The Rise of a Family: Starting from Daily Intelligence - Chapter 404 (Patreon)

Chapter 404: A New Path, Self-Detonation, Ancient Tomb

To be safe, before entering the Mechanism House, Fu Yongjing left the Image-Retaining Pearl outside. Only after confirming it was secure did he pat his storage pouch.

Radiance flashed.

Several Bloodfang Wolf carcasses appeared.

Immediately after—

In the next instant—

He sensed the Void-Heaven Tower in his sea of consciousness stir once more. A powerful suction burst from the tower’s body, instantly enveloping the Bloodfang Wolves’ remains. Bone-Eroding Poison—normally potent enough to corrode a cultivator’s meridians—became like a tamed beast before the tower’s might, swiftly drawn out of the carcasses.

Zzzt, zzzt, zzzt!

The Bone-Eroding Poison turned into wisps of ghostly green mist that coiled in the air, as if unwilling to be devoured.

Yet the tower’s power brooked no defiance. With a soft hum, the green mists were forcibly compressed, finally thinning into a single filament that slipped into the void and vanished.

At the very moment the poison was absorbed, Fu Yongjing’s sea of consciousness trembled.

Within the Void-Heaven Tower, countless runes seemed to flicker. The tower quivered lightly, and then a pure, potent force poured out from within, followed his meridians, and coursed through his entire body.

That power was like warm spring water, washing through his channels. Wherever it passed, blocked apertures were opened one by one. Fu Yongjing felt faint prickling from within—that was the sign of apertures being forced through. However, the sting didn’t last; it was soon replaced by a gentle heat.

While he basked in it—

The power cut off.

The Bone-Eroding Poison within the Bloodfang Wolves had been completely absorbed and transformed by the Void-Heaven Tower.

Fu Yongjing blinked in surprise. “I didn’t expect the Void-Heaven Tower could feed on Bone-Eroding Poison!”

Even more delightful—

The tower’s returning power could help open the apertures linking his upper and lower dantians.

That was the key to breaking into the Purple Mansion.

Turning his sight inward—

He discovered that, deep within the lower abdomen three inches below the navel, the Qi Sea at the Guanyuan acupoint—the storehouse of essence and the starting point of the Ren and Du meridians—as well as the Haidi Wheel at the Huiyin point; the Sea of Vital Energy, core of refining essence into qi at the Qihai point; and the Shenzhuo at the navel, the nexus of innate fetal breath—had all been opened.

Fu Yongjing couldn’t help growing excited.

“If it can devour Bone-Eroding Poison, perhaps other toxins can also be refined and absorbed by the Void-Heaven Tower.”

With that thought—

He patted his storage pouch. A map scroll flew up; as it unfurled, a ‘Miasma Valley’ choked with poisonous fog came into view.

Only with a specially made Antidote Pill could one enter ‘Miasma Valley.’

For low-level cultivators—

It was a forbidden zone.

But with the tower’s poison-devouring ability, for him this could become a treasure ground. Besides, for this hunt, clan scions most likely wouldn’t choose such a cursed place.

Decision made.

Fu Yongjing slipped out of the Mechanism House, took his bearing, and sped straight toward ‘Miasma Valley.’

Time was tight.

All the way—

Fu Yongjing used Urgent Travel Talismans.

Whenever he heard fighting in the distance, he avoided it if he could—he didn’t want to be dragged into delays. After a day and a night, he finally reached the marked site.

At the valley’s mouth, a smear of gray-green poison fog hung like a heavy curtain, veiling everything within. A faint fishy stench seeped from it, like rotting plants and animal corpses stewed together—sickening to the core. The air felt viscous and damp, as if every breath carried toxins that gnawed at the lungs.

On the way here—

He had already noted that for dozens of li around Miasma Valley, not to mention cultivators, even demon beasts avoided lingering nearby. “A perfect environment for the Void-Heaven Tower to draw in poison.”

Right then—

The tower in his sea of consciousness trembled fiercely. If he hadn’t kept it suppressed, it would already have begun devouring. “Hoo~”

Even with one success under his belt—

Fu Yongjing still felt a bit nervous.

He took a deep breath—

Then stepped into Miasma Valley. The ground underfoot was soft and wet; each step sank into thick, decaying leaves with a soft rustle. The trees around him were twisted and grotesque, their trunks carpeted with dark-green moss. Now and then, a faint hiss filtered through the branches, as if some creature watched from the dark.

Suddenly—

A sharp sting lanced his ankle.

He looked down—

A venom vine had coiled around his leg, its surface bristling with tiny barbs. The instant they pierced skin, numbness spread fast. Fu Yongjing frowned; the Void-Heaven Tower’s power flared within him, and the vine withered like scorched grass, sloughing away.

To be safe—

Fu Yongjing pressed on.

The poison fog thickened by degrees, its color shifting from gray-green to deep violet. A suffocating pressure saturated the air. His breathing grew ragged, yet the tower inside him only grew more active. Its body quivered, the suction it exuded surging beyond anything he could control.

“So be it—this spot will do!”

Fu Yongjing halted.

He patted his pouch.

Radiance flashed.

The Mechanism House sprang up in the gorge.

With a flicker—

He stepped inside.

At the same time—

He completely released his hold on the Void-Heaven Tower.

Hum!

A mighty suction erupted from within the Mechanism House. The poison fog of the valley shuddered as if summoned; then, like rivers returning to the sea, it howled toward the house in unison. In a blink, the structure was swathed in toxins. After a few breaths, the house itself was gone from sight, replaced by a vortex of venom.

At first, the vortex spanned only a few zhang.

As time passed—

It grew to over a dozen zhang… thirty… sixty… ninety… and finally a full hundred zhang across.

“Rooaaar!”

The demon beasts that dwelt in Miasma Valley felt the toxins within their bodies suddenly rampage, drawn uncontrollably toward the terrifying maelstrom. They roared in fury and fled the valley in droves.

Dozens of li beyond the valley, Huang Yunlong, a Huang clan Qi Refining cultivator, was hunting when his face changed.

A deep bellow rolled out ahead of him. He looked up and saw a massive venom lizard lumber from the fog. Its hide was a dark violet, its back bristling with sharp spines. Blood-red eyes fixed on him as its maw spewed rank poison. “Why would a Thousand-Silk Venom Lizard break out of Miasma Valley like this!”

Cursing inwardly, Huang Yunlong roused his spiritual power. His hands flew through seals and a blade of sword qi slashed forth. The lizard roared, sprang aside, and snapped its tail. Venomous spines flew like arrows.

Huang Yunlong flickered aside just in time, but the beast didn’t relent. Its jaws yawned and a gout of thick venom exploded outward, blooming in midair into a rolling cloud that surged toward him.

“Damn it!”

At the last moment—

Huang Yunlong crushed a Substitution Talisman. His figure dissolved into a puff of white smoke; his true body staggered into view several li away. Yet before he could catch his breath, he saw that the beasts of Miasma Valley—normally reclusive—were swarming out as if some great terror chased them.

“Damn it all, who’s sabotaging Miasma Valley!”

Not daring to tarry, he slapped down an Earth-Burrowing Talisman and fled in panic. He fought and ran, killed few beasts, and nearly died several times.

He was miserable.

Before the contest—

He had sworn before the patriarch and the old ancestor to clinch first among Qi Refining. Now he was gravely wounded, fighting ability gone, and even survival in doubt.

Gritting his teeth, Huang Yunlong spat, “If I find out who’s making trouble in Miasma Valley, I swear on my name—today’s humiliation will be repaid a hundredfold!”

Deep within the Ten Thousand Phoenix Mountain Range, ancient trees soared and beastly roars echoed one after another.

Riding his third-tier Corpse Puppet “Ironbone,” Fu Yongshou sped through the forest. His hawk-sharp gaze locked on the fleeing quarry ahead—a massive third-tier demon beast, a Burrowing Mole.

The mole resembled a giant rat, its body armored in earthen-yellow scales. Its limbs were thick and short, its talons hooked like knives, and it excelled at tunneling. Though only third-tier, it wasn’t witless. Sensing Fu Yongshou’s pursuit, it dove underground, trying to use the terrain to escape.

Fu Yongshou snorted. His hands formed seals and Ironbone lurched to a halt with a low roar. The puppet’s eyes glowed blood-red; cords of muscle knotted along its arms as black qi seeped from between its scales. “After it!”

Ironbone hammered both fists into the earth. A shockwave rippled outward; the ground split and dirt geysered up. The Burrowing Mole was jounced out of the soil with a shrill squeal, clearly rattled.

Seizing the chance, Fu Yongshou whipped out a talisman. Chanting under his breath, he fired it as a beam of gold that spread into a net midair and bound the mole tight. It thrashed, hooked talons rasping the net with teeth-aching screeches.

He dared not be careless; the creature’s scales were tough, their usual strikes near-useless. He formed seals again. Ironbone leapt and smashed both fists—now wrapped in a knot of black force—at the mole’s skull.

Boom!

The earth cratered, dust billowing. The mole’s cranial scales shattered and blood sprayed, but it didn’t die. Driven feral, its eyes went crimson. It tore free of the golden net and lunged for Fu Yongshou.

Prepared, Fu Yongshou flashed aside and sicced the puppet from the flank. Ironbone’s punch caved in the mole’s ribs and hurled it several zhang; it crashed through an ancient tree and snapped it like a twig.

Fu Yongshou pressed the attack, drew a black short sword etched with runes that breathed cold. He vaulted high; the blade speared for the mole’s throat. It struggled, but the fight had gone out of it. The sword sank home and blood fountained.

With a final wail, the mole convulsed and went still. Fu Yongshou exhaled, sheathed the blade, walked over, and pried out the demon core—a soil-yellow bead dense with earth-aspect spiritual power.

Just as he lifted it toward his pouch, a prickling dread stabbed his heart. He whirled around. Three streaks of sword light knifed through the mist, murderous edge aimed at his face.

“If you want to live, hand over the demon core—and that third-tier Corpse Puppet of yours!”

Huang Yunying’s icy shout rolled through the woods. Two Huang clan cultivators stood behind her, all three brandishing longswords wreathed in the glow of Baneful-Breaking Talismans—bane of corpse puppets. They weren’t just prepared; they’d lain in wait here to play the mantis stalks the cicada—only to be caught by the oriole!

Three against one.

And each of the three had a third-tier spirit pet.

Fu Yongshou had no time to think. He retreated fast and flung Ironbone in front of him. But Huang Yunying’s Dragon-Cleaving Sword was already falling. Empowered by the Baneful-Breaking Talisman, it was the nemesis of yin-evil beings; Ironbone’s left shoulder shattered, black qi gushing out.

“Hmph!” Fu Yongshou bit his tongue and spat essence blood onto his corpse-controlling bell. The bell shrilled. The chest of another puppet burst open and twelve Bone-Eroding needles spat out like a storm toward the Huang clan trio.

“Parlor tricks.” Huang Yunying sneered and flicked open the Xuanyang Umbrella. Golden lines flared across the canopy; the needles touched and melted, curling away as threads of black smoke.

They had the upper hand.

They carried not only third-tier spirit pets but fine third-tier talismans and spirit tools as well.

Seeing this, Fu Yongshou slipped three Yin-Escape Talismans from his sleeve—lifesavers his father had gifted him before departure. He crushed them without hesitation. As the talisman light burst, his body diffused into black mist. When he reformed, he was already at the edge of Flying-Heaven Cliff ten li away.

But—

The three spirit pets weren’t slow in flight. They chased hard.

Fu Yongshou glanced down at Flying-Heaven Cliff.

Below, Astral Winds howled like knives, their wails like ghosts crying.

Huang Yunying scoffed. “Fellow Daoist Fu, Flying-Heaven Cliff is a forbidden ground of the Ten Thousand Phoenix Mountains. Even a Golden Core might not make it out alive. Will you risk your life over two corpse puppets and a single third-tier demon core?”

At her side, Huang Yunying’s brother snapped, impatient, “Ninth Sister, why waste words? One sword to finish him—won’t that be quicker?”

Clearly—

He wanted to save time to slaughter more beasts.

Huang Yunying’s lips moved in a quick voice-transmission, “Fu Clan rose to a seventh-rank family—they’ve got some foundation. Corner him and he may bite. Not worth it.”

Driven to the brink, Fu Yongshou had a bottomless chasm at his back and the Huang clan’s sword array sealing the front. The clan had sweated to cultivate two third-tier corpse puppets for him. Handing them over would leave him no face with his people. Even if he died—

He wouldn’t let these Huang thieves profit!

Resolute light flashed in his eyes. He formed seals; blood-red curses crawled over both third-tier corpse puppets. They loosed ear-splitting keens and lunged for the Huang cultivators. This was his last killing move—the Corpse Explosion Technique.

“Back!”

Huang Yunying had been on guard.

Seeing Fu Yongshou go for mutual destruction, her pupils tightened. She knew it had turned dire. She wheeled her spirit pet and fled. But her two brothers reacted a heartbeat too late.

Fu Yongshou’s flat voice rang out:

“Explode!”

Boom!

Both third-tier corpse puppets detonated. The shockwave swallowed the two Huang brothers.

A third-tier corpse puppet’s self-detonation was equal to a Purple Mansion cultivator blowing themselves up. The blast was something Foundation Establishment like the brothers—Huang Yunying’s brothers—could never weather. They didn’t even have time to scream before they turned to ash. A vast mushroom cloud rose from the spot.

“Third Brother! Sixth Brother!”

Huang Yunying watched her brothers die before her eyes.

Her calm vanished, twisted into feral rage. “Die, Fu scum!”

She drove her Cloudscent Beast forward with a howl. It gaped and spewed a heavy bank of cloud. Venom laced the mist, surging straight for Fu Yongshou. He was a spent arrow; faced with her frenzy, he could only scrape together the dregs of his power for one last defense.

“Yin Fiend Bodyguard!”

At his shout, a thin veil of black qi sheathed him. It barely held as a shield—but the Cloudscent Beast’s toxic fog was overbearing. The black barrier sizzled and thinned, vanishing in moments.

Pfft!

Fu Yongshou spat blood, his body wavering. He knew he couldn’t fight on. Despair flickered in his eyes, but more than that—unwillingness. He looked up at Huang Yunying, hatred and fury burning.

“Huang Yunying—what your Huang clan did today, I, Fu Yongshou, will repay in full!”

He gritted his teeth, wheeled around, and leapt into the Astral Winds below the cliff. Huang Yunying’s face changed; she urged her Cloudscent Beast to the edge—but his figure was already swallowed by the winds, impossible to trace.

“Hmph. Leaping to your death—how cheap for you.”

She snorted. Though still aggrieved, she knew the Astral Winds below were fearsome. Even Golden Core might not survive. If he jumped, he was doomed.

Turning back toward the blast’s heart, she saw only the shredded remnants of two puppets and her brothers’ ashes. Grief flickered in her eyes, quickly iced over.

“Third Brother, Sixth Brother—I’ve avenged you. As for the Fu clan—one day they’ll pay the price.”

Huang Yunying drew a steadying breath.

Of the three Foundation Establishment who’d entered the hunting ground, only she remained. It wasn’t the time to mourn. If she couldn’t make up her brothers’ quotas, the patriarch’s wrath would be thunderous.

This time—

Her father had spent heavily to send the three siblings to war. Not only had he let them contract third-tier spirit pets, he had sworn a military pledge before the patriarch and elders that the three would take top two among the Foundation Establishment squads!

She could not fail her father!

Fu Yongshou’s body tumbled in the Astral Winds, the shrieking gusts like ghostly howls that stabbed his eardrums. His consciousness dimmed, the world going dark—as if the next heartbeat would plunge him into bottomless night.

Crack!

Just before he blacked out, his back slammed into a rocky outcrop. Agony jolted him awake. With that momentum, he rolled sideways into a hidden cave behind the spur.

The cave was pitch-dark, reeking of rot—as if no one had set foot there for ages. Gritting through the pain, Fu Yongshou took out a luminous pearl. Its gentle glow lit the space.

By that wan light, he forced himself along a narrow passage. Damp chill soaked the cave; the fetid tang of decay thickened the air. The backlash from detonating two third-tier puppets made every step laborious.

He dared not stop. Who knew if that madwoman Huang Yunying would pursue him to the death?

Just as he neared collapse, his palm brushed a lump on the wall. It looked ordinary, yet the instant he touched it, a soft click sounded. The wall shuddered; the stone sank back, revealing a deep, dark corridor.

“This is…”

Fu Yongshou’s heart tightened as he peered into the depths.

The passage was absolute black, like a road to the abyss.

At the same time—

The moment it opened, his injuries eased… just a little.

“What… is going on?”

After a brief hesitation—

He chose to enter.

He had no retreat; perhaps this corridor held a sliver of life.

His steps rang dully on stone slabs. Ancient runes carpeted the walls on both sides, shedding a faint glow—as if whispering some primordial secret. As he walked, he studied them, vaguely feeling they pertained to the Corpse Dao. “Could this be a great chance fated for me?”

Excitement stirred.

If this truly held a Corpse Dao inheritance, then for someone with the Myriad Corpses Physique, it was a treasure beyond price.

The deeper he went—

The stranger aura here mended his wounds faster and faster. “This is… too wondrous!”

His pace quickened.

At the end stood a massive stone gate carved with the likeness of a bronze ancient corpse. Lifelike, eyes shut, as if in slumber. Standing before it, he felt a suffocating pressure—like the figure might open its eyes at any time.

Rumble—

He drew a deep breath and pushed. The gate yawned open with a grinding groan. Beyond lay a grand ancient tomb. A bronze coffin rested at the chamber’s heart, its lid likewise etched with archaic runes.

“An underground burial chamber?”

Fu Yongshou was genuinely surprised.

At that moment—

A potent corpse qi surged from the coffin. It resonated with his Myriad Corpses Physique—like a summons.

He hesitated.

Should he approach?

He’d heard plenty of lurid tales—old monsters slumbering for ages, waiting for a suitable body to seize.

“Forget it!”

He resisted the temptation.

He hadn’t even stepped into Purple Mansion.

His two main crutches were gone as well; how could he dare disturb an unknown ancient coffin now?

“Better to send a message to Father and have him come after the hunt. Still, I can survey the tomb first.”

Circling the coffin, he swept the chamber with his spiritual sense.

Click.

At a corner of the room, his foot pressed a loose slab. Beneath it—something concealed. He crouched and lifted the stone, revealing a broken stele.

It was carved over with ancient script. Though fragments were missing, he could still tell it related to the Corpse Dao. Heart stirring, he studied it closely.

“Corpse Dao inheritance… source of the Myriad Corpses… take corpses as the guide, refine heaven and earth…” he murmured, joy dawning in his eyes.

This remnant stele recorded the core secret arts of the Corpse Dao—complete cultivation formulas and several powerful secret arts besides. The more he read, the more elated he grew. He knew he had stumbled onto a tremendous opportunity.

“Myriad Corpses Physique is the foundation of the Corpse Dao. Refine corpse qi to achieve the supreme path of corpses…” He read on and found the arts matched his physique perfectly.

One was called the Corpse-Soul Refinement Technique. By refining corpse qi, it could strengthen his soul—and even let him command corpse puppets with multiplied might. He was overjoyed; this was exactly what he needed now.

Another was the Corpse Qi Shapeshifting Technique, which condensed corpse qi into myriad forms for attack or defense. He pictured corpse qi turned to blades and shields and felt his blood heat.

The last was the Corpse-Dao Rebirth Technique. When the flesh was damaged, one could reshape the body with corpse qi and even leverage it to break through bottlenecks. At that, a sharp light flashed in his eyes—this was a true treasure.

However—

A note warned that the Corpse-Dao Rebirth Technique required Golden Core or higher to have even a slim chance of success, and demanded many auxiliary spirit items. The stele was broken besides, and the content here was incomplete. “A pity.”

He chuckled at himself.

He was being greedy.

The first two were already of immense help.

And—

Golden Core was still far off.

He hadn’t even breached Purple Mansion; steady steps first, no rushing.

“Hoo…”

Once calm returned—

He committed the stele’s contents to memory, then sat cross-legged and cultivated per the formula. As he ran the Technique, corpse qi in the tomb gathered, streaming into him.

He felt his Myriad Corpses Physique fully awakened. Corpse qi coursed his meridians, knitting his wounds. Nourished by it, his cultivation edged upward.

“I might seize this chance to link my upper and lower dantians in one go!”

He acted on the thought.

He focused on the lower dantian—the Qihai point three inches below the navel. It stored essence and was the core of refining essence into qi. He felt corpse qi pool there, spinning into a vortex like a blazing furnace.

“Huiyin, Qihai, Shenzhuo—link the three and refine essence into qi!” He silently chanted. Corpse qi climbed the Ren channel from Huiyin to Shenzhuo and then gathered again at Qihai.

As more corpse qi poured in, his lower dantian grew hot, as if a fire burned within. His vital essence, smelted by corpse qi, transmuted into pure vital energy, filling his body.

After an unknown time, Fu Yongshou slowly opened his eyes. A thread of ghostly green glinted within.

Thank you for reading! This chapter got intense—poison vortices, cliff dives, and a hidden tomb… chef’s kiss. If you’re enjoying the ride, please consider supporting me on Patreon; even a small pledge keeps the chapters flowing and helps me survive on coffee and dumplings. And if you have a moment, dropping a rating or review on NovelUpdates really helps new readers find this series—much appreciated!

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