The Rise of a Family: Starting from Daily Intelligence - Chapter 417 (Patreon)

Chapter 417: Envoys from the Heavenly Secrets House, Plans on All Sides, An Auspicious Start

Staring at the contribution points that had climbed back up again, Fu Changsheng resisted the urge to spend them on the spot. The Kunlun Minor World was about to open; he had to save enough to exchange for useful intelligence once he was inside.

With a flick of his sleeve, a robe fell over the unconscious Widow Wang. A thoughtful glint flashed through his eyes.

He had braved Nine Nether Valley to pick the Yinshade Grass so she could awaken the Dark Yin Profound Physique and in turn cure Ningning.

But now, another thought had taken root.

According to the earlier intelligence, Widow Wang possessed the best body for communing with spirits and ghosts. If he could find the Totem Stone, he could establish a new Heavenly Dragon Temple in the living world. A temple would undoubtedly need a new witch-priestess to guard and manage it, and the widow before him was the finest candidate.

“Looks like I’ll have to make Widow Wang one of our own.”

Otherwise, if the secret of the Heavenly Dragon Temple leaked, that would be troublesome. The temple was connected to the Five Elements Space; he did not want anyone following the vine to the melon.

Widow Wang let out a soft groan and slowly came to. Seeing that she had only a robe draped over her, she realized the family head had seen her completely. Her cheeks flushed scarlet.

Fu Changsheng coughed lightly and turned his back.

The widow dressed deftly. After carefully sensing herself, she was overjoyed to find that her speed at absorbing spiritual energy was clearly much faster. It felt as if she had undergone a cleansing of marrow; much of the filth in her body had been expelled, and her meridians had widened.

In other words, the family head had not deceived her.

In an instant, she was deeply moved. In this world, aside from the mistress who had saved her life back then, the second person who treated her well was the family head.

She immediately bowed deeply to Fu Changsheng. “Many thanks for helping this concubine awaken a spiritual physique, Family Head. Your grace is beyond repaying. I will devote myself to repaying it with all my strength in the days to come.”

“Rise.”

Fu Changsheng raised a hand. A gentle force lifted her up. “Fairy Wang, now that your spiritual physique has awakened, how do you feel?”

At that moment, he noticed the ghostly eye at her brow glow once and then vanish. Widow Wang, however, sensed nothing at all. Filled with respect and gratitude for Fu Changsheng, she hid nothing and recounted every change in her body. At the end she asked, “Family Head, what physique did I awaken?”

Fu Changsheng pondered a moment, then told her the truth. “You possess the Dark Yin Profound Physique.”

“Dark Yin Profound Physique?”

Widow Wang cried out, her face full of disbelief.

Such a physique was one in ten thousand; even among postnatal spiritual physiques it was fifth-grade. One who possessed it, barring early death, would absolutely have hope of reaching Nascent Soul.

Her face flushed with excitement.

Only when she had calmed did Fu Changsheng speak again. “Fairy Wang, the Dark Yin Profound Physique is no common thing. Other than the two of us, do not let a third person know. As far as I know, there are sects in the Extreme West that steal spiritual roots and dig bones.”

“Yes, Family Head.”

Widow Wang shivered. She was only at Foundation Establishment; anyone above Purple Mansion could easily seize her body.

Hearing his words, she felt yet more moved. The family head had clearly learned she possessed the Dark Yin Profound Physique. He could have controlled her and let a descendant seize her body to replace her, yet he had not—he had even risked life and limb to seize Yinshade Grass for her.

She had heard that Elder Yaoyao and Elder Yongwei had nearly lost their lives in Nine Nether Valley.

Just then, a familiar mechanical chime rang out in Fu Changsheng’s sea of consciousness.

“Ding.”

“You have gained Widow Wang’s heartfelt submission. Family Contribution Points +50.”

With the Kunlun Minor World about to open, Fu Changsheng followed the original plan: he sent Qiu Chan to Yinan Mountain in the Eastern Wilds, and had Qiuniang sit in Huizhou Prefecture.

In the blink of an eye, the day of the opening arrived.

…

Wuzhou.

Patriarch Huang stood before the ancestral gate archway of the clan, craning his neck in anticipation.

Half an hour ago, he had suddenly received a message: officials from the capital would be visiting the Huang clan. As to why, they had not said. The Huang clan claimed to have someone at court, but even he, the patriarch, did not know the true backer. Only the old ancestor had the right to contact that person.

“Could it be that person has appeared?”

He was anxious yet expectant. As he was thinking—

Buzz!

A rapid, bee-like vibration came from the token at his waist.

He cast a hand seal. The spy’s voice transmitted in: “Patriarch, a flying boat bearing the capital’s insignia has just passed Qingwu Mountain.”

“So fast?!”

Patriarch Huang drew a deep breath and straightened his robes. He had deliberately donned the clan’s ceremonial dark brocade today.

“Pass down the order: open the main gate. All clansmen at or above Purple Mansion will accompany me to welcome our guest.”

In less than the time for half a cup of tea, a streak of azure light arced across the sky and descended steadily onto the square before the archway. The light dispersed, revealing a three-zhang-long jade-green flying boat. Its hull was carved all over with intricate runes that flowed with a chilling spiritual radiance under the sun.

Patriarch Huang’s pupils contracted. This boat was at least a fourth-tier mid-grade treasure, worth the Huang clan’s income for ten years.

The hatch slid open without a sound. A man in an ink-black robe stepped out.

His features were ordinary, appearing to be around forty, but his eyes were deep as a pool, and now and then a sharp gleam flashed that made others avert their gaze. Most striking of all was the purple-gold token at his waist, the ancient seal script upon it reading “Heavenly Secrets.”

“The Huang clan of Wuzhou greets the exalted envoy!”

Patriarch Huang led over twenty Purple Mansion cultivators of the clan in a deep bow, their voices ringing in unison.

The black-robed man’s gaze swept the crowd and settled on the patriarch. “No need for ceremony. My visit is to be kept secret. Let us speak inside.”

Patriarch Huang nodded repeatedly, heart pounding with both fear and curiosity. He dared not ask more and stepped aside to lead the way. “Exalted envoy, please.”

After passing through three courtyards, the black-robed man suddenly stopped. “Take me to your clan’s old ancestor.”

Patriarch Huang’s figure stiffened. The old ancestor had long feigned death and remained in seclusion. He had only reluctantly come out to attend the Myriad Phoenix Mountain Range hunt last time.

“This…”

He looked troubled. “The old ancestor is in closed-door cultivation. If the lord envoy has any instructions, please feel free to tell—”

Before he could finish, the black-robed man snorted coldly. An invisible pressure crashed down.

Patriarch Huang felt a thousand-jin weight crush his chest. His knees nearly buckled. Around him, many Huang clansmen went pale and collapsed to the ground.

Golden Core pressure!

He was aghast. This seemingly ordinary middle-aged man was actually a Golden Core True Person!

“Lead the way.” The man withdrew the pressure, voice flat.

“Y-yes! Please, this way!” Patriarch Huang no longer dared delay and hurried toward the ancestral hall.

The Huang clan ancestral hall sat at the deepest part of the estate, an austere blue-brick hall flanked by two centuries-old cypresses. Before the door, the patriarch halted and respectfully pressed the patriarch’s token to the gate.

“Old Ancestor, a distinguished guest requests an audience.”

Silence within.

The black-robed man lifted a hand and flicked a streak of azure light at the doors. The restrictive runes on the gate flickered a few times and then dissolved without a sound.

“Long time no see. Elder Brother is as cautious as ever,” the man said blandly.

The doors eased open. A white-haired elder stood within, hands clasped behind him. Though gaunt of face, his eyes were bright, a faint spiritual glow about him—the Huang clan’s old ancestor.

A complex emotion flashed in the old ancestor’s eyes before he calmed and cupped his hands. “I did not know the lord envoy would grace us today. Forgive me for not welcoming you from afar.”

The black-robed man—True Person Xiao—smiled faintly. “Why should Elder Brother be so distant?”

Patriarch Huang stood dumbstruck to the side. The old ancestor and this Golden Core True Person were brothers? Why had the old ancestor never mentioned it?

The old ancestor seemed to read his doubt. “Mingyuan, withdraw. What transpires today must not be spread.”

“Yes, Old Ancestor.” He dared not ask further and retreated with the others.

Inside the hall, the old ancestor raised a soundproofing ward, then turned to Xiao. “Fifty years apart, and the lord envoy is already mid–Golden Core.”

True Person Xiao’s smile tilted into a sneer. “If Elder Brother hadn’t given me that push back then, how could I have such fortune today?”

Clearly, there had been unpleasantness between the two.

The old ancestor’s face changed; a flicker of guilt passed through his eyes before he sighed. “Speak. Why have you come? For a Golden Core True Person of the Heavenly Secrets House to come in person, it can’t be only to reminisce with these old bones.”

Looking at the deathly aura coiling about his brother’s body, True Person Xiao seemed to let the past grudges dissipate. He flicked his sleeve. A hide scroll glowing faintly with spiritual light appeared on the ancestral table.

“The Kunlun Minor World opens in three days. I need Elder Brother to fetch something for me.”

The old ancestor’s gaze fell on the scroll: an exquisitely detailed map. At its center a place named “Qingming Valley” was marked. Beside it, in small script, were the characters “Donghua Yimu.”

“Donghua Yimu?”

He frowned. “That is an auxiliary spiritual object for cultivators of wood attribute to form a core. You’re already mid–Golden Core. What use is it to you?”

A strange light flashed in Xiao’s eyes. “No need for Elder Brother to worry about that. Bring it out and I will naturally offer a handsome reward.”

As he spoke, he took out a jade box and opened it.

Inside lay a purple pill the size of a longan, cloud patterns flowing across its surface, its spiritual fluctuations making the heart tremble.

“Purple Sun Pill!”

The old ancestor’s breath hitched, a trace of yearning in his eyes. “You would part with this in exchange?”

The Purple Sun Pill was unlike other elixirs; it ignored a cultivator’s spiritual root and cultivation attribute, a supreme aid to core formation that could increase the odds by twenty percent. To the old ancestor, who had lingered at False Core for over two hundred years and lived on life-extending secret arts, it was a straw to clutch at.

Xiao closed the box. “Elder Brother understands—this matter must be kept absolutely secret. If so much as half a word leaks—”

“I understand.”

The old ancestor drew a deep breath. “But the Kunlun Minor World is extremely perilous. Even I dare not claim I can withdraw intact, much less secure the treasure.”

“Rest easy,” Xiao said with supreme confidence. “I already have arrangements. Inside Kunlun, someone will clear the obstacles for you. Follow the map and take the Donghua Yimu. If this succeeds, you can form your core; the Huang clan will at least rise to a sixth-rank clan, its resources doubled. It’s a win-win for both of us.”

“Very well. I agree.”

Satisfied, Xiao set the jade box on the table. “In that case, I await good news.”

He turned to go, then paused. “Oh, and tell no one—not even the patriarch.”

Before the words finished echoing, his figure blurred into a streak of azure light and vanished beyond the hall.

…

Wuzhou City.

With the great clans of Wuzhou moving in, the city was no longer desolate and empty as before. People came and went; bustle filled the streets.

Among the crowd, an old ancestor of the Wu clan in gray robes entered through the city gate and headed straight for the Wanning Chamber of Commerce.

At the door, a shop boy hurried up with enthusiasm. “Honored Senior Wu! Please, this way!”

The opening of the Kunlun Minor World was imminent. The scions of the great clans had gathered in Wuzhou City to purchase supplies. The Wanning Chamber of Commerce was first choice; the place was packed to the rafters.

“Honored Senior,” the boy said warmly, “Elder Wan is hosting guests in a third-floor private room. Would you like to wait, or shall another elder attend you?”

Clearly, Ancestor Wu and Elder Wan were old acquaintances.

As they spoke, Elder Wan was seeing a guest downstairs—none other than Clan Head Ouyang, veiled as ever.

Ancestor Wu’s eyes narrowed slightly. So the rumors were true; otherwise, how would the elusive Ouyang show up at the Chamber?

Elder Wan first greeted Ancestor Wu with hearty warmth, then personally saw Ouyang out. Smiling, he said, “Old brother, you’ve waited long enough. Come, come. I just got half an ounce of Heavenly Dragon Tea and was hoping you’d help me judge it.”

Both men were fond of tea. After a few pleasantries, they entered the inner hall. Fragrance curled from the cups.

“Good tea.”

Ancestor Wu set his cup down with a laugh. Knowing Elder Wan was busy, he didn’t circle around. “Brother, I’ve come to ask a favor.”

Elder Wan’s eyes flashed, then he smiled. “You saved my life back then. I’ve yet to repay that grace. If you need anything, speak plainly.”

Ancestor Wu nodded. “My shouyuan is nearly at its end. If I cannot form a core, I fear my days are numbered. I’ve heard your Chamber holds a map of the Kunlun Minor World, one that marks the location of a spiritual object that aids core formation. I’m willing to pay a heavy price. Can you oblige me?”

Elder Wan pondered a moment, then said slowly, “To be frank, we do have such a map, but…”

He paused, a hint of difficulty in his eyes. “The map not only marks the core-aiding spirit object, it also notes the trace of an ancient alien flame ranked fiftieth on the Alien Flame Roll. If we can obtain it, it would be of great significance to our Chamber.”

Ancestor Wu’s brow creased; he understood. Conditions.

Sure enough, Elder Wan continued, “If the old brother would help our Chamber obtain that alien flame, I can make the decision to present the map to you free of charge. What do you say?”

Clearly, Elder Wan was repaying his life-saving grace. Otherwise, even for someone willing to help, no one would hand over such a map for free. A clue to a core-forming spirit object was priceless.

Ancestor Wu nodded without hesitation.

Elder Wan laughed, lifted his cup, and toasted him. “Then may our next meeting find the old brother already a Golden Core.”

Ancestor Wu laughed as well and tapped cups. “I’ll borrow your auspicious words!”

On the day the Kunlun Minor World opened—

Dong—dong—dong!

In Huizhou Prefecture, the ancient bronze bell atop the Fu clan’s Demon-Subduing City tolled again and again, its deep, lingering peals carrying across the whole city.

Hearing the bell, every Fu clansman, no matter what they were doing, set down their work and looked toward the ancestral shrine.

As the bell fell silent, Liu Meizhen’s voice echoed across the entire clan. “All selected to enter the Kunlun Minor World—assemble at the ancestral shrine!”

In an instant, figures shot from courtyards and caves throughout the estate, converging toward the shrine.

First to arrive were nine Purple Mansion cultivators led by Liu Meizhen.

Behind her stood Fu Changli, Fu Changlei, Ouyang Fei, Yaoyao, and Fu Yongyi, Yu Qingru, Fu Yongwei, and the newly advanced Fu Yongfu.

After a while, the Foundation Establishment juniors—Fu Yongshou, Gan Muwan, the Tianyin Fairy, Fu Yongqi, and Fu Changli—arrived one after another.

Last came fifty elite Qi Refining disciples led by Fu Yongjing and Fu Qingyun.

From the edges of the square, those not chosen watched from afar.

Widow Wang felt a twinge of regret. If she had awakened the Dark Yin Profound Physique a step earlier, perhaps she would be the one admired by the crowd today.

Fu Yongfu, master of the Talisman Hall, was excited for the clan yet a bit ashamed. He turned to Fu Yongdan beside him. “As the family head’s chief disciple, I failed to seize even this chance. I truly feel unworthy of his teachings.”

“Talisman Master Fu, are you hinting at me?” Fu Yongdan gave a wry smile. She was also the mistress’s chief disciple—and likewise had not been selected.

They shared a look, a touch of shared misery in their eyes. They both understood: if those on the square returned safely from Kunlun, their fortunes would far outstrip their own. In ten years, eight years, their stations would be worlds apart.

Fu Yongshang had even rushed back from Jingzhou. He and the others of the Yong generation were old hands now, and he was about to say a word when—

“The clan head arrives!”

With that cry, the whole field fell silent.

Fu Changsheng came in a dark robe, hands clasped behind his back, his steps steady as mountains. He did not speak at once but walked straight into the main hall of the ancestral shrine and stood before the tablets of the forebears. Seeing this, everyone straightened their clothes and followed him in.

Fu Changsheng took three sticks of incense, and with a light pinch at his fingertips, the incense lit of itself. In the curling blue smoke, he led everyone in three kneelings and nine prostrations. “Forebears above, your descendants enter the Kunlun Minor World this day. We pray for your blessing.”

When the rites were done, he turned to face the crowd, his gaze like lightning sweeping over every face. “The Kunlun Minor World opens once in centuries. Opportunity walks with peril.”

His voice was not loud, but each word weighed a thousand catties. “Our Fu clan sends sixty-five people today. Remember three things. First: unity—support one another in the Minor World. Second: caution—opportunities are good, but life is better. Third: our bottom line—cause no trouble, but fear no strong foe.”

“We heed the clan head’s teachings!”

Voices answered as one.

Fu Changsheng added a few last instructions, then suddenly lifted his head to look to the far end of Demon-Subduing City.

A streak of golden light split the sky.

“Report—the envoy of the Imperial Court’s Divine Guardians Office has arrived!”

With the herald’s cry, a Golden Core True Person in a dark-gold official robe drifted down. His vast aura made hearts tremble. In his palm hovered a crystal-bright jade seal engraved with the characters “Kunlun.”

“Greetings, True Person,” the Fu clan saluted with Fu Changsheng at their head.

The envoy waved a hand. “No need for ceremony. By the court’s order, I am here to escort you into the Kunlun Minor World. But before that, your identities and cultivation must be verified.”

“Begin.”

Though the envoy spoke softly, everyone heard clearly. His left hand formed a seal while the jade seal in his right turned. A golden light-curtain unfurled before the crowd, dense with writing—the list of Fu clansmen approved to enter.

“Fu clan’s mistress, Liu Meizhen—Purple Mansion.”

At the head of the line, Liu Meizhen stepped forward and produced a purple jade token. The instant it touched the light screen, it flared with dazzling violet light that matched the characters on the screen.

“Identity confirmed.” The envoy nodded slightly. “Fu clan’s second lady, Yu Qingru—Purple Mansion.”

Each person named stepped up to verify.

When it came to Fu Yongjing among the Qi Refining disciples, the light screen rippled. The envoy frowned. “Verify again.”

Cold sweat beaded on Fu Yongjing’s brow. He was actually Purple Mansion, entering Kunlun under a Qi Refining identity. The Hidden-Origin Technique could avoid a Golden Core’s scrutiny, but even so he was nervous and pushed the technique to its limit.

Buzz!

On the second attempt, no anomaly appeared. The light screen matched perfectly.

“Pass.” The envoy’s tone was bland, though a trace of doubt flickered between his brows. Fortunately, the rest proceeded smoothly.

When the verification was complete, he put away the jade seal and swept his gaze around them. “The Kunlun Minor World is perilous in the extreme. Now that your identities are confirmed, remember this: know your limits. Once inside, the Great Zhou law ceases to protect you. Half of everything gained within belongs to the Imperial Court.”

With that, he flicked his sleeve. Sixty-five new storage pouches floated to each of them.

When the distribution was done, the seal inscribed with “Kunlun” bloomed with radiant light. The envoy’s face grew solemn. “The hour is upon us. Stand at the center of the arena.”

He wove a hand seal and chanted under his breath.

Boom!

The seal seemed to link to the void. A pillar of light descended from the ninth heaven and enveloped the Fu clansmen.

Fu Changsheng felt the world spin. When he steadied, there was no one around him. Liu Meizhen, Fu Yongyi—no trace of any of them.

“Random transmission?!” His face sank. He flipped his hand and took out a clan token. When he poured spiritual power into it, the token glimmered faintly—but the response was extremely weak.

“It seems the Minor World suppresses messaging.”

Pocketing the token, he lifted his eyes to take in his surroundings.

The sky was shrouded in blood, three blood moons hanging high, lighting a vast primeval forest. The air reeked of rot mixed with the scent of spirit herbs. In the distance, some unknown fiend howled, making one’s very soul quake.

“So this is… the Kunlun Minor World?”

He unfurled his Kunlun map. The sheepskin scroll’s faintly glowing lines were stark beneath the bloody moonlight. As his fingertip traced the inked characters “Nether Mists Forest,” the map flared with azure light.

“The Nether Mists Forest.” His pupils contracted. A cinnabar warning in fine script along the edge lit up: “Quasi-fourth-rank Bone-Corroding Ant nest—devours wood and dissolves spirit. Flee on sight.”

Suddenly, a subtle tremor came from underfoot. He snapped the map shut and retreated three steps. The dead leaves where he had stood collapsed, revealing a yawning pit a zhang across. A rank greenish vapor billowed up; the ground began to heave like waves.

Boom!

The earth exploded. Soil geysered. A massive blue-gold figure burst from the ground.

A quasi–fourth-rank Bone-Corroding Ant Queen!

It was three zhang long, its carapace gleaming metallic blue-gold. Twelve compound eyes flickered with eerie green light. Its mandibles opened and shut, venom drooling; wherever it fell, pits smoked into the earth.

“Hiss—!”

The queen shrieked, soundwaves shattering the dead trees around them. Its abdomen swelled; its mandibles yawned—

“Puff—!”

A tide of dark green poison fog surged out, covering a hundred zhang in a breath. Wherever it passed, grass withered, rock melted, even the air sizzled.

Fu Changsheng’s eyes hardened. Azure light flashed from his sleeve. “Xiao Qing, Dragon-Scale Shield!”

“Rooaaar!”

A water-blue flood dragon tens of zhang long soared into the air. Its scales flashed, weaving a blue barrier that blocked the poison fog. The fog’s corrosion was fearsome; even Xiao Qing’s Dragon-Scale Shield was being eaten away at a rate visible to the naked eye.

“It won’t hold long…” Fu Changsheng did not want to waste time here. A protracted battle might draw others. He decided to end it quickly. With a thought, the Seven-Colored Glazed Beast flashed out of the Five Elements Space and hovered above his head.

Hum!

The lazy beast flicked its tail. Seven-colored radiance poured down. Fu Changsheng’s aura surged, spiking in an instant to the False Core Realm.

At the same time, the ant queen, seeing its poison blocked, drove its six legs into the earth. Blue-gold carapace veined with countless root-like lines that plunged into the depths.

“It’s drawing on the earth’s spiritual vein!” Fu Changsheng’s eyes narrowed.

The queen’s aura was climbing visibly. “I can’t let it break through to fourth rank!”

He flicked sword fingers. Three Thunderstriking Swords shot forth, becoming three bolts of lightning cleaving at the queen’s buried roots.

“Starry Heaven Thunder Sword Array: Thunder-Locking Earth Veins!”

Boom!

Thunder detonated. The ground split. Most of the queen’s root-lines were shredded by the lightning.

“Hiss—!” In pain, the queen writhed madly. Its swelling cultivation crashed back down to quasi-fourth rank.

Enraged, it stamped with six legs, a deep tremor rolling out—

Shashasha—!

In a heartbeat, hundreds of third-rank Bone-Corroding worker ants boiled up from below. Each was the size of a man, gray-white carapaces, mandibles gleaming with blue-gold venom. They surged toward Fu Changsheng like a black tide.

“Troublesome…” His brows drew tight. The workers were weaker than the queen, but in such numbers their venom would be deadly if they swarmed him.

“Xiao Qing, Water-Curtain Canopy!”

“Rooaaar!”

The flood dragon spiraled upward and spewed a vast water curtain that became a barrier, stalling the ants. But the workers were fearless, hurling themselves at the water curtain in waves. Cracks soon laced the barrier.

“End it fast!”

Cold light flashed in Fu Changsheng’s eyes. He flipped out a crimson talisman treasure—Fourth-tier mid-grade Heavenly Phoenix Talisman Treasure.

“Heavenly Phoenix Trueflame—burn!”

A piercing cry rang out. A fire-phoenix phantom unfurled blazing wings. Searing trueflame swept forth, incinerating swathes of worker ants to ash in an instant.

Seeing its brood destroyed, the queen went berserk. Strange markings crawled across its blue-gold carapace as it began to burn essence blood; its aura climbed again.

“Going all out?” Fu Changsheng sneered. He drew the three Thunderstriking Swords back before him.

“Starry Heaven Thunder Sword Array: Heavenly Thunder Exterminates Evil!”

Boom!

Three bolts wove into a single pillar of thunder and slammed down on the queen’s head.

The queen howled and spat venom to resist, but the thunder was irresistible. It punched through the carapace in a flash.

“Hiss—!”

Grievously wounded, the queen thrashed. Fu Changsheng would not give it a chance to breathe.

“Xiao Qing, Heaven’s Net!”

“Rooaaar!”

The flood dragon’s long body coiled, unraveling into countless azure chains that bound the queen fast.

“It’s over.” Fu Changsheng’s sword fingers dropped.

“Sever!”

Thunder exploded. The queen’s head burst apart. Its massive body crashed to the ground, blue-gold sheen gone dull, six legs stiffening—lifeless.

“A quasi–fourth-rank demon core—no wasting that.”

He had paid a Heavenly Phoenix Talisman Treasure for this.

With fingers like a blade, he gathered spiritual power, split the queen’s skull, and took out a fist-sized wood-aspected demon core, emerald through and through, rich with life force, faint wood-grain flowing within.

“Hm? Mutated…” he murmured. Warm in the hand, the core bore layer upon layer of wood-grain.

Stowing the core, his gaze shifted to the queen’s lair.

The pit plunged into darkness, a faint blue-green radiance glimmering within.

He kindled a wisp of spirit flame at his fingertip and stepped into the ant nest.

Within, it was damp and chill. Sticky slime coated the walls. Piles of demon beast bones lay underfoot, all riddled with holes by corrosion. The air reeked with an uncanny mix of rot and living wood, enough to turn the stomach.

Fu Changsheng held his breath and advanced. The flood dragon coiled on his shoulder, dragon eyes scanning warily. The Seven-Colored Glazed Beast crouched on his other shoulder.

The deeper he went, the brighter that blue-green glow became.

“Shasha—”

A faint crawling came from the dark.

He stopped, swept out his spiritual sense, and found a few surviving worker ants curled in a corner, shivering.

“Clinging to life.” He snorted, flicked his sleeve, and the Thunderstriking Swords shot out to shred them in an instant.

The winding passage opened up ahead—

A vast underground cavern appeared. At its center stood a spirit tree of pure emerald, a zhang high. Its trunk was as clear as glazed glass, and pale blue-green radiance flowed between its branches and leaves, lighting the entire cavern.

Thanks for reading! That opening clash in the Kunlun Minor World set the tone—fast, fierce, and deadly. If you’re enjoying the ride, my Patreon could really use your support; even a small pledge helps me keep translating these long, crunchy chapters. And if you have a minute, please drop a rating or review on NovelUpdates—your feedback there genuinely helps more readers find this series.

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