The Rise of a Family: Starting from Daily Intelligence - Chapter 422 (Patreon)

Chapter 422: Intelligence, the Spirit-Nurturing Pool, and Heroes Converge

Having survived by the skin of his teeth, Old Ancestor Huang had only just let a faint smile show when it froze on his lips in the next instant.

A clear bell tone chimed by his ear—unhurried, yet like a death knell.

Old Ancestor Huang jerked his head up, pupils tightening.

Ten steps away stood a black-robed figure wearing a bronze mask.

The man held a jade-green handbell and gave it a gentle shake. Cold, emotionless eyes gazed at him from beneath the mask.

“Sir, you are…?”

Every muscle in Old Ancestor Huang’s body drew taut as he quietly circulated what little spiritual power he had left. He had never met this man, but the pressure of a Purple Mansion eighth layer made his back prickle. Worse, he had burned his mana dry—no different from a mortal without the strength to truss a chicken. Never mind a Purple Mansion eighth layer—any Foundation Establishment junior could take his head right now.

The visitor came with ill intent!

Sensing mortal danger, Old Ancestor Huang moved on instinct—he spun around to throw himself back into the mist behind him.

“Too late.”

The black-robed man’s hoarse voice sounded as his right hand pointed at the air.

A hum rang out.

A streak of golden light flashed. Before Old Ancestor Huang could react, an invisible force pinned him in place. He couldn’t twitch a finger.

“A third-rank Questioning-Spirit Talisman?” Old Ancestor Huang’s face went ashen. This was a talisman used specifically to interrogate the soul—once activated, the victim would have no secrets left.

“Fellow Daoist, stay your hand! I am the Old Ancestor of the Huang clan, a seventh-rank family of Wu Province. If I have offended—”

“Noisy.” The black-robed man cut him off coldly. With a tap of his finger, the talisman sank into Old Ancestor Huang’s brow.

“Aaah—!”

A ghastly scream tore from Old Ancestor Huang’s throat. His soul felt gnawed by ten thousand ants as memories surged up beyond his control.

Donghua Yin Wood… Azure Abyss Valley… Zhenren Xiao… the key…

Everything was laid bare to the black-robed man.

“So that’s how it is.” The man retrieved the talisman, the corner of his mouth lifting beneath the mask.

Old Ancestor Huang collapsed like a puppet with cut strings. Soul wounded, blood leaked from his seven orifices. Terror filled his eyes. “Spare me… I’ll serve you, I’ll—”

The black-robed man shook his head, voice arctic. “A pity. Alive, you’re an obstacle.”

A green light flicked.

Old Ancestor Huang’s head flew high; blood fountained.

The black-robed man lifted a hand and clenched. The corpse’s essence blood streamed out, gathering into a single crimson bead that hung in the air.

The black-robed man was Fu Changsheng.

After leaving Thornbriar Mountain, he had exchanged for a round of intelligence and learned Old Ancestor Huang was at death’s door. He rushed here at once and used the bell tone to guide the man out of the maze.

With a beckon of his fingers, the storage pouch on the ground drifted into Fu Changsheng’s palm.

“Hissss~”

Xiao Qing flicked his scarlet tongue. Verdant scales gleamed coldly in the sun as he circled the headless corpse, vertical pupils shining with greed. The flesh of a False Core cultivator was a rare tonic to him.

Fu Changsheng also wished the azure flood dragon would break through to quasi-fourth rank soon. He smiled. “Eat.”

A low roar answered.

With permission granted, Xiao Qing’s excitement burst free. His body swelled, unfurling into his true form—a thirty-foot azure flood dragon. His gaping maw bit into the corpse’s chest; fangs like daggers tore away a great slab of flesh.

Crunch, crunch—

The chilling sound of chewing echoed through the ravine. Xiao Qing’s throat bobbed as he swallowed flesh and bone together. The body of a False Core cultivator brimmed with vigorous essence and blood. With each gulp, the flood dragon’s scales turned more crystalline and his aura climbed higher.

In moments, the corpse was gone without a scrap left—not even a drop of blood. Xiao Qing coiled in satisfaction, belly faintly distended as demon qi surged around him—he was clearly digesting that vast energy.

Before long, the panel rippled.

A line of text emerged: [Azure Flood Dragon: Third Rank Peak (50/400)]

Since stepping into third-rank peak, the flood dragon’s cultivation had advanced again. A few more False Core cultivators—or the corpse of a quasi-fourth-rank beast—and the quasi-fourth rank would be within reach.

Fu Changsheng patted his storage pouch.

A glow like rosy clouds flashed.

A topographic map of the Kunlun Minor World slowly unfurled.

He compared it carefully with his current position. His gaze locked onto the three characters for “Azure Abyss Valley”—the place where Donghua Yin Wood might appear.

“Xiao Qing, we’re going.”

He tapped the flood dragon’s head. Xiao Qing immediately understood, gave a low roar, and swelled to a thirty-foot length. Fu Changsheng vaulted onto his back. The flood dragon gathered clouds beneath four claws and became a streak of azure tearing the sky.

Wind howled. Seated cross-legged on the dragon’s back, Fu Changsheng drew out Old Ancestor Huang’s storage pouch. He had already broken the mouth-seal; a sweep of his spiritual sense laid the contents bare.

“As expected of a man at the end of his rope.”

The jade bottles that should have held pills were empty. The spirit-stone pouch was shriveled—without even half a lower-grade spirit stone left. That battle with the Wolf King in the secret realm had clearly drained his savings dry.

Fu Changsheng snorted and kept searching.

A few third-rank spirit tools were intact, but none worth his attention.

At last his eyes fell on a simple white box carved with leaf veins, engraved with restrictions—and on the back a single character: “Xiao.”

“So this is the key Zhenren Xiao gave Old Ancestor Huang!”

From the man’s memories, this key was crucial to obtaining the Donghua Yin Wood.

He sent a hand seal into the box.

Hum—

The restriction didn’t budge.

Fu Changsheng frowned.

He recalled the memories gleaned by the Questioning-Spirit Talisman, then his eyes lit up. “So it even needs a dedicated incantation.”

He formed seals at once.

As his murmured spell rose—

Hum—

The restriction dissolved.

A bronze key lay revealed.

It was only three inches long, fine patterns etched across its surface, cool as ice in the hand.

…

In Wu Province, within the Huang clan.

The Soul Hall flickered with ghostly flame.

Great Elder Huang Yansong sat cross-legged on a mat, eyes closed in meditation. As the Purple Mansion peak cultivator second only to the clan’s old ancestor, the duty of watching the soul lamps naturally fell to him. Hundreds of lamps burned quietly in the hall—each representing a core member’s life and death. The central jade lamp burned the brightest—that was Old Ancestor Huang’s soul lamp.

Suddenly—

A soft hiss.

Huang Yansong’s eyes snapped open, pupils contracting.

The flame atop the jade lamp was flailing wildly—and then gave a soft puff and went out. A wisp of azure smoke curled upward and vanished.

“The Old Ancestor… has fallen?!”

His whole body trembled; his face drained white as paper. He sprang up and flicked a beam of light into the lamp to check for error. But the wick was cold, devoid of life.

“Impossible… The Old Ancestor was of the False Core Realm, and Zhenren Xiao gave him a life-preserving treasure. How could…” he muttered, voice shaking.

Drawing a deep breath, he forced down his horror and swiftly sent a message with a spell.

“Clan Lord! Come to the Soul Hall at once—the Old Ancestor… has met with disaster!”

Moments later, the Huang clan lord hurried in with several late-stage Purple Mansion elders. One glance at the dead jade lamp and all faces changed.

“The Old Ancestor… has fallen?” the clan lord asked in a low voice, disbelief flitting across his eyes.

Great Elder Huang Yansong nodded heavily. “The soul lamp is extinguished, the soul dispersed—no mistake.”

Silence fell like a pall.

The Old Ancestor was their only False Core expert and the clan’s hope of rising. He had entered the Kunlun Minor World with the family’s wish that he seize a Core-forming treasure, break through to Golden Core, and lift the Huang clan into the ranks of sixth-rank families. And now…

“With the Old Ancestor gone, Wu Province’s seventh-rank families will surely see the Wu clan take the top seat,” one elder said, frowning.

The clan lord’s voice was cold. “What is there to fear? Though the Old Ancestor has fallen, our heritage remains. The urgent task is to learn the cause of his death—and… to steady Zhenren Xiao.”

At that, everyone stiffened.

The Huang clan’s current standing owed much to Zhenren Xiao’s covert support.

“Clan Lord, before entering the secret realm the Old Ancestor instructed: if aught should befall him, the clan lord must go alone to his private chamber. There is a way there to contact Zhenren Xiao,” Great Elder Huang Yansong said quietly.

The clan lord inclined his head. “I will go at once to the Old Ancestor’s chamber and report to Zhenren Xiao.”

—

The secret room lay deep within the clan’s forbidden grounds, layered with heavy restrictions. Holding the clan lord’s token, the clan lord passed unhindered. When the stone door opened, the first thing he saw was an ancient bronze mirror.

A jade slip lay beneath it.

It was the Old Ancestor’s last message. A sweep of divine sense, and the clan lord sighed.

The mirror was called the Yin-Yang Messaging Mirror, refined personally by Zhenren Xiao for secret contact between the two. The jade slip contained the method to refine and use it.

Drawing a deep breath, the clan lord bit his fingertip and let a drop of essence blood fall on the mirror. He formed seals and chanted:

“Yin and yang as one—show the shadow in the mirror!”

Ripples spread across the surface. After a moment, a blurred figure sharpened—it was Zhenren Xiao!

His features were cold and stern, three points similar to Old Ancestor Huang, yet his aura was far deeper and more terrifying. Lightning flashed in his gaze as he spoke frostily, “Why are you there? Don’t tell me…”

“As Zhenren has guessed,” the clan lord bowed hastily, voice heavy, “the Old Ancestor… has fallen.”

“What?!” Zhenren Xiao’s pupils shrank. A terrifying aura exploded from him—Huang Tianxing felt a suffocating pressure even through the mirror.

“When?” Zhenren Xiao’s words dropped like blades, killing intent surging.

Cold sweat beaded on Huang Tianxing’s brow. “The Old Ancestor’s soul lamp went out moments ago. He must have been slain within the Kunlun Minor World. As for the murderer… we do not yet know.”

Zhenren Xiao’s lips moved—he seemed to swallow other words. At last he sighed lightly. “Before entering, did your Old Ancestor leave any instructions?”

The clan lord shook his head. “He said little—only that he would surely obtain a Core-forming treasure and not fail Zhenren’s expectations.”

Zhenren Xiao’s eyes closed a moment. When they opened, only glacial cold remained. “Very good… Kill my elder brother, and whoever it was—I will see him scattered body and soul!”

Even as his voice fell, the mirror dimmed and his image vanished.

…

Azure Abyss Valley lay south of Cloudridge Mountain; the two were far apart.

Even with the azure flood dragon traveling at full tilt, it took several days before they were a hundred miles from the valley.

Even at that distance, Fu Changsheng saw smoke billowing in the far sky.

What’s more, the air around here was much hotter.

“Is Azure Abyss Valley a volcanic crater?”

After a brief hesitation, Fu Changsheng dropped his thought onto the panel in his sea of consciousness without a second’s delay. “Redeem intelligence.”

Hum—

The panel shivered.

Golden light surged.

Images began flipping past in waves.

He fixed on the first. Seven-colored radiance flooded it; the scene grew vivid and lifelike.

“Eh—Mei Zhen!”

At the sight of Mei Zhen, Fu Changsheng’s eyes lit up.

Since entering the Kunlun Minor World he had refreshed news several times but found nothing on Mei Zhen. She was pregnant—how could he not worry? He focused on the vision.

A two-headed, green-eyed giant python coiled beside Liu Meizhen. Two ferocious heads flicked scarlet tongues, emerald pupils locked on the front.

With one hand Liu Meizhen supported her rounded belly; with the other she held the Dragon-Phoenix Void Cauldron. Dragon and phoenix lines flowed across the cauldron, a faint pill fragrance wafting out. Her gaze rested on the pool ahead shrouded in mist—the Spirit-Nurturing Pool.

It was said this pool could nourish a fetus so that, even in the womb, a special spirit body would gestate—perhaps even innate spiritual roots!

A thunderous roar erupted. The pool heaved, and a massive demon beast burst from the water.

“Third-rank peak—Profound Water Spirit Tortoise!”

Its body was pitch-black, shell traced with arcane patterns. Limbs were pillars; its head was savage with glinting fangs. The moment it appeared it fixed on Liu Meizhen, murderous intent blazing.

“So there is a guardian beast…” Liu Meizhen drew a deep breath; resolve flashed in her eyes.

Pregnant as she was, her mana flowed with difficulty—she could at best muster seventy percent of her strength. But for the child in her womb, she had to fight!

“Bilin, attack!”

The two-headed green-eyed python sprang.

A hiss ripped the air as the left head spewed a cloud of viridian poison. Wherever it passed, plants withered and rock corroded.

The tortoise rumbled; arcane lines flickered over its shell and a curtain of water snapped into being, blocking the poison. At the same time it slapped the lake—dragons of water vaulted into the sky, lightning-swift, to besiege the python.

“Roar!”

The python’s right head yawned wide and belched a pillar of raging flame.

Bang, bang, bang!

Water dragons and fire pillar crashed, sending up billowing steam.

The python staggered back a few steps, but was unhurt.

Seeing this, Liu Meizhen shook the Dragon-Phoenix Void Cauldron. A dazzling golden beam surged from its mouth.

The light became a fire dragon that roared straight at the spirit tortoise.

The tortoise bellowed; its shell-patterns flashed again and a colossal blade of water slashed out.

Boom—

Fire dragon and water blade collided, the shockwave blasting outward. Liu Meizhen slid back several steps, face paling.

“This brute… has three bloodline spirit arts!”

The tortoise pressed the advantage, jaws gaping to spit a pitch-black water column.

“Bloodline Spirit Art—Profound Yin Heavy Water!”

The water column crashed down like a mountain; the ground it crossed split inch by inch.

Gritting her teeth, Liu Meizhen spun the cauldron. Dragons and phoenixes on the bronze intertwined into a barrier.

Thud—

The heavy water hammered the cauldron. Liu Meizhen gave a muffled groan; blood traced the corner of her lips.

“I can’t drag this out…”

Cold light flashed in her eyes. She bit her fingertip; a drop of essence blood fell into the cauldron.

“Dragon-Phoenix Void Cauldron—Pillfire Scorches the Heavens!”

Boom—

Blinding gold burst from the cauldron. Endless pillfire poured forth, becoming a rain of flame that covered the spirit tortoise.

The tortoise howled as lines on its shell flared madly, but the pillfire seeped through every gap and burned straight in.

“Bilin—now!”

The two-headed python hissed; both heads spat poison-fire together, hammering the tortoise.

A thunderous crash.

The colossal body toppled. Life fled.

Liu Meizhen exhaled long, face white as paper. She walked slowly to the Spirit-Nurturing Pool. The water was crystal-clear, wreathed in mist, brimming with innate spiritual qi. She stroked her belly, eyes full of tenderness and hope.

“Child, Mother will see you… born a peerless prodigy.”

She shed her outer robe and stepped into the pool. The spiritual water soaked into her skin; wisps of innate qi streamed into her body to nourish the fetus.

The two-headed green-eyed python coiled at the bank, keeping vigilant watch.

[1: Under the Spirit-Nurturing Pool’s nurture, the fetus in your wife Liu Meizhen’s womb will trigger heavenly portents at birth.]

“So Mei Zhen even knew of a sacred ground like the Spirit-Nurturing Pool!”

Fu Changsheng’s heart leapt with joy.

A touch of regret followed. If only Qingru and Xiang’er could also enter the pool—it would be perfect, since the three conceived one after another.

[2: Your son Fu Yongjing obtained half a Void-Heaven Tower shard in Medicine Immortal Valley. After the Void-Heaven Tower fused, it fed back vast power to him, letting him break through to Purple Mansion fourth layer.]

[3: Yu Qingru obtained clues to the principles of constructing a teleportation array in the Cloud Abyss.]

[4: Cao Xiang’er successfully obtained a Core-forming item—the Heavenly One Sacred Water.]

[5: Ouyang Fei obtained the incomplete legacy of the Drunken Half-Immortal in Madmen Valley.]

[6: Fu Changli blundered into Myriad Flower Valley and tasted aged brews sealed there. The vast energy proved too much to digest; he can only force a breakthrough in Purple Mansion.]

“What?”

Fu Changsheng’s heart tightened at the sixth item.

The previous items were all good news.

But his third younger brother had stumbled.

“He’s a man of a hundred years now—how can he be so reckless!”

Who knew how many tens of thousands of years the Kunlun Minor World had existed? How could anyone drink such ancient brews at whim? Thankfully, before entering, he had given the clan’s last Soul-Guiding Pill to Changli as a precaution.

“Let nothing happen to Third Brother…”

He checked the map.

Myriad Flower Valley lay far from his current position. Even if the flood dragon flew day and night without rest, it would take a month to arrive. His arm was simply too short to reach. All he could do was silently pray the man would break through safely.

The remaining four items held no fresh intelligence on Azure Abyss Valley.

“How odd.”

What shrouded this valley so tightly?

It was even more mysterious than Heavenly Secrets Valley. While Fu Changsheng hesitated, a pillar of treasure-light shot up from the direction of Azure Abyss Valley.

…

Boom—

The soaring treasure-light detonated, bursting into rolling clouds of radiance that dyed a thousand miles of sky.

The entire valley shook. The ground cracked; countless stones rose into the air, held aloft by unseen force.

“The Void-Heaven Hall… is finally showing itself!”

Before the valley, Patriarch Ouyang stood with hands clasped behind his back, sharp light flickering in his eyes. His aura was deep as an abyss.

At his side, Old Ancestor Wu’s white hair streamed as he leaned on a jade-green cane, gaze solemn on the heavens. Veiled, Patriarch Ouyang’s spouse let out a light laugh. “Fellow Daoist Wu, they say the Void-Heaven Hall holds Life-Extending Spirit Pills that grant three hundred more years. True or false?”

“Truth or falsehood—we’ll know when that door opens.”

“Fellow Daoist Wu, I hear the hall has three levels—the life-extending pills are on the last. These layers upon layers… to pass them all might…”

Old Ancestor Wu’s pupils tightened.

It was said that of those who entered the Void-Heaven Hall, seven of ten would die.

But any who came out would, at worst, break through to Golden Core thereafter.

That was why he had risked coming.

As the two spoke, thunder like a crashing tide rolled across the sky.

A flying boat etched all over with purple thunder lines burst through the clouds. A burly middle-aged man with hair and beard like spears stood at the prow—Clan Lord Lei of the seventh-rank Lei family of Wu Province!

Lei Wanjun wore a robe woven with purple-gold thunder runes. His eyes flashed like lightning as faint arcs flickered over him. Standing with hands behind his back, his voice boomed like a great bell: “Hahaha! Ouyang old ghost, Wu old freak—you came early!”

The boat descended slowly, two Lei clan Purple Mansion elders at his back. Both had deep auras and keen eyes.

“Old dog Lei, that boat of yours is quite dashing. A reward from the Seventh Commandery Prince?” Old Ancestor Wu smiled with narrowed eyes, tone probing.

Lei Wanjun stroked his beard and smiled smugly. “Indeed! This ‘Purple Firmament Thunder Boat’—my grandson specially had it brought from the prince’s armory to aid me on this trip.”

He made no effort to hide his closeness with the Seventh Commandery Prince.

The current Seventh Commandery Prince was Lei Wanjun’s own maternal grandson. Thanks to that tie, the Lei clan had wrung three extra Purple Mansion slots out of the royal house.

Otherwise, by the results of the Myriad Phoenix Mountain Range clan trials, the Lei clan’s Purple Mansion would not have set foot in the Kunlun Minor World.

While they traded greetings, a clear crane cry came from afar.

Six figures strode through the air. At their head was a refined middle-aged scholar with a jade ruyi in hand—Patriarch Cao Xuanming of the seventh-rank Cao clan! Five Cao Purple Mansion cultivators followed him. Among them, a woman in plain white—Cao Yuehua, Cao Xiang’er’s aunt.

Patriarch Cao saluted with a slight bow and quietly took a place to one side.

Lei Wanjun snorted. “Patriarch Cao does pick his moments. Did you calculate the opening hour of the Void-Heaven Hall?”

Cao Xuanming merely smiled and said nothing, eyes burning as he stared at the pillar of treasure-light.

By now, the four seventh-rank families of Wu Province had gathered in the valley.

Yet they numbered barely ten in all—pitifully few compared to the many other clans whose Purple Mansion cultivators had crowded here in packs.

Patriarch Ouyang’s gaze flickered. All at once he smiled. “Fellow Daoists, the fortunes of the Void-Heaven Hall are great, but the dangers are greater. We of Wu Province are clearly outnumbered. Why not wait for Old Ancestor Huang and the Fu clan to arrive, then the four of us can join hands to probe the first level?”

Lei Wanjun scoffed. “Join hands? Ouyang old ghost, we listened to you in the Myriad Phoenix trials and the Lei clan lost a Purple Mansion slot for it. Your words? I don’t believe half a one.”

Old Ancestor Wu had no intention of teaming up either.

Cao Xuanming pondered a moment, then said, “There is reason in Brother Ouyang’s words. But the specifics of cooperation should wait until Patriarch Fu arrives—then we can plan at length.”

The Cao clan’s seven Purple Mansion slots were thanks to Fu Changsheng.

By agreement, half the gains from their four extra slots would be handed to the court, and of the remainder, half would be split fifty-fifty with the Fu clan.

Add to that Cao Xiang’er carrying Fu Changsheng’s child…

The Cao and Fu clans were tied to the same rope.

Before entering, Cao Xiang’er had instructed repeatedly: if uncertain, heed Fu Changsheng.

Patriarch Ouyang’s eyes narrowed.

Ten Purple Mansion of the Fu clan had entered the Kunlun Minor World; the Cao clan had seven. If these two allied, the Ouyang clan would be on its own—and taking part might make them cannon fodder.

But a glance around showed every group fierce and eager. Whatever the case, they were of the same province. He smiled. “As Patriarch Cao says—let us wait for Patriarch Fu, then discuss in detail.”

While all weighed their own designs, the radiance above Azure Abyss Valley suddenly surged. A titanic phantom of a bronze gate solidified fully. The pressure spilling from its seams made rocks for a hundred miles tremble; countless stones floated into the air, hanging like a reversed river of stars in the treasure-light.

“The Void-Heaven Hall is opening!” Lei Wanjun’s eyes blazed like thunder. The runes on the Purple Firmament Thunder Boat lit one by one.

Suddenly—boom!—an azure escape light tore from the southern sky, fast enough to leave a ring of sonic clouds in its wake. When the light faded, a hundred-foot azure flood dragon coiled in midair, and upon its head stood a black-robed man with hands behind his back.

“Fu Changsheng!” Cao Xuanming’s jade ruyi glimmered faintly.

The flood dragon descended. Fu Changsheng stepped forward, azure lotuses blooming as phantom petals beneath his feet. His gaze swept the crowd and paused briefly at the Cao clan. When he saw Cao Yuehua and she inclined her head, a smile touched his lips.

“Thank you for waiting.”

Patriarch Ouyang’s pupils tightened—the aura around Fu Changsheng was deeper than three months ago at Myriad Phoenix Mountain. He wasn’t even releasing pressure on purpose, yet Ouyang, at Purple Mansion peak, felt a faint oppression.

“Patriarch Fu, you came at the perfect time.”

Cao Xuanming advanced three steps, pointing his jade ruyi toward the colossal bronze gate. “The restrictions on the Void-Heaven Hall are loosening. We were discussing entering together.”

Fu Changsheng did not refuse, but he was surprised. “Patriarch Cao, the hall hasn’t opened yet. How can you be sure we’ll enter the same place once inside?”

That gave Patriarch Cao pause.

Truth was, he’d only learned of the hall after entering the secret realm and seeing everyone rush this way. Of its interior, he knew nothing.

Fu Changsheng had hoped to pry more from Patriarch Cao and Patriarch Ouyang, but judging by their reactions they knew little more than he did about the hall. He said, “Rest easy. If, once the hall opens, we cross paths inside, we’ll naturally form a team. We’re all from Wu Province, after all. In days to come we may have to stand together against the Joyous Sect.”

As he spoke, just as Fu Changsheng was stepping into the Void-Heaven Hall, a clear phoenix cry rang from the heavens. An arc of crimson light cut the sky; clouds boiled and spiritual winds roared in its wake.

A piercing hiss followed. A giant python with four wings and a body of blood-red scales burst through the clouds, head held high, its scales shining like glazed blood in the radiance.

Atop its head, a girl of seventeen or eighteen in red stood against the wind. Her hair fell like a waterfall, her skin was like congealed cream, and a cinnabar mark lay vivid between her brows.

Fu Yongyao—Fu Changsheng’s eldest daughter!

Young in years, yet her aura had already reached mid-stage Purple Mansion.

“Fourth Aunt, Aunt Qing—we made it right on time.” She turned with a bright smile, voice sweet.

Two more figures appeared on the serpent’s back.

They were Fu Changli and Yu Qingru.

Thanks for reading! This chapter was a whirlwind—blood on the blade, fire over water, and that hall finally opening. If you enjoy the story, please consider supporting on Patreon; even a small pledge helps me keep the chapters flowing and the translations polished. I’m shamelessly begging here—it really keeps the lights on. Also, if you have a moment, drop a rating or review on NovelUpdates; your feedback helps new readers find this series and keeps me motivated.

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