Chapter 111 - 110: Joy for Nothing

Chapter 111: Chapter 110: Joy for Nothing

「At night.」

In the distance, at the Patrol Guard Station, a fierce burst of light erupted, accompanied by violent Spiritual Power fluctuations.

"Damn it!"

"Tong Zuo, how did you know..."

Before he could finish, a flippant voice cut in, "Steward Luo, you may be good at hiding, but that surging Spiritual Power of yours can’t escape my eyes."

In an open area at the Patrol Guard Station.

Tong Zuo’s face was cold. Beside him stood the stern-faced Luan Jian and the ferocious-looking Mingzhuang.

Across from them was a rather disheveled Luo Fang. Judging by his grim expression and tattered robes, he seemed to have suffered a small loss in their earlier clash.

Lan Cai Shen stood silently on a nearby rooftop, clearly having no intention of getting involved.

Not far away, a large man who was a Spirit Binder of a three-headed python hesitated for a long time before hiding in a corner, not daring to step forward.

The other Patrol Guards had scattered and fled the moment the Spiritual Power erupted.

They didn’t dare get involved in a battle between figures of this caliber.

A moment of silence.

A slightly cold, hoarse voice spoke.

"Hand over the Senluo Flower."

Luo Fang shot him a dark look, then glanced at Lan Cai Shen. Seeing that Lan Cai Shen remained motionless, a ruthless glint appeared in his eyes.

"The Senluo Flower, is it?"

"Fine. I’ll hand it over."

A smile suddenly spread across Luo Fang’s face. He flipped his hand, produced a jade box, and, as if afraid Tong Zuo couldn’t see clearly, waved a hand to open it.

A flower, a foot long with petals wider at the tips than the base and dotted with golden specks, appeared before them.

Under the moonlight, misty flood dragons seemed to roam over the golden specks, and each speck was like a dragon pearl held in their mouths. It was an extraordinary sight.

On the rooftop.

Lan Cai Shen’s expression was unmoved. The Senluo Flower was a fine treasure, but it was not suitable for him.

Tong Zuo’s face seemed to ripple with emotion, but inwardly, he was perfectly calm. ’From the very beginning, my goal wasn’t the Senluo Flower, but that severed tail.’

’Demanding the Senluo Flower was just a pretense to mislead everyone.’

Mingzhuang and Luan Jian stared at it with burning eyes. They didn’t have Dao Foundation Spiritual Objects of their own.

However, after showing it off to the crowd, an earthy-yellow stream of light suddenly flowed from Luo Fang’s palm and wrapped around the Senluo Flower.

"Heh..."

Luo Fang stared fixedly at Tong Zuo and sneered, "You want the Senluo Flower..."

"What do you think you’re doing?!"

"Stop! Right now!"

Mingzhuang and Luan Jian’s expressions changed drastically. They shouted for him to stop, Spiritual Power surging within them as they prepared to charge.

Even Lan Cai Shen’s face showed a flicker of astonishment.

"In your dreams!"

As his voice fell, the earthy-yellow light binding the Senluo Flower abruptly tightened.

CRACK...

The Senluo Flower’s metallic stem split open with countless fissures. Wisps of pale golden sap trickled out, evaporating into a hazy mist.

ROAR...

A low roar echoed faintly in the air as the Senluo Flower completely shattered. A dense golden mist rose up, transforming into countless tiny flood dragons that swirled for a few moments before vanishing completely.

Tiny fragments drifted slowly down from Luo Fang’s palm.

Luan Jian flipped his hand and summoned his sword, his pupils filled with intense killing intent.

"You..."

Mingzhuang’s face contorted. Staring at the withered stalk on the ground, he pointed at Luo Fang, hating him so much he could have ground his teeth to dust.

Others might not know, but they did: Tong Zuo had no use for the Senluo Flower. If he had obtained it, there was at least a fifty-percent chance it would have gone to him.

Tong Zuo stared at the withered stalk on the ground as a violent wave of Spiritual Power began to surge from his body.

A soft rustling sound arose as Purple Crystal Scorpions poured out from his robes. Within moments, they had spread out and were swarming toward Luo Fang.

Luo Fang showed no fear. He took out a seal, channeled his Spiritual Power into it, and a heavy pressure rapidly spread across the area.

Under this pressure, the advancing Purple Crystal Scorpions sank halfway into the dirt, their legs buried.

On the roof.

Lan Cai Shen looked at the cultivators about to fight and said in a low voice, "Are you two determined to fight to the death?"

"If so, in my opinion, you might as well go to the border and serve the sect with your lives. In any case, whoever dies here, the survivor won’t be able to avoid that trip anyway."

With that, Lan Cai Shen turned and transformed into a streak of light, disappearing from the camp.

Tong Zuo stared at Luo Fang, his expression impassive, as the aura around him intensified once more.

Luan Jian held his sword, the runes on its blade linking into lines as a sharp, pearlescent glow enveloped it.

Mingzhuang’s pupils turned aqua-blue. Water vapor filled the air around him, and the faint sound of a great, surging river could be heard.

Luo Fang stared at the three of them, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. His mind was stretched taut. The seal in his hand flowed with an earthy-yellow light, and the heavy pressure once again extended over a dozen meters.

The tide of Purple Crystal Scorpions paused for an instant, their advance slowing even further.

Just then, Tong Zuo suddenly let out a muffled groan, and his aura plummeted to that of the Mid-Meridian Condensation realm.

"He’s severely injured!"

Luo Fang’s eyes lit up, joy surging in his heart. The light from the seal in his palm grew a fraction brighter.

Tong Zuo gave him one last deep look, then waved his sleeve to recall his insects and turned to leave.

"We’re leaving..."

Luan Jian and Mingzhuang shot Luo Fang a vicious glare before following Tong Zuo into the distance.

Phew...

Seeing them depart, the tension that had gripped Luo Fang finally eased, and he let out a heavy gasp of air.

After resting for a few moments.

Luo Fang strode into a simple wooden house, sat cross-legged on the bed, and closed his eyes to focus, replaying the day’s events in his mind.

From slaying the Snake Demon to taking advantage of Tong Zuo’s entanglement with the flood dragon to seize the Senluo Flower...

One by one, the events replayed in his mind.

「A moment later.」

After confirming there were no oversights, Luo Fang opened his eyes and murmured softly, "I’ve blocked your path to the Dao... How will you get back at me?"

He then closed his eyes again, contemplating his next move and escape route.

’I definitely can’t stay in the Wanzhong Mountains Range anymore,’ he thought. ’Not only are my methods inferior to his, but my subordinates are too.’

’If I stay any longer, who knows, I might end up as demon food one day...’

While he was contemplating his escape, at the Demon Hunting Corps’ base.

"Let’s go intercept and kill him!"

The moment Mingzhuang returned to the base, his eyes blazed with intense killing intent as he yelled, "As long as we do it cleanly, not even the sect can do anything about it!"

Luan Jian’s eyes flickered; he was clearly entertaining the idea as well.

Tong Zuo’s expression remained unchanged, and he said nothing.

The group entered a spacious wooden house in the center of the camp.

Tong Zuo turned to face the other two and, after a few moments of silence, said, "Tomorrow, I will find a place for secluded cultivation and attempt to break through to the Dao Foundation."

At these words, Luan Jian’s and Mingzhuang’s expressions changed dramatically.

Mingzhuang asked gravely, "Are you ready? What are your chances?"

Tong Zuo thought for a moment before giving an answer he himself wasn’t too sure about. "About thirty percent..."

"That’s not low, not low at all..."

The two men’s expressions shifted, unsure of what to say.

Tong Zuo continued, "I’ll go find Lan Cai Shen in a bit."

"While I am breaking through to the Dao Foundation, you two will take the Demon Hunting Corps and station yourselves at the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land."

Tong Zuo waved his hand. "Go on."

"Yes."

As Mingzhuang reached the door, he suddenly turned his head and grinned. "Try not to die. It’d make becoming the corps leader way too easy for me."

Up ahead, Luan Jian’s steps faltered for a second, a corner of his mouth twitching, before he quickened his pace and left.

BANG...

A flash of dense demonic energy flared and vanished. Mingzhuang was sent flying backward out of the wooden house, smashing hard onto the ground. He rolled several times before scrambling to his feet, looking utterly wretched.

"Pah..."

Mingzhuang spat out a mouthful of dirt, muttered something incomprehensible at the wooden house, and then left with a few leaps.

Inside the wooden house.

Tong Zuo felt the agitated thoughts coming from his Purple Crystal Scorpion’s Insect Mother. He took a mustard-seed jade box, dyed deep purple, from his robes, his expression flickering between light and shadow.

A moment later, a soft murmur could be heard.

"A Lifebound Spirit Insect..."

.

「The next day.」

Led by Lan Cai Shen, Li Changsheng and the others set foot on the small island in the center of the lake.

As they drew closer to the island’s center.

The Spiritual Qi in the air grew progressively denser. By the time they reached the center, it was several times richer than the Spiritual Qi outside the lake.

An image of the island’s shape formed in Li Changsheng’s mind.

Its topography resembled a volcano; the outer edge was a sandy beach, and the closer they got to the center, the lusher the forest and higher the elevation became.

At the island’s heart was a slightly concave, flat piece of ground, roughly a couple of acres in size, with a dark, deep pool at its very center.

The group stood at the peak, surveying their surroundings.

Lan Cai Shen turned and smiled. "Junior Brother, why don’t you first examine the distribution of the Spiritual Land?"

"Alright."

Li Changsheng nodded, circulated Spiritual Power to his feet, and leaped lightly down onto the Spiritual Land below.

Lan Cai Shen, Tan Hu, and the others followed close behind, their Spiritual Power contained but ready as they protected him.

Although the Snake Demon in Ten Thousand Serpent Lake had been slain, there were still many spirit snakes. This wasn’t a concern for Vein Condensation Realm Cultivators, but it posed a significant threat to those at the Qi Cultivation Realm.

Li Changsheng cupped his hands in a brief salute to the others, then squatted down. He placed his palm on the Spiritual Land, and his consciousness stirred.

A three-leafed fluorescent mark on his brow flashed, and a stream of jade-green light appeared in his palm.

BUZZ...

Li Changsheng’s mind wavered for an instant as his consciousness spread outward like clouds and mist.

Compared to his experience at the Tier One Spiritual Land, he could clearly feel a slight resistance this time.

After a few breaths, his consciousness hit a barrier, unable to expand any further.

Meanwhile, a network map slowly materialized in his mind.

On it was a Spiritual Vortex, about the size of an egg, which was dozens of times larger than the speck of light he had found at the Tier One Spiritual Land.

’So this is a Tier Two Spiritual Land...’

Li Changsheng’s thoughts stirred, and he broke the connection, opening his eyes.

Lan Cai Shen quickly asked, "Junior Brother, how is it?"

Although he could sense the Spiritual Qi contained within the Spiritual Land, he wasn’t sure how many Spiritual Vortexes it held without a detailed inspection.

And the number of Spiritual Vortexes determined how many acres of Spirit Fields could be created.

Li Changsheng spread his hands and said wryly, "Senior Brother, you don’t really think I can survey the entire island in one go, do you?"

Hearing this, Lan Cai Shen gave an embarrassed smile and said no more.

Li Changsheng, on the other hand, took out a piece of paper and casually drew a couple of lines and a dot on it.

Afterward, the group followed behind him, systematically surveying the entire island.

First, they surveyed the outer perimeter of the peak, then worked their way down the mountain.

During this time, whenever his life force was depleted, Li Changsheng would absorb more, leaving the others marveling in amazement.

This continued until nightfall.

Under the curious gazes of the others, Li Changsheng summoned Xiaohua and his other Spirit Beasts to feed them some Spirit Rice and beast meat.

「The next day, at the peak.」

Li Changsheng rubbed his throbbing temples, stood up, and handed the paper in his hand to Lan Cai Shen.

A look of delight on his face, Lan Cai Shen reached out, took the white paper, and looked it over.

The others also gathered around to look.

The paper was covered in a crisscrossing network of ink lines, dotted with several dozen black spots of various sizes.

「A moment later.」

The group exchanged bewildered glances.

Lan Cai Shen cleared his throat and said softly, "Perhaps it’s better if you explain it to us, Junior Brother. This map..."