“Brother Xueying, you may stay here for now, but do not wander around recklessly. Many areas of the Fan Clan’s Demon Mountain are forbidden zones! Even the Xia Clan and the Cang Clan have terrifying experts who come here to cultivate in seclusion… If you trespass into a forbidden area, you might be directly struck down by the formations guarding those places,” Fan Tianchong reminded him. “Soon, you’ll receive your identity token and other items as an Upper Guest Elder. Then you’ll know which areas of the Demon Mountain you can and cannot enter.”
“Brother Tianchong, rest assured, I won’t wander off,” Dongbo Xueying nodded.
Fan Tianchong soon departed.
Dongbo Xueying sat alone in the courtyard, gazing at the distant, undulating mountain ranges. Even from afar, he could sense the terrifying auras emanating from certain areas.
“The three great clans of the Xiafeng Ancient Kingdom cultivate their experts in vastly different ways,” Dongbo Xueying mused, well-versed in such intelligence.
The Xia Clan…
The ruling family of the Xiafeng Ancient Kingdom, their heritage was the most unfathomable, and they were widely regarded as the foremost clan in the entire Heart Realm Continent. The very name of the ancient kingdom—’Xiafeng’—spoke volumes. They also produced the greatest number of experts, slightly surpassing both the Cang and Fan Clans in sheer quantity.
The Cang Clan, on the other hand, raised their experts in a ‘free-range’ manner. As a result, their experts were unrestrained and free-spirited, some even brutish and self-centered.
The Fan Clan, however, cultivated their experts much like the Black Fiend Abyss—strictly speaking, the Black Fiend Abyss had learned its methods of selecting experts from the Fan Clan! Internal competition within the Fan Clan was fierce: the strong rose, the weak fell. Their rules were stringent, making them the most united of the three great clans. At the same time, they were inclusive, absorbing experts from external nations.
The Cang and Fan Clans were roughly equal in strength, but in actual conflicts, the Cang Clan usually suffered losses—because the Fan Clan was more united, though their rules were far stricter.
“The Fan Clan’s rules are not to be trifled with,” Dongbo Xueying thought to himself as he sipped wine, watching the faint snowflakes drifting in the sky.
*Knock, knock, knock!*
A heavy knocking sounded at the gate.
“Open it,” Dongbo Xueying commanded.
“Yes, Master,” the servant demon dragon obeyed, moving to open the courtyard gate.
Outside stood a soldier clad entirely in black armor, his eyes icy and his aura unmistakably at the Chaos Realm level. The armored soldier looked at Dongbo Xueying inside the courtyard and announced, “Upper Guest Elder Feixue, I have been ordered to deliver these items to you. Take them.” With that, he tossed a golden bracelet toward Dongbo Xueying, who caught it effortlessly. Before he could even speak, the soldier turned and left, vanishing in a streak of light.
“A Chaos Realm cultivator like me becoming an Upper Guest Elder seems to have displeased this soldier,” Dongbo Xueying chuckled, shaking his head. “Close the gate.”
“Yes, Master,” the demon dragon complied.
Only then did Dongbo Xueying examine the contents of the golden bracelet, retrieving them one by one.
Identity tokens, scrolls, and other items…
Among them was a detailed map of the entire Fan Clan’s Demon Mountain, marking the accessibility of different zones. As an Upper Guest Elder, Dongbo Xueying was permitted entry to most areas of the mountain.
*Rustle.* He unfurled a cyan wooden scroll, upon which lines of text materialized.
**”Formless Mirage Art”:** 300,000 Major Merits (Guest Elder)
**”Heaven-Suppressing Ruler”:** Peak-tier treasure, 200,000 Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
**”Void-Piercing Disk”:** Peak-tier treasure, 200,000 Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
…
**”Hunyuan Inquiry”:** 100,000 Major Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
**”Triple Moonblade Volumes”:** 100,000 Major Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
**”Formless Dharma Body”:** Transformed by Patriarch Fan, requires 100,000 Major Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
**”Primordial Blood”:** A single drop of source blood from the Primordial Night, requires 100,000 Major Merits (Upper Guest Elder)
…
The scroll was densely packed with exchangeable treasures, ranging from the most expensive at 300,000 Major Merits to the cheapest at a mere 1,000. Items like the Primordial Night’s ‘source blood’ were legendary—ordinarily, the Primordial Night bestowed only refined blood upon subordinates, which could be replenished through cultivation. But ‘source blood’ was foundational; recovering it required devouring vast amounts of rare treasures, making it virtually unsellable.
Each treasure was meticulously described.
For example, the **”Heaven-Suppressing Ruler”** was a treasure of the Space-Time lineage, requiring mastery of Space-Time at the second level of the Cosmic God realm to wield.
Or **”Hunyuan Inquiry”**, which demanded the practitioner reach the pinnacle of Void Transformation to even begin comprehending.
Techniques priced at 100,000 Major Merits were even more valuable than the **”Five Phases Sealing Art”**, pointing directly to the apex of cultivation. Take the **”Formless Dharma Body”**, for instance—once transformed by Patriarch Fan, a cultivator would instantly ascend to the Cosmic God realm. How heaven-defying was that?
Yet it cost 100,000 Major Merits.
That amount could buy a trillion Cosmic Crystals! Moreover, these merits had to be earned through life-and-death missions for the Fan Clan. Even rulers like the Firelight Monarch or the Maple Nest Monarch typically earned only a few thousand merits per mission. And if the Fan Clan issued no tasks, they had nothing to undertake!
Accumulating 100,000 Major Merits was daunting; 200,000 was nearly impossible. Even the Southcloud Monarch had yet to gather that much.
“Peak-tier treasures…” Dongbo Xueying’s gaze lingered on those listings.
Peak-tier treasures could drive any Cosmic God to madness!
Take the Southcloud Monarch—once hunted down and forced to flee in disgrace, he only rose to his current status after stumbling upon an ancient ruin and obtaining the peak-tier treasure **”Dual Realm Blade”**. Only after fully mastering it did he regain his standing. Similarly, without treasures, Dongbo Xueying was merely a ninth-level Chaos Realm expert. With one, he could instantly ascend to the tenth level.
The value of peak-tier treasures was absurdly high.
The Fan Clan listed six such treasures on the scroll, each of a different type, enough to make countless experts willing to walk through fire for them.
“Primordial source blood?” Dongbo Xueying also scrutinized the entry for the Primordial Night’s source blood.
During the Second Ancient Kingdom War, the Primordial Night and Eternal Night had joined forces to battle the three progenitors of the Xiafeng Ancient Kingdom—the Xia Emperor, the Cang Emperor, and Patriarch Fan. That battle left both Primordials severely wounded, and the victors seized a portion of the Primordial Night’s source blood. Now, a single drop was being offered for 100,000 Major Merits to tempt guest elders.
The Primordial Night’s source blood was the stuff of legends.
“What kind of mission is this, that the Fan Clan is willing to grant me 10,000 Major Merits?” Dongbo Xueying wondered silently. “Monarchs like the Firelight Monarch risk their lives for mere thousands. This time, I’m not even in mortal danger. How did my master persuade the Fan Clan to agree to this?”
He remained unaware of the mission’s true nature—a secret internal affair among the three great clans of the Xiafeng Ancient Kingdom. It was only because of his mastery of the **”Five Phases Sealing Art”** and his tenth-level Illusory Realm techniques that the Fan Clan had agreed, confident in his success.
…
Dongbo Xueying stayed in the residence for three days.
During that time, though he did not venture out, he caught glimpses of the other four experts selected for the mission.
“From the Icefield Tribe?” Dongbo Xueying noticed the mysterious expert from an external kingdom—a thin, small man wrapped in thick robes. When their eyes met, the Icefield Tribesman nodded slightly, the corners of his lips curling.
“It’s him—King Salong of the Icefield Tribe,” Dongbo Xueying recognized.
King Salong appeared reserved, but in truth, he was ruthlessly domineering. He had once single-handedly slain the leader of one of the Icefield Tribes—a Cosmic God! Though called a ‘tribe’, it was equivalent to a third-rate kingdom. The leader’s death led to its annexation by neighboring tribes.
Three days later…
*Boom!*
A terrifying aura descended, drawing the attention of all cultivators in the five surrounding residences. A towering, muscular man wreathed in crimson flames appeared, his overwhelming presence making Dongbo Xueying and the others feel the threat of death.
“Come forth,” the man commanded, his voice resounding.
*Creak…*
Doors swung open one after another as the five selected cultivators emerged from their residences, Dongbo Xueying among them.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage