Grandpa, times have changed.

Eastern Wilderness.

The bamboo grove where Wu Shi and his two apprentices lived had an open space in the middle.

After more than a year away, bamboo shoots have sprouted in the previously empty spaces, some of which have even grown into bamboo.

Some of them even penetrated through the bamboo house...

Fortunately, the bamboo house itself is built with an extremely strong and resilient type of bamboo, making its structure very stable.

All you need to do is remove the bamboo that's piercing the bamboo house, repair the damage, and clean the inside, and you can move back in.

Xu Xing and Bie Xuening were assigned by Wu Shi to clear away the excess bamboo shoots and bamboo around them.

He himself went to clean the inside of the bamboo house, and collected the bamboo shoots and bamboo that he had cut down to refine them with real fire, intending to extract their essence.

Because this departure will take much longer than expected.

Although the treasured Moon Crown Bamboo Essence was unharmed, the previously stored Spirit Bamboo Essence had lost its effectiveness.

He needs to refine another batch as soon as possible.

Perhaps because the remaining ash was often buried around after refining the essence of the Moon Crown Bamboo, these newly grown spiritual bamboos were also nourished and underwent certain changes.

In short, the extracted bamboo essence this time is far more effective than before.

Each drop is crystal clear, like the finest gemstone.

The three returned just as dawn was breaking.

But it wasn't until the afternoon that we finally finished tidying up the bamboo house and its surroundings.

"Hoo~!"

Letting out a long breath, Xu Xing leaned the iron sword in his hand to the side.

"Junior brother."

Bie Xuening handed him a bamboo tube containing the essence of spiritual bamboo that Wu Shi had just extracted.

The deep blue liquid swayed slightly, and a delicate fragrance immediately wafted out, seeping into the body and mind, as if it could dispel the fatigue that had been accumulating over time.

"Thank you, Senior Sister."

Xu Xing picked it up and took a sip.

Bie Xuening was also holding a bamboo tube, sipping her drink in small sips, looking very happy.

The bamboo essence with added elixirs has an unbearable bitter taste, but the bamboo essence without added elixirs is still very delicious.

"Is Senior Sister happy?" Xu Xing put down the bamboo tube and asked with a smile.

"Yes!"

Although it's fun outside, she still prefers home.

"Junior brother, are you unhappy?"

"Of course I'm happy."

Ignoring whether the ground was dirty or messy, Xu Xing sat down directly.

Looking up at the azure sky, I felt more relaxed than ever before.

To be honest, returning here after a year does bring a strange sense of peace.

after all……

This place feels like home now.

He smiled and looked at Bie Xuening again.

"Senior Sister, aren't you planning to break through to the embryonic breathing stage yet?"

My senior sister already had enough foundation a long time ago, but because of that special method of fetal breathing, it has been delayed until now.

“Just a little bit more,” Bie Xuening said.

That year, she suppressed herself and did not advance to the fetal breathing stage.

But the experiences along the way were still very helpful to her.

To put it simply, she could probably take on three and a half of her former self now, and with her current junior brother, taking on ten wouldn't be a problem!

She felt that she was about to reach the special state described in the fetal breathing method!

"Junior brother, you must also work hard."

"Ah."

Xu Xing nodded slightly and took another sip of the spirit bamboo essence.

During that year, he also successfully raised his cultivation level to the ninth level of Qi Refining.

Of course, this is the kind of breakthrough that has just occurred, and it is far inferior to Bie Xuening... or even Bie Xuening a year ago.

However, Xu Xing was quite content.

After all, he's only been in this world for less than four years...

Come to think of it, my time travel experience is quite different from what I remembered.

Leaving aside the fact that it lacks the cheat codes and special abilities that are standard for transmigrators, what's truly unique is this world.

According to their master, the region they were in was called the 'Eastern Wilderness Domain,' the most barren and spiritually scarce of the seven domains in this world.

During the years of his cultivation, he never lacked spiritual objects, and even received a portion of Moon Crown Bamboo Essence every few days.

Moreover, none of the three settlements I visited this time were known to lack cultivation resources.

If one's cultivation level is lagging behind, it can only mean that one's innate talent is insufficient or that one has not worked hard enough.

Even the most barren eastern wilderness is like this...

How extravagant must the Radiant World Domain, inhabited by countless powerful races and even more prosperous, be?

There's also the Cang Domain, which is located at the very center of heaven and earth, and the four domains of Gu, Tai, Xuan, and Tian, ​​which are occupied by the Cang Clan. They are even more prosperous than the Huang Shi Domain.

It's laughable that I used to think this world was the 'Chinese martial arts' world I imagined...

"Xiao Xing, Xue Ning."

The sudden sound interrupted Xu Xing's reverie.

In front of the bamboo house, Wu Shi, who was refining the essence of spiritual bamboo, stood up at some point, his expression somewhat heavy.

In his hand, he held a red gemstone with a golden vertical stripe in the center.

It was the very piece that he, Sanshi, and Shijiu used for positioning.

However, at this moment, the once-transparent gemstone was now covered with cracks.

“Master.” Xu Xing stood up.

"We...we'll probably have to leave for a while longer."

……

……

"Not bad, not bad, the completion rate is even higher than I expected."

Above the settlement established by San Shi and Shi Jiu, above the clouds.

The Howling Moon Demon Wolf treads on the colorful clouds formed by the flow of spiritual energy, its snow-white fur fluttering in the wind, shimmering with silver light.

A pair of crystal-clear, icy blue eyes gazed down upon the vast land, where a strange rune slowly rotated, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

"My lord, won't we be discovered if we do this?" Howling Moon Wolf asked, puzzled.

It wasn't these ants. He was worried that other beings might notice.

"will not."

Sitting upright on the back of the Howling Moon Demon Wolf, the Cang Clan member, toying with a jade disc in his hand, looked down with amusement.

The disc was inscribed with densely packed runes—

Concealment Array Plate.

Although it's not anything particularly high-end, it's perfectly adequate for this purpose.

After all, Cang, who is willing to pay such a small reward, cannot see through the concealment array plate's shielding, and Cang, who can ignore the concealment array plate, is not interested in such a small reward.

"Little White, once I get my reward this time, I'll go to your clan and ask you for a cultivation method."

Na Cang gently stroked the soft fur of the Howling Moon Demon Wolf, a smile playing on his lips.

"Thank you, my lord!"

The Howling Moon Wolf named 'Little White' was very excited.

Although the Howling Moon Wolf clan has cultivation methods, they are not methods he can access.

After all, he already belongs to the Lord.

But if the master speaks, the situation will be different. Even within the clan, it is impossible to ignore the wishes of a member of the Cang clan.

The Cang Clan member smiled, about to say something more, when he caught a glimpse of several figures appearing below, and his expression suddenly became somewhat strange.

Six giant, silver-white dragons were silently surrounding the settlement at its very center.

It also carried nearly a hundred birds of prey with grayish-yellow feathers and reddish eyes, which filled the sky in a dark, swarming display.

Shayuelong and Shayingying.

Leading the group was a Moon Dragon King at the Divine Forging Realm, who was also injured.

Clearly, they had just returned from the Radiant World.

"My lord?" Xiaobai asked.

"emm..."

The Cang Clan member pondered for a moment, sensing the aura that had begun to transform.

The 'delicious food' that I painstakingly cooked was about to be stolen by a mouse.

how should I do it?

"Get rid of it quietly, don't let them disturb 'thirty'."

Of course, we just slapped it to death.

"Yes!"

The next second, the Howling Moon Wolf named 'Little White' carried the Cang Clan member and transformed into a streak of silver-white light as it swooped down.

Silently, the streak of light pierced through the leader, the Moon Dragon King, and the remaining five Moon Dragons at the Condensation Realm.

Awooo~!

Amidst the loud howls of wolves, a beam of light radiating extreme cold swept across the area above the settlement in all directions.

It instantly froze the already dead Moon Dragon and the panicked Fiend Eagles that realized something was wrong, turning them into tiny specks of light that disappeared into the air.

In the end, leaving behind only two or three harmless hawks, the Howling Moon Demon Wolf carried the Cang Clan member back.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

Because of the concealment array, the people in the settlement were unaware of what had just happened.

Just as they returned above the clouds.

boom!
The surging spiritual energy converged, transforming into a seven-colored vortex that swirled slowly above the settlement.

A surge of magical power, far surpassing the level of Condensation and reaching the level of God Forging, spread out.

A golden sphere, like the sun, rose and hovered above the settlement.

hum~
The pressure of magic manifested as tangible ripples that spread out, instantly crushing the remaining few evil eagles into clouds of blood mist that drifted into the air.

"Interesting, the God of Forging dares to make such a big fuss."

The Cang Clan member, seated behind the demon wolf, smirked.

“After all, this is the Eastern Wilderness Region,” Xiaobai added.

"Too."

"Judging from his appearance, he seems to be in a good mood. Let's arrest him and let him go."

The reason for leaving behind a few Fiend Eagles at the Nascent Soul stage was simply to let him test his skills.

Otherwise, if you finally break through to the God-forging stage, but get captured without doing anything, wouldn't you feel terrible?
It would be such a shame if my mood affected the 'quality' of the product.

"Go down."

"Yes."

After respectfully responding, Little White carried the Cang Clan member down slowly.

The golden orb above the settlement gradually dimmed during this process, transforming into a tall and imposing figure that calmly watched the wolf and the hawk descend from above.

Seeing this, the Cang clan members were somewhat surprised.

Did you know I would come?

"Ah."

San Shi remained calm.

But his heart had already sunk to the bottom.

The worst-case scenario has still occurred.

“Interesting.” The Cang Clan member suddenly laughed. “I am Zhou Cheng, and this is my pet, Little White?”

"Can I explain a few things to you before I go with you?" San Shi asked.

Zhou Cheng glanced at the settlement below.

But all they could see were tense and bewildered gazes fixed on them.

He couldn't help but sigh softly.

"Of course, but I hope you can do it as soon as possible."

It's like seeing a kitten or puppy on the street protecting its young.

This is probably Zhou Cheng's mindset right now.

Even though He wasn't a cold-blooded and ruthless Cang among the Cang clan, He was still somewhat moved by this scene.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Then, the three stones fell into the settlement.

Approaching Hong, he handed him a scroll of animal hide that recorded his breakthrough insights.

"Take good care of your sister."

From the moment the Cang Clan appeared, he had no choice. (End of Chapter)