Zhang Kui Asks the Way in Investiture of the Gods

In the middle of the valley, Zhang Kui looked up at the sky.

"Half-step Golden Immortal...only one step away from the true Golden Immortal Dao Fruit." Zhang Kui muttered to himself, his right hand clenching into a fist, and five-colored lightning quietly appeared in his palm—green, red, yellow, white, and black, the five colors intertwined yet clearly distinct.

Each bolt of lightning contains the primordial energy corresponding to the five internal organs, as lively as a living thing.

This is precisely the mark of "mastering the Five Thunders".

With a slight thought, the five-colored lightning suddenly receded, disappearing into the palm of his hand.

Zhang Kui looked around; the residual thunderous aura in the valley from his cultivation had not completely dissipated.

He raised his right hand towards the sky, and the clouds above the valley began to gather; he pressed his left hand down lightly, and the moisture in the earth's veins was slowly drawn out, thus performing the art of summoning clouds and rain.

The clouds thickened, and a light rain began to fall.

Every drop of rain is infused with pure spiritual energy. As it falls on the scorched earth, the rain washes away the ashes from the vegetation, and new buds quietly emerge from the soil.

In just half an incense stick's time, the entire valley was completely transformed.

Zhang Kui nodded in satisfaction, then used the Five Elements Escape Technique to transform into a five-colored stream of light and return to Mianchi City.

……

Night had fallen, and the city of Mianchi was sparsely lit.

Zhang Kui landed silently in the backyard of "Jishantang". As soon as he opened the door, Gao Lanying came to greet him.

"Husband, is everything going well?"

Gao Lanying looked Zhang Kui up and down with concern in her eyes.

Zhang Kui patted her hand with a smile: "Don't worry, Lan Ying, everything is going smoothly! Not only have I mastered the 'Five Thunders' supernatural power, but I can now be considered a half-step Golden Immortal."

"A half-step Golden Immortal?" Gao Lanying's eyes lit up, then turned worried. "Then the final step..."

"No rush." ​​Zhang Kui shook his head. "The Golden Immortal Dao Fruit requires a fortuitous opportunity; it cannot be forced. The current situation is just right. With a solid foundation, we can advance or retreat as needed."

He paused, then suddenly noticed two glittering silver rings in Gao Lanying's hand. "These are..."

"Husband, I was just about to tell you this." Gao Lanying handed over the ring. "These two things have been trembling slightly all day. I couldn't make up my mind, and I didn't dare to investigate them rashly."

Zhang Kui took the ring; it felt warm and smooth like jade, with subtle fluctuations of spiritual energy on its surface. He activated his Great Yin-Yang Void-Piercing True Eye, his left eye focusing on the Sun and his right eye on the Yin, sending two beams of divine light sweeping over the ring.

The circular structure was clearly visible – its interior was engraved with a complex control array, with a wisp of demonic beast blood at its core serving as a catalyst, and its exterior was covered with spirit-gathering runes that nurtured the spirit beast.

"This is a Beast Taming Ring, and a high-grade one at that," Zhang Kui said in a deep voice. "It's a magical artifact specifically designed to control and nurture spirit beasts. The control array and nurturing array are perfectly combined, and the crafting technique is extremely sophisticated."

"Husband!" Gao Lanying nodded and said, "I found this while sorting through the belongings of the four fellow Daoists from Kowloon Island. I had kept it deep inside my storage bag, but I don't know why it suddenly reacted today."

Zhang Kui carefully examined the two beast-taming rings.

They are similar in size, but their patterns are different. One of them is a mythical beast with a tiger's body and a dragon's mane, roaring to the sky, which is powerful and domineering; the other is a mythical beast with a lion's shape and a dragon's appearance, which is curled up and resting, which is majestic and calm.

"Bi'an and Suanni!" Zhang Kui recognized the two strange beasts. "Judging from their appearance, these should be the mounts of fellow Daoists Wang Mo and Yang Sen. There is a spiritual connection between the Beast Taming Ring and the spirit beast. If the spirit beast encounters danger or experiences a violent emotional fluctuation, the Beast Taming Ring will sense it."

He frowned slightly: "The fact that both of these beast-taming rings are trembling at the same time indicates that the Bixie and Suanni are likely in trouble."

"Could it be a trap?" Gao Lanying wondered. "The Four Saints of Kowloon Island just fell not long ago, and their mounts have already run into trouble. It's too much of a coincidence."

He weighed the beast-taming ring in his hand, pondered for a moment, and then decided, "It's alright! Let's go check the situation first. If it really is a trap, with our current cultivation levels, it shouldn't be difficult for us to escape unscathed."

"Yes, my husband!" Gao Lanying no longer hesitated. "Then let's set off immediately and return as soon as possible. I've already made arrangements for Mother. Just tell her we're going out to visit friends and will be back in three to five days."

Zhang Kui nodded in agreement.

Without alerting anyone, the two quietly left Mianchi City. Once outside the city in an open area, Zhang Kui grasped the two beast-taming rings and activated the sensing arrays within them with his magic power.

"Buzz—"

The Beast Taming Ring emitted a soft chime, and its silver light pointed southeast.

"In the East China Sea," Zhang Kui deduced.

Gao Lanying summoned auspicious clouds, and the two rode the clouds, flying towards the East Sea following the guidance of the beast-taming ring.

The tremors within the Beast Taming Ring were sometimes intense and sometimes subtle, indicating that the situation of the Bixie and Suanni was constantly changing.

"The situation is not good, we have to get there as soon as possible." Zhang Kui used the Five Elements Great Escape technique with all his might, his body surrounded by five-colored light, and his flight speed suddenly increased by 30%.

Gao Lanying followed closely behind, protected by the celestial light of Shangqing, and auspicious clouds streaked across the night sky like shooting stars.

……

The East China Sea is vast, dotted with numerous islands.

The Beast Taming Ring's guidance became increasingly clear, eventually pointing to a crimson island. When Zhang Kui and Gao Lanying landed on the clouds, it was already noon the next day.

This island is called "Red Reef." The entire island is composed of dark red reefs, which gleam with a rusty sheen under the blazing sun. Vegetation is sparse, with only a few salt-tolerant shrubs scattered about; most of the island is...

The island is called "Red Reef." The entire island is composed of dark red reefs that gleam with a rusty sheen under the blazing sun. The island has sparse vegetation, with only a few salt-tolerant shrubs scattered about. Most of the island is rock, with mottled textures on its surface formed by the cooling of lava.

"This place... the fire elemental energy is unusually active." Gao Lanying sensed the surrounding environment. "There should be a volcano or a ley line fire cave underground."

Zhang Kui nodded, his Great Yin-Yang Void Eye scanning the entire island. In his vision, the entire island was shrouded in a layer of pale red fire elemental energy, and deep within the earth's veins, there was indeed flowing scorching magma.

At the center of the island, three powerful demonic auras are clashing fiercely.

"Awooo—!"

"roar--!"

The roar of the beast came from the center of the island, echoing through the open reef area, sounding particularly abrupt and violent.

Zhang Kui and Gao Lanying exchanged a glance, then, with perfect understanding, concealed their presence and stealthily moved towards the direction from which the sound came.

At the heart of the island lies a ridge formed by a volcanic eruption, its top relatively flat and roughly a thousand feet in circumference. The environment here is far harsher, the air thick with the pungent smell of sulfur, and scorching white steam constantly billowing from cracks in the ground; the temperature is much higher than off the island.

Three magnificent and extraordinary beasts are fighting here.

Two of them were precisely the targets of Zhang Kui and his companion's trip: the Bi'an and the Suanni.

The Bixi is the size of a tiger, three zhang long, covered in bluish-black scales, with a dragon mane on its neck, four claws like hooks, and a tail like a steel whip. At this moment, there are several deep claw marks on its body, its scales are broken and blood is dripping, but its eyes are still fierce, and it is protecting the Suanni.

The Suanni resembles a male lion, measuring two and a half zhang in length. Its golden fur is interspersed with dragon scales, and it exhales wisps of smoke from its mouth and nostrils. Its condition is worse—its forelimbs are clearly broken, and it has a wound more than a foot long on its abdomen, from which blood is flowing continuously. Its breath is already very weak.

The third beast, confronting them, resembled a leopard, its body crimson like blood, with a single horn on its head and five tails, each tipped with flames of a different color. Its voice was like the clash of metal, sharp and piercing.

Judging from the situation on the field, the Suanni is the most seriously injured and has basically lost its fighting ability. Although the Bi'an has multiple injuries, its movement is not restricted and it still has the ability to fight.

The five-tailed red leopard was in the best condition, its demonic aura surging, clearly giving it the upper hand.

"Husband, besides the Bixie and Suanni, what is the other strange beast?" Gao Lanying asked telepathically. Although she was knowledgeable, this was the first time she had ever seen such a mutated monster.

"It's ferocious, with the body of a leopard, a single horn, and five tails." Zhang Kui's eyes were sharp. "The ferocious beast in front of us has five tails with different attributes—look, it has all five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. It must have obtained some kind of opportunity, causing its bloodline to mutate."

He paused, a question arising in his mind: "This ferocious beast should be Li Xingba's mount. The three of them should know each other well, so why are they fighting here?"

"Huh, so this is... infighting?" Gao Lanying was a little confused.

At this moment, the situation on the field changed again.

The five-tailed, ferocious creature suddenly swayed, a thick cloud of smoke rising around it. As the smoke swirled, its body began to twist and change, its bones cracking and popping, its fur shrinking, and its claws and teeth retracting…

A moment later, the smoke dissipated, and a human-shaped figure appeared in the spot.

This man was about thirty years old, eight feet tall, with bulging muscles. He wore a crimson animal skin coat and had long, dark red hair. His face was rugged, his eyes were clearly animal pupils, gleaming with bloodlust, and a fang protruded from each side of his mouth.

If it weren't for these animalistic features, at first glance he really would look like a skilled hunter.

"Hahaha!"

The grotesque figure, now in human form, roared with a hoarse, grating laugh. "Long confined in a cage, I, the Great King, am finally free from the wrath of that fool Li Xingba! He thinks he can control me with his Beast Taming Ring? How laughable! I've endured for a hundred years, waiting for this day!"

He turned to look at the heavily injured Bi'an and Suanni, his eyes filled with greed: "You two pieces of trash, though your bloodlines are pure. If I could have condensed dragon blood essence earlier, why would I have had to play the role of a grandson for nearly a hundred years, acting as your colleague?"

The Bixie let out a deep roar, pawing at the ground with its front paws, pouncing. The Suanni behind it also struggled to stand up, but its forelimbs were broken, and it failed several times.

Seeing this, the ferocious beast became even more smug: "However, there's no need to endure it now. Li Xingba is dead, the Beast Taming Ring has lost its effectiveness, and the earth vein fire of Red Reef Island can just help me cultivate. As long as I refine the dragon essence in your bodies, this Great King may be able to reverse my innate nature and achieve the form of an ancient divine beast. At that time, I will be a Golden Immortal, and what can they do to me?"

He spread his arms, and several streams of earth vein fire immediately spewed out from the cracks in the island's ground, swirling around him: "With the blessing of this earth vein fire, it will only take a little more time, but we will eventually be able to refine the dragon essence in your bodies."

Upon hearing this, although the Bixie and Suanni could not speak, their eyes were filled with rage, and they roared.

"Such a deep and cunning mind," Gao Lanying transmitted her voice, her tone icy. "She has endured for nearly a century, all for this day."

Zhang Kui nodded, his eyes already showing a decision.

In the arena, Zheng Ning stopped talking nonsense and his magical power suddenly surged, preparing to completely subdue Bi'an and Suanni.