After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

Zhou Ran didn't reply, but simply took out a tissue and wiped the remaining bloodstains from her fingertips, her tone indifferent.

Don't be too happy yet.

That Gu worm had lived in your heart meridian for too long. Although it was removed, your internal organs had been gnawed and riddled with holes.

I'm just keeping you alive with my breath.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hongli, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, suddenly changed her expression.

"Then... what should we do?"

Zhou Ran, you have a way, right?

Zhou Ran turned and looked out the window.

"To achieve a complete recovery, a key ingredient is needed to rebuild the foundation."

This medicine is not available in the market.

"What medicine?"

"If it exists in this world, I will find it with all the resources of the Xiao family!"

Xiao Hongli said urgently.

"The seven-leaf lingzhi must grow in an extremely yin place."

Zhou Ran gave a name.

Upon hearing this name, Master Bian's pupils constricted sharply on the ground.

This spiritual herb exists only in ancient records. It is said to grow deep in ancient tombs or mass graves, absorbing the earth's energy. It is both extremely yin and extremely yang, making it extremely rare.

How did this young man know about such an unorthodox remedy?

Zhou Ran and Xiao Hongli exchanged a glance, and simultaneously thought of the same person.

Qin Sangui!

In his mind, Ye Futian's aged voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, rang out.

"Kid, this old man's foundation is indeed destroyed, but as long as you are willing to use the Blood Demon Resurrection Technique and sacrifice ten years of your own lifespan, you might be able to make him lively and energetic again immediately."

Zhou Ran sneered inwardly: "Old Deng, don't try to trap me."

I have no relation to him, and I only saved his life because of Hong Li.

Do you want to shorten my lifespan?

Don't even think about it.

At this moment, Xiao Zhenguo seemed to have regained some strength. He struggled to get up, but Xiao Hongli held him down.

"Second... what about that rebellious son?"

Although the old man's voice was weak, it carried an undeniable air of authority.

Xiao Hongli bit her lip, unsure of how to begin.

Chen Ya gave a cold laugh and answered for her:

"Your second son colluded with outsiders to poison you, and just now he even led people to force you out of the Xiao family, trying to drive your granddaughter out of the Xiao family."

Right now, he's probably busy calling his master for help.

Xiao Zhenguo closed his eyes, his chest heaving, and two streams of tears slid down his cheeks.

"What a misfortune for our family... what a misfortune for our family!"

A moment later, the old man opened his eyes again, the grief in them now replaced by a resolute determination.

He looked at Xiao Hongli: "Hongli, go and call the lawyer."

Furthermore, I hereby issue this order: effective immediately, strip Xiao Changfeng's entire lineage of all power and expel them from the family.

The entire Xiao family obeys your every command.

This is the decisiveness of a powerful family leader; even if their heart is breaking, they won't tremble when cutting off their own flesh.

"Young friend Zhou, I am deeply grateful and cannot express my thanks."

Just then, Xiao Zhenguo, who was lying on the hospital bed, coughed violently twice.

Her eyes, which had just regained some of their vitality, looked at Zhou Ran. She laboriously raised her hand and pointed to the area under her pillow.

"Hongli...take...take it out."

Xiao Hongli quickly lifted the pillow and saw an antique sandalwood box underneath.

The wooden box was unlocked, and inside lay a rusty bronze key.

This key has a unique shape, with a ferocious beast head carved at the end, resembling neither a dragon nor a tiger, exuding an ancient and desolate aura.

The moment Zhou Ran saw the key, his pupils contracted slightly.

"This is……"

Zhou Ran reached out and took the key. It was extremely heavy and carried a bone-chilling coldness.

Xiao Zhenguo said, panting:

"This is the Xiao family's... biggest secret."

That port wasn't just for cargo transport.

Years ago, we dug out a strange entrance in the silt below the harbor.

This key is the key to unlocking that place.

"The Song family and the Wuji Sect, what they really want isn't the port itself, but what's below..."

That ruin.

At this point, Xiao Zhenguo seemed to have exhausted all his strength, and his face turned ashen once again.

"Young friend Zhou, this key... I'm handing it over to you."

If you can find that seven-leaf Ganoderma lucidum to save my life, then the things in these ruins...

The Xiao family will not take a single penny; it's all yours!

Zhou Ran held the key, sensing the subtle spiritual energy fluctuations within it.

Remains?

The Earth's spiritual energy is depleted, but that doesn't mean there are no caves left by ancient powerful beings.

If it is truly a historical site, its value is immeasurable.

"make a deal."

Zhou Ran put away the key and gave the order.

"Hongli is staying here to look after the old man. The Xiao family has just been purged, and people's hearts are unsettled. In addition, the Song family is eyeing us covetously, so we can't leave this place unattended."

"Sister Ya, arrange for a few trustworthy and capable people to surround this building. Don't let even a fly in."

......

Half an hour later, a black Maybach drove out of the Xiao family manor and sped towards the old town of Jiangcheng.

Inside the car, Zhou Ran closed his eyes to rest.

He was reviewing the treatment process that had just begun.

That so-called "medical skill" was actually just a reverse application of the demonic technique "The Myriad Spirits' Withering and Rising Technique" taught by Ye Futian.

Demonic cultivators saving people is never about being kind, gentle, respectful, frugal, or modest; it's about plunder.

They plunder the life force of heaven and earth and forcibly infuse it into the human body.

"Kid, that key is something special."

Ye Futian's voice rang out again.

"The aura above feels somewhat familiar to me."

If I'm not mistaken, the ruins beneath the harbor might be a "corpse-raising ground."

"A corpse-raising ground?"

Zhou Ran's heart skipped a beat. "Wouldn't that mean there's a Seven-Leaf Ganoderma?"

"clever.

However, corpse-raising grounds are usually accompanied by great dangers. With your current Qi Condensation Level 6 cultivation, going in might be quite difficult.

unless……"

Night, burdened by the sky, seemed to want to speak but hesitated.

"Unless what?"

"Unless you can absorb the essence of a few more masters, or find a spiritual vein."

He broke through to the late stage of Qi Condensation, which is what you call a "Land Immortal" here.

Zhou Ran opened his eyes, looking at the street scene rushing past the car window, and murmured to himself.

"A master, huh...?"

The Song family and the Wuji Sect should be delivering goods to our door soon.

The old town of Jiangcheng, a street lined with antique shops.

Zhou Ran got out of the car and easily made his way to the underground hall.

As soon as Zhou Ran stepped down the steps, two burly men guarding the entrance stepped forward and stopped him.

"Stop right there, there are rules inside..."

Zhou Ran didn't even look at them, but simply spoke to one of them.

"Go tell Qin San that Zhou Ran has arrived."

The burly man was taken aback for a moment, then sneered.

"You think you can just see our Third Master whenever you want? Did you make an appointment...?"

Before he could finish speaking, he felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight up to the top of his head.

The young man in front of him hadn't done anything, yet he felt as if an invisible hand was gripping his heart, and even his breathing stopped.

His companion beside him was already weak in the knees, stammering, "Master Zhou... Master Zhou?"

A moment later, a flurry of footsteps came from the inner room.

Wearing an expensive Tang suit and holding two top-quality dzi beads in his hands, Master Qin scrambled out.

Upon seeing Zhou Ran, this powerful figure who wielded immense influence in Jiangcheng's underworld instantly bent over at a ninety-degree angle.

"Oh my! My dear Mr. Zhou!"

"Your esteemed presence is an honor! Why didn't you give us a heads-up? We could have sent a grand sedan chair to fetch you!"

He already knew about 70-80% of what happened at the Xiao family last night through his own channels.

Xing Lie, a grandmaster of internal energy cultivation, died suddenly.

The one who made the move was none other than the man standing before us.

Zhou Ran ignored his polite words and went straight to the grand chair that symbolized the highest power in the black market. He sat down and his slender fingers tapped rhythmically on the rosewood armrest.

"I want something."

Zhou Ran finally spoke.

"Seven-leaf Ganoderma lucidum".

The smile on Master Qin's face froze instantly, and cold sweat poured down his face.

"Master Zhou, this...this thing is a legendary ferocious beast!"

It grows in piles of dead bodies; it's for zombies...

"Do you have it?"

Zhou Ran's voice turned colder, and his fingers, which were tapping the table, stopped.

Qin Sanye felt an overwhelming fear grip his throat, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud.

He kowtowed frantically, his voice trembling.

Yes! Yes!

I...I know where it is!

"I don't have any on hand, but... I just received news that the Song family spent a huge sum of money to dig one out of an old grave outside the Great Wall, right there in their secret base in Jiangcheng!"

"The Song family?"

A cold smile slowly curved the corners of Zhou Ran's lips.