Zhou Kai tightened his grip, pulling Wu Hongxiao flush against his side. She felt a surge of fierce, scorching heat radiating from his body at the point of contact. Assuming it was just the natural output of his tyrannical physique and rapid reflexes, she didn’t give it a second thought.
Around them, the battlefield was a cacophony of steel clashing against steel, spells detonating with earth-shaking force, and the shrill screams of Yin Corpses and malevolent ghosts.
“This Golden Copper Dock is a paper tiger,” Wu Hongxiao gasped, catching her breath behind cover. “Why does it feel so easy to break in?”
Zhou Kai kept his eyes scanning the chaos, explaining rapidly, “After the Fu family took control, they became puppets for the Yin Ruins Sect. This place is garrisoned mostly by Yin Ruins cultivators.”
He paused to check a corner, then continued, “Last year, our Sect Leader, Jie Sanxing, baited the Yin Ruins Sect into a trap. They lost a massive chunk of their Golden Core and Foundation Establishment forces. Now, with infighting consuming them, they’re hollowed out. Give it a few years, and this place would have fallen on its own.”
Zhou Kai maintained strict vigilance, his senses stretched to the limit. With a flick of his wrist, the Intercepting Heaven Buckle—the artifact he had obtained from Lin Zhiwei—appeared in his palm.
He channeled Mana into it. The buckle hummed, emitting a faint, almost invisible beam of light that pointed toward the deepest sector of the Golden Copper Dock.
“Stay close!” Zhou Kai ordered in a low voice.
Roughly half a day later, the crushing Aura Pressure of Golden Core cultivators erupted in the sky above the dock.
Brilliant lights shattered the cloud layer. Each collision between the titans sent tremors through the earth, whipping the ambient Spirit Qi into a chaotic frenzy.
“The Golden Core big shots have finally made their move!” Wu Hongxiao looked up, awe in her eyes.
Seizing the distraction, Zhou Kai dragged Wu Hongxiao through the shadows, narrowly avoiding patrol squads until they reached a relatively intact cluster of buildings.
Here, elegant pavilions and terraces stood in stark contrast to the smoking ruins of the outer perimeter. The war hadn’t fully reached this sanctuary yet.
According to the Intercepting Heaven Buckle, this was the ancestral ground of the Lin family—now usurped by the Fu family.
The duo suppressed their auras, crouching behind a decorative rockery.
Just as Wu Hongxiao lowered her communication jade token, a streak of light shot across the sky and touched down silently in front of them. The light dissipated to reveal Du Chuyao.
Her pristine dress was dusted with ash, and a strand of raven hair hung loose across her cheek. She had clearly been fighting, but her breathing was steady, her composure unshaken.
Du Chuyao looked at Zhou Kai. “Situation?”
Zhou Kai’s expression was grave. “The Lin family’s Grand Formation is hidden extremely well. I suspect the Fu family has been sitting on this place for years without knowing the exact entry point.”
He held up the buckle. “According to Lin Zhiwei, if the Formation is breached forcibly, it will self-destruct, taking everything inside with it. The buckle says it’s right here, but Junior Sister Wu and I have swept the area and found nothing.”
Du Chuyao’s Jade Soul Golden Pupils flared with light as she scanned the courtyard. Moments later, she extended a jade-like finger and pointed at the ground beneath their feet.
“We are standing on it. My Spirit Ying Sacred Body senses the energy signature. It’s dangerous… and it’s deep underground.”
Zhou Kai’s eyes lit up. “I’ll trouble you, Fairy!”
Du Chuyao wasted no words. She waved her hand, and the earth groaned, splitting open to reveal a fissure several feet wide.
“Go!”
Zhou Kai and Wu Hongxiao exchanged a glance and leaped into the darkness. Du Chuyao remained above, guarding the entrance.
The passage was winding and steep. After descending roughly a hundred zhang, they hit a dead end—a solid rock wall.
Zhou Kai held the Intercepting Heaven Buckle flat in his palm and poured Mana into it. The runes on the artifact ignited one by one.
Responding to the key, the ordinary rock wall rippled like water, turning transparent. Finally, a light gate—ten feet high and wide enough for three abreast—materialized silently.
Inside the gate was not a stone chamber, but a swirling vortex of chaotic light and shadow.
This Formation is hidden well, Zhou Kai thought with admiration. Even my Divine Sense couldn’t detect a flaw. The Lin ancestor was a genius.
As the gate stabilized, a massive screen of light flickered to life across the entire underground cavern. The Formation had fully activated, revealing its true scale.
Suddenly, two Golden Core auras descended from above.
“What insolent fools dare trespass into the Fu family forbidden ground?!”
“You have a death wish!”
Violent Mana fluctuations exploded overhead as the Fu family guards engaged the intruder. Immediately after, the sounds of Du Chuyao’s icy spells clashing against them echoed down the tunnel.
“Go! Now!” Zhou Kai shoved Wu Hongxiao toward the gate and dove in after her.
Vision warped. Light and shadow danced. When their feet finally touched solid ground, both gasped.
The underground space was colossal.
Rows of titanic shelves stretched into the gloom, laden with materials. In the corners, Spirit Stones were piled like garbage heaps—Low Grade, Middle Grade, and even a shimmering mound of High Grade Spirit Stones. Further in, rows of sealed Jade Slips, ancient texts, and unidentified artifacts waited in silence.
“Sweet mother of…” Wu Hongxiao’s almond eyes were round as saucers. “Senior Brother! If you strike it rich, you have to share!”
She spotted something and practically pounced on a weapon rack.
“By the heavens!” She grabbed a crimson spear, flames seeming to flow beneath its metallic surface. Her face flushed red with excitement. “Profound Fire Flood Dragon Tendon! The shaft is made from the tendon of a dragon! This is insane!”
Zhou Kai was momentarily dazed himself. The Lin family really lived up to their reputation. This foundation is terrifying.
But he snapped back to reality quickly. “Grab what you can, but prioritize safety! If the Formation twitches, run immediately!”
“Got it, got it!” Wu Hongxiao barely heard him. She slung the fiery spear across her back and dove into the nearest pile of Spirit Stones like a starving wolf.
Zhou Kai ignored the wealth. He sprinted toward the archives deep in the treasury.
Thousands of Jade Slips and ancient scrolls lined the shelves. He swept them with his Divine Sense, grimacing as he found mostly generic cultivation manuals and family records.
He moved faster, weaving through the aisles.
Boom—!
A violent tremor shook dust from the ceiling. A cold snort from Du Chuyao echoed from the tunnel entrance. The battle outside was intensifying.
Time blurred. Maybe five minutes passed, maybe an hour. Finally, in a neglected corner, Zhou Kai found a plain, dust-covered wooden box.
It had no protective Restrictions, no spiritual glow. It was so humble he nearly skipped it.
He flipped it open. Inside lay a thin booklet: Cicada Cry Art.
Next to it was an even thinner, nameless booklet bound with strange silk, its cover blank.
Found it!
Zhou Kai swept both books into his Storage Bag.
The moment he did, the entire underground space lurched. A terrified whine of wind and thunder erupted from the walls!
“The Formation is breaking? Who the hell is attacking it? It’s definitely not the Fu family!” Zhou Kai cursed, his face paling.
Above ground, Song Tiancheng led a strike team of Calamity Abyss Valley cultivators. He saw the Grand Formation activate and Du Chuyao fighting off two Golden Core enemies.
Mistaking the location for a critical enemy stronghold initiating a doomsday protocol, Song Tiancheng didn’t hesitate.
“Disciples, hear my command! Combine efforts! Focus fire on a single point and blast this turtle shell open!”
The Calamity Abyss Valley elites obeyed instantly. Dozens of Dharma Treasures lit up the sky, converging into a single beam of destruction that far exceeded the Formation’s load limit. They had no idea their own people were inside.
“Stop!” Du Chuyao sensed the energy spike and screamed, but it was too late.
“Junior Sister Wu!” Zhou Kai’s Divine Sense screamed a warning.
Wu Hongxiao was still frantically stuffing loot into her bag. “This one’s expensive… Zhou Kai owes me a cut of this…”
Zhou Kai’s eye twitched. He didn’t waste breath. He activated Dragon Roaming the Void.
BOOM!
The ceiling cracked. Shards of the light screen peeled away like dry paint. Turbulent energy leaked in, vaporizing a row of shelves instantly.
“Stop looting! It’s collapsing!”
Zhou Kai flashed beside her, grabbed her by the waist, and tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“Hey?! Zhou Kai, what are you doing? This Formation can hold for at least ten days!” Wu Hongxiao protested, dropping a handful of Spirit Stones.
“It’s not a defensive array! It’s a bomb!” Zhou Kai roared.
He channeled every ounce of Vitality and Mana into his legs, sprinting back toward the light gate.
“You should have said so earlier!”
The light gate was crumbling. The exit was shrinking inch by inch.
At the very last second, Zhou Kai launched himself through the closing gap!
ROAR!
The moment they cleared the threshold, the treasury detonated behind them. A shockwave of howling wind and apocalyptic thunder annihilated the cavern. The destructive force didn’t dissipate; it funneled up the tunnel, chasing them like a hungry dragon.
Zhou Kai ran for his life. Vitality burned in his veins. Stray arcs of lightning whipped their backs, shredding clothes and scorching flesh.
“Damn it!”
Wu Hongxiao, bouncing on his shoulder, saw a bolt of lightning closing in on them. Zhou Kai couldn’t dodge it. She gritted her teeth, drew her new spear, and thrust backward with everything she had!
Bang!
The lightning shattered. The recoil nearly tore the weapon from her hands.
Zhou Kai didn’t look back. His eyes were locked on the pinprick of light a hundred zhang above.
Du Chuyao stood at the edge of the pit, her face pale. The two Fu family Golden Core cultivators had already fled, sensing the impending catastrophe.
Just as she raised her hand to cast a rescue spell, two figures shot out of the hole like cannonballs, trailing smoke and lightning!
Zhou Kai was drenched in blood. Wu Hongxiao, draped over his shoulder, looked like a ragdoll.
They cleared the fissure by mere meters before the hole erupted.
KA-BOOM!
A pillar of black wind and purple lightning shot into the sky. The Lin family treasury was gone, reduced to a crater of scorched earth and crackling electricity.
Zhou Kai and Wu Hongxiao tumbled across the ground, rolling to a stop far from the blast zone.
Zhou Kai shook his ringing head and let out a long breath. “Safe.”
Wu Hongxiao scrambled off him, patting out the smoldering patches on her clothes. She blinked, processed what just happened, and then punched Zhou Kai in the arm.
“Zhou Kai! You saved my life again!” Her voice trembled slightly with lingering fear.
Zhou Kai rubbed his arm, grinning through the soot on his face. “A life-saving grace… twice now. How does Junior Sister plan to repay it? How about… promising yourself in marriage?”
Wu Hongxiao’s eyebrows shot up. Her fear vanished, replaced by indignation. She threw another punch, softer this time.
“Repay my foot! Next time you’re lying there like a corpse, I’ll carry you back just like this! That’ll make us even!”
Zhou Kai was left speechless, staring at the sky.
Whatever happened to the script?
Where is the ‘Young Master, your great kindness can only be repaid with my body’ line?
Why do I always get the ‘Cultivation Vessel’ contract or the ‘Sworn Brother’ pact?
This Wu Hongxiao… is there really no hope?
He looked at her dusting off her new spear with a grin.
Yep. This brotherhood is welded shut. Not even a blowtorch could take it apart now.
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