Chapter 88

In Xiao Fan’s bedroom, a bright light appeared.

“Ahh—!!!”

Screaming in agony, Xiao Fan clutched his neck and staggered backward, finally collapsing onto the bed.

The horrifying scene replayed endlessly in his mind: that monstrous, ghoul-like figure, and the sword she swung down.

“Xiao Fan! Xiao Fan!”

“Are you alright, Xiao Fan?”

His parents’ anxious calls reached his ears, and then gentle Foundation Establishment spiritual energy flowed into his body.

Gradually, he calmed down and softly sensed his own body.

emm…

It doesn’t hurt at all.

Did I not die?

Releasing his grip on his neck and confirming his body was truly unharmed, Xiao Fan felt a pang of embarrassment.

To ease the embarrassment—and to make his earlier actions seem less abrupt—he pretended to struggle for a while, then slowly calmed down.

He slowly opened his eyes, meeting his parents’ worried expressions.

Xiao Fan felt a wave of self-reproach.

“Sorry, Dad, Mom. I worried you just now.”

“It’s fine! As long as you’re alright.”

Xiao Fan’s mother embraced him tightly, still shaken but offering comfort.

Xiao Fan’s father, though offering similar reassurances, had gradually loosened his clenched fists—clearly, he too had breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Ming stood silently at the bedroom door, observing.

As a Golden Core–cultivated body cultivator, he could detect deception in low-level cultivators by observing changes in their expressions, blood flow, heart rate, and more.

‘Xiao Fan’s apology just now truly seemed sincere.’

Yet given his bizarre behavior in the secret realm, Xiao Ming refrained from drawing a conclusion.

After calming his parents, Xiao Fan turned to Xiao Ming, who stood at the door.

The two brothers locked eyes.

Xiao Fan scratched his head awkwardly: “Brother, were you also eliminated?”

Huh? Xiao Ming frowned.

Is he genuinely unaware, or pretending?

Seeing his younger brother’s expression, unfeigned and earnest, Xiao Ming grew momentarily confused.

“Yes, I was eliminated too.” He paused, then spoke with solemn seriousness, “Aren’t you the one who eliminated me?”

"Hmm, I got eliminated too." After a pause, he said seriously, "Aren't I the one you eliminated?"

Xiao Fan froze.

He eliminated his older brother? How could that be possible!

Xiao Fan’s parents were also startled by this news, but they didn’t want their sons to argue. They opened their mouths to speak.

“Let me explain.” A gentle voice entered the brothers’ ears.

Instantly, everything around them receded, just as when they had been pulled into the combat space within the secret realm.

But unlike the gray, hazy combat space, this place was blindingly white, and at its center stood a figure of ordinary appearance and gentle aura, smiling at them.

Yet compared to the gray, hazy battle space, what lay before him was a blinding white expanse, where a figure of ordinary appearance and gentle demeanor stood at the center, smiling at the two.

Huh? Does Xiao Fan know this mysterious cultivator? Then was his earlier change related to this figure? “Indeed, his transformation is tied to me.” Huo seemed to read Xiao Ming’s thoughts.

It really is him! Xiao Ming’s heart jolted, and he bowed respectfully.

“May I ask, Master, why did you do this?”

Concerned for his younger brother, he no longer cared whether the question was impolite.

“I saw his pure heart—he was willing to sever his own path to save his elder brother. I could not bear to let him perish, so I granted him a boon.”

Huh?! Wait, you call that a ‘boon’? Did I misunderstand the word?

“Reconnecting his path, ensuring endless opportunities—isn’t that a boon?”

"Isn't the chance to restore your Dao path, with endless opportunities, itself destiny?"

“Right, Brother! The *Clan’s techniques are incredible! The ‘Pastoral Spirit, Nourish Self Scripture’ lets me forge a Heaven-Born Foundation without relying on celestial treasures.” Xiao Fan hurried to say.

The influence of Gu had vanished, and Xu Xing’s sword had severed most of the connection—he had reverted to the innocent, adoring younger brother he once was.

Yet he still believed the *Clan was a branch of humanity, an ancient, once-powerful but now-declined minority.

Still, he continued to regard the Cang Clan as a branch of the human race—a minority group that was once powerful in ancient times but has since declined.

Though the method was bizarre, at least his true nature was preserved.

But compared to the young disciple supported by Dao Brother, he still fell far short.

Xiao Ming heard none of what Xiao Fan said—he only saw his mouth moving.

“The *Clan is not, as you believe, a branch of humanity. On the contrary, the *Clan is our people’s mortal enemy.” Huo finally began to explain.

Xiao Fan froze completely—this contradicted everything he believed.

“Inside the secret realm, you used the ‘Pastoral Spirit, Nourish Self Scripture’ to harvest spiritual essence, only to be seized by the *Clan Ancestor, who took over your body.”

"Inside the secret realm, you harvested spiritual essence using the Mu Ling Yang Wu Jing, only to be seized upon by the Cang Clan’s ancestor, who took over your body."

“Then, the *Clan Ancestor commanded his enslaved Tongxuan Grass Beasts to surround and kill your elder brother.”

I… killed my brother?! No! That’s impossible!

But as Huo’s words entered his ears, memories stirred in his mind:

Himself standing before his mortally wounded elder brother, then coldly piercing his brow with a single finger.

After that, he went to hunt down Brother Zhang…

After that, I went after Classmate Zhang...

So that was why he ultimately died in her hands—her wounds were inflicted by him.

So in the end, I died in her hands—turns out the wounds on her body were inflicted by me.

He still clung to a faint, idealized fantasy of the *Clan.

Images of figures herding stars and commanding all spirits flashed through his mind… How could they not be human?

Only humanity could possess such grandeur!

The *Clan must be a branch of humanity… emm…

After his cognition twisted, it had become this extreme belief.

How to put it? It was strange, yes.

But he could now understand why Gu chose to take over this boy’s body.

“Whether you believe it or not, the *Clan is our people’s mortal enemy.” Some truths must be clarified. “You now carry *Clan blood. I will name one thing—you should sense it.”

"Whether you believe it or not, the Cang Clan is our people’s greatest enemy." Some things must be made clear: "You now carry Cang Clan blood. I’ll name one thing—you should sense it."

Qianling Ganlu?

As Huo’s voice reached him, the *Clan blood within his body transmitted a piece of information.

Qianling Ganlu requires three thousand human infants under one year old—each heart cut open, blood extracted, mixed with Supo Zhenhua, refined over nine years with Yangjing Danxi as fuel, and purified souls as kindling, to produce but one cup.

Its flavor is indescribably exquisite, enhancing spiritual essence.

Vivid, crystal-clear images unfolded before him, detailing the entire process of Qianling Ganlu’s creation.

Watching children sobbing as their hearts were ripped open, Xiao Fan’s face turned ashen.

But the next moment, something even more devastating happened.

An intensely sweet, incomparably delightful taste flooded his mouth—his soul felt euphoric, floating on the sensation.

This flavor—was Qianling Ganlu.

Gag—! Xiao Fan could no longer hold back; he collapsed to his knees and vomited.

He vomited while weeping! The taste was exquisite—but knowing it was brewed from the blood of three thousand infants filled him with revulsion. The vomit did not pile up; it vanished instantly.

He vomited as he wept! The flavor was fresh and delicious, but the thought that it was brewed from the blood of three thousand infants filled him with revulsion—the vomit did not pile up, but vanished instantly.

Xiao Ming could not hear their words, but seeing him like this, he grew frantic—wanting to rush over, yet unable to move.

“Because of one of my Dao Brothers, you have temporarily escaped the *Clan blood’s influence—but that does not mean it will cease.” Huo continued, “Soon, you will adapt—even grow to enjoy this taste. Then what will you do?”

“Perhaps you will choose to devour your parents and your elder brother?”

Gag—! As if vomiting up his internal organs.

After a long while, the taste faded. Xiao Fan was nearly collapsed, yet forced himself to stand.

He bowed deeply and respectfully.

“What should I do, Master?”

He did not want—did not want at all—to become a monster that devoured people.

“I will teach you how to suppress the *Clan blood. But you must forever remember: you are, and always will be, human.”

Xiao Fan did not hesitate—he dropped to his knees and slammed his forehead to the ground.

“Disciple Xiao Fan, bows to you, Master!”

Perhaps because of Dao Zun’s peculiar disciple, or perhaps because of Dao Brother’s sword.

Either way, Huo wished to take a disciple.

In short, Huo Xiang wanted to take a disciple.

…………

Inside the secret realm.

Beneath the central sword peak, Lin QiuXian sat with eyes closed, cultivating his breath; only he remained beneath the peak.

Outside the sword peak, several hundred meters away.

A figure crept cautiously along the narrow fissures between the rocks, his aura suppressed to the extreme, nearly imperceptible.

Every few steps forward, he halted to observe carefully, confirming no danger before proceeding further.

Thus he advanced nearly a hundred meters, the view gradually opening until he could see Lin QiuXian seated beneath the sword peak.

Puff~ A faint, almost inaudible sound—the figure transformed into a dull gray bean, which shattered upon hitting the ground and blended into the rough terrain.

Several li away, a cluster of unremarkable, tangled rocks

Yet within lay a hidden space, large enough to hold several people; Han Yun sat in a corner, slowly opening his eyes.

“Indeed, the first to arrive is the brute from Sword Sect.”

Those fools who charge ahead without caution are utterly reckless.

“Pity, my Bean-to-Soldier technique pales beside my younger brother’s.”

Thus, until now, he had only uncovered seventeen obscure yet safe paths leading beneath the sword peak.

And Yang’s younger brother…

With his Bean-to-Soldier technique, he must have already mapped over thirty safe paths by now.

No choice—this place forbids the Paper-Cut-Life technique; the burning flame would be far too conspicuous.

Clearly, after returning, I must further cultivate several transformation arts.

The sect has no shortage of such spells and techniques, and some of my uncles and aunts have even refined them so even low-level cultivators can use them.

Then, Han Yun began meditating to restore his spiritual power.

He would not advance until he had mapped over fifty safe paths.

Grow stealthily. Don’t be reckless.

That was his life creed.

Meanwhile, a slender figure fled at high speed—and unluckily, she drew near Han Yun’s location.

It was Jiang Yujiu, her eyes filled with terror.

Just moments ago, she had been resting in hiding when she saw a female cultivator from Lingyin Workshop and a cold-faced female sword cultivator enter the combat zone.

Yet only seconds later, the female sword cultivator emerged! Damn it!

In seconds? You treat it like crushing a bug?

Even more absurd—over a dozen Tongxuan Grass Monsters drawn by the commotion were wiped out in an instant.

It was like cutting grass.

Sure, these things are technically grass—but they’re Level Nine Qi Refining grass!

Second update, another three thousand characters! Six thousand total. Another chapter will be posted this evening, also three or four thousand characters.

Future updates will stick to this schedule—after all, this was the routine before the subscription launch, and everyone’s used to it.

I’ll try to post more. Please, dear readers, support me!! (End of chapter)