Chapter 250: Crisis Averted

Brother, honestly, that "decomposition" you just did was scarier than me just eating it.

Wang Zhitao patted his round, plump belly, glanced again at the empty ground, and couldn't help smacking his lips.

It felt like watching the most advanced magic act, the kind where the magician and his props disappear together.

Wang Zhize said nothing, simply stood there quietly, sensing the pulse of the whole space.

Very steady.

The previous sense of raging, twisted, destructive aura had completely vanished, replaced by a heavy, solid, rock‑like stability. Grandfather's spirit‑light hovered silently at the Core of the space, like an tireless star, radiating gentle yet powerful light and heat, making every corner crystal clear.

Here, it's safe.

"Hey, bro, what are you thinking?" Wang Zhitao leaned in, "Researching new functions for this 'backend administrator'?"

"I'm thinking, the 'manual' Grandfather left behind is quite detailed," Wang Zhize waved the jade tablet in his hand.

Now he no longer needs to use his eyes to read the jade tablet; as long as he holds it, all the information streams into his mind naturally, like an innate instinct.

From the space's structure, to the operation of the laws, to the circulation of energy, everything is as clear as his own palm lines.

"Hey, what good stuff is there? Is there a one‑click instant‑kill function for the Nascent Soul old monster?" Wang Zhitao asked, his face full of expectation.

"Yes." Wang Zhize replied, concise and decisive.

"Really?!" Wang Zhitao's eyes lit up.

"Lure the Nascent Soul old monster in, then close the door. As long as it steps here, not even a Spirit Severing would be able to break free." Wang Zhize's tone was calm, yet exuded undeniable confidence.

In this realm shaped by Grandfather, he is the rule‑maker.

Wang Zhitao laughed, pounded his chest and said, "That's perfect! It's an invincible turtle shell! Whoever provokes us later, just let them walk into the jar!"

"It's a trap, also a furnace," Wang Zhize corrected, "and also… home."

When he uttered the final word, his voice was very soft.

Wang Zhitao's smile faded a bit; he scratched his head, looked at the surrounding vast yet reassuring space, and nodded.

Yeah, home.

At that moment, a faint moan came from not far away.

"Sss… why does my head feel like it got kicked by a donkey…" Li Hu rubbed the back of his head, swayed as he sat up, his eyes still a bit dazed, "Zhitao? Zhize? Are we… ascending?"

He looked around and saw a vast, boundless strange space, the ground a mirror‑smooth black‑gold, the dome above swirling with countless runes, and at the center floated a massive humanoid light‑shadow, radiating an awe‑inspiring authority that one dared not stare at directly.

This scene dwarfed any heavenly palace in myths or legends.

"Shut up, you're up in the sky; I think you just overslept," Zhang Mei said from the other side, also waking up. She was far calmer than Li Hu, and first checked her body, finding only some weakness but no serious injury.

But her brows knit tightly.

"The energy here… has changed," she said softly, her tone tinged with wonder, "very stable, very gentle, but… also makes it hard to breathe."

As a law cultivator, her perception of energy was far sharper than Li Hu's. The previous space's energy raged like a pot of boiling water, ready to explode at any moment. Now, the energy here is pure, heavy, and carries an absolute, unresistible sense of control. It's as if every particle in the air had its own will.

Li Hu snapped back to his senses, suddenly recalling what happened before he fainted, his face turning pale: "Right! Those guys in black! And Grandfather Wang! Old Lao Wang…"

The two brothers exchanged a glance, each already having a sense of the situation.

Wang Zhitao cleared his throat, stepped forward, patted Li Hu's shoulder, and adopted a carefree air.

"Cough! So, my grandpa, Grandfather Wang! His divine might is unmatched, he drove those villains away!" he said, gesturing, "Then he had other business, so he set off to cloud‑travel across the seas!"

Li Hu opened his mouth wide: "Left… left? Those guys? All driven away?"

"That's not it!" Wang Zhitao pounded his chest with a bang, "When my grandpa steps in, one can take on two! No, one can take on a hundred!"

This line of talk might still fool Li Hu.

But Zhang Mei's gaze passed over Wang Zhitao, settled on Wang Zhize, and finally lingered on the massive humanoid light‑shadow at the center of the space.

"Grandfather Wang… really left?" her voice was soft yet clear, "Then… what is that?"

The atmosphere instantly fell silent.

Li Hu followed her gaze, finally noticing the light sphere he dared not stare at directly, and was stunned. This thing, however it looked, didn't seem naturally formed.

Wang Zhize walked over, his expression calm.

"Grandfather Wang paid a great price to rescue us," he said slowly, his voice low yet clear to everyone, "This place is an ancient cultivator's cave he found for us. The center is the inheritance Core left by the cave's master."

He recited the pre‑written lie, half‑truth half‑false, sounding far more credible than Wang Zhitao's spiel.

"Grandfather hopes we can use this inheritance here, cultivate properly until we have enough self‑defense power, then leave on our own."

"Inheritance Core?" Li Hu looked at the light‑shadow, still a bit uneasy, "This thing… can't be dangerous, right?"

"With Grandfather here, what danger could there be?" Wang Zhitao immediately replied, trying to smooth things over.

The moment he uttered it, he himself was stunned.

Wang Zhize also felt a shiver in his heart.

Yeah, with Grandfather here, what danger could there be?

He looked at the light sphere, as if he could see Grandfather's ever‑kind, smiling eyes.

Zhang Mei seemed to sense something, didn't ask further, just silently watched the light sphere, her gaze complex.

Li Hu, being a blunt sort, didn't overthink; hearing Wang Zhize's words, his worries eased. He had been struggling for a while, thirsty and exhausted, licked his cracked lips: "So… any water to drink? I'm dying of thirst. In this damned place, we can't even get a sip of water…"

Before he could finish, he suddenly stopped.

A cup, formed from the black‑gold rocks of the ground, suddenly appeared before him, hovering in midair. Immediately, strands of vapor coalesced in the cup, and in an instant it turned into a glass‑clear cup of water.

The whole process was silent, eerie yet miraculous.

"..." Li Hu's eyes nearly popped out. He looked at the cup, then at the calm‑faced Wang Zhize, stammering, "Zhize… Zhize, did you… did you make this?"

"This is a place of inheritance; moving some energy is not difficult," Wang Zhize replied lightly.

Wang Zhitao, watching from the side, eyes sparkling, almost couldn't help whistling.

Bro, awesome! This setup, I give it full marks!

Li Hu shakily took the cup, drank a sip, and a wave of cool, sweet sensation instantly spread through his body, lifting his spirit a few notches.

"Whoa! Immortal water!" he exclaimed.

Zhang Mei watched the scene, her eyes filled with even greater astonishment and doubt. This meticulous control over matter and energy was beyond her understanding of a "inheritance." It wasn't inheriting any technique at all; it was more like… becoming the god of this space.

But she wisely said nothing more. She knew that the Wang Family brothers had undergone earth‑shattering changes, and the Core of those changes might be linked to the already "departed" Wang grandfather and the truth they were unwilling to elaborate.

Since they didn't want to speak, they wouldn't ask. Among friends, trust is paramount.

"Bro, this move is way too convenient!" Wang Zhitao said excitedly, rubbing his hands. "From now on, do we even need to order takeout? Want hot pot, just conjure a pot? Then conjure some beef and mutton?"

"…" Wang Zhize glanced at him. "I can only manipulate the basic matter and energy here, and can't yet create beef or mutton. Moreover, everything here is formed from Grandpa's power, so we can't waste it arbitrarily."

"Oh, right." Wang Zhitao sheepishly rubbed his nose. "We have to use it sparingly."

The crisis was temporarily averted, the friends had revived, and the tense atmosphere finally eased.

Wang Zhize once again sank his mind into the jade tablet, and the "manual" left by Grandpa became increasingly clear in his mind.

Shelter, cage, trap, furnace… and the prototype of the Divine Kingdom.

He and his younger brother are the controller and energy engine of this prototype Divine Kingdom.

Three generations—grandfather, father, and grandson—are eternally linked in an unfathomable way.

He lifted his head, his gaze piercing the vast emptiness, as if seeing the perilous world outside, seeing the massive entity hidden in the shadows, coveting their bloodline—"Shadow."

The sorrow and longing in his chest had, at some point, settled and turned into a cold, hard stone.

He turned, watching his brother beside him, who was heartlessly discussing with Li Hu how to use the new ability to conjure roast chicken, and watching Zhang Mei calmly meditating to recover.

"Tao Tao."

"Huh? Bro, what's up?"

Wang Zhize's gaze was unprecedentedly resolute.

"From today onward, this place is our cultivation ground and our arsenal."

His voice echoed through the vast space, clear and powerful.

"That organization called 'Shadow', and that damn empire that wants to take our alchemy…"

"They owe the Wang Family, and I'll make them repay us tenfold, a hundredfold."