Chapter 287: The Treasure-Seeking Fly

Endless peaks stretched as far as the eye could see; this paradise realm was like a vast mountain range, with all manner of towering peaks rising everywhere, and dense, ancient trees growing thickly—this place was like a primeval forest.

As he was observing everything in the paradise realm, suddenly, a brilliant light erupted from a distant mountain peak. Though it vanished quickly, its brilliance was so intense that nearly everyone here saw this anomaly.

“This place is huge. Why don’t we head south and try our luck? After all, an anomaly just appeared up north—lots of people will rush there.”

Wu Hao suggested.

Lu Fang had no objection. This paradise realm was so vast that it didn’t matter where they went; Wu Hao’s idea of avoiding the crowds appealed to him greatly.

Seeing no one else objected, Wu Hao flew toward the southern mountain range.

They traveled for most of the day. Undoubtedly, they had chosen well—they encountered not a single soul along the way. Perhaps others were ahead of them on this path, but none crossed their path.

“Stop.”

Lingguang Sanren, usually silent, suddenly spoke up.

“What’s wrong?” Wu Hao halted and turned back, frowning at Lingguang Sanren.

Zixu Daoren scanned the surroundings warily. “Lingguang Sanren, did you sense something? Is there an ambush here?”

After all, they were in the Lesser Upper Realm, where death meant others could seize the deceased’s unclaimed fortune—especially with alien races present. Caution was never wrong.

Liu Tong was also on guard.

Lu Fang stared at Lingguang Sanren, puzzled why he’d called a halt. If there truly were ambushes nearby, his hyper-perception should have detected them—but he sensed nothing amiss.

Lingguang Sanren shook his head. “We’re not in danger yet. I stopped you because I wonder: how exactly do we find opportunities?”

Liu Tong frowned. “What’s there to think about? If a rare treasure or other opportunity emerges, an anomaly should appear—we’d all see it.”

Zixu Daoren suddenly understood. “Lingguang Sanren means: do any of you possess treasures or strange beasts capable of locating hidden treasures?”

Wu Hao chuckled bitterly. “Such items are extremely rare. I looked into it before coming—there’s no market for them, only buyers with no sellers. I certainly don’t have one.”

He didn’t say the rest: even if someone did have such a treasure, they’d likely refuse to reveal it.

After all, they were only a temporary alliance. Once they left this paradise realm, they might become enemies.

Lu Fang glanced at Lingguang Sanren and smiled. “Since you brought it up, you must have one yourself?”

“Correct. I do possess one strange insect capable of locating hidden treasures.” Lingguang Sanren admitted openly. “But I have only one. Once awakened, it will die automatically within three days.”

“If we wander aimlessly like this, by the time another anomaly appears, others will have already rushed there—we’ll get nothing.”

“Each of you give me five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones, and I’ll release the insect to seek hidden opportunities. We stand a strong chance of finding something valuable. What do you say?”

For an ordinary second-rank cultivator, five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones was no small sum.

But every cultivator here who had reached this paradise realm had some status or backing in the Zhou Empire—they all had at least five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones.

Seeing the others remain silent, Wu Hao smiled and was the first to speak up. He pulled out a storage bag and tossed it to Lingguang Sanren. “Five hundred mid-grade spirit stones for a chance at a paradise realm opportunity? This deal is too good.”

Lingguang Sanren caught the bag, glanced inside, confirmed it contained five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones, but didn’t immediately put it away. He said:

“Let me be clear: I can’t guarantee the insect will find any opportunity in this paradise realm. These five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones buy only a possibility.”

Frankly, this price wasn’t unfair.

If I hadn’t stumbled upon this paradise realm, I wouldn’t have dared to bring out the insect—it’s incredibly rare and precious.

The only regret is that it can be used only once—but even so, it’s easily worth two thousand mid-grade Wanda stones.

“Here’s my five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones.” Zixu Daoren pulled out a storage bag and tossed it to Lingguang Sanren.

Liu Tong and Lu Fang each handed over five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones at the same time.

After collecting two thousand mid-grade Wanda stones, Lingguang Sanren wasted no time. He pulled a bamboo tube from his person, tapped it lightly, and soon a tiny insect, no larger than a thumbnail, with a hard carapace, crawled out.

“This is the special treasure-seeking insect, the Treasure-Seeking Fly. It moves at incredible speed and can sense anomalous fluctuations invisible to cultivators. It uses this unique perception to locate hidden treasures.”

After explaining, Lingguang Sanren tapped the insect gently with his finger. The little creature flapped its black wings and shot swiftly toward the south.

“Incredible speed!”

Wu Hao was startled and immediately gave chase.

Lu Fang, Zixu Daoren, and Liu Tong were also shocked—no wonder the Treasure-Seeking Fly was famed for its speed. It truly was fast.

But everyone here was no ordinary cultivator. With focused attention, they could keep up—even more so with Lingguang Sanren leading the way.

They followed the Treasure-Seeking Fly from day into night. Along the way, they encountered places where anomalies had appeared—but those spots had already been seized by several teams and alien races.

These teams were mostly first-rank cultivators and aliens who had entered earlier.

In strength and resources, Lu Fang’s group had no reason to fight them. With the Treasure-Seeking Fly, and so many hidden places and treasures in this paradise realm, they had no reason to fail.

The next evening,

Lingguang Sanren suddenly halted, his face alight with excitement as he stared ahead at a massive mountain. “The Treasure-Seeking Fly has found a hidden special site—right up ahead on that mountain.”

Without delay, he flew forward.

Lu Fang and the others rushed after him. When they arrived, they saw the Treasure-Seeking Fly crawling atop a stone stele—the surface of which bore carved characters.