[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou":3,"chapter-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-287":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Ink Saint of Great Zhou",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2292250,4481,"Chapter 287: The Treasure-Seeking Fly","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-287",287,"\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Hao suggested.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing no one else objected, Wu Hao flew toward the southern mountain range.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stop.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lingguang Sanren, usually silent, suddenly spoke up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s wrong?” Wu Hao halted and turned back, frowning at Lingguang Sanren.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zixu Daoren scanned the surroundings warily. “Lingguang Sanren, did you sense something? Is there an ambush here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Tong was also on guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lingguang Sanren shook his head. “We’re not in danger yet. I stopped you because I wonder: how exactly do we find opportunities?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zixu Daoren suddenly understood. “Lingguang Sanren means: do any of you possess treasures or strange beasts capable of locating hidden treasures?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t say the rest: even if someone did have such a treasure, they’d likely refuse to reveal it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, they were only a temporary alliance. Once they left this paradise realm, they might become enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang glanced at Lingguang Sanren and smiled. “Since you brought it up, you must have one yourself?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we wander aimlessly like this, by the time another anomaly appears, others will have already rushed there—we’ll get nothing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For an ordinary second-rank cultivator, five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones was no small sum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frankly, this price wasn’t unfair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only regret is that it can be used only once—but even so, it’s easily worth two thousand mid-grade Wanda stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here’s my five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones.” Zixu Daoren pulled out a storage bag and tossed it to Lingguang Sanren.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Tong and Lu Fang each handed over five hundred mid-grade Wanda stones at the same time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After explaining, Lingguang Sanren tapped the insect gently with his finger. The little creature flapped its black wings and shot swiftly toward the south.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Incredible speed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Hao was startled and immediately gave chase.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But everyone here was no ordinary cultivator. With focused attention, they could keep up—even more so with Lingguang Sanren leading the way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These teams were mostly first-rank cultivators and aliens who had entered earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next evening,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without delay, he flew forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>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.\u003C\u002Fp>",1022,"2026-06-20T03:56:22.339Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","cf7adf4e1142f022a34c7e773bfe76b94c960148f2dfa1c11e6fffd9b147d7d7","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-288","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-286",289,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-cover.jpg"]