[{"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-60":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},2292023,4481,"Chapter 60: The Ten-Day Pact","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-60",60,"\u003Cp>Lu Fang leaned in to examine the scorpion; its entire body was ice-blue, with pincers at the ends of its chelicerae resembling scissors, their carapace densely covered with granular spines, and its tail curved into a hook glowing with a blue luminescence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heteromorphic beasts differ from demons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their intelligence is limited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Except for a few exceptions, they almost all follow their animal instincts, making them extremely difficult to tame or enlighten; they typically dwell in the most dangerous and uninhabited places.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Special regions have given rise to various heteromorphic beasts, and precisely because of these extreme environmental factors, they have grown powerful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How strong is it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng’s face still glowed green; half of it was frozen stiff, the other half twisted in pain, his words slurred:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s slightly stronger than an ordinary seventh-rank Confucian scholar—mainly because its carapace is too hard. I struck it several times with a war-poem-formed hammer at full power, and only then did I manage to injure it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Its front pincers are immensely powerful—they can crush stone into powder. Imagine what would happen if they clamped down on human flesh and bone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The hardest thing to deal with is its scorpion tail poison. I was stung once; at first, my whole body went slightly numb, but it wasn’t obvious.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Now, even after taking an antidote pill, half my body is stiff—I doubt I’ll recover in less than a while.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zixuan joked: “Wang Teng, aren’t you always bragging when you drink that no Confucian scholar has a body stronger than yours? Even this little scorpion poison can’t be endured?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng rolled his eyes. “You get stung by this scorpion, and you’ll understand why. Can the toxins of a heteromorphic beast be compared to ordinary ones? Lord Wenguan, please give me another antidote pill—I’m in agony.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang nodded, pulled out a porcelain vial of antidote pills from his storage pouch, and tossed it over—but Wang Teng’s stiff hand failed to catch it, a clear sign of the scorpion tail poison’s potency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bubbles had vanished again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang paused, then said: “Everyone, when you enter the next bubble, be doubly cautious. This time it was the ice-blue venomous scorpion; next time, who knows what danger we’ll face?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The talented woman Tao Yidie covered her mouth and laughed: “Next time we find a bubble, I suggest the strongest among us enter first. That way, even if we encounter a powerful heteromorphic beast, the danger won’t be too great.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Wang Teng’s misfortune as a warning, everyone nodded in agreement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Half a cup of tea passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They found another bubble, clearly much larger; unlike the previous transparent ones, this one was semi-translucent, as if coated with a thin layer of frost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone looked at each other, none willing to enter first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll go.” Lu Fang summoned his Black Armor to cling to his body, with Yan Chixia beside him, and stepped forward to touch the bubble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, a tremendous force yanked him violently inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a rocky area, roughly three training grounds in size, with a small bubble sunken deep into the ground, its exposed half-radius empty inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is the hetero-herb underground?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang circled the small bubble, reached in, and pulled out a handful of pebbles—confirmed they were all ordinary stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A thought struck him!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Fluorescent Moon Sword plunged straight down, spinning like a drill to dig into the earth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He dug a pit half a man’s height deep and still saw no hetero-herb—just as he was about to give up—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ding!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A metallic clang rang out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang retracted the Fluorescent Moon Sword and found, at the bottom of the pit, a disc-sized piece of Huang Gang Stone—an excellent grade-two material for forging.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This big!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stored the Huang Gang Stone in his pouch, saw the small bubble shatter, casually searched the area for anything unusual, and then stepped out of the bubble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lord Wenguan, what’s inside?” All eyes turned to Lu Fang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang made no secret of it—he pulled out the Huang Gang Stone. Instantly, gasps and murmurs of envy erupted around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grade-two materials are far rarer than grade-one; selling such a large piece of this would bring a substantial profit in silver taels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, they moved through over a dozen locations; most people gained substantial rewards and began to discern patterns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For instance, the heavenly treasures within the bubbles, so far recorded, include hetero-herbs, heteromorphic beasts, and rare minerals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The size and color of the bubbles, ranked by difficulty, rarity, and danger, are transparent, semi-translucent, and white.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Entering a white bubble is most dangerous if a heteromorphic beast is encountered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as one touches the bubble again promptly, one can escape immediately to avoid risk; with a little caution, there’s virtually no life-threatening danger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zixuan had just obtained a grade-two Flame Herb and grinned broadly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is truly a fengshui treasure land. The ancient traces have turned into ten thousand streams of light flying everywhere. Sticking together like this wastes time—we should split up and seek our own fortunes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you run into trouble, use a message talisman to contact each other. If anyone finds a bubble with a heteromorphic beast, share the information.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you all think?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang nodded with a smile. Waiting for one person while the rest stood by was indeed inefficient. The bubbles held danger, but it could be avoided.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demon barbarians couldn’t possibly sneak into this ancient human land to ambush—even if the suppression here was minimal, they wouldn’t arrive anytime soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s highly likely the demon barbarians are also exploring the bubbles in their own territories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I fully support it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng’s scorpion poison had fully cleared; he raised both hands dramatically, his face beaming with anticipation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I support it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I support it too!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Use message talismans to stay in touch.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone looked eager to go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang declared: “Since no one objects, it’s settled—we’ll regroup at the northern point a hundred kilometers ahead in ten days, to guard against a demon barbarian ambush.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“See you in ten days, Lord Wenguan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Teng dashed off first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone bid farewell and flew off in all directions—even Luo Sha and Shui Yao departed; though they faced slight restrictions in this ancient human land, it didn’t greatly hinder them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Aren’t you leaving?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang looked at the only one left—He Zixuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zixuan grimaced. “I forgot you don’t have a message talisman. Otherwise, I’d go with you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang smiled and shook his head. “No need. This area isn’t small, but it’s not huge either—there are people everywhere. If I want to find you, it won’t be hard. Go seek your fortune without worry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zixuan thought it over—indeed, it was true—and chose a direction and left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang took flight at the same moment, heading toward a distant area—being alone was far freer; he could act as he pleased without considering others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t rush into the nearby transparent bubbles; instead, he planned to use his speed to quickly locate larger ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bubbles formed from ancient traces?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Interesting—could there be ancient divine arts inside?\u003C\u002Fp>",1190,"2026-06-20T03:56:21.568Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","1c65fd39df8f9d94e811d508559e625031c74b5b0b4086b6349461fce085a42b","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-61","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-59",289,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-cover.jpg"]