Chapter 267: Darkness Under the Lamp

"So there's a lead?"

Hearing about the fifth Spirit Beast King's blood, Li Yuan's eyes lit up; he hurriedly invited Zhang Ada into the room and poured wine and tea.

The Bai Tan Spirit Goat King, the Spirit Fire Ling Ox King, the Cloud Sea Deer King, plus this jar of Spirit Desolate Wolf King's blood in hand—he now possessed four of the five Spirit Beast King's bloods he needed.

"Come to think of it, our Hundred Beast Mountain has quite a few Spirit Beast Kings; if it weren't for you, junior brother, insisting on those specific ones, senior brother would have found them for you long ago."

Raising his wine cup, Zhang Ada smiled as he recounted the origin of this jar of Spirit Desolate Wolf King's blood.

Great sects in the world all have the habit of raising Spirit Beasts, but those capable of raising Beast Kings, apart from the imperial court and the Wudadao Sect, are merely a handful.

The Spirit Desolate Wolf King is the Beast King raised by the 'Tian Lang Gate' in Dingzhou; for this jar of blood, he paid a heavy price, not just in Spirit Beast bones and blood, but also in favors.

"Thank you, senior brother."

Zhang Ada spoke obscurely, yet Li Yuan naturally understood his meaning; he clasped his fists in thanks, deeply appreciative.

"We are all brothers; junior brother, you are too formal."

Zhang Ada's smile grew even warmer; upon returning to the mountain, passing the Dragon Stele, he had seen Li Yuan's current ranking.

Entering the sect less than a year ago, he had actually fought his way to the fortieth position on the Dragon List, faster even than Long Long Xinglie back in the day; although the latter had not practiced Wu Gong when he entered, this still showed Li Yuan's astonishing talent, truly a peerless genius.

A jar of blood exchanged for the favor of such a figure was naturally an excellent bargain.

"Senior brother has worked hard."

Li Yuan raised his cup to toast.

He had never minded owing people favors; at times, this could quickly draw people closer; a relationship of interest was still a relationship.

"Come, drink."

Zhang Ada had returned dusty and weary, also thirsty, so naturally he accepted without refusal.

After drinking a few cups, without waiting for Li Yuan to ask, he began speaking of the fifth Spirit Beast King's blood:

"Junior brother, have you heard of the Golden-Eyed Angry Clear Chicken?"

"Angry Clear Chicken?"

Li Yuan pondered: "On the Hundred Beast List of Mount Hengshan, there seems to be such a creature?"

"The Angry Clear Chicken is not rare; many small and medium sects, such as the Pang Pang Liexue Mountain in Huizhou and Sanyuan Wu, raise some. But the Golden-Eyed Angry Clear Chicken is very rare; on Mount Hengshan Dao, there are openly only that pair."

Zhang Ada knew all kinds of Spirit Beasts like the back of his hand, but at this moment he did not show off; after a slight pause, he said: "That pair of Spirit Chicken Kings is in the hands of Jin Jin Shengwu, the old master Jin, at the Yellow Dragon Mountain Villa."

"Old Master Jin?"

Li Yuan frowned slightly.

Anyone addressed as 'Old Master' by the helmsman of the Dragon-Tiger Temple was naturally no ordinary person.

The Yellow Dragon Mountain Villa is a prefecture-level sect in Dingzhou, with a reputation even greater than that of the Huai Long Palace and the Seven Fiends Gate; the reason, naturally, is this Old Master Jin.

The sixth person on the Hero List, a grandmaster-level giant, famous for over a hundred years, with supreme Wu Gong, and known for being generous and having wide connections; even Long Long Yingchan, the Dao Master of the Dragon-Tiger Dao, received his guidance in his youth.

In terms of martial arts seniority, he ranks higher than Long Xi Xiang and Nie Xianshan.

"Is Senior Brother Zhang joking?"

Li Yuan's eye twitched, his gaze somewhat unfriendly: "Who dares to draw blood from the chickens raised by Old Master Jin?"

Rather than offend a supreme grandmaster, he might as well go to the Wind Thunder Valley to catch that pair of Winged Lei Quan Kings.

"Others might not be able to, but junior brother, you might."

Zhang Ada smiled: "Junior brother, having entered the sect not long ago, you may not know, but Uncle Long and this Old Master Jin are friends despite the age gap; back then..."

"Stop."

Li Yuan frowned and interrupted.

"Junior brother, do not rush; listen to me explain slowly."

"... Senior Brother, it is better to be brief."

Li Yuan adjusted his mood.

"Come to think of it, that pair of Spirit Chicken Kings was originally brought back from the Imperial Capital by Uncle Long as a gift for Old Master Jin; only later did they grow golden eyes and become Spirit Beast Kings."

Zhang Ada coughed lightly; speaking of the past, he did not joke again:

"No one expected the appetizer Uncle Long gave to become a Spirit Beast King; for many years afterwards, Old Master Jin wanted to return that pair of Spirit Chicken Kings to avoid attracting covetous eyes."

"Unfortunately, Uncle Long insisted on not accepting them."

Zhang Ada sighed; he had some attachment to that pair of Spirit Chicken Kings; a Spirit Beast King that could lay eggs and was highly productive, let alone on Mount Hengshan Dao, was rare throughout the world.

"If Old Master Jin is willing, his disciples are likely unwilling, right?"

Li Yuan shook his head.

The value of a Spirit Beast King is far beyond that of ordinary Spirit Beasts, let alone a Spirit Chicken King; a Spirit Chicken King is still a chicken, still lays eggs; in terms of value, it is far higher than other Spirit Beast Kings!

"Perhaps before, but now it is different."

Zhang Ada lowered his voice: "In the middle of June next year, it will be this old master's birthday, his two-hundredth birthday!"

Two hundred years; this is the limit.

Glancing at the somewhat furtive Zhang Ada, Li Yuan understood somewhat in his heart.

Even Zhang Ada was somewhat obsessed; obviously, there were not a few forces coveting that pair of Spirit Chicken Kings; no wonder that Old Master Jin intended to send that pair of Spirit Chicken Kings to the Dragon-Tiger Temple.

As long as Jin Jin Shengwu is alive, everything is negotiable; the title of the sixth on the Hero List is enough to intimidate the martial world, but once he passes away, that is uncertain.

The reputation of the Yellow Dragon Mountain Villa rests largely on this old master.

"Spirit Beast Kings are rare in the world; junior brother, you require those specific ones; apart from the Golden-Eyed Angry Clear Chicken, within the four provinces of Mount Hengshan, there are only a few, all hiding in desolate places like the Wind Thunder Valley."

Seeing Li Yuan's expression change somewhat, Zhang Ada put down his wine cup: "I mention this matter because I know junior brother has a request; I have no other intentions."

"Thank you, senior brother, for the advice."

Li Yuan raised his cup to toast, but since it involved a grandmaster, even a supreme grandmaster, he truly did not want to join the fray.

If truly compared, the Yellow Dragon Mountain Villa is not necessarily any safer than the Wind Thunder Valley.

After drinking a few more cups, Zhang Adao stood up to take his leave. He did not mention the Golden-Eyed Angry-Sunny Rooster again, only saying he would inquire for him whether the blood of the fifth required spiritual beast could be obtained.

"The Golden-Eyed Angry-Sunny Rooster, a spiritual beast king capable of laying eggs..."

Watching Zhang Adao depart into the distance, Li Yuan muttered the name a few times, then suddenly snapped out of it:

"Why am I so fixated on the blood of spiritual beasts?"

As the thought flashed through his mind, Li Yuan's thoughts immediately became lively; he realized he seemed to have walked into a misunderstanding.

The Offering required for the Heaven's Bestowal of the Mandate ceremony demands the Five Sacrificial Animals, not the blood of the Five Sacrificial Animals. The reason he chose the blood of the Five Sacrificial Animals was because the meat of a spiritual beast king was nearly impossible to buy.

After all, no Sect would kill the goose that lays the golden eggs; slaughtering a spiritual beast king to sell its meat was unheard of. Drawing some blood for alchemy or tempering was already the limit.

"In my past life, I used frozen meat from a supermarket... The Heaven's Bestowal of the Mandate ceremony only requires assembling the Five Sacrificial Animals; there are no further requirements regarding the Offering."

Li Yuan's heart raced; he realized he had been completely blind right under the lamp:

"If there is no chicken blood, what about chicken eggs?"

Suppressing the impulse to chase after Zhang Adao, Li Yuan felt he should not appear too eager; that Fatty was not as simple-minded as he appeared on the surface.

Someone capable of standing out among tens of thousands of Dragon and Tiger disciples to become a Helmsman was naturally not that simple.

Li Yuan returned to the courtyard, stood in the Dragon Zen Stance for quite a while, only then calming the restlessness in his heart, and once again sensed the changes within himself after the two Jun Tian Heavy Hammers had been activated.

"I must provoke that hammer; perhaps two hammers will be enough?"

After sensing it slightly, Li Yuan felt the change was significant. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he had arrived at the Black Whale Mi Jing with the mastery of seven heavy hammers.

Voom~

On the Upside-Down Mountain, the wind howled.

Almost the instant Li Yuan appeared, he heard a humming sound coming from somewhere unknown, and the entire mountain seemed to shudder.

【You?!!】

A burst of deep blue light exploded from the stone tablet; the characters flashed and vanished, seeming extremely shocked.

"Still not coming out?"

Li Yuan patted the stone tablet, raising his voice, which echoed across the mountain peak.

【... Deceived... Deceived again...】

On the stone tablet, the stuttering text flickered, then vanished shortly after.

"What do you mean 'deceived again'?"

Daoist Li flew into a rage; this hammer was too rude.

Bang bang~

Li Yuan smashed down with several heavy hammer strikes; centered on the stone tablet, the mountain rocks within dozens of meters cracked and collapsed.

Puff!

Immediately afterward, his body exploded into fragments, and he was directly kicked out of the Black Whale Mi Jing by an invisible tremendous force.

"Too rigid, understands no flexibility at all."

In the room, Li Yuan slowly opened his eyes, feeling somewhat speechless in his heart.

He did not know if all Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing were like this, or if only this Rending-Sea Black Whale Hammer was like this, but based on this exchange, he had some doubts about the spiritual nature of this hammer.

Not only rigid, but also old-fashioned; could this thing be called full of spiritual nature?

"However, the hammer's attitude has softened considerably; perhaps if I provoke it a few more times, I can pass without needing the third divine hammer?"

Li Yuan stood up and paced; he felt that the time when he would master this Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing was not far off.

"Hmm, even if I fail, the third divine hammer should be enough. If that's not enough, then it's truly too rude."

Daoist Li muttered to himself.

After entering and exiting the Black Whale Mi Jing once, Li Yuan's emotions were much calmer; the Black Whale Qi nourished his spirit, allowing him to cool down.

"Fatty Zhang gave plenty of blood; dividing it for two uses should be enough... Even if it's not, these types of spiritual beast king blood are relatively easier to obtain."

Li Yuan took out four jars and shook them slightly; Zhang Adao had not shortchanged him, the blood was plentiful.

Spiritual beast kings often have a body size larger than ordinary counterparts, some even several times larger; with a larger physique, the blood naturally is more abundant.

"Zhang Adao's meaning is clearly to have me persuade Old Dragon Head to accept the Golden-Eyed Angry-Sunny Rooster, but not only is it impossible for Old Dragon Head to listen to me, even if he did, it is still more than half a year until that Old Master Jin's two-hundredth birthday..."

After calculating slightly in his heart, Li Yuan put the jars away and instead took out the 'Night Travel Suit' he had not used for a long time.

Compared to mastering the Rending-Sea Black Whale Hammer and the Heaven's Bestowal of the Mandate ceremony, what was currently more urgent was dealing with the Xieshen Sect grand expert who was likely coming for him.

Just thinking that there might be a grand expert, at least at the Zhun Sect level, wearing divine armor and secretly spying on him made him unable to sleep.

"Senior Brother Dou Yue is steady in character; he is the best candidate."

Li Yuan spoke to himself.

Giving a warning also has its nuances.

If he went to warn Dou Yue himself, he would have no way to explain how he discovered and recognized a giant of the Xieshen Sect at the Guardian level or above.

The best method was naturally to give a warning while masked, explaining nothing at all.

"Huff!"

Li Yuan changed his clothes with nimble hands and feet, adjusted himself slightly in front of the mirror, took out the Ghost Mask, and put it on.

Li Li Yuanba, who had been silent and hidden for a long time, appeared in the bronze mirror.