Chapter 111: Presenting the Map!
Inside an underground cave, a soft fluorescent glow illuminated the faces of master and servant.
Even though reaching the cosmic level of cultivation meant being able to see in pitch darkness as if it were daylight, Jiang Zhe still wasn't fond of the dark. Whenever he wasn't cultivating, he would keep a luminous pearl by his side — only under its light did he feel truly at ease.
Oriana was holding a spatial ring in one hand, consuming the stored universe crystals, while her other hand manipulated countless minuscule particles out of thin air, merging them into the flesh and blood tissues of the ancient god race. She buried them in the earth, waiting for them to decay.
Jiang Zhe crouched nearby, watching, and couldn't help but ask, "Is there something special you're doing with this?"
"Master, have you heard of nanoparticles on Earth?"
Jiang Zhe nodded. That was something from before the Great Nirvana — after humanity encountered cosmic technology, those were tossed into the dustbin of history.
"I've mixed some special particles into this flesh — particles even smaller than nanoparticles. They carry a unique aura of the ancient god race and are about 50% similar to a mysterious substance I found in their divine blood. Chances are, after going through multiple refinement processes, they'll mix into the final product: the ancient god's blood. From there, they'll flow to wherever it's produced… and I can sense these special particles. As long as they aren't intercepted, I can trace them back."
Jiang Zhe nodded without more questions, quietly watching Oriana work.
The flesh tissues were created quickly, but it still took nearly three days to traverse the entire continent, burying pieces in different regions — spreading out roughly 100 domain-lord-level flesh samples.
Another three days later, all of the scattered flesh had decayed.
The special particles Oriana created seeped underground along with the rot, then surged in one direction like moths to a flame. Along the way, they passed through a series of refinement steps, ultimately becoming the purest divine blood.
Jiang Zhe hadn't been idle these days either. He went around hunting domain-lord-level sacrificial participants, quietly collecting their bodies afterward. This was to cover up Oriana's operation and keep things balanced.
After all, a single domain-lord-level ancient god descendant could only produce about 300 milliliters of divine blood, which equaled around 15 doses of E-grade serum that boosted mental power amplitude tenfold.
If the output suddenly rose by 30,000 milliliters — that's 1,500 doses — it would definitely alert the overseers.
Having counted the remaining 900 or so badges in his spatial ring, Jiang Zhe paused the slaughter and returned to their underground base.
The one who'd been following him these days was actually a clone of Oriana; her true body had stayed back to track the particles' trail.
Jiang Zhe was waiting for a result before deciding his next move.
About three hours later—
"Master, I found it!"
Jiang Zhe, who had been immersed in studying the Nine Refinements Fist, was startled by her excited voice in his mind.
Without caring about his disrupted train of thought, he quickly asked, "Where did they converge?"
"Most of the particles were ground away during refinement. Only a tiny fraction slipped through and gathered at the very center of the continent — 300 kilometers below the highest peak in the arena, the Ancient God Peak. I also detected an F-grade energy source nearby, most likely an immortal-level overseer."
Jiang Zhe frowned. "If the production site of the Blood of the Ancient Gods is on this continent, it must be wherever this immortal is stationed."
"Master, what should we do next? Should we go see him?"
Jiang Zhe remained clear-headed, shaking his head. "I can't go. Even as a domain lord, I wouldn't survive the shockwave of his power if he erupted."
"Funny enough, master, I could withstand the shockwave — but facing him directly, I'd die for sure."
They exchanged looks and both gave wry smiles.
Oriana cautiously suggested, "Why don't we just follow the plan and wait for the grand ritual to end? We'll still get a share of the blood."
"I doubt we can just follow the plan anymore. All this slaughter has caught the immortal's attention. He wants to take me as a disciple — disappearing now would be like announcing my guilt to the world."
"Then let's gamble. It's just a captive, subpar immortal after all." Oriana said this solemnly, clearly not joking.
"Alright. If we win, we'll be S-class elites enjoying luxury; if we lose, we'll be out there doing hard labor." Jiang Zhe's tone grew serious.
After all, Luo Feng was out there in the Blood Luo World, frantically harvesting Blood Luo Crystals — a key step in his rapid rise.
How could Jiang Zhe and Oriana be content with just one dose of ancient god blood, then flee with their tails between their legs?
Meanwhile at the grand ritual
This year's grand ritual in the holy city hadn't been kind to the usual high-and-mighty saint-level participants.
A fierce god from the martial god line was hunting them down. Only peak saint-level participants stood a chance of escaping.
Some had complained to the inspectors — only to be ignored. Anyone who made a scene at the inspection sites was simply executed by the half-god inspectors, leaving the saint-level participants seething with anger but too scared to speak out.
Because of the allure of the ancient god blood — and pressure from "the glory of the ancient god race" — few dared to quit the ritual.
Nearly five months of torment passed, and finally, that fierce god withdrew.
The saint-level participants thought they'd finally have a peaceful month before the ritual's end.
Little did they know, as soon as one devil left, an even more ruthless butcher appeared.
This time, it was… a puppeteer?
Because of his unique combat style, that's what people started calling him.
While others fought using mental power weapons, he controlled a humanoid puppet — a puppet that wielded a blood-red scimitar with martial precision, could unleash law attacks, and was far stronger than other ancient god warriors of his level.
After the fierce god from the martial line came this puppeteer, continuing the slaughter.
Some saint-level participants, moments before dying, questioned why he was so ruthless to his own kin. His answer was simple: he was paving his own way to the top with their heads.
Secret meeting of the saints
"You might not know that armored youth from the martial line, but you all recognize this 'puppeteer,' right?"
"Yes — Scott Dadarich from Guo Wang City's Dadarich family. They used to be a half-god family, now in decline, with fewer than ten saints left. None wanted to join this ritual, so Scott was pushed forward by the lottery. His past record was unremarkable…
Fourteen days ago, he ran into that fierce god at Yabu Valley. They had a titanic battle and ended in a draw.
To protect himself, Scott revealed his puppeteer skills. Later, after paying a price, he learned the conditions for being accepted as a disciple by the high god — and started butchering us saints to earn favor."
"Damn it! Why should two low-born thugs catch the high god's eye? I refuse to accept it!"
"Me too. How could monsters who slaughter their own kind become disciples of a god?!"
"We're all against it. We should protest!"
"Protest where? At the inspection sites? Go ahead if you want to die."
"Enough!" A powerful figure snapped, silencing the crowd. "Save your complaints. We're here for a reason — anyone dares whine again, they'll taste my 'Starfall'!"
"Yuanze is right. We're here to discuss this 'puppeteer.' Do you think he matches what we read in the ancient records?"
"Very strong mental manipulation! Matches the records by about 80% — likely the same."
"Agreed."
"Same here."
"I think so too."
Someone broke the string of "+1s." "You're all curious about the puppeteer legacy, I'm sure. But we don't have much time. We must uncover its secrets before the high god intervenes — or else we might wait centuries or millennia for another chance."
One by one, the saints' eyes lit up like hungry wolves.
"Right. This might be our only shot in life. Let's do it!"
"Strike fast — kill Scott, seize the puppeteer legacy!"
The ambush and aftermath
Twenty-two hours after their secret gathering, twenty-four peak saint-level participants ambushed puppeteer Scott in the Samo Desert southwest of the arena.
But Scott's earth domain crushed all twenty-four like sheep trapped in a swamp. His bronze puppet, eerily similar to the engraving on the saint/hero badges, killed them one by one.
A golden-robed inspector watching from afar was stunned. Seeing the puppeteer Scott emerge victorious, he quickly buried his thoughts and sent word to the god stationed at the arena.
About an hour later, a crude communicator received the reply:
[Ensure his safety. Bring him to see me!]
The meeting with the immortal
A date-pit-shaped ship landed at the foot of the continent's most famous peak, Ancient God Peak. From it flew a golden-robed realm master and a tall, gaunt man — "Scott," standing 2.5 meters tall, eyes cold.
This was none other than Jiang Zhe's puppet incarnation.
He carried a treasure umbrella wrapped loosely in black cloth, faint divine light leaking out.
"You youngsters always stir up trouble before the ritual ends — adding to our workload," the golden-robed realm master complained, though his stiff face barely hid his greed. "What are you waiting for? Come with me to meet the god."
He flew ahead at thousands of meters per second. "Scott" followed silently.
They entered a cave, moving downward through magnificent limestone caverns.
Three or four minutes later, "Scott" caught the scent of blood and knew they were close.
Sure enough, after rounding a bend, the space opened up.
They stepped into a vast cavern, nearly 10,000 square meters wide. Water dripped from the walls, pooling into a small lake on the right.
Stalactites hung from the nearly thousand-meter-high ceiling, most glowing milky white — except for the largest one, which was rust-red, dripping scarlet blood into a stone vat below.
It was the divine blood of the ancient gods, refined from the corpses Oriana's particles had infiltrated.
Not far from the vat sat a shriveled old man.
Though his eyes were closed, an intense aura radiated from him like a raging sea of fire.
An immortal — a god who had ascended through the laws of flame.
The golden-robed realm master gave Jiang Zhe a look and approached. "Scott" followed suit.
When they were within ten meters, the old man's eyes snapped open, burning like twin stars.
"Scott" felt crushed under the gaze, every inch of his flesh as if aflame — being stripped and purified.
Thankfully, Jiang Zhe's will was also at the immortal level, so he could withstand it, suffering only physical discomfort. Still, he pretended his mind had short-circuited.
Two or three heartbeats later, the old man withdrew his pressure. "Scott" waited a few extra beats before seeming to "recover," bowing deeply.
"Scott Dadarich greets the god! Please forgive my rude delay."
The old man ignored him, telling the realm master, "Excellent willpower. Definitely one of our ancient god descendants. Kolon, you may leave."
The realm master had wanted to eavesdrop, but could only obey. "Yes, my lord."
He bowed, then vanished — quickly fleeing tens of thousands of kilometers away under Oriana's instruments.
The old man's heavy gaze returned to Jiang Zhe — or rather, the puppet incarnation he'd sent.
"Where did you obtain your puppeteer inheritance?"
A warm, gentle voice wormed into Jiang Zhe's ears, like hearing his own father — stirring a desire to pour out everything.
The thought was eerie, but Jiang Zhe kept his mind sharp.
He had "Scott" appear dazed, lips trembling, and spun a tale of how he rose from nothing — your classic "poor boy finds treasure" story, mixed with the pilgrimage motifs dear to the ancient gods. He borrowed outlines from Earth's web novels, painting vivid pictures. The old immortal was completely taken in.
"You said you found many more puppets? Quickly, show me!"
Jiang Zhe stepped forward and offered a — well, not a map of Yan Kingdom — but a world ring.
The old man couldn't wait, forcibly tearing off the mental imprint and probing inside.
There, on vast grasslands, lay rows of 20-meter-tall purple-gold puppets, made of tough F-grade metal perfect for his use. A dormant ambition reignited in the old man's heart.
End of the chapter
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