Qingqiu Secret Realm.
In the wilderness.
"Damn it, how can he be that strong?"
Yang Xiu's face twisted in rage.
That single sword strike from Yang Cheng had dealt him a heavy blow.
He had believed that with the Heaven-Devouring Divine Cauldron, his cultivation had surged so quickly that he should now be able to match Yang Cheng.
But Yang Cheng had cut down Mo Jialan with one strike—and at the same time shattered his confidence.
That sword was too terrifying.
He felt that if he had been the one facing it, he would also have been killed instantly.
"I must increase my strength at any cost."
Yang Xiu's eyes burned with madness.
Before, he had hesitated to use the Heaven-Devouring Divine Cauldron too much, worrying that if his realm rose too fast, he wouldn't be able to explain it to Lin Xinglan later.
But after Yang Cheng provoked him, he no longer cared.
He began a frenzy of slaughter.
Whether human or demon beast—anything he encountered, he killed, devouring its life force.
"Hm?"
An hour later, Yang Xiu suddenly sensed something.
He stopped killing and turned sharply, shouting, "Come out!"
At once, a serpent with wings burst forth.
"It's you."
Yang Xiu's pupils narrowed. "It was Yang Cheng who stole the divine corpse. If you want revenge, you should be chasing him. Why come to me?"
"You misunderstand."
A voice echoed in his mind. "Human, I sense the aura of destiny on you. That is why I've come to follow you."
A surge of joy flashed through Yang Xiu's heart.
But before he could speak, the serpent's voice continued, "However, human, you should stop using that demonic cauldron. I can feel it eroding your fortune."
Yang Xiu's expression darkened, his mood turning sour.
In his eyes, the Heaven-Devouring Divine Cauldron was his only hope to surpass Yang Cheng. Anyone who tried to dissuade him felt like an enemy.
As for fortune, he didn't consider it important.
Everyone called him the child of destiny. Yang Cheng was not.
Yet reality showed that Yang Cheng kept seizing opportunities from him and crushing him over and over.
This proved that strength mattered far more than destiny.
But Yang Xiu's scheming heart was not what it once was.
Even though he was displeased, his face showed nothing. Instead, he spoke sincerely, "Truly? If that's the case, then I should indeed stop using it."
"No wonder you are the child of destiny. You truly have a broad heart."
The serpent said with excitement, "Do not be deceived by my current cultivation as a Martial Emperor. In truth, I am a Martial Saint, only suppressed by the rules of the Qingqiu Secret Realm."
"Once we leave here, my cultivation will recover, and I will be of immense help to you."
A Martial Saint?
Yang Xiu's heart pounded. His tone grew gentler. "Why choose me?"
"All beings of the Qingqiu Secret Realm are bound by its laws. We cannot leave on our own."
The serpent explained, "But you are the child of destiny. Your fortune can resist this world's rules. By following you, I can leave."
"Moreover, following you is my fate."
"I see. But how can I trust you?"
Yang Xiu said coldly, "If you really are a Martial Saint, once I bring you out, you'll have the power to kill me instantly."
"This…"
The serpent paused, then said, "I can let you plant your spiritual mark in my demon core. That way, if I ever betray you, you could cripple me instantly."
To the child of destiny, it held great trust.
In its inherited memories, it was fated to become the mount of the child of destiny, to support him side by side.
If it suffered harm, the child of destiny's fortune would also collapse. So it never believed he would truly harm it.
"Good."
Yang Xiu replied calmly.
He appeared composed as he planted his spiritual mark into the serpent's demon core.
"Child of destiny, now you can trust me completely…"
The serpent's voice rang.
But before it could finish, Yang Xiu's eyes turned ruthless.
"Explode!"
He directly detonated his own spiritual mark.
In an instant, the serpent's demon core was heavily damaged.
"Ah!"
The serpent let out a miserable scream.
Yang Xiu seized the chance, slamming his palm into its skull, denting its head inward.
Bang!
The serpent crashed to the ground, staring at Yang Xiu in disbelief. "Child of destiny… why?"
"Why?"
Yang Xiu's eyes gleamed with greed. "You're a Martial Saint. If I devour your life force, my cultivation will skyrocket."
"No… you are the child of destiny. How can you be so short-sighted?"
The serpent groaned in agony. "You and I would one day both become True Gods. A Martial Saint is nothing compared to that. You're digging your own grave…"
Before it could finish, Yang Xiu thrust his hand into its body and began devouring its life force.
Already weakened, the serpent could not withstand such draining. Before long, its breath faded away.
Even at death, its eyes still held disbelief.
This wasn't how it was supposed to end.
At that moment, Yang Xiu felt an odd emptiness inside.
But that hollow feeling was quickly drowned out by the thrill of his cultivation soaring.
The serpent's true realm really had been Martial Saint.
Its life force was terrifying, and it surged into Yang Xiu like a flood.
His cultivation skyrocketed. In no time, he had reached the peak of Martial King.
When he finally finished swallowing its life force—
Boom!
His realm broke past the Martial King bottleneck, stepping into Martial Emperor.
And not just the first level—he leapt straight to the third!
"Hahaha!"
Yang Xiu let out crazed laughter. "Yang Cheng, you're monstrous, but with the Heaven-Devouring Divine Cauldron, I will surpass you."
"No… perhaps I've already surpassed you."
Elsewhere—
Unnoticed, nearly two full days had passed.
That divine pearl had at last been completely absorbed by Yang Cheng and the nineteen generals.
Yang Cheng's cultivation broke through three levels in a row, from the sixth level of Martial King to the ninth!
The others also gained tremendous growth.
Tang Xingyu, for example, had already reached the sixth level of Martial King.
Yang Cheng opened his eyes and quickly sensed changes in the Square Inch Mysterious Realm.
When he extended his spiritual power to probe it, he couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.
The once-thin mist had now thickened to a shocking degree.
'Just how much has Yang Xiu's cultivation risen?'
Yang Cheng was stunned.
Judging by the surge of mist, Yang Xiu must have devoured the life force of at least a Martial Saint.
Could it be…
A strange look crossed Yang Cheng's face.
There really was a Martial Saint in this secret realm—
That serpent.
Its true cultivation was Martial Saint, only suppressed by the realm's rules, leaving it able to show only Martial Emperor strength.
Could Yang Xiu have actually killed it?
If so, then Yang Xiu was truly destroying his own foundation.
That serpent was destined to be his mount, tied directly to his fortune.
In the future, it would have been of immense help to him.
Killing it now was nothing less than digging a pit for himself.
And Yang Xiu's reckless use of the Heaven-Devouring Divine Cauldron—had he not considered how he would ever explain it to Lin Xinglan afterward?
No matter what, for Yang Cheng, this was nothing but good news.