Panic was a language every beast on Ghost-Fiend Mountain suddenly spoke fluently.
"The Yuandan Realm! That man's reached the Yuandan Realm!" one of the demonic creatures shrieked, its voice cracking with terror.
"That's the same level as a Demon General!" another howled.
"A master of that caliber is here to kill us! Run! Everyone, run for your lives!"
A single cry was all it took. The chaotic assembly of demonic beasts dissolved into a stampede, a screaming, clawing tide of bodies fleeing the mountain. Within moments, the vast, rocky landscape was silent, leaving only Luo Zhen and the middle-aged man standing under the open sky.
A smug grin spread across the man's face. He slowly unsheathed a longsword, its polished steel catching the light. "Well, demon snake," he drawled, "it seems your followers have abandoned you. Not a very loyal bunch, are they?"
"They're fair-weather friends," Luo Zhen replied, his voice a low, unbothered hiss. "I never expected anything more."
The man chuckled. "True enough. Monsters, men... we all bow to the strong. But they had the sense to run. Why didn't you?"
"Why would I?" Luo Zhen countered.
The man's grin faltered. "I'm a master of the Yuandan Realm. I could extinguish your life with a single strike. You're not afraid?"
Luo Zhen's serpentine lips curled into a smile.
"The Yuandan Realm?" he boomed, his laughter echoing off the rocks. "So what? I was hoping you'd give me a real fight!"
It wasn't a bluff. The system's voice, cool and clinical in his mind, had already assured him: this man poses a negligible threat.
Luo Zhen's own power, the Skull Ghost Fire, had evolved to the fifth tier. It was more than capable of handling a mere magical artifact—the primary weapon of any Yuandan expert. Neutralize the artifact, and the fight was over. Besides, he had a Gale Talisman tucked away. If things somehow went sideways, he had an escape plan. Luo Zhen never moved without calculating the odds.
"You want to fight me? You think you're worthy?" the man scoffed, his pride stung. "I'll show you the crushing power you've dared to challenge!"
With a roar, he flicked his wrist. The earthen-yellow sword leaped from his grasp, transforming into a streaking comet of light aimed straight for Luo Zhen. As it neared, a crushing weight descended upon him, as if the very air had turned to mud, trying to drag him down.
His sword is an earth-elemental artifact, the system noted. It manipulates gravity to immobilize its targets. But your beast fire will overwhelm it.
Luo Zhen needed no further convincing. He opened his maw and unleashed a torrent of ethereal white flame. The Skull Ghost Fire surged forward like a tidal wave, not just meeting the sword but swallowing it whole.
"What is this fire?" the man screamed, his face paling. "How can it trap my—Ah! My artifact!"
Under the spectral heat, the sword sizzled and warped. Its form sloughed off like wax, melting into a pathetic hiss of molten slag that dripped onto the ground.
A violent cough wracked the man's body as he sprayed a mouthful of blood. His life-bound weapon was destroyed, and the backlash savaged his soul.
Seizing the moment, Luo Zhen commanded the Skull Ghost Fire. The flames coalesced, forming a massive, shimmering saber that descended on the sputtering man. His senses dulled by the injury, his reaction was a fraction too late. The saber of ghost fire passed through him, and in a silent, brilliant flash, he was erased from existence, leaving nothing but a sprinkle of ash on the wind.
A worthy kill, the system commented. That Yuandan expert provided nearly 10,000 experience points.
"The points are nice," Luo Zhen mused, drawing the Skull Ghost Fire back into his core. "But the real prize is knowing I can now destroy a Yuandan master." And he'd done it with only a quarter of his power, almost effortlessly. "This beast fire... its potential is terrifying."
He spread his golden wings and took to the sky, intending to recall his scattered minions. But after a wide sweep, he found nothing. The cowards had scattered to the four winds, putting as many miles as possible between themselves and Ghost-Fiend Mountain.
"Damn, they're fast," he cursed.
It's a natural reaction, the system said, a hint of digital comfort in its tone. To them, you were a Tianxuan-level snake facing a Yuandan master. They ran to survive.
Luo Zhen let out a sigh of resignation. "Fine. Let them run."
So, what's your next move, Host?
"My next move?" Luo Zhen flickered his forked tongue. A cold, hard light entered his eyes. "The Eastern Yue Kingdom has provoked me again and again. I let it slide. But hiring an assassin to come after me? That crosses a line."
His voice dropped to a menacing growl. "They think I'm a pushover. They're about to learn how wrong they were. I'm going to their palace, and I'm going to burn their entire pathetic kingdom to the ground."
With a powerful downstroke of his wings, he shot through the air, a golden spear of vengeance aimed at the heart of the Eastern Yue capital.
Half an hour later, a shadow fell over the royal palace—the seat of power for the nation and the stronghold of the ruling Li family.
"Look! Up there!" a guard shouted, his voice trembling. "There's a—a golden dragon-snake in the sky!"
Everyone looked up. There, hovering like a god of destruction, was Luo Zhen, his wings beating a slow, deliberate rhythm.
"What in the hells is that thing?" another whispered.
"A flying snake? What are you all babbling about?" An old man in white robes hobbled out of the main hall, leaning heavily on a crutch. It was the Li family patriarch, the same one who had barely escaped their last encounter with Luo Zhen, his body still frail from his injuries.
"Patriarch, in the sky!" a warrior yelled.
The old man tilted his head back. His eyes widened in pure, unadulterated horror.
"The snake from Ghost-Fiend Mountain?" he croaked. "But... he should be dead!"
"Disappointed?" Luo Zhen's voice rolled down from above, dripping with contempt. He descended slowly, his gaze locked on the terrified old man.
"Impossible!" the patriarch stammered, stumbling backward. "We hired a Yuandan master from the Wu Kingdom to kill you! How are you still alive?"
"That master is dead," Luo Zhen stated flatly. "And if you want to know how, you can go ask him yourself."
With that, he opened his mouth and painted the world white.
The Skull Ghost Fire swept through the palace, a silent, cleansing inferno. Luo Zhen targeted the Li family cultivators first, their screams silenced before they could even fully form. Once they were ashes, he unleashed his ordinary flames, turning the opulent palace and everyone left inside into a raging funeral pyre. In less than five minutes, the proud Li family was history.
As the flames licked the sky, Luo Zhen wheeled away from the carnage.
"System," he asked, "run a threat assessment on the Wu Kingdom. How many Yuandan masters do they have left?"
Scanning... the system replied a moment later. The Wu Kingdom has two. One at the initial Yuandan stage, one at the middle. Together, they are still no match for you.
"Perfect," Luo Zhen hissed, the thrill of power coursing through him. "Since they started this, I might as well finish it."
He banked his wings and flew toward the Wu Kingdom.
Two hours later, he arrived above their royal palace. Like Eastern Yue, the Wu royal family was the nation's strongest cultivation clan, and their palace was their fortress.
Luo Zhen hovered above it, a golden specter in the afternoon sun.
"Wu family!" his voice, amplified by his power, boomed across the palace grounds. "Get out here and face me!"
Doors flew open and figures poured into the courtyard, staring up in shock. At their head was an elderly couple. A weathered old man with a heavy saber strapped to his back, and at his side, a woman with a face like cracked porcelain, leaning on a gnarled staff. They were the patriarch and matriarch of the Wu clan, the two Yuandan masters.
The old man squinted at Luo Zhen, sensing only his Tianxuan-level aura. He bristled with indignation. "What is this overgrown worm doing, making a scene at our palace!"
Without another word, he drew his saber and swung it in a vicious arc. A massive wave of crimson energy rocketed toward Luo Zhen.
Luo Zhen didn't even flinch. He simply exhaled a controlled plume of Skull Ghost Fire, which formed a shimmering white shield in front of him. The crimson wave slammed into it with a dull thump and dissipated into nothing. The shield remained, unblemished.
"What a bizarre flame," the old man muttered, stunned. "It blocked my attack completely."
"Careful, my love," the old woman cautioned, her eyes sharp. "This is no ordinary creature. Let's find out what it wants before you rush in again."
The man nodded, his bravado tempered. "State your purpose, demon snake!" he bellowed.
"I'm looking for a man named Wu Ye," Luo Zhen replied coolly. "He's one of yours, isn't he?"
"You mean Ye'er?" the patriarch said. "He's my son. What do you know of him?"
A wicked smile spread across Luo Zhen's face. "Oh, we've met. In fact, I'm the one who turned him to ash. Not a bone left."
"What did you say?" the old woman shrieked, her composure shattering.
The patriarch, however, just laughed. "Nonsense! My son is a Yuandan master! A whelp like you, stuck in the Tianxuan Realm, could never touch him." He paused, a flicker of recognition in his eyes. "Wait... Eastern Yue sent us a portrait a few days ago. Of a powerful golden snake..."
"That was me," Luo Zhen confirmed. "And just like I exterminated the Li family, I'm here to finish yours."
"Ha! The arrogance!" the old man sneered. "I'll chop you into pieces and have you for soup!"
He channeled his energy into his saber. The blade hummed, then shot from his hand like a guided missile, glowing with murderous intent. The old woman stood back, confident the fight was already over.
Luo Zhen simply sighed. With a flick of his will, a tendril of Skull Ghost Fire lashed out and wrapped around the flying saber, smothering it.
"My saber!" the man cried out as he watched his artifact melt into a puddle of useless metal. The backlash hit him like a physical blow, and he doubled over, coughing up blood.
"My husband!" his wife screamed, rushing to his side. She turned a venomous glare on Luo Zhen and began to chant. Her gnarled staff began to glow and swell, expanding to the size of a massive tree trunk before launching itself at Luo Zhen.
"Another one?" Luo Zhen said, almost bored. He sent another wave of ghost fire to meet it. The colossal staff was incinerated in seconds, turning to cinders on the wind. The old woman crumpled, blood pouring from her lips.
Stripped of their artifacts, they were just two old mortals with a bit of power. Their fangs had been pulled. The rest was a formality. Luo Zhen's Skull Ghost Fire descended, and soon, they and every other Wu cultivator in the courtyard were nothing more than memories.
With the cultivators gone, Luo Zhen prepared to torch the palace itself.
Host, I advise against that, the system interjected.
"Why not?"
This isn't just a palace; it's the Wu family's hoard. It's filled with generations of accumulated cultivation resources. Eastern Yue was a poor nation, not worth looting. But the Wu Kingdom is rich. Burning this place would destroy countless spirit stones, elixirs, and artifacts. It would be a terrible waste.
The thought cut through Luo Zhen's vengeful haze. He'd been so focused on payback, he hadn't even considered the loot.
"You're right," he said, canceling the flames. He dove toward the ground. "System, where's the treasury?"
There's a large cellar to the north. Everything is stored there.
"Excellent."
Five minutes later, Luo Zhen stood before a heavy stone door. He ripped it from its hinges and descended into the earth. The cellar opened up into a space as large as a town square, and it was filled to the brim. There were glittering piles of spirit stones, shelves lined with rare herbs and perfectly crafted elixirs, racks of talismans, chests of raw materials, and scrolls containing powerful cultivation techniques.
It was a staggering fortune, a king's ransom a hundred times over.
Laughing, Luo Zhen began to claim his spoils.