In the Misty Cloud Mountain Range, Sector C, on Peak Number Thirty-Six.
Before a courtyard built by Qi Ping and Old Man Zhou with their own hands, over a hundred varieties of flowers were blooming vibrantly. A colony of Green-Nu Bees and a colony of Small Black Bees were each busy gathering nectar.
When some of the Small Black Bees noticed Qi Ping’s arrival, they buzzed over and greeted him.
These Small Black Bees were the very same colony that Qi Ping had first raised back on Peak Number Seven in Sector D.
This colony had been with Old Man Zhou for half his life, then raised by Qi Ping for a long while. They had followed Qi Ping through several moves and twists and turns, only to eventually return to Old Man Zhou’s care.
But so many years had passed that the Small Black Bees had gone through multiple generations, from the queen to the workers. Those two stubborn bees that had first led Qi Ping deep into the Misty Cloud Mountains to search for Gold-Marrow Bees had long since grown old and passed away.
The one truly heartening change was that their colony had grown much larger than before and had become the finest strain among the Small Black Bees.
As Qi Ping stepped into the courtyard, he saw three people sitting around inside.
One was an elderly man with a full head of white hair, radiating an air of frailty, yet his face was beaming with a cheerful smile.
One was a middle-aged man marked by the trials of life; his once completely black hair now had a few streaks of white woven through it.
One was a woman growing ever more mature and graceful, carrying an air of serenity and otherworldliness about her.
On that familiar rosewood table were laid out some honey, a pot of Golden-Feather Chicken Soup, and a plate of Spirit-Nurturing Fruits.
Besides these, there were also some rare delicacies seldom seen in the world of cultivation.
These three were Old Man Zhou, Wang Shan, and Sister Nan.
As Qi Ping entered, all three turned their gazes toward him.
“Xiao Qi, you’re here!” Sister Nan said with a smile.
His arrival clearly brought her great joy.
“What fine wine have you brought us this time?” Wang Shan also turned to look at Qi Ping.
His tone made it clear that this was far from Qi Ping’s first visit.
Old Man Zhou didn’t say much, just happily motioned for Qi Ping to sit down. There, waiting, was the fourth seat he had prepared long ago—the very same stool Qi Ping always used.
It was covered in scars and the marks of time, yet it was also the very first stool Old Man Zhou had made for Qi Ping with his own hands, back when he first took the boy in. It was also the first time Qi Ping had witnessed the power of those in the cultivation world.
Once Qi Ping sat down, although Old Man Zhou said nothing, it was plain to see that he was the happiest of them all.
Having such a promising disciple who often brought his favorite fine wines to visit—anyone would be overjoyed.
“Old Man Zhou… Sister Nan… Brother Shan!”
“This time I brought back a century-old vintage wine from Yaoshan in the Tianhuo Domain. It was quite a feat to obtain! You should all try it.”
Qi Ping replied with a smile, and as he spoke, he took out a jar of aged wine radiating the essence of years gone by from his storage pouch.
As he uncorked the jar, a rich, intoxicating aroma of wine immediately wafted through the air…
“Excellent wine! This time I’ll have to thank Old Man Zhou for the chance to have a few cups…” Wang Shan exclaimed in admiration.
Old Man Zhou gave a gentle sniff, and his face instantly filled with bliss.
For an old drunkard like him, one whiff was enough to know the quality—and his rapturous expression said it all…
“Don’t drink too much! You’ll ruin your health!”
Sister Nan scolded gently as she ladled Qi Ping a bowl of Golden-Feather Chicken Soup and even added a large drumstick.
What followed was, of course, a scene of warm and merry hospitality.
Nowadays, they only gathered occasionally, after long intervals. Having lived through that terrifying war and the chaos of the demonic insects, they had come to cherish life and its simple joys all the more.
Each of them had their own unique experiences during that turmoil. Old Man Zhou, for instance, had returned to the mortal world. Wang Shan had witnessed with his own eyes the three great families go from their peak of glory to mountains of corpses and seas of blood, until their total annihilation.
Thankfully, it was all over now. Wang Shan’s son had grown up and had already reached the third level of Qi Refining. He wasn’t exceptionally gifted, but that was more than enough, and he also had the natural talent of innate divine strength.
Old Man Zhou and Sister Nan had originally taken refuge within an illusionary formation. After the chaos subsided, they each came out and rented a plot of land. After all, having nothing to do left them restless; they both knew they had no hope of attaining immortality, so the best path was to have a purpose and live their lives well.
Qi Ping didn’t object to this. Instead, he arranged for them to settle near Sector C so they could look out for one another.
Gradually, they all fell into the habit of meeting up every month or two.
In the past, there had been over a dozen people in the Fusheng Society. Now, only the four of them remained here. Fatty Zhou had returned to a mortal life, Skinny Li Peng had vanished without a trace, and Meng Shanshan had gone mad after a demonic cultivator drained her cultivation—her fate unknown.
That was why they cherished even more this friendship that had sustained them through hardship.
But as the conversation wore on this time, the mood gradually grew heavier.
The first to speak was still their well-informed elder brother, Wang Shan:
“Have you all heard? It seems demonic cultivators have shown up in Qingshi County. Over the past month or two, a lot of infants and young children have gone missing. Rumor has it they’re practicing some terrifying demonic art, trying to use it to reach Foundation Establishment! I’ve seen parents who’ve lost their children—the way they wail is absolutely heartbreaking. Sigh… only those who have been parents themselves can truly understand what it means to lose a child.”
“They’d rather die themselves than let anything happen to their kids. If it were my child, I wouldn’t know how to go on living… Pah pah pah! Let me knock on wood!”
“But now it seems it’s not just babies anymore—young cultivators have been disappearing too. Speaking of which, Xiao Qi, you need to be careful.”
With that, Wang Shan earnestly cautioned Qi Ping.
Qi Ping had always been close to him, and besides, he was Old Man Zhou’s only disciple and family. If anything happened to Qi Ping, Old Man Zhou would be devastated.
Old Man Zhou and Sister Nan, however, didn’t seem too worried about this. A demonic cultivator not even at Foundation Establishment? That was practically delivering themselves to Qi Ping on a platter. Though they didn’t know the full extent of Qi Ping’s strength, they knew he was far beyond what an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator could handle. Only Wang Shan remained in the dark.
Qi Ping, however, nodded seriously and said:
“Thank you for the warning, Brother Shan. I’ll be on my guard!”
Then he added, “Brother Shan, you should also keep an eye on your boy. It’d be best to hide him away, so those demonic cultivators don’t set their sights on him!”
“I’ve already warned him, so don’t you worry!” Wang Shan said cheerfully. “As a matter of fact, he’s caught the eye of the Huishan Merchant Guild. They were recruiting a while back, and my boy got picked because of his innate divine strength. Under the shelter of a big tree like the Huishan Guild, he should be safe enough!”
“I see. Congratulations, Brother Shan! Let me toast to that!” Qi Ping said, raising his cup and draining it in one go.
But although Qi Ping kept up a cheerful front, his heart grew heavy.
He clearly remembered that the Huishan Merchant Guild was on the bounty list of the mysterious black market. The only reason he hadn’t targeted them before was that they were itinerant traders with no fixed whereabouts.
He hadn’t expected that this time, under the guise of recruitment, they’d set their sights on the young people of Qingshi County—even Wang Shan’s son, with his innate divine strength, had been chosen.
Just then, back in his own territory, the main body’s second-grade high-level formation—the [Six Ding Fire Serpent Formation]—failed to set up properly!
Connecting this sudden weakening of the Heavenly Earth Force with the recent spate of missing children in Qingshi County, Qi Ping instantly understood the full picture!
The strength of the Heavenly Earth Force is closely tied to the prosperity of a region. The more thriving the living beings within a realm—the more high-level cultivators and prodigies—the more powerful the Heavenly Earth Force becomes, enabling it to nurture more spirit veins and celestial treasures.
This was precisely why the ancient cultivation world had been so flourishing—it was a dazzling golden age of cultivation, with dense spiritual energy and a constant emergence of all kinds of wondrous treasures.
Now, with the Heavenly Earth Force suddenly declining, there was no doubt that countless beings born of heaven and earth’s creation were being captured and refined into blood nourishment.
The only thing Qi Ping couldn’t understand was: what in the world was the Qingyuan Sect doing? Didn’t they care about their very foundation in the Qingtian Domain?
With such a massive disturbance, there was no way the Qingyuan Sect was unaware!
“Absolutely disgusting!”
At this point, Qi Ping felt the Qingyuan Sect was nothing but a fart! And here he’d once thought they were a decent sect!
If one day he managed to cultivate a Five-Element Golden Core or even a Five-Element Nascent Soul, he would make sure the Qingtian Domain changed hands! If the Qingyuan Sect kept ravaging the Qingtian Domain like this, it would soon become a wasteland—and then Qi Ping could kiss his Misty Cloud Mountain territory goodbye!
For now, though, he didn’t have that kind of power. What he could do was cut down every single person or force that dared to lay a hand on the children of the Qingtian Domain!
He wasn’t confident he could kill anyone above the Golden Core stage just yet, but below that—merely some Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators—he’d slaughter as many as came!
Qi Ping refused to believe that if he wiped out all their underlings and forces, the Immortal Alliance would still have anyone to command!
“Just so happens that the Dream-Cloud Mist Tiger is just about to break through to the second rank. With a bit of potential stimulation, I can help it make the breakthrough. Once that’s done, I can start making my move.”
“And if I kill all these people, that should be enough to raise my [Heaven’s Favor] up another level, right?”
With Heavenly Fate and Fortune, Spirit Beast Blessing, Spirit Tree Life-Binding, and Druidic Curse Immunity, Qi Ping was already well-protected!
He had already tested the [Curse Immunity] with the Dream-Cloud Mist Tiger—it could block heavenly divination! And not only would attempts to divine Qi Ping be blocked, but any attempts to divine his animal companions or anything closely tied to him would also be interfered with and shielded by [Curse Immunity].
The Bee Daoist could now resurface!
