novelraw Chapter 219 : It's Actually Her!!
Chapter 219 : It's Actually Her!!
Chapter 219: It's Actually Her!!
“Heaven Silkworm, do you really think this place is the tomb of that True Lord of the Fox Clan from back then?”
Jiang Hong lay sprawled on the dragon throne, still fiddling idly with the two spirit-light radiating walnuts in his hand as he asked lazily.
Real Person Heaven Silkworm, who had originally been standing behind him, stepped forward upon hearing this, cupped his hands slightly, and replied, “Without a doubt. The tomb on Mount Qingyi was only a decoy. Although the Fox Clan’s treasures are all there and have drawn countless covetous eyes over the years, the body of the Fox Clan’s True Lord is not there—it was buried here.”
“This intel came from the Bone Demon Lord.”
“Heaven Silkworm, tell me—do you think I can obtain this opportunity?”
Jiang Hong asked again.
Real Person Heaven Silkworm continued, “Opportunities like these are governed by fate. And you, Young Master… are fate itself.”
Jiang Hong chuckled, unable to suppress a laugh as he sat up and looked at him with a grin. “Heaven Silkworm, no wonder my mother chose you to accompany me back then. With that tongue of yours, I’ve certainly had no shortage of amusement along the way.”
Real Person Heaven Silkworm stroked his beard and smiled.
“Subordinate is merely in the habit of speaking the truth.”
Jiang Hong laughed heartily.
“In that case, I’ll have you make another trip to the Wei Family and strive to take them down as soon as possible.”
“Go on, go on. Without that tomb guardian's key, this True Lord’s tomb truly can’t be opened.”
Real Person Heaven Silkworm smiled and said, “This is only the first step.”
“Isn’t the second step already well within our grasp?”
Jiang Hong spread his hands and spoke with a smile.
“No one is wiser than Young Master,” Heaven Silkworm cupped his hands again. “Then I shall take my leave.”
“Go on, go on.”
Jiang Hong waved his hand.
To him, everything was firmly under control.
“...”
“What’s that?”
On the way back, Ji Yuan saw a streak of escape light flying from west to east. He naturally knew it was Real Person Heaven Silkworm setting out—likely heading to strike the Wei Family again.
“Looks like the Young Master doesn’t want to wait anymore. He intends to take them down in one swift move.”
Feng Xiuxiu glanced up and said knowingly.
“Then we’d better hurry back and recover. The great battle to annihilate the Wei Family will probably erupt very soon.”
“When that happens, we’ve got to perform well and try to earn great merit in the war.”
Hu Li spoke quickly.
“Mm.”
Immediately, the four of them, who had been traveling at a leisurely pace, all accelerated at once, transforming into four streaks of black light heading straight toward the stone mountain to the west.
A while later, Ji Yuan returned to his own Cave Dwelling.
There wasn’t really anything to recover. What he was pondering was whether, after Jiang Hong destroyed the Wei Family, he could find the Blood River.
Once he found the Blood River, seizing the opportunity to condense a sword embryo shouldn't be a problem.
After all, Ji Yuan never planned on exerting himself. He intended to slack off while biding his time—and also look for an opportunity to get rid of that scoundrel Hu Li.
As for the idea that the Wei Family might counterattack and kill Jiang Hong—Ji Yuan hadn’t even considered it. With a Golden Core Real Person on Jiang Hong’s side, the Wei Family lasting four or five days would already be proof of deep foundations.
What puzzled him was the identity of the woman who controlled that third-tier demon beast—why was she choosing to live and die with the Wei Family?
As Ji Yuan was mulling it over, a Messaging Talisman in his Storage Pouch trembled slightly. He took it out and checked.
It was from Hu Li.
“Senior, are you free? I’ve come to speak with you for a moment.”
Ji Yuan thought for a second and didn’t bother sending a reply. He went straight to Hu Li’s Cave Dwelling.
“What is it?”
Upon arrival, Ji Yuan casually reclined onto a soft chair.
Hu Li stood respectfully at his side. “Senior, I’ve just received word—the Young Master no longer wants to wait. This time, he likely intends to directly take down the Wei Family.”
“We’ve raised troops for a thousand days, only to use them in a single moment. All-out effort it is.”
Ji Yuan looked at him with a half-smile.
But Hu Li’s expression wasn’t relaxed—on the contrary, it seemed rather grave.
“This matter… Senior has only just arrived and might not be aware of everything, but I feel like something is off.”
“Oh? How so?”
Ji Yuan raised an eyebrow, his posture casual, as if he hadn’t taken it to heart at all. But inwardly, he was already on high alert.
He’d only been here a few days and already sensed something strange—let alone someone like Hu Li, who’d been here for months.
“The Young Master said he came here to cultivate. But if that’s the case, why is he wiping out everyone here? That’s the first point.”
“Secondly, Senior might not know—Jiang Hong and the others never intended to give the Wei Family a way out. The public story is that the Wei Family refuses to leave their ancestral home and insists on dying with it. But the truth is, Real Person Heaven Silkworm had already set up formations to wipe them all out before we even arrived.”
“Thirdly, there’s the matter of the location. We actually tried several sites at first, but Real Person Heaven Silkworm said none were suitable—until we found this one.”
Hu Li spoke clearly and earnestly.
Ji Yuan’s expression didn’t change after hearing all this. He merely asked, “Anything else?”
Of the three points, only the second one surprised him. The rest were within his expectations.
“No, that’s all.”
Hu Li lowered his head.
Ji Yuan stood up. “Then forget it. You can just wait here to die.”
“No no no—”
Hu Li quickly reached out and grabbed Ji Yuan’s sleeve. “There’s more, there’s more! Just… this junior wasn’t sure and didn’t dare to speak.”
Ji Yuan halted and glanced down at Hu Li’s hand on his sleeve.
The latter immediately let go, then sent a voice transmission: “It’s like this. Some time ago, I happened to overhear the Young Master speaking with Real Person Heaven Silkworm. In their conversation, the word ‘tomb’ came up.”
“Tomb?”
“Yes.”
Hu Li nodded vigorously and continued via voice transmission, “I’m sure I didn’t mishear—they were talking about a tomb. I suspect… they’re not here to cultivate at all. They came to excavate a tomb.”
A tomb… that explained everything.
Why was the ancient battlefield completely barren?
In Ji Yuan’s previous life terms, it was because a massive tomb below had created a water-isolation layer, preventing plant growth.
In this world’s terms… it meant there was a great tomb beneath—one that buried a powerful cultivator.
Either the aura of slaughter from that expert was too intense, or the tomb had certain formations inside that caused the barrenness above.
“Not impossible.”
Unable to confirm, Ji Yuan mimicked Hua Yaoyue’s tone, offering a vague response.
As he spoke, he realized that he too was now reclining in a soft chair, gently rocking it back and forth while speaking idly.
Unknowingly, had I already picked up my master’s habits?
Or… was this what they called… inheritance?
“Senior, think about it—what kind of tomb would make even Jiang Hong, the son of a Nascent Soul cultivator, take such interest?” Hu Li’s words carried a hint of temptation.
Ji Yuan mocked him without mercy, “So what? Even if it’s the tomb of a Nascent Soul True Lord, would you dare lay hands on it? Dare to fight Jiang Hong and Heaven Silkworm for it?”
Hu Li grinned awkwardly and rubbed his hands together.
“Well, that’s why we have you, Senior.”
So you really want me to be the vanguard, huh? Tch, tired of living already… Ji Yuan clasped his hands on his stomach and said coldly:
“Not interested.”
“Senior…”
Ji Yuan’s expression darkened.
Hu Li hurriedly changed his tune, “Senior is wise. Jiang Hong and Real Person Heaven Silkworm probably know everything about this tomb already, while we have no clues at all—we absolutely must not take risks.”
“Heh. So you’re going to say all the good things and the bad things too?”
“Well… hehe.”
Hu Li chuckled dryly and lowered his head.
“Anything else you want to say?”
“No, this junior knows only this much.”
Hu Li shook his head. Whether that was all he knew or he simply didn’t want to say more, was unclear.
Ji Yuan guessed it was the latter.
People like Hu Li never fully trusted anyone.
Suppressing the urge to assassinate him right then and there, Ji Yuan turned and returned to his Cave Dwelling.
What followed was unknown to him—until five days later, when he received another message from Hu Li: gather at the palace hall on the mountaintop. Young Master Jiang had an announcement.
It seemed the operation was about to begin.
Ji Yuan packed everything in his 【Cave Dwelling】, then deactivated its function. He summoned the skull head and flew toward the mountaintop palace hall.
By the time he arrived, the others had already gathered.
Ji Yuan had the lowest cultivation level, so he naturally stood closest to the door… that way, he could run the fastest if needed.
Seeing Ji Yuan approach, Jiang Hong sat up from his dragon throne and casually said, “Aside from the four who are surrounding the Wei Family—Zhong Daoke and the rest—everyone else is here.”
“Here, take these.”
As he spoke, Jiang Hong casually flicked his sleeve, and streams of light flew out, landing before each person.
Storage Pouches.
Ji Yuan probed with his Divine Sense.
Good heavens, another 100 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones!
Handing out money at the drop of a hat?
He’s really damn rich… Ji Yuan looked up at Jiang Hong. With Real Person Heaven Silkworm away dealing with the Wei Family, the idea of killing him flashed across his mind.
But he quickly looked away.
Can’t startle the snake. If he ever decided to act, it would have to be a fatal strike.
“I’m sure you’re all clear on the matter already, so I won’t say much. Just this—after this is done, each of you will get 1,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.”
“For every Foundation Establishment-stage cultivator of the Wei Family you kill, that’s another 1,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.”
“Mid Foundation Establishment, 2,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.”
“Whoever can kill Wei Kun—that’s 3,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.”
As Jiang Hong finished speaking, Ji Yuan could clearly sense that the breathing of those around him had quickened.
Hu Li, in particular, shouted out like a well-trained sidekick.
“Young Master, what if someone kills that female cultivator who raises foxes?”
Jiang Hong sneered coldly. “If you can kill her, I’ll reward you with 5,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones!”
“Hiss—”
Hu Li gasped sharply, as if scared backward several steps.
“Young Master is so generous!”
“Swear to follow Young Master to the death!”
“……”
As the others roared with excitement, Ji Yuan’s eyes were equally ablaze—only his flame wasn’t directed at the Wei Family, but at Jiang Hong before him.
Just wiping out the Wei Family alone wasn’t worth the upfront investment… The Wei Family had a total of eight Foundation Establishment cultivators: two at Late-Stage, four at Mid-Stage, and two at Early-Stage.
That alone cost 16,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.
Add in the female cultivator, and that was 21,000.
Damn bastard—really doesn’t treat Spirit Stones like they’re Spirit Stones!
Ji Yuan realized he had still underestimated how wealthy Jiang Hong was.
“All right. If there’s nothing else, then… move out!”
With a grand wave of his arm, Jiang Hong transformed into a streak of blood light and shot out of the palace hall. Closely following him was Late Foundation Establishment cultivator Feng Xiuxiu. Ji Yuan, as usual, brought up the rear.
In a way, it could be said he was putting everyone else in front of him for protection.
A host of Foundation Establishment cultivators departed in grand formation, and Ji Yuan, at the very end, looked back once more.
That palace hall still remained, unmoved.
…
“Master, the formation is about to be broken. If you have a way, you should leave first.”
Atop the Wei Family mountain, Wei Kun made one final plea to the black-robed woman before him.
The black-robed woman, holding the Six-Tailed Demon Fox in her arms, didn’t respond. She just looked up, watching fire serpents licking at the pale blue barrier. The barrier, once vast enough to cover the heavens, had now thinned to a mere film. It wouldn’t be long before the fire serpents tore it apart.
“We tomb guardians can’t leave. These demonic cultivators are dead set on using our blood to open the tomb of our ancestor. But you, Master…”
Wei Kun was on the verge of tears as he spoke.
At this, the black-robed woman finally opened her mouth. She gently stroked the back of the Six-Tailed Demon Fox and said, “And have you considered that the tomb they want to excavate is my ancestor’s? Where do you expect me to run?”
“This…”
Wei Kun fell silent for a long time, then finally spoke in a trembling voice:
“Master, as long as the green hills remain, there’ll be firewood to burn.”
For tomb guardians, such words were nearly heretical, for he was essentially saying… run. Forget about ancestral graves—your life is more important.
“Don’t worry. If we really can’t win, I will run.”
Only after hearing this did Wei Kun relax.
“Good.”
Before the words had fully left his lips, four blazing pillars of fire erupted from the corners of the formation. Each pillar was so thick it would take three people to encircle it, and faint patterns seemed to writhe upon their surfaces—on closer inspection, those patterns were… tiny serpents.
The black-robed woman opened her mouth and softly said:
“They’re breaking the formation.”
“……”
“Yes. It’s being broken.”
A voice transmission from Hu Li rang in Ji Yuan’s mind.
At this moment, Ji Yuan, who had arrived at the outer edge of the Four Symbols Sea-Boiling Formation, took a few unobtrusive steps backward.
Looking up again, he saw that the four blazing pillars had dispersed, transforming into countless small, fiery serpents that pounced upon the pale blue barrier and began biting ferociously.
The barrier visibly thinned with astonishing speed. In mere breaths, one of the small serpents bit through and slipped into the formation.
“Open!”
The voice of Old Man Heaven Silkworm rang out from the sky.
Immediately, Ji Yuan saw a massive crimson hand descend from above, slamming toward the mountaintop. The hand was as large as a hill… just like the Buddhist Palm from his previous life’s impression.
Everything in its path was crushed like dead wood.
The Wei Family’s remaining defensive formations were torn like ragged cloth—completely shredded in an instant. The giant palm was about to smash into the mountain peak.
Just then, a fox tail appeared out of nowhere atop the peak—a fluffy tail, quite beautiful.
Yet this beautiful fox tail whipped through the air, directly smashing the palm into pieces. Not only that, thousands of white hairs scattered from the tail.
“Whoosh—”
The countless snow-white hairs danced through the air, instantly shredding all the fiery serpents mid-flight.
“Kill!”
From within the stone mountain came the heart-wrenching roar of the Wei Family Patriarch, Wei Kun. Immediately after, streaks of flowing light rose from the ground and flew outward.
At the same time—
Atop the mountain, a phantom image of a several-dozen-meter-tall Six-Tailed Demon Fox appeared. Initially illusory, it quickly solidified, its six thick tails sweeping behind it.
Seductive, terrifying, radiating a soul-shaking aura.
Ji Yuan only dared to glance from afar before hastily withdrawing his gaze.
And then, Jiang Hong’s voice rang in his ears.
“Go.”
“Just kill them all.”
The Six-Tailed Demon Fox had already leapt from the ground. With a few steps in midair, it stirred up ripples and vanished toward the north, followed by thunderous clashes.
Clearly, it had engaged Real Person Heaven Silkworm in battle.
Ji Yuan hesitated only briefly. By then, the group of demonic cultivators had already clashed with the Wei Family’s Foundation Establishment cultivators.
One demonic cultivator was stationed to guard the gate. Perfect—eight versus eight.
Meanwhile, Jiang Hong searched the crowd for that female cultivator’s figure. Ji Yuan’s assigned opponent was also an Early Foundation Establishment cultivator… someone unfamiliar—a gray-robed middle-aged man, skilled in earth spells, fighting with broad and aggressive moves, exuding strong momentum.
Ji Yuan, clad in black demonic armor and wielding the Bone-Melting Yin Claws, was actually able to hold his own.
Out of caution, Ji Yuan didn’t even use any talismans.
Let alone treasures like the Yin Ghost Flag, Thousand Souls Banner, or Blood Marrow Pearl.
Of course, he mostly feared accidentally killing this man.
If he did, he’d have to join the fight against the Qi Refining cultivators—making it harder to keep up appearances.
While using the Yin Claws to tear apart the earth walls summoned by the gray-robed man, Ji Yuan also used his Divine Sense to observe Hu Li’s battle—
Looking for an opportunity to strike from the shadows.
At the same time, he searched for that female cultivator.
But strangely, Ji Yuan couldn’t find her—and neither could Jiang Hong.
After the formation was broken, the female cultivator had seemingly vanished. Even though Jiang Hong circled the entire stone mountain several times, he never spotted her.
Unable to find her, Jiang Hong vented his anger on the Wei Family’s Qi Refining cultivators.
As a Late Foundation Establishment cultivator, killing these Qi Refining cultivators… to put it bluntly, was like slaughtering chickens. One spell, and dozens died or were maimed.
Ji Yuan looked on with some discomfort—but not enough to step in.
This was cultivation. He would only do what was within his capabilities.
The other demonic cultivators were used to it. Meanwhile, Wei Kun, who was fighting Feng Xiuxiu, had bloodshot eyes and screamed in fury, cursing wildly.
But then—
A figure suddenly walked out from the main hall atop the mountain. She looked up at Jiang Hong in midair and spoke coldly: “Enough. If you want to kill me, then come. What’s the point of bullying a few Qi Refining cultivators?”
After speaking, the black-robed woman’s gaze swept across everyone present.
Suddenly, when her gaze passed over Ji Yuan, it paused ever so slightly.
Just as Ji Yuan felt puzzled, a familiar voice rang in his mind—
“What a coincidence. You and I meet again here.”