A black furball?

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Jiang Yuebai’s question made Chu Liang smile wryly. It felt like a normally obedient child suddenly coming home with a fortune, and instead of joy, the parents’ first reaction was to ask, “You didn’t break the law, did you?”

Her concern wasn’t entirely unfounded.

There was a precedent. A righteous sect disciple once seized an evil cultivation manual and secretly practiced it. Naturally, the progress with the dark arts was much faster than the righteous path, and that disciple quickly rose to prominence within the sect.

Unfortunately, the dark arts came with great risks. That disciple eventually lost control, turning into a demon and causing significant bloodshed and damage to the sect.

If Chu Liang were truly such a brilliant genius, why had he not stood out over the years? Why had his realm only recently soared so rapidly? It didn’t seem reasonable.

“Senior sister, rest assured, I am pure and upright,” Chu Liang said with a smile, having guessed what she was thinking. “I was young before, and without anyone guiding my cultivation, my progress was slow. Now I’m just catching up. I would never take the crooked path.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yuebai relaxed. It made sense; while prodigies rarely went unnoticed, his master was the Imperial Phoenix... With that in mind, even the most unlikely things became understandable.

As for the real reason, Chu Liang wasn’t about to say, “You think my cultivation advanced too fast? Didn’t you see the big-headed doll in the White Tower smoking from all the strain?”

His previous years of “mediocrity” had to be blamed on his master.

As dusk fell, the two parted ways.

...

Back in his small room, Chu Liang took out the spirit beast egg again and began infusing it with true energy to hatch it, while also organizing all the items he currently possessed.

Thanks to various battle spoils and rewards from the White Tower, his collection of magical artifacts and treasures far exceeded that of his peers, resulting in some clutter.

First were the Demon-Illuminating Treasure Brick, Binding Demon Rope, Red Name Severing Sword, and Flying Leaf Quick Blade—these were his frequently used offensive artifacts.

The strongest was naturally the Red Name Severing Sword, but its activation conditions were strict and not always usable.

He was particularly fond of the Demon-Illuminating Treasure Brick; its solid feel when smashing foes was more reliable than flying swords, though it wasn’t always the right moment to use it.

As for the Binding Demon Rope, he recently felt it was somewhat powerless. Although a strong control tool, it only worked against opponents with lower cultivation and was ineffective against stronger foes.

This was a common problem for cultivators: the power of one’s artifacts often failed to keep pace with the cultivation level, and not every artifact could be used from beginning to end.

Some artifacts were destined to be phased out, usually passed to junior disciples or sold for other items.

Considering this, his most stable offensive artifact was actually the Flying Leaf Quick Blade?

But it was stable only in flight, not in accuracy.

Something felt off...

It seemed his arsenal of offensive artifacts was somewhat lacking.

Next came consumables like Hundred Flowers Powder, Bee Nectar Tea, and Hidden Origin Pills.

He still had plenty of Bee Nectar Tea stock from a large recent purchase, including various flavors. They were likely discontinued now, so he hadn’t rushed to sell them.

Hundred Flowers Powder was practical, able to neutralize mild poisons, though stocks were low with only a few doses remaining. Once used up, he could buy similar effects from the Alchemy Hall.

The Hidden Origin Pill was a valuable item that would definitely come in handy later, so it was worth keeping.

Then there were some miscellaneous items he held onto without a clear purpose or plan to use them yet.

For example, the bronze mask captured from the demon tribe envoy was still with him.

Also, a precious Underworld Golden Lotus plant, which would fetch a good price if sold but might prove useful later, so he kept it.

Mentioning the Underworld Golden Lotus inevitably brought to mind the Soul Binding Order. It hadn’t activated for a long time, suggesting the Underworld Sect members were all well.

Other possessions included the heavy big-headed doll from the White Tower, the spirit beast egg in hand, and the quarter scroll he had found.

Looking over it all, despite the many miscellaneous items, very few were actually ready for immediate use.

The reason was simple: most of these items were plundered or discovered, not purchased with a specific purpose.

Purchasing items was naturally better in quality but came with one drawback: cost.

Strengthening oneself remained the most reliable path.

...

Early the next morning, Chu Liang flew down from Mount Shu and followed the mountain range to a remote, dense forest where no human presence was likely.

He landed and resumed cultivation.

Drawing out the Flying Leaf Quick Blade, he locked it onto the third tree to the left, then launched it toward the right, channeling true energy.

Whoosh—

A flash of cyan crescent light blinked, too fast for the naked eye to catch. In the next moment, the blade had pierced through the fourth tree on the left, then several more trees, finally embedding itself far beyond.

“Alas...” Chu Liang sighed softly.

He now felt this weapon was like shooting hoops; no matter how good your skill, you couldn’t guarantee a perfect shot every time.

Over the past two days, he had analyzed the flight trajectory patterns of the Flying Leaf Quick Blade, but execution still varied.

How to ensure a hundred percent hit rate?

He thought of Liu Xiaoyu... Unless he let the koi fish fly it.

Just then, he sensed a golden mark merging into his body.

Huh?

He hurried over to investigate.

Under the tree where the Flying Leaf Quick Blade was stuck lay a black object split in two. It resembled a ball the size of a human head, covered in sharp spines. When halved, it was hollow inside, devoid of flesh.

The air carried lingering yin energy.

This thing... seemed like a yin-yang hybrid.

It had a physical body yet also appeared to be a yin spirit. If it were a simple ghost, it wouldn’t be able to appear during the day, even in a sun-shielded dense forest. But with this body as a shield, it could move freely here.

Essentially, it resembled a lantern ghost—mindless wandering spirits attached to worldly objects.

This black spiny ball was stronger than a broken lantern, though its origin was unclear.

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He was a bit surprised, having carefully avoided any human presence, yet accidentally slashed something.

Fortunately, it was a ghostly entity, which meant he had essentially sent the trapped wandering spirit to rest.

Just as he pondered this, the surrounding yin energy began to rise, and a buzzing sound filled the air.

A swarm of black spiny balls surrounded him...

Oh ho.

Did these things have a sense of group consciousness?

That was rare among ghosts.

Such low-intellect wandering souls were usually bound by negative emotions like “resentment,” “anger,” and “grievance,” unable to find peace and lingering in the mortal realm, utterly cold and emotionless.

Naturally, they wouldn’t care about companions.

But these black spiny balls seemed to be avenging the death of one of their own by attacking en masse.

Being hit by one would definitely hurt.

Chu Liang flew backward as the swarm pursued. He flicked his hand, throwing a Flying Leaf Quick Blade at the nearest pursuer behind him.

With a whoosh, the farthest black spiny ball at the rear of the group fell, cleaved in two.

Chu Liang flicked his finger, recalling his weapon, shaking his head helplessly. His blade technique truly was hit-or-miss.

Then, changing his finger formations, he activated the Flying Sword Bracelet, instantly multiplying one sword into a hundred, dense sword lights rising from the forest.

The Hundred Sword Formation!

Seeing the swords soar, the black spiny balls—whose eyes were nowhere to be found—paused collectively, then turned en masse!

They fled!

Or rather, they didn’t need to turn, lacking front or back; they simply switched from chasing forward to fleeing backward.

Chu Liang pointed his spear finger forward.

“Go!”

The mass of sword lights roared upward.

They ran.

He pursued.

No wings to escape!

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