Escorting the group for a portion of the journey would grant him an opportunity. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

If he changed his objective midway, he would draw a medium-low lot and receive a Tier Three opportunity.

But if he didn’t change his objective and stayed focused on the goal, he would draw a medium-high lot—and receive a Tier Four opportunity?!

At this very moment, Fang Yang’s eyes narrowed, a faint black mist spreading within them.

There was nothing more to be said; he had already decided to choose the medium-high lot.

In other words, he had to join the escort party.

The only question now was what excuse he could use to join them.

"Miss Dongfang, where is your next stop?" Fang Yang asked softly.

Dongfang Xuezhi glanced sideways, pondering for a moment.

She wasn’t sure if she should tell Fang Yang, but then she thought of his status as a champion.

And especially when she recalled Fang Yang’s special relationship with Sen Hui, she decided against hiding anything.

Her expression was calm. "We’ll go to Pingliang Mountain first, then to Grass Jiao Swamp. So our next stop will be Grass Jiao Swamp!"

Fang Yang said, "Grass Jiao Swamp? A short while ago, Liu Manlou and his hostile group made some unusual moves. Although it’s difficult for them to cross the Leran Grassland, we can’t let our guard down."

"Is that really what’s happening?!" Dongfang Xuezhi’s expression turned serious.

Fang Yang spoke slowly, "Yes. To be safe, I think we should travel together for a while. We can part ways at Grass Jiao Swamp."

The others were stunned by his words.

No matter how outstanding Fang Yang’s potential was, he was still just a Tier Two Peak Cultivator.

But when they saw Second Uncle Fang, no one said another word.

Starlight twinkled in Dongfang Xuezhi’s beautiful eyes.

It was as if she were trying to peer into Fang Yang’s innermost thoughts.

Based on what she knew of him, Fang Yang was the type who never acted without a profit.

Even if Liu Manlou and his men were truly planning to ambush the escort, Fang Yang shouldn’t be the type to get personally involved.

’Could it be that Fang Yang is actually warm-hearted beneath his cold exterior?’

’It makes sense. He put himself in danger to save Qing Wenxi, so it seems he isn’t as cold-blooded as the rumors say.’

Dongfang Xuezhi felt the confusion in her heart begin to fade.

Finally, she nodded. "Alright, we can do that. But what about your situation here at the Leran Grassland...?"

Fang Yang: "It’s fine. I’ll just be escorting you for a part of the way. Besides, if you were to be attacked on this journey, it would be my failure as a Zhi Ling Wu."

When Fang Yang brought up his status as a Zhi Ling Wu, a brief silence fell over the group.

Sen Yue’s army had established a six-tier system of official ranks, and a third-tier rank like "Zhi Ling Wu" was a position of significant power and influence within the army.

Among the younger generation present, no one held a higher status than Fang Yang.

"That is true."

Dongfang Xuezhi nodded. "Then we’ll have to trouble you to accompany us, Zhi Ling Wu."

And so, the group boarded the Flying Boat.

...

The Flying Boat roared as it tore through the clouds, heading straight for Pingliang Mountain.

Aboard the Flying Boat, the group, led by Dongfang Xuezhi, was discussing the secret stories of the war.

Caught in the tides of the current era, they had a great deal to say about the changing times.

"As the monarch of the Muri clan, Muri Guang Huang’s combat prowess is comparable to a saint’s. It’s no surprise she can suppress Jiang Venerable Sword so thoroughly he can’t even lift his head."

"Muri Guang Huang is terrifying, I’ll give you that, but I feel she’s still not as scary as Hei Liwu."

"Exactly. As the monarch of the Hei family, Hei Liwu has managed to achieve a shocking ’Convergence of Power.’ The stronger the forces under his command, the stronger he becomes."

"That’s right. If our own monarch hadn’t burst onto the scene like a great sun, I feel the other monarchs would have had to team up to fight Hei Liwu."

"I heard a rumor that someone vaguely saw a ’Blood-Winged Dragonbat’ cub near Hei Liwu..."

The Blood-Winged Dragonbat is a Blood Dao desolate beast.

What’s even more startling is that this type of desolate beast isn’t born of nature. It’s artificially created by someone, much like Artifact Refining!

And the only ones capable of creating a Blood-Winged Dragonbat are the members of the People’s Desire Cult.

The moment this was mentioned, someone’s face paled.

If members of the People’s Desire Cult truly appeared, there was no telling how many wronged souls would be created in the Xuan Domain!

"The People’s Desire Cult..." Fang Yang was silent, his mind racing.

’The Venerable’s inheritance I received—the "Realm of Profundity"—is an inheritance that could be linked to the People’s Desire Cult.’

’And if I’m not mistaken, the deceased Muri Shengkai must have known the locations of some of the People’s Desire Cult’s strongholds.’

’It’s even possible that Shengkai was one of the current agents of the People’s Desire Cult!’

Realizing this involved a Venerable’s inheritance, Fang Yang suddenly felt that he was in over his head.

But he wasn’t particularly alarmed.

After all, the Golden Clan was also the legacy of a Venerable—and a righteous one at that!

"Heh, let’s not talk about these things anymore."

Dongfang Xuezhi clapped her hands. "It’s rare to have a Zhi Ling Wu with us. Why don’t we hold a small treasure trading fair?"

In truth, Dongfang Xuezhi had been thinking of holding a small treasure trading fair for a while.

The timing just had never been right.

But now, seeing Fang Yang—and especially Second Uncle Fang—she knew it was the perfect opportunity.

Second Uncle Fang’s name was Fang River. He was nicknamed the Medicine Fox and was an incredibly skilled master of the Alchemy Dao!

"A treasure trading fair?" Hearing this, Second Uncle Fang glanced toward the other two Daoists.

These two were a man and a woman, both appearing middle-aged, and both were Tier Five Great Cultivators.

The woman was named Dongfang Shuanghua. Dressed in purple, she was Dongfang Xuezhi’s guardian.

The man was named Minghai Nanzhong. Draped in a green robe, he was the guardian of Minghai Profound Blade.

And Minghai Profound Blade was the other young prodigy in the escort group, his status second only to Dongfang Xuezhi’s.

"Heh heh, if the young ones want to, let’s do it." Dongfang Shuanghua’s eyes curved into a smile as she casually took out two treasures, apparently to get the ball rolling.

Minghai Nanzhong remained expressionless but also nodded. "There’s no harm in a trade."

The three of them were the most powerful cultivators on the Flying Boat—all Tier Five Great Cultivators.

Once they reached an agreement, the small treasure trading fair, initiated by Dongfang Xuezhi, began.

Pills, Talismans, array flags, Spirit Plants, spirit pets...

For the most part, items were exchanged one-for-one.

Surprisingly, unless absolutely necessary, no one was willing to have their treasures bought with Yuan Stones.

In an instant, the atmosphere became lively.

Fang Yang, for his part, used Purple Kidney Pills and other medicines to trade for several special Flying Eagles he wanted.

These special Flying Eagles were called Iron-winged Eagles, and they were the same tier as the White Feathered Eagles.

However, they were aligned with the Gold Dao.

White Feathered Eagle, Fire Dao School.

Black Water Eagle, Water Dao School.

Perhaps in the future, Fang Yang could truly perform the "Slave Array Convergence" of the five-element Flying Eagles.

Of course, this was just something Fang Yang did on the side.

It would be great if it succeeded, but it was fine if it didn’t.

’So many Pills. It seems this Fang Yang is just a Potion Junkie. His foundation must be incredibly unstable.’ Minghai Profound Blade sneered inwardly.

In truth, he wasn’t happy with Dongfang Xuezhi taking the lead role in the group!

As a renowned young prodigy of the Minghai Race, he believed he had clawed his way up through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

He felt he was completely different from a so-called champion like Fang Yang, who only knew how to cower in the rear and act tough among his own people.

So what if Fang Yang was a champion? So what if he was at Tier Two Peak? So what if he was skilled in duels?

If it came to a life-and-death battle, even though he was only at the Tier Two Elementary realm, he was confident he could pay the price to make Fang Yang fall!

A greenhouse flower like Fang Yang would be utterly crushed before him!