Chapter 181: Chapter 170: Return to Luoshui City

’To think there were so many Demons in the Two Realms Mountain. After all that killing, I ended up with two Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Cores, more than a dozen Qi Sect ones, and countless from the Armor and Gang Formation Realms. I’ve really struck it rich!’

Nie Yun smiled as he walked through the mountain forest, thinking about his haul from the past two days.

After killing Liu Chengze, Nie Yun had followed his instincts to this place and easily found King Ning.

By then, King Ning had already used some unknown Secret Technique to regain consciousness. Seeing that Nie Yun had come alone, he immediately ordered the Demons to surround him!

The strongest beings in Two Realms Mountain were two Early-Stage Ultimate Venerable Demons. When they heard he had opened the Luoo Qu Tomb, their eyes went red with excitement, and they charged at him, roaring wildly.

Nie Yun had always detested the Demon Race, and now that these creatures dared to make trouble for him, he showed no mercy. His Profound Jade Sword, augmented by the Momentum of the Earth, cut a swath of destruction through them. Demons died on contact and were grievously wounded by a mere graze. Even the two Ultimate Venerable Level Demons didn’t last two strikes before they perished!

His Three Great Demon Pets didn’t hold back either. With four Ultimate Venerables on a rampage, the slaughter lasted for a full day and night. By the end, every last Demon in Two Realms Mountain had been wiped out—not even a chicken or a dog was spared.

As it happened, the Demon who had once possessed Nie Haotian was also among them, so Nie Yun took the opportunity to kill it as well.

He might show some leniency toward humans, but when it came to the Demon Race, Nie Yun was utterly ruthless.

When he truly committed to a slaughter, if he let even a single mouse escape—to say nothing of a Demon—he would be unworthy of the title Blood Prison Demon Venerable!

There had been countless Demons in Two Realms Mountain, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, if not millions. From the slaughter, Nie Yun had obtained two Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Cores, more than a dozen at the Qi Sect level, and countless others of lesser value. Furthermore, the Demons had run rampant for years, burning, killing, and plundering—committing every imaginable evil—and the wealth they had amassed was staggering. Wiping them out and taking it all in one fell swoop meant he had truly struck it rich!

’Over ten thousand catties of gold bars, more than thirty million taels in silver notes, thousands of Noble Level weapons, hundreds of Royal Family weapons, and even five Royal Family’s Weapons... With this kind of fortune, probably no one can compare, aside from the Divine Wind Empire’s Imperial Family!’

Nie Yun couldn’t help but smile at the thought of the gold, silver, and other riches filling his Storage Dantian.

He had slain King Ning with a single sword strike during the battle. It was only after killing all the Demons and completely plundering their wealth that Nie Yun truly understood just how rich they had been!

Compared to this fortune, the wealth of the so-called Four Great Families of Luoshui City wasn’t even a drop in the bucket!

’This wealth can greatly increase the strength of my father and the Nie Family, but it’s not very useful to me. What *is* useful, however, are these Spirit Stones!’

With a quick flip of his palm, Nie Yun summoned several sparkling, translucent stones into his hand.

Each stone was about the size of a walnut with eight facets. They were Radiant under the sunlight, emitting a dense wave of Spiritual Qi.

Spirit Stones!

The kind of Spirit Stones that could allow an Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse to absorb energy and advance their cultivation!

When one’s Cultivation reaches the Ultimate Venerable Level, their entire being undergoes a heaven-and-earth-shattering transformation, and their need for Spiritual Qi becomes completely different.

Although there is a fair amount of Spiritual Qi in the air, for a behemoth like an Ultimate Venerable, absorbing it is simply too slow.

To use a vivid analogy, absorbing Spiritual Qi from the air is like scooping water with a spoon. At the Qi Nourishing, True Qi, Body Emergence, and Gang Formation Realms, the Qi Sea is like a wine cup, a bowl, a bottle, and a pot.

You can fill a wine cup quickly with a spoon, and a bowl is also fast. Although the pot at the end is quite large, it can still be filled if you take enough time.

But an Ultimate Venerable is different. Their entire being undergoes a qualitative leap, and the capacity of their Qi Sea can no longer be compared to a pot; it can only be described as a river or a lake!

Trying to fill a river or a lake by scooping water with a spoon... you could work yourself to death and never complete the task!

Because he knew this, Nie Yun hadn’t actively pursued his Cultivation after advancing to the Ultimate Venerable Realm. Instead, he had begun to focus on Body Refinement.

At the Ultimate Venerable Level, relying on absorbing Spiritual Qi from the air to advance is simply too slow. Even though Nie Yun now had seven Dantians, that was only equivalent to seven spoons... still painfully slow!

Unless... he had Spirit Stones!

Spirit Stones are a special kind of ore formed by the natural world, containing incredibly dense Spiritual Qi. Absorbing from a Spirit Stone is at least a hundred times faster than absorbing from the air!

For this very reason, Spirit Stones are extremely precious, making them an irreplaceable resource for Cultivators.

From annihilating the Demon Race this time, Nie Yun had seized a total of 32 Spirit Stones, which was definitely a massive fortune!

One must understand that the Divine Wind Empire does not produce Spirit Stones; who knows where these Demons managed to get their hands on these!

The two Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Cores were from cultivators weaker than himself, so absorbing them wouldn’t allow him to advance. The Spirit Stones were different. With so many, he could definitely advance from the Early-Stage Ultimate Venerable Realm to the mid-stage!

’I’ve killed King Ning, and my Cultivation is firmly consolidated at the Ultimate Venerable Level. My Ascetic training is over. It’s time to go home!’

He had been in the mountain forests for a full two months since leaving his family, and in that time, his strength had advanced from the Early-Stage Armor Realm to the Early-Stage Ultimate Venerable Realm. He was now truly standing at the Peak of the Empire!

With this kind of power and so many treasures in his possession, it was definitely time to go back.

’Father and City Lord Luoo have probably finished absorbing the Demon Cores of King Ning and King Tong by now. Even if they haven’t reached the Peak of Qi Sect, they should be close. I haven’t seen them in over two months. I’ll go back for a visit, and then I can start a new journey to strive for a higher Realm!’

’Father will definitely be happy once he learns I’ve reached the Ultimate Venerable Level and even tamed three Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Beasts!’

Nie Yun couldn’t help but smile as he imagined how happy his father would be to hear the news.

’My father endured humiliation and carried heavy burdens his entire life, all in the hope that his son would one day become great. In my past life, I never even got to call him "Dad" before he passed away in sorrow. I failed to be a good son. In this life, I must make him happy and proud to have a son like me!’

’My brother’s snake venom is cured. Knowing his personality, his strength must have improved by leaps and bounds. He’s probably reached at least the second level of the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique by now!’

Nie Yun was filled with emotion as he recalled how diligently his brother cultivated.

’Even when his legs were petrified, he trained desperately to become an expert despite my telling him not to. Now his legs are healed and he has an unparalleled Cultivation Secret Manual! His current strength probably can’t match mine, but I bet that ordinary Gang Formation and Armor Realm cultivators are no match for him now!’

’I left an Alchemy Secret Manual for my sister before I left. With her incredible Alchemy Talent, she should be able to refine Low-Level Elixirs by now...’

In his past life, his sister had died young, so he never knew she possessed a Pill Fire Dantian and the Red Flame Pill Fire. Now that he knew in this life, he naturally couldn’t let her talent go to waste. He had specifically taken the time to write an Alchemy Secret Manual and leave it for her.

’My Alchemy Secret Manual was a product of my past life’s experience, far superior to the work of that so-called Liu Chengze. With it, and her superhuman talent, my sister’s alchemy skills must be advancing smoothly and at incredible speed!’

’And Mother, her strength should be improving more quickly as well. She must be the happiest of all now that Father’s injuries are completely healed... Heh, it feels so good to have the whole family together!’

As he thought of his family, of each familiar face and loving smile, Nie Yun’s heart filled with warmth. A blissful smile spread across his face as he leaped into the air. Leading his three Demon Pets, he flew swiftly toward Luoshui City. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)