The Will

Underground Workshop.

The Spirit Lamp's gentle light spread evenly through the entire space.

Ning Zhuo sat at the table, giving the Storage Bags in his hands one final inspection.

These were the spoils of war he had taken from the Yellow Family Three Ghosts at the Black Market earlier.

After confirming that they were safe, Ning Zhuo began cracking the miniature formation on the first Storage Bag. He then forged the original owner's aura and divine sense, finally tricking the Storage Bag into opening.

The first Storage Bag contained a small amount of spirit stones, a Spirit Pet Green Blade Mantis, and some materials suited for Ghost Cultivators, such as Dark Essence, Soul Essence, and Netherworld Flowers.

The second Storage Bag held several hundred spirit stones. Its Ghost Cultivator materials consisted only of a clump of yin wind and a jade slip containing the Ghost Cultivator technique "Yin Bone Art," which could alter one's own bones.

The third Storage Bag belonged to the eldest of the Yellow Family Three Ghosts. Its formation had two layers, causing the difficulty and time required for Ning Zhuo to crack it to surge dramatically.

"Interesting." The boy's eyes gleamed brightly.

The greater the difficulty and the stronger the resistance, the more it stirred his fighting spirit.

He threw himself into it wholeheartedly, savoring the pleasure of tackling a difficult challenge.

After nearly half an hour, he finally cracked it.

The moment it opened, a Little Ghost Head lunged at Ning Zhuo's face.

Ning Zhuo snorted inwardly. He had been prepared. At the crucial moment, the My Buddha Heart Demon Seal within his sea of consciousness flashed, pinning the Little Ghost Head in place. Then the defensive formation on the worktable activated, instantly blasting the Little Ghost Head until its soul scattered and vanished.

The Little Ghost Head seemed to be the Yellow Family ghost leader's final stubborn defiance.

At this point, his Storage Bag no longer held any defenses against Ning Zhuo.

There were over a thousand spirit stones, along with two jade slips: the Ghost Cultivator technique "Netherworld Heart Sutra" and the Ghost Cultivator spell "Soul Guiding Art Detailed Explanation." There was also a large pile of cultivation materials, not limited to items usable by Ghost Cultivators.

"Fire essence?!" Ning Zhuo's pupils widened slightly as he discovered roughly ten pounds of fire essence.

Joy immediately surfaced on his face.

Suppressing his excitement, Ning Zhuo pulled open a drawer and grabbed a handful of Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake from within.

With a surge of magic power, he burned away the wrapping paper around the cakes. A few ashes drifted out, like ash from corpses scorched inside a pill furnace.

He opened his mouth and stuffed all the cakes in his hand inside.

He chewed.

Under the Spirit Lamp's glow, his lips were vivid red, revealing white teeth now and then. The Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake was ground between his teeth and lips, its filling spilling out and mixing together. It was like the many cultivators who had fallen into his hands, howling amid the grinding mill before their flesh and blood were pulverized into nourishment for Ning Zhuo's growth.

The cultivators' world was cruel. Without gray-market dealings like the As-You-Wish Rope, without the contributions of these demonic-path cultivators, how could Ning Zhuo afford to eat so much Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake?

As Ning Zhuo ate Golden Silk Jade Dew Cake, he cheerfully counted the gains from yesterday's Black Market.

Selling As-You-Wish Ropes had earned him 24,000 spirit stones.

Of that, his grandfather Ning Ze had purchased eighty As-You-Wish Ropes for the Ning Lineage, contributing the lion's share.

Compared to that, the spirit stones on the Yellow Family Three Ghosts were pitifully few.

"The As-You-Wish Ropes I make are the best cave-descending ropes available on the market. That is why this business has always done well."

"Looking at it this way, the Ning Lineage is making such extensive war preparations. Are they about to make a major move?"

"Ah, in the cultivation world, people eat people!"

"There are always those harboring ulterior motives, bullying an ordinary boy like me."

"Since those three Ghost Cultivators came out to rob people, they were naturally poor. Still, those ten pounds of fire essence were beyond my expectations. What a pleasant surprise."

"With this, the fire essence I have stockpiled has reached over a thousand pounds. It is enough!"

Over the past few years, Ning Zhuo had been secretly accumulating fire essence. For safety's sake, he only purchased tiny amounts from the market each time, gathering grains of sand into a tower. At his usual pace, stockpiling ten pounds of fire essence would probably take more than a month.

But now, this large batch of fire essence had immediately filled his final gap.

After tallying his gains, Ning Zhuo calculated the losses from last night's Black Market.

He took a silver-gray token from his robes.

The front of the token bore the character Azure, while the back bore the character Han.

With a light toss from Ning Zhuo, the token disintegrated in midair, stretching, expanding, and bursting with dazzling radiance. When the light faded, the mechanical battle armor, Azure Iron Han Armor, floated silently in the air.

Ning Zhuo opened one section of the mechanical battle armor's spine. Embedded there was a Foundation Establishment Pill.

"The Foundation Establishment Pill has only thirty percent left."

This pill was crucial. It was one of the elements that allowed the Azure Iron Han Armor to wield Foundation Establishment battle strength. Ning Zhuo himself possessed only Qi Refining Stage cultivation.

"Once the Foundation Establishment Pill is used up, the Azure Iron Han Armor will no longer be usable."

"Ah, obtaining Foundation Establishment Pills is extremely difficult." Ning Zhuo frowned slightly.

This was Ning Zhuo's greatest loss yesterday.

Last night had also added another wound.

It was the stab mark left behind when the eldest of the Yellow Family Three Ghosts fought desperately to the death. Ning Zhuo was helpless about it as well.

A closer look would reveal that the surface of this mechanical battle armor was already covered in scars.

Some were Old Injuries; others were marks left from battles after Ning Zhuo had worn it.

"Mother..." Ning Zhuo stroked the old scars, and his gaze grew sorrowful.

Fourteen years ago, when he was only two years old, his Mother had given him these instructions before she died.

Thus, he learned that Fire Persimmon Mountain held a Magma Immortal Palace, a mechanical immortal city. Its city spirit secretly selected cultivators to inherit the immortal city. His Mother had been one of the selected Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators. The immortal city's tests came one after another, each immensely difficult. Because his Mother was outstandingly strong, the other competitors had joined forces to target her, leaving her gravely wounded beyond treatment.

"The immortal city is steadily decaying, and its selection standards will decline accordingly. Zhuo'er, when you turn fourteen, the mechanical immortal city's selection standard will fall to the Qi Refining Stage. That will be your greatest opportunity!"

"Zhuo'er, study Mechanism Art well. Do not let anyone know how much effort you have invested in it."

"You must personally design Mechanical Creations, personally assemble them, and personally control them. These are all part of the mechanical immortal city's assessments."

"If you rank among the top few candidates, you will be recognized as a mechanical seed and receive the mechanical city's focused cultivation. This is especially important for you, because compared to those with backing, you need the mechanical immortal palace's cultivation resources even more."

"By no means should you cultivate the Ning Lineage's techniques to the Foundation Establishment Realm! Your Mother was a mechanical seed among Foundation Establishment cultivators, but my dantian had already been set, and I could not change techniques. Many tests within the Magma Palace became far more difficult because I had not cultivated the techniques left behind by the Three Sects Forefathers. In the end, I could only stop in helpless resignation."

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Two-year-old Ning Zhuo cried in utter panic. "Mother, stop talking. You're coughing up blood!"

Ning Zhuo's Mother reached out and stroked his little head, her eyes full of reluctance and worry. "Zhuo'er, Mother is sorry. I cannot protect you. Without a father or mother, you will be alone from now on. You can only rely on yourself."

"Do not be too loyal to the Lineage. Your father made that very mistake!"

"Before your father died, he asked the Young Clan Leader Ning Xiaoren to look after you. But I have seen through that man. He is one thing in public and another in private. He cannot be relied upon."

"Your grandfather and grandmother—one cares desperately about saving face, while the other is stingy to the extreme. Neither is generous or kind. You must watch out for them too."

"Sometimes, the relatives and friends around you are often more dangerous than enemies!"

"Do not perform too brilliantly. Your father and mother are gone, and no one is truly there to rely on. Hide yourself well. Do not perform too poorly either; being middling is enough. Grow up ordinarily, accumulate quietly, and do not draw attention."

"Mother has seen too much. So many geniuses die young..."

"Mother leaves you her Azure Iron Han Armor to protect yourself. It possesses the might of Foundation Establishment."

"And this treasure—My Buddha Heart Demon Seal! Mother obtained it by sheer luck from the Magma Immortal Palace. It must never be exposed."

By the time Ning Zhuo's Mother reached this point, her voice had faded to its limit.

Tears streamed down her face as she stared at two-year-old Ning Zhuo with all her strength. She wanted to look at him, to keep looking at him, but her vision gradually darkened.

At the final moment of her life, she fell into hesitation. "Mother does not know whether teaching you this way is right."

"Zhuo'er, take good care of yourself. If it truly comes to it, give up on the Magma Immortal Palace."

"Your life comes first. Mother hopes you live—live well!"

"As long as you live, Mother will be happy."

Two-year-old Ning Zhuo clutched his Mother's bloodstained clothes desperately. "Mother, Mother, stop talking. I do not want you to die. Do not die, wuwuwu..."

Ning Zhuo's Mother said at last, "Good Zhuo'er, do not be afraid, do not be afraid... Mother is here. Mother... Mother will protect you from beneath the earth..."

The next moment, his Mother's heart stopped beating, and her hand slowly slipped from atop Ning Zhuo's head.

Two-year-old Ning Zhuo's body trembled violently as though struck by lightning. He suddenly raised his head—revealing the appearance of his sixteen-year-old self.

The once incomparably tender child's face, streaked with snot and tears, had now been replaced by the resolute expression of a grown youth.

He had grown up, carrying the instructions and hopes his Mother had left behind at death's door.

"Mother, circumstances have changed!"

"The City Lord, along with the Zhou and Zheng Lineages, has joined forces to intensify the cleansing of the Crimson Flame Demon Lava Cave. This has greatly reduced the Magma Immortal Palace's defensive pressure and lowered its losses considerably. Without external pressure, the Magma Immortal Palace has remained in good condition, so the Palace Spirit has not actively lowered the selection standards."

"This year, the Ning Lineage also discovered the Magma Immortal Palace's secret. If I wait until they participate in its defense as well, when will I ever see the standards lowered?"

"Perhaps I will never see it happen in this lifetime!"

"The major powers of Fire Persimmon Immortal City are doing everything possible to conceal the Magma Immortal Palace, hoping to digest this opportunity within their own circles. How can that be allowed?"

"Therefore, I must act personally!"

"Now, I have accumulated enough fire essence—absolutely enough to blast the immortal palace into damage and force the standards to drop."

"All that is left is the Fire Ape."