The Crispy Fish's Sense of Crisis

A thousand years felt like nothing to the Great Wilderness powerhouses who lived for several Eons. It was barely enough time for a nap, to brew a pill, or to have a spat with the neighbors (like the Witch Race and the Demon Race).

But deep within Kunlun Mountain, a certain salted fish who was forced to be productive was undergoing a profound seclusion that felt like shedding its skin and tendons.

On this day, at Chen Song's seclusion spot.

A much stronger aura than before, like a fart held in for too long, finally found an outlet and spread from the cave dwelling. Mid-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortal! He made it!

Chen Song strode out with a swagger that defied recognition (actually, his legs were numb from sitting too long). He bathed in the long-lost sunlight, stretched comfortably, his joints cracking like popping beans.

"Ah! The air of freedom! Ah! The long-lost... Huh? This air smells wrong?" He took a deep breath and keenly sensed that the spiritual energy in the world seemed to have become "spicier" than before, mixed with a faint... smell of gunpowder and blood?

Just then, three figures appeared before him like ghosts.

Laozi still had his usual serene expression, holding a newly refined pill, seemingly pondering why this pill looked like a toad rolling its eyes. He glanced at Chen Song and said calmly, "Hmm, mid-stage. At least you didn't eat all those immortal pills for nothing."

Yuanshi, holding his Three Treasures Jade Ruyi, scrutinized Chen Song from head to toe, his gaze sharp enough to shave off an ounce of skin. "Your aura is quite stable. Not bad."

Four Unlike, who was undergoing Yuqing immortal cultivation nearby, blinked its innocent eyes, which looked like a dragon and a tiger combined.

Tongtian was the most direct. He landed a punch on Chen Song's shoulder, almost scattering his newly stabilized cultivation. "Hahaha! Good lad! Worthy of being my Tongtian's disciple nephew! This speed, it's almost as fast as the lightning ferret I raised back in the day! Come, come, come! Martial Uncle has just developed a 'Ten Thousand Swords Piercing Heart Happy Formation' that will guarantee you the ultimate speed and thrill!"

Chen Song grimaced from the punch and quickly pleaded, "No, no, no! Third Martial Uncle! Your disciple just came out of seclusion, my heart is still fragile, I can't withstand the test of your 'Happy Formation'! I think it's better to adapt to the outside environment first..."

Before he could finish speaking, his expression suddenly changed slightly. It wasn't because of Tongtian's punch, but because the "smell of gunpowder" pervading the world was becoming clearer, and even his mid-stage Grand Unity Primordial Spirit felt a sense of oppression and palpitations.

It felt like the suffocating low pressure before a storm.

"Master, Second and Third Martial Uncles," Chen Song dropped his joking demeanor and pointed to the sky and the distance, "The aura in this world... seems a bit off? It feels like someone's gas leaked... Ah, no, the killing intent is a bit heavy?"

Laozi sighed softly upon hearing this, put away the "toad pill," and his gaze seemed to pierce through the endless void, seeing the tragic scenes unfolding on the Great Wilderness land.

"The Witch-Demon Conflict," Laozi's voice carried a hint of imperceptible gravity. "Since the fall of the Immortal Court, the Demon Race's arrogance has grown, and friction with the Witch Race has escalated. Now, it's no longer a minor skirmish, but a struggle for destiny, the Heaven and Earth Tribulation... has already begun."

Yuanshi chimed in, his tone cold. "Tribulation Qi permeates, the heavenly secrets are chaotic. Now, when I deduce the path ahead, I see only blood red. Even Grand Unity Golden Immortals, caught in it, face the peril of death and Dao dissipation."

Tongtian, however, was eager to fight but was glared back by Laozi. He could only pout, "Fighting and killing, too much killing intent, it affects my mood for practicing swordsmanship."

Chen Song's heart skipped a beat.

Holy crap! The script has begun! The Witch-Demon Tribulation! This is the famous meat grinder of the Great Wilderness, where even top powerhouses like Emperor Jun, Eastern Emperor Taiyi, and the Twelve Ancestral Witches had to queue up to get their lunch boxes! This is a super major event!

Various descriptions he'd seen in his past life flashed through his mind: Buzhou Mountain collapsing, the Milky Way pouring down, living beings suffering, great figures falling like rain... It was simply the Great Wilderness version of 2012 plus The Day After Tomorrow plus Independence Day, with a super multiplier!

A chill ran from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head! He, this little salted fish, although he had clung to one of the Great Wilderness's thickest thighs, the Three Pure Ones, this tribulation was an area-of-effect attack, indiscriminate! What if one day the killing intent clouded his mind, or he was "cleaned up" by some berserk Great Witch or Demon Saint, who would he complain to?

"No! Absolutely not!" Chen Song wailed inwardly. "I finally managed to transmigrate once, became an Innate Spiritual Root, became a disciple of a Saint, became the big brother of the Ancestor of Earth Immortals, and was about to welcome a version update with the emergence of Saints, allowing me to comfortably lie down and win as a Great Wilderness rich second generation... Ah, no, a rich first generation. How can I fall on the eve of the tribulation?"

An intense sense of crisis, like the snowmelt of Kunlun Mountain, drenched him to the bone! His heart, accustomed to lying flat, finally began to beat faster after a long time.

Grind! I must grind to death! Pfft, I mean, cultivate diligently! At least I need to max out my survival skills!

He immediately put on a serious expression of "worried about the Great Wilderness, aspiring to improve," bowed to the Three Pure Ones, and said with profound (and exaggerated) grief:

"Master! Second and Third Martial Uncles! Your disciple was lazy and wasted time in the past, which was truly wrong! Now, seeing the Tribulation Qi pervading the Great Wilderness and all beings suffering, your disciple feels deeply pained! I also deeply understand that my cultivation is low, and if the tribulation affects us, I might become a burden to the sect! Your disciple earnestly requests Master and Martial Uncles to strengthen my 'quality education'! Whether it's alchemy, artifact refining, formations, or evasion techniques, your disciple is willing to learn! Learn to death! Only hoping to have some self-preservation ability in the future storms, and not bring shame to our Three Pure Ones Group... Ah, no, the Three Pure Ones Dojo!"

This "eloquent" speech completely baffled the Three Pure Ones.

Laozi paused his hand stroking his beard, looking at Chen Song with a strange expression, as if judging whether this kid had broken his brain during seclusion.

Yuanshi's mouth twitched slightly. He was used to Chen Song's wisecracks, and this sudden "positive energy" made him a little uncomfortable.

Tongtian directly reached out and touched Chen Song's forehead. "Are you running a fever? Why are you talking nonsense? Senior Disciple Nephew, have you been invaded by an Inner Demon? Shall Martial Uncle scrape it out for you with sword energy?"

Chen Song: "..." As expected, the persona collapsed as fast as a tornado.

He quickly tried to salvage the situation. "Your disciple is serious! Mainly... mainly after coming out of seclusion this time, the outside world feels too dangerous! Without strength, I don't even dare to eat melon casually!"

This reason sounded much more "Chen Song-like." The Three Pure Ones exchanged a look of "As expected."

Laozi nodded. "To advance when aware of danger is also progress. Since that is the case, it shall be as you wish. The alchemy room, artifact room, and formation diagrams are always open to you. If you have any difficulties, you may come and ask us."

Yuanshi added, "Don't blow up the furnace again, the materials are expensive."

Tongtian patted his chest. "Evasion techniques and sword formations are on me! I guarantee you'll run faster than that stupid dog!"

Big White, who was secretly gnawing on a spirit fruit nearby, was innocently dragged into it. "Woof???"

Thus, Chen Song's journey as a grinder officially began.

He was no longer content with passively receiving knowledge but actively delved into Laozi's alchemy room, researching how to refine pills that could not only improve cultivation but also avoid side effects.

He soaked himself in Yuanshi's artifact room, wrestling with various hard metals and complex formation runes, aiming to forge a Great Wilderness version of a multi-functional Swiss Army knife that could attack, run, defend, and hide.

He even followed Tongtian to learn how to escape more elegantly (and quickly), and how to set up seemingly harmless but actually insidious and treacherous trap formations.

He even began to exploit... ah, no, "cultivate" Big White.

Before Chen Song went into seclusion, he had instructed Big White to research whether it could "eat" enemy spells and divine powers, or convert what it ate into energy. Unfortunately, this silly dog was disappointing and hadn't researched anything.

"Big White!" Chen Song held a freshly baked, five-colored poisonous smoke-emitting "experimental Five Elements Pill" and said earnestly, "Look, the tribulation is approaching, and swords are blind. Although you have thick skin, what if you encounter a Quasi-Saint who likes to stew dog meat? So we can't just be satisfied with being tough, we need to develop new skills! For example, can you try to 'eat' the enemy's spells? Or instantly convert what you eat into energy for a super acceleration?"

Big White looked at the strangely colored pill, its dog face filled with refusal. "Woof! Boss, this pill looks expired! If I eat it, will I perform an instant ascension?"

"Don't worry, you won't die! At most, you'll have diarrhea, or temporarily turn into a colorful black!" Chen Song enticed. "Think about it, in the future, if someone sets you on fire, you swallow it in one gulp, then counter with an 'Energy Devouring Sprint,' and run away quickly. How cool is that! Then, you'll be the most dazzling dog in the Great Wilderness!"

Under Chen Song's "drawing a pie" and "pill temptation" (and threat of force), Big White tearfully began its "devouring" skill development journey, with all sorts of comical situations in between, needless to say.

And while Chen Song was "ignoring the outside world and solely reading the books of sages" in Kunlun Mountain, the Great Wilderness world outside had already descended into complete chaos.

The conflict between the Witch Race and the Demon Race had long since escalated from minor skirmishes of "What are you looking at?" and "What are you looking at?" to full-scale group battles of "grabbing territory" and "annihilating tribes."

The Great Wilderness was engulfed in smoke and flames, with murderous intent soaring into the heavens.

At the foot of Buzhou Mountain, the Great Witch Xing Tian wielded his shield and axe, locked in a fierce battle with a Demon God. Their clash of violent power caused the surrounding mountains to collapse like building blocks.

On the shores of the Sea of Blood, Witch Race warriors and the Demon Race army were locked in a deadly struggle. Blood stained the land, limbs and torsos flew everywhere, and resentment surged into the clouds. Even Old Ancestor Minghe couldn't help but peek out and curse, "So noisy!"

On the shores of the North冥 Sea, the Demon Master Kunpeng lurked in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity. The icy North冥 Sea Cold煞 was like a venomous snake, ready to deliver a fatal blow to the Witch Race at any moment.

Di Jun and Taiyi presided over the Heavenly Court, their might pressing down on the Great Wilderness. The Twelve Ancestral Witches gathered in Pangu Hall, exuding a terrifying aura that made all things tremble.

Although the two races had not engaged in all-out war, the invisible confrontation and occasional friction had already made the entire Great Wilderness world tremble. The Tribulation Qi was so dense it had almost become tangible. Ordinary cultivators, once caught in it, would instantly have their minds clouded by murderous intent and become mere puppets driven only by slaughter.

The Great Wilderness, this grand play, had finally ushered in the most brutal and bloody climax chapter since its creation – the Witch-Demon Tribulation!

And Chen Song, on his VIP viewing platform in the eye of the storm that was Kunlun Mountain, was frantically improving his strength while anxiously watching the "live broadcast" outside, with only one thought in his mind:

"Stay steady, don't get reckless! Hold on, and we can win!"