Burial Spirit Ruins Expedition Begins!

Half a month later, Great Officer Ye, dressed in full military attire, led the jungle squad he had bestowed with the title of the "Four Great Vajras" to a storm-ravaged stretch of high sky under Lu Changling's escort. The space here was extremely unstable, making Great Officer Ye secretly uneasy.

"I'll clear the way for you in a moment. Seize the chance and get inside.

"Remember, whether you gain anything is secondary. We don't lack those few resources. The main thing is to make sure you train safely..."

Amid Old Lu's extravagantly lavish instructions, Ye Kong, long accustomed to such treatment, silently nodded. He reminded himself not to let this lifestyle erode his will to cultivate. No matter how tempting it was, he could not give in.

The meaning of life was to stir things up and make trouble. If he did not raid tombs, dig pits, and run dungeons while he was young, where else would he find such a unique youthful experience later?

"Now! Get ready to enter!"

As Lu Changling spoke, he noticed an orderly change in the chaotic space. Seizing the opportunity, he sliced open a gate of light and sent the five of them inside.

"Youth truly is wonderful."

Old Lu wore a nostalgic expression, as though reminiscing about the past.

At the same time, somewhere in the Great Thousand World, an old lion with nine heads let out the same sigh. He reluctantly bid farewell to the good grandson he had only recognized a little over a year ago, grieving inwardly.

The Burial Spirit Ruins lived up to their name, filled with an aura of deathly silence and darkness. The gloomy sky and cracked earth everywhere seemed to tell every newcomer what kind of great calamity had once taken place here.

"Little Hou, where in this damned place are we supposed to find Divine Beast Essence Blood? Let's hurry up, find it, and go home. This place is way too shabby."

After landing from the sky, Ye Kong immediately used his fully cultivated Heavenly Eye. A clear radiance glimmered in his eyes as he surveyed everything thousands of miles away and saw through the geomantic fortunes within several thousand miles.

Yet after scanning the area, all he saw was a devastated landscape in shades of gray and black. Forget treasures—there were not even any living people besides the five of them.

Vajra One, Lu Hou, calmly pulled out a Compass from his robes, one Ye Kong had engraved with the cardinal directions. He bit his finger and dripped blood onto it. The needle slowly began to turn, finally wavering endlessly between east and south.

"Boss, it's too far away. Even the treasure-seeking Compass can't determine it precisely, but it should roughly be in the southeast."

"A direction is enough. Let's get moving together."

Ye Kong was not picky. He took out a flying boat more than ten meters long from his Mustard Seed Bracelet and tossed it onto the ground.

The surface of the flying boat was carved with numerous Buddhist inscriptions, ancient and imposing. It was a parting gift he had swiped from Shi Luo when leaving Spiritual Mountain.

"Get on!"

Ye Kong called to the Four Great Vajras and leaped aboard. After spiritual energy was infused into it, the flying boat raised a protective barrier and shot past countless sights at tremendous speed, leaving the Four Apes staring in astonishment.

"Damn, Great Officer, your equipment is way too complete!"

After Vajra Two came to his senses, he felt that Boss Ye was simply an exploration genius. If not for the fact that he could not find his way around, he probably could have managed alone!

"To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools.

"Danger is unavoidable when venturing out. Only by preparing more life-saving items can we be ready for anything."

"Good, good, good. I learned something new again today."

Vajra Three held a writing brush in one hand and paper in the other, rapidly jotting down Ye Kong's words.

He did not really understand what they meant, but they sounded impressive. Later, he could ask Boss for more guidance and brag about it to those stupid monkeys.

"Boss, there are still some ruins left from ancient times in the Burial Spirit Ruins. Should we try them out? We might be able to get some benefits."

Vajra Four flipped through the intelligence they had gathered before setting out and offered Ye Kong a suggestion.

"What ruins are there?"

Catching the key word, Ye Kong perked up.

"There are several kinds.

"For example, the Small Body Refining Tower, modeled after the ancient Body Refining Tower in the Divine Beast Plains. You can earn a spot to enter the tower by fighting in an arena. Once inside, passing the trials will earn you Divine Beast Essence Blood, Divine Arts, and divine artifacts. There should be one along our route.

"There are also things like the Heaven-Ascending Ladder. Each step brings pressure and a test for the body. The more steps you climb, the greater the rewards.

"However, these things have fallen into disrepair over the years and have become much stingier. You have to persist long enough to get any real benefits.

"Then there are those who simply enter the Divine Beast Old Grounds to dig graves, but that's more dangerous and harder to find..."

Having followed Ye Kong for so long, Vajra Four had already become very familiar with Ye Kong's way of speaking.

"Very good. We'll see how things go, but if there's an opportunity, we'll take everything!"

Ye Kong answered without hesitation.

"Hehe, that's exactly the style we like!" The other three Vajras all revealed their admiration for their boss.

"Boss, there are several Spirit Beasts flying not far ahead. They're extremely fast and look like members of the Sky Peng Tribe!"

At that moment, Lu Hou, who was looking around through a telescope, noticed some movement.

"The Sky Peng Tribe?"

Ye Kong muttered the name, rose to his feet, and stepped forward. He used Heavenly Eye to observe the situation of the five people ahead.

The three in the rear had generic faces. No need to say it—they were mere extras. The leading man flew with his hands behind his back. Though he was traveling, he still appeared as relaxed as if strolling through a courtyard. His profile was rather indifferent, while his gaze was sharp.

"This guy should be Zong Teng. Why does he like putting on airs even more than I do? He has to make traveling this troublesome too."

Ye Kong muttered, then looked at the only woman among the five.

She wore a green dress, with a tall, shapely figure, exquisite features, and a seductive appearance.

Like Zong Teng, she paid close attention to her bearing even while traveling. Her gaze had never left Zong Teng's figure. One look was enough to tell that she was his fangirl.

"If I remember correctly, this woman is called Liu Qing, Jiu You's rival. I've finally met one of the Great Thousand World's signature Liu-named villains today."

"Ahem, Boss, according to our intelligence, this woman's talent and bloodline are nothing special. She only looks decent. But if you're interested in her..."

Seeing Ye Kong's gaze linger on Liu Qing for quite some time, Vajra Four spoke hesitantly. Ye Kong was so startled that he immediately turned around and waved him off.

"Stop! Stop! Stop! What nonsense are you thinking? Do I look like the sort of man who will take whatever he can get?

"Besides, this woman is probably Zong Teng's lover. I have no interest in messing with another man's woman!"

"Oh, oh, oh. That's good.

"Actually, there are quite a few women in the Divine Beast Race with strong bloodlines and beautiful appearances. If you're interested in anyone, I guarantee I'll find all her information for you."

Vajra Four's elder was an elder responsible for gathering external intelligence for the Heaven-Reaching Ape Tribe. Having been exposed to such matters from a young age, he hurriedly changed his approach.

"We'll talk about that later. Right now, I'm only interested in resources and becoming stronger. Put everything else aside."

Ye Kong irritably waved his hand, unwilling to continue dwelling on the subject.

Was becoming an unrivaled expert not good enough? Why would he go around snatching women by force? Although he did not care much about his reputation, doing that would be far too scummy.

"Uh, alright. We won't mention it."

Vajra Four's eyes shifted as he began pondering Ye Kong's meaning.

Boss was not interested in Beast Tribe beauties—did that mean he was interested in human beauties? Should he gather intelligence on some beautiful human women for Boss later?

As they spoke, the flying boat had already overtaken the Sky Peng Tribe's group, who were strolling through the air, and continued flying straight ahead. The five members of the Sky Peng Tribe all stopped and looked over.

"Brother Zong Teng, what Spirit Beast race is that? They actually dare to swagger around so ostentatiously in a place like this. They're utterly audacious and courting death!"

Liu Qing's delicate brows furrowed. It was not that she had failed to see the protective barrier around the flying boat. She was simply mean-spirited and jealous by nature, unable to stand the fact that another race had surpassed them in speed, especially through such an obvious external method.

"Little Qing, the Burial Spirit Ruins are full of people from every race. Some spoiled wastrels, pampered by their elders since childhood, are venturing out for the first time. It is hardly strange for them to carry more protective items. Why get angry with them?"

Zong Teng smiled faintly. Though he too was displeased, he naturally had to maintain his composure before his woman.

"Hmph, unfortunately, not everyone is as broad-minded as you, Brother Zong Teng, and disdains to argue with them. There are plenty of proud people in the Burial Spirit Ruins.

"Maybe someone will find them unpleasant someday and decide to teach them how to keep a low profile. Then they'll be in for a sight!"

Liu Qing was utterly infatuated with Zong Teng. His fanning of the flames only further stirred her hostility toward Ye Kong and the others.

"Alright, Little Qing. According to the intelligence Brother Qing Feng and the others gave us, there is a Small Body Refining Tower not far ahead. Everyone will have to fight in the arena for a spot to enter it.

"If they're heading for that Body Refining Tower as well, perhaps you'll get to teach them a lesson yourself in a moment."

Coldness surged in Zong Teng's eyes as he considered whether he should lower himself later and teach them a lesson too.

After all, aside from the geniuses of those avian Divine Beast races, no one had ever dared to disregard him so completely in terms of speed.

"Hmph! Let's see if they can even make it that far!"

Liu Qing gave a cruel smile and continued onward with Zong Teng.