The Plan

Chu Zheng had come here for the sole purpose of taking a look at this Ancient Battlefield.

Now, he had achieved that purpose.

Once he found the remaining two fragments of the Void Condensing Bracelet, this place would be of little use to him for the time being. There was naturally no need for him to stay.

Fu Quanliang stared at Chu Zheng for a moment, then turned back to the miners and gave the order, "Go down the mine!"

The Spiritual Spring Realm cultivator did not even glance at Chu Zheng, as though he had come merely to go through the motions. He turned and left as well.

In the blink of an eye, not a soul remained before the tents.

Fu Quanliang fell silent for a moment before sending a voice transmission. "I never noticed you were such a saint, with such a kind heart. When you killed Ji Feng yesterday, why didn't you think of any of this?"

His tone was thick with mockery. Unmoved, Chu Zheng shook his head. "This isn't kindness. It's merely a difference in position."

"I don't think those Han Family disciples did anything wrong. They think of themselves as immortals, born with Immortal Bones, and do not regard these mortals as their own kind. Even drawing marrow and drinking blood from them makes sense to them."

"But I am only a mortal, not an immortal. There are things they can do that I cannot."

"As for Ji Feng... he was the one who never treated himself as a person."

Fu Quanliang seemed stirred by those words. He looked at Chu Zheng for a long while before asking in a low voice, "Then in your eyes, what kind am I?"

"You're my best companion," Chu Zheng answered without hesitation.

The words sounded somewhat strange. Fu Quanliang pondered them for a while, seeming to come to some realization.

"Fine. Three days. I'll cover for you for the time being, but after three days, leave this place and return to Phantom Spirit City."

Fu Quanliang took a deep breath and reminded him again, "Don't forget what you came here to do."

Chu Zheng's actions were far too bizarre and impossible to understand. At times, Fu Quanliang could not help but reflect on why he had believed Chu Zheng's words in the first place.

As a menial servant, if Chu Zheng could no longer bear the work and wished to leave, no one would stop him. But for Fu Quanliang himself to get away would take no small amount of effort. After all, he had only just chosen a side; this was precisely the time for him to show his loyalty.

If something went wrong now, he could easily end up alienating both sides, perhaps even drawing the Han Family's ire.

"I said I would help you destroy the Phantom Spirit Sect. Then I will definitely do it."

The corners of Chu Zheng's lips curved slightly. Hoisting his iron pickaxe onto his shoulder, he slowly headed toward the mine tunnel.

The great undertaking he intended to accomplish was by no means limited to the Phantom Spirit Sect before him. What he wanted to overthrow was the entire immortal path.

Whether martial arts or qi cultivation methods, both could give mortals the ability to break free of their shackles.

Putting aside the illusory and intangible path of martial arts, Chu Zheng already held an astonishing trump card in his hands: the Grand Cycle Qi Circulation Compendium.

This cultivation method had no such thing as the restriction of Immortal Bones. Anyone could cultivate it. Once it spread into the world, it would bring earth-shattering change.

A qi cultivation method could utterly overturn the world before him and rewrite heaven and earth.

If that day truly came, the name Chu Zheng would be carved forever into the annals of history alongside the qi cultivation method.

But before he possessed enough strength for self-preservation, this method absolutely could not be passed on.

To this world, a qi cultivation method was far more terrifying than his ability to repair things.

The deaths of Ji Feng and the others stirred no ripples. The news never leaked out and was directly suppressed.

Even though his great-grandfather was a so-called Outer Sect Elder, his death was still as light as a feather. No one cared in the slightest.

Over the following days, another batch of menial servants arrived. The mine now held over a thousand people, divided into several large groups. Every day, they worked in full swing, hauling out heaps upon heaps of ore.

Chu Zheng spent his days wandering the Ancient Battlefield, searching for fragments of the Void Condensing Bracelet. He tried using the Qi Observation Method as an aid, searching for qi similar to that of the Void Condensing Bracelet, but ultimately failed.

This Ancient Battlefield was filled with Five Elements Qi, far too chaotic to sort through. Yet while he had no intention of planting willows, willows cast their shade all the same. Through qi observation, Chu Zheng ultimately found an exceedingly valuable treasure.

Five Elements Shaping Vitality Pill (Fourth Order): Gather Five Elements Qi and supplement it with the Five Saint Essences—the White Tiger Claw, Azure Dragon Scale, Black Tortoise Shell, Vermilion Bird Feather, and Qilin Blood. Refine it for three years to form the pill, which can shape a Five Elements Vital Body. Due to the passage of too much time, its medicinal potency has nearly completely dissipated. Can be repaired (0/500)

This Precious Pill had been found in the Dantian of a corpse. Clearly, after it had been swallowed, it could not be digested for a time and was thus placed in the Dantian, allowing it to survive the great battle.

Fortunately, the pill was still fairly intact. Although its medicinal potency had completely dissipated, the number of repairs required was not great.

If this Shaping Vitality Pill were restored to its perfect state, Chu Zheng could imitate this corpse and place the Precious Pill in his Dantian. On one hand, it would aid his cultivation; on the other, he could use Five Elements vital qi to transform yin and yang, treating it as a false core to prepare for condensing a Golden Core.

Spiritual Transformation, Jade Bone, Dao Embryo, Golden Core.

In terms of cultivation realm alone, a Golden Core qi cultivator was already comparable to a Divine Infant Great Power of the immortal path, possessing the Great Divine Ability to move mountains and fill seas.

"This trip was not in vain."

Chu Zheng let out a breath, his mood instantly brightening.

This Five Elements Shaping Vitality Pill would bring him tangible benefits in his cultivation.

Chu Zheng made his way to the center of the battlefield and lightly tapped the bones, listening to echoes passed down from ancient times.

The closer he drew to the battlefield's center, the stronger the cultivation of the corpses had been in life. Fifth Order corpses were everywhere, and now and then, he could even see Sixth Order remains.

Nameless Corpse Bone (Sixth Order): In life, it belonged to the Dark Wolf Clan and had attained the pinnacle of cultivation. It died from a sword wound to the back of the heart, having been caught unguarded and secretly assassinated. Its spirit essence has dispersed and cannot be repaired.

Chu Zheng stopped. This appeared to be a humanoid skeleton, yet it belonged to the Dark Wolf Clan. It was likely a Shapeshifted Great Demon.

No clothing remained on it. Whether it had been stripped away or had never been worn in the first place was unknown. Only bare white bones were left, and judging from the frame, it should have been a woman.

Chu Zheng glanced over it a few times, then his gaze suddenly sharpened. He stepped forward and slowly pried open the corpse's tightly clenched palm. Several silvery-white finger bones were gripping more than half a piece of Broken Jade with all their strength.

After prying at it for quite some time, Chu Zheng was drenched in sweat before he finally managed to take the Broken Jade into his hand.

He took two more fragments from his robes. The three pieces fit together seamlessly, forming most of a circle, with only a thumb-sized piece missing.

Void Condensing Bracelet (Sixth Order): A spatial Spirit Treasure, broken into four pieces during a great battle. It is connected to a piece of Other Domain space; once repaired, the connection can be reestablished. If all components can be gathered, repairs will be easier. Repairable (0/1000)

Another fragment.

Chu Zheng did not know whether this Void Condensing Bracelet had belonged to the Dark Wolf Clan woman, but even if it had not, it must have belonged to someone extremely important to her.

Chu Zheng rose and took two steps, then suddenly turned back. In a few swift motions, he removed his outer robe and covered the corpse with it.

"I won't take your bracelet for nothing."

Muttering softly, Chu Zheng tucked the pieces of Broken Jade into his robes and strode toward the cave entrance.

Fu Quanliang had already settled everything for him. The Flying Boat would arrive today.

The two could not leave at the same time. Fu Quanliang still needed to remain stationed here for a while before finding another chance to be transferred back to Phantom Spirit City.