Motai Xiao's Ambition! (Seeking Collection!)

"How could he be this strong!?"

Yuan Lie gritted his teeth against the excruciating pain, yet the terror in his heart made his scalp prickle.

His entire right arm felt as if it had just been pulled from a meat grinder. Although he desperately channeled his divine power to repair the bone and knit the wounds, that would take time.

His left arm remained intact, but Yuan Lie had been completely stunned—and terrified—by the punch Zhou Hao had just delivered.

Run!

The thought had barely flashed through his mind before his body acted on its own, darting away like the wind for dozens of zhang.

"He just entered the Xiantian realm, yet his strength rivals a Xiantian peak cultivator of the Chiming Nine Heavens Map... Where did this monster come from? If I survive this, Motai Xiao, I will never be done with you!"

Yuan Lie was utterly petrified, and at this moment, his hatred for Motai Xiao was gnashing-teeth deep.

"Trying to run?" With a thought from Zhou Hao, the Taiji Grindstone appeared out of thin air to obstruct Yuan Lie, and in the next instant, he stomped the ground, appearing behind Yuan Lie as if he had teleported.

BOOM~~~~

Zhou Hao clenched his right hand into a fist, unleashing another 'Sea Floor Hammering Punch' that brought with it a howling gale.

The dust and yellow mist that had filled the sky, no longer sustained by the small wind vortexes of Yuan Lie's staff techniques, were instantly blown away.

The members of the Iron Ox Tribe had just seen a streak of light fly out of the yellow mist and recognized it as the weapon of that fierce Xiantian creature. They were still wondering what had happened when the mist cleared, revealing Zhou Hao swinging his right fist from below and hammering it into his opponent's skull.

Squelch!

Brains splattered!

The immense force traveled from Yuan Lie's skull down through his neck and torso, causing his entire upper body to twist and wring around.

"Ah!" Xiangcao saw the gruesome sight and quickly reached out to cover Zhuzi's eyes, though she herself stared fixedly at the man who stood as mighty as a god.

Every member of the Iron Ox Tribe looked at Zhou Hao, who appeared like an invincible demon god, and even forgot to breathe.

"Too fierce!" Iron Ox muttered. "Even the Xiantian Gods and Devils of the ancient era couldn't be much stronger than this."

Zhou Hao was unaware of the profound shock he had caused Iron Ox and the others; he was currently immersed in his own excitement.

"This Blue Flower Mist is truly incredible—it even boosts speed to such a degree!" Zhou Hao looked at the corpse that had collapsed with a crash, an irrepressible smile on his face.

Just moments ago, when Yuan Lie had used his movement technique to flee, Zhou Hao had been prepared to chase him for a thousand miles to crush him to death.

He hadn't expected to cover nearly a hundred zhang in a single step and kill his opponent with one hammer-like blow.

"It's just a pity there's so little of it. If only there were more mist in the Blue Flower Space."

Sensing that the mist energy within his body was now exhausted and only a final wisp remained in the Blue Flower Space, Zhou Hao felt a bit unsatisfied.

Having experienced power and speed that transcended his own limits, returning to his normal state now made him feel incredibly weak.

I'll have to study how this mist in the Blue Flower Space is produced later, Zhou Hao thought to himself.

Such a heaven-defying method, even if it couldn't be used casually, would absolutely be his strongest trump card in a critical moment.

Turning around, Zhou Hao looked toward where the Iron Ox Tribe members were gathered, and the joy and excitement in his heart vanished instantly.

Brother Zhamu, Qingshi, and the other tribesmen whose names he hadn't yet learned but whom he had accepted as brothers the moment he arrived in this world—they had all lost their lives.

...Motai City.

In a quiet, secluded courtyard within the central mansion of the city, the Great Demon Night Owl stood on the branch of a tree, his eyes vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

"Night Shadow." The door to the quiet room opened from the inside, and Motai Xiao walked out.

Whoosh~~~

The massive Night Owl transformed into black mist out of thin air, which then condensed into a middle-aged man with black hair.

"Master." Night Shadow looked at Motai Xiao, who appeared significantly younger than before, his face full of excitement. "Have you stepped into the Purple Mansion?"

"Hahaha." The usually cold and sinister Motai Xiao laughed repeatedly. "It was worth the sixteen years I spent cultivating Qianxue. The reward from that big shot this time was truly generous; he directly bestowed ten Purple Mansion Opening Pills, which I have dreamed of for so long."

The 'Purple Mansion Opening Pill' was a spiritual elixir refined by immortals, capable of allowing a powerhouse trapped at the peak of the Xiantian realm to directly open their Purple Mansion and become a true cultivator. Its effects were truly heaven-defying.

Of course, such a heaven-defying effect naturally came with a great drawback: a Purple Mansion cultivator who broke through using a Purple Mansion Opening Pill would have no hope of further advancement for the rest of their life.

But for a Xiantian peak powerhouse who had little lifespan left and could never break through on their own, the Purple Mansion Opening Pill was an elixir that could drive them mad.

"Congratulations, Master, congratulations." Night Shadow said quickly. "Now that you have stepped into the Purple Mansion, our Motai Clan will be qualified to seize a Vassal City! When that day comes, becoming a hegemon clan will be just around the corner!"

"Vassal City..." Endless desire surfaced in Motai Xiao's eyes.

The continent they resided on was ruled by the Great Xia Dynasty.

The Great Xia Dynasty had stood since the era of the ancient Gods and Devils, unifying this endless land after destroying other ancient dynasties; its history spanned hundreds of millions of years!

Such a vast and boundless territory was not something even the deeply-rooted Great Xia Dynasty could easily manage. Therefore, when the world was first unified, the Xia Emperor divided the land into three thousand six hundred commanderies and enfeoffed eight hundred vassals to manage his endless territory.

However, this gave those vassals who controlled the regions immense power, and it was inevitable that some would rebel.

After dealing with several rebellions, the Great Xia Dynasty, in order to better govern this land, began frantically building cities across the continent. There were even ten such cities in the Great Wild Plains.

These were not cities like Motai City, which the Black Hand Tribe had built themselves.

Every city built by the Great Xia Dynasty had a corresponding Vassal Token. Only by refining the Vassal Token could one be considered to have obtained a Vassal City, which also meant becoming a vassal of the Great Xia Dynasty in name and receiving the protection of the entire Great Xia Dynasty.

Only a clan or tribe capable of occupying a Vassal City could be called a hegemon of the Great Wild Plains.

However, obtaining a Vassal Token is extremely difficult, and even if one is obtained, it must be successfully refined.

Those on the path of Qi Refining can use True Essence to manipulate magical treasures once they reach the Innate stage, but those are merely unranked trinkets; in the eyes of true cultivators, they do not even qualify as magical treasures.

A true magical treasure must be at least a "Human-Rank Magical Treasure."

Human-Rank Magical Treasures can only be activated once a Purple Mansion cultivator has opened their Dantian Purple Mansion and transformed their internal True Essence into Elemental Power.

The Vassal Tokens for the cities established by the Great Xia Dynasty are Human-Rank Magical Treasures, which can only be refined by those at the Purple Mansion stage or higher.

Thinking that he had now stepped into the Purple Mansion stage—not only increasing his lifespan several times over to five hundred years but also gaining the ability to activate Human-Rank Magical Treasures—Motai Xiao realized that if he could obtain and refine a Vassal Token, he could elevate the Black Hand Tribe into a true hegemonic power.

Motai Xiao's desire for a Vassal Token became incredibly urgent.

Fighting between cultivators is strictly forbidden within every Vassal City; to violate this is to provoke the Great Xia Dynasty, which is a capital offense!

In theory, once a tribe refines a Vassal Token and becomes a vassal of Great Xia, it is difficult for them to be destroyed!

Yet, in reality, while the ownership of Vassal Cities does not change often, it is by no means rare.

For one thing, when a Purple Mansion cultivator reaches the end of their lifespan and the tribe has no other Purple Mansion cultivator capable of refining the Vassal Token, they naturally lose the qualification to occupy the Vassal City.

Furthermore, Purple Mansion cultivators do not stay within their cities or tribes every day; cases where they are killed while abroad, leading to the Vassal Token being seized and the tribe losing their city, are numerous.

"Which clan's Vassal Token should I seize?" Motai Xiao fell into deep thought.

There are ten Vassal Cities on the Great Wild Plains.

Great Wild City is the main city and the garrison for the Great Xia Dynasty on the Great Wild Plains; it cannot be seized.

Jade Dragon City is located at the easternmost edge of the Great Wild Plains, bordering the East Sea. It is backed by the East Sea Immortal Sect and has a deep relationship with the Great Xia Dynasty; it has seen no change in ownership for countless years, so it is naturally out of the question.

The remaining eight are held by the five major hegemonic powers of the Great Wild Plains: the Fire Worship Sect occupies three, the Liu Clan occupies two, and the remaining three are held by the Yang, Miao, and Hu clans, respectively.

"The Fire Worship Sect and the Liu Clan are not to be trifled with, and the Yang and Miao clans also possess many Purple Mansion cultivators."

Motai Xiao's eyes turned cold.

"Only the Hu Clan remains. They were founded most recently, have the shallowest foundation, and possess only three Purple Mansion cultivators."

If it were before, even having broken through the bottleneck to reach the Purple Mansion stage, he would not have dared to easily target other hegemonic clans, but now...

"Night Shadow." Motai Xiao flipped his hand and retrieved a scroll of animal hide from his storage treasure. "This is intelligence on the top-tier Great Demons of the Great Wild Plains. Every one of them has been trapped at the peak of the Innate stage for years, yet they possess strength comparable to the Purple Mansion realm."

"Follow the locations recorded here and invite them one by one. Tell them that I, Motai Xiao, have stepped into the Purple Mansion stage and have matters to discuss with them. If they can assist me in my success, there will be a generous reward."

"Does Master intend to use these Great Demons to seize a Vassal City?" Night Shadow stepped forward to take the scroll. Seeing the dense, small characters written upon it, he hesitated. "Those Great Demons each occupy their own territory. The strongest among them, those with the bloodline of divine beasts, are even more powerful than ordinary Purple Mansion cultivators. If you invite so many of them, Master, you..."

The rest of the sentence remained unspoken, but Motai Xiao understood Night Shadow's meaning perfectly.

He was worried that his strength, having just entered the Purple Mansion stage, would not be enough to suppress those Great Demons.

"Since I dare to do this, I naturally have the confidence to keep them in check." Motai Xiao sneered, flicking his hand to reveal a blood-red cloth banner.

The moment the blood-red banner appeared, the entire courtyard seemed to be shrouded in a bloody glow.

The chill was so extreme that it felt as if it would freeze the blood in one's veins, causing Night Shadow to shiver and a sense of boundless fear to rise from the depths of his heart.

"Master!" Night Shadow looked in alarm at the blood-red banner held by his master, Motai Xiao.

On the banner, a hideous, flickering face appeared, as if a demon god were trying to lunge out of the fabric to devour him.

"Do not panic." Motai Xiao still held some genuine affection for Night Shadow, the spirit beast that had followed him for so long. Seeing his fear, he flicked his hand, injecting a streak of blood-red light into Night Shadow's body, and the demon god on the banner gradually calmed down.

"This Blood Demon Banner is the greatest harvest I obtained from the Fire Worship Sect's Main Altar this time."

Looking at the blood-red banner in his hand, Motai Xiao's eyes were filled with obsession.

"A peak Purple Mansion cultivator must be refined alive by blood-fire for thirty-six years to have their flesh and soul fully transmuted into this Blood Demon."

"Even though it is currently only a semi-finished product and not yet fully matured, it already possesses boundless strength, comparable to a body-refining expert at the true peak of the Purple Mansion realm."

"If it is fed with the blood of countless living beings and the souls of Innate creatures, and if I use the heart-blood of one hundred thousand children with innate talent to carve demonic patterns for it, the Blood Demon can break through the Purple Mansion realm and reach the even higher Wanxiang realm."

"So powerful?" Night Shadow was shocked.

It was no wonder his master was so confident this time; the fact that the Blood Demon currently possessed the strength of a peak Purple Mansion body-refining expert was enough to sweep away all the Great Demons at the peak of the Innate stage.

Motai Xiao waved his hand and put away the Blood Demon Banner.

He had only been able to refine the banner after stepping into the Purple Mansion stage, and for now, he could only control the Blood Demon within it through the simple restrictions on the banner.

To fully refine it, he would not only need to expend his own Elemental Power but also continuously feed it with the blood of countless living beings and a large number of souls from Innate creatures.

Motai Xiao estimated that one month would be enough for him to simply refine the Blood Demon Banner and unleash its power, so he instructed Night Shadow: "Tell those Great Demons that the time is set for one month from now, and the location is Wild Stone Mountain, three thousand li northwest of Motai City."

Even with the temptation of the "Purple Mansion Opening Pill," it would be wishful thinking to expect those Great Demons to obey without the corresponding strength to back it up.

When the time came, if Motai Xiao were to reveal the Purple Mansion Opening Pill, those Great Demons would not listen to his chatter; they would inevitably move to seize the treasure immediately.

Motai Xiao knew he had to strike first to intimidate the demons before he could continue the discussion, so the meeting place with the Great Demons could naturally not be his own lair.

"Yes." Night Shadow bowed in obedience. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he thought for a moment and reported, "Master, Commander Yuan and Ye Feng went out to search for the murderer of Motai Jie and have not returned for three days."

"Previously, Ye Feng sent word that they were searching in the Liu Clan's territory and had killed an Innate creature. After that, they left in the direction of Jade Dragon City, and there has been no news since."

"No news for three days? At the speed of that Golden Winged Eagle of Yuan Lie's, three days is enough to circle the entire Great Wild Plains." Motai Xiao frowned deeply. "If they haven't returned by now, I fear they are dead."

If Ye Feng was dead, then so be it; Motai Xiao did not care.

Yuan Lie was a fierce warrior at the Fire Worship Sect Great Wild Branch Altar, and since he had been acting on his behalf, he had to confirm his status now that his life or death was uncertain.

"You go and look for him first," Motai Xiao said. "If you find him, tell him to return as soon as possible. If he is dead, report the news to the Fire Worship Sect branch altar. As for whether they choose to pursue the matter further, let them worry about that themselves."

Having won the favor of that big shot at the Fire Worship Sect Main Altar through Motai Qianxue, Motai Xiao no longer held a mere branch altar in the same high regard as he once did.

If not for Motai Qianxue's request, which prompted that big shot to order the Great Wild Branch Altar to send experts to hunt down the killer of Motai Jie, he would never have bothered.

Otherwise, at such a critical juncture in his bid to establish his hegemony, Motai Xiao would never have wasted manpower on a Motai Jie.

A mere son—and now that he had gained hundreds of years of additional lifespan, wouldn't it be simple enough to sire another?

"Those small tribes are useless now; they will serve perfectly as fodder for the Blood Demon. Once I collect the souls of innate beings and one hundred thousand children with potential, I shall be the absolute hegemon of the entire Great Wild!"

A blood-red light flashed in Motai Xiao's eyes.