A Great Menace Had Appeared in Cang Province

All was peaceful within the Cangyun Sect.

After everything that had happened, everyone cultivated even more diligently.

They had come to understand that even a sect could vanish overnight. Only by cultivating and growing stronger could they avoid being at a disadvantage when facing powerful enemies.

Those chosen to participate in the Dynasty War were also cultivating. The sect provided them with resources. Although it knew they were all merely there to make up the numbers, it still hoped to help them advance a little further.

What if?

If they succeeded, they could not only win a bright future for themselves but also offer the sect protection.

Only Lu Changsheng was nowhere to be found.

Feeling guilty, the ancestor brought him some resources, intending to offer him some more reassurance.

Yet after several visits to Qingyun Peak, he still found no one.

Only after finding someone to ask did he learn that no one had seen Lu Changsheng for several days.

"That boy hasn't gone and done something rash, has he?" The ancestor raised his eyebrows.

Lin Po shook his head. "Even if everyone else did, that fellow wouldn't. He's probably off somewhere enjoying himself!"

"His spirit is that resilient?"

The ancestor was surprised.

Lin Po, however, was dazed. This counted as resilience? Did the ancestor admire him that much?

Still, since Lu Changsheng was fine, the ancestor stopped worrying, left the supplies, and departed.

Meanwhile, Lu Changsheng had settled atop a mountain peak several hundred li from the Cangyun Sect.

Nestled among the mountains, this place rarely saw human visitors. To anyone else, it would certainly qualify as a place of great peril.

For him, however, it was just right.

With no one around, he could draw in Spiritual Qi without restraint. But the Spiritual Qi within Cang Province was so sparse that after only an hour, he had nearly drained the surrounding area dry.

Left with no choice, he could only move elsewhere and continue cultivating.

He moved from place to place like this for a month.

Over that month, one mountain range after another ran dry. Sensing the changes, the Demon Beasts that had lived there kept retreating farther back.

Yet wherever Lu Changsheng passed, Spiritual Qi steadily disappeared, forcing countless Demon Beasts to migrate.

It was only because he had been unable to cultivate freely in the past that this place had remained so peaceful. Now things were different.

He himself hardly noticed anything and only stopped after two months had passed.

Looking at the endless mountains, he wondered when he would ever reach the end and lamented Cang Province's barrenness.

Eventually, he started back toward the sect, worried that his senior brother would be concerned if he stayed away too long.

But when he returned to the sect, Ye Tianyi immediately heard the news and rushed over.

"Junior Brother, thank goodness you're all right!"

"What could have happened to me?" Lu Changsheng raised his eyebrows. He had merely been away for two months. What was there to make such a fuss about?

Previously, when his eldest senior brother was in secluded cultivation, no one had even known when he went out for half a day.

Seeing this, Ye Tianyi frowned. "The world isn't peaceful right now. You'd best not go out unless you have something to do!"

"Not peaceful?"

"That's right. You might not know yet, but a great menace recently appeared in Cang Province. Rumor has it that it's savage by nature and has slaughtered countless living creatures, provoking the wrath of heaven and the resentment of men!"

"Something like that happened?"

Lu Changsheng was astonished.

Ye Tianyi nodded. "Not long ago, an elder discovered that the Spiritual Qi in the Hundred Thousand Mountains south of the sect had dried up. Countless Demon Beasts have fled to seek refuge elsewhere. You won't find a single Demon Beast for over ten thousand li in that direction. I'm afraid it may have come near the sect!"

"South of the sect? Isn't that where I was cultivating before...?"

Lu Changsheng immediately fell into a daze.

After offering a few more reminders, Ye Tianyi left. The sect master still needed him for something.

Watching his senior brother leave, Lu Changsheng sank into thought.

He had stayed there for two months. Why hadn't he noticed anything wrong?

On his way back to Qingyun Peak, he encountered many people, all discussing that great menace, and the rumors grew increasingly absurd.

Apparently, someone had even seen it. They said it was a vicious beast a hundred zhang tall, hideous and ferocious-looking, with a mouthful of fangs. It grabbed Demon Beasts and gnawed on them, then caught a couple of people to use as toothpicks afterward...

Hearing all this made it sound fantastical.

Lu Changsheng was speechless. What on earth was all this? Yet suddenly, something occurred to him, and his expression shifted.

Could the great menace they're talking about be me?

At that thought, he was rather speechless, though he had indeed caused quite a commotion.

Over the next two days, he wandered around the sect and discovered that more and more people had been coming to visit the Cangyun Sect lately.

Everyone knew full well what their aims were. Perhaps they wanted to probe for the whereabouts of the Azure Cloud Map, or perhaps they had come for the Nighttime Madman.

Lu Changsheng could not be bothered with them. After staying for two days, he left the sect again, only this time he changed direction and headed east.

There was still some time before the Dynasty War.

He entered the mountains, found a place with relatively abundant Spiritual Qi, and began cultivating.

Everything was as peaceful as ever. Spiritual Qi vanished in a steady stream, while his Law Power still grew slowly. But as he focused on cultivating and absorbing Spiritual Qi, he noticed something unusual.

Just then, a strange fluctuation swept toward him. As he cultivated, he discovered a force competing with him for Spiritual Qi.

Both sides plundered it, neither yielding to the other. Only when the surrounding Spiritual Qi was nearly exhausted did Lu Changsheng abruptly open his eyes and look into the distance.

"Where did this fellow come from? Have they gone mad from poverty? Even this little bit of Spiritual Qi is worth fighting me over?"

With that, he immediately set off in that direction. As his Divine Sense swept down, he sensed something amiss.

In a valley within the mountain range, a silver waterfall plunged into a pool. A bird three zhang in size lay there, its plumage a rare black. A streak of crimson amid those black feathers was especially striking.

It looked quite extraordinary, radiating an astonishing presence, yet it seemed to be injured.

The once-clear pool had been stained bright red. Seemingly sensing Lu Changsheng's presence as well, it raised its head warily and looked around.

"What kind of bird is this? Why haven't I seen one before? Those black feathers are pretty unusual. It looks like a giant crow!" Lu Changsheng muttered, quietly studying it.

Just then, he noticed that the great black bird seemed to have sensed his presence and was searching for him. Moreover, it actually had Nascent Soul Realm cultivation.

"Nascent Soul... good grief, could it be the thing Senior Brother mentioned? So the great menace actually wasn't me?"

As Lu Changsheng spoke, the great black bird suddenly opened its mouth. Countless fireballs shot in every direction, their scorching flames searing the void and setting even the Spiritual Qi alight.

Several fireballs hurtled toward him as well.

Lu Changsheng frowned. With a lift of his hand, Law Power surged forth, and he thrust his palm out before him. The fireballs shattered, flames falling all around as streaks of radiance streamed into view.

Before he could react, the black bird took to the air. Its wings swept outward, sending countless black feathers hurtling toward him like a torrential rain of pear blossoms.

Boom!

A tremendous rumble echoed as Lu Changsheng shattered the onslaught.

"So petty? I can't even take a look?"

He spoke with his brows tightly furrowed, yet inwardly he marveled. This black bird truly was extraordinary. Unless something unexpected was involved, it was probably that great menace.

At that thought, he immediately retreated, unwilling to get entangled with it.

Their brief exchange had already let him sense its might. If they insisted on fighting to the death, the commotion would be too great.

So many people were searching for it, and anyone who dared come looking for it certainly would not be weak. If someone discovered him, the losses would outweigh the gains.