Attacked

Four years later.

Firestone chamber.

Fang Yu tossed a freshly crafted Metal Fire Stone into a stone box, then pulled it closer and counted them one by one.

"One... ten... a hundred... two hundred... two hundred ninety-four... three hundred..."

"Hahaha, I can finally pay off the next six years of my cave abode loan early!"

Fang Yu cheerfully counted them again, put all the Metal Fire Stones into his storage gourd, and left his cave abode for Fire Cloud Cave.

His original plan had been to spend half a year crafting and half a year cultivating, but cultivation was simply too addictive. Having to interrupt it every time was far too painful.

So he immediately made a difficult decision: he would stop cultivating for the time being and devote himself to crafting Metal Fire Stones,

pay off his cave abode loan in one go, and then focus on cultivation. Cultivating without interruption was bound to be far more efficient than cultivating in fragments.

When he arrived at Fire Cloud Cave, Fang Yu saw that Steward Han Feng was free and walked over, presenting his disciple token and three Metal Fire Stones as usual.

"Steward Han, I'd like to pay off everything I owe on my cave abode in one go!"

Han Feng took the token and Metal Fire Stones and looked up at him. "Are you sure you want to pay it all off at once? Won't you think it over some more?"

"I'm sure!" As Fang Yu spoke, he took out the two hundred and ninety-four Metal Fire Stones he needed to repay over the next six years.

Han Feng took them and inspected each one. Once he had confirmed there were no problems, he handed back Fang Yu's disciple token.

"All right. From now on, cave abode Dingmao One Thousand Seven Hundred and Twenty-Two is your private property."

"Many thanks, Steward Han!"

Fang Yu happily took the disciple token and swept it with his spiritual sense, confirming that his cave abode loan had been paid off in full. From now on, he would never again have to toil over crafting Metal Fire Stones to repay the loan.

Han Feng bounced the three Metal Fire Stones in his hand and watched the "firestone laborer" leave. He shook his head slightly. "That laborer's thinking is truly foolish beyond measure. He thinks paying off his debt will let him live free and easy. How could anything in the sect be that good?"

Medicine King Ridge. Cloud Mist Cave.

Fang Yu reclined halfway in a rocking chair, enjoying himself as he drank tea and admired the setting sun on the horizon.

As the saying went, without debt, one's whole body felt light. Having paid off his cave abode loan, he was a changed man in spirit and looked utterly at ease.

"Now I can devote all my attention to improving my cultivation!"

After finishing a pot of tea, he closed his eyes and began circulating the Crimson Firmament Profound Craft Canon, transforming the rich Spiritual Qi into his own Law Power.

Time passed unnoticed in cultivation, and in the blink of an eye, three years went by.

On this day, Fang Yu's eyes suddenly flew open. His Qi surged, and a faint red light shone from his body, making him look as though he were glowing.

"I've broken through to the Fourth Layer of Qi Ingestion!"

Fang Yu felt another strand of Law Power gathered in his heart meridian, and a smile appeared on his lips.

The defining sign of a breakthrough from the third layer to the fourth was that one had enough Law Power to circulate throughout the body, forming a protective spiritual light around it.

This spiritual light could block all kinds of damage and was a cultivator's last line of defense. With this layer of protective spiritual light, one had the means to leave the sect and venture out into the world.

Fang Yu, however, would never take such a risk. He possessed a high-grade blessed land, and as long as he cultivated in peace, he could improve his cultivation. Why would he go out and risk his life?

"Whew..."

He gently exhaled a breath of turbid air flecked with sparks, then immediately began circulating the Flowing Flame True Fire Scripture. In just a moment, that strand of Law Power transformed into Flowing Flame True Fire.

He flicked a finger, sending a spark flying. In the space of a few breaths, it became a fireball as large as a human head, arcing through the air and landing on the mountain peak opposite him.

"Boom!"

With a thunderous blast, flames scattered and set a great tree alight, making it burn like a torch.

"My Law Technique looks quite a bit more powerful now!"

Fang Yu thought to himself. With a thought, he summoned a white cloud beneath him, which carried him into the air and flew along the Medicine King Ridge mountain range.

When he had first arrived, his Law Power had been limited, making it hard to survey all of Medicine King Ridge. Now that he had reached the Fourth Layer of Qi Ingestion and had ample Law Power, he naturally wanted to make a thorough inspection of his own territory and see if there was anywhere with richer Spiritual Qi than Cloud Mist Peak.

The white cloud drifted leisurely, neither fast nor slow, from day into night and then from night into day.

Fang Yu was in no hurry at all. He drifted slowly and looked around at his leisure, carefully investigating the area around Medicine King Ridge.

As time passed, a clear map of Medicine King Ridge took shape in his mind.

Medicine King Ridge was quite extensive, stretching over two thousand li in every direction. The vast majority consisted of uninhabited mountains and remote peaks; only in the flat areas at the feet of the surrounding mountains were there a few mortal villages and towns.

He did find several peaks rich in Spiritual Qi, but its concentration was basically no different from that of Cloud Mist Peak. Thus, there was no need to carve out another cave abode.

"Alas! I really came all this way for nothing. If I'd known the Spiritual Qi was much the same everywhere, I wouldn't have bothered. I wasted so many days for nothing!"

Fang Yu sighed and rode his cloud back toward Cloud Mist Peak.

After winding his way back for several more days, Fang Yu returned to Cloud Mist Peak and landed in front of the platform outside his cave abode.

He went to the tea table out of habit and was just about to boil some water when his gaze suddenly froze. He stared fixedly at the small red clay stove, from which heat was faintly rising.

He had been gone for nearly half a month. How was the stove still burning?

"Whoosh..."

A whistling sound suddenly rang out, and a streak of green light shot from inside the cave abode, striking him squarely in the chest.

"Screech..."

A piercing sound rang out as red light appeared around Fang Yu. A crescent-shaped wind blade at his chest was stopped outside his body by his protective spiritual light and shattered into countless flecks of green light, which shot in all directions and gouged deep marks into the cliff face.

"Huh..."

A voice that sounded somewhat surprised came from inside the cave abode, followed by several more wind blades.

Golden Light Shield.

With a movement of Fang Yu's spiritual sense, a small shield appeared before him and blocked every wind blade.

"...Hah..."

He drew a sharp breath, his chest swelling, and then, with a "pff..."

A stream of flame sprayed from his mouth and shot into the cave abode.

Fire clouds spread, turning the small cave abode into a fire cloud cave in an instant.

"...Ahhh... what a powerful fire technique..."

A cry of alarm came from inside the cave, and a streak of green light immediately fled out of it. The next moment, a golden hammer glowing red slammed viciously into the green light.

"Splat..."

The green light was struck and fell to the ground, revealing a middle-aged figure in a green robe.

Seeing the golden hammer come crashing down again, he screamed in sheer terror, "Fellow Daoist, spare me... ah..."

Before he had finished speaking, the golden hammer struck his head, and his perfectly good head burst open like a watermelon.