Chapter 193 - 71: Rewards and Merits

Words : 1949 Updated : Sep 23rd, 2025

The morning sunlight had yet to dispel the haze. A thunderous roar shook the desolate Yanpo Forest with a rumbling sound. It was but a single night, and the largest forest outside Polo City, Yanpo Forest, had already changed beyond recognition. "What in the world happened?" Clad in a yellow hunting robe, his face so somber it seemed it could drip with frost, King Fa Xiaoyun of Shang exploded in rage. The entire Royal Family of Shang knew the significance of Yanpo Forest to the entire Shang Kingdom. The Land Crocodile Turtle that had lived nearly as long as the Shang Kingdom itself was left by our ancestors. Every Emperor of Shang Kingdom since childhood would be told the tale of the divine turtle empowering the nation. In earlier years, the monarchs of Shang Kingdom would even assign the Imperial Army to guard Yanpo Forest, but that divine turtle was naturally ferocious, devouring any human or Dark Beast that dared to approach. As time passed, the monarchs of Shang would simply follow the ancestral instructions, raising a group of Dark Beasts on the outskirts to feed the crocodile turtle, ensuring that as long as the turtle lived, the nation’s fortunes would flourish. Little did anyone know that by dawn, after only three crows of the rooster, the Heavenly Master from the Tianji Pavilion within the palace urgently reported in the night, claiming that a blood disaster occurred within Yanpo Forest, outside Polo City. Fa Xiaotian initially dismissed it and did not immediately dispatch troops to the outskirts; in his youth, he had ventured into Yanpo Forest and if not for bearing the bloodline essence of the Fa Family, he might have been swallowed by the turtle as well, holding a deep disdain for the ugly creature in his narrow heart. Moreover, Fa Xiaoyun had always believed there were no beasts or masters within the kingdom that could threaten the turtle’s life. At the break of dawn, General Tianwei reported that there had been a rampage of Dark Beasts outside Polo City, nearly causing a disturbance among the civilians. Prince Xiao Yi had led his cavalry out early in the morning to settle the frightened populace and dispatched troops to drive away the Dark Beasts; when the main force finally arrived at Yanpo Forest, the scene before them shocked everyone. Only then was Fa Xiaoyun informed a second time. Standing inside Yanpo Forest, it’s no wonder Fa Xiaoyun was so furious; where once there was a lush canopy of trees and blooming flowers, now there was nothing but a landscape of scars. The forest within ten miles was more unbearable than the aftermath of a forest fire or flood; not a blade of grass grew, indeed it seemed not even a single hair could sprout. "General Tianwei, you have battled on the front lines for many years and have experienced numerous campaigns against Dark Beasts. Tell me, is the crocodile turtle dead or alive? And what caused Yanpo Forest to become like this?" Fa Xiaoyun took a breath. If it had suffered a decade of natural and man-made disasters, it could still be understandable, but the land before them, akin to a cursed barren tomb of hell, would not recover anytime soon; it may be difficult to restore its former glory even in several decades. The crocodile turtle had completely vanished, not leaving a single trace behind. Upon hearing the inquiry, even General Tianwei showed difficulty in his expression. Since before dawn that day, he had felt a surge of powerful Dark Power from the direction of Yanpo Forest, but the fluctuation was short-lived. He had thought it was just the turtle losing its temper, and unless necessary, he was too reluctant to provoke the Seventh-Order Alligator Turtle. Yet to his surprise, he later discovered that the presence of the turtle had completely disappeared. Even with his life full of countless fierce battles, he had never seen such a battlefield. All the tree branches were gnawed clean, the surface grass roots were uprooted, and tree trunks hollowed out. To say the turtle was dead, not a drop of blood was found on the ground, but if it hadn’t died, how to explain the intense traces of a struggle that had suddenly appeared. In such a situation, even someone like General Tianwei, who had seen all manner of events, was at a loss for words. Seeing General Tianwei hesitating to conclude, Fa Xiaoyi stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, this does not resemble a typical fierce fight, but looks more like the aftermath of a beast tide." "Nonsense, there are not enough Dark Beasts around Shang Kingdom to form a beast tide," Fa Xiaoyun impatiently rebuked upon Fa Xiaoyi abruptly bringing up a beast tide. He had long held a grudge against Fa Xiaoyi since their youth, yet since the late Emperor’s death and his entanglement with the Feise Empress Dowager, he had been a bit kinder to Fa Xiaoyi, but that was just for show. A few days earlier, upon hearing that Fa Xiaoyi had been humiliated with a broken engagement and had fallen from grace, Fa Xiaoyun secretly rejoiced for a long time, and the public’s opinion of Fa Xiaoyi plummeted. Yet this morning, Fa Xiaoyi’s actions to soothe the populace and expel the Dark Beasts had regained some favorable opinions for him, much to the dissatisfaction of Fa Xiaoyun. "Emperor, this humble official speaks not of an ordinary beast tide, but instead an Insect Beast Tide. Although Shang Kingdom does not have a large number of Dark Beasts residing within, it is home to a plethora of insect species due to its location in the warm temperate zone," Fa Xiaoyi said, taking a step forward without showing any annoyance. "This humble official has been to the barbarian tribes in the south, where the forests resemble the current situation during the insect plagues of spring," Fa Xiaoyi continued, bowing slightly and leading Fa Xiaoyun to the side. "These are the marks of Earth Devouring Ants; the trees are hollow inside. These are the bite marks of the Seven-tailed Peak, the ground is filled with holes and there are more..." Fa Xiaoyi narrated methodically. In the history of the continent, the term ’beast tide’ is extremely terrifying, but ’insect tide’ is even more dreadfully notorious, and it is the bane that every monarch of any nation fears the most. Throughout the history of the continent, the few insect tides that occurred brought about cataclysmic disasters. The Insect Clan, as the lowest echelon among Dark Beasts, would not draw any attention from a Dark Practitioner if encountered individually. However, the sight of the Insect Clan swarming as a group is undeniably terrifying. Among all species, they are the oldest and possess the strongest reproductive capabilities. You can eradicate an entire squad of the Insect Clan. But even if a single insect egg remains, it could reproduce into an entire new Insect Clan army within just a few days. An insect tide means corpses strewn everywhere, failed harvests, and a grim landscape of bones. "Enough," seeing the insect-bitten scars that riddled everything, Fa Xiaoyun felt a chill in his heart, yet he couldn’t help but agree with Fa Xiaoyi’s view. Only a rampaging insect tide, relentless and invincible, could explain why a Seventh-Order Alligator Turtle would end up with no remains, not even a drop of blood left. Even a High-level Dark Beast would be defenseless against an overwhelming, millions-strong tide of insects. General Tianwei looked at Fa Xiaoyi with gratitude and strode forward, "Emperor, our current priority is not to discern the whereabouts of the Alligator Turtle, but to quickly determine the cause of the insect tide. This humble official also suggests setting fire to this forest to kill the insect eggs here, preventing a secondary insect tide. And it also creates the illusion of a wildfire, safeguarding us against snooping rival nations that come across this news." Shang Kingdom is currently peaceful and prosperous, and the knowledge of an insect tide would undoubtedly shake the public’s faith and even alert certain scheming individuals. The three present were undoubtedly experts in the art of power politics, a pity that they all overlooked one point, none of them connected the happenings of Yanpo Forest with the Dark Practitioners, nor did anyone imagine that at this moment, someone in a courtyard within Polo City was dealing with the aftermath of the Alligator Turtle incident. It wasn’t until the next day, as dawn began to break, that Yue Jinghua gradually realized as she returned to her rented courtyard, what kind of deadly battle she and her Dark Beasts had endured the night before. The Dark Beasts had suffered heavy injuries this time, but correspondingly, their gains were also substantial. The Flash Mink Leopard was the most severely wounded; its limbs were seriously injured by Earth Spur, and it was only spared through the infusion of several strands of Creation Power by Yue Jinghua. Following Qing Pu’s advice, Yue Jinghua fed the Flash Mink Leopard a Dragon King Pill and placed it in Mo Xi’s Sea of Consciousness. The Flash Mink Leopard temporarily entered a state of hibernation, whether it would advance or its cultivation would decline remains an unknown for now. The Cannibal Small Qingpu gained the most, not only did it develop the second Dark Technique – Pu’s Instant, but after devouring a large amount of the Alligator Turtle’s flesh, its physical appearance also underwent some changes. The present Cannibal Small Qingpu hadn’t changed much from its initial pact with Yue Jinghua, except that its plant body had become much more robust, advancing into a Third-stage Devouring Grass. As it waved what appeared to be fragile pine leaves, they suddenly grew a few inches, with spines resembling the Alligator Turtle’s carapace growing on the blades. "Pupupu," dozens of piercingly powerful Pu thorns shot out like a volley of bullets, instantly shattering a rockery boulder in the courtyard. Yue Jinghua was very satisfied with this, and of course, what satisfied her even more was the chain of benefits that Cannibal Small Qingpu’s advancement brought to her, the second Dark Technique, Pu’s Instant. After a brief discussion with the Cannibal Small Qingpu, Yue Jinghua learned the most basic Instantaneous Movement; though her range was severely limited, costing nearly a third of her Dark Power each time, not spanning more than ten feet, and could only be used three times a day. In comparison to the original Cannibal Small Qingpu, it was far from just a little inferior. Regarding the secrets of the Spirit Wood Dark Technique, whether it’s the first Spirit Wood Dark Technique – Pu’s Concealment, or the second – Pu’s Instant, her use of them was far inferior to Cannibal Small Qingpu’s. Yue Jinghua once consulted Qing Pu, and all he did was explain that the difference lay in spiritual power. As Yue Jinghua’s spiritual power and cultivation improved over time, it would get somewhat better. This response only made Yue Jinghua more perplexed, could it be that the seemingly weak Little Qingpu’s spiritual power was so formidable? Yet she hadn’t noticed it at all. But her confusion lasted only a moment, as she had more pressing matters to attend to. Yue Jinghua hadn’t forgotten that her Desire Gourd contained the entire carcass of the Alligator Turtle. An Alligator Turtle with a lifespan of several centuries, mirroring the age of Shang Kingdom, posed a significant fortune for Yue Jinghua, who was often steeped in sudden riches and poverty. Wealth aside, the current Yue Jinghua still faced the concern of how to handle the fortune.

Chapter 193 - 71: Rewards and Merits

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