Liu Zhenxiong paid no mind to Xu Ming's sour attitude. Minor friction between disciples was perfectly normal; he had no intention of wasting time on such trivialities.

"With Ouyang Hao injured and driven off by Chu Xuan, the Shengang Sect will undoubtedly tear through Taipingfang and the surrounding areas again," Liu Zhenxiong warned, his tone stern. "Keep your heads down. Until I give the word, you are to remain sealed within the secret room. No one steps foot outside."

"Yes, Elder," the disciples nodded in unison.

...

Ten days later.

Just as predicted, the Shengang Sect descended upon Taipingfang like a swarm of locusts, hunting for any trace of Ouyang Hao. It was a massive mobilization. Three Foundation Establishment cultivators led the charge, flanked by over a dozen Qi Condensation disciples.

They turned the market and its outskirts upside down. Rogue Cultivators didn't dare show their faces on the streets, terrified of becoming collateral damage to the Shengang Sect's wrath.

The relentless search dragged on for three days. Even Wu Teng, the Wu family's veteran Foundation Establishment cultivator, was dragged in for interrogation.

Yet, despite their fury, they found absolutely nothing. Left with no other leads, the Shengang Sect cultivators finally stormed off in a rage.

The moment Wu Teng returned to the Wu family manor, he hunted down Liu Zhenxiong.

"Brother Wu," Liu Zhenxiong asked, bewildered. "Ouyang Hao was merely injured. Why in the world did the Shengang Sect spend three full days tearing this place apart?"

Wu Teng scoffed, his face dark. "Injured? He vanished! Which is practically the same as being dead. Tell me, which of your Wuji Sect disciples did this 'good deed'?" He leaned in, his voice dropping to a harsh hiss. "Who actually had the gall to murder the Shengang Sect Grand Elder's favored disciple?"

Liu Zhenxiong froze. "Vanished?"

Wu Teng sighed heavily. "If Ouyang Hao hadn't completely disappeared, do you really think they would have mobilized three Foundation Establishment and a dozen Qi Condensation cultivators? If I didn't know how to handle myself, the Wu family manor would have been ripped out by the roots."

Liu Zhenxiong rubbed his temples, his mind racing. This wasn't how he pictured it at all. He had assumed Chu Xuan merely wounded Ouyang Hao, forcing the arrogant disciple to flee.

But the reality was far more brutal. Chu Xuan hadn't just defeated Ouyang Hao—he had slaughtered him and scrubbed the corpse from the face of the earth!

Looking at it this way, he had severely underestimated the kid. Chu Xuan's true cultivation had to be at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation!

"Brother Liu, my old bones can't take much more of this," Wu Teng said wearily. "Reel in your disciples. No more trouble. I've spent years acting as a shadow agent for the Wuji Sect, feeding you intelligence on the Shengang Sect, but my cover won't survive repeated inquisitions. If this heat keeps up, I'll have no choice but to evict you all."

"Understood, Brother Wu. You have my word. I'll keep them on a tight leash," Liu Zhenxiong promised, nodding repeatedly.

Returning to his secluded courtyard, Liu Zhenxiong caught the hushed, frantic whispers of Chen Ge, Wei Hua, and the others.

"Ouyang Hao is dead!"

"They say he's missing, not dead."

"What's the difference? Did you see the heat? The Shengang Sect sent three Foundation Establishment cultivators!"

"Who do you think killed him? Could it be... Senior Brother Chu Xuan?"

Seeing Liu Zhenxiong approach, the disciples immediately stood at attention.

"You've all heard, then?" Liu Zhenxiong sighed.

Chen Ge nodded. "The rumors are spreading like wildfire. Even locked in the manor, we heard the Wu family servants gossiping about it."

Liu Zhenxiong offered a wry smile. "Ouyang Hao is likely dead. It seems I misjudged Chu Xuan's true strength. He must be the one who finished Ouyang Hao and disposed of the body."

Wei Hua, Bai Feng, and the rest stared in wide-eyed shock. In an instant, Chu Xuan's standing in their minds skyrocketed, placing him almost on the same pedestal as Elder Liu himself. Ouyang Hao had butchered so many of their fellow Qi Condensation disciples; he was a nightmare they all deeply feared and loathed. Knowing Chu Xuan had ruthlessly avenged their fallen brothers filled them with a fierce, vindicating joy.

Xu Ming, however, looked as though he had swallowed a lemon. The chasm between him and Chu Xuan had just widened into an impassable abyss.

"Elder Liu," Chen Ge couldn't help but ask, "why didn't you bring Senior Brother Chu here with us? With him around, we'd have a much stronger backbone."

"I tried," Liu Zhenxiong said, shaking his head in regret. "He refused. Honestly, I should have forced him to stay."

The disciples exchanged bewildered glances. Chu Xuan had actually rejected a direct invitation from an Elder?

"Chu Xuan understands the grim reality of our situation," Liu Zhenxiong explained softly. "Our resources are stretched thin. If I were to funnel cultivation resources to him, it would inevitably breed resentment and fracture the unity among you. So, he chose to walk away. He intends to break through to Foundation Establishment relying solely on his own strength."

A heavy silence fell over the courtyard. Chen Ge, Wei Hua, and Bai Feng lowered their heads, a profound sense of awe and emotion swelling in their chests.

Chu Xuan!

Senior Brother Chu!

To think he was so selfless!

Xu Ming's face burned a bright, shameful red. He had been so petty, so openly hostile toward Chu Xuan, yet Chu Xuan had been silently shouldering the burden for all their sakes.

"Enough dwelling on the past. Focus on your cultivation," Liu Zhenxiong sighed. "I must continue tracking down the whereabouts of our two Patriarchs."

The disciples nodded solemnly.

When the Wuji Sect fell, some of their Golden Core Patriarchs had died in battle, and others had surrendered. But two had managed to carve a bloody path out. Liu Zhenxiong had never abandoned his search for them. If they could just locate a Golden Core Patriarch, their survival would be guaranteed. If the worst came to pass, they could quietly flee the Yu Kingdom and rebuild the Wuji Sect in some untamed wilderness.

As long as a Golden Core Patriarch drew breath, hope remained.

...

Meanwhile, deep within a secluded cave.

Chu Xuan exhaled a long breath of turbid air and slowly opened his eyes.

He had nearly finished refining the entire batch of Blood Beads he brought with him. He could feel his dantian swelling, stretched to its absolute limit. Yet, despite the overwhelming volume of spiritual energy, there was not a single sign of it liquefying.

Clearly, I am no Peerless genius, he thought dryly. Without the catalyst of a Foundation Establishment Pill, forcing that final step was proving to be a monumental task.

"I've acquired what I need. Time to go."

Chu Xuan sifted through the newly acquired spirit herbs in his Storage Bag, giving a satisfied nod. He hadn't bought these in Taipingfang. Ever the pragmatist, he had flown to a distant rogue cultivator market to make his purchases, ensuring no trail led back to him. He hadn't even dared to use the Heavenly Dipper Flying Sword, opting instead for his old Low Grade flying sword to maintain a low profile.

Reaching into his robes, Chu Xuan withdrew the Blood Mirror.

A crimson spiritual light rippled across its surface, parting to reveal the desolate, ruined skyline of Hailan Planet. He linked his consciousness to the mirror. Instantly, a powerful suction gripped his body.

The world spun into a chaotic blur of light and shadow.

When his vision finally cleared, the familiar, gritty wind of the apocalypse greeted him. He was standing on the rooftop of the Haotai Hotel.

Roar! Roar!

Before he could even steady his footing, a series of excited, guttural snarls echoed nearby.

Whoosh!

A dark blur shot across the rooftop. Little Tiger skidded to a halt and dropped to one knee before him, looking up with the eerie, blood-soaked devotion of an affectionate puppy.

Chu Xuan smiled, casually patting the undead monstrosity on its rotting head. "How have things been while I was away?"

He briefly tapped into Little Tiger's rudimentary consciousness, sifting through the zombie's memories. After a moment, he nodded in satisfaction.

Perfect.

Four months had passed on Hailan Planet. In all that time, not a single survivor or wandering horde had dared to encroach upon the Haotai Hotel. Little Tiger had been the perfect guard dog. Aside from his scheduled hunting excursions, the zombie hadn't taken a single step off the property without permission.

Thanks to four months of relentless slaughter and feeding, Little Tiger had successfully evolved into an eighth-level Corpse Soldier. Even the six lesser Corpse Soldiers and the two undead spirit hounds under his command had experienced significant growth.

Down in the hotel's rear courtyard, the makeshift herb garden was thriving. The spirit plants were growing at an astonishing rate. For recipes that didn't require centuries-old ingredients, some of the stalks were already mature enough to be harvested for alchemy.

But ordinary herbs were secondary. Chu Xuan's primary concern was the Soul-Spawning Flower.

He strolled over to the captive Wolf King.

The massive beast was a pitiful sight—emaciated, hollow-eyed, and clinging to its last breath. It was nothing more than a living flesh vessel now. Little Tiger had meticulously force-fed it a single chunk of zombie meat every day, ensuring the creature remained in a perpetual state of agonizing, near-death stasis so it could continue acting as fertilizer.

"Excellent," Chu Xuan murmured, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the budding stalk rooted in the beast's flesh. "It's about to bloom."