Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

  Still, his ascension was only to a small extent, Jiang He was slightly taken aback too, since it did not matter if soulless cultivation like this made him grandmaster.

  What was there to be displeased about?

  He took out another two walnuts and crunched them down.

  Blended qi pellets for dinner and supper, and walnut for snacks.

  “Maybe I could grow some fruits…… and eat it before and after meals.”


  At that thought, Jiang He turned to look at Dumbo’s grave.

  Rustle.

  A faint sound was audible from the grave.

  Meow!!!

  Trumbo’s feline ears twitched even as it knelt in front of Dumbo’s grave, trilling while its jet-black eyes palpated fear. Its black fur bristled and it promptly turned into a black blur as it darted inside Jiang He’s arms, shuddering.

  Jiang He: “.……”


  Does a rank-five Feral like you have to be that scared?

  That sound was clearly Dumbo sprouting. It was not as if the corpse was coming back to life!

  Holding the cat with his left hand and pointing at the grave with his right, Jiang He was at a loss for words. “Don’t be afraid. Look, Dumbo is almost coming out.”


  The bricks that Trumbo piled over Dumbo’s grave were shaking.

  Trumbo shuddered even harder in Jiang He’s arms then, especially its bristling coat. The rank-five Feral’s fur was no different from steel needles, pricking Jiang He and leaving him very uncomfortable.

  Grabbing the cat and promptly flinging it beside Dumbo’s grave, Jiang He could not help barking, “You only need to bury the hole with soil. Why would you pile bricks over it?”


  Even as he spoke, he walked up to remove the bricks.

  And just as expected, he found two tender buds pressed sideways beneath the bricks.

  Trumbo, who had been sprawled before the grave, covering its eyes whilst shaking could not help peeking at the grave. It only breathed a sigh of relief after it saw the two buds, and its bristling fur slowly lowered.

  Meow!

  Meow……

  Delighted, it kept purring, before leaping atop Dumbo’s grave and jumping around it.

  Grave disco!

  Jiang He allowed it to skip around as it liked, while his eyes were focused on the two buds that bore a rather weird hue.

  After all, the buds were neither green nor light yellow like new shoots that had not seen sunlight. Instead, it was the exact same color as Dumbo’s fur.

  “With the current growth rate, it would probably bear fruit in two hours……”


  Jiang He glanced at his phone then.

  It was already four in the morning, so he promptly climbed into his sports car—anything could wait until he had some sleep.

  As for the dog?

  Well, let it grow.

  ***

  Meanwhile.

  Nanchuan Village.

  A group of Sky Demon Cultist was having a lively chat. Then, someone who had been idling too much even suggested some entertainment, and they began to sing and dance.

  But outside the farmyard……

  Brave Star was standing under the night sky utterly dispirited, and all he could feel was a humming in his head.

  Sixth Elder……

  Was gone?

  That could well be true, since Sixth Elder would never allow someone else to receive his calls. Still, Brave Star could not understand however much he thought about it…… Sixth Elder was a rank-nine elite who has mastered blade will, and was a grandmaster adept at assassination.

  How could he have failed to kill a rank-five martial artist?

  And even if he was spotted, who could stop him if he tried to flee?

  And what is with that person on the other end saying ‘brutally butchered my dog’?

  Brave Star could not help remembering what Sixth Elder said before he left……

  To kill Jiang He and wash away the humiliation to the Holy Faith?

  “Sixth Elder…… did he really target Jiang He’s dog?” Brave Star muttered to himself.

  Soon, however, he shook his head firmly to dispel such ridiculous thoughts, before striding towards the farmhouse, scowling!

  Sixth Elder was dead!

  Things had gotten out of hand!

  Five Heavenly Generals were an acceptable loss for their Holy Faith, and they would make up for two dead Decans as long as they could take Lingzhou City…… this time, however, it was Sixth Elder, who had begun to master blade will. The Holy Faith would never recover from this loss even if they managed to take Lingzhou City!

  Brave Star reached the gates of the farmyard then.

  That was when he heard the singing and dancing within, especially that girly Ma Liang, who was putting on a Chinese Opera show……

  Bang!

  Brave Star crushed the gates to the farmyard into pieces with a single swipe of his palm. Then, he darted up to Ma Liang in a single stride even as he hummed a tune and made rather graceful hand gestures, and slapped him as well, leaving him in pieces.

  The farmyard was instantly silent, and every Sky Demon Cultist appeared shocked and frightened.

  What……

  What was going on?

  “Brave Star!”


  A burly man with prominent facial hair and an alloy combat blade slung over his back rose to his feet, frowning—he was Guilty Star, one of the elites who had ambushed Chen Jingzhou alongside Sixth Elder.

  And being a part of that group, one could easily deduce how remarkable Guilty Star’s ability was.

  The third person who had helped in the ambush was Bound Star, an A-class earth-type Awakened who looked to be in his thirties and was much younger.

  But at present, Brave Star did not respond to Guilty Star, and instead strode into one of the houses.

  Guilty Star and Bound Star traded glances before following him inside.

  Entering the room and closing the door, Brave Star checked outside before saying quietly and hoarsely, “Sixth Elder is down!”


  The other two men’s faces dropped at that.

  There was disbelief all over Bound Star’s face as he quietly said, “No way! How powerful is Sixth Elder? There are no elites guarding Lingzhou right now, and even Chen Jingzhou…… would never stop him!”


  “Moreover, Sixth Elder has grasped blade will and is a master of assassination. If he’s doing it, wouldn’t a rank-five like Jiang He be in the bag already?”


  “But……”


  Guilty Star suddenly said somberly, “What if it was a trap in the first place?”


  Even though he appeared rough with his facial hair, tanned skin, and muscular form, but one should not mistake him to be a brainless boor.

  Still, there were certainly parts of him that were quite small……

  Nonetheless, it was clear he had thought further than Bound Star and Brave Star, even as he mused, “Everyone had read Jing He’s information: rank-five, advanced, and even his resume was absolutely average. And yet, he had sabotaged our Holy Faith’s plans multiple times, slaying two or our fellow Grands in Killer Star and Pain Star, along with five Heavenly Generals, including Earthen Majesty and Earthen Savage……”


  Guilty Star paused for a moment then, before asking, “Brave Star, do you even believe that it’s possible?”


  Brave Star frowned.

  Meanwhile, Guilty Star sneered and continued, “Even the Holy Child, groomed with the sea of resources from our fellowship and receiving guidance from the Saint himself—could he have beaten a rank-eight grandmaster when he was rank-five?”


  Bound Star frowned then as well.

  “From how I see it, there is no way a rank-five could kill a rank-eight. Moreover, since our double agents in Lingzhou had long since been rooted out, and the information the Holy Faith provided us was information provided to the higher-ups of the Martial Arts Department (MAD).”


  Guilty Star lowered his voice then, “But what if the MAD deliberately leaked that information?”


  At his words, the expressions on the other two men’s faces changed.

  “That’s impossible,” Brave Star quickly whispered. “Not even we are aware of the identity of those agents who infiltrated the higher hierarchy of Hua Nation. There’s no way they had been found out!”


  “What if they were?”


  Guilty Star said. “The Holy Faith has been losing people left and right in Lingzhou City, and now, even Sixth Elder is not coming back…… this has to be a trap set by the MAD!”


  Everyone in the room became silent.

  After half a beat, Guilty Star suddenly said, “I even suspect whether this person named Jiang He exists…… A rank-five turning the tables on a rank-eight? If such a prodigy exists, would the MAD allow him to remain in an uninhabited village by himself?”