Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

  The 14th of October, one in the morning.

  After completing the exchange of Orirocks with the head monk, Jiang He brought along the black panther he had left with the Diamond Sect as he prepared to leave the mountain.

  The head monk even personally escorted Jiang He’s group to the entrance of the mountain gates.

  “Farewell!”
Jiang He offered the head monk a fist-palm salute, whereas the head monk put his hands together and bowed, saying, “Mister Jiang, I know of that Golden-Winged Roc—it had become intelligent even before we, the Diamond Sect closed off our mountain, and once rampaged across the Western Frontier. The disciples of our sect had even left the mountain in an attempt to slay it.”
“Its ability is simply extraordinary. Be cautious when you confront it.”
The head monk offered him a kind warning.

  He had become exceedingly friendly towards Jiang He now—not even Wang Hou was shown such hospitality before.

  Jiang He smiled in gratitude. “Don’t worry, head monk. I value my life a lot, and I won’t fight it until I’m confident I could defeat it.”
He turned, ready to leave the mountain when Corban flew in from the distance, exclaiming, “Please wait, Mister Jiang.”
Landing before Jiang He, Corban said, “Mister Jiang, the guru has asked me to relay his intention: if you intend to eliminate the Golden-Winged Roc, the Diamond Sect shall assist you.”
“There’s no need.”
Jiang He headed down the mountain, waving him off without turning his head. “It’s just one Golden-Winged Roc. I can deal with it myself.”
Jiang He spoke without concern, but the high monks and even the head monk of the Diamond Sect twitched.

  The guru actually volunteered to help Jiang He eliminate the Golden-Winged Roc?

  One should know that even when Wang Hou sought an audience before, the guru had merely sent one divine-tier disciple and a handful of average disciples to escort him down the mountain—even the Diamond Sect cultivation manuals that they gifted him were nonessential.

  The head monks then looked up at the temple where the guru was, surprise showing in his eyes.

  He had respect Jiang He plenty enough.

  And yet, it turned out the guru had an even higher opinion of him?

  Chen Jingzhou and the others who were going down the mountain with Jiang He were beside themselves in shock as well, though their expression appeared stiff.

  It was only when they arrived beneath the mountain that Cheng Dongfeng came to his senses and muttered, “Jiang He, are you acquainted with the guru of the Diamond Sect?”
Jiang He shook his head.

  “Why would he volunteer to help you if you didn’t? According to what I know, every guru past of the Diamond Sect was simply extraordinary, and there were even rumors that they were actually one and the same… their soul would reincarnate would after they passed on, whereas the disciples of the Diamond Sect would step out into to the world in search of the guru’s reincarnated body and bring him back to their sect.”
Jiang He did a double take and could not help asking, “Aren’t they a little too much, the Diamond Sect? The man already reincarnated—can’t they be given some space?”
Indeed, something crossed Jiang He’s mind just then…
The lamas of the Diamond Sect were no different from monks since they were prohibited from taking a wife and having children. It was alright for average disciples, but for someone who cultivated up to Void-tier, it meant living up to several hundred years. However, if the guru continued to reincarnate, wouldn’t he be celibate for several lifetimes?

  Was that not too scary?

  Nonetheless, Jiang He smiled as he stared at Yang Chengwei, “Well done, Little Yang—you’ve reached grandmaster already? From now on, there shall be three grandmasters standing guard over Lingzhou City?”
“Eh?”
Yang Chengwei blinked and asked uncertainly, “Bro Jiang, don’t you mean four?”
Even as he spoke, he counted with his fingers.

  Cheng Dongfeng, Duan Tianhe, Bro Jiang, and himself…
Jiang He smiled but did not reply.

  The kid was right in a way—he was still rank-nine, and more or less still counts as a grandmaster, even if that might not be the case tomorrow.

  After all, Jiang He was concerned about whether he should deal with the threat that was the Golden-Winged Roc as soon as possible. That might cause him to have trouble sleeping like before, when he was so worried about the Sky Demon Cult coming after him for payback.

  Ascending as soon as possible would solve that problem, and he could go home and farm in peace.

  Jiang He then glanced at He Litong and Zhou Rui too.

  They had improved significantly in the Secret Realm as well—He Litong had ascended up to rank-eight, with his aura becoming even more intense.

  As for Zhou Rui, it was clear that her superpower had developed remarkably with the shroud of razor-sharp Sword Qi around her.

  Offering a fist-palm salute, Jiang He said, “Everyone, I’m pressed for time so I’ll be going ahead. Farewell!”
Chen Jingzhou, Cheng Dongfeng, and the others all returned his salute, while Jiang He leapt up the black panther and firmly slapped it on the backside.

  At his ‘hyah’, the black panther shot out like an arrow.

  But after around forty miles, Jiang He remembered something—
Snikt!

  A scarlet sword light shot out from his brow, turning into a giant scarlet sword. With a light tap over the black panther with his foot, Jiang He jumped onto the sword.

  “…”
The black panther stared at the sight with wide-eyes, its jet-black gaze filled with disbelief and unsure how to convey its deepest thoughts through acoustics.

  “What are you doing, spacing out?”
“Jump on. I’m in a hurry!”
The black panther leapt up at Jiang He’ words, landing behind him.

  Whoosh!

  The giant sword streaked into the clouds, becoming a scarlet sword flash. Then, in the next split second…
“Aaaaaaaah!!!”
“Master, slower, slower!”
“I’m afraid, I’m afraid of heights…”
The black panther was sprawled prone over the sword flash, shuddering and staring at the ground below in fear—it was even stuttering in its spirit voice.

  Speechless, Jiang He slapped the beast and barked, “You fool. Won’t it be fine if you just closed your eyes? And here you’re still staring downwards…”
The black panther promptly closed its eyes with its two front paws and exclaimed in delight, “Oh, master, this feels much better…”
“I really want to kick you off so you’ll fall to your death right now!”
Jiang He’s Royal Sword Flight was swift, reaching twice the speed of sound even while carrying the black panther. Moreover, since the Diamond Sect’s mountain was just a little over 2000 miles from Lingzhou City, Jiang He, who started his journey at twenty past one in the morning, he reached home by half-past two.

  It was now late into the night, and the best timing to sleep reasonably speaking. Indeed, Jiang He intended to have a bath, sleep, and then plant the Orirocks.

  That was when he realized that he was not drowsy at all.

  After all, he woke up in the Secret Realm before he returned.

  “Whatever. I’ll start farming since I’m not falling asleep!”
Jiang He entered the farm.

  Already sensing his return, Dumbo and Trumbo happily lunged towards him.

  Jiang He stretched out both hands to slap them aside, asking, “Dumbo, anything happened at home when I’m not around?”
“Yes!”
Dumbo stood on its rear legs, breathing human speech as it replied, “Master, a Feral came out of nowhere on the night before yesterday, intruding on our home.”
“A Feral?”
Jiang He’s gaze had a flash as he frowned, “Could it be the Sky Demon Cult again? A Feral… was it a powerful Beast Tamer?”
Dumbo shook its head, saying, “Not according to what I’ve observed. The Feral was merely rank-four, and it was shipped to death by the willow tree before I could do anything.”
Jiang He turned towards the willow tree then.

  It had already grown up to six meters tall, its many dangling branches glimmering in faint fluorescent light in the night.

  Even as Jiang He stared at the willow tree, a single willow branch discreetly crept towards him, rubbing itself intimately on Jiang He’s face.

  “M-Master…”
A bashful, hesitant, and crisp loli voice reached Jiang He’s mind.

  Jiang He twitched in spirit…
This willow tree actually had a gender???