Although Fairy Li Jiang was already dead, Fang Ling could still sense a certain fire source within her body.
He didn’t rush to expel that fire source but instead summoned his Life-Bound Blood Sword.
A strong practitioner like Fairy Li Jiang was the best nourishment.
The Blood Sword greedily absorbed the blood fiend energy, and Fang Ling also raised his hand to absorb her life essence.
After a while, the voluptuous beauty’s body turned into a skeleton.
Above the skeleton, a golden seed the size of a fingernail floated.
This golden seed was the fire source he had sensed.
With a wave of his hand, he drew the golden fire seed into his palm.
Before he could examine it closely, the golden fire seed suddenly merged into his palm and drilled into his body.
A surge of scorching heat erupted instantly, making him feel as if he were about to be burned alive.
His blood boiled, not just metaphorically, but literally, like boiling water.
This sensation of being burned alive made it hard for him to remain calm, contorting his face in pain.
Fortunately, the agony didn’t last long and soon subsided.
The golden fire seed took root in his dantian, sprouting two leaves.
This mystical flame seedling released a series of messages, communicating with his soul.
Fang Ling finally understood its origin; it was the seed of the Divine Fusang Tree!
The Divine Fusang Tree was well-known, an ancient divine tree that nurtured the Golden Crow race.
The Golden Crow race was the supreme demon race with imperial bloodlines, and the Golden Crow’s fire was said to burn everything.
A divine tree capable of nurturing such a race was undoubtedly extraordinary.
But unfortunately, the Fusang Tree withered shortly after nurturing the Golden Crow race.
Since then, no new Fusang Tree had been known to grow in the world.
Fang Ling never expected to be fortunate enough to obtain the tree seed, and it had even taken root and sprouted in his dantian.
He flipped his palm, conjuring a flame in his hand.
The golden flame in his hand was more powerful than it had been in Fairy Li Jiang’s hands.
The intense heat seemed to melt the very space around it.
When the Fusang tree seed was in Fairy Li Jiang’s body, it hadn’t taken root and sprouted, remaining in seed form.
So, she could only utilize the fire seed’s power, but Fang Ling was now using the flame of the Fusang seedling, making a world of difference.
“This Fairy Li Jiang must have been a notable figure to possess the Fusang tree seed.”
“But this flame shouldn’t be used lightly; if the Golden Crow race discovers it, they will undoubtedly mobilize their entire clan to seize it.”
The Golden Crow race had been passed down since ancient times and had not been extinguished. He had read about them in the miscellaneous books in the Humble Hut.
However, the Golden Crow race resided in the Central Divine Region, thousands of miles away from the Southern Dipper Region, so there was no immediate concern.
After obtaining the Fusang seedling, Fang Ling lost much of his interest in the treasures at the end of Wind Stone Gorge.
No matter how precious the treasures in Wind Stone Gorge were, they couldn’t compare to the Fusang seedling.
But no one would complain about having too many treasures, so he took a deep breath and continued deeper into the gorge.
…
He continued through Wind Stone Gorge for another quarter of an hour.
But in that quarter of an hour, he didn’t advance very far.
The deeper he went, the stronger the black gale became, and even his physical body struggled to withstand it.
At every moment, he felt as if blades were scraping his bones, and his skin constantly cycled between regeneration and destruction.
“If I go any further, even my body might not hold up.”
“Perhaps I should wait until my body is stronger before exploring further…”
Fang Ling weighed his options and decided to withdraw from Wind Stone Gorge for now, planning to return when his body was more resilient.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, a sudden flash of light pierced his eyes.
After some searching, he discovered some peculiar crystals on the opposite stone wall.
The blinding light had been reflected from one of these crystals.
Braving the bone-scraping gale, he moved forward and reached the stone wall.
“That’s right, these must be the legendary Wind Spirit Stones!” Fang Ling exclaimed in delight.
He immediately flew up and used the Xuanjin Heaven-Piercing Spear to carve out the Wind Spirit Stones embedded in the stone wall.
These Wind Spirit Stones were not artificially embedded but were rare objects formed over years of being tempered by the gale.
In the cultivation world, spirit stones were commonly divided into three grades: upper, middle, and lower. Supreme-grade spirit stones were already extremely rare.
The supreme-grade spirit stones circulating today were all relics from ancient times.
Above supreme-grade spirit stones, there were even rarer attribute spirit stones.
The conditions for forming attribute spirit stones were more stringent, requiring long-term exposure to attribute forces to have a chance of forming.
Like these Wind Spirit Stones on the stone wall, they were born from the influence of the black gale.
But their quantity was limited; he only managed to carve out eight standard-sized spirit stones from the entire stone wall.
These attribute spirit stones were of little use to him since he hadn’t cultivated any wind attribute techniques or divine powers.
But for those who had, these stones were priceless, significantly enhancing their power and divine abilities upon refinement.
After storing the Wind Spirit Stones, he looked towards the depths of the gorge, still unable to see the end.
Without hesitation, he turned and retraced his steps.
While he was exploring the Liuhe Sect’s forbidden area, Mr. Mo and the others had almost finished sweeping through the Liuhe Sect.
Tiger Lord and the others who went to the branch altar also succeeded without any incidents.
Not only had they seized all the existing resources of the Liuhe Sect, but they also took control of the Liuhe Sect’s various shops, medicinal fields, spiritual mines, and other money trees.
After annexing the Liuhe Sect’s forces, the Tianluo Sect undoubtedly became the number one sect in the South Sun Kingdom.
This battle shocked the entire South Sun Kingdom, and for a time, legends about Fang Ling were rampant.
A few days later, Fang Ling returned to the Black Mountain headquarters with Mr. Mo and the others.
The 120,000 disciples of the Tianluo Sect also gathered there.
Fang Ling distributed all the cultivation resources obtained from the Liuhe Sect among them.
The 120,000 disciples, along with the key figures like Mr. Mo, all received substantial benefits.
They already held Fang Ling in high regard, and now, with this great favor, he won their hearts even more.
In front of the Tianluo Sect’s altar, Fang Ling was discussing the details of advancing into the Blood Marsh with Mr. Mo and the others.
From Mr. Mo, Fang Ling had long known that the mastermind behind this conflict was the Xuantian Hall.
So, the first thing to do upon entering the Blood Marsh was to eliminate this second-rate force there.
“In my humble opinion, it is not advisable to move the entire sect at this time,” Mr. Mo said.
“Our sect already has many industries in Nanyang, and now that we’ve annexed the Liuhe Sect, we need some time to stabilize and manage them.”
“Once the situation in Nanyang stabilizes, it will serve as our rear base for expanding into the Blood Marsh, providing a continuous flow of resources and talent.”
“With this foundation, we can fully unleash our potential in the Blood Marsh.”
“For now, it’s best to gather about 800 elite disciples.”
“Taking around 800 people into the Blood Marsh won’t attract too much attention and will make it easier to operate.”
“Mr. Mo makes a valid point,” Fang Ling nodded. “Mr. Mo, you will select these 800 people and prepare to head south with me.”
“But before we set out, I think it’s necessary to meet someone.”
“The Sect Master wants to see Emperor Shao, right?” Mr. Mo asked.
“Exactly!” Fang Ling planned to visit the palace to warn the ruler of the South Sun Kingdom, preventing her from causing trouble in the future.
“Emperor Shao ascended the throne at a young age and is a woman, but she is very capable,” Mr. Mo said.
“The Nanyang royal family has been revitalized under her rule in recent years.”
“Therefore, Emperor Shao is quite proud and may clash with the Sect Master.”
“Although the Sect Master’s strength is more than enough to kill her, it must not be done!”
“While Nanyang is a small country, it is under the jurisdiction of the Great Qian Dynasty.”
“She is the Empress of Nanyang, which means she is also part of the Great Qian Dynasty.”
“Harming her would be an affront to the Great Qian Dynasty.”
“The Great Qian Dynasty is a first-rate power in the Southern Dipper Region, with countless experts.”
“Even though the Sect Master has an extraordinary background, they may not be deterred.”
“Even if the Sect Master is fearless, the sect’s hard-earned favorable situation might collapse.”
Fang Ling laughed upon hearing this.
“Mr. Mo, you worry too much. I have always been kind to others; why would I kill people so easily?”
“Rest assured, I won’t fight with Emperor Shao.”
Everyone present felt uneasy upon hearing this.
They thought their Sect Master might not have a clear understanding of himself.
“I don’t know the way to the palace. Charm Emissary, come with me!” Fang Ling looked at Yun Shuiqing.
Yun Shuiqing immediately stood up, “Yes, sir!”
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