In the night sky, bathed in a brilliant glow, the white peacock spoke. "Elder Zhou, don't be anxious. Everything must proceed according to the rules, and the half-month duration isn't up yet."
Hearing this, Zhou Tao felt a throbbing headache.
He knew this couldn't go on. While nothing violated the regulations, he wouldn't be able to account for this to the others once he returned.
Which elder didn't have descendants or favored disciples? Those wondrous medicines had long been claimed, and several old fellows were counting on raising them to prolong their lifespans.
"Then enact the emergency protocol and end this assessment at once!" Standing atop the bird of prey, he made a resolute decision.
"On what grounds?" the white peacock asked gravely.
Zhou Tao replied, "Didn't you say an outsider was snooping around and made a move in secret before you stopped him?"
"The disturbance has passed, and matters have settled," the white peacock replied.
Zhou Tao pleaded, "Old Bai, do me a favor just this once. This was supposed to be a testing ground, but now it's practically been turned into his vegetable patch! Continuing like this makes no sense!"
Most importantly, how was he going to explain this to those elders afterward?
The white peacock nodded, calmly saying, "There have been no major casualties. Even under special circumstances, if we follow the rules, today must come to an end first."
At the mention of the word "rules," Zhou Tao felt a tight, suffocating pressure in his chest.
***
In the forest during shallow night, Qin Ming walked along while extracting the medicinal essence.
The pale-gold wondrous blood vaporized in the heavenly light, swiftly turning into mist and releasing a nose-filling, fragrant aroma before condensing into a shower of radiance that enfolded his entire body.
Qin Ming took a deep breath. Fragrance filled his mouth as if he were supping on clouds and sipping morning mist. From head to toe, he felt cleansed and purified. Every pore in his body expanded, making him feel as though he were ascending to immortality on the spot.
Though not his first time experiencing it, he would gladly repeat this wonderful sensation of prolonging life, deepening one's foundation, and raising one's strength every single day.
He felt an ethereal lightness, as if standing within an imperial palace with golden radiance swirling about him and white fog curling at his sides, his wide sleeves fluttering as if he were about to ride the wind away.
Surprise showed on Zhuo Ya's face. He had taken the medicine directly—what method was he using?
The portion she had unexpectedly acquired was something she dared not touch; she had to take it back and ask an elder for help refining it, as the composition of wondrous blood was exceedingly complex.
"Is this an ancient medicinal method?" she caught up and asked. It resembled the techniques researched by certain old men in the esoteric sects, requiring no alchemical cauldron.
"Yes. Heaven and earth serve as the cauldron, and Six Imperials force serves as the flame," Qin Ming said with a nod.
Zhuo Ya did not believe him, but she felt her cousin's defeat had certainly not been undeserved. Judging by Qin Ming's method of slaying the flood dragon, even two more of her cousin wouldn't have stood a chance.
She followed him closely as they made their way to the next territory, wanting to see what he would do next.
Qingshi Village was named after a massive bluestone over ten meters tall standing beside a Fire Spring.
"What's going on?" Zhuo Ya wondered in astonishment. Weeping could be heard from the village, casting an atmosphere of gloom and sorrow over the place.
This was the region assigned to Cao Wuji. Reasonably speaking, a mutant ought to be more than capable of handling the bloody cases in the records and clearing out the neighboring demon beasts.
Qin Ming hurried to inquire about the situation, wondering what had happened and where Cao Wuji was.
An old man leaning against the bluestone sighed. "Alas, this time we offended the Golden Demon King and brought disaster upon ourselves."
The village chief walked over and explained the details. "Young Brother Cao is a good man. He helped us slay monsters and clear away threats. He was very responsible and wanted to get rid of the biggest demon, but he proved no match for it and fled back severely injured. The golden demon doesn't cross the boundary himself, so he sent his subordinate monsters to retaliate. Now that Young Brother Cao is injured, he can't hold them off."
Soon, Qin Ming and Zhuo Ya saw Cao Wuji.
He was a handsome youth who originally possessed sword-like brows and starry eyes, but now he was in a wretched state, covered in wounds. Blood matted his long black hair, sticking it to his forehead and neck in clumps.
The most severe injury was on his chest and abdomen, which had nearly been pierced straight through and gave off a scorched smell. Though treated, the wound was clearly far from healed.
"Don't laugh at me. I failed to slay the demon and brought trouble instead. I've let down the villagers here," Cao Wuji said.
He had originally been an outgoing youth capable of conversing poisedly even with representatives from great sects and ancestral courts, yet now he was quiet and dispirited. Clearly, though proud, Cao Wuji possessed a strong sense of justice. Knowing nothing of wondrous blood, he had simply wanted to rid the villagers of that paramount monster.
In the end, he had nearly lost his own life.
Given his existing record, he had no need to trouble himself with that Golden Demon King; his accomplishments were already sufficient to make him a core disciple of the Six Imperials ancestral court.
"Don't worry, Brother Cao. We'll take care of that monster for you. Rest and heal here," Qin Ming said.
"It's a golden rhinoceros with thick, coarse hide. Our heavenly light force can't pierce it at all," Cao Wuji warned seriously.
Like Zhuo Ya, he was considered a top-tier mutant whose strength exceeded a thousand jin at his first Newborn stage, but he had never learned a powerful force art.
For now, both he and Zhuo Ya were unpolished gems lacking offensive power. Once they mastered the Six Imperials force, both would undoubtedly undergo a qualitative transformation!
Cao Wuji insisted on coming along, wanting to help at a crucial moment.
Qin Ming pressed a hand onto his shoulder. "With injuries that severe, coming won't do any good. Just watch from a distance."
Afterward, he and Zhuo Ya saw two corpses and three critically injured villagers within the village. Some had had their chests pierced by horns, while others were torn in half.
According to the villagers, several people had also been abducted to the Golden Demon King's territory to wait on the monsters.
Furthermore, just today, two Outer Sage-level monsters had brought a pack of rhinoceros demons here to stir up trouble.
Before long, Qin Ming and Zhuo Ya stepped into the dense woods, with Cao Wuji trailing behind at a distance, refusing to listen to their advice.
The golden rhinoceros's territory was flat and open. Every tree had been cleared away, leaving an expansive pasture upon which stood a cluster of buildings.
In such an open space, an ambush was out of the question. In fact, Qin Ming had never intended to strike from the shadows. His goal was to intimidate the monsters of the surrounding lands, and he meant to blast this Golden Demon King to death fair and square!
From far off, he saw over twenty raggedly dressed men and women washing the backs of several old rhinoceroses and teaching young monsters how to read.
"Ahhh!" A bloodcurdling scream rang out. An old man who had been trimming the hooves of a sturdy white rhinoceros had somehow provoked it and was kicked flying. He coughed up blood continuously, at least four of his ribs broken, lying on his back in agonizing pain, unable to move.
"If you don't get up, you can die," the white rhinoceros barked.
It had already spotted Qin Ming on the horizon, but paid him no mind; this display was staged precisely for him and Zhuo Ya.
With a boom, the ground in the distance exploded. Qin Ming accelerated in a charge, moving so fast that the white rhinoceros's pupils constricted. Sensing something was wrong, the beast tried to dodge, but it was already too late.
Vegetation energy flowed over Qin Ming's entire body. A jasper-green sword appeared in his grip. The entire grassland resonated with him, every blade of grass rustling as green radiance carried him across the field.
With a squelch, blood sprayed everywhere. Qin Ming sliced the white rhinoceros in two with his Yimu sword and charged right through the severed halves without breaking stride, instantly beheading another Outer Sage-level old rhinoceros alongside it.
Without a single word, he began a slaughter across this patch of land.
In an instant, eighteen corpses of rhinoceros and hound demons lay strewn across the pasture, blood soaking the ground, shocking every monster and enslaved human alike.
In the rear, Cao Wuji stared dumbfounded. *This brother is truly wild—he just charged straight in like that?!*
A low, muffled roar echoed from the cluster of buildings. Then, amid surging golden light, a colossal rhinoceros appeared, marching forward with heavy steps, demon energy rolling around it.
It was entirely golden, taller than a giant elephant and resembling a small mountain. Every step it took shook the pasture, flames raging across its body.
It charged wildly, making the earth quake and the mountains tremble, locking onto the human youth ahead.
Qin Ming did not hesitate in the slightest. The Yimu sword in his hand unleashed dazzling green light, and the entire pasture seemed to rise and fall with it, sending up a dense green mist. He accelerated, rushing head-on to meet the giant demon.
"Brother, don't be reckless! You have to rely on agility to beat it!" Cao Wuji yelled from behind, terrified that Qin Ming would be impaled and killed on the very first clash.
Qin Ming swung the growing Yimu sword. With a resounding boom, it chopped against the giant rhinoceros's head.
The golden rhinoceros roared, thoroughly enraged. A gash opened on its forehead, dripping with blood that painted half its face crimson.
*He hurt it? Is he really that strong?!* Cao Wuji was deeply shaken. The youth's heavenly light force was utterly absurd!
Zhuo Ya, having witnessed his power before, remained calm.
Qin Ming's expression turned grave. He had only managed to open a single cut on its head; this demon's defenses were truly astonishing.
Since his aim was to awe the demons of the neighboring lands, he naturally had to bring out his true capabilities. In an instant, he clenched his fists and clashed head-on with the great monster.
Demon energy surged to the heavens from the golden rhinoceros, flames engulfing its entire form. The firelight shot from its horns gathered like lightning into solidified beams that could swiftly incinerate the flesh of an Outer Sage, striking out again and again.
Surprisingly nimble on its feet, it shifted its massive bulk rapidly, seeking to pierce and toss Qin Ming on its horns. Soon, thunderous clatter and crashes filled the territory.
The golden rhinoceros charged savagely, demon flames running rampant, tearing up vast stretches of pasture. Even when tall buildings blocked its path, it barreled through without slowing, leaving only ruins in its wake.
Qin Ming met it with all his might, holding off the demon-aura-drenched beast.
Radiance shone around him as though he stood in a pure land. His fists flew and pounded like golden crows casting light upon the four directions, beating the giant rhinoceros into continuous roars and tremors.
He bombarded it with his strongest heavenly light force over and over, marveling at how difficult such a thick-skinned old monster was to handle. How many punches had he landed by now? No wonder Cao Wuji had been critically wounded and nearly perished here.
By now, the golden rhinoceros was trembling. It felt its internal organs taking heavy damage, and cracks had begun to spread across even its golden hide; it could no longer hold out.
As Qin Ming blasted it once more with his strongest heavenly light force, the colossal rhinoceros swayed and roared in fury. Radiance converged from across its body into its longest horn, flashing through the void like a golden flying sword that blew all the nearby buildings to pieces.
Qin Ming shifted sideways, nimbly evading the strike.
It was a blindingly concentrated golden fire mixed with baleful aura, truly possessing the momentum to cut down enemies on all sides. Driven mad, the golden rhinoceros swept the beam back and forth continuously.
Seeing that it had weakened considerably, Qin Ming tested touching the flames with his heavenly light force and discovered he could block the firelight.
Immediately, he confronted the monster head-on. Amid sharp crunches, both of the golden rhinoceros's horns were shattered one after the other, falling to the ground.
Roaring and wailing, it took punch after punch across its body until, with a deafening boom, it shattered into pieces, blasted entirely apart!
Qin Ming approached swiftly and plucked out a large heart tinged with rosy light. It was indeed a wondrous creature. All the surviving monsters were scared out of their wits—the golden old demon had actually been beaten to pieces by bare fists!
Light gradually rekindled in the dull eyes of the enslaved humans, who soon broke into cheers. Zhuo Ya and Cao Wuji began slaying the remaining monsters, drenching the pasture in foul blood.
"The quality of these rhino horns is exquisite—golden, translucent, and crystalline. They'd make wonderful drinking cups to give as gifts. Let's split them among the three of us."
Qin Ming carved off a large chunk of horn, planning to gift it to Meng Xinghai, Li Qingyun, and the others. Having come all the way to the edge of the world, how could he not bring back some local souvenirs?
Here, everyone was overjoyed.
Meanwhile, Elder Zhou Tao from the Six Imperials ancestral court was engulfed in gloom, the veins at his temples throbbing violently. Another wondrous medicine lost? They were about to be plucked completely bare!
When Qin Ming heard the news that the assessment would "successfully" conclude once today passed, he grew anxious at once, feeling as though time waited for no man. Without a moment's pause, he rushed toward the next territory.
When Zhou Tao heard that the boy was sprinting off as if injected with chicken blood to slaughter his way through other regions, he felt as if the sky were falling. The trial was about to end—why hadn't this kid stopped? He was moving even faster!
Qin Ming was disappointed. He went to help Zhou Lei and Huang Cheng, acquaintances he had made at the Six Imperials ancestral court, resolve their troubles, but found no creature that had birthed wondrous blood.
The two were deeply grateful. Under their complex gazes, he did not linger for a second, speeding off to the next area.
Soon, Qin Ming figured it out. It seemed the regions assigned to mutants were special, all possessing wondrous creatures, whereas the monsters elsewhere were entirely ordinary.
Qin Ming immediately asked where Cui Chongxuan was, refusing to waste even a breath as he cut a path straight over.
When Cui Chongxuan saw Qin Ming, covered in blood and radiating murderous aura, his heart sank at once. "Brother, I bear you no ill will, you..."
"I'm here to help you slay monsters. Tell me where the strongest old demon is!" Qin Ming said.
"Why is time passing so slowly? Is it not over yet?" Zhou Tao felt every passing second dragging on like an eternity, panicking because that absurdly formidable youth had found the right territory and had already rushed over.
"Elder Zhou, as a senior master, you must remain calm and not be anxious," the white peacock consoled him.
Zhou Tao was on the verge of exploding, nearly tumbling off the bird of prey's back. "How can I not be anxious?! Even if this happened for a reason and under special circumstances, multiple wondrous medicines have been harvested. Can I avoid making amends to those old fellows? This whole affair has been handled far too clumsily... My losses are catastrophic!"
In the end, under Cui Chongxuan's shocked and conflicted gaze, Qin Ming tossed him the corpse of a purple marten missing its heart and turned away without looking back.
Elder Zhou Tao felt the world spinning. Would there even be a single wild wondrous medicine left in this entire domain by the end of this?!
"It's finally over. Have everyone brought back, will you?" Zhou Tao felt completely drained, yet he still had to force a warm, kindly smile to meet the youths.
Qin Ming, on the other hand, was delighted—his harvest from this trip had been magnificent!
Chapter 152