Chapter 270: The Ancient Demon's Calamity

Chapter 270: The Ancient Demon's Calamity

After Ning Xiaochuan helped Situ Fengwu refine the Broken Meridians Healing Pill, the Pill Qi entered her body, healing most of her injuries and restoring her complexion.

She bowed to Ning Xiaochuan. "Thank you again, Manor Lord."

"It's nothing." Ning Xiaochuan shook his head and turned to leave, but as soon as he took a step, a wave of weakness struck him, causing his body to sway unsteadily.

"Manor Lord, what's wrong?" Situ Fengwu stepped forward to support him.

Ning Xiaochuan had already suffered severe injuries during his battle with Tianchenzi, losing a great deal of Blood Qi. After returning to Ghost Manor, he prioritized healing Situ Fengwu over himself, worsening his own condition.

Situ Fengwu was no fool—her cultivation was not low, and she was sharp-witted. She could tell that Ning Xiaochuan had been gravely injured even while treating her.

A flicker of emotion stirred in her heart. Young Master Chuan doesn’t seem as detestable as I thought.

Strangely, even knowing he was severely wounded, she felt no urge to kill him. The realization puzzled her.

"It's nothing."

Ning Xiaochuan circulated his Martial Arts Profound Qi to suppress his injuries once more, then immediately returned to the Blood Toad Wood Tree. He swallowed a Blood Qi Treasure Pill and began recuperating.

The five Blood Qi Treasure Pills did not merely contain Tianchenzi’s Blood Qi—they also held his Profound Qi and Martial Arts Divine Abilities, all refined into the pills.

Unbeknownst to him, over ten days passed. Ning Xiaochuan remained motionless beneath the Blood Toad Wood Tree, refining four of the Blood Qi Treasure Pills until his body was entirely enveloped in a dense Blood Mist.

Not only were his injuries fully healed, but his Blood Qi had also grown even more potent.

A single drop of his blood could now manifest four Divine Tigers.

Though his martial cultivation had not broken through to the Transcendent Realm Sixth Layer, it had still improved significantly, reaching the peak of the Fifth Level of the Transcendent Realm.

The more extraordinary a Martial Artist’s physique and the thicker their Blood Qi, the harder it was to advance in cultivation.

For someone like Ning Xiaochuan, breaking through required resources ten times greater than those needed by an ordinary Martial Artist of the same cultivation realm. If another Fifth Level Transcendent Realm Martial Artist had refined four Blood Qi Treasure Pills, they would likely have already reached the Seventh Level of the Transcendent Realm.

"Manor Lord, Ghost Manor has stabilized. The remnants left behind by Tianchenzi—those who were stubborn—have been eliminated. The rest have been subdued by me." Meng Ying appeared behind Ning Xiaochuan as if materializing from thin air, ghostlike in her suddenness.

Ning Xiaochuan asked, "What about Situ Fengwu?"

"This Miss Situ has been quite cooperative. She has already led the forging masters of the Situ Family to join forces with the Jian Pavilion Marquis House. By now, they should have begun establishing the forging site for the Divine Sword Palace."

Ning Xiaochuan nodded, then suddenly raised an eyebrow. "There’s something I’ve been curious about and wanted to ask you. Who taught you those Daoist techniques?"

In the Yulan Empire, only those from the Daoist sects were well-versed in Daoist techniques. Could the Dark Emperor City have even recruited Daoist practitioners?

Meng Ying smiled. "If I said I was self-taught, I doubt the Manor Lord would believe me."

"If you don’t wish to say, then forget it." Ning Xiaochuan stood up and glanced toward the Imperial City. "It’s time to head to the Imperial City."

"Is the Manor Lord concerned about the Saintess?" Meng Ying asked.

"I am going to search for the final profound medicine needed to refine the Great Earth Solemnity Pill."

Ning Xiaochuan ordered the servants to prepare an ordinary Green Deer Horse Carriage and sat alone inside, heading toward the Imperial City.

Meng Ying had wanted to accompany him, but he politely declined.

Ning Xiaochuan’s journey was not merely to find the profound medicine for the Great Earth Solemnity Pill—he also intended to return to the Emperor's Martial Palace. Naturally, he couldn’t let Meng Ying follow him.

The Green Deer Horse Carriage stopped outside the Golden Roc Heart Nurturing Hall.

Ning Xiaochuan, wearing a golden mask, stepped down and instructed the carriage driver to wait outside.

Alone, he entered the Golden Roc Heart Nurturing Hall and retrieved the token of an Intermediate Heart Nurturer from his sleeve, showing it to the guards. Immediately, they straightened with respect and bowed to him in unison.

"Greetings, Intermediate Heart Nurturer!"

"Summon Steward Hua for me," Ning Xiaochuan said.

Steward Hua was the sixth-ranked steward, a figure of considerable authority within the Golden Roc Heart Nurturing Hall. Only an Intermediate Heart Nurturer would dare to directly request his presence.

Upon hearing that an Intermediate Heart Nurturer wished to see him, Steward Hua immediately excused himself from his current guest, dressed properly, and hurried over without delay.

"Where is this Intermediate Heart Nurturer?" Steward Hua, his large belly swaying, walked briskly as he questioned the maidservant following him.

"He is in the side room, drinking tea. The Intermediate Heart Nurturer said he is an old friend of yours," the maidservant replied.

Steward Hua was slightly puzzled, running through the faces of the Intermediate Heart Nurturers he knew in his mind. Pushing open the door to the side room, he saw a young man sitting at the table, wearing a golden mask and dressed in fine brocade, sipping tea.

This young Intermediate Heart Nurturer didn’t match any of the figures in Steward Hua’s memory. Taking two more steps forward, he suddenly felt an overwhelming pressure.

The young man in the golden mask exuded a faint but unmistakable aura of authority. Clearly, he was not just an Intermediate Heart Nurturer—he was also a formidable martial artist.

"Steward Hua, it’s been a long time," Ning Xiaochuan gestured for him to sit while discreetly observing the steward.

In the past, Ning Xiaochuan had only known Steward Hua as a martial artist, but his own cultivation had been too low to gauge the steward’s true strength.

Now, with his current martial prowess, Ning Xiaochuan could easily see through Steward Hua—his cultivation had reached the seventh level of the Transcendent Realm. Such a level was already considered remarkable in the martial world.

That a mere steward possessed such strength spoke volumes about the Golden Roc Prince's Manor’s abundance of experts, further astonishing Ning Xiaochuan.

Steward Hua frowned slightly. "And you are...?"

Ning Xiaochuan removed his golden mask and smiled. "Steward, have you truly forgotten me?"

Upon seeing Ning Xiaochuan’s face, Steward Hua’s eyes first flashed with surprise before he bowed deeply, chuckling. "So it’s the Minor Marquis! Had I known of your esteemed visit to the Golden Roc Heart Nurturing Hall, I would have prepared a proper welcome. If the Princess were to find out, she would surely reprimand me for my lack of hospitality."

Hua Zhishi suddenly recalled Ning Xiaochuan's current predicament in the Imperial City and regretted his words, lowering his voice as he said, "If the Princess were to learn that the Minor Marquis is unharmed, she would undoubtedly be overjoyed."

Ning Xiaochuan had secretly met with Hua Zhishi precisely to glean information about the current situation in the Imperial City.

Ning Xiaochuan chuckled, "Does everyone in the Imperial City believe I’m already dead?"

Hua Zhishi sat down, his expression grave. "Ever since the day of the sacrificial ceremony, the Jian Pavilion Marquis House has been sending people to search for you, and our Golden Roc Prince's Manor has also dispatched intelligence teams specifically to track your whereabouts—yet there’s been no trace of you. Now, many are spreading rumors that you’ve been killed by the Millennium Ancient Demon, your heart torn out."

This was exactly the outcome Ning Xiaochuan had hoped for. "Has the Millennium Ancient Demon appeared recently?"

Hua Zhishi’s face darkened. "That fiend has remained in the Imperial City, claiming three more marquises—Tianji Marquis, Wuyue Marquis, and Mingnan Marquis—all found dead in their homes, their hearts ripped out. This has caused a massive uproar in the Imperial City. Every noble who has reached the Martial Venerable Realm is now living in fear. Not long ago, the Jade Emperor sent Dragon Warriors to confront the Millennium Ancient Demon. The battle took place in an alternate dimension, and it’s said to have been horrifically brutal. Four Dragon Warriors perished, and in the end, the Millennium Ancient Demon still managed to escape."

"The most terrifying part is that with every powerful figure it kills, the demon’s cultivation advances by leaps and bounds. I fear the day will come when even His Highness the Prince won’t be able to subdue it. Right now, nobles in the Imperial City are clamoring to lead troops outside the capital. Few Martial Venerables dare to remain in the Imperial City anymore."

Ning Xiaochuan felt a chill run down his spine. Even if the Demon Emperor himself were to come to the Imperial City, he wouldn’t inspire such terror among Martial Venerables—yet this Millennium Ancient Demon had achieved exactly that.

Perhaps the main reason was that even if the Demon Emperor went on a killing spree, he would never skulk in the shadows like the Millennium Ancient Demon, striking unpredictably. Another critical factor was that the demon seemed to possess an Undying Body, leaving even the Martial Venerables helpless against it.

Faced with such a monstrous entity—one that specifically targeted the hearts of Martial Venerables—it was only natural for these nobles to panic and seek assignments outside the capital.

"Don’t worry. The Millennium Ancient Demon likely won’t wreak too much havoc in the Imperial City. If it continues its slaughter, the Master of the Martial Palace will surely intervene. My guess is that the demon is deliberately driving the nobles out of the Imperial City so it can pick them off one by one elsewhere," Ning Xiaochuan said solemnly.

"If what the Minor Marquis says is true, I must warn His Highness immediately," Hua Zhishi replied.

Ning Xiaochuan smiled. "How could the Great Golden Roc King lack such wisdom? If even I can deduce the Millennium Ancient Demon’s intentions, he surely can as well. Rest assured—though the demon is formidable, it cannot shake the empire’s foundations. At least… not yet."

Five marquises had perished in succession. Though this was not enough to shake the foundation of the imperial court, it had thoroughly tarnished its prestige and authority. Moreover, as the Millennium Ancient Demon continued to devour the hearts of powerful cultivators, its strength grew ever higher. Just how formidable would it become in the future? Could it eventually threaten the very foundation of the empire? That was truly hard to say.

Fortunately, Ning Xiaochuan had gone into hiding—otherwise, he would certainly have fallen prey to the demon’s grasp.

At the same time, Ning Xiaochuan grew worried for his grandfather. If the Millennium Ancient Demon targeted him, even with his grandfather’s martial arts at their peak, it would be impossible to remain vigilant at all times.

"It seems I must find a way to eliminate this great threat. But with my current cultivation, I’m still far from being a match for the Millennium Ancient Demon. Ugly Granny has been tracking the demon all this time—has she arrived in the Imperial City yet?"

Ning Xiaochuan thought of the enigmatic Ugly Granny. She had been pursuing the Millennium Ancient Demon relentlessly and surely knew a way to deal with it.