Volcanic Age

"Understood, I'll help," Zhou Xuchuan replied without hesitation.

"R-really, you will?"

Duan Hecheng seemed taken aback by the immediate response, as did the others around him.

"I say this again… this place will become more dangerous the deeper we go in. There will be poisonous creatures far more dangerous than the bugs we just faced, and the Seven-horned Serpent itself is also a very powerful spiritual beast."

"Didn't you say augmented qi alone doesn't work against its horn? Then it'll be okay. With this many members, we'll definitely be able to do something."

Ugh.

Duan Hecheng felt a pang of guilt. He knew deep down that the cultivators accompanying him wouldn't be much help. However, if he admitted this, this young expert from Mount Hua could leave them here. Right now, he needed all the help he could get.

Eventually, his desire for acknowledgement outweighed his conscience.

I'm sorry.

Duan Hecheng wanted to take responsibility for the remaining fifteen cultivators and get them home safe. However, he needed the help of the young man in front of him to do that. He set his conscience aside in the face of reality. He also suppressed the guilt of pushing his savior to a land of death.

"Then please, take care of us."

*

Everyone was exhausted and sleepy, so they decided to take turns sleeping. Those awake conversed with Zhou Xuchuan, introducing themselves. Through their discussions, Zhou Xuchuan learned that Duan Hecheng was thirty-one this year, and a Peak Realm expert.

"That aside, you seem to have expended so much qi, yet you don't look tired at all."

"I may look like this, but I was once known as Zhou Xuchuan, the internal qi master."

Nope, not once had he ever been called that.

"I apologize. I've been engrossed in cultivation and am not well-versed in worldly matters."

Duan Hecheng had faced heavy persecution from his senior brothers as soon as he entered the sect, and it had been a long time since he first wanted to receive acknowledgement from them and started putting in the effort. It wasn't surprising that he wasn't familiar with Zhou Xuchuan's name.

Moreover, Zhou Xuchuan's name had briefly surfaced during the discovery of the Three-Eyed Godly Thief's treasury but was soon forgotten. As for the recent match with Tang Hui, Duan Hecheng likely hadn't been paying attention due to preparations for entering the Poisonblood Valley.

"It's fine. That aside, how much of the Seven-horned Serpent's horn do you need?"

"It'd be a relief if we can take just one. Honestly, while I said we'll be hunting it down, killing it won't be easy."

"Then…"

"The horn cannot be cut even with augmented qi, but the scales and flesh are vulnerable. Therefore, we must rip the horn and the flesh underneath it all at once and run away at full speed.

"Does that mean I can take the rest of the horns?"

Originally, he planned to obtain the Seven-horned Serpent's horns since he wanted the internal core anyway.

"Try it if you can. If it's possible, you can take everything except my portion." Duan Hecheng laughed emptily.

That's a lot of things to do.

Whether it was the Seven-horned Serpent's horn, or the Seven Swords War from the Ominous Demon's tomb, there were a lot of things he had to take care of.

Zhou Xuchuan pushed his plans to the back of his mind and began walking.

*

"Poisonous insects."

Zhou Xuchuan swung his sword horizontally.

Pooow!

The sword sliced through the air, a gust of sword wind sweeping the surroundings, and reducing the nearby poisonous insects to puddles of blood.

Grrrr!

An animal, clearly a mutant of some kind, emerged from the bushes. It was accompanied by centipedes, moths, spiders and many other creatures.

"Seventh Young Master, please focus on defending."

"Call me Young Master Duan. Are you okay with that?" Duan Hecheng asked as he severed a poisonous centipede in two.

"Yes, conserve your qi. Same for the rest of you, cultivators of the Galaxy Manor. Stay back as much as possible."

The Second-Class and First-Class cultivators here weren't disciples of the Diancang Sect. They were from the Galaxy Manor.

"Guard that bag instead."

Zhou Xuchuan darted forward, munching on some poisonous plants. His breathing wasn't ragged, nor was he shouting to exert strength. He just silently swung his sword around. However, the poisonous creatures that haunted Duan Hecheng's group fell in the face of his sword.

The growing pile of corpses, easily exceeding three hundred, left the Galaxy Manor cultivators speechless.

Such power from someone so young!

When they introduced themselves before, they had heard about Zhou Xuchuan as well. They couldn't help but doubt their ears when they heard his age. An expert who was at least on the same level as Duan Hecheng wasn't even twenty!

Not to mention the ten major organizations, the entire martial world didn't have anyone who was that powerful at the age of eighteen.

"Please excuse me, Great Hero Zhou, but may I know your master's name?"

Zhou Xuchuan's strength indicated that he wasn't just an ordinary disciple. Duan Hecheng considered the names of the five high elders, the plum blossom swordsmen, as well as Sword Immortal You Riwen.

"Sure, my master's name is Liu Zhengmu."

"Oh, the Gentle Smiling Swordsman…"

Duan Hecheng knew this person, but his expression was odd.

It's not that I don't know him, but…

Although he was nearly nameless, he rose to the ranks of experts a few years ago. Even Duan Hecheng, who was relatively in the dark when it came to the news of the martial world, had heard of him, but this wasn't the man he was expecting to hear.

Bluntly put, he didn't think Liu Zhengmu was capable of producing an amazing person like Zhou Xuchuan.

"He'll become the most powerful figure one day. I recommend you remember his name and pay him a visit later," Zhou Xuchuan said, his head held high with confidence.

Ah! What was I thinking? I can't believe I looked down on the master that my savior respects so much!

Duan Hecheng was a relatively virtuous man, even among the cultivators of the Orthodox Faction. Normally, those raised in sheltered houses or large sects were bound to grow arrogant, but he had none of such traits.

He endured the disdain from his sect and his senior brothers, but still managed to become a decent man. There was a reason the cultivators that followed him were willing to risk their lives.

"I apologize, Great Hero Zhou. For a moment, I was thinking that your master was not such a great man. There is no way the master of someone as powerful as you, who saved us, isn't great. Please forgive my rudeness of looking down on your master."

Duan Hecheng suddenly bowed while fighting.

"Y-Young Master!"

A cultivator nearby panicked and stepped in to fend off the poisonous creatures approaching him.

Zhou Xuchuan clicked his tongue when he saw it. What the hell is he doing? No wonder he died so early.

He had an inkling when he heard that Duan Hecheng had come to the Poisonblood Valley merely to be acknowledged.

"It's okay. If you truly feel sorry, you should help me out in the future. Just don't forget today, like those of the Demon Cult or the Evil Valley. Haha."

Zhou Xuchuan brought up the pride of the Orthodox Faction. It was a political technique he learned when he became one of the five high elders.

"Then refocus."

Chatting was good and all, but this wasn't the right place for it. Zhou Xuchuan might be an exception, but the rest of them weren't.

Fighting while protecting someone is harder than it looks.

In his previous life, he had always been the one protected by some hero or expert. While he had fought against enemies alongside fellow sect members, he had never been the one protecting others.

However, through this experience, he realized that it required much more power and concentration to protect someone from harm.

"Phew, their numbers have reduced a bit…"

As time passed, the number of poisonous creatures dwindled. Many of them died in Zhou Xuchuan's flurry of sword attacks, but some had fled after seeing how powerful he was.

Creatures—animals in particular—relied heavily on instinct. They instinctively realized that Zhou Xuchuan was powerful and did not approach him.

After getting some leeway, Zhou Xuchuan was able to switch to his bow and arrow. He took out the bow and arrows he put inside his bag and got ready to use them.

"Wait, Great Hero Zhou. Are you planning to use that?"

"Yes, it's a hobby of mine," Zhou Xuchuan replied as he nocked an arrow on the bowstring.

"No matter how many creatures you have killed, there's no way you can be so leisurely and…"

Whoosh!

Before Duan Hecheng could finish, an arrow left the bow. It was not an ordinary arrow, but one imbued with qi. The sharp arrow darted toward a poisonous spider about the size of a child.

Crunch! Squeak!

The poisonous spider shrieked as a hole appeared on its body

Leisurely?

Duan Hecheng shut his mouth. The others also became speechless.

D-did Mount Hua have a bow art?

Sweat formed on their foreheads. Any cultivator could imbue qi into arrows. However, at most, that would increase the destructive power and speed a little. Showing that kind of explosive power was impossible.

"It's just a hobby of mine, okay?"

He emphasized it out of importance.

He used a sword and bow and arrow interchangeably, but yet still managed to navigate the Poisonblood Valley effortlessly. He even asked those from the Galaxy Manor to collect some poisonous plants.

"Daoists from Mount Hua Sect can eat poisonous plants?"

"From what I know, the plants in the Poisonblood Valley are highly toxic… are they perhaps not poisonous?"

"Look at that fancy pattern on the leaves. I bet my pinky that it's poisonous."

"If you don't want to die, you better not even touch it. I followed my grandfather to look for herbs and poisonous plants when I was young because he was a herbalist, but there's not a single herb or plant that can be eaten, much less used for medicine."

The men of the Galaxy Manor murmured among themselves after seeing the weird things that Zhou Xuchuan did. Duan Hecheng eventually couldn't contain his curiosity and asked.

"Excuse me, Great Hero Zhou. Why are you eating poisonous herbs?"

"Don't poison cultivators increase their resistance to poison by being poisoned? I'm doing the same thing."

"What the heck are you even… is that even possible?"

Duan Hecheng was speechless. Indeed, he had heard that poison cultivators used such training methods, but that was limited to those who trained in poison arts. It shouldn't be in the list of cultivation manuals possessed by Mount Hua.

Yet, judging by Zhou Xuchuan's complexion, he didn't seem to be lying. He truly seemed to have some resistance to poison. The more he thought about it, the more puzzled he became. His head couldn't keep up with what was happening before him.

"Young Master Duan. Have you cultivated a poison art before?" Zhou Xuchuan asked.

"No… I have… not."

"Then don't bring it up."

Duan Hecheng was at a loss for words.

"Forget that, we shouldn't linger here any longer. The atmosphere feels ominous," Zhou Xuchuan continued.

It was just as he said. The endless swarm of poisonous insects had disappeared.

"Normally, that means there's a—"

Rumble!

Before Zhou Xuchuan could finish, the ground suddenly shook violently.