Linghu Xu was a Demonic Path Gu Immortal from the Western Desert who specialized in the Theft Path.
Fang Dongxi of the Fang Clan was furious. The opening of the Sandbag Blessed Land had been completely unexpected, and the Fang Clan couldn't mobilize enough manpower in time, so they could only send him—being the closest—to handle the matter.
What he hadn't anticipated was that the batch of Soul Cores he had recently collected in the Green Ghost Desert had been stolen by Linghu Xu during the chaos.
"These Soul Cores are goods that must be delivered to Fang Yuan! They absolutely cannot be lost!" Fang Dongxi was thoroughly unlucky. His Immortal Aperture held all manner of resources, yet the very portion that was indispensable had been the one pilfered.
The secret of the Fang Clan's cooperation with Fang Yuan could not be exposed.
Fang Dongxi couldn't shout about it openly, so he had no choice but to give chase to Linghu Xu.
Linghu Xu's cultivation had recently risen to the Seventh Transformation, and his speed was extremely fast. Fang Dongxi had made up his mind—he would not rest until he caught him.
But just as he was about to leave, he was intercepted by Shi Kang with a Killing Move.
"What do you want, Shi Kang?!" Fang Dongxi was enraged.
Shi Kang let out a cold chuckle. "Fang Dongxi, you and these others have been besieging me for so long, and now you think you can just leave?"
Fang Dongxi's eyes twitched with fury. "Shi Kang, you ought to be grateful that I'm withdrawing from the siege. Don't tell me you've already struck some secret deal with Linghu Xu? So the great Shi Clan has openly allied with Demonic Path scum!"
The moment Fang Dongxi opened his mouth, he flung a bucket of filth at Shi Kang.
But this disruption by Shi Kang had allowed Linghu Xu to vanish completely.
Shi Kang roared with laughter, his aura formidable. "I've been in seclusion for years, and this is my first battle after emerging. I intend to make a name for myself across the land. None of you think about running—come and fight! You will all be stepping stones for my widespread renown."
These words immediately darkened the expressions of the other Gu Immortals.
Fang Dongxi gnashed his teeth. "Shi Kang, you were already spouting insults and provoking us before—that's why we besieged you. But in the spirit of our shared Righteous Path allegiance, none of us went all out. Now not only have you colluded with Linghu Xu, but you also look down on us like this. You really are asking for death! Everyone, attack together!"
"Good, I'd like to see what means Fellow Daoist Shi Kang has cultivated over the years."
"Shi Kang, it's been a few years, and your nerve has grown so bold. Do you think you're the only one who's made progress?"
This time, Fang Dongxi took the lead in the assault. The other Gu Immortals truly got serious and engaged from the flanks.
After Fang Dongxi fought for a stretch, another Gu Immortal took his place. Several Gu Immortals launched a wheel assault against Shi Kang!
Shi Kang had no breathing room whatsoever. The pressure skyrocketed, increasing several times over from before.
His situation deteriorated rapidly, yet he was laughing uproariously, brimming with excitement. "Come, come!"
The Gu Immortals fought fiercely. Below them, Mo Li had been watching the battle for a long time when he suddenly gritted his teeth and leaped, flying straight into the largest of the sandbags.
It was from this very sandbag that the Gu Immortals had broken through and emerged earlier. Resources that the Gu Immortals had deemed beneath them must still remain in abundance.
"Fortune favors the bold!" Mo Li had always been a merchant at heart, and his gambler's instinct and adventurous spirit were fully ignited.
Once inside the sandbag, the thunderous sounds of the Gu Immortals' battle still echoed from outside. Mo Li quickly realized his decision had been the right one.
He pressed deeper and deeper, swiftly gathering large quantities of Gu materials along the way.
The sandbag had originally been teeming with wild beasts and fierce plants, but since the Gu Immortals had scoured it beforehand, the ecosystem had been completely disrupted.
Corpses of wild beasts lay everywhere—not just Thousand Beast Kings, but even the occasional Ten Thousand Beast King.
These resources were beneath the notice of Gu Immortals, who had discarded them without a second thought, but to Mo Li, they were an enormously rich bounty.
He was practically picking up countless spoils of war for free.
"I've struck it rich, really struck it rich!" Mo Li was ecstatic.
He then discovered many enormous craters and pools of terrifying poisonous blood.
Clearly, Desolate Beasts and even Ancient Desolate Beasts had been dealt with by the Gu Immortals, but the massive ruins quietly testified to the terror of an Immortal-level battle.
"If I had been the one exploring, I would likely have ended up as food for these vicious beasts."
Thanks to the Gu Immortals' prior exploration, Mo Li was able to penetrate all the way to the innermost core of the sandbag.
This was where the most valuable resources in the entire sandbag had originally been, but Mo Li found nothing at all.
It was clear that this area had long since been claimed by the Gu Immortals.
"If even a single leaf of immortal material had been left behind, it would still be a tremendous fortune!" Mo Li was unwilling to give up. Since he had already come this far, he decided to dig through the ground thoroughly.
And sure enough, he actually discovered a massive boulder buried underground.
"A Fourth Transformation Gu material—Flying Stone, containing Qi Path and Earth Path dao marks." Mo Li sighed. This harvest fell far short of what he had imagined, but it was better than nothing.
Just as Mo Li was about to haul the enormous Flying Stone away, it suddenly cracked open.
A youth tumbled out from the fragments!
"What on earth?!" Mo Li was startled, and then his curiosity surged.
The youth was clearly just a mortal—how had he ended up here, sealed inside a Flying Stone?