The setting sun sank toward the horizon, painting the sky in a gorgeous spread of crimson and scarlet, ablaze like fire and breathtaking to behold.
A gentle breeze swept across the land, raising wave after wave of golden wheat that rippled across the fields like an ocean of gold.
"So this is the wheat field that the Hei Family has so painstakingly cultivated — the scale of it is quite impressive." Gu Immortal Lu Qingming hovered high in the air, gazing down below, his voice light and measured.
The Hei Family had planted an enormous quantity of wheat here.
This variety of wheat was called Golden Wheat. It ripened once every two years, but what it produced was not grain for human consumption — it was a metal known as Gold Essence.
This region had originally been barren, desolate wasteland. Because the soil was so saturated with minerals that exposed ore seams jutted from the ground, nothing could grow here.
The Hei Family had planted Golden Wheat to harvest this place using this method. Not only was it a clever idea, but it also demanded tremendous effort and resources. In the end, they had created this vast wheat field stretching over ten thousand li. Even now, as Lu Qingming gazed down from his lofty vantage, the field extended as far as the eye could see.
Standing beside Lu Qingming was another person.
His surname was Su and his given name was Guang — a Light Path Gu Immortal.
His eyes burned with eager anticipation as he stared down at the wheat below. "This wheat field of the Hei Family has long been famous across the Northern Plains. Every harvest yields at least a million jin of Gold Essence. That Gold Essence has always been one of the Hei Family's major sources of income. Even though these are only Fifth Transformation mortal-grade materials and we have little use for them, we can strip the place clean and sell everything off for a handsome profit."
Lu Qingming smiled and nodded. "It's certainly worth making a move."
"I'd advise you two not to court your own destruction. This place already belongs to my Guan Family." The words had barely landed when a figure materialized out of thin air, appearing right in front of Lu Qingming and Su Guang.
His face was stern and solemn. Battle intent radiated from him in palpable waves. A third eye sat vertically on his forehead — striking and impossible to ignore.
Lu Qingming and Su Guang exchanged a glance, instantly reaching a tacit understanding.
They had long sensed that a Gu Immortal's aura was lingering in this area. They had only been talking without acting in order to lure out any other Gu Immortals who might be nearby.
"So it's Guan Shenzhao of the Guan Family," Lu Qingming said politely.
"The name of the Three Earthly Heroes is something I've known for a long time. But after the battle against Dongfang Changfan, your companion Han Dong fell at Taiqiu. If you two insist on making a move today, I'm afraid the title of the Three Earthly Heroes will be struck from existence for good." Guan Shenzhao's tone was anything but polite.
He was a Gu Immortal of the Guan Family — and the Guan Family was a supreme force, one of the Golden Families. He had every reason to be confident.
Su Guang let out a hearty laugh. "You're from the Righteous Path, and we brothers are from the Demonic Path. Righteous and Demonic stand opposed — why would we back down so easily? Naturally we'll have to fight it out and determine a winner!"
Guan Shenzhao gave a cold snort and struck without further hesitation.
In an instant, immortal qi swept across the sky, light exploded in blinding flashes, and the clash between them erupted high above the ground.
……
Two figures — one large, one small — skimmed along close to the earth, flying at tremendous speed.
"Grandfather, where are we heading?" The smaller figure was a young boy, his face bright with curiosity as he asked.
"Heh heh, good grandson — the place we're heading is the Gushing Spring Forest. Have you heard of it?" The larger figure was an elderly Gu Immortal, clad in a yellow robe. His wide sleeves billowed wildly in the wind.
The boy's eyes darted about. "The Gushing Spring Forest is an underground geothermal area where water jets erupt from the earth, forming a forest of water pillars. They say that countless Water Path Gu Insects and Earth Path Gu Insects can be found there — it's one of the Hei Family's most important strongholds."
"Correct. Grandfather hasn't been teaching you for nothing. Good grandson, aren't you cultivating the Water Path? This trip to the Gushing Spring Forest — what kind of Water Path mortal Gu could we possibly fail to find? If our luck is good, we might even strip a few extra water sources and plant them in Grandfather's Immortal aperture. The day you become an Immortal yourself, I'll hand all those resources over to you," the old Gu Immortal said.
A look of gratitude and emotion welled up in the boy's face, but worry quickly followed. "Grandfather, you're only a Gu Immortal at the very bottom of the Sixth Transformation. If we rashly attack one of the Hei Family's key strongholds and you lose your life — what then?"
The boy spoke bluntly, but the old Gu Immortal didn't take offense. Instead, he grinned and offered his grandson some guidance. "More than ten days ago, all the Hei Family's Gu Immortals had already retreated into their main base. Right now, none of the Hei Family's outlying strongholds are guarded by Gu Immortals."
"But what if the Hei Family's Gu Immortals are gone and other Gu Immortals show up instead? Didn't we hear just yesterday that even old monsters like Pi Shuihan have appeared?" The boy was still worried.
"Now that's something you don't understand," the old Gu Immortal said with considerable confidence. "The Gushing Spring Forest, while important to the Hei Family, is actually one of their lesser holdings compared to the rest. Old monsters like Pi Shuihan wouldn't even bother looking at a place like this."
"The supreme forces nearest to the Hei Family are, in order, the Liu Family, the Guan Family, and the Yao Family. Those resources near these three families — we can't seize those. And we won't go anywhere too close to the Hei Family's main base either. The truly critical treasures are contested by the strongest among them, so we wouldn't stand a chance of taking them. Even just watching from the sidelines out there could cost us our lives. That's why the Gushing Spring Forest is one of the best choices for us."
"So that's how it is," the boy said, the realization dawning on his face.
The wind roared past their ears as the grandfather and grandson drew ever closer to the Gushing Spring Forest.
Suddenly, the old Gu Immortal's expression shifted — he could hear the sounds of fierce combat.
"This is bad." His face darkened, and he shot upward into the sky.
At that moment, the blazing sun hung high overhead, its scorching rays beating down without mercy.
The Gushing Spring Forest came into view before them, and they found that a chaotic battle had already engulfed the entire area.
The place, once an idyllic paradise hidden from the world, was now a wreck — utterly ravaged and thrown into complete disarray.
Geysers of water sprayed in every direction, and the thunderous roar of explosions echoed without cease.
A rough glance revealed nearly ten Gu Immortals mired in the fray.
Grandfather and grandson looked at each other and smiled bitterly.
Everything they had thought of, others had already thought of too. There was no shortage of level-headed lower-level Gu Immortals.