"SKREEE—!!!"

The Hundred-Eyed Ghost Vine let out a piercing, miserable shriek.

Its core eye exploded, splattering a foul-smelling, black-green ichor everywhere. One by one, its ghastly white eyeballs lost their luster and fell limply to the ground, becoming silent.

"The Valley Master is mighty!"

Tan Fu roared with excitement.

Seeing this, Wei Dragon’s gaze flickered away for a moment before he too started cheering loudly.

"What skill, Valley Master! A Ghost Vine that even ordinary Incense Masters would avoid at all costs, yet you killed it in a single strike."

"Is that so?"

Qin Xuan smiled faintly and patted Wei Dragon’s shoulder.

A Bone-Transforming Corpse Beetle silently dropped onto the back of his neck.

"Well said. Now, don’t say it again. Your flattery is grating."

Wei Dragon shrank back, an embarrassed look on his face.

"Bring me that Hundred-Eyed Yin Vine. Be careful not to damage the root system,"

Qin Xuan instructed.

Wei Dragon waved his hand and, along with two Foundation Establishment Second Level Spirit Plant Cultivators, tiptoed into the Spiritual Field.

They took out Spiritual Shovels and Spiritual Hoes from their Storage Pouches, knelt on the ground, and worked with precision and expertise. In no time at all, they had actually managed to extract the massive, buried root system completely intact.

"The Hundred-Eyed Yin Vine is a Tier Two Top Grade Spiritual Plant. It’s already developed sentience and is almost a demon. My lord, are you planning on performing Refinement on it?" Wei Dragon asked.

Qin Xuan shot Wei Dragon a sidelong glance. "Since when do I need to explain my actions to you?"

A chill ran down the back of Wei Dragon’s neck. He immediately fell silent, not daring to breathe too loudly.

"Let’s go. Take me to Spiritual Field 127."

"As you command!"

...

「Meanwhile」

In Yinluo Country, at Blood Spring Mountain.

"CRUNCH... CRUNCH..."

Over a hundred fist-sized, dark-red Demon Insects, shaped like giant ants, were crawling densely over the Spiritual Field.

Neat rows of Blood Marrow Rice Seedlings collapsed.

In just a few moments, a huge patch of Blood Marrow Rice had been devoured completely.

"Where did all these Blood Marrow Demon Insects come from?"

"We’re finished. The Demon Poison has seeped into the Spiritual Field. There’s no way we can pay this year’s field tax..."

"Come spring, we’ll probably all be buried in the fields as Spiritual Fertilizer!"

The handful of Spirit Plant Cultivators responsible for guarding the Spiritual Field had deathly pale faces. They collapsed to the ground, their hearts filled with despair.

However, gazing at the glowing, turquoise Demon Insect venom in the Spiritual Field, not a single one of them dared to step forward.

They could still tell the difference between dying immediately and dying in a few months.

If it were just ten or twenty Demon Insects, Human Dao Foundation Establishment cultivators like them might have been able to handle it. But with this many Blood Marrow Golden Insects...

Even if an Incense Master came personally, they would have to shed a layer of skin to deal with this!

"A bunch of useless trash. Get out of my way."

A woman’s sharp cry rang out.

A voluptuous, mature woman with a full chest and hips, dressed in a rose-red silk skirt, was seen arriving from the horizon, riding a black cloud.

"Greetings, Mountain Master!"

The Spirit Plant Cultivators immediately knelt.

The mature woman had a stunning face and a slender waist, and her Cultivation had already reached the Foundation Establishment Seventh Level.

But there were faint lines at the corners of her eyes, her makeup was rather heavy, and she had a slightly world-weary air. This was precisely the Mountain Master of Blood Spring Mountain, Wang Qianru.

"Senior Brother Fang, I’ll have to trouble you," Wang Qianru said softly.

"It’s nothing."

Beside Wang Qianru, a middle-aged Cultivator with a sallow face, around forty years old, spoke with a smile.

The middle-aged Cultivator looked as though he had just recovered from a long illness. He wore a faded, dark-brown linen robe, and his eyes were murky, yet his Cultivation had reached the astonishing Foundation Establishment Tenth Level!

He was, in fact, a Great Demon qualified to attempt a breakthrough to the Purple Mansion realm!

"Thousand Yin Demon Fire, go!"

Fang Mingshan shouted softly, summoning a Red Small Banner.

The Red Small Banner floated above the Spiritual Field, shook violently, and spewed out a great plume of black Demon Fire.

HISS!

The Blood Marrow Golden Insects were engulfed by the Demon Fire. They burned, letting out sharp hisses as they exploded one by one.

Wang Qianru said in pleasant surprise, "Senior Brother Fang, your Demon Fire has grown even more powerful!"

"Heh, mere Demon Insects, hardly worth mentioning..."

Fang Mingshan waved his hand dismissively. Just as he was about to say something more, his expression suddenly changed.

BUZZZZ!

A low, vibrating hum was heard.

From within the Demon Fire, dozens of dark-red Demon Insects with transparent, cicada-like wings actually flew out.

They flew about erratically, a faint bloody light flashing on their carapaces. They had actually managed to withstand the burning Demon Fire and flew to other Spiritual Fields to continue devouring the Blood Marrow Rice Seedlings.

"How is that possible? Mere Late-stage Qi Cultivation Demon Insects can resist Demon Fire?"

Fang Mingshan was shocked, finding it unbelievable.

Huge swaths of turquoise Demon Poison shot out from the tails of the Blood Marrow Golden Insects, vaguely forming the beginnings of an Array.

Layering on top of each other, it actually extinguished the Demon Fire!

"Vile creatures, your rampage ends here!"

Wang Qianru’s beautiful face was frosted with anger as streams of ice-blue chilling energy shot out from her.

The Blood Marrow Golden Insects, which were busy devouring, suddenly stiffened. A thick layer of ice covered their bodies, freezing them in place.

"Senior Brother Fang, the Demon Fire isn’t working and could easily spread to the surrounding Spiritual Fields. Let’s cut them down with our Lifebound Longswords,"

Wang Qianru cried out urgently.

Fang Mingshan nodded slightly and immediately activated his Lifebound Longsword.

A stunning flash of sword light slashed past, and a clear crack finally appeared on the carapaces of the frozen insects.

’It’s working!’

Their spirits lifted, and the two quickly coordinated using this method.

For a time, ice chips flew through the air and sword light whistled.

Broken insect corpses scattered across the field.

"Put more power into it!"

Fang Mingshan swallowed a Qi Recovery Pill and roared, his voice strained and gasping.

Wang Qianru was also drenched in fragrant sweat and had just let out a sigh of relief.

Just then, the ground suddenly began to bulge violently.

POP! POP! POP!

Swarm after swarm of Blood Marrow Golden Insects poured out from underground.

The new swarms were twice as numerous as the ones they had just painstakingly slaughtered!

"H-How can there be so many?!"

Wang Qianru’s beautiful face lost all color. Fearing damage to the Spiritual Field and being unable to pay the field tax, she didn’t dare make any large-scale moves.

However, this hesitation only allowed the Blood Marrow Golden Insects to spread further.

Facing the tide-like swarm of insects, Fang Mingshan roared and once again activated the Red Small Banner.

Unfortunately, the black Demon Flame spread out, only causing the newly emerged swarm to fall into slight chaos before they quickly adapted.

Wielding his Lifebound Longsword, Fang Mingshan was hard-pressed. For every one he slashed away, two or three more would immediately zip past him from the sides.

Finally, he was truly enraged.

"Dammit! Where did these blasted bugs come from?! You forced my hand!"

Fang Mingshan’s eyes turned crimson as he let out a furious roar.

He formed a seal with his hands, and a profound and mysterious aura unfurled.

WHOOSH!

A viscous, crimson substance appeared, surging forth from the void.

Positional Divine Technique, [Flame Demon]!

A series of crackling explosions echoed across the Spiritual Field.

Hundreds of Late-stage Qi Cultivation Blood Marrow Golden Insects exploded, turning into a great cloud of turquoise poison mist before being burned into nothingness.

Wang Qianru was dumbfounded.

"Senior Brother Fang, don’t! My Spiritual Field!"

...

On the other side, faced with the same Blood Marrow Golden Insects, Qin Xuan’s approach was completely different from Wang Qianru and Fang Mingshan’s.

He did nothing at all.

He let the Blood Marrow Golden Insects devour the Spiritual Field.

"Valley Master Qin, if this goes on, our Blood Marrow Rice will be completely eaten!" Wei Dragon couldn’t help but advise.

The edges of the Spiritual Field were now a complete mess.

The Spiritual Plants, once brimming with Spiritual Qi, were toppled over in disarray.

The spiritual soil was overturned, revealing tunnels underneath that had been riddled with countless holes.

"Mm, it’s time."

Qin Xuan’s expression was calm. His gaze swept over the Spiritual Field as he slowly raised his hand.

A vast wave of Demonic Essence surged toward the sky. The clouds gathered, and in the blink of an eye, a downpour of Spiritual Rain began to fall.

But within this Spiritual Rain, there was a trace of sharp Sword Intent!