Today's midday update will be postponed until this evening.

"Is there really such a thing?" Yao Chuxi widened her eyes, unable to believe that the person who had just spoken so cheerfully with her was actually so miserable in her own home.

The chilling aura, having scented fresh human presence, seemed to have found its next victim and drifted toward Bai Cheng's parked vehicle. Slipping through the narrow gaps in the car windows, it seeped inside; four strands of icy qi wove together into a cord, ensnaring the half-reclined authority figure and burrowing into his body through his nostrils.

Su Miaojing felt that there were too many beggars and poor people in the city. She resolved to settle some of them first, and for the rest, she’d try to find other solutions—perhaps she could ask the emperor or the Shen brothers to come up with ideas.

After recuperating in Pingyang for several days, the group waited until Su Lingxiao was able to move before beginning their return. At this point, Su Lingxiao could not show her face, and Yang Xu, fearful of being targeted by He Chonghuan, quietly purchased several carriages and slipped back to Xiangning.

Silken bodies twisted below him, seeking to escape every danger, but instead roused the beast within. Yang Xu could no longer restrain the fever burning through him; he flipped over, pressing Zhang Yuewan beneath him on the bed. The canopy above trembled as the joy bells chimed ceaselessly.

He pressed his hand to his forehead, rubbing it irritably, then took out his phone and dialed a number that had no label.

It’s like when you buy something in Wu, the shopkeeper naturally prefers to take local currency rather than a universal one.

The vengeful soul beast drifted like a phantom, unpredictable in form, floating closer in a flash with its monstrous maw agape, a black cloud snatching at its prey.

His words were directed at the assistant driving ahead. The assistant nodded and answered, "Yes," before continuing to drive.

"Find somewhere interesting. Old Lü, you’re always out meeting clients—have you been to any fun places? Just pick one at random," Zhu Jun said.

Meng Luo’s lips began twitching again. She hadn’t noticed, but in just a short while, she’d done it countless times—something she’d never experienced before.

"No! The price is too high. Bingling, is there another way?" Situ Yuelang said firmly. Though gravely injured, his refusal was resolute, leaving no room for compromise.

Two days later, after all terms had been settled, envoy Fang An departed from Dengzhou, escorted by a squad of Taiping cavalry, passing through the Da Qing Pass and returning to Central Province.

His hand rested on his thigh. He realized then that the poison in his bones had reached an uncontrollable stage.

"I said, become partners—be my mount when necessary, and I’ll protect you. This way, your safety is secured and you gain much greater freedom," Ye Hanxiao explained.

"If it’s difficult for him alone, did you forget about me?" Ling Chuxi replied confidently.

Precisely because it couldn’t be a scam, Shen Lie was astonished. In eight hundred years, he’d never tasted a first-grade supreme pill that rivaled a second-grade one.

The avalanche roared behind, drawing ever closer to the Burning Sky Sword. Linghu Yuer, terrified, buried her head in Han Lun’s arms; Han Lun too was panic-stricken, cold sweat soaking through his clothes.

Hua Tao nodded promptly. Now she was free of all attachments. Le Qianxue was her only family, her sole reliance.

For a moment, the masters were like ants on a hot pan, frantically circling, but soon the tribulation clouds dispersed out of nowhere. The spiritual energy within the Heavenly Melon Heart compressed and spun under the force of the five elements, forming a crystal core. Lili’s level dropped to thirty-six, her spiritual power less than forty; naturally, the heavenly calamity faded away.

With a helpless sigh, Luo Chen could only shake his head and murmur to himself.

Yang Duo’er, sitting nearby, was startled. She’d only come hoping that Liu Mang, out of old friendship, would sponsor a hundred thousand or so—enough to solve her urgent needs back in Guan Temple Town. She never imagined he’d make such a fuss, even establishing a scholarship fund named after himself.

No matter how refined his manners or deep his cunning, if he didn’t get angry at this moment, he wouldn’t deserve to be called a man. As expected, Hua Yunxiong’s face turned cold and grim, just as Xu Ruo had predicted.

Another path veered northwest, soon approaching the domain of Phantom Butterfly Valley—a place of extreme danger, where a single misstep could spell eternal doom.

If Chi had known early on that Xu Xiao could rapidly boost his inner spiritual power by consuming inner pills, and had kept his guard up from the start, then even Xu Xiao’s miraculous flying armor might not have been enough to kill him in one stroke.

Within the Tianya Prefecture city, Niu Qingyun ordered the demolition of several unused buildings where Stupid Heaven Gate had stood. Using five spiritual cultivators as the backbone, he established a vast hall for producing spicy magical beast jerky, and had the disciples of the Stupid Heaven Gate’s forging hall craft a set of spiritual tools for the jerky’s production.

The scene inside the disc echoed the night-wandering ghost’s vision in his sea of consciousness—a truly bizarre place, crammed with cables, odd devices, and faint energy currents surging between them, seeming some unknown kind of formation.

Even the Japanese ninja encountered days ago, with his two blades that could slice through iron like clay, could only leave shallow scratches on the Measuring Ruler after clashing head-on. That’s why Ling Yu had absolute confidence in his weapon.