Chương 120: A Ticking Time Bomb

Huaijin stared at the letter in his palm, his heart a tangled knot of grief and regret. Miao Linhui and Su Xiuqi were already beyond words, their sobs filling the room with raw, wrenching sorrow. Especially Su Xiuqi. Zhang Hanren had been her firstborn, the child she had raised from infancy, the son whose every milestone she had witnessed. The bond between mother and first son was something sacred, unbreakable. And now, the white-haired were sending off the black-haired. A parent burying her own child.

The weight of it crushed her. Miao Linhui was no better. After decades of sharing a life, a bed, a future, to have her husband ripped from her side so suddenly, it was a wound that no words could heal. Only time, slow and merciless, could ever hope to soothe such agony. Huaijin reached out and gripped Zhang Rende's shoulder firmly.

"You're a man now," he said, his voice low but steady.

"Take care of your mother. Hold this family together. Do you understand?" Zhang Rende's eyes were rimmed with red, his jaw tight. He gave a silent, resolute nod. —— The news of Zhang Hanren's death spread through Langya County like ripples across still water. Cultivators from the Miao and Wu families arrived soon after, after all, the bonds of marriage tied their houses together. They came to pay their respects, their faces somber, their offerings sincere.

Three days later, Zhang Hanren's body was laid to rest in the Zhang family's ancestral cemetery, nestled among the graves of generations past. Green Bamboo Mountain fell quiet once more. Huaijin moved silently through the family halls. Without a word of explanation to anyone, he placed the Foundation Establishment Pill he had obtained into the family vault. The rules were clear: besides accumulating Merit Points, one had to render significant service to the clan to qualify for such a treasure.

The cultivators in the family who were close to breaking through to Foundation Establishment Realm were thrown into a frenzy of hope and determination. But Zhang Rende's eyes held a far more complicated emotion.

"Uncle," he said quietly, "this wasn't meant to be Father's fortune. You can't force what fate doesn't give." When he learned the origin of that Foundation Establishment Pill, and the timing of its arrival, Zhang Rende felt the cruel, capricious hand of destiny at play. If his father had delayed his seclusion by just a little longer... If he had waited just a few more months... Then perhaps he would have been the one to claim that pill. Perhaps he would still be alive. But no one could have known.

The timing was simply that cruel. Perhaps that was destiny's way. Huaijin let out a long, weary sigh.

"You must reach the Foundation Establishment Realm. Train harder than you ever have. Promise me." Zhang Rende's gaze hardened with resolve.

"Uncle, go on ahead. I'll stay with Mother for a few more months, then I'll follow you to Purple Cloud Peak."

"Good." —— Huaijin returned to Purple Cloud Peak alone. These days, the peak was thriving, practically bursting with vitality. The Blazing Sun Chickens had multiplied beyond expectation, bringing Huaijin thousands of Merit Points every single year. The family purchased them at fair rates, then processed them into exquisite Cuisine, which was sold to cultivate even more resources. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

The Pine Fish population, too, had swelled to nearly a thousand heads. It was time to begin the harvest. All of this prosperity traced back to that mysterious Pine Fish, the one that had made all of this possible. Because of it, Huaijin could afford to leave Purple Cloud Peak whenever he needed to handle family affairs elsewhere. The Zhang family's herd of Purple Spirit Tigers was also growing steadily.

Every clansman dreamed of forging a bond with one, to have a contracted beast at their side in battle was the mark of a true cultivator. Huaijin entered seclusion to polish his cultivation. In his spare moments, he honed his talisman making art. His skill had now reached Tier 2, mid grade, a significant milestone. Each session produced several talismans, filling the family's armory with power. The Zhang family's resource reserves grew richer by the day.

And because of Huaijin, the Tier 2 cultivators of the clan never wanted for anything. They could simply sit upon the Spirit Veins and cultivate at their leisure, their paths smoothed by the prosperity he had built. —— Three months passed like a breath. The Spirit Vein beneath Green Bamboo City had been successfully upgraded to Tier 2, low grade. Zhang Liliang, who had just broken through to Foundation Establishment Realm, immediately set out to take command there.

The Tier 2 Array formation purchased from the Gao family had also arrived, a massive defensive array that now enveloped Green Bamboo City in an impenetrable barrier. The Zhang family elders members finally released the breath they had been holding. Zhang Lixian remained at Langya County Town, holding the family's primary seat of power. Zhang Liwei stayed at Green Bamboo Mountain.

In his spare time, he led the family's beast spirit hunting squad into the inner reaches of the Purple Dusk Mountain Range to hunt Tier 2 spirit beasts. Part of the purpose was to gather resources, spirit beast cores, pelts, bones, and blood. The other purpose was to temper his combat strength. With four Tier 2 cultivators now standing guard, the Zhang family was undeniably the strongest cultivation force in Langya County.

And with Huaijin's fearsome reputation spreading across the region, not a single soul dared to provoke the Zhangs. —— Another three months slipped away. The world took on a harsh, unforgiving edge. Endless frigid winds swept across the Bing Province like the breath of some ancient beast, howling through valleys and over mountain peaks. Unbeknownst to most, another year had nearly passed. Winter was coming. Huaijin's cultivation advanced with steady, inexorable progress.

Every three months, he refined one Spirit Peach to accelerate his growth. His speed was accelerating. By his most conservative estimate, in less than three years, he would reach the peak of the fifth level. And when that time came, the bottleneck to the sixth level wouldn't be able to hold him back. Meanwhile, the energy inside the Realm-Breaking Pearl continued to accumulate. Every day, vast quantities of spirit beast flesh and shattered spirit herbs were devoured by the pearl's insatiable hunger.

And because Purple Cloud Peak sat upon a Tier 2, mid grade Spirit Vein the pearl never wanted for fuel. The black-and-white energy within was already nearly three-quarters full. By the time Huaijin reached the peak of the sixth level, it would certainly be completely charged. Then, when he advanced to the late stage of Foundation Establishment Realm, he could finally sell off all those green Peaches he had been stockpiling.

Spirit items that extended one's lifespan by ten years weren't particularly coveted by high level cultivators. And by that time, the Zhang family would be strong enough to protect its own treasures. By that time, Huaijin himself would be able to contend with even a Tier 3 cultivator. —— Zhang Rende had already returned to Purple Cloud Peak. His expression was calm now, too calm, perhaps. But the fire in his eyes burned brighter than ever. He trained relentlessly.

His cultivation had reached the mid-stage of Qi Refining Realm. He had also inherited his father's love for brewing. Every spare moment, he spent researching new wine recipes, tinkering with ingredients, perfecting his craft. Huaijin saw this and smiled. Let the boy have his hobby. Let him find joy where he could. Through Zhang Rende, Huaijin received the latest news from Langya County. And the news was grim. Over the past few months, Qingtai Prefecture had descended into chaos.

Demonic cultivators had begun showing themselves openly. Some weak Qi Refining Realm factions had been completely wiped out, entire clans offered up in blood sacrifices, their life force consumed to fuel the demonic cultivators' advancement. Every major power was on high alert. They poured resources into nurturing their Spirit Veins, protecting their mortal populations with everything they had. Because if their mortal subjects suffered heavy losses, the foundation of their power would crumble.

The Tier 2 forces in Langya County didn't dare be careless. The demonic cultivators had been in hiding for decades. Their resurgence now spelled disaster. Every cultivator knew their duty: hunt them down, destroy them, show no mercy. —— But what surprised Zhang Huaijin most was the fate of the Zhang family's old nemesis. The Hu family. A terrible catastrophe had befallen them. Hu Lingsi, that name had once been a symbol of their clan's ambition. But something had broken inside him.

One night, he succumbed to demonic possession. And in a single, horrifying act, he sacrificed his own clan members. Tens of thousands of mortals, men, women, children, all slaughtered. With that crimson offering, Hu Lingsi successfully ascended to Foundation Establishment Realm. And then he vanished without a trace. Huaijin stared at the news, his expression darkening. Zhang Liwei had already issued orders: all clan members traveling outside must exercise extreme caution.

The enmity between the Hu family and the Zhang family was ancient and bloody. It had been carved in pain, soaked in grudges. And now Hu Lingsi had plunged into the demonic path, sacrificing his own kin. He had nothing left to lose. A barefoot man fears no one wearing shoes. To the Zhang family, he was a ticking time bomb. No one knew when he might choose to strike. No one knew when the explosion would come.