Chapter 104: Taking Stock of the Harvest

Chapter 104: Taking Stock of the Gains

Chu Jie felt uneasy. The bloodline that had just appeared caused his spiritual power to surge wildly. If he did not kill the descendants of the Wang family within six months, death would be inevitable.

Now that he was certain Wang Shan was indeed a descendant of the Wang family, Chu Jie felt he could not kill him immediately. What if there was more than one descendant? Wang Shan was the clue; he had to cling to this thread and follow it to find all the Wang family heirs.

Only then could he truly fulfill the task entrusted to him by the old man in the dungeon. His life depended on it, so he dared not be careless.

Although the old man in the dungeon had meddled with him internally, as long as he completed the mission within the deadline, nothing would happen. On the contrary, with the help of the bloodline, he could unleash even greater power.

However, his spiritual power would only surge wildly when facing the Wang family bloodline.

Yet, this was not absolute. If a Wang family bloodline was nearby, would it not trigger the surge at any time? Chu Jie thought that if he captured Wang Shan and released him when necessary, he could provoke the surge, and when not needed, hide somewhere to calm his spiritual power.

Though somewhat complicated, this was a method to temporarily boost his strength. In the Abyss of Gods and Demons, fraught with danger, Chu Jie sought every possible way to enhance his power. Just now, he had driven away Wang Shan—almost at the Nascent Core stage—relying on the bloodline left by the old man in the dungeon.

With the old man’s strength, what exactly he had done inside Chu Jie’s body remained unknown, which made him uneasy, as if his life was being controlled by someone else.

"I must find a way to see if there are other manipulations inside my body."

Chu Jie felt that perhaps only upon reaching the Great Emperor Star Core stage would he find some clues. For now, no matter how he searched within his dantian and body, no abnormalities appeared.

While Chu Jie was deep in thought, Wu Long and his men had already searched extensively for cultivation materials, placing their findings not far from Chu Jie.

Thanks to the help of the Jade Gourd and their armor, they had a significant advantage in this battle. Had the opponents been more cautious and steady, the outcome might have been quite different.

Among the more than two hundred dead, many were low-level martial artists, likely reinforcements from outside Blood Butchery City’s perimeter.

"I wonder how the Mad Dog Battalion is doing," Chu Jie sighed. He had ordered them to retreat earlier, foreseeing that this place would soon be a bloodbath.

And now, this was only the beginning.

The greatest gain from this battle was Chu Jie’s acquisition of Wang Shan’s Wolong Saber, a superior treasure weapon that perfectly replaced his old sword. This saber was immensely powerful and, if wielded well, could play a crucial role.

Had he not been wearing the golden armor, he would have been cleaved in two by this saber. Moreover, if Wang Shan was indeed a Star Core martial artist wielding it, he could have inflicted serious harm on Chu Jie.

Now that the Wolong Saber was his, Chu Jie extracted it from the Savage Cauldron. Immediately, a surge of dragon energy radiated from the saber, and faint traces of Wang Shan’s aura lingered within.

Chu Jie infused his spiritual power into the saber, cleansing Wang Shan’s aura and reforging it. It was now ready for use without difficulty.

Wu Long gathered more and more items before Chu Jie’s eyes. Among these, the Cultivation Realm practitioners carried profound crystals, some medicines, and the Body Steel Realm warriors had Spirit Gathering Herbs, likely for exchange or cultivation during their journey.

All of these now belonged to Chu Jie.

Still, he knew this was no place to linger. Those who fled would soon bring reinforcements, inevitably leading to another fierce battle.

"Boss, the inventory is complete—profound crystals, all grades combined, total over five hundred superior profound crystals; fifteen lower-grade treasure weapons; three superior treasure weapons; numerous body and spiritual recovery pills; and more than thirty Spirit Gathering Herbs!" Wu Long reported everything found.

Chu Jie nodded and put away the profound crystals first. In the Abyss of Gods and Demons, he might need them anytime. For instance, the Stone Hall earlier had consumed quite a few.

He instructed Wu Long and the others to exchange their current weapons for the medium-grade treasure weapons. With good equipment, they could serve him better. In the Abyss, their roles were important. Seven men could hold off an expert or help restrain the enemy’s subordinates.

Wu Long and his comrades were delighted. Though they had long known Chu Jie was not the legendary most-wicked fiend, he treated them well and was strong. Hence, they resolved to stay loyal. Now, armed with medium-grade treasure weapons, their former lower-grade ones were virtually useless.

Chu Jie stored all the loot into the Savage Cauldron, then distributed the healing and spiritual recovery pills so everyone had supplies.

Had they not wiped out this group, Chu Jie’s resources would have been insufficient.

One of his previously gravely injured men had recovered almost fully after taking the red pills gifted by the legendary fiend, showing the remarkable restorative power of those pills.

"Let’s go. We’re leaving this place," Chu Jie said.

The nine of them headed toward the center of the Abyss of Gods and Demons. Chu Jie had wanted to capture some minor leaders for interrogation, but among those killed, he couldn’t tell who the leaders were—they had been in a blind fury then, paying no attention.

Moreover, many secrets were likely hidden among certain leaders, and to uncover them, they would need to capture and question some people.

They left swiftly, knowing others were surely converging here. They had to leave before reinforcements arrived.

Along the way, Chu Jie frowned. Their golden armor made them conspicuous; if only they could temporarily conceal it.

At that moment, as if sensing his wish, the golden armor gradually transformed into golden light and seeped into Chu Jie’s dantian.

It turned out the golden armor could be retracted at will, serving a concealment purpose.

"Duankun, the golden armor can be retracted," Chu Jie reminded.

Having only recently acquired the golden armor, they were still exploring its functions, so this was new information.

Seeing the golden armor on Duankun dissolve into golden light and enter his body, Chu Jie looked back at Wu Long and the others.

"Try to see if your iron armor can be hidden too," Chu Jie said.

Wu Long and his group began trying after seeing the golden armor stored away.

Wu Long smiled brightly, "It works!"

The iron armor turned into a white light and entered their dantians, though a bit slower than Chu Jie and the others.

They could now fully retract their golden and iron armor and summon them quickly in battle, which was very convenient.

Their only vulnerability now was the possibility of being recognized as the former legendary fiend, but without the obvious golden armor, it was less likely.

Most people were focusing their attention on golden armor warriors, which ironically benefited Chu Jie’s group.

Along the way, they encountered several martial artists who, despite Chu Jie’s attempts to stay hidden, did not recognize them as the former legendary fiend.

Everyone was seeking trouble with golden armor warriors. When questioned if they had seen any, Chu Jie’s group always answered no, causing the questioners to leave immediately.

To avoid being recognized, Chu Jie even removed his mask, revealing his true face.

Only then did Wu Long and the others realize their leader was Chu Jie, the one who had stirred unrest in the Luo family, deepening their admiration.

Duankun also altered his appearance slightly to avoid immediate recognition.

Their goal was to reach the center of the Abyss of Gods and Demons to obtain more and better cultivation resources and treasure weapons. Though they had acquired some, it was still insufficient.

Clearly, the most formidable treasures had yet to appear. Chu Jie was eager to understand why so many families had brought so many people here, and what exactly these so-called extraordinary treasures were.

Many had already died in this abyss, so whatever attracted such crowds must be extraordinary indeed.

Along the way, they encountered several groups but were not recognized.

They drew ever closer to the abyss’s center.

From afar, the center still had beams of light continuously rising, faster and more frequent now. Around it swirled fierce winds reminiscent of the Nine Heavens Fierce Wind, which might return, though currently it only appeared near the light beams.

Chu Jie asked some martial artists along the way but none reported seeing any super powerful presence, only the golden armor warrior incarnation of Zhou Jie wreaking havoc.

"I don’t know what the legendary fiend is up to. He elevated Zhou Jie to the Star Core stage to create carnage here in the Abyss, while he himself is probably controlling the abyss from somewhere," Chu Jie said, his gaze fixed on the swirling vortex in the sky.

At this moment, the vortex above was magnificent. The black sphere at its center had been completely torn apart and assimilated into the whirlpool.

The entire vortex shimmered with eerie light, purple lightning growing stronger inside, as if disaster could strike at any moment.

Such a tremendous formation made it difficult for Chu Jie to judge what the Abyss of Gods and Demons was nurturing. He suspected many shared his confusion.

Currently, the Abyss was the most active area in Blood Butchery City. Despite many deaths, numerous people still rushed here.

If counted carefully, nearly half of Blood Butchery City’s forces were concentrated here.