The power of the Emperor's weapon awoke, its might as vast as the sea.
Nine phoenixes soared out from the furnace, carrying sky-scorching flames, rushing toward the shadowy black figure.
These nine phoenixes were different from what Qin Chuan had witnessed before. Last time, the furnace merely yawned, but this time, it was a genuine attack!
The flames could incinerate the heavens, boil the seas, and melt everything in their path!
"This is impossible!!"
The shadowy figure let out a terrified scream and immediately turned to flee. He didn't want to experience, nor could he afford to withstand, the power of an Emperor's weapon!
But the nine fire phoenixes beat their wings, distorting the space around them, even warping time itself. Though they seemed to move slowly, in reality, they were incomprehensibly fast, instantly cutting off the figure's escape.
"Caw—"
The nine phoenixes circled around the black figure, each flap of their wings causing the flames to flicker, like the rhythm of breathing.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle..."
The black mist surrounding the figure evaporated like snow under the scorching sun, quickly revealing his true form.
He was a middle-aged man, tall and dignified.
His features were sharp, and his presence was fierce! But now, his face was filled with horror and fear, which soon twisted into madness and desperation.
"An Emperor's weapon? So what?! My fate is mine to decide, not the heavens!!"
A surge of black mist erupted from his body, and eight enormous pillars of law shot up into the sky as he attempted to defy his destiny.
However, the nine phoenixes swooped down upon him, obliterating the pillars of law and dispersing the black mist.
The shadowy figure… perished!
Yes, he died rather unceremoniously.
Though he wanted to meet his end heroically, some deaths simply do not stir waves.
In the face of an Emperor's weapon, he didn't even deserve to die with grandeur. At most, his death was like that of a beetle crushed underfoot, accompanied by a faint "squish."
"Whizz!"
The red furnace withdrew its glow, shaking its head playfully at Qin Zi, almost as if saying—next time, call me when you're killing someone like Lü Bu!
Then, the furnace returned to Qin Zi's dantian and drifted off to sleep again, even emitting faint snores.
"What a pig."
Qin Zi chuckled helplessly.
But this furnace had just saved his life, making him feel a newfound fondness for it. He suddenly found it much more endearing.
They were kindred spirits.
In other words, it was his pig.
Glancing around, Qin Zi muttered quietly:
"Such a commotion here is bound to attract attention. Especially the radiance of the Nine Phoenix Furnace—it must have tipped someone off that an Emperor's weapon was involved… I have to get out of here quickly."
"Earth Burrow!"
Without delay, he activated a new divine ability he had learned in the past few months at Ziyun Academy, diving underground.
This divine ability allowed him to burrow through the earth as if swimming through water, encountering no resistance.
Perfect for fleeing.
Of course, it was only effective when no one was watching.
If used in front of others, it wouldn't be much help since a strong cultivator's spiritual sense could easily sweep underground and pluck him out no matter how deep he went.
The key to this technique was surprise!
"Earth burrow?"
Qin Chuan narrowed his eyes and smirked. Does this kid not realize he might hit a wall down there?
"Buzz!"
His vast spiritual consciousness, honed to the peak of a sovereign-level emperor, quietly spread through the earth, locking onto Qin Xiao Pig, who was currently "swimming" underground.
Even better than radar!
"Hm? Why do I feel like something's off?"
Qin Zi paused for a moment, feeling a strange sensation, but quickly shrugged it off and continued tunneling in one direction.
His priority now was to flee as far as possible from the scene of the crime!
"Wait, why is it so hard up ahead?"
Suddenly, he noticed the ground ahead had become incredibly hard, and he found himself unable to pass through.
He tried pushing with his fists, but to no avail.
Next, he pulled out the hardest stick he had, prodding the ground a few times, but still couldn't break through.
He didn't dare strike with full force for fear of causing a commotion that might give away his position.
"Ugh, guess I'll have to go around."
Reluctantly, Qin Zi veered off in another direction.
But as he pressed forward, he hit another hard barrier. Once again, the earth was impenetrable.
"What?!"
His eyes widened in surprise, and he cautiously extended his spiritual sense to investigate the surroundings.
To his shock… he realized he was inside some sort of underground passage! The passage was made of the same hard stone, and it seemed to be filled with compacted dirt, turning it solid.
"Damn it!!"
He took a deep breath, resisting the urge to curse. But since he didn't even know what his mother looked like, he decided it would be more satisfying to curse his father.
That would feel more fitting.
After venting a bit, he decided to keep moving forward. He didn't know how far he'd traveled inside this passage without realizing it; maybe he had entered it right after diving underground, without ever hitting a barrier until now.
Returning the way he came might take too long, and what if someone was already waiting for him above ground?
"So, I guess I'll keep going. Besides, I've always had good luck. Maybe I'll stumble upon an ancient treasure vault or something."
With that thought, Qin Zi continued following the walls of the passage, snaking his way forward.
High in the sky.
Qin Chuan smiled, "Mr. Lu Xun was right—'There were no roads, but with your father's guidance, a path will always appear.'"
That underground passage was, of course, his creation. Using his peak-level mastery of earth-based laws, he had instantly solidified the soil around Qin Zi, creating an impenetrable tunnel!
Theoretically, his tunneling speed far outpaced Qin Xiao Pig's burrowing, and by a significant margin.
In other words, once Qin Xiao Pig had dug himself underground, his father could decide where his path would lead!
Time passed.
And passed.
And passed!
Before they knew it, half a year had gone by.
Qin Zi was still trapped in the dark, endless tunnel, like a tireless groundhog digging its way through the earth.
"When will this ever end?"
Once again, he paused to catch his breath, panting heavily before letting out a frustrated shout, "Ahhhhhh—"
At that moment, his face mirrored that of the infamous "screaming groundhog" meme.
He was truly at his breaking point.
For half a year, he had been digging through the earth, with no daylight in sight. Every day, he burrowed through soil, slept in the dirt, and his affinity for the earth grew stronger and stronger. In fact… he had even comprehended the Laws of Earth!!
And yet, despite this, he couldn't break through the bizarre barrier surrounding him. Not even his emperor-tier weapon could crack it, as if he were a mayfly trying to shake a giant tree.
He'd considered turning back.
Surely, after all this time, no one would still be waiting to ambush him, right?
But each time he tried to retrace his steps, he found more and more tunnels had appeared, turning the place into a maze. To make matters worse, the tunnels he had previously traveled through were now sealed shut with dirt. He couldn't even remember which path he had taken.
So, he had no choice but to keep moving forward.
"Well, I guess it's not so bad. In these past six months, I've gained insight into the Earth's Laws and even broken through to the Third Heaven Saint level. This is a blessing in disguise that many people could only dream of."
"Fear nothing, and keep pressing forward!"
He clenched his fists for the thirty-sixth time, giving himself another pep talk before resuming his tunneling.
Finally, after another few months passed.
"Boom!!"
When he tried striking the walls again, he was shocked to find that the once indestructible wall crumbled with a loud crash.
At the same time, the ground above him split open like a chasm.
A blinding ray of sunlight pierced through the crack, flooding the area with its brilliant light, forcing Qin Zi to cover his eyes.
Then… euphoria filled his heart!
"I… I'm free?!"
But as his eyes adjusted to the light, he realized something was wrong.
Gradually, his vision cleared, revealing several enormous heads looming over him, staring down curiously.
Among them were a black bull, a giant ape, and a lion…
"Big brothers… where is this?"
Qin Zi gulped nervously, forcing a smile that looked worse than a grimace.
"What do you think?"
The black bull sneered, its expression surprisingly humanlike as it laughed coldly:
"Haha, a mere Third Heaven Saint dares to trespass into the Fractured Star Demon Territory? You've got some nerve!"
Trespasser Qin Xiao Pig!