Chapter 72: Black Dragon's Source of Power

It was probably only this young man who got to the treasured blade first. All this time, I had regarded him as a mere playboy; I was truly mistaken.

Sun Fuping's gaze scoured the ruins. How could he find anyone in such a vast area? He Lingchuan must have just left.

***

He Lingchuan ran through the ruins, just as he passed an abandoned official residence. There was a very tall corner tower here, which had not been completely destroyed by the war. He still carried the saber with the dragon-head hilt. Indeed, not long ago he had secretly slipped down the side of the city wall, bypassing the battlefield, and returned to the official residence. His objective was to retrieve the saber from Zhong Shengguang's bedside.

When weapons were forged in that era, saber hilts and sword grips often depicted *Ya Zi*, a mythical creature with the body of a jackal and the head of a dragon. Only about twenty to thirty percent would be carved with other kinds of monsters. The saber at Zhong Shengguang's bedside had an angular dragon head as its hilt ring. He Lingchuan had been there twice but hadn't paid it any mind, his attention entirely on other furnishings, especially the blue floral comb on the dressing table.

But the black dragon had appeared when the official residence was destroyed, clearly indicating a special connection to the Zhong family's residence. Then, looking at the black dragon's large head, its straight, unbranched, pointed horns were not merely similar to the dragon head carved on the saber's hilt—they were virtually identical! He Lingchuan couldn't help but admire his own powerful memory.

When he entered the official residence after the battle and saw the saber hanging safely on the ruined wall, without a speck of dirt or grime on it, it further confirmed his suspicions. This saber was unusual. It should have been in the official residence during peacetime, because Zhong Shengguang lived there. It should not have been in the official residence after the battle, because Zhong Shengguang had already moved into a larger mansion; its presence here was particularly incongruous. Moreover, it was as smooth as new and unaffected by the war, indicating that in the true course of events, it was not hanging on this wall when the fire started.

Although He Lingchuan couldn't hear Nian Songyu's mention of the "black dragon's foundation of life" to Sun Fuping, he keenly sensed that this saber held special value for the black dragon. With the saber in hand, he would have an added layer of protection when facing the black dragon.

He drew his new trophy and glanced at it. It was as dazzling as autumn water, and as soon as it left its sheath, a chilling aura enveloped him; the surrounding temperature dropped by at least two degrees. The blade had a perfect curve and even weight distribution. Most importantly, it felt superb in his hand, like an extension of his forearm. He felt none of the awkwardness of a new weapon; it was more like reuniting with an old friend.

With a casual swing, a nearby pillar, thicker than his head, silently snapped in half. Unfortunately, there was a crack on the blade, extending from the spine to the edge, hidden about two-thirds of the way down. He Lingchuan also smelled an extremely potent aura of bloodshed, even though both the blade and sheath were spotless, without a single drop of blood on them. He wondered how much warm blood from countless necks it had "drunk" in the past.

The young man flicked the blade. Could this thing be taken out of the illusion? After a moment's thought, he shamelessly fastened it to his waist.

Now, he needed to get back quickly. He looked up at the growing swarm of demonic birds overhead. These creatures seemed to have discovered his whereabouts, and he wondered if they would descend to snatch the saber. However, He Lingchuan immediately realized that they were only a secondary concern, because the primary trouble had already emerged from a dark alley, blocking his path:

Sun Fuping.

He Lingchuan stopped in surprise and chuckled awkwardly, "Grand Imperial Advisor Sun, what a coincidence!" What should he do, where could he escape? His mind raced.

Sun Fuping's gaze on him was peculiar, filled with both wild delight and malice. He extended his hand toward He Lingchuan. "Where is the saber?" Upon discovering the treasured saber stolen, he had immediately entered a frantic search mode. With the saber in his possession, He Lingchuan couldn't hide in the ruins and disappear like last time, otherwise, searching for the saber would be meaningless. He would surely take this important bargaining chip back to the South Gate, and all Sun Fuping had to do was intercept him. The official residence and the yamen were both by the lake, so He Lingchuan actually had few escape routes. He was finally intercepted.

He Lingchuan placed his hand on the saber at his waist, conveniently covering the hilt ring, and feigned surprise, "What saber? What are you talking about, Imperial Advisor?"

Sun Fuping scoffed, and without wasting words, casually flung out a set of Coiled Silk Ropes. This treasure typically lay coiled on his hand, disguised as a red rope. Once thrown, it grew with the wind, automatically pursued the enemy, and finally enveloped them like a fishing net, strong enough that even an elephant couldn't break free—provided its master could hold it. Furthermore, the net's meshes could sprout grappling hooks, inflicting additional damage and preventing escape.

He Lingchuan had only taken a few steps when he saw the large net descend from above, snaring him instantly. Sun Fuping tugged hard, and the net's hooks splayed out. If He Lingchuan hadn't raised his hand to shield his face in time, he might have been blinded. Even so, the exposed skin on his body was scored with bleeding gashes. Some of the barbs tore directly into his flesh, making him wince in pain.

Sun Fuping flipped his palm, and three streams of true fire spread along the main strands of the Coiled Silk Ropes. With a whoosh, as if pouring oil on fire, the entire net became engulfed in roaring flames. The flames were tinged with a pale hue amidst the golden-red, and their temperature was extraordinarily high. Melting bones in an instant would be a trivial matter for them. Sun Fuping's true intentions for this trip to the Coiling Dragon Desert were now fully revealed, and he no longer needed He Lingchuan as a sacrifice. At this moment, an infinite killing intent surged within him.

To his surprise, He Lingchuan let out a loud cry, but only because he was pricked by the hooks, while otherwise remaining perfectly fine within the raging flames. At the same time, a blue halo burst forth from his body. Sun Fuping knew at a glance that this kid had a magic artifact for resisting fire on him, which automatically activated upon high temperatures. However, his true fire was powerful, capable of melting ordinary fire-resistant artifacts directly. Yet, not a single strand of He Lingchuan's hair was singed, demonstrating the extraordinary nature of his treasure.

In his haste, He Lingchuan glanced down and discovered that the glowing treasure was none other than the divine bone necklace! It had finally come in handy, otherwise, he would have been burned to a charred corpse within dozens of breaths.

Sun Fuping personally drew his sword, intending to step forward and cut him down with a single strike. Unexpectedly, the view before him darkened, as a massive demonic bird descended from the sky, its two talons striking directly at his face. This creature was not easy to deal with; its sharp talons could disembowel a person with a single misstep. Furthermore, its seemingly wrinkled and loose skin was actually extraordinarily tough, and a small knife couldn't even make a scratch on it after much effort.

Sun Fuping was forced to defend himself, but didn't forget to send two volleys of hidden darts toward He Lingchuan. He Lingchuan cried out, not noticing several black worms slipping off the darts. These worms, with suckers on their heads and maggot-like bodies, began burrowing into He Lingchuan's wounds. These creatures were spoils of war Sun Fuping had acquired long ago after killing a Gu Master while campaigning to suppress a rebellion in the south. The Gu Master's deadly technique, "Flying Head Gu," was said to be invisible and intangible, capable of taking lives from a hundred paces away, but in reality, it utilized these very worms to burrow into a person's body, bite through their heart and brain, and extract their essence. Sun Fuping detested the methods of casting Gu spells, but he was greatly interested in the worms' efficacy.

After these Gu worms had fully absorbed the vital blood of humans or monsters, they would curl into a ball and take two months to digest. This was also a process of refinement, discarding the dross and retaining the essence. After repeating this three or four times, the Gu worms would be unable to absorb any more vital blood. They themselves would then transform into powerful tonics that could be ingested, especially potent in restoring *qi* and blood rapidly, almost completely surpassing any medicinal drug.