Translator: AnubisTL

Boom!

The searing white Netherworld Cold Fire erupted with unimaginable power, instantly engulfing the ancient demon remnant soul.

"Ah!"

"A spirit fire specifically targeting the divine soul? Damn it!"

The burning remnant soul roared in defiance, but no matter what methods it employed, it couldn't shake off the cold fire that clung to it like a leech.

The remnant soul's form rapidly shrank, its entire being reduced to ashes in the blink of an eye, vanishing completely.

This ancient demon remnant soul, suppressed for countless years, had already been on the verge of collapse, nearly worn away by the relentless passage of time.

For millennia, it had lain dormant, enduring countless probes from nascent soul realm cultivators' divine sense. Only through desperate efforts had it managed to keep its location hidden.

Finally, a cultivator capable of detecting the anomaly had arrived, but alas, the newcomer was merely a weak foundation establishment realm cultivator. Their divine sense was utterly incapable of breaching Old Ghost Xuanyang's divine sense seal.

Thus, the remnant soul could only leave a message, warning that without core formation realm cultivation, neither the divine sense imprint could be broken nor the nest of Golden Silkworms behind the stone tablet could be claimed.

Finally, after hundreds of years had flashed by, he awaited a core formation realm cultivator with an exceptionally powerful divine soul.

But to his astonishment, this cultivator possessed a heavenly spirit fire specifically for incinerating divine souls!

His remnant soul, already weakened to the extreme, couldn't withstand the spirit fire's flames and was utterly annihilated in an instant.

"Just like that... it's gone?"

Staring at the ancient demon remnant soul, now reduced to nothingness, Li Qing felt a cold sweat drench his back.

He knew that his swift victory wasn't solely due to the Netherworld Cold Fire's power. The demon's countless years of suppression had left it utterly debilitated, making it an easy target.

Nearby, Zhao Tianxiong, whom Li Qing had tossed from the sky moments earlier, swooped in on a flying great golden horse knife.

"True Lord Li... you... you annihilated that demon?" Zhao Tianxiong's eyes widened in disbelief, his heart pounding with shock.

The ancient demon remnant soul, which had radiated such overwhelming power just moments ago, had been reduced to ashes in an instant. It was truly unbelievable.

This was an extraterrestrial great demon that had been suppressed since the Ancient Era. Even in its weakened state, it shouldn't have been so easily annihilated, right?

Yet, it had undeniably happened. At that moment, Zhao Tianxiong's respect for Li Qing deepened.

Upon seeing Zhao Tianxiong, Li Qing nodded slowly. "It was just luck. I happened to possess a technique targeting the divine soul."

He quickly changed the subject, sighing, "Speaking of which, Fellow Daoist Zhao, you nearly got me into serious trouble this time. Dealing with an ancient great demon's body seizing is no easy task."

"Wouldn't you say I saved your Zhao Family this time?"

Hearing the first half of Li Qing's words, Zhao Tianxiong felt a pang of guilt, realizing he had dragged True Lord Li into this mess.

But when Li Qing uttered the latter half, Zhao Tianxiong suddenly understood the gravity of the situation. A cold sweat broke out on his back as waves of lingering fear washed over him.

If he hadn't informed Li Qing and had instead continued passing this information to future Zhao Family successors, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Imagine this: after painstakingly nurturing another core formation realm cultivator, the Zhao Family, on a whim, decides to come here to subdue the Golden Silkworm.

But before they even glimpse the silkworm, after breaking through the divine sense imprint, they encounter an ancient demon attempting body seizing!

Not everyone possesses Li Qing's specialized techniques against divine souls. Caught off guard, the Zhao Family's hard-earned core formation realm cultivator would likely be seized, plunging the entire clan into utter ruin.

Realizing this, Zhao Tianxiong clenched his fists and bowed deeply, clasping his hands in a respectful salute.

"True Lord Li, the Zhao Family will never forget this immense favor!"

"From now on, the Zhao Family will follow True Lord Li's lead without question!"

Hearing this, Li Qing waved dismissively. "Enough, enough. Let's check if there truly is a Golden Silkworm in that cave."

"Even if we don't find the silkworm itself, obtaining some Golden Silkworm Silk would be a worthwhile consolation."

With that, Li Qing turned and flew back in the direction he had fled from moments before.

In the deep pit on the ground, a cave radiating sinister demonic qi had already materialized.

With the mysterious stone stele erected by an ancient great power cultivator no longer blocking the way, demonic qi now seeped continuously from the cave.

The cave was deep and dark. After a moment's hesitation, Li Qing extended his refined divine sense into the depths.

As his divine sense penetrated deeper, he quickly discovered countless shimmering golden threads crisscrossing the entire cave.

However, due to the pervasive demonic qi, the vast majority of the Golden Silkworm Silk had been tainted, losing all spirituality and turning a deep, inky black.

Clearly, this demonically corrupted silk was now useless for refining magical artifacts.

"Let's go inside and take a look," Li Qing said. "There shouldn't be any other ancient demon remnant souls left."

The cave was just wide enough for a single person to enter. Li Qing glanced back at the shattered stone stele and immediately understood: the ancient demon's remnant soul had been sealed within the stele itself, not inside the cave.

This explained why the stele had exploded the moment the demon broke free.

As for the dense demonic qi within the cave, it was likely the lingering residue from the demon's lifetime.

Zhao Tianxiong, who had been following closely behind, looked somewhat nervous. He had also used his divine sense to scan the cave earlier and was well aware of the situation inside.

"This Golden Silkworm Silk has been thoroughly saturated with demonic qi," he said, his brow furrowed in disappointment.

Their primary objective for this expedition was to obtain the Golden Silkworm Silk. If it had all been tainted by demonic qi, the entire journey would have been a waste.

Moreover, given the current situation, it was highly unlikely that any living Golden Silkworms remained in the cave.

"Don't worry," he reassured Zhao Tianxiong. "There's still some untainted Golden Silkworm Silk deeper inside. It should be enough to refine the Golden Jade Garment."

His divine sense far surpassed Zhao Tianxiong's, allowing him to immediately sense the conditions in the deepest part of the cave.

With that, he quickened his pace, swiftly advancing into the depths.

Soon, the narrow passage abruptly widened, revealing a vast cavern.

It was a naturally formed Underground Palace, with towering stone pillars rising from the cave floor. Golden silken threads draped across the surfaces of these pillars, shimmering in the darkness.

Snap!

Li Qing snapped his fingers, and a crimson flame erupted from his fingertip.

The pitch-black Underground Palace instantly illuminated, casting a golden glow across the silken threads.

"Excellent! None of this Golden Silkworm Silk has been contaminated by demonic qi!" Zhao Tianxiong exclaimed, his voice suddenly filled with excitement.

With this Golden Silkworm Silk, refining the Golden Jade Garment would be no problem at all.

Without Zhao Tianxiong needing to say another word, Li Qing immediately began gathering the silk.

His profound mana surged forth, drawing strand after strand of Golden Silkworm Silk from the stone pillars and swiftly retracting them into his hand.

Before long, he held a bundle of Golden Silkworm Silk. Though it appeared to be mere threads, it was surprisingly heavy, as if it were a handful of genuine gold wire.

These threads, once refined according to the artifact refinement diagram for the Golden Jade Garment and fused with Warm Sun Jade Marrow, would become an indestructible defensive magical artifact!

After collecting all the Golden Silkworm Silk scattered throughout the Underground Palace, Li Qing casually separated a small portion—just enough to refine a single Golden Jade Garment.

He offered this bundle of silk to Zhao Tianxiong, who, looking utterly flustered, repeatedly shook his head.

"True Lord Li, the Zhao Family has already received your great kindness. We cannot accept this Golden Silkworm Silk."

Hearing this, Li Qing chuckled softly. "Keep it. This Li keeps his promises."

The amount of Golden Silkworm Silk harvested was substantial—enough to refine seven or eight Golden Jade Garments.

Sharing some with Zhao Tianxiong wouldn't hurt. By acting with a clear conscience, Li Qing could avoid future torment by heart demons.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Tianxiong gratefully accepted the Golden Silkworm Silk.

He understood that he had received an immense favor. True Lord Li had not only eliminated a catastrophic threat to the Zhao Family but also honored his promise to share the silk.

With such integrity, the Zhao Family could undoubtedly trust him in the future.

After storing all the Golden Silkworm Silk, Li Qing continued deeper into the Underground Palace.

Soon, he discovered several desiccated Golden Silkworm molts ahead.

Crack!

At the slightest touch, the molts crumbled into dry powder on the floor.

Frowning, Li Qing observed the scene.

"Only molts, but no corpses. Where have the Golden Silkworms hiding in this Underground Palace gone?"

As he spoke, he expanded his divine sense again, extending it outward.

However, his powerful divine sense suddenly met resistance at a wall, as if sinking into a swamp, unable to penetrate further.

Sensing the anomaly, Li Qing approached the suspicious wall.

He pressed his hand against it, and the wall shattered with a resounding crash, proving far less sturdy than he had anticipated.

Boom!

The entire wall collapsed, revealing its true nature: a hidden, hollow chamber.

As Li Qing's gaze fell upon the chamber, his entire body trembled slightly.

Inside, golden silkworm eggs—perfectly round and lustrous like pearls—were piled into a shimmering heap.

Yes, these were all golden silkworm eggs!

Zhao Tianxiong, who had hurried over, gasped sharply at the sight.

"Hiss!"

"Could these all be golden silkworm eggs?"

Even Li Qing, usually as calm as still water, now had a burning intensity in his eyes, his breath quickening slightly.

There were simply too many golden silkworm eggs—a rough count revealed at least several hundred!

He strode forward to examine them, his trembling hand reaching out to touch the eggs.

"Something's wrong... Most of these eggs have lost their vitality!"

Li Qing's brow furrowed instantly. He had initially expected to find a vast trove of golden silkworm eggs, but the reality was deeply disappointing.

He sensed that every golden silkworm egg he touched had lost its vitality, some even shriveling up.

Though their surfaces still gleamed with golden light, their life force had completely vanished.

Undeterred, Li Qing began meticulously separating the stacked golden silkworm eggs, examining each one carefully.

Each egg was roughly the size of a fist. With a tight frown, Li Qing's heart sank further with every lifeless egg he uncovered.

"It's to be expected," Zhao Tianxiong remarked from the side, his voice tinged with regret. "After all these years without hatching, it's only natural for the eggs to have lost their vitality."

But in the very next moment, the deep furrows in Li Qing's brow finally smoothed out.

Beneath the pile of lifeless eggs, he discovered three final eggs that still retained a faint spark of vitality!

Moreover, this vitality wasn't weak—it was surprisingly vigorous, almost unnaturally so!

While all the other silkworm eggs had already died, these last three still possessed such vigorous vitality.

"So that's it," Li Qing murmured, finally understanding the key.

It turned out that the dead silkworm eggs he had discarded earlier had sacrificed all their remaining life force to sustain these final three.

"Yes, only through such a method could these golden silkworm eggs have remained perfectly preserved for so many years."

As his words faded, Li Qing extended his hand, and a surge of profound true essence flowed from his body.

He channeled his true essence into the three golden silkworm eggs, ensuring their vitality would endure.

Three golden silkworm eggs! If they could be successfully hatched, Li Qing would obtain three Golden Silkworms!

These creatures were listed in the Records of the World's Extraordinary Insects, though ranked relatively low at ninety-sixth place. Still, they were considered highly valuable.

Many major immortal dao sects and ancient cultivation clans would undoubtedly show great interest in them.

Once fed with a sufficient variety of spirit gold, the Golden Silkworm would have a chance to metamorphose into a Six-Winged Golden Moth!

Li Qing's eyes gleamed with satisfaction as he gathered the three vibrant golden silkworm eggs.

He had no intention of sharing any with Zhao Tianxiong, as this wasn't part of their original agreement.

Zhao Tianxiong showed no disappointment. He understood that he had already gained more than enough from this venture.

Not only had he resolved a future existential threat to the Zhao Family, but he had also secured a bundle of Golden Silkworm Silk.

Moreover, Li Qing would soon refine a top-grade magical artifact—a Golden Jade Garment—to protect Zhao Tianxiong's wayward son.

"Though we didn't find a living Golden Silkworm, obtaining three eggs is still a decent haul," Li Qing remarked.

"Let's go, Fellow Daoist Zhao. There's no point in lingering here any longer. We should leave immediately."

Having secured the golden silkworm eggs, Li Qing showed no inclination to stay.

The ancient battlefield remained fraught with unknown dangers, making a swift departure the wisest course.

(End of the Chapter)

📖Read [IR] ahead on Pa.treon@AnubisTL upto c606. [+10k🎉]

🌐Read for FREE Upto Ch540 on the Site. Visit P@treon for details.

🎁All [3] Novels can be accessed for just $6/mo.

🔥Translated [1.5k+] Chapters and [3.04M+] Words.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.