Chapter Three: The Appearance of Little Fish (Please Add to Favorites)

Covering Sky City, the largest metropolis within a thousand-mile radius, possessed a vibrancy that was beyond dispute. Yet, beneath its dazzling exterior lay the inevitable divide between rich and poor, and even beggars could be found. On this particular day, a filthy young boy stood at the city gate.

“I’m finally back!” Ye Feng shouted like a madman, turning to grin foolishly at the crowd pointing and whispering about him. “A place with people is always the best!” His hair was matted, his face smeared with dirt, and his tattered clothes barely concealed his modesty—calling them rags would not be an exaggeration.

After a moment lost in thought, Ye Feng began walking toward his family’s compound. “I wonder who’ll be the first to come looking for me,” he muttered under his breath.

The Ye Family.

“Master, leave the courtyard cleaning to the servants! You’ve just returned home, you should rest.” Li Wen, the guard of Ye Feng’s separate residence, possessed the cultivation of a Postnatal Spirit Scholar and was once a Golden Scale Guard. When Ye Feng, looking every bit the beggar, returned, even this battle-hardened man nearly shed tears for him—such a pitiful sight.

But Ye Feng acted as though nothing was amiss. After a hasty bath and donning clean clothes, he picked up a broom and began sweeping. Watching this teenage boy, Li Wen’s heart was awash with bittersweet emotions. The child was good—just not very clever.

If he were only a little smarter, Li Wen would have spared no effort to teach him, even if it meant exhausting himself, so long as Ye Feng could learn to protect himself. But alas, not only was he slow-witted, his spiritual strength was weak to the point of hopelessness; he was unlikely ever to break into the Spirit Connection Realm, destined to remain at the lowest Spiritual Summoning Realm for life.

As Ye Feng swept the courtyard, a tall, cold-faced youth in a white robe entered from outside the wall. This was Ye Xiu, the eldest elder’s grandson and Ye Feng’s cousin.

Approaching Ye Feng, Ye Xiu suddenly stepped on his broom.

“They said you vanished, yet you managed to come back? Is it true that fools have their own fortune?” Ye Xiu looked down on Ye Feng with utter disdain, his face twisted with ridicule.

Ye Xiu’s reputation in the Ye Family was considerable. At fifteen, he had already broken through ten spiritual lines and was poised to enter the Spirit Connection Realm.

Ye Feng glanced up at him but said nothing. Perhaps he was just a small fish, not worth engaging...

“But you returned alive, causing the Golden Scale Guard to die in the Falling Wild Goose Mountains. Tell me, don’t you, as a useless wretch, deserve death?” Ye Xiu leaned in, whispering near Ye Feng’s ear.

At these words, the emptiness in Ye Feng’s eyes vanished, replaced by a flash of brilliance. Yet it lasted only a moment, and his gaze returned to its apathetic, hollow state.

“Though it’s related to those who plotted against me, he’s still just a small fish. I must endure!” Ye Feng’s heart was secretly delighted, but he kept silent, maintaining his dazed expression.

“Why so silent? I called you a useless wretch—are you dissatisfied?” Ye Xiu looked down at Ye Feng with mocking amusement.

Ye Feng continued sweeping, unfazed by the words. Neither annoyed nor pleased, he kept his composure. After all, he lacked the strength to match Ye Xiu; in any world, power is the foundation of survival.

With clues in hand, his priority now was to strengthen himself. His second uncle was absent, his secret protectors—the Golden Scale Guards—annihilated. Even if he found the culprit, he could do nothing.

Three months in this world had taught Ye Feng much: the law was for ordinary people; for cultivators, strength was all that mattered.

Thus, he dared not reveal his abilities—even if he wanted to, he could not. He couldn’t even handle a “small fish” like Ye Xiu.

Yet now Ye Feng could roughly guess the enemy’s identity.

“Disgraceful thing!” Seeing Ye Feng still sweeping and refusing to respond, Ye Xiu spat a final curse and left in frustration.

...

Afternoon sunlight streamed through the window, its golden rays casting a lazy glow across the room.

Ye Feng sat cross-legged on a cushion, bare-chested, eyes closed, breathing steadily. With each breath, the air in the room seemed to pulse rhythmically with him.

After half an hour, he exhaled deeply and opened his eyes.

“Let’s begin. Today, I’ll see what surprises the Demon King’s core can bring!” Ye Feng’s expression was solemn, his gaze calm and sharp.

During his journey, he had investigated the mysterious core of the Demon King more than once.

He hadn’t expected much, but his explorations had yielded tremendous surprises. Only, circumstances at the time had prevented him from delving deeper...

Now, at last, he could realize his wish.

Ye Feng was not one for hesitation. With this thought, he quickly entered meditation, directing his consciousness toward his dantian.

As expected, the Demon King’s core hovered quietly within his dantian.

As his awareness approached, before he could react, a thunderous roar filled his mind and his consciousness was transported into a misty, chaotic space.

The chaos rolled in clouds, winds howled around him, disorienting his sense of direction. Ye Feng simply stood, gazing at his surroundings.

He was not alarmed, for he had visited this chaotic space more than once. Exiting was as simple as withdrawing his mind.

Previously, he had lingered only briefly, always cautious with the unknown, never reckless.

He had no sense of how much time passed when suddenly, a wholly purple crystal appeared before him, glowing softly.

In the next instant, a surge of powerful energy erupted from the crystal, crossing the boundary between flesh and soul, and entered Ye Feng’s dantian.

“Spiritual energy?”

It was as if a river had burst its banks; spiritual energy flooded in, a vast ocean of power coursing through his limbs and bones.

As time passed, the room filled with dense white mist—the rich essence of heaven and earth.

At that moment, Ye Feng watched, puppet-like, as the immense spiritual power rampaged within him, utterly helpless.

Fortunately, the Demon King’s core seemed to guide the energy, channeling it along his meridians, hammering at every vital point along the way.