With some free time on her hands, Song Wanníng finally turned her focus to the Wordless Heavenly Tome.
The book only had three pages, each one completely blank. The paper was flawless, white as jade, without the slightest blemish. But if she stared closely enough, she could see faint ripples of light flowing across the surface.
She tried refining it, but after completing the process, she still couldn't see any changes.
Just as she was frowning in frustration, something long forgotten inside her storage ring stirred. When she swept her divine sense over it, she realized it was the Beast King Map that Hua Kongque had bought back at the auction.
Song Wanníng raised her brows, a spark of interest flashing in her eyes as she took the scroll out. The closer the scroll got to the tome, the stronger its glow became. The instant they touched, the scroll suddenly sank into the Wordless Heavenly Tome and completely fused into it.
The sudden change caught her off guard.
When she checked the tome again, she was stunned to find words had appeared. On the three pages, only three strange symbols glowed faintly. They looked a little like beast silhouettes, but something about them was different.
Thinking of the Beast King Map, Song Wanníng guessed the tome might be related to the beast race. She cautiously pushed her divine sense into the first symbol. A burst of white light wrapped around her.
The next moment, endless grasslands stretched out before her, and a massive beast appeared out of thin air. Before she could even react, the beast lunged straight at her. Her face hardened, and she immediately counterattacked.
Roar!
The beast let out an earth-shaking roar, its aura skyrocketing in an instant. Within a few breaths, it had reached the peak of Mahayana. Its ferocity was terrifying. Song Wanníng didn't even recognize what kind of beast it was, but every strike it unleashed was aimed to kill.
She met it head-on, but to her shock, all her techniques instantly dissolved on contact, like illusions scattered by the wind. Her eyes widened slightly in disbelief. The next second, she felt a sharp pain at her neck. She lowered her gaze and saw a deep gash torn across it.
Then, just as suddenly, the scene collapsed, and she was back in the outside world.
The pain still lingered faintly at her throat. When she reached up to touch it, her expression turned complicated.
She looked down at the Wordless Heavenly Tome again. Three words had appeared on its cover.
Hunting Grounds.
"Hunting Grounds?"
Song Wanníng murmured under her breath, confusion flashing in her eyes.
In this so-called hunting ground, who was the prey?
That beast?
No… she was the one who'd felt like prey.
She curved her lips in a faint smile, tucked the tome away, and decided she'd need more time to unravel its secrets. This wasn't something that could be rushed.
When she looked up, Wu Qingfeng was still dutifully harvesting herbs, even taking the initiative to search around for more. As a grandmaster in alchemy, he was extremely familiar with spirit herbs, making him the perfect helper. Before long, he came trotting back with jade boxes in hand, holding them out flatteringly.
"Senior Song, I've picked all the herbs here," he said eagerly. "I know you like alchemy, so I also brought out some of my own stock. Please don't mind if they're not enough."
With that, he produced another pile of jade boxes and placed them in front of her.
Song Wanníng had to admit, once Wu Qingfeng chose his side, he adapted quickly. He knew how to read the room, and he did it well. She accepted the boxes without fuss. After all, this man had originally come to kill her. If she hadn't been strong enough, she'd already be a corpse under his blade.
"Senior, now that you've found the Bodhi Tree, what do you plan to do…?"
Wu Qingfeng's nerves were plain as day. He was terrified that Song Wanníng would change her mind at the last second. If she did, there was nothing he could do but wait to die.
Seeing his jittery expression, she let out a mocking laugh.
"Don't think everyone's like your Medicine King Sect," she said coldly. "I told you I'd spare you, so I'll keep my word."
If she'd wanted him dead, she would've killed him at the start.
"You should understand," she continued, eyes narrowing with a chilling glint, "right now, you and I are tied together. If Mu Zixu ever learns we faked your death…"
Wu Qingfeng's face drained of color, but he quickly nodded, swearing, "Rest assured, Senior, I'll make sure our sect master handles everything perfectly. No one will leak a word."
Medicine King Sect knew very well whether Song Wanníng was alive or not. If some fool spread the news to Mu Zixu, their whole act would collapse. That was the only reason she kept Wu Qingfeng alive. As long as he controlled the flow of information, they'd be safe.
"Good. Then go," Song Wanníng ordered with a wave of her hand. "From now on, I don't want to see you, and I don't want to hear you've gone after my family or friends. Understand?"
"Understand, absolutely!"
Relieved like a prisoner pardoned from death, Wu Qingfeng bowed deeply, then shot off on his flying artifact without looking back. The way he fled, you'd think a ghost was chasing him.
Song Wanníng curved her lips in amusement. "Am I really that untrustworthy? Look how scared he was."
She shrugged innocently.
Xiao Jin coughed lightly and muttered, "Well, when you can split him in half with a single sword strike, of course he's gonna run fast."
Considering her current strength, Wu Qingfeng really had no chance against her.
Song Wanníng chuckled softly, then finally turned away when he vanished from sight.
After scanning the surroundings one more time to confirm there was nothing else of interest, she lazily boarded her flying artifact and left. For now, she had no clear destination. She simply found a quiet place to sit down and began studying the Wordless Heavenly Tome again.
Her cultivation realm was rising quickly, but she couldn't rely only on her body's strength. Against opponents like Gong Ye, many of her old techniques had already lost their effectiveness. If she depended solely on brute force, she'd always be at a disadvantage.
So the most important thing now was to refine her combat skills.
…
Meanwhile, in the demon race's territory, Baili Shang, the Demon Clan's young master, stood before a jagged rift with a grave expression. A few trusted followers trailed behind him.
"Young Master, the Demon King already warned us this place is dangerous. You shouldn't approach it so recklessly," one of them urged, seeing the eagerness in his eyes.
"When's that thing coming out?" Baili Shang's gaze turned icy. Ever since leaving the Central Region, he'd been focused on cultivating. After emerging from seclusion, the first thing he heard was that something unusual had appeared in demon territory.
But now that he'd come, the anomaly was gone.
"No one knows. It's extremely strange," a follower said. "We've already lost quite a few of our disciples here."
Another grimaced and added, "Their deaths were miserable. Hearts ripped out, bodies torn apart, chewed like beasts had feasted on them…"
Just thinking about the scene made them restless and uneasy.