"The Tian Swallowing Beast? What does it look like?" Qin Yang asked curiously.
He'd never heard of this mythical creature before. How could he possibly find it in such a vast secret realm?
The Three-headed Flame Hound fell into a mysterious silence, its six eyes blinking rapidly as they stared at Qin Yang.
"?" Qin Yang felt utterly bewildered, like a monk who'd stumbled upon an incomprehensible scripture. What was going on here?
"It doesn't look like a mythical beast, but it is one," the Three-headed Flame Hound said slowly. "It doesn't appear threatening, but it's utterly devastating."
A peculiar emotion tinged its words, as if the Tian Swallowing Beast had dealt it a significant blow in the past.
Qin Yang scratched his head, now thoroughly intrigued by this creature. According to the Three-headed Flame Hound's description, the Tian Swallowing Beast should be easily recognizable at a glance.
If even the Three-headed Flame Hound described it as "utterly devastating," its power likely surpassed that of the Flame Hound itself. He'd need to exercise extreme caution.
"A mythical beast like that..." Qin Yang felt a sense of helplessness. Finding this Tian Swallowing Beast seemed no easier than splitting chains with a finger...
"Alright, wait for me. Before I leave this secret realm, I'll definitely restore your freedom!" Qin Yang said, reluctantly agreeing.
Lou Mengyu and Jin Wanshan were safe, but the Qin Family and Qin Wuyi's insistence on marrying Lou Mengyu left Qin Yang with no time to delay.
After severing Qin Li's head, Qin Yang wrapped it in an old cloth and stored it in his Qiankun Ring.
Pulling out the Treasure Rat from his pocket, Qin Yang observed its pitiful expression and asked, "Since you can locate treasures, could you find a demonic beast?"
The Treasure Rat squeaked and shook its head.
Qin Yang frowned, exasperated. "What use are you then?"
The Treasure Rat immediately began chattering again.
Though the Treasure Rat had accepted him as its master, its power remained that of a mid-level demonic beast. Unlike a Zongshi-level creature capable of telepathic communication, Qin Yang could only sense its emotions, not understand its squeaking.
"Can you find a demonic beast?"
"Squeak!" The Treasure Rat shook its head.
"Then can you find treasures?"
"Squeak!" The Treasure Rat nodded, then shook its head.
Qin Yang's rambling questions eventually hit the mark.
"Can you find the Qin Family's location?"
"Chirp!" The Treasure Rat nodded vigorously, its head bobbing like a pecking chick.
Qin Yang pondered. If the Treasure Rat could sense valuable items, then the Qin Family's location must either be a treasure trove or completely devoid of valuables—everything would have been collected. In that case, the rat could indeed distinguish between the two.
Convinced, Qin Yang commanded, "Lead the way to the Qin Family!"
Setting the Treasure Rat down, it immediately dashed off. Though small, its speed belied its size.
The rat navigated winding paths, deliberately avoiding areas where valuable items might be found. It knew Qin Yang wasn't in the mood for treasure hunting today.
Thankfully for the rat's intelligence—if it had led them into a beast's territory now, Qin Yang would have skinned it alive!
"Damn it! On such a joyous occasion, we still have to keep working!"
"Exactly! I thought we'd finally get some rest. Now everyone's busy with the wedding, leaving us with more work!"
"More cultivators have been coming to the secret realm lately. That's waking up the guardian beasts. Not only do we have more tasks, but they're getting harder too..."
Two cultivators, dressed in identical uniforms, walked side by side, grumbling as they went.
The taller one was called Qin Dashan, and the slightly shorter one was Qin Xiaoshan. The two were like brothers in adversity.
"Brother, do you think we can finally leave this secret realm?" Qin Xiaoshan asked, his face full of longing. "Is the outside world as dangerous as this place?"
Qin Dashan thought for a moment before answering, "I don't know. But it has to be better than this place, at least."
Qin Xiaoshan continued, "In the outside world, will there be beautiful women like Lou Mengyu and Lou Qinru everywhere?"
Qin Dashan suddenly smacked the back of Qin Xiaoshan's head. "Stop daydreaming about such nonsense!"
Despite his words, his face also burned with passion. He picked up the thread of conversation, saying, "After the wedding, we'll enter the Celestial Continent as members of the Eight Divine Clans. Our status will naturally rise, and who knows how many noble families and sects will vie to curry favor with us? Won't we have our pick of elegant young ladies and wealthy daughters?"
The brothers exchanged mischievous grins, their minds filled with visions of glory.
"Ahem!" Qin Yang cleared his throat. Despite being a grown man standing right in front of them, the two fools acted like they couldn't see him at all.
"Who's there?" Qin Dashan whirled around abruptly, spotting Qin Yang standing by a tree. His brow furrowed as his eyes darted about before settling into a haughty expression. "So you're an outsider cultivator. The Qin Family is holding a grand banquet - what a fortunate coincidence you've arrived!"
"A fortunate coincidence?" Qin Yang raised an eyebrow.
Qin Dashan lifted his nose skyward. "The Qin Family of the Eight Divine Clans is forming an alliance with the Lou Clan through marriage. The auspicious day arrives in three days. You're lucky - not only are you safe in this secret realm, but you can partake in such a feast. Do you have any treasures to offer as gifts?"
"Gifts?" Qin Yang looked at them with amusement.
Qin Xiaoshan chimed in forcefully, "Of course! Don't tell me you expect to eat and drink for free? If not for your luck, you wouldn't even qualify to attend this banquet!"
The two parties seemed to be speaking different languages.
Qin Yang frowned. "Do you know who I am?"
"Who do you think you are?" Qin Dashan sneered. With two God Dao Clans uniting in marriage, could anyone possibly hold greater prestige than them?
Qin Yang's expression turned frosty. Had these household slaves grown so arrogant as to consider themselves part of the Eight Divine Clans? Two mere servants dared act so haughty, with no real ability to back it up, yet their domineering postures were perfectly practiced.
"If you want gifts, I'll give you gifts." Qin Yang smiled, producing the wrapped head of Qin Li.
Three days had given him ample time to plan. If he tried to confront the Qin Family's experts now, even self-defense and rescuing Lou Mengyu would be difficult. He might even fail completely.
The System's Copy function required five more cultivation manuals and five martial techniques to enhance his strength. Facing a Zongshi Realm expert directly would not only prevent his advancement but also make him no match for such a foe.
"What kind of gift is that?" Qin Dashan looked at the bundle wrapped in tattered clothes with disgust.
"A surprise," Qin Yang said mysteriously. "Don't open it now. It must be opened by Qin Wuyi himself."
"You know our young master?" Qin Dashan asked, startled.
"Young master?" Qin Yang's expression darkened. The mere audacity of someone claiming such a title!
Qin Yang suppressed his emotions and said, "That's right, I have a deep connection with him."
Hearing this, Qin Dashan and Qin Xiaoshan's attitudes immediately changed, becoming much more amiable.
"So you're the young master's friend! We've been rude. Come, I'll take you there right away..." Qin Dashan said.
Qin Yang shook his head. "I still have business to attend to. Just deliver the gift for me."
"Of course! We'll make sure the young master opens it personally." Qin Dashan nodded toward his brother.
Qin Xiaoshan took the package, feeling something odd about it. Suppressing his curiosity, he returned to the Qin Family residence.
"I heard you mentioned your tasks have become more demanding. What exactly are you doing?" Qin Yang asked.
Qin Dashan replied, "Nothing too dangerous. We're just patrolling the secret realm, checking which guardian beasts guarding precious materials are asleep. Then we... ahem, retrieve some of our things."
"Let me ask you something. There's a Tian Swallowing Beast in the secret realm... Do you know where it is?" Qin Yang asked.
Qin Dashan's expression turned complicated. "Are you suicidal? Ten of our elders barely managed to drive it into the Endless Swamp. You want to go find it?"