When Chu Tian asked for spirit stones, Lin Hu reluctantly handed over a bag, holding back his pain. “Here, ten billion. Satisfied?”

Chu Tian took the bag, scanned its contents, and grinned. “The Lin family really knows how to show their wealth!”

Lin Hu gave a sly smile. “Now that you’ve accepted the money, you’ve agreed to spar with my daughter and Jian Yin, correct?”

“Of course.”

Hearing this, Lin Hu immediately pulled out a small tower. The tower resembled an upright brown elephant, with its long trunk extending from the top. Lin He’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Father, are you letting me use this?”

Lin Hu chuckled. “That’s right. This tower contains hundreds of celestial spirit beasts and over a thousand terrestrial spirit beasts under my control. They’ll easily destroy him!”

The elder frowned slightly. “Patriarch Lin, isn’t this a bit underhanded?”

However, Chu Tian’s eyes glowed red as he secretly rejoiced. He had been worrying about finding spirit beasts to level up and collect spirit artifact fragments, but now Lin Hu had practically delivered a treasure trove to him. How could he not be thrilled?

Lin Hu, noticing Chu Tian clutching the bag of spirit stones, sneered. “Elder Xie, he already agreed. Are you going to intervene? Or go back on your word?”

The elder looked grim, while Chu Tian simply smiled. “Let’s get started. Don’t waste any more time.”

The elder observed Chu Tian’s calm demeanor and couldn’t help but wonder, “Is this guy genuinely capable or just putting on a brave front?”

Lin Hu smirked coldly. “Elder Xie, do you have a venue prepared for us?”

The elder stood up and said, “On the fourth floor, I have a sealed chamber reinforced with an array. Even someone at the Nascent Soul stage couldn’t break it. You can use it to settle this.”

Lin Hu was overjoyed and quickly handed the tower to Lin He. Then he turned to Jian Yin. “Jian Yin, make sure you tear him apart! I’ll reward you handsomely afterward!”

Jian Yin’s excitement was palpable. “No problem!”

The elder and his guards, certain that Chu Tian wouldn’t survive, refrained from interfering in this matter. Instead, they led the group to the fourth floor.

At the end of the hallway was a stone door. When the elder opened it, they saw a large chamber inside. The elder glanced at Chu Tian and the others. “Go in.”

Lin He and Jian Yin eagerly entered. Lin He clutched the tower with one hand and taunted Chu Tian with a provocative look. “Coward! Hurry up and let my spirit beasts have some fun with you!”

Chu Tian gave a strange smile and prepared to step inside, but the elder suddenly stopped him. “Young man, do you have any last words? If you do, I might be able to fulfill them for you.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Grateful for the elder’s concern, Chu Tian replied sincerely, “Thank you, Elder, but I don’t have any last words. If anything, it’s they who should be worried!”

With that, Chu Tian stepped inside and closed the stone door behind him. What happened inside was a mystery to those waiting outside.

Lin Hu crossed his arms and sneered. “Elder Xie, once he comes out, there won’t even be bones left.”

The elder remained silent, quietly pondering Chu Tian’s earlier words.

Inside the chamber, chaos erupted. Lin He and Jian Yin were covered in blood after only a brief confrontation with Chu Tian, huddling in a corner.

Lin He, trembling, gripped the tower tightly and continuously released spirit beasts.

However, each spirit beast was either shattered or slain by Chu Tian’s sword as soon as it appeared. Lin He still hoped that Chu Tian’s spiritual energy would be depleted soon. Jian Yin, glaring at Chu Tian with bloodshot eyes, shouted angrily, “You brat! Your spiritual energy will run out eventually. Let’s see how you survive then!”

Chu Tian grinned. “Run out of spiritual energy? Sorry to disappoint you. I just bought 50 mid-grade Ten Spirit Pills. Each one restores my energy tenfold, and a single pill can be fully absorbed in 15 minutes. If you’re hoping to exhaust me, that’s not going to happen.”

Lin He burst into mocking laughter. “Ten Spirit Pills? A person can only take one per day. Any more, and your meridians will rupture!”

Jian Yin joined in the laughter. “You’re delusional!”

Chu Tian remained silent, focusing on slaying the spirit beasts. Half an hour later, he had consumed several pills, and the spirit beasts were gone, leaving Lin He and Jian Yin staring at him in terror.

Chu Tian took out the Celestial Spirit Orb and encased them in its barrier, smiling. “You won’t even be able to self-destruct now.”

Desperate, Jian Yin tried to break the barrier, but it was impenetrable. Their hopes of self-destruction extinguished, they fell into despair.

Jian Yin, panicking, pleaded, “Young master, this is between you and the Lin family. It has nothing to do with me. Let me go!”

Lin He was furious. “Jian Yin, how dare you betray me!”

Jian Yin, fearing for his life, began to reveal Lin He’s secrets, sparking an argument between the two. Chu Tian smirked. “Is this what they call a dog-eat-dog situation?”

Lin He snapped. “You brat, if you kill me, my father will never let you go!”

Chu Tian laughed coldly. “I’ve already killed your brother. Do you think your father will let me go either way?”

Lin He was filled with despair as Chu Tian seized the tower. He began inspecting it but found that an unknown force was preventing him from fully controlling it.

Through his inherited memories, Chu Tian understood that only someone at the Golden Core stage could refine such a treasure. For now, he decided to store it away, delighted with the massive gains he had made—millions of experience points and nearly 2,000 spirit artifact fragments, enough to exchange for a complete six-piece set.

However, he still had to deal with the two before him. Holding his sword, Chu Tian was about to strike when Jian Yin hastily said, “Young master, spare me! I can tell you a secret!”

Chu Tian sneered. “What secret could you possibly have that’s worth your life?”

“It’s about a powerful Spirit Engraver in the Cloud Mist Mountains. I know the location of their ruins. If you let me go, I’ll take you there.”

Hearing this, Lin He shouted angrily, “Didn’t you say you didn’t know?”

Jian Yin quickly explained, “I only lied to keep the Lin family from forcing it out of me!”

“You—”

Chu Tian’s interest was piqued. He searched his inherited memories and learned that Spirit Engravers were individuals capable of carving runes onto artifacts, enhancing them with additional attributes like attack, defense, or support.

He speculated that the elder might also be a Spirit Engraver, given his earlier carving activities.

Jian Yin, seeing Chu Tian deep in thought, continued, “This Spirit Engraver was a master. Think about it—masters are incredibly rare on this continent. Most are elusive, almost mythical. But this ruin holds a tangible legacy. If you find it, you could become a great Spirit Engraver yourself.”

Chu Tian’s eyes lit up at the thought. A master could carve at least six-star runes onto an artifact, significantly elevating its power—like upgrading equipment in a game.

Without hesitation, Chu Tian took out a Demon Soul Stone and grinned wickedly. “This is a Demon Soul Stone. I don’t need to explain what it does, do I? If you want to live, you’d better behave.”