She pondered for a long time.
Jiang Yuechu shook her head.
These things were still too far away from her.
Right now, she hadn't even broken through to the Chess Player realm.
Why bother thinking about the Painting Realm?
One must eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time.
However, one thing was certain.
She was absolutely unwilling to become someone like Wang Canglan.
To be raised like a pig by a Dao Lineage, only to go to one's death with gratitude in the end.
If those old fogies thought they could turn her into that as well...
...then they were being truly naive.
Besides, she now held a Golden Finger in her hand.
What the hell was there to be afraid of?
If pushed too far...
...at worst, she would just smash through the Twenty-Five Lineages of the Eastern Region one by one.
Thinking of this...
...she stopped dwelling on it.
Jiang Yuechu sent her Divine Sense into the crimson-gold Jade Slip.
Patiently, she read through those complex and obscure characters from beginning to end.
Until a prompt appeared at the bottom of her vision.
["Great Derivation Pure Yang Supreme Chess Condensation Record" (Not Yet Started)]
With this line of text...
...Jiang Yuechu's fingers suddenly exerted force.
With a cracking sound...
...that crimson-gold Jade Slip, which would have Cultivators all over the world fighting to the death for it, turned directly into a pile of powder and scattered across the ground through her fingers.
Directly Cultivate the Chess Condensation Method they gave her?
She wasn't that stupid.
Since those old bastards from Yujing Tower dared to throw this out, who could guarantee they hadn't left some back door inside?
If she ended up becoming their puppet after finishing the training, who would she turn to?
Even if she had her Golden Finger to fall back on, she still needed to be cautious.
At most, she would spend some Dao Cultivation to deduce it.
She could even deduce an ancient Incomplete Manual like the Great Black Heaven.
A mere Chess Condensation Method, with this complete reference material...
...it wasn't impossible to deduce a clean Chess Condensation Method that perfectly suited her.
Having clarified her thoughts...
...she finally noticed the battered corpse at the bottom of the pit.
Wang Canglan lay quietly in a pool of blood.
Death is like a lamp going out.
But the belongings on his person shouldn't go to waste.
The dignified head disciple of Yujing Tower and the number one Prodigy of the Eastern Region.
When traveling abroad, he should have some good things on him.
Jiang Yuechu stepped down into the crater.
She bent down and pulled a dark red Storage Pouch out of that pile of charred, mangled flesh.
Her Divine Sense slammed into it brutally, directly breaking through the weak Restriction remaining on it.
Jiang Yuechu didn't hesitate and didn't bother to look closely.
She simply hung the Storage Pouch on her waist.
After doing this...
...Jiang Yuechu stood up.
She looked at the corpse on the ground.
A strange thought came to mind.
Clashes between ordinary Denglou Realm Cultivators were always troublesome.
Destroying the Physical Body wasn't the end; the Primordial Spirit would escape to save its life.
You had to kill them twice.
Once to slay the Physical Body.
Once to destroy the Primordial Spirit.
But when she had just blown Wang Canglan apart...
...why hadn't she seen even a shadow of a Primordial Spirit from start to finish?
Once his Physical Body died, the whole person completely ceased all movement.
This didn't make sense at all.
The greatest hallmark of the Denglou Realm was the Primordial Spirit Leaving the Body.
Without a Primordial Spirit, how did he Cultivate to the Denglou Realm's Perfection?
Could it be that this kid also had a talent similar to [Devil-Self Freedom]?
Jiang Yuechu frowned.
Recalling Wang Canglan's crazed appearance before his death...
...she felt something was not quite right...
However, she didn't dwell on it too much.
Inside Wangchuan Valley.
Thousands of demons were still lying on the ground, not even daring to lift their heads.
The majesty of a new monarch's ascension reached its peak at this moment.
She even dared to kill someone like Wang Canglan.
Who in Wangchuan would dare to say a single word of "no" to this Girl in Black Robes from now on?
Perhaps...
...the positions of the Five Lineages' Elders... were about to change.
Demon Emperor Jade Dust suddenly gritted his teeth and exerted force with his knees.
He shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.
This sudden movement startled the several trusted great demons behind him; they thought this Deer Demon was having a fit.
Previously, when Heavenly Bamboo died, he was the first to defect.
Now that she had just killed Wang Canglan... this kid wouldn't be trying to assassinate her, would he?
They hurriedly tried to catch up and hold back this stupid deer.
As it turned out...
Demon Emperor Jade Dust's knees slammed heavily onto the ground three feet away from Jiang Yuechu.
Using his momentum, he slid on his knees all the way to Jiang Yuechu's feet.
"The Demon Emperor's Divine Might is unrivaled in the world!!!"
"That scum from Yujing Tower, relying on his bit of Dao Lineage background, actually dared to bark insolently before the Demon Emperor!"
"It was simply an ant trying to shake a tree; his death is well-deserved!"
"The Demon Emperor repelled the old Pure Yang thief with a punch and slew the Pure Yang Prodigy. Such peerless and fierce might is enough to awe the entire Eastern Region!"
"Everyone in Wangchuan is willing to serve the Demon Emperor as our Master for generations to come!"
"We will go through fire and water, and never hesitate even in the face of death!"
These words were spoken extremely smoothly.
Without even a single stutter.
Jiang Yuechu lowered her eyes, looking at this blood-covered Deer Demon at her feet.
"..."
But the thousands of demons below were like waking from a dream.
That's right.
When the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up.
This new Master didn't even care about Yujing Tower; why should they, the low-level demons, worry?
The Yao Race naturally admired the strong.
Whoever had the biggest fist and could kill was the rule.
After a brief silence...
...the trusted great demons behind him, who had finally reacted, all kowtowed in unison.
"May the Demon Emperor live for ten thousand autumns without end!"
The other demons followed suit one after another.
"In the world of the Eastern Region, only our Emperor reigns supreme!"
The other demons followed suit one after another.
"Only our Emperor reigns supreme!!!"
The sound waves exploded within Wangchuan Valley like a tsunami.
Wang Ziyu stood at the edge, silently watching the front.
His youthful face was filled with complex and inscrutable expressions.
Wang Canglan...
...what a brilliant and talented figure he was.
Even when his Master mentioned that name, he couldn't help but sigh.
And just like that, he was dead.
Wang Ziyu looked up at the gloomy sky.
If one day this girl really went up against the Xuanzhen Grotto-Heaven...
...how should he conduct himself?
Wang Ziyu closed his eyes, no longer looking at the scalp-tingling scene of worship.
And in a corner that no one noticed...
Tiger Cuihua's massive body was curled into a ball.
With her rear sticking up and tiger fur standing on end, her amber tiger eyes were wide and round.
Her breathing was heavy, and her breath blew against the paper, making the booklet rustle as she wrote furiously.
"It is the ninth month, the season of late autumn."
"On Yu Mountain, there is a valley called Wangchuan. Its valley Master, Heavenly Bamboo, commanded thousands of demons and was domineering in the region as an Elder of the Xirang Lineage."
"A great expert in black robes arrived, riding a Bone Chariot and commanding the demons. The old man Heavenly Bamboo failed to recognize a True Dragon and recklessly started a conflict. The great expert was enraged and, in an instant, beheaded him and seized his soul. Wangchuan changed Masters, and the demons were awed into submission."
Writing to this point, Tiger Cuihua stopped her pen and licked her dry nose with her tongue.
Recalling that world-destroying battle just now...
...a shiver involuntarily ran through her entire tiger skin.
She continued to write.
"Suddenly, a member of the Wang Clan, a Pure Yang Prodigy of the Eastern Region, arrived with a Nine Heavens Fire Phoenix, intending to burn Wangchuan. This youth was arrogant and spoke recklessly of destiny."
"The great expert disdained to argue, transforming into the Great Black Heaven Avatar. With black mist covering the sky, she tore through the Pure Yang; the Prodigy shed blood, and his flesh and bones became mud."
"Furthermore, an old man from Yujing descended, attempting to suppress her with righteousness. The great expert sneered and repelled the Chess Player with a punch."
"Alas!"
"Our Emperor's Divine Might shakes the past and shines in the present, reversing Yin and Yang, and standing alone throughout the ages."
"Personally recorded by Tiger Cuihua."