Chapter 91. Awakening the Martial Dao Heavenly Eyes, Chang'an in Peril! (1)

True to its name, the Valley of Fading Twilight was a valley surrounded by lush, high cliffs. Its floor was an unremarkable basin of overgrown grass, home to only a few weak, low-tier mutated beasts that foraged and hunted ordinary beasts.

Screech!

Just then, a majestic cry echoed from the sky.

Immediately afterward, the valley erupted in panic. Birds burst from the trees, and the beasts below scattered in every direction. These beasts weren't intelligent, but the majestic cry carried an oppressive force that resonated deep within their bloodlines, triggering a single, primal instinct—flee.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

High above, the Golden-Winged Great Peng spread its wings and began a slow descent. On its back, Lu Yuan sat cross-legged, smiling faintly.

To him, the Golden-Winged Great Peng was a mere ant, but in the eyes of the mutated beasts here, it was on a whole new level—a beast king with an extremely powerful bloodline. It exuded the presence of a superior being.

In terms of bloodline, it was the strongest in Qinling.

Shaking his head, Lu Yuan didn't dwell on it and said, "Alright, this is far enough."

"Go patrol the surrounding area. Unless it's an emergency, you'd better not disturb me."

With that, he leaped from the great peng's back, plummeting several hundred meters into the valley. Due to the height at which he jumped off the Golden-Winged Great Peng, he crashed into the ground like a meteor, creating a large crater.

The shockwaves of his landing alone flattened over a hundred nearby trees.

"What a monster." The Golden-Winged Great Peng's heart trembled at this sight.

Lu Yuan had plummeted from so high up that even the Golden-Winged Great Peng would have to be careful if it were in Lu Yuan's shoes. However, what had become of Lu Yuan upon his landing?

He suffered not even the slightest injury—zero.

His physique was terrifying even to a mutated beast like the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

If he continued to evolve, what would eventually become of him? The Golden-Winged Great Peng was silent. Then, its wings fluttered as its massive figure vanished from the skies.

After landing in the Valley of Fading Twilight, Lu Yuan surveyed his surroundings. The word "primitive" was the apropos word to describe the valley. Perhaps even the most experienced survivalist could die here.

"Its name isn't exactly telling, but who could have guessed that there's a treasure within?" Lu Yuan murmured to himself. Indeed, this was his true goal for visiting Qinling.

In terms of value, the treasure here was no less precious than the Eleven-Tier Blood Pagoda, and perhaps it was even more precious. After all, it could trigger a further evolution of his genes and bestow upon him an incredible ability. In his memories, this treasure wasn't supposed to be discovered for another year.

By coming here a year early, he could claim it for himself and evolve once more.

The valley wasn't exactly massive, but it wasn't tiny. Finding a single object in the wilderness would be a massive waste of time.

With that in mind, Lu Yuan raised his right hand, and the Meridian Heavenmend Furnace appeared, growing to a height of ten feet. He had used it to find the Nine-leaf Golden Resonance, and he hoped it would save him some effort today.

He tapped the furnace several times, but it remained still. Its search range was limited; he would have to do this slowly.

After a full half day of searching, the furnace finally reacted.

Lu Yuan followed its guidance, only to be disappointed. It wasn't the treasure, just an exotic herb of little use to him. On the principle of not letting anything go to waste, he plucked it anyway.

I really need a reliable way to find treasures,

he thought, sighing helplessly.

Otherwise, I'll waste too much time on situations like this in the future.

He recalled a memory of something that could be helpful, and located in a special place called "Shennongjia," but that was a problem for another day. First of all, he had to deal with the matter at hand.

Just as he was about to resume his search, the Meridian Heavenmend Furnace vibrated violently. The intensity of the tremors told him that it had finally found something truly extraordinary.

I'm sure this one is extraordinary.

Lu Yuan thought. Then, he made his move.

Swoosh!

Upon arrival, a dark yellow shadow streaked past in the distance.

Trying to escape?

He took a step forward and activated the Bloodforce Pagoda within him. An eleven-tier pagoda appeared behind him, crushing the surroundings.

The dark yellow shadow stopped moving and fell to the ground.

It was a ginseng—a humanoid ginseng.

The ginseng pulsed with a light reminiscent of the sun, and it was emitting a rich aroma of medicine.

Legend has it that extremely rare spirit herbs can sense danger and flee even without intelligence comparable to a human being,

Lu Yuan thought, amazed.

I'm looking for the Heaven-Earth Profound Ginseng; it must be you.

Certain that this was what he needed, he grabbed the ginseng.

I heard it's capable of stimulating the potential within one's genes to unlock the treasure chest within the human body. Let's see if you can really do that.

He didn't want to waste even a second of his time. After sitting cross-legged, he devoured the Heaven-Earth Profound Ginseng. The surrounding beasts had already scattered in fear, courtesy of the Golden-Winged Great Peng busy patrolling the perimeter.

In other words, the Valley of Fading Twilight was the safest place in Qinling at the moment.

The so-called "treasure chest within the human body" was the human body's latent potential, and the Heaven-Earth Profound Ginseng would be the key to open that treasure chest.

In his past life, Lu Yuan knew someone who had consumed the same ginseng and awakened a special constitution that allowed them to store energy way beyond their limit and unleash it during emergencies.

It was an incredible ability that allowed one to stay low-key.

Of course, Lu Yuan's Primordial Dragon Breathing Technique made that specific ability redundant, but the reward in the "treasure chest" was always random. No matter what power he would end up awakening, it wouldn't be considered a loss.

At the very least, he would shatter a few genetic shackles.

Upon swallowing the ginseng, a profound energy appeared within him, surging into the deepest parts of his genes.

Boom!

A light engulfed Lu Yuan, and a powerful aura erupted from him. The brand-new profound energy flooded every cell within him, and in a single moment, three genetic shackles were shattered.

However, the Heaven-Earth Profound Ginseng wasn't done yet. It transformed into a radiant light that rose and fell within Lu Yuan, seemingly searching for something. Once it had found its target, Lu Yuan would surely evolve once more.

As time went on, the radiant light finally made its decision. It split into two streams of light that surged into Lu Yuan's eyes. His "treasure" had been unlocked, and it awakened something in his eyes.

However, this was only the beginning. A complete transformation would take time.

Just then, the Bloodforce Pagoda materialized, coming out of its own to protect its master.

Meanwhile, the Golden-Winged Great Peng soared through Qinling. Its speed was like lightning, allowing it to scan land spanning hundreds of kilometers with ease.

Amidst its patrol, it decided to swing by its old nest.

Hm? Where did they go?

It realized that the auras of many familiar mutated beasts were nowhere to be found. Puzzled, it flew away.

Soon, it reached the periphery of Qinling, and it saw a shocking sight—thousands upon thousands of mutated beasts were moving in a single direction. Among them, there were even creatures on the same level as it.

Further ahead is a human city,

it thought, and then it immediately understood. The great river of mutated beasts up ahead was a part of a massive beast tide.

"Golden-Winged Great Peng?" A voice suddenly boomed. It was the White King's voice.

"So it's you." The Golden-Winged Great Peng recognized the enormous white python. It beat its wings, creating some distance between them before replying, "Are you planning to attack a human city?"

It wasn't a native of Qinling and had fought the White King before. It was no match for the python—not yet. After all, it had yet to fully mature, so it was better for it to keep its distance and avoid conflict.

"That's right," the White King said. "The Brown Bear King and the Tiger-Leopard King didn't answer my summons. In their place, your strength would be a tremendous asset."

The Golden-Winged Great Peng's mythical bloodline held terrifying potential, and its speed was also a perfect counter to the fighter jets of humanity. In addition, its strength was second only to the White King.

"Forget it. I'm not interested," the Golden-Winged Great Peng replied with a shake of its head, but its next words were laced with traces of mockery. "But I will offer you a warning—there are powerful beings among the humans. Don't get yourself killed."

It thought of its new master, Lu Yuan, and assumed that many humans were similar to him in terms of strength.