Chapter Twelve: The Palace in the Forest

With only one arm functional, Zhu Yan quickly could no longer withstand the onslaught of the demonic scale lions. His face and body were stained a vivid red. His vision blurred gradually until he finally collapsed to the ground. The moment he fell, the demonic scale lions greedily swarmed over him, beginning to devour his flesh.

"Brother!" Zhu Rong, seeing this, was deeply shaken. A surge of strength surged through his hands, pushing back two demonic scale lions in front of him. He immediately rushed toward Zhu Yan. In his frantic and reckless attacks, the demonic scale lions retreated several steps, but Zhu Yan had long since lost his human form.

Though he despised his willful younger brother, seeing his pitiful state now, memories of growing up together flashed rapidly before Zhu Rong’s eyes like a revolving lantern, causing his heart to ache so painfully he could hardly breathe.

"It's all your fault! It’s all because of you!" Zhu Rong's eyes blazed red as he raised his sword and lunged at Gu Liuyun.

"You brought this upon yourself," Gu Liuyun sneered coldly.

As the long sword came at him, he caught it between two fingers and applied slight force, causing the blade to snap into pieces. Zhu Rong’s arm throbbed with intense pain.

"Go to hell and repent for your own incompetence," Gu Liuyun’s voice rang like that of the King of Hell beside Zhu Rong’s ear.

Then, he tapped Zhu Rong’s forehead with a finger.

Zhu Rong’s body lost control and toppled backward. Over a dozen demonic scale lions immediately swarmed him, encircling him completely.

"Tsk tsk, how cruel. At this rate, he won’t survive," Chen Jiaojiao, having jumped down from a tree, shivered involuntarily.

"Let’s leave while they’re feasting. Otherwise, once Zhu Rong is finished, you’ll be next," Gu Liuyun said calmly.

Chen Jiaojiao swallowed nervously and hurried to follow Gu Liuyun.

"By the way, is what you just said true?" she couldn’t help but ask.

"Which part are you referring to?"

"You’ve eaten demonic scale lions before?" Her eyes were filled with curiosity and inquiry.

Gu Liuyun nodded.

In his previous life, he was born into a humble family that had fallen on hard times, so he had to rely entirely on himself to cultivate the way.

Once, during his most difficult time, he entered a small secret realm and fought fiercely because of a local-level cultivation method book. In the end, only he survived out of dozens who entered, but unable to find the exit, he was trapped inside for over ten days.

It was only by eating the demonic scale lions raw that he barely survived.

---

Chen Jiaojiao became increasingly intrigued by the mysterious man before her and was about to ask more when a coquettish female voice came from nearby.

"Brother Liuyun?"

Ye Manman’s eyes reddened at the sight of Gu Liuyun, tears threatening to spill.

"Are you alright?" Gu Liuyun asked with concern.

Ye Manman shook her head.

Beside her was Zhou Hanqing from the Zhou family of Shanyang City.

Both appeared disheveled, their faces grimy and marked with many scrapes and bruises, clearly having endured much hardship, but fortunately without serious injuries.

At that moment, Ye Manman’s gaze finally fell on Chen Jiaojiao trailing behind Gu Liuyun.

Chen Jiaojiao’s stunning beauty made Ye Manman feel a pang of inferiority, and what troubled her more was that the beautiful woman wore only one of Gu Liuyun’s jackets.

A woman’s intuition immediately stirred a great deal of hostility toward this unknown woman.

"And who is she?" Ye Manman probed cautiously.

"She is Chen Jiaojiao, the daughter of the Chen family from Tian Sheng City," Gu Liuyun replied.

Seeing the intimacy between Ye Manman and Gu Liuyun, Chen Jiaojiao felt uneasy. She stepped forward and hooked her arm around Gu Liuyun’s.

"I’m Gu’s elder brother’s fiancée, Chen Jiaojiao."

Ye Manman sneered coldly, "Where did this vixen come from, daring to call herself Brother Liuyun’s fiancée? There is only one fiancée for Brother Liuyun—and that’s me!"

Chen Jiaojiao sized up Ye Manman from head to toe, tightened her grip on Gu Liuyun’s arm, pressing her ample figure unabashedly against him.

"Fiancée or not, Gu will marry only me."

"My betrothal with Brother Liuyun was arranged by our elders since childhood, a legitimate engagement—not like some wild woman from who knows where."

"You—!"

As tensions between the two women escalated, Gu Liuyun hurriedly explained the whole backstory.

"It’s alright, Brother Liuyun. I know you’re kind; you only saved him," Ye Manman deliberately emphasized the ‘saving’ part.

Chen Jiaojiao felt somewhat defeated inside.

This round was lost, but she was absolutely confident in her charm and believed that one day Gu Liuyun would see her worth.

Even if Gu Liuyun never married her, she was willing to stay by his side.

"These two are Essence-Strengthening Pills to restore stamina. You two should take them first," Gu Liuyun said, taking two pills from his storage pouch and handing them to Zhou Hanqing and Ye Manman.

After taking the pills, the two women’s complexions brightened considerably.

---

"Brother Liuyun, let’s hurry and search for the opportunity!" Ye Manman, seeing Chen Jiaojiao still clinging to Gu Liuyun, was unwilling to be outdone. She grabbed the other side of his arm, and the two women flanked him, one on each side.

When else could he be happier than now? Gu Liuyun felt a secret thrill in his heart.

The treasure-seeking compass’s needle trembled and gradually weakened, its directional indication becoming clearer.

This meant they were drawing ever closer to the secret realm’s opportunity.

The three chatted and laughed along the way, with Zhou Hanqing following silently behind. Meanwhile, Ye Manman and Chen Jiaojiao secretly competed with one another in subtle ways.

"Look, what’s that?" Zhou Hanqing suddenly pointed in a direction.

Everyone looked to see a towering building amidst the jungle.

"That must be our destination," Gu Liuyun said.

Approaching the building, they found it was a magnificently constructed palace.

"There must be an opportunity inside!"

Before Gu Liuyun and the others could admire it, a figure dashed ahead and rushed inside.

Soon, dozens of cultivators followed eagerly, fearing they would miss the chance.

Gu Liuyun led the three women inside the palace.

Dazzling golden light almost blinded his titanium-alloy dog-like eyes.

The place was filled with a dazzling array of gemstones, gold and silver treasures, rare natural materials, spirit instruments, cultivation techniques...

Everything gleamed with radiant golden light, clearly priceless.

"Great! I must take as much as I can!"

"Woohoo, I finally bring glory to my ancestors..."

"Grab it! Grab it!..."

The crowd erupted into a frenzy of looting, but Gu Liuyun stood unmoved.

"Brother Liuyun, this one is a heaven-grade cultivation technique!" Ye Manman eagerly presented a glowing golden book to Gu Liuyun.