Luo Zhen gripped the hilt of the Thunder Cloud Blade, and with a mental command, a pair of translucent green wings burst from his back. He launched himself into the sky, the wind rushing past as he left the city behind.
Fifteen minutes later, he hovered over a desolate, uninhabited stretch of desert. Raising the blade high, he channeled his energy and slashed downward.
Whoosh!
A twenty-meter arc of幽 spectral blue lightning tore from the steel. Crackling with raw electricity, the blade-energy slammed into the sand below. The explosion carved a jagged gully into the earth, stretching dozens of meters long and deep enough to channel a river.
"A Pseudo-Magic Treasure indeed," Luo Zhen murmured, watching the dust settle. "And that Thunder Blade energy is no joke."
He had secured a new trump card. He spent the next while testing his limits, firing off slash after slash until he felt completely in tune with the weapon. Satisfied, he triggered his spatial ring. A faint, ghostly light washed over the blade, absorbing it into the storage dimension. It was a convenient trick—armed and dangerous at the speed of thought.
As he winged his way back toward Feisha City, the System's voice echoed in his mind. "Host, now that the Thunder Cloud Blade is complete, you should begin gathering materials for your Natal Magic Treasure."
"I know," Luo Zhen replied silently.
In the brutal hierarchy of the cultivation world, a good weapon could tip the scales of fate. But there was a distinction. The Thunder Cloud Blade was merely a tool. A Natal Magic Treasure was different—it was forged to be an extension of the cultivator's very soul. It grew in power alongside its master. If it broke, the owner could lose half their life force or die on the spot. It was a high-stakes bond, but necessary for any true contender.
"Do you have a design in mind?" the System asked.
"Not yet. There's no rush." Luo Zhen was still in the early Demon Core realm. The Demon King stage—and the Demon Infant required to reach it—was still a distant peak to climb.
Upon landing back in Feisha City, however, his solitude was short-lived. A crowd of Demon Generals—powerful half-human, half-beast hybrids—had gathered outside his front gate.
Luo Zhen retracted his wings, his guard instantly up. "What are you all doing at my door?"
One of the generals blinked, surprised. "This is your place? That bolt of wild thunder earlier—that was you?"
"It was. Is there a problem?"
"No, no problem!" the general stammered, clearly reassessing Luo Zhen's threat level. "We live nearby. We felt the shockwave from a great distance. We just wanted to… well, pay our respects. Make friends. In our line of work, neighbors should look out for each other, right?"
Luo Zhen relaxed slightly. It was the universal law of survival: one more friend is one more path; one more enemy is one more wall. They were here because they feared and respected his power.
He was about to offer a diplomatic response when a Soil Scorpion general squinted at him. "Hey… why do you look so familiar?"
Luo Zhen turned. "Do I know you?"
"I can't place it," the scorpion scratched his chin, then his eyes went wide. "Wait! I remember! You're the Green Snake General from the exchange meet a few days ago. The one with the Iron Essence!"
The words Iron Essence acted like a spark in a powder keg. The atmosphere shifted instantly, with every pair of eyes locking onto Luo Zhen with greedy intensity.
Luo Zhen's expression darkened. Iron Essence was a rare, high-grade crafting material. Advertising, he had it, was like bleeding in a shark tank.
"You're mistaken," Luo Zhen said smoothly. "I don't know anything about Iron Essence."
"I'm not mistaken!" The scorpion insisted, oblivious to the danger he was causing. "I was sitting far back, but I'm sure of it now. You're the one who pulled out those chunks of high-grade metal!"
"Iron Essence? Who has Iron Essence?"
The booming voice rolled over the crowd like thunder. Everyone turned to see a towering, four-armed figure striding toward them. The crowd parted instantly.
"King Wu!" someone gasped.
"We pay respects to King Wu!"
Luo Zhen cursed internally. Of the two Demon Kings who ruled Feisha City, this was the one known for his obsession with weapon forging.
"Greetings, King Wu," Luo Zhen said, offering a polite bow.
"Save the formalities," King Wu said, waving one of his four hands dismissively. He looked at the crowd. "Who was talking about Iron Essence?"
The Soil Scorpion, eager to curry favor, immediately pointed Luo Zhen out and recounted the story. King Wu's gaze snapped to Luo Zhen, burning with an uncomfortable heat.
"Alright," King Wu announced, his voice brooking no argument. "I have urgent business with my Little Friend Green Snake here. The rest of you, scatter."
He waved them off as if shooing flies. The generals, though disappointed to miss the show, weren't suicidal enough to disobey a Demon King. They bowed and retreated, leaving Luo Zhen alone with the four-armed giant.
King Wu smiled, a predatory glint in his eyes. "Well, Little Friend? Aren't you going to invite me inside for tea?"
"Please," Luo Zhen gestured, knowing he had no choice.
Inside the main hall, after the tea was poured, King Wu dropped the pleasantries. "I was refining a treasure in the east district when I felt that lightning. A strike with the power of a Half-step Demon King. Impressive for someone only at the early Demon Core stage. You have a bright future."
"You flatter me, King Wu."
"I came for the lightning," King Wu admitted, leaning forward. "But staying for the Iron Essence was a happy accident. Now, don't insult my intelligence by denying it. Sell me a piece."
Luo Zhen sighed, feigning reluctance. "King Wu, your timing is terrible. I only have two pieces left. I was saving them for my own Natal Magic Treasure."
It was a lie, of course. Luo Zhen had plenty of Iron Essence stored in his system inventory and plenty of points to buy more. But in negotiations, scarcity was value.
"You have two?" King Wu's eyes lit up. "Show me. Don't worry, I pay fair market value. I'm not a bandit."
Luo Zhen hesitated for a calculated second before brushing his hand over his ring. A fist-sized chunk of dark, heavy metal materialized on the table.
King Wu snatched it up, examining the grain. "Superb quality! And the size is perfect. Name your price."
"I really shouldn't," Luo Zhen pressed his brows together. "If I sell this, I won't have enough for a full set of artifacts later."
"Little Friend, don't be greedy," King Wu chided, though his tone was eager. "Iron Essence is like salt in a stew. You need it, but you don't dump the whole bag in. One piece is plenty for a primary artifact. Besides, you're years away from needing a Natal Treasure. Take the profit now."
After a prolonged bout of haggling, Luo Zhen finally 'relented.' King Wu, overjoyed, piled a small mountain of spirit stones, rare pills, and resources onto the table.
Luo Zhen swept his hand over the pile. The spatial ring flashed with black light, and the goods vanished.
King Wu paused, his eyes narrowing slightly as he watched the ring.
"You really are full of surprises," the King noted. "Iron Essence, powerful lightning, and a spatial artifact? That's rare wealth for a Demon General." He tilted his head. "Though… that ring looks incredibly familiar."
Luo Zhen's heart skipped a beat.
He had looted that ring off the corpse of Pang Feiyun—the son of the city's other Demon King, Pang Hong.
"Oh?" Luo Zhen kept his face mask still. "How so?"
"I can't quite place it," King Wu muttered, tapping his chin with a lower arm. "It's on the tip of my tongue. Ah, never mind." He stood up, stretching. "I have my metal. I'll leave you to rest."
"Safe travels, King Wu."
Luo Zhen saw him out, smiling politely until the gate closed. The moment he was back in the safety of his hall, his expression turned ice-cold.
He didn't care about the Iron Essence. He cared about the ring.
He immediately went out into the city to gather intelligence. The news wasn't good: King Wu and Pang Hong were close allies. They moved in the same circles. If King Wu remembered where he'd seen that ring, he wouldn't hesitate to tell Pang Hong that a random snake demon was wearing his dead son's jewelry.
"I can't be careless," Luo Zhen thought, drumming his fingers on the table. "If I'm exposed, I'm dead."
There was only one solution. He needed to be strong enough that it didn't matter.
Returning to his room, Luo Zhen summoned the payment he'd received from King Wu. Dozens of bottles of high-grade cultivation pills cluttered the table.
He popped the cork on a bottle of Golden Flower Pills and downed the entire contents in one gulp.
Warmth exploded in his stomach. The familiar, mechanical notifications of the System scrolled through his mind, confirming the influx of experience points. He didn't stop to read them. He just reached for the next bottle. He had a lot of catching up to do.