They had arrived at Yunling Swamp.

As Fang Yang and his party advanced, Yunling Swamp slowly revealed its full appearance.

This was a dense swampland. It wasn’t particularly vast, but the variety of Fierce Beasts that called it home was immense.

"First, we’ll gather the Mud Crab Grass. We’ll tackle the missions one by one." Fang Yang, astride a fine horse, gave the order.

Immediately, the squads behind him shot forth like fish breaking free, rushing into the swampland one after another.

Mud Crab Grass was an extremely common Spirit Grass that grew in swampland.

Specimens that weren’t old enough couldn’t even be graded, not even qualifying as a Tier One Spirit Grass.

And this was basically the kind of group mission that an unranked tribe could accept.

This time, coming to the Yunling Swamp area, Fang Yang had accepted a total of four missions. Completing each one would earn him a minor merit.

If all four missions could be completed smoothly today, then Fang Yang’s White Feathered Eagle tribe would accumulate an additional minor merit, reaching a total of five.

’Alchemist Doctor’s apprentice, Hawkmaster, Alchemist Doctor, Commander...’

On the grassy field, Fang Yang watched his subordinates work, a contemplative look flickering in his eyes.

In less than a year, he had already changed identities multiple times, working in different fields.

’If what Sen Yue said is true, once I achieve outstanding results in the upcoming army-wide competition, will I have to become some minor strategist in charge of managing the grand army?’

The thought struck Fang Yang as a bit absurd.

His status was rising a little too quickly, like he was riding a rocket. No wonder Qingluo was green with envy.

As Fang Yang pondered, time trickled away.

Ahead, Lu Yao held a whip, cracking it from time to time to urge her subordinates to work faster.

Lu Yao’s enthusiasm for building up the White Feathered Eagle tribe was even greater than Fang Yang had imagined.

She seemed to regard the White Feathered Eagle tribe as her new home, leading her former tribespeople to work tirelessly in its construction.

Sometimes, choosing the right person means the job is already half done.

Lu Yao was, without a doubt, the right person.

「A quarter of an hour later.」

Pile after pile of Mud Crab Grass was presented and placed on the grassy ground.

Lu Yao rolled up her sleeves and began to count. Out of caution, she would only consider the tally complete once it exceeded the mission’s requirement by ten percent.

From start to finish, the first mission was completed in less than an hour.

It seemed very simple, but it was mainly because Fang Yang and Second Uncle Fang were overseeing it.

The two of them were Pill Masters, so they knew exactly where the medicinal herbs were easiest to collect.

First mission: Collect Mud Crab Grass. Complete. Reward: one minor merit. Time taken: one hour.

Second mission: Capture and kill a pack of earth snakes. Complete. Reward: one minor merit. Time taken: one hour.

Third mission: Transfer supplies to the Cangmu Banner. Complete. Reward: one minor merit. Time taken: two hours.

It was smooth. Everything was going smoothly.

But as Fang Yang led his subordinates to complete the fourth mission, a strange disturbance occurred deep within Yunling Swamp!

"BOOM—"

A violent explosion roared from above. Black smoke billowed, putting Fang Yang and his people on high alert as if facing a great enemy.

A blue Bee Beast emerged, staggering, from the smoke, followed by a swarm of Bee Insects.

This was a Hundred Beasts King, a king among Tier Three Fierce Beasts!

Although this Bee Insect Hundred Beasts King’s aura was weak and listless, as if it could die at any moment...

...its current strength was still enough to annihilate an unranked tribe!

"Second Uncle, I’ll have to trouble you," Fang Yang said softly.

At this moment, Fang Yang understood where the Tier Three opportunity mentioned in his upper-medium fortune slip came from. It was this Tier Three Bee Insect Hundred Beasts King.

"Go." With a soft cry from Second Uncle Fang, he flicked his sleeve, and a sheet of blue light shot forward.

In an instant, the bodies of the Bee Insect Hundred Beasts King and its swarm of Bee Insects stiffened and fell to the ground.

As Fang Yang looked at the corpse of the Bee Insect Hundred Beasts King on the muddy ground, he inexplicably thought of Hong Qishang.

Hong Qishang was also an expert at handling Bee Insects. His Spirit Body seemed to be the Rain Bee Spirit Body.

’Hong Qishang is already a Tier Three Cultivator. He’ll definitely be interested in the Bee Insect Hundred Beasts King. Trading with him is absolutely better than exchanging it for merits at the war-achievements camp,’ Fang Yang thought, a pensive look in his eyes.

...

「As the red sun sank in the west, at dusk.」

Behind the medicine hall of the Thunder Punishment Banner.

"Since you came to me for an exchange, I won’t hold back either." Hong Qishang looked at Fang Yang with a complicated expression.

Not long ago, he had teamed up with Wei Rubao and others to hunt and kill a Fire Eagle, acquiring its Fire Eagle Wings and some of its Fire Eagle Essence Blood.

Other than a few close friends, no one else knew about this.

But he had never expected that Fang Yang would actually capture a complete Rain Bee Mother and come to trade with him.

All these things increasingly convinced Hong Qishang that Fang Yang was blessed with great fortune.

It was too much of a coincidence. So much so that Hong Qishang was at a loss for words, almost believing Fang Yang was the biological son of the Thunder Ancestor.

HUFF... Hong Qishang took a deep breath, deciding to continue his strategy of staying on good terms with Fang Yang.

He directly took out the Fire Eagle Wings and the Fire Eagle Essence Blood, not holding anything back.

"Hm?" A sharp glint shone in Fang Yang’s eyes. "Can I have it all? I can compensate you with war merits or Yuan Stones."

「Night.」

The White Feathered Eagle’s encampment.

The commander’s main tent.

At this moment, Fang Yang, Second Uncle Fang, and Seventh Uncle Fang stood around a Three-legged Great Cauldron.

Inside the Three-legged Great Cauldron, the White Feathered Eagle stood obediently.

"Ah Yang, this kid, the White Feathered Eagle, is absolutely worth cultivating. Trust me!" Seventh Uncle Fang patted his chest in assurance. These past few days, he had been completely won over by the White Feathered Eagle.

"Of course I trust your judgment, Uncle Qi." Fang Yang nodded. "Yes, I will cultivate it well."

WHOOSH...

Soon, Fang Yang placed a host of Spirit Grass and Spiritual Liquid into the cauldron, followed finally by the Fire Eagle Essence Blood.

The moment the Fire Eagle Essence Blood was added to the cauldron, the White Feathered Eagle erupted in blazing light.

Seeing this, Fang Yang struck while the iron was hot, decisively tossing in the pair of Fire Eagle Wings as well.

"RUMBLE..."

The various types of Primordial Qi within the Three-legged Great Cauldron collided, continuously letting out thunderous roars.

Following that, thick white smoke rose, swirling around the cauldron.

Vaguely, Fang Yang thought he saw the White Feathered Eagle confronting and fighting a Fire Eagle Illusion.

The growth of Fierce Beasts was quite different from that of the Human Race. It seemed more like bloodline determined everything—the older, the more powerful.

Although Fang Yang was very interested in this phenomenon, in his current weak state, all he could do was accept and utilize it.

And the White Feathered Eagle was, without a doubt, a defective, inferior-blooded version of a Fire Eagle.

As time passed, the White Feathered Eagle’s growth didn’t seem to be going well.

"Its foundation is still a bit weak..." Second Uncle Fang concluded, slightly disappointed.

Seventh Uncle Fang’s expression also soured, but he still held out hope, encouraging the White Feathered Eagle, "Don’t give up! You can do it."

Seeing this, Fang Yang sighed softly in his heart.

He had already begun to plan on replacing the White Feathered Eagle, imagining what kind of Flying Eagle companion he should get next.

In truth, the White Feathered Eagle had very obvious merits. At the very least, it was easy to work with and trustworthy.

It was just a pity that the White Feathered Eagle couldn’t quite keep up with his pace of growth. It was truly regrettable.

You couldn’t blame the White Feathered Eagle, nor could you blame Second Uncle Fang. This was the consequence of the Fang Clan’s decline—the resources provided to their own geniuses were basically never top-tier!

’There’s no other way. One must always look forward.’

「Meanwhile.」

The White Feathered Eagle cared about the opinions of Second Uncle Fang and Seventh Uncle Fang, but it cared even more about Fang Yang’s.

And when it sensed Fang Yang’s soft sigh, it was as if it felt his regret and farewell.

In that instant, it went berserk.

Suddenly, it flapped its wings desperately, flying clumsily inside the cauldron, unwilling to sink into oblivion.

Pain.

Intense pain.

Excruciating pain.

But even more painful than its body was its unwilling heart.

Thanks to the willpower it had forged through past trials, the White Feathered Eagle actually managed to endure the agony, even beginning to withstand the Fire Eagle Essence Blood and launch a powerful counterattack against the brand deep within its bloodline.

Gradually, the White Feathered Eagle’s snow-white body turned a fiery red. Its aura also grew more formidable, trending more and more towards Tier Two.

If one didn’t sense it carefully, claiming the White Feathered Eagle was a Tier Two Fierce Beast probably wouldn’t raise much doubt!

"I knew you could do it!" Seventh Uncle Fang laughed heartily, pleased with the White Feathered Eagle’s growth.

"Truly remarkable. After this growth, it will certainly be able to bear the power of the Fire Eagle Illusion," Second Uncle Fang also affirmed with a nod.

’It actually managed to turn things around, and it was because of me... Could it be that I was really wrong?’ Fang Yang lowered his head, a little surprised himself.

But in the next moment, Fang Yang answered with certainty, ’No, I wasn’t wrong.’

He would never, under any circumstances, base his source of strength on things like bonds or affection.

He was, after all, a Transmigrator.

In the words of this world, an otherworldly demon.

The person he could trust the most was, and could only be, himself!

In the great cauldron, the White Feathered Eagle had finished absorbing all the strange substances.

At this moment, the White Feathered Eagle felt an immense wave of drowsiness wash over it, making it difficult to keep its eyes open.

Just then, it saw Fang Yang give it an affirmative nod.

With just that, the White Feathered Eagle instantly closed its eyes, the corners of its beak curling up slightly as it peacefully fell into a deep sleep.

’Now I can finally be of help to Fang Yang again. I don’t have to be afraid of being cast aside by him anymore.’

’This is great~’

...

「Late at night.」

Snow Frost Mountain Range.

Qingluo and Old Shan had abandoned their subordinates and were fleeing frantically.

It wasn’t just them. In the entire Snow Frost Mountain Range area, all living creatures were frantically running for their lives, fleeing in a panic.

Because ’Dao Seed’ Sen Yue and ’Dao Seed’ Lin Shenghuang had actually moved their battlefield to this vicinity!

This was terrifying.

A confrontation between two Dao Seed Level geniuses—even just the aftershocks were enough to easily erase them from existence.

"Damn my luck, damn my luck, damn my luck! Why did I have to run into something like this?" At this moment, an extremely intense regret washed over Qingluo’s heart.

And when his ’Protector’ Old Shan was struck by a bolt of lightning and died violently right before his eyes, his pupils contracted sharply, and the regret in his heart surged to its absolute peak!

"The heavens are blind! Why does a useless piece of trash like Fang Yang have such good luck..." Qingluo seethed with indignation.

In the next moment, a vast torrent of lightning descended from the sky like a waterfall, instantly melting the Snow Frost Mountain Range and silencing all life.

This was the aftershock from the battle between Sen Yue and Lin Shenghuang. It killed many living creatures, including Qingluo.

"Lin Shenghuang, you’ve gone too far!"

"Hmph, if I can’t be the monarch of the Changkong clan, then don’t think you’ll have an easy time either..."