Chapter 321: The Trap
Squeezing a drop of crimson blood from his fingertip, Jiang Chen overlaid it with the brand of his spiritual sense.
Instantly, the Square Inch Ring was his. As his consciousness seeped inside, he discovered the internal space was far vaster than he had ever imagined. He’d expected a few dozen cubic meters at most. A hundred? Unbelievable.
His own Jade Green Gourd was a paltry twenty cubic meters. This ring held the space of five of his gourds. More importantly, it could store living creatures, not just inanimate objects. It was in a league far above common storage tools like his gourd in every conceivable way.
Though he was no expert on such treasures, Jiang Chen hazarded a guess. Its market price had to be in the tens of thousands of Mid-grade Spirit Stones, perhaps even several thousand high-grade ones.
And now, both the Meridian-Reversing Worm Mother—worth a hundred thousand Mid-grade Spirit Stones—and this priceless ring were his. For free. Not a single Spirit Stone spent.
The generosity of these powerhouses was on another level.
Even Zhao Feng, the pampered young master of the Zhao Clan, couldn’t hide the raw envy in his eyes. On the surface, Jiang Chen was being rewarded for his timely discovery, which had saved the Spirit Farm from greater losses. But the reality was far more significant. The Spirit Farm’s second-in-command, the Grain Master, and the absolute authority of the Earth Veins, the Abyss Master, both held him in high regard.
That was the true prize.
With a mere thought, Jiang Chen commanded the Square Inch Ring. The Meridian-Reversing Worm Mother, still curled into a tight sphere before them, vanished, drawn instantly into the storage space.
All that remained was a gaping maw of absolute darkness, a vast pit from which not a single glimmer of light escaped. Tendrils of a chilling, deathly aura coiled out from its depths, like the stench from a desecrated tomb.Zhu Fuxian glanced at Shi Yuan. “With the Mother captured, the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King is a lone weed. Are you leaving, or are you venturing into that hole?”
Shi Yuan’s eyes swept over the Dragon Transformation Cave, now utterly devoid of Spirit Qi. A flicker of regret crossed his face. “Auspicious caves like this usually nurture something special at their core. If I had the time, I’d tear this place apart to see what’s hiding at the bottom. A pity more pressing matters await. We can only seal it for now.”
With that, he raised his hand and waved.
A dense cloud of Yellow Earth Essence coalesced at his command, swirling into a thick mist that completely enveloped the abandoned cave. A crushing weight slammed into Jiang Chen. Despite his late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation and his own Earth Spirit Root, he felt an immense, suffocating pressure.
Yellow Earth Essence and Earth Qi—a single word’s difference, but a world apart in reality. The former was superior in both quality and sheer density. Earth Qi only became suffocating when it reached extreme concentrations.
With Shi Yuan’s seal in place, no one weaker than him could ever hope to break it, let alone delve into the abandoned cave. No, it was a dead cave now, its value completely exhausted.
The group then departed.
Their ascent was blindingly fast. In the span of a few breaths, they shot from the subterranean depths back to the surface. This time, it was Shi Yuan who acted. If not for the burden of three Wood Spirit Root cultivators—an elemental clash—and the fact that this was a mere projection, not his true body, their ascent would have been instantaneous.
Their entire underground exploration had taken barely half an hour.
Feeling the warm sun on his skin again, Jiang Chen stretched languidly.
Yang Zhenyue stepped closer. “The Meridian-Reversing Worm Mother was one thing, but what about the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King? I hear it’s an even more elusive creature.”
Jiang Chen finished his stretch and explained, “Generally, the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King prefers dark, damp places rich in Spirit Qi.”
Zhao Feng mused aloud, “Could it also be hiding in an abandoned underground spirit vein?”
“Impossible,” Zhu Fuxian stated flatly. “They share no parasitic or symbiotic relationship. They wouldn’t be found together.”
Jiang Chen nodded in agreement. “Exactly. The Meridian-Reversing Worms crave Earth Qi, while the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King consumes only Wood Spirit Qi. Their only common ground is a shared obsession with mutated spirit plants.”
Yang Zhenyue’s brow furrowed. “So, what’s our plan?” When it came to spirit plants, he was out of his depth. He couldn’t compare to the expertise of Wood Spirit Root cultivators like Zhu Fuxian and Jiang Chen.
Zhu Fuxian’s gaze fell upon Zhao Feng, a look so sharp it made the young master’s skin crawl. “The best way,” the Grain Master said slowly, “is to lay a trap. An irresistible one.”
Shi Yuan and Yang Zhenyue looked on thoughtfully.
Jiang Chen’s mind raced. His eyes, too, flicked to the bewildered Zhao Feng. “Grain Master,” he ventured, “are you suggesting we use mutated spirit plants to lure out the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King?”
The pieces finally clicked into place for Zhao Feng. He understood why he was the center of attention. “Then… how many mutated spirit plants will you need?” he asked, a nervous tremor in his voice.
Zhu Fuxian considered it for a moment. “Three should suffice. Five would be ideal.”
Zhao Feng blanched. “Grain Master, our Zhao Clan is a victim in this disaster too!” he pleaded.
Zhu Fuxian’s expression shifted to one of almost theatrical envy. “Your Zhao Clan, the preeminent family of the Spirit Farm for a millennium, has more treasures than I do. What are a few mutated plants? Besides, we’re only using them as bait, not destroying them.”
Zhao Feng hesitated, still unwilling to commit. “Better safe than sorry!”
Not wanting to waste any more time, Zhu Fuxian waved a dismissive hand. “Any losses will be compensated by the Immortal Sect.”
Zhao Feng knew he couldn’t refuse; his only goal now was to avoid a loss. At the Grain Master’s promise, his apprehension vanished, replaced by a sycophantic grin. “In that case, Grain Master, what kind of mutated spirit plants do you require?”
Zhu Fuxian gestured toward the sealed pit. “The mutated plant cultivated here was the Thousand-Ear Golden Light Rice, correct?”
“Yes, yes, that’s right!” Zhao Feng nodded vigorously, like a pecking chicken.
“Then we’ll use the same plant in the same location,” Zhu Fuxian commanded.
A trap set elsewhere might not work. But this specific spot had already hosted both Spirit-Eroding Fungus and Meridian-Reversing Worms. It was proof of their deep attraction to the Thousand-Ear Golden Light Rice. If that’s what the Fungus King desired, then they would give it a feast it couldn’t ignore.
Zhao Feng nodded, then turned to leave. While he had the authority to agree, a matter of this importance still required a report to his clan elders.
Suddenly, Jiang Chen remembered something. “Grain Master, Abyss Master, Manager Yang,” he said quickly, “the harvest for the outer perimeter is scheduled for today. As one of this year’s assessors, I must be present.”
Shi Yuan and Yang Zhenyue were indifferent. Neither belonged to the Spirit Farm, so its harvests were of no concern to them. Jiang Chen’s including them was a simple courtesy.
A hint of approval glinted in Zhu Fuxian’s eyes. “That you still remember your duties speaks well of you. In any case, the Spirit-Eroding Fungus King won’t show itself until nightfall. Go. Attend to your business.”