Chapter 1046: Void Servant, My Medicine?

"Run! Run! Run!"

It wasn't just Hong Dang running; Xiao Kongdong was running too.

After completing the shady deal in the Sin One Hall, even Ye Xiaotian was now on the run.

Everyone seemed to share the same goal: better a fellow daoist dies than oneself—survive by any means, cling to life as long as possible.

They had thought Kong Xu Island was just as Ba Zun An had described in his legendary tales: opportunities everywhere, foundations for sainthood at every turn, as easy as lifting a hand.

But once they arrived, they realized the truth.

Ba Zun An had told the truth.

He just mentioned the benefits of the Sky City and left out the downsides.

—All the opportunities here came at the cost of your life!

"Thump! Thump! Thump..."

In the Miracle Forest, at the Shen Nong Medicine Garden.

The heartbeat of the Sheng Di Long Lin was reaching another peak, making anyone who heard it feel dizzy and nauseous.

Using Hong Dang's life as the price, Xu Xiaoshou was still frantically expanding the channels of his Yuan Fu World.

He had no idea what was happening outside right now.

The only thing he knew was that the opportunity Hong Dang had bought with his life couldn't be wasted.

—Wasting even a single sacred herb would be disrespectful to Hong Dang!

—Absolutely not! No way!

"Buzz... Buzz... Buzz..."

The spatial channel strained to expand, with the Sheng Di Long Lin wildly interfering.

But Xu Xiaoshou was obsessed; even knowing the Sheng Di Long Lin was trying to stop him, he couldn't hold back the desires of Xu the Great Demon King. He had to take it all!

Finally...

When the spatial channel, encompassing thousands of li, was fully constructed, even Xu Xiaoshou felt he could barely maintain something so massive.

In the "perception" he received, a patch of land in his Yuan Fu World finally matched the Shen Nong Medicine Garden perfectly.

"I'm sorry, Kong Xu Servant!"

"I'm sorry, Hong Dang!"

"I'm sorry, all you fellow spirit refiners on Kong Xu Island who haven't had a chance to come and gather herbs..."

"The Shen Nong Medicine Garden belongs to the Xu family now!"

Xu Xiaoshou's face twisted into a ferocious expression. With a forceful clench of his hands, the massive spatial channel, thousands of li wide, completely enveloped the Shen Nong Medicine Garden.

"Shh!"

A soft sound rang out.

The dense spiritual energy and herbal fragrance vanished from this place.

In their stead was a massive pit, stretching thousands of li across and three hundred zhang deep!

Yes, wherever the Kong Xu Servant reached, Xu Xiaoshou dug just as deep.

He didn't want to harm a single innocent weed; they still had to survive in the Yuan Fu World, roots intact.

So, digging three feet wasn't enough...

Digging three hundred zhang was his minimum, his baseline!

"Run!"

In the span of a single breath, he emptied the entire Shen Nong Medicine Garden.

Xu Xiaoshou didn't even dare glance back at his Yuan Fu; he bolted straight out of the barrier channel.

Originally, in his plan, he could have just picked a few sacred herbs or dug up a tenth of it—that would have been normal.

Then, he could come back for more trips, making the whole garden his.

But after actually being there, Xu Xiaoshou understood why, in Shuang DAI's memories, even on the brink of death, he couldn't let go of that Sacred Trace Fruit.

"It's not about not letting go—it's that you truly can't let go!"

"It's not that I'm trash—it's that I really have to give every spiritual herb in this Shen Nong Medicine Garden a share of my love!"

"Their destiny shouldn't be to wither away on this forgotten Kong Xu Island; they should end up in Elder Sang's Dragon and Phoenix Harmony Bath Tub, transformed into plump, perfect pills!"

Wiping drool from his mouth, Xu Xiaoshou dashed to the ancient tree where Lei Xier was hiding.

"Got it?"

Lei Xier looked at Xu Xiaoshou, his face wild with madness. She felt worried and expectant, fearful and tense, and asked cautiously, "How much did you take?"

"Just a little."

Xu Xiaoshou waved his hand and rambled on:

"No time to explain; the Sheng Di Long Lin is going berserk right now. You two hurry into the Yuan Fu and hide."

"Little white cat! No stealing! If you touch even one sacred herb, I'll swallow every hair on your body!"

The Greedy God, White Fur, bristled.

"Meow!"

How much did you even take?

Lei Xier fell silent.

She felt Xu Xiaoshou's state was off—really off, like he needed a massive purification from her Shen Mo Pupils.

He was way too crazy!

But Xu Xiaoshou didn't waste another word or second.

He grabbed Lei Xier's hand with his left and scooped up the chubby cat with his right, then opened the Yuan Fu channel and tossed them both inside.

"Invisibility Technique!"

Sorry, sorry, sorry...

Kong Xu Servant, I'm so sorry to you!

But please, whatever you do, don't find me—please!

In the Miracle Forest.

A massive foot stamped down, sending blood and shadows flying.

Hong Dang, the Dragon Subduing Hand, was a standard body cultivator, and his escape techniques were nowhere near as good as those of a killer like Shuang DAI.

After running for so long, he still hadn't made it out of the Miracle Forest.

Covered in wounds, his body drenched in blood, with holy power surging from his injuries, Hong Dang was now completely unhinged.

"I can't die; I won't die."

"I've only just swallowed the Sacred Trace Fruit; I'm the top Tai Xu below the saints. How can I die here?"

"I want to challenge Ba Zun An; I want to rip that bitch Rao Yaoyao's clothes to shreds; I want to stomp Teng Shanhai under my feet and toy with him like trash!"

"I want it! I want it all!"

"But..."

"Shuang DAI, ahhh—I'll kill you! I absolutely will kill you!!!"

With his dragon soul possessed, Hong Dang stood ten zhang tall, like a little giant who could crush most Tai Xu on the Sheng Shen Continent and kick them around like balls.

But now, he was the one being kicked around like a ball under the three-hundred-zhang-tall Kong Xu Servant, rolling and scrambling in utter humiliation.

"Three zhang, ha ha ha..."

Another kick came, and Hong Dang's body exploded, only to be pulled back together at the limit by the holy power.

He clutched his head, shoved his fallen eyeball back in, and desperately pieced together his mangled body.

"Three zhang!"

"Go to hell with your three zhang!"

"Shuang DAI, ahhh—you damn beast, I have no grudge with you from the past or present, so how could you toy with me like this!"

Another kick sent him bursting apart like mud.

The Kong Xu Servant stood with arms folded, eyes twinkling with amusement as it watched the ball below explode and heal, explode and heal.

It had witnessed the full extent of human greed.

If he had just let go of that Sacred Trace Fruit, he could have lived and escaped the chase.

But anyone in his position—well, the first, or rather, the only choice—was to eat it!

The Kong Xu Servant watched this scene in silence, finding it absurdly ridiculous.

What was more important: life or opportunity?

Weren't opportunities meant to ensure survival, to make life better?

Swallowing the sacred herb only led to a miserable death...

Wasn't that completely against the purpose these people had in mind when they came to steal herbs?

"Sometimes, I really don't understand humans."

The Kong Xu Servant kicked again and again, intent on playing this ball to death.

It enjoyed this rare entertainment after countless years of calm.

Of course, if another Kong Xu Island sinner showed up right now, that would be even better.

Issue tasks, watch humans slaughter each other, then reward a few stones and bask in their respect and fear.

Humans—utterly defeated!

"But why does this guy keep talking about 'Shuang DAI'?"

The Kong Xu Servant stomped down again, its massive head pondering this small doubt.

It had only just woken from a nap and didn't think a millennium or more had passed, so it vaguely remembered that Shuang DAI was the name of that guy with number 800820 who had been killed before.

"The person is dead, and this human is still holding a grudge against a dead man?"

"Maybe it's an old grudge, formed outside Kong Xu Island."

The Kong Xu Servant didn't dwell on it.

As soon as it thought about issuing tasks, it recalled that little giant with number 800820.

What a nostalgia...

If that sinner turned into a little giant again and came to take on tasks, killing this human, that would be so entertaining.

Sadly, as it had said in their farewell, they'd never meet again.

Because after witnessing its power, no human would dare covet even a single weed in the Shen Nong Medicine Garden it guarded!

"I'm done playing. Since no other Kong Xu Island sinners are coming, I should tidy up and go back to sleep."

With that thought, the Kong Xu Servant stopped kicking the intruder like a ball. Instead, it reached down and grabbed the human who was still desperately mending his broken body.

"Ahhh—"

Hong Dang was still roaring.

He hated Shuang DAI, hated the Kong Xu Servant, and hated this heartless world even more!

"You're so noisy."

The Kong Xu Servant brought one blood-red eye close, its voice booming like thunder, nearly bursting Hong Dang's eardrums.

"Uh?"

In that instant, Hong Dang froze.

"You can talk?"

"You can communicate?"

His eyes widened suddenly as he realized his lifespan was nearly drained, and he was only hanging on by the power of the Sacred Trace Fruit.

And now, the Kong Xu Servant was telling him they could talk.

So, what was the point of all that running?

"Ah—"

Hong Dang wanted to clutch his head, but his hands were gripped tight, so he could only howl helplessly.

If I had known you could talk, I would have just told you the truth! Why did you chase me?!

"You're the noisiest human I've ever met."

The Kong Xu Servant rarely said so much, only because it had never seen such a noisy creature. Had this guy spent his whole life cultivating just to master yelling?

"You idiot! You absolute idiot!"

"How could you wait until now to speak to me..."

Hong Dang shook his head, tears of blood streaming down.

He couldn't beat the Kong Xu Servant, and with his lifespan ending, he didn't care about dying anymore. He just had to mock this giant.

"Hah, spit!"

He hawked up a thick glob of phlegm, splattering it on the Kong Xu Servant's red eye, and laughed maniacally.

"Ah ha ha ha—"

"You idiot, you're really an idiot!"

"You brainless brute with muscles for brains... Do you even know you shouldn't have chased me? You've fallen for Shuang DAI's trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain—your home's been robbed!"

The Kong Xu Servant was furious.

It hadn't expected this human to insult it with such a pathetic physical attack right before dying.

"Die."

It gripped Hong Dang's body with its right hand and reached out with its left to pinch his head.

"Kill me, kill me, ha ha ha..."

"Kill me!"

Hong Dang's eyes bulged with rage: "But, if you do, your Shen Nong Medicine Garden is probably gone too!"

The Kong Xu Servant wouldn't normally believe a human's words, but right then, a bad premonition hit it.

Lure the tiger away from the mountain? Home robbed?

It didn't fully understand, but "Shen Nong Medicine Garden is gone" was clear enough.

"What are you talking about?" the Kong Xu Servant asked.

"He he ha ha ha..."

Hong Dang grinned wickedly and didn't explain.

His time was up; he couldn't live anyway, so with his last breath, he roared at full volume: "I said you're a moron! A brainless fool who's rotted in the medicine garden! An unparalleled... total waste!"

"Roar!"

The Kong Xu Servant let out a low roar, completely enraged.

But before it could twist off the human's head, through its senses, it realized—the Shen Nong Medicine Garden was gone!

Vanished without a trace!

Not even a single weed remained!

"Roar—"

The Kong Xu Servant's eyes burst with blood light, and with a squeeze of its right hand, it accidentally crushed Hong Dang's body.

At that moment, it finally understood what the guy meant by "lure the tiger away from the mountain" and "home robbed."

But...

"Im-possible!"

The Kong Xu Servant panicked, its killing intent overflowing.

In a rage, it leaped into the air, stepping through space to return to the Shen Nong Medicine Garden and investigate.

Poor Hong Dang—his body was crushed, but he hadn't died yet. His head was still in the Kong Xu Servant's left hand, laughing maniacally.

"Ha ha ha, that mad?"

"You waste, why didn't you speak earlier? Are you mute?"

"If you'd spoken sooner, I wouldn't have... ended up like this? Pfft!"

"You should have gone back to check earlier, ha ha cough cough... But from your reaction, you've finally noticed, right? Your home's gone! Ha ha ha ha..."

The Kong Xu Servant, already angry, now crushed the noisy head without hesitation.

Tai Xu, Dragon Subduing Hand Hong Dang, dead!

One step, two steps, three steps...

The barrier of the Shen Nong Medicine Garden was still there, the channel intact, but the herbal fragrance and spiritual energy were completely gone.

Returning swiftly to the garden's edge, the Kong Xu Servant's body trembled.

It stomped through the protective barrier, and in its line of sight... nothing was left!

"The herbs!"

"My herbs!"

The Kong Xu Servant felt its vision darken and its body sway, nearly collapsing from rage.

So, these treacherous humans had used one of their own as bait to empty the Shen Nong Medicine Garden it had guarded for millions of years?

—There wasn't even a single herb in sight, just the spot where its bed used to be, now expanded thousands of times over, leaving only an endless pit three hundred zhang deep!

"Roar! Roar! Roar!"

The Kong Xu Servant clenched its fists and roared furiously into the deep pit.

It was furious!

It was enraged!

It was filled with hate!

"Who was it?!"

This crime deserved a thousand cuts, ten thousand slashes.

If that didn't kill them, they could be thrown into the inner island prison and locked away for life!

But...

The Kong Xu Servant had no idea who had emptied the garden—who they looked like, what their aura was like...

"Roar—"

The Kong Xu Servant was livid.

It existed solely to guard the Shen Nong Medicine Garden.

Now that its charge was gone, what reason did it have to keep living?

"Humans!"

"Deceitful humans!"

"Roar! Roar! Roar!!!"

It bent its knees and, in a fury, shot up into the endless sky.

In that instant, it surveyed the entire Miracle Forest from above.

No matter who the thief was, they must have picked up the scent of the spiritual herbs, and as long as Kong Xu Island remained sealed, they couldn't escape.

So, by following the herbal scent, it could find the culprit!

But before that!

With so many humans still wandering in the Miracle Forest...

"Because of your accomplice's crime..."

The Kong Xu Servant roared with bloodshot eyes, passing judgment: "All humans... must die!"

Not just the Miracle Forest...

Including all invaders and sinners on Kong Xu Island.

Now, they all had to die!

"Roar!!!"