Fang Ming stood on the back of a crown eagle, looking toward Sacred Palace.
Below him, the remaining eagle groups flew in formation
Fang Ming's gaze was calm.
The Eighty-Eight True Yang Building had couple of rules.
Passing rounds was not enough.
A low-grade pass only allowed one to move forward.
A middle-grade pass gave better rewards.
But a high-grade evaluation could send the challenger into the treasure room.
That was where the real benefits were hidden.
Fang Ming had strength, beasts, and preparation.
But True Yang Building was not simple. Even if one performed well, there was no guarantee of receiving the best result. Giant Sun Immortal Venerable's arrangements were layered and deep, and relying only on ability was not always enough.
Fang Ming needed another advantage.
Luck.
His eyes moved slightly.
"Find Ma Hong Yun."
The eagles scattered.
During the earlier scouting, Fang Ming had already marked the region where Ma Hong Yun had appeared. The Ma tribe remnants had been defeated, weakened, and scattered, but they had not vanished completely.
Soon, a wind chaser eagle returned with a cry.
Fang Ming turned.
"Lead."
The crown eagle beneath him spread its wings and shot forward.
A while later, Fang Ming saw the Ma tribe remnants.
They were resting near a shallow valley. Their camp was simple, their numbers were reduced, and the atmosphere was gloomy. Some people were eating, some were treating wounds, and some stared blankly into the distance, as if they still could not accept their fall.
Among them was Ma Hong Yun.
He sat with a bowl in his hand, eating without any elegance. Beside him, several Ma tribe members talked in low voices, their expressions tired.
Then shadows covered the ground.
Someone looked up.
His bowl fell.
"Eagles!"
Cries erupted through the camp.
A large number of eagles appeared overhead. Wings blotted out the sky, and the wind from their descent scattered dust and grass. Rank four and rank five flying beasts circled above, their eyes cold and sharp.
The Ma tribe remnants panicked.
Then Fang Ming descended.
He stood on the back of a crown eagle, his black robe moving in the wind, his expression indifferent. He did not greet them. He did not ask for permission. He did not even look at their leader first.
His gaze landed directly on Ma Hong Yun.
Ma Hong Yun froze.
"Eh?"
The crown eagle dropped lower.
Fang Ming extended his hand.
Before Ma Hong Yun understood what was happening, an invisible force wrapped around him and pulled him upward.
"Ah! Wait! Wait! My bowl—"
The bowl fell to the ground.
Ma Hong Yun was lifted onto the eagle's back.
The Ma tribe remnants stared blankly.
Several Gu Masters instinctively stepped forward, but they stopped almost immediately.
Fang Ming was rank five peak stage.
His eagle army was hovering over their heads.
The Ma tribe had already fallen. Their current strength could not afford to offend such a person. More importantly, Ma Hong Yun was not even a true core member of Ma tribe. He was an outsider who had only been given the Ma surname.
For him, should they risk their lives?
No one moved.
Their faces turned ugly.
Fang Ming had entered their camp, taken someone away, and left without saying a word. This was not merely forceful. It was disregard. He did not put their tribe or their reputation in his eyes at all.
But humiliation without strength could only become silence.
The crown eagle rose.
Ma Hong Yun struggled at first.
"Let me go! Who are you? Why are you taking me? I did not steal anything!"
Then he looked down.
The ground was already far below.
The camp had become small.
The people below looked like insects.
Ma Hong Yun's body stiffened. His hands grabbed the eagle feathers tightly, and his voice became much smaller.
"Senior… maybe we can talk?"
Fang Ming looked ahead. "Now you want to talk?"
Ma Hong Yun swallowed. "It is too high."
Fang Ming's lips curved faintly.
This person was exactly as expected.
He really was simple minded.
But he had something more terrifying than intelligence.
Heaven Rivalling Fortune.
A rank eight luck path Immortal Gu.
Fang Ming could not copy it. He could not seize it. He could not even touch that level right now.
But he could borrow its influence.
If Ma Hong Yun benefited from Fang Ming's gains, then Ma Hong Yun's luck might push those gains to become better.
A person did not need to own the wind to sail with it.
Fang Ming said, "Ma Hong Yun, I have taken a liking to you."
Ma Hong Yun blinked. "Ah?"
"I intend to accept you as my disciple."
Ma Hong Yun's eyes widened.
"Disciple?"
"I am rank five peak stage. I have my own inheritance and methods. You are weak now, but your luck is not bad."
Ma Hong Yun immediately became nervous. "Senior, I am only rank one…"
"That is why you need a teacher."
Ma Hong Yun opened his mouth, then closed it again.
A rank five peak expert wanted to take him as a disciple?
This was not a small matter.
In Ma tribe, he had never been anyone important. Most people looked down on him. Even after being given the Ma surname, he was still treated as someone who had stumbled into fortune by accident.
But now, this powerful expert had personally taken him from the camp.
Ma Hong Yun scratched his head.
"Senior, are you sure you did not take the wrong person?"
"I did not."
"Then… why me?"
Fang Ming looked at him.
"Because you have potential."
Ma Hong Yun was moved.
He believed it.
Not because the words were very convincing, but because he wanted them to be true.
Fang Ming continued: "Iam going to explore Eighty-Eight True Yang Building. I will bring you inside. You will see how high-ranking Gu Masters fight. You will learn. And if I gain inheritance benefits, I will share part of them with you."
Ma Hong Yun's breathing became heavier.
"Inheritance benefits?"
"Yes."
Fang Ming paused, then added calmly, "And if you want to be with Zhao Lian Yun, remaining weak will not do."
Ma Hong Yun's face instantly turned red.
"Zhao— Zhao Lian Yun? Senior, what are you saying! I, I do not…"
"You do."
"I don't!"
"You do."
Ma Hong Yun lowered his head, his ears red.
Fang Ming did not continue teasing him.
"Zhao Lian Yun has background, intelligence, and ambition. If you remain weak, you can only follow behind her like a fool. If you want to stand beside her, you need strength, status, and resources."
Ma Hong Yun became quiet.
These words touched him more than the promise of inheritance benefits.
Fang Ming's tone remained even.
"Follow me until the Eighty-Eight True Yang Building inheritance ends. I will provide enough resources for you to cultivate to rank five."
Ma Hong Yun lifted his head suddenly. "Rank five?"
"Yes."
Ma Hong Yun's eyes shone.
To him, rank five was an enormous height.
Fang Ming continued: "If I obtain an immortal inheritance, I will share twenty percent of its content with you."
Ma Hong Yun's mouth opened slightly.
"If I obtain an inheritance suited to my own path, I will share fifty percent of its content and knowledge with you."
Ma Hong Yun stared at him in disbelief.
"Senior, are you serious?"
"Yes, i never go back on my words."
Fang Ming's expression was calm, and his voice did not fluctuate.
Ma Hong Yun was not clever enough to suspect the deeper calculation behind those words. To him, Fang Ming looked like a powerful senior who had suddenly discovered his talent and wanted to train him.
He was confused and frightened, but he was also tempted.
Rank five resources.
Inheritance benefits.
A powerful teacher.
And Zhao Lian Yun.
Ma Hong Yun clenched his fists.
"Senior… if you really teach me, I will learn properly!"
Fang Ming nodded.
"Good."
Inside, his thoughts were clear.
The promise was not empty. If Ma Hong Yun's luck helped him obtain something valuable, sharing a portion was acceptable. If the inheritance was suited to Fang Ming's path, then he was willing to share it—this was good business.
Ma Hong Yun's luck was terrifying, but without enough strength, he could not turn that luck into benefits, or even benefit from it at all. Fang Ming wanted to be that strength, but he also wanted a share of the benefits. The only way to do that was by aligning his future gains with Ma Hong Yun's.
Only then would Heaven Rivalling Fortune have a reason to tilt the board and influence Fang Ming's luck positively.
The crown eagle flew toward Sacred Palace.
When Fang Ming arrived, Hei Lou Lan and several Hei tribe elders were already gathered near the entrance arrangement of Eighty-Eight True Yang Building.
They noticed Fang Ming immediately.
Then they noticed Ma Hong Yun behind him.
A rank one Gu Master.
Awkward.
Nervous.
Clinging to the eagle feathers as if afraid he would fall, even though they had already landed.
Hei Lou Lan frowned. "Brother Fang Ming, who is this?"
Fang Ming stepped down from the eagle.
"My disciple."
The Hei tribe elders' expressions changed.
Disciple?
This dumb-looking rank one Gu Master?
Ma Hong Yun hurriedly climbed down and nearly stumbled.
Fang Ming continued naturally: "I found a worthy inheritor of my legacy. This little guy has some potential, so I am bringing him to see how high-ranking Gu Masters fight."
Hei Lou Lan looked Ma Hong Yun up and down.
He did not see anything special.
"Can he enter?"
"He has Huang Jin bloodline," Fang Ming said.
Ma Hong Yun nodded quickly. "Yes, yes, I am Ma Hong Yun."
The Hei tribe elders exchanged glances.
Ma tribe?
The defeated Ma tribe?
Some of them frowned slightly, but none spoke.
Hei Lou Lan thought for a moment, then waved his hand casually.
"Fine. If Brother Fang Ming wants to bring him, then bring him."
He did not care much.
A rank one Gu Master could not change anything in his eyes. If Fang Ming wanted to train a junior, that was Fang Ming's own business.
The Hei tribe elders, however, were far more curious.
Their eyes kept drifting toward Ma Hong Yun.
How did this fellow attract Fang Ming's attention?
Was he hiding some talent?
Was his bloodline special?
Was there something about him that ordinary people could not see?
Ma Hong Yun felt uncomfortable under their gazes. He scratched his head and moved closer behind Fang Ming.
No one mocked him openly.
Fang Ming was standing there.
Hei Lou Lan took out a guest token and gave it to Fang Ming.
Ma Hong Yun stared at the enormous Eighty-Eight True Yang Building, his mouth slightly open.
"Senior… we are going inside that?"
"Yes."
"Will it be dangerous?"
"Yes."
Ma Hong Yun swallowed. "Can I stand behind you?"
"You should."
Fang Ming walked forward.
Ma Hong Yun followed carefully.
Hei Lou Lan glanced at them once, then activated the token.
A strong pressure descended.
For an instant, Ma Hong Yun's face turned pale.
Fang Ming did not look back.
The building accepted them.
The guest token in Fang Ming's hand began to melt like cold iron, flowing between his fingers.
The world shifted.
Fang Ming's eyes remained calm.
Beside him stood Ma Hong Yun, carrying heaven-defying fortune without knowing it.
Ahead waited the round.
Beyond the round waited the evaluation.
And beyond the evaluation waited the treasure room.
Fang Ming stepped into Eighty-Eight True Yang Building confidently.
If this test succeeded, and his theory about Fortune Rivaling Heaven Gu proved correct, then he might attempt some risky plans he had been hesitant about.
As this thought passed through his mind, he glanced briefly at Hei Lou Lan.
Then he shifted his gaze back.