"We were at Cloud-Drifting Mountain..."
Dustin Lee recounted their entire experience to Lance Xu and his wife, Susan Shen, leaving out no details.
The couple listened, their jaws dropping lower with every sentence.
"A worldly expert... living in seclusion on Cloud-Drifting Mountain?" Lance Xu murmured, finding it hard to believe.
He had visited the foot of that mountain many times. For centuries, the peak had been sealed by an ancient, impenetrable ban. Many had tried to explore it, but none succeeded.
And now, the ban was gone? And someone was living there?
It sounded like a fairy tale.
"Dad, Mom, it's all true! I saw it with my own eyes!" Serena Xu chimed in enthusiastically.
Lance exchanged a glance with his wife, Susan.
"If that is true," Lance deduced, rubbing his chin, "then this person must be a horrifyingly powerful entity."
Dustin, Bobby, and Serena nodded like bobbleheads.
Susan's face lit up with joy. "Honey, with these Heavenly Treasures, forget about the Three Sect Tournament. Our Mystic Sword Sect has a real shot at becoming the Number One Sect in the entire Heavenly Martial Empire!"
"Exactly," Lance agreed, his anxiety melting away. "Especially this Verdant Origin Grass. It's exactly what I needed to break through my bottleneck."
Lance looked ten years younger. The depression from earlier was gone, replaced by pure hype.
"You three did well," Lance said, looking at his disciples with pride. "Not only did you bring back these treasures, but you also formed a connection with a supreme being. This is a massive stroke of luck for our sect."
"It was our duty, Master!" Dustin said, grinning.
Lance immediately rewarded each of them with a Limit-Breaking Pill.
The trio was ecstatic. A Limit-Breaking Pill was expensive stuff—enough to boost their cultivation by a whole level.
"Thank you, Master!" they bowed in unison.
Clutching the bundle of Verdant Origin Grass, Lance rushed off to his meditation chamber immediately.
With the tournament starting two months early, he had no time to lose. He needed to turn this grass into pills and power up.
He also made a mental note: After the tournament, I must personally visit Cloud-Drifting Mountain to pay my respects to this Quinn Ye.
Meanwhile, back at Cloud-Drifting Mountain.
Quinn Ye was staring at the pond in his backyard. He frowned, feeling like something was missing.
"It looks empty. I should go down the mountain and buy some fish fry. See if I can keep them alive."
As usual, he left Big Fuzz in charge of house security. Quinn hiked down the mountain alone, heading to the nearby market.
Once Quinn was gone, Big Fuzz yawned, flopped down by the gate, and soaked up the warm sun. Within seconds, he was snoring.
In the corner of the yard, the rabbit—who had been pretending to gnaw on a radish—finally revealed its true colors.
It let out a sinister, villainous grin.
Heh heh heh!
My time has come!
This was no ordinary bunny. It was a Great Demon that ruled over the surrounding hundreds of miles.
In the monster community, it was kind of a big deal. It considered itself the "Rising Star of the Monster World."
The rabbit glared at the sleeping Golden Retriever.
"Hmph! A mere Dog Demon dares to bully The King? Outrageous!"
The rabbit spat on the ground in Big Fuzz's direction.
"So what if your cultivation is slightly higher than mine? Big deal! Once I eat all the Heavenly Treasures in this yard, I will skin you alive, you mutt!"
"I'm going to make Dog Meat Hotpot tonight!"
With a cold sneer, the rabbit launched itself toward the Seven-Leaf Crimson Fruit (Tomatoes).
But just then, Big Fuzz rolled over in his sleep.
Eek!
The rabbit froze, trembling in terror, and scrambled back to the corner.
It waited.
Big Fuzz kept snoring. The rabbit let out a breath of relief.
"Stupid dog. Just keep sleeping. Don't ruin my big moment!"
The rabbit crept toward the tomatoes again. Stealth mode: On.
But before it could take a bite...
ZAP!
A beam of white light shot out from inside the house.
It smacked the rabbit square in the chest.
The rabbit didn't even have time to react. It was sent tumbling backward, flipping through the air like a ragdoll.
When it landed, a huge patch of its white fur had been blasted off.
The rabbit was dazed.
"What... what was that?"
It looked toward the house. A mirror hanging on the wall was shimmering with a faint white glow.
The rabbit paused.
"That mirror... is it a Treasure?"
Greed instantly overcame fear.
The rabbit checked on Big Fuzz. Still sleeping.
Chance!
The rabbit charged into the house.
But the moment it crossed the threshold—
ZAP!
Another beam of white light.
The rabbit was launched out the door again.
This time, another large chunk of fur was gone, revealing pink, naked skin underneath.
The rabbit felt dizzy. It squinted at the room. The light hadn't come from the mirror this time. It came from a Calligraphy Brush sitting on the desk.
"Another Treasure?!"
The rabbit was shocked. But it was also stubborn.
"I will not be defeated!"
It charged into the room for a third time, head held high.
POW!
Another beam.
The rabbit flew even further this time.
By now, it was almost completely bald.
The rabbit wobbled to its feet, wanting to cry but having no tears left.
Are... are all the items in this house Divine Artifacts?
This is a trap! A house of horrors!
Inside the room: The mirror on the wall. The brush on the desk. The broom in the corner. Everything was glowing with a faint, terrifying holy light.
A breeze blew through the room, and the objects swayed gently, as if locking onto a target.
The rabbit didn't dare to go in again.
It felt like if it took one more step, it would be vaporized.
"Nope! I'm out! I'm leaving!"
The rabbit turned around to flee.
But immediately, it saw Big Fuzz.
The giant dog was no longer sleeping. He was lying right in front of the rabbit, blocking the exit.
"Mommy!"
The rabbit nearly had a heart attack.
Big Fuzz grinned, revealing sharp teeth. He reached out a massive tongue and licked the now-bald rabbit's head.
Slurp.
The rabbit shivered uncontrollably.
"Since you've entered my Master's yard, you better behave yourself from now on," Big Fuzz projected into its mind. His voice was calm, which made it even scarier.
The rabbit wept silently.
What kind of sin did I commit in my past life to deserve this?
Later, Quinn Ye returned.
He carried a bucket of fish fry. He looked at the corner and saw the rabbit shivering against the wall.
"Huh? Why is your fur gone? You're bald!"
The rabbit twitched, looking at him with eyes full of grievance.
Quinn turned to look at Big Fuzz suspiciously.
"Big Fuzz, did you bully him?" He patted the dog's head.
Big Fuzz rubbed his head affectionately against Quinn's hand, acting like the most innocent good boy in the world.
Quinn shrugged and went to the pond. He dumped the fish into the water.
Suddenly, the water in the pond began to churn violently.
It scared Quinn half to death.
"Whoa! What's happening?"
He jumped back.
BOOM!
A pillar of water shot up.
Visible to the naked eye, the tiny fish fry were growing at an insane speed. Within seconds, they had transformed into massive, golden, slender carp.
Quinn stood there, dumbfounded.
"What the hell? GMOs? Why did they grow so fast?"
Once the water calmed down, Quinn cautiously approached the edge.
He reached in and touched the water. Felt normal.
Curious, Quinn leaned over to peer deeper into the pond.
Down in the depths, a gigantic, vertical pupil opened and stared right back at him.
"HOLY SHIT!"
Quinn screamed, pissing his pants (metaphorically... mostly), and scrambled away on all fours.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, in an ancient, dilapidated palace.
A pair of eyes suddenly snapped open.
"In the Southwest... Why is there Dragon Qi soaring into the heavens?"