The aura of this Shura Horse was not as strong as Brother Gut-Bro's, merely stepping into the threshold of a Legendary Hero. Its foundation was clearly weaker; thus, even a Black Dragon on the verge of Grade 7 could only elevate it to this degree.
"Seeing it more clearly now, it really doesn't look like a Qilin anymore," Mu Zhong remarked. "A dragon's head, a human upper torso, and a horse's lower body—it's a bit too deformed."
Wei Huan remained silent. With a single thought, the Hero-grade Shura Horse received its command and turned to gallop across the void.
"What is it doing?" Mu Zhong asked, puzzled.
"Watch," Wei Huan replied.
As Wei Huan spoke, Mu Zhong noticed that with every step the Shura Horse took, its form expanded. Before it had traveled far, it stood a thousand meters tall, requiring one to tilt their head back fully to see its entire frame.
"Ah, good, another Dharma-Apparition class undead!" Mu Zhong nodded, his expression not particularly shocked. Over the past ten months, Wei Huan had conquered countless tombs in the Profession Temple, and not a single Dark Beast royal had escaped his grasp. With so many royals capable of size manipulation, plus Dot Mom's offspring inheriting the trait after her advancement, Mu Zhong was quite used to the "giant growth" ability.
Of course, size manipulation was far from useless. As the difficulty of their challenges increased, battlefields requiring pure Dharma-Apparition combat were inevitable. The more powerful methods they had, the better.
But the Shura Horse's next ability left Mu Zhong's mouth hanging open.
The three dragon heads began to sway in succession. One head exhaled a thick mist, instantly covering the sky with dense, dark clouds. Then, the other two heads opened their maws, spitting out bolts of lightning laced with destructive power.
These bolts surged through the dark clouds before crashing down. With a deafening 'crack', a nearby mountain was cleaved in half.
"Swallowing clouds, spitting mist, and commanding lightning? And you still say it's not a dragon?" Mu Zhong said in amazement. "Why is this world looking more and more like the era of myths from Blue Star's legends?"
Wei Huan didn't answer. Unlike Mu Zhong's wandering thoughts, he was immersed in the divine sensation of summoning wind and rain. He silently issued orders, and the lightning spat by the Shura Horse became even more ferocious.
'Crack!'
'Rumble!'
Thunderbolts rained down, devastating the mountains for ten miles. Rocks shattered and flew; beasts hiding in the range either fled for their lives or huddled in the depths, trembling with fear.
"Awoooo~~!"
Brother Gut-Bro also received Wei Huan's command, spreading his wings to weave through the lightning. Simultaneously, his fleshy wings flapped, calling forth a violent gale that swept up sand and stone into tornadoes, ravaging the landscape alongside the thunder.
The area ahead looked like the end of the world.
Even with modern human technology, natural disasters remained terrifying. Now, he could manifest them with his own hands.
After watching for a while, Mu Zhong said blankly, "I take back what I said earlier. This specialized breeding is incredibly valuable. This cataclysmic power makes your undead deployment truly formidable."
Wei Huan nodded. This journey to another world was proving to be deeply meaningful. Last time in the Dark Beast Plane, their main harvest was resources that strengthened humanity. This time, the world was of immense use to them as Challengers—it was a massive training ground where everyone saw huge improvements.
This place was truly a Blessed Land.
---
Wei Huan paused temporarily to test his newly bred undead, merely arranging for the other vehicles to follow the fleeing beasts. However, a message came from the lead car: the commotion Wei Huan caused had spooked the fleeing beasts. Instead of just running faster, they were scattering again in different directions.
"Continue west?" Mu Zhong asked. "They came from the west and are fleeing back there. There must be something significant in that direction."
Wei Huan nodded. "We'll go that way. No rush. If that truly is the Beast King's territory, we shouldn't underestimate the leader of an entire world. It will likely be a massive battle. We'll speed up once everyone has recovered a bit."
"Alright." Mu Zhong looked at Wei Huan. "Since it's a hard fight, you should rest well. It will all depend on you."
Wei Huan agreed; he needed to conserve his energy. He recalled the two undead, who were somewhat exhausted from their unrestrained display of power. Before leaving, he asked Mu Zhong, "Have you had any insights lately?"
Mu Zhong shook his head.
Wei Huan frowned. "If administrative work is hindering your cultivation, put it aside for a while. It's just a few people; it won't matter if they aren't managed for a few days."
Mu Zhong shook his head again. "It's not much work; it doesn't affect me. I just haven't found the right opportunity."
"What opportunity?"
"When we first arrived, I acted alone and felt the natural energy from the flora. But the situation was unclear then, and I didn't dare leave the shield, so the sensations were blocked. Once this operation is over, I'll find time to truly immerse myself in this world. I'm sure I'll gain an insight then."
"What about now?" Wei Huan wanted to prioritize Mu Zhong.
Mu Zhong declined. "My mind is preoccupied. An insight gained without focus won't be deep. Once we kill the Beast King, walk with me for a while."
"Alright. I'll go with you, whenever you're ready."
"Mm."
"Oh my!" Dou Lin's eyes darted between them, landing on their hands, which had somehow found each other. He suddenly covered his face in a mock-shy gesture.
The two of them, who were acting naturally, suddenly felt a hint of embarrassment. Wei Huan straightened his face, and Mu Zhong's ears turned red, though they didn't let go of each other's hands.
Mu Zhong asked, amused, "We're just holding hands. Why are you covering your face?"
Dou Lin replied, "Because you're about to kiss, and I can't watch that."
"Who said we were— don't make wild guesses, kid. It's late; go back to your room and sleep," Mu Zhong shooed him away. Dou Lin couldn't win the argument and was pushed out the door.
After closing the door, Mu Zhong leaned against the frame and smiled at Wei Huan. "Rest well, Captain."
Wei Huan walked past him, looked away from Dou Lin's peeping, expectant eyes, and reached up to tilt Mu Zhong's chin, pressing in for a quick kiss.
"Mph!?" Mu Zhong stiffened.
Dou Lin let out a "Wow" and covered his eyes, but his fingers were spread wide, revealing his dark, beady eyes. He watched the blood rush to Mu Zhong's face and giggled like a little mouse.
---
Wei Huan said he was going to rest, but he actually entered the Profession Temple.
In the Prime Great Tomb, the Nether Power was now so dense it was saturating the entire Tomb World. The strength of the undead living there had increased another notch. It was possible that the rule of undead being weaker than same-level Challengers was about to be broken.
Wei Huan didn't rush into the Tomb World or conquer others. He planned to organize his forces today for the upcoming war. Under his command, all his successfully recruited undead emerged from their respective tombs and flew toward the Prime Tomb.
Within moments, a massive army of over 200,000 undead filled the sky and ground. Ten months ago, he had 140,000; the reason it only increased by 60,000 was that he prioritized quality over quantity—recruiting high-level Dark Beasts and breeding elites. But in terms of combat power, the current Wei Huan could defeat several of his past selves.
Like a general reviewing his troops, he watched the units pass before him, committing his total strength to memory:
Wolf Legion
Pseudo-God Hero: None
Legendary Hero: Brother Gut-Bro
Epic Heroes: 12
Normal Heroes: 298
Normal Elites: 847
Normal Wolves: 60,000
Violent Bear Legion
Pseudo-God Hero: None
Legendary Hero: Big Bear
Epic Heroes: 12
Normal Heroes: 99
Normal Elites: 247
Normal Bears: 22,000
Shura Horse Legion
Pseudo-God Hero: None
Legendary Hero: New Leader "Black Dragon Horse"
Epic Hero: Moji (Tentative)
Normal Heroes/Elites: 0
Normal Shura Horses: 23,000
Burrow Beast Legion
Pseudo-God Hero: Dot Mom
Legendary Hero: Gouzi (First Son)
Epic/Normal Heroes/Elites: Grandchildren/Great-grandchildren
Normal Earth-Burrowers: 250,000+ (Offspring of the Queen's bloodline aren't counted in Wei Huan's recruitment limit)
Kobold Legion
Epic Hero: 1 Kobold Matriarch
Normal Heroes: 108 small kobolds under the Matriarch
Normal Elites: 200 Matriarchs
Normal Kobolds: 1,000 small kobolds
Flying Monkey Legion
Normal Elites: 135
Normal Flying Monkeys: 12,000
Magic Eye Lord Legion
Legendary Hero: 1
Normal Elites: 3
Normal Magic Eye Lords: 21,000
Two-Headed Hidden Demon Legion
Normal Hidden Demons: 68,000
Thinking Beast
Only one. It needed 2,000 more to reach Epic Hero rank. Currently, it provided a +1,000 attribute bonus; at Epic, it would provide +10,000. It had been slow because Wei Huan's Nether Power was mostly used for recruitment and specialized breeding.
Finally, his gaze fell upon the Bichon Frises floating around him. These white, cotton-candy-like dogs could fly, had vicious eyes, and shark-like teeth. These 78 "Dark Beast Royals" were his greatest harvest from the past ten months. He could have taken one a day, but he preferred the "sea of people" tactic and didn't want to waste all his undead as fodder for royals. He had slowed his conquest of the Tomb World to recruit high-level units like Hidden Demons instead.
Wei Huan's total count didn't include the Ghost Crows, except for Sister Crow. The 50,000 crows were scouts, not combat units. However, Sister Crow was now a Pseudo-God undead after eating the mysterious ghost bird. She could manifest a Nether Domain where grey snow fell, corroding enemies while buffing the undead and reducing Wei Huan's summoning costs by a third. With his new equipment, Wei Huan's combat endurance in the Nether Domain was now tripled.
He felt he had not only shattered the ceiling of the Grade 7 world but that even Grade 8 couldn't stop him. He was touching the edge of Grade 9—the end of the Challenge World.
---
Wei Huan woke from the Profession Temple and headed downstairs. Mu Zhong was sleeping in the cockpit of Brother Hammer's vehicle. Hammer had given them control, and since they were on board, Hammer barely entered the cockpit himself.
Mu Zhong was busy and couldn't enter the Temple every day. Being dual-classed was a disadvantage, and if not for Wei Huan giving him all the best resources like Nature Fruits, he wouldn't have kept up. Mu Zhong knew this and cultivated whenever he could. Knowing the time ratio was 2:1 compared to the Challenge World, he was using every spare moment to catch up.
Wei Huan didn't wake him and went to the Co-Captain's cabin at the front of the vehicle. It had large screens and a window looking out, plus a small balcony. Hammer was on duty inside. Wei Huan nodded and stepped onto the balcony.
"Status?"
"We slowed down," Hammer said. "The fleeing beasts are out of sight."
After the brief exchange, the silence returned. Both men were quiet by nature and were comfortable with the stillness.
By dawn, the sun rose behind them. The mountains were thinning out, replaced by vast plains. Wei Huan saw small, unintelligent animals peeking through the grass. He knew this world was complete with its own civilization and food chain. To avoid feeling pity, he chose to ignore the fragile lives below, focusing his gaze only on the distant mountains where the ruling beasts—the predators at the top of the food chain—would live.
As the sun reached its zenith, Mu Zhong woke and joined him.
"Notice anything?"
"No," Wei Huan replied.
Mu Zhong looked at a flat-topped mountain in the distance. "I wonder if the direction is right."
They both looked at the "broken" mountain. They didn't think much of it then, assuming it was a natural shape rather than something perfectly sliced off. After 20 more minutes of flight, they realized the mountain was still far away.
"That mountain is massive."
"Even at 1,000 km/h, it's barely grown in our vision."
"It's like the World Tree," Mu Zhong noted. "So huge you can see it from afar, but you never seem to get closer."
"That mountain is our destination. Any ruler would occupy such a high point over these plains."
"Prepare everyone for battle."
They moved into action. Mu Zhong called the crew to battle stations. Wei Huan opened ten summoning gates, deploying his undead army and ordering all vehicles to land on Dot Mom's back for protection.
Before he finished deployment, a massive beast army appeared ahead. Over 100,000 enemies covered the sky and ground, their demonic energy twisting the air.
'Roar!'
'Howl!'
The radar showed mostly Grade 4 and 5 beasts in the front—vanguard fodder. There was no room for negotiation; Wei Huan's status as an invader was clear. The Beast King had spent the last few days agonizing before mobilizing the entire race for a final stand.
Wei Huan hadn't known that while he traveled in peace, a world-wide draft had occurred. All beasts Grade 4 and above had been summoned to the royal court on the Sacred Mountain. As his army approached, the last hope for negotiation died. The Beast King gave the order to charge.
Wei Huan looked at the incoming tide of enemies and raised an eyebrow.
"So many? They want a group fight?"
That was his specialty.