The scenery in the arena rippled outward like waves. When the waves settled, Zhang Yuanqing returned to his bedroom. "Drip, drip..." Blood fell from his chest, pooling thickly on his torn T-shirt. Due to the waning of the Yin energy, the wound that pierced his chest had not fully healed and continued to bleed slowly. Zhang felt no pain—perhaps he had simply grown numb. He walked to the full-length mirror by the window and saw himself: pale, his clothes and pants torn, with claw marks and bruises scattered across his arms, cheeks, thighs, and waist and abdomen. Now, he looked like a condemned prisoner who had just endured a brutal interrogation. So tired, so uncomfortable... Zhang drew the curtains and slowly sat down on the floor, lying flat in a broad, sprawling position. Just sleep on it—sleep is the best rest. Zhao Chenguang is now receiving treatment with the life essence fluid; the second-generation spiritual practitioners truly have their advantages, something we commoners can't match. I've won—I'm the champion, and I've secured the Hou Tu boots. When I was leaving, I was too hazy-headed to remember bringing back the Yin Shi, but that's fine—Fu Qingyang will retrieve them for me. The exhaustion from the intense battle surged over me, and I'm also hungry, though now I simply don't have the energy to get up and eat. …… Midday, Wuhen Hotel. Xiao Yuan was unusually restless, frequently checking her phone, reading messages and glancing at the time. By 11:40, she finally couldn't wait anymore and opened the chat app to send a message to Yuan Shishen: "Has the match ended?" The message went unanswered—no reply came. Xiao Yuan took a deep breath, her chest rising visibly beneath her white shirt, and patiently waited. By 12:30, after sending a message to Kou Beiyue about her meal, Xiao Yuan dialed Yuan Shǐ Tianzun's number. "Sorry, the number you've dialed is currently off the hook..." Hearing the voice prompt, Xiao Yuan furrowed her brows—had the match not yet concluded? According to Yuan Shǐ's account, today's final showdown was for the championship, featuring only him and Zhao Chenghuang. How long could such a match last on the platform? It had been all morning now, and still no end in sight. Honestly, Xiao Yuan was genuinely curious about the outcome, somewhat hopeful, yet didn't feel overly optimistic. As a newcomer among the spiritual realm travelers, Yuan Shǐ Tianzun's very presence in the top three was already a pleasant surprise. Winning the championship seemed unlikely—should he actually win, it would suggest a troubling decline in official talent. At that moment, the hotel door opened, and an outside delivery rider entered, wearing a blue safety helmet. He had a handsome face, with well-defined brows and sharp eyes, resembling a fierce little wolf dog. Kou Beiyue returned, carrying the delivery rider's special box. He brought back a plentiful lunch for Xiao Yuan and himself. During this period, Xiao Yuan has been thriving financially—selling information about Yuan Shishen several times, and earning an additional 200,000 by hunting down yin corpses on Yuan Shishen’s behalf—so her financial situation has greatly improved. After several months of delivering meals, Kou Beiyue’s complexion, once pale, has now turned into a healthy wheat hue. Drenched in sweat, Kou Beiyue stood at the air conditioner outlet by the door, enjoying a refreshing breeze before hurrying over and saying, “Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yuan—while I was delivering meals, I encountered the ‘Blood Bun’.” Xiao Yuan frowned slightly, asking, “Do you still have contact with him?” The ‘Blood Bun’ is a subordinate of Gu Wang, the Vice President of the Spiritual Energy Association. He played a key role in the Black Immortal Incident and was assigned to serve as a district official in Jinshan City, where he established the Jinshan City Office specifically to attract and recruit evil professionals. This person is deeply inflexible about delivering food deliveries—he rides his small electric bike in the heat, persistently visiting homes one by one, and in doing so, happens to meet Kou Beiyue. Person Blood Mutton believes Kou Beiyue, who also loves delivering food, has potential and thus exchanges contact information. Although Kou Beiyue strongly insists he doesn't particularly enjoy delivering food, but rather does so out of necessity, Person Blood Mutton doesn't believe him. "Don't worry," Kou Beiyue shouts, "that man isn't a good person—he's emotionally volatile, ruthless when it comes to killing, yet he's not a bloodthirsty killer. He's just an ordinary bad guy. Isn't there a shortage of such ordinary bad guys in official circles?" Seeing Xiao Yuan's expression grow serious, he quickly adds, "I just want to gather intelligence from him. It's better than you having to make daily trips to the black market. Just now, I already picked up something remarkable." "Remarkable intelligence," Xiao Yuan chuckles dryly. After becoming a bewitching demon, Kou Beiyue has been under the protection of Master Wuhen, studying and practicing together with him—she could truly be said to have little worldly experience. She had no idea what information was crucial and what wasn't. Most of the time, she was simply convinced by ordinary updates, like the "human blood buns" casually handed to her. “Zhao Chenghuang, 15 million, one piece of Saint-level equipment.” “Only I am supreme, 15 million, two pieces of elite equipment from the Transcendent Realm.” “Sun Miao Miao, 10 million, two pieces of elite equipment from the Transcendent Realm.” “Land God, 15 million, one piece of elite equipment from the Transcendent Realm.” “…” Zhao Chenghuang, who had originally ranked first among the Transcendent Realm cultivators, now settled at second place, while the top spot was claimed by Yuan Shi Tian Zun. The small, bright eyes of the girl slightly narrowed, and her vibrant face went stiff. At this moment, as she processed the information, the only thought that remained in her mind was: The match results have been announced. Yuan Shi Tian Zun has won! He defeated Zhao Chenghuang—he actually defeated Zhao Chenghuang! The girl gently set her phone down and gazed out toward the hotel’s exterior, lost in thought. After a while, she placed her phone on the table and softly said: “I’ll go see Master Wuhen.” … In the study, Ling Jun moved around the corpse of the shadowy spirit, inspecting it carefully and said, "This body is still showing traces of the earth monster's essence. Remarkable—where did Yuan Shǐ Tian Zun obtain this corpse? I don't recall him having requested assistance from you, nor did you mention it yourself." The first deceased was being tightly wrapped by vines, roaring and struggling fiercely, twisting and writhing, trying to break free and kill the living people in sight. His assigned instruction was to eliminate enemies—by default, to kill all living beings. When the master had angered the crowd and fled, he hadn't had time to issue a command to end the combat stance. Fu Qingyang sat behind the desk, calmly saying, "You're not from the Five Elements Alliance, so I don't need to tell you everything." Shifting the topic, he added, "Go inform the second Rabbit Maiden to prepare the payment—each White Guard member will receive a bonus of one million." "Got it!" Ling Jun beamed and departed. After watching the waste leave, Fu Qingyang picked up his phone and opened the chat app. Five Elements Alliance, Elder Group. [Dog Elder: Excellent! Now both the Champion of the Transcendent Realm and the Champion of the Sage Realm are from our Five-Element Alliance.] [General of the Tang Dynasty: It's been quite some time since we've truly risen to prominence. Back then, even before the Female Marshal gained momentum, we had to secure the titles of Champion in the Transcendent and Sage Realms in two separate efforts.] [Lotus Goddess: Master Yuanshishen's talent is truly astonishing—his future achievements are boundless. The reputation of Elder Sun as being slow-witted will never be erased.] [Fire Sea War God: This is quite interesting—Master Yuanshishen has caught my eye. I'm particularly impressed. You, the White Tiger troops, should hand him over to our Red Fire Clan. Ahahaha!] To reach the level of the Supreme Ruler, ordinary benefits are deemed insignificant—what matters most is face. Fu Qingyang chuckled, these so-called "old fellows": when buying Zhao Chenghuang, they acted without hesitation, pouring in millions without even blinking; yet when it came to acquiring Yuan Shi Tianzun, they were miserly, settling for just tens or hundreds of thousands. Now that Yuan Shi Tianzun has defeated Zhao Chenghuang, the elders are all beaming with satisfaction. Indeed, millions are nothing for them—face still holds greater weight. Fu Qingyang sent the message: 【Fu Qingyang: Thank you all for your generous support!】 A simple sentence, yet it struck like a resounding slap. The otherwise pleasant atmosphere in the elder group suddenly fell silent. No one spoke. After a few seconds, Fu Qingyang saw a notification pop up on his phone screen: 【You have been removed from the group chat】 ... When Zhang Yuan regained consciousness, it was already evening. He propped himself up with a weary body, glanced down at his chest—where the penetrating wound had long since healed, leaving no scar. Wounds and bruises across his body vanished. His condition had recovered about 30 to 40 percent—he was so hungry. He staggered to his feet, shedding his tattered clothes, holding his dry T-shirt, pants, and towel, and carefully made his way to the door, turning the locked handle. He opened a narrow crack and listened to the sounds in the living room. Outside, everything was quiet. Neither his grandparents was there. At this time of day, Grandpa should be strolling around the neighborhood, chatting with neighbors, while Grandma had gone to the market to buy ingredients for dinner. Zhang Yuanqing quickly slipped into the bathroom, washing away the bloodstains on his body, then picked up the mop and returned to the bedroom, wiping clean the bloodstains, pooled water, and the human-shaped outlines formed by sweat. He gathered his tattered clothes and pants into a trash bag, went downstairs, and tossed them into the small building’s trash bin. After completing all this, Zhang Yuanqing, now clean and fresh, turned and headed straight to the yellow chicken restaurant outside the complex. He ordered three servings of yellow chicken, and in the owner’s gaze, he saw clear signs of envy. While waiting for the yellow-braised chicken to be served, he eagerly pulled out his phone, turned off flight mode, and realized he had one unanswered call from Fu Qingyang. As usual, he first sent a message to Aunt Xiao Yuan celebrating the victory, then went through the congratulatory messages one by one—from Xie Lingxi’s “Brother is truly amazing,” to Dajibu’s “Whoa, you’re out of this world!” from Li Dongze’s “Oh my god,” to Guan Ya’s “Congratulations! From now on, the eel will never go hungry again.” This woman’s meat-based jokes are getting more and more absurd… The diligent student Zhang Yuanqing replied to Guan Ya with a modest expression: “I’m still a kid, I don’t quite understand what you’re saying. Um, is Master Bao available tonight? I’m feeling hungry.” Then he opened the Bai Huiwei group chat and saw Fu Qingyang’s message to him: [Fu Qingyang: Wake up and remember to head to Fu’s Village to retrieve your corpse.] [Have the Phoenix Arrived: Master is the best!] [The Seventh Prince: Leader is the best!] [Little Axe: Thank you, Master 】 【Sweeping the World: Thank you, Master!】 Even the usually quiet members of the White Tiger Guard have sent messages saying "Thank you, Master!" Hmm? Why aren't anyone talking about me? Am I not the star of today's event? Zhang Yuanqing felt a bit disappointed and scrolled down through the chat messages. 【Fu Qingyang: Each person will receive a bonus of 1 million yuan, excluding mid-year and annual bonuses.】 "!!!" Zhang Yuanqing opened his inbox and found the notification message confirming the deposit of 1 million yuan. 【Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn: The Captain will reign supreme for a thousand years and a hundred generations, blessed by heaven and entrusted with the mandate of the emperor—may he live forever and prosper.】 A wave of "Thank you, Boss" emoji messages flooded the screen. 【Nanjiu: Oh no, I can't keep up with him.】 【Xiao Nao Fu: ...】 【You Feng Lai Yi: Doesn't the Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn have any pride of a genius?】 【Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn: Under the magnificent radiance of the Fu Qingyang: Don't misunderstand—this is a championship reward. I don't encourage flattery and back-scratching; please don't follow suit. You Feng Lai Yi: ... Qī Cì Láng: ... Leaving the group chat, Zhang Yuanqing eagerly opened the forum, eager to see the official reviewers' evaluations of himself. That's where the real story unfolds. ... In the dimly lit bedroom, Zhu Rong, dressed in a long dress, lounged lazily against a single sofa, one of her long, graceful legs curled elegantly. She gazed at the young people in the room and smiled gently: "Give me his blood."