The demon king chuckled coldly, "The erosion of the Fallen Holy Grail is growing stronger, and negative emotions are rising steadily. I've simply chosen sensuality—the least costly outlet—for my release. That's far better than slaughtering ordinary mortals. Though I don't particularly care about their lives, accumulating merit points isn't easy. Hey, given my current state, even if you're pregnant, you're still a karmically doomed being—once born, I'll simply strangle you." Teng'er's mother gasped and scolded, "You heartless thing!" The bed and the body seemed to have become instruments, weaving together into a symphony that sent blood rushing to the veins. Zhang Yuanqing shook his head. Shouldn't the demon king have ascended to the rank of Sovereign by now? His character had already deteriorated into that of a purely evil being. Choosing sensuality—the least costly of all negative emotions—among so many? It seemed that, in his later journeys, he deliberately sought out and poked the hindquarters of every mother dog he encountered. Yet, he still retained a measure of conscience. Indeed, desire is the most cost-effective and least damaging choice—far better than extensive destruction or slaughter. "Fast forward!" Zhang Yuanqing urged. The Cat King speaker obediently fast-forwarded the audio, concluding a one-hour bed scene in just a few minutes. No valuable information was gathered from this segment. The Cat King speaker then proactively transitioned to the next section. After listening for a while, Zhang Yuanqing noticed no desired information and immediately said: "I want information about Ling Jun's mother." Although the Cat King speaker was of extraordinary rank and possessed self-awareness, its spiritual depth even surpassed that of the rule-based artifact, the Red Dance Shoes. Teng'er's mother's moans paused, followed by a series of crackling electrical sounds. Soon, a new audio segment began. The magic lord said: "Indeed, older women are more captivating—my mother, I look forward to meeting you every month." The woman scoffed, "You're not one for sweet words. Saying nice things means you're either a thief or a cheat." Though the tone was harsh, her voice was soft and weak, clearly having just been severely whipped. The demon king chuckled, "Even if I don't offer sweet words, you'd still lie quietly on the bed, letting me play with you, wouldn't you? By the way, do you remember your sister—your former sister-in-arms, who had a short and tragic life? She claimed to have discovered a huge secret. Hm, if she didn't want you to know, she'd never have told you." The woman remained silent for a few seconds, no longer delicate or languid. She said, "I truly didn't know. She never gave any hints." The demon king replied, "Perhaps the hints were already given to you, but you simply didn't notice. Try to recall everything about her—especially after she made that phone call." The woman fell silent again, remaining speechless for fully two minutes. The room was quiet, with only the soft sound of her breathing. "I seem to have a hunch about this..." the woman said, her tone somewhat uncertain. "After that phone call, my sister later told me that the incident was just a joke. She talked to me at length—about our father, who seemed warm and gentle on the surface but was actually extremely pragmatic and goal-oriented, and about my brother, who had a calm, Zen-like demeanor. She also mentioned the planting competitions we used to have as children—the family held an annual 'cultivation and rearing' competition, where the same plants and animals were raised using different methods, yielding vastly different results. 'I always lost to my sister,' I said. 'The spiritual plants and animals she nurtured were always stronger than mine. I used to suspect that our father favored her, secretly giving her special attention. I've always wanted to know her cultivation techniques, but she never shared them with me. 'Yet that day, she willingly shared her methods with me.' Hearing this, Zhang Yuanqing felt a surge of renewed energy. Now, seeds were secured, and the secret of the cultivation techniques had been uncovered—finally, the mystery of that past year was within reach. The mage king furrowed his brow, "The method of cultivation? How does that relate to the secret she discovered?" The woman replied, "I'm not sure either." The mage king asked, "What exactly is the method of cultivation?" "Even if I tell you, only the wood spirits can truly understand and master it," the woman clearly wasn't willing to reveal more. The mage king huffed, and then, with a rhythmic sound of the bed creaking under pressure, the woman began to softly hum. Zhang Yuanqing, no longer eager to listen to the bed scene, instructed, "I want to hear the method of cultivation." The cat king speaker ceased playing audio and remained silent. It means that藤儿's mother never told the mage king—so there's no record of it in the cat king speaker? Zhang Yuanqing felt a bit disappointed. It seems now that he must meet this legendary "aunt" personally. "Let's unravel this secret before we head into the next instance." Zhang Yuanqing maintained his secrecy, picked up his phone, and was about to contact藤儿—only to find that his phone had also gone silent, as if hidden from signal. But he was still unwilling to end the night wanderings—should he lose the hidden protection, the Sovereign of the Moon might discover him. After a few seconds of thought, he devised a compromise solution, opened his book, picked up his pen, and wrote swiftly: "Contact Miao Teng'er; I wish to see her mother. The appointment is tomorrow morning. Miao Teng'er’s contact number: 189…" The eight-armed mirror’s cooling period will end at dawn tomorrow. Because it cannot be achieved quickly, ancient cultivators' techniques always emphasize gradual progression—this is dictated by the environment. Only the primary method of Taimei Sect, focused on the Yin energy, allows for "rapid development," though even this is relative. For an ordinary Night-Wanderer who begins cultivating Yin from the extraordinary stage, it takes five years to reach mastery. Given Zhang Yuancheng's current status—his broad perspective and authoritative approach—he can achieve mastery within a few months, and with the added enhancement from the companion moon spirit, even one month would suffice. As his thoughts shifted, the lively young attendant climbed back up, holding a piece of paper. Zhang Yuancheng picked it up and read: "All set." Done! He exhaled deeply, pushing the matter of the "seeds" out of his mind, then stepped out of the Night-Wanderer state. "Snap!" He snapped his fingers, and his form dissolved into starlight, vanishing into his bedroom. Three minutes later, Zhang Yuancheng descended upon Fu Qingyang's grand villa, his feet gliding on a five-clawed golden dragon, his presence concealed by the magic of illusion. — With the masterwork ring that has improved steadily over three months, the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon's episodes of "drowsiness" have noticeably decreased, and short-distance flights no longer risk losing their refined aura. Zhang Yuancheng folded the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon and entered the study directly, where he found Fu Qingyang. Seated behind the spacious desk, the young gentleman named Qian opened a drawer and produced a stack of printed materials. "All unexplored A-level instances, as well as those requiring team collaboration, are here—please take a look," he said. Zhang Yuancheng stepped forward, took the documents, and without hesitation settled himself on Qian's desk, beginning to read. [Shu Mountain Nan Yuan] [No.: 45] [Difficulty Level: A] [Type: Multiplayer (Death-Based)] [Main Quest: Address the strange phenomena enveloping Nan Yuan.] [Overview of Instance 45: Black smoke emanating from the main hall has settled over Nan Yuan. The footsteps, laughter, and cries heard within the smoke—more piercing than even a swordsman's blade—create an atmosphere of sharp, unsettling intensity.] … ... [Battle of the Black River] [No. 22] [Difficulty Level: A] [Type: Multiplayer (Death-based)] [Main Objective: Eliminate the enemy forces.] [Introduction to Scenario 22: Qin and Yan mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops at the Black River for a decisive battle. The Qin dispatches their legendary general, renowned for his prowess in annihilating enemies, who vows to achieve national extinction in a single campaign.] … ... [The Last Sovereign] [No. 36] [Difficulty Level: A] [Type: Multiplayer (Death-based)] [Main Objective: Character-specific mission.] [Introduction to Scenario 36: The southern and northern dynasties have been in conflict for a century. The southern court is plagued by corrupt ministers and deteriorating administration, leading to a steady decline in national strength. After three decades of preparation, the northern dynasty gathers its entire military force following the autumn harvest and advances southward, gradually capturing cities and fortresses, until the northern army reaches the capital of the southern dynasty.] … ... [Fighting Alone] [No. 17] [Difficulty Level: S] [Type: Single-player (Death-based)] [Main Objective: Recover the 】 【Introduction of the 17th Spiritual Realm: The army of the Western Barbarian Kingdom has feigned as bandits and attacked the Tang diplomatic delegation. The chief envoy, displaying exceptional martial prowess, manages to break through the siege, yet the precious gifts accompanying the delegation are stolen, severely damaging Tang's prestige. Upon returning home, he faces certain death. With his troops heavily depleted and now operating alone, recovering the tribute goods proves nearly impossible—his options are limited, and he is caught between a rock and a hard place, difficult, difficult, difficult...】 Zhang Yuancheng carefully reviewed the quest details and found that, in total, there were only seven uncompleted A-grade and S-grade quests. Of these, only two could accommodate the arrival of extraordinary or sage-level travelers. One was an A-grade quest, the other an S-grade quest. "There aren't many," he remarked, exhaling. Fu Qingyang responded calmly, "It's already exceptional when travelers at different stages enter the same quest." Such rarity makes it a solid opportunity for a modest benefit—definitely worthwhile—but to expect substantial profits from this 'exception' is unrealistic. Moreover, whether it truly constitutes a benefit remains uncertain. First, these副本 are all quite challenging, starting at A-level. Tasks assigned to the extraordinary and sage-level characters are much easier, and the rewards they receive cannot possibly match those of A-level rewards from master-tier dungeons—yet the risks they bear are substantial, since the maximum difficulty of these dungeons reaches the master level. The sages returning from the realm of the dead wish to accompany Yuan Shi into the dungeons, drawn specifically by their group's proven ability to tackle master-tier dungeon challenges—effectively securing an A- or S-level dungeon slot for them. "Boss, I'd like to choose the 'King of the Fallen Nation' dungeon. I'm not confident about the S-level one, but the A-level one feels manageable with solid rewards," Zhang Yuanqing opted for a more secure A-level dungeon. A-level difficulty—moderate... Fu Qingyang nodded. "Exactly as I expected. By the way, this time, since we're forming teams with familiar faces, Ling Jun will also need to claim one spot." As he spoke, the money-son expressed a moment of confusion: "From the tone of his voice, he sounds full of energy and enthusiasm—something must have happened recently that I haven't heard about." Perhaps a wild fire fueled by maternal vengeance was blazing within her heart… Zhang Yuan thought, unsurprisingly—no matter how laid-back someone might be, knowing their mother might have been murdered would surely stir a desire for strength. It just remained to be seen whether she’d have a three-day enthusiasm or a complete transformation, truly turning around her life. Zhang Yuan pulled out her phone, took a photo of the fallen emperor’s avatar, and posted it to the guild group chat. 【Yuanshi Tianzun: @Everyone, get ready—we’ll enter the instance in two days.】 【Xie Lingxi: Ah ah ah, it’s so wonderful to be entering the instance together with Yuanshi Brother again—I’ve been missing the Jinshui Amusement Park (blushing).】 Xie Lingxi and the Queen were also on the list of those entering the instance, both having successfully advanced to the rank of Saint in the year-end combat instance. 【Hong Ji Brother: The title of “Fallen Emperor”? Doesn’t sound very auspicious. I’ll go visit the temple and ask for blessings over the next few days.】 【Xiahou Aotian: You just need to ask me—I’ll take care of it Then, I didn't quite understand the role tasks for the副本.】 【Heaven Returns to Fire: The tasks should vary depending on the characters—naturally, the responsibilities of the Saints and Masters will differ.】 【Red Chicken Brother: Still a shame for the Fire Master! (gives a big thumbs-up!)】 Heaven Returns to Fire paid no attention to him. At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing's phone rang—caller ID read: "The Pouty Knight!" What could this guy possibly want? Zhang Yuanqing answered the call, and instead of Si Cai's voice, he heard a young woman's voice: "Master Yuan Shi, is that you? I'm An Ye Qi." An Ye Qi? The attractive secretary with a high hairline? Zhang Yuanqing remembered her, and said, "Yes, I'm here—what's the matter?" An Ye Qi hurried: "Our boss has had an emergency.