Volume One: The Emperor's Sword Chapter 125: A Bountiful Harvest

Cao Ran was a Sword Disciple of the West Court, ranked fourth, possessing the cultivation of the ninth level of Qi Refining. He was known for his cunning swordsmanship and a cautious nature.

Upon arriving in the Transformation Realm, he began searching for various spiritual materials with all his might, recruiting the West Court disciples he encountered along the way with promises of substantial rewards. Cao Ran was a calculated man. He knew the Transformation Realm was too vast for him to harvest significant benefits on his own, but if he gathered a group of fellow disciples under his command, his gains would increase exponentially.

His goal was to climb the Sword Disciple rankings. Each advancement in rank brought better rewards, so this year he was determined to break into the top three of the West Court. He harbored ambitions of vying for the position of Chief of the West Court. He knew that since Chu Hu had been infuriated by a Sword Servant from the North Court, his focus would undoubtedly be on hunting that servant down upon entering the Transformation Realm, meaning Chu Hu’s own harvest would surely suffer compared to previous years.

Thinking of that North Court Sword Servant, Cao Ran felt a mix of disdain and gratitude. "What was his name? Yun something? A real hothead, daring to provoke even Chu Hu. I hope you’re lucky enough to drag out Chu Hu’s time a bit longer before you die." With this thought, Cao Ran chuckled with satisfaction.

At that moment, the Ironwood Beast and the Bone Lizard across from them had mauled each other into a bloody mess; both were on the brink of death.

"Attack!" Cao Ran signaled, striking first, with the other West Court disciples following suit. The battle ended quickly. The second-tier Bone Lizard was slain on the spot, its entrails spilled, while the equally second-tier Ironwood Beast collapsed into a mass of dead Ironwood Ants.

Satisfied with the result, Cao Ran commanded like a leader: "The Bone Lizard is mine; you lot can split the dead Ironwood Ants among yourselves."

Upon hearing they were only getting dead ants, the disciples were displeased. One complained, "A complete Bone Lizard is worth at least five sword tassels; no matter how many dead ants we have, they won’t even trade for one."

Cao Ran sneered inwardly and said, "Ironwood Ants are no ordinary insects. Ten catties of them can be refined into iron essence worth one spirit stone. This beast has at least a hundred catties. Each of you will receive about two spirit stones. Isn't this a harvest without any risk?" The disciples dared not speak further. They were only at the early stages of Qi Refining, while Cao Ran was a true late-stage Sword Disciple.

"With the loss of the mass of ants, the Queen must be extremely weak. We can dig her out and capture her!"

"The Queen is only a first-tier monster, not as strong as the Bone Lizard. We can handle her ourselves."

"If we catch the Queen, how will she be divided?" the disciples asked, looking at Cao Ran.

"You lot just dig; I’ll handle the Queen. The old rules: the dead ants in the nest go to you, the Queen goes to me." Cao Ran repeated his earlier terms, completely indifferent to the feelings of the disciples.

This was asking too much; doing all the work for no reward would satisfy no one. Seeing no one move, Cao Ran cajoled them: "The Transformation Realm is filled with danger; one moment of carelessness could cost your lives. Following me may not yield much, but at least you are safe. Don't you understand the concept of gathering crumbs to make a loaf? Dig! Once we catch the Queen, we’ll look for other treasures. I know a place where Lightning Stones are common. If we find even one, you’ll be well rewarded!"

Hearing the mention of Lightning Stones, the disciples were tempted, but recalling Cao Ran’s character, they still lacked the motivation to dig. However, one person began to move, swinging a pickaxe into the nest.

Cao Ran smiled smugly. "Look at him, that’s what it means to be a man of wisdom who submits to circumstances. Whoever digs out the Queen first gets a reward of one spirit stone!"

The disciples scoffed. The Queen was worth at least dozens of spirit stones; offering one was like throwing scraps to a dog. But they couldn't just stand around. Since someone had started, they had no choice but to follow.

Cao Ran was very pleased with the one who started first. He walked over, patted the man on the shoulder, and said, "Work hard! Follow me, and this trip will make you rich!"

"Sure thing!" The digger stopped, looked back, and grinned.

That grin scared the wits out of Cao Ran! It was a wrinkled, aged face covered in spots, with folds of skin over the eyelids. The person was not a fellow disciple, but an old woman who had appeared from nowhere!

Before Cao Ran could react, the old woman swung the pickaxe down. The fourth-ranked Sword Disciple didn't even have time to cry out before he was struck half-dead and collapsed to the ground. The other disciples hadn't even realized what was happening before the old woman struck again. Within a few breaths, all the West Court disciples were laid out, unconscious.

"You’re lucky you met me. I only take wealth, not lives," the old woman said, nimbly stripping their storage bags. Yet, the voice was that of a young man. The speed of the movements showed no signs of an elderly person, especially the kind smile at the corners of his mouth—identical to Yun Que’s.

It was indeed Yun Que. The old woman's face was a projection from his Hundred-Face Mask. He couldn't control the random transformations and had to make do. After collecting the six storage bags, Yun Que went to the nest. The Ironwood Ant nest was unusual; it wasn't on the surface but buried deep, leaving only a sand pit. Digging it out would take forever. The nests were labyrinthine and deep, sometimes reaching several yards underground. It was too time-consuming.

Yun Que had a better way. He released his Corpse King Worm, using his Sword Soul to shrink the creature down to the size of a fingertip, and sent it into the nest. The Corpse King Worm was aggressive, moving like an armored general through the narrow tunnels and trampling every ant in its path. As a first-tier monster, it made short work of the ordinary ants.

Using his Sword Soul, Yun Que could clearly sense the progress. By closing his eyes, he could see everything through the worm's vision. He felt as if he were the worm king himself, carving a path of destruction—it was exhilarating.

Finally, deep in the nest, the Corpse King Worm encountered the Queen. A struggle was inevitable. To Yun Que's slight surprise, the Queen was surprisingly weak; the worm bit it to death in a few swift motions and carried it out. Seeing the Queen in full, Yun Que understood. It was just a fat, white worm, wrinkled and disgusting, with almost no attack power and zero defense—even a Sword Servant could have killed it.

The Queen's danger lay in the army she commanded. At her strongest, she could control the ants to form a second-tier Ironwood Beast, which would be a match for any Sword Disciple. But without her army, the Queen was a commander without troops, ripe for the taking. Since it could be traded for sword tassels, Yun Que didn't let the worm eat it, instead placing it in his spirit beast space.

Finding a safe, deserted spot, Yun Que tallied his loot. It was a massive haul! In the six bags, there were twenty-nine flying swords alone. He found seven hundred and thirty spirit stones, over fifty Spirit Essence Pills and Foundation Pills, two sword leaves, and a dozen types of common spiritual materials, worth about a hundred spirit stones.

After transferring everything to his storage ring, Yun Que tossed the six empty bags aside. "Following these senior brothers really does make me rich," Yun Que sighed with genuine appreciation.