Volume 10, Chapter 680 – Kapok Valley Treasure Land

He gratefully accepted the Heaven-Mending Crystal and quickly dropped it into a bowl of water.

Qi Huang stepped closer to observe. As time passed, the crystal melted like sugar, shrinking in size little by little.

Watching this, Qi Huang’s heart ached, and worry gnawed at her. If the entire Heaven-Mending Crystal was needed to save Zhao Xi, what would happen to her own master?

She desperately wanted to stop Zhao Ming, but her conscience prevailed. The item belonged to him; even if it was entirely consumed, she had no right to interfere. She could only resign herself to fate.

Fortunately, good deeds are often rewarded. After a third of the crystal had dissolved, Zhao Ming removed it from the bowl, then lifted the bowl to feed his daughter. But with only two hands, it was awkward to manage.

Qi Huang sighed helplessly and stepped forward to help, propping Zhao Xi up. That was when she noticed the woman’s entire body was burning hot, the fever far worse than expected. If she wasn’t treated immediately, she wouldn’t last the day.

“Thank you,” Zhao Ming said politely before preparing to feed the water.

“Wait!”

Qi Huang frowned.

“What’s wrong, benefactor?” Zhao Ming asked, confused.

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“Your daughter is unconscious and has no awareness right now. Forcing the medicine down her throat could make her choke. If she suffocates, it will be extremely dangerous,” Qi Huang explained.

“Yes, yes, yes! I completely forgot about that.”

Zhao Ming slapped his forehead, quickly setting the bowl down. But he sighed deeply. “What do I do now? I’m no doctor, and I don’t have any other medicine…”

Qi Huang didn’t waste words. She immediately pulled out a pill and slipped it into Zhao Xi’s mouth. Though it couldn’t mend broken limbs like the Heaven-Mending Crystal, it worked well for treating trauma-induced symptoms.

“Benefactor, didn’t you just say she can’t swallow? Won’t this choke her?” Zhao Ming asked nervously.

“This pill doesn’t need to be swallowed. The mouth will absorb it directly. Once her condition improves, she’ll naturally regain consciousness,” Qi Huang explained patiently.

“Thank you, benefactor! Thank you!”

Zhao Ming’s relief was palpable, and he bowed repeatedly.

Qi Huang’s words proved true. As time passed, Zhao Xi’s condition visibly improved. In less than half an hour, her fever broke, and she slowly regained consciousness.

“F-father… Is… is it really you?”

Zhao Xi wept with joy upon seeing her father.

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“My dear daughter, you’ve suffered so much… it’s my fault I failed to protect you,” Zhao Ming sobbed.

Unable to bear the emotional scene, Qi Huang awkwardly stepped aside to give them privacy.

After a long while, the father and daughter finally calmed down.

Zhao Ming helped Xi’er drink the crystal-infused water, then walked over to Qi Huang and knelt, bowing low. “Benefactor, I, Zhao Ming, will never forget your immense kindness. If ever you need anything, just ask.”

Qi Huang’s awkwardness finally faded. She asked, “Do you know why I saved you? Actually, I have a relative who lost an arm and three fingers. I was hoping to borrow your Heaven-Mending Crystal for a while.”

Zhao Ming hesitated briefly, then clenched his teeth and handed over the crystal. “Benefactor, please take it. It’s yours.”

“Are you serious?”

Qi Huang was taken aback.

“Of course. You saved both me and my daughter, this is a tremendous favor. You could have kept the Heaven-Mending Crystal, but you returned it. That is true righteousness. I, Zhao Ming, am not an ungrateful man. Please accept it as a token of my gratitude.”

Zhao Ming’s expression was firm.

Qi Huang frowned slightly. As expected of a ruler, his foresight surpassed ordinary folk. On the surface, gifting the Heaven-Mending Crystal was to repay her kindness, but in truth, he wanted her to owe him a favor.

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‘If I accept this, I’ll have to ensure their safety from now on.’

Qi Huang understood perfectly. But since she had already decided to protect them anyway, she welcomed the arrangement.

“Then I shall accept it with thanks,” Qi Huang said, taking the crystal and promising, “Stay here and remain safe. It’s too dangerous to go out now. When the time is right, I’ll personally send you back to your kingdom.”

“Thank you, benefactor!” Zhao Ming bowed once more.

Qi Huang left the spatial ring and scanned another ring containing other captive family members. She found them desperately trying to escape, but their weak cultivation made them as powerless as ants shaking a tree.

For them, Qi Huang needed only to keep them locked up like prisoners. There was no need for explanations.

She knew Kapok Valley Treasure Land wasn’t far and quickly headed toward the Immortal Alliance’s team. With Elder Ma dead and Cao Hong already gone, she could now show herself openly.

Kapok Valley Treasure Land was located at the southernmost end of the cultivation continent. According to legend, the region had once been warm and fertile in ancient times, blooming with endless kapok flowers and brimming with countless natural treasures. Hence, it was called Kapok Valley Treasure Land.

But after the Great Horror, the temperature of the entire cultivation world plummeted. Unable to adapt, the kapok flowers went extinct, and “Kapok Valley” became a name without meaning. The “Treasure Land” part, however, still held true.

The valley was massive, comparable to a small kingdom. Every year, it produced more than half of all the spiritual herbs and medicines in the cultivation world. With such abundant resources, the Immortal Alliance quickly seized control, investing tremendous manpower and resources to build impregnable defenses around the perimeter. Patrols were everywhere, trespassers were forbidden.

But natural treasures didn’t just attract people, they also lured evil entities.

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Some powerful malevolent spirits could completely bypass the Alliance’s defenses and force their way inside. Over time, the area became shrouded in an eerie, oppressive Yin energy. Visibility was so poor that even Divine Sense couldn’t penetrate it, forcing treasure seekers to find alternative methods. That was why the Immortal Alliance needed bait.

Qi Huang didn’t know whether the rumors were true. She hadn’t yet caught up with the Alliance’s team when her Divine Sense swept toward Kapok Valley Treasure Land.

Her Divine Sense extended for over a hundred miles until she saw an immense “Great Wall” stretching across the land, vanishing into the horizon.

But upon closer inspection, her eyes widened in disbelief. It wasn’t a wall at all, but a colossal vine!

The vine was dozens of meters thick, with massive, flat, spear-like thorns stretching out on either side. On top of it were countless houses and fortresses, and secondary branches sprouted from cracks in the structures, climbing upward to bloom into blood-red flowers. Some buds were just forming, while others had already blossomed in mesmerizing, almost surreal beauty.

“Is this the Immortal Alliance’s defensive structure? What kind of plant grows this huge?” Qi Huang muttered in astonishment.

Just then, she noticed a large bird trying to fly overhead. Suddenly, one of the flower buds shot upward, its petals opening wide as it swallowed the bird whole before retracting.

“It… it eats animals too?”

Qi Huang was stunned. Peering at the people living atop the vine, she overheard enough of their conversations to confirm that this truly was the Immortal Alliance’s defensive structure, and beyond it lay the legendary Kapok Valley Treasure Land.

Her Divine Sense swept past the enormous vine, probing deeper within. She wanted to test whether her late Heavenly Tribulation Realm Divine Sense could bypass the valley’s oppressive Yin energy. If it worked, she could potentially harvest all the treasures inside herself, without needing bait at all.