In an unnamed mountain range, quite some distance from Mount Hua, there lay a valley. This valley was perpetually shrouded in miasma.

Anyone living nearby who dared approach it would have their life taken by the noxious fumes, without exception. Over time, the local populace ceased to venture near, dubbing the place Miasma Valley.

Amongst cultivators of the unorthodox path, this Miasma Valley held another moniker: Poison Valley. Within this Poison Valley resided endless toxic substances.

The very grass on the ground was an inky black, continuously emitting poisonous gas; the flowers were ghastly, vibrant colors that were terrifyingly beautiful. The creatures inhabiting this place had all mutated into bizarre forms—a sickly green or a ghastly crimson.

The mosquitoes here were the size of millstones; a single bite could prove fatal even to cultivators in the Longevity Stage. The tigers retained their general shape but were a lurid, sickening green, moving ten times faster than normal tigers, their fangs a matching pallid green.

A bite meant a dose of venom far more terrifying. A grand feast was currently underway within this Poison Valley.

The banquet was held in honor of other cultivators of the unorthodox path. The celebration was taking place atop a Star-Plucking Terrace situated at the very heart of Poison Valley.

While the rest of the valley was impossibly perilous, this terrace was immaculate. Special medicinal herbs grew here, deterring all other virulent things from approaching.

Beneath the Star-Plucking Terrace lay mounds of white bones, easily taller than ten feet, their accumulated resentment surging upward, mingling with the surrounding poisonous miasma to forge an even deadlier killing intent. The company of unorthodox cultivators drank and reveled, roaring with laughter.

“If we talk about renown among unorthodox cultivators in the past, it was naturally the Seven Kills Constellation Sea, the Profound Darkness Gate, and the Blood Sword Sect. But now?

That’s long been superseded by the Heaven-Defying Alliance.” “Indeed.” The Heaven-Defying Alliance is overwhelmingly powerful. Even figures like Venerable Yuan Ling, Zhang Xuan, and the Crippled Elder are all affiliated with the Alliance.

Their leader, the Alliance Master, is utterly unfathomable; one truly wonders what deity they might be.” “It was thanks to Yan Cangtian’s ascension that we fiends of the unorthodox path finally found a way to live.” “To be able to join the Heaven-Defying Alliance—that is the path all unorthodox practitioners aspire to.” “If we speak of joining the Alliance, then surely the Poison Hand Medicine King has the best chance.” “Of course. Brother Poison Hand’s toxins are truly unparalleled in this world.” A crowd of unorthodox cultivators lavished praise upon the Poison Hand Medicine King, who sat regally among them.

Beside him stood two female cultivators at the sixth level of the Longevity Stage. These two had originally been female cultivators of the orthodox path, but they were captured by the Poison Hand Medicine King and dragged here, force-fed poisons until their past memories were lost, turning them into his sex slaves.

The Poison Hand Medicine King rested one hand upon the thigh of one female cultivator while sensuously consuming the breast of the other, utterly intoxicated by his pleasure. “Speaking of which, Brother Poison Hand,” one unorthodox cultivator mentioned, “I heard that many sects have recently issued kill orders against you.

You must exercise extreme caution.” “Kill orders?” another scoffed. “With Brother Poison Hand’s cultivation, who could possibly succeed?

Besides, Brother Poison Hand’s toxins are renowned throughout the world.” “Exactly. Anyone who seeks out Brother Poison Hand is simply looking for death.” The supremely complacent Poison Hand Medicine King let out a roaring laugh: “To come kill me is truly a joke.

Three years ago, a Sword Immortal at the eighth level of Longevity came seeking me out, but he was utterly subdued by my World of Poison and died from the venom. He was no match for me.

My poison is unparalleled; who can kill me?” “The great immortal sects sending Elders, or even Sword Immortals, to kill me—they are only providing me with fresh ingredients.” “Who can kill me? Who dares kill me?” The Poison Hand Medicine King laughed wildly, filled with boundless arrogance.

These unorthodox cultivators were merely the lackeys following the Poison Hand Medicine King, so naturally, they offered continuous praise, their flattery resounding loudly. “I did happen to see earlier that Lu Yuan, the new generation genius from Mount Hua, seemed to be nearby, apparently searching for you.

It seems highly likely he’s been tasked with killing you, Brother Poison Hand.” one of the lackeys offered. “Lu Yuan.” The Poison Hand Medicine King showed not an ounce of fear.

“A mere junior. So what if he’s a genius?

Even the greatest genius is still just that. If a Sword Immortal couldn't touch me, how could he possibly succeed?

But if he comes, so much the better. I’ve been wanting to refine a Grand Perfection Toxin Soup, to aid my breakthrough to the eighth level of Longevity.

A genius arriving just now is perfect.” “I require all sorts of geniuses to add to my Grand Perfection Toxin Soup. Lu Yuan, being a genius among geniuses, one like him can substitute for ten others.

If I absorb him into my soup and integrate his brilliant mind into my being, breaking through to the eighth level of Longevity won’t be difficult.” He let out a grand laugh—and at that precise moment, a streak of sword light shot straight down, targeting the Poison Hand Medicine King with an intensely profound technique, its lethal intent locking onto him almost instantaneously. The Poison Hand Medicine King, still feeling overly self-assured, reacted.

But as a notorious cultivator of the unorthodox path with such great fame, he certainly wouldn't be without formidable counter-measures. Seeing the incoming sword qi about to strike his body, he violently unleashed the ultimate venom from his supreme technique, World of Poison.

Boom! Instantly, the surrounding environment transformed.

Thousands upon thousands of deadly poisons erupted, coalescing into a scene of supreme toxicity. Visions of mountains and rivers, birds and fish, paradise and the underworld—all materialized.

These were all composed of brilliantly colored, potent toxins, appearing as real as life, yet utterly illusory, trapping the incoming attacker within this unique poison. Rolling torrents of corrosive poison engulfed everything, sweeping across the area.

When the other unorthodox cultivators saw the Poison Hand Medicine King trap his opponent within the World of Poison’s miraculous toxin, they knew the assailant was doomed and began preparing flattering remarks for the Medicine King. The Poison Hand Medicine King was brimming with confidence.

Once the World of Poison was unleashed, unless the opponent was in the Great Dao Realm, they would be trapped and unable to escape quickly; even a Sword Immortal would fare poorly. But in a flash, the sword light pierced through the rolling mass of extreme poison.

This single strike was overwhelmingly sharp, and before the Poison Hand Medicine King could even react, his head was cleanly severed from his body. Just moments before, the Medicine King had been certain his enemy was finished.

The severed head exhibited an expression of impossible shock, the look of utter disbelief. The assembled unorthodox cultivators looked over and saw a figure clad in green robes materialize in the void.

This young man held his right hand resting on his sword hilt, a wine gourd in his left, and a faint green sword light hovering above his head—all exuding an air of relaxed composure. Someone among the unorthodox cultivators exclaimed: “That’s Lu Yuan!

The Lu Yuan we were just talking about!” “What? He’s Lu Yuan?” These cultivators had just been discussing Lu Yuan, and the Poison Hand Medicine King had been fantasizing about incorporating Lu Yuan’s body into his Grand Perfection Toxin Soup to absorb the genius's wisdom and help him break through to the eighth level of Longevity.

Yet, in the very next moment, Lu Yuan appeared and executed the Poison Hand Medicine King with such clean efficiency. For a junior to possess the strength to slay the Poison Hand Medicine King—a figure who had defeated a Sword Immortal—was simply unimaginable.

Lu Yuan smiled faintly: “Indeed, I am Lu Yuan.” Smiling softly, his hand rested on the hilt. “I am generally not fond of killing.

In my hands, there is not yet a single life taken from the orthodox path, nor any mortal life. However, cultivators of the unorthodox path must be eliminated.

I am a person of the Immortal Heroes, one who must restore clarity and justice to the world.” The piled bones beneath the Star-Plucking Terrace, the rising killing aura, and the surging resentment—these were the reasons these wretches deserved their fate. Lu Yuan made his move.

These unorthodox cultivators, whose strength was already far inferior to the Poison Hand Medicine King, being mere followers, were naturally no match now and were swiftly slain clean by Lu Yuan. After executing the Poison Hand Medicine King, Lu Yuan began collecting the spoils of war.

To bring true peace to the world, he needed ever-greater strength. Ancestor Yan, in his day, was able to keep the demons and fiends from stirring, forcing them to retreat to their corners, possessing the greatest might in the Great Jin dynasty.

I wish to emulate Ancestor Yan, to suppress the evil with my single person and my single sword, returning a peaceful world. Therefore, these spoils of war must not be missed.

Lu Yuan searched the ground and soon found a dark green ring. This ring radiated an endless stream of toxins, not one bit less potent than the myriad poisons of the World of Poison.

Lu Yuan channeled his Azure Emperor Sword Dao through it before daring to sweep his divine sense inside to examine the spoils. Quite a decent haul, Lu Yuan observed.

He found two Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, four colossal Spirit Beasts, and seventeen Great Soul Stones. The Poison Hand Medicine King’s power was indeed more terrifying than the Thirty-Six Fiends of the Loose Immortals, but since he was just one person, the loot couldn't compare to that of the Thirty-Six Fiends.

Inside, there were also countless toxin manuals. These manuals were useless to him and were all burned.

Then there was one manual on alchemy. Lu Yuan paused.

Since the Poison Hand Medicine King styled himself the Medicine King, he must have been highly skilled in the art of medicine. Lu Yuan immediately flipped open the Medicine King Scripture and discovered that it recorded methods for refining various antidotes and potency-enhancing elixirs.

However, the medicines described within were exceedingly rare and difficult to find. This Medicine King Scripture might prove useful someday, so he kept it.

There were also countless stored toxins. Among these, he found one marvelous toxin capable of incapacitating a Sword Immortal, but its activation condition required the lives of one hundred cultivators.

He dismissed it; though this supreme poison was potent, it harmed the masses, so he immediately destroyed it. After sorting through everything, Lu Yuan flew directly back to the Cloud-Emerging Immortal Realm.

He had completed the number one ranked mission in the Cloud-Emerging Immortal Realm. While the rewards here were lesser than those from the Thirty-Six Fiends of the Loose Immortals, the rewards from the Cloud-Emerging Immortal Realm were comparatively higher.

What Lu Yuan did not know was that shortly afterward, a mysterious and unfathomable figure arrived at this very Poison Valley, the former residence of the Poison Hand Medicine King.