Li Yundong caught sight of Su Chan snatching the Earth Essence Spirit Pill right in the middle of the crowd, but instead of being happy, he was consumed by sheer terror. He could hardly imagine what he would do if anything happened to Su Chan.

Driven by panic, Li Yundong immediately shouted, "Idiot, throw it away, quickly!"

Su Chan blinked in surprise but quickly regained her wits. Seeing the deluge of magical artifacts hurtling towards her, the little girl shivered violently. As she fled, she screamed, "Waaah, don't hit me, don't hit me, I won't take it anymore!" As she spoke, she casually tossed the Earth Essence Spirit Pill away, releasing the three pills.

The three Earth Essence Spirit Pills tumbled in the air, landing like decorative balls into the hands of one cultivator. Before this cultivator could even rejoice, the whistling magical artifacts tore him to shreds in an instant.

His Yang Spirit burst forth from his destroyed body, hovering mid-air as he cursed violently, but no one had time to spare him a glance; all eyes were red, fixed on the three Earth Essence Spirit Pills floating suspended in the sky.

By now, no one present was foolish. They quickly realized that whoever dared to grab the Earth Essence Spirit Pills at this moment would become the target of universal scorn and certainly suffer a coordinated assault. However, they knew they lacked Li Yundong’s ability to stand immovable amidst a siege. For a moment, no one dared to step forward, and Heavenly Capital Peak grew silent once more, leaving behind only a ground littered with blood, the air thick with a stinging, metallic scent.

At this moment, Su Chan returned to Li Yundong’s side, her face pale with lingering fear. Patting her chest, still shaken, she gasped, "Thank goodness I threw it fast enough; I was scared to death!"

Li Yundong glared at her fiercely, "What were you thinking just now? Are you insane?"

Startled by his roar, Su Chan immediately whimpered, "I... I just wanted to help out a little..."

Li Yundong snapped, "Help out? Didn't you see what happened to the people who tried to grab the Earth Essence Spirit Pills? If something had happened to you, what would I have done?"

Although Li Yundong had shouted at her in front of everyone, Su Chan felt a secret sweetness bloom in her heart. She feigned a pitiful look, tugged at Li Yundong’s sleeve, and murmured softly, "Alright, alright, I understand now. Don't yell at me so fiercely in front of so many people... Nothing happened to me, did it? I promise I won't do it again next time!"

Li Yundong could never resist her soft, yielding tone; even a towering rage in his heart began to dissipate. He let out a humph, feigning anger, "There's a next time?"

Ziyuan, standing nearby, saw that Li Yundong was all thunder and no rain—his anger clearly gone—so she quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Su Chan, how did you manage to snatch those Earth Essence Spirit Pills just now?"

Su Chan’s expression brightened, and she chuckled happily, "That’s easy! Think about how I snatched the Human Origin Gold Pill last time?"

Li Yundong watched as Su Chan, after only a brief moment of guilt, immediately began to wag her tail proudly, showing off. He glared at her, caught between frustration and amusement, "Did you snatch that? I recall your master snatching it?"

Su Chan pouted, saying, "Hmph, what's the difference?"

Li Yundong could hold back no longer and laughed, cursing lightly, "You really have thick skin!"

Seeing Li Yundong finally smile, Su Chan immediately linked her arm through his affectionately, sweetly saying, "Yundong, you're not angry with me anymore?"

Li Yundong immediately glared at her again, "How can I not be angry? Why are you here? Confess honestly!"

Su Chan’s face instantly fell, and she mumbled, "Sister Ziyuan and Sister Zhou Qin, you aren't questioning them, so why single me out?"

Seeing the two of them flirting shamelessly, Zhou Qin cleared her throat awkwardly and spoke quietly, "Master, what should we do now?"

Li Yundong stared at Su Chan, whispering, "We'll settle this when we get back!" Then, his gaze swept toward where Claire stood stiffly in the distance, and he frowned, "Why is she here too? Who else has arrived? Where is John? He must have followed too, right?"

Zhou Qin’s expression dimmed. She recounted the events that transpired on the cableway and then said softly, "I'm sorry, Master, this... this is all my fault."

After listening, Li Yundong was silent for a long moment. He took a deep breath and said slowly, "It was his fate; there's nothing to be done about it. We will discuss these matters later, and think of a proper solution later on."

Su Chan glanced at Claire and spoke with considerable guilt and sympathy, "Yundong, perhaps we should let her come over; it might be safer?"

"No!" Li Yundong immediately shook his head in denial. "If she comes over now, it will surely bring her misfortune rather than fortune, and might even invite a deadly threat. The three of you at least have the ability to protect yourselves; she’s a defenseless girl—what would she do? She isn't a cultivator, so perhaps these cultivators would hesitate slightly before attacking her. Don't pay attention to her; pretend you don't know her, lest someone with malicious intent tries to use her for some despicable scheme."

Su Chan, Ziyuan, and Zhou Qin finally turned their heads back. They quickly surveyed their surroundings again, only to find that the night had settled back into a calm stillness. Only the three Earth Essence Spirit Pills floated in the air, and the area within ten meters of them was empty.

Ziyuan frowned as she looked at the towering pillar of colored light. "This seven-colored strange light will eventually attract the world's attention. Li Yundong, why didn't you think about wrapping up those Earth Essence Spirit Pills just now?"

Li Yundong managed a bitter smile, "Did I have the time? The moment the Earth Essence Spirit Pills were refined, people started fighting over them. The instant I rushed out, people started attacking me with magical artifacts. The moment I dodged back, I heard your cries—when could I possibly have dealt with the Earth Essence Spirit Pills? I haven't even had a chance to touch them yet!"

Zhou Qin said with lingering trepidation, "It’s fortunate that no Golden Body experts showed up this time, or the consequences would have been unimaginable!"

Su Chan also found it strange. "That's right, why were so many cultivators here, yet not a single Golden Body expert?"

Li Yundong paused, sinking into thought. "Indeed, it’s highly unusual, even sinister!" He turned to Ziyuan, "What do you think?"

Ziyuan pondered for a moment and said, "If Zheng Yuan spread the news, given his nature, he certainly wouldn't inform cultivators stronger than himself; otherwise, he'd be sawing off his own branch. However, spreading the news within just a few hours without any leaks is also impossible. But, while the Golden Body experts of the major sects are incredibly powerful, they counterbalance each other, forming a delicate equilibrium. It's possible they are nearby right now, simply remaining hidden and not making a move."

"Furthermore, while the Earth Essence Spirit Pills are vital for Yang Spirit experts like us, they aren't as crucial for Golden Body experts. Perhaps... they deem it beneath them to act?"

Saying this, Ziyuan felt her own speculation was quite unreasonable. She shook her head and smiled, "I really don't know. But the greatest fortune in this misfortune is... the absence of Golden Body experts. Otherwise..."

As her voice trailed off, a harsh, arrogant voice suddenly cut through the air.

"Hahaha, Junior Brother, it truly is the birth of the Earth Essence Spirit Pills! Your eyes are saved, hahaha, heaven is watching over us! The Daoist Master calculated just this morning, seeing continuous flashes of seven-colored radiance in the sky. I assumed an anomaly appeared and rushed over, only to find my prediction correct! Hahahaha!!"

Upon hearing that voice, Li Yundong’s expression instantly changed, and he sharply looked in the direction the sound originated from.

Two Daoists swiftly appeared around the Earth Essence Spirit Pills. Both their Daoist robes appeared incredibly filthy and tattered. The taller, thinner Daoist had a black cloth covering his eyes, clearly blind. The other Daoist, short and stout, wore an expression of aggressive arrogance—it was none other than Xu Kong and Xu Ling, who had clashed violently with Li Yundong at Mount Kariesi!

Li Yundong's heart shook violently. Su Chan, standing beside him, asked curiously, "Who are these two slobs?"

Zhou Qin frowned at the pair and inquired, "Where did these two filthy devils come from?"

Li Yundong stared vigilantly at Xu Ling and spoke slowly, "Tell me, what if a Golden Body expert came to steal the Earth Essence Spirit Pills, and that expert happened to be your enemy?"

Su Chan, Ziyuan, and Zhou Qin were momentarily stunned. They quickly realized the implication and, with changing expressions, exclaimed in unison, "The Void Daoists of the Vacuum Sect?"

As soon as they finished shouting, Xu Ling immediately looked in the direction of their voices and yelled, "Strange, are there young ladies here who know the Daoist Master?"

Xu Ling’s eyes instantly lit up when he spotted Su Chan, Ziyuan, and Zhou Qin. He yanked hard on his beard and exclaimed, "Are there such beautiful women in this world? And three of them at once? And one of them is a fox spirit?!"

But his gaze quickly settled on Li Yundong. Rage surged in Xu Ling’s heart, hardening his malice. He burst into loud, mocking laughter, "It truly is a small world, Junior Brother! Guess who I see again!"

Xu Kong leaned in and whispered a few words into his ear. Xu Ling grunted a few times, glaring hatefully at Li Yundong, and declared, "What do we care about them? These Earth Essence Spirit Pills aren't running away. Does anyone dare snatch these pills right in front of the Daoist Master? Hmph, if I desire something, whoever dares to snatch it, I’ll kill them!"

His statement was incredibly arrogant, immediately inciting general anger. One cultivator shouted angrily, "Hey, who are you? You talk big enough to rival a toad yawning! Which sect do you belong to? State your name quickly!"

Xu Ling didn't even look at him. He flicked his finger towards the speaker; a sharp gust of True Wind shot out like a bullet, tearing through the air and slamming into the man, sending him reeling backward with a cry. He rolled several times and lay still.

Xu Ling grinned menacingly, "You asked for the Daoist Master's name? Did you even ask politely?"

A true expert reveals themselves with their first move. With this single action, the cultivators from various sects hidden in the shadows were struck with terror. Some cultivators shouted, "Let’s attack together! Kill this guy first!"

As they spoke, unified by common enmity, magical artifacts and spells once again surged toward Xu Ling like a monstrous tidal wave.

Xu Ling neither dodged nor deployed any magical techniques. He stood with his hands on his hips, facing the incoming spells and artifacts without moving an inch, allowing them to bombard him.

The crowd watched as every time an artifact struck Xu Ling, a faint golden ripple would appear on his body, spreading outward like concentric circles. Yet, he remained completely unharmed, as if clad in an invisible suit of armor.

At this point, the more knowledgeable cultivators finally understood, and they cried out in horror, "Indestructible Golden Body, a Golden Body expert!"

Ding Nan, who had been intently observing the scene, also watched Xu Ling with fear. Even if she didn't grasp the true terror of a Golden Body expert, witnessing countless magical artifacts and spells bombarding him without him even dodging meant only one thing!

Ding Nan trembled, "Master, w-what should we do?"

Zheng Yuan's face was ashen as he looked at Xu Ling. Despite all his calculations, he never anticipated this Golden Body expert would emerge out of nowhere, shattering his meticulously laid plans!

Zheng Yuan’s expression shifted between shades of grimness, his gaze icy as he scrutinized the arena. Like everyone else present, a single thought raced through his mind: A Golden Body expert is here to steal the Earth Essence Spirit Pills—what now?

First update for the day; there will be another update tonight.