Chapter 120: Strength is the Prerequisite for Protection

"You may take the immortal herbs, but you are limited to one naturally grown herb every hundred years. However, there is another option: you may cultivate your own herbs within the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well. If you do, you are entitled to take the specific herb you have grown. After all, any plant placed within the Well will grow at ten times its normal rate. In just a hundred years, an ordinary medicinal plant will become a thousand-year-old spiritual herb. For those of you who are soul beasts, a century is but a fleeting moment, so this is by no means a loss. As for who among you gets to take an herb, you must decide amongst yourselves. However, there must be no casualties; if anyone kills another, they forfeit their right to any herb." Muyang laid out his conditions.

The leaders of the various soul beast tribes considered his request before nodding in agreement.

"By the way, if any of you possess immortal herbs that I require, I will exchange them for items of equivalent value."

"I am looking for immortal herbs related to poison—the more lethal, the better. I have no specific preference for the type of poison, as long as it is capable of taking a life," Muyang added.

After the meeting concluded and the soul beast leaders returned to their territories, Muyang spoke to Snow Empress and the Manager: "For the time being, you must remain inside the spatial dimension. My identity is troublesome to reveal in the outside world, so it is best if you do not emerge for now."

"Manager, I will do my utmost to find your daughter. Because of our equality contract, I will be able to sense it if she is in danger, so there is no need to worry," Muyang assured him.

He then tore open a rift and stepped out. The Manager watched the crack close and let out a sigh. His prejudice against Eto Yoshimura was indeed his own fault; if not for the danger, he would never have abandoned her. Yet, if he had been stronger back then—strong enough to stand against the organization—this tragedy would never have occurred.

His wife had already died due to his lack of strength. Now that he was by Muyang’s side, his potential for growth was far greater than it had ever been. He vowed that such a disaster would never happen again. Muyang was right: the prerequisite for protection is power. With this thought, the Manager returned to his cultivation, not only for his daughter’s sake but for Muyang’s as well.

As soon as Muyang emerged from the spatial dimension, he triggered a spatial quake. He was initially baffled by the occurrence, but it made sense; since the arrival of Spirits triggered spatial quakes, and his own strength was comparable to—or perhaps even greater than—theirs, it was only natural that he would cause such a phenomenon. (This refers to Muyang’s innate strength, excluding his equipment.)

The moment the spatial quake erupted, the AST members swarmed him like persistent gnats. Muyang released a burst of Phoenix Flame just as he had done previously, but the result surprised him. They brandished weapon-like devices at his flames, firing a stream of ultra-low-temperature air. This air managed to slightly resist the Phoenix Flame; while it could not extinguish the fire, it provided enough protection for them to remain combat-ready.

Muyang frowned. This AST group was becoming increasingly annoying. So they wanted to use ice? He would give them ice. Opening his mouth, he unleashed a melodious song—a prayer, a natural disaster: Ultimate Hail.

Hailstones the size of fists plummeted from the sky, carrying immense kinetic force and radiating intense cold. This forced the AST members to focus their defenses on the falling ice, and taking advantage of the distraction, Muyang vanished from their sight.