: Undercurrents (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Trouble in the black market was one of the scenarios Ning Zhuo had long anticipated.

He wasn't the least bit surprised.

"If it comes down to it, just abandon the black market entirely and turtle up."

Compared to the Molten Rock Palace, the black market was trivial. If Ning Zhuo allowed himself to be distracted, investing time and energy into it, it would mean the enemy's schemes had succeeded.

Of course, a full retreat was only the last resort. At this stage, it wasn't necessary yet.

Ning Zhuo immediately sent a reply, instructing the black market to seek help from the two former family elders, Ning Youfu and Ning Houjun.

Ning Zhuo, with his long-term strategic vision, had long foreseen the many difficulties he would face during the palace exam. He had made arrangements in advance, one of which was persuading the two former family elders, Ning Youfu and Ning Houjun.

These two had played significant roles in Ning Zhuo's overthrow of Ning Xiaoren.

As members of the family's branch lines themselves, they were both optimistic about Ning Zhuo and willing to support him.

Only such heavyweight figures could stabilize morale, providing the leaderless black market with authoritative leadership and preventing panic and disarray.

In his letter, he also demanded that the black market allocate a group of personnel to station themselves in the Molten Rock Palace.

This group would be led by the two former managers, Ning Xiangguo and Ning Xiangqian, commanding a large number of Ning family cultivators. They had also forcibly recruited members from the Monkey Head Gang, Turtle Breath Gang, and Crane Beak Gang, totaling over a hundred people.

"Power and influence are meant to be used by me, not for me to invest excessively in them."

Ning Zhuo understood this point deeply.

The influence he had painstakingly built—if not used now, then when?

Second Round of the Palace Exam.

Eleventh Test.

Sun Lingtong achieved a complete victory, making others grind their teeth in frustration but unable to do anything about it.

Ning Zhuo won more than he lost. Although he tried his best to keep a low profile, it was no longer possible.

Whether on the arena stage or standing in the square, the way the other cultivators looked at him had changed. Even Golden Core level cultivators now regarded him seriously as a formidable opponent.

"To think a mere Qi Refining junior would stand out like this."

"Ning Zhuo certainly has some skill."

"Every time Ning Zhuo faces Zhu Xuanji or Ning Jiufan, he voluntarily concedes. If they actually fought, his record might be even better!"

Many praised him verbally, but their eyes secretly exchanged glances, all realizing they couldn't allow Ning Zhuo to keep winning like this.

However, Ning Zhuo was extremely cautious, holed up in his residence all day, right next to the Ning family ancestor, Ning Jiufan.

This left many feeling helpless, sighing in frustration.

Deep in the night at the Molten Rock Palace, flames surged, bright as day.

Since the volcano erupted and the beast tide surged, the sky above the Molten Rock Palace had been constantly shrouded in heavy smoke, blocking out the sun.

Ning Xiaoren had been fighting here for some time and had gradually lost track of whether it was day or night.

He had been fighting continuously for over ten hours. His face was haggard, eyes bloodshot. The intense, prolonged combat made him wish he could just collapse and fall into a deep sleep.

But he couldn't. He had to endure the drowsiness and exhaustion.

"They've appeared! A group of demon beasts, southeast corner!" Suddenly, a cultivator shouted.

A few breaths later, the scout spoke again: "Be careful! This group is all Treading Flame Lizards. We must strike preemptively; can't let them charge our formation."

Ning Xiaoren and others had formed a cultivator squad, stationed at a street corner, setting up a formation to defend a strategic point.

Most were cultivators from the Ning family main line.

Although Ning Xiaoren had been expelled from the family, cooperating now didn't violate any family rules.

Hearing the warning, Ning Xiaoren gritted his teeth, driving the nearly depleted法力 in his body to activate the formation.

Formation spells were much faster and more powerful than individual casting.

Ice spears, thick as giant logs, instantly formed and shot out consecutively.

The ice spears killed several Treading Flame Lizards, enraging the remaining half.

The lizards roared, charging towards Ning Xiaoren's position.

From within the formation, cultivators immediately manipulated the formation, deploying a large number of mechanical constructs.

These constructs were mainly battering rams, rushing forward to collide. Although they were all shattered by the Treading Flame Lizards, they successfully halted the charge, significantly slowing the lizards down.

Ning Xiaoren gasped for breath, feeling waves of nausea. His法力 was exhausted, so he could only retreat temporarily.

A reserve cultivator immediately replaced him, taking the formation eye to control the formation.

After the fierce spell bombardment, one Treading Flame Lizard still managed to break through to close range.

"Oh no, we haven't recruited any body refiners yet!" The cultivators turned pale.

Just then, a frantic voice sounded: "Afraid? Who made my little Hui afraid? Granny will handle it! Don't be afraid, Little Hui!"

With that, Ning Xiaohui's grandmother rushed out of the formation, charging straight at the Treading Flame Lizard.

She collided head-on with the lizard, then was sent flying back, crashing through two buildings before falling to the ground, unmoving.

She was nearly completely broken, coughing up blood continuously, her protective magic tool utterly destroyed.

"This lunatic!" Ning Xiaoren's pupils constricted seeing this.

The Ning family main line cultivators also had varied expressions.

Thanks to Ning Xiaohui's grandmother's desperate interception, they finally seized the last opportunity, covering the area with a volley of spells, killing the last Treading Flame Lizard.

The formation was safe again, but Ning Xiaoren felt heavy-hearted.

"Demon beasts have tough hides, and this was just a group of Foundation Building level Scarlet Flame demon beasts."

"If it were a Golden Core level one, could I retreat safely?"

Ning Xiaoren had no confidence at all.

He looked again at Ning Xiaohui's grandmother. Ning family cultivators had already run out of the formation to her side, beginning treatment.

"She's already insane."

"Xiaohui's death hit her too hard."

"I've been sharing a formation day and night with a lunatic like this?"

Ning Xiaoren felt a wave of fear.

"It's all that brat Ning Zhuo's fault!"

"If not for him, how could I have become a prisoner? If not for him, would I be here risking my life to earn merit points under an expelled status?"

"Ning Zhuo deserves to die, deserves to die!"

"Heaven has no eyes, letting this cunning, sinister villain thrive instead! He's even ranking high in the second round of the palace exam! What are those Golden Cores and geniuses doing?!"

"Can't even deal with Ning Zhuo?!"

Ning Xiaoren's situation was just one example within the Molten Rock Palace.

The destruction of the Molten Rock Palace had pros and cons.

The benefit was that Qi Refining and Foundation Building cultivators could now enter, even without any mechanical expertise.

Under the leadership of Meng Kui and Zhu Xuanji, Fire Persimmon Immortal City dispatched a large number of Qi Refining and Foundation Building level cultivators to station in the Molten Rock Palace.

This massive number of cultivators was like a timely rain, filling all defensive lines.

With their participation, the inner circle defense of the Molten Rock Palace was reinforced all around, solidly holding back the advance of the demon beast tide.

After all, among the Scarlet Flame demon beasts, Golden Core level individuals were few. Once they appeared, they would be targeted with concentrated fire, rarely surviving.

As for the real threats to the Molten Rock Palace—the two Nascent Soul level demon beasts—they were held back and engaged by Meng Kui.

However, judging from the battle situation, Meng Kui, fighting two alone, was often at a disadvantage.

The Nascent Soul level demon beasts frequently scored, shattering piece after piece of the Molten Rock Palace's outer areas.

The more the Molten Rock Palace was broken and lost, the weaker its restrictions became.

Now it was Qi Refining and Foundation Building cultivators exploiting gaps to enter directly. Following this trend, later it would be Golden Core and even Nascent Soul cultivators who could enter.

"Ning Xiaoren, you're too tired. Go back and rest. Return to fight after you've recovered!" The Ning family main line cultivators still showed considerable care for Ning Xiaoren.

Ning Xiaoren nodded and, after recovering a bit of法力, eagerly retreated from the front line.

On his way back, he saw a large crowd gathered.

Curious, he approached to ask and found it was a murder scene. A Foundation Building cultivator had been ambushed and killed, his heart pierced, his soul gone without a trace.

"The Empty Hand Sect has struck again! The deceased participated in the palace exam just during the day, and now he's dead at night... sigh..."

"These demons will stop at nothing to seize the Molten Rock Palace!"

Ning Xiaoren learned the specifics and gnashed his teeth: "Why don't they assassinate Ning Zhuo instead? Good people die young, scoundrels live long. What a damned world!"

This was already the third recent murder targeting a palace exam participant.

Two succeeded in killing the target; one resulted in severe injury.

Strictly speaking, the severe injury also counted as success. Because the injured cultivator was in terrible condition, he lost every single arena match.

Palace exam participants couldn't attack each other directly, but they could certainly use others to carry out schemes and suppression.

The competition for the Molten Rock Palace wasn't just the daytime exams; there were also nightly assassinations.

It was predictable that lone practitioners without deep foundations or backing would be gradually eliminated, losing their lives.

Ning Xiaoren returned to his quarters and collapsed onto the bed to sleep.

The next moment, he was jolted awake by the icy coldness of a dagger pressed against his neck.

"Who are you?!" Ning Xiaoren was terrified.

The masked assassin held the dagger, constantly threatening Ning Xiaoren's life: "Tell me about Ning Zhuo."

"You... you want to deal with him?" Ning Xiaoren reacted, stunned. "No, I won't betray my clansman."

The intruder sneered: "Stop pretending. Who doesn't know about your grudge with him?"

"Besides, you've been expelled from the family, all thanks to Ning Zhuo! He's no longer your clansman, former Young Clan Leader of the Ning family."

Ning Xiaoren's face darkened rapidly, a flash of venom in his eyes: "What do you want to know?"

"Everything." The masked person's tone was calm.

Ning Xiaoren: "How do I know you'll let me go after I tell you everything?"

The masked person shook his head: "You don't know, and I can't guarantee it. You just need to know you must satisfy me. If I'm not satisfied, I'll cut your head off right now."

Ning Xiaoren hurriedly said: "Alright, alright, I'll talk, I'll talk."

He spoke in great detail.

But the masked assassin wasn't satisfied: "I already know all this."

He used the dagger tip to pry open Ning Xiaoren's teeth, forcing a gu worm into his mouth.

The gu worm burrowed down,钻进 Ning Xiaoren's heart.

The masked assassin activated it lightly. Ning Xiaoren immediately clutched his chest, writhing and twisting on the bed in pain, like an electrified maggot.

The masked assassin tortured him for a while before stopping: "Your answer displeases me greatly."

"I'm giving you a task now: do everything you can to hinder Ning Zhuo, interfere with him as much as possible."

"Otherwise, I'll make you die miserably in this heart-devouring pain."

Ning Xiaoren quickly waved his hands, pleading desperately: "Sir, this sir, don't be rash. I'll do it, I'll definitely do it."

"Ning Zhuo is my enemy anyway! We're on the same side, we're allies!"

The masked assassin冷笑: "Good that you have this awareness. You have three days to show results. Otherwise, you die."

With that, the masked assassin disappeared from Ning Xiaoren's sight.

Coming and going without a trace.

He left Ning Xiaoren biting his lip bloody, pounding the bedside fiercely with his fist: "Ning Zhuo! Ning Zhuo!! I almost died because of you, you damned scum!"

"I'll kill you, I'll kill you!"

However, after venting his fury for a while, Ning Xiaoren gradually regained clarity.

"That dog Ning Zhuo, usually does so many shady deeds. Since the palace exam started, he's been turtling up, living next to Ning Jiufan."

"Under the protection of a Golden Core cultivator, how can I kill him?"

"That dog thief is too sneaky, too sneaky!"

(End of )