Chapter 139

Hei Feng looked thoroughly disgruntled.
"I can't even celebrate a little? Do you have to be this uptight?"

Han Luo glanced at him.
"Rule number one: once we’re outside, don’t tell anyone you know me."

Hei Feng was speechless.
"Come on, Han Luo! That’s not fair! I gave you my immortal iron, my feathers, you even saw me stark naked—and now you treat me like this? What about friendship? What about brotherhood? What about—wait, wait, no need to pull out a knife, I was just joking, hehehe..."

Han Luo was convinced—Hei Feng’s real injury must be in his brain.
"Alright, seriously now. We’ve signed the contract—aren’t you going to let me try some of your qi?"

Now completely bald, Hei Feng held his wing to his beak and grinned ingratiatingly. Han Luo was sorely tempted to toss him into a pot and cook him.

Still, Hei Feng was now his servant for the next ten thousand years—sooner or later he’d find some use for him. Besides, the bird’s body was as tough as a magic treasure—perfect for use as cannon fodder.

Han Luo took out a colorless immortal pill, transformed its qi to match that of the Nether Tree, and tossed it over.
"This contains the same qi as the Nether Tree. It'll hold your injuries at bay for a month. After that, come find me for more. If I’m not around, ask Jiu Tong."

"Wha—!" Hei Feng pouted.
"Han Luo, this isn’t right! You mean all my treasures were only worth one colorless immortal pill?"

He was devastated. His whole plan in giving Han Luo those iron chunks was to curry favor and score some valuable qi to heal his foundation. But now? He’d lost both his iron and his feathers, and gotten practically nothing in return.

"You’ll get your qi—and healing qi too—but I’ll be watching your behavior. You’re my servant now—don’t disappoint me."

Han Luo left. Hei Feng, seeing how decisive he was, knew better than to argue.

So instead, he turned his sights on Jiu Tong.
"Hey, mutt! Listen to me—stick with me, not Han Luo. You won’t get anywhere following him."

Grinning like an old rogue, Hei Feng slung a wing over Jiu Tong’s shoulder.

"Can you bathe first?" Jiu Tong asked, scooting away.

"You just don’t get it—this is style, this is charm! How else do you attract the ladies?" Hei Feng preened, sniffing his bare biceps.

"It stinks," Jiu Tong said, moving even further away.

"This is a manly scent. You wouldn’t understand."

Jiu Tong ignored him and lay back in the grass to bask in the sun. He’d grown up under Han Luo’s care, and their personalities were quite similar.

"Come on, mutt! I’ll take you somewhere incredible—guaranteed to blow your mind. If we’re lucky, we’ll even score some real treasure." Hei Feng’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

He had long known the location of a certain hidden treasure. Previously, he’d been tied to the Nether Tree and unable to leave. But now, with the colorless pill, he had freedom of movement—so why not take matters into his own claws instead of relying on Han Luo?

Besides, something about Han Luo gave him an ominous feeling. It never hurt to prepare an escape plan.

"My master told me to guard Luo Xian Mountain. I can’t leave without reason," Jiu Tong replied lazily.

"Pfft! That’s not called leaving without reason—we’ll have a purpose! You bring back some immortal iron, and Han Luo will be amazed. Besides, you know how many traps and wards are on this mountain—what’s the harm in stepping out for a bit?"

"No."

"You’re so stubborn." Hei Feng sighed, trying again.

Firstly, going alone was dangerous—but Jiu Tong, having undergone nine rounds of tempering, was ridiculously strong.

Secondly, with earth-attribute qi, Jiu Tong was a master of escape.

Thirdly, even if Han Luo got mad, Jiu Tong could shoulder the blame. After all, Han Luo was far more attached to his dog than to a bald rooster.

"Come on, mutt! Why stay here cultivating peacefully when there’s treasure out there? You sure your head’s okay?"

"You’re the one who sounds brain-damaged."

Frustrated, Hei Feng played his trump card.
"I’ve got a complete ancient manual from the Ten Great Demon Kings—啸月天狼’s [Howling Moon Wolf] art. Come with me, and it’s all yours."

"Not interested," Jiu Tong replied flatly.

"You—!" Hei Feng almost coughed blood.

Surely his silver tongue could persuade one earth dog?

Meanwhile, Han Luo delivered some excess spirit wood to Senior Sister Xiao Lou on behalf of the sect.

When he returned, he was surprised to find both Jiu Tong and Hei Feng gone.

On the stone table was a crooked note in Hei Feng’s handwriting:
"Me and Brother Jiu Tong are off to score big. Just wait for the good news — Hei Feng, the Great."

Han Luo stared at the note. It felt like his own kid had been kidnapped.

That damn bird—trouble already!

Still, he’d told Jiu Tong in advance: if Hei Feng caused any nonsense, he was free to follow, but the moment things went south, he was to retreat immediately.

With Jiu Tong’s earth qi, escaping shouldn’t be an issue.

For now, he trusted them to be safe.

Besides, Han Luo had more pressing matters.

For one, Luo Xian Sect had weathered the immediate crisis. The spirit wood and iron mines were back to normal—especially the iron mine, which Changshou Sect had obediently handed over after the Imperial Envoy’s decree.

It was only a low-grade iron mine, but for Luo Xian Sect, it was still a major boost.

And importantly, the sect had no intention of retaliating unnecessarily. Han Luo was pleased by this—another reason he’d chosen Luo Xian Sect. They didn’t provoke trouble, but neither did they fear it. The perfect cover for someone like him.

Changshou Sect, however, was in shambles—having lost four forests and one mine. They were now turning their anger on their former allies, Green Willow Sect.

Caught off guard, Green Willow suffered heavy losses—losing a mine and three forests.

Now, former allies were locked in brutal conflict—and Han Luo reaped the rewards.

He deployed his Twelve Divine Generals to stir the pot even further—sometimes disguised as Changshou disciples to hurl insults, other times as Green Willow disciples to launch sneak attacks.

The resulting chaos only deepened their hatred.

With the generals handling the fieldwork, Han Luo could finally focus on his next project.

In his puppet lab on Luo Xian Mountain, the development of spirit wood puppets was nearly complete. Now it was time to begin their next stage of upgrades.