The great battle in the valley had finally ended with the surrender of the Black Venom King. The Great Zhou royal clan Zhou Yuan represented was clearly the biggest winner of this affair.
Outside the valley, the other factions tactfully withdrew one after another upon seeing this. After all, Qi Manor had been defeated and even the Black Venom King had submitted.
The royal clan's power will definitely soar to astonishing levels after this event.
In the face of such a powerful royal clan, there were no longer any factions in Blackwater that could match the former.
"Congratulations your highness." Wei Canglan withdrew his Genesis Qi and cupped his fists together towards Zhou Yuan.
It was clear that Zhou Yuan had grown even more important in Wei Canglan's eyes, and there was even a trace of respect in his tone. After all, besides the mysterious giant beast and grade 4 Genesis Rune proficient Yaoyao, there was now an additional Black Venom King at Zhou Yuan's side.
These three were comparable to Alpha-Origin experts.
Such strength could easily subdue the entire Great Zhou Empire. The truth was, the most important reason why Wei Canglan had been able to ignore the imperial edicts was because the royal clan only had one Alpha-Origin expert, Zhou Qing.
This number had now shot up to four.
Hence, if the royal clan wanted to, the great general's faction could be easily disappear.
The balance of power between both parties was no longer equal, and Wei Canglan was naturally not foolish enough to treat Zhou Yuan in the same manner as before.
"Great general's help was paramount to the success in obtaining the Fire Spirit Grain. After I return, I will make sure that your service will not be forgotten. When the Fire Spirit Grain is cultivated in future, great general's residence will definitely have a share." Zhou Yuan cupped his fists together towards Wei Canglan.
"Then I'll take this chance to thank your highness first."
Wei Canglan chuckled. Soon after, his expression grew solemn as he said, "However, due to Qi Manor's failure and the fact that Qi Hao has been killed by your highness, Qi Manor will not take this lying down."
Zhou Yuan let out an icy chuckle. "The ones that will not let this matter rest should be us."
Previously, Zhou Qing had been very patient and accommodating because the royal clan's power was equal to Qi Manor's. If they clashed, it would be a huge blow to the Great Zhou Empire. However, after the events of Blackwater, the royal clan's power would undoubtedly rise sharply, making it the best opportunity for them to completely eradicate this malignant tumor of the Great Zhou Empire.
Wei Canglan's heart shivered slightly at the coldness in Zhou Yuan's tone. He knew that the royal clan would soon begin hostilities against Qi Manor.
"Great general, Qi Manor has been harbouring thoughts of rebelling. If a war breaks out, I hope that you will be able to lend us your aid." Zhou Yuan's expression was earnest as he looked towards Wei Canglan.
Wei Canglan hesitated for a split second. In the past, he had refused to interfere in the struggle between the royal clan and Qi Manor. However, this hesitation quickly faded. Since he had already helped Zhou Yuan in the contest for the Fire Spirit Grain, it was likely that Qi Manor already viewed him as part of the royal clan's camp, making him a thorn in their side. Therefore, why not fully side with the royal clan and aid them in eliminating the threat known as Qi Manor.
Wei Canglan replied in a solemn voice, "Don't worry your highness, if it is needed, the great general's residence will do all we can to exterminate the rebels."
Zhou Yuan sighed in relief upon hearing Wei Canglan's promise. With his aid, the royal clan's power would rise once again.
Zhou Yuan looked towards the rest and smiled, "The Fire Spirit Grain is already ours, let's leave."
Everyone nodded. Yaoyao however cast her gaze towards the bottom of the valley and suddenly asked, "Have you collected all of the treasure?"
Zhou Yuan was taken aback. "The Fire Spirit Grain is already in our hands."
Yaoyao gently stroked Tuntun's fur as her red lips parted slightly, "The Battle Puppet Sect is a rather decent sect, their ruins are likely not as simple as your imagine."
Zhou Yuan was utterly confused. However, he seemed to have caught a hold something amongst Yaoyao's words and probed, "Are there other undiscovered treasures here?"
Surprise surfaced in the eyes of everyone else.
Yaoyao said, "You'll know once you have a look."
After which, she walked forward towards the bottom of the valley. Zhou Yuan and the rest looked to each other before quickly following.'
The group advanced towards the bottom of the valley.
Their footsteps eventually came to a stop just outside the abandoned herb cultivation field where Zhou Yuan had dug up the Fire Spirit Grain.
Zhou Yuan's eyes darted everywhere, but all he found were the rather desolate bare walls of the valley. There were no traces of anything out of the ordinary.
Wei Canglan's gaze also scanned the area and was likewise unable to discover anything. Thus, they could only turn their doubtful gazes towards Yaoyao.
"Are there really other treasures here?" Zhou Yuan was a little skeptical.
Yaoyao ignored him as she walked forward into the abandoned herb cultivation field. She squatted down and gently rubbed the ground as she closed her eyes.
Upon seeing this, no one dared to make any noise.
Several minutes later, Yaoyao opened her eyes and pointed towards the large hole that had been left behind after Zhou Yuan had dug out the Fire Spirit Grain earlier and said, "Continue digging there."
Zhou Yuan was somewhat puzzled. He was the one who had dug that hole, and had not felt any peculiar undulations from below. However, he still nodded towards Lu Tieshan and the rest due to his trust in Yaoyao.
Thus, Lu Tieshan and a few Heaven Gate experts moved forward began to circulate their Genesis Qi, sending waves of Genesis Qi into the hole to dig deeper and deeper.
Layers of soil were sent flying and the originally six feet deep hole very quickly became over thirty feet deep. If one looked in, all one would see was pitch-black darkness.
Buzz!
As one of the Heaven Gate experts shot out another stream of Genesis Qi into the soil, a sound was heard as something had been struck. Light suddenly emerged from the depths of the hole, blasting away the Heaven Gate expert with a 'bang', causing him to slam into one of the valley walls.
This sudden turn of events stunned everyone.
"It's a Genesis Rune boundary!" Zhou Yuan's eyes flickered brightly as he stared at the bottom of the pitch-black hole. When the light appeared earlier, he had sensed a very faint pulse from inside.
"Let's go down and take a look."
Everyone carefully descended into the pit. They quickly discovered a barrier stretching over one corner of the pit where a bronze door stood.
Wei Canglan uttered in astonishment, "I never imagined that there would be such a thing below the herb cultivation field."
Zhou Yuan also gasped in surprise. The barrier outside of the bronze door was a Genesis Rune boundary that both protected and sealed off any undulations. No wonder he was unable to detect it before.
Thank god for Yaoyao's powerful Spirit perception, or no one would have realised that there were still treasures under the herb cultivation field.
"This Genesis Rune boundary seems to be very powerful." Wei Canglan's expression was grave as he stared at the barrier. Even someone as powerful as himself could feel an extremely fatal sensation from it.
Yaoyao observed the barrier as she explained, "This is a special Genesis Rune boundary, and a very specific Genesis Rune is needed to open it. Forcibly opening it would cause it to self-destruct, turning the trespasser and the treasures inside to nothingness."
"If it self-destructs, I'm afraid that nothing within a hundred mile radius will survive."
Upon hearing her words, everyone's hearts trembled as they involuntarily took several steps backwards. Even Zhou Yuan was a little frightened.
"Looks like it's hopeless for us." Zhou Yuan smiled bitterly. It was likely that only the most high-ranking members of the Battle Puppet Sect knew of the special Genesis Rune, let alone people like themselves.
Without the special Genesis Rune, they would not be able to open the barrier regardless of how capable they were.
Everyone else nodded in agreement as feelings of regret rose within them. A treasure mountain stood before their eyes, but none of them could enter.
However, while everyone was feeling regret, Yaoyao suddenly grinned.
"That may not be so…"