186: Chapter 186 Advancing to Silver Level

When the news reached Fengling City, the five major factions moved simultaneously.

The Wang Family was the first to act.

They had operated in the North for three generations; their connections, intelligence, and armed forces were all top-tier.

The location of that light pillar east of Beimang Mountain had already been surrounded by the Wang Family the moment they released the news.

There was no negotiation, no discussion—it was a land grab.

They put up barbed wire, built temporary camps, and stationed guard units on twenty-four-hour shifts.

If anyone dared to approach, they would attack directly without warning.

The City Lord's Mansion was next.

Jiang Tianzong did not show up personally, but the City Defense Army under his command moved.

An elite squad set out from Fengling City, riding flying Pet Beasts, heading straight for the light pillar west of Beimang Mountain.

Their actions were a step slower than the Wang Family's, but their preparations were more thorough.

In less than an hour after landing, simple defensive fortifications were erected, Crystal Core Turrets were set up, and the communication system was connected.

The Zhou Family, Lin Family, and Zhao Family all moved almost at the same time.

They each chose a light pillar location, dispatched their most elite teams, and staked out their territory with the greatest speed.

Their strength was not equal to the Wang Family or the City Lord's Mansion, but in front of small and medium-sized factions, they were still unshakeable behemoths.

Five families, five light pillar locations—like five nails, they were hammered into the map of the North.

The remaining eight light pillar locations presented a different scene.

Those locations were not within the spheres of influence of the five major families; some were in the wilderness, some in mountain ravines, and some were the nests of fierce beasts.

No one could monopolize them, no one could control them; anyone could come, and anyone could fight for them.

Small and medium-sized factions swarmed in.

Some were family militias, some were mercenary groups, and some were haphazardly assembled teams of independent practitioners.

Bringing their Pet Beasts, their weapons, and all their belongings, they lunged toward those eight light pillar locations.

Some were intercepted and killed on the road, some were driven away on the first day of arrival, and some died in the struggle without even seeing a shadow of a crystal.

The North had fallen into total chaos.

At this time, Qin Ce stood at the barracks entrance, watching the military vehicles hurriedly driving out of the camp in the distance, watching the solemn teams carrying packs and leading Pet Beasts, and watching the expressions on those people's faces—a mix of greed and fear.

He did not get involved.

Instead, while everyone else was rushing toward the light pillars, he led the Seventh Squad in another direction.

Yinpinglu.

The place they had desperately escaped from three days ago.

The mountain was still the same mountain, the rubble was still the same rubble, and a faint smell of blood still lingered in the air.

But the Red-Scaled Earth Lizard materials packed earlier—crystal cores, leather armor, claws and teeth, cured meat—were all gone. Even the bags containing the materials had been taken, leaving only a few drag marks on the ground and a few abandoned vines.

No one complained.

From the moment they decided to evacuate, they had prepared themselves for the possibility that these materials would not be recovered.

Life is more important than anything—this was the first lesson Qin Ce had taught them.

Qin Ce did not look at those empty material storage spots.

He walked straight toward the collapsed cliff wall, toward the place where the Pterosaur was buried.

"Dig." Standing before the pile of rubble, Qin Ce said only one word.

The twenty-four people did not ask why.

They pulled tools from their backpacks—some used pickaxes, some used spades, some used shovels, and others let their Pet Beasts take over. The Ice-Armored Blazing Rhino used its head to push aside large boulders, the Black Iron War Ape used its fists to smash stones stuck in crevices, and the Chi Tiger Beast used its claws to dig through fine sand and soil.

They worked with great fervor.

Rubble was moved piece by piece, and accumulated sand was shoveled away scoop by scoop. When the last large stone was pried loose and rolled aside, everyone froze.

The Pterosaur's corpse was still there.

It hadn't been scavenged by wild beasts, it hadn't weathered or corroded, and it hadn't even rotted.

But it was no longer the majestic Gold Rank fierce beast it had been three days ago.

It looked like an empty shell that had its essence and blood sucked dry.

The once-full muscles covered in hard scales were now shriveled like old newspapers stuck to a skeleton.

The scales had lost their luster, turning a dusty gray like pieces of bark about to fall off.

Its skin clung tightly to its bones, and the outline of every rib was clearly visible, like a skeleton wrapped in dried skin.

Some stepped back, some gasped, and some covered their mouths.

They had seen corpses, many corpses, but never one like this—clearly dead for only three days, yet looking like a mummy weathered for three years.

"This... what kind of thing sucked it dry?" Lei Gang's voice was tight.

No one could answer him. Everyone's gaze fell on Qin Ce.

Qin Ce crouched down and tore an opening in the side of the Pterosaur's neck.

The shriveled flesh tore like a rag, revealing the bone beneath.

There was not a trace of meat left on the bone; it was perfectly clean.

It was as if something had drained it from the inside.

Qin Ce reached into the Pterosaur's chest cavity and felt for the position of the crystal core.

The crystal core was still there; it hadn't been taken.

But the moment his fingers touched the crystal core...

The crystal core shattered.

Like a piece of charcoal burned through, it looked whole, but the interior was completely carbonized, turning to powder at the slightest touch.

Grayish-white powder flowed through Qin Ce's fingers and was scattered by the wind, leaving nothing behind.

Qin Ce looked down at the powder and remained silent for a few seconds.

All the energy within the crystal core had vanished.

So, as he had suspected, the energy within the crystal belonged to this Pterosaur.

He stood up and brushed the dust off his hands.

A Gold Rank fierce beast had to sacrifice its flesh, bones, crystal core, and soul to that diamond-shaped phantom just to condense a single layer of golden liquid.

He was mentally calculating the cost.

If this was the case, how many Gold Rank fierce beasts would be needed?

And with his current strength, could he independently kill a Gold Rank fierce beast?

The previous Pterosaur relied on pure physical attacks and had no long-range means, only able to engage in close-quarters combat.

He had used the terrain to restrict it and the 'Reverse' mantra of the Seven Kills Chaos to turn its power against it, barely managing to succeed.

Against any Gold Rank fierce beast capable of energy attacks, he would have no chance of winning.

To kill a fully capable Gold Rank fierce beast, Qing Luan's level would need to reach at least Silver Rank.

Qing Luan was currently at Upper Bronze Rank, still facing the threshold of bronze peak before reaching Silver Rank.

The good news was that Qing Luan's foundation was already solid.

Furthermore, the energy of being Reborn had circulated within Qing Luan for three days, repairing all the meridians, muscles, and bones damaged in that near-death battle, making them even stronger than before.

Those newly formed meridians were wider, tougher, and clearer; the speed at which wind-elemental energy flowed through them was more than twice as fast as before.

One could say Qing Luan had entered a high-speed growth period.

Reaching Silver Rank should be within his grasp.

Qin Ce stood up and brushed the dust off his hands.

He turned and looked at the twenty-four people behind him.

Qin Ce's gaze swept across their faces one by one.

Jiang Mo, Lei Gang, Sun strong, Feng Bao, and those newcomers he had picked from the refugee camp, whose injuries and illnesses he had treated, to whom he had given Pet Beasts and hope.

Three days ago, this team was still a loose pile of sand.

Three days later, they stood by his side, every one of them firm in their resolve.

The corner of Qin Ce's mouth curled slightly.

This was also something to rely on!

"Let's go," he said. "Back to camp."

Time to start leveling up!

...