Chapter 157: Calamity Leaves All Living Things Extinguished

"According to legend, in the ancient era, the Ten Shamans each inherited a supreme legacy."

"For example, Wu Peng wielded the Verdant Wood Invocation, a divine art capable of drawing forth the life force of heaven and earth. The inheritances of the shamans cannot be cultivated together. There have only ever been ten true shamans in the world."

"However, countless beings existed under the protection and influence of the shamans' power. They were collectively known as the Shaman Clan."

"The faith upheld by the shamans of the Xiang Nation originated from this."

"According to the oral traditions passed down within this village, after a cataclysmic disaster in ancient times, the Ten Shamans disappeared, and the Shaman Clan fell apart."

"Their ancestors fled here in desperation to escape that calamity. Since then, they have never once left these endless mountains."

Over the past half month, through repeated investigation, Fang Han had gradually pieced together a clear understanding of the origins of this Shaman Clan village.

Beyond that, however, he had uncovered nothing else of real value.

"It is said that the ancient Shaman Clan once possessed a writing system entirely their own. Yet during that great catastrophe, every clan member who knew or had mastered the script died mysteriously. From that day onward, the Shaman script vanished completely."

"Even more strangely, every artifact bearing those ancient inscriptions lost its characters overnight. The mysterious symbols simply disappeared without leaving behind the slightest trace."

"Since then, this remnant tribe has relied solely on oral tradition. The fact that they still retain scattered fragments of knowledge from the ancient age after so many years is only because of the extraordinary steadfastness of their faith."

During these past two weeks, Fang Han had repeatedly displayed the power of the Verdant Wood Invocation before the villagers, demonstrating what could only be described as miracles.

He was secretly testing whether doing so would cause the Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth to gather around him.

The result was a failure.

Even though the villagers' faith in him had reached the point of absolute worship, not a single strand of Xuanhuang Qi condensed upon his body.

"It seems that in this martial world, the Xuanhuang Qi only gathers upon martial artists."

Fang Han paid it little mind.

Advancing to the Grandmaster realm and standing unrivaled beneath heaven had always been a path he intended to walk sooner or later.

Even while residing in the Shaman Clan village, he had never neglected his martial cultivation.

Using the life force generated by the Verdant Wood Invocation, he continuously tempered his physical body. At the same time, he honed his martial killing techniques by sweeping clean every ferocious beast inhabiting the mountains surrounding the village.

The savage beasts dwelling deep within these ancient mountains appeared to possess traces of primordial bloodlines inherited from antiquity.

Each one had hide as tough as iron and astonishing physical strength.

Some were even comparable to Inner Force martial artists in combat ability.

Even with Fang Han's current strength, he suffered serious injuries on more than one occasion during these hunts.

Fortunately, with the life force of heaven and earth constantly flowing through his body, he had nothing to fear.

His injuries healed almost instantly.

With everything here concluded, Fang Han prepared to return to ordinary city life.

When he announced his departure, the members of the Shaman Clan were overcome with fear and reluctance. They all knelt upon the muddy ground, desperately pleading for him to stay.

After hastily gathering together to discuss the matter, the villagers finally reached a decision.

They would choose the most beautiful and intelligent young woman in the tribe to accompany Fang Han and attend to him.

"Please, we beg you not to refuse."

Fang Han looked at the trembling villagers kneeling across the ground, then glanced at the graceful young woman kneeling before him.

After a brief silence, he calmly nodded in agreement.

He devoted himself entirely to cultivation. Having someone to tend to his daily needs would indeed be convenient.

Entrusting such matters to an outsider would leave him uneasy.

As for the woman before him, named Ying, she already regarded Fang Han as a sacred deity beyond all desecration.

Moreover, she had grown up within this isolated primitive tribe, completely untouched by the chaotic influences of the outside world.

Her heart was exceptionally pure.

For Fang Han's current circumstances, she was an ideal choice.

Seeing him agree, the villagers immediately erupted into jubilant cheers.

Ying herself burst into tears of joy. Filled with boundless devotion, she once more kowtowed reverently before Fang Han.

After another grueling half month of travel with Ying, Fang Han finally returned to Tianmu City.

Yet when he arrived before his own home, his brows immediately furrowed.

His once peaceful villa had become the site of a noisy celebration.

A large crowd of people had gathered inside, holding a wild party.

"Hm?"

Hearing the commotion and raucous laughter drifting out from within, a murderous glint flashed through Fang Han's eyes.

He did not immediately storm inside and slaughter everyone.

Instead, he patiently made a few inquiries.

Only then did he learn what had happened.

During his absence from Tianmu City, the Fang Family had exhausted every possible method to contact him.

After so much time without any news, they had privately concluded that he had died somewhere outside.

As the Fang Family's financial situation grew increasingly strained, it was only natural that others would covet his luxurious villa, which occupied an enormous piece of land.

Furthermore, ever since Patriarch Fang Dian's passing, there was no longer any influential elder within the clan willing to protect his interests.

Thus, these people had simply occupied the villa as though it rightfully belonged to them.

"Where's my younger brother?" Fang Han asked with a frown.

Although the brothers had gradually grown distant over the years, Fang Lie would never have allowed the family to seize his house before his death had even been confirmed.

"Fang Lie left more than half a month ago for the Eastern Capital to study under a master. He hopes to break through into the Astral Qi realm as soon as possible."

The members of the Fang Family looked rather awkward when they saw the villa's rightful owner return alive.

"Now that you're back... we'll pack our things and leave immediately..."

Fang Han swept his gaze across the filthy, smoke-filled villa.

Then he merely waved his hand dismissively.

"Forget it."

"You can keep the house."

"Our ties have come to an end."

Leaving behind those words, he turned and strode away with Ying following quietly behind him.

The Fang Family members looked at one another in confusion.

But when they realized they could still occupy the finest estate the Fang Family possessed, every trace of doubt immediately vanished.

They quickly returned to their drinking, singing, and revelry inside the luxurious mansion.

"Master, why did you simply give such a beautiful house to them?"

"They forcefully stole your belongings. Shouldn't you have taken everything back and taught them a harsh lesson?"

Ying asked in somewhat clumsy Common Speech, her face filled with confusion.

In everyday life, Fang Han still wasn't accustomed to speaking the Shaman language.

During their journey back, he had therefore spent his free time teaching Ying the common language of the outside world.

She was remarkably intelligent.

Within only half a month, she had already become basically proficient.

Fang Han smiled faintly.

"If I continued living in that house, it would mean I had accepted a favor from the Fang Family."

"And once you owe someone, sooner or later you'll have to repay it."

"It would only become another troublesome entanglement. It's better to sever those ties now."

Ying nodded as though she understood.

Fortunately, Fang Han still had some savings left over from the time he had worked odd jobs.

He immediately rented a small courtyard and moved in.

Although it could not compare to his previous mansion, it was more than sufficient for the two of them.

"I probably won't remain in Tianmu City much longer."

"There are simply too few martial artists above the True Qi realm here. They're nowhere near enough to temper my Martial Intent."

As Fang Han was contemplating his next move, he suddenly sensed that someone had disturbed the restriction he had left behind in the Great Qian world.

He immediately synchronized his current state with the Fangcun space.

Then his body shattered into countless fragments before returning to the Great Qian world.

Watching Fang Han disappear into thin air without any warning, Ying showed no trace of surprise.

Instead, overwhelming excitement and reverence filled her beautiful eyes once more.

She silently knelt before the empty space where he had vanished.

With incomparable devotion, she began offering sincere prayers.

Great Qian.

Dongshan Town.

More than three months had already passed since Fang Han first descended into the Martial Dao world.

Throughout those three months, he had remained behind closed doors under the pretext of recuperating from his injuries.

Only occasionally would he make a brief appearance.

Whenever he traveled to the Martial Dao world, he would leave behind Shentu Xin's phantom to stand guard.

This ensured that no one would notice anything unusual.

His sudden return this time was because someone had entered directly.

The visitor was none other than Li Qing.

Having accepted Li Shun's assignment to investigate how Fang Han had lost his providence in Qingyuan County, he had finally returned in triumph after more than three months away.