Chapter 319: The Billionaire Acknowledges His Master

At the entrance to the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land, Tai Xu and the others rushed out in a state of utter disarray.
The three sect leaders fared somewhat better—protected by their divine artifacts and possessing profound cultivation, they suffered little in appearance and were unharmed; yet the two Yuan Ying elders from the Illusion Demon Sect and the Blood God Sect had their faces blackened, their clothes torn, and their top-tier divine robes as well as their most crucial defensive talismans almost completely ruined, with little chance of repair. They too were severely injured and would need at least a month to recover.
Seeing them escape in such condition, the other two Yuan Ying elders guarding the entrance must have been shocked beyond measure.
“This… how could this happen?” asked Tai Hao, the chief elder of the Tai Yi Sect, his face filled with alarm.
“Sigh!”
Tai Xu waved his hand, too busy to explain anything. He needed to tidy himself up first; otherwise, if the people from the Wu Ji Sect who arrived later saw him in such a state, it would become an extremely embarrassing laughingstock.
“Where is Tai Wu?” Tai Hao asked anxiously. “Why hasn’t he come out?”
As he spoke, he rushed into the entrance and scanned the vast, desolate Wind and Thunder Desolate Land, but still couldn’t spot Tai Wu.
By the time he came back out, Tai Xu had dressed neatly and said in a grave voice, “Tai Wu… things probably don’t look good for him…”
“How is that possible?” Tai Hao was utterly shocked, his voice even slightly off-key. “That Tian Yu is only at the middle stage of the Golden Dan phase. How could he defeat all of you and even keep Tai Wu inside? Could it be that he can harness the divine punishment power of the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land?”
As expected of an elder who had lived for over 700 years, he guessed roughly correct based on Tai Xu’s words.
Just as Tai Xu was about to explain, seven figures descended from the valley. The seven Yuan Ying elders from the Wu Ji Sect and the Manli Tribe had fought their way through over ten thousand miles but arrived more than two hours late.
“Tai Xu, you’re still here? Haven’t you gone in?”
The loud voice of the Tiger Hill Old Monster boomed. “Where’s Tai Wu? Is he the only one who went in?”
Tai Xu and the others wore gloomy expressions and remained silent.
With their sharp eyes, the Tiger Hill Old Monster and the Wu Ji Sect leaders could tell right away that they must have suffered a heavy defeat, hence their expressions.
Thinking about Tian Yu’s ability to obtain the only Black Domain Immortal Lotus in the cultivation world, the Tiger Hill Old Monster and the others also began to suspect something.
“That Tian Yu really can’t be underestimated!”
Everyone murmured in silence. For a while, no one dared to enter the Wind and Thunder Desolate Land to search for Su Che’s whereabouts.

In particular, the demon race feared various types of thunderstorms even more than human cultivators, and the several great demons of the Manli Tribe dared not take risks lightly. Yet, due to the overwhelming temptation of wealth, they were unwilling to give up so easily. Thus, the seven members of the Tai Xu Sect, along with the four great demons of the Manli Tribe—eleven Yuan Ying-level cultivators in total—set up camp in the valley, patiently waiting for Su Che to show up. They believed that Wind and Thunder Desolation was like a sealed jar with only one entrance and exit; trying to escape through other routes would surely lead to death. So, Su Che would eventually come out from there.

The five Golden Core-stage treasure hunters who had originally been stationed there had been completely annihilated. Aside from You Lan Gui Ji, who was far away in the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sect, no one else could tell them that Su Che had other ways to escape if he wanted to withdraw.

The three Yuan Ying-level ancestors of the Wu Ji Sect had left early, as they had already received a message from Tian Yin that read, “Wind and Thunder Desolation cannot trap Tian Yu. The three senior brothers can return to the sect as soon as possible…”

……

Su Che moved swiftly through the gaps between the thunderstorms and strong winds, quickly reaching the location where he had picked the Black Domain Immortal Lotus back then. Three years ago, the Black Domain Immortal Lotus grew in a deep pit, with a Wind and Thunder Eye above it. Su Che had experienced dancing with lightning, descended deep into the pit to fetch the lotus, which triggered a massive underground collapse, creating a bottomless pit nearly a thousand zhang wide.

Today, the pit still existed, but the Wind and Thunder Eye above it had disappeared. Su Che guessed that the powerful suction force generated by the underground collapse must have destroyed the Wind and Thunder Eye as well.

Without hesitation, Su Che plunged deep into the bottomless giant pit.

That massive heart still lay tens of thousands of zhang underground. As its inheritor, Su Che had an almost intuitive and clear sense of it, being absolutely certain of its existence. After descending vertically by fifty thousand zhang, Su Che arrived once again in that peculiar deep-space area beneath the earth, standing in front of the massive heart.

Bang! Bang! Bang…

Its heartbeat matched Su Che’s exactly. This time, seeing it, Su Che felt no sense of strangeness or fear—only a close connection born of blood and kinship. His own blood and bones had undergone tremendous changes due to inheriting its legacy, so describing it as a familial bond was not an exaggeration.

With their heartbeats in perfect sync, Su Che greeted it through telepathic communication, without needing to speak.

A thick blood vessel swayed like a tentacle and gently touched Su Che’s back several times, expressing affection and joy toward its successor.
After a few breaths, Su Che sat down beside that massive heart. Everything else could wait—the ultimate fate of the Wealthy One needed to be decided as soon as possible. Keeping it in hand like this wasn’t sustainable!
Originally, Su Che planned to enter the Wealthy One’s Palace and communicate with the spirit of the Wealthy One with the help of Master Huaguang. But when he sent a thought to the Wealthy One, the response was that the spirit didn’t want Su Che to enter.
Why? Could it be that once free from the pursuit of people like Tai Xu, the Wealthy One would turn on him? For a moment, Su Che also had such a misunderstanding. Later, the spirit of the Wealthy One explained through mental communication, and it turned out…
The Wealthy One was extremely afraid of that massive heart and asked Su Che to hold it in his hands for protection. If Su Che entered the palace, it would mean the Wealthy One had to face that heart alone. It didn’t dare; it was terrified! By instinct alone, the spirit of the Wealthy One sensed that the heart possessed terrifyingly powerful forces capable of destroying it easily.
The ultimate defensive treasure in the cultivation world was scared to this extent—no one would believe it if told…
“Well then…”
Su Che sent a thought, asking politely, “Spirit of the Wealthy One, would you like to venture through the cultivation world together with me?”
In other words, were you willing to acknowledge me as your master?
He had thought the spirit of the Wealthy One would be stubborn, unyielding, and fierce, making it difficult to control. But unexpectedly…
“Okay, Su Che. I’m willing to acknowledge you as my master.”
The Wealthy One’s reply was simple and direct, leaving Su Che momentarily stunned. How could it be so easy?
At that moment, Master Huaguang’s voice reached Su Che’s ears from inside the palace: “I’ve already made it clear to it. The ancient ancestor passed away thousands of years ago; its former master is long gone, and my own lifespan is also coming to an end. So, for the Wealthy One, the only one left to choose from is you, who has fought alongside it.”
Uncertain whether the massive heart might harm Master Huaguang, Su Che didn’t dare let him appear rashly and could only communicate this way.
Master Huaguang continued, “I’ve told it about you—indeed, the greatest genius in the cultivation world deserves such a top-tier Dao artifact. So, it agreed without much effort.”
“Great!”

Su Che cheered, unable to hide his excitement. Holding the vast wealth in his hands, he laughed and said, “Spirit of Vast Wealth, thank you for making such a choice. I am confident that in the future, I can continue to improve you, turning you into an even more extraordinary Dao artifact, or even an immortal artifact.”
If any Yuan Ying ancestor were here and heard Su Che’s last words, they would surely think the ignorant young man was being overconfident and completely unrealistic…
Normally, an upper-grade Dao artifact is already fully formed; it can only enhance its power to a certain extent and has no possibility of being upgraded to an extraordinary Dao artifact, let alone an immortal artifact.
Only true immortals in the Immortal Realm can create immortal artifacts. Even if Su Che were capable of reaching the Mahayana realm and eventually ascending to the Immortal Realm, it would still be impossible for him to take mortal artifacts with him.
Immortal artifacts that have ended up in the mortal realm due to certain reasons can return to the Immortal Realm, but mortal objects do not have the right to enter it—this is a rule of the Heavenly Dao that cannot be violated.
Therefore, it is utterly impossible to upgrade a Dao artifact into an immortal artifact!
The Spirit of Vast Wealth understood these principles but did not correct Su Che. It believed this was just Su Che being overly excited and speaking impulsively, without any real meaning.
Still, it sent a mental message to remind Su Che, “In the Spirit Realm, above extraordinary Dao artifacts, there are supreme Dao artifacts, and above those are immortal artifacts.”
“Supreme Dao artifacts?”
Su Che paused briefly before laughing and saying, “Whatever, whether it’s extraordinary or supreme… Anyway, since you chose me today, you definitely won’t regret it in the future. I can guarantee that.”
The Spirit of Vast Wealth responded with a mental fluctuation and provided Su Che with some information.
The method to claim ownership of an upper-grade Dao artifact is actually quite simple, but the prerequisite is that the artifact must willingly accept you. Otherwise, it will be extremely difficult.
Following the guidance of the Spirit of Vast Wealth, Su Che first forced out a drop of his lifeblood from his fingertip and dropped it on a certain spot on the artifact. This was the first step: marking ownership with blood.
The second step required Su Che to infuse a large amount of true essence into the artifact to completely erase the true essence traits of its previous owner. The third step involved injecting a large amount of mental energy to completely erase the mental traits of the previous owner.
Su Che had stored plenty of true essence and mental energy in the Sumeru Divine Seal, so it only took fifteen minutes to meet the artifact’s requirements.
Once these three steps were completed, Su Che immediately felt a connection between himself and the artifact.
Buzz…
The artifact emitted a faint humming sound. Then, with a thought from Su Che, the artifact, which had been held in his palm, disappeared instantly.

Through mental introspection, it could be seen that tiny riches, as fine as sand grains, were attached to Su Che’s Golden Elixir, ready to be summoned at any time. This was the true sign of successful ownership, with them completely belonging to Su Che. Thus, in addition to the Immortal Prison Space, Su Che now had another personal treasure space entirely of his own: a vast palace of riches.