He was happy to be fighting something other than a beast! The dragon-kin continued to punch down on the golem, striking it with enough force to knock it back a step. At the same time, one of its ankles cracked and shattered giving after being pummeled by Ruishi Lei.

Its balance was lost and the golem fell to its knees.

"Now! Grow!

"

The killing blow was landed by none other than Qiang Rong who grew his staff to the size of a pillar and smashed down. With both size and power, the strike practically demolished the golem's head! Its body suddenly froze in place before crumbling to pieces.

And the six weapons it once wielded fell to the ground, clattering as it dropped.

The Zodiacs all watched and waited. Just because one danger was gone didn't mean that there wouldn't be another one waiting for them. But thankfully, nothing came after the golem and everyone felt as if they could breathe.

The gate hummed with energy before quieting down. Lao Yang walked up to it, he put his hand forward reluctantly but pushed through.

"The barrier is gone, we can leave!

" he spoke out happily.

"That's it then… We've finished the Cracked Ten Pillars…

" said She Xing.

The snake-kin looked around her in disbelief, seeing the destroyed field and the crumbled golem. As someone who had attempted it before, she truly didn't think that this would be done. Zhu Xie was busy grabbing the weapons while everyone else took a short rest in this peaceful realm.

"We did it.

"

Ao Qin chuckled before sharing a look with Niu Hong, who had a blank expression.

"We actually did

", he muttered.

"What do you think is next? Leader of the Four Claws

", the dragon-kin asked.

He wasn't very loud but it was enough for everyone to hear and that grabbed their attention. Now that they have completed one, it meant that they could do more. Worse than that, it would most certainly be more dangerous than this. And the risk would only continue to grow.

Even Zhu Xie stopped admiring the spoils to listen.

"I'm not sure… there are dozens that we could be sent to. Perhaps, we take on more ruins like these where they haven't even been entered before or we go for ones that are known to be dangerous

", Niu Hong answered, scratching the back of his head as he did so.

"Now that I think about it, the Cracked Ten Pillars wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. The hard part was getting the corpse to be honest.

"

Ruishi Lei gave his own thoughts and his words gave the others a sense of security. When someone as strong as him said it, everyone felt as if they had a better chance of living through it all. Even Ao Qin couldn't help but agree to this thought.

"If it was just us two against that golem, we would've had a much harder time defeating it but we would've won regardless. Considering every one of us is not only strong but have our own specialties, I doubt any of us will be dying soon

", he added.

"Too bad we didn't find anything regarding the teleportation array. Not even any treasures that could power that thing. In any case, this is our first conquer, the first of many!

"

Lao Yang spoke loudly as everyone followed.

Indeed, after this set of ruins, there would be many more trials come.

The same could be said with Ming Yue and her little group.

At this moment, she was busy in their little home, carving a large white tusk with a single Zephyr Claw. Carefully and with a bit of dexterity, she shaved off much of it before ending with a final product.

"This doesn't look too bad

", she muttered to herself.

In her hand, the large tusk of the massive elephant she killed had become that of a pure white sword. It was in the shape of a normal sword, double-edged with a small guard and even a pommel.

It was certainly smaller and lighter than Blood Moon. Holding it by the handle, she swung a few times, feeling the weight of it.

"Hmm.

"

She thought carefully, shaving off just a bit at the tip and on some other spots too. And her claw didn't stop until she was satisfied, smiling as she gave it a few more swings.

"Alright, this should be good enough for her

", Ming Yue thought.

The young woman then put the bone sword away before going outside where the skies were a bit cloudy. Off into the distance, Hongyu was busy practicing her swordsmanship, still swinging that makeshift wooden sword from before.

As for the three beasts, they were nowhere to be found, most likely hunting outside.

However, Ming Yue did not bother and instead walked towards the little girl, watching her practice before picking up a random stick.

"Come on then

", she said,

"Let's practice for a bit.

"

Understanding her words, Hongyu pointed her wooden sword at the cultivator and their little duel began.

"She's getting much better at it, still not at the first stage but she's getting there.

"

Ming Yue made little notes and thoughts, seeing where her progress was.

"How long has it been since I took her? Half a year?

" she thought,

"She looks a bit bigger, stronger too.

"

Hongyu was a growing child after all.

And having eaten the flesh of the Savage Beasts, there was certainly growth. She was an inch or two taller and there was already a bit of definition in her body, no doubt from the daily training. Her pale skin now had small scratches from training and exploring.

"Alright, that's enough. Let's go have lunch.

"

After sharing over a thousand moves, Ming Yue stopped dropping the stick and moving to cook. As for Hongyu, she was tired and sweaty, panting heavily as she followed her, dragging the sword behind. Making it back to the house, there were plenty of improvements since it was first made.

There was a table and chairs outside, bowls and cups carved from wood along with chopsticks.

The garden had expanded and suffused a sweet and earthy scent to the air, growing both medicine and vegetables. The house itself was improved as well, no longer a little hut but a larger home with rooms of their own.

Such changes had become a source of pride for Ming Yue, who sat down by the table with bowls and chopsticks.

"Ah, all that time spent building and thinking was not wasted.

"

She smiled at the thought, spending more than just a few days trying to figure out how to improve. Setting the table, Ming Yue grabbed a pot she had made out of clay, using a wooden ladle to fill the bowls with a warm stew.

After filling her's and Hongyu's, she placed the pot away before grabbing three larger pots and leaving them on the ground. They all had differing sizes, one for each of her pets.

All Ming Yue did was whistle once and then she began to eat.

Soon enough, they burst out of the forest, all three of them returning with a few catches of their own.

"Come on you three, it's time to eat!

" she shouted out in between bites.

The trio dropped whatever they had caught and went off to feast on their food. Between raw meat and cooked food, they much preferred this, slurping away at the hearty stew. It was filled with numerous meats and vegetables, brought together with a few spices and herbs.

It certainly wasn't amazing but it was a filling meal.

This was just one of the many days they spent here, peacefully, quietly.

But as Ming Yue enjoyed her meal, she felt something, a sharp pain, one in her chest and one in her mind.

"No.

"