NOVEL NEXT Ch. 112
Chapter 112: Zombie Embryo
Gu Fan's figure disappeared, and when he reappeared, he was already standing before a blood pool.
Sensing Gu Fan’s arrival, the Evil Lotus cheerfully extended its branches, gently brushing against his body over and over.
“Alright, alright, every time I come here, I have to empty my pockets for you.”
“This time I’ve brought you something different.”
As he spoke, Gu Fan took out a Tri-colored Yuan Crystal Stone from his Storage Pouch.
Immediately, all the Evil Lotus’s branches began to thrash about wildly—it was clear just how excited it was.
“Don’t be in such a rush, here you go!”
Gu Fan tossed the Yuan Crystal Stone high into the air, and it was instantly entangled by the Evil Lotus and drawn back into the blood pool.
The next moment, one could see the Evil Lotus continuously absorbing the energy within it.
Gradually, its originally over-two-meter-tall body began to grow slowly once again.
Gu Fan then sat cross-legged on the spot, silently observing the Evil Lotus's growth.
Each time he observed, Gu Fan felt as if he gained a new insight—he even found that certain bottlenecks in his cultivation seemed to unravel before him.
Just like before, this time the Evil Lotus’s growth was also accompanied by various phenomenal visions.
Galaxies shattered, the cosmos collapsed, Dao Rhythms spread into the surroundings, gradually enshrouding the area around Gu Fan.
Just like that, man and flower cultivated in silence, until suddenly, an overwhelming aura surged from Gu Fan’s entire body.
The next moment, a terrifying force erupted!
“About to break through to mid-stage Primordial Yang Realm…”
Gu Fan muttered to himself. Then he took out a Tri-colored Yuan Crystal—this was the benefit Senior Brother Nanyun had shared with him after collecting Storage Pouches from the Shangjie Sect disciples.
It was perfect to use this for his breakthrough—it would serve its purpose.
Immediately after, Gu Fan placed the Yuan Crystal Stone between his palms, circulating the cultivation technique that accompanied the Domain Suppression of Myriad Phenomena.
The Tri-colored Yuan Crystal Stone vibrated for a moment, then its glow slowly dimmed.
At the same time, the spiritual energy within Gu Fan surged continuously.
It was his first time absorbing a Yuan Crystal Stone, and he couldn’t help but be surprised—this thing really absorbed fast!
Previously, spiritual energy needed to be filtered and compressed by him before it could be refined into spiritual power and guided into the Qi Sea.
But now, with the Yuan Crystal, there was no need for that—it could be absorbed directly and flowed straight into the Qi Sea.
This speed wasn’t just faster—it was much, much faster!
No wonder they always said cultivation conditions in the Lower Realm were harsh. Now that he saw it, they truly were.
With a casual complaint, Gu Fan put aside all distractions and focused on using the Yuan Crystal’s power to break through the bottleneck of the fourth layer of the Primordial Yang Realm.
Time passed quickly, and by afternoon, the snow covering the ground where Gu Fan sat had melted continuously. As soon as the snow water flowed near him, it vaporized instantly, as if meeting intense heat.
At that moment, Gu Fan, who had been sitting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them wide, and a powerful aura surged out—only to be immediately retracted!
“Fourth layer of the Primordial Yang Realm… I’ve finally reached mid-stage Primordial Yang Realm.”
“This time, after tempering my root bones, breaking through was indeed much smoother. Seems like Fang Xue’s method really works!”
“Not to mention the Evil Lotus feeding back into my cultivation—it’ll definitely speed up my progress in the future!”
Gu Fan felt a bit more reassured inside.
Though he had appeared relaxed during this period,
The truth was, ever since arriving in the Upper Realm, he had been under immense tension.
There was only one reason. In the Lower Realm, as long as the older generation didn’t act, he was nearly invincible among his peers.
He could even slay Elders without hesitation.
And with his exceptional talent, the Heavenly Evil Sect gave him full support.
That gave him immense confidence.
But in the Upper Realm, everything had to start anew.
There was no special treatment from his sect, and among his peers were also many powerful individuals.
Especially after learning about the Holy Son, his sense of crisis only intensified.
Wasn’t this exactly the kind of treatment he received back in his sect in the Lower Realm?
In other words, if one day he accidentally offended the Holy Son, the other party could rely on his strength and the sect’s favoritism to kill him without consequence!
The moment this thought surfaced, Gu Fan felt an unprecedented sense of crisis.
Even though Fang Xue was helping him now, it was based on mutual benefit. If there ever came a day when those benefits disappeared, she might not necessarily continue to protect him.
Moreover, even if she were willing, it seemed Fang Xue’s strength still fell short compared to the Holy Son’s. Whether she could actually protect him was uncertain.
In truth, Gu Fan didn’t even understand why he feared the Holy Son so much—it was just a feeling!
“I must obtain more Yuan Crystals. Only then can I properly nurture my precious Evil Lotus...”
“Once the Evil Lotus bears another lotus seed, I’m sure its power won’t be any weaker than the first one!”
“Only these things can ensure my safety. In the end, it still depends on my own strength.”
Gu Fan muttered to himself for a bit, then left the remaining Yuan Crystal Stones beside the Evil Lotus.
“Big Brother Boss?”
At that moment, a crisp voice sounded from behind.
Gu Fan turned around—it was the little girl he had rescued earlier from the salt depot.
Gu Fan smiled and pinched the girl’s cheek.
“Do you know where Sister Xia Yan is?”
The girl nodded.
“She’s in the office on the first floor. Sister Xia Yan is working there.”
Gu Fan nodded, then rubbed the girl’s head and handed her a piece of dried meat.
The girl’s eyes sparkled as she said thank you and ran off with the dried meat.
Gu Fan headed straight to the first-floor office. At that moment, several people inside the room were in a heated discussion.
Nurse Xia Yan, as the leader, remained seated without moving.
It wasn’t until someone noticed Gu Fan’s arrival that their discussion was interrupted.
“Boss!”
“Boss!!”
Xia Yan looked pleasantly surprised, then turned to the others and said,
“That’s all for today’s discussion. Youyou, go tell the kitchen to prepare extra dinner. Just say the boss is back.”
With that, the group sensibly vacated their seats.
Gu Fan chuckled. Looking at Xia Yan, whose gaze was filled with emotion, he asked in a low voice:
“What were you just discussing? It seemed pretty intense?”
As the topic returned, Xia Yan immediately turned serious.
“It’s about zombie evolution...”
Gu Fan frowned. Zombies?
With his current strength, zombies honestly posed no real threat to him.
He could even lie on the ground and let them bite him—his skin probably wouldn’t even break!
“Explain it in detail. What exactly happened?”
Xia Yan nodded and instantly switched to work mode, beginning to explain their recent discovery.
“It’s like this. We recently found that zombies have undergone some strange mutations. The day before yesterday, when Youyou went to check near the salt depot, she encountered a giant zombie on the way.”
“At first, they thought it was just a kind of mutant zombie or an undiscovered new type.”
“But after killing that zombie, they discovered five or six zombie embryos inside its stomach!”
“Wait a minute!”
Gu Fan raised his hand to interrupt, his face full of disbelief.
“What did you just say? Zombie embryos?!”
Xia Yan paused for a moment and then nodded.
“That’s right—zombie embryos!”
“They were wrapped in a layer of mucus, and when cut open, inside was a small zombie. Although it only had the strength of a Level 1, for now, the only word we can use to describe it is: embryo!”