My Crazy Upgrade System-Chapter 42 - 41: Illusion Beast Mountain Range

Inside a secret chamber, the atmosphere was heavy.

BANG!

An expensive mahogany table shattered into several pieces from a single slam of a hand, scaring the guard who had come to report the news so much that he trembled, not daring to look up at the powerful figures before him.

"I never expected that sending Ma Liangpeng to your Celestial Phoenix Tower would result in this! Not only is Ma Liangpeng dead, but even Steward Fu is dead!" said Qingyun Cheng, the Sect Master of the Divine Forging Sect. His gaze was icy, his eyes filled with killing intent.

"Several of our stewards and a Pavilion Master are dead, too. You think we’re pleased about this?"

The man sitting beside him, Xiang Tianya, the Grand Pavilion Master of the Celestial Phoenix Tower, appeared calmer, but his eyes blazed with fury.

"That brat from Merak Palace is just too damn strange, isn’t he? Wasn’t he supposed to be a good-for-nothing without a shred of Blood Qi? How could he be so strong that even Steward Fu was killed?! While there’s no confirmation he did it, it was definitely someone on his side, if not the boy himself! For all we know, people from Merak Palace were helping him from the shadows!"

Qingyun Cheng was fuming, looking like he wanted to swallow Yi Tianyun whole.

"That’s a possibility. Steward Fu’s cultivation was by no means weak. For that boy to kill someone at the peak of the Spirit Refining Stage is absolutely impossible!"

Xiang Tianya said coldly, "It’s highly likely he was killed by a Merak Palace elder, or perhaps even by Shi Xueyun herself. I hear she dotes on him. It’s not impossible that she secretly followed him."

"So that’s how Merak Palace wants to play it! But the brat has already announced that he’s no longer a disciple of Merak Palace and that whatever he does has nothing to do with them!"

Qingyun Cheng frowned. "But the boy is indeed an Outer Disciple, so there’s not much we can hold the sect accountable for."

’Can’t hold them accountable, huh...’

Xiang Tianya’s eyes glinted coldly. "Does that mean we just take this loss? Issue a bounty for that brat! I don’t care if you have to tear up the earth, I want him captured and brought to me! Our Celestial Phoenix Tower’s reputation has taken a massive hit this time, and we’re being completely overshadowed by Rainy Day Tower!"

"Rest assured, we will put a bounty on him. We’ll capture him, drag him before the Merak Palace, and kill him brutally!" A bloodthirsty light gleamed in Qingyun Cheng’s eyes. "But soon enough, the Merak Palace will be ours, including all the Treasure within!"

"Exactly. The Merak Palace thinks they’ll get off scot-free. Heh heh..."

They exchanged a look, and in each other’s eyes, they saw a triumphant glint, as if the Merak Palace was already within their grasp.

Rumor had it that the Merak Palace held a Treasure coveted by all. However, the Palace’s foundation was formidable, so no one had dared to make a move. But now, it seemed the time was almost ripe for them...

...

Yi Tianyun was unaware of the Divine Forging Sect’s and Celestial Phoenix Tower’s collusion. He had already traveled to a rather remote area—the Illusion Beast Mountain Range.

His reason for coming here was simple: to level up. He was well aware that his current cultivation level was too low. It might seem high to others, but when facing major powers like the Divine Forging Sect, it was far from enough.

Therefore, he had to come here to train and break through to the Core Formation Stage!

This might seem unthinkable to others, but for him, as long as there were enough Demon Beasts to kill, he could break through without any bottlenecks.

’So this is the Illusion Beast Mountain Range. It really does have a sinister feel to it...’

Standing atop a high peak, Yi Tianyun looked down upon a seemingly endless forest. He could feel a sense of unknown danger emanating from it. The deeper one ventured, the higher the cultivation level of the Demon Beasts within.

"Let’s go!"

Yi Tianyun vaulted onto the Snow Wolf’s back, and they began to charge down the mountain. As they galloped, many of the weaker Demon Beasts fled in terror. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

He headed straight for the deeper regions. He couldn’t be bothered with the Demon Beasts here; the experience gained from killing them was far too low.

After they had ventured a fair distance into the range, a giant bear suddenly leaped out from the side with a ROAR. It expressed its fury at Yi Tianyun and his companion for invading its territory with a powerful swipe of its paw.

"Perfect timing! Snow Wolf, you’re up!"

Yi Tianyun quickly leaped off the Snow Wolf. With a roar, the Snow Wolf transformed into a streak of silver light and pounced. WHOOSH! The silver light flashed, and a deep, bloody gash appeared on the giant bear’s body. The bear froze on the spot.

The next moment, it collapsed to the ground, completely still.

"Successfully killed Giant Bear. Obtained 900 Experience, 1 Bear Pelt, 90 Madness Value."

’Not bad. With Mad Experience Mode activated, that’s 1,800 experience points.’

Yi Tianyun felt the experience here was quite substantial. The Demon Beasts in this area were generally at the eighth or ninth layer of the Body Refining Stage. Not too high, not too low, which made killing them highly efficient.

While higher-level beasts offered more experience, they were also more difficult to kill. Demon Beasts, unlike Cultivators, had incredibly thick hides, making them tough opponents. Besides, he was also using this opportunity to train his Snow Wolf.

He had no allies, so leveling up his pet was the best way to create a powerful helper. And so, they began a frenzied slaughter in this region. Man and beast, they madly hunted down Demon Beasts.

Soon, their experience points were skyrocketing, and the Snow Wolf’s level naturally rose with them.

"Congratulations, Player. Your pet, Snow Wolf, has successfully broken through to the ninth layer of the Body Refining Stage..."

"Congratulations, Player. Your pet, Snow Wolf, has successfully broken through to the tenth layer of the Body Refining Stage..."

"Congratulations, Player..."

The slaughter continued unabated. The Snow Wolf’s level grew at a staggering rate. The Mad Experience Mode was constantly active, maintaining the 2x experience bonus. Given the rate at which he was accumulating Madness Value, he had no fear of running out, unless he decided to go on a lottery-drawing spree.

However, he had no intention of using the lottery for now. He had to be frugal; Madness Value had many uses, and he’d have none left for other things if he spent it all on the lottery. ’What I’d really like to do,’ he thought, ’is save up a hundred thousand Madness Value points and upgrade the Madness Mode. I wonder what level it’ll reach?’

After several days of frenzied hunting, Yi Tianyun was completely exhausted and sat down to rest for a while. He turned to look at the Snow Wolf, and the Eye of Investigation in his pupils activated automatically.

Snow Wolf: Cultivation at the fifth layer of the Spirit Refining Stage. Forelimb Sharp Claw grade is High-Grade Mortal Iron. Fur grade is High-Grade Mortal Iron. Blood Volume is 4,500. Comprehensive Combat Power is 5,700!

He had successfully raised the Snow Wolf’s cultivation level and was quite satisfied with the result. Just as he was preparing to venture deeper to hunt even stronger Demon Beasts, the urgent sounds of a fight suddenly reached his ears, growing closer by the second.

Just as he was about to mount the Snow Wolf and retreat, a message sounded in his mind: "Random Quest: Accept ’Rescue Miss Yan of the Yan Family’? Completion Reward: 5,000 Experience, 100 Favorability with Yan Lingxue, 10 Character Value."

’What? An increase of ten Character Value!?’

Yi Tianyun froze. He couldn’t care less about the other rewards, but the Character Value was a different story.

Many quests offered no Character Value at all; only those that involved helping others for a good cause would grant it.

’To accept or not to accept?’ Yi Tianyun’s eyes darted about for a moment before he nodded and said in a deep voice, "Accept!"

For the sake of that Character Value, it looked like he would have to play the hero and save the damsel in distress.