In order to find Chu Lan as quickly as possible, Chu Tianxiong offered a generous reward.
Anyone who could track down Chu Lan would receive one hundred taels of silver, and informants would also be given ten taels as a reward.
Consequently, everyone within the Chu Family—whether household servants or collateral descendants—was motivated to search for Chu Lan.
With Chu Lan missing, the person most distressed by far was Chu Beichuan.
The control of the North Courtyard's Spirit-Gathering Array rested with Chu Lan; without it, Chu Beichuan had no way to utilize the array for his cultivation.
What Chu Beichuan did not know was that the Spirit-Gathering Array he so desperately longed for had long since been moved from the North Courtyard into the Divine Desolation Pagoda.
Leading a group of Chu Family guards, he searched the outskirts of Luoyang City for any trace of Chu Lan.
"Damn that Chu Lan!"
Chu Beichuan clenched his teeth. "If I had known, I should have arranged for someone to keep an eye on him!"
"Young Master!"
At that moment, a guard hurried over. "We have news of Chu Lan!"
"Speak, where is that brat now?"
Chu Beichuan's eyes turned icy.
"Someone saw Chu Lan enter the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains!"
The guard's reply made Chu Beichuan raise an eyebrow. "A good-for-nothing like him actually dares to enter the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains?"
"Isn't that just going to his death?"
The Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains were infested with ferocious beasts. Even for someone of his standing, entering the mountains alone without guards carried a severe risk of perishing in the jaws of beasts.
Since Chu Lan was now nothing more than a cripple with a shattered Dantian, entering the mountains was undoubtedly courting death.
"Let's go, to the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains!"
Just as Chu Beichuan gave the order, the four guards accompanying him frowned and tried to dissuade him. "Young Master, if we want to enter the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains, we must make some preparations beforehand."
"Heh... there's no need to prepare anything."
Chu Beichuan laughed. "Even if that trash Chu Lan ran into the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains, he would never dare to venture deep inside."
"He'll definitely just linger around the outer fringes."
The four guards exchanged glances.
If they remained only on the outer fringes, their combined strength would be more than enough to protect Chu Beichuan without any issues.
Little did they know, Chu Lan had already stepped deep into the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains.
Although the outer fringes of the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains were safe, finding spirit herb seeds there was exceedingly difficult.
Only the depths offered a high probability of finding them.
True, the beasts in the depths were more numerous and far stronger than those on the periphery.
Yet there were still certain beasts that Chu Lan could handle on his own.
Naturally, should he encounter a beast he could not defeat, Chu Lan could simply hide within the Divine Desolation Pagoda to avoid the brunt of its attack.
Chu Lan swept his gaze around his surroundings.
With his sharp eyes, he immediately spotted a fruit on the ground not far away.
"This is a Scarlet Scorching Fruit!"
The Scarlet Scorching Fruit was a spirit fruit capable of transforming one's physique, holding immense value for martial artists in the Body Spirit Realm.
Any Body Spirit Realm practitioner who consumed a Scarlet Scorching Fruit would find their bones and muscles tempered to several times their previous strength.
Of course, that was merely the benefit of consuming the fruit on its own.
The Scarlet Scorching Fruit had another major use: it could be used as an ingredient to refine Pulse-Opening Pills, which more effectively helped martial artists advance into the Vein Spirit Realm.
"What a pity, this Scarlet Scorching Fruit has fallen for too long, its medicinal efficacy has completely vanished."
Chu Lan sighed regretfully.
To prevent its medicinal properties from dissipating, a Scarlet Scorching Fruit had to be harvested using special methods immediately upon ripening.
Although this particular fruit was ruined, the seeds inside remained useful.
Retrieving the seeds, Chu Lan immediately entered the Divine Desolation Pagoda to cultivate them.
After all, he still needed to search the Hundred Thousand Li Great Mountains for other spirit herb seeds, which would take a considerable amount of time.
By the time he finished gathering most of them, these Scarlet Scorching Fruit seeds would be nearly ripe as well.
After planting them, Chu Lan wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Since the place I just visited had a Scarlet Scorching Fruit, there's a good chance there are more nearby."
Discovering a single fruit meant that a Scarlet Scorching Fruit tree must surely exist in the vicinity.
When the time came, he could use those fruits to temper his bones and muscles.
The moment this thought crossed his mind, Chu Lan stepped right back out of the Divine Desolation Pagoda.
A shadow loomed before him. Raising his head, he found himself locking eyes with a massive beast.
"This... this is a Body Spirit Realm Seventh Layer beast, a Crimson Blood Mad Wolf!"
Chu Lan's expression sank.
A beast at the Body Spirit Realm Seventh Layer was far too powerful for him.
If a real fight broke out, Chu Lan might not emerge victorious.
The Crimson Blood Mad Wolf snapped to its senses.
Accompanied by an angry roar, it lashed out at Chu Lan with its massive claws.
Unfortunately for the beast, Chu Lan dodged the strike instantly.
The Crimson Blood Mad Wolf did not stop its assault.
Pushing off with all four limbs, it lunged fiercely at Chu Lan.
*Bang!*
Under the impact of the beast's charge, the ground cracked open into a massive fissure.
Chu Lan vaulted into the air, using the momentum of the wolf's charge to leap behind it.
"Not only is the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf huge, but once it locks onto prey, it will clamp down and never let go until the target is dead!"
Chu Lan braced himself into a combat stance. Even if he wanted to avoid a direct confrontation right now, this Crimson Blood Mad Wolf would pursue and hunt him relentlessly.
Even if he hid inside the Divine Desolation Pagoda, the wolf would simply wait on the spot for days until it confirmed its prey had completely vanished.
"Although there is a massive gap in power between us, victory is not entirely out of the question!"
An idea already formed in Chu Lan's mind.
He beckoned to the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf, shouting, "You beast, come on!"
Though the unevolved Crimson Blood Mad Wolf could not understand human speech, it could easily read the contempt in Chu Lan's expression.
It immediately let out a furious roar.
A puny ant dared to show contempt for it?
Simply courting death!
The Crimson Blood Mad Wolf lunged forward, its speed reaching an absolute extreme.
Any other Body Spirit Realm Fourth Layer practitioner would have been utterly incapable of reacting in time.
Even if they had reacted, they would have been unable to evade the beast's attack.
Yet Chu Lan simply slipped straight into the Divine Desolation Pagoda, evading the wolf's charge entirely.
The next instant, Chu Lan reappeared from the pagoda, landing in a position directly behind the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf.
"Scarlet Gold Fist!"
Executing the mastery-level martial art Scarlet Gold Fist, Chu Lan smashed his fist down hard against the wolf's back.
Caught off guard, the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf tried to spin around to defend itself, but it was already too late.
Its back took the full brunt of the devastating blow, sending its massive body hurtling several meters away.
Digging its claws firmly into the ground to steady its frame, the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf lowered its head and emitted a low, rumbling growl.
Clearly, Chu Lan's actions had driven it into a frenzy of rage.
"The strength is still far too lacking."
If his own cultivation realm were even one minor tier higher, that previous strike just might have beaten the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf to the brink of death.
"Though I can't manage to slay this beast in one go, doing it a few more times will definitely do the trick!"
Just as Chu Lan finished speaking, the Crimson Blood Mad Wolf attacked once more.
Unlike before, the beast did not charge this time; instead, it leaped high into the air and whipped its tail around.
Its tail, sharp as a blade, slashed straight toward Chu Lan.
"No way, this beast's tail can detach?!"