"Kid, what kind of riddle are you spinning? Who is it?"
Despicable Donkey blinked in confusion, staring at Ling Feng with wide eyes.
"Someone we both know." Ling Feng rubbed the bridge of his nose, his expression serious. "If I'm not mistaken, that Blood Sword Heavenly Lord is none other than Li Qingling, the man we met back in Wangduan Mountain."
Despicable Donkey frowned, recalling Lay Practitioner Qingling's appearance, then nodded. "Now that you mention it, there is a resemblance. This divine beast thought he'd died in the imperial tomb."
"Turns out, not only did he survive, but he also got his hands on that shattered demon sword—only to be controlled by it instead. Now he's wreaking havoc in the Western Wilderness."
Ling Feng's brows knitted together. According to Despicable Donkey, anyone whose soul essence was drained by the Blood Soul Pearl would turn into a "Blood Spirit Corpse"—a mindless puppet. If this spread unchecked, the death toll would be unimaginable.
"That's why this divine beast came back—to see if you had a solution. Otherwise, a lot of people are going to die." Despicable Donkey puffed out his chest righteously.
"Cut the act. You're no saint—just tell me what you're really after."
Ling Feng rolled his eyes.
"Hehe." Despicable Donkey grinned, baring his big white teeth. "Well, there is a tiny little favor. That Blood Sword Heavenly Lord is slippery as an eel, and this divine beast isn't exactly a bloodhound. So..."
Ling Feng saw right through him. "You want to use me as bait to lure him out?"
"Haha! As expected of this divine beast's little brother—sharp as ever!"
Despicable Donkey flicked his tail smugly. "With your medical skills, if you cure those Blood Spirit Corpses, the Blood Sword Heavenly Lord will come for you. Then, we team up and take him down—easy!"
Ling Feng raised an eyebrow. The moment Despicable Donkey wagged his tail, he knew exactly what he was scheming.
This damn donkey had his eyes on the Blood Sword Heavenly Lord's treasures.
Still, he wasn't wrong. If left unchecked, the Blood Sword Heavenly Lord would become a calamity.
With both himself and Despicable Donkey, taking on the Blood Sword Heavenly Lord shouldn’t be too difficult.
Since Gu Tengfeng had mentioned team missions anyway, a trip to the Western Wilderness wouldn't hurt.
"Fine. If it's for the greater good, I'll play along this time."
Ling Feng nodded. "Now, if there's nothing else, go rest in the Five Elements Heavenly Palace."
"Wait, wait!" Despicable Donkey rubbed his hooves together eagerly. "There's still one more thing."
"What else?" Ling Feng played dumb.
"Tch! You looted so many treasures in the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons—you owe this divine beast a cut! After all my heroic efforts, battling demons for the people, returning wounded—this is how you treat a savior?"
Despicable Donkey's speech was so dramatic it almost sounded believable.
"Your share already went to the Tianmeng Chamber of Commerce."
Ling Feng shrugged. "Think about it—how much trouble did you cause? If I hadn't paid up, would they have let you off? Since it's with Tianmeng now, consider it spent."
"Outrageous! Daylight robbery!"
Despicable Donkey gnashed his teeth, almost tempted to raid Tianmeng's vault—until he remembered their legion of Human Emperors. Gulping, he glared at Ling Feng. "No way. You're holding out on me."
"Well... there is one thing left."
Ling Feng retrieved a porcelain bottle from his storage ring—the supreme god pills he'd refined from the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons.
Originally ten in total, he'd distributed them to Li Bufan, Jiang Xiaofan, Mu Qianxue, Yue Yunlan, himself, Tuoba Yan, and Yan Cangtian, leaving only three—two of which were half-finished.
Uncertain of the pill's effects, Ling Feng hadn't dared to consume them yet—or rather, his current cultivation wasn't ready for them.
Despicable Donkey's eyes gleamed as he swallowed hard. "What's this treasure?"
Ling Feng took out the last complete pill, holding it up. "A pill I obtained in the Battlefield of the Gods and Demons. Refined by Ethereal Fire for millennia, completed by sheer chance."
Despicable Donkey's eyes bulged as he sniffed the pill, his face twisting in ecstasy.
"More than that—its completion triggered a pill tribulation. A Blood Echelon Creation Tribulation Lightning."
"Blood Echelon Tribulation?!"
Despicable Donkey lifted his head, staring at Ling Feng in disbelief. "Kid, you're not messing with this divine beast, are you?"
"Of course not." Ling Feng shook his head. "Even Elder Yan couldn't identify it. Given your age, I thought you might know."
Despicable Donkey lifted the pill with his hoof, scrutinizing it before sighing. "The medicinal strength is immense—and it uses some kind of special demonic beast essence. No ordinary beast, either!"
"You can't tell either?"
Ling Feng sighed—just as Despicable Donkey gulped the pill down whole.
"Who cares what it is? Eat first, ask later! With this divine beast's physique, no pill can beat me!"
Then, before he could finish, Despicable Donkey clutched his belly and started rolling on the ground.
His stomach pulsed with red light, swelling rapidly until he looked like a bloated ball, bouncing around the room.
"Ahhh! I'm dying! This is murder!"
Black donkey hair rained from the sky as his once-luxurious mane shed completely, replaced by two bald, glowing red bumps on his head.
The commotion drew Su Hongxiu and Tuoba Yan, who stared in shock as the Despicable Donkey thrashed and flailed like a mad beast.