63: Chapter 63 Iron-Blooded! The Empress's Power!

Great Elder Xia Mingyuan's private storehouse was located in the deepest part of the Xia Family Mansion.

When Xia Youchu used the key to open the heavy gate, even with her high standards, her brow couldn't help but twitch slightly in surprise.

The internal space of the storehouse was massive, far exceeding its appearance from the outside, clearly utilizing space expansion technology.

Inside, items were neatly categorized and piled high like mountains!

Near the entrance was the Origin Stone area.

Low Grade Origin Stones were piled in the corner like trash, while Medium Grade Origin Stones were stacked neatly like a low wall.

And in the deepest part, there were over a dozen chests of High Grade Origin Stones radiating dense waves of Origin Qi!

There were even three small chests of Top Grade Origin Stones, with their Origin Qi restrained and glowing with a misty brilliance!

This quantity was already equivalent to five years of income from all of the Xia Family's properties combined!

Beside it was the Spiritual Plant area, where various rare medicinal herbs were carefully preserved in jade boxes, yet their refreshing fragrance still leaked through.

Century-old Blood Ginseng, thousand-year-old Green Spirit Vines, and even a few stalks of Snowy Jade Bone Ginseng radiating an icy Aura!

Further inside on the shelves, countless bottles and jars were arranged; this was the Medicinal Pill area.

Basic pills like Body Tempering Pills and Qi Gathering Pills were piled up, and deeper in, there were precious pills labeled "Barrier Breaking Pill", "Meridian Connecting Pill", and so on.

The weapon racks gleamed with cold light, containing everything from ordinary iron to graded Origin Weapons. Though there were no top-tier divine weapons, the quantity was enough to arm a small guard unit.

In the furthest corner was a huge iron cage holding over a dozen dying Yao Beasts, none of which had weak Bloodline Auras. They ranged from Demon Soldier to Demon General ranks, meant to be used as consumable materials by Great Elder Xia Mingyuan to extract essence blood and nurture War Beasts.

"Tsk, this old dog is truly wealthy," Xia Youchu sneered.

"Awoo! Dinner time!"

Ling Tian didn't care about any of that. His eyes lit up instantly, and he charged in like a hungry dragon pouncing on its prey!

First, he rushed to the pile of medicine bottles. With a sweep of his large claw, he stuffed a massive amount of Spirit Pills, bottles and all, whole into his mouth.

Crunchy! Tastes like chicken!

[Devour successful! Obtained evolution points +800! Strength +50, Stamina +50...]

Next, he pounced on the pile of Origin Stones, grabbing a handful of High Grade Origin Stones and chewing them to pieces like candy with loud "crunch, crunch" sounds, forcing the pure Origin Qi into his body.

[Devour successful! Obtained evolution points +50!]

[Devour successful! Obtained evolution points +50!]

...

Although the evolution points provided by a single stone weren't much, the sheer quantity was more than enough to fill him up!

He then saw the gleaming weapons. After trying to bite through a steel longsword, he found the texture surprisingly good, a bit like chewing on hard biscuits.

[Devour successful! Obtained evolution points +150! Strength +5!]

Thus, under Xia Youchu's slightly speechless gaze, Ling Tian began a true clean sweep.

His cheerful chewing sounds echoed throughout the entire storehouse.

[Devour successful! Obtained evolution points +999...]

[Fire Resistance increased!]

[Digestion Ability increased!]

[Obtained a trace of Dragon Clan Origin Qi! Dragon Source +1!]

[Devoured rare mineral Star Sand, obtained evolution points +50!]

[Devoured Earth Core Jade Pith, obtained evolution points +2000! Earth Resistance increased!]

...

Xia Youchu shook her head as she watched Ling Tian's bandit-like eating habits, but she didn't stop him.

Walking over to the Spiritual Plant and Medicinal Pill areas herself, she waved her delicate hand, circulating her "Swallowing Heaven Demonic Art". Instantly, those precious Spiritual Plants and Medicinal Pills transformed into a torrent of the purest medicinal power, which she swallowed and absorbed directly!

Her Aura began to rise steadily at a pace visible to the naked eye, and the barrier of the Six-star Origin Master Realm began to loosen.

As she devoured, she was deep in thought.

The root of the Xia Family's internal issues did not lie solely with Great Elder Xia Mingyuan.

These Family elders held positions they didn't deserve, cared only for their own private interests, and were extremely short-sighted.

In her past life, when the Xia Family was nearly destroyed, they had played a major role.

Right now, she had initially acquired the strength to protect herself. She could leave Cloud City to seize the opportunities from her past life's memories, rapidly increase her strength to deal with the future alien invasion, and attempt to Ascend to Godhood once more!

She had no time to waste on scheming and slow reforms with these old fogeys.

She had to cut the Gordian knot!

Using this Opportunity of establishing her authority, she would completely reshape the Xia Family!

Her gaze grew colder and colder, and her Aura gradually intensified, finally reaching a critical point.

Seven-star Origin Master!

...

Meanwhile, Ling Tian was still eating frantically.

His body was like a bottomless pit; his evolution points skyrocketed, and his various attributes and resistances steadily increased. He even unexpectedly gained two precious points of Dragon Source, making his whole body feel comfortable and his skin look even glossier.

But strangely, no matter how much he ate, that feeling of hunger always remained.

The moment he stopped eating, he would soon feel hungry again.

Perhaps this was the price of evolution.

He who wears the crown must bear its weight!

Ling Tian didn't think this was a problem.

Since he would starve if he didn't eat, then he would just keep eating!

Ling Tian used his claws to rummage through a pile of seemingly unremarkable clutter in the corner.

Most of these were miscellaneous items whose uses even Great Elder Xia Mingyuan couldn't identify, or things he deemed of little value.

Adhering to the principle of "better to eat a thousand by mistake than let one slip away," Ling Tian rummaged through them haphazardly, stuffing anything that caught his eye into his mouth.

Suddenly!

*Crunch!*

A crisp sound came from his mouth.

"What is this thing? It's so hard!"

Ling Tian's expression changed, and he quickly spat out the object in his mouth.

It was a palm-sized, dusty, and completely unremarkable little box.

The material was neither metal nor wood, with a smooth surface that formed a seamless whole.

Ling Tian's bite just now could have snapped a true dragon bone, yet it hadn't left the slightest mark on this box, only getting it slightly wet with his saliva.

"Huh?"

Intrigued, Ling Tian picked up the dusty box with his claws, looking it over from left to right.

"Even I can't bite through it? A treasure! This is definitely a treasure!" He instantly grew excited.

He tried to squeeze it hard with his claws, but the box didn't budge at all.

He threw a full-force punch, shaking the entire treasure vault, but the box remained completely unresponsive.

"Heh, my short temper!"

Getting a bit worked up, Ling Tian opened his mouth as destructive energy began to gather deep in his throat. "If I can't open it, I just won't open it! I refuse to believe I can't deal with you!"

Just as he was about to use his breath to forcibly melt this bizarre box,

the storehouse doors were pushed open.

Led by Third Great-Uncle, who was being supported, a crowd of Xia Family elders entered, accompanying a calm-faced Patriarch Xia Yuan.

The moment they stepped inside, they were dumbfounded by the sight before them.

The resources that had once been piled high like mountains were now visibly depleted by a large portion!

Nearly half of the Origin Stones were gone, the Spiritual Plant and Medicinal Pill areas were in complete disarray, weapon racks were knocked over with broken blades and shattered spears scattered everywhere, and that Ironclad Rhinoceros only had half of its body left...

As for the culprit, that ferocious dragon-shaped War Beast was currently squatting in the corner, holding a dusty box in its claws, with half of some unknown Yao Beast's bone still hanging from its mouth.

Xia Youchu stood near the Spiritual Plant area, her Aura fluctuating—clearly, she had just finished cultivating—as she looked at them with cold eyes.

The elders' hearts were bleeding!

These... these were the accumulated Foundations of their Xia Family!

Although most of it had been embezzled by Great Elder Xia Mingyuan, seeing it wasted like this still filled them with deep pain!

Third Great-Uncle's eyes twitched a few times as he forced down the pain in his heart, squeezing out a smile that looked worse than crying:

"Youchu, we truly have you to thank this time for exposing a black sheep like Great Elder Xia Mingyuan, preventing our Family from going astray. You have truly rendered a monumental service!"

The other Family elders chimed in one after another, pouring out all sorts of praises as if they cost nothing, trying to ease the atmosphere.

Xia Youchu watched their performance expressionlessly, sneering in her heart.

"An excess of courtesy hides a deceitful heart."

Sure enough, Third Great-Uncle shifted the topic to the main point: "Youchu, look, now that Mingyuan has fled, the position of the Family's Grand Elder is vacant, and many affairs need someone to manage them."

"You possess outstanding talent and extraordinary wisdom, and you have such a powerful War Beast assisting you... We old fogeys have discussed it and would like to invite you to serve as the Family's Grand Elder, participating in Family decision-making. Furthermore, you will have priority access to the resources in this storehouse."

However, after hearing this, Xia Youchu's face did not soften at all; instead, it darkened completely.

Her gaze, sharp as a knife, swept across every single Family elder.

"Grand Elder? Priority access?"

Her voice carried a bone-chilling coldness. "Do you think I am the same kind of person as Great Elder Xia Mingyuan? That as long as you give me enough benefits, I will be submissive to you just like him, or even collude with foreign enemies and damage the Family's Foundation?!"

The Family elders were taken aback, intimidated by her sudden, fierce Aura.

Third Great-Uncle quickly explained, "Youchu, you misunderstand. We didn't mean it that way..."

"Then what did you mean?"

Xia Youchu cut him off directly, taking a step forward as her Empress's majesty was fully revealed. "The Xia Family's deeply-rooted problems run deep. If you Family elders hadn't been solely focused on fighting for power and profit, turning a eye and shielding him, how could Great Elder Xia Mingyuan have grown so powerful?!"

"Do you think that by changing the Grand Elder and giving some sweet benefits, everything can go on as before?!"

Her eyes burned like torches as she stared down Third Great-Uncle. "I will make my stance clear today! The Xia Family must reform! A thorough and complete reform!"

"Starting today, all Xia Family properties will be directly managed by my father, with open accounting, and no one is allowed to interfere!"

"All Xia Family disciples who reach the age of twelve will automatically become reserve members of the Pioneers Guild, enjoying the guild's basic benefits and being required to complete basic guild missions!"

"All those whose cultivation reaches the Origin Master Realm must complete a monthly quota of wilderness hunting or escort missions, with contribution points directly linked to resource allocation! Those who fail to complete them will have their cultivation resources for that month deducted, and severe cases will be expelled from the Family!"

"The Council of Elders will have assessment standards established! Every year, they must make corresponding contributions to the Family or nurture outstanding descendants! Those who fail to meet the standards for three consecutive years will automatically have their elder treatment and status revoked, or... be expelled from the Xia Family!"

...