After revealing his true identity, Fang Chang swiftly regained control over the upper echelons of the Spider God Academy, reestablishing his authority over the institution.
Even the Sun Moon Imperial Family found themselves forcefully rebuffed by the academy. Despite the recent upheaval, the academy imposed no punishment on Fang Chang—a fact that left many astonished.
Once the turmoil had settled, Fang Chang returned to Sunset Forest.
The Bloodwing Demon Spider he had rescued in the Great Star Dou Forest had followed his orders, gathering other spider-type soul beasts within this forest. Over the days, it had managed to rally nearly twenty of its kin, forming a considerable force in Sunset Forest.
Fang Chang surveyed the assembled spider soul beasts, his expression darkening slightly. The number was far fewer than he had anticipated.
"Is this all?" he asked through telepathy, directing the question at the Bloodwing Demon Spider he had saved.
The spider nodded in a disturbingly human-like manner, replying, "The spider kin are weak now. Even gathering these few was difficult—they were scattered and hiding throughout the forest."
Fang Chang scoffed but didn't press further. For those among the spiders who showed even slight potential, he bestowed blessings to accelerate their evolution. The rest were given divine herbs and fruits cultivated in the God Realm, significantly boosting their overall strength.
Next, he turned to a local of Sunset Forest—a Shadowfang Evil Spider with roughly fifty thousand years of cultivation. "Which creatures in this forest pose the greatest threat to your kind?"
The spider froze for a moment before excitement surged through it. The implication was clear: Fang Chang intended to eliminate their enemies.
Relying on memory, the spider quickly listed several dominant soul beasts in Sunset Forest, particularly those with whom it had personal grudges. Not a single rival was spared.
Among the names, one stood out to Fang Chang—a Hundred-Thousand-Year Wailing Vine Emperor.
He had once fought a similar soul beast in a bloody battle, only narrowly surviving by relying on his "Blood Drain" ability to exhaust it. Now, another had appeared in Sunset Forest, and this one had reached the hundred-thousand-year threshold.
Interesting.
With a sweep of his divine sense, Fang Chang pinpointed its location and led the spider army toward it.
As they approached the Wailing Vine's territory, the smaller spiders hesitated, unwilling to advance further. A hundred-thousand-year Wailing Vine Emperor had the power to wipe them all out.
Fang Chang cursed inwardly at their cowardice before levitating into the air just outside the vine's domain.
With a flick of his left hand, flames descended from the sky, igniting the Wailing Vines in the area.
Fire was the bane of plant-type soul beasts. The Wailing Vine Emperor let out a piercing shriek as its burning tendrils flailed wildly, attempting to smother the flames. But the more it thrashed, the fiercer the fire grew. Embers scattered, setting more vines ablaze.
Realizing the danger, the vine acted decisively—it severed the burning tendrils, cutting off their connection to its main body to prevent the flames from spreading.
Fang Chang strode forward along the path cleared by the fire, his spider followers hesitantly trailing behind.
His divine sense soon locked onto the Wailing Vine Emperor's main body. Sensing the threat, the vine turned toward them, countless tendrils surging like a tidal wave.
Yet any vine that entered a ten-meter radius around Fang Chang's group spontaneously combusted, forming an impenetrable barrier of flame.
The current ruler of Sunset Forest—a hundred-thousand-year Wailing Vine Emperor—found itself utterly helpless against even a mere projection of Fang Chang's power.
Realizing the disparity, the vine did something unprecedented—it uprooted itself, using its tangled roots like stubby legs to flee.
A plant-type soul beast had learned to run away.
Fang Chang almost laughed.
But even with mobility, the vine's speed was laughable. Fang Chang caught up in mere strides.
"Who are you? We have no enmity. Why hunt me to extinction?" The vine's shrieks now carried discernible human speech.
"The soul beast world operates on strength alone," Fang Chang sneered. "When the spider kin were weak, you preyed on them. That was fair—they were inferior.
"But now, you are my prey, and you are inferior. Why should I spare you?"
As he spoke, he unleashed another wave of flames, this time directed at the vine's main body.
The Wailing Vine Emperor despaired. It understood now—this being sought vengeance for the spiders. No words would save it.
Abandoning escape, it turned and attacked with everything, tendrils lashing out recklessly despite the flames. If it was doomed, it would at least make Fang Chang pay.
"Now this is how a hundred-thousand-year soul beast should act."
Fang Chang smirked, raising both hands before clapping them together. A Frostflame Demon Spear materialized—a crystalline blue shaft wreathed in golden fire.
With a flick of his wrist, he hurled the spear. It streaked through the air like a comet, piercing straight through the Wailing Vine Emperor's core.
"RIIIP—"
Every tendril went limp simultaneously, lifeless.
Seizing the moment, Fang Chang reverted to his true form—a gargantuan spider. His maw split open, revealing a black-hole-like vortex that sucked the Wailing Vine Emperor's main body whole.
Next came its severed tendrils and uprooted remains. Nothing escaped.
With the feast concluded, Fang Chang licked his lips, savoring the taste.
It had been so long since he'd enjoyed a meal from his "homeland."
Under the awestruck gazes of the spider kin, Fang Chang lifted his head, peering toward a distant valley.
That was the former site of the Icefire Yin-Yang Well—though without the Dragon Kings' bones he had long since devoured, it no longer held its miraculous properties.
Yet his divine sense detected something unexpected: the valley still housed numerous treasures...
And a powerful individual residing among them.