Dao of Money

Yun Zhaotian did not know when the heavens had abandoned him, but he was certain they had.

There was no other way to explain his current situation. If it was not the heavens turning their back on him, then he must have been cursed. Nothing else could justify ending up in prison twice within two weeks.

He had barely escaped imprisonment on the fifth floor. Not even a full day into his arrival on the sixth floor, he had become a prisoner again.

The moment he attempted to charge into the city across the black desert, the death knights had descended upon him. They moved in groups, their armor clanking, and their blades glowing with demonic qi. Yun Zhaotian was confident he could defeat them.

But during the battle, the Zombie Queen herself had descended from the walls.

In a floor saturated with demonic energy, she was probably the strongest being. His storm techniques had barely slowed her. And before he could run, chains wrapped around him and dragged him down.

For a brief moment, he thought that was the end.

But instead of killing him, he was dragged inside the city and beaten up. Then he got thrown into a cell.

The death knights stripped him of his weapons and pouches. His spatial storage was taken. Even the smallest blade was removed. Left alone in the dim prison, Yun Zhaotian laid on the cold ground, pain coursing through his body as he forced his qi to circulate and mend his injuries.

Healing was slow. The demonic qi in the air made it worse. He had to actively suppress it from entering his body, which drained his strength further.

Three days passed like that.

There was no food. No water. No conversation. The only movement he saw came from the other cells.

And that was the part that unsettled him the most.

The other prisoners were zombies. Not mindless ones either. They stared at him. Some tilted their heads. A few even snickered, low and mocking, as if amused by his suffering.

Yun Zhaotian had never imagined zombies capable of such behavior. But then again, this was the pagoda.

It was full of things that defied reason.

The death knights who had beaten him also told him more about the Zombie Queen. But Yun Zhaotian didn't really care too much when he was locked up.

All he wanted was food, water and a way out. But it didn't seem possible.

The death knights patrolled constantly. The memory of what happened to prisoners who tried to escape on the fifth floor was still fresh in his mind. Yun Zhaotian did not move. He sat still in his cell, circulating qi, healing slowly, and waiting.

He hoped his sect would come.

At the same time, shame burned in his chest.

He was supposed to be their senior brother. The one leading them through the pagoda. Yet he kept falling into traps and getting imprisoned like some fool.

He clenched his fists and endured.

Then, on the fourth day, something changed.

The death knights opened his cell.

Chains clamped around his arms again, and they dragged him out. For a brief moment, Yun Zhaotian thought it was finally over. That he would be executed and tossed aside like garbage.

Instead, they threw him into an arena.

The stone floor was cracked and stained. The air felt thick with demonic qi.

“Fight,” one of the death knights said in a hollow voice. “Win ten battles in a row, and you will be released from the city.”

Yun Zhaotian did not believe them. He was not foolish enough to trust undead creatures, even if they spoke clearly like the living.

But it did not matter.

Anger had been simmering inside him for days. Weeks, even. Most of it had been directed at Chen Ren, but now, he simply needed an outlet.

If they wanted him to fight, he would fight.

So, as dozens of undead soldiers rushed toward him in the arena, their weapons raised, Yun Zhaotian simply lifted his head and storm qi surged around his body.

Lightning cracked through the arena as he unleashed it without restraint. Bolts tore through the charging undead, blasting holes in armor and sending bodies flying. Before the smoke even cleared, he moved forward.

He crushed the nearest undead with his bare hands.

If the pagoda wanted to test him again, he would show it the true strength of a storm cultivator.

When they charged in groups, Yun Zhaotian pushed qi into his legs and slammed his foot into the ground. Waves of force rippled outward, knocking the undead off balance. Then a single spark of lightning was enough to finish them. Electricity raced through their bodies, armor cracking and limbs twitching before they collapsed.

In less than a minute, he had killed them all.

But he was not done.

His anger had nowhere else to go, and the city seemed more than willing to provide him with targets.

More undead poured into the arena from every direction. What started as small groups became waves. What started as waves became a flood. It was no longer a fair fight and Yun Zhaotian did not care.

Life was never fair. The Empire had never been fair to his sect. The world itself favored some and crushed others. If this arena wanted unfairness, he would answer it with violence.

Lightning cracked again and again. Storm qi swirled around him, tearing through armor, splitting skulls and burning flesh. He crushed some with his fists, tore others apart with raw strength. With every undead that fell, a part of his anger cooled.

By the third hour, his qi reserves had dropped dangerously low.

He had clearly surpassed ten fights. He had slaughtered far more than the promised number.

Yet the gates did not open to let him leave.

The death knights stood still, watching.

Rage flickered in his chest again. He wanted to charge at them for their lies, but he knew better. In his current state, he would lose.

That was when he noticed something else.

High above, seated among the stands of the arena, was the Zombie Queen. Standing in the arena, he got a better look at her. She had pale skin and long dark hair with red eyes that gleamed faintly as she looked down.

She was nothing like the zombies he had been fighting. He knew that.

If anything, she resembled the female elders of his sect—those who had reached higher realms and gained an almost fairy-like beauty.

But Yun Zhaotian knew that if she wished, she could kill him in seconds. She almost had accomplished that.

Her gaze alone made his body tense, but despite that, he kept looking.

For a long moment, neither of them looked away. Then the Zombie Queen leaned slightly toward the undead seated at her left and said something in a low voice. Then, she gave a faint smile.

The next minute, Yun Zhaotian was dragged out of the arena.

He did not resist. His qi was nearly empty. The death knights threw him back into his cell and told him to rest.

“The next battle will come soon,” one of them said.

It did.

The very next day, he was forced to fight a demonic bull. Its horns were coated in black qi, and each charge cracked the arena floor. Yun Zhaotian had to drain almost half his remaining strength just to bring it down.

The day after that, he was thrown against giant demonic vultures. They attacked from above, their claws slicing through his defenses. He barely managed to survive by leaping onto their backs and forcing them to crash into the arena walls.

Each fight grew more dangerous than the last. Each time, he came closer to death.

And every time he looked toward the stands, the Zombie Queen seemed more entertained.

Once, after cutting down his opponent, Yun Zhaotian lifted his head and shouted toward her. He demanded to be released if he had satisfied her.

He did not even finish his sentence.

The death knights seized him and dragged him back to his cell.

That humiliation burned deeper than any wound.

He was supposed to become the future leader of the Thunder Blade Sect. Yet here he was—dragged like an animal by undead creatures for someone’s amusement.

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If the elders found out, he might lose everything. His position. His status. He could even be demoted from core disciple to inner disciple.

That thought made his teeth grind. But what could he do?

He doubted anyone was coming to save him.

In the past few days, he had seen other human cultivators locked in nearby cells. One by one, they were taken into the arena.

None returned twice.

If his junior brothers and sisters tried to rescue him, they would likely share the same fate.

The Zombie Queen was not someone the current cultivators could challenge.

So what was left for him? Should he keep fighting until his body was torn apart and devoured? Was that how a storm cultivator was meant to end?

But fighting until he was torn apart felt like the only path left to him.

Yun Zhaotian sat in his cell, lost in that bitter thought, when suddenly the ground trembled.

Dust fell from the ceiling and landed on his face.

He immediately shot to his feet, and every second, the shaking grew worse.

From outside, he heard panicked shouting. Even the undead in the nearby cells looked confused. Some stumbled, clutching at the bars as the tremors intensified.

Yun Zhaotian’s heart pounded.

Was the arena collapsing?

Was this how he would die, buried beneath stone like some forgotten criminal?

The ceiling cracked slightly above him. Fear flashed through his mind. He immediately pushed qi into his palms and struck the iron bars of his cell. They rattled but did not break. Demonic qi reinforced them heavily.

He struck again.

The bars only bent slightly.

Frustration surged through him.

“What is happening?” he growled.

If he had to die, he would rather fall in battle like a true cultivator, not crushed in some collapse. But it seemed the heavens truly had abandoned him—

“Senior Brother Yun Zhaotian! Where are you? We’re here to rescue you!”

A voice suddenly cut through the chaos, and it was one that was extremely familiar to him.

Yun Zhaotian froze for half a heartbeat before shouting back, “I’m here! I’m alive!”

Footsteps rushed closer.

Moments later, Yan Qianyu appeared in front of his cell, eyes wide with relief. She grabbed the bars. “Senior Brother! You’re alive. I’m so glad.”

For a second, Yun Zhaotian did not know what to say.

But then he looked past her.

Behind Yan Qianyu stood several members of the Thunder Blade Sect. And behind them stood Li Shijun of the Soaring Sword Sect. Even other members of his sect were here.

Yun Zhaotian stared at him in shock.

He had never imagined he would see such a mix of people together to save him. They had always been rivals. Not openly murderous, perhaps, but he was certain none of them would have mourned his death on this cursed floor.

Yet here they were.

He stared at them and asked, “What are you all doing here?”

Li Shijun rolled his shoulders and replied bluntly, “We’re here to rescue your ass. Now don’t just stand there. We need to move before more death knights show up.”

Yun Zhaotian raised an eyebrow. “You dealt with all of them?”

“No,” Yan Qianyu said quickly. “Most of them are busy outside the walls, Senior Brother. I’ll explain later. We don’t have time right now.”

As she spoke, Shijun and the other Soaring Sword Sect disciples stepped forward. They drew their swords and began slashing at the bars. Qi of different elements shimmered along the blades—lightning, wind, frost, and more. The demonic reinforcement cracked little by little under the repeated strikes.

Yun Zhaotian stepped back to avoid being hit, his mind still racing.

What was happening? Who had managed to bring these two sects together?

But Yan Qianyu was right. This was not the time for questions.

With a final strike, the bars shattered.

Yun Zhaotian immediately poured force into his wrists and snapped the handcuffs restraining him. The metal cracked apart, and for the first time in days, his hands were free.

He stepped out of the cell and looked around. “Let’s go. We can’t stay here. I know a general path we can use to escape.”

Li Shijun shook his head. “We can’t do that.”

Yun Zhaotian paused and looked at him. “What do you mean?”

Shijun pointed toward the other cells lining the corridor. Inside them were undead prisoners—some snarling, some staring blankly.

“Do you think we came here just to rescue you?” Li Shijun said. “No. We’re here to create chaos for the Zombie Queen to deal with.”

A grin spread across his face.

“So we can reach the seventh floor.”

***

Vesrya had been resting in her quarters when the city began to tremble.

She lay upon her stone bed, one arm draped lazily over the side, thinking about whether she should send more of her soldiers to capture the recent climbers. It had been some time since she had added new toys to her arena.

Then the shaking started.

At first, she assumed it was an earthquake. The last one had struck nearly three decades ago. But this tremor did not fade.

It grew stronger, and then she heard it.

A deep familiar roar.

Her red eyes slowly opened and she immediately understood who was causing this.

Sand elementals.

She had slain dozens of them in her youth. She would never forget that sound. From the echo alone, she could tell there was more than one.

What were they doing here?

As she thought that, the doors to her chamber burst open. One of her death knights stepped inside and immediately dropped to one knee. Even beneath his helmet, Vesrya could sense his unease.

“My Queen,” he said, voice strained. “There are intruders in the city.”

Vesrya rose smoothly from her bed. “Who?”

The death knight lowered his head further. “Climbers. They used the sand elementals attacking the walls as cover. They have entered the city and are moving toward the lift.”

Vesrya blinked slowly. That was not entirely new. There had been attempts before. It had simply been… a very long time since the last one. She could not recall the details clearly, but she remembered the outcome. She remembered what she had done to them.

“Let them get closer,” she said calmly. “Then they will understand whose city they have barged into.”

The death knight straightened slightly. “Then… you will move yourself, My Queen?”

Vesrya inclined her head.

But before she could say anything, a violent explosion shook the castle. The force was strong enough to shatter several windows. Stone cracked and dust fell from the ceiling.

Vesrya walked over the scattered glass shards without hesitation and looked out and what he saw made her surprised for the first time in a while.

The arena was burning.

***

A/N - You can read 30 chapters (15 Magus Reborn and 15 Dao of money) on my patreon. Annual subscription is now on too. Also this is Volume 2 last chapter.

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