《Unbeatable! Invincible! Unparalleled!》


 1 Chapter 1: Fate Changed!

    ''Knock knock!''


    The sound of a wooden door being knocked resounded the room, after which a gentle voice, seemingly from the voice of a lady around 40 years old could be heard calling out.


    "Young man, time to wake up! Help your mother here to collect some firewood today!"


    After the voice called out, the person whom was sleeping soundly before began to jolt slightly under the blanket amidst a slightly dark room, where lights could be seen penetrating through the tiny holes of the wooven wall.


    Coupled with the swaying of the translucent white curtains from the cool breeze that entered the room through that single half-opened wooden window, it creates an atmosphere of a very comfortable and blissful bedroom.


    In fact, if one were to enter the room, one could even find their eyes to suddenly droop as if they were about to fall asleep suddenly!


    The room is extremely neat and tidy, with minimalistic furnitures consisting of a single bookshelf with some books on it, one study table by the window and a chair draped comfortably with the leather of a deer.


    Not to mention the bed which have many layers of sheathings to it that seems to be filled with either cottons or feathers, surrounded by pillows in all four cardinal directions, and of course, a blanket that is as smooth as silk covering a person beneath it.


    "Yawwhhhh~" yawned the figure, as it slowly rose up into a seating position while rising both hands into the air in the form of a morning stretch.


    Turning his head towards the window, a pair of eyes that is as clear as a lake could be seen reflected from the face of this man. His expression aloof, he slowly moved his legs down to the floor as he stood up from the bed.


    "Another new day.." he mumbled to himself as he reached for his clothes hanged on the wall to wear for the day.


    The door of the room slowly opened up with a creaking sound as this young man stepped out from his room with a little bit of a sluggish movements while wiping his eyes with one hand and his other arm tucked inside his clothes.


    "Finally up eh, you sure know how to sleep.. sigh.." frowned his mother while sighing helplessly by the kitchen.


    "Go and wash up your face! Happy 21st birthday by the way! Now go and collect some firewood for me." she continued with a wink and a charming smile.


    "Okay mother..." he replied awkwardly. Although the lady in front of him is his mother, he couldn''t help but to feel awkward as his mother always teases him with such a seductive charm.


    The thoughts that this mother of his was not his mother by blood would often ran across him, but he quickly dismissed them as quickly as it appeared in his mind.


    After all, he knew that his mother had always taken care of him since he was but a baby. Once, he even took a tour around to ask the village folks and they could confirm that it is as so.


    ''splash''


    Wiping his wet face with his sleeves, he tidied up his long black hair that reached down to his shoulders. From the reflection of the water, one could see that this young man had bushy eyebrows that was shaped like a mighty saber.


    An aura of extreme sharpness could be felt from it.


    This young man, is named Duan Li after his mysterious father by his mother. Whenever he would asked about his father, his mother would just smile as she utters the same sentence time and again;


    "He is a great man."


    ...


    Duan Li walked through the forest slowly with the axe up on his right shoulder, his left arm still tucked into his clothes as he looked around to find suitable trees to chop for some firewoods.


    They could be seen as a low class family, a little bit impoverished if one were to observe their living condition. But nevertheless, they still lived happily and enough to last day by day without going hungry.


    "Hmm.. seems like this tree should do it.." thought Duan Li to himself as he swung his axe into a chopping motion.


    Halfway through the trees, the axe seems to hit something hard that produces a metal ''clang!'' sounds before repulsing his axe away causing Duan Li to feel shocked as he stumbled backwards and fell flat on his back to the ground with a ''thud!''.


    "What just happened?.. " said Duan Li to himself as he stood up slowly by using both hands to support himself from the ground while still feeling rattled by that sudden repulsion.


    As he approached the halfway chopped tree trunk to get a closer look, to his surprise, he found a tiny pearl the size of a marble ball lodged firmly on the center.


    This ball gave off a mysterious feeling to it as it is crystal clear like a glass that its innards could be seen to be filled with a golden glow with mists shrouding around it.


    "What is this thing?.." he said curiously as he lift his right hand to grab it.


    Just as his fingers touched it, a blinding flash of light seems to cover the entire area he is in before his head feels like it will burst apart as unbearable sharp pain strikes at him suddenly.


    Unable to withstand the pain, his mind went blank as he blacked out and fell to the ground, unconscious.


    ...


    In a kingdom far away, an old man with a long white beard draped in a luxurious clothing fell from his chair.


    Rising haggardly as he put his arms onto the chair to support himself to stand up, he muttered with bated breaths;


    "The stars of the Nine Heavens have merged together!"


    His white beards shaking as he continued with a horrified look;


    "T-This is.. what could this possibly mean??"


    From that day onward, the fate of the entire Tian continent have derailed from its original course, forever changed by the unique destiny of a single person...


    Duan Li..


    ...

 2 Chapter 2: State of the world.

    "Urgh..." groaned Duan Li as he slowly woke up and sat on the ground.


    Touching his forehead, Duan Li looked around towards his surrounding in confusion, "What in the world.. just happened?" he said to himself while feeling bewildered.


    He remembered that he had only tried to pluck that mysterious pearl away from the tree to take a better look, before a blinding light to suddenly encompassed him followed by surges of pain assaulting his head that caused him to faint.


    Must things be so exagerated?


    Turning his dizzied head slowly towards the halfway chopped tree, he realized that the pearl was no longer there. In its place was a hollow rounded space, the only evidence that what he had experienced was not a dream or illusion.


    "Did the pearl broke apart when I touched it?" he thought to himself but shook his head immediately afterwards.


    "That cannot be, even my axe was strongly repulsed by it with a metallic clanking sound, thus it should be pretty sturdy.." he mumbled as he rustled around the ground among the fallen leaves to find it in case it fell off from the tree after he had touched it.


    After several minutes of attempt, he stood up and tidied himself as he shook his head again. "Forget it.. I should just continue chopping down trees for the firewood.. I need to get back by noon or else mother would get worried.." he sighed helplessly, as he decided to put the previous matter to the back of his head.


    ...


    "Mother, I am home!" shouted Duan Li as he put down the pieces of firewood that he had straped to his back with ropes.


    "Ahh there you are! I was beginning to get worried! Tell me, where did you run off to?" queried his mother with a stern, reprimanding look. But if one were to see her face right now, they would only find that reprimanding face to be quite adorable instead.


    "Well.. after I finished chopping some firewoods, I decided to sat down and rest.." replied Duan Li. He decided not to tell his mother about the bizarre experience he just had before.


    After all, who would believe him if he were to said a pearl was growing inside a tree he was chopping?


    "And then you dozed off, correct? Ha... " sighed his mother. "Well, as long as you''re fine.." she said with a smile. "Come let''s eat, the food is ready!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s eyes turned bright. In this world, there are only three things that he truly enjoyed doing; sleeping, eating and learning! Everything else he chose to not care too much. He had lived with such a mindset since he was a child, therefore, he didn''t manage to make a lot of friends.


    ''Munch munch!''


    "Slow down young man.. you''re going to choke yourself up!" said his mother with a giggle and added with a tease, "You are already 21! Stop eating like a child..".


    "Mother, this potatoes.. its not from our farm at the back of our house right?" asked Duan Li as he stared at the mashed potatoes on his spoon.


    "Hmm? Yes.. that potatoes was given by our friendly neighbour.." replied his mother, "Why? Does it not taste that good?" she continued, feeling worried that the potatoes tasted wierd.


    But that shouldn''t be the case.. because she had tried the mashed potatoes too before serving it. It tasted the same as their potatoes. Even the way she cooked it was normal without any extra addedingredients.


    "Ohh.. no that''s not it, I just feel like this is the case.." replied Duan Li casually while still stuffing his mouth with the food.


    His mother felt weird when she heard this. "How could he tell the difference?" she thought to herself as various assumption sprung up in her mind.


    ''thud!''


    "Finished!" said Duan Li after putting down the bowl onto the wooden table feeling quite satisfied with a smile. He truly loved his mother''s cooking as he could somehow felt the gentle warmth everytime he ate it.


    "Good! Now wash the dishes and take this money.." said her mother while handing a pouch filled with copper coins. "Go to grandma Ying''s grocery and buy some fresh fish enough for three people for dinner tonight."


    "For three people? Is someone visiting ?" he asked curiously and then continued, "But 10 copper coins in here is a little bit too much..."


    "Yes, you will know later on.. and consider the remaining copper coins your pocket money. Now get going!" replied her mother with again a stern but cute look.


    "Okay mother..." replied Duan Li as he stepped out from the house and walked lazily with one arm tucked inside his clothes as always.


    Looking at the disappearing figure of his son from the distance, his mother couldn''t help but to feel that something is amiss. "How did he know there are 10 copper coins inside the pouch?" she thought this is extremely weird.


    This is because when she handed the pouch over, not only did she not state how many copper coins were there inside, she didn''t even see her son taking a peek inside but only casually grabbed it with his right hand.


    ...


    Walking down the village, Duan Li immersed himself with the atmosphere as he observed people of all ages doing various activities and daily transactions with vendors and stores.


    Although Duan Li came from a low-class and impoverished family, he had spent most of his pocket money on books regarding the various contemporary knowledge and fields. Thus, he knew quite a bit on the current state of affairs of the world.


    The village that they lived in is called the Xuan village, with a total population of over a thousand. It is situated on the Tian continent and ruled by the Jiu Empire.


    The Tian continent in itself is quite vast and wide, spanning some few million kilometers in size. However, of these total areas, only about 30 percent were currently habitated by people. This is because the Tian continent only had a few places where humans could live safely away from danger. The rest are lurked with various form of hazards, be it monsters or carnivorous and toxic environment.


    Of these 30 percent, it is ruled further by nine Empires spread across the continent, some are sparse while others are closely located to each other, thus, war is quite a common occurence. In terms of power, the strength of the Jiu Empire and its close rival by the border, separated only by the mountain ranges, the Liu Empire, is quite equal.


    Although skirmishes would often break out at the borders, rarely has there been any all-out wars between the two of these empires since their founding two thousand years ago.


    That is because, compared to the other seven empires out there, their individual strength as an empire are not even worth a mention. Had any of these other seven empires decided to invade, they would be doomed. Thus, the relationship between the Jiu and Liu Empire could be considered as complicated.


    The only reason why these two empires were currently safe from invasion is dueto being surrounded by long stretch of deserts with extreme heat and cold temperatures, and thousands of kilometers wide rivers filled with instant-kill behemoths and monster creatures that could wipe a few million soldiers on march with a few slaps and gulps here and there.


    Therefore, at times of peace, they would only poke at each other here and there playfully, and fight some small wars so as to not get rusty. But if any of these two were to be invaded by the other seven empires, both would immediately ally themselves and stand back to back like a pair of old bestfriend on reunion and fight together until the end.


    Duan Li thought to himself that this situation is quite romantic indeed. He conjectured that the founding emperors of the Jiu and Liu must have been in love as they are of opposite sexes! However they do not dare to confess to each other in their lifetime and only expressed their loves through petty fights and rivalries. Thus, this trend had escalated down to the current generation as well.


    "Hais... People should be more straightforward with each other so as not to complicate the latter generation.." sighed Duan Li as he thought to himself.


    ...


    After a few twist and turn around some corners, he finally saw grandma Ying''s grocery store at a distance. As he was approaching however, voices of shouts and yelling could be heard coming out from the store.


    Duan Li''s brows furrowed together.


    "A fight?"


    ...

 3 Chapter 3: Time.. slowed down?

    "Shut up! I bought your chicken meat here yesterday and it caused me to feel drowsy to eventually fell asleep in class!" yelled a young man with short black hair. He bears an arrogant look to him.


    "My teacher reprimanded me for that! Do you know how shameful that is for me?! Now compensate me a hundred coppers and I will let this matter go!" he shouted directly in front of grandma Ying, before his lips curled into a sneer.


    "Otherwise..."


    Just as he was still trying to finish his sentence, a loud ''pa'' sound could be heard as he was slapped by grandma Ying which had immediately made him stumbled backwards two steps.


    "You ruffian! How is that my fault? Are you dumb?!" yelled grandma Ying back towards that stupefied young man.


    This grandma Ying was already in his 70''s and had quite the temper as well. "This young man had picked the wrong person to vent his frustrations on..." thought Duan Li.


    "Y-you! How dare you slap me?!" said the young man with an infuriated expression, "Are you blind old woman?! I am a student of the Jixue Knights Academy!" he shouted while flicking his white and blue uniform as his index finger pointing to the academy emblem on his right shoulder. The emblem had one sword and one saber crossing one another, with a shield as its background.


    "Hah! Even if I''m deaf, I would still have slapped you the same! Now get out of here!!" replied grandma Ying angrily.


    "Damned old woman!" yelled the young man as he stepped forward with raised hand seeming as if to slap back at grandma Ying.


    "Stop!" shouted Duan Li, his voice was loud that it startled the young man which immediately halted his momentum.


    The young man turned his head to look at the person who stopped him.


    "Who are you?! Don''t meddle in my business you peasant!" said the young man with an even more haughty look as he observed Duan Li''s clothing. In his view, Duan Li is but a simple peasant.


    "Well.. about that.. I have business with grandma Ying.." replied Duan Li slowly while giving an awkward smile as he continued, "If you hurt her, it would be difficult for me then..".


    Hearing this, the haughty young man replied with disdain, "Hah! Then let me teach you a lesson first as an example!"


    "Materialize!" he chanted as a sword appeared in his hand.


    At first, Duan Li was surprised that a sword had materialized out of thin air. But, as he observed, in all honesty, this sword seems to be made of common grade that he frequently saw on the rack of a weapons store.


    Noticing Duan Li''s look towards his sword that he had materialize and the lack of reaction the latter had, the contemptious young man''s face flushed red before yelling angrily, "What are you looking at?! Too surprised that cat''s got your tongue?!".


    "No.. no.." replied Duan Li while shaking his head slowly and continued "That is a great quality sword you have there!".


    ''Pu!'' the young man choked.


    Great quality sword? He himself knew that his sword was quite common that could be found anywhere. Thus, hearing Duan Li''s compliment, coupled with that gaze of his that even hinted a sliver of disdain to his sword with that ''nothing special'' look in his eyes, riled up the young man entirely!


    "Y-you good for nothing peasant! How dare you humiliate me like this!" he shouted as he step towards Duan Li.


    "No! Stop!" shouted grandma Ying in a terrified voice when she saw the situation started to spiral out of control.


    Duan Li is the child of Meng Yue! If her son was hurt because of her, how could she face her next time?


    "I''ll chop off your arms so that you will remain disabled forever! HAHA!" laughed the young man as he swung his sword in a cutting motion. To him, a mere peasant losing an arm or two wouldn''t really cause any issue.


    Due to the suddenness of this situation, Duan Li still wasn''t able to react properly at all. By the time the sword was swung halfway however, his ear ranged for a bit before that sword suddenly seems to slow down considerably.


    How bizarre!


    But taking this chance, knowing that there are no time for hesitation, Duan Li performed a single side step as he dodged the incoming strike beautifully.


    ''swoosh!''


    "What?!" startled the young man. He just couldn''t believe his eyes! In an instant before, he was sure that his sword would amputate the peasant''s arm, yet in another instant, the latter suddenly moved so fast that his eyes couldn''t follow as his attack was dodged seeming effortlessly.


    "I.. managed to dodge?" said Duan Li to himself as he realized that time had returned to normal again.


    Gritting his teeth, he swung his sword again. This time, he aimed for the knee. He thought that it must be due to pure luck that the peasant had managed to dodge his sword attack before!


    This time, Duan Li knew that the young man was aiming for his legs and tried to dodge, but his reaction speed was still too slow that the sword had already reached halfway to chop off his legs!


    "I won''t be able to make it!" thought Duan Li as he panicked. Then, the ringing sound reappeared again as time slowed down to a snail''s pace.


    "Wha.. again?" he was entirely stumped by this bizarre phenomena of time slowing down! The ringing sounded just like when one had reached a certain depth while swimming.


    Thus, taking this chance, Duan Li lifted his legs from harm''s way. But this time he decided to retaliate!


    Just as he successfully lifted his legs, he immediately stomped downwards on the body of the sword, pressing it to the ground with his weight. After his counter-attack was completed, time flowed normally again.


    However, due to the sudden change in momentum, the young man''s elbow snapped and twist in a horrendous way. A ''crack'' sound could be heard.


    Duan Li hadn''t expected this outcome at all!


    He had only meant to stop the young man from attacking, but instead got the latter''s arm broken into a cripple!


    "ARGHHH!" shouted the young man with agonized moans. "My arm! My arm!" he yelled out with a horrified look as tears started to churn out from his eyes.


    ''Hissss''


    The crowd looking at this commotion from outside could not help but to be alarmed with surprises from the sudden reversal! At first they thought that it was over for Duan Li. Yet, at the next instant, Duan Li had crippled that arrogant young man''s arm instead!


    The hairs on their back stood straight as they shivered!


    ...


    "Duan Li... practices martial arts?" they thought simultaneously. From what they knew, Duan Li was just someone who liked to be alone, to sleep and eat comfortably..


    But now, he had a new side to him that the village folks didn''t know about! This caused some of them to start looking at Duan Li in a new light. Some of them even had that look of awe and veneration!


    "Hais.. I never knew.. who would have thought that all this while, Duan Li actually practices martial arts to this terrifying degree?.." said a villager.


    "Me too.. so the reason why he had always liked to be alone is because he was practicing such martial arts.. perhaps he had long treaded the path of a warrior before we even knew it.." said another while shaking his head slowly.


    Similar thoughts and conversation sprung up among the masses that watched this commotion.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was still standing still looking unfazed with the sword still stomped tightly to the ground beneath his legs. The crowd was awed by his calm composure.


    In actuality however, Duan Li had not a sliver of clue as to what was happening at all! All he did was just waiting to be chopped up before time suddenly slowed down and he moved to dodge. Then, what was up with these crowds and their reaction? Aren''t they exagerating themselves too much? Thought Duan Li feeling a bit weird.


    In fact, if Duan Li were to become one of the crowds and watched how fast he had dodged the incoming attack on the last minute, even he too would be riled up like the rest of them.


    ...


    "Bastard! BASTARD!!" shouted the young man as he glared at Duan Li with murderous intention. "I will remember this! This is NOT over!!" he retreated backwards slowly while tucking his broken arm, looking wary towards Duan Li in case the latter decided to attack him. As he retreated a safe distance, he quickly turned his back and ran away.


    "Not good!.." said one of the villager, seemingly to remember something important as he slapped his forehead.


    "What is it?" asked one of the crowds towards the man.


    "That young man is a student of Jixue Knights Academy! A simple scuffle would be of no issue normally.. but now that one of their student has returned with broken arm.. the Academy is bound to take action!" replied the man as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.


    A sense of foreboding came into the rest of the crowd as they too realized this. In fact, this is not the first time students from the Jixue Knights Academy were causing troubles, there were also others although of less intense than this one.


    If not for the fact that they do not want to dishonour the name of the Academy, as it had trained numerous people into knighthood to serve the empire, they would have long pummelled the troublemakers themselves.


    "Then.. what are we going to do? today''s matter is not as simple as before! You guys too have seen how overboard that young man from the Jixue Knights Academy was right?" said a man from the crowd, evidently feeling displeased from the increasing brazenness of the troublemakers.


    "Hais.. the only thing we can do now is tohelp report this matter to the village head, and hoped that the village head had some way to settle this in order to not escalate the matter further!" replied an elderly man.


    The crowd nodded to the elder''s suggestion as they quickly walked off together, heading into the direction of the village head residence.


    ...


    "Duan Li my boy.. Are you okay?.. Are you hurt anywhere?" asked grandma Ying worriedly, "I''m sorry.. if only I hadn''t slapped that haughty young man from before.. things wouldn''t have turned into this.." her voice grew weak as she continued, "Now that I have troubled you, ohh no... What am I going to do.. how am I going to answer this to Meng Yue!".


    Hearing the concern of grandma Ying, Duan Li''s heart grew warm as he put up a smile and hugged grandma Ying.


    "It''s going to be fine, this Duan Li will naturally be able to handle it somehow.." said Duan Li softly.


    "Are you sure you are going to be fine? If those bastards were to find trouble with you after this, this old grandma will cause a ruckus at their academy for nurturing degenarates!!" she said while clenching her teeth, but tears could be seen welling up the sides of her eyes.


    Duan Li shook his head helplessly.. grandma Ying had always been protective of him since he was young. Somehow, he felt that grandma Ying was like his true grandmother..


    ...

 4 Chapter 4: Sparring with mother!

    "Mother! I am home!" said Duan Li after coming in, "..and here is the fish.." as he handed a wrapped paper with a conflicted look to him.


    He wondered that if he should tell his mother the incident at grandma Ying''s store.


    "Good, I''ll prepare it later on.. though, what''s wrong with you?" noticing the look on her son, she knew that something is up. After all, she had taken care of him since he was but a baby. So naturally, any unnatural reaction her son made would not go unnoticed by her.


    "Well.. it is like this.."


    Knowing that his mother would know the incident sooner or later, rather than getting scolded for hiding it, Duan Li decided to tell the whole story to his mother, even the bizarre phenomena of time slowing down.


    ...


    "What? Time slowing down?.."


    "You stomped your foot on his sword, causing his elbows to cripple at the same time?.."


    At first, when his mother was listening to his story, she couldn''t help but to get agitated and infuriated by the action of that haughty young man. To think that grandma Ying was about to be slapped back!


    One has to know that grandma Ying was already over 70 years old! A strike from someone no matter how small would definitely injure her! At the thought of this, her mother clenched her teeth and hands into a fist and was about to left the house to teach that insolent young man a lesson when Duan Li stopped her, and told the rest of the story.


    Her eyes couldn''t be any more wider and mouth agaped open. One could even put an egg and it would fit. However, her expression was just too adorable with that baby face of her. Sometimes, Duan Li wondered whether her mother was truly over 40 years old.


    "Duan Li my son... did.. you slept along the way back?" questioned his mother, seeming to not be able to believe the stories her son just told her and that it actually came from his dream after dozing off.


    It was simply too inconceivable for such things to happen!


    Granted, that there are all sorts of mysterious magic, runes and secret techniques in the Tian continent, but forget even about these three advanced skills, her son didn''t even practice any sword arts and martial arts!


    How then, would he have the capabilities to slow down time? Even if such a cheating skill were to conveniently exist, surely it would cost a vast amount of spirit Qi to use?


    After all, the laws of the world are centered around true balance, a legendary skill such as slowing down time would need something inconceivable to activate as well!


    Her son didn''t even cultivate any spirit Qi as far as she knew, so how was that even possible?


    ...


    Knowing that his mother wouldn''t believe him, Duan Li could only try to prove it by activating that ability again. But the question is, how was he supposed to do that?


    After contemplating for awhile, Duan Li decided for a mock battle with his mother. He didn''t know any sorts of martial arts and techniques at all, so when he first suggested this, his mother hesitated but went on with it after seeing that determined eyes of her son.


    ...


    Outside their house..


    Duan Li was just standing still like a scarecrow, ready for a beating anytime.


    "This is why mother have told you for so many times before to practice some martial arts and skills.. yet all you do is sleep, eat and read books.. haa.." sighed his mother helplessly as she took a stance.


    Right now, they were standing roughly three meters away from each other.


    "Look at you.. there are so many openings! Guard yourself! Your mother here wouldn''t give you any leeways!" said his mother as she raised her arms alternatingly, forming a sort of a movement in a seemingly graceful way.


    "C-calm down mother.. this is only.."


    Just as he was about to say more, his mother had already stepped forward, with a ''swoosh'', she appeared instantly in front of him, with her right hand clenched into a fist, heading straight into the abdomen of Duan Li.


    Seeing that punch with force behind it, Duan Li knew that his mother was serious. If that were to hit him, he would be sent flying!


    Mother! This is your son! How can you be so tyrannical?


    "Let''s see if you are telling me the truth.. if you are lying, then this punch from your mother here would be enough to teach you a lesson..!" thought his mother as she launched the fist forward.


    Duan Li panicked and closed his eyes, tightening his abdomen while feeling that all hope is lost..


    ''Rrrringggggg..''


    "This sound!" said Duan Li as he quickly opened his eyes.


    The world had slowed down, even the falling leaves are so slow that he could definitely pick them up one by one in the air before they could even touch the ground.


    Looking at that fist that is inches apart from making contact with his abdomen to break a few of his ribs, Duan Li smiled.


    "It happened!" he said excitedly to himself as he dodged to the right with a sidestep, and then time returned to normal again.


    ...


    "What.. Instant reaction?" said his mother while exclaiming in surprise before continuing, "But that cannot be! He had not even practice any sorts of martial arts! Let alone the ''Instant reaction'' skill that one could only get after being baptised with near-death situations numerous times!"


    Knowing that such a thing should not be the case, but it wouldn''t hurt to reconfirm her assessment, she launched another attack. This time, the right punch that was dodged by Duan Li had arched upwards halfway before his mother''s left foot stepped outside of Duan Li''s left side and her left hand threw a horizontal chop aiming for the neck.


    Time slowed down.


    "A horizontal hand chop? And the trajectory... My neck?!" cried Duan Li frantically. He was feeling really scared right now. His mother is way too scary!


    Am I not your son? Why do you use such a blood-thirsty attack on your own son?


    Could it be that mother had been possessed by evil?


    Duan Li couldn''t help but wanted to cry right now. He ducked downwards immediately and time returned to normal again.


    "Disappeared?!.. no.. he ducked down! Let''s see how you handle this!" exclaimed his mother.


    A series of kicks, punches, and other sorts of technique was displayed relentlessly by his mother..


    It seems that she had completely forgotten that this was just a mock battle to test the ability of her son as she grew more and more excited..


    ...


    After a while..


    "Huu..." exhaled his mother from her mouth as she closed her stance and her arms returned to normal position, marking the end of the spar.


    "You.. did you really see time slowing down?" said his mother, but this time she seemed more convinced than before.


    "Yes mother.. every time you attack me time would slow down for me to the minute detail.. thus I was able to dodge all of your attacks.." replied Duan Li and continued, "But mother, your attacks are.."


    "Ahem!" coughed his mother dryly, stopping her son from saying anything more, "The rest don''t matter.." she said awkwardly while trying her best to stay composed. She was too excited as it had been long since she had a sparring session with someone. Thus, she had forgotten the objective and went on displaying her skills on her own son.


    But now, she knew for sure that what her son just did to dodge all of her attacks, was thanks to this ability of slowing down time to see through attacks. In contrast to the skill ''Instant reaction'' that is gained through countless battles, those are more of an instinct by the body to move naturally without one having to think about it.


    "Your abilities are.. hmm.. cheating! Hmph!" said his mother while harrumping, seeming a little bit jealous. But in her heart, she was quite happy that her son had a very unique ability! If he uses it well.. then no one could possibly match someone who is a master in slowing down time!


    "But tell me, how did you get it?" asked his mother curiously. Her son didn''t have such an ability before, she thought.


    Thus, Duan Li retold the bizzarre experience he had that morning while chopping down a tree, about the mysterious clear pearl with golden glow and mist inside it..


    ...


    "Hmm.." the brows of his mother creased together as she walked forwards and backwards repeatedly trying to contemplate on what her son just told.


    If what her son had told is the truth, then that mysterious pearl is the cause for her son''s ability to be able to slow down time! However, she couldn''t help but to worry. After all, external help is not of one''s own potential, thus, it might had its own complications as well..


    Shaking her head, she sighed helplessly knowing that worrying on something unknown would not help even a tiny bit.


    "Do not tell this to others, otherwise.. I fear that.. you will be hunted down!" warned his mother. Duan Li nodded with a grim face for he could also imagine what would happen if others were to learn of the abilities that he possessed.


    "Regardless however, if you start to feel weird, tell your mother here and I will look into it!" she said worryingly and continued, "If somehow, you gained more new abilities, also tell your mother, okay?" with a stern face.


    "Yes mother.. I will.." replied Duan Li.


    Then, seeming as if he had just remembered something important, he said "Mother, I am afraid that the Jixue Knights Academy will take action on behalf of that young man.."


    "Ohh? Don''t worry, nothing will happen to you." replied his mother casually while pouring tea into a small tea cup as she felt thirsty from the spar.


    Hearing this, Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel confused and asked, "I don''t understand.. what do you mean mother?"


    "Ohh don''t think too much into it! You will understand by tonight.. now go to the kitchen and prepare some dishes for later!"


    ...

 5 Chapter 5: The guest arrived!

    Later that night..


    ''Knock knock!''


    "Ahh you''re here! Come on in!" said Meng Yue with a smile as she opened the door. A slender figure with long emerald hair had arrived at their doorstep.


    "Senior elder sister! This junior had missed you!" said the woman as she leaped forward to hug Meng Yue.


    "Now.. now.. calling me a senior elder makes me seem old! Just call me sister!" replied Meng Yue with a slight giggle.


    "Duan Li, come here and greet sister Ling Yu!" said Meng Yue as she turned towards the kitchen.


    Hearing his mother calling out to him, Duan Li emerged from the kitchen room as he wiped off his wet hand with a small kitchen towel.


    "Hello.. I am called Duan Li.." he greeted with small voice and a slight bow in a show of respect to the guest.


    "Ohh.. he is quite the man!" said the woman called Ling Yu. Her eyes scanning his figure from top to bottom and nodded repeatedly as if she is satisfied on something, "Not bad! Not bad at all!.."


    "Ouch!!" She yelped slightly as her sides got pinched by Meng Yue.


    "That''s my son, what do you think you are doing?" glared Meng Yue.


    "Ahahahaha! I''m joking! I thought he was.. okay, I''m sorry~" she quickly bowed and apologized realising what that meaningful glare from Duan Li''s mother meant.


    "Sister Ling here is a friend of mine from the Jixue Knights Academy. She is a senior teacher there.. we met quite a while ago during our younger days.." told his mother as they both exchanged glances and smile, seemingly to reminisce the good old times.


    ...


    After the dinner that night, the reunited sisters continued to make small talks and catching up sessions. Some topics even consisted of hot males and the likes that they have encountered which made Duan Li felt embarassed as he listened to all those.


    Did you two forget that I even exists?


    Duan Li sighed inwardly as he felt troubled listening to their steamy gossip.


    "Ohh yea!" Ling Yu said suddenly. "I came here to tell sister Yue that the registration for the enrollment of Duan Li to the academy has been completed yesterday! But as I was busy handling other matters, I could only come here to tell about the matter tonight.."


    "Speaking of which.." she continued hesitatingly.


    "It''s the matter regarding this afternoon incident right?" interjected his mother as if she already knew this topic would come out.


    Nodding her head slightly, she said, "That''s right, that young man whose arm got crippled by your son is called Li Feng. He is a known troublemaker even amongst the teachers."


    "However, because he is a student of the academy, he is entitled to get justice for the harm that was done. Thankfully, Duan Li had already become an official student of the academy as well. Thus, per rules that was stated, enmity between students could be resolved through personal duels."


    "You meant to say that, the incident was considered as duels between students of the academy?" asked Meng Yue.


    "En. That''s right! Therefore, the academy had turned a blind eye to it. Injuries resulted from duels are fine as long as no one had died. Had Duan Li was but of a common person, the academy would be forced to take action somehow.. although since Li Feng was the one who started it, I doubt it would be anything serious. The academy is quite reasonable anyway, so there is no need to worry." she answered carefully, so as to reassure them.


    "That''s great then! See? Didn''t your mother here said that it would be fine? Heh heh!" said Meng Yue with a proud look. She seemed pleased somehow, thought Duan Li.


    "Okay.. but mother.. I never remembered registering to the academy or any of the sorts!" Duan Li spoke up to voice his complaints.


    He was already at peace with his current lifestyle; eating, sleeping and reading books...


    Becoming a student of the Jixue Knights Academy? You must be joking! Why would I even want to trouble myself on such complicated matters?


    "Hush young man! This mother had already decided this for your own good! How would I bear to see you wasting your life just eating, sleeping and reading books all day?" interjected his mother.


    "Besides, you can still do all those three even as a student of the academy! The higher you rank on the student''s power ranking, the more privileges you could obtain! You could even buy better beds and food to your liking! Not to mention that with their vast library, you can read all you want without spending a penny!" continued her mother as she listed out all the benefits like a merchant introducing her wares to the customers.


    Knowing that he couldn''t argue his way out of this, at least not with his mother, Duan Li finally relented as he replied slowly, "Okay mother, I understand.."


    "Good! Very good!" nodded his mother happily.


    "Pardon me for asking, but Sister Yue, does your son here practiced any form of martial arts? He is already 21 years old this year.. by standard, he should be at least a third year student at the academy.." asked Ling Yu slowly.


    "M-martial arts?" Meng Yue stuttered as she sweat. Her son was someone who had never even punched a practice dummy before, let alone practice some martial arts! How was she going to answer this?


    However, an idea suddenly sprung up in her mind.


    "Well, to tell you the truth.. I have been teaching him a form of a secret art for the past 10 years! That insolent fellow called Li something was crippled by this technique!" said Meng Yue in a small voice, almost like a whisper.


    "S-secret art? Of what rank?" replied Ling Yu as she swallowed down her saliva.


    One had to know that a secret art is incredibly rare! This is because, just by its naming category, a secret art is a technique that is not recorded down in any manual books. It would be only passed down through practical teaching between a master and their most formidable student.


    One could even say that it is a form of inheritance passed down secretly.


    Secret arts are also ranked accordingly from 1 to 9, the higher the rank, the lethal and powerful it is. This is based on their fighting prowess, whether it be on the support attributes, defense or attack!


    "T-this.." Meng Yue stopped for a while as she did not know how to answer to Ling Yu.


    Seeing that her senior elder sister was having a hard look on her face, Ling Yu decided that she wouldn''t pry any further but instead continued, "Its fine sister Yue, but... If its only one secret art, then your son would definitely have a lot to catch up within the academy.."


    In the Jixue Knights Academy, typically, a fresher would usually be 16 years old of age. This is because, it is the most suitable time for the human body to start practicing martial arts and cultivate their spiritual Qi as the bones and muscles had already become strong enough to persist in strenuous training and environment.


    For Duan Li, not only did he never practiced any form of martial arts and spiritual Qi training, he is already 21 years old, way behind his peers. Even if he has a powerful secret art, if it does not serve the conditions well, he would definitely remain at the rock bottom in the student''s power ranking!


    Take for example, Li Feng, the haughty young man that was crippled by Duan Li is still only 18 years old. If not for the mysterious ability to slow down time, with the snail''s reaction time Duan Li had, he would definitely have lost an arm and leg without a doubt.


    Realizing this, Meng Yue smiled slightly as she said mysteriously, "Well, the martial arts that I have passed down onto him is quite profound and he had already mastered them to the pinnacle level, even higher than me!. Therefore, learning a few foundation level martial arts to its pinnacle should not be a problem for him at all!"


    Hearing this, coupled with the confident tone of her senior elder sister, Ling Yu could not help but to become curious again as she turned to look at Duan Li that was sitting at the opposite direction of them in an awkward manner.


    "If it doesn''t trouble you, could you demonstrate your secret art against me?" she asked with a frown and a curious gaze as she looked at Duan Li.


    It is indeed true that the higher the rank of the secret art is, the more profound it would be. Thus, relying on the same logic,a few foundation level of low ranked martial arts that does not need deep comprehension could be learned within a shorter period of time.


    His mother nodded to him as a sign that she allowed him to do so, but deep inside her heart, she hoped that everything would go well. His ability of slowing down time is still quite mysterious, not knowing what the post-effect of using such a cheating ability is definitely a cause for concern.


    ...


    The both of them stepped out from the house as they stood three meters away from each other, just like the afternoon spar Duan Li had with his mother.


    "Hmm, let me light up the place first." Ling Yu said. Her right arm rose upwards as her palm faces the night sky, she then chanted a spell, "Sun flash illumination strike!"


    A ball of bright light floated out gently from her palm as it rose up slowly and hanged five meters above them, illuminating their surrounding area brightly.


    "En. That should do it! Don''t worry, I''ve modified my channeling formula slightly so that it is completely harmless and only consisted of balls of bright lights!" she said to Duan Li.


    "Well then.. let''s start!"


    ...

 6 Chapter 6: Ability Over-used!

    "Then, let''s start!" said Ling Yu as she stepped forward with a stance. This stance was like a reminiscent of a sharp lance being stabbed forward. Mighty and unstoppable.


    "Single lance momentum strike!" she shouted out. Her hand bolted out to the front as all her fingers were extended outwards shaped like the tip of a spear.


    ''rrringgg''


    "As expected.." said Duan Li inwardly as time began to slow down and he side-stepped to the right slightly.


    "T-this.. Instant reaction?!" Ling Yu''s eye squinted and her brows creased together as she was surprised by the last second side-step performed by Duan Li. She was sure before that her attack would hit, only to be dodged and effortlessly at that!


    She swept her arm to the side where Duan Li was, and the latter abruptly disappeared. She was startled but only for a fraction of a second before she found Duan Li to be squatting down on the ground.


    She lifted one of her leg to do a round-flip back kick. This movement was very fast and occurred in less than a second, but to Duan Li whose world seemed to be as slow as a snail, he could see every movements clearly.


    "She.. is surprisingly quite decent.."


    Now that he had all the time of the world to look properly, he realized that this sister Ling Yu is actually quite the beauty.


    "She should be in her early thirties.. how did mom become friends with someone of the younger generation?" he thought.


    His mother was already over 40 years old as far as he knew. His age himself is 21 years old, thus it wouldn''t make sense for his mother to be younger than that. However, he threw this miscellaneous thoughts to the back of his head as he returned to focus on the battle.


    ...


    "He had already dodged twelve strikes from me consecutively.. this secret art is quite decent, even I didn''t manage to see how he moved.." thought Ling yu.


    "Time to step it up then!"


    Suddenly, her aura went on a qualitative change as it becomes sharper and somewhat more dangerous.


    "Hmm? Her movements.. became faster?" said Duan Li shocked.


    He was still in the world where time had slowed down, but he could visibly tell that the strike was getting faster by the second. Eventually, it reached a state where her strike moved almost a quarter of a second faster in the real world. But to Duan Lin, it was still kinda slow, so he was able to dodge them yet again.


    "What?.. he was still able to dodge my strike without a single counter? Let me see then how long can you last!" thought Ling Yu inwardly as her aura burst forth yet again. This time, it took a tangible form between translucent and light emerald flowing outwards of her body like a river.


    Noticing this, Meng Yue''s heart shuddered for a moment. The technique displayed by Ling Yu right now is called the spirit Qi burning. It is a tradeoff between stamina and speed. The more one burn their spirit Qi, the more faster they become, but also, the more tired.


    Although the level of spirit Qi burning that Ling Yu used is of the lowest output so as not to injure Duan Li, Meng Yue still felt worried as she did not know how long her son''s ability of slowing down time would be able to last.


    What if the ability abruptly ended and he was attacked with that level of speed?


    Thinking up to here, Meng Yue does not dare to take chances anymore as she yelled "Enough!" and released a pressuring aura against Ling Yu.


    ''swoosh!''


    Ling Yu stopped her assault halfway as she quickly turned and apologized to Meng Yue, "Sister! Forgive this junior here for going overboard.. I am just feeling a little bit excited.. that''s why.." she said with a sheepish tone while playing with her fingers like a child getting scolded.


    "Ha.. its fine.." replied Meng Yue with a sigh. Even she was excited before when she had a spar with her son. Thus, she couldn''t really blame her.


    "It''s just that the secret art is extremely taxing for one''s mind, if used for a long duration.."


    ''thud!''


    Just as Meng Yue was about to make a believable excuse for intervening, at that moment, Duan Li had suddenly collapsed to the ground. His face pale as sweat poured out from him and his breathing haggard, gasping for air as he clutched his chest.


    "DUAN LI!" yelled his mother with a terrified expression.


    "Mother..." said Duan Li weakly, as his vision slowly turning into a blur and then blacked out.


    ...


    "Urgh.. oww!"


    Duan Li was startled when he woke up as all of his muscles suddenly ached. Sitting upright on his bed, he recalled that the last scene he saw before collapsing was his mother shouting for his name and running towards him with tears flowing down her cheeks like raindrops.


    "Ouch!!" everytime he tried to lift any part of his limbs, he would feel terrible pain assaulting on his muscles. "Seemed like.. the ability does have its side-effect.." he sighed.


    For a cheating ability as such, it is already quite fortunate that his condition right now was not that severe. If it involved, let''s say, hairs turning white... now that would be scary, he thought.


    Turning his head to the left, he quickly saw a familiar figure sleeping soundly beside his bed with remnant tears still apparent beside her beautiful eyes. She was sitting on the floor while her upper body was supported by her arms on his bed to act like a pillow.


    "Mother.. she must have been extremely worried.." he said slowly in his heart, feeling a little bit guilty.


    As if hearing the inner voice of her son, the sleeping Meng Yue abruptly jolted up as she stared at her son in surprise.


    Seeing the surprised expression of his mother, Duan Li said teasingly, "Mother.. could it be that I.. have grown handsome?" with a cheeky smile.


    "Idiot!!" yelled his mother as tears once again flowed down like a broken dam. "Don''t you know how worried I am?"


    ...


    His mother lectured him for a straight hour before coming to a stop.


    "Do you understand now?!" she said with a glaring face.


    Duan Li couldn''t help but had to suppress himself from laughing as that adorable face of his mother looked like an angry panda with her swollen eyes from crying.


    "Y-yes mother.. your son understands.." he replied slowly.


    "Good! Now it is already morning! Get up already and wash yourself! Hmph!" harrumphed his mother as she stood up.


    "But mother.. my body hurts.. can I sleep for the whole day today?" Duan Li tried to find an excuse to be lazy.


    "I don''t care! Even if you have to drag your body around using your head, you WILL get up this instant!" yelled his mother.


    "I will wait for you to ready for your breakfast, if you haven''t gotten up by then.." she said with a threatening voice as she widened her eyes trying to look scary.


    ''pu!'' Duan Li couldn''t hold out anymore as he finally let out a laugh. His mother is way too adorable!


    "W-what?! Why are you laughing?" seeming to not expect such a reaction from her son, her face flushed red as she realized why.


    "GET UP BEFORE I HIT YOU!!" shouted his mother as she quickly reached for the door in embarassment and closed it with a loud ''bang'' sound.


    Duan Li was still laughing and when he finally stopped, he let out a smile.


    "Thank you mother for worrying about me.."


    ...


    Finishing his breakfast, his mother turned to him as she decided to speak up first to clear the awkward silence, "Today should''ve been your first day at the academy, but because you''ve fainted, sister Ling Yu had given you a leave of absence. Thus, you will start tomorrow!"


    "She had also sent you the academy''s uniform last night and I''ve hanged it on your wall." continued his mother.


    Duan Li had already seen the uniform from the haughty young man yesterday, but having his own and giving it a good look, he couldn''t help but to feel impressed.


    On the outside, the uniform looked to be quite normal, but if one observed carefully and touched it, one would definitely realized that the uniform is far from simple! Ripples of power could be felt from the material, making it tough, stretchy and extremely durable.


    Perhaps as a student of the academy, they would have to undergo quite a lot of intense physical activities and some sparring. Thus, it wouldn''t work for the academy''s budget if they had to replace the student''s uniform every now and then, thought Duan Li.


    "And also, this morning the academy was kind enough to sent you a batch of manual books containing some basic foundation martial arts for you to study and practice." said his mother as her index finger pointed out to the bunch of books stacked together by the door.


    "They hoped for you to at least get a gist of it.." she continued.


    ...


    Carrying the stack of books to his room, Duan Li stretched his back lazily as he could still feel the soreness from his muscles. He then picked out a random book to read titled ''Foundation: Human Anatomy''.


    He flipped the first few pages.


    "There are about 206 bones in the body of human adults. Twenty-six can be found in the spine and vertebrae; eight in the cranium; fourteen in the face; twenty-six in the ribs and sternum; seventy in the upper body; and sixty-two in the lower extremeties..."


    "As for skeletal muscles, there are about 700 altogether, of which is divided into 300 major and 400 minor muscles. Each is divided further into sub-categories.."


    "In order for a martial artists to be able to execute their techniques well, one must know how each limbs function, what makes them move and what drives the force within it. Thus... "


    ...


    After two hours, he finished flipping all 86 pages. To his surprise, he managed to remember word by word in that book as well as where each bones and skeletal muscles are located inside his body.


    "This is strange.. I love reading, but I was never able to remember everything that I''ve read.. but now.." Duan Li contemplated with a frown, "..is this because of the effects from the mysterious pearl as well?"


    He thought that this should be the case.


    Closing his eyes, he tried to feel the bones and muscles inside his body according to the depiction stated in the book before.


    ''shinggg!''


    Suddenly, something even more bizarre happened!


    Confirming that he wasn''t imagining, he abruptly opened his eyes, then closed again.


    ''shinggg!''


    "T-this!" he said shockingly.


    ...

 7 Chapter 7:The All-Seeing eye!

    ''shiinggg''


    "W-what is this?" exclaimed Duan Li feeling extremely shocked.


    When he closed his eyes to recall everything that he had read in the book before, his vision that was supposed to be dark when one''s eyelid closed had instead turned into a see-through eyes!


    "Holy-moly.." he said in bewilderment.


    Looking down towards his body, he could see every bones and skeletal muscles in his body!


    As he lifted his right arm he could see what made it moved. The forearm muscles, biceps, triceps and other sorts of muscles worked simultaneously while others alternatingly.


    As he was tranced by this phenomena he subconsciously thought, "what''s behind this muscle?" and to his surprise, the muscles that was blocking his view got filtered out!


    "W-what the..!!"


    Duan Li panicked at first thinking that he had lost a portion of his muscle, but immediately recomposed himself as he felt that was not the case as there was no pain at all.


    "Maybe..." a theory came into his mind.


    ''shingg!''


    "Aha! Its back there again! Now I see..." he said. It turns out that whenever he wanted, he could filter out any sorts of bones and muscles as long as he willed it. Feeling excited, he experimented for awhile.


    "This is interesting! But the human body should have the blood vessels and all those sorts right? where are they?" he thought.


    Throwing a side glance at the stack of books on his table, he quickly scanned them and saw a book titled, ''Foundation: Human blood vessels''.


    "Is it like that..?" he said inwardly as his mind seemed to click on something.


    Wasting no more time, he took the book out and began to flip it to study its contents;


    "The blood vessels are the part of the bodily circulatory system that transports


    blood throughout the human body. There are three major types of blood vessels: the arteries , which carry the blood away from the heart; the capillaries , which enable the actual exchange of minerals between the blood and the flesh; and the veins, which carries blood from the capillaries back towards the heart..."


    "According to experts, the human blood vessels could stretch out for a total of 100,000 km. The blood vessels is essential for a martial artists to understand as it is... "


    ...


    Spending around three hours, he finally finished flipping through all 112 pages as he read them word by word, and studying the illustrated drawn image carefully so as not to miss out even a single detail especially the crucial ones.


    He then closed his eyes to recall every single thing that he had learnt about the human blood vessels.


    ''shiinggg!''


    "I knew it! Hahahaha!" shouted Duan Li to himself as he clenched his fist in agitation, excitement filled his body.


    Previously, he had made a theory that anything he has learned involving the human body, he could visualize them if he closed his eyes. Thus, when his conjecture is proven, he couldn''t help but to feel extremely happy.


    He looked down at his body once more while in that state of closing his eyes, and he could see all the relevant blood vessels coiling around the muscles in his body. It looked a little bit eerie as he could even see the blood travelling around being delivered here and there, a sight to behold that he had never thought before.


    Opening his eyes, his vision turned normal again.


    "Well, now that I am a master of the human anotomy and blood vessels, I could understand the reason why my body was assaulted by pain after using the ability to slow down time before.." said Duan Li.


    It turns out that his body is quite unfit for extended usage of the ability. Time might have slowed down for him, but in actuality, that is only in his perception and reaction. The natural law still applied to him all the same.


    Thus, moving faster than possible in reality had put a strain on his muscles that his body can''t handle after a duration of usage. Thankfully, all he did previously during the spar was just dodging here and there, and that requires minimal bodily movements and energy.


    Had he used the ability to do strenuous body movements like counter-attacking, he might be in a worse condition than now. Perhaps his muscles might even explode?


    Duan Li shuddered as he thought about it.


    "Hais.. from now on, I have to train my physical body so that my bones and muscles are stronger, and my stamina better.." he sighed.


    Physical exercise is one of the thing that he hated the most. But now that he wanted to make full use of his ability so that he doesn''t faint prematurely during its usage, he had no other choice.


    ...


    ''knock knock!''


    "Young man! Its already noon! come out from your cave this instant!" yelled his mother from outside the door.


    "Yes mother.." replied Duan Li lazily as he reached for the door.


    As he came out from his room, his mother gave him a training Gi uniform that is all white in color.


    "Put that on! Your mother here is going to give you a crash course so that you don''t end up shaming yourself too badly against your juniors!" said his mother with a teasing glare.


    ...


    Outside their house..


    "Today, I am going to impart you on one of the foundational basics of martial arts, stances!" said his mother with a strict tone.


    She then lowered her body as she raised both of her arms together in a guarding position and spread her legs a little.


    "This is a defensive stance! Every martial arts technique varies, but the essence of it remains the same! Now watch again!" she resetted her position as she lowered her body once more into the previous defensive stance.


    "Observe! My legs are now stretched out a bit so that I could spread out my center of gravity. I''ve also lowered down my body so that the area where my opponent can strike me becomes limited. Furthermore, in this stance, you put up a defensive guard like this."


    ...


    Duan Li''s mother put up demonstrations of some defensive stances one after another according to their needs. Meanwhile, Duan Li mimics the bodily movements of his mother.


    To her surprise, Duan Li was able to follow along her moveset well enough like he had already practiced it some while ago after two or three tries.


    "Duan Li, did you secretly practiced some martial arts movements without me knowing?" asked her mother with furrowed brows.


    "No mother, somehow.. I could remember really well how you do it.." he answered and continued, "Also mother, I''ve discovered another new ability.. its like this.."


    Duan Li began to tell his mother about the new ability of seeing through his body.


    ...


    "What? You are now able to see all your bones, skeletal muscles and blood vessels clearly once you closed your eyes?" his mother stared at him widely with shocked eyes.


    "Yes... and maybe as I read more books, I could visualize all the other aspects of my body too.." answered Duan Li slowly.


    "That is great!" shouted his mother, jumping happily.


    "Although you''ve become such a cheat character now, but that ability to visualize clearly your inner body will definitely help you to advance your martial arts by leaps and bounds!" she continued.


    "This is because, martial artists requires their body to memorize the movements technique by instinct at its pinnacle level! For you now, although you won''t jump straightly to the pinnacle, you should be at the adept level at most for every martial arts you learn for the first time!"


    "Adept level?.. pinnacle?" thought Duan Li sounding confused.


    Seeing his reaction, his mother giggled for a bit before explaining, " It''s like this, there are a total of five levels to one''s own mastery of any particular martial arts! From the lowest mastery; beginner, novice, adept, master and the highest is pinnacle!"


    "You should know that most martial artists or practitioners, could only master most of their martial arts to the adept or master level. This is because, reaching the pinnacle would be very time consuming, with all sorts of martial arts everyone is learning, rarely would they have the time to practice each to their pinnacle state!" said his mother.


    "Is that so.. then that means.."


    "That means you have suddenly become a genius!" interjected his mother while exclaiming happily.


    Duan Li touched his hair feeling embarassed being called a ''genius'' by his mother. Nevertheless, he felt happy about it.


    "If you could learn every single martial arts straightly to the adept level.. then.." his mother said slowly.


    "...then..?" asked Duan Li.


    "Then, you are going to train all night! The advance technique could be learned some other time. But for now, I am going to impart you with all the basics that I can squeeze today! So man up!" shouted his mother sounding like a strict drill captain.


    "Y-yes!" answered Duan Li.


    ...

 8 Chapter 8: Congratulatory Feast!

    "Now this, is the 32nd form of defensive stance! If you change your step just a little bit to the left, and twist your body to the right, you can immediately counter any attacks from the front and back!" said Meng Yue as she demonstrated the feasibility of stances combination.


    Duan Li, whom have followed the lesson for three hours now, so far were getting the hang of it.


    "With this one, I should have already memorized exactly 89 stances already.." said Duan Li, feeling somewhat tired.


    Mother.. I know that you are excited to impart all your stances technique to me, but I am hungry..


    In the end, after another one round of rigorous stances impartation, Duan Li had finally learnt a total of 14 attack stances, 44 defensive stances and 31 supportive stances.


    Not to mention, with a total of 416 possible stances combination!


    "Haa..." Duan Li exhaled.


    Reviewing all the stances in his head, it seems like his mother is very adapt in defensive and countering techniques from all the stances he had learned. Duan Li could also better understood what these stances could do now.


    Firstly, as the name suggest, attack stances is used to properly adjust one''s own body to prepare for doing an attack. Defensive stances is both a neutral stance and for guarding against attacks. Meanwhile, supportive stances is used to chain in between attack and defensive stances, while also for counter-attacking as well.


    "It is impressive for you to be able to memorize and practice 70 percent of my total stances so quickly.. how cheating.. haa.." sighed his mother helplessly. She knew that with the help of the quick memorization ability, her son would definitely soar through greater heights. But at the same time, she felt jealous as well.


    "Did you know that mother had to spend perhaps seven years to master all those stances to the adept level? And another three years for most of them to the master level.." she continued while shaking her head. To think that almost ten years of her life was wasted into training diligently. Yet here, her own son had just achieved almost the same thing within just ten hours.


    Truly cheating.


    "What about the pinnacle level? Did mother perhaps have any martial arts trained to the pinnacle?" asked Duan Li curiously.


    "Of course! Your mother here had spent another three years to practice some of them to its pinnacle level!" his mother said proudly.


    "You had to be careful though Duan Li. Although you seemed to have reached adept level on those stances that I have taught you, as someone who is experienced in it, I could see that they are brittle and have no power to them." she warned.


    "It should be fine if you were to duel between fellow juniors, but for seniors and teachers, especially the elders at the academy, they could see right through the flaw of your stances!" she added.


    "I see.. no wonder my body felt it awkward even if I had mimicked it perfectly.." replied Duan Li seeming to understood.


    "Exactly! This is because of the natural phenomena called ''muscle memory''! Your muscle takes time to integrate these movements along with the appropriate force to be distributed into it. For you today, you have only just learnt of their movements and had not yet experienced using it in battles. Thus, they are extremely weak and is just the proper form of it." she nodded.


    "However,since we don''t have time for proper training session, I think what you have learnt so far should already be enough for now. Some people might call you a genius starting tomorrow, but considering your age.. I doubt they would feel any different than looking at their seniors from you.. hehe." she said with a giggle at the end.


    Hearing this, Duan Li suddenly felt demotivated.


    "Haa... that''s right.. all my classmate should be way younger than me.." Duan Li sighed with his shoulders dropped down weakly.


    He is already 21 years old today, compared to his classmates, they should be well around 16 years old!


    Duan Li facepalmed himself as he imagined what a scene he will have to undergo tomorrow..


    ...


    The next day..


    ''swish..''


    The lithe and gentle flow of the translucent white curtain of Duan Li''s bedroom danced around as cool air entered through that half-opened window.


    "Yawnnnn~"


    Duan Li woke up with a gentle stretch. He patted his bed as he thought, "From today onwards, I wouldn''t be able to sleep on this bed as frequently as I did before.." he sighed.


    Students of the Jixue Knights Academy had to live in their respective room at the dormitories. They could only go back home twice a week during the weekend.


    The reason for this is because, the Jixue Knights Academy is quite far, more than 1000 km away from Xuan village. The only method of transportation that is fast and viable enough would be through the air, using the public transport called the ''Airtrain''.


    These airtrains would go around in predetermined routes in a constant loop, using floating rails up in the air as its tracks. They are unmanned and operated entirely by magic inscriptions to arrive at their destination within set intervals.


    For villages, their routes are located in between the other villages where the stops are shared by many people. These routes then travelled through the center of many towns along the way. Finally, it will reach the capital city of the Jiu Empire, Nine Lotuses City, where the Jixue Knights Academy is located.


    Thinking up to here, Duan Li then thought about the haughty young man called Li Feng whom he had crippled.


    "That Li Feng fellow came here in Xuan village two days ago.. isn''t that during the final weekend? What did he mean to fall asleep and getting scolded before that day?.." thought Duan Li in contemplation as he fixed his uniform.


    "Ahh.. he must be on detention during the first weekend then!" he said, after coming to the conclusion that it should be the case for that troublemaker.


    ''knock knock!''


    "Young man, are you ready yet? Come and have breakfast with your mother here first before you go!" said his mother in front of the door.


    "Okay mother, just a minute!" replied Duan Li hastening himself.


    ...


    "Mother.. I couldn''t finish them all.." burped Duan Li as he touched his ballooning stomach.


    His mother had somehow decided to overcook today.


    "Hehe! This will be my congratulatory feast for your successful enrollment to the academy starting today!" said his mother with a big smile along with her adorable baby face.


    Looking at that smile and the effort his mother put into the breakfast, Duan Li''s heart was filled with warmth. He then looked at the remaining dishes and a determined glint shone in his eyes.


    "Just three more portion to finish!" he said in his mind.


    After a battle of wits, Duan Li had finally managed to stuff himself with all the food his mother prepared. He was so full that he felt that if he tried to walk just for a bit, he would barfed out everything to the floor.


    "This is bad.." he said to himself worryingly.


    His mother had put a lot of love in that dishes, if he were to puke them out, he would never forgive himself!


    He closed his eyes to think for a solution as his view turned into that of the see-through state.


    "Hmm.. maybe.."


    Duan Li then focused his gaze on his stomache and found out that it was really filled to the brim. Subconsciously, he thought in his mind for his stomache to ''digest faster!''.


    To his surprise, his stomache started to churn rapidly as if its contents was being sucked into the void by vaccuum. It then formed into a clump of blue-ish mist, as it flowed slowly downwards about four inches to an empty region and swirled around before slowly disappearing.


    Realizing how bizarre this phenomena is, he opened his eyes and turned towards his mother.


    "Mother, all the food that I just ate transformed into a blue-ish mist before being sucked down and disappeared around here.." he explained while pointing out to the part where it dissipated.


    "Ohh? That area? Isn''t that the Dantian?" answered his mother.


    "Dantian? What is that?" asked Duan Li seeming unaware of the term.


    "Seriously? You don''t even know what a Dantian is?" his mother replied as she rolled her eyes.


    ...

 9 Chapter 9: Farewell Mother!

    "You don''t even know what is a Dantian?" said his mother while rolling both of her eyes.


    "A Dantian is where the human body stored their spiritual Qi that they have absorbed from the surrounding." she explained.


    Hearing this, Duan Li thought for a while and asked, "How do we do that? By eating?"


    "No silly! We absorb spiritual Qi into our body through breathing exercises!" she giggled and added, "As for how your stomach managed to transform your digested food into a spiritual Qi, I am no longer surprised by your cheating abilities eventhough I don''t know the reason why."


    "Cough!" Duan Li coughed dryly.


    "Haha.. what is this ''spiritual Qi'' for mother?" sounded Duan Li feeling curious as he chocked himself little bit, embarrassed that his mother categorized his abilities as cheating. He smiled awkwardly looking at that annoyed face of his mother.


    "You can do a lot of stuff with spiritual Qi. In fact, some martial arts requires it to be executed just like the skill used by sister Ling Yu the other night. Furthermore, even normal martial arts becomes powerful when imbued with spiritual Qi." replied his mother.


    "Basically, spiritual Qi lets you do wonders and perform miracles. For now, you don''t have to think about it yet. After learning the various meridian channels inside your body and mastering them, the academy will explain to you the numerous methods for you to gather spiritual Qi. After that, you just have to pick one that suits your needs." explained his mother.


    Thinking about it, Duan Li conjectured that this spiritual Qi topic might be too difficult and advance for him as of yet. Thus, he relented by nodding.


    ...


    ''knock knock!''


    "Sister Ming Yue! I''ve come to pick up Duan Li!" sounded a voice from outside the door.


    "Ahh, sister Ling Yu has arrived.." Duan Li''s mother said as she opened up the door. They greeted with a hug.


    "Sister.. about the other night.." Ling Yu spoke up with a small voice sounding quite guilty.


    "Don''t worry about it! It''s my son who was too weak to have fainted from executing his own secret art. Haa.. " sighed Meng Yue as she shook her head slowly.


    To think that her son would suddenly fainted on the spot from executing his own abilities in front of her junior sister, she felt a little bit ashamed.


    "Come on Duan Li, sister Ling Yu is waiting for you!" shouted Meng Yue, beckoning for Duan Li who was still in his room.


    Emerging out of his room, Duan Li closed the door to his room gently while looking melancholic. He then slowly carressed the door as he sighed.


    "Stop being so overdramatic and come quickly! You don''t want to miss the airtrain!" said his mother as she rolled her eyes.


    Coming forward while sighing again, Duan Li turned to look at his mother. On the outside, it seems that his mother seemed to be cool and unfazed. But as a son, Duan Li could clearly see that his mother was just acting. From her eyes, he could feel the hidden sadness in it.


    "Mother, Duan Li your son here, will visit you every weekend okay? Don''t feel too sad about it.." said Duan Li.


    "Who is sad?! I am the one who decided to sent you to the academy! Hmph!" harrumphed his mother with crossed arms while pouting.


    "Duan Li will make mother proud!" he said as he laughed for a bit looking at that adorable reaction from his mother.


    "You.. just.. you take care of yourself over there, you hear me? Don''t let others bully you! I will not acknowledge if my son were to be.. a weakling!" replied his mother seeming to stutter in her words a little bit.


    She was trying hard to suppress her brewing emotion so as not to betray her unfazed expression.


    Duan Li smiled.


    Bowing down towards his mother at 90 degrees, Duan Li then hugged her as he whispered, "I will mother, you too.. take care of yourself.." with a gentle voice.


    "Silly boy.." replied his mother, her inner emotions almost broke out.


    As Duan Li and Ling Yu departed into the distance, they both waved to Meng Yue as she waved back with a wide smile. Looking at their disappearing figure from their backs until they are completely gone, the trace of sadness finally expanded as it engulfed Meng Yue.


    She looked inside the house, feeling empty.


    "Now.. I''m all alone.."


    She slumped to the ground slowly, and reclined her back towards the door frame. Burrowing her face with her arms to cover it, a silent cry of a mother was then heard by no one, but the wind.


    ...


    "Grandma Ying!" called out Duan Li as he waved at the grocery store owner where the incident took place a few days ago.


    "Ehh? Duan Li my boy! I heard you fainted yesterday while hard at practice! You should take things one step at a time.. " said grandma Ying slowly with a worried look.


    "Ahh.. yes.. " replied Duan Li, embarrassed as he pat his own head.


    He continued, "Starting today, I will be living in the dormitories at the Jixue Knights Academy grandma Ying, I''m here to bid you farewell..".


    Hearing this, grandma Ying nodded as if she already knew.


    "Yes, I''ve heard about it. After that incident happened here a few days ago, the village folks had reported to the village head straight away in your defense as they were afraid that the academy might deal with you unfairly." she said.


    "However, when the village head heard about this, knowing the regulation of the academy, he just smiled and said to not worry about it as you have already been accepted as part of the academy. The matter would be treated as a duel between fellow students. Thus, everyone was already quite aware of it.. except maybe you, hehe.." she giggled while covering her mouth, seemingly to tease Duan Li.


    What? They all already knew beforehand? And it seems that I was the last one to know about it in the end?


    Duan Li was crying in his heart.


    "Haa.. it is as grandma Ying had just said.. I only just knew recently.." he said with a sigh. "If it is not troubling, I hope grandma Ying could accompany my mother once in a while, she gets lonely easily.." added Duan Li with a concerned voice.


    After all, he knew best about his own mother. As tough as she was, he found out that his mother would sometimes act like a little sister instead with that adorable face of her''s..


    Seeing that worried look on Duan Li''s face, grandma Ying smiled as she said, "Don''t worry, grandma will come visit her often. You should take care and focus to study hard! Be sure to return with a title that will make your mother proud!"


    Hearing the reassurance and encouragement from grandma Ying, Duan Li finds himself to be more motivated, as his worries lessened.


    Duan Li bowed 90 degrees to grandma Ying as he bid his farewell, "Thank you grandma Ying! I have to go now.. please take care of your health! I will return every weekend!"


    "Ohh! And pass my thanks to the other village folks for their help as well!"


    Duan Li waved at grandma Ying as he continued to walk forward. Looking at the never-changing busy street of this village, he expressed inwardly to himself, "I am going to miss this village.."


    He knew that once he step foot into the academy, he wouldn''t be able to enjoy such kind of atmosphere anytime he wanted anymore.


    Things will change.


    ...


    After some roughly thirty minutes walk, they have finally reached the end of the village. He could see a big red gate and concrete walls as high as three meters encircling the village. These gate and walls are guarded with some patrolmen in light leather armors doing daily routine checks and station guards donned with heavy iron armors plates. They serve to protect the village from the seasonal monster attacks.


    Stepping outside the gate, Ling Yu turned to Duan Li as she said, "From here on out, we will go to the nearest airtrain stops located 80 kilometers northeast."


    "W-what? 80 kilometers.. we didn''t bring any supplies for such a long travel.." said Duan Li, shocked to hear that the distance to the airtrain stops would be so far away.


    Ling Yu giggled seeing that shocked expression, "Silly, we are not going to travel by foot! Come closer!" she beckoned to Duan Li with her index finger while winking at him.


    Duan Li''s face turned red as he blushed seeing that seductive charm and slowly walked to close their distance. They are now less than a few inches away from each other. Duan Li''s heartbeat pumped loudly as he could faintly smell the perfume she was wearing.


    Ling Yu smiled teasingly as she patted her right palm onto Duan Li''s shoulder and chanted, "Feather flight!"


    ''shiingggg!''


    Suddenly, Duan Li felt his body to be as light as a feather. He floated one meter off the ground.


    "W-whaaa??!!" he exclaimed, sounding a little bit terrified as he struggled to balance himself in midair.


    "Calm down! Its a magic for a short, long distance travel." she said as she chanted the same spell and her body also floated one meter above ground.


    "Don''t move too much, this spell is quite taxing for me since I''m using it for you too. I could only do this for perhaps thirty minutes before we stop to rest for a while." she added.


    They both then floated higher and higher as they finally reached five meters above ground. Duan Li covered his mouth with both hands as he look dead forward, afraid to look down.


    Then, as if some invisible force was tugging at them, they moved forward slowly as they began to accelerate faster and faster..


    ''psheewww!''


    And so, off they flew into the distance..


    ...

 10 Chapter 10: Ling Yus horizon widened!

    "Daddy! Look what is that?" said a boy with a round hat, that seemed to be only around eight years old while pointing into the sky from the distance.


    "Huh? Ohh! that is just a pair of birds! Now help daddy carry these harvest over there!" replied a thirty years old man that seemed to be the boy''s father.


    Ling Yu and Duan Li had already travelled approximately half the total distance to reach the nearest airtrain stops. They have been flying at constant bottleneck speed of almost 100 kilometers per hour that Duan Li''s face had turned green.


    Ling Yu''s face had also grown a little bit pale in color while breathing heavily. It seems that she had almost reached her limits.


    "Let''s rest for a while over there.." she said after finding a good spot to rest.


    They then slowly descended down from the air until they are hovering about one meter above ground. Ling Yu then chanted, "Feather flight release!" before Duan Li felt that his body weight had returned to normal and they landed with their feet on the ground.


    "Finally landed.. haa.." said Duan Li while wiping off his sweat. At first during the few moments of flight, he was quite excited to feel how it is like to soar through the air eventhough he is a little bit scared of the heights. But as time passes on and their speed accelerated, his excitement dumbed down and his fear increased as he shuddered observing the breaking speed that they are moving.


    What if we were to collide with birds or hills? Wouldn''t I become a bloody mess or turned into a meat paste?


    Walking under the shades of a tree beside the river, Duan Li sat down under it as Ling Yu went off to wash her face in the river.


    With a wet face making her look more sexy, Ling Yu then sat down as she took a dry small towel to wipe off her face and said, "We will rest for around 10 minutes so that my spiritual Qi will recover. We can cover the rest of the distance until then."


    Knowing that they will have time for some breather, Duan Li felt relieved as he stretched his back and arms.


    "Say Duan Li, you do practice some martial arts right? Knowing your mother is THE Meng Yue, it is impossible for her to not impart you anything.." asked Ling Yu curiously.


    One had to know that Duan Li''s mother, Meng Yue is someone renowned from 15 years ago. She was part of the top three subjugation squad for defending the empire during seasonal monster stampedes. During that time, monsters would come to attack the empire at the border in hordes and these subjugation squads hunted these monster packs down for sports and glory.


    "If it was not because of that big incidentin the past.. haa.." Ling Yu sighed inwardly.


    "Well.. I did learn a few stances from my mother.. all three types of stances.." Duan Li replied.


    "Ohh? How many dozens have you managed to learn so far?" asked Ling Yu as her interest was piqued.


    "Hmm.. a total of 14 attack stances, 44 defensive stances and 31 supportive stances..." replied Duan Li with his fingers on his chin.


    Hearing this, Ling Yu''s expression from her initial curiosity changed into that of shock and her mouth was slightly open.


    She didn''t want to believe it, but this is the son of THAT Meng Yue they are talking about. Her brutality back in the past was known far and wide.


    "T-that''s a total of 89 stances h-huh.. w-well that shouldn''t be surprising as she IS your mother.." Ling Yu said while stuttering, trying to accept that the son of Meng Yue shouldn''t be measured by the normal standards..


    "Then, how many total of combinations..?"


    This time, her best estimate was roughly around a hundred at most. No matter how brutal Meng Yue is and talented the innate potentials of her son, it shouldn''t be far from that figure.


    "Emm.. it should be around 416 combination!" answered Duan Li with a confident look and a nod, oblivious to the shocked expression of Ling Yu.


    ''Pu!''


    416 combination?! Are you actually some forty years old man disguising yourself with some secret art to make you look younger?


    Choking herself out from her own saliva, she took in a deep breath as she tried to stabilize her spiritual Qi from going berserk. She was currently absorbing massive amounts of spiritual Qi from the surrounding to recover her dantian, and one''s state must be in a harmony to do so. Yet, this young man in front of her are being too vicious in his words.


    A young man such as yourself should be more humble in their words! Even if what you speak off is the truth, try to be more considerate hey!


    Stabilizing both her mind and spiritual Qi, she recomposed herself as she contemplated that 89 total stances with 416 combinations learned shouldn''t be impossible. After all, they are both sickos.


    "I-I see... Hmm.. well, that is impressive! But for now, you should focus on levelling up your mastery to at least novice for a few of them. Just knowing a lot of stances and combination wouldn''t actually make you stronger in a fight!" she said while nodding that this should be the case.


    Quantity alone doesn''t make one''s own prowess to skyrocket as a martial artists. After all, people often said that ''quality over quantity'' is the most important factor to become truly powerful!


    "Tell me, which one is your most favorite move? I''ll help and point out some of the flaws in your stance so that you can easily reach the adept level on it in a few weeks!" she continued, exuding the aura of a senior teacher would have with confidence.


    Hearing this, Duan Li contemplated for a while. Should he tell the truth that he had reached adept mastery in all of them? Thinking up to here, he decided to do so. After all, she is a senior teacher and would know sooner or later once he displayed them.


    "Sister Ling Yu, I.. have already reached adept mastery in all of them...." he said slowly.


    ''Kacha!''


    One of the seven emerald jade beads on her wrist that looked no more like the usual accessories a girl would wear, hadsuddenly cracked before turning into ashes.


    These were actually one of the protective talisman to guard one''s mental state should a sudden trauma were to risk its owner from their spiritual Qi going out of control due to emotional breakdown.


    "R-reached adept masteries in... a-all of them?" her eyes and mouth are now wide open. Replacing that previously sexy and alluring face of her''s into one similar to that of a puffer fish.


    What the hell!


    Have you been practicing stances in your mother''s womb?


    No! That''s not right either! Have you been practicing stances in your father''s testicles since he was young?


    At that point, her entire world view had broken down. She was now forced to see into the wider horizon.


    Standing up, she clasped her hands behind her backs as she looked up towards the blue sky in a 45 degrees angle. She then closed her eyes as she tried to stabilize her tumultuous heart.


    After a few moments in silence, she then said, "Show me!". If it were true that he had reached adept masteries in all of them. Then she will accept it with open heart.


    "Okay!" replied Duan Li as he stood up and began with a defensive stance.


    ...


    Around ten minutes, Duan Li had so far demonstrated 21 stances with 57 combination with adept masteries before Ling Yu hold up her palm in a gesture for Duan Li to stop. That he had proven himself true to his words.


    "Hais.. the younger generation will eventually overtook the old generation huh..? Now.. I know what master meant back then.." she sighed while shaking her head helplessly.


    "You must have trained very hard for several years.. In all my years that I have been alive, you are the most talented person that I have witnessed! And I can vouch that you have already far surpassed your mother back when she was your age!" said Ling Yu confidently, finally accepting that the world had surprised her thorough and thorough today.


    "Let us continue on our journey then!"


    She chanted the spell ''Feather flight'' as they both flew to the skies to continue their journey.


    Thankfully, she had not asked Duan Li how long does it took for him to master all of those to the adept level.


    If she knew it only took him around ten hours to achieve such accomplishment..


    Would she die on the spot?


    ...


    In a parallel world, the Jixue Knights Academy had stopped all classes, to both honor and mourn two days later due to the loss of a capable senior teacher from a mysterious cause..


    ...

 11 Chapter 11: Trials to enter!

    After roughly another 30 minutes soaring the air with extreme speeds, they could finally see people lining up to form multiple long queues.


    "We have arrived! Let''s go to the counter to buy the tickets!" said Ling Yu after they landed down from the air.


    This time, Duan Li''s complexion is much better than before. His body somehow adjusted itself to the heights and speed they were flying with.


    "Perhaps this is the effect from the mysterious pearl as well?" he said to himself.


    He then looked around as he could find myriad sorts of people queueing up whileothers are opening up some portable stalls taking advantage of the crowd to some quick business. The place is extremely busy.


    "So this is the airtrain stops huh?.. I wonder if the airtrain would have enough spaces for everyone here.." thought Duan Li feeling curious of what the airtrain would look like.


    "Two-One way ticket to the capital city please!" said Ling Yu to the official in charge of the tickets. She also handed in her emblem, and upon seeing it, the official gave a nod after verifying it and pressed a red stamp to both of their tickets. The stamp spelled out ''30% discount''.


    This is the privilleges given out by the empire towards senior teachers of the Jixue Knights Academy. For normal teachers, they will be given 20 percent discount, while students will get a 10 percent discount.


    "Okay, let us queue up at the gate number eight!" said Ling Yu as Duan Li followed suit.


    ...


    Shortly after arriving at gate 8..


    "Ohh! Ling Yu! What a surprise to see you here!" shouted a tall man with a muscular body from afar as he waved his hands excitedly.


    "Hmm?" Ling Yu turned her head as she frowned.


    Seeing who it was, Ling Yu''s complexion turned slightly awful. This muscular man is also a senior teacher at Jixue Knights Academy and has been trying to court her for a while.


    Its not to say that he is a bad man, just that he was not her type. Nevertheless, as a fellow senior teacher, it would be quite rude to not exchange greetings, especially looking at how sincere and excited the other party was after stumbling upon them.


    She sighed and replied, "Hello Wang Guozhi, its a pleasure to see you here as well.."


    "Hehehehehe the pleasure is all mine!" replied the man, seeming quite happy just from her short sentence alone.


    Although he knew that Ling Yu does not have the same feeling towards him, he is the kind of man who believed in ''persistence is the key'' concept, like how he trained his muscles.


    It is not to the stage of being an annoying pest though, as he knows where to draw the boundary and respect her comfort space as well. This is also the reason why Ling Yu could not find it in her heart to chase this man away, for while he is not the type of man she likes, he has that kind of quality she does not despise.


    Behind him is a young girl with the Jixue Knights Academy''s uniform as well. Noticing the look on Duan Li''s face, Wang Guozhi began to introduce her.


    "Ahh, this young girl here is my sister''s daughter. Go on, introduce yourself." he said with a big smile towards the latter.


    "Hello.. I am called Xiahou Yu.. 16 years old.." the young girl said while avoiding direct eye contact with Duan Li. It seems that she is quite the shy person as well, thought Duan Li.


    "Hello.. nice to meet you Xiahou Yu, I am Duan Li, 21 years old.. " he replied with a slight smile.


    While he could consider himself to be on the shy category as well, but being much older than the other party, especially as a man, he needs to show some more backbone. If he didn''t, and this somehow travelled to the ear of his mother, who knows if she will tease or lecture him all day.


    "Ohh? 21 years old? Are you a senior boy?" questioned Wang Guozhi as he had never seen him in the academy before.


    "Ahh, no.. I am a new student that will start my enrollment today.." replied Duan Li feeling a little bit embarrassed when his age was mentioned.


    "A fresher..? At your age? Hmm that''s weird.." thought Wang Guozhi as he stopped for a while to contemplate. Then, coming up with a possible theory, he asked curiously, "Have you already studied martial arts before?"


    "Yes.. I have studied and mastered some crucial stances.." replied Duan Li. "I didn''t enroll earlier in my younger days, because my mother wanted to teach me herself and pass down some techniques.." he added.


    The reason he had said that was because to make it look more believable for the other party to accept. Otherwise, a fresher at the age of 21 years old without knowing anything, would definitely be left in the dust even if he were to practice day and night.


    "Ahh.. I see.. no wonder.." said Wang Guozhi as he touched his chin and nod. This is actually quite normal for big and influential family in the empire. As they have a very deep inheritance, they would usually only allow their sons and daughters to enroll after they inherited their family''s heritage.


    Although, for someone like Duan Li who is not from any of those families to enroll a little bit too late, is quite rare but understandable at least.


    ''PTOOTT TOOTT!!''


    A heavy sound came from the distance as a large and an extremely elongatedvehicle that resembled a snake appeared. It slithered effortlessly onto the tracks that floated up in the air with breaking speed.


    "The airtrain is here!" said Ling Yu.


    Duan Li was mindblowned as he observed this gigantic public transport that looked extremely flashy and tough with that thick, metal appearance. The airtrain is coated with a white base along with blue streaks that perfectly acentuates its aerodynamic body.


    Wang Guozhi threw sneaky smiles at Duan Li due to the latter''s shocked expression as if looking at a country bumpkin.


    ''Seems like it is his first time huh?'' he thought.


    ...


    Aboard the train...


    "Duan Li, although you are already 21 years old and has mastered quite a lot already, you will still start as a fresher, you do know that right?" told Ling Yu.


    Duan Li nodded as he looked busily towards his surrounding.


    The inside of the airtrain is wide and spacious. In each compartment, there are roughly twenty rooms where each could fill roughly ten people inside. Furthermore, they are minimalistically decorated, which suited the taste of Duan Li.


    However, among the twenty rooms, there exist separate private VIP rooms for important individuals. Duan Li is in such a room right now.


    ''The cabin inside this airtrain is even more impressive, and this VIP room.. how extravagant.. '' thought Duan Li.


    "Good, now remember carefully. To decide which class each fresher would be in, the academy has prepared several test to measure one''s own aptitude." she explained.


    "Test? What.. sort of test?" asked Duan Li sounding a little bit nervous.


    At this moment, Wang Guozhi who had been sticking closely with them ended up using this room as well, which Ling Yu was quite reluctant at first. But seeing the former''s bright smile, she sighed and just let them share the same room.


    Wang Guozhi waved his hands to signal that ''Let me do it'' meaning. Ling Yu sighed again as she nodded.


    Xiahou Yu who was previously looking at the fast changing scenery outside through the window, turned to listen to the explanation as well.


    "There are five levels to measure one''s aptitude to become a martial artists. The first level is the measuring of spiritual Qi one could hold within their dantian. The method will be explained later, but you should know that there will be a minimum threshold that a student should have to become part of the Jixue Knights Academy." he said.


    "The second level will be a test regarding one''s spirit and will. The path to become a martial artist is long and painful. Thus, if one''s spirit and will is horrible, the academy will not permit them entry. As usually, these types of people will be easily discouraged by themselves and quited halfway, wasting precious resources of the academy." he continued.


    "En. Next, the third level will be a personality test. In this test, the academy will cast on you a high level truth spell that will compel yourself to tell the truth. From then on, they will ask you a series of questions and scenarios which you will answer truthfully." explained Ling Yu as she waved to take over the explanation.


    "Of course, this test will be conducted by a senior teacher and will be observed by other senior teachers as well. This is done to prevent the conductor from breaching the student''s privacy and ask irrelevant questions. Thus you do not need to worry about leaking any sorts of confidential secret and private matters.." she continued.


    At the thought of this, Duan Li felt relieved. If he were to accidentally reveal about his secret abilities, it will spell quite the trouble for him.


    "Finally, the fourth and fifth level are special tests, provided that you scored flying colors in all the three tests and fulfilled the hidden conditions to trigger it." Ling Yu said and added, "At that point, even we the senior teachers do not know what the test would be. However, as long as you passed the previous three tests, then you have successfully enrolled as part of the Jixue Knights Academy!"


    "En. Furthermore, the two final tests will be conducted personally by the vice-principal and the principal of the academy themselves. Rarely does anyone made it to the fourth and fifth level. And even if one did, they are forbidden to tell a single soul about it, or so I''ve heard." explained Wang Guozhi as he touched his chin in contemplation.


    Hearing this, Duan Li thought for a while and conjectured that it will be fine. He wasn''t really worried about the first three level, if he passed, then he would enroll. If he didn''t, then so be it! He would be able to go back home continuing his lazy days.


    What he really felt some forboding sense was towards the fourth and fifth level of the tests. However, knowing that only few people ever made it, he wouldn''t be one of them... right?


    Exchanging some few small talks between the four of them, the airtrain eventually slowed down as an announcement was made that came out from nowhere.


    ''Ting Tong!''


    "Next stop, Triding river town! Please remember to take your belongings with you and to exit with orderly manner. Thank you for your patronage."


    ...

 12 Chapter 12: Finally arrived!

    "Are we getting out here?" asked Duan Li.


    "Nope, we will continue to ride for another one stop before reaching the capital city." replied Ling Yu.


    "This Triding River town is technically the first line of defense for the Jiu Empire. Thus, there are many stores out here that sells numerous necessities for martial artists going on an adventure including armors, weapons, manuals and the sorts. You can come here next time to take a look." she said with a smile.


    "Ahh, I see.. But why is it considered the first line of defense?" asked Duan Li curiously.


    This is because the numerous surrounding villages on the outskirts were also part of the Jiu Empire. Then, why are they not the first line of defense?


    Hearing this, Wang Guozhi turned to answer as he pulled out a paper and pen from the void. This seems to be that ''Inventory space'' magic that was imbued usually on rings. These rings are made up from the sack of a rare monster called ''Three striped Fanged-Snake''by which its tail has the properties of an alternate dimensional space, although the inner space would varies on random.


    Ling Yu had told him about this before when they were travelling through the air as she took a sip from a water bottle that came out of nowhere.


    "Well, imagine it like this, the capital city of Nine Lotuses is the center of the Jiu Empire. It is surrounded by eight towns including the Triding river town. There are two towns infront of the capital city in each four of the cardinal directions, and they are all connected together by town walls as their border." said Wang Guozhi as he draw a single circular shape which he divides them in a sectorial manner on the paper.


    Although Duan Li loved reading, and he knew there are towns surrounding the capital city. He wasn''t sure before how each were situated as the book he bought at a very cheap price had only stated as much roughly without going into the details.


    Duan Li cupped his chin with his fingers as he found this positioning of towns around the capital to be quite interesting. Still, he did not understand the relationship of these towns with the ''first-line of defense'' thingy.


    ''Ttak ttak!'' the airtrain began to move and accelerate slowly.


    Noticing Duan Li''s expression, Wang Guozhi smiled as he continued.


    "I mentioned that there are two towns in each cardinal direction right? Well, each of the first town after the capital are called the ''Production'' town where they produce many stuff that is crucial for the prosperity and advancement of the empire. Thus, technically, they are the backbone of the Jiu Empire and where the majority of the people of the empire work." he said while labelling the middle sector shape as ''production town''.


    "Therefore, each of the town after that, where the majority of the people lived and commute from protects the inner town and the capital city, which is the heart of the empire! Thus, my fellow senior teacher Ling Yu here, used the term ''first-line of defense'' to make it simpler!" he said while crossing his arms together and giving side glances towards Ling Yu with a wink and smile.


    He seemed to hint, ''Did you see that? I''m also quite knowledgable as well other than my manly figure and suave looks!''


    Ling Yu giggled a little bit as she shook her head slowly.


    While Wang Guozhi had explained how the towns were located and their functions, he seemed to fail to explain the crux of the matter.


    "Senior teacher Wang Guozhi is correct. Also, the reason why it is called the first line of defense of the empire is because whenever there are threats, such as the seasonal monster stampede, these towns will be the first to dispatch official Knights from the academy to protect the surrounding villages!" she explained while emphasizing the ''Also'' in her first sentence.


    As the other party had already explained to the best of his ability, it is only right for her to just add on to the explanation rather than pointing out which one he was missing in his explanation.


    Hearing this, Duan Li seemed to come to a better understanding now.


    "No wonder everyone still respect the students from the Jixue Knights Academy eventhough some of them are quite the bully.. it turns out that they will eventually become a full-fledged knights to protect villages against monster attacks... " thought Duan Li.


    It wasn''t that he didn''t know that Knights had protected them from the numerous monster attacks before. But that he didn''t know the responsibility they held. Now, he had a more positive outlook towards the academy as a whole.


    ''Perhaps only that Li Feng is the most degenerate fella out of all the bunch of people..''


    ''Ting Tong!''


    "Next stop, Capital City, Nine Lotuses city! Please remember to take your belongings with you and to exit with orderly manner. Thank you for your patronage."


    "We have arrived, let''s go quickly. The airtrain will only stop for a minute." said Ling Yu as she gestured for Duan Li and the rest to move.


    ...


    Capital city, Nine Lotuses city..


    "What size.. what exquisite buildings.. how many floor is that? Perhaps ten or more?" said Duan Li to himself as he swallowed his saliva.


    When he first stepped out from the airtrain, he was quickly mesmerized by the tall buildings and orderly street view. Even the air seemed to be very clean and has a certain aroma to it that make one''s body to relax. Not only that, this city seemed to be in harmony with nature as trees were everywhere at the correct places and angle.


    This is truly a marvel in engineering and architecture!


    "Surprised eh? Well that look on your face doesn''t seem all that far from when I first step into this city as well! HAHAHA!" laughed Wang Guozhi.


    Duan Li''s face turned red in embarrassment.


    Ling Yu just stood there to look at the both of them with a smile. In her heart, she chuckled as she remembered when Wang Guozhi had first arrived as well.


    He came from a very far away place, up in the mountains bordering the Liu Empire. Thus, when he first saw the city, he had been entirely flabbergasted with every single thing he saw.


    He had even put on his guard against the approaching airtrain before as he thought it was the ancestor snake looming up upon them.


    What not that different from his?


    Duan Li''s reaction right now could be considered quite mild compared to him before.


    "Umm.. senior teacher Ling Yu, I guess.. we should hurry up.. the gate will close soon.. " reminded Xiahou Yu as she approached.


    Realizing this, Ling Yu quickly woke up from her stupor as she beckoned towards the two men in front of her.


    "Let us go quickly! Otherwise the gate will close!" she said in a panic.


    "Crap! Let''s go boy!" said Wang Guozhi as he lifted Duan Li with his arms like a maiden in distress and shot forward with haste.


    "W-what''s going on?" said Duan Li feeling shocked with the sudden event.


    Ling Yu also carried Xiahou Yu in her arms as they followed suit closely from the back.


    "No one is allowed to be late in the academy! Not even us the senior teachers! Lest the principal himself might personally punish us!" replied Wang Guozhi with hoarse voice, seemingly afraid of something.


    Ling Yu swallowed down her saliva as she also explained, "The principal is a scary and savage man, he wouldn''t let even the tiny small ants crawling on the ground to be late!"


    ''Pu!''


    Hearing this, Duan Li almost chocked himself to death.


    Not letting even the ants crawling on the ground to be late? Was ants also part of the enrolled students of the academy or something?


    What kind of principal to not even let some innocent ants off?


    Noticing the bizarre look on Duan Li''s face from the front. Ling Yu coughed as she could imagine what the former was thinking in his head.


    "It''s like this, a few years ago, when the principal had just taken office to replace the previous principal, the first thing he did was making rounds at the academy. He then discovered some fingernail-sized ants called ''Keeper Ants'' walking around the compound..." she said with an awkward smile.


    "That''s right. So he decided to follow the trail of this keeper ants back to their nest with some senior teachers including us following him at the back. We were curious why he did that, but when we have finally arrived.." continued Wang Guozhi as he stopped talking for a while, seeming to reminisce that moment as he shuddered.


    "He.. he spoke in the language of the ants!"


    ''Pu!''


    Duan Li chocked himself again.


    He spoke with the ants in their language? Is he part of the species?


    "When he first spoke in such a language, coincidentally, one of the senior teachers at that time could also roughly understand their language as the latter mastered in linguistic field. Thus, he translated what the principal had said to us.." said Ling Yu.


    "The principal said, starting tomorrow no one is allowed to be late, even you. So come before the gate closes. Otherwise I will punish you." Wang Guozhi recalled every word that he remembered from that time.


    "At first, we thought the principal was just being strict and didn''t actually meant what he said.. " he continued.


    "But the next day, we saw the principal standing near the gate observing the students and teachers. We bowed and greeted him as he smiled gently to each of us. When the bell rang and the gate closes, no one came late. But then, he was still observing the closed gate as the Keeper Ants are passing through the gaps leisurely.. " he said as his body started to shudder again.


    "The next moment, everyone saw the most horrifying scene that we have ever witnessed. Using locking spells, he sealed the movements of the keeper ants and pinned them on the walls as he pulled out a whip the size of several hairs combed together.. " he muttered in a small voice, seemingly to talk in whispers, afraid of getting heard.


    "He then started to whip the ants like a madman! And that was while laughing eerily too! Not only that, he didn''t even let the queen of the keeper ants off, as he somehow summoned the queen out of nowhere and pinned her against the wall too to start whipping her!"


    ''prik!''


    Duan Li was closing his lips tight so he wouldn''t get chocked if he got surprised, but now, he had bitten his own lips!


    What savagery! The principal is a maniac!


    They were leaping atop buildings with great speeds as the gate of the academy could finally be seen. Numerous people were rushing in like soldiers that had finally collapsed the gate of the enemy in a rush.


    It seems like they would be the last one.


    ''Ding dong!''


    The chime of bells suddenly resounded through the area as the gate slowly moved to close itself..


    "Damn it!"


    Both Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi cursed as they clenched their teeths together.


    A burst of wild aura suddenly emanated out of them as their speeds increased by many folds and speeded even faster like a shooting bullet.


    Like the gale of a strong wind, they passed through the gate on the last second before it closes tightly.


    ''Thud!''


    They fell to the ground as both Wang Guozi and Ling Yu wiped the sweat off their forehead as they said simultaneously, "We made it.." with faces as if they had just won a tough battle.


    Duan Li chuckled for a bit as he turned to look at that vast building in front of them, standing tall and majestic.


    "I.. have finally arrived.."


    ...

 13 Chapter 13: The Millennium Yidara Tree!

    Duan Li and the rest fixed their unkempt appearance after the previous emergency landing.


    "Okay, let us go to the testing hall first." said Ling Yu as she took the lead.


    ...


    As they entered the main building, the ground floor was vast and spacious with marble flooring and pillars supporting up to the third floor making it look grand in appearance.


    They could see a lot of people here.


    The party went to the right wing and after a few turns, they went up the stairs and reached a big door with label ''Faculty Facilities'' on it.


    ''creakk''


    ...


    "Okay, from here on is where the numerous faculty facilities and some practical lectures are conducted. So we should remain quiet at all times.. the testing room is further to the front.. " reminded Ling Yu.


    On the way, Duan Li witnessed several lesson activities along the corridorthrough the transparent window of each rooms. Some were given pointers by teachers on their martial arts and some were sitting cross-legged that seemed to be cultivating their spiritual Qi.


    Duan Li even saw some students doing mock duels with each other while under the supervision of seniors and teachers.


    "We are here." said Ling Yu as they stood in front of a huge chamber.


    ...


    ''knock knock!''


    "Come in!" said the person inside the chamber with the voice of an old man.


    "Pardon us senior teacher Hong Xin, I am here for the test of one of the newly enrolled student, Duan Li." said Ling Yu with respectful tone.


    Senior teacher Hong Xin is one of the elders of the academy that is in charge of new enrolling students. Reaching 90 years old soon, his hair had already turned white and his beards reached down to his chest. However, his physique still radiates that robust aura like someone who was still in his prime. His eyes glimmers with vigor and sharpness. A rarity to be found in someone especially of his age.


    "Senior, I am also here for the test of one of the new enrolled student under the recommendation of vice-principal Ying Shen!" said Wang Guozhi as he entered and bowed.


    The both of them brought in Duan Li and Xiahou Yu respectively as Hong Xin inspected them for a while from his desk. He then put on his glasses as he read their relevant documents. After affirming that the two new enrolled students match with the description in the papers, he nodded and stood up.


    With his hand clasped behind his back, he gestured towards the party, "Follow me." as he lead them into a spacious hall with open roofs.


    As they arrived at this hall, both Duan Li and Xiahou Yu could feel their breath to ease and their minds to relax. At the centre of this room is a big tree that seemed vicissitudinous and extremely ancient. The leaves had branched far outwards like an umbrella as it swayed mysteriously from the wind. The sunlight from above penetrated ever so slightly through the gaps in between those leaves, leaving gentle rays of light to reach the ground from its shades.


    "This is the millennium Yidara Tree!" said Hong Xin with a trace of reverence in his eyes. He then continued, "It is a great tree from the ancient past.. at least, only a few of them are left in the whole Tian continent! Now pick any spot and sit comfortably under the shades!"


    Duan Li and Xiahou Yu walked forward as they sat down opposite of each other, five meters away from the tree trunk. The shades from the tree will uplift one''s soul to be in harmony with nature and absolves any worries in one''s heart.


    ''This tree is very suitable for meditation..''thought Duan Li.


    "This test will let you know of your maximum potentials inside your dantian. As long you reached the minimum threshold, you will be considered to have passed this test." said Hong Xin.


    "The millennium Yidala Tree is unique in that even for those who have yet to cultivate any breathing technique to absorb spiritual Qi from it, as long as one were to breath continuously, they should be able to do so." he continued impassively.


    "Remember however, once you feel that you have reached your limits, you must seize taking in spiritual Qi and quickly leave the shades of the tree! Otherwise.."


    "You might risk for your dantian to explode!" he said with a serious tone, seemingly to hint on how grave the situation would be.


    "En!" nodded Duan Li and Xiahou Yu as they closed their eyes and breath in.


    ''shiingggg!''


    "Ahh.. these vision again, well.. let''s see what this spiritual Qi does.." said Duan Li to himself.


    Duan Li could observe the flow of spiritual Qi coming inside of his body, just that not through his nose, but shockingly.. through his pores!


    "Hmm? That young man.." said Hong Xin as he noticed Duan Li to absorb spiritual Qi from the pores.


    One had to know that for a complete beginner in breathing technique, spiritual Qi will definitely flow inside one''s body through the nose. If one were quite talented, they would be absorbing them through their seven apertures.


    But from the pores? only advanced senior students could do that.


    But then again, thinking of Duan Li''s age, he didn''t remained surprise for too long. In his mind, it was only natural. For he could have already been practicing breathing techniques when he was 16 years old.


    On the other hand, it is Xiahou Yu whom is more impressive in his eyes. Although she is not the first, this girl has already been able to absorb spiritual Qi from her seven apertures.


    Truly outstanding!


    ...


    As time passed, the complexion of Xiahou Yu reddened as she stood up and walked away from the shades. As soon as she left the boundaries of the shades, the spiritual Qi she had absorbed into her dantian abruptly churned out from her pores as it floated above her head and coagulated together, forming the color of bright yellow, before slowly returning back to be absorbed by the tree.


    "Ohh? Bright yellow.. not bad! It seems her innate potentials will allow her smooth sailing to become a successful knight in the future." said Hong Xin with his hands clasped behind his back, exuding total confidence in his statement.


    Even Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi who was standing behind him nodded in agreement.


    In total, there are six color indicators to assess one''s innate potentials of their dantian. In the order from weakest are; red, orange, yellow, green, blue and the strongest, white. All colors are further broken down according to their intensity levels; pale, true and bright!


    The higher the intensity are, the higher one''s potentials in their dantian.


    It is not to say that one''s innate potential will remain stagnant throughout one''s lifetime. As one cultivates and reinforces their martial arts and spiritual Qi through time and constant practice, the potentials inside their dantian will advance qualitatively as well.


    However, for a beginner to already possess the color of bright yellow at start, would already mean that they could advance far higher as well compared to their peers in the future.


    To compare, an average beginner will usually have a true orange color of their dantian. Taking into account their successful graduation after five years, they would leap by one color into true yellow, and by the time if they ever reach the ranks of titled knights in their lifetime, the colors would again evolve into true green!


    Following this logic, by the time Xiahou Yu reached the ranks of a titled knight, she would possess a fearsome battle prowess that could last days after days in fight before her dantian to be depleted. Only a few handful people like this ever existed within the Jiu Empire!


    In other words, the color blue!


    Noticing their gazes on her, Xiahou Yu flushed red in embarrassment as she looked down towards the ground.


    "Why is the boy taking so long?" blurted Wang Guozhi.


    Hong Xin then turned his attention back towards Duan Li as he frowned and wondered the same thing.


    Ling Yu was quite worried over the situation as well.


    "It couldn''t be possible that he.. isn''t talented in spiritual Qi.. right?" she thought in her mind as she clenched her fists together in anxiety.


    No matter if Duan Li had practiced hundreds of stances and learned thousands of combinations, if he didn''t have any aptitude for the spiritual Qi, he wouldn''t amount to anything at all!


    As all of them focused their attention on Duan Li, when suddenly, the white beard of Hong Xin trembled as he noticed something terrifying.


    "T-the.. the leaves of the millennium Yidara tree.. is w-withering!!"


    ...

 14 Chapter 14: Rebirth!

    "What happened?!" yelled Hong Xin, horrified at the scene playing in front of him.


    The leaves are withering at a visible rate. Seeing this, even Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi stepped forward in a panic.


    "T-the boy is absorbing them at a rapid speed!" said Wang Guozhi as he activated his unique bloodline ability - to see the flow of spiritual Qi, albeit vividly.


    Hearing this, the other two senior teacher were flabbergasted and for a moment did not dare to believe it was true. However, Wang Guozhi is someone of the Wang tribe, and their children were born under rich spiritual Qi environment due to a mysterious treasure that exist in their mountain that they guarded since a long time ago.


    Thus, every single one of them could vividly trace the flow of spiritual Qi on their surrounding to an extent. Therefore, with this advantage, their tribe possesses particular talent in the field of harnessing spiritual Qi.


    "M-make the boy stop!" shouted Hong Xin as he was terribly scared that the millennium Yidara tree would die on the spot.


    "But we who had formed our own dantian core could not get under its shades! Otherwise we would risk our spiritual Qi to run berserk due to the conflicting spiritual Qi that entered our body from the tree!" shouted Ling Yu in a panic to stop them as she reminded with a grim countenance.


    The millennium Yidara tree possesses a unique spiritual Qi to itself. These spiritual Qi are more purer than the surrounding spiritual Qi while also having its own unique attributes. Therefore, those who had cultivated their dantian core with other forms of spiritual Qi, what more of a different attributes than the wood element, should not even dream of entering the shades.


    At this moment, while the trio were brainstorming with haste on how to stop Duan Li from absorbing more of the spiritual Qi from the tree, the person himself was deep in a trance as his body underwent a qualitative change. Thus, he was not aware of the situation.


    "I can feel that this spiritual Qi that I have absorbed are changing my bodily system.. " said Duan Li as he observed his body interior with his see-through eyes.


    His bones that seemed quite brittle before are now becoming more compact and denser, his skeletal muscles are growing leaner and radiates more force to it. In addition, his skin turned from brown to a more lighter color and even his face somehow have changed slightly that gave him that more sharper looks compared to before.


    After a while, Duan Li finally opened his eyes slowly as he could no longer feel any spiritual Qi flowing towards his dantian.


    ''I guess this is my limit?'' he said while slowly standing up.


    As he lifted his head towards the group, he found that their eyes and mouth opened wide and agaped. It seems that they are entirely shocked by something to the point like they are almost salivating!


    "H-huh? Why.. are you all looking at me like that..?" said Duan Li suspiciously as he covered his body with his arms in a reflex.


    He had also realized his facial features had become a little bit more masculine than before and could understand if Ling Yu and Xiahou Yu to suddenly be entranced by this new looks of his, but for the old man Hong Xin who was almost 90 years old and that muscular fella Wang Guozhi to react the same?


    I shall report you two to the authorities!


    "B-boy.. what have you done..?" said Wang Guozhi slowly as he pointed to the tree with his index finger.


    "Its.. over.. " said Hong Xin weakly as he slumped to the ground.


    "Hmm? What do you guys mea-..!!"


    He turned towards the tree following that weird gaze of the other party trying to understand what was going on. It was then that he was shocked by what he saw..


    The ancient millennium Yidara tree that was full of vicissitudinous and majestic ancient to it before had now grown bald!


    Specifically, the leaves are now nowhere to be found, leaving behind only emptied branches that seemed desolate and pitiful. If one were to come across this tree, one would not even believe it to be the legendary millennium Yidara tree even if they were to be beaten to death and their whole families whipped harshly!


    It looked more like a malnutritioned tree bidding its time for death!


    "T-this! Who could have done such an abomination!" said Duan Li as he clenched his fist tightly, feeling aggrieved towards the perpetrator.


    But then, in a moment he said, "Or the tree had grown weary after living for a long time now and had decided to... Hais.. " Duan Li shook his head.


    Pu!


    When the trio heard this, they almost spat out blood!


    Who could have done this, you asked?


    If it is not you, then who else was there?!


    Did you think that a grand tree that had survived for a millennium with extreme resilience, thus its name, to had suddenly gone senile trying to end its life with a suicide?! shouted the trio in their minds in indignance.


    Just as Hong Xin was about to blow up in anger, Duan Li backed away from the shades zone while looking sad.


    Suddenly, as he stepped out of the shade, the spiritual Qi inside his body started rumbling as he felt his entire body prickling out.


    Then, the spiritual Qi that he had absorbed before, leaked out from his pores and floated gently above him as it spiralled together to form a sphere of spiritual Qi.


    This sphere then glowed slowly from red, to orange. Then, from orange to yellow and then to green. Finally, it rumbled for a while as it turned to the color of bright blue in the end. This bright blue light was like the sun in its intensity, except that it was blue in color.


    "Wha.. what is with this blue light ball?"


    Duan Li was a little bit terrified with this startling phenomena as it emptied the spiritual Qi from his dantian in but an instant and caused him to feel a little bit tired.


    Turning to look towards the three senior teacher of the academy to look for an answer, he had instead found the trio''s face to look even more ridiculous than before. Their lips were pointing outwards with their eyes opened wide. If one were to look carefully, they would find these trio''s expression to be similar to that of a puffer fish indeed.


    "Ba-ba-b-blue!!!! B-bright blue!" shouted Hong Xin with both of his hands tugging at his hair as if he cannot believe what he is seeing.


    "Ling Yu! Hit me!!" shouted Wang Guozhi at the back towards Ling Yu on the side.


    Pa!


    Wang Guozhi flew into the air with a spin as he was slapped by Ling Yu at full force and crashed on the wall.


    "This is.. impossible! a sky grade dantian potential?!" murmurred Hong Xin as his beard trembled and his voice hoarse.


    However, even if he said this, in the end he had to face the reality that the impossible had just happened in front of his eyes. This mind-boggling scene was even witnessed along with three more other people than him.


    Thus, how could he even be dreaming?


    Hearing what Hong Xin just said, Duan Li shifted his focus towards the other party as he asked curiously.


    "Sky grade dantian? What do you mean senior teacher Hong Xin?" he asked respectfully.


    Even if the old senior teacher in front of him looked a bit incredulous with his expression and his air of solemness had disappeared, he is still the elder of the academy.


    "It is like this.." Hong Xin explained in detail after he composed and suppressing himself to not faint.


    ...


    It turns out that a red color or grade dantian is known as the mortal grade. It is of the lowest grade of dantian that a person could have. People who are of themortal grade would also not be allowed to become a student of the academy and their enrollment revoked if they had registered.


    Orange grade dantian, known as the inception grade. This is the bare minimum that a student of the academy should posses. One''s future will be limited in their cultivation. But through hard work, one would eventually be able to reach yellow grade in their prime.


    Meanwhile, the yellow grade dantian is a qualitative leap in spiritual Qi density. Thus, they are known as the earth grade. Similar to the density and pureness of thesurrounding environment where they could absorb it easily.


    Green grade dantian, is an even denser spiritual Qi that is in complete harmony with natural balance and cycle. It is of this level that one''s own spiritual Qi will start to have their own unique attributes, and they are called as the nascent grade!


    Further than that, is the sky gradepossessed by people with blue colored dantian. Only a few have managed to achieve this level. Every single one of them is an accomplished figure known far and wide in the Jiu Empire.


    And finally, the white grade dantian, legendary and almost deemed as impossible to attain unless one is destined, is called the immortal grade! Those who are of this level of power could even forget eating and drinking, and they will still not die. Furthermore, their battle prowess is extremely terrifying and heaven-defying! With just a flip of their palm, mountains will be squashed and seas to split!


    This is the pinnacle of spiritual Qi condesation that will evolve a human body to its very limits!


    As for if there is any martial artists who did possessed this level of prowess in the whole Tian continent, no one could actually know. But for sure, there was none in the Jiu Empire to date.


    "For you to possess a potential of sky grade dantian.. this is entirely unheard of in the history of the Jiu Empire!" said Hong Xin with bated breaths as his hands trembled in excitement.


    Just as Xiahou Yu before with the earth grade potential could reach the sky grade in the far future, Duan Li have the high possibilities to step into the realm of legends, the immortal grade!


    Even Ling Yu at the back and the fella Wang Guozhi whom have just stood up after getting slapped by the former upon his own request slowly nodded their heads together, their hearts palpitated with eagerness and positivity for the future of Jiu Empire.


    The floating blue sphere made from the spiritual Qi of the tree slowly returned back to be absorbed by the tree.


    Seeing this scene, Hong Xin shook his head slowly as he closed his eyes in sadness and thought, "Even if the spiritual Qi were to return, the tree is already beyond saving.. " he stopped and sighed, then continued, "..this tree is worth a lot in the entire Jiu Empire, but if not for its sacrifice, we wouldn''t have been able to see such an earth-shattering talent of this boy.."


    "With great power, comes great sacrifice.. the true balance of the natural law that is inviolable in this world.." he said slowly as he tilted his head 45 degrees to gaze the starry sky with his hand clasped behind his back. Due to the absence of the obscuring leaves from before, the sun could shone brightly towards him on a slanted angle, causing his shadow to extend long and big. A deep sense of profoundness engulfed within this old man as he seemed to have understood more on the vicissitudes of life.


    Suddenly, after the tree finished absorbing the blue sphere, it jolted and trembled slightly, attracting their attention.


    "Hmm?" they all said in unison.


    Crack!


    The millennium Yidara tree that had seemed more than dead before, began to crack like a series of connected spiderwebs as it shedded its old bark.


    Replacing it, is a golden lustrious bark that seemed to glow with vigor and youth. The bald branches began to grow back its leaves and sprouted denser than ever before. Its leaves also had a tint of golden hums that is visible to the naked eye. They seemed more like a holy lotus now more than just a bunch of leaves.


    "R-r-regrowing golden bark and the b-birth of the lotuses?" exclaimed Hong Xin with extreme shockness on his face.


    "T-this! It is a sign of rebirth!" he yelled out.


    Thud!


    He fell to the ground on his butt with a puffer fish like expression once more and his white hairs all messed up. He looked more like a peasant on the streets than an honorable elder of the academy now. His previous disposition of profoundness had disappeared without a trace.


    Following this, a pair of eyes slowly opened up from the golden bark of the tree. When its eyes had fully opened, a bright gleam suddenly radiated out from it that encompassed the whole Jiu Empire and startled its citizens. Numerous powerful figures stopped what they are doing and rushed to the academy immediately as they flew to the skies.


    "I... have awakened!!"


    ...

 15 Chapter 15: The prophecy!

    "I... Have awakened!"


    A voice that sounded more ancient and old than a hundred years old man was spoken out by the tree whom had already opened its eyes wide now.


    "The millennium Yidara tree had regained.. its spirit?" muttered Hong Xin in a daze.


    Hong Xin knew that the tree had already passed a thousand years old in age, and in his calculations before, about five thousand years old!


    The millennium Yidara tree is an extremely rare species that will possess a spirit of its own by the time it reached 100 years old. After it reached its 1000 years old mark, the spirit will slowly fall into a slumber and will remain dormant for nine thousand years.


    Only after reaching the age of 10,000 years old would it awake from its slumber reaching adulthood.


    Yet, to think that this tree whom is only around 5000 years old to have already awakened?


    How is this possible?


    "Child.. come closer.." said the tree to Duan Li after it gazed at the latter for a long time.


    Duan Li hesitated and turned towards the senior teachers. After he saw them nodding their heads in a solemn manner, Duan Li gritted his teeths together nervously as he walked forward slowly.


    He stopped just before the tree.


    "I sense.. a mysterious force.. dwelling in you.." the tree said with extreme ancientness, as if peering into the depths of his soul.


    "Yes.. this force has entwined itself.. into your destiny.. but.. even then.. I cannot see the strings.. of fate.. touch upon you boy.. " the tree peered deeper.


    The tree continued to observe Duan Li as its frown deepened.


    "It seems, it is this mysterious force.. that have awakened me.. even forcingrebirth.. such power.. and you.. chosen by it.. hmm.. mysterious.. "


    Slowly uttering each word like an old man, the tree closed its eyes for a while as the hall became silent to respect the tree in its contemplating state..


    ...


    Outside the academy gate..


    "T-thats esteemed knight, Ju Hai! One of the seven swords of the empire had also come?"


    "Thats not all, look over there, that is Shi Dai! a titled knight and also part of the subjugation army!"


    "Fang Liu, another esteemed knights?!"


    "Di Luli, the peerless beauty from the Moon pavilion?"


    "And thats... "


    The crowd was getting ever larger at this moment. If not for the two guardians standing straight with their backs like a pair of mountain, these people would have already rushed inside the academy to take a look.


    "Che.. these two guardian would be impossible to pass through.." said the esteemed knight, Ju Hai as he floated up in the air as well as numerous other experts exuding mighty aura.


    In fact, they could have easily flew over the gates and the wall surrounding the academy with their flight capabilities, but no one here are fool enough to dare to even try.


    The reason for that is because the academy are being protected by numerous runic formations that will be fatal to ANY invaders.


    Furthermore, these two guardian Knights are extremely brutal -slaughter class puppet at that. Driven entirely by several high purity spirit stones, their potential is around lower nascent grade.


    If that was all, it wouldn''t pose a problem for most of the experts as they too are of the same level, and some are even above or beyond that!


    However, slaughter class.. now that is terrifying!


    This is the type of puppet that will ignore their spiritual Qi usage and just blast waves after waves of lethal and high level skills continuously until they ran dry.


    There will be bound to have numerous deaths and heavy casualties if they evertake action, and anyone who provoked them to do so, will instead be the one who are charged with the assault.


    Thus, no one dared to enter the academy and could only observe from afar. They discussed some possible theories and conjectures regarding what had just happened inside the academy for the whole Jiu Empire to be engulfed in that white light before.


    ...


    Creak!


    The door of the hall was opened wide suddenly as a figure around the age of sixty years old came in along with several other elders of the academy behind him with solemn looks to them.


    The figure who lead them in doesn''t seem to be that impressive compared to the others. In fact, one could even hardly feel any sort of intimidating aura and ancientness to it that could usually be found on powerful experts of his age.


    Nevertheless, this old man who seemed to be just like another old mortal you could find anywhere on the street is surprisingly the most calm and composed. His brows curled upwards slightly, but that was it for his reaction after seeing the transformation on the millennium Yidara tree.


    The rest of the people who followed him are no different than how Hong Xin and the other two senior teacher reacted before, with eyes and mouth wide agaped open.


    Now that the trio could finally see how that incredulous expression looked like, they immediately looked to the ground in shame as their faces flushed red.


    Is that how we looked like?


    ...


    The man on the lead waved his hands as the people behind him nodded and stopped following him.


    "Principal Bian Tianyu.." greeted Hong Xin, Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi respectfully with a bow.


    When Duan Li and Xiahou Yu heard their senior teacher called out that old figure who seemed like a mortal to them as THE principal himself, their faces turned a little bit pale and bowed as well.


    "Principal!" they called out in unison.


    They didn''t dare to utter the principal''s name as they were but a pair of new student. Far removed from the hierarchy of the academy until they formally becomes part of the community.


    "En." nodded the principal as he walkedforward towards the tree casually, stopping just before entering the shades zone.


    "Millennium Yidara tree, how have you regained your consciousness? You are still only about 5000 years old.. " he askedcuriously.


    "State your rank human.. " the tree said in an indifferent voice.


    "I am called Bian Tianyu, a principal of this academy. As for my rank.. if this academy is a kingdom, then I am its ruler." explained the principal using a comparison method.


    This is because the tree''s age had far exceeded from when the Jiu empire was founded two thousand years ago. Thus, it may not know what is an academy as the term has not yet existed before.


    However, a kingdom and a ruler is a term that had existed since the beginning of time perhaps. Therefore, using such comparison method is definitely the correct step to explain his rank among the people here to the tree.


    "Hmm a ruler.. very well.. other than this principal and the four of you, the rest will have to leave.." demanded the tree.


    The principal nodded and turned towards the people who entered along with him. With a nod, they all hurried to exit the room. Perhaps what the tree was about to say is something that shouldn''t be heard by the unrelated people.


    After they were the only one remaining in the room, the principal muttered some incomprehensible language as his hands moved to create a series of hand incantations and sealed the whole hall away from prying ears and onlookers.


    "Hmm.. space dimensional transfer magic.. impressive.. but not secure enough.. let me help you.." said the tree as its whole being glowed bright and encompassed the whole sealed area.


    "This.. a sixth tier space dimensional transfer magic?" thought the principal. He himself had only mastered up until the third tier, but the tree was able to use it up to the sixth.


    One had to know that each tier is five times harder to achieve than the previous tier. For the tree to use it so non-chalantly in but an instant, perhaps the sixth tier is not its limit.


    This in itself is already a testament that this tree is something from the far ancient times.


    "Incredible..". he thought.


    "Before I speak.. know of my name.. I am called Ancestor Zong.." the tree said as it continued;


    "First.. I have awakened around five thousand years too early.. and had also undergone a rebirth.. you.. the human called principal.. must protect this boy away from harm.. for he is my benefactor.."


    The principal turned his head towards Duan Li and his brows raised.


    "Second.. the boy.. is not tied to the strings of fate.. his destiny is far greater.. for what purpose.. that I do not know.. "


    "Third.. know that in a few years time.. the Tian continent will undergo a series of turmoil.. I have felt it.. the abominations.. will be awakened soon.. sometime in this era.."


    "Fourth.. against this.. the humans must ally themselves together.. for how that is achieved.. or if it is even possible.. I also do not know.. "


    "Finally.. the fifth.. after the abominations.. will come the calamity.. for the end times.. will rise the Ancient One.. for which all life.. shall return to its origin.. to start anew.. "


    Hearing this, the principal''s face that was calm before turned extremely grim and solemn, before he asked:


    "How do we tide through those end times?"


    The tree was silent for a while, before it closes its eyes. It then replied with a single sentence full of solemness:


    "The final.. is impossible to tide through!"


    ...

 16 Chapter 16: Duanlu Qi!

    "Impossible?.." said the principal, before he slowly shook his head.


    "Humans have time and again bested calamities since the ancient times.. how will these be any different?" he asked, trying to pry for some clues.


    "Bested..? Have you humans ventured.. deep into the oceans?.. far to the desert reaches?.. and.. leave the sky.. of this world?" the tree replied, its voice seemed to be sneering at him in disdain.


    The principal shook his head.


    "Then.. the final calamity.. is something..you human wouldn''t even dare.. dream to come true.. let alone bested.. " said the tree with a slight chuckle.


    "Is there really.. no way out?" asked the principal once more after a deep contemplation.


    "According to the fate.. that I have peered into.. for this world.. it is impossible.. " the tree replied with a sigh in the end.


    To the Ancestor Zong, what the humans have tided through so far is nothing but a few setbacks, mainly due to their petty arguments and wars. Even the deep behemoths of the rivers, and monsters from the desert is something that the humans would always have trouble fighting against with, what more of the abominations to come out? And the Ancient One, an entity that seemed to be tasked for utter destruction, to remold the world anew after the ends of time?


    "You.. could peer through fate?" said the principal as he was surprised. But his expression has minimal reactions to it.


    "Human.. do not dare to call me ''You'' once more.. I am an existence above you.. and you are beneath me.. call me Ancestor Zong!" the tree reprimanded the other party with a tone that seemed to be annoyed with the principal.


    Hearing this, the principal smiled as his brows trembled.


    It is true that this millennium Yidara tree is far above others in terms of seniority considering its age, but for a mere tree to call himself an existence above others?


    What more calling him someone that is beneath even a tree?


    Should I burn and whip or whip first and then burn this tree?


    The principal smiled with a strange gleamto it.


    Duan Li shuddered as he saw that deranged smile of the principal.


    "P-principal, do not be hasty!" adviced Wang Guozhi from the side, afraid that the other party will be triggered and go whipping-spree on the spot!


    That will be a true calamity then!


    "I know." the principal replied, his voice calm.


    "I am a being closely in tune with mother nature.. the cycles of life and death.. absorbed by the world.. I can feel it.. this inviolable cycle for all existences.. when one feel it all the time.. one would eventually piece out the puzzle.. of coincidences.. and consequences.. a series of meetings.. that creates fate.. a storyboard.. a plot of the world.. although vividly.. but yes.. I can peer.. through fate.." the tree replied impassively.


    "If that is the case.. and we will reach our doom.. then, what Ancestor Zong have said before, why should we even bother to ally with the other empires?"


    This time, it was Wang Guozhi who asked as he was quite curious. If fighting against an unstoppable being is indeed a fool''s dream, then why even bother to ally?


    Shouldn''t they just focus on protecting their empire instead to the very last until the end?


    Hearing this, the tree chuckled once more.


    "Child.. if someone with a knife.. tried to stab your wife.. even if you knew you wouldn''t make it.. would you still stand idly by.. or run forward to save her?" replied the tree in a rhetorical way.


    "Hmm.. I will definitely move to save my wife, that is obvious!" said Wang Guozhi as he threw a sneaky glance with a smile towards Ling Yu on his side.


    Ling Yu rolled her eyes but smiled afterwards.


    "Thus.. is the human''s nature.. or instinct.. faced with extreme threats.. of complete eradication.. if one does not lose.. their humanity.. then one would definitely.. protect.. their kind.. " the tree said and continued;


    "Furthermore.. if what you seek is hope.. then find.. the miracle.. "


    "The miracle?" asked the principal, his frown deepened.


    Miracles are chances bestowed by theheavens for those with affinity and luck. For someone to try to attempt and find this miracle, isn''t that like seeking the ends of a rainbow? Forever unreachable?


    "Haa.. I am still around.. 5000 years old.. according to natural law.. I should only be awake.. 5000 years later.. but now.. I am awake.. defying the natural order.. even undergoing.. a complete rebirth.. that should have.. only occur.. 5000 years later.. " replied the tree mysteriously.


    The principal''s eyes widened as he realized what the tree was trying to imply.


    The millennium Yidara tree which was supposed to hibernate for another 5000 years, to suddenly be forced awake now..


    He turned towards the rest of them as his eyes finally laid on Duan Li and asked, ".. was it you?"


    "I.. I don''t really know?" answered Duan Li in all honesty.


    He had some suspicions towards the mysterious pearl for the cause of this, but he wasn''t sure at the same time as well. Thus, what he had just said is the truth.


    "Do not bother.. to question the boy.. you will protect him from harm.. fate does not seem to.. flow along him well.. perhaps he.. may very well.. be the miracle.. the hope.. for your species.. " adviced the tree.


    The principal then walked slowly and stood directly infront of Duan Li.


    "Him? An anomaly against the fated impending doom huh? Very well.. " thought the principal cupping his chin with a smile.


    Duan Li stepped back a little bit as he was intimidated by this strange principal of their''s.


    "Now that I.. have been rebirthed.. my senses.. has also been extended.. impressive.. human''s civilization.. have advanced this far.. a pity indeed.. " sighed the tree.


    ...


    The five of them exitted the hall as they were crowded with curious people from the academy.


    "Principal, what happened to the millennium Yidara tree?" asked a senior teacher.


    "Haa.. " the principal sighed.


    "Go back to your respective faculties and continue with your previous activities. After all,it is not a problem but more like a fortune for our academy and the empire!" replied the principal sounding amiable.


    "Fortune for the academy and the empire?" said some of the crowd looking confused.


    From the startling flashes of bright light before that engulfed the whole empire, is it some auspicious sign for the Jiu Empire?


    "No matter, I will explain in due time. Now go back to what you are doing!" ordered the principal with a gesture.


    After which, the crowd sighed and reluctantly headed back to what they were doing before. Seemed like they would only know what was going on next time.


    Duan Li and the rest of them had already been told by the principal to not tell the truth to anyone. If anyone were to ask, just say, ''The millennium Yidara tree had awokened earlier due to it consuming a treasure tonic from the past to hasten its growth.''


    They all agreed on this as if anyone were to speak otherwise, the principal himself will hunt them down.


    "Continue with your next test. I have matters to attend, so I will leave first for now." said the principal casually as he left them. Not a hint of worry seemed to reflect on his face.


    "What a mysterious and unpredictable person.." thought Duan Li.


    "Hey boy.. is what senior teacher Ling Yu just told me is true? You have mastered 89 stances with a total of 416 combinations?" asked Wang Guozhi with a peculiar expression on him.


    "Yes.. that is indeed correct.. " answered Duan Li truthfully.


    "How.. inconceivable.. it seems that your outrageous potential and latent talent in the field of martial arts is a testament for what Ancestor Zong said to be correct.. " said Wang Guozhi with his arms crossed together as he nodded.


    Seems like this boy defies the natural law eh..


    Awakening from his contemplation, a sudden inspiration struck him as he looked at Duan Li. He then said with a teasing smile, "Shouldn''t your name be Duanlu Qi instead? Pfff!"


    Pu!


    Duan Li chocked on himself.


    ''Law breaker? Breaker your head!'' he said in his mind with indignance feeling that he was being bullied.


    The four of them laughed out loud after that and proceeded to the next room for the second test.


    Meanwhile, Hong Xin returned to his chamber to write for a report. He was still in a daze and his appearance unkempt after going through bizarre incident one after another.


    What a day..


    ...

 17 Chapter 17: Xiahou Yus trial! 1

    "We are here!" said Wang Guozhi as they stood in front of a big purple door, its style is a little bit different than the blue door of the hall for the first test. Furthermore, this door is of three meters tall in height and there are two columns of pillars on both its right and left with some symbols inscribed on it.


    "This second test will measure your spirit and will. Compared to the first test, this will be significantly more difficult. You will be thrown into an illusion magic through runic formations combined withhypnosis." told Ling Yu in a solemn voice.


    "Hypnosis? What for... " asked Xiahou Yu looking reticent.


    "The reason is simple. First, the runic formations will control space magic and illusion magic at the same time to create a scene for you. Second, in order for these illusion to feel like the reality, you will be hypnotized and artificial memories will be made. Third, although the illusion magic used in these runic formation is of low level and would pose no harm for students, the hypnotization effect of perceiving it as reality will cause damage to your mental." explained Ling Yu.


    "That''s right. Thus, the hypnotization will be done on you in two conditions;" continued Wang Guozhi to explain further.


    "Firstly, is that the students to be hypnotized must agree that what they will experience inside the illusion magic would be perceived as real and their memories that it is actually a test to be suppressed."


    "Secondly, is that the moment the body feels that its mental state will be in danger if the test were to continue on, the students must agree that thehypnotization effect will immediately wear off!"


    "I see.. so it is like that.." nodded Xiahou Yu as she came into an understanding.


    "En! In this way, not only would we be able to tell how your spirit and will would farein times of trials, it also prevents you from being in danger as well!" said Ling Yu with a nod.


    Hearing their explanation, Duan Li grew nervous. Knowing himself, would he be alright in this test..?


    For him, the life of becoming a student of the Jixue Knights Academy was all too sudden and not of his choosing. If it was not to respect for his mother''s wish, he couldn''t even be bothered with all these and would just continue to eat, sleep and learn stuff until he grows old.


    But now, spirit and will tempering? He had been living the lazy life all this while, a trial of pressure on him.. this will be quite tricky.


    Duan Li wiped the sweat off his forehead. If he were to believe it as real, then, wouldn''t I try to use the abilities from the mysterious pearl?


    Would they be able to observe me? If they do.. I would be in trouble!


    "Hehe what''s wrong boy? Scared aren''t you?" laughed Wang Guozhi, "Don''t worry, the test won''t be too harsh on new students".


    ...


    ''knock knock!''


    "Pardon us senior teacher Ran Yang, we have come here for the test!" said Wang Guozhi as they entered the hall.


    This hall is quite spacious and empty, perfectly lit due to the surrounding tall windows that enabled the sunlight to pass through. In addition, with its floor and walls made up from white marble, this place seemed extremely grand and holy.


    In the middle of the room are four pillars, of which on top of it could be seen four figures sitting cross-legged with their eyes closed. Their attire was that of the student uniform, white and blue. When the party came in, they slowly opened their eyes.


    In the centre between these four pillars, was a lady that also sat cross-leggedwhich seemed to be around her 20''s. She had voluptuous curves at all the right angles and her facial features so beautiful that Duan Li almost chocked himself out in a fluster.


    "Ohh..? Wang Guozhi and little Ling Yu.. let me prepare for a while.." replied the lady called Ran Yang as she gestured towards the four figures above the pillars.


    They then formed a series of hand incantations as the center began to glow in purple light along the lines drawn on the hexagram.


    "Mmm this is fine!" she said and walked towards the party. She wore loose white robe made from silk, multiplying the seduction factor a hundred folds!


    "Your disciples?" asked Ling Yu with a monotone voice.


    "No.. they are just the members of my fan club.. hehe!" she replied with a slight chuckle.


    Seeing Ling Yu''s annoyed and cold expression towards the other party, Duan Li realized that their relationship isn''t on the friendly level. Perhaps they have some history?


    Suddenly, Wang Guozhi pulled Duan Li slightly to the back as he whispered; "Do not be fooled by her appearance, she is actuall-..!!"


    Just as he was trying to finish his sentence, a dagger came flying by towards his head as he immediately dodged to the left.


    "I wonder what you guys are whispering about? Hehe!" said the lady while covering her mouth with shy expression.


    If only Duan Li hadn''t witnessed that the dagger came flying straight from her, he would have thought that the other party was actually an innocent and pure young maiden.


    "Cheh! petty tricks!" harrumphed Wang Guozhi as he crossed his arms together with a wide grin.


    The atmosphere was a little bit awkward for both Duan Li and Xiahou Yu. It seems that not all senior teachers are on friendly terms with each other..


    The lady called Ran Yang walked forward towards Duan Li as she inspected him from top to bottom.


    "You better had no funny ideas on him, lest should senior elder sister Meng Yue would to hear you charmed her son, there would be hell to pay!" warned Ling Yu towards her with cold sharp gazes.


    Hearing this, the countenance of this seductive woman changed as she said awkwardly, "I''m not planning to do anything! Hehe.. " and continued with a smile, "so.. who will start first?"


    Xiahou Yu turned towards Duan Li and the others as she nodded shyly.


    ''She really is quite shy.. but her temperament is not that bad.. '' thought Duan Li.


    "Step into the center of the runic formations and sit down.. " told the lady.


    As Xiahou Yu walked to the center of the formations, she could feel that the surrounding air felt different and heavy, perhaps due to the formations.


    After she saw Xiahou Yu settling down, she nodded as her face grew serious. She then warned her;


    "Now, when I state the condition for the hypnosis, you must agree to it! This is very important.. otherwise.. you risk danger to yourself from being unable to pull out from the illusion!"


    "En!" replied Xiahou Yu with a confident nod. Her gentle eyes shone with sharpdetermination as she clenched her hands into a fist.


    Seeing this, Wang Guozhi smiled.


    "Seems like she had already steeled her resolve.. I hope the test won''t be too harsh on her.."


    After Xiahou Yu closed her eyes, the lady started to read out the conditions for the hyponsis;


    "You will be hypnotized as part of the second tests and that you will believe the illusion to be your reality. Nod if you agree!"


    Xiahou Yu nodded.


    "You will be hypnotized as part of the second tests and that you will wake up from the illusion should your mental state risks from being damaged or traumatized. Nod if you agree!"


    Xiahou Yu nodded again.


    "Good! Now with the flick of my finger, you will enter the illusion under being hypnotized!" explained the lady as she step back slowly and started counting down.


    3.. 2.. 1..


    Flick!


    Xiahou Yu''s body jolted slightly after the finger flick resounded from Ran Yang as she slumbered down deep into a trance.


    "Now, the trials for her has begun.. she will be fine." said Wang Guozhi as he pointed towards a direction at the corner where a big reflective mirror was slotted into the wall, "Let us look at what her trials look like."


    ...


    Xiahou Yu was sitting cross-legged atop of a boulder amidst an ancient waterfall. Her figure no longer bore the look of a 16 years old girl, but instead a mature woman who seemed to be in her late 20s. Her face had turned more beautiful and her waist looked extremely lithe and alluring, totally fatal for any young man.


    Her eyelashes trembled as she slowly opened up her eyes, gazing towards the beautiful moon in the lonely night, her expression melancholic.


    "This will be my toughest tribulations to come.. In my years since I started becoming a martial artists and walking the path of cultivation.. I have gone far and wide, experienced many sufferings and hard work to come this far.. " she said slowly to herself, a sad expression loomed over her beautiful face.


    "I have sacrificed many things.. my emotions.. my feelings.. detached myself from the people around me.. all in order to focus to ascend to the higher realm.. and now.. I shall not fail!" her sad expression disappeared, replaced with a determined looks and clear eyes, devoid of any turbidity within it.


    Inhaling deeply as her aura slowly rose higher and higher until it reached the peak, as if reaching the ceiling of a bottleneck, she suddenly shouted out towards the sky;


    "Come! My tribulation!!"


    Kacha!


    The previous bottleneck within her meridians and acupoints were smashed like brittle glasses as her rumbling spiritual Qi pummelled it in one shot and continued to rise sharply, as if trying to reach for something.


    It was then that the clear night sky suddenly turned darker as black clouds formed above her. Sounds of crackling thunders and flashes of lightning encompassed the whole sky, as if preparing itself to descend and decimate the whole world.


    Xiahou Yu gritted her teeth and clenched her fist tight.


    BOOM!


    The surrounding trees were uprooted as fierce gales of wind assaulted the area when the thunder struck down towards Xiahou Yu continuously.


    ...


    "S-she! She got struck by a thunder!!" said Duan Li feeling extremely shocked and terrified as he watched this scene.


    Holy cow! That thunder would roast anyone to ashes!


    "That is the tribulation one had to endure in order to reach the nascent soul realm!" replied Wan Guozhi to the side.


    "Nascent soul realm?" said Duan Li confused, as this was the first time he had heard of ''realm'' rather than ''potential''.


    "En! Let me explain!" gestured Ling Yu.


    "In total, when you enroll to become a student of the academy, naturally, you will start at the bottom-most level, which is the Qi Condensation realm!"


    "In total, there are six known realms so far in the Tian continent, from the weakest, Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Golden Core, Nascent soul and finally the strongest.. Immortal ascension stage! "


    Duan Li listened attentively as these realm stuff seems pretty important for him later on. Also, since he loved learning, naturally he was able to remember anything that interest him well, even before the mysterious pearl gave him the abilities to do so.


    "Realm is entirely different than the potentials of the dantian, although are very closely connected at the same time." Ling Yu explained as she took out a book from her ring.


    Opening the book, she swiftly flipped through the pages where diagrams were drawn on the relationship between realms and potentials.


    "The dantian potential as you already know, are also divided into six grades; Mortal, Inception, Earth, Nascent, Sky and Immortal!"


    Duan Li nodded.


    "By having a potential of Earth grade dantian, it means you will definitely be able to reach Core Formation realm in your lifetime! If you practiced martial arts and cultivated diligently, you could raise it by one grade and one realm!"


    "Similarly, if one''s potential were only of the Mortal grade, then they would only be at the Qi condensation realm in their lifetime, and through luck, would be able to advance to the Inception grade and the Foundation establishment realm at most! That is as far as they can go!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li came to a realization. His dantian potential is at the bright blue color, which is the sky grade potential! Then, what realm would be possible for him to achieve in his lifetime?


    "Then.. what realm would I be able to achieve with the sky grade potential?" he asked curiously.


    "Well.. that is why we were shocked before.. according to the trend between these relationships.. it is possible for to be able to reach.. the Immortal ascension realm without a doubt!"


    Duan Li''s hair stood on end as he heard this and subconsciously clenched his hand into a fist in excitement.


    To be of the immortal realm? What sort of conception was that?


    Isn''t that like, ridiculously powerful being?


    And I would be able to reach that stage in this lifetime?


    Holy-moly!


    Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi smiled when they saw his expression. Who wouldn''t be happy to reach such a stage in the future? For them, it is but a pipe dream. Thus, they felt a little bit jealous of Duan Li.


    The lady called Ran Yang at their back was shocked to hear Duan Li''s potential to be of the sky grade. Flashes of scheme were reflected in her eyes as she smirked silently.


    ...

 18 Chapter 18: Xiahou Yus trial! 2

    "However, it doesn''t necessarily means that one''s potential would upgrade when they reach a higher realm!" explained Ling Yu.


    Duan Li had previously made the assumption that each potential correlates to each realm. Thus, hearing that its not the case, he became curious once more.


    "Really?.. why is that?" he asked.


    Ling Yu turned towards Wang Guozhi as the latter nodded.


    "Well, for example is between me and senior teacher Ling Yu here, she is of the Earth grade potential, while I am at the Nascent grade potential. But, we are both of the Nascent soul realms!" explained Wang Guozhi.


    "However, a lower potential could only go so far.. thus, even if we are of the same realm, our fighting prowess is entirely at a different level!" he continued while sounding proud.


    Ling Yu at the side seemed to pout a little bit.


    "That''s right.. haa.. " Ling Yu sighed as she felt a little bit saddened by it, and then continued explaining;


    "While we are both of the same realm, I am only at the Early-stage while he is at the Middle-stage.. eventhough I cultivated more diligently than him, this is as far as I can go without my potential upgrading to the nascent grade!"


    "Furthermore, at the nascent realm, each stage becomes much more difficult to attain. And the trend seemed to be like this.." Ling Yu took out a paper and a pen as she drew something.


    Earth grade -> Early stage.


    Nascent grade -> Middle stage to Late stage.


    Sky grade -> Late stage to the Pinnacle stage.


    Seeing this, Duan Li finally understood. The difficulty level leaped by many folds as one reached the nascent soul realm it seems.


    And by the looks of it, to reach the Immortal ascension realm would definitely requires the Immortal grade potential without a doubt!


    It is of this moment that a spark of fire were lit within the hearts of Duan Li, as he vowed to reach the Immortal ascension realm in this lifetime.


    ...


    "Ohh.. take a look, it seemed that she succeeded!" said Wang Guozhi as the thunder tribulation began to settle down and the dark clouds slowly disperse.


    Xiahou Yu whom was sitting on the boulder slowly stood up, as a wide smile appeared on her face.


    "I.. have finally reached the Nascent Soul realm!"


    Looking at the screen, Duan Li asked; "Is the test finally over?"


    Wang Guozhi shook his head.


    "No.. its not over yet, what the test just now did was to test her will to withstand the pain of the thunder tribulation to ascend to nascent soul realm.. what comes next is a little bit more harder.. the test to measure one''s own spirit!" he replied as he pointed to the screen.


    "Take a look.."


    The bright face of Xiahou Yu suddenly went dark as she coughed up blood.


    "W-what? Qi deviation?!" she said feeling shocked.


    She gritted her teeth as she sat back down on the boulder cross-legged to use spiritual Qi breathing technique.


    "Right now, she is undergoing a spiritual tempering from the trial of Qi Deviation! This happens to someone who had succumbed to their inner demons, practiced the wrong techniques, consuming pills or using treasures to forcefully ascend into the higher realm!" explained Wang Guozhi as his countenance turned grim.


    "Qi deviation is extremely dangerous in the real world, if one does not tide through it, they risk of falling down into a lower realm.. or even worse.. losing their cultivation entirely and had to start from the beginning!" added Ling Yu.


    Duan Li nodded as his face turned serious. He then asked, "Would my trial be the same as her''s?"


    Ling Yu shook her head.


    "Every student will face random trials to temper their spirit and wills. The runic formation will assess your potentials and possible realms you will achieve in the future, and create a scene for it. It does not necessarily be trying to breakthrough to another realm like she is doing now.." she explained.


    "Is that so.. what if she failed in this trial?"asked Duan Li.


    If he were to face the same scene.. breaking through to the immortal realm?


    That is extremely scary for him right now.


    "Hahahaha! Don''t worry boy! The runic formation will test you of the most difficult tribulations and trials first. If the students failed, their memory of it will be wiped out and will start another of a lower difficulty than before!" laughed Wang Guozhi as he explained.


    "However, you will only have three chances in total, if you fail them all.. then naturally, you failed the second test!" he added.


    The lady called Ran Yang stepped forward at this point, of which Ling Yu looked towards another direction, avoiding her line of sight from being the same as her.


    "If I may add a few more points, the runic formations will plant you plausible artificial memories so that there is no incongruicy during the test which may harm the mental state of the student." she said.


    "Furthermore, the runic formations used ancient inscription of time magic that could slightly peer into one''s lifetime.. thus, the artificial memories planted are true to some extent.." she added with a smile towards Duan Li.


    "Right. In other words, when you are in the illusion, you will feel like you have lived a lifetime when in fact, you are not." Continued Wang Guozhi.


    ...


    After a while..


    The berserk aura surrounding Xiahou Yu finally began to calm down as she slowly reined in her aura back.


    "It seems that she had managed to put her spiritual Qi back under control! As I expected, she is quite talented like me! Hahahaha!" laughed Wang Guozhi happily.


    Xiahou Yu is his niece, thus he is extremely satisfied with her performance in this trial.


    "Not just that.. look at her aura.. she had already consolidated her foundation to reach the Early stage of nascent soul realm in one go.." said Ling Yu in surprise.


    It usually took an average on one week to consolidate the foundation of the early stage in nascent soul realm, but the fact that she had completed it after undergoing a trial meant that her talent and luck is extremely high!


    The monitor then turned misty as it slowly reverted back into a normal reflective mirror.


    The body of Xiahou Yu who was sitting at the center between the four pillars jolted a bit.


    Her eyelashes trembled as she slowly opened her eyes.


    "I.. I did it.. Haa.." she exhaled as she wiped the sweat off her forehead.


    "That was.. it seemed so real.. the memories of it is still intact in my mind.." she said.


    "En! And this will prove beneficial for you in the future during your breakthrough to the nascent soul realm as you already remembered what it feels like! Consider this as a gift for passing through the most difficult trial for you!" laughed Wang Guozhi again with crossed arms.


    "Duan Li.. its your turn now.." said Ling Yu.


    Honestly, she was quite worried with Duan Li. His potential is already of that in the Sky grade.. who would know what scene would the runic formations decided to show him later on?


    No one has ever yet been tested with sky grade potential and he would be the first one in the Jiu Empire throughout its history to experience it.


    Furthermore, eventhough the runic formation is of low-level and harmless.. it has its drawbacks as well. Which is control factor.


    The four students sitting on the pillars will act to stop the illusion magic from going out of control. But so far, everything was within the standard operating procedure.


    What if an anomaly like him were to be in it?


    After some contemplation, she shook her head slowly thinking that she was worrying too much.


    ...


    Duan Li walked forward and sat on the center of the formation as he relaxed to breath slowly.


    Ran Yang repeated the previous conditions for the hypnosis magic on Duan Li as she flicked her finger to start the test.


    Flick!


    Duan Li''s body jolted.


    ...


    In a kingdom far away, in a royal palace, an old man wearing delicate white robes with long white beard was meditating on his chair with serene and calm expression. His white hair danced mysteriously as the cool breeze blowing on him through the big open window from the balcony.


    (Author''s note: This is the same old man whom appeared on chapter 1)


    However, his relaxed face suddenly contorted and he fell off from his chair.


    Putong!


    Aiyoh!


    "W-what? Another anomaly?" he said with bated breaths as he used his arms to support himself onto the chair.


    He looked towards the ceiling where various constellations of the stars in heaven and earth were drawn intricately. This is also where he previously saw the stars of the Nine heavens to merged together.


    As he looked closely, his beard trembled as his eyes and mouth opened wide in horror.


    "T-the position of the stellar bodies have randomly swapped - ouchh!" he bit on his lips after speaking while stuttering.


    What the hell is going on?!


    ...

 19 Chapter 19: Duan Lis bizarre trial! 1

    Mist.. mist was everywhere as Duan Li opened his eyes.


    "What.. what happened?" he said, trying to recollect his memories as the mist slowly dissipated.


    He was sitting cross-legged atop one colossal boulder that extended far downwards like a steep slope. Still in a daze, he turned his head to look at his surroundings as he frowned. From the East to the West were stretches of mountains that seemed to extend far into the distance.


    "This is.. the mountains bordering the Jiu and Liu Empire?" he thought to himself.


    Duan Li stood up as he flew into the air slowly with his expression that still looked confused. After some distance away, he stopped mid-air to gauge his bearings and look back towards the place where he sat before.


    His eyes opened wide in astonishment due to the ridiculous scene that he saw.


    "T-that is not a boulder!" his mouth agaped.


    Gulp!


    "That is.. "


    "T-the shell.. of an extremely colossal crab!" he exclaimed shockly.


    The shell of this monstrous crab looked extremely tough and ancient, its hardness and appearance looked no different than the cliffs and rocks of a mountain!


    He put on his guard as he observe this colossal crab. After a while, he realized that it was not moving at all.. it seems that it has died!


    Duan Li flew and circled to the front of this crab and he was shocked once more.


    This dead crab was actually..


    Splitted in two!


    And what he was seeing right now was just its other half!


    Where is the other half?


    Becoming extremely curious, he turned towards his surroundings while scanning the mountain ranges with his heavenly senses before he found outwhat he was looking for..


    Just that this other half was..


    About 50 kilometers away..!!


    "A.. giant crab.. was split in two.. "


    ".. this size.. if the two was merged together.. its width would have easily reached five kilometers wide and about two kilometers in height!"


    Duan Li swallowed his saliva.


    "What.. what kind of a monstrous crab is this?!" he said feeling astonished and horrified at the same time.


    Suddenly, his body shook.


    Prick!


    "URGH!!"


    Duan Li clutched his head together as it suddenly feels like he was having a migrain attack!


    Slowly, some memories began to surface onto his mind one after another.


    "This monstrous crab.. is actually.. "


    ".. the mythical being from the deep ocean.. "


    Million years old Hermit King, Crastesauros!!


    He had read about this creature in a mural painted on the walls of a ruin during his expedition before.


    His eyes flashed as he look towards the dead colossal crab and realized another startling factor;


    "And it seems like.. "


    ".. the one.. who killed it.. "


    ".. was.. was.. "


    ".. me..?"


    He stuttered in his words and struggled to finish that final sentence as if he could not believe it!


    How?!


    Prick!


    More memories flooded into his brain as the pain increased by folds.


    "ARGHH!" he shouted out.


    Memories that he was actually undergoing trials right now and that this was just an illusion had alerted him back as the pain slowly subsided.


    "I.. I remember now.. " he said.


    It seems that he was undergoing the second test.. but he wasn''t supposed to realize that this was a test..


    And at the same time time..


    That memories seemed to be from the distant past to him..


    What is going on?


    Duan Li felt extremely puzzled!


    In his confusion, a voice suddenly spoke within his mind.


    "This.. "


    ".. is not a test!" said the voice that seemed ancient and archaic.


    "W-what!? Who''s there!" exclaimed Duan Li in surprise as he put on his guard stance in a reflex.


    "I am.. Ancestor Zong.. you do remember.. boy..?" said the voice.


    Knowing that it was just Ancestor Zong who had just spoke, Duan Li exhaled a sigh of relief.


    "Ancestor Zong, how are you.. able to speak to me.. in my head? Where are you now?" asked Duan Li as he look at his surroundings to find the ancestor.


    Ancestor Zong chuckled.


    "I.. never thought.. that you really are.. haa.." he said halfway in his sentence, ending it with a regretful sigh.


    He then continued;


    "I have already.. become the guardian spirit.. of this empire.. thanks to you.. boy.. thus.. speaking to you.. telephatically is not a.. problem.. as long as.. you are within.. the empire.. " replied Ancestor Zong.


    Guardian spirit..?


    "What do you mean Ancestor Zong..?"


    Duan Li was becoming more and more confused. He tried to listen to the ancestor but at the same time, his brain was still throbbing as numerous random memories and information surged into his mind one after another, slowly piecing them together.


    "Ancestor.. are you okay?" asked Duan Li as he noticed the voice to be extremely weak.


    "Listen boy.. this is more.. important.." replied the ancestor.


    "This is.. the future.. of the original timeline.. right now.. the whole Tian continent.. are fighting all out.. against the abominations.. "


    "Nine Hermit Kings.. each are.. of colossal size.. they are the abominations.. that I have told you about.. eight years ago.. "


    "You have slayed.. the first hermit king.. Crastesauros.. the weakest of them all.. currently.. the others are being.. assaulted.. on each borders of each empire and kingdoms.. they are holding back.. for now.. but they will soon collapse.. !"


    "You have to go.. to the northern-most Kingdom.. "


    ".. and make.. the last stand..!!"


    Hearing what the ancestor just said, the final memories slipped inside his mind into place as everything became connected.


    Duan Li''s hazy eyes slowly turned clear, but before long, his lips quivered and his heart palpitated..


    His eyes opened wide..


    He refused to believe it!


    "The.. Jiu empire.. "


    ".. was.. destroyed..? " he said slowly. His expression unsightly.


    ...


    Based on his memories of this future him, he was actually on his way to the kingdom on the further South as they suddenly requested an emergency assistance from him.


    However, just as he had departed and was already halfway through his journey, one of the jade slip in his dimensional inventory within his ring..


    Cracked and turned to ashes!!


    He immediately stopped in his tracks startled, because that jade slip contained the spiritual Qi signature of Shen Lu, his martial arts teacher that was tasked to guard the gate of the Triding river town!


    Realizing that something has gone wrong to the empire, he turned around and quickly bolted back to return to the empire.


    But..


    On his way back, more and more jade slips cracked and turned to ashes..


    Ju Hai..


    Ling Yu..


    Dai Li..


    Wang Guozhi..


    Xiahou Yu..


    and finally..


    Meng Yue.. his mother!!!


    Something has gone terribly wrong within the empire!


    Realizing the dire state of the empire and the people he knew, Duan Li used numerous skills at his disposal to increase his speed, and he was bolting the Tian continent at an unprecedented speed closed to 100,000 kilometers per hour!


    These caused intense vibrations in the air wherever he passed.


    Sonic booms followed by flashes of lightning and flames threatened to split the skies apart!


    And then..


    When he finally arrived at the borders of the Triding River Town gate.. what he saw was no more the same familiar scene of bustling atmosphere full of numerous activities and crowded people by the market, but instead..


    What he saw was a scene of utter carnage and destruction!!


    Buildings were flattened..


    Flames was spread everywhere engulfing the majority part of the town..


    Smokes were rising and billowing to the air similar to the eruption from a raging volcano!!


    Countless dead bodies, dismembered and disfigured as if being trampled to their deaths by something colossal were laying everywhere!!


    Witnessing this scene, Duan Li felt that this situation was like a nightmare..


    He scanned the surroundings and could see familiar faces that were no longer alive..


    His mind became blank as he advanced forward among these unfamiliar atmosphere that he was in.


    Everything was destroyed..


    When he finally reached the city of the empire.. the final glimmer of hope in his eyes dimmed entirely..


    Dead bodies..


    Flattened buildings..


    Flames and smokes..


    Utterly desolate..!


    Almost bursting in insanity, Duan Li scanned his surrounding once more using his heavenly senses to search for any survivor so he could ask what has happened for the empire to be destroyed in a day..


    To his surprise, he found the spiritual Qi of someone most familiar to him..


    His mother!


    Her life signature was extremely weak and this made his heart palpitated in fear.


    Wasting no time, he bolted towards the location, his face paled like a white sheet as he found his mother laying weakly on the floor among the rubbles.


    Her body was riddled with deep scars and fresh blood spewed out from her mouth. Her breathing grew increasingly weak with each exhalation.


    His mother realized he was at her side in that moment, although she could no longer see or even hear, the senses of a mother goes beyond anything else.


    She turned her head towards him and only managed to say a single sentence;


    ".. Run.. and survive.. mother.. Loves you.. "


    Her eyes grew dim as her heartbeat halted to a stop.


    His mother.. had passed away..


    At that moment, time seemed to stop for him as countless memories of his cheerful mother, and sometimes strict, her adorable expression and unbounded love flashed within his mind.


    Thud!


    Duan Li fell to his knees as the sky turned dark and the clouds rumbled with thunders and flashes of lightning. Heavy rain began to fall.


    "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"


    Realizing that he had lost his mother, Duan Li bellowed to the sky!!


    His heart was filled with extreme grief..


    Such that if it bleeded out blood, it would be enough to flood the Tian continent numerous times over!


    His eyes turned red in rage and vengence with tears of blood flowing down his cheek!


    "AHHHHHHH!!" he roared with clenched teeth and fists.


    He bolted to the sky as high as he could, sounds of shockwave blasted the clouds and sky apart as he extended his heavenly sense to the maximum to scan for the one who was responsible for all that has happened.


    When he finally found the source, not even caring the colossal size of the enemy that he had picked from his heavenly senses, he bolted straight to it as streaks of lightning encompassed his body.


    He encountered the Hermit King Crastesauros and it was trying to cross the borders by trampling against the mountains.


    With extreme rage burning within him, Duan Li focused all of his spiritual Qi within his dantian into a single needle point on his finger.


    "One finger starlight slash!"


    A burst of light beam streaked across the sky as it it hits the hermit king on the middle.


    This is his strongest attack!!


    That colossal crab was immediately pierced and split into two like hot butter, and the other half flew away due to the sudden cutting impact resulting that accursed creature to die in but an instant.


    Breathing heavily, Duan Li stopped to rest at the top of the slained Crastesauros to absorb spiritual Qi to refill his empty dantian.


    And after that, the situation is as now..


    ...


    "Everyone.. is dead?" said Duan Li as his expression blanked out.


    "Calm youself..!" yelled Ancestor Zong in his head.


    "This is.. but a future.. that has not happened.. for you yet..!"


    The ancestor started to breath haggardly.


    "Now listen.. I do not have.. much time.. left.. go to the Northern most.. kingdom.. and fight.. to the last.. only then.. will your this ends.. "


    "For the other empire.. and kingdoms.. it is already.. too late.. they are doomed.. go north.. make the last stand.. and witness yourself.. the terror.. of the Ancient One..!"


    "Remember its strength.. our deaths.. our griefs.. our indignance.. and avenge us..!"


    "Change the future.. do not let this.. happen.. once more.. only you.. the miracle.. can stop it.. "


    "Goodbye.. boy.."


    The voice of the Ancestor Zong then slowly disappeared as it finally went silent.


    Duan Li knew, that as of that day, everyone he knew in the Jiu Empire, including the Ancestor Zong is of no more..


    With both of his memories from the present and past merged together, Duan Li had become one in this future, and his eyes turned determined!


    "I must.. change this future!"


    Boom!


    He then quickly bolted to the sky to reach the northern kingdom as soon as possible.


    Pshewww!


    ...

 20 Chapter 20: Duan Lis bizarre trial! 2

    Duan Li continued to bolt through the air as he glided faster and faster. The friction against his body caused shockwaves after shockwaves to exploded out with each accelaration. In a hindsight, the speed at which he was flying at was intense and would make onlookers to think that a comet has descended upon the world.


    Furthermore, streaks of fire and lightning surrounded his body, yet not a single damage was done to him.


    "This is.. the future.." said Duan Li as he closed his eyes and entered into a state of contemplation.


    ...


    "Huh?" he was struck by a sudden realization.


    He couldn''t see his inner body!


    His bones, skeletal muscles and the blood vessels that he could usually see after he closes his eyes was not there!


    In other words, he doesn''t have the All-seeing eye ability!


    "What is going on?" he thought as his brows creased together.


    He tried closing and opening his eyes multiple times but it was still the same.


    "Could it be..?" a theory came into his mind.


    Duan Li tried to peer into the past memories of this future self of his. To his surprise, this future self does not have any recollection of ever touching the mysterious pearl at all!


    In fact, when he was chopping the trees in the woods, he was supposed to chop the tree on the left, not the right!


    Furthermore, he had no recollection of the memories where Ancestor Zong underwent a rebirth, only that its spirit was awaken after absorbing the spiritual Qi refined by Duan Li''s sky grade potential.


    "Is this.. really.. is a separate.. timeline.. ? " he said in confusion.


    He tried to peer further into his memories.


    He then recalled that when Ancestor Zong awoke in this timeline during his test before, the other party had also did the same of peering into his fate.


    Even the words of warning and prophecy of the future by the ancestor remained the same, but the words it had spoken regarding his fate was slightly different than what he had remembered!


    The ancestor instead had just said that his fate was peculiar, in that instead of a single line with branches along it, his fate was in round circles as if going haywire!


    He also remembered that the ancestor told him it may meant that he was not tied to the normal path fate had dictated, but a path of one fate that could be experienced in many different ways in a single moment.


    At that time, he was entirely mind-boggled and thought that the ancestor was just playing word riddles with him to sound mysterious, but now he knew what the ancestor could have meant!


    "It seems that.. this is a timeline.. where I do not encountered the mysterious pearl.."


    If his deductions was true, then it meant.. his latent high talent were all his and wasn''t related to the mysterious pearl at all!


    Perhaps the pearl only aided him in giving unique abilities such as the All-Seeing eye and instant memorization!


    "So.. in this timeline.. we are fated to doom.. but due to the mysterious pearl.. it has changed my original fate.. to the extent that it was able to bring my pastconsciousness into this future.."


    His heart palpitated in nervousness as he realized one crucial element in this event.


    That this.. is really not an illusion..


    But instead, he had dived straight to his future self from the original timeline!


    This is real!


    Holy cow!


    "If I die here, would I die for real?!" he exclaimed.


    The thought of this scared him a little bit, but as he recalled everything that had happened to this future self of his in this original timeline, including the death of his mother, the feeling of fear disappeared without a trace.


    Replacing it, was extreme anger.


    Even if Duan Li had come from a different timeline than this one, when their memories merged together before, he had experienced the whole lifetime of this future self of his.


    Thus, it could be said that, right now, he was the Duan Li of this future and not of the past!


    Psheww!


    ...


    The Tian continent was extremely vast, even with his lightning speed, he could only arrive at the northern-most kingdom after some time.


    The scenery quickly changed from green to white as he passed the northern zone of the Tian continent. Temperatures also swiftly dropped to below freezing point.


    Flying for about an hour, Duan Li could finally see a long stretch of wall with the heights of several hundred meters amidst the blowing snowstorm.


    From my memories, it seems that this is the lands of the Titan race!


    They are at least five meters taller than the average human being and boasted twenty more times the strength! For them, building such a colossal wall was within their capabilities.


    But sadly, the abominations that were to come was a colossal being that spanned kilometers in width and height like the Crastesauros!


    Who knows if the others were even bigger!


    Thus, such walls wouldn''t amount to anything in stopping them at all.


    After approaching near the walls, he circled to the left and found a black gate, even taller and majestic of about one kilometer high and four kilometers wide.


    Duan Li stopped in mid-air as he hailed to state his identity according to the memories of his future self.


    "Supreme General of the Jiu Empire, First-rank white titled-Knight! Duan Li!"


    His voice reverberated through the air as it travelled towards the gate.


    ...


    Bang!


    The door towards a war room where many veterans and experts of the Titan race are currently gathering for an emergency meeting were opened abruptly by a guard.


    "Impudent! How dare you disrupt this meeting!" said an angry elder as he smashed his table with a fist.


    "State your business or die!" shouted another burly titan with his hand alreadyunsheathing his sword.


    The guard swallowed his saliva as he bowed and swiftly told them;


    "Generals! We spotted a human who claimed to be that legendary figure, Supreme General of the Jiu Empire, Duan Li!" said the guard.


    It was only just a few moments ago that he had to run like crazy when his captain told him that he must reach the war room within ten breaths to relay this information or else he will be decapitated.


    And now, he was under the threat of being beheaded?


    You guys are too much!!


    Hearing this, the hostile aura within the room suddenly halted and the titans who were enraged previously went mute. Their knees grew weak as their lips turned purple.


    Bang!


    Another table got crushed.


    "Imbecile! How dare you delay the information of his holiness arrival!" shouted the man on the center of the room who seemed to be the most savage and brutal out of them all.


    This was the Supreme General of the Left hand of the Titan race, Kong Donghai!


    His body had many scars on him, ontop of being bare-chested, his hair was colored in deep red, as if from the blood of countless enemies that he had slained and decapitated.


    Yet this same brutal man who seemed to be limitless in his strength had an obvious fear reflected in that sharp eyes of his.


    "Come! Let us go meet his holiness!" he said.


    They all then rushed out from the war room as they bolted into the air and flew frantically towards the gate, leaving the stifled guard standing alone in indignance.


    "I don''t want to live anymore.."


    ...


    At the gate..


    "Supreme General Duan Li! Welcome to the lands of the Titans!" greeted Kong Donghai respectfully with a straight bow.


    "Welcome Supreme General Duan Li!!" shouted the rest of the titans at the back following suit as they too bowed with a straight back.


    It created a very peculiar scene where giants were bowing against a man that was hardly even two meters tall.


    One has to know that the Titan race will only truly respect one another if they are stronger than them, no matter from what race those powerful being came from.


    What more when it is Duan Li himself, the undisputed number one rank Knight in the whole Tian continent!


    The gap between the number two and Duan Li in battle prowess is extremely vast. Such that, if the number two knight had powers that could be said to be as vast as the ocean, then Duan Li''s powers are as vast as the sky, fully encompassing the world and the ocean itself!


    Thus, not only do they respect Duan Li, they even feared him as well!


    "En. There is no need to be so formal." replied Duan Li casually as he waved his hands, acting in accord with his memories of how the future him behaves.


    The titans then stood straight with their backs like unbreachable walls.


    "Supreme General Duan Li.. it seems that.. the surrounding empires and kingdoms had already fallen.." said Kong Donghai slowly.


    "We have several jade slips which contained the spiritual Qi of important people within them from each of the empires and kingdoms, but.. all of them had cracked and turned to ashes!" one of them added.


    Another one of the veteran also decided to ask to Duan Li;


    "Could it be.. that the Jiu Empire.. has also.."


    Pa!


    He was hit in the head before he could even finish his sentence. The rest besides him glared at that titan with deadly gaze, seeming to say;


    ''If you say any more, we will pummel you to death!''


    This was because they had actually knew that the Jiu empire had already fallen when the jade slips cracked and turned to ashes.


    For the whole empire to be destroyed, Duan Li''s emotion must be extremely unstable right now, filled with griefs and anger. If any words spouted by them were to trigger his ire, they could possibly pay it with their life!


    Hearing that question, Duan Li could only look towards the sky with his hands clasped behind his back.


    He nodded.


    "Alas... " exclaimed the crowd looking extremely dejected.


    "Was it.. the abominations from the prophecy?" asked Kong Donghai hesitatingly.


    Duan Li nodded again.


    ...


    Everyone became silent to the point that no one dared to speak or breath out loudly.


    As the mood slowly turned sour, Duan Li finally began to speak while looking towards the sky.


    "The abominations that will be coming for us will be far beyond your imagination." said Duan Li.


    "But, I have already slaughtered one of them. Thus, I know that they can be beaten!" he continued as his gaze turned sharp with deep killing intention reflected on his eyes.


    The crowd''s eyes began to glow with hope.


    "That''s right! Even if we are all to die, we will drag them along to hell with us!" shouted Kong Donghai to the crowd.


    "Yeahh!!!"


    The morale of the crowd rose as they moved to prepare for the incoming battle.


    The lands quake as Duan Li''s brows creased together and look towards the distance.


    He had bad premonitions for the battle to come..


    ...

 21 Chapter 21: Duan Lis bizarre trial! 3

    Three towering black cannons with its ends shaped like the mouth of a fierce earth dragon, were fitted atop the wall facing the open snow field. These cannons were called the dragon''s angry bellow as it could spit out powerful flame bombs according to the quantity of spirit stones it absorbed. Various runic symbols were carved onto its body making it seem ancient and powerful.


    Right now, for the sake of this upcoming battle, the titan''s race had decided to emptied out their whole treasuries of spirit stones. Even the most influential families had donated everything they got along with everyone here as well.


    To them for now, these spirit stones were akin to bad luck. If anyone were to hold onto them, they would be drawing death upon themselves.


    "Supreme General! We have enough spirit stones here for several rapid shots hahahahahaha!" said one of the lieutenants.


    "Even mountains will be blasted to dust with such firepower! Gahahahahaha!" laughed the rest of the soldiers.


    Everyone was quite confident right now. Even if compared to the other kingdoms and empires in the past, they would undoubtedly be the top three with the most riches.


    "Quiet idiots! Prepare yourself for battle!" reprimanded Kong Donghai with a smug grin.


    "Yes supreme general!" replied the soldiers and lieutenants in unison as they sat down cross-legged to focus their minds into entering the peak state before the final battle.


    ...


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    Duan Li whom was floating in mid-air absorbing spiritual Qi like swallowingrivers slowly opened his closed eyes.


    "They have come.." he said slowly.


    Kong Donghai immediately turned towards his army.


    "Charge the cannons!" he shouted out.


    Everyone began to pour countless spirit stones into the cannon while putting it on standby.


    "Remember our battle strategy!" said Duan Li with an authoritative air.


    In the Tian continent, the supreme decree from a first rank titled Knights are absolute. Before his power, all other supreme generals are but his soldiers to commmand!


    "Sir, yes sir!!" shouted the rest of them including Kong Donghai.


    According to the battle strategy that they have discussed shortly after the arrival of Duan Li, there are eight hermit kings left to be slained.


    Their strategy was, Duan Li would split himself into three, where the other two of his clones would have 20 percent of his powers each.


    This is because, based on his memories of the previous encounter with the Crastesauros, 40 percent of his power would be enough to delay them.


    Therefore, each of his clones would delay one of the hermit kings, while the three cannons would delay another three of the hermit kings. In total, during the fight, they will be delaying five hermit kings!


    The titan race have two supreme generals, the left and right, namely Kong Donghai and Xang Lubai. Each of them will lead a subjugation squad to face one hermit king, consisting of several generals and slay them if possible.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s role is to slay them one at a time with overwhelming power. He might also need time to recuperate his spiritual Qi, thus several multi-layered spiritual Qi gathering formation of tier-6 was set up for him in advance.


    Within that snowy blizzard far in the distance, eight colossal shape of different sizes towering the skies could be seen vividly approaching.


    Thump! Thump!


    The heartbeats of the soldiers were thumping furiously at the sight of those colossal shadows that grew bigger as they neared.


    The Titans have always been proud of their huge stature and viewed the other puny races as inferior to them. But right now, they were feeling extremely small compared to these eight abominations.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    The footsteps from these hermit kings shook the earth and crumbles the mountain with each step they took. No matter any terrain that it walked on, everything became flattened as soon as they stepped on it.


    Even the thick ice melted under the extreme pressure from their bottomless weight.


    Gradually, these vivid figures became clearer.


    They strolled casually as they trampled everything in their path.


    "Are we.. gonna fight those?"


    "Such crushing pressure.. I doubt I would survive this battle.. hahaha.. "


    "D-damn it! My legs can''t stop shaking!"


    Some of the soldiers are beginning to lose their wits and the overall morale quickly plummeted.


    Who wouldn''t be terrified looking at thetowering figures where some of them had reached almost 10 kilometers in height?


    Who wouldn''t be hopeless when looking at that massive sizes of which one of them had reached the width of almost 30 kilometers in size?


    Who wouldn''t shiver in fear when feeling that terrible pressure they emit which could crush bones into dust and meat into paste?


    At this moment, Duan Li decided to act as his aura rose to a peak and his hands moved to perform a series of complex incantation gestures.


    ''Three thousand Great Spell: Wills of unrelenting Dao Kings!''


    ''Three thousand Great Spell: Might of thesupreme Overlord Saints!''


    ''Three thousand Great Spell: Spiritual body of the Heavenly stars!''


    ...


    Duan Li casted these three spell buffs to every single soldiers on the battlefield. Their aura rose to extreme heights as their anxiety, nervousness and fear disappeared without a trace.


    "M-my.. realm had advanced significantly.. to the pinnacle!" said a soldier with a gold core realm.


    "Me too! And my strength.. I think it just increased by a few dozen folds!"


    "N-not only that, I can feel that my stamina seemed to be bottomless! I could fight for days without exhaustion like this!"


    "Hey! Did you guys feel these sensation? I could absorb the surrounding spiritual Qi rapidly as I breath!"


    Numerous other people made similar statement as their morale swiftlyreturned to its peak and their faces shone with indomitable spirit and confidence!


    Seeing this phenomena, Kong Donghai was thoroughly excited as even his battle prowess had multiplied by a staggering hundred folds! Even his heart stood like a steel wall, as if the towering pressure of the coming battle is of no threat to them!


    That is a true supreme general!


    That is true power!


    "To be able to use three high tier of the three thousand Great Spells at once.. there is no one in the Tian continent who could be his match anymore!" said Xang Lubai, the Supreme General of the Right of the titan race.


    Kong Donghai nodded in agreement.


    He was about to speak something when Duan Li chanted another spell.


    ''Three thousand Great Spells: Armors of Rognak!''


    Shinggg!!


    The soldiers were startled as some of them were suddenly surrounded in white light.


    When the light disappeared, these soldiers found themselves to be equiped with black gold armors!


    "Armors of Rognak!" said Kong Donghai startled.


    These are magical armors made to withstand extreme beatings and damage!


    To think that he had used such a powerful spell on normal foot soldiers and by the looks of it, over a thousand of them as well!


    "How much spiritual Qi does he actually holds?!" exclaimed Xang Lubai in astonishment.


    "Those whom I have equipped with the armors of Rognak, you will stand to guard the three cannons with your life!!" shouted Duan Li.


    "SIR! YES SIR!!" replied the agitated crowd in unison.


    Their faces have now become extremely savage and brutal, their aura berserk on a rampage! Such that if Duan Li were to order them to charge towards those eight abominations right now, they would not hesitate in the slightest even at the cost of their lives!


    The eight abominations?


    Hah! So what?!


    Come here! Your daddy will give you a beating!


    Looking at everyone''s faces and their morales surpassing their peaks, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    "Time to buff up myself.." said Duan Li as he performed yet another spell incantation gestures.


    ''One hundred Legendary Spells: Hexagram of the Celestial Demise!''


    ''One hundred Legendary Spells: Tetra unsealing of the Nine Voids!''


    BRRRRR!!


    Countless round-shape black material that seemed to be the most hardest substance in the world materialize as if coming from a deep dark abyss and floated around him, each with glowing purple runic formations inscribed with anancient primal language that seethed out extremely hair-raising powers!


    Black Tendrils flowed out from each of them as they molded to become a long sharp spear from end to end. Duan Li grabbed it casually.


    "The Dark spear!" said Kong Donghai as he swallowed his saliva.


    He recognize that black spear on Duan Li''s hands that seemed to be made from nothing but the aura of death!


    "An intangible material made up from thecountless death aura of the previous generations that filled the realm of theoutworld fiend.."


    A single wound that was caused by it would immediately suck the life of someone dry in a single breath!


    "The last time he used it was on that vile criminal.. "


    Duan Li raised his palm upwards to the sky and chanted;


    ''Ten Epic Spells: Blessings of the Yggdrasil!''


    Wonggggg!


    The sky split as a hole was made, by which a golden light shone downwards from the sky with mystical golden hums as it flashed on Duan Li.


    Boom!


    His entire being was filled with a gushinggolden aura that was reminiscent of a deity!


    His hair had also turned gold and extended long to his backs.


    Streaks of lightning flashes around him every so often and four white wings made up from angelic feathers sprouted from his backs.


    Right now, he became the center of focus for everyone. Even the eight abominations stopped in their tracks for a moment before continuing on when they felt his power rising beyond his previous limits.


    He stood in the air majestically.


    "It seems.. we might have a little hope.. " said Kong Donghai as he clenched his fists in agitation.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    The abominations are finally close enough for the battle to start.


    Duan Li raised his right arm as he moved to point a single finger forwards.


    "One finger starlight slash!"


    A sharp beam of light was unleashed from his index finger as he swiped it from the left to right, up and down repeatedly like the conductor of an orchestra.


    KABOOM!


    BOOM!


    Flashes of explosion reminiscent of multiple comets hitting the continent surrounded the eight abominations.


    BOOM!!


    KABOOM!


    The symphony of destruction!


    ...


    After the smoke disappeared, two of the abominations were reduced to dust while one was heavily injured. The rest continued on trampling the lands as if nothing had happened.


    Duan Li''s previous majestic form slowly dissipated.


    "Only about ten seconds.." he sighed disappointingly in his heart.


    "Time for a switch." said Duan Li towards the two supreme generals Kong Donghai and Xang Lubai as he sat cross-legged on the spiritual Qi gathering formations to recuperate.


    The both of them nodded as they exhaled and shouted to the soldiers;


    "KILL THEM!!"


    "YEAAAAAAHHH!!"


    ...


    After a few hours of intense battle, they have finally won!


    However, the cost was great..


    Xang Lubai died along with 47 generals..


    All three cannons were destroyed..


    Countless soldiers were killed..


    The walls of the titan race had been breached and a lot of civilians died..


    80 percent of the titan''s land had been reduced to ashes..


    It would take decades for the titan race to be able to return to half of their former glory..


    And perhaps a few centuries for them to return back to their peak strength..


    Duan Li could only cast the blessings of Yggdrasil once to himself as it requires an abysmal amount of spiritual Qi and required one''s aura to be at the extreme peak to succeed. As their battle does not allow him to have such a privillege, their losses escalated over time.


    Even Kong Donghai had lost one arm and one leg in that battle and was currently laying on the ground undergoing emergency treatment. From his injuries, it doesn''t seem like he will survive for long.


    "Supreme general Duan Li.. we.. we.. did it.. " he said while coughing up blood.


    Duan Li nodded with sad smiles.


    Kong Donghai smiled as his breathing slowed and his lifeforce dimmed. He knew that he was going to die, but knowing that they have won the most difficult battle in the history of the Tian continent, it matters not to him.


    After a while, he passed away.


    Duan Li looked at his surroundings and shook his head seeing their terrible state.


    "All the abominations have been slained.. but the Ancient One had still yet to make a move.. and we are already.. " he sighed.


    Suddenly a general that was laying on the ground while being treated yelled out.


    "G-guys! Look at the sun!"


    "Huh?"


    "The sun?"


    Everyone including Duan Li looked upwards and squinted their eyes.


    !!!!


    The..


    Sun..


    Is..


    Moving.. ?


    The sun that was familiar to everyone else that shone brightly every morning to mark a new day after a good night rest, suddenly felt so eery to them.


    The sun was wriggling..


    As if, uncoiling itself..


    Duan Li and some others used spells to focused their eyesight to see clearly on the sun.


    Thud!


    He fell to the ground on his knees..


    "How.. what.. is.. this..?"


    "So this.. is.. the Ancient One?"


    For the first time ever.. Duan Li felt despair in his heart.


    What he had seen, is truly something impossible to fight against.. even with his means.


    What use was all that power that he holds against this?


    The sun that everyone knew..


    Was actually..


    An extremely colossal long dragon!


    For all this while, it had coiled together and fallen asleep deep into a slumber, only to awake at the predestined times..


    The end times..


    Bang!


    "ARGHHHH!!" shouted a general smashing his fist onto the ground creating a large dent in frustration.


    He was feeling extremely indignant. All of the people he knew for years, had already died in this battle.


    And finally when he thought that they have won, before even conducting proper burial ceremony, not to mention celebration, the sun had suddenly turned to become their main enemy?


    Who could even fight against the sun that was infinitely bigger than the whole Tian continent?


    Despair!!


    Thud!


    Thud!


    Thud!


    Everyone fell to the ground on their knees..


    "Its all over.."


    "D-damn it all.."


    ...


    ROARRRR!!


    The roar of the sun dragon was the most terrifying that they have ever heard before in their whole life, akin to the bells, signifying one''s death.


    The sun dragon finally finished uncoiling its colossal body as it wriggled on the space.


    Turning to look towards the Tian continent, its colossal body jerked, before it flashed and rammed the Tian continent into ashes in an instant.


    BOOM!!


    ...

 22 Chapter 22: The Principals anxiety!

    "The trial is finally over! Let''s go!" shouted Ling Yu as they immediately ran towards Duan Li who was still sitting cross-legged on the center.


    "Duan Li!"


    "Wake up!"


    "Duan Li wake up!"


    They called out to him numerous times as Ling Yu shook his body.


    "Uhhh.."


    Duan Li slowly opened his eyes as he groaned. The throbbing pain he felt in his brain left him to clutch his head together as he tried to stood up. Even worse, his insides felt stiffling enough to the point that he was about to throw up.


    "Sister Ling Yu..?" he said after finally getting a clear view. Duan Li could see that her face was quite pale.


    "Are you okay boy?! We thought that you were done in that final moment!"


    Wang Guozhi was at the side while wiping his sweat off his forehead, remembering that earth-shattering battle that he had just witnessed with everyone was like a bad nightmare!


    "That battle was terrible.. your nose was bleeding continuously as you fight those monsters.." said Xiahou Yu. Her mind was still in a daze, terrified.


    "En! And when we tried to stop the magic, the runic formations doesn''t respond to our controls at all! This has never happened before!" said Ran Yang as she shook her head and exhaling in relief seeing Duan Li safe and sound.


    She had lost her cool during that incident and went panic when she realized that she couldn''t stop the magic.


    "You even spat a mouthful of blood when the sun dragon descended!"


    Ling Yu''s eyes was in tears as her worries was finally over and the worse that she imagined didn''t happen. Otherwise, if Duan Li were to die in the middle of a test, how could she explain that to his mother?


    Furthermore, who would even believe that a student had died due to an illusion test that was supposed to be harmless for even non-martial artists?


    They would be put under the suspicion of killing an innocent student of the academy!


    "Bloody nose?.. spat out blood?" answered Duan Li as he looked downwards. Sure enough, his clothes has patches of blood here and there.


    "At first, when the ancestor said that it was not a test but real, we didn''t believe it and had just assume that the illusion magic did really well in setting up such an environment." said Ran Yang while casting healing spells onto the four student who were tasked to set up the illusion magic before as their practice.


    They lost their consciousness as their spiritual Qi was sapped dry during that time. It was fortunate that Ran Yang immediately cast a protection spell on them. Otherwise, who would know what would have happened?


    Moreover, the test grew even morebizarre and horrifying as they watched further;


    The fall of the empire..


    Their deaths..


    The battle with the titan race..


    The descend of the sun dragon..


    And finally, the whole Tian continent bursting out into flames!!


    That was too eery for a mere illusion to test one''s own spirit and will that involved the fate of the whole Tian continent!


    Thus, after watching that wretched future of themselves, Ling Yu, Wang Guozhi, Xiahou Yu and Ran Yang felt something changed within themselves.


    Like a small burning candle transformed into a raging flames due to being splashed with oil, they found themselves extremely motivated to reach an end goal, an invincible prowess that they must achieve no matter what!


    To become stronger than they could possibly imagine!


    They clenched their fists tightly in agitation with this new goal as they look at Duan Li.


    They swore to themselves that they will stood by him to fight together for that end times!


    Meanwhile, as they were resolving themselves with extreme training methods planned out within their minds, Duan Li was worrying about something else.


    "So they saw everything.." said Duan Li to himself.


    He forgot that the trial could be viewed by others using that reflective mirror at the heat of the moment as he was too absorbed within the emotions of his future self.


    He was domineering, brave and ultimately strong, and could even be said to be the most strongest existence in the whole Tian continent!


    But now, he had reverted back to his usual self. Eventhough the lifetime memories of his future self still exists within his minds, most of it will change inevitably from now on, and most importantly, this is the real him.


    Perhaps, only the memories of learning those powerful techniques would be vastly useful for him.


    Fortunately also, Duan Li hadn''t mentioned about the existence of the mysterious pearl and only said so within his thoughts.


    It was due to that mysterious pearl that he could dive into his future self of the original timeline, and it was also because of it that they will have the chance to change the future.


    Its powers goes way beyond logical reason and comprehension.


    If word were to come out that this was all possible due to the mysterious pearl, wouldn''t experts with ulterior motives and greed pop out everywhere to snatch it from him?


    No!


    He musn''t let that happen.


    Eventhough he knew that without it, he could still achieve back the inconceivable feat and battle prowess with his talents alone, evidenced by his future self, with the addition of the mysterious pearl however, that could give him miracles and unique abilities, he would be able to soar even further.


    In other words, eight years later with the help of this mysterious pearl, his battle prowess would be way, way more higher!


    He could somehow feel that, it would be possible to beat that sun dragon!


    Most importantly, they would have the chance to overturn the previous future and he could avenge everyone from that timeline.


    Therefore it could be said that, their chance to change the future was at the cost of everyone''s death!


    With such responsibility on his shoulders, how could he afford to risk the existence of the mysterious pearl being known?


    Thus, he would let them assume that he was destined somehow to change their fate.


    "What.. should we do about the footage..?" asked Ran Yang to break the awkward silence.


    "We.. I think we should show it to the principal.. and let him decide.. " replied Wang Guozhi, although he seemed to be quite unsure as well.


    After all, what they had just witnessed was extremely bizarre that involved everyone''s fate, thus in their mind, everyone should have the right to know!


    But at the same time, it could cause harm to Duan Li when people realized what he could become in the future, especially those that disdain and hate others to be stronger than them.


    "I think.. the principal would know what to do too.. " said Ling Yu and everyone as they nodded solemnly.


    After a short discussion, Ran Yang will stay to heal the four students while they will head to the principal''s office to report and hand over the footage.


    ...


    Knock knock!


    "Come in!"


    The principal had just finished writing a report regarding what the millennium Yidara tree, or wanted to be known as Ancestor Zong, told them. Eventhough the ''impossibility'' part of tiding through the future end times seemed like an exageration, he wrote it in anyway.


    "Principal, we.. have come to show you something.." said Ling Yu as she lead the party inside the principal''s office.


    "Ohh? Its you people. Have a sit first." he said casually while pouring hot tea into a few cups.


    "Now, what is it?" he said as he handed one cup each to them.


    Wang Guozhi, Ling Yu and Xiahou Yu turned towards Duan Li as they signaled at him, indicating;


    ''You explain it to the principal!''


    Thus, Duan Li straightened himself up and swallowed his saliva. He stood up and walk forward to give a red jade slip on his right hand to the principal.


    "This.. it is hard to explain.. and we don''t know where to start. But I guess it would be better if Principal were to see it yourself.."


    The principal creased his brows together looking at that red jade slip, one that is used to record scenes or events in visual footage.


    Taking it from Duan Li''s hands, he then put the jade slip on a small circle tray as the jade slip glowed.


    Wonggg!


    A visual footage appeared on thin air as the principal cupped his chin.


    ...


    The footage on Duan Li''s trial was about one hour long, and as time passes by, the principal''s expression turned grim. By the time the eight abominations appeared on that snowy plains, he was already standing up straight, immersed in the epic battle as he clenched his fists tight.


    Finally, when the sun dragon descended and burned the whole Tian continent to ashes, his expression froze for a while with his eyes opened wide, before he sat down slowly as he rubbed his temples.


    "This.. who else.. knew about this?" he asked towards the party.


    "Sir, other than us, there is still Ran Yang. Her four other students had passed out not long before Duan Li''s trial started, so they wouldn''t have been able to witness it." answered Wang Guozhi truthfully.


    Hearing this, the principal exhaled in relief.


    "Good. Do not let anyone know about this matter too. In due time, I will release these information to the public properly. For now, this has already go way beyond my jurisdiction and authority to handle. Thus, I will be forwarding it to the administration of the empire."


    The principal rubbed his temple once more. Due to this footage, he needed to rewrite the whole report that he just did.


    Atta damn boy!


    What a trouble you are!


    Hais..


    "Tell the senior teacher in charge of the third test, that both of them had passed the personality test, with me as the invigilator!"


    If another bizarre incident were to happen again because of this boy, he wasn''t sure if he could contain things under his wraps anymore.


    Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi nodded.


    "Now the three of you may leave, but you, student Duan Li, stay!"


    Gulp!


    ...

 23 Chaoter 23: Pitiful Wang Guozhi!

    Gulp!


    "Principal.. are you going to.. "


    Ling Yu''s expression was that of horrified, while Xiahou Yu ran to hide at the back of Wang Guozhi, her head poking out from his sides with a terrified face. As if understanding what their expression was all about, the principal''s veins popped out as he shouted;


    "Of course not! What do you people take me for!"


    To admit, he does like whipping, but he isn''t someone with an extreme fetish to it!


    Thus, when he saw their terrified faces, he blew up in a rage as it were too much for him!


    And that little girl hiding there, are you seven years old?!


    Hmph!!


    Come out lest I whip you instead!!


    Hearing the principal''s answer, Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu sighed in relief. If the principal had decided to abuse Duan Li to vent his pent up frustration, there was nothing that they could do about it.


    "Alright principal, we will be leaving now to convey your message!" said Wang Guozhi as he pulled both Ling Yu and Xiahou Yu out of the room like avoiding a plague.


    He was afraid that the principal decided to change his mind and whip them instead!


    Bang!


    The door was closed forcefully.


    "That.. Wang Guozhi!" said the principal in a hoarse voice as he clenched his teeth, evidently furious by that fella''s antics.


    What is up with his reaction?!


    People would misunderstand him to be someone lunatic if he acted like that!!


    Ahem!


    But first things first!


    He cleared his throat as he stood up, his hands clasped behind his back as he tried to regain his dignity as the principal.


    "Duan Li, I''ve looked at your student profile and found out that your mother is Meng Yue?" he asked directly.


    "Yes.." replied Duan Li in a small voice, still scared to be left on the same room with the principal alone.


    "Good! Could you convince her to somehow rejoin the subjugation squad? We have spread our knights thin these past few years. According to our statistics, the number of monsters per season have increased to ten times than the last few years!"


    The principal said with a solemn voice as he look outside the window, his expression serious.


    "At first, we didn''t know what caused these monsters to multiply at such a rapid pace and becoming more violent at that. But perhaps.. now that I''ve seen that footage.. hais.. maybe it is somehow connected to these.. abominations.." he sighed as he shook his head.


    "From what I saw in that footage, it seems like you will be the hope for us.. But you do know that, once this gets out.. you will be hunted down by some people?" he asked Duan Li without looking back.


    "Yes.. I know.." replied Duan Li as he looked at the floor, realizing this matter as well.


    "Are you prepared?" asked the principal once more, but this time, his voice sounded more firm and solemn.


    Recalling the whole lifetime memories of his future self, the fall of the empire and the death of his own mother to those wretched abomination, Duan Li''s eyes gleamed with extreme determination as the air around him heated up vividly.


    "I am!" he answered.


    Boom!


    His answer is but a single, simple sentence. Yet, the moment he uttered that single sentence with his full conviction, the lands seemed to quake and the seas were rattled. The conviction and confidence in that single sentence of his, had unknowingly changed something within his body.


    A change brought forth by the mysterious pearl!


    ...


    After a few more talks with the principal regarding the memories of his future self and the state of the empire before the incident, the door was suddenly opened as Wang Guozhi strolled in with Ling Yu and Xiahou Yu in tow.


    His expression still looked apprehensive towards the principal as he threw side glances towards the body of Duan Li, seeming to try and find if there are any marks of the latter being whipped.


    At the sight of this, the principal''s veins popped out as he barked;


    "How now, becoming more brazen eh? Do you even know how to knock properly?! And that face of yours!"


    Flash!


    A black whip materialized on his right hand. He then swiftly flicked it creating that ''pak!'' whipping sound as it hit the table.


    Seeing this, Wang Guozhi jumped up in a fright as he tried to escape using the door.


    However, before he could even turn the door knob, he already found his body to be unable to move at all!


    "T-this! spatial locking!" he shrieked out in a horrified manner as he sweated profusely and his heart palpitated in fear.


    The principal then moved his hands to perform a series of incantation gestures.


    ''Space magic: Third-tier space dimensional transfer magic!''


    Wongggg!


    Both Wang Guozhi and the principal suddenly disappeared from the room.


    "..." everyone.


    They have been relocated into another dimension!


    Silence..


    "Whe-where are they?" asked Xiahou Yu whom was hiding behind Ling Yu at the moment with her head poking out as she look left and right with extreme alertness.


    If a whip were to suddenly strike at her, she had resolved herself to bite at it!


    "Hais... It seems that.. Wang Guozhi is done for.."


    Ling Yu sighed as she shook her head looking towards that empty space where Wang Guozhi once stood with an expression full of pity.


    That fella would definitely be in for a round of whipping by the principal for sure!


    ...


    After some time..


    Wonggg!


    The two people returned from the other dimension.


    Padah!


    "..." everyone.


    Wang Guozhi fell to the floor with his body covered in many streaks of peculiar bruises as he convulsed and twitched on the floor. That long streak marks on his clothes and the butt region of his pants..


    Hais.. how tragic!


    Ling Yu, Xiahou Yu nd Duan Li shook their heads looking at the pitiful state Wang Guozhi was in.


    Ahem!


    The principal cleared his throat as he gestured for them to sit down on the sofa, ignoring the convulsing Wang Guozhi on the floor.


    "You guys should have heard about the fourth and the fifth trial right?"the principal asked.


    The rest of them nodded.


    "Then, as the principal, I announced hereby that you two are qualified for it!"


    When Duan Li and Xiahou Yu heard this, both each have a differing expression.


    Xiahou Yu seemed to be ecstatic as her eyes glowed, while Duan Li showed an expression of anxiety and nervousness.


    "May I ask.. what is the fourth and fifth trial would be?"


    Duan Li hoped that it wouldn''t be anything crazy. After all, these two are special levels that no one actually knew what it was all about.


    Furthermore, the first and second trial was already filled with bizarre events that shocked himself time and again. So now, he was quite afraid that his little heart wouldn''t be able to take it anymore.


    "It isn''t difficult, the fourth trial would be entering the ''Eternal Maze'' beneath this academy." said the principal casually as he stroked his short beard.


    The eternal maze?!


    Ling Yu was startled as she knew about this eternal maze beneath the academy!


    Basically, two thousand years ago, the empire was found out after the first ancestor or the founder, Jiu Zhentian,managed to emerge out of the eternal maze after being trapped inside it for a whole 30 years!


    The first ancestor obtained many treasures that allowed him to reach the immortal ascension realm in that maze, and one of this treasure, is called the ''Celestial Saint Platform''!


    Rumor has it that, whoever obtained this celestial saint platform would be able to ascend one realm higher than their limits!


    Could it be that the principal wanted them to enter the eternal maze for such a treasure?


    That would be a suicide!


    Not even senior teachers with nascent soul realm dared to venture into it, what more of a student who has yet to even properly form their Qi condensation realm!


    Noticing Ling Yu''s changed expression, the principal chuckled in realization.


    "Don''t worry! The eternal maze wouldn''t be dangerous to them!" he explained.


    "Not dangerous to them? What do you mean principal?" she asked with her brows creased, confused.


    "It is like this.. " the principal explained out.


    It turns out that the eternal maze will adjusted its difficulty according to the realm of the one who entered it. The higher one''s realm are, the more dangerous and difficult it will be.


    But, for someone who has yet to even enter the Qi condensation realm, the challenges that they will face will be similar to that of mere mortals.


    When he read Duan Li''s student profile previously, he found out that this boy had already learned a staggering amount of stances and combination!


    At first he had suspected this student to be one of those scammers and was about to whip him as punishment, but recalling the report came from senior teacher Ling Yu herself, it is impossible for the information to be false.


    Xiahou Yu had also learnt them as well, although compared to what Duan Li had learnt, it was miniscule and isn''t worth a mention at all.


    Of course, the principal had assume that Duan Li''s achievement in learning such astounding amount of stances and masteries in them was due to his mother, Meng Yue.


    After all, who hadn''t heard of that woman''s savage title back in the past?


    Even he from the headquarters had heard about her exploit back then.


    Looking at Duan Li, the principal shook his head gently.


    Hais!


    This boy must have been through a lot of tough times because of the tyranny of his mother.


    "So.. because I have learnt quite a lot of stances and combinations, it should be quite safe for me to enter it?" said Duan Li after hearing what the principal had to say with quivering lips.


    To hell with that!


    I had only learnt all those stances to the adept level overnight!


    Furthermore, I only knew how to perform their proper form and have zero experience in using them in battle!


    Just as Duan Li wanted to voice out his own opinion, the principal raised his palm to stop him as he continued speaking.


    "I know that you must be thinking how did I know about it? Heh, senior teacher Ling Yu here had added the details onto your student report through the blue jade slips meant for communication!"


    "The blue jade slips?" said Duan Li feeling interested, but remembering his original intention to oppose the principal, he was interjected again and this time by Wang Guozhi who had recovered from his previous pitiful state.


    "There are many types of jade slips used by martial artists and cultivators alike.." he started off as he joined them to sat on the sofa with his appearance still unkempt.


    He then materialized many different types of jade slips with different colors from his spatial ring as he laid them outnicely on the table.


    He then began to explain..


    ...


    From Wang Guozhi''s explanation, the most commonly used jade slips according to their functions are;


    Blue jade slips, used for communication over long distances. Although not rare, they are quite expensive and have different sizes and brands imprinted on it. The most expensive one could cover the distance of several million kilometers!


    With it, you can reach your loved ones with no problem at all!


    Next, is the Red jade slips, oftenly used to record a visual footage for any purposes. At the academy, teachers would often record the method to practice stances with the proper form on this jade slips for their students to study. Also comes in different memory sizes and brands, the expensive ones even comes with sound recording function as well!


    Then is the yellow jade slips. This is used to record one''s thoughts and is fairly cheap. They are mass produced by the General Stores company and is useful for almost everyone. Students use them as a method to write mental notes during lesson conducted by their teachers.


    However, some knock-offs jade slips that made it to the market would often lose part of the data that was recorded in it when used, and the General Stores company along with other big shot companies had numerous time conducted campaign and raids to arrest those irresponsible people who made these immitation products!


    "..." everyone.


    Why does he sound like someone who is part of the marketing team?


    Duan Li had also remembered another type of jade slips, which is the green jade slips in his memories. It would seems that one is used to store one''s own unique spiritual Qi signature that is connected to the owners. If it cracked, it meant that the owner is in extreme danger and if it turned to ashes immediately afterwards, it meant that they had already died..


    "There are also numerous more types of jade slips which you will know eventually, but for now, take this blue jade slips, it will be convenient for us to communicate once you enter the eternal maze."


    The principal then handed them a medium sized blue jade slips each, about the size of a thumb.


    "The cost will be deducted from senior teacher Wang Guozhi''s salary later on, so for now let me explain further.."


    "....." everyone.


    ...

 24 Chapter 24: The fourth trial!

    "In this fourth trial, you only needed to return with a treasure box. The box will be something like this.."


    Shingggg!


    The principal took out a treasure box from his spatial ring that is square in shape. It is deep red in color and seemed to be made up from some kind of a wood that they hadn''t seen before.


    "According to the research division, this treasure box is made up from the nine roots tree. It is extremely tough and prevents weathering over time. However, the real starking features of this treasure box is at the bottom." said the principal as he turned the treasure box over.


    Duan Li and the rest craned their necks out to observe this treasure box that was laid on the coffee table. They saw some kind of a runic formation was inscribed onto it that seemed ancient and profound.


    Furthermore, the symbols and letterings used in the formation are quite foreign and doesn''t resembles their language characters at all.


    Truly mysterious!


    Kacha!


    The box opened after the principal drove his spiritual Qi signature onto it. Within it, is a pill that is white in color.


    "A pill?" the rest of them looked over suspiciously over this pill.


    Seeing their expression, the principal chuckled for awhile before explaining;


    "This pill and this treasure box is one part of the same body. When I drove my spiritual Qi onto the runic formation below the box before, it had registered my spiritual Qi as the owner."


    "The box had then processed my spiritual Qi into a pill that was then mixed with the essence of this treasure box. If you don''t believe me, Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi, try using your soul sense onto this pill and see it for yourself." gestured the Principal.


    "En!" the two of them nodded as they extended their soul sense onto the pill.


    Soul sense could be said to be the sixth sense of a human that could be unlocked once one reached the nascent soul realm. It can scan the surroundings or any materials to peer the secrets within.


    Furthermore, the higher one''s stage in the nascent soul realm is, the better their soul sense would be.


    Of course, compared to Duan Li''s future self of Heavenly sense, which could only be acquired after reaching the immortal ascension realm, they pale in comparison.


    After a thorough check on the pill using their soul sense, they both nodded to the principal''s statement as they could feel his spiritual Qi signature within it.


    How peculiar!


    They cupped their chin together.


    "Next, if you swallow this pill.."


    Gulp!


    The principal swallowed the pill and then hold the box with his right hand.


    Shingggg!


    The treasure box jolted as it remolded itself into a whip in but an instant. The three of them were shocked by this sudden transformation!


    "This nine roots tree wood are tough in nature but is already extinct. From the historical records, its origin could be traced towards a distant lands that was called as Mirealith. The records also mention that the people in these lands are slightly different in physical features than us, particularly their long pointed ears, and their indistinguishable gender." explained the principal.


    "Furthermore, it seems that with the augmentation of this runic formations, the owner could change its shape at will with just a thought after swallowing the pill." he added.


    It could change its physical shape at just a thought from the owner?


    That''s incredible!


    Everyone looked at the whip on the principal''s hand with extreme interest as they stroke their chin.


    "Also, the moment you found these treasure box, a voice will speak within your mind whether you would like to continue on the journey or exit the eternal maze."


    "At that point, naturally you should exit the eternal maze and your fourth trial will be complete! You may keep the treasure boxes as well!"


    Duan Li and Xiahou Yu nodded in understanding. They clenched their fist tight in excitement of wanting to have their own treasure box that could change at will!


    "But principal, how do you know about this and obtain this treasure box? Did you enter the eternal maze yourself?" asked Ling Yu in curiosity.


    This is because, not a single teacher or senior teacher have ever ventured into the eternal maze. It isn''t that they were forbidden to enter, but those who had entered it, had never made it out backalive.


    "No, I didn''t enter it, if I did, perhaps I would''ve died too!" answered the principal as he shook his head.


    "This treasure box was found by the explorer squad that consists of Qi Condensation realm students!" he added.


    Hearing this, Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi frowned.


    Why haven''t they heard of this squad before?


    Furthermore, Qi Condensation realm students?


    "Explorer squad? We have never heard of them!" said Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu as they shook their heads.


    "Hais, naturally this is a secret squad that the founding ancestor formed personally to raise the prowess of the empire.This tradition is only known to a select few, and now that you both knew of them as well, I would like for it to remain that way."


    "Otherwise.."


    Flash!


    A whip appeared on his right hand momentarily as it danced in the air looking for a prey. It then disappeared as quickly as well.


    The principle then explained things further for them.


    It turns out that from the analysis of the founding ancestor and several other principals of the academy after that, the lower the realm of someone who entered the eternal maze, the lower the risk of thedangerous encounter will be.


    In their best estimate, Qi Condensation realm will face difficulties of one stage above them. For example, a student with an early stage Qi Condensation realm will face difficulties similar to that of the middle stage, which doesn''t really amount to anything at all.


    One had to know that in every realm, there are ten levels altogether.


    The early stage would consist of the first, second and third level.


    The middle stage would consist of the fourth, fifth and sixth level.


    The late stage would consist of the seventh, eight and ninth level.


    Whereas the pinnacle would be at the tenth level of the Qi condensation realm.


    For the explorer squad party, they are usually consisted of either early stage, middle stage or the late stage only. Students with the pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm would not be allowed to enter the eternal maze.


    Should they enter, they will find the difficulties to be fatal as it would be on a whole other realm, which is the next realm, Foundation establishment realm.


    To make an anology, students with thepinnacle stage Qi Condensation realm could shatter a boulder the size of five by five meters using a single punch.


    A student with the early stage of Foundation establishment realm on the other hand could shatter a boulder the same size with just their index finger alone!


    Therefore, the gaps between them is as vast as the earth and the sky!


    Only those students with the pinnacle stage of the Qi Condensation realm who are tired of living could enter the eternal maze just to court death itself.


    "Hmm.. so only those with the Qi Condensation realm except the pinnacle stage could enter the eternal maze safely huh.." thought Wang Guozhi in contemplation as he cupped his chin.


    Hearing this, the principal shook his head.


    "Not necessarily! Other than the explorer squad, we also have the advance explorer party that consist of top students from the academy in the early stage of the Foundation establishment realm!" said the principal.


    Foundation establishment realm?


    "This.. is their difficulties are also at one stage higher too?" asked Duan Li as he was becoming more interested in this topic.


    The principal shook his head again.


    "Unfortunately, no.. " he sighed.


    The principal then explained that early stage foundation establishment would find the difficulties to be three times their realm, in other words, the late stage!


    Furthermore, there was even once a student with a level 3 early stage Foundation establishment realm whom entered even found the difficulties to be at the pinnacle level!


    Fortunately, that student managed to return alive as he brought a lot of life saving talismans with him.


    Therefore, with that logic, middle stage and beyond that stage of the foundation establishment realm would only encounter swift death if they entered.


    Foundation establishment realm against the core formation difficulties?


    It would be easier to clash head on with a mountain and still live rather than that.


    What more to say when the next few realms up to the nascent soul realm who wanted to try challenging the eternal maze?


    One should just travel to the past to report those unfilial children back to their parents so they could get a good thrashing.


    Your mother had put a lot of work to give you birth, and here you are trying to court instant death.


    "Needless to say, it would be better for you two to reach the first level of the Qi condensation realm first before heading into the eternal maze to avoid any mishaps. I will give you both three days to do so, it should be achievable with the means the academy has!" said the principal with confidence.


    Three days to reach the first level of Qi Condensation realm..


    Duan Li tightened his fist as he realized that his martial path are beginning to unfold..


    ...

 25 Chapter 25: Being Human and what it means.

    "Alright, Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu, I will permit you two to use the maximum resources to get them into the first level of the Qi Condensation realm within three days!" said the principal casually as he sips down the tea slowly.


    When they heard this, their eyes gleamed with excitement. Especially Duan Li and Xiahou Yu.


    For Duan Li, now that he was already exposed with the means of what a martial artist and cultivators could do, his previous indifference about being one have been replaced with the eagerness to be one.


    ...


    Leaving the principal''s office, Duan Li decided to practice under Wang Guozhi and Xiahou Yu under Ling Yu. This is because of their gender constitution between Yin and Yang and thus they must practice the suitable breathing method for it.


    Yin and Yang here refers to the duality that is present in all aspects of the universe. Yin is Female and Yang is Male. However, the comparisons are actually quite endless as they are used to describe how opposite or contrary forces are actually complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they mutually give rise to each other.


    "Right, let us first go to the library first and borrow some books that detailed out the various meridian channels inside the body. That will be very essential for you to visualize your breathing technique!" said Wang Guozhi.


    They both headed down and went back to the first main hall from when they entered the academy previously this morning.


    Duan Li haven''t realized it before, but the library is situated just on the third floor and the stairs is located right at the center of this hall.


    Entering the library, Duan Li could see rows of rows of books that is too many to count. Based on his rough estimation, there should be at least hundreds of thousands of books here!


    As someone who loved reading, naturally he was elated to be inside this treasure trove of knowledge!


    Seeing his excitement, Wang Guozhi chuckled and said "Impressive right? You can learn just about anything here!"


    He then explained that the library is divided further into quite a lot of sections, ranging from martial arts skills, breathing method, spells, runic formations, pill forging, blacksmithing, medicine, and more.


    However, students are only allowed to borrow one book each that is suitable for their realm. But for Duan Li now, with the special privilege he got from the principal, he could borrow as many books as he want.


    Although there were many students here, the atmosphere is quiet and only whispering sounds could be heard when the students talk to each other.


    Perhaps some sort of a spell was at place here?


    Duan Li strolled to one of the bookshelf for human anatomy after getting the proper directions from the librarian at the counter.


    "Take this book, this one and this!" said Wang Guozhi as he took out three books from the shelf titled, ''Comprehensive Human Meridian Channel Compendium'', ''The Three Dantians'' and ''2000 Acupoints of the Human body''.


    Each book was thick and heavy, such that if Duan Li hadn''t experienced an upgrade on his muscles during the first trial before, he would definitely fell to the floor right now due to their sheer weight.


    "Oho? You are quite strong!" complimented Wang Guozhi as he continued;


    "You can have a look at these books first before you start practicing breathing method."


    Then, Wang Guozhi led Duan Li to another bookshelf specifically for breathing method.


    "Usually, for new students whom have yet to practice any breathing method, they would usually pick up this book, ''Three steps to the Qi Condensation Realm!'' to absorb spiritual Qi into their dantian through the nostrils." he pointed towards a book which had several copies on the shelf.


    "But, for you boy, since you are already able to absorb spiritual Qi through your pores, then this book should be more suitable for you." he said as he picked out one book from the shelf.


    ''Opening pores, swallowing river!''


    This book is quite thick, and through Duan Li''s memories, the future him had also practiced this similar breathing method as well. It is a thoroughly renowned book in the whole Tian continent and many martial artist and cultivators started to practice them when they have reached the core formation realm!


    However, just as Duan Li took this book with him, his eyesight caught a peculiar red book sitting at the very corner of the shelf. Taking out this book, Duan Li found out that the cover was extremely old and the ink has weathered to the point that the sentences are hardly discernible at all.


    ''Nine Seas Forming Formation''


    Formation? Isn''t this supposed to be the shelf for breathing method?


    Why is there a formation book here?


    "Ohh that book is still here? Don''t even bother reading it, the words inside could hardly be read at all! Rumor has it that this is a breathing method that the founder had acquired during his many years of exploration before settling down to found the empire! However, even he himself did not dare to practice it since the book was already damaged over time." explained Wang Guozhi.


    Martial artists and cultivators whom practiced wrong or incomplete breathing method would risk themselves undergoing Qi deviation. Thus, eventhough this book had existed since the ancient past and seemed very mysterious, no one had tried to practice it yet.


    Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated for awhile. He then decided to take them both. After all, he had the privilege, so why not use it?


    Taking the books to the counter, the librarian frowned at first looking at the numerous books Duan Li wanted to borrow, but after Wang Guozhi passed towards her a blue jade slip with the principal''s commands, her countenance immediately changed as she swiftly approved them..


    "Now, let me show you the dorm and your room. For today, you only had to go through these books casually and try to understand some of the most important points in them."


    "Tomorrow, I will personally guide you to absorb the spiritual Qi from the surrounding using the ''Opening Pores, Swallowing River'' manual and also explain some stuff that I think you should know."


    Duan Li then walked with Wang Guozhi as they went back to the main hall and walked through the left wing. Along the way, he could see the cafeteria where many students of the academy hang out together.


    Before long, they then arrived at an open hallway leading towards the square of the academy. This square is extremely vast. Convenience stores, fast food restaurants and a department store was located along the pathways. There are even many outdoor facilities here for sports such as the football field, badminton, tennis and basketball court.


    Looking at these sports facilities, Duan Li couldn''t help but to ask;


    "Does the students here also play sports? Like.. do they even have the time for that?"


    When Wang Guozhi heard this, he just laughed it out and answered;


    "Of course they do! Even teachers and senior teachers play sports too! Even if we have gone onto the martial arts and cultivator path, in the end, we shouldn''t forget our own origin as a human being."


    "You would probably heard that people like us known as the immortals would slowly detach ourselves away from the mortal world as we advance on our path, but in fact, that was all in the past!"


    Wang Guozhi further explained that because people were like that in the previous era, immortals are very indifferent towards the life of mortal human being, as it fostered a concept in their mind that, they have evolved into a more superior species somehow.


    Always calling those weaker than them as ants.


    How annoying!


    Therefore back then, after the founder himself Jiu Zhentian formed the empire, among the first thing that he did was amending the relationship between immortals and mortals by re-introducing common grounds and establishing laws and order.


    And thus, sports is one of that common grounds!


    "But.. the physical attributes for immortals are far superior than mortals.." said Duan Li highlighting an important point.


    Wang Guozhi laughed out loud.


    "Hahahahahahaha! Boy, don''t misunderstand!"


    "When I said that we had established a common ground and sports is one of them, its not like we play sports against the mortals! Even if we suppress ourselves down to their level, our physical body alone would left them injured!" replied Wang Guozhi with a big hearty laugh as he patted Duan Li''s shoulder.


    It was then that after further explanation by Wang Guozhi that Duan Li understood. Sports is a physical entertainment activity for any humans, and even immortals are still considered as humans. Thus, there is no reason for immortals to not engage in any sports activity just because they are different than the mortals, because in the end, they are still humans!


    If being an immortal is to forget one''s own origin, then, isn''t that a problem in the path of the dao itself?


    Of course, sports competition played byimmortals are done between those of the same realm by suppressing themselves down to the first level. In addition, it is forbidden to use any spiritual Qi during asport and one must rely only on their physical body. Without spiritual Qi reinforcing the muscles and bones, immortals would become more or less like a mortal with heightened physical attributes only.


    It is also because of these that law and order are effective and mindless killings of the mortals are not tolerated and is punishable by death.


    Therefore, their era could be said to be the modern era with a more civilized approach in society as a whole.


    Thinking about this, Duan Li nodded in agreement to this philosophy as well.


    "Aha we have arrived!"


    ...

 26 Chapter 26: The Ronin Samurai!

    "Aha! we are here!" said Wang Guozhi as they stood in front of the dorm building.


    This building was made up from concrete with a color combination between deep and light blue. Also, the dorm consists of five blocks joined together by a round common hall building at the centre.


    From where they stood, Duan Li counted the number of floors slowly using his index finger with squinted eye, and found out that there are a total of ten floors for each block.


    "So, your room number is 810 in block B. That''s the eight floor, let''s get going then! I need to prepare my report too for today as well.. haa.. " sighed Wang Guozhi.


    When he was first offered as a teacher in the academy, he thought that all he needed to do was teach. But now, to think that they had to prepare a report everyday..


    What a hassle!


    I should just hire a shadow writer..


    ...


    At first, Duan Li thought that it would take quite an effort to go up the eight floor using the stairs. Fortunately, his body had already underwent a qualitative change from when he absorbed the spiritual Qi from the millennium Yidara tree before.


    Therefore, he barely needed to take a break and his breathing remained calm. Had it been his previous limpy body before, not to mention the eight floor, even going onto the third floor would havealready caused his breathing to become haggard like an old man.


    As they reached the eight floor, a student that came out from his room saw them and greeted with a cheerful smile and a wave.


    "Ehh? Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi? Nice to meet you here!" he said.


    "Ohh, Shen Lu! Your room is also on this floor as well? That''s great!" he exclaimed with gleaming eyes.


    "Could you show him to his room? He is Duan Li and is a new student in the academy! I needed to go now or else I wouldn''t be able to complete my report for the day!"


    Farewell!


    After saying his piece, Wang Guozhi immediately bolted out from the opening at the stairs and flew away. Leaving Duan Li with Shen Lu in a daze.


    "..." Duan Li and Shen Lu


    Ahem!


    Duan Li cleared his throat as he turned towards the man called Shen Lu.


    "Nice to meet you, I am Duan Li from Xuan village, 21 years old. I''m sorry for the trouble.." said Duan Li feeling guilty that he was suddenly being passed onto someone else.


    "Ahahaha! Don''t worry! It is of no trouble! I am Shen Lu by the way!" the man replied casually as he laughed it out.


    "Anyway.. you sure are carrying a lot of books there.. You don''t have a spatial ring?" he asked with a weird look to his face.


    Nowadays, no one actually carried such a burden along with them physically anymore as they stowed them all inside their spatial ring for convenience.


    "Emm.. no.. not yet.." replied Duan Li with an embarrassed look.


    "Hahahahaha! No wonder! Well, come! Let this brother here help you out a little bit!"


    He quickly snatched a few books from Duan Li''s hands.


    Pointing to a direction further at the back, they began to walk while carrying the books.


    "It''s that way! Let''s go!"


    ...


    ''creaakk!''


    Duan Li had finally arrived at his own room.


    In this room, he could see that there were one study table with one chair facing the window, a small table lamp, a bed, a shelf and one closet. It would seemed that every room has all these essential furnitures in it.


    Bam!


    Duan Li and Shen Lu put the stack of books on top of the bed.


    "Thank you for your assistance brother Shen Lu! I owe you a favor for this!" Duan Li bowed as he thanked him sincerely.


    "Ahahahaha! It''s fine! Unfortunately, I have to go now too to meet someone soon. How about we eat breakfast tomorrow morning together? We will have more time to introduce ourselves then!" he suggested.


    Duan Li thought to himself that this Shen Lu guy is pretty friendly and the air around him makes it easy for him to talk to with as well.


    "Sure, let us eat together tomorrow morning then!" replied Duan Li with a nod.


    "Alright! See you tomorrow!"


    Bam!


    Just like that, he made his first friend in the academy after Xiahou Yu.


    ...


    Duan Li sorted the books out one by oneas he put them on his shelf. He looked at the paper receipt and pinned it onto the wall. It seems that he needed to return them within a week. If he wanted to continue borrowing them, he had to go to the librarian again to renew it.


    "Hmm, let''s start with this book.."


    Duan Li picked out the ''Comprehensive Human Meridian Channel Compendium''


    Thud!


    The book was very heavy, swiftly checking the end page, Duan Li saw the numbers 461 at the end.


    His eyebrows twitched..


    "Could I actually reach the 1st level of the Qi Condensation realm within three days..?"


    Haa..


    ...


    Duan Li took four hours to finally finish reading the whole book. He massaged his temple together with his thumbs as he felt a little bit headache from all that reading.


    Now that I have finished reading them all and memorized everything..


    Let''s see..


    Duan Li closed his eyes.


    Shiingggg!


    Duan Li could see another new pathways that travelled around his body. It seems like this is the meridians inside my body?


    He observed his meridians as he could see that there is a kind of flow there but everything was stagnated and flowed really slowly.


    "Is this the internal force within my body?" thought Duan Li.


    Within the book, there was a mention regarding the internal force inside the body that exists in the meridians.


    This internal force is separate from the spiritual Qi, but they exists together as well. Like Yin and Yang, they made up the total amount of prowess one could hold if they master the usage of the both of them.


    "Hmm.. now that I''ve learnt that one.. next should be.. the human acupoints huh?"


    He put the previous book back to the shelf as he took out the ''2000 Acupoints in the Human Body''.


    Thud!


    "..."


    This book is even thicker, a total of 912 pages!


    Even for someone who loved reading, this book is too much!


    Who in their right minds would compile everything into a single big book?


    Haa...


    Duan Li sighed as he immersed himself reading the book word by word, not missing any details.


    ...


    After around 8 hours..


    "F-finally.. done.."


    Duan Li slumped his head above the book with tired face. His eyebag is already making it look like he is one of those malnourished panda.


    He looked towards the window with difficulty as he realized that it was already dark.


    "It seems that.. its already passed midnight.. got.. to.. sleep.." he said weakly as he forces his body to move limpidly onto his bed.


    He didn''t even bother to check whether or not he had gained the ability to see the acupuncture points with his All-seeing eye ability.


    As soon as he closed his eyes, he immediately fell asleep.


    Shiinggg!


    His All-Seeing eye activated. Thankfully, he could only see it when he was conscious. Otherwise, he might suffer from mental damage of being unable to sleep..


    ...


    The next morning..


    Duan Li rustled around within his blanket.


    As his consciousness woke up, he jumped up in a fright as he saw his body to be all bones and muscles.


    Holy-f*ck!


    It turns out that he had forgotten to open up his eyelids...


    Yawnnnnn!!


    Duan Li stood up from his bed lazily with a back stretch.


    It was quite chilly in the early morning so out of habit he tucked his left arm inside his clothes as he walked out of his room with droopy eyes.


    He remembered that the Shen Lu fella whom he called brother before, had told him that everyone on each floor shared the same public bathroom together.


    Thus, bringing his toothbrush and other morning amenities, he slided through the hallway among the many students who also lived on this floor.


    "Hey, look! Its a new face!"


    "Ohh? Its weird to have a new student at this time of the year.."


    "This man looked a little bit older than us, but he seemed weak.."


    "I think so too.. should we play a prank on him?"


    The people around him whispered here and there as they made a few assumptions regarding the background of Duan Li.


    "But hey, look at the way he is walking.. that staunched stance.. that indiffereny expressions.. he looks just like one of those ronin samurai from the Eastern lands!" one person commented.


    "Lets open up a path! I don''t want to get in trouble with someone like that!"


    People began opening up a path for him to walk.


    Duan Li hadn''t realized any of this yet as his mind was still in a daze after that long reading last night.


    Suddenly..


    "Stop right there!" shouted a man who seemed to be 18 years old.


    This man had quite the colorful pattern to him as his hair was dyed with the color of red, blue, green and yellow.


    When Duan Li raised his gaze to look at the person in front of him, still in a daze, he blurted out a sentence;


    "A peacock.."


    Gasp!


    The crowd sucked in cold breath.


    "Did he just call brother Zhang Li, the famous bully among junior students of the academy, as a peacock?"


    Pu!


    The crowd exclaimed in shock!


    This new guy is quite savage with his words!


    New boy, we know that his hair color looked like a peacock, but you shouldn''t say that out loud you know?


    "He is finished! Once brother Zhang Li gets enraged, that guy would be beaten up to a pulp!"


    "This is bad! Should we report this?"


    "No don''t! I want to see how this goes!"


    The crowd then started to back up to give them both a space for a few good rounds of brawling.


    After all, the use of spiritual Qi within the dorm is forbidden, and for security purposes, runic formations was around somewhere to seal their spiritual Qi are put into place on the foundation of each block.


    Thus, when there are fights at the dorm, people usually resorted to the good ol'' fists method!


    "Y-you!! You dare call me.. a peacock!" said Zhang Li enraged as he put up his hands together with clenched fist as he twisted his neck left and right to produce that ''crack'' sound.


    "T-that is his famous fighting style.. called boxing!" exclaimed one of the crowds.


    Poor new student, today is your bad luck it seems..


    Zhang Li curled up his mouth into a sneer as he moved in a stepping motion, zig-zagging between left and right with his arms raised.


    "Take this!" he shouted out as he threw a left hook in a sudden jerk.


    When he saw that Duan Li seemed too slow to react he smiled in disdain!


    This snail!


    But, just as his fist was only 1 centimeter away from hitting Duan Li''s face, the latter suddenly disappeared.


    Whoooshhh!


    Bam!


    Gales of wind pushed his face up against the wall, knocked unconscious.


    His left hook had punched the empty air!


    Gasp!


    Seeing this scene, the crowd sucked in air again as they stood silent for a while before breaking into storm.


    "W-what the hell! Did you guys see that!"


    "Unbelievable! To dodge at the last moment! But where is he..?!" said one of the crowd.


    They then look around to see that Duan Li was already at the end of the hallway turning the door knob of the public bathroom casually.


    "..." everyone.


    ...

 27 Chapter 27: The Gossiping Juniors!

    "Ahh..."


    Duan Li immersed himself in the sensation of bathing in hot water.


    "That feels good.." he said as he closed his eyes, feeling all his bodily aches to slowly go away with each exhalation.


    The hot water bath for the students were made up using spirit spring water, which was from a natural reservoir up from the mountains and then transferred into this bath through some genius engineering method called pipes.


    These spirit water could alleviate pain and fatigue when bathed in, and when it is drinked, could quench thirst with just a few sip.


    Furthermore, this hot bath were reinforced with runic inscriptions for passive healing in order to quickly restore the student''s vigor into the peak state every morning.


    After all, being a martial artists and cultivator is a tiring occupation.


    Shiinggg!


    His All-Seeing eye activated as usual but now he could see the addition of many tiny spots the size of a few needle points around his body. These are the 2000 acupoints that he had studied.


    "Mmm.. it seems that some of these acupoints overlapped with my meridians and blood vessels too.."


    He continued to explore his body with closed eyes as he thought about some stuff.


    According to the book and his memories, to level up in stages required three things;


    Firstly, is that they needed a certain amount of spiritual Qi density inside their body to push through a bottleneck. These bottleneck consists of several acupoints inside the body that the spiritual Qi must travel to and complete a whole cycle.


    Secondly, as these acupoints overlaps with the meridians and blood vessels, the physical body must also be trained to a certain extent to reinforce them. Otherwise, the dense spiritual Qi would rupture these pathways and seeps into the muscles and bones that would be difficult to control.


    Thirdly, is that it requires manual books to actually identify these pathways along which acupoints to be opened and closed to stimulate the meridians for new routes the spiritual Qi could use and circulate within a single breath.


    For Duan Li who had already reached the pinnacle in the original timeline, although his memories were now filled with a whole lifetime, but since that future self of his didn''t encounter the mysterious pearl at all, the result was - lapses in between memories.


    Duan Li is someone that has a habit to easily forget anything insignificant over time. Therefore, when he had reached the pinnacle of power before, all the practices and knowledge to breakthrough the stages of the lower realm were pretty much forgotten by him.


    This isn''t to say however, that he had forgotten them all. He did remember a few powerful skills and techniques that he previously used during his time in the lower realms. Just that these also had certain requirements and conditions.


    Furthermore, as someone who is at the pinnacle of the immortal ascension realm back then, his physical body was already tantamount to the rocky mountains. Thus, most of the stances of martial arts were no longer used by him as he inclined more towards the cultivator path instead.


    Therefore, other than a few notable andextremely strong stances of the martial arts path, again, he had forgotten most of them.


    Opening his eyes, he cupped his chin together.


    "I''ll go breakfast with brother Shen Lu first and then go back to my room to wait for senior teacher Wang Guozhi to come.. "


    During the bath, the other male students around him kept on whispering as his background got exagerated further and further.


    "I heard that this new guy had once served the emperor of the eastern lands when he was 16!" said a 16 years old boy with wild imaginations.


    "What? Then how did he end up becoming a student of the academy now?"


    "It is because his emperor got murdered by an immortal unjustly! Thus, he came here in order to turn himself into an immortal for revenge!"


    "T-thats! How tragic!"


    "It is! Hais.. what a rightful man.."


    These groups of young people were gleaming with respectful glances, reverence even as they allow their imaginations to run wild.


    Duan Li was oblivious to all their gossip talks as he didn''t bother to hear what they were saying. To him, the gossips from people younger than him shouldn''t be anything important and was just about girls and love.


    At the moment, he wasn''t interested in such an affair at all.


    Splash!


    He poured out cold water atop his body after getting out from the hot bath to freshen himself. Then after brushing his teeth and donning on his student''s uniform, he exitted the bathroom to find Shen Lu.


    Along the hallway, he could vividly realize that some students avoid their gaze from meeting his eyes. In fact, some even showed an expression of fear except the others that were older in appearance who seemed to be indifference. When he thought about it, it must''ve been because he looked like a senior. Therefore, as they were someone younger than him, it might be rude to look at their seniors straight in the eyes.


    Hmmm.. what a strange culture..


    "Ohh Duan Li! You''re finally out from the hot bath eh? How was it?"


    Shen Lu was leaning besides the door outside his room as he was waiting for him.


    "Ahh, I''ve never taken a bath such as those.. Its effects are really quite marvelous! All my fatigue from yesterday are gone too.. " replied Duan Li.


    "Hahahahahaha! When it was my first time using the hot bath, I was surprised too by its wonderful effects!" he laughed out.


    And then, sneakily looking around him left and right, he leaned forward to whisper at Duan Li.


    "Duan Li, I heard some of the students talking here that you were a ronin samurai from the eastern lands.. "


    Huh? Ronin samurai?


    From the eastern lands?


    What is that?


    "Eh? I''m not! I told you that I came from the Xuan village.." replied Duan Li shaking his head vehemently.


    Eventhough he didn''t know what a ronin samurai meant, he thought that it shouldn''t be anything good at all with the vibes he was feeling about it.


    "Is that so.. I even heard they said that you disappeared just a moment before Zhang Li''s left hook was inches away from your face.. and it was actually a quick draw techniques of a samurai. Fortunately they said, you didn''t bring with you any sword, otherwise that fella would''ve been a goner.. " said Shen Lu as he cupped his chin feeling amused.


    Zhang Li? Who is that?


    Did such an event really occurred this morning?


    Thinking about it thoroughly, Duan Li did indeed recalled that there was a young man who stopped him as if trying to say something to him.


    But because he was still in a dizzy at that time, he couldn''t heard what he was saying at all. The next thing he knew was that the young man tried to pat his shoulder perhaps as a way to become friends with him, but suddenly his bladder acted up.


    Thus, after saying that he needed to go to the toilet very quickly, he just rushed straight to the bathroom and entered the toilet. He then soon forgot about the whole matter after that!


    Hais, what a blunder!


    Duan Li palmed his forehead.


    "It must''ve been due to my ability that slowed down time automatically if I am under threat.. thought Duan Li.


    "Anyway, it doesn''t matter! People here always liked to gossip whenever they had the time. I sometimes wonder myself how they were similar to those old grandmas by the town street when they were gossiping! Whats with all their hush-hush way of talking and all! Hahahahahaha!" Shen Lu laughed out as he grabbed at his stomach, feeling hungry.


    "Ahahahaha..." Duan Li laughed too, albeit awkwardly.


    "Well, lets just go to the cafeteria then, the rumors will die out eventually! Im famished!" continued Shen Lu.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded as he was feeling quite hungry too now. But remembering something, he quickly entered his room to take the breathing manual on his shelf, ''Opening Pores, Swallowing Rivers''.


    He hadn''t had the time to read it last night, so he was thinking that he should read it on their way to the cafeteria and while having breakfast.


    As someone whom had already learnt such a breathing method before in that timeline, it shouldn''t take long for him to re-learn all the details on how to do it.


    When Shen Lu saw Duan Li carrying that thick book, he had a weird expression on his face as he threw some glances at it.


    Finally unable to rein in his curiousity, he couldn''t help but to ask Duan Li.


    "Duan Li, if I am not mistaken, that book.. is the breathing manual ''Opening Pores, Swallowing River'' right? Did you perhaps..were already able to breath in spiritual Qi.. using your pores slowly..?"


    Hearing this, Duan Li recalled that senior teacher Wang Guozhi did indeed mention such a thing. Thus, he nodded.


    "En! That''s right!" Duan Li replied casually.


    Although Shen Lu''s statement was a bit incorrect as he could actually absorb spiritual Qi through his pores rapidly, instead of slowly. But he wouldn''t tell that to him.


    "Ahh.. I see.. "


    At first, Shen Lu was quite surprised when he heard Duan Li''s answer, but thinking about how Duan Li is about the same age as him, he didn''t think that it was too weird.


    After all, there were quite a number of talented students who achieved the same feat as well at a young age in the academy.


    "Hais.. you are quite talented! While here I am, still only able to breath in spiritual Qifrom my seven apertures.." sighed Shen Lu as he felt a little bit down.


    People around him all said that he was a genius for being able to breath in spiritual Qi through his seven apertures when he was 19, and now three years later, he was still at that level while Duan Li and several other of his classmates were already able to breath in through their pores.


    "This.. hahaha.. I reckon brother Shen Lu would be able to do the same quite soon.." replied Duan Li awkwardly as he tried to smooth it out.


    Shen Lu sighed repeatedly along the way while Duan Li would casually open a few pages to read if they are not talking.


    ...


    At the cafeteria..


    "Oh yea, let me re-introduce myself! I am Shen Lu, a second year and is at the early stage of level 2 in the foundation establishment realm. I''m also one year older than you and I came from the Triding River town!" said Shen Lu as he munched down on his breakfast.


    "Why were you late to enroll here in the academy?" he asked feeling quite curious.


    "Ahh.. its because.. my mother wanted to train me personally before I enroll.." Duan Li decided to answer similar to how he had said it to sister Ling Yu.


    "Ahh.. no wonder.. then you should have already learnt quite a lot of stances for your foundation then. How much have you learnt? Perhaps we could trade for a few moves next time!"


    ...

 28 Chapter 28: Modifying efficiency level!

    Hearing that question, Duan Li remembered how Wang Guozhi''s expression became shocked when the latter heard he had practiced 89 stances with 416 combinations in total to the adept level.


    Thus, not wanting to become a high profile student, Duan Li decided to ask back first in order to get a benchmark so he could answer something lower than that.


    "This.. How about brother Shen Lu told me first how much have you learnt?.. I''m embarassed because I really haven''t learn much.. " he said.


    Shen Lu was all smiles as Duan Li said those. In his mind, eventhough Duan Li had already begun to breath in spiritual Qi using his pores and he was still stuck at the seven apertures, at least, he still holds the advantage in martial prowess.


    Naturally, that would have been the case since he was the senior while Duan Li was just a junior, newly enrolled at that. Thus, no matter how long Duan Li had trained under someone, their means couldn''t possibly outstrip the ability of the academy in nurturing talent.


    "I have learnt a total of 32 stances with 211 possible combinations! 15 attacking stances, 7 defensive stances and 10 supportive stances! I''ve mastered roughly twenty percent of them to the adept level, fifty percent to novice and 30 percent still beginner!"


    Shen Lu stated all of those as he sat while crossing his arms together and his nose pointing up to the sky.


    He was feeling quite proud of himself.


    Pu!


    Duan Li chocked on his coffee.


    "Eh? Are you okay? What happened?" said Shen Lu as he was startled that Duan Li had suddenly chocked on himself just as he was telling on how great he is.


    Could it be that my martial prowess was so high that he chocked on himself?


    That has to be it!


    Hais.. if I had known he would be like this beforehand, I would''ve tone it down a little bit.


    Poor little junior..


    Chocked by his own coffee..


    However, what he didn''t realize was that Duan Li had chocked himself because he was startled that Shen Lu had learnt so.. little!


    Was practicing stances that hard?


    You just have to follow it properly right?


    "T-that''s incredible..! I.. perhaps I only learn a few stances and isn''t worth a mention.. I''m too embarrased to say it.. so I hope brother Shen Lu could understand.." said Duan Li awkwardly, trying his best to sound demotivated so that She Lu wouldn''t pry any further.


    "Hais.. that''s fine.. I will teach you some if I have the time next time, so don''t feel too down.."


    Shen Lu felt pity towards Duan Li as he patted on his shoulder, and from the looks of it, he seemed to be quite sincere as well. But hearing that he was going to teach him some moves..


    Should he have just told the truth..?


    Ahem!


    Duan Li cleared his throat as he tried to change the topic.


    "By the way, how long would it take to graduate from the academy?"


    "Ahh, that actually depends.. the genius and talented people usually graduated after studying for 8 years. While the average students graduate on their twelfth year." he answered as he cupped his chin.


    He then explained further that in the academy, there are three types of students. The junior, who are all at the Qi Condensation realm, the Sophomore who are at the Foundation establishment realm and the senior, who are at the core formation realm.


    Students would then graduate after reaching the golden core formation realm.


    Thus, the title of seniority in the academy isn''t according to one''s age or how long they have been staying in the academy for, but instead, the student''s realm itself.


    In fact, it was quite common for some sophomores to be younger in age than their junior students counterpart.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s brows creased together. He didn''t expect that it would take at least 8 years to graduate. Thus, he checked his memories and it is indeed as so.


    However by that time, if according to the original timeline, they would already be facing the end times and doomed to an inevitable end by the sun dragon.


    If he remembered it correctly, he had managed to reach the early stage of the immortal ascension realm on the sixth year, and reached the pinnacle stage on the eight year.


    Now, with the help from the mysterious pearl, he conjectured that he should be able to reach the immortal ascension realm faster than before.


    In addition, with his photographic memories to cut studying time by a whole lot, his speed of amassing knowledge should be at least more than ten times!


    Furthermore, with his memories of being able to remember how it feels like to tide through each realm, especially the immortal ascension realm and its agonizing painful procedure, breaking through bottlenecks in the lower realm should be like a breeze to him now.


    However, he still felt that him alone being overpowered wouldn''t be enough!


    The despair he experienced upon the might of the colossal sun dragon was deep, even if there were a thousand of him at the same time, it would still be impossible to beat it.


    After all, a single person could only do so much.


    Thus, he needed to find ways to boost up everyone''s battle prowess as well asderive a counter measure against the sun dragon.


    The nine hermit kings or the so called abominations?


    He reckoned that in this timeline, he would be able to whack them casually with a flip of his palm.


    Especially that Crastesauros, Duan Li''s heart seethed with rage everytime he remembered how the empire fell and everyone had died including his mother because of it.


    He must make sure to torment that crab for all eternity thoroughly next time.


    Crack!


    The spoon broke as he got a little bit agitated.


    "Eh? What got you so worked up?" asked Shen Lu besides him.


    As someone from the foundation establisment realm, he could easily see that something had caused Duan Li to suddenly flare up in rage.


    Hearing this, Duan Li recomposed himself as he answered "Its nothing.. I just remembered something from the past.."


    "..." Shen Lu cupped his chin in contemplation as he threw a side glance towards Duan Li who went to the cafeteria lady to get a new spoon.


    He could see Duan Li bowing his head repeatedly as he apologized in embarassment to the angry lady for breaking the spoon.


    "Perhaps the emperor that he served in the past before really did got killed by an immortal unjustly.. hais.." said Shen Lu inwardly as he shook his head.


    What a man with history!


    ...


    After the breakfast, Duan Li parted ways with Shen Lu as the later would have a lecture soon. Duan Li hadn''t yet to register in any class modules as he was currently in a special provisions by the principal.


    As of now, he had roughly read 60 percent of the manual book he was holding. In theory, he could already practice the breathing method with just the insights from his memories alone.


    However, because he wanted it to be perfect, he chose to finish the whole book before trying to practice it. Going to the outdoor square, Duan Li could see some students playing football on the field while some girls cheered on them by the side.


    Scanning his surroundings, Duan Li saw a suitable spot to read under the shades of a tree located on a slightly hilly surface facing the football field.


    As he sat down and leaned his back against the tree trunk, a thought came up to his mind.


    "If this was the me before.. I would have definitely sleep soundly under the shades of this tree.. whatnot with this cool breeze from the wind.. " he said as he found the place to be quite comfortable.


    However, now that he is a changed man, he shook his head with a smile as he opened the book to continue reading the manual from where he previously left off.


    ...


    After roughly an hour, he managed to read and memorized every single sentence, description, details, diagrams and illustrations inside the manual.


    Just as he was about to try practicing it, the blue jade slip inside his pocket that was given to him by the principal previously had suddenly glowed a bit before he could hear someone talking from it.


    "Hello.. hello boy.. can you hear me?"


    This voice seemed to belong to senior teacher Wang Guozhi. Holding the blue jade slip on his right hand, he brought it close to his ear as he replied;


    "Hello.. senior teacher Wang Guozhi?" he said.


    "Aha boy! Where are you now? I''m currently up in the air above the academy, just tell me where you are and I will arrive in a jiffy!" replied Wang Guozhi.


    "Hmm.. I''m currently below the shades of a tree on top of the hill facing right in front of the football field at the square.." answered Duan Li as he lifted his head to look at the sky trying to spot Wang Guozhi.


    "Ahh so its around that area I see. Okay, wait for a moment!"


    He closed the connection as he bolted down from the sky.


    Pshewww!


    ...


    Bam!


    Wang Guozhi landed on the ground a little rough, creating a dent on it.


    Some girls who were watching the football before noticed the arrival of Wang Guozhi as they hushed up, whispering between each other.


    "Hey, isn''t that senior teacher Wang Guozhi? What is he doing up there?" said one of the girls curiously.


    "It seems that he is meeting that young man.. I can''t see his face clearly.."


    "I just used my peering skills to magnify my sight, here take a look of his image I transferred into the jade slip!" said another as she handed down a yellow jade slip.


    Wongg!


    Duan Li''s face emerged from the jade slip.


    "Ohh? We haven''t seen this guy before.. is he a junior?"


    "Mmm probably.. but it seems like I saw his face from somewhere this morning.."


    "En! Me too.. "


    ...


    "Senior teacher Wang Guozhi!" greeted Duan Li as he bowed.


    "Ahahahaha there is no need to be so formal! Let''s just sit here shall we?" said Wang Guozhi as they both sat below the shades of the tree.


    Noticing the book on the ground besides Duan Li, Wang Guozhi nodded in satisfaction.


    "Very good! It seems that you are very diligent in your study! Now tell me, what have you learned so far?" he asked as he crossed his arms, curious about this enigmatic young man in front of him that would eventually become the pillar for the whole Tian continent.


    "En! So last night.. " Duan Li began to retell the summary of what he had studied.


    Wang Guozhi''s face was all smiles before, but as he listened to Duan Li, his expression gradually becoming blank. Next, that blank expression was slowly replaced to that of an excitement!


    "So, you are saying that the breathing method would be more efficient if one had already opened the Lingxu acupoints and let the spiritual Qi travel from the Xuanji to the Zhongji acupoints directly instead of circulating it through the Huangshu acupoints?" Wang Guozhi cupped his chin as he contemplated this.


    "En!" nodded Duan Li.


    What Duan Li had mentioned before was how the breathing method should be changed accordingly to adapt the increase in each level of a stage which was entirely a new outlook to him.


    As a senior teacher who had vast experience in the path of being a cultivator, he naturally knew the method to adjust one''s breathing method to compensate the change advancing through the stages.


    Just that, the things he had learnt before was changes for every stages only. For example, his breathing method should be changed slightly when he advanced from the early stage to the middle stage.


    Yet, Duan Li had thought of a way to change this breathing method not for every stage in a realm, but for every LEVEL in the realm.


    What does this mean?


    It means that the breathing method could be changed ten times for every realm!


    Furthermore, this change isn''t just a small change at that.


    Imagine, for every change in breathing method on every stage in a realm, which would be a total of four changes from early to middle to late to pinnacle stage, had already increased the rate of absorption of spiritual Qi by 15 percent for each change.


    However now, according to Duan Li, every change in every level would increase the absorption of spiritual Qi by 10 percent!


    As a result, if the previous four changes amounted to a total of 60 percent increase in a single realm by the time one reached the pinnacle stage, this time, the total would be 100 percent increase!


    A whopping increase of 40 percent more efficiency than the traditional method is an extremely large gap!


    To make an analogy, if by 60 percent increase you could flood a village under a dam in ten minutes, then, with a 40 percent more increase, you could flood the village within 6 minutes!


    The time needed to recuperate one''s spiritual Qi would be vastly shorter using this method!


    How incredible!


    What a genius!


    "Y-you.. how did you learn about this?" asked Wang Guozhi as he gulped his saliva, feeling really impressed with Duan Li.


    He had only told the other party yesterday to skim through the books casually. Yet, not only that it seemed for him to have read every single pages, he had also made some modifications to the breathing method!


    "Umm.. because its within my memories of the original timeline.. " replied Duan Li slowly.


    In actuality, even his future self on that timeline had only 60 percent increase efficiency for every realm in absorbing spiritual Qi. But because he was already at the immortal ascension realm, the rate at which he absorbed spiritual Qi was just heaven-defying.


    For those that were still in the nascent soul realm, they wouldn''t be able to notice that it was actually nothing special at all and was just because of the difference in between realm.


    Thus, remembering that Duan Li was a true immortal that he himself had witnessed. The earth-shattering battle prowess his future self held in that state, is extremely domineering! Therefore, he chose to immediately trust what Duan Li had told him.


    Not wasting time any further, Wang Guozhi sat down cross-legged on the ground as he drove his spiritual Qi according to what Duan Li had just said while shutting his eyes to concentrate.


    Right now, he was at the fourth level of the nascent soul realm, which is at the beginning of the middle-stage and had already increased his spiritual Qi absorption by 15 percent after advancing from the early stage.


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Very quickly, the aura of Wang Guozhi rose to its peak as a series of acupoints were rammed simultaneously inside his body.


    BOOM!


    His aura reached the pinnacle as he felt his spiritual Qi flow inside his body becoming more fluid by about 10 percent!


    Its true!


    He opened his eyes as it shone with extreme excitement!


    Unable to contain himself, he jumped up and shook Duan Li''s body repeatedly.


    "HAHAHAHAHA! Boy! You are a true genius!"


    Duan Li''s face turned red as it was the first time that he got complimented by another in such a happy state.


    He smiled as he clenched his fist.


    "I will help everyone to become stronger.. sun dragon.. just you wait!"


    ...

 29 Chapter 29: Against the Heavens!

    After listening to the theories of how Duan Li came up with the modifications to the breathing technique, Wang Guozhi became even more convinced that it would be suitable for even Qi Condensation realm students to practice this change as long as the proper meridians and acupoints along the body are stimulated correctly.


    "Then, have you already cultivate according to this breathing method?" asked Wang Guozhi.


    "No.. not yet.. I had only just finished modifying the breathing technique from the book a few moments ago with the help of my memories.." replied Duan Li in a small voice.


    If it had been any other students who came up with such a theory and told him that they hadn''t practiced the method yet while telling others to do it, he would''ve whacked that student to half-death.


    Fortunately, the student in front of him is Duan Li who had already reached the highest pinnacle of power in the future. Thus, he was confident that he wouldn''t risk any form of Qi deviation.


    "Alright then, you should start to cultivate it and enter the first stage of Qi Condensation realm to walk the path of both martial artist and cultivator! I shall guard you, so you don''t need to worry!" gestured Wang Guozhi as he stood up straight.


    Duan Li nodded.


    "Then, I will start..!"


    Duan Li closed his eyes as his breathing slowed down.


    Shingggg!


    The All-Seeing eye activated.


    After observing his body conditions internally and found nothing out of place, he began to breath in spiritual Qi using his pores.


    Due to the experience he had from breathing in spiritual Qi using his pores from the millennium Yidara tree and the help from his memories, it was easy for him to do it again. Before long, spiritual Qi from the surrounding area began to converge together in a spiral motion with him as the center.


    "T-this.. the spiritual Qi in the area are being dragged forcefully!" exclaimed Wang Guozhi in a shock.


    Even the students that were playing football at the field and the cheering female students stopped what they were doing as their attention shifted onto the strange phenomenal event happening currently atop of the hills where Duan Li and Wang Guozhi are located.


    "Guys! Look at the sky above there! What is happening?!" cried one of the girls.


    "I can feel the surrounding spiritual Qi were being sucked and centered over there!" said one of the foundation establishment students.


    "Let''s have a look!"


    "En!"


    The students flew over to the sky as they watched at a distance, not daring to get closer due to their gut instinct was telling them it''s dangerous.


    Furthermore, with Wang Guozhi standing guard, who would even be brazen enough to be near?


    The grasses and leaves were swaying back and forth rapidly as the blue sky suddenly became cloudy and turned dark within just a few moments.


    "This phenomena.. it cannot be!" exclaimed Wang Guozhi as he observedthe sky with grim expression.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    Thunder and flashes of lightning crackled the sky above. Wang Guozhi''s expression turned ugly as his premonitions came true.


    "A thunder tribulation!"


    For a student that haven''t yet to have any sort of cultivation or even realm to already be undergoing the thunder tribulation meant only for one to ascend to the foundation establishment realm and higher, is an evidence that the heavens itself were alerted by him!


    After all, walking down the cultivator path and practicing cultivation is an act of defying against the heavens itself as it is a process whereby the mortals are striving to become an immortal.


    However, at the Qi condensation realm, the heavens have never sent down any sorts of tribulations at all and that has been the iron law since the beginning of time!


    Yet now, for one to appear when Duan Li was just trying to enter the first step towards immortality and the heavens was already provoked, shows how heaven-defying Duan Li actually is.


    "Kuh.. ! I can''t help him to tide through this tribulation!" said Wang Guozhi with gritted teeth as he clenched his hands into a fist.


    He was helpless in this kind of situation!


    After all, a thunder tribulation is a form of judgement sent down from the heavens and anyone else besides the cultivator themselves are not allowed to interrupt or help the cultivator at all, lest they would be immediately struck down by the thunder too.


    The crowd of boys and girls who were watching from afar broke into acommotion.


    "This is a thunder tribulation! But this is even intense than when I was trying to ascend to the foundation establishment realm!"


    "I know right! Is he advancing to the core formation realm?"


    "No! I have seen the core formation realm tribulation, this is a little more intense than that as well!"


    "W-What? Then.. is he going to ascend the golden core realm stage?"


    "I don''t know! Let''s just watch! This is pretty interesting!"


    The clouds continued to rumble as it got bigger and darker. Wang Guozhi had already contacted Ling Yu and the principal about this matter as soon as his premonitions came true. Currently, they were already underway and should arrive shortly.


    ¡­


    Psheww!


    "Wang Guozhi! Tell us what happened!" asked the principal as soon as he arrives along with Ling Yu, their expressions grim when they look at the dark sky and coiling thunder seeming to recharge itself before striking at full power.


    Wang Guozhi then quickly retells them the events that were happening.


    After the principal heard the details, he quickly informed numerous senior teachers using the blue jade slips to position themselves along the four cardinal directions of the academy to seal the space around it by using spatial magic.


    His purpose of doing so isn''t to try and help reduce Duan Li''s tribulation as that was something impossible, but instead, to limit the public from being able to see this peculiar events.


    After all, if cultivators on the nascent soul realm outside the academy''s jurisdiction were to witness this scene, they would immediately found out that Duan Li hadn''t even yet to step into the Qi Condensation realm and had already attracted the thunder tribulation.


    From that alone, they would be able to conjecture that Duan Li would become someone big in the future and some would even be threatened. As a result from that, some may decide to eliminate him or even use him in one way or another to fulfill their own agenda.


    That is a risk he is not willing to take as Duan Li hadn''t yet matured in terms of his cultivation and battle prowess.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    "It''s almost starting!" they exclaimed worriedly.


    ¡­


    While everyone else was worrying, the person that became the object of worry himself was as calm as the ocean below the tumultuous waves above. Totally oblivious as to what was happening outside as he continued to immerse himself in absorbing spiritual Qi at a rapid rate.


    "Hmm.. I think I have been absorbing spiritual Qi for a while already.. but my dantian is still not fully ready..?" thought Duan Li as he found the situation to be weird.


    In his memories, although his potential was very vast at the sky grade, back when he tried to first reach the Qi Condensation realm, it didn''t eventook this long.


    ¡­


    Outside Duan Li..


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    "I-impossible.. each of those thunders were already as big as a tree trunk! This tribulation is already way beyond what a core formation tribulation is like!" said the principal in hoarse voice.


    Will he survive?


    Even if they wanted to help, it would be futile. Furthermore, not only that it wouldn''t be able to help at all, it might provoke an even bigger disaster for Duan Li. Thus, they could only hope for the best.


    Crack!


    KABOOMM!


    The first thunder struck down on Duan Li.


    BOOM!


    Pshingg!


    "HUH?!" cried the trio with stupefied expression.


    Did we just saw wrongly?


    They wiped their eyes quickly as they focused their gazes once more.


    Even the thunder tribulation seemed to be quite startled by something that it went mute for a few seconds before recharging once more.


    This time, even more furiously!


    "T-the tribulation was upgraded!" cried Ling Yu as she felt horrified.


    The tribulation right now was similar to one that are undergoing the golden core tribulation!


    KABOOM!


    The thunder struck a second time. This time, it sent down three strokes of thunder simultaneously.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    Pshingggg!


    "¡­" everyone.


    ¡­

 30 Chapter 30: Qi Condensation Realm!

    Pshiinggg!


    "..." everyone.


    "..." thunder tribulation.


    "H-hey.. did my eyes played tricks on me?" asked Wang Guozhi with eyes opened wide and his mouth fell agaped.


    "I.. I see the thunder struck down.. and then.. Duan Li seemed to.. seemed to.."


    "He sucked in the thunder right..?" continued the principal as Ling Yu was stuttering in between her words to confirm what they were seeing.


    The trio nodded together as they realized that what they had seen was all real!


    In their imaginations before, when the thunder had struck down, what followed after that should be a scene of Duan Li howling in agonized pain towards the sky!


    But, not only were their expectations wrong, it was totally off by a wide error margin!


    To think that the heaven''s punishment would be absorbed by him!


    The thunder had struck down with an extremely scary momentum onto Duan Li. But just as it had reached one meter above him, something fluctuated like an invisible layer of sphere protecting him!


    At the same time, that barrier shredded down those mighty thunders into small spiritual Qi comprising of thunder elements!


    One had to know that, against the heaven''s thunder tribulations, any sort of magical artifacts or runic formation could only reduce the damage a tiny-little bit and never so much as to stop it.


    But for Duan Li to be able to casually halt the thunder mid-air using some unknown bizarre power around him, and as if that wasn''t enough to humiliate the heavens, it even turned to whack the thunder tribulation down into smaller thunder elements before absorbing them whole!


    CRACK!


    BZZZTTTT!


    Hearing the deafening drizzing sounds up on the sky, to the point of forcing the trio to close their ears with their hands, they were flabbergasted as of this moment.


    "L-look! The clouds are even getting denser and the lightning had changed color to red!" pointed out Wang Guozhi to the sky with bated breaths.


    "T-the heavens had finally gone bonkers!" exclaimed Ling Yu with horrified expression.


    The sky right now was extremely dark, with flashes of ligtning that no longer seemed white or blue, but instead red in color!


    The crimson flashes of lightning overshadowed by the dark clouds made it seem that the world was drowned in an ocean of blood!


    Never before had the heavens itself has been humiliated during the course of sending down judgement like now.


    Therefore, it could be imagined how the heavens were seething in rage right now as it stepped up the game by introducing new and powerful thunders!


    "C-crimson thunder! Isn''t this meant for the golden core people that wanted to ascend to the nascent soul realm?! Why is it here?!" Wang Guozhi was entirely shocked right now to the point of farting out some putrid gases from his bottom.


    As nascent soul realm experts themselves, they were pretty much very familiar with the color of this thunder.


    After all, this was the thunder that was giving them the hardest time ever back then!


    "D-don''t tell me.. Duan Li is jumping straight to the nascent soul realm?" said Ling Yu while swallowing down her saliva that were threatening to choke her.


    "Impossible! That would never be tolerated by the heavens! If that were the case, then I''m sure, even if the heavens had to exhaust its supplies of thunder tribulation to the point where they have to personally rub their feet against the rubber carpet to generate static charges, they would definitely scramble to stop him at all costs!" interjected the principal.


    For the first time, even the principal had lost his calm composure as his lips were quivering like mad.


    Thankfully, the other two senior teachers beside him were busy looking at the clouds above. Otherwise, they would be able to see his puffer fish mouth which would destroy his grand image.


    Ahem!


    He quickly recomposed himself as he put on a grim expression.


    Unbeknownst to him, there were students who caught sight of his bizarre expression from a far.


    ...


    "Did.. you guys.. record that..?" asked one of them.


    "I did.. " replied another.


    "This footage is a red tape then.. "


    ...


    CRACK!


    The clouds teared up as several hundreds of crimson thunders were floating on the sky, ready to smite Duan Li at a moments notice.


    When the trio saw these, their expression turned ugly once more as they panicked.


    "The heavens intended to eradicate him all at once!" shouted the principal.


    "I.. I need to help him!" exclaimed Ling Yu as she tried to flew over to Duan Li before she was stopped by both Wang Guozhi and the principal.


    "No! You musn''t make it any worser than this!" they adviced her.


    Right after they said their piece each, the crimson thunders jolted as they rained down from the heavens!


    This phenomena was akin to like the ends of the world!


    The symphony of destruction!


    Not even the corpse of Duan Li later onwould be spared!


    BOOM!


    pshingg!


    BOOM!


    Pshingg!


    BOOM!


    Pshingg!


    ..


    ..


    After a while..


    BOOM!


    Pshingg!


    BOOM!


    Pshingg!


    Pssss..~


    The thunder that rained down grew weaker and feeble.


    "..." everyone.


    With the repeated strokes of thunder striking at him, they had assumed that whatever barrier that was protecting Duan Li at that moment would surely break apart, unable to withstand the countless batterings from the heavens.


    Yet right now, it was instead the clouds that began to dissipate as the berserk energy from the sky were drained of power to exhaustion.


    It had tried its best to pummel Duan Li, but no matter what it tried to do, it just couldn''t penetrate through that damned barrier!


    Damn it! God damn it!


    What a beast!


    "The tribulations.. is finally over.. haa.." exclaimed the trio in relief.


    For a moment or so, they even seemed to hear the heavens wailing and crying in frustration!


    "That had to be the most powerful tribulations that I have ever encountered! Even ours back then paled in comparison.." said Wang Guozhi as he shook his head with dejected expression, feeling somewhat defeated.


    "Well, let''s see how much success Duan Li had made first.. "


    The principal and the rest then waited patiently for the dust that was kicked up by the raging heavens before to settle down.


    ...


    Before long, they could finally see a silhoutte sitting on the ground cross-legged. From the looks of it, it seemed that he didn''t even have a single scratch or damage to him.


    Duan Li''s expression was calm, even smiling happily at that while still closing his eyes as if he was located in the center of a paradise right now.


    Smiling? Smile your head!


    Don''t you know how worried we are?!


    For a moment, we even thought that you would inevitably become a black-charred corpse..


    But here you are smiling as if looking down at the heavens in disdain!


    Hais..


    We felt pity for the heavens instead.. its dignity got smeared because of you..


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Sounds of Duan Li breaking through a few bottlenecks could be heard.


    "He is even breaking through a few bottlenecks right now while he was at it as well it seemed.. " said the principal as he shook his head helplessly.


    How much heaven-defying could a man be before being satisfied?


    Hais..


    Slowly, Duan Li''s aura reached its peak as it was gradually being reined back down inside Duan Li''s body, a sign of stability after an advancement.


    The swaying grasses and leaves stopped as well as the weather turned blue once more, as if the previous bizarre phenomena never happened.


    Duan Li opened his eyes as it gleamed with a powerful vigor.


    "Success!" he said as he clenched his right hand into a fist in excitement.


    Checking on himself, Duan Li was quite satisfied as he nodded.


    He had advanced all the way to the level 9 of the late stage in the Qi Condensation realm!


    Even the principal along with Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu were surprised by this.


    Never before had a person advanced immediately from nothing straight to the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm!


    He was quite troubled when it took him awhile to enter the first level, but after he did, everything became smooth sailing!


    Now this is what you could call domineering!


    The trio approached Duan Li whom was still sitting cross-legged at the ground.


    "Duan Li, are you okay?" asked the principal while the other two showed worried expression.


    "I''m fine! I was actually quite surprised that there were no mishaps at all! To think that I could level up all the way to level 9 immediately after stepping into the Qi condensation realm, the heavens sure are kind for allowing this to happen!" answered Duan Li as he looked to the sky in reverence.


    His heart was filled with deep respect towards the heavens!


    Pu!


    The trio choked onto themselves as they nearly spat out blood and farting putrid gases when they heard this.


    Brother, the heavens was trying to smite you back then into non-existence!


    And here you are saying such things..


    The trio held their chest together, afraid that they wouldn''t be able to take any more domineering acts from Duan Li.


    The principal coughed a few times before talking once more to calm down.


    "This.. this matter is entirely quite mysterious to us.. won''t you tell us how you managed to achieve levelling up straight to level 9?" asked the principal as he clutched his chest, trying to calm himself down.


    "En..!" Duan Li nodded.


    "At first when I gathered the spiritual Qi from the surrounding to form the first pool in my dantian of the lower region below the navel, I noticed that it was too little.. Furthermore, the circular motion to complete one cycle around my body was too slow, which was around one breath to complete it.." he said with a frown and a contemplative look.


    "Therefore, I decided to try and form another pool in my second dantian between the heart and my solar plexus! To my surprise, It then shortens the time to complete one cycle by a third!" continued Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    You formed the second pool in your second dantian you said?


    You ''just'' decided to TRY?


    Pu!


    He is insane!!


    In fact, everyone in the academy knew that there are three dantians in the human body. But people could only cultivate using a single dantian that is below the navel!


    It is not to say that no one has ever tried to use their other dantians to cultivate before, there WERE a few actually.


    Just that they have all died prematurely!


    Once they had finished storing spiritual Qi into these other dantians, their Qi flow inside the body will turn in reverse haphazardly causing instant death!


    Due to this, it has been dictated inside the book ''The Three Dantians'' that one should only cultivate the lower region dantian and not the other two.


    Therefore, how did he do it?


    Perhaps, this was why the heavens were enraged?


    Because he was practically defying common sense itself!


    "Y-you.. did your Qi not flow in reverse because of that?" asked the principal with stupefied expression.


    "Ohh..? Now that principal has reminded me, it did try to reverse my Qi flow!" answered Duan Li with a nod.


    "T-then.. how did you.. solve it?" the trio asked in unison with their fist clenched tight in anticipation and their breaths hastened.


    If they could also know the secret to cultivate their other dantian, their battle prowess would increase by who knows how much!


    "Emm.. its not that big of a deal.. I just opened a few acupoints and redirected it to another place a few rounds until it rejoined the main meridians to flow naturally again!" replied Duan Li as he explained further what acupoints he opened and closes.


    When the trio heard his answer, at first they were gleaming with excitement. But as Duan Li carried on, their expression slowly turned bleak before becoming helpless..


    After all, what Duan Li just mentioned to them was impossible to practice!


    When he listed out the total acupoints to be controlled, by opening and closing simultaneously was about 400 in total, they knew that Duan Li is someone not human.


    Even horrifying to them, was how Duan Li could mention a few of those pathways that seemed unfamiliar even to them as a nascent soul realm experts!


    Just how deep is his understanding of the human body?


    Or was it because of the insights from his future self?


    While the trio was in a daze, Duan Li continued to speak.


    "And then, I just remembered that we humans had another dantian located somewhere inside the head. Thus, I drove some of the spiritual Qi in circles around my brain until I could locate it."


    "When I finally found on what seems to be the right place, I made another pool inside it and redirects the Qi flow again until it reached the main meridians to flow naturally once more."


    "Hence, right now I could complete three full cycles of spiritual Qi inside my body in a single breath!"


    "After that, although it took me longer than I expected, I just continued to form a total of nine pools in each dantian to reach the ninth level of the Qi condensation realm!"


    "To be honest, I was about to form the final pool to reach the pinnacle when thankfully, I remembered that I needed to enter the eternal maze later on!"


    Duan Li exhaled in relief as he wiped the sweats off his forehead.


    He thought that, for a moment, he almost fell into a blunder and accidentally reach the pinnacle stage.


    It would be a disaster for him if he challenge the eternal maze at the pinnacle stage!


    Fiuuhh!


    After he finished explaining, he finally looked at the trio before he jumped up in a fright immediately.


    He had found out that their faces had grown pale as a sheet of paper and their eyes unfocused like their last lifeforce was being sucked dry!


    "..."


    The trio howled out in indignance within their soul..


    ...

 31 Chapter 31: What should I choose?

    At first, when you told us that you had cultivated your second dantian, we were already shocked to death.


    Then, when you told us how you did it, our sincere excitement turned into helpless dejection at the impossibility and impracticalability of your solution.


    And just as we tried to recompose ourselves and accept the fact that you are unique, you bombed us yet with an even more confounding truth that you had cultivated your third dantian!


    What''s that you said?


    Twirl around your spiritual Qi flow inside your brain until you found the exact location of the dantian?


    Pu!


    Psheww~


    Padah!


    Padah!


    Padah!


    The trio spatted out a mouthful of blood each as they found their body grew weak and fell to the ground.


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Kacha!


    Several of their lifesaving talismans broke down and crumbled to pieces simultaneously one after another as it replaced their mental trauma from Duan Li''s savagery.


    To think that their very mental fortitude were assaulted relentlessly to the critical level from Duan Li''s sentence alone!


    You dared to play around with your Qi flow inside your brain..


    Are you tired of living?


    What, do you disdained life so much that you tried to find creative ways to commit suicide?!


    Brother, you should take the first place for the title of courting-death expert!


    Not even knowing where the third dantian was located..


    Why haven''t you died yet?


    The trio struggled to get up from the ground as Duan Li hurriedly ran forward to help them up.


    "W-what happened? Was there enemy?!" exclaimed Duan Li in shock as he put on his guard while looking around in full alert.


    "N-no.. that''s not it.." answered Ling Yu with heavy breaths.


    "T-then..." Duan Li was trying to said something else as he continued to make another speculation before the principal gestured towards him to stop.


    Flash!


    A whip materialized on the principal''s right hand.


    "You don''t have to know!" he yelled with gritted teeth.


    "Y-yes!" answered Duan Li in a fright as he stood up straight like a soldier in the army, afraid of being whipped.


    The principal was quite upset right now.


    Not only that the other party''s solution was not feasible to them after giving such a high hope, even his dignity as the principal was broken to pieces as his expressions contorted into many faces..


    His previous mighty and awe-inspiring disposition crumbled into a wretched state.


    Hais..


    Flash!


    The whip dematerialized as it was put back into his storage ring. He then sighedmany times as he looked towards the sky in a 45 degrees angle with his hands clasped behind his back.


    Just as he was contemplating on what sentences should he spout out that were filled with wisdom in order to salvage back his dignity as the principal, his face suddenly froze as he caught something by the corner of his eyes.


    There were some students watching them from afar..


    Curses!


    "Stay here!" he shouted towards Duan Li, Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu causing them to jumped up in a fright seeing that deranged face of their principal as they nodded like a bunch of chickens pecking rapidly at the ground.


    Pshewww!


    The principal flew towards the students..


    ...


    "Huh.. guys the principal is coming over!" shouted a female student as her face contorted in horror.


    "Do you think.. he is here to eradicate all witnesses..?" said another student as he felt his butt to tightened mysteriously.


    The students then look towards each other as their faces turned pale immediately.


    "RUN FOR IT!"


    They shrieked together as they scrambled towards many different directions.


    ...


    "Where are you brats trying to run off to?!" the principal shouted from afar as his hands moved to create a series of complex incantation gesture.


    ''Space Magic: Spatial Lock!''


    "STAY!" he howled out.


    ...


    "Wha-what! My body.. I couldn''t move!"


    "Nooo! the principal is getting nearer!"


    "I shouldn''t have been here..! Oh fate.. why must thee be so cruel..!"


    The students roared to the sky in indignance!


    From afar, Wang Guozhi swallowed his saliva.


    "H-hey.. do you think.. the principal.. would.. " he said slowly, not daring to finish his sentence.


    Ling Yu and Duan Li hide their faces with their hands as they peeked through the gaps in-between their fingers at the horrifying scene.


    Woongg!


    The students and the principal disappeared..


    The last scene they saw was that the principal had materialized his whip..


    "They are done for.."


    ...


    After a while..


    Woongg!


    Padah!


    All the students were laying on the ground now convulsing with streak marks along their body like how Wang Guozhi was previously.


    "Hmph! You brats had better not mention a thing about what just happened! Otherwise, with my influence.. I could catch you anytime as long as you are within the empire!" harrumphed the principal as he reprimanded the punished students.


    On his hands were several jade slips of differing colors that he seemed to confiscate.


    "I''ll take this contrabands away too! You brats dared to have these illegal things with you and should be glad that I am quite lenient with my punishment this time around!"


    "Now scram!!" shouted the principal as he made a terrifying face like a pubescent gangster.


    "Y-yes!" replied the students as they struggled to get up and flew away very quickly while quivering in fear.


    That whipping session they experienced was extremely horrifying to the point that the terror from it has been etched deeply into their soul..


    After this, even if they were to be beaten to death while naked, they swore to never tell a soul about what had transpired here!


    Ahem!


    The principal cleared his throat as he flew back to Duan Li and the rest.


    "Now.. where was I.."


    "Ahh yes! Duan Li, you have opened my eyes with these miracles you have performed today!" complemented the principal with a weird smile.


    "T-thank you principal!" replied Duan Li hurriedly.


    Afraid that the principal would do something to him too, he immediatelyremembered about how he had modified the spiritual efficiency level before.


    "Also, I have modified the spiritual Qi absorption efficiency method!"


    Hearing this, the principal''s brows were raised as he became interested.


    "Ohh? Explain!" he beckoned.


    ...


    After Duan Li had finished explaining, the principal contemplated for a while before sitting down cross-legged to cultivate his spiritual Qi according to the method that Duan Li had mentioned.


    Before long, a series of ''kacha'' sound could be heard as the principal''s aura rose to another level.


    "Hmm interesting indeed! It does increase my spiritual Qi absorption by at least 10 percent!" he said with a satisfied nod.


    He himself had already reached the pinnacle of the nascent soul realm. Thus, further increasing his spiritual Qi absorption anymore was naturally extremely difficult.


    Yet, with just listening to the modifications theory made by Duan Li, he had achieved it quite easily!


    "Is this practical for every level in every realm as you have said?" asked the principal in excitement.


    Duan Li nodded quickly as he answered, "It does!"


    Hearing the positive response, naturally, the principal became quite happy.


    10 percent increase for every level is quite significant and can dramatically increase the empire''s strength by many folds if it accumulates!


    "Alright! After you exitted the eternal maze tomorrow, I want you to compile me a book that could increase the spiritual Qi absorption for every level in the Qi condensation realm!"


    "Furthermore, you will be rewarded handsomely for this merit!" said the principal.


    They then discussed a few things related to the modification techniques.


    ...


    After a while, Duan Li decided to head back to his room at the dorm to rest for the day as they split up.


    The trio needed to report this findings to the research and development division so that Duan Li could get the copyright for it.


    Before they split up though, the principal gave Duan Li some of his personal martial arts manual books back when the former was still at the Qi condensation realm.


    He sat in front of the study table as he pondered while looking at the manual books.


    ''Nine fists shattering meteor''


    ''Nine palm slapping ocean''


    ''Nine swordplay thunder strike''


    These three martial arts manual were part of the Nine legends edition that were famous back then from a certain martial artists.


    They are extremely expensive and the principal had warned Duan Li to never lost them or borrow them to someone else.


    In Duan Li''s memories, he had never been imparted with any of these three manual books before and would only knew about them after he reached the core formation realm, which at that time was already quite useless for him to practice this low-level technique.


    After all, these were the skills used only by those at the Qi condensation realm. Although its prowess makes them top notch, against skills of the higher realm, they aren''t even worth a mention.


    The reason why the principal had loaned on to him these three expensive manual books was because of the sudden leap in Duan Li''s level from nothing to level nine in an instant.


    Even if Duan Li had the spiritual capacity of a level nine condensation realm, his foundation in this level could be summed up to as zero, because he had learned nothing yet.


    Not to mention that Duan Li hadn''t undergone any physical body tempering before. Thus, his abundance of spiritual Qi inside his body is pretty much useless as well.


    Furthermore, in order for his still-weak meridians and blood vessels to not rupture due to the excess amount of spiritual Qi, he had to suppress his level down to the level one of the Qi condensation realm so that only a minimal amount are cycled throughout his body.


    If others were to know about this, they would find Duan Li''s situation to be quite peculiar.


    According to the natural order, one must temper themselves up to the requisite condition before levelling up, and this has been so since the ancient times. Yet, Duan Li is currently doing the opposite!


    It is not to say that Duan Li had no advantage whatsoever in levelling himself up straight to the level nine at all.


    In fact, he does have the one most significant benefit to be in this peculiar condition!


    Spiritual Qi efficiency!


    His spiritual Qi was far more efficient at 90 percent more than others of the same level and realm, even when he now had tosuppress himself back to the level 1 state as the effect is permanent.


    A single breath is all it took to recover his spiritual Qi back to 100 percent. Therefore, as long as he was still breathing, technically, his Qi would be practically infinite at the level 1 until the level 5 state!


    Through level 6 to level 9, only two breaths were required to completely recuperate the spiritual Qi inside his body to 100 percent!


    The principal had also realized this as well being an expert. Thus, the three manual books that he loaned to Duan Li while undoubtedly are very powerful in the condensation realm, are also demanding in spiritual Qi usage at the same time.


    "Hmm.. let''s see which one should I learn first... "


    ...

 32 Chapter 32: Magnanimity!

    "Hmm.. I don''t have any sword at the moment, so that leaves me with either the fist or the palm arts.. " thought Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    He calmly observe the blue sky from the window in front of his desk with his hands behind his head, the quiet atmosphere in his room allows him to contemplate thoroughly.


    It was then that an epiphany struck him.


    In the original timeline of his future self, the most domineering and powerful skill art at his disposal was the ''One Finger Starlight Slash'' skill.


    As that was his favorite skill art which he made himself after reaching the immortal ascension realm, naturally, he still remembered the method to use it like the back of his hand.


    Just that there is a problem.


    "My ultimate skill, One Finger Starlight Slash, although extremely lethal.. requires an absurd amount of spiritual Qi to use.. " he said to himself slowly.


    He then stood up from the chair as he clasped his hands behind his back while walking back and forth in his room, murmurring out softly once in awhile as numerous simulations to modify his original skill appeared in his mind like a flood.


    "Perhaps.. if I do that.. and this.. then maybe use this acupoints and here instead of that one.. and channel my spiritual Qi through this meridian and stop the flow over there.. "


    ...


    After a while..


    "Hmm.. I think that should work.. but I need to test it out.. " said Duan Li as he flew out from his room through the window.


    The common Flight ability could only be obtained when one reached the seventh level of the Qi condensation realm. Now that he is at the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm, naturally he could fly pretty easily with the minimal amount of Qi needed even at a suppressed state.


    Not to mention his cycle which is at 90 percent more efficient, thus running out of spiritual Qi is the least of his concern.


    Psheeww!


    ...


    Duan Li scanned his surrounding as he found a suitable location.


    Tap!


    He landed on the ground gently.


    The location he was in now is a little bit forested, not too far from the square.


    Duan Li scanned his surroundings again to make sure that no one was around.


    This is because his ultimate skill is extremely lethal, even mountains would be sliced into two without any reservation as if a butter being cut with a hot knife.


    Eventhough his theoretical adjustments of the skill could technically control the amount of output the slash could do, it was still in theory and not practiced.


    And that was what he was going to do right now.


    "Hmm.. let''s start with this tree.. " Duan Li then pointed his index finger forward towards a tree five meters away from him.


    In simple terms, the original version of this skill art requires Duan Li to channel about 90 percent of his spiritual Qi into a single point before compressing it thoroughly until it reaches the size of needle. By opening a single pathway, these compression would then be beamed out until it reaches an exit, which is Duan Li''s index finger by opening an acupoint at the end.


    Although this logic sounds simple enough, only Duan Li himself has managed to be able to do it. Compressing spiritual Qi to the size of a needle was already extremely difficult, although still quite doable for most experts.


    It was the channeling of a single pathway under that colossal Qi pressure that is entirely on a whole other level as it requires meridians that is strong enough to withstand a sudden outburst of Qi without rupturing that could be lethal to the host.


    This is only possible for someone who had ascended to the immortal ascension realm that has an incomparably tough and rugged body, both internal and external!


    Therefore, Duan Li needed to be more careful in his steps using this skill art in a Qi condensation realm, lest he will injure himself.


    He drove his spiritual Qi throughout his body and compresses them into a ball the size of a needle. This ball is a lot less denser compared to what he could do before, but it would do.


    To compensate his weaker meridians, Duan Li planned to open several pathways to lessen the pressure. However, in order to retain its outburst of power, these spiritual Qi will travel along a few pathways through a series of acupoints that will spool, twist and spiralled them together to increase its speed. He called this process as the supercharging. It will finally then converge to a single acupoint in a series of continuous beam from the front of his index finger.


    Pew!


    BAM!


    The tree trunk that has the circumference of a three grown man was penetrated cleanly by a short burst beam of spiritual Qi!


    "Success! Hahaha I did it!"


    Duan Li jumped up in excitement. Although this move had left him with only 10 percent of his spiritual Qi, with a single breath, he had already recovered to a 100 percent!


    His eyes gleamed with enthusiasm.


    Rapid fire!


    Pew!


    Pew!


    Pew!


    Pew!


    ...


    Duan Li continued to shoot beams of spiritual Qi with his index finger. When he finally stopped, the tree trunk now looks like the hives of bees.


    A continuous slash like the original version would be impossible for him right now. Thus, he could only make them fire a short burst of compressed Qi!


    "This is fun heheheh! Let''s call it.. the Qi beam!" said Duan Li with a wide smile and a nod.


    "I could increase its power and penetration by a whole lot more if I release my suppressed state.. hmm.. " thought Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    If he release his suppressed state to level 2, by his estimate, the power would increase by at least five more times and he would take some minimal damage to his meridians as he hasn''t yet tempered his level 1 physical body. But above that while using this skill art would incur to him pain that he didn''t dare to imagine.


    After all, this was a skill that was actually meant to be used when he reached the immortal ascension realm.


    "I guess I could only use them in a pinch then.. "


    Duan Li then flew back to the dorm to return to his room and practice another skill art as it was still in the afternoon when he saw Xiahou Yu standing outside peeking through the windows of a fast food restaurant.


    "Hey.. Xiahou Yu!" he called out with a wave.


    Hearing her name being called out so suddenly, she jolted up as she turned to look behind her only to find that there was no one there.


    It was only when Duan Li called out to her again did she realize that it was Duan Li who was flying over to her from the air.


    Tap!


    Duan Li landed gently in front of her.


    "D-Duan Li.. its you.. " she said awkwardly.


    "I saw you from afar standing still here, what were you looking at?" said Duan Li as he took a peek from the window as well.


    "Its the.. fried chicken.. they smell so good.. I was attracted to their smell when I was just having a stroll at the square.. " she replied with a red face, seemingly flustered after getting caught peeking at the fried chicken.


    "Anyway.. you were already.. able to fly..?" she continued.


    She was quite surprised when she saw Duan Li flying from the distance. After all, the common flight ability, although slower than the skill art ''feather flight'' used to travel long distances, could only be gained after one reaches the seventh level of the Qi condensation realm!


    Does it mean that he had already reached the seventh level of the Qi condensation realm?


    Hissss..


    She breathed in cold air as she realized this.


    In a single day and he had already reached the seventh level of the Qi condensation realm?


    That''s a little.. no.. its way too fast!


    "Hmm..? Yeah.. somehow.." Duan Li replied with a shy expression seeming embarrased by his talent.


    When she heard this, she felt like wanting to bawl out and cry.


    It was just the other day that they were on the same level, but now? She was a bit jealous with Duan Li''s mystifying talent.


    But thinking about how Duan Li had already became the pinnacle of power in the whole Tian continent at the peak of the immortal ascension realm in that timeline, she sighed.


    "I guess it was only natural for him.. " she thought to herself as she finally accept it.


    "I see.. I had only just entered the level one of the Qi condensation realm a few hours ago.. and it made me quite hungry.. " she said to Duan Li as she held her tummy.


    Duan Li broke out into a smile as he saw her expression and could guess what was going on, so he asked;


    "Do you have any money yet?"


    She shook her head.


    "Okay then, let me treat you to a meal!" said Duan Li smiling.


    He was given some pocket money by the principal before as an advance payment for his merit in modifying the spiritual Qi efficiency method. Furthermore, the smell of the fried chicken that had wafted out from the window had piqued his appetite as well.


    "You will..?" said Xiahou Yu in anticipation as her eyes sparkled.


    Duan Li nodded with a smile as he took out a few gold coins. Back when he was at the Xuan Village, a gold coin would already be enough for him and his mother to eat happily for a few months.


    Thinking about how the principal had given him these gold coins to him casually without any sort of reservation at all, the principal sure is a noble person!


    Eventhough the principal might seem scary and strict with his whipping and all that, but deep inside him is a heart that is magnanimous towards the younger genaration.


    Duan Li found within himself a newfound respect towards the principle.


    Even senior teacher Wang Guozhi and sister Ling Yu back then had put out a blank face when the saw the principal gave him such a lot of gold coins.


    They must be pretty surprised by the kindness of the principal too!


    "..." Xiahou Yu.


    Seeing her blank expression, Duan Li wanted to ask her what was wrong when he realized something as he palmed his forehead.


    Ahh.. she must be like senior teacher Wang Guozhi and Sister Ling Yu back then.. I guess seeing this much of money does indeed could shock someone I see..


    He then quickly smiled as he explain hurriedly;


    "Ahh don''t worry about it, It''s fine! This is given to me by the principal! You need not to worry and use this money as much as you want to eat!" he said as he thought that Xiahou Yu was feeling guilty of using his money to buy some food.


    "No.. that''s not it.. " she shook her head as she pointed out to the price on the menu hanged on the wall of the fast food restaurant.


    Hmm? Duan Li squinted his eyes.


    100 SS for a drumstick fried chicken?


    What does ''SS'' even mean?


    Duan Li creased his brows as this term looks familiar to him from his memories, but he just can''t seem to recall.


    Noticing that it seems like Duan Li hadn''t got a clue yet, Xiahou Yu decided to tell him.


    "Actually.. ''SS'' is a short term used for spirit stones.. in the academy, you can only buy stuff using spirit stones.. gold coins don''t have any value here.. " she explained with a small voice.


    Paang!


    Duan Li almost stumbled forward and fell on the ground as if a metal basin had hit his head on the back.


    "...." Duan Li.


    Principal..


    ...

 33 Chapter 33: Nine Fist Shattering Meteor!

    What is up with the principal?


    Is there actually a meaning behind these gold coins that he gave me?


    Duan Li turned all the gold coins upside down and squinted his eyes against the sun to see if there is any sort of mysteries hidden along with them.


    After looking for awhile and finding nothing, Duan Li sighed.


    Perhaps the principal was currently broke too and this is all that he could afford to give me?


    It couldn''t be that he had mistakenly gave me these instead of spirit stones right?


    "Perhaps.. the principal wanted me to use these gold coins so that I can contribute to the Xuan village when I go back..?" he said trying his very hardest to sound positive.


    After all, the village he came from uses coins from copper, bronze, silver and gold.


    Seeing the expression that Duan Li was making, Xiahou Yu hurriedly explained;


    "Yes.. in villages and the majority of towns uses coins to trade.. only the capital city uses spirit stones for trading purposes.. perhaps you are right.." she said slowly to convince Duan Li.


    "En... " Duan Li nodded as sighed again.


    "Then.. I''ll treat you to a meal next time!" he said awkwardly as his face flushed red in embarassment.


    Here he was trying to be cool to someone of the younger generation, yet to think that he didn''t even have the proper money to buy her a meal!


    If he knew this in advance..


    Is there a hole somewhere here? Let me dive in and hide in it!


    "En! Okay!" replied Xiahou Yu with a smile as she chuckled.


    In fact, she could actually tell what was going on. The principal was probably trying to get even with Duan Li, as the latter had always surprised him time and again to the point that he might feel he had lost his disposition as the principal in front of Duan Li.


    "I''ll go to the cafeteria.. We can use our student coupons there for a free food.." said Xiahou Yu.


    As a student of the academy, they are each given two coupons to be used, one for breakfast and another for dinner. Every morning, the coupons will be delivered to the small box hanged in front of their door room.


    "Okay then! I''ll have to go back and learn a few skill arts to prepare for tomorrow''s trial! I''ll see you until then!" gestured Duan Li as they both waved at each other and split ways.


    ...


    Back in his room..


    Thud!


    Duan Li took out the first book off from the shelf as he laid it on his study table.


    ''Nine fist shattering meteor''


    "The name of this book sounds very domineering.. does it mean that it can shatter a meteor if one punched it nine times?" thought Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    If that was the case and this was made specifically for the Qi condensation realm students, then not to mention foundation establishment, even nascent soul realm experts would palpitate in fear against such a mighty fist art.


    Since there are lots of students under the Qi condensation realm, all hell would break loose!


    Shaking his head, Duan Li chuckled to himself as he imagined Qi condensation realm students running rampant throwing the fist to everyone''s face.


    Social order would pretty much be in chaos.


    Flip!


    Duan Li flipped the first page as he scanned each details one by one.


    ...


    After a while..


    "Hmm.. this is weird.. "


    After spending two hours reading the whole manual book and memorizing everything to its detail, Duan Li couldn''t help but to frown.


    This is because he felt that the manual book was somehow.. incomplete.


    With his superior analysis due to his photographic memory, he could tell that some parts of the book was actually being left out deliberately.


    For example, when executing the first fist technique, the book underlined a total of 4 pathways and 4 acupoints to control in order to launch the fist successfully.


    Yet however, according to Duan Li''s understanding after memorizing the whole skeletal muscles, bones, blood vessels, meridians and acupoints with their functions in detail, he is already able to connect their Yin and Yang concept. Thus, this manual book could have actually mention another 32 more pathways and 32 more acupoints to use.


    Psheww!


    Feeling mysterious, Duan Li flew out of his room through the window and this time, he just hovered in mid air.


    He then drove his spiritual Qi according to what the book had mentioned and launched the first fist at the empty air in front of him.


    BAM!


    The air was compressed together as a series of strong wind blew all the way to the front before dissipating into the distance.


    "Hmm.. the power isn''t that bad.. in fact, I could say that it was pretty accurate.. could I have been wrong?" his frown deepened as he contemplated further.


    He then drove his spiritual Qi along the pathways that he had theorized before, driving them along 32 more pathways and 32 more acupoints as he then punched out.


    Kapoof!


    The first fist art exploded out prematurely as the condensed spiritual Qi leaked out and evaporated from the fist with a thick black smoke. His hair became dishevelled and his face turned charcoal''ed.


    Cough cough!


    ".. It didn''t work..? This is really strange!" he said with a puzzled and blackened face.


    He then tried it again and again several times more..


    Kapoof!


    Kapoof!


    Kapoof!


    The results was still the same and the fists keeps on exploding prematurely as his appearance ended up becoming more and more unkempt with each failure.


    Hais..


    "I don''t understand.. was the manual book is actually complete and there is nothing left out..? But why do I feel like they are missing a lot of important details.. "


    Suddenly, a thought struck at him as he clapped his hands together.


    "Wait a minute.. perhaps the book is indeed complete.. and that my theory is also correct too! Just that I was analyzing it from a different angle!"


    Aiyoh!


    Duan Li palmed his forehead.


    He was someone with three dantians running actively together in complete synchronization. Even the Qi flow inside his body runs differently. That was why he felt that something about the book feels off..


    Because it has actually been simplified to suit the needs of people with only a single active dantian!


    With this conclusion, Duan Li made a quick revision towards the 32 pathways and 32 acupoints.


    Redirecting his Qi flow accordingly, Duan Li could now feel that his entire body is building up with immense momentum as his spiritual Qi was draining like a broken dam!


    Even with his practically infinite spiritual Qi reserves, the rate of usage had begun to outstrip the rate of which he could breath in spiritual Qi!


    Level 2 of Qi condensation realm!


    Level 3 of Qi condensation realm!


    Boom!


    Duan Li''s aura continued to climb as he unsealed his cultivation state to the level 3 of the Qi condensation realm!


    But to his surprise, it was still not enough!


    "This.. is still not yet the full power of the first fist.. but I can''t hold it in anymore!" Duan Li gritted his teeth as his breathing grew increasingly heavy.


    He could even feel his meridians to soon rupture due to the immense strain from using the fist art this way.


    Unable to withstand it any longer, he punched out.


    BAAMMMM!


    The surrounding air was compressed to the point that after the release, sonic booms could be heard from the punch as some of the clouds parted away, pushed by the gale force.


    Powerful!


    "Haa.. haa.. that was.. all I could.. do.. huh.. and that was only.. the first fist.. out of nine.. " Duan Li was gasping for air as he felt entirely drained by the skill.


    A stifled sensation was churning inside his stomach as he then spurted out blood.


    Urghh!


    Closing his eyes to activate the All-seeing eye and scanning his interior body, he found out that several pathways were damaged by a slight rupture caused by the over-exertion.


    He then rested for awhile sitting cross-legged on the sky as he absorbs spiritual Qi into his body.


    "Hmm.. I guess I needed to reroute my Qi flow and let those damaged pathways to recuperate for awhile.. but for the original unmodified fist art to be this strong.. even if I were to unseal my cultivation states back to the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm, it would still do me no good.. "


    Duan Li then suppressed himself back to the level 1 and trained the watered-down version of the fist art in succession.


    Based on the manual book, the fist art uses momentum from each punch and absorbs the recoil to induce a greater force for the next fist, with the ninth fist being the greatest and most powerful.


    For the normal Qi condensation realm people, that should''ve been the max they could accomplish, the ninth fist. This is because with each recoil absorbed, it would induce increasing pressure to the pathways or meridians it uses.


    In fact, it was named Nine fist shattering meteors as each fist corresponds to one''s own level. One therefore needed to temper their physical body accordingly with each level they were in to withstand the increasing pressure to the meridians. Only then, would they be able to use the next fist up to the ninth fist!


    But for Duan Li who seemed to have an infinite amount of spiritual Qi, he could continue to launch the fists as much as he wanted. Furthermore, with his masteries of meridians and acupoints, he could reroute his Qi flow so that the pressure increase are minimum while its prowess will continue to increase.


    If he wanted to, he could actually spam these fists onto unlucky opponents or enemies successively up to the 50th fist and only then would he started to feel the pressure onto his meridians. Had he already tempered his physical body, he could actually spam it indefinitely..


    "Well.. let''s stop here.. I''m kinda hungry.. "


    Duan Li then flew downwards to go back to the dorm to collect his coupon. Along the way, he stumbled upon some students who were flying past by him that got shocked by his appearance.


    "H-hey look! What happen to that guy?"


    "Eh? His body is all charred black! Did he played around inside the mines? He sure has a lot of time!"


    "Ewww! Dirty! Get away from me!"


    People were avoiding him like a plague as his face turned red in embarrasment.


    As he reached the dorm, he immediately went straight to the bathroom and took off his uniform to get it washed by a laundry box. This box was run by a series of runic formations strapped onto it that is extremely convenient as it automatically washes, clean and ironed the students uniform in less than ten breaths!


    After taking a quick shower and donning back his squeaky clean uniform, Duan Li took the coupon in front of his door room and continued to proceed to the cafeteria.


    As he flew, he look up towards the sky and found out that it was almost evening now.


    Tap!


    He landed gently onto the second floor of the cafeteria, where a platform was specifically stationed for students who came by air to land properly. Anyone caught landing elsewhere on the building will be punished as per the academy''s rule.


    "Ohh? Hey Duan Li!" a figure called and waved out to him from the distance.


    It was Shen Lu and another person besides him.


    It was a tall figure with curly short hairs reminiscent of a wild fighter from the mountains whom Duan Li hadn''t met before.


    That man''s expression seemed to be quite indifferent as he look towards Duan Li.


    Gulp!


    ...

 34 Chapter 34: Spatial Ring!

    "Hey Duan Li! How about we have a dinner together? This here is my senior, Wang Xiolun!" Shen Lu gestured to the tall figure besides him as the other party nodded.


    "I am Wang Xiolun! 23 years old and a third grade in the early stage of the core formation realm!" the tall figure called Wang Xiolun said with a deep voice.


    This Wang Xiolun is about 30 centimeters higher than Duan Li who''s height was only about 180 centimeters. Thus, when they stood face to face, it seems as though Duan Li was looking at a mighty pagoda!


    His body was similar like Wang Guozhi, albeit a little bit taller. His biceps and thighs were threatening to pop out from his student uniform at any moment as it was too big and seemed to be as tough as a rock.


    His curly black hairs were also being swept by the wind making it look like they are moving individually. The sharp gazes of his eyes looked like a veteran of the battlefield.


    Gulp!


    Duan Li swallowed his saliva as the man was too intimidating for him. But nevertheless, he finds himself some courage to reply;


    "H-hello senior brother Wang Xiolun.. I am called Duan Li.. 21 years old and is at the level 7 of the Qi condensation realm.. "


    His voice was awkward, but Wang Xiolun''s expression never change, steadily looking so solemn and serious as he just nodded.


    Duan Li had also decided to lie about his level. At first, he was about to say that he was at level 1, but thinking that he could already fly, that would be quite a hassle to explain. Therefore, he just said that he was at the level 7 of the Qi condensation realm!


    "Well, let''s go and eat then!" Shen Lu gestured as he dragged Duan Li by the arm and the mighty Wang Xiolun followed suit from the back.


    ...


    "H-hey.. it''s Wang Xiolun.."


    "Shhh! Don''t speak his name out loud! Are you trying to die?!"


    "I heard he just came back from the north.. I wonder how many monsters he had slained.. "


    "Well, he IS in the top 10 student''s power ranking, so I guess.. hundreds?"


    Sounds of whispers could be heard as the trio walked in to the cafeteria.


    "Don''t bother with those juniors, like I said, they loves to gossip more than cultivating and training! Hahahahaha! " laughed Shen Lu out loud being sarcastic.


    When the gossiping students heard what he said, they pouted their mouths with a ''hmph!'' and continued eating their meals with annoyed faces.


    The trio then went to get their food and was looking for a seating, it was then that Duan Li saw Xiahou Yu sitting by the corner table with no one else besides her.


    "Ohh, that''s Xiahou Yu, let''s sit next to her!" gestured Duan Li.


    "Your friend? Can we sit there?" replied Shen Lu as he look towards Wang Xiolun and the latter nodded.


    "Let''s go then!"


    ...


    "Xiahou Yu! Do you mind if we sit next to you? These here are my friends!" called out Duan Li to Xiahou Yu who seemed to be immersed in reading a manual book.


    "Ahh? Duan Li? Emm.. sure.. " she said slowly as she threw a side glance towards Wang Xiolun. The other party big stature and cold expression was very intimidating as she immediately look away.


    "Hello! I am Shen Lu, a sophomore and this is my senior, Wang Xiolun!" greeted Shen Lu and pointed towards Wang Xiolun. The latter just nodded slowly.


    "Ohh..?" something caught Shen Lu''s attention with how his senior brother behaved.


    Is it what I think it is?


    Shen Lu then just smiled as the trio sat down. Duan Li was sitting beside Xiahou Yu while Shen Lu was sitting opposite of her and Wang Xiolun next to him.


    "What are you studying Xiahou Yu?" asked Duan Li as he slurped the curry noodles.


    "Ohh.. it is the body tempering method for level one of the Qi condensation student.. senior teacher Ling Yu gave it to me.. " she replied with a small voice.


    "Ahh.. I see.." said Duan Li. He himself wasn''t even given a body tempering method from Wang Guozhi. It seems that the latter had forgotten...


    "If it is the body tempering method for the early stages of the Qi condensation realm, it just so happens that I have quite a few of Chinook''s blood that is suitable for females as it has the quality of Yin element with it, I''ll give it to you!" Shen Lu said as he pointed his ring finger. His spatial ring then glowed dimly.


    "T-Thank you!" Xiahou Yu was startled with the sudden gifts but immediately became elated as the other party was kind enough to give her the materials needed while they were just meeting for the first time. She then extended her ring finger as well and her spatial ring glowed dimly as a series of emerald light seemed to flow out from Shen Lu''s spatial ring to Xiahou Yu''s spatial ring.


    This is the transfer of ownership of materials that was inside the alternate dimension within the spatial ring. When the host of each ring owner acknowledge the transfer procedure after confirming the items, the exchange will then take place immediately through opening a hole between the two dimension that was done automatically.


    Their ring then blinked green lights three times to indicate that the transfer has been complete!


    "No need to be so formal! Since you are Duan Li''s friends, I won''t charge it! Consider it as a token of our friendship! Hahahahaha!" he laughed out as he elbowed Wang Xiolun teasingly.


    The latter''s face seemed to turn a little bit red which might have been cuter if not for his cold and solemn expression all the time. But this was enough for the scheming Shen Lu to confirm his previous assumption as he smiled sneakily.


    Huehuehue! So that''s how it is!


    Duan Li whom was witnessing their exchange couldn''t help but to feel saddened in his heart as he sighed.


    Firstly, was that Wang Guozhi had forgotten to impart to him manual books for body tempering. Although this wasn''t really a problem as he could just borrow one from the library, he still felt that he had been abandoned like a lost kitty.


    Secondly was that, the principal had given him money that were coins instead of spirit stones. This made him felt really embarassed when he tried to treat Xiahou Yu to a meal previously and failed because of it.


    Thirdly, is that he doesn''t yet have a spatial ring to store his stuff! Looking at their exchange just now made him feel jealous about it as he too wanted to try it!


    Fourth, was that this Shen Lu fella in front of him had gifted Xiahou Yu useful items on their very first meeting. He even had the gall to say that it was because Xiahou Yu was Duan Li''s friend that he gave it to her for free.


    I don''t remember you ever gifted to me anything?


    Hais...


    Noticing the dejected look on Duan Li''s face, Shen Lu laughed a bit.


    "Don''t be too sad, right now I only have a spare spatial ring of low quality if you want, although the space isn''t quite big, but it will be good for a start!" he said as he materialized a spatial ring that seemed to be black in color.


    Hearing this Duan Li''s previous expression turned bright as he became excited.


    "Really? Thank you brother Shen Lu!"


    Duan Li immediately took the spatial ring and fixed it onto his ring finger.


    "To use it, you first have to drive your spiritual Qi into it so that the ring can recognize you as the owner. Then, you will be able to store or take out items with a single thought! Even transferring items works this way too!" explained Shen Lu.


    "Is that so?" Duan Li then drove his spiritual Qi into the ring as it glowed a dim black light. Then with a thought, he could make out the space and found out that it was really small. Just roughly one by one meter square.


    Nevertheless, Duan Li was quite happy with it.


    But then, something startling happened.


    As his consciousness was still looking at this peculiar dimension, he found out that the edge of the space started to wrigle around!


    Then, as if being forcefully pulled by some unknown force, the space began to extend at a rapid pace.


    Twenty five meters square..


    Fifty meters square..


    Two hundred meters square..


    ...


    The space continued to expand endlessly!


    By the time Duan Li had lost count of how big it was, that was when it was already fifty square kilometers!


    It was after quite awhile that the space stopped wriggling and the expansion of space also halted as well. While these might took some time to explain, in reality, it only took around ten breaths in total!


    "Finish inspecting your ring?" said Shen Lu as he smiled.


    They were waiting for him as the latter seemed to froze for awhile after casting a look towards his new spatial ring inventory. They thought that Duan Li was mesmerized by the alternate dimension which couldn''t be helped.


    Even their first time experiencing the feeling of casting their own consciousness into the alternate dimension of their spatial ring felt mysterious, as if some kind of knowledge was automatically unlocked inside their brain.


    Duan Li was probably experiencing the same thing as well, or so they thought..


    Had they knew that Duan Li stood still for ten breaths was because he was shocked to witness the space in his low quality spatial ring expanded endlessly that an entire small country could fit through it, their eyes and mouth would turn wide agape in astonishment.


    But he chose to keep it a secret as it will be quite a hassle to explain.


    "Y-yes.. it was really interesting!" he replied with an awkward smile.


    Wang Xiolun was looking at Duan Li as he began to speak with a deep voice.


    "Hmm.. Duan Li.. did you suppressed your cultivation state to the level one?" said Wang Xiolun suddenly.


    "A-ah.. y-yes.. I suppressed my cultivation state from the level seven to level one.." replied Duan Li stuttering, he hadn''t expected for the other party to notice.


    In fact, people within the Qi condensation realm and Foundation establishment realm wouldn''t be able to notice Duan Li was suppressing himself. But for the core formation realm experts and above, they could already feel the fluctuating spiritual Qi from a person''s body.


    If the rate of absorption was faster while only some of it entered, that roughly meant that the person was suppressing his cultivation state.


    "Ohh.. you suppressed yourself? That''s strange.. why would you do that?" asked Shen Lu as his brows creased feeling curious.


    Wang Xiolun, Xiahou Yu and Shen Lu was now looking at Duan Li with curious gaze. It was very weird for someone to suppress themselves back to the level one, especially when the person in question is just at the Qi condensation realm.


    Duan Li felt his back drenched in sweat as he tried to cook up something to answer them.


    "Ahh.. well.. "


    ...

 35 Chapter 35: Meng Yue and Subjugation Squad!

    Shen Lu was practically astonished by this fact. Even if the other party had already comprehended the method to breath in spiritual Qi using his pores, he knew that Duan Li had yet to enter the Qi condensation realm the other day!


    In addition, even if by breathing in spiritual Qi using pores could skyrocket his cultivation level states, at most he should be at the level 3 of the Qi condensation realm!


    This is because cultivating takes a really long time, and the need to study which meridians and acupoints to correctly stimulate is also an extended process as well, not to mention other miscellaneous things that needed to be done to solidify one''s foundation in each level.


    To think that Duan Li had already reached the level 7 in but a single day? Even he himself had to work for 4 years to get to that level!


    Noticing what their expression meant, Duan Li decided to tell the half-truths;


    "Ahh.. its actually like this.. "


    Duan Li began to explain that he had shot straight to the level 7 of the Qi condensation realm from nothing due to his potential being suppressed by his mother. Thus, when he finally ascended to the Qi condensation realm, his level quickly rose up to seven in an instant.


    He then told them that because he had never done any physical body tempering yet, his inner body and meridians couldn''t handle the excess amount of spiritual Qi flowing inside him. Thus, he suppressed himself back to the level one state.


    Hearing this, they couldn''t help but to still frown in suspicions, except Xiahou Yu.She knew that Duan Li would be a monstrous existence in the future that would be unparalleled in the whole Tian continent.


    Naturally, she also knew that Duan Li''s potential and talent would be quite amazing as well so it wouldn''t be surprising if he had shot straight to the level seven. She was only curious as to why Duan Li decided to suppress himself to the level 1 state, but hearing that it is because of his physical body had yet to be tempered, she thought that it made sense to her.


    However, the same couldn''t be said for Shen Lu and Wang Xiolun as they hadn''t witnessed the future of the original timeline of the Tian continent during Duan Li''s bizarre trial back then.


    "I have not heard of any way to suppress one''s potential.. but as a wise man once said, never heard doesn''t mean it didn''t exist! Tell me Duan Li, who is your mother?" asked Shen Lu while sipping his tea slowly as his interest was piqued.


    From what Duan Li had said, it seems that this mother of his was someone capable enough to suppress one''s potential until it accumulates to give an explosive effect in one''s cultivation state after it was released!


    How powerful would the means of the other party had to do that?


    "Umm.. I''m not sure if you guys have every heard of my mother.. but she is called Meng Yue.. " replied Duan Li nervously.


    Meng Yue??


    Pu!


    Shen Lu spurted out the tea that he elegantly sipped. It had narrowedly hit Duan Li on the face squarely, but the slow down time ability activated at the last moment which allowed him to evade effortlessly.


    Even Wang Xiolun''s expression jolted for a bit as he heard that name. He also took a note of Duan Li''s incredible reflex as the urge to battle started to brew inside of him.


    "Y-you.. your mother is called Meng Yue? Is she from the... Subjugation squad previously..?" Shen Lu asked with a shocked expression.


    "Yes... " Duan Li answered.


    No wonder!


    If it was THAT Meng Yue, the tyrant of the subjugation squad, then they could imagine how suppressing his potential would just might be possible for her!


    "You guys knew of my mother?"


    Duan Li hadn''t really thought that her mother''s name was well known, but looking at their expression, he couldn''t help but to wonder how big of a reputation his mother had back then.


    "Knew? Of course we know! Your mother Meng Yue was a legendary figure in the subjugation squad! Everyone in the squad knew of her existence and treated her like a holy being!" replied Shen Lu excitedly.


    After all, he too was part of the subjugation squad and knew of her past exploit when she was active as a knight.


    Who wouldn''t be impressed with someone who looked chibby in appearance but managed to savagely slayed thousands of high level monster during the seasonal monster stampede single-handedly?


    Shen Lu began to tell stories of how Duan Li''s mother back then was part of the subjugation squad. The squad was comprised of nine squad altogether, with the ninth being the most powerful and thestrongest where Duan Li''s mother used to be in.


    The required battle prowess for one to join the subjugation squad is that one must be able to kill a hundred monster single-handedly!


    The first squad which is the weakest, has a total of 81 members in it. They are deployed around the empire to handle miscellaneous mission.


    Meanwhile, the second squad has a total of 72 members and was tasked to handle patrol orders around the border.


    The third squad has 63 members and was to subjugate monster stampede of one star monster level threat.


    On the other hand, the fourth squad has 54 members and is an all-rounded fighters which could handle themselves in tight situations. Rather than slaughter, they are more geared towards medical assistance for all the nine squads during the seasonal monster stampede.


    Next, the fifth squad has 45 members and is tasked to handle monster stampede between one and two stars.


    After that, the sixth squad has 36 members and their members are all savage and brutal people that could kill their way in a two star threat level during monster stampede.


    Then, the seventh squad has 27 members and a step higher in battle prowess which could stop monster stampedes of 2 to 3 star threat level.


    The eight squad, a total of 18 members are all very strong and influential people within the empire. Their strength is just second to the ninth squad and could fight against monster stampedes of 4 star threat level.


    Finally, the ninth squad is dubbed as the strongest people within the empire! There are only 9 members in it and each member has a battle prowess so extremely high that geographical terrains would change if they fought together. They could handle monster stampede of the 5 star threat level, although it will be quite rare.


    Hearing this explanation, Duan Li couldn''t help but to clench his fist tight in excitement. To think that his mother was part of the ninth squad, the most powerful! How domineering was she back then?


    Mother is too awesome!


    "Your mother back then was the youngest knight that had a lot of potential to climb higher in ranks between the ninth squad members! I think she was around 20s at that time!" said Shen Lu, his eyes gleaming with reverence.


    Even the expressionless Wang Xiolun besides him nodded repeatedly as respect and awe could be seen from his always serious and solemn gaze.


    "Is that so..? I never knew.. mother had never told me about any of this.. " replied Duan Li as he scratched the back of his head feeling embarassed.


    Xiahou Yu was listening attentively to their conversation as she too became absorbed in it and couldn''t help but to ask;


    "What are the monster stars threat level represents? And are there anymore monster higher than that?"


    Shen Lu nodded as he replied;


    "The number of stars represents how strong those monsters are. To give an analogy, a one star monster could fight against 2 people at the foundation establishment realm. A two star monster could fight against 10 pinnacle stage of foundation establishment realm. A three star monster could fight 20 core formation experts. A four star could floor up to 30 pinnacle stage of the golden core realm experts."


    "What about the five star?" She quickly interjected in her excitement.


    "A five star monster.. could fight evenly against five nascent soul realm experts!" replied Shen Lu with a grim expression as he continued;


    "And above that, the six star monsters.. perhaps that would take the whole nascent soul realm experts in the Jiu empire to handle it I guess.."


    In fact, what Shen Lu had just said was pretty accurate. With increasing star level, the monster''s age grew increasinglyold and thus their prowess was more powerful as well. Monsters above the three star had already been living for a few hundreds. Meanwhile, monster of the five stars and above, those could be thousands of years old!


    "Anyway, let''s talk about the subjugation squad again next time, right now I''m more worried about your physical body condition.." said Shen Lu.


    He cupped his chin as he contemplated for awhile.


    "To tell you the truth, since you are the son of Meng Yue, I''ll give you a rumor that I had just heard.. " he leaned in closer to Duan Li as he began to whisper.


    "In the academy, there exist some sort of a secret organization that will enter the ''eternal maze'' beneath us! The rumors were that people hardly ever returned alive, but those who did returned, stated that there was a large pool of blood with lots of colossal bones surrounding it!"


    "I theorized that those bones must have been extremely ancient and those that bathed in that pool of blood would gain a body comparable to the mountains!"


    "But of course, bathing in it would cause instant death due to the sheer purity of the blood. However, if you were to be able to gather a bit of it through some means, and dilute it with other stuff, the effects should be quite good!"


    Shen Lu then look towards his surrounding warily as his voice becoming much more softer.


    "I saw you the other day being led to the dorm by senior teacher Wang Guozhi, so you must have some pretty deep connections with the echelons right? Heheheh! If you can get a few of these blood.. with my help.. you will be rich in no time!"


    Hearing what Shen Lu had just said, something akin to a trigger was released in his mind as he remembered.


    "According to my memories, that pool beneath the academy.. is the one hundred thousand monster graveyards!" thought Duan Li to himself as his eyes gleamed with interest.


    Back in the other timeline, when he was at the nascent soul realm, he entered the eternal maze to bath inside that pool to prepare his body for ascending towards the immortal ascension realm and the result was that.. his body had grown tougher to the extent that if he flew straight to a mountain, that mountain would crumble to pieces, akin being hit by a meteor!


    Therefore, he named that physical body of his, ''The meteor body physique!''


    He thought that, with his current body, it would just be him courting death if he were to jump straight into that pool. Thus,the suggestion that Shen Lu gave him was extremely enticing.


    After all, he knew the best what effects would he get from bathing inside that pool!


    Even if they were to dilute it.. his body would become as strong as steel!


    "Hmm.. okay, I will do that!" replied Duan Li.


    "Great! Hahahahaha!" Shen Lu laughed out loud as his shrewd business succeeded.


    ...

 36 Chapter 36: Show me your power! 1

    Duan Li had only agreed not because he has someone else or some connections to get that blood in one way or another, but because he IS going to go to the eternal maze himself. For the method, he will try to ask the principal on how to extract the blood from the pool somehow.


    If a rumor regarding such a pool had already spread among the juniors, its impossible for the principal to not know about it as well.


    After all, back in the other timeline, he just dived straight into that pool of blood to strengthen his physical body in order to prepare himself to ascend to the immortal ascension realm. When he was done, he just tore apart the void forcefully to exit the eternal maze. Therefore, he did not bother to know about any sorts of method to store those blood before.


    They then proceeded to talk more about the benefits of the blood, including the financial benefit aspect of it as well, which made Duan Li becomes increasingly interested.


    After some time, their conversation are finally wrapping up.


    "Well, its already late now so we''ll talk again next time! Don''t forget our deal!" said Shen Lu as he winked towards Duan Li with a shrewd smile.


    "Yes, I will!" replied Duan Li as he nodded.


    Shen Lu and Wang Xiolun then got up from their seat and left the table, leaving behind only Duan Li with Xiahou Yu. Some of the people in the cafeteria are starting to leave as well as the cafeteria will be closing soon.


    "Well.. let us leave too then, shall we?" gestured Duan Li to Xiahou Yu.


    ...


    This time, Duan Li decided to walk along with Xiahou Yu until they reached a fork separating the path between the male and female dormitories. After exchanging some small talk, they wave at each other as they return back to their dorm respectively.


    ...


    In Duan Li''s room..


    "I still have some more time.. so I should learn the other skill then.. "


    Duan Li then took out the manual book from the shelf, ''Nine Palm Slapping Ocean'' and sat down to learn it on his study desk.


    Flip!


    He started to flip the pages one by one.


    After roughly around two hours, he had finally finished committing every single detail in the book to memory. He cupped his chin as he thought;


    "It seems that even this skill art could actually be improved further.. "


    Driving his spiritual Qi around his meridians and acupoints according to the directions from the manual book, he nodded as he confirmed that the skill could work just fine. For the improvements, he already had the rough idea on how to execute it, but because it was already late at night, he decided to test it out in the eternal maze tomorrow if he had the luxury and target to practice.


    As he laid down on the bed and closed his eyes, the All-seeing eye ability activated.


    Shiinggg!


    Scanning his internal body carefully, he was startled when he cast his sights to the previously ruptured meridians to see its condition.


    "Ohh? The damaged meridians has already.. fully recovered?"


    He was shocked to see that the ruptured pathways from overexertion when using the modified Nine Fist Shattering Meteor had already fully recovered.


    Driving his spiritual Qi along those pathways, he found that no anomalies or problems crop out whatsoever!


    "Is this also.. due to my encounter with the mysterious pearl?" he thought as he contemplated deeply.


    Ever since the encounter with the mysterious pearl, so far, he had been bestowed with two mystifying abilities that is, the photographic memory and the All-Seeing eye.


    Then, when he met the millennium Yidara tree and cross-referencing his memories together, he had found out that the fact that the ancestor had undergone a rebirth was highly probably because of the mysterious pearl as well.


    Not only that, his consciousness was even transported into an alternate timeline after that, to witness the ends of time himself where humanity were destined to fall.


    And then, the originally small space within the low quality spatial ring was expanded forcefully by a mystic force which Duan Li conjectured was done by the mysterious pearl as well.


    Now, his damaged meridians had also already fully recovered in less than a day, even with his immortal ascension realm cultivation state before, the rate of recovery was not as rapid as this, at least not before the pinnacle!


    Just what is the origin of that mysterious pearl?


    How mysterious indeed!


    He soon fell asleep as he pondered all that had happened during the past few days..


    ...


    The next day..


    Chirp chirp!


    Duan Li was awokened by the sound of birds chirping happily that landed outside his window.


    He yawned as he got up, did the usual morning stretch, took a recuperative bath and donned on his fresh student uniform thanks to the laundry box. Wang Guozhi has already arrived waiting for him while crossing both of his arms together as he leaned on the walls outside of Duan Li''s room as the latter came out.


    "Are you ready?" asked Wang Guozhi with a solemn face.


    "Yes!" nodded Duan Li with confidence.


    Based on his analysis, eventhough he had only learnt three skill arts including the Qi beam which is of the inferior version of his ultimate skill, the One Finger Starlight Slash, and also not forgetting his slowing down time ability he got from the mysterious pearl, he was confident that he will be able to go about in the eternal maze safe and sound.


    They then meet up with Xiahou Yu and Ling Yu by the fork separating the male and female dormitories before proceeding onwards to meet the principal.


    ...


    Knock knock!


    "Come in!"


    Duan Li and the rest entered the principal''s room. They bore serious expression especially Duan Li and Xiahou Yu as it will be their first time entering such a place. Not to mention that they had just stepped into the Qi condensation realm, which made Xiahou Yu in particular to feel quite nervous.


    "We will be going to the entrance of the eternal maze using this teleportation stones." said the principal as he handed down one teleport stone to each of them.


    His face was solemn and serious as he warned;


    "Remember, the eternal maze isn''t a place meant for core formation realm and above to enter. Be very careful not to step into the entrance accidentally, because once you do, there is no going back until you were given the exit!"


    He had said these specifically to alert the two senior teachers so that they wouldn''t be careless in the vicinity of the eternal maze.


    The principal was about to chant the teleportation spell when Duan Li rose his hand up as he stepped forward to ask something.


    "Principal, I know of a place inside the eternal maze to temper the physical body called the One Hundred Thousand Graveyards lake. I planned to procure some of the blood there and bring them back to the academy. Do you have a way?" said Duan Li.


    Hearing this, the principal''s brows furrowed together as he answered slowly.


    "Ohh? I too know of this lake.. but the purity of the blood in that lake is too potent for anyone to try and temper their body! Even a middle stage foundation establishment student that I''ve sent there to procure it last time had lost a finger to it!"


    "But as for a method to procure it.. " the principal then contemplated for awhile as he stroke his beard.


    "I think.. the only way to procure it is to actually use the treasure box and command it to form and become a barrel or something.."


    When Ling Yu heard this, her brows twitched as she couldn''t help but to express her concern.


    "Principal, I suggest we should give him a storage flask instead. Because according to what you have said two days ago, obtaining the treasure box would be the way to exit the eternal maze.. if he decided to continue exploring after obtaining it.. I am not sure what to expect.. but he might be in an even more danger!" she said with a frown, evidently displeased with the method the principal had just proposed.


    "I understand what you are saying, but its not that I haven''t tried using that method. In fact, I''ve used many storage artifacts to procure the blood but to no avail! They would immediately disintegrate the moment they touched the pool of blood!" said the principal as he shook his head slowly.


    "The only method that I haven''t yet tried is using the treasure boxes despite this theory.. and the reason why I haven''t yet done so is because that I am afraid to endanger the student''s life.. " he explained.


    "But for Duan Li, he is someone that is not tied to the strings of fate as was said by Ancestor Zong! You even witnessed yourself that his future prospect is something that is far beyond our reach."


    "Therefore, I am absolutely confident that his destiny wouldn''t end in a measly eternal maze! He would continue to survive and soar even higher now that he knew of what is to come. That is why I think that, if there is anyone that could pull it off, it would be him!"


    Hmm...


    Thinking about what the principal had just said, both Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu contemplated deeply and found themselves to be convinced as it is quite logical.


    Furthermore, the path of cultivation is always treaded alongside danger. And only when one can overcome it, would they become strong and powerful!


    Such is the iron law since the beginning of time!


    "Alright! Now that you has put it like that, it does sound doable for him!" nodded Ling Yu as she turned to Duan Li.


    "But Duan Li, you MUST promise me to return back alive! Your mother has put you under my care and thus it is within my responsibility to keep you safe!"


    When Duan Li heard this, he couldn''t help but to smile a bit as he felt deeply touched by what she just said.


    "En! I will!" replied Duan Li as he continued;


    "In fact, I''m quite confident that my battle prowess right now is on par with at least an early stage foundation establishment realm experts!"


    Ohh?


    The trio became interested to Duan Li''s proclaimation as the principal stroked his beard feeling impressed and said;


    "It seems that you have already mastered the skill arts that I have passed on to you. That is very impressive indeed!" nodded the principal.


    One has to know that the manual books he loaned to Duan Li were part of the nine legends edition! A single book would take at least three months to master to the novice level!


    A skill art masteries are broken down into five level, from the lowest, novice, adept, minor, major and the highest consummation!


    To think that he had already comprehended and mastered the skill arts in but a single day?


    What a monstrous talent!


    With their interest piqued, the principal then suggested;


    "Will you show us how much you have mastered those skill arts? In fact, we will become your opponents! And don''t worry, we know how to handle ourselves well so we will suppress our cultivation states all the way down to the very first level of the foundation establishment realm since you said your battle prowess would rival that realm!"


    Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu both nodded in consent. In fact, they too had wanted to try firsthand the battle prowess of the future expert on the pinnacle of the immortal ascension realm!


    Especially Ling Yu, she had already did a mock battle with Duan Li previously and that was when the latter hadn''t yet mastered any form of skill arts. She had also witnessed how Duan Li had mastered numerous amount of stances that was too inconceivable for her at his age.


    And now, he had already mastered the skill arts that was imparted by the principal in a single day!


    Skill arts of the Nine Legends edition at that!


    "Umm... Okay!" replied Duan Li.


    "Good! Let us change place then, we will go to the eternal maze after this mock battle!" said the principal as his hands moved together to perform a series of incantation gestures.


    Wongggg!


    The five of them were then transported into a separate space.


    ...

 37 Chapter 37: Show me your power! 2

    Wongggg!


    "This is a separate temporary dimensional space I''ve managed to create a few years ago and is currently completely empty! Time will also moves slower for a bit so you can definitely let loose all your skill arts here without worry!" said the principal with a calm face as he clasped his hands behind back, exuding a proud face.


    Bzzztt!


    Flints of sparks were emanated out of their body as they began to suppress their cultivation states.


    Boom!


    Nascent soul realm early stage!


    Golden core realm pinnacle stage!


    Golden core realm late stage!


    Golden core realm middle stage!


    ...


    Foundation establishment realm early stage!


    Boom!


    They have finally suppressed their cultivation states all the way down to the level one of the foundation establishment realm!


    "Alright, since the eternal maze will be fraught with danger, you will have to fight us three by yourself to familiarize with deadly situations!"


    Psheww!


    They leaped in simultaneously to surround Duan Li with a triangular formation.


    "First, let us test your hand to hand combat capabilities! Ready yourself!" said the principal as their expressions turned serious and solemn.


    Each began to lower down their stances to neutral as they slowly crept in to close at Duan Li''s position.


    Duan Li had also put himself on guard mode as he pushed his sense of alertness to the maximum level. He looked left and right as he gauged their distance.


    "They are almost within 5 meters away from me.. at which they would most probably start their assault simultaneously.."


    Just as Duan Li had thought along that line, Wang Guozhi had stepped into the 5 meters range as the latter suddenly dashed forward with a left punch to hit Duan Li''s head from the side.


    Bam!


    Duan Li had managed to redirect that left punch by doing a hand sweeping motion using his right palm. This is one of the defensive stances that he learnt from his mother back then.


    However, the moment he managed to divert the punch from Wang Guozhi away, Ling Yu came in from the other side as she threw out a left mid-kick to Duan Li''s abdomen.


    Bam!


    Duan Li raised his left leg in that last moment to block her kick using his thigh, but it was at this moment that the principal had suddenly appeared right in front of Duan Li as the former slapped out a chopping motion to the right side of his neck!


    Bam!


    The hand chop was stopped by Duan Li''s left palm crossing to the right as he exhaled in relief. However, the next moment he saw that the three of them smiled into a grin as he then realized that his movements were locked!


    Pshew!


    Pshew!


    Pshew!


    Three simultaneous attacks were launched from three different directions!


    Because he had already used his right hand, left leg and left hand, there was only his right leg that was left standing on the ground supporting himself from toppling over.


    Thus, when these three attacks came in suddenly at the same time targetting his right leg, his exposed abdomen on the center and his left rib, he dived straight into his mind to find the right combination stances to use against these three-pronged attack!


    However, he was too slow as these attacks had already nearly landed!


    Huuuu!


    In a rush of panic, something exploded inside Duan Li''s mind as his instinct and reflex changed quantitatively and his aura became sharp.


    Bam!


    Bam!


    Bam!


    He dodged two of the attacks while blocking the other one as he rolled to the front, effectively escaping their triangular formation.


    Seeming to not expect Duan Li to be able to escape from their encirclement and joint-attack, the trio was shocked.


    "He escaped from our formation?"


    "His reflex just speeded up all of a sudden!"


    "What sharp instincts!"


    They each thought similar things within their minds, feeling quite surprised. Looking towards each other, they nodded as the principal chuckled.


    "It seems like we had underestimated you, this time we will go much more faster than before!"


    Now, instead of locking themselves in a triangular formation, they ran around Duan Li in cricles with each in a random direction as they closed in.


    Pshew!


    The principal were the first to bolted in.He threw several punches and kicks. With the sudden increase in Duan Li''s instinct and reflex, his reaction is now much more flexible compared to before, as he started to counter-attack instead of just being on the defensive.


    Seeing that Duan Li had managed to put up a fight against the principal, Wang Guozhi dashed in to increase the difficulty as he joined the fray.


    Pshew!


    Bam! bam! bam!


    "This boy.. to think that his martial arts is already to this extent.. how formidable!" thought Wang Guozhi in astonishment as he found out that Duan Li had now begun to attack them pre-emptively as well during the lapses between their stances.


    Pshew!


    Ling yu came in from the back as she threw a high kick aiming towards the back of the head of the pre-occupied Duan Li.


    Bam!


    Her kick was stopped by Duan Li using his right arm in an outside sweeping motion. To her surprise, Duan Li doesn''t just stop there as the latter grabbed at her leg and using a circular momentum, he swung his body to the left as he flung Ling Yu towards Wang Guozhi.


    Startled by the sudden change of rhythm in their assault, Wang Guozhi was left open on his right rib as he tried to catch Ling Yu. Using this opportunity, Duan Li threw out a kick towards that direction.


    Bam!


    Urghh!


    Wang Guozhi was forced to take a few steps back as he was hit on the right rib squarely, while Ling Yu had stabilized herself as she landed on the ground eight meters away, leaving only the principal himself.


    "To think that he managed to counter-attack me on his blind-spot and creating a situation where Wang Guozhi was forced to leave a single gap in his defense which he specialized in.. this is already the battle prowess of an expert!" thought Ling Yu as she continued to witness the exchange between Duan Li and the principal.


    Xiahou Yu whom was watching at the sidelines from the very beginning nodded as she agreed as well. Witnessing the battle prowess that Duan Li has, she couldn''t help but to be awed as her gaze was filled with reverence.


    "Maybe I should get him to teach me next time.." thought Xiahou Yu.


    ...


    "Duan Li, never had I thought before that your martial arts was already at the pinnacle realm!" said the principal, his face showing a hint of excitement.


    Bam Bam Bam!


    They continued to trade blows as their speed of exchange was getting increasingly faster.


    "It seems like.. I have begun to assimilate my martial arts prowess from my other self.." thought Duan Li as he began to grew familiar with movesets and combination stances used by the principal.


    Before the assimilation, for every attack, he could only make out at least 12 stances to defend and 7 stances to counter. Also, because he had never fought in real battle before, he had just randomly pick any of them to use. That was why he found out that his movements were locked previously because it does not have any flow to it!


    But now, with the assimilation of the countless battle experience from his other self, his instincts and reflexes are slowly improving by the second. Or it would be more suitable to call it as recovering!


    Bam Bam Bam!


    Pshew!


    The principal did a last attack with a reverse roundhouse kick as he flipped backwards which Duan Li had easily dodged with the least amount of movements.


    "Impressive! With this much skill in your martial arts, no one under the Qi condensation realm would be a match to you!" complimented the principal as he clasped his hands behind his back.


    "But that sudden outburst of instincts and reflex of yours, if I had to guess, did it came from your memories?" asked the principal as he stroke his beard, feeling interested.


    "En! During the fight, my body seemed to recall countless movesets and stances combination. Then, my body reacted to each assault automatically!" answered Duan Li with a nod.


    "I see, that should''ve been the case. However, remember that the you now isn''t from that timeline where you possess an indestructible body physique as an expert at the pinnacle of the immortal ascension realm. Thus, you musn''t be reckless. Take a look at your limbs." pointed the principal.


    Huh?


    Ouchhh!


    Duan Li could suddenly feel aching pains on all of his four limbs! He raised both of his arms up and then look down towards his legs as he saw many red bruises appeared.


    Previously during the battle, due to adrenaline, he couldn''t feel the pain, but now after relaxing himself, the pain was starting to bite at him!


    Seeing Duan Li''s contorted expression due to the pain, Ling Yu chuckled.


    "Don''t worry, pain caused by physical damage could be recovered pretty easily if one is a cultivator like us. Since you are already in the Qi condensation realm, your spiritual Qi should be enough to heal it. Let me impart to you the method." said Ling Yu as she began to explain how to heal his damaged body by using his spiritual Qi.


    "Ahh yes, now I remembered, there is this way indeed. Okay, let me try it!" replied Duan Li as he sat cross-legged and drove his spiritual Qi around his body.


    Shiinggg!


    "Ahh my body had already fully recovered! Em! This is pretty convenient!" said Duan Li as he nodded.


    "Y-you.. how have you recovered in an instant? You are way too inconceivable!" exclaimed the principal shocked.


    Even Ling Yu and Wang Guozhi shook their heads as well.


    If it were them, such minor injuries at the nascent soul realm, although wouldn''t take too much time, would take at least a dozen of breaths in order to fully recover from such an injury.


    Yet, for Duan Li to recover in just one breath?


    Let me cut off your arm to see if it will grow a new one!


    Hais..


    "Thank you for going easy on me!" said Duan Li as he bowed towards the trio.


    Naturally, they had gone easy on him even if they had suppressed themselves down to the early stage of the foundation establishment realm. If not, just with their enhanced physical body alone as a nascent soul realm expert, would already be enough to cripple Duan Li with a single blow.


    That was why this time, the time-slowing down ability did not activate! Seemed like it would only happen when it senses threat that Duan Li couldn''t handle.


    "Don''t be too formal, it is only logical and fair for us to do so. Even if you were of the immortal ascension realm before, right now, you are but only someone in the Qi condensation realm." replied the principal as he waved his right hand dismissively like a magnanimous expert.


    "Now, let us test how proficient you are in the skill arts of a cultivator!"


    ...

 38 Chapter 38: Show me your power! 3

    "First, let''s start with the fist art, Nine Fists Shattering Meteor! We will just execute one fist for the purpose of this demonstration. Watch carefully how this skill actually looks like from the order of their mastery!" said the principal as he turned his body towards another direction, his expression solemn.


    Huuuu!


    His left leg stepped forward slightly, about a quarter of a step as he punched out with his right fist.


    Bam!


    An invisible exploding sound could be heard in front of the fist as well as some slight tremors unfolding out from it.


    "That is novice mastery, next is the adept mastery.." the principal then adjusted his posture slightly as he punched out once more.


    Bam!


    This time, the impact sounded much more crisp and the air was compressed slightly as the reverberations caused winds to blow over.


    The principal then continued to punch outtwo more times, each carrying an even more impactful result than the other.


    Bam!


    Bam!


    "Those are the minor and major mastery. After this will be the real deal, the consummation mastery!"


    Huuu!


    BAM!


    The pressure from that punch alone had compressed the air so much that when it exploded out, sonic booms could be heard from it as gales of fierce winds assaulted the surrounding.


    "These are the five tiers of mastery for this fist art! It took me just three months to master them to the consummation level back when I was at the Qi condensation realm! Now, show me this fist art and I will help you reach the consummation level!" said the principle with a proud smile as he reminisce the good old times.


    Back then, he was hailed as a true genius! Mastering any one of the skill arts into consummation from the Nine Legends edition within three months, was no easy feat at all and therefore, he had gained recognition from the academy because of that.


    "Mmm.. okay.." Duan Li just nodded as he himself wasn''t sure what mastery he had achieved in the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor fist art, but he was sure that the effects from his fists before when he tried it out during practice had reached a similar phenomena like the consummation level the principal had just showed.


    Adjusting his posture and stance, he drove his spiritual Qi from his three dantians to the numerous pathways as he stimulate the different acupoints. Without any sort of stances, he then just casually punched out.


    BAMM!


    The space in front of Duan Li''s fist reverberated chaotically, that the resulting compressed air was creatingvacuum holes that sucked in air from the surrounding before exploding outwards creating a series of tsunami-like shockwaves!


    The impact from Duan Li''s punch was so great that it caused the trio including Xiahou Yu to step back two steps.


    Gulp!


    Holy cow!


    If any Qi condensation realm students were to be hit by that, they would definitely be blown to the sky while spurting blood like rainbows!


    Cough cough!


    The principal choked on himself as he witnessed this scene. To think that he was so proud of his fist art before, even to the extent of bragging out a bit that it took him 3 months to master it to the consummation level.


    Yet here is Duan Li, the brat whom had just practiced it within but a single cow day, had just performed a consummation mastery of the fist art that has an even greater impact compared to the punch that he executed before!


    His face right now was flushed red as if he was being slapped by the other party!


    "Y-you.. nevermind.. you passed!" sighed the principal as he shook his head.


    Just as he tried to move on to the next skill art, Duan Li began to speak;


    "I don''t believe that the punch I had just performed was the consummation level at all!" said Duan Li, his expression looking dejected.


    What? Not the consummation level?


    They were surprised when Duan Li made such a statement, and the principal couldn''t help but to ask;


    "Not yet the consummation? What do you mean?" his brows creased together as he contemplated the words that Duan Li had just spoken.


    "En! I feel that its not worthy to be called as the consummation level! In fact.. it would be even more accurate to call it as.. the novice mastery instead!" said Duan Li as he nodded with confidence in his explanation.


    Pu!


    You call that devastating punch you performed just now as a novice mastery?


    Then, what about the punch that I had executed before? A noob''s mastery?


    Novice your head!


    Let me punch that head of yours so that you can speak properly!


    The principal was fumed by Duan Li''s words. Just as he was about to say something to reprimand the other party to not be too cocky, the latter suddenly put up a stance while holding his right fist close to the abdomen.


    Duan Li then unsealed his cultivation states as his aura rose sharply!


    Level 2 Qi Condensation realm!


    Level 3 Qi Condensation realm!


    Boom!


    "This is my limit for now! I can''t hold out long in this state so I will immediately execute the fist art!" exclaimed Duan Li as his countenance began to turned pale and his breathing grew heavy.


    The air infront of his fists was folding layers upon layers to the point that it heats up the surrounding air current creating a vivid vaporization effect with a sizzling sound.


    Szzttt!


    Then, with a powerful momentum that shook the ground, Duan Li stepped forward half a step with his left leg as he punched out the fist!


    BOOMM!!


    The air was split as it teared apart like a hot knife through a butter, creating a huge vacuum that exploded out the space in front of Duan Li. Streams of heated air that combined together combusted spontaneously due to the intense friction between them shooting out sparks of flames forward.


    A reminiscent image of a meteor shooting forward with an unstoppable force could be make out from Duan Li''s punch!


    ...


    Hisssss!


    The four of them sucked in cold breath as they witnessed this incredible scene! They had even just realized that their body was pushed backwards ten steps away from their original position!


    "Sigh.. I guess.. this should be the adept level of mastery.. "said Duan Li with a depressed expression.


    Pu!


    The four of them were shocked to the point that they almost farted out putrid gases from their bottom when they heard what Duan Li had just said.


    A punch so powerful, so catastrophic and outrageous like that and you called it adept mastery?


    You must be trying to pull our leg!


    "D-Duan Li.. is what you said true? T-that fist is only at the.. adept mastery?" asked Wang Guozhi at the sides as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    "En! In fact, If I had tempered my physical body to at least suit the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm, perhaps I would be able to perform the minor mastery of it!" replied Duan Li with a positive nod.


    The minor mastery..!


    The Adept mastery was already so powerful, what would be the minor mastery be like.. or the consummation?


    Their hairs stood on end as they thought about it.


    In fact, if they were to re-evaluate back the fist art, just from the battle prowess of its adept mastery alone, would be enough to push the rank of the skill to the pinnacle level of the foundation establishment realm, perhaps rivalling even skill arts from the early stage of the core formation realm!


    If that was the case, following the logic, minor mastery would push it between the core formation and golden core realm, while major mastery would push it to the nascent soul realm!


    Then..


    Consummation mastery would be at the immortal ascension realm!


    Hissss!


    The four of them sucked in cold breath again. They had never thought that a fist art that was discovered within an ancient ruin evaluated to be on the pinnacle level of the Qi condensation realm by the research and development department of the academy would have a probability to reach the immortal ascension realm!


    Would the academy really made such a big error in its judgement? That has never happened before!


    Curious, the principal turned to ask Duan Li;


    "Duan Li, how did you manage to increase its battle prowess?" he asked.


    "Mmm well, when I read through the manual book, I found that somehow.. in its complete state.. there was also incompleteness within it.." replied Duan Li in a rhetoric manner as he cupped his chin.


    Huh?


    The four of them were confounded, unable to comprehend what Duan Li had just said.


    "Its actually like this.."


    Duan Li began to explain that his punches were stronger because he made use of his three dantians to execute the fist art. When the principal heard this, his heart was uplifted once more as he could finally knew the reason why he had lost in the dominance between their fist art exchange before.


    But this had sparked a certain thought within his mind.


    Could it be?


    "Duan Li, do you mean to say that this fist art was actually made by someone.. with three dantians?" the principal asked with wide eyes, trying to affirm his conjecture.


    "En! That was why I said that it is complete but incomplete! Complete in the sense that, the might of the fist art stop there for a person with one dantian. Thus, that was really the consummation level of it!" explained Duan Li as he continued further;


    "But, for a person with three dantians.. that fist art is still far from reaching the consummation level!"


    "T-this.." the four of them couldn''t help but to be astonished.


    All these while, they thought that Duan Li was the only sicko..


    Who would have thought that there was another lunatic in the past?


    Hais..


    "Execute the fist art to exhaustion so I can have a gauge of how much spiritual Qi a person with three dantians has!" said the principal.


    Punch to exhaustion?


    Err..


    "Umm.. okay.. " replied Duan Li as he too hadn''t yet tried how much fists he could punch out before he got tired.


    Bam!


    Bam!


    Bam!


    ...


    After a while..


    Bam!


    Bam!


    Bam!


    "Okay stop! Enough!" shouted the principal out loud as he clenched his chest.


    Normally, even a pinnacle stage Qi condensation realm student could probably only execute the fist art 3 times. With Duan Li''s triple dantian, he conjectured that Duan Li should at least be able to execute the fist art 9 times and at most 15 times, give or take.


    After all, that fist is part of the Nine Legends edition which is extremely demanding on spiritual Qi consumption.


    But no, all of his expectations has erred like the laws of nature has gone senile!He had just witnessed how Duan Li was throwing out punches after punches without any breaks in between!


    Hell, as if that wasn''t enough to get the person in question exhausted, before long, the other party began to punch out rapidly with both fists!


    If he had counted correctly from the very beginning, the total amount of punches Duan Li had thrown out was more than a hundred already!


    Just what the hell happened here?


    Has the heavens gone blind?


    Huuuu!


    Duan Li finally adjusted his stance back to the neutral position as he cooled down. His expression devoid of fatigue as he wiped off the non-existing sweat from his forehead as he exhaled out.


    "Haa.. that was a good exercise!"


    ...

 39 Chapter 39: Departure!

    A good exercise you say?


    Hais..


    "Should I demonstrate the next skill arts?" said Duan Li remaining oblivious to the inner emotions of the four people.


    "No! There is no need! With just your fist arts alone, you would be unhindered in the eternal maze." replied the principal with an annoyed expression.


    In fact, any enemies that even dared to foolishly show their faces in front of him within the eternal maze later on would undoubtedly be just courting death.


    If he were to continuously spam the fist art, not even a monster with the foundation establishment realm would survive.


    "What about Xiahou Yu? Did she not needed a test?" asked Wang Guozhi feeling quite concerned for his niece.


    The principal shook his head as he answered, "No, because she is at the level 1 of the Qi condensation realm, the most difficult hurdle she would face would only be monsters at the level 4 of the Qi condensation realm which is in terms of attributes, isn''t that far off compared to a level 1, perhaps only one step stronger. Furthermore, from our intelligence reports so far, they do not attack on sight if not intimidated. Also, most of the monster''s speed will be much slower, a trade-off with their much more tougher and rigged body."


    He then continued, "The most effective combat strategy for her would be to target these monsters isolately and finish them off however she wants, even without the help of any skill arts. Here, take this monster guide. It details out the numerous strengths and weaknesses each monster has which will be useful for you both." the principal handed out two identical books to Duan Li and Xiahou Yu.


    The principal then turned his attention towards Xiahou Yu.


    "Since I chose you to enter the 4th trial, it means that I saw the future prospect in you to be boundless. Therefore, you will have to struggle in this test and prove yourself to be worthy of it. Once you come out from this trial, you would then have successfully mastered your basic experience as a beginner!" said the principal with a serious expression.


    "And you Duan Li.. naturally, with your overpowered strengths, I imagined you to be massacring monsters here and there instead to make their life a living hell. I only hope that you do not provoke the eternal maze too much, because as far as our intelligence goes, the eternal maze is somehow alive." warned the principal towards the other party, as the latter smiled sheepishly while scratching the back of his head.


    "I will have you both enter separately as well. Otherwise, it will upgrade the difficulty level instead which might prove fatal, even for you Duan Li. Alright, let''s go to the entrace of the eternal maze right now."


    The principal then chanted the teleportation spell as the teleport stones on each of their hands began to glowed brightly.


    Woonggg!


    ...


    The five of them were teleported and thenreappeared in a giant cave that was filled with countless stalagmites and stalactites. This cave has an aura of ancientness to it that made one feel that it belonged to an era far beyond the reaches of time itself.


    Coldness crept up to them as the ground was covered up by shrouding mists up to their knees. Echoes of water droplets could be heard resounded through the cave, making the overall atmosphere detached and tranquil.


    In front of them stood a vast coiling vortex. This vortex alternated between the shades of blue and violet in color. Spiralling towards the center, they became darker until it formed a void that was pitch black and seemed to be the entrance into the abyss.


    Between the vortex and where they are standing right now, stood a mighty and gigantic red temple gate that appeared to be withered as if from experiencing the countless vicissitudes of time.


    "Beyond that gate is already the zone that will start to suck you in to the vortex once you step in." said the principal as he pointed out towards the red gate.


    "There are certain things that you should know about when inside the eternal maze. Firstly, any items you brought with you that was stored inside your spatial rings will be unusable. Somehow, the eternal maze forbids any separate dimension outside of its own. Therefore, you should take out items that you think you will need to use and put them inside this backpack."


    Whoosh!


    Two rucksack backpacks were materialized out from the principal''s spatial ring as he then handed down one each to both Duan Li and Xiahou Yu.


    "Use this backpack to store any items you found inside the eternal maze as well." said the principal as he watched them wear the backpack and continued.


    "Secondly, the eternal maze will allocate separate region for the two of you. Thus, it will be highly unlikely for the two of you to meet. Furthermore, there are walls that goes straight up into the sky that will separate each space. So even if you wanted to enter the other, it will be nigh impossible to do so."


    "Thirdly, there are other treasures that you could encounter within the maze as well if you got the affinity. However, be very careful as it could be a trap."


    "Fourth, if there are any monsters that your instinct tells you to stay away from, you would do well to follow it and steer away. Especially those that are not pointed out inside the monster guide book. Also, some stronger monsters could actually found their way into the weaker monster zone somehow and we haven''t yet a clue as to how they did it. Again, be very careful!" warned the principal as he highlighted that last sentence.


    "Fifth, it would be best if you can gather some monster cores. The monster guide will tell you their exact location inside their body. These are extremely helpful to increase the pace of your cultivation speed as the spiritual Qi inside the monster cores are denser. These monster cores will vary in color according to their element attributes which you can also refer to the monster guide book."


    "And finally, the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake is the only place that connects between all space together as its center. That place is an unchartered territory as it is way too potent for anyone within the two realms to explore. But I guess that won''t be an issue for Duan Li I guess. Although Xiahou Yu, you must definitely steer clear away from it, do you understand?"


    "En! I will principal, thank you for your advice!" replied Xiahou Yu as she nodded.


    The trio then handed out some protection and supportive talisman mostly to Xiahou Yu. They weren''t worried too much for the overpowered Duan Li. Furthermore, those talisman could only help so much as the more powerful a talisman is, the more spiritual Qi it will require to activate, which a level 1 Qi condensation realm students wouldn''t have.


    After some more tips and walkthrough from the principal, they are finally ready to enter the eternal maze.


    "Alright, I guess that should be the gist of it all. Don''t worry too much, I have personally sent a few students here before and everyone had made it out safely, albeit a few injuries here and there. But, being both a martial artist and a cultivator, the path to the dao had always been filled with both pains and gains."said the principal as he clasped his hands behind his back, his expression solitude while tilting his head 45 degrees to the ceiling.


    Duan Li wondered why their principal would act like this from time to time. What did he even gaze up there for? Its not like there are birds flying. There are only stalactites that could fall at any moment now towards unsuspecting victim. Is he actually worrying about that?


    Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated.


    Cough cough!


    Noticing the weird gaze Duan Li was giving him, the principal made a dry cough as he complained in his heart.


    Can''t you let a man act a little bit?!


    Hais..


    "Alright Xiahou Yu, you go on first. We will just stand here and watch from this distance. I don''t dare to get anywhere closer than this." said the principal towards Xiahou Yu, his expression a little bit guilty.


    Understanding the worries of the principal, Xiahou Yu chuckled for a bit as her views on the principal changed a little. Previously, she was afraid of the strict air the principal has around him and his weird whipping habit. But now, she found out that the principal was actually kindhearted as well.


    "En! I will go first!" she nodded as she began to step forward and walk slowly towards the gate.


    The four of them watched her from behind as they saw her small figure was walking forward without turning back. Her fists clenched tight, and a reminiscent aura of an indomitable will exuded out from her.


    "En! That is an excellent determination! She will be able to go far in her cultivation with such a will!" complemented the principal.


    "That''s only natural, after all, she is my niece!" said Wang Guozhi smiling proudly as he crossed both of his arms together while standing straight.


    He was actually quite worried for her, but since the principal had guarenteed that they will be safe, he reined it in. After all, he also knew best that the path to cultivation is something that will always be wrapped in danger and setbacks. Only when one managed to persevere, will one succeed to become stronger!


    Ling Yu nodded as she agreed with the principal as well.


    Tap!


    Xiahou Yu finally stood right below the red gate. Clenching her teeth tightly, she stepped forward.


    Whooshh!


    As soon as her feet stepped into the zone outside the gate, she immediately felt a mysterious tugging force that dragged her in slowly. She did not resist this pulling force as she just let it drag her all the way into the vortex.


    Woonggg!


    Her figure disappeared as she entered the pitch black vortex.


    "Alright, now Duan Li its your turn!" said the principal. This time his face is really serious.


    After all, Duan Li is the only hope they have to tide through the end times. Therefore, he was quite worried if any mishaps were to befall on him in the eternal maze. This is the kind of guy that loves to break the laws of nature, perhaps some form of retribution would definitely find its way towards this fella sooner or later.


    But thinking about how this same brat would be the one to ascend to the pinnacle of the immortal ascension realm, even if it were the heavenly tribulation themselves that are trying to smite him to dust, that wouldn''t even be close to enough to stop him.


    In fact, he even started to wonder if the heavens itself has the capability to even do so after witnessing the bizarre event when Duan Li was ascending to the Qi condensation realm the other day. Those crimson thunders were already the tribulation level of the nascent soul realm. Yet, it couldn''t even scratch him even for a tiny-teeny bit.


    "Okay, here I go! Take care everyone and I will return soon!" said Duan Li as he floated a meter above ground and bolted casually through the gate and into the vortex in the blink of an eye.


    "..." the trio.


    Are you going on a picnic?


    Hais..


    ...

 40 Chapter 40: The Eternal Maze!

    What do you mean take care?


    We are here away from danger while you yourself will enter the eternal maze! It isyou who should take care instead!


    Hais.. that brat!


    "Alright, let us leave! I dare not linger around this place for too long now!" said the principal as both Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu nodded.


    Somehow, perhaps due to their realm, they are much more sensitive towards the intricate fluctuations of the mystical elements in their surrounding. This cave was giving off the kind of vibes that their instinct couldn''t understand. Thus, it would be better for them to leave if there was nothing else to do.


    After all, if the vortex decided to act up all of a sudden and suck them in too, that would be the kind of situation where they can kiss goodbye to their life.


    The principal then chanted a teleport spell as their teleport stones glowed brightly, after which they immediately disappeared from where they stood.


    Whoosh!


    ...


    Inside the Eternal maze...


    Woonggg!


    Ohh?


    Duan Li raised his left sleeve over his face as the scene in front of him had suddenly turned blindingly bright right after he flew through the vortex.


    He halted his flight as he floated mid-air and turned around to look at his surroundings with squinted eyes.


    Holy cow!


    "Whoa.. is this really the inside of the eternal maze?" said Duan Li looking stumped at what he was seeing.


    This is because the inside of the Eternal maze was far beyond his expectations!


    To think that an entire ecosystem was present here! From small hills, forests, rivers, to birds and gigantic long neck monsters roaming freely around! The entire area also seemed to be quite vastas it stretches far beyond before he can see a staggering line of long and tall walls that jutted up across the sky marking the end for this region.


    In Duan Li''s memories, when he was at the pinnacle of the nascent soul realm before when he came here, that region he was in was completely different than this region here.


    That place was extremely desolate and full of aura of death that lingers even on the ground itself. Terrible monsters and all sorts of fiendish beings littered practically everywhere as they fought one another to the death. If it was any other person that went there other than him, their little life could be considered as forfeit. But with Duan Li''s battle prowess that had already reached the pinnacle of the nascent soul realm, he naturally just threw one big slap towards them all one after another to clear the path straight to the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake, almost unhindered.


    This is because there were still behemoths and colossal monsters which he dared not provoke. Those kinds of supreme beings in this eternal maze wasn''t something a human could beat, at least not before he ascended to the immortal ascension realm anyway.


    At that point, even the nine hermit kings had eventually fallen before him, not to mention them.


    However, one thing was for sure is that, compared to that chaotic place, this region here could be seen as a paradise instead!


    "According to the difficulty for my level, the strongest monsters here should be at the pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm... " thought Duan Li.


    Eventhough he knew that he could just spam his fist around like what the principal said before, only savage lunatics would do such a thing. Thus, he decided to sneak around silently and avoid any monsters if he could like a civilized man.


    Tiptoeing his way around a few bush, Duan Li squatted down to hide behind them as he spotted a monster five meters away from him. He then took out the monster guide.


    Flip!


    Flipping through several pages, he finally found a drawing that has similar depictions of the monster in front of him.


    "Hmm... this monster here is called the Ankylosaurus... Level 3 of the Qi condensation realm." Duan Li continued to read its description.


    According to the monster guide, the Ankylosaurus is a carnivorous monster with its entire top side being heavily protected with thick, bony and oval plates embedded in its leathery skin that form an armor coating. It has a club-like tail which it uses to defend itself against predators. However, the Akylosaurus gets intimidated very easily and will run away once it senses threat.


    "Interesting... It seems that the monster core is located at the end of its tail... " Duan Li contemplated for awhile as he cupped his chin.


    To attack or not?


    Its not that he didn''t know how beneficial a monster core is for speed cultivating. But each monster cores have their own elemental attributes to them. Furthermore, he has one of those rare body constitution, attributeless.


    Back then when he tried to cultivate using these monster cores, his body had rejected all the five great elemental attributes.


    These five great elemental attributes are wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and water. Each elements generates interaction to the next one in a cyclical manner. In addition, each element could overcome one another. Wood would overcomes Earth and Earth could overcomes Water. Water would overcomes Fire and Fire could overcomes Metal. Finally, Metal overcomes Wood.


    When he discovered that his body would not accept spiritual Qi from any monster cores, he had given up altogether and just practiced the breathing method normally.


    However, when he pondered upon it deeply, ever since the moment he encountered that mysterious pearl, his body had undergone many unexpected changes including some bizarre abilities that was added to him.


    "Maybe I can cultivate using monster cores now?"


    He decided to just find out the hard way. If he could cultivate using the monster core, good. Otherwise, its still fine too as he would not lose anything. Duan Li pointed his index finger forward from inside the bush.


    Pew!


    BAM!


    The tail got cut off from the unsuspecting Ankylosaurus after Duan Li uses his Qi beam, the inferior version of the One Finger Starlight Slash skill.


    ROAARR!


    The Ankylosaurus got startled and groaned in pain due to the sudden attack that tore off its tail. Realizing its weapon to defend itself was no longer there, it quickly ran away.


    Duan Li then walked forward to pluck out the monster core from the tail.


    "Hmm... so this monster core has an Earth elemental attribute. Let''s see if I can cultivate it... " he said as he sat down cross-legged to cultivate the monster core.


    Pshiingg!


    EH?


    Duan Li was truly startled by now. He was just trying to see if he could cultivate the spiritual Qi inside the monster core. Yet, to think that the monster core would get absorbed into his body instead?


    Did my stomach grew a mouth somewhere without me realizing?


    Then suddenly, he could feel something was forming within his body. Specifically, inside his dantian! He immediately closed his eye to see just what was going on as he panicked.


    Shiiinggg!


    The All-Seeing eye activated as he drove his consciousness straight away into his dantian on the lower region.


    "T-that is..!"


    Inside his dantian, the surrounding area was just pitch black with a pool of spiritual Qi spiralling around in it. He actually had 9 of these Qi pools, but because he suppressed himself all the way to the level one of the Qi condensation realm, only one Qi pool was forming right now.


    However the Qi pool wasn''t the one that caught his attention, it was instead a singular object that was floating above it!


    The monster core!


    "H-how does it gets here?" exclaimed Duan Li.


    After circling around the floating monster core several times inside his dantian and checking that nothing was wrong with it nor does it causes trouble, Duan Li opened his eyes as he exhaled out in relief.


    "Well... Since its not causing me trouble at the moment, I guess its fine..."


    At first, he was afraid that his body would undergo some bizarre transformation. If it turns out that he had grown out a tail of the Ankylosaurus on his bottom, that would be a tragedy indeed.


    But, just what is the purpose of the monster core being absorbed into my dantian? He thought.


    Unable to satiate his curiousity, he went around the forest until he encountered another Ankylosaurus again.


    Before the Ankylosaurus could even react to seeing him, a fist was already coming straight to its face.


    BAM!


    Thud!


    The Ankylosaurus was knocked unconscious by Duan Li''s fist. He then pointed out with his index finger to cut off the Ankylosaurus tail.


    Pew!


    BAM!


    Forking out the monster core, he immediately sat down cross-legged again to cultivate it. With no surprises, the monster core was absorbed yet again.


    Pshiingg!


    Duan Li then drove his consciousness inside his dantian and found out two identical monster cores of the Earth elemental attributes floating together side by side as they revolved around one another.


    But just as he was about to contemplate the meaning of this phenomena, the two monster cores clashed with one another as a bright light followed. And then, a new monster core was formed.


    The same monster core with the same Earth elemental attributes, just bigger. In fact, two times bigger!


    Holy moly!


    Is it what I think it is?


    Duan Li opened his eyes in a daze, before a thought struck at him.


    "That must be it!" he exclaimed happily.


    Duan Li then immediately bolted to the sky as he scanned the area for more Ankylosaurus.


    As of this moment, all the Ankylosaurus that was roaming around the region stood still as their instinct sensed an impending threat looming over them.


    ...

 41 Chapter 41: Little Buddy, are you okay?

    "There is another one!" exclaimed Duan Li as his eyes glittered and then bolted straight to another Ankylosaurus that was currently busy relieving itself by the bushes.


    Psheww!


    BAM!


    ROAARR?!


    He plucked the monster cores from the tail, absorbed it and flew to the skies again, rinse and repeat.


    BAM!


    ROARRR!


    BAM!


    ROAARR!?


    ...


    Agonized moans of Ankylosauruses resounded through the forest as Duan Li kept on assaulting and cutting off their tails one after another. Even a pair of Ankylosaurus that was busy mating together passionately were not let off by Duan Li.


    It was truly a tragic sight!


    Whenever he would spot their kind, he would bolt straight towards them and immediately cut up their tails. The runaways Ankylosaurus began to howled out with an emergency scream towards the others that they encountered along the way.


    Run! RUNN!


    There is a lunatic in the forest! Everyone hide!


    He cut up my tail! That man is crazy!


    The Ankylosauruses was thoroughly riled up by now! A few moments ago, they had been merrily roaming around the forest minding their own business when this man suddenly appeared and started to savagely slice their tails apart without any warning just to collect their monster cores!


    The Ankylosaurus were running together in packs as their faces showing terrified expression. Some of them even panicked to the point of ramming straight into a tree and got caught by Duan Li as their tails got cut off instantly.


    After running for a while, these packs of Ankylosaurus finally reached a dead end as they stood in front of a tall cliff up ahead which would be impossible to climb. Eventhough they don''t have body hairs, right now they felt as if their hair are standing straight when they saw that lunatic approaching steadily from behind.


    Their terrified emotions brought upon an illusion onto themselves as they could somehow make out a sinister grin coming out from the face of that man as he walked slowly towards them.


    Mother! Help!


    NOOOO!!


    BAM!!


    ROARRR!!


    ...


    Thud!


    Thud!


    Witnessing these horrifying scenes, some Ankylosaurus could not endure it anymore as they passed out with white foams forming out of their mouth.


    The remaining Ankylosauruses huddled up together, shivering as they watched this evil man was about to turn to them next.


    They couldn''t help but to feel hopeless with their situation. There was one thing however, that bugged them since the beginning of this farce.


    Just what is up with this fella?!


    If you wanted our monster cores, just pluck it out straightly then!


    Was there really any need for you to cut off our tails?!


    Right after the Ankylosauruses thought along that line, Duan Li halted his momentum as he slapped his forehead with his palm with a loud ''Pa!''.


    Aiyoh!


    "I could have actually just knock them out and pluck the monster cores straight!" he said out loud as he turned around to face the remaining cornered Ankylosauruses that he managed to round up, their faces showing petrified expression.


    They had been THAT close to being amputated en masse without leaving a single one intact by this ruthless evil fella and lose their precious tails. Had it not been for the timely divine intervention that took pity on their plight and managed to knock some sense into this lunatic''s mind, they would have already all turn into a handicapped species by now!


    Smiling sheepishly, Duan Li scratched the back of his head as he palmed his hand together and bowed to apologize. He then waved them goodbye as he bolted back to the sky while feeling guilty.


    You left just like that?


    You think apologizing with a bow will settle this grievances between us?!


    Even if we have to knock the graves of our ancestors, we WILL get you for this!!


    Give us back out tails!!


    Nevertheless, the Ankylosauruses roarred as they sighed in relief when Duan Li left. However, there was quite a significant number of them that had already fallen prey to Duan Li''s antics.


    By ratio, it would be about 70 percent of them whom had lost their tails to that deranged devil!


    These victims then bited and dragged at their detached tails using their mouth with dejected faces. Burrowing at the ground with their hind legs, they buried their tails in the pit as tears welled up in their eyes, their emotions running amok!


    ROARR!!


    Oh dear Guardian! What have we done to deserve this?!


    They howled out to the sky with extreme indignance, hoping to find justice from the guardian of the Eternal maze.


    ROAAARR!


    ROAARRR!


    ....


    On a floating platform high above the sky within the Eternal maze, is a small wooden house that looked extremely ordinary. Inside this house, was an old man dressed in blue robes. His brows, hairs and beard had all turned white. There are even quite a lot of wrinkles on the face of this old man, a telltale sign of his old age. However, his appearance and disposition is filled to the brim with dignity!


    This old man was currently watering the small pot of cactus plant by the window of his room when suddenly his brows creased together as he heard shouts of howling coming from below.


    "The howls from Ankylosaurus? What''s wrong with them?" thought the old man.


    Their howls sounded tragic, anguished even. Never before had the old man heard the howls of so many Ankylosauruses together like this before.


    Was there some sort of a commotion between the monsters going on?


    Feeling that something was not right, he put down the watering can onto a small table by the side of the window gently as he abruptly vanished like a smoke.


    Whooshh!


    ...


    Meanwhile, the person responsible for the whole mess was currently flying to the East of the forest he was in before. The Earth elemental monster cores that he had gathered unscrupulously was now more than twenty times bigger. For now, all he knew was that it will eventually transform into an Earth essence once it reached a certain size.


    This was from the information that he remembered from his memories. When one cultivate enough monster cores of the same attribute for a long time, they have the chance to form an elemental essence within their dantian!


    Although technically, he absorbed the monster cores instead of cultivating them, he conjectured that eventually, it would turn into an Earth essence all the same.


    Elemental essence is very useful in that, it increases elemental attack by a whole lot depending on their intensity within one''s dantian.


    As he flew around, he was scanning at the ground for the treasure boxes along the way to see if he could get lucky, but unfortunately, he hadn''t manage to find any.


    "Perhaps the treasure boxes is located somewhere that is actually more conspicuous rather than hidden in the open field?" he thought as he cupped his chin.


    Suddenly, the corner of his eyes caught something moving as he halted his flight in mid air.


    Ohh?


    Duan Li saw a large pack of monsters that seemed to be currently on a hunt. He was about to just pass through and continue with his journey, but then, he heard a barking sound.


    Aarrff!!


    He squinted his eyes towards the location of that bark to get a good look. It was then that he saw a small animal being cornered by those monsters.


    "A wolf cub? What is it doing here?"


    It turns out that those monsters were actually stalking an injured wolf cub from behind. They slowly surrounded the wolf cub as they growled in excitement, seeming to play around before they jump in together to finish the cub.


    Those monsters...


    Feeling a little bit unsettled with the scene, Duan Li took out the monster guide.


    Flip!


    Duan Li flipped through the book as he soon found what he was looking for.


    "Velociraptor, they hunted in packs and is of the fifth level of the Qi condensation realm." said Duan Li as he read through the description briefly.


    That was all he need to see if it was safe for him to meddle into this situation. After all, the laws of the jungle is that it is the survival of the fittest and these kinds of situation was extremely normal in the wild.


    However, looking at that helpless small cub with the size of about his two palm combined, his human heart couldn''t ignore it. Such a small creature that hasn''t yet to explore the world, why must its fate end so tragically when he can change that?


    Making a swift decision, he headed down while throwing the Nine Fist Shattering Meteor in rapid succession towards theVelociraptors from above.


    BAM!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    The Velociraptors were hit squarely on their heads and were knocked unconscious instantly by Duan Li''s fist. Of course, he too had decided to control his strength back then. Otherwise with his full power, they would have turn into meat paste.


    Tap!


    Landing softly on the ground with both his feet, Duan Li observed the injured wolf cub more closely. This cub is extremely cute, with both of its ears sloped downwards. Furthermore, its grey fur looked to be comfortable to the touch. Only upon inspecting closely, could Duan Li see that one of its hind leg on the left was injured as it stood up limpidly.


    Arrfff!


    Grrrrr!


    The wolf cub growled in apprehension towards the approaching Duan.


    "Relax little buddy.. I am here to help you..." said Duan Li with a soft voice and a smile as he bent down his body a bit, trying to look as small as possible so that he would appear less intimidating.


    Arrff!


    As if it understood what Duan Li had just said, the wolf cub laid down on the ground as it panted heavily. Obviously, the cub was just putting up a tough front before but was actually quite exhausted since it was still pretty much a baby, what more with an injured leg.


    When Duan Li finally was able to approach closer to the cub a little bit more, he extended his hands slowly as he stroked the cub''s head gently.


    "There there.. its going to be fine.. I will heal you soon.. " said Duan Li slowly as he pondered in his mind.


    "The method to heal physical injuries taught by sister Ling Yu could only work within my own body. Therefore, if I wanted to use it on someone else.. I just had to externalized it right?"


    Duan Li then searched through his memories to see if there was any skill arts like these that he had mastered before. To his surprise, he found out that he knew so many ways to heal other people''s injuries outside of his own. These techniques are in the form of inscribing runic formations, or chanting spells and magic incantations. But all those techniques will take a LOT of spiritual Qi which he didn''t have right now.


    After a while, he finally found what he was looking for, a form of art from the Qigong branch that can transfer spiritual Qi to another person. With the help of this memory and his increased analytical skills, he managed to combine Ling Yu''s healing art together with the Qigong arts and modify it so that it can used to heal on the limb of the injured cub.


    He then named this skill as the ''Healing hands'' as he extended both of his hands towards the injured leg of the cub.


    Wooongg!


    The injured area of the leg began to glowed brightly with the shades of pure white, like milk. Not long after that, the wound began to heal slowly for about 10 breaths before it fully closed altogether.


    The cub then stood up on all of its four limbs and jumped around Duan Li after it felt the injured area was completely healed by Duan Li.


    Arrff Arffff!


    The cub barked adorably as it wagged its tail left and right with its tongue sticking out. It seems to be thanking Duan Li for healing its injured leg.


    "What are you doing out here alone little buddy? Where is your mother?" asked Duan Li softly as he lifted the cub to his chest and rubbed its body gently.


    Aarrff! Arrff!


    The cub sniffed for abit as it pointed out a direction with its paw. Duan Li was surprised by its intelligence and decided to carry it along with him. He then put the cub inside his clothes with its head poking out.


    "Let''s go find your mother then!" said Duan Li as he chuckled looking at that adorable and cute cub.


    ...


    Whoooshh!


    The old man from the wooden house before that has vanished, appeared abruptly above the forest where Duan Li had just left a few moments ago.


    ROOARR!


    ROAARR!


    Seemingly to notice the arrival of their savior, the Ankylosauruses howled out one after another with saddened moans. They seemed to voice out numerous complaints one after another with similar contents in them.


    EHHH?


    Looking at the tragic state of the Ankylosauruses, the old man''s face darkened as he shouted out.


    "BRAZEN!! WHO DARES?!"


    His voice was so loud that it causes sonic booms and fierce gales to blow over the whole area.


    ...

 42 Chapter 42: An encounter with the Mythical beast!

    When he look at those tragic state of the Ankylosaurus, he was so confounded that his eyes turned wide and his mouth wide agaped.


    What in the world is going on here?


    To think that most of them no longer had their tails attached to their bottom!


    Is this some sort of a new trend between the Ankylosauruses right now that I didn''t know about?


    But wait, why are they wailing out to me?


    It was only when he listened carefully to their wails that he managed to understand what was going on.


    "BRAZEN!! WHO DARES!!"


    His shout was so loud that it sent out fierce gales which encompassed the whole area. After all, it couldn''t be helped for him to get riled up like this.


    These Ankylosauruses was something that he had painstakingly raise from when they were a hatchling along with the other monsters as well until they were able to procreate and expanded in population. To think that a mere human that had just entered the Eternal maze would act as such, chopping off their tails here and there without conscience, for the sake of cultivating their monster cores? Truly courting death!!


    Look at his babies!


    Their anguished wails that can break one''s heart!


    Those once cute figure they had before was gone and now, they looked nothing more but a bunch of disabled species!


    Damn it! DAMN IT!!


    As the sole Guardian of this region, how could he endure it as such?


    "Don''t worry my babies, I will find that devillish man and uphold justice for you all! I swear this on my name, Jing Zhianghu, as the Guardian of this first region!" said the old man as he made his vows with a serious and solemn expression.


    He needed to make sure to hunt that fella down and force onto him some good morals! For the old man, killing these Ankylosaurus would not be an issue at all, but when one torment them like this, chopping off their tails which was their only weapon to provide themselves for self-defense, it was similar to let them dying with a slow, painful death!


    Totally unacceptable!


    Flicking his hands together, he performed a series of complex incantation gestures. With his index finger pointing out, he then drew on the air some runic formations and inscriptions that appears to be extremely archaic.


    ''Ten Epic Spells: Rhapsody of Rebirth!''


    Wooonggg!


    The drawn symbols flashed together as the skies parted open. Then, a soft light that seems to be coming from the heavens descended down towards the ground where the Ankylosauruses are gathering right now.


    These lights then wrapped around them as they glowed brightly before they began to shrink down smaller and smaller. If one observed carefully, they would find out that these Ankylosauruses were getting younger by the seconds, to soon became into a hatchling as they finally turned into an egg!


    These eggs then jolted slightly as cracks began to form on them. When the cracks joined together from one end to another, they burst apart, revealing the newborn hatchlings of Ankylosauruses. They then started to grow bigger and bigger rapidly. Finally, the Ankylosauruses had matured to the state they were once before!


    In addition, they now have their tails back! The Ankylosauruses couldn''t help but to become elated seeing that familiar part of their body once again! They wagged their tails left and right in excitement.


    However, for the Guardian to be able to regrow back their lost tails in just but a few breaths, naturally, the Guardian must have paid a heavy price for this.


    The old man panted heavily as his face turned a bit pale.


    "Performing the epic spell has drawn out a lot from me... It would take sometime for me to recover..." said the old man.


    The Ten Epic spells is a realm higher than the One Hundred Legendary spells. Performing any one of these ten spells would take a huge toll to one''s three Life''s being. These three Life''s being are the soul essence, the body''s spirit which consisted of the mental fortitude and physical stamina, and the spiritual Qi!


    Thus, when he performed the spell, all three Life''s being that comprises himself has been depleted to the critical level. After all, the requirements to cast such a high level spell was simply abysmal!


    Only those that had transcended the boundaries of mortality would be able to perform a spell of such caliber. Otherwise, one''s lifeforce would simply cease to exist.


    In other words, the old man that had performed this spell was already at the Immortal ascension realm!


    Extending his heavenly sense towards the whole region under his control, it didn''t took long for him to locate Duan Li. Curling his mouth into a sneer, his figure immediately vanished on the spot.


    Whooshh!


    ...


    Whooshh!


    The old man appeared above the clouds. With his heaven-revolting realm, locking his sights onto Duan Li on the ground was naturally something easy for him to do.


    "So that''s how this brazen fella looks like eh? I''ll teach you a... Huh?"


    Just as he was about to make a move, his eyes caught something that was sticking out of Duan Li''s clothes at this moment.


    "The cub of a Fenrir? How does that thing gets here?" he said as he pondered.


    Extending his heavenly sense once more, he scanned the surrounding walls that encompassed this region and found that they are still 100 percent intact. Nothing that is out of sorts it seems.


    Those walls are virtually impenetrable, with a height of 30 kilometres high and a width of 5 kilometres wide with a depth of 10 kilometres deep. It would be a fool''s dream to even try to break it apart.


    Not to mention that the walls were especially made up of solid material that was plucked straight from the seabed by the Grand Immortal himself. The sheer toughness would be enough to stop the combined assault from several behemoths and colossal class monsters together.


    Therefore, how did a beast from the ninth region arrived here? A harmless cub at that.


    But wait.. if the cub is here, then the mother?! His heart started to palpitate quickly.


    DAMN IT!!


    He extended his heavenly sense through every nook and cranny of the region before he detected an extremely terrifying existence that reflected back his heavenly sense.


    The mother of the cub!


    "To think that something as such had slipped into the region under my supervision without me noticing!" the old man exclaimed in a panic.


    The Fenrir is an extremely ferocious mythical beast that has a very high intelligence. Their overall battle prowess is at the immortal ascension realm as well. If it wanted to wreack havoc here, there would be nothing he could do to stop it!


    This is because he had used most of his strength to cast the rebirth spell onto the Ankylosauruses before. So if he tried to step in front of it right now, he would be able to say hello to the death god!


    "Curses! How could I let this happen!"


    And then, he happened to realize that Duan Li was approaching towards the location of the Fenrir! It seems that the cub was pointing towards the direction of its mother!


    Its the end!!


    With that fella''s brazen attitude, he would definitely provoke the Fenrir!


    But when he thought deeply into it, he realized that all hope is not lost yet! Perhaps the Fenrir was just waiting for her cub right now, and would return back after that!


    Crunch!


    The old man crushed a heavenly pill inside his mouth to accelerate his recovery. For now, he only hoped for the worst to not happen. Until his strength returns back to its peak, that fella would better stall time for him!


    ...


    "Ohh? Your mother is somewhere around here?" said Duan Li as he patted the cub.


    "Arrff Arff!" the cub replied with excitement as it nods repeatedly. Seeing this, Duan Li chuckled as he found the cub to be cute.


    Tap!


    Finally approaching the location, Duan Li cast his sights onto something that made his entire body froze.


    Gulp!


    In front of him, laid a giant wolf, about the size of 10 meters long, its eyes looking sharply into his eyes. This wolf has pure white fur, its eyes gleamed with a shades of blue. There were static charges of lightning that was let out of its body from time to time.


    Holy cow!


    What sort of a wolf is this?!


    How could Duan Li imagined that the mother of a helpless cub being chased around by some puny monsters at the level five of the Qi condensation realm would be something so terrifying?


    Duan Li''s entire body was screaming with extreme alertness right now. Even his individual body cells let out a scream that the being in front of him is something that he would not be able to survive against. Even running would be useless!


    Thus, Duan Li followed his instinct as he continued to approach the mother of the cub slowly as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Ehh?


    Due to fear that had controlled his minds before, he hadn''t been able to take a better look. But now that he was close enough, he could see that the mother was also injured!


    It seems like the injury came from a sharp bite to her back! Furthermore, those bite marks looked pretty deep too!


    Gathering up his courage, Duan Li was about to speak up when suddenly the cub inside his clothes leaped out suddenly as it ran towards its mother.


    Arrff Arrff!


    ...

 43 Chapter 43: Powerful existence!

    The mother continued to stare at Duan Li as the cub ran towards her. Her stare made Duan Li felt as if the tip of a sword was being pressed right in front of his throat right now. If he dared to move even a muscle, he will definitely die without a doubt!


    "Little buddy! Please tell your mother that I was the one who had saved you!" Duan Li was praying for himself inwardly.


    Arrff Arrff!


    The cub then appeared to be communicating with its mother as the latter listened attentively. Her gaze was gentle and full of warmth as she nodded after listening to everything that her child has to say.


    Duan Li couldn''t help but to remember his own mother that was now alone back at the Xuan village.


    The mother of the cub then turned to look at Duan Li as that suppressive aura of her''s was reigned in.


    "Human, it seems that according to my son, you had protected him from danger and even healed his injured leg. For this, I am in debt with you." said the wolf as it nodded.


    Duan Li was a little bit startled when the wolf communicated to him this way. It was because of two things. One, is that it spoke in human language. Two, is that it communicated with him directly through telepathy!


    As far as his memories goes, he had never encountered a talking beast as such, except the peculiar talking tree, Ancestor Zong. Unable to contain his curiosity, Duan Li asked slowly.


    "You.. can talk?" said Duan Li.


    "Indeed. We are of the species called Fenrir from the ninth region. My name is Milvia, and my son here is Daelius." replied the mother.


    Milvia...?


    Daelius...?


    Why does their name sounded so foreign to him?


    Noticing the expression of Duan Li, the mother called Milvia chuckled.


    "It is natural for you to find our names foreign to your tongue. After all, we came from the Norse world."


    "The Norse world?" said Duan Li as his brows furrowed together. Somehow, he had once heard of this word in his memories. But he just can''t recall it entirely.


    "Never mind. Human, are you willing to take a look at my injuries?" continued the mother.


    Upon hearing her request, naturally Duan Li wasn''t able to refuse. After all, this wolf in front of him was so intimidating even in its weakened state!


    Thus, he had no choice but to acede to her request with a nod as he walked closer.


    ...


    Somewhere in the sky...


    "You fool! What do you think you are doing?!" shouted the old man as he rose from his sitting position.


    He had just managed to recover over half of his total strength and hoped that Duan Li could buy him some more time. Instead, the other party was about to try and heal the Fenrir!


    For the old man, even if he was at his peak right now, the odds of him fighting it out against a mythical creature from the Ninth region would at most be a draw. This was because each mythical creatures in the Ninth region has a heaven-revolting strength!


    Thankfully, this Fenrir here was only at the early stage of the immortal ascension realm, the same as him. If it were to be any more than that, he would definitely had to risk his life to protect this region if it suddenly turned hostile!


    Suddenly, he felt a towering pressure over him as a voice resounded into his mind through telepathy.


    "Guardian, please be rest assured. I mean no harm and has only accidentally passed through here as I tried to escape from my pursuit." the voice said with a monotone.


    The old man was a little bit surprised as he didn''t expect for his whereabouts to be located that easily by the Fenrir.


    "Why should I trust you?" he replied cautiously through telepathy as well.


    "I shall waste no effort in explaining myself to you more than once. If you believe me, good. If you don''t, then come. We shall fight it out to the end!" replied the mother as its aura slowly rose.


    Kuh!


    The old man could feel from the increasing pressure alone that, eventhough the Fenrir was currently injured and their realm is of the same level, the Fenrir was more stronger than him by a few notch!


    After all, a beast was born with more strength to them compared to a human since birth.


    "Fine! But if I sense that you were about to do any harm, even if I have to sacrifice my life on the line, I will kill you!" replied the old man coldly as his aura also surged out rapidly.


    Boom!


    Boom!


    A clash of aura was happening right now above the sky as the old man pushed the pressure exerted onto him by the Fenrir.


    Trying to bare your fangs against me?


    That would depend if you have the capability!


    It is true that you are a little bit stronger than me, but so what? I have a lot of treasures I can use to increase my powers!


    Who''s afraid of whom?!


    ...


    The mother did not bother to reply to the old man above the sky as its gaze followed the approaching Duan Li.


    "Hmm... these bite marks are fairly deep... If I wanted to heal it at my current suppressed state, it would take me a few days... Guess I''ll have to unseal my cultivation states to the level 3 then!" said Duan Li to himself as he cupped his chin.


    Boom!


    Level 2 of the Qi condensation realm!


    Level 3 of the Qi condensation realm!


    Duan Li''s aura now had also jumped torrentially as well after he unsealed himself. Right now, this was the most he could do with the least amount of damage to his meridians and pathways. If he unsealed his powers any more than this, they will definitely burst apart! Even with the miraculous recovery ability his body has due to the mysterious pearl, he did not dare take such risk.


    Hmm?


    Both the old man and the Fenrir was surprised with the sudden qualitative increase in Duan Li''s aura. They hadn''t bother to check what level he was in at the Qi condensation realm before as it didn''t make a difference to them.


    But now, both of them immediately casted their heavenly senses onto Duan Li as their scan results that they got back shocked them even further.


    Level 9 of the Qi condensation realm?


    Why does it feel like he is at the early stage of the Foundation establishment realm right now?


    Furthermore, he had been suppressing himself down to the lowest level in the Qi condensation realm all these while!


    To think that when he unsealed himself to the level 3 of the Qi condensation realm, his spiritual Qi is already this heavy?


    Who on earth is this young man?


    Nevertheless, the Fenrir did not detect any sort of threat radiating out of Duan Li. Thus, it remained calm when both of Duan Li''s palm was above her injured back.


    "This boy... How could his aura be like this? Was he actually at the Foundation establishment realm? But that can''t be right! After all, the entrance to the Eternal maze would do a thorough check of someone''s realm before teleporting them to the allocated region... This brat, he is actually not that simple eh?" said the old man as his brows creased together.


    If Duan Li was actually someone from the Foundation establishment realm, he would definitely be sent to the second region right now instead of the first region.


    ''Healing hands!''


    Woonggg!


    The injured area glowed brightly as the wounds began to close up rapidly at a visible rate. Seeing this, the duo was shocked yet again.


    Eh? The wounds are starting to close up already?


    What spell is that?


    They were startled because when one''s body had already been tempered to the extent of reaching the immortal ascension realm, it would take a very powerful being to hurt their physical body into such a state.


    This also means that, the body of someone at their realm is extremely complex and dense, such that a normal healing spell would no longer work.


    However, the young man in front of them right now seemed to only cast a simple healing spell, or was it actually not that simple at all?


    Previously, the mother was only trying to see if her wounds could be healed even if just 10 percent of it. But by the looks of things right now, she would be up to 100 percent peak condition in no time!


    They found this to be extremely weird, a person at the Qi condensation realm has such means? Unable to contain their curiosity, both extended their heavenly sense further into Duan Li as they tried to probe deeper into his body.


    But when their consciousness was about to reach his dantian, an insurmountable aura suddenly burst forth that repelled their heavenly sense forcefully!


    BAM!


    Urghh!


    They almost spat out blood each from the unsuspecting force that repelled their heavenly senses.


    "T-this guy...!" exclaimed the old man feeling a little bit horrified right now.


    One had to remember that they were both at the immortal ascension realm. With their heavenly senses, no matter what powerful means someone has to hide their abilities from them, as long as their realm was low, nothing could shroud past their senses.


    But to think that now, not even did their senses could not penetrate through, they were even repelled harshly by the other party to the point of almost spitting out blood!


    How inconceivable!


    "There must be a powerful existence protecting this young man!" was their thoughts.


    ...


    Soon, the injured area had completely healed. The mother was now back to 100 percent peak state, and so do the old man. Right now, they are on edge with each other. Should any of them decided to make a move, the other party would definitely retaliate.


    The mother then stood up on her four legs as her towering figure caused Duan Li to feel a little bit apprehensive. She cast her sights on him.


    "This young man has a powerful existence behind his back that even my heavenly senses was repelled forcefully. Daelius will be in danger if I bring him back to the Ninth region, so I should let this young man take care of him for awhile instead..."


    As she thought along that line, she spoke to Duan Li, "Young man, I need you to take care of my son for awhile as I will be returning to the Ninth region. He will be far safer in your hands."


    Hearing this, Duan Li was a bit troubled. After all, he never had any pets before.


    Noticing Duan Li''s troubled looks, the mother whip her tail up as a thunder bolt crackled and floated above her.


    "This here is my thunder essence from the fire element. If you help me take care of my son, I will let you cultivate it. You can use it for a few times with just a thought which will be very beneficial for you. It can even reduce half of the intensity from the heavenly tribulation when you ascend to a higher realm." she said with a confident tone.


    Duan Li thought about her proposal for a bit as he nodded in agreement. After all, it will just be babysitting. What could possibly go wrong?


    "But there is no way to cross from one region to another..." said Duan Li.


    "There is a way." replied the mother.


    ....

 44 Chapter 44: The Nine shackles of mortals!

    "There is a way." replied the mother.


    "And that is through the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake!" she continued, her tone solemn.


    Hearing this, Duan Li recalled that the principal somehow said that the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake was centered around all the other region.


    "That is a graveyard for all the beings of the nine region. When we die, our carcasses will be teleported and dumped into the graveyard lake!" she explained.


    "Is that so.. no wonder it is called as such..." said Duan Li slowly.


    The One Hundred Thousand graveyard lake was a lake that is full of dried up bones and meat. When Duan Li had first entered it to temper his physical body for his ascension to the immortal realm, he thought that it was from the remains of a very, very colossal monster.


    "According to the legend, these nine region was formed after an absolute being, the Grand Immortal from the upper firmaments of the multiverse founded a way to live for the third lifetime. Thus, in order to create an increasingly strong physical body for his future self, he had painstakingly created this dimensional space and poured countless varying creatures within it, separated by tall borders with each a respective Guardian overseeing them." continued the mother.


    The reason why these beings were caged inside this separate dimension called the Eternal maze was due to the Grand Immortal''s wish to use their blood as atonic to temper his future self''s body.


    However, thinking that it would be cruel to massacre all these living creatures for the sake of their blood, he decided to let them live naturally inside their own habitat which he artificially made using his boundless powers.


    Only when they died, either naturally or killed, will their body be teleported into the One Hundred Thousand graveyard lake, where their blood essences would then be extracted, condensed and merged together with the other blood essences.


    As a result, the lake grew increasingly potent through time, such that it would kill any cultivator that tried to temper their physical body in it, except those with affinity.


    Duan Li was astounded when he heard the title, Grand Immortal. That title seemed to be the most domineering one he has ever heard.


    Grand Immortal?


    Isn''t that like someone who is above the immortals?


    What kind of concept is that?


    With curiosity poking at his mind, he couldn''t help but to ask, "Grand Immortal? Is that someone at the peak of the immortal ascension realm?"


    If that was the case, then wouldn''t he be also called the Grand Immortal back then?


    The mother wolf narrowed her eyes.


    "Young man, be very careful whenever you said something involving the Grand Immortal himself. That is an Utmost Supreme Being that is worshipped by the nine guardians of the Eternal maze!" replied the mother hurriedly, her tone a little bit panic.


    Who was the Grand Immortal? That is an existence which created the entire Eternal maze with inconceivable means. To say that the Grand Immortal was at the immortal ascension realm?


    That would be downright blasphemy!


    And just as she said that, a figure abruptly appeared behind Duan Li.


    Whoooshh!


    This was the old man, the Guardian of the first region. His face was looking quite dark right now.


    "Brazen brat, you dare to suggest that the Grand Immortal is of a lowly realm once more, I will erase you from existence this instant!" said the old man with a hoarse voice.


    When Duan Li saw the abrupt appearance of the blue robed old man with a dignified air to him, combined with what he just said and the warnings from the mother wolf before, he immediately knew who the old man standing before him was.


    "I... I am someone new to the world of cultivation, please forgive my slip of the tongue if I had mentioned anything offensive Lord Guardian!" said Duan Li quickly as he did a 90 degrees bow towards the old man.


    Seeing Duan Li''s immediate repentence, the old man''s face returned to normal as he nodded.


    After all, a man who knew the three wisdoms of life; respect, repent and forgive is someone whom is worth the second chance.


    "Hmph! You are fortunate that this region was supervised by the magnanimous me. If it had been any of the other eight Guardians, you would have died on the spot right now without a doubt!" the old man harrumphed.


    "I am Jing Zhianghu, the Guardian of the first region!" he introduced himself with his hands clasped behind his back.


    "That wolf you spoke with, is from a species called Fenrir from the Ninth region. It would be best for it to return soon." continued the old man.


    Fenrir...


    What a powerful name for a species...


    "Anyway, It seems that you came from the Tian continent. How is it nowadays?" the old man asked.


    He was also someone who came from the Tian continent about ten generations ago. Thus, feeling his interest piqued by Duan Li''s previous means, he wondered whether humanity had become much more formidable ever since the day he departed into this maze.


    "Eh... I guess everyone is doing fine.. we now have a total of nine empires across the whole continent... We even have something called the Airtrains now..." replied Duan Li slowly.


    Airtrain? What''s that?


    Nevermind, its probably something new that was invented recently.


    "Nine? That''s quite a lot! It seems that humanity has flourished. What more with that thing called Airtrains that seems to be impressive since you mentioned it. Although it would still take some time before the human civilization could reach the apex once again." said the old man as he nodded his head, but he still has that indifferent look to him.


    After all, before someone from his realm,all others beneath and everything material are quite insignificant in the scale of the multiverse.


    "It seems that the human''s conception of the cultivation realm has deteriorated though. Why don''t you explain that to him?" interjected the mother wolf.


    "Hmph! You don''t have to remind me! I am planning to tell him anyway!" replied the old man while closing his eyes feeling annoyed as he turned his attention towards Duan Li once more.


    "Listen brazen brat! The cultivation realm doesn''t just stop at the immortal ascension realm. In fact, that is merely the beginning to truly become an immortal!" he continued.


    "The mortal wheels of fate, will transform to become the immortal''s fate once they ascend to the immortal ascension realm! What it means for this change is that, one would have finally escaped the first shackle of a mortal! Thus, ascending to the realm of immortality!"


    The old man then continued to explain that, according to the Grand immortal whom had released himself from the eight shackles, the ninth shackle should be the final obstacles before one finally reach true immortality, an existence that is unbounded by the laws of nature, space and time!


    In other words, the most inviolable existence there is!


    The first shackle is called as the Escaping mortality realm! In this realm, one''s body will become incomparably tough, to the extent that their three life''s being will leap into a qualitative change that could prolong their lifespan up to five thousand years old!


    The second shackle, Entering Omnipresence state realm is when one would be able to obtain the ability to travel through the void to reach a distance so vast, in but an instant!


    As Duan Li listened all the way to the eight shackles, his heart palpitated in eagerness. In his memories, he was only able to reach the pinnacle stage of the immortal ascension realm, or now known as the Escaping mortality realm.


    At that time, his battle prowess was already so heaven-defying!


    What would it be like to go far beyond than that? To release the ninth shackle?


    "And finally, the ninth shackle, True One Whole state realm! This is the name given by the Grand Immortal who had ascended all the way to the Eight shackle, Eternal Heavenly Realm state!" said the old man as he look towards the sky, his eyes filled with awe and reverence.


    "True One Whole state realm...!" Duan Li repeated subconsciously.


    A singular state where there is no precedence before or after it, separating oneself from the Three Life''s being, while still being alive indefinitely for all eras until the ends of time and after. Now that, is a true indomitable and inviolable existence!


    A true immortal!


    Duan Li''s hair stood on end as he imagined what sort of unparalleled being could reach and release that final shackle!


    "However, releasing the ninth shackle is extremely beyond difficult and that phrase would still be underestimating it! If there is anyone who could do it, that would only be the Grand Immortal himself!" added the old man with a longing look to him.


    For the old man, releasing the first shackle was already too difficult for him. It took a total of 800 years for him to reach such a state. And now 500 years later, he was still stuck at the early stage of the first shackle.


    If he do the maths, perhaps he could only reach the pinnacle of the first shackle in this lifetime. After all, the world of cultivation is aligned entirely with both luck and affinity. Without these two, it would definitely be impossible for one to progress any further.


    The old man sighed as he accepted his fate.He then turned towards the mother wolf.


    "Go back to where you belong now, this is not the place for you to stay." said the old man with a stern voice.


    "Hmph! As if I wanted to be here in the first place." snorted the mother wolf looking annoyed at the old man.


    "Young man, I shall leave my son to you for awhile. Take care of him for me." continued the mother.


    "En! No problem!" replied Duan Li as he nodded his head.


    The mother wolf then extended the floating thunder essence in front of Duan Li. However, before she could even began to tell him how to cultivate it, the latter had closed his eyes and started to cultivate it while sitting cross-legged.


    Noticing the other party trying to cultivate the thunder essence normally as if cultivating the spiritual Qi from a monster core, both the old man and the mother wolf chuckled as they shook their heads.


    This young man is still too green!


    Let''s see how long it will take for him to realize that it will be futile to cultivate the thunder essence this way!


    Just as such thoughts crossed within their minds, the inconceivable happened before their very eyes.


    Pshiingggg!


    The thunder essence that was floating so majestically before was now gone without a trace, absorbed by Duan Li as he then opened his eyes abruptly.


    "Done!" he said with a happy expression.


    He could feel the power of the rattling thunder essence floating within his dantian right now to be extremely strong. If he encountered any powerful being even at the nascent soul realm, this thunder essence would be able to do a quick work out of them!


    Done?


    We just so happen to see that the thunder essence was gone when we blink in just for a few moments!


    Did you eat it? Hurry and spit it back out!!


    That is no way to cultivate it at all!


    ...

 45 Chapter 45: Prelude to become the strongest man!

    "Where did the thunder essence go?" asked the old man towards Duan Li, his expression still looked a bit baffled.


    Duan Li scratched the back of his head as he replied, "Ahh that, I have already absorbed it into my dantian..."


    "Eh? Human, how did you managed to absorb it so quickly?" this time, it was the mother wolf who asked curiously.


    After all, that thunder essence had originated from her and she knew very well how difficult it would be to cultivate it. Only through special means can the thunder essence be cultivated successfully!


    But who would be able to guess that a young man, merely at the level of a Qi condensation realm would be able to cultivate the mighty thunder essence that could strike fear at the hearts of even nascent soul realm experts in but a single instant?


    "Well... I actually don''t really know..." said Duan Li slowly. He would never reveal a single clue to point out that the mysterious pearl was probably the one at work for that.


    Hearing Duan Li''s answer with that suspicious tone of his, both of them decided to not pry any further. There must be a reason why the young man decided to not talk about it. Furthermore, they are quite cautious regarding the background of Duan Li after the previous incident, where their heavenly senses were repelled forcefully.


    If that secret was somehow connected to that powerful existence behind him, their life could be in danger for knowing something they shouldn''t know!


    There was a saying that, those who peeked too close, will find themselves being slapped at the bum!


    Furthermore, the ability to block a heavenly sense from others could only be obtained through releasing the third shackle, Forming Realm and Law State! When one is already in this state, they can surround their body with a layer of their own realm that is able to block the heavenly senses from others to detect or even scan them.


    But to forcefully repel and simultaneously attack at another through their heavenly senses alone? Now that is another story altogether. That would be the means of someone whom had already released the fourth shackle, Primordial Spirit Forming state!


    Gulp!


    "Anyway, it doesn''t really matter actually. The sooner you absorbed it, the sooner will this Fenrir be able to leave from this region." waved the old man casually.


    "Humph! I will leave soon even without you having to remind me!" snorted the mother wolf.


    Arfff! Arrfff!


    The wolf cub looked towards its mother with teary eyes.


    "Daelius, you take care okay? This young man should be able to keep you safe from harm. Mother needs to take care of something important and where I am going, kids are not allowed there." explained the mother wolf to her cub.


    "Arff..." the cub looked down towards the ground as its sad expression deepened, seemingly ready to bawl out into tears right now. Its soft ears had also drooped down even further.


    The mother wolf licked the head of her cub as she reassured him, "Don''t be too sad, mother here can communicate with you through our bloodlines remember?".


    ...


    Duan Li observed the two wolves communicating with each other with a warm smile. At a glance somehow, looking at the both of them really reminded him of his mother. He looked towards the sky as a thought ran across him.


    When I return to the academy later on, I would have to request for the principal to borrow me a jade crystal for communicating with mother!


    Leaving the two wolves aside for the moment, Duan Li turned towards the old man who called himself Jing Zhianghu, the Guardian of the first region.


    "If I may ask sir, where can I find the location of the treasure boxes?" asked Duan Li respectfully.


    "Oh? I have lived here for so many centuries and has encountered a lot of people before you. Yet, when they knew of my existence, not even one dared to ask me as such. You really are quite peculiar." replied the old man with a frown.


    Suddenly, he flicked his two fingers together as he remembered the original purpose he was looking for the young man in front of him.


    "That also reminded me you brazen brat! You dare to cause such a ruckus with the Ankylosauruses earlier on! Are you right on your mind to chop off so many of their tails just to cultivate their monster cores?!" reprimanded the old man coldly.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s face flushed red in embarrassment as he scratched the back of his head feeling guilty and replied, "Ahh... That is... I was too absorbed in what I was doing and didn''t realize it..."


    The old man really wanted to slap the head of this brat in front of him real hard right now. He couldn''t make heads or tails whether this brat was a genius or a handicapped person!


    However, he reined in his intention deeply and just shook his head as he sighed helplessly.


    "Hais... but why do you need such a lot of low-level monster cores for? Even if you were to wipe off the whole family of thr Ankylosaurus here, their low Earth elemental attributes wouldn''t form an Earth essence for you!" told the old man.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s eyes widen as his mouth agape in shock, "Ehh? They wouldn''t be able to form the Earth essence?"


    Then, have I been hunting them franticallyfor naught?


    The old man shook his head helplessly again. This brazen brat is way too green for this! Who was the one foolish enough to let this fella roam free into the Eternal maze with such a low basic knowledge?


    Perhaps that person was also not right in the head!


    ...


    At the principal''s office...


    Achoo!


    "Eh? Why do I feel like someone is talking bad about me behind my backs? Do they wanna get whipped? How insolent!" thought the Principal as he snorted and continued writing his paperworks.


    ...


    After hearing the explanation from the old man, only then did Duan Li realized that what he did so far was nothing short but a farce.


    "So, it turns out that in order to have a higher chance to form an elemental essence, I need to find higher levelled monsters because they have more density and is of high quality as well!" said Duan Li to himself as he slapped his forehead in realization.


    But, why does the monster cores inside my dantian continued to congregate together and got bigger as I absorbed more of them?


    Duan Li cupped his chin together as he pondered. However, a sudden stifling sensation came out of nowhere as he spatted out a mouthful of blood!


    Urghh!


    "Eh? You are injured brat? what happened?" said the old man with a little bit of indifference in his voice.


    Even the two wolves that were conversing together before had their attention focused onto Duan Li now with his sudden outburst of spitting out blood.


    Arrrff! Arrff!


    The wolf cub was running in circles around Duan Li as it panicked seeing Duan Li''s state.


    "What happened to you human?" asked the mother wolf curiously.


    Duan Li wiped the blood beside his lips as he gestured with hands, "Ahh, this is nothing... I have injured my meridians and pathways because I unsealed my cultivation states back then..." replied Duan Li.


    Hearing Duan Li''s answer and the fact that the other party had suppressed himself all the way to the level 1 of the Qi condensation realm before, the face of the old man contorted in disbelief as a thought ran across him.


    "You... It can''t be that you haven''t yet tempered your physical body right?" he asked slowly.


    He wanted to believe that it was false, but when Duan Li nodded, he almost spatted out some blood himself.


    What kind of a person who had gone all the way to the late stage of the Qi condensation realm without even tempering their body once?


    How did he not die yet?


    The sheer density of spiritual Qi from every stages in a realm increases substantially such that their meridians and pathways will rupture if not tempered, which is impossible!


    Unless...


    This brat had ascended into the Qi condensation realm and jumped straight to the late stage!


    That''s way too surreal!


    But thinking about it, it seems to be the case. No wonder the brat decided to suppress his cultivation all the way to the level 1.


    "It seems that he is a handicapped genius I see..." nodded the old man.


    Taking out a blue pill and an orange pill from his side pouch, he handed both of them onto Duan Li casually.


    "Here, take the blue pill first to recover your meridians, and then swallow the orange pill. You should be able to reinforce your meridians and pathways up until the pinnacle of the Qi condensation realm by then."


    Duan Li accepted the two pills from the old man as he swallowed the blue pill first. He could then feel a gushing force that scrambled to repair the damaged meridans and pathways inside his body.


    Within ten breaths, they are already healed! What a miraculous pill!


    Then, Duan Li popped the orange pill inside his mouth as it melted on his tongue to become like a syrup. When it entered his stomach, a hot sensation spreaded out within his body, like his insides were being remolded anew.


    Had these two pills were to be inspected by the research and development department in the academy, the whole Jiu empire will be thrown into a commotion!


    They are both heavenly pills that was long lost through the course of time. Nowadays, no one can make such a pill anymore, at least not in the Jiu empire.


    Feeling that his meridians and pathways had been thoroughly remolded, Duan Li began to unseal his cultivation one level at a time.


    Boom!


    Level 1 of the Qi condensation realm!


    Level 2 of the Qi condensation realm!


    Level 3...


    ...


    Level 9 of the Qi condensation realm!


    BOOM!


    Duan Li''s aura was flooding out like a torrential burst from a broken dam right now!


    Both the mother wolf and the old man was shocked as they observed the fluctuation signals of Duan Li''s aura.


    This intensity...


    It was similar to a middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm!


    How is this possible?!


    "You... How are your spiritual Qi signature this strong?" asked the old man in agitation.


    Back when he was at this realm, he was considered as a genius as well, but never to this extent!


    Feeling his interest piqued by Duan Li, the old man spoke out, "I will let the matter regarding the Ankylosaurus bygones if you spar with me. This aura you have... I''m interested to know how strong you are in your peak state!"


    "En! I am interested to know too!" replied Duan Li in excitement as he nodded. After all, he also has never been able to test his full power at the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm. Thus, he was longing to see what it will be like!


    "Good, let us fight above then." pointed the old man casually as they both bolted to the sky.


    Psheww!


    ...


    "I will just dodge or defend against your attack. Otherwise, you will be injured since only your meridians and pathways were reinforced. Your physical body is still as weak as a sheet of paper to me."


    The old man then clasped his hands behind his back as he lifted his chin up a bit in dominance with a haughty look.


    It has been quite a while since he sparred with a junior. Furthermore, with his realm, all below him was like a helpless baby in front of him. He only suggested the spar because he was interested in seeing the battle prowess of this handicapped genius in front of him.


    With a snort, he suppressed himself to the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm in an instant.


    Boom!


    "Let us start!"


    ...

 46 Chapter 46: Overpowered Fella!

    Duan Li put up a stance mid air as he circulated his spiritual Qi along his meridians and pathways. To his astonishment, his Qi efficiency right now is off the charts!


    "This... I can feel my powers to be... overflowing!"


    Meanwhile, the old man gazed at Duan Li with a frown. "His aura continued to rise further... is he not reaching his limit soon? At this point, he would reach a battle prowess comparable to that of a late stage Foundation establishment realm!"


    After a few breaths, Duan Li had finally reached the peak state in his realm right now. He could feel 9 Qi pools within each of his three dantians, rotating furiously as it churned out mighty powers around his body.


    "Lord Guardian, here I come!" told Duan Li with an excited expression.


    "En! Come!" gestured the old man casually with a nod, his hands still clasped behind his back as he showed a confident expression.


    After all, he was just facing a mere junior whom was still wet behind the ears. No matter how outstanding the other party would be, how can it compare against someone of his realm?


    Whooshh!


    Duan Li moved his left leg half a step forward and clenched his right hand into a fist near his abdomen. With a glint in his eyes locking onto a prey like an eagle, he punched out!


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BRRRR!


    In a slow motion, the air was folded to an extreme degree that they heated up instantly around the area of Duan Li''s fist as it launched forward. When this glowing red punch reached half the distance to being fully released, vacuum was slit open along the way as the heated air rushed into it chaotically. The friction between the heated air causes spontaneous combustion of long flames, as it wrapped around Duan Li''s fist alternatingly like two coiling dragons!


    However, the heat produced from this yet-to-be punched out fist has become too scalding hot that could melt iron and metals together!


    Duan Li could feel the extreme temperature was about to burn right through his whole right arm!


    "Holy moly! I miscalculated the force of this punch!"


    Rriinggg!


    Suddenly, time began to slow down to almost a halt, as the two coiling flames around his arm was now moving like a pair of snail. Duan Li exhaled in relief!


    Fiuhhh!


    "What a useful ability! So it can even try to stop a threat from my own undoing as well? Ah! I better punched out this fist first!"


    Without wasting any more time, Duan Li completed the punch to its full momentum as he pulled back his right hand in a jiffy.


    BBBOOOMMMMM!


    However, what Duan Li did not realize was, the speed at which he completed that punch during the slow-mo time was even faster due to the time dilation differences. Thus, it had instead increased the overall power by a few more folds!


    BBOOMMM!


    The punch was shooting forward madly like a crazed bull, reminiscent of a raging meteor that threatened to flatten the whole continent as it approached the old man with extreme speed.


    On the opposite side, the old man was shocked beyond belief to what he was witnessing right now!


    "A Q-Qi condensation realm s-shouldn''t have a fist with this much torrential force behind it!" he exclaimed with a jumpy voice as he quickly unsealed himself to the early stage of the core formation realm. He then activated the force field barrier that is made up of spiritual Qi.


    And it wasn''t on a whim as well, for this barrier will completely negate any skill arts attack from a Foundation establishment realm and below. After all, the distance between the first and second realms compared to the third realm could be described like the Earth and the Sky.


    Or at least it should, but the next scene had destroyed that conception as well.


    BAMMM!


    The force field barrier that the old man used trembled rapidly as cracks spread out. The fist continued to ram at it relentlessly as he got pushed backwards.


    "Grghh! To think that even the early stage of the core formation realm barrier that could negate attacks from the lower realm was not enough to stop it?! What sort of power is this!"


    The old man gritted his teeth together. However, for the sake of his dignity, he refused to use both of his hands to stop the persistent fist art that was continuously assaulting his barrier with extreme force. Instead, with his hands still clasped behind his back, he snorted and raised his cultivation level to the middle stage of the core formation realm!


    Hmphh!


    BOOOMM!


    That trembling barrier just now was finally showing signs of stabilizing as the old man had rooted himself on the sky, no longer being pushed back by the fist.


    Slowly but surely, the force behind Duan Li''s fist were being dissipated by the barrier. However, just as the old man was about to relax himself, another fist was coming straight at him.


    BAAMM!


    BAAMM!


    BAAMM!


    ...


    After a while...


    BAAMM!


    BAAMM!


    "Bloody hell! Just when is this brat going to stop throwing his fists around?!" exclaimed the old man in astonishment.He was starting to feel a little bit scared right now.


    The other party had continuously thrown out one punches after another left and right! Not only that, this brazen brat even started to circle around him while punching out rapidly with both hands!


    Furthermore, the one thing that bugged him the most was... the other party hasn''t even shown any signs of growing fatigue at all! It seems as if his spiritual Qi reserves runs very deep and endless!


    In addition, he could feel that every single punch was growing stronger and lethal with every consecutive punches!


    "This is a combo fist art!" he said in realization.


    Crack!


    The barrier began to crack slowly as the brows of the old man twitched. He hadn''t imagined that the other party would be able to push him this far! Hmph!


    Boom!


    Late stage core formation realm!


    Pinnacle stage core formation realm!


    Boomm!


    The old man lifted his cultivation seal all the way until the pinnacle stage of the core formation realm as the barrier around him slowly mended together and the cracked lines disappeared.


    The punches no longer brought any sorts of ripples to the barrier. In fact, no matter how many hundreds of times Duan Li continued to punch against it, nothing would happen at all!


    After all, the pinnacle stage of a core formation realm is extremely mighty!


    "Alright, enough!" said the old man out loud.


    Huuu!


    Duan Li sucked in one more breath as he relaxed himself, his expression happy.


    "I have seen your strength now and frankly, you are quite overpowered for someone of your realm! I suggest you tone down your powers a bit when you are outside, lest you would attract a lot ofunwanted attention!" continued the old man.


    His face was quite indifferent as he said this, but within his heart, he was extremely rattled. So shocked to the point that his world views were forced to see beyond the horizon!


    How could someone like this even exist?


    If his powers were to match that of the foundation establishment realm, then so be it. Because that would meant that he is a true genius and there are also others like that. But to match those of the core formation realm? This has never happened before in the history of the Tian continent, not that he know of at least.


    And then, if he were to level up to the Foundation establishment realm, would he be able to take on the golden core realm experts? That would be simply going against the rules!


    It seems that the person behind him is a truly powerful existence indeed!


    Hais...


    He deduced that Duan Li''s explosive battle prowess was all due to the help of the mysterious powerful existence''s backing.


    After all, he refused to believe that a person''s talent could be so heaven-defying to such an extent! Even the heavens wouldn''t want to let him live!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li on the other side was quite satisfied with his current battle prowess. If he remembered correctly, his other self in that timeline was only a quarter of what he is capable right now during the Qi condensation realm.


    "Thank you for your guidance Lord Guardian!" said Duan Li with a 90 degrees bow. He was really amazed with the other party''s strength. To think that the old man would be able to block his fist without even using either hands.


    "En!" nodded the old man casually, as if the matter wasn''t a big deal for him at all.


    "Let''s get back to the ground!"


    Psheww!


    ...


    Tap!


    Both of them landed gently onto the ground with their feet. The mother wolf had a stunned look to her expression as well.


    "Human... You are pretty.. No! you are very strong!" she said with a trace of awe in her eyes. It was common for a beast to respect the strong, as it was in their nature.


    "Arrff! Arrfff!" the cub nodded rapidly as well, like a chicken pecking on the ground while wagging its tails.


    Duan Li just scratched the back of his head as he felt a little bit embarrassed when he heard their compliments.


    "Anyway brat, listen. There are three mazes in the first region, each is about tens of kilometres long and wide with varying difficulties!" said the old man, his expression solemn.


    "I noticed that another one has entered the maze before you. She is currently in the first maze, while you are in the third!"


    He then continued, "The location of the treasure boxes in the third maze is naturally more treacherous than the other two. It is located quite deep underground, and I can show you the entrance! But that is as far as I am willing to help you. The rest, you will have to depend on yourselves!"


    In fact, as the Guardian himself, intervening this much was already unbecoming of someone with his title. Thus, he decided to only tell the entrance towards Duan Li.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded. His expression was serious as well before the old man spoke again.


    "Although, with your current physical body structure and its density... I bet with a hundred percent confidence, you will die for sure if you head in right now! Hahahaha!" laughed the old man.


    Ehh?


    Duan Li hadn''t expected this at all. If that is indeed the case, how was he to come out from this eternal maze then?


    "I also agree with the Guardian. With your battle prowess, no monsters here would be able to injure you. However, the force of nature is something else!" said the mother wolf by the side.


    Hmm...


    Duan Li contemplated as he cupped his chin. It seems that the only way out from this maze is to first temper his physical body.


    Does he really have any other choices?


    Haiss...


    Duan Li shook his head and sighed. His eyes however, had a sharp glint to it as he made his decision with determind looks to him.


    "Then... I will temper my physical body inside the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake!!"


    ...

 47 Chapter 47: Plop! The unsettling sound!

    What? Did we heard him wrong?


    You want to temper your physical body inside the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake you say?


    "Brat, did you lose your mind?" asked the old man with a frown as he cupped his chin while looking at Duan Li with a peculiar look, as if looking at an exotic creature.


    "Human, you haven''t yet to temper your physical body even once. If you were to go and temper yourself in that lake right now, the only thing that will improve is the surface level of the lake increasing by a few macrometres from your liquefied remains..." said the mother wolf.


    Cough! Cough!


    Duan Li had to cough dryly as he listened at their savage response.


    "I... I think I can manage to do it somehow!" Duan Li replied with a confident look.


    Seeing Duan Li''s expression, the old man''s face turned livid.


    This brat! Just what is the use of that confident look of yours? If things were that simple in this world, a confident look is all it takes to make the impossible possible, then why haven''t I yet ascended to the ninth shackle yet?


    Look here, my confident expression!


    Hmph!!


    "Nevermind, its useless to argue with a junior. Even I back then, have such confidence within me before experiencing the vicissitudes of life! I''ll just let him learn from his mistakes then!" said the old man to himself.


    "Well... since I am in a debt with you human, for helping my child, let me repay you by bringing you along to that lake where I will be going soon anyway." said the mother wolf.


    "Whether you decide to temper your body in it after seeing the lake, that would be entirely up to you." she continued.


    She wanted to see for herself what made this human before her so confident. Duan Li''s manliness somehow compelled more respect from her as well.


    "Hop onto my back, and we will depart right after." she continued.


    Duan Li nodded with a smile as he then hopped onto her back as he could feel a comfortable feeling from the soft fur of the mother wolf. The cub also hopped as well but instead, entered Duan Li''s clothes once more as it poke its head out.


    Arrff! Arrfff!


    "I will wait for you guys over there then!" said the old man as he swiftly departed to the sky with a sonic boom. His speed was so fast that it only took about two breaths for his figure to disappear into the horizon!


    Boom!


    The mother wolf then stood mightily on its four legs as it stretched its body backwards like an arrow about to be released from its bow.


    With a snort, the mother wolf dashed forwards. This dash was extremely fast, in just one breath and they had already crossed more than 400 metres!


    Not only that, the mother wolf seems to be building up momentum with each dash. Slowly, a single breath increased to 600 metres, then 800 metres...


    2000 metres per dash!


    Psheww!


    ...


    Meanwhile, somewhere in a lush forest on the first maze, a small figure draped with a full suit of turtle shells could be seen laying flat on the ground, unmoving. This figure was Xiahou Yu.


    She was currently observing the behaviors of the monster in front of her. A three-tailed rabbit with two protruding fangs that was about one metre in size.


    "A Fiend Rabbit... level 4 of the Qi condensation realm..." she swallowed her saliva as she read the details of the rabbit in the monster guide book.


    Her entire body right now was covered with the shells of numerous turtles with varying sizes. The small ones were from level 1 where she equipped it on her two shoulders, elbows, knuckles and kneecaps. The slightly bigger ones were from level 2 and she equipped it as a helmet and another at her bum region. The larger ones were from level 3 and she donted it as a body armor that covered her chest and backs.


    The turtles that she hunted down to get these shells from were called as Lazebum Turtles and were extremely weird. Even when they saw her standing right in front of them, they would only bare their short fangs out and that was it.


    When she approached them, they quickly hid within their tough shells. According to the monster guide book, their shells were hard enough that it would perhaps require an attack from a steel hammer!


    At first, Xiahou Yu was about to leave them alone, but a thought struck at her as her gaze flashed with a peculiar smile to it when she turned her head to look back at those frozen turtles.


    She took out a bunch of explosive talismans and hopped onto their back as she slapped the talismans inside the openings of the shells. She then activated them with incantation gestures that was thought to her by senior teacher Ling Yu.


    BOOMM!


    BOOMM!


    BOOMM!


    All those turtles imploded from within and that cracked open their shells together as a result. As for what happened after, she had now donted a full body suit made up from the shells of those deceased turtles.


    If the Guardian were to witness those tragic scene of the turtles as well, he would definitely put up a ruckus.


    The Fiend Rabbit in front of her right now was the strongest monster in the first maze that was recorded inside the monster guide book. Their main highlighted attribute were speed and their sharp fangs. Thankfully, Xiahou Yu had already covered most of her body parts with the turtle shells.


    Of course, these shells put together into a suit was so heavy that it added up a whole 100 kilograms to her weight. Had it been any other normal person that practices neither martial arts nor cultivates, they would probably become a solid rock right now.


    However, Xiahou Yu were both of that. In addition, she had also finished tempering her physical body last night with the help from the materials provided by Duan Li''s and her newfound friend, Shen Lu.


    Therefore, her physical prowess right now was extremely strong and equipping such heavy turtle shells around her was just like putting on another piece of clothing.


    "I have a good protection draped around my body and I don''t think this rabbit would be able to make a dent on it.. but.."


    The thing that she was worried right now was the method to attack this rabbit with. She wanted to slay it because of the monster core on its belly. Specifically, its monster core is of Fire element that is in line with her body attribute!


    If she could cultivate it, not only would her level increase much faster, she would have the chance to invoke the Fire essence within her dantian in the future as well!


    "Hmm... maybe I should observe its attacking pattern first.." she said inwardly.


    She then laid down one shock trap talisman on the ground. If the rabbit were to step on it, the talisman would immediately release high voltage electricity that will be enough to paralyse the rabbit into an immobile state for a few moments.


    However, her main concern was that she only had a few of these talisman with her right now. If she were to run out of it, that would significantly reduce her combat capabilities in the next encounter with other monsters.


    Furthermore, to depend a lot on talismans would not be good for one''s self-development in the future as it will restrict her battle prowess due to over reliance in external means.


    Back then, she had already resolved herself to become strong enough to stood by Duan Li side by side for the end times. So how could she afford to be afraid of a mere rabbit in the level 4 of the Qi condensation realm?


    Compared to the Nine hermit kings that she saw during Duan Li''s bizarre trial, the rabbit in front of her looked nothing more but an ant.


    With such resolve burning within her right now, her gaze had turned extremely sharp as her newfound confidence engulfed the bubbles of fear that was lingering by the corner of her heart.


    ...


    Whoosh!


    Duan Li and the rest had finally arrived at the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake. Looking around, Duan Li remembered the scene to be exactly the same like in his memories. This lake looked extremely vile and sinister with the protruding of many bones and dried up meat poking out from its surface. The appearance of this lake could not be any more redder than this.


    In fact, the lake was too red that it glowed with a red mists forming above it. There doesn''t seem to be any monster that was loitering around this area as well.


    Furthermore, eventhough there were a lot of carcasses here that looked so old that they crumbled down due to the passing wind, the air doesn''t smell foul even a tiny bit.


    "This is the lake of the Eternal maze, or better known as the graveyard for all the living creatures within this dimension." said the old man with solemnity on his face as he clasped his hands behind his back.


    "Did you entered the first region through this lake?" he asked towards the mother wolf.


    "No... I had arrived here due to a sudden temporal displacement of the space when I was being pursuit by that accursed beast." replied the mother wolf as it growled a bit in fury.


    Hearing this, the old man''s interest was piqued.


    "Oh? There are beasts able to push you to such an extent? What kind of species?" he asked as he stroke his beard.


    The mother wolf took a while to reply. She then gritted her teeth together as she said, "Cerberus!" with a glaring hatred in her eyes.


    Hearing the name, the old man''s eyes turned wide, a trace of fear could be seen within it.


    "Cerberus? That three-headed hellhound?How did it escape from that place?!" exclaimed the old man with a horrified voice.


    "We don''t know, it seemed that someone has snucked into the ninth region and broke the seal apart somehow. Most of the creatures that were trapped inside that place had broken free as well! My injury was caused by the hellhound minions!" explained the mother wolf.


    The ninth region was already a place of battle royale for many of these mythical creatures. However, they still have a functioning society between them. But with the release of Cerberus the three-headed hellhound, the place was entirely thrown into chaos!


    "Where was the Guardian? Did it not stop Cerberus?" asked the old man with a frown. He found it to be completely weird for the Guardian of the ninth region to not take any action with such a beast roaming free.


    The mother wolf just shook her head indicating that she didn''t know. The situation back then was too chaotic as all hell had broken loose!


    Suddenly, just as they were about to converse some more, they heard an extremely unsettling sound.


    Plop!


    They turned their heads towards the source of this sound to see what was up, only to found by the edges of the cliff that a part of it had crumbled down into the lake.


    "..." the old man and the mother wolf turned mute as their eyes and mouth opened wide.


    ...

 48 Chapter 48: Tempering the body! 1

    Author''s Note: My Paypal (Ramzi.Hamzah.Personal@gmail.com) it would be great if you guys could help support me... I only have a few dollars in my wallet now... :(


    ------------------------------


    Crap!


    Did he fell into the lake?!


    Feelings of panic struck at their hearts as they floated over the cliff in a rush.


    When they reached over, they each squinted their eyes to see if there were any bubbles forming onto the surface of the lake, only to find none.


    "It cannot be that his physical body was so weak that he immediately got vaporized the moment he fell into the lake?" they thought.


    Suddenly, just as they were about to head down to take a better look, a voice called out to them.


    "Eh? Are you guys going to temper your body inside the lake too?"


    This voice belongs to no other than Duan Li as he approached them from the distance. It seems that he had just came back after a short tour around the sides of the lake and they happened to not notice his disappearance before, due to being too absorbed in their conversation. The cub was also still tucked closely inside his clothes with its tongue sticking out.


    Pu!


    Bloody hell! We thought that you fell into the lake!


    "It''s nothing!" they both shook their head as they exhaled in relief. How could they have made such a blunder and mistake in their judgement?


    Although the other party was a handicapped genius, he was still a cultivator as well whom had the flight ability. If a cultivator were to fall from a cliff and not engage their flight ability, then they really do deserve to die as a dimwit.


    "By the way brat, do you still plan to temper your physical body inside this lake now? You see how potent it is? Not to mention you, even my limit on this realm would only be about fifteen metres deep!" explained the old man with a sneer on his face.


    He was waiting for Duan Li to give up and ask for his guidance instead. If the other party relented on such foolhardiness, then he would give the other party all the proper ingredients and material to properly temper a physical body which would be strong enough and suitable up until the core formation realm!


    Naturally, as an expert of the first shackle, he had an abundance of resources at his disposal. Jacking up the cultivation realm of someone with Duan Li''s realm could be done with extreme ease. In fact, if he willed it, he could even raise Duan Li''s cultivation realm to the Foundation establishment realm in the blink of an eye!


    What more when it come to just resources to temper the physical body?


    However, contrary to the old man''s expectations, the other party just nodded its head.


    "En! I will give it a try!" replied Duan Li confidently.


    Hearing his answer, the old man''s face turned livid once more as he pressed his forehead with his fingers.


    You will give it a try? Do you think that once your remains were liquefied inside this lake, you can still be alive for a second chance?


    Hais! I shall not bother with your decision any longer!


    The old man just shook his head and let Duan Li do whatever the latter wants now. The mother wolf by the side couldn''t help but to worry the end result for this. However in the end, they have no rights to stop whatever Duan Li was about to do.


    After all, a cultivator had to walk their path relying on themselves, luck and affinity.


    If his path as a cultivator ends here, then that is naturally part of the fate and destiny that governs all things.


    Duan Li lifted out the cub from inside his clothes as he put the cub down besides its mother. With a smile, he patted on its head. Then, he floated gently over the cliff as he slowly head down until his feet was just inches above the surface of that deep red lake.


    "Arrff! Arrff!" the cub called out to Duan Li feeling worried.


    Gulp!


    Swallowing his saliva, Duan Li lowered the tip of his toe slowly to touch the surface of the blood lake. The duo above him had fixed their gaze onto him as they too felt nervous on what the result would be.


    Dip!


    The cub closed its eyes in fear while the mother wolf and the old man sucked in cold breathe to prepare themselves for the next scene.


    After a few breaths...


    "..." everyone.


    "Eh? Nothing''s happening?" said Duan Li as his brows creased together.


    Feeling suspicious, he dipped his feet deeper into the lake until it reached both of his knees. But to his surprise, he still felt nothing from it!


    How strange!


    "H-how could this be?!" exclaimed the old man whom was floating above him in disbelief.


    When the other party''s toe had dippedinside the blood lake, he expected that what should have followed suit would be a shout full of Duan Li''s agonized moans howling to the sky dramatically!


    Yet, what is with this situation here? Did the lake somehow loses its potency? But that should be impossible!


    Duan Li then slowly plunged himself deeper until it reached his waist, then abdomen and finally chest. But he still felt nothing from it!


    "Brat... Did you really never tempered your physical body before?" asked the old man suspiciously.


    This is because when one''s body has already been tempered, the skin and nerves would become more tolerant to pain and resistant to any sorts of damages.


    Hearing the Guardian''s question, Duan Li shook his head and replied "Never..." and then thought inwardly while feeling baffled, "I remembered that time when I tempered my physical body in this lake before, the cascading pain boring through my body as if a million needles were trying to rip me apart was so horrendous that I almost went insane!"


    The him previously was a nascent soul realm expert when he tempered his physical body inside this lake. At that time, he could plunge to about 5 metres in depth, but that was because his physical body had already been tempered numerous times before!


    Now, he is only a but a mere Qi condensation realm without any prior body tempering. So, why did he not feel any sorts of pain?


    "I will go down deeper!" said Duan Li.


    "En! Be careful brat! Even I don''t know what is inside this lake!" replied the old man as he watched Duan Li''s head went below the surface with trepidation.


    2 metres...


    5 metres...


    10 metres...


    ...


    30 metres...


    "The brat is still going deeper? At this rate, my heavenly senses wouldn''t be able to detect him!" said the old man as his face turned serious.


    This was because Duan Li had already reached a depth of more than 30 metres, even he, someone from the immortal ascension realm would have long been vaporized if he dived to such a depth!


    "My heavenly senses could probably still detect him as long as he didn''t reach a depth of more than... What?!" exclaimed the mother wolf in a horrified voice.


    Hearing the sudden change in the Fenrir''s tone, the old man got panicked as he asked, "what happened?! Did he die?!"


    "No! H-he... he suddenly chose to dive even faster and has went past the 50 metres depth in the blink of an eye! My heavenly senses couldn''t detect him any longer!" cried the mother wolf.


    That reckless brat!


    In reality, their heavenly senses could actually reach a few hundred kilometres with extreme ease. However somehow, the blood lake could supress their heavenly senses so much that, they could only scan a few dozen metres below the surface!


    ...


    Meanwhile, Duan Li had reached a depth of more than 100 metres now and there were still no pain to be felt. He checked whether his body was actually already being tempered by the lake, just that it was somehow without the pain by pinching at his forearm. He then yelped out a bit as he felt the pain!


    Suddenly, Duan Li could feel an extremely weird gut feeling! This feeling was as if there was something familiar to him deep inside the recesses of this lake!


    "This... What is this feeling? It''s calling out to me..." said Duan Li as he felt himself to be in some sort of a trance.


    He then dived deeper into the lake as he soon reached a depth where no lights could penetrate any further. His surrounding right now is extremely dark, as if he was going straight into the abyss! If it was not because of the pull of gravity, he would have long lost his sense of direction.


    Tap!


    Right at this moment, Duan Li''s feet seemed to have touched a solid surface. "It appears that I have reached the bottom of this lake..." thought Duan Li.


    He then turned his head left and right as he walked forward towards the direction where the sense of familiarity was the strongest.


    As Duan Li walked further, a glimpse of red light on the distance could be seen as Duan Li squinted his eye.


    "T-that... It cannot be!" exclaimed Duan Li in shock with wide eyes. He then rushed forward towards the source of this red light.


    ...


    Meanwhile, above the surface of the lake, the sky was getting darker as black clouds started to coil around together.


    "The human is still alive... I could feel his lifeforce through the thunder essence that I gifted him." said the mother wolf with a serious expression to her face. If Duan Li died, then her thunder essence would dissipate.


    "The brat better hurry it up! I can feel that something is about to happen now!" the old man said as he looked towards the sky, his expression extremely grim.


    "These coiling dark clouds... It is as if a thunder tribulation from the heavens is about to happen... But at the same time, it seems different than the normal thunder tribulation that I had experienced before..." thought the old man.


    Rumble!


    The dark clouds were now getting thicker as rain began to fall down. Even thunders and lightning could be seen to flash once in a while above it. The situation now looked extremely dire.


    Just what in the world is going on?!


    Suddenly, the surface of the blood lake began to undulate and rippled. It didn''t took long for this undulating ripples to turn into furious waves as the lake started to circulate and spiralled towards the centre like the forming of a typhoon!


    Fierce gales of winds shattered the many withering bones that were protruding out from the lake.


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    Thunders started to struck the lake continuously as the duo watched these unfolding scene with pale and grim countenance.


    ...

 49 Chapter 49: Tempering the body! 2

    Duan Li saw the red glow to be ever so familiar. "Where have I seen it?" he thought.


    Dum! Dum!


    As he approached closer, he could finally see clearly the true origin that radiated out this red glow. "T-this..!" he exclaimed as his heart started to beat faster.


    How could Duan Li ever forgot this small piece of pearl? This is the very pearl that had changed his fate and destiny!


    The mysterious pearl! But right at this moment, something had caught his eye that caused him to become fully alert.


    "Hold on! Although the resemblance is definitely uncanny, this pearl does not have that golden glow to it!" said Duan Li with extreme caution.


    This is because the myterious pearl that he remembered had its innards glowing in golden hums, not crimson red, like this one!


    Wooongg!


    Eh?


    Duan Li could suddenly feel that his body was being tugged towards the red mysterious pearl by an intangible force! Furthermore, there was now a golden glow inside his body too!


    "T-this!" exclaimed Duan Li in shock.


    The golden mysterious pearl!


    This was the mysterious pearl that he had first encountered in the woods while chopping down a tree back in the Xuan Village!


    To think that it was hiding inside his body all these while! Just how did it managed to elude from his detection?


    Right now, he could feel that the two mysterious pearls are resonating between with each other. When he finally reached a distance of about a metre away from the red mysterious pearl, the tugging force locked him down as he became rooted on the ground, unable to budge an inch.


    The two mysterious pearls each are now emitting flashes of light as if communicating. Then, an eerie voice that sounded ever so sinister, hoarse and archaic spoke out.


    "So... It.. is.. time..."


    This voice seemed to overshadow everything that was dark. If the surrounding of Duan Li within the blood lake right now could be described as dark due to light being unable to penetrate through it, then the voice could be said to be even darker.


    Boom!


    With a sudden jerk, the red mysterious pearl bolted right into Duan Li''s body, and joined to float besides the golden mysterious pearl!


    Just as Duan Li was about to feel shocked, his face suddenly contorted in pain.


    "ARRGHH!"


    His body right now was being assaulted with a pain unimaginable to him. If the pain before when he tempered at the lake was like a million needles boring through his body, right now it was like a billion!


    Furthermore, he had no prior body tempering as someone in the Qi condensation realm. Thus, the pain right now was extremely unbearable for him.


    In addition, every single cell within his body was like being roasted alive as he could feel himself burning, his skin exfoliating as a new layer quickly grew under it, which seemed to be more tougher and denser than his previous ones.


    Due to the extreme pain, Duan Li couldn''t maintain his consciousness any longer and fainted. His body then floated gently as the red mysterious pearl inside Duan Li''s body gave out a bright crimson light as it flashed out.


    BOOM!


    The flash of crimson light illuminated the dark blood pool as it sent ripples of wave outwards with Duan Li as the centre. As if triggered by the ripples, the surrounding blood began to spiral towards Duan Li, specifically, towards the red mysterious pearl inside him!


    "...co..aa..gu..la..te.."


    When this dark voice spoke out, mulitple flashes of thunder strucked out from the thunder tribulation up above the lake onto Duan Li, seeming to obliterate him into cinders, forbidding his existence entirely!


    Pshhingggg!


    Yet, with the power of the golden mysterious pearl, a spherical barrier wereformed around Duan Li and when these brazen thunder tribulations rammed at it, they were immediately shredded into tiny pieces of thunder elements as it got absorbed into Duan Li''s dantian!


    The thunder tribulations however, had a dignity to uphold. Thus, it continued to send strokes after strokes of thunder, each with the thickness of a grown man''s arm!


    But alas, every single one of them continued to be shredded and absorbed. Seeing this, how could the thunder tribulations endured it as such?


    Since the ancient time, they were considered to be holy. Their main roles were to baptized every single cultivator who rose up through the ranks in order to judge whether the person was worthy or not. Yet, what is with this situation right now?


    Could you please let us do our job properly?


    ...


    Above the surface of the lake, chaos were currently ensuing.


    Holy moly!


    "T-the thunder tribulations are going all out! Just what in the world was happening here?!" cried out the old man, his expression horrified.


    The thick black clouds were releasing crimson thunders non-stop into the lake, as if going bonkers. In fact, the thunder tribulations right now were so messy that some of them ricochet off the dense surface of the lake towards the surrounding area.


    Crash!


    BOOM!


    The old man and the mother wolf had to put their barrier active all the time, lest they will be hit by these collateral damages.


    The lake continued to spiral upwards as if being sucked into the sky. It was now reminiscent of a colossal watersprout, only in this case, was made up entirely of blood!


    This entire scene was just way too horrifying for the duo as they keep swallowing their saliva and watched with bated breaths.


    It was fortunate that the blood lake was extremely vast. Otherwise, such an earth shattering phenomena would definitely attract the attention of the other Guardians.


    Suddenly, the mother wolf noticed a silhoutte within the centre of that sprout.


    "L-look! That figure..!" she exclaimed in astonishment.


    "The brazen brat!" said the old man in excitement. Somehow, he felt happy inside his heart that Duan Li had survived.


    He was about to bolt forward to retrieve Duan Li. However, he could feel that something was amiss!


    Extending their heavenly senses, they found out that Duan Li was currently unconscious!


    "The brat is currently knocked out! But why do I sense that his aura kept on rising rapidly?" he thought as his eyes narrowed in realization, "This.. he is undergoing a breakthrough to the Foundation establishment realm!"


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    Damn it!


    A person whom is currently undergoing a thunder tribulation must not be disturbed! Lest, there are two things that will happen. One, was that their tribulation will become stronger and two, the intervening party will be smited to dust!


    Thus, unable to intervene, the old man could only gritted his teeth and clenched his fist tight as he continued to watch.


    Don''t die brat!


    Besides him, the mother wolf continued to scan the body of Duan Li with her heavenly senses.


    "N-not only that, this human... his physical body had become so much denser and compact!" exclaimed the mother wolf in surprise.


    Usually, the physical body would only be tempered for the stage that a person was currently in. For example, if someone was in the level 1 of the Foundation establishment realm, then his body tempering would be up until the level 3, which is the early stage. If the person entered level 4, which is the middle stage, then his body tempering would be up until level 6 and so on.


    Yet, the physical body of Duan Li right now was on par with a pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm! That is a jump of a whole realm as he was currently still in the Qi condensation realm!


    To both be tempering his physical body while undergoing a breakthrough at the same time, what kind of conception was this?


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    "H-hey! Now that I looked closer, it seems like the thunder tribulation was being absorbed into his body! Is this your doing?" asked the old man as he turned to look at the mother wolf, thinking that these bizarre phenomena had to do with the thunder essence she gifted to Duan Li previously.


    "N-no! That should be impossible! My thunder essence was meant for protection, but not like this!" replied the mother wolf as it shook its head rapidly.


    "His aura right now is already at the peak of the pinnacle stage! His breakthrough to the Foundation establishment realm should be any minute now!" shouted the old man as the gales were becoming stronger that their vision had became blurry.


    Suddenly, the thunder tribulation stopped as they froze in mid-air.


    Seeing this, the duo were stumped.


    Eh? What''s happening?


    Is it over?


    Just as they thought that the tribulation had ended prematurely, the black clouds turned violet all of a sudden!


    CRACK!


    The previous thunders were now wriggling slowly as they morphed.


    "T-this phenomena! It cannot be!" shouted the old man in horror!


    He knew what these violet clouds and what the thunders were morphing into. However, this was not why he was so shocked. The reason was because these tribulations were only meant for one when they are trying to release their first shackle!


    In other words, ascending through the Escaping mortality realm!


    CRACK!


    The thunder had finally finished morphing, each of their appearance right now was so terrifying! No matter where one would to look, they were brimming with powers that seemed to be able to decimate the entire world!


    "This is bad!" the old man bolted through the field of thunders without care any longer.


    When these thunders sensed that the old man was trying to help Duan Li, several dozens of them turned simultaneously to aim at him!


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    "Arghh!" the old man was strucked by these thunders and spatted out a mouthful of blood. But nevertheless, he continued to charge onward towards Duan Li.


    In his mind right now, it would be impossible for Duan Li to tide through these tribulations that was meant for immortals! He also had no idea why the heavens sent such an overkill tribulation just for a mere person in the Qi condensation realm.


    Thus, the only way for Duan Li to escape from this predicament would be for him to touch Duan Li''s body and use the powers bestowed upon him as one of the Guardian of the Eternal maze to forcefully send the other party out!


    It would be a breach of responsibility for him to do this, but he had no choice. Otherwise, Duan Li might really die!


    BOOM!


    BOOM!


    The thunders continued to strike at him strokes after strokes as it painted the sky with flashes of golden lightning. The mother wolf whom was witnessing this heroic scene of the old man was touched right now!


    To think that this Guardian would be so valiant!


    At this moment, she had a newfound respect for the old man in her heart!


    "Just a little bit more!"


    The old man was now riddled with numerous injuries. Even for him as an immortal, being struck rapidly by the tribulation was not something easy to recover from! He estimated that these injuries would take him weeks to be fully healed!


    As the old man was about 10 metres away from Duan Li, the latter''s eyes slowly opened lazily as its lips muttered.


    "...Too.. no..ii..sy..."


    Duan Li then punched upwards towards the violet clouds with his right hand.


    KABOOOMMMMM!


    The force of this punch was too devastating that it ripped the whole violet clouds apart!


    Soon, the hundreds of golden thunders floating around began to dissipate slowly.


    "..." everyone.

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 51 Chapter 50: Heading to the third maze!

    The old man''s face right now couldn''t be described any better than using the expression of similar to that of a puffer fish.


    Bloody hell! So you can clear away the tribulations with a single punch of yours eh?


    I had flown over an ocean of wrathful thunders as if I had killed their entire family just to pull you away from your predicament. Not only that, I had even spatted out a few mouthful of blood and my body was now riddled with numerous injuries just to save you!


    To think that you could non-chalantly blew the whole clouds apart with a single punch after waking up, aren''t you way too domineering now?


    What about my valiant act? What about the blood that I had spilled? Was that all for naught?!


    His face had turned crimson red like the lake below him in embarrassment and agitation.


    Just as he was about to shout at Duan Li in a rage to vent up his frustrations, the latter closed their eyes while plummeting from the air, becoming unconscious once more.


    "Eh? Wait up brat!" the old man immediately bolted forward to catch Duan Li from his fall. Otherwise, if the other party were to fall back into the lake, who knows what sort of mind-boggling phenomena would ensued next.


    The old man then landed on the ground besides the lake with Duan Li at tow. Just as he was about to laid Duan Li gently on the ground, he remembered the previous matter. Thus, he snorted angrily as he threw the latter to the ground.


    Thud!


    Hmph! That''s what you get for messing around with me!


    "This human... that level of power he just displayed in his punch... that''s no power of a first level of the Foundation establishment realm..." said the mother wolf apprehensively.


    Hearing this, the old man nodded "That''s right. In fact, that level of power had even surpasses of what we can do at the first shackle. Furthermore, right before the punch, this brat had spoken something which I didn''t heard clearly, with a voice that doesn''t seem to belong to him."


    They both then went silent as they pondered on what to do after this.


    ...


    After a while...


    "Urghh.."


    Duan Li''s body twitched as he slowly opened his eyes. He felt pain all over aching through his body.


    "What... happened...?" he said slowly while clutching at his head.


    "That is what we wanted to know. What happened to you in that lake? How were you able to have such a physical body and ascended to the Foundation establishment realm in one go?" asked the old man with an annoyed look to him.


    You asked us what happened? For all we know, the chaos was started by you! But we doubt that you would remember anything since you fainted!


    "My physical body? Foundation establishment realm?" Duan Li was quite puzzled with what they just said. He slowly stood up as he pressed his weight onto the ground with his right foot.


    Crack!


    "Eh??" he exclaimed in a shock.


    He never thought that he could make a dent on the ground by just pressing his foot slightly!


    Was I always this strong?


    "You better be careful to not kill anything accidentally after this brat. Your physical body right now is on par with a pinnacle Foundation establishment realm! It would be hard for you to control your strength as you leaped so suddenly and might take a while to adjust yourself to your newfound strength." explained the old man with an unfazed reaction.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was quite thrilled! To think that his physical body tempering right now had advanced so much! If he cultivate right now, would he be able to reach the pinnacle straight away?


    At the thought of this, Duan Li was quite tempted to cultivate immediately. But, looking at their solemn faces at the moment, he could only push his thoughts aside as he prepared himself to explain.


    "It''s actually like this..."


    Duan Li began explaining to them that when he reached the bottom of the lake, he heard a calling from an old man with an ancient robe. Unable to resist the calling, he approached the old man as the latter suddenly tapped at his forehead and a surge of spiritual Qi entered his body as well as being assaulted with terrible pain.


    He then told them that he fainted shortly after, and when he came to, he was already there on the ground between them, not knowing anything that had transpired when he fell unconscious before.


    The duo showed a suspicious expression when they heard this, unable to believe his story one hundred percent. This is because, such strength would only be possible due to the help of a treasure. But it was understandable, if one were to have the affinity of such a lucky encounter that would boost their strength and realm by many folds, naturally, one had to keep it a secret.


    If the duo right now were not of a higher realm than him, they would''ve been tempted to steal whatever treasure it is that Duan Li got. After all, such things were of utmost rarity in the whole world. Thankfully, such a treasure would be useless for them now as it was only something for the mortal.


    If the treasure was something very heaven-defying, Duan Li''s cultivation states would have reached at least the first shackle. Now that, might have tempted them.


    Taking the other party''s explanation with a grain of salt, they just nodded and put the matter at the back of their head. They also did not mention to Duan Li about the bizarre strength he had displayed previously or that chaotic scene.


    In their minds, that could''ve been connected with the powerful existence behind his back!


    "Well, no matter! Now with your physical body and realm like this, the maze would not be able to stop you at all." said the old man as he sighed.


    Duan Li had broken every sorts of convention that they could think off.


    The old man then continued with a stern look "However, you would do best not to decimate the third maze. Otherwise, if I found it to be destroyed, even if you were to run away back to the Tian continent, I could still chase you and beat up your bottom!"


    Gulp!


    "Y-yes! Please be rest assured Lord Guardian! I will try my best to keep everything intact!" replied Duan Li with a confident look.


    The hairs of the old man stood on end as he saw that confident look of Duan Li. The last time the other party did that, all sorts of crazy phenomena happened! Even the thunder tribulations from the heavens were not spared!


    To the cosmic being out there, I hope you can shelter my region away from harm by this brat!


    "So, I guess things here are done? I better be on my way back to the ninth region now!" said the mother wolf as she turned towards her cub.


    "You be good now yeah? Mother has to leave. The human will take good care of you!"


    Arrff! Arrff!


    The mother wolf then licked the head of her cub gently as she cast one last look at her cute, small child. Stretching her back like an arrow about to be released from its bow, she dashed forward with an explosive momentum from the get-go!


    Boom!


    Her figure dashing through the air was so fast that small thunders were discharged from her body. Furthermore, the speed at which she was moving right now could not be compared to when she brought along Duan Li before. It only took a while before her figure entirely disappeared into the horizon.


    "So fast..." Duan Li said subconsciously.


    "Naturally. The speed previously when she brought you along was extremely slow that she had to increase her speed slowly to find how much your body could handle. Otherwise, if she moved at the speed at which she is going right now, you would have long turned into a mangled corpse!" explained the old man with a sneer as he clasped his hands behind his back, seeming to be proud at how strong they are.


    Duan Li then picked up the sad lonely cub on the ground as he tucked the cub closely inside his clothes, with its head sticking out. He then patted its head with a gentle smile.


    "Well, let us go to the entrance of the third maze then! Stand behind my back!" the old man continued.


    Duan Li then moved to stood behind the back of the old man as the latter muttered a skill art.


    ''Mystic arts: Shadow binding!''


    Woongg!


    The old man''s shadow extended and merged with Duan Li''s shadow as the latter soon felt his body to become stiff and rigid, akin to an unmoving mountain!


    Furthermore, his hands moved without his will as they both clasped behind his back, mimicking the old man. His expression also became indifferent and haughty.


    They now look like a pair of matching old socks together no matter where one would look at.


    Hupp!


    With a single leap, both of their figures abruptly vanished from where they stood.


    Whooshh!


    ...

 52 Chapter 51: Wait for me!

    Whoosh!


    Tap!


    The both of them reappeared in front of an entrance of what seemed to be a large cave.


    ''Mystic Art: Shadow binding release!''


    "That was quite fast..." thought Duan Li. It appears that what the old man just did was a method of travel that was quite similar to a teleportation ability!


    Even when he was at the pinnacle of the first shackle back then, his speed was nowhere as fast as the old man. Curious, he asked, "Lord Guardian, if you don''t mind me asking, just what sort of skill arts did you use to travel just now?"


    Hearing Duan Li''s question, the old man smirked, "Interested? It''s a movement skill art I painstakingly created! It''s called One Step To Reach!" he laughed out, feeling extremely proud of himself.


    Duan Li''s eyebrows twitched when he heard the name of the skill.


    That name is too.. simple but extremely bold!


    "Since you are the kind of brat that liked to court death, I''ll impart this secret art to you. Who knows, maybe one day it will help to keep your little life a little bit longer!" the old man then took out a manual book from his sleeves.


    "After you mastered the secret art within this book, burn it. You will be the only one that I passed it to." he continued with a serious expression.


    Receiving the kind gestures from the old man, Duan Li bowed 90 degrees as a token of respect.


    "Thank you, Lord Guardian!"


    "En! Now off you go to the cave and remember brat, DO NOT destroy it!" he waved off his sleeve as he turned his back to Duan Li, about to head off.


    But then, he recalled something important as he halted his steps and spoke out, "Ah wait! One last piece of advice for when you exit the Eternal maze later on, beware of the Dark sects scattered throughout the Tian continent! They practiced the most profane and devilish arts that enabled them to wrest away at one''s potential somehow! You would do best to avoid them!"


    Dark sects?


    As if the name had became a sort of a key to a lock in his mind, a flash of memories suddenly flooded through Duan Li''s vision.


    Dark sects, the most mysterious band of people that comprises of rogue cultivators that were either shunned from their empires, or a national wanted criminals!


    In his memories, so far he had only encountered a single member of this Dark sect. This person alone, had single- handedly caused wide-spread panic and chaos within the Jiu empire for resurrecting the corpse of titled knights from their grave to do his bidding.


    His name, Xang Ji Han!


    The old man then casted one quick look onto Duan Li, as he clasped his hands behind his back. His robes fluttered along the gentle blows of the wind, creating an image reminiscent of an old sage that had grown tired of the worldly affairs. The old man sighed mysteriously as he uttered a single sentence before abruptly vanishing.


    "Farewell, and goodluck!"


    Whoosh!


    Seeing the departure of the old man, Duan Li made another bow of respect towards the empty spot where the old man had stood previously. He continued to hold this position for a few breaths before he stood upright.


    "Thank you Lord Guardian!"


    ...


    Whoosh!


    The old man reappeared above the clouds as he cupped his chin with a wide grin and nodded.


    What a suave exit I just did!


    He then extended his heavenly sense to watch Duan Li below as a look of worry appeared on his face.


    "I hope he doesn''t trash the maze too much. Otherwise, it would be difficult for me to explain during the round-table meeting between the rest of the Guardian next month..."


    ...


    Arrff! Arrff!


    "Ohh? Are you okay now? Good boy!" said Duan Li as he patted the head of the cub.


    He then entered the cave and before long, he found himself to be standing in front a huge iron door that seemed to be ancient and eroded with rust through the countless eras it had stood in this place.


    Approaching slowly, Duan Li pushed the door with both of his hands, putting a little bit of strength in his arms as the iron door looked to be extremely heavy while engaging his back muscles.


    PENG!


    The door was slammed opened with a bang. Thankfully, the door was quite rigid enough to withstand Duan Li''s strength. However, some cracks were now apparent by the sides of the door.


    Eh?


    I thought the door was extremely heavy?


    A certain individual above the sky slapped his forehead with a loud ''pa!'' when the scene happened.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li entered the cave slowly as the path continued to descend underground. The cave also grew more darker as the temperature rose.


    After a while, the surrounding temperature had became so hot to the point that the air could be seen to be vibrating vividly. "It''s no wonder why they said I would definitely die here before. Just this scalding temperature alone would be enough to dehydrate me to a withered corpse..."


    Thankfully, Duan Li''s physical body right now had gone beyond the required level. Thus, he just casually strolled around until he reached a vast opening in the cave.


    As he was now in the early stage of the Foundation establishment realm, his senses on spiritual Qi had become much more keener than before. With just a glance over this vast opening, he could detect the fluctuating spiritual Qi leaking out of some living creatures hiding behind the rocks.


    "Two.. four.. six! There are six monsters hiding behind the rocks" Duan Li prepared himself as he got into a defensive stance.


    Sensing that their prey had noticed their existence, they came out of hiding.


    Grrrrr!


    "Unenlagia!" exclaimed Duan Li, alarmed.


    Because he had a photographic memory, he had already memorized 70 percent of the monster guide book when he flipped through them several times before and could recognize the monster in front of him.


    These monsters were extremely agile and ferocious, its tough skin and that long serrated blade-like fan attached between its shoulders and forearm like a small wing, the monster was graded as dangerous within the book.


    On top of that, its realm was at the pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm!


    The Unenlagias started to surround Duan Li as they walked in circles around him. Their eyes are dead intent in watching every movements that Duan Li was about to make.


    "Right now my body is at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, but I don''t know yet just how resilient my body would be against their attacks..." thought Duan Li.


    "But I need to get the upper hand, can''t let them think that I''m a pushover now..." Duan Li then punched out a normal fist imbued with his spiritual Qi towards one of the Unenlagia.


    BAM!


    The force of the punch hit squarely onto the body of the Unenlagia as it flew to the walls with a loud ''crash!'' sound.


    "..." Unenlagias.


    Did I... Just killled it?


    The Unenlagias turned mute right now with their jaws wide agaped to the point that their sharp teeth could be seen. They watched at their lifeless companion buried within the crumbled rocks. They then turned their head towards Duan Li, with a deadly gaze.


    "Holy moly! They are mad now!" just as Duan Li was about to unleash multiple indiscriminate punches in all direction in a panic, the Unenlagias turned their backs to him.


    Whooshh!


    The Unenlagias began to ran with their tails between their legs, terrified at the tyrannical strength of the human intruder.


    What is with the strength of this human?!


    Isn''t this cave supposed to send us weaker human beings?


    It didn''t took them long before they disappeared completely from sight. Duan Li was now standing alone with an awkward pose as his face showed a blank look at what just happened.


    Hais!


    Why did you guys had to run away like that!


    Its not like I killed your friend over there on purpose!


    If there is no one to help me to adjust my strength, how will I know which amount of power I should use so as to not kill my enemy?


    Please come back!


    Let me throw a few more punches!


    Duan Li sighed helplessly as he stood upright. He thought in his mind that he would get to see the escapees later on as they ran deeper into the cave. It would only be a matter of time before he finds them.


    For now, he turned his attention towards the dead Unenlagia that he killed accidentally. He walked towards it as he crouched down.


    ''Qi beam!''


    Pzzzttt!


    Duan Li made a small incision onto its abdomen using his index finger. The Qi beam acted like a hot glowing knife slicing through the meat with extreme ease. He then put his right hand into the incision and grabbed onto something as he pulled it out.


    Opening his hand, there was a small crystallized ball the size of an adult''s thumb that was ruby in colour.


    Fire attribute monster core!


    Duan Li then sat cross-legged on the ground to cultivate the monster core.


    Woonggg!


    Closing his eyes as he looked towards his dantian, there are now four things that floated inside it. His previous 10 Qi pools had merged together to form a single, rotating ball of spiritual Qi that seemed to be a lot more denser than before. The same could be said in his two other dantians as well and thus, altogether he had three Qi balls right now.


    Because of this, his strength right now could be said on par with that of a level 3 Foundation establishment realm!


    From his knowledge, to advance to the second level would require him to merge another 10 Qi pools to form a second Qi ball. But with his triple dantians, that would amount to 30 Qi pools altogether to form another 3 Qi balls, amounting to a total of 6 Qi balls in his second level. With that, he could rival anyone at the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm!


    And by the time he reached the pinnacle stage in this realm, his actual battle prowess would be quite similar to that of a middle stage Core formation realm!


    The rest that were floating inside his lower dantian were that earth attribute monster core which was now quite big and shaped like an egg, the thunder essence from the mother wolf and the small thumb-size, fire attribute monster core.


    Opening his eyes, Duan Li nodded, feeling quite satisfied with the rate at which he was improving right now.


    Standing up, he continued to walk deeper inside the cave.


    Wait for me Unenlagias!


    ...

 53 Chapter 52: A weird encounter!

    Tap! Tap!


    After walking for a while more, Duan Li frowned and stopped. This was because he had arrived at a juncture of multiple forks in the road up ahead.


    "Hmm.. there are six paths to take.. which one should I choose.." he began to contemplate as he cupped his chin.


    "Ahh nevermind, I''ll just pick the leftmost route." Duan Li then quickly strolled forward and not too long after that, he found himself to be at a dead end.


    "Is this it for this path?" just as he was about to turn back and pick another route, the cub began to barked out.


    Arrff! Arrff!


    "Eh? What''s wrong? Why are you pointing towards the wall?" noticing the look on the cub as if it insisted for Duan Li to do something onto the wall, a thought struck at his mind as he came onto a realization. There might be something behind the wall!


    "A secret chamber?"


    Duan Li looked around to see if there were any levers or secret button to open up the blocked path. However, he didn''t manage to find any of the sorts.


    Frowning, he processed what the Guardian had just said to him before.


    "Well, he did say not to destroy the maze... But some modification to it shouldn''t hurt.." he smiled sheepishly to himself as he scratched the back of his head.


    He had an idea of what to do in this kinds of situation.


    With a glint in his eyes, he threw a normal punch forward.


    BAM!


    Peng!


    Duan Li''s punch caused the wall to vibrate slightly and then dissipated as if it was being absorbed by a mysterious force.


    "This wall is too thick! How suspicious..."


    BAM!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    He punched at the wall several more times but the result was still the same. At the sight of this, Duan Li became more confident that there really was something on the other side!


    "Such a strong barrier... Perhaps the only way is really through brute force..."


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li retreated five steps back as he positioned himself into a stance. "Since normal punches won''t do it, then perhaps my fist art could open it!"


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    Pzzztt!


    This time, Duan Li charged his fist for a while as he spooled his spiritual Qi. Right now, his fist were glowing bright blue!


    Hupp!


    With a powerful momentum, Duan Li punched out. All sorts of phenemona happened as he launched this fist. The air split and vacuum was crushed opened. Spontaneous combustion of air created not two, but six coiling fire dragons around his arm as they bolted right along his fist.


    BBAAMM!!


    crack!


    Due to the sheer force of the fist, which Duan Li didn''t hold back anything from, the wall cracked a bit before the mysterious dissipating force started to absorb and mended the cracks together again.


    Noticing this, Duan Li punched out rapidly with the fist art.


    "I must continue to damage it until it couldn''t hold on anymore!"


    BBAMM!


    BBAMM!!


    BBAMM!


    ...


    After several rounds of pummeling, the barrier could finally no longer dissipate the reckoning force from Duan Li''s continuous ramming fist art, and crumbled.


    BOOM!


    A shower of dust followed suit with the crumbled wall. Due to excitement that had taken over his body, he couldn''t wait for the dust to settle down. Thus, he launched a normal fist forward to clear the dust away.


    BAM!


    Peng!


    "Eh? Is there another barrier again?" said Duan Li as he heard that sound. However, when he squinted his eyes, he found out that, that was not the case!


    Beyond the crumbled walls in the secret chamber, was a gigantic platform. In the middle of it, stood a single sword that has a golden hilt. This sword seemed to be otherwordly and radiated out an extremely peculiar aura!


    Taking his steps slowly with caution, Duan Li entered the secret chamber and climbed atop of the platform. Using his mental calculation, he was able to roughly estimate that the area of this platform was about 40,000 metres2.


    Not only that, this platform seemed to be extremely ancient. As if it was created when the Eternal maze itself was first born!


    Crack!


    Crash!


    "Eh? What was that sound?" Duan Li turned his head towards the origin of the sound as his eyes widened.


    One of the seemingly rows of grand statues that surrounded the platform had crumbled down.


    Looking towards the angle of the statue and the sword, Duan Li was able to guess what had just transpired here.


    Due to his fist that he deployed before in his excitement, the fist had landed onto the sword in the middle but ricochet off from it and hit that statue.


    From then, it must have been cracked continuously over time until its integrity could no longer hold itself and crashed down.


    Duan Li''s brows twitched continuously at the sight of this.


    Lord Guardian! Please forgive me!


    This was but an accident!


    Hais..


    He had only launched a normal fist, and even if it was an accident, how could the statue be so weak? Was it actually a knock-off?


    Duan Li casted a suspicious gaze towards that crumbled statue.


    "Oh well, let''s have a look at the sword instead..."


    He decided to just ignore the matter with the statue completely. After all, what is done, is done. If one were to remain in a standstill by the past that cannot be changed, how could one move forward then?


    Approaching the sword slowly, Duan Li analyzed it from top to bottom.


    What a magnificent sword!


    There wasn''t even a single flaw that could be deduced from its appearance. Eventhough there weren''t much lighting on this platform right now, which was only from the torches hanged on the wall, the sword still looked extremely good to the eyes!


    Right now, Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated whether to try and grab a hold of the sword. He was quite afraid that if he took the sword off the platform, something could happen.


    "Hmm.. even if something DOES happen.. this maze was created to test the late stage of the Qi condensation realm! Whereas I am at the early stage Foundation establishment realm with a pinnacle stage body!"


    "I don''t think that what could happen next would really pose a threat to me... Even the Guardian had guarenteed me before that I can pass through this maze easily.."


    Looking at that alluring sword that continuously gave out mysterious aura coiling around it, Duan Li couldn''t held himself back anymore.


    Slowly, he extended his right hand to grab at the hilt of the sword.


    Grab!


    The moment Duan Li grabbed the hilt, an aura of extreme desolate gushed out from the sword. This aura was vicissitudinous and reflected the countless eras that it had existed. Slowly, this aura encompassed the whole body of Duan Li as it locked him down!


    "Arrff! Arrff! Grrrr!" the cub growled out towards the sword.


    Was this a trap?!


    Feeling this aura, Duan Li was about to put it back onto the platform but realized that he cannot open his right hand, as if it was being clamped tight by a mold of cement!


    Suddenly in his panic, an ancient and hoarse voice spoke out to him.


    "Insignificant being, you dare touch me?!" this voice resounded through Duan Li''s mind which seemed to come from the sword itself.


    Eh?


    This sword is alive?


    "Y-you.. you can talk?" asked Duan Li with astonishment and fear in his voice.


    "Hmph! Before your great-grandfather''s testicles was even formed, I had long existed from the timeless realm!" replied the sword haughtily.


    "Arrff! Arrff!" the wolf cub barked out.


    "Shut up you inferior dog species! Quiet down before I slice you up into a shish kebab!"


    "And you! release me this instant you insignificant worm! How dare you defile my holy body with your.. eh?" the voice suddenly stopped as it swallowed what it was about to say.


    This presence!!


    "Y-you! How do you have that person''s presence inside you?!" the voice continued. But this time, its haughtiness was completely replaced by a trace of sudden fear instead.


    Hearing this, Duan Li creased his brows. "Someone''s presence? Inside me? Did he meant... those mysterious pearls?"


    "Ahh.. that was a long story.." replied Duan Li mysteriously as he smiled.


    The sword was about to continue lashing at him with abusive verbal attacks. If this ''presence'' inside him could somehow put it into place at least, then Duan Li would be able to suppress him!


    "Impossible! That person.. it cannot be! Y-you.. what is your name?!" asked the sword hastily.


    "My name? I am called Duan Li!" replied Duan Li with a proud smile.


    Hearing this name, the sword seemed to lost its luster as if paled in horror from hearing Duan Li''s name!


    "I..I.. forg-.. " seeming to say something, he stuttered in his word as if he remembered something and then continued, "N-nevermind! It seems that we are fated to meet together! I shall call you young master from now on!"


    Looking at the complete 180 degrees change in the personality of the sword, Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel suspicious as he frowned.


    "Why the sudden change in attitude? Are you.. scheming something against me?" he asked directly.


    "N-no! How could I dare! I, the great severing sword of the nine immortals, Duergar, am always an upright spirit! My previous personality was naturally due to a momentarily lapse in myself as I have been in a slumbered state for a very, very long time!"replied the sword with extreme confidence.


    "You are a spirit? A sword spirit?" Duan Li asked as he analyzed the sword.


    "Yes! That is correct! My origin is pretty long, perhaps we can talk over it next time! For now, I am dying to leave this place! I have been here for so long that if I stayed any longer, I would puke in disgust!" said the sword.


    Hmm..


    This sword is quite suspicious..


    Eventhough Duan Li felt that something was amiss, he decided to put the matter to the back of his head. After all, one must do things one step at a time. Everything will fall into place eventually and he will deal with it accordingly.


    "Oh young master, there is no need for you to carry me around everytime, I can morph myself into any accessories you wish. You can just summon me by then with a single thought and I will be by your hand in a flash!" it said.


    "Oh? Then... change into an earring on my right lobe then!" said Duan Li. He always wanted to have an earring for himself, but because he has no money, he hasn''t been able to get one.


    "Okay! I will change now!"


    Woongg!


    The sword flashed into a soft light as it became smaller and smaller, until it eventually became the size of a pinky finger, where it then attached itself to Duan Li''s right ear.


    Clang!


    "Okay then, let''s return and go to another route!"


    ...

 54 Chapter 53: Hello! I am back!

    "Say little sword, why were you in this secret chamber?" asked Duan Li as he leaped off the platform.


    Duan Li had decided to call the sword not by its name Duergar, but instead ''Little sword''. This was to establish a dominant relationship between the two of them in case the sword acted up with its split-personality once more.


    "That is.. from time immemorial, after this dimension was created, I happened to be placed here by the Grand Immortal himself. As to why, even I am not sure.." the sword replied.


    The Grand Immortal again?


    That figure really had a lot of means at his disposal. To think that even a spirit sword with such an eccentric personality was made to wait countless of eras just to find the one with affinity to get it.


    It was fortunate that I chose to break that wall. Otherwise, who knows if there would be any Qi condensation realm student able to break through such a tough barrier!


    Clank!


    Just as Duan Li was thinking along those line, his right foot had stepped onto some sort of a pedestal that seemed to activate a certain mechanism.


    Brrrr!


    Sounds of metal chains could be heard resounding through the secret chamber. The sword platform earlier on then rose higher and higher to eventually crash onto the ceiling and destroyed itself.


    This... it self-destructed?


    Duan Li''s mouth was wide opened as he watched this scene.


    How savage this Grand Immortal was! To think that after the platform had served its purpose, he would make it kill itself!


    "Ah! No wonder I felt the platform to be quite different from the last time! Actually, if someone were to enter the secret chamber, the opened secret door would act as the counter-weight and will push the platform up from the ground to become a tower! The person will then have to enter the tower and face the trials within to eventually reach the top floor. Naturally by then, they will be able to obtain me, if they have the affinity that is."


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s eyebrows twitched.


    "However... judging by that crumbled entrance of the secret chamber, with no counter-weight to stop the platform from being shoved upwards continuously, it had crashed to the ceiling instead..." continued the sword.


    "T-this... Then how are we supposed to enter? I tried to find the lever or buttons to open the entrance but I couldn''t find any..." said Duan Li as if he was being wronged by the explanation from the sword.


    "Actually... the entrance has to be opened with your spiritual Qi. As long as your potential isn''t too bad, it will open without a problem!" explained the sword.


    ''Pu!'' Duan Li choked on himself


    What? I just have to inject my spiritual Qi onto it?


    That Grand Immortal or something should have put an instruction manual on the walls and not make the life of others difficult!


    Now that I had destroyed it, the Lord Guardian would definitely make me accountable for this in the future!


    Gritting his teeth together in annoyance, Duan Li asked, "It''s that simple? Then what about this pedestal here? Why does it triggered the contraptions again?"


    The sword sighed inwardly, seemed like this young master of his was a little bit too green with secret chambers.


    "Naturally, it was to open the entrance for the tower... but since the young master had destroyed the counter-weight, as this pedestal relies on the same mechanism, an error occurred with its weight distribution and caused what we are seeing right now..."


    Seriously! This maze was meant for trials to anyone that entered it! Surely the maze here wasn''t that really difficult and would just require a little bit of logical thinking?


    If it were too simple, how could it be considered as the Eternal maze?


    That would just be a waste of such a domineering and scary name it has!


    Crumble!


    The ceiling began to crack open as they started to fall off. Noticing this, Duan Li made a run for it. Even if he had the body at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm right now, those big pieces of rocks crashing down would still be able to kill him if it hits!


    BOOM!


    The secret chamber has now completely collapsed. Back in the tunnel, Duan Li exhaled in relief.


    "That was close!"


    He dusted off his clothes as he made his way back to choose another path and scratched the back of his head, feeling a little bit troubled.


    "Hopefully, the Lord Guardian wouldn''t mind I crashed that secret chamber... After all, now that I had took the sword, they no longer has any purpose too..."


    ...


    Meanwhile, in the deep recesses of an underground cave, there existed a hot boiling pool of lava that encompassed a single skeleton within it.


    This skeleton was about two metres tall and radiated out an exceptionally dangerous air about it. All four of its limbs were each clamped by two black chains, with one on its neck.


    However, the weird thing about this skeleton was, even though its whole body that was made up of extremely withered bones were dipped into that pool of hot glowing lava, they did not show a sign of being burnt by it, not even the slightest!


    Right at this moment, the seemingly lifeless skeleton jolted slightly, as a dim glow of hazy red light could be seen to flash in its empty eye sockets.


    The jaws moved as if forming an expression of a sneer, before a hoarse voice that was filled with extreme malevolent intent spoke out.


    "Ke..ke..ke.. one.. seal.. was.. undone.. eight.. more.. to.. go.. ke..ke..ke.."


    PANG!


    The chain on its neck exploded out.


    "Ahh.. my.. neck.. felt.. a.. little.. bit.. sore.." said the skeleton as it twisted its neck left and right with that ''crack'' sounds.


    "That.. feels.. good.. ke..ke..ke.."


    ...


    "Now, which path should I choose next?" said Duan Li as he cupped his chin, looking at the remaining 5 routes.


    "Arrff! Arrff!" the cub pointed out onto another direction.


    "Eh? You want to go there?" said Duan Li as he raised his brows, interested in what lays beyond the path choosen by the cub.


    This was because the cub had uncovered the secret chamber previously. Thus, he wondered what they would find next.


    "Ohh? My senses could detect several foolish lifeforms huddling together by the end of this path... seems to be the nesting grounds of some inferior creatures!" said the sword in disdain.


    Lifeforms? Creatures?


    A thought struck Duan Li at this moment.


    The Unenlagias!


    "Little sword, do you know of any ways we can extract their monster cores without killing them? This here is the monster." asked Duan Li as he flipped the pages of the monster book to the one that contained the depiction of the Unenlagias.


    He really needed the monster cores to satiate his curiosity of what would happen if he keeps on cultivating them. However at the same time, he didn''t feel good about killing them en masse either.


    Hearing this question, the sword replied, "Well, that position of the monster cores inside their body is quite troublesome for most, but its nothing for the great me! If young master could knock them out cold, I would extract their monster cores for you!"


    "Is that so? Knocking them out wouldn''t be a problem! Let''s go then!"


    Duan Li then swiftly made his way to the path towards the nest of the Unenlagias.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    "Hey guys! I am back!" greeted Duan Li as soon as he emerged into their nesting grounds.


    Grrrr!


    The Unenlagias had long sensed that this scary human was coming for them, thus they huddled together in large numbers to pummel at him all at once!


    "I could detect about.. 40 of them in here!" exclaimed Duan Li in excitement as he clenched his fist.


    BAM!


    He punched towards the exit from whence he came, as the rubbles collapsed to block the exit. Now, there was no way out for them.


    Both parties were now silent to the point that a single drop of pin would be heard. They gazed at each other intently. With a dash, they commenced the fight!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    Duan Li threw out rapid punches towards the Unenlagias from all direction as he was surrounded in the middle. With each punch that connected, an Unenlagia would inevitably soar through the air before crashing on the wall, knocking them out instantly.


    Meanwhile, the sword would zig zag through the crowd to approach the unconscious Unenlagias and pierced through their body, right at where their monster cores were located.


    The sword was extremely efficient in its method as each only took it one breath to extract out one monster core.


    BAM!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    ...


    After a while, the one-sided pummeling has finally been concluded with all 40 Unenlagias knocked out cold, some of their teeths were smashed, and their monster cores stolen.


    The fire attribute monster cores were now piled up in front of Duan Li as the latter then sat down cross-legged.


    Cultivate!


    Shiingg!


    All the monster cores were swallowed whole and took only one breath for them to disappear. Witnessing this, the sword shuddered for a moment.


    What extreme cultivation speed!


    Currently, inside Duan Li''s lower dantian, all the Fire attribute monster cores had coalesced to form a single monster core the shape of an egg. It was a little bit bigger than the Earth attribute monster core floating besides it.


    However right now, other than getting bigger, there seemed to be nothing else going on with them right now.


    At the sight of this, Duan Li''s curiosity only grew deeper as he pondered what the eventual outcome would be like.


    "Its only a matter of time.."


    He stood up as he punched through the blocked exit to clear the rubbles away.


    BAM!


    Looking at the tragic sight of the knocked out Unenlagias, Duan Li asked the sword.


    "Would they be fine without their monster cores?"


    The sword then replied, "En! It would take at most a few years for them to form another monster core, but other than that, they would be able to live normally. Albeit they wouldn''t be able to use any of their skills for the time being."


    Hearing the sword''s answer, Duan Li nodded in relief.


    "Well, at least I didn''t amputate any of their body parts like I did with the Ankylosaurus'' tails before... So I guess this should be fine!"


    He then palmed both of his hands together towards the fallen Unenlagias as he turned his back to exit and pick another route.


    ...

 55 Chapter 54: The third route!

    Duan Li was now back at the juncture where the route was divided into six paths. He had already entered 2 of them, and now were only left with 4 more paths.


    "Hmm.. which path should I take after this?" said Duan Li as his brows creased together.


    He couldn''t be wasting any more time in this maze. After all, he was quite worried that the principal and the rest might be waiting for him.


    "Pardon me young master, but perhaps I have a conjecture that could help us to decide our next waypoint." the sword suddenly said.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s interest was piqued. "Oh is that so? Explain it to me little sword!"


    "Excluding the exit, the position of 3 of the entrances here are located along the 3 major cardinal directions, while another 3 are at the minor cardinal directions. If I am not wrong, this is in line with the 3 fortunes and 3 misfortune formation!" said the sword.


    "Since young master has already entered two of the 6 paths, you have already encountered one fortune and one misfortune. The former being able to get me and the latter would be the nesting grounds, which was supposed to be a misfortune by the way." continued the sword.


    Duan Li scratched the back of his head awkwardly. He had turned the misfortune into personal fortune my extracting their monster cores!


    "I could guess where the other two paths that leads to the fortune are. Since the Grand Immortal that created this whole place was quite the eccentric man, he had the beliefs that the common paths are the road to stagnation, and thus to him, are misfortunes. That means, the entrances at the three minor cardinal directions should be the fortunes!" explained the sword in confidence.


    It had only came into this conclusion after the route to his chamber were at the minor cardinal direction, while the nesting grounds were at the major cardinal direction. These thus, served to back up his conjectures!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li didn''t have a single clue as to what the 3 fortunes and 3 misfortunes were, but since the sword said so, its better than having nothing.


    "In that case, where are the other two paths that leads to the fortune then?" Duan Li asked as he cupped his chin.


    The sword conjured a spectral hand as it uses the index finger to point "There and that way!"


    Now that they have the clue as to where to go next, Duan Li decided to pick the left-most path.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    "Eh? There is another dead end up ahead... seems like the fortunes are all hidden in a secret chamber!" Duan Li became excited as he hastened his foot steps.


    After scrutinizing the wall carefully, the sword spoke out, "It seems like this door also requires spiritual Qi energy to open. Have a try young master!"


    "En!" Duan Li then placed his palm onto the wall as he injected his spiritual Qi into it.


    Woonggg!


    The wall lit up with a faint blue glow that made it seemed quite enchanting.


    One breath... Three breath...


    The faint blue glow eventually dissipated after about 10 breaths. At this sight, Duan Li frowned, "Why does it take so long to open?"


    "This.. I don''t understand it too.. can you try one more time young master?" replied the sword in bewilderment as it observed the wall once more.


    "Very well..." Duan Li then pressed his right palm onto the wall much more harder this time.


    Wonnggg!


    After another ten breaths had passed, the door would still not open.


    "This is very strange! I have observed the fluctuations of the barrier on this wall and the runic formation used in it are quite identical to the entrance in my secret chamber before.. why did it not open?" said the sword feeling confused.


    Did the mechanism broke?


    But that shouldn''t be! This was the works of the Grand Immortal himself!


    Tap! Tap!


    "Eh? Young master, why do you retreated five steps? Was there enemy that I did not notice?!" the sword immediately scanned its surroundings only to find nothing that was out of sorts.


    "No, because the wall had malfunctioned somehow, only through brute force would we be able to pry it open!" replied Duan Li as he clenched his hands into a fist.


    ''Nine Fist Shattering Meteor!''


    BBAMM!


    BBAMM!


    BBAMM!


    ...


    Crack!


    BOOM!


    After a few rounds of intense pummeling with his fist art, the wall eventually crumbled down.


    Witnessing this scene, the sword thought to himself, "This kind of forceful behavior.." and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    "Done!" Duan Li rubbed his hands together with a satisfied nod.


    ...


    Inside the secret chamber...


    Holy-moly!


    The size of this secret chamber was similar to the one where Duan Li had found the sword before. Just that instead of an empty platform with a single sword on it, this room was filled with rows of golden columns that under it, lies numerous types of uncountable treasures!


    "This.. there are so many treasures piling up!" exclaimed Duan Li in surprise.


    "Not only that, look over there young master! Those are rows and rows of rare herbs! And some are even legendary at that!" said the sword in excitement as it sweeped its senses around the room.


    Hais..


    "Too bad.. we can''t use our dimensional ring in this maze.. otherwise I could pocket all these treasures. I reckon these will be able to strengthen the Jiu empire.. how unfortunate.." Duan Li sighed helplessly as he lamented on the fact that he can''t use the dimensional ring.


    He had tried it several times before out of curiosity, but it really could not work at all. If only it could, just with the sheer size of the dimensional storage in his ring was, these much of treasures could be stored effortlessly!


    Hearing what Duan Li had just said, the sword spoke out "Ah! This Eternal maze was created in a seperate dimension that forbids the use of another spatial dimension. However, I could help young master with that!"


    "Oh? You can help me overcome such restrictions? How?" Duan Li''s eyes began to gleam with anticipation right now.


    "Simple! Since I have been in this maze for such a long time, I had analyzed the many laws and realms inside this dimension. The reason why the spatial rings couldn''t be used within the maze was because the runic inscriptions it uses was different!"


    "If I modify the runic inscriptions within young master''s spatial ring a little bit, it would become compatible with the laws and realms of this dimension! However, since this dimension was created by the Grand Immortal himself, naturally I wouldn''t be able to bypass all of the rules."


    "Thus, the only thing it would be able to do will just be storing items but not retrieve it! After exiting the maze though, young master should be able to use both functions normally once again!" explained the sword.


    "En! That would be plenty! Here you go!" Duan Li took off the spatial ring on his ring finger as it floated closely to the sword.


    Wooongg!


    The ring glowed mysteriously with several distortions that appeared to contort the ring with each flicker.


    Arrfff! Arrrfff!


    The cub suddenly barked out, attracting the attention of both Duan Li and the sword.


    Immediately, a heavy tremor spread out within the room as a tall figure emerged from above, descending down towards where they stood!


    BOOM!


    Roaaarrr!!


    This figure was quite massive, about the size of 10 metres tall. It has a reminiscent of a bulky giant made up of many layers of bricks and ceramics patched up together.


    Duan Li managed to do a side-roll to the right and avoided its sudden ambush.


    "Earthly golem!" exclaimed the sword in a panic.


    "This is an Earth spirit that is quite slow due to their density, but its attacks are incredibly heavy as a result! Even the body of a Foundation establishment realm could be injured by it! Be careful young master!"


    Duan Li dodged to the left avoiding the incoming fist attack.


    BAM!


    The fist hits a pillar which immediately sending it crumbling down.


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li retreated five steps to the back and launched his own normal fist.


    BAM!


    Eh? The punch was not effective?


    Duan Li''s punch had hit squarely on the chest of the Eartly golem, but the latter remained unfazed by it.


    "Young master, I''m sorry that I cannot help you in this battle! I had to focus all my efforts in modifying the runic inscriptions. Otherwise, if even just one mistake were to occur, this spatial ring would become useless and lose its dimensional space!" said the sword.


    "Its body is extremely tough as well, comparable to a pinnacle stage of the core formation realm! Young master wouldn''t be able to damage it! Just continue to dodge until I finish modifying the ring!"


    "Until then, I would personally split this contemptous fool into half! To think that it dared to raise its hands against young master, just that fact alone entitled it a death sentence! Truly courting death!" snorted the sword in a rage.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded as his expression turned serious.


    A physical body at the pinnacle stage of the core formation realm? Even my fist art wouldn''t be able to do much to it!


    After contemplating for a while, Duan Li''s eye gleamed with determination!


    He began to breath in spiritual Qi from the surrounding through his pores, as pools of Qi began to form inside his dantian before slowly coalescing into a Qi ball.


    Level 2 Foundation establishment realm!


    Level 3 Foundation establishment realm!


    Level 4 Foundation establishment realm!


    BOOM!


    Duan Li''s aura evolved as it became even more fiercer and torrential like a broken dam!


    Feeling this change, the sword palpitated in fear. "How tyrannical! To think that the young master was able to advance himself by a few levels in but the blink of an eye as if drinking!"


    Truly fearsome!


    "Hmm?I can''t breath in any more spiritual Qi? Seems like I had sucked them dry.." thought Duan Li.


    But these upgrades to his levels should be enough!


    Clenching his fist tightly, Duan Li faced the Earthly golem straight ahead.


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BBAMM!


    Duan Li''s punch right now was several more times devastating than before! However, contrary to Duan Li''s expectation, the Eartly golem merely stumbled backwards a little bit before stabilizing itself.


    Even the dent on its body immediately recovered too!


    "That would do no good young master! This Earthly golem seemed to be the treasure guardian for this place and because it was made up of Earth spirit, it can nullify physical damage quite easily and regenerate itself through absorbing the soil from the ground!" explained the sword."


    Not expecting for this outcome, Duan Li''s face slowly turned grim. "How much longer will it take to modify the ring?" he asked the sword.


    "About 30 more breaths!"


    ...

 56 Chapter 55: Full-Burst Mode!

    BAM!


    The golem continued to throw punches at Duan Li as the latter dodged left and right.


    "I feel as if the situation are being reversed right now.." said Duan Li with an awkward smile.


    This was because, he was the one who would usually throw the punches around non-stop. But now without the existence of the spiritual Qi replenishing him from the surrounding, he could only avoid the punches being thrown at him without retaliating as it would be useless and a waste of his spiritual Qi.


    After about 30 breaths, the sword had finally finished modifying Duan Li''s spatial ring and he couldn''t help but commented, "I took a peek inside young master''s space ring when modifying it before. At first, I thought that the inside space would be quite small since it was made up from a very low quality material... but the size.. I could say perhaps it is as big as the whole Eternal maze itself!"


    Duan Li just smiled wryly as he didn''t know how to explain it. After all, he had vowed to not tell a single soul about the mysterious pearl aside from his mother.


    BAM!


    The golem threw another punch but missed and hit the ground. There were now a lot of craters inside the chamber and Duan Li was getting worried that it would eventually run amok to destroy the precious treasures around.


    Thus, he turned to speak at the sword. "How do we beat this thing?"


    The sword then immediately replied, "I could slice up this fool''s limb into many pieces, but that would just be a waste of time as it would definitiely reattach itself in a jiffy!"


    "Therefore, the only way to beat it, would be to snatch away its monster core directly or destroy it!" the sword continued.


    "Snatch it''s monster core? But isn''t it a spirit and not a monster? Besides, I don''t see it anywhere though?" asked Duan Li as he squinted his eyes.


    In his memories before, he had never encountered any spirit at all, perhaps only Ancestor Zong. This was because he was too focused on cultivating day and night and spent less days outside. He had heard of them, but only superficial information that he couldn''t recall at all.


    "Every living thing has their core, some even had multiples of them! Human being is the only exception to this as they have their dantian. For monsters, even if you snatched away their cores, they would still be able to live and regenerate their cores over time. However for a spirit, once you snatch away their cores and cultivate them, they would be as good as dead!" explained the sword.


    Even the sword himself has a core within its hilt. But naturally, he wouldn''t reveal this to anyone.


    "I see! Okay, I''ve come up with a plan! I will use my fist art to pressure the golem while you prepare youself at my signal to bore through its body and retrieve the core! Can you do that?" said Duan Li as he dodged the punches to the left.


    "That''s a solid plan young master! My strength was not as it used to be so I would need a moment to focus myself, but yes, I could penetrate against its defense!" replied the sword confidently.


    The sword then floated up into the air as it reverted back to its proper sword form. Slowly, it''s aura started to become sharper and more vivid.


    "Time to counter-attack!" Duan Li''s eye glinted like that of an eagle hawking at its prey as he dashed forward to circle around the back of the golem.


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BAM!


    BAM!


    Duan Li targeted both of its legs so as to destabilize it''s footing. Specifically, his target was at the back of it''s knees.


    BAM!


    BAM!


    With countless batterings, the golem couldn''t help but to eventually became unstable as it then fell to the ground.


    Crash!


    It was this moment that Duan Li was aiming for as he signalled to the sword to finally make a move!


    "NOW!"


    Psheww!


    The sword immediately bolted forward while rotating on its own axis like a revolving thunder dragon being casted by the heavens, straight into the chest of the golem.


    Break!!


    BOOM!


    The sword was drilling through the golem right now. Before long, it could finally see the monster core of the Earthly golem!


    "I found it young master! I''ll snatch it right away!" exclaimed the sword in excitement.


    However, just as the sword was about to sever the monster core away from the body of the Earthly golem, the unthinkable happened!


    Whoop!


    To think that the core would be able to move freely within it''s body!


    The Earthly golem then regenerated instantly to seal the sword inside it, leaving only the hilt exposed outside it''s body.


    "Damn it, you brainless brute!" roared the sword in anger.


    Seeing this, Duan Li called out to the sword in a panic, "Are you alright little sword?!"


    "I am fine young master! Just that I am unable to escape from it''s grasp! This Earthly golem continued to regenerate endlessly inside it''s body in order to pin me down!" replied the sword feeling completely frustrated with it''s situation.


    How did he became so useless?


    And why did this Earthly golem was so smart?


    "Young master, now that it had become like this, there are only two way to escape from this predicament! Unless you have a space magic to lock its movements, then we can somehow stop its regenerative abilities to snatch its monster core away!" said the sword out loud.


    BAM!


    Duan Li dodged to the right as he replied, " I haven''t learn any space magic yet! What about the second option?!"


    "This... to evaporate its whole body! The Earthly golem however, would definitely reinforce the area where it contained it''s monster core to the best of its abilities! Furthermore, this golem is of the Earth element, resistant towards the Fire element! It would take a tremendous firepower to evaporate the whole body!" explained the sword.


    Evaporate it''s whole body? Tremendous firepower?


    A thought struck at him as he remembered his ultimate skill art, ''One Finger Starlight Slash!''


    Of all the skill arts that he possessed, only this one was the most powerful of all!


    "I shall placed all my bets onto this one then!" said Duan Li as he gritted his teeth with a very deep conviction look appearing on his face.


    "Arff! Arrff!" Duan Li placed the cub on the ground as the latter ran out to seek shelter.


    Duan Li then started to analyze his entire meridians, pathways and acupuncture points as he devised a plan, which was to turn his ultimate skill art into an all full-burst mode!


    BAM!


    BAM!


    Urghh!


    Duan Li was flung away by the Earthly golem''s punch as he was distracted trying to modify his skill art.


    "Young master!!" the sword shrieked out, horrified as it then bellowed out with extreme anger, "You scum! How dare you lay your hand onto the Young master! Courting death!"


    ''Pu!'' Duan Li spatted out a mouthful of blood. That single punch from the golem was extremely terrifying! To think that it could damage his physical body which is at the pinnacle of the Foundation establishment realm!


    "I am fine! Don''t worry about me! I am going to use my ultimate skill art now! Be sure to protect yourself and snatch it''s core!" shouted Duan Li as he stood back up again.


    Stabilizing his breathing, his pores were now all opened wide to absorb not spiritual Qi, but the surrounding oxygen rapidly like a black hole.


    His entire meridians and pathways were now surging, spooling repeatedly as if charging itself to becoming more potent with each cycle.


    Sensing the changes of Duan Li, the sword shouted out in a panic, "Young master! What are you doing?! You are going to severely injure yourself like this!!"


    "This is the only way!" replied Duan Li as he gritted his teeth. His internal organs were now just barely holding together, and he had started to bleed on all of his seven apertures!


    Raising his right arm straight ahead, he pointed out with his index finger!


    ''One Finger Starlight Slash: Full-burst mode!''


    A ball of light appeared in front of his index finger. This light seemed to illuminate everything in the world as they turned extremely bright!


    In an instant, this ball of light became a single, raging stream of large beams that expanded out as it shoots forward with extreme and tyrannical force behind it!


    BOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!!!


    At that point, the whole maze shook as the intense power that was released by Duan Li''s ultimate skill art hits the body of the Earthly golem squarely to instantly evaporate it and penetrate all the way to the ceiling.


    The sword also moved in an instant as it snatched the monster core away while it''s whole body were glowing bright red!


    "Ouch! Ouch! It''s hot!" the sword yelped out.


    At the same time, it couldn''t help but to feel awe with Duan Li''s power. "This young master is even more tyrannical! Such firepower would alert even those at the Nascent Soul realm!"


    "We did it young master!" the sword exclaimed happily as it approached Duan Li with the monster cores at tow.


    "We... did it..." Duan Li smiled widely as he then felt all his limbs growing weak.


    His consciousness slowly fading, he fell to the ground.


    Thud!


    "Young master!!"


    ...

 57 Chapter 56: Miraculous elixirs!

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    Tssss!


    Approaching the unconscious Duan Li, the sword spoke out with a horrified voice, "Damn it! Even his cells are burning up! There must be an elixir somewhere within these piles of treasures!"


    The sword bolted off quickly around the room, scanning for elixirs that could help recover Duan Li''s body.


    After all, the insides of Duan Li''s body right now could be considered to be half-cooked due to the intense heat from repeatedly cycling his spiritual Qi to an extreme level!


    Furthermore, he had also absorbed a large amounts of oxygen to help catalyze the full-burst mode. As a result, remnants of burnt carbon particles polluted all over his body!


    "Arrff! Arrff!" the cub called out to the sword as it found a bottle of clear liquid among the piles of treasure.


    "That''s a grade five elixir! Hahaha! You are not so useless after all even coming from an inferior dog species! To express my gratitude, I''ll call you little dog from now on!" exclaimed the sword happily as it conjured a spectral hand to grab at the bottle of elixir.


    Rushing towards Duan Li, the sword poured the contents of the elixir inside Duan Li''s mouth.


    "Let''s hope that this elixir would be enough..." it said feeling quite worried.


    Elixir was a potion that could heal numerous injuries be it internal or external. The method to concoct an elixir varies in difficulties, and the end product were ranked between grade 1 until 9 according to its potency.


    A grade five elixir could heal heavy injuries in a matter of a few breaths. But this also depended on the realm of the cultivator. The higher their realm, the higher the grade of elixir they would need to consume.


    This was because with increasing realm, a cultivator''s body would have a much more higher resistance against any damages. Inevitably, this resistance also seemed to affect the effectiveness of elixirs!


    "Cough! Cough!" Duan Li opened his eyelids slowly as he could feel a surging warmth within his body repairing his damaged cells.


    "Young master! Please refrain from moving and let the elixir settles the remaining damage inside your body first!" said the sword as it exhaled in relief.


    "We.. won.. right?" asked Duan Li with a weak voice.


    "Yes young master, you did it! However, you have suffered grievous internal injuries and thankfully, we have a grade five elixir around... Otherwise, with such injury, young master would probably not make it..." replied the sword with a worried tone.


    Duan Li chuckled as he continued to laid down and closed his eyes.


    Shiinggg!


    His All-Seeing eye ability activated as he observed his body condition.


    "Hmm.. my internal body is indeed quite messed up.. But the elixir is surprisingly able to repair them at a visible rate! How miraculous!" exclaimed Duan Li to himself as he saw the roasted cells were being shaved anew. Even his meridians and pathways were resurged back with some spiritual Qi.


    "I must learn how to concoct an elixir later on when I return to the academy! Only then at times of pinch I would become more confident to gamble with my life.." thought Duan Li inwardly.


    After a few more breaths, Duan Li''s injuries have now fully recovered. However, his spiritual Qi reserves were only at the bare minimum level right now and that was also thanks to the elixir.


    Otherwise, with no spiritual Qi to absorb and resuscitate his empty dantians, meridians and pathways, they would crumble down and stagnate. At that point, even with an elixir, there was no guarentee that he would be able to cultivate anymore!


    Thinking about this made Duan Li shuddered. Thus, he turned towards the both of them, "I want you two to find as many lifesaving elixirs within this room as much as you guys can before I store these treasures in my spatial ring!"


    "Okay young master! Leave it to the both of us! Let''s go little dog!" replied the sword as it gestured towards the cub. The latter then hopped aboard it''s body as they flew around the piles of treasures searching for more elixirs.


    Looking at this sight, Duan Li was a little bit surprised. "Since when did the both of them become so close? Furthermore, little dog?" Duan Li chuckled at the sight of them flying around together.


    Shaking his head, Duan Li sat down cross-legged to contemplate. "It seems that even the path to fortunes are guarded. The final route might have an even stronger boss!"


    I need to prepare myself!


    Duan Li then took out the manual book that the Guardian gave him.


    ''One Step To Reach''


    His eyebrows couldn''t help but to twitch by itself looking at that bold name in capital letters on the cover of the manual book. Nevertheless, Duan Li began to flip through them to study it intently while waiting for them to uncover some elixirs for him.


    Flip!


    ...


    After roughly about an hour, Duan Li had managed to internalize the movement skill art inside the manual book.


    "Thankfully, my comprehension and analytical senses have been tremendously upgraded after my encounter with the first mysterious pearl. Otherwise, with a skill art made specifically for the first shackle, I wouldn''t be able to understand them in such a short period of time!" Duan Li nodded, feeling satisfied.


    His previous memories had also helped him to understand the manual a lot better, since there were terms that only those on such a realm would know of.


    Standing up, Duan Li focused his gaze onto the distance as he activated the movement skill art. His figure flickered slightly before abruptly vanishing.


    Whooshh!


    Tap!


    With a single breath, he was able to travel the distance seemingly without any movements at all!


    "Not too bad! I''ve modified it a little bit to reduce the spiritual Qi consumption, but as a result, the range are reduced quite considerably. But this will make do for me in this realm for the time being!"


    Burning up the manual book with a surge of his spiritual Qi as was told by the Guardian into ashes, Duan Li took out another book and began to study it.


    ''Nine Swordplays Thunder Strike!''


    Flip!


    ...


    After about less than an hour, Duan Li finally finished studying the book. His brows creased together as he cupped his chin.


    "It seems that its getting easier for me to understand the contents inside of a manual book... I could even skip a few pages as some of them revolves around the same basic that I had already internalized before.."


    In his conjecture, as long as he accumulates knowledge through reading manual books, the time to learn its contents would drastically be reduced!


    Perhaps one day, he could even learn a skill art by just looking at the cover?


    Duan Li chuckled to himself and shook his head to dispel such thoughts. After all, such things would only happen in the world of fantasies.


    It''s not as if his world was a fantasy right?


    "So far, I''ve already learned six skill arts in total; Nine Fists Shattering Meteor, Nine Palm Slapping Oceans, Nine Swordplays Thunder Strike, One Step To Reach and the two variations of my One Finger Starlight Slash -- Qi beams and Full-Burst mode!"


    With a lot of skill arsenal at his disposal, he could fight both bare-handed and with a sword at hand. Coupled with a movement skill art and his ultimate skill variations, if he were to deploy all of them at the same time, all hell would definitely break loose!


    Shortly after, the sword came back with a few bottles of elixirs at tow. The cub was sitting adorably above it with it''s tongue sticking out.


    "Young master! We have combed the whole chamber and managed to uncoverfive elixirs in total! Three were of the grade four elixirs, one grade five and another one at grade six! Grade six elixirs are so potent that it could even grow a new limb if used on a cultivator at the lower realms!" said the sword with excitement.


    "Is that so? Good job then! The both of you worked so well together though, when did you two get so close?" asked Duan Li with a grin.


    "Huh? I am close with this little dog? No way! I am far higher in status than a mere cub!" the sword complained, feeling a little bit displeased.


    Duan Li laughed out as he shook his head. With a thought and a single sweep of his right hand, the whole piles of treasures inside the room were quickly swallowed by the spatial ring.


    Huala!


    The previously grand appearance of the secret chambers that were filled with numerous treasures to the brim were now bare naked without a single gold coin left on the floor.


    "The Guardian shouldn''t mind me taking all these treasures right?" thought Duan Li. Turning his head towards the sword, he asked out, "By the way, where is the core of the Earthly golem?"


    "Here it is Young master!" the sword handed over the monster core to Duan Li using his spectral hand.


    Seeing the size of the monster core, Duan Li''s eyes widened.


    This! Isn''t it way too big?


    The monster core of the Earthly golem was like a small boulder! No wonder Duan Li hadn''t realized it. Even the colour was almost similar to the debrises around him.


    Cultivate!


    Shiinggg!


    Driving his consciousness inside his dantian, the Earth attribute monster core were now in the process of merging together with the core from the Earthly golem. They rotated around each other as they combined.


    Woonggg!


    The resulting merge brought out bright flash of light as a new egg-like shape monster core appeared. This thing was quite big in Duan Li''s opinion.


    Suddenly, just as he was about to retract his consciousness, a sound attracted his attention.


    Crack!


    Hmm?


    ...

 58 Chapter 57: Elemental Origin Spirit!

    Crack!


    Eh? What was that sound?


    Duan Li turned around to see just what was going on. What he saw then had turned his eyes wide and his mouth agaped.


    "T-that is.. it.. is that.."


    At this moment, Duan Li had a trouble in trying to express his thoughts clearly. The words he was about to speak out stuttered in his mouth. It was only after taking a few breaths in that he was able to say it.


    "A... A worm?!"


    The previously big, egg-like shaped monster core of the Earth attribute just now had cracked open to reveal a worm-like creature that was wriggling and dancing about inside his dantian.


    This worm wasn''t that big nor was it long. Just about a metre long and a few inches thick, with its head much more bigger than the rest of its body. However, contrary to the appearance of the usual grotesque worms inside the Earth, this worm was extremely pink in color and its body flawless without any sorts of ugly blotches on it.


    Furthermore, it''s eyes were round like that of a rabbit, and both of its pupil was green in colour. In addition, its mouth was quite small and curved into a cute smile.


    When this worm saw Duan Li was staring at it with a puffer fish like expression, the worm chuckled for a bit as it spoke out, "Master, I am the Earth origin spirit, Dilong!"


    Dilong? Where did I heard of that name before?


    As if hearing the thoughts of it''s master, the worm replied, "Dilong is an Earth dragon!" with a wide smile.


    Pu!


    An Earth dragon?!


    Duan Li choked on himself when the little worm called itself an Earth dragon. With an appearance as such, wasn''t that sullying the holy name of the mighty dragon species to call itself as one of them?


    Would the heavens even tolerate such blasphemy?


    The little worm then pouted its mouth feeling a little bit displeased as it complained, "Dilong am really part of the dragon species! It''s just that Dilong was born recently that Dilong''s appearance is like this now!"


    Duan Li casted a suspicious gaze towards the little worm, still having a trouble in believing it''s words.


    From the depiction of many drawings of dragons that he had seen so far, even at their initial stage, a baby dragon resemblance to their parents was definitely uncanny!


    But this little worm wriggling around doesn''t even look that one bit of how a dragon would look like.


    "Humph! Those are but merely the depictions of dragons from ignorant people that based their imaginations of how we looked like by referring to the inferior wyvern species!"


    "If master doesn''t believe what Dilong had just said, then master would only have to continuously supply Dilong with an endless supply of Earth attribute monster cores! The more Dilong consumed, the more would Dilong evolved!"


    "By then, Dilong would have naturally proven the words Dilong had just said to master!" continued the little worm as it harrumphed haughtily.


    Hearing the little worm tried to prove itself, Duan Li was still a little bit dazed but he nodded nevertheless and replied, "Okay... But even if you don''t turn out to become a dragon, you don''t need to feel disheartened by it... I don''t discriminate between a wor- I mean between different species!" he quickly corrected himself.


    "Although, what is it that you are capable of?"


    "For now, Dilong''s usefulness is quite limited. Like an Earth essence, whenever master have a skill arts or magic spells that is related to the Earth element, Dilong could boost its prowess and effectiveness by at least 10 percent!"


    "Also, in the future, Dilong could be summoned out to participate in battle after Dilong completed a few more evolution stages. By then, Dilong would bring an immense benefit to master!" replied the little worm with a trace of pride and dignity in its words.


    Hearing this, Duan Li felt a little bit better. "I see... then I will leave it you then Dilong!"


    "En!" the little worm nodded and smiled.


    ...


    After that, Duan Li retracted his consciousness away from his dantian. When he opened his eyes, he turned to look at the sword floating besides him.


    "Little sword, what is an Earth origin spirit? And do you know of a dragon named Dilong?" asked Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    The sword was surprised when Duan Li asked this. "Earth origin spirit? That''s the origin of an elemental attribute! To put it simpler, an Origin spirit is the mother of all elemental spirit in its field attributes! Dilong is the name of the mother of all Earth elemental spirit and is part of the True dragon species!"


    The mother of all Earth elemental spirit? Part of the True dragon species?


    It seems like the little worm was telling him the truth, and holds an impressive amount of influence under its power too!


    Duan Li contemplated for a while. He then decided to would just have to wait for the day the little worm were to mature. By then, he would naturally be able to witness just what sort of capabilities does it possess.


    "Why do young master suddenly asked about this though?" the sword asked curiously.


    Hearing this question, Duan Li smiled wryly as he replied, "Well... after cultivating a lot of Earth attribute monster cores, it seems that they had formed a little worm whom called itself an Earth dragon called Dilong inside my dantian..."


    Pu!


    The sword choked on itself even though it doesn''t has any mouth. For a True dragon to form inside his young master''s dantian, isn''t that way too terrifying?!


    Albeit his young master labelled the dragon as a ''little worm'' which sounded quite savage and pitiful for the latter, the sword somehow could imagine how the Earth dragon looked like in its infancy stage and thus understood why its master would call the Earth dragon as such.


    Still, the sword could not help but to be astonished. He had heard before people cultivating monster cores until they could form an elemental essence or even an elemental spirit, but never an Origin spirit!


    Although thinking back to the name of its young master, the sword could naturally accept that it would be the case.


    After all, its master is THE Duan Li!


    "Okay, since we are done here, let us go to the final route then!" Duan Li stood up as they exitted the secret chamber that has now became nothing more than a desolate ruin.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    Arriving at the juncture once more, Duan Li could feel the presence of spiritual Qi within this place to be a little bit thick. Thus, he sat down cross-legged to cultivate and absorb them to replenish himself.


    After a while, Duan Li could feel that his battle prowess was now back to at least 80 percent of his peak strength before the surrounding spiritual Qi ran dry.


    "This should be enough for now... I could absorb some more spiritual Qi at the final chamber later on if I needed to." he nodded.


    "Little sword, you hold on onto this grade six elixir! I would count on you if I were to fall into an extreme injury once more!"


    The sword then replied, "Okay young master, although I do need to remind this, that the effectiveness of elixirs will reduce with each consumption. It would take a few hours for the body to be able to absorb a hundred percent of it once more!"


    "En!" nodded Duan Li as he patted the head of the cub that was poking out of his clothes.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    Eh? The final route doesn''t have a secret chamber?


    When Duan Li arrived, the entrance here doesn''t have a secret wall that needs to be opened with the spiritual Qi. Instead, the chamber was wide open, with a towering pedestal at the very end of the chamber, protected by what seems to be a barrier.


    Sneaking warrily, Duan Li poked out his head at the entrance to look left and right. He could see several small pedestals scattered throughout the room.


    However, after Duan Li squinted his eyes, what was on top of these small pedestals had caused him to become elated!


    "It''s the treasure boxes! I finally found them! And to think that there were a lof of them here too!" he exclaimed excitedly.


    "Eh? Those treasure boxes... If I am not wrong, their designs and material, these boxes came from another world called Mirealith!" said the sword, a little bit taken aback by the sight it sees.


    "Oh? You know of these tresure boxes?" Duan Li turned towards the sword as he could not help but be impressed with the vast amount of knowledge the other party has.


    "En! These treasure boxes were crafted out from the Nine roots tree! Its extremely durable and flexible, able to morph its shape at the user''s will!"


    "They are considered to be rare, but to think that so many were scattered around here... the Grand Immortal''s means had never ceases to amaze me!" continued the sword with a tone full of reverence.


    Feeling quite curious, and after looking at his surroundings to see that there were no incoming threat or danger yet, Duan Li stepped inside the chamber.


    Bam!


    Thud!


    "Ouch!" He was forcefully pushed forward as soon as his foot stepped inside. As a result, he fell to the ground face first.


    "Cough! Cough! What in the world just... Eh?" Duan Li turned around to see who would suddenly push at him, only to see that the previous entrance was now gone without a trace!


    A sense of deep foreboding came into him.


    ROAARRRR!!!!!


    ...

 59 Chapter 58: The Final Boss 1

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    Damn it! The exit was locked out!


    Swiftly turning his head towards the direction of the roar, Duan Li could make out a gigantic silhouette emerging from the shadows at the very corner of the chamber.


    "Where does that big cave come from? When I had taken a look just now, there was no such thing?!" Duan Li spoke out with apprehension.


    "I believe this should be... spatial manipulation!" said the sword.


    When it scanned the entire chamber with its will, the sword found out that his will had rebounced off the walls! This could only mean that the whole chamber was being encompassed within a runic formation right now, and the fact that the entrance from whence they came before had disappeared so suddenly, that another entrance reappeared instead, could only mean one thing -- this runic formation was imbued with the power of spatial manipulation!


    ROOAARR!!!


    Duan Li squinted his eyes to see at that emerging figure. When its whole body came out, he couldn''t help but to swallow a mouthful of saliva.


    Gulp!


    "That... That is one big, giant Komodo!"


    The body of this Komodo was about 14 metres long from head to its tail, and its height was around 4 metres. Its skin was covered with thick black scales and a glowing hot red pattern in between them, making them look like a molten lava!


    "That filthy creature is of the Komodo dragon ancestor species, molten Komodosaurus! Its scales are extremely thick and no normal weapon could damage its body! I, the great Duergar however, have the ability to slice this thing up into a shish-kebab!" said the sword with a little bit of haughtiness to his tone.


    "Although you should be very careful young master. Not only does that filthy creature have a tough body, its speed isn''t something to scoff at either! Thus, eventhough I might have the ability to injure it, let us just run away!" the sword continued with a monotone.


    EH?


    That next sentence that came from the sword had totally rooted Duan Li to the ground, almost making him stumble even!


    At first, the sword had bragged out haughtily that it could injure the Komodo, yet after that, it suggest for them to run away instead!


    How shameless!


    "Run away? Why? Can''t we just beat it since you said you could slice it up, eh little sword?" replied Duan Li somewhat teasingly.


    "Ahh that! I''m talking about the ancient past! However right now, perhaps I could only make a few sparks flew off from its boulder like body! Although that thing were of the similar realm with the Earthly golem, its a few notches more stronger and deadlier!" told the sword as it conjured its spectral hand to point out at one of the smaller pedestal.


    "Furthermore, I think that in this chamber, we are not meant to even beat that little Komodo! It''s just impossible for us yet! Instead, if young master noticed, that thing that is heading over to us right now ever so casually, as if we are nothing but an ant to it, had rammed those small pedestals that stood in its path, yet none of them was destroyed and appeared intact without a single damage!" continued the sword.


    Hearing this, Duan Li took a swift look behind the incoming Komodo and could affirm that what the sword had just said was indeed right! The stone pedestals just disappeared and reappeared if the Komodo was near it!


    "This.. is it because of the spatial manipulation or something that you had just said?" queried Duan Li.


    "En! that means that all we had to do was avoid it and settle the puzzle here!" replied the sword.


    Settle the puzzle?


    Duan Li once again made a swift assessment towards his surrounding and could make out around 81 small pedestals spread out randomly inside this chamber. On the ground below them, was branches of straight lines with some stopping abruptly at a dead end, while others were joining together!


    This!


    "Isn''t this the depictions of the numerous meridian pathways and acupoints around the human body?" thought Duan Li.


    Due to his photographic memory, as he focused his sight onto each of these peculiarities, he could straightly understood what their hidden meaning implied!


    "Oh? Young master knew of what they are? Then this will be quite easy!" exclaimed the sword in surprise.


    The young master was an incredible person indeed!


    Nodding his head, Duan Li moved to the nearest stone pedestals to his right and touched upon the treasure box. Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind.


    "You have acquired the treasure box, do you want to leave now, or continue on? Warning, if you do not exit, you would have to solve the puzzle until the end to exit the Eternal maze!"


    Eh? This voice...


    "That''s the voice of the Mirealithians! It has been so long since I''ve heard them, but only theirs sounded so mechanical to me! It seems that they have their own terms with the Grand Immortal, as it looks like they were the one whom have designed this puzzle. No wonder that so many of these rare treasure boxes from the world of Mirealith were put here!" exclaimed the sword as it came onto a realization.


    "I wonder what is atop of that towering stone pedestal at the very end, for the Mirealithians to construct such complex mechanism to unlock it! Not to mention, under the pressure of that little lizard that is currently stalking at us right now from afar, no one would be able to take this challenge head on!" continued the sword.


    To think that this maze was made to test the people at the Qi condensation realm, isn''t this way too much?


    Furthermore, the incoming Komodo had stopped in its tracks, observing the movements of Duan Li with its tongue slithering about creating that ''hisss'' sound.


    "It seems that, the Komodo was waiting for my decision. If I chose to continue on, it would definitely charged forward without any hesitation to try and stop me from completing the puzzle!" thought Duan Li.


    Gulp!


    He swallowed a mouthful of saliva as he made his decision.


    "Little sword and little cub, are you guys ready?" he turned to ask them both as his adrenaline began to pump inside his body furiously.


    "Well, I chose to follow young master until the end! Since it has come to this, then why not? I, Duergar, has never been afraid of anyone or anything since the time I was created, let alone for a mere contemptuous lizard! Bring it on young master!" replied the sword, its tone full of pride and dignity!


    "Arrff! Arrfff!" the cub barked out, as if agreeing with the statement made by the sword.


    Duan Li chuckled out as his face then slowly turned serious and solemn. He looked straight in the eyes of the Komodo up ahead.


    "..."


    There was a moment of silence between both parties.


    Tap!


    Duan Li lifted the book as he replied to the voice inside his head, "I will be continuing!"


    Shiinggg!


    The stone pedestal glowed bright blue as they flowed downwards onto the line, immediately connecting to the next pedestal, waiting for the treasure box above it to be lifted.


    Seeing this, the Komodo''s mouth seemed to be curling into a sneer!


    ROAAARRR!!


    The Komodo bolted forwards with its jaws wide opened, seeming intent to devour Duan Li whole.


    In a single breath, the leap it performed had covered the whole distance between them and was just a few metres in front of Duan Li, when the latter performed the movement skill art.


    ''One Step To Reach!''


    Whoosshh!


    Duan Li abruptly vanished on the spot as the Komodo snapped onto an empty air.


    Whooshhh!


    Turning around, the Komodo saw Duan Li reappearing onto the next pedestal as the latter lifted off another treasure boxes.


    Two lifted, 79 more to go!


    ROAAARRRR!!


    The Komodo was enraged by now, for the other party to not care one bit about its existence, courting Death!


    It leaped forward even more furiously and this time, Duan Li didn''t had the luxury of fixing his gaze onto the correct spot as he vanished and reappeared away from the correct stone pedestal.


    Swiftly injecting his spiritual Qi into the runic inscription at the bottom of the treasure boxes, their lids both opened as two identical pills were formed.


    Swallow!


    Without wasting any more time, Duan Li swallowed both of the pills. Then, with a thought, he quickly willed for both of the treasure boxes to morph into two, long javelin spears!


    Woongg!!


    Righr at this moment, Duan Li could feel that he could control the movements of these two long javelin spears that was floating above him with a single thought!


    "What spiritual Qi control!" commented the sword in astonishment.


    Pshewww!


    Pshewww!


    Duan Li launched both of the long javelin spears onto the Komodo.


    Peng! Peng!


    Both of the spears ricochet off from its body as the Komodo grinned as if saying, "Foolish human, your insignificant toys wouldn''t be able to scratch me!"


    Feeling a little bit annoyed with the attitude of the Komodo, Duan Li willed for the sword to form in his right hand as he quickly executed a skill art.


    ''Nine Swordplays Thunder strike!''


    Pshew!


    A single stroke of Duan Li''s sword had created a flash of thunder that quickly bolted off onto the body of the Komodo.


    Pooff!


    However, the same thing happened as that stroke of thunder were being repulsed off by the scales. The Komodo could feel a slight tingling sensation from that thunder strike, but that was all there is to it.


    Seeming to mock at Duan Li, the Komodo rolled on the ground as if laughing at him, "HAHAHAHAHA!"


    "This infidel creature! How dare it act so brazenly in front of--" just as the sword was about to let off some curse words onto the other party, Duan Li had quickly swung him around nine more times!


    ''Nine Swordplays Thunder Strike!''


    Psheww!! Psheww!!


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    Bam!! Bam!! Bam!!


    ''Nine Palm Slapping Oceans!''


    Pah! Pah! Pah!


    With a single breath, Duan Li had deployed all three of the Nine Legends edition skill arts instantaneously. His right hand performing the sword arts while his left hand performed both of the fist and palm arts!


    Padah! Pa!!


    Padah! Pa!!


    Caught off-guard, the Komodo that was rolling on the ground got slapped and thrown left and right as it was then blown-off into the distance like a dirty ragdoll.


    Holy-moly!


    The Young master was finally incensed!


    You are definitely going to die for this little lizard!


    ...

 60 Chapter 59: The Final Boss 2

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    Crash!


    The Komodo landed at the far ends of the chamber as it crashed against the wall.


    "Annoying monster..." snorted Duan Li as he moved onto a another stone pedestal.


    Whooshh!


    Grab! Inject Qi! Open! Swallow pill! Morph!


    Duan Li was able to repeat these process for a total of 3 times before the Komodo stood up. Standing a little bit unsteadily, it turned its head to look at Duan Li with an enraged expression.


    "Ant! You have some capabilities, I''ll give you that!" it somewhat said, although no one could understood it.


    Fuming in rage, the glowing hot red pattern between its scale exudes out vaporized steam. When Duan Li saw this, his instinct kicked in as he summoned all five long javellin spear above him to prepare for a counter-attack.


    Whoosh!


    However, with a single leap, the Komodo that was far away had immediately closed the distance between them with its claws ready to slash at Duan Li in a split second before the latter could even prepare himself.


    Rriingggg!


    "This Komodo! Its speed had actually increases so much so that it had become a threat to automatically activate my time-slowing down ability!" said Duan Li to himself as his countenance turned grim.


    That claw was already half-way to slash at his body, and it seems that without the activation of this ability, even if Duan Li were to use the movement skill art ''One Step To Reach'', he would not be able to escape unharmed!


    "I should make use of this advantage! My speed in this state would be lethal if I follow up with a counter strike!"


    ''Nine Swordplays Thunder Strike!''


    At this moment, Duan Li had activated the sword art once more. But instead of releasing the thunder strike, he reined it in onto the sword to slash through at that incoming claws from the left arm of the Komodo.


    Psshh!


    The sword was able to slice through the left arm cleanly due to the extreme speed Duan Li was waving his sword with. After that, he quickly moved away using the movement art before time returned to normal.


    Whooshh!


    Duan Li''s silhouette reappeared in the distance with his back facing towards theKomodo.


    "ROAARRR!!" the Komodo howled out in agonized pain with his whole body plagued by electric shocks that entered through its severed limb.


    My left arm! DAMN IT!


    The Komodo turned around to look at Duan Li with more caution as it couldn''t help but to palpitate in fear against the speed that Duan Li had just executed on him.


    To think that a mere human only at the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm could severed one of its limb, now THAT was something that it had not expected before!


    "This human! How did he propelled with such a speed at that realm?! Urghh! My severed left arm had already reduced my overall speed considerably, but with these constant electric shocks coursing through my veins from time to time, my speed had diminished even further! Damn it all!"


    With his back still facing at the Komodo, Duan Li turned his head to look at it with a side glance. As the place where he was right now was quite dark, only the rough outline of his expression could be seen as his lips moved.


    "Don''t get ahead of yourself now."


    Hisss!!


    The Komodo''s survival instinct kicked in as he heard this sentence and instinctively leaped back. He didn''t know why, but that human right now looked ever so terrifying that every cells in his body was telling it to escape and run away.


    However, being binded onto this place left it with no way out. Thus, the Komodo could only grit its teeth tight as it suppressed his instinct.


    "I need to move more carefully right now and use long distance attacks instead of close combat, his speed was too abnormal during that last moment... And that disposition of his... where have I felt it before?" thought the Komodo.


    Just as it was trying to recall its memories, Duan Li disappeared and reappeared onto another stone pedestal.


    "Damn it! I musn''t let him complete the puzzle!"


    The Komodo''s throat bulged out and expanded rapidly as it immediately spits out a ball of molten lava towards Duan Li.


    Seeing the incoming attack, Duan Li executed the palm art to slap it away.


    "HAHAHA! Insignificant tricks you puny lizard!" laughed the sword out loud. Inwardly though, he still couldn''t help but to be astonished by the speed Duan Li had swung him at that moment.


    Before he could even realize, he only felt as if a sudden breeze had blown against him. When he then looked at the surrounding, he found out that his young master had already severed the limb of that Komodo!


    Whoosh!


    Whoosh!


    ...


    After a while, Duan Li had already managed to obtain around 50 of the treasure boxes and had activated them all. Thus right now, there were around 50 long javellin spear floating above him aiming at the Komodo.


    Whenever the Komodo would try to move, those floating spears would strike at it all at once. They had even started to aim at its eyes and severed limb!


    Therefore, the Komodo didn''t have any choice but to continue launching its molten lawa spit onto Duan Li from the distance which was quite useless.


    Furthermore, sometimes, the palm art would slap at it too. Eventhough there was literally little to no damage at all, the force of the slap would sent it tumbling away!


    "This isn''t fair!!" the Komodo howled out in indignance.


    It was tasked by the Mirealithians to guard this chamber and stop anyone from trying to complete the puzzle. Yet, who could have thought that such situation right now would occur?


    The human it was fighting against wasn''t even at the Qi condensation realm! Did the identification system of the Eternal maze became buggy due to the passage of time?


    "Curses! I only had to spend another 10 more years before my binding contract with this maze expires! I refuse to die like this!"


    When the molten Komodosaurus recalled the day that he was kidnapped into this maze, he became extremely depressed and dispirited. Originally, he was just a normal monster living in the second region going about his daily business.


    Who would have thought that just as he was about to mate with a female counterpart of his species, an old man suddenly appeared above him and knocked him out cold without even a single sentence!


    After he woke up, he had already found out that he was trapped inside this maze, with the voices from the Mirealithians telling him that he was bounded by a holy contract to guard this place for thirty years!


    Like hell! How could that be considered a holy contract?!


    I wasn''t even conscious when the contract was signed by whatever means or dark arts they used!


    Surely, the contract should have been void! I was forced to sign it under duress!


    The Komodo continued to howled out with a peculiar sound as it lashed foward with many verbal abuses towards the maze and the unknown old man whom had kidnapped him!


    "Young master, check it out! That Komodo had turned to become senile! Perhaps the palm art that Young master uses against it had caused severe concussion to its brain!" commented the sword with a chuckle.


    "Eh? Is that so? Should I turn down the strength of my palm arts by a few notch?" replied Duan Li as he stopped and cupped his chin to ponder regarding this matter.


    He was someone that has always been upright and had never conducted the ways of savagery like the barbarians. Thus, he was thinking whole-heartedly about how to resolve this issue.


    Suddenly, just as Duan Li was thinking along those line, a mechanical voice echoed out throughout the chamber.


    [Anomaly detected inside the chamber. Rescanning the battle prowess of the challenger and recent battle data statistics.]


    [Rescanning complete. The challenger''s battle prowess is similar to those at the early stage of the core formation realm.]


    [Employing emergency counter-measures against the breach of rules.]


    "The maze is scanning at me?" said Duan Li as he suddenly felt the surrounding air to become stifling and heavy.


    Woongg!!


    The ceiling of the chamber glowed brightly as a series of symbols floated together to form a sort of magical arrays.


    Realizing what that was, the sword turned panic as it quickly told Duan Li, "Young master! We need to quickly snatch the treasure boxes! Those are summoning magical arrays! The Mirealithians are going to summon an even stronger monster to replace that lizard!"


    When Duan Li heard this, his countenance became extremely ugly as he quickly deployed his movement skill arts to the maximum.


    Whooshh!


    With a swift and frantic movements, Duan Li had already managed to get ten more boxes, leaving only 21 left before the barrier above that towering pedestal could be lifted. However, it was at this moment that the summoning magical array was completed.


    Wooongggg!!


    The ceiling glowed brightly as a large silhouette could be seen to slowly materializing. This monster seemed to be several times more bigger than the Komodo!


    "That appearance... it cannot be!" the sword exclaimed out, completely horrified.


    RRROOAAAARRRRRR!!


    ...

 61 Chapter 60: The Final Boss 3

    Chapter 60: The Final Boss (3)


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    This! It cannot be!


    BOOM!


    The gigantic creature landed on the ground with a loud ''boom'', causing the whole ground to be cracked open.


    "A greater species! Supreme Salamander!" exclaimed the sword with horrified voice.


    If the Molten Komodosaurus was a one star monster, then this Supreme Salamander was of the two star monster. In other words, a pinnacle stage core formation realm creature!


    "This is overkill! We cannot dream to even beat this thing! Hurry up young master! We must escape from this maze!" shouted the sword as it turned panic.


    Duan Li nodded grimly as he could also make out the extremely dire situation they were in right now. To think that the maze would send in a creature of a 2 star rank against them!


    BAM!


    The Supreme Salamander slapped its long tail onto the Komodo as the latter was pinned to the ground. With a terrified expression, the Komodo closed its eyes as it lost all hope and was about to be devoured whole by the Salamander!


    This Salamander was also a monster from the second region and was its natural predator that they had to run away from. But now that it was right in front of the Komodo, the latter naturally could only resign to its pitiful fate.


    After all, in this place and in such a state it was in right now, even if his binding with the maze has been nulled, how could it even run away?


    Damn it..


    Hais..


    However right now, just as it expected to be eaten alive, the most unpredictable thing happened.


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    The long javellin spears attacked at the Salamander''s eyes as Duan Li threw the palm art with an even greater force behind it towards the Salamander''s tail that had pinned down the Komodo.


    Pah!!


    Taking this opportunity, the Komodo was able to skid away freely from the grasp of the Salamander. The electric shocks within its body was also cancelled by Duan Li as it recovered most of its speed.


    Arriving by the side of Duan Li with a blank look, he could not understand just what was the human beside him was thinking when the latter suddenly spoke out, "Enemy of yesterday could become today''s ally! For the sake of survival, let us cooperate!"


    When the Komodo heard this, it was naturally about to refuse. Being a reptilian creature that possesses a sliver of the dragon bloodline within it, its dignity and pride was unquestionable.


    However, when he gazed towards that deep eye''s of Duan Li. He could not help but to nod. Somehow, there was something about the latter''s disposition that evoked its obedience.


    What was it?


    The Salamander had managed to block Duan Li''s sudden attack by quickly closing its eyelids. Thus, when Duan Li saw this, he couldn''t help but to curse a little, "Damn it! Even its eyelids was that thick?!"


    He quickly gathered back all 60 of the javellin spears to float above him. However, now that he had decided to cooperate with the Komodo, naturally he had to boost its battle prowess as well.


    Clang! Clang! Clang!


    With a thought, Duan Li transformed 30 of the javellin spears into body armours that equipped itself around the body of the Komodo.


    The Komodo was surprised by this supportive gesture of Duan Li as it had not expected for the latter to even provide him with a body armour!


    This gesture of Duan Li commended a trace of respect within the Komodo''s heart as it nodded towards Duan Li.


    Seeing this, Duan Li smiled in return as he transformed another 10 of the javellin spears into a full suit of body armour for himself as well.


    And then, he willed yet another 10 of the javellin spears to morph and become floating shields around him. With a single thought of his, these shields would be able to block any incoming attack from the Salamander, or so he hoped.


    The Salamander right now was still gauging its entire surrounding as it was quite surprised to be sent onto another place so suddenly.


    However, it didn''t took long for the Salamander to completely lose interest in its new surrounding and locked its focus onto Duan Li that had dared to initiate an attack against him!


    As a proud creature of the 2 star rank, how could it endure to be assaulted by a mere human at the Foundation establishment realm?


    Thus, lifting its right arm, theSalamander slashed its claws towards the front, creating streams of four arcs slicing through the air, as they flew towards Duan Li with extreme speeds and lethality behind them!


    Peng! Peng! Peng! Peng!


    It was fortunate that Duan Li had formed the shields earlier on. Otherwise, he would definitely have to take some damage!


    "A skill art? The Salamander was able to use skill arts?" exclaimed Duan Li in astonishment.


    Seeming amused by the little human figure that was able to block its claw attack, the Salamander slashed repeatedly towards Duan Li as the latter continued to block.


    Although this appeared to look like Duan Li was able to hold his ground, in reality, this was not the case. Because with each block, the shields would use a substantial amount of Duan Li''s spiritual Qi to diffuse away the damages!


    Not to mention, the Salamander did not seemed to intent on taking them seriously!


    "This can''t go on! I need to finish the maze!" turning his head towards the Komodo, Duan Li spoke out "Go and distract him away from me! I will need to finish the puzzle so we can escape from this maze!"


    The Komodo nodded its head as its eyes gleamed with seriousness, "Its either die trying, or die regretting!". Its throat then bulged out to spit the molten lava at the Salamander.


    Bam!


    This attack caused the Salamander to stop its claw assault on Duan Li as its focus shifted onto the Komodo and attacked the latter instead.


    "Damned food! You dare to rebel against me?! DIE!!"


    Psheww! Psheww!


    ...


    With Duan Li free from the barrage of assault, he quickly breathed in to replenish his spiritual Qi reserves as he constantly vanishes and reappears onto the remaining stone pedestal to snatch the treasure boxes away.


    Noticing this peculiar situation, the Salamander could naturally predict that something was amiss. Eventhough it didn''t know what the human in front of it was planning along with the Komodo, the Salamander knew that it should stop Duan Li from succeeding whatever it was he was trying to do.


    ''Skill art: Supreme Salamander''s Flame!''


    The Salamander sweep out blazes of streaming hot flames from its mouth towards the Komodo and Duan Li. With the material they were using as protection has an extreme weakness against fire, their spiritual Qi quickly plummeted.


    ''Skill art: Salamander''s Lava Field!''


    BOOM!


    The ground began to burn up like crazy as they turned to glow hot red as if standing atop of lava. Furthermore, the surrounding air began to heats up considerably to a scalding temperature level that could burn up the human body to a second degree burn with prolonged exposure to it.


    Left with no other choice, Duan Li had to float in the air as the ground was burning his feet. Eventhough the air was also hot, his physical body could handle it for awhile, but he had to stop breathing or else his internal organs will be cooked!


    Unable to either absorb spiritual Qi nor breath, the situation right now could be considered to be extremely precarious!


    Just as the situation was turning to become worse, the Komodo shook off the armours it was using. This was because its body could withstand such heat as it was part of its natural traits.


    However, with the armours gone, the Komodo was now exposed to physical damage. Thus, the Salamander quickly took this opportunity and uses its skill arts to claw at the latter continuously, as if playing around with its food.


    ROAARR!!


    The Komodo began to become injured with the torrential assault from the Salamander.


    Witnessing this scene, the pressure building upon Duan Li caused his state of self to slowly degrade away.


    "No! No! What should I do? Damn it!!"


    Right now, Duan Li was struck by multiple emotions - fear, anxiousness, panic,desperation and... anger! With all these emotions bubbling up within him, slowly, his memories began to reel in towards the moment where he had witnessed the fall of the Jiu empire, the corpses of his friends and the death of his mother.


    "This weakness! I will not let.. such a thing.. such a scene! To happen ever again!"


    Duan Li''s face slowly contorted to become extremely hideous as blood dripped down from his palm from clenching his fist too tightly that the nails began to puncture through the skin.


    "NEVER.AGAIN!!"


    "ARRRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"


    Duan Li howled out with an extremely tyrannical hoarse voice that immediately attracted both the attention of the Salamander and the Komodo as the former stopped its attacks on the latter.


    "Dangerous!" the Salamander leaped backwards with utmost apprehension as its instinct roared out that a premonition of death was looming over the whole area right now.


    Duan Li''s aura continued to become sharper and deadlier, as he eventually radiated out streams of dark gold and crimson aura entangling between each other. On the middle of his chest, both the golden and the red mysterious pearl had glowed brightly.


    "Y-young master! What happened to you?!" exclaimed the sword as it palpitated in fear. Even the little cub was shivering, feeling extremely scared.


    Right now, Duan Li''s consciousness had ignored all sorts of logical reasoning as he began to churn out and cycle his spiritual Qi with extreme speeds even surpassing during the time when he had fought the Earthly golem!


    Bzztt.. Bzztt... BAZZTTTTTTT!!


    The thunder essence that laid dormant within Duan Li began to activate at this moment. Duan Li''s whole body was now shrouded with blue sparks all over, as his hair rose upwards like the peaks of Mountain Tai and his pupils turned golden!


    ...


    Above the clouds of region one, within the humble abode of the Guardian, a ''crash'' sound could be heard as the old man dropped his cup of tea that he was enjoying leisurely before onto the floor and stood up suddenly.


    "What.. this feeling?! The spiritual Qi fluctuations of the whole environment was being pulled in forcefully..." the face of the old man turned grim as he used his heavenly sense to trace the origin of this cause.


    When he had finally found the source, his eyes turned wide as he couldn''t help but to be surprised and his little heart jolted in apprehension.


    "Its the location of the third maze! Damn it! What the hell is that brat doing again right now!"


    Whooshh!


    ...


    Somewhere within the area of the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake..


    "Eh? The thunders within me.. are agitated?" said the mother wolf as it turned its head towards the direction of the first region.


    "Its that human... has something happened?"


    ...

 62 Chapter 61: The barrier was lifted!

    "This.. what an inconceivable amount of aura and density!" commented the sword.


    For any cultivator that was trained in the way of a martial artists, whenever they prepared themselves to fight seriously, the fluctuations caused by the cycles of their spiritual Qi inside their meridians and pathways would radiated out an ''aura''.


    The faster the cycle, the more sharper the aura would be. However, the quality of one''s aura wasn''t just judged based on their cycles alone, but the amount of spiritual Qi that they were able to cycle per breath.


    This means that, a person with a faster cycle doesn''t necessarily mean that they were stronger than a person with a slower cycle as the latter might have an even denser spiritual Qi.


    However, a person who possesses both, their might and battle prowess would be unquestionable!


    Therefore, with Duan Li right now that was radiating these insane amount of aura, he could be said to possess both of them, at an even extreme levels!


    "D-Damn it! I''m gonna get killed! How did a human at the Foundation establishment realm possesses such a torrential amount of aura?!" exclaimed the Salamander with a terrified expression.


    At this moment, the entirety of Duan Li''s disposition had took a starking change compared to his previous demeanor. The amount of power coursing within him, the blue sparks flashing around his body ever so slightly, combined with that golden pupils of him that gazed downward towards the Salamander as if in disdain, with his hair that rose up like the peaks of mountain Tai, and the wild aura dancing around Duan Li right now, it was as if an inviolable deity had descended down to pass judgement onto them!


    Duan Li rose his arm as he pointed his index finger forward.


    ''One Finger Starlight Slash!''


    BZZZTTTTTT!


    In a single move, the Salamander was cut into half, along with the ground and ceiling. The penetration power of this ultimate move of Duan Li had even sliced the cave into half that it escaped out and was seen by the Guardian.


    "What a skill art! Such condensed spiritual Qi and skillful execution! It looked simple at a glance, but even if it were me, there is no way I am able to replicate such a skill without suffering some serious drawbacks!" exclaimed the old man with astonishment as he looked at that slowly dissipating beam that had penetrated out from the cave.


    Just what has happened inside there that forces the brat to use such a serious move?


    If only the Guardian were able to enter the maze, he would have already barged in to see what was happening. But alas, there were restrictions in place that made Guardians unable to intrude and enter the maze.


    ...


    Within the cave...


    Duan Li was breathing heavily right now as his face turned pale white like a sheet of paper. Unable to exert anymore spiritual Qi, he quickly plummeted from the air and almost crashed into the ground when the Komodo caught him with its tail.


    "Damned little lizard! Now that Young master has exhausted himself, You are planning to make a move now? Over my dead body!" the sword barked out as it brandished itself to fight at the Komodo to the death!


    The Komodo quickly shook its head in reply to the sword, as if saying "No! No! You misunderstood! I''m not planning to fight him any longer!"


    "Humph! That had better be the case! Don''t you look down on me now, If I ever get serious, even the whole Eternal maze will cease to exist!" said the sword as if it understood what the Komodo was trying to say.


    The Komodo laid down Duan Li gently on the ground as the latter bleeded from all of his orifices and seven apertures.


    The sword extended out its will and realized that all of Duan Li''s meridians and pathways has totally ruptured. The severity of the damage was even worse than back when they fought the Earthly golem!


    Without wasting anymore time, the sword uncorked the grade six elixir and forced feed Duan Li whom was about to fall unconscious.


    After a few breaths of time, although the severity was alleviated slightly, some significant damages was still apparent inside him.


    To make matter worse, blood had even contaminated some of the pathways which forced Duan Li to shut them off and redirected his Qi through other channels.


    It took him quite a while for colors to return to his face.


    "The grade 6 elixir is still trying to heal your internal injuries young master. However, due to your previous consumption of the grade 5 elixir, the effects are quite slow right now. Furthermore, since some of your pathways has been contaminated, unless you find a doctor that can flush them away, you won''t be able to exert your full strength!" explained the sword.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded in relief as the resulting effects were not that severe than what he had expected. Previously, he was too affected with his emotions that he disregarded the consequences of using his ultimate skill with an incomplete method.


    Although the skill was successfully executed albeit with severe damages as the side-effect, the total prowess was not even 10 percent of what it could actually do!


    Forcing himself to sat cross-legged, he breathed in the remaining spiritual Qi around his surrounding as his reserves were at the critical level. However, he could only manage to absorb 10 percent before he emptied them out into his three dantian.


    Duan Li tried to stood up but the pain was unbearable for him. He needed to complete the puzzle before the maze decided to send them another surprise.


    "Young master, let me help you!" said the sword as it conjured out a layer of spiritual Qi that wrapped around Duan Li to float him up into the air.


    "There are ten more treasure boxes, move me to the remaining stone pedestals." told Duan Li with a weak voice.


    Everytime he tried to move any of his limbs, unbearable pain would bite at him, as if bitten by a thousand crazed ants. Thus, he only extended his arm to activate the ten remaining treasure boxes.


    Soon, after the remaining treasure boxes was gathered according to their correct sequence, the chamber vibrated as the barrier around the towering stone pedestal finally dissipated.


    Woonggg!


    Squinting his eyes, Duan Li could make out that atop of the towering stone pedestal, stood a scroll that was golden in colour!


    "What.. is that?"


    With the help from the sword, Duan Li was able to ascend the steps slowly. As he reached at the top, the sword exclaimed in shock, "This... to think that it would be an impartation scroll! Not only that, its made up from a high quality material too! Such a scroll was extremely rare, even across the many worlds!"


    "An.. impartation scroll? What is that?" this was the first time he had heard of it. Not even in his memories that he could remember hearing such name from rumors or even books.


    "An impartation scroll was something that was very difficult to make! It exists to store numerous information and archives that was usually passed down after a sect had existed for a minimum of one hundred thousand years!" explained the sword in agitation.


    "Furthermore, they could also be used to store tens if not hundreds of skill arts! And the most terrifying thing about an impartation scroll is, the moment you inject your spiritual Qi onto them, these information will go straight into your brain! Hurry young master!" the sword continued as it urged.


    Hearing this, Duan Li could not help but to be astonished.


    This impartation scroll was so formidable?


    Wasting no more time, he extended his index finger to touch onto the scroll and injected his spiritual Qi into it.


    Boom!


    With a sudden flash, a single skill art appeared immediately inside Duan Li''s mind. The feeling was so mysterious, it was as if he had known about this skill all along and practiced it for a very, very long time!


    Unable to contain his curiousity, the sword asked out impatiently, "Young master, so what did you get?"


    "Hmm.. just a single skill art..." replied Duan Li as he creased his brows.


    A single skill art?


    Pu!


    The sword choked on himself in a fit of rage!


    A high quality impartation scroll was used only to store a single skill art?


    Who was the one that was so wasteful?


    Let this daddy slice you up into a shish-kebab!


    "But.. this skill art felt so mysterious.. it''s called the ''Tetra Unsealing'' skill art.." continued Duan Li.


    "Tetra Unsealing? I''ve never heard of such a skill art! Can young master use it?" asked the sword.


    Duan Li nodded as he willed with his mind to activate the skill art.


    ''Tetra Unsealing!''


    Woonggg!


    Within Duan Li''s vision, the whole world seemed to flash in green as his gaze turned into a daze.


    "Young-master?" the sword spoke out as Duan Li stood blankly like a scarecrow in the middle of the rice field.


    Holy-Moly!


    What is up with my vision?!


    ...

 63 Chapter 62: One heaven-defying abilities after another!

    Chapter 62: One heaven-defying abilities after another!


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    ####################


    Holy-moly!


    What happened to my vision?!


    When Duan Li activated the skill art Tetra Unsealing, his vision flashed bright green before the whole world around him turned into a series of grid lines!


    Not only that, his vision has extended far outside the chamber and could see clearly within a radius of 500 metres around him!


    "This... it''s Soul sense!" exclaimed Duan Li in shock.


    After all, he had once ascended all the way to the first shackle. Thus, this ability was ever so familiar with him, the Soul Sense!


    [Congratulations to challenger. You are awarded with the Tetra Unsealing ability that is an upgraded version of the Soul sense!]


    [This ability will allow you to see far and beyond similar to the Soul sense ability of a Nascent soul realm without the unnecessary clutter and can be filtered out with a single thought.]


    [With increasing realm, the ability will become more powerful and there are chances for it to evolve.]


    [Version one of the Tetra Unsealing ability will have the following function: Identify.]


    [Identify ability could be used on any object or person. This ability can list out the details, history, realms, battle prowess and many more. However, this ability depended on internal database and as such is limited.]


    Hearing the voices of the mechanical Mirealithians speaking inside him, Duan Li almost felt a headache with their monotone way of speaking.


    However now, he was able to make out what this new ability of his, the Tetra Unsealing was all about!


    "Seems like this would be quite the handy ability to have!" said Duan Li with excitement.


    When he focused his gaze onto the Komodo, the voices of the Mirealithians spoke once more inside his head.


    [Molten Komodosaurus - Creature from the Second region of the Eternal maze dimension - Stronger than host - The current status is mildly injured - 85% chance of winning in battle]


    "Oh? This is awesome! Such information before a battle would be quite the game changer and would allow me to prepare properly!" exclaimed Duan Li in surprise.


    "Young master? Hello?!" shouted the sword beside him after calling out to Duan Li several times.


    "Eh? Ahhhh sorry! I was preoccupied with this new ability! Its actually an upgraded version of the Soul sense with a sort of like a helper function from the Mirealithians to detail out the object of my focus!" explained Duan Li.


    "Ohh? How peculiar! But the Mirealithians was always a species that is full of enigma for me. They loved to invent stuff that I can''t explain and some could just perform miracles out of thin air!" said the sword as it recalled its previous experience with the Mirealithians back in the past.


    "Is that so? They sounded like an advance race more than humans! If I could have the chance to meet them one day, that would be great!" Duan Li was so excited that he quickly forgot all the pains inside his body at the moment.


    Approaching the Komodo with the help of the sword, Duan Li handed out a grade 3 elixir. "Here, you should be able to recover some of your wounds with this elixir!"


    The Komodo then uses its long tongue to fetch and uncorked the elixir as he gulped its content.


    Gulu! Gulu!


    The numerous wounds on its body then began to heal at a visible rate, leaving only the severed arm that would took perhaps a healer or a higher graded elixir to regenarate its lost limb.


    "Thank you human. Although we were enemies for a short while, it was out of duty for me to do so. Now that you have solved the puzzle and lifted the barrier, naturally my task here was done." said the Komodo even though it knew that the human in front of him wouldn''t understand.


    However, to its surprise, Duan Li''s mouth was agaped for a while before he spoke out, "I.. I could understand what you are saying now!"


    Hearing this, the Komodo was shocked in disbelief! The natural convention was always that they could understand the human language since birth. Humans on the other hand, could only understand them if they studied their language.


    Eventhough the Komodo didn''t know why mother nature created them as such, but this rule seems to affect every other living creatures - They could understand the humans, but the humans couldn''t understand them!


    So how, did a human who seemed to not be able to understood him before, suddenly gained the ability to do so?


    Noticing the peculiar look on the Komodo, Duan Li explained out that it was probably due to the Tetra Unsealing that could somehow immediately translate their language to be understood by him.


    In reality, Duan Li wasn''t actually really sure if this was the case. However, no matter what, this ability was quite useful! Thus, Duan Li didn''t ponder too much on it.


    It was only after the Komodo heard this explanation that it nodded. "En I see! The Mirealithians has such a terrifying means to understand the language of creatures!"


    Duan Li chuckled a little bit at that dazed look of the Komodo. "So now, what are you going to do? Will you stay here?" asked Duan Li.


    "No. I will try to find my way back to the second region, that is where my home truly is!" replied the Komodo with excitement as it has been trapped inside this accursed chamber for 20 years after being kidnapped!


    "I see! Until next time then!"


    The Komodo nodded its head as it slithered towards the exit with anticipation in its eyes.


    "Finally! I''m free!" it said to itself.


    However, the sad reality quickly slammed him on the head.


    BANG!


    A barrier appeared as it knocked the Komodo away, tumbling it onto the ground.


    "No! No! No! This is impossible! Why can''t I get out? The binding contract should have been settled the moment the puzzle was completed! Why?!" the Komodo howled out with extreme indignance asthe final hope it had, shattered like a broken mirror being smashed onto the ground viciously.


    Duan Li whom witnessed this scene could feel the emotion running amok through the Komodo right now. He shook his head as he sighed in lamentation.


    But then, a sudden thought struck at him as he asked the sword that was beside him. "Little sword, is it possible to store living things inside my spatial ring?"


    "Eh? Well usually, it would definitely not work out. With a normal spatial ring, it could only store inanimate object inside it. However, to store living organism, I guess trying, shouldn''t be an issue since it would just fail if it doesn''t work and wouldn''t kill them." explained the sword as it contemplated for awhile.


    Hearing this answer, it was like what Duan Li had thought. Even back then when he had a high quality spatial ring, he could also not store any living things inside. But, with the enhancement from the mysterious pearl, there might still be some hope left for the Komodo!


    Duan Li approached the Komodo once more as he explained out. Deciding to try the method, Duan Li willed for the spatial ring to store the Komodo inside it.


    Whoooshh!


    "HAHA! It worked!" shouted Duan Li in excitement! This would mean that he had another heaven-defying ability!


    Suppressing the joy within him, he remembered something as he asked the sword, "Little sword, bring me the monster core of the Salamander if it was still intact!"


    "Roger that young master!" the sword shot forward with haste. After a short while, the sword brought back on what seems to be a giant monster core of 1 metre in diameter!


    "This is even bigger than the core of the Earthly golem!" without wasting anymore time, Duan Li sat down cross-legged and cultivated the monster core.


    Woonggg!


    The monster core of Salamander was of the fire attribute. Thus, after being cultivated by Duan Li, it merged together with the fire attributed monster core inside his dantian that he got from the Unenlagias.


    Wooongg!


    The resulting combination of the two of them was an egg-like shape monster core, similar to the Earth attribute monster core, before it cracked open to reveal a little worm that called itself the Earth dragon, Dilong of the Earth Origin spirit!


    Waiting nervously, Duan Li could finally see cobwebs-like lines slowly appearing on the egg.


    "Its finally happening!" said Duan Li in agitation.


    Crack!


    With the shells finally cracked open, a blinding flash of light emerged from it, revealing a small silhouette that looks quite familiar to Duan Li as his mouth opened wide.


    He had seen this thing many times before in the Xuan village!


    Not to mention, he even had the occasionof chopping their heads off several times to cook for dinner!


    This!


    "A chicken?" said Duan Li with both his eyebrows and lips twitching.


    Seeming to heard what Duan Li had just called him, the ''chicken'' quickly responded with a displeased tone.


    "Master, I am not a chicken! I am the Fire Origin Spirit, Zhulong the Fire dragon!" the chicken said as it puffed its chest with a haughty style.


    Hearing this, Duan Li didn''t know what to make out from this situation anymore as he just shook his head and sighed helplessly.


    "It appears that even all the mighty dragons from the legends has such a humble beginnings..." said Duan Li.


    Nodding his head, Duan Li made a small talk with Zhulong before he introduced it to Dilong. He then retracted his consciousness to leave them with their conversations.


    Duan Li opened his eyes as his brows creased together.


    "Hey little sword, I''ve managed to complete the puzzle, yet we are still here, was there something else that we missed?" asked Duan Li.


    "This had me confused as well Young master! Let me have a look around. Little dog, come with me!" beckoned the sword towards the cub.


    "Arrrff! Arrff!" the cub leaped on top of the sword as they bolted forward to look around the chamber.


    "Hmm.. perhaps I should use my new ability to scan around since I''m currently still injured.." said Duan Li as he cupped his chin.


    ''Tetra Unsealing activate!''


    Woongg!


    Duan Li''s vision flashed green before all sorts of unnecessary details were filtered out and replaced by grid lines instead.


    As he scanned through every nook and cranny of the chamber, he turned towards the towering stone pedestal before he could see something inside it!


    "What is that?"


    ...

 64 Chapter 63: Return to the Academy!

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    ####################


    What is that?


    "Little sword, come back here! Help me to go up to the stone pedestal!" Duan Li called out as he continued to observe that peculiar object within the stone pedestal.


    The sword came back as it wrapped up Duan Li with its Qi and they slowly went up the towering stone pedestal. "Young master, did you find something?" asked the sword.


    "En! It seems that there was something under this thing!" replied Duan Li as they arrived at the top. Activating his Tetra Unsealing ability, he tried to focus on what the object was before a mechanical voice spoke out within him.


    [Unable to identify. Object needs to be seen physically by the host]


    "Hmm.. it seems that this ability is not as omnipotent as I thought... How do I get the object under this stone pedestal..." Duan Li fiddled around the stone pedestal before he saw a runic inscription behind it.


    [Identifying complete. The runic inscription is of Mirealithian origin and is responsible to activate a lot of hidden mechanism.]


    [According to the database, this runic inscription will require blood to activate it.]


    Blood?


    Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated for awhile. He then used his index finger to slid at his bloody uniform and pressed it onto the runic inscription.


    Woonggg!!


    The runic inscription lit up with bright red colour as if using Duan Li''s blood as a sort of catalyst.


    Tink! Tink! Tink!


    A series of metal chain sounds grinding against each other could be heard as the stone pedestal slowly opened up like a blossoming flower to unravel the object within it.


    Wooonggg!!


    When Duan Li saw this object, he couldn''t help but to be mesmerized.


    This was because this object was a golden longbow with an intricate design as well as many character in a mysterious language written on it!


    "A longbow? This thing seems to be quite familiar! Where have I seen it..." commented the sword as it tried to recall something from his memories.


    [Identifying complete. This bow is of the Mirealithian origin, used by the first Ancestor, Auriel. It is therefore called theAuriel''s Legacy Bow and was passed down between chieftains of the Mirealithian race as a national tradition.]


    [The Auriel''s Legacy Bow has the distinctive homing ability and uses spiritual Qi of its host to summon the projectiles. Its total combative ability depended on the battle prowess of its host.]


    Eh? Its an item used in a traditional culture of the Mirealithians?


    "My identifying ability told me that this bow is called the Auriel''s Legacy bow. It appears to have quite a decent ability too..." said Duan Li.


    Hearing the name, the sword seemed to have come into a realization. "The Auriel''s Legacy bow? Now I remember! But why was it here? Isn''t this supposed to be a guarded national treasure of the Mirealithians?" the sword commented as it found this situation to be weird.


    Could something might have happened to the Mirealithians for them to leave their most sacred national treasure in this Eternal maze?


    Before they could contemplate any further, the mechanical voice of the Mirealithians echoed throughout the chamber.


    [The puzzle has been unraveled and completed. Prepare to be teleported out in 10 breaths of time.]


    Hearing this notification, Duan Li quickly willed for the javellin spears, shields and armours laying on the ground to return back to their cubic states to be absorbed into his spatial ring along with the little cub. The sword also shrunk back to become an earring on his right earlobe, dangling freely with the shape of a small sword.


    [3... 2... 1... Teleport!]


    Wooonggg!!


    ...


    Outside the Eternal maze, the red temple gate was vibrating before a series of runic symbols flashed on it.


    Woonggg!!


    "Oh? It seems that Duan Li is finally back. Let us see how he fares." said the Principal as he chuckled out with his hands clasped behind his back.


    They had been frequently going to the entrance several times now every few hours, and didn''t expect for Duan Li to finish last instead of Xiahou Yu.


    In their opinion, since Duan Li was so overpowered for someone of his realm, the maze would naturally be a cakewalk for him.


    However, after Duan Li was materialized, their eyes couldn''t be anymore wider and mouth agaped as the shock ran through their brains, horrified.


    This was because Duan Li had came out with his body riddled with blood and his face pale!


    As he had finally escaped the maze, the feeling of being relieved causes his adrenaline level to decline significantly. Thus, the amount of pain that was suppressed in his body before, was let out in full at this moment!


    Urghhh!


    Spatting out a mouthful of blood, Duan Li found his consciousness to be fading as he collapsed on the floor.


    Thud!


    Wang Guozhi, Ling Yu and the Principal rushed forward to get him. With their soul sense, it didn''t took them long to found out how grievous his injuries were.


    "Damn it boy! What happened in there for you to be in this wretched state?!" exclaimed Wang Guozhi as his face turned grim.


    "We needed to treat his injuries quickly! Let''s move him to the infirmary!" Ling Yu said with haste.


    Since the situation was dire, the Principal nodded as he quickly activated the teleportation ability to return to the surface of the academy.


    Wooongg!


    ...


    Inside the infirmary...


    "Urghhh!"


    Duan Li slowly opened his eyes as he tried to move his limbs.


    "Eh? I can''t move?" when he felt this, he turned panic as he thought something was wrong before a voice called out to him.


    "Duan Li, you are finally awake!" this tender voice was no stranger to him, as it belonged to Ling Yu.


    "Sister Ling Yu? Where.. where am I? What happened?" said Duan Li slowly. His mind was still messed up and he can''t recall things properly.


    "You were seriously injured when you exitted the Eternal maze! Thus, we brought you in to the infirmary of the academy to treat you." replied Ling Yu slowly as she sighed in relief.


    "It has been two days since you were unconscious and we were getting worried. Thankfully you have awakened now." she continued.


    Two days? I have been out for that long?


    "I see... what happened to Xiahou Yu? Has she exitted the Eternal maze yet?" asked Duan Li as he remembered that Xiahou Yu had also entered the maze before him.


    Ling Yu nodded as she replied, "She is fine and had exitted before you. Although she was injured, its quite superficial. You on the other hand, just what happened for your injuries to be like that?" Ling Yu questioned him back with a frown.


    Duan Li smiled awkwardly as he started to explain his adventure in the Eternal maze from the beginning until the end.


    Hearing his stories, Ling Yu''s expression contorted numerous times as she listened.


    You chased some Ankylosauruses and cut off their tails for their monster cores?


    You met with a little cub of the wolf species called Daelius and saved it from a pack of Velociraptors?


    You met with an extremely beautiful white wolf called Milvia which is the mother of the cub and found out that they were part of the Fenrir species?


    An old man at the immortal ascension realm which was the Guardian of the first region came out to reprimanded you?


    You tempered your physical body at the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake and broke through to the Foundation establishment realm in one go?


    You obtained a legendary sword, hunt a pack of Unenlagias at their nesting grounds, defeated the Earthly golem, confiscated the whole treasury, fought with a giant Komodo and then made friends with it, defeated a Salamander at the Core formation realm, got an ability similar to the soul sense and finally obtained a legendary longbow of the Mirealithians?


    What an adventure!


    Ling Yu was clenching her fist tight in agitation as she listened to the whole stories. Imagining each scene, she couldn''t help but to let out a few gasps every now and then as it was full of actions and encounters that could only be described as heaven-defying!


    "These! I needed to report these to the Principal! These are definitely some fruitful adventures and discoveries, especially that old man whom stood at the peak of the cultivation world of the immortal realm!" she exclaimed as a rush of excitement flowed throughout her whole body.


    She then dashed out of the room leaving Duan Li alone.


    ...


    "She... she just left?" Duan Li''s mouth was agaped as he didn''t expect for Ling Yu to suddenly disappear like a ghost.


    When he looked at his body, he found out that he was fully wrapped with white bandanges like a mummy! In addition, about a dozen of thin needles were poking at several locations of his acupoints.


    However, the strange thing was, there wasn''t any sort of restraining belts on his limbs or whatever to hold him down. Thus, why can''t he move his body?


    Feeling perplexed, he activated the identifying ability and focused onto his own body.


    [Identifying complete. This is the body of the host. Currently, the host is at 70 percent recovery.]


    [Internal injuries detected. Meridians and pathways hemorhagging. Host overall battle prowess are reduced by 60 percent.]


    [Spatial locking ability detected. Host''s body is currently being suppressed with spatial magic. Impossible to break through with brute strength.]


    Listening to this, Duan Li came into a realization.


    "No wonder... the spatial magic must have been casted by the Principal." said Duan Li to himself as he sighed. He felt like he was treated like a prisoner somehow.


    ...

 65 Chapter 64: The treatment 1

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    Tap! Tap!


    The Principal entered the infirmary followed by Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu behind him. Their expression was a little bit off as the Principal quickly asked Duan Li.


    "Duan Li, is what Ling Yu just reported to me true? You encountered one of the Guardian of the Eternal maze who was at the immortal ascension realm?"


    Hearing this question, Duan Li whom was glued onto the bed could only nod his head slowly as he replied, "En! There was no mistaking it because I''ve once achieved the same state and knew of its spiritual Qi fluctuations!"


    "Furthermore, it appears that the cultivation realm doesn''t just stop at immortal ascension realm!" continued Duan Li as he explained the realm beyond the first shackle.


    The trio was shocked as they listened to these realm states known as the ''shackles'' that was even more heaven-defying than the immortal ascension realm that they heard of.


    Within their eyes, an old flame that was previously like the small kindle flame of a candle, suddenly burnt furiously like the hot blazing sun! They found their motivation to cultivate was re-ignited as they realized these new possibilities!


    Duan Li had opened an entirely new horizon for them to achieve!


    "If... If what you said is true, then... the first shackle is actually the first step to true immortality!" said the principal as he clenched his fist tight in agitation.


    Even Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu was equally astonished and excitement filled them. "In your opinion, if you achieved realms beyond the first shackle, will you be able to prevent from what is about to come within 7 years?" asked the principal with a serious expression.


    Duan Li shook his head and replied, "No... But! If everyone were to ascend beyond the first shackle! Then we would have that chance!"


    Duan Li didn''t want to give them false hope with a false statement. The feeling of despair that he got from the sun god, it doesn''t look like he himself alone could stop it.


    Hearing Duan Li''s answer, the principal nodded, feeling very satisfied!


    He now knew that Duan Li was truly destined to fight against the end times. If the latter were to answer otherwise, then even if it were the case, his opinion of him would definitely plummetted to rock-bottom!


    A destined person to fight alone while leaving everyone else in the dust was just sending people to their inevitable curse of eternal damnation!


    Sure, even if they managed to achieve it, would history not repeat? Then, when the same thing happened again, would they have to continue depending on the power of a single person once more?


    Thus, Duan Li''s answer meant that the other party aimed to bring them along the ride and not left them behind instead!


    This was the true definition of what a leader is!


    "Good! Good! Hahahaha! Then we shall strive to ascend beyond the first shackle together!" the principal laughed out loud before he continued, "But how are we going to achieve this within 7 years? We would need tremendous amount of resources that would be unimaginable to supply, even for the Jiu empire!"


    "About this... I have a rough idea of where to start!" replied Duan Li with a confident look.


    "But first for a start... could principal please remove your spatial magic on me?" Duan Li smiled awkwardly.


    Oh!


    The situation suddenly dawned onto them as they looked at the state at which Duan Li was currently.


    Pu!


    Hahahahahahaha!


    They all laughed out loud seeing how comical the entire situation was, looking all serious and pumped up to ascend beyond the first shackle when their ''hope'' in front of them was locked to the bed, mummified with several needles poking at the other party''s acupoints as if being experimented with.


    After suppressing themselves hard to not laugh any further, the principal was the first to spoke out again to explain.


    "Duan Li, you can''t move yet! Right now, a lot of your meridians and pathways had ruptured and was contaminated with your blood. These needles on your acupoints serves to contain these contaminations before the chief doctor from the imperial palace could arrive to treat you further!"


    Chief doctor from the imperial palace?


    A sudden thought struck at him as he quickly asked the principal, "If I remembered correctly, the Chief doctor was also a master in the arts of concoction other than the arts of medicine right?"


    "En! That''s right! In the whole Jiu empire, the Chief doctor, Ju Zhianhu is well-known for his mastery in concoction arts besides his doctor occupation!" answered Ling Yu by the side.


    Awesome!


    Duan Li''s eye sparkled. He couldn''t wait to learn the arts of concoction so that he could make all sorts of pills and elixirs!


    The trio then conversed with Duan Li including the retelling of his adventure back to the principal and Wang Guozhi. When they listened, they couldn''t help but to feel their blood boil with excitement!


    As both martial artists and cultivators, they all dreamed of such an adventure that could make their adrenaline pump in the heat of danger!


    Because with danger, comes great rewards!


    This iron law is truest to its extent, and Duan Li''s adventure was just part of the evidence for that!


    They were also quite shocked to learn of Duan Li''s realm that have reached all the way to the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm in just a single day at the Eternal maze!


    Such cultivation speed was out of this world and could only be described as beyond heaven-defying!


    If he was left minding his own business for a year over there, would Duan Li had already become the heavens itself?


    They chuckled to themselves when they thought along those lines, it would perhaps be possible if it was this fella!


    ...


    "By the way boy, you had also told us that you obtained a legendary sword? Can we have a look?" asked Wang Guozhi as he was someone that was very fond of weapons.


    Nodding his head, Duan Li willed for the sword to reveal itself.


    Clink!


    Duan Li''s earring began to detached from his right earlobe as it expanded out to its original size.


    Wonggg!!


    "Hello, I am the sword of the Young master!" greeted the sword with a simple, single sentence.


    Duan Li sweat for a bit as he listened to the sword greeting them with such an attitude.


    This sword had the personality to look down on every single thing in the world with disdain other than Duan Li whom it was scared of for some reason. Thus, when the trio heard its greetings, being experienced, they naturally knew what that eye signal of Duan Li meant.


    Fortunately, the sword doesn''t appeared to be too overbearing perhaps due to being near with Duan Li. Otherwise, with its savage mouth, it would be hard to say what could have happened next.


    ...


    After a while...


    Duan Li requested for Wang Guozhi to help him borrow a few books from the library. This was because according to the principal, the Chief doctor would only arrive three days later due to his busy schedule and Duan Li himself was already out of danger. Thus, there was no emergency to this and Duan Li only had to continue and lie down to wait.


    Therefore, rather than wasting his time just laying around to eventually be bored to death, he could make use of the time to learn some stuff.


    Although Wang Guozhi was shocked with the amount of books Duan Li requested for him to borrow from the library, in the end, they were still delivered to him in batches every few hours.


    The range of books that Duan Li was currently reading, were mainly in the field of concoction arts, related to ingredients such as herbs, plants and other materials from the body parts of numerous creatures.


    It took him one whole day to completely memorize several books that could be combined together to form more than 20 thousand worth of pages!


    As of now, Duan Li could perfectly identify all sorts of herbs, plants and more without needing the Identify ability of the Tetra Unsealing to do such a menial tasks for him.


    Furthermore, these also helped with his cognitive and critical thinking speed, thus he could only be said to gain immense benefit from it with zero losses.


    Duan Li was doing all these so that it could increase his chance to be accepted as the direct disciple of the Chief doctor later on.


    After all, who wouldn''t want to nurture a genius? Thus, he planned to become one!


    Besides books regarding the arts of concoction, Duan Li was also interested in studying the arts of medicine. Therefore, by the end of the second day, his understanding regarding the field ofmedicine had increased basically from zero to hero. Such a terrifying degree of learning shook the trio whom witnessed Duan Li''s progression first hand.


    Not to mention, Duan Li had actually already understood the way to treat the hemorrhaging inside his meridians and pathways. If it was not because the method required a very dense amount of spiritual Qi that he lacked however, he could have actually treated himself already!


    During the span of these two days, Duan Li had also released the cub to play around inside the academy once in awhile. It was not such a strange sight because there were many cultivators who had pets as their companions roaming around the acadrmy.


    Some female students that had took a liking to Duan Li''s little cub even went so far as to come to the infirmary to play with the cub and feed it.


    Witnessing such a scene, Duan Li could not help but lament his fate, totally being ignored by these female students.


    At least you guys should have brought me some gifts or food! I am the master of the little cub okay?


    Duan Li was also thinking to release the Komodo at this stage, but in the end, he refrained from doing so. Because not only the Komodo was huge and could cause apprehensive atmosphere in the academy due to its sheer appearance, he was also worried that someone would try to attack it because the Komodo was categorized as a one star monster.


    ...


    The third day...


    Tap! Tap!


    "Are you the student called Duan Li?" said an elder that wore a royal white robe with an insignia of the royal emblem on his left chest, a symbol of his status as the Chief doctor of the royal palace.


    "Y-yes.. I am Duan Li!" replied Duan Li sounding a little bit nervous.


    This was because the expression on the face of the elder right now was one of serious and a little bit unfriendly. Even a trace of annoyance could be seen from his face.


    Fortunately, the elder didn''t seem to be too haughty. "Don''t move as I diagnosed your current condition first."


    After a few breaths of time, this serious elder''s expression slowly turned a little bitgrim.


    ...

 66 Chapter 65: The treatment 2

    "You.. Your injuries are too terrible and severe.. a lot of your meridian pathways has already begun to show signs of stagnation. I''m afraid that I could only heal about half of them." said the chief doctor as he shook his head helplessly.


    Half of them?


    "That.. its.. not possible for chief doctor to heal.. all of them?" asked Duan Li in disbelief with a doubting tone as he creased his brows together.


    In his opinion, as someone of the chief doctor''s elite status or title, it cannot be that the knowledge of the other party was beneath him in terms of the medicinal arts right?


    Granted, that he had quite the cheating ability due to the mysterious pearl and learnt quite a lot about the arts of medicine in just a mere single day, but the chief doctor was someone from the royal palace that looked well over 60 years old!


    Surely, the other party''s experience and knowledge would be even deeper than his?


    "Humph! With such an internal injury, you should be glad that I could resolve about half of them! Don''t be so ingrateful, the arts of medicine isn''t such a simple field for someone like you to know its complexity!" the chief doctor frowned as he said this.


    He was a chief doctor from the royal palace! Instead of being showered with praise and gratitude by the other party, he was being doubted instead!


    During his 2 hours travel from the royal palace, he was quite delighted with this job as it seems to be of the high priority. However, when he arrived at the academy, he was informed that he has to heal a young man with a seemingly no background at all!


    The academy was really being too pamperous with its students! To think that a mere nobody would receive such a treatment from someone of his high status, he wondered just what was going on inside that head of the principal whom had made such a request to him personally.


    I am the chief doctor of the royal palace and was always busy concocting numerous pills and elixirs for the royal family on a tight schedule!


    To think that I had decided to use my free time to heal a simple brat, and an ungrateful one at that, it seems that I have really made quite the poor choice this time!


    Hais!


    Whatever! The milk has already been spilt into the glass, I should just drink it and go back home straightly later.


    The chief doctor then moved the both of his hand atop of Duan Li''s body before the latter spoke out once more.


    "I... I am actually quite versed in the arts of medicine a little bit... and I had diagnosed myself for the past two days repeatedly... all my internal injuries could be healed using my method... its just that my spiritual Qi is way too low because of my realm" said Duan Li slowly.


    Hearing this, the face of the chief doctor darkened. "You claimed to know how to resolve all your internal injuries?"


    He already had said that he could only resolve half of them, and he was the chief doctor of the royal palace. A mere nobody, still a student at that, claimed to be able to do better than him?


    Wasn''t that an indirect way of saying that he was incompetent doctor?


    Knowing what the chief doctor was thinking from the latter''s expression, before things got out of hand, Duan Li decided to explain things out.


    "I meant no disrespect chief doctor, its just that with the state of my internal injuries were right now, if I could not resolve all of them, I would be just as good as a cripple, no better than if I was treated or not!" said Duan Li with a firm voice.


    Calming himself down, the chief doctor nodded after a while as he also agreed on this point.


    What the patient had just said was indeed correct. Even if he could resolve half of them, the contaminated pathways would not be able to be used anymore.


    To put it into an analogy, imagine a long road that was heavily damaged after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. Even if both ends of this road were being repaired and reworked on, as the middle section was still damaged, no cars would be able to use that road!


    If spiritual Qi was the funds to repair that road, then Duan Li right now was severely lacking in that. Compared with the chief doctor, someone whom was at the nascent soul realm, was like a tycoon with spare funds to build another 10 new roads!


    Thus, suppressing his pride, the chief doctor spoke out, "Then, what do you propose I should do? Not heal you? That would definitely not happen! As a chief doctor of the royal palace, once I have decided to nurse a patient, I will never go back on my words! Humph!"


    Hearing what the doctor just said, Duan Li smiled warmly.


    It seems that this chief doctor knows when to put down his pride, even though the latter had such a high status in the royal palace. Duan Li now had a better impression towards the chief doctor.


    "Of course I wanted to be healed! Its just that, I only needed chief doctor to follow my instruction... please ascede to my request chief doctor, I am willing to bet my future in this decision!" Duan Li highlighted that final sentence of his as he looked straight into the eyes of the other party with determination.


    Seeing that look on Duan Li, the chief doctor could not help but to be surprised for a little bit.


    "Such a determination... Does he really have the way to resolve all of his internal injuries when I couldn''t see the way?" he thought.


    After thinking for a while, the chief doctor sighed as he nodded.


    "Fine! But whatever that goes wrong in this treatment according to your method, I will not be held responsible for it, do you understand?" the chief doctor said with a serious expression.


    It was already a breach at his code of conduct as a doctor asceding to such a preposterous request. Normally, he wouldn''t even entertain it, but somehow, the words that Duan Li had just spoken had a compelling force behind it.


    If the treatment were to go wrong, not only that it would not heal the other party, it could also escalate the injuries even further, and at worse, death was also possible!


    As the chief doctor from the royal palace, if such a thing were to happen, then his reputation would also fall down the drain. Thus, it could be said that he was also betting with an extremely high risk bet right now!


    The principal, Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu was also inside the room right now as they entered along with the chief doctor before. They had only been listening to their conversation passively without intervening, and when they heard Duan Li''s request, they could also not help but to turn apprehensive too.


    However, knowing the identity of who Duan Li was, their worries only lasted for a few breaths before they trusted in the latter''s words.


    "I, Bian Tianyu, Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy, bears witness to this treatment!"


    "I, Wang Guozhi, Senior Teacher of the Jixue Knights Academy, bears witness to this treatment too!"


    "I, Ling Yu, Senior Teacher of the Jixue Knights Academy, also bears witness to this treatment!"


    When the three of them gave their statements, the chief doctor could not help but to be astonished.


    Such faith in their student? Or do they not know the risk?


    He could only shook his head helplessly. Compared to them, he wasn''t that positive about this. However now, he just had to finish and go through with it, regardless of what could happen.


    "Let us begin!"


    ...

 67 Chapter 66: The treatment 3

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    "Let us begin!" said the chief doctor with a serious expression.


    "En! Firstly, drive your spiritual Qi through my Yutang meridian and pushed it all the way to my Shimen meridian with 12 percent of your spiritual Qi. Then.."


    Duan Li began to instruct the chief doctor with the method to heal his internal injuries.


    At first, the chief doctor was a little bit impressed as Duan Li was able to name the meridians properly and thought that the latter had done their homework well.


    However, that feeling of a ''little bit'' impressed had slowly turned to become ''truly'' impressed when Duan Li was able to gauge how much spiritual Qi was to be used for each meridians.


    "It seems that this kid is really quite versed in the arts of medicine! I have underestimated him, this is truly a rare talent for someone of his age!"


    And then, it didn''t took him long before the feeling of being impressed turned into that of astonishment and surprised.


    "Eh? This method could also work? I''ve never thought about that..."


    "What? To split my spiritual Qi and let them resolve six pathways at one go so that the harmony of yin yang was not broken?"


    "Oh? This method is really quite ingenious! To think that I could do it this way too!"


    During the first hour, the chief doctor was already able to heal half of Duan Li''s internal injuries using the method that Duan Li had instructed him. This was already a lot more faster than the chief doctor''s expectation by a very wide margin!


    With his original treatment, it would took him at least four hours, but Duan Li''s method had reduced those to only one hour!


    At this stage, the chief doctor was already developing feelings of respect towards the other party. However now, is where the hardest will begin!


    It will decide whether the treatment will be successful or not!


    Gritting his teeth, the chief doctor focused himself entirely in listening to all Duan Li''s instruction intently without diverting away from a single detail.


    This is because he was starting to realize that Duan Li''s instruction had become more complex to the point where even he was struggling!


    Of all the experience that he had while treating a patient, Duan Li was the first to have him sweat buckets with his heart palpitating nervously.


    This was an unchartered territory for him!


    The trio that was standing at the back watching the whole scene unfolding before their very eyes, could not help but to show an expression of the profound puffer fish face.


    Just what is with this situation right now?


    The chief doctor of the royal palace seemed to become a newbie disciple in front of Duan Li instead! He even repeatedly nodded his head saying stuff that a disciple would usually say such as, ''I see!'', ''I am enlightened!'' and ''So its like that!''


    In addition, there were even traces of worship appearing on his face in awe and veneration towards the other party!


    Who was actually the master here?


    ...


    After another hour, all of them could finally exhaled their breaths in relief. The whole process was very nerve-wrecking, especially towards the very end!


    To think that the chief doctor was so fatigued from Duan Li''s complex instruction that he lost his focus for a split second and that caused the treatment to be derailed!


    Thankfully, Duan Li had acted fast and corrected the derailment by instructing the chief doctor to counter it using another method!


    Otherwise, Duan Li would have definitely suffer an even more grievous injuries!


    That was a truly holy-moly of a situation!


    "The treatment is done..." said the chief doctor as he sighed. Then, he looked up straight at Duan Li''s eye, a determined expression could be seen reflected on his face.


    "Young man... No, Young master! Please accept me as your disciple!" the chief doctor quickly kowtowed as he said this out loud.


    EHH??


    The trio was then shocked into disbelief, as their jaws almost dropped onto the floor and their eyeballs about to jumped out of their eye sockets!


    Even Duan Li seemed to be in a daze right now.


    Hey, it was I whom was planning to become your disciple! Not the other way around!


    The infirmary was silent to the point that their bated breaths could be heard along with the nervous hearbeats of the chief doctor, as if waiting for the replies of his confession to a lover.


    Sighing deeply, Duan Li could only accept this outcome helplessly.


    "Okay, I will accept you as my disciple!" said Duan Li as he nodded.


    Previously, the reason why he wanted to become the disciple of the chief doctor was so that he could get access to resources such as advance books in arts of medicine and ingredients.


    But now that he had become the master instead, his goal was somewhat achieved. Furthermore, as the master, it would be much more easier for him to ask for the resources. Thus, he could only be said to gained benefits from this exchange rather than losses.


    "Principal, can you lift your spatial magic on me now?" asked Duan Li awkwardly.


    The principal nodded as he flicked his finger, and the previous immovable state Duan Li was feeling was now gone without a trace. The dozens of needles was also removed in the process.


    Kacha! Kacha!


    Slowly sitting upright, Duan Li could now feel that his strength was recovering at a rapid speed as he clenched his fist, producing that ''popping'' sounds.


    Cultivate!


    Closing his eyes, Duan Li absorbed the surrounding spiritual Qi into his almost empty dantian.


    Level 5 Qi condensation realm!


    Level 6 Qi condensation realm!


    ...


    Level 3 Foundation establishment realm!


    Level 4 Foundation establishment realm!


    Boom!


    "Although I have already known that he had reached the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, seeing it myself is an entirely different sensation.."


    "Exactly, to think that he was just at the late stage of Qi condensation realm before he entered.."


    "What a terrifying cultivation speed!"


    The trio murmurred behind the chief doctor as they witnessed Duan Li whom was slowly recovering.


    Hearing their conversation, the chief doctor was surprised yet again!


    "It seemed that he is also a cultivation genius too! I''m lucky! Hahahaha" he laughed out loud, as if strucking a gold mine.


    ...


    After a while...


    "Duan Li, its good now that you have recovered from your injuries, but I can no longer delay your occupation selection even with my authority. You have to choose one today!" said the principal.


    Occupation selection?


    Knowing that Duan Li was confused, Ling Yu stepped in to explain.


    ...

 68 Chapter 67: Choosing Occupations!

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    "There are several occupation which you could master while studying in the academy. Here are the list." said Ling Yu as she handed down a paper with the title ''Occupation''.


    Looking through this long list, Duan Li found out that these occupations were broken down into major and minor. For a student of the academy, it was compulsory to select at least one major and four minor occupations.


    For the minor occupations, there are more than 50 choices. However, for the Major occupations, there are only 5 available; Warrior class, Spellcaster class, Alchemist class, Strategist class and Lord class.


    Duan Li was very much interested in that last occupation, thus he looked up towards Ling Yu and asked, "What does a Lord class occupation does?"


    The trio raised their brows including the chief doctor whom had now became Duan Li''s disciple, when they heard Duan Li''s interest in the Lord class. After all, out of all the five major occupations, the Lord class was the most difficult to advance and daunting.


    "This... Perhaps the principal would be the better person to ask this rather than me..." said Ling Yu as she smiled awkwardly.


    While she and Wang Guozhi were of the Warrior class occupation, the principal himself was of the Lord class occupation!


    "Let me explain then. The Lord class is the most troublesome of all the occupations, but also the most rewarding out of them all!" said the principal as all the people in the room nodded their head in agreement.


    "But, before I go into detail of the Lord class, let me explain to you the star ranking system for all of the major and minor occupations!" the principal continued.


    The principal began to explained that the Academy would put star levels on each occupation, which meant how far had a person achieve in it. The higher the number of their total stars, the more formidable the person would be.


    However, not all occupations were similar in their difficulty level. Out of all the occupations, the Warrior class was the most easiest, followed by Spellcaster class like Ran Yang - the senior teacher that was in charge of the second trial, Alchemist like Ju Zhianhu - whom was the chief doctor from the royal palace and was now Duan Li''s disciple, Strategist class like the vice principal -whom Duan Li hadn''t met yet, and finally the hardest, the Lord class like Bian Tianyu - the principal of the Jixue Knights Academy.


    Therefore, a 3 star Warrior doesn''t necessarily meant that they were superior to a 1 or 2 star Spellcaster. In terms of battle prowess, perhaps they were, but because of the differrent goals and difficulties to achieve in each occupation class in order to rank up, if one were to use their battle prowess alone as an indicator for whom was much more superior, then they had totally made a fatal judgement error!


    And this concept was the most truest to its essence for the Lord class occupation. This was because even if a Lord class was still stuck at the one star rank, their battle prowess could be even more terrifying than that of a five star rank warrior!


    Duan Li''s brows creased together as he listened to this explanation, "Such a gap in difficulties to rank up?"


    "Why is it like this? Does being a Lord class is really that difficult?" asked Duan Li curiously as he cupped his chin.


    "The word difficult is but still an underestimation for the Lord clas! I myself am still stuck at the four star rank for almost 10 years now!" replied the principal as he shook his head, looking a little bit dejected.


    "Eh? Then.. what about everyone else here?" exclaimed Duan Li, a little bit surprised when he heard the principal stated his star rank.


    "I am a seven star Warrior class!" replied Wang Guozhi with a proud face as he crossed his arms on his chest.


    "I am a seven star Warrior class too!" said Ling Yu with a smile.


    The chief doctor, Ju Zhianhu with a sneering look, declared his rank as he lifted his chin up a bit, "Young master, this disciple is of the six star Alchemist class!"


    "Eh? Such a vast gap! Perhaps the most impressive one here should probably be the chief doctor!" thought Duan Li.


    The principal could only sighed deeply.


    Looking at that downed expression of their principal, Ling Yu spoke out "But Duan Li, you have to know what makes the Lord class occupation so unique! Just with the principal''s battle prowess alone, he is already on par with an eight star rank Warrior class, a six star rank Spellcaster class, a three star rank Alchemist class and a four star rank Strategist class!"


    It was only after she mentioned these that the face of the principal became bright once more and that dejected face alleviated slightly. Although there was still a trace of hopelessness that could be seen reflected on his face.


    "If you wanted to know why a Lord class was so difficult to rank up, I will tell you now, its because a Lord class would have to raise the capabilities of their followers by using their own means, and the academy would not spare a lot of resources to nurture the followers under these Lord class people!" said the principal as he looked up at the ceiling, straight into the light bulb up ahead, as if reminiscing the most difficult moment in his life.


    "Eventhough this would be quite a heavy decision to make for the people who wanted to become the followers of a Lord class because of the limited privileges that they will get, it would still not be a problem for them as they could find other means to supplement themselves."


    After exhaling deeply once more, the principal continued, "Therefore, if it were only that, there would still be a lot of students choosing the Lord class from the silkpants students faction and those tycoon families. If I were to convert the value of 10 gold coins into one spirit stone, then the cost to rank up a single Warrior class into a five star rank would be a staggering 200 thousand spirit stones! For those rich individuals, although these are expensive, it was still manageable and could be recovered within a few months."


    "But what if I told you that in order to rank up to even a single star rank Lord class requires you to have at least 10 followers, of which the Warrior and Spellcaster class must be a two star rank above, and the Alchemist and Strategist at one star rank? With the total accumulation of the star rank ranks of their 10 followers to be at least 15 stars and above?"


    "If you think thats a crazy requirement but still manageable, then the two star rank of Lord class requires you to have at least three times more than that, the three star rank Lord class seven times and the four star rank Lord class ten times?"


    As the principal expressed all these, there were tears forming at the both sides of his eyes, threatening to fall down anytime soon.


    He remembered that difficult times back then, where he had to be extremely frugal in every aspect of his daily life. He looks a lot more like a beggar living beside the street than a Lord!


    Even his followers had to grit their teeth and work as part timers, some of them that couldn''t handle it anymore even decided to leave his side, and after he had painstakingly put all his resources to raise their ranks too!


    Those ingrateful bastards! One of these days, I will find them to make even for all of the grievances that I felt before because of them!


    How dare they used me!


    Wang Guozhi patted the shoulders of the Principal in order to soothe the latter''s painful heart.


    Hais, how tragic!


    Thinking for awhile, Duan Li currently had a lot of resources that he got from the treasury he looted inside his spatial ring, so getting 10 followers shouldn''t be an issue for the time being.


    However, he needed to choose these followers carefully and they must have a solid and upright personality. This was because Duan Li was planning to nurture them so that they could help in defeating the Sun dragon in the future. Thus, they must be loyal and shared the same goal as him!


    "I see, but I think I will be able to handle it! At least for the one star rank of the Lord class for the moment!" Said Duan Li as he looked at their eyes.


    Noticing what Duan Li meant, the trio agreed because Duan Li has a responsibility that not many knew. If Duan Li couldn''t even accomplish this task, then they can all forget about defeating the Sun dragon as it would be nigh impossible!


    "En, fine!" nodded the principal before he continued, "What about the minor occupations? You need at least four of them at the moment."


    With his photographic memory, Duan Li didn''t need to look through the long list of occupations anymore as he quickly replied, "I will take the Appraiser class, Herbalogist class, Master Teaching class and the Combat class!"


    Eh? What an interesting choice of minor occupations.


    The four of them tried to find the meaning behind Duan Li''s decision. The chief doctor could understand the reason for the Herbalogist class, and the trio understood why Duan Li was confident to take the Master Teaching class and the Combat class, but for the appraiser class?


    That is one hell-of-moly-cow difficult stuff that requires extensive knowledge on a lot of things, ranking up on this class wouldn''t be easy!


    ...

 69 Chapter 68: Recruiting followers!

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    The trio then huddled up together including the chief doctor at the corner of the room, seemingly to discuss something important as they threw side glances towards Duan Li every now and then.


    Looking at them like that, Duan Li was quite suspicious with this impromptu discussion of theirs.


    After a while, they finally finished from whatever it was they were doing as the principal approached Duan Li.


    "Now that you had applied for the Lord class, as the principal, naturally I have the authority to approve it on the spot. However, after further discussion, we have decided to put ourselves as your mentor and advisors to help you out!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s brows creased together a little bit as his suspicions grew.


    Why does something feels off about this?


    "What is a mentor and advisor?" he asked out.


    "Ahem! Well, a mentor is someone whom will be in charge of guiding a new student that has decided to take up the Lord class as their occupation! As you know, this occupation is really, truly difficult! Some students would decide to drop and change to another occupation halfway because of that, and the academy has found this to be a problem!"


    "Therefore, with a mentor, a new Lord class student would have someone to seek help and guidance to resolve their issues with! Otherwise, there would be no one who would be inclined to become a Lord class with such losses and no one to help them!"


    "Thus, I have applied myself as your mentor! Don''t worry, I am quite experienced in this occupation!" said the principal with a tone full of confidence as he clasped his hands behind his back.


    However, Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel that something was amiss,but he could just not pinpoint out what it was.


    "I see, in that case it would be good to have the principal to guide me!" nodded Duan Li as he bowed after thinking for a while.


    "Great! Now both senior teacher Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu, as well as the chief doctor Ju Zhianhu here, has vouched themselves to become your advisor!"


    "An advisor would help in filtering out tasks and missions and find those that would be suitable for the party of the Lord class to handle according to their overall level and ranks!"


    "Furthermore, an advisor could also help in many areas which we will inform you later on." continued the principal.


    Hmm.. why are they so proactive in this?


    After shaking his head, Duan Li replied, "Okay! I will follow this arrangement, thank you Principal!"


    This was because, even if he were to rack out his brains, it would still be useless to find out if these elders were playing scams or frauds on him. After all, he had just enrolled into the academy and hadn''t yet integrated everything.


    In addition, since the principal has mentioned the benefits of having a mentor and advisors, to Duan Li right now, that would be extremely vital in speeding up his star ranks. Thus, he didn''t put too much thought into it.


    "Now the final procedure before I approve your application is, you need to name your party!" said the principal.


    The name of the party?


    Hmm...


    "I got it! Please name it as the Mysterious Party!"


    Ohh?


    Mysterious Party?


    What an interesting name!


    At this time, Duan Li hadn''t yet thought of how the name of this party of his would become the talk of the academy, where many different rumours was associated with his party.


    But that would be a story for another time.


    The principal then nodded as he jotted down the name of Duan Li''s party.


    "Alright then, we will go back now to the office to arrange a few things for your new party. Until then, be sure to recruit your followers!"


    The principal exitted the room along with Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu, leaving only the chief doctor with Duan Li in the infirmary.


    "Young master, this disciple would have to go back to the royal palace as well for another matter. Here, take these jade slips. If young master needed anything, just contact me through the blue jade!"


    The chief doctor handed out two jade slips, one green - to sense his life force and another blue - for contact purposes.


    Duan Li was still having a trouble in trying to adjust himself being called young master by an elder, a high ranking one at that. Nevertheless, he just nodded.


    "Alright, but could chief doctor please prepare me some advance books regarding the art of medicine and concoction that would not be available in this academy? I would appreciate it very much!" requested Duan Li while still calling the other party as the chief doctor to respect the latter''s status.


    "Sure, that wouldn''t be a problem at all young master!" replied the chief doctor as he bowed.


    After the chief doctor left the infirmary, Duan Li followed suit not long after that. He was navigating along the corrider while cupping his chin, contemplating regarding his Lord class occupation.


    In his mind, Duan Li already has the names of the potential candidates to be invited and become his followers. The problem now was tough, would they be willing to become his followers?


    This was something that Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel a little bit troubled with. After all, he only just knew those people for a few days and their friendship wasn''t yet to the point where they would just agree to him.


    Sighing deeply, Duan Li decided to just try it out. Looking at the time, it was about noon, so Duan Li headed down to the cafeteria.


    "There they are!" said Duan Li inwardly after he scanned the surrounding with the upgraded version of the Soul sense from the Tetra Unsealing ability.


    Duan Li was really amazed by this upgraded version of the soul sense ability made by the Mirealithians. With a single thought, any object or a person that he wanted to find would blink in red colour!


    "Huh? Hey its Duan Li!" waved Shen Lu from afar with a very wide smile. On the same table, there was also Wang Xiaolun and Xiahou Yu. It seems that these trio have started to hang out together more often.


    When Duan Li sat on the same table with them, they felt quite alarmed with what they were feeling, except Xiahou Yu whom just continued to eat her meals.


    "This qi fluctuation... Middle stage Foundation establishment realm?" exclaimed both Shen Lu and Wang Xiaolun in their minds.


    If they remembered correctly, just a few days ago, Duan Li was still at the late stage of the Qi condensation realm and had to supress himself even lower due to his weak physical body.


    But now, this fella right in front of them had advanced significantly to next realm!


    Could the reason why they can''t find him these past few days was because the latter was undergoing some closed-door cultivation?


    Or did he encountered a heavenly treasure that could advance one''s realm that much?


    Either way, this kinds of progress was way too horrifying for them!


    This was especially the case for Shen Lu whom was feeling to be entirely defeated right now. Before, he was proud to be called as a genius, but when Duan Li was already able to breath through the pores, he had given up on such a title and passed it onto Duan Li.


    But at least at that time, he was so much more stronger than Duan Li!


    Now however, the gap was so close that he felt so anxious about it. After all, he was now at the late stage of the Foundation establishment realm, while Duan Li was at the middle stage!


    Although they wanted to ask Duan Li on how did he advanced so fast in so little time really badly, they decided to suppress such feelings. Every cultivator has their own secrets and Duan Li might feel troubled if they asked him.


    Thus, as a fellow cultivator with both honor and pride, they just shook their head and exhaled as they decided to train even more harder in their cultivation!


    If only they knew that it only took Duan Li a single day to reach this far, they would probably choked themselves and interrogate Duan Li frantically without backing out even a single bit.


    Who cares about honor and pride!


    ...

 70 Chapter 69: Creating a stir at the cafeteria!

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    "Shen Lu, what is your occupation?" asked Duan Li after they made some small talks while eating together.


    "Eh? My occupation is the Strategist class! I am a 3 star rank Strategist!" replied Shen Lu with a wide smile and a wink. It seems that he was quite proud with his occupation.


    Hearing that the friend in front of him was a strategist, Duan Li came into a realization, "No wonder his offer was quite alluring before.. it seems that it was because of his occupation.. did he use an enticement skill arts on me?"


    It was pitiful however, that Duan Li didn''t had the chance to retrieve the blood from the One Hundred Thousand Graveyard lake. However, he did tempered his physical body inside that lake during his eventful adventure. Therefore, he decided to test his own blood later on and would remind Shen Lu about their previous deal when he was successful.


    Otherwise, he would just have to go back to the Eternal maze to retrieve some from the lake. Although by that time, he would probably be teleported into the Second region and the difficulty would definitely be not simple like the first region.


    As if knowing what Duan Li was thinking, Shen Lu spoke out hurriedly, "Relax brother, I did not use any enticement skill arts on you. That was purely due to my charisma alone heheh!"


    "Anyway, Wang Xiaolun here is a 3 star rank Warrior, he is now only half a step to be promoted to the 4 star rank warrior!" continued Shen Lu as he gestured with his thumb to point towards Wang Xiaolun by his side.


    The latter as usual, only nodded and replied with a simple sentence, "That''s right."


    "I just submitted my occupation form two days ago, and I applied for the Spellcaster class!" said Xiahou Yu besides Duan Li as she bit that golden crispy fried chicken with a crunchy sound.


    When Duan Li noticed her cultivation states before, he couldn''t help but to be astonished and impressed!


    Level 5 Qi condensation realm!


    Such a cultivation speed was definitely tyrannical! A true genius!


    "What about you Duan Li? What did you applied, for your occupation?" she asked slowly.


    "I... I applied for the Lord class occupation!" replied Duan Li as he lowered down his head while scratching the back of his head.


    He was expecting for them to advice him to change his occupation. However, the reaction he got from them was entirely opposite to what he was thinking.


    Eh? The Lord class?


    "Brother, you really have the guts to choose the most difficult occupation to achieve! I never thought that you would choose the Lord class occupation!" exclaimed Shen Lu in surprise sincerely. Even Wang Xiaolun by his side also appeared to be quite shocked, although the latter''s expression was quite subtle with it.


    However, only Xiahou Yu seemed to have anticipated this and wasn''t that too surprised with the occupation that Duan Li chose. After all, with his potential in the future, it would definitely be a pity and a waste to the Jiu empire if he did not become the Lord class.


    Duan Li was a figure who could transcend to the immortal realm and possibly beyond, who wouldn''t want to acknowledge someone like that as their Lord and master?


    Thus, without thinking too much into it, she quickly requested to Duan Li.


    "Duan Li, may I become one of your followers? I promise to cultivate diligently and wouldn''t let you down!" she asked with a serious face, although there were rice all over her mouth as she said this, thus making her serious expression doesn''t look that serious at all.


    Nevertheless, Duan Li was quite surprised with her proposal. He thought that he would have to convinced her first. Who would have thought now that she would be willing to apply to become his followers instead?


    Grabbing this opportunity, Duan Li accepted her request without any hesitation as he quickly nodded, "Good! That would be great! Thank you for becoming my first follower!"


    Shen Lu and Wang Xiaolun was again quite surprised, but this time, it was because of how decisive Xiahou Yu were as soon as Duan Li mentioned his occupation as the Lord class. It was then that a thought struck at Shen Lu as his brains began to pump out thoughts after thoughts.


    "Wait, Xiahou Yu has also disappeared at the same time as Duan Li three days ago. Back then, her cultivation states was only at the first level of the Qi condensation realm, and now she suddenly rose to the fifth level two days ago!"


    "When I asked around last time, my sources had told me that she was last seen with Duan Li as well as with both senior teacher Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu by their side, as if they were escorting them somewhere!"


    "Could it be...?!"


    As if the puzzle was slowly being pieced together one by one, his thoughts soon became clearer as he shifted his gaze towards Duan Li with extreme interests.


    It seems that Duan Li has a secret that could help someone to increase their cultivation states rapidly! Although I am not sure yet what that is, it must be so!


    If I were to also become one of his followers, would I be entitled into that secret as well?


    In fact, Shen Lu''s way of rational thinking was definitely logical. As a Lord class, they are obligated to share whatever resources they have to an extent, to increase the star ranks of their followers in order to increase their own star rank.


    Again, this was also what made the Lord class occupation so difficult that not many are willing to do.


    However, what Shen Lu couldn''t grasp was, how valuable was that secret?


    He exchanged glances with Wang Xiaolun, and it seems that the latter appeared to say, "I will follow your decision." from that gaze of his.


    Clenching his fists tight, Shen Lu''s eyes gleamed like a wild tiger that was about to pounce on its prey as he decided to bet everything!


    An opportunity might come twice, but by then, the pie would already be eaten thrice!


    Therefore, following his instinct, Shen Lu spoke out almost immediately.


    "Brother, Me and Wang Xiaolun here also wanted to apply to become your followers! Would you be willing to accept us?"


    EH?


    What is happening here?


    Why are they requesting to become my followers without me even have to mention anything?


    I must be blessed with the goddess of luck!


    "En! I would be comfortable to have you both as my followers as well! I promise to never mistreat you guys as my followers!" said Duan Li in excitement.


    Now that he already has 3 followers, he needed 7 more! Duan Li wondered if he could get those 7 members as easily as these 3 friends of his. By then, he would be able to become a one star rank Lord class!


    However, what Duan Li hadn''t expected was, there were already some people whom had put him inside their radar and his background was already being checked and uncovered by some of these people.


    The result was quite shocking as they discovered that he has some sort of a connection with two senior teachers, a chief doctor from the royal palace, and the principal himself!


    Not to mentioned, it seems that his mother was a famous figure from the Subjugation squad some decades ago!


    In addition, both Shen Lu and Wang Xiaolun has quite the reputation as well. This was especially the case for Shen Lu, as a lot of people had acknowledged him as a genius in his occupation other than his battle prowess and cultivation!


    Thus, although they weren''t conversing out loud, many people were silently eaves-dropping on their conversation. Therefore, when they heard these two reputable figures were requesting to become Duan Li''s followers, they were alerted as an epiphany struck onto most of these people, especially those that hadn''t yet learned of Duan Li''s background.


    "Both Shen Lu and Wang Xiaolun requested to become that fella''s followers?"


    "Shen Lu is a brilliant Strategist, he has never made any move that would only bring small benefits to him before! Why does he wanted to become that person''s followers without the other party even bothering to offer him?"


    "Something is definitely going on here! That person appears to be a new student that just applied for the Lord class, to think that two senior students with reputable background would apply to become his followers? This is definitely unheard of!"


    "A Lord class is someone who shares their resources with their followers, unless that person was an idiot, no one would apply for such a difficult occupation without having some sort of a powerful backing to them!"


    "Quickly, hire some investigators or buy information from the Strategist club! Pay them more than what others offered for this information! We must capitalize on this opportunity!"


    Whooshh!


    Whooshh!


    Whooshh!


    In less than a few breaths, some people inside the cafeteria began to vanish one after another, as if their stomach was acting funny and they had to quickly leave for the toilet!


    Even Duan Li realized these peculiar atmosphere in the cafeteria.


    "Eh? What''s wrong with them? Why are some of them looking at us intently like that?" asked Duan Li as he grew more nervous with their deep stares, as if scanning his body down to his private parts!


    Damn it! I''m a straight man, don''t you guys dare to go overboard right now!


    As if noticing the panicky look on Duan Li''s face, Shen Lu chuckled out.


    "Relax brother, they were probably listening to our conversation before and was quite surprised to find out that a new Lord class was available! They were probably eager to also become one of your followers!" said Shen Lu as he laughed.


    "Is that so? I thought a Lord class would have to work hard and invite people to become one of their followers..." replied Duan Li as he cupped his chin, a little bit suspicious with what was happening right now.


    Naturally, what Shen Lu just said was correct. Those people were definitely eager to try and become one of Duan Li''s followers, but what he didn''t mentioned was, that his and Wang Xiaolun''s reputation was what made it so explosive!


    He thought that a true strategist should be humble and never boasts openly about themselves to others.


    However, what Shen Lu did not calculate was, their reputation was only so much and could only create a small stir at best!


    What had actually made the surrounding to have an explosive reaction was caused by someone standing not too far away from them, observing the whole situation with a wide smile.


    This person appears to be elderly and ordinary, almost as if a janitor doing his daily routine inside the cafeteria. But if people were to observe this person''s minute gestures and disposition, they would soon realize that this figure was definitely far from being ordinary!


    "I never thought that Bian Tianyu would personally ask me to help this boy recruit his followers from the shadows..."


    "I just have to wait and see if all these was worth it..." this person then chuckled out as he left the canteen with his hands clasped behind his back, a unique disposition flowing out from him that was subtle, yet firm as the Mountain Tai!


    This person was the Vice-Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy, Zhang Shi, an 8 star rank Strategist class!


    ...

 71 Chapter 70: The coming battle!

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    "I assume you still need some more members left?" asked Shen Lu casually without even bothering to tone down his voice.


    This was because he knew that the surrounding people were still listening onto their conversation, even though from the surface, these people appeared to be minding their own business, chatting with each others casually or eating silently.


    Naturally, Duan Li could also somehow guess the intentions behind Shen Lu''s question this time. Thus, he nodded and replied, "Yup, I would still need 7 more followers for now!"


    Shen Lu chuckled out, feeling glad that Duan Li wasn''t someone that was too dense to understood his actions.


    "I see, well how about this then. I knew a lot of students along with their background whom would be suitable enough to become your followers. But even though that was the case, I guess we should also open up a booth for people to fill in their names to apply!"


    Hearing this, the surrounding people began to whisper silently.


    "Did you hear that? Investigate whom these people that was mentioned by Shen Lu were!"


    "They are opening up a booth! Great, I could try my luck!"


    "This Shen Lu is truly a cunning person. I feel like there is more to this than meets the eye!"


    "Definitely! The words spoken out by someone from the Strategist class were not to be taken lightly!"


    In fact, some of these people were spot with their deductions. Shen Lu does has an ulterior motive when he mentioned those two things out loud.


    Firstly, although he knew a lot of people with powerful reputation and backgrounds with them, he was not 100 percent sure that he could invite them to become Duan Li''s followers.


    Therefore, as the contingency plan, he purposely let out that they would be opening a public booth to accept application from the masses!


    This way, even if he could only brought in two or three people from his personal invitation, the rest of the empty slots could be filled out by these people and this also made it appear fair to them as well.


    Of course, he would have to conduct a thorough background checks on all those people before accepting them, and this was not a problem for him.


    Shen Lu''s smile was caught by Duan Li, and again, he could somehow understood the whole reason behind Shen Lu''s scheme.


    "This... why do I feel like I could somehow know what he was thinking? Has my instinct also underwent a qualitative change slowly?" thought Duan Li as he found this to be strange.


    But then, he soon remembered that back before this, after his first encounter with the golden mysterious pearl, he was already able to deduce whose potatoes it was during the meal with his mother and the number of copper coins inside the pouche bag that he could identify without even looking inside it.


    "I see... So the changes has already been made back then. But why does this instinct of mine did not activate when I was in the Eternal maze before? It would''ve been a great help to me and I wouldn''t have to destroy that chamber as well..." Duan Li sighed inwardly.


    This was definitely weird for Duan Li, he still couldn''t find out just what could stimulate the activation of this heightened instinct ability of his even after thinking for a while.


    "Although brother, could I apply to become the manager for your party?" requested Shen Lu suddenly as he cupped his chin.


    Manager?


    So there was another position besides the mentor and advisor?


    "If I give you the position of the manager, would you be able to handle it?" asked Duan Li wording his sentence around carefully. This way, it would imply to Shen Lu that Duan Li somehow knew what the responsibility of being a manager were, even though the reality was the complete opposite, he didn''t know a thing about it!


    "Don''t worry, I could handle it. I would only manage and filter out the applications and you would still have the final say in deciding whether to accept them or not. Furthermore, I could also manage what their task should be if you wanted in the future, just ring the bell!" replied Shen Lu as he winked.


    Duan Li nodded as he felt quite satisfied with Shen Lu''s answer. If Shen Lu were to mention that he also wanted to manage the resources as well, his view on him would have plummeted to rock bottom.


    It seems that this guy knew where the borderline were!


    Suddenly, Wang Xiolun whom was quiet all these while began to speak.


    "It would be best if we could form a complete party soon. According to the recent news, another monster stampede will be coming soon, they will be a one star monster stampede!" he said with a serious expression.


    As if he just remembered about this news too, Shen Lu snapped his fingers together.


    "That''s right, now that we have joined under you, the academy would no longer group us among the other people as we would automatically become one group under the banner of the first squad as part of their reserve forces!" Shen Lu said with a serious expression to him.


    "However, this would be beneficial for us too. Usually, if a student were not a member of a party under a Lord class, they would be randomly inserted into a group formed by the academy based on their ranks and other criteria. But as we are now a party under you, we could become familiar with the battle prowess of each other and could complement the flaws by using teamwork!"


    "The only downside to this was, a normal random group formed by the academy as part of the reserve forces consisted anywhere between 30 to 50 people. On the other hand, we could only have a maximum of 10 people, so we must focus entirely on the total battle prowess of our party!" he added.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s countenance also turned serious. In his mind, a one star monster should have the strength like the Earthly golem or the Komodo. He knew how tough they were to beat personally.


    Not to mention, that during a monster stampede, these creatures would come against them like the flood!


    "I see, how many days do we got before the stampedes, do we have the exact figures?" Duan Li asked, as he had just recovered today, he was not yet updated with the current news.


    "The intelligence department estimated that they would attack the Jiu empire within two weeks time. The estimated total one star monster in this stampede were about 30,000!"


    "We don''t know why, but their numbers kept on increasing dramatically during the last few months. This was also why the academy decided to form the reserve forces for the first squad of the Subjugation squad! Even the Second squad was being put on standby this time." replied Shen Lu with a grim countenance.


    Pu!


    30,000? That was way too many!


    From his recollection, a one star monster stampede would only be about a few thousand in total at best, how did it jump into five figures in an instant right now?


    "I have also heard about this issue two days ago and the senior teachers were currently having a meeting about it right now. According to their strategy, the whole 81 members of the First Squad would be deployed and they would act as the commanders for the groups of reserve forces." said Xiahou Yu as she joined in the conversation.


    "Furthermore, the academy will deploy about 6,000 students from the academy to act as the reserve forces. Naturally, although we are a party of ten members, we would also be commanded by the members of the First Squad as well." she added.


    "That''s right, the strategy that was proposed by the Vice-Principal this time would be to split the enemy forces into three groups. The enemy would appear from the north, Blastwinter desert. They would have to travel through the great canyon before they could enter the soil of the Empire!" Wang Xiolun said as he crossed his arms together.


    "I see... splitting the monsters into three groups is a great idea indeed. I''ve heard that most of these First Squad members was at the Core formation realm?" said Duan Li, this was coming from his vivid memories.


    "That''s right! Wang Xiolun was almost promoted to become one of their official members, too bad that their standards was way too high for us and we could only become the trainees." replied Shen Lu as he sighed, a little bit of disappointment could be seen on his face.


    He then continued, "The basic criteria alone was that a single skill art should be able to take out, impede or knock unconscious 5 to 10 monsters at once! Unless one really has a very solid foundation, no one would be able to pass such a criteria against the one star monsters!"


    "Thus as a trainee, we were required to hunt monsters and accumulate experiences to be able to achieve that!"


    Duan Li nodded as he listened to Shen Lu''s explanation. He started to recall more about the Subjugation Squad from his memories.


    Every single member of the squad possesses a terrifying might that could knock out tens of monsters at the same time! They are veterans of the battlefield and rarely would they ever fall during a monster stampedes.


    Now that the enemy forces were divided into three, they would also have to divide themselves accordingly. Thus, there would be exactly 27 of them in each fronts that would command up to 2,000 students under them!


    This was definitely going to be a bloodbath!


    ...

 72 Chapter 71: The life of wealthy people!

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    "Don''t worry brother, we have plenty of time to prepare properly for the monster stampedes!" said Shen Lu as he chuckled out.


    Listening to the surrounding whispers, he knew that his plan had worked perfectly. In the next few days, people would be applying to become Duan Li''s followers like a flood!


    "Duan Li, now that we have formed a party together, as a Lord class, you are entitled to purchase a residence court!" Xiahou Yu by the side said casually.


    "Residence court? That sounds like a good idea! The surrounding spiritual Qi within its court are always nurtured by special runic formations. Too bad that a residence court is extremely expensive, even if it were to only house 10 people, we would not be able to afford it..." said Shen Lu as he sighed.


    Residence court? Expensive?


    "Hmm... if what you guys had said is true, and that it would be beneficial for our cultivation, then it would be of utmost importance for us to purchase one! Let me see if I can make a deal on this, so just leave this one to me!" Duan Li replied confidently.


    With the mountain-like treasure stash that he had collected from the Eternal maze of the first region, there were so many valuables inside his spatial ring right now that he couldn''t possible count their total values!


    Walking up to a portable vending machine inside the cafeteria, Duan Li brought a few blue jade slips that cost him 10 low quality spirit stones each for communication purposes. He then handed down one blue jade slip to each of them respectively.


    "I will have to go now and see if I could purchase a residence court for us. Meanwhile Shen Lu, I leave the recruiting planning and method to you, and when I could find ourselves a suitable residence court, I would inform you guys through the blue jade slips!" said Duan Li.


    "Sure brother! Leave it to me! By the time you found a residence court for us to live in, we would have the plan ready to be carried out with a single command of yours!" Shen Lu replied confidently as he nodded.


    Inwardly, he was actually quite surprised and had not expected that Duan Li would have the money to buy a residence court. But by the sound of it, the latter seemed to have some deep financial resources to him.


    This was truly weird for Shen Lu, because when he did a background check onto Duan Li before, he had found out that although Duan Li''s mother was the famous Meng Yue, their way of life was humble and they were not rich.


    Could it be that they actually had a very deep inheritance that they never used before?


    Either way, what was most important for him to know was that, he hadn''t made the wrong decision to follow Duan Li!


    Just with this evidence alone, had outlined that Duan Li could really provide them with an immense amount of benefits!


    Duan Li then left them on their own as they started their discussion. Meanwhile, he was now heading back to the Principal''s office.


    ...


    Knock! Knock!


    "Principal, I am here to purchase a residence court! Could you help me with this?" asked Duan Li as soon as he entered the room.


    "Eh? A residence court? You do know that those are quite expensive right? Unless you were the son of a rich family, I don''t see how you could own one. Even with my authority, I wouldn''t be able to bend the prices for you. After all, those lands were owned by the empire!" the principal answered as he shook his head.


    Hearing this, Duan Li realized that the principal had misunderstood him. Thus, he tried to explain to the principal.


    "It''s not like that, during my adventure in the Eternal maze before, I was lucky enough to discover a treasure trove! I''m sure I could buy a simple residence court with it!" said Duan Li as he whipped out a large spirit stone that hummed brightly with blue colours from his spatial ring.


    Seeing this big, shiny object that was put on his desk, the principal gasped as he stood up subconsciously. He couldn''t believe what he was seeing!


    "T-this! This is a superior grade spirit stone! Not to mention that you could definitely buy any residence court with this one, the academy wouldn''t even have enough to pay you the remainder!" exclaimed the principal as he swallowed his saliva.


    In fact, within the academy, only spirit stones was accepted as the currency for official exchanges. There are 5 types of spirit stones altogether; inferior spirit stones, low quality spirit stones, medium quality spirit stones, high quality spirit stones and superior quality spirit stones!


    Normally, people would only use the inferior and low quality spirit stones to make small purchases and medium quality spirit stones for business transactions. For those corporate levels, they would use several high quality spirit stones as well.


    However, rarely does anyone uses superior quality spirit stones to make a transaction! This was because its value alone was extremely astronomical!


    A single one would already be enough to buy a small region in the empire!


    "How about this, you should buy the whole 30 residence court that the academy has, and we will put them under your name. If anyone wanted to purchase them, we would handle all the transaction process for a small fee and the rest would be delivered to you!" the principal suggested as he made a rough calculation.


    "The whole 30 residence court? How much do they cost?" exclaimed Duan Li, shocked that the value of the superior quality spirit stone would be so much.


    In his memories, he had only owned up until the high quality spirit stones. He knew that a superior quality spirit stones was more valuable, but he never expected that a single one was enough to buy the whole residence court!


    Not to mention that he had several hundreds if not thousands of these inside his spatial ring right now!


    I have strucked it rich overnight!


    "Eh... to be honest with you, even if you purchased the whole 30 residence courts, that would only be about two thirds of the value of this superior quality spirit stone. I will have to apply for you the black-gold master card and put the remainder as your credit points instead." replied the principal as he rubbed his forehead.


    The black-gold master card was a symbol of status for the extremely rich people in the Jiu empire. Although, the number of credit points was actually the total amount of debt that the empire has with a card holder!


    As long as an asset was owned by the empire, a card holder that wished to purchase it must use their black-gold master card until it reached 0 credit points.


    Only then, would they be able to use spirit stones to purchase once more. This way, not only would the empire did not have to pay these card holder with spirit stones for its debt, the empire could also raise the values of their assets higher so that they could benefit from any purchases made by these card holders!


    In a way, this process was similar to a mortgage, except with benefits in the end!


    Of course, some influential figures have filed their complaints against this system before, but when the empire replied them that "No amount of losses was too much for the rich", somehow, these people instantly became fine with it!


    This was because, the black-gold master card itself has a deterring values where they can show-off to people that they are far more wealthy than the other. Thus, these filthy rich people are now racing to increase their credit points instead without even bothering to decrease it for the sake of proving themselves to the others.


    How? By sponsoring the empire with its public spending! If the whole street lights required a single high quality spirit stone a month to maintain, these card holders would sponsor two to five high quality spirit stones a month in exchange for credit points!


    There were also others who joined a co-venture corporate that bought some cheap empire-owned assets for an overpriced value, and distributing these costs among the card holders. Whoever paid the most, will get the larger cut of credit points!


    Therefore, the empire has instead accumulated a lot of free money from these groups of people, and the trend was still ongoing as well as the empire had become more intelligent to push this culture forward, by holding frequent lucky draw for a certain range of credit points. The winner would then receive some more credit points that could elevate their total value to reach a new range of credit points to participate in another lucky draw!


    Because of this, the empire remained far more wealthy than the card holder themselves. Thus, even if all these card holders wanted to reimburse back their credit points into spirit stones, the empire would still remain on the top of the most wealthiest chart!


    "Hmm okay, that would be fine too! I''ll pick the largest residence court to live with my followers from now on." said Duan Li as he pointed towards the most expensive residence court on the book tablet that the principal showed to him.


    The principal nodded as he took out an application form for Duan Li to fill in. After a while, Duan Li had finally finished all the proper official procedure and was handed the key for the house by the principal.


    Now, he could move in whenever he wanted.


    "Hello guys, this is me Duan Li, let us meet up in two hours in this location that I gave you. Make sure to bring all your belongings along as well. From now on, we will be living the residence court!" said Duan Li as he used the blue jade slips to pass his message onto Shen Lu and the rest.


    Exitting the room with smiles all over him, Duan Li was contemplating for what his next step should be while walking along the corridor, before a voice shouted out to him from behind.


    "Stop right there!"


    Eh?


    This haughty voice sounded familiar...


    ...

 73 Chapter 72: The three-staged plan!

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    Turning his back, Duan Li gasped in surprise as he saw that familiar face.


    "It''s the crippled Feng Li!" said Duan Li subconsciously, entirely unintentional.


    Pu!


    "Who the hell are you calling crippled? How dare you be so arrogant over a single win against me!" barked Feng Li furiously.


    He was totally enraged right now!


    Just the thought of remembering that scene where his arm got crippled by this bastard in front of him, had caused him to seethe with immense anger and shame!


    "You might have won against me at that time, but you had humiliated me in front of all those people! Do you dare accept my challenge again right now?!" he shouted again.


    Hearing the other party shouting at him, Duan Li''s brows furrowed, feeling quite annoyed with the accusations that was thrown at him.


    "What humiliation? I just stepped onto your sword to stop you from attacking me like a blind donkey, who would have thought that your body would be so weak as to have your arm crippled by that?" refuted Duan Li.


    Although most of the time Duan Li would have never used such a term to describe a person, he has a passive personality. Thus, if someone were to annoyed him, he wouldn''t mind getting a little bit nasty too!


    Especially to this degenarate man in front of him that had almost assaulted grandma Ying physically before.


    Pu!


    Blind donkey? Weak body?


    "Y-you!" Feng Li almost spatted out a mouthful of blood.


    Just as he wanted to shout again, a loud ''Pa!'' could be heard, as he was slapped on the back of his head by someone.


    "Enough yelling! This corridor is near to the principal''s office, if he were to come here and reprimand you, do you think I would be able to speak on your behalf then?" said a tall figure besides him.


    This tall figure has a body similar to Wang Xiolun, tough and bruly.


    "F-forgive me brother, I had gotten ahead of myself due to my emotions!" Feng Li said as he stuttered.


    "Humph! I would only cover for your own undoing this once!" said the tall man as he looked towards Duan Li.


    "My name is Feng Juan, and I am the older brother of this useless fool! I''ve heard that he had caused some trouble for you back in the Xuan village, and for that I had to apologize!" the figure called Feng Juan said as he bowed.


    "But!" he suddenly said as his spiritual Qi rumbled.


    "Crippling the arm of my foolish brother here has gone too far! As the older brother, I had to address his grievances with you!"


    Hearing this, Feng Li by the side sneered with an elated expression as he said out loud, "I told you that I will get back at you for what you have done! Now that my older brother had stepped in, there is no-"


    Just as he was trying to finish his sentence, the other party seemed to step forward ever so slightly with a clenched fists.


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BOOM!


    Witnessing this huge fiery fist coming at them, both the brother and Feng Li were scared silly!


    This was especially the case for the older brother Feng Juan. He was someone at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, just a half step away from the Core formation realm!


    But to think that even he could not fathom the might of this fist art in front of them, now that was terrifying!


    Holy-hell!


    BAM!


    Crash!


    The fist hit them squarely on the chest as they flew along the corridor and crashed onto a window, falling all the way to the ground level.


    Bam!


    Fortunately, Duan Li had controlled the strength of his fist. Otherwise, they would have turned into a bloody mist instantly if he used his full power!


    "Y-young master, please be appeased! They were just insignificant bugs that do not know their place!" commented the sword that was dangling at Duan Li''s right earlobe right now, as if it was truly afraid when Duan Li suddenly turned violent.


    "Humph! I''ve got no time to waste on them!" snorted Duan Li as he quickly left the place.


    The reason why Duan Li striked at them right away was because that they were too rude and appeared to be self-important. Furthermore, his train of thought before was disturbed by them due to such a nonsensical reason!


    At first, when Feng Li had accused him, he was already dissatisfied, and just as he thought that the older brother was a different kind of person, it turns out that the older brother was also being unreasonable!


    He was acting in self-defense back then! Even if he had accidentally crippled Feng Li''s arm in the process, that should be considered as a just punishment, karma!


    After all, the other party was trying to chop off his limbs, was he going to stand idly by back then?


    And now the older brother was here trying to avenge for the wrong-doings of his little brother?


    Don''t think that you can bully me as you like!


    ...


    Inside the principal''s office...


    "Eh... that Duan Li, how short tempered! But I have to say that I like his style handling that problem well. Nevertheless, I''ll have to deduct the total spirit stones that the academy owe you for the repairs." said the principal as he cupped his chin for a while and then reworked on his calculations on a paper.


    When the commotion broke out, all the senior teachers had noticed it with their soul sense and was about to reprimand them for causing a ruckus near their office. However, the principal sent them an order to not make a move and just observe.


    He had previously thought that Duan Li would accept the challenge from the older brother, and he could then observe how far has Duan Li matured after his adventure in a formal duel between them.


    But who would have thought that Duan Li would just immediately strike out at them without talking too much?


    That was a scene that caused him and the rest of the senior teachers that had witnessed it with their soul sense to become stupefied!


    Had it not been the principal who told them that he would handle the rest, they would have bolted from their rooms and apprehended Duan Li for breaking the rules of the academy!


    Grudges should only be settled on the dueling platform!


    However, from the fist art that Duan Li had just shown them, their interest was piqued as well.


    "That fist art was far from ordinary, it''s might should be at the Core formation realm."


    "I sensed that he was holding back, just how strong would that fist art be had he used his full power?"


    Numerous senior teachers made their own conjectures as they assessed Duan Li''s battle prowess. Some of them were moved while others remained indifferent. After all, fights between students was beneath them.


    Soon, the issue was put at the back of their head.


    ...


    "Is this really the correct place?" said Shen Lu with a wide eyes that almost seemed to popped out from their sockets as he floated in the air, along with Wang Xiolun.


    Xiahou Yu was still at the middle stage of the Qi condensation realm, thus she could not float like them. Therefore, she had climbed a tall tree to look at the scene and could not help but to gasped in surprise as well.


    This was because the residence court that was in front of them was way too huge and extravagant!


    From the top, they could see a large garden with various matured medicinal herbs that could be harvested anytime! A little bit to the left, were some ponds and lakes that were filled to the brim with numerous rare fish that would be benificial for the body of cultivators!


    There are even several rare trees that exudes dense spiritual Qi and were planted according to the spirit gathering runic formations that was laid beneath the ground!


    In terms of facilities, it could be said that this residence court has almost everything, sports field, dojo, pagoda, leisure amenities such as outdoor hotspring and artificial waterfall, and a lot more!


    This residence court was so huge that it could probably housed 50 people inside and still has a lot of empty rooms left.


    Gulp!


    "This is probably the most expensive residence court that the academy has! With its sheer size alone, it should cost more than 50 high quality spirit stones at least!" remarked Shen Lu as he did a quick mental calculation while swallowing a mouthful of saliva.


    "I was confident that he would definitely be able to purchase a residence court for us, but this! This has gone way beyond my expectations!" he continued as he clenched his fist tight in agitation.


    I''ve really benefitted greatly in my decision to become Duan Li''s followers! This is probably the most correct decision that I has ever made in my whole life!


    "Me too... his means could only be described as terrifying if he was able to purchase this residence court." commented Wang Xiolun with a serious face.


    Xiahou Yu nodded but a trace of confusion was apparent on her face.


    "With this big residence, how far would it help us in our cultivation?" she asked.


    In her mind, that was the most important of all. If a residence court was just big but did not give too much benefit to one''s cultivation, then what use would that be?


    In front of the building pressure that was bubbling inside of her heart right now to face the coming onslaught 7 years later, extravagance would not help them at all.


    "Help in our cultivation? That is an understatement! This residence court could do more than just help our cultivation! In case you didn''t notice, just with these dense, high quality spiritual Qi that was nurtured here alone, would already boost our cultivation speed by at least ten times!" replied Shen Lu with his eyes sparkling.


    As a Strategist class, he could already see the whole value of this magnificent residence court that has limitless potentials and possibilities!


    "Ahh, you guys are already here!" said Duan Li from afar as he approached them from the sky.


    "Brother! I could have never imagined that you would have bought us such an incredible residence court! How were you able to do this?" Shen Lu immediately asked Duan Li as soon as the latter joined them.


    Hearing this question, Duan Li was a little bit troubled as to how he should answer.


    "Eh... its nothing, I had quite an inheritance from my mother..." answered Duan Li as he scratched the back of his head.


    Shen Lu was quite skeptical with this answer, but it didn''t really matter to him whether its the truth or not. After all, it was not his place to question Duan Li as someone whom was part of the latter''s followers.


    "Anyway, about the plan to recruit more followers, have you guys come up with a good one yet?" Duan Li asked.


    "You bet we have! Hahaha! Listen!" replied Shen Lu excitedly as he explained the whole plan to Duan Li.


    According to Shen Lu, the best way to attract followers was to show that the Lord was someone of an extremely capable person!


    In order to prove this, they have decided to form a three stage plan!


    The first stage was to open a public booth to accept the application from the masses. With the stir that they have made in the cafeteria before, people would definitely formed a long queue to apply.


    However, these applicants at most would be sub-par people that would only leech benefits from Duan Li without giving back anything in return at all!


    The real people whom are like tigers and dragons would definitely not be impressed by their public booth, and therefore, these people are the ones whom they should target to become part of the followers instead!


    Thus, comes the second stage. During the second stage, Xiahou Yu, Shen Lu and Wang Guozhi as Duan Li''s followers, must become stronger and rapidly increase their cultivation level during the recruiting phase.


    This way, it would attract the attention of those hidden people to finally make a move and apply!


    After all, those people were someone whom could only be impressed with strong people. Just the fact that Duan Li was able to raise his follower''s strength considerably within a short time should be a testament to the capability and means that Duan Li holds as the Lord.


    Therefore, came the necessity of the third stage!


    The third stage would be a duel between the chosen applicants! There are no better ways to identify both a person''s personality and battle prowess other than through a duel!


    However, those who won in the duel does not necessarily meant that they would be chosen as Duan Li''s followers. Instead, the final judge for whether they are worthy or not to become part of the followers would be entirely up to Duan Li''s choosing!


    Hearing this three-stage plan to recruit his followers, Duan Li was impressed beyond words! With his super instinct activated, he could definitely see the underlying intricacies within these plan that they have made!


    Granted, that there would be some problems that would cropped up if they implement this plan, but, the benefits far outweigh the cons. Thus, Duan Li felt that enacting this plan should be well worth it!


    "Excellent! I really like this plan that you guys have made! To appreciate this first service that you guys has made as part of my followers, in crafting this well-made plan, I shall gift you three these!" said Duan Li as he whipped out a few high quality spirit stones from his spatial ring.


    He handed down one high quality spirit stone to each of them, which caused them to choked hard.


    Cough! Cough!


    "T-this! Brother, I feel that these gifts of yours are way too generous! But I will accept it nevertheless!" said Shen Lu as he laughed out loud!


    "En! Me as well!" said Wang Xiolun trying to suppress his face from showing any emotion with his arms crossed. Yet, his fast breathing has exposed his excited inner state.


    Meanwhile, Xiahou Yu was already in a daze as she hold that high quality spirit stone on both of her hands like it was the most precious thing ever. A vivid image of countless fried chickens could be seen appearing from her pupils.


    ...

 74 Chapter 73: Recruitment day!

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    "Damn it! It''s still so early in the morning and the queue was already this long?!" said a student who just came.


    "Hais, be patient fellow brother. According to the number of people here, we should be able to register after queuing for 2 hours!" replied another student who was in front of him.


    "What, 2 hours?! Curses!!"


    At first, Duan Li and the gang had only opened up one booth to cater the needs of the application process today. But who would''ve thought that people was already waiting outside the gate of the residence court so early in the morning?


    Therefore, Shen Lu decided to open another two booths after the public was disgruntled for waiting too long. Furthermore, Duan Li had also allowed the people waiting to enter the garden area of his residence court so that they could cultivate while waiting.


    "To think that the new Lord class, Duan Li,was someone this rich, he sure has deeply hidden himself for our information network to not be able to expect this at all!" said a student that has a Strategist token on his waist.


    "I know right? My sources told me that he was just a pauper from a faraway Xuan village! But look at this residence court, this has to be the most expensive out of all of them!" commented another student with a strategist token as well.


    A senior student contemplated for a moment before adding his own thoughts towards their conversation, "Could it be that he has someone that can pull the strings to be able to purchase this expensive residence court?"


    "That''s impossible! The administration was supervised by both the vice-principal and the principal himself! They were both from a different faction, it would take a miracle for them to collude together and allow such a thing to happen!" interjected his friend as they continued to speculate and reassessed Duan Li''s worth.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was getting a little bit anxious with the increasing number of students that came into his residence court. The garden was slowly getting crowded by the minute as people started to push around, getting impatient from waiting.


    The early birds were people that had got wind of the news early, and they decided to camp out directly in front of the residence court overnight. Whereas the people that had just arrived were those that came due to words of mouth that was spread like wildfire in the academy.


    Shen Lu even went to the extent of spending some of his money to print out a lot of flyers and released them from the air as he flew around this morning.


    At first when the people who knew about the recruitment but wasn''t interested in it picked up the flyer, they sneered in disdain over their effort. But when they read the details of the location, their eyes immediately bulged out from their sockets and bolted straight into the air!


    This residence court was something that was worth more than 50 high quality spirit stones to purchase! Just the fact that Duan Li was able to bought it, had already told them how capable the former was in his financial means alone.


    If they were to be able to serve under such a Lord, their life and cultivation would definitely be smooth sailing!


    This was because, even though the academy would give them coupons that entitled them for some free resources for their cultivation, it was quite limited and everything else must be purchased.


    With higher cultivation realm, naturally the price would become steeper too. Therefore, the students had to find their own source of income by opening their own stores and workshops.


    Roughly around 90 percent of the revenues made inside the academy were by private sectors that was owned and managed by the students faction alone, only some were controlled by the empire and other external influence.


    And as such, who wouldn''t want to serve under an extremely wealthy Lord class like Duan Li? All of these people that came were trying their luck, to see if they got the affinity for it.


    "The number of people here are beyond my expectations, the total applicants that has signed up so far was already beyond 500! We just opened an hour ago too!" exclaimed Duan Li in a shock.


    After making a decision, Duan Li instructed Shen Lu and the rest to close up their booth within one hour and to continue the recruitment next day.


    This was because it was already approaching the time for class. If a lot of students were to escape their class just to sign up at their booth, some teachers would definitely filed a complaint to the administration, and he might get a reprimand for it.


    This was especially the case when Duan Li found out that most of the applicants decided to stay and cultivate due to the rich and dense spiritual Qi in the garden. The more unruly ones that took advantage of the chaos even had the guts to pluck out some of his neatly arranged medicinal herbs and koi fishes from the pond illegally.


    Naturally, this was something that Duan Li could not endure. Thus, he flicked the residence court token to expel these opportunist and thieving bastards out forcefully and reclaimed back his stolen goods.


    And then, as an opportunist himself, Duan Li demanded compensation from them by threatening to report the matter of their unethical misconduct to the academy!


    One had to know that Duan Li was someone with a passive personality. Thus, if others were to go overboard with their behaviour, he would definitely go a little more overboard than them as well.


    When Shen Lu and the rest saw this side of his, they could see a new personality to Duan Li that they didn''t knew beforehand. Somehow, this forceful action made by Duan Li onto those offenders caused them to start feeling reverence towards him as their Lord.


    Now, they were more confident to serve under him, as the surrounding people becomes more reserved with their actions while they were inside the residence court and was no longer showing dissatisfied expression as well.


    In addition, even those that sneered in disdain towards Duan Li as they thought of him as just another idiot silkpants immediately casted out such thoughts when they witnessed that scene.


    ...


    Somewhere atop of a giant boulder that was surrounded by forest, was a muscular figure that looked extremely vicious, sat down cross-legged while emitting a tremendous amount spiritual Qi fluctuations. His long dark hair streaked along the wind, as his red pupils gleamed with a dangerous aura to it.


    This figure was holding a blue jade slip, and he reviewed the message that he had just received from someone he hired.


    "Kekeke... interesting!!" this enigmatic figure spoke out.


    GUAKK! GUAKK!!


    When his voice echoed around the forest, a lot of crow birds suddenly flew away in panic as they sensed a thick battle intent coming out from that voice.


    ...


    Within a pavilion, two students that bore the looks of a scholar were playing the game of Shogi together. One of them has a brown hair, and another a violet hair.


    Although they were extremely casual with their actions as they moved the little pieces across, the board itself was emitting a very terrifying aura, as if it was not a board, but a real battlefield where numerous cultivators clashed to the death instead!


    At this moment, someone walked in as she kneeled onto the floor with one knee towards the violet haired student.


    "Master, the reports said that the value of Duan Li, the new Lord class student were being reassessed by the Strategist club. The manager has then decided to increase his worth to the level 4. Thus, his name has climbed onto the top 200 ranks." said this young female student, her voice was tender and her figure could be described as beautiful, albeit lacking the qualities of a matured maiden.


    Hearing this, the violet haired guy has his interest slightly piqued as he raised one of his brows and moved another piece forward.


    "Oh? Continue to observe him. If my deductions are not wrong, it won''t be long before his level was increased to the level 5 or even 6!" he said casually as he waved his hands to dismissed the young girl.


    "I agree." nodded the brown haired student as he also moved another piece forward across the board.


    The both of the scholarly-looking student then continued to play Shogi, as if the previous matter was already been put at the back of their head.


    ...


    Within a residence court, there was a female student who sat atop of a throne with expensive accessories that perfectly defined her ravishing figure. Her robes were as smooth as a silk, and her hair also shone with a bright azure colour, as if this person was part of the royal family.


    Her face could only be described with one word, divine!


    At this moment, both of her eyes was closed shut, as she used one of her hand to support her head on the armrest. She looked aloof just like that, but it didn''t make her less beautiful. In fact, she even appeared more bewitching!


    When she finally opened her eyes, it seemed as if she had grasped everything that was happening, and a mysterious smile appeared on her face as she then sat upright, looking extremely dignified and graceful.


    "Hear my command, if there is anyone that were to plot against this new Lord class student, whose name is Duan Li, you are to report to me directly!" she said. Her voice was enchanting, as if it was from the angels themselves.


    On her waist, was a Spellcaster class token.


    "We hear and obey! Rest assured my lady, we will inform you as soon as we got the information from our intelligence!" replied the two grown men simultaneously, whom single-kneed onto the floor.


    They were wearing flashy armors with bright blue capes, and their appearance was quite graceful as well. On their waist, was a token that was uniquely different than the tokens given to the students of the academy.


    They were the tokens of official Knights, the main battle force of the empire!


    ...


    As numerous influential figures on the background was aroused by the stir that was caused by Duan Li unconsciously, the man himself was currently busy understanding the floor map of the classrooms inside the academy building.


    Eventhough he has a photographic memory and that he could remember everything with just a single glance, finding direction was always one of his worse forte!


    Thus, he decided to summon Daelius from his spatial ring, and let the latter point out the direction towards his first class.


    Most of the female students that recognized the little cub, was following along from the back of Duan Li as they watched the little cub walking slowly while wagging its tail left and right, causing the female students to cringe with high-pitched voice every once in a while.


    "Awwww! This little cub is so cute!"


    "Look at the way it moved! Where can I find such a pet?"


    When the other male students saw the numerous amount of female students following behind Duan Li on his back like some avid cult followers, naturally the idiotic and dumb ones had misunderstood the whole situation.


    "Damn it! He is showing off right now! He is not even that handsome compared to me!"


    "Curses! I curse your whole ancestor! How dare you hogged all those female students to yourself!"


    "Heh, those girls must be following behind him because they wanted to fawned all over him to be accepted as his followers!"


    "Hey look! Isn''t that the rumored ronin samurai? It turns out that he was actually a rich guy! How envious, I also wanted to become rich and has a lot of girls following me around!"


    Thankfully, when the bell rang, all these female students scrambled towards their own respective classes. Otherwise, if they were to continue following him around, it would definitely attract the attention of people inside his class later on.


    "I am finally here!" exclaimed Duan Li as excitement filled him.


    At first, he thought that becoming a student of the Jixue Knights Academy would be a troublesome responsibility. But who knew, he was actually enjoying himself right now!


    Not to mention, he always loved to learn new knowledge himself! He now felt that it was the correct decision to follow along the words of his mother in entering this academy!


    Although he had memories of having classes as well, those were memories that the current he, had not experienced himself personally, thus he was still quite excited.


    Standing in front of the door of his first class, the placque atop of the door reads:


    "Appraiser Class!"


    ...

 75 Chapter 74: The Appraiser class!

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    Creak!


    Duan Li opened the door and entered the class room. This room was situated in a semi-circular shape, with stairs-like seating arrangement, similar to how the viewing platform were in a coliseum.


    In the middle of this room was the platform stage, with a semi-circular table. On top of it, laid several items and artifacts. Perhaps they were the lecture materials for today.


    Looking around, Duan Li found out that this minor occupation only had a few students. The seating wasn''t even close to being half-full.


    "I didn''t expect that the third most lucrative occupation in the academy would only had a few students in it..." said Duan Li inwardly.


    He quickly found himself a seat in the middle and after a while, a teacher in a green robes came in that appeared to be in his late 30s.


    "Good morning students, I am Le Cenglei, a 3 star rank Appraiser class." said the teacher as he stood atop of the platform.


    Shortly after he introduced himself, the surrounding students quickly whispered with each other.


    "Only a 3 star rank? Even my father was better than this!"


    "Beats me. Last I checked, the teacher should at least be a 5 star rank Appraiser class!"


    Ahem!


    Hearing this, the teacher made a dry cough as the students returned their focus back at him.


    "Some of you might have noticed that my star rank was a bit low than your expectations, but this couldn''t be helped. After all, the academy doesn''t have enough staff to teach the beginner appraiser class." said the teacher as he shook his head.


    "Furthermore, I am just the assistant teacher. But even so, my knowledge should be enough to cover the basics for today''s lesson!" he continued.


    The students nodded in realization. Eventhough the academy has a number of teachers of the 5 star rank Appraiser class and above, they were still considered only a few compared to the other occupations.


    This was because the Appraiser class could be said to be the most difficult for the minor occupation as it required an extremely vast and diverse knowledge. It would not be an exageration to say that the Appraiser class requires the students to be knowledgeable in most other fields as well as it was part of the requirements in order to rank up.


    In other words, an Appraiser class could be considered as a walking encyclopedia that could appraise any items, objects or artifacts, be that mineral ores for the blacksmith class, herbs and pills for the medical class, and weapons for the combat class!


    Such surmounting task has become the bane of many students inside the academy, which was also the reason why there were only a few students here that were willing to take up to the challenge.


    Noticing the students has returned back to their peak attention, the teacher nodded in approval of their attitude. He thought that it would require more effort from him to convince them, but now it appears that these students had already understood the predicament of being an Appraiser!


    An aspiring Appraiser must have the sharpness in their minds to understand the crux and intricacies of the problems at hand quickly, if they could not even understand this, then they wouldn''t be able to get far in the future.


    Feeling satisfied, he then moved behind the semi-circular table where a lot of items were placed on it.


    Taking a book with the title ''Background of the Tian continent'', he lifted it with his right hand and showed it to the rest of the students.


    "As everyone here are interested to become a successful Appraiser, I am pretty sure that most of you were an avid readers of history yourself, and the contents within this book should be memorized by heart!"


    "For those of you who were just starting out, let me summarized what this book is all about."


    The teacher then explained that as an Appraiser, learning history should be theirbackbone and foundation. The more they learn, the better they would be able to perform.


    This was because the history could tell a lot about the culture and traditions of the people within the Tian continent. These could be ranging from the numerous dynasties throughout the ages, the differing weapons, items, objects and artifacts produced during their era, as well as people''s way of life back then.


    Only through being able to understand and knowledgeable about these numerous history, could an Appraiser be able to properly date and identify the items they have at hand.


    This was also what separated an Appraiser class from every other occupations as well. They were more of a bookworm type of people, and most influential and high star ranking Appraiser class has an excellent recollection of history, even the most peculiar, uncommon and exotic ones, would not be able to get past their eyes and knowledge!


    "Now that I have briefed you all about that, let us get into the practical session. Placed on top of this table were numerous items, objects and artifacts. They were a little bit uncommon, but as an Appraiser, this should be the first hurdle for everyone here to overcome!"


    He lifted a token up and pointed towards a student, "Can you tell me what this item is?"


    The student that was pointed at stood up as he bowed a little bit. This was a customary gesture from a student towards a teacher. It serves as a discipline and a form of respect as well.


    "If I am not mistaken, that is a token that was used during the warring period before the foundation of the Jiu empire. It symbolizes the identity of the elite soldiers of the Jiu clan!" said this student.


    Hearing his answer, the teacher''s brows raised upwards as he nodded.


    "Impressive! Allthough a lot of people knew about the history regarding the foundation of our Jiu empire, not many were knowledgeable about how it happened, not to mention the little details within that history!"


    "For you to be able to identify this token at a single glance, meaning that you have a deep knowledge about them as well! Very good!"


    The student smiled widely ear-to-ear after being complimented by the teacher, and some others were amazed as well. But there were also others who weren''t clearly moved by this, as if such knowledge was just a matter of fact for them as well.


    "Humph! I learnt about that token when I was just three years old. Such basic stuff, who wouldn''t know?"


    "Exactly, what was he being so proud of from something so insignificant? If it were me, I could even identify the undergarments of those soldiers that they wore back then!"


    Pu!


    Some students could not help but to choke when they heard these exagerated comments.


    Brother! You should be taking up archaeology class instead!


    An undergarments from centuries ago would have long been broken down into sand or was fossilized inside a ruin!


    Ahem!


    The teacher made a dry cough again to silence the ruckus.


    "Moving on! Let''s see... Aha! You there, could you tell me what this thing is?" said the teacher as he pointed out towards Duan Li.


    As he was being pointed at, Duan Li stood up and bowed like the student before him. Naturally, he wouldn''t know what that odly oval-shaped looking wood were. It was just like a crescent moon and was slightly curved on its surface.


    Thus, Duan Li activated his identify ability from the Tetra Unsealing art as he scanned that peculiar object. The voices of the Mirealithians soon sounded inside his mind, and his face immediately lost its colours after that.


    Should I answer it?


    Would anyone even believe me if I did?


    Seeing Duan Li hesitating, the teacher chuckled for a bit.


    "It seems that you are having a quite hard time eh? Nevermind. You there, can you tell me what this is?" the teacher pointed out towards another student.


    That student quickly got up from his seat, bowed and then earnestly answered.


    "That is part of the design wore atop of the helmet of a warlord like a horn. Although I am not sure from which helmet model it was from, but judging from its appearance like the horn of a bull, it should belong to the warring Xia clan ages ago. I''ve once encountered their flag symbol during my readings and they had started out as a humble villager, domesticating bull to help with their farm works."


    Pu!


    Duan Li could not help but to choke hard in order to suppress his laughter when he heard this answer, and because he was the only one that was doing so while still standing, all the other students looked at him.


    The students that had answered in his place immediately frowned upon seeing this reaction from Duan Li.


    "What was so funny about that? Do you think my deductions are wrong?"


    Seeing that it wasn''t appropiate for him to act like what he did, Duan Li quickly apologized towards the other party.


    "I''m sorry, it was just that... your deductions are way off from what that item actually is!" replied Duan Li.


    Hearing this, the student flared up and quickly refuted, "Is that so? Then can you tell me what that item is in detail, just like what I did?"


    "Well..." Duan Li hesitated for a bit as he turned towards the teacher, where the latter just smiled and nodded.


    Gaining the approval from the teacher, Duan Li''s final hesitation was lifted as he turned back towards the student who refuted him.


    "That object was actually... the paddings of a toilet seat!" he said seriously.


    Pu!


    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!


    The whole class got cracked up by Duan Li''s answer. Some of them even laughed until they began to shed tears.


    To overturned what the other party had said after such a detailed explanation, we have thought that you would come up with an even impressive answer to back up yourself!


    Who would have thought that your answer would be to claim it as the paddings of toilet seat instead?!


    Brother! Even if we have ten more guts than you, we would definitely not be able to say it as confidently as you!


    The laughter continues before that student''s face flushed up red in anger.


    "Brazen! How dare you claimed that the symbolic element of the Xia clan as the paddings of a toilet seat!" he shouted out.


    Ahem!


    The teacher then made a dry cough yet again to silence the stir that was made by Duan Li.


    "Well, what he said was actually correct!" the teacher said.


    "Did you hear that? The teacher even said that I am correct! If you wanted to be a clown, then you should apply for the Clown class occupation instead and not disturb the holy atmosphere here!" the students said as he sneered in disdain towards Duan Li.


    "Not you, I meant him. He was correct in his appraisal that this object was indeed the paddings of a toilet seat!" the teacher interjected as he cupped his chin, looking amused at Duan Li.


    EH?


    Hearing the teacher that had said it himself, the whole class got stupefied, including the student that was arguing with Duan Li. Their faces were all showing the puffer fish like expression right now.


    Teacher, are you trying to play pranks on us right now?


    "T-that! I refused to believe it!" refuted the student again as he gritted his teeth, his face was so red from the embarrassment.


    Some of the students had also nodded to support him as they were also not convinced as well.


    The teacher then shook his head with a chuckle as he beckoned towards all of the students to come down onto the platform and observe closely.


    It was only after closer inspection that most of the students could finally agree that the object was indeed, a paddings for a toilet seat!


    The student that refuted before was now mute as he looked down straight onto the floor.


    "Do you guys know why I decided to brought this thing here today?" the teacher asked with his hands clasped behind his back.


    After a moment of pondering, the students shook their heads, unable to comprehend the meaning behind it all.


    "It was because that as an Appraiser, we are oftenly too obsessed with seeing a peculiar object as if it has a profound background!"


    "Inevitably, this had also become a trap of some sort for us. Therefore, what I wanted you students to learn here, was that before deciding what an object truly is, you should try to analyze it from every different angles and perspectives first!"


    "When you follow this guide carefully, you would soon find yourselves to have several differing answers before you. By then, you would only need to go through the elimination process in order to make that final conclusion!"


    The teacher explained carefully his motives behind this towards his students. Only then did they come with the realization and nodded in agreement.


    Even that student before then had acceeded to his mistake, and apologized to Duan Li.


    "En! That is a very good attitude to have! As an Appraiser, one must have the capacity to be able to see things beyond the surface. A single mistake earned, is a single lesson learned!" complimented the teacher towards that student.


    "There would be times when our arrogance would overtook us. But remember, when we are proven wrong, that would only mean that we are not yet qualified to act as so."


    "And we are bounded to make many mistakes in our lifetime to remind us of this, and through these, we would be able to find that humility, is the actual key!"


    "No matter how knowledgeable every single one of you would become one day, never ever forget, that you had trodden such a path from a single step encountering mistakes one after another to shape what you are."


    "And being a cultivator, our journey is something that is eternal, as the dao is but boundless and never-ending!"


    BOOM!


    When all of the students listened to this, it was as if something within them was being evoked! A magical feeling and strucks of inspiration coursed through their minds as they quickly sat down cross-legged to cultivate.


    It was from this moment on, that their innate potentials had been unlocked. They are now destined for greatness, but only those with affinity, will triumph above the rest!


    The teacher smiled as he nodded, feeling immensely satisfied as he looked at the Duan Li, whom was the only one left standing.


    "So, you are that Duan Li? Not too shabby!" he chuckled out.


    Seeing that all of the students were now cultivating, he decided to stop the class early. After all, there was nothing more important to a cultivator than their cultivation!


    He soon left the class room, but just before his silhouette was gone, only Duan Li was able to make out that token of his that suddenly changed using his Tetra Unsealing art!


    That token was actually an 8 star rank Appraiser class!


    ...

 76 Chapter 75: The Combat Class! 1

    "Now that class has finished early, I still have two more hours before the next class..." said Duan Li as he pondered for what to do.


    In the academy, there was only a maximum of two lessons per day. The students themselves were given choices on which timeslot they wanted to attend for their classes according to the availability for the week. Normally, an occupation would only have around two classes per week.


    This was because the academy strongly emphasizes for its students to do more self-learning. After all, the path of being a cultivator is where one had to rely on oneself.


    Although the academy was responsible to nurture their students, the academy themselves only serves to act as a guide by giving the students proper insights towards the crux of cultivation.


    Furthermore, the academy themselves was a facility of the empire, tasked to distribute the empire''s resources accordingly in order to produce as many capable and diverse ranges of knights as possible.


    These Knights were the graduates from the academy, and they were the military backbone of the empire. Against the threat that surrounds the empire everyday, whatnot with the increasing activity of the monsters, the empire needed strong cultivators to protect its sovereignty.


    Therefore, if a student did not try their best to break through their cultivation states for at least by a few levels within a year, the academy would kick them out for wasting the resources of the empire!


    After a while, since the next class was the combat class, Duan Li decided to go to the library to read some books regarding martial arts and skill arts.


    ...


    Inside the library, there were people who realized who he was, and these people whispered to each other. However, due to the unique runic formations laid inside the library, there was only a peaceful silence that enabled Duan Li to focus as he continued to read books after books.


    "Hmm.. all these martial and skill arts were somehow familiar to me. Was it because of my memories?" thought Duan Li as he quickly skimmed through the book he was currently reading.


    Since an hour ago, he had managed to read through 36 books already. Such a reading speed would definitely be impossible if it were anyone else!


    In fact, what Duan Li just said was half correct. Previously, when his memories had merged together, he could only recall some bits and pieces if he tried hard in recollecting them.


    This was because all those memories were fuddled, jumbled and mixed together as if being compressed and archived with numerous locks on them as a security measure.


    After all, it was the memories of his whole lifetime from another timeline. If it were to continuously play inside his mind, he might even had an identity crisis because of it.


    This was why he managed to quickly understand the contents within those books as they acted like the keys to his memories.


    However, what helped him to double this speed was actually due to the photographic memory and supreme analytical skills that was given to him by the golden mysterious pearl!


    Any martial and skill arts that he had already learnt would quickly propagate his learning capabilities of the next martial and skill arts that dwelves aroundthe same basics and foundations!


    Therefore, when he started to read the books at such a blazing speed, it had inevitably attracted a number of people that were observing him.


    "Would you look at that pile of books? How did he even managed to read so fast?!" exclaimed a shocked student.


    "Eh, he is probably just skimming through those books to look at some skill arts that would be compatible for him." commented another student.


    "Or because he was just trying to show off and doesn''t actually read anything at all? After all, he was THAT Duan Li that people were currently talking about like hotcakes." an unconvinced student replied.


    "That''s possible. He might be trying to market himself as a capable yet mysterious Lord. I didn''t apply to become his followers yet because I felt the whole situation to be quite off somehow." said another student.


    "Me too! I felt that it was like one hell of a big scam! But he did purchased that expensive residence court though..."


    As these kinds of conversation were happening around in the library, Duan Li had finally finished reading the 40th books!


    "Well, its about time for the Combat class to start, I should leave for class now..." he said as he left the library under the watchful eyes of the observer and the gossiping juniors.


    "Eh, where is he going right now?"


    "Probably for a class, I''m guessing it should be the Combat class!"


    "Yeah, after all that ruckus he made inside the cafeteria, almost everyone knows what his major and minor occupations were."


    "Those combat class were filled to the brim with a lot of people mainly from the Warrior class. I wonder how he would fare later on as someone from a Lord class. If I''m not mistaken, the first lesson of the combat class should be a battle royale!"


    "That''s right! The lesson would be conducted at the main field later on and there is also viewing grandstand too! Let''s head over there guys!"


    "Damn it, I''m excited! The first class would definitely be a bloodbath!"


    ...


    After summoning the little cub once again to help him steered into the correct destination, Duan Li managed to make his way onto the main field where hundreds of scary-looking people had already gathered, men and women alike.


    Of course, due to the presence of the little cub, there was a trail of female students following behind Duan Li, and this had once again caught the attention of the people, especially the ones on the field.


    "Damn it, it''s that guy again! How dare he brought along his fan club to defile this holy land!" said a man as he gritted his teeth in agitation.


    "Arghh! I haven''t yet to have a single girlfriend to my name, and yet this guy has already had these many girls following around behind him?! Arghh! I''m indignant!" howled out an unkempt burly man.


    "This guy is the public enemy of men!"


    "Shameless!"


    "I curse your whole ancestors!"


    ...


    A lot of the men were shouting and roaring out at the top of their lungs as they looked at Duan Li with fiery eyes! Somehow, these fellas had huddled up together subconsciously and made an impromptu coalition force to face against Duan Li, whom they labelled as the number one evil entity of the holy land.


    Looking at them agitated like that, Duan Li couldn''t help but to swallow a mouthful of saliva!


    Gulp!


    "W-what the?! Why do I feel that their eyes are all looking at me with such anger in? Did I do something wrong?" said Duan Li feeling quite stumped.


    Brothers! I did not even murder your whole family, why are you guys being like this?


    Ahem!


    Suddenly, a single dry cough echoed out onto the field. It wasn''t loud and appeared to be extremely ordinary, if not slightly deep in its tone.


    But, this single dry cough had silenced the whole field instantly, including the people who were cheering merrily at the grandstand by the side!


    It was as if, this single dry cough had the power to bend the natural laws and order! If this voice were to command the sun to stop shining and for the moon to come up instead, they would immediately heed to the owner of this voice without delay!


    Of course, this was but an exageration, but it was how these people on the field felt! The pressure from that dry cough alone was too tyrannical! Even Duan Li''s face had turned grim.


    When everyone turned around towards that large platform at the front, there stood an elderly man with a topless attire. Behind him, stood rows of teachers with their hands clasped behind their backs!


    This elderly man has a bald head and his face was wrinkled. His brows were white and his white beards had grown down to his chest!


    This elderly man was about 2.5 metres tall, and supporting him standing was the massive brown walking stick in front of him, with both hands laid on it casually as he pressed down.


    If one were to think that this elder was someone fragile from this description, then they could be considered as a blind person.


    This tall, elderly man stood straight like the mountain Tai jutting all the way to the heavens! Such that, even if the whole world were to collapse, he would remained unfazed by it all and continued to stood straight until the end!


    His body was the most toughest and brutal-looking that Duan Li had ever saw on a person. With chest like the boulders from the mountains and abs that looked rock solid like the seabed, it was as if nothing could beat this elderly man at all!


    A lot of gruesome scars could also be seen on the body of this elderly man that was radiating out immense pressure onto the masses, evidence that he, was a veteran of the battlefield!


    On his waist, was a token with a clear tell-tale symbol of his unprecedented might, a 10 star rank Combat class!


    As everyone waited nervously, this elderly man finally began to speak.


    "New students of the Combat class, I am Shen Long, a senior teacher of the academy in charge of this class!" this elderly man spoke out casually.


    All the people immediately stood straight like a soldier that was about to go to war when they heard this voice, even Duan Li was no exception.


    "As you might already know, the first lesson of a Combat class for the new juniors would be the battle royale!"


    "However, there are three rules to be followed in this coming battle, those who failed to comply, will be executed on the spot!"


    "First, only palm, fingers, fist and leg strikes are allowed in this battle! In other words, martial arts only! No skill arts are to be used in any circumstances at all!"


    "Second, no external help are allowed as well! That means, no weapons, no pills, and no talismans are to be used in this battle!"


    "Third, you are forbidden to take lives, in other words, no killing!"


    As the elderly man laid out these three rules, some were relieved while others seemed panicked. A number of roller-coster emotions were happening to each and every single one on the field right now.


    But if one emotion that everyone was sharing at this moment, it was the feeling of their blood boiling!


    The eagerness to battle!


    "Could there be reasons why this elderly man only allowed the use of physical force in this battle?" Duan Li pondered in his mind.


    After all, with such rules, there were nowpeople that had became severely disadvantaged by this. However, by the looks of things, it seems that these people only had that worried look on their face for a moment before it left them entirely.


    Since they already knew what the first lesson would be, naturally they had already made plenty and sufficient preparations beforehand!


    Only idiots would cling to false hopes that the rules would be changed to suit them.


    "I will give everyone here a time of five breaths to sparse yourself away from each other right now before we begin!"


    Pshew!


    Pshew!


    Pshew!


    The crowd immediately began to distance themselves away from each other like a receding tides. Now, there were more spaces between each students.


    Eh?


    But what surprised this elderly man was, the people that was around Duan Li all faced towards the latter!


    "Interesting!" said the elderly man inwardly to himself.


    Dup! Dup!


    Dup! Dup!


    There was an eery silence right now on the field, like the calm before the storm that made everyone nervous as their eyes intently moved around to see if anyone had locked onto them.


    "Begin!" the elderly man shouted out, like a gong that marks the beginning of a heaven-shattering battle!


    ....

 77 Chapter 76: The Combat Class! 2

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    AHHHHHHHH!!!


    When the elderly man gave the green signal to start, all of the students started fighting out against one another. Some could be seen making a small group of temporary allies to fight another group. There were also others who preferred to fight solo while the cunning ones avoided the fight altogether to reap in the last benefits.


    However, the most striking ones on the battlefield right now were the groups of people that were rushing through to surround against an enemy they dubbed as the ''evil entity'' of the holy land!


    "W-why are all these people targeting me?" exclaimed Duan Li in shock as he readied himself into a defensive stance.


    When Duan Li scanned through these people with his identify ability, he was glad that most of them was only at the Qi condensation level. Most were at the early and middle stage, only some were at the late and pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm.


    This was because everyone on the field right now was just a fresh junior intake of the academy like Duan Li. There were also others who were at the Foundation establishment realm, but these were all the geniuses of some famous clans across the Jiu empire, and people were avoiding them like a plague in order to not get on their bad side.


    By the looks of things, it seems that these geniuses would only fight against one another after the small fries were all defeated around them.


    "HAHA! You have no escape path, we have blocked you from all sides!" shouted an excited student towards Duan Li.


    "Beg for your puny little life right now and maybe, JUST maybe, we will consider to just rough you up slightly! Otherwise... don''t blame us for going overboard!Hehehe!"


    "Evil entity! For the sake of justice towards all the men here, we shall topple and de-throne you down!"


    A lot of the people that were surrounding him right now has made similar statements. For the life of his, Duan Li could just not make sense of what these deranged fellas wanted with him.


    "Their strength are not a threat for me, but with these sheer numbers alone, it could definitely pose a problem! Not only that, I have to carefully adjust my strength to every single person here so that I do not end up to accidentally kill them..!"


    When all the skill arts were banned, the only thing that was left for them to fight with was using their raw strength. To Duan Li whose physical body was at the pinnacle of the Foundation establishment realm right now, he was much stronger than these people.


    But, this also meant that he needed superior control of his physical strength, and perhaps, this was also one of the goal for the first lesson of the Combat class as well.


    "CHARGEEE!!"


    No one knew who was the one that shouted first, but because of that, the people surrounding Duan Li right now were letting out warcries one after another as they rushed forward at Duan Li to get a piece of him.


    AHHHHHHHH!!!


    Someone had been spreading the actual Physical strength of Duan Li, and when these people found out about that, they decided to not hold back anything at all!


    Swishhh!


    A front punch was thrown directly onto Duan Li''s face as he evaded it by slightly moving to the left.


    Swisshhh!


    Another punch was thrown towards his left ribs and he dodged it by retreating half a step backward.


    Swisshhh!


    A kick was thrown behind his right knee that was supporting his weight, giving him no choice but to turn around and lower his stance so that the kick only hits the side of his thigh, which does no damage at all.


    Swisshhh!


    Two fingers struck out heading towards Duan Li''s eyes, forcing him to block inwards using his palm and swiping it to the right.


    Swisshhh!


    A palm attack was heading towards the back of his head targetting for a concussion to destabilize him. Left with no choice, Duan Li''s eyes gleamed like an eagle as he decided to make a counter-attack!


    Whooshh!


    Duan Li spinned his body to the right with a slight jump. Throwing a left kick while in mid-air, his right hand grabbed at the wrist of the owner of that palm strike at the same time, to act as a hand stand by borrowing its forward force.


    BAM!


    He managed to land a heavy kick towards the owner of the two fingers strike before, and then quickly landed to the ground while twisting his upper body with a slight spin to the right. As he lowered his center of gravity, a centrifugal force was created from the momentum that allowed him to threw the person that was locked by his right hand onto the one that attacked him on his thigh before!


    BAM!


    Immediately dashing forward for a single step, he kneed another person on the face and the other got elbowed by him in a single instant. These were the five people that had attacked him before.


    Hissss!


    The crowd sucked in cold breath as they watched this scene that happened in just less than three breaths!


    During that three breaths of time, five people had ganged up on him from multiple directions at the same time. Yet, not only do their attacks had failed, all of them were even counter-attacked in a single sweep by the other party!


    Formidable!!


    Due to this shocking performance of Duan Li with his martial arts, the people that surrounded him began to back up for a bit as they hesitated.


    "Damn it! What is with this guy?! How is he so formidable!"


    "I can''t even see clearly his stances when he changed from defense to supportive stance and immediately to attacking! It''s like they were combined!"


    "Idiot! That''s called a combo you fool! It''s formidable indeed, but we still got the numbers! For the sake of our pride now that we have him surrounded, unless we successfully beat him, we would become a laughing stock for everyone!"


    "That''s right! If we lost against him while having him surrounded and outnumbered, people would laugh at us! Let''s beat him up again!"


    AAAHHHHHHHH!


    These people then let out warcries once more to steel themselves for another attack at Duan Li.


    Noticing this, Duan Li''s eyes narrowed together.


    "Not good! The attack that would come after this would surely be even fiercer! It would be hard for me to control my strength if they all rushed in together! I have to get out from this encirclement!"


    Resolving himself, Duan Li breath in a mouthful of air as he dashed straight to the front, launching fist attacks at the same time.


    When the crowd saw this, at first they were startled and didn''t expect for the other party to pre-emptively strike at them first!


    Even worse, a single punch from Duan Li was already enough to knock a person out cold, even the five people that was counter-attacked by him previously are now lying on the ground twitching, unconscious!


    Soon, when Duan Li began to push forward even more with trails of incapacitated people behind him, some people started to realize what he was aiming for.


    "Damn it! He is trying to break through from our encirclement! Don''t let him get out!"


    "People at the back, break up and flank him from the sides! We need to whittle his stamina down!"


    "Arghh! Damn it! We can''t move! There are also another groups of people fighting at the back!"


    "Curses! At this rate, he will escape!"


    The people here knew that once Duan Li escaped from their encirclement, their temporary coalition would immediately break down due to their common foe was gone, leaving only themselves to fight against one another!


    They were planning to continue to surround him until his stamina were depleted, because in the field right now, there were runic formations being activated that blocked out spiritual Qi to prevent cultivators from recovering their stamina by breathing in spiritual Qi. Otherwise, this battle royale would go on for weeks!


    This was also the reason why they were confident in attacking Duan Li. Even if the other party were stronger in cultivation states and breathing technique compared to them, with no spiritual Qi to breath in, the other party would soon tire himself out and be easily defeated by their large numbers!


    BOOOOO!!


    The people who were watching this scene from the grandstand were boo-ing the crowd of people that surrounded Duan Li right now.


    "Shameless! To attack a single person by outnumbering him, the juniors this year are quite brazen!"


    "But look, they were the ones that were getting pummeled instead! That Duan Li is quite formidable with his martial arts!"


    "Yeah, his stances are so fluid! Perhaps only the seniors could compare to him right now in terms of martial arts prowess!"


    "Hurry up Duan Li! Escape from their formation!"


    At this moment, most of the viewers attention were focused entirely onto Duan Li and his attempt to break through!


    Some of them even began to stood up with their fists clenched tight in agitation and excitement! Even their blood was boiling, and if this were not the first lesson that was specifically for the juniors only, they would had already stepped into the field right now to add more to the mayhem and cause chaos!


    For Xiahou Yu that was sitting calmly right now while biting through that crispy fried chicken on her hand, she was confident that Duan Li would be able to get out from being surrounded somehow.


    After all, he was someone with a predestined future. Even Wang Guozhi, Ling Yu, Ran Yang and the principal himself were viewing this battle with similar thoughts as well.


    However, if there was one thing that were able to shock and amaze them, it was that the martial arts of Duan Li right now was showing a noticeable improvement at a very rapid pace!


    "Hmm.. this young man, is he using those crowd of people to temper his martial arts as he went along?" commented Shen Long, the elderly man with the 10 star rank Combat class token as his interest was piqued.


    However, the truth was, Duan Li had never once thought about tempering his martial arts this way. Right now, he was earnestly trying to escape from the deranged fellas that was rushing at him non-stop!


    Therefore subconsciously, this pressure had enabled his control of martial arts to become both solid and fluid!


    Swissshhh!


    Swissshhh!


    Swissshhh!


    A myriad number of punches, kicks, palms, fingers, elbows and knees were being thrown out relentlessly by Duan Li right now. Wherever he dashed through, people would be sent flying here and there.


    (Author''s note: you can imagine this scene like when Uchiha Madara was first reincarnated and fought single-handedly against the army of the shinobi alliance at the desert :p)


    Slowly, Duan Li was already approaching the outer rims of the encirclement.


    "Curses! We can''t contain him!"


    "Damn! We can''t push forward anymore! There is another group fighting at the side, if we move into their range, we would be attacked immediately!"


    Not long after that, Duan Li had finally managed to escape from their formation as he continued to dash forward into the distance.


    "He... escaped..!"


    "Unbelievable! We have more than 300 people here!"


    "Hey look behind!"


    When these people turned around, they shuddered from what they saw. Due to the heat of the moment, they ignored the people that were being defeated by Duan Li one after another in their frantic attempt to stop him from escaping.


    Lying on the ground were about a hundred people twitching like dying cicadas. At the sight of this scene, they sucked in another cold breath subconsciously.


    Hisss!


    To think that they had not realize that the other party had already defeated so many of them. If they continued, would they actually be the one to be wiped out instead?


    It did not take long for the crowd to process this, and when they came to a realization, their entire coalition broke down immediately, as they began to fight against one another.


    ...


    Meanwhile, far in the distance, Duan Li sighed in relief.


    "Holy-moly! That was a close one indeed! I need to lay low for a while and recover some of my stamina first!" said Duan Li as he hid behind a pile of unconscious people.


    Unknowingly, a pair of eyes had already locked onto his figure from the distance.


    This pair of eyes belonged to a burly man with long black hairs and red pupils. He was just sitting cross-legged on the field right now surrounded by fallen people.


    "Kekeke!"


    ...

 78 Chapter 77: The Combat Class! 3

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    "Hmm? What is with this chilling sensation?" said Duan Li as he suddenly felt uncomfortable, like someone was watching him from afar.


    When he looked around to see where the source of that uncomfortable feeling was coming from, his eyes caught sight of a burly figure sitting cross-legged on the ground just like him, about 100 meters away and was looking at him intently with a wide grin.


    "What a dangerous looking man!" exclaimed Duan Li in shock when he felt the reverberations of Qi signature around that figure.


    The Qi that the figure emitted was unique,ravaging and swirling around him in a random pattern.


    "This feeling... that person is also at the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm? But it''s stronger than me.. was it the fifth level? Or the sixth?"


    Looking at that strange gaze the figure was giving him, Duan Li was a little bit unsettled by it.


    "Judging by the people that had fallen around him, he must have fought solo against those guys too and was now in the process of recovering his stamina... I shouldn''t be dilly-dallying!"


    Closing his eyes, the All-Seeing eye ability was activated. After doing a quick check on his internal state, he found out that he had roughly spent about 10 percent of his stamina during the previous fight against those people that surrounded him before.


    The reason why he had only spent such a small amount of stamina on them was because they were weak and the level of power output he used on them was small as well.


    But against this person that was giving him that weird gaze, his instincts told him that their total raw strength should be about similar level. If they clashed out, things wouldn''t be pretty and he would had to expend quite a lot of stamina by then.


    Thus, Duan Li needed to recover himself to the peak status in order to prepare himself for the worse.


    And it turns out that he was correct!


    As soon as his stamina was back at its peak, the burly man with the long dark hair and red glowing pupils stood up and approached at him slowly in an imposing manner!


    "Kekeke! If I am not mistaken, you are that Duan Li, the new Lord that people were talking about quite recently? I heard that you were recruiting for followers?" asked the burly man with a grin on his face, his eyes looked straight onto Duan Li''s, as if trying to peer the secrets inside him.


    "That''s correct, I am a Lord and my name is Duan Li... you are?" replied Duan Li as he slowly adjusted himself onto a defensive stance. He was feeling quite warry right now.


    "My name is Shen Murong! I have an objective to achieve and was looking for a very capable Lord for it. Since you are one of them, I was about to apply to become one of your followers under a single condition!" the man called Shen Murong answered as he crossed the both of his arms together on his chest.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s eyebrows creased a little. He had mixed feelings right now. Due to this man that seemed to be very strong-looking, he was happy that the other party was trying to apply to become one of his followers. By then, the overall battle prowess of his party would increase by a few notch to have a better chance faring against the oncoming monster stampede!


    But on the other hand, Duan Li wasn''t sure if he could handle this person well. The objective that this person wanted to achieve was quite mysterious as well. Therefore, Duan Li decided to ask him.


    "I see... what is that objective of yours? And your condition?"


    Shen Murong laughed out.


    "Kekeke! The condition is that you have to beat me in this battle, only then will I join you willingly! As for my objective, naturally I would only tell you after I become your followers right? Prepare yourself!!"


    BOOM!


    As soon as Shen Murong finished his sentence, his aura bursted forth and sent pressure onto the whole battlefield! The surrounding students that were currently fighting stopped what they were doing as they couldn''t help but to be drawn in towards Duan Li and Shen Murong.


    The aura that surrounded this Shen Murong was black and crimson coiling against one another, creating a vivid image of a demon from hell that had descended onto the mortal plane to cause chaos!


    "Urgh! What is with this pressure?!"


    "Look, its from that scary looking man!"


    "Fool! Don''t let him heard you saying that! That''s the grandson of Shen Long!"


    "Eh? He is fighting against that evil entity? HAHA! You had us good before eh Duan Li? Let''s see how you fare against him!"


    Feeling this stifling sensation, somehow instead of turning panic, Duan Li''s mouth curled into a smile subconsciously. His instincts was itching for a good fight.


    "Hmm? He is smiling against me?" thought Shen Murong to himself, a little bit surprised with Duan Li''s reaction.


    BOOM!


    Duan Li released out his suppressed aura as well, and unknowingly to him, his aura had changed a lot after his adventure inside the Eternal maze.


    Now, the aura that he was emitting had a trace of gold and crimson shades to it. Although this aura was subtle looking as compared to that of Shen Murong, the pressure it radiated out was even more torrential and pressing compared with the other party!


    Against a person as strong as Shen Murong, Duan Li had decided to use all 100 percent of his raw strength in this battle! He didn''t dare to underestimate the other party at all!


    The elderly man that stood upright like mountain Tai on the platform right now, whom was Shen Murong''s grandfather, was surprised by the amount of aura that Duan Li was releasing.


    "Hmm... such a thick aura, what sort of bloodlines does he have to be comparable in strength with my grandson?" he thought silently.


    Even Shen Murong''s face turned serious when he felt the aura that was released by Duan Li as he readied himself onto a stance as well.


    "It looks like I have underestimated you, seems like you are a monster as well eh? Kekeke!"


    The combined aura from Duan Li and Shen Murong caused the surrounding students to step back away from them as far as possible. The feeling that those aura gave them was like two wild beasts that was about to have a showdown to the death!


    Whooshh!


    Whooshh!


    The two men dashed forward together at the same time, with a clenched fists, they both throwed out a punch.


    BOOOMMMM!!


    Their fists collided against one another, resulting in a deafening shockwave that sent ripples of powers to their surrounding. Some of the weaker students got blown over while others that managed to stood on their ground firmly got pushed back creating a long trail on the ground from their feet.


    "To think that a mere punch from them could cause such a shockwave? This is insane!"


    "How strong is their physical body right now for such an effect to occur? This is way beyond the power level of a Foundation establishment realm!"


    "It seems that Duan Li was holding back against us previously! Otherwise, we would''ve been turned into bloody mists with such a punch! Deader than dead!"


    The resulting collision of their fists also caused the both of them to be pushed backwards, both spurted out a little blood from their mouth.


    "HAHAHA! Interesting! Now this is a battle!" Shen Murong laughed out loud as he dashed forward once more.


    Duan Li just smiled in reply to Shen Murong''s statement as he dashed forward to meet up with the other party with his fists.


    BOOOMM!!


    BOOOMM!!


    BOOOMM!!


    A serious of deafening booms rumbled out across the whole battlefield, from each punch, the surrounding students would get pushed back further. From each kick, a portion of the ground got blasted off into the air! When their elbows met against one another, it was as if volcanoes were erupting violently!!


    BOOOMMM!!


    BOOOMMM!!


    BOOOMMM!!.


    "Arghh! I can''t hold it anymore! The deafening shockwaves even rattled my bones!"


    "Quick! We need to get out from this field!"


    "What monstrosity display of raw strength! I could understand Shen Murong''s power because of his dragon bloodline, but Duan Li? Who is he actually?!"


    Right now, both of the men were riddled with injuries and blood on their body, but none seemed to look fatigue nor hold back against one another even the tiniest bit!


    "HAHAHA! This is more than what I bargained for! Good! Time to step this up!!"


    ROAAARRRR!!!


    Shen Murong roared out onto the skies as his aura grew more savage and barbaric! The shades of his aura grew darker and more potent as his strength skyrocketed by at least 10 times!


    Black veins popped out and covered his whole body as his hair whipped tyrannically on the air! Then, two horns slowly jutted out from both of his temples that made him looked like the true reincarnation of a devil!


    (Author''s note: You can imagine this like Devil Jin from the game Tekken! ;) )


    "Fool! What is that idiot grandson of mine got so excited for to activate his bloodline power?!" Shen Long face turned grim as he prepared to step in immediately.


    But before he was able to, something even more shocking to him happened!


    ROOOAARRRRR!!!


    Duan Li roared out to the skies as well as his aura bursted forth like the dam got broken and the heaven was collapsing!


    Right now, Duan Li''s aura was even more visible and the pressure it sent out was huge and colossal!


    Streaks of blue lightning flashed out ever so slightly that covered Duan Li''s whole body as both of his pupils turned golden and his hair rose up like the peaks of mountain Tai!


    The students that still remained on the battlefield immediately spurted out blood and the viewers on the grandstand were pressed down hard onto their seat!


    "This battle is now going out of control! Teleport the whole students from the field out of there immediately! Seal the battlefield with a spatial barrier of tier 4 now!!" Shen Long commanded out at the teachers behind him.


    With a series of complex hand incantation gestures, both the unconscious students and the still standing ones were teleported out from the battlefield instantly before a spatial barrier covered it out, eliminating the immense pressure that was leaking out and containing it within the barrier.


    But even so, the barrier was showing signs of vibrating immensely under the combined might of both Duan Li''s and Shen Murong''s tyrannical aura!


    "Kuh! I have still underestimated you! To think that you would have such a hidden trump card as well! But very good! Let us decide the winner of this battle with a single punch!" Shen Murong shouted out as he clenched his fist tight.


    Duan Li nodded without saying anything as he clenched his fist as well.


    "This should be the final moment to decide which one of them is superior!" said Shen Long to himself.


    Whoosshh!!


    Whoosshh!!


    BBOOOMMMMMM!!


    The whole ground of the battlefield got blown off to dust as people by the grandstand that watched this scene unfolding before them had to squint and cover their eyes due to the blinding flash of light from the extreme collision between the two monster''s fist!


    Who won?


    This was the question that everyone was eager to know right now.


    ...

 79 Chapter 78: One more follower!

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    Swishhh...


    The dust had blocked everyone''s view from being able to see the end result between the clash of the two monsters properly. But to the eyes of the nascent soul realm experts, with their soul sense, the scene that they had witnessed was as clear as day.


    These were the senior teachers of the academy, and right now, most of them were shaking their heads.


    Even Shen Long, the 10 star rank Combat veteran, had closed the both of his eyes. No one knew what he was currently thinking about.


    Could it be that one of them had died from that clash?


    The spectators were all waiting with full of anxiety for the dust to settle down. At this moment, no one dared to even make a single sound at all! Even their breathing was silent. It was as if they were afraid that any noise they make would attract everyone''s ire.


    "T-this! Impossible!"


    "How can this be? To think that he lost?!"


    "Damn it, my money!"


    Right now, when the dust had finally settled down, they could see a man standing firm on his ground, as if a mountain that had endured the countless batterings of time.


    With tattered clothing and his body riddled with numerous injuries, this man stood tall and looked extremely attractive under such a state.


    Some of the women had even started to gasp in disbelief under such a charismatic sight before them!


    If there was one word to describe this person at the moment, it would be..


    Manly!


    Extremely manly!


    YEAAAAAA!!!!!


    No one knew who started to cheer first, but soon, everyone followed suit as their cheers slowly rattled the ground beneath them!


    To them, it didn''t really matter who actually won during that final clash, because as far as they were concerned, the battle was unlike everything else that they had witnessed before!


    It was truly satisfying!


    There were some though, who cried emotionally. A part of these people that cried out was because of the manly battle between Duan Li and Shen Murong that had touched the very depths of their hearts and soul, while the majority that cried was also due to the emotional breakdown, not from the fight but because they lost in gambling.


    To think that Duan Li had actually won!


    Who would''ve thought that a junior student that just only recently rose in fame had won that monstrosity of a battle instead?


    "Holy! Brother was actually this strong! If I hadn''t witnessed it myself, I wouldn''t have believed it at all! Just where did he hid such powers in that body of his before?" exclaimed Shen Lu feeling shock through and throughly.


    "Formidable! Such fighting prowess could only be rarely seen between the duels of top ranked seniors before!" commented Wang Xiolun, suppressing his itchiness to fight.


    And as usual, Xiahou Yu had already expected the outcome of this match. Right now, she was actually more worried that there were only three drumsticks of fried chicken left in her bucket, compared to what was going on inside that field.


    ...


    Shen Murong kneeled on one knee as he used his left hand to support his right shoulder.


    That final clash between him and Duan Li was way too intense that his right shoulder got dislocated from the impact!


    Although his face had reverted to normal and the horns were already gone, there were no trace of bitterness on him from the fact that he had lost the battle. Instead, a wide smile could be seen from him amidst that bloodied look of his!


    Right now, he was looking especially enigmatic towards the spectators!


    "Hehe... HAHAHA! Very good! That was an excellent battle! From now on, consider me as one of your own!" Shen Murong said with a wide grin as he looked straight at Duan Li, whom had also returned to his normal state.


    Duan Li nodded and replied "As you are now one of my followers, I am obligated to take care of you."


    He then tossed out a grade 4 elixir to Shen Murong while drinking a grade 2 elixir himself. After all, Duan Li''s injuries wasn''t all that serious and his meridians was still holding out despite such a fierce battle.


    With none skill arts used, he only had external injuries to recover from, which was not a big deal for him.


    Catching the elixir with his left hand, Shen Murong swiftly uncorked it using his teeth and swallowed the contents of the elixir in one mouthful.


    Bzzztt!


    The injuries on his body began to heal up rapidly at a visible rate as vapours were coming out from his wounds.


    "This young man has a grade 4 elixir?" thought Shen Long, feeling a little bit surprised.


    Although a grade 4 elixir were rare in the empire, it could still be bought if one had enough money. But what actually surprised him was that Duan Li had just casually threw one of these astronomically expensive elixir to his idiot grandson like it was just a cabbage!


    Even if it were him, his heart would palpitate a little bit by giving one away so casually, much less tossing it around like that!


    The crowd had also gasped as they saw this, and at this moment, they were now thoroughly convinced that Duan Li was a profligate son!


    First was that expensive residence court, and now the grade 4 elixir. Anyone who hadn''t yet managed to caught what these actually implied was definitely a blind fool!


    "HAHA! That elixir sure works like a charm!" said Shen Murong as he stood up. All his injuries were now healed, both external and internal.


    Crack!


    He pulled at his disjointed shoulder back to its socket with his left hand and made a few swings to test his fixed right arm.


    Woongg!


    The barrier was now lifted and Duan Li could finally see and hear the crowd cheering!


    "I was too excited in that battle and made such a scene..." Duan Li scratched the back of his head, feeling a little bit embarrassed.


    Ahem!


    Shen Long''s dry cough had once again silenced the whole area as he instructed the teachers behind him.


    These teachers then deployed their spatial arts once more to fix the desolate field back to its default state before the battle.


    Right now, all the junior students had already woken up from their incapacitated state before and returned back onto the field, lining up properly. In front of Shen Long, they dare not to be so casual at all.


    "Some of you might have already knew the purpose behind that previous battle, but for those that didn''t know yet, it was for these teachers behind me to spot where your talent actually lies in!" Shen Long spoke out.


    "When one fights with nothing but their body alone, their reflexes would indicate whether they were more suitable for a short, middle or long distance fight! Their stamina would showcased their attributes for either a soft or hard style and in some cases could be both! And finally, one''s tenacity would denote that they were more suitable to either attacking or defensive style!"


    "One has to know that a person could only do so much with our limited lifetime in this world. If one were to practice everything, then they would never be able to reach the peak in something!"


    "Thus, in order to help you narrow down among these clutters, we have identified three most suitable weapons for you to master during your lifetime!"


    As Shen Long spoke this, above the field, there could be seen many light orbs floating with specific characters on them. There were, swords, sabers, spear, greatswords and a dozen more.


    These orbs then multiplied indefinitely as they reached out to the junior students below.


    After a while, every single students now had their own three characters. For Duan Li, it was a Sword, an Axe and a Spear character respectively. Meanwhile, Shen Murong has a Saber, an Axe and a Greatsword character!


    Shen Long nodded and continued, "These three weapon characters should be your main focus alongside your cultivation. Furthermore, the academy will spare the resources required to nurture your talents on these three weapons as well!"


    "However, the academy does not forbid you to practice weapon styles other than those three! In fact, we encourage diversity! Just remember that the academy will not be able to spare additional resources for those and you would have to depend on yourselves!"


    "In the next class, go towards each department around the academy. They have a more specialized manual books compared to the general purpose that you may found in the library!"


    "That is all for today, class dismissed!"


    Whooshh!


    As soon as Shen Long finished his sentence, with a tap of his cane stick to the ground, he and the rest of the teachers behind him immediately disappeared like phantoms.


    ...


    On their way back to the residence court..


    "Brother! I have never thought that you were so strong! I have misjudged you!" Shen Lu spoke out.


    "Indeed, your martial prowess is already comparable to us seniors and might be even better than some!" Wang Xiolun added.


    "HAHA! That was truly the most exciting battle I had with someone else so far! We should spar again next time!" Shen Murong laughed out as he joined them with his arms crossed together on his chest.


    When they heard him, Shen Lu and the rest couldn''t help but to imagine what the outcome would be if another super battle like that were to occur unsupervised by the teachers.


    They would probably had to live on the streets by then as their residence court would definitely be reduced to rubbles.


    Coughing dryly, Duan Li decided to steer the topic away from battles or spars.


    "Shen Murong, I''m guessing you must be related with Senior teacher Shen Long?" Duan Li asked.


    "En! Shen Long is my grandfather! We trained often together but with him, it was so boring. I got instantly beat with a single chop of his everytime and he said that was a good battle!" Shen Murong replied with a little bit of dissatisfaction in his tone.


    Even Duan Li and the rest nodded in agreement. Such a thing should not even be called a battle at all!


    Unexpectedly, Shen Murong''s grandfather has such a low standard of what a good battle means!


    "We are here!" Duan Li said after they reached the residence court.


    Since it was the first time that Shen Murong saw where he would be living from now on, he was quite flabbergasted for a moment with the sheer size of the residence court and all the available amenities around it.


    "HAHA! Not only is your strength quite formidable, even your pocket is quite something else! I''ve truly benefitted this time around! HAHA!" Shen Murong said out loud.


    Compared to Shen Lu, Shen Murong was more of a straight forward person in the way he talked.


    "Eh, now that I think about it, Shen Lu, are you actually related with Shen Murong?" Duan Li asked as he turned around.


    "Hmm? Definitely not! It was a coincidence that my first name was Shen as well!" Shen Lu shrugged as he dismissed it.


    Hearing Shen Lu''s replies, Duan Li contemplated for awhile, "Is that so? Anyway, wait for me in the meeting room, I will change my tattered uniform first!"


    ...


    Inside the meeting room was a big round table that could fit exactly ten people, but right now, there were only five of them.


    "As you all might realize, we are still lacking five more people to complete ourparty, and with the monster stampede coming in the next following week, our time is running a little bit short I guess." Duan Li spoke out.


    "Therefore, taking into account our three-staged plan, we need to quickly boost our strength in order to attract more people!" he continued.


    At this point, Shen Murong rose his hand up and asked, "What is this three-staged plan you were talking about?"


    Duan Li turned towards Shen Lu as the latter nodded and explained it to Shen Murong.


    "So that''s how it actually is! Brilliant! HAHA!" Shen Murong commented.


    "But how do you propose we increase our strength in such a short time? Cultivating normally wouldn''t yield that fast result even with the dense amount of spiritual Qi here, and taking in strength potions would definitely counts as a bad idea to do this." he continued with crossed-arms.


    Hearing this, Duan Li smiled.


    "Don''t worry, I''ve got a good idea!" he said as he whipped out four bottles filled with red liquid from his spatial ring.


    When the rest of them saw these four bottles, they couldn''t help but to quickly realize that these bottles contained blood in them!


    But at this moment, only Shen Lu seemed to be thoroughly shocked as he suddenly stood up and pointed towards the four bottles.


    "T-those.. are they what I think it is?" exclaimed Shen Lu, stuttered as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    ...

 80 Chapter 79: Guiding the disciple!

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    Duan Li nodded.


    "That''s right, inside these four small bottles are the blood that was extracted from the One Hundred Thousand graveyard lake, in short the blood pool!" Duan Li replied.


    However what Duan Li had just said was only half the truth. In fact, these blood was actually his own blood!


    Back when he went to change his tattered uniform, he was still pondering on the method to increase the strength of his followers exponentially within a short period of time. It was then that he remembered about the blood pool that had skyrocketed his physical body to the pinnacle level of the Foundation establishment realm in one go!


    If he was not mistaken, the extreme potency within that blood pool were actually caused by the crimson mysterious pearl, and right now, that pearl was somewhere within his body!


    Therefore, he decided to see for himself if his blood contained the miraculous effect like those inside the blood pool. Prickling his index finger, a tiny blotch of blood popped out.


    When he used his identify ability on it, the information he got had thoroughly excited him!


    [Host''s blood. Preliminary analysis shows that the blood contained a mysterious effect from an unknown origin.]


    [Upon consume by other people, at host''s will, the blood will seep into their cells, transforming their innate potentials tremendously.]


    [Danger! Host is adviced to dilute a single drop of blood with other liquid agent to reduce its lethal potency!]


    These were the results from his identify ability and because of that, he decided to put a single drop of blood into each of these four small bottles.


    "Eh? I''ve also heard about this mysterious blood pool from my grandfather. Supposedly it could really help in tempering the physical body. But I thought that was only just a rumor because no one could actually find it?" Shen Murong spoke out, a little bit unconvinced.


    "No, it is definitely real! My sources told me that the academy has some sort of a secret organization that was able to go in and out of the Eternal maze safely, and the blood pool was located somewhere inside there!" Shen Lu replied as he held one of the small bottle with sparkling eyes.


    "The Eternal maze? You mean THAT one underground? Impossible! I personally knew some of the old folks from my clan with heaven-defying abilities that went in and never came out again! How could this rumor be true then if no one was able to make it out alive?" Shen Murong refuted.


    "T-this.." Shen Lu has no way of replying to Shen Murong''s statement. While the rumor regarding the blood pool and secret organization that he got was definitely reliable, the fact that people on the level of nascent soul realm that had entered and never came back was also true as well!


    This was something that had always poke at his mind whenever he thought about it.


    Which one was actually the truth?


    At this sight, Duan Li turned his head towards Xiahou Yu and the latter nodded. However, Duan Li was still conflicted whether he should tell them the truth or not.


    Thus, he reached out for the blue jade slip inside his spatial ring and contacted the principal by sending a voice message through it.


    "Principal, my followers wanted to know about the Eternal maze." Duan Li spoke out to the blue jade slip before injecting some spiritual Qi into it to send the message away.


    "Eh? You have the Principal''s personal contact?" the three fellas was shocked by this, excluding Xiahou Yu.


    One has to know that the principal was someone at the very top of the power chain within the academy!


    To think that Duan Li could ask something out so casually to the other party, just what sort of relationship do they have?


    Not long after that, the principal replied with a short "Ok."


    Somehow, Duan Li was quite annoyed with this short reply.


    "T-that was really the voice of the principal''s! How was this possible!" exclaimed Shen Lu, utterly surprised.


    Such crucial information, and he has no way of knowing it? There must be a high star ranked Strategist that intervened with the information network inside the academy!


    Was it the vice-principal?!


    "Eh.. me and Xiahou Yu are a little bit close with the principal somehow.." Duan Li replied as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly.


    Even Xiahou Yu has a connection with the principal?!


    The trio looked at Xiahou Yu with deep gazes that caused the latter''s face to flush red from being stared as such.


    "A-Anyway! The most important thing is, I could now tell you guys about the truth regarding the Eternal maze!" Duan Li said hurriedly.


    "The truth regarding the Eternal maze? What do you mean?" Shen Murong asked curiously.


    "It''s actually like this..." Duan Li began to explained out everything that he knew so far.


    ...


    "W-What? So it was actually like that? No wonder!!" Shen Lu exclaimed out in disbelief.


    "En! Now all those rumors made perfect sense to me if it were like that after all!" Shen Murong added.


    "To think that only weaker people could go in... but why does this has to be a secret and not made public?" Wang Xiolun asked out, as both Shen Lu and Shen Murong nodded to express their sentiments regarding this secrecy too.


    Hearing this, Duan Li shook his head as he could only answer out truthfully.


    "You guys are underestimating the Eternal maze! It was because the maze was still extremely dangerous, even for me! And I''m not trying to brag, but even with my capabilities, I had still needed to struggle with all of my might!"


    "The reason why the both of you hadn''t been able to see me around during the past three days, was because I had to recuperate from a severe injuries after exploring the first region!" explained Duan Li with a deep sigh.


    Listening to this explanation, the trio cupped their chin each as they contemplated. It didn''t took them long to nod as a sign that they had accepted Duan Li''s explanation.


    It makes sense.


    After all, they had all witnessed Duan Li''s might back then during the battle with Shen Murong. If even he had struggled inside the Eternal maze with such a battle prowess, it was needless to say if it were anyone else.


    When Duan Li saw that they were convinced, he exhaled in relief.


    "Okay, let''s talk about the Eternal maze again next time. Right now, we need to focus on the task at hand!" Duan Li reminded them as they all nodded at him in realization.


    "Shen Lu, I will leave you to the task of experimenting with this blood. But remember, you need to dilute them! Do not consume it before informing me!"


    "Later on tonight, be sure to report to me on your findings. For now, you guys can do whatever it is you wanted to do before night time. By then, everyone must be present back here, understood?"


    Somehow, Duan Li was not nervous at all in passing down his commands onto them without a hint of hesitation to it.


    "Roger that!" they replied.


    And naturally, all of them were gladdened by this. After all, It would be quite an awkward situation if their Lord turned out to be someone timid with no talents in leadership at all!


    ...


    Right now, Duan Li was waiting at the front gate of his residence court. He received a message from his ''disciple'', Ju Zhianhu, the chief doctor from the royal palace that the latter was coming to meet him.


    Not too long after, Ju Zhianhu had finally arrived at his doorstep.


    With a bow and clasping both of his hands together towards Duan Li, he greeted out excitedly, "Disciple greets young master!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li almost had the urged to stumble and fall down from where he stood. It still sounded awkward for an elder to label themselves as a disciple of his.


    Nevertheless, Duan Li needed to be professional in this, so he just nodded casually.


    "En! It''s good for you to come today!" said Duan Li.


    "Of course, this disciple here had rushed to meet young master as soon as my task at the royal palace was finished today!" replied Ju Zhianhu eagerly.


    "Speaking of which, I have brought some advanced books regarding the art of medicine and concoction from the royal palace''s library!" he continued.


    Woonggg!


    A pile of books that was neatly arranged were materialized by the latter on the ground.


    Seeing these books, Duan Li couldn''t help but to be impressed! There must be at least a hundred books from this pile alone!


    "Very good! I am happy for this, a job well done!" Duan Li complimented the other party as he whipped out a high quality spirit stone from his spatial ring.


    "Here, take this as a token of my appreciation! Don''t reject it, this is out of my goodwill for you!" he continued.


    Gulp!


    A high quality spirit stone was a third of my yearly salary!


    Swiftly receiving the high quality spirit stone from Duan Li, Ju Zhianhu bowed again, "Thank you young master!".


    "Don''t mention it! Come in, I will impart to you on my knowledge regarding the art of medicine later on!" said Duan Li as he pulled in the pile of books into his spatial ring.


    ...


    Inside the residence court...


    "This residence court of young master is truly impressive! Although it''s not as grand as the royal palace, it''s not half-bad at all! Just the atmosphere and the view alone is already so beautiful!" Ju Zhianhu commented as he nodded repeatedly, entirely amazed.


    No wonder the young master could afford to fork out one high quality spirit stone for me!


    "Eh? Is that a herb garden? Holy!" his eyes squinted.


    Ju Zhianhu quickly rushed forward as his eyes opened wide observing the varieties of herbs in front of him, like a child seeing a new toy for sale.


    Looking at this sight, Duan Li chuckled out.


    "Go and play- eh! I mean you can have a look first on my herb garden! Meanwhile, I would like to browse through the books that you borrowed for me a little bit." Duan Li quickly corrected his words.


    Thankfully, the other party had not been listening properly.


    "Okay young master! I would also like to study these herbs here first!" Ju Zhianhu replied as his hands began to touch the leaves and stalks of the herbs passionately.


    ...


    Within the study room, in just under two hours, Duan Li had already been able to internalize 10 books on concoction arts and 16 books on the art of medicine.


    Even he himself was struck at disbelief with the rate of his learning speed!


    "T-this, its truly getting more easier for me to read books! Perhaps one day it might be really possible for me to learn the contents of a book by just seeing the title and the cover!" Duan Li chuckled out to himself.


    If that were truly the case, then he would probably become the winner of life.


    "Ohh, it''s already been two hour! Let''s see now what my disciple is currently doing..."


    ...


    At the herb garden...


    "How was the herb garden? Did you find it to your liking?" Duan Li spoke out as he approached at Ju Zhianhu from the distance with his hands clasped behind his back, like how a teacher or an elder would usually do.


    "This herb garden is marvelous! Some even had the maturity of several decades!" Ju Zhianhu replied, his face full of satisfaction.


    "But there are some herbs that even I don''t know of! For example, this three-clover leaf herb, at first I thought that it was the famed spirit twilight herb! But upon closer inspection, it was actually something else different entirely!" he continued as he pointed at the red spots under the leaf.


    Activating his identify ability, Duan Li chuckled for a bit.


    It''s time for him to act his part as the teacher!


    "That''s actually a hybrid between spirit twilight herb and Yin transforming herb! Their genetic was mixed together during the process of cross-pollination! So you are not entirely wrong there." Duan Li pointed out.


    "That over there, is a grassroot spirit herb. But if you look at its leaves carefully, you would see that it had undergone a slight mutation! This is due to being planted near to the Vermillion herb!"


    He then continued to use his identify ability on herbs that he didn''t know anything about. And naturally, it was 100 percent spot on everytime!


    Ju Zhianhu was truly convinced right now that Duan Li was a rare genius. Because on some of the herbs that he pointed out, claiming to ''not know'' of them, it was actually just an act of his part to test how deep the knowledge of the latter goes.


    To think that Duan Li could identify every single herb, including some that he didn''t managed to recognize, now THAT was amazing for someone of his age!


    After a while, Duan Li felt that it was enough, so he turned towards the other party.


    "That''s it for the herb lesson today. I''m guessing your main reason to come here is actually to learn more about the art of medicine right?" asked Duan Li with a smile.


    "En! This disciple was quite mesmerized with young master''s healing technique the other day, and would love to get some more pointers behind their usage!"


    "If it''s not a trouble for young master, this disciple beseech for your guidance!" Ju Zhianhu spoke out with a respectful bow.


    "Don''t be too formal. Alright, come in!" Invited Duan Li.


    ...

 81 Chapter 80: Resolving the affliction! 1

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    "Who is the elder?" Wang Xiolun asked.


    He happened to walk in the same direction towards the herb garden and saw that Duan Li was with an elder with white robes.


    "This is Ju Zhianhu, a chief doctor from the royal palace. He is visiting me for a while." replied Duan Li.


    Pu!


    A chief doctor from the royal palace?!


    "F-Forgive me for my rudeness! I am Wang Xiolun, a follower of the Lord Duan Li." he immediately bowed 90 degrees towards Ju Zhianhu.


    Someone from the royal palace has an extremely high status, not to mention that it was the chief doctor himself!


    That was a position two ranks below the Imperial doctor, before the General doctor!


    What was a person with such an influence in the royal palace doing here?


    "Don''t be too formal, at best while I''m here, my status would be a little bit similar to you." Ju Zhianhu chuckled out.


    Eh?


    "You are... similar to us?" replied Wang Xiolun, confused as to what the other party meant.


    He can''t possibly be claiming that he was also a follower right? Only students are allowed to do that!


    Noticing the peculiar look on Wang Xiolun''s face, Ju Zhianhu could only answered frankly.


    "I''m one of the advisor for this party... as well as your Lord''s disciple!"


    Pu!


    Wang Xiolun''s lungs almost failed to function properly when he heard this at the moment.


    He knows what an advisor were, although it was quite rare for somebody outside the academy to be one, it still exist nevertheless.


    But for someone with the ranks of a chief doctor from the royal palace to claim that they were their Lord''s disciple?


    They must be pranking me!


    "Eh, the details are a little bit complicated, but yes, Ju Zhianhu is my disciple!" Duan Li said.


    Pu!


    Ahh! My heart! I could feel that my hearbeat was about to stop!


    "Since you''re already here, this would be a lot better then. I was planning to call for Shen Murong, but I am afraid that guy would not like the idea of being used as a demonstration purposes!" he continued.


    Demonstration purposes?


    "What do you mean?" Wang Xiolun asked out warrily. By the sound of it though, it seemed like he was about to be experimented with!


    "I''m thinking of imparting my personal method of healing the internal body to my disciple here. With a live body, it would be more practical and efficient! Furthermore, you are at the core formation realm and your body should be able to withstand it." Duan Li explained.


    Damn it! It turns out I''m really going to be experimented with!


    He was about to refuse, but seeing the chief doctor besides Duan Li eyeing at him intently, he dared not to reject. Thus, with gritted teeth, he forced himself to agree with it.


    "Fine!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li exhaled in relief.


    "Don''t worry, with our capabilities, you won''t suffer the least bit. I''m just going to demonstrate the method and nothing else." Duan Li reassured him.


    Thinking about it for a while, Wang Xiolun nodded.


    What the other party just said makes sense to him. Since they were both versed in the arts of medicine, what could possibly go wrong in a demonstration?


    "Even if we did make a mistake, rest assured, it would be minimal at best!" Ju Zhianhu added.


    When Wang Xiolun heard this, he cursed his bad luck for encountering them here.


    My kidney! I feel cold in my kidney!


    ...


    Within a room inside the residence court, three men were sitting cross-legged on the floor.


    Wang Xiolun was sitting in the middle, while Duan Li and Ju Zhianhu were sitting on the right and left respectively.


    "Firstly, place your palm onto his left shoulder, while I will place mine onto his right shoulder. This is so that you could ''see'' how my Qi injection will flow inside his meridians and pathways. I''m sure you at least know about this." Duan Li explained out.


    Ju Zhianhu nodded.


    For a cultivator that practiced the art of medicine, by placing their palm onto the body of another, they would be able to feel accurately the reverberations of spiritual Qi inside one''s body that was being cycled consistenly.


    This creates the sensation of being able to ''see'' the inner workings of the meridians and pathways within a living body!


    Suddenly, Duan Li''s brows curled a bit as he discovered something startling.


    "Eh? You have suffered quite a few traumas inside your body!" exclaimed Duan Li in surprise, as he ran a diagnosis onto Wang Xiolun''s internal state.


    Hearing this, Wang Xiolun nodded slowly.


    "En! That''s right. Two years ago, I encountered a 1 star rank monster when I was still at the middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm. I tried my best to flee from it and was successful. But ultimately, I still suffered quite a grievous injury in the end." Wang Xiolun sighed out, lamenting the tragedy that happened in the past.


    "I see, with this injury... you should already know by now that the best you could achieve in your cultivation in this lifetime, would only be at the pinnacle stage of the core formation realm right?" asked Duan Li.


    Exhaling deeply again, Wang Xiolun nodded and replied, "That''s right, it was hard to swallow the truth at first, but now, I had already come to terms with it!"


    "That''s quite the mental resilience you got there. Most cultivators would despair if they had such an affliction like yours. Actually, this internal injuries within your body could be partially healed and you would be able to reach the Golden core realm in your lifetime, but since it has remained untreated for so long, there is no way it could be healed anymore!" Ju Zhianhu said as he shook his head in pity.


    "Hais.. I only knew about how serious my internal injuries were after the yearly medical check-up conducted by the academy." Wang Xiolun said, his tone carried a hint of deep regret with it.


    Hearing this, Duan Li could feel the tumultuous emotion within Wang Xiolun right now from the way the latter''s Qi pulsated. Even Ju Zhianhu shook his head once more.


    Eventhough the other party had said that he had come into terms with it, what sort of cultivators could truly resign to a fate as such?


    "Don''t be too down on yourself. While these internal injuries or trauma that had afflicted you couldn''t be healed by others, it would be a different story now that I am here!" Duan Li suddenly said.


    This sentence of Duan Li jolted Wang Xiolun in surprise as the latter quickly turned his head towards Duan Li.


    "Y-You... d-do you mean..?" he asked with a stuttering voice.


    Duan Li nodded.


    "That''s right, I am able to release you from this affliction that had plagued you for so long!" Duan Li said confidently.


    When Wang Xiolun looked straight into the eyes of Duan Li that was full of clarity, he was convinced that the words spoken by the other party was devoid of lies.


    "He really meant it?" Wang Xiolun thought to himself, subconsciously clenching his fists tight in agitation, the hope that had long vanished from him could now be finally seen once more!


    Even Ju Zhianhu was skeptical with what Duan Li had just said at first. But looking at that confident expression of the other party, it seems like the latter could really just be able to do it when no one else can!


    If its truly possible, then he would be the first doctor to witness such a miracle!


    Gritting his teeth, Wang Xiolun turned his body towards Duan Li, then he kowtowed with his forehead banged onto the floor.


    Bang!


    "Please help me, my Lord!" Wang Xiolun said, his voice quivering, full of emotions!


    Even the way he addressed at Duan Li has now changed.


    At first, he was only willing to become Duan Li''s follower because of Shen Lu. But now, due to Duan Li''s willingness to treat him, his heart underwent a starking change as he now viewed the other party with deep respect!


    "H-Hey! There is no need to be like this! I have told you before, that I would not treat my followers unjustly! Quickly, sit straight now!" Duan Li hurriedly said to Wang Xiolun, evidently flustered with the sudden action of the other party.


    "I will my Lord!" Wang Xiolun immediately sat upright once more.


    "Okay, let me treat your affliction first before conducting a demonstration for my disciple. Ju Zhianhu, although this might be too advanced for you right now, just pay attention to my methods. Who knows if you could benefit from this somehow." Duan Li said as he looked at his disciple.


    "This disciple understands!" Ju Zhianhu replied.


    "En!" Duan Li then placed back his palm onto the right shoulder of Wang Xiolun.


    Injecting his spiritual Qi, he made a second diagnosis just to be safe and not let out anything else.


    "So, there are a total of 36 meridian channels that was being blocked, most of them had deteriorated after remaining stagnated for so long. About 112 pathways ruptured and..."


    ...


    "W-What a terrifying level of Sonar Qi! To think that just a single injection could reveal all the peculiarities just like that!" Ju Zhianhu commented, feeling absolutely amazed.


    This was also the first time that he saw Duan Li in action personally. Previously, the other party had only guided him and even that was already so formidable to him.


    After a few breaths, Duan Li spoke out.


    "I will begin the treatment now. It will hurt a little bit, but when this is over, your affliction would be as good as just another bad dream for you!"


    Wang Xiolun nodded as he prepared himself mentally.


    "I will even risk my life if this accursed affliction of mine could be treated!" he thought to himself.


    ...

 82 Chapter 81: Resolving the affliction! 2

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    "First, we need to get rid of the small blockages due to the stagnation!"


    Slowly driving his spiritual Qi around the meridians and pathways of the other party, Duan Li used the momentum of Wang Xiolun''s cycle speed to forcefully crush against the numerous small blockages.


    In simpler terms, Duan Li was now conducting a thorough spring cleaning!


    After a few breaths of time, Duan Li nodded. The first stage was done successfully. This was done to increase the efficiency for the next procedure.


    Even Wang Xiolun himself could feel that the cycle speed of his Qi throughout his body had increased significantly!


    "Next is the second stage! We need to resuscitate the dormant meridians and pathways!"


    Wongggg!


    Duan Li increased the amount of density in his spiritual Qi injection.


    "T-this! How is such a method even possible?!" Ju Zianhu exclaimed, stupefied with the method Duan Li used.


    Holy-moly!


    From what he witnessed, Duan Li was driving his spiritual Qi in multiple directions at once!


    Specifically, three directions!


    A single meridian would have three different pathways that connected to the other meridians. Hence, it could be said that Duan Li was traversing all three pathways in a single go!


    This was something that was absolutely impossible for the chief doctor. Just with the sheer speed of a Qi cycle alone would guarentee that different directions of Qi injection at once would inevitably collide!


    A collision of Qis during its cycle would cause the meridians to implode, further agravating the injuries instead!


    "This isn''t something possible to do no matter how versed one were in the arts of medicine... unless..!"


    A sudden realization struck at him.


    "H-He... he a-actually.. c-cultivated with all..t-three dantians?!"


    BOOM!


    Ju Zhianhu was utterly mind-blowned right now!


    To think that there was a living sane person right now in front of him whom had managed to cultivate all three of their dantians!


    As someone who had studied the art of medicine for decades, he knew firsthand of how impossible his conjecture sounded, but other than this, there was no other possible explanation!


    A spiritual Qi originating from different dantians could be controlled separately without interfering with each other. This was why there were no danger with Duan Li''s method.


    Suppressing his excitement, he gathered back his focus to continue watching the procedure as a thought flashed at his mind.


    "But even if that were the case, how would he resuscitate a dormant and blocked meridians?"


    Just when he thought along that line, he saw three spiritual Qi heading onto a single meridian from three different direction in a collision course!


    These three Qis came from the left and right pathways respectively, while the last one came from above!


    "I-Is he going to forcefully clash the three Qis on a single meridian?!" he shrieked out in his heart, terrified in just imagining the consequences behind this!


    The force from such a clash would definitely not just implode a single meridian, but the whole pathways too and collapse the surrounding meridians like a pile of dominos!


    If that happened, Wang Xiolun would definitely become a crippled person, and by then, he could kiss goodbye to the world of cultivation forever.


    Booonggg!


    Eh?


    "Ahh! So he had diffused the Qis into small waves like strings! No wonder the tragedy didn''t happen!" Ju Zhianhu exhaled in relief.


    It took him a few breaths of time to understand the intention behind this peculiar method that Duan Li used.


    This was just like the roots of a plant that bore through the ground soil in order to find minerals!


    Only that in this case, the Qis had bypassed the blockage by going through the many small pores until it found the exit on the other side to form links! Genius!" Ju Zhianhu commented, once again feeling deeply amazed.


    This second stage took him quite longer, about an hour before all 36 meridians underwent the same process.


    After wiping the sweat off his forehead, Duan Li spoke out, "All of the stagnated Meridians are now connected again! Time to remove these blockages then!"


    Woonngg!


    This time, Duan Li had thought of a very clever way to clear the blockages.


    Drilling!


    By twisting the previously linked Qis inside the blockage clockwise and anti-clockwise repeatedly, and in a rapid fashion, it would simulate the function of a drill!


    And Duan Li''s method had worked flawlessly!


    The pores inside the blockage were slowly getting bigger and bigger until all of the Qi strings merged together to form a complete, one whole big link that was now devoid of any blockage!


    In other words, a single meridian had already been healed thoroughly by Duan Li, and it looked as good as new!


    Right now, Ju Zhianhu''s mouth was already wide agaped as he found no words suitable to describe the level of shockness that he received by witnessing Duan Li''s unique medical procedure.


    It was truly mind-boggling as well as mind-opening!


    However, the same could not be said to Wang Xiolun. At this moment, his face was gradually turning paler from the sheer pain alone.


    The feeling of one''s internal state being drilled continuously was definitely agonizing, as if countless savage worms had bored through his body!


    He wanted to howl out but afraid that it would disturb Duan Li''s focus. Thus, he could only bear with it and suppressed the pain with gritted teeth!


    Persevere!


    I must persevere!


    ...


    "Finished!" Duan Li spoke out as he laid down on the floor, mentally exhausted.


    That final stage had took him 4 long hours to completely heal the remaining 35 meridians!


    Wang Xiolun opened and closed both of his hands repeatedly, trying to feel the state of his body after the healing process.


    "M-My cycle speed has improved tremendously! T-Tell me.. was my internal injuries.. were finally fixed..?" he asked slowly as he looked at Duan Li with a hopeful expression.


    Duan Li smiled.


    "En! Right now, your cultivation should no longer be limited to the pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm! As long as you cultivate hard, even reaching the Nascent soul realm would not be a dream anymore!" replied Duan Li.


    When Wang Xiolun heard this, tears finally dropped from the side of his eyes.


    The countless days that had tormented him both mind and soul as if being cursed, was finally gone!


    "F-Finally... Finally! I''m saved! Thank you! Thank you!" he said emotionally as he kowtowed towards Duan Li once again and remained in that position.


    Seeing this, Duan Li was about to tell the other party to not kowtow to him, but Ju Zhianhu shook his head, signalling Duan Li to just let the other party do it until the end.


    After all, the man was feeling deeply grateful to the point that there was no way he could express any other forms of gratitude than kowtowing to the other party right now.


    It was an affliction that could make any cultivator grieved with despair, day and night, no matter how strong they were.


    The cry of a tough man whom was usually silent in nature resounded in the room, as Duan Li couldn''t help but to cast a warm smile towards the latter.


    Ju Zhianhu by the side closed the both of his eyes and continued to sat down silently, respecting the current warm atmosphere between a Lord and his follower.


    It was from this day onward, that the very first loyal follower of Duan Li appeared in this world!


    It was from this day forth, that Wang Xiolun had decided to make a vow in his heart, to follow Duan Li to his deathbed!


    If the other party were to ask him to swim across an ocean of fire, he would do so unhesitatingly!


    If the other party were to ask him to go and massacre a hundred thousand enemy alone, he would not falter even the tiniest bit and will see it to completion no matter the cost!


    And perhaps if the other party were to ask him to forfeit his own life, he would also gladly do it without question!


    In the far future, the name Wang Xiolun would be known far and wide across the multiverse as Duan Li''s personal blade. A name that would sent countless powerful figure to cower in fear!


    A name that would not let anyone sully the reputation of Duan Li.


    That man was Wang Xiolun!


    ...


    After the man finally finished venting his emotions, Duan Li told him to sat upright once more.


    "How are you feeling right now?" he asked.


    "Greater than ever! I could even feel my innate potential to increase somehow!" replied Wang Xiolun, excitement still filled him.


    "That''s good to hear! The stronger my followers are, the greater the chance it would be for us to survive in the future!" Duan Li nodded, satisfied.


    "Okay, it''s time to conduct the demonstration for my disciple here to learn. Prepare yourself!" he continued.


    "En!" Wang Xiolun replied as both Duan Li and Ju Zhianhu placed their palms on his right and left shoulders respectively.


    He could feel a tingling sensation from time to time as his facial expression would twitch uncontrollably whenever something goes wrong.


    But he chose to ignore it and allowed them to continue whatever it was they were doing to him.


    If only he realized, that this was only his first session of being experimented by the duo out of the many more to come, he would definitely ran away to escape at this instant.


    ...


    "Eh, it''s already night time? I have to return to the royal palace now. Thank you for your guidance young master! I have truly benefited immensely today. With these experience and knowledge that young master had imparted to me, my abilities in the arts of medicine would definitely grow by leaps and bounds!" Ju Zhianhu cupped his fist together as he bowed towards Duan Li.


    "En! If there is anything more that you need to ask, don''t hesitate and just send me a message. And for the books that you had borrowed for me, I will return them to you once I finished reading them!" said Duan Li with his hands clasped behind his back.


    He felt that he was now able to adapt on his role in becoming the teacher for the other party slowly!


    In fact, it was even enjoyable somehow!


    After seeing Ju Zhianhu off, Duan Li sent a message to Xiahou Yu, Shen Lu and Shen Murong to gather at the meeting room.


    Wang Xiolun was now back to his old personality of being untalkative. However, Duan Li could somehow felt that the other party was more approachable compared to before.


    At least, he got the feeling that the other party was not acting like a stranger to him anymore.


    ...

 83 Chapter 82: Tempering their body!

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    Inside the meeting room...


    "So, Shen Lu, go ahead and tell us about your experiment on the blood." Duan Li spoke out.


    Shen Lu nodded as he said excitedly, "You won''t believe this!"


    He then told them about his numerous experiment with the blood that he got from Duan Li.


    Heeding to the advice of Duan Li before, he diluted a single drop of blood inside a bucket full of water and to his surprise, the whole water was dyed red in an instant the blood touched it!


    This was the evidence of the sheer potency of the blood alone!


    And then, in order to test it, he caught himself a few small fishes from the nearby pond on what would happen if it were to swim in that bucket of red water - which was what he called it from then on.


    When he did, the result had entirely shocked him!


    The small fish grew bigger and bulkier as it metamorphosed into something terrifying in a short time!


    It''s mouth grew teeth while its scales became as thick as a metal sheet! However, the fish continued to expand without showing any signs of stopping, until it eventually explode!


    After some further adjustment, he found that the correct ratio were; a drop of blood should be diluted with three buckets of water! Only then did the fishes stop exploding one after another.


    He had also tested this golden ratio onto other animals as well - chicken, ducks, birds, and all of them had successfully evolved to become bigger and stronger after being bathed with the red water!


    And the most spectacular thing was, they still remained docile after their transformation!


    Hearing this result, Shen Murong was a little bit unimpressed.


    "Eh? All the other blood essences from random monsters could do that to normal animals. Although the chances are far more miniscule, what would be the difference?"


    "Hehehe! I have already predicted that this question would come out!" Shen Lu smirked.


    "What if I told you, that these animals had formed their own cores and started to cultivate?" he said.


    Pu!


    Shen Murong choked out.


    "H-How was that possible?! Poultry animals are just normal creature!"he exclaimed out in shock.


    As far as he knew, only monsters could cultivate! He had never heard of any normal creatures forming their own cores and started to cultivate, regardless if they had transformed due to being affected by blood essences and the likes.


    They were just not meant to!


    And this was the iron clad rules since the beginning of time. To think that a mere single drop of blood, at its diluted state could create such a change?


    That was truly heaven-defying!


    "Well, I also took into consideration that this fact would be hard to swallow, so I brought one of the transformed chicken with me here for everyone to witness themselves!" Shen Lu said as he pulled out a cage from under the table.


    All eyes were now focused onto this big chicken. It''s chest were puffed up entirely as if it had been doing body-exercises for all of its life. That feather of his was gleaming with shine, as if radiating out its grand presence.


    Even its beak had turned golden!


    Furthermore, from the fluctuation of spiritual Qi around it, they could see that this chicken in front of them was currently cultivating with closed eyes!


    No wonder it was so silent before, to the point that they didn''t managed to noticed it under the table!


    "That''s not all." Shen Lu chuckled out as he opened the cage.


    "Watch!" he said as he poked at the chicken abruptly.


    Immediately, the chicken was startled and cuckoo''ed. Then, under the astonished gaze of the people inside the room, it began to flap its wings and flew in circles trying to find ways to escape!


    Hiss!


    What a sight! A chicken could actually flew like a real bird now?


    And as if that was not mind-boggling enough for them, it turns out that this chicken used a skill art in order to fly from that faint blue hue on both of its wings!


    "T-This is incredible! If this news were to come out of the world, people would kill to get their hands on a single drop of this miracle blood!" Shen Murong commented out.


    All of them nodded their head in agreement to what the other party had just said.


    In fact, it was even possible for the value of the single drop of blood to go way beyond their expectations!


    "As my followers, I forbid everyone here to talk about this to anyone else. I understand that I have no ways of preventing you from telling this to others at the moment, but I hope that I can trust everyone here on this secret." Duan Li spoke out.


    Both Xiahou Yu and Wang Xiolun could already be considered as trustworthy enough for him. The former had witnessed personally on what he could become, while the latter should be feeling immensely grateful to him for resolving the affliction and wouldn''t even think about crossing him.


    Only the two men that was in front of him right now that made him worried.


    Shen Lu was a Strategist, someone who could weigh the pros and cons for the sake of benefits. Sometimes, Duan Li feels like he could understand him, while at other times it feels like the other party was having their own thoughts.


    Shen Murong on the other hand, was just someone that Duan Li knew recently. From his personality so far though, Shen Murong seemed like someone that was direct and upfront. Duan Li hadn''t yet witnessed for the other party to show any signs of scheming. But that boldness alone might cause the other party to slip up their lips unintentionally.


    The both of these men nodded their heads after thinking for a while.


    "I agree. Furthermore, the full effects from the blood was still a mystery. For all we know, this chicken might even turned berserk or died the next morning. It was just the first day after all." Shen Lu said, as if hinting that he would not tell anyone else, at least for the moment.


    To Duan Li, this was acceptable. After all, he did not plan to hog these benefits all to himself and his party for long. If it proved to be able to increase the strengths of the common populace as a whole, that would bring them even more closer to survival!


    "Me too! These kinds of things are always too troublesome for me. I would rather have my safe haven to cultivate in peace rather than telling others and risk myself of being spied on at every moment!" Shen Murong spoke out.


    Duan Li nodded, although Shen Murong''s reasoning sounded simple enough, he could feel that the other party had really meant what they said.


    "I agree as well!" Wang Xiolun added.


    "Me too!" Xiahou Yu said.


    Hearing their words, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction. His first few followers were showing quite the promise!


    As long as they remained loyal to him, he wouldn''t mistreat them at all.


    "Now that it was all said and done, there is only one question left." Duan Li said, as the rest of them nodded in realization as to what Duan Li meant.


    Looking intently at the three remaining small bottles that contained a single drop of blood each, a single question popped in their minds.


    Will this blood be able to make them stronger?


    ...


    Duan Li had tasked Wang Xiolun to bought them four wide cauldrons that were usually used by cultivators to strengthen their physical body.


    Usually, only by adding bone pastes mixed with blood essences from some special types of monsters, could a cultivator increase the resilience of their body slowly by stages.


    At first, they were confused as to why Duan Li had asked Wang Xiolun to only bought 4 cauldrons when there are five of them. Naturally, Duan Li decided to just told them that he wanted his followers to have a go at it first and he would do it himself later.


    After all, to be bathing in his own blood was something that makes him feels a little bit uncomfortable.


    It did not take long before Wang Xiolun came back with four big cauldrons. The cauldron that Duan Li asked him to buy was the most expensive one available on the market, cauldrons that was made from the silvergold crystal!


    The revolting-heavens cauldron!


    Each of these cauldron cost about 200 middle quality spirit stones, but it seems as though Duan Li did not even bother to count as he whipped out a single high quality spirit stone to buy them, and asked Wang Xiolun to keep the remaining change.


    These cauldrons would allow for an optimum heat temperatures to be maintained throughout the process.


    And not only that, the impurities within a cultivator''s body that was excreted out during the process of body tempering would be filtered out from the cauldron automatically. Thus, ensuring the contents to remain pure at all times!


    Shen Murong and Xiahou Yu were setting up these cauldrons right now as Shen Lu approached at Duan Li.


    "Brother, do you still have another drop of blood?" he asked out.


    Hearing this, Duan Li chuckled out as he whipped out a small bottle with a drop of blood in it.


    "Great! Now we don''t have to dilute the remaining blood any further! Otherwise, I''m afraid that the effects would not be as impressive.." said Shen Lu excitedly as he took the bottle.


    "The water temperatures are now hot enough for our pores to open once we bathed in it!" Xiahou Yu called out as she turned towards Duan Li, with Shen Murong behind her giving the thumbs up with a wide grin.


    What is up with that guy so suddenly?


    Shen Lu went over to each cauldron as he put in a single drop of blood in them, and the water swiftly turned deep red.


    "Alright, goodluck people!" Duan Li cheered on them as the men started to unbutton themselves.


    At this moment, Xiahou Yu approached at Duan Li slowly.


    "Umm.. can I temper somewhere else?" she asked with a red face.


    Hearing this, Duan Li face-palmed himself in a sudden realization!


    No wonder Shen Murong gave him that wide grin!


    ...

 84 Chapter 83: Trouble!

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    Tsssss!


    The three men entered the boiling red water inside the cauldron as they sat down cross-legged, the water level reaching onto their necks.


    Swiftly driving their spiritual Qi within their body to protect themselves from being cooked alive, it didn''t took them long before their pores started to opened up.


    Altogether, there were three stages that a cultivator would have to undergo during the process of body tempering.


    Firstly, was the rejection of the body towards the foreign substance that was trying to enter their body. Second, was the excretion of impurities from the whole body and third, was the bonding of the substance with the body cells and bones.


    While a human would feel a lot more pain in each increasing stages, as compared to animals and other creatures during the body tempering phase, they would obtain significantly more benefits than the latter.


    Humans could absorb 60 percent while animals and the others could only absorb about less than 10 percent at best!


    Kuuh!


    The three men grimaced in pain slightly as they underwent the first stage of the body tempering process.


    It was like countless needles was poking through their skins right now!


    With the potency of Duan Li''s blood, the one who had to endured the most pain out of the three of them right now was Shen Lu. After all, his cultivation realm was the lowest of them all. He had to grit his teeth hard so that the pain could be suppressed.


    Meanwhile, Shen Murong was just looking slightly paler and his breathing out of tune. Wang Xiolun on the other hand, was the most calmest of them all, as if he was just having a hot bath.


    The physical body of someone at the Core formation realm was a lot tougher after all.


    Due to being worried that some mishaps might occur during the body tempering phase, Duan Li had Xiahou Yu''s cauldron be covered with wide planks on all four sides like a cube instead of relocating her to somewhere else. Only the top was being left open.


    At first, she didn''t like the idea at all, but after thinking it through, Duan Li''s concern was right as well. Thus, she agreed to it in the end.


    Ever so slightly, sounds of pained moans could be heard from within it. Had it not been for Duan Li''s previous decision to add another bucket of water inside her cauldron to dilute the potency further, the one to experience the most cruciating pain right now would be her instead, rather than Shen Lu!


    After all, she was just someone at the Qi condensation realm.


    Shen Murong would look at Duan Li with wide grin everytime she heard Xiahou Yu moaned in pain, as if trying to encourage the other party to check out at the latter. Of course, Wang Xiolun by his side could not help but to lose focus as well when these ''pained moans'' echoed out.


    Duan Li could only shook his head at the sight of these fellas.


    You guys are here to temper your physical body, what in the world are you guys thinking about right now instead?!


    After a few more breaths, the first stage was phasing out slowly into the second stage, and at this moment, the pain they felt was gradually becoming more apparent.


    "Arghhh!!"


    The four of them cried out.


    Crunch!


    "D-Damn it! To think that it would hurt to this extent!" Shen Lu exclaimed out, his countenance becoming more ugly as he decided to crushed the pain reducing pill that he had readily put inside his mouth.


    This pill was something that was among the treasure trove that Duan Li had looted out into his spatial ring, and gave them one each. Should the pain becomes more unbearable to them, they could crush it to temporarily alleviate the pain!


    It''s a fourth grade pill that had the wondrous effects as the name implies, usually used during a battle to suppress pain from grievous wounds and injuries in order to not impede one''s battle momentum.


    Woongg!!


    His body jolted slightly as all the pain receptors on his body was dulled significantly. Only then did he managed to hold himself from passing out.


    "Even the bone marrow paste from the Wingless dracord monster, famed for its potency that our clan specifically used to temper our physical body was not as bad as this!" Shen Murong spoke out.


    "This thing just keeps on getting painful! Ouch!" he continued as he yelped.


    His countenance right now was similar to how Shen Lu were previously. Even his tough appearance did not help him at all at this moment.


    Meanwhile, Wang Xiolun''s breathing had now started to become heavy with each passing second.


    "Damn!" he cursed out, evidently feeling the pain encroaching at him as well.


    This had thoroughly surprised him. If he could already feel such pain while at the Core formation realm, how did others who were much lower in their cultivation realm managed to not pass out?


    It cannot be that their physical body was as tough as him right?


    Unless... this blood had adjusted itself to one''s realm!


    "What kind of blood essences that could do this?!"


    As these thoughts flashed on his mind, he could not help but to feel that there was more to this blood than what it seems!


    "Xiahou Yu, how are you faring in there?" Duan Li asked out.


    "N-Not good! B-But I can keep going!" she said one word at a time slowly.


    The second stage could be said to either become more painful or less, depending on the rate of excretion of impurities from the body. However, by the looks of things right now, it appears that this rate was blazingly fast that their impurities flowed out off the cauldron like tiny leaks!


    Crunch!


    "H-Here comes the the f-final stage!" Shen Murong spoke out as he too crushed the pain reducing pill inside his mouth along with Wang Xiolun and Xiahou Yu.


    Crunch!


    Crunch!


    They dared not to take any chances during the oncoming final phase. If they failed to persevere at that moment and came out from the cauldron, the resulting effects of prematurely ending a body tempering process would left one''s body to be in a weak state for months as well as a drop in their cultivation level permanently!


    "ARRRGHHHH!!" all of them howled out in agonized pain, as if they had not expected for the pain to be this intense!


    "D-Damn! The pain reducing pill is not working!" Shen Murong cursed out.


    It was at this moment that Duan Li suddenly realized. At the final stage of a body tempering phase, the bonding process occurred on both the body cells AND inside the bones!


    While those pills that he gave out to them could tamper with their pain receptors, it does nothing to reduce the pain within one''s bones at all!


    "Wait for me! I''ll return soon to get something that could help you guys out!" Duan Li spoke out as he quickly dashed towards the direction of the herb garden.


    Swishh!


    Since body tempering is the process whereby a cultivator uses external means to strengthen themselves inside a cauldron, a spark of idea strucked at him at this moment!


    "The concept of body tempering should then be similar to the art of concoction when trying to create elixirs or pills! They extract the essences between numerous herbs and merged them together in a balance, to create a whole new effect when consumed!" said Duan Li as his eyes flashed with confidence.


    Fortunately, he had already internalized some of the concepts regarding the art of concoction from the books that his disciple had borrowed for him in the afternoon previously!


    In his mind, he had already memorized the whole different types of herbs and their respective effects the moment he used the identify ability on them when trying to ''show off'' to his disciple before.


    ...


    Pluck!


    Pluck!


    As soon as he arrived at the herb garden, he quickly plucked out four sets of two different types of herbs, the Chilling moon grass herb and the Calming Summer petal herb without the slightest bit of hesitation!


    Swisshh!


    Swiftly dashing through as fast as he could, his figure appeared like a phantom as it only took him around five breaths in the whole round-trip by making use of his movement skill art to the maximum, The One Step To Reach.


    This was the movement skill art that was imparted to him by the Guardian of the first region during his adventure inside the Eternal maze before, by Old man Jing Zhianghu!


    Swisshh!


    He quickly added in the two herbs into each cauldrons. Next, he slapped the body of the cauldrons lightly, leaving a fine palm prints each, that contained his spiritual Qi onto them that connected to his palm like invisible ropes.


    This was one of the famous advanced concoction skill arts named ''Chainlock Processing'' that involves the use of multiple cauldrons during concoction simultaneously!


    This was because some advanced and extremely hard to produce elixirs or pills, required their herbal materials to be processed at the same time while being separated during their initial stage in different cauldrons.


    Using this concoction skill art, Duan Li could infuse instructions onto his spiritual Qi for the essences within the herbs to be extracted at the right time!


    The Chilling Moon grass herb has the properties of being able to freeze anyone that consumed it down to their bones!


    Whereas, the Calming Summer petal herb had the properties to negate frostbites. Cultivators would usually store some of them inside their spatial ring whenever they were about to venture in extremely cold regions!


    Thus, by extracting the essences of the first herb, Duan Li could drive the freezing effect onto their bones so that their pain could be numbed down significantly!


    And Duan Li''s method immediately showed wonders, as their contorted and darkened expression from being assaulted with extreme pain were now gone as they slowly exhaled and tried to breath in normally once again.


    Next, in order to prevent the coldness from their bones to seep out onto their internal bodies that could disrupt the optimum temperatures for the body tempering process to occur, Duan Li extracted the essences from the second herb almost immediately.


    This time, Duan Li merged the essences directly onto their body cells. Not only would the cold effect that tried to permeate into their internal body be negated, in the future, they would also become more immune to extreme cold temperatures!


    Slowly, the dire situations were now starting to reverse back, before finally being resolved entirely.


    Right now, the body tempering process was almost done!


    However, Duan Li could now feel that something weird was starting to form inside his mind the moment the bonding process was completed!


    This feeling...


    Why does it feels like I could control them?


    ...

 85 Chapter 84: Massive increase in power!

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    "But that can''t be right?" Duan Li thought to himself.


    Even if they have bonded with his blood essence, it was just a single drop of blood for each one of them.


    Thus, how could it be that formidable?


    Huuuu!


    The three men stood up from their respective cauldrons as the red water turned clear once more, evidence that they had successfully absorbed all the blood essence within and fully integrate it into their own body.


    "Ohh! I can feel that my physical body right now is shooting off through the roof! Its now at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm!" exclaimed Shen Lu excitedly.


    To think that the blood essence could let me skip two stages from the early stage all the way to the pinnacle, this was justone hell of a formidable blood essence we got here!


    Shen Lu''s eyes right now were gleaming with even more clarity to them than before. Even his figure had became slightly taller, sturdier and more sharper.


    The disposition he radiated out would make anyone feel that this man was far from simple and looked more like an esteemed scholar with numerous capabilities at his disposal!


    "HAHA! My physical body is now at the pinnacle too! Not only that guys, check your Qi cycle out, mine was now at least five times more faster! With this, I should be able to recover my spiritual Qi within just 10 breaths!" Shen Murong laughed out loud, extremely satisfied with his transformation.


    With this speed of Qi cycle, it won''t be long before it increases even further when I reach higher cultivation realm! By then, I would become truly invincible! It would be even possible for me to beat that darned grandfather of mine. He had been way too haughty all these while!


    Shen Murong''s body right now looked more rugged and his muscles seemed to be way denser than before. One would feel that they were looking at a beast instead of a human if they saw him.


    Even his footsteps had left a slight depression onto the ground just by stepping on it slightly, signs that his body had become heavier like the boulders from the mountains!


    "En! With this, our cultivation speed would dramatically soar over the next few days!" Wang Xiolun nodded.


    He felt the changes to his body the most. Perhaps it was due to the addition that he had just been healed by Duan Li before that the effects of his body tempering was off the charts.


    Right now, if he were to punch out casually, it would definitely create sonic booms even without using any sort of skill arts. This battle prowess was naturally due to his now transformed andimpeccable physical body!


    If he were to fight it out with a level one Golden Core realm, he had 50 percent confidence that he could win the fight!


    Seeing these sights, Duan Li nodded approvingly.


    He could feel that each of their aura had underwent a qualitative change that was now far more radical and personified, better aligned with their natural traits than ever before.


    If he were to summarized it up within one sentence, it would be that their powers had increased massively!


    Just as they were still busy checking each other out, Xiahou Yu suddenly spoke out within that enclosed cube.


    "Umm.. have you guys finished changing yet? I want to get out too..."


    When the men heard this, they stopped talking and sneaked a glance at each other.


    Shen Lu was standing naked with both hands on his waist, feeling proud of his transformation. On his side, Shen Murong stood tall nakedly with both arms thrown up into the air in rejoice, while Wang Xiolun stood quietly with both arms crossed on his chest, also naked.


    Duan Li shook his head at this sight in front of him. They looked like three maniacs that just got out from prison!


    If people were to see them like this, some might even spread unscrupulous rumor happening in his residence court at night!


    "What are you guys waiting for? Go get changed!" Duan Li reprimanded them before they all burst out into laughter. Within the cube, Xiahou Yu''s face was flushed red, no one knows what she was thinking about.


    "My body.. how did these got bigger so suddenly?" she said while looking down, flustered.


    ...


    After a while...


    The four men were startled by Xiahou Yu''s transformation. If before she looked nothing more like another female junior to them, right now she had rose suddenly to become one of the top ranked beauties within the academy!


    Her figure appeared far more mature and graceful than before. Even the curves were all hitting at just the right angle!


    Due to this transformation, her uniform had become slightly more tight, causing her to look a little bit sexy.


    Duan Li had to cough dryly for several times to broke the three men out from their daze.


    "Xiahou Yu, how was it?" Duan Li spoke out to break the awkward atmosphere away.


    "I''m feeling great! My physical body had climbed all the way to the pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm!" she replied with a smile, happy with the results.


    Hearing this, Shen Lu cupped his chin as he realized a significant pattern.


    "It appears that the blood essence could temper one''s body all the way to the pinnacle stage, regardless of the realm one was in!" he said.


    "I think so too, no wonder that I had to experience the same excruciating pain as everyone else even though I am at the Core formation realm right now. At first I thought it wouldn''t hurt me much, but in the end, it did. Thus, it must be so." Wang Xiolun said in agreement.


    Everyone nodded with this conjecture.


    "Very good! This would definitely help us immensely against the upcoming monster stampede!" said Duan Li, satisfied with everything that was going on today.


    It has to be said that Duan Li had personally battled against two one star rank monster, which was the Earthly golem and the molten Komodosaurus back in the Eternal maze.


    Each were so strong such that he had to struggle to fight even one of them!


    Not to mention that the force that would be coming at them this time would be a whopping 30,000 one star monster!


    If one does not prepare, it was absolutely possible for people to fall and die next week!


    Granted, that cultivators would be able to show fierce battle prowess in a group fight when compared to fighting solo, but even Duan Li himself was not so sure that they could handle it yet with just a ten men party, and it was not even guarenteed that he would have ten followers by then. Thus, he needed to boost their strengths on every opportunity that he gets before the battle.


    Perhaps, even the Second Subjugation Squad would have to roll out in this one to support the first squad with their reserve forces.


    Furthermore, if somehow there was an unpredicted element to suddenly appear during the monster stampede, the course of battle would definitely turned chaotic!


    "Okay, one last thing before I dismiss everyone here, let me impart to you a personal breathing technique of mine that could increase your Qi efficiency by 10 percent for every level. Listen carefully!"


    The crowd began to show extreme interests when Duan Li told them that. Without further ado, they sat down cross-legged listening attentively to Duan Li.


    Right now, his teacher temperament had fully kicked in, and the four people in front of him looked more like his students and disciples than followers.


    It didn''t took Shen Murong and Wang Xiolun long before they were able to comprehend this new breathing method completely. Even though the former seemed to be all muscles with less brain power, his origin was that from the prestigious Shen clan, and their resources were extremely deep!


    Whereas Wang Xiolun came from the same mountain clan as Wang Guozhi. They have the innate ability to be very familiar with the intricacies of spiritual Qi. Adding to the fact that he was a senior student, his deep comprehension regarding the numerous meridians and pathway channels were all top-notch!


    On the other hand, Shen Lu and Xiahou Yu seemed to be struggling, especially the latter as she was still not familiar with all the meridian channels and its different pathways in the human body.


    Perhaps it would take days for them to truly comprehend it.


    After the impromptu knowledge impartation session, the night had become even more darker and cold. Thus, Duan Li decided to end their activity for the day to let everyone have their good night''s rest.


    ...

 86 Chapter 85: Stop making trouble for me!

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    The next day early in the morning, Duan Li took a walk around his residence court. He saw Shen Murong cultivating atop a boulder below the waterfall, and it seemed that his cultivation level had rose by a level. He was now at the late stage of the Foundation establishment realm, at level 7.


    Walking further ahead, was Shen Lu cultivating by a corridor. In front of him was a large piece of paper with the map of the human meridian channels and pathways. It appears that he was still trying to comprehend Duan Li''s Qi efficiency breathing method.


    Arriving at the garden, Duan Li saw Xiahou Yu cultivating with a graceful temperament. All the flowers by the side swayed gently around her.


    "This is... a unique cultivation method? And it seems that she has already managed to comprehend the lesson from last night and integrate it with this technique. Definitely a genius!" Duan Li said to himself as he nodded.


    This must be a clan secret breathing technique!


    When Duan Li observed her Qi fluctuations, he was shocked even further.


    "S-She is already at the 7th level of the Qi condensation realm? Fast!"


    He then passed by the pond that was combined with a larger lake. All types of fish swam here merrily, and Duan Li planned to cook some for later as they were nutritious to the body of a cultivator.


    If a commoner were to eat it though, they would become a poison for them instead and has a high chance to die upon consume.


    On the middle of this lake was a gazebo, at which Wang Xiolun was currently cultivating in peace. Strands of spiritual Qi were vividly visible spiralling around him.


    Furthermore, the latter''s aura had gotten more condensed than before. Judging by the Qi fluctuations, Wang Xiolun had rose to the 3rd level of the Core formation realm and was just half a step from reaching the middle stage.


    "Everyone''s cultivating really hard! I''m still only at the level 4 of the Foundation establishment realm... I shouldn''t lag behind them as their Lord." thought Duan Li as he entered a small cluster of forest within his residence court.


    This forest was protected by numerous runic inscriptions and arrays that prevented anyone from entering except the owner, which was Duan Li himself.


    This was kind of like a special place for the Lord as the surrounding spiritual Qi was at least ten times thicker than outside!


    The reason for this was because of the trees were special - Angaran trees. From Duan Li''s identify ability, these Angaran trees were at least 500 years old each. They act as a nurturing mechanism for spiritual Qi and hence, was why this area has such a thick spiritual Qi!


    In addition, Spiritual Qi can enter this forest, but none can get out. Thus, the saturation level was extremely high and caused the place to hum in blue hues.


    Finding a spot on the middle of this forest, Duan Li sat down cross-legged as he closed his eyes.


    Shiingg!!


    The All-Seeing eye activated as he ran a thorough diagnosis of his internal body state.


    "Hmm.. to think that my internal body has changed these much after tempering myself in the blood lake.." said Duan, a little bit surprised.


    From his sonar Qi, which was the skill art used by those who practiced the art of medicine to run a full body diagnosis, he found out a lot of minute-detailstransformation that would not be possible for everyone else.


    The blood vessels within his body had expanded and became much more thicker. Every single one of his muscle fibers were also coiling with each other like tight ropes. Thus, it made him looked a little bit leaner, but had actually increased the density of his body as a whole!


    Previously, his body weight was around 80 kilograms. But now, he was way over 150 kilograms!


    Not only that, to his surprise, there were new meridian channels and pathways forming together, originating from his second dantian located at the middle section. They bridged across gaps that significantly shortened the distance to another.


    This would allow his Qi efficiency to be even far more formidable than before. If previously he was able to breath in once to refill his spiritual Qi, now he could do the same with just half a breath!


    "If my third dantian within my brain could also develop another meridian channels and pathways... then even without breathing, my spiritual Qi would always remain at the maximum level! In other words, it would just absorb Qi passively at all times!"


    As long as the spiritual Qi within an area was not limited though!


    Suppressing his excitement, he swiftly made a few more changes to his cultivation method. Right now, if he were to write this method into a book, no one would be able to understand it as it involves meridian channels and pathways that does not exist for others.


    This meant that, he had subconsciously created a whole new cultivation technique that was unique to only himself!


    "En! This should be fine! Time to cultivate!" he said as he started to breath in spiritual Qi and drove it around his body according to the new method that he just created.


    Woongg!


    It works!


    ...


    "Hmm?"


    At this moment, all four followers of Duan Li that had been cultivating silently opened their eyes abruptly as they suddenly detected an anomaly with their surrounding spiritual Qi.


    "This... the spiritual Qi is suddenly getting thinner!" Shen Murong frowned, alerted as he bolted straight into the skies.


    He could see Shen Lu and Wang Xiolun up above, even Xiahou Yu was there.


    "Eh? She has already rose to the late stage of the Qi condensation realm and could fly now? That''s quite fast.." he said but soon shook his head.


    The most important thing right now was to find out just what was going on.


    "Shen Murong, you''re finally here!" Shen Lu called out.


    "Yeah, just what happened? I was cultivating when suddenly I felt the spiritual Qi around me to become thinner!" replied Shen Murong.


    At this moment, Wang Xiolun pointed out to a location from the distance.


    "Look over there, all the spiritual Qi from the surrounding was being sucked into and gathered inside that location. The Angaran forest, where only the Lord could enter. Since the Lord is not here, this meant that he is currently inside there." Wang Xiolun spoke out.


    Shen Lu and Xiahou Yu nodded as they realized this too.


    "You meant to say that this phenomena was caused by Duan Li? What is he doing for all these spiritual Qi to gather like that?" Shen Murong cupped his chin.


    Wang Xiolun shook his head, he too does not know what their Lord was up to.


    Psheww!


    Psheww!


    Suddenly, four figures wearing black robes with face covered in black mask appeared on the four corners of Duan Li''s residence.


    Flicking their fingers together rapidly, a series of complex incantation gestures was made, before the whole area within Duan Li''s residence court was sealed with a barrier.


    Seeing this, the four of them narrowed their eyes as their battle instinct exploded!


    "This! An attack? Who are they?!" exclaimed Shen Murong as he quickly bursted forth with his full might from the get-go. Even his bloodline power was activated as his aura radically transformed into that of dark crimson and black veins popped out all over his body, his dragon horn immediatedly jutted out from the both of his temples!


    Even Shen Lu and Xiahou Yu had also released the full extent of their powers, with Wang Xiolun being the most tyrannical of them all!


    Wang Xiolun''s aura had climbed to its peak, his Qi fluctuations was so intense that the air around him rippled out!


    Its not that they were trying to show off their battle prowess, it was just that the four figures that had abruptly appeared and locked the whole place down, was already people beyond their capabilities to handle.


    Nascent Soul realm experts!


    "Hmm? To think that the four of you had become this strong in just a single day? Interesting!" a voice echoed out.


    When the four of them heard this voice, all of them creased their brows together as they looked at each other.


    This voice sounds familiar?


    But before they could think deeper, their hairs immediately stood on end as they sensed danger!


    BOOM!


    A palm attack suddenly came out of nowhere as they head straight towards them. This palm attack was spectral in nature, but the might behind it was so immense that they immediately sweat from the pressure!


    An attack from a Nascent Soul realm expert!


    "Block against it together!" Shen Lu roared out as they deployed a multitude of skill arts to stop the palm attack.


    BOOMM!


    The palm attack clashed with their combined assault as it created a deafening booms to the surrounding area!


    However, the palm attack was only stopped in its tracks for a short while and then slowly began to push against them slowly, inch by inch!


    They gritted their teeths together and blood began to drip from their nose as they put more pressure into their attacks.


    Push!!


    There was a saying, in front of a Nascent Soul realm expert, all were just ants!


    The voice chuckled out as the palm attack suddenly disappeared.


    Just as they were about to breath in relief for a moment, another palm attack was made. But this time, it headed not towards them, but towards the Angaran forest - where Duan Li was currently located.


    BOOM!


    Seeing this palm attack, the four of them paled as it appears that the attacker had put a little bit more effort into this strike!


    But at this moment, one of them was suddenly enraged like a caged wild beast that was being let out.


    "YOU''D DARE?!" Wang Xiolun shouted out as he bolted straight in front of that palm attack and tried to stop it with his bare hands.


    BOOMM!!


    "Urgghh!"


    Wang Xiolun immediately spurted out a mouthful of blood after coming into contact with the palm attack directly, but pushed against that palm attack nevertheless.


    "Hmm? This one is pretty good!" the voice said to himself.


    The three that had lagged behind due to being scared momentarily by the strength of that second palm attack, broke out from their dazed state as they bolted forward to help Wang Xiolun defend against it!


    "YOU DARE TO SNEAK ATTACK AT OUR LORD?! IMBECILE!!!" Wang Xiolun shouted out again as more of his aura bursted forth torrentially like a broken dam.


    He was thoroughly enraged right now.


    The moment Duan Li had successfully resolved his affliction, effectively breaking him free from the curse, he has made his vow to lay down his life for the other party, and would fight against his enemies to the death!


    Crack!


    That second palm attack was now showing signs of cracking slightly, but immediately recovered after that.


    The unknown voice then chuckled out once more again as it suddenly withdrew that palm attack.


    Right now, the four of them was fully alert and their backs facing at each other, covering their blind spots.


    "Relax, I am not your enemy."


    Woongg!


    A figure appeared suddenly and floated in the air with his hands clasped behind his back, radiating out the disposition of an expert.


    When the four of them turned to face this unknown assailant, they immediately became stupefied!


    It''s actually the Principal of the academy, Bian Tianyu!


    "Hais! That brat really knows how to create a trouble for me!" he spoke out.


    ...

 87 Chapter 86: The capabilities of Duan Li!

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    "P-Principal! W-Why are you here?" Shen Lu spoke out nervously.


    Seeing who it was that appeared, Xiahou Yu finally relaxed herself. She knew that the principal was not their enemy.


    However, Wang Xiolun still kept his guard up. Even if the other party was the principal of the academy, if they turned out to be an enemy of his Lord, he would not hesitate to retaliate the slightest bit!


    Shen Murong was also still pretty guarded, with his Qi cycling at top speed. He knew that people at the top would always have some dark secrets of their own that they were not willing for others to know.


    "Calm down. I had the entire place on a lockdown so that your Lord would not be able to absorb the spiritual Qi from outside his residence court. Otherwise, it would attract the attention of others." said the principal casually.


    "Why is that?" Wang Xiolun asked out with his body still in a defensive stance.


    Against a Nascent Soul realm expert, attacking would be entirely futile, as well as defending. But even so, he would have a better chance if he put everything he had into defending. At least, he won''t fall with just a single attack.


    "This must be your first time observing this phenomena around your Lord right? If I were to tell you that he is currently cultivating, and that in itself has endangered himself, would you believe me?" the principal chuckled out.


    Hearing this, Shen Murong''s mouth opened slightly.


    "You mean to say that all the spiritual Qi were sucked clean by Duan Li because he is cultivating right now? That makes no sense!" he spoke out in disbelief.


    In his knowledge, no matter how talented one were in cultivation, there was no way they would be able to cause a phenomena as such!


    The reason why a cultivator needed a long time to cultivate and increase their realm despite being surrounded by spiritual Qi the whole time was due to the two limitations set by the heavens, the rate of absorption and the density of the spiritual Qi.


    For example, a cultivator at the Foundation establishment realm already has the ability to form Qi balls within their dantian. Each of these Qi balls were made up from 10 Qi pools.


    Although forming a single Qi pools would not take them a lot of time when compared to people at the Qi condensation realm, it would still take a bit of an effort to form one.


    If a person at the Qi condensation realm with an average talent would took 10 days to form a single Qi pool, then a person of the Foundation establishment realm with an average talent as well would be able to achieve the same thing in just 2 days.


    However, this was provided that both was in seclusion and focused all their time in cultivating, and normally, this was not the case as they were students of the Academy and needed to learn more than just cultivating.


    Therefore, these rate of absorption between different realms were more or less fixed, with slight differences for those who were more talented. But even if they were a genius among geniuses, there was no way they would be able to defy the laws set by the heavens onto them.


    The only game changer to this set of rules were if they cultivated within an area with a more denser spiritual Qi!


    That was why they were excited with the residence court here, because it has a much thicker spiritual Qi of at least 10 times than outside due to the nurturing of the numerous runic formation within it.


    But even if that were the case, there was no way they would be able to increase their rate of absorption to the point that the whole spiritual Qi were being sucked dry like it was now!


    To make an analogy, the human lungs could only absorb so much air at one time. This was the same with one''s dantian, they could only absorb so much spiritual Qi at a time!


    The principal chuckled out mysteriously hearing such a question.


    "You guys haven''t yet to know his true capabilities. His very existence was already a defiance to the heavens! Back when he was just a mortal trying to ascend to the Qi condensation realm a few days ago, there was already a thunder tribulation the level of a Nascent Soul realm would have to undergo!" the principal said as he shook his head.


    Whenever he remembered that scene back then, he was utterly stupefied to the point that students of the academy had seen his puffer fish like expression!


    In his attempt to covered it up, he had them punished in a separate dimension, and had the vice-principal lock down any rumors revolving around such phenomena.


    When the three men heard this, they couldn''t help but to be taken aback in disbelief!


    A mortal doing their first ascension to the Qi condensation realm was already struck by a thunder tribulation at the Nascent soul realm level?


    What more, ''just a few days ago''?


    What an exageration!


    Why is he not dead yet?


    This was something that should only be possible for an inanimate object like thepebbles by the roadside. If they were to suddenly turn into a cultivator, the heavens would definitely not tolerate it and smite these rocks into non-existence!


    But the problem here was that, their Lord was a perfectly normal human being, not a pebble!


    Thus, how could he had already attracted the heaven''s punishment just by trying to cultivate to the very first level of the Qi condensation realm?


    From their knowledge, the heavens wasn''t an existence that was that petty at all!


    Looking at their faces full of suspicion to what he just said, the principal could not help but to feel a little bit exasperated!


    "Hmph! Observe for yourself then. Right now, he was just cultivating casually with his three dantians. Even if the heavens were to try to kill him today, they were not someone qualified to have that capabilities!" the principal saidnon-chalantly as he snorted.


    Pu!


    The three men choked their throats out.


    To think that the principal would dare to look down on the heavens that had encompassed their whole skies since time immemorial, was he not afraid of being strucked by a thunder?


    Furthermore, what was that they heard from him?


    Their Lord was cultivating with three dantians?


    Pu!


    The three men choked on their throats once more.


    Were they dreaming? Or was the principal toying with their little hearts?


    Just as they were about to ask more, the principal narrowed his eyes as he swiftly projected his Qi barriers to surround the four of them.


    "Things are going to get ugly now, we need to move back a bit further." said the principal.


    "Eh? What''s going on?" Shen Lu asked out.


    The principal pointed out with his index finger towards the place where Duan Li was.


    "Take a look. The heavens has begun to make their move. Those clouds of tribulation formed within the spatial barrier that my followers casted had just passed right through it."


    "Such things had never happened before. Those barriers effectively treated the entire place here as a separate dimension, yet the tribulation cloud still appeared."


    As the principal said these, his expression turned grim.


    "Thunder tribulations? I-Is he trying to breakthrough to the Core formation realm already?!" Shen Murong couldn''t help but to exclaimed out in shock.


    "No, from my soul sense, he had already reached the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm a few breaths ago."


    "I don''t know why, but he suddenly stopped cultivating just before the bottleneck. With his abilities, levelling up straight to the Core formation realm wouldn''t be a problem for him."


    "But soon after, the gathered spiritual Qi around him started to be absorbed once more. However, his cultivation was still just below the bottleneck and it was also at that time that I realized the tribulation cloud to abruptly formed, quickly at that."


    The principal explained as his eyes continued to observe the minute changes to the tribulation cloud.


    Somehow, he felt that this was very different from what he had experienced so far. A deep unsettling feeling surrounded him that caused him to become increasingly wary.


    With a flick of his fingers, ten layers formed around his Qi barrier, further reinforcing himself and the four students under his protection.


    He also cycled his spiritual Qi to the maximum level and shifted the students to float behind him. This way, he was confident that he could protect them if anything were to happen suddenly.


    Powerful!


    Extremely powerful!


    The four students sweat as their hearts palpitated in fear when they felt the aura leaking out from the principal!


    They felt that even if there were a thousand of them each, the principal would only need a single palm to slap them all to death at this moment!


    ...


    Seeing the serious state their Lord was currently in, the four figures in black robes and black mask that was managing the barrier was surprised as they communicated with each other.


    "What happened to the Lord? Why is he so worked up?" asked one of them, alerted.


    "I don''t know, it has been so long since I last saw him like this. Let''s keep our guard up." replied another.


    "En! Reinforce the spatial barrier and upgrade it to tier 3!" said another figure with a deep voice.


    "I will keep a lookout outside the barrier, you guys focus your attention on whatever that will happen inside." a slender figure that seemed to be authoritative in her tone spoke out.


    "Roger that!"


    "Alright!"


    "En!"


    The three figures responded simultaneously.


    ...


    Within the barrier, the cloud rumbled slightly, as a golden door that looked extremely archaic and vicissitudinous in nature suddenly appeared.


    "What is.. that door?" the principal said as his face turned solemn.


    ...

 88 Chapter 87: The voice of Heaven!

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    When the door appeared, it was as if the surrounding temperature had dropped by a few degrees celcius. The innumerable runic inscriptions on it were mysterious, written using a form of ancient language that no one had ever seen or saw before.


    The principal narrowed his eyes warrily, so were Duan Li''s followers behind him. But right now, all they could do was just stare at it silently. Each felt like their hearts were about to burst from anxiousness.


    Just what was the origin of this door?


    Creakk..!


    The door slightly opened, before an aura that seemed to be as deep as the oceans flowed out from the crevices. Streaks of strong winds blew in all direction as if even the winds were afraid and scrambled far away to escape.


    "This feeling..!" the principal gasped as he put one hand in front of his face to block the wind, with his hair and beard fluttering furiously.


    This was an aura unlike anything that he had ever felt before!


    There was no figure that came out of the door as it just opened slightly. But the feeling that he got was like witnessing an immortal that has descended down from the heavens personally!


    And then, an archaic voice spoke out.


    "The heavens has decreed onto you, cease your activity of violating the heaven''s law immediately!"


    BOOM!


    This voice was stern and strict, getting straight to the point without wasting any time for useless opening speech.


    The principal that understood the meaning behind these words shuddered.


    "The heavens could finally no longer tolerate his existence? What did Duan Li just did to directly attract a formal decree from the very heavens itself?!" he exclaimed inwardly in shock.


    From the legends, the heaven''s decree would only be passed down when one had committed an extreme case of violation of rules laid down by the heavens!


    Hearing the strange voice spoke out, Duan Li opened his eyes.


    "Eh? Who are you?" he said as he looked up towards the sky, surprised that a grand-looking door floated mightily as if it was the king of the world.


    "I am the Heaven''s will. Let me repeat the decree once more; stop from infringing the natural law set by the heavens from whatever means it was that you have to achieve this!" the archaic voice replied coldly.


    "Huh? All I did was just cultivating normally! What do you mean by this?" Duan Li''s brows furrowed, slightly dissatisfied with this ''Heaven''s will''.


    Pu!


    The principal along with the four people behind him choked.


    "Brat! You called that cultivation method of yours normal? You just sucked in all the spiritual Qi within a kilometre square radius here cleanly!" the principal commented inwardly.


    Even Duan Li''s followers thought along similar lines.


    "No, although your cultivation method had alarmed the heavens, it is still within the boundaries. Thus, you can keep cultivating as such, only that your tribulations would become more catastrophic than others."


    The voice answered out with a tone of indifference to it.


    "However, we detected that a certain volume of spiritual Qi in this world was cut off and was put inside your spatial ring. Such act is considered as a robbery of heaven''s property!" the voice lashed out with an even sterner voice than before.


    Huh?


    Did the Heaven''s will just said that Duan Li had put spiritual Qi inside his spatial ring?


    That''s impossible!


    The only way the surrounding spiritual Qi could be moved was through breathing method and absorbing it towards one''s own dantian for the human cultivator, and monster core for the monsters!


    How did he even managed to store it somewhere else?


    Realizing what the problem now was, Duan Li scratched the back of his head awkwardly.


    "Ahh so it was something like that.. I never knew it was not allowed.. But I''m not robbing it or anything.. I needed to store it for use sometime later!" Duan Li replied slowly while feeling a little bit embarrassed.


    He had planned to stop cultivating after reaching the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm just a moment before.


    Like what the principal had stated, he could have levelled up to the Core formation realm if he wanted to. But he chose not to do so because he wanted to go back to the Eternal maze and enter the Second region!


    Based on his experience, the difficulty level was always a few levels above him. And now that he was at the Foundation establishment realm, the Second region would be even more difficult!


    Therefore, he planned to store the spiritual Qi here inside his spatial ring and then learn some runic inscription or formation so that he could bypass the restrictions of the Eternal maze and use his spatial ring over there somehow!


    This was because he found out that the spiritual Qi within the Eternal maze was quite limited for his use. Having an external reserves would definitely make his life far more easier, and when it comes to it, he would even cultivate to level up to the Core formation realm to get even with the difficulties!


    When Duan Li explained this to the owner of the stern, reprimanding voice beyond that golden gate, the voice was silent for awhile as if contemplating it, before speaking out once more.


    "Request denied! The heavens would only allow two storage medium to store spiritual Qi in this world, which were the dantians and monster cores. Everything in this world must be in accordance with the balance of Yin and Yang! Lest it will attract Karma!"


    Hearing the Heaven''s will talk about balance, Duan Li was exasperated.


    "What balance! Back when I was still a mortal trying to ascend to the first level of the Qi condensation realm, the heavens had already struck me with thunders! How could you guys laid your hands to someone that was just starting out?"


    "At first, I was filled with gratitude for being allowed to step onto the outskirts of immortality. But when I was laying down in the infirmary to recuperate my injuries, Senior teacher Wang Guozhi came to visit and told me the truth!"


    "He said that, the heavens were trying their best to smite me out from existence, even to the extent of sending out the crimson thunderbolts meant for Golden core realm trying to ascend towards the Nascent soul realm!"


    "If it were not because of some bizarre things happened that protected me from the heavens bullying, I would have already died back then thoroughly!"


    Duan Li refuted with strong and conscise points of arguments that left the Heaven''s will mute for a while before beginning its explanation with a dry, awkward cough.


    Ahem!


    "That was.. a mistake from our part. When we peered through the list of new mortals that was currently trying to ascend to the Qi condensation realm back then, your name popped out in bold with an asterisk symbol behind it."


    "According to our system, this means that the person was an anomaly. Thus, we swiftly made a quick check on your identification records for your background."


    "When we finally retrieved your files, we were shocked to find out that it was empty! For someone to exist without its records being noted automatically by the system, this was something that had never happened before!"


    "Thus, we peered through the clouds and found out that you didn''t just ascended to the first level, but continued to rise further! Not only that, you had even activated all three dantians seemingly without repercussions at all."


    "Therefore, an elder who got panicked and thought that it was a symbol of bad luck for the heavens immediately sent down a struck of thunder without going through the normal protocols!"


    "We were angry at first towards the elder, as we, the committee of Heaven''s will were all law abiding members and followed through every procedure down to its tiniest details. It was our symbol of our pride and honor!"


    "Yet, who knew that the thunder that was sent out by the elder which should have been able to kill you, were absorbed by you thoroughly instead?"


    "Thus the elder screamed out and told everyone that he was right, spreading the panic further. Things turned chaotic as the committee was split into two, and the ones that agreed with him sent down strucks of thunders repeatedly to smite you down!"


    "They even went so far to the extent of using even stronger means. But fortunately, that mayhem was subdued by our superior that noticed a stir was going on."


    "When she took a look at you, she ordered us to stand down and just observe. Therefore, as part of the Heaven''s Will representative, we would like to apologize for the inconvenience we had caused."


    The Heaven''s will tone was slightly humble this time, and the sincerity with it could be felt directly to one''s heart.


    But what had stupefied everyone else here, was that such a thing had actually transpired in that fashion!


    Who could have thought that even the heavens could be divided in their opinion?


    "Hmm is that so? Then it is understandable." Duan Li cupped his chin and then continued, "However, to make amends for that, just let me store this spiritual Qi within my spatial ring then!" Duan Li spoke out.


    "That would be impossible! To tell you the truth, the committee was still divided even now. What you just did was a clear violation of the laws laid down by the heavens when compared to your anomaly back then."


    "The elder that oppossed you before were about to use the Heavenly Severing Existence axe to chop down your fate immediately, and that would have truly killed you despite the mysterious power that had protected you before."


    "However, somehow our Superior noticed this once more and stopped him. She then sent me here with a task of telling you to stop the infringement. Otherwise, even with our Superior''s status, she would not be able to stop the punishment from being sent out."


    "After all, this was part of the rules. With violations came its punishment, and this time, the violation is quite severe and warrants your death at least!"


    Duan Li was quite stumped when he heard all this.


    That Elder!


    Just what was his problem with me?


    Duan Li gritted his teeth as numerous thoughts swirled inside his mind.


    Should he back out from this affair after all?


    Then suddenly, he came up with an idea.


    ...

 89 Chapter 88: The Heavens Will committee!

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    "If we are talking about balance.. then how about advance payment?" Duan Li suggested.


    The voice went silent for a while before it responded, "Explain."


    Duan Li nodded as he cupped his chin.


    Seems like they were quite sensible and reasonable bunch after all!


    "How about you give me the thunder tribulation for the Core formation realm here in advance? In exchange, I get to keep this spiritual Qi within my spatial ring!" Duan Li said with eagerness.


    He had to bet himself on this!


    Pu!


    Hearing this, the Heaven''s will was dumbstruck.


    Did I just hear him right?


    Who in the world would want an advance thunder tribulation when their realm wasn''t even complete yet?


    That was not something that one can get struck by on a whim. Not only that a failure to withstand it would cause one''s cultivation to regress back to zero, in the worst case scenario, it could even lead to one''s own death!


    Is this man looking to die?


    "T-This brat is crazy!" the principal exclaimed with utter disbelief.


    He had never heard of anyone to be eager of being struck by the thunder tribulation in all his life before, much less wanted it in advance!


    Even with his powerful cultivation state, the principal would still shudder whenever he remembered about his thunder tribulations.


    If there was a way to avoid it at all, he would definitely not hesitate to do so even if it costed him a fortune!


    But to think that this fella would want it in advance?


    Lunatic!


    That was something only those who wanted to court death would do!


    The expression of the four students behind him was also not that far off from him.


    "M-My Lord.. what are you thinking?" Wang Xiolun gasped, horrified.


    He had felt the prowess of the thunder tribulation for the Core formation realm before and it was absolutely terrifying!


    At that time, he almost failed in withstanding the tribulation. Thankfully, he had an artifact with him that activated during the last moment and fortified his recovery speed!


    But even that was not enough. He had to spent quite a fortune to buy all sorts of pills in preparation, and used them all during the tribulation. Had it not been for these, he would already turned crippled or six feet below ground right now.


    The Heaven''s will right now was just silent and still, but Duan Li could guess that the ''committee'' or the sorts behind that door were having a heated discussion right now.


    Gritting his teeth, Duan Li shouted out to push the advantage to him further.


    "Don''t forget that you guys haven''t yet to balance out the unfair thunder tribulations that you sent me when I was at the Qi condensation realm back then! I don''t think it would be good for the heavens to accumulate such negative karma without readressing it."


    ...


    High above the nine firmaments, in a dimensional realm was a vast room filled with two groups of people discussing in a heated debate. But when they heard from that last sentence of Duan Li, they could not help but to turn mute.


    These people all wore golden robes and their cultivation states was heaven-defying. If even just a single one of them were to descend down to the Tian continent, every single living creature there would have to prostrate on the ground before them.


    Right now, an elder with a vicious temperament spoke out in his heart, seething with rage. "Damned ant! You should just shut your mouth and let me kill you!"


    "Elder Xiqong, what the kid just said was right. After all, we as the Heaven''s will committee were tasked in keeping the balance of the lower realm and avoid karma!" an elderly man said.


    "En! I support elder Jun! Furthermore, we have already accumulated karma when we judged him unfairly. For us, the Heaven''s Will committee, even a single karma attached to our name has already attracted the attention from the one above!" said another elder.


    "Yeah! If the upper echelons were to come here personally and saw that we still had not resolve it, who would take responsibility for that?!" an elder pressed on.


    Elder Xiqong and the rest of his group were silent. Some of the people on his side began to nod their heads in agreement with what the other party just said.


    Observing the situation to slowly turn away from his favor, elder Xiqong gritted his teeth as he looked up at the woman sitting atop of the throne.


    This woman wore similar loose gold robes, but it had actually acentuates her sexiness instead. Sitting while crossing her leg ontop of the other, she was playing with her emerald hair playfully. Her ravishing face were like that of an angel and a lot of men here were drooling silently when they looked at her, as if a bunch of ants attracted to a golden honey.


    "Empress Luo, I am firm with my decision to smite that mortal into non-existence with the Heavenly Severing Existence axe, as stipulated by the guidelines. I am just following the necessary actions for those who had violated the rules laid down by the heavens." elder Xiqong spoke out.


    He then continued, "However, Empress Luo have the final say in this matter."


    Empress Luo shot a look at elder Xiqong for a while before moving her gaze towards the holographic screen before her.


    She then spoke out.


    "Both sides are right in this case, elder Jun wanted to resolve our Karma while elder Xiqong was just trying to follow the guidelines."


    "However, elder Xiqong, this problem was first started by you. As part of this committee, you lost your composure which was unbecoming of you towards the unknown."


    "For us of the Heaven''s Will committee, mysterious existence and the such was, but a common occurrence. At that time, you disregarded the guidelines entirely and struck away to kill a mere mortal. But now, you followed the guidelines and still vehemently wanted to kill him too."


    "Tell me elder Xiqong, was there something about that boy that we do not know about except you?" she said with a weird smile on her face.


    Other than her looks, Empress Luo was known far and wide to have an unrestrained personality. Even her sentence just now had made elder Xiqong entirely uncomfortable.


    "N-No! How can that be? It was just a moment of my carelessness that I did what I did before." elder Xiqong spoke out as his back was drenched in sweat.


    In his heart, he could not help but to curse out at the woman before him for being too sharp with both her insights and tongue.


    "Hmph! That had better be the case! Just for the fact that your misjudgement before had caused our reputation among the heavens to drop slightly, you should be glad that I allowed you to keep that pathetic life of yours!" said Empress Luo directly to elder Xiqong, not giving the latter any face at all.


    She then turned her attention towards elder Jun, "Go and tell that boy that his request has been granted."


    "Thank you Empress Luo!" said elder Jun as he bowed.


    The Empress continued to sat down leisurely on her throne as she looked at the holographic screen with Duan Li''s face on it.


    "Just what are you?" she said to herself.


    A mortal that does not have any single records by the system at all was something that had never happened before. Until she could firmly understood Duan Li''s background, she wouldn''t let elder Xiqong kill him.


    After all, if it turned out that Duan Li was related to someone that they could not afford to offend, there would be hell to pay!


    ...


    Elder Xiqong excused himself as he walked down the corridor.


    "Damn it! I was so close! If I kill him, I would be able to obtain that golden mysterious pearl!" he cursed out in his heart.


    He could still not forget the event that he had witnessed.


    One day, elder Xiqong was bored and decided to randomly peer into the life of a mortal and Duan Li came up on his screen.


    At that time, Duan Li was chopping down a tree and elder Xiqong laughed out in disdain towards Duan Li''s pitiful life. This was his favorite activity in his free time, to badmouth the life of a mortal.


    Just as he was about to find someone else to peek, a scene happened that attracted his attention. Duan Li''s axe flew away as if it had come into contact with something.


    It was then that he found out about Duan Li possessing the golden mysterious pearl!


    To him, that pearl contained some mystic force that even he could not peer through its secrets. Thus, he conjectured that pearl to have a power far beyond his imagination and turned greed.


    But as someone from the Heaven''s Will committee, there was no way that he could descend down to the mortal realm and take things into his own hands.


    After all, killing a mortal would directly alarm the system, and he would be found out in an instant, tagged by the system and executed for it.


    Unless Duan Li were to die naturally, by someone else''s hands or by the thunder tribulations from them, only then he could secretly search the body without anyone noticing.


    That was why the anomaly behind Duan Li''s background was a chance for him to kill the latter. But who could have thought that it would not work?


    However, his greed was fueled even further by that mysterious power that protected Duan Li. He knew the origin of where such a power came from.


    The golden mysterious pearl!


    Thus, today''s event was another chance for him, but again as before, it was foiled.


    "Just you wait, Empress Luo! One fine day, I will get my hands on it. At that time, let''s see if you could act so high and mighty in front of me when I deflower you!"


    Elder Xiqong then grinned in a twisted manner, as he continued to walk along the corridor.


    ...

 90 Chapter 89: The Tribulations strikes!

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    After some time, there was a bit of noise coming out from the door, before the voice of the Heaven''s Will spoke out once more again.


    "Your request has been granted. You may keep the spiritual Qi inside your spatial ring for later usage. Now, we will deliver your advance thunder tribulations as part of this exchange. Please prepare yourself."


    The principal was astonished beyond words when he heard this. "The Heaven''s Will actually relented to his request? This must be the first in this world!" he spoke out with an agitated tone to it.


    The door slowly disappeared as thick clouds formed above Duan Li. This cloud was almost 5 kilometers high up in the skies, and the furious rumbling sounds of thunders could be heard from within it.


    "I succeeded hahaha! With this amount of spiritual Qi, it should be enough for me to use it for emergency purposes!" exclaimed Duan Li excitedly in his heart.


    After his adventure in the first region of the Eternal maze, even though the place was fraught with danger, he had benefitted a lot from there as well.


    Therefore, he was planning to complete all nine regions of the Eternal maze, and the second region would be the next one he should enter.


    Who knows if he would be able to have an even more heaven-defying encounter next time?


    CRACK!


    The lightning started to coil together.


    "Oh boy, I should prepare myself first! This tribulation seemed dangerous.." said Duan Li as he snapped out from his daze to look at the massive black clouds above him.


    ...


    Empress Luo, who was watching this even unfolding from the holographic screen atop of her throne, frowned upon seeing that massive cloud.


    "If I am not mistaken, this is a tribulation for those who had defied the heavens, Heaven''s Judgement! Why did you not use the tribulation for the Core formation realm?" she asked with a slightly angry tone to it.


    It goes for sure that the mortal boy was defying the heavens, but they had already agreed upon the latter''s request to send down an advance tribulation for the Core formation realm, then what is this all about?


    Such tribulation would more or less be no different than the Heavenly Severing Existence axe! The mortal boy would definitely be killed by this!


    For us the Heaven''s Will committee, to actually renegade on our promise, what has become of us?!


    Just as the Empress was about to fume in anger, elder Jun immediately spoke out.


    "Empress Luo, although you have heard of the incident back then, you hadn''t witnessed it personally. Elder Xiqong went crazy and sent down powerful tribulations all the way to the Nascent Soul realm tribulations!" elder Jun said as he shuddered when he recalled that bizarre scene.


    Hearing this, the Empress''s heart stopped beating for a single breath. Obviously, she was not ready to hear such a reply from elder Jun and almost choked herself.


    However, her outward appearance remained indifferent and graceful as she raised one brow.


    "How is that possible? I still see him alive and kicking on the screen right now!" she spoke out with a questioning tone.


    Do they take me for a fool?!


    "T-This.. it''s hard to explain.. maybe the same thing would happen again today.. let''s just watch first.." elder Jun answered awkwardly.


    ...


    "The tribulation is about to come down, let''s go back a bit further!" the principal said as they retreated 100 meters back.


    CRACK!


    Numerous lightning bolts started to enlarged with the size of a tree trunk each. They were golden in colour and shimmered out with a pale emerald glow.


    Identify!


    [Heaven''s Judgement Tribulation - A thunder tribulation meant for those who had defied the laws of the heavens.]


    [Danger level: Fatal]


    Seeing the results from his identify ability, Duan Li was stumped reading at its description and that ''Fatal'' danger level.


    "W-What kind of a tribulation is that?! I have never seen such a tribulation even in the books of records before!" Shen Lu exclaimed out in horror.


    "This is something beyond our imagination here, to think that Duan Li would attract such a tribulation! Even if it were me, I would definitely die from the sheer power that was radiated out by those lightning bolts right now!" Shen Murong spoke out with a grim countenance.


    BOOMM!!


    Duan Li exploded out with his full power from the get-go. His hair rose up as his pupils turned golden with streaks of lightning flashed around his body ever so slightly.


    "Urgh! His aura is even more denser than before! How did he managed to power up to such an extent!" Shen Murong said in disbelief as he clenched his fists tight.


    If previously they were almost equal in strength, after the body tempering, he was confident that he had become stronger than Duan Li by a few levels. But now, he knew for sure that Duan Li''s strength had already left him to eat dust!


    "This was the effect of someone cultivating with three dantians. His total battle prowess right now should be similar to that of a late stage Core formation realm cultivator!" the principal said.


    Suddenly, a gigantic palm streak across the skies and slapped against the still charging lightning bolts!


    BOOMM!!


    It was a pre-emptive strike from Duan Li, the Nine Palm Slapping Oceans!


    Pu!


    The principal and the rest choked their throats out at the sight of this!


    Brother! No one has ever dared to strike against the tribulation from the heavens before!


    Why must you be so domineering now?


    What if the heavens got mad and made it even stronger?!


    Even Empress Luo was jolted at her seat and almost choked out. To think that a mere mortal would dare to slap against the judgement from the heavens?


    That was tantamount to looking to die!


    "What an interesting mortal.. but if you think that such a puny strike would deter the heaven''s punishment, you are definitely thinking too much of yourself!" the Empress noted out as she snorted slightly with pride.


    When the dust finally settled, the lightning bolts still floated mightily in the air, as if unbreakable and indestructible!


    "Damn! I thought that my strike would at least dissipate some of them. To think that not even a single one was affected!" Duan Li''s face turned grim as he finally realized the power of the lightning bolts above him.


    BOOMM!!


    BOOMM!!


    Several lightning bolts immediately struck down towards Duan Li.


    "My Lord!" Wang Xiolun shouted out in horror, about to bolt forward to help Duan Li and become the meat shield.


    However, the principal grasp at the latter''s left shoulder firmly with his palm, halting Wang Xiolun from acting foolishly.


    Shen Lu and Shen Murong at the side turned away their faces as they dared not to witness the tragic scene before them any further.


    In their hearts, there was no way that Duan Li could have survived that. To them, Duan Li was already a lost cause after the lightning bolts struck at him squarely.


    "It was short but a memorable experience. I would never forget about you from this day onward my brother!" Shen Lu sighed out in his heart.


    "Hais! There goes my only rival! If there is an afterlife, I would wish for us to meet again once more!"Shen Murong closed his eyes emotionally.


    Only Xiahou Yu was watching intently at the scene where Duan Li was strucked repeatedly by the numerous lightning bolts. She almost took out a fried chicken drumstick on impulse as she felt this part to be the climax!


    However, she suppressed herself from doing so. After all, even though she has an undivided beliefs that Duan Li would tide through every single problems he would face, the rest of them would definitely not share the same thought as her''s yet. Thus, it would be inappropriate and insensitive if she were to whip out a drumstick right now.


    Therefore, she just whipped out a single, crispy skin of a fried chicken from inside her spatial ring, and discreetly put it inside her mouth.


    Crunch!


    "Good, they didn''t realize!" she exhaled in relief as she swallowed it.


    Gulp!


    However, her actions was caught red-handed by the principal as well as the four figures managing the isolation barrier. Due to the intensity of the situation at the moment, they had deployed their soul sense to the maximum and was very sensitive at each and every change within their range.


    With their mouths wide agaped open, they simultaneously screamed inside their hearts.


    Hey, are you watching a play right now or something?!


    (Author''s note: My intention here was to portray Xiahou Yu like eating popcorn during a movie lol.)


    BOOMM!!


    BOOMM!!


    BOOMM!!


    The lightning bolts continued to rained down from the heavens relentlessly. At this moment, the Angaran forest was already burnt down to crisp before disintegrating into ashes as the ground tore open and many cracks had formed.


    However, contrary to the principal''s previous grim countenance, right now he had instead thoroughly relaxed as he shook his head.


    To Shen Lu and Shen Murong''s astonishment, the other party even chuckled!


    Hais!


    The principal must be extremely devastated right now that the innumerable emotions swirling deep inside him had turned so convoluted, that he couldn''t help but to just chuckle out at the tragic fate of Duan Li!


    But what these two people did not realize was that the principal shook his head and chuckled was because he had already seen what happened behind that continuously blinding flash of light with his soul sense!


    "As expected! That barrier was activated again this time to shred the tribulations into tiny pieces of thunder essence to be absorbed in the end!" the principal said to himself as his worries had now disappeared without a trace.


    In retrospective, Duan Li was dumbfounded. During the first tribulation, he was too absorbed to notice a barrier was protecting him back then. And during the second tribulation at the blood pool, he was unconscious.


    Therefore, this was his first time witnessing this event himself!


    "Holy moly! What is this barrier? Is this another ability from the mysterious pearls inside me?!" he exclaimed in his heart, thoroughly shocked.


    But it didn''t took him long to snapped out of it and pretended to be unfazed by this bizarre barrier surrounding him as if he knew about it all along.


    He then sat down cross-legged, focusing in analyzing the shredded tribulations as it entered his body.


    Closing his eyes, the All-Seeing eye activated.


    "Eh? These thunder essence are coagulating inside my right arm?"


    Right now, due to the high intensity of thunder essence that he was absorbing, he could finally feel that his right arm was being imbued with powers!


    ...


    At this moment, Empress Luo stood up straight from her throne in agitation.


    "This feeling.. it cannot be!"


    ...

 91 Chapter 90: As if things never happened!

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    "Empress Luo?" elder Jun and the rest of them was surprised with her sudden and weird reactions.


    "It''s nothing." she replied as she sat back down on her throne. But the look on her face was still that of confusion amidst her composed outward appearance.


    "How can this be?" she finally shook her head.


    If it were really THAT existence, she wouldn''t be able to imagine the consequences if they were to go overboard!


    "Stop the tribulations. It''s useless to continue any further." she commanded.


    "Yes, Empress Luo!" the elders replied as they also agreed with her words.


    Elder Jun sighed.


    After all, the mortal boy were like receiving the Heaven''s gifts right now instead of the punishment.


    To think that the latter would be able to absorb even the tribulations from the heaven''s punishment!


    Hais!


    ...


    "The tribulations are finally stopping.." Wang Xiolun exhaled in relief. But he was still nervous on what would be the outcome of their Lord after such a devastating tribulations.


    If it were him, he would not be able to survive even a single struck of that lightning bolt!


    It was just too powerful!


    As the dust settled in, they could finally see Duan Li sitting down cross-legged. The ground that he sat on was like a tall pillar as the surrounding soil got vaporized by the raging lightning bolts from before.


    Duan Li opened his eyes.


    "Holy moly! My residence court!!" he shrieked out in horror.


    His mystic Angaran forest was now gone, the herb garden was burnt to a crisp and the lake were devoid of water. The fishes inside were plopping up and down, suffocated before eventually dying off one by one.


    Everywhere he looked, things were badly damaged to the extent that his beautiful residence court that was filled with splendor previously was now like a broken den suitable only for bandits to live in.


    "Heaven''s Will, you better fix my residence court this instant!" Duan Li shouted out while pointing his index finger into the skies.


    He was quite exasperated right now, if it was just a tribulation meant for him, then why must his residence court got mixed up into that as well?


    Furthermore, its not like Duan Li could not afford to go to another residence court, it was just that he had finally grown fond of this place already!


    "..." the principal and the crowd.


    ...


    "Empress Luo, what should we do?" elder Jun asked as he watched Duan Li getting a little bit brazen on the holographic screen, pointing straight at them.


    At this moment, the Empress was sitting on her throne with gritted teeth. Normally, she wouldn''t even bat an eyelid for something so trivial. In fact, she would love to add some more salt to that wound. After all, she was a little bit petty in personality as well.


    But now, things were not that simple.


    Unless she could identify the origin of this mortal boy before her, she could not afford to get careless right now.


    "Reverse the damage!" she spoke out as she waved her hand casually.


    ...


    Woonggg!!


    The residence court began to glow with a heavenly hum as the damage was slowly being reversed.


    "T-This!" the crowd was shocked by this seemingly grand phenomena.


    It was as if time were being turned back slowly, and that every single damage to the residence court was being amended, joined and re-fixed back into their default state!


    The herb garden was reversed from being burnt into a crisp to healthy green plants, and the vaporized ponds were now filled with clear water once more as the dead fishes were being resurrected and swam merrily.


    "This is a higher level of spatial magic!" the principal noted in his mind as amazement filled him.


    His understanding of the magic grew deeper as inspiration struck at him. He could now feel that he would be able to advance his spatial magic if he integrated this experience later on.


    When the rest of the damage was finally fixed, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction. His respect towards the heavens grew as he couldn''t help but to commend their integrity and seriousness in doing their job.


    This was what a responsibility should look like!


    His followers soon approach at him. As they analyzed his body from top to bottom, they couldn''t even find a single injury on the latter!


    "Y-You.. how did you manage to do this?!" Shen Murong spoke out in disbelief.


    He had seen numerous mystifying phenomena that happened before being someone from a prestigious clan, but nothing was as outlandish as this!


    His horizons were now truly widened!


    At the side, Shen Lu was cupping at his chin as he thought about several theories. The most plausible one that he could think of right now was that Duan Li had an extremely valuable treasure or artifacts that helped protected him from the tribulations before!


    "To think that he wouldn''t even be scratched, that item must be of the highest tier!" he said to himself, convinced with his conjecture.


    Treasures and artifacts were divided into tiers. The higher their tiers were, the more formidable their functions would be.


    Because of this, instead of greed, he now grew more secure and confident of Duan Li''s capabilities, and had now firmly believed that he had made the right choice in becoming one of the latter''s followers!


    If someone could even protect themselves thoroughly from the heavens itself, then it would not be an exageration to say that they could safely secure their lives against anything else!


    After all, there was no one above the heavens in this world!


    Wang Xiolun exhaled in relief once more as he saw that their Lord was fine and healthy. Although he had some lingering questions himself, in the end, he didn''t say anything at all.


    Xiahou Yu finally took out a drumstick fried chicken as she started to bite at it unreservedly.


    Watching that scene from before had made her extremely hungry!


    The principal spoke out, "It was good that the heavens are willing to reverse the damages done to your residence court. Otherwise, even with my capabilities, there was no way I could fully prevent rumors from spreading out with such a devastated state."


    "Now that things are settled here, I should go back to my office soon. And remember, no one is to speak of the event that had transpired here to anyone else. Otherwise, the consequences wouldn''t be something that you could imagine." the principal added with a stern warning towards Shen Lu and the rest.


    They swiftly nodded. Even the principal himself has given the warning to them personally, how would they even dare to leak it?


    Waving his hand casually, the spatial barrier that surrounded the residence court dissipated as the four mysterious figures with black robes and black masks vanished into thin air.


    The principal soon followed suit and disapppeared into the distance.


    ...


    At this moment, only Duan Li and his followers were left. With every single damage to the place got reversed, it was as if the previous event that had happened was just a passing dream to them, and they still couldn''t believe it if everything was true.


    "Hais! Thinking about it won''t get us anywhere. I still got questions, but right now it would be best if we continue cultivating." Shen Lu spoke out after the long silence.


    "That''s right, we still have about an hour before we need to open the registration booth for today." Wang Xiolun added.


    After all, they must showcase their improvement in their cultivation realm later on to attract more people.


    The rest nodded as they went on theirseparate ways and began cultivating once more. The previous spiritual Qi that was sucked dry by Duan Li had also returned back to being thick and dense.


    ...


    Back at his room, Duan Li sat down cross-legged, cupping his chin. He soon came to a decision.


    Since he already read some books regarding pill concoction, his knowledge about it could be considered to be adept right now!


    Time to concoct some pills!


    ...

 92 Chapter 91: Depictions of a monster!

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    Duan Li already has a plan in his mind. He was thinking of concocting pills that could boost one''s strength temporarily in battle.


    Specifically, the Battle Pills!


    Because they were about to go and fight against the monster stampede, he needed to make ample preparations beforehand to increase their overall battle prowess.


    It would never hurt to be too prepared after all.


    "The normal Battle pills sold on the market could increase one''s battle prowess by 20 percent. But at the same time, they also have side effects such as 50 percent more stamina reductions and 30 percent more spiritual Qi consumption rate!" Duan Li said to himself as he cupped his chin.


    With such draining side effects one could experience from consuming these Battle pills, one would truly try to avoid using them at all, unless forced into a desperate attempt.


    "I, however, have already come up with a new recipe that could reduce the side effects significantly while increasing its effectiveness!" he then chuckled out.


    Whoosh!


    Swiftly gathering the required ingredients from his herb garden, he put the herbs inside the revolting-heavens cauldron. This was the cauldron used by Shen Lu and the rest when tempering their body before. If any cultivator that practiced the art of concoction were to see this, they would definitely laugh their ass off until their lungs bursted out.


    This cauldron was not meant to concoct pills nor elixirs as they were made specifically to temper at one''s body. But to Duan Li, his opinion was that, if one were a master in the way of concocting, it wouldn''t even matter if they were to concoct using a pot for making porridge, one would still be able to produce some good stuff out if it!


    Swiftly driving his spiritual Qi in a unique way, the index of his finger produced a bright blue flame by opening an acupoint at the tip. Pointing this finger towards the cauldron, the blue flame flew out.


    Huala!


    The cauldron lit up and began to boil the herbs together.


    "Usually, people would only put in the herbs one by one according to the proper steps, but for simple pills like this Battle pills, I don''t need such a time consuming method. Jumbling them up together andextracting their essences out should do the trick!"


    Huu!!


    The herbs melted as their essences was separated. He then combined the essences together according to his new version of an improved formula for the Battle pill. Not long after that, the pills were already beginning to take its shape!


    Huehuehue! Let''s see what these pills could do!


    Duan Li whipped out the pills from the cauldron. To his surprise, the cauldron had managed to produce 5, green coloured pills!


    Not bad at all!


    Identify!


    [Improved Battle Pills - Tier 3 pills.]


    [Able to increase one''s battle prowess by 50 percent. Side effects includes 10 percent stamina reduction, 10 percent increase in spiritual Qi consumption rate and high chances to become hyper-active!]


    "Hahaha! I did it!" Duan Li cheered happily and almost broke out into a wild dance.


    But wait, what is this another side effects?


    High chances to become hyper-active?


    What''s that?


    Throwing a side glance at the transformed chicken by the corner of the room, an idea soon popped inside him.


    Let''s test this pill out using this chicken first!


    Since the chicken had been transformed to be able to form its own monster core, right now, it was already at the first level of the Qi condensation realm. Thus, this pill should be effective on it!


    If it works, this chicken would give out a little bit more denser aura than it is radiating now!


    As this thought ran inside him, the chicken somehow seemed to understand his intention and swiftly glided over, arriving besides him.


    "Eh? This chicken came straight at me?" Duan Li''s eyes gleamed as he realized something.


    When he focused himself, he could feel that there was an intangible connection with this chicken somehow.


    Just how could this be?


    "Wait, this chicken was transformed after bathing with my blood! No wonder I could sense a familiarity after Shen Lu and the others tempered themselves with my blood before! It must be a similar case!" exclaimed Duan Li.


    It was only because this chicken was so weak that Duan Li had only realized this just now.


    Interesting!


    "Here, swallow this pill!" Duan Li handed down a single Battle pill towards the chicken as the latter immediately peck at it and swallowed the pill whole.


    Gulp!


    BAM!


    Immediately, the body of the chicken expanded even bigger as its thighs and chest muscles popped out, its eyes gradually turning red before flapping its wings furiously!


    "Oho? It seems like the effects from the Battle pill would become even stronger on lower cultivation realm! This chicken now exudes the aura of a level 3 Qi condensation realm, not too bad!" Duan Li nodded satisfactorily.


    CUUCKK CUCKOOO!!


    The chicken suddenly leaped forward and dashed through the wall.


    BAM!


    The force of that dash was so strong that the wall did not crumble. Instead, there was now a hole that looked similar to the figure of that chicken!


    Feeling a bit stumped, Duan Li exited out to see what the chicken was doing while under the effects of the pill.


    Peck! Peck! Peck!


    When Duan Li saw the chicken once more, it was pecking at the ground non-stop, plucking out worms with every single peck as if it had developed a sixth-sense, and knew exactly where the family of worms resided below the ground!


    "Impressive, so it also looks like under the effects of the pills, one''s senses would be heightened even further!" exclaimed Duan Li, surprised as he played with his chin, observing the chicken intently.


    CUCCK CUCCKOOO!!


    The chicken then flapped its wings wide as it leaped atop of a tree, about 5 meters in height.


    Eh?


    To Duan Li''s surprise, this chicken then began to rein in its aura deeper and deeper into its body, until only a small amount of its aura leaked out. Hidden by the leaves atop of the branches, only a glimmer of its eyes could be seen vividly.


    It was as if the chicken had suddenly attained the art of concealment, stealth!


    This was akin to that of a trained assassin, if one were to be careless, this chicken just might be able to take at one''s life in a single sweep!


    Frowning his brows, Duan Li looked at the direction of where this chicken was gazing intently.


    It was the pond where a lot of fish were swimming merrily with each other!


    Gasp!


    "Could it be?" said Duan Li as his eyes turned wide, seeming to come into a realization.


    Whoosshh!


    The chicken suddenly dashed from the branch and flapped its wing with a single, powerful flap. This caused the chicken to glide forward with a sudden acceleration and force behind it, causing it to bolt forward, reminiscing of a true cultivator!


    Snatch!


    With its sharp claw, the chicken had managed to grab ahold of an unlucky fish that had carelessly swam close to the surface of the water.


    This fish was struggling to break free, but that sharp claws of the chicken, or more accurately, its claws-turned-talon grip was too strong!


    Landing atop of the ground, the chicken then began to peck at the fish rapidly. Soon, only the bones remained.


    Gulp!


    "This pill is too formidable! To think that it could turn a mere transformed chicken to act like a Falcon?!" exclaimed Duan Li in astonishment.


    At this moment, he was now truly convinced of this improved Battle pills that he had concocted personally along with his concocting skills. It seems like, if he were just to put his mind into it, a heaven-revolting pills would definitely be formed then and there!


    ...


    "Empress Luo, this mortal boy is a madman!" elder Jun spoke out in disbelief.


    He could not believe it that a mere chicken had turned so formidable by just swallowing a single improved Battle pill!


    A single chicken of this caliber might not amount to much, but if a legion of this chicken - wait no, an army of this chicken was formed, with their might alone, they just might be able to win against a single mortal village!


    Now THAT would be truly heaven-defying!


    Would a rebellion by the chickens was, but inevitable?


    The Empress only observed silently at this scene, appearing indifferent. But her inner heart right now was tumultuous!


    Even their guidelines were useless at this moment. After all, such a thing has never happened before!


    Hais!


    ...


    In a place far, far away, was an old man with long white beard and an aged look to him. Donning on his white robes, he appeared to be full of enigma.


    Right now, he was looking at the ''Timeless Mural Painting'' with his hands clasped behind his back. This was an artifact that he had recovered from a long forgotten civilization back in the past.


    Suddenly, his brows creased together, alarmed, as at the corner of this Timeless Mural Painting, a new image was slowly forming.


    "What is this?" the old man muttered as a foreboding sense crept into him.


    An image of connecting walls were formed as the old man made an accurate conjecture.


    "This seemed to be.. the depictions of a town wall?" he cupped at his chin.


    Then, another image formed atop of these newly formed walls.


    "W-What kind of a monster is this?!" the old man exclaimed in surprise, as he intently observed at this ''monster''.


    Hmm..?


    It seems to be a chicken..?


    But that cannot be! Why would a chicken be depicted here?


    It must be a phoenix?


    The old man then continued to ponder on the meaning behind this newly formed image of a ''monster'' for a whole week.


    ...


    Outside the gates of Duan Li''s residence court, there were already a lot of students waiting impatiently, akin to soldiers that had come to take down the walls of an enemy.


    "Don''t push me! I got here first!"


    "Screw you, I am a senior!"


    "Screw that, I am older than you!"


    Countless arguments could be heard and the crowd had almost broke out into an all-out brawl.


    "Huh? Guys, Look! That''s Shen Murong!"


    "What? Eh you are right! So the rumors is now confirmed, that new Lord managed to recruit Shen Murong into his party!"


    "Is this guy someone impressive?"


    "Fool! That''s the grandson of Shen Long!"


    The crowd began to whisper while throwing glances at Shen Murong, whom was standing firm behind the gate with both of his arms crossed together at his chest.


    At this moment, Shen Murong appeared to become immovable like the mountains!


    He then opened his eyes.


    "The moment this gate opens, everyone better queue up properly! And don''t make trouble for me! Otherwise, don''t blame me for being ruthless!" he shouted out as he let out his aura.


    He was tasked by Shen Lu to become the security when the registration booth opened later.


    Huuu!!


    "T-This! It seems that Shen Lu had become even stronger!"


    "What?! How could that be?"


    "It''s true! Previously, I could tell from his aura that he was just at the level 7 of the Foundation establishment realm. But now, this aura is already at half a step towards the pinnacle stage!"


    "Impossible! Cultivation is not something that easy! Unless...!!"


    Some of the smarter ones immediately made an accurate conjecture.


    It must be because of his Lord!


    ...

 93 Chapter 92: Creatures in one room!

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    After three hours of long queuing, two applicants exhaled in relief when they finally managed to successfully applied.


    They could not help but to shook their heads when they saw these 3 rows of long queues. If not for Shen Murong acting as the security guard, some would have already skipped the line at the front out of impatience. If that happens, riots would definitely ensue.


    "Hey, did you hear that? They only have 5 more slots!" one of them spoke out.


    "What? That''s too little! How will their selection process will be then?" replied the other, surprised.


    "I heard its some kind of a duel between shortlisted applicants." said the man as he cupped his chin.


    "Damn! This is even harder than my job interviews! If it is going to be a duel, there is now way I would be able to win!" the other cursed out between his teeth, feeling depressed.


    "Calm down! The final verdict would be decided by the Lord himself, Duan Li! Regardless if someone won or lost, each have their equal chances before him!"


    The two of them continued to discuss their strategies IF they got shortlisted. After all, the total number of applicants has reach well over a thousand already!


    It would be a miracle if they got the chances and be shortlisted.


    ...


    Soon, the recruitment ended for the day as Shen Lu, Wang Xiolun and Xiahou Yu closed down their booths and prepared to leave towards their respective classes for the day.


    "You guys have classes today?" asked Duan Li as he approached them.


    "I have classes both in the morning and the afternoon." Wang Xiolun replied as he nodded. His tone and body language was now more polite towards Duan Li.


    "Me too! Today is gonna be full time for me! I hate the classes for today, the teachers are way too strict!" Shen Lu remarked with a sigh.


    Xiahou Yu thought for awhile with her index finger on her chin and then answered, "I only have classes in the morning and free by the afternoon! Although, I have plans after that. I might be coming home early though."


    Hearing these, Duan Li nodded.


    "I see, what about you?" Duan Li said to Shen Murong.


    "I don''t have any classes today, but I have to return to my clan and report. But don''t worry, I won''t say anything that I''m not supposed to divulge out. Wouldn''t want to cause trouble for myself anyway." Shen Murong replied.


    After some small talks between them, each went their separate ways with different emotions each.


    "Looks like Shen Lu''s class must be quite stressful. As expected of a Strategist." Duan Li commented as he looked at their disappearing figure from the distance.


    Now, only he was left alone in the residence court.


    At this moment, Duan Li''s party could be considered to be all-rounded for a group battle. They have three Warriors with him included, one Spellcaster and one Strategist. The only class they were lacking right now was an Alchemist.


    Before a group battle, the role of Strategists would be to deploy tactics and manuever nodes for their course of actions during a battle. They must ensure that all things are considered as best as they could.


    Meanwhile, during the battle, the roles of Warriors are far more straightforward. Each could be designated as either the vanguard or the rear-guard.


    As for Spellcasters, they are more flexible between attacking, defensive and supportive roles. However, these are predetermined before the battle by the Strategist. The reason being was that, although they were flexible, they tended to exhaust their spiritual Qi sooner than the others!


    Thus, their enemy targets are far more specific than the Warriors. For defensive roles, they were more needed to protect the backs of both vanguards and rear-guards, with inclination towards the former. As for supportive roles, they were to cast healing and recovery magic, as well as buffs for allies and debuffs for the enemies.


    In other words, the key elements for a successful battle would be to make good use of these Spellcasters!


    However, the roles of an Alchemist were also equally important.


    This was because, although they would usually have the weakest battle prowess out of all the classes, their pills and elixirs could add more advantages and reverse the tides in an unlucky situations during a battle!


    With their means, they could help allies significantly both before and during the battle in many different ways, either buffs or recovery. Furthermore, after the battle, they would be the person most needed on the battlefield to distribute recuperative pills and elixirs for the next incoming battle.


    Thus, an Alchemist was actually the lifeline of a party!


    "Hmm.. even though I am quite capable in producing pills and elixirs myself, mine is quite unorthodox. Having an orthodox Alchemist whom produces pills and elixirs based on the situations would be far more beneficial in a group battle." thought Duan Li as he flipped the applicants paper one by one.


    In his opinion, what he needed the most right now would be Spellcasters, Alchemist and Warriors according to their priority level. For Strategist, he decided that Shen Lu was enough for now.


    Thus, he separated all the applicants into categories based on their classes and star ranks. The rest, he would have to depend on Shen Lu for the shortlisting process.


    "That''s done! Now I need to finish reading the whole loads of books that my disciple borrowed for me. I guess I could finish reading them all today." he said as he went to the reading room.


    ...


    After five hours, Duan Li had managed to read all hundred books and he could feel his brains to be overheating from absorbing too much of information at once.


    "My reading speed had become even faster! However, the feeling of my brain overheating like now is not something I would like to feel every single time after reading.." Duan Li sighed.


    Guess there were still limits he couldn''t overcome naturally despite the seemingly omnipotent abilities he was bestowed with.


    He could extend it if he were to eat pills or elixirs, but unless he was desperate enough, he wouldn''t do it. After all, even though he loves reading books, he was not a maniac.


    "Let''s see.. what should I do next?" Duan Li sat in the room as he cupped at his chin.


    He had concocted some improved Battle Pills of his own version and read a whole pile of books. The only thing he needed to do right now was to rest for a bit!


    "I miss my room and mother.." Duan Li laid down on the floor as both of his hands supported the back of his head, like a pillow. He stared at the ceiling as numerous thoughts sprouted.


    In just a matter of few days after his fateful encounter with the mysterious pearl, his life had definitely changed in a dramatic fashion. This was the kind of life that he had never imagined himself to be in, not even in his wildest dream!


    After resting for two hours while daydreaming, it was already past noon and none had came back yet to the residence court.


    Because he felt bored, he closed his eyes and drove his consciousness into his lower dantian.


    Eh?


    It had been a while since he last saw these two. Dilong, the Earth dragon that looked like a little worm, and Zhulong, the Fire dragon that looked nothing more like a chicken.


    Both of them were the Earth Origin spirit and the Fire Origin spirit respectively. Right now, these two origin spirits had made their own room inside Duan Li''s dantian. Which had caused him to be surprised.


    Entering that room, he saw Dilong and Zhulong chatting with each other while drinking something.


    "Oh? Its the master! Welcome!" Dilong greeted him, elated as she wiggled towards Duan Li.


    "What have you been up to master? We were so bored with nothing to do here!" Zhulong complained as he too approached at Duan Li, like a child seeing its parents.


    Seems like these two had been living it up comfortably inside him eh?


    "What is this room? How is this here?" Duan Li asked them suspiciously.


    "Ahh.. I made this room! Since I am an Earth origin spirit, this is something that is within my means!" Dilong replied proudly.


    "Furthermore, I made a tea too! Come and have a drink!" she said as she whipped her pink tail and a cup of tea materialized out of thin air.


    "As long as your feet touched the ground, I could at least do this much! Hehe!" she continued with a slight giggle.


    "That''s... convenient.." Duan Li said slowly as he observed the room, still feeling rattled that all these was created inside his lower dantian right now.


    He sipped at the cup of tea.


    "Mmm! This tea is delicious!" Duan Li remarked, feeling astonished.


    "Well, if the tea were not boiled to the most perfect temperature, it wouldn''t be able to taste heavenly like that. Naturally, this was only possible because of my help!" Zhulong interjected with a proud look as it used its right wing to hold the tea cup and sipped slowly with its beak.


    It was a strange scene for Duan Li.


    "En! Furthermore, we also have a hot bath and this room is heated quite nicely. We could use another companion sometimes. It gets boring with just the two of us here." Dilong added.


    Pu!


    Duan Li choked on his tea.


    You guys are being way too complacent!


    "Well, I have a Fenrir cub and a molten Komodosaurus sleeping inside my spatial ring right now. I might not be able to join you two as frequently, but they also needed companions as well." Duan Li said, and this was especially true for the molten Komodosaurus.


    The latter had been in a slumbering state ever since Duan Li exited the Eternal maze. Since it had helped him immensely during that final boss encounter, Duan Li felt pitiful for it not having its freedom of roaming around like the cub.


    Hearing this, Zhulong became excited.


    "Molten Komodosaurus? That''s a fire attribute monster! We could get along really fine!" he chuckled.


    "A Fenrir''s cub? It has been a long time since I''ve seen one! Hey Zhulong, let''s open up a portal and connect the spatial ring here so they could enter!" Dilong said, equally excited.


    "Sure!" replied Zhulong.


    Bzzztttt!!


    They both then channeled their powers together, as a small black dot appeared on the corner of the room, appearing to become bigger and bigger.


    "By the way master, we felt two peculiar strong forces that we could not make out at all! They hid beneath several layers of dimension inside you. Thus, even we could not locate them. What are they exactly?" Dilong asked at Duan Li as she continued to channel at her powers.


    "Yeah! I tried to peer through some inner dimensions myself to search for them, but if I get too close, they would repel me away! I only wanted to make friends with them!" Zhulong added as their powers started to make the hole more bigger.


    Hearing this, Duan Li contemplated for a while.


    "They must be talking about the two mysterious pearls, Gold and Crimson.." thought Duan Li.


    "Don''t worry about it, they are not dangerous, just that they do not like to be disturbed." he replied.


    After all, in all honesty, even he too did not know the origin of those two mysterious pearls inside his body. What he did know so far was that, they helped him to change his fate and obtain unique abilities that made him what he is right now.


    Since they did not cause any problems to him, they should be safe.


    Woonggg!!


    The hole finally tore open.


    The size was quite big and soon the Molten Komodosaurus stepped out from the hole.


    "Huh? What is this place?" the Komodosaurus said as he stepped out from the portal.


    But then, it freezed upon coming into eye contact with Zhulong, as if the latter was its forefather. The Komodosaurus finds himself to be reverring the other party almost immediately.


    "Aarrff!! Arrff!!" Daelius, the Fenrir''s cub walked out from that portal excitedly.


    Wooongg!!


    Another portal tore open.


    It was Duan Li''s sword, Duergar.


    "Hmph! No wonder I felt different powers coagulating together, it seems like we have a party here eh? Let me join in as well!" the sword harrumphed as it used its spectral hands and dunk in at a cup of tea with his mouth that suddenly formed on its hilt.


    They began to chat together merrily, and soon, the spacious room had become packed with these creatures socializing with each other.


    Being the host, Duan Li felt really weird about all these, but he still enjoyed it nevertheless.


    Pinggg!!


    Suddenly, an alarming feeling crept up inside him.


    "Eh? This is a connection from Cucko!" said Duan Li as he creased his brows together.


    He decided to name the transformed chicken as Cucko and let it roam free at the garden.


    "This.. an intruder in my residence court?"


    ...

 94 Chapter 93: The Twin Intruders!

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    "Sorry guys, I had to leave now. Trouble just knocked at my doorstep." said Duan Li as he sighed.


    Just when he was enjoying himself, someone just got to arrive and cause trouble for him!


    Retracting his consciousness from his lower dantian, he was now back inside his own room.


    "The direction of this disturbance.. is at the garden?" Duan Li said after he got the telepathic signal from Cucko again.


    Whoosh!


    He swiftly left the room and arrive at the garden within three breaths.


    The garden was silent as usual, but even he could felt that this silence was off from the usual bright atmosphere. It felt stiffling and makes one uneasy to stay for too long.


    Sighing, Duan Li called out towards the people that were hiding in his garden.


    "Come out. I know you guys are here."


    Whooshh!


    Two men covering half of their face with black cloth leaped out from their hiding spot. Eventhough both of their faces were covered, their upper facial appearance were identical with each other - same short hairstyle, wide forehead, sharp brows, deep eyes and narrow upper nose. In other words, these two intruders were twins.


    "How did you find us out?" asked one of them. He did not expect for this person to easily snuff them out from hiding just like that.


    "I didn''t, its my chicken that had discovered you two." Duan Li replied honestly.


    Pu!


    The two men choked as they got caught off guard with Duan Li''s word. They did not expect him to answer like that!


    "Y-You! To say that a chicken caught us infiltrating, do you mean to look down on us?!" this person shouted out, enraged.


    Hearing this, Duan Li realized that the ''truth'' he had just spoken to them would indeed sounded like an insult.


    But what could he do about it? He was really being honest here!


    "It really is because of my chicken that had discovered you, I can prove-" replied Duan Li as he tried to explain before he was interjected by the furious intruder.


    "Enough!" the man shouted out.


    "Our goal is to find a capable Lord to lead us and make use of our skills. When you found us out, I was impressed, because this meant that you had skills of your own."


    "However! To think that you would insult us immediately after. This is something that we could not accept! We challenge you to a duel!" the man said as his emotions fumed with each sentence he spoke out.


    "A duel? Seems like these two are students of the academy too." Duan Li remarked inwardly.


    If it were outsiders, then he definitely would do his best to escape immediately. If these two could bypass the barrier surrounding the academy, then that speaks volume of their actual capabilities and Duan Li would be an idiot to stay longer.


    But now that he knew they were just students of the academy like himself, he reckoned he would be able to take care of them easily.


    This was because, even though both had reined in their aura, some of it still leaked out. If he was not mistaken, these two should be at the Foundation establishment realm, which he would be able to dispatch with ease.


    However, out of caution, he used the identify ability on them.


    [Harmless student, middle stage of Foundation establishment realm.]


    Pu!


    Duan Li had to suppress himself from laughing out loud. This description of them was too dismissing! If they were to know of this, they would be fuming in indignance right now.


    "Prepare yourself!" the angry man shouted out for the last time before both of their figures suddenly vanished.


    Whooshh!


    Eh? This art of concealment they used was far better than before.


    Not bad!


    Although Duan Li couldn''t locate them, the spiritual Qi fluctuations in the air still told him that they were around, and this time, they used skill arts to hide themselves.


    However, what kind of person was Duan Li? If he were to not make use of his abilities that he had gained so far, then he really was a big idiot. Clasping his hands behind his back, he activated an ability.


    ''Tetra Unsealing: Soul Sense!''


    Woongg!


    Right now, his vision layout was changed entirely. It was as if he could view all 360 degrees within the range of 500 meters with absolute clarity.


    Although Duan Li wasn''t someone unfamiliar with the usage of Soul Sense, he had to admit that this version of Soul Sense was far more superior than the original version.


    In particular, was the filter function!


    All non-essential clutters were now being filtered out, and like a sonar, he radiated out a little bit of his spiritual Qi into the surrounding, to uncover the two hidden twins inside this garden.


    This was an ability he had just improvised on the spot by looking at the fundamentals of Sonar Qi, which was a technique used specifically by the practitioners of the art of medicine, the same technique he used to diagnose the internal conditions of Wang Xiolun before!


    "Found you two!" Duan Li chuckled out as he swiftly kicked two pebbles in front of his feet towards the location of the two twins casually.


    Pa! Pa!


    The twins blocked the incoming pebbles with their bare hands, causing their concealment art to be cancelled out almost immediately.


    "You! I have to admit that you have some capabilities!" the rowdy one spoke out, surprised that Duan Li had managed to easily locate them once more.


    What they just used was a clan secret art, and no one outside of their clan knows of this! Furthermorw, even if one managed to identify its flaw, they would still not be able to locate them easily like this!


    "Are you going to say that you found us out because of your chicken again?" he spoke out with gritted teeth.


    If the other party still dared to mock them, he would risk it all and beat up this haughty guy in front of them!


    Duan Li chuckled a little and shook his head.


    "Nope. This time, it was because of my ability." Duan Li replied casually.


    "Good! Since that''s the case, it meant that our concealment art had lost its purpose. Following which, its time for some close quarters combat!" he spoke out somewhat excitedly as he began to form a stance.


    Since they were both a sophomore, they had not come to watch the battle royale conducted for the junior''s first Combat class. Thus, they naturally hadn''t witnessed the brutal battle between Duan Li and Shen Murong that broke the entire field apart!


    However, they did keep on hearing that Duan Li''s hand to hand combat was formidable. Therefore, they were eager to test if that rumors were true at all!


    "Close quarters combat?" Duan Li''s face turned a bit blank as he recalled a scene. The last time he did that with Shen Murong, all hell had broken loose. If that were to happen again here, his residence court might really just turn to become a hiding den for bandits!


    Even yelling at the heavens would not make them fix his residence court this time around if that happen.


    "Wait! I don''t want to mess up my residence court! I agree to close quarters combat, but it must be purely raw strength with no skill art used! In addition, If I could hold out twenty moves from you two, then I win!" Duan Li hurriedly said.


    The two of them looked at each other at this weird duel rules that Duan Li had proposed, but since they were the challenger, naturally Duan Li had the rights to chose the rules of the duel.


    Thus, they nodded, but the rowdy one asked Duan Li, "Are you sure with this rules? This would be two against one. Let me warn you, our hand to hand combat is not something you see everyday. You might regret this decision!"


    "Yes I am sure. In fact, I am not looking down on you both. Imagine three martial artists that practiced cultivation were to fight with full strength here, my residence court would be turned into a mess! If that happened, can you two fork out 50 high quality spirit stones for the repairs?" Duan Li replied with another question.


    Hearing that number ''50 high quality spirit stones'' for compensation, both of them immediately broke out in sweats!


    It was as if they were facing a truly horrible, devastating monster before them!


    Eventhough their clan was extremely reclusive and capable, they were not rich at all. Just the thought of recalling that their allowances per month was just a meager 500 low quality spirit stones had already made them thoroughly depressed. Where would they even be able to fork out 50 high quality spirit stones then?


    Even if the empire itself were to come down and loot their whole clan to the ground to look for such an amount, it would be far more easier for them to ascend the heavens than finding one or two high quality spirit stones laying around inside their clan.


    They were just that poor!


    In the past, being a reknown assassin clan far and wide, many had hired them for their special skillsets, and their treasury could be said to be as deep as the ocean.


    But when the revolution came and laws were made, if they were to continue with their assassination business in broad daylight, they would soon find their whole nine ancestors and nine predecessors to be wiped clean from the Tian continent!


    Thus, after several decades, their deep treasury eventually ran out and dry like the boundless deserts, until every single one of them had to live frugally. It was truly a tragic fate for their clan.


    After all, times have changed and people could not just wantonly murder people left and right anymore.


    That was why they needed to find a Lord soon, so that they would have a shelter on top of their head to rely upon and not be subjected to such vicious cycle of poverty anymore.


    Furthermore, they were trained to be loyal since they were but a child, and swearing fealty to a Lord would not be a problem for them at all.


    In fact, by then, their clan would be second in priority compared to their Lord!


    Swallowing their saliva, the rowdy one immediately nodded his head like a chicken pecking at the ground, thoroughly afraid of having to pay up 50 high quality spirit stones.


    With such a number, even if he were to sell all of his bodily organs, he would still not be able to clear such a debt.


    "W-We agree!" he said quickly.


    As Duan Li did not know yet of their tragic background, he found it weird for the other party to instantly agree.


    Nonetheless, this works well in his favor.


    Lowering himself into a unique stance, all sorts of opening from before was now thoroughly guarded.


    At this moment, Duan Li''s martial art had already evolved into something that was terrifying as the result of his battle experience with Shen Murong.


    Just with this stance alone, the wind had suddenly stopped blowing, insects and small creatures shut their mouth for good, and fishes by the pond submerged themselves deep into the water, afraid to be exposed to such a brutal air above them.


    The two twins could sense this dreadful air being permeated by Duan Li as they too became serious. Even if there were no killing intent behind that stance by the other party, this pressure alone that they were subjected to right now feels eerily similar nonetheless.


    "Come!" Duan Li spoke out.


    ...

 95 Chapter 94: The true master!

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    "Come." Duan Li beckoned towards them.


    Whoosh!


    Whoosh!


    The twins dashed forward with breaking speed from two opposite direction. One was coming towards Duan Li from the front, while the other was coming from the back.


    Impressive!


    From Duan Li''s observation with his Soul Sense, the pair had charged forward with the exact same speed and momentum, their breathing synchronized down to their core!


    Unless one was an expert with countless years of experience, such perfect synchronization is but impossible. However, this duo in front of him right now were doing just that, and perhaps this was because they were twins or blood-related, but who actually knows how they did it.


    With just a single breath, they have closed the distance of more than 5 meters away in an instant. Right now, the one at the front was using a bare-handed chop from the left, akin to a sharp blade aiming at his neck, while the other was also doing the same chopping motion, coming from the back on his right side by the ribs.


    A pincer attack!


    Smiling, Duan Li casually stepped back with his left foot, and his right foot suddenly arched backwards, creating a donkey back kick!


    Ooffff!!


    The one at the back managed to block this surprise counter-attack from Duan Li by using his left hand, but the sudden impact still ran through his body and the strong force caused him to be pushed back three steps.


    At the same time, Duan Li swiped at the incoming chop from his front-left with his left hand. His palm slid down from the forearm to the wrist of the opponent''s arm like a snake.


    Grab!


    Twisting his left foot clockwise while turning his body, he borrowed the momentum and weight of this person to throw the other party to the back by grabbing at the wrist.


    Whoosh!


    The man lost his balance for a while but did a somersault in mid-air to adjust himself and landed safely on the ground, right beside his little brother.


    Formidable!


    Just from this exchange alone, they could tell that the martial art of the other party was not a joke at all, and the rumors were indeed true!


    Their encounter only lasted for a single breath, but their joint attacks had been successfully countered at the same time and his little brother was even dealt with a blow and he himself was thrown over!


    "Such kinds of moves would take years of experience to master. Not bad!" the big brother thought to himself, amazed.


    "But we too, have our own experiences as well!" he continued as his eyes gleamed.


    He then looked at his little brother as they both nodded. Soon, both of their aura was reined in even further, close to their body until it was only about 1 cm from them. But now, their disposition had changed entirely. If previously they were like a pair of blades, now they were like a pair of glistening sharpened blades.


    Oh? Finally serious eh?


    Duan Li remarked as he noticed this qualitative change in their aura.


    Whoosh!


    Whoosh!


    The two dashed forward once more, but this time, both were coming from the front. However, the weird thing was, their dash was now even slower than before.


    In fact, this couldn''t even be considered a dash made by cultivators, but running towards him at normal speed, just like how the mortals did it.


    At the sight of this, Duan Li focused his sense onto their feet. His eyes narrowed as he noticed something.


    "Their momentum increased dramatically with each step they took!" he exclaimed as he took a step back to distance himself.


    But this realization was a step too late.


    After their fifth step, their figure immediately turned blur. This was a unique innate gift of their bloodline.


    ''Immaterial Shadow Body!''


    Due to their lines of work that had went on for several centuries, their continuous practice of concealment art religiously every single day had unknowingly changed their very essence.


    This was because back then, their clan was very strict on their members, and this immense pressure had finally resulted in evolution of their bloodline.


    Thus, every single one of their offspring right now possessed this innate ability that can turn their body into an immaterial figure, and thus the name of their ability.


    As this was an innate ability and not a skill art, they were not violating the rules that Duan Li had just spoken before. Even the latter seemed to had realized this as there were no fluctuations to the spiritual Qi in the surrounding when they used this.


    Because of this unique state they were in, every single move they made was extremely hard to decipher. The constant blurring gave them the advantage of being able to change their technique mid-way that can caught their opponents off-guard.


    In other words, a punch might turn out to be a palm attack, while a chop might turn out to be a finger attack and vice versa.


    Strike!


    BAM! BAM!


    Their increased momentum from before had added an even more advantage to them. Their strikes were heavy by at least three folds each, but it also seems like their speed had dropped a little bit as well, and it was only because of this that right now Duan Li was able to see their attacks and defend against them.


    BAM! BAM!


    The twins attacked at Duan Li relentlessly and they were now using multiple attack patterns and style to confuse the latter as well.


    If one were to kick, one would try to grab. And if one were punch, the other would try to kick him. However, even if these combination attack were impressive, in the end, it was just that.


    Against someone else, their tactics might''ve worked flawlessly, but he was someone with many cheat abilities that he could deploy at any moment now.


    For example, if he were to just drop his stance at this moment, the time delay ability of his would definitely kick in and their attacks would be as good as a still statue to him.


    Although this was something that he had yet to tested out, because it was way too dangerous back then, and he did not dare to play with his life. But, he was sure that it would be that way if he actually tried.


    And even if he did not use that time delay ability, given a few more breaths, the analysis of their whole combat pattern by his brain would soon be finished. By then, he would be able to deal with them easily.


    However, he did not want for the twins to be discouraged or crushed when they lost against him, which would be if he did that, and was thus the reason why he gave them the chances of 20 moves to defeat him.


    This way, not only it would cause them to revere his martial arts and capabilities as a Lord, they would even try improve their skills further so that they could win against him in the future!


    BAM! BAM!


    ...


    Soon they had used up all twenty moves against Duan Li, and finally stopped attacking.


    The older brother sighed, "You really are formidable, to think that even our combined assault with our bloodline ability activated, we still couldn''t win against you, this is a first!"


    "In fact, it even seemed to us that you were still holding back from showing your true prowess! Not too arrogant and not too straightforward as well. These are the kind of qualities that we are looking for in a Lord! We would definitely want to give our loyalty to you!" he continued.


    Hearing this, Duan Li chuckled for a bit, he already had guessed this much from them, and this should be their main goal for challenging him.


    He couldn''t help but to recall his past self that was dull compared to now. He didn''t know when he started to change like this though, but ever since coming to this academy, he had already encountered numerous kinds of people and even accepted a disciple at that!


    Through his interactions with them, his experience and the memories from another timeline slowly integrating with him, and the responsibility he holds as a Lord right now had changed his disposition slowly without him knowing.


    Only now did he realized, that he had truly begun to change.


    "I guess, change is inevitable for me." he said to himself as he shook his head.


    He looked at them and smiled, "Well, you guys haven''t yet to introduce yourselves to me."


    "Ah! I am the older brother Wei Shang, and this here is my little brother Wei Wang. I think you could already guess from our appearance but yes, we are twins! Furthermore, we came from the Wei clan!" the older brother called Wei Shang said.


    Duan Li nodded as he heard their names. He then turned to the little brother.


    "Wei Wang, I believed I haven''t yet to heard you speak about anything since arriving here. Do you share the same thoughts as your older brother?" Duan Li asked him as it was bugging at his mind since the beginning.


    Only the older brother liked to talk so much, while the little brother was just so quite that it was eery for him.


    Thus, he hoped that with this question, he could bring the other party to talk, but to his surprise, the latter just nodded!


    "Umm.. my little brother could not speak.. he is mute.." Wei Shang explained as he scratched the back of his head.


    Oh? No wonder!


    With this unexpected realization, Duan Li apologized to Wei Wang as he then said, "You both had proven yourself to me, but I will give you two about two days time to think about this. If you still insist to serve under me, then fill this in and submit this recruitment application form to Shen Lu tomorrow."


    "After two days time, I can only promise you two that you would be shortlisted among the many. There would be duels between shortlisted applicants and it didn''t matter if one would win or lost, I would give the final verdict myself."


    "Until then, you two would just have to prove yourself once more. After all, today''s fight was quite limited to showcase your full capabilities, don''t you guys think so?" Duan Li continued as he handed down the application form to them.


    Hearing this, both Wei Shang and Wei Wang nodded. If they were able to use their many skill arts, perhaps Duan Li would be more convinced of what they could really do!


    "Thank you! Even though we are still lacking, I hope you won''t insult us again next time!" Wei Shang scratched his head again, joking.


    Insult?


    Seems like these two were still not convinced they got caught by a chicken!


    "Cucko! Come out now!" Duan Li spoke out suddenly.


    Swoosh!


    A tough looking chicken immediately bolted forward to stood beside him.


    "Do you guys believe me now?" Duan Li chuckled.


    When the twins saw this chicken, they couldn''t help but for their eyes to open wide and their mouths agaped.


    It really is a chicken!


    How did we not managed to sense its presence before?!


    Right now, their entire horizon was being shattered as they were forced to see beyond it.


    A true master of concealment art!


    ...

 96 Chapter 95s Herbalogist class!

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    Just like that, another two days had passed, and Shen Lu, Wang Xiolun, Xiahou Yu and Shen Murong were currently looking at the long list of applicants that was to be shortlisted.


    "This one is no good.." said Xiahou Yu as she flipped at another applicant form. She was tasked by Duan Li to shortlist Spellcaster class applicants.


    By the side was Shen Murong, with veins popping on his forehead as he mocked out, "Huh? What the hell is with this specialty, body massage? Who needs that? Trash!"


    Pong!


    He crumpeled the applicant form and threw it to the dust bin at the corner of the room.


    "Check this guy out, his specialty is a recon specialist! Shortlisted!" Shen Lu exclaimed as he nodded.


    Both of them were tasked to shortlist the Warrior class applicants and to disregard any Strategist class applicants entirely.


    Right now, their party member was just five people and they needed another five more in order for Duan Li to rank up to a 1 Star rank Lord Class.


    Specifically, after their further discussions, they needed 3 more Warrior class, 1 more Spellcaster class and an Alchemist class.


    With these mix, they would then have a final lineup of 1 Lord class, 1 Strategist class, 1 Alchemist class, 2 Spellcaster class and 5 Warrior class.


    "This person is an all-rounder spellcaster, shortlisted!"


    At this moment, Xiahou Yu had already filled her quota of 5 shortlisted Spellcaster. Wang Xiolun was also given 5 quota except Shen Lu and Shen Murong, whom only got 4 quota each.


    This was because they were in charge of shortlisting the Warrior class and Duan Li had already shortlisted 2 Warrior class in advance before, the twins - called Wei Wang and Wei Shang.


    "Specialty, unbeatable warrior? This daddy thinks that he could beat you up in a hearbeat! But I like this confidence!"


    Shen Murong laughed out as he also filled his quota.


    "Alchemist that can produce 12 different types of pills? Shortlisted."


    On the opposite side, Wang Xiolun and Shen Lu had managed to fill up their quotas as well.


    They then submitted these shortlisted applicants to Duan Li, whom checked at their biodata thoroughly as he nodded every so often while reading it.


    ...


    After two whole hours of the shortlisting process, they now has a total of 20 shortlisted applicants out of the total three thousand applicants.


    "Let us notify these 20 people to gather at the Dueling platform this afternoon." Duan Li said as he nodded satisfactorily.


    With the help of the Principal, he managed to book the whole Dueling platform on the afternoon. Thus, the main event was now set in motion.


    But right now, Duan Li had to swiftly go to his class soon - Herbalogist class. Even Shen Lu and the rest had immediately departed afterwards in a rush.


    Hais!


    Such was the life of a student, no matter how eager one were to do something else, one must definitely be accountable to their actions and responsibility as a student!


    No matter if one were an immortal or a mortal, in a functional society nowadays, every single student needed to contribute their time for the sake of a better future for their Empire.


    And if they were able to benefit from this as well, then one can truly say to themselves that they had succeeded.


    A symbiotic relationship where both parties gained something out of it, this was the key to prosper!


    Ahem!


    Retracing back his thoughts, the reason why he chose the Herbalogist occupation was simple. The higher the star rank of someone in Herbalogist, the more access they would have to obtain rare types of herbs to concoct high grade elixirs or pills.


    This way, it would generate a chain of connective demand and supply, where high Star ranked Herbalogist became the most saught after individual for influential figures and organization to obtain rare resources.


    Furthermore, as the Star rank was a system created by the Empire, naturally, this also means that a higher Star ranked individual would become increasingly connected to the Royal palace. This ensured that all precious and limited resources of the Empire were strictly articulated and bonded.


    Thus, while higher Star ranked individuals could be said to had gained immense amount of influence and prestige, they were also being closely monitored by the royal palace as well.


    But of course, these were but simpler explanations to the whole complex mechanism that surrounded the successfulness of the Monarchial system of the Jiu Empire.


    Against the test of time, many powers and influence had tried to undermine the authority of the Royal palace, but none dared to be truly brazen at all.


    Otherwise, the convicted would find themselves to be slowly sanctioned by the Empire and then isolated from the others, slowly losing their significance until one day, where no one cared about them anymore, they would be dragged into a dark alleyway to be silenced eternally for good.


    Thus, it could be said that, the first Forefather whom had invented this system could only be described as the most terrifying and unfathomable individual!


    Other than that requirement though, those rarer and nice herbs would also cost quite a fortune to be purchased. In fact, they were so expensive and some even reached an astronomical sum due to their rarity and age alone.


    Although for Duan Li, money was definitely not an issue at all.


    Furthermore, he wanted to groom a personal group of Alchemist under him, with each specialized in a certain field.


    This way, he could focus on his teaching approach for every individual in order to increase their overall productivity. When compared to teaching a single individual to be all rounded, not only would it take longer for them to become a master, resources would be wasted as well.


    For example, if an Alchemist was taught whole-heartedly in just producing pills to increase combat power, they would be able to master a lot and could already produce a varieties of higher quality combat pills within a timeframe.


    On the other hand, if an Alchemist was taught in producing pills to increase combat power, recovery, constitution and more within the same allotted timeframe, they would only be able to master the basics due to the time constraints and other inevitable limitations. This would only produce sub-par pills that was just like any other available in the market.


    ...


    Bringing along Daelius as always, the cub walked in front of Duan Li to point him towards the correct direction. As usual, there were lines of female students tagging along behind Duan Li, and a lot of male students that saw this was naturally indignant within their hearts.


    But now that they knew who Duan Li was, due to his increasing reputation and fame after the fight against Shen Murong, almost everyone had heard of how formidable he actually were, despite his sleazy outlook. Thus, they could only bear with it and curse silently.


    Tap! Tap!


    "I have finally arrived!" Duan Li said as he turned his head to look at the cub. "You can go around the campus and play now. Just remember to not cause any trouble okay?"


    Arrrff! Arrrff!


    Duan Li chuckled to himself seeing this energetic cub ran with its tail wagging left and right excitedly, eager to play with the other creatures in the academy.


    And as he expected, it only took a few breath for the cub to be surrounded by female students that would gladly took care of it.


    With a smile, he turned his head back and entered the class. This was a scene that he could remember vividly that was similar to back then.


    The room was bigger and could fit a few hundred students per session.


    The reason for this was because learning Herbalogist was part of the mandatory requirement in order to rank up every single major occupation to the 2 Star rank level by at least advancing the Herbalogist class to the 1 Star rank!


    For an aspiring successful cultivator, they needed to at least knew of the basics to identify herbs properly, or to at least have the knowledge to stay away from dangerous and poisonous looking herbs in the wildlife.


    Otherwise, with the numerous hostile environment outside there, if they decided to adventure out with zero knowledge in Herbalogist, they would most probably die.


    The design of the classroom was similar to every other lecture-type of class - Coliseum style.


    Taking a seat somewhere in the middle, it didn''t took long before the whole seats was filled out and the room feels cramped.


    Thankfully, there was no roof and it was an open air lecture. This was because some herbs releases scents or pollens that could be dangerous if inhaled. Some runic formations could also be seen revolving by the air to exhaust out these undesirable elements during the course of the lecture.


    After all, the academy took the safety of its students seriously.


    Tap! Tap!


    A female teacher walked up onto the platform. Her looks were above average but her demeanor were graceful, and some male students had already fancied her to be their favorite teacher.


    "Greetings everyone, I''m your teacher for this semester and my name is Ding Huiqing!" she spoke out with a clear melodious voice that caught everyone''s attention instantly!


    What a beautiful voice!


    Even Duan Li nodded to himself hearing the voice from this teacher.


    "Since this will be your first class, in this introductory lesson for today, we will learn how to identify between good and bad herbs!" she said as she whipped out two different herbs from her spatial ring.


    Good and bad herbs?


    That''s an interesting term to use!


    ...

 97 Chapter 96: The Red Herb!

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    "There are many ways to identify whether a plant or herb is dangerous or not. But the most basic way is by using your eyes." the teacher, Ding Huiqing said as she winked innocently.


    Very quickly, some of the male students blushed as they started to whisper with one another.


    "Hey, I think she just winked at me!" a fat male student whispered silently to his friend besides him, feeling excited.


    Pa!


    "Even my blind dog dared not look at your face. She must be worse than a blind person if she winked at you! Focus!" said his friend as he was smacked behind the head.


    "The most obvious way to first look for clues using your eyesight is to observe the leaves! I''m pretty sure that everyone here should at least know of this." the teacher said.


    The students nodded.


    "Very good! But for those who didn''t know yet, the colour coding of the leaves is very important. When you have memorized the contents of ''Common Herb Compendium'' book, just by looking at the colour of the leaves and you would already be able to to identify on what kinds of herb it is!" she continued.


    "Furthermore, for this semester, you would do well to memorize the contents of another important book as well, called ''Herb Identification 101''. This is a really good book for beginners and the final exam will reflect mostly on the knowledge from within it."


    "However, what you must remember is that, just by mastering this basic identification method would not keep you 100 percent safe from danger. For example, take a look at these two herbs!"


    She pointed towards the two different herbs that she just whipped out a few moments ago.


    "These two different herbs are common that you would frequently find when you adventure out. One is called the Tallroot grassherb and the other is called Shortroot grassherb."


    Taking a sweeping gaze towards the crowd of students, she pointed out to one of the female students and asked her to describe the herb.


    The student then rose up from her seat and bowed slightly before answering. She had a noble disposition to her and Duan Li knew who this person was.


    It was none other than Xiahou Yu as she was also a junior student in the academy.


    "These two herbs are of the same species, one is taller than the other and had their roots spread out onto the ground like grass, hence the name." Xiahou Yu said fluently.


    "They are most commonly used to concoct grade 1 elixir. Which were sold on the market for a very cheap price. If a person could haul a large number of them, they could make themselves some quick small money!" she continued, and ended her answer with a bow before sitting down.


    The teacher nodded with a smile. What a good student!


    "Perfect! Your description is quite spot on! Now that everyone has heard her, take a look at these other herbs then!" she said as she whipped out another three different herbs from her spatial ring.


    These three herbs appeared to be no different than the other, but the keener ones were able to spot some crucial differences between them.


    "This one looks just like the previous Tallroot grassherb right? But look at the edge of the leaves, they are more pointed when compared to the previous one which were more rounded." she said as she plucked out one leaf from each herb to show the crowd the differences between them.


    "Well, this one is called the Tallroot trapherb, it is poisonous but treatable. Make this into an elixir though, and you would concoct a poison instead of recovery elixirs!" she said as she plucked out another leaf from the other herbs that had almost the same appearances.


    "Here is a Tallroot snakeherb. A tonic for snakes but deadly for other creatures, including humans. Look at the underside of the leaves, they have some black patches on it. Consume it, and you would go into a cardiac arrest. 30 percent that did just that had died before."


    "And this one here is Shortroot shockherb. Its branches are way more thicker than usual and if you eat it, you would be paralysed for three whole days. In the wild, three days of laying down on the ground would definitely make you an ideal target of free food for the wild animals." she chuckled.


    As she continued to explain and whip out more common herbs that has their appearance almost identical with each other, some of the students began to sucked in cold breath.


    To think that the world out there would be this treacherous!


    Just the plants alone could kill them in so many ways!


    ...


    After about two hours, the long lecture was finally ending. Duan Li sighed in relief at the sight of this. After all, he had almost slipped into the otherworldly plains and had to fought back hard so that his eyelids wouldn''t close.


    That was such a close battle!


    And by the looks of it, plenty of the students around had also seemed to fight against their own personal ''battlefield'' as well. Some were even raising their head haggardly with panting breaths.


    Those people must have gone through such an intense battle that one dared not imagine!


    "That''s it for the first lesson today. But before everyone here is dismissed, let me give you guys a good present!" Ding Huiqing said.


    Huala!


    A red coloured herb materialized on the table as the rest were put back inside her spatial ring.


    Most of the students here did not have a single clue as to what that herb was including Duan Li, thus they have an indifferent look to them right now.


    Only a very small percentage here could identify what that herb was, as their eyes narrowed and some began to clenched their fists tight in agitation!


    "A lot of you might not know what this herb is, but this is the Red Mistel Flowerherb, and only Herbalogist of Star rank 4 and above may have the permit to purchase this from the Empire."


    "If anyone here can describe the effects thoroughly, I would gift this herb to that person!" she said, smiling.


    However, she was pained deep inside her heart. This herb had costed her quite a lot to obtain, but in order to reach her goal, this loss was quite acceptable.


    This was a strategy that she had used all the time to scout and recruit talented individual everytime the semester starts, and right now she was hoping to find one in order to make that person her disciple.


    If one day that disciple of her''s were able to mature and flutter their feathers to raise in Star rank higher than her, then she would definitely benefit immensely from it as the teacher as well!


    This was called an early investment!


    The herb that she whipped out was something that was very difficult and rare to find. In addition, not many references were available about it in the library. If there truly was a student that could describe this herb for her, then she could consider herself to be truly lucky!


    "However, if none of you could answer it correctly, then naturally, I would not gift this to anyone!" she said, somewhat playfully.


    Noticing this, Duan Li frowned as he thought of what was so special about the herb in front of him. Since he had read some books regarding herbs due to him studying the art of medicine and concoction, he could ''see'' this herb before him to at least be safe to consume.


    But as for its effects? He hadn''t got a single dime on it!


    Thus, he used his Identify ability on the herb.


    [Red Mistel Flowerherb - Able to purify one''s inner spiritual Qi slightly if consumed directly. Have a very low chance to increase one''s own potential slightly.]


    [If concocted properly into a Transforming Essence pill of grade 4, it could increase one''s Qi cycle by at least 20 percent, muscle density by 10 percent, bone density by 10 percent, physical recovery ability by 30 percent, Stamina depletion rate reduced by 20 percent and Skill arts being stronger by 10 percent when deployed - effective for only those under the Core formation realm.]


    [The effects would be permanent and for one-time use only.]


    Holy-moly!


    When Duan Li heard the description, his eyes turned wide.


    This piece of herb here was actually a rare treasure!


    Immediately, a number of people rose their hands, including Duan Li.


    "Alright, those who rose their hands up, come forward and whisper to me their effects. This way, everyone would have a chance!" Ding Huiqing said, excited as there were 4 people who actually had a clue as to what this herb does.


    Now that was surprising!


    Coming forward one by one, each began to whisper to her the effects.


    The first two person only told her that the effects was that it could purify one''s inner spiritual Qi which was correct. But this was not that hard to know if one knew about it.


    What she actually wanted to hear was the second effect. Since it has a very low chance to induce qualitative change in one''s potential, not many had documented this before because some thought that it was not related to the herb at all.


    But when the third person came forward, her expression became delighted!


    This person knew about the second effect!


    Wonderful!


    As she scanned at Duan Li, her brows shot up.


    "Eh? This student is the one that people talked about recently a lot!" she thought to herself as she recognized him.


    When Duan Li whispered to her, she became delighted once more.


    But soon, she realized that she had to choose between one of them. This was because having a disciple was extremely time consuming and costed a lot.


    "It seems that the two of you has given me the correct answer that I wanted. Unfortunately, there is only one herb here, so the both of you would have to do rock-paper-scissor and leave it to fate."


    The other person besides Duan Li nodded as he agreed to this.


    Indeed, when two people encountered the same treasure, only those with an affinity to it would be able to get their hands on it!


    However, Duan Li by the side cupped his chin. Right after, he whispered to her once more.


    This time, her expression suddenly changed. Her face flushed red as her breathing hastened.


    Those who watched this scene immediately misunderstood the situation.


    "H-He can''t be whispering something dirty isn''t he?" a male student exclaimed.


    "Unless he wanted to get bared for a whole semester, only idiots would do such a thing with a teacher!" another spoke out in disbelief.


    This Duan Li really has the guts to flirt around with a teacher in front of people!


    "Are.. are you sure about this?" she asked slowly, suppressing her excitement.


    "100 percent sure." Duan Li replied.


    Hearing this, Ding Huiqing contemplated for a while before nodding.


    BOOM!


    What?!!


    The teacher had actually agreed to go out with him?!


    At this moment, the whole class began to descend into a state of pandemonium.


    ...

 98 Chapter 97: The battle of tongues!

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    "The Red Mistel Flowerherb belongs to Duan Li!" Ding Huiqing announced as excitement were apparent on her face.


    Hearing this, the crowd broke out into discussion once more as some of them began to question the validity of Duan Li winning that herb.


    "Huh? What happen to the rock-paper-scissor method? I thought they both gave her the same answer, how did he won then?"


    "Beats me. I smell something suspicious going on here!"


    "Yeah! Even though I don''t know what the effects of that herb were, but for him to win like this, this is just unfair for the other person!"


    Ding Huiqing knitted her brows when the crowd of students began to spoke out their opinions regarding this matter one after another.


    "Quiet down! I chose Duan Li as a winner because he just told me about the third effect that this herb could produce. Thus naturally, he earned it rightfully!" she explained.


    The other student that contested with Duan Li then spoke up, "If that is true, then indeed he should earned it. But this herb here only has two significant effects as far as I know. And this comes from my father being a 4 Star ranked Herbalism as well!" (AN: Changed from Herbalogist to Herbalism. Thanks to Jam28 from WN!)


    Hearing this, Ding Huiqing nodded.


    "Actually, that was supposed to be the case as well. So far, the herb was only documented to have two effects. But this student here, Duan Li, just told me about a third effect that was more significant than the previous two!" she replied.


    Hearing this, the student sneered a little bit.


    "I''m not trying to be rude, but its just that I am not convinced about this. How could another effect that was more significant than the other two went by unnoticed? Surely this should not be the case?"


    The crowd nodded to his statement.


    "If teacher could somehow explain this not just for me, but for the rest as well, then I would gladly back away and declare myself that he truly won this." the student said calmly as he seemed to have the entire situation controlled.


    Ding Huiqing sighed. She was planning to not disclose any information for the third effect, but it seems that what the other party had just said makes sense as well.


    Furthermore, it was reasonable that he demanded an explanation as to why he truly lost.


    Thus, she turned to the other party and nodded once more.


    "Very well!" she said as she whipped out a book from her spatial ring.


    "This here is the Advanced Herbal Compendium book, and within it, on page 201, detailed out a description regarding the Red Mistel Flowerherb. This book is not available in the library so I will state out the effects for everyone here. Listen carefully!" she said as she began to list out the effects.


    "Effects of the Red Mistel Flowerherb."


    "One, if consumed directly, the person would be able to feel that their spiritual Qi were being purified. As a result, one might notice that their cycle speed would increase by several percent. In other words, eating this herb raw would cause one''s own spiritual Qi efficiency to increase!"


    "Second, if consumed directly, there is a very low chance for a person''s potential to increase qualitatively!"


    BOOM!


    When the crowd heard that second effect, some began to breath in erratically as they looked at that red herb intently.


    What sort of miracle that would be if they were able to increase their potential just by eating that herb?


    One has to know that potential here refers to the grade of dantian that a person has. From the weakest potential are Red, followed by Orange. Then Yellow, Green, Blue and finally the strongest potential, White!


    This was something that was decided upon one''s birth. It was not to say that it cannot be upgraded at all, in fact, there were some that had managed to do it.


    But out of 100 people that tried to, only perhaps one of them had truly succeeded!


    Thus, it could be said that upgrading one''s potential was something that was extremely difficult. If there were even a very low chance to be able to upgrade their potential like this Red Mistel Flowerherb here, who wouldn''t want it?


    Therefore, as the crowd turned more agitated, they immediately supported that other student that lost against Duan Li,just because they have lost the chance themselves from the start and were unwilling for Duan Li, the winner to get it.


    "Settle down! If this makes everyone here agitated, then wait until you hear the third effect that Duan Li just told me!" Ding Huiqing harrumphed a little bit, confident that this third effect would have them even more excited!


    "The third effect!"


    The crowds sucked in breath as they waited anxiously.


    What could be more significant than the effect of increasing one''s potential?


    "If used as an ingredient for concoction, one would be able to produce a Transforming Essence pill of grade 4!"


    Hisss!


    When the crowd heard the ''Transforming Essence pill'' they immediately sucked in cold breath!


    The Transforming Essence pill was a widely known pill that was just as heaven defying in its effects as increasing one''s potential!


    In fact, it was even better because it could induce numerous qualitative change inside one''s body and battle prowess at a 100 percent chance, permanently at that!


    The ones that were available on the market were grade 1 to 3 and they are very few in numbers that was up for sale. Furthermore, their price was astronomical. Even a grade 1 Transformation Essence pill was already 500 medium quality spirity stones!


    Not to mention a grade 4 Transformation Essence pill, one could truly becomes rich overnight if they managed to produce even just a single of this pill!


    At this moment, the crowd turned silent as they shifted themselves to neutral once more.


    Seeing the tables had turned against him, the student that had lost was evidently displeased by this and quickly refuted.


    This time, he would be more forceful in his approach!


    "Hmph! A grade 4 Transformation Essence pill? Outlandish! No one in the whole Empire had managed to concoct it before, and you claimed to know of this effect?"


    "This is as if you are claiming to be able to concoct a grade 4 Transformation Essence pill yourself, which also indirectly says that you are superior to even the great Royal Alchemist himself as he had never achieved such a feat despite being an 8 Star rank Alchemist!"


    Hisss!


    The crowd sucked in cold breath once more.


    What vicious words! This fell has quite the sharp tongue!


    "T-This.." Ding Huiqing was also taken aback by what this student just spouted out. She had not expected for the other party to be so daring so as to bring the great Royal Alchemist of the Jiu Empire into this debate!


    Duan Li narrowed his eyes menacingly at this moment.


    To think that this person in front of him would dare to accuse him so suddenly just because they lost?


    He was usually an amiable person, but if someone annoyed and ruffle his feathers, much less accuse him without warrant such as this, he would not just sit idly by!


    "Big words you spouted there. Your statement just now is the same as saying that you know personally, the full extent and capability of the great Royal Alchemist of the Jiu Empire and knows of every pill that he had ever produced."


    "To even mention his 8 Star rank and said that he was unable to concoct a mere grade 4 pill, it seems that you are looking down on the great Royal Alchemist himself as someone incompetent and undeserving of his title! How dare you!"


    Duan Li barked out.


    Pu!


    The student immediately choked himself and was about to deny this grave accusation of Duan Li when the latter swiftly interjected him before he could even open his mouth to defend himself and continued.


    "Did you know that what you had just spouted out has just indirectly defamed our great Royal Alchemist?!"


    Pu!


    The student choked once more.


    "In addition, the great Royal Alchemist is someone that was recognized and acknowledged by even the Emperor himself! To even say that the Royal Alchemist couldn''t even concoct a mere grade 4 pills, are you saying that the Emperor was blind to give such a title to someone incompetent?!"


    Duan Li inhaled a mouthful of air as the room became so silent that it rang in their ears.


    The crowd was in a daze right now and couldn''t process what was happening yet.


    "That is committing treason!!!" Duan Li shouted out.


    He finished his final sentence by shouting the word ''Treason'' out loud so that it could be heard clearly by the whole crowd.


    Pu!


    Pu!


    Pu!


    The crowd could no longer hold out assounds of intense choking began to resonate from them, as if in symphony with each other as they tried to swallow down their saliva, including Ding Huiqing and the refuted student himself!


    Who would be able to thought that a mere debate between the two had just escalated to being one of them as someone committing an act of treason against the Emperor?


    Doesn''t that just made that person over there to be the enemy for the whole Jiu Empire here?


    That was truly screwed up!


    The crowd shuddered.


    Brother! We thought that the other party was already being vicious enough by bringing the great Royal Alchemist into the subject of this debate!


    Who would''ve thought that you had just upped the stakes even further and brought the Emperor himself into the debate soon after?!


    If the other party were to refute you once more, would you bring the heavens into the debate as well?


    This is one hell of a holy-moly situation right now!


    The crowd shifted their gaze towards the other party to see how he would release himself from this heavy accusation.


    But they soon shook their heads in disappointment when they saw the legs of the other party had wobbled like a jelly.


    Seemed that the other party had truly lost this time around!


    Hais!


    "I... T-This is an accusation! I have never said such things!" he cried out, almost bawling himself to tears.


    Seeing the situation to have escalated as such, Ding Huiqing immediately went in to salvage this chaotic scene.


    "You brought this upon yourself. Next time, don''t carelessly throw in big names just to protect and support yourself!" she reprimanded out to that student.


    "Y-yes.. it was a mistake on my part.." the student apologized profusely.


    This time, he no longer have the guts to take this matter further, afraid for his dear life to be snuffed up right under his nose in front of this savage fella!


    Ding Huiqing then turned towards Duan Li as mixed emotions were running inside her.


    She wanted to yell out loud that Duan Li was correct, but at the end of the day, she was still a teacher. Thus, she must be professional in resolving this situation and not take any sides.


    "As for you Duan Li, even though you are just trying to teach him a lesson, don''t just go bringing in the name of the Emperor himself." she quickly said, but her tone was softer.


    Duan Li nodded and apologized.


    Ding Huiqing sighed.


    But when she thought about it, what the other party just said did makes sense. How did Duan Li was so sure that this Red Mistel Flowerherb could be used to concoct a grade 4 Transformation Essence pill?


    But she did not want to fuel the debate further and was just about to wrap up everything and gifted Duan Li the herb, before the other party suddenly spoke out.


    "I know that some still doubted my words, then let me prove it to everyone, I will concoct a grade 4 Transformation Essence pill right in front of everyone here using this Red Mistel Flowerherb!"


    BOOM!


    The crowd exploded out in chaos once more.


    ...

 99 Chapter 98: Concocting the pills!

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    "What? He is going to concoct a grade 4 Transforming Essence pill here?"


    "Is he for real? I know that he is an extremely formidable person in combat, but as for concoction? I doubt a person could have so many talents at such a young age!"


    "Let''s just wait and see if his words amount to his capabilities at all."


    Ding Huiqing eyes opened wide when she heard this from Duan Li.


    Here I was trying to end things as they were, but you just had to push it through!


    Hais!


    "Are you certain about this?" she asked Duan Li, trying one last time to dissuade him.


    "Yes, I am." Duan Li nodded confidently.


    Now that he was doubted by someone, if he did not untie this knot, pretty soon, rumors would began to spread as more doubted his capabilities.


    If that were to happen, he would have trouble in convincing others in the future later on.


    "Fine. But do you have the necessities? For the ingredients, I could sell them to you with my access level as a 4 Star rank Herbalism practitioner. Although I''m pretty sure that the ingredients for a Transforming Essence pill are quite expensive for a junior student, thus, how about I loan them to you for now?" Ding Huiqing asked out of concern.


    Hearing this, Duan Li smiled as he shook his head. Waving his right hand where the spatial ring was located on, a High quality spirit stone appeared on top of the table.


    Huala!


    When the crowd saw this, they all exclaimed in shock and surprises.


    "A-Are my eyes playing tricks on me? That''s a High quality spirit stone right over there!"


    "God damn it! He is a rich profligate son!"


    "This is my first time seeing one! To think that the spiritual Qi density in it would be this thick! No wonder they are called High quality spirit stones!"


    "Indeed! Even a hundred thousand Low quality spirit stones would not amount to the purity of a single High quality spirit stone at all!"


    Ding Huiqing swallowed her saliva seeing Duan Li took out a High quality spirit stone casually. She does have a few of them, but that was her entire savings and it could be counted with only just one hand!


    "Teacher, if it would not trouble you, please purchase for me 3 sets of the ingredients to concoct a Transforming Essence pill, as well as these additional herbs from this list." Duan Li handed out a small paper containing a list of herbs to Ding Huiqing and made his request respectfully.


    After all, the other party was still a teacher of the academy and as a student, he must conduct himself properly as the other party was amiable to him as well.


    "En. Hold on for a moment." Ding Huiqing said to Duan Li as she sent out for an order of the required ingredients using a special blue jade slip.


    While waiting for the ingredients to be delivered, Duan Li set up the three Revolting-Heavens cauldron in the three directions of a triangle.


    BAM!


    The enormous cauldron made a large sound as they propped atop of the platform.


    "Huh? Isn''t that the Revolting-Heavens cauldron? Don''t tell me that he is going to concoct the grade 4 Transforming Essence pill using those?"


    "This is weird. I know that those are the most expensive cauldron ever, but those are used specifically for body tempering only!"


    "Hah! He must be just an idiot rich silkpants who knew nothing about concocting pills and were just trying to show off his wealth!"


    Sounds of people whispering to each other could be heard as they waited patiently.


    It was supposed to be lunchtime now, but none seemed to want to leave the classroom at the moment, afraid that they would be missing in a great show here.


    Crunch!


    The sound of a crispy fried chicken being bit through resounded inside the classroom, accompanied with a mouth-watering aroma.


    The crowd swerved their heads immediately to look for the source of this sound and aroma, only to see a young female student sitting casually with a bucket full of fried chicken drumstick on her hand while eating with another hand blissfully.


    She was Xiahou Yu.


    "Damn it! If I had known for this to happen after the class, I would have brought myself a bucket of fried chicken beforehand too!"


    "Curses! Now I am hungry!"


    Some of the crowd began to feel that their stomach started to rumble at the sight of Xiahou Yu eating fried chicken so casually while waiting for the show to continue.


    Duan Li shook his head as he let out a small chuckle at the sight of this, "This Xiahou Yu is really too candid!"


    He then made a mental note on the current time and there was about an hour away before the Duel between the shortlisted applicants would start at the academy''s Dueling platform.


    "An hour is plenty of time for me, I could finish this before then." Duan Li nodded as he said to himself.


    Knock! Knock!


    "Purple Lightning delivery! Here to deliver your express package!" the voice of a courier man could be heard outside the classroom as he went in.


    The courier man then waved his hand as rows of herbs began to appear from his spatial ring lined up neatly onto the table.


    "Please check the items carefully and make sure that we did not make any mistake in the delivery process. Once you are satisfied, please sign here." the courier man handed out a paper form respectfully to Duan Li.


    After a swift check by both Duan Li and Ding Huiqing and found that there was no problem at all with the delivered herbs, Duan Li signed onto the paper form.


    "Thank you for using our service. We at the Purple Lightning delivery takes pride in our 100 percent customer satisfaction! Please do not hesitate to use our service again next time!" the courier man said as he bowed, and then left swiftly as he came.


    They are truly efficient!


    "Now that the ingredients are here, let us start!" Duan Li moved to the center, in between the three cauldrons.


    Bbbzzztt!


    A blue flame appeared atop of his index finger as shades of small blue lightning dances around it.


    Sky Crackle Blue Flame!


    The crowd sucked in cold breath as they saw this blue flame that appeared to be both mesmerizing and dangerous at the same time.


    Ding Huiqing knitted her brows at the sight of this.


    "To think that he had already mastered the Sky Crackle Blue Flame at such an age! This is unheard of!" she exclaimed inwardly, surprised.


    At the same time, she felt joyous as Duan Li was looking more and more legitimate by the second.


    Seemed like the other party truly got the capabilities to back up on what he just said before!


    Whooshh!


    With a single flick, all three cauldrons were lit up simultaneously and began to show signs of boiling after just a few breaths of time.


    For Duan Li right now, concocting pills of grade 5 and below was something that was extremely doable for him. He had finished reading all the books that his disciple had borrowed for him from the Royal palace regarding the art of concoction.


    In fact, if he were to compete with a 5 Star rank Alchemist at this moment, he would have a 90 percent confidence that he would win.


    But of course, this confidence was limited to just concocting pills. After all, the Major occupation of Alchemist class requires them to learn concoction, alchemy, metallurgy and more.


    "Seems like the cauldrons are at the right temperature now." Duan Li nodded as he flicked his finger.


    Whooshh!


    Whooshh!


    All the three sets of ingredients were respectively put inside the three cauldrons simultaneously.


    When Ding Huiqing saw this, she almost shrieked out in horror.


    Those were all expensive and rare herbs that costed nearly the whole High quality spirit stone that Duan Li gave her!


    To think that the other party would just put them in together at the same time like that, is he really that confident to take the shortcut method?


    It was not to say that she hadn''t witnessed this kind of method was being used before in concocting pills. In fact, she had seen some Alchemist does exactly like what Duan Li was doing right now. Just that those were 5 Star rank Alchemist class and above!


    As far as she knew, Duan Li was a Lord class, an unranked one at that!


    Could it be that his real talents was actually in Alchemistry? But why did he chose to become a Lord class instead?


    At this moment, several conjectures and conspiracy theories ran wild inside her head.


    Duan Li, the person in question naturally did not realize this as he was focusing 100 percent of his mind to sense the minute changes happening inside the three cauldrons right now.


    "It''s time!"


    Duan Li flicked his index finger upwards, as the essences of the ingredients that was melted by the two cauldrons jumped up and swiftly flew towards the first cauldron.


    Plop!


    Mixing in the essences together inside the first cauldron, Duan Li began to adjust the temperature inside of the second and the third cauldron.


    The first cauldron was extremely hot while the second one was mild, but the third had vapours above it, evidence that the third cauldron was now nearing the freezing point temperature!


    The crowd was watching at this scene intently and no one spoke a word. If they could learn a thing or two from this, they would have benefitted a lot for when they chose their next Minor occupations for the next semester.


    The crowd did not know what Duan Li was planning to do with these three cauldrons and their varying temperature, but Ding Huiqing whom had experienced a lot of stuff in her life right now had wide eyes to her.


    "This! It cannot be!" she said in a sudden realization.


    With a flick of his finger once more, Duan Li activated a concoction Skill art.


    ''Alternating Chainlock Processing!''


    BOOM!


    This was a more advanced method of the Chainlock Processing Skill art that Duan Li had used previously when helping Shen Lu and the others in their body tempering processes, and it could be said to be an extremely difficult to master on a whole new level!


    Numerous colours jumped swiftly from the first cauldron to the second and then the third cauldron. Then, they jumped back towards the first cauldron and repeats.


    Controlling the tempo of exchanges between the colourful essences of the three cauldrons with his two index finger personally, Duan Li soon looked like a charismatic, professional and devoted conductor of a grand orchestra!


    As time passes by, these exchanges became increasingly complex that the crowd could no longer follow with their eyes.


    Now, the exchanges seemed random to them and did not follow a certain pattern.


    Naturally, this was because Duan Li had devised his own formula to concoct the grade 4 Transforming Essences pill with the shortest time while maintaining its quality!


    However, throughout the entire process, he began to feel that some things should be adjusted further and these was why it became too complex for the audiences to understand!


    Furthermore, even he himself did not realize, but at this moment, the golden mysterious pearl was glowing slightly inside of him.


    A few moments later, the long awaited time has finally come, the pills was beginning to take shape!


    Huala!


    With a flick of his finger one last time, a total of 15 pills shot up into the air from the three cauldrons as they floated above Duan Li, glowing brightly with a blue hums on them!


    The concoction of the Transforming Essences pills were finally done!


    When Ding Huiqing caught sight of these 15 pills, her face shot up as an expression of an utter incredulousness and disbelief appeared on her face.


    "T-This! How is this possible!" she finally could not contain herself as she shrieked out.


    Even Duan Li narrowed his eyes.


    "This... Am I going to be in trouble?"


    This was because the pills that Duan Li had just concocted were not of the grade 4 Transforming Essences pills, but instead..


    A grade 6 Transforming Essences pills!


    ...

 100 Chapter 99: Prelude to new companions!

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    "T-Those are not some grade 4 Transforming Essence pills! Those are grade 6!" Ding Huiging spoke out in both astonished and horrified voice.


    When pills reached the state beyond grade 5, they would start to shimmer out a blue hue with a unique disposition to them. With just one look, one would be able to tell that they were far from ordinary due to this special feature!


    Thus, everyone right now had stood up from their seats, agitated to see those 15 grade 6 pills floating above Duan Li like heavenly treasures!


    With a flushed expression, they turned their heads toward Duan Li, hoping to hear what the other party would comment about this.


    Raising his right hand, he then cupped his chin together and said, "Well, this is unexpected. I only planned to concoct just grade 5 Transforming Essence pills. To think that I had accidentally concocted grade 6 pills instead!" he said casually.


    Pu!


    The crowd choked out together.


    Brother, don''t you mean to concoct grade 4 Transforming Essence pills? What do you mean grade 5?


    Are you actually boasting right now?


    Now that you had accidentally created some grade 6 pills, this was something that we were totally caught unprepared for!


    "Teacher, how much is a single grade 6 pill usually cost?" Duan Li asked Ding Huiqing.


    Hearing this, the other party cupped at her chin as well before coming to a rough estimation.


    "Well, as far as I know, the case of someone selling grade 6 pills in the Jiu Empire does not exist. Alchemist who had the capabilities to concoct grade 6 pills would only do an exchange of items of similar quality level or with items that they wanted instead of selling them." she said.


    "However, since you have 15 grade 6 pills, the cost should be roughly at 10 High quality spirit stones each. But because this is the Transforming Essence pills that we are talking about here, the value should at least be 50 High quality spirit stones!"


    When everyone heard her, their hearts almost jumped out from their body.


    50 High quality spirit stones? That is an enough amount to live off like a King for the rest of their lives!


    "Is that so?" Duan Li replied casually while playing with his chin, feeling quite amused.


    Unknowingly, he had just found the secret to obtain eternal wealth!


    "Here, teacher can take one of them. Take it as a gesture of my appreciation for the trouble I''ve caused before." Duan Li flicked his finger as one of the pills flew towards the other party.


    Swiftly grabbing that pill without any hesitation, Ding Huiqing immediately clasped the both of her hands together towards Duan Li.


    "Thank you for the gift. For this, I owe you a favor!" she said, unable to hide the excitement in her voice.


    This was a pill worth well over 50 High quality spirit stones which had exceeded her entire lifetime savings!


    Only fools would reject such a gift with an astronomical value to it!


    "I''ll gift one pill each to my followers. As for the other 4 pills left, I would keep them for now and exchange them for something good next time!" he said to himself.


    ...


    After the class ended, very quickly, the news got spread around the academy like wildfires.


    "Hey, did you hear that Duan Li just concocted 15 grade 6 Transforming Essence pills?"


    "What?! That new junior Lord everyone keeps talking about these past few days? He is able to concoct 15 grade 6 pills?!"


    "How is this possible?! For a junior student to have such a capability! Hais, it seems that he is someone that was destined for something great!"


    People began to show numerous reaction to this piece of news. Some admired Duan Li within their astonishment and surprises, some remained indifferent while some others became annoyed and irritated with his swift rise to fame.


    This was especially the case for the violet haired student right now. He wore a peculiar uniform that made him appeared more like a scholar rather than a cultivator of the academy instead!


    With his hands clasped behind his back, he was facing the scenery outside from the balcony of the 30th floor of the New Moon Pavilion with a serene and calm look to him, as the gentle air brushed at his hair ever so slightly with both of his eyes closed.


    He could be described as quite handsome with a tall and lean body figure. Furthermore, his scholarly appearance made him even more charismatic to anyone that saw him.


    However, internally, this scholarly violet haired man was anything but calm as of right now.


    "Damn it! To think that my predictions were wrong!" he cursed vehemently inside his heart.


    Previously, he had made a thorough calculations to estimate Duan Li''s worth. In his best deductions, the latter''s worth at most should be at level 6 within the top 100 of the Value Rank and would not surpass that.


    This Value Rank was actually a list of people whom had their worth calculated by the Strategist club, which was formed by the students of the academy.


    Naturally, their members were all of the Strategist class, and any other students with different Major occupation would not be able to register and join their club.


    The higher the rank of someone in the Value Rank were, the more influence they held. In other words, these were the kinds of people that could cause great changes inside the academy with their actions or sentences alone!


    And yet, this scholarly violet haired man had just felt like he was being slapped in the face for making a wrong deduction in Duan Li''s overall worth!


    He was a senior in the academy and could be considered as holding the status of an ''Elder'' inside this New Moon Pavilion.


    For someone of his status, his single sentence and action itself had its worth weigh in gold and was taken seriously by others. Thus, when he guessed that Duan Li''s worth were at most should be at level 6 of the Value Rank and no more, which was the same as his, and made this statement known to his peers confidently, his reputation was smeered immediately as Duan Li had just entered the level 7 of the Value Rank so suddenly, which was within the top 50!


    This was a three level jump from Duan Li''s previous level 4 of the Value Rank andthere was no precedence for this.


    For him, this was a slap to his face so vicious that he did not wish to see anyone else right now.


    From where he stood at this balcony, he could hear clearly the conversation of the two people below him.


    "Hey, it seems like Elder Rong Huan had just made a mistake in his estimation. To think that I used to admire him for being spot on everytime with his guess, I am really disappointed beyond words by this!"


    "Me too! Elder Rong Huan had always appeared like an inviolable figure to me before, and his words were like the mandate of the heavens themselves. But now, I realized just how wrong I was to trust in his words!"


    "That damned Elder Rong Huan, I''ve made quite a bit of a lost in my assets because of his wrong guess in the Value Rank. I''ve bet half of my fortune in it and lost all of it! I curse all of his ancestors for this!"


    "Hah! He must have used all his luck right now, and perhaps this would be the start of his downfall. By the time that happen, I would cuff him by the neck and demand compensation for my lost!"


    Pu!


    Rong Huan choked at his throat.


    To think that these two damned fellas below him were this vicious with their words!


    Had it not been that the Jiu Empire and the academy forbids killing, he would have rushed down right away to just shred these two to pieces and drink their blood savagely!


    Huuu!


    Using the Tai Chi breathing method, he inhaled and exhaled out air from his nose and mouth repeatedly to calm down his nerves.


    Those two fellas below him must have known that he was just standing one floor above them, and purposely spout out some bad words in order to get him agitated.


    After all as cultivators, they could sense the spiritual Qi of someone that were quite close to them. To Rong Huan, they must be hired by someone else to do this so that his reputation was smeered further. Perhaps, the entire pavilion right now were mocking him behind his back!


    Damn it all!


    But alas, there was nothing he could do to stop it. He could try to find the source of the one doing this and repay them back a hundred fold, but as the saying went, a spilled milk could not be put back to its cup.


    Thus, even if he were able to take revenge for this, his reputation was already damaged significantly.


    Hmph!


    Harrumphing coldly, he decided to walk away and head back inside his room when he heard a single sentence that had him entirely riled up by the two fellas below him!


    "To think that his deductions were wrong, he should just castrate that small little bro he has down there to atone for his sins, its useless anyway!"


    "HAHAHAHAHA!" the both of them thenlaughed out loudly without reservations, aiming to let Rong Huan heard them clearly.


    Crash!


    Rong Huan flipped up the Shogi board in a fit of rage!


    "Duan Li, I''ll have to prove to these bastards that your worth are just at the level 6 and have them grovel their face in a pile of feces!" he roared out inwardly as he clenched his fist and teeth tight.


    ...


    At this moment, Duan Li was with Shen Lu and the others at the cafeteria, eating their lunch together. Sitting on the same table everytime, it was as if this table had been reserved by them entirely.


    The surrounding people were whispering loudly right now while looking at them with peculiar gazes as if they were a group of exotic animals in a zoo. Unable to tolerate such an atmosphere, Shen Murong lashed out at them by radiating out his savage aura to pressure them so that they could shut up.


    But of course, this had only affected the weak juniors. As for the tougher seniors, Shen Murong''s aura were not worth a mention.


    Furthermore, they were not that really interested with the affairs of the juniors. Thus, they just ignored Duan Li''s group entirely.


    "Alright, the time for the Duel is almost here. Let''s head to Dueling Platform right now!" Duan Li said to Shen Lu and the rest as they nodded, excitement filled them.


    It''s time to witness the capabilities of their future companions!


    ...

 101 Chapter 100: Duel start!

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    Duan Li and his party soon arrived at the Duel hall of the academy where the Dueling platform was located.


    This Dueling platform was centered in the middle of the hall, and just like the many lecture classrooms in the academy, the seating arrangement for the audiences were like that of a coliseum.


    In terms of size however, the Duel hall was countless times larger, and could fit as many as 30 thousand people in it.


    This was because the Duel hall was often the place where numerous official event from the academy were held when fighting was the main theme. For example, at the very end of each semester, the academy would hold the Student Ranking competition here.


    The Student Ranking was a very important competition where the top student from each realm would duel against each other. Those who managed to outlast every single one of the contestants would be crowned as the Student Emperor, and right now, this title belonged to a senior student whom had successfully defended his title and reigned for a whole five successive years!


    The moment Duan Li and his party arrived at the Duel hall, all of the crowds that came earlier became excited.


    "They are here! Finally the match is about to start!"


    "I know most of these 20 people that got shortlisted and they could only be described as terrifying! Their fights would probably be the most interesting I have yet to watch in this semester!"


    "No wonder I didn''t get shortlisted, to think that these 20 people would be so formidable, perhaps I could consider myself as lucky to not be chosen. Otherwise, I would probably make an embarrassment out of myself on that Dueling platform against these guys!"


    "Me too! The shortlisting criteria must''ve been really strict. These 20 people are all top-notch figure within the academy! Now, no matter who got chosen, that Duan Li would be destined for greatness and success with such strong lineups for his party members!"


    The crowd swiftly nodded to the person whom made that last comment in agreement.


    With that, they stopped talking as they put their entire attention onto the Dueling platform. This would be a fight that they cannot afford to miss!


    In front of this Dueling platform was a stage with a single throne in the middle. Turning his head to Shen Lu, the latter seemed to be able to guess what Duan Li was about to ask and immediately answered with a smile, "That throne is naturally for you to sit Brother. After all, the Lord must have their own prestige and dignity to go along with their title as well, thus, I ordered one!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li sighed. But he understood the intention and meaning behind Shen Lu''s words.


    Indeed, it was as the latter had just said. As the Lord, he must show that he has the capacity to become their ruler! The influence and dominance that he should display in public so that they would acknowledge him, this was something extremely crucial if one wanted to truly be recognized.


    As the saying went, false king could win the nation, but will never win the hearts of the people!


    Walking over to the throne, Duan Li analyzed it for a bit and found no problems or issue whatsoever. However, after using his Identify ability on it, he was shocked when he read the description.


    [Lord''s Rightful Throne - A throne built by using one of the seven memory material in the Tian continent, Laden Wood.]


    [Once one sat on it, the person would automatically unleash their whole aura to be absorbed by the throne. The throne would then perform special connection to this aura and recognize the person as its owner.]


    [Special effect - Increases owner''s dominance while sitting on the throne]


    Eh? This effect..


    Would everyone be okay if my aura were to be fully released here?


    "Hmm.. perhaps I''m overthinking this. What could my mere aura would do anyway?" he thought.


    Dilly-dallying no more, as he did not want the people here to wait any further, he quickly sat on it.


    BOOM!


    The air vibrated and turned viscous as if it was seething to explode. Like being pressed by the oceans, everyone within the Duel hall immediately felt this tremendous pressure!


    "W-What in the world?! What is with this sudden pressure!"


    "Argh! I can''t stand up!"


    "Such strong aura! This direction.. Duan Li?!"


    "How powerful! Is he truly at the Foundation establishment realm? Why does this pressure feels like he is someone at the Nascent soul realm?!"


    The crowd shrieked in horror when this colossal pressure fell ontop of them. Those that previously hadn''t yet to sit fell down flat to the ground, but some stronger ones did managed to crouch with their four limbs and others were able to stood with one of their knees.


    Even the Core formation realm seniors were not an exception to this. They felt like they were in the marshlands with a big heavy boulder pressing onto them.


    With sweats trickling down from their foreheads, each clenched down their teeth as they let out their aura rumbling to neutralize Duan Li''s pressure.


    To their surprise however, the torrential aura radiated out by Duan Li does not even seem to be affected by theirs and continued to press onto them as if their aura were nothing but an air!


    This was something that was truly unbelieveable for them!


    There has to be a few thousand people here at most, each letting out their own aura. Yet, their combined pressure does not even amount to Duan Li''s?


    Unthinkable!


    Shen Lu, Shen Murong and Wang Xiolun exclaimed in surprises as well. They truly hadn''t expected their Lord''s aura to be this radical!


    "He is actually this strong?" Shen Murong remarked and felt like they needed to fight again sometimes.


    But because their body had been tempered with Duan Li''s blood, they did not feel as much pressure as compared to the audience and everyone else.


    Even Xiahou Yu whom was still at the Qi condensation realm was able to withstand it while standing, albeit with some difficulties.


    Fortunately, the throne quickly absorbed Duan Li''s aura and before long, the surmounting oceanic pressure began to lessen until it was absorbed entirely.


    ...


    Huu!


    Everyone breathed in and out rapidly as they wiped off the sweat on their forehead.


    That was way too intense!


    At this moment, Shen Lu stepped forward to explain.


    "Sorry everyone, I just bought my Lord a new throne and he hadn''t yet had the chance to form a connection with it previously."


    Hearing this, everyone then came into a realization. Although most of the juniors didn''t get a single clue as to what Shen Lu was saying at all, but after the seniors explained it to them, they nodded as well.


    So it was like that!


    Otherwise, if they misunderstood the whole situation, they might hold a grudge at Duan Li over this which would be bad for the latter''s reputation.


    Truthfully though, Shen Lu himself didn''t expect that Duan Li''s aura to be THAT insane. He had only planned to scare the audience a little bit, but who could have thought that Duan Li was THAT strong?


    "He is really beyond my expectations! I don''t know how many times I''ve said this, but I''m really glad to have made the decision to follow him back then!" he thought to himself, feeling quite proud.


    After this whole situation was settled, Shen Lu then turned his gaze towards the seating platform where the 20 shortlisted applicants were sitting currently.


    Some of them had a nervous look to them while others remained confident and some indifferent.


    Personally, Shen Lu knew the capabilities of some of these people, and they could only be described as formidable and scary.


    This was especially the case for that figure under that black robe. No one really knows of his real name, but everyone called him as the ''Dark reaper''. He was also known to had inherited an unorthodox black arts.


    Rumors has it though, that this person had once encountered a 2 Star monster and was able to beat it alone!


    This piece of news had rattled the entire academy back then.


    Furthermore, this person was also an ex-member of the First squad!


    Again, no one actually knows the exact real reason as to why he had left the Subjugation squad, but back then, he was famous for his wide area of attack skill arts and was how he earned the nickname - Dark Reaper!


    As to this person''s exact intention of wanting to join Duan Li''s party? Shen Lu had not the slightest idea either. But since the final verdict would be judged by Duan Li, he decided to put all his trust onto the latter''s keen judgement.


    "The Duel would be conducted in a round-robin style. Could the participant please choose a number between 1 to 20? You can just said the number out loud and I will write them down onto this paper." Shen Lu said.


    After which, each of the participant began to call out a number of their choosing. Shen Lu then rolled up their numbers and select them randomly.


    The whole process was very simple, but short and efficient. Before long, all 20 participants were now matched up against each other!


    Turning his head to Duan Li to give the signal, the latter nodded.


    "Let the Duel begin!"


    ...

 102 Chapter 101: The First Battle!

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    YEAAAAA!!


    The crowd cheered at the top of their lungs, screaming out loud. They were so excited about this battle that was about to begin.


    This was especially the case that Shen Lu allowed betting for the audiences. The betting system was divided into two. The prediction bet and the pre-battle bet.


    In the prediction bet, they were allowed to predict as to who would be the final winner and the 5 person that would be chosen by Duan Li. Although the minimum amount required to bet in this prediction bet was quite expensive, it provides the highest cut-out as well. If one were to predict correctly, they wouldn''t have to worry about their financial expenses for the whole year!


    On the other hand, the pre-battle bet is a bet before every battle commence. This could be considered as the more affordable choice for the audiences that only wanted to gain or lose comfortably that wouldn''t really affect them, as they could bet as low as 10 low quality spirit stones!


    With the atmosphere set, the entire Duel hall felt like it was a ring for the gladiators and champions to fight against one another. Just by being in the Duel hall, one would find their blood boiling and their adrenaline to be pushed to the maximum!


    There was only one rule in this battle, and that was - no killing allowed! Although this was already widely known and common sense. Even if the battle allowed them to, not a single one would dare!


    This was because that the academy has made it so that the repercussions from committing such an act of murder would be extremely heavy. Offenders would be crippled of their cultivation and be put inside the slave mine to work until they die!


    "The first match would be between Wei Shang and Yun Bo! Please stand at the Dueling platform!" Shen Lu called out.


    The moment these two met each other''s gaze atop of the platform, they each nodded.


    "Seems like they knew each other." Shen Lu noted.


    With both cupping their fist together as a sign of respect before the battle begins, Yun Bo then spoke out.


    "To think that my first opponent would be you, I''m sure is unlucky!" he sighed as he shook his head slowly, before his eyes glinted sharply.


    "I was not a match for you one year ago, and I might not still be a match for you now too. But I want to see just how far I had improved during this time!" he said as he prepared himself into a stance.


    Hearing this, Wei Shang nodded. He battled with Yun Bo once last year, and managed to win without almost any effort at all.


    "I see! Then come at me with everything you''ve got!"


    Woonggg!


    A series of interlocking runic formations around the Dueling platform were now activated. They formed a barrier to block against any attack from getting past by it so that the audiences would not be injured by any stray skill arts!


    Yun Bo gathered his spiritual Qi onto both of his feet as he dashed out.


    Pshew!


    "Damn! That speed is too fast for my eyes to follow!" some of the audiences commented.


    However for Wei Shang, even though this speed was impressive, there was one fatal weakness in it, which was that it only allows Yun Bo to travel in one direction at a time!


    "The same old trick again as last time?" Wei Shang thought to himself as he side-stepped.


    But just as he did so, Yun Bo suddenly changed direction while delivering a right kick to his stomach. Fortunately, his reflexes were top-notch and managed to block this attack using his elbows by lowering his stance almost immediately.


    BAM!


    "Urgh! I felt that kick! Seems like you managed to tailor it even further!" Wei Shang spoke out, impressed.


    "Indeed I am! And I''m glad that this has caught you off-guard! At least I got one clean hit on you this time around!" Yun Bo laughed out, evidently satisfied with that one kick of his.


    Pshew!


    Yun Bo dashed out once more to circle around Wei Shang with the same lightning speed again. Wei Shang closed the both of his eyes, observing the former not by using his eyes, but by hearing it out and feeling the fluctuating spiritual Qi around him.


    Even if the other party was moving extremely quickly, it had not yet reached the speed of supersonic. Thus, the sound Yun Bo made with every change in his direction was quite accurate and reliable to measure the distance between them.


    "Damn it! His battle instinct is too formidable! To think that he had already developed a method to sound me out like this!" Yun Bo gritted his teeth.


    As expected of his rival!


    But he didn''t panic, instead he formed a smile.


    "Unfortunately for you, I had already expected this from you!"


    ''Whirlwind Field!''


    Yun Bo deployed a field effect skill art. He had painstakingly learnt this specific skill art in order to cover the weaknesses in his movement technique.


    While this skill art deals no significant damage to the enemy at all and would only create a slight discomfort and nauseating effect to one sense of balance and direction, what Yun Bo really targeted was that this skill art creates a lot of noise.


    In other words, the sounds produced by him changing direction would blend in perfectly with the Whirlwind Field, effectively cutting out Wei Shang from being able to detect him!


    At the sight of this change, Wei Shang''s brows knitted.


    "To even think of a method to cover this flaw as well. You''ve really come prepared!" he complimented.


    "But if you think you could hide better than me, then I had to dissapoint you!"


    ''Mystic arts: Concealing life!''


    Instantly, after Wei Shang used this skill arts, he turned invisible on the spot. This move of his had Yun Bo dumbfounded in disbelief. Not just him, even the entire audience was shocked as well!


    "His presence just suddenly disappeared? How is that possible?!"


    "Even my keen instincts are not able to locate him on the platform! Just where is he?!"


    Besides Duan Li, Wang Xiolun commented, "A very formidable concealing arts. Even my long years of experience before this, I hadn''t yet witnessed something as such."


    Shen Murong nodded in agreement. "He is not someone from the Wei clan for nothing I guess. But for this skill of his, I had not seen any other Wei clan members deployed it before, could it be one of the seven famed mystic arts that their clan has?"


    "Its highly possible that he just used a mystic arts right over there. Against such an ability where our senses could not detect his presence at all, I guess the only method to sound him out would be an area attack skill arts!" Shen Lu spoke out, feeling intrigued by this Wei Shang fella.


    It was no wonder that Brother Duan Li immediately shortlisted him, seems like this person really has the capabilities after all!


    Sitting atop of his throne, Duan Li casted out his soul sense and found out that Wei Shang was just standing idly on the same spot without moving a single inch!


    On the other hand, Yun Bo had expended his spiritual Qi drastically with the Whirlwind Field skill arts. Thus, he cancelled it out.


    As soon as the skill arts were cancelled though, Wei Shang whom was currently invisible to the naked eye instantly dashed to a certain location on the Dueling platform and threw out a punch.


    BAM!


    His punch connected and hit Yun Bo squarely on the chest, causing the latter to flew across the platform like a broken kite before Yun Bo''s body skidded on the ground and finally came to a halt at the very far ends.


    Urghh!


    Rising weakly from the ground with one hand clutching at his chest, Yun Bo spat out a mouthful of blood.


    Sighing regretfully, he raised his other hand and surrendered.


    At this point, continuing the battle would just be useless. Not only that he had expended quite a significant amount of his spiritual Qi already, he could not detect where Wei Shang were on the platform AND he was dealt with an injury.


    If he decided to press on despite these clear tell-tale signs that he could not win the battle, he would truly be a fool and would only make an embarrassment out of himself!


    Whoosh!


    Wei Shang appeared as he cancelled out his mystic arts.


    "To think that I would be forced to use my mystic arts against you, you had truly improved a lot!" he said as he cupped his fists together.


    Similarly, Yun Bo cupped his fist as well.


    "One day, I would at least score a single victory against you." Yun Bo laughed out as they both slammed at their fist together laughed out.


    They were both childhood friends from different clan, but that did not stop them from treating each other like true brothers bounded by blood!


    Seeing this, Duan Li nodded, feeling very satisfied with this first battle! He made sure to remember this Yun Bo person within his mind. In the future, he might need a person as such.


    As for now, what he needed was raw power. Against 30,000 one star monsters, there was no place for trickeries on the battlefield but brute strength!


    With the final outcome of the first battle, the audience cheered atop of their lungs. Some however were feeling downcasted as they lost a bet. But nevertheless, they were still excited and positive for the next battle!


    Even if one lost a single bet, it did not mean that one would lose again and again right?


    After a while, the second battle was about to begin and the crowds were riled up once more!


    ...

 103 Chapter 102: The Second Battle!

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    The crowds went on placing their bets onto the next contestants. Meanwhile, Shen Lu by Duan Li''s side were rubbing both of his hands together eagerly, as a sinister smile appeared on his face, looking at all those spirit stones piling up nicely.


    "What a crooked fella.." Shen Murong commented as he looked at the latter with a weird and wary gaze.


    For someone like Shen Lu, even though he knew that Duan Li''s pocket was already loaded and unfathomably deep, there was no harm in getting the extra income for their party as well.


    As the saying went, If a chicken could lay one egg at a time, ten chickens would make that ten eggs at a time! It was but a simple logic without a flaw!


    Duan Li chuckled slightly at this sight, he knew about the merchant side of Shen Lu, and the crowds had already fallen under these scheme of his. But if it could make the audiences to feel more satisfied about this duel where stakes were put into places accordingly, then it could be considered as a meritory service executed perfectly by Shen Lu instead!


    After all, if the audiences really enjoyed this, then they would surely gave a positive outlook towards his party as a whole later on. Thus, that would only work to their advantage for the future.


    "The second battle is about to start, all bets are now closed! To Sui Shunyuan and Xu Rong, please come atop of the platform right now!" Shen Lu spoke out.


    Duan Li couldn''t help but to nod at the latter. Shen Lu really has that natural appealing voice of a commentator which caused the whole Duel hall to have that surreal atmosphere to it as the crowds cheered crazily!


    Tap! Tap!


    Two figure currently stood atop of the platform right now. One was a male student, while the other was a female. Judging by their uniform, one could already tell that they were both sophomores.


    Sui Shunyuan has a medium-long black hair that flutters constantly even when there was no wind blowing at him. His stature was not that big either, but he was quite tall, similar to Duan Li. What made him really stands out though, was his aura that emanated a sharp contrast to his dull appearance. This aura of his feels chaotic and viscous, as if looking straight onto a patch of an abyss!


    Duan Li''s brows furrowed when he looked at this man. His instinct told him that this man was a little bit unstable in its state of mind.


    On the other hand, the crimson coloured hair Xu Rong, was an elegant and a beautiful woman that had managed to capture the hearts of some of the audiences at first sight. Although she has quite a bit of a haughty air to her with that smug smile she was wearing right now, this only serves to add to her overall attractiveness and showcased her boldness, like a bright, shining ruby!


    "What a beauty! If only I could have her as my wife, then I would be set for life!"


    "Dream on! Xu Rong is not meant for someone like you. Besides, I heard that she could get a little bit nasty when feeling unsatisfied. Being a pyromancer, she would burn you to cinders at the drop of a hat!"


    "I''m more concerned about that Sui Shunyuan fella. Although he looks like nothing at all from here, I got the feeling that he is quite the dangerous man!"


    "Indeed, I saw him before when he returned after a mission. His body reeks of blood! When I accidentally met with his eyes, it feels as though I''m looking at the embodiment of carnage himself!"


    The crowd began to broke into discussion as they analyzed both of the contestants.


    "Duan Li, that Sui Shunyuan person is quite dangerous." Shen Murong spoke out with a grim countenance.


    Even from where he stood, all his body hairs were standing on its end, as if his entire being felt wary about that man on the platform.


    "En. It seems like we got someone with a deep history to him." Duan Li nodded.


    ...


    After Shen Lu inspected both contestants for a while, he then shouted out.


    "Begin!!"


    Xu Rong instantly went all out and churn her spiritual Qi rapidly, as flames coiled around her body, forming an armor made out of pure flames!


    The crowd exclaimed excitedly and cheered when they saw this.


    "I must not get near to this man, something feels off about him!" Xu Rong remarked inwardly as she leaped 5 steps to the back.


    Her instinct was screaming in front of this man and urged her to keep her distance. In the first place though, she was a Spellcaster that specializes in medium to long range combat. Thus, this was not a problem for her at all.


    Looking at the other party warily for any sudden moves, she soon unconsciously laid down her sights towards the latter''s eyes, by which she shuddered in surprise.


    Those eyes.. it was as if he disdained of all life!


    Suddenly though, Sui Shunyuan spoke out slowly.


    "Why.. are you so far away?"


    When this sentence came out from him, the entire Duel hall went silent as a foreboding sense crept up to them.


    "Come." Sui Shunyuan beckoned.


    Immediately after this, Xu Rong felt her body to become weightless as she found herself to be pulled towards the other party slowly.


    "What''s happening?!" she clenched her teeth as she tried to lodge her feet deeper onto the platform. It was useless however, as the mystical force that pulled on her does not seemed to be affected by this.


    "This art.. impossible.. the Gravity pull?!" Shen Murong exclaimed in disbelief.


    The Gravity arts were known to be legendary, and consisted of seven main forms; Pull, Push, Cascade, Null, disintegrate, Reform and Decimate. Each has the ability to defy the natural law of things and was thus graded on the upper level of Mystic arts, - level 7 Mystic arts!


    "No.. it only appears that way. Look at her feet, it was subtle, but her feet was moving forward on its own slowly." Wang Xiolun spoke out as he managed to caught something.


    Being a senior with numerous experiences behind him, it was only natural that he could at least saw this much.


    "However, it should be a skill art that relates to controlling others like the gravity arts too, perhaps illusion!" he continued as he cupped his chin.


    ...


    Xu Rong was quite livid as of now. No matter how much she ordered for both of her feet to stop, they still moved on their own accord! It was only with her strong willpower that the speed had reduced a quite a bit.


    "Oh? You are able to resist me? What a tenacious woman.. a little bit Interesting." Sui Shunyuan chuckled.


    Hearing that smug sentences being spouted out by the other party, Xu Rong immediately snapped!


    ''Fire Javelin!''


    Streams of flames coagulated around her as they formed several long stretches of flames that looked extremely sharp, reminiscent of the real javelins.


    Pshew! Pshew!


    The Fire Javelins bolted forwards toward Sui Shunyuan, but the latter does not even seem to have the intention to dodge!


    With a wave of his hand, these Fire Javelins swerved around him, as if being obstructed by a triangle wedge.


    Seeing this, Duan Li''s eyes gleamed as he came into a realization.


    "It''s not illusionary arts.. this is possession!"


    Possession arts? Does that mean.. this Sui Shunyuan person is part of the Shinobi clan?


    Both Wang Xiolun and Shen Murong cupped at their chin.


    ...


    On the contestants seat, both Wei Shang and Wei Wang narrowed their eyes slightly as they had also made the same deductions.


    No wonder the air around Sui Shunyuan was familiar to them. It turns out that the latter was also part of the Shinobi clan like them.


    The problem was, they didn''t know from which part of a family clan does this man belongs to.


    After some digging inside their heads, they finally recalled.


    10 years ago, there was coup in a remote clan by the mountains called the Sui clan. They were known to be reclusive and would not open their gates to any outsiders at all.


    In addition, the Sui clan was rumored to be a master of the puppeteer arts. But one day, the head of the side family rebelled against the main family and managed to subdue the entire clan overnight after making a thorough preparation for several long years!


    All of the core members from the main family were killed and the rest were treated like slaves. Back then, the Sui clan was not part of the Jiu Empire, thus no action was taken on them.


    It was only fairly recently that the new Sui clan decided to join the Jiu Empire.


    But 2 years ago, that new Sui clan was wiped out completely all of a sudden!Rumors has it that another Shinobi clan whom was close to the previous grandmaster of the old Sui clan took revenge in order to ease the vengeful spirits on that mountain.


    Because the Sui clan was located very far away from the core influence of the Empire, the news was only made known a week later after that incident occured when travellers passed by their mountains, only to smell that it reeks of death!


    Eventhough the Empire had quickly dispatched the police force and declared a wide arrest warrant for the perpetrators soon after, in the end, not even a single one was caught.


    With this information swirling in their minds, both came to the same conclusion as they looked at one another.


    Was Sui Shunyuan a survivor from the Sui clan massacre?!


    ...


    Back on the platform, the Fire Javelins that was thrown at him floated gently besides him right now.


    "Impossible! How are you able to control my Fire Javelins?!" Xu Rong exclaimed out in disbelief.


    "Hmm? How indeed.." Sui Shunyuan lazily replied.


    With a flick of his index finger, the Fire Javelins bolted straight at Xu Rong with top speeds.


    "Don''t think that just because you could control my Fire Javelins meant that you could use them against me! Dream on!"


    ''Fire Twister!''


    BOOM!


    The fire armors wrapped around her swiftly exploded as they spun around her, creating a tornado of fire that engulfed the Fire Javelins entirely.


    Seeing this, Sui Shunyuan smiled as he rose up one hand.


    "I surrendered." he spoke out with a flat tone.


    "..." Xu Rong.


    "..." Duan Li and his party.


    "..." the audience.


    That was anti-climatic!


    ...

 104 Chapter 103: The Third Battle!

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    With everyone''s jaw wide agaped, no one had a single clue as to what was going on here.


    To think that Sui Shunyuan would just surrendered just like that, could it be that he felt like he could not win the battle as well?


    "Noo!! My money! Why did he chose to surrender?!"


    "This is something that I couldn''t come into terms with! He was already winning the battle and had pushed his opponent by making use of their own attacks, why did he lost on purpose?!"


    A lot of the crowd cried out, feeling that they had been wronged by Sui Shunyuan. The latter was already in an advantageous position but chose to surrender instead!


    "Hmm.. Could it be that he thought he had shown enough of his abilities in that short battle?" Duan Li thought in his mind as he cupped at his chin.


    In fact, some of the audiences started to think along the same lines as well. This was because the duel was just a formality between the shortlisted applicants, a platform to showcase their capabilities.


    Since it didn''t really matter whether one would win or lose, as the final verdict would be in the hands of Duan Li himself, then why bother showing all their cards upfront?


    Perhaps it would be better if they only showcased a glimpse of their power. That way, they would retain the mystifying nature of their full abilities, which might instead, increased their value a whole lot more than if they showed all of it!


    To make an analogy, in an auction, a single piece of rock with a mostly unknown nature behind it, would fetch quite a high price because people wanted to discover its true secrets.


    But this doesn''t just work on everything. They must first have that profound attractive effect which makes people wanted to know more about it.


    This was exactly the kind of situation that Sui Shunyuan was making right now!


    "It seems like not only is the nature of this man is far from ordinary, he even has the ability to scheme as well... interesting!" Shen Lu remarked, his interest was piqued.


    On the platform, Xu Rong was pretty much dumbfounded as well, and then turned furious on the spot.


    This was because even though she won, in that final few moments, it seems as though she was no match and was controlled by the other party since the very beginning instead!


    But since things has ended as such, there was no way she could really do anything about it.


    "Hmph! I''ll just display my full power in the second round then!" she harrumphed as she stepped down from the platform.


    When they both returned back to their seats, Xu Rong turned her head to glared at the direction of Sui Shunyuan all the time. The latter though, completely ignored her as he just crossed the both of his arms on his chest, closing his eyes and smiling, reverting back to his dull appearance.


    "Hateful!" Xu Rong spoke out between her teeth as she stomped her legs down.


    ...


    With his keen eyes, Duan Li was currently making his judgement onto them. Sui Shunyuan was someone with an ability to possess something and the intelligent mind to scheme. Meanwhile, although Xu Rong was a little bit haughty, she knew her limits well and does not push things too far.


    In his eyes, both were extremely capable. But he knew full well than to make an early judgement, as the battle was far from being over yet.


    At the same time, the crowd had already finished putting their bets onto the next contestants as Shen Lu''s voice rang out.


    "The third battle will begin soon! Would Fei Longwei and Ti Bao take their respective positions on top of the platform please?"


    As soon as the name was called out, the man with the black robe, known as the ''Dark Reaper'' stood up and walked towards the platform slowly.


    "Ohh! So his name is called Fei Longwei? This name got a cool ring to it!"


    "I''ve placed all my bets onto him, because I''m pretty confident that he would win and become the champion without a doubt!"


    "Me too! The guy is an ex-member of the Subjugation squad, it would be a no-brainer to not place one''s bet onto him!"


    All the crowds were excited for this battle, even Duan Li and the rest of his party were looking forward to this battle.


    The person called Ti Bao was bald with a generic face to him. Looking at his appearance, he seems to be more like a monk from some temple far away in the mountains, rather than a student of the academy.


    "Begin!" Shen Lu shouted out.


    "Benefactor, I was informed that you had practiced the dark arts which was closer to the power of the demons. I shall help you to cleanse yourself from this unholy power!" the bald monk Ti Bao spoke out.


    ''Purifying Mantra!''


    He then proceeded to chant some form of a long mantra which causes his whole body to shine golden. Next, this glow flew over to Fei Longwei as it surrounds the latter.


    This mystifying power of Ti Bao seemed as though it was intent in seeping through the body of the other party by penetrating the pores.


    "Paltry tricks. Perish." Fei Longwei spoke out coldly.


    ''Dark arts: Qi Infection!''


    When he used this ability, the previous golden glow wriggled as though something was choking at it. Slowly, that golden glow turned dark, before becoming black entirely!


    "Y-You! What have you done to my holy chant?!" the bald monk Ti Bao shout out, unable to believe that his holy powers just got engulfed by the power of the darkness!


    "Wasting my time. Disappear!" Fei Longwei spoke out once more as he used another skill arts.


    ''Dark arts: Darkness Whirl!''


    BOOM!


    A dark and insidious aura erupted forth from him, as they swirl out like a raging typhoon and crashed against the body of Ti Bao.


    "AAAARGHHHH!!"


    Ti Bao screamed out with a tragic cry as he was thrown over across the platform and then crashed over at the barrier, after which, the sheer impact had caused the latter to be swiftly knocked downunconscious.


    "..." everyone.


    Another anti-climatic battle!


    "That bloody bald monk got insta-killed! HAHA!"


    "This battle just went way too fast! Ten breaths has not even passed yet!"


    "Who cares! I already had the feeling that the bald monk called Ti Bao or whatever he is known as, were nothing to begin with! Now that the battle was swiftly over, perhaps the next one would be good!"


    The crowd cheered as the majority of them won their bets and managed to make a quick money out of that battle.


    Duan Li was sitting on his throne as he turned his head over to Shen Lu and Shen Murong by the side.


    "Who was the one that had shortlisted him? I don''t think he is that strong enough to make it into the shortlisted roll.." he asked curiously.


    Since Ti Bao had that 3 Star rank Warrior token on his waist, that means he was shortlisted by them since they were in charge of shortlisting Warrior class applicants.


    "Eh.. I guess that was me. When I looked through his applicant form, it was stated that he was close to being 4 Star rank Warrior and thought that he was quite decent." Shen Murong spoke out as he cupped his chin.


    This underperformance, could it be that the other party was just that strong that he couldn''t even manage to hold out for a bit?


    Shen Murong shook his head.


    What a waste!


    ...


    The next few battles swiftly commenced over after that as the crowds alternated between cheering, yawning and exclaiming in shock.


    Out of the seven matches after the third battle, the notable ones were from matches number five and the last, tenth battle of the first round.


    The fifth battle was coincidentally between two Alchemist which was funny to watch. Instead of battling with each other, they instead took out pills one after another to show off to their opponent.


    In particular, was the Alchemist called Guo He. Duan Li was amused by this man because the other party had challenged the opponent to concoct pills. Whoever concocted more pills within a period of time would win the battle, and he won.


    Not just that, Guo He''s method of concocting, while slightly unorthodox, could produce a lot of pills within a short amount of time. Although Duan Li could probably produce far more pills than the other party, in a group battle, his battle prowess was what was needed the most instead of his concocting skills.


    Thus, having another person with such a swift concocting skills to rely on in a group battle, would definitely be handy in a situation as such.


    His overall capabilities however, does not pale in comparison with another Alchemist, called Teoh Cheng whom also won his battle against another Alchemist using in the same way and method. So Duan Li hoped that in the second round, these two would meet together and battle it out!


    The tenth battle, which was the last match of the first round, could be said to be devastating. This was because coincidentally, the two of them were Seniors both in the Core formation realm, and their resulting duel was that, the platform was reduced to a rubble!


    After all, the might of those in the Core formation realm was not something to be underestimated. But after battling for a long while, it was apparent that no one would win if they did not stake their lives into it. Thus, they both made an agreement with each other to resolve the battle with a rock-paper-scissor instead.


    ...

 105 Chapter 104: All the way to the Semi-Final!

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    The second round was about to start soon and for this preliminary round, two groups were created, namely, the Loser''s roll and the Winner''s roll.


    In the Loser''s roll, it was made up from the previous ten contestants that had lost during the first round. On the other hand, the Winner''s roll were the ten contestants that had won against those in the current Loser''s roll.


    In the battle between the ten contestants of the Loser''s roll, Sui Shunyuan, Ti Bao, Dong Jinghai and Yun Bo managed to swiftly overwhelm their opponents. There was also supposed to be a fifth winner, but in that battle, both of the contestants fell down together, resulting in a draw. Unfortunately, Shen Lu didn''t want to drag out the next matches, thus he declared them both as defeated without any winners.


    Next, in the Winner''s roll, Wei Shang, Xu Rong, Wei Wang, Fei Longwei and Wu Jin each won their respective battle. Their match was more intense to watch than those from the Loser''s roll, especially the battle between Xu Rong and her opponent. In fact, she almost burned the whole platform into a big, pile of lava!


    Had it not been for her opponent that decided to surrendered, perhaps she would have just really unleashed her all, just so that she could prove that her abilities were truly top-notch!


    This was in contrast to Fei Longwei and Wu Jin though. Their battles were quick and anti-climatic. With Fei Longwei, he intended to just use the ''Darkness Whirl'' from the get-go to ram at his opponent. But who could have guessed that Alchemist, Guo He, would immediately surrendered just after Shen Lu told them to start the battle?


    Meanwhile, Wu Jin was a senior student against a sophomore, which was also another Alchemist called Teoh Cheng. It was obvious that he would won with just a single fist towards the latter. After all, in terms of battle prowess alone, he, a 4 Star rank Warrior class would never be defeated by a mere Alchemist.


    Thus, the second round ended with 9 total winners and the third round was beginning soon.


    This time, the third round was an elimination battle with one lucky slot given to the losers of the Second round. The one that managed to win this lucky slot was Guo He the Alchemist. Thus, he won by default to enter the third round.


    The battles during this third round could be described as the most intense of all.


    This was especially the case between Fei Longwei and Sui Shunyuan, they were dubbed as the ''Two dark horses'' by the audience. Both were wary of each other but the advantage was held by Fei Longwei before he eventually won.


    To Sui Shunyuan''s surprises, his Puppeteer and Posssesion arts does not seem to work that well on Fei Longwei''s Dark arts for some reason. Whenever he would try to possess Fei Longwei''s Dark arts, he would find a peculiar mysterious force trying to infect his Qi even when he had kept the distance between them all the time.


    Similarly, to Fei Longwei, Sui Shunyuan''s skill arts were very strange as well. It was able to affect his Dark arts to some extent which he had never experienced before. There was even one time where he had to wrestle away control for his Dark arts from the other party!


    When that happened, Sui Shunyuan sighed and then quickly surrendered as he lost interest to continue the battle any further.


    Next, the battle between Xu Rong and Wei Shang was a little bit one-sided. Even though Wei Shang had the capability to hid his presence entirely using his ''Mysterious arts: Concealing Life'', Xu Rong just had to blaze away the entire platform with a heatwave attack!


    At first, the heatwave attack does not seem to bother him at all. But overtime, because the platform was enclosed with the runic formations, the heat started to accumulate and he found himself to quickly became dehydrated. In the end, he also had to surrendered.


    After that, Wei Wang and Guo He fought. Deciding to try his very best in this round, the latter popped up pills upon pills into his mouth like a maniac! His battle prowess soon increased by at least two folds, but because Wei Wang''s cultivation was higher than his, it didn''t take too long for the latter to be defeated.


    The next two battles ended in a draw, thus, all the contestants were eliminated. Yun Bo and Ti Bao fought to the very limits of their capabilities and fell at the same time. Meanwhile, the battle between the two seniors, Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin whom ironically matched with each other once more, didn''t happen as they both immediately surrendered.


    Since they had already fought against one another beforehand during the first round, and there was no clear winner before them, what would be the point if they were to fight once more?


    Besides, it was not as if they would have better chances of getting selected by Duan Li even if they won. Thus, in such circumstances, it was better to just sit back along with the audiences to watch the next ensuing battles.


    ...


    Thereafter, came the semi-final round. In this round, there were only 3 contestants left - Fei Longwei, Xu Rong and Wei Wang.


    The rules were quite simple this time around, for the person that got beaten two times will automatically lose.


    The final results of this semi-final wasn''t surprising though as people could predict that it would be Wei Wang who would lose. This was because Fei Longwei was everyone''s favorite to win both matches, while Xu Rong would lose against Fei Longwei but not to Wei Wang. After all, even the older brother, Wei Shang had to admit defeat and surrendered to her, thus employing the same tactic, Wei Wang was quickly defeated!


    As for the final round, the crowds were thrilled beyond anything else and crazily placed their bets onto Fei Longwei. Some who believed in miracles though, betted onto Xu Rong to become the champion instead!


    The final round is finally here!


    But, it was at this moment that Duan Li suddenly stood up and walked towards the platform, where the two contestants was about to fight.


    Right now, everyone was confused as to what was Duan Li planning to do so suddenly.


    ...

 106 Chapter 105: Theysve all been had!

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    "Damn! The final round is finally here! Look at these legs of mine, they can''t stop shaking!"


    "Huh? This is a sign of Parkinson! You oughta return home and take a rest bro!"


    "Take a rest your head! I''m excited you idiot!"


    The crowd clamored in an even more intense cheering and shouting as their body were infected with uncontrollable amount of adrenaline shots right now!


    A fight between two of their favorite contestants, now this would be one hell of a ruckus!


    But when they saw Duan Li stepping up onto that platform as well, the crowd looked towards each other in confusion.


    What is that Lord trying to do now?


    While his domineering presence wasreduced since he left the throne, each step he took towards the platform still has the audience to feel nervous and anxious all the same!


    They knew that this Lord called Duan Li was a very formidable person, and every action he made would attract the attention of others.


    After all, this was the person that had managed to escape the encirclement from dozens of opponents during the first Combat lesson before.


    This was also the person that had beaten Shen Murong, a junior with a battle prowess comparable to that of a sophomore with raw strength fair and square!


    Furthermore, this was the person whom was so rich that he bought the most expensive residence court in the academy even though he only had less than 10 followers!


    Adding up to the rumors that this new junior Lord had connections to high places, the exagerated tales of the ronin samurai and some other more, it was obvious that this person here was far from ordinary!


    Facing the two contestants, right now their positions were like that in a triangle.


    "My Lord, what''s wrong?" Shen Lu asked out, evidently confused as well.


    Duan Li cupped at his chin before answering, "Well, since we already watched a ton of their matches, we need something special for the final, don''t you guys think so?" he turned his gaze towards the crowd, smiling.


    When the audiences heard this, they broke out into silence for a while before nodding.


    "Yeah! Since this is the final round, it makes sense to have something special!"


    "Indeed, otherwise even if its going to be intense later on, it would just be another matches like any other before."


    "True! Just that, what sorts of idea does he have in his mind to make the final round special?"


    The crowd swiftly agreed with what Duan Li was suggesting to them as they started to look forward to this ''special'' final round.


    "I see, then what is my Lord suggesting we do for this final round?" Shen Lu inquired once more, his eyes flashing with interest.


    This was the person that hadn''t yet let him down ever since he pledged to become a part of his followers. Thus, this must be something good!


    "For the final round, instead of two people fighting against each other.. why not all the 10 contestants from the semi-final round fight against.. me instead?" Duan Li said.


    Eh?


    Did we hear him wrong?


    The crowd broke into discussion as they asked those besides them to repeat what Duan Li had just said.


    To fight against 10 people at once, surely my ears were not working properly right?


    Those contestants weren''t the same as the weak juniors back from the Combat class before!


    In terms of sheer battle prowess alone, just a single one of them would be able to fight single-handedly against 10 people simultaneously!


    In fact, each of these individuals could be considered as a monster in their own category as well!


    To fight against 10 of them at the same time, we know that you are someone that is quite formidable brother, but are you sure that you''re not getting over-confident here?


    Most of the audience began to doubt at Duan Li, some were even speaking in contempt towards him.


    We understand that you are the Lord, but do you think that students of the academy are far more weaker than you?


    However, contrary to the crowd''s reaction, Shen Lu and the rest of his party immediately could tell that Duan Li was serious!


    They knew firsthand of what Duan Li was really capable of. Heck, even the Heaven''s Will before had to adjust a few things here and there just to accomodate to his demands.


    In their opinion, that was something that was extremely incredulous to believe. Had it not been that they had watched the whole scene with their own eyes, even if someone were to castrate them, they would refuse to believe even a single bit of it!


    What is he planning this time?


    Thus, each of them began to brew conjectures within their minds as to why Duan Li was doing this.


    "Could it be?" Shen Lu''s eyes narrowed.Being a Strategist, he has a far more in-depth analyzing capabilities as compared to the rest.


    According to his deductions, the resulting effect from this sudden move of Duan Li would be two things.


    One, was that the betting system would be reset. This would mean that he could ask the audience to bet once more of who would be defeated first, second, third and all the way to the last one against Duan Li!


    As to whether Duan Li could hold out against these 10 people at all, for some reason, he had full trust in Duan Li''s capabilities.


    Second, was that by defeating these 10 individuals simultaneously in one battle, he would be able to exert even more dominance and cemented his status over them of being the strongest!


    For a Lord, there was nothing more important than being looked as someone that was inviolable and unbeatable, for this causes a natural deference and reverence by others!


    Others might think that Duan Li was being over-confident, but this was actually a well-thought out and solid plan!


    Was he actually aiming for this since the very beginning when I had proposed this plan back then?!


    If that is true, what a truly, scary and formidable eye of insight!


    However, in actuality, Duan Li had only proposed this because he was bored just sitting around on that throne, watching the fights without doing anything at all!


    He was aching to get into action himself and was also curious to test out his current battle prowess.


    As of now, he was already at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, just a step away from being a Core formation realm expert.


    If Shen Lu were to know of the real reason behind Duan Li''s decision to interfere in this final match, he would definitely spat out blood!


    But Duan Li was not a fool as well and could catch on with the crowds reaction, thus he whipped out a single high quality spirit stone.


    "Perhaps most of you would be dissatisfied by this decision of mine. But worry not!"


    "For those of you whom could guess correctly as to who would be defeated by me first, second, third and all the way to the final one, I will personally gift each of you a single high quality spirit stone!"


    "But, if any of you were to bet against me instead, that I would lose during this final round, no matter how many contestants I''ve already taken out, as long as there still remains even a single person on this platform by then, I would have to consider that as my lost!"


    "By which in that case.. not only would you be able to win your bets, I would even gift each of those who betted against me.. 10 high quality spirit stones each, if they are correct!"


    Duan Li''s voice echoed out as that final sentence resounded clearly in the Duel hall.


    The impact of this speech of his had caused the whole audience to be muted as they were still processing whether or not what they had just heard was not a dream!


    Soon after, they broke out from their daze as they stood up with clenched fists in excitement!


    "What the hell! This is an extremely good deal! The minimum amount required to bet was not increased as well! If I could win this, that would be a jackpot!"


    "You''re right! Since the minimum amount to bet is still dirt cheap, even if I lost, losing a few low quality spirit stones wouldn''t affect me that much at all!"


    "HAHA! Let me put my luck to a test! All-in to Duan Li''s losing this match!"


    "Me as well!"


    "Me too!"


    The audience began to crazily bet against Duan Li''s odds of losing this match. Looking at the sheer number of spirit stones pouring in, the total worth was already about a dozen of high quality spirit stones and was still pouring in!


    Shen Lu''s eyes shone bright at the sight of this, as his smile beamed from ear to ear.


    There were also others whom had communicated with their groups and factions as well, and was granted the permission to bet with spirit stones of medium quality.


    In fact, there was even a few that had placed their bets using high quality spirit stones!


    Therefore in the end, the total amount of spirits stones from people betting against Duan Li had reached a staggering amount of 150 high quality spirit stones in worth!


    After all, the number of audience had increased during the period of time as the matches went by and was now numbering in the range of a few thousand. Thus, it was not surprising for such a colossal amount to stack!


    In comparison, the number of people that had not betted against Duan Li was not even worth a mention and was miniscule!


    This was proven by the fact that the total worth was not even a single high quality spirit stone!


    "HAHAHA! We''ve struck it rich this time!" Shen Lu laughed out.


    "They''ve been had." Wang Xiolun shook his head, feeling pitiful to the audience that had betted against Duan Li.


    Shen Murong was a little doubtful at first, but when he casted his sights onto the 10 contestants, other than those two dark horses, he was 100 percent confident in beating the rest of them with ease.


    "Since Duan Li is stronger than me, then perhaps he could really handle this!" thought Shen Murong.


    Meanwhile, Xiahou Yu just ignored the whole situation entirely. In her mind, there was nothing that Duan Li could not do. In fact, she was now busy thinking of ways to make her own fried chicken franchise in the Jiu Empire.


    Somehow, seeing those staggering amount of spirit stones before her had alighted that deeply hidden ambitions within her.


    ...


    Back in Duan Li''s residence court, Cucko was hiding within a bush, observing intently on the movements of the fishes within the pond in front of it.


    Currently, its biggest enemy was a transformed fish within that pond. This fish was considered as a nuisance for its daily fish hunting activity, as the latter would protect the fishes inside the pond from being its victim.


    For Cucko, this was something that it definitely could not tolerate at all!


    That was why it was stalking silently right now, trying to find the weaknesses of the other party.


    However, it was at this moment that Cucko''s body shivered momentarily, as it rose its chicken head onto the sky with narrowed eyes, as if peering straight into the heavens!


    Cucko had sensed that danger was coming soon!


    ...

 107 Chapter 106: 10 vs 1 1

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    "You.. are you looking down on us?" Fei Longwei spoke out with a cold tone.


    To suddenly change the settings of the final match from one versus one to ten versus the other party alone, to him, this was the other party getting over-confident!


    By his side, Xu Rong nodded to Fei Longwei''s statement as she also said her own piece.


    "That''s right. We know that you are quite formidable yourself. But requesting to fight the ten of us at the same time so suddenly, that is the same as not acknowledging our strengths at all!" she said as her brows furrowed, displeased.


    For Sui Shunyuan and the others, they only look at Duan Li silently, with a trace of displeasure as well. Then the seniors stepped up.


    "Lad, your fight with Shen Murong is something that I''ve watched personally before. That power you displayed there was enough to beat the average sophomores here with ease. But you must know your own limit, we and them are not of the same quality." Wu Jin spoke out casually, his disposition as a senior was shown entirely right now.


    Dong Jinghai analyzed Duan Li for a bit and then shook his head.


    "Your aura, I could feel that you are currently at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm. However, I have to agree with my friend Wu Jin here. Against the 10 of us, it would take a miracle for you to actually win." he said as he cupped his chin.


    Hearing these remarks one after another from them, Duan Li realized that he was indeed being a little bit overboard this time.


    This was especially the case with what Xu Rong just stated that had struck at him. Looking at it from the contestant''s point of view, it does seems that he had looked down upon them all.


    Thus, Duan Li swiftly explained so as to not be misunderstood even further.


    "This might seem as if I was looking down onto the ten of you, but in fact, I truly had no intention of doing so. Every single match that you guys did were a class of its own and I was thoroughly impressed by it!"


    Hearing this, their stares eased up a little bit.


    "Then, why did you propose such a battle?" Xu Rong asked out.


    She was a little bit displeased earlier on. But thinking on what Duan Li had just said, she realized that there might be a reason for this.


    "As both a martial artist and cultivator, I strived to see the extent of my full capabilities. Watching you guys fight at one another had sparked up my interest regarding that. But while I indeed wanted to see just how long I would last against the 10 of you, this decision of mine is closely related to my Lord class as well." Duan Li explained.


    The contestants contemplated deeply onto Duan Li''s words and found some truths in it, especially that last sentence that had them thinking.


    Since the other party was a Lord class, it makes sense to show one''s dominance by fighting against the odds. While it was true that a Lord does not need to be all rounded, but if the Lord does not have sufficient strength that their followers could look up to, their leadership would be just that.


    After all, in the world of cultivators, power reigns over everything!


    But even if this was the case, it still does not sit well with them to be challenged like this. Had this been between them only, it would''ve been fine, but with a public audience as such, things were more complicated.


    Unless Duan Li could totally overwhelm them at their fullest might, what the public would highlight would only be their humiliating defeat against a single person!


    And even if they won, the crowd would just dismiss it entirely, thinking that it was all due to them attacking in a group, not because of their personal strength.


    The prime example for this was the time when Duan Li had managed to escape while giving a beating towards those that surrounded him that time. Because he managed to totally overwhelm them, only his victory was passed around, and not those who were defeated by him.


    As cultivators with pride, they needed to take care of their own face and dignity as well. Otherwise, they would only become the laughing stock for people!


    Looking at their still unconvinced expression, Duan Li sighed out. He had truly underestimated the complexity of this issue. But since the bets was already placed, they had to go through with it whether they like it or not.


    Just that, if he does not settle this issue properly, some of these people would hold a grudge against him in the future!


    Therefore, the only way out for this was to show them the full extent of his might that would overshadow them entirely.


    Only then, would they be convinced, that he truly had earned the rights to challenge the 10 of them all at the same time!


    Narrowing his eyes, Duan Li''s aura began to rumble.


    Crackle!


    Flashes of blue lightning started to dance around him as his aura shrouded the entire Duel hall. Closing his eyes, he focused his spiritual Qi flow to cycle through the new meridian channels that was formed from his second dantian. As a result, his aura now emanated a certain unique frequency, that causes the whole surrounding to seethe with an eery vibe to it!


    BOOM!


    The weaker ones found their hearts to beat erratically as they sweat, with the sensation that makes it difficult for them to breath in properly.


    In fact, their instincts were screaming for them to run away at this moment!


    This was fear!


    Thankfully, the platform where Duan Li was in along with the 10 contestants, were protected by numerous layers of runic formations that formed a thick barrier to protect the audience from actual harm.


    Otherwise, these people would have long fainted the moment Duan Li let out this kind of aura onto them.


    After all, this aura of his was several times more stronger than the one he automatically released while sitting on the throne previously!


    ...


    Within the barrier, the people standing on the platform right now had their guards put up as they felt their backs to be drenched in sweat.


    To think that this aura of Duan Li was so ferocious that their natural instinct compelled them to just run away!


    It was as if they were mice in front a tiger!


    Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai that were so casual before, immediately tensed up as their faces turned serious.


    "Guys, you had better prepare yourself. It seems that we have made a grave mistake here. It wasn''t he that was underestimating us. Turns out, it was actually us underestimating him!" Wu Jin spoke out as he readied himself into a stance.


    "Friend, the sensation that this lad in front of us giving out right now was just like those of a 3 Star monster.. or even higher! We can''t afford to be careless now, seems like the other party is truly serious this time around." Dong Jinghai said to Wu Jin warily, as he took his stance.


    "Fei Longwei, Sui Shunyuan, Wei Shang and Wei Wang, you guys should take the vanguard position now! Xu Rong is a Spellcaster, so you support us from the back! Meanwhile, Yun Bo and Ti Bao, you guys protect her as the rear-guards! Guo He, if you have any pills that could help us right now, that would be good, and you should hide yourself behind Xu Rong, you are the weakest of us all!" told Dong Jinghai to the rest of them.


    Hearing this, they swiftly nodded and took up their own positions. Although each has their own attitude and personality, against a situation as such, they would be fools to not listen to the directions of a senior student!


    As a senior, both him and Wu Jin have some experience in hunting monsters with group members before, thus they were very familiar with various position settings.


    "How confident are you in we being able to beat him?" he asked to Wu Jin, even though he already knew himself of the chances.


    The latter was silent for a while before answering.


    "20 percent." Wu Jin replied.


    ...


    At the stage in front of the platform, Shen Murong''s brows creased together.


    "Seems like he is even stronger now.. how did he managed to do this?" he thought.


    Could it be that he has a unique cultivation method?


    Or was it an inheritance?


    ...

 108 Chapter 107: 10 vs 1! 2

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    "His aura still kept on increasing?!" Fei Longwei thought in his mind, feeling alarmed with the figure in front of them getting stronger by the seconds.


    Gritting his teeth tight, he then deployed a skill art.


    ''Dark arts: Darkness veil!''


    As he activated this skill, his black robe fluttered and its nature changed. If before it was a normal black robe, now it appeared to be alive as it wriggles and dances around constantly, like black flames waiting to devour its enemies whole!


    This skill allows him to change his molecular structure slightly, to be like that of a jelly where it would absorb a high amount of damage and redirect it to the ground. Although this move of his would diminish his physical strength greatly as a result, it didn''t matter to him as he planned to attack Duan Li from afar.


    On the left, Sui Shunyuan also noticed that their situation was getting more dangerous.


    "The aura he is radiating out is now similar or perhaps stronger than an average 3 Star monster.. this is troublesome.." he sighed out.


    ''Possession arts: Internal muscle control!''


    This possession arts will triple his reflex ability by manually controlling the amount of muscle expansion and contraction during movements so that he could better react to sudden attacks while increasing his combat ability as well. However, his stamina would also depletes three times faster than normal!


    On the right, both Wei Shang and Wei Wang turned their heads towards each other as they nodded, seeming to decide on something.


    ''Mystic arts: Interchanging Moon and Sun!''


    Since they both knew of Duan Li''s physical ability firsthand back at the residence court, and that crazy response time of his, they realized that hiding away from him was essentially useless.


    Therefore, they had decided to use this battle ability that could readily swap their position instantly. That means, if one delivered a punch and their opponent was about to block, counter or dodge, they could swap their body with the other person so that the punch would instead becomes a kick, breaking the combat flow of their opponents!


    Although this mystic arts of their''s would definitely depletes quite a big amount of their spiritual Qi everytime they did a body swap, they should still be able to last long if they tried to use it sparringly.


    "Look at them! These sophomores are already this strong! It won''t be long now before they could surpass us!" Dong Jinghai laughed out.


    Wu Jin by the side only nodded slightly, but a subtle smile was apparent on his face. In his mind, as long as the academy could nurture them carefully, the overall might of the Jiu Empire would definitely soar in the future!


    At the back, Yun Bo and Ti Bao were closely guarding both Xu Rong and Guo He.


    Guo He whipped out several pills, and with a flick of his finger, he handed them to everyone with an indifferent expression. This was the only type of pills that he would be willing to gave out to them as the ingredients were cheap to procure.


    After all, this battle was just superficial and did not really pose them any real threats, so there was no need for him to go all out on this battle and bankrupt himself.


    "Eat those pills, they would heighten your battle sense for a duration of an hour! The only side effect it has would be extreme drowsiness after one hour later!" he said.


    Gulp!


    Everyone then swiftly popped the pills inside their mouths simultaneously. If the side effect would only came out about an hour later, that would be as good as having no side effects at all during battle!


    As soon as they swallowed those pills, they could feel that their minds had become much more clearer than before, and their rational thinking speed increased as well!


    This was some good pills!


    Xu Rong on the other hand, has just finished chanting a magic spell that took her quite a long casting time. Raising both her hands up onto the air, she shouted out.


    ''Great Magic: Blessing of Shur!''


    Woongg!


    A big magic circle appeared on thin air above the platform, as Fei Longwei and the rest felt their strength, speed and spiritual Qi cycle increased rapidly. Soon, the effects stopped climbing after buffing their stats by at least a double!


    This might not look much, but in a group battle, a triple buff effect in one go for everyone would increase their combined battle prowess by a whole lot more!


    When the audiences saw these numerous amount of formidable skill arts, mystics arts and magic spells being deployed at this moment, they couldn''t help but to cheer out as the adrenaline inside their body churned once more. This helps them to shook some of the pressure weighing onto them due to Duan Li''s aura.


    "Wow! Did you take a good look at Fei Longwei''s black robe when he activated that skill arts of his? I almost thought that thing became alive!"


    "I don''t know what skill arts Sui Shunyuan had just used, but it should be as equally formidable as the rest of them!"


    "Neither did those twins seems to produce an effect after deploying their mystic arts either. I reckon that those should be a special ability of the sorts!"


    "Screw that, look at what Xu Rong just did! That magic spells she casted was quite high-level stuff! To think that she could triple buff everyone at the same time! Now THAT is insane!"


    They continued to chatter and discussed among them as they got more confident with their bets that Duan Li would lose this match. Thinking about the money they would be making later, most of them were laughing happily. In fact, some had even began to congratulate those high-stakers that betted with a majority of their lifetime fortune!


    These kinds of people have very large balls below them and not everyone could do what they did. At first, when Duan Li released that tyrannical aura of his onto them, they were shaken for awhile. But now, a feeling of regret looms upon them.


    Hais! We should have put more spirit stones into that bet!


    ...


    Observing at these two contrasting sight between those who were inside the barrier and those who were outside, Shen Lu shook his head pitifully.


    Obviously, those whom were outside would not be able to feel the tremendous amount of pressure felt by those inside the barrier.


    For them to deploy such skills one after another was already an indication that Duan Li was just that strong!


    How could the audiences be so blind?!


    Shen Lu sighed.


    Oh well, due to their short-sightedness, we have benefitted a lot instead!


    "Those people would definitely cry later on when they realized this. I should make some preparations to store these mountains of spirit stones as soon as Duan Li won the match. Otherwise, some of these crooked fellas would took their spirit stones back and fled right away."


    Contrary to everyone else, perhaps only Shen Lu and Xiahou Yu were thinking a few steps ahead into the future at this moment!


    One was busy preparing to store the colossal amount of spirit stones in a single fell swoop, while the other was already drafting the name of her future company.


    ...


    Back on the platform, Duan Li has just finished conditioning his whole body to its peak. With both of his eyes still closely shut, he submerged himself with this current state of his. He felt as if he was brimming with an immense amount of power that could topple down mountains and split apart the oceans!


    BOOM!


    The destroyed platform cracked deeper under the immense might of Duan Li''s aura. Even the barrier was now vibrating intensely!


    This was his strongest battle form, but now that his Qi cycle was a lot more faster due to the existence of the new meridian channels from his second dantian, this form was several times much more powerful as compared to when he fought with Shen Murong back then!


    "I should name this form.." he thought in his mind as he nodded.


    ''Mystic Form: Super Duan Li!''


    He chuckled slightly at the thought of this name that he had just came up with. It was a mysterious feeling, but this name alone somehow depicts the image of a battle-addict diety!


    Reining in his aura closely back to his body, the stiffling sensation that the audiences felt before was removed as they could breath in normally once more. However, the same could not be said for Fei Longwei and the other that was on the platform with Duan Li right now.


    Because his aura was now condensed closely back to his body, the air around Duan Li turned viscous as if they were being compressed by this stacking pressure!


    Bbzzttt! Bbzzzttt!


    The flashes of blue lightning around him gave shivers to those whom casted their looks on him.


    "These lightning elements that are still coagulating in my right arm after the tribulations struck down at me back then, it seems that I might be able to make use of them."


    CRACKLE!


    Channeling these lightning elements onto his right hand, he then opened the various acupoints, as they crackled loudly upon exitting and danced atop of his hand.


    With a single thought of his, these lightning elements slowly morphed to become larger and bigger, to the point that it finally took upon the form of a weapon!


    When the first Combat lesson back then revealed that he was suitable to wield either a sword, an axe or a spear, there was only one weapon right now that could shoulder the weight of his dominance and power!


    A weapon that could make others cast away their looks from him as they trepidated in fear under his tyrannical existence!


    These thoughts of his, had morphed the lightning elements into one, big giant weapon!


    A crackling blue dominance, the All-Slaying Eternal Great-Axe!


    BOOOMM!!


    Opening his eyes, that pair of golden pupil of his now has traces of inviolable authority in it! His hair that stood up like the peaks of mountain Tai, that golden and crimson shades of aura he was letting out right now with sparks of lightning dancing around him, especially that fear-inducing Great-Axe on his right hand upped onto his shoulder, this was akin to a war deity that had descended down onto the mortal plane to cause chaos and damnation!


    "Come!"


    ...


    When the Great-Axe was formed, up above the firmaments of the Heavens, their golden clear skies suddenly turned dark, as black clouds gathered and deafening booms of thunders echoed out, while strings of ravaging lightning of colossal thickness spread throughout the Heavens!


    It was as if these phenomena were the result from the birth of their rightful King and Ruler!


    At this moment, an elderly man with a golden robe that looked far from ordinary walked out of his palace and gazed indifferently at that scene.


    "Sky encompassing and heaven shrouding phenomena... so another Eternal Weapon was being birthed..."


    After saying this piece, he slowly walked back inside. From that disappearing silhouette of his, the elderly man spoke out with an utmost cold tone that could sever iron and chop nails!


    "It seems that you''re doing that antics of yours once again... you damned false god..."


    ...

 109 Chapter 108: 10 vs 1 3 end!

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    "Vanguards, me and Wu Jin would take the fight up front, you guys look for an opportunity and attack from a safe distance to lock him down!" Dong Jinghai said as both he and Wu Jin dashed forward to meet at Duan Li.


    BOOMM!


    Duan Li blocked the simultaneous punch from Dong Jinghai and Wu jin with his left forearm in a guard up position.


    BAMM!!


    The sheer force of the impact pushed Duan Li to the back while creating a pair of long streak marks on the ground from his feet. This much was to be expected, after all, the two individuals in front of him were still his seniors at the middle stage of the Core formation realm, and their strength was not to be underestimated!


    However, it has to be known that even though Duan Li was only at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, his original battle prowess was already at the same level of a Core formation realm experts!


    But now that he was fully powered up, his total battle prowess was at least on par with both Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai, although significantly more powerful due to his current unique state!


    Therefore, just this fact alone was enough to rattle them down to their very core.


    To think that a junior would possess the strength capable of withstanding the joint attacks of two seniors at the Core formation realm, this was totally unheard of!


    However, it was at this moment that, Fei Longwei, Sui Shunyuan, Wei Shang and Wei Wang surrounded him from both sides and his back.


    ''Dark arts: Dark fists!''


    ''Possession arts: Body steal!''


    ''Earth swamp!''


    The ground that Duan Li was stepping on soon felt soft and absorbed him downwards until he was sunk to the waist level in an instant.


    Duan Li snorted as he striked out at the ground with his left palm.


    ''Nine palm slapping oceans!''


    BOOOMM!!


    The swamp got blown apart as they reverted back to their normal state. Changing that palm to a fist, Duan Li swiftly punched out at that incoming fist attack from Fei Longwei while making sure he put in the correct amount of forces behind it.


    After all, his full powered attack was something that the other party would not be able to handle at all.


    ''Nine fists shattering meteor!''


    BOOOMM!!


    Both fists clashed against one another as they dissipated mid-air while making the sound of sonic booms to the surrounding.


    Hmm?


    Suddenly, Duan Li found himself to be unable to move his body due to Sui Shunyuan''s possession arts. At the same time, both Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai whipped out their swords as they dashed at Duan Li to attack at this opportunity!


    "Possession arts? Hmph!" Duan Li harrumphed.


    With a single quick burst of spiritual Qi from his body, the possession arts was unravelled in an instant as he swung the great-axe that rested on his shoulder to meet at the two swords of his opponents in front of him.


    BOOOMM!!


    When the two swords clashed against the great-axe, a deafening booms threw the ground apart below them, as the lightning elements from Duan Li''s great-axe sizzled and travelled through the swords that was pressing against it, and electrocuted the two seniors.


    ARRRGHHHHH!


    After their shrill tragic cries, both of the seniors fell limpidly to the ground with weak knees, twitching onto the ground.


    Paralysis!


    They had not expected Duan Li''s weapon to possess such a strong lightning element imbued within it that was enough to knock them both down!


    Then, it was at this moment that a large swirling tornado made up of flames came crashing down onto Duan Li from above.


    ''Fire twister!''


    This was a surpise attack from Xu Rong and was perfectly timed as well!


    However, this attack might''ve worked against someone else, but not Duan Li.


    Putting up a smile, Duan Li brought up thegreat-axe as he cleaved onto that Fire twister!


    SPLIT!!


    The Fire twister was cut clean in half as the lightning elements went berserk to attack at the flame elements in a series of loud crackles!


    Clang!


    Standing straight with the great-axe up on his shoulder once more, Duan Li appeared to be as immovable as the ancient mountains themselves. Right now, his every fiber was oozing out an indomitable aura that made the remaining contestants felt their situation to be helpless!


    Such strength! Such power! Such a strong disposition!


    How do we beat him?!


    At the side, Fei Longwei gritted his teeth as he recalled back at the previous scene. "He encountered my Dark fists using an equal amount of fist attack power to cancel it out!"


    In his mind, this was something that was very difficult to achieve. After all, his Dark fists was not an ordinary fist art, and anything that tried to obstruct it would be absorbed instead to make it even stronger!


    "Unless.. that fist art that he used was purely brute force that was compressing againts the air?!" as he realized this, both his eyes narrowed as his expression turned extremely grim.


    On the other hand, Sui Shunyuan was also shocked to his core. The possession arts of body control that he deployed against Duan Li was an exclusive skill arts that only he himself knew.


    The only flaw it has was that it could only control the external body by wrapping the target with his spiritual Qi. Usually, the more his target tried to move, the more stronger it became.


    This was because the spiritual Qi that he used to wrap his target with could absorb such force to augment itself. In theory, this was the perfect trap that his opponent wouldn''t be able to grasp in a short time, allowing them to try to move their body harder, only to make the containment even more powerful in the end!


    However, there was no perfect skill arts in the world and so was this. His body control attack could be negated when the opponent''s spiritual Qi cycle was far higher than himself!


    But, because that was the case, he had especially worked hard into reducing this flaw as much as possible. Unless his target were to have a cultivation beyond the middle stage of the Core formation realm, they would only be able to escape after wasting a few breaths of time, which would be enough for him to snuff out his target anytime!


    "To think that he could nullified it in an instant.. what a monster!" he remarked warily in his heart.


    For the first time after so long, he could now feel again that emotion called fear!


    "As expected.. our combined attack wouldn''t work at all!" Wei Shang said as both him and Wei Wang retreated while deploying their mystic arts, ''Concealing life'' to turn invisible on the spot.


    They don''t know why, but they felt that after this, it would be dangerous to remain on the platform!


    ...


    As they each retreated onto a safe distance away from Duan Li, they looked at the other party warily for any sudden movements. This was the kind of person where tricks would not work at all!


    "It''s time for me to attack." said Duan Li casually.


    As soon as this words was spoken out, Fei Longwei, Sui Shunyuan, Wei Shang and Wei Wang felt goose bumps that they instinctively backed away as fast as they can!


    "Too slow."


    ''One step to reach!''


    Duan Li deployed his movement skill arts that allowed him to travel across a short distance in an instant.


    Pshew!


    He appeared right in front Sui Shunyuan as he slapped out with his left hand.


    ''Nine palms slapping oceans!''


    Padah!


    With the immense force behind that slap of his, Sui Shunyuan flew across the platform while spinning as he crashed against the barrier and got knocked out.


    BANG!


    "Let''s see.." Duan Li stopped as he turned his gaze towards Fei Longwei, as the latter''s face turned pale.


    "You next!" Duan Li spoke out as he deployed the movement skill arts again.


    Pshew!


    "Noooo!!" Fei Longwei shrieked in horror, he realized that he wouldn''t be able to counter Duan Li''s slaps that made use of compressed air against others. His Dark arts would be useless to stop it.


    ''Nine palms slapping oceans!''


    Padah!


    Just like Sui Shunyuan, Fei Longwei was slapped like a fly as he swirled around in mid-air before crashing onto the barrier.


    With a ''Pu'' sound, Fei Longwei fainted as he hit the ground.


    Pshew!


    Arriving in front of an empty air, Duan Li sent out two resounding slaps yet again. This was where the twins were hiding, against his Soul sense and his Sonar Qi technique, there was no way they could hide from him.


    Pah! Pah!


    Pu! Pu!


    Wei Shang and Wei Wang got slapped to ground as the impact instantly knocked them out.


    "Now.. only you four are left.. hmm? Three..?" Duan Li stuttered in his sentence as he looked at the remaining contestants on the platform behind him.


    Guo He was already twitching on the ground with foams forming out from his mouth.


    "This fella seemed to decide to knock himself out using some pills to avoid getting slapped by me.." said Duan Li, a little bit taken aback by such display.


    No matter.


    Pshew!


    Pah! Pah!


    Yun Bo and Ti Bao got slapped with a weaker force, but still swirled on the ground dramatically like a table-top spinner, before their heads drilled onto the ground, causing their legs to jut out like some locust.


    Xu Rong was about to scream out before Duan Li appeared on her back and delivered a swift chop to her neck.


    No matter how ruthless he should display himself as, he shouldn''t really lay his hands onto a woman without warrant.


    Bang!


    Xu Rong fell to the ground limpidly as her vision turned dark. She muttered the word "impossible.." before she was snuffed out.


    As of this moment, the sudden turn of events had the entire audience shut their mouth. The Duel hall was so silent that a sneaky fart would still be heard by everyone here if someone decided to let it out right now.


    Furrowing his brows, he felt that the current situation was not right as he wasn''t being fair to everyone. Thus, appearing right beside the unconscious Guo He, Duan Li squatted down, as he delivered a slap to the other party.


    Pah!


    You think I didn''t realize you were playing dead?


    "...." everyone.


    ...

 110 Chapter 109: The chosen 5!

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    "T-This... what just happened?" asked one of the audience, his face showing that look of utter disbelief.


    In fact, every single one of the crowd here could not dare to believe what they had just saw to be real!


    It was only just a moment ago that they were celebrating and congratulating each other, but what is this?


    How did things turn out as such?!


    "I-Impossible! All 10 of the contestants were slapped senseless!"


    "T-this is the epitome of defeat! To be defeated by a mere single slap from him, just how strong could he be to be able to do this?!"


    Indeed, the power level that Duan Li had just displayed to them was something that could be described as above heaven-shattering!


    To only require a single slap to lay waste onto his opponent, this was just too terrifying and tyrannical!


    "I-I think I just saw a glimpse of the future.. where this person stood unwavering upon a tall mountain made up of unconscious people, each had a red palm print planted firmly onto their cheeks.. an eternal palm print that one would never be able to erase.." an elderly senior whom had stucked at his cultivation for decades spoke out.


    "Great elder senior Mu Bai! What do you mean?" the people around him turned towards this elderly man with sweats on their forehead. Mu Bai was known to have a slight foresight ability to vividly ''see'' the future. Because of this, he was deeply respected among the student''s populace even though his cultivation could no longer advance.


    Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, his face was pale and his goatee beard trembled, he spoke out a single sentence with quivering lips and hoarse voice that had the people around him feeling goose bumps as their hearts tightened with trepidation!


    "A single slap to rule the world!"


    (Author''s note: Remember LOTR? xD)


    ...


    Back on the platform, the two seniors could finally move their body albeit with some difficulties, as the lightning element was still present running amok inside their body.


    "T-To think.. that we were all beaten by you.. like this.. hais!" Wu Jin sighed out.


    "My intuition had long thought of you as someone that was far from ordinary.. but even that seemed like an understatement now.. such ability.. you should already be considered as the strongest among the junior now.. the Junior Emperor!" Dong Jinghai spoke out as he shook his head, still unable to wrap his head around the whole events that had just transpired.


    It felt like a dream for him.


    "Junior Emperor? What do you mean?" Duan Li asked out.


    Dong Jinghai then explained to Duan Li that there were three strongest figure in the whole academy among the students - the Junior Emperor, Sophomore Emperor and the Senior Emperor!


    Each Emperor were recognized by their collective groups of students and had tremendous amount of influences and power!


    "Perhaps, other than the Sophomore Emperor, there would be no one even among the sophomores who could beat you!" Dong Jinghai continued.


    Hearing this, Duan Li cupped at his chin.


    There is still someome who could rival me at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm?


    Interesting!


    "What about the Senior Emperor?" Duan Li asked out.


    "That guy.. he is the strongest student in the academy. Standing at the pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm, he could have very well step into the Golden Core realm a few years ago." Dong Jinghai said as he looked above at the ceiling with his hands clasped behind his back, as if peering right through it and into the clouds.


    "Ahh, this pose is similar to that of the Principal.." thought Duan Li subconsciously.


    Why do these people loved to pose like this?


    Dong Jinghai then continued, "But instead of graduating from the academy by stepping into the Golden core realm, he choses to further reinforce his cultivation thoroughly instead. All of this was done in order to step into that mythical realm, a limbo between Golden Core realm and Nascent Soul realm.. the Celestial core realm!"


    Urghh!


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s eyes slightly narrowed. His mind suddenly jittered for a moment as a section of a memory was unlocked from its depth.


    Celestial Core realm!


    This was a state stronger than a Golden core realm but slightly weaker than the Nascent Soul realm. Much about it remained only a myth, but Duan Li knew that this state existed!


    "What is this memory? Why does it feels so different?" said Duan Li as he pressed against the temple besides his forehead.


    "Are you okay?" Dong Jinghai asked as Duan Li''s face suddenly paled for a bit.


    Smiling, Duan Li shook his head, "It''s nothing."


    By the side, Wu Jin approached them.


    "That weapon of yours is really something, I myself got some good protection against attribute and elemental attacks. Yet, I somehow still got paralysed by that great-axe of yours." Wu Jin complimented as he recalled that great-axe.


    Soon after, all of the contestants began to woke up one after another. With confused expression, they would ask the others on what happened, seeming to be unable to recall that they were all being beaten senseless by one guy before!


    Hais!


    To think that Duan Li''s slaps were so vicious that they even lost a part of their memories, how tragic!


    Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai shook their heads as they sighed, "How pitiful.. it was no wonder that he dared to challenge the 10 of us so wantonly, it turns out that he has the capabilities after all.." they said to each other.


    After being explained by the two seniors, these victims of slaps eventually remembered their final moments.


    Each of them began to look at Duan Li with a trace of fear in them.


    How could it be possible for an individual such as them that was formidable in their own rights being slapped to a knockout in just one single hit?


    But the reality was there to enlighten them on the truths. That this fella in front of them was just that formidable!


    Gritting at their teeths, it took them some time to eventually accept such an outcome. As they sighed out, their gazes now has a different look to it, as if looking past the secular world and was being enlightened, for their horizons were now widened!


    Slaps, the most powerful form of an attack!


    It was at this moment, that the grand dao of slaps has started to take a foothold onto the Tian continent!


    ...


    After the platform was cleaned up and reverse magic was used, they returned back to their default state. Duan Li''s stage where he and his followers currently stood on were moved atop of the platform.


    Right now, Duan Li was sitting atop of his throne akin to that of a daimyo as Shen Lu stepped to the front.


    In front of this stage, about a meter lower at ground level, stood the whole 20 contestants from the previous Duel matches.


    "For your marvelous display in today''s event, let us have everyone here from the audience side to give them a round of applause for their spectacular talent!" Shen Lu spoke out with his excellent MC-ing skills and voice.


    Clap! Clap! Clap!


    The audience broke out into a series of loud claps and cheers. Although some of the battles were not what they expected it to be, especially that final round where everyone was getting slapped, they still enjoyed it nevertheless.


    "Now, without further ado, let us allow the Lord, Duan Li, to make his final verdict, of the 5 individuals among the 20 contestants here that would be selected to become his followers!" Shen Lu shouted out as the audience clapped and cheered once more.


    Tap! Tap!


    Shen Lu stepped back to return to his position besides Duan Li.


    With one palm raised into the air, the audience soon became quiet. They knew that Duan Li was about to speak and they wanted to listen to him carefully. Moreover, they were very afraid of getting slapped at by that vicious palm of his!


    "I''ve seen all your matches and even joined one match in the end to experience personally everyone''s potential here." Duan Li said, his voice carrying a certain unique disposition of dominance, compelling others to listen to him.


    "Regretfully, out of the 20 of you, only 5 would be chosen. This is because I have reached the maximum number of party members that I am allowed to recruit for the moment. Until I reached the 2 Star rank Lord class however, I hope everyone here would apply again once more." Duan Li sighed.


    According to the rules of the academy, an unranked Lord class would only be allowed to have no more than 10 party members including the Lord. At 1 Star rank, the maximum limit would still be the same, and only at 2 Star rank would this quota be increased by another 5 people.


    "Since I interfered in the final round, naturally there was no champion at all. But since we are talking about followers here, the Champion should be an individual that had contributed a lot as a team during that final round!"


    Hearing this, the crowd nodded in satisfaction.


    So this was another reason why he decided to interfere in that final round!


    "Thus, I chose Xu Rong that had displayed her powerful supportive capabilities in that final round as the Champion. Fei Longwei, are you okay with this?" said Duan Li as he turned towards the latter.


    "I am fine with it, as it is as what you have just said." replied Fei Longwei, his face showing no trace of dissatisfaction with the result.


    "Very good. With that, I chose her and you to be my follower. For you, it is because of your Dark arts that was quite versatile I my opinion. If used correctly in a group fight, our defenses should become impenetrable!" Duan Li declared.


    "Thank you, Lord Duan Li! We will do our best and try not to disappoint you! We hereby pledge to be your followers from henceforth!" they both cupped at their fists together at Duan Li, acknowledging him as their Lord from now on.


    Duan Li nodded. Now that two has been selected, only three slots were available left!


    The crowds clamored and discussed among themselves.


    "As expected, Xu Rong and Fei Longwei were accepted as his followers. Who do you think he would choose next?"


    "I would think perhaps one of the seniors? Or maybe those twins?"


    Each of them conjectured on whom would be chosen next based on their thoughts and evaluation of the contestant''s previous matches.


    ...

 111 Chapter 110: Chased!

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    After Xu Rong and Fei Longwei were chosen, Duan threw his gaze back at the remaining contestants.


    "Before I choose another 3 of you, let me just summarize on what I''ve seen during the previous few matches." Duan Li said.


    "Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai, both of you are senior students of the academy at the middle stage of the Core formation realm. Your experiences so far led you two to have better grasp on real battlefields to react accordingly. In addition, your individual matches against each other were the most intense in my opinion."


    "Wei Shang and Wei Wang, you two are from the Wei clan that has numerous way to conceal yourself from your opponents. Not only that, because the both of you are twins, your actions were highly synchronized. It would be a nightmare for your opponents to think of you two as separate individuals."


    "Yun Bo and Ti Bao, the both of you had stood firm in protecting your defensive formation regardless on what had happened to the vanguards back then. This shows that you two could follow order to the very end, even in the most dire of all situation. Such bravery to remain mission critical is definitely a commendable course of action."


    "Sui Shunyuan, your possession arts would be a powerful tool against any of your opponents. The versatile nature of it meant that you could very well use it creatively in a way that your opponents does not expect you to. Such surprise elements to be held in your hand at all times would make you advantageous in almost any kinds of situation."


    "Guo He, to produce such pills that its effects would only kick out after a battle ends, is already a testament to your formidable skills in pill concoction. If I am not mistaken, those pills that you had handed out back then were modified Spirit Consolidation pills which has a 30 percent more effectiveness as compared to the common grade 1 of its version sold on the market. Impressive!"


    Duan Li sighed out inwardly, it was so tiring and troublesome to speak out sentences so rigidly and serious like this, but as a Lord, he had to at least act the part and give out powerful insights in order to awe the audience.


    ...


    As Duan Li made various feedbacks and commented on each of them, the contestants soon realized that, not only was the other party monstrously powerful in strength, he was also equally intellectual and in fact, comparable to those Strategist class with that keen observation of his!


    Furthermore, there was not a speck of disdain and the feelings as such when the other party pointed out to them. In fact, it even feels like the other party was trying to guide them into the most suitable path that they should focus on next time!


    Even the audience felt the same way as they listened to Duan Li, as if the latter was conducting a beneficial lecture for them.


    "This junior Lord, Duan Li, is really formidable, it seems like he is one of those rare type of an excel-in-all-fields person eh?" a person said as he cupped at his chin.


    "Indeed. With both powerful strength and intellect at his disposal, he is destined to walk the path of greatness!" another person added while nodding, feeling impressed.


    By the side, the elderly man Mu Bai smiled as he recalled a certain quote of wisdom.


    "Powerful strength without powerful mind leads to you being used by others. Similarly, Powerful mind without sufficient strength causes you to surrender your fate onto another''s hand."


    "This was the vicious cycle of curse for almost all cultivators in the whole Tian continent. But in him, I only saw the figure of a dragon that had always been standing at the top.. he.. is the one!" said the elderly man Mu Bai to himself.


    ...


    After a few moments of silence, everyone had became quite anxious as to who Duan Li would choose next.


    After a slight cough and drinking a cup of water to sooth his dry throat from speaking for so long, Duan Li breathed in air as he continued.


    "Guo He, I guess it would be a no-brainer to not have such an astounding Alchemist within our ranks. Welcome to the party." Duan Li spoke out with a nod.


    The audience cheered and clapped their hands loudly. Most of them had already expected this though, as a functional party would definitely require at least one Alchemist that could change the tide of a battle with their pills and elixirs.


    "Thank you Lord Duan Li, I, Guo He, hereby swear on a pledge of loyalty to serve under you." Guo He said out loud as he clenched his fists in excitement.


    "En. Next, Wei Shang and Wei Wang. With the mystic arts in concealing yourself from others, you would make a great ambush squad as well as for rear-guards! You can catch just about almost anyone off-guard with such sets of skills. Therefore, I welcome you two to the party!"


    Hearing this, Wei Shang and Wei Wang immediately jumped up in excitement. With this, their numbered days and years of living in poverty had finally came to an end!


    "Thank you Duan- I mean Lord Duan Li! We swear our loyalty to you and would do anything you ask of us!" Wei Shang kneeled using one leg followed by Wei Wang.


    With that, all the 5 slots were now taken.


    The rest of the contestants sighed and was saddened by the fact that they were not chosen by Duan Li. But recalling that Duan Li would recruit once more when he reached the 2 Star rank Lord class in the future, they still had high hopes to eventually be able to join him.


    Until then, they would just have to train and cultivate harder.


    Shen Lu then whispered something to Duan Li as the latter''s eyes flashed. With an amiable smile towards everyone, Duan Li made a small closing speech for the audience as a gesture of appreciation for spending their time on watching the matches today.


    After that, with a slight awkward cough, Duan Li passes the floor back to Shen Lu, as he departed swiftly along with his followers including those new recruits of his as well.


    "Well everyone, with that, the Duel match has just officially ended! Regarding your bets, I have made it more convenient for everyone to claim it through the Jiu Bank company directly later on. Goodbye!"


    Pshew!


    After saying that final sentence, Shen Lu immediately bolted off into the distance.


    Huh?


    Only now did the audience started to realize, Duan Li and his part had all already left, and they were the only ones left in the Duel hall.


    Why are they leaving so quickly? Did they perhaps, had a simultaneous stomach ache breakdown from all those nervousness before to finally kicking in?


    Then, thinking back to that last sentence of Shen Lu, they finally seemed to caught onto something that had their entire faces paled like a group of corpses!


    BOOM!!


    One of the audience smashed his fist onto his seat, creating a huge depression, and his countenance unsightly.


    "Damn it! Those guys are getting away with our spirit stones! If they deposited all of those to the Jiu Bank company, there is no way we could raise a dispute anymore!" he said with gritted teeth.


    "Curses! It must be that crafty Shen Lu fella! He must have predicted that we would raise an issue regarding the bets in the end of this all!"


    The crowds began to howled out in rage as their faces darkened. Most of these were those that had betted All-ins or a large portion of their wealth during the final round back then.


    After all, if such a huge number of crowd were to open up a dispute claiming that they suspected Duan Li was committing fraud on them, using the reason such as the latter misleading them to all bet against him, it would not be hard to actually get back their lost spirit stones.


    This was why most of them did not really care about it back then. They too were a bunch of shrewd people as well. If they won, jackpot! If not, they would just get back their money!


    But who would have thought that they had overlooked this?


    The Jiu Bank company was the official national bank of the Empire to store one''s financial assets securely. However, as the national bank with integrity behind them, they would not condone any form of money that was brought illegally and would definitely check on how Duan Li had managed to get so much money from.


    But, since the source of that money was their bets in today''s matches, and there were a lot of witnesses around that could testify there was no unfair rules or conditions was being set up against them, they would definitely lose the case if they raised an official dispute against Duan Li through the bank.


    Instead, the bank would take an action against them for the fellony of trying to commit robbery!


    Now that would be one hell of a situation that they had to resolve!


    "Hurry! We''ve got to capture them and take back our spirit stones before they reach the Jiu Bank company!"


    "Even if I were to lose an arm and leg over this, I will get back my lifetime savings!"


    "Go! Go! Go!"


    CHASE!!


    Psheww!


    The crowds then bolted off to the sky one after another.


    As their numbers were more than a thousand, they appeared to look like a swarm of bees from the distance, ready to cause havoc to the world!


    Throwing a swift glance and scanning the whole area from the sky, with their combined line of sight, it didn''t took them long before the could find Duan Li and his party moving towards a certain direction.


    "There they are! CHASEE THEMM!!"


    Psheww!


    Psheww!


    Psheww!


    When the people on the ground saw the entire scene playing before them, their countenances turned grim as they became fully alerted.


    "What happened? Has the other Empire finally gave it their all and started to invade us?!"


    "Hah! I''m gonna massacre them all!"


    However, a keener observer found the whole situation to be weird.


    "Wait up guys, look! They were all chasing towards that group of people over there!"


    When the crowds swerved their heads to look into that direction, they immediately realized that what the person had just said was true.


    "Why are they chasing those people?"


    Are they perhaps, demons?


    ...

 112 Chapter 111: Crushing defeat!

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    "They''ve spotted us, hurry! Fly faster!" Shen Lu shouted out as his voice quivered in panic.


    Duan Li and his party bolted through the skies as the mobs were following closely from behind them.


    "STOP RIGHT THERE!" they shouted out.


    Yeah right, as if we are gonna listen to you fools!


    But immediately, Duan Li''s party started to realize something.


    "How are they so fast?!" Wei Shang exclaimed out.


    Xu Rong gritted her teeth as she answered, "I think some of the Spellcasters had deployed some Grand haste spells that increased their chasing speed and these effects were stacked together, that''s why they''re able to close the gap between us so quickly!" she said as quickly chanted her own spell.


    "Great haste!"


    "Greater haste!"


    Woongg!!


    She casted out two spells onto their party and they managed to flew faster than before. However, if things were to kept going on like this, it won''t be too long before her spiritual Qi ran out!


    From behind, seeing that the people they were chasing had flown even faster, the mobs panicked as they shouted out.


    "Halt! Stay calm! Let us talk things out!"


    "Yeah! We meant no harm! Let''s just have a good talk!"


    When Shen Murong heard this, he felt exasperated as he cursed out at the top of his lungs, "Halt your ancestor! Did you think that we are just a bunch of fools to believe your ''talk things out'' stuff?!"


    He swerved to the back, "I''ve had it with you all, come at me!"


    Pshew!


    "Shen Murong! Come back!" Shen Lu shouted out.


    That idiot! How could he even hoped to fight against more than a thousand mobs rushing against him at once!


    "Let him be. At least he should be able to hold out for a few breaths and delay them for us to escape!" Duan Li said calmly.


    However, deep inside his heart, Duan Liwas panicking as well. He was confident that with his full strength, slapping a few hundred like flies wouldn''t be an issue at all.


    The problem was now that all the mobs were in an agitated state and that''s an entirely different thing altogether. In such a condition, they wouldn''t even hesitate to give their all just to get back their lifetime fortune from him!


    Furthermore, if the weaker cultivator got slapped with an uncontrolled force from him, that would be a tragedy and would in fact bring him an endless amount of trouble instead later on!


    "How much further?" Duan Li asked as his countenance changed slightly.


    "Roughly about 2 kilometers left!" replied Shen Lu swiftly as he pointed towards the distance.


    2 kilometers?


    At this rate, the mobs would be able to catch up onto us soon!


    BOOMM!!


    BAMM!!


    Duan Li and his party swerved their heads to the back and found out that Shen Murong had taken out quite a few of the frontliners as he fell off from the skies like a bird losing its ability to fly.


    His face and body was all bruised.


    It seemed to be a mutual destruction clash!


    Nghhh!!


    With a weak grunt as he fell, Shen Murong lifted his right hand and gave the thumbs up to Duan Li.


    "The rest... is up to you guys.. urghh!"


    BAM!


    He crashed to the ground with a loud banging sound.


    "SHEN MUROOONGGGG!!" Shen Lu cried out at the top of his lungs, feeling aggrieved as he looked at that fallen brother with the same surname as his crashed.


    Hais!


    "Today, a good man has fallen.." Duan Li shook his head.


    At the back, Fei Longwei, Wei Shang and Wei Wang looked at each other as they nodded with a grim face.


    "You guys keep on going! We will try to delay them! Let us have the chance here to display our first service as a gesture of appreciation for taking us in!" Wei Shang shouted out.


    Pshew!


    The three of them made a quick 180 degrees turn as they bolted off to the opposite direction.


    "Fei Longwei, Wei Shang, Wei Wang! Come back! You guys are not a match for them! Nooo!!" Shen Lu cried out once more as he reached out his hand to the back, seeing their receding figure into the distance towards that swarm of angry and scary mobs.


    BOOMM!!


    BANGG!!


    BAM!!


    A series of clashing sounds echoed in the sky.


    However, no matter how formidable the three of them together were, they had only lasted for a few breaths of time against that crushing might of the enemies!


    Peww~


    BAM!


    Just like that, another three of Duan Li''s followers crashed onto the ground.


    "Kughh!! Rest well my fellow brothers.. your sacrifices would not be in vain!" Shen Lu spoke out in between his teeth as his manly tears was threatening to fall from his cheeks and shower the whole Jiu Empire.


    "Duan Li, you go on ahead, its my turn now." Xiahou Yu spoke out with a decisive tone.


    With a quick and graceful swerve, Xiahou Yu made a beautiful U-turn carefully, as her figure floated gently over there like an angel!


    With a wave of her hand, she emptied out the whole fried chicken drumsticks from her spatial ring inventory.


    Wonnggg!!


    A pair of long and majestic angelic wings made up of chicken drumsticks stacking together closely appeared behind her.


    When the people on the ground saw the sight before them, they cried out with a puffer fish like expression.


    "L-Look! An angel from the heavens has descended down upon us!"


    "Huh? Those are all fried chicken drumsticks! No wonder all the fast food restaurant I''ve visited these past few days mentioned that they had run out of drumsticks... i thought that it was weird, but now I see! So it was her doing all along!"


    "Are you for real?! But to procure such an immense amount of drumsticks like that, just how much had she spent on those things alone?"


    When the mobs saw Xiahou Yu like this, they laughed out.


    "HAHA! You might be a woman, but did you think that we would go easy on you?! We will steal all those fried chicken drumsticks from you and make you bawl out to your mama!"


    Hearing this, Xiahou Yu''s eyes narrowed.


    Gazing at those two wings on her left and right that she had formed from all of her chicken drumsticks with a melancholic look, she sighed out.


    "Seems like a very difficult decision has to be made here." she said as she closed her eyes gently.


    Those staggering amount of chicken drumsticks then began to point forward towards the mob. Rotating at their axis, these drumsticks were now reminiscent to that of the mythical spikes of an angel, ready to smite against the sinners!


    Opening her eyes with a sudden jerk, she pointed to the front with her right index finger.


    "Go and strike them down."


    Pshew! Pshew!


    The drumsticks then bolted off towards the mobs and soon, tragic cries rang out among them.


    "ARGGHH! My colar bones just got fractured! To hell with all these drumsticks!"


    "My ribs! I think I''ve broken my ribs!"


    "Arghh!! my left leg just got dislocated from the impact!"


    A huge chunks of these mobs began to fell off from the skies one after another after being struck by the endless amount of chicken drumsticks.


    "Look! A few hundreds of them got taken down! Eh? Xiahou Yu!!" Shen Lu cried out once more.


    "Seems like after that ultimate strike of her, she had ran out of spiritual Qi to sustain her flight abilities.. at this rate, she would crash down to the ground and suffer some injuries.. I have to save her!" Wang Xiolun bolted quickly to catch at that falling angel.


    Now that Wang Xiolun and Xiahou Yu was out of the picture, only Xu Rong, Guo He, Shen Lu and Duan Li himself were left.


    This could be described as their very first crushing defeat as a party ever!


    "I.. I can''t maintain the haste spells anymore!" Xu Rong said as her face turned pale and her breathing haggard.


    With her haste spells stopped working, their speed sharply declined.


    "HAHA! Look guys, they are slowing down! Hurry up, we need to catch them!"


    "Damn it! You guys go on ahead, I''ll take care of those who are closest to us!" Xu Rong stopped as she turned around.


    "Great Magic: Great Wall of flames!" she chanted out.


    Whooshhh!!


    A sudden gigantic wall made up of flames appeared between the heavens and earth, as if an otherworldly portal was being laid out.


    This wall effectively halted the angry mobs momentum as they had to decrease their speed and spread out to go around the wall of flames.


    Nevertheless, they were still hell-bent on chasing Duan Li as they continued their pursuit with a deranged look to them.


    Xu Rong almost ran out of spiritual Qi as she was forced to land on the ground.


    "Damn it! They''re getting closer!" Shen Lu shrieked out as he panicked further.


    "AAAHHHH!! SAVE ME!!"


    At the back, Guo He''s legs were caught by the mobs as he was the slowest. Then, a tragic voice rang out as he was being beaten up by the mobs before being tossed to the side like a broken doll!


    Now, only Duan Li and Shen Lu were left.


    Gritting his teeth, Shen Lu had to deploy his emergency plan. This would be a costly retreat, but its their only chance to make out from this situation from being ravaged and violated by those angry mobs behind them.


    Who knew what they would do to them once they got caught?


    Jus thinking about it had sent shivers down his spine!


    "Brother! Throw five high quality spirit stones to the back! We will have to sacrifice some to escape from this predicament!" he shouted out with a gleam of pained look in his eyes.


    "En!" Duan Li nodded as he whipped out five quality spirit stones and threw them to the back with each on a different heading.


    When the angry mobs saw these 5 high quality spirit stones being thrown out, they let out a greedy expression.


    "Guys don''t be distracted by those spirit stones, we need to chase them!"


    "Screw you! I''ll have that high quality spirit stones!"


    "No! It''s mine!!"


    And just like that, the swarm began to broke out in a fight with each other.


    However, a few of them disregarded the distraction entirely and continued to bolt through the skies, hot in pursuit behind Duan Li and Shen Lu.


    Fortunately, as most of their Spellcasters were now gone, their speed has declined sharply as well.


    "Curses! They''re getting away!"


    After a few breaths, Shen Lu pointed out towards a certain building on the ground.


    "That''s the Jiu Bank building! We made it! HAHA! We''re rich!!" he broke out in a mad laughter.


    Very quickly, they both entered the building as the security forces bolted through the skies to stop at the incoming mobs.


    "Halt! No commotion is allowed around this premises!"


    With that, the mobs cursed out and was forced to stop their chase. They howled loudly towards the sky.


    Hais!


    They have truly suffered a tremendous lost this time around!


    ...

 113 Chapter 112: Jiu Bank company!

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    Inside the Jiu Bank building..


    "Thank you for your patronage dear Sirs. If I may suggest, since the amount of spirit stones you have stored under us have reached more than a 100 high quality spirit stones in value, and you were applied to a black-gold master card already, the bank could issue you a special privilege of converting your stored assets as credit points." the bank employee said as she bowed her head with an amiable smile and then handed out a unique looking card that was plated black and gold.


    Black-gold master card?


    This should be the one that the Principal was talking about when he purchased his residence court back then.


    "How much credit points that would be in total? And what is the benefit of me doing this?" Duan Li asked as he cupped his chin.


    The bank employee smiled, "The current exchange rate for this service has been fixed at 100 credit points per 1 high quality spirit stones value. Meanwhile, the benefit for this is that your converted spirit stones would be used by the Empire in numerous investment activity. Then, by the end of each month, you will earn a share of the profit that the Empire made according to how much you have converted" she explained slowly.


    "In addition, to avoid confusion, the bank will issue you a second account meant to store your accumulated share, and you could if you prefer however, automaticallyissue us a command to transfer a certain amount of it per month to be converted as credit points and doing so would increase your future amount of shares continuously." she added.


    Hearing this, Duan Li thought that the offer was extremely good. But because he was not familiar with these kinds of business and could only grasp the gist of it, he turned to Shen Lu beside him for consultation and advice.


    "I think this is a very good opportunity to multiply your total wealth brother! In fact, owning black-gold master card in itself is actually a symbol of influence in the Empire! The more credit points you have, the more would the Empire favor you! By then, the Empire would definitely aid you in anything you requested whether openly or discreetly." Shen Lu said.


    "Furthermore, if I am not mistaken, we could actually exchange back your credit points to spirit stones if you need a few in the case of emergency at just a slight loss!" he added.


    Shen Lu was a Strategist, and these kinds of information were naturally known by him. In fact, he even knew of some of the inner workings behind the entire credit points scheme of the Empire!


    Hmm..


    "This offer they gave is just too alluring. Currently, I have over tens of Superior quality spirit stones, of which the total value should be about 10,000 high quality spirit stones each. Right now, I am still quite weak and might get targeted or even kidnapped if people knew I have such an enormous amount of wealth with me!"


    "If I accept it, not only would this offer protects me, it would generate quite a number of high quality spirit stones per month as well! After all, no matter how precious these Superior quality spirit stones were, if they can''t be used normally in transactions, then they''re just cumbersome to carry around and attracts the greed of people.."


    After a long thought-process, Duan Li has finally decided - he would keep only one Superior quality spirit stone on hand and the rest, he would just have to store it in his first account to be exchanged to credit points!


    He then asked the bank employee, "What if I were to exchange more than a few thousand of high quality spirit stones worth?" he said as he laid down both of his hands to the counter table while extending all ten fingers and signalled for the employee to look at it.


    At first, she was a little bit taken aback by what Duan Li meant, but when she noticed the latter''s gesture to look at his fingers and counted that there were ten of it extended altogether, her countenance changed.


    "He said a few thousand high quality spirit stones worth and extended all ten fingers.. 10,000 high quality spirit stones?.. could it be?!"


    As an experienced employee that had toiled in the business field for already more than a decade, she quickly understood what Duan Li meant!


    This young man wanted to store a Superior quality spirit stone!


    At the thought of this, her whole body shivered.


    The actual worth of even a single Superior quality spirit stones was more than just another form of money, it would become a part of the national''s strategic asset!


    If what the young man hinted at her was true, then she had to inform and let the Managing Director handle this. After all, such an amount of money was way beyond her authority to process!


    "Please wait for a while our esteemed customer, I will bring someone here to enable such a process." she replied with a bow, and swiftly went to the back room.


    Opening a gold box, a glistening blue jade slip rests inside that box with a grand aura to it.


    After this branch was formed, there was only two prior occasions where she had to use this blue jade slip, and that was when the Principal and Vice-Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy themselves were here to make a deposit!


    "Hello Sir, this is me. We have a student of the academy here that wanted to make a deposit to the bank at a value equal to that of a Superior quality spirit stones and possibly more. May I know on what course of action should I proceed with?"


    ...


    Outside of the Jixue Knights Academy, there was a grand and large building located at the South area in the Nine Lotuses capital city. This building was grey in colour and was built symmetrically in the shape of a pyramid. This pyramid building stood tall mightily, reminiscent to that of an impregnable fortress and Mount.Tai!


    This grand building is actually the headquarter of the Jiu Bank company!


    Inside the building, at the topmost level of the pyramid, was a lavish restaurant where numerous influential figures across the whole Jiu Empire meet together to discuss business proposals with their clients.


    Each and every single one of them could be considered as part of the economy backbone of the Jiu Empire, and they held tremendous authority over numerous things due to their colossal amount of wealth they possess.


    Right now, in a private dining hall within that grand restaurant, was a few people having an active discussion over their meals.


    These people sat on the left and right of the table respectively, and at the furthest end of this table, sat a middle-aged man.


    His appearance was like that of a royal prince, long emerald blue hair with a sharp facial features. He wore a white robe donned with intricate details weaved in gold around it, similar to the characters that were used in runic formations and inscriptions.


    At the moment, he was quietly listening to the conversation between the people in front of him, not uttering even a single word and continued to just eat through his meal.


    The people that sat around the table were not offended by this man''s action in the least bit. This was because they knew, that even though the person in front of them appeared to be ignoring their existence within that room entirely, it was actually not the case.


    In fact, this was a known unspoken rule that if people were invited to this private dining hall with this person in it, it meant that they had caught his interest!


    All they had to do was just to converse with each other and pick any topic to discuss for an hour. This person would not speak at all for that duration of time but would just listen at them.


    After the end of the meal, only then would this man call out their names. Those whom were not called, just meant that they weren''t able to impress him and had lost a significant business opportunity!


    No one would be able to question the unorthodox way this person conducted the selection process like this. In fact, no one dared to.


    This was because this middle-aged person was the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank company!


    His name, Liu Sheng Juan!


    The most powerful influence in the entire Jiu Empire, second only to the Emperor of the Empire himself in terms of seniority and power!


    A single word from this man would be enough to cripple down a large corporate business into bankruptcy!


    A single ire from him would cause countless business corporations to disfavor that person and they would go to great lengths to avoid any further connection they have between them.


    Right now, as this powerful man was listening to their conversation, his countenance suddenly changed. This change immediately attracted their attention as they halted from talking even a single word any further, afraid that they had just mispoken about something with pale faces and their backs drenched in cold sweat!


    Flicking his finger, a blue jade slip the size of a pinky appeared on his right hand, by which a message was then sent telepathically into his mind.


    Standing up from his seat, for the first time ever, he had spoken in front of them.


    "Everyone, pardon me, but I have to leave soon. Let us continue this talk another time."


    The people then stood up from their seat and simultaneously bowed their heads toward him with utmost respect and reverence.


    "We understand, travel safe Sir!"


    With a nod, a blue portal rippled behind him. Turning around as his robes fluttered, he swiftly entered the portal.


    Woongg!!


    Just like that, he disappeared from the dining room, leaving the people behind.


    Exhaling in relief, they felt as if a hundred years of their lifespan was just snuffed out from them!


    It was fortunate that they hadn''t done anything wrong.


    Each of them turned towards one another as they shrugged their shoulders and shook their heads.


    Just what was it that causes him, the most powerful and influential figure in the whole Jiu Empire, to immediately have to depart in such a manner in the middle of their meeting?


    Could it be that the Emperor himself has just summoned him to the royal palace?


    No matter how badly these people wanted to know the reason behind this, no one dared to even poke their nose into it.


    Only fools who wanted to court a certain and guarenteed death would do so.


    If there was anyone in the whole Jiu Empire that one should not mess with, it would be this man..


    Liu Sheng Juan!


    ...

 114 Chapter 113: The true Ruler!

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    Woongg!!


    A blue portal tore through the void as it appeared within the room that the bank employee was currently in. From that portal, a tall figure walked out as he scanned his surroundings.


    "This humble employee greets you Sir Liu Sheng Juan." the bank employee said respectfully with a bow.


    Nodding his head, he then spoke out with an air of authority to it, "Where is this student that you mentioned? Bring him to the private meeting room."


    Hearing the words spoken by the enigmatic person before her, she bowed her head and replied "I will go now to bring our esteemed customer to have an audience with Sir."


    ...


    "Look, she''s back." Shen Lu said to Duan Li as the bank employee approached them.


    "Dear esteemed customer, the person in charge of handling the kind of services you required is now here. Please follow me."


    Following behind the lady employee, they soon found themselves to be standing in front of a door to a room.


    Before entering, she promptly reminded them, "The person whom esteemed customer will be meeting soon in this room is someone that should not be offended in the slightest. I hope that esteemed customer would put my advice to heart."


    Knock! Knock!


    "Enter." said a voice beyond that door.


    Eventhough there was only a single word spoken in that sentence, it somehow carried an immense power behind it.


    "This room.."


    Entering the room, Duan Li could feel that the spiritual Qi inside it was completely cut-off from the outside, as if it were a separate dimension in itself. This feeling was similar to that of when he followed the Principal and entered the latter''s personal dimension.


    The room however, was nothing special in itself and was devoid of the extravagance that the main hall of the Jiu Bank building showcased to them earlier. In fact, there was not a single decoration at all and the furniture consisted of only two sofas with a coffee table in between them.


    Right now, there was a middle-aged looking person in a peculiar white robe sitting at one of these sofa that had closed his eyes shut while sipping a cup of hot coffee.


    Looking at the subtle aura this person was emitting, Duan Li could feel that this middle-aged man in front of them was far from ordinary!


    Taking a seat on the opposite sofa, Duan Li and Shen Lu felt quite nervous for some reason. As customers with loads of money, the one whom should feel nervous here should instead be the bank itself and not the other way around.


    This was because in typical with how a bank operates to generate its revenues, was by using the money of their customers and forward them in many investment deals and opportunities.


    If a rich customer decided to not store their money inside the bank, then the bank itself could be said to have lost quite a significant amount of future revenue that they could have actually made!


    "Let me introduce the person in front of esteemed customer here, this is Liu Sheng Juan, the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank company from our main headquarter." the lady employee said with a trace of worship apparent in her eyes as she said the latter''s name.


    Pu!


    Duan Li might not know what status does a person with the title of a Managing Director held in their hands, but Shen Lu choked on himself specifically because he knew!


    To think that the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank company would appear here himself to meet at them personally, just how much spirit stones was his Brother here planning to deposit?!


    A thousand? Or perhaps two?


    But those are still a meager amount for a figure as such!


    One has to know that a Managing Director was someone that stood at the very top of the hierarchy of the Jiu Bank company, an existence only second in both influence and power below the Emperor of the Jiu Empire himself!


    "Show me your gold-black master card." Liu Sheng Juan said, after which, Duan Li handed out to him.


    Woongg!!


    With a flip of his hand, a certain magical device appeared on the coffee table with a slot opening to it at the center. Pushing the card into this slot, a hologram then appeared above it, showing Duan Li''s current total credit points, and beside it was marked as ''transferred from'' with the name of ''Bian Tianyu'' signed on it.


    This was the name of the Principal!


    "A total amount of 700,000 credit points... it seems that the bastard has pulled a fast one on me." Liu Sheng Juan said as smirked slightly.


    Pu!


    Seeing that total amount of credit points, both the lady employee and Shen Lu choked on the spot.


    700,000 credit points?!


    What an absurd amount of money!!!


    Swerving his head to look at Duan Li besides him emotionally, Shen Lu almost shed his manly tears out of the sheer emotions that was bubbling in his heart!


    To think that I''ve sworn an oath of loyalty with someone so rich!


    Hais!


    This must be the result from my accumulation of good karma that I''ve been diligently living out in my many previous life before..


    The Heavens were truly not blind to one''s good deed!


    Meanwhile, the lady employee was equally elated as well, for she just managed to hit the jackpot!


    With this, her entire future was set on course. This was because she would definitely earn the Managing Director''s personal recognition of her effort in procuring such a priceless client!


    "Tell me, how much are you planning to deposit in high quality spirit stones worth? 2 million? 5 million?" Liu Sheng Juan asked.


    To him, this was something that was absolutely a first time experience, even for someone like him. A student of the academy with such an amount of questionable wealth, the only answer as to how the other party could possess this colossal fortune was most definitely because the other party encountered a sort of a treasure tomb of epic proportions somewhere!


    After all, the student in front of him was just a meager being at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm.


    Truly not worth a mention at all.


    Therefore, a small existence as such would not have the capability to procure such a fortune in any other way.


    Cupping his chin, Duan Li thought for a moment.


    "Well.. I''m not really good in arithmetic so I''m not really sure of how much these would amount to.. but just have a look first."


    Huala!


    With a wave of his hand, the entire room was filled with a thick presence of spiritual Qi to the point that they materialized to form a liquid river of spiritual Qi floating in the air!


    BOOM!!


    At this moment, Liu Sheng Juan, Shen Lu and the lady employee found their entire minds to burst forth like a broken dam as they fell into a daze looking at those mythical spirit stones that surrounded them.


    "T-This.. everything here are.. Superior quality spirit stones!" Liu Sheng Juan said in disbelief.


    This was the first time he had ever witnessed someone took out such an impressive amount of Superior quality spirit stones from a seemingly an ordinary stash.


    He casted a quick glance towards that spatial ring on Duan Li''s ring finger.


    "The saying of not judging something from its appearance has just been displayed to me to its fullest glory right now." he said inwardly while subconsciously clenching his hand into a fist in agitation.


    Even for someone like him that has always maintained a calm state through everything else, at this moment, he could not help but to feel his entire mental state has been rattled by the sight before him.


    With these amount of spirit stones and its total worth, Duan Li could practically buy the whole Jiu Empire himself and would still have some spare changes to last him a few generation!


    With a swift gaze, Liu Sheng Juan made a quick mental calculation.


    There must be at least more than a hundred Superior Quality spirit stones here to induce such an effect to the surrounding spiritual Qi into a floating river like this!


    However, at this moment, he could not help but to sighed out.


    "This.. this is no longer beyond my ability nor my authority to accept such a colossal amount of deposit. I''m afraid that we had to meet the Emperor himself for this.." Liu Sheng Juan said as he shook his head.


    In theory, exchanging spirit stones to credit points was a concept similar to mortgaging a part of the Empire in order to obtain the funds to accelerate the numerous economic activity and development happening within the Empire.


    This was why black-gold master card holders could possess a certain influence sphere within the Jiu Empire.


    If Liu Sheng Juan were to accept Duan Li''s immense wealth right now and exchange it to credit points, he would basically have to mortgage the entirety of the Jiu Empire and its assets to Duan Li!


    Naturally, this was impossible to be done as only the Emperor himself could decide for something of this scale.


    As a businessman, he was willing to accept it. But, as a subject of the Empire, there was no way he would dare to cross the Emperor!


    There was a saying that a man''s true worth is not judged with his appearance, wealth, power and influence, but their loyalty to a cause.


    And in his case, Liu Sheng Juan had made an oath of fealty to the Emperor back then by using both his name and ancestors to the Heavens.


    Only fools would dare to reneged their oath that was already witnessed by the Heavens!


    Since he was already out of the picture, he could only hoped that the Emperor would make a wise decision on this.


    With such an amount of wealth, if the Emperor was willing to mortgage the whole Jiu Empire to Duan Li, the numerous development plans that they had prepared for the future could be enacted even earlier!


    This means that the Empire would be able to enter the state of golden age - a total overhaul increment that could accelerate development progress by leaps and bounds, possibly by more than a decade!


    The trade-off for this golden age to happen however, was that since the Emperor was the ruler of the entire Jiu Empire and Duan Li was the owner of the Empire himself, this would basically means that Duan Li was above the Emperor himself in terms of status!


    Such a situation has no precedence in the entire history of the Tian continent before!


    Gulp!


    "I.. I would have to meet the Emperor?" Duan Li said as he swallowed his saliva.


    He had not imagined that things would escalate as such.


    ...

 115 Chapter 114: Making an appointment with the Emperor!

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    Beside him, Shen Lu was already sweating buckets as his pupils looking dim and dillated. Only when Liu Sheng Juan mentioned the name ''Emperor'' was he able to exit his stupor.


    At the same time, he swerved his head to look at Duan Li more emotionally this time around.


    "I knew that Brother is rich.. but not to this extent.. this is practically enough money to make a whole new Empire altogether!" Shen Lu said inwardly as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    "Indeed, only the Emperor himself could accept a proposal of this magnitude. After all, this amount of money concerns the very future of the whole Jiu Empire itself." Liu Sheng Juan said with a nod.


    For him, this was probably the longest discussion he ever had with someone. Even when he met the Emperor on numerous occasions before, he still took the position to be passive and silent most of the time, not say anything much at all.


    Hmmm...


    "If that is so, could just about anyone be able to meet with the Emperor? I mean, I am just a student of the academy.. not someone that has a high status, not to mention I don''t even have a single title!" asked Duan Li nervously.


    No matter how backward the village he came from, Duan Li knew at least this much.


    He didn''t know why, but when he tried to recall the memories of meeting the Emperor, a block obstructed him from remembering it.


    But he was sure that he had met the Emperor before!


    If he could just recall it and figure out just what kind of person was this Emperor were, he wouldn''t feel this nervous and anxious at all!


    Liu Sheng Juan smiled as he shook his head.


    "No.. not just anyone could meet with the Emperor, but this is a special occasion. With my power, meeting with the Emperor himself would not be an issue. Only that, he would definitely inquire on where did you managed to get a hold of such an enormous sum of money."


    "He isn''t someone that is hard to talk to, but if you can''t convince him, that would be a problem." Liu Sheng Juan added.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was a little bit conflicted. But after thinking it through, it was only normal that people would eventually try to poke their nose into his wealth sooner or later.


    "About this.. have you ever heard about the Eternal maze below the academy?"


    When Liu Sheng Juan heard this, he was momentarily taken aback, but it had only lasted for a single second before he seemed to had grasped the entire situation into his mind.


    He was not the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank company if he couldn''t figure this much.


    So that was the case..


    "I see.. I understand now. But why do you want to deposit all of these Superior quality spirit stones into the bank and exchange them to credit points?" said Liu Sheng Juan, trying to assess the motive behind Duan Li''s action further.


    "Well.. you see, I''m not really good in managing my finances, nor do I even feel the need to, when I am already this rich. Some might call me stupid for exposing my whole worth of wealth here, but there are a number of reasons why I chose to do so." Duan Li said.


    "But most importantly, it was because I need the backing of someone powerful to protect me from the danger that my wealth could bring me. Even though we have proper law and order right now in this era, people''s greed are sometimes unpredictable."


    Liu Sheng Juan nodded in agreement.


    "Besides, its not like I would lose anything. In fact, since the highest accepted currency in the Empire is High quality spirit stones, not only bringing these Superior quality spirit stones around me is dangerous, its also useless and can''t be used for most of the time!" Duan Li said as he sighed.


    "Also, since my follower here, Shen Lu, said that I could exchange back my credit points to spirit stones anytime I want, that''s even more convenient for me even if I were to have a slight lost!"


    "After all, who would dare to rob my wealth when it was being put into safekeeping by the Empire itself?" Duan Li added as he chuckled for a bit in the end.


    Listening to Duan Li''s explanation, Liu Sheng Juan nodded again, feeling extremely satisfied.


    Indeed, what he had thought about this young man was just like his first impression of him when the other party first came in.


    The air around this student couldn''t be described as ordinary, but with his decades of experience, he could tell that this person in front of him was not the scheming type of a person.


    In fact, this was a plain and simple man, even with such an astronomical amount of wealth that the other party possesses, there was not a hint that the latter wanted anything more than what was stated.


    Shen Lu on the other hand, wanted to interject on numerous occasions during this discussion. But his instinct told him that if he were to open his mouth, things would get complicated.


    He had always trusted his inner gut against a figure as such. This was an existence beyond his level of intellect. Any method he used to probe for opportunities would definitely be spotted on by this person!


    "I see.. if that is the case, then there is no problem at all. Come back here tomorrow, we shall meet with the Emperor by then." Liu Sheng Juan said casually as he continued to sip down his coffee.


    "For now, you should keep your Superior quality spirit stones back to your spatial ring. This branch building is not equipped with the latest anti-robbery mechanism yet, and we could not guarentee it to be safe here." he added.


    Duan Li nodded, but looking at that floating river of liquefied spiritual Qi around them, he sighed feeling that it would be quite a waste to leave them just like this.


    After all, the moment he would store the Superior quality spirit stones back to his spatial ring, this floating river of spiritual Qi would disappear.


    Seeming to notice Duan Li''s plight, Liu Sheng Juan whipped out something from his own spatial ring.


    "Here, use this as a medium to store the spiritual Qi so you can put it inside your spatial ring." he said as he handed it out to Duan Li.


    When Duan Li cast his sight onto that object, he was stumped.


    From his memories, this was a monster core of a 5 Star rank monster! The purity was so high that it could still absorb spiritual Qi upon being stimulated.


    Receiving this expensive gesture with an open arm, Duan Li accepted the gift as he stored those rich spiritual Qi into the monster core, before storing it and his Superior quality spirit stones back to his spatial ring.


    After which, Liu Sheng Juan suddenly said, "That would be for a total of one Superior quality spirit stone." with a flat tone.


    "..." everyone.


    ...


    After that, Duan Li and Shen Lu left the room following closely behind the lady employee.


    Eventhough the corners in this building appeared simple enough to be navigated normally, this was actually not the case.


    The entire building rest upon a runic formation that changes the inner layout of the building with every corner they took, akin to a maze.


    Any unauthorized individual would find themselves to be trapped here, and if they were so much as to open any random doors here, Duan Li and Shen Lu could only shiver at the thought of it.


    Arriving back at the front desk, the lady bank employee bowed earnestly towards Duan Li with utmost respect, the same kind of reverence she shown towards the Managing Director before.


    "Esteemed customer, thank you for your patronage today. From now on, if you encounter any sorts of problem, as long as it is within my capabilities, I would definitely help esteemed customer here."


    Hesitating for a bit, she then continued.


    "This might be a little too late to introduce myself, but my name is Di Ruohan." she said awkwardly.


    After exchanging a few pleasantries and small talk for a while, Duan Li and Shen Lu finally felt that it was time to leave. Shorty after, they left the Jiu Bank company building warrily.


    Looking left and right, they both scanned at their entire surrounding. Confirming that the situation was safe, they finally sighed in relief.


    Seems like those angry mobs from before had all but dispersed for a long while now!


    "Thankfully, they are gone now and we can safely go back to our residence court." Shen Lu said as he chuckled.


    Along the way, Shen Lu began to speak to Duan Li about the previous matter.


    "Brother, that Liu Sheng Juan fellow is someone that we must not offend at all. His position and status dwarves everyone here in the Jiu Empire and is only second to that of the Emperor himself."


    Hearing this, a hint of realization finally came into Duan Li''s mind.


    He had long conjectured this himself back then, as that middle-aged man seemed to spoke of the word ''Emperor'' so casually, but he had no way of proving it before.


    However now, he finally knew it for a fact.


    "So that is actually the case.."


    ...


    Arriving at their residence court, Duan Li and Shen Lu could see that their other party members had already arrived safely with none being taken hostage at all.


    After all, if those mobs were to truly go overboard now, Duan Li himself wouldn''t mind to teach them a good lesson with his personal slap!


    "You''re finally here, what took you so long?" Shen Murong spoke out with his tone seemingly a little bit irritated.


    "Ahahaha! Sorry, but we had struck quite a good deal at the bank, and that was why it took a bit of our time to get back here. But that would be a surprise for everyone next time. Right now, for everyone''s valiant and heroic display before, our Lord here would definitely not mistreat you!" Shen Lu gestured towards Duan Li as he chuckled.


    Noticing what the other party meant, Duan Li could only smile wryly.


    With a wave of his hand, 9 High quality spirit stones were whipped out from his Spatial ring. Extending one to each of them, their faces soon showed the expression of agitation.


    The new recruits, especially Wei Shang and Wei Wang, hadn''t yet been able to held a High quality spirit stone on their hands in their whole life before. Thus, they swiftly broke out into tears emotionally.


    The long years of vicious cycle of poverty has now ended as they were more positive towards the future!


    Xu Rong, Fei Longwei and Guo He was also happy to receive it, but each coming from a respectable clan except Guo He, they naturally had the opportunity to see and held one themselves, although not own one.


    After all, no matter how rich they were, the value of a single High quality spirit stone was truly massive for an individual use.


    Usually, High quality spirit stones would only accumulate through the collective assets of individuals within a group or organization.


    Only teachers and other lucrative occupation with a higher Star rank would be able to possess a few of them in their entire lifetime!


    Guo He on the other hand, already had a single one to himself before, back when he saved a dying child that was stabbed in an alleyway. Turns out that the child was a scion to some rich family and he was given one as a gesture of gratitude.


    Therefore, he wasn''t as shocked as well when he received this gift from Duan Li.


    The rest of the old party members were equally elated as well, but in order to show their seniority towards the new recruits, they managed to suppress their emotions and just accept it casually, as if it were a normal occurrence to them.


    Seeing this, Duan Li chuckled once more.


    Looks like things would get more interesting from now on!


    ...

 116 Chapter 115: Artifacts of Time!

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    "The first task I have you 5 do, is to temper your body with these blood essence." said Duan Li as he whipped out 5 small bottles containing a single drop of his blood each.


    But of course, they do not know that these was actually his blood.


    "Don''t underestimate the potency behind this single drop of blood, you would soon find yourself to be screaming in agony otherwise. Thus, I advise everyone to make some ample preparation beforehand." warned Duan Li.


    "Shen Lu, you supervise the entire procedure and make adjustments accordingly. But since they''re all at the Foundation establishment realm, it shouldn''t pose them any real trouble during the tempering process." he added as he cupped at his chin.


    Shen Lu took the 5 small bottles with a gleeful smile.


    "These blood essence will make everyone here a few times more stronger. Furthermore, so far there are no known side effects to it, don''t worry. But, prepare to feel the pain that the likes of you have never felt before!" he chuckled wickedly.


    The 5 new recruits then followed behind Shen Lu closely as they headed to the back of the residence court to undergo the tempering process of their physical body.


    Some of them appeared to be quite indifferent towards it. After all, they were already used to the pain of body tempering as a cultivator.


    ...


    Turning his head to Xiahou Yu, Duan Li thought for a moment as he decided to gift her something.


    Huala!


    "Here, take this monster core and cultivate with it everyday. Your cultivation will then soon enter the Foundation establishment realm." Duan Li said as he handed out the monster core that Liu Sheng Juan ''sold'' to him.


    To be honest, he didn''t plan to give such an item to anyone, but currently, Xiahou Yu was the weakest among them in terms of her cultivation states.


    Since the monster stampede was approaching soon, it would be better if she could get stronger faster.


    "Hmm.. that monster core.. the spiritual Qi within it are absolutely dense.. this is unlike anything I''ve ever seen before. What rank was it from?" Shen Murong asked.


    "It''s from a 5 Star Monster." Duan Li answered casually.


    Pu!


    A 5 Star monster core you say?


    That was something that was absolutely, incredibly rare and hard to find! Even if someone were to comb the entire Jiu Empire right now, one would still be hard pressed to find even a single whiff of it.


    Yet, here it was, appearing on the hands of the rich scion Duan Li!


    And to think that a treasure as such, he just handed it down to someone so casually?!


    "I don''t know if you are being generous or just ignorant here.." Shen Murong said inwardly as he sighed.


    Receiving Duan Li''s kind gesture, Xiahou Yu happily accepted the monster core gift, before she was sent into a daze when she felt that immense and dense amount of spiritual Qi contained within it.


    This was a priceless item!


    Seeing that expression on her, a look of worry appeared on Duan Li''s face as he coughed dryly.


    "That monster core is my gift for you so that you can quickly rise in your cultivation states. As you know, the monster stampede is just around the corner.. so I hope that you would not sell it just for some fried chickens.."


    Xiahou Yu''s body jerked for a bit when she heard this, before her entire face turned red as she blushed.


    "... I won''t..."


    she then immediately headed somewhere within the residence court to cultivate. As she was already in the late stage of the Qi condensation realm, it won''t take her long to reach the pinnacle stage with the help of the 5 Star monster core that Duan Li gave her.


    "I''m going to cultivate too, I''ll strive to reach the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm before the monster stampede at least." Shen Murong said as he flew off into the distance, leaving only Duan Li with Wang Xiolun now.


    Turning his head to Wang Xiolun at the side, Duan Li asked, "Are you going to cultivate too?"


    At which Wang Xiolun shook his head.


    "No.. I have already reached the middle stage of the Core formation realm. At this point, I should instead aim to consolidate my base strength by reinforcing my skill arts. This way, I would make better use of my current strength to match the maximum output I could bring out at the moment."


    Hearing his replies, Duan Li couldn''t help but to nod in agreement.


    Once one had reached the Core formation realm, cultivating too fast would leave their foundation to be weak and inefficient.


    This was because of the purity of the spiritual Qi within the Qi balls inside of one''s dantian, that has merged together to form Qi Core, and hence why the realm was called the Core formation realm.


    The main point of reaching the Core formation realm besides becoming more powerful was so that a cultivator could have a boundless amount of spiritual Qi within them that they could use for an extended period of time.


    Therefore, if someone at such a realm were to continue to cultivate without solidifying their skill arts, they would just be wasting their spiritual Qi with each usage as they lack the amount of proper output control.


    "En, you should do that." said Duan Li with a nod as a sign of his approval.


    With that, Duan Li was the only one left in the courtyard. As he walked around, his mind started to wander.


    "Hmm.."


    Recalling the numerous events that was happening in the past, he couldn''t help but to feel that there was something amiss.


    Only that, he didn''t know what that is.


    Sitting cross-legged on the ground, Duan Li calmed his state of mind as he tried to piece together the little details of the events that had transpired during the past few days.


    "My whole life changed the moment I encountered the golden mysterious pearl. After that, Ancestor Zong told me that my life was not connected to the strings of fate.. then during the second trial, I witnessed for myself of what the original timeline would be in 8 years from now on.."


    Was encountering the golden mysterious pearl a coincidence?


    He closed his eyes as he pondered even more deeply.


    "My memories then merged together with myself of the original timeline and I seemed to inherit quite a bit of information from it as well. But why was it that, some certain event, even when I tried to recall it, I just can''t seemed to remember?"


    This started to bug him when he felt that he had met the Emperor before somewhere in the future few years later, but he can''t even remember when and why he met the Emperor.


    Also, a big figure such as Liu Sheng Juan, it cannot be that it was also my first time seeing or even knowing about him?


    This all seemed too strange!


    "Furthermore, since that encounter itself with the golden mysterious pearl, I had become a lot more stronger than from that timeline. This has already deviate significantly from the original event that was supposed to happen.."


    The thing that had him really concerned about was that the monster stampede this time was far more dangerous than what he remembered.


    Usually, only about a few thousand would arrive at most per wave. But according to the information from Shen Lu, that number has now suddenly increased to a staggering 30,000!


    Unable to drive away this uneasy feeling that was nudging at him constantly, Duan Li decided to meet with a figure that should know the most regarding the world, the millennium Yidara tree - Ancestor Zong!


    ...


    Arriving at the vast hall, the millennium Yidara tree stood grandly at the middle of it all as the spiritual Qi around it hums gently.


    "Ahh.. Child.. come forward.. it seems that.. you have.. quite a number.. of questions.. to ask.." Ancestor Zong said as soon as he noticed the presence of Duan Li entering the hall.


    Hearing the manner of which the latter was speaking with, Duan Li couldn''t help but to wonder of why Ancestor Zong was speaking so slowly all the time.


    Was it due to the latter''s age?


    Coming forward, Duan Li explained the gist of his concerns to Ancestor Zong.


    "I see.. so you have begun.. to feel.. the artifacts.. of time.." said Ancestor Zong.


    Hearing this, Duan Li creased his brows together.


    "Artifacts of time? Please, enlighten me Ancestor Zong!"


    Ancestor Zong fell silent for a while before speaking.


    "In the annals.. of legends.. before everything began.. there was only.. a single and linear.. ''Timeline''.. as with all creation.. everything.. has an eventual end.."


    "This.. was supposed.. to repeat.. to loop.. for all eternity.. and was called.. the Ring of Eternal Time.."


    "But, an existence.. an anomaly.. appeared.. that forces.. this single ''Timeline''.. to branch out.. from the loop.. creating a.. second ''Timeline''.."


    "This anomaly.. exists in the.. second ''Timeline''.. and gained.. a power.. that none.. should have.. and through it.. created the.. third ''Timeline''.. that intervenes.. in the first ''Timeline''.."


    "When the.. Ring of.. Eternal Time.. senses that the.. Second ''Timeline''.. intervening in the.. first ''Timeline''.. through the.. third ''Timeline''.. ''Time'' began to produce.. the.. ''Artifacts of Time''.."


    "This.. is a natural.. balance mechanism.. to counter.. the change.. to prevent the.. Ring of.. Eternal Time.. from being.. unravelled.."


    "And you Child.. is also a product.. of this change.. with your life.. cut off from.. the strings of fate.. that I have.. already.. told you before.. Time.. will began to.. make a move.. on you.. everytime you make.. a change.."


    Becoming a silent again, Ancestor Zong sighed out.


    "This.. is the only.. thing.. that I could tell.. you.. for my ability.. is limited to tell.. what change.. will affect what.. and you.. would have to.. depend on yourselves.. for this one.."


    After Duan Li listened to everything that the Ancestor Zong had just said to him, he found out that he had become even more confused!


    The scale of that explanation regarding ''Time'' seems to be too humongous on him at the moment, and he could not make any deep correlation to it.


    "I need to investigate further if I wanted to know what Ancestor Zong meant.."


    However now, there was one thing that was clear to him.


    It was that ''Time'' seems to try and prevent him from changing the future, and the weird changes to the nature of the oncoming monster stampede should be the result to balance out the changes that he made!


    A deviation of history and ''Time'' trying to correct itself..


    This was the ''Artifacts of Time!''


    ...

 117 Chapter 116: Preparation!

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    "If there are any changes that I''ve made so far that is of note.. other than myself becoming stronger in just a short amount of time, it would be that I am now a Lord class."


    "Furthermore, my followers also has strength beyond normal now because of my blood essence.." Duan Li thought as he cupped at his chin and pondered deeper.


    Could it really be that the difficulties of the monster stampede this time around had increased significantly because of this?


    Duan Li tried recalling hard in his mind on the first monster stampede that he ever joined back then. He couldn''t remember the exact details, but he was sure that he had never joined in any monster subjugation activity this early but should only be a few years later!


    But even then, the scale wasn''t as big as what was about to come next week..


    There was also another issue that he still could not really make sense of, thus he turned to ask at the other party again.


    "But Ancestor Zong, if this is what you meant by the ''Artifacts of Time'', does it have anything to do with how my memories are sometimes not in sync with what I should have remembered?" asked Duan Li.


    "Hmm.. that is something.. that even I.. am not.. certain with.. perhaps.. it could be.. perhaps.. its because.. of something else.. entirely.." Ancestor Zong answered.


    Hearing that vague reply from the other party, Duan Li could only shook his head as he sighed.


    As expected, not everything would be that convenient and answered for him just because he wanted to know. For this, he would need to spend some effort if he wanted to unravel the mysteries behind it.


    "Well.. there is no use in thinking about something that I can''t find the answer for right now.."


    Since he already understood that changing the history would bring forth retaliation from ''Time'', this information alone would allow him to prepare beforehand in the future, especially if he wanted to change something major as preventing the Sun Dragon from destroying the whole world.


    "I should notify this to the Principal.."


    ...


    Knock! Knock!


    "Enter."


    Opening the door, a pitiful sight of an elderly man being surrounded by paperworks around him could be seen. Dark circles were apparent around his eyes.


    Hais..


    Seems like this old man had been forced to overwork himself.


    "Ahh, so its you. What happened for you to come here so suddenly?" the Principal asked while still flipping across the many papers around him.


    Duan Li then explained to the principal regarding the ''Artifacts of Time'' but omitted regarding the problem in his memories.


    Hearing what Duan Li had just said, the Principal''s countenance slowly turned grim.


    "I see.. as much as I thought we could prevent of what is to come with your information, they still came at a steep price eh?"


    The Principal stood up from his seat as he walked over to the window, staring outside with his hands clasped behind his back, and his gaze turned deep and unfathomable.


    After a while, he sighed before a gleam of determination could be seen from that old eyes of his.


    "As long as the world is still here and the Tian continent does not end up in flames, then any price would not be tooexpensive to pay. As the saying goes, as long as there still exist a verdant hill, we could still rebuilt even if the majority of us would perish!"


    The voice the Principal used in that words of his as were strong as mount.Tai and the intent behind it was clear.


    Even if he had to sacrifice himself, as long as the future still exist, he wouldn''t hesitate to walk into that ocean of fire and die trying!


    This determination of the Principal had Duan Li riled up and his body shaken from agitation, affected by the righteous aura exuded from the latter.


    Subconsciously in his mind, Duan Li made a vow to himself.


    "No.. No one has to sacrifice themselves.. I, Duan Li, would be the only one who has to do it!" he said inwardly with clenched fists.


    "I guess its time for us to meet with the Emperor and relay this information. Although, even with my status as the Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy, it would still take a while.." the Principal said as he slid the chair preparing to sit down again.


    "About that.. we could meet with the Emperor tomorrow!" Duan Li swiftly said.


    Pang!


    The Principal was not prepared to hear this from Duan Li and accidentally slid the chair too far away and fell to the floor. With that, all the papers that was stacked neatly together by him before were now scattered.


    Rising haggardly with one hand onto his table, the Principal cursed in his heart.


    This damned brat! Did you think meeting with the Emperor is as easy as meeting with your mother?!


    This is the Emperor we are talking about here, not some small figure that you could easily find on the streets!


    Furthermore, there are so many protocols for us to follow and the official procedure was a pain too!


    Those alone could already last us for a few days at least and that''s only to reserve time for the appointment!


    Seeming to catch on the air of misunderstanding coming from the Principal, Duan Li quickly explained.


    ...


    "What?! You have met with Liu Sheng Juan and he offered you to meet with the Emperor tomorrow?" the Principal said out loud as his expression turned comical in disbelief.


    Indeed! If its that person, meeting with the Emperor would be as easy as strolling through the Royal Palace like he owned the place!


    But soon realizing something, the Principal''s countenance changed once more.


    "To be able to drag that person out from the headquarters.. you must have offered him something that is extremely valuable or of utmost importance.. did you perhaps.. told him about the future?" the Principal asked with worry.


    Duan Li shook his head, "No, I haven''t yet told him."


    Sighing in relief, the Principal nodded in satisfaction.


    "Good, I don''t know what you did, but I guess it should be something beneficial for the Empire at least. After all, that person is not someone whom could be easily convinced. If you told him about the future without any sorts of evidence on you, he might do something totally unpredictable."


    The Liu Sheng Juan that he knew, was always someone who put the Empire''s interest as his first priority. With his untouchable amount of influence and power, it would be quite easy for him to spot and eliminate anyone who could be of threat, and recruit those who would be useful.


    Cupping his chin, the Principal then decided.


    "I will gather everyone that knew about the future to meet with the Emperor. Tomorrow, meet me here first thing in the morning and then we will rendezvous with Liu Sheng Juan. I will contact him later on so that he could be updated with this arrangements."


    Duan Li nodded as a thought came to his mind, "Can I bring along my followers? As their Lord, the least I could do is to tell them the truth.."


    "Hmm.."


    "Very well, you can bring them along, I will convince Liu Sheng Juan somehow for this sudden influx of people we are bringing together." the Principal replied as he rubbed his glabella.


    After Duan Li left, as if a phantom, another figure appeared besides the Principal.


    It was Zhang Shi, the Vice-Principal.


    "You know about this, don''t you?" the Principal asked him.


    "Naturally." the Vice-Principal replied casually as he made himself a tea by the side.


    "Why didn''t you tell me this beforehand then?" the Principal said with an irritation in his voice.


    "Even for me, I would just be courting a certain death to talk about the affairs of that hateful man. After all, Liu Sheng Juan would not take it lightly for anyone to poke around his business.. don''t tell me you forgot how he is like?" Zhang Shi chuckled as he shook his head, indulging himself in the aroma of the tea.


    "Yeah.. ever since we have graduated and went our separate way, that man is taking things far too seriously.. he didn''t even come by to say hello to us anymore." the Principal said dejectedly.


    The Vice-Principal said no more as he silently sipped at his tea.


    How time has fly..


    ...

 118 Chapter 117: Party assembled!

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    The next day, early in the morning..


    "Where are you bringing us all so early in the morning?" Shen Murong asked as he yawned out loud.


    He had been cultivating non-stop yesterday, and only slept for about an hour before continuing to cultivate from dawn.


    As a result, he entered Level 8 of the Foundation establishment realm and was only half a step away to reach Level 9, before Duan Li called him to gather around with everyone else.


    "You''ll know soon.." Duan Li replied shortly.


    Shifting his sight onto Shen Lu, the latter had also managed to step up onto the Level 5 of the Foundation establishment realm. A great clarity could be seen reflected in Shen Lu''s eyes.


    As a Strategist class, it was compulsory for him to practice the Skill art called Roc''s Encompassing Eye. This was an important skill art to be used as a radar during a group battle to identify the position of the surrounding enemies.


    The higher his cultivation states were, the more further and deeper he could see with his eyes!


    It was similar to a Soul sense, but of a poorer quality. This was because the user had to stay still during usage and the skill requires a long activation time to use.


    Wang Xiolun on the other hand, hadn''t yet made any advancement in his cultivation and was still at the Level 3 of the Core formation realm. It was understandable though, because at his realm, reinforcing one''s foundation was far more important than just raising one''s cultivation levels.


    Right now, the aura exuded by Wang Xiolun was deep and unfathomable. Furthermore, this subtle Qi fluctuation around him indicated that it won''t be long before he would finish consolidating the Early stage of the Core formation realm.


    By the side, in contrast to the rugged expression of his previous three followers, Xiahou Yu''s face was bright and filled with vigor.


    At first sight, Duan Li suspected that she had not cultivate yesterday at all, only eating fried chicken the whole day. After all, who wouldn''t be suspicious when her face was entirely devoid of fatigue unlike the others?


    But when Duan Li peered closer into her Qi fluctuation, he found out that she had actually already reached the Level 9 of the Qi Condensation realm!


    "At this rate, she would be able to catch up with everyone else in no time.." Duan Li nodded in satisfaction after his initial surprise.


    "Furthermore, it seems that the Monster Core that I had gifted her yesterday was quite effective in helping her shoot through her bottlenecks faster than I expected.." thought Duan Li as he cupped at his chin.


    After all, when entering the Late stage and Pinnacle stage of any cultivation realm, that was the moment when one had to push even harder at their bottlenecks no matter how talented one were.


    This was just like Shen Murong right now, whom was currently experiencing a steep challenge in trying to breakthrough to the Level 9 of the Foundation establishment realm.


    To put it into an analogy, the difficulties was akin to someone whom was eating to their fullest, to the extent that their stomach got extremely bloated. Yet, they still needed to force themselves and eat 10 more plates of rice slowly but constantly, trying their best to not throw up in the entire process!


    In other words, a cultivator''s body would experience a very slow growth in their cultivation at this stage due to the oversaturation of spiritual Qi in their body.


    This was because the body needed to ''digest'' the spiritual Qi properly first, before they could absorb more of it. In addition, they had to maintain this state of fullness until they breakthrough to the next level while enduring such a stifling sensation in that duration of time.


    Otherwise, the accumulated spiritual Qi would just dissipate out of their body, and they had to do it again from the beginning if they want to push to the next level.


    However, there are special cases where this limitation could be overcome to a certain extent, such as consuming high grade Spirit Digestion elixir and Spirit Reconstruction formation, albeit these would come at a steep side-effects later on.


    The other way was to have a medium that could bypass this ''digestion'' process, and this was through absorbing spiritual Qi from a higher Star ranked Monster Core.


    For example, the 5 Star ranked Monster Core that Duan Li gave to Xiahou Yu, inside it contains a very high density of spiritual Qi. Once absorbed, this spiritual Qi would immediately expand instantaneously in a single burst to ram furiously at one''s bottleneck!


    The only thing that Xiahou Yu had to do at this point, was to absorb a small part of it slowly at a time. Not only would this continuous barrage at her bottleneck would make it crumble faster, it was not stifling as well when compared to the usual ''digestion'' method.


    The ultimate way however, was to have an innate body that was more naturally in-tuned to the spiritual Qi, called the Innate Spirit Fetus body. This was a body that thrives on spiritual Qi and would have no difficulties in digesting them at all, enabling the person to soar in their cultivation rapidly as easy as drinking water.


    But of course, the Innate Spirit Fetus body was something that one was born with and could not possibly be obtained in any other way. Those who possess this type of innate body were usually heralded as the Children of Tian (Heaven) and would have hundreds of cultist following behind them as devout believers.


    The last known person whom was identified as the Children of Tian was several hundred years ago. Therefore, the Innate Spirit Fetus body was an extremely rare existence and since then, none has appeared for a very long time even until the present day.


    However right now, Duan Li''s followers that had all received his blood essence were slowly showing such traits that usually only existed in the Children of Tian with their Innate Spirit Fetus body, albeit only at a fragment.


    This was because, in addition to the 4 people of his initial followers, the 5 new recruits that had entered his party yesterday and bathed in his blood essence last night were also showing signs of similar traits as well!


    "That blood essence was truly peculiar.. just the effects alone wouldn''t make me think twice in dipping myself in it once more, if only I could ignore the immense amount of pain and agony from it though.." Wei Shang said as he sighed in the end, with Wei Wang nodding to his older brother''s statement.


    "Indeed." Fei Longwei said in a short sentence to voice his agreement.


    For him, that was the first time that he had ever felt such an amount of pain from a body tempering process. But as a result, his physical body right now was at the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, a skip of one level from his cultivation realm at the middle stage!


    "Not only does the blood essence allows us to directly reach the Pinnacle stage in one go, our innate potential seemed to be raised as well. Right now, I could feel that my Qi cycle had increased by a few folds!" Xu Rong added as her eyes gleaming with excitement.


    Even Guo He had to agree with them, although he felt immensely regretful in partaking that body tempering process.


    As he was the weakest of them all, only at the Level 2 of the Foundation establishment realm, the two level jump in his physical body state directly to the Pinnacle had him crying like a baby!


    It was utterly embarrassing as his tragic cries was heard by Xu Rong that was separated only by a wooden divider between them.


    Hais!


    ...


    Arriving at the Principal''s office, everyone had sweats drenching at their backs except Duan Li.


    W-Why are we meeting with the Principal and Vice-Principal so early in morning?!


    Could it be that they were about to be reprimanded for the Duel match yesterday?


    There are even some Senior Teachers of the academy here!


    And who is that scary looking person besides the Principal?!


    Gulp!


    "This is quite the large party you are bringing to me. I hope you have sufficient reason for this. Otherwise.." Liu Sheng Juan said to the Principal as his brows twitching and his tone threatening.


    "Relax, I guarentee with my life that everything here has a reason and would only be worth it to be unveiled later on. You just have to trust me on this." the Principal replied casually.


    "The reason why I accepted this has nothing to do with trust, but was because you agree to sell all your assets to me if this turns out to not worth my time. As for your meager life, I don''t care a single bit about it." Liu Sheng Juan said in contempt.


    Hearing this, the Principal''s veins popped out from his temples as he shot the latter with a thug-like gaze and lifted his chin up.


    "Has anyone ever told you that your words are such an annoyance and infuriating?"


    Liu Sheng Juan snorted as his lips curled into a smirk, "I''ll eliminate anyone whom has a problem with that."


    Both of their gazes seemed to spark some lightning in between them.


    Suddenly..


    Thud!


    Right now, both of their faces was only inches apart, thus when the Vice-Principal gave a kick to the Principal from behind, the both of their lips almost touched with each other!


    Huuu!!


    Thankfully, as a Nascent soul realm expert, their reaction time could only be described as heaven-defying and they managed to swerve their heads to the side in the last moment and avoided the devil''s kiss.


    "Y-You dare..!" the Principal bellowed out.


    "Courting death..!" Liu Sheng Juan shouted.


    They both shot the Vice-Principal with a savage look as if ready to pounce on the other party at any moment now, although the latter''s only reaction was to continue sipping at his cup of tea casually as if not caring about the two figure in front of him at all.


    Watching the whole situation playing in front of them, Duan Li and his party couldn''t help but to shout within their minds.


    What the hell is going on here?!


    ...

 119 Chapter 118: The Emperor of Jiu Empire!

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    "You both should have controlled yourself in front of all these juniors. Look at them, they were all strucked silly with that shameful performance just now." the Vice-Principal said with a sarcastic tone as he continued to sip down at his tea.


    Pu!


    Both the Principal and Liu Sheng Juan choked at the latter''s words.


    You were the one who made us lose face in front of them!


    To think that you would even had the cheek to call it a shameful performance by us when you were the one who made us did it!


    "One of these days, I would strangle you myself!" the Principal thought in his mind with gritted teeth.


    Liu Sheng Juan has recollected himself, but his eyes still gleamed furiously as he stared at the other party.


    "You would find your favorite tea brands to suddenly disappear for a few months from now on." he said coldly.


    You must''ve thought that it was funny, then let me show you how funny the outcome would be!


    Clang!


    The tea cup on the Vice-Principal''s hand clattered for a bit when he heard this.


    Yup! This person in front of them IS definitely the Liu Sheng Juan they both knew. That devoid of emotion and insta-kill counter could only be possessed by someone as heartless as him!


    Sighing inwardly, the Vice-Principal stared at that tea cup of his with a regretful look.


    "Looks like I won''t be seeing you in a few months after this.."


    They both knew that Liu Sheng Juan was the kind of person that meant every single word he had ever spoken. This was why they would rather say nothing anymore to refute him.


    Ahem!


    The Principal made a dry cough as he turned towards Duan Li and the rest, assuming his previous disposition as the principal.


    "We will be meeting with someone shortly. I suggest that everyone should be.. no..MUST be at their best behaviour later on.. otherwise you would be severely punished!" he said as he highlighted that last sentence.


    Hearing such grave words coming from the Principal, Shen Murong couldn''t help but to asked with furrowed brows, "Who will we be meeting?"


    Wongg!


    The Principal opened up a teleportation portal as he smiled at Shen Murong''s question.


    "You''ll know soon enough."


    Shen Murong then turned towards the others as they shrug their shoulders, evidently mystified as well.


    Only the three Senior Teachers, Wang Guozhi, Ling Yu and Ran Yang that were present there along with them wore a serious expression on their face.


    This caused them to even feel more curious as well as nervous!


    "Let''s head over quickly, we shouldn''t let the person waiting after all." the Principal said as they walked through the portal.


    ...


    Woongg!


    A portal suddenly appeared in the middle of a vast and grand hall.


    This hall has walls that were decorated with careful, delicate and minute-detail engravings. The large supporting pillars were plated in gold with a red banner on each of it, the ceiling topped with numerous precious gems that connected to a large runic formation on the center, and the floor was made up entirely of white, high-quality gazello marble!


    As soon as the portal appeared, a number of people that wore white robes immediately rushed to a 4-point location around the portal to set up a barrier to encompassed it within a cube-like room.


    Woongg!


    Not long after that, several figures emerged from the portal with curious expression.


    "Eh? A spatial barrier? Where are we?" Duan Li''s party whispered to each other.


    They couldn''t make out their surrounding at all because the barrier had distorted the views outside.


    Huh?


    When their sights locked at those five men standing still like untoppable mount.Tai in a single, straight row in front of them, with each donned lustrously in a golden and shining full-plate armor, their hearts almost leaped from their body in surprise!


    Titled-Knights!


    Those five men are Titled-Knights!


    There was only a few distinct traits between ranks of Knights in the Empire that one would be able to notice in just a single glance!


    From the lowest, was Apprentice Knights. Their armors were azure blue in color. Then was the official Knights, they donned themselves with Silver armors. After them, was the full-fledged Titled-Knights, wearing the Golden armors!


    These Titled-Knights could be considered as the cream of the crop of geniuses within the Empire!


    With this, a thought of realization struck them at this moment.


    "If Titled-Knights are present here.."


    "Don''t tell us.. this is the.."


    "We are in the Royal Palace?!"


    Each of Duan Li''s followers countenances changed as they simultaneously realized this!


    Each of the 5 Titled-Knights scanned at everyone using their Soul sense, Liu Sheng Juan, the Principal, Vice-Principal and the Senior Teachers were also included.


    After confirming that nothing was out of sorts from them, the Titled-Knights nodded to each other as they moved to the right of Duan Li''s party, before lining up into a straight column at the side.


    "Kneel!" said one of the Titled-Knights at the fore-front with a red cape behind him.


    This man was the commander of the Titled-Knights!


    "Kneel?"


    Their faces quickly paled as beads of sweat started to form on their forehead.


    Gulp!


    There was only one existence in the entire Jiu Empire where they MUST kneel down to!


    And that person was..


    The Emperor of the Jiu Empire.. Jiu Xian Ping!


    Tap! Tap! Tap!


    Everyone swiftly kneeled to the ground and no one dared to be casual at all with their movements and posture.


    After all, they would be facing against the Emperor soon, and any form of disrespect would be treated as treason that could warrant their deaths!


    However, the only one who seemed to be immune to this rule of thumb was Liu Sheng Juan, who stood still with a lofty expression on him.


    Gasp!


    They didn''t know why the Titled-Knights does not immediately respond to this, but this has caused the rest of them who did not know of Liu Sheng Juan''s identity to shiver in fear, afraid that they would be complicated and punished for such an untolerable act of display from a single person!


    Wonggg!!


    The barrier was then uplifted as they cursed in their hearts, closing their eyes in fear of what is to come.


    "Damn it! We''re screwed!"


    "..."


    "..."


    Eh?


    Nothing is happening?


    They slowly opened their eyes to look at each other and found out that everyone was still around, and their heads were still intact and attached to their body respectively.


    However, just as they were about to sigh in relief, an immense amount of pressure came crashing down at them, as if they were sunked deep into the bottom of an ocean!


    "Do.Not.Move." a deep voice belonging to someone rang out as he spoke the words one by one, evidently displeased with their behaviors.


    This voice carries with it an undisputed strong presence and authority that had the entire party froze on the spot!


    Then, a slight chuckle could be heard, as another deep voice belonging to another person spoke out.


    "Leave it, its fine." that voice said.


    They didn''t know why the voice this time sounded less dangerous compared to the previous one, but the feeling they got from that voice was that, the owner''s presence, disposition and authority could be felt even deep into their bones!


    This left them the feeling of subconscious reverence towards the owner of this voice!


    "I understand, please forgive my rudeness." the previous voice said, after which, the immense pressure looming upon Duan Li and his party disappeared without a trace.


    Huuu!


    They could finally breath back!


    But even so, no one dared to make any more extra movements and just stared right onto the floor in front of them while kneeling.


    They were waiting for the command.


    "Raise your head."


    When they heard this, everyone slowly rose their chin up as they gazed onto that figure sitting atop of a mighty throne that resembles the body of a dragon!


    Seeing that figure, their fists clenched tight in agitation!


    The Emperor of the Jiu Empire!


    "We pay respects to the Emperor!"


    ...

 120 Chapter 119: Making a deal with the Emperor!

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    "We pay respects to the Emperor!"


    Every single one of them that kneeled down called out and greeted the Emperor simultaneously with the utmost reverence and respect used in their tone.


    Just what kind of existence is the Emperor?


    One had to know that majority of the mere commoners would never be able to set their sights upon the shadow of the Emperor in their whole lifetime, much less the Emperor''s face.


    Even for the cultivators themselves, they would only be able to catch a glimpse of the silhouette of the Emperor from afar at best during rare moments, such as new year eves, where the Emperor would have to make an annual grand public speech from the Royal palace''s balcony.


    After all, the Emperor was a figure equal to the heaven of the Jiu Empire itself!


    Thus, not just anyone could have the chance for a proper audience with such a holy-like existence!


    The fact that Duan Li and his party had managed to see the Emperor up-close and personal like this was a very rare thing that could never happen to someone of their low status before.


    The Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping, had obvious wrinkles on his face due to his old age, but rather than making it look like he was some fragile elderly man, those wrinkles instead had accentuated his legitimacy as an Emperor with a boundless amount of wisdom over time, experiencing behind him the many intricacies and countless vissicitudes of life both tangible and intangible!


    His white hair and long thin beards, possesses a natural radiance of dominance, that when one look at him, would instinctively reverre to give him the utmost amount of respect he deserves!


    His pair of sharp brows, shaped like the most powerful sabers in the world, would instantly shroud those who looked at him with the feeling of trepidation and anxiousness in their hearts!


    Those pair of piercing eyes of his, appearing both mysterious and enchanting at the same time, were as if able to peer and discern through every lies and truths in the world!


    The golden silk robes that was donned onto his majestic figure, embroidered with the depiction of a single, coiling dragon that inter-weaved through the clouds, was a symbolic of his undisputable authority that encompassed the whole Jiu Empire in its entirety!


    And finally, that inviolable aura he exuded, mighty and indefensible, would gave the citizens of the Jiu Empire the feeling of being in a safe haven, secured and shielded from any sorts of danger, while the enemies would soil their pants and cower in fear!


    "Liu Sheng Juan, I never thought that you would bring forth to me such a number of people this time around.. this had me truly intrigued with today''s agenda.." said the Emperor as he sat casually on his throne, with one arm supporting his chin from the armrest.


    "I was actually planning to just bring along this kid here, but the Principal of the academy here, insisted that I brought all of them along to you." Liu Sheng Juan replied.


    Shiingg!


    A blade was unsheathed in an instant as a tall man donned in full black armor with golden cloak behind him appeared right in front of Liu Sheng Juan, pointing the tip of the blade towards the latter''s neck!


    "To address the Emperor so casually, do you want to die right now?"


    This was from the figure beside the Emperor, and from his voice, appeared to be the one that had deployed the immense amount of pressure onto Duan Li and his party previously for making inappropriate movements!


    The full black armor he was wearing was similar in design to the golden armor that the Titled-Knights were donning, but other than the different color theme, the armor itself had intricate symmetrical patterns all around it. Furthermore, the cloak that he wore was golden in color instead of red, with the symbol of the Jiu Empire on it.


    Because his face was covered with a helmet, like all the other Knights as well, his facial appearance could not be seen at all.


    "To point your blade right in front of my neck, not to mention that it would not be able to do a single thing to harm even a hair of mine, had already showcased that you are nothing but a barbaric savage, all brawns and no brains, isn''t that right, oh Supreme Knight, Fei Jin Fang?" Liu Sheng Juan answered with a tone full of sarcasm.


    When Duan Li and his party heard this, they were rattled once more!


    To think that they could feast their eyes upon the highest ranked Knights, whom sits at the very top of of them all, the Supreme Knight, Fei Jin Fang here, they must have been blessed with great fortune today!


    But it was only logical that the Supreme Knight would be here, after all, he was the one and only personal body guard of the Emperor himself!


    "Indeed. Let us kill each other and get this over with." Fei Jin Fang replied as he snorted and then tightened his grip on his sword.


    "Fine by me." Liu Sheng Juan said with a disdainful sneer.


    Right before they were about to unleash their might, a sudden ominous feeling had the both of them retreating backwards instinctively, creating a distance away from each other as their backs were drenched in sweat!


    Huuu!


    This feeling!


    The both of them went silent for a while and then returned back to their previous position without saying anything at all and just dropped the matter entirely.


    This situation caused the spectators to become confused, after all, they expected a brawl was about to begin between the two strongest power in the Jiu Empire, and had them excited for a while, only for it to end abruptly.


    Fei Jin Fang went back to the Emperor''s side while Liu Sheng Juan to Duan Li''s party beside the Principal.


    It was a subtle feeling, but their fingers couldn''t help but to tremble!


    Others might not realize, but the Emperor had just riled up his aura for a fraction of a breath. That single small action of his had the both of them feeling goosebumps, to the extent that they felt they would die had they continued such a farce in front of the Emperor.


    Fei Jin Fang was the number one Knight of the Empire as well as the personal bodyguard of the Emperor, while Liu Sheng Juan was an enigmatic figure that controlled the Empire''s economy from behind the scene.


    They might be a towering figure, but in front of the Emperor, an existence that was tantamount to the heavens itself, had the other party wished for them to chop off their own head and die, they would not be able to have any other choice than to acede and die a shameful death!


    After a while, the Emperor smiled and casted his gaze onto Duan Li, before his expression changed to that of a slight surprise and then chuckled softly.


    "I couldn''t see through this kid at all.. Interesting." he remarked inwardly.


    "Tell me child, why do you seek to have an audience with me?" he asked Duan Li with a tone used by many amiable elderly people when talking to their grandchild.


    Hearing the Emperor spoke to him, Duan Li became nervous for a while, before looking around at the other Knights stationed in the hall.


    Noticing this, the Emperor spoke out once more, "Everyone, other than them and my Supreme Knight here, may leave the hall now."


    Clang!


    The many Knights and hidden figures inside the hall swiftly left without questioning the Emperor''s order even a single bit!


    "Is it okay now for you to speak of the matter?" the Emperor said to Duan Li with a smile.


    Nodding his head, Duan Li replied, "En! We came here for two purpose. But firstly.. I''m sorry to have to trouble the Principal, but could you please cast an isolation barrier onto my party?"


    Hearing this, the Principal brows furrowed and asked, "That''s not an issue.. but may I know why?"


    "The first agenda is something that must not be known by many people, except Shen Lu, Principal yourself, I guess Vice-Principal Zhang Shi should be fine, and Liu Sheng Juan." Duan Li replied.


    Then he turned towards his party and apologized.


    "I''m sorry everyone, but the first agenda is extremely sensitive. There will come a day where I will tell everyone here eventually." he said as they nodded.


    "Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi, Ling Yu and Ran Yang, I need you three to enter the isolation as well." he added with a bow towards the Senior Teachers.


    "Silly kid, if you have to do this, then we will just have to trust you! Don''t worry about it!" Wang Guozhi said as he laughed out loud while Ling Yu and Ran Yang nodded at the side.


    Woongg!


    Right before the Principal could cast his magic spell, the Emperor flicked his finger and those that needed to be isolated was intantly shrouded with a unique barrier.


    "Eh?" Duan Li was surprised.


    Meanwhile, the Principal could only find himself to feel horrified and amazed at the same time.


    "To be able to cast a high tier spatial magic with just a flick of his finger, how fearsome!"


    "I guess.. this should work? Haha!" the Emperor said as he laughed out a bit.


    Gulp!


    Duan Li nodded as he swallowed his saliva.


    To him, that laugh from the Emperor in the last part sounded like, "Hurry it up, I haven''t got all day now!"


    Thus, without wasting anymore time, Duan Li waved his hand.


    Huala!


    More than a hundred Superior quality spirit stones appeared right in front of Duan Li!


    BOOM!


    This scene had the Principal shocked silly, the Vice-Principal to narrow his eyes, Fei Jin Fang to stagger on the spot, and the Emperor to be in a daze as his posture froze.


    Only Shen Lu and Liu Sheng Juan''s face was calm.


    "This.. don''t tell me?" the Emperor looked at Liu Sheng Juan as the latter nodded with a smile.


    "I see! HAHAHA! The heavens had blessed the Jiu Empire!" for the first time, the Emperor laughed out loud heartily, feeling immensely happy about this fortune that will bless his Empire for a few years to come.


    "Who else knew about this?" the Emperor then asked with a serious expression.


    "Other than me and this Shen Lu kid here, there was another one, which is my employee at the Jiu Bank company''s branch inside the academy, but I had already wiped off her memory and replaced it with a fake one. She wouldn''t notice a clue." answered Liu Sheng Juan.


    "Very good. Now, as for what you intended with all these fortunes child, naturally, I have already understood it. But before I accept your proposal, tell me, how did you managed to amass such a fortune?" the Emperor asked.


    This time, he was observing Duan Li in the entirety of his spectrum with his eyes. Any slight movement or fidgetting of the other party will be caught by him.


    And if there was so much as a single lie to be detected coming out from the other party, there will be consequences!


    "It''s like this.." Duan Li began to explain.


    ...

 121 Chapter 120: The First agenda!

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    Listening to Duan Li''s explanation, the Emperor could finally sigh in relief as it turns out that the latter''s wealth wasn''t obtained in an unjust way.


    He even had his suspicion that the other party had went to rob their neighbouring Liu Empire''s treasury.


    "I see.. so these fortunes of yours originated from the Eternal maze itself.. I thought that mysterious place could only bring upon the death onto anyone that enters.. Seems like I need to pay more attention to it in the future." the Emperor remarked as he played with his beard.


    He had long known about the existence of the Eternal maze. It was the most bizarre location in the whole Jiu Empire, located deep underground the academy, where strong people who could fight and return from a deadly battlefield never came back after entering it.


    Even after they find out that only the weak could enter and exit safely, they weren''t able to do anything much except scouting due to the limitation of their abilities.


    After a long silence, the Emperor finally finished his contemplation on this issue.


    "Very well, I agree to transfer the credit points equal to all of your Superior quality spirit stones here. Furthermore, since the total would still be insufficient, I hereby grants you the title of an Imperial Overseer."


    Liu Sheng Juan was surprised when he heard this and voiced out his opinion.


    "Your Majesty, are you sure to give him such a top-notch title? As you know, Imperial Overseer had the veto power that could overrule any development plans in the Empire, even if its you. He might disrupt our future plans if he becomes the Imperial Overseer."


    The Emperor chuckled and responded to Liu Sheng Juan casually.


    "Of course I am sure. Even though I am the Emperor of this Empire, and owned everything under it, I dare not claim his wealth as mine. After all, a person who had such a miraculous affinity to be able to get his hands on such a heaven-defying colossal fortune, this is clearly the work of holy providence where he is favored by the heavens themselves."


    Hearing this, Liu Sheng Juan cupped his chin and then nodded.


    Indeed, what the Emperor had just said makes sense!


    Encounters could only happen when one had their affinity with it, and these affinities were set up by the heavens themselves in one way or another.


    Since Duan Li was favored by the heavens this much, only fools would throw the seeds of negative karma upon themselves by making an enemy out of him!


    That would be tantamount to blasphemous action towards the heavens!


    The Emperor then continued


    "Therefore, since we are practically going to be using his money to develop the Empire, naturally he has the final say in everything. But, since I am confident with our plans, I believe there wouldn''t be much to change at all. Instead, with his money, we could open ourselves to better alternative solutions that we were previously unable to even consider of due to the tight budget!"


    ...


    The Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan continued to discuss while the Principal and Vice-Principal stood in a daze.


    Duan Li becoming the Imperial Overseer?


    That practically meant he could even disagree with the Emperor''s words without any repercussion!


    Furthermore, if all these Superior quality spirit stones were to be exchanged into credit points, that basically meant that the Emperor had mortgaged the whole Empire to Duan Li!


    What does this mean then?


    This means that the Empire would be indirectly owned by Duan Li from the shadows!


    Just the amount of influence Duan Li would hold could practically let him do anything he wants!


    Gulp!


    Shen Lu however, showed a completely joyful expression. From this day onward, their future were now set in stones to continue and climb to further greatness!


    Just thinking about it had him shivered in excitement!


    After a while, both the Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan had came to a conclusion that giving Duan Li the status of an Imperial Overseer would benefit the Empire greatly.


    As someone whom was favored by the heavens, the choices he made should be alligned with the wishes of the heavens itself. Thus, if they ever find themselves to be impeded, they could turn to Duan Li to make the right decision on their behalf!


    The Emperor turned back his attention to Duan Li.


    "Although you are now given the title of an Imperial Overseer bestowed by me, since you are not strong enough yet, it would be best for your title to be kept hidden from the public until then. But, your powers as the Imperial Overseer are 100 percent in effect starting from this point onwards, so do not worry. However, this would only be so if you yourself agreed to become the Imperial Overseer. So, do you accept?"


    Duan Li turned towards Shen Lu, the Principal and the Vice-Principal as they all nodded.


    "Then, I shall accept your Majesty''s wishes and become the Imperial Overseer from henceforth!"


    He didn''t know why, but Duan Li had the feeling that after today, the future that he knew would be entirely changed!


    "Very good, then I suppose the first agenda is done? Let me call in my personal intelligence expert."


    "Di Rou!" the Emperor called out.


    Whooshh!


    A slender figure suddenly appeared in front of the Emperor wearing black overalls from the top to bottom. Although half of her face was covered up with a black cloth entirely such that only her eyes, brows and vivid shape of her nose could be seen, just these vague features alone hinted that she was definitely a beauty inside!


    In addition, her long, sleek black hair tidied up into a high ponytail has a certain gracefulness aura to it.


    Kneeling with one knee, she greeted the Emperor.


    "Di Rou pays her respect to the Emperor!"


    The Emperor nodded.


    "En! Di Rou, from now on, that child over there, his name is Duan Li and is the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire. You will work for him from now on and become his personal aid." the Emperor commanded.


    Without wasting a single more breath, she immediately replied, "Di Rou understands and will perform dutifully to this imperial decree!"


    Whooshh!


    She then appeared right beside Duan Li and greeted him next, "Di Rou greets the Imperial Overseer!"


    Duan Li was at a slight loss of words with her quick decision and reaction, seeming to not even spare a single thought at pondering on the Emperor''s command.


    "E-En!" Duan Li replied her.


    "You will find her to be incredibly efficient, her autonomous act with just a single command truly had me impressed thoroughly. She will not disappoint you." the Emperor said as he chuckled.


    Flick!


    With a flick of his fingers, the spatial isolation barrier that covered at Duan Li''s party and the Senior Teachers before were lifted in an instant.


    "Oh? The first agenda is finally over." Shen Murong let out a mouthful of breath.


    To be encompassed within a barrier like that had him and the rest to be uncomfortable.


    "Now, onto the second agenda. What was it that is so important for you to bring everyone here?" the Emperor asked with a curious tone.


    In his opinion, while the first agenda was quite important, as it had changed the top-level hierarchy of the Empire as well as the future development of it, it appears that the second agenda today would be far more important than the first.


    At least that should be, judging from Duan Li''s grim expression.


    He could tell that if the first agenda was a good news for the Empire, then the second agenda should be the bad news.


    Turning his head towards the Principal, Duan Li signalled the latter as the Principal nodded.


    "It would be better for us to use this to explain why we all came here today instead."


    With a turn of his palm, a single red jade slip appeared on his hand.


    "Hmm? An image recording jade slip? So they are going to show me something.." thought the Emperor as he flicked his fingers.


    Dudududu!


    The floor opened up to reveal a gigantic projector device.


    "This is the latest projector to display an Image recording. It is truly immersive and can display the 3D elements with a crisp and clear resolution!" said the Emperor proudly.


    During his free time, he would watch some image recordings of the numerous action-packed battles, whether that be from duels or the battlefields with this projector.


    The Principal walked forward to the projector as he slotted the jade slip into an opening.


    With a grim countenance, he pressed the ''Play'' button.


    Woongg!!


    An image was displayed in a hologram above the projector and started playing.


    ...

 122 Chapter 121: The Second agenda!

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    Woongg!!


    The hologram started with Duan Li sitting cross-legged atop of what seems to be like a giant boulder atop of a mountain.


    "Hmm?" the Emperor said as he seemed to notice something different about Duan Li on that hologram.


    That Duan Li seemed to be much older as compared to the one standing down there!


    What''s going on?


    The image recording then zoomed outwards, revealing the boulder to actually be the remains of a colossal monster!


    The Hermit King class monster, Crastesauros!


    At this point, the Emperor''s countenance turned serious as everyone else''s expression were dumbstrucked.


    ...


    Woongg!!


    The image recording played until the end finale, where the whole Tian continent and the world was engulfed in flames by the Sun Dragon as the hologram slowly dissipated.


    Silence..


    The Emperor, his Supreme Knight, Liu Sheng Juan and Duan Li''s party, all were showing complicated expression and emotion!


    "I ask you, is this image recording real?" the Emperor turned to Duan Li as his voice grew extremely heavy and radiated out pressure that could make one sweat buckets.


    "I dare not fabricate anything at all in front of your Majesty!" Duan Li replied swiftly.


    "This is from what I''ve experience during my second trial.. Senior Teachers Ling Yu, Wang Guozhi and Ran Yang could testify this matter for me." Duan Li added as all three Senior Teachers nodded.


    "As the one whom had supervised the Second trial personally myself, I bear witness that this image recording and everything that had transpired in it is 100 percent real and is no illusion." Ran Yang said with a solemn expression.


    "We witnessed everything as well ourselves during that time and could testify that Senior Teacher Ran Yang is telling the truth." Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu added.


    The Principal nodded, "I can vouch for them as well. Furthermore, as I practiced the Spatial arts skill, I could see that there were no image tempering within it at all. In addition, I was there during his First trial and beared witness to the awakening of the Yidara Millennium tree whom called himself as Ancestor Zong, about how he said that Duan Li was not bounded by the strings of fate and Ancestor Zong''s premonitions of the future that matches this image recording!" he said.


    Hearing this, the Emperor went silent once again and then turned to Liu Sheng Juan.


    "What do you think?"


    Liu Sheng Juan shook his head.


    "Honestly, for the first time, I find myself to be stumped as well."


    "But from what I''ve seen so far, everything was devoid of lies and had only contained the truths.. your Majesty should realize this as well, as we cultivate the same optical arts under our master that enabled us to do just that." he answered.


    In fact, even though he said it like that, Liu Sheng Juan himself were still trying to wrap everything around his head as well.


    The image recording was definitely real, but to think that such an event would actually happen in the near future?!


    Even Duan Li''s party couldn''t believe what they saw as their tumultuous emotions ran amok inside their mind.


    Since Liu Sheng Juan, the only person whom could act so casually here and seemed to be trusted by the Emperor had said it like that, then the whole thing must be real then!


    Silence..


    "Let''s view it objectively then." Liu Sheng Juan spoke out after a while with a sigh.


    "First, was that we found out that our Duan Li here would reach the legendary realm in the near future, the Immortal Ascension realm! This could be said as a very good news for our Jiu Empire, even the Titan race seemed to fear him!"


    When the Emperor heard this, he nodded in agreement.


    "Indeed! To think that I could witness an Immortal Ascension realm expert and his heaven-defying means myself, no wonder they are called as the true immortals.. such battle prowess on that realm was nothing short of terrifying!"


    "And I seemed to recall them calling him as the Supreme General as well. That''s the highest Commander rank in the military.. I guess that''s a fitting title for the Strongest man that was feared even by the Titans!" the Emperor''s expression finally lightened up a bit as he chuckled.


    Both the Principal and Vice-Principal turned to look at Liu Sheng Juan from behind and couldn''t help but to shook their head while smiling at each other.


    No matter how hateful the latter''s personality were, this was the kind of person Liu Sheng Juan was!


    Even when the facts were laid bare in front of him that such a bleak future was waiting for them soon, he would not despair in the slightest and would only think of it as just another puzzle that he had to solve!


    This was also how they were saved from the catastrophe few years back then which had almost overrun the entire Jiu Empire. It was a pity that despite Liu Sheng Juan''s best effort, they couldn''t save everyone and had to make some difficult choices.


    Even Meng Yue, Duan Li''s mother, the rising star of the Empire back then, ended up in her current state..


    Looking at Duan Li from the side emotionally, they each thought subconsciously within their minds;


    "Does he know..?"


    Liu Sheng Juan then continued speaking;


    "Second, was that this event will happen roughly in 8 years from now on. Since we now already knew about this, we could mount some preparation as soon as possible. Most of the development plans would have to be changed however."


    The Emperor cupped his chin as he pondered for a moment.


    "Very well, we will have to overhaul some of our future plans in order to counter the supposedly impending doom for us. I refuse to believe that we will have the same tragic fate and that this revelation was brought to us for a reason!"


    The Emperor stood up from his seat, his hands clenched into a pair of fists as he declared;


    "The reason being is that we will survive this time!"


    This one sentence of his was filled with immense power and determination behind it, rallying the hearts of anyone that had despaired back to hope!


    Everyone nodded as their eyes now gleamed with powerful confidence in it!


    Since we already knew this, we just have to change the outcome!


    "Third, is that our master has long taught us both that in every action, there is always equal reaction as well. Therefore, since we are going to change the future, I assume that it would not be for free? Isn''t that right, Duan Li?" Liu Sheng Juan said as he turned to Duan Li.


    What he mentioned was the thing called ''Universal Balance''. Since things were already predetermined, if they wanted to change it, those would definitely come at a cost!


    "That''s right, I''ve consulted with Ancestor Zong about this, and he told me that there exists the ''Artifacts of Time'' for every changes made to the future!" Duan Li answered.


    He then explained what the Artifacts of Time was to everyone.


    ...


    "I see, so the reason why the upcoming monster stampede this time around was so massive is because you have started to change the future.." the Emperor said as he pondered.


    "In that case, we could only assume that, because we have come to know about the future and we now try to overcome it by approaching things differently, there would yet be some other form of retaliation from ''Time'' towards us later on." Liu Sheng Juan said and cupped his chin.


    Various thoughts were sprung inside his mind as he finally came to a conclusion.


    "In order to ensure that the ripple-effect from this does not spread too wide, it would be for the best that only us here knows about this. This helps to prevent mass panic and avoid unnecessary convoluted retaliation from ''Time'' which would be far too much for us to handle." he said.


    "Furthermore, since the citizens would be following your Majesty''s direction without any question, we could actually prepare thoroughly without them having to know the exact reason why." he added.


    "However your Majesty, what about the other Empire? If we reinforce and develop our military further, the others would sure come to notice this and might misunderstood our intention. Shouldn''t we also tell them this as they too were part of ''that'' future?"


    The Emperor nodded.


    "Indeed, they might misunderstand as to why we are bolstering our defences. But this in turn would make them prepare beforehand as well, thinking that another world war was about to start. But don''t worry, I will find the right moment to meet with the Emperors of respective Empires to tell them regarding this, so leave that to me." the Emperor replied.


    He then turned towards Duan Li.


    "Your worth now have overshoot far from my previous expectation. If I said before that you might be favored by the heavens on the first agenda, right now, I am starting to think that the heavens are watching over you and your actions closely instead."


    "Every single individual has their own fate decided upon birth, and all of us now might have been fated to die 8 years later. But because of you, an existence that was not bounded by the strings of fate has appeared to reveal the secrets of the future to us, at this very moment, I feel that only you could somehow remold our wheels of fate away from tragedy!"


    The Emperor said solemnly.


    Fate, that was something akin to the secrets that should only be known by the heavens themselves, forever unreachable for mortals like them, no matter how strong their cultivation realm were to become.


    But since now they already had a closer peek at their fate, then perhaps heaven themselves wanted to give them chances to change it!


    And if that is indeed so, then they could only strive to show their capabilities for such an expectation!


    As the saying goes, a single ant might not be able to kill an elephant, but a million could.


    "From now on, do your best to reach the Immortal ascension realm faster. We now know that this realm of legends is possible to be attained by you. Only then, would I be able to convince the other Emperor of what is to come for all of us!" the Emperor said as he tilted his head to the ceiling, appearing to gaze through the the sky itself.


    However, at this moment, Duan Li suddenly remembered something.


    "Umm.. to be honest, at the rate I am cultivating, reaching the Immortal ascension realm in just a few months would not be an issue at all.. my real aim is to go beyond that.. and release all 9 shackles of mortality!"


    "I don''t know how powerful my battle prowess would be beyond the realm of Immortal ascension, but if I managed to cultivate all the way until the 9th shackle, then I am quite confident that even a thousand Sun Dragon could be wiped out with just a flip of my palm!" Duan Li said energetically.


    Pu!


    ...

 123 Chapter 122: The secrets and limitations revealed!

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    Synchronous and melodious ''Pu'' rang out from everyone''s mouth as they listened to Duan Li.


    Cultivating to the Immortal ascension realm could be achieved in just a few months you said?


    Pu!


    Going higher than that realm and reach the whatever-shackle so that you can annihilate the Sun Dragon at a flip of your palm you said?


    Pu!


    Even the Emperor himself could not help but had to suppress himself from choking loudly as he pressed that quivering lips of his forcefully in view of his high standing.


    Brother! The Immortal ascension realm was a stuff of legend that hasn''t been seen at least for the past couple hundred of years! This should be a testament to how difficult it was to reach such a realm.


    Yet, you claim to be able to do just that in but a few months?


    Aren''t you too over-exagerating yourself?!


    And flip your palm to destroy the Sun Dragon? Why don''t you flip your head instead and break your neck? Stop dreaming!


    "Eh? You guys don''t believe me? As a matter of fact, I could have reached the Core formation realm already a few days ago if I wasn''t planning to return and enter the Eternal maze once more!" Duan Li said with a frustrated look to him.


    The Emperor jerked his body to suppress himself from becoming agitated as his beards trembled.


    "Bian Tianyu, is what he just said true?" he asked at the Principal.


    Although it was hard to swallow Duan Li''s words that seemed as if the latter was boasting, they had already seen the future where the other party had stepped into the Immortal ascension realm.


    Perhaps, there was a unique cultivation method that he used?


    "Y-yes.. if I am not mistaken, the total time he took to cultivate to this point from the Early stage of the Qi condensation realm should be about.. 2 weeks ago" the Principal answered as he retold the story of when Duan Li first stepped into the realm of cultivation with a deep voice.


    It was as if the principal was an elderly man retelling the myths and legends to his grandchildren.


    When the Emperor as well as everyone listened to the story told by the principal, their bodies shook as they were sent into a daze, their sights vaguely turned dark, almost fainting on the spot when the principal was done.


    To think that when the other party first stepped into the realm of cultivation from just a mere insignificant mortal, he had managed to cultivate all the way to the level 9 of the Qi condensation realm in one shot?


    Damn it! We must have been the trash of society in our previous life for our innate talent to be so wretched as compared to his!


    We have heard people that had managed to cultivate to the second or third level of the Qi condensation realm on their first try before, but those were all peerless genius that then became the legendary figures of the Jiu Empire back in the past!


    Even the Emperor himself, despite his extensive means of using top-notch treasure and expensive elixirs as well as hiring numerous experts to help him step into the realm of cultivation back then, could only reach the Level 4 of the Qi condensation realm!


    Back then, the Emperor was lauded as the number one peerless and supreme genius that the Jiu Empire has ever been bestowed with by the heavens!


    But now, compared to Duan Li, the Emperor felt himself to be laughable for being so proud before.


    "I was a fool.." the Emperor sighed dejectedly to himself.


    The rest of Duan Li''s party, were obviously more affected by this reality that was presented before them.


    Shen Murong especially, has been a very proud man as he was able to directly enter the Level 2 of the Qi condensation realm back then.


    It was just a skip of one level, but at that time, he felt that he has a unique destiny to fulfill and felt that he was some kind of a hero somehow that will leave a mark in the following history of the Tian continent.


    Now, all that was left from that proud heart of his, was a broken hope.


    Hais!


    Suddenly, the Emperor seemed to recall a certain sentence that Duan Li just said before.


    "You want to cultivate beyond the Immortal ascension realm? Does such a thing even exist for us mortals?"


    Duan Li nodded.


    "En! Back when I was at the First region inside the Eternal maze before, I encountered an old man called Jing Zhianghu whom appeared to be one of the Guardian there." Duan Li said.


    "He was someone at the Immortal ascension realm, close to the pinnacle stage as well. But, it was him that explained to me regarding the realm after reaching the Immortal ascension realm!" he added.


    Duan Li then told them regarding the cultivation realm beyond the Immortal ascension realm.


    ...


    "I see.. so the proceeding realms after one entered the Immortal ascension realm is called the Nine shackles of mortality? Interesting." the Emperor said as his eyes gleamed with excitement.


    All these while, he had thought that the final limits of mortals would be at the pinnacle stage of the Nascent soul realm, and the Immortal ascension realm was off-limits to only be attained by those favored by the heavens.


    But now, after listening to Duan Li and discovering the fact that there was someone else at such a realm right now, which was the Guardian of the First region inside the Eternal maze..


    He now knew that such a realm was attainable even for the mortals!


    Just that, what was the impetus required to ascend into the Immortal ascension realm hence embarking towards the real journey of becoming a true immortal?


    Every single one of them that heard these new cultivation realms for the first time was equally elated as well.


    "Indeed.. I have already felt what it was like to be at the Immortal ascension realm.. it was a realm where a single skill art could change the entire topography of the land in a single instant.." Duan Li said as he nodded in agreement.


    "If one''s battle prowess were already at such a level in that realm, no wonder we mortals were suppressed somehow to only be able to reach the pinnacle stage of the Nascent soul realm in our lifetime!" Liu Sheng Juan said.


    Hearing this, the Emperor furrowed his brows and asked curiously.


    "What do you mean by that?"


    Liu Sheng Juan shook his head.


    "Everyone here had just saw those previous scenes before. Imagine if most mortal could cultivate beyond the Nascent soul realm? Wouldn''t the notion of an Empire be useless by then?" he said.


    "Furthermore, this was a topic that I''ve always been considering in the past. Why were we not allowed to cultivate beyond the Nascent soul realm? It was as if there was an intangible barrier that prevented us from ascending further." he added as he cupped his chin.


    He stopped for a while before continuing.


    "This is only a conjecture of my part, but it seems that this world has a certain law that prohibits the existence of someone beyond the Nascent Soul realm!"


    "The first clue I have for the basis of this theory of mine is that of the old man, Jing Zhianghu, whom Duan Li mentioned as the Guardian of the First region. He was someone who came from the Tian continent back then, and as he stepped into the Eternal maze, the world''s limitation was no longer impossed on him. Therefore, he was able to cultivate to the Immortal ascension realm!"


    "But as a result, he couldn''t get out from the Eternal maze due to this world prohibiting their entry! Perhaps, this might''ve been also the case for all those experts we have sent into the Eternal maze.. either they really died.. or.."


    "Or they have ascended!" the Emperor interjected before Liu Sheng Juan could finish with clenched fists.


    Liu Sheng Juan nodded, "That''s right!"


    At this moment, everyone in the hall seemed to have strucked into an epiphany.


    This theory sounds extremely correct!


    After all, there was no other way to explain why they couldn''t ascended further other than this!


    "But wait, if that is true, then how did Duan Li managed to cultivate into the Immortal ascension realm as shown in that image recording?"


    It was Shen Murong whom asked this question.


    The principal stepped forward with both hands clasped behind his back and a thoughtful expression on his face.


    "Perhaps, that is because of what Ancestor Zong had said before to me, that Duan Li was not bounded by fate, which could also means.. that he was also not bounded by the rules of this world!" the Principal answered this question as his voice quivered coming forward with this realization!


    Now, most of the puzzle has been pieced together slowly and everyone became more excited as they nodded in agreement to what the Principal had just said.


    That seems to be the most plausible reason!


    "Then, this means that, if we wanted to step into the Immortal ascension realm, we have to leave this world somehow in one way or another to escape from the rules of this world?" the Vice-Principal chimed in.


    "I think so too, but my Brother Duan Li here, since he could both exist and step into the Immortal ascension realm while being still in this world according to that image recording, means that we could bypass the rule somehow!" Shen Lu said by the side.


    "Impressive. You''ve come to the same conclusion as mine as well." Liu Sheng Juan complimented.


    Suddenly though, his expression turned grim and serious.


    "However.. again.. this is only my conjecture as well.. and it could be either right or wrong as I have no way to prove it.."


    The Emperor''s countenance changed as well when he saw how serious Liu Sheng Juan were.


    "Continue and explain!" he commanded.


    Liu Sheng Juan nodded.


    "As a result of going against the rule of the world.. ''Time'' has retaliated.. and what happens next.. was probably why the Sun Dragon descended down from the skies.." Liu Sheng Juan added.


    Everyone''s hair stood on end as the hall became eerily silent..


    ...

 124 Chapter 123: Past, Present and Future!

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    What Liu Sheng Juan just said had struck Duan Li deep into his core.


    "The Sun Dragon descended from the sky because I broke the World''s law?"


    Thinking into the matter deeply, Duan Li took into consideration of the retaliation from ''Time'' in his perspective if he was the cause of it all.


    If that was indeed the case, before he were to bypass the rule, the Heaven''s Will committee should at least made their appearance back then to remind him that it was forbidden, just like when he was about to store the Spiritual Qi into his spatial ring.


    But they never did!


    Thus, he shook his head.


    "That shouldn''t be possible, the magnitude of the retaliation from ''Time'' was too big for it to involve the whole world with it like that just because of me. The Sun Dragon descension must''ve been due to a more severe case.." Duan Li said.


    "Pardon me if it seems like I am doubting you, but what is the basis for this reasoning of yours?" Liu Sheng Juan inquired as he frowned.


    "The reason being is that, the Heaven''s Will committee hadn''t even given me any sorts of warning at all when I tried to enter the Immortal ascension realm in that timeline!" Duan Li answered.


    For trying to break the rule of the world, they should at least came knocking down at him to give him a stern warning, but there was none at all!


    At this new term they were hearing, the Emperor couldn''t help but to ask out.


    "The Heaven''s Will committee? What is that?"


    The Principal stepped forward, "Let meexplain this in detail.."


    With a flip of his palm, another red jade slip appeared on his hand.


    "This here is another image recording from a few days ago.."


    Slotting it into the projector, a series of images began to play out.


    ...


    Watching the image recording while listening to the Principal''s top-notch story-telling talent, the Emperor had to press onto his temple to lessen his headache.


    From that image recording, he managed to summarize three important points.


    First! He managed to attract the Lightning Tribulation that was only supposed to be for those who tried to breakthrough to the next realm during his first entry into the Qi condensation realm.


    Second! In a recent occasion, during cultivating, he decided to store some condensed Spiritual Qi inside his spatial ring for future usage, which by the way, is considered as illegal conduct that had attracted those Heaven''s Will committee''s attention.


    After which, third, he managed to struck a deal with them, by undergoing an advance Lightning Tribulation that was only supposed to be meant when he entered the Core formation realm next time.


    Damn it! God damn it!


    This fella is nothing but trouble!


    At this sudden realization, the Emperor''s vision darkened as he worried about the future.


    Will the Empire be alright with him around?


    A tinge of regret crept up inside him electing Duan Li as the Imperial Overseer.


    He even ignored his previous shock after knowing the existence of the Heaven''s Will committee.


    To him, Duan Li was a more exotic existence than those terrifying beings up there!


    After all, even during an extreme thunderstorm situation, you would still be safe for most of the time.


    But Duan Li was like that metal rod that attracted the lightning from above, bringing danger to those around it!


    Hais!


    Nevermind, I can''t cry over a spilled milk!


    Looking over at the crowd, the Emperor shook his head and sighed.


    This was because their expression were blank as if in a daze. They felt extremely light-headed to witness yet another scene which they could described it as ''tyrannical'' due to the sheer incredulousness of it that their minds couldn''t process it outright!


    Are all these actually a prank?


    What Heaven''s Will committee?


    Why does this sounds like a fantasy instead?


    "If all these is true.. then, there has to be another major reason for the Sun Dragon''s descension to the point that it had to erase the whole world.." Liu Sheng Juan said as he contemplated further.


    He seemed to be immune to being shocked silly, and this had Duan Li nodding in approval.


    Someone finally reacted normally!


    All these people around him are just over-exagerating stuff by getting shocked here and there!


    They should at least properly train their mental resilience more..


    Hmm?


    Erase?


    Hang on a second..!


    At this moment, Duan Li recalled his recent conversation with Ancestor Zong.


    Specifically, regarding the ''Ring of Eternal Time''!


    "Pardon me for asking this, but what is your understanding regarding ''Time''?" Duan Li asked Liu Sheng Juan.


    "Oh? This is an interesting question." Liu Sheng Juan replied as one of his brows shot up.


    He cupped his chin for a while before answering.


    "Time is something that has no beginning nor an end. My reasoning for this is that Time had already existed before I was born into this world, and will continue to exist as so even after I die. Time is a conception that existed out of necessity."


    "In this sense, time would continue to exist as long as there is something for it to exists for. After all, the conception of time would disappear once nothing exist to acknowledge it.. huh?"


    Liu Sheng Juan suddenly stopped talking as a hint of realization struck him at that moment.


    "It can''t be.." he said as his voice quivered a little.


    Looking at the latter''s complexion, the Emperor asked out.


    "What''s wrong?" he said as he frowned. This was the first time he ever saw the other party to show such an expression.


    "This is only a theory, but the Sun Dragon erased everything to make way for a ''New'' Time!" Liu Sheng Juan said.


    As everyone heard this, only a few could comprehend it at this state.


    "Let me explain." knowing that most of the others did not get what he was saying, he decided to elaborate it further.


    Pointing his index finger onto the air, he began to draw in midair using his spiritual Qi.


    Zinggg!


    He started by drawing a single line.


    "This single line here is the current timeline where we are now."


    Zinggg!


    Next, he drew another line above the previous one, but shifted a little bit to the right, with a slash at the end of it.


    "This here is the timeline 8 years in the future, the slash there marks the end of when the Sun Dragon destroyed everything."


    "As you guys saw here, these two timelines existed separately, but it contains the same thing. Just that, the first line is the present, the second line is the future."


    Zinggg!


    He then drew a third line below the first line, shifting it a little bit to the left.


    "This here is the timeline of the past of where we watched the image recording just now."


    Zinggg!


    Then, extending all three lines together to form three rings of circle, Liu Sheng Juan finally said;


    "My conclusion here is that the past, present and future all existed at the same time!"


    The crowds reaction were stale as they showed an unconvinced expression.


    "Before, I couldn''t prove this theory at all because there was no precedence to take the reference for. After all, the past can''t know of the present, and the present can''t know of the future. But the present knows of the past, and the future knows of both the present and past."


    "Thus, since we does not know of the future, how can we then prove my theory that the past, present and future existed at the same time right?"


    As he said this piece, some of them began to comprehend what he was saying, and Liu Sheng Juan chuckled at this sight.


    "Indeed! If you guys realized, we had just sneek a peek at the future from the image recording and we now know that the future had already happened!"


    "Therefore, at this point, as I was saying, it could be said that the past, present and future had all existed at the same time!"


    Everyone nodded in agreement, they at least understood this much from that explanation.


    After all, they could be considered as genius cultivators and their problem solving capacity were high enough to understand complicated Skill art manuals that were sometimes even more vague than this.


    "But what has this got to do with the Sun Dragon destroying everything then?" Shen Murong chimed in.


    He wasn''t the type of person to have a long span of attention, so he was eager to know the ending more than the process.


    "Perhaps its because ''Time'' no longer find it relevant for that timeline to exist." Liu Sheng Juan answered.


    Huh?


    This answer has Shen Murong''s expression blank.


    "Although I do not know why ''Time'' chose to erase that Timeline, but I do have a possible theory, and that is because ''Time'' wanted things to change, but at the same time, introducing retaliation in the form of these ''Time Artifacts'' appeared to be counter-productive in my opinion."


    Most of the people nodded at this point except Shen Murong, Xiahou Yu, Xu Rong, Wei Shang and Guo He.


    It appears that their comprehension of Time was still a little bit lacking.


    "The rest of the reasons why, would require more technicalities, and I believe non would be able to understand it even if I were to take one whole day to explain it."


    Liu Sheng Juan shook his head, "Thus, my explanation ends here."


    For the Principal, Vice-Principal, Fei Jin Fang and the Emperor, as someone whom practiced the way of Spatial arts and magic, they naturally have sufficient understanding in the subject.


    "I see, since the future has got nothing to do with Duan Li bypassing the World''s rule, this meant that the reason were far more astronomical in scale than we could imagine." the Emperor said.


    Indeed, it would be too far-fetched to claim that the action of a single individual was the cause of a total annihilation of a timeline and everything.


    After all, no matter how strong humans could get, how could they even pose a threat in the grand scheme of things from the true immortals up in the heavens?


    "But I am quite interested in your claim to be able to reach the Immortal ascension realm in but a few months.. did you perhaps, cultivated an advance cultivation method from the future?" the Emperor asked curiously.


    If such a thing existed, then perhaps he could ask the other party to lend him the manuals if it was possible.


    "Oh! That is easy stuff! I could personally teach everyone here the cultivation method that I used!" Duan Li answered casually.


    Hearing this everyone''s eyes gleamed with anticipation and their hearts rumbled furiously in excitement!


    They had already known at this stage on how fast Duan Li cultivated. In fact the word ''fast'' was quite an extreme understatement.


    Which cultivator in the world does not want to become stronger faster?


    Thus, they pricked open their ears widely, afraid to lose even a single word that the other party will tell them.


    "First, you got to open your second and third dantian!" Duan Li said proudly as both his hands on his waist.


    "..." everyone.


    "Go kill yourself!" the Emperor scolded in his mind.


    ...

 125 Chapter 124: Peculiar-looking creature?

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    We have to unlock our second and third dantian you said?


    Why don''t you tell us to die instead?!


    Here we are anticipating with extreme eagerness on the secret to cultivate faster but your method happened to be one of those ''courting death'' series!


    Are you actually taking us for a fool?


    "Eh? What''s wrong everyone? I''m not lying!" Duan Li said quickly as he realized their expression seemed to be not right.


    The Principal shook his head as he sighed.


    "No.. we believe you. But we also believe that we, the unchoosen ones here, were not meant to cultivate our other dantians. We reckon to dig out a grave first in preparation if we chose to follow it though."


    "What.. it''s not that hard.." Duan Li said in bewilderment.


    "All you have to do to cultivate your second dantian is to make sure your respective spiritual Qi does not clash when cycling it inside the numerous meridian pathways.."


    Pu!


    "And if I remember correctly, cultivating the third dantian that was located within the brain would only require you to twirl around your spiritual Qi in that area several times until you find the exact location.."


    Pu!


    Not that hard your head!


    The second dantian was located somewhere near the solar plexus, and the meridian channels over there were intertwined with the veins transporting blood from the lungs to the heart.


    If we were to cultivate our second dantian, the clash from two different source of spiritual Qi in any of the pathways would subsequently rupture the veins around it to induce one into the state of internal hemorrhaging!


    Of which the end result, death!


    Twirl around your spiritual Qi inside the head your momma!


    The third dantian was located somewhere deeply inside the center of the brain. To continuously cycle one''s own spiritual Qi in that region randomly in search of the correct location, an accident would definitely occur at a 99 percent rate that would snuff at one''s own life immediately by having their brain imploded spontaneously!


    And even in the best case scenario, those whom could survive the accident would become an eternal fool, forever unable to tell if their genital belonging to that of a man''s or a woman''s!


    Do you even realize what you are speaking of so lightly over here is something that can cause instant fatality or eternal damnation to anyone with just a single misstep?!


    "I do wonder how you are able to cultivate your second and third dantian with such a casual mindset. Did you perhaps, forgotten that you can die?" Liu Sheng Juan said sarcastically.


    "Enough!" the Emperor waved his hand to stop them from debating onto the subject anymore. Doing so might just continue to frustrate them even further!


    After all, the fella in question here was someone that was not normal.


    "If you at least, could devise us a way to cultivate SAFELY our second dantian at least, we would be extremely grateful and your name would be carved eternally into the history of our Jiu Empire!" the Emperor said as he highlighted a certain word in his sentence.


    "Y-Yes..." Duan Li replied feeling a little bit dejected.


    All he did was told them the truth!


    Was there any need for them to scold him like that?


    I just want to help everyone here earnestly!


    "Sigh.." everyone.


    ...


    "Anyway, just to let everyone here know, under my imperial decree and power as the 15th Emperor of the Jiu Empire, Duan Li here, from now on, is our Imperial Overseer!" the Emperor declared grandly with a wave of his hand.


    Huh?


    The rest of Duan Li''s party was once again taken aback by this sudden declaration as they turned to look at him.


    Imperial Overseer?


    Isn''t that like, someone on the same status but a little bit higher than the Emperor himself?


    The one who could question the Emperor''s way of doing things without any sorts of repercussion at all?


    And that person happened to be Duan Li?


    Our Lord? Are you serious?


    My Heavens! Was all the continuous events that keeps on happening today for real?


    One bombastic thing after another kept on being getting shoved onto our face and all these appeared to be centering around their Lord!


    Was their Lord perhaps the Main Character of this universe?


    Why does this seems to be like that?


    Hais!


    At this moment, everyone was tired of getting shocked and surprised anymore, thus, they just simultaneously sighed.


    Seeing the awkward atmosphere, lacking from any sorts of agitated reaction that the Emperor was expecting, he had to cough dryly himself.


    Ahem!


    "By my order as the Emperor, none of you here shall reveal any single bit of information you got here today onto anyone else outside! Doing so, would be considered as the highest amount of treason against the Jiu Empire!" the Emperor once again declared with a cold tone that could freeze at one''s bone.


    The highest treason!


    That would be capital punishment for them if they decided to break it..


    In order words, public execution!


    Gulp!


    ...


    After the meeting was adjourned, Duan Li and the rest were teleported back to the academy by the Principal.


    The Principal however, along with the Vice-Principal and the three Senior Teachers, were commanded by the Emperor to stay.


    It seems like they needed more time to discuss things between themselves.


    Duan Li on the other hand, were requested to be always on standby to be called back into the Royal palace at anytime.


    To reward his merotorious service towards the Empire, it turns out that the Emperor wasn''t a cheap person after all.


    Turning over his palm, a talisman appeared from his spatial ring.


    Imperial Nine-Six Summon!


    In a time of utmost danger, Duan Li could activate this one-time use talisman to summon the Emperor and the Supreme Knight themselves to lend him a hand!


    On his left wrist, a green-unassuming wristband made up of a flexible jade could be used to summon the Level 5 Spatial barrier that could protect him and others away from harm!


    On his neck, was a manly silver necklace with the Imperial markings under it that could transform into a custom full-plate silver armor! The quality were in no way inferior to those worn by the Official Knights.


    In fact, it could actually be considered as a little bit better!


    And with his astronomical amount of credit points inside his Black-Gold mastercard right now, he could practically buy any facilities that he wants!


    In addition, Duan Li''s party had also received some items as well from the Emperor''s personal armory.


    Thus, everyone was all smiles right now.


    However, there was one thing that kept bugging on their mind about their Lord that was leading them at the front right now.


    To think that their Lord would be someone that will be able to attain the Immortal ascension realm in the near future, this had them entirely rattled from within!


    With him as their Lord, their cultivation would surely increase by leaps and bounds, even attaining that legendary realm would be more possible than just a far-fetched dream!


    Even if their chances was miniscule at most for this, at least now they knew that it could actually be obtained somehow!


    For them as a fellow cultivator, there was no greater news than being able to attain greater heights than they could previously ever imagine!


    Indeed, becoming his follower was the most correct decision they has ever made in their whole life before!


    This was especially the case for the new recruits whom were looking at Duan Li now with eyes filled with utmost reverence, reminiscent to those of the devout believers of the Children of Tian (heaven) from ages ago.


    Arriving at the residence court, they entered the meeting room with everyone sitting around the round table.


    Their further agenda today would be to talk about the upcoming monster stampede.


    "Di Rou!" Duan Li called out.


    Whooshh!


    A lady in black overalls with her face half-covered and her long black hair in high ponytail style appeared.


    "Your orders, Imperial Overseer?" she said while kneeling over besides Duan Li with one leg.


    Being called the Imperial Overseer somehow made him a little bit awkward and uncomfortable, thus he told her to call him as ''Master'' instead.


    "I want you to secure the area of this residence court and tell me later on of which of the places that needs to be reinforced for security purposes." Duan Li said.


    "I shall see to it immediately Master. Although, I sensed a peculiar-looking creature was lurking around at the corner of the garden when we entered before. It was able to sniff and lock onto my position even though I had remained hidden in the shadow realm." Di Rou reported.


    A peculiar-looking creature? Was she referring to that mutated chicken, Cucko, that always seems to remain hidden by the bush, as if trying to ambush on anyone it sees?


    "There also appears to be some similar looking creatures to it that possess the same aura and qualities as well, although at a much inferior degree.. should I eliminate them all?" Di Rou asked.


    "No, that creature is called Cucko.. as for the others.. hmm.. train them all to become part of the secret task force! Wei Shang and Wei Wang, go with her for now and follow her directions. The rest will update you two regarding the contents of this meeting later on." Duan Li commanded.


    As Wei Shang and Wei Wang were part of the Shinobi clan like her, they should be able to coordinate between them well enough.


    Whoosh!


    The three of them immediately departed.


    "Now everyone, I have a set of goals here that I want us to achieve.."


    ...

 126 Chapter 125: Battle Strategy!

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    "Im sure that everyone here should know about the upcoming monster stampede next week." Duan Li said.


    Everyone nodded solemnly.


    Unlike those in the past, the monster stampede that will come around knocking at the Jiu Border this time would be massive in numbers!


    For even the whole student populace were being put into a standby, this was probably the first time that it had ever happened and showed how grave the entire situation to be.


    Naturally, they now knew the cause of it, and it was because ''Time'' has retaliated against the changes that they were trying to make.


    Duan Li turned towards Shen Lu as the latter nodded.


    "First of all, let me just tell everyone here that the purpose of this meeting would be to discuss on our group formation, and basically, we have two roles here, the Vanguard and the Rear-guard." Shen Lu said.


    "I''m pretty sure that everyone here knows what these roles meant, but for the sake of completeness, let me just describe them out briefly."


    "Vanguards, their job would be to take on the frontlines, whittling out the enemy numbers. Rear-guards on the other hand, will protect the rear while at the same time making sure that any monsters that the Vanguards missed would be eliminated. Furthermore, the Rear-guards would carry out supportive roles for the Vanguards as well."


    Flip!


    Shen Lu whipped out a jade slip and inserted it into one of the slots on the round table.


    Woongg!


    The projector in the middle of the round table displayed a large map in the form of a hologram.


    "In this monster stampede, the whole 81 members of the First squad of the Subjugation team will be deployed, with the Second and Third squad being put into standby."


    "For the main attacking force, the academy will deploy 6,000 students to participate in this battle, and the battlefield would be split into three fronts namely, the Blastwinter desert on the North where they will emerge from, the Grand canyon of our borders, and finally the Greenplains of the Jiu Empire."


    Shen Lu said as he circled out three location on the map using his spiritual Qi.


    "Therefore, our forces will also be split into three as well, which means; 27 members from the First squad along with 2,000 students for each front! The 2,000 students will then be divided further into smaller groups consisting of 30 to 50 people each, and they are called ''Division''. Each of these ''Division'' will then be commanded by a captain from the First squad."


    "So there would be a total of 27 divisions altogether for each front then?" Xu Rong asked.


    "That''s right! Any other questions so far?" Shen Lu asked the others.


    Shen Murong raised his hand.


    "As we are being split into three fronts, does that mean the first front will take most of the brunt of the monster stampede and would pass the baton to the second front once they got tired of fighting or something like that?" he asked with a confused expression.


    "No.." Shen Lu shook his head.


    "The 30,000 One star monsters in this monster stampede would be forcefully split into three as well. Imagine them coming as rivers from upstream, by placing a wedge in between their flow, they would be split into two!"


    "Using this analogy, the monster stampede would be split into two on the first front. About 10,000 of them would be allowed to enter before closing the path down. The remaining monsters would then meet at the second front, and repeating the same method, another 10,000 would be redirected and the remaining monsters will then go towards the third front." Shen Lu explained.


    "What about the overall battle prowess from each fronts?" Fei Longwei spoke out.


    "Among the 2,000 students from each fronts, about 300 would be Early stage Core formation realm seniors, 700 would be Pinnacle stage Foundation establishment realm Sophomores while the remaining 1,000 would be Late stage and Middle stage Foundation establishment realm students." Shen Lu answered.


    Fei Longwei nodded, the ratio should be about right. Being an ex-member of the Subjugation squad, he naturally knew how their operation works;


    They would use the weaker students to support them from behind while taking over the glory!


    "That reminds me, rumors said that you were part of the Subjugation squad before, why did you leave?" Xu Rong by the side asked.


    Fei Longwei sighed as he reminisced about the past before answering.


    "I was recommended by one of the Senior Teachers because my Dark arts were mostly useful in an area attack. I did join in a few missions before, but I couldn''t stand their constant ridicules of me.. so I attacked them."


    "You attacked them? So because someone died, you got kicked out?" Xu Rong inquiried with a frown.


    Pu! Fei Longwei choked out.


    "Don''t be stupid! Attack and murder are two different things! They only came out with bruises in the end, but because they made the complaints to the upper management, I was kicked out." he explained with gritted teeth.


    "I see.. well, its not that hard to guess the reason as to why you were being ridiculed. A sophomore that had yet to reach the Core formation realm was able to join part of the Subjugation squad, they must''ve think that you used the back door." Guo He said as he popped down a pill as if eating snacks.


    Fei Longwei nodded to Guo He statement.


    "So that''s the case.. but let''s get back to the topic.." Shen Lu said as he continued;


    "Everyone here were probably already aware that the groups would be assigned randomly by the management of the Academy. However, for followers under the banner of a Lord, we will be forming a group of our own, separate from the others."


    "Although this could be considered as an advantage due to us being able to coordinate much better this way, but our small numbers also proves to be our disadvantage as well."


    Hearing this, Shen Murong laughed out loud.


    "HAHA! I alone could beat a few dozens of them single-handedly. What we have here is quality, not quantity! We don''t actually need a lot of people!"


    Shen Lu chuckled and nodded when he heard this.


    "Indeed, but if no one were to support you from behind, would you be able to survive? These are monsters we are talking about here, the kind that would try to kill you without a second thought. Compared to fighting against humans, the difficulties are vastly different!" Shen Lu reminded him.


    "Hmm.. yeah you''re right." Shen Murong said slowly as he scratched the back of his head, feeling a little bit embarrassed for speaking too soon.


    "That is why we need to finalize the roles for each one of us! By which, this would be decided by our Lord." Shen Lu said.


    Duan Li nodded.


    "As Shen Lu just said, we need to fix our roles and formation for the upcoming battle. But before that, I have a few objective in mind for us to be able to coordinate properly." he said.


    "Our first priority, contrary to my first thought, was that instead of attacking, we would be defending instead!"


    Eh?


    Defending? Not attacking?


    The others were caught a off guard and showed an expression filled with confusion.


    Even Shen Lu was surprised and had not expected for Duan Li to propose them to defend instead of attacking!


    He had thought that Duan Li would be planning on going all out, but after thinking about the matter deeply, he vaguely understands the reason why.


    "The reason for this is because we now know the cause for this unusual monster stampede. Therefore, in my opinion, there would probably be some unaccounted variables being put into play by ''Time''!" Duan Li explained.


    "By holding our fort down, not only would we not subject ourselves to those uncertainties, we could also observe how the battlefield will turn out. If things turn dangerous, the Second and Third squad would definitely move forward to help us."


    "But, if we move carelessly into the battlefield, once we are getting overrun, even if they came to help, it would be too late for us to retreat into the safe zone!"


    Hearing this from Duan Li, the others nodded their head in agreement to his insights.


    So its like that!


    "Our second priority, would be to collect monster cores as much as we could! I have uses for them in the future, and right now, I could not explain it yet, but it would be beneficial for us!"


    Oh? Monster cores!


    Fine by us, its good for cultivation purposes anyway.


    "Our third priority, if the battlefield somehow turns out easier than expected, would be.. to show off our battle prowess to the others!" Duan Li said with a little bit of an excitement apparent in his tone.


    Huh?


    The others were strucked with dumbstares as they listened to that last sentence.


    Showing off our strength? What for?


    ...

 127 Chapter 126: Deciding their roles!

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    "HAHA! I like this third priority better! Leave the showing off to me!" Shen Murong laughed out as he grinded his fists together.


    Ignoring the latter that was laughing like a maniac, Shen Lu turned his head towards Duan Li with a concerned expression.


    "Well, we do need fame for our ''Mysterious Party'', but Brother.. are you sure that showing off would be the best way to do it?" he asked.


    Duan Li cupped at his chin as he answered.


    "Actually, there are a number of other ways to do it, but those are slow and the effect would be gradual. Therefore, in terms of the impact and efficiency, nothing beats showing off and it would definitely bring us instant fame!" Duan Li replied.


    Xiahou Yu whom was only listening silently all these while during the meeting, while savoring her fried chicken, added her own thoughts in agreement to Duan Li''s idea.


    "Showing off our strength should be quite beneficial for our party.." she said with a casual look to her.


    Hearing this from her, Shen Lu''s interest was piqued. It was rare for him to see Xiahou Yu engaging herself with them. But he knew, that Xiahou Yu was actually quite smart! In fact, she was the one whom suggested the main idea behind the recruitment plan that they had employed previously!


    "What do you mean? I thought that with our party being called as the ''Mysterious Party'', we would be doing things more discreetly.." he asked.


    Xiahou Yu nodded.


    "You''re not wrong.. but the name could actually be used in another way.. we don''t have to act discreetly in order to be mysterious.." she answered.


    "Since we already cause some ruckus during the recruitment phase before.. rumors about us should already be circulating by now.. about how our Lord could overpower others so easily.. and all that money we obtained from it.. there would naturally be people whom are observing on what else can we do.. and would only act accordingly after that." she said slowly.


    "You mean.. the Strategist club?" one of Shen Lu''s brow shot up.


    Without a doubt, the Strategist club holds the most influence in information networking and distribution.


    It would not be an exageration to say that the student populace acts accordingly to the information they receive from such networks!


    Hence, if the Strategist club decides to manipulate the information going out to the student populace that Duan Li''s party was nothing but a pack of barbaric people, the others would start to scorn them.


    Using that as a reason, the Strategist club could harrass their party in so many ways, creating an endless amount of trouble in the future!


    "Yes.." Xiahou Yu nodded again before continuing;


    "By letting everyone see for themselves on how strong and unstoppable we are.. then no matter how the Strategist club decides to manipulate the information.. no one would try to go overboard and make trouble for us.."


    "In fact.. people would began to subconsciously view us as untouchable existences by then.." she said.


    Shen Lu contemplated on Xiahou Yu''s words deeply as he crossed his arms onto his chest while closing his eyes.


    "I see.. what you mean to say is that, after we became existences that shouldn''t be provoked, then no matter if there were rumors that tried to defame us, no one would actually took them seriously?" he said, slowly beginning to comprehend the ideas behind her words.


    "That''s right.. and after that, since no one could actually tell which was which, there would then be quite a number of versions of these rumors that will try to describeus.. contradicting with one another." she said.


    "I think I understand what she meant. By then, the name of our party would naturally be in effect by itself, making us truly ''Mysterious'' as per our party name, the Mysterious Party." Wang Xiolun added.


    Hmm.. that could actually work!


    Shen Lu clapped the both of his palms together, "Interesting, this might actually work and we don''t have to strain ourselves doing things discreetly!"


    "Indeed. I hate being low-profile as its too troublesome, it just doesn''t suit me at all!" Xu Rong said with a wide smile.


    "I''m fine with it as well." Fei Longwei nodded.


    Seeing everyone agreeing to all three of the objectives he laid out, Duan Li then continued with the next agenda.


    "Alright, since that was settled, let me now brief everyone on what roles each of you should play in the upcoming battle. However, feel free to suggest to me as well later on."


    ...


    After revising their roles a few times, their position was now finally fixed!


    Shen Lu was a Strategist, with the Optic skill art he cultivate, Roc''s Encompassing Eye, he could act as the party''s radar and watch out for any ambush, as well as coordinating their overall movements.


    However, as he could not move while the Optic skill art was active, he needed Rear-guards that were nimble and fast enough to react.


    For this purpose therefore, they agreed to assign the twins to become his bodyguard.


    For the main attack force, it was undisputed that Duan Li, Shen Murong and Wang Xiolun would become the Vanguards. After all, their battle prowess was the most massive out of everyone here.


    Fei Longwei on the other hand, at first requested to be on the Vanguard position along with them as well, but Xiahou Yu expressed her concerns that their defenses would be spread too thin if all their powerful people were to become the Vanguards.


    This was because Xiahou Yu, along with Xu Rong were Spellcasters and work best from mid to long range. But since Xiahou Yu was still a beginner, there was only a number of skill arts she could use right now and was mostly buff spells and elementary magic.


    Meanwhile, Xu Rong was more geared towards combat spells and while her Pyromancer magic were top-notch, the stronger ones required time to actually activate.


    Therefore, Fei Longwei serves to act as the buffer zone in between as he was basically an all-rounded Spellcaster.


    For Guo He, his task were to remain on standby and to switch out with either Wei Shang and Wei Wang protecting Shen Lu in cycle if they needed time to recuperate.


    This was because Guo He was practically their party''s lifeline due to his pills and elixirs. If they needed boost or recuperative supplies, he would send it to them.


    Of course, he will have to hand out some of the pills and elixirs to them prior before the battle, but it could only be in limited amount.


    After all, if one or two of them actually requires more supplies than the others, but everyone was busy handling their own stuff in battle to help, it would quickly turn into a disaster!


    Furthermore, the academy would only sell a fix amount of pills and elixirs to everyone, and while he could concoct them on his own, ingredients were also limited as well as time in that equation.


    "Good, now that our roles are confirmed, we will start tomorrow morning to train and get use to our formations.. as of now, this meeting is over." Duan Li said.


    After exchanging some small talks between them, each began to leave one after another. Some headed to their afternoon classes while others wanted to cultivate and do some other stuffs.


    "Let''s see how Di Rou and the others are doing right now.."


    ...

 128 Chapter 127: King of Chickens!

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    Tap! Tap!


    Arriving at the courtyard, Duan Li could see rows of chickens standing side by side forming straight lines, reminiscent to those in the army.


    Seems like there were a dozen of them altogether!


    At the forefront, was Cucko, standing mightily as the leader of the pack!


    But when Duan Li took a closer look, he was stumped!


    Holy-Moly!


    The heck?!


    Cucko''s cultivation level is already at the Level 3 of the Qi condensation realm!


    The last time Duan Li saw it, the latter was just at the Level 1 like the rest of the chickens here!


    Hais!


    Seems like my blood is doing some heaven-defying metamorphosis to these chickens eh?


    Would they turn into a dragon in the end?


    I wonder if the Heavens is alright with this..


    "Di Rou, update me on your task." said Duan Li.


    "Yes master! We''ve managed to round up all the chickens in the courtyard. At first, they were quite reluctant to go out from their hiding spots but after I told them that this was under your command, they swiftly listened." Di Rou explained.


    Oh?


    They all can understand human language instead of just Cucko?


    Interesting!


    Well, its to be expected since Cucko could understand me too.


    "These chickens are unlike anything that I have ever seen before! To think that they would possess cultivation level!" Wei Shang by the side said in disbelief as his little brother, Wei Wang nodded in agreement beside him.


    There is even a chicken that is at the Level 3 of the Qi Condensation realm!


    What the hell is going on here?!


    "These chickens have also bathed in the blood essence before that you both had yesterday, and it somehow induced their evolution to become as such." Duan Li replied casually.


    Hearing this, the both of them casted a gaze of suspicion towards Duan Li.


    If it were monsters that possesses monster cores, we would have understand..


    But these are your everyday poultry chickens that was usually reared to become food!


    "But I thought that normal chickens do not possess monster cores.. so even if they come into contact with the most potent of blood essences, there would not be any single change to them, in fact, they would actually just die straight away!" Wei Shang said.


    Duan Li sighed as he shook his head.


    "That''s because you don''t know where the origin of those blood essences were.." Duan Li said mysteriously.


    Ahem!


    "No matter, so tell me how have things gone out so far?" he swiftly continued so that they won''t pursue the matter as he turned towards Di Rou.


    "Yes Master! So in total, there are 13 chickens, with this singular one that appears to be their leader. I have divided them into 3 division with 4 chickens each, and have already told them the areas where they should patrol frequently on." Di Rou answered, seemingly to not care nor baffled by these peculiar chickens in front of her.


    "Right now, we are still discussing on the matters of how to report things if they were to encounter any intruders.. this was difficult because they can understand us, but we just can''t understand them!" Wei Shang by her side said frustratingly.


    Cuckk! Cuckk!


    "Hmm? What is it?" Duan Li said as he turned towards Cucko.


    Eh?


    The three of them frowned.


    This leader of the chickens tried to communicate with the Lord?


    "Futile! As if humans could understand what you are say-"


    Before Wei Shang could even finish his sentence, Duan Li swiftly replied to Cucko.


    "I understand." Duan Li said as he nodded.


    Pu!


    Wei Shang got choked by his own words.


    Shit! I almost bit my own tongue!


    How the heck is our Lord able to understand what this Chicken was saying at all?!


    Or is he actually doing that on purpose just to caught me off guard?


    Hey! I almost died tragically there!


    "Y-You are really able to understand what this chicken was saying?" he asked sounding a little bit indignant.


    "Indeed.. Cucko here just said that they could communicate with you two telepathically if you just hold out your palm right in front of them.." Duan Li answered.


    Oh? Just like that?


    That''s simple enough!


    Wei Shang hold out his palm facing Cucko.


    Peck!


    ARGH!


    Wei Shang jumped up as he shrieked in pain.


    His palm just got pecked by Cucko!


    "Damn it! What''s your problem?!" Wei Shang bellowed out towards Cucko.


    Although as a cultivator, he was long used to being injured and could persevere through numerous types of pain, getting pecked by a chicken was definitely a first for him!


    Right after the fright, he was just about to go forward and slap that impudent chicken in the head before a voice resounded inside his mind.


    "Settle down fool."


    Eh? What is this voice?


    "It''s me, Cucko, King of the Chickens!" the voice replied haughtily.


    "It''s.. this.. how is this possible?" Wei Shang said as his jaw dropped.


    Duan Li chuckled.


    "Since you had tempered your body with the blood essence, naturally, they run inside your veins. Cucko pecked your palm to fuse its blood with yours using the blood essence as a medium to communicate." Duan Li explained.


    Ah.. so that''s how it is..


    "Although.. you had to be pecked another 12 more times since there are still another 12 chickens here.." Duan Li added.


    "..." Wei Shang and Wei Wang.


    They could only hold out their palm with helplessness and resignation and let the chickens do it.


    Peck! Peck! Peck!


    ...


    "Di Rou, go meet up with Shen Lu later on and temper your body with the blood essence. Not only would it increase your physical body strength and potential, it would also allow you to communicate with Cucko and his brothers as well." Duan Li instructed.


    "Di Rou understands Master!" she replied.


    Duan Li then proceeded to instruct her and the twins to teach these chickens any Shinobi Skill arts like concealment or stealth arts if possible.


    He intended for them to not only become the security system within his residence court, but also as a special intelligence task force!


    After giving them their orders, Duan Li then headed out to the Library of the academy where he continued to read some more books regarding basic skill arts such as palm, fist and sword arts.


    To his surprise, reading these books was so easy that he only had to breeze through them and could finish roughly a hundred books within an hour!


    Those around him had mixed reaction to this sight, some who knew how capable Duan Li were marveled at him, some were indifferent, but there were also others who looked at him with contempt.


    "Hey, that''s the guy I was talking about! His fame right now continues to shoot through the roof!"


    "So that''s how he looked like.. pretty standard I must say.."


    "Don''t judge him by his outlook, he is stronger than Shen Murong and even two seniors couldn''t hold out a candle against him during a duel match along with 8 other participants at the same time!"


    "What?! Are you for real?"


    The crowds continued to whisper as their gazes locked onto him, turning Duan Li to become like an exotic animal in a zoo.


    Feeling uncomfortable, Duan Li left the Library and headed out to the Cafeteria to eat.


    "Hey, its Duan Li! Where are the rest of your party members?" a voice said from behind him as they queued to get their food from the serving trays.


    Eh?


    Turning his head around slightly, Duan Li recognized these two familiar individuals right away.


    "Ahh its senior Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin!" Duan Li said as he bowed a little bit.


    This was a form of respect one should show against their seniors, no matter how strong their cultivation realm were.


    After all, if one does not have any form of honor and respect to anyone just because they were strong, they''re just the trash of society!


    Facing against an enemy though, that''s an entirely different thing altogether.


    In the world of cultivation, cultivators with a lifelong feud would curse at each other''s mother, father and ancestors!


    "Most of them had classes, while others were busy with their own stuff.." Duan Li answered.


    "I see.. well, let us sit together!" Wu Jin said with a hearty laugh.


    As they eat on the same table, there were others who tried to listen to their conversations, but they did not dare to do it so openly with Duan Li''s fame and the two Seniors beside him.


    Dong Jinghai recalled how they were still bewildered at their loss against him, a fresh junior at that.


    At which, Duan Li shrugged it off and chuckled as he said;


    "Seniors, had it been a real battlefield where you two are coming at me with your life on the line.. I would probably lose.."


    "Don''t be too humble, we too know of how much you were holding yourself back in that fight before, but its fine!" Dong Jinghai said, his impression of Duan Li grew favorable.


    "Speaking of the real battlefield, the monster stampede is just around the corner.. there would be bound to be many casualties this time around.." Wu Jin sighed.


    ...

 129 Chapter 128: A gift and a problem!

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    "Indeed.. to think that the situation would be so drastic that it requires 6,000 students to participate in the subjugation.. even to the extent of taking in Late and Middle stage Foundation establishment realm students.. its practically sending them to their deathbed!" Dong Jinghai said in full lamentation as he downed his drink.


    It was only when Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai mentioned this that Duan Li realized it as well.


    This caused him to contemplate into the matter of retaliation from ''Time'' even deeper.


    "My party may be able to survive the stampede.. but the same could not be said with the others.. was this part of the consequences?"


    In fact, what worries Duan Li the most right now, was the fact that this monster stampede might not just end on this single wave.


    What if they keep on coming waves after waves?


    With their casualties keep on increasing, then it wouldn''t matter even if the Sun Dragon descended or not, a lot would''ve already died by then!


    Hais!


    Duan Li sighed.


    This was something that he had no idea on how to solve with at the moment. But since he had thought of this, naturally, the upper echelons and management of the academy would surely have realized this as well.


    Furthermore, since the Emperor knows about it as well now, and with that brilliant mind of Liu Sheng Juan, they would''ve most probably came up with a plan already.


    Therefore, nodding his head to Dong Jinghai''s words, he tried to give a more positive outlook into the whole situation.


    "The academy might have already devised a method to reduce the casualty..but I guess it was only inevitable that some would still be unfortunate in the upcoming stampede with such scale.." Duan Li said slowly.


    "You''re right.. no matter how hard we try, we just can''t save everyone. Besides, we are cultivators, the day we decided to walk onto this path, is the day we should have been prepared for the worst." Wu Jin said, gaining clarity back into his eyes.


    Dong Jighai nodded as well.


    "Speaking of which, you should be grouped with your party right? Will you be fine with just the 10 of you?" he asked, feeling quite concerned.


    No matter how strong Duan Li and his party was, they would be facing a huge number of monsters that quality alone wouldn''t just cut it.


    "I think we should be fine, we planned to be on the defensive side." Duan Li replied honestly.


    "That will be for the best. I assume the other Lord class students would do the same as well." Wu Jin said.


    Ohh?


    I forgot that there are other Lord class students in the academy as well!


    I wonder what kind of person they are..


    After some more idle chat, Duan Li left the canteen and headed over to the academy''s management office.


    It''s time for him to apply for his 1 Star Lord class rank!


    ...


    Knock! Knock!


    "Come in." a familiar voice inside the room said.


    "I''m here to- Ah! Senior Teacher Hong Xin, pardon me, it''s been a while.." Duan Li said as he respectfully bowed.


    He was the Senior Teacher in charge of the First trial before, where the Millennium Yidara Tree resides to test on the aptitude of new students for the academy.


    "Oh? It''s you.." Hong Xin said in surprise as his countenance turned a bit pale.


    He still remembered the ruckus Duan Li had made before that rattled the entire populace of the Empire by awakening the tree which now calls itself as Ancestor Zong. In the end, he had to submit written reports to numerous figures about the phenomena that had taken him a few nights of his sleep!


    This fella is a trouble-maker.. I should directly ask what he wants and let him leave as soon as possible!


    "Yes it has been a while haha.. what is it?" he said with an awkward laugh.


    "Umm.. I am here to submit my application to apply for my 1 Star rank Lord class.." Duan Li replied as he handed out a paper form.


    Hong Xin took the form and analyzed it swiftly. After doing a triple check that Duan Li had met all the criteria, he pressed his personal stamp onto the paper and handed it out back to the other party.


    "Your request has been granted. Pass this application form to the receptionist and they will give you your token." he said as he quickly made himself appeared busy by flipping through report papers while clutching at his forehead with a stressful look.


    Eh? That was fast!


    "I-I see.. thank you very much.. pardon me for disturbing you.."


    After quietly closing the door and leaving the former''s office, he couldn''t help but to wonder why Senior Teacher Hong Xin felt somehow a little bit distant to him..


    Did he do something wrong?


    Nah.. perhaps he was busy.. I should come over next time to cheer him up..


    ...


    "Thank you for waiting and congratulations! From now on, you are officially a 1 Star rank Lord class!" said the receptionist as she handed out Duan Li''s token.


    She knew that there were only quite a handful number of students that had the guts to become a Lord class due to its steep requirements, but she never encountered one that had managed to officially become one in the shortest amount of time!


    Even the previous fastest record was about 3 months before that person could officially earn the 1 Star rank Lord class token!


    "Thank you.." Duan Li said as he returned a smile.


    Suddenly, he felt a calling from one of his communication jade slip.


    "Hello? Duan Li boy! Come over to the Principal''s office now, we have something to give you and one bad news, quickly come over!" the message said.


    It was from Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi.


    A gift and a problem?


    Duan Li shook his head as he chuckled.


    Now that is what you call a balance!


    ...


    Knock! Knock!


    "I am here, what''s up?" Duan Li said casually as he walked into the Principal''s office.


    Looking at the latter being so casual caused the Principal''s brows to twitched.


    I am the Principal of the academy here! Show me some face will you?!


    Sighing deeply, he decided to ignore it.


    After all, if he were to compare the status between them, Duan Li was no longer just a mere student of the academy, but the Imperial Overseer of the Empire as well right now.


    "We have discussed with the Emperor regarding your safety in the upcoming monster stampede, and he showed his concerns as well." the Principal said.


    "Thus, he granted you three Guardian Knight puppets. It''s of the highest quality and could therefore house a High quality spirit stone as its power core." he added.


    The Guardian Knights were the most powerful of all puppets but was extremely difficult to make as well, and they were forged by the greatest Blacksmith clan in the Empire, the Tong clan!


    In addition, their prices were astronomically expensive such that only the Royal palace and the academy could afford to buy them!


    Even the academy only has two of them guarding the main entrance, yet Duan Li received three of them!


    This just shows of how the Emperor was placing an utmost value onto Duan Li.


    Huala!


    Three Guardian Knight puppets emerged from the Principal''s spatial ring.


    They were tall of about 2 meters in height, donning the full-plate Imperial class armor with a chrome finishing to it as well as a golden cloak each behind them, making them appear majestic and powerful!


    However, in order to hide the fact that the Royal family was helping Duan Li, the Imperial emblem was left out from the cloak as well as some rudiment modifications were made onto the armor itself.


    With a glance, perhaps only a tinge of resemblance to the Guardian Knights of the Royal palace could be seen from it, effective enough to dispel such thoughts from others.


    "With these Guardian Knight puppets, you should be able to preserve your life if you encounter any sorts of dangerous situations, so use them well!" the Principal said with a tone of envy to it.


    With bright eyes, Duan Li cast his Soul sense - Tetra Unsealing arts onto them in order to analyze their capabilities.


    [High quality puppet - requires High quality spirit stones as the power core. Middle quality spirit stones could be used as well at only 20 percent of its full prowess.]


    [Combat capabilities - Middle Stage Nascent Soul realm maximum, Early stage Golden core realm minimum]


    [Has several flaws, could be improved further.]


    The voice of the Mirealithians echoed in Duan Li''s mind as he nodded in satisfaction.


    Not bad! This should prove me useful in a pinch during the monster stampede later on!


    Storing the three Guardian Knight puppets into his spatial ring, Duan Li then asks;


    "Now.. about the problem, what is it?"


    With a grim countenance, Wang Guozhi stepped forward.


    "You may not know, but I am part of the scout division of the Empire other than a Senior Teacher of the academy." he said.


    "While I was at the Royal palace, a new update from my team came in.. they brought the news that.."


    "The Monster stampede wouldn''t be coming over next week.. but in two days!"


    "And their numbers increased to.. 50,000!"


    ...

 130 Chapter 129: Plan changed?!

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    What? The number of monsters increased to 50,000?!


    That is an insane increment!


    "When was this confirmed?" Duan Li asked as his countenance changed.


    "It appears that the change was abrupt.. right after we finished our meeting too.. therefore it''s safe to say that this change was due to.. Time!" Wang Guozhi replied.


    Due to this, the academy had to overhaul their plan and included the Second and Third squad as part of the advance attacking force. This was because there was no way the academy could increase their manpower to more than 6,000..


    If they did, that would just be sending the juniors to their deaths!


    "What about the military?" Duan Li asked, turning his head towards the Principal.


    The latter shook his head and sighed as he replied;


    "According to the non-agression pact, the military are not allowed to do any activity outside the borders. As you know, the other seven Empires out there excluding our neigbour Liu Empire are all behemoth existences that we shouldn''t provoke."


    "It''s thanks to this treaty that we are not dragged into their battlefield and wars.. if they ever found out that we did not honour the treaty, no matter for whatever reason it may be, they would use that as a cause for them to rally their forces and occupy our Empire!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li couldn''t help but to grit his teeth in frustration.


    Damn it!


    It''s true that there were wide rivers and deserts surrounding their Empire that were filled with numerous creatures and other dangerous hazards, and these had played their part in keeping their Empire safe from the other outside forces for a very long time now, but actually, if they focused their effort, those obstacles would be nothing for them!


    It was only because of them honoring the treaty that they did not did as so.


    However, that does not meant that those outside forces were not looking for any opportunity to march into their Empire. In fact, the land where the Jiu and Liu Empire occupies now were sandwiched in-between the other four empires in the four cardinal directions.


    Although their distances were vast and far apart, the land of Jiu and Liu Empire were still a strategic location that could be occupied to provide a two-front attack against any of the other three empires!


    The only reason why they hadn''t done that just yet was again, due to the non-agression pact. For some reason, no one wanted to be the first to earn the title of a dishonorable Emperor or Empire by breaking the treaty first.


    This was why the Jiu Empire had to keep their hands clean at all cost!


    Hais!


    "The only thing that the Empire could do right now is to dispatch the military to guard the nearby villages in case of some rogue monsters were able to enter from our encirclement. Even as we are speaking at the moment, they were already on their way to the respective villages." said Ling Yu by the side.


    "That''s right, but the effectiveness would be quite limited because we had to spread our military forces thin due to the sheer number of villages on the north. All in all, there''s got to be more than 50 villages out there alone!" Wang Guozhi added.


    In perspectives, the majority of military personnel consisted mainly of cultivators lead by the Offcial Knights. Although their numbers were far more than the total number of students in the academy, these cultivators were uneven in their cultivation realm.


    Furthermore, as they were not endowed with the same privileges as the student of the academy, where the Empire gave their resources to aid the students, these cultivator soldiers only had their numbers to make up for the lack of their quality.


    Therefore, the majority of them has a very low cultivation realm, averaging at the middle stage of the Qi condensation realm and the highest around Early stage of the Foundation establishment realm.


    However, they were not to be mistaken as weak and useless. In fact, even a Nascent Soul realm expert would find themselves to be in deep trouble against them in their proper formation and stratagem.


    But since they had to guard all those villages, their only strength in numbers were diminished greatly and only the Official Knights would be reliable enough to fend off against any rogue monsters.


    In addition, the Empire could not afford to go all out in sending their armies to these villages as there were also other influences within the Empire that they had to suppress, which if left unattended, might decide to cause some ruckus.


    Some of the soldiers also had to be stationed near the mountain passes as well, where the border between the Jiu and Liu Empire met.


    Since the Liu Empire was a neighbour, they should have already caught wind of the Jiu Empire''s current predicament, and without these soldiers bolstering their border, the Liu Empire might start to get some fancy ideas of pushing the border further to enlarge their territories!


    "The retaliation from ''Time'' should definitely not be underestimated. Just this change alone had the Emperor fell into a headache and had to resort to these drastic means." the Principal sighed.


    "But an increase of 20,000 monsters.. would deploying the Second and Third squad be enough?" Duan Li asked.


    "Definitely not. The Second and Third Squad consisted of Core formation realm experts and even before the increase, despite being officially stated to be put on standby, these two squads were actually planned to be immediately deployed before the monsters could even arrive at the First-front in order to reduce the overall student casualties on the battlefield." Ling Yu said.


    Hearing this, Duan Li frowned as it was different than what he was informed with at first.


    "Why is that?" he asked.


    "The actual plan was like this; the Second and Third squad needed to be grinded so that they could advance to the Fifth squad, and this monster stampede would be the perfect place for them to temper themselves. They have the objective to slaughter at least 3,000 of the monsters before retreating." Ling Yu answered.


    "Then the Fourth squad, being a medical team, would help the Second and Third squad to recover back their peak conditions so that these two squads could reposition themselves and put on standby behind each of the three fronts."


    "After which, the Fifth and Sixth squad, consisting of Golden Core realm experts, would jump in together to whittle down another 7,000 of the monsters before retreating along with the Fourth squad, leaving only 20,000 for the First squad and the rest of you to handle."


    The Vice-Principal nodded as he sipped down his tea.


    "That''s right, according to my best estimates and calculations, with only 20,000 monsters of 1 Star rank to handle, only around 500 of the students would be severely injured but could be nursed back to full health with the help of the Fourth squad."


    "But in consideration to being realistic, there would be casualties as well.. around a few dozens or so. But in return, the rest would receive an invaluable experiences that could bolster our Empire''s overall might in the future!" he said.


    Duan Li fell into a contemplative silent as he listened to them.


    No wonder the academy wasn''t as concerned in deploying 6,000 of the student populace into the battlefield..


    They really did have some plans in their mind!


    But as for those casualties, it would be inevitable, they were cultivators after all.


    The Principal sighed.


    "Since it had come to this.. the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad were already being deployed to the Blastwinter desert to whittle down the enemy numbers. They have the objective to slaughter at least 15,000 of the monsters before retreating."


    "The Second and Third squad''s slaughter quota was increased from 3,000 to 5,000 and they should be able to achieve it, albeit at a slight cost.."


    "But still in the end, around 30,000 monsters would rush towards the three fronts.. and that is 10,000 more than what we initially planned for.. we fear that with these numbers.. even ignoring the injured ones, the casualties alone would be in three digits.."


    All of them had downcasted looks on their face, even the Vice-Principal whom appeared calm drinking his tea slowly, had an obvious discontent to his face of the entire situation that was unfolding before them.


    "If you''re thinking that we should deploy our strongest Subjugation squads, the Eight and Ninth Squad, Liu Sheng Juan had opposed vehemently on such an idea." the Principal said.


    "He feared that there would be unaccounted variables from behind the scene that would add to the chaos.. such as the appearance of 2 Star or 3 Star monsters from another direction, in which case, would be their job to handle." he added.


    Thinking up to here, Duan Li nodded as a struck of idea appeared in his mind.


    Turning his head towards Wang Guozhi, Duan Li asked;


    "According to the scouts, what are the cultivation realms of these 1 Star monsters?"


    "Hm? They are mostly Middle stage Foundation establishment realm monsters.. why? Did you figure something out?" Wang Guozhi answered as he looked at the latter''s expression.


    Hearing Wang Guozhi putting it out like that, the rest of them had their attention piqued as well.


    Could this fella had possibly figured something out to escape this current predicament?


    Duan Li was in a daze when he heard that.


    That''s like Komodo back then!


    If memory serves him right, back when he was just at the Early stage of the Foundation establishment realm, he could already went toe to toe with Komodo, and that was when the Spiritual Qi in the surroundings were limited in that final fight!


    Heck, he could even beat the Supreme Salamander in that condition, a Two star rank greater species monster!


    So.. Middle Stage Foundation establishment realm monsters?


    Duan Li grinned.


    ...

 131 Chapter 130: Heading out!

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    "Why are you grinning? This is a grave matter!" the Principal frowned.


    He couldn''t help but to feel a little bit exasperated looking at the other party''s grinning face!


    Is this fella right on his head?


    "I have an idea. But before that though, a single question still lingers on my mind. Wouldn''t it be far more simpler if the Nascent soul realm experts are take things into their own hands?" Duan Li said.


    The Vice-Principal shook his head.


    "Things are not that simple. In the Empire, there are many hidden influences that requires us, the loyalist faction of the Emperor, to suppress them by just staying put here in the capital. If even we are to head out, who knows what sorts of problems they might cause." he said.


    "That''s right. Furthermore, there aren''t many Nascent soul realm experts that the Empire could freely command. Even if we include all the Senior Teachers in the academy which are all in the Nascent soul realm level, most of them belongs to many other factions or clans and they have their own precedence to prioritize for." the Principal chimed in.


    Duan Li nodded in realization.


    "But enough of that, what is this plan of yours?" he said growing impatient.


    Duan Li scratched the back of his head, "Principal, I am quite confident that I could reduce the number of the monsters by a few thousand.."


    Pu!


    The Principal almost had the urge to jump out from the window when he heard this.


    This brat! Isn''t he getting way over himself now?


    "I''ve seen what you can do before, but even if you are already at the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, and are several times more stronger than before, there is no way you could just head out there alone to test yourself!" the Principal bellowed.


    One-man army against a wave of 50,000 monsters?


    Who do you think you are? Some kind of an Immortal hero?


    Well technically you are, but that''s only legitimate a few years later!


    If you were to accidentally die over there, what will I have to say to the Emperor?!


    Surprised by the Principal''s sudden temper, Duan Li couldn''t help but to shirk his head to his body a little bit.


    "C-calm down.. It''s not like I''m going to fight to the death.. I will just slay a few of them myself and then will retreat if things gets too difficult.." Duan Li said.


    "No means no!" the Principal decisively answered.


    Wengg!


    A whip appeared on his hand.


    Seeing this whip, Duan Li''s natural reflexes had him skidding quickly to the back of the Vice-Principal to hide.


    That over there is the weapon of a demon!


    "Wait.. his idea sounds quite amusing." the Vice-Principal said as he sipped down his tea casually.


    "No, we shouldn''t let him indulge in such ideas, the stampede this time around has too many unaccounted variables that it would be dangerous if he head out there alone just to prove himself!" the Principal immediately refuted.


    "I know of what you are concerned about, but did you forget? The Emperor has gifted him the Imperial Nine-Six Summon talisman himself. That single talisman had the ability to teleport both the Emperor and the Supreme Knight together in the blink of an eye. Against them, even eliminating 10,000 monsters wouldn''t be an issue at all, much less escaping." the Vice-Principal reminded at which Duan Li quickly nodded to this.


    That was also his plan all along if the situation turned to be too messy for him.


    "Yeah! Besides, I have some other items that could protect my life too, such as that wooden treasure box that could morph into anything, the jade wrist with spatial barrier that the Emperor gave me, and the three Guardian Knight puppets! I can do this..!" Duan Li said continuously, trying to convince the other party.


    "T-This.. fine! But Zhang shi, you will take responsibility for this!" the Principal finally relented as he stared at the latter.


    "No problem." the Vice-Principal casually replied, after which he whipped out several items from his spatial ring.


    First, was a map. Drawing red lines onto that map, he explained the fastest route that Duan Li should take.


    Next, was a twin white jade known as the jade beacon. The idea behind this twin jade is simple, as the name implies, it can be used to track the location of each other by casting one''s soul sense into it. In addition, they could also see the surrounding of the other jade, which would be effective to know of Duan Li''s situation anytime.


    Third, was a manual book called Sparrow Footwork Formula. This was a movement skill art which would allow Duan Li to increase his speed by burning excessive spiritual Qi at the rate of 1:10. The skill would be quite easy for Duan Li to learn but is extremely demanding as well in terms of spiritual Qi consumption.


    "Take them, and this movement skill art should allow you to retreat easily if the need arise. But, destroy that manual book once you studied it. It''s one of the secret arts from my clan, so I wouldn''t want others to learn of it." he said.


    "This.. Thank you Vice-Principal!" not expecting the other party to impart him an important skill art just like that, Duan Li was filled with gratitude towards the latter.


    The Vice-Principal waved his hand casually, "Its nothing, just make sure to arrive back safely here by midnight and let the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Squad handle the rest tomorrow. You just do what you can and then retreat."


    Soon after, Duan Li finally left the Principal''s office in a happy mood as he couldn''t wait to immediately set course to his destination.


    "Are you sure about this?" the Principal asked with concern.


    "Don''t worry, he is the chosen one after all." the Vice-Principal chuckled as he replied and then continued to sip down his tea.


    If even he could not make it, then our quest to change our fate would be laughable and nothing more than a pipe dream..


    ...


    Duan Li left the academy through another gate that requires a special token to exit, which the Principal conveniently gave him beforehand.


    Currently, he was on the move to the express Airtrain station on the North of the capital.


    "Duergar the sword should be inside ''that'' room within my dantian along with the others. I should call him out."


    Weengg!!


    A sword-shaped earring materialized as it dangled on his right earlobe.


    "Eh, Young Master? Why did you call me.. We were having fun at card games.." the sword complained.


    "Oh? You''ve finally grown a pair of big balls that gave you the guts to question me now?" Duan Li replied with narrowed eyes.


    For this sword of his, Duan Li had to exert his dominance over it. Otherwise, it''s cocky personality would resurface once more.


    Seeming to realize this, the sword sweated as it quickly apologized.


    "F-Forgive me Young Master! I have truly misspoken this time around!"


    "You''d better, otherwise don''t blame me for going overboard, hmph!" Duan Li snorted as he replied menacingly which caused the sword to shirk even further.


    "Anyway, we will be heading to the battlefield soon, you should prepare yourself!"


    Hearing this, the sword quickly became happy.


    "Battlefield? HAHA! It''s been such a long time since I''ve been to one that my metals began to rust! What are we fighting against Young Master?" the sword asked energetically.


    "Oh, its nothing worth mentioning for your caliber, we will just be fighting against 50,000 One Star monster stampede, it should be a breeze for you." Duan Li replied casually with an indifferent expression, but inwardly he was laughing hard!


    Although this sword of his was undoubtedly a supreme existence that had unparalleled might in the past, or so it claimed to be, it also had a cowardly personality somehow.


    And as expected, the sword froze after hearing that they would have to fight against 50,000 monsters!


    Cough! Cough!


    "Young Master, can I get a sick leave today? I''m not feeling so good.. must be because of the tea that Dilong made for me just now.. Damn that Earth dragon! How dare she do this to me!" the sword bellowed out, trying to act angry.


    "Eh? Don''t tell me that you can''t handle some puny monsters and are trying to hide in safety?" Duan Li said teasingly.


    Hearing that, the sword''s ego made a refutement on reflex.


    "Hah! Me, afraid against some meager insignificant ants? Even if the Primordial dragon ancestor himself were to descend down to this mortal realm to wreak havoc, I would still have stood tall to cut at its genital to feed at the fishes!"


    Duan Li chuckled as he replied sarcastically, "Oh? You sure are quite dependable! That''s a very good battle spirit you''ve got there. I''m expecting great things from you later on, do not disappoint me!"


    The sword cried.


    Damn it.. my stupid mouth!


    ...


    Duan Li soon boarded the express Airtrain and it would take him roughly an hour to arrive at his destination, just before evening.


    He did not bring any of his followers along because if things comes to worse, it would be difficult for him to retreat while taking care of others.


    Besides, he was just trying to see on how strong he had become and this monster stampede would be a way for him to let loose completely without others obstructing him.


    ...


    After an hour of Duan Li''s departure at the Principal''s office..


    "Look, he already boarded off the Airtrain, from here on out, it should take him another hour to arrive at the border." the Principal said as the rest nodded.


    The Principal, Vice-Principal, Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu were currently casting their soul sense onto the jade beacon to observe Duan Li when someone suddenly came knocking.


    Knock! Knock!


    A teacher came in and he was surprised to see what they were doing.


    "What is it? If it''s not important, don''t disturb us and tell me tomorrow morning!" the Principal said with a frown.


    What audacity to just barged in without my permission!


    "Pardon me Principal, but a lady just came by the Academy entrance gate a few minutes ago.. she goes by the name of Meng Yue and wanted to meet you. She was adamant about it.. so I had to inform you.." the teacher said apologetically.


    Hearing this, everyone''s heart almost stopped beating as they turned their head towards the Vice-Principal slowly.


    Well..


    Sh*t.


    ...

 132 Chapter 131: Arriving at the Blastwinter desert!

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    After half of an hour flying further to the North from the Airtrain station, Duan Li has just reached the Grand Canyon when he felt amazed with what he saw.


    This was a place filled with barren tall cliffs and steep slopes jutting downwards for several dozens and some to hundreds of meters, and the total area stretches to about hundreds of kilometers wide, if not thousands, from the East to West. But from South to North, the total area was only about 2 to 3 kilometers wide.


    According to history, back in the ancient past, the entirety of the Grand Canyon was covered by thick ice all the way to the Blastwinter desert. When it melted, these natural formations were revealed under it!


    As such, due to these natural formations, the Grand Canyon provides a natural barrier or walls for the Northern part of the Empire, and any rogue monsters that had entered the border from the Blastwinter desert would be allowed to enter here and then eliminated easily by the border patrols using the Great balista cannons arranged ontop of the cliffs.


    This was evidenced by the numerous decomposed remains and bones of monsters laying around beneath the cliffs with thick metal rods penetrating at them.


    If going by the original plan, this area would be the Second front where 10,000 monsters would be cramped together and then slaughtered. Perhaps, due to the protection from these cliffs, the number of student casualties would be the lowest here as friendlies could provide cover fire from the high grounds for those fighting below.


    Furthermore, as depicted by the map, this was the final region before the border of the Jiu Empire - where the outskirts of the Blastwinter desert or also the First front, are located.


    After reaching the ends of the Grand Canyon, standing on top of one of the higher cliffs with squinted eyes, he found out that there were already some forward camps being set up by people further up ahead.


    Judging from the Jixue Knights Academy emblem on top of those tents, they must be the camps for the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad..


    According to the newly added plan, these three squads would head out tomorrow morning to the middle region of the Blastwinter desert where they will cross and skirmish with the incoming monster stampede there to whittle down the enemy numbers.


    Their target was at least to eliminate 15,000 of these monsters and it was by no means an easy task. Eventhough the individual strength of the members from the three squads could take out numerous 2 star monsters or even 3 star monsters at once, the numbers of 1 star monsters this time around was simply too huge!


    To put this situation into an analogy, no matter how strong a dam was built to retain a river and control its output, during a heavy thunderstorm, the upper rivers would be overflooded to the extent that the dam would have to increase its overall output in order to keep the base pressure stable, causing low flood to the lower ends of the dam as a result.


    If the dam somehow tried to forcefully retain the overflooded river on the higher ends of it without increasing its output to the lower ends, they risk of compromising the overall structural integrity of the dam, and dam burst situation would be highly likely, which would result in a catastrophic destruction and overflooding to the low lands.


    And thus was the monster stampede this time around, they were just like that unprecedented heavy thunderstorm that was about to hit the dam!


    After the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad reached their goal, the remaining monsters would then be allowed to move towards the outskirts of the Blastwinter desert where the Second and Third squad will receive them and continue the battle in their place to eliminate another 5,000 of them.


    And then after that, these monsters would be redirected to the First, Second and Third fronts respectively.


    Although Duan Li couldn''t see the camps of the Second and Third squads from his position right now, he was sure that they should be placed somewhere around it.


    But he was not interested in finding out where their camps were located, because he was here for another reason; and that was to have the first taste of the stampede before anyone else could!


    "I should head out to the Blastwinter desert soon, it is already evening and I can''t stay for too long there during the night.." said Duan Li inwardly as he bolted off into the distance.


    Pshew!


    ...


    After another half an hour of flying, Duan Li had finally entered the outskirts of the Blastwinter desert. This was a treacherous place on its own where it would be extremely hot, reaching 58 degree celcius in the morning and utmost cold of almost -30 degree celcius at night!


    "Damn.. it''s already this cold and the temperature would only be decreasing as night comes.." Duan Li said as his exhaled breath turned misty.


    One hour later, his eye finally caught sight onto the scene of a large conglomeration of monsters from the distance of about 2 kilometers away from him.


    "Hmm? They seemed to be.. not moving at all? What kind of monsters are they? My soul sense would not reach that far.." Duan Li cupped at his chin.


    As his eyes could not make out the details of the monsters and his soul sense could not cover such a vast distance yet, he turned to ask at the sword.


    "Can you sense what kind of monsters they are?"


    The sword replied, "I''ll try, hang on for a moment Young Master."


    Duan Li wanted to at least know of what kind of monsters he was expecting here. After all, the only thing he knew was that those are 1 Star monsters and nothing else.


    If they seemed to be too strong for him to handle.. well, pack my bags then!


    "They seemed to be a mix between Earth and Fire type of monsters, as for their average battle prowess.. most are only at the Middle stage of the Foundation establishment realm based on their Qi signature.." the sword said.


    Oh? Earth and Fire type of monsters..


    No wonder they could pass through the scorching heat of the Blastwinter desert easily..


    These two types of monsters has high heat tolerance, especially the Fire type monsters!


    "Wait a moment, Earth and Fire type? Am I lucky or what?" Duan Li chuckled.


    Dilong and Zhulong! It appears that the time for you both to level up would be approaching soon!


    Huehuehue!


    "From my observation senses, most of the Earth type monsters had somehow cuddled together with the Fire type monsters.. it cannot be.. that they are brazen enough to engage in a blasphemous cross-breed activity when night hasn''t even come yet?! What gal!" the sword commented in disdain.


    As expected of lower life forms, they can''t even control themselves and were blinded by lust to do such things!


    Pu!


    Duan Li choked when he heard this.


    Fool! If they are cuddling together it''s obviously because they wanted warmth!


    What an unreliable hypothesis!


    Ahem!


    "I don''t think that''s the case.. since night is approaching soon and the temperature is decreasing even further, they had to stop marching and save their body heat by cuddling together. Otherwise they might freeze to the death by nightfall.."


    "Is that so.. turns out that they''re just some weak creatures after all to still be doing that.." the sword remarked with a snort.


    Ignoring the sword, Duan Li has several thoughts flashed inside his mind.


    This would be the perfect time to set up an ambush!


    Tap!


    Duan Li landed on the ground and find himself a natural entrenchment to prepare himself so that he wouldn''t be noticed.


    Woongg!!


    With a flip of his hand, three Guardian Knight puppets materialized, of which he inserted one High quality spirit stone each.


    Wengg!!


    The body of the three Guardian Knight puppets jerked for a moment before their eyes flashed red.


    [System activated.]


    [Boot sequence completed.]


    [Owner identified, Imperial overseer.]


    [Current mode on standby, waiting for orders.]


    "Hmm? These are the voices of the Mirealithians.. these puppets has some System Core in them?" the sword said, feeling deeply intrigued.


    Hearing this, Duan Li couldn''t help but to ask, "System Core? What is that?"


    The sword replied, "Its another ingenious relics from the Mirealithians advanced technology.. they were used for the golem soldiers back then, but I never remembered they ever came into the Tian continent before?" It said feeling puzzled.


    How did the Jiu Empire get ahold of them?


    "I see.. well that''s a mystery for another time. Let me first prepare myself."


    Driving his spiritual Qi to the necklace that was gifted to him by the Emperor, Duan Li called out;


    "Necklace of Armor!"


    Psshiingg!


    Warm lights began to engulf Duan Li with the necklace as the center before spreading throughout the rest of his body, slowly tranforming into a piece of full-set armor from top to bottom!


    Thankfully, he was hidden inside an entrenchment or the lights coming out from the necklace would have definitely attracted the attention of the monsters!


    "Looks like I''ve made the right decision to hide here first.. but the color of this silver armor is just too flashy for my purpose.. not suitable for a sneak attack.."


    I know!


    Weengg!!


    Duan Li called out several of the treasure boxes he had obtained from the Eternal maze before in that last boss fight.


    With a single thought, these treasure boxes of his began to morph and cover the exterior of the armor.


    Since the wooden color of it was dark brown, Duan Li''s armor now looked less striking than it''s previous conspicuoussilver and shiny appearance!


    "This should be good enough!" Duan Li clenched his hand into a fist in excitement.


    Not only that the equipped armors provided him with increased defense power, he could also feel that they''re reinforcing his physical strength by at least one level as well!


    Therefore, in terms of physical prowess alone, Duan Li was confident that he could engage toe-to-toe with any Core formation realm expert with this armor on.


    Duan Li explained his plan to ambush the monsters to the sword.


    "Ohh, that sounds fun! But.. are you sure about this Young Master?" the sword asked.


    "Why am I not? Are you perhaps, scared?" Duan Li replied in a sarcastic tone.


    "Nonsense! Let us go now Young Master, I am ready anytime!" the sword took the bait.


    And so, Duan Li skedaddle silently towards the pack of monsters along the entrenchment slowly..


    ...

 133 Chapter 132: Duan Li going solo-lo-lo~ 1

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    Ssupp!


    Javelin spears morphed from the wooden boxes flew to the left and right side of the entrenchment discreetly along with one Guardian Knight puppet each. Meanwhile, Duan Li himself snuck closer at the monsters slowly from the front, accompanied with the third Guardian Knight puppet behind him.


    His plan was to first surround the monsters from their left and right flank to attack at them simultaneously. With the element of surprise, they should be able to take out a few dozen or hundreds before the monsters could properly react.


    After all, monsters has a slower thought process and reaction time when compared to humans, especially when they panicked!


    Once the monsters finally collected themselves together and began to counter-attack, the two Guardian Knights would retreat slowly, pulling apart their formations to the left and right as if stretching a rubber band.


    When the time is right, Duan Li would then deploy the third Guardian Knight puppet behind him to attack at the center along with the sword as if a wedge, cutting them off which would effectively isolate the monsters on the left and right side into two separate groups!


    Then, the third Guardian Knight puppet along with the sword would try their best to hold onto the remaining and majority of the monsters for as long as they can, acting like the barrier of a dam.


    In that instant, Duan Li would rush forward to the middle and deploy his skill arts to attack the monsters on both the left and right side at the same time!


    This way, he could deploy a pincer attack on both groups of monsters from their front, which would be handled by the Guardian Knight puppets and himself, from their backs.


    In other words, all the three Knight Guardian puppets along with the sword would only act as a diversion for him to be able to isolate and attack the monsters from their vulnerable position!


    Although he wouldn''t be able to eliminate all the monsters here with this method, it was enough if he could reduce their numbers substantially.


    After all, not to mention that defeating all 50,000 monsters here was still inherently impossible for the current him, the other subjugation squads would be able to handle the rest tomorrow, so he does not need to concern himself for too much on how many he could take out by himself.


    There was an old saying that a single man could only do so much in the world.


    But of course, he would only be getting stronger from this point onwards, thus maybe he would be the first to prove that the old saying was wrong!


    Huehuehue!


    Now that Duan Li was this close, he could see that there were indeed numerous types of monsters of Earth and Fire element here, but even in terms of both their appearance and aura, they still pale in comparison to Komodo whom was probably playing with either Dilong or Zhulong right now inside his dantian somewhere.


    This would be a lot more easier than I thought!


    With the sun slowly setting in from the horizon, the sky gradually turned to orange in color, and visibility were reduced.


    The time was now sunset and their color was as if trying to paint the fate of these monsters here - slaughtered!


    "It is time to enact the plan!" Duan Li grinned as his eyes flashed dangerously.


    Inhaling the surrounding air deeply into his lungs, Duan Li circulate his spiritual Qi around his vocal cord in order to magnify his voice volume to the highest level.


    "CHAARGGEEEEEE!!"


    With a single loud bellow to the sky, Duan Li''s warcry had the air vibrated immensely as though a thunder from the heavens has suddenly struck down amidst a calm ocean! This voice of his echoed throughout the whole Blastwinter desert region creating the illusion that it was coming from the collective warcries from a legion of angry soldiers, which immediately startled the resting monsters into a state of panic!


    ROAAARRR!!


    Clang! Clang!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Sounds of clashing from the left and right flank of the monsters could be heard as several dozens of them were being flung into the air by the Guardian Knight puppet''s attack!


    They were not called the Guardian Knight puppets for nothing it seems!


    Just their barrage of continuous attacks had the monsters flying here and there as if papers were being blown by a tornado!


    It was definitely a sight to see!


    ROAAARRR!!


    Within three breaths from the start of their ambush, the Guardian Knight puppets had already managed to slaughter more than 20 monsters!


    These Guardian Knight puppets were equivalent to Nascent Soul realm experts, thus its battle prowess was nothing short of terrifying when it went straight for the kill!


    PSSHH!! PSSHH!!


    As for the flying javelins, Duan Li had previously planted several advance instructions enough for them to attack autonomously without the need for his direct intervention. With each side having around 30 of these flying javelins slitting through the air at high speed akin to the claws from the weapon death scythe, more than 80 of the monsters were being slaughtered left and right, by having either their head or heart pierced directly in that short period amount of time!


    It was as if the death reaper himself has appeared to claim at their life!


    5 breaths of time had passed..


    10 breaths..


    15 breaths..


    The monsters were now gradually adjusting themselves and were able to react better to the attacks from both the Guardian Knight puppets and the flying javelins. Thus, the rate of them being successfully felled from each side began to decrease as the monsters defended themselves instead of trying to get away in a panic as they did previously.


    ROAARRR!!


    Clangg!! Clangg!!


    "Hmm.. the element of surprise is slowly dispelling itself now.. but they had served their purpose.. time for the Guardian Knight puppets to retreat slowly.." Duan Li said as he watched the entire scene from an entrenchement.


    Within the span of that 15 breaths of time, around 500 of the monsters was killed in total. This was a feat only possible during the initial stage of the ambush, but since the effect from the ambush were now becoming ineffective as time passes, Duan Li decided to instruct the Guardian Knight puppets to move to the second phase and retreat slowly.


    Looking at those monsters taking in the bait, thinking that they had pushed their assaulters to the point retreat, Duan Li laughed in his heart!


    "Good.. they''re slowly splitting away.. now, I just need to wait for a little bit!"


    Duan Li''s aim was for each side to have at least 5,000 monsters with them before he would isolate the two groups away with his third Guardian Knight puppet and the sword.


    Only then would he be able to begin his true assault!


    ROAARR!!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    The monsters were getting ahead of themselves as they chased the two Guardian Knight puppets energetically, pulling away from the safety of their mass formation.


    Seeing this opportunity, Duan Li knew straight away that the time for him to act has come!


    "GO!" he shouted out as the third Guardian Knight puppet and his sword bolted to the middle of the enemy spread with a powerful momentum!


    In order for their driving wedge to be as efficient as possible, Duan Li released the wooden plating on his armor and transform them into flying javelins to help reinforce the third Guardian Knight puppet and the sword at holding the enemy line.


    Shiingg!!


    With Duan Li''s silver armor exposed, the monsters had finally caught sight of him.


    He was now floating in the middle of their formation gently, to the left and his right side was the isolated group of monsters respectively, and to his front was the main force of the monsters that were being held by the third Guardian Knight puppet, the sword as well as the other flying javelins!


    "FULL POWER!!" Duan Li bellowed out as his entire spiritual Qi circled furiously in berserk!


    Crack!


    BOOMMMMM!!


    The orange sky of the sunset in the background with Duan Li''s figure floating in the air, sparks coming out from him every so often, that golden pupil of his that seemed to look down onto the world in disdain, and that black hair of his standing up straight like mount.Tai, all of these elements combined together to paint a vivid picture that..


    The War God himself has arrived!


    In that instant, Duan Li had completed his transformation to his most powerful form in a single go. Right now, he was fighting with time and must finish their assault as soon as possible!


    After all, the main force held by the third Guardian Knight puppet and the sword amounts to a staggering 40,000 monsters in total!


    Even if they were powerful existences, they could only hold out for a certain amount of time before they need to retreat or they would risk themselves of running out of spiritual Qi and being overwhelmed!


    Thankfully though, Duan Li''s sudden outburst of powerful aura had the monsters intimidated that their natural instinct to cower in fear against the powerful kicked in, causing them to be in a dazed and vulnerable state.


    "They''re intimidated..? Good! Now they wouldn''t be able to put up a proper resistance for a while! I had to make full use of this opportunity!"


    Raising up his right hand into the air, Duan Li summoned with a single thought of his;


    Come forth, my All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe!


    CRACKLE!


    With Duan Li''s command to summon his most powerful weapon, webs of lightning formed from the 8 cardinal directions in the sky as they simultaneously shot forward to converge onto Duan Li''s right hand!


    When they converged to mold and morph together to become the Great Axe of lightning, upon its complete whole appearance into the world, the Great Axe released a single burst of deafening shockwave that blasted out in all direction!


    BOOOMMM!!


    ROAAARR!!


    The affected monsters that were hit by the shockwave all fell to the ground and their body convulsed rapidly - paralyzed!


    Witnessing this sight, Duan Li himself was stumped silly.


    Holy-Hell!


    Was the Great Axe this domineering before?!


    Eh no time to contemplate!


    Pshaaa!!


    Since Duan Li only had this single weapon in his hand right now, he threw it towards the main force so that the third Guardian Knight puppet and the sword could hold out much longer.


    As if a wild and unstoppable boomerang, the Great Axe spun rapidly in mid air while decapitating the head of the monsters along its path!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Seeing that weapon of his was causing great havoc and pandemonium to the enemy''s main force, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction as he rose both arms to his left and right side respectively.


    Jerking it rapidly, Duan Li gritted his teeth as he deployed his skill art simultaneously on both hands that was clenched into a pair of tight fists!


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    At that moment, it was as if the ends of the world has arrived!


    With Duan Li''s cultivation already reaching the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, this fist art of his was nothing short of deadly and terrifying!


    To put this into a perspective, back when Duan Li was at the Level 9 of the Qi condensation realm, the Principal had once told him to display this fist art of his before entering the Eternal maze so as togauge his battle prowess.


    But who could have expected that Duan Li''s Novice mastery of it had already exceeded the might of the Principal''s Consummation mastery of the same fist art?


    It had to be also noted that back then, Duan Li''s physical body was severely lacking, and he could only unseal his cultivation level to the Level 3 of the Qi condensation realm. In that state however, when he displayed the Adept mastery of the fist art, it had already brought a vivid image of a raging meteor!


    But of course, this powerful effects was naturally only possible because Duan Li had cultivated using all of his three dantians!


    Thus, he was on a whole mythical level than the Principal''s fist ar mastery himself.


    Regardless however, its might was a hard fact and was already undisputable back then!


    And now that Duan Li''s physical body and cultivation had both reached the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, the might he could display from this fist art of his was already at the Major mastery!


    Even when he could theoretically perform the Minor mastery of this fist art back then when he was against the boss monster of the third Maze in the First region of the Eternal Maze before, he wasn''t able to use it due to the extreme limitation of the surrounding spiritual Qi over there.


    But now that he was back into the Tian continent, where he could absorb spiritual Qi as if drinking water without a single care, coupled with the fact that his Qi efficiency was monstrous, this enabled him to have a near limitless supply of spiritual Qi at his disposal!


    Thus, what kind of might would Duan Li be able to display using the Major mastery of this fist art against the monsters with these perfect conditions?


    BOOOMM!! BOOOMM!! BOOOMM!!


    The result was - devastating!


    Duan Li''s Major Mastery of the fist art was terrifying such that with each fist, it displayed an almost perfect replica of a real meteor plunging down from the skies!


    BOOOMM!! BOOOMM!!


    When each fist landed onto the monsters down below, their entire figure was viciously crushed into a meat paste!


    When that fist hits the ground, the ground shook like an earthquake as they broke apart into cobwebs while the ground zero that was impacted directly by the fist were sending tons of soil into the air!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Sounds of crushed body, bones and skull, and the ground breaking apart, echoed throughout the Blastwinter desert as if the land was receiving retribution from the heavens itself!


    Pant! Pant!


    However right now, Duan Li was already near to his limit even when he could replenish his spiritual Qi almost instantly with a single breath due to his Qi efficiency.


    This was because the fist art was taking a huge amount of his spiritual Qi in order for it to form at the Major level of mastery!


    "I didn''t imagine that even with my currentabilities, I could only deploy up to the Major mastery of this fist art, and its spiritual Qi demand.. was already this colossal!" Duan Li said in between his teeth as he panted and breath heavily.


    In addition to this, the Great Axe was also taking a huge toll on his spiritual Qi usage, in fact more than the fist art itself!


    Not only that, it seemed to consume his mental powers as well as Duan Li started to feel a slight headache striking at both temples of his forehead.


    "Well.. that''s the Young Master for you.. even if he is still at such a lowly realm right now.. if he was out for blood, not even a Nascent soul realm expert would want to tangle with him.." the sword commented in awe.


    ...

 134 Chapter 133: Duan Li going solo-lo-lo~ 2

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    Within the camps of the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad..


    Crash!


    A patrolman suddenly barged in amidst an ongoing meeting between the squad leaders and some other personnel from each squad, apparently discussing their battle strategy and formation for the battle tomorrow morning.


    Thus, when this happened, their expression quickly turned sour from being disrupted.


    "What are you doing? Did anyone not tell you that we are currently having an important meeting here?!" one of the personnel within the tent bellowed angrily at him.


    The face from this patrolman was pale as he tried to catch his breath before he could even reply properly.


    "R-Reporting in! Me and my men have witnessed an immense activity currently happening in the middle region of the Blastwinter desert!"


    Hearing this sudden unexpected news, the expression from all the people that were currently present turned extremely grim, especially the three individuals that were sitting around the round table.


    These three were the squad leaders for the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad respectively.


    "What? Has the monster stampede began to move once more?" asked the Fifth squad leader, her tone indicated that she was confused.


    This lady wore a loose robe covering her student uniform right now, effectively hiding her graceful and curvature figure within. But her bright and long azure hair, as well as her beautiful face would still catch the eyes of everyone wherever she went.


    "Xu Liyu, you know that shouldn''t be possible, the cold temperature at night would eventually freeze them to their deaths if they did not stop to conserve their body heat!" said another squad leader with a large body build and bald head.


    This man was the leader of the Sixth squad, Mo Shinfeng. On a first glance, people would often mistook him for a travelling monk, but fortunately, his wild personality would quickly shook that misconception away.


    "Enough. Let the man continue first." said another person who seemed to have the highest amount of authority among the three of them here.


    This was Zhuge Liang, a middle-aged man in his forties that had a calm composure to his look and was also the leader of the Seventh squad.


    "R-Right! Me and my men were 5 kilometers away from the monster stampede when we suddenly noticed a disturbance happening on the the enemy side." the patrolman said as he continued;


    "When we went over to take a look.. the monsters.. t-hey.. they..!" his voice was shaking at this moment that he was stuttering in between his last sentence.


    "Speak coherently!" bellowed Mo Shinfeng, annoyed.


    Isn''t this fella a little bit too dramatic here? Just say it already!


    "Y-yes! The monsters.. they were being flung left and right by someone wearing a silver armor!" the reprimanded patrolman finally said as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva recalling the scene that he and his fellow patrolmen saw.


    After all, it still felt like a fantasy dream to him!


    The moment they noticed that something was happening to where the monsters were, they quickly bolted off to take a look from a closer distance.


    But to think that they were able to witness something so inconceivable before in their whole life!


    A single silhouette, floating gently in mid-air between the enemy''s formation, before transforming to what appears like a lightning war god with all those sparks of lightning dancing around him!


    That had sent shivers down their spine!


    Even the monsters were intimidated!


    And as if that wasn''t enough, that figure suddenly summoned a massive Great Axe weapon which was made up from the congregation of lightning bolts from the 8 cardinal directions, and when that weapon formed a complete whole, it blasted the surrounding with a deafening shockwave that had the monsters hit by it became paralyzed on the spot!


    It was truly a scene unlike any other to see such a huge mass of monsters falling to the ground like that, flip-flopping and convulsing as if a pack of vulnerable fishes that had their ocean taken away right under their noses!


    And finally, the scene that had their mind blowned like almost literally, was that the figure began to punch out with a skill art that seemed to summon out real meteors from his fist to mow onto the monsters down below him!


    That had them truly scared sh*tless!


    The ground shook violently when each of those meteoric fists collided with it, sending cracks everywhere and debris of soil flung into the air!


    Feeling that the situation was unsafe, they no longer dared to stay and decided to head back to the camp to report this matter.


    Therefore, when the squad leaders heard this, they were dumbstruck.


    "What?! There was a person fighting against the 50,000 monsters out there? Isn''t that just courting death?!" said one person within the tent in disdain.


    "Indeed! Must be an idiot whom was too overconfident with himself!" snorted another person as he chimed in.


    The rest also began to converse with each other and mockery, confusion and awe was mixed in between their conversations.


    "Silence!" the three squad leaders bellowed out.


    "Silver armor? Was it Official Knights from the Empire?" Zhuge Liang asked.


    "N-no! That doesn''t seem to be the case.. those armors of his were indeed silver.. but it was not the standard ones that the Official Knights from the Empire were using, these were custom-made!" the patrolman answered.


    "Furthermore, we couldn''t identify who that person was because he was wearing a helmet as well.. but the monsters were annihilated left and right! He was just too powerful.. possibly a Pinnacle stage Nascent soul realm cultivator!" he added as his voice showed a hint of reverence to it.


    "Did you record it using a recording jade slip?" Xu Liyu asked.


    The patrolman shook his head as he replied, "Unfortunately.. we were too dazed by the whole scene that we couldn''t even move.. until the last moment that we had to retreat.."


    "You had to retreat at the last moment, did that person got defeated by the monsters?" Zhuge Liang frowned.


    "What? No! We had to run away because the entire battlefield was being wrecked by that person to the extent that the ground shook like an earthquake and all the debris were being flung away into the air!" the patrolman explained.


    Hearing this, all three squad leaders nodded to each other.


    "We three shall scout that place, and identify the unknown man if he was still there. As for the rest of you, put everyone here on standby in case anything happen! You are to move at a moment''s notice!" they instructed the others strictly.


    Without wasting any more time, the three of them bolted off into the distance guided by the patrolman.


    ...


    Back in the battlefield, Duan Li''s Great Axe had already dissipated some time ago as he could no longer supply the colossal spiritual Qi demand and had to focus his all into his fist art.


    But even then, his spiritual Qi reserves were now extremely low. This was due to the overusage of his meridians from the continuous rapid cycling of Qi around all of his three dantians, his rate of spiritual Qi absorption had significantly plummeted to more than 80 percent of its original efficiency!


    This unexpected state he was in had his battle prowess decreased significantly.


    Thus, Duan Li could no longer perform the Major mastery form of the Nine Fist Shattering Meteor skill art. Instead, he had to notch it down to its Minor mastery form!


    BOOOMM!! BOOOMM!!


    However, the damage he could inflict was reduced as well and the monsters noticed this. Thus, they slowly began to counter-attack more and more!


    "Young Master, we would not be able to hold them off for much longer! We need to retreat soon!" the sword called out to Duan Li in a panic.


    Hearing this, Duan Li gritted his teeth as he summoned Daelius the wolf cub.


    "Arrff! Arrff!!" the cub materialized on top of his helmet, clutching tightly so that it won''t fall off to the ground.


    "Daelius, go fetch the monster cores down below! Take as many as you can and stuff them into this spatial ring!" Duan Li instructed.


    He gave the cub a spare spatial ring hefound among the treasures he retrieved back then.


    "Arrff! Arrff!!" the cub nodded and whipped its tail energetically left and right, bit the spatial ring in between its teeth and bolted off.


    Psheww!!


    Eventhough Daelius was still a wolf cub, the blood of the Fenrir''s species still runs through its veins. Therefore, its speed of movement was nothing short of lightning fast!


    Tap! Tap!


    Monster cores that were tapped by its squishy paw was immediately stored into the spatial ring.


    "Good.. now I need to finish up quickly, there are still some of these monsters left from both of the groups.. damn it.."


    BANG!


    The third Guardian Knight puppet got blown off into the distance as it was hit by a sudden tail strike from the center of the enemy main force.


    When the sword saw this, it immediately scanned its surrounding to identify this new threat.


    Damn it!


    "Young Master! It seems that the Alpha monster from the stampede has begun to make its move!" the sword shouted out as it fended off the barrage of claw attacks from the monsters in front of it.


    "What? An Alpha? We need to retreat now!"


    An Alpha, although rare in making its appearance during a monster stampede, was several times more powerful than the rest. Usually, they are one or two Star higher than the monsters themselves!


    They were mutated species and possesses a certain degree of high-level intelligence that made them extremely deadly!


    Many have speculated that monster stampede was actually organized and commanded by these Alphas, although such claim was rejected by the Empire.


    With a flip of his hand, Duan Li''s signal had all three Guardian Knight puppets to quickly rally together with him as the center.


    "Arrff!! Arrff!!"


    Daelius also came back to Duan Li but showed a sad expression as it was only able to fetch about 30 percent of the monster cores.


    Burning his spiritual Qi in a unique way, Duan Li could slowly feel that his body grew more lighter. This was the result of using the Secret art that the Vice-Principal had imparted to him before..


    Sparrow Footwork Formula!


    This should be able to increase his speed by a good 50 percent!


    Stowing all three of the Guardian Knight puppets along with the javelins inside his spatial ring, Duan Li executed his most profound movement skill art;


    One Step To Reach!


    Pshew!!


    Duan Li''s figure immediately disappeared from the spot he was in.


    Seeing that the enemy that had most of their fellow brothers annihilated, trampled and plastered viciously to the ground was now gone without a trace, the monsters bellowed out to the sky in rage!


    ROAAARRRR!!


    ...

 135 Chapter 134: A Mothers Wrath!

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    Pshew!


    The Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad leader finally arrived at the scene after half of an hour travelling from their camps at neck-breaking speed.


    "Here is the location of where we saw that unknown figure battling against the monsters before.." the patrolman said as he scanned his surroundings nervously.


    Where did that person go?


    Looking at the physical state from the leftover battleground with their very own eyes, they couldn''t help but to swallow a mouthful of saliva each.


    Gulp!


    "The entire ground was devastated!" Mo Shinfeng commented as his eyes opened wide in astonishment.


    Countless chunks of rocks were jutting out from the ground due to the impact of Duan Li''s fist art, littering tons of soil and debris around it.


    For these to occur as such, it would require a tremendous amount of power to be able to do it.


    "Look at all of those dead monsters.. their entire remains were being plastered forcefully to the ground.." Xu Liyu added as she surveyed an area of crumpled rocks.


    Zhuge Liang on the other hand, observed his surroundings calmly with his hands behind his back. He noticed that there were vast traces of burnt marks all over the ground as he nodded repeatedly.


    Some of the monsters even melted and was in a gooey state!


    "It seems that what you said was indeed correct.. these decimated areas were all burnt as if it had collided with some meteors.." he said towards the patrolman feeling intrigued.


    ''Just who exactly is this mysterious figure?''


    ...


    After further assessing the battleground and piecing the hints together, they were able to learn and understand 3 things;


    One, was that there was not just a single individual duking himself against the monsters as was saw by the patrolmen. Instead, there were at least four, including the mysterious man.


    This was evidenced by the different damage marks done onto the enemy such as traces of the monsters being decapitated, punctured, slashed and smashed.


    Two, was that while these 4 individuals were strong, they were only able to eliminate roughly around 8,000 of the monsters before retreating hastily. As for the reasons, they could only make some baseless hypothesis for now.


    And three, was that from the vast damaged areas, they could make out two separate sides, left and right from the middle. These meant that the enemy was split to at least two groups and was being handled separately while the main force of the monsters were suppressed somehow!


    The only thing that had them confused was the damage wounds..


    After all, the 4 different types of damage wounds were on both side as well as further up ahead, excluding the decapitated enemies, which were only present on the North side.


    Did all 4 individuals rotated themselves for each side repeatedly?


    But that would be too much task..


    Tap!


    "I''ve finished the scouting and the enemy''s new position was located up ahead by 30 kilometers to the East from here. They settled down to a new area before resting for the night due to the cold.." said the patrolman who had just came back after being instructed to find the location of the enemy.


    "En! Seems like we are done here too and there are not much to do to hang around anymore. Let us return to the camp to discuss about this situation further and report it to the higher ups." said Zhuge Liang.


    All four of them nodded in agreement.


    Pshew!


    ...


    Pshew!


    "Huu! That was a close one!" Duan Li said in relief. He was now somewhere near the outskirts of the Blastwinter desert.


    He had used the One Step To Reach movement skill art several times to quickly fled the battlefield. Only then did he dare to flew normally after he reached a safe distance away.


    After exhaling another sigh of relief, Duan Li''s face beamed with a wide smile!


    "Eventhough I was short of 2,000 monsters from my initial expectation, I still couldn''t believe that I was able to do what I just did!" he said while laughing out as he clenched both fist and threw them into the air.


    That was a very good feeling of being able to dominate the entire battlefield back there!


    ''Seems like my real battle prowess is actually around Golden core realm.. and my fist art attacks, and possibly the rest of the Nine Legends Edition skill arts too.. each of their might should be on the level of a skill attack from a Nascent soul realm at Major mastery!''


    "Young Master, this was only natural for you, back then.. ehh nevermind!" the sword was about to say some more before it realized something and quickly shut its mouth.


    It was fortunate that Duan Li wasn''t really paying attention to him.


    "Young Master, those Alpha monster.. it would be quite a trouble handling it.." the sword said as he switched to another sentence quickly.


    Hmm?


    "That''s right.. to think that an Alpha was among them.. but the Principal and the rest should already be discussing on what to do about it at the moment.. after all, they could see everything from the beacon jade.." Duan Li said as he cupped at his chin.


    Anyway, time to go back!


    Pshew!


    ...


    Back in the Principal''s office..


    The atmosphere within the room was oppressive such that not a single one dared to utter a single word.


    The Principal and the Vice-Principal included!


    However, the robes of these two enigmatic figure whose status was the highest of all in the academy were currently wrinkled, a little bit tattered and their hairs dishevelled.


    Seeing that Duan Li was finally on course to head back to the academy, all of them could finally breath in relief!


    "H-Hey.. its okay now see? We are confident of his abilities.." the Principal started to open his mouth.


    "Shut it!" an angry shout came from a chiby woman by the side.


    She was Meng Yue, Duan Li''s mother!


    When she first came to know this, her entire face was dark, seething with anger that was about to explode anytime.


    Only after she saw Duan Li was safe without any sorts of injuries on him, did her face softened up gradually.


    But as a result, she had to vent some of her anger away by roughing up both the Principal and the Vice-Principal that were responsible for it all!


    Against her beatings, they were helpless and didn''t dare to retaliate against her due to past traumas.


    "I''m gonna wait for my son by the entrance. The next time you two dared to do something like this ever again, you would pray that I did not find the two of you! Hmph!!" she said as she harrumphed loudly before leaving the room and banging the door hard.


    BANG!!


    Huuu..


    Safe!!


    We are safe!!


    "Sh*t! I''ve never been in such a dangerous situation like that before! This was all your fault!" the Principal bellowed out towards the Vice-Principal.


    "Well.. if I knew that she was coming over, even if this world were to collapse, I would have never agreed to his request either!" the Vice-Principal replied frustratingly as he bent his body down to collect the broken pieces of several of his favorite teacups and pots scattered on the floor.


    Hais!


    "That 3 Star Monster back then, she almost exploded on us when she saw that. Thankfully, Duan Li made the right decision to retreat quickly." the Principal said as he sighed in relief.


    "Indeed, even with Duan Li''s battle prowess right now.. which shouldn''t be possible at someone of his realm yet, had he decided to foolishly fought it.. the likelihood of him being killed is extremely high.. and us too here.." the Vice-Principal added.


    Since they had all witnessed Duan Li''s shocking might through the jade beacon, they now had a good grasp of the latter''s battle prowess..


    Pinnacle stage Golden Core realm!


    "Should we send the Emperor a notice for us to leave the academy to beat that thing up?" said the Vice-Principal as he suddenly thought of a good idea.


    "Oh? I reckon the Emperor would immediately agree. After all, if he too was here, even his status as the Emperor would not protect him from Meng Yue''s wrath." the Principal snickered as he sent out a message through the communication jade slip.


    Shortly after, they got the Emperor''s reply;


    "Permission granted!"


    ...

 136 Chapter 135: Two Top-Notch existences!

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    "HAHA! Look at how fast the Emperor''s replies got here. It would have taken him days normally." the Principal laughed out.


    "If you included Meng Yue''s name in your message, of course he would prioritized it. Back then, the young Emperor did something foolish and got beaten up badly by her." the Vice-Principal replied.


    The principal chuckled as he recalled that tragic beating. After that incident happened, practically no one in their generation didn''t know of who Meng Yue were.


    She was called as the Tyrant of Jiu!


    Even Wang Guozhi and Ling Yu of the junior generation during that time had at least heard of this nickname before, thus they too nodded.


    "Senior elder sister Meng Yue''s might was undisputable back then.. even at such a young age, she had already stepped into the Nascent soul realm level.. if only the Dark Sects did not attack the Empire, she would still be-"


    Just before Ling Yu could finish her sentence, she was stopped by Wang Guozhi. When she turned to him, she saw the latter shaking his head, only then did she realized that she had mentioned a certain name that was considered as a taboo for the older generation.


    Both the Principal and Vice-Principal went silent when they heard that name..


    The Dark Sects..


    That name made them recall some terrible memories of the past..


    The Dark Sects was considered as the most blasphemous of existences in the whole Tian continent. Even the entirety of the Nine Empires jointly labelled them as dangerous criminals of mass murder and worshipper''s of the Satanic ritual.


    They are small in numbers, but their individual prowess, especially their unique ability, could cause mass panic and severe damage to an Empire.


    In other words, each member of the Dark Sects was considered to be at a national level threat!


    "Let''s get changed. We can''t use these robes outside there or people would notice we left the academy." the Vice-Principal said to the Principal after suppressing the terrible memory back into the depths of their minds.


    After all, each of them had a significant losses back then.


    "Yeah.. wanna race of who could arrive there faster and slaughter that bastard whole?" the Principal said.


    Hearing this, the Vice-Principal chuckled, "Oh? Let''s get going then."


    After donning a pair of black robes, both the Principal and Vice-Principal bolted off into the sky as they headed to a certain direction in the North at a neck-breaking speed!


    Psheww!!


    ...


    At the moment, Duan Li had already crossed back into the border and was currently boarding the express Airtrain to return back to the capital city of Nine Lotuses.


    "Arff! Arff!" Daelius playfully ran inside the train as it explored the entire carriage along with the sword.


    Since it was already night time, there were virtually no people other than them boarding the train from the North station to the capital as it was a place close to the border. Therefore, Duan Li wasn''t worried for the cub and the sword to cause any sorts of trouble inside the Airtrain away from his supervision and let them play around.


    "They sure got along well now.." Duan Li commented as he saw them going into the next carriage.


    Well, Its time to cultivate the monster cores now!


    Eventhough Daelius only managed to gather around 30 percent of the monster core drops during the previous battle, it was still a substantial amount nevertheless.


    After all, the total amount of monster cores inside his spatial ring right now numbered more than 2,000!


    Driving his consciousness inside his lower dantian, Duan Li appeared within the mysterious room that Dilong made.


    "Eh Master! What''s up?" Zhulong said as he noticed Duan Li''s figure appearing beside them.


    "Zhulong and Dilong, roughly how many more monster cores would it take for you two to evolve?" Duan Li straightly asked them.


    Hearing this question, both Dilong and Zhulong became excited.


    Could it be that Master had found some good monster cores for us to absorb?


    "It should be around a thousand for us to evolve from this Fetus level to a Newborn level.. provided if the monster cores were of average quality." Dilong replied after thinking for a while.


    "Oh? How many levels of evolution do you guys have?" Duan Li asked out of curiosity.


    Both Zhulong and Dilong then explained to Duan Li regarding the various evolution stages for an Elemental Origin Spirit like them.


    In total there were 6 evolution stages;


    The first stage was the infancy stage - the Fetus level. At this level, they could only exist within the host and was very limited in terms of what bonuses they could provide to the host.


    The next stage would be the Newborn level. This was the first step for them to be able to exist within the physical realm through materialization. At this stage, they could project a spectral body using their consciousness outside of the host. While their abilities to help the host would still be limited, they could already manipulate the surroundings to a certain degree according to their elemental attributes.


    Then, the third stage was where they could finally materialize their own real physical body instead of just a spectral body. Their real abilities and potential would be unlocked at this stage which would vastly aid their host in any sorts of situation including melee fights. This stage was called as the Rookie level.


    The fourth stage of evolution, was the Champion level. Their physical body sizes would start to grow exponentially, sometimes reaching for more than 10 times of their Rookie level body! At this stage, they could cause widespread mayhem if their host weren''t able to control them.


    Then, was the Ultimate level. Only few have ever evolved to this fifth stage and their physical sizes would be even more colossal than before. Everywhere they went, there would be chaos and destruction. Battlefield would be levelled out entirely with their powerful area of attack and they could also already break free from their host at this stage if they wished.


    And finally, the legendary mythical Mega level, the sixth stage of evolution that was only heard of in old tales to scare away children, was so far only achievable for the dragon species, or so as was told by Zhulong and Dilong right now.


    Hearing all six stages of evolution along with their description, Duan Li could already imagine the kind of trouble these two would bring him when they matured, thus he swiftly said;


    "If the two of you planned to cause problems for me in the future, I won''t let you two cultivate anymore monsters cores, do you hear that?" he said with a stern and strict tone as if a father reminding his children to not be naughty.


    "Of course! Dilong would never do that, but Zhulong might!" Dilong answered as she wriggled her worm like body around.


    "Hey! What do you mean by that! I''m not some violent creature! Please don''t listen to her Master.. its definitely not true.. " Zhulong nervously said as he pleaded to Duan Li while flapping his chicken like wings.


    Duan Li chuckled when he heard them bickering like this, especially this Zhulong with his chicken-like appearance, which reminded him of Cucko.


    This Zhulong and Cucko would definitely become best brother if they ever met!


    "Alright, you two should better keep your words! I will cultivate the monster cores now for you two to absorb, so prepare yourselves!" Duan Li said.


    "Hurrayy!! We can be a Newborn level soon!" they both broke out into cheers.


    Retracting back his consciousness, with a single wave of his hand, the entire room was filled with monster cores to the brim as he started to cultivate them one by one.


    ...


    Pshew!!


    Up in the airspace above the Airtrain that Duan Li was currently boarding right now, were two figures bolting through the sky at an unbelievable speed.


    "Seems like you''ve made some improvements in your strength for the past while." the Principal said, a little bit surprised.


    "That is only natural. If it were not because of you who begged me to become the Vice-Principal, I would have long left you to the dust." the Vice-Principal replied as he increased his speed further.


    Pshew!


    They continued bolting through the night skies to soon passed over the Grand Canyon and finally the border.


    "It appears that the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh squad had not yet rested judging from those lights coming off from their main tents. They should be quite busy adjusting their new strategy for tomorrow.." the Principal remarked as they passed over the campment areas.


    "Indeed. But watch out now, since we are already outside of the Empire''s territory,we wouldn''t want anyone here to be able to identify who we are. Let''s not use any signature skill arts later on." the Vice-Principal said.


    The Principal nodded in agreement. After all, even though the non-agression pact does not strictly mention that individuals of their level were forbidden to step out from the Empire, there were still many other scheming people out here that could twist facts to craft out an entirely different rumor!


    Thankfully, since the Vice-Principal was an 8 Star Rank Strategist, he has a plethora of method and numerous networks of information that could counter such a rumor even if it was spread.


    Furthermore, he knew where the scouts of the other empires around them were hiding within these wilds, so they were able to avoid those areas with no trouble at all.


    The both of them were among the top notch existences within the Empire''s lineup, so their speed and overall ability were well-above the standard level of the normal Nascent Soul realm experts!


    Thus, after an hour of bolting through the air from the academy non-stop, they finally reached their destination.


    "Looking at these aftermath of destruction caused by Duan Li, they looked far more impressive in reality." the Principal said as he nodded in satisfaction.


    As expected of the chosen one, even while still in the Foundation establishment realm, Duan Li was able to brought out a fighting prowess almost equal to the means of a Nascent Soul realm!


    Impressive indeed!


    They had only been able to peer through the situation by using the jade beacon before, thus they weren''t able to see the entire thing perfectly.


    "Indeed.. let''s see now.. seems like the enemy has relocated their position 30 kilometers away from here.." the Vice-Principal said after sensing the environment using his Soul Sense.


    Nodding to each other, they reigned in and retracted their aura as close as possible to their body.


    Their objective this time was to eliminate the Alpha monster only, without disturbing the rest of the monsters.


    After all, an Alpha monster would be too much of a task for the Subjugation squads tomorrow morning to handle when taking into consideration of the thousands of other monsters that they had to handle at the same time.


    Thus, they went into stealth mode and slowly approach the monsters from a distance..


    ...

 137 Chapter 136: Mother?

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    "Well.. would you look at that." the Principal said as they approached within 5 kilometers away from the monsters as he played with his beard.


    Because of Duan Li''s previous ambush, the monsters were now more alert and were currently scanning at their surroundings warrily.


    However, due to the guise of the nightalong with their dark robes, no matter how the monsters were to look, it would be very difficult for them to notice the existence of these two figure near them.


    After all, the both of them were currently floating gently up above 1 kilometer in the air!


    The Vice-Principal then commented, "This would make our assault attempt to be a little bit more difficult.. but this should be good as well.."


    With the monsters being active at night, they will not be able to get a proper rest for tomorrow''s march and would be fatigued to a certain extent.


    What this means was that, the Subjugation squads would have the advantage tomorrow morning fighting against these tired monsters.


    Who knows, perhaps they might really be able to achieve their original objective of slaying at least 15,000 monsters!


    "An Alpha should be guarded by the other monsters.. let''s take a look around.."


    Both of them then split ways to the left and right respectively. Since they are closer to the enemy now, they narrowed down the search net of their Soul Sense to a limited length and area.


    With their prowess, they might be able to find the Alpha monster easily by expanding their Soul Sense to the maximum, but in doing so, it would alert the Alpha as they are quite sensitive to Soul Sense.


    If the Alpha happened to notice that a Nascent Soul realm was locking onto it, it would definitely issue some commands to the surrounding monsters to become its meat shield and run away if things turned awry.


    That''s definitely a scenario that they would prefer to avoid if possible.


    "I found the Alpha." the Vice-Principal said through sending a message using their communication jade slip while chuckling slowly.


    Receiving this message, the Principal put on a wide grin as he went over to the Vice-Principal''s side discreetly, and when they joined up, they were exactly above the 3 Star Alpha monster!


    From the eery coldness of the night along with the faint reflection of light from the moon, the faces of these two elderly figure under that black hood of theirs was ever so sinister.


    It seemed as if these two old men were plotting to scheme against the world!


    Now, all they had to do was to dive in slowly first. Then, when they get close enough, they will bolt down quickly to surprise the Alpha, cutting down its escape path and take turns in beating it up!


    How dare it appeared before causing their life to nearly be snuffed out by a reknown tyrant!


    For an expert like them, a mere 3 Star monster was not worth a mention. In fact, they could close their eyes and still bully the other party using their fingers if they so wanted.


    And perhaps, they might do just that.


    Thus, they began their descent as the shadows of chaos looms upon the Alpha monster..


    ...


    "We have arrived at the Capital City of Nine Lotuses, please do not forget your belongings and exit in an orderly manner. Thank you for your service." the announcement inside the Airtrain said as Duan Li exited.


    At this moment though, Duan Li could not help but to sigh.


    "I''ve cultivated all the monster cores and the two little dragons inside my dantian have absorbed all of them too.. but who could have known that in the end, they would turn into a puppae or the sorts?" he muttered as he walked off the Airtrain platform.


    He was very eager to see their evolution transformation to the Rookie level, but it would seem that it would take that bit of a time for their evolution process to finish.


    Hais!


    I guess I just have to wait until then..


    Pshew!


    Duan Li bolted off to the sky and headed back towards the direction of the academy.


    On the way, he contemplated several plans in his mind for tomorrow morning''s training with his party.


    When he arrived, he tried to enter using the main entrance as the back door was far away by a few kilometers and would also require him to circumvent around the walls for quite a bit. But upon realizing that the token given to him by the Principal was not responding to the main gate, he was just about to leave when an extremely familiar voice called out to him from inside the gate.


    "Duan Li!"


    Tap!


    Stopping in his footsteps, Duan Li''s heartbeat skipped as he turned his whole body around in a single swerve.


    "M-Mother?"


    BANG!!


    The entrance gate was kicked by Meng Yue from the inside.


    "Stupid gate, why won''t you open up! My son is out there! OPEN!"


    BANGG!!


    BANGG!!


    Seeing his mother kicking the gate repeatedly, Duan Li quickly came over, afraid that his mother would eventually bring the whole gate down.


    Previously, Duan Li was not a cultivator and he could not sense the Qi fluctuations coming out from a person''s body. But right now, he could do just that and couldn''t help but to swallow a mouthful of saliva when he sensed his mother''s Qi fluctuations..


    Pinnacle Stage Nascent Soul realm!


    What the heck!


    My mother was actually this strong?!


    "W-Wait mother! Don''t destroy the gate! Let''s meet up from the back door of the academy, I can enter from there."


    "Huh? What are you saying? You are already here, why should we go around a few kilometers to the back when we could try to pry open the gate.. just wait for a while and let me do it.. " his mother replied.


    Pry open the gate?


    Mother, are you here to cause problems for me?


    Duan Li cried inside.


    "M-Mother! Just listen to me and meet me at the back door of the academy! I''m going now!"


    Pshew!


    Duan Li quickly bolted off to the sky at his maximum speed. He was worried that if he stayed and dilly-dallied any longer, his mother would truly pry open the gate to let him in!


    If such a situation were to occur, the Guardian Knight Puppets that guarded the door from the side would definitely become active and attack them as intruders!


    That would bring them countless amounts of trouble by then!


    "Wait! Urgh.. fine!" Meng Yue pouted her cheeks as she saw Duan Li leaving.


    Then, she immediately bolted off elsewhere.


    Sshhh!


    By the side of the entrance gate, a bush was swaying for a bit.


    It turns out that there was a person hiding within it and it was the security guard.


    He was an elderly and respective figure, on his waist was a 6 Star Rank Combat class, evidence of his deep capabilities.


    But this same, formidable person right now was clutching at his chest tightly as he breathed out in relief.


    "That tyrant is finally gone! What is she doing here after so long? I thought she was no longer in the capital!"


    When he looked at the place where Meng Yue, the reknown tyrant of the Jiu Empire kicked, there was a large dent and cracks around it. If she were to give it another one or two more round of kicks, the gate would unquestionably and truly crumble down!


    "T-This..!" the security guard was shocked silly.


    After all, the material used to forge this entrance gate was the hardest metal alloy reinforced by numerous runic formations!


    "What a monster.."


    ...

 138 Chapter 137: A pair of Observing eyes..

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    "Mother, what are you doing here?" Duan Li asked as soon as they met again on the back gate of the academy.


    "What am I doing here? You haven''t gone back home last week, so I was worried and decided to come and visit you.." Meng Yue said as she pouted her mouth.


    "Eh? I was told that the freshmen are not allowed to come back home yet two weeks after enrolling.. I thought mother knew about this.." Duan Li explained feeling a little bit guilty.


    Hearing this, Meng Yue thought for a while and then shook her head.


    "Hmm.. I didn''t know that there are such rules now.. well after all, I haven''t been back here since for at least, a decade already.." she said and reminisced the good old times as she turned her head around to look at the academy.


    There were now a lot of new buildings being constructed in the academy and it looked far more grander than it was before.


    For example, previously, the sports ground was used to drill new students and they would have to live inside shared camps until they could reach the Middle stage of the Qi Condensation realm. It was hell, but effective in boosting the new fresh blood.


    What surprises her the most was that, ontop of the academy now being surrounded by tall walls of about 10 meters in height, there were even numerous formidable runic formations reinforcing it!


    Even she herself would not be able to force her way in so easily.


    And back then, the walls were not that high and they were only guarded by several Nascent Soul realm experts..


    It appears that I''ve been out of the loop for far too long..


    Meng Yue sighed and then turned to look at her son once more but this time, with a serious look.


    Realizing that something was amiss, Duan Li swallowed a mouthful of saliva in preparation of what was to come.


    Gulp!


    "You.. just what were you thinking of heading out there fighting against all those monsters just now? Did you think yourself as someone immortal and became conceited just because you''ve become a little bit stronger?"


    When Meng Yue said these sentences, her voice was not loud, but it was her low and deep pitch that was giving off an extremely dangerous vibe to it.


    She was serious!


    It was at this moment that Duan Li knew his mother was angry, and not just a small bit, but extremely angry!


    "I.. I was just.." he tried to answer but his mind couldn''t find the right words to express his thoughts.


    If he were to answer that he was out there just to test on how strong he had become now, his mother would definitely hand him over an a*s-whopping of the century..


    "What? Tell me about it." Meng Yue asked once more, as her face turned increasingly dark.


    Realizing that there was no way out for him and giving out excuses would just add more fuel to the fire, Duan Li sighed.


    "I''m sorry mother for being reckless.. next time, I won''t try to do things like that anymore.." he said slowly while looking straight to the ground, not daring to look at her face one bit.


    While his mother might be shorter than him, at this moment, it was as though his mother was a giant and towering existence that he could not hope to scale over.


    "Good. That is what I wanted to hear! Regardless of what reasons you chose to do what you did, you are still far too weak to head out of the Empire on your own!" Meng Yue nodded as she finally said her piece.


    "I''ve seen what you can do from the jade beacon, and while your current battle prowess is indeed impressive, against a Nascent Soul realm expert or monsters, you will die before you even knew it!" she added with a strict tone.


    Outside of the Empire territory were the lawless zone and Duan Li could only be considered to be lucky for not encountering any other stronger monster like the 3 Star Alpha.


    Acknowledging his mistake, Duan Li replied, "I understand mother.. I''m sorry.."


    In fact, he understood the point that his mother has made just now.


    He could remember the vivid memories and feelings of being a Nascent Soul realm expert before. Undoubtedly, it was by no means comparable to the prowess of someone in an Immortal Ascension realm cultivation state, but to make a simple analogy, If an Immortal Ascension realm cultivator was a tall mountain, a Nascent Soul realm cultivator was a hill, and those below it were nothing more than an ant mound!


    It was just like the old saying that, all those below the Nascent Soul realm wereants!


    "Good, make sure to not do it again. At least not until you are a full-fledged Nascent Soul realm expert anyway. By that time, you can just practically do anything you want and usually, no one could really do anything about it when you are disgustingly strong." Meng Yue said, carrying a hint of pride within that sentence of her''s.


    Indeed, in front of true powers, everything else will have to make way for it!


    "Oh but make sure to not go too overboard. There are some really old hermits hidden around the Empire. They are far more profound in their means when compared to a normal Nascent Soul realm expert!" she added.


    Back then in one occasion, she had thrown a huge ruckus before to the extent that one of the ''Old Masters'' of the Empire were forced to resurface back to the world to deal with her.


    It was quite a troublesome experience but fortunately, she managed to escape in the end.


    Hearing this, Duan Li had a dazed look to him.


    Mother, I am not going to cause problem for the Empire!


    I am not some problematic child!


    "Right, where are you staying? I reckoned that the Principal should give you at least a proper lodging for the sake of my name." she asked casually while puffing out her chest proudly.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was shocked.


    Eh?


    Mother is planning to stay overnight?


    Was that even allowed by the academy at all?


    "I bought myself a residence court to the East of here.." Duan Li replied as he sighed.


    Even if he tried to persuade his mother to leave, not only would the latter not listen, he would also feel quite guilty from that as well.


    "Huh? Since when did you get enough money to buy a residence court? Those were usually priced in the ranges of a few High Quality spirit stones.." she said in bewilderment.


    Don''t tell me that in this short while that he was here, my son has already been engaging himself in illegal and illicit dealings?!


    "Yeah.. I found a treasury inside the Eternal Maze under the academy before and got myself some good fortunes.." Duan Li answered.


    Pap!


    Duan Li''s mother face-palmed her own face in frustrations.


    The Eternal Maze?


    You mean that place where not even the strongest Nascent Soul realm expert in their time back then has ever made it out alive?


    I''m quite intrigued to hear this part of the story on how you were still in one piece.


    Maybe there are changes to the Eternal Maze too?


    But regardless, I need to have another good ''talking'' session with the Principal later on..


    "What''s wrong mother?" Duan Li asked, not knowing what his mother was currently thinking.


    "It''s nothing. Point me the way to your residence court then! Your mother is tired here after such a long journey from the village." she replied.


    Duan Li nodded as they both then bolted off into the distance.


    ...


    BAM! BAM!


    ROAAARR!!


    Currently, in the middle region of the Blastwinter desert, a tragic wail from a single monster echoed through the cold night.


    "Are you done yet? We''ve been at it for a good 5 rounds now, finish it quickly." said the Vice-Principal as he maintained a barrier made up of his Spiritual Qi that was encompasing him and the Principal inside, along with the Alpha.


    Right now, the 3 Star Alpha was bruised all around its body, its face deformed and one of its arm and leg got torn off by the duo from venting away their frustrations.


    "Hmph! You deserve this for causing us to nearly lost our lives! Blame it on yourself for getting conceited and showing yourselves to the boy back then!" the Principal harrumphed.


    Pshhh!!


    With a single, swift wave of his hand in a chopping motion, the head of the Alpha was decapitated in an instant as it flew off from its body.


    "It''s done, let us leave now. I garner that this second disturbance has caught the attention of the surrounding people." he said as he swept up his robes.


    "Indeed." the Vice-Principal replied.


    With a flick of his finger, the Spiritual Qi barrier erupted like thin needles flying outwards. They pierced through the bodies and skulls of the surrounding monster that was attacking it before and turned them into a beehives.


    BOOMM!!


    The duo then bolted off to the sky to return back to the Empire as they had finished the objective that they came here for.


    However, unbeknownst to them, a pair of eyes was observing them from the distance, its figure was as invisible as the surrounding air and was the reason why the Vice-Principal and the Principal did not notice him back then.


    "I see.. so that boy back then was from the Jiu Empire as well.. superb potential.. perfect for a harvest.."


    This person was wearing a dark black robe with the symbol of a new moon at its back.


    The Dark Sect!


    ...

 139 Chapter 138: Who am I you asked?

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    Next day early in the morning, everyone woke up early for the training session. At first, they felt a little bit unmotivated since the monster stampede was still at least a week away.


    However, when their communication jade slip sent them a direct message from the academy itself, that they will have to depart in the afternoon today as the monster stampede will arrive tomorrow, all of them let out a surprised reaction and their faces turned grim.


    This timing is too soon!


    Thus, as their anxiousness built up under that pressure, it gave them a high dose of adrenaline that fired up their motivation to train properly in these last few hours before they were required to depart simultaneously!


    Positioning themselves into the formation that was agreed on yesterday, each began to line up with their roles as vanguards and rear-guards respectively.


    Shen Lu made some small adjustments to the overall distances between each member that was suitable with their roles, and everyone was starting to get the hang of it.


    Suddenly however, an unfamiliar voice spoke out.


    "This group formation you guys are using is not too bad, but there are several fatal flaws in it!"


    Hearing this comment, everyone turned their head into the direction of that voice to found out that a lady whom they''ve never met before, seemingly in her forties and shorter than an average woman''s height, was looking at them while shaking her head, standing at the balcony on the first floor.


    It was Meng Yue.


    "Who are you? How did you get in?" Wang Xiolun put up his guard as he said this.


    From his senses, he couldn''t detect the spiritual Qi of the other party to determine her strength at all, and this could only happen because of one reason; that she purposely reigned in her aura so skillfully such that not a single trace of it could be felt, and what this practically meant was that - this short lady was stronger than them by a huge gap!


    One has to know that, although a Core formation realm cultivator did not have the exclusive ability of Soul Sense that a Nascent Soul realm cultivator has just yet, their senses were still extremely sharp and could usually detect what realm a person was currently in!


    Therefore, he felt extremely wary that an unknown person with such means to suddenly appear before them and quickly took position to cover Duan Li from the front with the rest following suit behind him.


    However, Wang Xiolun couldn''t help but to have a strange gut feeling that, he somehow knew who this lady actually was.


    Why does she seems so familiar?


    Where have I seen her before..?


    "Ohh? You''re not too bad." Meng Yue said after she witnessed Wang Xiolun''s loyal action and nodded in satisfaction.


    The fact that this man was the first to take action to protect her son on the first sign of danger, has won her approval!


    "Who are you? And what do you mean by fatal flaws? I see no problem with it myself and in fact, it was a much better formation when compared to the subjugation squad I was in back then." Fei Longwei said, being an experienced person in group formations before.


    Seeing that his party was slowly getting riled up by his mother, Duan Li was just about to tell them who she was when the latter then threw him a gaze to not say anything first and let her handle it.


    Meng Yue chuckled when she heard Fei Longwei''s reply, "You''re an ex-member at one of the Subjugation squads? At such a young age and low realm too.."


    "If I am not mistaken, you must be practicing some form of special skill arts or the sorts and was recommended by one of the Senior Teachers? Impressive!"


    Shen Murong then suddenly snorted, "Hmph! Flattery would not deceive us from the fact that you are a suspicious person to intrude into someone else''s residence court like this. Eventhough I can see that you are strong and we won''t be a match for you, but if you don''t state your business soon, I will call for reinforcements from my Shen clan!"


    Meng Yue''s brows shot up as she found something amusing.


    "Hmm? You are from the Shen clan? That group of brutes with dragon bloodline flowing in them? Sorry to say but, back in the old days, your elders used to run errands for me. If you were to call them here, I''m afraid they''ll just run back to your clan''s residence and shut their gates tight such that, not even ants could come through from the crevices!" Meng Yue replied with a wide and smug grin.


    Pu!


    "Y-You..!" Shen Murong''s veins popped out from his temples as he choked on himself.


    Just what kind of existence was his Shen Clan?


    Even in the whole Jiu Empire, in terms of pure battle prowess, their clan came in second after the Royal family, the Jiu Clan''s phoenix bloodline!


    In addition, their glory dated back since the ancient past, even before the founding of the Jiu Empire itself, and whenever wars were fought, the enemy would run between their tails just from hearing rumors that the Shen clan was participating in the battle!


    Yet, this short lady claimed to have made his powerful elders, her errand boys back then?


    How impudent!


    "Let me go! I''ll teach her a lesson!" Shen Murong shouted out in indignance as he struggled to break free from Wang Xiolun''s arm lock.


    "Senior, I don''t know who you are.. but please leave.. we are short on time to practice our group''s formation as we have to depart this afternoon.." Xiahou Yu gently said.


    Meng Yue''s attention turned to the other party as she scanned the latter up and down before nodding in satisfaction.


    En! She''s a fine woman!


    That lady behind her is quite the voluptuous beauty as well!


    And oh.. what''s this? There is another lady hiding under my son''s shadow? His personal assistant?


    Looks like my son isn''t hopeless after all!


    "Calm down, I''m not your enemy. When I said that your group''s formation has several fatal flaws in it, its not referring to the formation as per say.. but more towards the individuals!" Meng Yue said calmly as she exuded the disposition of an elder giving out pointers to the junior generation with her hands clasped behind her back. She then gently floated down from the balcony, causing her robes to sway with grace like a real expert.


    Eh? My mother is even better in her ''expert mode'' than the Principal!


    Duan Li''s jaw dropped as he stared at his mother doing this. Although it was similar, but the disposition that she currently radiated out was on a higher level than their Principal whenever the latter was trying to say something profound!


    Hearing this unexpected answer, Shen Lu''s brows furrowed.


    The formation isn''t the one with flaws but us?


    "Could you tell us more in detail, Senior?" Shen Lu asked politely.


    Everyone here was more tactful than the wild Shen Murong. They knew that she must be some respective figure in the Empire to be able to casually claim that the elders from the Shen Clan used to run her errands back in the past.


    However, just like Wang Xiolun, it seems like he had once saw her before too..


    But where?


    "It''s simple. One of the flaws lies in the vanguard''s stamina. From everyone''s positioning here, I could tell that you guys are planning to be on the defensive later on, which is a good choice against a monster stampede of huge numbers like this time around."


    "But you have to consider that while vanguards are strong, their stamina are limited and would deplete faster against rapid incoming of monsters!" Meng Yue explained.


    "This.. I haven''t thought of it that way.." Shen Lu said in realization as he cupped his chin.


    Indeed, he hadn''t taken into consideration of their stamina in a prolonged battle, and fatigue would cause the effectiveness of their vanguard to inevitably decrease!


    Furthermore, while pills and elixirs could help them temporarily, but with rapid usage, their effects would be drastically reduced as well!


    "To resolve this issue, all you have to do is to shorten the distance between the vanguards and the rear-guards. Instead of 30 steps in-between them, it should be reduced to 20 steps!" Meng Yue continued.


    "Then, after the vanguards did their job for at least 30 breaths, switch with the rear-guards and let them recover their stamina naturally. Next, switch them back again after 15 breaths and repeat this process. If needed, consume some pills and elixirs."


    Only after Meng Yue said these did everyone came into the realization that she was correct!


    "I understand now.. but why did the vanguards needed to switch again after 15 breaths instead of 30 breaths? Wouldn''t more rest time means more effective recovery?" Shen Lu asked.


    Meng Yue nodded.


    "In normal circumstances, that would be ideal. But think about the scale of this upcoming battle.. 6,000 of you versus 30,000 monsters or more if you are unlucky, and those numbers alone would sap the surrounding spiritual Qi dry when everyone is using it!"


    Hissss!


    Everyone sucked in cold breath in realization once more.


    Since they were used to being surrounded by spiritual Qi all the time, they hadn''t thought the possibilities of running low on it!


    Regardless of one''s Qi efficiency in absorbing Spiritual Qi from the surrounding, if it was low, their recovery would be slow too!


    While the surrounding Spiritual Qi would technically not run out and only ran low due to everyone was constantly using it, with low recovery while constantly using their spiritual Qi, would quickly drop their stamina to rock bottom!


    Thus, resting time was needed by using the switch method!


    "Hmph! I still don''t understand why we could only rest for 15 breaths though." Shen Murong chimed in as he crossed both arms on his chest.


    "I think I get it.. perhaps its because of the roles? I mean vanguards are supposed to attack.. while rear-guards are to watch their backs.. even with this switching method, their roles wouldn''t really change.." Xiahou Yu answered.


    Meng Yue nodded again, impressed with Xiahou Yu''s comprehension!


    "Indeed. Rear-guards must not be exhausted equal or more than the vanguards! This is because they are the last line of your defense. Thus, they must remain in top condition at all time or at least better than your vanguards!"


    "Remember, in a defensive battle, everyone''s collective roles would be translated into a single goal, and that is to hold out for as long as you can! Do not ever go for the offense!"


    Everyone nodded in agreement.


    It seems like this short lady in front of them was truly an expert and were well-versed in the art of war against a monster stampede!


    Who is she actually?!


    Unable to hold out their curiosity any longer, Shen Lu asked out, "If its not inconvenient for Senior, would you please tell us who you are?"


    Meng Yue smiled wide as she puffed her chest slightly.


    "The younger generation might no longer know who I am.. but I am Meng Yue, an ex-member of the Ninth squad of the Subjugation squad!"


    "Oh and also, your Lord over there, I am his mother!"


    ...

 140 Chapter 139: Move out!

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    When Meng Yue revealed her name to the party, it was as if nails were being chopped off clean that their expression changed through a series of stages.


    First was their blank looks, and then their jaws dropped as their eyes turned wide before their pupils became dilated.


    Gulp!


    "Y-Y-You''re Meng Yue you s-said?" Shen Lu swallowed a mouthful of saliva, afraid that he had misheard something that he stuttered in his speeches.


    "Yes." Meng Yue replied with a nod.


    "You mean.. you are really the Meng Yue of THAT Ninth squad??" he asked again as his heart thumped quickly.


    "Yes, I am that Meng Yue." she answered with a smile.


    With the two confirmation replies, Shen Lu''s dazed look immediately turned bright as he felt his mind being mindblowned!


    "I.. I-I my name is Shen Lu! I am a strategist and have been a fan of you for a very long time! It''s an honor to finally meet Senior!" Shen Lu said in agitation as he bent his back 90 degress and bowed towards the other party.


    Following suit, the others began to introduce themselves as well with bright expression. After all, everyone here knows of who Meng Yue were.


    The Tyrant of the Jiu Empire!


    Although her title was obtained through her numerous ''unruly acts'', her battle exploits were undebatable and had been the subject of people''s veneration especially for the younger generation of the Subjugation Squads!


    "I am Wang Xiolun, a third year student of the academy. Greeting with respect for Senior Meng Yue!"


    "I.. I am Xiahou Yu.. I am pleased to meet you Senior.."


    "I am called Shen Murong! Please f-forgive my previous rudeness Senior! I ask you to be magnanimous for my foolishness!"


    "I am Xu Rong, a spellcaster.. it''s a pleasure to be able to meet you Senior Meng Yue."


    "My name is Fei Longwei from the Fei clan, to finally be able to witness the legend herself.. this is an honor!"


    "I am Wei Shang and my brother here is Wei Wang. Pardon our rudeness for not noticing who you are previously Senior!"


    "Guo He! My name is Guo He! I err.. that''s right! I make good pills! Pleased to meet with you S-Senior!"


    Each and every single one of them bowed with veneration and reverence apparent in their expression towards Meng Yue.


    EHH!


    This had Duan Li entirely surprised and shocked silly!


    One had to know that most of them were a prideful bunch of individuals, but upon realizing whom they were currently facing with, none dared to hold their weight at all!


    "En! It''s a pleasure of mine to meet the followers of my son as well. Do your best to serve him properly from now on!" Meng Yue replied as she put both hands on her waist, standing proudly while giving Duan Li a wide grin.


    ''Did you see that? Your mother here is a great person!'' - was what seems to be implied behind that gaze of her''s.


    Duan Li chuckled and had to suppress his laugh at the sight of his mother acting so smug with that small stature of her''s!


    "Yes, she is my mother.. sorry that I did not inform anyone about this sooner, after all, she had just arrived late midnight lastnight and I didn''t want to disturb you guys." he put on an awkward smile.


    Oh right!


    "Di Rou! Come out!"


    Whooshh!


    A slender figure emerged from Duan Li''s shadow.


    "I''m here Master, what are your orders?"


    "Introduce yourself to my mother. Frankly,I almost forgot about you because you always hide in my shadow.."


    Duan Li scratched the back of his head feeling a little bit guilty.


    Nodding her head, she turned towards Meng Yue.


    "My name is Di Rou and is currently serving under the Imperial Overseer. I''ve read your tales and had personally witnessed your past exploits back then when I was a child. It''s an honor to finally be able to meet you Senior."


    Meng Yue smiled as she scanned her up and down.


    From her mature figure, she should be at least 10 years older than Duan Li.. Not bad!


    Recalling what the other party just said, a hint of curiousness flashed in her eyes.


    "Oh? Who is this Imperial Overseer? To think that there was finally someone in status that was practically above even that of the Emperor himself.. this is a first." Meng Yue asked, feeling intrigued.


    Err..


    The others stared at each other, not knowing how to explain the matter.


    Di Rou went silent for a while before she answered, "The Imperial Overseer.. is your son, Duan Li.."


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s mother brows shot up as she nodded casually.


    "Ahh I see I see.. my son is the Imperial Overseer.."


    She closed her eyes as both arms crossed on her chest, went silent for a while to comprehend what she just heard before suddenly jerking open her eyes and almost stumbled down from the shock.


    "WHAATT?!!" Meng Yue shouted out.


    When she turned to look at Duan Li, she found the latter to smile back at her, imitating her previous smugness.


    "M-My son.. you.. y-you are telling me that my son had become the Imperial Overseer?!"


    "Even if you were to beat up the Emperor until he was black and blue, he would sooner bit his own tongue and die rather than giving someone the title that could grant them control of the Empire!"


    Not to mention trying to beat up the Emperor, the Royal Palace itself has multitudes of top-notch Titled Knights! If anyone can get past that, there was the Supreme Knight that they had to face next, which Battle prowess was only second to that of the Emperor himself!


    As far as she knew, her son was only in the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm right now!


    Even if her son was a lot more stronger than normal, it should not be possible for him to force the Emperor to give him the title of an Imperial Overseer!


    Pu!


    Hearing Meng Yue casually talking about beating up the Emperor, Duan Li''s followers could not help but to choke on themselves.


    The heck?!


    The Emperor appeared to become a casual figure in her speech!


    As expected of the Tyrant of the Jiu Empire! It really does seems that the rumors was true that she had beaten up the current Emperor back then when the latter was young..


    "W-what are you saying mother? How could I even do that to the Emperor.. it''s a long story.." Duan Li''s face turned red in embarrassment from his mother''s reaction.


    Duan Li then persuaded his mother to drop the matter at the moment because of two reasons;


    One was that, the matter that caused him to become the Imperial Overseer of the Empire was a top secret stuff, not something that should be disclosed near people, even to his followers!


    And two was that they had spent enough time talking and need to train their group formation because time was running out!


    Realizing this as well, Duan Li''s mother nodded.


    "Alright, you''ve got tons of explanations to tell me young man! But you''re right, your group formation needed to be adjusted, so let me help out!"


    Turning around, she stared at Shen Lu whom was currently still in a daze after experiencing this sudden encounter with his idol.


    "I guess you don''t have any complaints about this right?" she asked the strategist in charge of the party''s group formation.


    "What? No No! Of course not, Senior! Please enlighten us on your wisdom and knowledge!" he replied with a glistening pair of eyes.


    Meng Yue chuckled and so began their proper group formation training under her careful guidance.


    ...


    "That''s right, in such a situation, you shall switch with him and she would cover the retreat!"


    "Move 4 steps to the right and familiar yourselves with this position. From there, your backs are protected by your friends and you could go all out!"


    "Spellcasters, try to use a more precise area of effect magic skills eventhough the damage output is low! Your aim is to bottleneck the enemy and tunnel them down for the vanguards to handle!"


    Meng Yue continued to give out advices and correction to their battle formation and stratagem as they became increasingly in-tune with each other.


    Amazing!


    No wonder she was a legend!


    The others felt their respect and reverence increase rapidly throughout the training session towards Duan Li''s mother, before their communication jade slip sent them all a message simultaneously.


    "To all respective students that received this message, head over to the hangar, we are about to move out!"


    ...

 141 Chapter 140: Trouble and mastermind!

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    ####################


    "Seems like we need to go soon.. how are the preparations?" Duan Li turned around and asked his party.


    "I''ve managed to memorize everything that your mother- I mean Senior Meng Yue taught us just now. With that, I''ll be able to compile a manual book for group formations and give each maneuver a code name for easier reference on the battlefield, and it will be finish by the time we arrive at the hangar." Shen Lu said confidently.


    After all, he didn''t apply to become a strategist just on a whim, but because he could speed read and write at a blazing speed that had outpaced all of his peers!


    With such abilities, he was able to learn and comprehend numerous complex strategem in a very short period of time, and when he entered the entrance test for the Strategist class, he basically excelled in all his marks!


    "I... I''ve made it a compulsion to concoct pills or elixirs everyday, and thankfully because of that, we have enough supply for tomorrow''s sudden skirmish. But just in case, I.. I will concoct some extras in case of emergency later on!" Guo He said nervously.


    All these while, he had thought that those extra pills and elixirs he made everyday would either go to waste or would be sold for a very cheap price being a low 2 Star rank Alchemist.


    But who would''ve thought that it would come in handy today?


    "Very good! Di Rou, do you have any advice on how to distribute the pills and elixirs efficiently during a battle?" Duan Li turned to ask at his personal assistant.


    Di Rou nodded, "Yes Master! I could personally deliver each pills and elixirs around a battlefield quickly, but for efficiency, we could use the newly formed Special Task Force!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li became very intrigued.


    "You mean Cucko and his team?"


    "Affirmative Master!" after which, Di Rou called them out, "Chickens, Assemble!"


    Whooshh!! Whooshh!!


    Three rows of chickens suddenly congregated together that appeared to be extremely well-built and mighty, especially that sole leader of their''s that stood at the very front of them all with a puffed out chest, the self-proclaimed King of the Chickens, Cucko!


    "CUCK-CUCCKOOOO!!"


    Cucko cucked out with a loud cuck, akin to a military commander greeting their superior, after which, the other chickens behind it followed suit and cucked out!


    CUCK-CUCK-CUCCKOOOOO!!


    They all seemed to be greeting Duan Li with their utmost form of respect and reverence by cucking out proudly!


    Just by these outstanding performance of their''s, they had already overshadowed the rest of their fellow species by an insurmountable gap!


    "Holy hell! Where does all these loud chickens come from?!" Shen Murong said with a stupefied expression.


    "... Is my senses alright? I felt these chickens to be somehow.. in the.. Qi condensation realm?" Fei Longwei creased his brows together, unable to comprehend the phenomena before him.


    ".. I think you are right.. I could feel their Qi fluctuations too.. but that can''t be right.. chickens don''t have monster cores in them.." Xu Rong commented out curiously.


    At the side, Shen Lu nodded his head proudfully!


    It seems that those chickens that had survived the experiment before has started to mutate splendidly!


    Kekeke!


    I wonder how the fishes are faring in that pond though?


    "Impressive! You guys will definitely become a force to be reckoned with in the future!" Duan Li couldn''t help but to compliment them after sensing their Qi fluctuations.


    It won''t be too long before they would make another breakthrough to the next level!


    "Master, we could use two out of the three division here to help out with the pills and elixirs distribution during the battle tomorrow. Not only are they extremely agile, their small body would go undetected by most large enemies!" Di Rou said.


    "Furthermore, I''ve taught them the basic form of the secret art that I''ve always used to hide in the shadows, and surprisingly, they were already able to execute it almost effortlessly as if it were in their blood!"


    "With these, they could hide within one''s shadow and could be commanded to fetch items any time!" she added.


    Oho? That''s very interesting!


    "Good! Then in that case, leave one division to guard the residence court here while we are out." Duan Li instructed.


    Whooshh!!


    A division of the chicken nodded as they immediately spread out to hide in various locations of the residence court. Erasing their presence, they soon became undetected once more.


    "Since there are 8 of you chickens here, I want you all to hide in each of my follower''s shadow other than Xiahou Yu. As for your orders, I''m pretty sure you''ve all already received it!"


    The chickens nodded and quickly dived into everyone''s shadow except Xiahou Yu, where the latter''s expression showed disappointment as she sighed.


    "I couldn''t risk letting her get one of these chickens.. who knows what she might do to them.." Duan Li thought inwardly.


    The rest of the party also showed a hint of understanding as well, but couldn''t help to still pity her.


    Ahem!


    "You.. you surely do have some weird companions around you.." his mother commented after closing her wide opened jaw from sheer disbelief of chickens possessing cultivation realms.


    Just what sorts of person was Meng Yue, the Tyrant of the Jiu Empire?


    She was a top-notch expert before her retirement, but even then, after trodding through the Tian continent for many years before while experiencing the various vicissitudes of life, she had never encountered a species of chickens as such!


    Even the poultry animals like these chickens here had transformed into such a degree, was I really out of the loop for so long that I''ve never heard a mention about this back in the village?


    But the neighbour''s chickens was still normal though..


    Shaking her head, she decided to forget it and put the matter to the back of her head.


    "Well, let''s head off to the hangar then shall we?" she said.


    Everyone nodded and Cucko leaped atop of Duan Li''s left shoulder, perching proudly as it puffed its muscular chest out.


    Duan Li chuckled as he shook his head.


    "I could already open up a circus show with all these collection of pets that I have now.."


    Psheww!!


    As they flew into the distance together, Cucko that was standing stoicly on Duan Li''s shoulder could suddenly feel that someone was staring at its thigh intently from the back that it sent shivers down its spine!


    Swerving its chicken head to the back, she found out that a human, the one called Xiahou Yu, to be staring at it for a while before the latter turned her head away into another direction.


    "This human, what could she be thinking? I just felt a dangerous vibe.. as if a predator coming out from her.." Cucko remarked inwardly before turning its head back to the front.


    Was it my imagination?


    ...


    In front of the academy''s hangar, was a mass congregation of students numbering in the thousands.


    Some appeared to be wearing a grim expression while others indifferent and some, excited. But regardless, everyone was worked up by the sudden news that they had to depart today and the battle was tomorrow.


    "Damn it! I couldn''t believe that the monster stampede would be coming tomorrow instead of next week!"


    "Me too! I haven''t even purchase any pills or elixirs yet! I''m finished!"


    "What? Here, take some of mine. As a cultivator, you should have some of these in stock at all times you know?"


    "Yeah.. sorry and thanks.. huh? Hey look! Those groups of people over there.. isn''t that the famed new junior student, Duan Li that had been causing a ruckus lately at the very front there?"


    "Eh, you''re right! Its indeed him.. those at the back must be his party then.."


    The students began to gossip as soon as Duan Li and his party landed. They''ve heard a variety of rumors going on about this new junior with the Lord class as his main occupation.


    Some said that he was an extremely formidable cultivator, such that even the third year Seniors had difficulties handling him in a battle!


    Some even said that he was a crooked person, swindling everyone''s spirit stones in a huge controversy and scandalous event that he created using his fame!


    Therefore right now, there were a lot of gazes looking at Duan Li and his party with various intent behind them.


    "Alright, stare on us much longer than that and I will slap you all to meet with your ancestor in the afterlife!" Shen Murong bellowed out.


    Somehow, Shen Murong''s role right now was like a bodyguard to Duan Li and his party. With his huge solid body as if a slab of rock from the mountains and his furry looks, coupled with his reknowned wild personality shared by all those of their clan, not many dared to retort on his words and thus, stopped their staring.


    However unfortunately, there were still groups of people that do not understand this, thus they shouted back.


    "Huh? Who the hell do you think you are?"


    "Yeah, what''s your problem with us staring, its our eyes and we can do anything we want with it!"


    "Overconfident prick! You''re nothing but an exagerated individual. If not for your clan, I would have long pummeled you for your insolence!"


    "Big body but small brain!"


    "HAHAHAHAHAHA"


    Hearing the waves of insult on him, the veins on Shen Murong''s entire body popped out as he let out a murderous aura.


    "Huh? What? You gonna kill us now? You got the guts? All show-offs!"


    "Boohoo! I''m so scared! Where do you think this is idiot? You think the academy would turn a blind eye if you kill someone here just because you''re from the Shen clan?!"


    Shen Murong''s face darkened at this moment. And was just about to head out to truly kill them!


    He could tolerate them mocking him and at most, they would only receive a near-death injuries for that. But for them to bring his clan into this matter, as if he was strong and unfettered was due to his clan helping him, he would not tolerate those!


    Only he knows of how much effort he had made to be where he was right now.


    Thankfully, Shen Lu stopped him.


    "Wait! Something is not right. It seems as if they were doing this intentionally. Don''t get baited out." Shen Lu spoke out.


    Gritting his teeth, Shen Murong replied, "I know, but I won''t let them continue running their mouth!"


    Duan Li on the other hand, frowned at this unexpected scene.


    At a distance, further away from the fray, was a scholarly looking student with a wide grin on his face as he watched the entire scene playing out with a snicker.


    "Now, Duan Li, I wonder how you will deal with this situation.."


    He was the Strategist club''s elder, that previously had his reputation thrown down the drain due to his mistake in predicting Duan Li''s value ranking.


    Rong Huan!


    ...

 142 Chapter 141: Dealing with schemer!

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    ####################


    "Ahh.. a bunch of ants has appeared, I wonder what should we do?" Meng Yue finally spoke out, unable to tolerate these hoodlums any longer.


    When those troublemaker heard this, they swerved their head to look at her with a smug face.


    "Eh? What is that old shorty? From what I can see, your body looked far more similar to the small ants than us!"


    "Yeah! Judging by your small figure, I''m guessing that there must be no men who wanted to marry you huh?"


    "HAHAHAHAHA!"


    "You people.." Meng Yue was just about to step forward and teach them a lesson when Duan Li stopped her.


    "It''s fine mother, let me handle this." he said with a smile. However, a bubble of anger was already slowly forming inside his heart.


    Not only do these bastards caused trouble for them when they just landed and mocked one of his follower straight onto his face, they even had the gall to implicate his mother in this as well.


    Calling her old shorty? That''s just courting death!


    Can''t they tell what her cultivation level is?!


    What amateur!


    You guys would be thankful to me later on today for stepping up like this!


    With a serious expression, Duan Li called out, "Those who spoke just now, come out here."


    The troublemakers turned towards each other and their faces started to show signs of worry.


    After all, the person that just spoke was the Lord himself, with reputation and various rumors behind him that they don''t want to mess with!


    In addition, they were only paid to instigate things so that the reputation of Duan Li''s party would plummet down, not to berate the person in question himself directly!


    Otherwise, they would not even dare to accept this mission at all!


    But judging from the situation right now, if they were to really get beaten up by the other party, that would be way too scary for them!


    Thus, they sent out a message to the middle person that set this mission up for them, wondering what they should do in such a situation.


    Before long, they received back a reply;


    "Proceed to provoke them, they will not be able to do anything to you as long as there are this many people around you. Don''t worry, your payment will be doubled." the person replied.


    With this, they nodded to each other and crept up a wide grin on their faces. After sorting out their newfound confidence, they finally stepped out from the crowd, one by one with smug faces.


    "Yeah we are here now, so what can you-"


    Just before the man could finish his typical villainous sentence of a hoodlum, he suddenly saw a wide palm attack heading straight at him.


    PAH!!


    "AAHHHHHH!!" the man screamed out as his entire face got slapped in one whole big palm, and the strong force behind that impact caused him to be catapulted into the air while spinning 360 degrees, before crashing down onto the ground far away with his face planted deep into the soil.


    BANG!!


    The other troublemakers stopped on their tracks when they saw this, but one brave individual among them started to bellowed out;


    "You dare to hurt someone in the open like this?! You think you own the academy like its your fath-"


    PAHH!!


    "AHHHHH!!" similar to the man before him, he got slapped in the face by Duan Li''s palm attack and flew to the skies before face planting himself into the ground.


    Gulp!


    Gripped by their fear, the others began to shout out as well in the hopes that they wouldn''t share the same fate as their last two companions that got face slapped tragically.


    "Y-You! D-Don''t you dare to go o-overboard now! We are-"


    PAHH!!


    "S-Stop!! I am the son of-"


    PAHH!!


    "My clan is the great-"


    PAHH!!


    "No don''t hurt me! My uncle is the-"


    PAHH!!


    "If you hurt me, my pet would not let you-"


    PAHH!!


    "D-Don''t touch my face! Or else my girlfriend-"


    PAHH!!


    "I will tell my mother if you-"


    PAHH!!


    PAHH!!


    PAHH!!


    At this point, Duan Li was going wild with slapping-spree to anyone that dared to spoke out even a single sentence!


    This caused the spectator to hold their mouth with both hands, afraid that a single whimper would cause them to be slapped by the other party!


    Far in the distance, the Strategist Club''s elder, Rong Huan whom was spectating the show with a snicker before, was stupified by this.


    "What in the world? He dared to hurt them when there are this many people around?! Did he not care about his reputation at all?!"


    His plan would be smooth-sailing if Duan Li were to play by the rules, but the latter didn''t even seem to be bothered or concerned, and continued to slap people left and right as if a lunatic!


    PAHH!!


    PAHH!!


    After countless people were sent flying by his slaps, Duan Li''s figure flitted and disappeared into thin air before reappearing in front of the last troublemaker, whom had lost all courage and stumbled down onto the ground, his whole body shaking with fear.


    "N-No! Don''t slap me! Forgive me!" he pleaded out with tears and mucus flowing together down his face.


    As he stared up from the ground with clattering teeth, his fear had turned Duan Li''s figure to appear as if the death reaper himself was there, closely approaching to take his life away!


    In addition, combined with Duan Li''s intimidating aura and pressure that the latter has put onto him, he no longer has any will to continue with the mission and decided to blurt out everything.


    "W-We were paid by someone to do this! P-Please have mercy!"


    Finally, the cat is out from the bag!


    Prior to this moment, Duan Li has long activated one of his Tetra Unsealing ability - Soul Sense, to observe the people around him for any small and suspicious gesture.


    He had planned to have a little ''chat'' with this last fella here to tell him whom they are working with, but who could''ve thought that the latter would spoke out the truth themselves?


    Thus, this unexpected scene caused a certain individual from the crowd to flinch slightly and tried to move deeper into the crowd to hide. But of course, with Duan Li''s Soul Sense, there was no way this person could escape him!


    Ssupp!!


    Duan Li''s figure immediately disappeared from the pleading man and reappeared in front of the person that was trying to escape.


    "So, was it you that was plotting from behind that caused all these?" Duan Li said towards the man as he narrowed his eyes and his expression turned cold.


    "F-Fast!" the suspicious person remarked inwardly as he was surprised by Duan Li''s speed and mysterious method to identify him among the many crowd here.


    How was this possible?


    But instead of panicking, this person smiled instead, and flashes of schemes were apparent in his eyes.


    "So what if it was me? Don''t tell me that you would dare to raise your hand to one of your seniors? Do you think that we are pushovers and you could do anything you want here by stepping onto everyone else, eh Junior?" he said with disdain in his looks.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised at first, but soon shook his head in disappointment.


    "It seems that you are not too smart with this sentence of yours. Evidently, you are not the real mastermind behind this." Duan Li sighed.


    "Huh? The hell do you mean?" the person asked out, infuriated with Duan Li''s tone.


    He was one of the many 3rd year student within the academy, a senior, and had long enjoyed the privillege of being one. Furthermore, he was used to speak condescendingly towards the junior generation and not the other way around.


    Thus, he was about to continue with his words when Duan Li slapped him directly on the face without using any form of skill art. In addition, Duan Li toned down the slap''s strength just enough to cause the latter''s face to be swollen like a pig and not be catapulted into the air like the others before him.


    PAHH!!


    The slap was whole onto his right cheek as it echoed towards the surrounding.


    "Y-You! You dared to slap your senior! Have you no manner-"


    PAHH!!


    Duan Li sent him another slap to his left cheek.


    AHHHH!!


    After the two slaps, Duan Li looked at him with an expressionless face.


    "There are two things that you are mistaken here."


    "One, is that you are alone here, no other seniors are with you in this and your dirty cheap schemes, so don''t try to pull them down with your petty tricks, not everyone is as stupid as you."


    "Two, is that, indeed, I can hurt people like you without the academy being able to do anything to me."


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    BAMMM!!


    Duan Li punched the man with an uppercut down onto the stomach.


    URGHH!!


    The arrogant person got blasted into the air as he flew all the way up to the stratosphere. Had Duan Li used his full power, he could have easily turned that person into a meat paste.


    The crowds were silent all the way through this entire scene, and their wide opened mouth has long caused their saliva to dry.


    How tyrannical! He didn''t even let anyone off!


    Amplifying his voice, Duan Li spoke out with clear sentences;


    "I am a person who dislikes trouble, but that doesn''t mean I am afraid to face it. To the mastermind behind this all, I could find you if I actually try, but let this be a first and last warning to you. Even if I were to take a more brutal action than this, not even the Empire itself would be able to salvage you."


    Ssupp!


    Duan Li disappeared and reappeared back to his party, as they continued to move along unfettered while the crowd backed up as if the seas were being split into two!


    ...


    Crash!


    A teapot was being thrown to the ground and broke into pieces.


    "Impudent!" Rong Huan spoke out between his teeth.


    Just you wait!


    ...

 143 Chapter 142: Another formidable background!

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    "You dared to challenge me.. I will make sure that you would regret such impudence!" Rong Huan snorted as he stood up furiously and his servant picked up the broken pieces of the teapots on the floor of his carriage.


    "I''ll let you off for now.. but next time.. hehe.." a hint of savagery flashed in that scheming eyes of his.


    ...


    "I didn''t know that my son could be that aggressive." Meng Yue said as they walked by the crowd.


    Although she was satisfied by her son''s performance teaching those troublemakers a lesson that they won''t be able to forget anytime soon, she was still surprised with the whole scene taking place before.


    After all, being the mother for well over 20 years, she had never seen even once that her son could turn agressive like that back in the past.


    "Umm.. well.." Duan Li scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression, unable to explain it.


    Frankly, he himself was not so sure on how he was able to do things like that sometimes. Ever since he merged with his memories from the future timeline, his personality had started to mix together such that, even when expressing the things that he did just now, it seemed to be all too familiar for him.


    "What mother said is true.. I''m not like this before.." Duan Li thought inwardly as he agreed with her as well.


    Am I developing some sort of a split personality without my own awareness?


    That''s too scary!


    "It''s fine, I prefer my son to have a sturdy backbone anyways. Furthermore, against people like those, you need to show them the extremes so that they wouldn''t dare to do such things twice!" Meng Yue scoffed.


    When the rest of the party heard this, they shivered a little bit.


    As expected of the Tyrant of the Jiu Empire!


    When most mothers would reprimand their children for acting violent, she on the other hand, had encouraged her son to be doing the extreme side of it instead!


    "I could''ve handled the situation myself, why did you have to intervene?" Shen Murong asked, feeling a little bit disgruntled from being unable to pummel those troublemakers himself.


    Duan Li chuckled, "Knowing you, of course I am confident in you being able to beat them. However, don''t forget that, even though we are trying to increase our reputation, it isn''t through infamy, but rather through being vague.. just like our party name."


    Shen Murong creased his brows together as he cupped his chin, pondering the meaning behind Duan Li''s words.


    Noticing that Shen Murong didn''t seem to get what Duan Li meant, Shen Lu sighed and explained;


    "What our Lord here meant by that, is that while infamy would make people more wary to not get on the bad side of us, the rumors people would spread about our party would be mostly negative by then."


    "However, by pointing out to the masses that there was a mastermind behind that previous mess, even if our Lord here had beaten them up black and blue like that, people are more willing to accept it."


    "Furthermore, by letting the mastermind off with a warning in front of everyone else, it showed the magnanimity of our Lord as well. With these two factors combined, people would view things in two different perspective at least." Shen Lu said with a smile, impressed by his Brother here.


    Shen Murong nodded after a while, "So, what you are trying to say is that, the two different rumors circulating around at the same time would make it hard for people to judge of how we really are while at the same time staying away from us?"


    "Correct. That way, the magic name of our party would once again cast them the illusion that we are, mysterious." Shen Lu answered.


    Shen Murong and the others nodded as they finally could comprehend the entire scenario back then.


    So it is like that!


    To think that the hidden meaning behind their Lord''s action would be so deep!


    Truly fitting for their name - The Mysterious Party!


    On the other hand, Duan Li by the side was just smiling, as if what Shen Lu had just stated was in fact, according to his plan all along. This caused the new recruits to have a deeper feeling of respect and reverence towards him as they were awed by his ingenuity and planning!


    However, the actual truth couldn''t be any more wrong than that!


    He had only answered Shen Murong''s inquiry half-heartedly just now, and it was really meant to be a vague answer!


    So even if the other party could not understood him, he would just have to chuckle and act mysteriously without saying anything more, and the matter would naturally be resolved just like that.


    But who could''ve thought that Shen Lu had just conveniently filled in that blank answer for him with the latter''s perfect ''comprehension'' of the intent behind his vague words?


    Lol.


    To be honest though, it was all because he didn''t want his mother to act personally. Otherwise, not only would the crowd be confused that an outsider had suddenly intervened, but if they later found out that his mother was the famous Meng Yue, people would mistook him for hiding under the umbrella of his mother.


    In other words, people would start to label and call him as cowards!


    For something as such, he would definitely not allow it to happen!


    And another reason for him acting out back then was because they had insulted his mother too for being short, and that had him feeling a little bit angry.


    So what if my mother is short?!


    She is still cute!


    ...


    After entering the hangar, they couldn''t help but to marvel on the gigantic transportation vehicle in front of them - the Phoenix Craddle!


    This was a very extra-large ship, almost similar to those used in sailing the ocean. But instead of on water, this ship sailed on air!


    Thus, it was known as the Airship!


    The Phoenix Craddle was the pride of the Jiu Empire, a mothership with its bow ends shaped like the head of a real phoenix, a tell-tale symbol of the authority of the Jiu royal family and their phoenix bloodline!


    This mothership measured roughly around 450 meters in length, and could transport up to 10,000 people at max capacity!


    However, although this might sound impressive, the Phoenix Craddle that they saw here was just one of the several of its kind being stationed around the Jiu Empire for the purpose of moving large personnel around the Empire quickly!


    The largest mothership, known as the Phoenix King, stationed by the Royal Palace, was far more impressive than this one.


    Nevertheless, the Phoenix Craddle could still attract the numerous awes and reverence from the onlookers that saw it. After all, these things couldn''t be seen flying around on a daily basis, for the single fact that they are very power hungry and costly to operate!


    "This version of the Phoenix Craddle isn''t too shabby.." Xu Rong commented.


    Hearing this, the others turned to her and Fei Longwei couldn''t help but to ask;


    "You''ve seen the other version?"


    Xu Rong nodded, "En. If I am not mistaken, perhaps the better version of the Phoenix Craddle was stationed near the Southern region."


    After she said this, Wei Shang chimed in, "Xu Rong.. can it be.. that you are from of the Xu Clan?" he asked and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    "Indeed I am. When I was still young, I remember that I used to play in one of these Phoenix Craddle back when it was just in its early phase of construction." she replied proudfully as she crossed both arms on her chest.


    Hisss!


    The others sucked in a cold breath when they heard this. This was especially so for Shen Lu!


    Back then when he was going through their list of applicants and saw her name, a thought had flashed across his mind that this Xu Rong could possibly be from that famous Xu Clan!


    But because a lot of people were surnamed ''Xu'', and the Xu Clan was not lacking when it comes to money nor resources as well, for her to put in an application to become a follower of the yet-to-be famous Lord back then, he quickly dismissed the idea entirely because it was just almost impossible for someone of such status and backing to follow behind a nameless Lord!


    "Why did she join us?" Shen Lu couldn''t help but to ponder on this question, so was some of them as well.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li, the Lord in question himself, coming from the humble Xuan Village with no prior knowledge of the Xu Clan, was clueless as to why they were so surprised, thus he asked them.


    "Is this Xu Clan formidable?"


    The others swerved their head to look at him with yet another shock on their faces.


    He seriously didn''t know?


    Has our Lord been living inside a cave before this?


    Meng Yue that noticed their weird expression could only made some dry cough, a little bit embarrassed by her son''s lack of knowledge, and so, explained it to him;


    Ahem!


    "In the Jiu Empire, there are Nine ruling Clans and was also the reason why the capital city was named as the Nine Lotuses City rather than just the eight towns surrounding it."


    "The strongest clan is the Jiu Clan, the royal family themselves whom possessed the phoenix bloodline. The second was the Shen Clan, and they possessed the dragon bloodline. After that, is the Xu Clan. While they do not possess some powerful bloodline as the rest, their King serpent bloodline has endowed them with the ability to control fire at will."


    "In fact, their mastery over fire was so profound that they work very closely with the top blacksmith clan, the Tong clan! It could be said that while the Xu Clan does not need the Tong Clan to survive, the same could not be said in reverse!"


    "In other words, this Phoenix Craddle mothership you see here, was largely possible due to them, as well as other inventions as well." she explained.


    "I see.. no wonder everyone was surprised.. it turns out that you are from this Xu clan.." Duan Li said as he turned towards Xu Rong.


    He finally came into the realization as the others as well, that with such a powerful background, she still decided to join him?


    As for the matter of Shen Murong joining him, that was entirely due to their battle together, but as for her..


    What was the reason?


    Perhaps due to his curiosity, Duan Li began to scan Xu Rong''s figure up and down subconsciously, trying to determine what her real objective was, of which the latter simply blushed without evenreprimanding him.


    Seeing this, Duan Li''s mother seemed to notice something interesting before she smiled.


    Oh? Could it be?


    Unable to guess Xu Rong''s intentions, Duan Li decided to just let the matter go before he noticed something missing.


    "Eh? Where is Cucko?" he asked the others.


    Cucko had steadily perched atop of his left shoulder all these while, even during the previous incident while maintaining an indifferent expression as its master was punishing the troublemakers.


    Where in the world is that chicken now?


    When they finally saw the missing chicken, their jaw dropped open.


    "T-The chicken is over there.." Guo He pointed up as he swallowed his saliva.


    Gulp!


    Cucko was seen perching atop of the head of the phoenix statue on the Phoenix Craddle!


    And to add spice to this scene, this chicken seemed to be stepping on it with a proud look as it puffed out its chest and opened its wing out wide!


    CUUCCK-CUUCCKOOO!!


    God damnit! That''s the symbol of the Royal family!


    ...

 144 Chapter 143: Airship departure!

    Chapter 143: Airship departure!


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    "H-Hey look at that chicken over there!"


    Someone pointed out with a baffled look on his face.


    "Huh? What the hell is that chicken doing?"


    "Perching itself atop of the royal symbol? Courting death!"


    As one by one from the crowd began to notice Cucko standing atop of the head of the phoenix, Duan Li panicked and sent out a telephatic message to the latter.


    "What are you doing? Stand down immediately!" of which the respond Cucko gave him had him entirely dumbfounded.


    "Master, we dragons and phoenixes has always been brother in arms since time immemorial, I was just happy at the thought that we could soar through the skies once again later on, and it had me emotional to subconsciously climb here.."


    Cucko said all these with a serious expression to it as it''s head pointing up straight to the sky, as if reminiscing the good old times.


    Dragons and phoenixes are brother in arms?


    I don''t know about that, but one thing I do know here is that the statue you are standing on is indeed a phoenix, and a royal symbol of the Jiu Empire on top of that. But you are far too dreaming to call yourself a dragon, you little chicken!


    Why not look yourself into the mirror and see that small stature of your''s?


    To be calling itself as a dragon, what gall!


    And stop that reminiscing act! You think that it will make you appear like an expert or something?!


    "Just get down here and stop causing trouble!" Duan Li bellowed out in his telephatic message.


    "Yes Master.."


    It was only just a while before that he had become a domineering figure in front of everyone else by putting on a superb performance, but he would still not dare to cause too much trouble yet despite everything else.


    Yet, this chicken of his had already set its ambition high enough to step atop of the royal symbol as it pleases, has it already think itself as an immortal after attaining the secret to cultivation?


    Ssupp!!


    Cucko''s silhouette slowly sinked into its own shadow as it disappeared from the public''s eye.


    "Eh? Where is that chicken just now?"


    "What chicken? What''s going on?"


    "Strange.. am I having delusion?"


    Duan Li and his party could finally sigh in relief as another trouble almost hit them by their knee. It seems like they should not take their eyes off from these chickens even a single moment. Otherwise, they could get complicated by their brazenness!


    "You should stay in my shadow and don''t come out for a while until I call for you!Consider that as your punishment, hmph!" Duan Li said to Cucko whom was currently hiding in his shadow.


    Clap! Clap!


    "Attention everyone!"


    A figure among the crowd clapped his hand together before continuing;


    "We will be departing soon, so please take a look at the listing on the projector here to determine your group members and board the Airship accordingly." the person said as he slotted in a jade slip into the projector.


    Woongg!!


    Multiple holograms was being projected out as it displayed three rectangular boxes, above it were the names of the three fronts; Blastwinter desert, Grand Canyon and the Green plains.


    Each rectangle boxes contained the names of these students.


    Since there are 81 members of the First Squad and a total of 6,000 students, the three fronts had them divided equally, which meant that each front will have 27 members of the First Squad, commanding over 2,000 students.


    They will then be divided further into smaller groups consisting of 30 to 40 students while the remainder; students with the lowest cultivation levels, are put into a much bigger group between 80 to 100 students.


    However, some students like Duan Li could form their own group due to their occupation as a Lord class.


    "So, we are stationed to be fighting on the First front huh?" Shen Lu remarked.


    To be honest, he was quite unnerved should they were stationed to be on the Second front. Although the natural protection of tall cliffs that the Grand canyon provided to the students would ensure the lowest rate of casualties as compared to the First and Third front, it would prove to be disadvantageous to their party instead.


    This was because the natural cliffs would be in the way for them to be able to display their full potential. After all, not to mention others, just the battle style of their Lord and Shen Murong had him worried that the both of them would cause the collapse of the Grand Canyon!


    "Let''s board the Airship then." Duan Li instructed to the rest as they nodded. But then, he realized something as he turned towards his mother.


    "Umm mother.. are you allowed to board the Airship as well?"


    Hearing this question, his mother showed him a confused expression, as if Duan Li was asking her a question with obvious answer to it.


    "That is a silly question, even if I wasn''t supposed to board it, who could stop me?" she said casually as if it was a matter of fact.


    "..." everyone.


    ...


    After everyone boarded the train, the captain of the Airship sounded the hazard alarm so that anyone below it would evacuate to stay clear.


    "Start up the engine." the captain said.


    Wongg!!


    BRRRRRRR!!


    The underside of the Airship glowed a bright blue color as it started to vibrate, before sending shockwaves to the ground blowing all the dust and sands below it!


    BOOMM!!


    The Airship then began to slowly lift up by itself and floated up higher and higher into the air as it left the open roof of the hangar.


    A lot of the students showed an excited expression onboard while looking down below as the Airship continued to float up. Although everyone here could already fly, boarding an Airship had a certain distinct feeling to it that causes one to feel powerful somehow!


    In fact, even without the Airship, they could still reach the border in a matter of a few hours including some rest time. However, by using this Airship - Phoenix Craddle, knowing that the Royal family was everyone''s backing, it gives them a boost of high morale that would keep their fighting spirit on a peak condition!


    Furthermore, a travel using this Airship would only take an hour to reach their destination, on par with the speed of an express Airtrain. However, when compared to the latter, the Airship were a far more suitable choice to transport a larger number of personnel in one go.


    In addition, the rare sight of a Phoenix Craddle soaring through the skies would have the entire populace cheer for them, adding more morale to the students onboard.


    "HAHA! I will conquer tomorrow''s battlefield and make a name for myself!"


    "What? Don''t you mean me?"


    "Who cares, I''ll whoop all those monsters tomorrow! Even if a hundred thousand of them came, I would still kick them all the same!"


    "H-Hey! Don''t jinx it!"


    Hearing everyone''s brightful conversation with that cheerful expression of their''s, the scene now looked more like they were going on a picnic instead of heading to a battlefield.


    ...


    "Sh*t! Sh*t! Hurry up and retreat!" Mo Shinfeng, the leader of the Sixth squad shouted out.


    Everyone desperately tried to run away from the battlefield, but the extreme heat of the afternoon was not helping their condition to escape the middle region of the Blastwinter desert at all!


    Instead, everyone was getting increasingly fatigued and some of the members from all three squads had already fallen as well.


    At the very back, covering on everyone''s retreat was the leader of the Fifth squad, Xu Liyu and the Seventh squad, Zhuge Liang, fighting it out with the monsters with scars and injuries all over their body.


    "How did things come to this.."


    ...

 145 Chapter 144: Routed and forced to retreat!

    ###NOTICE###


    I have noticed that Webnovel began to censor the words P.A.T.R.E.O.N (without the dots) in order to capitalize the income all on their side, which to be honest, is quite lame as they are killing original author without contract to them (like me) despite encouraging new authors to write on their platform.


    P.s: No author would be motivated enough to write for a long time for free to be honest. It''s just simply not sustainable.


    However, I can''t complain much as I have also received the benefit from publishing here by getting a good exposure to a wide range of readers. (Cool guys like you all)


    Therefore, let them censor it, I would just find ways to circumvent it lol xD


    Please support me at P.A.T.R.E.O.N so that this novel that you love would continue to grow further (just $5.00 a month would be enough to show your support) by searching for my name on that platform.


    Best Regards,


    Author


    #####


    Early morning in the middle region of the Blastwinter desert before..


    "ATTACKKK!!"


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    The Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Subjugation Squads jointly made their surprise attack on the pack of monsters simultaneously. The ambush was largely successful as the monsters had overslept due to being fatigued after staying up all night on their toes guarding for a sudden enemy attack.


    ROOAARRR!!


    Their surprise element made use of the same trick that Duan Li had executed before, which the leaders from the three squads had analyzed last night.


    Since the monster''s intellect were limited, and their confidence in numbers had them careless, they didn''t notice that they were led towards the same kind of trap that annihilated 8,000 of them yesterday.


    "HAHA! As expected of these dumb monsters, they fell for our trap so easily!" Mo Shinfeng laughed out.


    Once again, the monsters were separated into three groups, left, right and the main group. The left and right groups roughly had 5,000 monsters each, and were handled by the Fifth and Sixth squads respectively.


    Meanwhile, the strongest Seventh Squad were holding out against the Main group of the monsters themselves.


    "We should be done in a short while.." Xu Liyu said to herself absent-mindedly as she beheaded 12 monsters gracefully with her sword in almost an instant.


    BOOMM!!


    "AAHHHHHHH!!" a member of the Seventh Squad screamed after he got blowned off by a sudden attack.


    "What?" Zhuge Liang narrowed his eyes warrily as he looked towards the direction of the person that got blowned away.


    Thankfully, the person was only slightly injured but the monster that appeared had him feeling unsettled.


    A 3 Star monster?


    Being the Seventh Squad, they were more than capable in dealing with a 3 Star monster. Thus, Zhuge Liang''s figure fluttered before disappearing and reappearing in front of the monster.


    Pshhhh!!


    With a swift chopping motion, the head of that monster got loped off from its body and died instantly.


    "The scouts had not informed us that a 3 Star monster has appeared among the monster stampede.."


    Feeling concerned that perhaps something was amiss, he sent out messages through everyone''s jade slip and warned them to be wary of any 3 Star monster suddenly appearing amidst the 1 Star monsters.


    I hope this is only me overthinking, but..


    Only just a few moments after he thought along that line, he heard a shout from one of his member.


    "Leader, 3 Star monsters.. about 10 of them!"


    "There are a few of them here too!"


    "Here as well!"


    Hearing this, Zhuge Liang''s expression turned grim as he quickly instructed out;


    "Ignore the 1 Star monsters and eliminate the 3 Star monsters first!"


    What is going on here?!


    One has to know that, if a 1 Star monster was roughly at the Foundation establishment realm, a 3 Star monster was only a half step away from reaching the Golden core realm!


    Furthermore, a monster''s build were far more superior in terms of battle prowess when compared to a human''s. To put it into a perspective, a single 1 Star monster would require at least 3 or more people on the same cultivation level to slay it.


    These gap would only increase exponentially as the monster''s Star rank increases!


    This was specifically the reason why the Subjugation Squads were formed - to select the best among the best of the students, that could slay multiple of these Star ranked monsters instantly, all in order to level out the playing field.


    After all, the Subjugation Squad''s main objective was to combat against monster stampede, and these would come at them like waves. Thus, they must possess the capability to stand their ground even when outnumbered of 10 to 1!


    The other two squads had also received this message as well, and they were equally surprised.


    "What?! There are 3 Star monsters among them? Sh*t! Everyone, quickly finish your job! We have to leave soon!" Mo Shinfeng instructed out as he could predict things were going to turn out for the worst from here on.


    "This is bad.. 3 Star monsters appearing from out of nowhere would meant that our scouts had failed to relay this crucial information.. or that these monsters had hidden themselves deeply among their ranks!" Xu Liyu remarked as her expression became serious.


    Her Fifth Squad was only capable of handling 2 Star monsters at most and the Sixth Squad could fight against 3 Star monsters to a certain degree, but in this chaotic situation, it would be extremely dangerous to focus solely on either monsters!


    Pshhh!!


    "AAAAHHHHH!" another person screamed out tragically, but this time, his body was pierced by the claws of a 3 Star monsters due to the 1 Star monsters that surrounded him were obstructing his field of vision!


    How could he possibly expect that a 3 Star monster had suddenly stab directly at its fellow monsters in the stomach from the back and pierced them all the way through his too?


    Just the thought of it was inconceivable for him!


    "Urrghhh!"


    The first victim of being overwhelmed and caught off-guard spatted out a mouthful of blood, before his entire face slowly lost its color and finally, his life.


    Dead.


    When Zhuge Liang saw this, his entire face darkened as he let out a furious bellow along with his strongest moveset on the loose.


    Sky Slaughtering Half-Moon!


    Pshhh!! Pshhh!! Pshhh!!


    A beautiful white arc formed around him as they shot out towards the monsters, slicing everything in half from the waist.


    "Retreat now!"


    The Fifth and Sixth squads had also received their orders to retreat, and as the Fifth was the weakest, they were the first to go, followed by the Sixth and finally the Seventh squad.


    "Those who are confident enough to take out 3 Star monsters, come with me, we will support the rear while we retreat! The rest will continue to move and don''t stop no matter what!" Mo Shinfeng shouted out.


    ROAARRRR!!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    ...


    After a long chase, the three squads were finally able to escape the pursuit behind them after the monsters gave up chasing and retreated back to their main group.


    All in all, the three squads were only able to eliminate roughly 10,000 of the monsters, a short of 5,000 from their initial objective.


    Not only was that bad, they had also taken in some heavy casualties during the retreat, all because of the unaccounted 3 Star monsters.


    "Sh*t! I''m gonna wipe the floor with those motherf*ckers one day!!" Mo Shinfeng bellowed out to the skies as his blood raged furiously.


    Out of all the three squads, his Sixth squad was the one with the heaviest losses! 5 of his members got sneaked attacked and killed on the spot, while several others were heavily injured - all these were during the retreat alone!


    The Seventh squad lost another member as well, a female that happened to be the fiancee of the first victim. She haddecided to sacrifice herself in order to cover everyone''s retreat.


    Zhuge Liang''s face was dark as well, and his usual calm and amiable look was now replaced with a bitter and grim expression.


    "We need to report this to the higher ups.. they need to change their plans.. otherwise.. I fear that the whole 6,000 students would be annihilated tomorrow!"


    If that were to be the case, then practically the entire future of the Jiu Empire would be at stake!


    ...


    "What?!" the Principal stood up from his seat, shocked after he listened to the report from Zhuge Liang through the communication jade slip.


    To think that the 3 Star monster that they had killed last night was not alone, but instead, a bunch of them has appeared in the morning!


    And to top it off, several members from the three squads was killed in action with others sustaining severe injuries!


    With a grim expression, he turned towards the Vice-Principal beside him as the latter nodded.


    Holding out a special token on his hand, the Principal sent out his message;


    "Eighth Squad and Ninth Squad, prepare to move out!"


    ...


    Amidst the monster stampede, was a person with a black robe and a new moon symbol on it, seemingly to remain unnoticed as he walked around them.


    Tap!


    With a light tap of his finger onto the back of the head of one of the 1 Star monster, a black tentacle wriggled out from the tip of his finger.


    Huuu!!


    The black tentacle bored through the head quickly as the monster screamed out.


    ROOAAAARRRRRR!!


    The body of the monster convulsed rapidly, before its entire appearance and strength slowly changed to those of the 3 Star monsters!


    "Hmm.. the success rate of this forced evolution is still quite low.. seems like I need to do more research on it.."


    ...

 146 Chapter 145: Well met!

    Chapter 145: Well met!


    ###NOTICE###


    I have noticed that Webnovel began to censor the words P.A.T.R.E.O.N (without the dots) in order to capitalize the income all on their side, which to be honest, is quite lame as they are killing original author without contract to them (like me) despite encouraging new authors to write on their platform.


    P.s: No author would be motivated enough to write for a long time for free to be honest. It''s just simply not sustainable.


    However, I can''t complain much as I have also received the benefit from publishing here by getting a good exposure to a wide range of readers. (Cool guys like you all)


    Therefore, let them censor it, I would just find ways to circumvent it lol xD


    Please support me at P.A.T.R.E.O.N so that this novel that you love would continue to grow further (just $5.00 a month would be enough to show your support) by searching for my name on that platform.


    Best Regards,


    Author


    #####


    "All crew members, prepare for landing." the captain spoke out.


    BOOMM!!


    Dust and sand was blowned off from the ground as the Airship landed on a tall flat cliff above the Grand Canyon.


    "I knew beforehand that the Phoenix Cradle was fast, but to think that it was THAT fast!"


    "Me too! If we were to fly personally, I reckon we would only arrive here in the evening.. but now, we are already here barely even one hour after the departure!"


    Some of the students was extremely impressed with the Phoenix Cradle. To put it into a perspective, a Foundation Establishment realm cultivator could fly up to 2 or 3 times more faster than those in the Qi Condensation realm. A Core formation realm were faster by 3 times than the realm before it, but slower at least by 2 times than a Golden Core realm cultivator!


    Meanwhile, Nascent Soul realm was 2 times more faster than Golden Core realm cultivator, and the Phoenix Cradle Airship here, was at least 1 times more faster than that!


    "Listen up everyone, we have received an update for the battle plan tomorrow. So please head over to your designated zones immediately upon disembark. Goodluck to you all!" the Captain spoke out.


    Another update?


    Everyone showed a surprise reaction to this piece of news as several of them began to commented out.


    "This monster stampede this time around sure is weird.."


    "Yeah.. not only is the total number of monsters this time around is far beyond anything else from the past, the dates was even pushed forward to tomorrow when its supposed to be next week!"


    "Right.. what is going on here?"


    Hearing their conversation, Duan Li couldn''t help but to scratch the back of his head awkwardly.


    If I were to tell them it was my fault.. would they even believe me?


    Psheww!!


    Everyone started to flew away towards their respective zones as Duan Li and his party flew further to the North, where their battle front was located - the outskirts of the Blastwinter desert.


    After flying for about half an hour, they could finally see the forward camp of where they would be staying before tomorrow''s battle. However, what had them totally surprised was that , there was already a number of people occupying these camps, and by the looks of it, most of them were injured too!


    What happened here?


    "Hmm?" Zhuge Liang saw the 2,000 students approaching in from afar.


    "Xu Liyu, go to these students and find out if any of them has any healing related skill arts. The Fourth Squad should be quite exhausted after doing such a prolonged treatment for us." he instructed.


    Acknowledging the intention behind the latter''s words, Xu Liyu nodded before quickly approaching the students that had just landed with confused expression on them.


    "My name is Xu Liyu, and I am the leader for the Fifth Subjugation Squad. Pardon us for using your forward camps like this, but we need a helping hand right now and will explain everything else later on." she swiftly said.


    Then, without wasting anymore time, she continued, "Does anyone here has any practical healing related skill arts? Please come with me, we have many people injured that needs immediate attention!"


    As the crowds were still confused, their response was mostly blank faces, looking towards each other. But after hearing who she was, coupled with some of the men here that had swiftly recognizes her as their idol, they immediately stepped out from their stupor!


    "She is the REAL Xu Liyu! Guys, let''s help her out!" a grown man with a swag hairstyle shouted out to his team mates, before the rest of them nodded.


    "Wait! She had mentioned before that only those with healing abilities should go! We shouldn''t annoy her or she might hate us.." another man spoke out with concern apparent on his face.


    Realizing this, most of the men began to curse out and blame themselves for not bothering to learn any sorts of healing skill arts before!


    As cultivators, their body and regenerative abilities were far beyond the resilience of normal people. Injuries that would take normal humans months to recover from would only take them a few days due to their bodies that were saturated with spiritual Qi.


    Thus, there wasn''t a lot of them that had learnt such an art coupled with two specific reasons;


    One was that, any form of healing skill arts was extremely difficult to master, such that even the lowest grade would requires the utmost dedication and talent to learn, and these took a lot of precious time. With most cultivators preferring stronger offence and defense over healing abilities that would be far more suitable for a support, it was no wonder why only a few of them had came forward to Xu Liyu while the others could only grit their teeths in enviousness!


    Second was that, healing abilities was widely known to take too much spiritual Qi of its user! This had many cultivators with a lower Qi efficiency to shy away from even thinking about learning it!


    Even out of all the ten members of Duan Li''s party, the only one who came forward was Duan Li and Xu Rong.


    However, this had Shen Lu and the rest of Duan Li''s followers to be surprised. After all, it would be understandable if Xu Rong had practiced some form of healing skill arts being a spellcaster and a sophomore student.


    But their Lord here was just a fresh junior like Xiahou Yu and Shen Murong!


    Not even Shen Murong here has learnt any form of healing skill arts, and that was coming from someone that belongs to a prestigious clan!


    Was it because his mother had taught him before?


    This was the only possible explanation that they could come up with.


    "Hmm? You are that new Lord that people keeps on talking about recently.." Xu Liyu said as she noticed Duan Li coming forward. This caused some of the men to throw him dagger stares from sheer jealousy!


    "Damn it! The goddess spoke to him!"


    "ARGH! Why can''t it be me? This isn''t fair!"


    "Why did she spoke to him? Did they know each other?!"


    Duan Li was a little bit taken aback by this, as he didn''t expect that his fame was already taking effect here to the extent that he was known by the leader of the Fifth Subjugation Squad!


    This is a good feeling!


    Seems like I have to act a little bit aloof right now!


    "En. My name is Duan Li." Duan Li nodded as he replied to her casually.


    Xu Liyu nodded as well before turning her attention towards Xu Rong. Contrary to what Duan Li believed, even if she knew about him, there was a high chance that she might not know how he even looked like.


    In other words, he was only noticed by her because of Xu Rong that was standing beside him.


    "It''s been a while little sister." she said.


    "Hello elder sister, indeed.. it has been quite a while since we last met.. How are you?" Xu Rong replied.


    EHH?


    They are sisters?!


    At this moment, it suddenly dawned onto Duan Li that the truth of why she knew about him was probably because of this little sister of her''s.


    She might have caught wind that her little sister had joined a certain Lord, and the rest was quite simple to predict.


    "I''m fine, but let us talk later.. right now, we have a more pressing issue to solve." Xu Liyu said.


    All of the students that had came forward nodded as they realized this as well. Thus, they followed her and went inside a big tent centered in the middle of the other tents.


    ...

 147 Chapter 146: Duan Li is a medical expert?! 1

    ###NOTICE###


    I have noticed that Webnovel began to censor the words P.A.T.R.E.O.N (without the dots) in order to capitalize the income all on their side, which to be honest, is quite lame as they are killing original author without contract to them (like me) despite encouraging new authors to write on their platform.


    P.s: No author would be motivated enough to write for a long time for free to be honest. It''s just simply not sustainable.


    However, I can''t complain much as I have also received the benefit from publishing here by getting a good exposure to a wide range of readers. (Cool guys like you all)


    Therefore, let them censor it, I would just find ways to circumvent it lol xD


    Please support me at P.A.T.R.E.O.N so that this novel that you love would continue to grow further (just $5.00 a month would be enough to show your support) by searching for my name on that platform.


    Best Regards,


    Author


    #####


    Entering the tent, Duan Li and Xu Rong saw several people lying on their bed. They appeared to be suffering from some severe injuries judging by that deep wound on their bodies, while those sitting on the ground with pale faces, looking overly fatigued seems to be the healers.


    It appears that the situation here was not looking good..


    Xu Liyu instructed the others that came with her to switch with the members of the Fourth squad that were currently healing the injured so that they could rest.


    Meanwhile, she brought Duan Li and her little sister to a lady currently resting on a chair by the corner while popping some medicinal pills.


    "Meet the leader of the Fourth Squad, Jiu Yinxing." Xu Liyu said as she stood by the side of a woman who seemed to be in her late 20s with long black hair draped across that loose blue robe of her''s.


    If not for that dark circles around her eyes and that fatigued look, Duan Li could reckon that this lady would be a stunning beauty comparable to the woman beside her.


    "My name is Duan Li and this is Xu Rong, my follower. Your name is Jiu Yinxing? Are you part of the royal family?" Duan Li asked.


    The lady nodded as she wiped off the sweat from her forehead using a small towel.


    "Yes I am, although I''m from the outside branch of the main family.. so there is no need for formality. Since you mentioned that she is your follower, I assume you are a Lord class then?" she replied with a small amiable smile.


    Duan Li chuckled, "Indeed, coincidentally though, my follower here appears to be her little sister as well." he said while pointing to Xu Rong using his right thumb.


    Upon realization, she quickly turned to assess at the lady besides Duan Li, "Ahh.. so she is that little sister of yours that you keep on talking about before.." she said to Xu Liyu as her eyes brightened.


    Indeed, if one were to look carefully, the both of them really do look similar!


    "Yes, not only is her offensive ability quite similar in style like mine, she also possess quite remarkable talent in the field of healing and recovery arts." Xu Liyu complimented.


    Hearing this, Xu Rong''s complexion turned red in embarrassment, and Duan Li could detect that her older sister''s compliments were sincere, direct from her heart!


    What a good older sister!


    "Great! Perhaps you can help me! Follow me.." Jiu Yinxing quickly tried to stand up from her seat but almost tripped herself immediately. Thankfully, Xu Liyu was quick to catch her before she fell.


    "She has been healing a lot of people since this morning non-stop, and as you can see.. she is already at her limit a few moments ago and couldn''t even stand straight right now.. " Xu Liyu sighed.


    The both of them were bestfriend since childhood, and she knew how stubborn the other party were if it was related to healing others.


    After all, back when the other party was six years old, she lost her mother due to internal bleeding from wounds that was caused by a monster. From then on, it became her motivation to try and help others as best as she could!


    If it were not for Xu Liyu that was adamant in telling her to rest before, perhaps she might still be trying to heal others even in her current state!


    They then moved onto another tent where a man was seen sitting down on a wooden chair while breathing heavily as sweat dripped off from his forehead.


    "Zhuge Liang, I bought someone here whom perhaps could heal that persistent wou-..!!"


    The man then looked up, and the three of them were shocked to see his current state, including Xu Liyu that they subconsciously took a step back.


    "Y-You.. what happened to your eyes?!" Xu Liyu said as she then quickly approached him.


    "I-I don''t know.." Zhuge Liang shook his head slowly.


    The entirety of his left eye were black in color as were the veins beside it. It seemed as if he was being plagued by a kind of disease!


    He then continued, "I was fine a moment ago and thought that the stab wound on my left arm didn''t manage to heal was due to the monster''s powerful toxins.. that was why I requested to be healed by Jiu Yinxing before because she is an expert in healing.."


    "But here.. take a look at my left arm too.." he flitted over his sleeve.


    Hissss!


    They couldn''t help but to sucked in cold breath when they witnessed it! His left arm had bulged and morphed to a certain degree that it had an uncanny resemblance to that of a monster!


    "W-What... What is this?!" Xu Liyu shrieked out, terrified in what she was seeing right now.


    Xu Rong was so shocked as well that she had to cover her mouth and managed to suppress herself from vomitting. Meanwhile, Duan Li narrowed his eyes.


    "Did anyone else know of this?" Xu Liyu asked with a grim look on her face, and only when the other party shook his head did she finally sighed in relief.


    After all, if this were to be known outside, it might cause panic and uproar!


    "I do however, reported this to the Principal directly.. in case that something goes wrong with me, at least they would still have a clue to follow.." Zhuge Liang said with a downcasted look on him, but still managed to let out a smile.


    Furrowing her brows, Xu Liyu asked, "What do you mean..?"


    Zhuge Liang sighed before shaking his head.


    "I feel like.. this sudden transformation is slowly eroding or eating at my own consciousness.." he said.


    "T-This..!"


    Xu Liyu and Xu Rong became speechless and clueless on how to approach this topic nor on how to resolve the issue.


    Even if it was Xu Rong, no matter how talented she was, against an unknown disease that might be contagious upon touch, she would not dare to do it so casually.


    Tap!


    "Perhaps, you could let me look into it?" Duan Li stepped forward as he said this.


    "You are..?" Zhuge Liang asked.


    "My name is Duan Li. Although I am a Lord class, I have some bit of knowledge in the field of medical arts and healing as well." Duan Li replied casually.


    Hearing this, Zhuge Liang''s expression lit up for a bit before he shook his head after thinking about it.


    "I don''t mean to berate you.. but unless you have evidence of what you claimed to be, I cannot allow you to try and treat me. As far as I know, medical diagnosis requires one to inject their spiritual Qi into another, and in my current state, that would be extremely dangerous and a risk that I am not willing to take as it might infect you too!"


    Xu Liyu and Xu Rong nodded to this statement as well. After all, it was a basic knowledge that unless someone''s disease or illness could be identified, if it seems lethal and dangerous, it would be better to leave the matter in the hands of a real expert.


    "Evidence?" Duan Li was taken aback by Zhuge Liang''s words. Cupping his chin, he then nodded to himself.


    Flipping his palm, a certain token appeared on his hand.


    Woongg!!


    "Would this token do as evidence of my capabilities?"


    When they saw this token, the three of them exclaimed in surprise.


    "T-That token is..!!"


    "It cannot be.. the token of a R-Royal Doctor?!"


    Eh? Why did they react so much? Was this token really that great?


    "The name on that token is.. Ju Zhianhu?! That''s the Chief Doctor at the Royal Palace and is also my teacher as well! To have that token on your hand.. how did you..??" Xu Rong asked in disbelief.


    One has to know that, although the title of a Chief Doctor was only the third highest when compared to the Imperial Doctor and General Doctor, they were still an expert on their own!


    In fact, there was rarely a time when a disease or any affliction couldn''t be identified by their abilities, and even the most complex of injuries or traumas could be resolved to a certain extent using their innumerable means at their disposal!


    To obtain one token from a Chief Doctorwould mean that they had acknowledged the other party.


    If that was so, then wouldn''t this meant that Duan Li''s medical and healing arts were comparable to that of a Chief Doctor?


    Doesn''t that mean that this person here, is an expert?!


    Unreal!!


    "Ju Zhianhu? Ahh yes! He is my stu- I mean, we know each other!" Duan Li answered and almost blurted out that the person in question was his student.


    If he were to claim as such, who in the world would believe him?


    In fact, he might even find the three of them here to suddenly turn hostile on the spot if he were to tell them that!


    To dare call a Chief Doctor, someone of such a high status in the Royal Palace as one of their student, one must''ve been too desperate to court death to say as such!


    "Ahh! That means you really do have the ability! Forgive me for being rude before!" Zhuge Liang bowed his head.


    Xu Liyu hadn''t expected that this new junior Lord that she brought here would possess such capabilities in such a young age, while Xu Rong on the other hand, seemed to crept up a smile before covering it!


    "It''s fine! Let me diagnose your current condition first." Duan Li waved his hand dismissively as if a magnanimous expert.


    "En! I beseech you sir to help me out!" Zhuge Liang said, using a more respectful term in his words.


    Placing his hand onto the latter''s left arm that was transformed into that hideous state, Duan Li began to channel his spiritual Qi before injecting it onto the other party.


    Sonar Qi!


    Huuu!!


    Woongg!!


    Zhuge Liang''s body turned golden as Duan Li''s spiritual Qi quickly flowed throughout the former''s meridians.


    "W-What a powerful Sonar Qi technique!"


    ...

 148 Chapter 147: Duan Li is a medical expert?! 2

    ###NOTICE###


    I have noticed that Webnovel began to censor the words P.A.T.R.E.O.N (without the dots) in order to capitalize the income all on their side, which to be honest, is quite lame as they are killing original author without contract to them (like me) despite encouraging new authors to write on their platform.


    P.s: No author would be motivated enough to write for a long time for free to be honest. It''s just simply not sustainable.


    However, I can''t complain much as I have also received the benefit from publishing here by getting a good exposure to a wide range of readers. (Cool guys like you all)


    Therefore, let them censor it, I would just find ways to circumvent it lol xD


    Please support me at P.A.T.R.E.O.N so that this novel that you love would continue to grow further (just $5.00 a month would be enough to show your support) by searching for my name on that platform.


    Best Regards,


    Author


    #####


    "His spiritual Qi must''ve been incredibly dense and pure for Zhuge Liang''s body to shine golden like that.. but then again, since he cultivated using his three dantians, I guess this shouldn''t count as a surprise.." Xu Rong commented.


    "W-What? He cultivated.. with all his three dantians you said?" Xu Liyu''s eyes turned wide in disbelief.


    If what her little sister said was true, then this new junior Lord would be a dragon amongst men, and a dragon lord amongst dragon!


    This was because as far as she knew, no one has ever managed to cultivate using their second dantian in this day and age, much less cultivating the third dantian itself that was located somewhere inside the brain!


    After all, those whom had ever tried todo so, had always ended up six feet under the ground soon after..


    Therefore, it''s unthinkable for a person as young as this man was able to do it!


    Even if he was actually the son of some prodigious family, there was no way he could succeed in cultivating all three dantians!


    This was unless he was one of the Children of Tian..


    But how could that even be possible?


    Because even if he did, there was not a single mention that the Children of Tian had ever cultivated using all three dantians..


    Shaking her head, Xu Liyu forced herself to stop thinking about irrelevant stuff and regained her focus as she waited for the result of the diagnosis from Duan Li.


    Sa!


    The diagnosis was finally done.


    Duan Li lifted off his palm and then shook his head slowly while closing his eyes, face looking all solemn as if there was no hope for the other party. When the two sisters saw these, they couldn''t help but to expect for the worst and readied themselves for whatever bad news that would come out of Duan Li''s mouth in the next moment.


    Even Zhuge Liang himself was not that positive about his current condition and thus did not put too much hope into it, afraid that expectations would only lead to an even bigger disappointments!


    "H-How was it?" Zhuge Liang asked nervously nevertheless.


    "When the monster attacked you before, it was highly likely that it, or the other monsters that had injured you, had also injected a certain foreign substance into your bloodstream that caused your left arm and eye to become mutated like this." Duan Li answered directly with a complex expression.


    Hearing this, Zhuge Liang''s countenance turned pale.


    "Then what about the others? If it were to infect them too and become like this.. it would be far too disastrous for them and the Jiu Empire!" concerns apparent in his eyes when he said this.


    Xu Liyu turned towards Xu Rong as the latter nodded, and then went out of the tent to inspect the other injured people to see if there were any similar cases like this.


    Shortly after, Xu Rong came back and reported, "I''ve been to all the other camps, and there was nothing of the sort like here.." she said.


    Hearing this, Zhuge Liang let out a sigh of relief. Duan Li that saw this, couldn''t help but to feel incredibly impressed with him and nodded approvingly.


    He had never saw anyone, that when their condition was so terrible to the point that they might not be able to get better at all, would still have the time and capacity to think about other people''s well being compared to their own!


    This man here was such a perfect rare example of how a strong person should be, dutiful and compassionate to others below him!


    If not for Duan Li running a diagnosis on him, he would never have realized the depth of power that this man has!


    Perhaps if he were to fight at full strength and utilized all his means against Zhuge Liang, the other party would still be able to triumph over him!


    But of course, it was only because of Duan Li''s low cultivation realm though. If Duan Li were to step into the Core formation realm, that would be an entirely different matter altogether!


    Still, it was no wonder that the other party had managed to become the leader of the Seventh Subjugation Squad with such means and personality!


    "I guess.. this is it for me. Maybe in my next life, I would be more fortunate and wouldn''t have to encounter such a premature end like this." Zhuge Liang said.


    He then continued, "I could feel that this foreign substance in me to continue eroding my consciousness.. at this point, I might turn into a mindless violent monster that would attack everyone here.. therefore.."


    Thud!


    "Please.. end my life!" he said to them with a serious determination reflected on his eyes while standing on both knees as he made this request.


    "W-What? H-How could we do that!" Xu Liyu shouted out.


    "There has to be another way.." Xu Rong said as she wreak her brains.


    Suddenly, Duan Li lifted up his palm.


    "Hold up! What gives you the idea that I can''t cure you from this predicament of yours?" he said with a furrowed brows.


    Hais!


    This fella is a good man indeed, but he is also so overdramatic as if he was going to die anytime soon!


    "Y-You mean.. you can cure me?" Zhuge Liang''s eyes lit up once more as he saw hope in the other party''s words.


    "En! That is only natural!" Duan Li replied casually while waving his hand in a dismissive manner, as if it was a thing not even worth mentioning.


    However, the two sisters beside him almost flared up in anger when they heard this.


    What the hell!


    We thought that there was no hope for him when you shook your head with that solemn look after that diagnosis of yours!


    Who wouldn''t misunderstand the situation when you act as such!


    Suppressing the stiffling sensation in their hearts, Xu Liyu and Xu Rong sighed in relief.


    "Let me begin. Oh and Xu Rong, come over here and place your hand onto his right shoulder. You should observe and learn on how to treat this thing." Duan Li said as he approach Zhuge Liang and Xu Rong following suit.


    "Thing?" Zhuge Liang wanted to cry as he was referred to as if an ugly stuff.


    Tap! Tap!


    Both Duan Li and Xu Rong pat their palm onto Zhuge Liang''s shoulder respectively at the same time.


    With one hand behind his back, Duan Li began to use Sonar Qi once more.


    Huuu!!


    Wengggg!!


    "I-Incredible! I had thought that his Sonar Qi was impressive when I saw the body glowed golden before, but not to this extent!" Xu Rong remarked inwardly.


    To think that a single burst of Sonar Qi was all it takes to scan the entirety of the patient''s internal state, that was just too formidable!


    In fact, she had never heard of anyone ever able to do that!


    Perhaps not even the Imperial doctor or the General doctor could do what he just did!


    "T-This??!" Xu Rong was shocked.


    With Duan Li''s Sonar Qi, Xu Rong was able to see that ''foreign substance'' inside of Zhuge Liang''s body!


    "As you can see.. it was this black stuff wriggling around his body that had caused this tranformation. The epicenter seems to be from that deep wound on his left arm and spreaded out like the roots of a plant to the rest of his body." Duan Li explained.


    "En! That seems to be the case. It is only fortunate that this black stuff is just parasitic on the host''s body and would not spread like a contagious disease to others through air or touch.." Xu Rong said.


    Feeling extremely curious, Xu Liyu chimed in, "Can I look too?"


    Duan Li turned to her, "Yes you can, just place your palm onto his right shoulder below Xu Rong''s" he said as the latter nodded.


    Su!


    "T-This!! What is this heinous stuff?!" Xu Liyu gasped.


    Zhuge Liang was feeling quite the mixed reaction from this. He felt a little bit embarrassed being touched by the two females, but being a man, he did not abhore such sensation at all. On the other hand though, he felt as if he was being stripped to laid bare and nude, with his innards being peeked at by the three people around him.


    Sigh!


    "Watch what happens to his spiritual Qi in this sectiom of his meridian." Duan Li said to the two sisters.


    Huuuwww!!


    "T-This! The black stuff engulfed his spiritual Qi and turned it black!" Xu Liyu said in surprise.


    Duan Li nodded, "That''s right. Even if Zhuge Liang were to try and supress it himself, it would be a futile endeavour. The only consolation to this was that the rate of spreading of this black stuff was too slow.."


    Hearing this, Zhuge Liang nodded in agreement.


    "No wonder that when I tried to suppress it by using my spiritual Qi, I felt the spreading to become faster instead.. so it turns out that its food is my spiritual Qi!" he said in realization.


    "En. Therefore, it''s safe to assume that, slower Qi cycle would slow its rate of spreading inside your body. About half of your normal Qi cycle would do. Give it a try first!" Duan Li replied.


    "Alright then!"


    Huu!!


    "Ah? It''s working! I saw the congregation of black stuff to suddenly become less dense than it was before!" Xu Rong said.


    "Me too!" Xu Liyu added.


    Seeing that everyone was energetic on this discovery, Duan Li smiled.


    "I could only think up to two solution to kill off this black stuff. The first one is quite unrealististic in your case, as it involved cutting of the infected body parts."


    Pu!


    Zhuge Liang choked out.


    That''s indeed quite unrealistic! If I were to let you guys cut off my body parts that got infected, you would have to slice up my body in half!


    Rather than saving him, that would be more suitable to be called as torture before killing him!


    If it were a few hours before, he might have made such a decision himself by severing his left arm, but now that it haf spread to half of his body, such an option was no longer viable for him.


    "Then, the second method?" he asked curiously as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Duan Li chuckled, "It''s simple. Just completely cut off your spiritual Qi from the infected meridian and reroute it through another pathways!"


    When the three of them heard this, they let out a blank look.


    "P-Pardon me.. if I am not mistaken.. there is actually no way to umm.. completely cut off spiritual Qi from travelling across your meridians.." Xu Rong said slowly.


    Zhuge Liang and Xu Liyu nodded to her statement.


    Just what kind of concept was the other party trying to imply to them?


    It was like saying you have to stop your blood from flowing through some certain veins and arteries..


    In other words, completely impossible!


    "Huh? What do you mean impossible? I can actually do it.." Duan Li furrowed his brows.


    Are they for real?


    The three of them sighed.


    It seems that the world of dragons amongst men were too far apart.


    Even such a basic concept was a contradictory to them!


    Seeing their helpless expression, Duan Li could only harrumphed in displeasure for a little bit.


    "Hmph! Nevermind, let me do it for you then! Watch me and learn!"


    Saaaa!!


    Injecting his spiritual Qi into Zhuge Liang''s body, it soon made a complete cycle in just a single breath, before rerouting the traffic of spiritual Qi abruptly in the other party''s body, completely avoding the plagued region!


    "There! I said it before that it was easy! How could you guys said that it was impossible? Hmph!" Duan Li harrumphed once more.


    Aren''t they a little bit unreliable to not be able to do even such a basic thing as a cultivator?


    Meanwhile, the three of them was shocked beyond belief as their entire horizon was widened at this moment.


    What kind of miracle is this?!


    ...

 149 Chapter 148: Duan Li is a medical expert?! 3

    ### Notice ###


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    Ps: If it gets censored, those words are P.A.T.R.E.O.N without the dots.


    ### Notice ###


    To complete a single cycle in just under one breath inside another individual''s body, how could they possibly believe it?


    But the truths were there, laid bare in front of them to see, and indeed, Duan Li had done just that perfectly, completely destroying their perception of what seems to be logical in this world.


    In fact, they wouldn''t have any trouble in believing such a thing if it was Duan Li''s own body, but this was other''s!


    In their general knowledge taught by the academy, even the most formidable Royal Doctor from the Royal Palace would require at least 20 breaths in order to aid the Qi cycle within other people''s body, as it involves the daunting task of having their injected spiritual Qi to not be rejected by the host''s spiritual Qi.


    Then, completing a single cycle would take at least 10 breaths while maintaining equilibrium, thus all in all, what Duan Li had just did in one breath should actually only be possible after 30 breaths!


    Just how in the world did he managed to do it?!


    Not to mention, that was not the only thing that had them flabbergasted. What was even more bizarre was that, the other party had indeed managed to re-route the traffic flow of spiritual Qi inside Zhuge Liang''s meridians under that single one breath as well!


    My Heavens! Has the law of this world changed without us knowing?


    That should not have been possible!


    "T-This! I could feel that the spread was halted almost immediately!" Zhuge Liang''s eyes complexion turned bright, as he finally became confident that Duan Li would be able to cure him from the unknown plague.


    If previously he had harbored some doubts with the other party, right now he already had put a complete faith in the other party''s capabilities!


    "Oh I remembered, no wonder you guys thought that it was impossible, turns out that I forgot you should at least cultivate your second dantian to re-route your spiritual Qi into using other meridians forcefully.." Duan Li scratched the back of his head awkwardly.


    Hearing this, they finally came into the realization as well. The nature of spiritual Qi, once taken into the dantian would become unique and possess repulsing nature towards other foreign spiritual Qi, acting similar to a person''s anti-body against diseases and illnesses.


    This was also why it took doctors quite some time to aid a patient''s spiritual Qi cycle so that the two nature of spiritual Qi between them and the host''s does not repulse with each other.


    But now they understood why it was possible for Duan Li to achieve what he did. Since the spiritual Qi of his second dantian also possess a different nature, it means that right now inside Zhuge Liang''s meridians, there were three different spiritual Qi coursing through it!


    By having the third dantian blocking the pathways towards the infected region, when the two spiritual Qi came in contact with it, the repulsive nature of it will cause them to be redirected to somewhere else conveniently!


    Still however, this does not mean that things had become less mystifying. In fact, their mind had become more mind-boggled by this new knowledge.


    It appears that, the more they know, the more it became vagued and difficult to understand!


    Sighing depressingly, they had to force themselves to accept it, no matter how outlandish the entire phenomena were!


    "Now that the infected region has stopped spreading.. how do you plan to extract them out?" Xu Rong asked.


    "That is even simpler. Since their food is spiritual Qi, we just have to find another source of spiritual Qi for them to retreat into!" Duan Li replied as he chuckled, his disposition was like that of a teacher answering the question of his student.


    "Do you guys have some monster cores? The higher its rank, the faster the next treatment would be!" he continued.


    Flip!


    With a flip of her palm, Xu Liyu produced two, 3 Star monster cores!


    "Will this amount do?" she said nervously. She only had two of them at the moment as she frequently cultivate with them, thus, she was afraid that it might not be enough.


    Looking at the two monster cores, Duan Li nodded.


    "En! This should be enough!" he said.


    Placing one of the monster core on top of the opened wound from Zhuge Liang''s left arm, Duan Li stimulated it for a bit so that the spiritual Qi inside the monstercore could become active.


    Wenggg!!


    And just as expected, the moment the monster core began to glow, the black stuff inside Zhuge Liang''s body started to pour into it crazily!


    "ARRGHHH!!" the latter groaned in pain as beads of sweat dropped from his forehead.


    And then slowly, his left eye turned back to normal and black veins around it also began to disappear. It didn''t take long for the plagued region on half of his body to recede all the way back into his left arm before the 3 Star monster core turned entirely black!


    Pang!


    Duan Li threw the infected monster core to the ground and fetched the fresh one, enacting the similar process like before until Zhuge Liang''s entire left arm turned normal again.


    Pang!


    "F-Finally.. it''s gone.." Zhuge Liang said slowly as manly tears began to form and threatened to fall from the corner of his eyes.


    He had already resigned to his pitiful fate before and even determined to have someone end his own life so that he would not turn into something inhuman.


    But now that he was saved from such a hopeless situation, who could blame him for getting emotional like this?


    "Xu Rong, burn the first infected monster core to ashes!" Duan Li instructed.


    "En!" Xu Rong nodded as she threw a fireball onto the pitch black monster core.


    Coming into contact with the flames, the black substance inside it began to screech and seethe out before turning into a pile of burnt ash!


    Xu Liyu turned towards the other one laying on the floor, "What about that other one?"


    "We should submit it to the Principal to have the matter looked into." Duan Li replied with the rest of them nodded, in agreement with his decision.


    They needed to know just what was it actually that they were dealing with here.


    Could a monster really possess such an ability to turn human into a monster of its kind?


    This was definitely the first they had ever witnessed for such a thing to happen, and it seems to be more than meets the eye!


    Suu!!


    With the threat gone, Duan Li and the two sisters retracted their palm from Zhuge Liang''s left and right arm respectively.


    "Thank you sir Duan Li! From now on, as long as it is within my capabilities and means, I would help you with anything!" Zhuge Liang stood up as he performed a 90 degrees bow towards Duan Li.


    Waving his hand dismissively, Duan Li casually replied with the air of an expert, "This is nothing to fret over! As we are both fellow cultivator of the same academy, we should do our best to help each other in times of need. Doing so would only benefit the Empire as a whole greatly, so don''t mention it!"


    I have to act cool and magnanimous so that my reputation as the Lord would soar from now on!


    Xu Liyu and Zhuge Liang then began to brief Duan Li and Xu Rong regarding the recent events that had transpired.


    Hearing those, Duan Li''s expression turned serious.


    "Could it be that because I''ve slayed a few thousands of them last night, that time began to retaliate again by popping out 3 Star monsters randomly among the packs?" Duan Li couldn''t help but to ponder onto this thought.


    If that were really the case, wouldn''t that practically meant that he could not do anything at all since time continued to react against him?


    "If it is truly like that, I swear that once I get strong enough, I will find those who was in charge of this ''time'' madness.. once I found them, I will mop the entire nine heavens floor with their face on the ground!"


    Now that all was well, Zhuge Liang sat down cross-legged on the ground to meditate and took in the surrounding spiritual Qi to alleviate his condition.


    Slowly, his complexion turned better and normal once again.


    Suddenly however, they could hear some sort of commotion going on outside the camp, as if the people outside were shouting and cheering out loud for something!


    "Huh? What going on outside?" they turned towards each other as they decided to have a look.


    ...

 150 Chapter 149: Becoming bestfriend!

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    "Try saying that again!" Mo Shinfeng shouted with veins bulging out from his temples.


    "HAHA! Go run to your mama and cry a river!" Shen Murong said out loud with a sneer.


    "You dare!!" Mo Shinfeng''s face turned dark as he let out a fist punch.


    BAM!!


    When Mo Shinfeng threw out that fist, the spectators were expecting for Shen Murong to be blasted off into the distance.


    After all, it was only logical for that to happen when the scuffle was between a Senior at the Core formation realm against a Sophomore that was still in the Foundation establishment realm.


    However, what they witnessed next had made them astonished instead!


    BAM!!


    "Oh? What''s with that look? You don''t seriously think that you could send me off that easily, do you now?" Shen Murong grinned.


    The sight of Shen Murong grabbing that fist with one hand had put the spectators into a round of surprise and astonishment.


    "What the holy-moly?! How is he able to stop that fist?!"


    "This is unreal! The force behind Mo Shinfeng''s punch would blow even Core formation realm away even if by just a few meters back! To think that he could stop such a force without being pushed back even by a single inch? Is that guy really in a Foundation establishment realm?!"


    It was at this moment that Duan Li, Zhuge Liang and the two sisters came out from the main tent.


    Looking at the current situation, Duan Li frowned as he approached Shen Lu that was standing some distance away with the rest of his party.


    "What''s going on here? Why are they fighting?" he asked.


    "Oh Brother, you''re finally back! Well, to be honest, it was quite silly but this seems to be interesting as well." Shen Lu chuckled.


    He then continued, "We were waiting for you and Xu Rong to finish when suddenly that guy came here and started to shout at us for no reason."


    At this point, Zhuge Liang stepped in.


    "You mean Mo Shinfeng started this mess?" he asked as he cast a look towards the two burly men trading blows in front of them.


    "Yes, it seems that he was quite upset by something. And when he saw us, he started to call us ''weaklings'' and that we have no place around here, telling us to just go back to the academy." Shen Lu replied.


    "Ahh.. no wonder.." Duan Li said in realization.


    Knowing Shen Murong, that guy would definitely not take such a beratement under his nose.


    Zhuge Liang sighed, "I apologize on his behalf.. he had just lost quite a few member under his squad this morning.. perhaps that is why he is acting out as such.."


    He lost quite a few member of his squad?


    His name is Mo Shinfeng? Could it be?!


    "Don''t tell me.. that guy is the leader of the Sixth Subjugation Squad?" Shen Lu asked with wide eyes.


    "Indeed he is that very same person." Zhuge Liang answered with a smile.


    Gulp!


    "Well.. this is getting more interesting! But what do you mean he lost a few of his member this morning?" Shen Lu asked once more, but with a confused expression this time.


    One has to know that members of the Subjugation Squads, not to the mention from the Sixth Squad, were all top geniuses in the academy, just a single one of them possessed a battle prowess that could wipe out several hundreds of 1 star monsters in a single session!


    "That is.. I will tell you guys after their scuffle ends. Don''t worry though, Mo Shinfeng is only using his brute strength against your friend over there to let out some steam and vent his frustrations, he won''t really go overboard." Zhuge Liang replied, seeming to reassure Duan Li and his party.


    BAM!! BAM!!


    "You''re good! It has been a while since I last met someone who could match up against my raw power! My name is Mo Shinfeng! What is your name?" Mo Shinfeng said as he wiped off the blood from the side of his lips.


    "HAHA! Me too! The last person that gave me this much thrashing was Duan Li, that monster Lord of mine! My name is Shen Murong by the way!" Shen Murong replied, similarly wiping off the blood from the side of his lips.


    Standing up, they both approached each other slowly and..


    BAMM!!


    Hand-shaked one another with a deafening force as both palm met.


    "I need a partner to drink, will you accompany me?" Mo Shinfeng requested, but this time his expression no longer looked that sour as he finally formed a smile on that face of his.


    Shen Murong nodded with a wide grin, "Anytime friend! It seems like you need to down some feelings out, but I have to warn you though, you might collapse if we were to contest on who could drink more!"


    "Oh? Is that a challenge I''m hearing? The last time I drink, the entire Bar had to close down for a whole week because I finished all of their stocks!" Mo Shinfeng replied, with a similar wide grin.


    The both of them stared at each other''s eyes for a while.


    "Pfftt!"


    "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"


    Their sudden laugh was so loud that the previous tension in the atmosphere was lifted off completely.


    Seeing this, both Zhuge Liang and Duan Li could only shook their head with a smile.


    "Seems like they''ve become best friends now.."


    Clap! Clap!


    Zhuge Liang suddenly clapped his hand, it was a small movement, but the piercing sound of it had attracted everyone''s attention.


    "Sorry to disturb you guys, but my name is Zhuge Liang. I am the leader of the Seventh Squad as well as the commander for this camp. Line up please!"


    Hearing this, Shen Lu almost tripped himself and fell to the ground in shock.


    "I.. I just spoke with the commander?.. so casually at that.."


    Everyone then began to line up in rows and columns. When they finished, Zhuge Liang stood at the very front facing the other students. Mo Shinfeng and Xu Liyuboth stood on his left and right side respectively.


    "As you guys have been informed earlier, the number of monsters have increased from 30,000 to 50,000. But worry not, the monsters have been reduced back to roughly 30,000 once again by the Subjugation Squads and some other people." Zhuge Liang began his speech.


    When the crowd heard this, their tense expression alleviated a lot as they let out a huge breath of relief.


    "Thank goodness! That means that our front should only be dealing with 10,000 monsters again.."


    "Yeah! And now that the higher levelled Subjugation Squads are here, this will be a cinch!"


    As the crowd began to relish their worries, Mo Shinfeng''s face turned dark once more and suddenly bellowed out.


    "Fools! Such thinking will get you killed!"


    "I''ve lost some of my members to reduce their numbers, so don''t you guys dare to be careless now, or I will personally beat you to death myself before you get killed!"


    "I see.. no wonder he was cranky.." Shen Murong thought in his mind.


    If the crowd did not understand what the other party meant by that, then they really do deserves to get a beating of their life.


    After all, if these people started to get lax and then killed due to their carelessness, Mo Shinfeng''s member that died, their sacrifices would''ve been in vain!


    Getting reprimanded and now knowing that even some members from the Subjugation Squad was killed in action, they quieted down and their seriousness returned as they realized the graveness of the matter.


    "Let me continue.. this morning, when we were on our mission to reduce their numbers, things quickly escalated to worse.. 3 Star monsters have appeared.. not one or a dozen.. but hundreds.. if not a thousand or two!" Zhuge Liang said with a solemn expression.


    "W-What? 3 S-Star monsters?"


    "Thousands of them?! W-We can''t fight against those! We will die!"


    "No wonder some of their members were killed.. if it were that many 3 Star monsters.. wouldn''t we be sending ourselves to die as well?!"


    The students began to become rowdy once more as the situation slowly turned uncontrollable from their panic.


    Pshew!! Pshew!!


    Suddenly, two groups of people came flying in from the distance.


    "Hey look! Isn''t that the Principal? And those behind him.. those are all Senior Teachers of the academy!"


    "What''s going on??"


    ...

 151 Chapter 150: Two hidden royal members?!

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    Pshew!!


    Tap! Tap!


    Several people landed on the ground with an air of authority to them. By the looks of it though, all of them appeared to be the teachers and senior teachers of the academy, including Duan Li''s mother and the Principal himself!


    However, their robes right now were entirely different than their usual attire. These two groups of people wore red while the other black robes!


    It was no wonder why they couldn''t recognize most of them from a distance before.


    "Eh Principal, why are you here?" Duan Li asked as soon as the other party landed on the ground.


    "It''s an emergency. I''m sure Zhuge Liang of the Seventh Squad had already informed everyone here of the change in situation?" the Principal replied, his usual temperament no longer indifferent and casual, but was now replaced with a serious expression and carried on a different air to his disposition, seemingly more powerful and sharp than when he donted the Principal''s uniform before.


    "Don''t worry, we will update on the battle plan, make sure you listen carefully okay?" Meng Yue said, her expression was solemn as well.


    Previously, when they landed on the Grand Canyon using the Airship, she suddenly received a message through her communication jade slip and then decided to remain there for a while to wait for people coming over and would catch up to them later.


    But who could have thought that she would catch up and brought the Principal as well as the other teachers and senior teachers with her?


    "Let me take over." the Principal said to Zhuge Liang as he walked over.


    "Yes, Principal!" Zhuge Liang replied.


    When the Principal stood at the center, the crowd quickly simmered down.


    "Some of you might have already guessed the reason as to why we came here. But let me just say it, as of now, I am Bian Tianyu, leader of the Ninth Subjugation Squad!"


    EH?


    The Principal is the leader of THE Ninth Squad?!


    Is he pranking people? I thought that Subjugation Squads would only consist of students?


    The Principal happened to cast a glance onto Duan Li at this moment, and couldn''t help but to notice the other party giving him a suspicious look.


    "This brat.." he sighed.


    Ignoring Duan Li, he continued on, "As everyone here is already informed regarding the appearance of 3 Star monsters among the 1 Star monsters, we thus came here with an additional battle plan set up so that the situation tomorrow would be as safe as possible for everyone!"


    "The Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Squad would specifically deal with the 3 Star monsters tomorrow by method of securing air superiority and hunt them down from the air. Meanwhile, the Second, Third and Fifth Squad will join everyone else on the ground to watch out for your back."


    "You can view them as your support or rear-guard while you handle the majority of the 1 Star monsters, thus this way, there won''t be any major changes to the original plan and you guys can head out tomorrow without any confusion."


    "One last thing though, I''m sure that most of you are aware, that no matter how much we tried to make the situation safe for you, there will always be a risk. Furthermore, before you are a student of the academy, know that you are a cultivator, and a cultivator should not be stopped by the mere thought of a risk."


    "That is all."


    The students broke out into discussion as soon as the Principal finished.


    "Will just that be fine?" Meng Yue asked towards the latter as she furrowed her brows.


    Isn''t that speech a little too short?


    The Principal nodded, "It''s best for us not to over-complicate things with them. They needed to focus on their task at hand and not worry some needless things that they can''t change."


    "Anyway, come with me." he beckoned towards them to follow him as they entered the main tent.


    Jiu Yinxing whom was resting on her tent was also called for a meeting between them.


    "Now that everyone is here, there are a few things that I must say and must not be mentioned to anyone else, understood?" said the Principal with a strict tone.


    All of them nodded.


    "Good. From these recent appearance of the 3 Star monsters, we have reason to believe that it was not due to the scout and the recon team were negligent in their duties, but that these 3 Star monsters seems to have appeared, well.. randomly!" he explained.


    "Randomly? How could that possibly be?" the rest of them murmurred.


    Even the Principal has his own doubt, but its not like he could just say the things going on in his mind right now.


    For one, he had a conjecture that this might be related to the retaliation from ''time''!


    After all, they had yet to fully understood how ''time'' would retaliate against their resistance to change their future.


    But since they were not yet qualified to know this secret, the Principal couldn''t possibly voiced it out towards them.


    "It can''t be on random.. there must be something that we might have missed!" Shen Lu said as he knitted his brows.


    The Principal nodded, "That''s highly likely. Secondly, this might sounds weird for some of you here, but heed this command, it is his Majesty''s decree personally to everyone here!"


    Wenggg!!


    "T-That is!!"


    The moment the Principal took out a golden scroll with the symbol of a crowned phoenix from his spatial ring, all of them were shocked and immediately kneeled down including Duan Li.


    Ultimately, no matter how a country-bumpkin someone was, they should have at least been taught what a golden scroll with the symbol of a crowned phoenix meant!


    The Principal then threw the golden scroll lightly into the air as it floated gently and then stopped.


    Fluurrr!


    When the scroll unrolled itself, hints of a unique aura carrying the utmost disposition of a royal blood was exuded from it!


    "This is the aura from the Emperor!" Zhuge Liang''s eyes brightened.


    There was only one occasion where he had witnessed the Emperor before, and that was when he was selected as the leader of the Seventh Subjugation Squad!


    The rest of the squad leaders also seemed to be excited by this as well.


    "Hear my command.." the voice of Emperor Jiu Xian Ping that seemed to be filled with archaic wisdom in it began to echoed out from the scroll as everyone''s heart pulsated nervously.


    What will be the Emperor''s personal command for us?


    "No matter what.. you must do this, and you should do it discreetly without attracting anyone''s attention.."


    What could possibly be so important that the Emperor wanted us to do something so stealthily?!


    "Protect the person named Duan Li.. at all cost! That is all."


    Suupp!!


    Flashh!


    Right after the Emperor''s words finished playing, the golden scroll immediately disintegrated into flames.


    "..." everyone.


    "What the heck.." Duan Li subconsciously said.


    Thankfully, everyone was in a daze so no one could heard what he just said. The Principal had expected this scene to happen so he just shook his head helplessly.


    It was only when Zhuge Liang turned his head towards Duan Li and spoke out that everyone finally stepped out from their stupor!


    "To think that the Emperor would request from us personally to protect Sir Duan Li.. c-can it be?" he said with his eyes wide open, as if realizing something entirely bizarre!


    "H-Huh? What are you getting at?" Duan Li stepped back a little bit.


    Thud!


    Zhuge Liang suddenly kneeled with one leg as if paying respect to a titled knight, but with one hand crossing on his chest.


    "Forgive me for being blind! With such medical capabilities that could even heal me to recovery.. you must be a certain hidden expert within the Jiu Empire!" he said out loud with extreme confidence in it.


    Thud! Thud!


    The rest of the squad leaders followed suit, kneeling with similar posture to Zhuge Liang''s!


    After all, even though each of them might have a different conjecture as to what Duan Li''s real identity would be, their kneeling posture was meant to be for those with high status in the Jiu Empire, in other words..


    For the Royal family!


    This indicates that they had theorized Duan Li''s identity to be either a ''hidden prince'' or one of the Emperor''s personal Enforcer!


    But from the way that the Emperor had voiced out his request, makes them feels like the former was far more likely than the latter!


    To think that there would be a hidden prince!


    "This is indeed a grave secret that we must hold until our deathbed at all cost!" they simultaneously thought.


    If words were to spread that the Emperor had hidden an illegitimate son, the whole Jiu Empire would be thrown into a state of disarray!


    "T-This..!" seeing this, Duan Li was lost for words and turned towards the Principal for help, but the latter only chuckled lightly.


    Even Meng Yue - his mother, only nodded proudly with a smug look. As if it was only natural for them to kneel as such!


    Hais!


    While their conjectures were all wrong and stemmed from their premature assumptions, they were at least right in one area, and that was - that Duan Li was indeed, a hidden expert of the Jiu Empire!


    The Imperial Overseer! A position even higher than the Emperor himself!


    When the kneeling squad leaders realized that they were not reprimanded for using such a kneeling posture meant for the Royal family, their conviction of it grew even stronger than before!


    In reality however, the only reason why they were not reprimanded was because there were no other forms of kneeling posture that was used specifically to address an Imperial Overseer!


    At least, not yet!


    And even if there were, it was impossible for them to know that Duan Li was the Imperial Overseer.


    Ahem!


    Duan Li made a dry cough to ease the awkward atmosphere.


    Hmph! Since you don''t want to clear this misunderstanding for me, I''ll just talk to my mother first then!


    "Mother, perhaps.. the sudden appearance of these 3 Star monsters are not random after all.." Duan Li said.


    Hearing that Duan Li was calling the other party his ''mother'', the squad leaders once again let out a pair of wide eyes with a pale expression as they look towards each other and swiftly nodded. Stepping up to the front at the same time, they kneeled once more in front of Meng Yue.


    "We humbly greet High Lady! Please excuse us for not realizing sooner!" they said in a harmony.


    Right now, they were feeling extremely scared. Not only was there an illegitimate prince here, but also the Emperor''s second ''hidden'' wife, that should be similar in status to the Empress herself!


    "Curses! If I ever mention this out even once to anyone, I refuse to call myself a human and will just commit suicide!" they all swore an oath deep inside their hearts that this secret must never be leaked out at all cost!


    "Ohh, isn''t that the kneeling posture one must show to the Empress?" Duan Li''s mother was a little bit surprised by their sudden kneeling posture towards her.


    Ting!


    An idea flashed inside her mind as she grinned.


    "Rise." she said with a solemn tone, giving out an air of authority to her voice.


    "Yes, High Lady!" they replied quickly and then swiftly rose from their kneeling posture, keeping their head down as a symbol of respect and reverence for her status.


    But because Duan Li''s mother was short, they appeared to be staring straight right at the ground instead.


    "En!" Meng Yue nodded, but inwardly, she was laughing out loud, full of satisfaction!


    "Ahhh this feeling is so good!"


    Duan Li could only drop his lower jaw to the floor when he witnessed this.


    M-Mother! Aren''t you being too shameless here!


    Even the Principal could only shook his head helplessly.


    "Oh! What is it you were trying to tell me earlier?" she said as she realized a more important matter and turned back towards Duan Li.


    Hais!


    "It was this object mother, take a look.." Duan Li replied as he took out the infected monster core from his spatial ring.


    Wengg!!


    "!!" Meng Yue quickly dashed backwards in a sudden panic and her eyes reflected a certain fear to the object on Duan Li''s hand.


    "W-Where did you get those?!!!"


    ...

 152 Chapter 151: 25 years ago.. 1

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    "Mother? What''s wrong?" Duan Li asked, feeling baffled on why his mother suddenly retreated and acted that way.


    "T-That black monster core!" the Principal narrowed his eyes menacingly as his hands immediately moved to create a series of hand seals.


    Spatial sealing!


    Weengg!!


    The infected monster core floated off from Duan Li''s hands before it was encassed in a spatial barrier in an instant.


    "Where did you get this blackened monster core?" the Principal turned to Duan Li and questioned him with a serious expression.


    Feeling utterly confused by their exaggerated reaction, Duan Li scratched his head as he answered, "Oh that? It was actually just a normal monster core before.. it turned black after I treated Zhuge Liang with it!"


    Hearing this, a surprised look was seen from the Principal''s face as well as his mother''s. Turning his head towards Zhuge Liang, the Principal asked the other party, "Is what he said true? Are you telling me that the report you''ve sent to me, that you said you were infected by an unknown toxin, was due to this?"


    Zhuge Liang nodded, "Yes! Inside that monster core was some black stuff that we do not understand.. previously it was inside me and caused half of my body to turn into that of a monster.. but Sir Duan Li here managed to cure me from it and extracted the black stuff into that monster core.." he answered.


    "T-This.. someone can actually be cured from this?!" the Principal stared at that infected monster core inside the spatial barrier and then turned towards Duan Li in disbelief.


    This brat could just practically do anything isn''t he?


    "The thing inside this monster core.. it is actually called as the Demiruke''s virus.. a product of creation from the blasphemous organization.. the Dark Sect!" the Principal said as he clenched his fist tight.


    Dark Sect? If I am not mistaken, isn''t that the group of people that Jing Zhianghu, the Old Guardian from the First region of the Eternal Maze warned me about?


    The Principal continued, "A single strand from this virus.. will slowly turn the infected into monsters.. until they can no longer differentiate between foes and friends.. and attack everything or anyone indiscriminately!"


    Duan Li nodded, "I see.. no wonder Zhuge Liang turned into that.. but how did you come to know about this virus Principal?" he asked.


    Xu Rong and Jiu Yinxing nodded. As a practitioner of the medical arts, they have read innumerable amount of books, and there was not a single mention of this ''Demiruke''s virus'' or the sorts.


    Not to mention that it has something to do with the Dark Sect, the number one public enemy of all nine empires across the Tian continent! Therefore, such a terrible virus should''ve been well documented by the combined efforts of all the empires..


    Yet, why was it that it was the first time they were hearing about this?


    Was the virus perhaps something newly discovered and that was why it wasn''t documented in any books?


    The Principal closed his eyes and went silent for a moment as he started to recall that distant, bitter and painful memories.


    "25 years ago.. the Dark Sect attacked all the nine empires simultaneously. It was in that battle that, this virus first made its appearance into the world.."


    Hearing that the Dark Sect attacking all the nine empires like that, Duan Li was strucked in disbelief.


    "They attacked all nine empires at the same time? How did such a small organization has the manpower to be able to do that?" he asked curiously.


    The Principal shook his head, "They are indeed a small organization.. but you must never underestimate them! The Dark Sect only consisted of 10 members altogether as far as we know.. but when the attack happened that year, hear this.. they had only dispatched a single member to each of the nine empires!"


    "And they managed to cause mass chaos to all of the empires, our Jiu Empire included!" the Principal said with a grim expression.


    They managed to cause chaos to all nine empires?


    Most of them that had never heard of this and thus couldn''t help but to have some doubts.


    After all, an incident that big, why were there no stories about it being told in the academy?


    Seemingly to understand the meaning behind their befuddled expression, the Principal explained, "You guys must be thinking that why such an incident was not talked about? Well, after the incident happened, the Emperors of all nine empires passed down a decree that it shall never be spoken publicly. As for the reason, even I myself do not know why.."


    "I see.." Duan Li nodded in comprehension.


    "But why are you two acting like this? Is that black stuff, or as you guys called it, the Demiruke''s virus, really that dangerous?" he continued.


    "This thing goes way beyond the level of dangerous! It is a national threat! When it first hit our Empire, the entirety of 3 villages and 1 town near the South border had to be eradicated!" the Principal spoke out with gritted teeth.


    The memories were still fresh in his mind, as if it was just yesterday..


    ...


    25 years ago..


    BOOM!! BOOM!!


    Heavy thunderstorm echoed out in the sky as rainfall was pouring down non-stop. Rivers overflowed and houses was torn apart by the strong winds.


    "Hurry up! We need the Airship to return quickly or else many more would die!" Bian Tianyu shouted out.


    He then turned to the person beside him, "How is the situation in the town?!"


    The person replied, "It''s bad! Reports were coming in that the citizen of the town were getting infected and turned into monsters at a rapid speed!"


    Another person added in, "This just came in, reports were saying that some of the monsters had escaped the barricaded zone amidst the chaos! They were heading in towards the nearby 3 villages!"


    Hearing this, Bian Tianyu''s face turned pale, "What?! How could the monsters have escaped? Those barricades were maintained by Nascent Soul realm experts!"


    "Uhh more reports are coming in, the frontline barricade are in a state of chaos, the Nascent Soul realm experts were showing symptoms of infection!"


    "Impossible! How did this happen! I will see the situation for myself!" Bian Tianyu bellowed out in disbelief as he quickly bolted off into the air, flying at top speed as if a raging lightning tearing apart the skies!


    "Ahh sir wait! You can''t leave here!"


    Psheww!!


    After a while later, he finally arrived at the scene and saw the Subjugation team being pushed back.


    "What is that monster?!"


    Bian Tianyu could feel that this monsters were stronger than a 4 Star monsters!


    "5 Star monsters? Where did they come from?!"


    Pshew!!


    He bolted down to the ground and threw out a punch.


    BOOMMM!!


    The ground cracked as tons of soil were lifted off into the air due to the impact of the fist.


    The 5 Star monster were caught off guard but still managed to get away with only a slight injury that soon recovered in a matter of seconds!


    "Bian Tianyu, why are you here?!" Shen Long shouted out, "You are supposed to stay in the refugee camp and guard thepeople over there!"


    "How am I going to sit still over there when I heard reports that the barricade had been breached and our members are getting infected?!" Bian Tianyu shouted back.


    "You fool! You dare to disregard the command from the Emperor?! You will be punished for this when we get back to the capital!" Shen Long cursed out.


    "But since you are already here, go and help them out! Remember, do not get struck by their tail at all cost! It''s what caused our members to become infected! Lu Quan had already turned into that monster and is beyond help! I will have to finish him off!" Shen Long pointed to the 5 Star monster that Bian Tianyu had blowned off before.


    "What? That monster is Lu Quan?! Damn it! Where is the medical team? Why are they not here?!" Bian Tianyu looked around and found that most of the medical team had collapsed on the ground due to over-exertion of their powers from healing others.


    "Face the reality! Once they completely turned, they are already gone and there is no way to save them anymore! Are you willing to let our member, no, our friend that had turned into that, to suffer such a humiliation?! Now GO!!" Shen Long punched at him with full strength.


    BOOMMM!!


    "Urghh!! DAMN IT ALL!!" Bian Tianyu howled out to the sky as he was blowned away, bit his lips and then turned away to bolt off into a nearby group of people that were struggling against a few 5 Star Monsters.


    "Bian Tianyu is here!!" one person shouted out.


    "Bian Tianyu? That fool.. he left his post!" Liu Sheng Juan clicked his tongue.


    Tap!


    After he landed, he quickly approached them with a panic stricken face.


    Seeing a familiar figure lying and writhing on the ground in pain, his face warped in horror, "Meng Yue?! What happened to her?!"


    Liu Sheng Juan shook his head, "It''s not good.. she has been infected and we discovered this fact a little bit too late!"


    "ARRGGHHH!!" Meng Yue screamed out in pain.


    "Meng Yue! Hang in there! Damn it! Is there nothing else we can do to stop this madness?!"


    BAM!!


    Bian Tianyu punched the ground, and the cracks caused a minor tremor around him.


    ".. there is one thing, that maybe.. could save her.." Liu Sheng Juan said with a solemn expression.


    ...

 153 Chapter 152: 25 years ago.. 2

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    "There is a way to save her? Then do it!" Bian Tianyu urged him with traces of hope in his eyes.


    Liu Sheng Juan shook his head, "The consequences for it isn''t that simple.. but I guess its much more better than turning into one of those.."


    With his index finger sitting on top of the puncture wound on Meng Yue''s left abdomen, he injected a stream of his spiritual Qi into it.


    "You!! What are you doing?! You''ll cripple her like that, stop!" Bian Tianyu yelled out in horror.


    The other party had said that he could save her, so why is he going to harm her instead?


    After all, he was very familiar with the unique nature of Liu Sheng Juan''s spiritual Qi or specifically, the unique spiritual Qi of their neighbouring Liu Empire''s royal family - the Disconsonation Qi!


    While the Jiu Clan possesses supreme regenerative ability due to their phoenix bloodline, seemingly to be able to recover from any sorts of wound in almost an instant, the Liu Clan possesses the nine-tailed fox bloodline, passing down the Disconsonation Qi down to all their predecessor!


    While the unique attribute of this Disconsonation Qi enables one to be superior in excelling almost about anything regarding magic, the curse it came with, was such that they could not cast nor practice any sorts of healing or medical arts!


    If one were to truly try and heal themselves with this spiritual Qi, it would only worsen their injury instead! Thus, the Liu Clan had always hired alchemy expert to concoct them top grade recovery pills and elixirs in order to make up for this glaring weaknesses of their''s.


    Therefore, if Liu Sheng Juan were to inject his spiritual Qi into Meng Yuan''s meridians unabated, like a pair of rotating sharp blades, her pathways would be thoroughly grinded into shreds!


    "Calm down! I know what I am doing. This is the only way after all.. this black stuff that is infecting her right now seems to feed on her spiritual Qi.. the more she tries to suppress it, the faster it will spread to the rest of her body instead!" Liu Sheng Juan replied.


    Hearing this, Bian Tianyu could only let out a pale, blank look in disbelief.


    "A plague.. that would only grow the more you suppress it? T-this.. then how do you plan to save her? You can''t possibly try to cripple her dantian! That won''t work! Even the normal people that don''t cultivate were already infected and turned into those monsters!" he said.


    "No, cultivator''s body is far more different and resilient than that of normal people''s. Our combative nature provides a certain degree of resistance towards foreign substance entering it. Even my Disconsonation Qi would be futile and ineffective had she been in her normal state right now!" Liu Sheng Juan replied.


    Suu!!


    Drawing his index finger off from her left abdomen, he continued, ".. with this, I''ve managed to cut off the infected meridian pathways. She should be safe now.. although at a cost that her cultivation would forever be bottlenecked into the Pinnacle Stage of the Golden core realm.. what a pity for someone of her caliber to be reduced to this by this wretched thing!.."


    Tap!


    Zhang Xi (A.N: changed from Shi to Xi) landed beside them and noticed the situation.


    "Don''t tell me.. you cut her meridian off..?" he said.


    Liu Sheng Juan nodded and answered, "I had to."


    Zhang Xi kneeled on the ground with grim countenance as he put his palm on Meng Yue''s left abdomen.


    Sonar Qi!


    Wengg!!


    A few breaths later, the single one outcome that he was afraid the most was made obvious after his diagnosis.


    "You.. you do know that not only isolating the infected meridians would only suppress the plague temporarily.. she would also not be able to give birth in the future?" Zhang Xi said with narrowed eyes.


    If she was to be bottlenecked into the Golden Core realm forever, then so be it. Perhaps, that would have been an acceptable trade in order to save her life.


    After all, only a miniscule amount of lucky cultivators had ever stepped into the Nascent Soul realm. Majority had their growth stunted at the Golden Core realm and if she were to be compared to the rest of those people, she would still be the pinnacle of them all.


    As someone whom had already stepped into the Nascent Soul realm previously, the severing of some of her meridians would only hinder her from using her fullrealm permanently, but she still has the limited prowess of a Nascent soul realm, including her Soul Sense.


    Only if compared to the rest of the Nascent Soul realm experts, she would be the weakest of them all!


    Nevertheless however, that was still within the acceptable range. But for a woman to lost her capability to conceive her own children, that could cause her to have a long-lasting effect of mental trauma that might last forever!


    Hearing this, Bian Tianyu''s face turned dark as he grabbed Liu Sheng Juan by the collar and bellowed out angrily, "You!!"


    "SHUT UP!!" Liu Sheng Juan shouted out with an even more louder voice before Bian Tianyu could even finish his own sentence.


    "What would you have me do then?! Watch her turn into one of those horrendous creature? Or kill her? I did not have a choice!!"


    Seemingly to realize this as well, Bian Tianyu released his grip and howled out to the sky, "DAMN IT!! HOW IN THE HELL DID ALL OF THIS HAPPEN?!!!"


    BOOM!! BOOM!!


    The thunders boomed loudly and lightning twisted with each other in the sky, the heavy downpour covered their face as their manly tears joined the rain and fell down on the earth.


    "Hehehehe.. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!"


    A malevolent laugh that seemed to come out from a deranged person suddenly echoed out into the surrounding.


    "How did all of this happen? Hehe.. I can answer that for you.." said a figure draped in a black robe with the symbol of a new moon on it as he stood behind the three of them.


    "Who are you?!" Liu Sheng Juan narrowed his eyes and put on his guard as he stepped back, carrying Meng Yue on both his arms.


    "To think that I can''t sense this man''s presence?! Who is he?!"


    "Such a vile aura he is emitting!"


    "This person is dangerous!"


    The three of them activated their combined formation stances and arts that complemented each other''s strength and weaknesses.


    Seeing this, the unknown figure smiled, his upper face shrouded with some sort of shadow that their Soul Sense could not penetrate into.


    "That thing that infected those people.. we call them the Demiruke''s Virus! As you can see, it has the ability to turn one into a monster by consuming their spiritual Qi! It is our flagship product as of the moment and we are very proud of it! Hehehe.."


    "Your product??? This blasphemous thing was artificially made?! You people did this?!!" Bian Tianyu roared out.


    "Shesshh! Settle down.. no need to shout so loud.. I am not deaf.. we are from the Dark Sect and you are.. well, only half correct that this thing was artificially made. But how do you like it so far?" the unknown man asked with a wide cynical grin on his face.


    BAAMMM!!


    The three of them sent out a punch simultaneously. This was a special fist art that requires the three of them to perform and cooperate together in a series of complex movement with high level of synchronicity to it!


    A fist reminiscent to that of an unstoppable hammer tearing apart the air appeared. If this were to hit a mountain, perhaps a huge chunk of it will get blowned off into pieces, not to mention if it were a person!


    But this formidable fist art seemed to not bother the unknown man even the tiniest bit. With just lightly brushing it off to the side with his palm, the fist art was redirected to get past behind him without injuring his body the slightest!


    This was truly an inconceivable feat to achieve unless one was truly an expert among expert!


    "The power behind that fist art isn''t too bad.. Hehe!" he said.


    Then he took out a communication jade slip before letting out a gleeful look.


    "Ah! It seems that our objective has been achieved! Not too bad for our first real-time experiment even though the chances were still quite low.. HAHAHA!" he laughed out as his vile aura shot through the air, and vivid images of ghost and banshee screamed through it.


    Liu Sheng Juan cast a side glance towards Bian Tianyu and Zhang Xi as the both of them nodded.


    Puku! Puku!


    A series of crisp sound was heard popping out from their body, as if small beads of glasses were being shattered into pieces.


    Bloodline ability activated!


    Huuu!!


    Their aura continued to climb as they reached their pinnacle fighting prowess.


    BOOOMMM!!


    "Oh? Activating your bloodline power now eh? Hehe.. useless!" the man laughed out loud once more while shaking his head.


    "I would love to play with you three some more, but unfortunately, the Utmost One has already called us to come back.." he sighed dejectedly.


    And then continued, "Oh right! Make sure to keep the citizen healthy in the future okay? We need more energetic samples to experiment with in the future! Bye bye!"


    Suuppp!!


    Saying that final piece, the unknown man''s figure began to distort before disappearing into thin air.


    ...

 154 Chapter 153: That guy is finished!

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    After hearing the stories from the Principal, they couldn''t help but to shudder in horror imagining the whole situation going on at that time.


    To think that this Demiruke''s virus was a product made by those Dark Sect members, it seems that they were indeed the true enemy of mankind!


    Who in the world would be sick enough to turn humans into monsters and call them as experiments and samples?


    But of course, the Principal left out some part of the story purposely in view of the people that were involved during that time, in particular of how Meng Yue could no longer conceive her own children.


    The only one who knew about that secret was the three of them; him, the Vice-Principal and Liu Sheng Juan.


    After all, this was a matter that had shocked Meng Yue thoroughly, and left a deep mental scar in her heart. This was also the reason why she decided to leave the capital and live a reclusive life in the remote corner of a faraway village for the rest of her life.


    Thus, they just could not talk about it so casually like that to everyone and decided to keep it to themselves.


    As to how she was able to have Duan Li as her son, they were a hundred percent sure that he was adopted by her from someone, and that she cared for him as if he were her own child.


    Perhaps, Duan Li was the reason why she managed to have the lively eyes and colorful expression like she has back then once more..


    "Did you say that, my mother was attacked.. and then got infected by that virus, which was made by this.. Dark Sect people?" Duan Li suddenly spoke out slowly, and the air around him turned viscous as if it was heated up by a burning hot surface.


    "Yes.. that was why she reacted as she did just now when she saw that black stuff inside that monster core.." the Principal replied while pointing to the floating infected monster core, but seemingly to notice the weird air flowing around Duan Li, he couldn''t help but to ask, ".. you okay?"


    "Hmm? Yeah.. I''m okay.." Duan Li answered in a flat tone, but his mind was rewinding back to the memories of when he saw his mother died.


    "Back then in that timeline, mother was hurt badly that I couldn''t even save her.. and now.. someone almost killed her too?"


    Those people..


    "THEY WILL DIE FOR THAT!!"


    Wengg!


    The crimson mysterious pearl suddenly glowed and vibrated intensely inside his lower dantian, before streams of red spiritual Qi flowed out from it and mixed together with the rest of his body.


    Whhrrrr..


    CRACK!


    The ground beneath his feet sunked one inch as the pebbles around it began to rattle. His long black hair then floated slightly as if there were winds brushing against it and seemed to dance malevolently in the air. His clear black pupils turned deep crimson and the aura he was letting out at this moment..


    Was a pure, uncontrollable thirst to kill!!


    Hisss!


    "What a murderous intent!" the Principal glared with his eyes wide open in disbelief!


    This was the first time he had ever felt such a deep, powerful killing intent that could rattle even his bones!


    It was terrifying to such a degree that his back was drenched in sweat and he had some difficulties in breathing due to its pressure.


    One has to know that he was a pinnacle expert of the Nascent soul realm in the Jiu Empire, and he was still affected to such a degree was just unthinkable!


    It was as if the person in front of him was not a human but an extremely powerful wild beast instead!


    Gulp!


    The others also felt this insurmountable aura and couldn''t help but to swallow a mouthful of saliva in fear, and when they tried to retreat a few steps back to ease the heavy killing intent pressuring against them, they realized that their feet refuses to move according to their will and remained rooted on where they stood!


    To think that the killing intent Duan Li was exuding right now had affected their ability to control their own body, just what kind of notion was this?


    CRACK!!


    Not only that, his killing intent only seemed to grow more potent as time goes on!


    "Urghh!"


    Several of them began to fell down on their knees as their vision slowly turned dark. They could not even let out a proper groan!


    If this were to go any more longer than this, they would collapse and faint, and some might even suffer a few injuries!


    "Hey brat.. what''s happening to you? Snap out of it!" the Principal called out, yet it appeared that his voice does not seemed to reach out to Duan Li''s ears.


    Tap!


    Duan Li''s mother slowly stood up and managed to overcome her previous sudden reaction due to her trauma.


    "Is he angry.. because someone hurt me?" she said inwardly, her eyes slowly turned watery, feeling extremely touched that her son would get so worked up because of that.


    Tap! Tap!


    With gritted teeth, she stepped forward towards Duan Li slowly, as the killing intent the latter was radiating out right now was indiscriminate and affected her too.


    "With this much power in you.. I''m sure you would be able to exact revenge for your mother one day.." she clenched her hands tight.


    Only she herself knew and understand of how much mental pain and torment that she had to endure and suffered all these while because of that incident. If she were to lost the ability to cultivate anymore, then so be it. But as a woman that could not give birth on her own was something that she could never accept at all.


    That was until that one fateful encounter, when that mysterious person descended down from the skies, bringing in about rainbows as he floated down gently to approach her with his hands behind his back while appearing stoic, that her entire life began to bloom once more.


    That mysterious person had performed a ''miracle'' unlike anything she had ever seen before.


    Although that person was a bit brazen in nature, casually throwing his arms to pull her by the waist when they first met, and then suddenly saying something so embarrassing like becoming his wife from out of the blue!


    But still, had it not been for that person giving her a miracle, she would have probably ended her own life already..


    Tap! Tap!


    After some struggle, she finally arrived right in front of her son, but the latter seemed to be consumed with extreme rage that he didn''t even notice his own mother standing right in front of him.


    Tap!


    As much as she wanted to place her hand on her son''s shoulder, she was shorter than him, thus she could only hold out his hand together with her small hands and then spoke out, "Young man, snap out of it.. your mother is fine now.."


    Whhrrrr..


    The terrible killing intent finally receded slowly as his crimson eyes turned back to normal.


    "Huh? Mother?" Duan Li said in confusion, "What happened?" he asked.


    His mother only shook her head with a smile and then hugged him tightly, full of emotion as her tears finally trickled down from the corner of her eyes.


    My son.. you are the blessing of my life..


    "Eh?? Mother, why are you suddenly crying? People are looking at us!" Duan Li said with his face turning red in embarrassment as he panicked.


    The people around him that had finally escaped their previous predicament could only sighed in relief and watched the entire scene with an understanding expression and smiled awkwardly.


    After all, even if it was them, if such a thing were to happen to their parents or loved ones, they would definitely find the person responsible and deal with them thoroughly!


    Just that the killing intent let out by this man in front of them was to the very extreme and this made them very confident of one thing;


    That the mysterious man from that Dark Sect or whatever would be finished one day!


    There was on old saying that every dragon has a reverse scale that one should not touch at all cost, lest they would watch every single thing be thrown into an eternal damnation!


    "Ohh right! The Principal had said before that mother got infected by that virus? Was it already extracted out?" Duan Li said seemingly to remember the most important matter.


    His mother wiped off her tears and shook her head dejectedly, "How could that be possible? My infected meridians was only cut off from the pathways.. and even until today, those things still existed within me.."


    The Principal nodded, "That''s right.. even though the infected meridians was already cut off, its nature as pathways still allowed spiritual Qi to enter it albeit at an extremely miniscule amount that the virus could continue to feed on.. thus it could be said that, it would only be a matter of time, before she.. sigh.." the Principal shook his head.


    Hearing this, everyone''s expression turned dejected as well as they realized that eventual outcome.


    If the time really comes, would she have to.. kill herself before she turned?


    "Mother.. can I see the wound?" Duan Li said.


    "This.." his Mother was a little taken aback by her son''s sudden request. She was about to reject it at first, but since the secret was already out, she might as well just show it to him.


    Lifting up her clothes slightly, it soon became apparent to everyone''s view on the wound on that left abdomen of her''s.


    "T-This! It has already turned partially?!" the Principal said in horror, "Why did you not tell us?!"


    Meng Yue sighed, "I don''t want to trouble anyone anymore.. besides, even if I did.. what can we even do about it?"


    Mo Shinfeng, Jiu Yinxing and the others who had never seen it before let out a series of gasps, shock and disbelief as they covered their mouth.


    "Half of her body had already become like that of a monster.."


    Just as everyone tried to come up with a sentence to show their sincere condolences, Duan Li suddenly broke the silent atmosphere.


    "Ohh! This is nothing too terrible.. I can cure it!"


    "..." everyone.


    ...

 155 Chapter 154: Curing his mother!

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    "You.. you said you could cure me?" Meng Yue stared at her son with wide eyes in disbelief.


    "Duan Li, I know how capable you are, but don''t give your mother some false hope, it would only-"


    Before the Principal could even finish his own sentence, Duan Li had already interjected him.


    "I''m not joking.. I could actually cure her right now." he said with confidence gleaming in his eyes.


    Zhuge Liang stepped forward, "I could vouche for his words Principal. After all, he was the one who saved and cured me from that same virus before.. I trust him!"


    "En! Me and my little sister here have witnessed it as well. We believe in him!" the sisters nodded to each other.


    Hearing them making such a confident statement, the Principal could not help but to feel that a strand of hope that he had long forgotten was being lit back like torch amidst a dark, endless tunnel.


    Back then, he had tried numerous ways to treat Meng Yue from her affliction but to no avail. Perhaps, the only method that he did not dare to try was to request the help from a medical doctor, from the fear that her secret would be spread to others.


    Thus, he could only wailed from his lack of capabilities in silence, and from then on, his hopes slowly vanished with time as Meng Yue decided to isolate herself from the rest of the world.


    Granted that it was not anyone''s fault for how she turned out to be right now, but as one of the person present in that scene back then, he couldn''t help but to have a sense of shame and lament in guilt for not being able to prevent it from happening.


    "You.. really could do it?" he asked with a hopeful tone.


    "I can, it shouldn''t be a problem!" Duan Li replied positively.


    He then turned towards his mother, "Mother, I have to ask you to sit down cross-legged in a lotus position and cut half the speed of your Qi cycle for me to treat you!"


    With teary eyes, Meng Yue nodded, "En!" and sat down with a smile.


    Even if you can''t cure mother.. just this effort of yours is already enough for me..


    Sonar Qi!


    Wengg!!


    In a single burst, Meng Yue''s body turned golden as Duan Li performed his diagnosis.


    "W-What kind of mastery is this?!" the Principal muttered out in shock.


    He had seen many formidable medical doctors performing the same skill art, yet the phenomena happening in front of him right now was a first!


    To think that the Sonar Qi of the other party would turn an entire person golden.. just how pure was his spiritual Qi?


    And by the looks of it, it seems that he was already done with it too!


    "Wait.. oh no! What if he now knows that his mother could no longer conceive her own children? He would then began to doubt whether Meng Yue was his real mother or not!" the Principal''s face paled in horror.


    This is bad! I should''ve realized this earlier and stopped him!


    Gulp!


    "How.. was it?" Meng Yue asked her son, feeing extremely nervous.


    Duan Li closed his eyes for a while before opening them and answered, "As I thought.."


    Gulp!


    "He knows!!" the Principal said to himself, his heart beating furiously in trepidation!


    "This is indeed no problem at all!" Duan Li chuckled and turned to Xu Liyu, "Give me the 3 Star monster core that you have left from before."


    Of which, the latter nodded and swiftly gave him the monster core that he needs.


    Eh?


    "Haa... I thought he would really found out.. but what''s going on? With such a formidable Sonar Qi like that, he would''ve been able to detect any sorts of abnormalities inside her body!" the Principal let out a breath of relief.


    Was he.. hiding it?


    "However, I''ve detected that this virus was far less potent than the virus inside of Zhuge Liang before.. this must''ve been the earlier version of it.." Duan Li said as he pat his palm down on his mother''s left shoulder.


    Huu!!


    Wengg!!


    Injecting his spiritual Qi inside his mother''s meridians, Duan Li then began to work quickly by first blocking completely the meridians that was cut off so as to deprave the virus completely from receiving any spiritual Qi at all.


    Sensing this phenemona, it didn''t took his mother long to realize that something was amiss. When she finally confirmed something, she let out a look of utter shock, "You.. you cultivated your second dantian??"


    "Hmm? Ahh, yes mother! It''s how I managed to block the Qi flow in your meridians!" Duan Li replied casually.


    He then put the monster core closer to her wound on her left abdomen and stimulated it slightly.


    Wengg!!


    The monster core began to glow dimly as the virus quickly sensed it.


    "Urghh.." Meng Yue grimaced in pain.


    Whrrrr..


    "T-They moved into the monster core? I..Isee.. I get it! First, we have to deprave the virus from spiritual Qi before introducing it to another spiritual Qi source so that it has no choice but to migrate over in order to survive!" the Principal said in realization.


    Why didn''t he thought of this before?!


    "Would it also work if we just give it a higher grade monster core without depraving it first? I mean if it were in case of an emergency.." Shen Lu spoke out after being in the background this entire time.


    The reason he asked this was that, as the strategist of Duan Li''s party, he needed to make sure that every possibilities would be accounted for.


    If in tomorrow''s battle for example, that someone from their party got inflicted with the same virus, they could perform an emergency treatment on the spot.


    In response to this however, Xu Rong shook her head, "I don''t think so.. and Principal, pardon me if what I would be saying here is out of bounds, but while the treatment seemed simple enough at first glance.. if you were to look at its process yourself, you would realize how difficult it is to actually perform it!"


    "To put this into an analogy, just because a theory says that a hundred thousand men could move a mountain, in reality, it would perhaps requires more than that!" she explained.


    Shen Lu nodded as he understood what she meant. Indeed, because everyone''s capability was not made equal, what seemed to be easy for one to do might not necessarily be the case for another!


    This was especially the case if one were to compare themselves with Duan Li, their monster Lord with monstrous and mind-bending, seemingly out of this world capabilities!


    After all, who the hell in this whole Tian continent had ever cultivated all their three dantians before? Definitely none.


    And who had ever striked a deal with the heavens before? There was none too!


    "I don''t understand, explain it to me in a much simpler and non-vague terms!" Shen Murong said as he scratched his head.


    Xu Rong sighed, "You do know that our Lord here cultivated all his three dantians right? He uses one source of it to guide his mother''s spiritual Qi to flow in certain pathways and then complemented it using his second source to block some meridians off completely!"


    "By understanding this process, it should be safe to say that normal people could perform this treatment as well, just that instead of a single person doing the treatment, it would require two individuals doing two different things at the same time!" she explained.


    "I see.. then what''s the problem with that?" Shen Murong cupped his chin.


    Wang Xiolun spoke out, "The problem with that, is that it is highly likely that it won''t work at all."


    "Huh?" Shen Murong creased his brows together, getting even more confused.


    Since two people could perform the same thing that he did, why won''t it work then?


    "You are forgetting that.. each of us has a unique signature to our own spiritual Qi.. even medical doctors would require intense practice so that injecting their spiritual Qi into a patient''s body does not cause rejection from the host.. imagine if more than one source was injected.. the patient would then die instead of being cured.." Xiahou Yu continued.


    "That''s right." Xu Rong nodded, "The only reason that I could think off as to how it was possible for our Lord to perform this was that, there exists some form of familiarity or something between all his three dantians."


    "But of course, this is only my conjecture as I have no way to prove it since I don''t cultivate with all three dantian.. but in summary.. even though in theory this could be performed by two people, it would be extremely, very difficult!" she added.


    "I see.. well, there goes another area that I can''t compete with.." Shen Murong sighed feeling dejected.


    The Principal nodded as well, "Ahh.. is that how it is? What a pity.."


    Peng!


    While they were busy conversing, Duan Li finally finished extracting out all of the virus that was residing inside his mother''s body before and threw the infected monster core to the floor.


    "Done! And by the way, I heard you guys talking and well, Shen Lu is not completely wrong there. I seemed to discover a pattern that this virus preferred a purer source of spiritual Qi. So, if you give it an even purer source of it, they would definitely migrate over without a second thought." Duan Li said.


    "Just that, since their purpose was to multiply and then take over the host, not all of them would migrate. So in the end, this would only be a temporary measure to slow down their growth rate inside one''s body." he added.


    Shen Lu thought for a while and then asked, "Would Spirit Stones do?"


    "No.. while the spiritual Qi within a Spirit Stone is pure and dense, they are inanimated and is the result from geographical formation of compressing dead organism for hundreds of years.." Duan Li replied.


    "Perhaps you could think of this virus like us cultivators? That we need organic spiritual Qi from the surrounding living organism? That is also the reason why we cannot cultivate the spiritual Qi from spirit stones.." he added and then turned to his mother.


    "How are you feeling mother?" he asked with a gentle smile.


    Tears dropped from her cheeks once more, "I.. I could feel that it''s gone entirely.. the stiffling sensation in my abdomen was gone! This.. is this a dream?"


    "It''s not a dream mother.. you''re finally free from it.." Duan Li replied softly.


    "Uuhh.. uhh.. uwaaahhhh!!" Meng Yue cried out from the bottom of her heart as she hugged her son tightly.


    How long had she suffered and enduredsuch an agonizing torment?


    To constantly being reminded that, one day she would turn into a monster?


    That she would have to end her own life so that she wouldn''t hurt others?


    All these while, she had been living alone under the constant fear that such a day would eventually come knocking for her!


    Had it not been for that person suddenly appearing before her, and then giving her the ''miracle'' during the lowest point of her life back then, bestowing Duan Li, a child whom she could proudly claim as her own, she would have long gone crazy and committed suicide.


    She was that close to her breaking point!


    It was only from the birth of Duan Li that she found her motivation to live on, despite still being haunted by her fears.


    Because she believed in that man''s last words before disappearing somewhere, that one day, her son would ''solve everything''!


    The rest of them looked away and stepped back a little bit, giving the both of mother and son some room.


    Xiahou Yu and the rest of the women there cried silently, feeling touched with the emotional scene.


    Meanwhile, the most unexpected one to cry was Shen Murong, whom turned himself back and faced against the walls of the tent with both arms crossed on his chest while muttering, "I''m not crying!" with gritted teeth.


    "Mother.. I promise you.. those Dark Sect or whatever it is they were called as.. they were responsible for this.. for your suffering.."


    "I.. will show them no mercy!" Duan Li swore an oath inside his heart as the high heavens rumbled with lightning and thunders!


    ...

 156 Chapter 155: An existence you couldnst comprehend!

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    Ps: If it gets censored, those words are P.A.T.R.E.O.N without the dots.


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    "It''s good that she is finally cured. Duan Li, I don''t know how to thank you, but on behalf of the Vice-Principal and Liu Sheng Juan that isn''t here right now, let me express my sincerest thanks and gratitude. Here, take this." the Principal said and took out an item from his spatial ring.


    Weng!!


    "T-That is.." some of them who knew what the item was gasped in surprise.


    The Principal nodded in satisfaction seeing their shocked face. Indeed, a true man would show his sincerity of thanks by presenting something and not just empty words!


    As the old saying goes; ''Action justifies words!''


    "This is an ancient artifact that could scan physical object and recall it back to memory once you instructed it with just a single thought." a metallic spherical object appeared on his hand as he handed it over to Duan Li.


    He sighed inwardly from letting such a precious object off into another''s hand. After all, this was the ancient artifact dubbed as the ''Wisdom Stone'' that came from an unknown civilization back in the past. In addition, there was only a few of them in existence and was thus extremely rare to come by!


    "But since its memory has been used to its full capacity, you could only recall and no longer scan any new object. We used it to perform a backup of the entire books in the library, including and not limited to, the collection of books from the various schools and classes within the academy!" he added.


    Realizing the value of this object that was handed over to him, Duan Li could not contain the eagerness in his eyes!


    All sorts of books in it that could be recalled with a mere thought? Isn''t this like a portable, convenient library that I could access on anytime I want?


    But then again.. I thought that certain books are forbidden to be accessed without the proper permission and authority.. he said this thing contained all of those?


    Wouldn''t that basically meant that I could read all of them without requiring any sorts of permission?


    Is this even allowed?


    "Are you really sure that you would give me such a valuable artifact Principal?" Duan Li asked the Principal with excitement albeit feeling a certain doubt in him.


    "Hmm? No way, I am only lending it to you! Look at the back of the sphere.. it''s not even mine. That thing cost the Empire quite a fortune to procure.." the Principal replied dismissively.


    Eh?


    After which, Duan Li turned the sphere around and could see the words etched clearly on it and read it out loud;


    ''Property of the Jiu Empire. Note, Do not take this outside of the academy''s repository - Jiu Xian Ping.''


    "Huh?" everyone''s eyes bulged hearing the name of the person in that last sentence.


    Isn''t that the name of our Emperor?!


    Duan Li looked up towards the Principal with a weird look, full of disbelief.


    Cough! Cough!


    Seemingly to understand the meaning behind that stare of the other party, the Principal made a dry cough, "I.. I borrowed it from the academy''s repository and carried it around with me because I love to read books in my spare time.. and besides, its far more safer with me!" he said awkwardly, trying to justify his actions.


    The others also gave him a suspicious look.


    Didn''t it clearly state that you shouldn''t take it outside of the academy''s repository?


    Heck, it was even instructed by the Emperor himself!


    "W-What is with you guys now? Such a useful artifact like that to be sitting around collecting dust in the repository, wouldn''t that be such a huge waste? Thus, I took on the noble cause myself to let it shine and see the world outside!" he explained in a fluster.


    But seeing them still giving him that glaring suspicious stare on him, he gritted his teeth and conjured out his whip.


    Pah! Pah!


    Whipping it on the ground a few times, he bellowed out, "Alright, I admit that I took it outside even when its not allowed. But so what? I am the Principal of the academy and can do whatever I want! You students shouldn''t be too nosy about the affairs of your Principal here! Hmph!!" he snorted with a smug face.


    Hearing this, black streaks of line appeared on their face as they decided to shrug the matter off.


    As the other party had said, it''s true that the position of a Principal was the highest in the academy and could practically do anything they want.


    But still, for a Principal of the academy to take out such an artifact so casually and did as such, despite that it was not allowed.. isn''t that a little bit shameless thing to do?


    Meng Yue chuckled, "Don''t even bother, this guy has a track record of going against the rules for so many times back in the past that I had lost count!" she said and laughed.


    "Y-You! You should be siding with me as as my long time old friend rather than selling me out like that! Besides, if we are to talk about going against the rules, I''m pretty confident that you stand at the very pinnacle of everyone else! Hah!" the Principal retorted back with a sarcastic remark.


    "Huh? It seems that you growing old had let you grew a pair of bigger balls as well. But I thank you for the compliment, its not such a big deal. Heh heh!" Meng Yue snickered.


    "Y-You..!" the Principal clenched his whip tight in frustration.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s face turned red in embarrassment hearing that replies from his mother and face-palmed himself.


    Mother.. I don''t think that''s something you should be proud about..


    From the side, Duan Li''s party observed his reaction as well and secretly thought to themselves..


    "What are you acting on about, you''re even shameless yourself sometimes as well.."


    They remembered how their Lord would sometimes state something impossible as if it were an easy thing to do for everyone so casually..


    Like Mother, like son indeed..


    Ahem!


    "Principal.. would you care to elaborate more on the battle strategy for tomorrow?" Zhuge Liang chimed in to stop the bickering between the Principal and Duan Li''s mother.


    "Ahh that''s right!" the Principal snapped back to himself as he realized that they''ve been dilly-dallying for too long and put on a serious expression once more.


    "As I''ve said before in front of the other students, Squad six through nine would watch out your backs for any 3 Star monsters among the monster stampede. If you guys happen to encounter one and we hadn''t come to your aid yet, do not engage it and just retreat." he said and then turned towards Duan Li.


    "And remember the Emperor''s decree, no harm should befall on Duan Li''s life either." he added.


    "Does that mean we shouldn''t let him become the vanguard?" Shen Lu asked, feeling a little bit troubled as the majority of their plan involves Duan Li actively assaulting the enemy.


    The Principal shook his head, "No, this fellow here should be able to take care of himself I think. Even some 3 Star monsters ganging up on him wouldn''t be able to take him out without expending quite an effort.. just make sure he stays alive."


    The four squad leaders that heard this statement couldn''t help but to be surprised, including Zhuge Liang.


    He knew that the other party was very formidable in the field of medical arts, but as for battle prowess?


    If what the Principal just said was the truth, then the other party was already on par with the members of their Subjugation Squads..


    But that''s strange, because from his aura, it seems that he is still in the Foundation establishment realm.. even if he did cultivate with all three dantian, Is he really that formidable?


    Various thoughts rang inside their mind as to how capable this man in front of them were, and when they cast a look on the other party''s followers, they saw that none of them showed any expression of being surprised at all!


    This had them deeply intrigued and looked forward into seeing the latter''s battle prowess on the battlefield tomorrow.


    ...


    After briefing them the rest of the battle strategy for tomorrow, the Principal then turned towards the four squad leaders, "The members of the Eighth and Ninth squad had already divided themselves and went to each front respectively, so the rest of you squad leaders should do the same as well with your members!"


    Hesitating for a while, he then continued with a solemn expression, "Lastly.. there is a high probability that the Dark Sect will make their appearance tomorrow because of this virus. If you guys happen to meet them.. do not even think of fighting and just run away! You should also immediately inform it to me directly, understood?"


    "Yes!" everyone said in unison.


    After their meeting was adjourned, the squad leaders then quickly dispersed to carry out their respective orders immediately.


    Just before Duan Li and his party were to exit the tent too, the Principal called out to Duan Li.


    "If you meet them.. don''t be reckless, you understand?" he said.


    With his back facing against the Principal, Duan Li only made a smile and then left the tent with his followers behind him, without giving the former any replies at all.


    Sigh..


    "What are the chances that he would engage the Dark Sect should they appear tomorrow?" he asked Meng Yue.


    The latter stood silent for a while and then looked towards the exit from where her son had just left, "He is my son.. and now that he knows.. they would do well and wish to never meet him tomorrow.."


    Hearing this, the Principal frowned.


    "What are you saying? You know full well of what they are capable off! Even with my means, I am not confident that I would be able to take them one on one!"


    Meng Yue shook her head, "You only saw what he is currently capable of.. not what he could actually do.."


    "What do you mean?" the Principal asked.


    Meng Yue replied, "I could feel that my son.. is being backed by an existence that neither you nor I, or anyone else could possibly imagine.."


    She slowly walked forward to the exit, and then stopped before continuing;


    "If only you knew just what kind of father he has, it would give you a thorough glimpse that, even if the whole world were to turn against him, he would still remain.. unbeatable, invincible and unparalleled!"


    After saying that piece, she then left the tent, leaving only the Principal alone to contemplate on that last sentence of her''s.


    "Who his father was? Hmm.." he decided to investigate the identity of Duan Li''s father when he get back to the academy next time.


    "But despite what you have just said, you still turned violent against me a while ago from letting your son fought against those monsters alone! And look at you now saying such enigmatic things.. Hmph!" he snorted, feeling a little bit indignant inside.


    ...


    Outside the tent, Meng Yue continued to walk and tour around the camp as she relished the memories from back then, back when she was still an active part of the Subjugation Squad.


    Tilting her head up towards the sky with a melancholic look, she muttered to herself, "Now that he had become a cultivator, his facial features and figure really does resemble you a lot.. I wonder.. when will you return back here.."


    Sigh..


    ...


    After having a good night''s rest, the day has finally come.


    Forming their ranks and groups, each of them wore a serious expression on their face.


    They had two objectives to complete by the end of the day today;


    To slay all the monsters down..


    And to remain alive!


    POOOOONNNNNNNNNN!!


    As the trumpets of war was being blown and the sound echoed throughout the silent battlefield, each began to clenched the grip of their weapons tight and their backs started to sweat.


    The monster stampede has come!


    ...

 157 Chapter 156: The scene that shouldnst happened! 1

    ### Notice ###


    No matter what anyone here believed in, let us take a moment of our time to send our condolences to the victim and their family from the recent terrorist attack in New Zealand on Friday.


    It was such a sad day for our world, that in this day and age, there was so much hatred in a person that they dared to commit such atrocities for the sake of what they believed it..


    Even children who knew nothing about the world and its politics, that all they know about was eating, playing, having fun and sleeping, still fall victim towards such heartless massacre..


    Let such an event reminded us, that any form of agression, violence and terrorism, no matter how politically correct their cause was, the one to suffer from that in the end was always the innocent..


    Therefore, even when I have no influence or power to stop such a thing from happening again, I firmly condemn such an act of terror and violence against any groups of people.


    It is unjust and only those whom depraved themselves of all humanity inside them would do something as such.


    #StayStrong #SayNoToViolence


    #SayNoToTerrorism #SayNoToExtremist


    #SayNoToRadicalIdeology


    ### End of Notice ###


    "They are here!" Wang Xiolun narrowed his eyes as his battle intent rose to its peak!


    "Hey Wang Xiolun, we should do a headcount of who could take out more between the two of us! The highest should get some prizes from the Lord!" Shen Murong said with both arms crossed on his chest as he gave a look to Duan Li with a grin.


    Hearing this, Duan Li shot up his brows feeling intrigued and said "Oh? That''s a good idea. Let''s see.. for every 100 monsters each of you slained, I will give you 1 High quality spirit stone! As for the one who have the highest head count, perhaps.. I''ll make you stronger in one way or another?" he cupped his chin.


    Pik! Pik!


    When the both of them heard this, their adrenaline was shot through the roof as their veins popped out.


    1 High quality Spirit Stone?


    Make us more stronger?


    "The fight is on!" the both of them said at the same time while clenching their fist tight in agitation.


    Inwardly however, Duan Li chuckled and said to himself, "That is, if the both of you could manage to slay them faster than me.. huehuehue.."


    From the back, the rest of his followers happened to overheard their conversation and couldn''t help but to voice out their complaints.


    "Hey, that''s not fair! Give us something to compete too!" Wei Shang said while his little brother, Wei Wang beside him nodded furiously in agreement.


    "Yeah Brother! Oh, but you should lower the bar for us! After all, we are the rear-guards and wouldn''t have a lot of opportunity to slay more monsters than you guys do later on!" Shen Lu shouted out.


    "Hmph! I bet if I joined the vanguard over there, I would be able to earn more than those two. But a pity, since I''m at the rear-guard now, I agree with them, we need prizes as well!" Fei Longwei snorted as Shen Lu beside him sneakily gave him a thumbs up.


    "I agree! Don''t just left us out like that!" Xu Rong added and Guo He jumped up in in excitement, "Me as well! But my bar should be the lowest, because I''m in charge of the well-being of the party later on!"


    "Umm me too.. I need to buy some more fried chicken.." Xiahou Yu chimed in, albeit with a small voice that no one could practically heard what she was saying at all.


    A chance to earn some spirit stones? Yeah right, as if we could let such an opportunity go past our noses!


    "We demand prizes! For equality!"


    "For fairness!"


    "For justice!"


    "For fried chicken!"


    With this, they began to make a ruckus with their complaints, similar to that kind of situation when some overworked laborers demanded a more increase in their salary and mobbed out on the streets en masse.


    "This.. fine! Let''s see.." Duan Li pressed his temples together as he tried to think of what competition and prizes he should gave them.


    When the other students around their party first heard of their initial bickering, they hurriedly turned over to listen on what it was all about.


    But when they heard that their argument was all about competition and prizes, they couldn''t help but to have their brows twitching constantly while some pulled on their own hairs and beard in frustrations, feeling indignant.


    Are you guys really here to slay down some monsters to protect humanity and the Jiu Empire behind us?


    Why does it feels like you guys were on a leisure picnic?


    POOOOOONNNNNNN!!


    "That''s the second signal, seems like the scouts have managed to separate the monsters from their main packs!"


    "All hands! Prepare for battle!"


    "Long range attackers, get yourself ready!"


    Brrrrrrr!!


    The ground beneath their feet began to rumble as clouds of dust could be seen beyond the distance.


    "Here they come.."


    "That''s a monster stampede for you.. look at those numbers..!"


    "I hope we could make out from this battle alive.."


    "Sh*t, the ground''s trembling so much.."


    "The ground? Isn''t that your own legs? Hahaha!"


    The crowd showed a mix reaction and expression facing their incoming enemies; some felt motivated, others felt angry and furious, while some of them felt a little bit scared.


    "Focus!!" their squad leaders reprimanded with a loud bellow.


    "Long-range squad, steady yourself!!"


    Brrr...


    Crack! Crack!


    The ground began to crack as the intensity of the shaking increases, a tell-tale sign that the monsters were getting closer!


    Bzzzzz!! Bzzzzzzz!!


    The long range squads has finally finished charging their full-powered attacks and were ready to let loose at any moment now..


    "Steady.. steady.."


    They were now 1 kilometer apart from each other!


    Gulp!


    3.. 2.. 1..


    800 meters!!


    "FIREEE!!"


    BAMM!! BAMM!! BAMM!!


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    A barrage of continuous long range attacks was being let out by the long range squad towards the closely approaching monster at this moment!


    "DIEEE!!!" everyone shouted out at the top of their lungs.


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    "ROARRR!!"


    The series of attacks was like a heavy, torrential rain showering against the monsters as their bodies were ripped apart, torned to shreds, penetrated and mangled to bits and pieces!


    "Second long range squads.. FIREEE!!"


    BAMM!! BAMM!! BAMM!!


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    "Would you look at those monsters! I''d hate to be the one on the receiving ends of those attacks! HAHA!" Shen Murong laughed out, feeling satisfied upon seeing the monsters gets blowned apart to pieces.


    "As crazy and powerful our preemptive strike appeared to us from this distance, only a few hundreds of those monsters were killed by that.. and that''s coming from the combined attack from at least a thousand of us!" Shen Lu remarked with a grim countenance.


    "Indeed.. these monsters are incredibly resilient." Wang Xiolun nodded.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was scratching the back of his head.


    "Is it just me.. or that attack of their''s seemed to be.. quite weak?" he thought to himself with a frown.


    "ROOAARRR!!"


    As the second long-range attack was launched, roughly another 300 of the enemies fell.


    "Damn it, I can''t do anymore long-range attacks like that.. or else it would sap my spiritual Qi reserves dry within a few breaths!" one student said.


    "Me too! That two long range attacks I just did took about half of my spiritual Qi! I need to meditate for a while!"


    "Same! And here I thought that it would do a good number of damage to their numbers.. but it seems like we had only been able take down about a thousand of them altogether.."


    The students began to show signs of panic as they hadn''t expected that even 1 Star monsters was this tough and difficult to handle!


    ...


    High above the battlefield, was a number of figures draped in red and black robes respectively, floating gently observing the entire situation down below.


    "Principal, should we help them out? At this rate, they would get overwhelmed soon.." Zhuge Liang said, and then continued, "..these 1 Star monsters are a little bit stronger than usual.."


    "Not yet.. let''s see what Duan Li would do in this situation.." the Principal shook his head while maintaining a curious expression.


    He is more concerned about Sir Duan Li''s action?


    Unable to understand what the latter meant, Zhuge Liang asked once more, "Sir Duan Li? Is he going to do something?" he said as he focused his sights to where Duan Li and his party were.


    Meng Yue beside them then spoke out as she suddenly noticed something, "Oh? I saw him scratching the back of his head just now..Usually, there were only two reasons for that; either he felt embarrassed or frustrated.."


    Hearing this, the Principal formed a wide grin. "Is that so? I''m guessing it should be the latter then.."


    ...


    "Hmmm.. let me just throw in one punch.." Duan Li said as he floated up a little bit higher.


    Crack! Crack!


    Clenching his right hand into a tight fist, Duan Li pulled his arm backwards, ready to throw in a swing.


    "Eh? What are you doing?" Shen Murong said, but then quickly realized from Duan Li''s sudden spike in aura. After which, his face turned panic.


    "Wait.. stop!! Don''t just hog all those monsters to yourselves! I need my high quality spirit stones!!"


    Bump! Bump!


    Ignoring the latter begging at him, Duan Li continued to charge the power behind his fist. His arm muscles soon bulged out and the furious aura he was radiating out right now had attracted the attention of the surrounding people.


    "Hey, look at that guy! What is he doing?"


    "Eh? Isn''t that the famous junior? His face seems to be contorting.. and that weird posture.. is he constipating?"


    Pah!!


    The latter just got slapped in the head by his friend, "Idiot! He is preparing an attack!"


    "Huh? Isn''t that a little bit too late? We had already finished our long-range attack just now.."


    "Yeah.. I''ve indeed heard that he is strong, but what could an attack from one guy possibly do.."


    The crowd began to grew curious of Duan Li''s sudden move.


    "It would seem that.. getting some High quality spirit stones would be a lot harder than I previously think.." Wang Xiolun said inwardly as he sighed and shook his head.


    80 percent power..


    90 percent..


    100!


    Clink!!


    Duan Li''s eyes narrowed and glinted like that of an eagle predator!


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!!''


    Full-blast!!


    As soon as Duan Li punched his fist forward, a series of shocking phenomena occurred.


    Space began to contort around his fist, creating active vacuum holes that sucked in highly heated air from the intense friction between them, coiling around his right arm like that of a boiling phantoms!


    These heated air then spontaneously combusted, forming coils of flames like those raging dragons, heading furiously for the opening at the tip of Duan Li''s fist!


    When these coiling dragons exitted at the front, they merged together and formed into one, gigantic ball of flames!


    All these took a while to describe, but happened in less than a single breath at the speed of a supersonic!


    BAAAMMMM!!


    "Holy-molley!!"


    "Ahhh!!"


    The students that were near him were blowned away by the shockwaves and their eardrums erupted!


    "W-What the hell..?!!" the others back off a little bit, feeling extremely shocked.


    This fist art that Duan Li just launched, was the strongest form of the Major mastery of it that he could perform right now!


    When compared to the major mastery of this fist that he had deployed out in a successive manner during that time he went solo, this single punch right now was at least twenty to thirty times more powerful!


    That single, one giant ball of flames hurling towards the monsters were like that of a real, fiery and volatile meteor, and the instant it made contact with those monsters, their very existence disappeared without a single trace of them left!


    BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!


    The humongous explosion caused a tall mushroom cloud to form, reaching up into the sky, and its shockwaves had torned everything asunder around it.


    Everyone that watched this scene had their jaws dropped and their mouths opened wide agaped.


    Even if someone were to fart directly into their mouths right now, it remains aquestion on whether they would close it or not.


    High above the sky, the trio, including Duan Li''s mother, had the same puffer fish expression as well.


    "Did.. did he just.. eliminated them all in one fell swoop?"


    ...

 158 Chapter 157: The scene that shouldnst happened! 2

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    ### Notice ###


    Prak.. prak..


    The remnant from the catastrophic impact had left a huge crater in the middle of the enemy ranks, and from the looks of it, any monsters that were caught directly in that blast before, was instantly reduced to ashes!


    Even the surrounding monsters that had barely managed to survive the blast were heavily injured, such that they had lost quite a few of their limbs here and there!


    All in all, this scene was entirely unexpected to everyone, even in their wildest dream, they dared not imagine such a thing to happen!


    "T-This.."


    "What an unbelieveable amount of force!"


    "That one punch alone has just effectively killed more than half of the monsters!"


    Gulp!


    "Y-You.. when did you get so strong?" Shen Murong asked Duan Li with his mouth still wide agape in disbelief.


    "I.. I did not expect this as well.." Duan Li replied as he scratched the back of his head, feeling a little bit embarrassed.


    All along, he imagined that his full-charged attack would be several times more stronger than usual, but he did not expect it to be THAT strong!


    "Are.. you able to do that again?" Shen Lu asked with his mouth twitching.


    They had planned a lot of stuff just for the sake of this battle, such as how to attack and defend, their position and rally point, backup and alternative plan as well as several contingencies for emergency purposes. He even went as far as going 10 steps beyond personally, by burning the midnight oil to repeatedly go through over their battle plan so many times that he could recall them even in his sleep!


    If their Lord happened to be able to do that kind of attack for even at least just twice, then it was certain that their enemies would be obliterated completely, leaving them with nothing to do. It would indeed be the most positive outcome as there will be no casualties on their side, but he was stifled as well if that were to happen.


    After all, all their previous meticulous preparations and hard work would be for naught and down the drain!


    "Eh? Let me see.." Duan Li pulled back his arm and made the same body gesture to punch yet again with his fist art!


    "Ahh? Waitt!!" Shen Lu reached out his hand to stop Duan Li, but it was all too late, as the latter swiftly punched out, akin to the hammer being released from the God of judgement..


    Unstoppable and devastating!


    Peww~


    BOOOMMMMMM!!


    Although Duan Li''s second punch was nothing earth-shattering like the first one, it still managed to take out another few hundreds of the severely injured monsters around the crater.


    "Ahh.. as I thought.. even though theoretically I could do the same thing again, the fist art does not seems to be able to charge up this time.. I guess my meridian channels was not yet strong enough to handle its recoil?" he said and then shook his head in disappointment.


    This was also the reason why the second punch was faster than his first one - since it doesn''t charge at all, why wait needlessly?


    Thus he just punched it out!


    Meanwhile, Shen Lu could only cry in indignance silently within his heart.


    He had asked the other party the question before not for it to be tested out, but so that the uneasiness in his heart would be smothered!


    But who could have thought that the other party would instead deployed yet another fist attack?


    It was only fortunate that the second punch was just a miniature version of the first one, or he would really spurt out some old blood and faint!


    In addition, what is with that look of disappointment on your face?!


    It should be us instead having that look!


    Us!!


    After all, we haven''t even done a single thing at all, and the next thing we knew, close to about 7,000 of the enemy monsters were already being done in by you alone!


    Why can''t you have the spirit of benevolence and magnanimity in that vast heart of your''s?


    This isn''t fair for us!


    The rest of his party was utterly shocked as well, and they couldn''t find any sorts of words, much less constructing proper sentences to comment and describe for this kind of outcome.


    It was only after a long silence that someone began to speak up.


    "Umm.. so.. should we go attack them now? There are still some leftover monsters over there.." a person pointed out to a patch of disabled monsters in the distance, with some crawling on the ground with only one arm left, desperately trying to run away.


    It was a pitiful sight and their agonized roars seemed to be crying out full of indignance.


    They had come with vigor but before they could even process what was going on, there was a flash ball of fire, and then a loud boom, and suddenly, they were already in such a state!


    Oh Heavens! Why did you give us such a fate..


    Have you gone blind?


    Where was the promised thrills of battle that could send us to valhalla?


    Someone then replied, "Uhh yea.. let''s check it out.. we should be able to kill at least one or two if we are quick enough, before they die off from their wounds.."


    The masses then quickly rushed forward to meet the disorganized monsters, and when they finally arrived, some could not help but to shed a little bit of tears out of pity.


    "Look at them.. they don''t even have an ounce of battle intent left in their eyes.."


    "Yeah.. and over there.. some was disoriented so much that even laying flat on the ground still have them twitching around constantly.."


    "Look at this poor soul.. all its limbs were probably disintegrated from the blast.. its trying to crawl out from here using its tongue.."


    "Ahh.. I can''t watch such pain.. should we try to heal them first before we do our job?"


    Hais!


    This could only be described as an utter tragedy!


    One of the group leaders then awkwardly called out to everyone, "Okay guys.. line up properly.. there won''t be enough monsters for each of us to slay at this rate.. how about we do a rock-paper-scissor instead? Those who won could pick any monsters laying down over there, and you could also claim their monster cores!"


    Immediately after, the other group leaders also turned to their members to discuss on how they should delegate the remaining monsters to be taken care off by their members.


    And then, a few moments later, numerous types of competition was decided!


    There were an arm-wrestling competition, fastest 100 meter sprinter, long jump, blind-folded javelin throw, blind-folded monster smash with a club, long-range archery competition, lottery, and more!


    In fact, some groups had even opened up a stall to sell some beverage to others that were not competing and was just there to watch!


    Not forgetting the group of volunteers that patched up some terribly injured monsters just so that they could live long enough to be slayed properly.


    For the first time ever, some of these monsters seemed to shed tears of gratitude towards the human cultivators. At least, they would be able to die with a more warrior-like dignity this way!


    Or so do they thought..


    In fact, unbeknownst to them, these monsters were crying because they were aggrieved and were far more willing to die swiftly rather than being treated like this.


    Yes, we do eat humans from time to time because you guys were tasty and full of nutrition, but spare us from this madness please!


    Yet, their roars of horror was misunderstood as words of gratitude when the human cultivators heard it.


    Smiling softly, the human cultivators wiped off the tears from these monsters gently and caress their head like they were some lovely pets of their''s.


    Hais!


    How did we not realize they were actually this cute?


    After watching the entire situation unfolding before his very eyes, high up above the sky, the Principal''s figure had long turned into a stone with a permanent puffer fish-like expression.


    If he were to not present here and was somewhere else, and then heard about this matter from another, even if the entirety of his Ancestor''s graveyard was being turned over repeatedly, he would never believe even an ounce of it as the truth!


    Just what the hell is going on here?!


    How has a holy battle between mankind and monsters that was supposed to happen turned into something as such?


    This is more like a twisted sports festival!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s party was grounded by the other students and were asked to stay put. Since their Lord had already claimed a lot from just two punches deployed by that formidable fist of his, the entirety of the party members were forbidden to even take single one more!


    Right now, each and every one of Duan Li''s followers showed a downcasted and dejected expression.


    The one that seemed to take the most mental hit from this situation was Shen Lu, as he could be seen crying while laughing at the same time, as if turned into a deranged person and was no longer sane.


    On the other hand, Shen Murong keeps on muttering ''my high quality spirit stones'' repeatedly, as if traumatized from his life''s fortune being taken away just when he was able to smell it in front of him.


    As for the others, they also showed a multitude of expression; Xiahou Yu was seen drawing doodles of a fried chicken on the ground with her finger, as if experiencing from a special type of withdrawal symptom, Wei Shang and Wei Wang sat down while pulling their knees close to their face, as if their little hearts were being broken by a maiden they fell in love with, Guo He was playing with pebbles, Fei Longwei stared straight at the sky with his hands in his pocket, and Xu Rong shaking her head repeatedly as if denying something.


    The only one who seemed to be quiteindifferent to all these was Wang Xiolun, whom just kept his eyes closed with both arms crossed on his chest.


    Only now did Duan Li realized just how he had wronged his followers, and he could only let out a long, deep sigh.


    "Alright.. alright.. haa.. I know that it is my fault.. I''m sorry.. and to show that I''m sincere in my apology to you guys, I will give each of you some spirit stones when we get back to the residence court.."


    Only when he said these, did their mournful countenances alleviated slightly.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    The Principal, Zhuge Liang and Duan Li''s mother all landed on the ground with a complicated expression on their face.


    Meng Yue was the first one to talk, "Young man.. as your mother, I think that you''ve done really well.. but.." she said as she looked at the rest of his party, ".. next time, try to keep things at the minimum alright?"


    Duan Li sighed, and then nodded.


    The Principal next spoke out, "You.. that fist art has long turned into something terrifying in your hands.. the name was supposed to be metaphoric, but you really did caused a meteor-like destruction over here.."


    "I never thought that Sir Duan Li are both an excellect doctor and such a strong expert as well! If there are plenty of spare time in the future that we could use, I would like esteemed Sir to guide me in the arts of destruction!" Zhuge Liang bowed his head, his eyes showing deep reverence and respect towards Duan Li.


    "Uhh.. yea.. sure?" Duan Li replied, feeling a little bit awkward as the other party was a senior, which was supposed to be way above him.


    "Since the situation here has been resolved.. albeit in such an.. unconventional way.. we will head out to the other two fronts and aid them in their battles instead.. but, we will leave Zhuge Liang here, if there are any more 3 Star monsters from those packs of umm.. disabled monsters, he should be able to take care of them all with ease.." the Principal said.


    After some small talk, the Principal swiftly left with Duan Li''s mother to head towards the next two fronts.


    ...


    While they were bolting through the skies together, Meng Yue got quite curious, "Was my son always that strong since the beginning?" she asked.


    The Principal shook his head, "Well.. he was indeed strong from the start.. but not like this.. that fist attack he just made.. even if it was a Nascent Soul realm expert like me.. I''m not even sure if I would be able to take that head on.."


    Meng Yue nodded, "Yeah.. such an attack was like the casual punch of an Escaping Mortality realm state.." she sub-consciously blurted out as she recalled a certain similar scene back in the past.


    Hearing this, the Principal turned his head around in shock, "Y-You.. you knew about the names of the Nine Shackles of Mortality realm state?!"


    Meng Yue was shocked as well, "Yeah.. but I only blurted that out unpurposely.. how did you come to know about it as well?"


    "Well.. it''s like this.." the Principal began to retell her the stories about the future with Duan Li as the main character of it all.


    ...


    "Puuuhhhh!" a certain figure coughed out some sand from his mouth and stood haggardly with his feet on the ground, his entire appearance looking extremely wretched.


    This person was with the monster pack before and was riding one of the monsters on its back while being invisible, before a sudden impact from a meteor that literally came out of nowhere came straight at him.


    At that time, he was shocked silly and nearly pissed off his pants because the incoming meteor was too sudden and fast that his reaction time was slow by a single breath that he almost died!


    Fortunately, in that last moment, he managed to compound the space around him with another barrier that absorbed most of the brunt of the impact!


    But he was still blowned off far away into the distance nevertheless, about 5 kilometers away from where he originally were.


    The robe that this person wore was supposed to be pitch black with the new moon symbol on it, but now, he looked nothing more than like a homeless beggar in the middle of the desert, as if he had just undergone through some serious robbery by a group of ravaging bandit!


    "Curses! What in the name of the holy Demiruke''s hell was that?!"


    He cussed out in extreme frustrations and anger.


    As the most elite and dangerous underground society in the Tian continent, which was the Dark Sect, all their operation was always being updated with the latest information thoroughly, such that even climate change was taken into consideration when they were about to conduct their acitivities.


    Just how in the world did such an obvious meteor strike was not inside his briefing files?


    The next time I return to the headquarters, I will beat that person whom was in charge of giving out information to us black and blue!


    Just you wait!


    "Sh*t! Now I''m in no mood to play.. I need to vent this frustration inside me.."


    Just as he said this, an idea flashed through his mind as he crept up a sinister smile.


    "I just got the perfect sample right over there.. huehuehue.."


    ...

 159 Chapter 158: Cao Tengfei! 1

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    "Idiot! Where are you even aiming! Hahahaha!"


    "Run faster! He is catching up to you!"


    "Look at that bicep! I guess their tough physical body is an advantage in this arm-wrestling competition huh?"


    The other students that were not participating all surrounded each competition with eyes full of vigor as they cheered out loud energetically.


    At this moment, someone with a tattered black robe finally arrived, and as he casted a look to his surrounding, he couldn''t help but to rub his eyes multiple times, just to make sure that he wasn''t seeing things.


    What the heck is going on here?


    Am I in the right place?


    From the looks of that fresh giant crater over there, that seemed to be caused by the previous meteor impact, so this has to be where the battlefield should be..


    Yet, why is it that this place here feels more like a theme park?


    "There is no way that I''ve hit my head so hard and lost my sense of direction is it?" the person said to himself with an unconvinced look.


    While he was still looking around, a group of students eating skewered meat while touring the various competition spotted him.


    "Hey guys, check that person out! His clothing is in tatters!"


    "What a bony figure.. he almost looked like a skeleton if not for his skin! And what is with that long shady beard of his? Does he ever wash up?"


    "Was he affected by the blast? Or is he a beggar in this barren desert? Let''s go and ask him out!"


    They nodded and soon approached him.


    "Hey old man, are you okay? What happened to you?" one of them said.


    Huh?


    Hearing that he was being called as an old man, his face darkened as he casted a scary look onto the group of students.


    "Eekkk!" the students jumped back.


    Cough! Cough!


    Control yourself! Control yourself!


    Before I start to kill these idiots here, let me just play along and ask them what was going on here..


    First goal of infiltration should be gathering information!


    "Ahh.. pardon me.. my old age mistook you guys as the desert''s phantom.. it''s really scary out here.." he said in a weak, elderly voice.


    The students sighed in relief, "It''s fine old man.. but, what happened for you to be in such a tattered state like this? Were you robbed?" they asked with a look of pity on them.


    Tattered?


    He then casted a look onto his robes.


    Ahh..


    No wonder they gave me such a look.. my battered state indeed made me appeared like some homeless man in the desert..


    He was feeling deeply stifled inside, such that he almost had the urge to slice up these young students in front of him to pieces and vent out his frustrations, but he managed to suppress himself in the end.


    Casting a deep gaze towards the blue sky, a melancholic look appeared on his face as he began to tell them of his fake backstory;


    "Ahh.. a month ago.. I was a peddler with the rest of my friends.. but as fate would have it, we got robbed by the desert bandit.. fortunately, I managed to stay alive all these while and evaded many dangers in this desert.. before I knew it, my robes turned out like this.." he said, adding a deep, dejected sigh at the end of his sentence.


    Ohh this is surprising! I actually have some superb talent in acting!


    Hearing such a sad story, the students shook their head in pity once more, "Come with us old man, we will give you a new sets of robe as well as something good to eat! What is your name by the way old man?"


    My name?


    Thinking for a fake name is just too troublesome if I want it to be heaven-defying..


    After all, even if its a fake name, it shouldn''t be anything less powerful than my real name..


    Arghh!! This is too complicated!


    Should I just use my real name instead?


    It''s not like they would even recognize me if I gave them my real name..


    While he was thinking about this, the students looked at him with weird gaze as they whispered to each other;


    "Hey.. this old man is really too senile already huh.. even recalling his own name was already so difficult for him.."


    "Hush! Tone your voice down! But yea.. even my old grandfather was like this.. pretty soon.. he might even forget what kind of gender he has and requires him to take a peek on his own genital just to be sure.."


    It was only fortunate that the person they were gossiping about weren''t properly listening to them, otherwise their life would be forfeit right then and there.


    Seeming to come into a decision, the old man in front of them nodded, "My name is.. Cao Tengfei!!" he said with a prideful look.


    Cao Tengfei?


    Cao?


    The students went silent for a while as they stared on each other in disbelief before they nodded, "Ahh I see.. then let us call you Old Cao instead.."


    Old Cao? These brazen students just put a nickname to my grand name?!


    Right now, he was fuming with anger once more as veins popped out from his temples.


    Forget it! I''ll just let them call me whatever they want for now.. but later on.. hehehe...


    They then escorted Cao Tengfei to a tent so that the other party could get himself a new set of robe.


    On the way there, one of the students whispered to his friend, "To think that this old man''s parents would be so vicious, naming their own son something as such.. truly horrible!"


    The other nodded in agreement and replied, "Indeed, if it were me, even as a baby, such name would definitely make me want to cry for a hundred years.."


    "Eh? What is wrong with my name?" Cao Tengfei asked, as he happened to overheard them talking about him.


    Deep in his heart, he felt that there was something amiss with them when he told them his name before.


    It was like his name actually meant something else to them!


    "Ahh! It was nothing, we were talking about how grand your name sounded.." they hurriedly said.


    Hearing such a nice compliments, Cao Tengfei now felt a little bit better.


    "Perhaps I should just let them be my mindless slaves later on and not kill them.." he thought to himself, feeling a little bit soft inside.


    If only he knew what the students actually meant, he would definitely run amok in an instant!


    After all, these young students live in a new, millennial era, far apart from the generation of when Cao Tengfei was born from.


    In this day and age, even simple words could be twisted to sound offensive and profane, much less Cao Tengfei''s name, specifically that ''Cao'' literally meant to ''F*ck''.


    And when they nicknamed him as Old Cao, they were literally calling him as ''Old F*ck''!


    Who in the world would not run berserk if they were called as an Old F*ck?


    It was only due to the grace of Heavens up above that Cao Tengfei was not up to the current trend with the usage of words used for profanity.


    ...


    After getting himself a new set of robe, the students bought him some meat skewer from a BBQ stall as they reckoned that the old man should be quite hungry, judging from his bony figure.


    Taking a few bites off from the meat skewer, Cao Tengfei was enjoying himself before he quickly realized that he hadn''t found out about anything yet.


    "What happened here? I thought that the Blastwinter desert is supposed to be barren.. why are you guys having a theme park here? And what is with that large crater?" he asked.


    "Ahh! Well actually, we were supposed to fight to the death against a pack of monster stampedes before, but then a powerful junior just suddenly threw out a single punch towards the monsters and kaboom! More than half of them were instantly obliterated!" one of them answered.


    "Eh? A powerful junior throwing out a single punch to annihilate half of the 1 Star monsters that came here?" he said in disbelief.


    "En! That punch was like a meteor! I guess that if he hadn''t held back, his second punch would''ve completely eliminated them all!" the student explained.


    "That''s right, it was because of that that there were only a few of these monsters were left.. and since we had already come all the way here, we can''t just go back empty-handed.. but since the number of monsters isn''t enough for us, we held some competition and the winners will get to slay the remaining monsters as well as their monster cores!" another student added.


    "This.." Cao Tengfei swallowed his saliva.


    Are these students actually toying with me?


    How can a mere junior possesses such a strength that could even pose a threat to a Nascent Soul realm expert like me before?


    And a single punch at that?


    I refuse to believe it!


    Besides, that was definitely a real meteor before! I even felt its impact firsthand!


    Just as he thought along these lines, one of the students narrowed his eyes as he pulled back his friends away from Cao Tengfei.


    He then glared a suspicious look onto Cao Tengfei, "Old Cao, how do you know that these monsters are all 1 Star monsters and that they were heading here?" the student said in a wary tone.


    "Huh?" Cao Tengfei was taken aback.


    "Well.. I saw that those monsters were heading here from the distance.." he answered.


    "As I thought.." the student said and then continued as he rose his battle intent to the peak while retreating a few steps back, "I was observing you in silence before and wasn''t sure on how you managed to smell like the stench of death since the very beginning.."


    "I thought that it was because you were dying and was reaching the end of your life, or a war veteran, but from what you have said before, you were just a peddler and that had me really skeptical with your background.."


    "But now, since you had your stomach filled and your tattered robe changed, you still smell like death regardless.."


    "The only possible explanation for this is that.. you''re not something whom you claimed to be.. isn''t that right, Old Cao?" the student said.


    Cao Tengfei was a little bit surprised and was trying to find more excuses, but then shook his head.


    Why do I need to explain myself to an ant?


    Since he wants to snuff me out, let me just come out then!


    Cao Tengfei''s face suddenly warped, from a fragile old man to that of a sinister lunatic.


    "It seems that I got found out.. interesting.." he said slowly.


    Piku! Piku!


    His skinny and bony figure swelled up as he slowly became taller, and then casted a look onto the student that managed to identify him with intrigued, "Now I see.. no wonder you could smell me.. turns out that you have the same kind of smell as mine too! Hehe.. HAHAHA!"


    "What is your name? I''ll try my best not to kill you.." he said as his aura grew ever so menacing and vile!


    Before this, he was suppressing his cultivation and appeared to be no more than an ordinary fragile elder before other''s eyes, but since he has now unsealed himself, he could vividly see the dark tendrils flowing out from the other party!


    Purghh!


    All the students with the exception to the one that had identified Cao Tengfei puked out their innards.


    "You guys go on and retreat from here and call for reinforcement! I feel like we are dealing with something inhumane here.." the student said as they nodded and swiftly left.


    He then casted his narrowed eyes onto Cao Tengfei as sweats began to form on his forehead, and his heart could not help but to beat out erratically!


    If even he was feeling like this, then there was no way they could withstand such an abated killing intent this old man was letting out right now!


    Gulp!


    And right now, he could see something vivid but extremely sinister and dark flowing out from the body of the other party.


    "My name.. is Sui Shunyuan!"


    ...

 160 Chapter 159: Cao Tengfei! 2

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    "Sui Shunyuan? Are you perhaps, from the Sui Clan that was annihilated years ago?" Cao Tengfei inquiried with great interest showing on his face.


    "If I am, so what?" Sui Shunyuan replied with a cold expression.


    Hearing this, Cao Tengfei stroke his beard with a bemused expression, "Interesting.. huehuehue.."


    Tap!


    A figure landed behind Sui Shunyuan, it was Zhuge Liang.


    "Get back.. this person is likely from.. the Dark Sect!" Zhuge Liang said as he surged his battle intent to the maximum.


    The Principal had said before that it was highly likely that a member from the Dark Sect would appear, and from the looks of this old man with such a vile aura around him was one of them!


    Dark Sect?


    Sui Shunyuan narrowed his eyes menacingly as he heard this and retreated behind Zhuge Liang, "If he is really from the Dark Sect, then I have a blood feud with him!"


    Cao Tengfei rose his eyebrows, "Oh? I never remembered doing anything to you.. not yet anyway.. huehuehue.."he replied with a smirk.


    Sui Shunyuan then bellowed out in rage, "Bastard! Don''t act like you don''t know! It was you guys who had planted some wretched ideas that the branch families managed to usurp our main family! If there was no external force supporting them from behind, there was no way that they could ever replace the main family head with just their power alone!"


    When Zhuge Liang heard this, he was shocked, "What? The Dark Sect has played a role in the downfall of the Sui Clan?"


    He recalled in his history lesson that decades ago, the Sui Clan was not originally part of the Jiu Empire. It was only after an internal coup and massacre that they joined the Empire in order to gain protection.


    The Emperor then agreed to take them in under one condition; he decreed that the Sui Clan were to relinquish and dissolve itself to absolve from their sin as punishment for the atrocities that they had committed, or be banished into isolation, cut-off from the rest of the Empire, and they chose the latter.


    The next thing that the people of the Empire knew was that the Sui Clan was annihilated in a single night few years after their isolation!


    This was a news that had rattled the entire Empire like waves back then, and to this date, no one actually knew how ithappened!


    "Accusations! What we did was ''only'' giving them ideas.. as for the matter of the reformed Sui Clan getting annihilated.. perhaps.. you know something about it? Huehuehue.. " Cao Tengfei casted a sarcastic smile towards Sui Shunyuan.


    In response, Sui Shunyuan spitted out his saliva in the latter''s direction.


    "Just like your name, go f*ck yourself, you old f*ck!" Sui Shunyuan cursed out atop of his lungs.


    Hearing this, Cao Tengfei furrowed his brows, "My name?" he thought deeply.


    It''s not that he hadn''t heard of the latest word used in profanity, specifically, the word ''f*ck'' seems to be widely used nowadays and was very effective in instigating chaos.


    Just that, what has that word got to do with my name?


    No matter!


    "Huehuehue.. words spouted by a mere ant would never affect me, as an ant''s tongue is just too small to notice.. but let''s see.. it seems that you guys were having fun around here eh?" he said as he look towards his surrounding.


    At this moment, most of the competition has already stopped because the students that ran away before has shouted ''we are under attack!'' so loudly that it caught everyone''s attention.


    Right now, they were crowding around Cao Tengfei, Zhuge Liang and Sui Shunyuan, albeit having some distance between them. After all, the vile aura that Cao Tengfei was radiating out right now was giving them a stifling sensation if they got any nearer.


    "Who is that old man? Why does he reeks of death so much?" one of the onlookers that just arrived asked.


    "If I didn''t misheard them earlier on, Zhuge Liang over there, said that the old man.. was from the infamous Dark Sect!" a student beside him replied.


    The Dark Sect?


    That''s the most wanted criminal organization!


    Gulp!


    "I-If that is true.. then aren''t we in deep sh*t right now? I''ve heard that just a single member from the Dark Sect could cause an entire Empire to go into a state of full alert!"


    "Yeah.. but since they are dubbed as the public enemy of mankind, even worse than monsters at that, how can we just leave? My pride as a cultivator would not allow it!"


    "That''s right! We regretted giving this old man a new robe and giving him food, turns out that this Cao Tengfei person is just another hateful crook!" one of the student that helped Cao Tengfei before spoke out.


    Hearing this, the crowd turned their head towards this student, "Seriously? His name is Cao Tengfei? That''s just absurd!" they exclaimed, trying their hardest to suppress their laughter.


    "En! Out of pity, we tried to make it less awkward, so we call him ''Old Cao''. But no matter how you see it, the nickname he has now describes who he actually is a person! An Old Cao!" the student explained with a satisfied smug.


    "Old Cao? HAHAHAHAHA!!"


    "Ouch! My stomach hurts, Old Cao? Hahahahahahaha! What a beautiful name!"


    Seeing the crowd to suddenly broke out in a series of shrill laughter, Cao Tengfei furrowed his brows once more. His heart felt that something was truly amiss when these fellas called out his name!


    What is wrong with my name?


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li and his party landed beside Zhuge Liang, attracted by the sudden commotion. With a weird expression, Duan Li asked out, "Who is this person here with such a vicious name?"


    Unable to tolerate it any longer, Cao Tongfei cussed out to the people around him, "Shut up you insignificant ants, laugh any more and I will pull out your tongue in an instant! Is my name really that funny to you all?! Its a name of power that encompasses the Heavens!"


    He then pointed an index finger to Duan Li while shaking in anger, "And you, what do you mean that my name is vicious?!"


    Duan Li let out a befuddled look, "Do you really not know what they meant?" he shook his head in pity.


    "Pu!" Cao Tengfei choked on himself after seeing the latter''s pitiful look on him.


    Ants really love making a fool out of something they can''t handle!


    Very well! I will let you guys taste the true meaning of pain later on!


    Duan Li then continued, "Your name, specifically the ''Cao'' part, can be pronounced differently. Even if you were to pen down your name on a paper, just by changing the ''Cao'' character to this character, your name would basically meant ''F*cked by the Heavens''..


    Pu!


    After listening to the ''thorough'' explanations from Duan Li, Cao Tengfei choked to himself once more.


    How did my name which originally meant ''To encompass the Heavens'' could so easily be changed into ''F*cked by the Heavens''?


    Damn you all! How dare you guys made my powerful name into something so profane!


    Am I a joke to you guys?!


    Wait..


    Since those students before called me as ''Old Cao'', then going by their logic, doesn''t that actually meant that they were calling me as ''Old F*cker'' or ''Old F*cks'' all these while?


    BOOOMMMMM!!


    Cao Tengfei exploded out his entire aura in a fit of rage!


    "How dare you all call me as such! Courting death!!"


    All in his life before, because of what he had done, he was frequently the subject of many profane words by his enemy, but through time, he was long used and immune to react to it.


    In other words, he had long detached himself from being affected by people he viewed as insignificant!


    But now that they had associated his name to something as such, there was no way he could ever say his name out loud proudly anymore!


    In fact, he was even feeling quite aggrieved now, why did his parents name him as Cao Tengfei?!


    Wouldn''t that basically put on a permanent label on him with ''F*cked by the Heavens'' wherever he went?


    Was this also the reason why the other members from the Dark Sect seemed to continuously call him by his name as well?


    Damn it all!


    "You.. such an atrocious amount of death in your aura.. don''t tell me.. you are one of the member of the Dark Sect?" Duan Li said as he suddenly realized something.


    Cao Tengfei snorted, "Yes that''s right! I am one of the member of the Dark Sect, but so what?! What can you possibly do after knowing that? Hah!"


    Bzzzttt... BOOOMMMMM!!


    Duan Li instinctively tapped onto his bottomless power when he heard the latter''s confirmation.


    "Then.. you will die here!!"


    ...

 161 Chapter 160: Cao Tengfei! 3

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    Huh?


    What the hell are you so angry about?!


    I should be the one getting angry here for being called as an ''Old F*cker'' by everyone!


    "I will die here? Me? Hehehe.. good good.. HAHAHAHA!" Cao Tengfei bursted out in laughter, feeling both angry and amused at the same time as his vile aura surged out once more.


    Brrrr..!!


    "Urghh!"


    "Wahhh!!"


    Cao Tengfei had let out an even thicker bloodlust, such that even the sand under his feet was seething and the black tendrils around him appeared to be more clearer than its previous vivid state.


    "Let me tell you a secret you little ant, I have lived for more than 500 years and innumerable amounts of people have said the exact same thing to me that it bores me!" Cao Tengfei said in disdain.


    "Do you know what I''ve done to them? I crippled their limbs and went to their family, then I tortured their family members one by one, right under their helpless eyes so that they die full of indignance and their souls turned malevolent!" he said with his body trembling in excitement.


    Uuuu... Uuuuuu.. Uuuuu!!!


    The black tendrils around him began to let out a series of shrill wails and cries that seemed to be full of mournings and rage, that those who heard it has their hairs stood on end.


    Blurghh!!


    People who could not stand it had to step back even further after they puked out their innards, this was especially so for those whom practiced medical arts, as they were affected the most by such a tremendous amount of dark, negative energy!


    Such a disgusting aura!


    "Do you see this? This here.. is their souls that I''ve absorbed when they died! Full of vengence and revenge, the ultimate and most satisfying ways to collect dark energy ever! HAHAHA!"


    Just as he started to laugh out loud, Duan Li narrowed his eyes and sent out a palm attack;


    "Nine Palm Slapping Oceans!"


    BAM!


    Hmm?


    Peng!!


    Cao Tengfei casually deflected Duan Li''s palm attack with a slap of his own.


    BOOMM!!


    "Enough talking crap, you think you can intimidate me like that?" Duan Li said with an indifferent tone and his face became frosty.


    Cao Tengfei rubbed the palm that he just used to deflect Duan Li''s surprise attack before with a raised brow.


    "Quite a strong attack you have there.. you seemed to be someone extraordinary.. hehehe.." he said as he casted his soul sense to judge how strong the latter were.


    Huh? Pinnacle Stage Foundation Establishment realm?


    He threw out a doubtful look onto Duan Li.


    Wait a moment.. this figure..


    Is he the one from that night?


    "Now I see.. no wonder you look so confident! You''re the one from the other night that took out all those monsters on your own!" Cao Tengfei said as he clapped his hands together in realization.


    The mysterious figure that managed to route more than 8,000 monsters alone back then was also in the Pinnacle Stage of Foundation Establishment realm!


    Hearing this revelation, the crowd looked at one another in confusion, unable to comprehend what the other party was talking about.


    "Ahh!" Zhuge Liang gasped as he also finally realized something, "So it was actually Sir Duan Li whom eliminated one fifth of the monster stampede that night!"


    With his ability, I would not doubt if it was he who did it!


    "What do you mean?" a curious student from the crowd asked.


    Zhuge Liang then began to explain, "It was like this; a few nights ago.."


    ...


    As he finished his explanation, the crowd could not help but to look at Duan Li with a new light. In fact, they had already revered and respected the other party when he managed to wipe out the monsters before with just a single punch!


    But now, he had become their public idol!


    "Duan Li, I have a blood feud with the members of the Dark Sect! Now that I know how truly strong you are, please help me resolving this vengence in my heart!" Sui Shunyuan spoke out with gritted teeth.


    Duan Li had long spotted the other party a while ago, but hadn''t expected for such a statement to come out from him.


    Nodding his head, Duan Li confidently replied, "Don''t worry, just mark my words, he will die here today!"


    "HAHAHA! I love how confident you are now! But even Nascent Soul realm experts were not able to stop me, what makes you think you fools could even do to me?!" Cao Tengfei bellowed out, feeling increasingly incensed with the way Duan Li spoke to him.


    Indeed, he admitted that the other party was way strong for someone of their realm, but so what?


    Its not like the other party was stronger than a Nascent Soul realm expert like him!


    Just why is he so confident?!


    How infuriating!


    "I''ll make sure to turn you into one of the most horrifying monster later on.. huehuehue.." he said to himself as he clenched his fist in agitation.


    Duan Li shook his head, "We might not be able to deal with you ourselves.. but ''they'' could!"


    They?


    Wengg!!


    Duan Li took out something from his spatial ring that had him quickly step back on instinct.


    "T-That is..!!" Cao Tengfei widened his eyes in shock as he quickly bolted off to escape.


    What Duan Li held in his hand was the Imperial Nine Six Summon talisman!


    "That damn ant! How did he get such an item?!" he cursed out in his heart.


    It was true that so far, no Nascent Soul Realm expert could do him in, but if it were the people behind that summoning talisman, even if he could manage to escape in the end, he would have to pay some heavy price to do it!


    In fact, he might even be severely injured and has the small possibility that he could die!


    Seeing that the other party was trying to escape, Duan Li swiftly injected his spiritual Qi on it, and the talisman began to quickly burn into golden flames!


    Wengg!!


    "D-Damn it!" Cao Tengfei that was trying to escape before had to make a sudden stop.


    This was another function of that summoning talisman that he feared!


    ''Spatial Locking: Grade 6!''


    By using the Imperial Nine Six Summon talisman, the entire area within 500 meters square with it as the center, was locked down by a spatial barrier!


    It would be a fool''s dream to think that they could bust out from such a barrier within a few breaths, thus instead of continuing to escape anymore, he stood his ground and surged all his aura to its peak, ready for the incoming battle!


    "This barrier exist to keep enemy away while both protecting and trapping the enemy that was already within encassed within it.." he recalled the information about the talisman and then sneered.


    But the effectiveness would degrade over time! I just have to play for a little bit and when the barrier is weak enough, I''ll let them eat my dust! Huehuehue..


    Woonggg!!


    Two silhouette suddenly emerged upon a flash of white light. It was so bright that the crowd had to cover their eyesight with one hand!


    But as the light dissipated, the two silhouette finally became clear, and had the entirety of the people there gasped in shock as they instinctively landed on the ground and one-kneeled themselves.


    "We pay respects to the Emperor!"


    ...

 162 Chapter 161: Summoned in an awkward state!

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    Jiu Xian Ping was still in his light red morning robe with a cup of coffee on his right hand. He was just about to head over to the War Room in the Royal Palace to get the updates of the battle from the Three Fronts, but who knew that when he opened the door, the scene he saw was not that of the War Room with his peoplebusy running all over making reports, but instead one of the battlefield itself?


    "Huh? this is the Blastwinter desert.." he said in a state of shock.


    I was summoned? But who could..


    Wait!


    I gave the summoning talisman to that young man called Duan Li recently, and that fellow should currently be in this area as well..


    Don''t tell me.. this is the First Front?!


    Sure enough, when he swerved his head to the back, he could see Duan Li waving at him with an awkward smile.


    This bastard!


    Why couldn''t he communicate and tell me first before summoning me in this state?!


    When he glanced to his side, Fei Jin Fang was there as well, using a light blue morning robe with a cup of tea on his left hand and a newspaper on his right hand, quite similar in state like he was in now.


    They both glanced at each other.


    Because of the suddenness of their summoning, the latter forgot that he had to one-kneel on the ground before the Emperor, thus when he realized this, he quickly bent his knees towards the other party, albeit in an awkward posture with both the items on his two hands, as if a liberal poet that travelled the lands in a more casual outlook.


    "P-Please forgive your servant here for not noticing your presence earlier your majesty!" Fei Jin Fang swiftly said in a panic and his face reddened in embarrassment for the state he was currently in right now.


    The Emperor was feeling a little bit awkward too seeing that his mighty left hand that was usually cladded with full-plate body armor from top to botton in such a casual attire.


    Thus, he swiftly replied, "En! A-At ease!" with a little bit of stutter in-between his sentence.


    Ahem!


    After making some dry cough, he continued, "Were you suddenly summoned as well without any advance notification from him?" the Emperor said while pointing his index finger to Duan Li.


    Fei Jin Fang stood up and then crumpled the newspaper on his right hand, "Yes your majesty! I was summoned without any warning beforehand as well!" he replied truthfully with gritted teeth, fuming with anger.


    But it was at this moment that he realized that the Emperor was also in a similar state as his as well, thus he couldn''t help but to let out an agaped mouth, "Y-Your Majesty! T-This.." he said, unable to construct any proper sentences at all.


    To think that little fellow dared to summon the Emperor in such a state as well?!


    What brazenness!


    "Y-You! Are you courting death?! Why did you summoned.." he stopped before he could finish his sentence, his face warped in horror. This was because he was so surprised to see that there were well over two thousand people here, and by the looks of it, they seemed to be the students from the Jixue Knights Academy!


    Right now, all of these people were in a one-kneel posture, a symbol of respect and subservient to the Emperor, but it was that blank look on their face that made Fei Jin Fang horrified!


    T-They saw the Emperor in such a state..!


    Oh Heavens! The dignity of the Emperor had taken a critical damage today!


    "W-What are you all doing? Face down to the ground, now!" he bellowed out in an effort to reduce the situation from escalating into utter embarrassment for their Emperor.


    After which, he turned towards the Emperor but found the latter to be gesturing for him to not act any further than this.


    Fei Jin Fang swiftly realize the meaning behind this; as long as they did not say anything regarding their appearance right now, they could still maintain their dignity at the end of the day.


    Besides, its not that they hadn''t brought any spare clothing with them.


    With a swift motion of their hand, their current light robes were switched to their formal attire; the Emperor with his majestic golden robe while Fei Jin Fang with his all-black full-plate armor and golden cloak behind him.


    They had never felt so grateful of having a spatial ring around. It was in such an emergency situation did they finally realized its value!


    Still, when they finished changing, both of them threw a menacing glance towards Duan Li.


    If this fellow did not have any good reason to summon them in such a state, he will be in world of pain later on!


    "Y-Yo! Good morning Your Majesty, and how are you doing Supreme Knight Fei Jin Fang? S-Sorry to call you both so suddenly.. it was an emergency.." Duan Li tried to swiftly explain himself before he realized something and one-kneeled on the ground.


    He remembered Liu Sheng Juan getting reprimanded by this Fei Jin Fang in the Royal Palace before for acting so casual towards the Emperor, and the latter''s voice was utterly loud and sounded like a mad bear when scolding someone, thus he swiftly kneeled. Besides, as a citizen of the Jiu Empire, it comes with a warrant that he should show the proper form of respect when seeing the Emperor!


    Fei Jin Fang was just about to flare onto Duan Li for greeting the Emperor in such a casual manner, and in fact, even more casual than how Liu Sheng Juan were! But the Emperor again, gestured for him to stop and drop the matter entirely.


    "Why did you summon us?" the Emperor then said, the frustrations in his voice couldn''t really be concealed, no matter how hard he tried.


    "I.. We were just about to wrap up ourselves from this Front because we had finished the battle way sooner before the predicted time.. but then, someone troubling came here.." Duan Li answered, not daring to dilly-dally the matter any longer.


    After all, he too knew that he shouldn''t have used the Imperial Nine-Six Summoning talisman without advance notice beforehand, because he was lucky that they were only in their light robes before..


    What if they were having a shower and was summoned naked?


    Fei Jin Fang''s dignity could be left and cast aside, but if the Emperor was summoned in such a state, news of it would travel all the way across the other Eight empires, becoming a laughingstock of the century!


    "Huh? You guys were already done?" the Emperor was evidently surprised by this, and he felt it hard to believe.


    It hadn''t even been an hour before the Three Fronts made their attack simultaneously, and the First Front was already done?


    When he threw a look around, he could see that some tents and stalls were being set up nicely, and if he was not mistaken, the atmosphere here was reminiscent to that of a festival!


    What the hell are my people doing?


    What happened to the battle here?


    Where are the thousands of monsters?


    Just as he was about to inquire for more details from Duan Li, his eyesight caught a figure of someone not too far ahead.


    It was Cao Tengfei, casually standing patiently with both hands clasped behind his back, replying the Emperor''s gaze on him with a sinister smile.


    "That old man!" the Emperor''s face quickly turned serious, as he drove his battle intent to the maximum.


    Fei Jin Fang also seemed to noticed Cao Tengfei at the same time as the Emperor, thus he too skyrocketed his aura to the pinnacle!


    "Is he the one causing trouble to you?" the Emperor said in a solemn voice, without averting his gaze from Cao Tengfei even for a moment!


    What a vile aura he is radiating out right now!


    Duan Li nodded, "En! He is from that blasphemous Dark Sect! And his name is.."


    Just as Duan Li was about to say his name, Cao Tengfei bellowed out with a darkened face, "Don''t you dare say my name!"


    "..." Emperor.


    "..." Fei Jin Fang.


    "..." Everyone.


    Smirks - Duan Li.


    "His name is ''F*cked by the Heavens'' and his nickname.. ''Old F*cker!''"


    ...

 163 Chapter 162: Prepare for battle!

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    Pu!


    D-Damn it..!


    Cao Tengfei was so stifled that he almost ended up puking his innards to the ground when Duan Li mentioned his ''new'' name that they had come up with before a while ago instead of using his real name.


    How dare you say that as if my actual name is truly as such?!


    I am Cao Tengfei!


    Cao Tengfei!!


    "F*cked by the heavens? Such a simple riddle! Let''s see.. Cao Tengfei?" the Emperor said with an indifferent expression, making it sounds like there was only one outcome for such a name.


    Pu!


    Cao Tengfei choked on himself.


    H-How did you managed to guess my real name from that, much less on your first guess?!


    Are you guys actually conspiring against me?


    And that indifferent facial expression of your''s when you guessed my name correctly just from that interpretation alone..


    Are you trying to imply here that my name actually translates to that and no other?!


    To hell with all of you!!


    "Oh? To think that your majesty could actually backtrack and guessed his real name from the meaning alone! Indeed, your majesty is truly unparalleled!" Duan Li said out loud, full of respect towards the Emperor.


    "Your majesty is truly unparalleled!" everyone repeated the same phrase after Duan Li and their synchronous voice was reminiscent to that of a patriotic assembly.


    Pu!


    "S-Stop it.." Cao Tengfei found his lungs to suddenly stop functioning. He had taken a critical damage to his self-esteem!


    "Hah! Of course his majesty isunparalleled! Such a simple riddle is nothing but a child''s play before his majesty!" Fei Jin Fang scoffed and then turned towards Cao Tengfei while pointing his long sword towards the latter with a darkened face.


    "And you! How dare you make your name as such! To think that you would have the audacity to sully the holiness of his majesty from that atrocious name of your''s! That alone, deserves you the highest form of capital punishment for forcing his majesty to speak of your dirty name, and that is, death!!"


    Pu!


    Cao Tengfei could no longer hold himself steady as his knees started to buckle up by themselves.


    "T-this is bad.. I''m going to faint!" thus he had to quickly slap his own face.


    Pah!


    His left cheek was now swelling red after that slap, but he was spared from falling into unconsciousness due to the continuous compounding mental attack on him.


    How could he have thought that just by his enemies playing around with his name, his inner self was already injured to such a degree?


    The old prophecy was truly wise, as tongue were indeed sharper than anything else in this world!


    "Enough playing with my name!!" he bellowed out loud at the top of his lungs, his face was entirely red and his hair dishevelled, while his breath became haggard.


    Never before had he ever experienced being driven into the corner in such a way, not even in his wildest dream!


    After all, he found himself to be on the verge of going insane!


    He was a member of the most evil of all sect in the whole Tian continent!


    Yet, instead of being properly feared and revered to by his enemies which he usually gets from his evil reputation, he was being ridiculed to no end instead!


    This is not how the world is supposed to work!


    Something must''ve been broken somewhere!


    "While I admit that you guys have done splendidly and managed to have your way with me just by playing with my name, everyone here will pay dearly for that." he said, focusing his mind back to the real matter at hand.


    First, I need to delay more time!


    The longer they took to attack me, the more energy I can reserve for myself to use during my escape later on!


    The Emperor furrowed his brows when he heard this.


    "Is that a threat? You are threatening my people in front of me? Courting death." the Emperor then unleashed his full cultivation prowess.


    BOOOMMMMMM!!


    Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm expert!


    At this moment, the Emperor seemed to be reminiscent of an undying phoenix with the golden aura he was letting out right now, blazing like the hot flames of the sun!


    His entire disposition showcased the true prowess and air of an Emperor!


    "Wahhhh!" the intense pressure combined with the solemn majesty of the Emperor''s aura had the crowd''s adrenaline shot up through their roofs and became a riled up mobs!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Everyone then began to unleash their full cultivation state, and even though their combined aura was still nothing in the eyes of a Nascent Soul realm expert, similar to the passing empty air, their large numbers would still be a headache if these people decided to fight without regards to their life!


    As the saying goes, a King that was brave enough to stood at the forefront of his people, was a King worth dying for!


    "Tsk!" Cao Tengfei narrowed his eyes as he decided to kill all these ants later on.


    Meanwhile, Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight and also the left hand of the Emperor, also started to feel the thirst of battle in him burning wildly!


    "It has been a very long time that I''ve ever gotten serious in a fight, but against a scum like you who view human life as nothing but power vials to suck in, I''ll gladly display to you the extent of my full power today." Fei Jin Fang said with a cold tone as he released his cultivation state to the pinnacle as well.


    BOOOOMMM!!


    "Hmph! Big talk, plenty have said the same thing to me, and I am still well and alive 500 years later! Let me see just how powerful the top expert of the Jiu Empire are!" Cao Tengfei replied with a disdainful snort and let his cultivation realm run amok.


    BOOOOOMMMM!!


    As soon as Cao Tengfei released his cultivation state, the vivid dark tendrils around him became visible to everyone, and the intensity of it increased to at least more than 20 times!


    "Blurghh!"


    More people puked out their innards as Cao Tengfei''s vile aura had their minds reeling, an instinctive human reaction to something unholy and grotesque!


    Seeing this, the Emperor''s eyes flashed in alarm.


    "Everyone who cannot stand their ground, retreat for as far as possible! Please forgive your Emperor here for not letting you guys out from this barrier, or we risk this criminal escaping as well, I hope everyone understands." the Emperor said.


    Hearing this, everyone held out their right hand onto their chest and kneeled once more, "We hear and obey his majesty''s decree!"


    Pshew! Pshew!


    They swiftly retreated after hearing the direct command from the Emperor and no one dared to pull their weight around to stay, not even Duan Li''s party whom was practically stronger than most of the people there.


    Only three people stayed from the student''s side; Zhuge Liang, Sui Shunyuan and Duan Li.


    "Hmm? He is able to withstand the full pressure of 3 Nascent Soul realm expert?" Fei Jin Fang threw a surprised look onto Duan Li, whom seemingly was not affected by their might at all.


    Just the pressure from a single Nascent Soul realm expert unleashing their cultivation state to the maximum will leave anyone lower than their realm within the range of 30 meter to rattle their knees, much less remaining unaffected.


    Perhaps if the other party was a pinnacle Golden core realm, it wouldn''t be that hard to believe, but this fellow was just at the pinnacle Foundation establishment realm!


    For example, the student beside him could barely even stand!


    "Sui Shunyuan, will you be fine like that?" Duan Li said, feeling concerned that the other party would pass out anytime soon.


    "I.. I want to fight him!" Sui Shunyuan gritted his teeth as he said this.


    When the Emperor heard his name, and the look of conviction in the latter''s eye, the Emperor swiftly understood something.


    "So he is from the annihilated Sui clan.. there were records of the Dark Sect having something to do with it, so I guess he wanted revenge because he knew about it?"


    Meanwhile, Duan Li tried to persuade Sui Shunyuan, "I know he own you blood, but in this state.."


    But before Duan Li could finish his sentence, the Emperor interjected, "Lend him one of your Guardian Knight Puppet. Since he is from the Sui clan, they are masters of the puppeteer art."


    "Ohh yeah! How could I not think of that!" Duan Li said, feeling awed on how quick-witted the Emperor was.


    Truly a wise Emperor indeed!


    Wengg!!


    With a wave of his hand, a Guardian Knight Puppet appeared before Sui Shunyuan.


    "T-This..!" Sui Shunyuan was surprised to see such an exquisitely designed puppet!


    Just from a single glance, that chrome-plated armor and the golden cloak behind it was already enough to show how impressive of a quality this puppet was!


    However, no matter how excited he was of such a formidable puppet being lended to him, he soon realized the major problem.


    "I could definitely control this with no problem, but I need a powerful energy source as well.. if only I have a High quality spirit stone right now or something equivalent.." Sui Shunyuan clenched his fist tight in frustration.


    The purest spirit stone that he has right now was just a couple of Medium quality spirit stones. If inserted into this puppet, it would only display some subpar abilities that was not worth a mention.


    Seemingly to understand the other party''s predicament, Duan Li chuckled, "Here use this, I''ll lend you one." he said as he gave Sui Shunyuan the highest purity of spirit stone that he has, of which the latter was strucked in bedazzlement.


    Even Cao Tengfei, who were just waiting passively for them to waste time, was utterly surprised as well!


    Superior Quality Spirit Stone!


    Gulp!


    "T-This.. I will never forget your kindness for lending me this spirit stone!" Sui Shunyuan said in agitation.


    To think that the other party would be so kind to him that was practically still a stranger, so as to lend him a national grade treasure so casually, it was totally a first for him!


    If spirit stones were to be depicted as plants, then Low Quality spirit stones would be like weeds growing non-stop, no matter how many times it was plucked out.


    But Superior quality spirit stone? That was like the world tree in terms of rarity!


    "Its no problem at all!" Duan Li waved his hand dismissively.


    Sui Shunyuan could be said to have an excellent eye to know whether someone was pretending or not, but he was truly surprised to see that Duan Li was not even bothered the slightest, as if he had plenty of them at his disposal!


    But how could that even be?


    Sui Shunyuan then shook his head to cast away such miscellaneous thoughts and quickly inserted the Superior quality spirit stone into the core of the puppet.


    Booonggg!!


    The Guardian Knight puppet swiftly came alive, and when it felt the colossal amount of power coursing through its body, as if having a consciousness of its own, it did the ''eureka'' pose with both hands thrown into the air!


    "..." the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang.


    The puppet seemed to be like those on drugs!


    ...

 164 Chapter 163: Beating up Cao Tengfei! 1

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    "You will be controlled by Sui Shunyuan''s puppeteer arts unless I said so otherwise later on." Duan Li instructed to the Guardian Knight puppet as it nodded.


    Forming a series of complex hand incantation gestures, Sui Shunyuan then casted his puppet arts;


    ''Six Paths of Puppet Arts!''


    Weengg!!


    The body of the Guardian Knight Puppet rattled for a moment before it calmed down, signs that Sui Shunyuan had successfully controlled its whole body!


    "What a talented young man.. he is already able to master their late clan''s secret art to such an extent.." the Emperor nodded in acknowledgement.


    All in all, there were 3 levels of the puppet arts; the lowest being the Three Paths of Puppet Arts, and the highest being the Nine Paths of Puppet arts.


    In their records, the only last known Sui Clan''s member that managed to master the highest, the Nine Paths of Puppet Arts was the long deceased main head of the family from back then; Sui Mulong!


    Even after the coup that led to the downfall of the clan, the new head after that, Sui Palui, only managed to master up to the Six Paths of Puppet Arts!


    With this alone, it had already outlined what a genius Sui Shunyuan were. Usually, only the elders whom have accumulated enough experience were able to master the Six Paths of Puppet Arts, but Sui Shunyuan?


    He was still young and has a very high probability to be able to master the highest form of puppet arts!


    The Nine Paths of Puppet Arts!


    He would then become a great asset to the Empire later on in the future!


    "What a surge of power!" Sui Shunyuan exclaimed in excitement.


    Because of his puppet arts, he could feel the raw flow of spiritual Qi coursing through the body of the Guardian Knight Puppet; this was a prowess that feels totally boundless for him!


    Noticing the excited look on the other party, the Emperor shook his head.


    "It''s a pity that that version of Guardian Knight Puppet could only make full use of High quality spirit stones. The Superior quality spirit stone in it right now would only provide it excess energy without any increase in its power, so its prowess should still be somewhere in between Middle to Late stage Nascent Soul realm." he said.


    To date, there was no Guardian Knight Puppet able to make full use of a Superior quality spirit stone and for obvious reason of course.


    One was that the materials would be ultra rare to find, extremely difficult to forge and would require the absolute best of blacksmith forger to mold them!


    Second was that there has never been in history of anyone capable of achieving such a feat, at least none in the Tian continent yet.


    And third, Superior quality spirit stones was perhaps the most rarest of all minerals in the Tian continent, at least before Duan Li somehow ended up with a bunch of them.


    Thus, unless it was from someone with heaven-defying capabilities, would a Guardian Knight Puppet of such a caliber could be made.


    And in the case that it were made, then its battle prowess would definitely surpass the realm of Nascent Soul realm on a whole another level for sure!


    "You should back away now with the rest of them young man, just fight using the puppet in your stead for now." the Emperor advised.


    Seeing that the Emperor himself had personally asked him to retreat back, it would be extremely rude for him to go against it, therefore he nodded and swiftly dashed to where everyone were.


    After all, with the Six Paths of Puppet arts, even from such a distance, he could still control it with no problem at all.


    Turning his attention back towards Cao Tengfei, the Emperor smirks, "It''s not that I don''t know what your plan here is, you wanted to drag this situation out as long as possible right? Well, I''ve been stalling for time to complete this as well."


    With a flick of his finger, the students that retreated all the way back was encassed in a spatial barrier of the same level as the surrounding barrier that encompassed them all.


    Wengg!!


    "Ahaha.. that''s a very smart move right over there. I was planning to kill them for their loud mouths earlier on, but I guess I''ll have to do that next time. Huehuehue." Cao Tengfei chuckled.


    In his mind, since he had already marked everyone here with his soul sense, there was no way those people would be able to get away from his grasp in the future.


    He was hell bent into wanting to kill those students as they gave his name a bad taste to it, such that even he himself found it embarrassing!


    Death was only a matter of time for them, it was inevitable.


    And after that, perhaps I should find the opportunity to give myself a good name..


    "Audacious! You dare to speak to the Emperor like that?! You think the more we dilly-dally here, the weaker this barrier around us gets right? Well, here is a surprise for you!" Fei Jin Fang took out a talisman.


    Seeing this talisman, Cao Tengfei narrowed his eyes as he quickly pointed his index finger forward and shot a black tendrils of flame from the tip of it in order to burn down the talisman.


    "Too late!" Fei Jin Fang injected his spiritual Qi into the talisman as it burned in a spectacular flash of blue flames!


    Whooshh!!


    Wengg!!


    The 500 meter square barrier ontop of them vibrated, before its previous vivid state turned more viscous, signs that it was reinforced to become much more durable and long lasting.


    "Damn you!" Cao Tengfei cursed out.


    He did have some reservation that on the off chance, the two of them might try to reinforce the barrier and that would spell some trouble for him.


    But its not like everything can go according to plan. Besides, since the Emperor decided to protect the students while the weaker one here reinforced the barrier all by himself, there was only one way for him to escape this current predicament of his; and that was to focus on attacking Fei Jin Fang!


    The moment Fei Jin Fang became tired, the barrier would become unstable, and at that moment, he could blast his way out from this place!


    Both the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang was no amateur and realized this issue as well, but they betted on their luck that they would be able to take this man down, for the simple reason that their black horse was here - Duan Li!


    Staring at one another, they waited to see on who would make the first move first.


    Zengg!!


    The Guardian Knight Puppet that was controlled by Sui Shunyuan made the first dash to Cao Tengfei.


    ''Strings of Rupture!''


    With an open finger attack akin to a stabbing motion with a knife, 5 strings made up of spiritual Qi was shot forward from each of the five fingers of the puppet.


    "Hmph!" in response, Cao Tengfei threw out a slap to counter the five strings coming at him, but just as it was about to touch the strings, the 5 strings ruptured and turned into countless smaller strings that weaved its way around that palm attack.


    Noticing this, Cao Tengfei only snorted and erected his Soul barrier to protect him.


    Pengg!!


    All the strings were deflected harshly by this seemingly invisible barrier. This was many times stronger than the spiritual Qi barrier that one could form after reaching the Core realm and was only accessible to those in the Nascent Soul realm.


    Still, Sui Shunyuan''s motive was not to attack Cao Tengfei, but to restrain the latter!


    Fwipp!!


    The deflected strings converged back to wrap around his Soul barrier, and Cao Tengfei''s expression turned livid.


    "You want to stop me? Dream on!" he bellowed out and the black tendrils around his body began to infuse into his Soul barrier before quickly turning black.


    When the Emperor saw this, he summoned his sword and leaped forward to swiftly cut the connection of the strings between the two right in the middle.


    Swishh!!


    And just as he did that, the remaining strings attached to Cao Tengfei''s black barrier turned into black color in an instant, before receding into the barrier, as if absorbed.


    "Be careful! That black stuff, they call it the Demiruke''s virus.. once infected by it, you will turn into a monster!" Fei Jin Fang shouted.


    The Emperor nodded with grim countenance, "This is perhaps the main reason why it was so hard to deal with the members from this Dark Sect! If not for this so-called virus, we would have long gone all-out to eradicate them once and for all for their blasphemous action towards mankind!"


    Cao Tengfei laughed out loud when he heard this, "HAHAHA! What a prepostrous claim! You call our method blasphemous? We are just a group of individuals that decided to cultivate using alternate means.. HAHAHA!"


    "This maniac..!!" Duan Li gritted his teeth in anger.


    From the looks of it, the constant wails and roars of anger seething from those black tendrils, it appears to be the negative emotions from people..


    Could it be?!


    Activating his Tetra Soul Sense (Author note: Tetra Unsealing arts changed to Tetra Soul Sense for this ability), Duan Li scanned the black tendrils.


    [Analysis in progress.. complete.]


    [Demiruke''s Virus - High possibility of transmogrification into a lesser being with varying capabilities depending onhost once injected.]


    [Demiruke''s blood - harvested from the remains of the mythical creature, Demon Demiruke. Effects, transmogrifying living organism with negative energy into lesser beings.]


    [Negative energy - source was derived from human souls. The more unstable a human''s emotion were before death, the higher will be its negative energy purity.]


    "As expected!" Duan Li narrowed his eyes as the bubbles of anger inside him swelled up.


    Bbzzttt! Bbzzzttt!!


    He had long been in his peak right now, and it''s time to let the fist do the talking!


    ...

 165 Chapter 164: Beating up Cao Tengfei! 2

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    "I''ve treated both Zhuge Liang and my mother from this Demiruke''s virus before, it is incredibly potent and a hassle to treat. So let''s try our best not to be infected with it." Duan Li said with a serious expression.


    The most troublesome nature of this virus here, was that if the injury was deep enough, the virus could enter directly into the meridian pathways!


    When that happens, it would only be a matter of time before one turned into a lesser being - or those that they called as monsters. This was specially the case during the heat of battle, when one''s spiritual Qi - it''s food - was surged to its peak, that will accelerate their transmogrification into monsters even faster!


    "You''ve treated it? Hah! Empty talk!" Cao Tengfei snorted disdainfully when he heard what Duan Li have just said.


    As far as he knows, there was practically no viable method to treat someone once infected with their virus, and this young man claimed to be able to do it? Of course he would never believe it!


    "The treatment he spoke about must''ve been temporary only at best.." Cao Tengfei thought inwardly.


    After all, that was the most what people whom were infected with the virus could do.


    But when the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang heard this, they were evidently a little bit surprised.After all, they''ve already come to know almost everything there was to know about Duan Li, including who his mother was.


    Meng Yue, this was a woman that possessed perhaps the most talent that the Jiu Empire had ever seen before back then. Unfortunately, she was afflicted by this untreatable virus and had to live the rest of her remaining days in seclusion, bidding time for when she would eventually turned into a monster herself.


    For Duan Li to say as such, and knowing who Duan Li were and the fate the other party was destined with, they glanced to each other and nodded.


    They were confident!


    Confident in the sense that, Duan Li had truly, really managed to treat her! This in turn, ease a great amount of pressure weighing on their minds to finally go all-out!


    "Bloodline release!" both shouted at the same time.


    BOOOOOMMM!!


    The Emperor''s forehead glowed brightly, before a peculiar shining tattoo appeared on it. This tattoo was a pair of wings - the insignia of the Royal family of the Jiu Empire, the Phoenix wings!


    Then, his whole body started to radiate out some thick, viscous golden flames, the Phoenix aura!


    Phoenix aura, or specifically, the flames surrounding the Emperor at this moment grants him two things; instant regeneration and incineration of any foreign substance!


    What this means was that, there was almost no chance for the Demiruke''s virus to infect the other party. If it gets close enough, it would be incinerated to ashes before it could even reach his body!


    Perhaps the only other way to do it, was to use cold weapons such as a sword to create an injury and inject the virus after that. But with the instant regeneration ability, there was almost no chance of that happening as well.


    Clank! Clank!


    Fei Jin Fang''s body made a series of clanking sounds within that thick armor of his. Although it could not be seen with the naked eyes right now, his flesh was actually molding together and transformed into that like steel!


    But this was even stronger than steel!


    This was Fei Jin Fang''s unique bloodline ability, ''Titanium Serpent Silver Scale!''


    With this ability activated, it would take an incredible amount of damage to even create a single cut on his bare flesh!


    Not to mention, with his Supreme Knight''s armor that was already difficult to penetrate with, along with the numerous runes to dampen all sorts of attacks, his defenses was practically impenetrable!


    Fei Jin Fang''s weight would also increase by a few tonnes, thus any attack made by him would weigh incredibly heavy as well! However, the tradeoff for this was that his speed became much slower, but this debuff was nullified with the runes on his armor and cloak, granting him speed!


    "Damn it!" Cao Tengfei cursed out in his heart.


    This was the reason why he wanted to escape when Duan Li were about to summon these two..


    At their full battle prowess, it would give him an endless amount of trouble to deal with them at the same time!


    However, Cao Tengfei couldn''t help but to find this matter a little bit strange. Even if the full extent of their might could greatly protect them, in reality, it would still, only took a single damage to them to get infected by the virus!


    Just where did they get such confidence?


    Cao Tengfei frowned and casted a slight glance towards Duan Li.


    It couldn''t be that they trusted what this young man said before right?


    "Hmph! To think that you two would even activate your bloodline powers here.. are you really hell bent for us to go at each other''s neck today?!" Cao Tengfei bellowed out in anger.


    He wasn''t the least bit of afraid of them, not even when they were at their full peak right now. Granted, it would bring him more trouble like this, but he too, was a bona-fide Nascent Soul realm expert!


    Throughout the 500 years that he had lived so far, he had committed many unimaginable atrocities in order to absorb negative energy of the highest purity.


    He was chased by many experts, hunted by them from all corners of the Tian continent, but he still managed to persevere his life until today.


    "Two Nascent Soul realm experts wanting to claim my life? Arrogant!!" his face suddenly became twisted.


    Pshhh..!!


    His skin then started to warp before more black tendrils crawled out from inside his body, slowly connecting with each other before finally turning his body all pitch black!


    Next, a series of grotesque transformation happened; exoskeleton started to appear on all limbs of his body, with bones protruding out from each joints. Four horns jutted out from his temples and his back spine surfaced, exposing razor-like backbone!


    Urgh!


    All those who watched this transformation felt their stomach rumbling, feeling disgusted that they almost puked!


    "What a twisted transformation.. no wonder the Dark Sect members seems to have no remorse in conducting any kinds of massacres.. it turns out that they had long fallen from grace.. that body.. they are no longer human!" the Emperor said as he narrowed his eyes, his instinct telling him that the form Cao Tengfei took right was was incredibly dangerous!


    "This is a threat level far higher than a national threat.." Fei Jin Fang clenched his fist tight.


    "Your majesty, allow me to be the vanguard!" he turned towards the Emperor and kneeled, after which, the latter nodded.


    "Very well, I shall be the support and you become my sword! Receive my blessing!" the Emperor''s forehead shone brightly.


    Weengg!!


    ''Three Thousand Great Spells: Phoenix Rampage of Carnage!''


    BOOOOMMMMMM!!


    Fei Jin Fang''s figure was lit ablaze by a ball of golden flame shot from the Emperor''s forehead, but instead of burning the latter to ashes, this flame seemed to seep into his pores, as if forging his bones and metallic flesh into something even stronger!


    Fei Jin Fang clenched his hand into a fist, "Such power.."


    He felt that all his attributes, such as strength, defense and speed had rose considerably, at least by more than five times of his original capabilities with this buff spell!


    "I can only maintain this spell until this tattoo mark on my forehead disappeared completely. You have to subdue him before that happens!" the Emperor said with an authoritative air to it.


    Hearing this, Fei Jin Fang nodded solemnly while still kneeling, "Yes your majesty!"


    BOOMM!!


    His figure disappeared as a result of him moving near the speed of sound. With just a single dash, he had already closed the 10 meter distance between him and Cao Tengfei!


    BAM!!


    He sent a straight right punch forward to Cao Tengfei, of which the latter quickly dodged it.


    BAM!!


    Then a left hook which was blocked, and finally a right uppercut that hit cleanly on Cao Tengfei''s chin.


    BAM!!


    All these take a while to explain, but it happened in less than a single breath!


    By the end of Fei Jin Fang''s 3 punch combo, a loud sonic boom exploded out.


    BOOOOMMMM!!


    Those who watched this marvel in awe as they became excited!


    "So this is how top notch Nascent Soul realm expert fights!"


    ...

 166 Chapter 165: Beating Cao Tengfei! 3

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    By the end of the 3 punch combo, the resulting impact to Cao Tengfei''s chin made a loud resounding booms to the surrounding.


    But contrary to expectation, Cao Tengfei wasn''t even hurt in the slightest! Instead, he formed a wide smirk on his face.


    "Is that all you could muster from your power up?" he said in a tone full of disdain and then launched a sideway kick to Fei Jin Fang''s abdomen, of which the latter was able to block it on time.


    However, as the kick connected, even when blocked, the resulting blow had Fei Jin Fang''s eyes widened in astonishment.


    Nani?


    This kick.. its heavy!


    BOOMMM!!


    Fei Jin Fang''s figure had to retreat 3 steps to the back in order to cancel out the remaining force acting on his body.


    "Don''t get overconfident just yet." Fei Jin Fang said as he put himself into a horse stance.


    Clenching both fist hard, he roared out to the sky as his meridians surged with an even more power!


    AAAAHHHHHHHHHH!


    When Cao Tengfei saw this, he laughed out loud, "Crazy idiot.. even burning your spiritual Qi.. so you figured out that trading off your stamina for more speed would let you beat me? You won''t even last long like that! HAHAHA!"


    "Shut up! I don''t need that much time to kill you!" Fei Jin Fang bellowed, and with a single step, the ground below his feet cracked similar to that like cobwebs and his figure became even more blurry as he moved.


    Whooshh!


    BAM!! BAM!! BAM!!


    Trading blows with speeds close to the speed of sound, the fight lifted off from the ground to the air as more and more resounding booms exploded with each contact formed, causing the spectator from the ground to swallow a mouthful of saliva from excitement and nervousness.


    With the addition of more speed at his disposal, Fei Jin Fang''s punches connected 60 percent more each time, but to his dismay, the other party doesn''t seem to receive any sorts of damage at all, regardless on how much power he used behind his fist!


    It was as if the force behind his punches were being nullified each time it made contact with Cao Tengfei''s body!


    What is going on here?!


    "Don''t tell me.." the Emperor narrowed his eyes as he seemed to realize something.


    He then called out, "Fei Jin Fang, his body transformation.. it seems that its innate ability is to absorb any physical impact and could possibly cancelled it out!"


    Hearing this, Fei Jin Fang showed a surprised expression, "What? A physical body that could cancel any sorts of physical attacks?" he said in disbelief.


    How is that even possible?


    They were both Nascent Soul realm expert, practically equal in terms of fighting prowess. In fact, he actually had the upperhand in this battle as the other party has not been able to counter his attacks so far after that first one in the beginning!


    Thus, even if the latter possess such a body, there was no way it could continue to cancel out physical attacks forever..


    There has to be a limit threshold somehow!


    I only just have to continuously attack him!


    BAM!! BAM!! BAM!!


    "HAHAHA! You must be trying to figure out something by now eh? Let me tell you in on a little bit of the secret behind this body of mine.. indeed, they have a certain threshold on how much physical attacks it could absorb and store!" Cao Tengfei said with a deranged smile on him.


    "Honestly, its about to be filled up right now, and to empty that out, all I have to do.. is THIS!!" he deployed a swift punch to Fei Jin Fang''s stomach.


    BAMM!!!!


    "Urghhhh!!" the unexpected colossal force behind that punch had Fei Jin Fang struggle to maintain his consciousness and almost passed out from it!


    And from the looks of it, the speed that the other party had just displayed doesn''t seemed to pale in comparison to his own speed right now as well!


    "Despicable.."


    BOOOMMMM!!


    Fei Jin Fang''s body was shot to the ground and collided, causing a deep depression on its surface with almost 10 meters deep and 30 meters wide!


    Blurghh!


    A mouthful of blood was sprayed from Fei Jin Fang''s mouth.


    "HAHAHA! Did you think that my speed was inferior to you? I''ve been letting you hit me all these while so I could return them back to you in one, big surprise package! How does it feel like to receive all your punches in one go?" Cao Tengfei said with his tone full of mockery.


    Whooshh!


    Fei Jin Fang''s body then lit up in golden flames, and any internal injuries he suffered from that collision before was instantly healed!


    "Cheh!" Cao Tengfei clicked his tongue as he threw a hateful look towards the Emperor that was standing casually below, watching their fights as if it were a show.


    "I have to be careful of this guy the most, he seemed to still have something up his sleeve.. he is the Emperor after all.." he thought in his mind.


    Furthermore, this instant regeneration was the most troublesome of all abilities he had to face right now. Even if he could deal substantial amount of damage to them, the healing properties from a Phoenix bloodline was not a joking matter!


    Fei Jin Fang slowly stood up from the debris, his countenance looking more solemn than before.


    Had it not been for the Emperor''s previous blessing, he would have suffered a grievous injury already!


    "I musn''t lower down my guard.."


    His mind then started to whir into action..


    If any sorts of physical attack does not work on the other party, then that means only perhaps skill arts with elemental attributes would be able to do it!


    "But that also means.. that I''m burning my spiritual Qi needlessly before.. damn it!" he gritted his teeth and then turned to the Guardian Knight puppet, "Sui Shunyuan, I want you to release any skill attacks with elemental attributes that you know on him for as long as the puppet could handle!"


    Elemental skill attack?


    "Roger!" Sui Shunyuan replied in realization.


    ''Qi blast attack!''


    Pew! Pew! Pew!


    The only elemental skill attack that he knew which could be launched to the enemy from a distance, was the basic spiritual Qi blast, or simply called as the Qi blast - which practically anyone could learn after entering the Foundation establishment realm!


    It has a light elemental attribute, and was also the bane for the negative energy which posses the dark elemental attribute!


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    Cao Tengfei opened up his palm and sent out dark colored Qi blast to meet with the incoming attack from Sui Shunyuan''s puppet.


    Due to the opposing attribute of both Qi blast, they quickly eliminated each other!


    BOOOMM!!


    "HAHAHA! Seems like you insects has finally learnt something! That''s right, only elemental skill attacks would work on me!"


    But even knowing this, what could mere ants like them could possibly do to me?


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Sui Shunyuan continued to successively launch Qi blast repeatedly, while Fei Jin Fang readied himself into a stance, with a peculiar weapon straped onto his waist..


    A Katana!


    This was a sharp sword with only one edge of it sharpened to an incredible degree! It''s origin could be traced back to the Eastern part of the Tian continent!


    "To think that he would even summoned his treasured weapon.. It appears that Fei Jin Fang is going to perform that quick draw.." the Emperor remarked as he saw the unique stance of the other party.


    "I refuse to acknowledge that I won''t be able to deal you with a significant damage that could surpass that threshold of your''s in a single attack!" Fei Jin Fang''s eyes glared in blue colors.


    Bzzttt! Bzzztttt!


    His katana then started to let out sparks of blue lightning around its edges as he activated his skill arts.


    ''Blue Flash series: Roaring Thunder!''


    Supppp!!


    Cao Tengfei that was preoccupied with fending against the seemingly unlimited number of Qi blast being shot at him was starting to get annoyed.


    "Curse this puppet.. once I destroy it, I will snatch that Superior quality spirit stone for myself.. it would be such a waste for a mere puppet to use it.." just as he was thinking along this line, he heard a deafening sound, akin to a thunder splitting the skies apart!


    BZZZTTTTTTTT!!


    The next thing he knew however, was that Fei Jin Fang''s katana was already at his throat, ready to slash through his neck!


    Sh*t! I was distracted!


    Since he was caught off-guard, he wasn''t able to block or dodge it, thus the katana cleanly swiped past his neck. But due to his body having the ability to nullify and absorb physical damage, the Katana simply rebounded off from his neck after making contact with it!


    Pengg!!!


    "Damn it, it still won''t work?!" Fei Jin Fang cursed as he retreated back to the ground with grim expression.


    However, the sharp eyes of the Emperor was able to notice something, "No.. look very closely, there is a slight seam cut on his neck!" after which, everyone narrowed their eyes to be able to look closely.


    Indeed! There was a cut!


    "What a fluke!" Cao Tengfei spit his saliva in anger.


    A mere ant dared to injure me.. unforgivable!


    Pshew!


    Bolting straight to the ground to meet at Fei Jin Fang, they both then continued their engagement in a series of melee attacks; the latter using a Katana while he uses a bone like sword that jutted out directly from his palm!


    "It seems that his limit threshold was about 5 to 7 times of Fei Jin Fang''s heavy punch.. and the Quick draw attack was slightly higher in damage than that punches by a single hair.. that was why his neck was injured!" the Emperor said as he finished the analysis he made.


    Had it been equal to Fei Jin Fang''s 10 times punch, Cao Tengfei''s neck would have been severed by now and his life forfeit!


    Hearing this explanation, Duan Li then finally sighed in relief, which was noticed by the Emperor, thus the latter frowned and asked him, "Why do you appear so relieved? Even though I just said that, giving him that much damage is extremely difficult, and if we can''t do it fast enough, the only thing he has to do was to empty out the accumulated damage he stored onto us, which would be problematic.."


    "I understand your majesty, but I think I can do it!" Duan Li replied.


    Pshew!


    He bolted off to the sky as soon as he said that.


    "W-Wait!" the Emperor extended out his hands to stop Duan Li.


    Haven''t you been listening to what I just said?


    Fei Jin Fang is a Nascent Soul realm expert and you are still at the Foundation establishment realm, but even he needed to damage the other party several times to top off the threshold!


    What can you even do? Punch him a million times?


    "Your majesty, Duan Li.. his punch is actually quite strong.." Sui Shunyuan by the side said and pointed down.


    He then continued, "This huge crater we are standing on right now, its more than 300 meters wide.."


    The Emperor then looked around and finally realized it, "Indeed, this is a huge crater.. but how is this related to Duan Li?" he asked.


    "Well.." the puppet scratched its head, "Believe it or not, Duan Li did it with a single punch before.."


    "..." the Emperor.


    ...

 167 Chapter 166: Beating up Cao Tengfei! 4

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    "Are you trying to commit fallacy in front of your Emperor here?" the Emperor said in a strict tone.


    Even a Nascent Soul realm expert would find it impossible to create a crater this gigantic with just a single punch, much less from someone that was still in a Foundation establishment realm cultivation state!


    In fact, this crater seemed to be caused by a natural phenomena! And by the looks of those burnt edges over there as well as this rigid, pressurized soil underneath him, a meteor impact from the heavens would be a far more believeable story!


    Did you think that your Emperor here is someone that could be fooled that easily?


    What gal!


    Hearing such a sentence from the Emperor as if he was being reprimanded for trying to troll the latter, Sui Shunyuan one-kneeled on the ground, his body trembling in fear, "W-What? No! How would I dare, your majesty! Those people over there, everyone saw it with their very own eyes as well!" Sui Shunyuan hurriedly answered, afraid that he would be misunderstood by the Emperor.


    Seeing that deep conviction in the other party''s words, the Emperor furrowed his brows before turning towards the crowd at the back.


    "Is what Sui Shunyuan here said just now, is in fact, the truth and was not exagerated to any lengths or whatsoever?" the Emperor inquiried with his majestic disposition.


    "Y-Yes your majesty! What Sui Shunyuan had just said is the truth! All of it! We would not dare to fabricate anything in front of your majesty!" everyone said as they too one-kneeled on the ground.


    In front of the supreme aura and authority of the Emperor, no one dared to be brazen or insolent at all, and acted very coherently.


    Thus, when the Emperor saw their reactions, he became dumbstrucked.


    What? It is actually the truth?


    He quickly swerved his head to look back at Duan Li that was floating gently in the sky, seemingly to wait for an opening to sprung up an ambush like a sneaky bandit.


    The Emperor''s brows twitched, "This Duan Li.. am I supposed to believe that he was really the same person who did it?" he thought in his mind, trying his best to accept it after the matter was justified by everyone.


    But then, he also remembered the identity of this same person.


    "Oh yea.. he IS the destined child.. perhaps he was made as such to be overpowered?"


    When the Emperor thought of this, his heart became much more calmer and was able to accept it.


    Indeed, a child favored by the Heavens could practically make the impossible possible..


    Take for example the case of Meng Yue, Duan Li had actually managed to treat his mother from her affliction, which we thought earlier before as untreatable, so this should be well within the range of the things he could do as well..


    Just that, medical arts were more reliant on one''s skill of manipulating the spiritual Qi and were thus more acceptable if indeed he could do it from the guidance of Heaven secretly.


    But raw strength and power?


    He had never heard before that someone in the Foundation establishment realm were able to do this, not even the Children of Tian from the legends!


    Hais!


    "Nevermind.." the Emperor sighed.


    If he tried to put rational logic into this, it would definitely not work. Thus, he was willing to believe that it was indeed done by Duan Li and none other.


    Had it actually been someone else, even if the whole Jiu Empire was threatened to be turned upside down, he would rather fight it out to the death rather than to believe in such a fantasy.


    After all, an Emperor wasn''t someone that could be swayed easily!


    ...


    Up in the air, Duan Li spoke telepathically with his sword, "Hey little sword, tell me how confident you are in able to get through the flesh of that fellow."


    "En! As long as there is enough speed and power behind the swing, I am able to cut through almost everything there is in existence!" Duergar replied.


    Speed? I can do that..


    But as for sufficient power.. well let me just try it later on and see if I could do it.


    "But aren''t your description of yourself too exagerated there? To claim that you can cut through everything, I remembered that time in Eternal Maze back then, all you managed to do, was cause a few sparks flying off from Komodo''s body.." Duan Li said in a teasing manner.


    Cough cough!


    "Y-Young master, of course what I just said is the truth! I was given the nickname of ''All-Severing Sword'' back when I was forged by.. eh.. nevermind! But I''m unbreakable! That''s why, no matter how hard something is, as long as there is enough speed and strength behind a swing, I can severe through almost anything with ease!" Duergar answered quickly, albeit with a frustrated tone apparent in its voice.


    When Duan Li heard this, he chuckled and replied, "Alright, I''m just joking with you, but I''ll trust your words for now. However, if you happened to break into two later on, don''t go blaming me."


    At the same time inside his mind, Duan Li took note of something, "He stopped in between his words, and the nickname he has, that''s almost similar to my All-Slaying Great Axe.. it seems like this sword knows quite more than I thought.. I''ll have to question him later on.."


    "Rest assured young master, just swing me as fast and hard as you can!" the sword replied. If it has a physical body, it might just puff out its chest in pride when saying that line.


    They then discussed their plan together and some evil laugh were let out from them from time to time.


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    Meanwhile, Cao Tengfei and Fei Jin Fang were still trading blows using their weapon.


    "That''s a very good sword you have there. After I turn you into a corpse, I''ll be sure to take good care of it, so you don''t have to worry!" Cao Tengfei said mockingly.


    Fei Jin Fang snorted, "Hmph! That depends on whether you have the capability to save your life today!".


    Just as they were about to continue, they heard someone shouted from the back.


    "Time to switch!"


    After which, Duan Li suddenly appeared between the two of them, making use of his movement skill art, ''One Step To Reach''.


    Whooshh!


    Completely caught off by surprise, Cao Tengfei swung his bone sword towards Duan Li reflexively.


    At the sight of this, both Fei Jin Fang and the Emperor was struck in horror as they shouted simultaneously.


    "Idiot! What are you doing? Get away!"


    Fei Jin Fang then quickly dashed forward in an attempt to knock Duan Li to the side to save him, but the sword was already inches from Duan Li''s neck.


    "I wouldn''t be able to make it!" Fei Jin Fang''s face paled as he knew that it was too late to save Duan Li.


    But the strange thing was, he saw the latter forming a wide smirk just before the sword landed!


    "Stop!!" he shouted.


    Rrrriiinggggggg!


    The world suddenly crawled to a halt!


    "As expected! Huehuehue.." Duan Li chuckled in a devilish manner.


    This was the trump card ability that he had long not make full use of. Whenever there was an attack that could threatened his life, this time-slowing ability would quickly kick in!


    "Based on my experience, I need to stay within the dangerous zone so that the ability would remain active.. if I were to exit the danger zone entirely, time would flow back to normal.."


    Duan Li side stepped to the right slightly, moving his neck 5 inches away from the sword and then readied his punch.


    "My meridians is somehow still recovering.. I guess it would take quite a bit more time before I could use the full-charged punch once more.. but nevermind, even the non-charged version of my fist at its major mastery level would be lethal enough.."


    Taking one step forward, Duan Li closed the distance between him and Cao Tengfei, entering past the latter''s defenses casually and then threw out a punch right through the latter''s stomach.


    ''Nine Fist Shattering Meteor!''


    BAMM!!


    "Okay.. now time to move back to my original position, just missing the tip of the blade by an inch from my throat so that it seemed like my movement was too fast for their eyes to follow.."


    But technically, that''s what happened anyway.. huehue..


    Duan Li then put both hands behind his back and stood casually with a slight smile, reminiscent of an expert with unfathomable means.


    "No wonder the Principal always used this pose, it actually feels good when I''m trying to do something mysterious!"


    Rriinngggggg!


    Time flowed back to normal..


    "Stop!!!" Fei Jin Fang bellowed.


    But suddenly..


    "Blurrghhhhh!"


    Cao Tengfei suddenly sprayed out a mouthful of blood!


    "Huh?!" Fei Jin Fang halted with widened eyes in disbelief.


    "What happened..?" the Emperor down below that was looking at this scene closely, muttered with narrowed eyes.


    Fei Jin Fang couldn''t see it..


    He couldn''t see it..


    But Cao Tengfei was injured?!


    That only meant.. that Duan Li had launched an attack so fast that their eyes couldn''t follow!


    "What formidable means!" the Emperor unknowingly clenched his hand into a fist in agitation, rattled by this bizarre phenomena!


    "H-How..!!!" Cao Tengfei roared out with bated breath as he wiped off the blood from his mouth furiously, his heart fuming in anger!


    He was very confident before that the other party would have their head lopped off from their neck for being insolent to suddenly jump in between the fight of two Nascent Soul realm experts!


    Even if he didn''t meant to kill the other party, the heat of battle had all his senses heightened to the pinnacle level. Thus, when the other party suddenly appeared like that before, his reflex automatically slashed at the former in no time at all!


    Yet, just what is with this situation right now?


    How is he the one that was injured instead?!


    And by the looks of it as well, it seems that he was punched right on the stomach by the other party!


    Just how did he managed to do it?!


    Because his damage threshold was only half-full before, he didn''t bother to empty it out just yet. Thus, when Duan Li''s punch landed on him, the accumulated damage went past the limit and caused him the resulting injury right now!


    "You.. you just attacked him?" Fei Jin Fang still couldn''t believe his eyes.


    "That, I did." Duan Li replied casually, with both hands still behind his back.


    Hisssss!


    When he confessed this, everyone who heard it couldn''t help but to suck in cold breath!


    How formidable!


    "It must be a fluke! Come at me again if you got the guts!!" Cao Tengfei bellowed out full of indignance.


    He refused to believe that a mere Foundation establishment realm trash could deal him such a tremendous amounts of damage under his nose just like that without him noticing!


    Chuckling casually, Duan Li replied, "Very well!"


    Suupppp!


    ''One Step To Reach!''


    Again, Duan Li appeared right in front of Cao Tengfei with a smug smile that infuriated the other party even more.


    "DIEEEE!!" the latter shouted in rage with twisted expression and swung his sword even faster with more force behind it.


    Rrriiiiingggggg!


    Time slowed down once more..


    "Pu.. hahahaha! This is fun!" Duan Li couldn''t help but to laugh out loud.


    Time to experiment something..


    "Cucko, come out!"


    CUCCK CUCCKOOOO!!


    Cucko leaped out from his shadow energetically. But when it turned to look around and saw that the world seemed to stop moving, it had a confused expression.


    "Master, why is everyone not moving?" it asked Duan Li telephatically.


    "Obviously, its the work of your master here." Duan Li replied with a grin.


    Seems like summoning others after the time-slowing down ability kicked in would let them move normally.. this is a good discovery!


    He then continued, "Cucko, go behind that old man''s back."


    Cuck?


    Cucko tilted its head trying to understand the intention behind its master''s will, but still followed it diligently.


    After seeing that Cucko was in position, Duan Li''s grin turned even wider.


    "Now, leap forward while spinning yourself and attack that old man''s bottom with your beak, as if you are intent to penetrate through him!"


    Cucko found this instruction to be weird, but nodded to it and did as was told.


    Cuuckkoooo!!


    Bssshhhhhhh!!


    "Cucko is indeed efficient.. he went straight for the an*s.." Duan Li covered his eyes, unable to witness such brutality himself, lest he would become a tainted man!


    After a while, Cucko stopped and Duan Li recalled it back to enter his shadow and let it hide once more.


    Rrriiiinggggggggg!


    Time flowed back to normal.


    "DIEEEEEEEE!!" Cao Tengfei still roared out with full power, but suddenly, his face was drained of color, becoming pale as a white sheet and halted, his face twisting hideously.


    "AARRGHHHHHHHH!! MY AN*S HURTS SO BAD!!" Cao Tengfei screamed at the top of his lungs in a high-pitched agonized moans as he plummeted to the ground.


    BAANGG!!


    Crashing to the ground, he rolled all over with both hands covering his a*s.


    "MY AN*S!! MY AN*S!!" he cried out loud.


    "..." everyone.


    ...

 168 Chapter 167: Beating up Cao Tengfei! 5

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    "Hey.. what did you do?" Fei Jin Fang threw a suspicious look at Duan Li.


    "Just some unconventional way of dealing damage.." Duan Li replied with a slight chuckle at the end.


    How dare you lot tried to harm my mother before.. if I don''t make each of you suffer terribly before your death, I would be ashamed to call myself as my mother''s son!


    The Emperor himself had to control his own composure watching this scene so that he did not have any sorts of reaction unbecoming to that of an Emperor.


    Cough! Cough!


    Approaching Cao Tengfei, the Emperor spoke with an indifferent expression and a monotone voice, "And you were so smug before, what happened to you now?"


    When Cao Tengfei heard this, he wanted to lash out and murder this damned Emperor for kicking him when he was already down. But unfortunately, he was still rolling on the ground with both hands covering his a*s, trying his best to mitigate the twitching and burning pain on that region of his.


    However, the main focus of his rage right now was no one other but Duan Li, the figure floating high up above, currently looking down at him with a pair of eyes full of disdain!


    Damn it!


    You dare humiliate me like this!


    I''m going to kill you!!


    "Are you full of indignance right now? Good, you should be. For you to harm my mother, your very fate at that moment was sealed to be finished by me!" Duan Li said with a frosty look, his previous slightly playful expression disappeared completely, as his bottling anger nearly erupted.


    But not yet, he wasn''t finished just yet.


    For someone of their kind, these members of the Dark Sect must first receive some gruesome moments of their lives before killing them in the most painful way they could ever imagine!


    Hearing this, Cao Tengfei''s countenance finally showed a hint of fear, a feeling that he had long forgotten as he was used to commiting many barbaric acts all these while, forgetting the fact that people could also do the same to him as well!


    Perhaps, this was what people called as Karma.


    I''m scared of him?


    Me? The great Cao Tengfei?!!


    "Damn him.. I will have to find ways to escape from here.. and one good day in the future, I will return to torture all these people of the Jiu Empire.. and you Duan Li, I will definitely pay you back a thousand fold for this humiliation you gave me!!" he gritted his teeth, replying Duan Li''s words with eyes full of hatred as the pain on his bottom still prevented him from letting out a single sentence yet.


    When Duan Li saw that eyes of Cao Tengfei used to stare at him, something snapped inside of Duan Li as both the golden and crimson mysterious pearl whirl violently inside his body.


    "How dare you look at me with such eyes?"


    ...


    High up above the very heavens, in a spherical firmament overseeing the multiverse, was a mysterious place that encompassed every single color of truths there was in existence. They flowed like waves and sometimes remaining still, alternating between each colors and seemed to continue doing so in an eternal cycle.


    Inside this very place, was a figure draped in a golden light. It''s light overshadowed all colors of truths, as if it were the only thing that matters in this rhetoric place, appearing both vicissitudinous and unfathomable!


    Although his overall appearance could not be perceived, shrouded by the strings of many intangible phenomena, the pair of golden eyes of his could be clearly seen, and he was currently peering deep into a certain corner within a universe''s timeline, observing.


    Then, his eyes narrowed.


    "Insignificant being.." he said in a cold voice.


    As if this single sentence were like the wrath of heavens itself, the colors of truth around him began to seethe. Those very same colors that appeared to be eternal and inviolable, was affected by this man''s words!


    He then thought for a while before coming to a decision, "I will not tolerate such audacity."


    Lifting up his hand, a surge of pure power started to condense at the tip of this man''s index finger as he shot it forward.


    CRACK!


    The source wall that protected the multiverse cracked and a small hole was tored open, and then penetrated by this power. When it entered, it quickly bolted off to the corner of a certain timeline of a universe before disappearing.


    Pingg!


    ...


    Within the heavens, there were three realms of dimension; the Upper realm, the Higher realm and the Lower realm.


    The Upper realm was further divided into 9 region, each was ruled by an Eternal being, and they were referred to as the ''Eternal Lords of All-Era'' by all the Supreme entity of the Higher realm.


    These Eternal beings or Lords, existed by themselves, and has been like so ever since the beginning of time itself. No other beings than themselves could ever exist on this plane.


    Each of them were in charge of many different aspects of the universe, and their role was to disseminate and watch over it; Wisdom, Knowledge, Fulfillment, Emotions, Justice, Balance, Time, Existence and Power!


    These existences were extremely archaic and devoted to their role. There can''t be, or ever be, a slight deviation from what they were doing, because they were all connected in a symbiotic loop with each other.


    At this moment, all these 9 Eternal Lords rose up their heads at the same time.


    "The source wall was invaded by a foreign power.." they said simultaneously.


    ...


    When the two mysterious pearl started to whirl, a sudden influx of power was activated.


    There was no explosion of power coming from this, but more like a filter that was being turned off. Thus, when it appeared, everyone could suddenly ''feel'' an insurmounting might enveloping over them.


    "Wha-What is this?!" both Fei Jin Fang and the Emperor showed horrified expression.


    While those on the lower cultivation realm could only feel that this power was very formidable, both of them whom was at the very pinnacle stage of Nascent Soul realm state could clearly discern that this power was even far above their''s!


    To put it into an analogy, from the perspective of an ant, a human figure was already colossal to them, and the size of the moon was not that much different.


    However, to the perspective of humans, the moon was actually countless times far more colossal than what the ants could possibly comprehend!


    Suuppp!


    Duan Li disappeared and reappeared in front of Cao Tengfei with a frosty expression.


    "Duan Li, this power of yours, could it be.." the Emperor at the side was just about to say something when the other party suddenly kicked Cao Tengfei squarely on the face, causing the latter to flew several meters away.


    BAMM!!


    ARGHHHH!


    Gulp!


    The Emperor swallowed his words and halted his tongue from saying anything further. This was because he was very familiar with the current expression on Duan Li''s face right now.


    "Those eyes.. that''s the look from someone on the peak of a power chain.. a pair of eyes that would not tolerate any dissidence from their subject.. unique only to those of rulers and lords.. how did he.."


    BAMM!!


    BAMM!!


    BAMM!!


    Duan Li kicked Cao Tengfei''s face several more times before he stopped.


    "Try and look at me with that eyes of yours again, and you will find your eyeballs to melt next!" Duan Li said with a threatening voice, but Cao Tengfei knew for sure that the other party was dead serious.


    "Y-You.. Who-Who in the world are you?! H-How did you get this level of power!" Cao Tengfei screamed, his eyes were now reflecting deep fear towards the other party.


    After all, he was also a Nascent Soul realm pinnacle, and could clearly ''feel'' the unfathomable amount of power coming forth from the latter.


    Shiiinggg!


    Duan Li materialized his sword, Duergar.


    "Good, that''s the pair of eyes more suitable for someone like you, despair!"


    Pshhh!!


    ARGHHHH!


    "My left arm.. my left arm!!" Cao Tengfei screamed out once more, blood pouring endlessly from his severed left arm.


    Even if he were to release the damage threshold to the ground, it was futile. The damage done on him went past what his threshold could store!


    "I''ve been meaning to toy with you some more before killing you. But you disgust me."


    Psshhh!!


    ARGHHHHH!!


    This time, his right arm was severed.


    Pshhhh!!


    Pshhhh!!


    And now, both of his legs were also dismembered entirely, leaving Cao Tengfei limbless.


    Those who couldn''t watch this scene had to look away for its brutality. But no one felt pity for Cao Tengfei, after all, there was no redemption given to someone whom had committed innumerable amount of demonic acts for over 500 years!


    "Didn''t I tell you that you would die here?" Duan Li said as he pointed the tip of his sword towards Cao Tengfei''s ''Little brother''.


    Psshhhh!


    ARGHHHH!!


    This was a very tragic scene, in fact, even the Emperor found his legs to close tightly on instinct, and all the males who watched this could somehow imagine just how painful that could be as they covered their crotch.


    "Stop.. stop.. I surrender.Don''t cut me anymore.."


    At this point, Cao Tengfei no longer held any thoughts of resisting and cried profusely, begging to be spared.


    "Fine. I am also in no more mood to continue doing this." Duan Li replied and the sword disappeared from his hand before reappearing back as an earring on his right ear lobe.


    Raising his right hand to the sky, he looked at the sorry figure of the other party below him.


    "So time to die."


    ''All-Slaying Great Axe!''


    BTOOMMMMM!!


    Lightning suddenly fell from the skies before coagulating on his right hand, quickly morphing to become that of a great axe!


    "What a spectacular weapon! A great axe made up entirely of lightning!" the Emperor commented, feeling deeply astonished with Duan Li''s continuous unfathomable means!


    Perhaps I shouldn''t try to pull my weight too much around him anymore in the future..


    Seeing this, Cao Tengfei tried his best to summon up any strength he has to run away, but it was futile as he didn''t have any limbs or energy to do so.


    After all, his dantian was already shattered the moment Duan Li cut-off his ''Little brother''.


    "No... No!! I don''t want to die.. NOO!!" Cao Tengfei screamed at the top of his lungs.


    Slay!


    BOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!


    The ground quaked and shattered that it extended all the way outside of the spatial barrier they were in, the cracks extending a few kilometers outwards and still doesn''t show any signs of stopping for a while.


    "What an immense amount of power! If I am not mistaken.. this was just like him a few years later in that image recording.. this realm.. could it truly be.. the Immortal Ascension.. no.. Escaping Mortality realm state!" the Emperor widened his eyes and clenched his fists tight in excitement.


    It was an attack that Duan Li had put all his current might in. However, the moment he swung his great axe down to chop at Cao Tengfei one last time for good, he felt that he had only crushed some empty air, and his great axe only struck the ground directly!


    And his feelings were right, as soon as the dust settled, there were no remains of the other party!


    In other words, Cao Tengfei was gone!


    "How..!!" Duan Li''s face darkened.


    Suddenly, a voice that seemed to be omnipresence spoke out, "Impressive, it seems that you have quite the background for someone to temporarily borrowed you their powers.."


    Everyone looked towards the sky to find out just where the source of this voice were coming from, but it was useless.


    "I don''t know who was the one brazen enough to do it, but that means I could also intervene as well.. for this is the sake of balance after all.. huehuehue.." the voice continued.


    Hearing this, Duan Li bellowed out, "Who are you! Where is that darned Cao Tengfei!"


    The owner of the voice seemed to be a little bit displeased with Duan Li''s tone, "Settle down you ant! Until next time, he will come back to you once more!"


    He snorted and then added, "I will take him under my wing as a disciple to train, so I hope that whoever it was that was backing you before would also do you the same favor.. otherwise, consider yourself already dead! Hahaha!"


    The voice then disappeared into thin air as if it had never existed.


    ...


    Somewhere on the Lower realm of heaven..


    "W-Who are you? Why did you save me?! What do you want!" Cao Tengfei spoke with deep fear towards the latter.


    This was because he could sense that the power coming forth from the old man in front of him was even stronger than what he felt from Duan Li before!


    If it were to be compared..


    It would be like heaven and earth!


    Pah!


    The old man slapped him.


    "Get a grip. You are already old enough to stop screaming like a monkey." he said.


    "You can call me as Elder Xiqong, and I am a part of the.. Heaven''s Will committee!"


    ...

 169 Chapter 168: Heading to Greenplains!

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    "Damn it!" Duan Li gritted his teeth in frustrations.


    Just who in the world was the one that intervened just now?


    Ssuuuu..


    He reverted back to his normal state and the All-Slaying Great Axe dissipated from his hand.


    Tzzztt tzztt..


    The unbriddled amount of power that he had just now also seemed to disappear into thin air with no trace of it left.


    Duan Li looked at his hand, "I suddenly gained that tremendous amount of power.. although only temporary, the feeling is extremely familiar.. that is definitely.. the Escaping Mortality realm state!"


    Was it due to the mysterious pearl inside me?


    The Emperor and Fei Jin Fang swiftly approached him from behind as the former asked, "Duan Li, what happened back then? Who was the one that intervened during that last moment?"


    Duan Li shook his head, "I also do not know who it was.. but one thing is for sure.. that person is someone with an extremely high cultivation state!"


    Hearing this, the Emperor let out a serious look.


    "Curses! To think that the bastard could escape from our grasp just like that when we already had him cornered.. that person is definitely an enemy with a hidden agenda behind him for helping such a twisted bastard!" Fei Jin Fang shouted, lamenting on the fact that they hadn''t manage to finish off Cao Tengfei thoroughly.


    "It''s fine.. he might be able to escape today, but there won''t be a next time! And that person who helped him.. I will make sure that he would have a fair share of what is to come as well!" Duan Li turned to look at the sky with a solemn look to him.


    I have to become stronger!


    The Emperor nodded, "En, that would be for the best. We can''t have someone twisted like that as an enemy for long.. that Cao Tengfei would definitely cause trouble for the Empire in the future.. whatever means and lengths, he must be eliminated at all cost!"


    Weengg!!


    The surrounding spatial barrier that was already cracked when Duan Li summoned his great axe before, finally gave away and disintegrated along with the wind.


    "Seems like the barrier reached its limit.. I''ll undo the spatial barrier on them as well.." the Emperor flicked his fingers together and the spatial barrier he casted to protect the students were lifted.


    Ssuuu..


    Both the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang also decided to deactivate their bloodline ability as the fight was already over.


    "Zhuge Liang, divide the students here into two groups and head over to the other two fronts to aid the rest." the Emperor commanded.


    "Yes, your majesty!" Zhuge Liang replied and one-Kneeled on the ground, followed by the rest, "Yes, your majesty!"


    He then turned back to Duan Li, "As for the matter today, you have done a commendable job and deserves the highest achievement medal for your merits! Come to the Royal Palace once you are free next time , and we will arrange the ceremony to publicly announce your status."


    When Duan Li heard this, he was a little bit taken aback, "Eh? Are you sure your majesty? I''m still at the Foundation establishment realm.." he scratched his head awkwardly.


    The Emperor''s brows twitched.


    Yeah right, who are you fooling.. everyone here just saw how you managed to defeat a Nascent Soul realm expert until black and blue..


    Obviously, the normal standards and limits of cultivation realm doesn''t work on you..


    When the rest of them heard this, with the exception of Duan Li''s party, they whispered to each other, confused on what subject the Emperor was talking about.


    Duan Li''s status? What could it possibly be?


    Meanwhile, the squad leaders were sweating profusely.


    "It can''t be that his majesty were going to announce that he has an illegitimate prince and also a second wife?"


    "Wouldn''t that cause chaos?"


    Gulp!


    No matter how much they personally disagree with this, it was still the personal wish of the Emperor himself in the end. Mere commoners like them were not privy to know the details and the reason as to why the Emperor decided to do so.


    But of course, this was all a misunderstanding and wild imaginations on their part.


    Shen Lu cupped his chin.


    "It happened way sooner than I expected.. but it seems that Duan Li''s status as the Imperial Overseer would be made public in the next few days.."


    Oh boy.. I can totally imagine the amount of unrest this would do.. news would probably travel to the other empires as well..


    After all, a person whose standing that was above even the Emperor himself waspretty much a very big deal..


    An Empire having an Imperial Overseer would only mean one thing..


    That the person was incredibly strong!


    Ahem!


    "It doesn''t matter.. if there is anyone that disagrees, I''m pretty sure you can deal with them." the Emperor waved his hand casually.


    The crowd nodded in agreement as well.


    Only brazen idiot that did not conduct their research on today''s event would be gutsy or foolish enough to challenge the other party on whatever status he would held in the future.


    Fei Jin Fang then stepped forward, "There is one thing that bothers me though.. your cultivation state is clearly still on the Foundation establishment realm from this aura of your''s.. but you still managed to injure Cao Tengfei to such an extent.. even using attacks that we can''t see.. just how did you managed to do it?" he asked Duan Li, full of curiosity.


    As a cultivator that had long reached his peak, there was hardly any improvements that he can make in his current state, and thus longed for something that could push him further.


    That was why he asked this, to see if Duan Li could give him a few pointers.


    In response to this however, obviously Duan Li couldn''t tell him his secret, thus he shamelessly answered, "It''s all because I cultivated all my three dantians! If you could do it too, you would then be strong like me as well!"


    Pu!


    It seems that those whom were destined for greatness would forever be out of reach for normal people like them.


    Hais!


    But he wasn''t willing to give up just yet, thus, gritting his teeth, he made a request.


    "If you would be willing to help me unlocking my second dantian, I would be eternally grateful!" he said with a slight bow.


    "Fei Jin Fang.." the Emperor was a little bit surprised to see this.


    After all, he knew how extremely prideful the other party were. Other than him, the Emperor, there was probably no one else that he would lower his head like this.


    This also caused the crowd who saw and heard this to broke out into discussion.


    "Hey, did you see that? Even the Supreme Knight lowers his head in respect!"


    "Just what is his status? Even stronger opponents wouldn''t make Fei Jin Fang bow just like that.."


    "You guys must be blind and deaf! Didn''t that guy just said that he cultivated all his three dantian? Of course the other party would want to curry favor from him!"


    "Shut up idiot! You actually believe that? I''m guessing that the real identity of this Duan Li here, should be someone extremely old that suppresses his cultivation state all these while.. and his status was actually a really, well-known expert!"


    "Hmm.. you could be right. His Majesty even said something about announcing his status to the public.. I wonder what this all means.."


    The people continued to whisper and gossip with each other as their imaginations ran wild, while the squad leaders were practically biting their nails right now..


    Seeing how sincere the other party were asking him, Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel soft, "Very well, I will try to help you next time. Though, don''t put your hopes too high for it, I can''t guarentee that it would work.."


    Hearing this, Fei Jin Fang bowed even lower to express his gratitude. "That''s fine, as long as there is hope, then there is always possibilities!" he said.


    Duan Li was impressed when he heard this, "When there is hope, there is possibilities eh?" he nodded in agreement.


    "I still have quite a few things to talk to you about, but let that be for another time. I have to return to the Royal Palace for now, as I imagine that they should be in a state of panic with me suddenly went missing." the Emperor slightly chuckled.


    He then turned to Fei Jin Fang, "Let''s go. They can handle the rest themselves."


    Burning a special kind of talisman with his spiritual Qi, the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang soon flashed brightly, before disappearing before everyone else.


    Zhuge Liang then stood up as he faced the others.


    "Alright, you guys heard what his majesty just said. Let''s head over to the camp and discuss whom should go where."


    Everyone nodded and shortly after, their discussion was concluded.


    ...


    "Sir Duan Li, according to the reports, the Greenplains were having quite a bit of trouble holding the monsters back, so I guess it would be more suitable to send the stronger people there.." Zhuge Liang said.


    He then continued, "So, if Sir Duan do not mind, could you head over to the Greenplains and help them out?"


    Duan Li thought for a while and then nodded, "Sure, its no problem at all."


    After they finish their preparations and dismantling back the tents to their spatial rings, each flew towards two different directions.


    Pshew! Pshew! Pshew!


    ...


    On the way to the Greenplains, Shen Murong couldn''t help but to ask, "What the Supreme Knight just requested, could you.. help me with it as well?"


    He realized that no matter how hard he trained, there would be limits to getting stronger using the conventional way.


    Facts has it that those who tried to unlock their second, much less the third dantian would inevitably died.


    But he just couldn''t shake off the feeling that, if Duan Li helped him, the impossible would become possible!


    When the rest of his party heard this, their eyes also hinted the same kindle in it as Shen Murong''s. Thus, they couldn''t help but to look at Duan Li, their Lord, with hopeful expression.


    Duan Li cupped his chin, "Maybe, I could actually do it?"


    ...

 170 Chapter 169: Celestial Beings!

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    Somewhere on the Lower realm of Heaven, within a huge hall was a grand-looking throne where a voluptuous beauty was sitting haughtily on it, crossing her legs together.


    "Empress Luo, reports were stating that there were two accounts of breach made to the Heaven''s Will on the Tian Continent. The first one was unknown, but the mystifying nature of its source, indicates that it is highly likely came from somewhere in the Upper realm." Elder Jun said as he bowed his head.


    The Empress was currently watching an image recording of Duan Li''s battle with Cao Tengfei while listening to Elder Jun''s report.


    "Hmm.. If this intervention really came from the Upper realm, then it is already outside of our jurisdiction. Perhaps the Nine High Chancellor would deal with it in one way or another, depending on the severity.." she replied in an indifferent tone.


    Inwardly, she could only think of a certain individual that would do this.


    Back when she was witnessing personally for Duan Li''s advance tribulation, she could sense a very familiar presence coming out from the latter.


    In fact, that presence also belongs to someone in the Upper realm, and that person has many track records of being carelessly voyaging throughout the thousand worlds in the mortal realm, in pursuit of something while leaving behind some ''footprints'' in his wake.


    If the intervention to the Heaven''s Will this time around came from that very same person as well, then it makes sense. After all, that would meant that this Duan Li was his son, among the two other children he has in another two worlds..


    Just that, he had never intervened directly like this. Usually, Celestial beings like them would empower their children with numerous lifesaving blessings and superior aptitude that would leave the normal genius mortals to dust!


    This was further evidenced from the fact that, all legendary figure in the mortal world were usually their offspring in one way or another.


    But this time, not only was Duan Li not in any sorts of life-threatening danger, it was instead, during a fight where he clearly would''ve won even without the added power-ups.


    Did that person somehow felt like he should give this particular son of his a better spotlight?


    I can never understand what that man is thinking..


    The Empress shook her head, "Anyway, what about the second intervention? The voice at the end of this battle was faked.."


    Elder Jun swallowed a mouthful of saliva before answering, "Well, after repeatedly tracing back the source.. it actually came from here in the Lower realm.."


    The Empress froze and narrowed her eyes, "Who was it?"


    Gulp!


    "It''s.. the source belongs to.. Elder Xiqong!" Elder Jun said while lowering his head to the ground, not daring to look at the Empress directly.


    Hearing this, the Empress stood up from her seat.


    Clenching her hand into a tight fist, her aura was rising rapidly as bubbles of anger were boiling inside her.


    "W-What a diabolical amount of energy.." Elder Jun could hardly breath with the amount of pressure that he was affected with.


    "Xiqong Wu.. you dare to besmirch our honor and code as the Heaven''s Will committee like this.." she said with a frosty expression.


    She then turned to Elder Jun, "Bring him to me!"


    "Y-Yes!!" replied Elder Jun before quickly leaving the hall, not daring to waste anymore time.


    ...


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s party were thoroughly excited when their Lord mentioned that he might be able to help them cultivate their second dantian.


    "But I might need some more time to devise the actual method, as I only have a few theories on how to do it right now.." Duan Li said.


    Based on his knowledge about meridians and medical arts, he could theoretically use his spiritual Qi to guide others to cultivate their second dantian.


    But unless he was very sure that there were no risks involved, he would not attempt to do it just yet.


    "That''s fine! Even if it would take a few years, we could wait!" Shen Murong clenched his fists tight in agitation.


    What sorts of possibilities would it open if one were to successfully cultivate their second dantian?


    One word; unimaginable!


    In fact, it would not be an exageration to say that one would become dragon amongst men once they were able to do it!


    After all, there was no living example of a person that had been able to cultivate their other dantian..


    Well, except for this Lord of their''s of course.


    "Oh look, we are already here.. let''s get this over with.." Duan Li said as he quickly readied his punch.


    Psheww!!


    All his followers then suddenly blocked him, as if a squad of suicide martyrs that would stop at nothing to obstruct Duan Li from trying to do whatever it was he was going to do.


    "Stop Brother! What do you think you are doing?" Shen Lu said with a pale countenance.


    "Huh? What do you mean? Of course I''m going to annihilate those monsters down there.." Duan Li pointed with furrowed brows.


    Then, he seemed to realize what was going on based on their expression, "Ahh, I see what this is all about.. Relax! I''m not going to one punch them, those would complicate our allies down there as well, so there is no need to worry.." Duan Li reassured them.


    Not that I could do it yet even if I wanted to..


    Hearing this, his party immediately sighed in relief.


    "Still, let us handle the monsters this time around.. you''ve already took everything by yourselves last time Brother.." Shen Lu said.


    "This.. fine.." Duan Li sighed.


    As the rest of them flew down to join the battle, Duan Li was left alone floating with nothing to do.


    "Huh? Its you boy! What are you doing here?" a familiar voice spoke out from behind him.


    Hearing this familiar voice, Duan Li turned around to find Wang Guozhi swiftly approaching him from a distance.


    By the looks of it, it seems that the latter was tasked to hunt any 3 Star monsters that popped out amongst the monster stampede here, judging from that attire of his.


    "Eh? Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi, you belonged to the Eighth Squad? I thought you were part of the Recon division.." Duan Li said, and then continued, "The Emperor requested us to divide ourselves to aid both the second and third battle front, that''s why I am here with my party.."


    Wang Guozhi was surprised when he heard this, he did heard rumors of reports that the First front on the Blastwinter desert was pretty much finished already, but he did not dare to believe that it was truth.


    After all, they were dealing with several thousand monsters on each front, so how could they finish so quickly while the other two fronts were still struggling?


    Thus, he answered, "Well, I am in both groups, because I''m practically wanted by everyone hahaha! Anyway, you guys really did finish the First front? And you said his majesty requested you guys to come here? What exactly happened?"


    Duan Li then retold him all the events that had transpired before, and when Wang Guozhi heard this, his eyes couldn''t help but to turn wide in disbelief.


    He one punched the monster stampede and annihilated most of them while leaving the majority disabled?


    They have competitions to see who would have the rights to eliminate the remaining monsters because they were short on it?


    One of the members from the Dark Sect came over with an atrocious name and got beaten to death before disappearing in a sorry state?


    Pu!


    Is he for real?


    Wang Guozhi threw a suspicious look onto Duan Li.


    "Nevermind, with the extra help here, we should be finished soon. There were far more fewer 3 Star monsters than expected as well, so this would be easy." he said, quickly dimissing the stories that Duan Li told him.


    No matter what, he chose to take the stories with a grain of salt, until it was proven to be true.


    They then converse with each other and from this, Duan Li found out that there were only a dozen of casualties so far.


    This meant that the counter-attack was largely successful, in that the casualties were only the result from the 3 Star monsters attacking people off-guard.


    However, Duan Li felt something was amiss, so he requested for Wang Guozhi to round up the injured and the bodies of the fallen students later on.


    The latter was a little bit taken aback by this, but still nodded to it, as Wang Guozhi knew of Duan Li''s status as the Imperial Overseer.


    "Okay, I''ll do that later on. But if I may know the reason why, it would be easier to explain the matter to those people later on.." he asked.


    Duan Li were silent for awhile, before telling him his concerns. After which, the other party showed a grim expression and quickly left to gather those people around.


    Time was something that those people do not have.


    ...

 171 Chapter 170: The Viruss Potency,n

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    After the end of the monster stampede in the Greenplains, there were roughly about 500 of the 2,000 students there that was injured, of which one-fifth were severely injured and a few dozens in critical state. Meanwhile, the dead only accounts up to less than 50 people, which was way less than the previous projection.


    Currently, all the injured and the dead were gathered into two separate camps. These were done under the instructions from Duan Li and was managed prudently by Wang Guozhi.


    Some of the teachers and subjugation squads took notice of this move, and they were curious about it. However, they were sure that the order came from either the Vice-Principal or the Principal himself, as only those two could practically command Senior Teachers, which were higher in status when compared to normal teachers to do something like this directly.


    What got them really curious however, was the fact that the injured would be treated by a well-known, new junior student - Duan Li.


    Rumor has it that the only reason why the First Front ended so quickly was due to this junior student alone, and currently, the details of these rumors had many people flabbergasted.


    After all, what they have heard sounded so outlandish that it seemed more like a fantasy instead, or even a miracle!


    Still, since Zhuge Liang, the squad leader of the Seventh Subjugation Squad was also the one involved in spreading this rumor, although many people remained doubtful, they couldn''t easily dismiss the stories as false either.


    The person in question behind all these -Duan Li, obviously did not care for whether they believe it or not, as he knew that it would only be a matter of time before things were proven.


    There was however, one person that vehemently denied this rumors and considered them as baseless and false. This person was none other than that certain elder of the Strategist Club - Rong Huan, and claimed that these rumors were spread purposely by irresponsible people in order to crank up Duan Li''s reputation.


    In his opinion, the people who were spreading those rumors were apparentlytrying to get into the good side of Duan Li, so that the other party would take them in or pay them something as compensation.


    Either way, Rong Huan was full of conviction that the new rising junior was nothing but a person full of fraud and underhanded means.


    But of course, the number of people who believed what he said were totally miniscule in comparison to those who believed in those rumors. Thus, this had him angered greatly.


    Inside a certain carriage..


    Pang!


    "What tea is this that tastes like a pile of horse sh*t?" Rong Huan barked out at his servant as he threw the pot of tea to the floor.


    His servant that were currently serving him that tea immediately frowned upon this. However, her expression changed as quickly as the speed of light, thus she was not found out.


    Bowing to her master, she replied, "Perhaps I did not put enough sugar in it.. please forgive me master.."


    Inwardly however, she was viewing the other party with disdain, "Foolish master.. all these while I''ve been adding some horse''s urine inside your tea a little bit every time, and you praised it to be your favorite.. to think that this time you would notice the taste of horse sh*t even though I only put it in slightly, have you become smarter?"


    "Hmph! Make me a new one! And make sure its that favorite of mine! Also, I want the taste to be slightly stronger this time, or else... I will make the life of your younger brother miserable in the academy!" Rong Huan said with an imposing tone, as if talking to his slave.


    Hearing this, she gritted her teeth slight, but immediately smiled after that.


    You want the taste to be stronger? Sure.. I''ll give you that!


    "I will go to make the tea now master.." she said as she left the carriage to find the most oldest of horses, so that she could extract some of their urine.


    Inside the carriage, Rong Huan couldn''t help but to find himself becoming more frustrated.


    "All these while, my life has been smooth-sailing.. now it became like this ever since you came to the academy! I will definitely make sure that you will thoroughly pay for this!"


    ...


    Inside the tent where the dead were kept..


    "How was it?" Wang Guozhi spoke with grim expression.


    Duan Li shook his head.


    "Fortunately, I do not detect the remnants of the Demiruke''s virus inside these bodies.. without their source of food, which is the spiritual Qi, it seemed like they died almost instantly." he said.


    But before Wang Guozhi could let out a sigh of relief, Duan Li continued on.


    "However, some of them were clearly infected with the virus before.. and when these virus died.. the negative energy contained within them began to slowly corrupt these body."


    He then lifted the arm of one of the body and gestured, "Take a look.."


    When Wang Guozhi casted his sights onto that arm, he did not notice anything unusual.


    "Use your soul sense, then you would be able to detect it." Duan Li said, knowing that the other party was only looking with his naked eyes.


    Wang Guozhi shot his brows in realization and flushed red in embarrassment.


    Wengg!!


    After a moment, his expression turned solemn.


    "This.. the decomposition of the arm.. is slowing down?" he said, feeling alarmed.


    Duan Li nodded, "That''s right.. I have casted my soul sense onto those dead monsters, but this phenomena seemed to be only unique to a cultivator''s corpse.."


    Hearing this, Wang Guozhi''s eyes widened, "Boy.. you, you could use soul sense?" he asked in disbelief.


    One has to know that the ability - Soul Sense, was specific to those only in the Nascent Soul realm. Even Golden core realm had never managed to use Soul sense, much less someone like Duan Li that was currently still in the Foundation establishment realm..


    Thus, how did the other party managed to do it?


    "Ahh.." realizing that he had told one of his secret to the other party unintentionally, Duan Li scratched his head and answered awkwardly, "Well I sort of can.. but don''t tell anyone.."


    "This.." Wang Guozhi was at a loss of words before replying, "Don''t worry, I won''t."


    Tell anyone? What a joke! Who would even believe me?


    Sighing deeply, he decided to focus back on the real matter at hand, "What sorts of complications would this brings?"


    Duan Li pondered for a moment before answering, "As of now, the corruption from the negative energy only seemed to to slow down the decomposition of these bodies and nothing else.."


    "We could eliminate future problems from cropping up by burning these bodies to ashes, but their friends and families would definitely complain about that. Therefore, have their graveyards placed in a special area far away from residences.. just say that it is a special place for them to remind us of this battle if anyone were to ask." he added.


    Wang Guozhi nodded in agreement to Duan Li''s decision. After that, they went to the second tent where the injured were placed.


    Because there were currently some few hundreds that were injured, it would take too much time to diagnose them all. Thus, Duan Li had them raise their hand for those who were attacked by 3 Star monsters and isolated these people into one group.


    After doing a thorough diagnosis with every single one of the injured within this group, Duan Li''s brows creased together.


    "I don''t understand.. none of them seemed to be infected with the virus at all.." he said inwardly, trying to understand on what was the hidden link but the un-infected injured versus the infected dead.


    Wait a moment..


    Duan Li cupped his chin, "These injured are mostly in Foundation establishment realm and early stage Core formation realm, about the same with those that were killed.. the only difference were.."


    He came up with a hunch.


    Could it be that their innate potential played a major role here?


    Because he could not yet detect a person''s innate potential, he had to ask them directly. As for the dead, he managed to get the information from their friends.


    When he finally compiled them, he noticed a startling pattern.


    "This..!"


    Realizing that he might be on to something there, he quickly called Zhuge Liang in.


    "Senior Zhuge Liang, what is your innate potential?" he swiftly inquiried as soon as the other party entered the tent.


    "My innate potential? It''s a True rank Green colored, a Nascent grade!" Zhuge Liang answered with hints of pride in his tone.


    After all, there were only 6 types of innate potential that one could have; Red (mortal grade), Orange (Inception grade), Yellow (Earth grade), Green (Nascent grade), Blue (Sky grade) and finally, White (Immortal grade).


    In addition, each color was further graded into three ranks; the lowest being pale, then True and then Bright. In one''s lifetime, after years of cultivating spiritual Qi and advancing one''s realm, there was also a chance to upgrade their ranks, usually by one rank. Meanwhile, for those in Nascent grade, two rank advancement was a given, and in rare cases, even three ranks advancement was possible!


    He himself had just advanced in one rank last year, from Pale rank to True rank by consuming some specific pills. And judging from the trend of those with a Nascent grade innate potential, he should still have a chance to advance to a Bright rank somewhere in the future!


    However, seeing that Duan Li''s expression was serious, Zhuge Liang immediately knew that something was wrong.


    "What happened?" he asked.


    "I think I understand now about the success rate.. of the Demiruke''s virus!" Duan Li answered in a grim tone.


    Hearing this, both Zhuge Liang and Wang Guozhi showed a serious expression as well.


    Before Duan Li could say anything at all, Wang Guozhi quickly stopped him, "Boy, I think it would be better for you to make an official report when we arrive back at the academy. This place is not safe to divulge such information."


    It''s not that he did not trust Zhuge Liang, but because there could be others who were listening in to their conversation despite they were the only one inside this tent right now.


    After all, in the world of cultivation, anything one could imagine was possible.


    Duan Li nodded in understanding.


    "Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi, I hope you could relay this information to the battlefield on the Grand Canyon.. have them seperate the injured and the tent as we did here." he instructed.


    "Understood, I''ll do it right now. Oh and, have a good rest now boy. You''re an incredible figure, I''ll give you that. But you''re still not an immortal just yet, so don''t push yourself too hard, got it?" Wang Guozhi said before he left the tent.


    Hearing what Wang Guozhi just said, Zhuge Liang could not help but to ponder, "He is still not an immortal? What does that even mean?"


    ...


    After sometime, everyone finally finished packing and was inbound to the Grand Canyon - where the Second front was located, and was also where their Airship transport to return to the academy were.


    After arriving, it seemed that the Second front had just finished their battle as well, and by the looks of it, the majority of the 3 Star monsters of the monster stampede were annihilated here.


    Tap! Tap!


    Landing on the ground were both the Principal and Meng Yue, Duan Li''s mother. They quickly came here after receiving the news that Duan Li and the rest had arrived.


    ...

 172 Chapter 171: Shen Longs anger!

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    "Duan Li brat, we''ve heard of your recent exploits so far.. but I want to hear it from you directly, did you really managed to beat the crap out of the Dark Sect member?" the Principal asked with bated breaths.


    Even his mother by the side, Meng Yue was looking at him with hopeful eyes.


    Facing the two of them like this, Duan Li''s face flushed red a little bit, and he answered, "Yeah.. I did managed to put that person in his place.. after all, that''s what he get for harming my mother.."


    Meng Yue couldn''t help but to almost broke out into tears when she heard this and remembered what that person''s words back then said, "Our son will solve all your problem."


    Looking at this son of her''s, she could see that the good-for-nothing boy back then was all grown up right now. Before, all her son would do everyday, would just be eating, sleeping and reading all day long.


    Now, he had practically became the strongest student in the academy!


    "Hahahaha! This is the best story I''ve ever heard in all my life! You don''t even know how much I wished that I could''ve meet that bastard one more time to give him a thorough ending. It''s a pity that he managed to escape by the teeth of his life though." the Principal gave out a good laugh.


    "Yes.. the Dark Sect had haunted your mother here all these while.. and now that you''ve taken care one of them, you''ve made me proud Duan Li.." his Mother said with a gentle voice.


    "Mother.." being praised by his mother, Duan Li was feeling very warm inside.


    Ahem!


    Suddenly, a dry cough that belongs to an aged man echoed out, bringing attention and deference to the people around him with his archaic voice.


    This old man was tall, bald, muscular and burly. He was also topless with innumerable amounts of old scars all around his body, looking nothing less than like an immovable stone mountain, forever mighty.


    This person was Shen Long, Shen Murong''s grandfather!


    "Under the Principal''s command here, we have isolated the injured and the dead into separate camps, but I''ve also heard that it came from you, because you claimed to have found out something about the virus, is this true?" Shen Long said with an imposing tone.


    Duan Li threw a confused look towards the latter, as the other party seemed to be looking quite displeased with him out of the blue.


    Did I do something wrong?


    Nevertheless, Duan Li replied him honestly, "Yes, I did found out about something regarding the virus, but.."


    "Tell me about it." Shen Long interjected, without even bothering to let Duan Li finish.


    Hearing this as well as looking at this old man''s attitude, Duan Li''s brows furrowed in displeased as well, "What is up with this old man so suddenly?" he thought inwardly.


    "Excuse me?" Duan Li said.


    "You heard what I said, tell me about what you have found out about the virus, as well as how to treat it." Shen Long replied with a frosty expression, as a mere junior student dared to talk with such tone to him.


    Shen Murong that was watching this from the back couldn''t help but to notice that his grandfather was not like his usual self. Thus, he stepped out from the crowd and called out to his grandfather.


    "Hey Grandpa, what is wrong with you? This here Duan Li is my Lord.."


    "Quiet, I am not talking to you!" Shen Long immediately lashed out, giving no face even to his own grandson that he usually pampered thoroughly.


    "Y-Yes.." Shen Murong jumped to the back, feeling quite surprised because he could sense that his grandfather was somehow angry about something.


    Why is grandpa like this? This isn''t like him..


    "I''m sorry, but I cannot divulge this information just yet. Now if you will please excuse me, I have to go and see the injured right now." Duan Li shook his head and was about to walk away.


    BANG!


    The ground cracked as a ferocious aura was radiated out from Shen Long''s body. This was an aura of slaughter!


    "Don''t you dare to walk away from me like that, boy!" Shen Long shouted out, and the anger on his face could be clearly seen right now.


    BANG!


    The ground underneath Meng Yue''s feet cracked, as a similar type of aura was being emitted from her. Although she was still recovering and was far from her full strength, just from this aura alone, it was obvious that she only pales slightly when compared to Shen Long.


    "You dare to threaten my son in front of me?" Meng Yue snapped, unable to tolerate Shen Long whom were suddenly being so rude to her son out of nowhere.


    Seeing that the situation was becoming more fragile by the second, the Principal stepped in between the two, trying to mediate the both of them to calm down.


    "Hold it, what is wrong with you two? This is an attitude unbecoming of elders!" he spoke out hurriedly.


    As far as he could remember, back when they were still all in the same squad, only Shen Long dared to talk back to Meng Yue, even though the result was that, he was always the one being beaten in the end.


    "I will stop if her cocky son over there showed some more respect to his elders!" Shen Lu snorted as he gritted his teeth.


    Just a mere junior student that recently became famous and was now pulling his weight around me?


    Me, Shen Long, a 9 Star rank Combat master?


    Audacious!


    "No! YOU WILL stop whether you like it or not. Do you think that just because I''m not in my full strength yet, you could be this imposing? You don''t have what it takes!" Meng Yue refuted Shen Long''s words with vicious replies.


    Hearing this, Shen Long shot the latter a piercing gaze.


    "Woman, did you think that the me right now is still the same as I was once were? While you were wasting your life away somewhere for this dozens of years, I''ve already reached a peak far beyond what you could imagine."


    Meng Yue laughed out before she replied, "Amusing! But do you think that I care about how strong you are right now? Go and try to harm him, and as soon as you take even a single step towards my son over there, I will fly all the way back to the city and wreak havoc inside your clan. In terms of speed, you are still far beneath me no matter how hard you trained you bald fool! Do you dare to try me?!"


    "You..!!!" Shen Long clenched his hands tightly into a fist, because what the latter said about him was in fact the truth.


    Due to their dragon bloodline, when activated, their strength and hardness could be boosted all the way up to more than 10 times!


    But there was a single attribute that would remain unchanged, and that was..


    Speed!


    Also, he was very familiar with Meng Yue. If he were to really stepped forward, the latter would definitely do what she had just said.


    After all, she was once the famous Tyrant of the Jiu Empire!


    He was already unreasonable himself, but this woman in front of him were far more ridiculous!


    What has my clan got to do with this that you were going to implicate them all?


    Damned woman!


    "Shen Long, I know that you wanted to kill that bastard yourself for turning your sworn old brother into that monstrosity back then. But now that he had already managed to escape somewhere, what could we even do about it? Even his majesty himself was involved personally this time, you''ve read what the report stated it like." the Principal spoke with a stern voice.


    He then continued, "It''s not only you who''ve lost someone precious that day, think about it! And if you were to insist that he shouldn''t have let the bastard escape, well his majesty was there too, so are you blaming his majesty for this as well?!"


    After being given this wake up call by Bian Tianyu, Shen Long''s temper finally settled down slowly.


    "What? That would be an act of disloyalty! How would I dare go that far?" he immediately replied.


    He then turned his attention back to Duan Li, letting out a deep breath, he spoke with rationale this time.


    "Boy, I know now that I am in the wrong for suddenly going at it with you just like that. But, as a mere junior student, you should learn to respect your elders very well!"


    When Duan Li heard this, he also realized his mistake. Dismissing an elder in the middle of a conversation was really rude now that he gave it a thought. Although the other party was being unreasonable with him, it was not without reason.


    After all, he was even frustrated himself for letting that Old F*cker getting away under his nose just like that.


    Still, there was one word that Shen Long used on him that Duan Li couldn''t let go just like that.


    Duan Li bowed and apologized, "Forgive me for my rudeness just now elder Shen Long.. but don''t call me cocky, as you were not there at that time. If you still feel that I truly am what you call me however, how about you withstand a single punch of mine first and see it for yourself?"


    Shen Murong that was only silently watching this conversation took place within the crowd after being reprimanded by his grandfather previously, had his body hair stood on end when he heard this.


    "H-Hey! That''s my grandfather over there! He is already so old.. so please, hold your punches! His bones is not what it used to be!"


    Pu!


    Pu!


    Pu!


    A series of choking sounds could be heard, even the Principal and Meng Yue was not exempted from this, especially Shen Long, his own grandfather that was caught off-guard by such a ravaging sentences.


    Unfilial grandson! Your grandfather here could withstand a thousand punches without stepping back even an inch!


    Don''t you dare to humiliate your own grandfather here like I am some brittle old man now! My age has got nothing to do with my prowess!


    Suppressing his inner desire to teach that audacious grandson of his, he replied confidently to Duan Li''s challenge.


    "Just a single punch? Are you sure?" he said as he chuckled slightly.


    Eventhough the reports have stated that you''ve beaten the bastard thoroughly and has only managed to escape by the skin of his teeth due to unforseen intervention, his majesty must''ve played most of the role in beating that bastard up.


    After all, how could I possibly believe that a mere Foundation establishment junior student could beat a full grown, not to mention pinnacle Nascent Soul realm expert?


    "Remember, don''t punch my grandpa too hard!!" Shen Murong shouted loudly, truly feeling concerned for his grandfather.


    Damned grandson! Stop humiliating your grandfather here!


    Suuppp!


    "Oh? Pretty fast, almost instantaneous it seems.. not bad.." Shen Long remarked as he was astonished by Duan Li''s speed when the latter used the ''One Step To Reach'' movement art.


    "But if you think that speed alone could.." just before he could finish his sentence, Duan Li''s fist has already landed on his stomach.


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    "Hmm?"


    BAMMMMM!!


    "Bluurrghhhhh!!"


    Pewwww~


    BOOOMMMM!!


    "..." everyone.


    ....

 173 Chapter 172: You wished to enter again?

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    BOOM!!


    The single punch from Duan Li had Shen Long being pushed all the way back 100 meters and crashed against the face of a cliff in a loud boom.


    Pu!


    Shen Long spurted out a mouthful of blood while his figure was still firmly planted on the cliff.


    At this moment, his face couldn''t help but to let out an utterly flabbergasted expression and his beard trembled non-stop in astonishment.


    What an inconceivable amount of force!


    To think that I, Shen Long, well-known for my mountain-like defenses, would be thrown so far from just a single fist of a junior student that was still in the Foundation establishment realm..


    Just what sort of conception was this?!


    Am I actually having a nightmare?


    PRAK!


    Jerking his body slightly, the rocks 1 meter radius around his body on the cliff crumbled to pieces as he came out from the depression, his expression was still that in full disbelief as he wiped the blood stain on the sides of his mouth.


    "You.. how do you possess such a humongous amount of force behind that fist of yours?!" Shen Long immediately inquiried with great agitation in his voice.


    Of all his life experiences, this had to be the most bizarr-est of all!


    Duan Li chuckled, "well, its the benefit of cultivating all three dantian." he replied casually with a shrug, as if it was something so simple.


    Pu!


    Shen Long sprayed out another mouthful of blood.


    This young man is definitely far from simple!


    "Ahh! Grandpa!" Shen Murong quickly bolted forward to support his grandfather by the shoulder, his face showed an expression of great concern towards the latter.


    "Duan Li, I told you to hold your punches before! My grandpa is already so old and his old bones couldn''t take a lot of beatings!" Shen Murong threw a disapproving look towards Duan Li.


    Pu!


    Shen Long felt as if his kidney suddenly ceased to function from his grandson continuous beratement of his capabilities due to old age.


    "What are you saying? That''s just the normal punch of my Nine Fists Shattering Meteor." Duan Li replied, denying that he ever used a strength that was overboard against an elderly man.


    Shaking his head, he then continued, "Since your grandfather is already considered as an expert of the Nascent Soul realm, I used the same Major mastery of the technique on him that I used on Cao Tengfei before so that he could understand."


    Hearing this, Shen Long finally realized why the other party was able to beat that Dark Sect member black and blue..


    With such a punch, practically no one could withstand it if they did not power-up properly beforehand!


    However, although he could probably withstand that single punch from Duan Li and would only sustain perhaps 10 percent of the damage in his awakened bloodline form, if the other party were to continuously punch him with such a fist, it would only be a matter of time before he fell!


    And by the looks of it, it seemed as though the other party was not even going all-out with that previous punch!


    Truly formidable!


    "Although I have to say, your grandfather has fared much more better than what I had expected.. the stamina of a Nascent soul realm expert is indeed different." Duan Li remarked.


    Because his punch this time does not involve the activation of his time-slowing down ability, it was way less in terms of impact when compared to the one he used on Cao Tengfei.


    Due to time dilation, the added speed to his punch causes its force to be several times more lethal. That was why Cao Tengfei, despite his monster form and damage absorbing abilities, could not handle Duan Li''s punch back then!


    Shen Long and the other Nascent Soul realm expert had their brows twitching when they heard this.


    Usually, it was them who would be astonished if cultivators lower than their realm were able to do something beyond their usual means, just like how they were dumbstrucked with Duan Li every single time.


    And now, to think that a cultivator with lower realm was impressed that someone higher than their own cultivation state could defend against their attacks, surely, the laws of reality does not seemed to be bounded to this young man.


    Hais!


    "Alright, I take back my words. You really do possess the capabilities after all." Shen Long said with a sigh.


    Seeing that the situation was no longer tense, the Principal hurriedly led Duan Li to the two tents as time was of most importance right now.


    They were already delayed by Shen Long''s sudden fit of antics and couldn''t afford to dilly-dally any longer when it came to the Demiruke''s virus!


    After conducting the same kind of diagnosis to both the injured and the dead, Duan Li was now more convinced that his previous theory was at least 90 percent accurate!


    Not too long after that, everyone boarded the Phoenix Cradle and departed to head back to the academy, arriving at night-time. They were given a good night''s rest and were instructed to hand in their report the day after the next.


    Classes were also put on-hold temporarily. After all, everyone earned their holidays after such an arduous battle..


    Well at least this was true for those that fought in the Second and Third frontlines anyway.


    For the students that were lucky enough to be on the First frontline, they were so carefree that their reports only contained between one to ten lines at max, of which among those were; enemies were annihilated by Duan Li, competition for leftover disabled monsters, Dark Sect member got beaten up, An*s destroyed, One-Punch guy and more.


    ...


    Inside the royal palace, at the main hall..


    "What?! Are you absolutely sure about this?" the Emperor was so rattled after he heard Duan Li''s report that he subconsciously stood up from his throne.


    "Yes.. at least, I am 90 percent sure that the Demiruke''s virus would have such an amount of success rate, depending on one''s innate potential." Duan Li said.


    His theory was that, the Demiruke''s virus could infect almost any cultivator irrelevant of their cultivation state, because it was actually based on one''s innate potential!


    Specifically, those with True rank or the highest, Bright rank, would have far more higher chances of being successfully turned into a monster when infected!


    This was due to the nature of the Demiruke''s virus, as its food was a cultivator''s spiritual Qi, therefore, higher ranks of innate potential would mean higher quality food for it to consume!


    Liu Sheng Juan, that was also summoned to the royal palace by the Emperor cupped his chin and pondered for a moment.


    "The Dark Sect threat level should now be lifted to the highest level; Cataclysmic Threat!" he declared solemnly.


    "I agree!" the Emperor nodded with similar expression as well.


    Fei Jin Fang clenched his fist tightly in frustration, "This would mean that practically all Nascent Soul realm expert would be turned into monsters once infected! Curse this Dark Dect! How could they be this twisted!!" he shouted out.


    The Vice-Principal, Zhang Xi, only gave out a long deep sigh, "Well, if there is at least one good news from this, it would be that most of the general populace are away from danger for now."


    The Principal nodded, "En! However, the corruption caused by the Demiruke''s virus onto the dead''s body also had me greatly concerned. Let us go with Duan Li''s plan that was previously forwarded by Senior Teacher Wang Guozhi yesterday."


    After some further discussion, the meeting finally ended.


    "By the way, I have decided to announce your title as the Imperial Overseer in one week from now on, would that be fine with you?" the Emperor asked.


    Duan Li thought for a while before nodding, "That should be fine. However, I plan to enter the Eternal Maze once more and advance my realm there at the same time."


    Hearing this, all of them turned to Duan Li at the same time with furrowed brows.


    "You wished to enter the Eternal Maze again?"


    ...

 174 Extra chapter

    Or is it?


    To my dear readers,


    I feel like there needs to be clarification about the status of release rate as of now..


    But first of all, I must apologize to everyone, I''ve heard your griefs and understood your pain, but mass release just isn''t possible at this moment. As I''ve told you, I''m working 3 part-time jobs at the moment and one chapter already uses at least 5 hours of my time to create (I even write chapters during work time).


    Why does it take so much time to create a chapter you asked?


    First, ideas don''t just flow like water. At times, due to fatigue, I could only write a few paragraphs and had to take breaks in-between, because writing just can''t be forced.


    Second, sentence structure. The more I write, the more my brain would try to simplify things by using the same words and structure repeatedly. This results in ugly and repetitive sentences, thus I had to modify them everytime.


    Third, is double checking, such as grammar and the use of correct expression. My English is not perfect and I can''t hire someone to proofread when I can''t afford to pay them. Therefore I have to do it myself.


    Fourth, I can''t possibly write continuously at work do I? And due to the nature of my work, materials and research needed to be prepared beforehand too.


    I''ve tried to reach out to my readers to support me more on ******* before, but I understand that I can''t force people to do that.


    Thus far, I only received about $100 usd (after minus tax and wire transfer fees) every month. As much as I love writing, with such an amount, that is definitely not enough for someone to live per month isn''t it?


    This is why I took 2 more part-time jobs as admin work and cram school teacher, otherwise I would end up a beggar by the street.


    Next, I have to love and take care of myself too by spending some time on other things as well. Otherwise, I am afraid that I might be struck with depression and those can actually destroy one''s livelihood.


    So I hope that this clarify a little bit of my current situation.


    But I promise, if my ******* was blessed by a miracle and reached more than 400 usd per month, I will release 3 chapters per day and quit all my part time job to focus on writing full-time!


    Best regards,


    Author.

 175 Chapter 173: Gifts!

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    "Yes that''s right. I''ve been holding myself from entering the Core formation realm because I want to enter the second region while still in the Foundation establishment realm." Duan Li replied to them.


    When they heard this, each showed some differrent expression. The Principal and Vice-Principal only shook their head slightly with a smile. Meanwhile, the Emperor, Fei Jin Fang and Liu Sheng Juan could only let out a long deep sigh.


    At this stage, they could only accept Duan Li''s peculiarity and was no longer surprised.


    Usually, cultivators would strive to enter another realm as quickly as they could. This was because, not only would it indicate that they were geniuses in cultivation, they would also attract fame and prestige that could open up a lot of opportunities offered by reputable clans.


    These clans would take them in and basically became their sponsor for cultivation pills, manuals and other resources, in exchange for swearing loyalty to the clan and would try their best to elevate the clan''s prestige and honor.


    However, this young man in front of them was different. There was no trace of such materialistic pursuit that could be seen within his eyes nor in his words. It was as if the other party was pursuing for something even higher!


    Hais!


    A person that was favored by the heavens, they truly are different from the rest!


    "Very well. With your capabilities, I''m not even sure if there is anything that could stop you. Although, I would have to remind you, while you are indeed powerful on your own in terms of battle prowess, you could still be pressured by opponents who uses magic skill arts, especially space magic. So be very careful and analyse your enemy thoroughly!" the Emperor said.


    The Principal nodded, "His Majesty is correct. While most people preferred to fight things raw, some avoided their hands from getting dirty. This is especially the case for Spellcaster class. So I advise you, to make full use of my previous ''gift'' to you to its maximum potential."


    Hearing the word ''gift'', Duan Li quickly recalled that the Principal had sort of lended him ''illegally'' an ancient artifact called as the ''Wisdom Stone'', which was a property of the academy.


    Although the wisdom stone''s ability to store information was not really that unique, as certain jade slips could also do the same thing, its memory capacity was so huge that it could collect all the important manual books in the entire Jixue Knight''s Academy!


    "Oh? You''ve prepared a gift for him? Hmm.. here take this. This shall be my gift for you then." the Emperor pondered for a moment before materializing a manual book from his spatial ring.


    This manual book has a golden cover, and an archaic air seemed to seep out from it. Just from a single glance, one could tell that this manual book was extremely old, judging from that worn out look of its cover.


    Realizing the value of this manual book, the rest of them could not help but to have their hearts trepidate in surprise.


    "Y-Your majesty! This manual book should not be.." Fei Jin Fang tried to dissuade the Emperor before the latter interjected with a wave of his hand.


    "It''s fine. Besides, our entire future practically rests on his shoulder. The least we could do, is to make it lighter!" the Emperor chuckled, and then passed on the book to Duan Li.


    Receiving this manual book, Duan Li read its cover;


    ''Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts''


    After flipping a few pages, Duan Li also began to realize the book''s value.


    "This is.." he said in astonishment.


    The Emperor somehow felt a sense of achievement seeing the looks of surprise on Duan Li''s face. After all, it was always the other party that had astonished him time and again.


    As expected of my family heirloom!


    Smiling proudly, the Emperor clasped both hands to his back as he tilted his head upward and stared at the ceiling of the main hall. This ceiling was filled with many pictorial arts drawn delicately that possess numerous depictions of events throughout the history of the Jiu Empire.


    "Before the founding of the Jiu Empire by our first Ancestor, Jiu Zhentian, we were.."


    The Emperor began to tell the origin of his family and the Empire as a whole with a melancholic look, he recited the various historical events that lead to the formation of the manual book and how it has since been passed on to the next Emperor in succession.


    It was only after a long while that he finished telling the story. He then continued, "Although I did say that this manual book is a gift for you, I could not possibly pass this family heirloom to anyone, not even you. But the contents, that''s an entirely different matter altogether. Thus, I want you to memorize the contents of this book to the best of your abilities and.."


    Before the Emperor could even finish his sentence, he could hear a loud ''Pop!'' sound. Turning around, he saw the other party had already closed the manual book tightly.


    ''Was it too difficult for him to comprehend?'' the Emperor couldn''t help but thought of this.


    The Emperor then shook his head with a smile, "Don''t worry, even I myself took 3 years to understand the first desolation. As it might be a little bit too advanced for you right now, it would take a while, so don''t be discouraged.."


    "Huh? I''ve already finished memorizing them all.." Duan Li said with a confused look.


    Pu!


    The Emperor suddenly found his throat to close up so suddenly, causing him to choke.


    Wait a moment, he only said that he had ''memorized'' them all, not ''learnt'' all 3 of them..


    I have to retain my composure and dignity as the Emperor!


    Ahem!


    "Do you mean that you have only memorized, but not learnt them all?" he asked.


    Hearing this, Duan Li threw him a weird look, "How could that be possible? Of course I could only memorized it your majesty. After all, the skill arts detailed in this book is extremely deep and complicated.."


    The Emperor nodded in contentment and thought, ''yes, this is how it should be..''


    Duan Li then continued, "Such that I''ve only managed to fully understand the first desolation thus far.. I have to say, this book is truly formidable!" he said with a look of awe on him.


    In fact, what he just stated was completely honest and devoid of any sense of bragging in it.


    After all, he had already read through numerous manual books and within the time it took an incense stick to burn out, he could already finish reading and understand on how to roughly use the technique correctly!


    Pu!


    You ''only'' mastered the first desolation arts you said?


    I took 3 whole years to comprehend the first desolation, yet you somehow managed to memorize the whole book and understood the very same first desolation arts in less than 30 breaths?


    Am I really that incompetent?


    At this moment, the Emperor''s mind flashbacked to all those years back then when his personal tutors all complimented him that he was an unparalleled genius..


    Lies! All lies!


    Hais!


    Noticing the downcasted expression of the Emperor, Fei Jin Fang hurriedly stepped in, "How could that even be possible? No matter how talented you are, it would take at least a few days to.."


    BOOMM!!


    ''First Desolation: Warring Intent!''


    Hints of flames began to suddenly burn under Duan Li''s feet before rising upwards and then coelescing into a small ball of fire about the size of an adult''s palm, which floated on Duan Li''s back.


    Seeing this, Fei Jin Fang almost bit his tongue out in shock. He then turned around and saw that the Emperor''s expression was far more dejected than before.


    Hais!


    ''I''ve failed to protect the confidence of his majesty..''


    All-Seeing Eye activate!


    Duan Li then marvelled at the current flow of Qi inside his meridians and pathway channels. They were moving vigorously as if boiled by the flames itself!


    "Experiencing it myself like this, although the amount of power-ups I could feel is not comparable to my Super mode, its still quite decent nevertheless!" Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    The ''Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts'', just like its name, comprises of three different skill arts. The first desolation, Warring Intent skill art was an overall boost to a cultivator''s offensive skill arts for as long as this skill remains active.


    There were of course, other skill arts that could practically does the same thing, but in terms of effectiveness, this skill art was definitely among the best of the best!


    On the other hand, his ''Super'' mode refered to him agitating the lightning element inside his dantian and fusing it with his spiritual Qi to elevate his overall attributes by at least 10 times more than normal!


    Furthermore, ever since he had cultivated the Thunder tribulation from the heavens and created the All-Severing Great Axe which currently resides on his right arm, it was showing signs of fusing with the lightning element inside his dantian.


    If one day that happened, then he could literally tapped into an even greater power boost! However, the only downside to this was that its spiritual Qi consumption was extremely demanding.


    In normal situation where the surrounding spiritual Qi was not limited, he could maintain such form for a longer duration, but inside the Eternal maze for example, he would not be able to last long against powerful opponents with limited amounts of spiritual Qi he could absorb and use!


    He had learnt all these from his previous experience in the first region of the Eternal Maze, and he could only manage to preserve his life by the skin of his teeth back then against the Elemental Spirit golem and the final boss.


    Therefore, with this new skill art, although its not as powerful, but because its designed for ''normal'' cultivators that only uses one dantian, he could practically maintain this form for almost indefinitely if he control his output!


    In addition, he could make necessary adjustment to the skill art and adapt it to his 3 dantian. But as for now, it was not necessary just yet.


    "Haa.." the Emperor gave out a defeated and relenting sigh.


    Ahem!


    "Since his majesty has already given him a gift, it would be rude for me not to do the same.. let''s see.." Fei Jin Fang pondered for a moment before taking out something from his spatial ring.


    Wengg!!


    "Oh?" the crowd was surprised that the other party took his most prized possession out.


    Is he planning to give it to him?


    Looking at the object with a deep gaze, a lifetime''s memory was reflected on his eyes.


    "Back when I was still a lowly Qi Condensation cultivator, I happened to stumble upon this treasure, and it had helped me immensely until I reached the state where I am right now.. but now, I will give it to you!" Fei Jin Fang threw a strange cube object towards Duan Li.


    Catching it with a single hand, Duan Li peered through it.


    ''Tetra Soul Sense''


    [Identifying complete.]


    [The cube is of unknown origin power. It was used to contain one of the nine Eternal Qi of a supreme being.]


    [DANGER!]


    [Unable to continue analysis.]


    Hearing this notification inside his head, Duan Li''s eyes narrowed.


    "Eternal Qi?"


    ...

 176 Chapter 174: Duan Lis student!

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    ''What is this Eternal Qi?'' Duan Li thought inwardly.


    Furthermore, the black cube that encassed this Eternal Qi was made up of something that even the Tetra Soul Sense could not decipher!


    How mysterious!


    "How do I use this thing?" Duan Li asked towards Fei Jin Fang.


    The latter cupped his chin before answering, "Honestly, all these while, I''ve only kept it within my storage ring, and from time to time, it will radiate out some extremely thick spiritual Qi which I will then cultivate."


    He then continued, "Although the interval between when it became active is extremely long, but once I absorb it, I was usually able to skip a few levels in my cultivation realm in an instant no matter what realm I was currently in!"


    Duan Li was surprised to hear this. For every cultivation realm, increasing one''s level would become more difficult the higher one''s realm were, and the amount of spiritual Qi required to progress into another level was extremely demanding.


    To think that this cube which housed the Eternal Qi within it would allow its user to skip levels no matter what cultivation realm they were in..


    Isn''t that too formidable?


    One has to remember that, spiritual Qi absorbed into one''s dantian would firstly formed Qi pools, and when these Qi pools becomes ten, it would transform into Qi balls. Then, when those Qi balls reached ten in total, they would turn into Qi Core. Next, when there are ten Qi Cores, they would form the Golden Core, and finally, when ten Golden Cores was formed, they would evolve into a Nascent Sea!


    Duan Li clenched his hand tightly into a fist in agitation. If what the other party said was also applicable to someone like him with 3 dantians, he would be an immortal in no time at all!


    However, looking at it realistically, since he was already in the pinnacle stage of Foundation establishment realm, that means that he has 30 Qi balls in total within his 3 dantians currently, which was equivalent to a level 3 Core formation cultivator to say the least!


    Therefore, it was rather doubtful whether this Eternal Qi would be able to grant him the same kind of benefit like what Fei Jin Fang had experienced before.


    Nevertheless, Duan Li was still thankful for such a valuable treasure being given to him as a gift.


    "Is that so? Thank you for these gifts everyone." Duan Li bowed towards both the Emperor and Fei Jin Fang.


    "Don''t mention it, its useless in my current state anyway.. and just think of it as an advance payment for when you unlock my second dantian next time!" Fei Jin Fang gave Duan Li a grin.


    "Ahh.." Duan Li''s face turned blank, before casting a glance towards Liu Sheng Juan.


    Noticing this, the other party harrumphed coldy, "Hmph! What are you looking at?"


    If you think that I would give you something just because the both of them had given you their prized possessions, you won''t be able to get anything from me!


    Don''t even dream about it!


    "N-Nothing!" Duan Li shook his head quickly as his face turned red. He was hoping for the latter to give him something too, only to have his intention being spotted on by the other party.


    "A-Anyway, I have to return to my residence court now, so until next time your majesty." Duan Li bowed before he left the main hall.


    He was already exempted from kneeling before the Emperor before, as his standing as the Imperial Overseer was actually on par, if not a little bit higher than the Emperor himself. Thus was why Fei Jin Fang was fine with it.


    Just as he was about to left the exit gate of the royal palace, a familiar figure approached and greeted him hurriedly with excited expression.


    "Teacher! I''ve been promoted to the Imperial Doctor yesterday! This was all due to your guidance before! Thank you teacher!"


    Oh?


    It was Ju Zhianhu, the Chief Doctor from the royal palace that had acknowledged him as a teacher before.


    He only remembered showing the other party some few stuff regarding medical arts from his perspectives, did that really helped him to be promoted?


    "Congratulations on your promotions! You''ve worked hard I see. But how did you managed to do it? If I remembered it correctly, the last time I showed you something was back when we treated my follower Wang Xiolun from his lifelong trauma.." Duan Li turned around and asked, assuming the disposition of an expert by clasping both hands behind his back.


    "Indeed, but to me, that was already so profound that I managed to understood a lot of things that I previously couldn''t make sense of!" Ju Zhianhu replied, full of vigor.


    Hearing this, Duan Li only nodded in satisfaction.


    ''It seems that, eventhough my method isn''t exactly advance, but because the way I do things were very different, it had evolved his understanding regarding the way of medical arts..'' Duan Li thought.


    It was then that he remembered something really important, thus he quickly inquiried to this student of his;


    "Now that you''ve become the Imperial Doctor, could you lend me more advance books regarding the subject? The more the better I guess.." Duan Li said, his intent was to find ways to perfect his theory on how to successfully guide others to cultivate their second dantian.


    Ju Zhianhu chuckled, and waved his hand.


    Huala!


    Rows of books neatly stacked together were materialized right in front of Duan Li. Just from a single glance, Duan Li was able to estimate that the total should be around a few hundreds!


    "This.. are you really allowed to take this much?" Duan Li was stumped to see such quantity, and couldn''t help but to be suspicious of this student of his, afraid that in order to satisfy him, he looted all these books secretly.


    Ju Zhianhu realized the suspicious stare from his teacher, thus he quickly answered, "O-Of course! I borrowed these books from the royal palace''s library, and some of them were even the personal collection of his majesty! I was actually planning to borrow only one or two books from there because the procedure was extremely strict."


    Stroking his beard, he then continued, "Therefore, I told them the real reason and that it was to lend it to you Teacher. But upon mentioning of your name, the next thing I knew, they let me borrow everything I want.."


    Duan Li''s brows shot up.


    Ahh.. if that''s that the case.. no wonder..


    I practically owned everything in this Empire anyway..


    My name must''ve been passed to the Emperor somehow, and this was why he was able to borrow all these books..


    Well, this is so much more convenient then!


    "I must say that it should be because of your increasing reputation Teacher. Recently, I''ve even heard of your exploits in the battle against the monster stampede a few days ago! This should make his majesty really impressed with you and thus grant you this benefit!" Ju Zhianhu said confidently.


    When Duan Li heard this, he couldn''t help but to chuckle slightly and nodded, "Perhaps that''s truly the case.."


    After a moment of catching up session between a teacher and a student, Duan Li bid his farewell and headed back to the academy. Not too long after that, he arrived at his residence court and summoned up all of his party members.


    ...


    "I''m sure that some of you already know about this, but I have went inside the Eternal maze before, and this time around, I''m planning to enter it again!" Duan Li said with confidence.


    "Eh, you''re planning to enter the Eternal maze?" his party looked at him with worried faces.


    Duan Li nodded, "That''s right. For me, there are so much things to discover inside the Eternal maze. Firstly, you would only be able to enter one region of it at a time, according to your cultivation level and realms. Secondly, there are treasures to seek.."


    Duan Li began to brief them on what he knew about the Eternal Maze so far with excited look. As they listened to his story, they had also came to an agreement that there should be a lot of opportunities to encounter something good in such a mysterious place.


    This left them wanting to enter the Eternal maze as well and explore along with their Lord. However, Duan Li rejected their idea.


    "It''s not that I look down on you guys, but even with my capabilities, I have only managed to survive by a hair''s width in the end, and that''s only the first region made specifically for Qi condensation realm!" Duan Li explained.


    If the first region was already so dangerous, then the least could be said about the second region. If his intuition was right, the place should be several times more extreme than the last!


    This was also the reason why he chose to store the spiritual Qi inside his spatial ring before, even at the cost of attracting the Heaven''s Will committee themselves.


    Because he was already half step away from the Core formation realm, he could step into it anytime he wanted with the spiritual Qi inside his spatial ring.


    That was his trump card!


    However, his followers did not have anything on them at the moment. Even if their whole aptitude was raised significantly after they tempered themselves with his blood, that would amount to almost nothing at all inside the Eternal maze.


    "But I want to be stronger too!" Shen Murong gritted his teeth, and the same could be said about the rest of his followers.


    This had Duan Li feeling extremely troubled and guilty, thus he pondered for a moment before coming up with an idea to appease them.


    ...

 177 Chapter 175: Possessed!

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    "How about this, I will perfect the method to unlock the second dantian for you guys first. Then, after it is successful and you cultivate it all the way to the same level of your first dantian, I would perhaps, allow you guys to enter the Eternal Maze!" Duan Li suggested.


    When his party heard this, they were dumbstruck for a moment, before their eyes gleamed in excitement!


    "Y-You mean.. all of us can unlock our second dantian?" Shen Lu asked hurriedly.


    "That''s right! After all, everyone here has sworn to be my follower. Thus, I can''t possibly be partial in such matter can I?" Duan Li chuckled as he shook his head.


    Because I am your Lord, I should be responsible in giving you all the proper access to more opportunities.


    Furthermore, I''m grooming you guys to become formidable companions to fight alongside me as well in the future, thus I can only benefit from it and not suffer a single loss!


    ''There is also that matter regarding our future..'' Duan Li clenched his fist.


    8 years later, whether the outcome would still be the same as the one he had experienced in that other timeline or not, would depend entirely on whether or not they could become heaven-defying before the time comes!


    8 years might be a little bit too short of a time to beat a colossal dragon the size of a sun, but there was always another way to prevent the Tian continent from being burnt to ashes; such as teleporting the whole continent to somewhere else!


    The mere thought of that alone might be too farfetched or outlandish at the moment, but once he stepped into the immortal realm, he was confident that there should be a method to make such things possible!


    They then used lottery to confirm the order of whose second dantian would be unlocked first. After that was done, Duan Li instructed them to condition both their body and mind to prepare for it, because with his capabilities, it might actually happen sooner than expected.


    ...


    Secluding himself within his room, he first took out all the books regarding medical arts that his student just borrowed for him.


    Huala!


    Piles of books were stacked onto one another neatly as Duan Li stared at them with eyes full of conviction and confidence!


    "Let''s do this!"


    After that, as if possessed by the Demon of all nerds, he continued to read books after books non-stop.


    With every flip of pages he flicked, streams of knowledge flowed into his mind like water!


    His reading speed becoming increasingly faster, such that it created wild winds in his room and the curtains to his window flapped continuously, as if bearing witness to this never before seen phenomena!


    Stepping it up even further, Duan Li went into his stance and proceeded to kick all of the remaining books up into the air! This caused the books to flung open, revealing its contents from each pages, of which Duan Li used his powerful eyes to read all the contents almost instantaneously it appeared!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    If there was any books that dared to touch the ground, he would kick or punch it up again once more until he had read all of its contents. These chains of combos were reminiscent to that of a berserk martial artist, not letting even an inanimate object off from their pursuit of power!


    "This is perfect, practicing my martial art while reading and learning new skill arts at the same time, killing three birds with one stone.. not bad at all!" Duan Li chuckled in satisfaction of his ingenuity.


    If the normal person were to enter and see this current state of his, they would think that Duan Li has gone mad and turned lunatic.


    However, to the trained eyes of veterans that possessed the capability to analyze the depth behind the verisimilitude of things, they would be strucked with awe and reverence towards Duan Li!


    After all, every punch and kick that landed on those books were controlled with the most infinitesimal force and movement! Thus, not a single harm was done onto these personal belongings of the Emperor.


    In addition, his fluid combos made it appeared that these books were floating up and down gently, as if blown by the calm breeze of the morning sea!


    BAM! BAM!


    After three hours of this intense physical and mental training, Duan Li finally finished reading all of those books.


    Tap! Tap!


    These books landed on the ground, and if books could breath, they would probably be panting heavily like Duan Li right now.


    Huuu!!


    Inhaling a deep breath, Duan Li then sat down cross-legged on the floor, internalizing what he had learnt so far, and this process would take him roughly another 2 hours to do so.


    Opposite of Duan Li''s room outside, was the medicinal herb garden. Behind a thick bush, could be found Guo He the Alchemist crouching on the ground, his countenance pale.


    Gulp!


    "How formidable.. to think that he would even raise the difficulty of reading books into a such an extreme level, no wonder he is unparalleled!" Guo He swallowed his saliva as he wiped off his sweat.


    ...


    Jerking his eyes open, Duan Li finally completed his internalization.


    "As I''ve thought, its definitely possible to guide others with my spiritual Qi to unlock their second dantian.." Duan Li said as he cupped his chin, his expression solemn.


    "However, the chances of fatality is still about 10 percent.. that''s too high!" he shook his head in lamentation.


    After internalizing the knowledge that he just learned, he found out that the main problem actually lies with the first dantian!


    Because it was the main source of a cultivator''s spiritual Qi ever since they stepped into the cultivation world for the first time, it had long since adapted into their body like their own blood and flesh.


    If the second dantian were to be activated right now, its different Qi nature would cause the body to identify it as a foreign substance, hence rejecting it.


    But because the organ was inside the host''s body, and would be impossible for it to be ejected, the rejection would then quickly turned violent. The spiritual Qi from the first dantian would push these foreign Qi back into the second dantian, causing a reverse in its flow.


    This reversal of Qi flow was what killed all of those cultivators that tried to cultivate their second dantian.


    To put it into an example, if the blood flow inside the human body system was reversed, it would cause an instant death, and one would bleed from all their seven orifices.


    Perhaps I should delve into the cultivation manual inside the Wisdom Stone that the Principal lended me next?


    Flicking his finger, the Wisdom Stone appeared on his hand. Injecting his spiritual Qi inside it, a weird phenomena started to appear within Duan Li''s mind.


    Oh? What''s this?


    It was the projection of all the books that it contained! Just on a first glance, there had to be at least a few hundreds of thousands of books in here!


    Furthermore, these books floated in an unorganized manner, and if Duan Li were to try and find something like this, it would be impossible without expending a lot of effort!


    "This.. perhaps there is a way to organize them?" Duan Li thought.


    When he thought of this, all those unorganized floating books suddenly whirled rapidly, as if blowned by a tornado, before stacking themselves nicely into each category, such as; Alchemy manuals, Forging manuals, Cultivation manuals and more.


    Ohh! So I can use my thoughts to instruct these books to organize themselves!


    Quite convenient!


    Casting his glance over, it seemed that the majority of these manual books inside the Wisdom Stone were offensive skill arts, judging by their colossal stacks level, towering like a mountain.


    In comparison to the Cultivation manual, it was like comparing between a mountain and a anthill. Still, the numbers should be around a few thousand at least.


    "Ahh.. it''s already this late.. I should stop here for today.." Duan Li said after he looked outside through his window and realized that the sun was beginning to set.


    I wonder where mother is right now?


    ...


    "Mother.." Duan Li planned to tell his mother about his plan to enter the Eternal Maze, as well as about the future he had experienced if she didn''t already know.


    Right now, his mother was taking a seat inside the gazeboo in the middle of the lake, sitting in a lotus position, her eyes were shut tight and ripples of spiritual Qi could be seen around her.


    "My powers are finally returning.." she said as she opened her eyes, a trace of happiness and longing could be seen in it.


    In her estimate, it should take her at least one month to recover all her powers that she had lost since being afflicted by the virus.


    Casting a gentle gaze towards this son of her''s, she felt extremely proud of him as a mother, and deeply impressed as a cultivator.


    One has to know that her infected meridians and pathway channels was cut-off by Liu Sheng Juan back then, but not only was her son able to remove the accursed virus from her system entirely, he even went one step further and that was to fix it!


    "Duan Li my son, your mother here felt extremely grateful to you for resolving mother''s long time trauma.." She said with a smile.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s face turned red as he scratched the back of his head, "What are you talking about mother? That''s only natural! After all, I am your son.."


    Meng Yue chuckled, and recalling her past, her expression somehow seemed to contain loneliness as she turned her head to look at the pond.


    She then continued, "After being afflicted by that virus, I left the city and reclused myself, living at the outskirts of the Xuan Village, away from people.."


    "Fortunately, the heavens did not forsake me, and delivered two miracles to help me tide through my trauma.."


    Plop!


    A fish jumped up from the water, and the ripples it created on the surface was like her undulating emotions right now.


    "The first, was the arrival of your father.."


    ...

 178 Chapter 176: Fathers origin! 1

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    My father?


    Is mother finally willing to talk about dad?


    Duan Li''s eyes flashed in surprise, evidently taken aback that his mother was the one that took the initiative this time.


    All these while, whenever he wanted to touch about the subject, his mother would just answer the same thing time and again; ''your father is a great man''. Such that he never bothered to ask anymore, afraid that it would bring his mother some memories that she did not want to recall.


    "It was during the night of the 3rd full moon, when I decided to just end my life before I lose myself and transformed into a monster.." his mother began to tell the story with a tinge of loneliness in her voice.


    ...


    On the night of the 3rd full moon, the wind was cold, the air dry. It was as if this particular night was a darkness full of emptiness.


    Inside a dilapidated-looking house, located far away at the outskirts of the Xuan village, a young maiden in her 20s had her cheeks drenched in her tears.


    "Perhaps the Heavens has given me enough time to enjoy my life to the fullest before.. and now, all this tragedy is a sign.. a sign that my lifetime''s fortune has ran out.."


    Meng Yue was staring at the full moon by the window of her room, her expression saddened by the fact that there was nothing else she could do to reverse the situation around.


    Firstly, she was infected by the Demiruke''s virus and although Liu Sheng Juan has cut off her infected meridian channels and pathways, reducing the rate of infection inside her body down to theminimal amount, it was still only a matter of time before the inevitable would come.


    Furthermore, she had to refrain herself from using any sorts of cultivation arts, as whenever she agitate her spiritual Qi and cycle it throughout her body, she found out that the rate of infection would quickly increase!


    Secondly, was that Liu Sheng Juan''s intention to save her from becoming a creature of monstrosity had her feeling the utmost amount of gratitude towards the latter. Therefore, she could not possibly blame the other party for causing her to be unable to conceive any future children as the side-effect.


    She understood that in such a situation before, there was nothing else the other party could do. However, had she been conscious of what was about to come, perhaps she would chose the option for her life to be ended instead..


    "If I can no longer cultivate nor have a children of my own, my fate is already sealed.. I guess it is time to go.."


    Meng Yue exit her house, went to the wooden pier atop of the lake and sat down cross-legged. She stared hard at the reflection of the moon on the calm surface of the lake as she shook her head.


    "It seems that only this full moon would be the sole witness of my ending.. to think that I would die this way.. who would have thought?" she sighed out deeply, such that when her breath touches the water, it created small ripples that disturbed the previous calmness of the lake.


    "It doesn''t matter anymore.."


    Moving both her hands to form the diamond hand incantation atop of her dantian, a single outburst of spiritual Qi trapped in this lower meridians would cause spontaneous implosion from the inside, disintegrating her bodily cells in a matter of instant which would immediately end her life.


    Her body would then turn into ashes, before eventually disappearing altogether, carried along by the wind.


    "Farewell.. everyone.."


    She closed her eyes tightly and two drops of tears flowed down her cheek.


    Huu!!


    Spiritual Qi flowed out from her dantian and began to cycle. But because of her hand incantation, it was rerouted into a loop in the lower meridians and seethed vigorously.


    When these spiritual Qi finally reached the critical point, the meridians would be unable to contain it which would then cause it to collapse. Next, the spiritual Qi would collide, resulting in a single burst of momentary fusion implosion that would quickly snuff out her life!


    Suddenly, just as her tears were about to fall off from her cheeks, she could feel a hand touching her chin, before the tears suddenly evaporated and her seething spiritual Qi calmed down.


    Huh?


    Meng Yue opened her eyes and the sight before her had her dazed.


    Who is this man?


    She was surprised to see that a man, possibly in his early 20s as well, was suddenly touching her chin!


    This man was extremely handsome, his robe was pure white and his hair long, reaching down to his back!


    Furthermore, one could tell that this young man was far from ordinary, judging from the fact of that inviolable disposition radiating out of him, such that even the previous emptiness in her surroundings was affected and replaced with a tranquil vibe!


    Even the night felt colourful instead of just a shade of darkness and shadows, as if rainbows had suddenly appeared during the night!


    Such a scene was just far too inconceivable for her!


    "Young lady, why do you look so gloomy? Why do you have this much sadness in your eyes?" the man spoke gently, and suddenly, the whole world seemed to bloom even more colorfully than ever before!


    Meng Yue was utterly dumbstrucked by this. She had never heard a voice from a man that was so enchanting before in her whole life!


    "I..I.." she was about to open her mouth and reply, before snapping back to her senses and violently patted away the man''s hand that was touching her chin so casually.


    Tap!


    "Wh-Who are you?! How dare you touch me like that!" Meng Yue bellowed out angrily, her face reddened in embarrassment.


    "Oh?"


    Feeling a little bit taken aback that his hand was patted so forcefully by the young lady before him, this man looked at his hand, smiled and then said, "Your hand is beautiful, marry me, oh young lady.."


    Pu!


    Meng Yue could not help but to choke herself!


    What is wrong with this man?!


    Here I am trying to end my life and you just suddenly appeared out of nowhere touching me like that?


    And then saying you want me to marry you?


    What gal!


    "Gasp!" Meng Yue retreated back as she thought of something, her countenance pale.


    Could it be.. that this man is a pervert?!


    Tap!


    Realizing that the young man was suddenly taking a step forward towards her, she shouted out, "D-Don''t come near me, you perv-.."


    Just as she was about to finish her sentence, as if unbounded by the space and time, the young man suddenly appeared before her, grasping her by the waist and lifting her up towards his eye-level.


    At this moment, Meng Yue found herself to be in a state of dazed once more, as when she stared into that black pupils of his, she could see that it was as if the pair of eyes were like the reflection of the starry night sky, encompassing the many stars in the universe!


    "How.. beautiful.." she said subconsciously in awe.


    The man chuckled when he heard this and pulled her closer to him until both oftheir nose touched each other.


    He then continued, "How is it? Will you be my wife?"


    Huuuu..


    A soothing breeze blew by the lake, causing the trees to rustle gently, sending flakes of leaves flying around them, as if dancing in celebration!


    This scene, coupled with the backdrop of the full moon and its reflection on the lake, as well as their''s on the wooden pier, was the beginning of a story that will eventually change the entire fate of the universe!


    ...

 179 Chapter 177: Fathers origin! 2

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    "A-Audacious! Brazen! P-Pervert!" Meng Yue struggled to break free from the young man''s arms by her waist.


    Never before in her life had she met someone as shameless as this young man that was holding her as he liked.


    Had this been in the past, she would have long pummeled anyone who even think of doing so, until they were just a step away from death!


    "L-Let me go! How dare you do this to me! Who are you anyway?!" she shouted out angrily and tried to summon all her strength to resist. However, it was futile because for some reason, she could not use her spiritual Qi at all!


    "Ah! Forgive my rudeness.. how could I have possibly forgotten the basic etiquette of a gentleman? The stars must have been misaligned somewhere.." the young man said as he shook his head.


    Pu!


    Stars misaligned your a*s!


    Not only have you touched my face so casually, you now even have me by my waist!


    And you talk about the etiquette of a gentleman?


    Tell me what that etiquette is!


    Seemingly to be able to read her mind, the young man chuckled, feeling amused by this short young lady.


    With a proud look, he stared straight into her eyes, "My name.. is Duan Ling!"


    Duan Ling?


    Pu!


    "Hahahaha!" Meng Yue bursted out in laughter.


    Seeing this, the young man whom called himself as Duan Ling gave out a confused look, but smiled gently afterwards.


    "It seems that we can worry no more.. to think that your previously deep sorrow was immediately healed by just hearing my name, truly, we are meant to be." Duan Ling said in realization.


    Pu!


    "Hahahaha! Stop! Where did you get this confidence of your''s from? Hahahaha! A-And release me this instant!" Meng Yue was laughing inside out while resisting at the same time.


    I laughed because your name sounded like that of a girl''s!


    Duan Ling shook his head, "To think that you are this joyful, I truly felt that I''m honored by your gratitude. Come, let me show your something."


    Wongg!


    With a flick of his finger, the space around them began to warp, and they soon found themselves high up above the Tian continent at the next instant.


    Eh?!


    "H-How did we end up getting here?" Meng Yue stared below her feet with shock.


    As she could no longer use her spiritual Qi for some reason, she couldn''t float or fly. Thus, if she fell down from here, she would definitely die!


    Therefore, this had her wrapped her arms automatically around the waist of Duan Ling subconsciously.


    Duan Ling only smiled gently upon this, as if confirming to a series of facts, "Indeed, upon witnessing such a beautiful scene, any woman would find themselves becoming more honest to their feelings with their actions.." he said confidently.


    Hearing this, Meng Yue came back to her senses and realized what the latter meant, as well as how her arms was wrapped around the latter.


    If anyone were to see them right now, people would surely mistook them for a loving couple matched from the Heavens, embracing each other by the calm breeze of the night, witnessed by the full moon above them.


    Right now, Meng Yue''s face turned even more redder as a result from the combined frustration, anger and embarrassment mixing up together inside her.


    "Idiot! We are so high up in the sky, if I were to let go, I would definitely die!" she shouted again.


    Why is this man so dense!


    Duan Ling then bursted out into laughter, "Silly girl, even if you were to fall, what makes you think that I won''t catch you? If you want it, I could even make it such that when you fall, the land below you would push you back up towards me.."


    It was at this moment, that Meng Yue realized talking sense to the other party was practically useless, as she could not get through him. Thus, she resigned herself and could only sighed out deeply.


    After a moment of silence, she turned her head to the side to look down at the view. It has been a long time since she last saw such a sight. "Why did you stop me?" she said, her voice quivering.


    Duan Ling smiled mysteriously and then quickly switched his arm position, holding Meng Yue with both arms as if a damsel in distress.


    "Y-You!!" Meng Yue gritted her teeth and wanted to say something more, before she found her lips being pressed by the young man''s finger abruptly.


    "How could I not stop you? Your sorrow was so deep that even the stars was affected. I have seen many griefs, yet none as pure as you.. a type of grief not from any of the negative emotions, but one that comes from helplessness.." Duan Ling said.


    Lifting up his index finger from her lips, he then pointed out towards the stars.


    "Do you see all those stars? They are countless and each represents one''s own signs. When a person is happy, the stars would shine brightly. Similarly, when one is sad, they would dim out and flicker.." he explained.


    Looking back towards her, he then continued, "You however, dimmed out so rapidly that the stars around you became affected. Thus I wondered, which mortal was enduring so much sadness in them that it would complicate countless people in the future as well?"


    From all this, Meng Yue could not understand a single word what the other party was actually saying and could not help but wondered if he was just making things up.


    But it was also at this moment that there was a specific word the other party had just said that caught her attention.


    "What do you mean mortal? I am a cultivator eventhough my spiritual Qi was out right now for some reason! Thus, I could be considered as an immortal" she said with pride. After all, no matter how far she had fallen from her peak, she still retained some of her powers despite not cultivating for a long while.


    Duan Ling shook his head with a smile, "Yes, you are a cultivator.. but still a mortal.. only those whose mortal wheels of fate remolded into that of an immortal''s when one ascended, could one be then considered or called as immortal, although partial at best in my standards."


    When she listened to this, she could not help but furrowed her brows in disagreement.


    "But our life span has already increased by at least a few dozens or so more years when compared to mere mortals that did not cultivate.. that means we live two or three more times longer than them usually, that''s why we are called immortals!" she said in refutement.


    Chuckling to himself, he only replied, "You will understand next time.. Now, about that marriage.."


    ...


    When Duan Li heard all these, his jaw could not help but to drop down to the floor.


    W-What a shameless father!


    His father coaxed his mother to marry him!


    Still, he could not help but picture every scene that his mother just told him. In fact, it almost seemed as if his father was someone from not of this world at all!


    Or at least, that was the kind of vibe he was getting.


    "So my father''s name.. is Duan Ling.."


    That''s almost similar to my name..


    And he had to agree, his father''s name really sounded like that of a female''s!


    Perhaps, mother gave me this name after father''s?


    Its only fortunate that his name was much more manly though.


    Meng Yue was chuckling every now and then when she told the story, but realizing that the time was getting late, she stood up.


    "We''ll talk more about your father next time. So, what do you need your mother for?" she said as both of her hands on her waist.


    Remembering his original intention, Duan Li inhaled a deep breath for telling her.


    "Mother, I actually wanted to head down below the academy and adventure again inside the Eternal Maze!"


    ...

 180 Chapter 178: Duan Lis Weakness!

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    "Oh? You want to head down and enter the Eternal Maze? Hmm.." Meng Yue was evidently surprised by this as she pondered for a moment.


    "I''ve heard that you''ve already been there once, so why do you need to go back?" she inquiried with a confused look.


    Seeing that his mother was not angry at him, which was contrary to his mother''s usual protective reaction, Duan Li sighed in relief before answering, "Mother, actually the Eternal Maze is designed like this.." he began to explain.


    "The Eternal maze is divided into 9 region. When a person entered, the maze would automatically scan a person''s cultivation realm and level. It would then transport them to the respective region where the first region is for the weakest, while the ninth region should be the most dangerous of all, made specifically for the most powerful.."


    Hearing this, Meng Yue understood the relation that her son was trying to tell her and nodded, "Then, your cultivation realm right now is at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm, would that meant that you would enter the second region?" she asked.


    Duan Li nodded.


    "That''s right mother. Back when I was still at the Qi condensation realm, I was put inside the first region. Therefore now, I should be entering the second region with my current cultivation realm." Duan Li answered positively, hoping that his mother would allow it.


    Meng Yue cupped her chin for a while before replying, "I''ve heard that the Eternal Maze is extremely dangerous, and I wouldn''t have allowed it if it was in the past. But now I know that you could hold your own even against a Nascent Soul realm expert. So I guess it should be fine?"


    She then continued, "However, you need to make sure to know your own limits. After all, even your father.." realizing that she was about to say something that she shouldn''t yet, she shook her head, "Nevermind.." and sighed.


    I should only tell him about what happened to his father after he became much more stronger than this.. at least after he stepped into the immortal realm..


    Otherwise, he might try to do something reckless and go against those that are beyond anyone''s means..


    On the other hand, Duan Li caught this and knew that there was still more about his father that he didn''t know about. For example, his mother only talked about how they met, and not yet about his father''s origin. Perhaps, in due time, his mother would slowly unravel the mystery one by one. But for now, he was already satisfied knowing who his father was.


    Duan Ling..


    Duan Li then chuckled and replied, "Don''t worry mother, I won''t go overboard with my adventure. After all, I still need to change the future! Speaking of which.. does mother already know about what will happen 8 years later?" he asked with a nervous expression.


    This was the other thing that he wanted to talk about, and honestly, he didn''t know where to start.


    After all, regarding the scene where his mother eventually died, how should he even begin to put that into a proper sentence?


    Meng Yue nodded, "En! I already know about everything from Bian Tianyu. Actually, I''m not really that surprised, because your father once said the same thing to me, that you would be the key to change the future.."


    She then stared at the setting sun and continued, "However at that time, other than the miracles he could perform, I rarely took him seriously, as your father always liked to talk about things I can''t seemed to understand. But that fool.. I wonder how he is right now.." her expression turned into that of a longingness.


    Seeing this expression of her''s, even Duan Li himself couldn''t help but to feel the loneliness that his mother felt.


    ''It has already been 20 odd years.. mother must have missed father greatly..'' Duan Li sighed.


    "I see.. since mother already knows about it, then I only have one thing to say.. and that is.. I won''t allow such a future to happen!" he said as he looked straight into his mother''s eyes.


    When she saw this, her heart warmed up a bit as she smiled. However, the next moment later, she punched Duan Li''s left shoulder lightly.


    BAM!


    Ouch!


    "Ohh look at you now, all big and ready to protect the world eh? But you still have a long way to go young man. Even if you could match up to a Nascent Soul realm experts now in terms of battle prowess, you still can''t match their wits!" she warned, so as to not make her son become overconfident.


    Just what kind of existences were the Nascent Soul realm experts?


    They were those whom had been in the cultivation world for decades, if not centuries!


    This meant that they have went through the countless vicissitudes of life, such that they were able to adapt to most situation quickly!


    While Duan Li''s trump card, specifically the slowing down time ability would activate automatically upon threats that could end his life was extremely powerful, it also came with a fatal flaw as well.


    This flaw was that, it would not activate on attacks that would not endanger his life!


    For example, the light punch that Meng Yue used on his left shoulder just now, it would only hurt him slightly and not kill him immediately. However, if these damages were to stack continuously, it would only be a matter of time before it would really start to threaten his life.


    Fortunately, most powerful expert would try to end their fight as soon as possible, and thus would use lethal force from the get-go. This was because they find those with cultivation realm lower than them as nuisance and annoying like flies, especially if those people were their enemy.


    After all, there was no joy in toying with ants, and it would be far more efficient to just end it in one go and proceed to the next one, for such was the life of a cultivator. The stronger they get, the more detached their views were towards insignificant life.


    However, not all cultivators has the heart of a saint, and they do sometimes play with the weaker ones out of boredom. There were also those twisted folks who likes to bully the weak, and they would not hesitate to bully others to the death!


    Although it would be highly unlikely for Duan Li to even take any meaningful damage from such an attack, as he could practically heal himself in a matter of instant with the current medical arts knowledge he possessed, raw damage wasn''t the only method of attacking!


    In the world of cultivation, skill arts that deals with the intangible phenomena; such as the manipulation of space, voids and other mystic elements could be indirectly used for most offensive purposes.


    Therefore, if they found out that their method of attacking Duan Li with raw power does not seemed to work, provided that the enemy was at least intelligent, they would switch to the more unorthodox method of fighting; such as using poison, magic and runic formation, and finally mystic elements.


    This was especially the case with experienced vagrant and rogue cultivators that only knows how to fight, survive, win and repeat. They would have long known that some people possess special means such as secret arts, bloodline ability and unique body that could negate some types of damages. Thus, they were mostly prepared and has a variety of strategies to fight against such opponents.


    Listening to all these, Duan Li nodded in agreement as he realized that what his mother just spoke of was all true. He couldn''t be careless just because he had grew a little bit stronger than he was in the past!


    Well.. it seems like I need to read those mountains of books if I want to be really prepared..


    Hais.. how troublesome!


    "Alright, I think I have said enough. Just learn on how to take care of yourself properly." Meng Yue said in a strict tone.


    "Yes mother.." Duan Li replied. Now he felt that his mother was back to her usual self again.


    "Good, I''ll be going back to the village tomorrow morning. After all, we can''t leave grandma Ying alone for too long, or else she might get really worried." she continued.


    "Follow your mother, let''s have a dinner together and bring along your followers as well! We''re going to eat at the most expensive and lavish restaurant tonight for a big feast!" she added with a big smile.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was a little bit surprised. His mother has always been living frugally, and thus disdained wasteful acts.


    Thus, he misunderstood that his mother meant for him to pay for everything and honestly, he doesn''t mind that at all.


    "Okay mother, don''t worry about the expenses, I''ll cover everything!" Duan Li said as he gave his mother a thumbs up with pride.


    If there is anything that I''m not lacking at the moment, its that I have too much money!


    "Huh? What do you mean? Why do we even have to pay?" his mother said with a frown, evidently confused with him.


    "..." Duan Li.


    ...

 181 Chapter 179: Restaurant!

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    Duan Li''s brows twitched continuously upon hearing this.


    "W-What do you mean mother? D-Don''t worry, I can afford to pay!" he hurriedly said, afraid that his mother does not want to depend on him.


    Meng Yue shook her head, "Idiot son, you are already the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire! Even if you were to ask the Emperor to vacate the palace right now and make it your new home, who would dare complain?"


    Pu!


    Duan Li got choked by his own saliva.


    Mother.. do you think your son was raised to become a bandit?


    And no one dared complain? The heck!


    Everyone would complain if the royal family got evicted from their home so suddenly like that!


    The least we should do to make things proper should be to send them a formal letter of eviction notice first, and then..


    Wait, wait!


    This train of thought is wrong!


    "M-Mother.. I know the status of the Imperial Overseer is higher than the Emperor, but that is too much of a high-profile move to make! Wouldn''t it be better if we just do things normally?" Duan Li tried to pursuade his mother.


    After all, a certain newcomer suddenly becoming an Imperial Overseer would already be too much for most people to accept, not to mention the same person were trying to do things as he liked..


    The citizens would definitely threw a huge ruckus and file a large amounts of complaints for that!


    He then added, "Besides, my status as the Imperial Overseer is a still a secret from the public.. only a week later would it be officially announced.. therefore it would create an endless amounts of trouble if I were to self declare myself as such.. in fact, it could even be considered as a treason!"


    Hearing this, Meng Yue pouted her mouth as what her son just said was indeed correct.


    "Hmph.. fine! But when you are officially announced as the Imperial Overseer next time, you should try to pull your weight around a bit. Otherwise, your status is practically useless!" she replied.


    "Well.. that''s true.." Duan Li gave what his mother just said some serious thoughts.


    I wonder what I should do once I get officially titled?


    ...


    Soon after, he gathered all of his followers and head down North towards the exit of the academy, which is the entrance gate. After which, an old man that saw them coming suddenly appeared and stopped them.


    "Halt! No students are allowed to- err.. you are.." he stuttered in his sentence when he saw Meng Yue, his countenance turned pale.


    This was the same old man that had quickly hidden himself behind bushes back then when Meng Yue were trying to forcefully open the entrance gate to let her son in after a late night excursion.


    "Huh me? I''m Meng Yue, why?" Duan Li''s mother shot him a glare.


    "Ahh! Yes, yes! Your lady must be on your way out to the capital eh? Please wait for a while, let me open the gate for you!" he hurriedly said, not daring to delay their encounter any longer.


    With his palm pressing on a certain corner of the gate, the gate started to rumble violently before it slowly moved to open itself up.


    This stupid gate! Why does it have to put on airs even when opening itself?!


    Do you have to be so dramatic and slow? My life is on the line here!


    ''I should have oiled its gears a while back..'' he thought to himself feeling immense regret.


    After a short while, which seemed to be eternity for the old man, the gate finally opened up in full, and he exhaled a deep breath in relief.


    "There, the path has been opened up nicely! Come back safely guys!" the old man said with an expression similar to that of a caring and friendly neighbour, which looked a little bit off with that glaring cross-shaped scar on his face.


    "E-En!" Duan Li replied awkwardly as they moved along with the old man waving at them from the back.


    They wondered on why the guardian of the entrance gate was being so nice to them, was it because of their Lord''s reputation?


    Haaa!!


    "That was the closest encounter I ever had with the tyrant herself! To think that my lifetime''s fortune was spared, truly the Heavens has watched over me!" he exhaled a deep relief once more.


    He was already a retired cultivator and his main source of living right now was his pension benefits for volunteering to help guard the entrance gate of the academy during nightime.


    Rumors has it that the Tyrant of the Jiu Empire back then would sometimes mercilessly snatched an elderly''s money for gambling and drinking, and while he did not know whether that rumor was the actual truth or not, he dares not to test it himself!


    Had Meng Yue were to know this old man''s thoughts, she would have pressed him hard for answers on who would so shamelessly spread such an inaccurate rumors about her like that!


    At least, they should get the facts right, that she would only snatch from her peers such as the Principal and the Vice-Principal!


    And not for gambling or drinking, but for auctions!


    Drinking at the pub? Too cheap! The auction has many wines that had aged for hundreds of years and was the best of them all, regardless of how much it cost.


    While she may not be a total drinker, she preferred top-notch quality when she does, not the generic ones!


    Gambling? Auctions was pretty much the same for her!


    ...


    After moving around for a while, they soon found themselves entering the district meant for the rich and profligate sons to waste their parent''s money.


    At the sight of all the colorful buildings and expensive looking clothes that the people wore here, Duan Li''s followers found themselves to be a little bit insecure.


    In a hush tone, Shen Lu whispered to Duan Li, "Hey brother, where is your mother taking us? This place looks quite expensive.."


    The others nodded to this as they felt the same way. While they were quite well-off now as Duan Li gave them some medium quality spirit stones according to their battle merits on the third front before, they would pretty much preferred to spend their money on cultivation resources!


    "Indeed.. and that alley-way over there, why are those young ladies calling us over?" Wei Shang said as his face turned red in embarrassment along with Wei Wang. After all, he was being waved to by some beautiful and ravishing beauties!


    "Oh? You''re right.. I was always called a brute by my fellow clansmen and clanswomen alike, but these young ladies doesn''t seem to mind my huge physique. Am I actually that handsome?" Shen Murong cupped his chin as he pondered this.


    Pia!


    "Eyes off! Unless you want to be turned blind permanently!" Xu Rong glared at these men as he slapped their head.


    Men and their perverterdness!


    She pouted in frustration as she casted a look towards the direction of Duan Li, and found out that the latter wasn''t even interested in looking at all these pretty ladies around them.


    This caused her to let out a breath of relief as she nodded and thought to herself, ''Indeed, only the Lord would be so unfazed by this material world..''


    However, she failed to take into consideration that Duan Li was only behaving as such was because his mother was beside him!


    After all, who would dare to act so brazen and foolish in front of their parents?


    That''s just plainly courting death!


    Meanwhile, Guo He was a very timid person and looked straight to the ground while chanting holy scriptures of the nine gods to fend off demons from possessing his mind.


    Wang Xiolun was probably the most indifferent out of all the men in their party, as he only had Xiahou Yu in his eyes, whom was currently enjoying a chicken drumstick while they were walking along the streets.


    Fei Longwei on the other hand, although had a fierce aura to him all the time, was a natural women magnet with his prince-like face. Feeling extremely annoyed with all those women bothering him, he casted one of his dark arts spell to cover his face with a shadow.


    Not long after that, they finally stopped as they stood in front of what seemed to be a huge and grandly decorated restaurant!


    Seven Saints Culinary!


    "Ahh.. this brings back memories.." Meng Yue said with excitement flashed in her eyes.


    She then continued, "The Seven Saints Culinary is probably the best restaurant in existence within the Jiu Empire! They were established roughly around the same time shortly after the Empire was formed!"


    As she licked her lips and was about to enter, a young man with expensive looking clothes with a bunch of servants behind him shouted angrily.


    "You bunch of peasants, you won''t be able to afford eating here! Now scram and suck your momma''s-"


    Before he could even finish, Meng Yue threw a palm strike without even looking at the young man.


    Padah!


    The palm strike was strong enough to quickly send this haughty and insignificant character spinning in the air like a broken ragdoll.


    However, the latter only fainted and was not killed. There were also no serious injuries on his body other than his face that got swollen like that of a pig''s due to being slapped.


    "Hmph!" Duan Li''s mother snorted coldly before continuing her steps to enter the restaurant.


    A mere ant dares to act haughty before the tyrant herself, seeking death!


    Hissss!


    Duan Li and his followers sucked in a breath of cold air when they witnessed this!


    "How vicious!" they swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Not even a villain could speak their line properly before this woman, how scary!


    Casting one final glance at the young man on the ground that was twitching with white foams forming on his mouth, surrounded by his panic servants, Duan Li and the rest could only let out a pitiful look towards the other party before swiftly following behind Duan Li''s mother.


    ...

 182 Chapter 180: VVIPs at the restaurant!

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    Woaaah..


    When they entered the restaurant, the decoration inside this large dining hall had them mesmerized thoroughly!


    Golden silk was carefully hanged from the center of the ceiling to the walls, and bright golden candles was being lit on every beams and corner of the room, creating a very majestic atmosphere!


    Not only that, the tables, chairs and overall settings was in line with this royalty-like feeling, creating an environment similar to that of the dining hall inside the royal palace itself!


    "Welcome dear guest!"


    Rows of maids and servants greeted them with a bow and this had most of Duan Li''s party turned awkward as they were not used to such a flamboyant and high-profile treatment.


    Somewhere in the middle of the hall, an old man with his white hair combed sideways like a true gentleman and dressed in a neat white butler uniform had spotted Duan Li and his party at this particular moment.


    ''That woman..'' he squinted his eyes, afraid that his old age had started to play tricks with him, before it turned wide in horror when he realized that he was not mistaken.


    Gasp!


    Taking out a communication jade slip, he clenched it tightly and whispered, "Code red, the tyrant has returned!" with a quivering voice.


    When the other veteran butler and servants around his age heard this, their face froze at almost the same time and their countenance paled. This had some of the guests that noticed this looked at them weirdly.


    "What''s wrong? You look pale so suddenly.." one of the guest asked, feeling concerned.


    "Ah! Its nothing dear guest. Please, take a look at the menu first and then we will come back to you again shortly.." the old man with the white butler uniform said.


    He then walked hurriedly towards Duan Li, or specifically towards Meng Yue.


    "Lady Meng Yue, it has been a while! It seems that you''ve brought others this time?" the old man said with a polite gesture.


    "Oh? Heng Wu, you''re still working here? And indeed, it has been a while! This young man here is my son, and the rest are his followers. I''ve come here this time specifically because I remembered your food is the best there is in the whole Jiu Empire!" Meng Yue said as she introduced them with a happy tone.


    She then continued, "I trust that the Seven Saints Culinary still holds this same reputation that it once has?" she said with a teasing tone.


    Hearing this, the old man called Heng Wu replied proudly, "Of course! Our reputation as the best high-end restaurant had only increased all these while and never plummeted! Come, let me guide you to the third floor."


    When the other guests that happened to be near them heard this, their eyes bulged out in astonishment.


    "T-The third floor? Isn''t that the place where only super VIP could enter?!"


    "That''s right! Only VVIPs or those big figures in the whole Jiu Empire could eat on the third floor! Who exactly are they?"


    In reality, the only reason why Duan Li and his party got to eat on the third floor was entirely due to the presence of Meng Yue.


    One has to know that all the guests of Seven Saints Culinary, no matter how profound their background were, has to obtain cumulative eating points before their status could be upgraded from casual eaters to VIP, and then finally elevated to the VVIP level, each differences were like that of Heaven and Earth!


    However, Meng Yue had only come to eat here occasionally because the price was extremely astronomical, even the cheapest dish would cost at least 10 medium quality spirit stones to eat!


    Therefore, logically speaking, she should not have enough eating points to eat on the third level!


    When they arrived on the third level, they were dumbstrucked once more. This was because the third level was actually the topmost floor with a big open window, facing towards the most beautiful scenery that the capital has to offer!


    Not only that, each floor was not only a symbol of status that guests has, but also the dishes itself has magical properties that would give numerous benefits to one''s cultivation!


    But when they looked at the pricing list, everyone turned their eyes wide as their teeths clattered together.


    "T-This whole restaurant is a big scam! A fraud!" Shen Murong lashed out.


    "Yeah! What is with this pricing tag? 50 medium quality spirit stones for a bowl of rice?!" Shen Lu also got angry as he cherished the contents inside his pocket a lot.


    Heng Wu only chuckled slightly upon hearing their complaints, "Dear valued guests, that bowl of rice is called the ''Dragon-seeking rice''. It''s origin is from the far West, located inside one of the twelve danger zones of the Tian continent!" he replied.


    Hearing this, Wang Xiolun whom was also frowning in disagreement upon looking at the disgusting price before turned his head towards the old butler in surprise.


    "The danger zone on the far West? Do you mean.. the Piercing Scale''s Haven?!" he asked with a pair of narrowed eyes.


    "Correct! This rice would only mature upon seeing a real dragon flying above it! As you guys know, dragons preferred to sleep for years before hunting outside for food. Thus, this rice could only be harvested once every 10 years!" Heng Wu explained.


    "Ohh.." they nodded in realization.


    No wonder the price was astronomical!


    If it was really like that, then the price is indeed justified!


    After all, not to mention their long harvesting period, even venturing inside any of the danger zone has a very high risk of one dying!


    "Furthermore, on this third level, all your food will be cooked by the seven top-notch chefs! This is why the name of this restaurant is called as the Seven Saints Culinary! It was actually named after them!" Heng Wu continued, his voice full of reverence when he mentioned this.


    Saints was a title given to chefs whom had already mastered their specific skillsets to the pinnacle level!


    Upon hearing this, Fei Longwei immediately asked, "What? If that was the case, then wouldn''t that basically meant that all those seven chefs are nearing 2,000 years old already?!"


    This was because from Duan Li''s mother with her brief introduction of this restaurant before, it was established soon after the Jiu Empire was founded!


    Hisss!


    Upon this realization, the others also widened their eyes as they sucked in cold breath.


    Will our food be cooked by skeletons?


    Pu!


    Seemingly to saw through their thoughts, Meng Yue suddenly laughed out loud while holding her stomach, "You guys, what are you on about? Have you ever heard of anyone even lasting a thousand years of age? These seven chefs are naturally the descendants of the original Seven Saints chefs!" she explained.


    Their faces turned red in embarrassment after hearing this.


    "Indeed, what the lady just said is correct! But although they are their descendants, I could vouch and guarentee with my life that their skills does deserve them the hereditary title of the Saint Chefs! Please believe me on this!" Heng Wu said with an honest bow, his eyes full of confidence.


    Duan Li and his party was more convinced now, but they still have one more last question that was on their front mind, and this question was asked by Xu Rong.


    "Then, what are the effects of this ''Dragon-Seeking rice''?" she inquiried with an interested look.


    Heng Wu smiled, because he was glad that a woman asked this. "For both normal people and cultivators, their skin would turn more pure and fairer like that of a newborn baby! And for cultivators, their meridians would be spring-cleaned and will stay that way for at least 10 days! In that time period, you will be able to experience exponential growth in your cultivation focus and Qi cycle!" he answered.


    Basically, this Dragon-Seeking rice was more beneficial to women than men!


    BAM!


    Xu Rong and Xiahou Yu immediately slammed their palm on the long dinner table that was made up of white-gold marble, before 50 medium-quality spirit stones that were neatly stacked appeared from their spatial ring.


    ''Shut up and take my money!'' was what seemed to be the meaning behind that vicious facial expression of their''s right now.


    The men shook their head upon seeing this, ''Women and their beauty-obsessiveness..''


    With a wide smile, Heng Wu flicked his finger and stored those 100 medium quality spirit stones inside his spatial ring in an instant, "Your order is coming right up!"


    Suuu!!


    He disappeared for a few breath before reappearing again, "Anymore orders?"


    Fast! Extremely fast!


    It seemed like this old man was actually an expert as well!


    Even Duan Li was a little bit surprised. However, when compared to his ''One-Step To Reach'' movement art that was created by an immortal of the first region of the Eternal Maze, Jing Zhianghu, it still paled in comparison.


    "What about this? And this? And that?" everyone then began to ask Heng Wu about the details of each item on the menu, and the latter was extremely helpful and seemed passionate on answering their inquiries one by one!


    After a moment, everyone finished ordering, except for Meng Yue. It was at this moment that Duan Li saw the calm Heng Wu before to suddenly swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    "A-And your lady, your order?" he said with a stutter.


    Meng Yue grinned from ear to ear.


    "Dominion King Lobster!"


    ...

 183 Chapter 181: Culinary Seer!

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    "D-Dominion King L-Lobster..? A-Are you sure my lady? That is extremely pricey, even for this restaurant''s standards!" Heng Wu the old butler swallowed a mouthful of saliva and his words became a little bit incoherent.


    "Of course I am 100 percent sure! Why? Did you think that I won''t be able to afford it?" Meng Yue put on a wide, smug face as she crossed both arms on her chest.


    Hearing this, the old butler Heng Wu almost stumbled down and collapse.


    D-Damned woman! Did you think that I have forgotten the mess you did 20 years ago?


    This cheeky short woman back then ordered a dish that was quite expensive when she first came. At first, the staffs were of course quite happy that a person would willingly spend so lavishly on food, but they soon found out that this woman had no intention to pay them in full at all!


    This was because there were ways to pay for their food without actually having to pay the full price!


    However, not only that this method was not that well-known, it was also extremely risky!


    This method had three different stages and they were called as ''Food Decryption''!


    On the first stage, the guests were required to list out 10 ingredients used to make the whole dish accurately. They would only have 3 chances of making mistakes in their guess, and each mistake would increase the price of the dish by 10 percent!


    If they managed to clear the first stage, they would get a 30 percent off from the actual price. On the other hand, if they failed to name all 10 ingredients and used up all their chances, they would have to pay 30 percent more!


    In the second stage, if the guests chose to continue, they were required to name 15 more ingredients used to make the dish and their chances would be resetted back to three. However, a single mistake would inflate the price by a whopping 20 percent!


    This meant that if they failed in this stage, they would have to pay 60 percent more of the price of that dish! Similarly, if the guests happened to list out all 15 ingredients correctly, they would get a 60 percent off!


    On the third stage, the stakes were even higher! The guests needed to list out 20 more ingredients and their chances were resetted back to three. But if they made just a single mistake here, they would be penalized by a staggering 30 percent increase in price!


    Therefore, as long as the Heavens were on their side, the lucky guests would get a 90 percent off from the actual price, but if the devil chose to make their life miserable, then they would need to pay 90 percent more of that single dish!


    In addition, the higher the guests status inside this restaurant were, the more expensive and rarer the ingredients used to make the dish were!


    In other words, while accomplishing stage 1 and 2 on the first floor of this restaurant would be considered normal, on the second floor, people would only dare to aim and complete the first stage, and those who dared to challenge the second stage here were extremely rare.


    This went on to show that on the third floor, the number of people that had ever challenged the first stage could be counted on two hands, while there was only a single person that ever managed to complete the second stage.


    As for the third stage on this third floor? Only lunatics would dare to challenge it!


    "S-So.. that would be 3 high quality spirit stones lady Meng Yue.. P-Please pay the bill first before we could process your order. " Heng Wu said in a stutter.


    Pu!


    Duan Li and all his followers immediately saw their life flashing by before their eyes when they heard this price quote.


    3 high-quality spirit stones?


    That is just daylight robbery!


    Just what sort of value that a single high-quality spirit stone has?


    10,000 medium-quality spirit stones! That is how much a single spirit stone of that quality amounts to!


    In other words, this restaurant demands some 30,000 medium-quality spirit stones for this Dominion King Lobster dish!


    Even for the flithy rich Duan Li, that was just a price too steep that would cause him to reconsider deeply before deciding to order it!


    Yet it seemed like this mother of his does not care about this even a single bit!


    ''Mother.. I know that I''ve said I would cover all the food expenses for us.. but do you want to make your son here a pitiful pauper?'' Duan Li cried in his heart.


    Silently taking a peek inside his spatial ring by sending his consciousness into it, he could see that there was still some few thousands of high-quality spirit stones laying around like useless cabbages, which caused him to sigh in relief. But still, spending 3 high-quality spirit stones was just too darned expensive!


    Meng Yue then started to laugh, "Hahaha! Heng Wu, you like to make jokes now eh? Don''t say that you forgot, I am this restaurant''s ''Culinary Seer'', therefore my method of payment is obviously Food Decryption!" she said proudly.


    Hearing this, Duan Li and his party turned their head to her with a confused look. Chuckling lightly, Meng Yue explained everything there was to know about Food Decryption.


    Soon after, everyone finally nodded in comprehension.


    So because Duan Li''s mother had always used this method to pay for her food far cheaper than the normal price everytime, she was heralded the title of Culinary Seer at this restaurant by the managing director!


    Seeing that smug look on her as she explained all these to the crowd, Heng Wu gritted his teeth in frustration as he recalled those tragic days in the past due to this woman.


    Hais!


    "At that time, when you first came here and used this exact method to get a 90 percent discount on your very first food you ordered on the first floor that day, we were honestly amazed by your rare talent to list out everything correctly.."


    "But then, you started to come here everyday and got your 90 percent discount everytime! I got scolded by the managing director as we incurred a huge loss because of you, thus we have no choice but to elevate your status to the VIP level on the second floor.."


    "Yet the same thing still happened! Although you only managed to get 60 percent discount everytime, our losses was even more considerable because the food and ingredients used on the second floor was far more expensive than the food on the first floor!"


    "Thus again, we increased your status to the VVIP level so that you could only eat here. We were confident that you would not be able to pass the first stage, at least not everytime, but we were wrong.. very wrong!"


    This was because she happened to get the 30 percent discount everytime, even on this third floor! What had them mind-boggled the most was that her success rate is at 100 percent which was far too unbelievable!


    Even the managing director had to step in personally, and interrogate each of the staffs including the Seven Saints chefs because he was suspicious that there was someone among them leaking out the ingredients to her on purpose!


    However, after that extensive alibi check, they found out that no one had spoken a single dust about any food and ingredients to her!


    This only meant that she was a natural and knew a lot of stuff about food!


    Thus, the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant was on the verge of bankruptcy and nearly closed down. But as luck would have it, she suddenly disappeared and no one could trace her anymore!


    This had them celebrate such a miracle for seven days and seven nights straight, offering their sincere thanks to the Nine gods and the Heavens!


    Slowly, all their losses could be recovered throughout the following years, and the cover was finally finished after 20 long years..


    But now, she has returned!


    Why Heavens? Why?!


    Heng Wu roared out at the top of his lungs silently. But if this were to be heard, one could not imagine just how agonized he was right now.


    Thus, that was why she managed to earn the privilege of eating on this third floor.


    Hais!


    Exhaling a moutful of air in resignation, he nodded, "Alright.. let me process the order right now.."


    Suu!!


    He disappeared and didn''t reappeared after that.


    "Mother, are you going to get a discount again? By the looks of it, he doesn''t seemed that pleased.." Duan Li asked his mother.


    "Of course! After all, this was still part of their rules, and I am just following it!" Meng Yue replied shamelessly.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Huh? Why the hell are you peasants here?!"


    ...

 184 Chapter 182: Rich? can you compare to me?

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    "Who are you calling peasants you plebian?!" Shen Murong lashed out immediately in reply to this haughty young man that just went up to the third floor.


    When Duan Li and his party turned their head to look at this young man with a displeased frown, they found out that this person was the same young man that just got himself slapped into a pig face previously by Duan Li''s mother!


    Astonishingly however, his swollen face was all but healed now, leaving not a trace of his previous tragic state, revealing his natural dashing looks that could captivate naive women instead!


    By the looks of it though, his age doesn''t seemed to differ that much than the rest of them here.


    "Plebian? Are you blind you peasant? Come and take a look here at my clothes, do I look like a mere commoner to you?" the young man answered as he swiped off his blond hair stylishly.


    Shen Murong was just about to teach this insolent fellow when one of the latter''s personal bodyguard quickly stepped in.


    "Please forgive our young master dear honorable students of the Jixue Knights Academy. Although our young master here appeared to be using crude words, he doesn''t mean any ill intentions towards everyone here." the bodyguard that looked like a veteran warrior apologized with a bow.


    He doesn''t mean any ill intentions with his words?


    My a*s!!


    To suddenly call out people as peasants the first time they met, and this was already the second time, yet you are telling me that there was no ill intention behind it?


    Then was that a compliment instead?


    Do you really take us for a fool?


    "Shen Murong, its fine.. sit down." Duan Li instructed. He doesn''t want to cause a ruckus while his mother was here, otherwise things might just escalate even further.


    Gritting his teeth, Shen Murong snorted coldly before he sat back on his chair.


    "Oh? They are from the Jixue Knights Academy?" the young man said with a surprised look and then cupped his chin as he squinted his eyes to gaze at their uniform up and down, before he shook his head as if disappointed by something.


    "It seems that my bodyguard was right, and I apologized for my previous rudeness." the young man gave out a smile and tilted his head down a little bit to express his sincerity.


    This had Duan Li and the rest of them feeling taken aback and confused.


    Usually, haughty young man especially the profligate children of the rich clans and family would never back down like this, not to mention apologizing on the spot!


    They would instead inflate their status and ego more by saying things like ''Do you know who I am?'' or ''I am from this powerful clan'' and ''My father is this famous person'' and more, in their effort to scare off their opponents so no one would dare to offend them.


    However, not only does this young man apologized, his action even seemed sincere!


    Are you actually a villain or not?


    He then continued, "But its not entirely my fault! I never expected the uniform of the most prestigious Jixue Knights Academy to be this shabby! Look, even my servants behind me were dressed better!" he pointed.


    Hais!


    "In order for me to correct this misunderstanding, I''ve decided to sponsor for a new uniform design of your academy next time!" he nodded with a serious expression.


    "..." everyone.


    Is this guy serious?


    Our uniform was created for both flexibility and durability in mind, why do we have to dress so flamboyantly?


    All the servants behind this young man including his personal bodyguard face-palmed themselves as they sighed, making it look like they were already resigned to this and that such things had occurred numerous times already that they were no longer surprised.


    "Oh by the way, my name is Fei Liquan! Fei as in from the most richest clan in the whole Jiu Empire!" he finally introduced himself with a unique signature bow of the nobles.


    The Fei clan?


    It was then that they finally understood why this young man was so haughty, and he was indeed qualified to act as so. After all, there was no clan that was more wealthy than the Fei clan!


    In fact, their total wealth and assets amounts to one-fourth of the Jiu Empire!


    Duan Li wasn''t versed in this, so Shen Lu briefed him on the details with a whisper.


    "Eh? Then does that mean that Fei Longwei here is also from the Fei clan since his surname is also Fei?" Duan Li said as he turned his head towards the other party, whom still hid his face with the dark shadow skill.


    "Fei Longwei?" the young man called Fei Liquan was startled when he heard this name. He then quickly shifted his gaze towards the direction that Duan Li stared at and found the person in question.


    Sighing deeply, Fei Longwei cancelled his shadow cloak on his face, revealing himself. When Fei Liquan saw this, he jumped up in excitement as he quickly dashed towards Fei Longwei.


    "Brother Long!"


    Eh?


    Again, they were surprised by this. From the nickname that this Fei Liquan used to call out Fei Longwei, it seems that their relationship were very close with each other.


    "Brother Liquan.. its been a while.." Fei Longwei greeted the other party with a smile. This was rare for Duan Li and the others to see, as the latter was usually indifferent and emotionless for most of the time, appearing like a man of solitude.


    "Uwahh! Brother Long! How many years has it been, I''ve missed you!" Fei Liquan bawled out into tears, and it took quite a while for him to settle down.


    ...


    Fei Longwei sighed before he turned to them and explained, "This person here is the young scion of the Fei Clan, and what his personal bodyguard said over there just now was true, while his words were harsh, he doesn''t mean anything behind it."


    He then told them that while he was indeed from the same Fei Clan, he was from the furthest branch family and was closer to being a commoner than part of the actual Fei Clan.


    However, it was a tradition that children who bore the blood of Fei Clan, even if its just a single drop of it flowed inside their veins, to participate in the coming of age ceremony when they were 12.


    They had to go through the trials of Brave, which was located in the Eastern wilds of Mount. Kilimanjaro and raced to reach the top.


    At that time, this young scion derailed off from the provided track because he was not interested to participate in such trials and was only looking for a good place to nap.


    It was then that Fei Longwei, whom had also derailed from the track heard someone shouting so loudly nearby about being a scion of the Fei Clan and would give them ten thousand gold if they let him off.


    Feeling concerned, Fei Longwei immediately dashed towards this location and found out that the young scion of the Fei Clan was negotiating with a pack of wild wolves!


    Had it not been for this dire situation that almost got this Fei Liquan killed by those ravageous wolves, his lower jaw would have already dropped to the ground. But alas, he had to quickly snatch this scion and escape to safety together.


    From then on, this Fei Liquan started to treat him as an older brother. But Fei Longwei soon found out that this young scion''s mouth somehow was a powerful magnet for offending people!


    Anywhere they went, there would always be trouble brewing on and about. To make matters worse, this young scion had the tendency to call people with derogatary remarks based on their appearance!


    To the young scion, the words he used were just a matter of fact, and his way of thinking was purely based on the logic he saw. This had caused their Clan Head to be feeling extremely remorseful and they soon had to categorized his condition as ''Intellectually Disabled''.


    Fortunately, this fellow could actually learn from his mistake, albeit at a very slow pace, and the catch was; one had to beat his logic first!


    Everyone nodded when they listened to all this, and they couldn''t help but cast a pitiful glance towards the object of their gossip.


    "Speaking of which, if I am not mistaken, when he first saw us, he tried to shoo us away while telling us to suck our momma''s t*ts.. was this also not intentional?" Xu Rong that was still not convinced asked out with narrowed gaze.


    "That.. Brother Liquan, would you care to explain?" Fei Longwei immediately passed this difficult question to the perpetrator himself.


    "Huh? Isn''t it normal for peasants that couldn''t afford to eat delicious stuff to suck their mother''s milk? After all, that should be the most delicious drink that they could afford for free.." he answered with a confident tone, as if there was nothing wrong with his sentences.


    Meanwhile, when they heard this, the urge to beat the other party up to death almost took over their sanity. But recalling that this Fei Liquan was ''Intellectually Disabled'', they only ended up with a long deep sigh.


    "Nevermind.." Xu Rong said, feeling defeated.


    "Great! Now all the misunderstanding is settled, I''m gonna order something to eat! Oh and by the way, I''ll buy for everyone here since I get to meet my Brother Long after 5 years of not seeing each other!" Fei Liquan energetically said.


    Everyone turned their head towards Fei Longwei and saw the latter''s complicated expression.


    Not seeing the other party for 5 years? Isn''t that the same thing as avoiding?


    Hais!


    Intellectually disabled indeed!


    "Y-Young master! The master had just said to not overspend again this month.." Fei Liquan''s personal bodyguard said with a troubled look.


    "Enough! What do a sword-fetish man like you whom slept with his sword day and night could possibly understand the relationship between us brothers? This fateful day calls for a celebration!" Fei Liquan reprimanded the other party.


    He then turned around towards his five other servants as he instructed, "Men! Empty out your pockets right now and lets see how much we''ve got!"


    "..." Everyone.


    Is he stealing from his own servant right now?


    "Y-Young Master.. why do we have to pay for the food as well.." asked one of the servants, feeling both confused and aggrieved.


    Hearing this question, Fei Liquan furrowed his brows in displeasure.


    "Huh? Do you still not get it? Father only said to me alone to not overspend. That means he is also hinting that I can use other people''s money first because that way, my money will not be used! Furthermore, my father is the one whom had always paid your monthly salary, so shouldn''t this be obvious?" he answered and shook his head.


    Why is this servant of mine so slow?


    Its not like father were restricted by his own assets like me!


    If I use your money, all you have to do is ask my father to pay you up again!


    Hmph!


    "I-Is that so.. okay then.." the servant replied with a blank look as he scratched his head before each of them handed their spirit stones inside their spatial ring.


    "..." Everyone.


    Isn''t that what is called as borrowing?


    And we are sure that that''s not what your father meant when he told you not to overspend..?


    Huala!


    With a single thought, roughly about 3 High quality spirit stones worth of money were accumulated together on top of the marble table.


    Fei Liquan crossed both arms on his chest with a proud look as he handed all of this over to Duan Li and his party.


    Cough! Cough!


    "This.. its not enough.." Duan Li said with great difficulty as he almost broke out into a laughter.


    Just his mother alone had ordered a dish that was worth 3 high quality spirit stones, yet all of these combined was just barely enough to cover such a cost!


    Suupp!


    Heng Wu swiftly returned after making the order for the Dominion King Lobster and saw another familiar face.


    "Ahh! Esteemed guest Fei Liquan! I haven''t seen you for two weeks! Welcome!"


    ...

 185 Chapter 183: Competing for food!

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    Hearing that the latter was calling the other party as ''Esteemed guests'' meant that this Fei Liquan was actually someone important in this restaurant!


    This had Meng Yue surprised, thus she asked, "So this young master of the Fei Clan is also a VVIP member of this third floor?"


    Heng Wu replied with a positive nod, "Of course! and not only that, he is also.. a Culinary Seer like you as well Lady Meng Yue.. and the best at that!"


    Oh? He is the best?


    "How is he the best?" Meng Yue said as her interest was piqued.


    Fei Liquan waved his hand grandly to stop Heng Wu so that he could answer it himself, "That''s because I''m the only one whom had managed to clear the second stage of the Food decryption method on this third floor so far!"


    When Meng Yue heard this, she was thoroughly surprised!


    After all, becoming a Culinary Seer was not easy at all, especially on this third floor where all the ingredients used on the dishes were rare and exotic!


    Back in the olden days, she had to try all sorts of the ingredients by herself using her connection with the Alchemist Society and the Doctor''s Circle, and this alone took her quite a long time to remember each taste by memory before she was confident to challenge the Food decryption method!


    But the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. After all, which resources does the Fei Clan was not able to access in this Empire being the most wealthiest of them all?


    Nevertheless, it was still quite impressive for one of the younger generation to be able to memorize all those thousands of tastes inside their brain!


    It seems that this ''Intellectually Disabled'' person was quite smart in something as well.


    "Speaking of which, I have spoken quite rudely to the most well-known tyrant of the Jiu Empire before at the entrance and for that, I hope you can forgive me Elder Meng Yue. But who could blame me? I didn''t know about you until my personal guard here told me about it." Fei Liquan sighed.


    Gulp!


    Everyone swallowed a mouthful of their saliva.


    This bastard has the balls of iron!


    Meanwhile, Meng Yue''s brows twitched upon hearing the words used in the latter''s sentences.


    You dare call me a tyrant so openly? And Elder?


    I''m still young!!


    Seeing that cold look gradually appearing on his mother''s face, Duan Li immediately intervened before things escalate, "Anyway, thank you for your generosity to pay for our food, but 3 high quality spirit stones won''t be enough to cover it.. so it''s fine!"


    Fei Liquan was evidently taken by surprised hearing this, "What? 3 High quality spirit stones isn''t enough? What are you eating? A baby dragon soup?" he said in astonishment.


    Pu!


    Meng Yue choked on her own saliva.


    Damned bastard!


    Meng Yue quickly stood up from her seat and was about to send another slap to this fellow, but as if oblivious to his current situation, Fei Liquan immediately waved his hand and took out another 2 high quality spirit stones, making the total amount on the table became 5 high quality spirit stones!


    "Is this enough then?" he said with both an innocent and indifferent look at the same time.


    Duan Li was surprised by the other party again. Despite the vicious words this fellow used in his speech, he was really far too generous in taking out such an amount for people whom he just met awhile ago!


    They couldn''t help but to ponder deeply on this.


    ''Perhaps this was how he managed to stay alive thus far?''


    Meng Yue also sat back down when she saw this with a snort. ''Hmph! It seems that your money has saved you this time!''


    Heng Wu by the side had already took out his handkerchief to wipe off the sweat on his forehead. He knew very well Meng Yue''s temper when others talk down on her, and was afraid that their restaurant would be implicated should that happen.


    Thankfully, the worse did not happen.


    Turning to Fei Liquan, he asked the other party politely, "Esteemed guest Fei Liquan, what would your order be today?" with a smile.


    The latter cupped his chin for a while before deciding, "Get me.. the Dominion King Lobster!"


    Eh?


    "This.." Heng Wu did not expect this and scratched his head awkwardly.


    Looking at the other party''s expression, Fei Liquan asked, "What''s wrong?"


    "Well.. the thing is.." Heng Wu began to explain.


    ...


    "What? There is only one Dominion King Lobster in stock and Elder Meng Yue has already ordered it?" Fei Liquan said with a frown.


    That won''t do.. I need to taste this next dish in order to complete my list of ingredients using the food decryption technique..


    "How about this, Elder Meng Yue, I will pay another 2 high quality spirit stones and you give me that Dominion King Lobster?" he suggested.


    "You..!!" Meng Yue gritted her teeth.


    This braindead fellow really did not know what''s good for him! To think that he would dare to vie for my food!


    "Never! I need to eat that food today and will not accept any other dish or money for it!" she replied with a frosty tone.


    The reason why she was being so adamant about eating the Dominion King Lobster was due to its miraculous effect to boost one''s recovery from damaged meridians and pathways.


    Legend has it that once upon a time, a well-known cultivator that survived the ancient war during the revolution period of the Jiu Empire was almost turned into a cripple when most of his channels was teared apart. However, he was saved by one of the ancient seven saints that served him this dish and made a miraculous recovery!


    This was what she was aiming for!


    Although Meng Yue''s internal injuries was all but healed by Duan Li, she still felt that her rate of recovery, specifically spiritual Qi, was significantly weaker than during her peak. Thus, she figured out that by consuming the Dominion King Lobster, her recovery rate would at least return to how it was before, even if its only temporary.


    However, there was no way the others here would know of this, and she also felt that she wasn''t obligated to explain this to them, therefore they were quite surprised with her response this time. After all, 2 high quality spirit stones for compensation was actually quite a lot of money!


    This was especially the case for Fei Liquan whose brows right now were frowning quite tightly in displeasure.


    "Why are you being so hard-headed? It is only out of respect from me that you, as an elder with significant infamy in the Jiu Empire, that I even considered paying you 2 high quality spirit stones! Yet you still did not budge? What is wrong with you?" he said.


    Ku!


    Hard-Headed? Infamy? What is wrong with me?


    ''Hard-Headed your ancestor! Infamy your predecessor! The only thing wrong here is your head!!'' Meng Yue cursed at him inside her mind thoroughly, and she was like a ticking time bomb right now, ready to slap this crazy fellow back into the fatherland.


    Knowing that trouble would only blew up outside of its proportion if he continued to let this Fei Liquan bash at his mother like this ruthlessly, even for an intellectually disabled person, the other party was already like a moth flying close to a raging sea of flames right now that was waiting to be burned to death if he did not take any action!


    Thus, Duan Li waved his hand and 5 high quality spirit stones appeared on the table.


    Wengg!!


    "If you can pay more high quality spirit stones than me, then you can have the Dominion King Lobster from my mother." Duan Li said with a confident smile.


    "Oh? Now this is a bet that I am most familiar with, plain and simple. However, if you actually take into account all the previous money I''ve put on the table, it would already amount to 7 high quality spirit stones." Fei Liquan shook his head as he chuckled with his hands behind his back, finding Duan Li''s proposal for this duel to be quite funny.


    What an amateur..


    He then continued, "Therefore, I''ve already surpassed your 5 high quality spirit stones by another two!" he said with a smug face and wide grin.


    Hmm.


    Now this Fei Liquan is starting to annoy me too.


    You want to compete for who is more wealthier with me?


    Fine.


    As the old saying once said, ''If you want to curb the hydra monster, you just have to cut all nine of its head simultaneously!''


    Duan Li waved his hand again.


    BAM!


    This time, what appeared on the table was no longer another pile of high quality spirit stones, but a superior quality spirit stone instead!


    "Sorry, you were saying?" Duan Li said with an indifferent expression.


    Pu!


    Finally, Fei Liquan was able to experience choking on his own saliva.


    ...

 186 Chapter 184: I wonst give up!

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    "S-S-S-Superior quality spirit stone!" Heng Wu, Fei Liquan and the rest who didn''t know about the extent of Duan Li''s wealth stuttered in their speech as if a cat that bit its own tongue.


    Even Meng Yue whom had only heard the reason as to how and why her son became the Imperial Overseer and knew about this, could not help but for her mouth to become slightly agaped after seeing a real superior quality spirit stone being taken out by her son!


    Meanwhile, Heng Wu by the side narrowed his eyes in alarm, his expression grim. "This young man is not simple!" he said to himself. Taking out his communication jade slip, he sent out a message discreetly.


    ''Go find out the background of a student in the Jixue Knights Academy named Duan Li!'' was what his message contained.


    He knew that the other party was Meng Yue''s son from their conversation, but a person who could take out a superior quality spirit stone so casually for a bet in a restaurant was definitely someone whom they could not afford to offend with!


    Perhaps, this young man has a connection to some sort of mega entity!


    After all, just the total value of a single superior quality spirit stone was already equal to a few generations worth of their total income!


    To put this further into context, the standard exchange rate for a low quality spirit stone would be a 100 inferior quality spirit stones, a single medium quality spirit stone would be a 1,000 low quality spirit stones, and a high quality spirit stone would amount to 10,000 medium quality spirit stones!


    Therefore, a single superior quality spirit stone by right, should amount to 100,000 high quality spirit stones!


    However, even though this might already sounds quite a lot, its real value even surpassed that by a large margin!


    After all, big corporates could easily earn such an amount of sum in just a matter of few years in operation and would thus, depreciate the value of a superior quality spirit stone if that had been the case.


    Actually, the contents of spiritual Qi condensed inside a superior quality spirit stone was so thick that if it were put inside a special extraction artifact to generate artificial power, a city could be powered for at least 100 years!


    Taking that into consideration, the actual value of a superior quality spirit stone would be at least.. a million of high quality spirit stones!


    "T-This is cheating! Why do you have to take out a Superior quality spirit stone when we are betting with high quality spirit stones?! Quickly take that back!" Fei Liquan turned panicky as there was no way he could overrule the value of a superior quality spirit stone nor took out one himself.


    Despite being the scion of the Fei Clan, even he did not have that much money inside his pockets.


    Duan Li chuckled, "Why? Can''t take out one?" he said with a teasing voice, trying to put pressure on the other party.


    Hearing this had Fei Liquan''s face turned crimson in embarrassment. All the time, it was always him who would face-slap others with his money and not the other way around.


    Gritting his teeth, he was now hell-bent in not giving up if its a challenge in terms of who has the most money!


    Forcing himself to calm down, he thought for a while on how to extricate himself out of this situation before his eyes flashed as he came up with something, and a smile suddenly crept up on his lips.


    With a haughty tone, he began to reply to Duan Li. "Of course I don''t have it with me right now, only idiots would carry a superior quality spirit stone around, waiting to be mugged by someone! Hmph!"


    "Furthermore, what are you even planning on doing in taking that thing out? Trying to scare me? You think this meager restaurant could pay you the remainders if you used that to pay for the food? Even if they close down right now and sell all their assets to you, it would perhaps still take them a few years to at least pay everything out properly!" he added with a slight contempt by the end of his sentence.


    Duan Li and his party was surprised by this, even Fei Longwei was taken aback by how smart this intellectually disabled scion had become.


    However, this was what surprised them the most; being both smart and intellectually disabled at the same time was far too much of a contrast that it should not have co-existed!


    Meanwhile, Heng Wu could be seen pressing his hand tightly onto his chest with another arm on the wall supporting himself, as if he was being dealt with a critical blow!


    Naturally, Duan Li was also well aware of this and had only taken out the superior quality spirit stone to quickly end their petty competition. But who knew that this Fei Liquan was quite a stuck up person?


    Since this was the way the other party wanted, then he just have to follow it through.


    After all, in terms of money.. well, he owned the Jiu Empire anyway.


    Thus, before the other party could boast and open his mouth again, Duan Li had already flicked his hand one more time and ''huala!''..


    A hundred high quality spirit stones appeared on the table!


    Kuh!


    Fei Liquan almost stumbled and fell down on his own when he saw how decisive Duan Li was in taking out all those spirit stones.


    At this moment, he was about bawl out his eyes and cry..


    What is this? Isn''t a show of wealth should usually be done gradually so that hype would built up before the final moment comes where the defeated would then said to the people watching something like ''I''ve found a worthy opponent'' or things like that so he could walk away cooly?


    What is wrong with you taking out a hundred high quality spirit stones just like that? How am I even going to compete with just 10 high quality spirit stones in my pocket?!


    Besides, who in the world would walk around carrying such a large sum of money that would amount to some small clan''s financial savings so casually? Isn''t he afraid of being robbed?


    And most importantly, Can''t you give me some face as the young scion of the most wealthiest clan in the whole Jiu Empire?


    You''re making me look like a pauper now!


    Realizing that there was no way he could win if he tried to do this with money, he only had one more way to solve this.


    "H-Hmph! It seems that you also got some money alright. But compared to the money I actually have, even this whole restaurant would not be enough to act as its warehouse!" he said.


    "Then, you''re not admitting defeat?" at this moment, Duan Li was already feeling quite tired entertaining this fellow.


    Should I just let mother slap him or I slap him myself so all this would be over?


    Fei Liquan laughed out loud with both hands on his waist.


    "Hahahaha! You''re mistaken if this duel of ours was only one round! Don''t you know about this simple basic of 2 rounds? Hmph! Let''s compete with food decryption then! If you win again this time, then by all means the Dominion King Lobster would be yours!"


    Shen Murong that had long held it in himself from beating up this retarded idiot gnashed his teeth and replied to him with an infuriated tone, "Huh? You are already the best Culinary Seer there is in this restaurant, and you are trying to compete with our Lord when he had never done such a thing before?"


    Wei Shang and Wei Wang also felt the same as Shen Murong, and thus they backed up the latter''s statement, "Yeah! This is just like a Nascent Soul realm expert trying to pick a fight against a Foundation establishment cultivator! How is that fair?!"


    The rest also nodded to this as well.


    Fei Liquan, being the mentally retarded person he was, naturally took this literally.


    "What do you mean? Even a newbie cultivator could tell that I''m no Nascent Soul realm expert and is still in the Foundation establishment realm like he is! Don''t tell me that the academy didn''t at least teach you guys this?!" he replied with a face full of surprise, and by the looks of it, he wasn''t making up that expression as well.


    Pa!


    Everyone face-palmed themselves, including Heng Wu and Fei Liquan''s servants as well as his personal bodyguard.


    Hais!


    No wonder Fei Longwei went under the radar from this person!


    "And besides, your Lord here has a lot of money on him at the moment while I don''t, so naturally this is the only way to do it!" Fei Liquan added.


    "Fine, but do you dare to promise on your Fei Clan''s honor that you would admit defeat if you lose?" Duan Li sighed and just went on with it.


    "Duan Li!"


    "Lord!"


    The others of course, does not agree on this, but Duan Li waved his hand dismissively, his expression indifferent and there was no sense of panic in his eyes.


    "I agree! And I swear on this with everyone here as the witness!" Fei Liquan answered confidently.


    In his mind, there was no way he would lose if its a battle of food decryption!


    Duan Li nodded to this as he crossed both arms on his chest and said casually, "Then let''s get started, which food should we decrypt first?"


    ...

 187 Not a chapter.

    @@


    Hello dear patrons and WN readers,


    It seems that I''ve overdone myself this week and my continuous juggling between work and writing had put my health at risk.. so please forgive me because I''ve decided to take two days off from today until tomorrow (20/4/19)&(21/4/19) and will resume normal operations next week.. i really need to rest.. so sorry for the inconveniences..


    Best regards,


    Author@@

 188 Chapter 185: Decryption combo!

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    "Heheh! Butler Heng Wu, give us a dish that I haven''t yet decrypted!" Fei Liquan immediately told the old butler this, which the latter nodded to and swiftly disappeared with a flash.


    Ssuu!!


    The reason why he requested a dish that he had not decrypted yet, was because all dish could only be decrypted once per stage!


    In other words, if the first stage was already decrypted, when the guests wanted to decrypt the same dish the next time, they could only decrypt the following stage; which is the second stage and so on!


    Therefore, this prevents the guests from abusing the decryption method system to continuously get discounts from the same dish over and over again. Still, what the Seven Saints Culinary does not lack was varieties of dishes, and a single dish could be cooked in more than 5 different ways - which was how Meng Yue in the past had almost threw the entire restaurant into an extreme financial deficit!


    Some short moments later, Heng Wu returned with their food floating all around him and gently placed them on the table in front of everyone whom ordered it accordingly with a flick of his fingers!


    Ssuu!!


    "Woaaahh!!" everyone began to salivate intensely once they smelled those crisps and alluring aroma coming out from each other''s food, and couldn''t wait to dig in.


    The table settings was also exquisitely selected too, making it apparent that each dish has its own unique way of eating them.


    They were truly impressed by these and when they thought about it, no wonder the prices were so astronomical!


    "The dish for the bet will be finished sometime later on as it will take a bit of a time to prepare.. but don''t worry about it, the costs will be on the house!" Heng Wu said with a smile.


    Both Duan Li and Fei Liquan nodded at this, thinking that it was something normal. But, Meng Yue frowned as she found this to be weird.


    ''The Seven Saints Culinary has never once treated its guests before.. especially when this is something private between two people of the younger generation.. what is with this occasion?'' she thought.


    Even with this young scion here, his influence was severely limited and there was no actual use in currying favor with him..


    Hmm.


    Was it because of my son when he took out that superior quality spirit stone previously?


    Perhaps they thought his background was actually extraordinary? Well, they''re not wrong on that though..


    After all, even if it was me in their shoes, I would have to think twice at least so as to not offend Duan Li if I have no clue what sorts of existences was backing him!


    This should be their way of expressing friendly gesture..


    Nomnomnom!


    Unable to take it any longer, everyone started to dig their way through their food and their facial expression as they eat was as if they had been starved for a month or two in the Blastwinter desert!


    Overly exagerated reaction began to appear from each of them.


    Shen Murong with his bulky stature began to sway his head left and right while he eats, as if he was on an epic journey atop of a giant ship, singing songs merrily towards a treasure island, this was the effect of consuming the Vermilion Wine Plateau dish!


    Shen Lu by the side, was grinning from ear to ear while letting out ''huehuehue'' snicker in an eery manner, as if he had encountered some sort of a paradise after eating a mouthful of the soft and juicy rib-eye steak from the Reversed Yang Reindeer meat.


    Wang Xiolun on the other hand, after eating the Fermented Royal Burger that was derived from the hundred years old fermented royal cheese, was just nodding his head continuously like a chicken pecking through the ground at a rapid speed, reminiscent of what Cucko would always do in its free time while murmurring ''so good!'' once in a while.


    Meanwhile, Xiahou Yu felt as if she was being surrounded by an unlimited number of fried chickens that was cooked in a thousand different ways, its taste exploded simultaneously onto her tastebuds, making her ascend the Heavens after eating this crispy masterpiece of a chicken drumstick called the Thousand Taste of Thousand Heavens!


    Then, when she ate the Dragon-Seeking rice, her entire face and skin began to glow pure white-like milk, exposing her delicate blood-vessels underneath. After the glow dissipate, her skin had become so much more smoother that it was comparable to that of a baby! The same phenomena seemed to happened to Xu Rong as well after she ate her portion of the Dragon-Seeking rice.


    Xu Rong also ordered a dish of her own though, and it was from the ''Super Diet'' section of the menu, literally named as "Eat without getting fat!". It was made from the multitude combination of premium-grade meat that contained a lot of fats from different source of animals, just that the special herbs used in this dish, the ''Three-Clovers Ginseng'' has the properties to dissolve all those fats into spiritual Qi after consumption!


    Although she tried to maintain her lady-like air, after putting the food inside her mouth, her body could not help but to tremble intensely as her face instantly warped into the face of a glutton devil! Like a hungry wolf, she began to devour each meat with her bare hands!


    Wei Shang and Wei Wang both ordered the Emerald Leaf Coated Salmon Sushi. As soon as this piece of sushi entered their mouth, it was as if they themselves had suddenly turned into the salmon fish, marvelling through the great ocean of the far West region in the Xueming Sea.


    Next was Fei Longwei, the food that he ordered was called the Four Flavors Of the Four Seasons; a piece of tender loin the size of a grown man''s palm, quite small but within it, encassed the taste of all 4 different seasons of Summer, Spring, Autumn and Winter! Which meant that, no matter in what season one would eat this meat, they would feel themselves to be in perfect harmony with nature, causing them to be like that billowing leaves joyriding through all the 4 seasons at once!


    Guo He lastly, was pretty much knocked out at this moment. As it turns out, this fellow had ordered the Spicy Noodles of the Red Sea, which was arguably the most spiciest dish ever in the whole menu that the Seven Saints Culinary has!Heng Wu had already warned him that this dish was not meant for the faint hearted, but the latter still insisted and even went so far as to called himself as the ''spicy food lover number one'' and the result was as everyone saw; he was the fastest man to be knocked out after eating a single spoonfed of this spicy noodle!


    What a waste!


    Meng Yue on the other hand, amidst all these chaotic rivers of reactions around her, was pretty much just closing both of her eyes tightly and meditated as she waited for her Dominion King Lobster dish patiently. She firmly believed that her son would unquestionably win the bet against the retarded Fei Liquan sitting opposite of her right now.


    After all, her son has some special abilities that originated from the mysterious pearl that even she was jealous of!


    "Hahaha! Their reactions after eating their food was similar to my household pets that got some expensive food after being adopted by me for the first time!" Fei Liquan laughed as he shook his head.


    It was only fortunate that Duan Li''s followers were not listening to what he just said as they were busy enjoying their food, or else he would really get pummeled by them for real this time.


    Duan Li stared at the food in front of him intensely and activated his tetra soul sense.


    Huu!!


    [High quality food detected. Analysing.]


    [Analysis complete. Indexing in progress..]


    [Food breakdowns: Meat type..]


    [Ingredients used: ..]


    Listening to this voice inside his head listing out each ingredients used in the dish down to its finest details, Duan Li chuckled to himself.


    "As expected!" he said subconsciously.


    "Eh? What''s expected? Are you admitting defeat?" Fei Liquan whom heard this asked teasingly with a haughty smile.


    "Nothing ahaha, let me eat first." Duan Li replied as he swiftly threw side glances towards everyone''s food before digging into his own food with an elated mood.


    Slurrppp!


    "Delicious!" Duan Li said out loud with both his eyes turning into stars.


    This Golden Noodles made from the natural wheat of one of the danger zone was so smooth and rich in taste! Even the broth was utterly fantastic and was in equilibrium with the noodles itself, complimenting each other''s taste!


    Coming from the remote corner of the Xuan Village, as they practiced the frugal life, Duan Li had never once tried the taste of an expensive food before!


    To think that it would taste this good! No wonder the rest of them had such an exagerated expressions!


    Huehuehue!


    ...


    After a long while..


    "Ahh.. my stomach feels so bloated.. I might throw up at this rate!" Shen Lu said as he rest his chin on the table with a satisfied look.


    The rest of Duan Li''s party also had some similar contentment on their faces and suddenly, Xiahou Yu that was rubbing her tummy couldn''t help but exclaimed in surprise, "Hmm? My Qi cycle had increased dramatically!"


    "Eh? Me as well!" the rest followed suit as they felt the same kind of sensation inside their body.


    Not only was their Qi cycle increased by quite a fair bit, even their rate of absorption was reinforced, and their bodily cells were filled with a seemingly abundant source of energy such that, they felt they could even fight for days without exhausting their strength!


    Heng Wu nodded to their reactions as he explained, "Those are from the effects of the food you guys eat. In hindsight, the effects would be similar to when eating pills. However, the effects brought upon by such pills would at best be temporary and short. Meanwhile, the effects from high quality food would last much longer due to its content being absorbed into your body as nutrition naturally and has a very low chance of permanently increasing your innate potential as well!"


    Meng Yue whom had already known this chuckled, "This is why I love eating at this restaurant back then, it helps my cultivation speed to rose quickly because of these effects!"


    "Haha.." Heng Wu laughed awkwardly, and thought, ''You also helped us nearly becoming bankrupt as well..''


    Ting!


    "Ah, that should be the food for you two, please wait for a moment!" Heng Wu said.


    Ssuu!!


    After a short while, the old butler returned with two sets of identical dish on both of his hands.


    "This here is the Premium Grapevine Fruit Icecream as your dessert and here is the tenderloin of a Horned-bull Flying Sheep!"


    ''Horned-bull Flying Sheep?!


    That alone already costs 10 high quality spirit stones! Easily reaching the top 20 of the most expensive dish in this restaurant! Are they really giving those food for free?'' Meng Yue questioned this inwardly with suspicious eyes.


    "Haha! This is perfect! With this dish, even my supreme prowess in food decryption method would be significantly handicapped! This would be your chance to.."


    Before Fei Liquan could finish his sentence, a resounding ''pa!'' could alreadybe heard as a casual slap was thrown to his cheek by Meng Yue sitting from opposite of him.


    "Do you believe that if you speak another single sentence of nonsense that I would beat you up to half-death? Even with your Fei Clan as your background, I would still dare to slap the a*s of your clan head should he come here to back you up. Do you want to try?" Meng Yue said with a frosty tone.


    "..." Everyone.


    Yes!! Thank you for slapping him!


    "I..I.. okay.." Fei Liquan for the first time in his life experienced mindblocked in his train of thought. Never before he had expected that he would get slapped twice today by the same person.


    "Butler Heng Wu, what would happen if someone could continuously decrypt food after food?" Duan Li asked.


    "Hmm? That would be called as.. Decryption combo!"


    ...

 189 Chapter 186: Seven Saints Chefs!

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    "Decryption combo? Are those special?" Duan Li asked curiously.


    "That''s right! Although high quality food like these are extremely beneficial to cultivators as they are like excellent tonic for us, over-eating them would eventually dull your sense of taste temporarily!" Heng Wu replied.


    Meng Yue nodded to this and continued Heng Wu''s sentence, "En! I have experienced this as well and my decryption combo could only go as far as eating 3 different types of food, before my tastebuds could no longer identify the ingredients used in the next food properly."


    Hearing this, Duan Li pondered for a moment before replying, "I see.. then would I get any special discount if I could do a decryption combo?"


    Heng Wu cupped his chin, "Well, since both your mother here and young master Fei has managed to combo 3 food consecutively on the lower floors before, we gave them a 100 percent discount for all the 3 food!"


    100 percent? Isn''t that equivalent to eating for free?


    Duan Li was shocked momentarily but his eyes were shining bright after that.


    "Alright, since the food is already here, let us dilly-dally no longer and eat!" Fei Liquan who could no longer wait to satiate his hunger as well as compete with Duan Li spoke out, his tone devoid of any worry in him.


    ''He really is too confident!'' Duan Li chuckled to himself inwardly as he shook his head.


    In the world of cultivation, there was once an old saying that ''As long as one isn''t Mount.Tai, there would always be someone who are better than you.'', and at this moment, with Duan Li''s abilities, he could be said to be the very depiction of Mount.Tai itself!


    Thus, if it was as so, how could Fei Liquan even hoped to win against Duan Li''s cheating abilities? Perhaps scaling the Heavens would be a far more easier task than challenging the other party!


    Thinking about the matter no further, Duan Li began to indulge himself with the food in front of him as well.


    Nomnomnom!


    ...


    Burrpp!


    Fei Liquan belched out loud as he rubbed his stomach with a satisfied look to him.


    "This is the best dish I ever had! To think that it would be so good!" he said as he licked his lips and then turning to Duan Li, he said provocatively, "Are you ready for the food decryption battle between us next? Or do you need to go and sample some ingredients first?"


    Duan Li shook his head ignoring the latter''s remark with a smile, "It''s fine, let us immediately start! The winner was already decided anyway."


    Fei Liquan shot up his brows on this.


    Oh? He sure is confident..


    But he is indeed correct, against me, Fei Liquan, the best Culinary Seer of this Seven Saints Culinary restaurant, how could he even dream to win?


    To think that he would already indirectly announced to everyone that he would lose this battle, he is at least a little bit smart!


    After all, doing so would at least keep his honor and dignity in one piece!


    I just hope that he would not cry and complain to his mother later on..


    Her slap actually hurts quite a lot!


    Heng Wu nodded, "Please wait for a moment, I will bring along the chefs that were in charge of cooking the dishes and will return back here shortly!" he replied.


    Then, with a ''Ssuu!'', the old butler disappeared on the spot and only returned after a while later with seven people in a clean white chef''s uniform, each one of them wearing an identical plain white mask to conceal their appearance!


    "These people are?" the crowd asked curiously.


    Ahem!


    "They are the Seven Saints Culinary chefs that cooked the food everyone ate here just now!" Heng Wu answered.


    The old butler then continued, "This is especially the case for the dish that you two had eaten before, ''Premium Grapevine Fruit Icecream'' and the tenderloin of the ''Horned-bull Flying Sheep''! Those two dish alone requires all seven of the Saints Chefs here to create!"


    Woaa!!


    Everyone marveled in astonishment when they heard this.


    They knew that cooking delicious food was hard, but to require all seven of the Saints Chefs just to make those two dish?


    That''s just too extreme!


    Although they do not know the full extent of these saints chefs capabilities in cooking, just their title alone was domineering enough to send those in their same field to fear and look up upon them in reverence!


    Fei Liquan crossed both of his arms on his chest as he began to laugh out loud.


    "Alright, since you are just a beginner in this, why don''t you start first? Oh and, you can take all the time you want!" he gestured towards Duan Li casually, confident that he had already won this battle before it had even started.


    "Oh? Then, I''ll be troubling the Seven Saints Chefs first!" Duan Li almost could not contain the laughter inside of him.


    The Seven Saints Chefs nodded, and without any sorts of verbal signal, a spiritual Qi barrier was already errected and encassed both Duan Li and all the seven Saints Chefs inside, cutting off all form of sound from leaking out or going inside the barrier.


    Wongg!!


    Furthermore, to prevent the viewers from reading the lips of Duan Li and knowing what those ingredients were, the Seven Saints Chefs had positioned themselves in such a way that Duan Li''s back were facing the audience.


    In addition, what caught Duan Li''s party insurprise, was that these Seven Saints Chefs were quite powerful as well!


    They were all at least in the Golden Core formation realm!


    ...


    Inside the spiritual Qi barrier..


    "Ohh.. spiritual Qi barrier.. I guess not just anyone could learn and use spatial magic.." Duan Li noted to himself.


    After being exposed to spatial seals and barriers repeatedly from both the Emperor and the Principal, Duan Li almost forgot that those two people wereexceptional individuals within the Jiu Empire, and possessing such means was only natural for someone of their caliber.


    Shifting his attention to the seven Saints Chefs in front of him, Duan Li began to analyze them.


    Their Qi signature and aura..


    Pinnacle Stage Golden Core realm experts?


    Not bad!


    One of the Seven Saints Chefs then stepped forward, "List out the ingredients used to prepare the Premium Grapevine Fruit Icecream, the order does not matter." he said indifferently.


    Another one stepped forward and then continued, "List out ten of the ingredients, and you would be able to clear the first stage, 20 more ingredients to clear the second stage and 30 more ingredients to clear the final stage!" this person said in a similar indifferent tone.


    "Ahh.. okay, well here I go!"


    Duan Li began to tell them the names of the ingredients used in the Premium Grapevine Fruit Icecream loudly one by one.


    ...

 190 Chapter 187: Trembling! Revelation!

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    Outside the spiritual Qi barrier..


    "This brother of yours sure is a hateful fellow! How would our Lord be able to win against him like this? The Lord has never even done this before!" Wei Shang complained to Fei Longwei.


    The latter sighed, "Well, its not like I could convince Brother Liquan to stop. He had already lost to the Lord in something that he had absolute confidence at before, which is money. But since he was beaten badly in that field, he no longer cares as long as he could make their scores draw at least." Fei Longwei said.


    "I think so too. After he made this situation into a draw, he will definitely have the higher grounds! Because even though he had lost the first round before, that could be attributed on reasons that he did not bring enough money today." Xu Rong said.


    "Furthermore, if he said later on that their Fei Clan has some Superior quality spirit stones as well, who could prove that he was spouting rubbish? After all, the Fei Clan is indeed the richest clan in the Jiu Empire anyway, so there is no way we could refute him on that." she continued with gritted teeth.


    All these while, their Lord has remained undefeated on every turn and occasion that they had long gotten so used to it.


    But now, will their invincible Lord and his unbeatable record streak ends today?


    All because of some food decryption?


    Just thinking about this had them feeling extremely frustrated and indignant as they threw a fierce look towards the perpetrator for all these - Fei Liquan!


    "Eh? What''s up guys? The toilet is right over the corner!" Fei Liquan said casually and pointed somewhere as he misunderstood the intention behind their multiple dagger stares at him.


    Kuh!


    This darned bastard thought that we are having a constipation!


    At the sight of this, Shen Murong''s brows twitched furiously, his face warped into a demon''s and he grabbed the edge of the marble table to try and flip it over to Fei Liquan to vent out his frustrations.


    He could no longer tolerate this bastard, and even if his action would cause the relation between his clan, the Shen Clan with Fei Clan becomes sour, he doesn''t care a single dime about it anymore!


    However, he soon found out a startling fact that he could not lift the marble table up even an inch from the floor!


    Heng!


    Unable to believe this, he held his breath, gritted his teeth and flexed his muscles such that even his veins were popping out from his biceps and temples, making it looked like he was indeed in constipation from the disdainful eyes of Fei Liquan looking at him right now.


    ''This peasant.. is he actually going to soil himself here?'' Fei Liquan frowned.


    Meanwhile, Shen Murong could not believe the situation right now and even summoned up all his strength, resulting his face to turned even hideous, but the marble table still would not move! This had him thoroughly confused. ''What is going on? Is this table actually so heavy that a cultivator of my caliber could not even lift it?''


    It was at this moment that he saw Duan Li''s mother, Meng Yue, was staring at him intently with her right index finger pressing down onto the table firmly.


    "Don''t cause a scene now." she said with a strict, low tone.


    "Y-Yes!" Shen Murong immediately replied.


    ''How scary!'' he said inwardly as he shivered.


    One has to know that the Shen clan was famous for their brute and raw strength, such that even him, whom was only at the Foundation establishment realm could compete in terms of physical strength with a Nascent soul expert!


    This is of course, not to say that he would win, but just enough to make those experts move at least a few fingers to fend them off!


    But Duan Li''s mother here had only exerted the force of her index finger on the table alone and he could already not give it even a slight budge!


    Just where did she put such a monstrous strength in that tiny frame of her''s at?


    ''You''re not strong enough to cause trouble yet..'' Meng Yue said inwardly.


    Fei Liquan whom was watching this entire exchange could not help but to nod in approval.


    "Indeed, this Meng Yue is scary! To think that the constipation of that fellow was immediately sucked back inside him with just a short sentence from her, how domineering!" he said to himself with a grim countenance.


    Shen Lu by the side, whom was still resting his chin on top of the table, chuckled slightly as he tapped onto the shoulder of Shen Murong.


    "Don''t worry, you guys haven''t seen the extent of wealth our Lord has in his possession! At least in that area, no one would be able to compete with him, even by a single fraction!" he said, trying to reassure them.


    "Hmph!"


    Fei Liquan only snorted when he heard this, as he thought that what the other party had just said was all empty and baseless boasting.


    Xiahou Yu on the other hand, whom was ignoring the drama around her, had her eyes focused entirely on Duan Li, whom was currently inside the spiritual Qi barrier of the seven Saints Chefs while eating her fried chicken all these while.


    It was a marvel to others on how she could still continue to eat so casually despite already having such a sumptuous meal before.


    At this moment, her eyes caught something weird happening inside the spiritual Qi barrier and couldn''t helped but to voice it out to the others.


    "Hmm.. the body of those seven Saints Chefs'' seemed to be.. trembling?" she said as she tilted her head a little bit.


    "Eh?" the rest of them heard this and swerved their head to take a quick look.


    Indeed, when they saw the seven Saints Chefs, they also noticed the same thing..


    And that was; those seven Saints Chefs were trembling non-stop!


    Prior to this, all seven of them were standing tall and mighty, appearing to be unfazed by the happenings in this world such that, even if the moon were to smash right over their head, they would only snort at it disdainfully and die alongthe rest with no complaints whatsoever.


    But these same seven people right now were shivering, as if they had encountered the most impossible thing ever!


    ''Could it be.. they are also constipating?!'' Fei Liquan said inwardly as his eyes flashed in realization.


    Turning his head over towards Heng Wu with a darkened face, he bellowed out, "Old butler Heng Wu! What is up with this restaurant on everyone getting constipated tonight?! You had better give me a thorough explanation on this!"


    "H-Huh?" Heng Wu was too dumbstrucked by the words of the other party that he forgot to react properly which made his expression appeared blank.


    Kuh!


    Fei Liquan gritted his teeth.


    At first, I thought that these peasants here, were having a constipation because their weak and scrawny body of the lower-class could not handle the sudden influx of nutrients from eating all those expensive and delicious food before..


    But who would have thought that the seven Saints Chefs were now constipating too?


    Since they were the ones whom had cooked those dishes before, it makes sense for them to taste the food first before it was being served to the guests, thus becoming constipated!


    Could it be that spies from the neighbouring empire has finally decided to sabatoge our food supplies?!


    Those scums!


    "Bodyguard Lei, protect me!" he quickly said after he finished this line of thought and looked around him warrily.


    Ssuu!!


    His personal bodyguard, whom he called as ''bodyguard Lei'' immediately unsheathed his long sword and scanned the entire area near them, looking for possible enemies in hiding.


    However, after a short while, he soon discovered that there was not a single ant crawling on the floor, let alone hidden experts! Thus, he said to his young master, "Umm.. young master, there doesn''t seem to be any enemies around?"


    Hearing this, Fei Liquan did not believe it.


    "What? How could that be? Look harder!" he reprimanded the other party.


    The rest that saw this, only shook their heads in pity.


    Hais!


    This intellectually retarded fellow really caught us by surprise with his ingenuity in his way of thinking.


    Constipation? Enemies?


    Your a*s!


    "F*cking idiot.." Shen Murong said subconsciously, which was heard by Fei Liquan.


    "You heard that? You''re an idiot for not being able to spot the enemies when they''ve already discovered it!" the young scion said to bodyguard Lei.


    Pa!


    For the third time, Meng Yue sent him another tight slap on the face.


    "Pipe down!" she roared out with an angry look, reminiscent of a raging lion that got her sleep disturbed.


    Fei Liquan was stupefied yet again, and his words stuttered in between his sentences. "I.. I just.. okay.." he looked straight at the table, almost bawling out into tears.


    What a bully! When I return to my clan, I will be sure to tell them all about you bullying me!


    Shen Murong threw Duan Li''s mother a glance for this, which the latter harrumphed coldly to, "What are you looking at? The stronger could do whatever they want!" she said.


    "N-Nothing!" he replied.


    Padah!


    "Huh?" Heng Wu turned around as he heard something.


    Gasp!


    "Saints Chefs! What is going on inside there! Are you okay?" he said with a horrified expression.


    This was because one of the seven saints chefs were currently on his knees!


    Padah!


    Padah!


    ...


    Before long, another Saints Chefs fell down, and another, and then another. This continued on until none of the seven Saints Chefs were able to stand anymore!


    "Oh no.. what is happening?!" Heng Wu''s countenance turned pale, and just as he was about to break through the spiritual Qi barrier, the thing itself has already started to collapse on its own rapidly.


    To think that they could not maintain even their spiritual Qi barrier, this is a sign that their mental state has become unstable!


    Ssuu!!


    Appearing beside one of the seven Saints chefs that was currently on the ground by his bottom, Heng Wu quickly asked, "First elder, what is wrong?"


    The Saints Chef that he called as the First elder rose his trembling hand to point at Duan Li in front of them with a shaking index finger.


    He then suddenly said with an aged, archaic voice;


    "This person.. is the Culinary Overlord!"


    ...

 191 Chapter 188: Defeated! Crying to Ancestor!

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    "C-Culinary O-Overlord?" Heng Wu swallowed a mouthful of his saliva as he swerved his head to threw the other party with an agitated and emotional look.


    Gulp!


    What is an overlord?


    Those were existences that stood at the apex of all, ruling and dominating with their sheer power alone! And in the field of culinary, an overlord would meant that this Duan Li was someone who knew everything there was to know about food, ingredients, preparation and its method of cooking!


    Experts from the caliber of these seven Saints Chefs would never make a single mistake in their judgement, but for these very same eccentric individuals to be defeated and kneeling in awe like that while looking at the other party in astonishment, there was no mistaking it, they had all acknowledged Duan Li as the Culinary Overlord!


    For the second time since the very first Ancestor or the original founder of the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant foundation, another Culinary Overlord was born!


    The others that were currently looking at them from behind did not managed to heard anything, thus they were still confused with the whole situation.


    Fei Liquan on the other hand, could not help but ponder upon seeing this entire scene, "Was he so bad in food decryption technique that all the seven Saints Chefs fell on their knees and bottoms like that? Or could they possibly fell down in sheer anger because the other party had just cursed all their ancestors down to their very predecessors?" he thought as he cupped his chin.


    Whatever.


    "Alright, I can see that he is bad in food decryption, but give him some face! Everyone''s reaction is too exagerated and he might cry over this!" Fei Liquan said in a frown.


    "Furthermore, its my turn now, so hurry up because its getting late, or my father would scold me again!" he added.


    When the seven Saints Chefs heard this, they were still under the effects of being dumbstrucked by Duan Li and didn''t know how to deal with the current situation. Thus, they turned to look at Heng Wu.


    Ahem!


    "Well, since it has been the long-lasting tradition that food decryption battle should be carried out until the end, let us just continue.. even though the winner has already been decided, we had to stick with the procedure after all.." Heng Wu said awkwardly towards the Saints Chefs.


    The seven Saints Chefs all nodded to each other before standing up.


    Indeed, what the other party just said was correct! As the most reputable restaurant in the whole Jiu Empire, they must have the absolute integrity in everything they do, or they might lose some recognition!


    "Heh! Don''t embarrass me like that, let''s just get on with it. And you, Duan Li or something, just prepare yourself and don''t sulk over this later on okay? The result is only natural you know? Heheh!" Fei Liquan said while not forgetting to ''remind'' Duan Li of the ''inevitable'' outcome.


    Duan Li chuckled, "Its fine, I am okay with it, so just go."


    With a proud look, Fei Liquan stepped forward and as soon as he approached the seven Saints Chefs, the spiritual Qi barrier encompassed them within, just like Duan Li before.


    Wengg!!


    ...


    Shen Lu then swiftly ran towards Duan Li and nudged the latter by the ribs, "Hey brother! What did you do back then for all the seven Saints Chefs to be kneeling in front of you like that?"


    Duan Li smiled somewhat in a sinister manner, "Ehh, It''s nothing much.. I just listed all the ingredients within the food that I ate, the exact proportions used, and the method to prepare as well as how to cook them." Duan Li answered casually.


    HUH??


    Hearing this, his party broke out into a loud clamor.


    "What? You meant that you cleared all 3 stages of the food decryption? And not just listing the ingredients out, you also listed how they were made?" Guo He repeated Duan Li''s words with widened eyes, his breath hastened.


    I know a little bit about food decryption.. and the process should be the same as pill decryption..


    But if the Lord could do the same thing with pills as he did with food.. wouldn''t he be able to decrypt that mysterious pill that my family has passed down onto me before?


    Decrypting it word by word..


    "Yup. Oh! And by the way, I also decrypted everyone''s food before while I was at it. This way, we don''t have to pay anything at all tonight!" Duan Li continued.


    EH?


    "We are eating for free?!!" they shouted all at the same time with their eyes shining.


    Wang Xiolun whom was mostly silent all these while found that a little bit weird, so he inquiried, "How did you do that my Lord?"


    The others also nodded at this, feeling extremely curious as to how their Lord did it, because Duan Li had never tried their food before, so how could he even decrypt those?


    ''Was decrypting food without eating them even possible?'' they thought with an agitated and excited look.


    Realizing this, Duan Li swiftly came up with an excuse.


    "Well, let''s just say that my nose is quite sensitive.." he answered with an awkward laugh.


    After all, he couldn''t possibly reveal them his cheating abilities, or they might throw him a fit!


    ''Your nose is quite sensitive? Are you a dog?'' Shen Murong did not believe him, and he knew that Duan Li did not want to disclose such a well-guarded secret so easily.


    Sneaking a glance towards his mother whom was currently just sitting leisurely, he saw his mother also looking at him at this moment, giving him a wide grin with a thumbs up.


    ''As expected of my son!'' was what seemed to be conveyed behind that face of her''s, which made Duan Li quite happy.


    Of all people, only perhaps his mother knew everything about him and his abilities, and that was why she was so confident in him.


    ...


    Wengg!!


    Fei Liquan walked towards them with big strides, his hands behind his back, and his face revealing a proud smile, the kind of expression that hinted he had nailed it big time!


    "The food decryption was a little bit tougher this time around, but in the end against my godlike capabilities, I still managed to decrypt the Premium Grapevine Fruit Icecream up untill the second stage!" he said.


    Oh?


    ''This fellow is at least legitimately good in this field.. unfortunately for him, I have my own abilities that lets me cheat!'' Duan Li chuckled while feeling a genuine respect for the other party as well as pity at the same time.


    Just from the results of the tetra soul sense that he got, he knew that all those listed ingredients were blended in so perfectly at the right ratio such that it was almost impossible to tell them apart!


    Therefore, from this, Duan Li could tell that this Fei Liquan was actually really talented!


    "Unfortunately, the Horned-bull Flying Sheep dish was far too difficult! I only managed to decrypt the first stage, and even then, I had used up all three chances!" Fei Liquan shook his head in lamentation, and Duan Li also nodded upon this, agreeing with him.


    He saw the results of the scan of this dish as well, and all the ingredients used were made to eliminate the taste of each other in order to bring out the taste of the tenderloin meat to its pinnacle!


    With such food preparation, unless one was really gifted by the Heavens, they wouldn''t be able to tell any differences at all!


    Clap! Clap!


    "Alright, its time for the result!" Heng Wu clapped his hands to attract their attention.


    Ahem!


    "The winner is.. Duan Li!" he revealed out loud.


    Silence..


    The crowd was so quiet that a fart would definitely be heard if one did not held it in.


    "Hehe.. Hahaha!"


    Fei Liquan started to laugh after a while until his stomach was hurting and his eyes tearing up.


    "Now that was the most funniest and effective prank I ever experienced! Why did you guys have to be so cruel? Aren''t you giving him a false sense of accomplishment only to destroy it a moment later? Geez!" he said as he shook his head, thinking that the old butler and the saints chefs were just too naughty to play such pranks on them.


    He tapped onto Duan Li''s shoulder as he encouraged the latter, "Don''t take it too personally, they only wanted to liven up the atmosphere a little bit, so cheer up okay?"


    Hais!


    Duan Li didn''t know whether to laugh or cry at this moment.


    "No.. we''re not playing around, the winner is really him!" Heng Wu pointed towards Duan Li.


    "Eeyyy~ tsk tsk tsk! That cannot be. He is just a beginner that had never decrypted food like these before, so how could he possibly win against me, the best of all Culinary Seer in this restaurant?" he said casually.


    Heng Wu sighed and everyone else also did not know what to say so that they could convince him.


    Tap!


    It was at this moment that one of the Saints Chefs stepped forward and took off his mask.


    "F-First Elder!" the other Saints Chefs including the old butler Heng Wu were surprised by this.


    The reason why they wore the mask was to conceal their identities for two reasons; one was so that no one could pester them on how to cook delicious food, and the other was to protect themselves from becoming the victim of kidnapping!


    "It''s fine." the First Elder said as he waved his hand dismissively and continued, "I trust everyone here has good moral standings and would not divulge our identities to others, am I right?" he asked with a confident smile.


    "Eh? Of course! Why would we even do that?" Duan Li and his party replied.


    Hearing their response, the First elder chuckled and then turned around to instruct the other Saints Chefs, "You guys can open your masks too."


    As they took off their masks, a series of gasps could be heard from Duan Li''s side.


    All the seven Saints Chefs were extremely old!


    Eventhough their Qi signature was obvious that they were all only in the Golden Core realm, the aura they were radiating out right now felt so archaic and vicissitudinous!


    However, there was something weird about them right now, as their gazes seemed to be locked onto Duan Li, their faces flushed red, as if seeing their long-lost father from ages ago.


    This caused the latter becoming nervous as he instinctively took a step back, "W-What is it?" he asked warily as he covered his chest, feeling that they were ogling at him in an excessive manner!


    "Ah! Pardon our rudeness!" the First Elder made a dry cough as he realized Duan Li had misunderstood them.


    Cough! Cough!


    "Young man of the Fei Clan, while you are indeed impressive, and we had never seen such a talent like yours before in the hundreds of years since we lived, this is a battle that you had clearly lost." he said to Fei Liquan with his hands behind his back, exuding the air of an expert.


    "W-What? No! I refuse to believe it! How could that be? I demand a proper explanation!" Fei Liquan shouted, his mind in a mess.


    The First Elder shook his head slowly with closed eyes, and then turned his head to look outside and stare at the full moon.


    "Before, you were indeed the best of all Culinary Seers we have ever met. In the span of just 3 years, you''ve managed to outclass every other Culinary Seers on our lists, even her, Meng Yue over there.. we have never expected anyone to beat her previous record before.. but you managed to do it!" he said.


    And then, he turned towards Fei Liquan once more, but this time, he stared right into the eyes of the other party before he continued.


    "But, do you dare to claim that you are the winner in front of the Culinary Overlord?!"


    BAM!


    It was at this moment that it suddenly hit Fei Liquan, and his body began to tremble as he stepped back bit by bit, his countenance pale as if he had just saw a ghost and pointed towards Duan Li with trembling hands.


    "C-Culinary O-Overlord? H-Him?"


    Padah!


    Fei Liquan dropped to his knees, all his hopes of winning against the other party was snuffed at this moment, replacing that, was a deep despair and helplessness!


    Three years ago, when he first came to this restaurant, he fell in love with the food they served, and from that moment on, he became dedicated to become the best Culinary Seer ever!


    Day and night, he would go towards the colossal library that his clan has, and studied innumerable amounts of ingredients used to make food and pills. Not only that, he had also spent quite a huge fortune on procuring rare ingredients just to taste them and solidifying his foundations, even at the cost of being reprimanded by his father numerous times.


    All of it, he had done it all in order to achieve and obtain that title that ruled over all the Culinary Seers, the Culinary Overlord!


    Never in his wildest dreams, that the title he had put his all into pursuing, would now fall to someone else!


    His heart broken, tears started to roll down his cheek. And as if the Heavens were feeling his deep remorse, the clear night suddenly turned cloudy, and light drizzle fell off from the night sky, covering the whole Jiu Empire with the sadness of a lone man!


    He had once overheard the elders within his clan gossiping about him being incompetent and a fool, unsuitable to be the heir of a prestigious and important clan like the Fei Clan, and he knew that they were correct.


    He didn''t know why, but his sense of logic just did not connect with others, and when he found his passion in food decryption that eventful day, he thought to himself that maybe, just maybe, if he could become the Culinary Overlord, he would at least not bring shame to his father!


    Kuh!


    Grabbing his chest that was filled with thousand of needles poking at his heart right now, he asked Duan Li.


    "How? How did you managed to do it?"


    Duan Li was feeling a little bit guilty at this stage, but he can''t possibly reveal his secret, and he can''t give him a different answer than what he told the others before, so scratching the back of his head slowly, he awkwardly said;


    "Well, my nose is quite good, I only have to smell things a little bit and would immediately know what it was made from.."


    Puu!!


    Fei Liquan spitted out a mouthful of blood and dropped to the ground, his ears twitching as if it could not believe what words had just entered through it.


    "Ancestor.. forgive your predecessor here for being incompetent.."


    Puu!!


    Spitting out another mouthful of blood, Fei Liquan finally fainted and lost his consciousness.


    ...

 192 Chapter 189: Entering the Eternal Maze once more!

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    "He fainted? Hah! Should I represent everyone here and kick him while he is down?" Shen Murong turned his head around with a wide grin and both his arms folded on his chest.


    "That.. would not be convenient for us.. haha.." said Fei Liquan''s personal bodyguard, Lei.


    While we pretty much would want to do that ourselves too, by the end of it all, he is still our young master, so we can''t possibly do such a disloyal and unfilial act.. at least not in front of everyone else here anyway..


    "The shock on him must''ve been pretty great, but this is good for him as well. After all, under the Heavens, if one wanted to step above all, one must first face Mount.Tai itself! Only after one could stood at its peak, will they be truly be the one!" the First Elder said with his archaic voice, and his hands behind his back.


    The rest nodded at this, but inwardly, they were thinking, ''To stood above Mount.Tai? Isn''t that impossible?''


    Fei Liquan''s servants carried their fainted young master and after his bodyguard Lei bid their farewell, the third floor was now open only to themselves as the First Elder instructed Heng Wu to close and lock down the door.


    "Now that they are gone.. the seven of us here have a proposal to make.." the First elder turned towards Duan Li.


    Ahem!


    "Culinary Overlord, will you inherit this restaurant?" he said, the excitement in his voice could hardly be contained.


    BAM!


    "Huh?" everyone became so flabbergasted that their expression turned into that of a puffer fish.


    Heng Wu''s countenance turned pale when he heard this, "F-First Elder, don''t be so rash! We must first held a meeting between the manager.."


    "Enough!" the First Elder interjected him.


    He then continued, "This Seven Saints Culinary restaurant was first founded by our founding fathers whom were the chefs at that time, and when we inherit their mantle, we are the ones whom are actually in power, not those greedy managers!"


    Another saints chefs stepped forward, "The First elder is right, look.. we are already so old, and we have mastered so much in the art of cooking. But do you not see that we had only cooked a few times per month because hardly anyone could ever step on the third floor?"


    "I agree with the Second elder.."


    "Me too." the rest of the saints chefs nodded.


    All of them had trained very hard to reach the current level they were in right now, for the very purpose of serving people with the best food people could eat.


    But if there was only a few whom could actually bought, eat and taste them, then what''s the purpose?


    Wouldn''t that meant that their extravagant skills that they had honed for countless years was wasted?


    Heng Wu sighed, "I understand, but the matter is not that simple.. to procure rare ingredients had required us to hire powerful cultivators.. especially the kind of food that you elders here cooked."


    "In addition, all those ingredients used on this third floor were from the danger zones! If we did not put an expensive price for the cost of procurement, who would even want to risk their life going to all those places?" he added.


    Originally, the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant was started by only seven Saints Chefs during its earliest days, but overtime as their popularity grew, their customers increased exponentially causing them to hire other chefs to cook all the simple meals.


    Eventually, they had to hire more to track all their financial expenses and income, and thus they hired managers to sort all those complicated tasks for them so that they could focus only on cooking the best dish.


    Over time, these managers began to change the layout of their restaurant in order to keep up with the public demands and was thus divided into three floors until today.


    However, the managers soon began to found out that they were raking in quite a lot of money, so they changed the business model and make everything much more expensive, turning it into a luxury restaurant. As a result, only the well-offs could dine in at their restaurant.


    "So you say that, but the overall income we have per year exceeded our expenses by a wide margin! Even when recoveringour loses from the tyr- I mean lady Meng Yue, we have already profitted so much in recent years, so why is this nonsense system still standing? We need to change it and that is why we need the Culinary Overlord!" the First elder said.


    According to tradition, a Culinary Overlord could over-rule changes made by anyone below them, or even change them entirely! And since hierarchy was strictly adhered to, no one would be able to go against Duan Li should he inherit the restaurant as its Culinary Overlord!


    "Again, I understand First elder, but even if he is a Culinary Overlord, inheriting the restaurant is just not possible! Remember, the blood rite requires 10 person to agree, and all seven of you holds that power, while the other three belongs to the managers." Heng Wu explained.


    This blood rite system was created in order for any major overhauls to the current system in the restaurant to be agreed first by everyone in the absence of a Culinary Overlord. Thus, in order for Duan Li to become their Culinary Overlord, he must first be acknowledged by all those 10 people, and only then could he make any sorts of changes he wished!


    However, it was downright impossible because what the seven Saints Chefs wanted, was to lower the prices down for each food so that they could cook for more people, and the managers would never agree upon this!


    "H-Hold up! Since when did I agree to inherit this restaurant? I''m a busy person!" Duan Li interjected them.


    "Eh? Perhaps you are still not clear on the benefits of being the Culinary Overlord of our restaurant?" the First Elder said in surprise.


    Surely, since the other party possessed such a heaven-sent talent in food decryption, he would at least know a thing or two about the privilege of being a Culinary Overlord?


    Yet, why does it seemed like he is a complete newbie at this?


    Seeing that completely blank look on the other party, the First elder sighed and started to explain, "Other than being able to command all the other chefs in this restaurant, and change its system structure into anything you want, you could practically have the finest dish to help you cultivate!"


    The Second elder nodded and continued where the First elder left off, "Indeed! As cultivators, one would benefit greatly by consuming the finest dish cooked by us! Take for example ourselves, although we are quite talented in the field of cooking, our innate potential in cultivation was severely lacking before!"


    The other Saints Chefs began to chimed in excitedly as well, "That''s right! In fact, our realm should not have been able to reach the Golden Core realm, yet, not only did we managed to achieve that, our lifespan has increased by a few hundreds of years too!"


    "True! It''s all because we have eaten many nutritious food of the highest quality before! However, there are more high quality food and ingredients that we had procured but was not able to eat!"


    "Strictly speaking, we could actually cook them into the perfect dish, but we can''t eat them since the price for its procurement is extremely high!"


    "However, there is one person who could eat it.. and that is the Culinary Overlord!"


    "Also-.."


    ...


    They continued to talk on and on about the perks of being their Culinary Overlord.


    Hearing all these benefits laid out in front of him, it dawned onto Duan Li something that he had never thought of before!


    "Hang on.. if I really become their Culinary Overlord and could do all I want.. added with my status of the Imperial Overseer.."


    Duan Li clenched his fists tightly.


    He could usher an era of gourmet, inducing power-ups for the people to quickly become stronger!


    Now that''s exciting!


    "Alright alright! I get it! I''ll be this Culinary Overlord then! Hais!" Duan Li said, trying to look like he was actually reluctant to accept it.


    After all, he had already shown his disinterest in the role before, thus, if he were to become giddy just because of all those perks, it might came out as a little bit pathetic.


    And that would be equal to losing face as the Imperial Overseer!


    "See? He agreed to become the Culinary Overlord of our restaurant!" said the First elder, contentment was written all over his face.


    In contrast to this, Heng Wu was still deeply concerned, "But.. even if he agrees, how would you elders convinced the three managers? As the guardian for this restaurant, I don''t want the relationship between you ten to be distant because of this.."


    Duan Li then waved his hand casually, as he replied to this in place of the elders, "Give me a week, and they will definitely agree."


    A week?


    Where did he suddenly get this confident of his from?


    Heng Wu frowned.


    "Hey, where is my food? My son has already won so I should be getting my food now!" Meng Yue whom was low profile all these while suddenly spoke out loudly.


    Ah!


    Ssuu!!


    Heng Wu disappeared in a flash and returned back with the dish - Dominion King Lobster!


    "We almost forgot about this dish.. please, enjoy your meal lady Meng Yue!" Heng Wu said with a polite bow befitting of a butler.


    "Hmph!" Meng Yue snorted before she start to dig in her food.


    Nomnomnom!


    Heng Wu then scurried away with the seven elders to the corner of the room, glancing towards Duan Li''s direction once in a while, appearing to be discussing something important.


    Duan Li wasn''t bothered by it though.


    Not too long after, Meng Yue finally finished eating. With a loud belch, she wiped off her mouth with a handkerchief and then said, "Its time for us to leave and return back to the academy, its getting late now!" she reminded.


    ...


    After Duan Li''s party left the restaurant, a man with an all-black uniform suddenly appeared behind Heng Wu.


    "How was it? Did you managed to find out anything about that student named Duan Li?" he asked.


    The man replied, "His background is quite normal and wasn''t exactly hidden. His kin is only his mother, the well known tyrant Meng Yue, and they have a home back in the Xuan village. Furthermore, this student Duan Li is a junior that just got enrolled into the academy very recently."


    He then continued giving his reports, "If anything about him is noteworthy, its that I managed to piece out his recent locations.. and it turns out.. that he had been invited to the Royal Palace for at least two times!"


    Hearing all these, Heng Wu pondered for a moment as he cupped his chin, "Hmm.. I see, that''s all. You may go!"


    Ssuu!!


    The black-uniformed man disappeared into thin air as Heng Wu walked towards the balcony. Staring at the full moon, he couldn''t help but to wonder;


    ''Who exactly are you?''


    ...


    The morning swiftly came the following day, and after talking to his party, instructing them to condition themselves and reach the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm for as soon as they can, he departed with his mother to meet the Principal in the latter''s office.


    Knock! Knock!


    "Principal, send me back to the entrance of the Eternal maze.. I''m ready to enter again!" Duan Li said, his eyes full of confidence.


    The Principal turned to Meng Yue, a little bit concerned about the safety of Duan Li.


    "Are you sure that you are willing to let him venture again? For disclaimer purposes, let me tell you that the only cultivators on the Foundation establishment realm that we had sent to enter and managed to return was only at the level 1, and the difficulty was already so terrible that he came back with grievous wounds after that!" he said.


    Meng Yue waved her hand, "It''s fine! Now that I have witnessed myself on what he could do, I''m confident that the difficulty shouldn''t exceed the level of a Nascent Soul realm!"


    ''For even one of the Dark Sect member was done in by my son, a mere Eternal Maze designed to test the limits of a Foundation establishment realm cultivator was not worth a mention!'' she snorted proudly as she thought of this.


    The Principal sighed and then nodded.


    "Very well!"


    With a series of complex hand incantation gestures, their surrounding space began to distort before they disappeared from the Principal''s office.


    Wengg!!


    When they reappeared, the location was already changed into that of a huge underground cave filled with countless stalactites and stalagmites, while the air feels damp and cold.


    "So this is the cave where the Eternal Maze resides.." said Meng Yue as she looked around. This was her first time ever being inside here.


    In front of them stood a vast coiling vortex. This vortex alternated between the shades of blue and violet in color. Spiralling towards the center, they became darker until it formed a void that was pitch black and seemed to be the entrance into the abyss!


    Meng Yue narrowed her eyes as she saw this vortex.


    ''What an aura!'' she said inwardly in surprise. This was because she could detect that the vortex itself emitted a fearsome power that was impossible to gauge!


    Between the vortex and where they are standing right now, stood that mighty and gigantic red temple gate, withered from the countless passings of time.


    "Beyond that gate is already the zone that will start to suck you in to the vortex once you step in." said the principal as he pointed out towards the red gate to Meng Yue.


    "I see.. well, are you ready?" she turned to her son.


    "Yes mother! Next time when I return back, I will be at the pinnacle stage of the Core realm!" Duan Li replied to his mother excitedly.


    Hais!


    Never before in my life have I ever heard someone mentioning that they could ascend one whole realm as easily as drinking water!


    The Principal shook his head before he realized something and widened his eyes.


    "Eh wait! Are you not bringing in any supplies with you? Where is the rucksack backpack that I gave you before? You know that your spatial ring would not work inside the Eternal Maze!" he said towards Duan Li.


    "Don''t worry, I found a work around for that!" Duan Li answered with a thumbs up.


    "Alright, it''s time for me to go! Mother, I''ll see you again in a few days!" he said as he ran off and entered the portal.


    Wengg!!


    And just like that, his figure distorted and turned into a small dot, disappearing from their sight.


    ...

 193 Chapter 190: The fellow whom likes to cause trouble!

    Wengg!!


    "I''m finally bac-.. huh?"


    Aaaaaaaaaahhh!


    As soon as Duan Li entered the Eternal Maze, he wasn''t teleported on land with a stable footing below him, but instead on the air, high above the atmosphere!


    If it was just that, he wouldn''t mind it at all, because cultivators of his realm could already fly. But what horrified him at this moment was that, he couldn''t fly at all!


    Thus, he was falling down at a rapid speed!


    Peww~


    Poof! Poof!


    Layers upon layers of clouds was penetrated by his falling body, his face became pale as he continued to plunge down.


    "A-At this rate, if I happen to ram straight onto something with the current speed I''m free-falling with, I will undoubtedly turn into a bloody meat-paste and die!"


    Poof!


    Eh?


    As soon as he penetrated through that last cloud, the scene below him had shocked him greatly!


    Currently still free-falling through the sky, he could see that there were two vast volcanic island on the opposite side of each other, one bigger than the other, surrounded by a vast ocean around them with many small islands and reefs in between the two.


    For a moment or so, Duan Li was completely mesmerized by this beautiful scene and couldn''t help but to forgot his current predicament.


    After all, the place where the Jiu Empire was located was inland, and while there were huge rivers the size of an ocean slithering around their Empire, Duan Li had never been able to experience such a sight as these before!


    Pah!


    It was only after a seagull that flew in straight for his face and slapped him with its wings that he snapped back to reality.


    "Damned bird!"


    When he squinted his eyes to look far below him, he was even more horrified!


    It was a small rocky island!


    If he were to directly collide with that island, then...!!


    "Think! Think!" Duan Li brainstormed his mind with gritted teeth as he closed his eyes tightly.


    Judging from the distance, he would reach the ground in another 10 to 15 breaths of time, so he had to think of a way to escape from such a shameful death before then!


    Ah! I know!


    Duan Li stabilized his body from falling horizontally to vertically.


    At first glance, this change in body position seemed like Duan Li wanted to court death even earlier, as this position had drastically reduced the air resistance acting on his body this way, causing his plunging speed to increase dramatically!


    But when one observed closely, it was apparent that Duan Li was getting himself into a stance!


    Clenching his fists tightly, he then punched out!


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    BAM!


    Due to the recoil force of the punch, Duan Li''s relative position had changed slightly, and this discovery solidified his previous theory on how to save himself, thus he punched out rapidly.


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    Finally, after only about 3 more breathsleft before he would collide with the island, he managed to change his landing from the rocky island to the water body around it!


    Splash!


    Puaa!!


    "T-That.. was close!" Duan Li said after he swam back up to the surface, before continuing to swim all the way back to the rocky island.


    Pant! Pant!


    "It seems like.. not only was my ability to fly was being nulled.. even my stamina was drastically reduced!" Duan Li breathed out heavily as he laid down on the rocks.


    This kind of wretched stamina was like back to being a mortal that had not cultivated at all!


    After a moment''s rest, he stood up and tried to look around. But because he could not fly, he had to climb the rocks a little bit to get a good vantage point.


    Standing at the peak, Duan Li could see that the two volcanic islands and some of the smaller islands around it were covered in wild and lush vegetations, a lot of it were green in color, some red and oranges, while the starking ones were purple in color!


    "By the looks of it, this place seems to be quite tropical.. and while there are no limits to the spiritual Qi here, it is extremely thin!"


    Hmm.. I''ve used up quite a bit of my spiritual Qi before to propel myself away from harm just now, so I should try to recover some of it while I can, for who knows what else would I be surprised with later on?


    Duan Li then sat down cross-legged on the rocks and was about to meditate, before he could feel some sounds from his dantian.


    "This is..!!"


    Narrowing his eyes in alarm, Duan Li swiftly realized what it was!


    Closing both eyes, he drove his consciousness inside his lower dantian, and when he arrived, he saw that those two egg-like shape cacoons was starting to tremble!


    Crack! Crack!


    Wengg!!


    "Hahaha! We did it!" said an excited voice as it emerged from the cacoon.


    It was Dilong, the Earth dragon. Her previous puny appearance, akin to a malnutritioned earthworm has now metamorphed into an even bigger earthworm with improved and less hideous outlook.


    Furthermore, her smooth pink skin from before was now replaced by thick pink scales. At first glance, she looked more like an armadillo than a dragon.


    "Great! I feel more confident in this body! Its much more convenient!" Zhulong said as he smashed the cacoon with its legs, revealing an impressive appearance.


    Previously, he looked nothing more than like a close relative of Cucko with his chicken-like figure. But now, those fluffy feathers looked more like steel, and his body shape has more aerodynamic angles to it, with two small horns jutted out from its temples!


    "Ohh.. so this is the Newborn stage of an Elemental spirit eh? Not too bad.." Duan Li said as he nodded in awe.


    The Newborn stage, this was the first step for them to be able to exist within the physical realm through projection of a spectral body using their consciousness outside of the host. While their abilities to help the host would still be limited, they could already manipulate the surroundings to a certain degree according to their elemental attributes.


    "That''s right! Now that we are already in this form, we can help master in the physical world too!" Dilong replied as she wriggle around in her new body.


    "Oh! but we can''t do any physical battle yet, that would only be possible once we reached the Rookie stage!" Zhulong added.


    Duan Li nodded, "I see, well currently, I''m in quite a pinch, so I was wondering if you two could help me out, but don''t worry, this doesn''t involve fighting or anything complicated like that."


    "Anything for you master!" the two simultaneously replied. They then explained to Duan Li on how he could just literally ''willed'' for them to project themselves into the physical world.


    Thus, Duan Li gave it a try according to their instructions.


    "Come out, Dilong and Zhulong!"


    Wengg!!


    Two small figures started to materialize on Duan Li''s left and right respectively, and like a bubble burst, Dilong and Zhulong''s spectral body, which was translucent, appeared.


    "Ohh! The physical world! Hahaha! It''s been such a long time!" Dilong excitedly shouted as she flew around in circles.


    Meanwhile, Zhulong was much more focused and analytical of his new surroundings, and something caught his attention, "Wait a minute.. this is the physical world.. but I am detecting signs of it being a looped space!"


    Dragons, creature of the apex, were highly attuned beings to spatial fluctuations, and added with the fact that these two dragons were Elemental Origin Spirit creature at the same time, which harnesses the might of nature, they could detect that the physical world they were in right now were in another space!


    "Looped space? What is that?" Duan Li asked Zhulong.


    Zhulong then began to explain that a Looped space was actually quite similar to the alternate dimension space within a spatial ring. However, the main differences between them was that, it could actually store living creatures within it and has the element of Time!


    "I see.. well, this is indeed not in the same physical world as the one I lived in.. this place here is called the Eternal Maze!" Duan Li told him.


    He then continued, "But if it is really as what you''ve just said, then isn''t that the same with my spatial ring here?" Duan Li said as he pointed to that black spatial ring on his ring finger.


    Zhulong nodded, "Yes master, it was actually my first time encountering a unique spatial ring such as yours.." he answered.


    Hmm..


    Duan Li pondered for a moment before deciding to put the matter at the back of his head.


    "Dilong, Zhulong, as you both can see here, the amount of spiritual Qi in this place is quite abundant, but its extremely thin! This means that my rate of absorption would be extremely slow.. coupled with the fact that I have 3 dantians active, it would take forever to accumulate enough for my recovery.. do you guys have any solutions?" he asked.


    Dilong and Zhulong both looked at each other when they heard this and then turned back to Duan Li, "So this is the pinch master was having? That''s quite simple for us to resolve! And luckily, this place is heavily affected by the fire and earth attribute due to its environment, so it would be even easier for us!"


    Oh?


    Previously, Duan Li did not have too much expectations placed on them as they just evolved from their cacoon, but who knew that they would be immediately reliable right now just when he was in a pinch?


    Both closed their eyes, and began to meditate as they absorbed the surrounding spiritual Qi directly from the element source themselves instead of from the air.


    Dilong was an Earth dragon, so her area of expertise was manipulating everything that concerns the Earth element, and this was especially the case for plants!


    Which means that, the denser the amount of vegetation around her was, the higher her efficiency would be in terms of its manipulation!


    Similarly, Zhulong was a Fire dragon, and the two volcanic islands were both an excellent source of fire element for him to manipulate!


    Since the actual body of these two were inside Duan Li''s lower dantian and their spectral body right now was just a projection, the moment they cultivate directly from the element source themselves such as from the plants and volcanic magma, the spiritual Qi absorbed was dumped straight into Duan Li''s lower dantian!


    "Oho! I''m feeling it! Continue on what you guys are doing right now!" Duan Li said as he closed his eyes, activating the All-Seeing eyes ability. He then rerouted the spiritual Qi from his lower dantian to redistribute them towards his two other dantians, so that all three would receive the same amount of spiritual Qi.


    "Hahaha! This is great! It''s even a little bit faster than when cultivating back at home!"


    Alright, since the amount of spiritual Qi is no longer a concern here, I''ll just save that spiritual Qi I stored inside my spatial ring for emergency purposes then!


    and..


    It''s time to make a breakthrough!


    Hong long!


    Removing the limitations he placed inside his meridians and pathways all these while, Duan Li''s cultivation state began to swiftly soar in an unprecedented speed!


    ...


    Deep inside the magma chamber of the larger Volcanic island, the silhouette of an old man could be seen sitting cross-legged within the magma itself.


    Usually, wherever a magma touches, it would burn everything down to ashes! But this old man that was within it was like having a leisure hot bath instead, entirely unaffected by the extreme heat of the magma around him.


    At this moment, the brows of this old man twitched as if he had detected something and opened his eyes.


    Frowning, he said, "Who dares to lower the temperature? Hmph! Brazen!!"


    ...

 194 Chapter 191: Darned bastard! Islands on fire!

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    ### Notice ###


    This old man was not too burly and big, but has enough muscle definition while keeping a slim appearance that would deter most people from offending him at first sight.


    After all, even if the physical body shape does not necessarily equates to a cultivator''s strength, the human instinct would always view those with great physique in caution due to its defensive nature.


    Furthermore, even though the wrinkles on his face would immediately gave out his old age to others, his facial appearance remained sharp and angular. Coupled with the fact that he has no beard but only moustache, others would have the impression that this old man was actually quite suave despite his age.


    "I have been cultivating silently for 500 years and almost broke through to the Entering Omnipresence Realm State, to think that someone would dare to disturb me in the last critical moment.. hmph! let''s see what kind of fool entered the Second region this time!" the old man gnashed his teeth as he clenched his fists, and then delivered a swift punch upwards.


    BTTOOMMMMM!!


    Like an unstoppable beast, the simple punch of this old man harnesses the might of a whole mountain and pushes everything in its way upwards indiscriminately.


    The result was that, the huge volcanic island has a momentary loud explosion and spewed out molten magma and fireballs to its surroundings!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Hmph!!


    With a casual snort, this old man pushed his legs against the magma below him, and the resulting force shot him high up through the main volcanic vent until he reached the sky and finally up above the atmosphere, producing a few sonic booms while he was at it due to the ridiculous ascending speed.


    Once he reached a certain height, he was no longer ascending but began to descend. From this, it was apparent that even this seemingly powerful old man could not escape the laws of this small world.


    Shifting his gaze to look below him with that gemstone-like clarity of his bright blue pair pupils, he narrowed his eyes and willed;


    "Heavenly Sense!!"


    Wongg!!


    Heavenly Sense was an upgrade to the Soul Sense that Nascent Soul realm experts obtained when they reached that realm, but Heavenly Sense could only be gained once one ascended to the realms of immortality!


    As if the whole world was enlarged in his view like a pair of magnifying glasses, he began to search for the source that lowered the temperature of the magma that he was in a moment ago.


    After all, he wasn''t inside the pool of magma for fun, but was actually cultivating using a unique method that made use of extreme temperatures to temper both his physical body and inner body at the same time, such as his meridians and pathways.


    This was because in order to enter the Omnipresence Realm State, one of its compulsory requirements was that one''s physical and inner body, must firstly reached a state where it could withstand a unique Lightning Tribulations from the Heavens called the Three Severing process.


    From the name itself, the Lightning Tribulation would consists of only three lightning bolts the size of an adult''s thigh.


    The first bolt, will severe a person''s sense of space. If one''s physical and inner body state was not strong enough, they would quickly disintegrate into smaller molecular atoms and die.


    The second bolt, will severe a person''s sense of perception itself. This will cause the Heavenly Sense of the cultivator to spread out continuously away from their body, and if the cultivator did not manage to stop their perception from spreading out in time, then their soul would extinguish and they will also die.


    Finally, the third bolt will attempt to disintegrate a cultivator''s source of power, which was their spiritual Qi. If their Qi cycle was not fast enough, then they will implode from within, and in that case, death would be inevitable.


    All these was a test on whether one is worthy enough to make use of the ability that could only be gained by stepping into the Omnipresence realm state..


    Omnipresence Perception!


    In this state, one''s perception would always be monitoring their surroundings everytime as if they were there the whole time, and if they so wanted, with just a single thought, they would appear in that very location itself in a single instant!


    To put it into a simple analogy, if both Soul Sense and Heavenly Sense was an ability that requires activation to be used, Omnipresence Perception was a similar ability but does not requires any sorts of activation at all, because it is a passive ability!


    In addition, the higher one''s realm in this state were, the further their perception could reach. For example, if their Heavenly Sense could reach tens of kilometers before, then their Omnipresence perception would be similar in radius as well!


    This means that, a cultivator in the Omnipresence realm state were always aware of everything within a thousand kilometers square around them and could travel within that space in a matter of instant!


    While there were ways to avoid being voyuered on by these beings, such as cultivators of the same realm state or those from the higher realms, this was what an Omnipresence Realm State experts could basically do!


    And for those in the lower realm, well..


    Just make sure to always put their clothes on!


    "Hmph! Found you, let''s see what you are doing right now.."


    Puu!!


    What the hell!


    The sight before him had left him so shocked and stupefied that the words he was about to say was stucked in his throat, causing him to choke on his own saliva!


    This was because after he found out who the perpetrator was, that person seemed to be running around on a small island filled with coconut trees and burning them down!


    This guy is an arsonist!


    "How the hell did such a lunatic was allowed to enter the Eternal Maze? Just what is going on in the Tian Continent nowadays that they let in such a crackhead like this person entered?!" he cursed under his breath.


    But soon, he found out something peculiar about the seemingly crazy fellow.


    "Eh? He sat down cross-legged in the middle of the island? Meditating?"


    And a few moments later, he was once again flabbergasted!


    At first, he thought that the deranged fellow was just burning things up on random, but that was actually not the case!


    "The fire.. was slowly being extinguished.. this is.. absorbing spiritual Qi directly from the source?!"


    No wonder the magma he was in had dropped by a few degrees so suddenly!


    Every element and things in the world possess their own unique spiritual Qi, but these Qi were like those inside their dantian, which no matter if there were a million cultivators around them meditating, they won''t be able to aborb even a drop of the spiritual Qi inside their dantian because it was already their''s!


    Therefore, one has to know that such a thing was absolutely impossible! At least not until one''s cultivation had entered the Forming Realm and Law state!


    "Even my unique cultivation technique does not allow me to extract spiritual Qi directly from the source itself.."


    That fellow was clearly still in the Early stage of the Core formation realm.. so how did he managed to do it?


    Eh? Hang on a second..


    His cultivation.. is skyrocketing?!


    Early stage!


    Middle stage!


    Late stage!


    and...


    Pinnacle!


    Hisss!!


    The old man had to cover up his mouth with his hand so that he would not choke on himself again as he watched the entire scene unfolding before his very eyes.


    "W-While he is indeed still under the mortal wheels of fate, such rate of breaking through stages straight to the pinnacle of a realm was far too fast! Even back in my heyday, this was still unheard of!"


    No matter if one was still a mortal or an immortal, the very act of cultivation was already a show of defiance towards the Heavens, and if breaking through stages was as simple as drinking water, there would already be no mortals left.


    Thus, how could cultivation be so easy?


    At least that, was his worldview until this very moment, and what Duan Li had just done before him had forced him to open up his horizon!


    It was said that if one had not yet experienced things beyond the conventional, then one hasn''t seen the world yet.


    "This young man is clearly not simple.. let''s see what else he could do.."


    Slightly pushing his feet towards the back direction akin to swimming, he started to propel himself forward.


    ...

 195 Chapter 192: All pets come out and fetch!

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    "Hahaha! As expected! Since the Fire element is more abundant here, having more fire would boost my cultivation speed even further!" Duan Li laughed out in satisfaction.


    When he was meditating before, while thespeed of absorption and accumulation of spiritual Qi increased dramatically with the help of his two Elemental dragons, it would still take him quite a while to reach the Pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm!


    However, one of the two volcanoes suddenly exploded, spewing out molten magma rocks onto its surroundings, and quite a bit of the natural vegetation got burnt down as a result.


    That scene had him a little bit surprised, but what truly shocked him after that was the fact that his cultivation suddenly sped up!


    Zhulong the Fire dragon then explained to him that because the amount of Fire element in the area increased, he could absorb more and transferred it to Duan Li even rapidly, and this sparked an inspiration inside Duan Li''s creative mind..


    Light the whole island on fire!


    "Master, while it is good that you have reached your goal now, that''s a little bit unfair for Dilong! I want to be of use to master too!" Dilong pouted.


    Realizing what she meant, Zhulong butted in, "Heh, these volcanic islands are my territory, as you can see, the fire element tipped the scale here!"


    "Hmph! Fine, but when its my territory next time, don''t think that I would allow you to do as you pleased!" Dilong replied with a snort.


    Dragons were territorial by nature, and while they don''t have their exact territory right now, they had already decided that their territory would be based on what kind of element were the most abundant in that place.


    "Alright, don''t argue now. Let''s think of a way to cross from this rocky island to one of those volcanic islands over there!" Duan Li pointed to the smaller volcano.


    If possible, he would like to avoid another swim in the ocean. After all, his gut instinct was telling him that lurking under these deep water was some terrible sea monsters that laid in wait for their prey!


    Could I use Komodo as a boat?


    Wengg!!


    Out of curiosity, Duan Li summoned the Komodosaurus that he had long kept in his spatial ring.


    "Eh? This place.. this smell.." the Komodo that had suddenly found itself in another location was blank at first.


    But as soon as he took a good look around, his eyes brightened!


    He knew where this place was!


    "Hahaha! I''m back! I am finally back!" he wiggled his tail emotionally.


    How many long years has it been since he could breath in this fresh air? These sands.. and the tropical heat!


    Ahh.. my Heaven!


    "Oh? So this is where you come from? No wonder you have such a high heat tolerance!" Duan Li remarked with a nod.


    "Yes! Specifically, I live in an area of that smaller volcano over there!" Komodo replied with excitement, pointing the way with its tail.


    Duan Li then shot up his brows, "Eh? Coincidentally, I''m also planning to go over there! But this place sure is strange.. not only was my stamina became as low as a mortal, I can''t even fly too!"


    Hearing this, Komodo soon remembered the peculiarities of this place and nodded before explaining;


    "Indeed, human cultivator would not be able to fly here, and the spiritual Qi is also very thin than normal. However, if there is one thing that this island could provide, its that every flora and fauna.. is incredibly nutritious!"


    Nutritious?


    Duan Li immediately looked around, and upon seeing a coconut laying on the ground half-cooked due to the area being burned by him before, he casts his Tetra Soul Sense on it!


    Wingg!!


    [Medium Rare Coconut Balm, highly nutritious and rare.]


    [Has the effects of increasing..]


    [If combined with the ingredients..]


    ...


    After hearing the various comments his ability made on a mere coconut, Duan Li''s mood quickly became elated.


    It''s true!


    Even a random coconut has the ''rare'' tag and some powerful descriptions!


    "Hahaha! I''ve strucked it rich!"


    Waving his hand, he summoned up Daelius the wolf cub


    Wengg!!


    "Woof!! Woof!!" the wolf cub barked out excitedly, for it has been such a long time since it came outside of the spatial ring.


    Hmm?!


    "Hey Daelius, when did you grow this big?" Duan Li asked in disbelief.


    If the previous size of this baby wolf was around the size of his head, right now it was the size of one of his arm fully extended!


    "Woof! Woof!" Daelius replied.


    "Eh? What''s that? You have been cultivating with the Lightning essence inside my dantian all these while because you were bored?" Duan Li''s mouth turned wide agape.


    How did he managed to do that?


    I did not even notice..


    Wait a moment!


    "All-Seeing Eye ability activate!"


    After looking through his body, Duan Li finally found and realized that the lightning tribulation he had absorbed before which coagulated inside his right arm, had merged completely with the lightning essence that Milvia, the mother wolf gave him before!


    Opening his eyes back to look again at this growned up wolf in front of him, Duan Li also noticed that its pure white coat from before has now a slight golden pattern on its head, and he did not remember that its mother Milvia, has such a pattern on her.


    Could it be.. mutations?


    Because the wolf had cultivate using the combined lightning elements of the two, it was highly possible that such an outcome would be the end result.


    But from this point onwards, Daelius would only start to grow even bigger..


    Eh whatever, I''ll think about all these later, for now, its time to reap the rewards here!


    "Daelius, go and grab every coconut you could find on this island!" Duan Li instructed the other party.


    "Woof! Woof!"


    Wiggling its tail and roaring out with zeal, with a loud ''Bzzttt!!'' Daelius turned into a trail of blue lightning before disappearing into the distance.


    "F-Fast!!" Duan Li was once again astonished by that Fenrir.


    "It seems that Daelius would be extremely useful in the future!" he nodded in approval.


    Alright, time for another one to come out and do some useful stuff as well!


    "Cucko!"


    Shhhh!!


    A big chicken silhouette slowly emerged from his shadow!


    CUUCK CUUCKOOO!!


    With a proud air, Cucko opened up its chest and flung both of his chicken wings out wide, its eyes showing his haughty look towards its surroundings.


    It was as if this chicken was saying, "Hmph! What is up with all these sands!!"


    Pointing forward towards the direction where Daelius had just gone to, Duan Li instructed the other party;


    "Cucko, go and help Daelius to fetch some coconuts!"


    "..." Cucko.


    "..." Komodo.


    "..." Dilong and Zhulong.


    Master, a chicken does not have the ability to fetch a coconut!


    ...

 196 Chapter 193: The Guardian of the Second region!

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    "Eh ahem!.. let''s see.. go and fetch some herbs if there are any!" Duan Li instructed towards the latter as he realized that Cucko did not have the ability to fetch a coconut with its beak and puny claws.


    CUCCKKOO!!


    Flitting its wings rapidly, Cucko immediately dashed forward and also disappeared into the distance, and although its speed was nothing when compared to Daelius, Cucko was still quite fast for a chicken!


    "Good, very good! I''ve decided, I''ll take everything that is nutritious in this second region for the Empire to grow swiftly!" Duan Li said in excitement.


    It was just a while ago that I suddenly became the Culinary Overlord of the Seven Saint Culinary restaurant, but to think that such an opportunity to collect resources would immediately came afterwards like this?


    This must be the work of fate!


    He then remembered something and cupped his chin.


    Wait.. Since Cucko was able to enter the Eternal Maze because it was hiding in my shadow.. could she also be here?


    His face turned pale.


    "Umm..Di Rou?" Duan Li called out.


    Shhhh!


    A slender figure draped in a slightly tight black Ninja outfit appeared from his shadow and kneeled before him, "Yes Master?" she asked, her voice mellow.


    Duan Li was stunned!


    ''She was here all along!''


    ''Damn it! Didn''t that practically meant that she got to see how I was since I first entered?'' Duan Li''s face reddened as he thought of this.


    How embarrassing!


    He previously thought that it was only him with his pets that was here, but to think that even his personal assistant had also came in through the portal as well just like that?


    Ahem!


    "Di Rou, please don''t mind me letting myself loose over here, its actually quite tiring to be so lordy-like all the time.." Duan Li said to her as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly.


    He decided to just confess the truth to her. After all, who could blame him? Just counting the days since he first stepped into the cultivation world, it hadn''t even been a month!


    He still had so much to explore and be excited about, but unfortunately, being a Lord was not so easy as he previously thought and he had to conduct himself properly as a leader.


    In simpler words, this was his opportunity to act more like himself!


    Di Rou chuckled softly, "It''s fine Master, I like you better this way." she replied in a simple manner.


    Although that sentence was short, Duan Li felt as if he was being strucked by a lightning!


    Like?


    She like me better this way?


    Like as in..?


    He immediately shook his head quickly before his imaginations could run wild.


    ''Nah, she must have meant that she preferred me better this way, yes that should be it!''


    Hais!


    Women are dangerous creature indeed, just their words alone could send a man''s mental state into chaos!


    "I see, then you should get used to this, because I think that we will be here for quite a while." Duan Li told her.


    "Yes Master!" Di Rou replied like a loyal servant.


    However, right after he said that, his mind flashed for a moment.


    W-Wait a minute.. if we are the only ones here..


    Duan Li turned his head and looked around.


    That.. that''ll be awkward!


    Casting a side glance towards Di Rou''s mature and slender body whom was still kneeling before him, with her curves all in the right places, Duan Li swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Gulp!


    He never had the chance to look at her properly before because there was always some things going on, but now that he had the time to observe carefully, this woman in her Ninja clothing was definitely a one, stunning beauty!


    Furthermore, all these while, he was always being surrounded by his party, and although Xiahou Yu and Xu Rong could be considered as pretty as well, they were at least a little bit younger than him, thus he never felt awkward having a conversation with them, no matter with others or private.


    But Di Rou was at least a few years older than him!


    Should I call her big sister?


    No wait, that can''t be right! I''m her Master!!


    Duan Li was clutching at his forehead so intensely that Di Rou whom was looking at him became quite concerned.


    "Are you all right Master? Do you perhaps need a rest?" she asked, and then immediately sat down with her legs folded.


    Tap! Tap!


    Tapping on her thighs, she stared straight at Duan Li and said, "If you need to lay down, you can use my lap as a pillow Master!" her expression serious.


    Puuu!!


    Duan Li choked on himself.


    ''That''s it! We can''t be alone!''


    "Guardian? Lord Guardian of the Second region? Come out! I know you are out there somewhere! Come outtttttt!!" he began to shout out at the top of his lungs.


    ...


    Standing mightily with both arms crossed on his chest, the old man was currently hiding his presence on the branch of a big tree far away from Duan Li, and when he heard Duan Li calling him out, his right foot slipped and he crashed to the ground.


    BAMM!!


    Standing up haggardly, the old man became furious, "What is up with this fellow? How does he knows that I''m here? It cannot be that he was able to detect me? That''s impossible!"


    Calming himself down, he soon found himself a plausible theory, "He must have encountered the Guardian of the First Region, and that''s why he knew there was a Guardian here too!" he said to himself as he nodded.


    That should be the case!


    "But this fellow! How dare he called me out like that as if I''m his servant! Does he want a beating?!" he gnashed his teeth in anger.


    The way the other party was calling out to him was just like calling out a servant that was late in serving the other party with their food!


    When I once roamed the Tian continent several centuries ago, not to mention anyone calling me out, even babies would shut their crying mouth if they heard my name!


    "Hmph! As if I will come out just because you want it. I''m a Guardian, an observer! You might be able to meet the Guardian of the First region, because he wasn''t someone special, but me? I''m Dugu Liubai! Not even the Emperor of a ten thousand years old dynasty was qualified to meet me, let alone a snotty brat like you!"


    I, Dugu Liubai, was once feared and revered to by the masses!


    This old man whom called himself as Dugu Liubai, has decided that he would not meet out with the fellow and continued in observing the other party from a distance.


    ...


    "Guardian!! Lord Guardian!!" Duan Li shouted out for the last time.


    ''That''s weird! Are there perhaps, no Guardian in the Second region? But that can''t be right..'' Duan Li frowned.


    He recalled that old man Jing Zhianghu, the Guardian of the First region once said that every region has their own Guardian, but why is the Guardian of this place not coming out despite him calling out for so many times?


    "I remembered that old man Jing Zhianghu only came out after I said something about the Grand Immortal whom they worshipped.. but I can''t possibly curse out someone like that out of the blue.. the Guardian might just decided to kill me on the spot!" he said inwardly as he remembered the words of Jing Zhianghu to never say anything bad about the Grand Immortal!


    Oh well.. I guess I''ll just have to keep a straight mind and not look at Di Rou too much..


    Whooshh!! Whooshh!!


    Daelius and Cucko appeared and disappeared in front of him while dropping coconuts and some herbs before they repeated the same cycle again and again until there was none left to fetch.


    Looking at the amount of coconuts in front of him and the herbs, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    He waved his hand grandly and stored everything inside his spatial ring.


    "Good job guys!" Duan Li gave them both a thumbs up.


    ...


    "What? He is able to use his spatial ring? How is that possible?!" Dugu Liubai''s face changed in horror.


    One has to know that the rules made inside the Eternal Maze was both eternal and fixed, such that even he himself could not disobey or circumvent around it!


    Take for example, in this Second region, the Grand Immortal has made it as such that their stamina would be dropped into the level of a mortal and that they won''t be able to fly!


    Yet, how can an unassuming, unimpressive fellow was able to use the function of the spatial ring?


    By the looks of it, that spatial ring isn''t even special!


    Dugu Liubai continued to observe Duan Li with greater interest while making his own notes about the other party.


    ...

 197 Chapter 194: Sea threa

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    Now that he had his pets finished fetching of everything to ground zero, the previously lush rocky island was now desolate and barren, filled with the charred remains of burnt up coconut trees, rows after rows.


    "Alright.. the next problem is.. how should we cross over to that smaller volcanic island over there.." Duan Li said as he pointed with his index finger.


    From where he stood, he could roughly tell the distance between them to be at least 2 kilometers, and if he were to swim that distance with his currently mortal-like stamina, it was questionable whether he would even make it alive!


    Upon hearing this, Komodo that was all excited to return to his natural habitat quickly spoke up, "I can swim and bring everyone there! Just ride along on my body!" he suggested.


    "Eh? No way! Aren''t you afraid of sea monsters attacking you? I have a feeling that something scary is down there!" Duan Li said as he shook his head in disapproval.


    While he had become quite powerful in this short amount of time, water was still an uncharted territory for him where anything could happen.


    For example, if they were to be dragged into the water, it would be useless even if they were strong if they can''t breath underwater and escape from their foes!


    And even if they could escape somehow, as cultivators has a range of powerful offensive techniques, stranded in the middle of the ocean with no ability to fly, they would just be dragged into the water again and again until they became tired and have no more energy to swim, which would leads to drowning!


    Not to mention, it would be quite dark down there, and Duan Li wasn''t brave enough yet to be unfettered by everything else like the novels he once read before in one of the Xuan village''s bookstore.


    Those super-strong main characters would just annihilate or disintegrate everything in their way; so what if there was an ocean filled with deep mystery under them? With just a slap of their palm, the whole ocean would evaporate, leaving the small and big fishes in it to be bared naked to the human eyes!


    "Sea monsters.. well, they are indeed down there.. but for some reason ,theywould not attack swimmers on sight unless we did a full dive! If I remember correctly, this is one of the several iron clad laws in this world to keep things balance, and in this case, its that as long as a part of your body was exposed to outside, they won''t attack!" Komodo explained.


    Oh?


    "Iron clad rules? There was not a single one among you whom tried to break it?" Duan Li asked with interest.


    Rules were rules, but not everyone would follow it. Besides, such a rule was exceptionally difficult to execute when the ocean was this wide, and it wasn''t even meant for humans!


    So who would notice if a thing or two happened?


    "Some decided to break it, but they would immediately be turned into a bloody mists after that!" Komodo answered.


    He still recalled that once in a while, there would be fools that dared to test this, and ends up dead almost immediately.


    Thankfully, he was a little bit smarter than his peers and lived by the rules!


    Hearing this, Duan Li came to a comprehension as he nodded.


    ''I see.. if that''s the case, then it should be safe to cross-over by swimming..''


    Since the laws were made specifically for the monsters and animals alike that lived here, while they may not be as smart when compared to humans, their instinct to avoid danger made them quite more obedient than the latter.


    "Was the Guardian of the Second region the one whom imposed such rules?" he asked.


    "No" Komodo shook his head, and then continued with a hint of fear on his face, "It was said that, the laws were crafted by.. the Grand Immortal himself!"


    The Grand Immortal!


    Duan Li''s eyes flashed.


    "I see.. well, if it was made by someone whom created the very Eternal Maze itself, then I guess we should be safe!" turning around to face Di Rou, Cucko, Daelius, Dilong and Zhulong, Duan Li told them his plans.


    ...


    "Is this fellow crazy?" Dugu Liubai scratched his head in befuddlement.


    He saw it all from here, that Duan Li was talking to a monster beside him while watching the ocean. Even worse before that, the other party was talking to a chicken!


    The former could only make same incomprehensible roaring sounds while the latter would just be making chicken cucks..


    So what was there to even talk about?


    But it appears that this fellow could actually converse with them!


    He had seen a lot of cultivators roaming around with their pets back in the Tian continent before, and even the best of them could only understand the actions of one another by heart based on repeated gestures and action, but never through language!


    Thus, eventhough his eyes were acknowledging the fact before him, his mind could not help but to have some difficulties in coming to terms with it.


    And while he could not hear everything what they were talking about, based on Duan Li''s lip movement, he could roughly tell what the other party was talking about, especially regarding the Grand Immortal.


    "So this fellow also knows about the Grand Immortal? That Jing Zhianghu really spilled the beans eh?" he said to himself feeling a little bit amused.


    The fact that Duan Li knows about the Grand Immortal showed that he had come into contact with the Guardian of the First region, and by the looks of it, it seems that they were a bit close with each other?


    He then shifted his gaze towards the Fenrir with a pair of wary eyes.


    "That Fenrir wolf.. it seems to be still developing.. but its air is a little bit different than what I remembered?" he thought to himself, but wasn''t sure what that differences were.


    His main concerns was that, how did a legendary and mythical monster from the Ninth region became that fellow''s pet?


    The more he thought about it, the more complex it seems!


    "This fellow definitely isn''t simple.."


    ...


    "So that''s about it everyone! I hope you guys are not that afraid of water!" Duan Li said .


    He then turned to Daelius, "Your current form is too big, so just get inside my spatial ring first and then I''ll let you out once we reached the island."


    He was planning to let everyone out so that they could have a breather while the view and atmosphere was this fresh, but Daelius had grown so big and it would be quite cramped later on, so he had no other choice than to tell the other party that.


    "Woof!!" Daelius shook its head, and then something happened.


    Wonggg!!


    The next moment, he had turned back into a small cub!


    "Eh? You can change your appearance back to that of a cub?" Duan Li was surprised by this and his mouth opened wide in agape.


    Usually, when an animal or monster grew bigger, they wouldn''t be able to revert back to their former appearance, but it seems that Daelius was an exception!


    ''Is this a special ability of the Fenrirs?'' he thought.


    But now that Daelius had become smaller once more, he doesn''t have to stuff the other party back into the spatial ring!


    Grabbing Daelius, he put the latter ontop of his head.


    "Stay there and don''t fall down!" Duan Li chuckled.


    Wooff! Wooff!


    ...


    The next moment, Duan Li and his pet was already about a quarter away to reach the other shore, and Di Rou, whom Duan Li had instructed to enter Komodo''s shadow to act like an underwater radar has detected something.


    "What is that?" she said as she squinted her eyes and saw a large, dark object that was rapidly surfacing from beneath the sea.


    While Komodo already told Duan Li that it was highly unlikely that a sea monster would attack them with such a strict rule in place, there was still a chance of being attacked, and that was why he instructed Di Rou to do this.


    As a ninja, her instinct was quite strong and this told her that the thing that was swiftly approaching them from beneath was something dangerous, thus she quickly exitted Komodo''s shadow and surfaced from the water.


    "Master, an unidentified threat is approaching!"


    ...

 198 Chapter 195: Fighting the sea monsters!

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    "An unidentified threat?" Duan Li narrowed his eyes in alarm.


    ''Tetra Soul Sense!''


    Duan Li activated this scanning ability of his which covered a few hundred meters below him.


    Weengg!!


    ''This... its big!!''


    "Everybody, hang on!" Duan Li shouted as he got himself into a stance, ready to defend against any incoming attack.


    SPLASH!!


    Emerging from the surface of the water, were 8 huge tentacles the size of a 5 tree trunks clamped together.


    Komodo shrieked out in horror, "I-Impossible.. one of the seven sea''s serpent.. Kraken!!"


    "Kraken? What monster is that?" Duan Li''s countenance turned grim as he noticed the power level of this sea monster.


    It''s actually on the Early stage of the Nascent Soul realm!


    What craziness is this?


    Wasn''t the Second region made for those in the Foundation establishment realm only?


    Then, how did such a monster exists here?!


    "The Kraken are sea creatures rumored to originate from the Fourth region! Sometimes, a few of these Krakens would slip pass through the sea barrier under the ocean and entered here!" Komodo explained hurriedly.


    "Some?!" Duan Li immediately extended his Tetra Soul Sense once more and to his horror, he detected another 4 of the Kraken swiftly approaching them from the bottom!


    His face turned pale as he asked Komodo, "Hey.. if they are from the Fourth region, would the laws here applied to them as well?"


    It took a bit of a time for Komodo to answer this.


    "Err.. probably not?"


    "..." everyone.


    "Then what are you waiting for? Quickly use that flappy feet of yours to paddle faster!'' Duan Li shouted in frustrations.


    If it was just one, he could definitely take the Kraken down even with a little bit of difficulties. But now that their numbers increased to 5, the best course of action was to escape as swiftly as possible!


    After all, there was no telling on how many of the actual hordes were, and if he were to be dragged into the water, with no ability to fly and stamina of a mortal, he would definitely die!


    "R-Right! Here I go!" Komodo replied as he cycled his four feet that was submerged underwater rapidly.


    Paddle.. paddle..


    Their speed barely increased, even worse, they seemed to be turning around instead!


    "..." everyone.


    Pah!


    The resounding sound of Komodo''s head being slapped by Duan Li echoed.


    "Why the hell are we turning around instead!" he yelled out.


    "I.. my right leg got cramped.." Komodo sheepishly replied in embarrassment.


    ...


    Watching from the distance, Dugu Liubai saw the whole scene with his mouth agaped.


    "What the hell are those idiots doing?! Why are they turning around instead!" he said anxiously with clenched fists.


    Those are Krakens! One of the legendary mythical creature and were also called as the Grim Reaper of the seas!


    Back in the olden days, the most hermits of all Krakens, had lived for several millenniums and its body was so large that its tentacles could wrap up a whole mountain!


    And the ones that surrounded Duan Li and his party right now were just its younglings, but they had already possessed some formidable strength!


    Therefore, the group of clowns in front of him couldn''t possibly deal with them!


    "But these Krakens, their numbers surely seemed to multiply lately.. just what is the Fourth Guardian doing in his region?" he furrowed his brows in dissatisfaction.


    Each of those Krakens were at least equal to a Nascent Soul realm in power, thus he had already readied himself to intervene should anything dangerous starts to happen.


    Usually, according to the stated rules, a Guardian''s job were only there to observe, but because the appearance of these Krakens were not within the parameters of the stated laws - since they originated from outside the Second region, it would be an exception should he chose to act against it.


    However, he felt that the fellow whom he had observed all these while was more than meets the eye. Based on his hundreds of years of experience, he could see that, even though the latter seemed to be panic on the surface, the aura that was radiating out from Duan Li was still that of calm person!


    This meant that, the fellow still has some tricks up in his sleeves which he could use to escape from this predicament anytime!


    "Or was it confidence? Hmm.. I''ll just watch for now and intervene if things gets dangerous.."


    Swish!


    Fetching a fruit hanging by the branch in front of him, Dugu Liubai started to bite at it and soon nodded, "Oh! I haven''t eaten for so long, and this fruit tastes good!"


    He then resumed watching the fiasco while eating.


    ...


    SPLASH! SPLASH!


    More tentacles emerged out from the water and began to attack Duan Li and his pets.


    "Damn it! You guys are just asking for it!" Duan Li gritted his teeth.


    Don''t think that you can bully me!


    Nine Palms Slapping Ocean!


    PAMM!! PAMM!! PAMM!!


    Three palm attack were projected out from Duan Li''s pair of hands as it slapped out towards the incoming tentacles!


    Pah! Pah! Pah!


    ROARRR!!


    Sensing that their food dared to up a fight against them, the group of Krakens became infuriated as its tentacles began to attack even more furiously.


    ''My palm attack didn''t work because of their slippery and rubbery textures?''


    To think that these tentacles would only be slapped away without a single damage!


    The force he used in those previous slapping techniques were about half of his full strength, and if it were any other monsters, they would surely be turned into a meat paste already!


    How durable..


    Shinggg!!


    Duan Li summoned up Duergar and executed his Nine Swords Thunder Strike!


    Shinggg!! Shinggg!! Shinggg!!


    Pang! Pang! Pang!


    All the sword strikes hit their marks, but as if hitting against a metal surface, the slashes had only managed to deal some small amounts of damage to the tentacles!


    However, after being injured by Duan Li, these tentacles turned crimson red and started to coiled up itself as if becoming a drill!


    "N-Not good.. the Krakens are angry! Previously, they were only hunting us as food, but now, they had turned hostile and aimed to kill!" Komodo roared out, feeling extremely scared.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s brows twitched.


    "They are angry you said? Being the ones that disturbed us first, they had the cheeks to be angry at us for defending ourselves?"


    Good! Very good!


    It seems like these bunch of octopuses thought that I could be bullied so easily?


    Suddenly, just before Duan Li was about to take action, Daelius whom could no longer suppress its wild instinct jumped up from Duan Li''s head.


    Poof!


    In an instant, Daelius had reverted back to its grown-up body!


    "Grrrrr!! Wooofff!!"


    With an angry roar, just after its rear feet landed on Komodo''s body, Daelius leaped up and turned into a blue flash akin to that a lightning bolt!


    Bzzztt!


    Psshhh!!


    Clutching with its sharp claws onto one of the tentacles, Daelius began to bite at them viciously!


    Seeing this, Duan Li was naturally elated, "Hahaha! Well done Daelius!"


    "Auuwwooooo!!" Daelius howled out to the sky, and a strike of lightning from the heavens suddenly fell down to strike at the tentacle!


    Bzztt!!


    ''Oh? He can summon up lightning now?''


    Impressive!


    Although that lightning strike was a little bit too weak, the tentacles were obviously jolted for a bit!


    "Seems like their weaknesses is against lightning element.."


    CUCCK CUCCKOO!!


    Cucko, not wanting to be left behind by the dominating Daelius, flapped its wings furiously and bolted up as well while spinning its body.


    Paangg!!


    "Cuck Cuckoooo!" Cucko cucked out tragically.


    Splash!


    Its beak attack was far too ineffective against the tough skin of the tentacles, and was thus rebounded back.


    "Ah! Cucko!" Duan Li panicked when he saw Cucko fell down to the water.


    Turning around, he immediately instructed Di Rou to fetch the fallen chicken.


    "Damn these octopuses! Everyone, fall back!" Duan Li waved his hand and pulled his pets back to his spatial ring while Di Rou merged back into his shadow.


    Splash!


    Duan Li dived down and saw all the Krakens coming at him together to strangle him underwater.


    At this moment, he no longer cares about the side effects or consequences and rose his hand upwards. With a savage expression, he muttered inwardly;


    All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe, Come!


    The sky turned dark for a single instant, before 8 lightning bolts that came from the 8 different cardinal directions in the sky merged together in a single spot right above Duan Li, and then came down crashing towards the ocean!


    BTTOOOOMMMMM!!


    ...

 199 Chapter 196: Can you swim?

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    "W-What the hell is that?!" Dugu Liubai exclaimed in shock.


    He had never before seen such a method of inducing a lightning strike from the Heavens as if it was under one''s beck and call like that!


    After the other party had dived into the water previously, the latter had only rose one hand towards the sky, before lightning bolts from the 8 different cardinal directions instantly scrambled through the sky to meet at one point exactly above the position of that hand before striking down!


    And by the looks of it, when the lightning bolts struck down, it coalesced together to form a weapon, a great axe made up entirely of lightning!


    Even for someone like him, Dugu Liubai, whom had already experienced the many vicissitudes of life, had never before seen something as bizarre as this!


    "Ahh! All those Krakens were electrocuted when the lightning bolts touched the water.."


    Dugu Liubai watched as the Krakens began to float ontop of the water one by one, unconscious while their body twitched every so often.


    "To think that the lightning bolts called upon by this fellow was so strong that even Nascent Soul realm monsters were affected to this extent.. just what is the origin of that great axe?" he said as he couldn''t help but to ponder upon this.


    He himself had some weapons in his disposal that could be considered as legendary as well with even more terrifying nature and damage to it, but he could sense that the lightning elements within Duan Li''s great axe has the nature of a lightning tribulation in it!


    But how could that possibly be?


    No one should be able to harness such a thing, especially not mortal!


    "And that sword on his left hand.. its a sword with a spirit? That''s quite the rare stuff he has there.."


    If he remembered correctly, there was no blacksmith in the Tian continent back then whom possessed the capability to smith a weapon with a spirit..


    Was there actually someone so formidable right now?


    "Furthermore, his skill arts.. was it just me or its a little bit too powerful for someone of his realm?"


    That palm attack and sword strikes even managed to repel the attacks from Nascent Soul realm monsters!


    One has to remember that Duan Li was just at the Core formation realm while the pack of monsters were one whole realm higher than him!


    Therefore, logically speaking, it shouldn''t even cause a graze, let alone some slight damage, but the other party somehow managed to hurt the Krakens!


    Thus, Dugu Liubai couldn''t help but to cup his chin and pondered upon this, "Was the identification system for the Eternal maze broken?"


    ...


    Puah!


    Duan Li swam back to the surface, and climbed atop of one of the unconscious Kraken.


    Throwing the Eternal Great Axe on his right hand into the air, with a slight ''Bzztt!'', the weapon dissipated back into 8 individual lightning bolts before zapping towards the sky to return from whence they came.


    Pant! Pant!


    "That took quite the toll on my body without my normal stamina.." Duan Li breathed out rapidly and had to stand from his kneeling position with the help of his hands.


    I hadn''t really noticed before, but the Eternal Great Axe had actually ate up a lot of my stamina as well, not just my spiritual Qi!


    ''I really have to train my physical body sometimes..''


    Should I be like Shen Murong? But he is too big.. hmm.. I''ll aim for a leaner muscle definition next time..


    For Duan Li, after reaching the Core formation realm pinnacle, he doesn''t have to temper his body like the one he did back in the lower realm. After all, the Crimson mysterious pearl had automatically reinforced his internal body state, meridians and pathways right after he ascended!


    Although he had not yet managed to uncover more secrets of what the crimson mysterious pearl could do, just this function alone was really convenient for him!


    Whoever made these mysterious pearls, you have my thanks!


    Staring at the unconscious kraken below his feet with a snort, Duan Li activated his Tetra Soul Sense!


    Wengg!!


    "Ohh! That''s a really nice and big monster core!" he said, excited upon the thought of being able to cultivate it and incubate another Elemental Spirit Origin like Dilong and Zhulong in the future.


    Raising his sword, Duan Li struck down.


    Clang!!


    The tip of the sword rebounded off from the skin of the Kraken.


    "Hey little sword, what is wrong with you? We need to cut this octopus up and get its monster core!" Duan Li said in a displeased tone.


    "Eh.. young master, the skin which protects the region of its monster core is pretty tough! Unless you execute skill arts, we won''t be able to puncture it! Damned lower life-forms, what is the use for so much of these protection!" the sword cursed out.


    Hearing this, Duan Li harrumphed, "Hmph! Wielding you while executing skill arts? That would be a waste to my stamina! Nevermind, I''ll just directly use a skill art to deal with this then."


    Pointing his right index finger towards the region where the monster core was located, Duan Li redirected his spiritual Qi inside his meridians and Qi pathways in a unique way.


    One Finger Starlight Slash!


    Zzzuuuuuu!!


    Oh?


    "This is unexpected, although the output is only at 10 percent, it still took quite a while to penetrate the skin inch by inch.." Duan Li said.


    "That''s because young master''s skill art were the combination of light and fire, while this hideous creature is of the water attribute which overcomes fire.." Duergar explained.


    "Huh? How did you know that my skill art nature was the combination of light and fire?" Duan Li asked in surprise.


    "Eh? I-Isn''t that quite obvious young master?" Duergar replied in a stutter.


    "Is that so?" Duan Li narrowed his eyes suspiciously towards the latter.


    ...


    Hmm?


    "That skill art technique, it seems to be a little bit familiar.. where have I seen that before.." Dugu Liubai pondered, before the fruit on his hand fell down to the ground as his eyes widened in shock.


    "N-No! T-That''s absolutely impossible!" he shook his head furiously.


    This fellow''s skill art was just similar in nature to that person''s!


    That has to be it!


    He suddenly found himself to be drenched in sweat. The more he thought about the matter, the more his heart palpitated.


    ...


    After a short while, Duan Li finally finished laser-cutting the tough skin that protected the monster core of the Kraken below him, exposing a shining bright blue monster core!


    He then turned around to look at the other Krakens around him, drifting far apart from each other.


    "Eh.. there are 4 more to cut.. and I don''t want to swim again, the water is just too cold and salty.." he said before summoning up everyone again.


    After instructing everyone to push the other floating Krakens near him so that he could cut them up later, he quickly scanned the water again to make sure that it was safe before giving them the green go.


    "Remember, keep some of your body parts above water! They can''t attack you if you do that!" he reminded, before Di Rou, Komodo and Daelius nodded, and simultaneously moved to do their respective tasks.


    Except Cucko that is.


    "What''s wrong?" Duan Li asked as he turned towards this chicken of his, feeling concerned that the other party might be having a lasting trauma from the previous incident!


    CUCK CUCCKOO!!


    "Oh.. you can''t float like a duck? But don''t you have feathers to paddle through the water?"


    Now, now! Don''t you try to fool me, I know chickens could swim and float on water because I''ve seen one back in the village, where a chicken was once chasing a female duck across the pond!


    Hais!


    ''It seems to be a trauma indeed..'' Duan Li shook his head as he thought of this.


    Let me help you overcome it..


    Grabbing Cucko with both hands, Duan Li assured the former that he will help the whole process and make it less tedious.


    Then, he pulled his arms backward and threw Cucko into the air towards the direction of an unconscious Kraken.


    "Go Cucko! You can do it!" Duan Li cheered.


    CU-CUCKKK! CCUUCKKOOOOOO!!


    "..." everyone.


    ...


    A.N: Believe it or not, chickens really do know how to swim, and this article really cracks me up lol xD


    https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/can-chickens-swim/

 200 Chapter 197: Who?!

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    CUCKOO!!


    "Ah! Hey! Why are you getting angry? I was just helping you getting over your previous trauma!" Duan Li covered his face from being pecked by the furious Cucko.


    The chicken that has been wronged by Duan Li almost got itself sunked to the bottom of the sea as its feathers became wet and heavy. If not for its dedication to paddle its legs faster and its strong animal instinct to remain alive, it might has well drowned by now.


    After all, a chicken''s feathers were not like that of a duck''s, oily and water resistant to remain afloat continuously!


    Di Rou suppressed her laughter when she saw the scene between the two.


    Zzuuuu!!


    Duan Li then proceeded to cut up the remaining Krakens carefully and extracted their monster cores. He then sat down cross-legged to cultivate them.


    Ssuupp!!


    Just like that, all 5 monster cores were sucked into his dantian almost instantaneously. This scene greatly shocked Di Rou whom was standing guard beside Duan Li, thus she leaned forward to ask towards the latter;


    "Master, how did you managed to cultivate those monster cores so fast?"


    Chuckling lightly, Duan Li was just about to answer this question in a mysterious way, but when he turned his head around to face the latter, what he found out was not her face, but the curvature of her two great mountain ranges instead due to her tight clothing. This caused his previous well-crafted sentences in his head to disappear like smokes.


    "Mountain peaks.." he subconsciously said and then immediately closed his mouth afterwards with his hand.


    "Mountain peaks?" Di Rou furrowed her brows as she pondered about this pair of words.


    A short while later, she shook her head.


    ''It seems that my comprehension towards cultivating monster cores is still too low to understand master''s deep knowledge and wisdom..'' she thought.


    Duan Li sighed in relief. Thankfully, she was a little bit dense, otherwise, he might have already gotten a tight slap on one of his cheeks.


    "Master, what about these creatures? After extracting out their monster cores, they''re only as good as the other normal animals around.. should we just kill them?" Zhulong said, his intention was to pull the Krakens out of their misery.


    Duan Li shook his head, "No.. while it was true that their intention was to kill us before, no matter what, we have to be the one with the higher moral grounds and be magnanimous here. Therefore, I''ve decided to just let them go!" he said with an air of righteousness to him.


    Hearing this, Dilong and Zhulong could not help but to be impressed towards this master of their''s!


    Such a noble heart!


    Duan Li then continued, "However, as the old sayings once said, one cannot be an upright person without ever experiencing punishment to correct their wrong-doings! Therefore, to prevent them from attacking people randomly ever again, I''ve decided to cut off these troublemaker tentacles of their''s!"


    Psshhh!! Pshhh!!


    He then diligently started to dismember the tentacles of the unconscious Krakens one by one using the One Finger Starlight Slash on a higher output in order to increase the efficiency, since there were no fragile stuff to be worried about unlike the skin that covered their monster cores.


    "Master.." Dilong and Zhulong''s mouth opened wide agaped.


    You cutting off all their tentacles would leave them entirely disabled for life, having nothing to fend off the future danger, nor to catch any food, and will therefore inevitably die a painful death..


    Thus, how was this a lesson to teach them their wrong-doings?


    Hais..


    After a long while, Duan Li finally finished dismembering all of the tentacles and whipped them into his spatial ring with a wide, happy smile. After all, the main reason why he chose to procure the tentacles was due to his Tetra Soul Sense identifying abilities, and he found out that their tentacles were highly nutritious!


    I know of a delicious dish that can be made from these tentacles, and if I''m not mistaken.. the name of that dish is Takoyaki!


    Duan Li nodded as he thought of this.


    "Alright, let''s be on our way then!"


    They then rode atop of Komodo once more as this animal boat began to paddle forward more carefully this time around to prevent getting another leg cramp.


    ...


    Tap!


    Finally landed on the beach!


    "I can''t believe I could step onto these sandy beaches once more! It is not longer a dream but a reality!" Komodo spoke out emotionally.


    Just how long has it been since he was trapped inside that boss room of the third maze back in the First region?


    It almost drove him insane!


    "Okay, hold onto your tears! We haven''t reached your pack of herds yet" Duan Li laughed out as they proceeded to enter the thick jungle.


    Throughout their journey, since Duan Li had already instructed Di Rou, Daelius and Cucko to gather any resources they came across with beforehand, everything that was of value in their path was ravaged mercilessly!


    Furthermore, Since Daelius and Cucko has keen instinct to detect natural resources of high quality with ease, every fetch of their''s was worth at least a few high quality spirit stones!


    This was further proven with Duan Li''s Tetra Soul Sense analytical abilities, that all these items were tagged from rare to ultra rare!


    It was like this whole island was filled with these rare resources as if it were mere cabbages!


    "For the Grand Immortal to create such a place.. he sure is quite the formidable figure.. perhaps second to my dad?" Duan Li thought of this for a while before shaking his head.


    Nah, I haven''t even yet met my father, but from the way mother described him, it was like he stood above everyone else!


    Maybe my father was even more formidable than this Grand Immortal person!


    "Hey Komodo, why was it that I haven''t yet encountered any animals thus far?" Duan Li turned to Komodo and asked about this as he found it to be weird.


    This was a lush jungle, so how can there be not a single animal in sight? It was a little bit eery to be honest.. because this jungle was just too quiet!


    The main reason he entered the Second region was to find some treasure troves or relic items and the sorts, while collecting monster cores was also part of that as well.


    Thus, where are all those cute little monsters?


    The latter shook its head, "I don''t know, it was not this desolate before the last time I was here! There were a variety of animals and monsters that should be roaming around, but I can''t seem to smell any.. huh?" Komodo suddenly stopped.


    It wasn''t that he was lost, but his animal instinct was screaming to him on the extreme amounts of danger that has suddenly surrounded them, causing his body to freeze entirely as he could not cope with it!


    Duan Li and Di Rou also seemed to sense this and their countenance immediately changed. Even Daelius whom was usually brave started to whimper like a scared wolf, because other than his grown-up body, his age was still just a kid in the Fenrir''s standard!


    Cucko on the other hand, had already slipped back into Duan Li''s shadow and refused to come out.


    "Di Rou, if it gets too dangerous, we will have to escape with all our might by mounting onto Daelius!" Duan Li said in a grim tone.


    "En!" Di Rou nodded while her eyes kept on scanning the surrounding around them continuously, looking even for the slightest amount of movement.


    Just what sort of entity is it that radiated out this huge amount of lethal, and dangerous aura that was enough to suffocate them?!


    Duergar, the little sword hanging onto Duan Li''s right earlobe at the moment, felt that this aura seemed to be quite familiar.


    Suddenly, the little sword recalled.


    "Y-Young Master.. r-run! Quickly RUN!"


    ...

 201 Chapter 198: The second threat!

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    "Y-Young Master, r-run! Quickly RUN!" the little sword told its master with an utmost horror in its voice.


    Duan Li whom heard this telepathy from the little sword immediately understood the precariousness of the whole situation.


    After all, the little sword was known for its disdain and arrogance towards other living creatures. But in front of this presence, even this seemingly self-proclaimed to be the most powerful sword shivered quite a bit!


    Without hesitation, he waved his hand and stored back the stoned Komodo into his spatial ring, and then grabbed Di Rou beside her whom was still observing her surroundings by the waist, which shocked the latter.


    Duan Li then hopped onto Daelius and urged the young Fenrir, "Hurry and escape! We need to escape quickly!"


    Woof!


    Daelius swiftly exerted force to its limb muscles and tried to leap forward, but to its horror.. it couldn''t move!!


    It was as if its feet was rooted to the ground and cemented!


    With a weak whimper, the little Fenrir dropped to its knees and fainted.


    "What''s wrong Daelius?!" Duan Li couldn''t help but to have an ominous premonitions of what was to come.


    "Uhh.. my head.." Di Rou whom Duan Li held by the waist also could not stand the oppressive feeling and fainted soon after.


    Suddenly, the whole jungle fell totally silent!


    If before, there were not even a single trace of animals or monsters could be seen, let alone the sound of insects or bugs that was usually common inside a lush jungle such as these. But now, even the rustling leaves seemed to be in a standstill, as if unable to move even when brushed against the wind!


    In the next moment, temperature of the area instantly dropped by a few degrees and their whole surrounding darkened. It was as if the sun was being blocked into an eclipse!


    "Run? Where can.. you.. even run.. from me?"


    A voice so chilly, dark and the most sinister permeated throughout the jungle that caused Duan Li''s body hair to all stood on end!


    ...


    "Sh*t! This presence! I should have known earlier!" Dugu Liubai countenance paled and immediately pushed his legs to create momentum and bolted off into the distance.


    BOOMM!!


    How is this possible? That being should''ve been sealed for eternity!


    To think that its presence seeped out into here.. could it be that, the seal are weakening?!


    Realizing this, he swiftly grabbed a communication jade slip on his hand and sent out a message.


    "I hope I could make it in time!"


    BOOM!!


    He continued to dash forward like a speeding comet and blasted everything in his path to smitherens.


    ...


    "Who are you?!" Duan Li shouted out as he scanned his surrounding with his Tetra Soul Sense.


    Wengg!!


    A moment later, his face turned even grimmer!


    There is no one here but them!


    ''How is this possible? I should at least be able to tell where he is even if he is a few hundred meters apart from me!


    Then, the voice appeared once more, "Futile.. ke..ke..ke.. this is only my presence.. for I, am not here.." the voice said coldly.


    It then continued, "I am.. the inevitable.. one that all living beings.. shall face.. in their final moment.. but my name? You.. will eventually know.."


    Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel that the entity behind this voice was definitely not a human!


    "What do you want?" he asked calmly, trying not to panic and think of a way to escape at the same time.


    "What.. do I want? Funny.. that you asked.." the voice chuckled.


    "All I desire.. is death.. for that is.. the sole purpose.. of my creation.." the voice answered, but its tone grew more colder by the second.


    "But that insolent being.. dared to take away.. my purpose! Thus, I am here.. to see.. just what kind of person.. whom that being.. had painstakingly protected.. but what do I found?"


    The voice began to laugh out loud before it continued; "You.. your very existence.. is a taboo for the world.. for everything!"


    "I may have.. been sealed.. but eventually.. I will come for you.. for I.. am inevitable.." the voice then died down.. before eventually disappearing altogether along with the oppressive feeling around them.


    "Its.. gone?" Duan Li looked around before confirming that the entity was truly gone for good.


    He could finally let out a breather, and the jungle returned to its previous state, but this time, the sound of insects buzzing around could finally be heard, making the jungle feels more alive than before.


    "Just what the heck was that.." his mind was still recalling the previous encounter. Raising both palm, he realized that his hands were trembling!


    Fear?


    It was probably the most dangerous feeling he has ever experienced! After all, even when facing Cao Tengfei of the Dark Sect, such a pressure was almost non-existent to him!


    He then remembered that it was the little sword whom had told him to run before, thus, it must have known a thing or two about the entity.


    Therefore, he asked the little sword, "Little sword, tell me.. who is that?"


    The little sword was silent for a moment before replying, "This.. I am afraid that I can''t tell you yet young master!"


    Duan Li frowned at this reply, "You can''t? Why?"


    The little sword sighed, "Its not that I won''t.. I just can''t! The Grand Immortal had put a seal on the information in my mind, and by the looks of it, it is a time seal imprint.. therefore.."


    "Therefore, it would only be revealed at the right moment?" Duan Li said as he interjected.


    "Y-yes young master.." the little sword shivered a bit.


    Hmm..


    After giving it a few thoughts, Duan Li decided that it was not meant to be known for him at this moment, and thus would ponder upon it again next time.


    But what he learnt from this encounter was that..


    He has a terrifying enemy!


    One that would be impossible for him to beat with his current strength, thus he gritted his teeth and clenched his fist together.


    The pressure onto him at this moment suddenly felt extremely heavy as if two peaks of mountain Tai was being slammed onto his shoulders at once, one was the Sun Dragon, and the other was this unknown malevolent entity!


    The feeling of threat that he got from this second entity was far more enormous than that of the Sun Dragon''s. If the Sun Dragon had rendered him entirely hopeless before, then this unknown being was like a permanent sickle in front of his neck, ready to take on his life at anytime!


    While he knew that the Sun Dragon was all-mighty, as he had experienced it personally, and its powers were possibly even stronger than this entity, at least the descent would only happen 8 years later and he has plenty amounts of time to prepare.


    But this new threat?


    All he knew was that the latter was sealed, and as for the time of when it will be able to unseal itself? Duan Li couldn''t tell!


    Tomorrow? Next week? Next month? Next year?


    "Damn it!" he cursed out.


    If he were to die prematurely, then the same thing will happen over again!


    The Empire, his friends, and his mother..


    "No!! I need to become stronger!" he said to himself with the resoluteness that could sever iron and nails.


    Seeing the profound confidence in Duan Li, the little sword sighed in relief.


    "Yes.. from this point onward, you would only grew more invincible young master.." it said inwardly.


    ...

 202 Chapter 199: Reunion!

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    "Uhh.. Master? What happened.." Di Rou whom was laying down in an unconscious state before finally woke up.


    Huh? The overbearing presence is gone..


    "W-We are still in the forest? Did we managed to get away safely master?" Di Rou turned her head towards her master that was currently sitting down cross-legged meditating and asked.


    Duan Li opened his eyes, "En! We managed to escape somehow.. perhaps it was the presence of a powerful wild beast, but it disappeared soon after and did not chased us." he answered, choosing not to tell her the truth as the matter was quite personal for him.


    Thinking about it for a while, she soon nodded.


    And then, it was Duan Li''s turn to ask, "Di Rou, I was actually quite curious, how did you managed to enter the Eternal Maze along with me? In my knowledge, there hasn''t been any prior incident where two people that entered together managed to be in the same place.."


    Duan Li recalled that time when he first entered the Eternal Maze along with Xiahou Yu, and they were separated by a huge distance between them!


    Furthermore, Di Rou''s cultivation state was at the Pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm, so she should be in the Third region at least, not here..


    Di Rou that listened to this quickly understood, "Ahh, so the Eternal Maze would teleport one according to their realm? In that case, its because the shadow dimension is actually a mirror of the real world, isolated yet connected."


    "Even if there were no lights present, one would always have their shadow with them and I guess that the Eternal Maze''s detection system had identified this but could not separate us because the shadows and the hosts are practically inseparable." she explained.


    "Oh? Then that means, as long as others entered my shadow, they are inseparable away from me?" Duan Li''s eyes brightened.


    If that was the case, then he could one day bring everyone along with them to the Eternal Maze and clear it together!


    Not only would it be beneficial for them, but also safer because he would be around to keep things in check!


    However, he was about to be disappointed because Di Rou shook her head in response to his question.


    "Yes.. but unfortunately, its not possible master for more than one person to enter.." she answered, as if reading her master''s train of thought.


    She then continued, "The shadow realm or dimension, is only equal to the actual shape of the host. The reason why I could fit in was because I have a secret technique that could dislocate my body efficiently without any harm and rearrange my internal organs and bones position to fit inside your body shape, because normally, its not possible for everyone."


    "Eh? What about Cucko then?" Duan Li inquiried as he shot a glance at Cucko whom was currently perching atop of Daelius''s head.


    "Cucko is quite small, so he could fit in with me somewhere, but that''s already the maximum your shadow could store.." she replied.


    "I see.." Duan Li couldn''t help but to ponder a bit where that ''somewhere'' was.


    "Anyway, let''s continue on! Komodo, you take point again!"


    ...


    Pant.. pant..


    "I made it.." Dugu Liubai sat down cross-legged in front of a small shrine and his breathing was haggard.


    That was close!


    To think that the entity sealed underground would be able to let a sliver of its presence escape through a tiny gap in the seal!


    How terrifying!


    And yet, that mere sliver of presence, if exposed outside to the mortal world, would be enough to cause the total breakdown of society!


    Just its commanding presence alone, would make most humans submit either through fear or reverence of its great, godlike power.


    Evildoer would even want to worship it!


    It was only fortunate that Duan Li, whom was affected directly by the presence of this entity, has managed to remain sane.


    "That fellow sure is something else.. even Nascent Soul realm experts would find themselves being beguiled if exposed directly by such a presence.."


    ...


    After quite a long walk towards the inner area, Duan Li finally found himself to be in a huge clearing with short grasses, right beneath the base of the volcano.


    "There they are! I finally found them hahaha! Hey family!" Komodo roared out to call the herds of Molten Komodosaurus by the distance.


    Roar?


    The herds of Komodos that were busy socializing turned their head to look for the source of this call as they walked over.


    But when they spotted Duan Li and Di Rou, as well as Daelius the young Fenrir whom emitted an aura of dominance, they halted their steps and roared out in wary.


    Roar! Roar!


    Cucko felt like these Komodos were afraid of him, thus it became proud and puffed out its chest with pride.


    Komodo that heard this roars became a little bit emotional, "Guys, don''t worry! These humans and monsters are friends of mine!"


    Roar?


    The Komodos looked at each other before proceeding forward slowly.


    "Eh, Junior Bulu? I haven''t seen you for years! Where have you been all these while?" one of them whom recognized Komodo spoke out.


    Puu!!


    Duan Li, Dilong, Zhulong, Daelius and Cucko choked on themselves when they heard this name, trying very hard to suppress their laughter.


    Junior Bulu? What an interesting name! It sounds very tribal-like!


    "Hmm?"


    Di Rou, whom was the only one out of the loop because she can''t understand animal and monsters language, tilted her head and found the scene to be amusing, especially when those three choked at the same time.


    ''Maybe I should learn animal language from Master next time..''


    Komodo Bulu whose name was called out by a Senior Komodo blushed in embarrassment.


    "Yes, I was trapped somewhere for a very long time, but long story short, this person, Duan Li, was the one whom eventually saved me!" Bulu explained.


    "Speaking of which, where are the rest of the family? I don''t see Lulu and Pegu here.. could they be roaming out somewhere in the field?" he continued.


    Hearing this, the Senior Komodo suddenly seemed to recall the two names being mentioned by Bulu. For a moment or so, it remained silent as if not knowing what to say towards the latter before letting out a huge sigh.


    "Junior Bulu, let me tell you what had happened since you were gone.." the Senior Komodo began to retell the events a few years back.


    ...

 203 Chapter 200: Revenge!

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    "What? Are you telling me, that they''re no longer alive?" Bulu''s face darkened, and his body that were akin to an igneous rock began to heat up intensely due to its boiling emotions!


    ROARR!!


    Bulu roared out to the sky, full of anger and its eyes became bloodshot.


    Duan Li that also heard the story could only shook his head in lamentation, casting a look of pity towards the other party.


    From what he had heard so far, he now knew that Lulu and Pegu were both Bulu''s wife and daughter respectively. 3 years ago, the mortal enemy of the Molten Komodosaurus, Fiery Iguanasaurus came by attacking their territory en masse!


    In that surprise attack, more than a hundred of their kind were killed in cold blood, Lulu and Pegu were just two of those many victims.


    The Fiery Iguanasaurus were always hostile to every species it met, but the Molten Komodosaurus proved to be a challenge towards their dominance, because the Komodos were tougher and has more strength than them.


    The only advantage these Iguanas has over the Komodos, was that their total number was more than 3 times than the Komodos!


    Thus, when the raid happened, the unprepared Komodos could only retreat and paid a heavy price as the result!


    "Hais.. Junior Bulu, I understand your anger.. everyone here had also lost some of their kins as well during the assault by those bastards.. even my sister.. hais.." the Senior Komodo shook its head as it recalled that bloody day.


    "But where is the chief? Why isn''t he doing anything about this?!" Bulu roared out angrily.


    He recalled that their chief was extremely powerful, a single fire breath would be enough to cause a huge forest fire in a matter of instant, not to mention that its body was several times bigger than the rest of the Komodos as well, such that a single, full-momentum ram from its body would cause cliffs and small hills to break apart!


    "You can''t blame the chief Junior Bulu, he had done well protecting everyone during that day, and as a result, he lost his tail and one of his lower limb.. as mighty as he was, he can''t protect everyone.. you weren''t there when the attack happened, so you can''t possibly imagine the horrors.. but despite all that, the chief stood at the very back, covering everyone''s retreat, and he nearly lost his life as well.. hais.." the Senior Komodo replied.


    "And now that the chief is in such a state to this day, no one is brave enough to initiate a retaliation.. their numbers are simply way too many! Even this clearing, is probably our last grounds.. if they came attacking again, we won''t know where to go next.." the Senior Komodo continued.


    "Damn it!" Bulu roared out once more.


    Gnashing his teeth, Bulu said, "If there is no one brave enough, then so be it! I will be the one to charge at them alone!" his eyes full of determination, unafraid of death!


    "Where are they?!" he asked, as the grass around him began to burn and the rocks melted due to his raging fury.


    He had finally returned after so long, and he hoped to see both his beautiful wife and cheerful daughter again. But who would ever thought that such a thing happened to them while he was gone instead?


    He was full of indignance, and his blood was boiling furiously. He wanted to charge ahead to the dens of those bastards and kill them all, even if he were to die in the process!


    "Junior Bulu, don''t be hasty now! I know that you are part of the twelve strongs before, but we already lost eight of them! Why don''t you meet the chief first and talk things out? Perhaps the chief actually has a plan in mind!" the Senior Komodo suggested.


    "Your senior is right Komodo. If you want a proper vengence, then you need to plan things out first in order to take out a large number of them efficiently. After all, what use is there if you could only kill one or two before being killed yourself? In my opinion, that''s definitely not enough to settle your thirst for revenge!" Duan Li spoke out.


    Hearing both of these pursuasion, Bulu thought about it for a while before eventually nodding to it. He couldn''t agree more with what Duan Li just said.


    If he could take out tens of them, then even if he were to die, he would have done justice for his wife and daughter''s life!


    ''Lulu, Pegu.. I will definitely avenge you two! Please wait for me!''


    They then walk together to head to a certain direction.


    ...


    "Dugu Liubai, its fortunate that you informed me just in time to patch up the seal. To think that I would have overlooked a leak in the seal myself.. it almost turned into a disaster!" a voice said through the communication jade slip in Dugu Liubai''s hand.


    "Jing Zhianghu, its my oversight as well, so you could call it even. But what actually happened for the seal in your place to become unravelled completely?" he asked, feeling curious.


    With a dry cough, the other party replied to him, "Well, there is this brat who came over and cause a ruckus in my region! But he isn''t evil though, just a complete lunatic that drove my beautiful Ankylosaurus disabled without a tail, just to fetch their monster cores en masse! Fortunately, I managed to reverse it."


    "A brat did that? Interesting, tell me more!" Dugu Liubai said, his interest was piqued, even though its not the answer he had expected.


    Jing Zhianghu chuckled, "You would be surprised of what he is capable of! When I finally found him and was about to beat him up, believe it or not, he stumbled upon a wolf cub and rescued it from a pack of hungry raptors.. and its not your usual breed too, but one of the Fenrir''s! Can you believe that?"


    Fenrir''s cub? Wait a minute..


    "Continue on.. " Dugu Liubai urged as his brows began to furrowed a little bit.


    Hmm..


    Somehow, he felt like the fellow that entered his region was actually the same brat as the one Jing Zhianghu just mentioned!


    "I almost peed my pants when I discovered that its mother was around too.. you know how absolutely vicious they are! Fortunately, its realm was somehow degraded and dropped to my level, thus, I was quite confident that I would at least be able to drive it away. But who knew that those Fenrirs would become friends with the brat instead and didn''t actually turn hostile?"


    When Jing Zhianghu recalled all these, he couldn''t help but to feel that the whole situation was quite bizarre!


    It was his first time seeing that a human, not to mention a mere mortal, did not attract the hostility of a Fenrir. One has to know that Fenrirs absolutely despised humans due to the human''s nature, especially greed which they could detect easily via their instinct.


    Perhaps the brat was devoid of greed? But how can a human exist like that? Even the most noblest of all has a sort of ambition to them, and a certain degree of selfishness couldn''t be avoided in order to reach that goal.


    He then continued, "Eventually, the little cub was given into the care of this brat as the mother departed to head back to the Ninth region via the Blood Pool. Oh and speaking about that graveyard, it was shocking that this brat dived into it without disintegrating himself! The result was that both his physical and inner body was tempered to such an extent that he rose his cultivation by a whole realm as if it was drinking water! It was crazy I tell you!"


    "Slow down there, why are you getting so excited for? While what he did and achieved was indeed quite noteworthy, how is this connected to the seal at all?" Dugu Liubai rolled his eyes.


    "Eh? Its all connected! This brat was the one that entered the third maze and somehow managed to make that legendary sword his! However at the same time, it was only because of that sword that the seal remained in place. But since he removed it, you could guess what happened after that." Jing Zhianghu explained.


    Dugu Liubai pondered upon what the other party had just told him. The Grand Immortal had once instructed them to keep watch over the nine regions of the Eternal Maze, as well as that entity that was sealed under it.


    However, the Grand Immortal had also told them that if one day, a person came over and retrieved the weapons used to seal the entity, they were to acknowledge that person and let him or her, obtain them!


    Naturally, since they worship the Grand Immortal so much, they would heed to every commands that was given by the latter, and would care less if by the end of it all, the entity was unsealed and revived after all nine weapons was plucked out of their platform by this fated person!


    Because they believe, that the Grand Immortal has a plan and purpose in everything he does.


    But this does not meant that they should shirk their responsibilities of preventing that entity from escaping, at least not before all the nine seals was lifted by the chosen one.


    For the Guardians, this was their very sole purpose, to observe and guard the place!


    Cupping his chin, Dugu Liubai asked, "This brat that you mentioned, did he look like these.." he began to describe the appearance of Duan Li.


    After a while, Jing Zhianghu was evidently quite surprised, "Eh? This is indeed the appearance of that brat! How did you know about it?" he said, feeling concerned that the other party has a voyuer habit that he didn''t know about.


    Dugu Liubai went silent for a moment before replying.


    "That''s because.. this person just entered my region.."


    "..." Jing Zhianghu.


    ....

 204 Chapter 201: Meeting the chief!

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    "Ahahaha.. well, goodluck with that." Jing Zhianghu did not know whether to laugh or cry. But what he absolutely knew was that, Duan Li would definitely cause a scene somehow in the Second region!


    "Where is he right now by the way? And how is his cultivation realm?" he asked.


    Dugu Liubai replied, "He is currently with a pack of Molten Komodosaurus, and you won''t believe this, but this fellow can actually talk with animals and monsters! Not to mention, each were talking with their respective language too as if it were natural!"


    He still found the entire situation to be bizarre. After all, even if individuals whom can talk with animals and monsters without any language barriers existed, they could be counted on one hand, and Duan Li was one of them!


    "His cultivation realm is currently at the Core Formation realm. And I think that this fellow is really interesting as you made him out to be, because barely a few moments after arriving, he had cultivated all the way from Pinnacle stage Foundation establishment realm to the Pinnacle stage Core formation realm.. without any sorts of tribulation descending upon him!" he continued.


    Puu!!


    The sounds of Jing Zhianghu spitting out his tea could be heard from the other side.


    Again? Another jump from one Pinnacle stage straight to another Pinnacle?


    Perhaps it has already been a few hundred years since I changed my wheels of fate to an immortal''s, and my memories might have deteriorated for a bit due to my age and time too.. but was cultivation always that easy?


    "The brat is impressive as always, it would be a shame if he were to fall midway on his journey. Do me a favor friend, if you see him in any sorts of danger, try to help him secretly.." Jing Zhianghu requested.


    "Oh? The fabled cold-blooded, Red Emperor of the Thousand Swords is actually showing favor to a mere brat? You sure have gotten soft!" Dugu Liubai chuckled and found it to be amusing.


    "I''ll do just that in consideration of our friendship for so many years, but you have to remember, we Guardians are limited in our means and musn''t intervene directly, so I could not guarentee anything, but I''ll keep a proper lookout." he replied.


    "That would be enough, although I''m quite sure that he could make it past the final trial in your region, it wouldn''t hurt to at least have a final safety net in case things went South. Thank you." Jing Zhianghu said earnestly.


    Dugu Liubai shook his head with a smile, "You''ve really gotten soft my friend. Very well, you can count on me!"


    Ssuu!


    Their communication ended as Dugu Liubai stood up and look towards a certain direction.


    "I guess standing at the peak of that volcano would provide me with a better vantage point.."


    Hupp!!


    BOOMM!!


    With a leap, Dugu Liubai bolted off to the sky and propelled through it by kicking and compressing air to mimic the ability of flying.


    ...


    "The Chief is right inside there. Remember, don''t blame him.. he also lost a daughter like you.. " Senior Komodo said as he reminded Bulu.


    "I understand, sorry about the sudden outburst before senior!" Bulu apologized sincerely.


    "It''s fine, you are right to be angry. But I trust that if there is anyone whom can turn this whole situation around, it will be you and your companions here.. at least, that''s what my gut instinct is telling me right now." Senior Komodo smiled gently.


    Bulu then turned towards Duan Li as they both nodded, and then proceeded to enter the large cave in front of them.


    This cave was damp and humid, although it does not reek and smells bad, it was a little bit hard for both Duan Li and Di Rou to breath in properly. This was due to the black ash below their feet that lets out some sort of mild putrid gasses to the air, which was not suitable to be breathed in by normal people.


    Thankfully, they were both cultivators.


    After they walked further in, they saw a huge silhouette of a Komodo laying flaton the floor.


    Bulu that saw the current state of their chief was in, couldn''t help but to feel quite saddened.


    "Chief.." he called out emotionally.


    The figure, seemingly to react to this voice that it hadn''t heard for a very long time, opened its eyes weakly.


    "This.. voice.. Bulu.. is that you?" the old Komodo said as it couldn''t believe its ears, thinking that it was him just hearing things.


    "Chief Zolak.. no, Father-in-law, I have returned.." Bulu replied as he approached.


    BOOM!! BOOM!!


    The old Komodo lifted its massive body from the ground using its remaining three legs. But its huge body and immense weight was enough to cause tremors on the ground with each step it took as if it was from an earthquake!


    Gradually, its figure started to become clear and Duan Li couldn''t help but to gasp in surprise..


    This was because, this old komodo was akin to a small, moving hill!


    If it were not because Dilong and Zhulong already told Duan Li on what a real dragon actually looks like, he might even be convinced that this old komodo was a real dragon in itself!


    "Bulu.. it''s really you..!! I can''t believe.. hmm?!!" the chief detected the presence of Duan Li along with the rest and turned its head over.


    ROARR!!


    Due to its natural instinct, the chief immediately roared out to Duan Li as he identified the latter as a threat for trespassing his territory, and this roar caused some of the ceiling to collapse!


    Holy-molly!


    "Wait! We are Bulu''s friends!" Duan Li hurriedly said.


    "Woof! Woof!"


    "CUCKKOOO!!"


    Daelius and Cucko also joined in and said the same thing as Duan Li.


    "Bulu''s friends? Is this true?" the old Komodo halted and turned his head as he asked this to Bulu.


    "Yes, father-in-law! They are my friends that I brought along here.." Bulu replied.


    "I see.. Bulu.. where have you been all these while? Both Lulu.. and Pegu.. they.. why were you not there to protect them when they need you?!" the chief roared out once more, its bottled emotions was finally uncapped, and it was very apparent that he was in a state of wrath right now.


    Lulu was his daughter, and Bulu was the only one out of the twelve strongs that he believed and trusted whom could take care of his daughter. But who would have thought that, even in that critical moment, Bulu was nowhere to be found causing his dear daughter to lose her life?


    Not to mention, he also lost a grandchild as well!


    Thus, how could he not be angry?


    With a single kick, Bulu''s body was sent flying to the walls and crashed, creating a huge cloud of dust and cracks.


    "Answer me!!" the old Komodo shouted.


    Meanwhile, Di Rou whispered to to Duan Li, "Master, should we help Bulu?" of which Duan Li shook his head and replied, "It''s fine.. let them settle this.. we are only outsiders when it came to their family matters.."


    Cough! Cough!


    Bulu spatted out a mouthful of blood, but didn''t retaliate and just stood there. In his opinion, he deserved this.


    While it was indeed outside his powers to protect them because he was not there, he had also already sworn to his father-in-law to protect Lulu with his life when he took her hand in marriage before.


    Thus, he could not absolve the blame from his side too.


    ...

 205 Chapter 202: Vengeance!

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    "I.. I was taken by the Guardian of the First region 20 years ago and tasked to become the final boss inside a certain maze.. I was trapped inside there since then.." Bulu answered to his father-in-law.


    Hearing this, Chief Zolak found that such an excuse was hard to believe and roared out angrily, "Impossible! Do not talk lightly about the Guardians! How would they kidnapped you just like that?!"


    "It''s true! I''m not lying father-in-law! My friend over there, Duan Li, can testify for what I have just said. In fact, he was also the one whom has managed to bring me back home today!" Bulu replied with a pitiful voice, feeling that he has been wronged.


    Turning his head towards Duan Li, Chief Zolak questioned, "Is what my son-in-law just said true?"


    Duan Li nodded, "En! When I entered the final room back then, your son-in-law here happened to be the boss, so I had to beat him up. But who knew that just when our fight was about to end, we actually ended up joining together to beat the real final boss instead, a greater species called the Supreme Salamander!"


    "Thus, when we won, we reconciled with each other and became friends. Since he had done me the favor of helping me to beat that Salamander, I vowed that time to one day get him back home, and so, here we are!" Duan Li explained.


    The Old Komodo listened to Duan Li from the beginning to the end, and while there was no trace of lying in the latter''s speech, he could not help but to narrow his eyes in suspicion, full of doubt on what Duan Li had just said.


    After all, he had only just met the other party, thus how can he trust him that blindly?


    Seemingly to notice this himself, Duan Li shook his head as he chuckled, "I''m not lying either, and even if I did, what would I even gain here? I am only to fulfill a promise here, nothing more, nothing less."


    The old Komodo found his reasoning to be logical and thus nodded.


    "I see, if its really the case.. then I could only imagine what you had to go through being held captive for 20 whole years.. forgive me for venting my anger on you.." Chief Zolak said towards his son-in-law.


    Hais!


    "It was actually my fault for not being able to protect them.. I''m a failure as a father and grandfather!" he roared out at the top of his lungs.


    This roars echoed throughout the cave, and from the reverberations, Duan Li and the rest could feel the intense emotion behind those words; it was filled with extreme griefs and pain, regrets and anger!


    However, there was also a trace of helplessness in it.


    "Father-in-law, since I am already here, let us retaliate! We must not let them think that we are so easy to bully!" Bulu said as he gnashed his teeth together and his blood boiling, thirsting for revenge!


    Unexpectedly, the old komodo shook its head before slowly moving back to its previous position and laid down as he let out another sigh.


    "Its not like we did not retaliate after that incident.. in fact, we retaliated and attacked them 3 times before, but we were defeated every single time.. and our losses continued to increase.." he explained with a heavy voice, full of regrets.


    "What? How can that be? While they indeed have 30 strongs when compared to the 12 strongs we have, a single one of us could take out 3 to 4 of them at once! How did we lost so many times?" Bulu said as he was shocked by this.


    Their physical body was many times more tougher than the Fiery Iguanasaurus. Thus, eventhough they didn''t have the numbers, they could still fight on equal grounds!


    Then how did they lost so badly?


    "Its because.. of two reasons.. one was their chief.. Nuhulak.. while his strength is beneath mine, his speed was faster, thus, we are more or less equally matched. But, with my tail and one of my legs severed, there is no way anyone could match him anymore." his father-in-law replied.


    He then continued, "The second reason.. is because they have a new champion, Valak! That individual is a fierce warrior.. I dare say that he would be the one to succeed the Iguanas Tribe in the future and even surpass Nuhulak!"


    Nuhulak and Valak..


    "Then.. are we going to just wait for our doom? Don''t tell me that we don''t have any sorts of plans at all! One of the senior even told me that the patch of grass outside is the last bit of our territory, if this goes on.. I''m afraid that.. we would all go extinct!"


    I will never accept that!


    BOOMM!!


    Bulu smashed the floor below him, sending cracks like cobwebs spreading around him as the center.


    "Bulu.. I understand your indignance.. I really do.. but what can be done? We only have 3 Strongs left to protect this last ground.. even with the addition of you here now, its still not enough to go to war with them for the last time!" old Komodo sighed.


    If we were to really fight them for the last time until the end, then there will not even be a legacy left of us.


    They will be attacking with their full force, not even letting the children live!


    Perhaps, this is the end for our tribe.. our species.. one that is called as the natural selection..


    Hais!


    Just when the atmosphere in the room was getting even more gloomy, Duan Li made a dry cough which attracted both of their attention.


    Ahem!!


    "Umm.. regarding that.. I think I may be able to help.."


    The old Komodo was evidently surprised when he heard this, ''A human was willing to help us?'' he thought.


    This was a strange situation for him.


    At first, he was quite elated, but when he pondered upon the matter more deeply, he shook his head once more.


    "You? Eventhough your realm is quite high.. sigh.. forget it, you will just drag yourself to your early death.. after all, there was only around 200 of us left while their numbers are in the few thousands!"


    When he detected Duan Li before, he had already realized that Duan Li''s realm was far more higher than him, that was why his defensive instinct suddenly kicked in and he roared out.


    But even if he was stronger, so what?


    There was no way the other party could handle the continuous onslought of a few thousands of those cunning beast!


    Not to mention, his stamina is now that a mortal''s due to the limitations of this region!


    Duan Li chuckled, "Aren''t they just a bunch of 1-Star monsters at most? While there may be 2-Star monsters among them, I''ve once single-handedly slaughtered more than 10,000 of 1-Star monsters, let alone a few thousands, that''s practically nothing!"


    Puu!!


    The old Komodo choked on himself.


    Who are you trying to bullsh*t!!


    It is not as if you are a Nascent Soul realm expert to be saying such things! If I were to believe in you, then I would have really been living in vain all these while!


    Do you actually take me for a fool?


    Seeing that the old Komodo''s bizarre expression was a hint that the latter did not believe in him, he was caught in an awkward position.


    "If you don''t believe me, its fine! But I could guess why your confidence has dropped to such a degree.. and that is because you are now a handicapped!" Duan Li said.


    "Y-You!!" the old Komodo''s face warped in anger and was about to lash out at him before Duan Li pressed on.


    "With no one to lead them, your species will be easily defeated. Furthermore, even if you can return to your peak state, unless there is also a champion on your side to fight against this Valak, a retaliation would only be courting death. Am I right?"


    Controlling his emotions, the old Komodo nodded. "That''s right."


    This was especially the case for him being disabled. In such a state, he was unfit to be their leader in battle as he cannot move easily. With no one to rally upon and no one to lead, morale would continue to drop before the fight becomes one-sided!


    Therefore, eventhough what Duan Li had just said infuriated him a little, he had to acknowledge that the other party was right!


    "Then, what if I said that I can make you walk normally again? Give you a champion, and.. that I can raise your whole tribe''s fighting prowess to the pinnacle?" Duan Li chuckled, his words sounded like a bewitching devil.


    ...

 206 Chapter 203: I will do it!

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    "What?" the Old Komodo could not believe what he was hearing and for a moment or so, he was in a loss for words.


    After coming out of his stupor, his countenance turned into that of ridicule.


    "Human, even if you are strong, you should stop giving us false hopes. Not to mention giving me back my lost limb and tail, even saying that you can increase our realm to the pinnacle? You can''t be serious!"


    Human''s cultivation realm with monsters differs by a whole lot!


    While humans needed to absorb spiritual Qi from the surrounding in order to ascend in their realm, a monster''s realm was decided upon birth!


    Along with their growth, their realm will increase naturally without the need to cultivate at all, up until their monster core reach their maximum potential.


    Take for example him, his realm had long reached its saturated point and stopped growing at the Early stage of the Core formation realm, and there was no way to increase it any further as they do not have a way or method to cultivate.


    Naturally, this might sound convenient at first, but a linear increase in realm was actually limited in so many ways that each of them became identical to one another in the end, separated by only who has the more higher realm!


    When compared to human cultivators, humans could practice an almost infinite number of cultivation methods so long as they have access to it and their body constitution was compatible or suitable for practicing the said cultivation method!


    Therefore, even if this human in front of him possessed the means to increase one''s realm, towards humans it might work, but for monsters?


    The old komodo sighed and shook its head.


    At this moment, Dilong furrowed her brows feeling displeased with the latter, she thus said, "Do not look down on my master, back in the human world, he had beaten a full-grown Nascent Soul realm expert on his own. And if that does not convince you yet, just know that your entire tribe here would only amount to a small village in where we came from.


    Zhulong butted in, "That''s right! Our master here is the Imperial Overlord, and what that means.. is that he rules over the lives of tens of millions of people!" he said with a tone of disdain.


    Both Dilong and Zhulong''s revelation was so impactful that the countenance of the old komodo changed once more.


    ''A ruler of tens of millions of people?'' his eyes widened.


    Even he could not imagine what kind of power or influences that would hold!


    In fact, that number was far too inconceivable for him to even process because he was just a chief for a few hundreds of his kin!


    Realizing his mistake, the old komodo swiftly corrected his words, "If that is indeed true, then.. perhaps you really has a way to help us?" he said with an agitated voice.


    "Hmph! Since I already said that I can help, so naturally.. of course I can!" Duan Li harrumphed to the obvious as he replied confidently.


    He then continued, "Have all your tribe members to gather around a hot spring large enough to contain everyone at the same time.. you guys will need to temper your body first in order to be able to handle the increase in realm that I will induce on everyone later on!"


    Hearing the confident tone used by the human in front of him, the old komodo no longer held any shred of doubt and decided to trust the other party thoroughly.


    After all, they were already cornered to the point of near-extinction, so even if the other party turned out to lie to them in the end, what more could they lose?


    "Alright, I will tell them right away!" the old komodo replied as he got up once more, but this time, his looks were far more energetic!


    From this, it could be seen that his vigor had been resurrected along with his long-buried hopes!


    He then started to move with a limp motion to head towards the exit of the cave one step at a time.


    Seeing this, Duan Li shook his head and said, "Hold up, let me patch up that leg of your''s and tail first!"


    What can you even accomplish walking at such a snail''s pace?


    Then, with a wave of his hand, wooden boxes began to flew out from his spatial ring one by one!


    With a single thought, these wooden boxes joined and morphed together as they started to fuse with the severed hind leg and tail of the old komodo!


    Wooshh! Wooshh!


    "Urghh!" the old komodo gritted his teeth as he could feel that the foreign object was integrating with all of his previously severed nerves!


    Su su su!


    Slowly, they formed to become a new wooden leg that was nearly-identical to the rest of his other limbs, including his tail!


    Furthermore, he could even control both of these prosthetic parts as if it were his own since the beginning! There were no sense of unfamiliarity with them at all!


    The only difference perhaps, was that both of his new limb and tail were made out of a unique hard wood instead of his normal flesh!


    "T-This..!!" the old komodo was left dumbfounded and could only look at Duan Li with its mouth wide agaped.


    This had really shocked him to a great degree!


    Am I the monster here or are you the monster?


    "T-Thank you for this, Lord Benefactor! I will never forget this graciousness of your''s even after I die! Starting from today onwards, your wish is my command!" he hurriedly said as if swearing an oath of loyalty.


    Duan Li only chuckled as he listened to this.


    "It''s only a small matter! Now, inform the rest on what I have just told you. I will give you guys the chance to turn this entire situation around and let you guys emerge as the winner by the end of it all!" he declared.


    ...


    Shortly after the old komodo left excitedly to inform the rest of his tribe, Bulu approached Duan Li and bowed his head towards the latter in order to express his utmost gratitude.


    "Thank you friend, after everything is settled today, I will be in your debt forever and would do as you wish!" he said.


    Duan Li smiled, "Why so serious? Come and follow me, I will make you the new champion of your tribe!" Duan Li said as he beckoned for the other party to accompany him.


    Walking a little bit further inside the cave, they soon found themselves to be in the middle of a fork and Duan Li head into one of them. Before long, Duan Li reached his desired destination.


    It was a pool of hot magma!


    "This.. what are we doing here?" Bulu inquiried, a little bit scared.


    Duan Li turned around to face him.


    "In order to become the champion of the tribe, you will need to undergo a body tempering that is even more vicious than the others!" he said to Bulu.


    Gulp!


    "I.. do you mean that I have to temper myself inside that pool of magma?" his body began to sweat.


    What lunatic!


    I know that my body looks rocky and as hard as it can be, but don''t you know that magma pools are so hot that even rocks could get liquefied?


    You must be trying to eat me instead!


    "Fool! The resources used to temper your physical body will be the blood from the Hundred Thousand Graveyards in the middle of the Eternal Maze, where all beings that lived here will return one day!"


    Duan Li then explained, "Due to the potency of the blood, every single drop would be like a toxic, eating at you straight away. However, by submerging yourself inside this magma bath, the heat will cause your blood flow to circulate in your body even faster than normal!"


    "This way, when I add the blood droplet later on, it will enter inside your bloodstream much more easily through your acupoints, and merged with your body cells rapidly, saving you from having to deal with extended sufferings!"


    Ahhh!


    Bulu stepped back involuntarily when he heard this as his body shivered.


    "I-I know about that blood pool, I will die if you use that to temper my body!" he shouted in panic.


    "Hmph! Don''t tell me that you are already afraid of death before the fight even begins? How disappointing! This a waste of my time!" Duan Li snorted as he turned to exit the area.


    "Urgh.. hold it right there!" Bulu gritted his teeth together.


    "I will do it!"


    ...

 207 Chapter 204: Rally of blood!

    "Good, very good!" Duan Li chuckled when Bulu agreed to be tempered by him.


    Previously, during the argument between the son-in-law and the father-in-law, Duan Li had already threw some questions towards Zhulong and Dilong, the Elemental Spirit Origin whether it was possible to increase the realm of monsters or not.


    To his surprise, it was actually indeed possible with their help, and there were two methods to achieve this at least.


    The first method was simple, but the effects would only be temporary and weak at best. It involves forming a second artificial, tiny monster core that acts as a sort of relay for the main monster core!


    By spooling spiritual Qi inside this tiny relay core, its density would be greatly enhanced. When used, the power output would at least be twice as powerful as before!


    Of course, this requires the physical body of the monsters to be quite tough, but a diluted version of Duan Li''s blood should be enough to temper the bunch of Komodos so that they can use this method.


    The second method, which was the more complicated one, was what Duan Li planned for Bulu. Its effects would be permanent and more powerful than the first method, but the process to achieve that would make those without enough will to choose to die rather than going along with it!


    In this second method, there were three pre-conditions and two processes that Bulu has to go through.


    The first condition was that - Bulu must already be at the limits of his potential. Second, his elemental attribute must be the same with the Elemental Spirit Origin, and in this case, Zhulong and Bulu were both Fire type, so they were compatible with each other.


    These two prerequisite could be considered to have been met by Bulu as of right now.


    Third, was that Bulu needed to be able to receive huge influx of spiritual Qi that was more than what his meridians and pathways could normally holds, which was something that was extremely difficult to achieve!


    This was why Duan Li had to temper Bulu''s physical and internal body first!


    Then, after the three pre-conditions were met, the first process involves the re-forging of the monster core inside Bulu through melting it. This was an extremely excruciating process, akin to swallowing a pot of boiling liquid into one''s stomach!


    The second process, would be re-forming the melted monster core!


    As the body has been saturated with spiritual Qi more than its normal capacity, the resulting formation of the new monster core would then be denser than how it was originally before!


    What this means was that, Bulu''s realm would increase by leaps and bounds!


    "First, we need to temper your body." waving his hand, a bottle filled with red liquid appeared on Duan Li''s hand.


    Gulp!


    ''That is.. the blood from the blood pool!'' Bulu instinctively lowered his body in a defensive position.


    "Go and take a bath there first, we need to open all your acupoints so that you will be able to absorb most of the essence from this blood!" Duan Li pointed towards the magma pool.


    Bulu turned his head and gazed at the bubbling magma in front of him. He wanted to curse Duan Li so bad, after all, even if his body was tough like boulders and could handle extreme heat from magma, taking a bath inside one was another different thing altogether!


    It was no different than sitting inside a boiling soup, waiting to be cooked and feasted by others!


    This was especially the case when he casted a glance towards Duan Li''s wicked smile, as if there were ulterior motives behind all these!


    "Hmm?"


    Seeing the hesitation from the other party, Duan Li shook his head, "What''s wrong? Don''t tell me that your resolve to avenge your family and kin is only this much?"


    Hearing Duan Li mentioning about the family he lost, Bulu grinded his teeth as his eyes flashed.


    At this moment, he threw all caution to the wind and jumped.


    ''Screw you!''


    Psshhh!!


    AHHHHHHHHH!!


    ...


    "What was that?" Chief Zolak turned his head around as he could hear an agonized roar from the cave where he just exited.


    From the looks of it.. it appears to be the voice from his son-in-law and sounded extremely tragic..


    "He must be undergoing some intense training or tempering.." he said, convincing himself.


    After walking a little bit further, he could finally see a group of his kin by the distance, and due to his huge physique,they had also detected his presence as well at almost the same time.


    "Eh? Isn''t that.. Guys, look! Its the chief!"


    "Huh? What happened for him to go all the way here? Don''t tell me.. the bastard are coming at us again?!"


    "No wait! It seems to be something else.. his expression doesn''t seem that dire.. and look at his limbs.. there are four of them!"


    "His tail is also there! What''s going on?"


    They couldn''t help but to feel stunned when they saw the chief coming at them with all his limbs intact.


    Furthermore, his face that was usually gloomy from being unable to do anything with their current dilemma was now quite lively, in fact, the latter was even smiling! It was as if there was some sort of good news that he wanted to deliver to them personally!


    "Chief, what''s wrong?" they hurriedly asked.


    "My family.. today, I have a very good news to tell everyone here!" Chief Zolak said with big smile and beckoned for everyone to gather around him as more and more started to rally together when they saw him.


    ...


    "What? A chance to increase our realm to fight against the Iguanas? Impossible!" said one of the komodos.


    The rest nodded suit as most of them found it hard to believe on what their chief just said.


    "We can''t trust the words coming out of a human''s mouth! They are a cunning species and could shamelessly play tricks with us!"


    The others also began to voice out their similar concerns as well.


    Chief Zolak sighed.


    "Everybody just calm down for a moment, if the human that I''ve just mentioned were indeed dubious in nature, did you guys think that I would go all the way here to convince you all? Look at my leg and tail, he is the one whom managed to do this!" he said.


    "Furthermore, there are nothing left for us to lose here! Rather than waiting for our inevitable death, wouldn''t it be far more better to try for this last chance to turn over the entire situation around?"


    Seeing that they were still skeptical with him, he has no choice but to push on.


    "I feel that this human was sent here to us for a reason, and this is the very purpose for that! To help us fight against them!"


    "Remember what we have lost to those bastards? Our griefs, our pain, our sufferings all these years! If we did not take this chance, I fear that there will be no more redemption left for us!"


    Hearing the chief mentioning on what they have lost, which includes their loved ones and families, their mind slowly reeled back to the nightmare three years ago, and the flames in their hearts were slowly re-ignited and their blood began to boil furiously once more!


    "Are we willing to accept and not avenge our fallen kin?" the chief shouted.


    "No! I''m not willing!" a burly old Komodo roared in reply.


    "Me too! I have been plagued with the same nightmare every day.. it is time to end this!!" another komodo said.


    Soon after, more and more komodos began to express their willingness to trust Duan Li in order to get their revenge!


    Chief Zolak nodded at this.


    This was the kind of atmosphere he was looking for.


    ''It''s time to flame this momentum all the way to its peak..!!'' he said to himself as his eyes glinted, and his aura started to surge.


    "If everyone here are willing to join me in this final cause of ours..." he pointed towards the direction of the nearest ocean with his wooden tail.


    "I promise you, that we will not stop until their blood flowed to become rivers that will drown the entire ocean before us!"


    BOOOMMM!!


    As he said that final piece, his aura exploded with a heroic air to it that immediately engulfed and affected the others!


    ROAARRRR!!


    Under their combined warcry, the sky began to rattle, the earth started to tremble and the seas seethed together!


    It is time for revenge!


    ...

 208 Chapter 205: Bulus transformation!

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    Tap!


    Chief Zolak has just returned back to the cave to tell Duan Li that the deed was done, but when he arrived, he was horrified by the sight that he saw!


    "Wha-What is this?!" he said with a pale face.


    "Oh? You''ve returned! How was it? Did you managed to convince everyone?" Duan Li asked with a smile as he continued to drive his spiritual Qi into the magma pool to swirl it like it was a pot of hot soup with Bulu in the middle of it.


    In fact, just a single whiff would be enough to tell that a part of Bulu''s meat was already cooked into the medium-rare zone!


    "Y-Yes Lord benefactor! B-But what are you doing to my son-in-law? Why are you cooking him alive?" he replied as he cast a look at that tragic face of Bulu''s, seemingly resigned to its fate.


    Could it be that his son-in-law had done a heinous crime?


    "You mean this? We are currently in the body tempering process! The heat from the magma has forced all of his acupoints to open, and he is now absorbing a unique blood in order to strengthen both his physical and inner body!" Duan Li answered.


    Hearing this, the old komodo heaved a huge sigh in relief.


    So it was body tempering!


    "Is this also the same process that we have to take later on? I don''t think that.. everyone will agree on this.." he said to Duan Li with a concerned look to him.


    After all, the process in front of him appeared to be no less than cooking in his eyes!


    Who in the world would even want that?


    Duan Li chuckled as he answered, "Don''t worry, this level of body tempering is not something that others could withstand! Everyone else will have a less cruciating body tempering process later on. This here is meant specifically for Bulu, for he.. will become the Champion after this!"


    "The Champion..!!" Chief Zolak widened his eyes in realization as his breath grew agitated.


    No wonder that such a peculiar method was used!


    A Champion was a title bestowed onto the strongest new generation of the monster''s species, and if the method used was common, then how can they possibly become any different than others?


    Those who strived to be different, must first chose a different path than everyone else!


    "Watch! I will add the blood to the magma pool right now.." Duan Li gestured as he dropped 5 droplets of his blood into the magma pool.


    Tssss!!


    "Ehh.. Ahh... AHHHHHHH!!"


    As soon as the blood came into contact with the burning magma, they immediately saturated the whole pool and dyed it the color of crimson, turning the pool into a boiling pot of blood!


    Bulu''s agonized moans became increasingly unbearable to listen to, and the old komodo could not help but to turn his sight away.


    "Persevere! You must survive this body tempering process if you want to avenge your wife and daughter!" Duan Li said as he saw the latter to be slowly losing consciousness.


    As if those pair of words were like magic, Bulu gritted his teeth and forcefully opened his eyes wide, even to the extent of slapping his own face with his tail so as to remain awake!


    AAHHHHHHHHH!!


    ...


    After a few moment, Duan Li nodded.


    "Good! You have managed to absorb it all!Come out of the pool and sit in front of me!" he instructed while feeling genuine amaze and respect towards the latter.


    Just how potent was his blood?


    One has to know that even Duan Li''s followers had to dilute a single droplet of his blood thoroughly, not to mention 5 droplets!


    Pant.. Pant..


    Stepping out from the magma pool, Bulu''s countenance was extremely pale, but his eyes was full of flames, as if it would burn for eternity!


    "What resolve.." Chief Zolak''s heart clenched, feeling emotional when he saw this.


    If only I have even a shred of that resolve back then.. perhaps we would have won..


    "Drink this, it will alleviate your condition back to its peak!" Duan Li waved his hand casually as a bottle of elixir appeared on his hand.


    Di Rou that saw this immediately gasped in disbelief..


    That''s a grade-5 elixir and its incredibly rare in the Tian continent!


    In fact, no present Alchemy masters could even concoct one out of a thousand batches!


    If Grade-1 elixirs could revive non-cultivators from any condition whatsoever, then Grade-2 would help Qi condensation and Foundation establishment realm cultivators immensely.


    Meanwhile, Grade-3 would recover most injuries for Core and Golden Core realm cultivators while Grade-4 was the only elixirs potent enough to be useful for Nascent Soul realm cultivators to mend their injuries and their price were astronomically expensive!


    Therefore, what would be the effects of a grade-5 elixir that was said to be an elixir made for the immortals in the legends?


    Even she did not know and could not help but to anticipate for this greatly!


    But what she did know was that, her master was someone with an unfathomable means behind him!


    To think that a legendary grade-5 elixir would be used to mend the condition of a mere monster like this, if the Emperors of the nine empires ever found out about this, they would spurt their old blood for seven days straight!


    Gulu gulu gulu..


    Swiftly after drinking down all the contents inside the elixir, Bulu''s countenance no longer looked pale but rosy instead.


    "Oohhhh! I can feel that my strength.. are returning back!"


    Kacha kacha!


    Like a grasshopper shedding its old skin away, Bulu shook his body rapidly before his old, crumpled skin exfoliated off of his body, revealing a new glistening, solid skin underneath!


    "Excellent." Duan Li commented with a nod.


    He then approached Bulu and put one of his palm onto the latter.


    Sonar Qi!


    Wengg!!


    ''Good! Its not wasted after all!'' he said to himself, feeling quite relieved.


    While it pains him to use a grade-5 elixir like that, he still has a few of them inside his spatial ring and this was an occasion that requires him to use it.


    After all, the effects from a grade-5 elixir was just too strong, and for a monster that was still in the Foundation establishment realm using it, there was still a good 80 percent of that elixir left coursing through his body, waiting to heal any new injuries that it encountered!


    This would be extremely beneficial for the next step, which was the melting of the monster core!


    Since meridians and pathways were connected directly to a monster''s core, if the core was melted, so does their meridians and pathways!


    But, with the help of the remaining elixir inside his body, it could continuously heal his internal body without touching the core at all!


    This was because elixirs were only meant to heal both the physical and inner body state only, not to fix a crippled dantian or a broken monster core!


    "The next step would be far more painful than before, are you ready?" Duan Li said with a serious voice.


    Bulu gnashed his teeth as he replied with a savage look, "Bring it on!"


    I''ve already endured such a pain, was there anymore more painful than that?


    Duan Li then turned to Zhulong, "Zhulong, its your turn now."


    "Alright master." Zhulong then closed his eyes as he meditated.


    Then, when he opened his eyes back, the magma pool from before started to float on air one-by-one and coagulated to form a kind of formation seal using ancient texts undecipherable for everyone.


    Wongg!!


    "This was actually a method for torture back in the past, so I hope that you are truly prepared." Zhulong warned and then waved his metallic wings, and the floating formation seal bolted straight into Bulu''s body!


    BAM!


    AHHHHHHHHH!!


    Again, another bout of agonizing cries resounded from within the cave.


    ...


    At the summit of the volcanic mountain, Dugu Liubai was sitting cross-legged on top of a large boulder.


    Since Duan Li had entered a cave, his eyesight no longer works, thus he amplified his hearing abilities to listen at Duan Li''s conversation in order to continue to observe the latter.


    But as fate would have it, Duan Li was not conversing with people but monsters. Thus, even if he were to listen to the numerous antonations sounds of different roars repeatedly, he would not be able to understand a single jacksh*t. Therefore, he could only understand the conversation from the mouth of Duan Li.


    From what he had listened thus far, he knew that a war between the Molten Komodosaurus and Fiery Iguanasaurus was inevitable, what more with Duan Li helping one side to win.


    Although what Duan Li did here was not a breach of any rules of conduct, he still found the whole matter to be quite bizarre.


    A human taking part between the tribal war of monsters? He was sure that this was the first time he ever saw one!


    Furthermore, the fellow even claimed to be able to increase the prowess of these komodos!


    It was not as if they were a bunch of cultivators, so what was the other party even planning to do?


    Then, the next thing he knew was that, sounds of tragic roars was being emanated out from the cave, similar to when one''s testicle was being hammered by a powerful kick!


    And since his sense of smell was particularly strong, he could smell an aromatic scent unique to a cooked meat waffing out from the cave!


    Wasn''t the other party trying to help them? Then why was he cooking them instead?


    It couldn''t be possible that the fellow had set up one elaborate trick just for having a grand feast?


    Only lunatics would even think of doing that!


    Hais!


    Dugu Liubai suppressed his complex rows of emotions and continued to listen to the sounds coming out from the cave patiently..


    ...

 209 Chapter 206: Bulus evolution!

    Chapter 206: Bulu''s evolution!


    Author''s note: Please consider supporting me over patre0n :) you can just search my name Ramzeyramzo. Thanks!


    ...


    "Ahh.." Bulu no longer looked as energetic as before, and his face turned pale like a sheet of white paper while his voice grew increasingly weak.


    It seemed that, he was about to faint at any moment now!


    The pain from his monster core being melted inside of him was a pain like none other. If before, taking a bath inside that magma pool felt like he was being cooked alive, right now, it felt like his very soul was being grinded down to the dust!


    "You must hold on son-in-law! Otherwise, all these sacrifices you made would''ve been in vain!" Chief Zolak encouraged the latter while his own heart was beating in trepidation.


    Never once before he had thought that the process to become a champion would involve such a horrifying step!


    To melt down one''s own core? Even if he had 10 times the guts, he would still not dare to do such a thing!


    After all, death was highly likely!


    Thus in this situation, he could not help but to view his son-in-law in extremely high regard and respect!


    "It''s done! Master, we need to reform back his core right now before the elixir in his body is exhausted!" Zhulong swiftly said to Duan Li.


    Duan Li nodded, "En! Leave this to me!"


    Placing both palm onto Bulu''s body, Duan Li muttered, "Sonar Qi!"


    Wengg!!


    "How terrible.." he could not help but to shiver a bit as he diagnosed the internal state of Bulu''s body.


    Everything was in a constant meltdown and repair cycle repeatedly!


    It was thanks to the remnants of the grade-5 elixir that Bulu was still alive right now, otherwise, he would have long turned into a molten state with such an extreme temperature inside his body!


    This final step involves the reforming of the liquefied monster core back to its solid state, and the method on how to do this was extremely difficult.


    Thankfully, Duan Li was well-versed in pill forging, and this process was similar to that. Furthermore, it also requires one to be an expert in the medical field at the same time and Duan Li also happened to master this area as well!


    Thus, by combining both of these expertise, he began to drive his spiritual Qi in a unique way along Bulu''s meridians and pathways, similar to how he would usually do to resolve internal traumas.


    Wengg!!


    Pumping all three of his Qi source from his three dantians, Duan Li used one of them to forcefully cycle the stagnated spiritual Qi inside of Bulu''s meridians and pathways due to the absence of a working monster core carefully.


    Next, another one source was injected directly into the monster core so that by the end of this process, Bulu would have a far denser monster core than he originally has before!


    The third Qi source was tasked to drive heat away from the melted monster core, so that it will gradually solidify to form a whole core once more.


    Tsszzz!!


    "Hmm.."


    At this stage, Duan Li got a certain inspiration and asked the pair of little dragons beside him a question.


    "Dilong and Zhulong, if I were to imbed other elemental attribute inside his core at this stage, would that make him able to use other elements than Fire?"


    Dilong and Zhulong turned to each other and replied, "I don''t think that''s possible Master, even if the core right now is still in a melted state, imbedding foreign element to it will cause rejection due to incompatibility.. thus those elements would simply dissipate!"


    Monster Core were formed at birth and their elemental attribute was already decided by then. Thus, if another element tries to co-exist with it, that would be next to impossible as it has already rooted itself into the very fiber of the monster!


    Hearing their explanation, Duan Li thought for a moment, ''So that means its okay to try?''


    In that case, let''s just try then!


    What could possibly go wrong anyway?


    "Alright.. Dilong, send me some Earth element here so that I can try imbedding it into the core.." he instructed, of which the latter did as was told.


    Ssuuuu!!


    As the Earth element was injected into Bulu''s core, it stayed for a moment before showing signs of rejection.


    "So.. it does not work after all? That''s a pity.." Duan Li shook his head.


    But halfway through his sentence, he could feel something becoming active inside his chest, and he was very familiar with this feeling!


    It''s the crimson mysterious pearl!


    Huuuu!!


    The crimson mysterious pearl glowed mysteriously before sending a surge of crimson Qi into Bulu''s core.


    Then, the previously unstable Earth element inside Bulu''s core began to calm down and cycled within it normally.


    Gulp!


    "This..!!" Duan Li widened his eyes in surprise and excitement.


    Did it work?


    Let me try and send him a lightning element too..


    Huuuu!!


    "..."


    It works! Both of the element consolidated with the core! They are stable!


    Hahahahahaha!


    Turning his head to Di Rou, Duan Li asked her quickly, "Di Rou, do you cultivate any specific element?"


    Di Rou nodded, "Yes master, I cultivate the dark element.."


    Before she could even finish her sentence, Duan Li swiftly grabbed at one of her hands and said, "I want it!" with a straight, manly gaze.


    This sudden action of his caused the young maiden in black to be taken aback and her face could not help but to blush slightly.


    For a moment or so, she almost thought that Duan Li was asking for something else..


    With a small voice, she nodded and replied, "Okay.. Master can have it.."


    Wengg!!


    "Great! Thanks!" Duan Li said as he excitedly injected the dark element he got from Di Rou.


    Huuuu!!


    "Alright! All three elements are now stabled with the core!" he said, which surprised the little dragons.


    "What? Master is able to do it? How is that possible?!" Dilong''s mouth quivered and Zhulong was stoned, stupefied by what they saw.


    Not too long after, the core was completely solidified and glistened with an even impressive look to it!


    "It''s finally done.." Chief Zolak was just about to jump in celebration, before Bulu''s body started to glow brightly in white color!


    Shiinggg!!


    "Huh? What''s going on?" Duan Li was surprised.


    His aura is spiking rapidly!


    Is he going to explode?


    Did the process failed? But that can''t be!


    Chief Zolak also noticed this sudden spike and could not help but to shout feeling horrified, "Son-in-law! Nooo!!"


    However, contrary to their wild imaginations, Bulu did not explode into a bloody mess, but instead was shrinking in size rapidly!


    If previously, his total size from head to tail was about 14 meters in length and his height was 4 meters tall, the size he was shrinking to right now was quite extreme!


    "I-Is he going to turn into an egg?" Duan Li said to himself in panic.


    He was here to make the other party stronger, not turn the latter into a egg!


    Then, the shrinking stopped before the glow slowly dissipated, revealing the new body of Bulu!


    2 meters tall!


    Skin rock solid with a boulder-like textures, muscles bulging out, one head, two arms, two legs and one tail..


    This is a humanoid appearance!


    If not for the obvious long tail, his grey skin color and his reptile-like head of a komodo''s, anyone that saw him would just dismiss the other party as a human with a strange body constitution!


    "T-This..!!"


    Everyone was too dumbfounded by this transformation that even Duan Li himself found his mouth to be opened wide in agape!


    ...


    At this moment, Dugu Liubai that was listening intently could not help but to feel anxious of what the ruckus was all about inside that cave!


    Suddenly..


    Hong long!


    "Eh?" he opened his eyes abruptly, shocked by the sudden sound of a thunder splitting the sky as he looked up.


    Lightning tribulation?


    "W-Wait.." he narrowed his eyes slightly to look more closely, before his face turned ashen!


    N-No!


    "T-This.. this isn''t tribulation for ascending one''s realm.."


    "This.. is Heaven''s punishment!"


    ...

 210 Chapter 207: Its him again..

    Author''s note: Please consider supporting me over patre0n :) you can just search my name Ramzeyramzo. Thanks!


    ...


    Staring at the lean, tall figure standing with both eyes closed, everyone was too shocked by the changes that they didn''t know how to react.


    However, a short moment later, Zhulong that came out from his stupor broke the silent atmosphere with his voice full of trepidation.


    "This.. its a forced evolution!" Zhulong commented as he swallowed his saliva, fear could be seen reflected in his eyes.


    Gulp!


    "Yeah, no doubt about it.. this.. Master, this is extremely bad..!" Dilong by the side added as she turned towards her master, her face similarly turning pale.


    "Eh? Why is it bad? Look at him, he turned cool and awesome! And can you feel that aura being emanated out from him? He has finally stepped into the Early stage of the Core formation realm!" Duan Li excitedly responded to Dilong.


    And he didn''t know why, but he got the feeling that somehow, Bulu''s new evolution form has more room for it to grow in the future as well!


    "Master.. this is a forced evolution that has deviated from the natural law.. I fear that.."


    Just before Dilong could finish her sentence, a loud thunder exploded outside that could be heard all the way inside the cave!


    BOOOMMM!!


    "I-It''s here.. Heaven''s punishment!" she shrieked out in horror.


    After realizing this, Duan Li rolled his eyes as he sighed, "Them again! How annoying!"


    Dilong and Zhulong''s jaws dropped.


    A-Annoying?


    Master, that''s the Heaven''s will! You can''t just talk it down like that!


    And what do you mean by ''again''?


    Could it be that.. this is not the first time?


    Crackle!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    A lightning strike from the Heaven bolted down to strike at the ceiling of the cave above Duan Li, which immediately vaporized it, revealing them underneath.


    BOOMMM! BOOOMMM!


    With the ceiling gone, they can finally see the raging dark clouds up in the sky with numerous lightnings crackling and dancing viciously within it!


    "T-The size of this punishment.. it will devour us all!" Chief Zolak panicked.


    The dark clouds was so colossal that its size covered the entirety of the island. It was as if the punishment that was about to descend from these clouds would annihilate the whole island along with it!


    ...


    Heaven''s Will committee..


    "Empress Luo.. it''s him again.." Elder Jun Xi said as he face-palmed himself in the face.


    This fellow really knows how to catch the Heaven''s attention!


    Empress Luo remained silent, but her brows furrowed a little, showing that she was being displeased by this entire situation as well.


    Why is he constantly creating troubles for himself?


    Does he not fear us?


    "Send down the punishments." she said casually with a wave of her hand.


    "Eh? But.." Elder Jun hesitated.


    "Just do it. Even though we have previous dealings with him, it was to balance karma, nothing else. We must not show any favoritism or else if we are judged by the high court, who would be able to take responsibility?" she replied sternly.


    Elder Jun sighed and then nodded, "Alright.." as he reluctantly passed the orders to send down the lightnings.


    I''m not worried about him, I''m just worried that.. the fellow would make use of us again!


    ...


    BOOMMM! BOOMMM!!


    "Finished.. this whole island is finished!! A punishment of this magnitude, just what kind of heinous sin did the fellow did to attract such a wrath from the Heavens?!" Dugu Liubai stared at the dark clouds with helplessness as he clutched his head with both hands and dropped to his knees, turning almost deranged.


    Even with his realm, there was no way he could survive a total devastating attack from the Heavens, let alone all those under his supervision!


    After all, all powers were sourced from the nine firmaments, and the Heavens could be considered the law for all things natural.


    Noticing that the dust had settled down and Duan Li and the others could be seen from the opening, Dugu Liubai stared hard to see what the fellow had done.


    A moment later, he stood up abruptly from his kneeling position as his jaw dropped to the ground.


    "That... That is impossible! How?!"


    He noticed from Bulu''s Qi fluctuations that Bulu was the previous Komodo that was with Duan Li, thus how did the former changed from a monster into a humanoid figure?


    There was only one answer..


    Forced evolution!


    To think that a mere mortal of the Core formation realm would possess the ability to break such a taboo, even for experts with formidable means, such a thing was almost impossible to do!


    He dared believe that, not even those with two or three realms above him could change the nature''s law as much as that!


    Crackle!


    The chains of lightnings dancing in the sky began to coagulate to form streaks of pure gold lightning bolts, and each were the size of a tree trunk!


    They were all suspended in the sky while pointing down, ready to strike at a moment''s notice.


    Gulp!


    "If even one of that falls to the ground, nothing can survive it!" Dugu Liubai said with absolute horror.


    This was the first time he ever saw such a magnitude of lightning, not even his immortal ascension tribulation lightning was this scary!


    At this moment, a figure dashed out of the cave and stood on a large boulder like a straight arrow, both hands on the waist like a parent that was about to reprimand their naughty child.


    It was Duan Li!


    "Heaven''s Will committee! What is the meaning of this?!" he shouted out at the top of his lungs angrily.


    "I demand an explanation for this farce!" he continued.


    Puu!!


    Farce?


    Dugu Liubai choked and stumbled on himself, falling flat on his face.


    "Lunatic! This fellow is a total lunatic! Crazy!" he shrieked out and cussed with all the cursing words he has in his vocabulary bank.


    To bellow out towards the Heaven like that, it was confirmed by now that the other party was indeed courting death!


    Just that, why did the other party has to implicate innocents like him?


    "Ahh.. forgive me Grand Immortal.. I might not be able to save the Second region from being destroyed.."


    ...


    "..." everyone in the Heaven''s Will committee.


    Why did it feel like we want to slap that brat in the face?


    "Answer him." Empress Luo ordered as she found the situation to be amusing.


    "E-Eh? Alright.." Elder Jun was shocked.


    There was no precedence where the Heaven''s Will has to back down after being reprimanded by a mortal like that!


    Still, he did as he was told.


    "Mortal human named Duan Li.. it''s me again." Elder Jun said.


    Duan Li was familiar with this mysterious voice.


    "Ah? Elder Jun? Why are you guys causing a scene once more? What is the problem this time?" Duan Li furrowed his brows.


    Puu!!


    Damn it!


    Elder Jun felt like he just received a critical damage to his soul with that question.


    "Ahem! You have broken the natural law of forcing evolution onto monsters away from their pre-determined path.. that is a huge sin!" Elder Jun answered.


    Hearing this, Duan Li shook his head.


    "A huge sin? I don''t believe that! Tell me, where can I get my information in the list of things that were illegal for me to do? Did you distribute books for the laws and regulations of what we can''t do? Let me guess, none!" he refuted.


    "..." everyone of the Heaven''s Will committee.


    Well, he is kinda right on that..


    They looked at each other and only found everyone to shrug themselves off.


    Indeed, they had not told the mortals what can be and can''t be done..


    In fact, the was no guide book at all!


    Elder Jun gritted his teeth, ''This brat is good!''


    "Even if there are no prior information for what you can''t do, defying what nature has already dictated.. it should be obvious that such an act is blasphemy in itself!" Elder Jun replied sternly.


    "Eh? What are you on to now! Don''t give me that. So are you telling me that cultivation is wrong?" Duan Li replied with a similar tone of not backing down at all.


    He was prepared to argue his way until the end this time.


    "Cultivation is both right and wrong, we allow it but at the same time discourage it. That is why there are tribulations! Enough of this, confess your sins before the Heaven''s Will!" Elder Jun barked out.


    "Hah! You can''t even answer my question properly. Let me tell you, what I did there was just helping a friend to cultivate and ascend in realm and I see nothing wrong with that! But fine, anymore talking is useless, since you want to punish, then punish me instead, I can take it!" Duan Li scoffed out with disdain.


    Dugu Liubai that was hearing the exchange of conversations between Duan Li and the Heaven''s Will blanked out.


    He felt like he was in a sort of a dream..


    The Heaven''s Will responded to his inquiries? What is this? A court proceeding?


    "Hmph! Fine! I don''t believe that you can handle the punishment we will give out this time! Even if you possess that mysterious life saving artifact or whatever it was that protected you before, the might of the lightning bolts this time is on an entire different level! Even immortals on a higher realm would be reduced to cinders! You have been warned!"


    Elder Jun cut off his words after that, finding himself to be panting heavily.


    ''Talking to that fellow is so infuriating!''


    "Ready the lightning bolts!" he instructed the others.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li stared confidently at the hundreds of lightning bolts aiming at him.


    You think I am afraid?


    Let them come!


    The lightning bolts trembled, and with a single wave from Elder Jun, the lightning bolts struck down!


    ...

 211 Chapter 208: Trying to leave?

    Author''s note: Please consider supporting me over patre0n :) you can just search my name Ramzeyramzo. Thanks!


    ...


    "H-He is standing still?" Dugu Liubai watched in horror as he saw Duan Li remained rooted on the spot, unmoving as if unfettered by the lightning bolts that was coming straight at him!


    Crackle!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    "He is done for.." Dugu Liubai could no longer watch the tragic sight before him as he turned his face away and closed his eyes.


    Forgive me Jing Zhianghu.. I wasn''t able to protect him..


    Hais!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    The torrential strikes of the golden lightning bolts was fierce as if tsunami that were engulfing everything it touches!


    Even if it was him whom had almost stepped into the second realm of immortality, he would not have the means to defend against such a devastating might!


    The Heavens sure did not pull any punches.. even towards a mere Core formation realm cultivator..


    How vicious!


    However, just as he shook his head feeling pitiful for the fate that had fallen onto Duan Li, a peculiar ringing sounds echoed out at where the lightning bolts had strucked down before!


    Psshiingggg!!


    Eh? What''s that sound?


    Dugu Liubai opened his eyes wide, and he could not believe what he saw!


    The fellow whom he thought would turn into ash was still there, standing tall and mighty, surrounded by a pale blue barrier!


    It appears that the Heaven''s punishment did not manage to harm him!


    In fact, not a single streak of blood was dropped from the latter''s mouth after all that lightning strike!


    Holy-molly!


    Am I seeing things? Am I dreaming?


    Pah!


    Slapping himself in the face, the twitching and burning sensation on his cheek told him that it was the reality. Thus, as soon as he realized this, he was even more stunned!


    What the heck is going on?!


    ...


    "What?" Empress Luo narrowed her eyes as she stood up from her seat.


    He wasn''t injured in the slightest?


    ''Just what is the origin of that energy barrier?'' she thought to herself.


    If it was the latter''s father, Duan Ling, then she could understand it. After all, that person was someone of a realm that she could not even begin to imagine!


    Did that person really dot onto this son of his that much to grant such a literally heaven-defying protection?


    "H-How can this be! Even lightning bolts of this degree was ineffective against a mortal?!" Elder Jun said with a horrified voice.


    Wengg..


    Staring at that humming pale blue energy encassing Duan Li via their real-time holographic projection, he stepped back subconsciously as he was dumbstrucked down to his core with what just transpired.


    Such a barrier.. to have the power to negate even the might of the heavens..


    Is this even legal?!


    In the next moment, he gritted his teeth, "Not yet, the duration for the punishment is not finished yet! Send more of the lightning bolts down!" he instructed as he waved his hand.


    I don''t believe that the barrier of that fellow, no matter how heaven-defying it is, could hold on forever!


    ...


    Meanwhile, Duan Li whom was standing still and appeared to be like Mount.Tai before everyone else could not help but to shudder a little bit inside his heart.


    Holy-Molly!


    "Even though this mystical barrier has managed to protect me, the vibrations from the sheer impact was enough to rattle my body inside out! I almost puked!" he said to himself feeling wary with the lightning bolts that was charging up above, preparing for the second wave of attack!


    Had either Dugu Liubai or Elder Jun Xi heard this, they would selflessly open up their legs just to smash at their own balls viciously in frustration!


    A Heaven''s punishment that could put the lives of even immortals in a tight spot had only managed on making the other party of wanting to puke!


    However, Duan Li of course, knows a little bit of courtesy regarding giving face, thus, he did not show any of these emotions on his face and only curled up a smile.


    "Hahaha! Thank you for that lightning bolts! I''ve managed to consolidate it well within my body!" he said out loud with a snicker.


    While the might of these lightning bolts had indeed shocked him, they were still far from being able to do anything to him at all with the help of his mysterious barrier!


    After all, the mysterious barrier seemed to be able to negate all sorts of lightning tribulations no matter how strong they were, and shredded them to pieces of lightning elements before being absorbed!


    Right now, Duan Li didn''t know why, but these pieces of golden lightning elements was being deposited onto his left arm!


    It was just like that time when the Heaven''s punishment came down at him that ended up being absorbed and stored onto his right arm, which then turned out to become the All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe weapon!


    Therefore, would the same thing will happen to his left arm next? Would it form another weapon and the sorts?


    Or maybe he could ascend his Super Duan Li mode to the second stage?


    Kukuku!


    He could not help but to anticipate for the outcome greatly!


    BOOMM!! BOOMMM!!


    ...


    Inside the cave..


    "What an invincible power that Lord benefactor has!" Chief Zolak said in awe.


    Had he not seen this scene with his own eyes, he would not dare believe it to be true even if he was being beaten to death!


    A single human could stand uninjured against the Heaven''s wrath? This will be alegendary story for generations upon generations for his tribe!


    "Master''s ability is really hard to fathom.." Di Rou by the side said as she looked up at the figure of her master standing tall like a hero!


    She could feel her heart to beat erratically as she saw that strong back of his. From her point of view, Duan Li''s back figure was like that of an unparalleled expert with no equal, and that long shadow of his, why does she felt like he seemed to be lonely?


    Could this be the very depiction of the famous saying that once said, "Reaching the apex would only brings in sorrow!"


    Hais!


    "Duan Li.. no, Master''s power.. if before I could only guess that he is strong, now that a portion of his power has merged together with me.. I could tell for sure that.. Master''s power.. is bottomless!" Bulu that has finally finished stabilizing his newfound cultivation realm suddenly aid as he stood up.


    "Son-in-law! You''re finally awake! Look at you now.. you look so mighty already with this new form of yours!" Chief Zolak turned around and stared at him intently, analyzing every nook and cranny of Bulu''s humanoid form.


    Even though the latter was far smaller than their original size before, he could vaguely sense that the might of a Komodo was still imbued within Bulu''s body, compressed into that tiny body frame!


    In other words, while Bulu had become smaller, if he were to punch, the force would be equal to that of a kick from a Komodo!


    Di Rou was surprised when she heard Bulu talking, because the other party was speaking in human tongue!


    "You.. could speak human language now?" she said and could not help but be more impressed towards her master.


    How is master doing all this?


    Then, they heard the laughter of Duan Li outside.


    "Ahahaha! Heaven''s Will, if you guys keep this up, I might just spurted out some blood! Keep going!"


    "..." everyone.


    ...


    "This damned brat..! He is just leeching off of us!" Elder Jun finally realized that no matter how many waves of lightning bolts was sent down, they could not even injure him the slightest!


    On the contrary, the fellow seemed to be cultivating the Heaven''s punishment instead!


    Empress Luo pressed her temples together in headache as she sighed, "Haa.. just end this session! The maximum duration for this punishment has been passed anyway." she instructed and waved her hand.


    ...


    Zzuuuu..


    "Eh? Where are my lightning bolts?" Duan Li stopped laughing and looked up, only to see that the previously dark sky was slowly dissipating!


    You guys are finished?


    Coming uninvited and leaving as you pleased?


    Think I''ll let you?


    Hurhurhur!


    ...

 212 Chapter 209: Time to march!

    Author''s note: Please consider supporting me over patre0n :) you can just search my name Ramzeyramzo. Thanks!


    ...


    "Chief Zolak, where is the rest of your tribe members? Quickly tell me!" Duan Li turned around and asked.


    Hearing his Lord benefactor calling him out, the old komodo swiftly replied, "Eh? I''ve told them to gather at the nearest hot spring pool right over there.. so they should be there by now.."


    He pointed to a certain direction using his tail.


    Tracing along the direction pointed by the tail, Duan Li saw a mass congregation of komodos by the distance that were hudling together inside a hot spring pool, remaining rooted in there due to their fear of the Heaven''s punishment.


    "The distance is not too far since my perception could detect it, so even if I can''t fly.. I have the movement skill art!"


    One-Step to Reach!


    Ssuuu!!


    Within a few moments, Duan Li reappeared in front of the bunch of komodos, this caused most of them to roared out instinctively.


    ROARR!!


    "Hold up guys, I know this human.. he is a friend of Bulu!" a komodo said as it stepped out from the crowd, this was the very same senior komodo that had identified Bulu when they first arrived at the tribe earlier on.


    Very quickly, a commotion broke up between them.


    "Eh? You mean.. the one that fixed the chief? So this is that capable human?"


    "So what? We are all going to die anyway! Look at the sky! This human must be the cause for it all!"


    The komodos began to converse with one another, most of them felt wary towards Duan Li.


    "Alright listen up, I know that you guys don''t really trust humans that much, but I don''t really care. My promise to your chief is to make all of you stronger! So here you go!" Duan Li said as he hurriedly took out a bottle containing his blood and dropped a few droplets into the hot spring.


    Tissssss...


    "Eh? AHHHHHH!!"


    Agonized roars began to echoed out towards the surrounding as every single komodos inside the hot spring pool writhed out in pain!


    Then, with a wave of his hand, fine threads of spiritual Qi began to spread out from the tip of his fingers and entered the spring pool. Duan Li intended to hasten the body tempering process himself!


    Dugu Liubai''s mind was already blank from everything that he was witnessing, thus when he saw this, he could not help but to swallow another mouthful of his saliva, his disbelief deepened even further.


    "This fellow quickly turned around just to torture harmless creatures right after being punished by the Heavens? Devil! This fellow is the reincarnation of the devil himself!"


    Based on his soul sense, he knew that those few droplets of blood were from the One Hundred Thousand graveyard pool!


    How did he even procured those?!


    Furthermore, even if it were to be fully diluted into the hot spring pool, the potency alone would still be enough to kill normal monsters in a heartbeat!


    He had already considered himself as a ruthless and cold-hearted person, but even he would not think of doing such a satanic act like this!


    F*ck me!


    However, when he observed the actions of Duan Li carefully, he noticed that the sets of action the other party did has a certain pattern to it!


    "He.. is body tempering them? What sort of technique is that?" he widened his eyes.


    ...


    "Alright Zhulong, do your job now! Hurry up before the dark cloud dissipate completely! We musn''t let them get away!" Duan Li urged the latter.


    We musn''t let them get away?


    "Master, it can''t be that you.. intend to attract the Heaven''s wrath once more?" Zhulong''s beak dropped.


    If there was anyone that claimed to have a pair of balls made out of steel, he will never believe them other than his master!


    With a slight grunt, Zhulong immediately released his powers and helped the komodos form their second core to be used as relay for their spiritual Qi.


    Tsszzz!


    This way, according to their original plan, the Komodos would have reached an extra stage in their realm!


    "Heaven''s Will! Look, I help these monsters achieve new stage in their realm!" Duan Li bellowed out excitedly, waiting for more lightning bolts to struck at him so he that could absorb them.


    ...


    "Empress Luo.." Elder Jun Xi sighed, not knowing what to say.


    The fellow was just too shameless!


    "Ignore him, or else we will play right into his trap. Wrap things up and move on to the other pending task!" Empress Luo replied indifferently as she waved her hand.


    In her opinion, the act that Duan Li did this time around was minor and doesn''t warrant Heaven''s punishment to descend down. After all, constructing relay core was artificial and only temporary.


    Then, an Elder of the committee could not help but to voice out his thoughts.


    "Empress Luo, about that guide book.."


    "..." Empress Luo.


    "..." Everyone else.


    ...


    "Eh? They are still not striking me back?" Duan Li furrowed his brows and saw that the dark clouds continued to recede even further before dissipating altogether.


    Damn it! There goes my chance..


    Hais!


    Huuu..


    "Master.. its finished!" Zhulong by the side said.


    "Eh.. well done!" Duan Li turned around and nodded as he cupped his chin.


    Oh well, at least our original objective is now achieved!


    As for the Heaven''s Will.. when they do send down the guide book to me.. hurhurhur.. I''ll make sure to use it thoroughly!


    List of not to do or else it will call upon the wrath of Heavens?


    Yeah right, I''ll specifically do those banned stuff just to call the lightning tribulation and absorb them!


    "Hahahahaha!" Duan Li bursted out in laughter. After all, it was a solid plan!


    "Master.." Zhulong shook his head. Judging from that deranged laughter, it was apparrant that this master of his was up to no good.


    "So.. what do you guys think of your newfound power? Although its only temporary, you guys should know better on the advantage of being one step ahead of your opponents!" Duan Li said to the bunch of komodos. They were still processing the events that just happened.


    It was a quick and painful process, but the result was beyond their expectations!


    "Awesome! Hahahaha! Now I''m at the late stage of the Foundation establishment realm!"


    "Me too! Now we can beat those bastards!"


    "Late stage? I''ve reached the pinnacle stage! Hahaha!"


    "Hey look, the chief is coming!"


    From the distance, Chief Zolak could be seen bolting through the field with his four legs. The latter seemed to be very happy with the artificial leg and tail that Duan Li made for him, as he could control them to the minute detail like it was there since he was born!


    Behind the chief was Bulu, also running along but with a pair of legs just like humans instead of four. On his arms, was Di Rou. Since both Duan Li and her stamina had decreased down to a mortal''s right after entering the second region, it makes sense to use Bulu as a means of transport, just like how they used the latter as a boat before.


    Meanwhile, Daelius had already arrived beside Duan Li due to its lightning-like speed! On top of its head was Cucko, perching complacently as if a King that was riding his ultimate mount!


    Dilong on the other hand was always within Duan Li, so she simply reappeared right beside him.


    "Ohh.. everyone''s powers..! I could feel that everyone has made a complete breakthrough!" Chief Zolak could not help but to feel emotional as he arrived.


    "Yes, father-in-law! Now that we have this strength.. we can finally avenge our family!" Bulu swiftly said, his pair of eyes was alighted as if flames that was continuously being fed with oil!


    Chief Zolak nodded excitedly, turning to everyone, he said with a domineering voice, "Let us march to their nestling ground and trample everything to dust!"


    ROAARRRR!!


    ...

 213 Chapter 210: Komodo Vs Iguana 1

    "March!" Chief Zolak roared out.


    ROARR!!


    BOOM!! BOOM!!


    The komodos began to march forwardwith an impressive momentum and headed to the southern direction. From the looks of it, their mortal enemies were located somewhere in the South.


    "Eh.. these komodos, they are not moving in formation.." Duan Li commented as he then commanded the komodos to reposition themselves along the way, and since Duan Li had helped them immensely, they followed his instructions thoroughly without questioning him the slightest.


    "That''s more like it..!" Duan Li nodded to himself feeling satisfied now that the komodos has realigned themselves.


    Back when he was still a mortal, he used to read some books regarding the usage of battle formations for soldiers in the army, and he knew some of the most basic ones to boost the collective effectiveness of their combined strength!


    Huu!!


    Now that their marching was in orderly manner, their might seemed to increased by two-folds and their auras torrential!


    It was as if they were the flood that would engulf everything before them!


    BOOMM! BOOMM!


    ...


    Far in the distance, two Fiery Iguanasaurus laid lazily on top of a tree. They were the scouts for the Iguanas tribe and were tasked to alert the tribe should they see any suspicious movements in their surroundings.


    These Iguanas were relatively smaller when compared to the Komodos. The average size of a Komodo was usually 3 to 4 meters tall and has a length of about 10 meters from head to tail, but these Iguanas were only half of that size!


    Right now, a loud reverberations in the distance ahead of them had jolted these two Iguanas awake from their laziness.


    "Eh? What''s happening?" one of them said.


    "Look! Isn''t that.. the Komodos? They are enroute to our position?" the other Iguana replied after he had identified the source of the disturbance.


    Immediately, the previous Iguana broke out into a shrill laughter, "HAHAHA! Seems like they wanted to attack us! Good, very good! This is a great opportunity to exterminate them once and for all!"


    "Yeah! Let''s inform the tribe so that they can sharpen their claws and teeth early in preparations! Huehuehue!" replied the other.


    "Huehuehue! Let''s go!"


    These two Iguanas then jumped off from the tree and bolted to where their tribe was located. Soon after, they reached their village and informed their chief.


    "What? The Komodos are attacking us soon?" their chief, Nuhulak furrowed his brows, finding the situation to be weird.


    Why did they suddenly have the balls to attack us with their meager leftover strength?


    "Hmph! Let''s just erradicate them all!" a younger Iguana that was bigger than the average Iguanas spoke out.


    This was their champion, Valak!


    "No, something is wrong.. inform the others and rally everyone. Let''s see what they have up in their sleeves!" their chief commanded.


    "Yes chief!"


    ...


    POOONNNNNNNN!


    "Hmm?" Chief Zolak gestured for the others to stop.


    "What''s wrong?" Duan Li asked.


    "That''s the sound of their war trumpet! They are calling everyone to rally together in that direction!" the chief said and narrowed his eyes, "Seems like they have already discovered our pending arrival!"


    "Ahh I see.. well, no matter! Just continue to march! With the newfound powers you guys have, it should be an easy fight later on!" Duan Li said. "Besides, with me here, you don''t have to worry for any mishaps to happen!"


    Chief Zolak nodded to this. Indeed, with their Lord benefactor here who could even defy the Heavens themselves literally, what could mere Iguanas do to us when he has our back?


    "Continue marching!"


    BOOM!! BOOMM!!


    ...


    Soon, the Komodos finally reached an open vast clearing as wide as the eye could see.


    And in front of them, about a few hundred meters, was the Fiery Iguanasaurus!


    Thousands of them!


    Gulp!


    The other komodos began to feel a little bit nervous as they recalled the tragedy that happened to them 3 years ago.


    Seemingly to notice this, Bulu immediately said something to stop them from becoming demoralized and scared.


    "Don''t be nervous guys. Their numbers meant nothing with our current strength! We are now mostly impenetrable to their attacks!" Bulu said to his peers with both of his arms crossed on his chest, looking quite stoic that managed to attract the eyes of a few females.


    The rest of the komodos nodded to this and their previous domineering aura returned as they cast a deadly stare towards the Iguanas in front of them.


    Today, things will be different!


    The Iguanas defeat and extermination was already set in stone!


    At this moment, the chief of the Iguanas and their champion, Nuhulak and Valak, stepped forward from their tribe with a haughty look on their face.


    "Zolak, you disabled animal! Have you come to meet your end so soon for you to bring everyone here?" Chief Nuhulak roared out in disdain.


    He then continued, "I thought that there was a more fiersome trump card that you are bringing along here, but to think that it was only a single human and a few other exotic animals? What can you even accomplish with those lineups?" he said and laughed maniacally.


    All of his previous worries were now washed away as his confidence skyrocketed.


    In response to this, Chief Zolak and Bulu then stepped out from their tribe as well to confront the other party.


    "Hmph! Nuhulak! Don''t be too arrogant! Today, our goal is plain and simple! And that is to wash the shame on us that you''ve given to us before! We plan to return the favor to you a hundred fold today!" Chief Zolak roared out.


    "HAHAHA! Insignificant lizard! Don''t you dare to go overboard now! Lest I will come later on to chop off one more of your.. eh?" the Iguana''s champion, Valak, replied before he stopped on his last sentence.


    This cannot be.. I remembered that both me and the chief had personally severed one of his limb and his tail.. so how can he still have them on him?!


    At this provocation, Bulu replied, "You shut up, you ugly animal! You think that today would be the same as it was back then where it was one sided? You want to chop off my father-in-law''s limb? Why don''t I chop off your balls instead?"


    "You..!! Good, very good! I''ll deal with you later on personally!" Valak gnashed his teeth.


    He then crept up a smile as he found a certain matter in this amusing, "Judging from how you call the chief of the komodo as your father-in-law, you must be the son-in-law then. To think that the komodos has fallen far from grace and conducted a cross-breeding with other species, how abominable!"


    Puu!!


    Duan Li was about to throw up a laughter. After all, this was an inevitable misunderstanding with Bulu''s new humanoid form.


    "Cross-breeding your mother! Your entire family is made up from cross-breed species! I''m a bona-fide komodo! But what can I expect from a lower intelligence life-form? How can a simpleton pen*s like you understand this grand evolution of mine? Enough talk, I accept your challenge! Let us fight to the death later on!" Bulu bellowed out.


    "You and your mouth! I will make sure to separate it from your head before I kill you later on!" Valak bellowed out as well in response.


    "Hahahaha! Look Zolak, my champion here could no longer hold his thirst for blood! And from the looks of it, that cross-breed is your new champion? Even if he is a little bit stronger, in front of our insurmounting numbers, what could he even possibly do to make a difference in your tribe''s inevitable doom?" Nuhulak laughed out.


    "What can he possibly do? That''s a good question! We shall see later on and witness it ourselves. Even I myself did not know and am really interested to use your tribe as the whetting stone to conduct the experiment on. Shall we?" Chief Zolak answered with a similar disdainful smile and laughter. In fact, his disdain towards the other party was even a notch higher!


    Seeing this, Nuhulak felt that something was weird, because the chief of the komodos sounded extremely confident.


    Are there any other trump card?


    He then casted a glance towards Duan Li.


    ''Hmph! Even if that human is a little bit strong too, his stamina of a mortal''s would be his downfall. He would not be able take out even a hundred of us!'' he thought to himself as he sneered upon this realization.


    Just as he was sneering, a loud ''pah!'' could be heard resounding on his face. He didn''t know how, but there was a human palm print on his left cheek!


    This was a sign that he was slapped!


    "Damn it! Courting death!" Nuhulak gnashed his teeth. Inhaling a huge mouthful of air, he then bellowed out;


    "CHARGEEE!!"


    ...


    Dugu Liubai that had finished collecting himself into a calm state once more was watching this scene from afar.


    ROOAARR!! ROOAARR!


    ROOARR ROOR!!


    ROORR! ROOARR!!


    Listening to the constant roars between the two species, he could not help but to scratch his head awkwardly.


    "It seemed like they were talking some grand stuffs with each other.. too bad I can''t understand them.."


    Hais!


    ...

 214 Chapter 211: Komodo Vs Iguana! 2

    A.N: If you like this novel, consider helping me out at Patre0n! Thanks!


    "Hahaha! They are charging? Good!" Duan Li snickered. "Everyone, remember the battle formation that I just told you guys awhile ago!"


    The Komodos nodded and replied simultaneously, "Yes, Lord benefactor!"


    "Go!" Duan Li hollered out!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    The impact noise from the hooves of thekomodos as they marched forward were like mountains that was being broken apart, and the tremors from their combined weight were like earthquakes splitting the ground open!


    Had anyone witnessed this sight, they would find it similar to the fight fought between soldiers of opposing Empire during wars!


    The two sides swiftly approached one another at an unstoppable momentum, and their clash was but inevitable!


    Furthermore, both the Chief and the Champion from each side remained rooted at where they stood as they foresee the entire battle from behind.


    According to traditions, their tribe members would be the first to fight with the other tribe members, and only then after their initial clash would they join in the fray!


    At this moment, only Duan Li was leading at the forefront of the Komodos, riding on top of Daelius along with Cucko on his head. Di Rou was keeping watch for Duan Li''s back through his shadow.


    "Wedge formation!" Duan Li bellowed out.


    ROARRR!!


    Like flocks of migrating birds, the komodos initial charge that was rectangular in shape began to swiftly morph into a triangle automatically, with Duan Li leading at the very front edge!


    Although their formation wasn''t perfect, the outline was there, and according to Duan Li''s plan, this wedge formation would penetrate the enemy lines and split them into two!


    Seeing this, the chief and champion of the Iguanas could not help but to furrow their brows in confusion!


    "What are they doing? This method of charging seems quite different.." chief Nuhulak said to himself.


    He was feeling a little bit wary now because humans were known to be sneaky and cunning! They could think of so many creative ways to fight against those stronger than them.


    "Hmph! Its all just for show! That human at the forefront would be the very first to die in the stampede!" Valak snorted, his face full of disdain.


    In the next instant, seeing that the enemy has no clue of the incoming threat posed by their wedge formation, Duan Li laughed out.


    Indeed, they couldn''t possibly know the effectiveness of proper battle formations! After all, they were only monsters!


    With the enemy now being 20 meters ahead of him, Duan Li readied himself as he clenched his fist tightly and pulled his right arm backwards, like an arrow that was about to be shot off from its bow!


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BOOMM!!


    A huge fiery fist was launched forward, reminiscent of a real meteor charging right into the enemy!


    "Eh? Ahhhhhhh...!!"


    When this fiery fist of his collided with the Iguanas in front of him, like a hot knife cutting through a butter, Duan Li had easily eliminated all the Iguanas before him!


    BAMMM!!


    In fact, the momentum of the fiery fist did not even stop after ploughing through for 50 meters inside the enemy ranks, instead, it continued to push even deeper!


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    This had the chief and champion of the Iguana''s tribe widened their eyes in disbelief!


    "What kind of attack is that? How did it even managed to push our defenses so far?!" Nuhulak gritted his teeth and bellowed out in rage!


    "Contemptible human! What a cheating attack!" Valak similarly cussed out.


    Then, before they could even fully witness the momentum of the fiery fist to dissipate, something even more shocking happened!


    BAMMM!!BAMMMM!!


    "Ahhh!! T-The enemy are penetrating through our defenses!" the Iguanas shouted out and began to panic.


    This was because with Duan Li creating an initial entry point using the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor and acting as the lead, the wedge formation easily broke through their rectangular formation through that small gap!


    It was like how a nail would be easily driven into a wood if it already has a hole!


    BOOMMM!!


    It didn''t take long before the wedge penetrated the Iguana''s defenses until the end of their line!


    "Turn around!" Duan Li commanded and the wedge made a U-turn to ram the backside of the enemy.


    BOOOMMM!!


    "Aahhhh!!"


    "Help! Mommy!"


    Just these two charges made by the komodos had caused the enemy formation to be in shambles and their previous arrogance turned into panic and fear!


    "Damn it! Valak, let''s go!" Nuhulak gestured as they both leaped forward.


    Seeing that the enemy chief and champion had entered the battle, Chief Zolak and Bulu decided to enter the battlefield as well.


    "Bulu, you take care of their champion while I deal with their chief myself! It''s time to avenge our fallen families!" Chief Zolak said with flames of anger apparent in his eyes.


    "En! Today, they will realize that their decision to attack us before was the most regretful decision they ever made!" Bulu nodded and replied.


    Sssuuu!!


    CLANG!! CLANG!!


    "Oh? It seems that those two finally decided to act! Good! It''s time to enact my hidden plan.." Duan Li smiled devilishly.


    Turning to his back, he bellowed out, "Alright from here on, split into two groups and continue to wedge them from two opposite direction! Use their panic to your advantage! Go!!" Duan Li waved his hand grandly.


    "Yes, Lord benefactor!" the komodos swiftly replied and did as they were told.


    Huehuehue, it''s time to fetch some monster cores..


    ...


    CLANG! CLANG!


    Bulu and Valak faced off at one another as they sent out waves after waves of attacks to each other.


    "Hmph! You cross-breed species, to think that you would fight like a human, have you no shame?!" Valak shouted out.


    This was because the Fiery Iguanasaurus species was known to have short limbs and they were only used to move around quickly. Instead, their main method of attack was using their tail, or specifically, the axe-like end of their tail.


    Although this might not look much, but combined with their wind element skill, each slash was faster than what the normal eyes could see!


    Even if it were cultivators at the Core formation realm, they would have troubles keeping up their defenses for a long time against the barrage of attacks should they go for a direct face-off against these Iguanas!


    However, while this was also true for the normal Komodos, it was different for Bulu in the current form he was in right now.


    The evolution of his body to a humanoid form gave him some peculiar new characteristics; one of them was that his forearm was incredibly tough, even tougher than his previous thick, rock-solid body!


    Therefore, he used his pair of forearms to deflect the attacks made by Valak''s tail!


    CLANG! CLANG!!


    Not only that, due to the infusion of the lightning element inside his body, Bulu''s movement was extremely lithe and sharp, reminiscent to the flexibility of a snake, which was in contrast to his solid form.


    "Hmph! What is the use of talking so much if you don''t have the capabilities?" Bulu snorted, and then threw out a quick punch as he switched from defensive posture to a more offensive one.


    BAMM!!


    A solid punch connected to Valak''s right cheek!


    "Arghhh!! I will kill you!!"


    The humiliation from getting punched in the face threw the other party into a berserk state, causing the latter''s attack to grew even more faster but haphazard and uncontrolled.


    In the eyes of Bulu right now, Valak was just like a child throwing tantrum at him.


    "Incredible.. my new body has so much responsive abilities that even a split second decision could be made so easily.." Bulu said to himself, feeling amazed. This caused him to become even more grateful to Duan Li.


    Dodging the latter''s attack left and right effortlessly, Bulu smiled in disdain.


    "Are you done yet?"


    ...

 215 Chapter 212: Komodo Vs Iguana! 3

    A N: If you like this novel, consider supporting me financially through Patre0n by searching up my name there! Thanks! ;)


    ...


    "Damn you! Face me if you''ve got the guts!" Valak roared out angrily.


    In response to this, Bulu chuckled, "Very well!" he said and threw out some serious punches which connected to the latter''s face, stomach and both side of the ribs.


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    "Arghh!!" Valak wailed out in pain as he spurted out some blood.


    ''How is his punches so heavy?!'' Valak gnashed his teeth and stared at the other party, full of killing intent!


    Not only was the punches that he received from Bulu was like the rocks from a mountain that was crashing down on him, it was even swifter than what his eyes could follow!


    To him, this was something that was absolutely incredulous!


    One has to know that their species, the Fiery Iguanasaurus was known for their unparalleled speed compared to any other monsters on the island, thus, how did he, the champion of the Iguana, lose out to a mere cross-breed?


    "Hmph! It seems that you can''t accept the truth that.. I am stronger than you!" Bulu said mockingly towards him.


    "Rubbish! I refuse to believe, that a cross-breed like you could supercede me!" Valak''s attacks grew more disorganized as he now focuses on speed rather than accuracy.


    "Die!!" he bellowed out.


    ...


    On the otherside of the battlefield..


    CLANG! CLANG!!


    "Zolak! How did you still have your limb and tail? You''re supposed to be a disabled monster now!" Nuhulak shouted out and laughed as he seemingly wanted the other party to recall the humiliation and get angry over it.


    However, contrary to the respond that the latter was expecting, Zolak only shook his head while looking at the other party with a pitiful expression and replied, "How can an insignificant Iguana like you understand the vastness of this world? The depths of the ocean? Even if I were to explain it to you, you will not be able to comprehend it! Hais!"


    Puu!!


    Nuhulak choked on his own laughter when he heard this.


    Damn you!


    He was trying to berate the other party, yet why was it him the one that got berated instead?


    In addition, the other party was treating him as if he was some animal without any sorts of intelligence!


    Insolent!


    "You! How dare you go overboard! Eat this!" Nuhulak bellowed out and whipped his tail. Similarly, Zolak lashed out his tail in retaliation as well.


    BANGG!! BANGG!!


    The clash between their tails producednumerous deep reverberations to their surroundings, similar to an iron bell on atemple that was being knocked on repeatedly!


    Furthermore, due to their massive body sizes, each step they took produced a lot of cracks on the ground from their sheer weight!


    Thankfully, they were fighting separately away from the others, or else there would already be some collateral casualties around them!


    ''My new tail is even tougher than the one I had originally before! If only this new tail of mine was shaped into more like a spear, Nuhulak would have already paid a portion of the price to his previous dued deed!'' Zolak thought this to himself subconsciously.


    Suddenly, a weird feeling struck at him as he found his tail to be quickly morphing!


    "Eh?" he let out a shocked exclamation.


    Shinnggg!!


    His blocky tail had turned into a sharp spear.. just as what he had imagined it to be!


    "What? How is that possible!" Nuhulak cried out in horror.


    Hearing this, Zolak snapped out from his daze and made a quick statement, "Didn''t I just told you? You wouldn''t understand." while shaking his head again.


    Even I myself don''t understand it, how can you?


    Ssuuu!!


    Zolak then made a quick strike making full use of the new spear-like tail of his and aimed at the other party''s chest!


    "Damn it!!" Nuhulak gritted his teeth and flexed his tail to quickly defend against such an unexpected attack and managed to deflect it to the side at the last moment!


    CLANGG!!


    "Could it be?" Zolak thought to himself as he came out with a theory. He then decided to try his hypothesis.


    Shiinggg!!


    With a single thought, the shape of his tail changed once more, and this time, into the shape of a battle axe!


    A grin could be seen on Zolak''s face upon realizing this new ability of his!


    You are a dead man Nuhulak!


    ...


    Meanwhile, at another part of the battlefield, a figure on top of his mount was busy rummaging through the fallen Iguanas, this figure was none other than Duan Li whom was riding on top of his not-so-little Fenrir anymore.


    Grab! Grab!


    "Hahaha! This is really making my job easier! Let others do the hard work and we grab the rewards eh, Daelius?" Duan Li laughed out as he patted the latter''s head.


    "Arrff! Arrff!" Daelius responded with a contented expression on its face from being patted by Duan Li and wagged its tail excitedly.


    This was Duan Li''s plan all along. While he did agree that he would help the komodos in resolving their vengeance, he didn''t do it out of the full generosity of his heart.


    Although not being able to fly was inconvenient, the most troublesome was actually his limited stamina!


    In fact, even using half of the full prowess of his Nine Fists Shattering Meteor had sapped out quite a few breaths out of him earlier!


    Therefore, he had devised this plan the moment he knew about the komodo''s predicament. By helping them beating the hell out of their enemy, he would get to fetch some free monster cores without any real effort!


    Right now, the total amount of the Iguana''s monster cores that he had already fetched amounts to almost two thousand already!


    "Based on their numbers, there should be at least a few thousand more.. let''s keep this up!"


    ...


    "Scheming little fellow.." Dugu Liubai that watched all these from the top of the volcano couldn''t help but had his mouth twitching constantly.


    After abruptly waking up from his hundreds of years of isolation to strive for the second shackle, never had he expected to be struck by so many bizarre phenomena within a single day by the same person!


    But what did he need so many of the monster cores for?


    Hmm..


    "It seems that the war between the two species is ending soon.." he said as he observed the fight between the two chiefs and champions.


    By the looks of it, the previously disadvantaged Komodo was now having the upper hand in this final battle due to the help from Duan Li before.


    "Well, this is good and all.. but as the Guardian of this second region.. I could not afford to get either side getting extinct.." he sighed and then slowly stood up from the ground.


    "Time for me to enter the scene.."


    ...

 216 Chapter 213: Guardian of second region!

    "Stop."


    A single sentence, a single word. But this seemingly simple command was as if it was the only thing that mattered in the world.


    The aura commanded by the owner of this voice was irrevocable, inviolable and supreme. Such that, by the time this single word was spoken, all the haphazard scene happening on the battlefield right now immediately stopped, as if the frost of winter had arrived.


    Even Duan Li, whom was busy rummaging and on a fetching-spree of monster cores from the fallen Iguanas had halted his action and looked up.


    "This voice.." Duan Li narrowed his eyes in alarm as he gazed towards a certain direction on top of the volcano.


    The voice came from on top of that volcano!


    Then, like a streak of lightning, a figure abruptly appeared on the sky and descended down at a speed surpassing that of sound.


    BTOOOMMM!!


    When this figure landed, the ground beneath his feet cracked like cobwebs due to the devastating impact, and it took quite a long while before the spread of these cracks stopped altogether, and by the time it stopped, the whole battlefield was already filled with these cracks, looking like a destroyed world!


    Huuu!!


    The figure that appeared in front of Duan Li wore a simple battle Gi uniform that was white in color, devoid from any dirt on it. At first glance, this person seemed to be like a mortal martial arts practitioner, but Duan Li knew that there was more than what meets his eye.


    This bald old man with a weird moustache and no beard, was in fact not that simple at all!


    From the aura that the latter was radiating out, it was unlike anything that Duan Li had experienced before. Usually, an expert of the highest caliber would have fine control over their aura such that no one would be able to tell that they were a cultivator. Yet, this aura felt extremely viscous,wild and unabated, causing natural deference to anyone that felt it up close like what Duan Li was feeling right now.


    "This old man.. he must be the Guardian of this second region!" Duan Li thought of a plausible theory.


    This was because the old man in front of him, whom had both hands clasped behind their back was extremely powerful! Even the might of old man Jing Zhianghu, the Guardian of the First region whom he had met before, could not be compared to this old man at all!


    It was like the difference between Heaven and Earth!


    "You are.. the Guardian of the Second region?" Duan Li asked out in a polite manner.


    "Indeed I am." Dugu Liubai said with an indifferent tone and expression. Even though he was shocked thoroughly by the fellow in front of him so many times before, to the extent of almost turning deranged, now that he was standing in front of him, he need to show his dignity and prestige as the Guardian of the Second region.


    "I have to ask you to stop whatever it is you are doing right now." he then continued as he said it with an authoritative air.


    Hearing this, Duan Li couldn''t help but to feel a little bit resentful.


    Stop? I''ve went to such lengths in order to collect all these monster cores, and I''m still not done yet..


    Still, Duan Li nodded as a sign that he complied with the latter''s command. After all, not only was the other party''s cultivation realm was beyond his means, this old man was also the Guardian!


    Therefore, Duan Li had no choice but to concede!


    "Forgive me for asking, but if its not too much trouble, can I have the honor of knowing elder''s name?" Duan Li said.


    Again, Dugu Liubai found the need to show Duan Li his dominance, thus he snorted for a bit and said "Dugu Liubai!"


    Seeing this elder acting a little bit unfriendly towards him, Duan Li couldn''t help but to wonder;


    What the heck is up with this old man?


    All I ask was just his name, must there be a need for him to harrumphed on me like that?


    Forget it! He must be one of those eccentric experts with ''who knows what''s going on in their mind'' type of person.


    Hais!


    "Old man Dugu, what do you mean by stopping us? This final battle between the two species had long reached its climax point and was unavoidable after several years of becoming archenemy with each other.." Duan Li said with a curious tone. He wanted to know why the Guardian was intervening in this last moment where the Iguana species was doomed to fall.


    Old man Dugu?


    "Puu!!" Dugu Liubai almost spat out his old blood from the sheer anger after hearing what the fellow used to call him.


    Old man Dugu your head! Do you think I''m one of your uncles or something? How dare you address me so casually!


    Had this been the old him, the moment Duan Li called him out like that, he would have already lashed out to hang the latter dry in the sun!


    But knowing that the fellow in front of him was far too bizarre, to the extent that even the Heaven''s punishment was fully absorbed by the latter, thus he didn''t dare to pull his weight for too much. After all, he was afraid that other world-breaking phenomena would occur! If the second region were to be truly destroyed to bits and pieces under his watch, then he wouldn''t know how to explain that to the other eight Guardians, much less to the Grand Immortal himself!


    "Hmph! My job as the Guardian is to not let the balance tipped off for far too much in this region. If I allow you lot to continue this farce, one race would inevitably go extinct, and that must not happen at all cost!" Dugu Liubai answered with a stern voice.


    When Chief Zolak and Bulu heard this, they had to grit their teeth in indignance. However, although they were feeling as so, the person in front of them was none other than the Guardian himself! If they even were to let out as much as a single fart in complain, who knows what this Guardian would do to them?


    In contrast to this, both Nuhulak and Valak was joyful and elated, feeling that their life has been spared. At this moment, they stared towards their respective opponent with a look full of killing intent!


    They vowed that after today, they will strive to multiply their numbers even more, such that the Komodo''s advantageous strength would not have any sort of effects on them at all!


    But, before this feeling of complacent could sunk in deeper, they were shocked to hear the next pair of sentence from the Guardian;


    "However, what I do not allow is just extinction. Other than that, feel free to do as you guys like. But I remind everyone here, do not go overboard!" Dugu Liubai explained.


    Oh!


    The meaning behind the Guardian''s sentence was loud and clear for all to hear; it''s that as long as both species still remain by the end of this all, they could continue their war for all they like!


    Naturally, the feelings for both parties was swapped after this, both Nuhulak and Valak had their countenance paled, but Zolak and Bulu gave them a wide murderous grin!


    Dugu Liubai then turned to Duan Li "And you, haven''t you taken enough of those monster cores? Any more than that and it would be equal to an act of desecration towards the dead!" he said with a serious expression.


    "Ah!" Duan Li said in surprise, seemingly to be taken aback by the Guardian''s statement.


    Indeed, he had been doing nothing but fetching their monster cores all these while, if the Guardian did not mention this, perhaps he would still be like lunaric fetching non-stop!


    ...

 217 Chapter 214: Who is actually in charge?

    A.N: Please support me on my Patre0n if you like this novel by searching my name there! Thank you! :)


    ...


    "There are naturally, reasons as to why I am fetching the monster cores in large quantity. Besides, every cultivator needed a few of them, and I have my own responsibility to mend through the needs of my people, so you can''t blame me on this, old man Dugu." Duan Li said as he swiftly crafted an excuse that was not necessarily a lie.


    Needs of his people?


    Dugu Liubai raised his eyebrows in suspicion.


    He was naturally skeptical of this. After all, if it were the words coming from someone of the Nascent Soul realm level, he would be more inclined to pass the matter as the truth.


    He did remember though, that back when he listened to their conversation inside that cave, he picked up a pair of words that seemed to indicate the latter''s status, which was..


    Imperial Overseer!


    Judging from that title alone, it sounded extremely mighty and domineering, and most likely, its the title used for an overlord of a royal family!


    But the fellow in front of him was clearly not only young, seemingly to be only in the 20s, and the latter''s realm was also quite shallow! Thus, how could he possibly believe that Duan Li was whom he claimed to be?


    However at the same time, he couldn''t casually dismiss the other party''s bold claim either, because the fellow was far too bizarre, unlike anyone he had ever met before!


    Therefore, in order to verify this information, he used a special method to detect lies by extending his Heavenly Sense onto Duan Li, should the latter were to fabricate the truth, he would instantly know just by hearing the heartbeat alone!


    But then again, the more he observed, the more uncertain he became!


    "Weird.. this fellow seemed to be telling me the truth.. but how can that be? A person of such lowly realm was able to lead so many people? Is he the overlord of a small kingdom comprised of mortals? But that can''t be right, mortals don''t need monster cores.." Dugu Liubai pondered upon the matter carefully.


    He then stared at Duan Li before replying the latter.


    "Based on what I have observed, you don''t seem to be telling me lies. But, it could also be that.. you are a really talented liar!" Dugu Liubai shook his head, and then continued, "Take out your follower, while you may be able to lie through your teeth, I don''t believe that she would also be able to elude me as you did. And if I were to detect any incongruency, you had better prepared yourself!" he said with a harrumphed in the end.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was a little bit taken aback.


    Take out my follower? Did he meant Di Rou?


    Puu!


    Duan Li almost bursted out in laughter! If there was anyone whom this Guardian should pick on to prove his words, then Di Rou was probably the worst choice for that.


    After all, Di Rou was assigned by the Emperor to serve him as the Imperial Overlord, someone whose status even higher than the Emperor himself!


    Di Rou knew and respected this strict hierarchy better than anyone else being the shadow of the Emperor for a very long time before, thus, Duan Li waved his hand for Di Rou to come out while shaking his head helplessly, appearing to be wronged by the Guardian for not trusting him somehow.


    Obviously, Dugu Liubai was watching Duan Li''s every move, and such display of confidence had him second-guess his judgement for a second.


    Could he truly be the ruler of an Empire? someone of his age?


    Ssuuu!!


    Di Rou surfaced from Duan Li''s shadow as she single-kneeled before her Master.


    "Di Rou, the Guardian wanted to ask you something. I command you to only speak of nothing but the truth as the answer!" Duan Li instructed with a serious expression on his face.


    "Your words are my command master!" Di Rou swiftly replied, showing utmost loyalty which had Dugu Liubai nodded in approval.


    What a fine follower!


    "Tell me, what is the status of your Master here in the Tian continent?" Dugu Liubai began his interrogation, his voice carried an air of absolute authority, reminiscent of a judge that will decide the fate of them both depending on the honesty of Di Rou''s answer.


    Without even a hint of hesitation, Di Rou immediately replied, "In the Tian continent, we hailed from one of the nine empires called the Jiu Empire. While the strength of our empire could not be considered as the top, our population numbered in the several millions and our empire is prospering without any sorts civil war or unrest when compared to the others."


    After that brief introduction, Di Rou then continued, "Currently, the Emperor of the Jiu Empire is Jiu Xian Ping whom is also an unparalleled expert at the pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm. The Emperor is a man with great wisdom, prospect and foresight. I have been the shadow protector of the Emperor since the moment I was adopted. In every empire, there exist a special status that was even higher than the Emperor, and this title was known as the Imperial Overseer."


    She then stopped for a while as if she was trying to recall something, "As far as the intelligence reports that we have gathered throughout the years, there are no other Imperial Overseer in the other eight empires other than our Jiu Empire to date, and this Imperial Overseer of us, is none other than my master here, Duan Li."


    Such a detailed answer had Dugu Liubai feeling very impressed. In addition, he also found out that the young lady''s heartbeat were consistent throughout her speech.


    What this means was that, the fellow in front of him was truly someone with such a fearsome background!


    To be the overlord of an empire, even above that of the authority of the Emperor himself, not to mention the Emperor was of the pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm, just how did this fellow managed to make such a figure practically his underling?


    The more he thought of the reasons behind this, the more scared he became.


    ''I cannot gauge the depths of this fellow!'' he thought to himself while feeling wary.


    "Very well, at least that you had proven yourself to be true. You may collect the monster cores of the dead monsters, but that is as much as the leeway that I am willing to give you, don''t cross the line!" he said with a warning.


    Inwardly however, he felt a little bit scared if the fellow became displeased and started to cause another scene.


    However, as the Guardian of the Second region, he had no choice but to act this way. Otherwise, others might start to get ideas that Guardians weren''t that omnipotent at all!


    "Thank you Old man Dugu for your understanding!" Duan Li''s eyes flashed in excitement once more. He then turned towards Zolak and Bulu.


    "You guys heard the Guardian, so unfortunately, our battle will not be able to proceed as planned. Therefore, the rest of you can stop fightning now. However, the outcome shall be decided by your chief and champion. They shall battle to the death and those that remained standing by the end shall be the winner!" Duan Li said casually as he then left the scene to continue fetching monster cores.


    "..." Komodos and Iguanas.


    "..." Dugu Liubai.


    Am I the one in charge here or you are?


    Dugu Liubai gritted his teeth feeling resentful. Staring at the chiefs and champions of both sides that were still idling like a bunch of fools, he bellowed out, "What the hell are you guys waiting for? Don''t you hear him? Go and fight to the death!"


    "R-Roar!"


    ...


    "Nuhulak! Our grievances shall be addressed today! Prepare to die!" Zolak roared out and charged through.


    "Prepare to die your mother! You should say that to yourself! Don''t think that you have already won now!" Nuhulak swiped his tail.


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    "Hmph, come on, let''s end this battle! I will avenge my wife and daughter''s death by taking your life!" Bulu went into an offensive posture, seeming ready to end it once and for all.


    "Fine by me! You think I''m scared of death? Come!" Valak bellowed out in response as he infused all of his remaining spiritual Qi into his monster core.


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    The scene of these four creatures fighting each other to the death would eventually turn to become legends for both species as it was nothing short of amazing from the eyes of the monsters from both sides.


    However, to the eyes of human cultivators, all these four creatures were just fighting like any other monsters, except Bulu of course, whom was humanoid and his fighting style was leaning towards human rather than monsters.


    With no less than 10 breaths, Bulu had finally managed to decapitate the head of Valak off from its shoulder, while Nuhulak right now was panting heavily as one of his limb including his tail was severed from his body, laying a few distance away. This situation was eerily similar to Zolak''s 3 years ago, the only difference was that, their roles was reversed!


    "Damn you Zolak! This battle is unfair! You have the help of that human you shameless scoundrel! I refuse to admit defeat!" Nuhulak vented out in rage as blood filled his body.


    He finally realized how the latter managed to recover their lost limb and tail! It was that human all along giving Zolak some sort of artifact that can shape-shift into any form the host wanted in a single thought!


    Against that type of weapon, there was no way he could overcome it!


    "HAHAHA! Now you have the guts to say that this was unfair! But when you ambushed us that night three years ago, and broke the tradition between monsters to first declare a war before an attack, do you not feel your own shamelessness? I could only say this to you in consolation to your feelings; what comes around, goes around! Now DIE!" Zolak eyes glinted as he delivered the final blow!


    PSHH!!!


    And with that, the long years of enmity between the two species has finally ended with the battle won by the Komodo!


    ...

 218 Chapter 215: Collision of stars!

    A.N: Please support me via Patre0n if you like this novel, thank you! ;)


    Now that both the chief and champion of the Iguanas had fallen, with no leader to lead them, they no longer has the motivation to continue the fight.


    Thus, they went back soon after the fight ended with crestfallen looks. All along, they thought that they would be able to win against the Komodos with their overwhelming numbers. But who would have thought that a human would help their opponent becoming something that was impossible for them to beat?


    In contrast to this, the Komodos roared out joyfully, celebrating their unexpected victory. Before, they had already prepared themselves to accept their inevitable fate, but with the descent of their savior, Duan Li, they managed to turn things around and emerged as the victor!


    At this moment, all of them stared towards the silhouette that was moving fast on top of his mount, busily fetching monster cores with agitated expression, the kind of faces that one would usually make when looking at someone they worship. It was filled with awe and utmost reverence!


    Huuu!


    "I think that we are done here!" Duan Li said as he looked around and nodded in satisfaction. He had swiped clean all the monster cores from the Iguana''s carcasses!


    Just by his estimate alone, the total number of monster cores he gained from this grand scheme of his was about 6,000! This was a number that could make even honest people become extremely greedy!


    Furthermore, these monster cores weren''t from the typical low-level monsters, but those that were mostly at the pinnacle stage of the Foundation establishment realm!


    If any empire were to obtain such an amount of resource, they could usher in a new batch of elite cultivators that would help in reinforcing the strength of their empire!


    However, Duan Li didn''t have that in his mind, it was all to cultivate it inside his dantian, so that he could form an egg that would eventually hatch into an Elemental Spirit Origin like Dilong and Zhulong!


    Zolak and Bulu approached Duan Li from behind after nodding to each other, seemingly to come into an agreement.


    Tap!


    Zolak laid flat on the ground while Bulu kneeled with both legs, this was the highest form of honor and respect that their tribe would show to someone!


    Complete submission!


    Soon after, the rest of the Komodos followed suit and laid flat on the ground as well, prostrating in worship!


    "This.." Duan Li was feeling a little awkward now.


    Was there a need for them to do this?


    "Lord benefactor, from now on, we, the Komodo tribe shall vow with our soul and being to serve you on whatever requests that you may have in the future, even if it means.. walking to our own death!" chief Zolak said out loud as the rest of them roared out in unison including Bulu, "We shall serve Lord benefactor to the death!", their voices carried powerful conviction that resounded from every single last one of them!


    BOOMM!!


    Right after this vow was made en masse, the sky began to split open revealing the starry skies as if it were the nighttime! Several stars then collided together to form an explosion on the galactic scale!


    Everyone was dumbfounded by this sudden scene, everyone, except Dugu Liubai whom knew what this meant!


    Tap! Tap!


    He staggered backward in shock and horror, his face was drained of color once more, and he said something between his haggard breathing;


    "T-The starry skies collided.. this.. this is the Fate reversal phenomena!" he muttered somewhat incoherently as he glanced at the back figure of Duan Li that was currently staring at the explosion in the sky with furrowed brows.


    Dugu Liubai was in absolute disbelief!


    An existence that was capable of shaking off even fate itself.. he had only heard it once in the legends before, but none such figure had ever existed! It was merely some folklore that served to motivate cultivators, so that they will never give up and continue to pursue their dreams and aspiration regardless of how difficult that was to achieve!


    But now, seeing the phenomena himself, Dugu Liubai knew for sure that it was no mere folktales, but real!


    After all, he was looking at that very person right now!


    "A person who challenged the fate itself.. that''s really scary! Will this fellow become someone whom would be able to change the current status quo of the Tian continent?" he thought inwardly, before shaking his head a moment later.


    No.. the fate of the Tian continent isn''t something that can be changed..


    "Hmm.. What is the Heavens up to now? Casually destroying a few stars like that.. are they really that bored with nothing else to do?" Duan Li narrowed his eyes in suspicion.


    Puii!


    Dugu Liubai spat to the side in fury and resentment when he heard the words coming out from the latter.


    "The stars exploded because some predetermined fate has been changed by you!" he bellowed out to Duan Li subconsciously in a fit of rage.


    According to ancient knowledge, every stars in the sky harnesses someone''s fate. They would continue to shine until that person died, and would blink if that person''s fate underwent some minor changes. However, if it exploded, that means the person''s fate was changed entirely!


    "Eh? What was that?" Duan Li turned around and inquiried as he didn''t manage to hear Dugu Liubai properly.


    "Hmph! Forget it! Anyway young fellow, I trust that you entered the Eternal maze was because you want to clear the trial of the maze?" Dugu Liubai asked.


    This fellow is a troublemaker! Its best if I send him out as early as possible!


    He was referring to the mazes that also housed the exit gateway to return to the Tian continent.


    "Eh? Indeed I am.. would Old man Dugu show me the way?" Duan Li replied with a nod.


    Old man Dugu this.. Old man Dugu that..


    Dugu Liubai could no longer held it in and voiced out his pented up complaints, "I believe that you should address me as the Lord Guardian, I am not your uncle!"


    He was feeling quite aggrieved right now. After all, in this Second region, he commanded the absolute authority that should garnered everyone''s respect!


    Yet this damned fellow continued to address him so casually! Thus, how could he allow it to continue?


    "Ah! I''m sorry! I thought that by addressing you as such would make you feel less lonely.." Duan Li immediately apologized and scratched the back of his head feeling a bit guilty. He truly meant nothing else by using such a nickname on Dugu Liubai.


    "..." Dugu Liubai.


    So because I am the Guardian here for thousands of years, you think I am starting to get a bit lonely?


    Obviously you are looking down on the Eternal Maze for too much!


    You had only entered up until the Second region.. so what would you know of the society on the Fourth region?


    Hmph!


    Ignoring the remark from Duan Li, Dugu Liubai waved his hand to gesture for the other party to follow him.


    "Follow me!"


    Ssuuu!!


    ...

 219 Chapter 216: Control technique!

    A.N: If you like this novel, please support me financially on my Patre0n by searching my name Ramzey Ramzo. It would greatly help alleviate my current financial situation.. thank you!


    ...


    "Old man Dugu.. eh, I mean Lord Guardian.. please wait for us!" Duan Li called out from afar.


    The other party had told him to follow, yet what is this? How can he possibly follow properly when the latter was moving too fast? Even Daelius as his mount was struggling to catch up!


    "Hmph! This is what you get for cheating. The real purpose of this place for limiting your stamina and making you unable to fly, is so that you could temper yourself to an even greater heights. Yet, you chose to ride your mount and lazily go around the places here!" Dugu Liubai stood far at the very front with a strict expression and his hands clasped behind his back.


    Pant* Pant*


    Daelius breath was becoming more haggard as they moved. Had it been by itself, it would normally took quite a while for it to become exhausted. But because Duan Li was riding on top of him, Daelius felt that it was quite tiring to move very fast with the extra weight.


    After all, when all was said and done, in the end, Daelius was still considered as a baby. His fast growth was only attributed to the mutation of its body!


    "What do you mean tempering the body? Like training our physical body? But I''m pretty sure my physical body is already at the pinnacle! What is there to temper.." Duan Li rebutted with a wronged expression.


    Dugu Liubai shook his head. "I don''t mean to train your physical body, but your spiritual Qi control!"


    My spiritual Qi control?


    Duan Li raised his brows as he thought of this.


    Not only that, he cultivated all three of his dantians, even his Qi cycle efficiency allows him to practically have infinite amount of spiritual Qi inside him as long as the amount of output and usage was not too fast.


    Therefore, if he were to compare spiritual Qi cycle around his body with the Lord Guardian, he was pretty sure that he would emerge as the winner.


    Unfortunately however, after further explanations, what Dugu Liubai meant by control was specifically, controlling the output!


    This had him thoroughly confused.


    He could control the output of his spiritual Qi just fine. But if he were to reduce it, the power behind his skill arts would be reduced as well!


    To make an analogy, this was similar to a flood gate system. The more you lower it, the less water would come out of it!


    "You won''t understand this just by thinking about it. Let me show you first, otherwise, despite your flamboyant performance ever since you entered this Second region, I fear that you would not be able to survive the maze trial as it is related to the control of your spiritual Qi!" Dugu Liubai said.


    He then raised his right palm in front of him with the other tucked behind his back, and aimed it far in the distance towards a small rocky island by the sea.


    "This is what normal cultivators usually do, outputting higher amounts of spiritual Qi for a formidable amount of force!"


    Hengg!!


    Thrusting that palm of his slightly forward, five mighty and gargantuan projection of blue palms spread out across the sky, locking towards that island from all direction, including from above!


    Each of this blue palm was as big as an entire rock cliff that jutted high up into the sky, its sheer scale even caused Duan Li to shiver!


    For a moment or so, this display of overwhelming might made him reminisced of the experience that he had once before in his memories, back to when he was also a true immortal!


    "Palms of True Desolation!" Dugu Liubai muttered the name of his skill with an indifferent expression.


    KABOOMMMMMM!!


    An entire space compressed, ruptured and then collapsed, creating an explosion with its mushroom extending far above the atmosphere!


    In addition to this mind-boggling visuals, the shockwaves from the explosion had sent tsunami that cloaked the entire sky, heights reaching hundreds of meters tall! If these tsunami were to hit land, everything would cease to exist!


    Gulp!


    Duan Li subconsciously swallowed his saliva as he watched this, and so does Di Rou that had emerged from his shadow to see what level of power this Lord Guardian has.


    But when she witnessed this, she was shocked down to her core!


    What level of godly power is this?!


    "This.. this isn''t something that can be defended at all.. even if all the Nascent Soul realm experts in the Jiu Empire were to band together, against such an attack.. the entire capital would be eradicated in an instant!" she said with horror apparent in her voice.


    Dugu Liubai happened to hear this, and his heart couldn''t help but to welled up in pride. Thus, with a casual look on his face, he replied cooly, "That is only natural, after all, there was a saying that, those under the realm of immortals were nothing but ants! Hmph!"


    Duan Li nodded as he agreed to this. He too knew the might of an immortal because he used to be one in that alternate future timeline.


    Just him alone back then could already eradicate monsters at the Hermit King level, monsters that none should be able to survive against!


    Dugu Liubai then pointed his index finger forward towards that raging colossal tsunami. His brows twitched a bit as he grunted;


    "Ten Epic Spells: Save Reload!"


    Whisshhh!


    As if the world was suddenly covered by a myriad of color filters, the marching tsunami then suddenly stopped moving, before retracing back on its original path!


    Wuishh! Wuishh!!


    The tsunami continued to recede back further until eventually the destroyed island could be seen once more.


    "T-This is.. time reversal?!" Di Rou gaped her mouth in shock once more.


    The means of an immortal is truly heaven-defying!


    "Now this time, I will control the amount of output. Observe the result!" Dugu Liubai said as he thrusted another palm attack of the same skill as before.


    Huuu!!


    "Hmm?" Duan Li noticed a peculiar flow in the Guardian''s technique this time.


    Specifically, the amount of force that was let out was insignificant compared to before, in fact, it was so inferior that people would not expect too much from it!


    However..


    BOOOMMMM!!


    The previously rocky island that was restored through reversing time was once again blown into smithrens as the explosion sent out mushrooms of black clouds and giant waves of tsunamis.


    "Incredible..!" exclaimed Duan Li.


    While the might was obviously down by a few notches, what had Duan Li feeling extremely amazed was that the amount of spiritual Qi input was only one tenth of the original usage, yet outputting two thirds of its maximum prowess!


    This was the utmost level of efficiency!


    If he could master this ''control'' technique, his skill arts would evolve to an even terrifying degree!


    Just thinking about this had Duan Li clenched his fists in agitation.


    "Do you understand yet?" Dugu Liubai threw Duan Li a side glance as he put both hands behind his back once more, appearing like a true expert.


    Duan Li nodded, "Yes, this control technique seems to be quite a high level technique! However, although I understand the gist of it, I still could not comprehend its method!"


    He then clasped his fists together and continued, "If it doesn''t bother Lord Guardian too much, would you mind in imparting me this useful technique?"


    Dugu Liubai was quite elated when the perpetrator whom had made him lose his mind so many times before was practically pleading to be taught a new technique!


    Somehow, he felt a little bit better now, thus he agreed to it.


    "Very well then!" he said before cupping his chin. "Do you know any technique that could analyse the spiritual Qi flow of other people?" he asked.


    "En! I have mastered a skill art called Sonar Qi that could do that!" Duan Li replied with a positive nod.


    "Oh? I Didn''t expect you to be also well-versed in the field of medical.. but that should work." Dugu Liubai said.


    He then allowed Duan Li to tap on his shoulder to perform Sonar Qi while he demonstrate the control technique later on.


    "This is the most direct and efficient way of teaching you control technique. You might not be able to master it immediately, but given a few years, you should be able to do it. For now, I want you to remember the perfect control of spiritual Qi!"


    Dugu Liubai then began to drive the spiritual Qi in his body.


    Sonar Qi!


    Wenggg!!


    The moment Duan Li casted this skill on him, Dugu Liubai immediately felt alarmed!


    "Eh? What kind of probing technique is this?!"


    He felt that all of his secrets was being revealed entirely in this single instant, leaving no stones unturned!


    He was too dazed by this fact that whenhe finally snapped out of it, Duan Li laughed out happily!


    "Hahaha! So that''s how it was! To think that it would be so simple! How could I never thought of this before?"


    ...

 220 Announcemen

    @@


    Dear readers,


    There won''t be any new update for 3 or 4 days starting today. Reason being is that, I''m gonna be super busy starting tomorrow until the end of this week, so I decided to hold releasing new chapters for the moment and stock it up because I won''t have as much time to write this week. However, this will not mean mass release (exception for my dear Patrons). So I hope everyone would be informed about this. Sorry for the inconveniences!


    Best Regards,


    Author.@@

 221 Chapter 217: The real monster!

    "What? You have already finished analyzing the flow pattern?" Dugu Liubai was stumped with his jaw open.


    You must be kidding! It hasn''t even been three breaths and you are telling me that you managed to understand it in less than that?


    "That''s right!" Duan Li nodded as he recalled something else, "Oh yeah, I also noticed that you.. seemed to have a problem.. down there.."


    Dugu Liubai almost keeled himself when he heard this.


    "Y-You...!!"


    How can he expect that the fellow was even able to notice that ''personal'' problem of his?


    Usually, no matter how skillful someone was in using Sonar Qi, they would only be able to detect problems with spiritual Qi flow!


    After all, it''s not like the technique was meant to be able to detect all sorts of problem within a person''s body!


    That would require an even more difficult and high-level method of probing skills!


    Clearly, that fellow''s Sonar Qi was entirely on a different level!


    Ahem!


    "Don''t worry about it! For the sake of my cultivation, I had it sealed for a duration of a thousand years! If I am unable to release the second shackle and ascend to the Omnipresence realm state before then, then I shan''t be able to use it in this lifetime anymore!" Dugu Liubai answered quickly with a look of an unshakeable conviction to him.


    Eh?


    This old man even went so far as to seal the function of his p*nis with a time bomb?


    How vicious!


    Probably, in the entire cultivation world, other than those lunatics whom would voluntarily jump on the band wagon to become an eunuch and castrated themselves, this old man was the very epitome and meaning of being vicious to oneself!


    The lengths that a cultivator was willing to go for the sake of obtaining power.. hais!


    Duan Li tilted his head 45 degrees to the sky and lamented over the fate of the world.


    "What''s wrong?" Dugu Liubai asked as he saw that the fellow in front of him had suddenly turned silent while having that profound gaze. Even more weird, was that the other party clasped both hands behind his back, reminiscent to an expert pondering about the fabrics of mystery in the world.


    This fellow is broken in his head..


    "It''s nothing!" Duan Li shook his head as he focused back at the matter at hand.


    Ahem!


    He then continued, "If I am not mistaken, the crux of this control technique.. lays in the extra cycle that a skill must went through before being released through the acupoints right?"


    Oh?


    Dugu Liubai was surprised.


    ''So he did managed to identify the flow pattern in less than 3 breaths using that peculiar Sonar Qi..''


    What a scary talent!


    Suppressing his awe, Dugu Liubai nodded, "Indeed, the secret lies in the extra cycle.. however, knowing this alone would not make your attack stronger! After all, each skill has their own different pathways, and you must know which route those extra cycle must go!"


    Narrowing his eyes with a grim expression, he then warned, "Otherwise, you risk yourself of having internal rupture in your Qi pathways.. which would result in your cultivation going berserk! In the worse case scenario, even death is highly likely!"


    This control technique was considered to be an unorthodox secret technique which not many knew about, and naturally, this comes with its severe backlash should the method of practicing it erred from their correct path!


    "I understand Lord Guardian Dugu.. if it''s not too much trouble, would you be willing to see if I have understood it correctly?" Duan Li said.


    Dugu Liubai cupped his chin and pondered for a moment before replying, "Very well! If you could show me at least twenty percent of the mastery behind the control technique, I would consider it as a pass for now!"


    In his opinion, while it may be possible for the peerless genius to quickly have a grasp of such a difficult technique, mastering it would still take a few years at least.


    Even he himself, still required 10 years before he was able to master it to the pinnacle form which he was quite proud of!


    Duan Li clasped both of his fist respectfully. "Thank you Lord Guardian Dugu!" he expressed his thanks as he readied himself into a stance.


    "En!" Dugu Liubai nodded at this positive attitude of the other party. While the latter was absolutely detestable to him somehow, at least the fellow still has some proper manners when it came to learning.


    "This skill art of mine is a fist art called the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor.." Duan Li said as he punched out.


    BAMM!!


    Immediately, the sky seemed to have lost its shine as a brutal red meteor vividly bursted out from Duan Li''s fist and streaked to the sky!


    BOOMMMM!!


    As the fist ascended and exploded in the sky, loud reverberations and shockwaves reached the ground, creating ripples of violent waves on the sea surface below it!


    Dugu Liubai swallowed his saliva as he stared at this with widened eyes.


    "What manner of sorcery is this?! How can the force behind that fist art of his be on the level of a Nascent Soul realm.. no! Even higher than that?!" he thought to himself as he turned to look at Duan Li with a look of incredulity.


    This monster!


    Back in the past, he was also frequently being labelled as a monster due to his top notch talent, but he came nowhere as close as this fellow in front of him!


    A Core formation cultivator with a fist art that could possibly take out Nascent Soul realm experts.. just the thought of that was scary for anyone below the immortal realm!


    However, what he didn''t know was that, the fist art was not yet at the Consummation level, only at Major mastery at best. If he knew this, he would slap his own face and possibly change his last name to that of Duan Li.


    "G-Good! Now, show me the control technique!"


    Duan Li nodded and readied himself into his previous stance once more. After taking few a moment to review what he understood of the control technique, Duan Li drove his spiritual Qi along a unique path inside his meridians.


    Then, he made an extra cycle which resulted in him exuding out a unique aura.


    This was sensed by Dugu Liubai, and his brows furrowed as he noticed something different.


    ''Eh? Why is he making three extra cycle? Furthermore, his body was able to handle the pressure?''


    While the idea behind the control technique was simple, practicing it was a whole different story altogether!


    Not only would the extra cycle increased the pressure within the meridians, one would also need to make use of this pressure in place of using spiritual Qi!


    This was how using the control technique had managed to cut down the usage of one''s spiritual Qi significantly!


    However, it also required one''s inner body to be as tough as the seabed rocks, capable of withstanding surmounting pressure from the layers of spiritual Qi cycle on it!


    Duan Li then stepped his right foot forward at the same time as he throwed out his punch!


    Crack!


    KABOOOMMMMM!!


    ...

 222 Chapter 218: Unexpected backlash!

    ...


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    ...


    KABOOOMMMMM!!


    When the fist was released, it was as if all the air in the area was immediately suffocated into exhaustion, turning into an absolute vacuum!


    This in turns, created enormous pressure on the temporal space of the surrounding, building up invisible breaking lines that streaked out towards the sky, away from Duan Li''s fist.


    To put it into an analogy, the breaking lines was similar to a ceramic pot being hit by a hammer on the top. The initial transfer of stress from the tip of the hammer onto the ceramic pot would cause its molecular bond to shatter due to reaching its limit tolerance, causing the ceramic pot to break downwards until it reached the bottom and merged with the other cracks to finally crumble into pieces!


    Therefore, when the breaking lines of the temporal space curved and merged together at one end point in the sky, a loud rupture sound immediately exploded out!


    The heat and waves from this single explosion was not that fabulous and as showy as his Nine Fists Shattering Meteor. In fact, the explosion was more compounded and focused in a centered position!


    However, the impact of this explosion had evaporated the clouds that was within 50 kilometers radius from it!


    This was an absolutely shocking phenomena!


    Still, through the untrained eyes and lowly comprehension of mortal cultivators, it would seem that the lacking visuals would make them misunderstood that this fist art was inferior to Duan Li''s meteoric fist from before.


    But, Dugu Liubai, a bona-fide immortal, that was watching this had taken eight steps backward by pure instinct alone!


    What does this mean? It means that his body had reacted defensively by its own accord!


    This was because he had witnessed something that was totally impossible to happen in normal situation!


    In fact, even if the situation was abnormal, it would still not happen at all!


    "How.. how is this even possible?!" he cried out. If he had hairs, he would have long plucked them out from his head. Unfortunately, he was already bald, similar to the most pious of all monks in the holy mountain. Even the reflection of heaven could be seen from the shine of his bald head.


    He was shocked to his core because as an immortal that would be able to release the second shackle anytime soon given a few more years, he naturally had a wide understanding regarding the topic of space.


    The punch that Duan Li had executed before was far too devastating that the present space was not able to contain it!


    Therefore, the force instead had to travel through the fabrics of the inner space, a special space that made up the existence of the current space in the third dimension plane which connects all matter together!


    That was why the previous breaking lines in the sky was made visible; it was the sheer force from Duan Li''s punch that the present space could not compute and had to transfer it into the inner space!


    However, as with all energy, they would eventually lose their momentum due to the conversion from one form of energy to another. Therefore, the breaking lines slowly curved together and merged after reaching a certain distance along with its force dissipation, because their energy was reduced to the form that the present space could finally take and exploded out!


    But, with all these explanations combined together, one thing was made apparent!


    It was that Duan Li''s fist had reached a new, incredible heights that could threaten even those on the immortal realm! Or at least those on the first shackle!


    Gulp!


    To Dugu Liubai''s extensive knowledge, such method of offense could only be obtained when one had released the second shackle and entered the second state of immortality - the Omnipresent realm state!


    At that state, even a casual movement of their''s would be able to induce such a world-breaking phenomena!


    But for Duan Li, a mere mortal at the trashy realm, to be able to achieve such a similar effect.. this was something that was absolutely incredulous to him!


    "Absolutely impossible!" Dugu Liubai almost bellowed out these pair of words out loud, even his bestial instinct was on the verge of cursing all the nine devas up to their ancestors. Thankfully, his last bit of rationality prevented him from doing so, or else a lightning bolt would probably struck him right then and there.


    However, it doesn''t seemed that the impossible might was achieved without cost.. for Duan Li''s right arm..


    Was completely destroyed, mangled together that it was too scary to look at!


    "Urgh...!!" Duan Li groaned out at the sharp pain that even seemed to seethe into his bones, the pain was enough to cause him to bend and fell down on both of his knees while clutching at his right arm!


    His facial expression was hideous as he tried to suppress the pain to no avail!


    After executing that punch, all the bones in his right arm was reduced to fine dust, the meridians in it completely ruptured and his skin was bleeding out profusely!


    "Sit down quickly and swallow this pill!" Dugu Liubai immediately flew into action after he snapped out from his daze.


    Without any time to think properly, Duan Li followed the latter''s instructions and crushed the pill with his teeth and swallowed them. Almost immediately, he felt that the rate of degradation on his body slowed down considerably!


    "That is a grade 9 medicinal pill, Violet Recovering Dust! It will slow down any chain-reaction injuries within one''s body to a snail''s pace for treatment. You really are too reckless you idiot!" Dugu Liubai bellowed out as he quickly put both palm onto Duan Li''s right arm that was disfigured beyond recognition.


    Huuu!!


    Driving his spiritual Qi, milky white light surrounded Duan Li''s right arm and wrapped around it. This was an all-round healing technique called ''White Saint Heal'' that he was most proficient at which could heal almost anything back to its original state.


    However, to his horror, Duan Li''s meridians and Qi pathways was very abnormal!


    "You!! What is with your inner body pathways? There are pathways and meridians that shouldn''t have existed here!" he said with a grim expression.


    If he was confident with his healing technique before, now, he was not so sure anymore!


    This was because the healing technique requires one to be able to remember every position of meridians and its recurring pathways which should be similar to all cultivators as long as they were human.


    However, Duan Li was definitely not the case!


    ''Does this mean this fellow is truly a monster?'' he quickly shook this thought away.


    After all, Duan Li''s body constitution and make up was definitely of that of a human. Therefore, he peered further and exclaimed another mouthful of shock as he finally realized the reason.


    "This.. you.. you cultivated all three dantians.. and created new pathways to make a shortcut for some of the meridian channels?!"


    Duan Li that was pale as a ghost and could not utter a single word due to the intense pain gritted his teeth and forced out a reply, "Yes.. Ah! This hurts!"


    I don''t feel so good..


    Duan Li could feel that even though the medicine pill had significantly slowed down his injuries, his All-Seeing eye ability was able to detect that his meridian ruptures was slowly escalating to the other parts of his body like a chain bomb!


    If this didn''t stop.. he would become a helpless cripple!


    This is bad..


    ...

 223 Chapter 219: A new fist art!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    This is bad.. I really did not expect this to happen at all..


    Wengg!


    Duan Li consumed a grade 5 elixir but quickly shook his head after. It appears that the extent of his injuries was far too severe that the rate of recovery was outmatched even with the medicinal effect from the Violet Recovering Dust grade 9 pill helping him!


    Damn it!


    "You brat! Hurry up and think of something! Aren''t you so awesome all these while? If you don''t have a way to save yourself, you will become a crippled!" Dugu Liubai said in a hoarse voice, indicating that the situation was really serious.


    Kuh!


    ''Was there really no other way but to use that elixir? I only have one.. '' Duan Li thought to himself and gritted his teeth as he soon came to a decision.


    Better a waste of an excellent elixir than ending up a crippled!


    Wengg!


    "T-That is.. a grade 7 elixir?! Where did you get that? Hurry up and consume it!" Dugu Liubai finally saw a glimmer of hope. After all, an elixir was far more potent than a medicinal pill such that, an elixir of grade 7 was even effective on immortals like them, much less on Duan Li!


    Furthermore, he was shocked that Duan Li had something so rare at hand, because an elixir of grade 7 and above, unlike a pill, was extremely difficult to concoct, and even if there was one, its price would be astronomical!


    Gulu gulu gulu..


    In a single mouthful, Duan Li swallowed the contents of the elixir whole. Immediately after, his body started to glow brightly and he felt warm all over.


    Wongg!!


    The chain-reaction injuries in his meridians slowly halted together, before his bloodied right arm began to take shape once more, as if he had grew out a new bone with a speed that could be seen by the naked eyes.


    It''s working!


    However, he soon found out that although the extreme pain had started to subside, his meridians still refused to be healed even with all the medicinal effect being compounded on him!


    ''How can this be?'' Duan Li started to panic.


    All I did was just to try out new technique, yet why does it turn out this way instead?


    No, I need to calm down!


    All-Seeing Eye ability activate!


    Wengg!!


    "Hmm?" after making a closer inspection, he found out that his spiritual Qi flow, albeit almost undetectable, was actually in a state of disarray!


    Because he cultivated all three of his dantians, there were naturally 3 different flows. While it appears that the three of them did not have any sorts of problem at first glance, after a few cycle per breath, there would be ripple effect that caused the flow of these 3 to coincide with one another!


    Since every cycle was extremely fast, noticing the problem was naturally quite difficult too. Thus, when Duan Li realized this, he forcefully slowed down his Qi cycle to find ways to solve this problem.


    For some reason, every few random cycle, all 3 of his Qi flow would ripple erratically!


    Dugu Liubai that was inspecting Duan Li''s condition by his own means suddenly snapped his fingers together as he finally realized what the problem was.


    "I see what the problem is now! No wonder I found it weird that even with a grade 7 elixir, your meridians still did not heal!" he said.


    "Stop absorbing spiritual Qi from your surroundings and let all 3 of your dantians run empty! There were traces of temporal space phenomena diffused into your meridians that disrupted your Qi flow, that''s why they continuously tried to rupture your meridians!" he explained.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded and swiftly diffused out his spiritual Qi into his surroundings instead of taking in more.


    Huuu!!


    Slowly, his pale complexion started to become better until he no longer had any shred of spiritual Qi inside all 3 of his dantians.


    Then, his ruptured meridians began to heal with the potency of the grade 7 elixir that still lingered within his body!


    "You nearly turned cripple there, so next time, don''t be too reckless and try things out without any sorts of precaution!" Dugu Liubai sternly reprimanded Duan Li.


    However, when he thought about it, perhaps Duan Li wasn''t actually in the wrong but..


    His control technique that he imparted to Duan Li!


    After all, that control technique was meant to be used by normal cultivators, not someone with three dantian and some extra meridians and pathways bridging for shortcuts that he knew nothing about!


    Therefore, since he can''t possibly know that in advance, he can''t be blamed for it as well. If he knew, he would not dare to teach Duan Li a technique that wasn''t compatible with the cultivation method of the latter!


    Still, to be able to cultivate with all three dantian, he had never heard of such a thing before!


    One might think that an extra two dantian would just boost a cultivators prowess by two or three times when compared to a normal cultivator, but it was not as simple as that!


    Just a single dantian would be enough to have a cultivator the chance to ascend to immortality and possibly beyond should their prospect and fate was at the right condition, but three?


    The future of this fellow was practically boundless!


    Exhaling a mouthful of air, Duan Li wiped off the sweats on his forehead as he stood up.


    He then turned to Dugu Liubai and clasped both of his fists together as he bowed.


    "This junior would like to express his sincere thanks to Lord Guardian Dugu for the assistance in resolving the conflict within my body!"


    Duan Li really thought that he had made a terrible mistake back there of being too presumptuous. This experience serves to remind him that cultivation was ridden with dangers and must not be treated lightly!


    Had he been alone while executing such a technique and facing the backlash without the Lord Guardian by his side, whom had managed to identify the crux of the problem for him to resolve, unless a miracle occur, he would be done in by his own carelessness.


    Just thinking of that possible outcome had his bones turned chilly and his body to shiver!


    ...


    After a round of being reprimanded by the Lord Guardian whom after that gave out numerous advices, warnings, stories of cultivators whom turned cripple by a single mistake and more, Duan Li was finally spared.


    "Remember, next time, if you must use the control technique to unleash that level of attack, don''t go for more than 50 percent if you don''t want to experience this incident again! Until you managed to find ways to integrate the control technique with your 3 Qi flows within your body, I would advice you against using it at all!" Dugu Liubai said.


    Knowing that the concerns of the old man in front of him was sincere, Duan Li listened and nodded respectfully towards the latter.


    While he might have special circumstances that made him possible to surpass the old man before him in less than a year, experience and wisdom was something that he could not hope to match against the latter at all.


    Therefore, he chose to take all the advices from the Guardian to his heart.


    As the old saying goes, ''Listen to those with experience first.''


    "Hmph! As long as you understand your own mistake and not consumed by your own ego, you would only continue to soar even higher from today onwards!" Dugu Liubai turned around as he rubbed his nose slightly.


    Placing his hands behind his back, he then said, "Alright, now that you know how to use the control technique, just apply some of it to any of your movement arts slightly, and you can already move significantly faster than before!"


    Duan Li nodded. He had been re-absorbing spiritual Qi from the surrounding while he was being reprimanded earlier on, and with the help of Dilong and Zhulong, his recovery was even faster and had already reached half of his full capacity.


    He also noticed that, the old man doesn''t seemed to realize the existence of both of these Elemental Spirit Origin besides him, and Dilong told him that it was because they refused to let their existence be known towards the Guardian that the latter can''t see nor sense them.


    "Let''s continue on our journey then!"


    Suuu!! Suuu!!


    Along their travel, Duan Li cupped his chin together as he thought about something.


    ''The prowess behind that fist from before was on an entirely different level.. even its visuals was far too different than the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor..''


    That settles it then!


    I''m going to name the fist art something different.. let''s see..


    ''Doomsday Calamity Fist!''


    ...

 224 Chapter 220: The trial begins!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n so that I could dedicate more time to making high quality chapter everyday. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    Ssuuu!!


    Tap! Tap!


    "We have arrived!" Dugu Liubai said with both hands still clasped behind his back.


    Arrived?


    Duan Li casted a look at the ''entrance'' of where the maze was supposed to be, and to be honest, he couldn''t help but to have certain doubts regarding the sanity of the latter.


    Isn''t this the mouth of the small volcano?


    Has the prowess of my Doomsday Calamity Fist from before shocked him so much that he had gone bonkers in his head?


    Seemingly to understand Duan Li''s inner thoughts, Dugu Liubai made a dry cough before explaining.


    "Ahem! The entrance of the maze is about 200 meters just below the lava. Once you get past through it, you will see a large metal door. Through that door, your trial will then begin!"


    "200 meters.. under these lava?" Duan Li''s mouth twitched as he gazed at that bubbling hot rocks that was ready to burn anything it touches to ash in disbelief.


    Who in the world would be so crazy as to set up the entrance of a maze below a hot pool of lava?!


    You must be trying to dupe me!


    Duan Li gave a suspicious side glance towards the old Guardian.


    Pu!


    "I am not lying! These lava serves to warn those who wanted to enter the maze to have the proper means or body toughness as the prerequisite at least! If they can''t even overcome this simple hurdle, how would they even survive of what is inside the actual maze?" Dugu Liubai harrumphed.


    He then continued, "Don''t tell me that you can''t get past through this warm bath? Even the exit gate is located just before that door! If you can''t pass through this lava, not to mention of entering the maze, you won''t be able to even return back to the outside world!" he casted a weird look onto Duan Li.


    This fella had done so many heaven-defying stuff today, and you''re acting like you are afraid of some lava? I would be an absolute fool if I were to believe that! Hmph!


    Gritting his teeth a little bit, Duan Li replied, "Of course I can pass through it! Just that I don''t expect the entrance to be like this.."


    Dugu Liubai then waved his hand dismissively with a hint of disdain as he looked towards the sky. "You have seen nothing yet! Compared to the other regions after this, diving into a pool of magma is not even worth a mention!"


    He then explained that unlike the First region where there were a total of three mazes, the Second and the following regions after that only had one maze!


    However, the entrance towards the maze would be filled with increasing precariousness for the following subsequent regions!


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded his head with a grim countenance in comprehension.


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    From here on, I guess it would only grew more difficult..


    "I see.. then all I have to do is just dive straight into these lava right?" he asked once more.


    "En! That''s right. Now hurry up and move along! I don''t have all day to attend to you!" Dugu Liubai replied with a snort.


    This old Guardian, why is he so overbearing..


    Clasping his fist together respectfully, Duan Li bid his farewell, as well as expressing his gratitude towards the latter whom apparently was feeling quite impatient about sending him off.


    What a weird Guardian..


    Huuu!!


    In the Core formation realm, one would already be able to create a spiritual Qi barrier around them intrinsically and this was what Duan Li just used. It was described to be an all-purpose defensive barrier capable of withstanding any sorts of physical damage done to it, as long as the damage was not over its stress level.


    Leaping forward, Duan Li plunged himself into that hot pool of lava.


    Plop!


    "..."


    Haa!


    Dugu Liubai was finally able to let out a huge exhale in relief soon after Duan Li''s departure.


    "Even his spiritual Qi barrier was alreadyso dense, so he shouldn''t have problems navigating through the lava.. but I thought that he would use that blue barrier from back then to.. ah well, it doesn''t matter! I only hope that he would be able to at least make it out of here alive and disturb the other regions next.."


    Having that fellow around was far too nervewrecking! Who knows what kind of calamity he would bring forward if he were to stay any longer?


    At least that now my island is secure from further harm and I was able to keep my job as the Guardian of this place..


    ...


    Meanwhile, Duan Li whom was slowly descending downwards into the depths of the lava pool began to furrowed his brows together.


    "It''s getting hotter and harder to breath.."


    Eventually, he reached a depth where he had to claw his way in, as the further he went, the denser the magma seemed to be, until it almost felt solid as a rock!


    "Screw this!"


    You want to impede me?


    Nine Palms Slapping Ocean!


    PADAAHHH!!


    ...


    "Alright, time to go back to the magma chamber and cultivate once more for some more years, I think I''m really close to a breakthrough and.."


    KABOOOMMMM!!


    Before Dugu Liubai could even finish his sentence, the mouth of the small volcano exploded out and gushed tons of molten rocks into the atmosphere, creating rains of hell on the paradise island!


    Eh?


    "W-What the heck? What''s happening?!"


    Without any further thought he immediately threw out fists after fists to smash out those molten rocks before they hit the ground, or else the habitat of the numerous animal and monster species at the foot of the volcano would be burned to cinders!


    It must be because of that fellow!


    Dammit! Can''t he even take a break?!


    ...


    After slapping the bulk of the lava away, Duan Li was able to swiftly made his way down and finally reached an open space, devoid of any magma.


    Tap!


    Landing on both of his feet, he gazed up and couldn''t help but to feel amazed. The lava that was floating above him was seemingly held by some invisible barrier!


    "Must be spatial arts.. I really should study and learn a few of them next time when I got the time.."


    Looking around, Duan Li saw a huge rusted iron door that gave out an archaic aura, and beside it was a dark vortex spinning around that feels quite familiar to him.


    "That must be the exit.." Duan Li cupped his chin as he pondered for a moment.


    If it were any other person, unless that person was courting death, they would chose the spinning vortex to exit out of this place once and for all and temper themselves to become stronger before entering the maze.


    But Duan Li had already achieved a breakthrough to the pinnacle of the Core formation realm, thus if he were to exit, he won''t be able to return to the Second region anymore since they were locked to one''s own realm, unless that person was hiding under a person''s shadow like Di Rou.


    Therefore, it didn''t took him long to decide and propped himself up in front of the metal door to give it a heavy kick.


    BANGG!!


    The door was thrown wide open, in fact, Duan Li''s forceful behavior had almost broke the door off from its hinges!


    "Eh? That wasn''t as heavy as it looks.."


    Flapping his robes to the side grandly, Duan Li began to walk in large strides as he entered the maze.


    Unbeknownst to him, a pair of eyes was already watching him silently from the moment he set foot inside this maze.


    His trial has begun!


    ...

 225 Chapter 221: The first puzzle!

    Whooshh..


    As if a gust of smoke was being blown over, the pitch black space that Duan Li was in after he entered the door gradually turned bright, eventually turning white all over, with the iron door behind him disappearing without a trace.


    ''This is.. I entered an empty Crafted Space?''


    Similar to the Principal''s Crafted Space from before, the nature of the place he was in felt strangely familiar yet foreign at the same time due to its flatness and emptiness.


    A Crafted Space was an alternate space created artificially for various purposes. For the Principal''s, it was a place where he trained and cultivate in isolation, whereas for this place, it serves to act as a place to conduct trials for cultivators.


    In a sense, even the entirety of the Eternal Maze could be considered as a Crafted Space, albeit an advanced one. Duan Li theorizes that a Crafted Space was divided into many levels, but he was still not sure what those levels were.


    However, even though this Crafted Space was similar to the Principal''s, the starking contrast was that the latter''s total size was quite small. When compared to this, there seemed to be no end in sight, appearing to extend all the way into the horizon indefinitely!


    Therefore, it was apparent that the level between the two Crafted Space was far in between, with this Crafted Space being far more advance in nature!


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li walked in one direction without stopping, but after a while, he felt as if he was going around in circles, because there was nothing to be seen yet.


    Cupping his chin, Duan Li pondered for a moment.


    "Hmm.. I guess I should let everyone out and let them test out my theory?"


    With a wave of his sleeve, Di Rou, Daelius, Cucko, and Bulu appeared. Bulu was actually quite reluctant to leave his tribe''s members initially due to being separated away from them for so long. But since he had already swore an oath to follow Duan Li and acknowledged the latter as his master, and his father-in-law as well as the rest of the tribe urged him to represent them in serving Duan Li, he made the decision to stick with the latter.


    When they each came out, Di Rou was the first to react to her surroundings.


    "Now that I am outside, I''m pretty sure this is a Crafted Space.." she said.


    "En, that''s right. I want the four of you to walk in four different direction away from me for 100 meters or until I said stop." Duan Li instructed.


    Then, with Duan Li as the center, Di Rou moved to the North, Daelius to the East, Cucko to the South and Bulu to the West.


    Tap! Tap!


    After they reached 100 meters away from Duan Li, they stopped and waited for his further instructions.


    After thinking about the matter for a moment, Duan Li then decided for them to continue walking and stopping for every 100 meters.


    200 meters..


    300 meters..


    400 meters..


    As soon as they reached the 500 meters mark, something bizarre happened!


    The four of them had switched position without them even noticing!


    Di Rou from the North switched with Cucko on the South, and Bulu from the West switched with Daelius on the East!


    Not only that, they were even facing into his direction, such that if they continued to walk, they would eventually reach him once more which was the center!


    "This is.." Duan Li furrowed his brows. His theory was correct. He was indeed walking around in circles before.


    Seemingly to notice Duan Li whom was suddenly in front of them when he should be behind them, the four of them were caught in confusion.


    "Eh master? How did he move in front of us?"


    Then, they noticed the others from the distance as well and slowly realized that their positions had been switched!


    How can this be?


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    "Calm down everyone. Move a step back and see if you can return to your original position." Duan Li said.


    They nodded and did as was told, and once more, as if it was natural, they returned back to their original spot!


    Incredible!


    What made them feeling even more awed of this phenomena was the fact that their transition from one position to the other felt like nothing has happened at all, which made them unaware that their position was changed!


    While not all of them were cultivators, since they were a mix of different species, each of them had already honed their senses to detect miniscule changes to their surrounding as part of their awareness.


    Thus, it left them extremely befuddled on how even their senses and instinct failed to notice this peculiarity. Perhaps, only after walking a long distance would their thought process be able to suspect that something was in fact amiss.


    "Stay right where you are everyone and don''t move." Duan Li said as he summoned the spectral body of Dilong and Zhulong.


    Weng..


    "Dilong, Zhulong, it seems that this Crafted Space has a radius of 500 meters before looping back, can you both confirm this?"


    The reason why he asked this question to these two Elemental Spirit Origin was because they were experts in things related to space as part of their natural abilities of the dragon species.


    "Okay" they both replied at the same time and began to scan their surroundings.


    Not too long later, these two dragons began to voiced out the results of their analysis.


    "Strange.. this Crafted Space is indeed looped together.. but there exists some tunnel pockets that connected to another Crafted Space which was too small for anything to even enter.." Zhulong said.


    "Hmm? Explain more." Duan Li said as he listened to them.


    "Usually, Crafted Space is an entirely isolated space that could only be entered and exited through an external portal, like the Eternal Maze outside connecting with outside world via the vortex gate." Zhulong replied.


    Dilong nodded and then continued, "That''s right, however this Crafted Space''s four cardinal directions was looped together, but at the same time connects to somewhere else which made it even more strange."


    "Therefore, even if one were to walk a thousand miles ahead in any direction, they would still be in this same space and would not be able to pass through those tunnels." she explained, "Unless.."


    Duan Li cupped his chin and nodded to this as he had already experimented on the theory with those four.


    "Unless?" he asked impatiently.


    "Unless.." both of them looked at each other as they agreed on the outcome with a single glance on each other.


    ".. this Crafted Space is actually a.. Compounded Space!" they said at the same time.


    Compounded Space?


    This was the first time Duan Li had ever heard of such a term, thus he could not help but to inquire further, "What is this Compounded Space?"


    "Compounded Space is a highly advanced technique of Spatial manipulation.. consisting of multiple Crafted Space that was compounded against one another!" Dilong answered as she stared towards a certain direction.


    "For example, in the North direction, it was looped to the South, but with the correct means, one would be able to escape that loop and enter the next Space!"


    Zhulong then added, "The reason why we found it strange was because we have already scanned the surrounding, but found no mechanism or whatsoever that could be used to escape the loop.."


    "Indeed. However, having no mechanism to escape is impossible as well, because if one could enter, then one should be able to exit too! There can never be a space without connection at all because that would violate its existence!" Dilong continued.


    Her explanation was derived from the absolute law that all space were interconnected regardless if they were in a different realm, dimension or time. There would always be some sort of a connection between them.


    However, this was a topic that their master hadn''t yet been able to learn, so until he has a grasp on these laws, he wouldn''t be able to make sense of it even if they explained it to him in more detail.


    ''Hmmm.. by the sound of it, this Compounded Space is extremely complicated..'' Duan Li pondered as he brainstormed for the correct solution to their current predicament.


    I guess the only way out is to find the mechanism in one way or another?


    The only question is.. how to find it..


    Duergar, the little sword on Duan Li''s right earlobe whom was silent all these while, decided to speak up at this moment.


    "Young master, I have seen numerous Compounded Space before, and the space like this one, while rare, isn''t anything too special in my experience. However, finding the mechanism is quite tricky usually. Luckily, this place is empty and is not filled with any danger at all." he said.


    Hearing this, Duan Li shot up his brows, "What? You know of this Compounded Space? You should have spoken earlier little sword! Then how can we find the mechanism?" he said with a hint of annoyance in his voice.


    "We.. disrupt the space!"


    ...

 226 Chapter 222: Too much free time!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    "Disrupt the space?" Duan Li frowned as he thought of something. "How do we do that?"


    I''m pretty confident with my ability to destroy stuff around, but I''m sure that''s not what he meant it it. Therefore, if one were to use both direction at the same time.."


    ".. they would collide inside that space tunnel?" Duan Li interjected.


    "Precisely young master! The resulting collision would send waves through that space tunnels which should trigger something!" confirmed the little sword excitedly, the thought of causing chaos made him quite elated.


    Hmm..


    "But Di Rou and Cucko had entered the North and South direction respectively at the same time before, and nothing happened." Duan Li said in confusion.


    If things were indeed as the little sword had said, then why didn''t those two collide before when they entered?


    "That''s because this place isn''t meant for more than a single individual at a time, so the law probably adapted when it encountered such a variable. After all, it would defeat the very purpose of testing oneself if the puzzle was broken using the unintended means. Therefore, young master should treat this as if you are alone. Only then you could think of the right solution!" the little sword explained.


    ''I should think of this situation as if I am alone in this place?''


    Duan Li pondered upon that sentence deeply and nodded.


    Indeed, in the first place, I should''ve been alone in this trial as this place was made to test a single individual.. thus, if the solution could only be realized if one were alone, then..


    Duan Li gazed at his surroundings for a moment before a flash of comprehension could be seen reflected in his eyes, "I see, so I should use my skill arts?"


    "You got it young master!" the little sword exclaimed with a laughter, as if successfully guiding a young child under its care.


    Duan Li shook his head with a smile feeling that the little sword''s reaction was silly, and then turned towards the four individuals on the four direction before instructing a command for them to return to him and be on standby.


    ''If the theory is correct, I should use minimal force first..'' Duan Li readied his fist and decided on the amount of power to use. After all, if he were to accidentally exert too much force and ended up breaking the space tunnels, well.. the situation would immediately spiralled into madagusta!


    BAM! BAM!


    Two meteoric fists flew in the opposite direction, one to the North and the other to the South at the same time.


    When they reached the 500 meters mark, both of the fists immediately disappeared into thin air before a metallic sound could be heard echoing in the entire space around them!


    PENG!


    This sound was similar to that of a gong''s, but after waiting for a while, it was apparent that no mechanism or anything was activated yet.


    However, this confirmed that the key to advance from their current situation has something to do with hitting that gong-like object inside the space tunnel!


    "Oh wait, there is also the East-West loop.. perhaps I should hit them too?" at the thought of this, Duan Li threw out two more punches towards the two direction.


    PENG!


    As soon as this gong-like sound was heard a second time, the space around Duan Li began to rattle intensely.


    Krrrr...


    "Something''s finally happening.." Duan Li looked around to identify where the change will come from and prepared himself.


    Eh?


    Suu!!


    Duan Li made a jump and flipped to the back as the white ground below his feet suddenly began to elevate out of nowhere which spooked him!


    Rrruururuuuu..


    "Damn, that surprised me.. I thought it was an enemy.." he said as he stared at the object that was slowly rising up from the ground.


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    At first, the object was pyramid in shape, but when it rose up higher and higher, it was obvious that it wasn''t what Duan Li had initially expected, because what came out was actually a small pavilion structure!


    TUMM!


    "This is.. a gazebo?" Duan Li stared at this red wooden structure intently while being on guard at the same time, for who knows what will pop out next.


    From the looks of it, even though the wood used was showing signs of decay indicating its extreme ancientness, it was still in a pristine condition!


    In the center of this gazebo was a small stone pedestal at waist height with a palm print on it.


    ''Tetra Soul Sense!''


    Wengg!!


    After a thorough inspection on both of the structure and the stone pedestal, Duan Li confirmed through the voice of the Mirealithians that the stone pedestal acts as an identifier or the sorts, which was probably used to identify the challenger of the maze in order to begin the real trial!


    Walking up to this gazebo and placing his right palm onto that palm print, a bright blue glow emerged out from the stone pedestal.


    Wongg..


    These blue glow then floated up into the air, before darting out towards the 4 cardinal direction and disappeared like a smoke without trace.


    PENG! PENG! PENG! PENG!


    Next, a total of 4 gong-like sounds could be heard before the stone pedestal splitted into half, revealing a floating stone tablet which contained 4 different symbols.


    "What is this?"


    Right after expressing his confusion, the 4 symbols on the stone tablet suddenly began to glow into 4 different colors; bronze, copper, silver and gold!


    Eh.. this thing has too much visuals..


    Duan Li could not help but to shook his head as he thought about the creator of all these, whom was possibly the Grand Immortal or whatnot himself, was putting too much effort into setting this up!


    Did he have too much free time at hand back then?


    ''Would I see some delicate, hand-crafted statues next?''


    As if to answer the monologue random whinings inside of Duan Li''s head, 4 different statues dropped down from the sky looking extremely life-like and positioned themselves to the North, East, South and West respectively!


    Just by a single glance, one would be able to tell that those was the handiwork of a true expert! Their hairs, eyebrows, eyes and mouth.. had it been that the textures of these grey statues was not that obvious and more colourful, some people would probably mistook them as real person instead!


    In addition, these 4 statues were dressed differently, one looked like a martial artist, another a cultivator, a scholar and one that looked identical to him in both appearance and style!


    Furthermore, he didn''t know why, but the last statue appeared to be quite handsome and dashing to him.


    "They really appeared..!" Duan Li''s jaw almost dropped to the floor.


    If I think about my mother, would she fell down from the sky too?


    "..."


    So it was a coincidence..


    If his mother really appeared, things might get a little bit more hectic here..


    "Now, what is the purpose for all these things appearing one after another?" Duan Li played with his chin as he circled the stone tablet with both hands clasped behind his back, as if an expert inspecting the unknown mysteries.


    ''Since my Tetra Soul Sense did not managed to see this stone tablet before, it must meant that the stone pedestal collapse after taking in my spiritual Qi formed into the stone tablet after..''


    The four symbols were depictions of a puppet, a kind of monster, a mountain and a person. No matter how Duan Li tried to observe more, he found that there was nothing else extraordinary about the four symbols other than they were protruding out a little bit from the stone tablet.


    "This is.. they are switches?" he said inwardly.


    Hmm..


    Duan Li stepped a little bit closer and pressed at one of them - one with the puppet symbol.


    Wengg!!


    The symbol began to lit up in a series of bronze color and this color connected to one of the four statues, specifically the one from the North that looked like a martial artist, and the statue began to tremble visibly.


    "Eh? Is it becoming alive?" Duan Li narrowed his eyes and waved his hand, gesturing for the others to regroup around him and prepare for battle!


    However, contrary to his expectation, this statue did not attack him but only rose both arms to the sky, before suddenly flexing both biceps like a thug.


    "..." Duan Li.


    Does this statue need a slap to the face or something?


    Wongg!!


    A bronze colored vortex formed behind the statue.


    "Oh? A vortex appeared.."


    After thinking for a moment, Duan Li walked towards the vortex and stopped when he reached in front of it as he turned to look back.


    "I guess the only way forward is to enter this vortex.."


    Well.. what may come, I will prevail!


    With a determined glint in his eyes, Duan Li gathered everyone back and entered the vortex before his silhouette gradually disappeared into its depths.


    ....

 227 Chapter 223: Not good enough!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    Wengg!!


    Tap! Tap!


    Emerging out from the spiralling bronze vortex, Duan Li suddenly found himself to be on a flat land with an orange ground and a wide blue, cloudless sky. This land was devoid of any vegetation, hills, and the other usual stuffs that made up a natural environment.


    Is this an artificial land?


    Squinting his eyes, Duan Li could see no end to this orange land, as the blue horizon seemed to eventually merge together in the far distance, creating a vivid sunset illusion that basks the space with a slight yellowish hue.


    "While this land might seemed to be endless at first sight, its probably another Crafted Space like before.. heng!!" Duan Li thought of this as he punched out.


    BOOMM!!


    His fist exploded after reaching 500 meters away.


    "I see.. the total area are the same as the previous one, but this place is like a real cage with a set boundary instead of teleporting one to the other direction to make it seem endless.." Duan Li nodded.


    Does this mean that this Compounded Space has identical space area with each other?


    That should be the case.


    Just as he was intending to walk around the area for a bit to take a look, his vision suddenly blurred and a sharp pain strucked inside his head, as if a brick was forcefully inserted into his brain, making him almost stumbling over.


    "T-This...!!" Duan Li''s face immediately paled.


    To his disbelief, he found out that his three active dantians was suddenly halted from cycling spiritual Qi inside his body!


    "My dantian.. its sealed?!"


    Damn it! What the heck happened?!


    Duan Li looked around and peeked under his feet to see if he had activated a trap mechanism accidentally somehow.


    ...


    High up above even the three realms of heavens, in an isolated space cut off from the dimensional fabric of time, tinges of colors that depicted every single truth in the multiverse seethed together around a single being.


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    This being had every disposition and aura of an Eternal existence would have, and it was inviolable. Every words that he spout would be the irrevocable law and reality, his might surpassing even that of the Nine Eternal Lords of All-Era in the Upper realm of Heaven!


    This man was absolutely mysterious, his facial appearance and figure was shrouded and could not be described at all. But if one thing could be seen, it would be that this person had his back straight like a sword, with both of his hands clasped behind his back, as his eyes that was filled with the archaic wisdom gazed onto one point of a reality.


    This man was the very same existence that helped Duan Li against Cao Tengfei of the Dark Sect before.


    "Henceforth, I sealed all your three dantians and render the pearls useless until you clear the trial with only your bare hands and feet." he said indifferently.


    ''If you could not beat the endless amount of enemy waves after this with just your four limbs alone, then you do not deserve to live in that reality!''


    Furthermore, that trial room was created to test those on the Foundation establishment realm over their limits. If one had never tried to break through their cacoon even once, why would they even dream of defying the Heavens in the first place?


    After all, the point of cultivation was to become supreme over everyone else, and the Heavens was not an exception to that equation!


    This person then sighed.


    However you.. you had already reached the peak of the next realm which rendered this trial useless.


    As such, it was only right for me to seal your powers! Hmph!


    This man then gazed at another block of the multiverse, where a Celestial Being was seen trodding through the foreign lands without any sorts of worry at all. As he saw this, he shook his head, lamented and sighed helplessly once more.


    "Duan Ling, you were supposed to be my predecessor.."


    ...


    Aiyoh! This is really bad..


    ''My cultivation realm is still there as I could feel the power of my physical body of the Core formation realm, but my dantians are truly sealed!''


    Isn''t this place way too strict? Just what kind of trial would it be that required one''s own source of spiritual Qi to be completely sealed?


    Just as Duan Li was thinking along that line, the ground beneath him began to shook intensely before bulging spots began to appear around him one after another!


    Krrrr...!!


    Gradually, those bulging spots rosed up from the ground and then shape-shifted from clay-like ovoids to that of a human figure!


    "This.. they are turning into a bunch of puppets?!" Duan Li readied himself into a defensive stance.


    How many are they?!


    10.. 50.. 100.. 200.. 400..


    "Hey.. hey! You''ve gotta be kidding me! There are thousands of them! Who the hell created this trial? Its a damned scam!" Duan Li cussed out at their ancestors.


    Trial? This is more a like a battle-royale!


    TAK! TAK!


    The lifeless puppets began to jerked their body one after another as they came alive. Their puppet body rattling together makes the situation like a horror scene when it was combined with thousands of them!


    Furthermore, these puppets only has one eye, which was glowing bright red, making their visuals even more scary!


    TAK! TAK!


    One by one, they stepped forward, inching closer to Duan Li slowly like a bunch of trained soldiers as their movement was synchronized, and when they finally reached the 5 meters mark around Duan Li, surrounding him, they suddenly ran forward!


    "Crap! This is really trouble!"


    Duan Li loosened his muscles as he dashed forward immediately.


    According to the martial art manuals that he had studied back in the academy during his free time, while the method they practiced were all different, there was at least one thing that they have in common with their teachings; and that was to not stand still when being surrounded!


    In other words, when one was being outnumbered and surrounded, never go for the defense in one spot, but instead to move forward like an arrow piercing through the enemy ranks, going into the offensive at full force!


    BAMM!! BAMM!! BAMM!!


    "Eh? They are not that strong.." Duan Li said as he realized this. "Still, their numbers are way too many!"


    Gritting his teeth, Duan Li continued to punch and kick left and right, sending tens of puppets flying into the distance with each hit!


    BAM!! BAM!!


    In addition, he also found out that his stamina restrictions was being lifted off, granting him immense vigor to push forward with incredible momentum.


    However, he knew that even with his monstrous stamina, it was not limitless. Against the sheer number of puppets that he had to beat here, it would only be a matter of time before his stamina ran out, and if he were not exhausted, he would still be like a dead log in the end!


    He had tried to summon the others from his spatial ring and Di Rou that was within his shadow time and again, but it was useless because each action needed spiritual Qi to perform!


    BAM!! BAM!!


    Right now, only Duergar, the little sword on his right earlobe became his companion in this brutal and lonely fight, although more like a cheerleader, as the other party could not even transform to become a sword for him to use either.


    "Young Master! You can do it! Punch their face! Kick their butt!"


    "Hey you filthy thing! You dare to hurt the young master? Courting death! Young Master, slap that puppet!"


    "Hahaha! Useless bunch of dirt bags! Come! Come! This sword is not afraid of you all!"


    Hearing the incessant cheering from the little sword, Duan Li had the intention to flick it with his finger, but he was too preoccupied in dealing with the puppets that he can''t even punish the noisy sword!


    Come? Come your ancestor! As if you are the one fighting them!


    BAM!! BAM!!


    ...


    "Hmm.. fighting form is solid, martial arts movement is fluid, but he still depends on his five senses! Not good enough!" the Eternal being said as he watched Duan Li with his hands behind his back, criticizing the latter from time to time like a strict teacher.


    You should be glad that I do not increase the prowess of those puppets and return your stamina back to you, but this fighting form is still too unsightly for my standards!


    Brawls like these should be handled by pure instinct alone! Hmph!


    With a single thought of his, the laws around him began to seethe and changes were made.


    "Until I am satisfied, you will continue to fight!"


    He then cupped his chin as he thought for a moment.


    ''Let''s make the puppet a tiny bit stronger..''


    ...


    Pant! Pant!


    Duan Li''s breathing was haggard, and all of his four limbs were starting to hurt. Below him was a mountain of broken puppets, and at this moment, Duan Li looked like the conquerors of thousandfrom the legends!


    He had finally won against the thousands of puppets after fighting for a long while.


    "I.. I fared much better than I expected.. still.. that took too much out of me.." he said as he panted heavily and wiped off his sweat. His clothes had become unkempt, but it was not tattered, and he only suffered some slight bruises here and there, nothing too serious.


    "You did it young master! Hahaha! As long as I, Duergar the ultimate weapon is here, nothing can beat you young master!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li almost spat out his blood.


    All you did in that fight before was rambling!


    Pang!!


    He rose his finger and flicked the latter, but then, he suddey felt the mountains of broken puppets below him sinking to the ground!


    ''Is the trial finally over?''


    However, that thought was immediately extinguished, as to his horror, bulging spots began to wiggle out from the ground and morphing into those lifeless puppets from before!


    You''ve gotta be sh*tting me..


    ...

 228 Chapter 224: Standing at the top!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    BAMM!! BOOMM!!


    A series of booming sounds exploded one after another on this orange land, with each explosion, tens of puppets was being blown away to the sky as if swept by a forceful gale!


    At this moment, a single figure stood up haggardly with both fists clenched tight, surrounded by countless fallen and dismembered puppets!


    Pant! Pant!


    "Damn it.. these puppets, they are stronger than before..!" he said as he wiped off the blood dripping down his lips.


    BAMM!! BOOMMM!!


    Duan Li''s breathing grew increasingly heavy as time passes. Even his clothes were starting to tear up little by little as the punches and kicks from the puppets were more intense than those on the first round!


    Thud!


    This second round went on for quite a long while, and after it finally finished, he dropped down to his knees to catch his breath.


    ''What is wrong with this place? These puppets just keeps on coming at me one after another relentlessly!''


    Have I offended their ancestors or killed their entire family or something?!


    Just as he was about to curse with every syllable he could come up with, the mounds of broken puppets around him began to sank into the ground as if swallowed by a bottomless swamp!


    Krrr...!


    "What.. don''t tell me.." his countenance turned extremely grim.


    Ssuuu..!


    Countless ovoid clays swiftly emerged from the ground and morphed into those puppets once more, giving him an eery feeling as if looking at an army of undying legions!


    "Again? How many rounds is this going to take before they are finished?" he exhaled out forcefully with a grunt, annoyance and frustrations crept up inside him.


    After all, not having spiritual Qi was extremely difficult for a cultivator. For example, if his dantians were not sealed, he was confident that he could slap all these puppets out cold with just a single palm strike!


    Nevertheless, Duan Li still stood up from the ground, and once more dashed towards the enemy ranks as he roared out!


    "RAAHHHHHHH!!"


    BAMM!! BOOMM!!


    ...


    When the third round was finished, Duan Li''s clothes turned from unkempt state to tattered and his hair disheveled. Next, the fourth round began and by the end of it, his appearance transformed from that of a formidable cultivator to that of a street beggar, his face all dirty. In the fifth round, all he was left with was his underpants!


    If one were to look at his current state, they would misunderstood him as almost being ravaged by vicious demons, almost losing his chastity!


    Furthermore, his body was filled with many severe bruises, as if stung by an army of killer bees!


    Right now, other than his hideous swollen looks, Duan Li was also experiencing troubles of breathing properly as his stamina finally reached rock bottom.


    Thud!


    "I.. really hope.. that would be.. the last round.." he said with gritted teeth as he fell flat on the ground, his muscles and bones was hurting all over.


    ...


    The Eternal being was currently gazing down with indifferent expression, watching the entire scene unfolding before him with his hands behind his back and thought for a moment.


    "So, he managed to last five rounds before almost collapsing. Not too bad."


    Since you have already ran out of stamina, let''s see if you can fight for another round, as only then would you be able to truly surpass your limits!


    With a single thought, the color of truths around him began to seethe intensely and a myriad of hums rang throughout this mystical space that this Eternal being was in.


    With an imposing will, he stared right down at Duan Li.


    Whether or not you will live through this is inconsequential. Your real fight begins now!


    ...


    TAK! TAK!


    "Ahh.. am I going to die here..?" Duan Li muttered in between his haggard breathing helplessly, as he watched the fallen puppets that was being brought to life once more was closing in on him.


    By the looks of it, they''ve gotten stronger too!


    ''I''ve already ran out of stamina.. there is no way I could continue to fight anymore..''


    He was already laying flat on the ground, barely even able to turn his head around to take a look, not even mentioning fighting for another round!


    As he thought of this, his eyelids suddenly felt really heavy and his vision started to blur. At any given moment now, he would faint and lose the trial!


    Duan Li was finally reaching the limits of his consciousness with all his stamina depleted!


    But then, a flash of memories repeated through his mind. Memories that he never wanted to recall if he could.


    Whoosh!


    The scene of the Jiu Empire being torn apart.. the city of Nine Lotuses spread with cold corpses laying around with many familiar faces among them, and finally, the scene where the lifeless body of his mother, Meng Yue, laid cold on his pair of bloodied arms..


    No.. No...


    "NO!!"


    BAMMM!!


    Duan Li''s right hand slammed the ground, causing cracks that spread out like cobwebs around it. He then slowly pushed himself up, his face was as dark as the night due to being shrouded by his hair.


    An eery vibe radiated out from Duan Li, causing even the lifeless puppets to suddenly flinch upon feeling this aura of his!


    Tap! CRACK!


    With every step that he took, the ground beneath him shattered, as if unable to support the insurmountable weight of his body!


    Clench.. punch!


    This single movement of his was slow as a snail, but the effects of it was devastating!


    BOOOMMM!!


    The ground shook, the sky trembled, and puppets was sent flying and raining down to the ground like flies!


    TAK! TAK!


    As if being agitated by this, the puppets immediately rushed forward and their lifeless eyes now contained a hint of intelligence within them.


    Still, while their punches and kicks were ten times heavier than before, as if coming into contact with a thick metal wall, each of their limbs were crushed the moment they connected to any parts of Duan Li''s body!


    He was invincible!


    "This.. young master has achieved the Martial True Instinct!" the little sword commented with a horrified voice.


    Martial True Instinct, this was the pinnacle form of martial arts that one could ever hope to accomplish as a martial artists!


    Responding purely by the bodily instinct alone, derived from the countless numbers of battles a martial artists has experienced, one would be able to focus all power within their body into any of the limb that was reacting to the external threat, resulting in an explosion of power that could never be achieved before!


    "To think that the young master has achieved it this early.. even without the help from the mysterious pearls, he would now be able to almost solve any threat on his own by just possessing this mythical arts alone!"


    As long as his opponents isn''t too heaven-defying, young master would never lose with this ability!


    Hell, if this was combined with the First Warring Intent technique that boosted one''s combat prowess even further, even Nascent Soul Realm experts would no longer be his match!


    "Furthermore, if young master uses the Golden Hair mode, even immortals would be in trouble!"


    I seemed to remember that there was a second mode to that too..


    The little sword shivered as he thought of this. A mortal that has yet to ascend to immortality was already capable of contending with the immortals..


    How scary is that?!


    ...


    "True Martial Instinct!" the Eternal being narrowed his eyes slightly as he said this in astonishment, before nodding in satisfaction.


    I wanted you to overcome your limits, but you''ve broken it entirely..


    ...


    In a land far away, an old man with a long white beard and white robe fell down from his bed with a loud ''thud!''.


    "Ah! W-What happened?"


    He then looked onto the ceiling where a patch of it was broken and fell down onto the very end of his bed, causing it to be flipped over and catapulting him towards the floor, landing flat on his face.


    ''How unlucky..'' he thought to himself, feeling aggrieved.


    But at the next moment, he seemed to have realized something as his eyes turned wide!


    Wait a moment..!!


    He then rushed out from his room, and when he entered this place that was filled with numerous engravings and depictions of fate as well as stories of the ancient past and the future, he noticed that on the very corner of it, a new drawing was carved onto it!


    "This..!!"


    This new drawing was a depiction of a silhouette that stood on top of a very tall mountain, its shadow was long and had overcasted the land below it in darkness.


    Somehow, this silhouette and its shadow seemed to depict loneliness after reaching the very top of the peak.


    The old man with the white beard pondered for a moment before his eyes flashed into an epiphany.


    Wengg!


    With a flick of his finger, a quill and a dilapidated looking book appeared on his hand.


    He then wrote down;


    "To stood at the very top with no equal no more, it is lonely."


    Nodding satisfactorily, he flicked his fingers once more and stored this book away.


    While his status was one that could cause numerous experts in the Tian continent to rally towards him should he desired something in order to curry in his favor, his side occupation was also writing books, and constructing poems was one of his favorite hobbies!


    The book just now was one of the many poem books that he was drafting, and he added those lines into it.


    In time, this book of his would be published worldwide, even reaching to the most remote of all of the multiverses, which was beyond his wildest imaginations!


    In time, unparalleled expert would eventually quote this phrase from his long stretches of poem;


    To stood at the very top with no equal no more, it is lonely.


    ...

 229 Chapter 225: The most familiar person!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    In the vast orange land, what was previously filled with the sounds of bones crushing and puppets breaking, was now eery silent.


    In the center of this land, stood a tall young man motionlessly. His appearance was wretched, with bruises all over his body. It was fortunate that the last battle did not shred him the last of his dignity, as his underpants still remained intact after his final battle despite the fight being more ferocious than the previous five rounds!


    This young man was Duan Li, and he had won all the battle in this first trial room. The number of puppets that he had destroyed in these battles amounts to a staggering total of 100,000!


    If there was others that had witnessed those epic scenes, surely, tales of the Duan Li going against the impossible would be spread far and wide, before turning into legends that will lasts for generations to come!


    At this moment, Duan Li had truly already lost his consciousness and fainted while standing. In fact, he had fainted even before the fight had started in that last round, and his body moved purely through his will and instinct alone!


    "Ahh.. young master is already wasted.. what happens now?" the little sword looked around and found no signs that the destroyed puppets will undergo through the rebirth process again and sighed in relief.


    Wengg!


    Eh?


    Looking up, the space above the sky rippled as a figure suddenly came out from it. Time and space seemed to become irrelevant in front of this person and his disposition was supreme, to the extent that his figure could not be seen, as if there were many layers of lights protecting his majestic figure from being peered to by lowly beings.


    The appearance of this transcendic being sent the little sword dumbfounded and he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. If he had any face, surely, his countenance would be extremely pale!


    It cannot be..


    "What? Have your brains aged for too much that you don''t recognize me anymore?" the person said with a slight chuckle, but his voice was as cold the arctic frost!


    Hearing this familiar voice, the little sword shivered and despite dangling on Duan Li''s right earlobe making his movements extremely limited, he still immediately tilted forward as best as he could to mimic the actions of kneeling in order to show his utmost respect!


    "H-How would I dare Master?! I, Duergar, one of the Nine Eternal weapons of Salvation, greets the Supreme Endless Monarch.. Lord Duan Lu Qi!" the little sword spoke out loud as he grovel with a stutter.


    Forget? The person before him was the most familiar person he knew! In fact, even if he wanted to forget, he would never be able to do so!


    This was the person that could command the laws of Heavens and manipulate it on his whim, decides the fate of an entire universe with a single thought, and drove even the strings of fate throughout the multiverse to move in a certain direction that he wants unfettered!


    Furthermore, this person was also the one.. who forged him!


    Each of the Eternal Weapon was forged out of the Everlasting ore as their core essence, granting them immunity to the ageing process, resulting in their spirit being immortal and their metal; resistant to rust and dullness!


    "Good. It seems that this ''Young Master'' of yours has grown quite quickly than I previously anticipated." he said with an approval nod.


    "Y-Yes! I have been trying my best to guide him properly all these while as per your instructions Master, so this much is a given for me, also.." the little sword tried to brag and bootlick at the same time, but when the Endless Monarch gave him that cold glance, he immediately shut his mouth from saying anything further.


    "Still, he needs to become stronger soon and ascend to release the shackles.. otherwise, if the Eternal Lords in that Upper realm of Heavens noticed this, it would be all for naught." he said with a hint of worry in his voice.


    The little sword then butted in, "Master, I know that it is not my place to ask this.. but why go through all these troubles? With your power, you could.."


    "Enough." the Endless Monarch interjected as he shook his head.


    With a light sigh and a gaze that was deeply filled with loneliness, he turned to look at the blue sky.


    "My powers.. even if it could turn back time, threw the whole dimension asunder, what use will it be when things are not the same anymore?" he said with a melancholic look, seemingly to long for something that was forever unreachable to him.


    "When you have reached the state of where I am in right now, you will then know that certain things could never be changed, no matter how powerful you are."


    He used to believe that as long as he become stronger than the next, what he wanted would eventually be within reached. However, he now knows the truth.


    As he exhaled another sigh, all the countless emotions on his face disappeared, replaced with an indifferent expression once more.


    "I trust that you will not fail me.. otherwise.."


    CRACK!


    When that last word was spoken, as if the Crafted Space was forcefully gripped by an intangible force, they began to compress, and signs of tear started to show under the immense pressure!


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    "I understand Master! I will not disappoint you!" the little sword swiftly replied as fear crept up in him.


    Who was the person before him?


    That person was his Master, Duan Lu Qi of the Endless Monarch! Not a single existence in all the three realms of Heavens has not heard of his name!


    Just by the mention of his name, countless experts would feel intimidated and would shy away from anything related to him.


    The prowess of his Master could only be described as ''otherworldly'', possessing might even surpassing that of the Celestial Beings!


    After all, his Master had reached the peak of cultivation that none has achieved before..


    The Eternal Heavenly realm state, the eighth shackle before the final one!


    Wengg!


    The figure of his Master disappeared into thin air and the dreadful sensation was finally lifted.


    Sigh..


    After confirming that his Master was indeed gone, the little sword pondered for a moment, "How did Master get here? If he leaves the Source realm even for a second, the Eternal Lords would definitely scramble the very instant they detect his aura.."


    It must be his projections then..


    At the thought of this, he felt even more chilly! Just a projection of his Master was enough to collapse an entire Crafted Space within a Compounded Space!


    Such a notion was probably difficult to comprehend, but one has to know that the Grand Immortal that built the Eternal Maze was someone of the Celestial Lord realm state - the Sixth realm under the Immortal wheels of fate that had released the sixth shackle!


    For his mere projection to be able to do this much, his title as the Endless Monarch, given to the one who ruled all things from beyond, was truly fitting!


    "Eh... What happened?" Duan Li finally regained his consciousness as he slowly opened his eyes.


    My spiritual Qi? Its back?


    Feeling the surging waves of spiritual Qi cycling within his three dantians, Duan Li swiftly performed self-recovery on himself, and the injuries on his body recovered in a matter of instant!


    He also whipped out a new robe from his spatial ring and dressed himself. Otherwise, if Di Rou were to come out from the shadow and saw him with only his underpants down there, she might misunderstood him of wanting some ''peculiar'' services.


    Duan Li had no doubt that she might attend to his every needs being the Imperial Overlord, but he was still a man of morals. Furthermore, the time was a little bit inconvenient.


    Ahem!


    "What have I missed?" he asked the little sword.


    "Eh? N-Nothing! Young Master were just unconscious and nothing absolutely happens while you were out! H-Hahahaha!" the little sword replied with a forceful laugh at the end.


    Hmm.. this thing is hiding something from me..


    "Aha! Look over there young master! The bronze vortex has re-opened! Let''s exit this smelly place!" the little sword tried to avoid the subject.


    Duan Li thought for a moment before nodding.


    ''Since the vortex has re-appeared, it must mean that I had cleared the trial.. but this little sword..''


    I guess he won''t talk about it.. well no matter!


    Stepping into the vortex, Duan Li''s figure disappeared. Soon after, the countless mounds of broken puppets piled up onto one another like hills and mountains sunk into the orange ground, making the whole place appeared flat once more, as if the intense battles fought before was nothing but a fleeting dream!


    ...

 230 Chapter 226: Why are they here?

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    Wengg!!


    Duan Li stepped out from the bronze vortex with an exhale of relief. Truthfully, he felt quite scared with that previous trial. Fighting against an endless amounts of puppet? Sure! But who could have thought that his spiritual Qi would be sealed like that?


    Not only was his fighting prowess fell to the rock bottom, leaving him with only his martial arts skill to fend for himself, but he also has no chance to recover himself at all!


    The thing that had him curious though, was in the last moment before he fainted, he seemed to remember that the puppets had rose to life once more, but when he opened his eyes at the next instant, they were still laying down on the floor.. could it be just a hallucination?


    Shaking his head, Duan Li decided to not think about the matter any further as he had already cleared it. Looking around, there was only three statues left, with the bronze statue in a flexing pose from before reduced to dust!


    "Eh? The bronze symbol on the stone tablet is shining.. maybe.." he pondered for a while and came up with a possibletheory as he nodded.


    ''Maybe, once I cleared the other three trials from their respective statues, their corresponding symbols on the stone tablet would light up to eventually unveil something in the end?


    "I just hope that it won''t be like the trial from the bronze statue.. at least let me keep the ability to use my skills and techniques.." Duan Li sighed out.


    But if it was still the case, then there was nothing he could do.


    He then went on to the gazebo once more and pressed at another symbol - this time, one with a cultivator symbol draped in a copper robe.


    He reckoned that, each of the symbol colors depicted the difficulty of the trial. The grander the color, the harder the trial would be! Following that logic, since he had already cleared the bronze trial, the next should be copper!


    Press!


    Wongg!!


    A ray of copper color shone from the stone tablet to the copper statue that was dressed in a cultivator''s robe, as if this copper color was charging it up.


    Brrrr!


    The copper statue then trembled before it abruptly turned alive. Next, clenching its right fist, it made a swift punch straight to the East direction, toring a vortex that was copper in color!


    Wengg!!


    "Perhaps this time the trial has something to do with the control technique?" he said inwardly, seeing that the statue was dressed as such, with the fist art it just showed had further solidified this line of thinking of his.


    If its something like that.. I guess I won''t fare too badly in it?


    Again, as long as my dantians were not sealed..


    Tap!


    Stepping into the copper vortex, Duan Li felt a little bit disoriented, before founding himself emerging out into another Crafted Space. Like before, this space appeared to be massive and endless, but he knew that those were just illusions.


    Using his previous experience, since this Crafted Space was part of the Compounded Space, the total area should be about 500 meters square too!


    However, contrary to the orange and desolate land from the first trial, this land was grey in color like the ashes from volcanoes and were filled with innumerable amounts of massive holes! Each were about 3 meters in diameter, and they seemed to be bottomless judging from their dark shade that did not reflect back light!


    Seeing all these holes laying around, The little sword on his right earlobe instinctively shuddered as he seemed to realized what they were.


    T-This..!!


    He was about to say something before Duan Li beat him to it first.


    "Little sword, Do I have to choose the correct hole and enter the ground?" he said in bewilderment with a frown.


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    Is this a treasure hunt trial?


    Cough! Cough!


    The little sword choked hard before replying, "No young master! If we were to dive down into any of these holes right now.. we would probably die.."


    Hearing this, Duan Li shot up his brows, "We will die? Is there something down there?" he asked while letting out curious gaze onto one of the holes as he cupped his chin and walked around it.


    The little sword swiftly answered, "If I am not mistaken, these grey soil and the sizes of these holes.. below us.. should lay a giant nest of.. Killerworms!"


    Killerworms?


    "You mean.. the giant worms with sharp teeth and insect wings? They are down there?" Duan Li said in astonishment.


    Its not like he didn''t know what kind of monster that was.


    According to the stories he heard back in the Xuan village, travelling merchants would sometimes encounter these Killerworms in the desert and everytime, rarely there will ever be survivors!


    These Killerworms were ferocious creatures, and they travelled along with their nest which was hidden underground by its queen!


    This was why travelling merchants would prefer to avoid travelling through the deserts because it was the home ground of these wretched creatures!


    Just that, this place was not the desert, so why were the Killerworms was located under these holes? How would the nest even move in solid soil?!


    ROAR!!


    As he thought of this, the ground under him began to shook intensely, and seething sounds of shouts or roars started to come out from those holes!


    BRRR!!


    "Here they come! Young master, run away first!" the little sword said in panic. He had a little phobia against fighting insects and slimey monsters!


    ''Run away? Where will I even go in this place?'' Duan Li shook his head.


    Furthermore, this place is a trial room! So it should be obvious that I have to do something about the Killerworms, such as beating them to death for example!


    Readying himself in a counter-attacking stance, Duan Li was prepared to slap anything that came out from those holes, and he was also ready to deploy his martial arts just in case his dantians were suddenly sealed later on!


    As long as I have spiritual Qi to work on, I will be able to..


    Whooshh!!


    A large, elongated monster with the size of 6 meters in length leaped out from the hole. Duan Li almost puked out in disgust when he saw the appearance of this Killerworms the first time!


    Dark brown, slimey, hairy with many sharp tooth and protruding bones in several places.. it was hideous!


    BAM!!


    He immediately let out a slap against the Killerworm that just came out. However, the next moment had his mouth opened in agape!


    Zzuzuzuz!!


    This..!!


    It''s absorbing the spiritual Qi of my slap attack!!


    ...

 231 Chapter 227: The species that nearly drove the world extinct!

    "What? How could that be?!" Duan Li exclaimed in surprise.


    The Killerworm had absorbed the spiritual Qi behind his palm attack rendering it useless!


    Hmm?!


    Realizing that the situation was off, the little sword thought for a moment before recalling something and then trembled in panic.


    "Wait.. that is no ordinary Killerworm.. it is actually a Parasitic Killerworm! It belongs to a far more superior and deadly species of the Killerworm..!" the little sword said in a horrified voice.


    I should''ve known earlier, Killerworms could only live in the desert and not on rigid soil.. furthermore, the burrows they make is only a meter in diameter, but the holes here are bigger than that!


    "Parasitic Killerworms?" Duan Li said with a hint of confusion. He had never heard of this species before.


    Noting the look of bewilderment on his young master, the little sword explained, "Parasitic Killerworms lives in damp soil, but they rarely came out to the surface and chose to live deep underground instead!"


    "In contrast to the carnivorous nature of the common Killerworms, Parasitic Killerworms usually does not eat people because they feed on spiritual Qi from the Subterranean river! However, once they have expanded in numbers and their food is no longer enough for all of them, they will start to attack villages and towns!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s countenance turned grim, but he still found it weird.


    "Why haven''t I heard of this type of Killerworms? Surely, if they had attacked villages before, I would''ve heard about it.."


    "That''s because these Parasitic Killerworms had long gone extinct! Back in the old days, their infestations were getting out of hand and they even dared to attack towns en masse, until cities were no exceptions!" the little sword replied.


    "The cultivators in that era banded together and sweped the entire continent clean of these Parasitic Killerworms, until they eventually rooted out its queen!"


    He still remembered those days, as even the Endless Monarch had personally helped in containing these wretched creatures from behind the scene, effectively neutralizing the entire species!


    Had it not been the case, the current Tian continent would be infested with them, and if humans were not enough as its source of food, it will suck in the spiritual Qi from animals and other monsters, until eventually the plants itself!


    This was why they were called as the Parasitic Killerworms, as they would eventually drive a whole world into a state of apocalypse!


    In other words, while a few of them posed no threat, their sheer numbers back then had made them the apex predator of all living things!


    Duan Li had not expected that the trial this time would involve him fighting against the common enemy of mankind, and at the thought of this, he grew extremely hostile towards them!


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    "But since they absorbed spiritual Qi, skill attack would not work on them, so how did the people back then managed to get rid of them?" he asked.


    The little sword trembled and was hesitating to answer this, but he eventually told Duan Li anyway.


    "Their skin is extremely thick, so no blunt weapon would work on them, but a sharp weapon.." he was just about to continue when Duan Li interjected because he was so slow.


    "Oh? You mean like a sword? Submit yourself to me then!" Duan Li grinned.


    From the little sword''s reaction, he knew that somehow the little sword was quite disgusted with the Parasitic Killerworms, even phobia perhaps.


    But since the little sword was the only sharp weapon he has, other than the Eternal Great Axe which was made out of lightning elements, he could only use the former in this battle.


    Shingg!!


    The little sword could only relented helplessly as he enlarged himself into a full one-meter long sword!


    Swish!


    With a vertical cut to the mid section of the Parasitic Killerworm, the latter was cleanly slashed into two pieces!


    Thud! The Parasitic Killerworm wriggled on the ground for a moment before its life was snuffed out and its blood spilled the greyish soil.


    Dead.


    BRRRR!!


    In the next instant, the ground began to shook and tremble intensely as if an earthquake was happening!


    "Now that they have smelled the blood of their kin, the rest are probably awaken from their slumber now.." the little sword said as he sweat nervously.


    Today, I am going to become filthy with the blood and stains from these lowly creatures.. damn their ancestors! How dare they breed such ugly things!


    Ssuu!! Ssuu!!


    Hundreds of the Parasitic Killerworms jumped out from their holes at the same time, and without giving them any chance to coordinate themselves, Duan Li immediately dashed forward and slashed repeatedly.


    Swish! Swish! Swish!


    With each slash, one or two of the Parasitic Killerworms would be sliced to death in an instant!


    ROARR!!


    The Parasitic Killerworms was enraged with Duan Li casually killing them off left and right in front of their eyes. After all, in their opinion, the human in front of them was only a food to fill their bellies, so how dare a mere food fight back against them?


    Swish! Swish! Swish!


    Meanwhile, the little sword was evidently surprised, because he knew how hard the skin of these worms were! In fact, it was so hard that only Golden core realm cultivators would be able to instant kill them like Duan Li did just now.


    Under that realm, perhaps only few lucky strikes would be able to sever them clean once in a while, but his young master managed to do it every time he was slashed forward!


    Hiss!!


    Even if his edges were extremely sharp and would never go dull, how far a cultivator could cut with it depends on their capabilities and swordsmanship!


    It was the same as chopping off a pile of wood, no matter how sharp the edges were, if the technique was not right, then one would need a few attempts to chop them clean in half!


    "Could it be that due to attaining True Martial Instinct, young master''s prowess in handling swords had also increased by leaps and bounds?" he thought to himself feeling awed.


    If that were the case, then this young master of his was truly a prodigy!


    It was said that the very essence of combat was only one, adaptability. If one could reach the pinnacle of this essence, then no matter if it were swords, sabers, spears, axe, or even empty handed, one would be able to execute any attacks, defend and counters flawlessly, even if it were their first time using the said weapons!


    An expert that had managed to comprehend the crux of it all, so far, he only knew of one person that could do this - the lord of all realms, Endless Monarch!


    At the hand of the Endless Monarch, even a grass of blade would be able to sever the world into two!


    Heck, if he wanted, even severing a universe clean in half would be doable if he put in effort and this was not an exageration!


    The realm that the Endless Monarch has attained, it was not something that could be imagined by those whom has not yet reached it!


    It was similar to the comparison of a frog in a well, how would it know the vast of the ocean if it had never seen one by itself?


    However, this was to be expected. After all, Duan Li was THE young master!


    While it was nowhere as close as the Endless Monarch, perhaps only an inkling of the prowess of the latter, this young master of his had already showed superb handling in using him, the ultimate sword of all swords!


    Swish! Swish! Swish!


    ...


    Deep in the recesses of the underground, a behemoth creature the size of 800 meters long coiled on a huge spirit stone that was shaped into a cube.


    At this moment, the thousand eyes on this huge behemoth abruptly opened at the same time!


    This was the queen of the Parasitic Killerworm, and it had detected an enormous amounts of spiritual Qi source above ground!


    ROAARRRRR!!


    ...

 232 Chapter 228: The toughest opponent yet!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    ROAARR!!


    "Hmm?!" Duan Li instinctively looked at the ground beneath him, and his frown deepened.


    A strong monster underground.. is it the queen?


    "That is the call of the queen! Young Master, prepare yourself.. the queen is an entirely different opponent when compared to everything that you have faced before!" the little sword said as he too became wary.


    He had no doubt in the capabilities of his young master, but he had witnessed the strength of the queen back then, and if it were the same as the one below, then his young master would be in for the trouble!


    "En!" Duan Li nodded as he continued to slash forward at the Parasitic Killerworms, dozens of them has already died by his sword at this moment.


    Swish!


    At this moment, he could only try to thin down the numbers of these Parasitic Killerworms before the boss came out!


    ...


    At the summit of the large volcano, there was a bald person sitting cross-legged, looking dashing from afar as his head glistened. This person was the Guardian of the second region, Dugu Liubai!


    Right now, this person with the highest authority in this region was scratching his bald head feeling confused as to why the holographic screen was not coming out from the projection stone on his hand.


    Pak! Pak!


    "What is wrong with this projection stone? Is it broken? He should''ve finished the first trial by now.." he said, feeling quite frustrated as he knocked the projection stone against the ground several times, in the hopes that the image would kick in.


    When Duan Li entered the maze, he had been watching the entire proceedings from the very start. He had to give his approval nod to this projection stone that he got from the Guardian of the Fourth region, as the holographic screen was of a very high quality!


    However, for some reason, after Duan Li entered the bronze vortex which was the first trial, he couldn''t see anything through the projection stone at all!


    There was only a static screen which he couldn''t understand why it was playing like that, as if the signal was cut off!


    I bought this one for an astronomical price! Is it actually a scam?


    Or did I forgot to renew my subscription plan?


    Bzztt!!


    "Eh?" the projection stone on his hand emitted some lightning pulse before the static screen projection was back on with the high definition hologram like before!


    "Good grief, its finally back on! Let''s see where he is now.. ah, the second trial I see! As long as he could beat a thousand of them, he should be good to go for the third trial!"


    At this moment, he noticed Duan Li''s prowess with the way of the sword.


    "What superb handling! How did he managed to master the sword arts to such an extent? It must''ve been from the tutelage of a formidable sword master! To think that the Tian continent nowadays has such a person!" he exclaimed feeling extremely amazed!


    A single clean slash to instant kill a Parasitic Killerworm! He had seen many talented sword genius before, but nothing came as close as to what Duan Li was showing off right now!


    In fact, the display of sword arts that Duan Li used right now was even higher than him! But of course, this does not mean that he would lose to Duan Li in a battle of the swords. After all, by the end of the day, cultivation realm still matters.


    As he watched, he had several epiphanies of resolving the many mistakes in his sword arts and nodded once in a while as if taking notes like a diligent student.


    "Ah, so it was like that, instead of swinging the sword directly, the energy transfer needs to start from the feet and passes through the crotch.."


    As he secretly enjoyed watching and learning at the same time, feeling that it was killing two birds with one stone, the next moment had his countenance immediately turned pale!


    ROARR!!


    "That.. that bellow is from the queen of the Parasitic Killerworm!" he immediately stood up from his cross-legged position in a panic.


    This is bad! How did the queen woke up from its slumber?


    Even if there was a huge ruckus going on above ground, the queen shouldn''t even give it a single damn! After all, it should only be interested in sucking the spiritual Qi from the Yin Yang Cube!


    The Yin Yang Cube was a unique stone forged by the Grand Immortal, and its purpose was to supply the queen with an inexhaustible supply of spiritual Qi!


    However, it was actually not infinite as per say, but that it merely absorbed the spiritual Qi of the one that used it!


    This was why the Cube stone was named as the Yin Yang Cube, because it cycled the usage of spiritual Qi by following the law of universal balance!


    In this way, the queen would think that it could suck spiritual Qi from the Cube all day long, but it was actually just sucking in its own spiritual Qi that was recycled by the Yin Yang Cube!


    Otherwise, if the Yin Yang Cube could really supply an infinite amounts of spiritual Qi, the queen would have already evolved into something terrifying that even he would not be able to stop!


    But this was exactly why he worried, because even if the queen''s realm were lower than his, it doesn''t mean that the queen was an easy opponent to deal with!


    If it was already a trouble for him, it could only be a given that defeating the queen would be like scaling the heavens with Duan Li''s current realm!


    However, what caused the queen to make a move in the first place? It should only be concerned about spiritual Qi..


    "Wait a moment! If I''m not mistaken, that fellow cultivated all three of his dantians! That makes his spiritual Qi incredibly dense and thick!" he said as realization strucked him.


    Damn it! As the Guardian, I''m not allowed to intervene in trials.. even if the cultivator were to die in it, there was nothing I could do..


    However, this fellow is different.. he had an infinite potential to grow! If he were to die, that would be such a waste!


    Gritting his teeth, Dugu Liubai came to a swift decision, "If it comes down to it, then I''ll just have to break the rules once!"


    ...


    The ground continued to tremble immensely, as the queen was burrowing and crawling through the soil at a rapid speed!


    While the surface area was only 500 meters by 500 meters square, the regolith under it was actually 10 kilometers deep! This was because the queen was absolutely massive, its 800 meters length would quickly traverse through such a distance in no time at all!


    BOOMMM!!


    "T-There it is.. the queen of the Parasitic Killerworm!" the little sword shivered at this sight.


    It was even more massive than the one from before! By the looks of it, a part of its body was still underground too!


    "So this is their queen..formidable!" Duan Li narrowed his eyes in wary, the aura radiating out by this queen was extremely horrifying that the air seemed to seethe continuously!


    PSHUUU!!


    Eh?


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    Pshhh!!


    A gaping hole tored through Duan Li''s left arm! He was fortunate that his instinct evaded it in the last moment, as the attack did not come from in front of him, but below ground!


    Dangerous! Extremely dangerous!


    "Young Master!" the little sword shrieked out in horror.


    "I''m fine!" Duan Li replied as he stared at the queen that was wriggling none stop like a viper, ready to prowl onto him at any moment!


    The appearance of this queen was definitely like a combination of a viper snake and a leech! Furthermore, its skin was scaled like a reptile, but the mucus membrane that covered it from top to bottom gave it both defense and extreme agility!


    In my current state, I would not have a single chance to beat it!


    "First, I need to conserve my spiritual Qi and identify its attacking pattern, defenses and methods of counter-attacking.. therefore, the correct course of action right now would be.."


    Huuu!!


    "Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts: First Desolation Warring Intent!"


    BOOMM!!


    Hints of flames began to suddenly burn under Duan Li''s feet before rising upwards and then coelescing into a small ball of fire about the size of an adult''s palm, which floated on Duan Li''s back!


    Clenching his fists tight, Duan Li then marvelled at the current flow of Qi inside his meridians and pathway channels. They were moving vigorously as if boiled by the flames itself!


    By his estimate, his prowess has increased by five times at least!


    "As expected of the family heirloom technique of the Imperial family!" Duan Li nodded to himself. If he had the Phoenix bloodline, his prowess would perhaps elevate to eight or ten times than this!


    This was a technique imparted to him by the Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping, as a gift for defeating one of the member of the Dark Sect, Cao Tengfei!


    While the amount of power-ups that this technique was not comparable to his Super mode 1 and Super mode 2, its still quite decent nevertheless, as the First Desolation Warring Intent was an overall boost to his offensive attributes for as long as the skill remained active!


    On the other hand, his Super modes refered to him agitating the lightning element inside his dantian and fusing it with his spiritual Qi to elevate his overall attributes by at least 10 times more than normal, and 50 times on Super mode 2!


    However, the only downside to this Super modes was that its spiritual Qi consumption was extremely demanding and taxing to the body!


    Learning from his previous experiences in the First region of the Eternal Maze, he knew that he shouldn''t squandered his spiritual Qi even if he has several times the reserves when compared to the average cultivators, especially when fighting bosses!


    Not to mention, this queen of the Parasitic Killerworms was probably the most formidable opponents that he had ever faced!


    Unless he was sure of every movement patterns that the queen would make, he would not go into Super modes at all!


    Ssuuu!!


    The gaping hole on his left arm healed, and with a smirk, Duan Li raised his left hand and beckoned with his middle finger towards the queen with a provoking attitude, all while shouldering the little sword to his back imposingly!


    "Come!"


    ROAARRR!!


    ...

 233 Chapter 229: The Queen!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    ROARR!!


    With Duan Li''s provocation, the Queen of the Parasitic Killerworms roared out in fury!


    Pshuu!! Pshuu!!


    Thin scales from her slender snake-like body was shot out towards Duan Li and travelled at an insane speed that would normally be impossible to see with the naked eyes for someone of Duan Li''s realm!


    But what kind of cultivator was Duan Li?


    He was someone with a fate that was boundless, his talent was endowed with endless possibilities, and his prowess, weren''t like those average cultivators of the Core formation realm!


    Even against higher realm opponents, Duan Li might not necessarily lost out easily, an example of this was the battle he faught with Cao Tengfei of the Dark Sect!


    This was especially the case that he had now activated one of the Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts - First Desolation Warring Intent!


    His reaction, speed and overall combat abilities were boosted by five times! Therefore, the speed of these projectiles being shot towards him that he previously was not able to detect and see, could now be seen faintly, just enough for him to dodge and avoid being injured by them!


    Suu!!


    Duan Li''s Sparrow Footwork, the movement skill art that was imparted to him by Zhang Xi, the Vice-Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy was originally a demanding skill, in a sense that it required a cultivator to burn their spiritual Qi to increase one''s speed at the rate of 10:1!


    Naturally, he wasn''t satisfied with such an apparent fatal flaw, so he decided to modify it and combine part of the movement skill art from the One-Step-To-Reach technique of the old man Jing Zhianghu, Guardian of the First region to create a completely new movement skill art - Impeccable Sky Footsteps!


    This new movement skill art of his could only be described as terrifying! Not only was the excessive demand of spiritual Qi to execute it was reduced to a ratio of only 1:1, it could basically be called as a near transmission skill!


    What this means was that, as long as Duan Li could detect an incoming threat within a radius of one meter, he would be able to shift his position anywhere within that boundary with a single thought!


    This was all made possible by him gaining the True Martial Instinct ability. Before, the radius was only a measly 10 cm, so it was not a practical, but now it became an extremely formidable skill!


    However, because he himself did not notice that he had gained the True Martial Instinct, he thought that the increase into 1 meter radius has something to do after fighting those lifeless puppets to the ends of his stamina, which was not too different from the actual fact.


    Still, because it was a movement skill art, which was an active ability rather than passive, it required him to activate the skill. Otherwise, how would the Queen be able to penetrate his left arm previously?


    ROAR!!


    Seeing that her attacks were being dodged by the little human in front of her effortlessly like a fly, she roared out once more in annoyance.


    "Foolish human! How dare you dodge my attacks? Die already!" the Queen spatted out.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised, "Eh? She was able to speak a language?"


    The fact that he was able to understand it due to the language translation ability of the Tetra Unsealing hex by the Mirealithians, shows that the Queen he was up against right now possessed some form of intelligence rather than being a mindless bug driven by pure instinct!


    "Hmph! So what if I dodge? What are you gonna do about it?" he replied sarcastically with a straight face.


    This time, it was the Queen''s turn to be shocked as all her attacks suddenly halted, "You.. you can understand me, human?" she said with a tone full of disbelief.


    Is this for real?


    "It''s not too difficult. As long as your rambling sounds coherent enough, I could tell what you are saying." Duan Li replied with a casual expression, as if such a feat was nothing for him.


    Seeing that she was not mishearing things, she welled up in excitement and laughed out loud.


    "HAHAHA! Good! Good! Since the day that I was born, no one in the world could communicate with me, except for the bastard that caught and trapped me here!" she said as she recalled that eventful day with a forlorn look.


    She was actually the supposed catastrophy from the ancient time back then, but the combined assault from the human cultivators banding together was more than what she could handle and she was defeated in the end.


    However, she did not die that day!


    Being a sub-species of the Hydra family, she possessed the ability to split herself into two. Before she was slayed, she had already sent her copy into the ground and hid herself away!


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    The world rejoiced while she slowly bid her time underground to recover her strength, because to survive, the cost was too great, and that she had lost all of her strength and had to restart from the very beginning once more.


    However, as bad luck would have it, someone seemed to have caught on to her ploy of playing dead!


    While she was travelling from one spiritual Qi river to the next in the Subterranean system, a spatial ripple suddenly appeared in front of her, and from it, came out a very handsome young man with a tall stature and an otherworldly aura.


    She still remembered that day very clearly as if it was only yesterday, as even though the young man was charming and smiling innocently, her monster instinct told her that the young man was very dangerous; an existence that could easily toppled everyone or everything in power that she knew!


    She felt that if she were to make even a single misstep, she would be killed on the spot in an instant!


    It was a terrifying level of invisible pressure that made her realized that, the pinnacle of power level that she knew, wasn''t actually the end at all and there was further more beyond!


    Next, it turned out that the young man could actually communicate with her which immediately turned her subservient!


    After all, how could she not? The young man was not only handsome, powerful and unfathomable, but could also talk to her when no one else, not even other monsters could understand her!


    It was every woman''s dream to have a man like that! So she fell in love at first sight.


    However, it was a terrible mistake for her, as humans would never view a monster like her as a true woman!


    Therefore, after some slightly weird question and answer session with the handsome young man, the latter nodded, seemingly satisfied as all of his queries were being answered by her fully, without missing out a single detail, the young man then flicked his finger, and she was suddenly trapped in a spatial container!


    The next thing that she knew, she was transported into this desolate space!


    She was only left with an instruction by the young man to cultivate diligently and that he would come again next time. But that next time never came, even after more than ten thousand years have passed!


    Twenty thousand years, fifty thousand, a hundred thousand.. until she lost track of time!


    The young man never came back, and her love for him then turned into hate!


    Now, a similar human whom could also understand her had appeared, how could she let this person go?


    Not to mention that this person seemed to be far weaker than her, she would do everything to make him accompany her for the rest of her life!


    Thus, with a gleaming excitement in her eyes, she then said, "Husband.."


    "..." Duan Li.


    "..." Little sword.


    ...

 234 Chapter 230: Need to escape!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    "You.. who are you calling husband?" Duan Li said with his mouth twitching.


    To suddenly be calling him husband from out of the blue like that, Duan Li could not help but to think that this Queen had gone bonkers from years of living underground!


    "Who else? I have decided that from now on, you would be my husband! I do not want to hear any disagreement on your part! Hmph!" the Queen replied dismissively with an attitude.


    Pu!


    Duan Li almost puked out the innards inside his stomach when he heard this.


    Husband your ass! As if I''m going to become a husband to a snake or leech or whatever the hell you are!


    "Keep on dreaming! Who would want to become your husband! Why don''t you find a male of your own species instead?!" he retorted.


    Not to mention becoming her husband, even the thought of undergoing a union between their body had already sent shivers down his spine!


    The human male reproductive organ wasn''t meant to penetrate something like that!


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    "Yeah! A filthy thing like you wanted my young master to become your husband? I will slice you up into a shish kebab!" the little sword bellowed out in anger.


    This Queen of the Parasitic Killerworms really did not know her place at all!


    "What? Are you going against my words? You, a mere weak human at the puny Core formation realm dares to? HAHAHA!" the Queen laughed out loud like a deranged maniac for a while.


    "Fine, if you can kill me, then I will let you go!" she said and propped herself up even higher as more of her body that was underneath came out from the ground!


    I have been alone for who knows how long, and my life that should have ended thousands of years ago due to old age somehow decelerated, to the point where I still retained my youth after being trapped inside this place!


    This place was hell and living in it alone was worse than death, even committing suicide was not allowed in this place!


    You have no idea how long I have waited for a day like this to come.. and yet you don''t want to accompany me?!


    As if I would let you!


    Pshuu!! Pshuu!!


    The Queen spat out saliva attack from her mouth rapidly.


    "Careful young master! Her saliva are powerful paralysis attack! She planned to make you captive and violate your body!" the little sword shrieked out in horror.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s usual calmness when dealing with an enemy was disrupted as he became a bit panic and dodged the attack haphazardly.


    "You enemy of mankind! You slaughtered humans to suck out their spiritual Qi and you expect me to become your husband? Impossible!" Duan Li slapped out at the incoming saliva with several palm attack.


    BAM! BAM!


    Roarr!!


    The other Parasitic Killerworms that remained motionless on the ground in the presence of their Queen was splattered with the saliva, and they twitched continuously as if a fish that was being roasted on a grill!


    Swish! Swish!


    Duan Li of course took this opportunity to cleanly cut them in half as he made his way to avoid the attacks from the Queen.


    "Enemy of mankind? That may be so ages ago, but I''ve never feasted on a single human ever since! Furthermore, I only did what I did so that my children would not go hungry, just like you humans hunted other animals to eat! What is so wrong about that?" she replied with a giggle as she continued to spat out her saliva towards Duan Li while occasionally shooting out her scales as well.


    Ping! Ping! Ping!


    Duan Li deflected each scales with his sword and dodged the saliva at the same time, and this continued on for a while which caused the Queen to become increasingly frustrated.


    "Why do you keep on resisting?! If you become my husband, I will treat you extremely well.. and I would even let you do.. all sorts of things to me.." the Queen said as her voice grew meek and blushed by the end of her sentences.


    Pu!


    Duan Li''s face turned pale as a white sheet, and he felt unprecedented fear creeping up towards him!


    ''This Queen is crazy! I need to get out from here!''


    "Little sword, how do we escape from here?!" Duan Li sent out a telepathic message to the little sword on his right hand.


    The latter then swiftly replied, "Since this is a trial room, we need to beat something in order for the exit to appear! If my deduction is correct, we need to slay a certain amount of Parasitic Killerworms excluding the Queen, as that monster would be impossible to beat for anyone that wandered here!"


    Duan Li nodded to this and found it logical. If the Queen was part of the trial that needed to be beaten, then he would one day come face to face with the Grand Immortal or whatnot himself to deliver a slap to the latter''s face!


    Knowing that the more the fight dragged on, the more disadvantaged he would be, Duan Li immediately waved his hand to call for reinforcements!


    Shuu! Shuu!!


    Bulu, Cucko and Daelius popped out from his spatial ring!


    "Guys, help me out to slay these worms! We need to kill as many as we can in order to escape from this place!" Duan Li instructed.


    "Wooff!!" Daelius immediately went to the nearest parasitic killerworm to claw at them repeatedly while Cucko pecked at a rapid speed similar to a hammer drill.


    "Alright master!" Bulu on the other hand, after ascending his previous limits into the Core formation realm, added that now his physique was similar to that of a human''s, his fighting technique was reminiscent of a real cultivator as well!


    BAM! BAM!


    His fists carried hints of the lightning elements imbued within it, causing those helpless parasitic killerworms to implode from the inside out as they were unable to utilize their natural ability to suck in spiritual Qi due to being paralyzed!


    BOOMM!!


    Seemingly not satisfied yet, Duan Li brought out the two Guardian Knight Puppets with a High quality spirit stone slotted into each of them as they burst out with a powerful might, reaching the realms of Nascent Soul experts!


    Swish! Swish!


    BAM! BAM!


    Quite a number of the worms were being massacred left and right, and this sight naturally fumed the Queen.


    "Wretched beings! You guys dared to harm my children?! Die!!" she shot out more scales from her body aiming towards Duan Li''s reinforcement!


    "Oh no you don''t!" Duan Li waved his hands as wood boxes scattered out from his spatial ring at an incredible speed while morphing to become pyramid shaped shields that protected each of his allies from harm!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    The slanted slopes of these pyramid shields easily redirected the scales!


    Shuu!!


    Di Rou suddenly came out from Duan Li''s shadow.


    "Master, allow me to help as well!" she said.


    With her appearance, the Queen''s attention were shifted onto her presence entirely!


    A woman!


    ROARRR!!


    ...

 235 Chapter 231: Rage!

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    "How dare you bring another woman before my presence! Die!!" the Queen of the Parasitic Killerworms got jealous and immediately let out a furious bellow along with a murderous aura!


    Pshuu! Pshuu!!


    Hundreds, if not thousands of the Queen''s sharp scales were shot towards Di Rou. Her intentions was clear..


    Kill that woman whom stood before her ''husband''!


    "Hmph!" Di Rou snorted, and two short black daggers appeared on her left and right hand simultaneously. This pair of black daggers radiated out an extremely sharp presence, such that a mere simple swing from them had pierced the air and left it to tremble open!


    Shingg!!


    With a series of graceful acrobatic movements, Di Rou swiftly dodged and deflected the incoming attack with her daggers!


    Duan Li was quite dazed with the way she moved, it was lithe and precise, definitely the movements of a trained assassin!


    However..


    "Watch out!" Duan Li stepped out from his stupor and waved his left hand. The pyramid shields in the surroundings then merged together in a single instant before appearing behind Di Rou!


    PANG!


    It was fortunate that Duan Li''s instinct was already heightened to an extreme degree and could detect hidden dangers to make that split second reaction. Otherwise, Di Rou would have been pierced by that thick and long spike that came from underground unsuspectingly!


    If she was hit, then her injuries would be severe, and even losing her life was not out of the question either!


    "The black spike! That''s the most venomous part of the Queen''s body that is located at the ends of her tail! She really meant to kill her!" the Little sword said as a trace of anger burned within him.


    This was especially the case with Duan Li. Earlier, his flustered state affected his reaction time and his seriousness in dealing with the situation, but the thought of nearly losing Di Rou just now due to his carelessness had snapped him out of it.


    "IMPUDENT!" Duan Li''s face darkened as his killing instinct seeped out from his pores!


    HUUUU!!


    In response to his agitated state, both theGolden and Crimson mysterious pearls that were hidden deep inside his body started to rotate furiously, and they let out Gold and Crimson spiritual Qi that interweaved with each other, before emerging inside Duan Li''s three dantians and cycled throughout his body.


    BOOMM!!


    As if the Crafted Space was on the verge of collapsing, numerous cracks started to appear one after another around Duan Li spreading outwards, and it appeared that his anger was something that even space could not contain!


    "Hiieee!! The young master is really mad this time!" Little sword almost bent itself as cold shivers ran throughout his body!


    "T-This..!!" the Queen was also thoroughly rattled by this sudden change in atmosphere. The human male whom she selfishly claimed to be her husband was originally someone that was incomparably weak when compared to her.


    But now, that very same human male was radiating out extremely dangerous presence that seemed to be able to annihilate all that is living with a single thought!


    Her instinct told her, that if she did not try to rectify this situation immediately, she would be mercilessly killed by the latter!


    Suddenly, she seemed to remember something as she gasped and her body trembled.


    "This presence.. it is similar to him.. but this aura.. its more.." before she could even finish this line of thought, Duan Li had already made his move!


    Swish!


    With a quick slanted swipe of his sword, Duan Li''s slash tored through the air and bent the very fabric of space itself!


    BOOMMM!!


    Pshhh!!


    "Ahhh!!" the Queen screamed out in pain as a long sword cut appeared on her body that was about one meter deep!


    It hurts!!


    Since she has the same unique ability as the other Parasitic Killerworms which could suck in the spiritual Qi of a skill attack, Duan Li just went with a simple slash of his sword.


    However, due to his currently angered state, that simple slash from him was enough to even hurt someone of her level!


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    To give an estimate of her powers, back then, she was already strong enough to be able to go head to head with dozens of Nascent Soul realm cultivators at the same time. But now, she had already grown beyond her previous peak state, such that even immortals at the pinnacle of the Escaping mortality realm would have trouble in dealing with her!


    And at this moment, someone incomparably weaker than her had managed to injure her body?


    Just how terrifying was that?!


    "Your insolence in both attitude and action towards me, especially to my subordinate just now, even if the Heavens itself were to shield you, you will still die today!!" Duan Li bellowed out.


    Previously, Duan Li was only focused in trying to clear the trial and saved up as much as spiritual Qi as he can. But now, he no longer cared.


    ''All my powers.. RELEASE!!''


    BOOOMMMMM!!


    The ground beneath him began to crack open, and the surrounding Parasitic Killerworms roared agonizingly in frenzy before their body simultaneously exploded under the insurmounting pressure of Duan Li''s sudden spike in power level!


    It was as if mountains were being dropped off from the sky!


    "Ahhh!!" even the Queen was no exception. Blood flowed out from her scales as her blood capillaries underneath ruptured, and her entire body was pressed against the ground!


    BOOOMMMMM!!


    Duan Li Super mode 1..


    Duan Li Super mode 2..!!


    BOOOOMMMMMM!!


    He then raised his left hand towards the sky, and the clouds swiftly darkened, casting shadows on his face, leaving only a pair of murderous eyes to be seen!


    "Heed my call.. Eternal Great Axe!!"


    CRACKLE!!


    Blue lightning from all eight of the cardinal directions were summoned as they clashed at a midpoint in the sky creating a deafening booms right above Duan Li, before descending into his left hand, coagulating and forming into massive Great Axe!!


    Eternal weapon, All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe!!


    Seeing this complete transformation of Duan Li and that the latter''s powers has gone completely off the charts, the Queen knew for sure that her fate was now decided!


    "W-Wait!! Forgive me!! I was just lonely for a very long time that my mental state.." before she could even finish, Duan Li had already cleaved downwards with the Great Axe!


    SLAY!!


    BOOOMMMMMMM!!


    ...


    Watching from the projection stone on his hand, Dugu Liubai stumbled and fell to the ground as both of his knees capped together. His entire body was full of cold sweat and a trace of dread appeared in his eyes!


    "I-Impossible..!! To boost his powers forcefully to such a degree, even surpassing my own.. this kind of power should not exist!" he said in utter disbelief and astonishment.


    Duan Li was only at the pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm, a level of power that was not even worth a mention. But now..


    He had heard of many techniques and secret skills to boost a cultivator''s overall prowess, but he had never heard that any of those could boost one''s power to such an extreme state!


    In fact, it should be downright impossible! Nature''s law and its dictations binds even the true immortals themselves like him, and not even Celestial beings was excluded. This was why they wanted to release all the Nine shackles of mortality and ascend to godhood!


    But the fact that Duan Li''s powers skyrocketed through the roof surpassing immortals on his realm that has undergone heavenly tribulations, even if he was a fool, he would still realized what this meant!


    Duan Li''s existence was an anomaly!


    "And this presence.. it cannot be..!"


    ...

 236 Chapter 232: Another to the party!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    Right after Duan Li cleaved down with the Eternal Great Axe, causing a massive split of the space in front of him, a corporeal hand suddenly appeared out of nowhere and stopped the momentum of the axe from advancing.


    CLANG!!


    This hand was only the size of a regular hand and it seemed gentle at a first glance, appearing to possess no strength behind it at all. Yet, this very same hand managed to stop the full force of Duan Li''s attack using the Eternal Great Axe just by clasping all of its five fingers onto it!


    "Formidable!" Duan Li narrowed his eyes as he instinctively moved eight steps to the back before asking warrily, "Who are you?"


    The corporeal hand shook visibly for a moment before the torn space made by Duan Li''s Great Axe shattered like a mirror!


    CRASH!


    "I am the will left behind by the Grand Immortal.." the hand replied.


    Whoosh..


    Slowly, spiritual Qi from the surroundings began to spiral towards this hand like a tempest, before forming the rest of its body parts and eventually revealing the complete corporeal form of a tall man wearing a full sized robe. His long hair seemed to be fluttering along with the wind, creating a vivid image of an otherworldly celestial.


    However, since it was only a corporeal form, its facial features was severely distorted. Otherwise, Duan Li would have been able to see just how this ''Grand Immortal really looked like!


    "You are the will of the Grand Immortal?" Duan Li was surprised.


    Isn''t that the person whom created this Eternal Maze?


    But more importantly, a mere will was able to stop my full attack? Too powerful!


    "You should keep your powers in check. That attack of yours nearly destroyed this Crafted Space into two had I not intervened." the Grand Immortal said with a slight chuckle. This made it seemed like he was quite the gentle person.


    Hearing this, Duan Li scratched his head awkwardly. "I.. I lost my composure.. and didn''t think things through.." he admitted.


    Whoosh!


    He cancelled out his super mode 2 as his golden spiky hair went back to normal. A few breaths in that mode had already used up a sixth of his total spiritual Qi, such a rate of usage was insane!


    Almost losing Di Rou''s life had made him lose his temper and went on a rage. Had the Grand Immortal''s will not stepped in at the last moment as the latter said, the Queen would indubitably die that very instant, but the resulting process would also tear apart the Crafted Space, sending them into the void of oblivion!


    "If this Crafted Space is destroyed, unless you possess the means of an Omnipresence realm state, your body will decay in an instant, turning you into nothing but drifting ashes!" the Grand Immortal''s will explained.


    The Void of oblivion was a place without space, that only time was running rampant within it. Therefore, since time was an uncontrollable factor in the void, any matter that entered it would simultaneously underwent the process of non-linear aging and de-aging.


    The resulting outcome would be that the matter will be stretched and then disintegrated into nothingness!


    He then continued, "Furthermore, this Queen, whom called herself as Queen Levy, had long served her due time in this eternal prison that I made as a consequence to atone for her past. As the one whom put her here, having her killed would really do her injustice, and that is something that I could not sit idly by under my watch. Thus, I intervened."


    Duan Li''s gaze towards the Queen softened slightly when he heard this, but some of his hostility still remained.


    "I.. but she was about to kill my subordinate, that was why I reacted in a similar manner.." he replied.


    The Grand Immortal''s will sighed and shook its head.


    "I understand your situation, but I can also see that you are still new to the cultivation world. While it is indeed a world where it is kill or be killed, that is only true for those who had no choice."


    The will waved its hand and a spatial ring floated on its palm as he sent it towards Duan Li.


    "Consider the items inside as my compensation this time around. While it was indeed the Queen that attacked with a murderous intent, it was partly my fault as well for imprisoning her here for a very long time." he said as he turned to look at Queen Levy.


    Seeing this corporeal form, the Queen was initially dazed as innumerableemotions exploded within her mind. She know this man, as it was the very same man that she fell in love with a few ages ago.


    "It''s.. you.." she said slowly, before her giant body glowed in a purple light, and shrunk rapidly until she was only the size of a human.


    Shuu..


    When the purple glow disappeared, it revealed an incredibly beautiful looking woman, seemingly in her late 20''s. She has a thick curvy figure that could send many men into a state of frenzy, her long purple hair and the slightly loose robe she wore was also in harmony with her voluptuous body, neither too revealing nor covering her up, leaving one to a series of wild imaginations.


    "Why did you leave me for so long?! You said that it would only be a few thousand years at most.. it has been ages!!" drops of tears flowed her rosy cheeks as she bit her soft lips.


    While the will of the Grand Immortal does not have a clear facial feature, at this moment, it was apparent that it felt quite guilty.


    Raising its hand, the will caressed her right cheek slowly and wiped off her tears. "Forgive me.. my will could only be activated at a critical situation such as now.."


    "Ahh, let''s leave the two of them alone.."


    While the two couple were having a tear-jerking reunion and catching up session, Duan Li rustled through the spatial ring that the will had just given him, and he was thoroughly surprised!


    "Holy moly! This spatial ring is a treasure vault!" his eyes flashed brightly.


    Elixirs of grade 5 and above, alchemy ingredients stacked like buildings one after another, a bunch of weapons of all different types and sizes, plot of herbs that was rare and some were even already extinct, and most of all..


    Superior quality spirit stones! There has to be a few thousand of them in here judging by how it was stacked!


    Duan Li could not believe his eyes. Just a single one of them, if it was put on the Tian continent, would cause bloodshed to spill into a river in order to obtain it!


    Yet, just a mere compensation from the Grand Immortal had already contained all these priceless treasures as if it were some useless garbage!


    The means of a true immortal was immeasurable indeed!


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    "Master, who is this person?" Di Rou by the side asked in a curious tone.


    "The Grand Immortal is the person who created the Eternal Maze.. I''ve had my suspicion before, but from the way he easily destroyed my full power attack, I suspect his powers is even beyond that of an immortal''s.." Duan Li replied with a grim countenance.


    It was fortunate that the Grand Immortal doesn''t look like someone who was haughty at all. Otherwise, if he were to turn hostile on them, Duan Li was not sure if he could handle such a person.


    In addition, the person in front of them was only the will and it was already of this caliber!


    Just thinking about the true might of the Grand Immortal really sent shivers down his spine!


    Di Rou was also shocked to hear that there was a realm even stronger than that of an immortal!


    As far as she knew, the Guardian of this second region was an immortal himself and she could not even estimate the extent of the Guardian''s power, as if an ocean without depth!


    Yet, this apparition in front of them exceeds even that?


    With such powers, one could truly dictate the life and death of others! It was scary when she taught of this and her heartbeat could not help but to beat faster in anxiousness.


    She had heard that powerful beings were extremely eccentric in their personality, that a single displeasure would sometime leads to them doing some drastic action.


    Thus, she tried her best to control her breathing and made no unnecessary movements with a pale face.


    Seeing that his subordinate was all tensed up, Duan Li chuckled. "Don''t worry, it doesn''t seem like the Grand Immortal intends to do us harm."


    Only after hearing this that Di Rou could heaved out a huge relief.


    Haa..


    ...


    "So kid, your name seems to be called Duan Li? How ironic.. but she was a really candid person after all." the will shook its head as if recalling something from the past.


    "Eh? What do you mean?" Duan Li scratched his head in confusion.


    And who are you calling a kid?!


    "Nevermind. Oh from now on, Queen Levy will be under your care. Remember, her past sins is already atoned for, and I''ve also had compensated you. Therefore, you must not bear any more grudges!" the will said, seemingly to emphasize that last sentence.


    "Eh? Why should I take care of her? Wasn''t she waiting for you all these while?" Duan Li could not help but to find this confusing.


    Previously, they were like a married couple whom had been separated for a long while, and now he asked for him to take care of her?


    The will chuckled as it nodded.


    "That''s right. You don''t have to know the reason for now. Things will become clear eventually."


    Then, with a wave of his hand, a copper vortex appeared.


    Wongg!!


    "This trial can be considered as completed. You should head on to the next one."


    Eh? It''s completed just like that?


    Isn''t this Grand Immortal too casual?


    But I did beat up the Queen..


    ''Eh whatever, he is the one who created this place, so he could overrule the set rules anyway.''


    "Husband, let''s go!" Queen Levy suddenly said as she pulled Duan Li''s hand.


    "Eh?!"


    Wasn''t the Grand Immortal the person you loved? How can you still call me your husband? Aren''t you breaking his heart?!


    Hais! It''s tough to be so good looking..


    Duan Li sighed, "I''ll just figure everything out next time.." he said to himself.


    "Kid, see you next time." the will said.


    Huh?


    "Umm yeah, I guess?" Duan Li replied. He then clasped both hands in respect towards the latter before stepping into the copper vortex.


    Wongg!!


    "You''ve grown well.. but that power.." the will stood silent for a while as he gazed into the sky.


    You should have learned to let things go..


    Whoosh..


    ...

 237 Chapter 233: Inviolable existences in the Universe

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    Wongg!


    "..Will you stop holding my hand already?" Duan Li said as he looked at Queen Levy with a purple shade on his face right after they stepped out from the copper vortex.


    While the Queen of the Parasitic Killerworm had already transformed herself into a ravishing beauty, the fact still remained that her true form was that of a hybrid snake and a leech!


    The mere thought of holding hands with such a creature, even if he was desperate, there was no way that he would ever went for this woman ever!


    "Ufufufu.. husband, why are you being so shy? Could it be that you are still.." the Queen said as she sniffed Duan Li''s scent. Her eyes then brightened up as she found her initial conjecture to be correct!


    This husband of her''s was still a pure man! What a good find!


    Seeing that lewd look of the woman licking on her lips, Duan Li''s face stiffened. "You''d better not get too full of yourself. While I have indeed forgiven you, it doesn''t mean that I have forgotten what you have done. Behave yourself!"


    And who is your husband? Husband your granduncle!!


    "Eh.. fine.." the Queen pouted her mouth as she let go of Duan Li''s hand. She then turned to Di Rou and sized her up and down.


    Body proportions and face..


    "You are not too bad. But he is my husband! Hmph!" she said with an arrogant look on her as she spoke the human tongue.


    The other party was definitely a beauty, but when compared to her more curvy figure and the way they dressed, this woman was a little bit lacking in that aspect because she was wearing all black without any other accessories.


    When compared to her, just her loose robe had already accentuated her attractiveness that could lead to many men drool on their own wild imaginations. Not to mention on how she could release specific hormones that would drive any male species crazy.


    However, she was bound to be surprised, because with a calm expression and her eyes closed, Di Rou retorted back, "Whether or not the Master is your husband, it is not for you to decide. Either way, I am but only his right hand. Surely, in terms of usefulness, an official subordinate like me could provide morethan a self-proclaimed wife."


    While she was usually a quiet person, that does not mean that she doesn''t have a personality.


    "You..!" the both of them then stared at one another as visible sparks flew in between.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li laughed heartily in himself, trying hard to suppress it from coming out after hearing Di Rou''s perfect counter. He nodded in satisfaction with a thumbs up.


    That''s my Di Rou!


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    However, there was one thing that bugged him. Just now, that Queen was clearly speaking in a human tongue!


    Wasn''t she complaining about how there was no one whom could understand her? If she could speak in the human tongue, then surely every single human could understand her!


    Just what is wrong with this woman?


    "Alright, knock it off. Di Rou, you may return back to my shadow, and you Levy.. I''ll just put you inside my spatial ring along with the rest." Duan Li said as the two seemed to want to start a fight soon if he did not break them up.


    Queen Levy was evidently confused when Duan Li said that, because as far as she know, living things could not be stored inside a spatial ring ever!


    There would only be two possible outcome for such an action; either the spatial ring would reject her, or she would suffocate and die if it was successful


    "Husband, don''t tell me that you are still.." she said with a saddened face.


    Noticing the befuddled expression on the latter, Di Rou chuckled slightly. "You country bumpkin. How would someone like you even try to question the means of the Imperial Overseer? Clearly you are a frog at the bottom of a well." she said with a trace of disdain and then single kneeled towards Duan Li. "Master, I will return first."


    Whoosh..


    Just like that, Di Rou merged back with Duan Li''s shadow leaving the stifled Queen behind.


    "Damned sl*t! I''ll make sure to.." before she could even finish her sentence, Duan Li had already waved his hand and stored the latter inside his spatial ring.


    Sigh..


    This woman sure had some mouth. I guess I''ll just have to ask her about being able to talk in the human tongue later on.


    ''Let''s see now..''


    Turning to look at the stone tablet, two of the four symbols were currently glowing in bronze and copper color respectively.


    From the looks of it, he really needed to beat the next two trials in order to complete the maze!


    Tap!


    He stepped onto the gazebo to press at another symbol just like before.


    Wengg!!


    A silver colored ray of light shone out from the stone tablet and flew onto the stone statue on the South direction, causing it to glow in silver!


    Weng!


    This particular statue was dressed as a scholar contrary to the previous two statues; one which was wearing a martial artist uniform and another a cultivator''s robe.


    "If the bronze statue tested my martial arts prowess, and the copper statue tested my cultivation strength, then this scholarly looking statue.. would it test my knowledge next?" he thought to himself as he cupped his chin.


    I guess I will just have to find out..


    Walking towards the South statue, a vortex that was silver in color appeared and Duan Li stepped inside it.


    Wongg!


    ...


    High up above the volcano, Dugu Liubai was sweating profusely like crazy. His face was pale and his eyes widened, as if he had seen a ghost! But it was understandable why someone of his status were in such a state.


    After all, he had witnessed something that could rattle his very soul..


    The Grand Immortal! That was the Grand Immortal damnit!


    Who would have thought that it was the Grand Immortal himself that would showed up at the very last moment just when Duan Li was about to destroy the whole trial room?


    Initially, he thought that Duan Li would be in danger when the Queen of the Parasitic Killerworms appeared and was about to take action, but the one that was almost sliced into two was instead the Queen herself!


    Imagine his shock when he saw that a monster that someone of his realm would have trouble in dealing with could almost be killed by a Core formation realm cultivator?


    Granted that Duan Li was a special case whom could even rival Nascent Soul realm experts and would be able to make them run for their money, but this was a monster that had reached the realm of immortality!


    Even amongst the juiciest gossips spread around the lower realm of Heaven, he had never even heard of a case as such from other people!


    But that was not the end of his roller coster shocks; the Grand Immortal himself had to appear in the end!


    Even though it was only a figment of the latter''s will, the Grand Immortal was still THE Grand Immortal! A person whom they revered in utmost to the point of almost worshipping him!


    Not to mention, he had never been able to witness the Grand Immortal himself even before he became the Guardian of the Second region. But he knew the will was THE Grand Immortal, because every single Guardians of the Eternal Maze would need to step onto the coronation altar and pay respects to the latter''s statue, which contained the essence of the Grand Immortal''s majestic presence!


    Who was the Grand Immortal?


    The Grand Immortal was a Celestial being, an Immortal that had ascended to the realms similar to that of a godhood!


    Celestial beings were capable of performing numerous miracles under the realms of their governance, and the Eternal Maze was one of the realm made by the Grand Immortal!


    What that means was that, the Grand Immortal could provide an impetus for one to ascend to immortality and beyond!


    Without the grace and blessings of a Celestial being, no one would be able to step into the realm of immortality, just like his old homeworld..


    The Tian Continent!


    For some reason or another, despite their otherworldly powers, Celestial beings could not bless worlds below the realm of Heavens, which was the realms of the mortals.


    The universe, which contained everything in existence, was separated into two realms; which was the Mortal realm and the Heaven realm. Rumors said that there was another realm beyond the two, but Dugu Liubai was not sure of whether that was true or not.


    Regardless, the universe, if imagined into a single pillar, at the bottom of it were where the Mortal realm was located. Innumerable amounts of worlds similar to that of the Tian continent exists, and the races from each world were different from one another.


    When he knew this for the first time, his worldview exploded and his horizon widened.


    The Heaven realm on the other hand, was further divided into three; Lower Heaven realm, Higher Heaven realm and Upper Heaven realm!


    Normal immortals like them, could only wander around the Lower Heaven realm, and the Higher Heaven realm was only accessible for Celestial beings!


    In fact, the Lower Heaven realm could be said to be made up of worlds created by THE Celestial beings!


    All the worlds, such as this Eternal Maze in the Lower Heaven realm, could only be accessible through numerous ''Gates'' connected to worlds of the Mortal realm!


    As such, if a cultivator wishes to truly ascend and become an immortal, they would have to enter these ''Gates'' first!


    But how would becoming an immortal be that easy? The Heavenly tribulation that one had to go through had reaped countless lives for those who dared to step into the realm through the eons, and he was only one among the luckiest ones to survive!


    To put a salt into the wounds of those who survive and become an immortal - they could not go back into their own world!


    At least not until they release the Second shackle and reach the Omnipresence realm state anyway, and by the time they did, time would have already advanced and past by the hundreds, if not thousands of years!


    At that point, even if they did return, what would be even left for them in their old world where not a single person they knew was alive anymore?


    Therefore, rarely do immortals ever went back to their home world, regardless if they have the capability. One might think that the immortals could lord over the mortals if they return and enjoy a lifetime of riches as their ruler, but how could things be that simple?


    There were those nine inviolable entities in the highest of the Heaven realm - Upper Heaven realm! They were entities whom stood above even the Celestial beings, and they were called as the Soverigns, or Eternal Lords of All-Era!


    They were truly undying beings, and all laws in existence was sourced from them!


    If an immortal wishes to disturb the realms of the mortals, it was highly likely that they would be erased from existence on the spot!


    Thus, only fools would dare to court a bastard''s death!


    The Soverigns had existed by themselves, and has been like so since the beginning of time itself. Each of them were symbiotic in nature, and they were in charge of many different aspects of the universe. Wisdom, Knowledge, Fulfillment, Emotions, Justice, Balance, Time, Existence and Power - their role was to disseminate and watch over each of these nine aspects in the whole universe!


    As such, even Celestial beings, whom possessed many worlds of their own creations and blessings, was still under the scrutiny of the Sovereigns without exception, albeit has much more freedom when compared to the immortals.


    Hais!


    "If only I knew the Grand Immortal would appear.." Dugu Liubai shook his head and lamented on his luck.


    ...

 238 Chapter 234: The one and only unscalable mountain

    ... Author''s Note ...


    If you like this novel, please support me financially through my Patre0n. The rates are only as little as $15, $10, $5 and $2 PER month!


    ... End Note ...


    Wongg!!


    Stepping out from the silver vortex, Duan Li stared at the sight before him with astonishment!


    "T-This..!!"


    The scene before him was a huge tall mountain that jutted up all the way to the sky! It was unlike anything that he had ever seen!


    Humongous was a word that would be insufficient to describe it, as the mountain seemed to blot out the whole land as far as he could see!


    In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the base of the whole mountain was as big as the entire Jiu Empire!


    A mountain as big as a whole empire.. if it were anyone else seeing this, they might just bow themselves down and prostrate to worship the mountain!


    However, being experienced in dealing with Crafted Space before, Duan Li knew that the sight before him was unlikely to be real and was just a mere projection to set up the atmosphere for the third trial.


    "Perhaps the size is still the same as the previous two Crafted Space.." he said as he looked around.


    It was a weird feeling; he knew that a mountain that big would not be practical just for the sake to test someone, but this was the work of the Grand Immortal, so who knew what the latter might be thinking. Therefore, he was still unsure on how big the area was.


    With this line of thought, he waved his hand and Daelius, Cucko, Bulu and Queen Levy appeared from his spatial ring. To his surprise though, these 4 different creatures immediately broke out into a ruckus right away.


    "Woof! Woof!"


    "CUCKO!!"


    "Damned snake!"


    Each of them were glaring at Queen Levy whose hands were both on her waist while looking at them with a disdainful and impatient glare in return.


    "..." Seeing this, Duan Li didn''t know what to say, but he had a good hunch of what the source of the problem was.


    "Alright, what''s the problem now?" he sighed out in one mouthful helplessly.


    "Master! This snake, she is just unbelievable! We were just chatting up nicely together within the ring when she suddenly came up and called us her ''servants''!" Bulu quickly replied, trying to express their grievances.


    "Not only that, when she took a look at your pile of treasures, Master, she was having some thoughts that we could not read and then tried to approach your belongings as if a sneaky thief!"


    "Naturally, we went forward and tried to stop her! But she goes on and on about her being your ''wife'' Master! She said what you own was her''s as well, and that if we try to stop her, she will beat our a*s off!" he continued, his tone disgruntled.


    "Woof! Woof!!" "CUCKO!"


    The pair of young Fenrir and mutated chicken were also complaining and the gist of it were similar to what Bulu had said just now. Thus, after hearing them out, Duan Li turned towards the Queen with a frown.


    "Levy, they are not your servants but companions, don''t bully them! And second, you are not my wife and my belongings are not yours! If you do not behave, I will put you inside a prison! Do you want that?" Duan Li said to the Queen of the Parasitic Killerworms with a strict tone, as if a father reprimanding his naughty child.


    "B-But husband, I..." she was obviously taken aback by this harsh scolding and was about to tear up, afraid that she would once again be imprisoned for life.


    Duan Li however, swiftly noticed this and quickly followed up, "If you behave, I will build a place for you to call home inside the spatial ring later on and also give you some presents. However, if you are not, then don''t blame me for treating you unjustly!"


    Hearing this, the Queen''s previous complexion immediately brightened up and her tears that were threatening to fall disappeared without a trace.


    "Eh? You are going to build a home for us husband? And you will also give me some presents after that?"


    Home and.. presents?


    EH?!


    Her imaginations started to run wild like a horse on fire, thinking on what those home and presents from her husband could be, and she could not help but for her face to flush greatly!


    ''By presents, could he actually be talking about..''


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    Ah!


    It must be! If there is a home, then logically, there should be a ''family'' living inside it as well!


    Huehuehue!


    "... what are you grinning like that for?" Duan Li felt all his body hair to stand on end as he saw that agitated and flushed look on the Queen''s face and stepped back.


    Why do I feel like I''m regretting my words?


    Wiping off her saliva, she hastily replied, "I promise to behave my husband! Hello dear comrades, let''s get along really well from now on! Hehe!"


    She put on her most friendly expression towards the three creatures whom she previously called as her ''servants'' with a smile, as if a doting mother looking at her children.


    ''This woman must be plotting something..!'' the three of them simultaneously thought of this as they saw that hair raising grin of her''s along with her 180 degrees turn of attitude towards them!


    That grin is way too suspicious!


    "Haa.."


    Seeing that his carrot and stick method worked on the Queen, Duan Li sighed yet again before giving out his instructions, "I want you four to each pick a different direction and walk towards it as far as you can. I want to see if this Crafted Space is the same as the previous two in size!"


    Nodding their heads, they quickly select a direction without too much of a fuss and ran towards it, even the Queen herself seemed to be strangely proactive. In fact, she even turned her legs into that resembling of a leech as she slithered through the ground like a snake.


    ''I wonder why she is so energetic all of a sudden..''


    And the way she moved, isn''t that way too fast? This isn''t a competition!


    One thing that had also caught his attention was Cucko''s speed and realm! The latter had already reached the pinnacle stage of the Qi condensation realm!


    If one were to still realize, Cucko was just a chicken! A chicken of the poultry category! Not only that, it seems to be on the verge of breaking through to the next realm as well..


    Duan Li had always prided himself in being exceptional with breaking through cultivation realms as if it were nothing, but he was still a cultivator, so such a thing was normal to say the least.


    Cucko on the other hand, was just a chicken! Granted that it had mutated after coming into contact with his own blood, but isn''t the rate of its cultivation speed was way too fast?


    If other cultivators found out about this, they would puke out their blood and wished that their ancestors were from the bloodline of this chicken!


    After all, a mere chicken was able to raise its cultivation level so swiftly when compared to the rest of the other human cultivators that levelled up like a bunch of snails!


    Hais! What a tragedy to mankind!


    Duan Li squinted his eyes as he stared right into their direction and couldn''t help but to furrow his brows after confirming it twice.


    "They had already went past the 500 meters mark? It seems that my initial thought is incorrect.. this Crafted Space is different from the other two.."


    He continued to watch as their silhouette continued to move forward, becoming smaller by the distance.


    600 meters..


    800 meters..


    1 kilometers..


    ''They are still not reaching the ends?''


    "That''s enough guys, return back to me.." Duan Li commanded. Any further and he would not be able to communicate with them.


    "This place is quite odd.." Duan Li looked around once more.


    Other than the colossal mountain in front of him, the rest were just flat lands with nothing in sight.


    ''Perhaps.. I need to climb up that mountain?''


    At the thought of this, his mouth began to twitch.


    How many days.. no, weeks would it take to scale a mountain that tall?


    Seeing that there was no other choice, Duan Li began to walk towards the direction of the mountain, and soon found himself to be on a gentle slope, where the start of the climb would commence.


    Huuuu..!!


    Channeling his spiritual Qi onto his two feet, Duan Li then activated his movement skill art.


    ''Impeccable Sky Footsteps!''


    Dash! Dash!


    ...


    Dugu Liubai''s bald head was full of sweat as he opened his eyes and exhaled a mouthful of turbid air.


    "I''ve finally managed to calm down my heart rate.. these continuous shocks the kid brought to me is not good for my health!"


    At this rate, I might really get a heart attack..


    "Oh? He is inside the third trial now? Let''s see the size of the mountain that he had to scale...!!"


    With his mouth opened wide agape, he then exclaimed in full astonishment mixed with horror, "H-How could the mountain.. be so colossal?!"


    What a giant a*s mountain!!


    The third trial requires one to ascend a mountain that was actually the depiction of their potential!


    The Crafted Space of the third trial room was unique in such a way that it harnesses the power to assess the full capacity of one''s spiritual Qi!


    Next, by some unknown method of calculation that the Grand Immortal had came up with, that total would be multiplied by several times!


    Finally, the result would be outputted into the form of a mountain, and the cultivator would have to climb this mountain and reach its peak in order to clear the third trial!


    However, this trial wasn''t just a simple scaling of the mountain. On specific heights, there would be mini trials that the cultivator would have to pass in order to continue climbing!


    Specifically, the mini trials would consist of pop quizzes regarding the cultivation practices that the cultivator had learned thus far, while there would also be other new techniques that they would have to master in order to pass!


    Normally, a cultivator of the Foundation Establishment realm, which the trial was meant to be for, would only depict small mountains that could be scaled within a few hours at most. At best, if the cultivator was exceptional, it would take a a day at most.


    After all, cultivator that was still on the Foundation Establishment realm, no matter how formidable they were among their peers, was still nothing but an ant in the grand scheme of things!


    However, this sight before him, even through his Heavenly Sense, he could not for the life of him, see the top of the mountain which had passed through several layers of clouds!


    He even suspected that the peak had already reached out of bounds..


    "The time it would take to climb that mountain.. months.. no, maybe years!!" he exclaimed in bated breaths.


    For the centuries that he had lived, never once had he witnessed a mountain so huge, so colossal, that it blotted the whole land and pierced through the sky with no end in sight!


    He tried to recall hard in his memories of the Lower Heaven realm if there was any mountain that huge, and he had to shook his head as he looked up again onto Duan Li''s mountain, and at this moment, a sudden name flashed inside his mind, and he shivered!


    Ooff!!


    Clutching his chest where his heart started to palpitate fiercely once more, threatening to almost explode, he could only think of one mountain in the legends that no one could ever hope to scale..


    "M-Mount Tai..!!"


    ...

 239 Chapter 235: This is too easy!

    "Huh.. I''ve been climbing this mountain for a while and it doesn''t seem like I''ve even covered any distance.." Duan Li said to himself as he stopped and look back.


    Since the slope was still gentle, it created the impression of not making any progress at all. However, the distance that he had actually covered thus far should at least be a few kilometers already!


    ''This Crafted Space sure is big..''


    Wengg!


    It was at this moment that a red temple gate had suddenly appeared before him. This temple gate radiated out an archaic aura, almost similar to that of the red temple gate under the Jixue Knights Academy to enter the Eternal maze, albeit significantly smaller.


    Next, this red temple gate glowed brightly as it churned out spiritual Qi. These spiritual Qi coalesced to slowly form an apparition which took the figure of an elderly man with a long beard.


    With both hands clasped behind his back, this old man seemed to possess the disposition of a scholarly expert!


    ''Ahh.. here comes the wise one..''


    "I am Xuan Tian, and I appear before you in order to test your knowledge on the path of cultivation and immortality. If you are ready, we shall conduct the test immediately." the elderly man said with a voice that was filled with wisdom.


    "..." Duan Li.


    ''Well, that was straight to the point..''


    Seemingly being able to read Duan Li''s mind, the elderly man chuckled slightly.


    "I am a man with less words. After all, the essence of understanding everything is being able to point directly towards the crux of a matter without convoluting it with unnecessary information. Now, we shall delay no more. Here is your first test!" the elderly man then waved his hand.


    Huala!


    The red temple gate glowed once more, and this time, words began to appear one after another, before forming a whole complete sentences!


    "Cultivation realm of the Mortal Wheels of fate refers to the five realms of the mortal cultivator. Name them."


    "..."


    Duan Li had a blank look on his face as he read that question once more.


    Isn''t this question too easy?


    What cultivator that aspired to be an immortal that does not even know of this?


    They might as well just cripple their own cultivation and roll to their grave!


    Thus, Duan Li answered them without even giving it a single thought.


    "Qi Condensation realm, Foundation Establishment realm, Core Formation realm, Golden Core realm and Nascent Soul realm!"


    Tring tingg!!


    The temple gate gave out a bell chime and the elderly man nodded in satisfaction.


    "Good! You have passed the first test. There will be more to come as you ascend this mountain. The higher you reach, the more difficult it will get. Goodluck!"


    Right after saying his piece, the elderly man was about to quickly disappear as his figure becomes translucent before Duan Li called out.


    "Wait, old man Xuan Tian! I have a few questions that I wanted to ask regarding this third trial!" Duan Li asked.


    The old man stopped dissipating before sighing, as if he was troubled by it.


    " I do not make a habit of staying more than I should. However, a wise man once said; the expert shall enlighten, but time is also gold. Therefore, ask one question right now and the others on your next test!"


    "..."


    Duan Li was totally in the loss of words of trying to describe this old man.


    Not only was its name could bring about a total heavenly punishment, as it literally translates to ''Heaven of the Earth'', he seemed to also be trying to cosplay of someone who was busy!


    Aren''t I the only one currently in this trial room? Why are you being so hasty?


    "Your question?" the old man furrowed his brows as he stood there impatiently.


    "Ah! How high is this mountain actually?" Duan Li snapped back from his thought process and he quickly asked this question.


    Hmm?


    The old man went silent after hearing such a question from Duan Li, as if he had not expected it and his brows creased together, seemingly to contemplate deep with what he has to say.


    Next, tilting his head 45 degrees upwards, he gazed towards the sky, with an expression as if he was forlorn about something.


    He then answered;


    "This mountain.. its very high. Farewell!"


    Right after saying that short sentence, he turned his body around before his figure quickly dissipated into the surrounding along with the red temple gate.


    Even a thief that was caught red handed would lose out in terms of their escaping speed!


    "..." Duan Li.


    It took him quite a while to recover from this shock, and when he did, he spat out with gritted teeth.


    "Curse your whole ancestor!"


    I know its very high, and I can see that too, or do you think that I''m blind?!


    What I wanted to know was a hint of its exact height, or at least how long would it take for me to ascend the mountain towards its peak!


    You seemed as if an indubitable expert, but now I''m beginning to have some serious doubts about you!


    Hais!


    Calming himself, Duan Li thought for a moment.


    "Maybe I need to word my question properly?"


    But just what is not clear with my previous question?


    Sighing in his frustration, Duan Li continued his journey to climb the mountain once again.


    After all, if what the elderly man said just now was true, he should be able to meet him again if he climbed higher.


    ...


    Dash! Dash!


    Wongg!!


    After traversing for a few kilometers, the red temple gate appeared once more, along with the elderly man and his scholarly aura.


    ''So my previous guess was correct, this old man is indeed the one in charge of the trial here..''


    Before the old man could open his mouth to speak, Duan Li had already spoken out first.


    "Hey old man Xuan Tian, why aren''t you able to answer my previous question properly? Are you in fact, not that knowledgable after all?" Duan Li said in a sarcastic tone with a dissatisfied look.


    This was a sentence that he had thought long and hard before, and he was pretty sure that a person of the old man''s personality would be baited right into it.


    And his guess was spot on!


    "Nonsense! Under the Heavens, there is nothing that I do not know about!" the elderly man replied with a snort.


    He was the culmination of knowledge itself that the Grand Immortal had created!


    For knowledge that originated from one of the Celestial being, this brat in front of him surely does not know any better!


    Ignorance sure is a bliss!


    Hmph!


    He then continued, "What I told you before is already the right answer. This mountain is unbelievably colossal. In fact, that word would be insufficient to describe it at all!"


    "Therefore, if even the word colossal could not describe it, how would you expect me to give you its exact height? Hmph!" he waved his hand impatiently as the next question appeared on the red temple gate.


    "This.." Duan Li thought about it and he nodded.


    ''Well.. what he said does indeed make sense. But why does it feels like he was just playing around with his words? Couldn''t he just give me a hint of how long it would take for me to climb to the peak?''


    Are there no words to describe it too?


    Nevermind..


    Taking a look towards the new question that just popped out on the red temple gate, Duan Li shook his head.


    ''This question is still too easy!''


    "The answer is... "


    ...


    Dugu Liubai could be seen to be walking around in circles as he cupped his chin while pondering about something.


    "If that is really the depiction of Mount Tai, then it would be a lifetime before he could reach its peak.."


    Since the restriction of no flying still took place even in the trials, there was no way to quickly scale the mountain.


    Surely, he won''t be trapped in it for a lifetime then?


    The more he thought about it, the more panicked he became.


    In the first place, how did such a mountain came to be?


    "Even if his cultivation realm was higher than what the trial room was originally meant for, it was still only by one whole realm! Yet, this mountain somehow was trying to depict a peakless mountain!"


    Even immortals would still have their peak no matter how unfathomable their cultivation were!


    He narrowed his eyes as he thought of this.


    ''Could it be?''


    When this thought flashed in his mind, he shuddered.


    Every single person, with no exception, would be tied with their innate potential from birth. This innate potential, while difficult, could be changed or upgraded, especially when one managed to release their first shackle of mortality and reached the immortal realm.


    However even then, they would still have their limits!


    If limits was not the truth, then how did so many profound and otherworldly cultivators, like the Grand Immortal, could only cultivate until the Celestial state?


    Even for those beyond such a realm, they would still be inexplicably tied within the nature''s law in one way or another.


    Of course, such logic may not apply to those that managed to release all nine shackles of mortality, but that alone was only a rumor and nothing else. Therefore, it could not be considered as the truth.


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    Thus, he could only count on two possibilities; either Duan Li had no limits, or Duan Li had a very high potential, such that the trial room could not measure it and that was why it was depicting such a peakless mountain!


    "En! This second reason is more logical than the first." he nodded to himself.


    Perhaps after climbing for a while, the trial room would eventually show the summit..


    ...


    The Grand Immortal, whom was currently sitting cross-legged atop of a boulder on a giant waterfall, opened his eyes.


    The moment he opened his eyes, countless stars on the sky started to blink joyously, as if greeting a respected figure across all the universe!


    "Hmm.. so he had entered.. and created a ruckus too.. as expected.." this inviolable figure that could make all the lands below him tremble in fear sighed, as if troubled by something unexpected.


    During his moment of cultivation before, a tinge of his eternal will that he had left behind within the Eternal Maze had sent him a feedback.


    When he reviewed the memories of his will, he found out that a familiar person almost destroyed the whole Compounded Space that he crafted eons ago under the instructions from the one ''above''.


    That was practically an impossible feat, as the structural integrity of all the spatial lands that he crafted was basically invulnerable against those under the Celestial realm.


    However, when he dug deeper, he was surprised, because he detected a power that was not of Duan Li''s, and this power was even more familiar to him.


    "Why did you lend him such power? If the Sovereigns, the Lords of All Era, managed to detect this, not only would the child be harmed, even you yourself would get into trouble." he said as he tilted his head towards the sky, as if speaking to an invisible figure.


    Weirdly enough, a voice could be heard across the sky in reply to his question.


    "I have calculated the possibilities, and even if those Sovereigns were to notice, that would be far in the future. Besides, it is not as if I fear them. If they were to foolishly cross me, the whole multiverse would be at stake." this voice that was filled with countless vicissitudes spoke out indifferently.


    The Grand Immortal sighed, "You are still not able to let the past go even after eons had passed.." he shook his head and continued;


    "Even if you did succeed in this goal of yours, nothing would change for you. That day when I helped you, it was because of our origin that were one of the same."


    The voice was silent for a while before replying, "It is not as if you do not know the motivation that pushed me. However, different from you, I held on to it to this very day. Do not tell me that you do not grieved the moment when she died in such an unjust manner, just because we are an anomaly to their Utopian world!"


    The Grand Immortal could detect waves of unstoppable rage coming from that voice as he sighed again.


    "I know how you feel, remember.. we are of the same origin. In all this observable reality that we lived in, there are no truths, just decision and possibilities. I too, longed to see her smile once more.." his eyes flashed towards the memories of a distant past that was ever so clear as if it was just yesterday.


    He then continued, "But did you not realize? Our actions; me saving you, and you saving the child.. it was as if, this was all but destined by someone."


    CRACKLE!!


    The sky immediately turned dark as typhoons, thunderstorms and lightnings suddenly poured out like it was the end of the world, sweeping the lands into destruction and nothingness!


    "Do not talk to me about destiny!" the voice bellowed out.


    "There are no such thing! If there was, I would find that person and kill him!"


    BOOMM!!


    The last sentence that came out from the voice caused all the solar bodies to explode simultaneously, as if unable to shoulder such a deep killing intent!


    "Calm down." the Grand Immortal waved his hand, and all the destroyed lands and planetary bodies in the solar system around his vicinity was restored to their previous state, akin to reversing time.


    "I do not doubt on what you would do. However, I pray that your actions would not hasten their doom instead. As you might have realized by now, ''Time'' has already begun to make a move." he said as his expression grew serious.


    "... I know, and I will take care of it." the voice replied before its presence disappeared entirely.


    Sigh..


    "Was my decision before, the correct one?" he contemplate and let out another sigh.


    If only I could turn back time to how it was before, I would spend more time with her than my cultivation..


    "Child, cherish your mother with the time you have.. do not be like us, filled with endless regrets.."


    ...

 240 Chapter 236: The frog in the well!

    Dash! Dash!


    Duan Li was repeating between ascending the mountain for a few kilometers and answering quizzes one after another after reaching every certain height.


    In fact, he had already begun to lost count on how many cycles he had repeated them!


    What the hell!


    This is more quizzes than even the entrance exam to enter the Scholar''s hall back in my village!


    Is this a trial or an exam?!


    Dash! Dash!


    Gradually, the slope was starting to become steeper as he went higher up and the terrain was also slowly changing from soft soil ground to rocky hard surfaces, as if in sync with his increasing frustrations of the mountain.


    "I must''ve climbed for at least hundreds of kilometers already, and I''ve even went through three layers of thick clouds but not a hint of its peak could be seen!"


    Just how tall is this darned mountain?!


    It took him hours to get this far, and he even upped his travelling speed a few times just to see if it would make a difference!


    If any experts were around, they would be shocked to their death if they witness Duan Li''s travelling speed!


    After all, it was a speed that could rival those on the Nascent Soul realm!


    But who could have thought that not even the slightest shadow of the peak could be seen from where he stood right now?


    If this was the Tian continent, this mountain would have probably taken the number one spot of the tallest mountain just from the sheer number of kilometers that he had already ascended!


    Wongg!!


    At this moment, the small red temple gate appeared before his eyes yet again, and Duan Li finally rolled his eyes in annoyance.


    Therefore, before the elderly man could even speak after his figure coalesced together, Duan Li had already lashed out a piece of his mind.


    "Shut up! No more quizzes or I''ll slap you out! I''m in no mood to answer any of your quizzes anymore!"


    Pu!


    For the first time ever since he held this profession, the elderly man almost spurted out blood even though he was only an apparition.


    Slap your head!


    Do you think that I enjoyed seeing you time and again, whatnot with your whiny questions every single time we met?


    It''s just that I am designed to function like this! You climb a certain height and I appear, that''s all okay!


    If there was someone to blame, its you instead! How did you even managed to summon out a mountain without a peak? Would we even still be here if your mountain is only an anthill?


    Hmph!


    "On to the next question!" he snorted out loud disdainfully and waved his hand for a question to appear on the red temple gate. However, he ended up choking himself once more instead when the next words that came out was totally out of his expectations.


    ''There are no more available questions left.''


    Pu!!


    Unable to believe what he just saw, he tried waving his hand once more, but the red temple gate still dished out the same statement!


    Wave! Wave!


    ''Senile old fool, there are no more questions left!''


    Pu!!!


    What the hell is this? Are you joking with me right now?


    You ran out of questions? How can that even be?!


    And what gal for you to call me a senile old fool! Courting death!


    Eiyak!


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    The elderly man was enraged and threw a flying kick at the red temple gate.


    PANG!


    A loud sound similar to a metal rod being smashed onto a heavy iron door echoed out before the elderly man was repulsed and blasted off to the sky!


    "Damn youuu!!"


    ...


    "..." Duan Li.


    He somehow felt sorry for the elderly man, but because the latter was so unhelpful, answering his questions in a roundabout way as if an expert in delivering a poetic speech, Duan Li felt that such a punishment was justified.


    Still, to think that the red temple gate has run out of questions to ask..


    Wouldn''t that basically meant that there would be no more quizzes henceforth?


    All the better then!


    Duan Li then cupped his chin as he pondered.


    ''Thinking about it though, it was only natural for all the questions to soon be emptied out..''


    After all, the questions prepared was only meant to be answered within the means of those in the Foundation establishment realm, but some of the topics were quite advanced as well.


    Still, even the most difficult questions was tackled by him so easily, thus it was no wonder that this would be the eventual outcome.


    ''But if that is so, then..''


    What the heck am I supposed to do now?


    There were no more questions left for him to answer, so would it mean that he needed to just continue climbing until he reach the peak?


    How long would that even take?


    Shuu...


    It was at this moment, that a familiar spectral figure that has a hint of majesty in it formed in front of him.


    It was the will of the Grand Immortal that he just met during the second trial!


    "It''s you.."


    This unexpected encounter had Duan Li caught off guard and he stepped back almost instinctively.


    He hadn''t really noticed it before, but now, he could feel that the Grand Immortal has truly earned its name!


    "Such power..!!" he gasped in shock as his eyes narrowed.


    The undulating pressure radiating out from the Grand Immortal was something that he hadn''t seen before!


    Specifically, the aura it was emitting was reeled in very closely to its body such that the width was only like the tip of a single needle!


    If one did not pay any attention at all, one would definitely not be able to sense even an ounce of the latter''s insurmountable power!


    To think that a leak of the latter''s aura which was only the size of a needle was already that unfathomable..


    How scary would the latter''s aura be if it was unleashed to the maximum?


    Hiss!


    Duan Li shuddered at that point in his thought.


    He had battled Cao Tengfei of the Dark Sect before, a true expert at the Nascent Soul realm level that had lived for centuries, and he had felt the latter''s tremendous pressure that could capped anyone''s knees by just standing near!


    If not for his rage and the help of his Super mode back then, while he could still evade the lethal attacks with the peculiar time-slowing down ability that he has, he would definitely not be able to suppress the pressure and retaliate even a single attack!


    "Hmm? Martial True Instinct? Impressive.. and your sense of perception has already reached the level of a Nascent Soul realm as well.. this is truly unprecedented.." the spectral will of the Grand Immortal said approvingly after a short glance at Duan Li, seemingly amused.


    One has to know that not just anyone could comprehend Martial True Instinct. Even for him, he only attained such a powerful ability when he stepped into the Immortal''s realm.


    But what had him surprised the most was Duan Li''s sense of perception!


    After all, the ability to sense how strong someone was, was an ability unique belonging to the Nascent Soul realm - Soul Sense!


    This ability could never be attained in any alternate means other than successfully entering the Nascent Soul realm!


    This was due to the qualitative leap in one''s sense of perception due to being more in tuned towards the natural law as their dantian evolved from a Golden Core to a Soul Core!


    Among the numerous things a Soul Sense could do, identifying the opponent''s powers was one of its key function!


    Even though what Duan Li had attained here was only that portion of the Soul Sense''s ability, it was still the very definition of heaven defying!


    "Martial True Instinct? Sense of perception? What do you mean?" Duan Li asked out after hearing these two strange terms that he was hearing for the first time.


    The will of the Grand Immortal chuckled.


    "Have you ever heard the phrase, ''frog at the bottom of a well?" it said in reply.


    Duan Li nodded.


    This was a phrase commonly used on someone who thinks that they have seen and knew everything.


    "Well, in the realm of mortal cultivators, this phrase refered to those below the Nascent Soul realm!" the Will continued.


    He then explained that mortal cultivators could never sense how strong someone actually was until they achieved the Nascent Soul realm due to the Soul Sense.


    Duan Li nodded again in agreement. He had stumbled upon this fact numerous times when studying manual books for skills and techniques.


    Each highlighted on how Soul Sense could analyze the skills and techniques that it saw the first time, and could quickly develop counter measures against it.


    This was also one of the many reason why Nascent Soul realm experts were invincible.


    "However, the phrase used in this context doesn''t actually view those below the realm of Nascent Soul realm in disdain, in fact, it was quite the opposite." the Will said as it stared up into the mountain.


    Hearing this, Duan Li could only furrowed his brows in confusion, "What do you mean?"


    "When one already reached the Nascent Soul realm, they could sense how powerful an opponent was by just a simple glance through their Soul Sense."


    "This is when most experts in this realm turned into a frog in the well! Not only do they think that they have seen and experienced everything being in the pinnacle of the mortal world, they began to judge others only through this small scope of their''s!"


    ...

 241 Chapter 237: Third trial complete!

    ... Author''s Note ...


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    ... End Note ...


    Duan Li raised his brows in comprehension upon hearing this and nodded. After all, once cultivators stood at the top, most of them would view those below them in indifference.


    "They began to neglect the importance that it was not raw strength that made up a formidable cultivator, but their finesse and execution of skills and techniques!"


    The Will had that reminiscing air on his corporeal figure right now, as if his indistinct eyes were tracing back to the distant past, the glorious days when he was still but a mortal.


    He was a peerlessly talented genius and this was not self-proclaimed either, but proven by the fact that he managed to beat every single opponent on the Nascent Soul realm while still being in the Golden Core realm back then.


    Had Duan Li knew what the other party was being so proud of, perhaps he would shook his head and call the other party the frog instead.


    You''ve beaten some Nascent Soul realm experts on the Golden Core realm back then?


    I''ve beaten one while still on the Foundation Establishment realm you noob!


    "When I was but a mortal, I have a knack in analyzing the weakness of the enemy''s techniques and exploiting those flaws." the Will said as it clasped its hands behind its back, its aura exuding the very air of a true expert.


    "Almost all Nascent Soul realm experts was too arrogant to even view opponents below their realm a challenge, and thisadvantage of mine combined with those arrogance of their''s was my path of success time and again."


    He then continued, "After I stepped into the Nascent Soul realm, my Soul Sense was far more powerful and developed when compared to others, perhaps because I had dedicated my time in honing my sense of perception from analyzing countless techniques and skills."


    "And it was also then that I realized, that Nascent Soul realm isn''t truly the pinnacle of cultivation level like most people believed! The legends and myths of immortals ascending beyond, I knew it was true the moment I used my Soul Sense onto myself!"


    Eh? You used Soul Sense onto yourself?


    Duan Li was surprised when he heard this.


    Soul Sense, an inherent skill obtained when one finally reached the Nascent Soul realm, was only meant to be used externally or outside the body of the cultivator.


    In fact, he hadn''t heard of anyone who could use Soul Sense internally, simply because its not part of the function!


    To put this into an analogy, its similar to how one''s own pair of legs and arms could only bend on one side and not the other way around, or similar to how the eyes could only see the perceived world outside.


    Thus, since that was the case, then how did the other party managed to do it?


    Sensing Duan Li''s disbelief which was reflected on the latter''s face, the Will chuckled, but a trace of sadness could be seen in his eyes.


    ''I wish I could still be full of emotions like you..''


    Hais!


    "I''ve told you before that I am good in analyzing techniques and uncovering their flaws.. so while I could exploit them, that also means that I can improve and modify them!"


    The Will then explained to Duan Li that he had made a modified version of the Soul Sense which could visually ''see'' all the internal parts of the body such as meridians, blood vessels, acupuncture points, bones and more.


    The more Duan Li heard this ''modified'' version of the Soul Sense, the more he raised his brows until both of his eyes were wide opened.


    His suspicion of it became true soon enough when the other party called out the name of this new technique.


    "I called that new ability, the All-Seeing Eye!" the Will said with a profound look.


    Huh?!!


    ''Wait a moment..''


    To be able to see all the internal parts and organs of the body, as well as calling it the All-Seeing Eye..


    Isn''t that similar to how my ability, which I have also called the ''All-Seeing Eye'' works?


    Is this a coincidence?


    Hmm..


    ''But, just what exactly did he saw when he casted the All-Seeing Eye ability onto himself other than those things?''


    Duan Li knew the capabilities of the All-Seeing Eye personally, because he had use it every time onto himself whenever he cultivated, observing the minute changes that occured inside his body.


    However, if there was one thing that he hadn''t been able to see yet with that ability, its the changes that occured after one had reached the Nascent Soul realm.


    After all, he hadn''t reached that level yet.


    He even tried his best to recall the fading memories of his other future self in that timeline, trying to see if he saw the same thing as well, but he just couldn''t remember seeing anything at all!


    Furthermore, in that version of him, he never had such an ability before because the All-Seeing Eye was an ability he gained right after coming into contact with the Golden mysterious pearl!


    In fact, it was due to his legendary innate potential, which was tested to be on the Bright Blue rank level, or also called as the ''Sky Grade'' that has a high probability to grow towards the White rank ''Immortal grade'', that he was able to release the first shackle and entered the Immortals Wheels of Fate!


    As if to answer this lingering thought on Duan Li, the Will of the Grand Immortal spoke, "I saw the real form of my Soul Core.."


    "And it is actually the incarnation of us in the soul form!" he said with a grim look in his eyes.


    "The incarnation of our soul?" Duan Li cupped his chin as he thought for a while and nodded.


    That should be about right..


    But this isn''t anything new..


    After all, there were already many experts who stated and theorized that the Soul Core, contained a cultivator''s real soul in some of the books that he read before even without the All-Seeing Eye ability, and was why it was called the ''Soul Core'' in the first place.


    And even if he had actually ''seen'' the real form of his soul, what was the big deal then?


    Unable to contain his curiosity, Duan Li asked the Will right away.


    "What does the soul look like? And how does this provides you an impetus to ascend to immortality back then?"


    The Will was silent for a while as it gazed towards the sky before it finally replied, "The exact replica of myself, except that .. it was chained with nine shackles!"


    The nine shackles?


    Suddenly, Duan Li felt as if mini explosion was happening inside his mind as all the previous information that he got on cultivation had finally pieced itself together perfectly!


    It all made sense now!


    The mortal wheels of fate that contained the five stages; Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Golden Core and Nascent Soul, was all but preparations towards immortality by firstly conjuring one''s own soul inside the Soul Core!


    Noting the look on Duan Li, the Will nodded with a satisfied look.


    "It seems that you get it now. That''s right, most people on the Nascent Soul realm could only ''feel'' that there are levels beyond their current realm, but they just can''t visualize it!"


    And if they can''t visualize it, they won''t notice the problem!


    The Will then continued on, "At the Nascent Soul realm stage, there would no longer be a breakthrough to one''s cultivation unless one knows how to release the first shackle first!"


    Duan Li thought for a moment before making a conjecture, "You mean.. to release the first shackle, one had to leave the Tian continent right?"


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    This statement of his was due to the recollection of his memories. The ''him'' on that future timeline was only able to break into the immortal realm after entering the Eternal Maze and cultivating there!


    The Will seemed to be evidently surprised by what Duan Li just said, and a hint of confusion was reflected on its face before replying, "That''s right! One of the nine shackles locking my soul was connected to the earth of the Tian continent, and it thus dawned onto me that, in order to severe that shackle and ascend to become a real immortal, I had to leave the Tian continent!"


    "But how did you know of this?" the Will asked Duan Li with some doubts.


    He guessed it? Impossible.


    This information can''t be come across coincidentally, so there must be someone that has already told him in one way or another before!


    "Well.." Duan Li then began to explain his ''strange'' experience during his second trial back then, where the illusion actually brought him into the future 8 years later!


    ...


    "I see.." the Will said, and a grim look somehow surfaced onto its face even though it was blurry as it went silent for a while.


    "How many people know of this future?"


    Facing this question and that serious air surrounding the Grand Immortal right now, Duan Li found his own heart to trepedate quite a bit!


    "Only a few people, and they are people whom I could trust including my mother.." Duan Li answered.


    "What? Your mother knows of her own death?!" the Will suddenly raised its voice which caused the whole mountain to start shaking violently!


    CRACK!


    "Eh? W-Why is he suddenly becoming so angry?" Duan Li was utterly confused by this unexpected reaction of the other party.


    Ah! I think this mountain is about to explode!


    The violent shaking was akin to an earthquake prior to a rupture of a volcanic mountain to spew out molten rocks!


    "W-Why are you so agitated? Do you know my mother?" Duan Li asked out in panic.


    This question threw the Will a pause in its raging emotion before it exhaled out a deep sigh.


    "Huu.." after the Will calmed itself down forcefully, only then did the mountain slowly stopped shaking, as if it mirrored the emotions of the Grand Immortal himself!


    "It''s nothing.. but the less people know about the future, the better. Or else.. ''time'' would eradicate everyone!" it warned Duan Li sternly.


    The events predetermined by fate should never in the first place be known by others especially the mortal!


    If the Lord of Time were to notice, not only would a whole timeline be purged to avoid paradoxical effect, but existences tied towards the fate of that timeline would also be eradicated!


    The Sovereigns, or Lords of All-Era in the Upper realm of Heaven, were existences of order. Although they were extremely powerful, they were devoid of conscience, and their actions was the result of the laws in place without the slightest iota of discrimination affecting their judgement!


    Therefore, eradicating a whole timeline, which includes countless of worlds, universe and multiverse would never moved them the slightest if it meant to adhere to the laws of Heaven!


    This was why even top notch existences like him, the Grand Immortal and the Endless Monarch were wary and had to do the things they did in the utmost secrecy!


    After all, athough they do not fear them, but once those Lords were to take action, the resulting ripple effect would affect even the entirety of the Lower and Higher realm of Heavens!


    "I.. I understand!" Duan Li replied, even though he didn''t exactly know what the Will was thinking.


    The Will nodded over Duan Li''s seriousness. "Good. By the way, you would never scale this mountain in a lifetime with your current ability, so allow me to help."


    With a flick of its finger, the previous majestic and peakless mountain they were on right now instantaneously retracted and was shrunked until it became the size of a small ball which floated on the palm of the Will of the Grand Immortal.


    Shuuu!!


    Waves of green energy spreaded out from the Will before coagulating into that miniature mountain, slowly encassing it within a green sphere!


    "That.. that is..!!" Duan Li was shocked when he saw this object, because he was really familiar with it!


    Isn''t that.. another one of those mysterious pearls?!


    ''This one is emerald colored though and its slightly bigger than the previous two!''


    On the other hand, the Will seemed to chuckle slightly as it shook its head before making a comment, "Even with my powers, this is the best I could do in compressing it huh.."


    It was a weird sight, as the tone it used when it said that was both helplessness and pride at the same time.


    "Give me your hand." the Will commanded, and before Duan Li could even think and react, his right hand had already rose on its own!


    Shuu!!


    The Emerald mysterious pearl shot forward as it entered through Duan Li''s right hand and slipped somewhere into his lower Dantian before disappearing without a trace altogether.


    "You have cleared this trial, now go on and face the fourth, which is your final trial. I believe.. it would be the most difficult battle you would ever face. So let me give you a piece of advice.."


    "The present is but static, like a frozen pond in the winter. You are the future, so do not be impeded by a mere ice!"


    Huh?


    The hell are you saying?


    Before Duan Li could even ask what the latter meant, the Will had already disappeared without a trace!


    "Damn it.. I have a few questions that I want to ask too.." Duan Li sighed.


    ''That Emerald mysterious pearl..''


    Duan Li was not sure what the origin of the Golden and Crimson mysterious pearls were before, but now he was sure that the Grand Immortal knows about it!


    The next time he appears, I''ll ask him..


    In the next moment, a familiar voice was calling out to him from the distance.


    "Heyyy...!!"


    It was Xuan Tian, the elderly man that got repulsed away by the red temple gate before, and he was jogging towards Duan Li with a haggard breathing.


    "What do you want now?" Duan Li said with an annoyed tone as he scanned his surrounding.


    I''ve already cleared the trial, so why is the silver vortex not appearing yet?


    "You ungrateful brat! Why do you speak to your elders in such a manner? Hmph! Where is the mountain? Why does it disappeared so suddenly?" the elderly man harrumphed.


    Veins popped out of Duan Li''s temple and he had the urge to give this fraudster old man a good kick!


    It was out of his good manners that he hadn''t yet done so when this old man had repeatedly answered his questions in a round about way trying to sound poetic and mysterious.


    In fact, Duan Li had suspicion that this old man didn''t know any jack sh*t at all!


    "I''ve destroyed it with a single punch because it was so annoying climbing it. What? You want to get punched too? Stop asking so many questions! Aren''t you tired with the hundreds of questions you''ve asked me before?"


    The elderly man was stumped for a while before replying in anger, "Do you take me for a fool? Hurry up and tell me!"


    "That''s right I do! So what can you do about it huh?" Duan Li retorted as he put on a thug face.


    "Y-You..!!" the elderly man was clearly taken aback by Duan Li''s brazenness.


    He hadn''t encountered such a rude young person before!


    "Hmph! In view of my magnanimity, I will turn a blind eye towards your rudeness! Still, if you want to leave this place, you would have to tell me what I want to kno-"


    BAMM!!


    Duan Li threw a full force punch which missed the old man by a hair''s width.


    BOOOMMM!!


    A huge chunk of the ground behind the old man was blown into dust by the resulting impact of Duan Li''s fist!


    "You think I have time for your game? If you don''t get me out of here right now, do you believe that I won''t pummel you to death?" Duan Li''s voice turned cold at this moment.


    I have tolerated your insolence before, but now you dare to threaten me?


    "I.. I.. okay.." the elderly man immediately cowered after that showcase of strength and waved his hand.


    Wongg!!


    A silver vortex appeared and Duan Li threw him a last look before stepping into that vortex.


    "I-It was subtle.. but I can feel the powers of the Grand Immortal in that fists of his!" the old man said shortly after Duan Li left and swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Shuu...


    Slowly, his corporeal form turned physical, and it was now apparent that he was actually someone in disguise!


    "Just who in the world is he?"


    ...

 242 Announcement!

    @@


    Hello people, so from now on I have decided to publish my chapter for my patrons only (until I can get a stable release again). This is due to several things:-


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    (1) My schedule right now is incredibly busy being a teacher at tuition school especially when its nearing the final exam right now.


    (2) I''ve dedicated my time for a whole 10 months now on this novel, and I don''t plan to stop. However, my original intention was to monetize this novel initially while giving free chapters to WN as well, but that was before my releases slowed down, giving no special privileges to my paying patrons left.


    (3) Therefore, I''ve decided that it would be better to focus on my patrons first and will get back to publish here when I have some good stocks on my patre.on. in the future!


    But if you really want to read it when it is released, hop onto my patre.on by searching my name Ramzey Ramzo and you can join the exclusive community there to read just by registering the lowest tier which is only $5.00 per month! :)


    ps: that would surely boost my energy for writing if I see my patrons amount increased lol.


    Lastly, a million thanks to my loyal readers here on WN and I am sorry that it had come to this. When the day comes where I publish my releases here once more again, hopefully, I will see everyone here again.


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    RR Author.@@

 243 Super Announcement!

    @@


    Alright, I''ve decided a release schedule for WN here:


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    (1) Starting on the 30th of September 2019, I will start releasing free chapters again here on webnovel!


    (2) Release rate would be 3 chapters per week, which is every Monday, Wednesday and Friday!


    (3) That means, there would roughly be 12 to 15 chapters per month released here on WN!


    (4) Furthermore, 30th of September is also the anniversary of which I''ve started writing this novel last year, so yay!


    (5) Thank you to my loyal readers here on webnovel who still voted everyday despite me being on hiatus here. But worry no more, for the day of salvation will soon arrive!


    All hail UIU!!!!!@@

 244 Recap first!

    Summary of the Second region events!


    So to get everyone back on track, Duan Li is now at the Second region of the Eternal maze. Shortly after entering the maze, Duan Li''s realm had levelled up all the way to the Pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm.


    Next, he discovered that he could absorb Qi essence directly from their element source such as fire or water and convert them to spiritual Qi with the help of his two Elemental Origin Spirit, the Dragon Dilong and Zhulong! (Both are Earth and Fire dragon respectively).


    The Guardian of the Second Region, Dugu Liubai, decided to observe Duan Li from the distance as he watched the latter''s antics; From evolving Bulu (the Komodo that he rescued before) into a humanoid monster, into leading a tribal war between the Komodosaurus and the Iguanasaurus, with the former species emerging victory.


    Just before the whole species of Iguanasaurus was to be wiped out, the Guardian decided to step in and stop the massacre for the sake of balance. This is when Duan Li finally met the latter.


    Throughout their way, Duan Li had mastered a new fist art called the Doomsday Calamity Fists, an especially destructive fist art that could threaten even the immortals on the First Shackle. However, due to the intense spiritual Qi fluctuation in that technique, Duan Li would suffer serious injury if he used it, unless he found more ways to temper his body to withstand the backlash of the technique.


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    After that, Duan Li entered the maze and found that he needed to complete 4 sets of trial which comprises of the four corresponding color on a stone tablet; bronze, copper, silver and finally gold. Each of these trials were located inside a looped Crafted Space called Compounded Space, and there was practically no way to escape unless one were to clear them.


    During the Bronze trial, Duan Li had defeated thousands of puppets until eventually he mastered the Martial True Instinct technique, a technique where the body and mind move instinctively to block physical attacks in its most efficient form.


    In the Copper trial, Duan Li was faced with defeating Killerworms. However, the Queen was awakened and an epic fight ensued. But before Duan Li managed to finish the fight, the Will of the Grand Immortal appeared and asked Duan Li to forgive the latter at which Duan Li agrees, adding new companions for his future adventures.


    In the Silver trial, Duan Li had to ascend a peakless mountain gradually as he answered quizzes after each distance he ascended, posed by the trial master called Xuan Tian. Eventually, the trial master ran out of questions and the Will of the Grand Immortal made reappearance once more. The latter shrunked the peakless mountain into another mysterious pearl, which was then absorbed by Duan Li, the Emerald mysterious pearl!


    Finally, the next chapter will continue on this saga, with Duan Li facing the final trial, the Gold Trial!

 245 Chapter 238: The final trial!

    Wongg!!


    Duan Li stepped out from the Silver vortex with his face full of questions. Not only did his ability, the ''All-Seeing Eye'' was the same with the modified version of the Soul Sense ability of the Grand Immortal, it seemed that the latter somehow knew about his mother as well!


    ''Is it perhaps only a coincidence? Or maybe that the Grand Immortal possessed one of the Mysterious pearls too?''


    Hmm..


    Was he thinking too much into it?


    Shaking his head, he decided to put the matter at the back of his mind. Right now, he was most curious about the new Emerald mysterious pearl that was gifted to him by the Will of the Grand Immortal.


    ''All-Seeing Eye activate!''


    After a moment or so, Duan Li had finally finished inspecting his internal body before he let out a sigh of helplessness.


    "As expected, the Emerald mysterious pearl had hidden itself deeply like the other two pearls, such that even I can''t seem to locate their rough whereabouts.."


    Hais!


    What the heck is this, am I the owner of this body or not? As tenants living inside my body, aren''t they supposed to at least introduce themselves to me?


    "At this point, I only seemed to roughly know about the two abilities from the Golden mysterious pearl, which was the ''All-Seeing Eye'' and the time slowing down ability.."


    Not to mention, perhaps there are other abilities that I still am yet to be aware about..


    Sigh..


    "As for the Crimson mysterious pearl, it wasn''t apparent at first, but now I am pretty sure that it is slowly changing the purity of my blood!" Duan Li thought.


    He obtained the Crimson mysterious pearl within the depths of the Graveyard lake before, or also known as the blood pool where the countless deceased monsters laid their eternal rest as their blood essence flowed and mixed together.


    With such a place as its original habitat, it would be no wonder if it possessed such means to purify his blood.


    Blood purity was something that was quite crucial to determine the overall quality of a cultivator. Unlike bloodline, which endows its host with unique abilities, blood purity equates to an elevated innate potential!


    What this means was that, the more purer one''s blood were, the more in tune they would be with nature, resulting to an easier time with their cultivation!


    "My blood was already quite potent before, and now that I have already reached the pinnacle of the Core formation realm, I wonder what sort of effects my blood would have onto others.." he couldn''t help but to thought of this.


    Only time would tell..


    Looking at the stone platform that was at the center of the gazebo, Duan Li could see that three of the symbols had already lit with the bronze, copper and silver color respectively.


    "Only the last symbol is left.. I guess it should be gold colored?" he said as he made a guess.


    "Judging from the statue, it seemed to be plainer than the others.. just what could the final trial be?" he wondered.


    Without wasting any more time, he quickly stepped onto the gazebo and pressed the fourth symbol, after which a golden glow was reflected off into the distance and connected with the last statue, its color now shimmering in gold!


    "As expected.." Duan Li said before a golden vortex appeared in front of that statue


    Time to end this..


    Wongg!!


    ...


    Wongg!!


    Stepping out from the golden vortex, Duan Li soon found himself to be in a familiar place.


    A small house by a calm lake, the swaying grass by the gentle wind, and the soothing chirps of birds that gave that tranquility vibe..


    There is no mistaking it!


    "This place.. its.. actually my home?" he said with a surprised look.


    This was the house where he and his mother lived in back in the Xuan Village!


    Why am I here?


    However, after observing the place for a while, he soon shook his head.


    "No this cannot be real.. this must be an illusion!" he thought to himself.


    Just by the fact that he was still undergoing the final trial, it went to say that it would be impossible for it to send him back home scot-free!


    Tap! Tap!


    Suddenly, a figure walked out of the house. At first, the silhouette wasn''t clear due to the shadow casting on it, but then,the appearance of this person immediately threw Duan Li into a big gasp once it stepped onto the light!


    "Eh? You.. who are you?!" Duan Li bellowed out as he put himself into a combat ready stance.


    That hair, eyes, style and extremely handsome face..


    This figure was no other than the exact copy or replica of himself!


    "Me? No.. the real question should be.. who are you?" the figure replied with a rhetoric sentence along with a confident smile.


    Hearing this, Duan Li furrowed his brows.


    So, we are going to play this now? Let''s see who can do it better..


    "Stop trying to sound so mysterious. You know who I am.. I am your father!" Duan Li answered with his tone as if it was a matter of fact.


    Puu!!


    The clone had not expected that Duan Li would gave him such a blatant lie with a straight face that he almost keeled over!


    Damn it!


    Composing himself, he forced a stiffled chuckle.


    "Wrong answer.. I am you and you are me!" the clone said imposingly.


    According to the script that he usually used, this sentence would throw the original into a state of confusion!


    After that, he would slowly trick the original into accepting him so that he could suck out their powers and be complete!


    However, what sort of man was Duan Li?


    He would never play by the rules of his opponent, thus he snorted and replied with made-up rage instead.


    "Insolent child! You dare to play around with your father here?! Are you looking for a beating? Now where is your aunt? Tell her that your father here needs a foot massage from his long travel!"


    Puu!!


    What beating? What aunt? Foot massage? What the hell is going on here?


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    Noticing that temporary lapse in the other party''s train of thought via its dazed look, Duan Li sniggered in his heart as he took advantage of this and released his aura!


    BOOMMM!!


    "What are you standing around for?! Go now!!" Duan Li shouted out with an angry face.


    "Y-Yes father!!" the Clone straightened its back and replied instinctively as it was shocked by Duan Li''s shout that carried the temper of a real father somehow.


    As it ran back to the house in a fluster to search for this ''aunt'' of his that does not even exist, his foot stopped as he gritted his teeth in a sudden realization.


    D-Damn it! I''ve been tricked!


    At the back, Duan Li couldn''t hold himself any longer and a momentary ''pfft'' slipped out from his mouth before noticing that the copy of him was looking at his direction with a darkened face.


    Thus, Duan Li swiftly assumed back his ''fatherly'' disposition!


    Cough! Cough!


    "What are you looking at me for with that face? What gall! Do a hundred pushups and beat yourself with a bamboo stick on the face for fifty times!" Duan Li harrumphed as he clasped his hands behind his back.


    The clone could no longer contain its rage when it heard this as it bursted out in madness.


    "Screw you!" it bellowed out and slapped out a palm attack.


    Nine Palms Slapping Ocean!


    BOOMM!!


    All along, it was his job to confuse the original, but today, he got to taste his own medicine!


    Therefore, this sheer embarrassment lead him to forego all those scripts to immediately attack the other party!


    On the other hand, seeing this attack, Duan Li raised his brows in surprise before nodding in comprehension.


    So, not only can this thing copy my external appearance, even the techniques it used was similar to mine as well?


    This could be tricky..


    ...

 246 Chapter 239: A world of pain!

    BOOM!!


    Duan Li swiftly slapped the incoming palm attack away with a similar one, causing them both to cancel each other out.


    "You dare to attack your father? Insolent child!" Duan Li bellowed out.


    Puu!


    Veins popped out of the skin of his clone as it heard this and shouted in return, "Shut up! Don''t you berate my intelligence! I am still you and not an inferior!"


    The clone had never met with an original that was as shameless as this one. Even if he was caught red-handed trying to lure the other party out, must the latter be so insulting so as to still put up this farce?


    BOOMM!!


    This time, the clone used the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor and similarly, Duan Li punched out the same kind of attack too.


    BOOMM!!


    "If you repent now, your father here will find it in himself to still forgive you! Otherwise, don''t blame me for being ruthless!" Duan Li replied with a strict fatherly tone that was reprimanding his child.


    "Now where is your Aunt?"


    His outward facial expression was that of indifference, but inside, he was almost bursting out into laughter!


    You think you have what it takes to scam me? Amateur!


    Watch how I will play this role until even the Heavens begin to split apart!


    "ARRGHHHHH!!" the clone could no longer tolerate Duan Li''s harassment and exploded into sheer madness, fists after fists was being launched from him towards Duan Li one after another.


    Aunt your mother!


    BOOMM! BOOMM!!


    On the other hand, seeing the enraged state of his copy, Duan Li chuckled as he continued to analyze this copy of his.


    "Hmm.. it seemed as though he is able to use all my skill arts and techniques.. but its mastery over them is only about ten percent at most.."


    Was this the extent of power that it could bring out?


    While Duan Li appeared to be playing around casually, he was actually quite serious. If the other party was a clone that could indeed copy him, he would be in a real trouble. This was because he knew better himself of what his full capabilities were, and if this clone could emulate everything, there was no way he would be able to beat it easily if it were to go all out!


    If there was one thing that assured him though, it was that this copy of his was quite a retard.


    However, Duan Li soon began to notice something alarming!


    "Hmm? Its mastery over my techniques and skill arts seems to be.. increasing?" he thought to himself as his eyes narrowed upon this realization.


    This is bad!


    "HAHAHA! I am beginning to becoming more accustomed to your powers! I must admit, even though you are a bastard, you are the most powerful original I have ever copied!" the clone laughed out loud as it continued to rain down onto Duan Li with a myriad of fists and palm attack!


    With every punch and palm attack it threw out, the damage output also began to increase steadily over time!


    15 percent..


    30 percent..


    50 percent..


    ''This power is exhilarating!'' the clone thought to itself, feeling extremely astonished!


    I feel that I could bring out more of this power coursing in me! Let me try it out!


    "AAAAHHHHHHH!!" the clone roared out towards the sky as its spiritual Qi cycled furiously along its meridians and Qi pathways!


    BOOMM!!


    The world began to tremble as Duan Li''s copy spiked out an extremely powerful aura! It was apparent now that its presence had completely changed in a single instant!


    "Well.. sh*t.." Duan Li felt goosebumps as he stared at the form that his copy had just assumed!


    It''s the Super Mode!


    Bzzztt.. Bzzztt!!


    Hints of lightning crackled around its body as its hair turned golden.


    Seemingly to be shocked by the enormous power that it held in its new form, the clone was dazed for a short moment before laughing out loud like a maniac.


    "HAHAHAHA! Awesome! Perfect! To think that you had this kind of power in you! And I can feel that there are still more powers I am yet to tap into!"


    When the clone punched out towards Duan Li with this new form of his, Duan Li had no choice but to repel that incoming attack with the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor at 80 percent of its full power!


    BOOOMMM!!


    "Damn it!" Duan Li cursed inwardly, but he did not let it show on his face. Instead, with a casual wave of his hand, he bellowed towards the other party.


    "Foolish son, you have activated your super mode? So what?" Duan Li clasped his hand behind his back nonchalantly and continued, "I''m the one who taught you that technique after you cried and begged to me for seven days and seven night! Had you not been my son, I would have whipped your a*s for kneeling in front of the entrance while disturbing your neighbors with your loud cries!"


    PUU!!


    The majestic disposition that it radiated out a moment ago after going into Super mode was gone without a trace now. In addition, the clone almost spat out its blood from hearing what Duan Li just said.


    "Screw you! I am not your son! I am you, don''t you hear me? Are you trying to test my patience? Shall I kill you now and be the original myself?!" the clone spoke out loud in between his gritted teeth.


    He was on the verge of going insane! This original of him insisted that he was his son when in fact he was not!


    "I am... I am.."


    Eh? Huh?


    The clone was just about to state its identity out of sheer anger, but a sudden bout of sharp pain struck its head, cutting off its words.


    Of course, Duan Li that was attentively looking at his clone for an opening did not miss this strange happenings.


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    Hmm?


    Could it be?


    A theory came to his mind, and he immediately whirred into action!


    "It seems that you don''t remember anything anymore.. you.. you''ve gone totally senile my son.. this, it is truly a pity! Hais!" Duan Li shook his head with a lamenting look.


    "Y-You..!!" the clone had one of its hand clutching at its head, hoping to ease the pain. However, the vicious tongue of its original that was posing as its father did not seem to want to cooperate at this moment and added more headache instead!


    "What you? Don''t you remember? Five years ago.. you were playing by the hill when a group of bandits suddenly ambushed you and hit your head! You were in a state of coma and only recently woke up!" Duan Li quickly assumed the face of a worried father.


    Putong!


    This revelation caused the clone to fall from the air into the ground with a loud bang, looking extremely wretched, covered with dust.


    Furthermore, its head started to feel even more painful! The more it tried to recall who it was, the sharper the pain seemed to become!


    "Look at you now.. you have just recovered and you are already straining yourself! Even in your coma before, you behaved strangely on bed. At one time you are calling yourself someone and the next you said you were another person!" Duan Li pushed on.


    "Shut up.. don''t speak anymore..!" the clone writhed in pain as it clutched with both hands on its head.


    What is happening to me?!


    "Every time you are acting like that in your coma, you weren''t able to stop yourself. At least not until I gave you a slap in the face, which would calm you down. Come here, let your father nurse you back to health!"


    Seeing its original quickly approaching, and after hearing that he would be ''slapped'' to get better, the clone shivered and roared out, "Don''t you dare to come any closer! I''m warning you!"


    However, because the clone was currently writhing on the ground, its threat did not work and a second later, Duan Li was already beside him. As if his face was full of agony about the thing that he was about to do, Duan Li gritted his teeth and gave his ''son'' a tight slap.


    Pah!


    "Son, do you remember now who you are?" Duan Li said with an expectant face.


    "How dare you.." the clone was again fumed by its original slapping its face and was about to curse him. But Duan Li immediately sent another slap before it could even utter a single word in retort.


    Pah!


    Pah!


    Pah!


    ...

 247 Chapter 240: The one thing it cannot copy!

    "Have you recovered yet?" Duan Li asked with a worried look.


    "..." the clone was totally speechless and looked extremely wretched with its swollen red cheeks.


    Recover your mother!


    It was your fault that I got a severe headache initially, and to make matter worse, you even claimed your ''slaps'' will make me better!


    Are you blind? Am I any better? I look no different than a swollen pig right now!


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    Better your head!


    Better your grandfather! Your grandmother! Your uncle!


    I curse your whole ancestors!


    At this moment, the clone had the most devastating emotional breakdown it ever had. Thankfully, the headache had subsided for now, but it was definitely not due to the ''slaps'' of the other party.


    He had copied countless cultivators and still retained some of their memories, as a result, whenever he tried to recall his true self, the fragmented memories in his brain seemed to seethe out frantically!


    He now realized that as long as he didn''t try to recall who he was originally, the pain would subside, but at the same time, he felt really sad about it.


    How long has it been since then? It was too long to count. After all, this place has been in existence for millenniums!


    Still, this was the role he always played in this Crafted Space. Knowing his real identity does not matter anymore, for he was always a clone for as far as he had remembered, the clone let out a subtle sigh.


    However, due to these mixed emotions welling up inside him, his tongue accidentally let out a slip of something that he shouldn''t have said.


    "If only you continued to repel my attacks instead of continuously spouting some garbage, I would be able to adapt more to how you use your powers and be closer to your original potential.."


    Obviously, at this moment he quickly realized that he just messed things up and immediately shut his mouth. But what was already said couldn''t be taken back. Thus, he couldn''t help but to curse his damned mouth.


    Hearing what his clone just said, Duan Li showed a blank look for a moment in surprise, before a crafty smile crept up on his face, like a gambler that just won his luck.


    Jackpot!


    "Oh? So that''s how you increased your powers.." Duan Li said in realization.


    Previously, because I wanted to show him that a copy would always be inferior, I ended up using a slightly more powerful but similar attacks to repel him each time to exert my dominance..


    But, it turns out that he was actually observing and assimilating the knowledge on how I use my skills!


    What a sneaky little fellow!


    If that was indeed the case, then I shouldn''t be using any more of my powers. Otherwise, things would definitely be blown out of proportions if he could tap into 100 percent of my true powers!


    Duan Li''s mind swiftly analyzed their previous blows, and he made a rough guess in his head.


    He should be at least 50 to 60 percent of my full capabilities right now..


    On the other hand, realizing that he was an idiot, the clone no longer held itself in ceremony. With a loud yell, his spiritual Qi within his meridians and Qi pathways rocketed once more!


    This time, it was even more intense!


    "AHHHHHHHHH!!"


    BOOMMM!!


    The ground began to crack, the water within the lake started to boil and evaporate, and the thatched house beside it crumbled down.


    Duan Li''s clone had entered Super Mode 2!


    "So.. this is the kind of pressure I was radiating out while in that form?" Duan Li was surprised with his eyes twitching.


    With his Tetra Soul Sense, he could feel the pressure that his clone was pressing onto him right now, it was extremely massive and suffocating, akin to being impeded within a deep trench of the ocean!


    All these while, it was him being the center of this power, but now that he was the spectator for once, he finally realized how incredulous this ability of his were.


    It was totally overpower!


    To put this into another perspective that could be understood, his base form was already powerful enough, such that even Golden Core realm experts would find trouble dealing with him.


    Then, Super mode elevated this ability further by several times, and back when Duan Li was still in the Foundation Establishment realm, he could already beat Cao Tengfei of the Dark Sect into a swollen pig in this form.


    Then what about Super Mode 2?


    Well, in his current Core Formation realm, if he were to use Super Mode 2 form to its maximum potential, then even an immortal on the level of Dugu Liubai, the Guardian of the Second region, would pack his bags and run away!


    This was a level of power that should not be trifled with, and could be summarized into a single word, Powerful!


    If there was a single flaw to this Super Mode 2, its that stamina and spiritual Qi would be burned like crazy!


    Duan Li''s clone then ascended to the sky as it looked down at Duan Li with a pair of wrathful eyes.


    "Don''t think that I don''t know what you are thinking. You thought that you could beat me as long as I don''t reach the same potential as yours and you are planning to hold back while using other means." the clone spoke in disdain.


    It then continued, "Now that I am in this form, even if it is only at 50 percent of its true output right now, there is no way you can beat me unless you push yourself!"


    Duan Li narrowed his eyes upon hearing this.


    This copy of his was right.


    After he discovered that this clone could only increase its power output in relation to the amount of output that he showed it, he had thought about using the Little Sword, Di Rou and all his pets to deal with the clone while he suppressed it.


    But now, he could no longer do that.


    Super Mode 2 could even push immortals to be serious, thus a collaborative attack would now be useless against it.


    This was similar to how a million ants working together could not hope to stop the stomping of an elephant!


    "Damn it, I accidentally provoked him a little too much.. now it won''t be easy to deal with him anymore unless I am in the same form as him!" Duan Li thought.


    What to do?


    Then, Duan Li''s glance caught something that he didn''t managed to notice before because he was too busy cosplaying as the latter''s father.


    He saw that this clone of his did not have a copy of Little Sword dangling on its right earlobe! Furthermore, it doesn''t seem to have a copy of his black spatial ring too!


    Could it be?


    Thinking about this, Duan Li no longer hesitate as a glint of determination flashed in his eyes.


    I could only bet on this probability!


    "Very well, you want me to show you what my true power is like if I am at my full potential? I shall endulge you."


    Raising his palm towards the sky, the clouds began to turn dark, reminiscent of an impending thunderstorm!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    "What is going on?" the clone swiftly looked up at the changed sky with wary.


    What kind of ability is this? Why didn''t I know of it?


    One has to know that my specialty involves copying 100 percent of my original host''s skill arts and techniques without a single flaw, but no matter how he tried to recall if he ever had such a technique, he couldn''t!


    Did he just made a new technique on the spot?


    But that is impossible!


    Noticing the awful look on the face of his clone, Duan Li chuckled.


    "It seems that my previous thoughts were correct. While you did managed to copy all my abilities down to my handsome appearance, there is one thing that you cannot copy!"


    The clone was perturbed after it heard this and couldn''t help but to grit its teeth upon realization of what the other party meant.


    "No.. that cannot be.. this Crafted Space.. no, the whole Eternal Maze would not allow you to use items stored inside another space!!" the clone shouted out in total disbelief.


    "HAHAHAHA! Who do you think I am?" Duan Li laughed out. At this moment, his presence was extremely domineering, and a hint of arrogance could be heard from his tone.


    "I am the one.. who challenges the very fate itself!" Duan Li then bellowed;


    "Come to me, My All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe!"


    With this shout that rattled the entire heaven, flashes of golden lightning could be seen bolting through the sky from all the eight cardinal directions!


    BOOMM!!


    Congregrating on the center right above Duan Li, as if the instrument of armageddon itself had appeared on the lands of the mortal, this bold lightning descended down with a tempest momentum that could annihilate planets and stars and landed onto Duan Li''s right palm!


    BOOOMMM!!


    ...

 248 Chapter 241: Both at full power!

    Flashes of lightning and crackling explosions of thunder were running rampant across the sky, that the whole scene was akin to the coming of an apocalypse as the Eternal Great Axe descended down!


    "W-What is that..?" the clone gasped with horror as it stared at that Great Axe resting on Duan Li''s shoulder in disbelief.


    Perhaps due to it copying Duan Li, its sense of perception was far more sensitive than the other cultivator that it had copied in the past, making him more aware of the threat posed by the Great Axe onto him!


    Without hesitation, he immediately retreated a few steps to the back as his eyes flashed with extreme wariness!


    "You.. cheater!" the clone then lashed out in full indignation.


    Previously, he had thought that this original of his would resort to some underhanded means to defeat him, and that was why he quickly went into Super Mode 2, simply because petty tricks would not work on this powerful form, even if it was only at 50 percent of its full power!


    After all, in front of true power, everything would be rendered useless!


    However, who would have thought that his original would have such a powerful weapon that could be summoned at will?


    Just by looking at the exterior appearance of that Great Axe that was dangling with lightning around it, he could already sense the devastating might within it!


    "Cheater?" Duan Li''s brows and mouth twitched.


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    You are the one who were copying me and my abilities! Yet, just because you don''t have and can''t copy my stuff too, you called me out as a cheater?


    This copy of mine is truly going way overboard now!


    "Fine then. Allow me to demonstrate you my full power so that you can learn from this father of yours. As for this weapon of mine, its only granted that a fake would never be able to wield it!" Duan Li harrumphed as he channeled his spiritual Qi inside his meridians and Qi pathways furiously.


    BOOMMM!!


    "This is the true power of Super mode 1!" Duan Li said with his hands clasped behind his back, his demeanor was like a father showing his son the proper steps to soar the heavens!


    "..."


    The clone didn''t say anything and ignored Duan Li''s sarcastic intimidation, as only its eyes were staring intently at the flow of Qi within Duan Li, trying his best to swiftly understand on how to tap into the full prowess of the first form of the Super mode.


    A few breaths later, he nodded in comprehension as he finished assimilating the method to harness the full potential of the first form!


    However, at the same time, the clone smiled in disdain.


    "Idiot! You are looking down on me for too much.. you will soon regret it!!" thought the clone as it grit its teeth while fuming in rage.


    He then bellowed out, "Hah! What''s so great about the full power of the first form? Its nothing but garbage right now! Why don''t you show me the full power of the second form too? Or perhaps.. you are too scared of me!" the clone intentionally tried to taunt and intimidate Duan Li so that the latter would show him what he wanted.


    Honestly though, he only said that because he was infuriated by the latter. He never expected that Duan Li would really show him the full might of the second form, because that would be a truly counter-intuitive move, and definitely a foolish one. If it was him, he would never show it either no matter what!


    But, Duan Li''s following move was contrary to this expectations of his!


    With a casual tone like an understanding father, Duan Li chuckled for a little before replying, "Relax, as your father, how could I bear to be so thrifty with my own pitiful son? I could only hope that you learn a lot from me."


    Puu!!


    This accursed fellow! He was still playing around with me!


    To hell with you!


    "Watch!" Duan Li said as his aura peaked into a new heights!


    Bzzztt.. Bzzztt!!


    BOOMMM!!


    The ground beneath him shattered to pieces as dense congregations of blue lightning danced around him, his aura surged to a whole new level, dwarfing the first form by at least fifty times!


    "W-What power..!" the clone subconsciously muttered as it felt the rattling might that was enough to shake even immortals!


    Who would have thought that the real potential of the second form could be this powerful?


    Therefore, at this moment, the Clone broke out into a shrill laughter!


    "HAHAHAHA! You are a fool! But I must commend you for daring to show me your full power despite knowing what I can do!" said the clone with elation and disdain apparent on his face.


    It didn''t took him long to assimilate the knowledge on how to tap a hundred percent of the potential of the second form by observing Duan Li''s Qi cycle.


    In the next moment, its aura spiked through the sky, and with a loud bellow, the clone managed to unleash the full power of the second form!


    BOOOMMM!!


    With the two of them unleashing an insane amount of pressure that pressed against one another, visible sparks exploded out here and there, creating chaos in the harmony of space.


    "What are you grinning so smugly about my son? Even if you now have access to the full power of my second form, I still have this Eternal Great Axe with me, thus I am more stronger than you by at least ten times!" Duan Li snorted.


    Hearing this, the Clone shook its head before laughing out loud once more. At the sight of this, Duan Li could also not help but to shook his head and sighed.


    Hais!


    "My son, I never expected that after experiencing my full power, your head would turn bonkers! Clearly, you are not ready for this level of power yet.. haii!"


    Puuu!!


    "Shut up! What makes you think that I turned crazy?! I just found it really funny, because you seemed to think that my ability was only copying? How naive!" the clone said.


    Duan Li narrowed his eyes when he heard this as he got a strange bad feeling, "What do you mean?" he couldn''t help but to ask.


    Could it be that his copy also has other abilities other than copying?


    If it is really that way.. then this is really bad..


    "I am saying that you have just made a terrible mistake. You were arrogant and celebrated your victory long before you could even defeat me!" the clone said in a sarcastic tone.


    It then continued, "You thought that it doesn''t matter even if you showed me your full strength for me to learn and copy, because you have other supplementary means to further increase your strength!"


    "Therefore, let me tell you that... you are not the only one!"


    The clone suddenly took off a necklace that was in the shape of a talisman paper.


    Swish!


    "He tored it?" Duan Li said as the latter''s next action immediately made him feel the goosebumps!


    The clone then crept up a sinister smile before dark matter, similar to a blotch of ink, suddenly bursted forth from beneath its feat, swallowing its body whole as if a raging black inferno!


    "SEAL RELEASE!"


    BOOOMMMM!!


    "Ughh!!" Duan Li had to take a few steps back in retreat from the pressure with a pale countenance.


    The aura of his clone.. it was getting stronger!


    This is bad..


    ...

 249 Chapter 242: Deadlock!

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    "Hold up! Hold up! Don''t go all crazy you two!" Dugu Liubai that was watching this scene through his projection stone shrieked in horror as he quickly stood up.


    Right now, since both Duan Li and his clone was at Super Mode 2, their combined aura was far too intense for the Crafted Space to withstand!


    This was evidenced by the numerous cracks and distortions in space that were already forming around them!


    After all, the Crafted Space was made with Foundation Establishment realm cultivators in mind, and it could not possibly withstand the barrage of intense pressure from auras on the immortal realm level!


    At least, that was their current battle prowess right now.


    "If they clash right now, the whole Crafted Space will break apart and rupture!"


    I must do something!


    A ruptured Crafted Space was something that could not be survived by those below the Omnipresence realm state. Their bodies would quickly experience the process of accelerated aging and de-aging spontaneously, creating a ''tearing'' phenomena that would eventually disintegrate them to dust!


    He was especially worried for Duan Li and not so much for the clone. After all, the essence of the Clone was nothing but a paper talisman!


    However by now, after all the things that he saw was happening around Duan Li, he knew better that the young man''s identity and fate was not that simple at all!


    If he were to allow harm to befall on Duan Li under his watch right now, who knew what kind of repercussions it would create?


    Without hesitation, he flicked his wrist and a jade token appeared on his palm. This was a special jade token that could be used by the Guardians of a region within the Eternal Maze to enter the mazes under their jurisdiction!


    "If I use this token, I will get a severe backlash in my cultivation which will not recover for several decades.." he thought to himself.


    For cultivators, the most important thing to them was their cultivation. If they could not improve their cultivation for decades, it would be a life worse than death!


    Just as he was about to utilized the function of that jade token, a voice suddenly spoke out that immediately halted his action!


    "Stop."


    This voice sounded ethereal and otherworldly, such that when it reverberated across the sky, the entire environment turned silent and all the animals and monsters on the island prostrated themselves to the ground as if it was the most natural thing to do!


    "T-This..!!" Dugu Liubai''s face paled and he quickly single-kneeled to the ground.


    There was only one entity in the entire world which could induce a phenomena as such!


    "Dugu Liubai greets the Lord, Grand Immortal of the Eternal Maze!" he quickly said with fervent and excitement in his voice.


    "Un." the voice replied casually.


    Then, an ethereal figure formed beside him, sending all his body hair to stand on end as he shivered.


    It was the Will of the Grand Immortal!


    "Your willingness to sacrifice yourself in order to help the boy is commendable. But I shall take over from now on." the Will said as its figure radiated out an air of inviolable dominance!


    This was the kind of aura that one would never dare to second-guess and had no choice but to submit to, thus Dugu Liubai swiftly replied, "Yes, Grand Immortal!"


    Then, the Will of the Grand Immortal made a move. With a flick of its finger, the unstable space of the Crafted Space where Duan Li and the clone were right now began to stabilized itself.


    Seeing this, Dugu Liubai''s eyes widened in astonishment.


    "To think that the Grand Immortal had not only fixed the Crafted Space but also upgraded it at the same time in a matter of instant with just a casual flick of a finger.. just how powerful are those on the realm of Celestials?!" he thought to himself as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    This is true power!


    At this moment, his respect for the Grand Immortal grew to the point of worshipping the latter.


    ...


    Within the Crafted Space of the final trial..


    "Hmm? The Crafted Space has mended itself together?" the Clone said as it analyzed its surroundings with wary in his eyes.


    Duan Li also noticed this and couldn''t help but to nod.


    The reason why they were hesitant to start their brawl was because of the condition of the space before. However now, that was no longer a concern.


    He deduced that the only person who could mend the space back together and even strengthened it at the same time like that was either Dugu Liubai, the Guadian of the Second region, or the Will of the Grand Immortal, with the latter being more probable.


    After all, he had witnessed himself the means of the Will of the Grand Immortal personally before, compressing a peakless mountain into the size of a single palm..


    That could only be done by someone whom had studied the law of Space to its extremities!


    "Since the space are now more stable to withstand our powers, come then, let''s get this over with." Duan Li beckoned with his hand as he donned a serious look.


    The aura radiating out from his clone right now was even higher than his after that secret means to elevate its strength from before. It meant that the latter was stronger than him by a few notches!


    However, Duan Li wasn''t too concerned about this. He still has some more hidden cards that he could play with should the need arises later on.


    In addition, he wanted to know just how powerful the clone was with a hundred percent of his full capability!


    This in return, would give him a clear gauge of his own strength as he never had the chance to really go all out before, not to mention that he was a lot stronger right now.


    In a sense, this fight in the end was advantageous and will benefit him greatly, given the condition that he could win!


    "Hmph!" the clone snorted and entered a fighting stance.


    Wasting no more idle chat between them, the two then immediately dashed towards one another. The speed they used at this moment was lightning fast, such that after-images were formed behind them along with the exploding sound of sonic booms at where they were before!


    Clenching their left fists, they both punched out at each other on point blank to the face upon contact as if they had agreed upon this before.


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    BOOOOMMMM!!


    Puuu!!


    Blood spurted out from the both of their mouths simultaneously, and their figures were thrown to the back in opposite direction as a result from their clash!


    Kuu!!


    Wiping off the blood from their mouth, they each formed a grin as they stared onto one another with a look of excitement.


    "Not bad!" they said at the same time. It seems as though the initial punch to their face was a test of their strength, which marks the beginning of their fight!


    BOOOMMM!!


    Clashing onto one another once more, explosions after explosions filled up the entire area of the Crafted Space, and each clash would produce deafening booms that would shatter the ground below them!


    BOOMMM!! BOOOMMM!!


    Whenever Duan Li would cleave down with the Eternal Great Axe at point blank, the Clone would use the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor to counter-attack against it. If Duan Li slashed with the axe from a distance, sending waves of sharp Qis'', the Clone would resort to the Nine Swords Thunder Strike to nullified it, and used the Nine Palms Slapping Ocean against any other attacks.


    Observing this, Duan Li nodded approvingly, after all, the fist art has the strongest offensive power, the sword art has the best distance attacks and the palm art was an all-rounder technique!


    Just like this, they continued to battle in this deadlock!


    "It seems that not only this copy of mine has managed to copy all of my techniques and skill arts, it is also able to understand the intricacies in using them!" he thought to himself feeling deeply impressed.


    At first, he hypothesized that his clone would continue to use the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor as it was the strongest skill art of all that he possess, except for his new Doomsday Calamity Fists art that was impractical to be used right now.


    But who could have thought that it was actually able to understand the usage for all of his techniques and skill arts?


    Had it not been for its problematic personality-wise, others might really mistook his copy as him if it were to return to the Jiu Empire!


    "At this rate, before he ran out of spiritual Qi, I might be the one to lose this fight.."


    He had thought that if the clone were to continue using the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor at 100 percent power output, it would only be a matter of time for the clone to run out of juice due to the fact that the skill uses a tremendous amount of spiritual Qi at full power.


    However, he found out now that the clone was actually being quite resourceful! It would only react accordingly and used the minimal amount of output for each of its attacks in order to counter him!


    "Hmph! Its useless for you to wait for my spiritual Qi to run out. In this place, I can suck the spiritual Qi from the surrounding as if it were a part of my breathing! Even though all of your skill arts uses tons of spiritual Qi, I only have to use them at the correct output. With these two, its obvious as to who is the one having the advantage here!" the Clone said with a confident smirk.


    Oh?


    Hearing this, Duan Li suddenly raised his brows and widened his eyes as an idea flashed inside his mind.


    Huehuehue!


    ...

 250 Chapter 243: Beyond the limit!

    If we are talking about sucking spiritual Qi as if it were part of the normal breathing.. then.. I can do it better!


    With a single thought, Duan Li instructed for both of his Elemental Origin Spirit, the dragon Dilong and Zhulong, to appear before him.


    Wengg!!


    "Yes Master?" Dilong and Zhulong swiftly asked with anticipation in their eyes right after they got summoned.


    "I want you both to try and make use of your elemental powers like before, help me suck out the spiritual Qi from any elemental source that you can find here!" Duan Li commanded.


    With an energetic nod, the both of them quickly got to work. Dilong the Earth dragon was perhaps the most useful in this situation, as she could practically extract spiritual Qi from the surrounding plants passively in a continuous stream and channeled it towards Duan Li''s three dantians.


    Zhulong on the other hand, was a Fire dragon. Thus, he could only extract spiritual Qi from fire elements if it was present in the surrounding. Therefore, whenever Duan Li would clash with the clone, the resulting outcome would usually involve in several extreme explosions which he then extracted from.


    As a result, Duan Li whom was previously concerned with his depleting spiritual Qi, could finally exhaled in relief!


    Usually in his base form, he could just ''instant fill'' all of his three Dantians with a single cycle of breathing in and out, but in his current form right now, replenishing his spiritual Qi reserves was not that simple.


    After all, the Super Mode, especially the second form, although will exponentially increase his fighting prowess beyond the realms of mortals, also burns through his spiritual Qi reserves as if there was no tomorrow!


    To put this into an analogy, his base form was similar to that of a bottle of drinking water, and his total spiritual Qi reserves from his 3 Dantians was like a large water retention dam. If he wanted to refill, he only needed to turn the tap water and he will be full within seconds!


    However, in this Super Mode 2, he practically becomes a bottomless sinkhole, forcing the dam to open up all the sluice water gates in order to fill it. Thus, it would only be a matter of time before the whole reservoir would run dry!


    Fortunately, he could modify and adjust the input and output to a certain degree with the help of his All-Seeing eye ability. Otherwise, if it were any other normal person with a single dantian core and without the means to control the ability properly, even if they could unleash Super mode, it would only took a single moment before every fibers in their body to disintegrate into ashes!


    Therefore, for the Clone to be able to hold out for so long could only mean three things; either it had copied the exact replica of Duan Li''s three Dantians, or the spiritual Qi reserves in the surrounding was practically infinite for it to absorb.


    However, if the latter was the case, then Duan Li would definitely be able to detect it and use it to his advantage as well. But, since it wasn''t, this only meant that the Clone had copied his three Dantians and learnt how to control them properly like he did!


    What a terrifying copying ability!


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    "Hmm? The surrounding spiritual Qi.." the Clone thought to itself as it made a frown in the middle of its battle.


    Finding the situation to be weird, he immediately scanned his surroundings.


    "What? How can the spiritual Qi increased by this much?"


    As the one whom had guarded the placesince the beginning of its creation, he knew full well of the ins'' and outs, especially the amount of spiritual Qi contained within the area!


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    However, he found out that the thickness of the spiritual Qi in the surrounding suddenly increased instead of decreasing, which was quite illogical as they had been fighting for quite some time now and has been sucking the spiritual Qi all the time.


    This doesn''t make any sense!


    Noticing the bewildered look on the face of his clone, Duan Li chuckled.


    "What? It can''t be that you think you''re the only one with tricks up your sleeves?" he said with a sarcastic tone.


    Hearing this, the Clone immediately was about to lash out before it thought for a while and laughed out loud.


    "What fool! You increased the amount of spiritual Qi around us? Aren''t you giving me more food to consume?"


    Duan Li shook his head and replied, "You are still too dense, go ahead and check if you can absorb them then!"


    Seeing Duan Li''s confident look, the Clone could not help but to feel wary about the whole situation. Thus, it tried to absorb the spiritual Qi around him more intensely than before.


    "T-This.. I can''t absorb some of the spiritual Qi! This is impossible! How did you do this?" the Clone said with a horrified voice.


    Its impossible for anyone to be able to dictate which spiritual Qi one could not absorb, unless it was within one''s own created realm!


    But none of them were at such a level, after all, creating realms was the unique traits for those that had become celestial beings!


    While the other party was indeed strong, he is not yet at that level.. thus..


    How did he managed to do it?


    "Hahaha! All this father had to do was to just fart, and it will transform to become spiritual Qi! In fact, while this a top secret information that should not be known by others, the origin of spiritual Qi actually comes from my fart!" Duan Li replied with a hearty laugh by the end of his sentence.


    Puuu!!


    This motherf***er!!


    Just die already!


    The clone let out a series of combos and waves of skill arts that further devastates their surrounding in his rage.


    BOOOMMM!! BOOMMM!! BOOOMMM!!


    However, to his astonishment, the more havoc he made, the higher the concentration of spiritual Qi around him seems to become!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was relishing upon this.


    Yes! Attack more! Let me charge myself up to the maximum!


    "Damn it! What is happening here?!" the Clone began to visibly panic. He could feel that not only did his original was able to suck in the normal spiritual Qi, the latter seems to be able to breath in the new form of spiritual Qi that he couldn''t as well!


    Although he still has the advantage of having vast reservoir of spiritual Qi to use, it seems that the other party was gaining similar, if not more unique advantage as well!


    "AHHHHHHHH!!"


    Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts: First Desolation Warring Intent!!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    In its frustration, the Clone further pushed its body beyond the limit with another one of Duan Li''s skill arts to increase its battle prowess!


    "What the... this clone of mine is crazy!" Duan Li widened his eyes as he took a few steps back.


    From his understanding of that particular skill art that he gained from the Emperor, while its exponential effect was far more inferior when compared to the Super mode, if it was stacked on top of it, then one would still be able to increase their fighting prowess by another few folds!


    However, Super Mode was already taxing for the body in itself! In fact, the meridians and Qi pathways were already at two times than its normal maximum capacity on the second form!


    The only reason why their internals did not explode under such load was because Duan Li had crafted new Qi pathways to ease the burden. Pushing it further beyond was just courting death!


    "You, are you planning to kill yourself or what? Stop this!" Duan Li shouted out.


    "Shut up! I will not be defeated by you!" the clone started to experience extreme painful sensation inside its body, akin to being set alight by fire!


    Puu!!


    Blood started to ooze out from its ears, eyes and mouth, even worse, its blood vessels seems to want to pop out from its skin!


    Hey! Hey!


    This is getting overboard! You are turning my figure into something hideous!


    ...

 251 Chapter 244: Need more spiritual Qi!

    Red eyes, swollen muscles and veins popping out from the skin, bloodied orifices..


    "Ahh.. there goes my dashing figure.."


    Duan Li felt like he wanted to cry.


    As the clone had copied practically a hundred percent of his appearance, forming an exact replica of him, whenever Duan Li would look at the other party, it was akin to staring into a mirror and looking at his own self.


    Therefore, as he watched the Clone turning its body into something monstrous, he couldn''t help but to feel quite disgruntled about it.


    "Your strength only increased by a mere 10 percent.. and you traded your appearance for this fraction of power?" Duan Li said helplessly with a disapproving tone.


    As he himself had not use the Warring Intent ability before the Clone yet, the latter was not able to execute it to its full potential, therefore unlocking only about a tenth of its boost power.


    "You..!!"


    Seeing the original shaking his head as if it had done something totally useless, the Clone felt so angry and agitated that it really wanted to push itself even further!


    But alas, without Duan Li showing it how its done, there was no way it could enhance its battle prowess any further.


    Furthermore, what is with this damned original of his?


    Usually, people would gladly exchange something else if it meant gaining more power in times of their need, and appearance was the least of their concerns. Perhaps, it was even the most cheapest price to pay for it!


    In fact, the Clone had even heard before that others needed to pay quite a hefty sum for a meager increase in power, such as their lifespan or inner potential that may never recover once again!


    At the thought of this, the clone was beginning to have some serious doubts about its original.


    Is this original of his really a cultivator?


    Oblivious to the inner thoughts of his clone, Duan Li beckoned the other party provocatively, "Let''s see if this newfound powers of yours will help you! Come!"


    Hmph!


    You are indeed a little bit stronger now, but as long as I can recover my spiritual Qi, overtime, you will only overexert yourself!


    With a loud bellow, the both of them began to exchange blows once more as the sky rippled with devastating waves of explosions one after another.


    BOOOMMM!! BOOOMMM!! BOOOMMM!!


    ...


    After a while..


    BOOOMM!!


    A figure was blown away and crashed to the ground, creating huge cracks and massive depression on the land!


    Puu!!


    "Damn it.. I underestimated his 10 percent increase in power!" Duan Li said to himself as he wiped off the blood trail from his mouth.


    Right now, his body was already riddled with numerous minor injuries, and his robe was starting to get drenched with his own blood even though he actually possessed the means to instantly recover from such a predicament, given how well versed he was in the field of medical arts.


    This was because boosting natural rate of regeneration took quite a bit of spiritual Qi to perform.


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    Normally, this wouldn''t be an issue to him, but the one he was fighting with right now was essentially a personification of his own self, complete with all of his abilities!


    Thus, against such a person, he didn''t dare to be lax and wasteful at all, for he knew full well the extent of the other party.


    Furthermore, since he planned to save as much spiritual Qi as he can in this battle of attrition, he only used that ''almost instantaneous'' regeneration ability of his to cure the major injuries from each clash they made. As for the superficial wounds on his body right now, he couldn''t care less about it and decided to just suck it up.


    On the contrary, his Clone that was previously all swollen up like a red-colored monster has started to show signs of being able to control the rampaging power within it, looking a lot less revolting than how it was before.


    In addition, to Duan Li''s surprise, the Clone was already able to utilize 20 percent of the Warring Intent ability!


    This was something that he hadn''t expected to happen before, and right now, it was clear that he was the one at the edge of the table right now.


    "Hahahaha! You think that I would be unable to learn how to use your skills properly even after so much time has already passed? I told you to not look down on me! If you keep this up, you will die here today!" the Clone laughed out loud with a shrill of satisfaction apparent in his voice.


    You''ve got to be kidding me, I''ve been playing this role for countless of years! Given so, it was only natural that I would be able to unlock the secrets behind each of your skill arts and techniques by myself!


    Hmph!


    "Although the situation is turning into my favor right now, I still couldn''t help but to be baffled by how I could not absorb some of the spiritual Qi here while he could.." the Clone thought to itself warily.


    At the rate of which they are battling right now, it was apparent that the Clone had a clear advantage in terms of pure battle power. Duan Li however, was only able to hold out on his own thanks to both of his Elemental Origin Spirit dragons working tirelessly to absorb spiritual Qi directly from the essence around them!


    Kuh! Must I also activate the Warring Intent?


    "But.. that hideous look.." he almost threw up as he thought of this.


    Upon reaching this dilemma, Duan Li swiftly turned his attention towards both of the dragons beside him that only he could see.


    "How long will you guys be able to hold out? Are there any maximum time limit for you guys to do this?" he asked.


    Dilong then replied, "We can actually hold on like this forever if you want master. After all, this is as easy as us breathing in in our sleep!" she chuckled before continuing,"However, the same could not be said about the surrounding.."


    Upon which, Zhulong then quickly intervened with a sense of urgency in his voice, "Dilong is right. While we couldhumbly do this until the Heavens itself split apart, the spiritual Qi of the essence in this place will eventually run out!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s countenance turned grim. "What do you guys mean?"


    "Young Master, extracting spiritual Qi directly from the essence essentially means that you are sucking out their life force directly instead of cultivating their by-product of respiration!" the Little Sword suddenly spoke out.


    "Eh? I''m sucking out their life force? They are alive?" Duan Li replied in a panic as his eyes widened upon this revelation.


    "Not technically. However, every living thing that exists, in order to live, uses spiritual Qi to reproduce and respire." the Little Sword said.


    It then continued, "Take for example, Dilong is an Earth dragon and she absorbs the spiritual Qi mostly from the plants. If their life force was taken out, they will die. But due to their nature, they will still grow back one day. However, that takes real time!"


    Duan Li thought for a while before nodding in realization.


    "So what you mean is that, the plants blown away and were currently under all these rubbles below me, will eventually all disintegrate and Dilong will not be able to absorb spiritual Qi anymore?" he asked.


    And then added, "But Zhulong can just extract spiritual Qi from all the explosion then?"


    "Young Master, Zhulong can indeed extract spiritual Qi from those fire elements, but those are merely temporary fragments! They don''t compare to real live fire and doesn''t amount to much!" the Little Sword answered.


    "Yes Master, the Little Sword is right. Right now, the ratio of absorption between me and Dilong, is honestly only at about 1 to 8 respectively. If only there was something that I could burn other than the plants, I could then convert those live fire into spiritual Qi!" Zhulong said.


    "Huh? You dare call me Little Sword? Impudent chicken! Call me Little Sword once more and I''ll cut off those pair of wings of yours and barbeque them!"


    "Ahh?! You rusted damn cheap metal! You picking a fight?"


    ...


    Ignoring the sudden chaotic dispute between his team members right now, Duan Li gave it a little more thought as he cupped his chin.


    "Zhulong needs to burn something in order to produce what they call as live fire.. that means, in order for a fire to be alive, it needs something to feed on so that it could continuously burn, which means, he needs quite a lot of flammable materials.."


    Eh? Flammable materials?


    Turning his head around, he saw the exact replica of the Xuan village by the distance.


    ...

 252 Chapter 245: Demon from hell!

    "Huh? Young Master.. you couldn''t be thinking to.." the Little Sword suddenly jolted itself as it traced the gaze of its Master into the far distance.


    Duan Li nodded calmly and answered, "Yeah.. I''m gonna burn down the whole village for Zhulong to extract the spiritual Qi for me!"


    My only concern right now is spiritual Qi, so as long as I have plenty of it, then I''m pretty confident that I could beat down that fellow!


    "..." Little Sword, Zhulong and Dilong.


    Master, if we recall correctly, this place is a replica of the place where you used to live..


    Are you really going to burn them down to ashes?


    Dash!


    "Eh? Where are you going? Trying to run away from me? Useless! Get back here!" the Clone bellowed out as it saw Duan Li flitted right to the opposite direction and threw out a palm attack.


    "Run your mother''s small a**! Just wait patiently over there if you dare! This father of yours is going to show you some more of his tricks soon! Hmph!" Duan Li replied with a similar tone as he crushed that palm attack away with the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor.


    Puu!!


    As if I''ll let you turn the tables on me again!


    And if you are cursing like that, isn''t that like cursing your wife, seeing that you claimed to be my father?


    Do you even have one anyway?!


    "Come back here!"


    Dash!


    Just like that, the both of them moved towards one direction while not forgetting to exchange a few blows here and there while they were at it.


    Eh?


    "This direction.. its the village of his birthplace?" the Clone couldn''t help but to think of this.


    While it could copy basically everything about its original host, memories were one thing that it wasn''t allowed to copy, nor does it have the ability to, even if it wanted.


    Therefore, the Clone was only endowed with basic knowledge of its hosts such as their name, family, friends and loved ones to a limited degree. This was in order to help it fool the hosts at the beginning of the trial!


    But of course, this standard operating procedure that it had adhered to religiously all these while doesn''t seem to work on this current hosts of his.


    After all, the one that it had to handle right now was a real a**hole!


    Thinking about this, the clone grew even more infuriated and lashed out more attacks rapidly one after another.


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    Before long, they soon found themselves to be at the entrance gate of the Xuan village. It was red colored and stood majestically like an imposing mountain, albeit a little bit weathered in its condition.


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    Duan Li however, frowned as he asked in surprise, "Little Sword, how can there also be people here?" when he saw a few guards with full plated armors looking at them in extreme wary while guarding the gate.


    "Those are not real people Young Master, they just took on the shapes of humans.. in reality, they are but paper talismans!" the Little Sword replied.


    It then continued, "In addition, these paper talismans could mimic the basic reactions of humans, which made it seem like they are truly alive. However, they are actually devoid of emotions!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li extended his soul sense onto them and he nodded.


    The Little Sword is right! They are indeed paper talismans!


    To think that these papers could mimic humans so closely.. what a terrifying ability!


    Huh? Hang on..


    At this thought, Duan Li''s eyes flashed as he recalled something and scanned the clone behind him as well, and he was surprised.


    This clone of mine is also a paper talisman!


    He never thought before that this clone of his would be something like that! In fact, he actually thought that his clone would be like his inner demon or something.


    "Hah! Are you trying to reminisce yourself before you.." right before the Clone could even finish its sentence, Duan Li had already made a strange move that immediately put him on a defensive posture.


    Huu!!


    However, after analyzing the situation for a while, he sighed out in relief.


    "This.. its the Nine Fists Shattering Meteor? But, why does it feels so weak than normal?"


    He thought that this original of his would use a new technique or skill arts and that made him quite apprehensive. But seeing that it was only the same fist art that he already saw and used numerous times before, he felt ashamed for being over-reacting.


    Curse this original of his!


    Still, he found the whole situation to be quite weird. After all, that fist art seems a little bit modified, even before it was launched, streaks of flames already curled around the whole arm as if it wants to burn something.


    Although this took quite a bit to explain, in reality, it all happened near instantaneously. It was only in the eyes of experts like them that things seemed to slow down to a snail''s pace.


    "Hahahaha! What are you planning now? Have your mind gone mad? It seems that you forgot how to use that fist art properly!" the Clone taunted with a look of disdain as it prepared to receive the attack.


    Shuuu...


    Eh?


    Contrary to its expectation, the fist art was not punched towards him, but on the big red gate instead.


    KABOOMMM!!


    Immediately after, the whole wooden gate that exuded the aura of vicissitudeness before crumbled down and lit up in a series burst of flames!


    "..." the Clone.


    Did he.. missed his aim?


    But the gate was at the opposite of his position! No matter how one were likely to miss, it shouldn''t have gone to the opposite way!


    Hell, he could even bet on blind people to throw a punch at least to the front and not to the back!


    Before its bewildered look could even recover, the other party had already gone further and threw out several more punches, and this time, it was towards the long wooden walls that was supposed to protect the village from harm.


    Shisshhh.. BOOOMMMM!!


    In that instant, as if an ember of fire that originated from hell being released onto the mortal world, the fire that combusted with the walls quickly spread throughout to the back and circled the whole village in a ring of fire!


    Puuu!!


    What in the Nine gods of Heaven..


    Has this person gone mad?!


    As if this was not enough to satiate his thirst of destruction, Duan Li rapidly threw out punches filled with fiery flames towards the other buildings the moment he saw them.


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Houses, marketplace, restaurants, the square, everything got burned down under the sheer insanity of Duan Li. At this moment, he looked nothing more but like a demon lord from hell that was ravaging on the innocent humans.


    "AHHH! Help us! Why is this happening?"


    "My house is on fire!"


    "Ahh! My stalls, my goods!"


    "Nooo!! My clothes!"


    The paper talismans that mimicked the humans ran around in panic as they screamed trying to find an escape path.


    However, it was futile, as all the four cardinal directions was but a sea of fire!


    Burn!! Burn!!


    "Hahahahaha! More fire! Give me more fire!" Duan Li laughed out loud to the sky like a demon as he rained down the village with fists of flames from the sky!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    Watching the entire scene unfolding before its eyes, the Clone could not help but for its mouth to open agape like a puffer fish!


    Holy-Molly!


    This original of his has gone totally bonkers!


    "S-Stop! H-Hey! What are you doing? This is your village! Stop that dammit!" the Clone shouted out in fury.


    ...

 253 Chapter 246: Who won?

    Damn it! God dammit!


    The Clone turned panic as it frantically tried to swept each of Duan Li''s attacks away before they reached the ground, in an effort to stop more fire and casualties from spreading.


    Although the paper talismans that were mimicking themselves as humans were basically without an ego, a far more inferior product than him, as the Clone himself was also of the same species with them, the Clone still wanted to save them from this madman original of his.


    "Have you no heart? This is your village! Stop with this madness!" the Clone shouted out with a little bit of pleading tone apparent in its voice.


    "What my village? All these are not real! Don''t you dare try to fool your father here! Go my holy flames! Burn! Burn them all to the ground! Hahahahaha! This is your sin of trying to copy me!" Duan Li laughed out loud with a high pitch tone.


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    No matter how the Clone tried to counter Duan Li''s attacks, it was all futile in the end. After all, the fire was already spreading to each corner throughout the whole village in the blink of an eye, burning them all into a sea of flames!


    "My brethren! Noo!!" the Clone roared out to the sky, full of anguish.


    On the other hand, due to the intense amount of fire elements present right now, with the help of Zhulong, Duan Li''s spiritual Qi was quickly recovering.


    Hmm?


    "Why does this scene seems quite familiar to me?" Duan Li thought for a while before he recalled.


    Ahh.. the destroyed villages, dead bodies, and that anguish lonesome cry..


    Did I just become like the Hermit King, Crastesauros, that destroyed the whole Jiu Empire?


    Hais! What a tragedy..


    "Die!!" the Clone suddenly turned around and launched a swift combination of attacks that were several times more stronger and faster than before.


    Whooshh!!


    Four fists attacks on all four cardinal directions appeared locking his escape path, innumerable amounts of sword Qi attacks circled him like a spherical cage to lock him down on his current position, and two palm attacks of gigantic proportions both from the sky and below was coming towards him in an instant!


    The Clone was intent on flattening him into a pancake!


    "Oh sh*t! There is no way in dodging that!" Duan Li cursed out and quickly took action.


    Driving his spiritual Qi to its limits, he took out Little Sword onto his left hand.


    "Pierce through!"


    Shuuu!!


    Focusing the Nine Swords Thunder Strike into a single point, Duan Li punctured a large hole in that seemingly flawless attacks of the other party.


    "Cleave!!"


    Then, using the Eternal Great Axe on his right hand, he cleaved down towards the hole as a driving point.


    Kacha!


    Like a broken ceramic pottery, the whole formation of the attack crumbled down into pieces as Duan Li dashed out.


    "Hmph! Don''t be too full of yourself!" he shouted out.


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    Pointing his index finger forward, Duan Li used a skill art that he refrained from using all these while in this battle due to how much spiritual Qi it will consume. But since he now had quite a bit to spend and he needed to get the upper hand as well, he decided to use it.


    I''m gonna finish this once and for all!


    One Finger Starlight Slash: Full Burst!


    In that instant, a blinding light that wanted to blotch out the whole world with the color of white appeared, before a dazzling white beam was shot out from Duan Li''s finger!


    "Kuh! Don''t think that you''re the only one who aren''t afraid to expend spiritual Qi!"


    One Finger Starlight Slash: Full Burst!


    KABOOOMMMM!!


    The moment these two beam attack met each other, the whole world of the Crafted Space shook like an Earthquake beyond the calculatable charts, the land and the sky seemed to have switched position as all debris was thrown off from the ground, and every single plants was uprooted, twisted into pieces, the flames of the village turned into a towering twisters of inferno!


    "You!!"


    Not expecting his clone to use the same technique as him, Duan Li gritted his teeth as his beam was being pushed back by the latter!


    "AHHHHHHHHH!!"


    Seeing that his life was really at stake here if he lose, Duan Li decided to unleash the Warring Intent ability up to 30 percent in order to get the upper hand in this clash of light beams.


    Puu!!


    Some of his blood vessels then immediately ruptured, causing blood to flow out from his nose, ears and eyes!


    "Hahahaha! I was waiting for this!" the Clone laughed out.


    Henggg!!


    Talisman Ultimate Move: Qioaken times ten! (A.N: Bahahahaha everyone should know this move, I just changed the name for illustration purpose in how this battle looks like xD)


    BOOOMMMMM!!


    The instant this skill was brought out, the Clone visibly turned pale and old as if it had just aged by 50 years in a single breath!


    It was apparent that activating this ability needed a very hefty price to use!


    However, the light beam was now ten times stronger than before, causing Duan Li''s beam to be severely outmatched, as if a river being engulfed by an incoming tsunami!


    "What?! This fellow still has such a trump card left?"


    Duan Li was entirely taken aback by how this Clone of his went into such lengths in order to beat him!


    But thinking about it, he then understood the reason why.


    This Clone had copied him and perhaps some of his traits and personality was passed down as well. Then, seeing how the village and the people was burned down right in front of its eyes, the Clone had somehow unlocked this ability!


    "Impressive! You wanted to copy me right? In that timeline, I have also lost everything that was dear to me! Now, you have felt what it really means to be ME!" Duan Li shouted out.


    He then continued, "But how can a mere copy understands? All these here is but a replica! Therefore.."


    "How can your artificial pain possibly be compared to MINE?!"


    AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!


    Doomsday Calamity Fists!!


    BOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!!


    ...

 254 Chapter 247: Last man standing!

    Puu!!


    Both figure spurted out a mouthful of blood before they fell down from the sky like a pair of kites that has just lost their wind.


    Crash!


    "Y-You.. crazy.." the Clone muttered each word with utmost difficulty as it struggled to stand up from the ground. But no matter how it tried, the best it could do was to use one of its knees to support itself.


    To think that this original of his had used the Doomsday Calamity Fists in that final moment, it was totally out of his wildest imaginations!


    After all, their cultivation was only at the pinnacle stage of the Core formation realm, and pushing their body with Super mode 2 combined with the Warring Intent, had already exceeded the threshold limits of their body by several folds!


    Perhaps, it was only due to Duan Li''s modified meridians and Qi pathways that was different from others that had made the whole transformation to be successful in the first place.


    Therefore, using the Doomsday Calamity Fists, a fist art that was well beyond what their current body could handle even in their base form, was truly what could be described as a suicide move in such a condition, aiming for a mutual destruction of both parties!


    In fact, had he not performed that last minute dodge, he would have been incinerated to ashes!


    Still, even though he already dodged, the impact was far too destructive and left him hanging by his last breath!


    This goes to show that the Doomsday Calamity Fists was a technique meant to truly massacre one''s enemies!


    At the thought of all these, the Clone felt shiver ran down his spine as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    Gulp!


    And as expected, Duan Li on the opposite end of him was not faring that much better either. He was laying on the ground covered with blood all over his body, looking more wretched than his clone.


    At this moment, both of them had expended their spiritual Qi reserves to zero, and since their internal body state was terribly damaged, even absorbing spiritual Qi from the surrounding became an impossible task for them.


    Right now, the only way for them to recover was to let their body ran through its natural course of regeneration for a while before they could absorb spiritual Qi once more.


    Huu..!!


    Suddenly, Duan Li began to slowly stood up as well in that frightful condition of his. At first, he used both of his arms to prop himself up from the ground and then his knees.


    "AAAAHHHHHH!!"


    Finally, with a loud bellow to the sky, Duan Li managed to force himself up on his legs, his back standing straight like a tall mountain, and his pair of clear but sharp eyes stared right into his clone''s eyes, causing the latter''s heart to tremble!


    ''Suuu.. ''


    A gust of warm wind blew right over them, causing Duan Li''s long black hair to flutter accordingly, magnifying his figure into something more majestic and mysterious at the same time.


    If people were to see at their current state, where one was single-kneeling and the other was standing tall like a pillar, people would mistook them as a loyal servant kneeling in respect in front of his Liege!


    ''This is a different feeling...'' the clone thought to itself.


    The trembling in his heart was no longer due to anger and frustrations, but instead a mixture of fear, respect and veneration!


    He shook his head and smiled. Then, after recovering a bit of strength, the Clone stood up slowly as well.


    This caused Duan Li to feel a little helpless.


    "Persistent bastard.." he thought to himself.


    However, contrary to his expectations that the other party would continue to attack him, the Clone spoke calmly instead.


    "For the first time ever since I was created, I lost against an original.. Congratulations!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised.


    Hmm?


    "First time? Then what happened to all the previous cultivators that went through this same trial? You killed them all?" Duan Li frowned.


    While he has no qualms of people dying in this trial, the fact that he was the first one to beat this Clone still unnerved him.


    After all, this was a trial meant to temper a cultivator, so fatalities was always part of the equation. However, to think that for all those uncountable years, where numerous cultivators before him had all failed while he was the only one whom had successfully cleared this last trial..


    Isn''t this trial a little bit too difficult?


    No, perhaps that was even a sheer understatement!


    This was pretty much impossible to be cleared!


    "What? Of course not!" the Clone quickly waved its hand to deny the matter.


    "The criteria to pass this trial was actually not to defeat me, but for the original to push themselves beyond their normal limits! Once they have done that, regardless if they lost against me, they would actually pass the trial!" the clone continued as it lightly chuckled.


    Puu!!


    This revelation caused Duan Li to almost spurt another mouthful of blood.


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    Bastard!


    Why didn''t you tell this to me earlier?


    I could''ve just pushed myself a little bit than normal and passed this trial withoutincurring this much injury on me!


    Had it not because he was sapped of all strength and talking was the only ability he has right now, Duan Li would love to go for another round with this Clone of his.


    "But.. how can no one was able to defeat you all these while? As far as my analysis went during our battle, you are only as strong as the original themselves.." Duan Li said after he pondered for a while.


    Since this trial was meant for Foundation Establishment realm cultivators, how is defeating something like that even pose a challenge?


    As if the Clone was able to read Duan Li''s inner thoughts, it quickly replied, "Don''t you remember my hidden abilities? I could increase my strength by several folds! Not everyone is a monster like you.."


    "Ohh.." realization dawned upon Duan Li.


    Thinking about it, the Clone was right.


    Since the Clone''s overall battle prowess scaled with the original, the stronger the cultivator, the stronger will be its abilities. Therefore, if the Clone were to stack its own abilities on top of that..


    It was no wonder why no one could win!


    Is this even a fair trial?


    "You are truly out of my expectations. This is my first time copying an original with battle prowess on a level beyond the mortal realm. In addition, you even won against me!" the Clone applauded and nodded its head approvingly, and due to its aged appearance after exerting itself to the maximum before, he seemed like an elder acknowledging a talented student of his!


    Somehow, although the other party looked sincere in congratulating him, Duan Li felt like he wanted to slap the Clone for saying that.


    Screw you!


    "Hmph! It was only natural. After all, how can an original be unable to beat their own clone? Perhaps, all those you''ve encountered thus far were all weak cultivators!" Duan Li said in his defense.


    The Clone wanted to laugh out loud when it heard this.


    Weak?


    How can those cultivators that managed to enter the Eternal Maze be weak?


    Its only that you are a monster in your own class..


    "Anyway, what do I get for being the last man standing in this match?"


    ...

 255 Chapter 248: Duan Lis internal state!

    Since he was the first one to ever beat the Clone, there ought to be some kind of a prize right?


    "Well, now that you mentioned it, there is indeed a prize for you." the Clone thought for a while before it flipped its palm, revealing a golden talisman.


    Oh?


    Staring at the Golden Talisman, Duan Li soon came into a realization as his eyes widened.


    "Could that be..."


    "En! This is the Ethereal Golden Talisman. To put it plainly, this is like another me and its main ability is to copy its designated target!" the Clone said.


    It then continued, "However, in terms of its copying ability, its far more inferior to me as its ego is still mechanical! You can have a try and see for yourself!"


    The clone said those with a hint of pride in its tone, and this pride of his was not misplaced either.


    After all, he had been around copying cultivators for countless of years. The resulting accumulation created this current ego of his, not to mention that he was specifically modified by the Grand Immortal himself to suit the needs of this trial!


    If people were to not know any better, they might just think that he was a true human!


    Duan Li pondered for a while before shaking his head.


    "I''ll try it later. Right now, I''m more interested in getting out of here. Quickly summon the Golden vortex for me so I can complete the stone pedestal. I''m a little bit concerned about how much time had passed in the outside world right now." Duan Li said decisively.


    Hearing this, the Clone was visibly dejected. "You''re leaving so soon? It has been a while since I had so much fun.. so, why don''t you stay for a moment or two? Perhaps three?"


    Duan Li''s mouth twitched.


    ''I would also like to stay a little bit longer to see if I can plunder anything valuable here if possible, but unfortunately, I am almost at my limit!''


    Majority of his meridians and Qi pathways had ruptured and his remaining strength is leaving him at every second as they spoke right now. With utmost difficulty, it already took him everything to not fall over and twitch like a roasted worm on the ground!


    "How about this, I''ll come over again next time! I am beginning to understand the connective layout of the Eternal maze already, and I should be able to return sometime in the near future!" Duan Li bullsh*tted his way through with a convincing look.


    As expected, the Clone was elated when it heard this!


    Cupping its chin, the Clone finally nodded after a moment, before a golden vortex appeared beside him.


    Wengg!!


    "Well, I''ll be waiting then! I also know a thing or two about the current state of affairs of the outside world from the limited knowledge I copied off you.. it seems to be quite dire if I must say so. Thus, I shan''t impose on you any longer!"


    I''ve been waiting for cultivators to enter here for dozens, sometimes decades or even centuries long in between!


    So what''s a couple of years waiting even worth?


    Besides, it''d be more interesting if he comes here again next time with an even stronger cultivation realm, I''d be a lot more stronger by then as well!


    Completely oblivious to each other''s thoughts, both Duan Li and the Clone seemed to come into an understanding with each other as they bid farewell.


    Suuuu!!


    ...


    Wengg!!


    The moment Duan Li stepped out from the Golden vortex, he could no longer hold himself and spurted out a mouthful of blood as he fell to the ground.


    Bam!


    Suu!!


    Di Rou immediately stepped out from Duan Li''s shadow with a frantic expression on her face.


    "Master, hold on!" she quickly tried to whip out several medicinal pills and elixirs from her spatial ring, but to her horror, she found that her spatial ring could not be used!


    "Oh no.. what should I do.."


    Being used to her master casually whipping out stuff from his spatial ring even with the restriction in place, she completely forgot that she doesn''t have that special privilege as well!


    Now that she thought about it, how in the world did her Master even do it?!


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    "Di Rou.. help me chug this elixir into my mouth so I could swallow them.." Duan Li said with a weak voice as a bottle of elixir popped out beside him.


    "This scent.. such a strong presence..!!"


    To her shock, the elixir that her Master just took out from his special ring was..


    A grade 6.. no 7.. wait.. grade 8 elixir!


    But she quickly noticed that the elixir was only a quarter full!


    "Hurry.." Duan Li spoke out.


    Awakened from her daze, she quickly casted away her miscellaneous thoughts and did as what her master instructed.


    She helped Duan Li to sit in a cross-legged position as she chugged the entire contents of the elixir into his mouth.


    Let''s just hope that it works..


    Gulu! Gulu! Gulu!


    ...


    After a while, Duan Li''s pale skin started to become rosy once more and his external wounds were closing as well.


    This was a sign that the worse had already passed.


    However, when Di Rou inspected her master''s internal state, she shook her head.


    "His meridians and Qi pathways.. they are all in shambles.."


    At this rate, her master might not be able to cultivate anymore..


    Without the proper form of meridians and Qi pathways, cultivator would not be able to cycle the spiritual Qi from their Dantian to the rest of the body.


    In other words, the state that her master was in right now was no less than a mortal!


    Huuu!!


    Suddenly, Duan Li opened his eyes and turned his face towards this capable assistant of his, causing the latter to jitter a little bit.


    After what seemed to be a deep scan from the other party onto her whole body, which made her a little bit embarrassed being stared at, Duan Li then nodded.


    "Di Rou, I want you to help me cultivate a medicinal pill!"


    "..." Di Rou.


    ...

 256 Chapter 249: Di Rou concoct pills!

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    "Master.. although I do know how to concoct pills, it is only basic at most.." Di Rou quickly said with a downcasted expression.


    In addition, even if I were extremely skilled to be able to concoct grade 4 pills, to my knowledge, there aren''t any pills that could help you mend an internal injury as severe as yours..


    "That''s fine, as long as you know how to concoct pills, it will do for now! I''ll guide you along with how the pills should be concocted." Duan Li replied and waved his hand.


    Huala!


    Three roots ginseng, Flamehorn fern, Emerald leaves, Crimson petal..


    "All these are high grade herbs!" Di Rou swallowed her saliva as she stared at the series of herbs being taken out of her master''s spatial ring as if they were cabbages.


    All in all, there were 24 unique herbs laid down neatly on the ground, with each herb so rare and expensive that one could only buy them with specific channels and the right authority in the Jiu Empire.


    In addition, the cheapest herb here already costs to somewhere around 10 Medium quality spirit stones, while a few of them costs as high as 2 High quality spirit stones!


    Just these showcase of wealth alone would be enough to earn the respect and veneration of most people!


    But thinking about it, this was only natural. After all, the residence court that her master bought was the best of the best, and these herbs were probably plucked out directly from the garden.


    However, all these made Di Rou even more afraid and nervous to concoct the pills in her master''s stead. If she failed, the sheer total costs was not something that she could bear!


    Still, seeing her master carefully analyzing each herb and had already separated them into the correct portions, she could not help but to grit her teeth as she made a decision.


    "Since Master has already trusted me, I must not fail at all costs!" she thought to herself.


    On the other hand, seeing the tensed look on his trusted aide, Duan Li chuckled.


    "Don''t worry, all you have to do is to follow my words exactly as I said them later on. You will then have a 99 percent success rate at least!" Duan Li said with an assuring and confident tone.


    Hearing this, Di Rou was surprised for a moment before she misunderstood.


    "99 percent success rate? That means the grade of the pills won''t be too high.." she sighed in relief.


    However, if the grade of the pills are low, would it even help alleviating his internal injuries?


    It didn''t take long before Duan Li finished with all the preparations, and he had already given Di Rou a compiled manual of the method on how to concoct the pill.


    "Overflow Resurgence Spirit Pill?" Di Rou said with a slight frown on her forehead as she pondered.


    The concept behind this pill was actually quite simple;


    After a cultivator swallowed the pill, the pill will not be digested but instead stayed in the stomach.


    Then, the pill will passively absorb spiritual Qi from the Dantian. Every few hours or so, the pill will release the full content of the spiritual Qi, mimicking the way with how a cultivator cycled their spiritual Qi along their meridians and Qi pathways.


    Next, with the potency of medicinal properties the pill has, the ruptured meridians and Qi pathways would slowly regenerate along with the cycle.


    However, this was more easier said than done.


    Theoretically, this would work, and there were already many pills which could absorb and release spiritual Qi overtime, acting like a capacitor.


    But then, for the pills to possess regenerative properties that could mend ruptured meridians and Qi pathways to such an extreme degree?


    Not to mention if that was even possible, there were not even records of myths or legends about something like that!


    In addition, this was the first time that she had ever heard of the name of this pill after she finished reading the manual.


    Therefore, it was inevitable that she would have some doubts about the existence of the pill and its effectiveness.


    "En! This is a pill that I formulated just now. If my estimate is correct, then this pill should be around..." Duan Li cupped his chin before continuing.


    "Grade 6 pill!"


    "..."


    Grade 6 pill?


    You just formulated it yourself?


    Puu!!


    "A-As expected of Master.." Di Rou said as she suppressed herself from possibly choking to death.


    If it were any other person hearing that they were about to be guided to concoct a grade 6 pill, they might just straight went up and slap the other party right on the face to say, ''Keep dreaming!''.


    Just how difficult was pill forging?


    To put it into a perspective, a One star Alchemist could successfully concoct a Grade 1 pill, the most common pills out there and their availability was practically limitless.


    Two stars and Three stars Alchemists could concoct Grade 2 pills, with the latter being more proficient in it and produces higher quality pills.


    Four stars through Six stars were able to forge Grade 3 to Grade 4 pills, and only Seven stars Alchemists could concoct the more difficult pinnacle Grade 4 pills.


    Whereas for Eight stars to Nine stars Alchemists, they could produce pills on the Grade 5 level, and finally, Ten stars Alchemists, through rigorous trial and error, would be able to concoct a Grade 6 pill out of ten batches!


    In other words, what Duan Li was asking of her, was to shoot straight for the moon and become a Ten stars Alchemist on the spot!


    Who in the world would not be triggered?


    "Oh Lord of the Nine Devas, please help me to concoct it successfully!" Di Rou earnestly prayed for the first time in her life.


    Since she had seen the miracles performed by her master time and again because she was always by his side, she knew that her master has the capability to back his words. Still, she was nervous and unnerved about it all the same.


    "Okay first, just throw all these portions into that cauldron over there!" Duan Li instructed her.


    Huh?


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    If I remembered my basics correctly, shouldn''t we try to put the portion one by one and let their essences mold into the cauldron first before placing the others?


    Seeing the dazed look on the face of his trusted aide, Duan Li frowned as he spoke with a stern voice, "What are you still standing around for? The cauldron will start to boil soon!"


    "Y-Yes!" Di Rou snapped out from her bewilderment and quickly did as told.


    Splash! Splash!


    "Good! Now wait for a few moments before the cauldron boils. Then we can begin the real process!" Duan Li said as he nodded with satisfaction.


    Unable to contain her curiosity after a while, Di Rou turned to her master and queried the questions she had on her mind.


    "Master, why are we boiling all those portions at the same time? Won''t their essences be mixed together?"


    As if he had already anticipated this type of question, Duan Li shook his head.


    "No it won''t.. if you do it properly though!" he replied and then continued, "Separating essences from the ingredients requires the temperature inside the cauldron to be just right."


    "Therefore, rather than wasting time boiling a portion one at a time, boiling all of them at once in one pot would be a far more efficient method."


    Thinking about this, Di Rou recalled that higher ranked Alchemist would boil the essences of multiple ingredients at the same time as well, albeit in multiple cauldrons with a single ingredients each.


    However, those had already required extreme focus to monitor and not just anyone could do it.


    The fact that her master could do all these within a single cauldron..


    Mythical skills might just be the right word to describe it!


    Gu! Gu! Gu!


    Duan Li then beckoned her to step a little bit closer and look deeper into the inside of the cauldron, where the searing heat started to produce ''gorgling'' sounds, signalling them that it would soon enter the boiling phase after the initial heating process!


    "It won''t be too long now. Sit cross-legged first. Then, I want you to cycle your spiritual Qi while opening your Haku acupoint on your shoulder. Next, send a stream of it into the palm of my hand through it." Duan Li instructed.


    Di Rou nodded and did as was told. Cycling the spiritual Qi inside her body and sending it out through her Haku acupoint, her spiritual Qi travelled through Duan Li''s palm that was on top of her shoulder right now.


    Huuu!!


    Although Duan Li''s meridians and Qi pathways were severely damaged and couldn''t cycle any spiritual Qi in it right now, only travelling through his palm region, this was already enough for Duan Li to understand her rate of cycle and breathing!


    "Good! The first phase of this pill forging technique will be a very simple process of isolating the essences and mixing them together. Your timing needs to match the sequence though, so listen to me carefully!" Duan Li said with a strict tone.


    Plop!


    As each ingredients has a different melting point before their essences were to be squeezed out, each needed to be wrapped with spiritual Qi of varying thickness.


    To put it simply, ingredients with shorter time of melting point would be wrapped with a thicker spiritual Qi, acting like a resistance to the heat in the cauldron.


    What this means was that, which essences would be extracted first could be controlled!


    "Amazing.." Di Rou could not help but to be astonished.


    This method was included in the manual that she had read before, and it was a simplified version of the Chainlock Processing technique that Duan Li had used back then when tempering the body of Shen Lu and the rest.


    However, while the theory sounded extremely simple, the reality was actually quite the opposite.


    Unless one could know the exact time and temperature as well as all sorts of conditions within the cauldron, this method was highly impractical.


    It was only due to Duan Li''s Tetra Soul Sense that he could do it. Meanwhile, Di Rou''s spiritual Qi was just like an extra hand, all because he can''t use any spiritual Qi at the moment.


    ...


    After the sequencing phase was complete, it was now the time to coagulate them together.


    "Alright, this is the final step. Merge this one first.."


    Duan Li continued to instruct Di Rou as the latter listened to his instructions attentively.


    While she could not make sense the majority of the whole process, she had also gained a tremendous amount of experience in it and had several epiphanies on the logic behind it.


    Therefore, it could be said that she had greatly benefitted from this bizarre pill concocting session!


    Wengg!!


    "It''s done.." Di Rou exhaled as she sweated buckets, highlighting her curvaceous figure even behind her dark outfit.


    There was only a single pill floating, but it was shining with an azure color, as if the pill was a tear drop that had just fell from the Heavens, captivating those that stared at it.


    "It''s really a Grade 6 pill, I can''t believe I managed to concoct it.." Di Rou felt goosebumps all over as her body shivered.


    Grabbing at the pill, Duan Li took a look and analyzed it for a while before nodding.


    Gulp!


    Swallowing the pill, he then sat cross-legged and closed his eyes as he began to cultivate it.


    ....

 257 Chapter 250: Second region completed!

    As the Overflow Resurgence Spirit Pill settled inside Duan Li''s stomach, the pill immediately began to show its effect.


    Wuuu..


    Surges of spiritual Qi from his three Dantian started to be absorbed by it. Normally, the process where the pill would be filled with spiritual Qi to the brim would take approximately 2 hours the least.


    However, with Duan Li''s three Dantian, coupled with his Sky grade potential, this was reduced to a mere 15 minutes interval instead!


    After cultivating for a brief 15 minutes, the Pill shuddered a little before releasing a wave of spiritual Qi like a pulse, cycling clockwise throughout Duan Li''s ruptured meridians and Qi pathways.


    Wengg!!


    As if coming into contact with a powerful tonic, his meridians and Qi pathways showed signs of being invigorated and hummed lightly!


    It works!


    Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    In fact, the result was even better. Due to him consuming the Grade 8 elixir before, the medicinal effect of the Overflow Resurgence Spirit Pill seemed to multiply by at least 80 percent!


    It''s a pity that only a quarter of it was available, if it was full...


    I reckoned that my internal injuries would be significantly alleviated!


    Hais!


    "M-Master.. is it.. working?" Di Rou whom was standing beside him asked worriedly when she saw that forlorn expression of her master.


    Standing up from his seated position, Duan Li nodded and replied, "Yes, it is working as intended!"


    Hearing this, Di Rou could finally sighed out in relief.


    She was tasked by the Emperor to look after their Imperial Overseer, and if she returned while bringing such a bad news that this very important person of their''s was now a crippled person, there''d sure be a hellish uproar!


    "However, based on the rate of recovery, it would roughly take three months before all my ruptured meridians and Qi pathways to heal completely.. my pill forging knowledge is still quite lacking hmm.." Duan Li added with a hint of frustration in his voice.


    "T-Three months? That''s... already quite fast.." Di Rou almost tripped on herself.


    An injury so severe that one might be better off forgetting to cultivate for the rest of their lives and toil the farmlands instead, would only take 3 months of recovery in front of her master?


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    Dear me! My horizons sure has widened today!


    However, there were still some lingering concerns in her mind as to what might be the side effect of this, so she quickly asked.


    "Are there any side effects from your current injury master? Or perhaps from the recovery pill itself?"


    When Duan Li heard this question, he thought contemplatively for a while as he played with his chin before his countenance suddenly turned grim.


    He nodded, "Only one!"


    The serious tone and expression he used in this reply of his has made Di Rou apprehensive and she could not help but to swallow another mouthful of saliva.


    Gulp!


    "W-What is that side effect master? Ah! But only if you are comfortable of telling me about it! Otherwise, its fine.." Di Rou quickly corrected her words, afraid that she might be stepping off her boundaries.


    Side effects also translated to weakness, and for any cultivator, no one was comfortable of telling others what that weakness was.


    If by chance, this weakness was exposed to others who bore malicious intentions, then they would be thoroughly troubled by it!


    However, what happened next was contrary to her expectations.


    With a profound look on his face, Duan Li answered as he looked down on the ground with a serious gaze.


    "I could only tap at most 10 percent of my full power with this injury, and while this pill could help me recover my powers, the nature of my severe injury would inevitably make me.." he stopped for a while as he shook his head.


    After a long sigh, seeming to come into terms with it, he finally continued and looked towards the sky, ".. unable to control that 10 percent of strength!"


    Hais! I fear to those who might offend me in the future..


    "If I, one day, accidentally hurt my enemy for too much, I hope that you will be there to stop me!"


    Duan Li said all these with a sorrowful expression.


    "..." Di Rou.


    Why did I even bother to ask?


    "Yes, Master.."


    ...


    After cultivating for another hour, Duan Li now has enough spiritual Qi distributed inside his body.


    This should be enough for him to defend himself for a while.


    "Come, let us take a look at the stone pedestal!" he waved his hand as Di Rou nodded and followed quietly behind.


    Stepping onto the gazebo, they could see that now, all four symbols were lit with 4 corresponding colours; bronze, copper, silver and gold!


    Brrrrr..!!


    A small slab of stone suddenly rose from the center as if it has detected their presence. Within it, a spherical object that was azure in color was slotted!


    "T-this!" Duan Li''s eyes widened in surprise. But after analyzing it for a bit, he quickly shook his head.


    No, this isn''t one of the mysterious pearls!


    Tetra Soul Sense!


    [Stone of absolute might.]


    [Could be slotted into practically any weapon to drastically improve their strength.]


    [Extremely rare. Does not exist in the mortal realm.]


    "Oh? This is an extremely good stuff!" Duan Li''s eyes sparkled as he threw a question to Little Sword.


    "Little Sword, can you use this as well?"


    The Little Sword then promptly replied, "En! I definitely can young master. However, considering that my full power is currently sealed, it would not prove that much of a boost for me being an Eternal weapon. Normal weapons though, could greatly benefit from it!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li cupped his chin, "Is that so.." and pondered for a moment, before storing it inside his spatial ring.


    "Well, that''s for another time then! Now, where is the exit portal?"


    As if his words were being listened to, a temporal vortex suddenly appeared not far away from them.


    "Finally.. let us return to the Jiu Empire!" Duan Li said as he put his hands behind his back and entered the vortex.


    Weengg!!


    ...


    High up above the mouth of the huge volcano, two silhouettes were observing Duan Li''s activity from the beginning to the end.


    "To think that he could even beat that overpowered talisman! Never before in my life had I even thought of that as something that could be done!" Dugu Liubai stared at the holographic screen with widened eyes.


    He knew full well that the final trial was rigged from the start. Therefore, to even overcome a rigged trial that none should have been able to beat..


    What a monster!


    The Will of the Grand Immortal seemed to inconspicuously chuckled.


    "It''s only expected of him to do so." he said with a hint of pride in it.


    Without turning his back, the Will then said to Dugu Liubai, "My role here is done. I have to request of you to not said a word about my appearance here."


    "Lord''s words is my command!" Dugu Liubai replied fervently.


    "En! Take this as my gift." a sliver ray of light seemed to be shot out from his forehead, before entering Dugu Liubai''s head.


    Wongg!!


    T-This!


    He immediately sat down cross-legged and cultivated this mysterious energy.


    Crack!


    A chime reminiscent of a chain being cut in half could be heard.


    Second Shackle released!


    Entering Omnipresence realm state!


    BOOMMM!!


    Opening his eyes wide in disbelief, he soon broke out into a celebration and jumped around.


    "Hahahaha! I have finally ascended to the second realm!"


    Then, quickly stepping out from his elation as fast as it came, he prostrated to the ground as if worshipping, his voice shaking with veneration, he said, "Thank you Lord! This lowly one is honored to receive such a gift!"


    The Will of the Grand Immortal waved his hand dismissively. "It''s nothing."


    Hmm?


    Crackle!


    The sky above them started to darken, and as if just realizing, Dugu Liubai''s forehead began to sweat.


    "Oh no! I forgot to do my preparation for the Heavenly tribulation!" he said with a horrified voice.


    As he still has a long way to release the second shackle before, he never did any sorts of preparation beforehand at all. After all, who could expect that the gift from the Grand Immortal would be so formidable?


    "Heaven''s Will? To appear before me.. Impudence! Now scram!"


    This word ''scram'' of his seemed to carry an archaic authority that resonated with the whole realm!


    Huuu!!


    The dark clouds then quickly scattered into the 8 cardinal direction as fast as they could before they even coalesced together, as if they just met with their grandfather who came after them with a beating stick!


    "..." Dugu Liubai.


    ...

 258 Chapter 251: Lamentations of the chosen one!

    Wengg!!


    The silhouette of a person with his hands clasped behind his back appeared vividly on the temporal vortex as it hummed behind the big red temple gate.


    "He''s here!" exclaimed a group of people as they waited with anxious looks on their face.


    This was the underground cave where the entrance of the Eternal Maze was located.


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    Tap! Tap!


    "Huh? Why is everyone here?"


    Upon stepping out from the vortex that connected the two worlds together, Duan Li was surprised to see that a crowd had already gathered before him.


    "Foolish boy! Do you know how long you have been gone? You had us worried!" exclaimed the Principal, Bian Tianyu with an agitated voice.


    "What? It''s probably two days at most.." Duan Li shrugged off his shoulder after he thought about it.


    "It''s almost a week." this time, it was the calm voice of the Vice-Principal, Zhang Xi who spoke.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s raised his brows.


    A week?


    The time dilation this time around was quite stretched out it seems..


    Does that mean that subsequent regions after this would have an even more dilated time lapse?


    "Kid, I seriously thought that you needed a rescue or something, so I was thinking about sending a group of elite people to come and fetch you. Thankfully, that wasn''t necessary." a majestic voice spoke out as he led a group of powerful cultivators at the Foundation Establishment realm behind him, along with several familiar faces.


    "Paying respects to your Majesty!" Duan Li swiftly cupped his fists together and bowed a little upon the approach of the other party.


    It was the Emperor of the Jiu Empire, Jiu Xian Ping!


    While in terms of status he was practically higher than the Emperor, it was still not an official matter.


    In addition, even if his title were to become official later on, he would still feel the need to show the proper etiquette when greeting the other party.


    An Emperor is an Emperor after all. At least, he would be spared from having to kneel before the latter during any official ceremony or events.


    The Emperor shook his head with a slight chuckle, "No need to be on ceremony. How was your adventure in the.. hmm?"


    The Emperor suddenly stopped between his words as a frown was etched onto his forehead. He then inched closer towards Duan Li as he shot a piercing gaze onto the latter, as if scanning him.


    "Your body''s internal state.. " the Emperor said in a low voice after a while with a troubled expression.


    Oh?


    The Emperor seems to be able to detect that I am grievously injured..


    Maybe soul sense?


    ''If that is so, then the other Nascent Soul realm experts here should be able to notice the same thing as well..''


    Therefore Duan Li nodded as it was pointless to hide anyway.


    "Yeah, most of my meridians and Qi pathways are ruptured. However, don''t worry too much about it, I will recover fully in about 3 months." Duan Li replied with a hint of helplessness in his voice.


    Hearing this, the Emperor was a little bit doubtful.


    3 months of recovery for meridians and Qi pathways broken beyond recognition?


    What method of sorcery did he used?


    Usually, people would wail in despair if such a situation were to occur to them, but this kid here..


    The more the Emperor thought about it, the more incredulous his expression seems to become. However, upon recalling on what kind of person he was dealing with here, the Emperor''s gaze soon landed onto an open area to the side, as if lamenting somehow.


    Hais!


    Main characters sure has it easy..


    He believed that there were chosen ones in the world, and Duan Li was indubitably that very same person.


    Still, this had caused him to be much more wary of the vortex before him than ever before.


    "Was the trial really that difficult? As you are now, you have already seemed to reach the pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm.. a whole realm from where you were before entering the maze.. but for even someone like you to turn into such a state.." the Emperor subconsciously swallowed his saliva.


    "We would have taken in quite the loss if we had sent them in to help him.. worse case, everyone would just die.. " Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight of the Emperor, shook his head as he sighed out in relief while looking at the people behind them.


    These people were the selected, best of the best from the younger generations which they were about to send in before.


    "I agree. The amount of resources we have put to nurture these young elite troops of the Jiu Empire would be for naught. To think that the level of the trial would be so insane." Liu Sheng Juan, the most richest person in the Jiu Empire, nodded to the latter''s statement as he cast a complicated frown towards the vortex.


    The reason why these three Big Guns of the Jiu Empire said all these with utmost seriousness was because naturally, they knew full well of how overpowered Duan Li was.


    After all, even a Pinnacle Nascent Soul realm expert, a renown member from the Dark Sect even, has fallen under his might.


    Realizing that they might have misunderstood the whole situation, Duan Li quickly waved his hand, "Well, the trial wasn''t actually that difficult, my current state is but from a different story.." he said as he scratched his head, feeling a little bit embarrassed.


    ...


    After he explained the event from the beginning to the end, the three big guns of the Empire had finally calmed down.


    "So that was the case.." the Emperor said with his mouth twitching is disbelief.


    He was actually fine all the way during the trial, only to messed up at the very end, hence arriving at his current state..


    Haaa!


    "Alright, we shall hear more of the story next time. For now, I think you should go back and rest at your residence court. All of your followers should be waiting for you too." the Emperor said.


    He then added, "But before you go, make sure you remember this. I''ve set the date of your coronation as the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire two days from now on, so it would be best if you could recover for as much as you can before then."


    ''Two days from now on? I''m not sure I''m really ready though..'' Duan Li cupped his chin.


    Liu Sheng Juan by the side then continued after the Emperor, "There are envoys from the other Empires around, and they would surely try to poke their noses on where it did not belong. Make sure to not get into too much trouble, if you can."


    Huh? Why does it seems like he was looking at me as if looking at a troublemaker?


    Duan Li could not help but to have some shades of grey on his face as he thought on what he did wrong.


    Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight then seemed to recall something as well before saying, "As for your identity, you need not be too concern about it. We shall handle the more difficult stuff for you."


    Hearing all these, Duan Li could only sighed out helplessly.


    Hais!


    I should have been more low profile..


    ...

 259 Chapter 252: Warm reunion!

    "Ahh.. home sweet home.."


    Duan Li exhaled a breath of fresh air upon reaching the gate of his residence court with a big smile on his face. Somehow, he missed the rowdy bunch of those followers of his.


    I wonder how the rest of them are doing..


    "If they slacked on their cultivation, I would have to reprimand them for a little bit!" he nodded with a slight chuckle.


    Kreaak..


    ...


    The moment Duan Li stepped inside the gate, Xiahou Yu, Shen Lu, Wang Xiolun, Shen Murong, Wei Wang, Wei Shang, Xu Rong, Fei Longwei and Guo He that were deeply immersed in their cultivation, immediately opened their eyes simultaneously.


    "He''s back?"


    They were busy reinforcing their cultivation realm in a separate location around the residence court, and they could somehow feel that their ''Lord'' has returned.


    Perhaps, this was due to Duan Li''s blood that was infused into them during their body tempering phase before, thus they obtained this mystical senses of theirs!


    Suuu! Suuu! Suuu!


    Everyone quickly stood up on their feet and flew to Duan Li''s direction. Similarly, Duan Li could also detect them approaching his location at an impressive speed!


    "Oh? Xiahou Yu is the fastest? That''s unexpected.." Duan Li was surprised when he payed more attention to this mystical feeling.


    Of all of his followers, Xiahou Yu''s realm was the lowest before. However, he could now sense that she had gotten incredibly strong to the point of almost reaching the level of her other peers!


    Impressive!


    "I guess, the higher my realm, the stronger would be my connection to them.." he cupped his chin as he stood still, waiting for them to come.


    ''Would that mean that one day I could also feel what they feel?''


    Duan Li shook his head and put such thoughts at the back of his head.


    Huuu..


    Rustling sounds of leaves from the nearby trees were gently caressed by an inconspicuos wind before they scattered along around Duan Li slowly, whom was standing tall with his hands behind his back, his black hair fluttering ever so slightly.


    Tap! Tap! Tap!


    At the same time this scene happened, all of his followers arrived at the exact moment despite their differences in flying speed. It seems that they have met up with each other along the way and decided to present themselves together.


    Standing in front of their Lord like this, both parties were silent for a while as the leaves scattered between them, displaying a vivid image of a warm reunion that could shed tears upon those that witnessed this.


    According to the normal route, the followers would either ecstatically called up their Lord with teary eyes and emotional face, while running towards Duan Li with snots hanging by their nose.


    However, one would need to be a normal party in the first place for this to happen, and with Duan Li''s, this party of his was definitely not something ordinary.


    Therefore, a unique scene played out instead.


    "DUAN LI!!"


    Shen Murong shouted out at the top of his lungs like a madman and dashed towards his Lordship with an intent to smash the latter''s face to that of a peasant''s.


    "Huh?"


    Duan Li of course, was caught off-guard by this sudden romantic approach of Shen Murong.


    With a reflex surpassing the normal people, Duan Li''s left elbow quickly curved to deflect Shen Murong''s fist as it was only an inch apart from breaking his nose.


    "You crazy bastard, your Lord here has just returned and you already assaulted him like this? Hmph!" Duan Li harrumphed as he thought of this in his mind and he followed up with a counter.


    Thankfully, he had already assimilated the ''Martial True Instinct'' ability subconsciously, and it was integrated with his every movements. Otherwise, with his injuries, he would most likely suffer from this sudden attack.


    After deflecting the fist with his left elbow, Duan Li used the momentum to spin himself and get behind Shen Murong, before doing a donkey kick to the latter''s butt!


    Putong!


    Shen Murong was sent crashing to the wall on the side.


    "Hmph! You need more practice!" Duan Li snorted a little bit.


    Plucking himself out from the wall, Shen Murong wiped off the blood trail on his lips cooly before saying, "You''re good.."


    Puu!!


    Duan Li almost choked on himself.


    This bastard has grown a little bit too cocky since I was gone, I''ll teach him a lesson latter on..


    Ignoring the other party, Duan Li nodded to the rest of them with a satisfied expression.


    "Everyone, I see that your cultivation has almost reached the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment within the span of a week.. that''s quite good!"


    Hearing this from their Lord, they could only smile wryly to themselves while thinking;


    Only ''quite good''..


    A cultivator that had reach this level with our speed could already be considered as a peerless genius within the Jiu Empire alone, yet we only got such a praise from him?


    As a result, they were a little bit dissatisfied by this and were about to voice out complaints for not praising them more when Wang Xiolun, whom was already at the Core Formation realm and was always impassive, widened his eyes and suddenly said something which shocked them.


    "P-Pinnacle stage of Core Formation realm?!"


    Puu!!


    They simultaneously choked on themselves.


    F*cking monster!


    Now they know that their cultivation speed they were so impressed with just now was viewed nothing much by their Lord here.


    After all, in front of this monster Lord of their''s, ascending straight to the Pinnacle stage of each realm was but like drinking and eating - not worth a mention!


    Feeling so stifled inside, they sighed out at the same time with a downcasted expression.


    Duan Li, not knowing their inner thoughts, misunderstood this as they were being sad because he did not bring them any gifts.


    Thus, he quickly laughed out.


    "Ahahaha! Don''t worry everyone, I have plenty of stuff I can gift you all for all your hardwork!"


    Again, they sighed helplessly when they heard this.


    Hais!


    "..." Duan Li.


    ...


    Inside the Imperial Royal Palace in the capital, the meeting room was in such a tense atmosphere that the guards literally broke out in cold sweats.


    Right now, Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight of the Knight''s Order, was currently giving out murderous aura towards a certain person opposite of him.


    "What? You disagree with what I just said? Tsk! To think that your Emperor would cast away his honor and appoint an Imperial Overseer, this Jiu Empire sure has its fate sealed!" said a haughty young man with freckles in an arrogant tone.


    This young man was Liu Shuiyui, a Prince from the neighbouring empire, the Liu Empire!


    Upon receiving the invitation from the Jiu Empire, they quickly came over just to mock the other party right on the face.


    In their opinion, an Emperor that would willingly appoint an Imperial Overseer, whose status was practically like stepping over the head of the Emperor, deserves a thoroughly tongue lashing!


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    After all, it was a disgrace for the royal family.


    "Liu Shuiyui, say that once more and I will kill you this instant." Fei Jin Fang said coldly.


    By the looks of it, he was really serious in his threat.


    Therefore, the two attendants of the prince could not help but to have their face warped in fury upon hearing this.


    "You lowly scum! You are just a mere Knight! How dare you said such things to the.."


    Before one of the attendant could even finish his sentence, a slight brush of wind went past them and had his head exploded into bits and pieces!


    Psshhh!!


    "You are saying?" Fei Jin Fang spoke indifferently, as if he had only smashed an inconsequential fly to its death.


    "If a person really has the balls of steel to say such things to my face, why not come over here with their real body instead of using clones?" he continued and spatted to the side with a disdainful look.


    Turning to the two Knights behind him, he instructed, "Throw them out from the window!"


    "..." everyone.


    ...

 260 Chapter 253: Left alone!

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    "So, was that really fine?" Fei Jin Fang said as he walked along the hallway in the Imperial Royal Palace. It seemed as though he was talking to an empty air beside him.


    Weng!!


    A ripple suddenly appeared which contorted the space beside him. With it, came out a familiar figure.


    It was Liu Sheng Juan.


    By using some sort of a mystical artifact, he was able to hide his presence from other people''s senses.


    "The small prince is but predictable. This much should be fine, and even if we go a little bit further, the Liu Empire would still turn a blind eye to us." he replied calmly as his eyes reflected a deep, calculative mind.


    The prince, Liu Shuiyui, although was renown to have a big mouth, was not as idiot as he appeared. He would not dare to have said such things in the first place if there was no one backing him up.


    After all, no matter how braindead someone was, insulting the Emperor of another Empire in a foreign territory would certainly grant them death by hanging.


    Even if the latter''s status was a prince, there was no exception to this.


    However, doing so would create an unstable rift between their Empire. While the big clans, nobles and aristocrats in the Jiu Empire was thoroughly suppressed by the Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping, the same could not be said about their neighbour, the Liu Empire.


    In the Liu Empire, there were four major factions eyeing for opportunity to wrestle influence and authority;


    The Royal faction, the most powerful in terms of authority. The Trinity Faction, consisting of nobles, aristocrats, and hired bureaucrats which has a deep influence in the society. The East Merchants Faction, controlling the vast majority of the economic flow in the Liu Empire, and finally, the Seven Deadly Clans, whom acted as the backbone of their military might!


    If their prince, was somehow executed in foreign territory, these 4 factions would definitely make a move against one another!


    Liu Sheng Juan, with his vast insights, had already predicted that something was amiss the moment this infamous prince of mischief, Liu Shuiyui requested for an audience.


    Therefore, he chose to stick with Fei Jin Fang despite their day and night personality.


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    Usually, when the two of them met, they would argue ceaselessly all day, causing even the Emperor to sigh out helplessly every time, as if casted out like an outsider.


    However, when it came down to doing business, the two of them seemed to become brother-in-arms as if bounded by blood! They would trust each other without restraint.


    If Fei Jin Fang was the brawns, then Liu Sheng Juan was the brain!


    Right now, Liu Sheng Juan''s calculative mind had already plotted out a clear conjecture of what was going on.


    "Most probably, Liu Shuiyui was sent here to try to get some information about who is the Imperial Overseer. By creating a ruckus and looking down on our Emperor for making such a decision, one would definitely feel the need to defend the Emperor''s honor." he said.


    Fei Jin Fang thought for a while before nodding in agreement, "Indeed, had you not warned me in advance, I would have told them that the Emperor made such decision was not due to simple means, but that the very fate of the people of the Jiu Empire hangs on it!"


    "That''s right, and while that information might seemed like insignificant to others, in front of my brother.. he would definitely be able to trace the meaning until the end!" Liu Sheng Juan said with a serious look on his face.


    "Oh yeah, the envoy that came from the Liu Empire was lead by your older brother, Liu Sheng Duhai isn''t it? That is one troublesome figure we have here.." Fei Jin Fang wore the same expression as well.


    This must mean that Liu Shuiyui''s action was most probably instructed by the other party!


    But to what extent was the purpose? The both of them weren''t really sure either.


    The calculative talent of Liu Sheng Juan''s older brother, Liu Sheng Duhai, was something that was too extraordinary that even their Emperor would never underestimate!


    Furthermore, the reason why Liu Sheng Duhai was sent to lead the envoy was because he did not support any of the 4 factions at all despite possessing the title of advisor for the Liu Empire. He always remained neutral, thinking of what''s best for the Empire first and foremost.


    Thus, the four factions of the Liu Empire does not need to worry as whatever happens here would not benefit any of them politically.


    Thinking of his older brother, a cold glimmer could be traced hidden deep inside Liu Sheng Juan''s eyes.


    ...


    Puhe!


    Two figure rose up from the zule river that surrounded the Imperial palace and crawled onto the river bank while gasping for air.


    Bam!


    "That damned Fei Jin Fang! To think that he dared to really throw me out from the window!" Liu Shuiyui spatted out as he punched the ground.


    Still, this much humiliation is acceptable as I did just straightly mocked out their Emperor..


    Though..


    That damned Liu Sheng Duhai, the hell is he planning making me said all those?


    For a second, I really thought that my soul was leaving my body the moment Fei Jin Fang attacked! Thankfully, he only strucked the clone beside me..


    If there was no one there, with no one to vent his frustrations on, I might have been the one to die..


    Suddenly, a shiver ran down his spine as he thought of something.


    "It can''t be.. did that bastard predicted this too and prepared the clone beforehand?"


    Gulp!


    Nah.. he isn''t that omniscient..


    "The effects from the Qi sealing pills should wear off soon my prince.." the attendant beside him reminded.


    According to safety protocols, any foreign cultivator regardless of titles, except for a very special circumstances, before entering the Imperial Palace, were required to swallow the Qi sealing pills that acted to disrupt the Qi flow within one''s meridians and Qi pathways, temporarily rendering them unable to make use of their spiritual Qi at all.


    This was also the reason why they can''t escape their fate from being thrown out of the window so disgracefully before.


    After all, both the prince and his attendant were in the Core Formation realm!


    "Hmph! Well I did as I was told already, so its time to have some fun! Follow me!" the prince waved his hand grandly as his attendant followed closely from behind.


    ...


    "And that''s how my adventure went inside the second region!" Duan Li said energetically as he retold his wondrous adventure.


    "..." his followers.


    Burning a whole small island to extract spiritual Qi? Okay.


    Evolving a monster to become a humanoid cultivator, and then rallying a whole tribe to wage war against one another? That''s possible.


    Developing a new fist art that could devastate an entire Empire? A little too far-fetched but alright.


    Fighting an endless number of puppets, exterminating ancient killerworm species and taming away the Queen, scaling a peak-less mountain and finally fighting a replica of his with the same ability..


    Is this Lord of theirs for real?


    As expected of their Lord, it was such a preposterous adventure that was on par with the myth and legends they used to hear back when they were still children. In fact, this was probably the most outlandish story that even 3 years old child that hadn''t properly developed their cognitive thinking properly yet would have some serious doubts regarding its authenticity.


    Thankfully, their Lord here was smart. Along the way of telling his story, Duan Li summoned all of his pets from his spatial ring as witnesses that had continuously nodded their head on each breakthrough in the story. At first, they were still largely skeptical as this whole fiasco could be orchestrated and planned beforehand, but the moment their Lord brought out Bulu, and then Queen Levy, all their doubts vanished on the spot.


    This was especially the case when Queen Levy came out. Due to her dark nature, the aura she gave out sent numerous alarm signals in their body to explode as they simultaneously stepped back large distances. While her human appearance was beyond the natural beauty of anyone they had ever seen before, the stench of death oozing out from her body immediately destroyed that facade!


    They instantly knew that this Queen Levy was an evil entity!


    Had their Lord not immediately kicked her from the back which sent her crashing onto the nearby pond, and then reprimanding her to suppress her murderous aura, they would never, in their wildest dream could have imagined that such a reality was possible.


    They were not fools and talented in their own fields, and they could sense that this Queen Levy was beyond strong. Perhaps on the level of Nascent Soul realm or even further!


    For their Lord to be able to suppress such an entity.. just how monstrously strong was their Lord actually?!


    Gulp!


    At this moment, they realized that despite the casual looks of their Lord, one would have already made a terrible mistake if they think of him as the same as his appearance. If one day their Lord were to rage out, who could possibly stop him?


    Duan Li''s image suddenly grew taller in their mind as a new sense of respect and veneration were nurtured inside them.


    "You said that you fought a copy of yours in that final trial.. was this also the reason why you seemed to be injured somehow?" Shen Lu, the brightest of them all said this as he noticed some peculiarities with Duan Li.


    "Eh? Now that you mentioned it, when I was countered, it felt like there was something wrong with his movements.." Shen Murong cupped his chin as he pondered.


    Hearing this question, Duan Li could only smile wryly.


    "Actually, I am severely injured after I fought with my clone. All of my Meridians and Qi pathways were either ruptured or destroyed totally. Thankfully, with the help of Di Rou here, we were able to concoct a medicinal pill that helped recover some of my strength. At most, I could only bring out 10 percent of my power right now." he replied.


    "10 percent? And you managed to counter Shen Murong''s fist in that condition?" Wei Shang exclaimed in disbelief.


    Shen Murong''s cultivation has already reached the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, and while the latter did not use any skill art in that previous attack, its might was backed with spiritual Qi!


    To think that a person could so effortlessly counter that with just 10 percent of his strength..


    Obviously however, Duan Li did not understand what the other party meant to imply, so he shook his head.


    "Huh? What do you mean I used 10 percent of my strength to counter him? If I did that, then he might have crashed all the way onto the Sunlong Mountain in the East!"


    Puu!


    His followers spurted out some of their saliva.


    "You bastard.. then how much strength did you used to counter me? 8 percent?!" Shen Murong bellowed out, feeling discontent with what the other party just said.


    Hearing this, Duan Li scratched the back of his head for a while before answering, "I only used pure martial arts to counter you.."


    Puu!


    Shen Murong was on the verge of insanity as he couldn''t help but to think of this in his mind;


    ''You used pure martial arts to counter me without shattering your arm?''


    ''Have our disparity really grew that far in such a short amount of time?''


    ''Screw you!''


    "Damn it! I''m going to enter that Eternal Maze or whatever this instant!" he shouted out and flew away.


    "Me too." Fei Longwei that was silent all these while followed behind Shen Murong.


    "Me as well!"


    "I think I should go too.."


    ...


    Just like that, all of his followers left him one by one, leaving only him alone as a cold wind blew.


    Everyone, should''t we celebrate first?


    Why are all of you leaving in such a hurry?


    Hais!


    ...

 261 Chapter 254: Country bumpkin!

    With all of his followers gone, Duan Li grumbled for a moment before deciding to tour around his residence court. He found out that the mutated chickens which acted as the security guards for this home of his was very well hidden. In addition, he was also surprised when he peered into their cultivation realm;


    Late stage of the Qi Condensation realm!


    Holy-Moly!


    To think that poultry animals could evolve so much.. this was far too inconceivable!


    ''Was my blood really that formidable?'' Duan Li could not help but to think of this.


    Furthermore, he noticed that the feathers of these chickens were starting to develop some peculiar patterns. However, when he cast a glance at Cucko beside him, whom was puffing out its chest proudly in front of its henchmen, Duan Li could not help but to shake his head in pity.


    "Haii! All of your minions are starting to show symptoms of great changes, while you.. you don''t really look that much different when compared to the other normal chicken.." he sighed out.


    If there was something that this small chicken could be proud of to spare its dignity, it''s that its cultivation realm was higher than them by a few notches.


    After a while, he left Cucko with them when he noticed that they started to converse with each other in their own chicken language. While he could understand them fully thanks to the translation ability of the Tetra Soul Sense, he felt really weird listening to a bunch of chickens ''cucko-ing'' rapidly with each other.


    Bulu and the little Fenrir, Daelius though, decided to stay with them and joined in on the conversation as they found it to their liking.


    Soon after, Di Rou had also bid her farewell as she needed to make a full report to the Emperor regarding her own observation inside the Eternal Maze. After all, she was still part of the Elite Intelligence team of the Jiu Empire. In addition, with the inevitable event that would come 8 years later, such information was crucial so that the Empire could try to send in its young cultivators for them temper themselves both physically and mentally.


    Finally, coming to a stop at the gazebo in the middle of the lake, Duan Li''s eye hinted a trace of loneliness as he watched the mutated fish doing a battle royale with the chicken drumstick that he just threw in. This was somehow given to him by Xiahou Yu before she left, and he honestly does not know what to do with it.


    Hais!


    This isn''t the kind of return that I was expecting..


    What was with all of them? Why did everyone wanted to leave so hastily?


    "Husband, let this wife of yours embrace you in her warm touch, so that your loneliness would be whisked away like the melting ice from the first sun of Spring." a sweet voice spoke out gently from behind him.


    Puu!


    It was Queen Levy.


    "When did you get out?" Duan Li almost choked out in surprise and nearly fell into the lake.


    Afraid that she would cause trouble if left on her own devices, Duan Li had kept her inside the spatial ring all these while after his previous story-telling session with his followers. He never recalled that he ever let her out after that.


    Seemingly being able to read his thoughts, Queen Levy chuckled for a moment.


    "A mere spatial ring, no matter how powerful, would not be able to contain the life essences of entities of those that has transcended mortality for long. Furthermore, even though I have yet to enter the Omnipresence realm state, the laws of space within a spatial ring is far simpler when you considered the fact that I, have remained trapped inside a Compounded Space for millenniums, trying to escape it." she said with a nonchalant expression.


    Hearing this, Duan Li nodded in realization.


    With the amount of time that she had served in her sentence, one would naturally try to break out of it in some form or another, where studying and observing the law of space was inevitable.


    "Is that so..."


    Duan Li then thought for a while.


    Even though her original nature was evil, according to the Grand Immortal, she had already served her due time in that space for long enough. Therefore, her sins against humanity could be said to have been repaid in full and her slate was now clean. If he were to continue keeping her inside the spatial ring despite this, that would be an inhumane act as it was no different from throwing the other party into another prison.


    With this in mind, Duan Li decided to be more lenient to her.


    "As long as you don''t make trouble, you don''t need to stay in the spatial ring anymore and can use any of the empty room in my residence court. However, call me Lord instead of husband from now on. I do not want to be misunderstood by others, especially if it were to be heard by my mother."


    The Killerworm Queen was of course elated to hear that she finally got her freedom back, thus she nodded her head like a woodpecker and swiftly replied, "Don''t worry, I won''t trouble you from now on husb- I mean, my dear Lord!"


    "..." Duan Li.


    Dear Lord?


    Duan Li sighed.


    Well, at least it''s a start..


    "Follow me!" Duan Li gestured as they left his residence court.


    Soon after, it didn''t take long for them to arrive at the big gate. Upon seeing their arrival, the gatekeeper immediately opened up the gate as if they were super VIPs, whom could enter and leave the academy on their whims.


    Although feeling weirded out by this, seeing that it takes away the hassle of trying to explain and convince the gatekeeper for him to pass through, Duan Li could only give the other party a single Medium Quality spirit stone for the trouble.


    ...


    Taking a casual walk inside the capital, Duan Li could not help but to still be amazed by the beauty and charm of the city, even though this was no longer his first time. However, Queen Levy was even more excited.


    Being trapped in an isolation space for too long, the outside world was no longer as crude as she remembered. The current world was very much to her liking and her amazement with this new environment was like a child being led around by their parents inside a new playground.


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    There were even several occasions where the other party abruptly disappeared from his view, only to find out later that a patrolman was approaching him with the Queen on tow. Next, he was reprimanded by the patrolman for leaving the Queen unattended. Duan Li had to apologize several times for the trouble that was caused as he cursed in his mind;


    What the hell is this? I am not her parents! She is not my child!


    Continuing their journey around the city, Duan Li could not count on how many times that he had to face-palm his own face to the point that his forehead was now swelling like the Dugu fish.


    This Queen Levy was even more of a country bumpkin than him!


    When there were signs of ''Do not fly'' in one area, she would instead fly away just to see of what will happen!


    Of course, the resulting event was that another patrolman came forward as if waiting in ambush and gave him a hefty fine.


    Damn it all!


    "This current era is wonderful! I never thought that humanity would advance and achieve so much in their society building game! Back in those days, I still remembered on how normal humans would never dare to even cross face with a cultivator for fear of being massacred down to their last family line. But here, even powerful cultivator had to apologize and give face to a patrolman whom was not even a cultivator! Amazing!"


    Queen Levy was full of praise for the Jiu Empire and from the looks of it, she has now grown really attached to the capital.


    Meanwhile, other than getting constant headaches of having to babysit this new girl in town, Duan Li had also made observations on his own.


    The streets were far more crowded than he remembered, and from the conversation that he listened to along the way, he could detect that there were a lot of people whom was not from the Jiu Empire based on the accent that they were using in their speeches.


    "These people were probably from the other Empires, invited over for my coronation two days later.." Duan Li could not help but to become slightly nervous.


    The atmosphere was far more serious than he had imagined.


    "You over there." a compelling voice suddenly called out to them from behind.


    Turning around, Duan Li saw that it was an unfamiliar man with a set of robe that seemed expensive, possibly belonging to another Empire based on the insignia on the emblem attached on the right side of the chest. However, the facial appearance of this man made him recall a certain person that he was very familiar with - Liu Sheng Juan!


    "Yes? How can I help you?" Duan Li politely replied.


    "Why can''t I see through you?" the man suddenly asked with a serious expression.


    Eh?


    ...

 262 Chapter 255: Competition too good to pass up!

    "Excuse me?" Duan Li was bewildered with the sudden approach of this strange man in front of him, who were eyeing at him like he was some sort of an exotic animal.


    "What is your background?" the man continued to press on with a penetrating gaze.


    Seeing that this stranger was starting to inquire about his private information, Duan Li could not help but to take a step back as he stared at the other party with a dubious look.


    Is he a pervert?


    At first, he said something about not being able to see through me..


    Now he is asking for my background!


    Suspicious! Very suspicious!


    With a frown, as if he knew what Duan Li''s expression meant, the man immediately said in a displeased tone, "I''m not someone suspicious, I am just genuinely interested in knowing about you."


    "..." Duan Li.


    That makes it even worse when we don''t even know each other!


    Duan Li shook his head vehemently, "I''m sorry, but I don''t know you. Goodbye!"


    The man was visibly stunned for a moment because of Duan Li''s rejection, which made him realize that his method of approach was incorrect and hasty.


    How could I make such a careless mistake?


    "Wait!" he called out when he saw that Duan Li was quickly leaving the scene as if a spouse that almost got caught cheating.


    "I apologize, I am an envoy from the Liu Empire that was invited over for the coronation of your Imperial Overseer. My name is Liu Sheng Duhai." the man introduced himself with an eloquent speech.


    "Liu Sheng Duhai?"


    Hearing this name, Duan Li''s mind quickly clicked together, as if he had just unraveled a mystery.


    Thinking for a moment, he then asked with a curious tone just to make sure, "Could you be in any way related to Liu Sheng Juan, the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank?"


    The man was once again surprised as an intrigued look appeared on his face.


    Cupping his chin, he replied, "You know my little brother?"


    Little brother?


    I see!


    He is the older brother of the Managing Director!


    No wonder he looks so familiar!


    "Yes, we''ve been acquainted before. So, the Managing Director is.. not from the Jiu Empire?" Duan Li said in realization along with a series of hypothesis reeling in his mind.


    The man called as Liu Sheng Duhai smiled. Instead of answering, he gave Duan Li a complicated look.


    "Let''s just say, things are not that simple. Anyway, now that you know of my identity, it would only be a fair trade to introduce yourself to me as well wouldn''t it?" he continued.


    Eh?


    Usually, people would introduce themselves to each other because its part of the common courtesy. To say that it was a trade..


    What a strange fellow!


    "My name is Duan Li. I''m just a junior student of the Jixue Knight''s Academy! Nobody too special!"


    "Duan Li.." the man thought for a moment as he committed Duan Li''s name to his memory.


    Someone that calls themselves as unimportant, are usually the one with the most formidable identity..


    In addition, my ability, the ''Eye of Unraveling Facade'' could see through everyone in almost an instant. However, when I looked at you, it was as if I was staring right into the abyss!


    There is no way that your identity could be so simple! Hmph!


    "If you don''t have any other plans, then why not join me? I''m sure that we can know more about each other along the way." Liu Sheng Duhai employed.


    Queen Levy that was beside Duan Li leaned in to whisper, "Lord, this person is quite the eccentric person. I suggest that we be more careful around him.. he seems to be too.. calculative."


    Duan Li nodded to this and whispered back, "Indeed.. all the more reason on why we have to know more about this strange fellow! Furthermore, we have nothing to do as well.."


    "..." Liu Sheng Duhai''s mouth twitched slightly.


    You know that I can hear you two when we are this close right?


    His interest was piqued even further, especially when he glanced at Queen Levy.


    "This woman.. I can''t see the depths of her cultivation.."


    Interesting! Very interesting!


    In a single encounter, I managed to discover two rare individuals!


    This must be the work of fate!


    Heavens! Be rest assured, I will unravel the meaning behind this encounter soon!


    "Where are we going?" the both of them inquired.


    Clasping his hands behind his back, Liu Sheng Duhai''s disposition suddenly turned vicissitudinous. With a hint of expectation in his voice, he replied, "We are heading towards the battle stadium to spectate students from the different parts of the Nine Empires around the world fighting with each other!"


    "Oh? There are things like that happening right now? Let''s head over there then!"


    "..." Liu Sheng Duhai.


    My change in temperament did not even faze him..


    ...


    WAAAHHHHHH!


    Roars of excitement could be heard around them the moment they arrived. There seems to be some kind of performances that were currently happening on the platform before the official battle will begin in the evening.


    "So this is the Battle Stadium! It''s gigantic!" Duan Li exclaimed excitedly with clenched fists as he looked around.


    The platform for the Battle Stadium was almost the same size as the sports field in the Jixue Knight''s Academy where they conducted their first Combat Class session before, about 100 by 100 meters.


    The only single difference however, was that the platform was surrounded by seats for the spectators, arranged in a stepped-slope fashion so that height differences won''t matter for those whom were viewing from the back.


    Roughly doing an arithmetic calculation in his mind, the total seats should be enough for around 100,000 people!


    Even then, most of the seats was already taken and the place was packed right now. However, the situation remained orderly as numerous powerful cultivators were stationed in the sky, acting as the security guards keeping a lookout for troublemakers.


    "The competition should be starting in about an hour, so we would have to wait until then." Liu Sheng Duhai said as they made their way to their seating platform among the masses.


    As they converse with each other, Duan Li found out quite a bit about the competition.


    Firstly, the minimum requirement to participate in the competition was that, they have to be at least on the Early stage of the Core Formation realm.


    Secondly, it turns out that the competition will ban all form of skill arts, only allowing martial arts and internal reinforcement skills to be used in the battle. Additionally, since there were many participants, the competition would be split into three stages.


    The first stage was decided to be battle royale, separated into groups according to their cultivation realm until only 6 participants were left from each group. They will then move on to the second stage which was a round-robin setup, where each group will have a total of 5 rounds. The first three participants from each group will be declared as the winner.


    The third stage was planned to be quite special, in that the winners from each group would be gathered together. They would then have the chance to fight a puppet one realm higher than them!


    This was dubbed to be the impossible challenge by the organizer, and those that managed to overcome this, shall be celebrated by everyone as a genius among genius, as well as earning the right to take home the grand prize; a single High quality spirit stone!


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    "..." Duan Li.


    Ignoring the measly value of the grand prize, Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated seriously in his mind.


    My cultivation realm is enough for me to join the competition, and since my internal injury only allows me to use 10 percent of my strength at most, the measuring orb they used to measure one''s realm should only show my realm to be in the early stage of the Core Formation realm..


    Eh, this is too good of an opportunity to pass!


    "Is there any way where I can join the competition?" Duan Li asked suddenly.


    Oh?


    "You want to join the competition?"


    Liu Sheng Duhai''s pair of eyes flashed with numerous schemes for a hundredth of a second before disappearing with a friendly smile.


    Weng!


    "Normally, no one could enter the competition on a last minute notice, but here, take this token of mine. As long as you show it to the person in charge, you should be able to join it with no problem at all."


    A token in the shape of a unique pentagon appeared on his hand before handing it over to Duan Li. There seems to be an emblem of identity on it.


    "Thanks!" Duan Li clasped both fists on the latter as a show of gratitude before turning to Queen Levy.


    "You wait here and watch the show! Remember to not create any troubles!"


    "Your wish is my command my dear Lord. Please enjoy yourself." Queen Levy gently replied with a nod.


    As they watched Duan Li''s figure disappearing into the distance to sign up for the competition, Liu Sheng Duhai could not help but to ponder upon that last sentence from this woman beside him.


    What did she mean when she said that her Lord could enjoy himself?


    ...

 263 Chapter 256: The other four empires!

    "Hey! You''re not supposed to enter here! This area is limited for the participants only! Turn back now before you get yourself hurt!" said a person sternly as he spotted Duan Li approaching and rose his hand to stop him.


    "I''m here to participate in the competition! Here!" Duan Li replied as he quickly showed the token.


    The man shook his head, "The registration is already closed. You can''t.. eh?"


    His eyes suddenly opened wide after he caught sight of the emblem on that token.


    Insignia of a Rook!


    "T-This! Forgive my rudeness! Please, come along this way!"


    ...


    Duan Li and the entrance guard soon arrived in a large hall where numerous participants gathered together.


    Some were chatting with each other while some were isolating themselves.


    Quickly after, a tall and burly middle-aged man swiftly approached them from the distance.


    "What''s the meaning of this? I''ve told you that only participants can enter here! Why are you bringing this fellow in?!" he bellowed.


    This person seems to be in charge of the place and has the air of authority in his words, causing the entrance guard to shiver and sunk his head between his shoulders slightly upon being reprimanded by his superior.


    "S-Sir, please hear me out! This person.." the entrance guard began to explain.


    The two of them whispered with each other for a while before the complexion of the other party turned pale. Unknowingly, he had already swallowed a couple of his saliva in anxiousness!


    "Sir, may I see the token?" the person in charge politely asked towards Duan Li.


    Duan Li nodded and flicked his hand to show the token. The other party gasped.


    Turning around, he slapped the entrance guard''s head from the back with a loud ''pa!'' as he shouted, "You fool! Why are you still standing like a mute here? Go and register his name right now and add him to the rooster list!"


    "A-At once, Sir!" the entrance guard dashed to the reception before making a quick U-turn. Scratching his head with an embarrassed look, he asked, "May I know your name Sir? I need to register you.."


    "..." Duan Li and the superior.


    ...


    The whole fiasco between the trio was witnessed by many people and most of them could not help but to snort in disdain.


    "Hmph! That milk drinker, how dare he sully the holiness of this competition! To enter through the backdoor.. I''ll be sure to pummel him very nicely later on kekeke.." a skinny looking man by the corner with missing teeth here and there said sinisterly.


    "I took a look when they measured his cultivation realm, he is just a measly Early stage Core Formation realm! What use is using his connection to enter the competition with such trashy realm? Truly courting death!" another person said proudly.


    "Ah, what''s that? I am also at the Early stage too! You looking down on me?" a person that overheard their conversation could not help but to chimed in with an angry face.


    "You damn right I do! I don''t only look down on you, but your sister as well! In fact, your ancestor is also the same!"


    "F*ck! Don''t you cry and beg for mercy when I sunk my finger to smash your big b*lls later on!"


    "Where is the guy that said something about milk drinker? I love milk!"


    "You shut up!"


    These groups of rogue cultivators turned rowdy as an intense staring competition and a series of cursing words was thrown at each other.


    In their opinion, students from the academies were all just sheltered babies that had not yet seen the world. Thus, they were determined to eliminate students the moment the competition start later on. After all, students has no real combat experience when compared to them who travelled the continent, or so they thought.


    Unbeknownst to them, at another corner of the massive hall, a young man seemingly in his 20s shook his head.


    "Those fools. Getting worked up for a mere fish, that''s how people can identify that they are trash as well." he harrumphed as he crossed his arms between his chest. This man radiated out some impressive pugilistic aura around him. In addition, his body was tall and big, comparable to Shen Murong.


    "Ling Shin, teacher said to never underestimate people. For all we know, that person could be strong like us." a gentle looking man with long blue hair said. From his words, one could mistake that he was kind, but a hint of sarcasm and pride was hidden well under the words that he just uttered.


    "Strong like us? Ruo Hen, you sure know how to make a joke." the person called Ling Shin replied with a dissatisfied look.


    These two were from the far East empire, the Doulou Empire!


    Among the Nine Empires that dotted the Tian continent, the Doulou Empire was renown for their massive collections of martial arts manual. Therefore, although the two of them could not be considered as the top-notch genius of their academy, they were still confident with their abilities for this kind of competition.


    They felt like it was made just for them!


    "You guys sure are confident." a voice spoke out behind them.


    "Bai Li, if you think that I would be surprised by how you managed to get behind me, don''t bother." Ling Shin scoffed with an indifferent tone.


    "Hahahaha of course. I was only toying with you. If you can''t even detect my presence when I''m not using any sorts of special skills at all, then how can our Empire possibly be a rival for each other?" the man called as Bai Li replied. His outfit drifted like those black inks being submerged inside a flowing river, dancing ever so slightly.


    "Bai Li, the Huan Empire only sent you alone?" Ruo Hen said with a curious smile.


    Bai Li nodded, "Well, we are short on hand.."


    "You jest. You guys just love to look down on all the other Empire anyway, what more of this backward Jiu Empire. In front of your eyes, you guys only accepted the invitation out of formality." Ling Shin spoke.


    He then continued, "If there were real reasons as to why we even bothered to come all the way here, isn''t it because of them?"


    Ling Shin''s stare fell onto a pair of individuals that seemed to be having a friendly conversation with each other a few distance away from them while drinking from expensive glass wine.


    As if realizing that someone was staring at them, the both of them looked towards their direction and smiled.


    Ptuh!


    Ling Shin spatted to the side.


    "Cocky bastard. They might be superior in terms of skill arts, but we eat this kind competition like our breakfast! Let''s see how long will that smug face stays on their face!"


    ...


    "Isn''t that Ling Shin? They''re here too?" a tall man with a fair facial appearance said to the person in front of him. One of his hand was placed behind his back while the other were holding a cup of wine.


    "Seems like they have an agenda. Oh well, it doesn''t matter. Zhang Liao, would you care for another drink?" a man casually replied as he whipped out another barrel of wine.


    "Lu Bu, I''m full already.."


    They were both from the Wei Empire and the Qin Empire respectively, two of the most powerful Empires out of the nine. Not only that, they were also allies with each other since time immemorial.


    ...


    Oblivious to the hidden turmoil as the result of his sudden participation, Duan Li quickly found a spot as he sat down cross-legged to analyze his internal state.


    Sonar Qi!


    Wengg!


    Before long, he quickly shook his head.


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    "Not good, my recovery will really take me a while before I can control my strength properly.." he sighed out. Recalling the moment when he donkey-kicked Shen Murong to the wall, he really had to give a round of applause to the other party for withstanding that kick of his!


    "That monstrous fellow.. I wonder how strong will he become when he returned.."


    DONG!!


    The sound of a gong suddenly reverberated across the room, catching everyone''s attention.


    "All participants, please prepare yourself! The competition will begin shortly!"


    ...

 264 Chapter 257: The tall burly man!

    "Ladies and gentlemen! I hope that everyone present here are prepared for a sore throat tomorrow morning because tonight, we will have some fights going on between cultivators across the continent happening right here, in this very Battle Stadium!"


    The emcee of the competition, wearing a white-colored skin tight suit and a weird hat was quite lively and full of energy, becoming the center of attraction.


    Furthermore, through amplifying his voice using a certain technique, he was able to shatter the night sky across the whole stadium making the audience riled up like some barbaric savages!


    "Yeaahh!! Bring them in now!"


    "I want to see blood! Dismembered bodies and agonized moans!"


    "Umm.. I don''t think killings are allowed.."


    "Alright guys, the bets are closed off! Going back on your bets are not allowed from now on or you must pay up the penalties first!"


    There were a number of people here whom could be considered as total lunatics while most others were just pure gamblers and was watching for fun. Some others though, were genuinely interested in the upcoming fights, especially the fans of the participants, their teachers and apprentices as well as their family members.


    "For the first stage, it is the battle royale! Would the participants please come out now!"


    Su! Su! Su!


    With a grand wave of his hand, 4 rounded platforms appeared on top of the big stage one after another. Next, four gates were opened simultaneously, where participants flew out and landed on their designated platforms while staring at each other intensely.


    "Everyone! Tonight, our Jiu Empire as the host of this competition, are honored that students from the various academies across the whole Tian continents have gathered together under this one platform to unleash and demonstrate their godly martial arts!"


    The emcee then continued, "In addition, there are also some others who were actually from the prestigious academies of the other empires, such as our neighbour, the Liu Empire! Doulou Empire and the Huan Empire from the far East, as well as the Wei Empire and the Qin Empire from the far West!"


    "Furthermore, quite a number of vagabonds and rogue cultivators alike, while not that much themselves, are here to help provide entertainment for us as well! Please give them a good round of applause!" the emcee finished with a high pitch voice.


    Puu!


    The cultivators that weren''t part of any of the academies spurted themselves silly.


    "This damned emcee! He better watch himself from the back later on!"


    "What''s that? We are not that much you say? Come down here if you dare and let me whoop your ass!"


    As these unaffiliated cultivators were estranged from the workings of society, they have no real problems of cursing out loud, and their expected reaction caused the audience to laugh out loud as they found it funny.


    "Now, now! Hold your horses little boys and girls down there, everyone here is talented and are treated as equals. There is no need to be so worked up!" the emcee chuckled. In truth, his previous speech was a set up in order to liven up the atmosphere and make it more intense.


    Treated as equal your mother!


    Didn''t you just disregard us in disdain? You shameless emcee!


    The crowd simultaneously cursed in their minds as they knew no better.


    Amid this small chaos, a group of students from the Jixue Knights Academy were sitting together on one row as they cheered along with the other audience.


    "Eh, that person over there, the one wearing the same uniform as ours.. who is he? Why didn''t I see his face and name in the rooster list before?" one of them said as she noticed Duan Li.


    "You''re right! Could it be that he is a replacement?" another female student replied.


    "No wait, I''ve seen him before! Isn''t he that.."


    This group of students whispered to each other as they swiftly recognized Duan Li!


    Gulp!


    "H-He is that monster Junior that had wiped out thousands of monsters in the Blastwinter desert during the monster stampede event before with a single fist art attack!"


    With their eyes sparkling wide, they immediately turned to the handler in charge of the bet.


    "We want to pay a penalty fine and change our bets!" they said without a hint of hesitation.


    "Ah? The penalty fine is 5 times than what you paid for before.. are you guys sure?" the handler was perplexed that a bunch of students suddenly requested this from him.


    When he realized that the participant whom they were replacing their bets onto was another student of the same academy as theirs, even younger than them in fact, this handler shook his head in pity!


    Hais! It''s a good thing that you all have such a strong spirit of camaraderie, but this decision..


    "Oh well, I''ll let them experience the harsh reality in a little while, not that I am making any losses in this.." the handler thought to himself as he casted another look towards Duan Li.


    Although, this person somehow suddenly appeared in the last minute.. weird, very weird!


    The emcee sucked in a huge breath of air before continuing, "Alright! Without further ado, let the battle... begin!"


    GONGGG!!


    "Yeaahh!! It''s finally starting!"


    "Show us some real fights!"


    ...


    On one of the four rounded platform where participants at the early stage of the Core Formation realm were grouped together..


    "Guys! Lets take care of that newcomer first!" said a cunning man as he casted a derisive look on Duan Li.


    "Sounds good to me! He seems like nothing much!" another man replied with a sinister chuckle.


    "Don''t cry to your mother now little man, this is what you get for.."


    Just before these people that surrounded Duan Li from all side could jump on him, a resounding voice bellowed onto them from a distance.


    "Hold it right there!!"


    Tap! Tap!


    "Sh*t! It''s him.." these people immediately put on their guard as they saw a tall burly man approaching them.


    "I''m giving you all 3 seconds to scram! Otherwise, don''t blame me for being ruthless!" the man said with an indifferent tone, his vast aura was radiating out all over his body like a broken dam!


    "Damn it.." they cussed inwardly and looked at each other. With an understanding nod, they all backed away and soon found themselves some other opponents to fight.


    "Hahaha! Boy, I''ve set my eyes on you the moment you entered this competition using the back channel! You think that this battle is a game? A place for you to gain fame?" said this tall and burly middle-aged man with an unkempt hair and moustache, wearing a worn out white martial arts gi towards Duan Li.


    "You are?" Duan Li was a little bit taken aback by this person as he had to look up just to see the latter''s face.


    This man is huge! At least two times taller than me!


    "I am called as Wang Dong! I hailed from one of the villages in the Wang mountain!" the tall man replied as he crossed his arms on his chest, looking dignified.


    Wang mountain? Isn''t that the name of the mountain ranges between the Jiu Empire and the Liu Empire?


    Is he perhaps, related to senior teacher Wang Guozhi?


    "My name is Duan Li! I entered this competition because I thought that it would be fun! As for fame, inevitably, I quite need it as well due to the nature of my identity both in the academy and the Empire.. somehow.." Duan Li said as he scratched the back of his head.


    "Oh? Surprisingly, you are quite honest! Not like the usual brats I encountered who are all haughty I see! Interesting! Although I''m not sure about what you meant by your identity, it doesn''t seemed like you are talking air." this person called as Wang Dong said and an intrigued look could be seen on his face.


    "How about this then, you see, I''m quite dissatisfied with you entering through the back channel so easily like that while I, the great Wang Dong, had to went through some tests first to see whether I am qualified or not.. hais! Those guys are truly blind to not be able to see my greatness!" he said as he shook his head in lamentation.


    Then, looking up towards the night sky, he sighed.


    The Heavens are not fair!


    "..." Duan Li.


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    Is he monologuing by himself?


    Wang Dong then continued, "Therefore, I''m giving you one chance to prove yourself to me that you are qualified!"


    Opening his arms wide casually, he exposed his stomach area to Duan Li.


    "Come! Deliver your best punch towards my stomach! I''ll judge if you are qualified or not!" he said with a prideful tone.


    ...


    Atop of a VVIP viewing platform..


    "That young man with the uniform of the academy.. isn''t he.. that person?" a gentle voice that could make even the raging sea of the black ocean to calm down like the vivid flowing river in winter spoke out amidst the shrouding curtain surrounding her.


    "Yes Empress Dowager, that young man is that person." a female servant replied. Her voice was full of deference towards the latter.


    "I see.." she placed her cheek on her palm where her elbow was resting on the armrest.


    A playful smile could be seen showing on her slender lips.


    I never thought that going here tonight would let me witness this!


    Let''s see what this future Imperial Overseer is capable of..


    ...

 265 Chapter 258: The two monsters sent by Heavens!

    "You want me to throw a punch on your stomach?" Duan Li almost had his mouth opened wide in disbelief.


    Judging by the aura you are releasing right now, you are indeed strong. However, if I were to compare you with Shen Murong, then your impressiveness failed to reach even half of his strength despite being higher than him by a single realm! If there is one thing that you would win here, it''s that your self-confidence is as tall as Mountain Tai!


    "Are you really sure?" Duan Li asked.


    "En! You can use all your strength to punch at my stomach! There is no need to hold back at all! Bahahaha!" Wang Dong laughed out loud with his hands on his waist, as if not caring for the world itself.


    Duan Li thought for a while before replying, "Very well then.. prepare yourself!"


    Since the other party had told him to do so, then there was no need for him to stand on ceremony! After all, his present state had also left him helpless to control his current strength. Therefore, he could use the other party as a test bench to see whether it was safe for him to attack others in this competition or not.


    Furthermore, this fellow standing in front of him could be classified as a monster class of his own! To think that an Early stage Core Formation realm cultivator would possess the aura density similar to those radiated out by cultivators on the Late stage of the same realm, Duan Li could not help but to praise him a little in his mind.


    "Since he is about half as strong as Shen Murong, then 10 percent power behind my punch will not kill him.. at most, only the majority of his ribs and bones would be shattered.. that should be fine I guess?"


    There is also a possibility of going straight into a coma though..


    "Eh, whatever.." Duan Li clenched his fist and went into a stance.


    Huh?


    "This guy.." the moment Duan Li took that preparation stance, all of Wang Dong''s body hairs stood on its end. From his experience, this kind of sensation only appears when the person he was fighting with was extremely strong!


    Interesting!


    Abs flexing technique: Supreme Turtle''s Crust!


    Huu!


    Since only internal reinforcement skills was allowed in the competition, he chose to drive this powerful technique of his right from the very start in respect of his opponent. For him, this skill was way too overpowered and legendary in the field of martial arts. He had only stumbled onto its manual book by chance when he was taking a dump by the tall grasses near a certain river.


    By driving his spiritual Qi around his abdominal muscle in a webbing fashion mimicking that of a turtle''s shell, he could increase the toughness of his abs by several times, rendering any physical attack inflicted on his stomach to be nullified!


    However, to his astonishment, even when deploying this fabled abs reinforcement skill of his to the maximum, he found out that the crawling sensation etching on his skin did not stop! In fact, with every passing millisecond, it was growing stronger instead!


    Huu!


    Suddenly, he seemed to saw the vivid image of an Asura projecting behind this opponent of his, and when Duan Li finally launched the punch halfway, he then saw the fist''s image to be magnified by at least a few hundred times bigger than before with no signs of stopping! It felt like his tall body was an ant staring onto an incoming meteor from the heavens!


    Instantly, he now realized that his previous judgement of his opponent was a terrible mistake, a mistake so wrong that could whisk his life away with only a single punch from the latter!


    Kacha! Kacha!


    His turtle abs was already showing signs of breaking apart even when the punch was still far from landing on his stomach.


    Thus, without hesitation, he shouted out at the top of his lungs, "STOOOOPPPP!"


    BOOMM!!


    Fortunately for him, Duan Li heard this shrill cry of his that was reminiscent to a lady taking a bath that shrieked out when she discovered that she was being peeked at, and stopped the punch just a few inches away from reaching Wang Dong''s abdomen.


    Still, even when this punch had not connected at all, the sheer force behind it pushes forward like a blunt force accompanied by sharp winds that shredded the latter''s martial Gi into pieces, exposing his rock solid body for all to see while only sparing his black underwear for some unknown reason. Perhaps, it was a legendary item that he happened to collect somewhere as well.


    Shaa!!


    "Huh? What''s wrong?" Duan Li frowned and asked. He was a little frustrated at having to stop midway through his punch just when he was getting into the fun of it too.


    "Hahahahaha! You passed! You are qualified to join this competition!" Wang Dong said with a straight face before continuing, "I had my doubts about you before, but now, while your strength is not that much when compared to mine, you should be able to give the others a go."


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    "..." Duan Li.


    "..." others that are watching.


    Do you think that we are blind? Besides, we heard it loud and clear that you shrieked before! We aren''t deaf!


    "Alright, I need to get going now and beat some of the more unqualified snubs around here. Hey you over there!" Wang Dong quickly turned around to beat a random participant near them and sent the other party flying before joining in the fight with the rest of the other participants.


    ...


    "What unbelievable strength!" Liu Sheng Duhai was so surprised by the scene that he subconsciously clenched his fists tight.


    How can someone on the Early stage of the Core Formation realm be that strong?! Not even a Golden Core realm could take such a blow and leave away unscathed!


    With his powerful ''Eye of Unraveling Facade'' skill, he could see right through the crux of a technique without much trouble at all, even more when considering the fact that what Duan Li used was just a mere punch. However, that made it even more scarier to him because it was such a simple punch but the might that it harnesses was so great that it was comparable to using a fist art!


    In addition, he could not help but to notice that Duan Li was having some sort of internal injury that made his movements more sluggish than normal. This was evidenced by the very slow speed of the punch when it was being pushed forward, as if the latter was very careful of not straining himself albeit flowing perfectly.


    By the side, Queen Levy chuckled to herself when she cast a glance at him.


    "My husb- I mean, my Lord''s prowess knows no bounds. Perhaps, in the whole Tian continent right now, there is no one who is above him in terms of fighting prowess." she said in a confident and casual tone, as if it was the most factual matter in the entire world that has not a single iota of wrongness in it.


    This statement of hers naturally attracted the interest of Liu Sheng Duhai as the latter rose his brows.


    However, the other party soon shook his head.


    "Naive. While I can see that your master over there is very strong, he is still not much when compared to a Nascent Soul realm expert. Besides, this world have some hidden hermits that defies the common sense itself. If they were to come out from their seclusion, just by the wave of their hand, the current orderly society would instantly crumble and the previous chaos era would return to engulf the whole continent!" Liu Sheng Duhai said with a grim look on his face.


    It is good that you are very respectable to your master and has a very extraordinary view on him, but such high expectation would leave your state of mind to be very vulnerable. If your master were to be beaten to a horrid state right in front of you, the knot in your heart would quickly cause your cultivation to run berserk and turn you into a mindless monster.


    He had seen such a scene so many times before, especially back then when the Dark Sect had unleashed a plague that turned people into monsters which affected all of the nine empires throughout the continent 25 years ago!


    Hearing this, the complexion of the lady beside her immediately turned cold before some of her suppressed aura leaked out for a fraction of a second.


    "Hmph! Before those hermits could even make a move to disturb the current society, I will personally slaughter them all along with all of their descendants!" she snorted.


    I have grown fond of the current development of the human society, if others wished to destroy it, then die shall they be!


    Huuu!


    What a monstrous killing intent!


    Liu Sheng Duhai''s heart palpitated as a bead of sweat flowed down from his forehead. He was utterly stunned with the murderous aura that this lady beside him radiated out for a moment before disappearing again without a trace, as if those sensations was all but an illusion!


    However, being a Nascent Soul realm expert himself, he could finally detect a hint regarding the depth of prowess of the other party that he was unable to gauge before, which can be summarized into one word;


    Immeasurable!


    Furthermore, that kind of murderous aura was not something that can be summoned or emulated at will, much less be suppressed deep within oneself such that not even an inkling of it could be felt by others! After all, when one had committed murder, especially massacre, the nature of that person''s spiritual Qi would be stigmatized permanently with a negative element, and whenever they cycled their spiritual Qi, their killing intent would be felt by others through the pores, activating one''s instinct to be wary of such a dangerous individual!


    Additionally, since one''s murderous intent grew thicker every time they committed such atrocities, this was the reason why his body involuntarily shivered just now, because the killing aura from her was like an ever-engulfing flood!


    Just how many people did she killed before? Hundreds? Thousands?


    Was she perhaps, one of the hermit from the previous era that had stepped out from seclusion as well?


    If that was true.. to think that one would appear in this little empire, and what more, became a follower of such a young man?


    The more he thought about this matter, the more mystified he became. But if one thing was now obvious to him, it''s that Duan Li''s identity along with this lady was definitely not ordinary at all!


    Right now, a part of him wanted to investigate their identity further, but through his vast experience, such a move was not worth the risk. If by chance he were to offend them, the consequences would not be limited to just befall upon him!


    Letting out a sharp release of sigh, he looked up towards the night sky as he muttered to himself, "Heavens, I thought that you had granted me with opportunities for giving me encounters with two rare individuals.. but these two are monsters.."


    ...

 266 Chapter 259: Ism not cheating!

    "Ahh! Help!" one of the participant screamed tragically as he was targeted by Wang Dong and got grabbed by the leg.


    BAM!


    The man was sent flying towards the other participants, causing them to stumble down like dominoes.


    Taking a peek at his back, Wang Dong thought to himself, "Just who in the world is that fellow?" as he replayed the previous encounter with Duan Li in his mind. He could still feel the shivers all around his body!


    It was fortunate that I acted quickly, otherwise, it would be a shame for me to be defeated so early in the competition without beating some people first..


    "Guys, we need to gang up on him!" a man shouted as he rallied six people around him. In this competition, although the format for the first stage was a battle royale, against tougher opponents, it makes sense for others to form a temporary alliance in order to win and for their mutual benefits.


    At this sight, Wang Dong threw them a mocking laugh. "Hahahaha! You guys must be looking down on me! Come on then! Let me show you guys what a true martial art is!"


    After he finished with that hearty laugh, his disposition immediately changed 180 degrees as his face turned serious. His eyes flashed with a wild look in it. Then, he chanted his martial arts stance with a deep voice;


    Stance of the Twin Mountain!


    CRACK!


    With a single change of stance, his whole body weight seemed to press onto the round platform causing it to crack like cobwebs!


    Six Steps of Crouching Tiger!


    As he deployed this martial technique, his feet moved into a series of blurry image as he dashed forward like a mad tiger!


    Whoosh!


    Fist of the North-East Star!


    BAM!!


    Although the direction of the punch was straightforward, it seemed to curve slightly before eventually hitting everyone either on their face, ribs or stomach. Even when they tried to defend against it, to their surprise, the initial trajectory of the fist would randomly change causing their defense to become useless!


    Seeing this, waves of excitement and cheering came from the crowd as they chanted his name!


    "Go Little Wang Dong! Go Little Wang Dong!"


    Puuu!


    "Go your little Wang Dong your head!" Wang Dong spurted out his saliva as he cursed out in his mind when he misheard this. To him, it was as if the audience was praising his little brother down there for being small.


    Besides, my body is big, how did I even git the nickname of ''Little''!


    ...


    On the other round platform, two participants were having a casual conversation with each other in the middle of their fight.


    "Hmph! While his appearance is like that of a barbarian, his moves are at least good." Ling Shin commented as he slapped his opponent straight into the dream world with a ''padah'' sound.


    "I''m even more intrigued about that new guy, his name seems to be Duan Li." Ruo Hen that was currently dodging his enemy attacks effortlessly with his hairs swaying left and right in style, bringing about a series of cheers from the ladies, said.


    They were both at the Late stage of the Core Formation realm and thus, their opponents were all in the same stage as well. However, other than a few people around, the rest were completely not a match for them!


    To the audience, this was a completely cool spectacle, so they cheered loudly.


    Similar scene was also happening right now on the round platform where the Pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm participants were battling with each other. In fact, the cheering was even louder as each participant on this stage were real martial arts expert thorough and thorough!


    This was especially the case with Zhang Liao and Lu Bu, whom were students from the Wei and Qin Empire respectively. The moment they made a move, as if a phantom, they become untouchable!


    "Did you see that punch?" Zhang Liao said to Lu Bu with an intrigued look.


    "Pretty much. That''s some deadly fist right there, unless one were to redirect the massive force to the ground directly after being hit, they would definitely suffer some serious injuries." Lu Bu replied casually.


    ...


    "Well, my previous estimate seems to be spot on.." Duan Li cupped his chin as he thought for his next course of action.


    Ten percent of my power is too much for the others here to handle, therefore..


    Duan Li suddenly got an idea as he nodded.


    "Yeah, I think this should work!" deciding on this, he quickly locked onto a participant nearby that was fighting with another participant.


    Taking a deep stance, he then threw a punch forward.


    BAM!


    A strong force immediately formed as it split open the air, bringing about intense gale before hitting the participant that he targeted.


    "Ahh! Damn it! Who dares to attack me from the back? Come out!" the person bellowed as he paused their fights and looked around. To his surprise, there was no one behind him!


    What the heck is going on here?


    BAM!


    He got another attack right onto his left rib as he spurted out blood. This time though, he was able to see from where the attacks came from.


    "It''s you?!" he shouted out as his face darkened. Turning around to the emcee that was floating above them, he angrily said;


    "You damned emcee! Are you blind? Don''t you see that he was using a fist art on me? Hurry up and disqualify him!"


    The emcee then shook his head before replying, "No dear participant, that was just a normal punch!"


    Puu!


    This motherf*cker!


    Do you think that I am a fool?! How could a mere punch develop such a phenomenon unless one were to infuse it with their spiritual Qi?!


    Seeing that the participant was about to lash out some more, the emcee quickly added, "It''s true, if you don''t believe me dear participant, then why not we do this? Participant Duan Li, could you demonstrate that punch again, but this time onto me?"


    Duan Li was surprised at this suggestion, but since he didn''t want anyone to think that he was cheating, he swiftly nodded and complied.


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    BAM!


    Before the force of the punch could even reach the emcee, it dissipated into thin air, causing the spectator to gasp in confusion.


    The emcee then chuckled, "If that was a fist art, not to mention me, even at your stage dear participant, you would surely detect the hints of spiritual Qi at the last moment when that force dissipates."


    Upon hearing this answer, the crowd swiftly broke out into a series of "oohh.." in realization.


    However, the participant was still not satisfied with this explanation. In his opinion, martial art competition should be a hand-to-hand combat, and launching a powerful punch that could hit someone from a distance like that was no different from cheating!


    Just as he was about to refute further, a swift barrage of punches landed on him, causing him to get blown out of the ring and got disqualified as his consciousness blanked out. It was Duan Li who did it.


    "Since I''m not cheating, can I continue what I''ve been doing now?" he turned to ask the emcee.


    "Yes of course, there was no breach of rules in your part, so you can continue on!" the emcee replied with a smile.


    With this confirmation from the emcee, Duan Li clasped his fists together as a show of gratitude towards the other party before dashing straight into the fray. Not long later, countless number of participants could be seen flying all over from his punches.


    "..." the audience and the emcee.


    Now that we took a closer look, that does seems like cheating..


    ...

 267 Chapter 260: All according to Plan!

    "Damn it!"


    "Run away!"


    Just like that, Duan Li had gone onto a full rampage as he threw his fists around at the participants like crazy. Somehow, he really enjoyed this more than he initially thought!


    As for the others, their face was full of indignance! Not only that, anger, sadness, lamentation, sorrow, regret, and all sorts of emotions appeared one after another as these participants ran around the platform hanging on for their dear life, afraid that they would be thrown out of the ring.


    Just what the hell is this? This is too unfair!


    "Emcee! What injustice has we ever done to you? We have conducted ourselves properly and in order during the registration phase and waiting phase, so why must we suffer like this?! We beseech you to redress our grievances!" a participant who could no longer bear it shouted out with tears churning down from his eyes, his voice full of sadness that managed to struck the heartstrings of many of the audience.


    Hais!


    This was truly a tragic scene. Some who chose to bravely face Duan Li''s attack even had their entire clothes torn to shreds and had to run around naked while covering their private parts!


    Even worse, Duan Li seemed to be taking advantage on these people and was slowly pushing them out near the boundaries of the ring!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    At the sight of this ridiculous fiasco, even the emcee had to reevaluate the rules of the competition with sweats pouring down profusely from his forehead!


    In all the decades since he had debuted as an emcee, this was the first time that such a bizarre situation ever happened!


    To think that a single participant could cause a ruckus on this scale, this was truly an eye-opener for him and his horizons was finally widened!


    Crack!


    Suddenly, the emcee felt the bottleneck that caused his cultivation to stagnate for 10 whole years started to collapse! Within a matter of a few breaths, he had already levelled up into the Middle Stage of the Nascent Soul realm!


    BOOM!


    This scene caused an entire portion of the audience to gasp in awe, and they could not help but to nod in acknowledgment.


    "It seems that witnessing something truly bizarre is extremely helpful when encountering a bottleneck in one''s cultivation!" they thought to themselves with a serious look. Some even jotted this precious finding inside their notebook, to eventually be passed down to their future lineage!


    Ahem!


    The emcee made a few dry coughs as he could not help but to feel embarrassed when he realized that he had benefited greatly from the sufferings of those below him.


    Wasting no more time, he quickly consulted with the rest of the organizers and swiftly came up with a new rule.


    "Dear participants and audience, the organizers of this competition had come to a consensus that long distance attacks are prohibited from now on! Would participant Duan Li over there please stop whatever it is you are doing?" the emcee spoke out with his lips curled into a forced smile.


    "Eh, what? I didn''t break any rules.. but fine!" Duan Li pouted his mouth feeling a little bit indignant with the sudden change of rules.


    What should I do now? I can''t possibly hit them directly with my fists..


    Duan Li thought hard as he cupped his chin. Meanwhile, the rest of the participants cried tears of joy and victory as they hugged each other, akin to getting a new lease on their life.


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    However, the Heavens were indeed cruel. This small celebration of the puny mortals was about to end.


    A light bulb flashed inside of Duan Li''s mind when he saw how vicious Wang Dong was pummeling his opponents by the side!


    His attack pattern was truly a sight to behold! At one moment, Wang Dong would perform a series of movements mimicking one species of an animal, swiftly after, he would immediately assume a different move set belonging to that of another completely different animal!


    These mix of martial art style was really flexible and could be altered at anytime! However, perhaps only the experts could see that the underlying principles of this style of his was extremely difficult to practice!


    To name a few elements that one had to consider when doing such a flexible fighting style was weight, breathing and joint movements! Achieving perfect control of these three alone was definitely not an easy feat at all!


    From these, it can be concluded that Wang Dong, despite his appearance and personality, was a real martial artists down to his core!


    However, what captured Duan Li''s interest was perhaps the latter''s toughness!


    Even when the other participants managed to land a blow onto his body, as if an immovable mountain, the other party would remain totally unfazed!


    "His body is so tough.. huh? Wait a minute.." Duan Li snapped his finger together as inspiration flowed into him.


    While the body of the other party was definitely rock solid, his body was several times or perhaps, tens of times tougher!


    That means..


    I could practically just run over them with my body right?


    The emcee as well as several figures observing Duan Li''s movements felt a strange vibe when they saw the latter had snapped his fingers!


    "What''s he planning now?"


    "Will he use a kick next?"


    "Why isn''t he making a move yet?"


    These were just some of their thoughts, but none of them could even come close as to predict of what would ensue next.


    With lighthearted footsteps, Duan Li started to dash forward!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    As if an incoming Airtrain charging forward relentlessly, Duan Li crashed onto several participants with his body which sent them flying all over the place!


    "..." everyone.


    "I name this martial technique, Mountain Footsteps!" Duan Li declared proudly.


    Puuu!!


    Martial Technique your a*s!


    How can that even be considered as a martial technique? You just rammed onto people randomly, you idiot!


    Come, let us beat that empty head of yours and fix a few loose screws while we are at it!


    ...


    "..." Wang Dong was truly speechless. All along, he had thought that there was no one more blatant and direct in expressing their martial arts than him, but he had to give the trophy to Duan Li this time around!


    In fact, he was even considering of receiving personal tutelage from the other party next time!


    Huu!


    Half an-hour had swiftly passed by in the blink of an eye, which was the time limit for the first stage. If there were more than 6 people currently standing on each platform, their points would be calculated based on how active they were during the battle royale. This way, those who avoided fighting just to advance for the next round was immediately disqualified!


    This outcome was pretty much expected. However, the organizers truly did not imagine that the result from just the first round was entirely different from what they originally thought.


    Except for the Middle stage Core Formation realm platform which had 6 participants left standing, the Early stage of the Core Formation realm platform, the Late stage Core Formation realm platform, and the Pinnacle stage Core Formation realm platform, all had only two or three participants left!


    On the Early stage platform, the only soul left standing was Duan Li and Wang Dong. All the other participants had themselves being either thrown out of the ring or was knocked unconscious on the ground in cold blood. Thus, since there was only the two of them, there was no need for a round robin stage, and they were immediately declared as the winner, with Duan Li the Champion for obvious reasons.


    For the Late stage platform, Ling Shin, Ruo Hen and Bai Li emerged victorious. In addition, they don''t even seemed to be breaking a sweat at all as if they had just returned from taking a casual walk by the park! After calculating their individual points, Bai Li rose as the Champion as he was making use of preemptive attacks using ninja stealth arts all the time.


    As for Ling Shin and Ruo Hen, although the both of them raked in quite a few points themselves, they had only stood their ground in defensive and counter-attacking style without moving around too much, hence was why they were ranked number 2 and 3 respectively.


    For the Pinnacle stage, the title of Champion was surprisingly taken by two seemingly eccentric individuals! Both Zhang Liao and Lu Bu collaborated with each other perfectly, such that they took out their opponents at almost the exact same time, granting them similar points!


    Therefore, only the Middle stage platform was having the round robin stage right now, while the rest of them had to wait patiently until the victors for this stage was decided.


    ...


    Currently among the audience, there were figures secretly communicating with each other via their communication jade telepathically. These people were the organizers of the competition.


    "Except for that black horse, everything else is going according to plan. Do we continue?" said a man. This person was the Emcee.


    "Empress, that black horse is someone that I met just recently. However, my instinct told me that he is not a person to be trifled with. In addition, his follower is beside me and I can only deduce that her cultivation realm is beyond ours. What should we do?" said another man, this was the voice of Liu Sheng Duhai!


    "It''s fine, I know who that person is. So just continue on with the original plan." the voice of the Empress said nonchalantly.


    "Yes, Empress!" the both of them replied with their tone full of reverence. This was the wife of the Jiu Emperor, and no matter how high their status were, especially so for Liu Sheng Duhai, they could not afford to put on airs against the Empress


    Suu!


    After their communication was cut off, Liu Sheng Duhai could not help but to become curious as his brows furrowed together.


    The Empress Dowager knows about Duan Li?


    ...

 269 Chapter 262: Special stage! 2

    BAMM!!


    "Did I get him?" Bai Li said to himself inwardly, but narrowed his eyes when a punch came over to his face.


    Suu!!


    With an agile twist of his body, he evaded the punch and flitted off to the side with gritted teeth.


    "You.."


    It was Dong Jinghai that blocked off his stealth attack!


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    "Don''t think that you can just gang up on him like that when we are also here watching his back heheheh!" he said with a wide smile showing off his white teeth.


    Suu!


    Wu jin also positioned himself onto the opposite flank of Dong Jinghai as he put up a guard silently.


    "Thank you Senior Dong Jinghai and Senior Wu Jin!" Duan Li cupped his fists together to express his gratitude. However, in reality, he didn''t really need help from them at all. In fact, if he wanted to, the hand chop towards the back of his neck just now could either be dodged, deflected or countered due to his Martial True Instinct that was already ingrained passively into his body!


    Of course, the time-slowing down ability would not work here though. After all, that ability will only activate should he face mortal danger to his life. Since this was a friendly competition, there was no killing intent behind their move.


    In addition, if he made a move himself previously, the wrist of the other party will probably be broken right now.


    "You guys are pretty good, for a lowly empire that is." a voice spoke out with a hint of utter disdain in it. It was Ruo Hen!


    "What did you just say? I dare you to utter it again!" Wu Jin immediately shot the latter a murderous glare.


    "Oh my apologies, it wasn''t intentional." Ruo Hen covered his mouth, but a sneer could be seen vividly forming behind it.


    Seeing this, Wu Jin was truly enraged. "Bastard! I''ll.." just as he was about to charge forward, a hand tugged at his shoulder firmly which jolted him off from his angered state as he look behind.


    To his surprise, it was Duan Li!


    To think that he wasn''t able to move even an inch forward when he was a stage stronger than the other party..


    "What a ridiculously strong grip!" he thought to himself as he subconsciously swallowed his saliva.


    "Let me deal with him." Duan Li said as he started to walk slowly towards Ruo Hen with casual steps.


    "I can''t ignore what you just said. Are you ready to get thrashed?" a sliver of anger was swelling slowly inside Duan Li.


    This was the Jiu Empire and the other party was a guest from another empire. It should be common courtesy to not badmouth others when its not their home ground in the presence of the host, but this fellow in front of him seemed to look down even on this very notion!


    Therefore, the conclusion that Duan Li made was that, the other party actually did not give a damn at all!


    In his opinion, that was all fine and dandy, but only IF the other party was truly strong.


    "Only if you have the capabilities.." Ruo Hen replied with a sarcastic smile.


    Zaa!!


    Just after he finished that sentence, a hand had already grabbed at the side of his head!


    Feeling shocked, he turned his eyes towards the owner of this hand and his eyes immediately widened in incredulity.


    "When did he..!!"


    It was Duan Li!


    This person was just right in front of him before!


    Pahh!!


    After Ruo Hen was grabbed by his hand, Duan Li flung the latter to the side. However, Ruo Hen managed to stabilize himself in mid air and rotated his body to land on the ground on his feet.


    "Damn you!" Ruo Hen bellowed out.


    The grab to his head just now wasn''t meant to inflict damage on him, but to make a fool out of him for everyone to see!


    Just recalling that scene again made his face fumed with humiliation!


    "You flipped yourself splendidly! I remember monkeys in my village used to do that as well!" Duan Li replied with a slight chuckle.


    "HAHAHA!" the audience laughed out loud in satisfaction. At first, even they were pissed off by Ruo Hen''s mouth. But the other party got his just retribution immediately after!


    "Ruo Hen! Don''t you dishonor the Doulou Empire!" Ling Shin shouted out in anger.


    This partner of his was a little bit unreliable sent by their academy to accompany him. In addition, he also did not like the fake personality this companion of his always wore in public.


    In front of others, he would try to appear like a gentleman and cool as possibly as he can to woo the ladies, but inside, he was even more worse than him!


    At least in Ling Shin''s case, although his mouth was not that far off, he knew when to keep his mouth shut!


    "Is this fool blind? This Duan Li is obviously strong! To utter such disrespectful words like that was just like asking for a public humiliation!" he cursed in his mind.


    "Hmph! Fine then. Let me prove my words from before." Ruo Hen refused to back down and changed his stance.


    At the sight of this, Ling Shin''s face darkened, "Ruo Hen! You do not get to use the Doulou''s Martial Art outside of the Empire!"


    At which, Ruo Hen swiftly scoffed at, "Ha! You said to not dishonor our empire right? Then, let me show them the gap between this backwater empire-wannabe with our great Doulou Empire!"


    Moving both of his arms and feet in a series of unique motion, Ruo Hen''s muscles started to tighten together until blood vessels were visibly popping out from his skin!


    ...


    From the audience seat, Liu Sheng Duhai narrowed his eyes slightly.


    "That is the Doulou Empire''s unique martial arts skill, the Eight Undulating Qi!" he said.


    "The Eight Undulating Qi? What''s that?" Queen Levy asked casually. In her opinion, whatever skills this Ruo Hen fellow deployed, all will be useless in front of her husband!


    "The skill makes use of Eight specific meridians inside the human body where the Qi travels. Then, by utilizing a secret martial art technique from each clan in the Doulou Empire, one would be able to increase their physical prowess exponentially!" Liu Sheng Duhai explained.


    Pfft!


    "Just that? He is done for." Queen Levy let out a soft chuckle as she shook her head.


    In front of real power, all these measly skills and secret techniques are nothing but toys!


    ...

 270 Chapter 263: Special stage! 3

    "So, he is already using his trump card? That''s unexpected." Zhang Liao commented.


    "Probably because he got thrown over from his head." Lu Bu shrugged. He then continued, "Still, to think that we will get the opportunity to see the Eight Undulating Qi technique here, this will be interesting."


    Duan Li by the side overheard them talking, and he couldn''t help but to become curious.


    "Eight Undulating Qi? Sounds like an impressive internal reinforcement technique.. let me have a look!"


    With such thoughts in his mind, Duan Li used the Tetra Soul Sense onto Ruo Hen and analyzed the Qi flows within the latter''s body. Swiftly after, his face turned purple in disgust and he almost had the urge to threw up!


    "Hahahaha! That''s right! Shiver in fear before I come to you in a few moments!" Ruo Hen laughed out with a high pitch tone. He was satisfied to see that Duan Li''s face had turned pale.


    However, what he did not know was that, in addition to that, Duan Li''s body trembled not because the latter was scared of him, but because the so called technique was far too flawed!


    For example, the Qi had to pass through eight specific meridians in Ruo Hen''s body that channels the strength in order to reinforce the physical body. While there was nothing wrong with this, the Qi passageway that it had to travel through was far too lengthy and dissipates much of its effectiveness due to the bandwidth lag!


    To put this into another perspective, it was just like how a lake and its river channel flowing to the sea was flowing along through its meanders. Although this was the natural course that water should flow as their nature was to bend, to make it efficient, one should dug a straight river down to the sea instead!


    "Even the Jiu Clan''s Warring Intent is far more practical than this Eight Undulating Qi.." Duan Li thought in his mind as he shook his head feeling disappointed.


    Although perhaps, that is because it was a family heirloom of the Royal family? It did came from the first founder after all..


    "Damn.. his bodily muscles are expanding rapidly! His strength and speed must be shooting through the roof right now! Brother Wu Jin and Junior Duan Li, we better be careful!" Dong Jinghai said with his tone full of wary as he switched his stance.


    Hearing this, Duan Li could not help but to scratch the back of his head.


    They sure are panicking..


    Not to mention that the flaw of the technique was obvious, in that Ruo Hen would only be able to use the technique for a few minutes at best before burning himself out, the activation process was also taking too long!


    "Should I just quickly go over there and knock him out?"


    When he thought about it some more, he decided to go against it. After all, interrupting someone in the middle of their transformation was quite the awful thing to do.


    Therefore, he crouched down and picked up a stone the size of his fist near to his feet, and threw it at the other party.


    Pahh!!


    The stone came straight and hit Ruo Hen''s left eye, causing it to become swollen!


    "Ahh! My eye! You bastard! Have you no honor?!" Ruo Hen lashed out in anger.


    Even the others around him were equally stunned by this sudden action of his. At the same time, the reality dawned onto them that the other party was pretty much vulnerable at this point.


    "Excuse me, but you are taking far too long.." Duan Li replied awkwardly. But before he could finish, a figure had already dashed forward to deploy a rain of fists onto the other party.


    Bush!! Bah!! Pahh!!


    "Hahahaha! Those who strikes first, wins!" Wang Dong laughed out loud heartily as he knocked Ruo Hen flying out of the ring with a spinning uppercut!


    Rising Dragon Fist!! (A.N: You can google this if you don''t know lol)


    Putong!!


    Crashing onto the ground like a broken doll, Ruo Hen lifted his swollen face for a brief moment with a look of utter indignation plastered all over it before falling unconscious.


    "..." Duan Li and the others.


    ...


    "..." Liu Sheng Duhai.


    "Hahahahahaha! Now that is unexpected! It seems that eccentric cultivators with proper and functioning brain still exists even to this age!" Queen Levy laughed charmingly as she tried her best to cover her mouth.


    ...


    "That fool.." Ling Shin face-palmed himself as he felt a little bit embarrassed by his teammate.


    The activation sequence wasn''t even supposed to be that long! Just because he wanted to show off a little and put on airs, he purposely delayed the technique so that his strength would rise bit by bit!


    Now look at what you have got yourself into!


    Hais!


    "Two down, four more to go!" Wang Dong said as he turned around.


    Zhang Liao heard this and raised his eyebrows in realization as to what the other party meant.


    "Oh? So you are joining that side? Are you sure that you are not making a big mistake here?" he asked.


    "I''m not blind, and I''m also no fool. If I were to join your side, it might seem like 5 against 3 would be highly advantageous. But this Duan Li guy here, he is worth 10 people by himself already! Hahahahahaha!" Wang Dong laughed out again, convinced that he had made the right decision.


    Hearing this, Lu Bu shook his head.


    He then said, "It''s true that he is strong, but do not underestimate us. We haven''t even used half of our martial prowess yet, and we still have reservations in using some of the more secret technique."


    Zhang Liao nodded in agreement to this and continued, "If you join us, it will be more like 30 against 12, with us being 30." he said confidently.


    Soon after he said this however, a frown emerged on his forehead as he quickly turned his body around and blocked out an attack from Ling Shin towards his left ribs.


    Narrowing his eyes a little bit, he asked, "What''s the meaning of this?" towards the other party.


    Ptuii!


    Ling Shin spatted out to the side before he replied, "You seemed to be having a major misunderstanding here. This is a battle royale, since when do we have sides?"


    Zhang Liao went silent for a while before sighing.


    "Fine, go suit yourself. But know that you have now become my enemy. Be careful."


    Shaa!!


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    Zhang Liao''s image then flickered for a single instant before Ling Shin''s face suddenly turned pale as the latter retreated five steps to the back while holding his neck!


    "When did he..?!"


    It seems that his solar plexus was hit squarely without him noticing, causing his breathing system to be stopped for a split second!


    How did the other party did it?


    "Brother Wu Jin, did you manage to see that attack?" Dong Jinghai said, feeling quite uneasy.


    "I didn''t.. " Wu Jin replied with a similar astonished expression.


    Knowing that they both didn''t manage to see that attack, they turned towards their junior beside them, hoping for an explanation.


    To their surprise however, even this fabled monster was frowning, evidently feeling confused as well. But this momentary daze only lasted a single breath before Duan Li explained.


    "That''s not a physical attack but, a very peculiar breathing technique! In other words, what this Zhang Liao fellow did was just to breath in huge volumes of air in an instant, creating a temporary vacuum, leaving one with no oxygen to breath for a brief moment!"


    Such method caused their opponents to suddenly become lightheaded, feeling like they were being attacked unknowingly, throwing them into a round of confusion as they leave themselves open!


    Hisss!


    After they listened to Duan Li''s explanation, they could not help but to suck in cold breath. After all, it was far too ridiculous!


    To think that a mere breathing technique was able to zap at one''s breath? Had they not seen it with their very own eyes, even if they were to be beaten black and blue, their very life threaten, they would still refuse to believe it!


    "How formidable.." Duan Li said to himself feeling quite impressed.


    While he could practically refill his spiritual Qi with a single breath, a breathing technique that allows one to create a vacuum around them even if its for a single breath would require an enormous lung capacity!


    Even he himself was not able to do that!


    It seems like they are far more trouble than I previously thought..


    ...


    "The Gongzi''s Breathing technique huh.. so, he is a student from the Jinchou Mountain Academy?" the Empress Dowager said with a look of excitement in her eyes.


    The Wei Empire where Zhang Liao hailed from, was built upon a gigantic mountain that had its base flattened, and according to the legends, its base was sliced horizontally by their founder, Wei Xiquan!


    Due to the high altitude of which their empire rests on, there was less oxygen for the people to breath there, so after generations had passed, their lung capacity seemed to have evolve to allow more oxygen to be stored in it!


    In other words, the citizens of the Wei Empire all has this trait as a common identifier! However, what was more impressive was that, those who have an especially large lung capacity, were selected to become the students of the Jinchou Mountain Academy!


    This was a gigantic mountain that penetrates all the way to the third layer of the clouds in the sky!


    According to their intelligence that they have gathered thus far, the Jinchou Mountain Academy splits their students into three ranks according to these three cloud layers, with the third rank being the most highest and formidable!


    Turning her gaze towards Duan Li, a smile crept up on her supple lips, "He seems to be quite injured though, so how will he face them I wonder?"


    ....

 271 Chapter 264: Special stage! 4

    "Gongzi''s Breathing technique!" Wang Dong said with narrowed eyes.


    Seeing the wary look on the latter''s face, Duan Li couldn''t help but to ask. After Wang Dong explained it to him, Duan Li swiftly realized that this Zhang Liao person was not someone ordinary!


    "A single whiff and the air around him already turned into a vacuum.. just how massive is his lung capacity?" thought Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin with astonished looks on their face when they heard this.


    Then, someone suddenly let out a disdainful laugh.


    "Hahahaha! So that''s the fabled Gongzi''s Breathing technique that I''ve heard so much about before! I really had to applaud you for giving me such a surprise." Ling shin said with a hint of anger in his tone.


    You are telling me to be careful? You are clearly underestimating me!


    An idea flashed through his mind before he turned around to face Duan Li''s group.


    "Let me tell you guys a secret; the Gongzi''s Breathing technique allows the user, depending on their lung capacity, to multiply their physical prowess in relation to the air that they breathed in." he said.


    He then went on to explain that, while this intrinsic ability of the other party was very strong, its main flaw was that the user had to exhale an equal proportion of air as well after a duration of time had passed. At this stage, they will leave themselves open as their muscles uncontrollably relaxes their tension, making their body susceptible to physical attacks for a short moment!


    Hearing that the other party actually knew about this secret, and that its flaw had been exposed and pointed out to the others, Zhang Liao''s face darkened.


    "Ling Shin..!" his tone cold.


    "What? It can''t be that you are afraid against mere Early stage Core formation realm cultivators and the rest of them, when you are already at the Pinnacle stage, could you?" Ling Shin immediately replied sarcastically.


    In his mind, he has two objective for exposing such a crucial piece of information towards Duan Li''s group. One was that, it was obvious that the latter''s group was pretty much a stable alliance. With the overpowered Duan Li taking the helm and this information, they have a higher chance of taking down the other party together for him!


    The second reason was that, he still had to be extremely wary of the person from the Qin Empire, Lu Bu. From the information he received, this person has an absolutely terrifying combat abilities!


    The Qin Empire was said to be founded by one of the seven Great Generals of hell, an immortal called Qin Wulong, whose entire body was tempered by the hell''s fire from the Netherworld! When this founder died, the astounding power and might inside his body erupted, creating a 10 kilometers wide lava pool!


    It was then discovered that, whoever managed to temper their body inside this searing lava pool, would be able to possess a portion of Qin Wulong''s immortal power!


    "He is from the Wulong''s Legacy Academy, and from what I have heard, he had successfully tempered his physical body inside the lava pool! I must be very careful of this man!" he thought to himself as he eyed the latter.


    In addition to this, he also had to be careful of Bai Li from the Huan Empire!


    "The wretched bastard is a renown assassin.. so I also have to keep an eye on him in case he took me by surprise.."


    "You cunning fox.." Zhang Liao gritted his teeth as he could roughly guess what the other party was thinking.


    But I guess it doesn''t matter, the previous whiff wasn''t even 10 percent of my total lung capacity anyway..


    "Leave him be. In front of true power, craftiness could only get so far." Lu Bu said indifferently with both arms crossed on his chest.


    "I know. For now, we have to eliminate them first." Zhang Liao pointed towards Duan Li. In his opinion, out of everyone here, Duan Li possessed the highest threat to them!


    To think that an Early stage of the Core Formation realm cultivator would be able to push everyone single-handedly.. existence as such could probably be counted on one hand!


    "Leave it to me." Lu Bu dropped both of his arms to his waist as his muscles visibly tensed and vapors exit his mouth.


    CRACK!


    The tile beneath his feet cracked into countless pieces before his figure abruptly disappeared.


    Suuu!!


    BAM! BAM!


    Puuu!!


    Both Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin were suddenly punched squarely on their stomach at the same time as they puked out their innards and growled on the ground, seething in pain.


    "Fast!" Wang Dong immediately made his move when he saw this.


    "Eh? Interesting." Lu Bu was surprised to see that this Wang Dong pushed forward towards him instead of retreating as a smile crept up on his face.


    Suu!! Pa! Pa! Pa!


    A series of punches, slaps and kicks was deployed by Wang Dong. However, to his surprise, Lu Bu was dodging and blocking each of his attacks effortlessly with the most minimal amount of movement!


    Suu!!


    These exchanges went on for a while as sound effects, akin to cliffs and boulders breaking apart echoed throughout the stadium, inducing the audience''s adrenaline as they cheered on top of their lungs!


    Roar!


    At this moment, since both of their figure were considered tall and burly, they appeared to be like giants fighting it out to their best!


    However, if one were to look carefully, they would find out that Wang Dong was pushed gradually step by step, despite being the one on the offensive!


    "Enough of this farce." Lu Bu''s eyes glinted as he tightened his fist, dropped his knee and threw a straight jab.


    "Crap!" seeing a punch suddenly went past him and was heading straight for his abs, Wang Dong activated his Supreme Turtle''s Crust, which was the previous abs flexing technique that he used to try and defend against Duan Li''s punch before.


    BAMM!!


    Puhe!!


    A mouthful of blood was vommitted out as two or three of his ribs shattered!


    Skreee!!


    The force of the punch was so great that his massive body was dragged to the back as if pushed by a level 9 typhoon, creating trails on the platform below his feet.


    Puu!!


    Wang Dong threw another mouthful of blood as he dropped to his knees, wiping the blood off from the corners of his mouth.


    "Your punch sure packs quite a bunch!" he said with an excited smile.


    Mountain Hermit Style: Indomitable Gold Body!


    Suddenly, a wild aura erupted out from Wang Dong as he stood up. His presence suddenly felt as heavy as the mountains, his hair fluttering crazily like a vagrant martial artists on revenge, and his muscles enlarged to become like boulders!


    Witnessing this transformation, Lu Bu could not help but to be impressed.


    "Oh? To think that I would be able to see such a formidable body reinforcement technique here.. However, you sure are unlucky, had it been anyone else, they would be having a hard time facing you, but against me.."


    Lu Bu''s aura surged as his body turned into a shade of red, a loud ''hissing'' sound permeated out from the pores of his body, evidently from the extreme temperatures circulating in his body right now!


    Demonic Hell''s Body!


    "I have inherited the legacy of Qin Wulong myself!" he bellowed out as the air around him burned intensely!


    ...


    "W-What the hell? Isn''t that a skill technique? I thought it was forbidden to use skill arts?" one of the audience could not help but to voice out his complaints.


    "What are you, dumb? They are using a high-tier body reinforcement technique! In this competition, such things are allowed!" another person replied.


    "That person is going to lose.. however, I believe that Junior Duan Li will made a move after this.." an elderly voice spoke out with confidence.


    "Elderly Senior Mu Bai! What do you mean?" the people around him asked.


    "Just watch.." he replied mysteriously as he played with his white beard.


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    Previously, during the selection of followers for Duan Li, he had saw a vision; the vague silhouette of a man standing a top of a tall mountain that pierced through the nine heavens! His hands clasped casually behind his back and his shadow extended long like the vicissitudes of life as the sun shone gently on him!


    This man was Duan Li, an ill-fated hero destined to be lonely for his supreme, unmatched prowess, and it was clear that he, will stood above all!


    ...

 272 Chapter 265: Special stage! 5

    "Kuh!" Wang Dong gritted his teeth when he saw Lu Bu''s transformation.


    His Indomitable Gold Body could be said to possess the indestructible might of a mountain. However, this was but an analogy, no matter how gigantic a mountain were, if it were to be rammed continuously, they will still shatter into pieces!


    Right now, he could feel the strength oozing out of Lu Bu''s body that were glowing hot red like lava, and it seemed like that internal reinforcement technique was much more superior than his!


    "Come." Lu Bu beckoned with his hand as his entire figure was reminiscent to that of an Asura.


    Sha!! Pa! Su! Suu!!


    Wang Dong dashed forward and let out a series of punches, slaps and kicks like before, but this time, his speed was several times more faster than before. However, to his surprise, other than dodging some direct hit to the face, Lu Bu practically ignored all of his punches that connected onto his body!


    "Urgh! His body is rock solid!" Wang Dong grimaced in pain as he felt the numbness on his fist starting to hurt a little. Then, he saw the other party making a counter, thus he crossed both of his arms together in an attempt to block it, and he did it successfully.


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    However..


    BAMM!!


    Puhe!!


    Wang Dong was sent flying and nearly fell off from the edge of the ring as he coughed out blood twice.


    "To think that.. my Indestructible Gold Body would be smashed in one hit.. even after cleanly blocking it at that.. dammit.." he punched the ground in frustration.


    "Hmph." Lu Bu snorted as he turned and focused his sight onto Duan Li, only to see that the other party was doing pushups on the ground!


    "..." his brows and mouth twitched uncontrollably.


    "What.. are you doing?" he asked, a hint of anger could be detected from his deep voice as it felt like Duan Li was looking down on him.


    "Huh? Oh nothing, I was trying to find at which point should I retract my fist when I punch someone.." Duan Li replied as he stood up and dusted off his hand and uniform.


    "Retract your fist?" Lu Bu said in confusion.


    Since when was pushups considered as practicing punches?


    "Un. I am currently suffering from some severe internal injury that caused me to be unable to control my power output.. right now, I am using 10 percent of my true strength and this is really dangerous for others!" Duan Li said.


    He then continued, "That''s why I''m trying to find a comfortable punching distance so that my punch would only be at 1 percent of my current power.. " he finished with a helpless sigh.


    Hais! Being too powerful could be really troublesome in times like these!


    On the other hand, Lu Bu was on the verge of choking himself when he heard this.


    You are severely injured and could only use 10 percent of your strength, but you wanted to reduce it all the way to 1 percent so that you will not injure your opponents?


    I think that its your head that was injured severely!


    He had seen and heard of several people who could act so outlandish and creative with their mouth, but he had never seen someone as shameless and boastful as this fellow here!


    Suppressing the stifled sensation on his chest, Lu Bu refuted, "If what you said is true, then you should consider yourself as unlucky. I''ve withstood a punch from you at your 10 percent strength at my base form before, and now that I am in my Demonic Hell''s Body, there is no way that you can match me at your 10 percent strength!" he said confidently.


    Duan Li cupped his chin, "That''s because I''ve sent the majority of the force towards the ground myself.. maybe about 70 percent of it.."


    "What?" Seemingly in disbelief, he turned his head to look at where he withstood the punch from the other party the first time before, and he saw a firm footprint from the latter with a perfect crack indented within it!


    "This..!"


    Recalling his exceptional Grandteacher, which was one of the Five Devas of the Qin Empire, a scene flashed in his mind back when he was still young;


    ...


    "Lu Bu, listen closely. The key to be indestructible from any form of physical attack is the redirection of force!" Qin Yongzheng, Lu Bu''s Grandteacher said as he stood bare chested with his hands clasped behind his back, appearing like an immortal from the legends.


    "En!! Grandteacher, please enlighten me!" Lu Bu energetically replied.


    "Hahahaha! Good! Good! You, come over here and punch me using all of your strength!" Qin Yongzheng said to one of his personal bodyguard.


    "Sir!" the bodyguard stepped forward and prepared himself into a stance, before a rippling aura seeped out from the latter!


    "Nascent Soul realm expert?!" Lu Bu was well versed with the power level of others by just a single glance. Due to this, he was worried that his Grandteacher would be hurt by the latter. At the same time however, he have 100 percent confidence that his Grandteacher will be able to take it!


    BAMMM!!


    A resounding smashing sound reverberated across the mountain that they were on right now, akin to a huge mountain cliff that suddenly broke apart by the sheer force of nature!


    "Grandteacher.." Lu Bu opened his eyes slowly when the dust finally settled, and he was mesmerized by the scene that he saw!


    A fist had firmly planted itself on the boulder-like abs of his Grandteacher, and not even a single dent or cuts could be seen on it. In fact, it was even glistening from the reflection of the sun!


    A wide grin appeared on Qin Yongzheng''s face as his white teeth overshadowed the entire sun behind him. "See? This is the art of redirecting force! No matter how powerful one''s attacks on your body were, if you learnt how to redirect them, you will not be hurt the slightest!"


    "Amazing! Where did all the redirected force went Grandteacher?" Lu Bu asked with both of his fists clenched tightly in excitement.


    "Huehuehue! In this single footprint of mine!!" his Grandteacher replied as he laughed out loud, and then pointing towards a firm footprint which could be seen when he moved his legs away.


    ...


    "No, that cannot be! Even after training with Grandteacher for more than 10 years, I have only managed to master a minor portion of it!" Lu Bu shook his head.


    How can someone younger than me possibly be able to master the art of force redirection to such an extreme degree?


    In fact, it even seemed similar to the one his Grandteacher showed..


    He must be bluffing!


    "Whether or not you are telling me the truth, we can only know through our fist. Come!" Lu Bu beckoned with his hand once more. His mind was set on debunking the question in his mind!


    "Sure! I''m also interested to fight you as it seems like you are the strongest out of everyone here!" Duan Li stepped forward before his figure abruptly disappeared with a ''swosh'' and reappeared again in front of Lu Bu, a punch heading straight to the latter''s face!


    "Hmph!" with a side step, Lu Bu was able to dodge the attack. However, the force of the punch was so strong that, because he only avoided it by an inch, it felt as though a portion of it still landed on his face as he took another two steps backwards.


    Kuh!


    "Take this!" Lu Bu punched out and aimed for Duan Li''s left ribs. Seeing this, Duan Li smiled and did not even bother to dodge or block it.


    Pengg!!


    "Oof!" Lu Bu''s teeth clattered together as his fist felt like he just punched a hundred steel beam at the same time!


    "What kind of Internal Body Reinforment technique is that?!" he widened his eyes in shock.


    Of all the nine empires in the Tian continent, his Demonic Hell''s Body could be considered among the top three Body Reinforcement Technique, but even his was not as solid as the latter''s body!


    "Huehuehue! Take this." Duan Li threw a backhand slap onto Lu Bu''s chest.


    "What?! His speed is too fast.. I can''t dodge this!"


    Gritting his teeth, he hardened his body to the maximum and planted his feet firmly to the ground to prepare and redirect the incoming force towards the ground.


    "After I redirect the force, I''ll kick his stomach and then.."


    PAHH!!


    Puhe!!


    Lu Bu''s body rotated uncontrollably like a spinning top, he spun and spun all the way to the edges of the ring and was about to fall off at any moment now.


    "Haaaa!!" with sheer willpower, Lu Bu shouted at the top of his lungs and managed to stop himself from spinning.


    Haa! Haa!


    "..." everyone and the audience.


    ...

 273 Chapter 266: Special stage! 6

    "What.. the heck just happened?" one of the audience said with a shocked expression, his mouth wide agape.


    Pah!


    "Ouch that hurts! This is really not a dream! Could it be.. are they staging the whole thing? This is too unbelievable!" cried another man beside him after he slapped himself in the face.


    How in the holly-molly''s name, did a cultivator three stages lower than their opponent, managed to make the latter a spinning top with just a simple back hand slap?


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    This is far too outlandish! We are no fools!


    The Heavens may be blind, but we are not!


    Hearing this, the other audience soon began to think that something was amiss and discussed it with each other as they became restless. Before long, they turned towards the Emcee and made their complaints as well as suspicions!


    "Calm down everyone! I can assure you that everything is not staged here! In fact, we have just pulled out an information regarding the identity of this outstanding junior participant of us here tonight! Let me read it out loud for everyone!" the Emcee spoke out as the crowd pried open their ears.


    "His name is Duan Li and a junior of the Jixue Knights Academy. Just last week, he went on an expedition with the academy along with the Subjugation Squads to eradicate an incoming monster stampede, en route to the Jiu Empire from the Blastwinter desert!" the Emcee continued.


    "W-What? Monster Stampede? How come did we not know anything about this?" the crowd began to panic as they thought about their family and relatives that lived in villages and towns near the vicinity of the Blastwinter desert.


    Typically speaking, a monster stampede would usually consists of thousands of monsters at one star and above, and their subjugation would take a total of one week at least.


    Seemingly to understand their line of thoughts, the Emcee chuckled before he continued on. "There is no need to worry people, the monster stampede had already been eradicated in just a single day!"


    The crowd once more turned to each other and surprised expression was apparent on their face.


    "Is this for real? That''s the first time I have ever heard a monster stampede was subjugated in a single day!"


    "Perhaps it was only a few hundreds this time around?"


    The audience continued to discuss the topic fervently before the Emcee interjected.


    "The monster stampede from last week was probably the largest that our empire had ever encountered thus far! They numbered a total of more than 50,000!!"


    Hisssss!!


    The audience sucked in cold breath when they heard that numbers!


    Fifty thousand?!


    "En! While most of the monsters were subjugated by the Subjugation Squads, our junior here, while still in the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, had managed to eliminate at least 7,000 of them by himself! Even His Majesty, our great Emperor Jiu Xian Ping was there and had personally witnessed it!" the Emcee said with excitement in his voice.


    At first, he was also skeptical to trust this information, but when the acknowledgement came personally from the Empress Dowager herself, and that their Emperor himself was the witness, only a fool would still think that the information was falsified!


    These lines of thoughts were also similar to the audience, and their previous expression changed from disbelief into excitement!


    "A genius! Our Empire is finally blessed with a true genius!"


    "I can see a golden age ushering to out Empire from this day onwards! Hahahahaha!"


    Seeing that the crowd was now convinced, the Emcee sighed out in relief.


    ...


    Down on the platform, everyone excluding Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin, each wore a surprised expression as they stared at Duan Li with mixed reaction when they heard all those.


    "This fellow is that strong?" Ling Shin''s pair of eyes flashed as his mind began to calculate.


    If that is indeed the case, then Lu Bu is done for! I don''t need to worry about him anymore!


    "Heh! Hahahaha! Zhang Liao, you had fun before surprising me with your breathing technique eh? It''s my turn!" he said as his lips curled into a sneer.


    Eight Undulating Qi Technique!


    Shaaa!!


    Ling Shin''s brawly figure slowly began to shrunk as his height was reduced from 2 meters to 1.85 meters!


    "Your muscle density has become more compacted.. so your physical transformation is speed-based?" Zhang Liao said as he appeared unimpressed.


    "Correct!" Ling Shin replied before continuing, "Let me warn you though.. although this transformation is originally meant to be implemented with a set of skill arts, it''s still a little bit overkill if it was used in physical martial combat like this." he said with extreme confidence.


    While the Eight Undulating Qi Technique was not meant to be showed on public outside of their empire, his partner Ruo Hen had already used it before, and they would be punished either way when they returned.


    Therefore, since the cake had already been spilled, what is the use of standing on ceremony then? Thus he decided to activate the technique as well!


    "Come then, do your best." Zhang Liao said with his eyes looking indifferent.


    Ling Shin gritted his teeth. "You asked for it!"


    Suuu!!


    With a single dash, tens of after images formed surrounding Zhang Liao in an instant! This was evidence of the former''s supersonic speed!


    "Die!!" Ling Shin bellowed out as all of his after images converged onto Zhang Liao at the same time, locking the other party in the center!


    "At this speed, I can detect when he would use his Gongzi''s Breathing technique by observing his chest! In that moment, I will back step and dash again, aiming for an opening!" Ling Shin thought as he planned it all inside his mind.


    BAMM!!


    "He.. did not use his breathing technique?"


    Ling Shin''s fist connected. However, contrary to his expectation, his fist went through the other party!


    "This!" he finally realized as his eyes widened and sweat trickled down his temples.


    He was punching through an after image!!


    "Hmph. Finally realized it?" a voice spoke out coldly behind him, it was Zhang Liao!


    BAMM!!


    Puhe!!


    A mouthful of blood was spatted out from Ling Shin''s mouth as he flew across the fighting platform!


    Crash!


    "Y-You.. how is your speed.. faster than mine.." Ling Shin struggled to look up as he groaned on the floor, his vision began to blur.


    "I never breathed out after I sucked in that mouthful of air before. Therefore, my physical body is exponentially lighter while my muscles has explosive strength right now." Zhang Liao replied as he gazed down on the latter with the moonlight behind his back, appearing like a real dark phantom in the cold night!


    "Damn.. it.." Ling Shin finally collapsed, knocked unconscious.


    Huuu..


    Just after Zhang Liao was sure that Ling Shin was incapacitated, he breathed out. At this moment however, a dark silhouette abruptly appeared behind him silently, delivering a hand chop to the back of his neck!


    It was Bai Li!


    "I knew you were waiting for this golden opportunity." Zhang Liao instead, smiled upon the latter''s appearance!


    "!!" Bai Li realized that he fell into a trap and was about to retreat before his lungs stopped working!


    "Kkrrukk!!" he clutched onto his chest!


    The air in the surrounding had become a vacuum! This caused his body to stop moving for a brief second out of the brain''s natural reaction towards the lack of oxygen, but this small opening was enough for Zhang Liao to throw a solid punch onto the latter''s stomach!


    BAMM!!


    Puhe!!


    Just like that, Bai Li was knocked unconscious as well. While he excelled in speed and stealth, his body was far more fragile than others. After all, his main occupation was an assassin!


    Turning to his friend, Lu Bu, whose countenance was slightly better now, he said, "Brother Lu Bu, we need to take out the rest of them before we can deal with him."


    His meaning was clear in that, they needed to crush Dong Jinghai, Wu Jin and Wang Dong completely so that they will not be distracted when fighting against Duan Li later on.


    Lu Bu nodded.


    Suuu!! Suuu!!


    Their figures vanished on the spot before two ''Puhe!!'' was heard. Dong Jinghai and Wu Jin was taken out like a paper bag just like that!


    Seeing this, the audience cheered!


    "Damn! Their speed are so fast that my eyes couldn''t catch up! Teacher, who do you think are faster?" a person from the crowd said as he asked his teacher whom was a Pinnacle stage Golden Core realm expert!


    His teacher went silent for a moment before he replied, "Both Lu Bu and Zhang Liao''s speed are probably faster than mine.." and sighed.


    "Eh? How can that be? Teacher are stronger than them by an entire realm!" the student said in disbelief. In his opinion, no matter how powerful a cultivator were, a difference in realm was like a gap between the width of a river to that of an ocean!


    The teacher shook his head. "While my realm is indeed higher than them, my heritage and skill arts can only be considered as low-spec when compared to what those two had practiced. After all, there is an insurmountable difference between our Jiu Empire, and the Qin and Wei Empire!"


    "Both their empire''s resources combined together could destroy our Jiu Empire tens of times over and they will still be able to spare some resources to go to war with the other seven empires around the Tian continent!" his teacher continued with a grim look on his face.


    This was the reality of the current cultivation world. The stronger empire possesses absolute firmness in their heritage and foundation. Therefore, a cultivator from a strong empire could outlast stronger opponents if they were to deploy all their skills in life and death combat!


    "This.." the student was rendered speechless upon this revelation.


    Then, he heard his teacher let out a light chuckle.


    "Don''t worry, while they are indeed strong, I can still see their movements. However, that junior they called Duan Li.. I reckoned that, if he goes all out, even your teacher here would be totally helpless against him!"


    ...

 274 Chapter 267: Special stage! final

    "D-Damn it.. they''ve taken them both out at the same time!" Wang Dong stood on his feet with much difficulty.


    "Brother Duan Li, we need to team up together if we even hope to defeat either of them at their current form!" he said as he wiped off the blood from the sides of his mouth with a grim countenance.


    From his analysis, since they now knew that Duan Li was not someone that could be taken lightly of, they will definitely synchronize their individual capabilities with each other to the maximum level in order to take Duan Li down!


    After all, hearing that the other party was able to take out 7,000 monsters single handedly during a monster stampede was a testament to the latter''s strength!


    Brother Duan Li?


    On the other hand, Duan Li was a little bit taken aback by how the latter had changed the way he addressed him. Before, the other party would simply called him a ''Boy'' as he was older than Duan Li. But now, there was a hint of subservientness when he called him out!


    "Was I really that impressive?" Duan Li cupped his chin as he could not help but to feel a little bit proud of himself!


    If I were to tell him that I secretly snuck out before the official expedition began and subjugate close to 10,000 monsters on my own, I wonder how he will react?


    Huehuehue!


    "Eh you are right. So, which one of them should we take out first?" Duan Li replied as he put the previous thought to the back of his head. In all honesty, he could probably take them both out on his own even with just 10 percent of his power, but seeing that Wang Dong''s expression was really serious, he thought that he should tone himself down and responded with the latter''s suggestion instead.


    "While Lu Bu seemed to be stronger than Zhang Liao, and you Brother, are stronger than Lu Bu himself, we could choose to take him out first and then Zhang Liao next. However, I propose that we aim for Zhang Liao first!" Wang Dong said.


    "Oh?" this made Duan Li''s interest piqued.


    Wang Dong then explained that, if they were to target Lu Bu first, Zhang Liao would definitely try his best to outmaneuver them and protect his friend, Lu Bu, against all odds. With the conclusion that Zhang Liao was smarter and more cunning than Lu Bu, if they made a wrong step, Wang Dong theorized that he would be taken down by them by some sort of diversion tactics; either separating him from Duan Li momentarily, or deploying varieties of feint attacks while actually targeting him!


    Hearing this, Duan Li was once again surprised as he nodded in agreement.


    "I never thought that he could actually be this smart from his outward appearance.."


    But, why do I feel like this fellow wanted me to act as his meat shield?


    Meanwhile..


    "..." Lu Bu and Zhang Liao.


    These two bastards, do they think that we are deaf?!


    To be talking about their plans right in front of us so blatantly, either they are blind or that they are looking down on us!


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    "Let''s just go all out. I''m sick of this competition already." Lu Bu said impatiently. He still remembers the back slap of Duan Li onto his chest earlier on, and the embarrassment that he felt after that makes him wanted to dig out a hole and hide inside it!


    I''m not a spinning top damnit!


    "Hold on. It could also be that they are messing with us and the things they talked about just now was all but a diversion to hide their real intentions!" Zhang Liao replied as he gritted his teeth, unsure of what their opponents were really planning.


    "It doesn''t matter. In the end, we need to take out Wang Dong first. We can use the strategy that we practiced 3 days ago." Lu Bu mentioned as he twisted his neck left and right, producing that ''crack'' sound.


    "I see.. that might work. Let''s do it then, but I am going all out to 50 percent of my lung capacity!" Zhang Liao replied with a determined look on his face.


    Lu Bu immediately frowned upon hearing this, but soon nodded his head. "In that case, I am going a little bit further as well."


    Crack!


    All the joints inside his body seemed to produce numerous cracking sound as if they were breaking apart. However, to everyone''s surprise, the tiles below Lu Bu''s feet was the one that began to crack rapidly instead!


    Wang Dong''s pair of eyes widened as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva, "Impossible! How did he changed the density of his bone to such an extreme degree!"


    Duan Li beside him had activated the Tetra Soul Sense and replied, "He.. molded his muscles into his bones by using his blood! Like a forge, his blood acted as the searing flame that mend the numerous metals together!"


    What a crazy fellow..


    "Suuuuuu!!"


    It was at this moment that Zhang Liao abruptly breathed in, and using 50 percent of his lung capacity, he created a spherical field of vacuum that covered the entire fighting platform in a single instant!


    Due to this sudden attack, Wang Dong was caught unprepared.


    "Dammit! The key to martial art technique is breathing, by sealing one''s capability to breathe in properly, he is able to put his opponent in a bind anytime he wishes!"


    Right after this thought flashed inside his mind, Zhang Liao had already appeared behind him!


    "You''re finished." Zhang Liao delivered a decisive hand chop towards the back of his neck.


    Suddenly, a frown appeared on his brows as he saw Wang Dong lips curled into a smile, a foreboding sense of danger loomed over him!


    This was because while his ability could rob his opponent of their means to breath in, he couldn''t possibly stop someone''s lungs from breathing out to make their move!


    "Sh*t!" realizing that he was lured into a trap somehow, he immediately retracted his hand and was about to retreat.


    However..


    "Reverse suplex!" Wang Dong caught Zhang Liao''s retreating hand like a snake curling flexibly onto a tree trunk with a single move, eventually locking the latter''s neck to lift the other party up!


    Haaappp!!


    "This is my limit.. the rest is on you.. brother!" Wang Dong''s eyes began to lose its focus while he grinned, showing his white teeth.


    After all, breathing out forcefully while making two, consecutive big moves was taxing to his body without breathing in oxygen!


    Just as his grip started to loosen up on Zhang Liao''s neck, Duan Li abruptly appeared in the midst of the reverse suplex and pushed forward his palm onto Zhang Liao. "You''ve done well."


    BAMM!!


    Because Zhang Liao had breathed in too much air, his body was as light as a feather. While this might be advantageous to increasing his speed, the lack of any weight only required a minimal force to blew him away with a single attack from Duan Li!


    Crash!


    Wang Dong collapsed on the ground and blacked out, while Zhang Liao flew all the way to outside the ring and was thus disqualified.


    "Bastard!!" Lu Bu bellowed out as he put his all into the opening that his friend had created and landed a solid blow to the back of Duan Li''s spine!


    Ironically, the strategy that they agreed on involved sacrificing Zhang Liao to create an opening!


    Even Duan Li was surprised by this, because its not that he couldn''t react to such a simple attack towards his back, but that their method was executed so flawlessly such that there was no delay between his attack on Zhang Liao and Lu Bu''s punch landing squarely behind him!


    In other words, both had happened practically at the same time!


    However in the end, their combined effort was still in vain.


    BAMMM!!


    After a resounding punch echoed the whole stadium, Lu Bu''s countenance turned pale, his previous body transformation had reverted back to normal, and he could not help but to utter in absolute disbelief, "You.. you are not at the Early stage.."


    Crash!


    And he fell to the ground as his consciousness left him and fainted. After all, he was also affected by Zhang Liao''s breathing technique and only had that one move of mutual destruction left!


    In addition, even as he fainted, he still could not believe just how solid Duan Li''s body were!


    "..." the crowd.


    Witnessing this scene, the audience that were on their tenterhooks went silent for awhile as they processed everything that they saw, before erupting into a loud cheer!


    Roarrr!!


    ...

 275 Chapter 268: The Champion!

    "Ladies and Gentlemen, a Junior from the Jixue Knights Academy, who fought his way through the first stage, and then stood as the last man standing on this special stage, I present to you, Duan Li!!" the Emcee declared grandly with his sharp posture and high-pitched voice. (A.N: You can imagine his posture like Frieza lol)


    Roaarr!!


    The audience cheered in excitement. After all, the champion was a local from the Jiu Empire whom could be described as young but extremely talented!


    Not only that, just his merits of defeating other students from the stronger foreign empires alone was enough for them to look up to him in extreme veneration!


    On the platform, Duan Li scratched the back of his head feeling a little bit embarrassed. For him, this much was not too difficult since it only involved a competition of martial arts, but if skill arts were to be allowed, even he wasn''t confident that he would be able to reign as the champion with his current internal injuries!


    "As per the previous arrangements with the organizer for the Special Stage, Duan Li will win himself the Grand prize.. of 5 High Quality spirit stones!" the audience once again erupted in a series of whistles and cheers. For them, this was a totally massive amounts of money that could trickle down all the way to the seventh generation!


    Furthermore, such capital would allow one to do many great things! For those whom are ambitious, they could even start a Clan or Sect of their own in the pugilistic world, and they would be looked up to with respect, holding influence and power that could hardly be matched by most people!


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    However, little do they know that this amount of money that could move a mountain was nothing to Duan Li! After all, he already pretty much bought the whole of the Jiu Empire when the Emperor agreed to make use of his money to develop the empire. If Duan Li wanted to, he could even request a massive private land and start a following of his own!


    ...


    "Hmph! His title as the champion meant nothing. If we were allowed to use skill arts, let alone hitting me, he wouldn''t even be able to see my shadow!" Liu Shuiyui scoffed as he cast a hateful glance towards Duan Li from the audience seat, watching the latter took the Grand Prize from the Emcee.


    "Stop dreaming kid. If he were to use his skill arts, the whole stadium might need to evacuate. Not to mention you, even Nascent Soul realm Early stage would pack their bags behind their a*s." Queen Levy replied, her tone a little bit cold. For her, arrogant young man was one of the type of person she hated the most, and if this was the old her, she would''ve killed him in a heartbeat!


    Liu Shuiyui was about to refute back, but Liu Sheng Duhai quickly waved his hand to stop him, shaking his head for the former to drop the matter with a stern look. In his mind however, even he himself found it hard to believe. After all, Golden Core realm Pinnacle stage was the closest realm to the Nascent Soul realm level, and even they could only win 3 out of 10 possibilities, what more for those whom was still in the Core Formation realm stage, they will definitely win none at all!


    Still, if what she just said was at least half the truth, then this Duan Li was definitely a genius comparable to that Young Lord in their Liu Empire!


    "I guess the young generation will eventually overtake the old generation.. such is the way of life.." Liu Sheng Duhai sighed as he stared up at the night sky with a complicated look.


    "Brother Juan.. "


    ...


    "Empress Dowager, you are right in your previous deduction, the young man won..." an old man with a hunchback cupped at his long white beard, his apathetic pair of eyes seemed to flash with great interest in it.


    The graceful lady sitting on the Queen''s throne chuckled, "Advisor Chen, he was chosen by my husband to carry on that title, so of course he must win. If he lost here, I will personally kill him myself."


    Hearing such murderous words that was devoid of emotion from the Empress, the hunchback old man seemed to shiver for a moment. He had no doubt that the Empress meant every single syllable in her sentence. However, he also understood the main reason on why she would''ve done so.


    A week before, a top secret decree was suddenly passed down onto some of the most important members of the Royal Family. In it, contained a startling information that stated that; the Emperor himself decided to bestow the title of the Imperial Overseer to a young man who had close to no background at all!


    At first, they thought that the Emperor was just joking, but it was apparently the truth. This in turns riled up the Empress so much that she had dispatched her personal Knights to go and ''collect'' the person in question, so that she could ''interview'' the latter.


    Regrettably, Duan Li was nowhere to be found and it was only later on that they knew that the other party was away on some sort of adventure somewhere.


    For the Empress, bestowing someone with the title of an Imperial Overseer was a great humiliation to the Royal Family! After all, not only will such a person holds higher authority than her husband, even her children would become a laughing stock!


    Furthermore, the consequences of the coronation of an Imperial Overseer that can loom over the Royal family and the Jiu Empire does not stop just there. For example, in terms of politics, the Jiu Empire was stable at the moment and all the big clans and influential people were pretty much patriotic.


    That would definitely change 180 degrees if a nobody were to become the Imperial Overseer, and they would view the Royal family''s influence as waning and no longer legitimate to be followed and heed to!


    Advisor Chen sighed as he rubbed his temple in distressed, "Still, strength is not everything.. Emperor Jiu Xian Ping is one of the wisest and surely he had also thought long and hard about this. If that is the case, then this young man called Duan Li is much more than we assumed him to be.. and that only left us with what that actually is.."


    ...


    "Brother Lu Bu, are you alright?" Zhang Liao said as he handed a pill over to Lu Bu which the latter immediately consumed.


    After swallowing the pill, Lu Bu felt his aching bones and muscles due to forcefully activating the Demonic Hell''s Body technique without using the required skill arts from before to slowly recede.


    "I''m fine.. to think that he is that formidable. I would''ve never guessed it before that the weakest empire out of the nine would possess such a talent here if I didn''t personally experienced it." Lu Bu replied, his mind still recalling the previous scene.


    He then continued, "The thing that had me most surprised though, even after you used half of your lung''s capacity, he was able to remain unfazed! How do you think did he do it?"


    "That''s the thing." Zhang Liao said. "My breathing technique is indiscriminate, such that even allies would be swept along with it as you''ve experienced. The only possibility is that he held his breath long before I attacked."


    Hearing this, Lu Bu cupped his chin with a frown. "Weird. Normal people wouldn''t do that before they could execute their move set. Otherwise, the brain and muscles.. eh wait, I seemed to recall that.. all he did was just some basic punches and.. slaps?"


    The other party also mentioned that he was injured and was only using less than 10 percent of his strength..


    Gulp!


    Coming to this realization, both of them swallowed a mouthful of saliva. It was at this moment that they realized they had just fought off against a monster!


    To think that one would be able to execute such martial prowess to an extreme degree without even using a single martial arts technique, it was something that could only be done by real experts like their Grand Teacher!


    "A person of such caliber had appeared.." they thought simultaneously in their mind as they subconsciously clenched their fists tight in agitation, a burning desire to be able to stand toe to toe with Duan Li appeared inside their heart!


    ...


    "Aghhh! That Wang Dong bastard! I''ll get him next time! and that Duan Li! They better watch their backs from now on!" Ruo Hen gritted his teeth vengefully as his veins popped up on his forehead. He still could not forget how the former had uppercut him during his showcase of releasing his powers slowly, while the latter threw a freaking rock onto his eye!


    He felt deeply humiliated such that his facial appearance had contorted to become hideous from his usual dashing looks.


    "Hmph." Ling Shin by the side surprisingly only let out a cold snort. He felt that this partner of his deserved it for showing off too much while not showing any results.


    Bai Li on the other hand, whom would usually nitpick the two beside him was quiet as well. On his right hand was a communication jade slip and his eyes was shut tight. He seemed to be focusing on communicating with someone and relaying important information through it.


    At this moment, due to this event, countless forces behind the scene was surprised to found out that such a talented genius had appeared on a tiny little empire. Each sphere of influence slowly began to plan for their next move, with all of them involving to have Duan Li on their side in one way or another!


    ...


    Oblivious to the unrest in the background and the strings of fate slowly converging to be tied around him, Duan Li, as well as Dong Jinghai, Ling Shin and Lu Bu was now led to the final third stage of the competition after a short pause to allow the champions from each stage platform before to rest.


    As the Champions, they were now eligible to advance into the third stage, which was to fight against a puppet one realm higher than them! If they were able to beat each of their own puppet without using any skill art, then they would receive 1 High quality spirit stone! If they use skill arts and won, they would win half of that amount, and if they lost, they would only receive an even smaller share!


    Once more, the audience erupted into a series of cheers as the hidden forces continued to watch silently..


    ...

 276 Chapter 269: Scheme!

    "As per the requests from the organizers, the Champion Duan Li would be the last to perform in this third stage!" the Emcee announced to the audience where many of them nodded in agreement.


    As the traditional saying went; save the best for the last!


    Thus, came the champion for the Middle stage platform first, Dong Jinghai, and he stepped forward to face a lifeless puppet. This puppet was reminiscent to that of a downgraded version of the Guardian Knight Puppet that guarded their academy''s entrance!


    The Emcee then personally flew down onto the platform with a single Medium quality spirit stone on his hand.


    Wenggg!!


    The moment he slotted this Middle quality spirit stone into the central core of the puppet, its eyes flashed blue before a grinding noise could be heard whizzing from inside it, then jolting it alive!


    "Since you are only a Middle stage Core Formation realm student, then an entire realm above you would be Middle stage Golden Core realm! I have already made the necessary adjustment to the puppet to output such level of power." the Emcee said.


    He then continued, "However, this puppet will only show the physical strength of such realm and does not have any skill arts at all, so there is no need for you to worry. Also, should you decided to give up, just say the word that you surrender and the puppet will immediately stop moving!"


    With a solemn expression, Dong Jinghai nodded and replied respectfully, "En! I understand, thank you Sir!"


    The Emcee then flew back atop of the stadium. With his high pitched voice, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Let the third stage... begins!!"


    Roarrr!!


    ...


    "Empress Dowager, why did you propose to forward that young man''s performance to be the last one?" Advisor Chen asked as his curiosity deepened.


    He understood that the talented junior student had managed to subjugate thousands of monsters, but in his opinion, there should be external factors that led to such an unbelievable outcome, especially when the person in question was just a mere Foundation Establishment realm cultivator back then, truly not worth mentioning at all!


    The Empress went silent for a while before replying, "According to a top secret information that I received, that boy was able to beat one of the member of the Dark Sect.. Cao Tengfei!"


    Hearing this, Advisor Chen lost his cool as his words stuttered, "W-What? The Dark Sect? Impossible! He is only but a mere.."


    "You dare doubt me?" the Empress interjected with a cold gaze before the latter could even finish his sentence, sending cold shivers down his spine!


    "I dare not, your Empress!" he quickly prostrated on all four of his limbs to apologize as beads of sweat flowed profusely from his forehead!


    "Hmph. Whether it is true or not shall be revealed later on. But if the information I received is indeed true, then I can kill two birds with one stone in the final match later on! If it is not, then he should at least be glad that he did not die personally by my hands." the Empress then lazily rests her chin atop of her palm after she said all these, devoid of any emotion.


    "Your Empress, do you mean..?" Advisor Chen raised his head slightly, only to saw the other party let out a calculative smile as her gaze drifted afar.


    Hissss!


    "That is the smile of a demon''s!!" he thought inwardly as he continued to prostrate down like a statue with pale countenance, not daring to even breath loudly for fear that the woman atop of the throne might get displeased and kill him on the spot!


    The Empress actually planned to accidentally increase the power level of the puppet into that of a Nascent Soul Realm expert. This was in order to find out whether the claim that she heard was true or not!


    If it was, then the hidden forces in the stadium observing silently would definitely become rattled, and she would be able to sense where they were currently hiding!


    "Despicable scums.. to dare cause trouble in this empire.. they will have to pay with their blood!" she said inwardly, her eyes radiating out murderous intentions!


    The reports she received from her personal network of information hinted that, at least one of the envoys from the foreign empires were up to no good!


    A few days ago, some people got caught snooping around for information on the stability of the Jiu Empire, misunderstanding the crowning of the Imperial Overseer in the next few days as the result of some internal political fights!


    After all, no sane Emperor would even think about giving anyone such a title that could step over their head! They would rather fight to the death than living in shame and sullying the title of an Emperor, which will invoke the wrath of the other eight Emperors!


    Therefore, the only possibility for a person to be titled as such was due to extreme political instability that could demoralize the entire empire if the Emperor did not agree!


    Of all kinds of fights that could destroy an empire through and through, it would be internal fights and civil war! Even the supreme might of an Emperor will become useless if all the major power in their empire turned their backs against him!


    By this logic, apparently, someone started spreading rumors that the big clans in the Jiu Empire was about to clash into a civil war!


    This caused the Empress to seethe in rage, and thus, along with the envoy from the Liu Empire, Liu Sheng Duhai, she concocted and organized this competition to gather up all the foreign envoys into one spot, so that she could take her time to identify the perpetrators!


    Who then, could have thought that Duan Li would suddenly jumped into the competition tonight, making all the procedures much more smoother?


    The Heavens was definitely on their side!


    "Let me see who among them, would dare to make a move on this empire!"


    ...


    Oblivious that he was actually used as a pawn in the grand scheme of the Empress, Duan Li was standing excitedly right now as he cheered, "Go Senior! You can do it!"


    Dong Jinghai''s clothes was now in tatters as injuries and bruises were all over his body, with the puppet stood imposingly before him and continued to rain down punches as he tried to block and dodge them as best as he could.


    Bam! Bam! Bam!


    "Damn it! I guess.. this is as far as I can go.." he gritted his teeth in frustration. He had already used some skill arts when he found that the might of the puppet was overwhelming, but even then, he was still being suppressed into such a state!


    The saying was indeed true; in front of the eyes of those in a higher realm, they were nothing but ants!


    "I surrender!" Dong Jinghai said with indignance and regret in his voice.


    "Ladies and gentlemen, our champion for the Middle Stage platform, Dong Jinghai, has given up on this third stage! However, make no mistake, to be able to last this long could also be considered as no easy feat as well! Let us give him a good round of applause!" the Emcee invoked the spirit of camaraderie within the audience as the crowd stood up and cheered for Dong Jinghai!


    "Don''t be disheartened! You are the best!"


    "Yeah! It was a good fight!"


    Many from the crowd gave positive feedbacks while some cursed and lamented as they lost their bet. There were also others who were totally not moved at all and remained seated as they closed their eyes.


    Soon, it was Ling Shin''s turn. At first, he was having trouble facing the puppet with just martial arts alone, similar to Dong Jinghai before. However, since he was feeling quite annoyed, when he activated the Eight Undulating Qi technique once more and used a fist art, the puppet was blown out from the ring with just a single punch from the latter!


    This unbelievable scene left everyone agape!


    Next, when it was Lu Bu''s turn, the crowd was even shocked into a state of disbelief than before! One has to remember that Lu Bu was already in the Pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm. That meant that the puppet he was facing was at the Pinnacle Stage Golden Core realm level!


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    This was a puppet with a battle prowess that was practically already one foot into the Nascent Soul realm level!


    However, a single, solid punch was all it took to shatter the puppet into pieces!


    BOOM!!


    Hisssss!!


    Even the Emcee was at a loss for words trying to describe such a phenomenon!


    Granted, that the body of such a puppet was not even close to that of a real Pinnacle Stage Golden Core realm cultivator''s, but it was still able to rattle the depths of one''s mind when they witnessed this scene!


    "Was a puppet''s body always that fragile?" Lu Bu frowned as he took a look at his fist. He had trained against puppets numerous times before, and while he was indeed strong enough to shatter them, it will definitely took him quite a few strikes to do so!


    "Something is amiss here.." he thought as he glanced over at the Emcee, but he soon put the matter to the back of his mind and stepped off from the platform.


    Whatever the organizer of this competition was planning, as long as it doesn''t complicate him, he would remain unfazed by it!


    After all, his background was not something ordinary. Unless the Jiu Empire was tired of living, then they could involve him for all he care!


    "Everyone, now comes the final match for tonight! I present to you, the star of the show, the talented genius of the Jiu Empire! Duan Li!" the Emcee clenched his fists tight, and then waved grandly onto the ground where Duan Li stood!


    Roarrr!!


    The whole stadium was like a lion''s den and their excited cheer shook the very foundation of the Battle Stadium! Had it not been for the various runic inscriptions reinforcing the stadium below ground, it might have already collapsed by now!


    "This.. they don''t have to be like this.." Duan Li walked onto the platform while scratching the back of his head, his face flushing red in embarrassment.


    "Since the previous puppet was destroyed, we had a replacement puppet for you!"


    Suuuu!!


    Boom!


    A similar puppet from before landed on the platform. However, Duan Li suddenly noticed something strange.


    "Eh? That is a High quality spirit stone in its core.."


    Just as he was about to tell the Emcee that they had made a mistake with the power source of the puppet, the Emcee had already waved his hand down!


    "Let the final battle, begins!!"


    ...

 277 Chapter 270: Child of Tian!

    "Whoaa!!" Duan Li quickly retreated a few steps to the back as his Martial True Instinct kicked in and forced him to use his movement skill arts, Impeccable Sky Footsteps, to dodge!


    BAM!


    The puppet had suddenly moved and mowed down the floor on where he stood a few moments ago with a single drop down kick!


    With a loud ''crack!'' the entire platform was shattered like giant cobwebs spreading from the center!


    Looking at the Qi aura oozing out from the puppet, Duan Li''s mouth twitched.


    "That''s not one realm higher than me.. that is two realm higher!" he said and then continued to dodge left and right as the puppet repeated its assault!


    Suuu!! Suuu!!


    Both of them moved at the speed which created many vivid after-images around the platform, sending shockwaves to the crowd that witnessed this!


    Thankfully, the platform was surrounded by many layers of strong barriers, otherwise, the common people that were currently watching this would''ve gotten hurt!


    Similarly, not only was it just Duan Li that realized the strength of the puppet was not as it should be, some of the experts among the audience watching this frowned as well!


    This is the movement speed of a Nascent Soul realm cultivator!


    On the seating platform, Liu Sheng Duhai stood on his feet, feeling quite shocked with his fists clenched tight together!


    "What''s going on? Did they messed up with the adjustments? This isn''t a level that a Core Formation realm student can handle!" he said as he sent a telepathic message using the communication jade slip to find out what went wrong.


    A few moments later, he seemed to be surprised before calming himself down and sat back on his seat, his expression focused and solemn.


    Queen Levy by his side then said with narrowed eyes, "I have my suspicion that you are part of the organizer for this competition. I wouldn''t have been bothered before, but to think that you people dared to scheme against my Lord?"


    A hint of killing intent was released in that last sentence of hers, causing Liu Sheng Duhai to shiver for a moment.


    "Calm down. This isn''t what it looks like. The situation is more complicated.. but I assure you, this is not a scheme against Duan Li!" he explained.


    Hearing this, as well as recalling that Duan Li told her to behave before, the killing intent receded. However, her tone was still cold as she scoffed, "Hmph. Regardless if this is a scheme or not, the puppet is still not my Lord''s match!"


    Liu Sheng Duhai shook his head slowly, "I regret to say that the outcome will not be as you might have expect. I understand that you have high expectations of your Lord, but against a- Puu!"


    In the middle of his words, he suddenly witnessed something crazy and choked on himself, almost biting his tongue into two in the process!


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    Padah!


    "Hahaha! Now this is what I call a challenge! I have to extend my gratitude towards those who thought so highly of my capability, and sent me a puppet of this caliber!" Duan Li said to himself with a wide grin as he patted off his palm together.


    "H-He... He slapped the puppet!" Liu Shuiyui was now poking his head out like a turtle straining its neck from its turtle shell, surprised to see the wonders of the world!


    Wang Dong, Wu Jin, Dong Jinghai, Ling Shin, Ruo Hen and Bai Li were equally stupefied as well as their eyes and mouth puffed together like a puffer fish!


    What in the world is going on?


    That is a puppet on the level of a Nascent Soul realm! You can''t just slap it on the face like that! What happened to the rules of this world? Aren''t we supposed to keep on running for dear life if we were to encounter such a terrifying opponent?!


    That puppet is pretty dumb as well, how could it let itself be slapped on the face like that by a mere human who is two realms lower?


    Where is your pride? Your dignity as a Nascent Soul realm puppet?!


    You fake!


    At this moment, everyone was on the verge of going insane!


    Throughout the eons, Nascent Soul realm has always been the very symbol of peak power in the Tian continent! This means that a breakthrough to such a realm was a dream so difficult to achieve, requiring massive amounts of resources and a very solid foundation that not just anyone could do!


    The difficulty was to the extent that, those whom were able to reach such a level could be said to only be 1 percent among the entire populace of the Tian continent!


    Furthermore, even if one had the riches and resources to grind their body and spirit to reach the bottleneck, if one does not have the requisite potential, then reaching the Nascent Soul realm level was but nigh impossible!


    Therefore, how could their mind tolerate seeing a top notch power in the world was being slapped casually just like that?


    They could try to understand if Duan Li possessed the means to evade or dodge, but not attacking!


    Granted that it was only a puppet and not a real Nascent Soul realm cultivator, but the power it harnesses was the actual real deal!


    "I.. I thought that the reason he was able to dodge was only because he pushed himself to the maximum, but to be able to retaliate.. this..!!" Liu Sheng Duhai swallowed his saliva and felt his whole body trembling!


    Whether everyone was prepared or not, believe it or not; they had seen it, and they can''t unseen it!


    Like a series of mini explosion of volcanoes erupting inside their mind, the audience all found their horizons widened, their expression dazed, as if enlightened by the descent of a deity.


    "Ha.. hahaha! I am not mistaken! He is the Child of Tian! A heaven-sent child!" an old voice suddenly spoke out with excitement and agitation. It was Elderly Senior Mu Bai who could vividly see the future!


    Hearing this, the crowd around him swiftly turned their necks at a perpendicular angle, almost snapping and ending their life altogether!


    "Child of Tian? What is that?"


    "Oh! I''ve heard about this from my Grandmother! It was said that the Children of Tian are children sent down from the realms of immortal!"


    "Heaven-sent child.. talented genius, impeccable prowess! There is no mistaking it, he is the one! He really is the Child of Heaven!"


    "Child of Tian! I love you!"


    "Duan Li, please bear my children!"


    Like a contagious disease spreading through the air, the entirety of the crowd was swept away by euphoria and screamed atop of their lungs, veneration and respect could be heard from them when they called out Duan Li as the Child of Tian!


    On the other hand, Duan Li was the one to be bewildered next by this sudden turn of events, "Huh? I''m the Child of Tian? What the heck are they saying?"


    Didn''t I just slap a mere puppet? How the hell did I become a Child of Tian from that?


    Suuu!!


    In this moment of deep thought, the puppet stood up from the ground and immediately charged at Duan Li seeing such an opportunity!


    "Annoying! Can''t you see that I am thinking?" Duan Li harrumphed and sent a fist over.


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    BOOMM!!


    The moment this fist came into contact with the puppet''s body, as if a glass that was being hit by a boulder, its body spontaneously disassembled into pieces, exploding like fireworks!


    Crack!!


    BOOMMM!!


    Just like that, the Nascent Soul realm puppet was utterly destroyed by a single punch!


    For Duan Li, even at 10 percent of his power right now, this was actually equal to the Pinnacle stage of Foundation Establishment realm back when he fought Cao Tengfei from the Dark Sect before!


    If even Cao Tengfei was beaten to a bloody pulp by him at that time, a puppet was not worth a single mention at all!


    Roarrr!!


    At the sight of this, the crowd grew even more excited! Their eyes reddened, their face flushed, and saliva splattered all over around them as they chanted religiously;


    "Child of Tian!"


    "Child of Tian!"


    ...


    Plop!


    "C-Child of T-Tian! Could it possibly be..?" Liu Sheng Duhai dropped to his seat with his face in extreme disbelief!


    Children of Tian was only a legend that was told to him by the maids in the royal palace, back when he was still a young lass as part of his bedtime story!


    According to the legends, immortals would sometimes visit the lower planes of existence and copulate with the mortals through fate. If they bore children, then these children would possess incredible means and could breakthrough realms like drinking water!


    At that time, he dismissed it as a mere fairy tales with bogus origin, but who could have thought that he was proven wrong at this very day?


    "I don''t know what''s the deal with everyone calling my Lord that, but it doesn''t sound too bad." Queen Levy shrugged.


    In her opinion, humans were quite interesting this way. Even though they didn''t know the true meaning behind those whom were called as the Children of Tian, they still rallied under it!


    Back during her time, there were also several other Children of Tian, and if words could describe them, then they were truly terrifying beings!


    However with Duan Li, he was not a Child of Tian, but something even greater than that! At least, this was how she felt when she observed the Will of the Grand Immortal spoke to Duan Li with a hint of melancholic before!


    ...


    "Empress Dowager, the entire crowd had gone berserk! W-What should we do?" Advisor Chen said in a panic.


    "..." the Empress thought that her plans were flawless, and never in her wildest dreams that a thing that was happening right now could even occur.


    Due to the revelation by Elderly Senior Mu Bai, everyone was practically showing exaggerated reaction! This made her difficult in identifying those people that were hidden among the crowds!


    Nevertheless, she still managed to cast her sights on some of them and saw their suspicious movements. After all that was said and done, she was still the Empress with unfathomable means in her disposal!


    "Pass down my orders!" she decreed.


    I will not let them harm this empire!


    ...

 278 Chapter 271: Mission complete!

    "L-Ladies and gentlemen! We have our star champion of the night, Duan Li!! The organizers would first like to apologize to everyone for the accidental mistake in adjustment of the puppet!" the Emcee spoke out awkwardly as he made a few dry coughs.


    Even he was ashamed of himself for stating such a blatant lie towards the public. However, what could a mere emcee like him do? In the grand scheme of the high class people, he could only force himself to abide!


    After all, only the common people would believe that it was an ''unintended'' rookie mistake. As for the experts, unless they were blind and was halfway to their grave, they could definitely smell that something was going on!


    Suppressing his inner emotions, he then continued. "Thankfully, our star champion here has still managed to win despite the odds being stacked against him. Everyone, let us give Duan Li a good round of applause!"


    Clap! Clap! Clap!


    Flying towards Duan Li, the Emcee whispered onto Duan Li''s ears, "We will explain the matter regarding the puppet to you later. So for now, please act that everything is fine.." he explained with an embarrassed look.


    Duan Li nodded and then turned to everyone, "Eh the mistake is okay, everyone does it once in a while. Besides, I had a little bit of fun fighting against it!"


    Hearing this, the crowd got excited.


    "As expected of the Child of Tian, to have the magnanimous heart to forgive others for their mistake.. he is truly a role model for us!"


    "Hais! The Heavens have truly blessed our Jiu Empire this time around! Such a good young man!"


    "If I remember correctly, he is of the Lord class right? Where do I sign up?"


    "Shut up and take my money!"


    ...


    "Zhang Liao.. did you.. see that aura when he punched out?" Lu Bu spoke with a grim countenance.


    "Yeah.. it was unlike any other that I have felt before..! Even my Grandteacher has a more reserved aura than that when he was angry at me before.." Zhang Liao replied.


    Gulp!


    Just who in the world is this guy? How did we not know of his existence prior to this with that kind of battle prowess that could dominate the whole younger generation?


    Did we look down on the other empires that much?


    At this moment, both Lu Bu and Zhang Liao, as well as the other foreign envoys made deep reflection towards their state of mind before they lamented and sighed helplessly;


    Despite the short history of the Jiu Empire, it had actually managed to produce such a monstrously talented young man like Duan Li!


    "It''s regrettable, but he is not the Child of Tian.." Zhang Liao continued.


    "En. While he is indeed strong, possibly even on par with the Children of Tian, he does not have the white aura that could induce automatic deference in others towards him.." Lu Bu nodded in agreement.


    As they came from the Wei and Qin Empire respectively, it goes without saying that each empire has a long and deeply rooted history that will suffice to say that, both has affected the Tian continent in one way or another, even until the present day!


    Thus naturally, they knew about the Children of Tian as well. The tell tale indicator for such an outstanding existence was their overflowing white aura that could make others submit to them!


    In the past thousands of years, there were some known Children of Tian roaming around freely in the continent, who then later on in their life, decided to settle themselves within an empire to help the young generation grow until the end of their lifespan.


    Consequently, each of their Grandteacher happened to be a true Child of Tian as well!


    "However, that extremely thick azure aura.. just what sort of cultivation technique did he practiced? It seemed to be way thicker than normal.." they both thought to themselves and could not help but to be amazed.


    Even when their Grandteacher had imparted to them cultivation techniques that were considered to be top-notch in the world, unrivalled even; their spiritual Qi was not as thick and dense as Duan Li!


    Feeling curious, they decided to meetup with the other party later on and inquire about the topic. Meanwhile, Ling Shin and Ruo Hen was already nowhere to be found after the competition ended.


    As for Bai Li, he silently went into a dark corner of the stadium and exitted into the small streets to quietly mold himself into the darkness and disappear, before he suddenly widened his eyes in shock as he felt shiver on his back!


    Danger!


    Tap!


    With a decisive leap, Bai Li flitted away and pushed his back against the wall as he took out two small, unique knives on his two hands and put up a defensive stance.


    "Who are you? Come on out!!" he bellowed angrily.


    To think that he was almost caught off guard when he had trained himself day and night as one of the top rated assassin in the Huan Empire..


    If others in the same line as him were to hear about this, he would become a laughingstock and die of shame!


    Unforgivable!


    The only possibility for this was that the other party was also a top rated assassin like him! At this line of thought, he calmed himself down before saying something to the empty surrounding around him warily.


    "Which clan are you from? Know that I am here under the official business of the Huan Empire! Go back and tell your lordship to cancel out your contract as this empire is currently off limits to other people other than me!"


    "..."


    Suuu...


    The cold breeze of the night blew against him slowly. He waited for a long while but there was still no reply at all!


    Even for an assassin like him, this too much stillness in the surrounding was exceptionally difficult to handle that his back started to drench in sweat!


    The area around him was eerily silent, as if there was no one there. However, his senses that was honed to the maximum from the countless hours of training and real life experiences told him that danger was close by!


    In fact, for each breath that he took in, he felt as if the unknown would inched itself a step closer with a scythe towards his neck, almost driving him crazy!


    "Who the hell is this person? How did he managed to hide his presence to such a degree?!" he thought to himself as fear began to crept up inside him.


    Damn it! I need to bail out!


    "Okay! I admit that you are better than me! I''ll leave this place right away and will not disturb you any- kuhe!!"


    Before he could even finish his sentence, he felt a sudden sharp pain below him that made all of his body hairs stood on end!


    "I.. was attacked..?"


    This sharp pain penetrated through his body like a thousand needles, and after he took a closer look towards the origin of this pain, he almost fainted from the sheer shock!


    After all, a chicken had suddenly latched its sharp beak to bite and gnaw at his little brother down there!


    "ARGHHH!! You f*cking chicken! My little brother is not for you to.. kuhe!!"


    He felt another bout of sharp pain. This time, it was his a*us that was penetrated by a sharp beak of another chicken!


    "ARGHHH!!"


    Kuhe!!


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    Another bite to his nose.


    Kuhe!!


    Kuhe!!


    Kuhe!!


    ...


    Even when his consciousness was starting to fail him, he still had no idea as to how so many of these chickens suddenly appeared out of nowhere to attack him.


    Have I somehow offended the ancestor of all chicken to receive such tribulation?


    Padah!


    His head finally slid to the ground and the unbearable pain that seemed to be doused with poison began to take its effect.


    Tap! Tap!


    Hearing the light footsteps coming towards him, he gritted his teeth and used the last of his strength to look up. Unfortunately, the effect from the poison had already made a full circle inside his body system, and he felt his eyelids becoming heavy!


    "Damn it... So this is.. where my path ends.."


    To die with chickens biting at my private parts.. ahh Heavens.. why must thee be so cruel...


    Putong!


    Bai Li was finally knocked into a deep sleep as he began to snore loudly.


    A lithe figure dressed in tight black clothing appeared beside the sleeping Bai Li.


    "This fellow sure is good. If not for my special ability to dive right into any shadow in an instant, he would''ve found me.."


    Grasping tight a communication jade on her palm, she relayed a message, "Empress Dowager, mission completed."


    Before long, a reply came in. "Good work. Sorry for using you like this. Just leave him there, my men will fetch him up for a good round of talking." the voice of Empress Dowager said coldly.


    "Understood." she replied simply and cut off the communication, before heaving a long sigh as she looked up at the starry night sky.


    "If its for the Imperial Overseer, there is nothing that I am not willing to do.."


    Di Rou''s silhouette then disappeared from the dark street into the cold night.


    Suu..


    ...

 279 Chapter 272: The Empress enters!

    Inside a grand hall with tall open window overseeing the whole platform of the battle stadium, a celebration party was currently being held here for the champions of the competition!


    "Brother Duan Li! I''ve never in my whole life met someone as formidable as yours from the younger generation before! This is shameful for a powerful cultivator like me who sits at the top of the world to not heard of your name prior to this competition! Hai!" Wang Dong scratched the back of his head as he lamented.


    "..." Duan Li almost had the urge to kick this fellow in front of him to the ground. For a person to be able to feel awkward while boasting himself at the same time..


    Shameless!


    Suppressing this emotion with twitching brows and mouth, Duan Li replied, "Well, you are not too bad yourself. If I did not participate in this competition, you would''ve become the champion for the early stage platform without a doubt!"


    Unknowingly, Duan Li had propped himself higher before the latter with a casual remark, causing Wang Dong to sunk his head lower!


    As expected of the person whom I looked upon! His art of boasting is quite suave and flows perfectly like water meandering through the river!


    "Ahahaha! Brother Duan Li, I''m not worthy of such complements, I''ve had too much of it already from the others to the point that it makes me nauseated.." Wang Dong laughed out loud as he put both hands on his waist, feeling satisfied.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Friend, if it is not inconvenient for you, let us have a chat! A toast between the champions tonight!" Lu Bu came forward and chugged out a bottle of expensive looking wine from his spatial ring.


    "While we might have been a little too serious during the battle before, it was only a friendly competition after all, so I hope that there are no hard feelings between us. Furthermore, we would prefer to make friends instead of petty rivalries with you!" Zhang Liao extended his right hand towards Duan Li for a handshake with an honest look.


    Seeing this friendly gesture of theirs, Duan Li was a little bit taken aback. He had thought that they would have some grudges on him after being defeated, but on the contrary, he sensed no malice from their expression!


    Heaving a sigh of relief, Duan Li smiled and shook Zhang Liao''s right hand in return before replying, "Don''t worry, I understand! Besides, I was only joining it for fun as well! However, I did not expect that you guys were so powerful that I had to use all of my strength! It''s a pleasure to be acquaintances!"


    "..." everyone around him.


    Don''t you mean 10 percent of your strength? We don''t know if you are being humble or boastful here..


    "Brother Duan Li is too shameless!" Wang Dong thought in his head as he nodded rapidly in approval with his eyes shining brightly in admiration. For creatures of the same species, he felt that he was at the right habitat tonight, and vowed to learn more from this brother of his.


    "That last fist art of yours was exceptionally deadly! To think that a fist art from an Early stage Core Formation realm would be able to destroy a Nascent Soul realm puppet.. could your mentor perhaps be.. a Grandteacher as well?" Lu Bu said and went straight to the point.


    "Grandteacher? What''s that?" Duan Li asked as he cupped his chin with interest.


    Seeing that Duan Li didn''t know, both Lu Bu and Zhang Liao was surprised and looked at each other before explaining it to Duan Li.


    After a while, Duan Li finally nodded his head in comprehension, "I see.. so Grandteacher is the most respectable title for a Child of Tian that settled down in an empire.."


    As far as he remembered, there was no figure as exceptional as that to ever appear in the history of the Jiu Empire!


    Perhaps, this was the reason why everyone here thought that it was only mere legends?


    He then shook his head, "Regrettably, I am under the tutelage of no one but myself. In addition, you guys are mistaken about something.. I am currently at the Pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm, but alas, due to some injuries, my strength plummeted all the way to the Early stage.." Duan Li sighed.


    Hearing this, the trio in front of him almost spurted out the wine inside their mouth to Duan Li''s face!


    Brother! Are you kidding? How in the world are you still able to destroy a Nascent Soul realm puppet if the injury is that severe?


    It was as if saying that you could slap a mountain to the extent that it will cry to its ancestor if you recover to your full strength!


    However, this makes sense as well. No wonder he is that powerful! It turns out that he is currently at the Pinnacle stage!


    But how did the test failed to reflect his realm properly? This was unheard of!


    Unable to hold himself in, Lu Bu spoke out, "Is that even possible? Weird, the orb to test at one''s realm has never failed before like that.."


    Seeing that the other party had misunderstood him, Duan Li shook his head before replying, "Eh, there is nothing wrong with the test orb and its working as intended.. I think. But it only measures the spiritual Qi density inside one dantian. With my current injury towards all three Dantians, its no wonder that the orb thought that I am just at the Early stage." he said as he sipped the wine slowly from his cup casually.


    Huh?


    Wang Dong, Lu Bu and Zhang Liao stared at one another.


    "E-Excuse us, maybe we have misheard you. But, did you say.. three Dantians?" they asked, their lips started to form a wide ''O'' shape, as if a ring was being forcefully put inside it.


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    Duan Li nodded affirmatively, "En, that''s right! I cultivated using all three of my Dantians!" he showed his three fingers towards them.


    Putong!


    The trio nearly keeled themselves over to the floor when they heard this!


    Heavens! Even cultivating just one Dantian could make a person become invincible in their life, and you are saying he cultivated all three?!


    "Brother, its not that I don''t believe you, but its just simply not possible to do! Every single cultivator that tried, either died a horrible death or become disabled for their whole life!" Wang Dong said as he shook his head.


    Hais!


    With a helpless sigh, Duan Li walked slowly towards the verandah with both hands clasped behind his back.


    Eh? What''s he doing now?


    Just as the crowd was perplexed as to what he was gonna do, with a deep look to him, Duan Li suddenly said, "If you were to climb the highest mountain on where you live, how can you be so sure that there are no mountains ten times higher in somewhere else?"


    Boomm!!


    The crowd that heard this swallowed a mouthful of saliva with surprised look.


    "T-This.."


    The words that Duan Li spoke just now might seem straightforward, but the wisdom behind it centered right at the very crux of the world!


    At this moment in their awe as their horizons widened, the full moon seemed to align perfectly with Duan Li, causing his shadow to extend far and wide; appearing like an expert that had gone through the ups and downs in life!


    Unknowingly, the trio had clenched their fists tight in agitation. If they were doubting his words before, now they were perfectly convinced!


    "I was blind! I had grown complacent because I have the greatest teacher in the world imparting to me everything there is to know about cultivation! Yet, here is a person who had actually cultivated all three Dantian!" Lu Bu said to himself with gritted teeth!


    "Grandteacher, you once said that in our lifetime, we will be able to meet someone so great that it will shatter our horizon. Today, I have met that very person!" Zhang Liao said to himself as he look at Duan Li with veneration in his eyes!


    "Father! Mother! I have found a gold mine!" Wang Dong cried joyfully as his tears streamed down from his cheeks, his face flushed red in excitement as if he had won a jackpot in gambling.


    Meanwhile, Wu Jin and Dong Jinghai that was watching from afar and overheard this could not help but to shook their head.


    Hais! Our junior have gone far ahead of us!


    Just as the trio were about to say something, a loud stern voice suddenly spoke out.


    "Everyone, the arrival of her highness, Empress Dowager!" an attendant announced.


    "H-Huh? T-The Queen is here?"


    The crowd then immediately dispersed and lined themselves properly as they single kneeled themselves.


    Tap! Tap!


    A figure draped in luxurious red robes with golden silk woven in them walked in. The moment she appeared, it was as if the stars had lost their light and the moon had become pale and old!


    Beautiful!


    This was the only word that came out at the top of everyone''s mind as they watched the Empress Dowager entering the room.


    Her aura and charm felt ethereal, as if she was an otherworldly angel that descended down to give light and warmth to the dampness of the mortal world!


    Behind her, was an old man with a hunchback and long beard.


    "T-That is Advisor Chen!"


    "Y-You mean the rumored 10-star Strategist of the Jiu Empire?"


    "He is way beyond that you fool! Now shut up before you got us complicated!"


    Sweats trickled down on everyone''s forehead except Duan Li. In his mind, he did not know why everyone was being like this.


    "Hey, why is everyone seemed to be scared?" he whispered to Wang Dong beside him.


    "E-Eh? You did not know? Despite her pretty looks, it is a known fact that the Empress is as cold as ice! Rumor has it that if she was displeased by someone, the next day, that person will somehow ''mysteriously'' disappear!" Wang Dong replied with a hushed voice.


    Eh? What a scary woman!


    "Everyone, don''t be too tense! I am here to congratulate the champions for tonight''s competition!" Empress Dowager chuckled.


    She then glanced over to Duan Li and a strange smile crept on her lips.


    ...

 280 Chapter 273: Undercurrents!

    Tap! Tap!


    The Empress walked towards Duan Li with casual steps as her maids, attendants and Advisor Chen followed closely behind her. In addition, their overbearing aura made the whole crowd swallowed their saliva, not daring to look directly!


    "Hmph! So that''s the Queen? Husband, you only need to say the word and I shall kill her in an instant. To think that existences of our caliber would be forced to single kneel like this.." Queen Levy said to Duan Li telepathically with gritted teeth as anger was boiling within her!


    "Shush! We need to keep a low profile before my coronation day. I don''t want to complicate others around me, so you better stand down and not do anything else!" Duan Li stared towards the latter with a reprimanding look.


    "Hmph!" Queen Levy could only pout and suppress herself even though she was not willing. Had this been the olden days, she would have killed everyone here without a doubt for witnessing her kneeling to a mere ant!


    "You are Duan Li? Congratulations for being the Champion of the Competition tonight." the Empress said promptly, her tone indifferent.


    In her eyes, the fellow in front of her was nothing but trouble. She had expected that Duan Li would win the fight, but she had imagined it to be an arduous battle consisting of a few gory scenes where he broke a few of his bones, ribs and the likes..


    Not with a single punch!


    A person with a fighting prowess as such would be nigh impossible to suppress once he becomes the official Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire! Not only that, the position and influence of the Royal family would be put in jeopardy!


    Just what in the world was his husband thinking, electing this fellow as the Imperial Overseer?


    "Thank you for the kind words your highness. Today was only won by a mere struck of luck, not worth a mention at all." Duan Li replied casually, trying to sound low profile as possible.


    In his mind though, from what Queen Levy told him, it was highly probably that the puppet was tempered by the Empress herself. But since the Emcee told him that it will be explained to him later on; he refrained from asking, afraid that it would send the wrong interpretation to others around them if he carelessly asked.


    "Y-You!" Advisor Chen was about to lash out at Duan Li for daring to speak with such an arrogant tone before the Empress.


    To him, the underlying meaning behind Duan Li''s words just now contained hints of disdain towards the Empress!


    In other words, it could be translated as;


    "Your petty tricks in the puppet before meant nothing to me."


    However, surprisingly, the Empress signalled for him to not interfere.


    "Interesting." the Empress smiled.


    To think that not only this fellow has the brawns but also the brains as well!


    This fellow is definitely the cunning type!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was oblivious to their inner thoughts. From his perspective, unless his opponent was above the Nascent Soul realm level which would give him some trouble, everything else was really nothing to him by now.


    Thus, how could he know that his simple reply of nonchalantness would instead resulted in misunderstanding by the two people in front of him?


    "Kukuku!" Queen Levy by the side could hardly suppress herself from laughing out loud.


    My husband is the best! Take that you filthy woman!


    The trio beside them; Wang Dong, Lu Bu and Zhang Liao was sweating profusely as their teeth clattered together.


    Brother! We know that you are daring okay! But you are in close proximity to us right now! If something were to happen, we will be complicated!


    That''s the Queen of the Jiu Empire damn it!


    In the Tian continent, hierarchy was kept extremely strict, especially between the commoners and royalties. If the former were to somehow offend the latter, then even if they were sent to the execution block, there was nothing they could do!


    The only exception to this was of course, cultivator with great power. After all, in front of true power, titles meant nothing!


    "Our meeting tonight is short, but seeing you like this face to face, I finally know just what kind of person you are. Let''s hope that we will meet again next time for an even longer chat." the Empress said as she turned around and left, along with her followers.


    Scratching his head, Duan Li could not help but to become confused.


    "That''s all? She sure is a person that don''t talk much..."


    ...


    After the Empress left, everyone in the hall heaved a sigh of relief. It was too much of a nerve wrecking when they can''t move or talk, and the constant fear of possibly offending the Empress made them stand on their tenterhooks!


    "Brother Duan Li! You sure are brave! I really admire you!" Wang Dong said with a thumbs up.


    "Huh? I''m not doing anything?" Duan Li once again scratched his head.


    "By the looks of it, the competition tonight was organized by the Empress herself, seeing that she came here to congratulate you personally." Lu Bu cupped his chin as he contemplated.


    A Queen of an empire took it upon herself to organize such a competition?


    "Hmph. She is also the one that purposely made the puppet stronger intentionally to scheme against my Lord. The gal!" Queen Levy by the side suddenly interjected.


    Scheme?


    Hearing this, Zhang Liao frowned as his mind started to piece the mystery together like the jigsaw of a puzzle.


    Ling Shin and Ruo Hen was nowhere to be found after the competition, and even Bai Li as well..


    Huh? Wait a moment..


    If what she said is true.. then..


    "It seems like.. there is a problem brewing inside your empire.." he said to Duan Li.


    "Eh? What do you mean?" Duan Li was surprised.


    Zhang Liao went silent for a while before explaining;


    "I''m not too sure as well.. but did you realize that Ling Shin and Ruo Hen suddenly disappeared after the competition? They are not even present here tonight, despite being the champions for the Late stage platform."


    "Yeah, now that you mentioned it. Was it possible that they didn''t come because they held a grudge against me? Or were they in a hurry to return back to their empire?" Duan Li thought with a serious look.


    "No, the invitation letter was of the Royal Insignia, there is no turning that down without heavy repercussion, even if we are outsiders. It is a cultural thing after all. Furthermore, those over there are their attendants, so that means they are still here in the Jiu Empire, possibly in their lodgings right now." Zhang Liao replied, hinting at their strict hierarchical system.


    While they may not be punished by the Jiu Empire if they neglected the invitation, rumor will spread. Once they return to their empire, the Royal court will definitely call them for a hearing!


    He then continued, "The only possibility is that, the invitation was directly negated by the Imperial Decree from Ling Shin and Ruo Hen''s empire, the Doulou Empire! In other words, they are required to stay indoors tonight!"


    It was at this moment that Lu Bu joined in with a solemn expression, "If even their Imperial Palace had ordered them for a house arrest, then the situation is truly dire! Just what is going on?"


    Zhang Liao shook his head, "I don''t know.. but one thing for sure is that, the Empress purposely tempering on the puppet before was not to scheme against you Duan Li, but something else. However, this is only my conjecture."


    Hearing all these, Duan Li''s brows creased together as he pinched his temples.


    Someone is trying to cause a problem in the Jiu Empire? Who and why?


    "Di Rou!" Duan Li suddenly said, before a figure in tight black clothing emerged from his shadow, causing the trio to become startled as they retreated a few steps to the back.


    "Ah! Calm down! This is my subordinate. She gathers intelligence for me." Duan Li explained before turning around to talk with Di Rou.


    Meanwhile, both the trio felt their backs to be drenched in sweat!


    "That woman is definitely an Assassin! Highly skilled at that!" they simultaneously thought in their mind.


    Of all the opponents that was the most difficult to handle, assassin was indubitably ranked amongst the top!


    Moreover, the woman talking beside Duan Li did not even let out a sliver of her presence when hiding, undetectable to even Lu Bu and Zhang Liao whom possessed exceptional sensory abilities!


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    To think that such a powerful assassin was a subordinate of this new friend of theirs... Just what is his real identity?!


    Gulp!


    ...

 281 Chapter 274: Lets Go!

    "I see..." Duan Li cupped his chin as he contemplated deeply.


    From what Di Rou had just told him, the Empress was indeed the organizer for their competition before. The malfunctioning puppet causing it to become way more overpowered than normal was also the Empress''s plan as well! This was in order to root out the ''hidden forces'' that were currently gathering intelligence on the Jiu Empire!


    From their investigations, these hidden forces were trying to uncover who the Imperial Overseer was, as well as the reason as to why the Jiu Empire decided to do it in the first place. However, not all of these hidden forces have the same agenda; some were just purely interested in knowing, but there were also others who were planning to cause harm!


    "It seems that Bai Li from the Huan Empire got captured by my subordinate here..." Duan Li turned around and said to the trio as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly.


    "Huh? Captured? For what?" they said in unison, evidently surprised. This was especially the case for both Lu Bu and Zhang Liao.


    After all, Bai Li was a top-notch assassin from the Huan Empire. If he wanted to disappear, it will be difficult for one to track him if he was not willing to be found! However, the possibility of him being captured still exist nonetheless, its just that they hadn''t thought that this small Jiu Empire would have an expert of such caliber!


    Not to mention that, this expert was right before their very eyes! In addition, to make their eyeball sockets popped out even more, this expert turns out to be the subordinate of this new friend of theirs!


    Heavens! If he was older than his current age right now, we might have suspected him to be the Imperial Overseer instead for all of his incredible means!


    "He was tailed after snooping around the Jiu Empire these past few days, gathering information for the identity of the soon to-be Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire. However, since he was only collecting intel and did nothing else, he will be released soon." Duan Li replied as he sighed.


    I don''t understand why people would make such a big deal out of me becoming the Imperial Overseer...


    It''s just being able to command where the rain should fall and where the lightning should strike, no?


    Hais!


    Zhang Liao that heard this pondered for a moment before he caught on to something. "It seems that I was right in my previous deduction. There are people who are planning to cause trouble right?"


    "En, that seems to be the case! There are traces of people spreading false rumors to destabilize the empire! The Empress thus deduced that these hidden forces were up to no good. But, we still do not know as to what their actual plans and intentions are..." Duan Li answered.


    "Hmmm..." everyone contemplated deeply on these series of shocking information with frowns.


    After a moment, Duan Li shook his head, "Oh well, the Empire should be able to handle it. How about we talk some more?"


    The party then went on as everyone made use of it to know each other better. It was not until near dawn that Duan Li finally returned to his residence court to have a good night sleep.


    ...


    Early in the morning, Duan Li yawned as he stretched his back lazily. "Eh, they are probably already inside the Eternal Maze right now.." he said, recalling that all of his followers had abandoned him yesterday, leaving him all alone.


    Suuu!


    Queen Levy popped out from the spatial ring as she greeted Duan Li. "Husband, where are we going today?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.


    In her view, the current society of humans nowadays was wonderful and much more better than before. Back then, all she witnessed was that cultivators would usually lord over the common people like they were some kind of god.


    Now however, both groups lived in harmony with each other. In fact, what surprised her the most was that, there were even laws that would punish cultivators that harrassed the common people!


    Therefore, she was eager to explore more of this present era! It was as if she had discovered a new virgin land!


    Meanwhile, hearing that he was still being called as ''Husband'' by the latter, Duan Li could only sigh helplessly.


    "We are going to the Jixue Knights Academy today!" Duan Li answered.


    Hearing this reply, Queen Levy pouted her mouth. "That''s not a fun place to go! An academy is like a sect right? Why would we go there?"


    "What else? Of course its to learn! As a matter of fact, if you did not realize yet, I am a student of this academy okay?" Duan Li was becoming a little bit exasperated with this woman.


    What fun? Do you think that I am your father that will bring you to a theme park?


    Is she really several millenniums old? Why does it feel like I am babysitting a child?


    Queen Levy tilted her head to the side with furrowed brows. "Husband, just what is there to learn in the academy? You are already stronger than most Nascent Soul realm cultivators!" she said, unable to comprehend Duan Li''s reasoning.


    "..." Duan Li was shocked. He then cupped his chin and nodded in realization.


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    Well.. she is right about that..


    "Still, its not appropriate for me to continue on being absent! Who knows if the teachers will get angry at me for being absent for a long time right after enrolling?" Duan Li replied and felt a little bit guilty.


    Initially, he was supposed to be learning with the other juniors like the normal students out there, but who could have thought that his journey would turn out this way instead?


    Hais!


    "If they dared as to even speak loudly in front of you, I will slit their throat and.."


    Bam!


    Duan Li kicked her by her bottom which sent her flying into the pond outside, creating a huge splash. The mutated Koi fishes then swiftly swarmed and assaulted her as they picked up the scent of worms from Queen Levy.


    "Ahhh! What is wrong with these fish? Why are they eating my clothes? Noooo!" she screamed tragically.


    As her nature was that of a worm, she had natural fear towards fish. Therefore, coupled with the aggressiveness of the fish, she could not summon even an ounce of strength to fight back, flailing in panic like a powerless girl.


    Duan Li then left her and found Bulu, sitting cross-legged atop of a boulder where Shen Murong always cultivate.


    "Hmm.. this fellow is even cultivating like a human now.."


    Giving the other party a few pointers as to how to properly cultivate, as well as imparting several move sets of a martial artist, Duan Li then left him to his own devices.


    "Di Rou!" Duan Li called out, of which the other party suddenly stood up from a nearby bush.


    "Summon Cucko, Daelius and the others!" Duan Li instructed with a cool wave of his hand.


    Suuu!! Ssuuu!!


    It didn''t take long before the small Fenrir and huge packs of chicken flooded out the entire courtyard, which made Duan Li''s brows twitched.


    What is this? Their numbers.. seemed to have grown en masse!


    There must be several dozens of them here!


    Noticing the stupefied look of her lord, Di Rou swiftly explained, "These mutated chickens seemed to have an explosive copulating abilities than normal. Every single one of these are their offsprings in one way or another.."


    Hearing this, Duan Li almost keeled over to the ground on his face.


    What the heck? I just left for more than a week and they already reproduced this much?


    In a month, no, in one year, wouldn''t I have myself an army of chickens?!


    I am afraid that Xiahou Yu might found herself being unable to control her evil desire at this rate...


    "This... What do we do with all of these... Chickens..." Duan Li asked as he felt a headache.


    "Please don''t worry my Lord. I think I have found a good use for them!" Di Rou confidently said.


    She then explained that these chickens happened to have an extremely long range telepathic ability between their species!


    Thus, she proposed that they used them as an intelligence unit to gather all sorts of information around the Tian continent!


    Pah!


    Duan Li slapped himself in the face, thinking that he was dreaming.


    Since when did these chickens become so formidable?


    Hais!


    He then left the matter to Di Rou to handle as he was not well-versed in such field. Taking Daelius the Fenrir with him, he then headed out to the academy.


    ...

 282 Chapter 275: Isll take the exams!

    "Eh? Isn''t that Duan Li?" A man said when he saw Duan Li and the little Fenrir entered the school grounds.


    "Huh? That champion? Wow! It''s really him!"


    "Damn! He is already famous when he exterminated thousands of monsters during the monster stampede before, and now he is a champion that could rival even a Nascent Soul realm expert!"


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    "Not only that, I heard that there was a lot of people saying that he is one of those legendary Child of Tian! Ah! I want to be like him!"


    Hearing all these people talking about him, Duan Li couldn''t help but to become a little bit embarrassed as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly, but at the same time, he felt a sense of achievement and pride in himself as well!


    However, just as he was about to wave to his ''fans'', a woman suddenly screamed excitedly!


    "Guys look! It''s little wolf!"


    "Little Dae? Where?"


    Kyaaa!!


    A whole flock of excited women soon crowded around Duan Li before they swiftly took Daelius away, leaving Duan Li with a disheveled appearance as if he had just been trampled over!


    "Little Dae?" his lips twitched. He never expected that Daelius would be much more famous than him to the extent of being given such a cute nickname!


    It was just a few moments ago that he was standing at the center of the limelight before it was snatched right in front of him!


    Hais!


    Why can''t you learn how to be low profile like me?


    "Should I summon Dilong and Zhulong to accompany me now?" Duan Li thought for a moment before he threw the idea away.


    People will think that I am crazy talking to an empty air...


    With an exasperated sigh, Duan Li entered the main building.


    ...


    His first class for today was the Appraiser class. This was a class that involves identifying items and artifacts.


    Since he was a junior just like the rest of the students here, the objects that the teacher gave to them to practice their skills was but simple stuff.


    The items laid in front of them was a bunch of artifact stones with each harnessing unique attributes to increase a cultivator''s battle prowess!


    "In order to understand which stone could give which attributes, one must..."


    Listening to the teacher talking on and on about method of identifying stones almost slapped Duan Li right into the realm of the dreams!


    At this moment, he could not be more grateful to have such an overpowered identifying ability;


    "Thankfully, I have the Tetra Soul Sense that could identify any objects by a mere glance.."


    After the class ended, Duan Li then went into the Herbalogist class. The situation was roughly the same for him and he almost slept throughout the entire course.


    Next, he attended the Master Teaching class and almost choked on himself!


    "What the heck is this? Why is everyone practicing to convince others to buy their Quill?!" he thought to himself as he widened his eyes in disbelief.


    (A.N: This is a common question to be asked during interview in the marketing department of a company - ''Sell me this pen'')


    Could they have gone bonkers?


    Shouldn''t they convince others on how to practice and correct the flaws in one''s cultivation instead?


    "Oh wait, I forgot... Everyone here is at the junior level and they are still learning everything from the beginning..."


    Hais!


    Duan Li then went on to the Combat Class next in the afternoon. He saw how the others were practicing some basic stances of martial arts on the side, while multiple teachers lead another separate groups and demonstrated how spiritual Qi could be infused to the move sets of those martial arts stances to make them more powerful!


    At the end of the lesson, Duan Li finally have a lifeless look on his face. Feeling helpless, he went to the Principal''s office.


    Knock! Knock!


    ...


    "What''s wrong with you now?" the Principal asked after he saw the look on Duan Li''s face.


    It was just like the face of someone that was drained of their entire energy, looking pale and frail; thus the Principal''s initial thoughts were that Duan Li had contracted Diarrhea!


    "I... I don''t think that I can continue learning the entire Junior course..." Duan Li explained honestly, and he told the Principal that each class was too basic for him.


    Hearing this, the Principal furrowed his brows in displeasure. "Are you thinking of skipping the entire course? While you may be the Imperial Overseer, in this Academy, I am the Principal! I will not entertain a request that allows you to not attend the classes at all!"


    The Principal then went on to say that, such a thing would cause a student''s status to become a ''dropout'', which essentially meant that they will be kicked out from the Academy; stripped of their titles and properties!


    "Huh? No, what I meant to say is that, can I jump straight to the Senior course?" Duan Li said to prevent the Principal from misunderstanding his intentions any further.


    "Oh? You want to become an express student?" the Principal stroked his beard gently as he found this intriguing.


    There were already several outstanding students that joined the Express course, and these students was groomed by the Royal''s Scholarship instead of the limited budget of the academy!


    After pondering upon the matter carefully, the Principal finally replied, "There are procedures for you to apply and become an Express student, and you will have unlimited resources at your disposal to further your cultivation and martial arts. Not that money is a problem for you though, just that, there are one condition that you need to fulfill!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li was ecstatic and asked straight away, "What is that one condition?"


    "The condition is that, you will have to progressively take examinations for each of your minor occupations! To become an Express student, you need to reach a minimum of 5 stars for all of your minor occupation! Next, you must not have a score lower than 95 where the maximum is 100 marks for each examination!" the Principal replied with a solemn look.


    Hearing this revelation, Duan Li was surprised. "Such a strict requirement! Are there even anyone that passed such a test?"


    "Naturally!" the Principal replied with a nod.


    He then explained that, there were originally only 3 slots opened for the Express course; one for each level of student - Junior, Sophomore and Senior!


    All three slots was already taken, but the Principal could make special exceptions for Duan Li in view of his status as the Imperial Overseer!


    In addition, the main perks of the Express student course was that a student can enter any lecture class they want!


    Basically, even if Duan Li were to attend a lecture class of a 7 Star rank-only, which was the current highest class a student can attend in the Jixue Knights Academy, he could do so!


    Thus, after careful consideration, Duan Li finally decided with a confident nod.


    "I shall take the examination to become an Express student!"


    ...

 283 Chapter 276: Isll take three!

    "Senior Teacher Hong Xin, we meet again!" Duan Li clasped his fist together when he entered the office.


    "Ahh... it''s you. I''ve heard many rumors about you flying around right now..." Hong Xin''s face was pale as if he had just seen a ghost when Duan Li entered.


    He was the elder that was previously in charge of handling Duan Li and Xiahou Yu when they first entered the Academy. Each subsequent tests caused him headaches especially by this fellow in front of him! Now that the other party showed up on his doorstep once more, his premonition told him that something bad was going to happen to the academy again!


    "I''m here to submit this application request..." Duan Li said as he handed down a paper to Hong Xin.


    Puu!


    "I knew it!" Hong Xin''s lips twitched wildly when he saw the paper. It was a request to take the Express Student''s Course entry examination!


    Is he for real?


    From the rumors that I''ve heard, although things might be exaggerated to an extent, he seemed to have quite the outstanding battle prowess for his age!


    However, this examination is not a test of one''s battle prowess, but more towards one''s proficiency in each of the minor class...


    "You know that this exam will be extremely difficult right? Furthermore, how did you even manage to convince the Principal to sign this?" Hong Xin asked in bewilderment.


    From his knowledge, although the Principal was quite the eccentric man, he wasn''t the type of person to be so casual in matters related to this! Previous applicants were all excellent students with powerful family background that dated all the way to the founding of the empire itself!


    Is this fellow really that outstanding?


    "Never mind. Since you already got his signature, I''ll just have to approve it. Go to the examination hall and wait there." Hong Xin instructed as he chose to not think about the matter any further. Since the Principal had already vouched for this fellow, then there was nothing else he could do. He only hoped that the reports he had to write later on will not be another headache for him. Otherwise, he might just have to retire early!


    ...


    Inside the examination hall...


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    There were currently 4 Senior Teachers standing at the very front facing towards him, each carried an imposing aura that would send cold sweats to anyone that was stared intensely by them! These people were the invigilators!


    Le Cenglei, the head of the Appraiser Class department in the academy. He was also the very same teacher that disguised himself as a 3-Star rank Appraiser when in fact he was actually an 8-Star rank Appraiser!


    Ding Ziqing, the older sister of Duan Li''s Herbalogist teacher, Ding Huiqing. She was the head of the Herbalogist Class department and was also an 8-Star rank Herbalogist!


    Zhang Xi, the Vice-Principal of the academy whose main class was a Strategist. However, since his minor class was a 7-Star Master Teacher, he was qualified to become the invigilator today.


    Finally, Shen Long. Shen Murong''s grandfather who always went around showing his bulky upper body that was full of scars. He was the head of the Combat Class department, and was one of the very few people that has a 10-Star rank qualification inside the academy!


    All four of them right now were looking at Duan Li with a solemn expression, as if they were not planning to give him even an ounce of leniency in this examination!


    "It seems that you are vastly more talented than I previously assumed. It has gone beyond my expectation for you to apply the Express Student Course program under the personal vouch from the Principal himself!" Le Cenglei said as he nodded his head, feeling impressed by the young man in front of him.


    "Hmph! I''m still not convinced that this little fellow are up to the task! Should you fail your exams later on, you will bear the consequences for wasting my time!" Ding Ziqing harrumphed with a frosty expression. She was just in the middle of concocting new pills when a notice came in for her to invigilate Duan Li''s exam.


    "Don''t be too hard on him. Who knows, he might even be able to breakthrough for the 6-Star class examinations later on!" the Vice-Principal Zhang Xi chuckled. He was well aware of Duan Li''s means and was actually looking forward for Duan Li to surprise them in these minor occupation examinations.


    "I heard that you''ve been treating my grandson well? Don''t worry, I will not look down on you. Instead, I will squeeze every last droplet of your strength in this examination as a show of gratitude!" Shen Long said with an indifferent tone, his tall stature made him look more menacing than the others!


    Gulp!


    "So, which exam will you take first? The whole examination would take three days in total, but we will all observe you at the same time to determine the appropriate difficulties that we should give you for your next subsequent exams as well as to prevent cheating." Le Cenglei said.


    Eh? Three days? That''s not good...


    Hearing this, Duan Li turned to look at the Vice-Principal. Understanding that gaze of his, the Vice-Principal made a dry cough before suggesting to everyone.


    "I propose that Duan Li should do the Appraiser and Herbalogist class examinations simultaneously. After all, not only do the two exams are similar in nature, he was recommended by the Principal himself. Thus, if he can''t even do this much, then as Ding Ziqing said, he really is wasting our time!"


    The three other senior teachers looked at each other before nodding.


    "Oh? This suggestion is not too bad. As Zhang Xi said, he should be able to at least do this much for someone recommended personally by the Principal!" Ding Ziqing was the first to be overjoyed by this suggestion. After all, this meant that she wouldn''t have to waste her time becoming the invigilator today!


    As to if this would lead to Duan Li''s failure, she didn''t care one bit at all.


    "Then we shall do that. The more pressure a cultivator experience, the more potential we will be able to squeeze out of him!" Shen Long stroked his long white beard with intrigued expression.


    "This... well, since everyone already agreed, then I have no reason to object. Duan Li, I hope you will not disappoint us!" Le Cenglei was reluctant at first before going through with the majority.


    At this moment, Duan Li was struck amazed by the Vice-Principal''s suggestion!


    "As expected of the top-notch Strategist of the academy, the Vice-Principal was able to sway them effortlessly!" he thought to himself with a look of respect as he glanced at the Vice-Principal!


    Since the Vice-Principal knew that three days will not be possible for Duan Li, as the latter would have to prepare for his coronation ceremony as well, he made use of this subtle suggestion to make it look like he was being strict and difficult on Duan Li!


    In reality however, he used this method only because they were short on time!


    Unbeknownst to him though, Duan Li wasn''t planning to simply agree to this. In fact, Duan Li wanted to suggest something even more daring!


    "Hmm... Senior Teachers here are right. If I don''t push myself today, then I don''t deserve to be acknowledged by the Principal! Therefore, why not we do it this way? Instead of going for two exams at the same time... why not I do the Master Teaching exam at the same time as well?" Duan Li said with his eyes flashing in confidence.


    Puu!!


    All four senior teachers choked on themselves and farted.


    This little guy! Aren''t you being too ambitious?


    Here we had thought that you would cry and beg to us to do the exam normally, but who could have thought that you would chose to strangle and drown yourself in water while your hands and legs are already tied?


    Are you sure you are not committing suicide here?


    Ding Ziqing felt like her face was slapped hard, and she couldn''t help but to become agitated by this. With a harrumph, she replied, "Oh? Quite the arrogant young man who thinks so highly of himself huh? Fine. Let''s do it your way then! I would like to see how you will fare later on!"


    Meanwhile, the Vice-Principal''s countenance turned slightly pale as his brows twitched.


    I have a bad feeling about this...


    ...

 284 Chapter 277: First three exams cleared!

    "Since you proposed to take all three exams at the same time, let me lay out the format then!" Zhang Xi said.


    Firstly, Duan Li must identify objects from the Appraiser class examination before moving on to identify the plants in the Herbalogist class examination. Only then will he conduct a discourse lecture to convince them on the methodology that made him arrive to such a conclusion.


    However, each invigilator has the right to maintain their original format in each examination should the wished later on. If Duan Li were to fail even a single one of the exam, then his opportunity to enter the Express student course will be forever over!


    Of course, this meant that Duan Li will have to take the Combat class examination the very last. After all, the Combat class''s examination format was entirely different altogether and would be impossible to merge with the other three classes.


    Making sure that he understands all the rules of the examination carefully, Duan Li soon nodded, "En. I understand!"


    "Good. Let the examination for the 1-Star rank Appraiser, Herbalogist and Master Teaching class, commence!" Zhang Xi waved his hand grandly.


    Le Cenglei then took out several objects from his spatial ring and laid them neatly on the table right in front of them.


    "Since this is only a 1-Star rank Appraiser exam, I''ll start with these three jade stones to gauge your appraising abilities first." he said.


    Duan Li nodded and secretly used his Tetra Soul Sense. He then instantly knew what the three jade stones were.


    However, he suddenly realized a problem.


    "If I were to immediately able to identify these three stones, would it look suspicious?"


    Cupping his chin, Duan Li pondered upon this with furrowed brows.


    Seeing that Duan Li seemed to be struggling, Ding Ziqing smiled wickedly. "I''ll give you ten breaths to identify those jade stones. Otherwise, I''ll immediately fail you!" she said.


    This was the main disadvantage for Duan Li combining the exam together, in that other invigilators could meddle in anytime they want.


    "Eh? I got it! From the right, that is the Tempered jade stone, the other is a Frigid Summerset jade and the last one is a Greenleaf jade!" Duan Li quickly replied.


    Hearing all the three names that Duan Li pointed out were actually spot on, Le Cenglei raised his brows in surprise!


    "Oh? To think that you are already able to identify them without even taking a closer look... But yes, your answer is correct!" Le Cenglei nodded in satisfaction.


    "Such eye of discernment is already on par with most 3-Star Appraiser, so there is no need for me to do anything more on this 1-Star exam. I''ll pass you over to Senior Teacher Ding Ziqing now." he said with a smile, seemingly impressed with Duan Li.


    On the other hand, Ding Ziqing was feeling quite the opposite. "Hmph! Don''t think that my exam will be that easy!" she waved her hand with an unconvinced expression. In her eyes, those three jade stones were as common as cabbages by the street, such that even peasants would be able to identify them on the spot!


    Also, she couldn''t help but to give a disapproval glance towards Le Cenglei for making the previous exam so easy for the other party.


    After all, this was an exam for the Express student course that many would leap on giving the opportunity to do so.


    She then took out three herbs from her spatial ring. Before she could even lay them on the table properly though, Duan Li had already spoke out the names of those herbs!


    "That is a Gilderoot sapling, that one is a Saphire sprout and that is a Yang Inversing plant..." Duan Li pointed out in a single breath.


    Pu!


    Ding Ziqing almost choked on herself, her face was in disbelief.


    The atmosphere was silent for a while before Duan Li scratched his head and said, "I''m correct right?"


    Cough! Cough!


    "Well... Yes! After all, this is only a 1-Star rank exam! So I thought that I should be a bit lenient for you..." Ding Ziqing said with a flushed expression.


    Damn it! How the heck was he able to identify them that fast?!


    Hmph! No matter, we still have several other exam ranks after this...


    "Your previous feat... is remarkable if I must say so myself." Zhang Xi made a few dry coughs before he continued.


    "Usually, a 1-Star Master Teacher exam would involve you convincing the invigilator to explain why one product is better than the other, but that would be an insult to the capabilities that you''ve shown so far..." he stroked his beard slowly.


    "Therefore, for this exam, I want you to tell us how you managed to quickly identify those jade stones and herbs! Remember, it has to be convincing!" he said strictly.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised due to its simplicity.


    That''s all?


    Nevertheless, he still answered, "Well, I''ve read a lot of books before... its not too difficult once you get accustomed to memorizing each of them with a single glance..."


    Of course, Duan Li''s answer was a lie, but the others would not be able to tell this.


    "..." Zhang Xi and the rest.


    "Y-You! What kind of answer is that? Did you think that we are-" Ding Ziqing wanted to berate Duan Li''s answer, but Zhang Xi gestured for her to stop.


    "While its not the answer that I am looking for, I think that your answer is satisfactory enough. Perhaps, I might have thought too deeply into it... After all, this is just a 1-Star rank exam and being able to memorize basic stuff is quite logical..." Zhang Xi nodded as he found Duan Li''s answer reasonable enough.


    Even though he knew the status of the other party, the Vice-Principal never planned to be biased with Duan Li because of this. He believed that for every cultivator to really know their worth, the trial they must take should be fair and equal!


    "Congratulations! You''ve passed the 1-Star rank exam for the three classes! Now that I think about it... this must be the fastest record of anyone being able to clear the exam at such speed..." he remarked with an intrigued expression as the others nodded, except for Ding Ziqing of course, her expression seemed to remain unimpressed.


    "Onto the next exam then..."


    Le Cenglei waved his hand and two identical vase appeared!


    "This here are two artifacts from the ancient era. It does not have any uses for us cultivators. However, I want to see your abilities in identifying the exact date for each vase." he said as he clasped his hands behind his back.


    Hearing this, Duan Li started to sweat a little.


    "I need to find the date of these artifacts? Damn.. I don''t think my Tetra Soul Sense have that kind of ability...!"


    It was then that a loud ''Ding!'' sound echoed inside his head.


    [Host is wrong. We can pull out almost any sorts of information on an object. However, for a detailed analysis, the host is required to touch the object.]


    The voice of the mirealithians said, seemingly a little bit mad in its tone.


    Oh? Is that so?


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    Let me give it a try then!


    Touch!


    [Vase of the Empyrian Civilization. Exactly 4,231 years old. Once upon a time, there was Avatar, he was the sole surviving son of a blacksmith.]


    [In the spring of a beautiful day, the village that he lived was peaceful and calm. However, everything changed when the Fire nation attacked...]


    A list of details popped out one after another endlessly. Only after Duan Li willed it to stop, did the Mirealithians halted their ramblings inside his head.


    Furthermore, why does it feels like they are telling a certain story?


    "How did they even pull out all these sorts of information though?" he thought to himself feeling quite awed, after which, a simple reply came;


    [We have reached Quantum Supremacy.]


    "..." Duan Li.


    Quantum what?


    ...

 285 Chapter 278: Cultivation lecture?

    Hmm.. I need to do something more believable other than just touching the vase before I give out the date..


    "Let''s see.. how do appraiser usually conduct their method?" Duan Li racked his brain out before he shook his head helplessly a few moments later.


    He had only attended the Appraiser class lecture once before and it was only an introductory lesson at that. After that, he never attended the class anymore!


    Thus, how could he know the proper procedure to date an artifact?


    Forget it! I''ll just do this instead!


    Shaa!


    Duan Li then proceeded to run his index finger onto the vase from top to bottom as if checking for dust, before licking his finger!


    Nom! Nom!


    After swirling a few rounds with his tongue inside his mouth and swallowing it, he then said confidently, "This vase is exactly 4,321 years old!" He then did the same thing to the other vase as well.


    "And this one is much older! About 4,387 years old!"


    Pu!


    Hearing this verdict from Duan Li as well as seeing his method, Le Cenglei found himself on the verge of keeling over before questioning his ancestor!


    What in the world did you think you are doing?


    Are you sure that you are dating the vases properly and not trying to pull my leg here?


    This isn''t a gourmet competition! Why do you have to taste it like that?


    Forcing himself to calm down, Le Cenglei thought about Duan Li''s verdict for a moment before his eyes widened in realization!


    "Wait a moment, while his method is unheard of, the date is actually very precise! In fact, those are the actual date of when the vase was created!" he cast a look of disbelief towards Duan Li.


    "That''s it, I''ve had it with you! Did you think that we senior teachers are fools?" Ding Ziqing lashed out in rage.


    She had seen cheeky students before, but this one practically wanted to slap over their head!


    "Hold on! He is actually correct!" Le Cenglei waved his hand to stop the other party.


    "What do you mean? How is he correct? While I''m not an appraiser myself, I at least have the basic knowledge on how to date an object properly! He is definitely messing with us!" Ding Ziqing refuted.


    "No, these two vases were from the museum that I borrowed for a study. It was actually extracted from the bottom of a river intact with its ledger that highlighted the year of when they are made! His verdict is precise down to the lowest value!" Le Cenglei explained.


    Hearing this, all three senior teachers were once shocked silly.


    To be able to date an ancient artifact down to its lowest value... Isn''t that too impressive for a junior?


    "Could it be that he saw it in the museum before?" Shen Long said.


    "That''s not possible, its still in the process room when I took it.. ah!" Le Cenglei immediately shut his mouth as they stared at him suspiciously.


    Cough! Cough!


    "A-Anyway, the point here is that, he managed to date them properly! I''ll pass the floor to you now senior teacher Ding Ziqing!" he swiftly said and ended the topic as he closed his lips tight.


    Damn this mouth of mine!


    After all, there were quite a lot of artifacts that can''t be borrowed in the museum and those in the processing room were some of them..


    Choosing not to dwell too much into it and will question the other party later, the trio nodded, soon forgetting Duan Li''s bizarre method of dating the artifacts before.


    "Hmph! Don''t think that I am convinced with you yet!" Ding Ziqing waved her hands as two sets of herbs and plants were laid on the table.


    "I want you to list out all the possible pills that can be concocted from these two sets of herbs here!" she said impassively with a wicked smile.


    "Eh? Okay... If we combine this herb with that roots over there, we can make the Qi concentration pills, but if we add this sapling here, we can make the Qi cleansing pills instead." Duan Li quickly said and pointed out.


    For Herbalogist Class to increase in Star rank, even if they do not have the practical ability to concoct pills, they must at least know which plants and herbs could be made into what pills.


    After all, if they were to give the wrong plants and herbs to others for them to concoct some specific pills, then the end result would always leads to a failure or pill poisoning!


    "Oh? You are quite fast... Continue!" Ding Ziqing was a little taken aback by this and found her opinion of Duan Li to become slightly better.


    Duan Li then continued to name pills after pills that could be concocted to the point that Ding Ziqing''s mouth was becoming more agape as time passes!


    The other party might not know this, but Duan Li had already mastered pill concoction to a very high degree!


    In addition, his knowledge about herbs and plants was quite extensive, thanks to the books that he read from the personal collection of the royal family through his connection with Ju Zhianhu, the Chief Doctor of the Royal family while at the same time being his disciple that he could command anytime!


    If even the Chief Doctor of the Royal family was willing to become his disciple, then Duan Li''s expertise in the field of Herbalogist was undeniable!


    After listing out almost 20 different pills, Ding Ziqing held up her hand to gesture for Duan Li to stop.


    "Y-You... You''ve passed... Hmph!" she said reluctantly while at the same time was bewildered to the point that she almost questioned her reality.


    Where in the world did someone this talented popped out from?


    Why haven''t I heard of him before?


    I expected him to name at least 5 pills minimum and 8 pills maximum... But he listed over 20 pills in less than a minute!


    Is he actually a senior teacher in disguise?


    Zhang Xi on the other hand, nodded in satisfaction with what he saw from Duan Li''s performance thus far.


    As expected of the chosen one!


    "Okay, for my exam, I want to hear you lecture about cultivation! As far as I know, you''ve managed to achieve this cultivation level in less than a month right?" Zhang Xi said, emphasizing his last sentence.


    "HUH?" all the other senior teachers widened their eyes in shock upon this realization!


    The world of cultivation has always been a long journey, far from simple. To advance from one realm to another usually takes years if not decades of dedication!


    Even if one were a blessed genius by the heavens, it would still take months of long cultivation to reach Duan Li''s level!


    From their knowledge, even those peerless geniuses in the other 8 empires could only reach such a level in their late 20''s despite cultivating from the age of 16 years old!


    For one to simply reach the Core Formation realm in but a single month...


    Did the heavens took on a vacation and there was no one to enforce the natural law?


    Fearing that their cultivation might go berserk at this point, they decided to not think too much into this matter.


    "Lecture on cultivation? Very well!"


    ...


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 286 Chapter 279: Duan Lis cultivation!

    Zhang Xi knew the others were not convinced that Duan Li reached his current cultivation level in just under a single month, and that they thought he was just exaggerating things. Thus, he purposely used this exam as an opportunity for them to open their eyes wide.


    After all, he and the Principal as well as their other small circle of friends had already been shocked to death, and it would be unfair for the others to not experience the same feeling as well.


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    Furthermore, Duan Li was about to become the Imperial Overseer soon, so the more senior teachers that acknowledged him prior to his coronation, the less opposition will they have to face later on!


    "Cultivation is the absorption of spiritual Qi from the surrounding into one''s dantian, and then cycling them throughout the body through the meridians and channel pathways to perform miracles." Duan Li started with his hands clasped behind his back, his disposition gradually changing into that of an expert.


    Seeing this, the other senior teachers curled up their brows and frowned.


    Why is a mere Core Formation student acting like an expert in front of senior teachers like them?


    What gal!


    Although they were a bit riled, since this was an examination, they decided to give the other party some slack and go on with his lecture.


    "Simple, concise and straight to the point. I like that! Continue!" Zhang Xi nodded in approval at Duan Li''s introduction to his lecture.


    "En. From this definition, cultivation can therefore be divided into three process; Absorption, Tempering, and Release! All these three are in continuous cycle in order to reach harmony with nature!" Duan Li continued as he tilted his head to the ceiling, seeming to peer into the secrets of the world itself.


    For a cultivator, after absorbing or inhaling spiritual Qi into their body, they will use it to temper their body both internally and externally. This was why there were different realms between cultivator in the first place!


    Subsequently, the spiritual Qi must be always recycled between the cultivator and the nature, hence release, or exhalation during the execution of their breathing technique!


    "Only when one can do this will they be considered as a cultivator! Why? Because to perform miracles, it is similar to borrowing the force of nature, and one must be aligned with the natural surrounding first!"


    "To put this into an analogy, it is the same as how a still water could never hope to erode a single pebble! Yet, by borrowing the power of the wind, the water will be able to create waves which in turns could even erode a mountain given enough time!"


    All the four senior teachers nodded in agreement this time. They had to applause silently in their hearts when they heard this, even for the proud Ding Ziqing!


    To think that a junior student had already developed such a concise comprehension towards cultivation that he was able to verbalized everything directly into the crux..


    This was already on the level of philosophical culmination, similar to an expert that had observed the world for a very long time!


    "However..." Duan Li paused dramatically.


    "This is all but inefficient!" He suddenly said as he shook his head, causing the senior teachers to become agape!


    Ah? Inefficient?


    Inefficient your head!


    Cough! Cough!


    Zhang Xi that had always been known to possess a calm composure even in the midst of tribulation could be heard coughing intensely, as if a patient with a terminal disease.


    "... Interesting. But, do you mind to enlighten us?" he said quickly before the others could chimed in and berate the later!


    Are you trying to push everyone to oppose you here?


    Those are the very ideology that a veteran cultivator had followed all their life!


    For you to say that it was inefficient, aren''t you practically saying that they had cultivated wrongly?


    As if expecting their bewildered expression, Duan Li chuckled for a moment before replying, "Simple. Cultivation in itself is an act of defying the heavens. Therefore, one needs to defy the very law that binds themselves to nature! Only by defying nature itself can one truly improve by leaps and bounds!" Duan Li said grandly.


    Pu!


    Defying both the heavens and nature while living under their roof?


    Are you sure you are not implying to become a robber instead of a cultivator?!


    "Preposterous! You are just talking gibberish! I was wrong to be impressed with you for a moment there! This is extremely disappointing!" Ding Ziqing bellowed out as she pointed her index finger to Duan Li, seething with rage!


    "You think that I am lying? Hmph! Come here and do a Sonar Qi onto my body then if you do not believe me!" For the first time, Duan Li harrumphed to the other party.


    He had tolerated the other party viewing him in disdain earlier, and now, she even went so far as to point finger towards his face!


    How rude!


    Do you think that just because you are a senior teacher, I do not dare to pummel you?


    "Y-You! Very well! Although I do not know why you want me to perform Sonar Qi on you, but this is your last chance to prove your words! Otherwise, I will be forced to fail you!" Ding Ziqing was even more enraged being scoffed at by a mere student.


    Suuu!!


    With a single step, she disappeared from her initial spot before reappearing right behind Duan Li, trying to catch the other party off guard so as to let him know the differences between them.


    However, Duan Li had already turned his head over and set his eyes on her with a cold glance, even before she appeared!


    This sent her body into an instinctive shiver!


    It seemed as though her movements was seen through by Duan Li the moment she executed her movement skill art which was supposed to be impossible!


    After all, she was a Nascent Soul realm expert while the other party was only at the Core Formation realm!


    It was unheard of for such a thing to happen!


    "What... Hmph! It must be a fluke! This arrogant young man is truly infuriating!" she said to herself, thinking that Duan Li was only lucky to be able to see through her.


    Nevertheless, she still placed her hand onto Duan Li''s back and executed a Sonar Qi. This was extremely simple for an expert of her caliber to do and was not worth a mention.


    Huuuu!


    However, moments after she placed her hands onto Duan Li''s back, her countenance immediately turned pale and she retreated all the way to the back with a single leap, and then her back facing against the wall, she slumped to the floor weakly as if she had seen the ghost of her ancestor, her whole body trembling!


    "Wha-What... Impossible! What are you?!" She muttered incoherently, her backs drenched with sweat.


    Seeing this scene, Le Cenglei and Shen Long furrowed their brows.


    "What happened? What did you do to her?" their countenance turned hostile, thinking that Duan Li had made a move onto Ding Ziqing!


    "Calm down, Duan Li did nothing to harm her. Just repeat what she did before, and you''ll both soon learn the reason why." Zhang Xi waved his hand.


    The duo looked at each other before nodding. From their perspective, it seems like the Vice-Principal had already anticipated this beforehand, making them curious.


    Tap! Tap!


    Shortly after placing their hand onto Duan Li''s back and executing Sonar Qi, their eyes immediately widened as they too retreated away from Duan Li, as if avoiding a plague!


    "What in the world?! You... You cultivated... using all three dantians?!!!"


    Just like that, they felt their whole cultivation almost going berserk as their state of mind spiralled into insanity..


    ...

 287 Chapter 280: The lecture of a true expert!

    "This... Was such a thing really possible?" Le Cenglei could not help but to feel like he was inside a fantasy dream!


    He could still accept it if the other party was a peerless genius, able to identify objects and artifacts with a single lick of their finger. However, even if he was beaten to death, his entire clan whipped harshly and his life''s savings was threatened to be sold out, he would still refuse to believe that anyone could cultivate the other two dantians inside their body, much less all three of them!


    Just what in the world was going on?!


    Was cultivation by defying both the heavens and nature so blatantly like this even tolerated?


    As far as I know, everyone who tried to do so, either died from Qi deviation or crippled their cultivation entirely to become a wastrel!


    "Pu!" Shen Long that was previously shocked could no longer suppress his emotions and laughed out loud, his long braided beard also seemed to dance wildly as well.


    "H-Huh? Why are you laughing?" Both Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing threw a horrified look at the other party, afraid that the sheer mental shock had made this powerful expert become retarded!


    After all, that would be a great loss for the Jiu Empire!


    "I could hardly maintain my act seeing how surprised you guys were! Ah! My heart feels content now!" Shen Long gave out a huge sigh of relief as he felt emotional.


    He was also shocked to the extent of spurting out blood when he knew Duan Li cultivated using all three of his dantian back then. As someone who stood on the top-level of the Jiu Empire in terms of battle prowess, the humiliation of being seen with a hideous face like theirs now could never be washed away, no matter what brand of soap he tried to rinse it with!


    Thus, making others experience the same thing was the best way to soothe this heart of his!


    He turned to the Vice-Principal Zhang Xi that was standing proudly with his hands clasped behind his back. Nodding their heads together, it felt like some sort of bond was created between them!


    From this point onward, they would eventually create a small circle comprising the elites of the cultivation world, naming themselves the ''Shocked to the Death'' group, where solemn experts that would usually carry themselves with an air of authority and influence succumbed to the might of Duan Li''s!


    "He... had turned mental..." Le Cenglei swallowed his saliva, before shaking his head over the loss of a capable expert that was currently laughing out of his character.


    Hais!


    While they were indeed rattled to their core, they were already experts with a strong foundation in their state of mind. Thus, it didn''t take them long for their emotions to become stabilized once more.


    After all, this was the Tian continent where bizarre phenomenon occurs every so often. However, after seeing this, their world view was renewed into a clean slate, and their disposition grew more mysterious. They felt like even if the other party claimed that he could slap a mountain to pieces, they would no longer be shocked, as long as the other party could not turn a mere chicken into a formidable cultivator.


    "Incredible..." Ding Ziqing could not help but to utter this word of praise subconsciously from her mouth.


    "En. I''m glad that you guys understand now. Being one with nature is fine and dandy, but if one wanted to go a step beyond their limits, then they must take that leap of faith and forcefully cultivate with all their dantian, even if heavens themselves forbid!" Duan Li finished his sentence with a dashing look, as if an ethereal expert that descended from the immortal plane!


    "I... I see..!!" both Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing were moved by this as they gritted their teeth.


    "During my younger days, I would stop at nothing to reach greater heights. However, after I achieved the Nascent Soul realm and hit my current bottleneck that doesn''t seem to budge no matter what I did, I have grown complacent and comfortable, thinking that I did enough! Duan Li is right, if I wanted to go beyond my limit, I must defy my bodily limits first!" Le Cenglei thought to himself emotionally as a newfound determination burned defiantly within his heart!


    "I was blinded by my status and disdained this young man because of his low cultivation. But who could have actually thought that his insights towards cultivation was even more profound than the top scholar within the Jiu Empire? His words deep and unfathomable, every sentence he said seemed to hit the fabrics of truths itself that was previously hidden from my eyes and senses! He is right, in order to push through the next stage in my cultivation, adhering to the natural limit of one''s potential is but the perspective of a small, unambitious person!" Ding Ziqing''s eyes flashed with agitation!


    Thud!


    Upon this realization, they immediately sat down cross-legged and activated their breathing teachnique!


    "It seems that they had reached an epiphany in their insights!" Zhang Xi and Shen Long that witnessed this historical scene nodded in approval as they looked at the young man with deep respect. Coupled with the forlorn gaze of Duan Li that was staring at the ceiling with his hands clasped behind his back, he looked like the deity from the legends!


    This was the lecture from a true expert!


    Zhang Xi was about to praise Duan Li for such a profound and deep speech that exceeded his expectation, when the latter suddenly frowned.


    "You both... what are you guys thinking of doing right now?" Duan Li said with a confused expression, seeing that one was on the verge of having a Qi deviation while the other party was about to consume a suspicious pill!


    "Ah? We are about to defy our limits right now! I have the idea of redirecting my Qi flow towards one of my dantian to cultivate it!" Le Cenglei replied.


    "That''s right! For me, this pill will theoretically expand the capacity of my dantian. I only concocted this accidentally before and was about to throw it, but it seems like this pill was not created by accident at all, but the workings of destiny instead! This is the fated pill that will bring me to greatness!" Ding Ziqing said with powerful passion behind her words!


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s face become unsightly, as if he saw two dumb monkeys that was about to die from playing around too much.


    "Are you guys tired of living? Why would you guys want to kill yourself?" he said feeling bewildered.


    "Kill ourselves?" the both of them looked at each other, not understanding what Duan Li meant by his words.


    "Didn''t you just say that we must take a leap of faith and challenge the very limits itself?" they both replied.


    Duan Li slapped his forehead.


    "Are you guys forgetting something? This is an examination for my Master Teaching class! Obviously I didn''t really mean what I said! Vice-Principal Zhang Xi said before that it must be believable, so I acted a little!" Duan Li said and his tone was a bit exasperated.


    Aren''t they supposed to be wise Senior Teachers? Why do they want to court death in such a gruesome way?


    Redirecting Qi into another dantian? That is a sure way for a Qi deviation to occur!


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    Consuming a failed pill to expand the dantian''s capacity? What path to greatness?! Is your head alright?


    "Y-You mean... all those that you said... about defying nature and all... are not real?" they said as their face turned ghastly pale.


    "Ah? Oh, that. Well, it is real because I managed to do it! But, aren''t you guys taking my words too... literally?" Duan Li scratched the back of his head, feeling a little guilty.


    Putong!


    Thinking that their necks was so close to the sickle of the Netherworld Emperor before, the two senior teachers collapsed weakly on the spot as their entire body shivered!


    "..." Zhang Xi and Shen Long.


    ...

 288 Chapter 281: The final exam starts!

    Looking at Duan Li wrathfully with a gaze that could conjure flames from her eyes, Ding Ziqing bellowed at the top of her lungs, "You despicable scammer! You dare to give such an erroneous lecture that almost got us killed!"


    "Wait! It is actually our fault for taking things too literally and being hasty... However, I must admit that your lecture was too deep and profound that it had affected our sense of judgement..." Le Cenglei sighed helplessly.


    He couldn''t even get mad at the other party knowing that it was truly their own mistake! To think that an expert like him almost purposely went through a Qi deviation to challenge the nature..


    Challenge the nature my head!


    Hearing this, Ding Ziqing''s rage slowly calmed down as well when she thought the matter further. "Fine! I admit that it was my mistake!"


    Recalling that she almost swallowed a failed pill that could run her cultivation amok, her face reddened in embarrassment!


    Zhang Xi''s lips twitched continuously as he tried to remain calm himself. This was because even he wanted to make a drastic move to free himself from nature''s grasp!


    Taking a glance to his side, he saw Shen Long''s index finger seemed to be pressing onto a certain acupoint within his abdomen with an ashened look.


    "He... he was almost done in as well?!" Zhang Xi eye''s widened in disbelief as he stared at Duan Li!


    What... what a monster! To think that all four top notch expert of the Jiu Empire was beguiled to commit suicide on the spot just from hearing a lecture...


    This was way too unprecedented!


    Despite this, Zhang Xi and the other senior teachers still gave Duan Li a pass on his 2-Star rank exam for the three minor class. After all, to be able to beguile others on their subconscious level could be considered as a peerless skill as well! If used in the correct situation, his enemy wouldn''t even know how they died!


    Just that, they felt a little bit aggrieved and indignant knowing that hey were the victim this time around...


    And so, the three senior teachers continued their exam until Duan Li completed the 5-Star rank exam for the three minor class. At this moment, their hair was already disheveled, and they looked extremely unkempt, their breathing haggard!


    If one were to witness how they look right now, they might misunderstand thinking that the three of them had just finished fighting some gruesome and epic battle!


    After all, Le Cenglei''s robe himself was in tatters, because during the 4-star exam of the Appraiser class, Duan Li managed to convinced him that a certain artifact possesses the ability of body strengthening, a function that he previously did not know about. Feeling curious, he activated it, causing his muscles to expand rapidly which in turns ruined his robe to its current state!


    Meanwhile, Ding Ziqing could be seen crying in the far corner of the Test hall. She had lost her confidence in pill concoction. As part of the Herbalogist class, to advance into the 5-Star rank, they needed to display a certain aptitude in pill concoction and thus she displayed her prowess as a demonstration.


    But who could have thought that Duan Li would then berate her harshly for her poor display and instead showed monstrous skill in pill concoction that rivaled even the best Alchemist in their empire?


    As for Zhang Xi, the final exam that he gave out for Duan Li to complete the 5-Star rank Master Teaching class was to play Xiangqi. This was a board strategy game where the player becomes the commander to move the generals and armies around in a simulated battlefield! After all, people who excelled in this class will usually be required to command some platoons in times of need and their leadership skills must be assessed for when such situations arise!


    However, Zhang Xi, a renowned 8-Star rank Strategist as his main class, found himself cornered at the schemes and guerrilla tactics of Duan Li! The other three senior teachers that witnessed this was befuddled down to their very core and their faces showing extreme disbelief!


    Who was Zhang Xi? Not only was he the Vice-Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy, but he was also the military advisor and strategist for the Jiu Army!


    To think that a person of such caliber was defeated by a single junior, this was totally unheard-of!


    Is this young man not human?


    Unbeknownst to them, Duan Li had only followed the voice of the Mirealithians that suddenly intervened when the battle started. In fact, he knew jack-sh*t when it comes to strategy! In his opinion, all board games were totally unrealistic as each piece had predetermined number of spaces and movement direction that they should follow. In real battles however, power was everything, such that even a single soldier with overpowered abilities could wipe the whole battlefield themselves!


    Being beaten by Duan Li, the face of Zhang Xi was utterly pale, and he stood up to question his entire life.


    Who am I? What am I? Who is my ancestor?


    It took the others quite a long time to be able to snap the Vice-Principal back to reality.


    And so, Duan Li was able to complete the 5-Star rank exams for the three minor class, leaving only the combat class left!


    "I have to trouble everyone here to set up a strong barrier so that we would not destroy the academy accidentally later on." Shen Long said to the others.


    Hearing this, the other senior teachers swallowed their saliva!


    "Shen Long, you couldn''t possibly mean to..." Zhang Xi narrowed his eyes, seeming to realize what the other party meant.


    "That''s right! I''m going all out! This young man had managed to beat me in a single punch before, so I know of his battle capabilities well enough to not underestimate him! In fact, under my authority as a Combat Grandmaster, I hereby change this exam directly to an 8-Star Combat class exam!" Shen Long answered with a solemn and deep voice.


    8-Star rank combat class exam?!


    "This was already the exam that a Nascent Soul realm expert would struggle to clear, much less a Core formation realm student... is this young man truly that strong?" Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing could not help but to look at Duan Li with fear creeping up inside them!


    Shen Long had been renowned to possess the extreme might of the Dragon clan that coursed through every fiber of his being, an expert that was even acknowledged by the other eight empires! Therefore, if a person of such caliber was willing to go all out, then his opponent must at least be equal... or even stronger than him!


    But how could that possibly be?!


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    "Very well. However, you''d best keep yourself in line and not go too overboard." Zhang Xi warned with a sharp glance.


    "You must be kidding! You know full well of his battle prowess as well, so you should warn him instead of me! Hahahaha!" Shen Long gave out a hearty laugh before his countenance turned serious.


    Su! Su! Su!


    Forming a triangular formation, the three senior teachers flicked their hands at a rapid speed to make a series of incantation gestures before an invisible barrier was summoned that encased both Duan Li and Shen Long inside them!


    "Duan Li, come!!!"


    ...

 289 Chapter 282: Duan Li vs Shen Long!

    "Henggg!!!"


    With a deafening bellow, Shen Long dashed forward, his tempest similar to that of an unstoppable tornado!


    The floor immediately cracked with a single step of his, and he appeared right in front of Duan Li in an instant!


    Shaa!!


    Right after appearing, he delivered a straight punch towards Duan Li''s stomach!


    Suuuu...


    The instant Shen Long''s fist made contact with Duan Li''s body, the entire floor tiles around them was destroyed with a loud sonic boom!


    BOOMMMM!!


    This was the might of someone standing at the peak of the Nascent Soul realm, the Pinnacle stage! A single punch from them could destroy and flattened the hills, and their steps could induce earthquakes! Right at this moment, this very same horrifying force was blasting at Duan Li''s body in full force!!


    "Ahhh!" Ding Ziqing received the majority of the force absorbed by their barrier from her side as she gritted her teeth and cycled her spiritual Qi furiously in an attempt to cancel out the force!


    What devastating might! Will someone of the lower realm still be able to live after receiving such a blow?


    "S-Shen Long is really serious? Duan Li is going to die at this rate! Stop him!" Le Cenglei was horrified at this sight and turned towards Zhang Xi with a pleading look.


    "Don''t worry too much. You haven''t yet witnessed that boy in a fight.. look." Zhang Xi shook his head with a smile as he pointed.


    Tracing the direction pointed out by the latter''s index finger, Le Cenglei''s eyes widened in astonishment!


    Amidst the slowly dispersing dust, a stout silhouette could be seen standing tall like an immovable mountain, and his body was completely unscathed!


    It was Duan Li!


    However, because the force was too powerful, Duan Li''s uniform ended up being torn to shreds, revealing an exposed upper body that seemed to glistened with dense and symmetrical muscular anatomy!


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    Shen Long''s eyes narrowed upon this scene as well. "I''ve already guessed that he could handle this much... But not a single scratch on his body? Just what kind of ridiculous power does this boy have?" he couldn''t help but to thought of this in his mind, astonished!


    He had sparred with countless experts before, and the Emperor himself was no exception! A hundred percent force behind his punch, and even the Emperor had to retreat a few steps to redirect the majority of the impact to the ground!


    But Duan Li remained rooted on the spot where he stood before!


    Terrifying!


    At this moment, two topless men with the physique of a perfect sculpture stared at one another intensely; one young and one old, causing Ding Ziqing to watch this flushed a little bit.


    This scene is getting a little hot for me...


    "How are you this strong?" Shen Long suddenly opened his mouth and asked. He was genuinely curious about Duan Li''s source of might as he retracted his fist from Duan Li''s lean abs.


    "I don''t know... maybe because my potential is of the Sky grade and I cultivated all three of my dantian?" Duan Li replied as he scratched his head awkwardly.


    After all, he couldn''t possibly reveal about the three mysterious pearls that were currently dwelling inside his body somewhere.


    The golden pearl had the ability to slow down time, saving his a*s every time he founds himself in danger. Meanwhile, the crimson pearl seemed to be purifying his blood, making his flow of spiritual Qi smoother and his internal organs and bones stronger overtime!


    As for the Emerald pearl, he conjectured that it was probably something to do with his potential, as that was his trial before in the second region!


    On the other hand, Zhang Xi that heard this question had long theorized that Duan Li''s overpowered capabilities had something to do with what Ancestor Zong, the Millennium Yidara tree told them before instead.


    After all, Duan Li was prophesied to be the one that will stop the end times. Thus, if the child of miracle did not have such confounding might that could befuddle all, who in the world could even fight against the sun that had long illuminated the entire Tian continent since the beginning of time?


    Noticing Duan Li''s obvious look of hiding something, Shen Long chuckled, "It''s fine, every cultivator have their own secrets after all." he said before retreating a few steps to the back to create a distance between them.


    "You''ve witnessed my grandson''s transformation right? What do you think about it?" Shen Long clasped his hands behind his back, his disposition gradually changing causing the air around him to start to ripple like hot air.


    "The bloodline ability you mean?" Duan Li recalled his first meeting with Shen Murong, where the latter transformed to grow horns from both sides of his temple, mimicking the head of a dragon!


    "His fighting prowess jumped by quite a lot... are you thinking of... doing the same thing as well?" Duan Li said as he couldn''t help but to swallow his saliva.


    Even I had to use my Super mode against Shen Murong back then, but my body is currently injured! I can''t drive my spiritual Qi to transform into Super mode right now!


    "Yes, but I won''t go to full power yet. If my senses did not fool me, your meridians and Qi pathways seemed to be seriously injured right now, and its a wonder how you could even fight me in such a state." Shen Long said.


    He then continued, "Still, it is absolutely because of that very reason that I must test the extent of your power right now. I refuse to believe that I cannot beat someone of the younger generation that is not even in his hundred percent!"


    Duan Li could feel the powerful conviction behind those words that Shen Long just said with a serious face.


    Right now, the other party was not looking at him with the eyes looking at a student, but an opponent that he must defeat!


    After all, how many decades had he cultivated to reach his current prestige and might? If he were to back down now without showing his all, his entire years of cultivation would be for nothing!


    Even worse, Duan Li might become the reason for him to become complacent!


    Therefore, he must know the answer himself as to whether he will be defeated today, or will stay prevail in the end!


    "Okay... I think I can handle it somehow..." Duan Li replied as he sensed his internal condition.


    Hmm.. the pill inside my stomach is doing quite well... I should be able to reach 20 percent of my power soon...


    Shen Long dropped his arms to his side as his veins began to bulge.


    Dum! Dum!


    "Thank you. It had been quite a few years since I transformed... Finally, I was able to find a worthy opponent to use it again!" Shen Long''s eyes glowed brightly as if sunlight was shining within in!


    "BLOODLINE RELEASE!!"


    Crack! Crack!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    The instant Shen Long shouted this, his entire being was shrouded with pitch black aura that extended out towards the ceiling before creating a hole in the barrier straight to the sky, as if a pillar of black ink shooting towards the heavens to paint it all black!


    Brrr!!! Crack! Crack!


    The intensity of Shen Long''s aura rippled through everything, causing the ground to tremble ceaselessly and the barrier reaching its limits!


    "We can''t hold this! What do we do?" Ding Ziqing shouted out, her countenance was already pale as her spiritual Qi reserves almost ran dry just by holding out!


    "Don''t worry, he is here." Zhang Xi replied casually, before a figure abruptly appeared beside them.


    "What the hell is going on here? Why is Shen Long releasing his bloodline ability inside the school grounds?!" this figure bellowed out, reprimanding them.


    It was the Principal, and he looked furious right now, ready to whip the perpetrator himself for causing such a ruckus.


    "Well... you are the one who assigned him to be the invigilator for the Combat class exam, what do you expect?" Zhang Xi replied feeling a little exasperated with the other party.


    Shen Long was a very competitive person in nature and the Principal know of this, yet he still told the other party to invigilate Duan Li, who was known to cause even the heavens to lose their mind!


    And he dare came here getting angry at us? Hmph!


    Hearing this reply, the Principal widened his eyes as if in realization before slapping his forehead in regret.


    "Fine. It was my mistake. Let me help out then!" the Principal waved his hands in a series of complex gesture, innumerable amounts of incantation symbol was formed.


    "Henggg!!" Clasping his palm together, the Principal''s robe began to flutter dramatically before the shaking barrier stabilized!


    Huuu!


    The Principal was just about to say ''done'' with a non-chalant look so as to appear cool before the other senior teachers, however, he heard a disturbing ''crack!'' and he couldn''t help but to raise his head to look at the barrier.


    Pu!


    The barrier began to tremble once more!


    What? This is not enough?


    Damn it!


    "Ancestor Zong, if you can hear me... I beseech you to help us..." the Principal said with gritted teeth.


    If there was any being who were more proficient in the spatial arts than him, then there was only the Millennium Yidara tree!


    After which, a deep archaic voice resounded around them and spoke slowly, "Very well... Let me help out..."


    Wonggg!!


    The barrier immediately stabilized on the spot! Not only that, there were now 9 layers of it stacked at each other, causing the others to gasp in disbelief!


    What prowess!


    "I''ve made... the space inside... larger as well... So they can fight... to their hearts content..." Ancestor Zong''s voice seemed to chuckle when he said this.


    Seeing the barrier was stabilized and reinforced, the others finally heaved a sigh of relief.


    "Is he going to be okay?" Le Cenglei could not help but to be concerned for Duan Li as he approached the Principal to say this.


    "Ah? Don''t worry, he might break a few of his old bones here and there, but Shen Long should be fine!" the Principal replied casually.


    "..." Le Cenglei.


    I''m worried about Duan Li...


    ...

 290 Chapter 283: He is lonely!!

    "This could be trouble..." Duan Li swallowed his saliva at the tingling sensation crawling on his skin.


    This was the first time that he ever felt a spiritual Qi wild enough to have his body react as such! After all, this body of his didn''t even shudder when facing Queen Levy who was already beyond the realms of mortal before!


    However, this did not mean that Shen Long was now stronger than Duan Li.


    In fact, this was to be expected of someone that inherited the bloodline of a dragon, the existence that stood at the very apex of the food chain in the legends..


    Just a sliver of its presence was enough to cause instinctive deference from others towards it, and Duan Li was no exception to this!


    Shuuaa!!


    When the pillar of black aura dissipated, they revealed the boulder-like body of Shen Long that now looked several times more rigid!


    Two black horns jutted out from his temples that crooked forwards, his eyebrows seemed to grow longer and thicker to resemble the frowns of a majestic dragon!


    Also, his eyes turned black and his pupil slanted vertically that was golden in color, and his previously carefully braided long white beard was now fully unravelled as well, fluttering like the mane of an angry lion!


    "Young master, be careful. I sense an overwhelming power pouring out from that old man." Little sword that was dangling on his right earlobe spoke out.


    Duan Li nodded in response, "Yeah.. at my current strength, dealing with him right now would be a little bit tricky.."


    Super mode is totally out of the question here, so I could only activate the First Desolation Warring Intent right now..


    But that would require my body to recover to at least 20 percent..


    I guess I would just have to hold out for a bit longer!


    Suu!!


    Shen Long''s figure abruptly disappeared from the distance, before a hand chop was already threatening to slice at Duan Li''s neck horizontally from his back!


    Although Duan Li could detect this attack and his body reacted almost instantaneously, his timing was still a little lagging due to his internal injury, such that even his Martial True Instinct could not move his limbs as fast as possible to dodge in time!


    Rriingg!!


    Time suddenly slowed to almost a complete halt.


    "What the heck... this old man is totally serious!" Duan Li felt his mouth to twitch continuously at this sight, feeling quite exasperated!


    To even force the golden mysterious pearl to activate this ability in self-defense..


    Is he trying to finish me off?


    Seems like I must respond in kind!


    Duan Li then swiftly turned around and delivered five square punches to Shen Long''s body with no restraint given! After all, the other party was a Nascent Soul realm expert on the Pinnacle stage, possessing an almost indestructible body, especially after activating such a formidable bloodline ability!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    After he finished delivering these five punches, Duan Li flitted to Shen Long''s back.


    "His body should be able to take those punches.. I think..?"


    Oh well!


    Let''s see... what kind of cool pose should I make before time returns to normal?


    Aha!


    Duan Li then tucked both of his hands inside the pocket of his pants, his muscular backs facing Shen Long''s back, and he adjusted his expression into that of a solemn expert!


    Suuu!


    Time then began to flow normally again.


    "Let''s see how you handle this killing move from... H-Huh?"


    Shen Long was confident that this lethal move of his would at least injure Duan Li to finally get back his honor and pride as one of the strongest expert!


    However, contrary to his expectation, just before his hand landed on Duan Li''s neck, the latter abruptly disappeared so quickly that his eyes and senses failed to follow!


    This had him thoroughly shocked down to his core!


    One has to know that Nascent Soul realm expert will always deploy their Soul Sense around their body during a battle in a fixed spherical shape, and this could be considered as their sixth sense as it covered all direction with their body as the center!


    This meant that no matter how fast their opponent''s movements were, even if their eyes could not follow, their Soul Sense would, and this allows them to react accordingly!


    Thus, how did the other party managed to elude even his Soul Sense, especially in his current form?


    This was totally unheard of!


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    In this brief dazed state of his that lasted a tiny fraction of less than a milisecond, he could finally detect Duan Li''s presence!


    "He is behind me!"


    With a horrified expression, he quickly rotated his body to turn around and adjusted his stances to defend any incoming attack, only to be greeted by a figure that stood tall with his hands inside his pockets, and his backs facing towards him!


    Eh?


    What''s he doing? Why does his shadow looks so lonely?


    Shen Long was stumped right now.


    At this moment, Duan Li was tilting his head slightly to the back as he stared right into the sky with an unfathomable expression.


    "You! Take this exam serio-...!!!"


    Just as Shen Long was about to bellow and reprimand Duan Li, a sudden bout of pain assaulted his chest, abs and pecs!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    A resounding fist pummeled through his body five times, with each creating a deep fist marks!


    PUU!!!


    Shen Long coughed out blood as he was sent flying away before crashing onto the walls of the barrier!


    Puhe!


    Coughing out another mouthful of blood, Shen Long crunched up at his body as his face warped in extreme pain, his breathing heavy!


    "When in the world... did he landed those punches?!" Shen Long look towards Duan Li''s direction with a look of utter disbelief mixed with horror in it!


    Right now in his mind, Duan Li was not a human but a monster!


    To think that he didn''t even notice he was punched, not to mention that it was five times at that!


    In addition, each punch felt like a mountain crashing upon him, causing a few of his ribcage bones to shatter!


    It was fortunate that he was a Nascent Soul realm expert, so this kind of damage could be healed given a few breaths of time. However, his body trembled in realization!


    If someone other than a Nascent Soul realm were to take even one of that punch, they would definitely die on the spot!


    How is he this strong with only that cultivation realm?!


    "Wait.. he is not even at his hundred percent state...!!" Shen Long''s eyes widened even further in incredulity upon recalling this!


    Huuu!!


    A slight breeze suddenly brushed by Duan Li''s hair, causing them to flutter slightly, making him look more manly, suave and handsome!


    At this moment, Duan Li''s figure that was standing far away from Shen Long appeared to be like a lonely vagabond that stood at the peak of Mount Tai!


    That expression and that deep gaze of his towards the sky... it was as if this young man was lamenting and begging towards the heavens at the same time, that his strength had grown far too much, such that he no longer found joy in his life, hoping fervently that the heavens would send someone equal to face him!


    He was tired of being too powerful!


    BAMM!!


    Shen Long smashed his fist to the ground with gritted teeth!


    "I have underestimated him... moves that my eyes and senses could not see, I should have gone all out from the start!!"


    How could I be so blind?!


    This arrogance of mine will be my downfall in the future!


    "AHHHHH!!" Shen Long shouted out as he stood his ground haggardly, his face emotional.


    "Forgive me for disrespecting you Duan Li! To think that you have shouldered such immeasureable power to the extent that it had made you sad and lonely!" Shen Long said with tears welling in his eyes.


    Hearing this, Duan Li frowned for a bit.


    Ah? What is this old man talking about now?


    "Eventhough I might not be a match for you, but I cannot sit idly by seeing such a young man like yourself be hurt that much! My sense of justice does not permit it!" Shen Long said again, his tears now rolling down his cheeks uncontrollably, making Duan Li even more confused!


    Did my punch hurt his brain so much to the point that it caused concussion?


    Don''t tell me that he had become crazy?


    Wiping off the tears with his big forearms, a determined look appeared on Shen Long''s face, "Therefore, if I could lift even an ounce of sadness from that deep pit of abyss of yours... then my whole life of cultivation will not be in vain! Allow me to use my hundred percent power so that I can bring you a shed of joy in your life once more!!"


    AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!


    Bloodline full awakening!


    BOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!!


    "..." Duan Li.


    The heck is happening?


    ...

 291 Chapter 284: The fall of the great expert!

    "No! What is he doing? Someone stop him!" Le Cenglei exclaimed with a horrified voice.


    At first, he was astonished with the unfathomable means that Duan Li performed before.


    To be able to move at a speed that eluded everyone''s eyes and senses, while at the same time able to perform a counter attack of five square punches straight onto Shen Long''s body without the latter even knowing..


    Such a scene was far too incredulous that he still wasn''t able to properly digest it inside his brain!


    Are they the Nascent Soul realm experts or Duan Li?


    However, now that Shen Long decided to use the full extent of his bloodline ability, an ability that will transform the other party into a half-dragon and half-man, things will definitely turn around!


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    After all, once transformed into that state, Shen Long''s mind will turn berserk due to the natural instinct of the violent dragon in his bloodline taking over!


    Hais!


    "Before, that was what I used to think all the time too. But time and again, I was wrong and now I''ve learned my lesson. No matter how insurmountable the odds might seem to Duan Li was for us, I can bet my whole assets that he will be the one to remain standing at the very end!" the Principal said with a helpless sigh.


    He couldn''t help but to feel that this Le Cenglei has not seen the world yet, still living comfortably within his mother''s embrace!


    What a shameful display of a senior teacher!


    "More importantly, Ancestor Zong, will the barrier be able to hold out? I''m afraid that Duan Li might start to go overboard now..." he continued as he spoke with a hint of worry in his voice, completely in contrast to when he spoke about Shen Long before.


    "I think... we should be fine...?" Ancestor Zong replied, slightly unsure as it made a few dry coughs.


    Hearing them talking like this, Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing stared at one another with an expression as if they had become utterly confused.


    Has the world already turned upside down?


    ...


    "Holy moly! His spiritual Qi aura is getting even denser!" Duan Li''s mouth was slightly agape at the sight of the black aura coiling around Shen Long right now, like a tornado made up from ink!


    ROAARRRR!!


    With a loud roar that was almost reminiscent to the ancient being from the legends, the entire ground shook and the air seethe together incessantly, revealing Shen Long''s new and terrifying form!


    "That is... an awakening!" Little Sword exclaimed, a little surprised.


    "Awakening? What''s that?" Duan Li asked as he was curious seeing Shen Long''s bizarre state!


    He seemed to be like a half-dragon now...


    "An awakening is a higher form of activating the latent power inside one''s bloodline. However, I''ve never witnessed a mortal did it before, so its quite an achievement for a mere weakling to be able to do it, if I must say so myself." the Little Sword replied.


    "Still, this awakening form of his is quite unsightly. Its only half awakening at best. After all, dragons were immortal beings, and tapping into their form in this mortal realm is already reaching the limits of the heaven''s law!" it continued, seemingly to stare at Shen Long with disdain.


    Hmph! To think that a mere lowly being dared to emulate the power of an immortal.. look at you now, you look nothing more but like a mutated big lizard!


    Even Bulu''s transformation now looked far more cooler than this!


    Poof!


    Dilong and Zhulong appeared beside Duan Li when they heard this conversation.


    "This person seems to possess an iota of bloodline from the Mad Emperor, Bilong!" Zhulong said.


    "That''s right! Master, Bilong is a dragon of madness, thus its name. Right now, that old fellow only managed to awaken half of it because he cannot control the bloodline''s power!" Dilong added.


    Unlike them, Bilong was not an Elemental Origin Spirit but a real dragon that governs the wild beast! Legends has it that one day, Bilong fought against an immortal in the higher realm, and when it was injured, a droplet of its blood fell onto the mortal world when they tore open the dimension!


    Duan Li was of course, not versed in this kind of knowledge, so cupping his chin, he said, "Basically, you guys are saying he is not in control of this power?"


    All of them nodded.


    [Hosts internal injuries are now healed at 20 percent.]


    [Some skill arts can now be used at 10 percent of their efficiency.]


    "Ahh, talking about the perfect time!" Duan Li''s lips curled into a smile.


    Since you are not in control of your own body right now..


    I hope you don''t blame me for pummeling you later..


    Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts: Warring Intent!


    BOOOMM!!


    ...


    "T-That form... it cannot be... That is his Majesty''s transformation skill arts!" Ding Ziqing widened her eyes in disbelief as she gasped.


    Even Le Cenglei was speechless when he saw this.


    For senior teachers, it went without saying that they knew of this kind of information. But this transformation was unique only to their Emperor!


    Therefore, how did Duan Li managed to get his hands on the personal skill arts of their Emperor?


    Unable to maintain their curiosity, they turned to look at the Principal and the Vice-Principal who appeared to be indifferent, as if they had seen this coming!


    "You guys will know soon enough, but don''t tell a soul about what you guys saw here. Otherwise, even I cannot guarantee the safety of you two." the Principal said, seemingly able to read their minds with his hands clasped behind his back.


    ...


    The form that Duan Li assumed right now has his hair fluttering to the air as if defying the gravity themselves, an aura of majesty surrounded him.


    However, because he could only use 10 percent of its prowess, there weren''t any significant changes to his body other than glowing a little brighter and his hair flowing around.


    "Oh well... I guess this much power should be enough." Duan Li sighed as he pointed out his finger towards Shen Long and curled them.


    "Come." He said with a nonchalant voice.


    ROAARRR!!


    Hearing such a provocation from Duan Li, Shen Long in his berserk state right now immediately dashed forward with all four limbs, leaving behind countless after-images as he moved around in a zig zag motion.


    "Heh." Duan Li closed his eyes as he crossed both arms on his chest and waited.


    While he now has 20 percent of his internal body state healed, that doesn''t mean that his battle prowess also increase by the same rate!


    In fact, his physical strength had only increased by a few more percent than before and this meager boost in strength posed no threat to the current form that Shen Long was in!


    However, just what kind of man was Duan Li?


    He has the mysterious pearl! The ability to slow down time!


    Even a casual punch in that state could be multiplied dozens of times!


    Therefore, all that he had to do right now was act cool and stand still, until he could hear the ringing sound in his ear!


    Rrringg!!


    "Kukukuku! Bahahahaha!"


    Duan Li opened his eyes as his grin became wider before laughing out loud like a lunatic that won in gambling. He found Shen Long right in front of his face, one fist and one kick was about to land on his body!


    But, alas, time denied them to make a move on Duan Li!


    "You are already dead."


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    Duan Li threw a flurry of punches to Shen Long''s body, multiple kicks towards the crotch area and not forgetting a few slaps on the latter''s face!


    PAH! PAH! PAH!


    As of this moment, the great expert of the Tian continent that could send all his enemies to tremble and defecate themselves on the spot was defiled by Duan Li!


    There was not a single spot on Shen Long''s body that could escape from his ravenous and violent attacks!


    After venting everything out, Duan Li finally exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, feeling extremely satisfied with his artwork.


    All that he had to do right now was step a little bit further and assume his previous cool pose.


    Rriingg!


    Time began to flow normally again.


    ...

 292 Chapter 285: Fate like Shen Long!

    "Both of them... stopped moving?" Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing swallowed their saliva, anxious to see the outcome of this epic battle!


    "As expected.. he is too much.." the Principal shook his head when he saw Duan Li posing like that as he sighed dejectedly.


    Wongg!


    A pipe appeared on his hand from his spatial ring as a small ball of fire was lit on his index finger. Lighting up the pipe and smoking it, the Principal then inhaled deeply as he closed his eyes.


    He had hoped that Shen Long''s awakening form would at least be able to stretch the battle a bit so they could enjoy watching and studying Duan Li''s current strength, but from the looks of it, it seems that he was expecting too much!


    After all, when Duan Li made that ''finishing'' pose again, it was obviously a signature pose of the grand finale! The outcome this time was but decided!


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    With an exhale of smoke from his mouth as if he had accepted the tragedies of life, the Principal sighed as he raised his head.


    "The boy has won."


    ...


    "Roaarrr... Roaa..?!" Shen Long''s body jolted continuously before his mouth sprayed the air with his blood like a broken fountain!


    Pshhh!!


    Slowly, fists and kicks indentation marks appeared on his body one after another accompanied with the heavy sound like iron that were knocking on each other!


    The marks gradually becoming faster in the blink of an eye, not even leaving the gaps between the crotch!


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    Utter desolation!


    With the last convulsion on his body, along with Duan Li''s forlorn sigh, a momentary silence ensued before a loud explosion sound reverberated behind his back!


    BOOMM!!


    Shen Long''s body flew towards the barrier while coughing out blood continuously, smashing against it and causing huge cracks appearing on the barrier!


    However, as if the energy from Duan Li''s ravenous attacks before were not satisfied, instead of falling to the ground, Shen Long''s body ricocheted to another side of the barrier instead and smashed against it!


    BAMM!! BAMM!! BAMM!!


    This process keeps on repeating as Shen Long''s body bounced off here and there like an old useless ball, his consciousness has long faded from the sheer shock!


    BAM!!


    It was only after a while did Shen Long''s body finally dropped to the ground, rolling like a broken ragdoll, the trace of an immovable expert was nowhere to be seen on his swollen face, body and crotch region!


    As of this day, the dignity of Shen Long the Great was of no more!


    The two senior teachers that were watching, Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing, had their expression turned like a puffer fish that were depraved from their oxygen, their sanity on the verge of crumbling to pieces!


    They were scared silly by Duan Li when they witnessed what happened to Shen Long. To think that a revered senior teacher like Shen Long that was known far and wide was being bounced around looking like an old fool, his body now one whole of a mess, to the extent of breaking six layers of the barrier altogether from the continuous pummeling impact..


    They will never believe what happened today if they hadn''t witnessed it themselves!


    Kacha!


    The barrier was undone as Duan Li walked towards the Principal with casual steps.


    "Oh? Principal! You are also here?" He said.


    His casual action had Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing''s face to become pale as they recalled the Principal''s tendencies when regards to punishing insolent students!


    This guy is asking for some serious whippings!


    However, to their surprise, the Principal react nothing to it and just nodded.


    "Yeah, I came as soon as possible when I detected Shen Long''s surging aura.. that fool." the Principal said with a berating tone as he looked at the unconscious body not too far away from them.


    "His heart is still beating, so he should be fine." Zhang Xi the Vice-Principal said after he checked Shen Long''s pulse and internal state.


    Despite Duan Li''s ravaging assault that seemed to be able to destroy even the mountains, he was careful enough to not hit any sensitive spot that could lead to some irreversible and permanent damage.


    After all, he only targeted the latter''s muscles, ligaments and tendons, shattering a few crucial bone structures here and there, nothing too serious and important for a human being to live.


    Being a Nascent Soul realm expert, even if the other party had to live pathetically for a while, given a few months, Shen Long should be able to learn how to crawl and walk again by himself.


    This was the terrifying might of experts of his caliber!


    Not too long later, four people came in to put Shen Long''s body on a stretcher, leaving as quickly as they came, admitting the other party inside the Intensive Care Unit in the hospital, owned by the academy.


    "Splendid, You have beaten him well! Effective immediately, you are now an Express Student that can enter any lecture class as you like! Congratulations!" Zhang Xi and the Principal both nodded in satisfaction.


    With the power he has right now, even if someone were to dare to cause ruckus during the coronation ceremony later on, their fate shouldn''t be too far off from Shen Long''s.


    "Come to my office, we need to discuss something about tomorrow." the Principal gestured.


    Slam!


    Le Cenglei and Ding Ziqing remained rooted on the spot from beginning to end, and only after Duan Li, Zhang Xi and the Principal left did they dare to breath in!


    Pah!


    "Ouch! Why did you slap me?!" Le Cenglei exclaimed in pain.


    "Ah! I was only making sure to see if we are not dreaming..." Ding Ziqing replied sheepishly.


    "..." Le Cenglei.


    You should''ve slapped your own face for that to work!


    ...

 293 Chapter 286: The day of coronation!

    "I am sure that you''ve already heard some groups of people are trying to cause trouble for you tomorrow right?" the Principal asked as he stroked his beard slowly.


    Duan Li nodded, "Yes. In fact, her Highness herself had took things into her own hands yesterday. Did she perhaps managed to catch those responsible already?"


    "You''ve met with the Empress?" the Principal raised his brows, a bit surprised before continuing as he shook his head, "We did managed to catch some people that poked their noses on where they didn''t belong last night.. but it doesn''t seem like they were the ones who were spreading those false rumors about the Empire!"


    Hearing this reply, Duan Li creased his brows together as he cupped his chin in contemplation, "Weird.. "


    Could there be people so skillful enough that they managed to escape all detection?


    The Principal sighed, "Don''t think too much into it for now, just know that we have already prepared something for the worst case scenario. Furthermore, unless the Heavens are not watching over you tomorrow, I wonder which idiot would be daring enough to make an enemy out of you."


    Duan Li''s face reddened in embarrassment when he heard this.


    Is he complimenting me?


    "Anyway, now that you know that, I need you to listen and remember carefully what you need to do tomorrow! If you dare to mess up the ceremony, I don''t care what your status are out there, I will still whip the hell out of you!" the Principal said as he changed his demeanor into that of a strict teacher and clasped his hands behind his back.


    "Yes!" Duan Li nodded and straightened his back, his face serious like a naive boy that was about to learn the ropes of life.


    ...


    The next day, the Capital city of the Jiu Empire, Nine Lotus city was filled with people to the brim. The streets were extremely crowded to the point that it makes it quite hard to walk and navigate properly. These were citizens of the Jiu Empire that came from all directions, be it from another city, town or villages.


    At this moment, some people could be seen to be wearing happy expression and laughed as they celebrated like it was a festival and decorated the streets, while others were feeling confused and some were even silently infuriated by the whole fiasco!


    How could the royal family suddenly declared to them that there will be an Imperial Overseer ruling above them starting today?


    Even though not all of them were educated, everybody knows what it meant to be ruled by an Imperial Overseer was!


    It meant that their Emperor was nothing but a decoration, a puppet while control was actually in the hands of another!


    For someone that had been living long under the rule of the Emperor, how could they tolerate to the sudden changes? Moreover, why does the royal family seemed to agree with it without a fight? Where was their honor and dignity?


    These dissatisfactions were even fueled further by the false rumors flying around about the instability of the Jiu Empire. After all, the common people were now scared that civil war might erupt and the Empire would split into factions! That would essentially means that their daily life would be disturbed and the economy would fluctuate unpredictably!


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    As for the influential nobles and clans, strangely enough, they don''t seem to be too bothered with it which caused even more confusion for the people!


    "Was this already set in stone beforehand? Otherwise, how could these big families and influential people stay calm like this?" a person said as he chugged down on his drink with a frustrated tone.


    "Hush! Don''t let them heard you! I think that this is only the calm before the storm!" his friend replied with a whispering voice.


    Similar discussions broke out everywhere as people were trying to ascertain the current situation within the Jiu Empire.


    However, there were also foreigners and envoys from the other empires, their face somehow wearing haughty expression, especially those that wore noble clothing that seemed to belong to some influential aristocrat or clan. In their opinion, the backwater Jiu Empire has fallen so low so as to accept others to rule over them, they felt that the royal family of the Jiu Empire has brought shame to the name ''royalty'', and sullied the long held traditional hierarchical system of the Tian continent!


    Right now, the situation was slowly turning volatile and people had already started to argue with one another. Fortunately, the presence of Knights dispatched all over the city managed to suppress those that were acting violent!


    Under the decree of the Emperor, the Knights were to exercise temporary elevation in their authority and arrest anyone that dared to cause trouble, regardless if they were citizens of the Jiu Empire or the foreigners.


    At this moment, countless people stood at the massive square that measured about 250,000 meters square in front of the Imperial Royal Palace, a tall platform with long stairs leading up to three thrones could be seen at the very top. Two of the thrones were located next to each other while another throne located slightly above them, higher than the previous two!


    It was obvious that the highest throne would belong to the soon-to-be crowned Imperial Overseer!


    Along the elevated platform leading to the three thrones were Titled Knights that wore golden armors with red flowing capes, the insignia of the royal family were imprinted clealry onto them, signifying that they would battle to death in order to protect the royal family against all threats! They stood still as if a sharp sword that was sheathed into their scabbard, suppressing their indomitable might that would seep out every so often!


    In addition, a figure that wore black armor with similar red cape stood mightily at the very top of the stairs, just before the throne. This figure was like that impenetrable fortress that none could hope to scale against, holding immeasurable power such that his presence overpowered all the Titled Knights below him, akin to an elephant standing amongst the tigers!


    This person was Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight that served as the right hand of the Emperor!


    Everyone that witnessed this could not help but to be at their best attitude, afraid that a single act of disrespect before the throne would have their heads rolling over, and they could only whisper silently between them.


    The previous haughty foreigners were quite surprised with the showcase of power by the Royal family of the Jiu Empire right now. They previously thought that since the Jiu Empire was such a small empire, the top tier experts would also be not that strong either. However, unless one was blind, they could see that this was definitely not the case!


    "To think that a small empire like this would possess so many experts guarding the Royal family.. those Titled Knights has to be at the Golden Core realm at least!" a foreign envoy spoke with an astonished look on his face.


    "Yeah.. and that guy wearing the black armor, I can''t even see his cultivation realm! That means that he must be a Nascent Soul realm expert!" another foreign envoy replied with gritted teeth.


    Most of the foreign envoys that came today has never bothered to visit the Jiu Empire before, thinking that it was a late-bloomer in terms of civilization and society. But when they came over, they were surprised to see that the society was properly ordered, even the buildings and technology was not that vastly inferior when compared to where they came from!


    And now that they witnessed the private might of the royal family, they were deeply unsettled! Many thoughts came into their mind one after another.


    Was this power limited only to the royal family? Or their military might is equally formidable as well?


    DUM! DUM!


    "Kneel before his Majesty, Emperor Jiu Xian Ping!!!" Fei Jin Fang shouted with his deep voice, reverberating throughout the square, his voice heard all the way beyond.


    Thud! Thud! Thud!


    Everyone kneeled to the ground without exception, their hearts palpitating nervously!


    ...

 294 Chapter 287: That strange fellow!

    The Emperor and Empress Dowager were actually floating high up above their palace all these while, observing each corner of the square for any suspicious person.


    "How was it, did you manage to find anyone hiding yet?" the Empress turned her sights towards her husband that was still scanning the surroundings.


    The Emperor shook his head, "No. Other than a few experts that protects their envoy from the shadow and some important figures, I don''t see anyone really suspicious.." he replied.


    "This is really frustrating! How are we not able to find out who the perpetrator are despite using everything in our disposal?!" the Empress gritted her teeth tightly.


    She was infuriated that someone dared to scheme against the Jiu Empire, but they were still not able to find any leads towards the person responsible.


    The Emperor sighed helplessly after scanning a few more times, "There is nothing we can do now. Let''s just hope that all the preparations we put in for today will be enough to handle any unforseen circumstances."


    "Hmph! I don''t believe in miracles! But this is all on you if anything were to happen to our empire! To think that you would be handing the empire over to a mere brat.. you are really asking for a beating!" the Empress replied with an exasperated expression, her face all red from the pent up anger.


    "C-Calm down.. I also would like to explain things to you, but this matter is not as simple as you might think! Besides, we are not handing over the empire to him, as I''ve told you before, he is not interested in that!" the Emperor explained quickly, afraid that his wife would not be able to control her temper.


    "The same kind of excuses again! Yeah, you told me the empire borrowed his money or whatnot to accelerate growth of the empire. As if I would believe that!" She harrumphed.


    "Even if that was indeed the case, you don''t have to go to the extent of making him the Imperial Overseer! Money can be repaid!" She added as her glare intensified.


    "Sigh..." The Emperor face palmed himself.


    Dealing with a woman can sometimes be troublesome..


    "Okay, I promise that you will soon learn the reason behind my actions after today. Just know that I did all these is in order to protect the Jiu Empire! Nothing more, nothing less!" he finally relented.


    Hearing this as well as the mention of the promise, the Empress slowly began to settle down from her rage. "That better be the case!"


    "Good, so don''t be mad anymore Yu Yan.. otherwise, your beautiful face will only get more wrinkles..." The Emperor said before he widened his eyes, realizing that he just slipped some sinful words, shutting his mouth immediately with his hands.


    "Ah? What was that?!" the Empress shot a murderous glare towards him.


    Cough! Cough!


    "I-It''s nothing! Oh look, its already this late, we need to descend now and sit on our throne.. can''t let the people be waiting for too long right?.. haha..." the Emperor then quickly flew down.


    "Hmph..." the Empress harrumphed as she saw her husband running away from her. Slowly, a smile formed on her lips, transforming her previous cold demeanor into a divine beauty!


    "I trust you..." she said in a small voice before descending down as well.


    ...


    The crowd kneeled as they looked at the two majestic silhouette descending down to the top of the platform with an indifferent expression with hands clasped behind their back. Their aura of royalty was domineering and hair raising! Not only that, they radiated out pressurizing glare that made no one dared to speak or even breath too loudly!


    The Emperor wore golden robe with many complex depictions of the past sewn onto it, while the Empress wore a similar golden silk robe that seemed to acentuate her beauty!


    "We greet your Majesty and her Highness!"


    One has to know that the members of the royal family was extremely out of reach for the normal citizens to even get a glance of, what more of being able to see the figures of the Emperor and Empress personally like this, everyone felt like they were inside a dream!


    Those who were skeptical about the authority of the Emperor before quickly threw those thoughts far away from their mind, they wanted to cry and slap themselves for doubting their Emperor! Guilt and shame overwhelm them from the very depths of their hearts!


    In fact, the foreign envoy was thoroughly shocked as well. They had never thought that both the Emperor and Empress of the small empire could be so overbearing in both their disposition and cultivation realm. At best, they previously thought that the two of them would be like those small Lords in their empire in charge of some small regions, but now that they were in their presence, it felt no different than meeting the Emperor and Empress of their own empire!


    This made them even more puzzled.


    How did such a formidable royal family like this willingly submit themselves to the ruling of an Imperial Overseer?


    After all, they were not blind and could see that both the cultivation realm of the Emperor and Empress were beyond what they could perceive. This meant that the two of them were at least Nascent Soul realm experts!


    When both the Emperor and Empress finally sat down on their throne, Emperor Jiu Xian Ping commanded them with a deep voice


    "Rise."


    Everyone then stood tall and organized with a proud look on their face. They were finally able to clearly see the faces of their Emperor and Empress! Some of the common citizens were even so excited to the point that tears streamed down their cheeks as their face flushed red in agitation!


    To them, being able to see the face of their ruler was like a blessings from the heavens!


    "I am sure that everyone knows the reason as to why I gathered you all here today." the Emperor began his speech slowly. However, his voice seemed to be able to permeate the entire square as well as the streets beyond them! Reverberating through each nook and cranny. It felt like the Emperor was speaking directly beside their ear and this mysterious feeling had the crowd feeling honored.


    "I am also sure that some of you are confused as to the suddenness of today''s event."


    Silence still ensued among the people, but some of them could be seen nodding to the Emperor''s words.


    "However, it has come to my attention that false rumors regarding the instability of our empire were spread by groups of irresponsible people. Make no mistake, as there are no such thing happening right now."


    Hearing this, the crowd turned to each other and happy expression appeared on their face. Their previous worries about civil war potentially erupting in their empire slowly began to disperse from their minds.


    "Silence! His Majesty is not finished!" Supreme Knight Fei Jin Fang bellowed out, causing the ground to vibrate and the air to seethe concurrently.


    Gulp!


    The crowd immediately stopped talking and their face was pale. That bellow felt like it was their ancestor scolding them for doing something foolish!


    "The perpetrators for trying to cause public pandemonium and anarchy will be found, and their entire family will be executed. Conspirators will face the same punishment."


    This last sentence from the Emperor shook everyone including the Empress. She furrowed her brows slightly.


    Since when has my husband become this ruthless?


    As far as she knows, although her husband was quite overbearing to others, he was not this vicious!


    However, the next line spoken by her husband had her smiling slightly. She understood his intentions.


    "But, if those responsible were to come out now and acknowledge their mistake, then their family will be spared. As for those who are willing to point out the culprit, the royal family will gift them one hundred High quality spirit stones. I will give them ten breaths of time to reveal themselves before continuing on the ceremony today."


    Hearing the amount of the prize, almost everyone in the square widened their eyes as their mind almost exploded!


    100 High quality spirit stones would be enough to start anything ambitious! Even spending lavishly everyday would be possible!


    The crowd turned to each other and stared as if they had opened their third eye, looking at everyone around them suspiciously.


    Seeing this, the Emperor then continued, "Of course, if anyone dared to falsify their facts before me, then they will die as well."


    Hisss!


    The crowd once more sucked in cold breath. They no longer had any shrewd thoughts of trying to frame their enemy and people they hate as the conspirators or perpetrators.


    After all, what use was a 100 High Quality spirit stones when they will have to die immediately after?


    Liu Sheng Juan and Liu Sheng Duhai was standing next to each other.


    "Little Brother, is this your idea?" Liu Sheng Duhai asked while smiling.


    "So what if it is?" Liu Sheng Juan replied coldly.


    Although they were brothers and were related by blood, they had some history way back in the Liu Empire.


    Liu Sheng Duhai could only chuckle upon such a response before saying, "I don''t think it is a good idea. What if the perpetrator was someone from another empire and had status?"


    "I don''t need to explain those to you since you already know anyway." Liu Sheng Juan replied.


    "..." Liu Sheng Duhai went silent for a while.


    "Maybe you are right.."


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    ...


    Duan Li that was within the masses along with Bai Li and Zhang Liao were similarly bewildered, this was especially the case for both the latter. In their opinion, what the Emperor just stated before was careless and could potentially cause conflict. However, this was not their empire so, they could only shook their head and sigh inwardly.


    At this moment, Duan Li was squinting his eyes, looking high up above the sky.


    "What is up with that fellow? Is he not afraid of being beheaded for daring to float in the sky right now?"


    ...

 Chapter 295 - King of Swindler!

    "What are you looking for Brother Duan Li?" Lu Bu and Zhang Liao raised their head to look at the sky.


    They were now very respectful towards Duan Li despite being older than him after witnessing his power and capabilities during the Battle Royale before. Although they knew that Duan Li was not a Child of Tian as the rumors said he was, they were definitely sure that this person in front of them does not pale in comparison at all!


    In fact, they felt as though Duan Li was even more powerful than the Child of Tian at his age!


    "You guys are not able to see him?" Duan Li was surprised to see their reaction.


    "See who?" they craned their necks and squinted their eyes to look further.


    We couldn''t even see any bird flying around..


    "... Ah, it''s nothing. I must''ve been seeing things!" Duan Li smiled as he shook his head and then looked around his surroundings, only to realized that no one noticed the figure floating above them except him.


    "Not even Fei Jin Fang could see that haughty old fellow above them?" Duan Li scratched his head.


    Eh well, maybe its a hidden expert of the Jiu Empire tasked to protect the Emperor..


    ...


    "So, no one confessed to their wrong doings?" The Emperor said as he furrowed his brows, feeling mystified.


    Then it means the perpetrator is definitely not someone from the Jiu Empire..


    But we have investigated every foreign envoys that came here and no one was acting suspicious..


    Just what is going on here?


    After this final attempt of trying to rat out the culprit failed, the Emperor sighed.


    "Regardless, the people responsible will not be able to escape me for long. You have been warned and I have showed mercy, let my mercy be no more from henceforth!" The Emperor spoke with a cold and overbearing tone.


    He then continued, "As for the matter today, the reason as to why I decided to crown an Imperial Overseer for the Jiu Empire, was because I am indebted to him."


    This sentence from the Emperor had the crowd gasped before they whispered to each other.


    "The Emperor is indebted to him?"


    "What sort of man was able to make an Emperor indebted to the point of making him the Imperial Overseer?"


    "Perhaps his teacher that taught him cultivation? Or maybe at one point in his life, someone saved him from a life threatening situation?"


    "You fool, his teacher is his father himself! Are you saying that the late Emperor raised himself from his own grave? Impudent!"


    "This is why I hate plebians, their assumptions are too outlandish! How dare you say that our Emperor had his life threatened before?!"


    "I-I was just trying to come up with some possibilities.."


    Seeing the crowd slowly becoming noisy, Fei Jin Fang was about to bellow like their grandfather when the Emperor sent him a telepathy to just let the crowd be for a while.


    "I know that every one of you are confused with this decision of mine, and some of you might even think that from now on, we will be under the rule of someone else.. let me be clear, that assumption is far away from the truth!" the Emperor spoke once more.


    He then continued, "Imperial Overseer are often portrayed as someone who stood above even the Emperor, leaning towards negative connotations more than the positive, but that is only a partial fact! Do you guys know the reason why this title existed in the first place?"


    This question had the crowd sunk into deep contemplation.


    "It is because an Imperial Overseer is a Guardian that guards over the whole Empire! Otherwise, if strong experts were to come knocking on our doors one day to enslave us all, and I chose to agree in exchange for keeping my life instead, who would protect the common people against such an abuse? No one!!" the Emperor raised his deep voice to the point that every pebble on the ground seemed to tremble!


    "An Imperial Overseer is both a contingency and a Guardian of the Empire. If I were to be led astray in my duty as an Emperor, then the Imperial Overseer will have my head! Similarly, if the Imperial Overseer abandons the people, then I will personally wage war against him myself!"


    Hisss!


    The crowd sucked in cold breath as this realization dawned upon them!


    In other words, their Emperor was basically saying that an Imperial Overseer was needed as a deterrent to himself if he were to shirk his duties as an Emperor of the people!


    What a noble cause! To dare point a blade to the back of his own neck in case he were to retreat in his responsibilities...


    Now that is a true Emperor! Our Emperor!


    Some of the people among the crowd could not help but to shed tears as they cried emotionally. They felt the warmth behind their Emperor''s words and felt extremely guilty for doubting him!


    We had wronged him!


    "However, before this, I am aware that some of you thought that I was too powerless or even spineless to the point that I had willingly appoint an Imperial Overseer! Am I right?!" He bellowed with a saddened expression as his presence became heavier for the crowd.


    Hearing this, the crowd immediately turned pale before they kowtowed to the ground, "We dare not your Majesty!!"


    "Please relieve your anger your Majesty!" the crowd cried out at the top of their lungs.


    "We are foolish peasants your Majesty! Forgive us for our short-sightedness!"


    They were very afraid because some of them had previously talked about it albeit only between themselves.


    However, now that the Emperor brought the matter out himself, they were scared that the Emperor actually knew the people who said such things!


    After all, being the Emperor, there should be plenty of ways and resources for him to have his ears planted all over the Jiu Empire, not to mention in this capital city!


    Thus, they kneeled on the ground with their body trembling! As if a spouse that was caught cheating!


    "Rise. I do not blame my people, for this decision of mine was too sudden, and for that, I hope everyone will forgive me." the Emperor said with his face showing a slightly perturbed emotions, as if a grandfather that had accidentally made their grandchildren cry.


    "Please do not apologize to us your Majesty, it is us that was wrong!"


    "We deserve death your Majesty!"


    "Aaahhh! Forgive us!"


    "Forgive us!"


    Almost everyone in the square cried frantically, their sense of guilt overwhelming their rational mind to the point that some even began to punish themselves by slapping their own faces repeatedly!


    Holy Moly!


    Duan Li that witnessed this bizarre scene suddenly happening out of nowhere swallowed a mouthful of saliva, his face astonished, extremely impressed with the Emperor!


    That is a completely game-changer speech!


    To think that the Emperor was able to swindle the public and make them slap their own face to become swollen like a pig...


    As expected, the voice of the Emperor was indeed able to induce miracles!


    He is the King of Swindler!


    One has to know that while the Emperor''s speech was eloquent enough, to the extent that everyone now believes that his decision of crowning the Imperial Overseer was the most correct thing to do, because it was all for the sake of the Jiu Empire..


    The fact still remains that an Imperial Overseer still holds authority that was higher than the Emperor!


    Only a few people realized this crucial factor that made the Emperor no less than a lackey starting from now on, but even if they were to try to convince the crowd otherwise, they might find themselves being hacked to their deaths instead!


    Thus, the intelligent people could only remain silent.


    It was only after a long while that the crowd began to settle down once more.


    "Since everyone now knows the reason behind my decision, let us invite the Imperial Overseer!"


    The people now showed an expression of anticipation, their eyes bright.


    After all was said and done, the Emperor felt that the most trickiest part of the ceremony was letting the people accept who the Imperial Overseer was!


    As soon as Duan Li was revealed to be the Imperial Overseer for the Jiu Empire, most of his citizens would definitely break apart mentally, and the trance he casted onto them previously would be dispelled!


    After all, not many could accept a young person with the appearance of a noob fellow to become their Guardian?


    In fact, the people might even think that he was playing prank with them!


    In order to combat this, he did prepared a few things to swindle his people further, but now that he was actually about to do it, he could not help but swallow his saliva nervously!


    Gulp!


    "Please come forward, Duan-"


    However, before he could even finish his sentence, someone suddenly laughed out loud.


    "Hahahahahaha! Emperor of Jiu Empire, you foolish ant."


    ...

 Chapter 296 - Unveiled!

    "Who dares?!" Fei Jin Fang bellowed out in rage as his aura exploded on the spot, unleashing the might of a true Nascent Soul realm expert at the Pinnacle stage!


    To think that someone dared to humiliate his Emperor like that when he was tasked to guard the Emperor''s dignity and honor..


    That was a direct slap to his face!


    Unforgivable!!


    Kacha! Kacha!


    The ground quaked as the air seethed incessantly, while the floor tiles began to crack one after another!


    The crowd that did not practice cultivation was immediately pressed onto the ground firmly by this invisible pressure, causing them to cry out in panic!


    In fact, this pressure was so great that even cultivators alike found the air around them to be extremely heavy that it was hard for them to move, such that only those above the Core Formation realm could remain standing properly, albeit the overbearing sensation made their breathing a little haggard.


    It was as the saying goes, "When the weather is nice, everyone will smile. But when the sky is angry, even the earth will tremble!"


    The Emperor extended his Soul Sense to scan everyone, and after finding that the location of the voice was not within the masses, his brows furrowed together.


    "Who is out there? Come out." the Emperor said with an indifferent voice, unleashing his own presence as well as he stood up from his throne.


    Brrr!!


    As of this moment, it was as if the previous peaceful atmosphere was suddenly turned into that of a battlefield during war!


    Do you think that you can hide from me forever after mocking me like that?


    The resounding laughter from before once again echoed in their surroundings.


    "Hmph! Your filthy eyes are not worthy enough to bask upon my existence." the voice said haughtily.


    Hearing this, Fei Jin Fang gritted his teeth and bellowed out once more, "Damn it! If you have the b*lls to say such garbage to the Emperor, why don''t you show yourself you coward!"


    "Come out you bastard!" the other Titled Knights in golden armors also roared out as they each brandished their silver sword, looking for the person that was courting death!


    Each of them were peerless experts and talented geniuses with backstories that could be compiled into story books for the children, and they weren''t afraid of anything that dared to sully the Emperor and the royal family!


    The voice was about to boast once more but went silent for a while after his words were drowned amidst the constant curse and slur words being thrown out by Fei Jin Fang and the lot like a pack of barbaric savages and hoodlums.


    Unable to hold himself any further, an annoyed snort could be heard.


    "Ants, know your place!" the voice harrumphed.


    BOOMM!!


    As if the whole sky was falling apart, a tremendous aura poured down onto the masses below, causing everyone to spurt out blood!


    Psshh!!


    The felt as though they were being submerged into the extreme depths of the ocean, where the tremendous pressure caused their lungs to rupture and blood to seep out from their mouth!


    Accompanied by this disdainful snort was an immeasureable force that pressed Fei Jin Fang and the other Titled Knights onto the ground, such that they could no longer stand on their two feet and was forced to kneel!


    Crack!


    "Arghh!!" Fei Jin Fang and his subordinates gritted their teeth as they felt a few of their ribs began to shatter one by one when they tried to forcefully stand up!


    It felt as though a giant mountain was sitting right on top of their head, and no matter what means they used to stand up, they couldn''t even budge an inch!


    Seeing this, the Emperor widened his eyes in shock!


    One has to know that Fei Jin Fang and his realm were both equal, and although he has more formidable skill arts to gain the upper hand in battle being the Emperor, in terms of presence, the other party was not any lesser than him!


    Yet, Fei Jin Fang was still forced to kneel before the voice''s presence!


    What does this mean?


    This means that the owner of the voice has an ever higher cultivation realm than them!


    "It cannot be... an Immortal?" the Emperor thought in his mind as his face changed color.


    Above the Nascent Soul realm Pinnacle stage was the Immortal Ascension realm, where one had successfully undo the first shackle of a mortal, thus known as the Escaping mortality realm!


    "But how can that be? I thought that no Immortal should be able to exist on the Tian continent!" He thought with a grim expression.


    According to Duan Li''s hypothesis that he heard before, the Tian continent does not allow one to ascend beyond the Nascent Soul realm Pinnacle stage in their cultivation.


    To do that, one has to go to another dimensional plane where the law does not apply, and the Eternal Maze was one of this place!


    However, if Nascent Soul realm experts were to enter the Eternal Maze, then they would have to face insurmountable trial to ascend to immortality! Even if they were successful, unless one managed to cultivate all the way to the Omnipresence realm state, then one will never have the chance to step foot in the Tian continent again!


    Upon recalling this, the Emperor''s expression turned more pale.


    This person must be of the Omnipresence realm state!


    "Every single one of you is but an ant, if not for the laws in place, I would have massacred you all with a single breath of mine!" the voice spoke out with an overbearing tone.


    "However, do not test my patience. Even the heavens will not be able to help you today should you continue to draw upon my wrath!" the voice continued.


    While everyone was trying to find the source of the voice, Duan Li has already locked his eyes to the person in question.


    It was the very same figure that was floating above them right now with his hands clasped behind his back!


    His aura appeared to be extremely lofty and he donned a peculiar white robe, as if belonging to a certain bizarre cult somewhere.


    From his facial appearance, one could see that this figure was about 50 years old with the wrinkles and white beard on his face.


    However, except for Duan Li, no one appeared to be able to see him!


    "What''s going on? Why can''t they see him?" he thought in his mind, feeling perplexed.


    Duan Li also felt like the voice from this figure was quite familiar, but he couldn''t remember where he last heard this voice from!


    This figure then descended from the air slowly before landing on the ground. Still, no one was able to see him, as if his very existence was shrouded with a mysterious energy that made him invisible to others!


    "I have to applaud you though for being able to convince the crowd like that. You Emperor of the Ants have your own way with words I see!" this figure that was now standing on the ground between the elevated platform and the square chuckled.


    Hearing this, the Emperor narrowed his eyes, "It was you that spread those rumors?"


    If it really was the other party, it made sense how they weren''t able to capture him despite using all their resources!


    The other party was an Immortal!


    "Indeed, it was I. But you dared to interrupt my entertainment? I was hoping to see chaos in this empire, as it would be a fun sight to enjoy, seeing ants killing each other with their meager power!" the figure replied, his voice was full of disdain and mockery.


    The Emperor gritted his teeth and clenched his fist tight, anger and rage was boiling inside him!


    However, he suppressed his inner emotions before asking, "You are an immortal, this is not your place to be! Why have you come to disturb us!?"


    The figure was visibly stunned when he heard this. To think that the other party realized that he was an immortal!


    But... why does it feels like the other party was talking to him as if he was an evil spirit?


    This damned ant!


    "Oh? So you know of immortals... Interesting!" he replied with a slight chuckle before continuing, "Now that you know, do you think that you are qualified to make demands from me?"


    "Hehehe... HAHAHA! If I were to order you all to die, you all should be obedient while feeling honored instead as the instruction came from an exalted being like me!" The voice''s laugh contorted into a high pitch.


    "Kuh.. this guy is a lunatic.. there is no way out for this!" the Emperor gritted his teeth and felt bad premonition.


    If the other party was a reasonable expert, he could try to at least speak his way into it, but words were useless against a mad man!


    "Fortunately, I am here today for a different agenda. Otherwise, this empire is already finished. I came for the boy." the voice finally revealed its intentions.


    "The boy? You can''t mean..." the Emperor, Fei Jin Fang, and some other people that managed to catch on the meaning behind those words, widened their eyes in horror.


    If an immortal that was not supposed to be here made all his way to the Tian continent to look for a single boy..


    There there was only one person that appeared in their mind..


    He was looking for Duan Li!


    "No! You can''t take him away! The Tian continent needs him!" the Emperor immediately bellowed out as he activated all of his powerful skill arts, causing his battle prowess to increase dramatically!


    However, despite using all his means, he still wasn''t able to budge from his standing position!


    "No! What should I do? I cannot let him take Duan Li away! The Tian continent will no longer have any future by then!" the Emperor brainstormed his mind as sweat were pouring out of his forehead.


    "Useless struggle." the figure turned around as he lost interest with the Emperor and approached Duan Li.


    It was at this moment that Duan Li could finally see his face clearly, amidst the hooded robe, wrinkled face and white beard, this old man has the eyes of a goat!


    "No! Don''t you dare take him away! Over my dead body!" the Emperor continued to increase his battle prowess exponentially past his limits as blood began to drip out from his nose!


    "Shut up! Slave, deal with him!" the figure was annoyed before he waved his right hand to summon up a portal that seemed to be connected to the void.


    Wengg!!


    With it, came out a figure that made most of the experts there gasped.


    That man...


    "Cao Tengfei!"


    This was the Dark Sect member that suddenly disappeared a while ago just before his life was about to be ended by Duan Li!


    "Yes, Master!" Cao Tengfei cast a wrathful glance towards Duan Li. He then turned around and walked forward to the Emperor with a blade by his hand!


    Seeing this, everyone was riled up!


    "No! Don''t you dare lay your hands on the Emperor!" Fei Jin Fang and all the Titled Knights summoned up all their power as they began to bleed out from their seven orifices.


    "Ants! In front of an Immortal like me, who has already ascended into the Omnipresence realm state that your puny senses couldn''t even began to fathom, let alone being able to see my majestic figure, you all dare to become disobedient?!!" the figure lashed out.


    "I am your go-" before he could even finish his sentence, intending to say ''god'', a resounding ''Pah!'' sound reverberated across the tense atmosphere, causing everything to become silent.


    Even Cao Tengfei halted his footsteps with widened eyes, his expression was in utter shock!


    The owner of the voice could be seen spinning in the air like a drill before landing on the ground face first.


    Bam!


    His invisible ability was undone, revealing his sorry state that was twitching on the ground with a face full of disbelief!


    "What Omnipresence realm crap? I can see you just fine curling your body on the dirt over there." a domineering and deep voice echoed out as a figure stepped to the front.


    This figure... was Duan Li!


    ...

 Chapter 297 - Riled up!

    Y-you.. you dare slap me?!" the figure stood up with one hand placating his slapped cheek while another hand pointing towards Duan Li.


    His body was now trembling in rage. However, he felt deeply perplexed as to how the other party was able to see him!


    For someone that was in the Omnipresence realm state, unless they willed it, no one under their realm would be able to detect their presence!


    In addition, how was the other party able to move with his presence suppressing everyone without exception?


    After all, just the presence of someone with his cultivation realm was already similar to the pressure exerted by an entire ocean, and no mortals could possibly be able to stand on their feet!


    It was due to these two reasons that he was so carefree and didn''t bother to put up his guard before, and Duan Li''s slap was totally unexpected even in his most wildest dream. Therefore, when the slap landed, he was hit full force and was sent spinning like a dirty cloth!


    This act of defiance is intolerable!


    He was Xiqong Wu, the esteemed elder of the Heaven''s Will committee, one that has the status to decide the life and death of mortals!


    Yet, to think that he was slapped by a mortal which unbelievably managed to stung him a little...


    Courting death!


    "If you talk like a lunatic once more, I would even dare to kick you just so you don''t get pulled deep into your delusion!" Duan Li replied with a scoff.


    Xiqong Wu''s face flushed even redder when he heard this, embarrassment and anger mixed in together. He then immediately lashed out, "Don''t get too far ahead of yourself you ant! You are only lucky before to be able to land a hit on me!"


    Now that everyone could see his figure, he no longer bothered to hide himself. "For laying your dirty hands on me, everyone around you will die!"


    The moment he said this, the crowd gasped in horror and they screamed in panic, trying to run away. But their body was locked in place, and they felt like their life was not theirs!


    Seeing this, Duan Li quickly sent a kick to the latter''s crotch.


    Peng!


    "You got some strong b*lls there..." Duan Li rubbed his feet as though he just kicked a thick iron door!


    Pu!


    "Damn you! Do you really want everyone here to die because of your impudence?!" Xiqong Wu bellowed out, rattled with absolute disbelief that Duan Li dared to make a move on him again despite his previous warning!


    It was a despicable move at that!


    What the hell is this? Is this brat crazy? Is he not scared of me?


    It was fortunate that he had put up his guard this time! Otherwise, his little brother might have been traumatized!


    Hearing this, Duan Li chuckled.


    "Why are you laughing?!" Xiqong Wu was on the verge of going insane.


    "It seems that my previous deduction was correct. You are not able to do anything to us." Duan Li answered, his tone confidence.


    Xiqong Wu''s eyes widened in surprise, "Ballocks! You think that I, the supreme-"


    "Shut the hell up!" Duan Li suddenly bellowed, cutting off the latter''s words. Right now, he was like a grandfather reprimanding his naughty grandchildren with both hands on his waist, appearing impatient.


    "My ears will grow worms if it hears you boasting empty air once more! Majestic this, exalted this, supreme this and that, are you mental?!" Duan Li said sharply.


    His interjection and words caused everyone that witnessed this scene to drop their jaw to the floor.


    Previously, everyone was already stunned when Duan Li was able to slap this so-called exalted being that was invisible to their eyes like a ragged doll, and they were once again flabbergasted when Duan Li made an attempt to destroy the manhood of the other party.


    Now, they were rendered speechless with the vicious words the young man threw at him!


    This young man is so savage! Who is he?


    "Wait, isn''t that young man... Duan Li?" one of the crowd that was pressed onto the floor firmly to the point where his cheeks were like being squashed, suddenly said.


    "Duan Li? That name sounds familiar..." his friend that was in similar situation beside him replied.


    "Huh? Isn''t Duan Li... that new champion?" a person that overheard them gasped in surprise.


    "Eh? You mean THAT champion? The one rumored to be the Child of Tian?" Another person joined in on the conversation.


    "Not just that, I heard he is a hero in the Jixue Knights Academy despite being only a junior!"


    It didn''t took long before the people on the ground that were planted like numerous ''T'' shapes began their discussion fervently.


    Now, they finally realized the identity of who this brave young man that was currently the only one standing to protect them was..


    Duan Li!


    Meanwhile, the person that became their topic of discussion continued, "If you really can kill us, then why haven''t you done so already despite your lunatic personality?"


    Like a detective that caught the culprit in a murder case, Duan Li pointed with his index finger, his eyes flashed.


    "This only means one thing! It''s because you cannot use your power to harm us! In other words, you.are.powerless!" He finally stated his verdict, highlighting his final sentence one by one!


    (A.N: Play detective conan music here xD)


    "Ohhhh!" the crowd gasped in astonishment as they nodded to this logic!


    What Duan Li just said made sense!


    "You.. you despicable ant! Alright, good! Good! You managed to rile me up! Don''t you regret this!" Xiqong Wu spatted out between his gritted teeth.


    He then finally confessed, "It is as you just said, I''m not allowed to make a move on you ants! Hmph!"


    "Still, just my presence alone is already enough to incapacitate most of you! See that no one here can move? HAHAHA! In front of me, I don''t even need to exert an ounce of my holy power against you lot!" He continued and laughed out with a high pitch, feeling extremely satisfied with himself.


    "They might not be able to, but I can!" Duan Li stepped forward as he loosened up his muscles.


    "Go Duan Li! Go Duan Li!" the crowd that was on the floor began to chant Duan Li''s name.


    "Hah! Although I do not know what sort of paltry tricks you used to be able to move like that, the same goes for me as well! While I might not be able to make a move on you, my slave can! Cao Tengfei!!" Xiqong Wu called out.


    Suuu!!


    "Yes master!" Cao Tengfei immediately appeared in front of the other party and kneeled.


    "Go and fight him!" Cao Tengfei commanded as he clasped his hands behind his back, appearing relaxed.


    "At once, Master!" Cao Tengfei replied with respect as he stood up to face Duan Li, his gaze full of murderous intentions!


    "Booooo!!" the crowd began to curse and threw slur words at Cao Tengfei.


    "Old Cao! Old Cao!" some of the crowd began to play around with his name that previously tore a deep wound on his heart.


    After all, Old Cao was a nickname given to him by a bunch of idiotic students and literally means ''Old F*ck''.


    Being someone that was prideful of his grand name, how can Cao Tengfei tolerate this mockery?


    Thus he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Shut up every single one of you, you filthy scum! Your father is my slave, your mother is a hooker, your sister a sl*t, your brother a dumb boy, and your ancestor is my toilet!" He pointed towards the people on the ground one by one.


    "..." the crowd widened their eyes upon hearing this insult before they threw up a huge fuss.


    "F*ck you! You dare to call my mother a hooker?"


    "Your ancestor is a toilet, your whole family is a toilet! Idiot!"


    "Come here if you dare! I''m gonna slap that mouth of yours you c*cksucker!"


    "..." Duan Li.


    Holy hell! The crowd had gone bonkers!


    Xiqong Wu that was witnessing this exchange of slurs stared with dumbfounded eyes, his entire mind went blank.


    What the hell is up with these people?


    ...

 Chapter 298 - The most evil!

    These darned peasants! Daring to create such a scene before me!


    Are they blind?


    They were before the presence of my almighty being, yet they still dared to throw slurs and cursing words around me as though a bunch of uncivilized plebians?


    What is this, a zoo?


    "Hmph! If only the Heaven''s restrictions are not watching this world, I would have long enslaved this entire dastard populace!" Xiqong Wu snorted in anger as his beard trembled.


    The reason why he could not make a move on them was due to the Heaven''s restrictions. It was dictated that the committee of the Heaven''s Will, although were free to traverse to any world down in the mortal realm, were not allowed to use their powers onto the local populace!


    Furthermore, the range of actions they could do was limited as well, like a spectator that could only observe but not influence things directly. Thus, they were severely restricted despite having an enormous power that could move the heaven and earth, making them no worse than a pebble by the side of the road!


    It was not that he was a law-abiding fellow, but if Xiqong Wu were to disregard this rule, he would immediately find his existence to be erased by the automatic system of the Heaven''s Will!


    Perhaps, the only people that were exempted from this rule was the celestials themselves to a certain degree. After all, the celestials were already an existence that stood on par with the Heavens themselves!


    However, just because he cannot make a move himself, doesn''t mean that he wasn''t able to do anything!


    "Slave, kill them all!" he instructed towards Cao Tengfei coldly, devoid of any emotions as though he was instructing the other party to pull out a bunch of weeds!


    "At once, Master!" Cao Tengfei''s lips curled into a twisted smile as he turned around in excitement, similar to a deranged person.


    He raised his hand with the intention to one-shot and massacre the people on the ground with a wave of his saber!


    "Hold it right there." Duan Li grabbed at Cao Tengfei''s arm with a tight grip, appearing abruptly before him.


    "Ah?" Veins were visibly popping out of Cao Tengfei''s temple as he turned his head to look at Duan Li beside him with wrathful eyes!


    "Are you looking to die so soon? Wait for your turn after I finish this task from my Master!" he said with a hoarse voice that was filled with malevolent intent.


    He hated Duan Li so much to the point that his bone marrow was itching continuously at the sight of this person that he wanted to kill the most!


    Before, he was a proud member of the Dark Sect, an expert at the pinnacle of power that was feared by all. However, after he met this fellow, everything in his life seemed to turn for the worse!


    To think that he was defeated by this person that was only in the Foundation Establishment realm back then..


    Not to mention that his an*s was somehow assaulted by some mysterious means..


    It was a defeat that was full of humiliation, even worse than death!


    "While being an utterly despicable bastard before, at least you were still a free barking dog back then. But now that you have a leash on your neck, don''t you think that you are quite pitiful?" Duan Li said with a gentle smile.


    His intention behind this was simple, and it was to provoke Cao Tengfei!


    After all, despite his calm composure, he was actually in a very precarious situation right now.


    Firstly, everyone except him were unable to move. This means that if he did not pull Cao Tengfei away, he will not be able to protect everyone if a fight were to break out since the people can''t escape.


    Secondly, he felt the rippling power coming out from Cao Tengfei and this made him extremely wary.


    This was a similar sensation back to when he first faced the Guardian of the first region, Jing Zhianghu!


    In other words, the other party had already made a breakthrough and released the First shackle of mortality, becoming a true Immortal!


    Against a person like this in his current state, Duan Li wasn''t sure that he would be able to hold the other party out. Therefore, he needed to pull their impending fight away from the others!


    The final reason was because Duan Li wasn''t sure to what extent the restriction on Xiqong Wu was effective in restraining his actions. However, Duan Li was confident that Xiqong Wu could not harm the people directly from the way he instructed Cao Tengfei to do everything for him.


    Thus, the key here was to keep Cao Tengfei at bay!


    "You and your mouth! Do you think that I am the same person as I was back then?!" Cao Tengfei finally snapped and barked out.


    He knew full well of the price that he had to pay for his life back then. In exchange for another chance to live and granted the power of an immortal, he was bound to a soul contract with the elder standing behind him.


    This was a sad fate for a former top expert like him, and the main cause of it all was this young haughty boy in front of him!


    Thus, he need not be reminded by the person who started it all!


    Duan Li cupped his chin upon hearing this and stared contemplatively at Cao Tengfei.


    "Your b*lls seems to have become much smaller?" Duan Li said.


    Cao Tengfei''s face immediately became dark as his face contorted hideously. The words that Duan Li used just now could be translated as ''You are scared.''


    "Bastard! BASTARD! All of this is your fault!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs. His deep enmity towards Duan Li was to the point that dark aura was seeping out from his body like the tendrils of demons!


    To him, unless one of them were to die, they cannot exist under the same sky together!


    "Master, just this once, please allow me to kill this brat.. I beseech you!" Cao Tengfei gritted his teeth and kowtowed towards Xiqong Wu. He was willing to even become a dog for the other party in order to get his revenge!


    Seeing the resolution of his slave, Xiqong Wu almost laughed out loud.


    A mere tool dared to request something from its master? You should be glad that I still allow your consciousness to remain in your body!


    He had the urge to dissipate the soul of the other party with a single thought of his, but after further contemplation, he decided to take a step back in his decision.


    After all, fights between ants was one of his favorite hobby!


    "Very well. However, if you take too long, then I will drag your soul out from your body and crush you into eternal death! Even the god of Samsara will not be able to reincarnate you for your next life!" Xiqong Wu said viciously.


    Cao Tengfei''s face went pale as he knew full well of the ruthlessness of his master. But since the stick has already been thrown, then he had to catch it before it fell to the ground!


    Turning around, he immediately wanted to chop Duan Li to pieces, only to find out that the man he wanted to kill had disappeared!


    "Looking for me?" Duan Li sniggered as he clasped his hand behind his back while floating in the air above them.


    "Don''t you dare to run away! You need to die NOW!!" Cao Tengfei was now like a crazed madman who lost all sense of rational thinking and dashed towards Duan Li with his mouth salivating and his eyes turning red!


    It was not that he did not realize Duan Li''s intention, however, he does not have the time to play the tug of war with Duan Li right now!


    After all, the command from his master was absolute! If his master told him to not take too long to finish the fight, who knows if it meant to finish the fight within a single or ten breaths?


    He felt his life was slowly dimming, like a candle flame on the verge of dissipating!


    Duan Li that witnessed this farce shook his head as he lamented, "An expert is now reduced to as such.. even if he was an evil person before and deserved to die, that master of his was countless times more evil!"


    The most evil person!


    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    A massive fight broke out in the sky which sent sonic booms with each of their move clashing against one another like mountains breaking apart!


    The shockwaves travelled all the way to the ground and caused tremors like mini earthquakes. Those that witnessed this epic fight for the first time in their life could not help but to marvel at such sight with astonished expression!


    This.. this was the fight between true immortals!


    ...

 Chapter 299 - Xiqong Wu!

    BOOMM!! BOOMM!!


    "Hmm? The boy... seems to be much stronger than before?" Xiqong Wu furrowed his brows as he cast out his Heavenly Sense.


    Wengg!!


    Heavenly Sense was an upgraded version of the Soul Sense that one could unlock once they stepped into the immortal realm. Not only that it was a much more superior sensing ability in terms of scanning range, it could easily peer through anything at an even greater clarity!


    Through the Heavenly Sense, Xiqong Wu''s expression became even more puzzled as he continued to watch the fight between his slave and Duan Li!


    "This is the second time that I checked, and he is really severely injured... How can he still fight like that?"


    He had confirmed it for the second time now that Duan Li''s body internal state was in such an erratic state that the latter couldn''t possibly fight in that condition, not to mention even surpassing the battle prowess from what he had witnessed back then!


    While it was true that the other party was now in the Pinnacle stage of the Core Formation realm, his internal body was at least two-thirds injured!


    Could this be the work of that miracle stone?


    It has to be!


    At the thought of this, Xiqong Wu grew even more determined to snatch the mysterious pearl away from Duan Li by hook or crook!


    "That mysterious stone contained an unimaginable power.. if I could obtain it, my cultivation realm would surely increase by leaps and bounds!"


    Even becoming a celestial would no longer be a dream by then, and I could say goodbye to those darned colleagues of mine that has no ambition to pursue a higher quality of life!


    Hmph!


    High up in the sky, Cao Tengfei was engulfed in black flames around his body. This was his aura that was mixed with Demiruke''s blood and negative energy to become the infamous Demiruke''s virus!


    A single drop from this virus would be enough to transmogrify most living things to become monsters!


    However, Duan Li that casually blocked his attacks that was imbued with this virus didn''t seem to be affected at all!


    "How are you not affected by the virus at all?" he asked with a wrathful tone, incredibly frustrated with the way things were going right now.


    Previously, he was only able to shoot out some tendrils of black flame from his fingers one at a time due to the tremendous spiritual Qi it needed.


    However, after ascending and becoming an immortal, he had an ocean''s worth of spiritual Qi within him right now, and he was able to use the Demiruke''s virus to merge with his aura, becoming an aura of death!


    Combined with his immense hatred towards Duan Li, which fueled the negative energy needed for the virus to become more potent, by logic, he should have been able to turn the other party into a monster that will submit to him!


    But not only did the other party was not fazed by the virus at all, his punches and kicks was easily deflected and countered!


    What the hell is this?


    Am I not an immortal?


    I''m a thousand times more stronger than I was before, yet things still remained the same like last time!


    "Because I am the virus''s grandfather, that''s why!" Duan Li replied with a chuckle.


    "ARGH! DIE! DIEE!! WHY WON''T YOU DIE?!" Cao Tengfei screamed out like a mad man. He was utterly scared that his master would grow impatient!


    These mixed emotions of fear, frustrations, indignation and anger at the same time amalgamated together until he could no longer take it and finally reached his breaking point!


    Kacha!


    Something snapped inside of him as he roared out!


    "ARGHHHHHHH!!!!"


    With a loud bellow to the sky, his entire skin turned black and his eyes redshot. Surges of black flames rained down from his body down to the ground like a torrential rainfall!


    "Oh no!" Duan Li''s expression turned ugly as he immediately reacted and waved his hand.


    Wengg!


    "Levy, go and and protect the people on the ground from those black flames! Hurry!" he instructed as soon as Queen Levy was brought out from his spatial ring.


    Hearing this, as well as looking at Duan Li''s serious countenance, Queen Levy quickly moved in with a speed that was impossible to follow with one''s eyes!


    Suuu!!


    Standing in front of the people that were still flattened to the ground by Xiqong Wu''s presence, she raised one palm to the sky before a blue barrier extended out from it and encapsulated everyone inside!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    This barrier deflected the incoming rain of black flames that was heavy like iron bars effortlessly.


    Seeing this woman, Xiqong Wu was surprised!


    Heavenly barrier? That woman is an immortal!


    Heavenly barrier was an upgraded version of the Soul barrier that Nascent Soul realm users used to protect their body from an attack. However, unlike Soul barrier, Heavenly barrier can be extended out away from the body as the user wished!


    "Who are you? Why do you intervene in someone else''s problem? Stand down!" he shouted.


    The suppressing power of his presence only works on those that had yet to release the shackles of mortality, but by the looks of it, this woman was already at the Escaping Mortality realm, and she was one foot into the Omnipresence realm state at that!


    How did a formidable figure as such suddenly popped out from a spatial ring?


    Could she be a spirit?


    Queen Levy turned her head to look at Xiqong Wu for a while before looking back at Duan Li''s direction.


    Seeing that he was ignored by the woman, Xiqong Wu''s face darkened.


    "You insolent woman, how dare you ignore-"


    BAM! BAM!


    "Shut up!" Queen Levy shouted as she threw a palm slap towards Xiqong Wu with her other free hand while maintaining the barrier with the other palm.


    Hisss!


    Her killing intent was fully unleashed and directed towards the imposing immortal like an incoming tsunami!


    "What the...!" Xiqong Wu immediately activated his Heavenly barrier to wrap it around his body to protect from both attacks.


    Kkrongg!!


    While he could effortlessly dispel the palm attack from the other party, the thick murderous intent that washed onto his barrier was like bronze metal that was dragged across rough surfaces, creating terrible noises!


    Heavy!!


    This woman.. she is more of a murderer than me!!


    Who in the world is she?!


    Queen Levy''s killing intent forced Xiqong Wu to maintain his Heavenly barrier. Otherwise, if his body were to instinctually react and release his Heaven''s Will aura to counter it, his disguise will be swiftly unravelled!


    If that were to happen, he will surely be detected by the Heaven''s Will committee!


    After all, someone of his status wasn''t supposed to intervene in the mortal realm, not to mention causing disruption of this scale..


    He might find himself beheaded!


    "Damn it! Slave, what the hell are you doing? Kill that boy NOW!" he shouted as he raised his head to look at the two figure fighting above in the sky.


    The emergence of the woman in front of him threw a wrench in his plans and he began to panic!


    He was disguising his aura as another immortal while suppressing his Heaven''s Will aura in order to elude its automatic detection system.


    This was because the Heaven''s Will committee could not possibly monitor each of the thousand worlds simultaneously. They have proper schedules to follow and today happened to be a day where the Tian continent was not monitored at all!


    This was why he took the chance today to enact his actions. Duan Li''s coronation ceremony was but coincidental that happened to be on the very same day!


    "ARGHHHHH!!" Cao Tengfei that heard this command became uncontrolled and attacked like a cornered animal.


    In his mind right now, he had to kill Duan Li at all cost!


    Pshh! Pshh!!


    "Young Master! This barbaric brute, how dare he did this to you!" Little sword became agitated as Duan Li was quickly covered in wounds.


    Duan Li gritted his teeth, "I can''t control the flow of battle anymore since he lost his rational thinking.. he is slowly overpowering me!"


    Previously, it was only because of a human instinct to avoid injury was he able to fight with Cao Tengfei on equal terms. However, as the other party was now desperate, he was going all attack without even bothering to dodge or defend!


    "DIE!! DIE!! DIEEEE!!" the berserk Cao Tengfei slashed continuously with his saber, kicked with both feet while unleashing a plethora of skill arts that exploded in the sky!


    "Damn it... if only I am at my full power.. " Duan Li sighed.


    Well.. time to cheat then..


    ...

 Chapter 300 - Cao Tengfeis demise!

    With the numerous wounds that were lacerated onto Duan Li right now, the Emperor, Fei Jin Fang and the rest became worried.


    After all, they had never seen Duan Li injured to such an extent no matter how strong his opponents were previously!


    "ARGHHH!! DIEEEE!!" the berserk Cao Tengfei seemed to saw an opening and hollered out as he dashed forward, streaks of black flames trailed behind him along with his red eyes, appearing like a demon!


    Shaaa!!


    The edge of his saber was just about to plunge deep into Duan Li''s skull when Cao Tengfei saw him crept up a smile.


    "Heh."


    Rringgg!


    Time began to slow down to almost a complete halt.


    ''Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!''


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    A total of nine punches landed on Cao Tengfei''s abdomen in a single instant on the same spot, and this was extremely deadly!


    Originally, the Nine legends edition which contained this Fist art was made to specifically increase the momentum and damage output the more the user attacked; up to nine times!


    Duan Li had never used this recurring punch technique on someone else because it was too lethal! Even when facing against the enraged awakening state of Shen Long before, he had only deployed a normal fist art to pummel the latter!


    However, Cao Tengfei was an enemy of mankind, and Duan Li wouldn''t do something so cliche so as to show magnanimity towards such an evil person!


    Therefore, he punched out without hesitation, and the total damage accrued would be equal to roughly 80 percent of his full strength!


    This effect was further compounded with the time dilation, where it was boosted to almost 300 percent!


    To visualize this damage in another perspective, it was akin to a single punch that could destroy a whole mountain to pieces!


    This time, Duan Li was attacking with the intent to kill!


    Rrinngg!


    When the time flow returned to normal once more, the saber stopped right in front of Duan Li''s forehead.


    "What are you doing? Why do you stop? Kill him!" Xiqong Wu bellowed in rage at the sight of this.


    What the hell is up with this useless slave of mine? To stop just when he had the perfect opportunity at that..


    Idiotic slave!


    However, right after he said this, he saw an indentation mark of a fist forming on Cao Tengfei''s abdomen that started small, but rapidly enlarged itself!


    Pu!


    BOOOOMMMM!!


    A loud imploding sound reverberated in the air as Cao Tengfei spurted out a mouthful of blood!


    "ARGHHH!! DUAN. LI!!!!!!" Cao Tengfei that had his innards smashed, gritted his teeth and shouted with deep hatred as blood continued to spurt from his mouth.


    Surprisingly, he was still alive!


    "Fool! There are reasons why those that managed to release their shackles are called as immortals! Even if his innards was destroyed, he could still recover given a few breaths of time!" Xiqong Wu scoffed.


    While he was surprised to see that Duan Li was able to do some real damage to his slave somehow, it only stayed in his mind for a bit before he became carefree again.


    After all, immortals were an existence that was hard to kill unless one were above their realm. Even losing their limbs that would usually be fatal to a mortal would mean nothing to them and could be regenerated as long as they had enough spiritual Qi!


    This was especially the case with Cao Tengfei. He possessed the innate ability to absorb and reflect damage to his assailant anytime he wanted. Combined with his now immortal body, the damage he received from Duan Li was significantly reduced!


    Duan Li was also taken aback a little by this, "Even with that punch, he is still alive?"


    "I''M GONNA KILL YOU AND EAT YOUR CORPSE!" Cao Tengfei dashed forward once more in a zigzag motion with a crazed look to him as he let out a shrill laughter.


    Hais!


    This fellow has already lost his mind...


    "Little sword!" Duan Li called out as Duergar was summoned into his right hand. He then lowered his body, making a posture for a quick draw, his sword glistened under the sun!


    Rriingg!!


    Time slowed down once more as Cao Tengfei''s saber reached Duan Li''s neck!


    ''Nine Swords Thunder Strike!''


    Shaa!! Shaa!!


    Duan Li''s sword cut through Cao Tengfei''s both arms and legs as if cutting through butter with a hot knife!


    Shaa!!


    Finally, a vertical slash cut Cao Tengfei''s body into half before time returned to normal.


    BTOOMM!!


    A sound akin to thunder exploded out.


    Pu!


    Shaaaaa!!


    Cao Tengfei''s limbs separated from his body and he was cut into two!


    "What the.. how in the world am I unable to read his attack again? Don''t tell me he was too fast for even my eyes to follow?!" Xiqong Wu widened his eyes in disbelief.


    He was also unable to follow Duan Li''s punch before, but he attributed it to mere luck. Now that he witnessed Duan Li''s swordplay in the same lightning speed, he was entirely stumped!


    In fact, not just him, but even Queen Levy shuddered at this sight. Her whole body trembled as excitement made her face flushed red!


    Down on the ground, everyone had shocked expression. Not a single one of them could see how Duan Li made his move, even the experts such as the Emperor himself and the hidden forces included!


    They could only summarize their whole experience into one word..


    Unparalleled!


    Duan Li was actually an unparalleled expert!


    However, just when everyone thought that the fight was finally done, Cao Tengfei that was already sliced into half bellowed out once more!


    "DUAN LI! EVERYTHING IS BECAUSE OF YOU! EVEN IF I WERE TO DIE, I''LL BRING YOU ALONG WITH ME!!"


    Roarrr!!


    The black flames intensified to an extreme degree, such that it almost blotted out the sun in the sky!


    Then, Cao Tengfei''s body parts began to merge into one mess of a meat ball, looking extremely hideous!


    Pshaaa!!


    The black flames eviscerated the remaining spiritual Qi, blood and life force inside Cao Tengfei''s body as his eyes rolled out and his skin dry like a mummy.


    Cao Tengfei was dead.


    This abrupt tragic ending made everyone silent in shock.


    Was that it?


    "Impudent slave! How dare he die without my permission!!" veins popped out of Xiqong Wu''s temples and his face became red in anger.


    All my plans are now ruined!!


    Damn it!


    Bump! Bump!


    The meat ball suddenly seemed to thump as if a heartbeat!


    "Huh?" Duan Li stared at the lump of meat before a bad premonition came to him!


    "This is... I see! Hahahaha! You are all dead now!" Xiqong Wu finally realized something as his eyes flashed viciously!


    Bump! Bump!


    The thumping of the meat ball became rapid before a powerful aura was released!


    This aura then swiftly tripled in an instant, and it was at this moment that Duan Li finally realized and his countenance paled.


    "He is going to explode!"


    Without any hesitation, he flitted right in front of the meat ball!


    "You are too late! You cannot stop it!" Xiqong Wu laughed out loud!


    Finally, the mysterious stone will be in my grasp soon!


    An expert that wanted to self-destruct could only be contained by means of spatial art or barrier of some sort. There was no way of stopping it otherwise!


    But since Duan Li does not have any of those, he decided to do something drastic!


    If the meat ball were to explode, his ability would surely be triggered! At that point in time, he will send it to the stratosphere!


    Shiinggg!!


    The meat ball began to glow bright before time decelerated!


    "Now!!"


    Focusing all his spiritual Qi onto his right leg, Duan Li kicked the meat ball upwards!


    BOOOMMMMM!!


    ...

 Chapter 301 - He is the one?

    BOOMMM!!


    A loud explosion accompanied by a bright flash of light illuminated the Jiu Empire like the sunlight of a second sun, while mushroom clouds filled the entire sky!


    It was fortunate that Duan Li was able to kick the self-destructing meat ball high up into the sky at the very last moment.


    After all, the explosion was gigantic and covered several kilometer radius in the sky! In fact, it was so powerful that the shockwaves travelled all the way to the ground and caused the windows to shatter and some buildings to collapse!


    If it had exploded on the ground, the entire capital city of Nine Lotus would be devastated and flattened into a barren land. Countless people would''ve died as a result!


    At this moment, Duan Li''s figure in the sky coincidentally blocked the flash of light with his body, causing his shadow to extend far and wide to the ground, encompassing everyone within it like an eclipse as his hair danced gently by the wind!


    "A celestial... That young man is a celestial! I need to build a temple for him!"


    "He is the child of Tian! My savior! My hero!"


    "Duan Li... what a terrifying figure.."


    Countless murmurs could be heard as the crowd was awed and astomished by this sight. They felt as though a guardian angel was protecting them within its warm and cozy cradle, all the while as they were helpless with their face flattened to the ground as if infants that was dependent on their parents!


    This caused them to have a sense of deep veneration, respect and worship towards Duan Li! As their emotions quickly surging through the roof, they began to cheer out his name excitedly!


    On the other hand, there was a single person that shook his head repeatedly in denial. "No.. no! NO! This can''t be happening!" Xiqong Wu clutched at his head, feeling extremely indignant with the end result!


    What the hell is this?


    He thought that his plan was perfect and that nothing could stand on his way. But who could have thought that a single mortal, the boy that he targeted turns out to be the very same person that thwarted his plan today?


    In addition, the slave that he had painstakingly raised at the risk of endangering his identity and status died without achieving his goal! To him, this was a very big loss!


    That insolent slave.. how dare he died without my permission!


    It wasn''t easy to snuck a mortal into the heaven''s realm and training them without catching anyone''s notice, and its even more difficult to find someone of Cao Tengfei''s quality!


    By the looks of it, it seems that he had thoroughly lost today. He had the urge to bellow and curse Duan Li down to his final ancestor, but upon recalling of his high status, he forced himself to stay calm to preserve the last shred of dignity he has left.


    "Hmph! Today is your day. But on my next visit, you will never be this lucky again! You will pay a hundred times more than what happened today for your disobedience!" he snorted before taking a last look on Duan Li. Then, his figure slowly turned transparent before vanishing altogether.


    After all, his time to stay in the Tian continent was limited even with his disguise to elude the senses of the Heaven''s Will. Even if he wanted, he couldn''t personally take action himself, so what use was staying then?


    As the old saying goes, ''Retreat today to fight another day!''


    With Xiqong Wu exiting the scene, the suppressing presence he placed onto everyone on the square was finally lifted as people gradually began to stand up one by one.


    They raised their heads to look up at the hero floating in the sky with their eyes swelling in tears. After all, despite the overwhelming sense of danger they felt earlier, the young man above them had not let even a single one of them die, it was truly a miracle!


    In the future, Duan Li would be heralded as the ''Hero that bled for the people'', his deeds will be told by travelling poets and bards across the continent until eventually, his name will be always remembered in the annals of history, passed through generations after generations!


    "Hais! We are truly indebted to this young hero.." a person from the crowd said.


    His friend nodded and replied, "It would be good if he is the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire.."


    "Yeah, that would make me feel really safe! Sadly, I don''t think someone so young would be chosen as the Imperial Overseer... Hais!"


    As the crowd continued to lament and discussed among them on this matter, the Emperor and the Empress, Fei Jin Fang, the Principal Bian Tianyu and Zhang Xi the Vice Principal, as well as Queen Levy flew to the skies to meet Duan Li.


    "Boy, are you okay?" The Emperor asked with a worried look on his face.


    Legs charred, multiple cuts and lacerations on the body..


    He had never saw Duan Li injured to such an extent before!


    "I''m fine, this is only some superficial wounds anyway.." Duan Li replied as he smiled awkwardly.


    Usually, these kinds of menial injuries would have healed instantly back when he was at his peak. However, with his body still at 30 percent, even healing external injury as such was quite slow, leaving others to see this current condition of his.


    How embarrassing!


    "Ughh.." Duan Li felt a little light headed due to his blood loss and his face was pale.


    "Hang on, let me heal you." the Principal said as he hold out his palm facing towards Duan Li.


    Wengg!


    The means of a Nascent Soul realm expert was boundless and thus, healing someone''s external injuries with their spiritual Qi alone was something that could be easily done by anyone at their realm.


    However, at this moment, the Principal could not help but to furrow his brows together.


    "Hm? Its not working?" he said in surprise.


    Seeing this, the Vice Principal decided to join in. "Let me help," and placed out his palm forwards as well.


    Weng!


    After several breaths, it was apparent that no positive result could be seen, even Fei Jin Fang, the Emperor and the Empress decided to lend their hand as well at this point, but Duan Li''s injuries was still not healed!


    How could this be?


    The face of the four experts were pale after exerting tremendous amount of spiritual Qi trying to heal Duan Li, but to no avail!


    "Everyone move." Queen Levy suddenly said at the next moment.


    The five experts turned their heads to look at her, and they remembered that she was the one that protected the people before under Duan Li''s command.


    They recalled that she was able to deflect the rain of black flames that was heavy and murderous with only a single palm of her''s, and it was such a powerful sight to behold!


    "His injuries was inflicted by an immortal, so even if a thousand of you were to crowd together to try and heal him, it would be useless." she said before placing her palm forward.


    She then continued, "The spiritual Qi of an immortal is qualitatively different than that of a mortal. They draw upon the spiritual Qi from the higher realm into their body, so the spiritual Qi that you guys used to heal him, which is coming from a lower realm, was outmatched by this purer spiritual Qi from the higher realm!"


    Hearing this explanation, the five experts finally nodded in comprehension.


    No wonder!


    Wengg!


    Queen Levy started to heal Duan Li with her spiritual Qi. Almost immediately after, Duan Li''s injuries was healing at a rapid speed that could be seen by the naked eyes!


    Hisss!!


    The four experts gasped as they finally realized. Based on her explanations and this sight, they couldn''t be wrong!


    "This woman.. she is an immortal?!"


    They thought that she was only a supreme expert that was already one foot into the immortal realm, but who could have expected that she was already an immortal herself?


    But hang on!


    If that was true.. didn''t this woman just heeded the command from Duan Li before?


    Does that mean that.. she serves Duan Li?!


    They hurriedly turned their heads to look at Duan Li again with widened eyes, only to see the latter scratching his head with an embarrassed look.


    "..." This guy is unbelievable!


    ...


    After a while, they finally descended down from the sky, landing on top of the platform.


    "Guys look, his Majesty and her Highness are personally thanking our hero! To think that they would even allow him to be on that platform, standing on the same level as their''s.." someone said excitedly.


    "Yeah! I wonder what sort of title or gifts that his Majesty will give him.. I bet that it will be... huh?"


    The crowd that were busy discussing among themselves suddenly halted when they saw something astonishing, their mouths agape along with their unfinished sentence as their brain froze on the spot!


    Tap! Tap!


    Duan Li stepped onto the higher platform slowly, where the biggest and grandest throne was a few steps higher than the throne of the Emperor and the Empress was placed. His small and casual steps echoed in the silence.


    Finally sitting on it, both the Emperor and Empress bowed their body and heads a little.


    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!"


    This sentence of their''s reverberated and crashed into the people''s mind.


    Suddenly, as if a broken dam, the crowd began to cry emotionally and shouted in unison!


    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!"


    ...

 Chapter 302 - Where is she?

    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!"


    Such emotional shouts could be heard all over like thunder coiling through the square, spreading contagiously to the very corner of the city! Their voices were filled with deep emotions in them and felt like the cries of people that were willing to die in a battlefield, sending shivers to the foreign envoys that were part of the agitated crowd!


    After witnessing his epic battle with the enemy to protect them, they had hoped that Duan Li could be the Imperial Overseer, but thought that such matter was impossible as the latter was too young. Who would have thought then that Duan Li was actually the Imperial Overseer all along?


    They were shocked down to their very soul, but felt lucky and blessed at the same time, to the point that they prostrated to the ground towards Duan Li''s direction, as if they were members of a dedicated secular cult to worship the legendary gods!


    At this sight, the Emperor could not help but to have his brows twitching a little.


    "These people... how are they so shamelessly willingly to prostrate like that as if they had no honor left?" he said inwardly feeling a bit exasperated.


    To think that they would went so far as to prostrate, when they only kneeled for me out of tradition before..


    Hais!


    He raised his head to look at the sky with a complex expression.


    By the looks of it, Duan Li had completely won over the masses!


    "Wha-what? He.. is the one?" Wang Dong clutched at his head in disbelief.


    "No wonder... it all made sense now.." Zhang Liao and Lu Bu swallowed the bulging saliva in their mouth in realization as they watched Duan Li sitting on the throne with Queen Levy behind him.


    Each of them had fought against Duan Li before, and they were puzzled on how did a person as such could possess tremendous power not normal on their realm. It turns out that the other party was actually the Imperial Overseer!


    Still, they could not help but to have some doubts in their mind.


    Although they were only in the Core Formation realm, they knew full well on how powerful Nascent Soul realm experts in the Pinnacle stage really were. After all, each of their masters were top notch experts on that very same level!


    However, the events that occured just now was beyond their comprehension. Even the experts that were tasked to protect them from the shadow was not able to do anything in the presence of the enemies and was pressed to the ground like everyone else, this was despite them in the Nascent Soul realm!


    Therefore, it made sense to think that the two enemies from before was clearly beyond the Nascent Soul realm, possibly the legendary Immortal Ascension realm that they only heard so much about in the myths! But what had them most surprised was that Duan Li was able to stand up and fight on equal grounds with the enemy!


    If the enemy was truly an Immortal beyond the Nascent Soul realm, didn''t that meant that Duan Li''s fighting prowess was actually equal to that of an Immortal?


    But this was not correct either, they have confirmed it that Duan Li was only a Core Formation realm Pinnacle stage!


    Could it be that because he cultivated all three dantians that he was able to possess such an unfathomable level of power?


    They widened their eyes in realization.


    It has to be!


    "No matter what, we must learn the method to cultivate our other dantians as well!" they said to themselves after pondering deeply!


    At this moment, several experts also seemed to realized this as well, albeit they do not know how Duan Li was that powerful to begin with. In their mind, Duan Li must be practicing some form of a long-lost cultivation method or using a peerless artifact to augment his power!


    This in turns created greed among them and they wanted to possess what Duan Li used to be that formidable! Later on, they decided to send messages back to their individual Empire, Sects and Clans containing this information!


    Wealth, influence, power, women, they would use and give Duan Li everything in exchange for at least a piece of the power that he currently held! In fact, they even considered using violence, subterfuge and wars if things came down to it!


    They were extremely determined!


    After all, in the world of cultivation, there was nothing scarier and heartbreaking than realizing that one was not able to improve their cultivation realm anymore! One might think that they were crazy to do this despite witnessing Duan Li''s strength, and it would be like ants trying to steal the fruit belonging to an elephant, where they could be stomped to death anytime!


    However, for those that were already on the verge of their lifespan, it makes no different if they fail in their attempt, as they would die anyway. Thus, what was the problem of giving it a try?


    Who knows that they might be lucky and succeed!


    The Emperor and Empress, as well as Advisor Chen also seemed to realize this issue as well. If this was not settled correctly, they might find themselves being surrounded by enemies outside the border!


    Except for the Emperor, the both of them did not know the secret to Duan Li''s powerful strength and panicked at the possible outcome of today''s events, but the Emperor was sure that at least half of Duan Li''s prowess came from cultivating all three dantians which no one would even dare to try and replicate unless one were insane!


    He could not help but to chuckle upon imagining the dreams of countless of the shrewd and calculative experts to be shattered by Duan Li''s mouth. In his opinion, there was nothing more entertaining than seeing the demise of those crooks with a tragic end in their hopes and dreams!


    ...


    The ceremony then continued until the end as Duan Li was finally officially coronated as the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire without further disruption. His image was now burned deeply inside the people''s mind, and they viewed him as their idol that looked extremely dashing and valiant!


    Boom! Boom!


    Fireworks were shot up into the sky and people soon forgot the prior incident as they chat among themselves energetically.


    "Hais! If only they were here... those ungrateful people!" Duan Li sighed deeply upon recalling that all of his followers had left him alone to venture inside the Eternal Maze themselves in pursuit of higher power.


    After the ceremony was finished, people began to return to their homes and exit the square of the Imperial Palace with high spirits. Having a powerful figure protecting them made them feeling more relaxed and their worries to disappear. The economy of the Jiu Empire began to increase rapidly as festivals and events was celebrated everywhere.


    Towns and villages was no exception to this, and practically everyone had heard of Duan Li''s name by now. Those who weren''t able to witness the entire historical proceedings felt envious when they heard the stories spread by the people that returned from the Capital City of Nine Lotus.


    However, there were also others who thought that the stories were all exaggerations and that these people were telling lies and was actually paid actors. This was because there was not a single evidence that was recorded on a jade slip for the people to see.


    For some unknown reasons, the recording jade slips was not able to record the events at all!


    This made the foreign envoys frustrated as they could not submit the evidence back home. In fact, shortly after they returned, they found themselves becoming the laughingstock of others, and there were even cases where they were beaten harshly for using emergency channels to spread pranks!


    Hardly anyone believed them when they returned home.


    After all, who would believe that an Immortal from the legends fought against a young brat that became the Imperial Overseer in the end?


    Unless one was retarded, even if their entire family was kicked from behind, they would refuse to believe such blatant lies!


    In their opinion, the envoys that returned were either affected by some kind of a powerful illusion, or that what they had witnessed was actually a carefully planned and orchestrated setup to fool them. Even worse, some were suspected to be bought by the Jiu Empire while some were even under the suspicion of consuming controlled and illegal substances, and they were thrown into jails and labyrinths to reflect on their mistakes.


    The fate of the returning envoys could only be described as tragic.


    Jiu Empire was but a small countryside village in the eyes of these powerful empires, sects and clans. Therefore, how could such an outlandish story happen on a mere backwater nation? There was nothing of worth for an Immortal to even appear there!


    Because of this, the repercussions were actually minimal than what the Empress and Advisor Chen had previously predicted, and they sighed in relief. Right now, they focused their efforts to exaggerate the story even more, so that people that didn''t witness the events back then would continue to not believe the outlandish story that has many versions like the fairytale of an old widow!


    In the end, the majority of people in the Tian continent did not believe in the story, and they vehemently rejected any information that stated a young man of the Core Formation realm was the Imperial Overseer!


    However, this was but the mindset of the general public. As for the influential families such as the royal families of the other empires, powerful clans and Sects across the continent, although they were still harboring some doubts regarding the authenticity of the information, they still at least believed most of it.


    After all, the information came from their loyal subordinates, and some were even Prince and Princess!


    Therefore, it would be weird that even experts could be beguiled by cheap illusion tricks or plays by some small empire!


    Thus, the people that accepted this information as the truth chose to keep their lips sealed and only discussed it among themselves. When the public asked their opinion about it, they would swiftly act like they did not believe it.


    This way, the number of competitors to gain Duan Li''s secret method of supreme power could be reduced drastically.


    It was like the saying that no hundred man could possibly share a single apple!


    ...


    3 days had passed by now and Duan Li that was currently cultivating in the gazebo inside his residence court has already recovered half of his full strength!


    Still, he found that the rate of healing was becoming slower the more he recovered. This was because of the modification he made onto his meridian channels and pathways that was not natural for the body. By his estimate, he would need at least a month to recover to his full strength!


    Although it was slow, at least it was much better than his previous estimate of 3 months recovery!


    In his free time, he decided to read the various books inside the Wisdom Stone that he got from the Principal. To his surprise, he was able to assimilate the knowledge inside each book as if eating and drinking water!


    Right now, his comprehension of skill arts evolved into another level, and he integrated all the knowledge that he learned into his Nine Legends edition skill arts!


    At this moment, he felt that the current him could take on Cao Tengfei even without the help of the mysterious pearl to slow down time! He even refined the Doomsday Calamity fist to become even more potent. However, he dared not to use it ever again until he was in the Golden Core realm at least.


    Just as Duan Li was about to go to the restroom to relieve himself, Liu Sheng Juan suddenly appeared in front of him by tearing open space. This Director of the Jiu Bank company had become a bit more casual with him, although his arrogant and frosty expression was never-changing, despite knowing that Duan Li was now their Imperial Overseer.


    "I have news about your mother." he said.


    After the coronation ceremony ended a few days ago, Duan Li inquired on why his mother was not present, and the Emperor told him that she was nowhere to be found when he sent someone to invite her over. This caused Duan Li to become worried and tasked them find her whereabouts.


    "She was last seen by someone called Grandma Ying, and her expression at that time was grave." Liu Sheng Juan paused for a moment before continuing on, "She mentioned that her sister was in trouble, and after buying some travelling supplies, she disappeared the day after!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised.


    Mother had a sister? That''s the first time I ever heard of this!


    "Did Grandma Ying said anything on where my mother could be heading to?" he asked curiously.


    Liu Sheng Juan paused again before answering,


    "One of the forbidden regions in the Tian continent... Forest of Slumber!"


    ...

 Chapter 303 - Indignant!

    "Forest of Slumber?" Duan Li raised his brows as the name felt familiar to him before he thought deeply, trying to uncover any sorts of information of the place from his future recollection before he shook his head.


    Not good, I can''t seem to remember anything about the place!


    "That''s right. It''s a forbidden region in the South of the Jiu Empire. As to why it was called as such, its because of the natural environment, or specifically, all the living plants there constantly released numerous types of pollens!" Liu Sheng Juan replied.


    He then explained that the pollens were so small to the point that just breathing in the air would inhale hundreds of different types of pollens at once! This was fatal to any living creatures that was not local to the environment as the pollens were mostly poisonous!


    In fact, there were cases that some of the pollens could infect and control the host like a parasite!


    The only known way to enter the forest and survive was to not breath in the air. As for cultivators, they also must not breath in the spiritual Qi in the area as some pollens could enter through the pores!


    For cultivators, not breathing in and absorbing spiritual Qi for some time was not a problem as long as they were not engaged in a fight. All it would do to them was at most a significant reduction to the rate of Qi cycle in their body. However, the Forest itself was home to some multitudes of ravenous monsters of 2 stars and above, therefore fighting against such beast was always part of the equation when one entered the forest.


    This was the main reason why it was named as the Forest of Slumber, unless one was really an expert in self-preservation, it would become the eternal resting place for those that entered!


    "Are you thinking of going after her? I don''t think that''s a good idea. Besides, your mother is one of the most tenacious woman I ever know, and it would take more than a forest to bring her down." Liu Sheng Juan calmly said. "This is especially the case after you managed to resolve her long-time affliction from the Demiruke''s virus. She was a barbaricly strong woman before, and now that she had regained her strength, I am more worried that she would burn the whole forest down instead." he added with a sigh.


    Hearing this, Duan Li''s face turned red in embarrassment. Knowing his mother, she might really go overboard and destroy the nature in a fit of anger if she was annoyed!


    "How about this then? We will inform the patrols in the southern border to look out for your mother. Once she was found or returns, we will be able to know by then." Liu Sheng Juan suggested. But seeing that Duan Li was still worried, he continued on, "If you are still worried, why not give it a week''s time? If she still did not return by then, you can go after her."


    Duan Li pondered for a moment before nodding to his suggestion.


    "Good. It would be inconvenient if you were to suddenly depart to somewhere else. After all, you have just been crowned as the Imperial Overseer so you have some things to do." Liu Sheng Juan then took out a jade slip as he handed it to Duan Li.


    "Inside that jade slip are the list of things that you should complete in a week''s time. Go through them one by one and if you are not sure on what to do, you can always contact Bian Tianyu. He''ll be able to advise you with Zhang Xi."


    Receiving the jade slip, Duan Li''s brows twitched as he browsed through the contents.


    "There are so many..."


    He almost bursted down into tears. He hadn''t imagine that being the Imperial Overseer was something like this. It looks like this Liu Sheng Juan fellow was really calculative and had prepared all these lists beforehand!


    He thought that as someone sitting at the very top of the hierarchy, he would only have to instruct others to do his biddings. But who would have thought that he had to do all the cumbersome stuff such as listening to the whims of nobles and citizens, as well as settling disputes of influential people and putting down stamps of approval for everything else?


    What the heck is this? Isn''t this supposed to be the job of the Emperor?


    Don''t tell me this is the reason why he wanted to make me the Imperial Overseer?


    Clutching at his hair, Duan Li was about to go mad before he recalled something.


    "Hang on...!"


    With a flick of his finger, a golden talisman appeared on his right hand. This was the Ethereal Golden Talisman that he got as a gift for defeating his clone back in the second region!


    "If I remember correctly, he said that this thing can produce my clone?" Duan Li cupped at his chin.


    Let''s give it a try!


    Injecting his spiritual Qi into it, the golden talisman shone bright with a golden color before bursting into flames. This flame then enlarged itself before morphing into the shape of a human!


    Looking at the newly formed figure, Liu Sheng Juan could not help but to widened his eyes a little in shock.


    "Is that.. a clone?"


    He previously had considered the possibility that Duan Li would have the means similar like this to shirk his responsibility away, and he planned to reject such an idea outright from the start. After all, a clone was far too lacking to do a proper desk job with their low level intelligence.


    Furthermore, what if high profile envoys from the other empires were to come, wanting to seek audience with him? Those experts would surely be able to tell the difference between a human and a clone! If they were to be offended, wouldn''t that be creating unnecessary enemy?


    However, the clone standing still before them with a solemn look to it right now appeared to be very life-like!


    In fact, even when he scanned it with his Soul Sense, he couldn''t tell the difference between the two!


    "Hello clone!" Duan Li greeted the other party with an excited face.


    The clone stared at Duan Li for a while, scanning him from top to bottom before it furrowed its brows together, seemingly to be in displeasure.


    "What do you want?" the clone replied with a serious tone.


    Hearing such a cold reply from the other party, Duan Li''s lips twitched. Then, he was stunned silence for a while.


    "What''s wrong?" Liu Sheng Juan asked curiosly.


    "It seems that... we can connect to each other''s thoughts!" Duan Li answered as he finally comprehended something.


    No wonder he felt displeased, it turns out that it had read my mind!


    "You guys are able to share your thoughts together?" Liu Sheng Juan was once again surprised.


    It was fortunate that he had prepared himself mentally to never be too shocked with Duan Li''s means, ever since the day he knew the other party was able to cultivate all three dantians. As far as he knows, no matter how delicate one made their clone were, clones would never be able to emulate their original perfectly!


    "Hmph. That much is a given. I am an artifact at the God-level tier after all. We can not only share our thoughts, but we can practically communicate with each other over vast distances, as long as we are in the same dimensional space anyway." the clone harrumphed as he replied to the obvious question posed by Liu Sheng Juan as if looking at a fool.


    He then threw a suspicious look at Duan Li. "However, what I do not understand is that how someone lowly like you were able to possess something as rare as me... are you a thief?"


    "Ah? You dare to accuse me as a thief? I''ve beaten the a*s of someone of your kind before, do you want to give this daddy a try too?" Duan Li said in exasperation.


    Just what is up with clones? Why are they more overbearing than the original? Is this normal?


    Even calling me lowly! I''m your damned original you fool!


    I''m extremely indignant right now!


    Hearing this, the clone was visibly surprised. "You are able to beat a clone like me?"


    Seeming to be untrusting of Duan Li''s words, the clone dived into Duan Li''s memories before a gasp could be heard.


    "He really was able to beat one of my species!" he looked at Duan Li as if staring at a ghost.


    As a God tier artifact, they were originally crafted to be more powerful than their original counterpart as they could emulate everything as long as one was below the realms of an immortal. They were normally used to replace powerful figures that stood at the apex of the thousand worlds within the mortal realms. This was because some people would sometimes lose their minds once they no longer found joy in being the strongest one in their world.


    Most of the time, these people would either go on a killing spree before ending their own life once every single living being died under their hands, while the more sinister one would conduct a demonic ritual to sacrifice millions of people in order to break through to become an immortal. At such cases, the Heaven''s Will committee would usually step in to save the world by replacing them with a clone like him.


    To date, there was no one that was able to beat a clone of his species, but he was staring at one right now!


    By the looks of it however, this original of his had to pay an extremely heavy price for it!


    "Hmph.. fine! I, Utmost Being, gives you the permission to be my original!" the clone declared as it clasped its hands behind its back, raising its chin upwards to look at Duan Li with a higher eye level, as if looking at a dirty person.


    "..." Duan Li and Liu Sheng Juan.


    ...

 Chapter 304 - Utmost Being!

    "You... you want to call yourself the Utmost Being?" Liu Sheng Juan that was always composed almost choked on himself.


    Isn''t this clone a little too overbearing with its naming?


    Usually, formidable experts in the world would want to be nicknamed uniquely so that they can be differentiated from the others such as, Night Monarch, Blood Emperor, Red Devil Hand, Tribunal Emissary and others. Although all their names sounded domineering and scary, this clone is on an another higher level!


    To think that it dared to call itself as the Utmost Being... didn''t that practically meant that he stood above all existences in the entirety of the Tian continent?


    Is it not scared of incurring the wrath and ire of others?


    Heck, I felt like I want to pummel him right now!


    Turning his head slightly to glance at Liu Sheng Juan by the corners of his eyes, he replied with a frown, "Is there anyone else that deserves to be called as such? If so, let me meet that person and challenge him or her to a life and death duel!" he said as he puffed his chest proudly.


    Pu!


    Duan Li could no longer take it and and made some dry coughs to interject the other party.


    "Hey! Let''s focus on the objective here shall we? You can call yourself whatever you want, but don''t make troubles out of empty air and implicate me and my image!" Duan Li said sternly.


    This clone... he was only formed just recently, but as if born from a bad egg, he wanted to cause ruckus right off the bat!


    What life and death duel?


    Sure, you might be the strongest existence right now in the Tian continent, but you can only be this smug and cocky because you copied my overbearing prowess that can shatter the Heavens and implode the nine skies!


    Shouldn''t that nickname belonged to me instead?


    Cough! Cough!


    Duan Li''s clone harrumphed and closed his eyes when he read Duan Li''s thoughts.


    A chick follows the chicken after all!


    "By objective, do you intend to make this clone of yours replace you?" Liu Sheng Juan asked directly.


    "En! Although his personality and attitudes are not as humble as mine, I can guarentee that he is at least a perfect copy of myself in physiology and strength! Furthermore, we can exchange thoughts almost instantly so you can relay important information to me via him." Duan Li answered with a nod.


    Hearing this, Liu Sheng Juan cupped his chin and pondered for a while before nodding as he ignored Duan Li''s humble bragging. "Fine. Even my senses could not detect anything out of ordinary from him. With that being the case, I''m sure that others wouldn''t be able to sense anything as well."


    Duan Li could finally sighed in relief. What he said was all true and that this clone of his do really possess all of his combat capabilities and skills! In fact, the clone was actually even stronger than him right now by a huge margin!


    After all, when the clone made a copy of himself via his spiritual Qi, through their thought sharing process, he was able to understand that his clone was literally him in his perfect uninjured state!


    To give a perspective as to how strong that was, he was already able to fight on par with Cao Tengfei who had stepped into the Early Stage of the Escaping Mortality realm with only 30 percent of his full capabilities. In his hundred percent stable condition, he had conquered Queen Levy which was at the Pinnacle stage of the Escaping Mortality realm before!


    "Alright, wait for a moment as I construct a spatial portal for you..." Liu Sheng Juan said. But right after he finished that sentence, Duan Li''s clone, the Utmost Being snorted, "You are saying?"


    With a flick of his finger, a spatial portal appeared right before them.


    Weng!!


    This had Liu Sheng Juan''s eyes almost popped out from its sockets.


    "S-Spatial arts? When did you..." he stuttered in between his words with his expression in disbelief.


    Spatial arts has always been both elusive and exclusive skill arts that not just anyone could learn!


    Take for example the Jiu Empire, how many people was able to use the spatial arts? To date, according to the people Duan Li met, only Bian Tianyu - the Principal of the Jixue Knights Academy, Jiu Xian Ping - the Emperor, Ancestor Zong - the Millennium Yidara Tree and himself!


    To his knowledge, the other party hadn''t yet learned any skill related to the spatial arts!


    Thus, how could this possibly be?


    "Ah! From the Wisdom Stone that the Principal lend to me, I was able to search for the manual books of this particular skill!" Duan Li replied.


    "The Wisdom Stone?" Liu Sheng Juan furrowed his brows, unconvinced.


    Even if that was the case, although the Wisdom Stone copied everything inside the library as a softcopy, the spatial arts contained within it was only theories at best!


    As for the actual manual book for spatial arts, there exist only one right now in the Jiu Empire, which was currently stored in the Emperor''s spatial ring for safekeeping!


    Did this fellow stole it from His Majesty?


    Noticing the suspicious look the other party was giving him, Duan Li explained, "Through the numerous theories depicted in the manual books regarding Spatial arts, I was able to analyze and deduce the correct method to at least be able to create a spatial portal two days ago when I was bored..."


    "..." Liu Sheng Juan.


    You learnt it when you were bored?


    Peng!


    A sudden headache assaulted his brain at this moment and he almost collapsed to the ground as his kneecaps were failing him.


    The sheer complexity of learning Spatial arts was not for the faint-hearted. In fact, the requirements were actually pretty strict!


    Firstly, unless one was at the Pinnacle Stage of the Nascent Soul realm, one would never be able execute even the most simplest form of Spatial arts! After all, it was said that Spatial arts was actually an exclusive skill of the immortals!


    According to the legends, one day, a kind-hearted Immortal descended onto the mortal realm to cultivate his state of mind by observing the mundane life of the mortals. Throughout his journey, he eventually decided to become a servant of an expert while keeping his identity a secret. This Lord of his was very fond of his grand daughter and when she was sent to a Sect, the Lord would cry every night worrying about her.


    Coming to an epiphany by watching this every night, this Immortal was able to conceptualize a certain mysterious skill. To thank that Lord, the Immortal gifted him a simplified version of Spatial arts!


    From there, the Spatial arts was eventually disseminated throughout the Tian continent overtime, but only people that stood on the top of the power ranking in the world would be able to possess the means to obtain at least a partial true copy of the Spatial arts, while the rest could only dish out possible theories on it!


    Liu Sheng Juan himself had to temper his state of mind and understand a few extraordinary conceptualization about space and time before he was finally able to use spatial arts, and it took him a good few years to be able create a spatial portal!


    Yet, to think that this fellow in front of him was able to learn it a few days ago, not to mention that the reason was because the other party was bored...


    Heavens! I know that he is the chosen one, but could you at least make the difficulty fair for us that are struggling everyday?


    Hais!


    Forget it! This person even dared to play around with his three dantians and successfully cultivated them without becoming a fool...


    Exhaling a deep sigh, Liu Sheng Juan gestured, "Alright, then let''s head over to the Imperial Palace first together. The Emperor must at least know about this." He then waved his hand to create a spatial portal of his own.


    Duan Li scratched his head in embarrassment, "Clone, make a spatial portal for me!"


    "Ah? You injured dog, this is why you shouldn''t play with fire back then! You are embarrassing me with your handicapped abilities!" Utmost Being said with a displeased tone.


    Why is his original so unreliable?


    "Shut up! You are my clone! How dare you talk to me that way!" Duan Li barked out.


    "Big deal, what can you even do about- ahh!!" Utmost Being was just about to scoff in disdain before a crushing pain struck at his crotch! It felt as though his b*lls were being crushed!


    He forgot that Duan Li could punish him with a single thought as clones were derived from the spiritual Qi of their original. This was a countermeasure against clones that sometimes grew rebellious with their unstable and random personality upon birth.


    Seeing this farce, Liu Sheng Juan slapped his forehead, "Can we go now? I don''t have all day and have some business to attend to after this..." he said helplessly. He felt as though he was baby-sitting two children!


    "Hmph! You are embarrassing us! Hurry up with the portal already!" Duan Li bellowed angrily.


    "Fine!" Utmost Being replied indignantly before flicking his index finger, creating another spatial portal for Duan Li.


    This original of mine is too uncouth and barbaric, to be so forceful with his means!


    And so, the trio entered their respective spatial portal...


    ...

 Chapter 305 - Angry!

    Inside the Imperial Palace in the throne room, the Emperor and the Empress were both seated beside each other in their respective throne. Right now, they were taking a break from their usual schedules of meeting with various clan leaders, nobles and influential people.


    Hais!


    With a deep exhalation of sigh, the Emperor raised his head and a look of longingness could be seen reflected on his noble face.


    "I have never dreamed of being able to purge away these menial tasks to someone else before. At last, it finally came true!" he said emotionally with clenched fists.


    When he was young, he was so eager to play the role of an Emperor. As it was the highest rank of hierarchy that one could get in the Jiu Empire and comes with many benefits, he thought that he could instruct others to do his work. But alas, he was too naive! The old saying remains true, ''With power comes responsibility'', and even the Emperor could not escape from this!


    Heck, if not to maintain his dignity and honor as the Emperor, he would bellow out ''Shut up, pack your bags and go home!'' to those people that came to meet him everyday ceaselessly!


    His ears almost grew deaf hearing complaints non-stop since his ascension to the throne, and his mind was tired of having to think creatively for solving difficult situations every time. It was fortunate that his wife, Empress Yu Yan, or most commonly known as Empress Dowager to the people, was a smart woman.


    After all, 80 percent of the issues that made him troubled was settled by her and her advisor, Advisor Chen!


    To the eyes of the public, they might only see her as a decorative and extremely beautiful woman to fill in the seat of an Empress, but no one knows best on what she was truly capable of than him!


    If not for his wife, then the political issues of the Jiu Empire would eventually piled onto one another until it reached the ceiling like a collapsing mountain, which by then would be too late to solve, creating political instability in its wake!


    In fact, the reason why all the powerful clans in the Empire could go along so well with the nobles was mostly attributed due to her personal arrangements behind the scenes. To the top echelons of these influential group of elites, the Empress was like a deterrence that balances the advantage on each side, giving benefits to all.


    Therefore, since everyone could get a slice of the pie continuously, why bother to create a scene and risk everything?


    However, it was not as if everything could go so well due to the Empress'' means alone. This was the resulting passive effect or power of advanced and functioning society where laws were strictly adhered to and enforced! Not only that, public image was now much more important than millenniums ago. One individual could be powerful and massacre anyone that offended them, but what use was power, influence and wealth without the people to flaunt it at?


    If everyone was dead, what difference would it make if the last person standing was as weak as an ant or as strong as the gods? Who would it impress? Nada!


    Indeed, the first founding ancestor could be said to be the father of their modern society for creating the foundation through introducing modern concept and philosophy of wealth. Without him educating the people with these ideas to be practiced generation after generation, perhaps the people would have still sticked with the barbaric ways where battle power meant everything!


    A world suspended in eternal classic!


    After recalling the great achievement of the founding ancestor, the Emperor could not help but to only feel respect for the latter!


    As for his achievement, well...


    Crowning Duan Li as the Imperial Overseer should be it!


    "Yu Yan, why do you look so troubled?" he asked after he noticed that this wife of his was a lot more silent than her usual self these past few days.


    "You are definitely hiding something from me!" the Empress quickly replied as she cast a sharp gaze on him, appearing to demand an answer straight away.


    Pu!


    The Emperor made a few dry coughs as he choked on himself.


    "This..."


    He truly did not know where to start. Knowing his wife, even if he explained it, he wasn''t sure that she would believe him. Besides, there seems to be repercussions if more people were to know about the future. Artifacts of time, or incongruency in the events that were supposed to happen, could lead to many new issues that might be beyond their capabilities to handle!


    Just as he was perplexed as to how to answer his wife that grew increasingly impatient, three spatial portals appeared before them.


    Wengg!!


    From these three spatial portals, came out Liu Sheng Juan, Duan Li, and what seems to be another Duan Li.


    "Paying respects to the Emperor." Liu Sheng Juan bowed a little as part of the formality. As for Duan Li and his clone, they don''t seem to be too bothered in the presence of their Emperor.


    This was especially the case with Duan Li''s clone whom self-titled itself as the ''Utmost Being''. At this moment, the latter seemed to be staring intently at the Emperor and Empress that sat on the throne casually, judging them in his mind.


    By the looks of it, they don''t intend to greet me as their Imperial Overseer...


    He was displeased and was about to say something barbaric when Duan Li glanced at him menacingly.


    "If you dared to utter nonsense, I will really rip your b*lls off!" Duan Li said inwardly.


    Since they both could exchange thoughts, when Utmost Being heard this, he harrumphed and looked to the other side lazily while rolling his eyes.


    "Liu Sheng Juan, why are there two... Duan Li?" the Emperor said with a confused expression. He immediately scanned both Duan Li the moment they appeared with his Soul Sense, but to his astonishment, he found them both to be completely identical!


    What''s going on? Could Duan Li possibly have a twin brother?


    "This here with the earring on his right earlobe is the real Duan Li, while this other fellow here, whom wanted to identify himself as the ''Utmost Being'', is Duan Li''s clone." Liu Sheng Juan replied calmly, appearing to no longer be fazed by it.


    Cough! Cough!


    The Emperor and Empress felt like their lungs stopped working for a moment.


    The other party is his clone? Formidable! We can''t even detect anything out of the ordinary between them!


    But to dare call itself the Utmost Being? Isn''t that courting death?


    Duan Li then raised his hand forward on top of his head as if greeting at his old buddy, "Hello your Majesty! Please don''t mind this clone of mine, his personality is a little bit off." he said with a disappointed tone.


    Everyone in the room went silent after hearing this.


    As if you''re the one to talk..


    "I made him because he will replace me as the Imperial Overseer in my absence. As for any trouble in doing so, don''t worry because he is a complete copy of me, plus we are able to communicate instantly as well through our minds!" Duan Li continued.


    The Emperor stared at them both for a long time before sighing helplessly.


    He talked as if this was something normal and casual...


    "I see... you know what you should do right?" the Emperor replied and asked a bit awkwardly.


    Utmost Being that appeared to be disinterested previously then answered, "Yeah, doing what was supposed to be your job right? I got it." he said in a sarcastic tone with his chin up.


    Pu!


    The Emperor choked slightly upon hearing that remark and waved his hand, "What are you saying? Since there are now two rulers in the Empire, naturally the workload must also be split into two right?"


    In his mind, he felt a bit indignant being directly called out like that. However, it was in fact the truth. Denying it vehemently would only make himself look pitiful.


    "Enough of this farce!" the Empress could finally tolerate it no more and exploded in rage!


    Boom!


    Her cultivation realm flooded the throne room with the suppressing aura of a Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm expert, causing others to sweat and their hearts to palpitate slightly.


    However, Duan Li and his clone appeared to be unfazed by her aura at all.


    The latter then gave out a short burst of laughter.


    "Farce? Indeed... let me tell you what a farce this is!" Utmost Being threw her a cold gaze and released his own aura.


    BOOMM!!


    The Imperial Palace immediately quaked as if earthquakes had struck the Jiu Empire, causing the throne room to tremble and the ceiling to crack!


    Stepping forward one step at a time with his hands clasped behind his back, his aura grew increasingly heavy as he continued, "First, you schemed against my original without knowing what he did for the Empire. Second, you didn''t apologize and appeared to hold a grudge against him instead for foiling your plans. Third, he and I are the Imperial Overseer and we stood above you in terms of seniority. As you can see, this is truly a farce. Where are your proper respects?"


    By that final sentence, Utmost Being was already standing in front of the Empress while looking down on her with a frosty expression.


    "Your meager showcase of power... is insignificant!"


    ...

 Chapter 306 - Secret revealed!

    Ku!


    "Y-You!" the Empress widened her eyes in surprise. She had never met anyone that dared to oppose her so blatantly like that before, regardless of their power and standing!


    "How dare you call me you? Impudent!" Utmost Being furrowed his brows and his aura grew even more intense.


    Initially, he was only casually suppressing her through his sheer presence like what Xiqong Wu did during the coronation ceremony. The presence of an immortal was akin to like a lion before herbivores, where their defensive instinct overtook their hosts and commanded them into submission!


    But now, he finally let out a sliver of his malevolent intent!


    BOOMM!!


    Against the aura of someone with the Escaping Mortality realm that bore an ill will, Nascent Soul realm was but an ant. The difference in power level between the two was like the heaven and earth!


    "Ahh!" the Empress finally let out a stifling groan. It felt as though her oxygen was forcefully extracted from her lungs and blood. She felt like she was going to drown soon.


    Seeing his wife being pressured like this, the Emperor''s countenance turned pale, thus he turned to look at Duan Li with a pleading look.


    "Alright clone, that''s enough playing around." Duan Li casually said.


    In reality, he also felt a little incensed over the Empress for being too overbearing despite not amounting too much at all. With him and the clone sharing the same thought process, it was impossible that he did not know what his clone was about to do.


    That means, if he really wanted the other party to not act at all, he would''ve commanded him to stand down and this wouldn''t happen in the first place.


    The fact that Duan Li had let things be for a while showed that he had some discontentment towards the Empress. However, for someone like him, it would be inappropriate to lash out personally. Since his clone was more direct, why not let him do it in his stead?


    "Hmph. Remember your place woman." Utmost Being scoffed in disdain before retracting his aura.


    Silently, Duan Li praised him inside his mind, "You''ve done well to redress my grievances!"


    Cough! Cough!


    Seeing that his wife was finally being let off the hook, the Emperor exhaled in relief.


    Although he has nothing but praise for this wife of his, the only flaw in her personality was that she was quite the obstinate person.


    She should''ve realized by now that their status was no longer what it used to be. Despite Duan Li being casual with them, the other party was still their Imperial Overseer!


    In his opinion, what Duan Li''s clone did was just and not overboard. This should reminded her that hierarchy in the Tian continent must be heeded!


    "Please forgive her for this, my wife has been feeling quite down recently. As a result, her mood has been erratic these past few days. I hope for the magnanimity and understanding of Lord Imperial Overseer.." the Emperor said.


    "Very well. Its not as if her frustrations were misplaced anyway. After all, as someone that was used to be in control of the situation to suddenly felt like the rules had changed without her notice, its understandable that one would get depressed." Utmost Being replied impassively.


    Kedeng!


    Utmost Being''s words hit directly at the crux of the matter, causing the Empress to become stifled once more.


    However, after her previous outburst and Utmost Being''s reprimand, her mind became rational once more and she didn''t refute.


    Inhaling a huge breath of air, she finally spoke, "Lord Imperial Overseer is right, I have overstepped my boundaries before in my carelessness. This one asks that Lord do not take it to heart. What this one wanted was only a proper explanation towards the recent happenings.. that was all."


    The Emperor nodded in approval.


    My good Yu Yun, you finally understand the circumstances now!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s brows twitched continuously when he heard their fluent conversation.


    What the heck? How is my clone so formidable to quickly threw them into submission?


    Besides, the eloquence of his speech as well as their response is a bit too formal..


    Why does it feels like I am the clone instead?


    Utmost Being turned to Duan Li, "My original knows better about this subject than me. It appears that there are some memories I could not peer into despite sharing the same thought process. From this, I can deduce that not many people knew about the truth as well."


    The Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan also turned towards Duan Li before nodding.


    If they were to continue their plans without alerting anyone, then they need the Empress to jump onto the same boat as them. Only then can the development of the Jiu Empire be accelerated!


    After all was said and done, the other powers and elite circle in the Jiu Empire could only be moved by her. As for her means, not even the Emperor himself was privy to the details.


    With this, Duan Li stared at the Empress for a long time before opening his mouth.


    "From now on, what you will hear must never be said to another. Other than us, only very few people knows and realize on the graveness of what is to come. Can you promise me this?" Duan Li first said in order to gain assurance with a serious expression.


    "En! On my name as the Empress of the Jiu Empire, I promise!" she said with confidence. Duan Li could see that there was not a slight flicker in her eyes, she was truly serious as well!


    "Good.." Duan Li then began to explain.


    ...


    The more the Empress listened to Duan Li''s words, the more incredulous her expression became. If it were only verbal, she would have definitely thought that everyone was making fun of her and go on a riot.


    But with a visual recording from a jade slip, she could see the destruction of the Jiu Empire and finally, the end of the world!


    After Duan Li finished retelling everything to her, her face was pale, and she finally realized the grimness of the matter!


    "8 years is too short! How are we supposed to tide through such calamity? From what I saw, no amount of defensive countermeasures can prevent such a tragic ending for us!" she said, showing a rare expression of panic.


    "Regarding this matter, Duan Li- I mean the Imperial Overseer here, had already resolved this issue for us. He had lent a huge fortune for us to develop the Jiu Empire accordingly!" the Emperor said.


    "A huge fortune? How can money solve this issue? You saw what happened, we did not even stood a chance!" the Empress shook her head with a weak expression.


    "Yu Yun, calm down. That is then, this is now! No matter how small the fighting chance we could muster, at least this time, we have hope!" the Emperor placated his sad wife with a voice filled with strong confidence!


    "Ancestor Zong had spoken before that Duan Li is the miracle we needed. I have no doubt that his inconceivable means that continued to shock us time and again is because he has a special ability or the sort as the child destined to change the fate of the Tian continent!"


    He continued, "As for what those abilities are, it is not in our place to know. I just have to trust that he will be able to do it. After all, just knowing the future had already significantly altered the predestined events. I fear that if we were to know more than what the heavens allows us, Duan Li might get implicated. If he is in trouble, so are our chance of surviving the calamity!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li was thoroughly surprised and sucked in cold breath.


    An Emperor is indeed the Emperor! He had already guessed that I have special powers even without me hinting anything!


    Duan Li felt his respect for the Emperor to increase significantly. Just from the words that was conveyed, it was obvious that the other party was thinking for the greater good!


    "Then.. what should we do?" the Empress asked as she look towards her husband with an expectant expression, her initial worries started to subside.


    While it was true that she was more intelligent than him, she found that this husband of her''s was always reliable in this important juncture every time.


    Whenever a problem that even she could not solve easily, her husband''s unique perspectives would solve the problem as though it was a simple arithmetic problem!


    This was the reason why she fell in love with him in the first place. Despite being more intelligent in most cases, her husband would score beyond the maximum points for problems that even she could not solve!


    For a woman like her, just being intelligent, strong and influential isn''t enough of a criteria to make her heart waver. After all, the more knowledgeable someone was, the more wary they became.


    She need not a perfect man, but a man that could complete her shortcomings!


    "We need to look at the matter objectively. Since Duan Li is the miracle, naturally he has his own missions to fulfill. As for us, it is already a huge blessing that he appeared in our Jiu Empire! With his help and his wealth, we could at least prepare ourselves with the means to go against the abominations at least!" the Emperor said as his gaze seemed to penetrate the ceiling, the sky, the heavens, the universe and beyond.


    "As for the Sun Dragon in the end, since there is nothing we can do about it, then why worry? I believe our part should be to stop the abominations, while Duan Li will take care of that Sun Dragon somehow! Am I right so far, Imperial Overseer?" the Emperor shot Duan Li with a look as if he had understood everything.


    This made Duan Li''s lips twitched.


    Wait... I have a mission? Why do I not know about it? Am I not doing this for vengeance?


    You guys are going to tackle the abominations while I take care of the Sun Dragon you say? I thought that we are going to do everything together..


    Despite Duan Li''s mind being knocked like an emptied husk, Duan Li still replied with a chuckle as if the Emperor had got everything right.


    "Hehe.. I can''t actually say anything, but yes, you do got the gist of it right." Duan Li said with his hands clasped behind his back.


    Hearing this, the Emperor laughed out loud, "Hahahaha! I thought that I got everything right, to think that there are even more than meets the eye, Imperial Overseer, you are really out of my expectations!"


    Duan Li could only smile as he did not know sh*t what the other party was talking about.


    "Ping-er you really are reliable..." the Empress said with a gentle and seductive voice, rarely heard by others, causing the Emperor to smile proudly.


    This is why I am the Emperor!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li and Utmost Being almost choked on themselves after hearing the nickname of the Emperor.


    How cringy!


    ...

 Chapter 307 - The plan!

    After a few discussions on what Duan Li''s clone, Utmost Being, must do as the Imperial Overseer, they finally talked about what they had done with Duan Li''s money so far.


    "Thanks to your money, we are able to purchase significant resources at four times the quantity from the foreign traders this month than our average last year. This includes herbs, pills, metals, construction materials and the necessary ration to expand our military might. In addition, under the pretext of investment from the Jiu Bank Company, I have managed to secure contracts with the various transportation companies for a joint-venture to build more rails for the airtrains!" Liu Sheng Juan said.


    He was the Managing Director of the Jiu Bank Company, and through his insights of financial regulations and market exchange, as well as his immense influence, he was able to convince every single figure that he proposed the plan to.


    "You invested them into the military?" Duan Li asked in confusion.


    He could understand the rationale to build more access points for the airtrain to travel to, which could be used by both civilians, cultivators or just about anyone to travel to any place within the Jiu Empire quickly. This in turns will speed up business activities and would only benefit the empire greatly in the long run.


    As for investing into the military, Duan Li had a hard time of thinking the proper reason behind it.


    The military consists of cultivators with varying realms and they form the bulk of the fighting power for the Jiu Empire. However, what the empire has right now were mostly average people with average fighting power.


    In other words, quantity over quality!


    In fact, the reason why the military was not sent out to subjugate the recent monster stampede was because their combined strength was far too inferior compared to the students of the Jixue Knights Academy itself!


    While Subjugation Army exists, similar to the Subjugation Squad, and their numbers amount to more than a hundred thousand strong, their cultivation realm were mostly in the Early Stage of the Qi Condensation realm!


    Against monster stampede consisting of 1-star rank that could threaten even the toughest cultivator at the Foundation Establishment realm, the Subjugation Army would only be sent to their deathbed if they were to be sent over to fight!


    After all, not everyone was lucky enough to be able to enrol and become students of the Jixue Knights Academy. Out of the tens of millions of the citizens of the Jiu Empire, more than 90 percent of the population were fated with a Mortal grade potential, which was the lowest grade below the Inception grade, the minimum required to enter the academy.


    In reality, one would be lucky enough just being able to step into the Qi Condensation realm with such a potential in their lifetime since they have to depend on themselves to find the proper cultivation resources to do it.


    This situation wasn''t unique to just the Jiu Empire though, but to all the other eight empires around the Tian continent as well. However, what makes the other empires stronger than the Jiu Empire was because of the number of true experts they have. For example, the number of Nascent Soul realm experts in the Qin Empire was at least 20 times more than the Jiu Empire!


    It''s not as if investing heavily into the military would necessarily overcome their potential, and even if every single warrior with a Mortal grade potential was able to miraculously leap into the Qi condensation realm, a single Nascent Soul realm expert could still slaughter a thousand of them easily!


    Therefore, why did they invest into the military?


    As if being able to read Duan Li''s thoughts, the Emperor chuckled.


    "It might sound quite the useless endeavor, but we have our reasons." he said while smiling.


    "Firstly, the amount of money we have right now is quite staggering, to the point that even if we invest into each sector in the empire, we would still be left with plenty of them to use. It''s not to say that we plan to juice up everybody in the military as that would be unrealistic, but we are conducting a special program to selectively choose among them that passed certain criteria." the Emperor flicked his finger and a paper containing the list of criteria appeared on his hand before handing it to Duan Li to assess.


    "That''s right." Liu Sheng Juan nodded and continued explaining after the Emperor.


    "As you are probably informed, about 90 percent of the military consists of people from humble background with no backing at all. Therefore, although most of them only have Mortal grade potential, there are some with Inception grade!" he said with a slight agitation could be heard from his voice.


    Hearing this, Duan Li pondered for a moment before asking, "I see.. now I''m beginning to understand it, but that''s weird, I thought all the academy in the empire would accept those with Inception grade and above to enrol?"


    In the Jiu Empire, the Jixue Knights Academy wasn''t the only academy to nurture cultivators, there are many others. The only difference was that Jixue Knights Academy graduates has the potential to become Knights in the future!


    The Emperor shook his head, "That''s indeed the case. However, resources in the empire is finite, thus we have imposed quota on the number of students each academy could accept every year. Furthermore, each academy has their own criteria and guidelines in accepting students. Take for example the Jixue Knights Academy where you came from, there are three official trials in which one has to overcome before being accepted as a student of the academy."


    "For those that failed the trials, they are presented with the opportunity to either enlist in the military as a warrior, or to try again next time. However, because the cooldown period for them to do the latter was three years, which by that time they would have grown older and they needed income to sustain themselves and their family, most of them chose to enlist in the military instead." the Emperor sighed.


    The needs of a strong military power couldn''t be underestimated just because experts at the Nascent Soul realm could dictate the lives of a few thousands. After all, there could only be so much an individual could do to protect their empire, not to mention the limited number of Nascent Soul realm experts to cover the vast territories of each empire.


    In addition, if a war between empires were to occur, experts would have to clash with experts of the opposing party. By then, their hands would be tied. This was where the military comes in. Therefore, possessing superior military might was equally important to possessing a lot of Nascent Soul realm experts!


    Contemplating the Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan''s words so far, Duan Li suddenly came to a realization.


    "Wait... are we preparing for war?" his eyes widened in surprise.


    The Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan looked at each other before nodding and replying simultaneously, "We are!"


    CRACK!


    The tile floor beneath Duan Li''s feet suddenly cracked. Upon seeing Duan Li''s face that immediately darkened, the Emperor swiftly explained, "Please don''t misunderstand. We are not going on the offensive! In fact, we only chose to do this after considering a lot of things together."


    Duan Li was enraged to hear that his money was used in preparation for war. After all, war could decimate lands and kill millions of people in its wake! Before the Sun Dragon could descend, perhaps humans might have long perish by their own undoing instead!


    Still, he reckoned that they must have their reasons, so he suppressed his anger and urged them to continue.


    "Explain!" Duan Li''s cold voice permeated the throne hall. This was the first time he acted like this towards them, causing sweats to drenched their backs!


    Gulp!


    By the looks of it, if they were to say something wrong here, there is a high chance that Duan Li would run amok! Who could stop someone that could stood toe to toe with an immortal?


    Liu Sheng Juan took the initiative to start, "I mentioned before that we invested to build more rails for the airtrain right? The moment this project is completed, there is no doubt that the area it touched would prosper in a matter of months, and our economic activity would sharply increase. In this case, the other empires would surely find it weird that our small empire suddenly have the means to become rich overnight. Therefore, what do you think might happen?"


    "Enlighten me!" Duan Li replied, not bothered to answer as he wanted the truth directly from their mouths.


    Noticing that Duan Li was still upset, Liu Sheng Juan continued, "One, they will investigate our source of money for such rapid developments, and I have no doubt that they will uncover that we have several Superior Quality spirit stones. Two, they will start to focus their attention to our empire and three... they might declare war on us!"


    ...

 Chapter 308 - The fellow who is insane!

    "This..." Duan Li was surprised upon hearing what Liu Sheng Juan had to say, and a frown appeared on his forehead.


    Indeed, the other party was right!


    Jiu Empire was viewed to be a backwater nation, not worth a mention at all in the eyes of the behemoth empire like the Wei and Qin Empire.


    For the citizen of the Jiu Empire, they might think that their empire and capital city does not pale in comparison towards the other eight empires. In reality, this couldn''t be any further from the truth. Even their neighbouring empire for example, the Liu Empire, was at least two times more prosperous for those who understands how economic works!


    Therefore, wouldn''t it be suspicious if their Jiu Empire were to suddenly become even more formidable than some of the other empire within a short period of time?


    Regardless of the reasons, others would surely covete whatever treasures they used to develop the Jiu Empire rapidly!


    In addition, with the increasing wealth of the Jiu Empire comes with an even more rapid development, be it in the civil development or the financial sector.


    If the Jiu Empire does not have the required military strength to protect this new capacity of their''s, whose to say that the other empire would not forcefully come to barge at their door and take-over some lands?


    While it is indeed true that Nascent Soul realms experts are the most important assets that an empire could have to protect their interest, at the end of the day, they would only act as a deterrent for the other experts!


    After all, if things were to be settled by experts all the time, then there was no need for an empire to exist in the first place!


    "I understand. So we are boosting the might of our current military strength not to wage war, but to protect ourselves from being declared war against!" Duan Li''s complexion finally softened, and his anger dissipated after knowing their true intentions.


    Both the Emperor and Liu Sheng Juan exhaled a deep breath in relief. If Duan Li decided to run amok, there was nothing they could do to stop him with their power!


    "Based on our estimation, we should be able to complete the first phase of this plan within 9 months!" the Emperor said confidently. However, he was quickly interjected.


    "Nine months is too long! Now that I am aware of this, six months would be more realistic!" his wife, the Empress Dowager Yu Yun harrumphed as she waved her hands grandly.


    With her unfathomable means, she could accelerate some things just by having a ''chat'' with those involved in the projects.


    They then continued on with the details of each of their projects, to which Duan Li''s head was sent spinning as he listened to them talking. He was someone with a humble background, so how could this meticulous subject was something within his capabilities to understand?


    Surprisingly, his clone, Utmost Being, was of the most interested and seemed to be listening intently, even interjecting sometimes and asking powerful questions that left even Liu Sheng Juan stumped. Fortunately, since they both shared the same thoughts, what the other party comprehended was translated into much more simpler ideas so that Duan Li could understand at least the gist of everything they were discussing.


    ...


    After a few hours, Duan Li felt like his attention was wandering somewhere else and he almost fell asleep. Therefore, he excused himself early and left everything in the hands of Utmost Being, since the latter was replacing him anyway. He then returned back to his residence court to rest, only to find familiar faces waiting for him at the entrance.


    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!" three people said in unison as they cupped their fists together and bowed.


    "Eh? Wang Dong, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu? What are you guys doing? There is no need to be so formal!" Duan Li quickly waved his hands as his face reddened in embarrasment.


    Upon hearing this, the trio looked at each other visibly in surprise.


    Honestly, they thought that Duan Li''s personality back then was only a cover so that his real identity did not get exposed. They were already mentally prepared that the other party would start to treat them coldly, given his high status as the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire, and it would be perfectly normal to them.


    However, they truly did not expect that Duan Li''s personality did not even change the slightest!


    Subconsciously, they felt relieved. They were already friends before, so if things started to become distant, it would be awkward just to meet with each other like this, much less talking about a certain matter that they had already made up their mind before coming here today.


    "Hahahaha! If Brother Duan Li truly meant that, I won''t stand on ceremony then! Come! Come! Let us talk inside!" Wang Dong laughed out loud as he gestured for them to enter Duan Li''s residence.


    At the sight of this, Duan Li''s brows twitched and he felt the urge to kick the latter.


    Am I the guest? or you are? Why does it seems like this residence is yours?


    Nevertheless, they still went inside. Sitting cross-legged on the floor mat around a coffee table, Zhang Liao began the conversation.


    "Brother Duan Li, we truly did not expect that your identity is as so. If we have wronged you in any manner before, please forgive us."


    Duan Li chuckled at the mention of this and replied, "What could possibly be wrong with the interaction between friends? In fact, I am glad to get acquainted with people from another empire."


    "Hahahahaha! Brother Duan Li is truly magnanimous! As expected of the most formidable expert in the Tian continent!" Wang Dong immediately said while laughing.


    He was truly lucky this time around. With Duan Li, he felt like his future would be smooth sailing from now on!


    On the other hand, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu almost choked themselves upon hearing such blatant compliments from Wang Dong.


    Even a fool would realize that there are ulterior motives behind those exaggerated words of his!


    Hais!


    Why did we befriend an idiot like him?


    Contrary to their expectations, Duan Li was scratching his head embarrassingly.


    "To be truthful to you Brother Duan Li, we came here with one goal in mind; and that is to learn cultivation from you!" Lu Bu said, not mincing words as Wang Dong had directly pointed their intentions anyway.


    "Indeed. Specifically, the method to cultivate the other two dantians inside our body!" Zhang Liao nodded grimly before he continued, "Of course, we are not asking this for free. In fact, we will owe you a favor in the future for this. In addition, not to sound boastful, but we have quite the background to ourselves back in our empire."


    "That''s right! Should Brother Duan Li request something of us in the future, you only need to look out for us!" Lu Bu added with an expectant look to him.


    At this moment, Wang Dong also said his piece, "Brother Duan Li, even though my background is not as astonishing as theirs, but if you just say the word, then the people of the Wang Clan will rally under you at anytime. After all, I''m just a lowly figure in my clan who happened to be the next successor in line of the Clan Leader! hehehe!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li and the rest choked on themselves.They were thoroughly surprised with his revelation!


    This fellow!


    How is that not astonishing? You are practically the young master of an entire clan!


    Noticing that his humble-bragging ambush had worked as intended, he laughed out loud in satisfaction!


    Hais! I am truly the greatest!


    "It''s not that I am unwilling to impart you three on the cultivation method, but as of this moment, other than myself, I don''t think that there is anyone that could succeed using my method..." Duan Li slowly said.


    After days of raking in the cultivation knowledge from the Wisdom Stone, he finally realized the incredulity of his method in cultivating his three dantians.


    Firstly, he found out that, while he could instruct his Qi flow to move in certain channels and pathways with a single thought, so as to not induce a reverse in his Qi cycle which would result in immediate fatality, others would have to guide their Qi flow manually if they were to diverge from its natural cycle along the meridians!


    In other words, its not that its impossible for one to start cultivate their second or third dantian, just that its impossible to keep the Qi flow in check to prevent them from crashing against one another!


    Secondly, the process of cultivating dual dantian, not to mention three, requires parallel execution of two different breathing techniques at the same time, at all times, and in sync! For him, he somehow managed to do this even without thinking about it!


    Thirdly, while it is theoretically possible that another heaven-defying genius like him was able to do what he did, sustaining such cultivation practice was another different matter! In fact, other than him, people who cultivate their other dantian using his casual method would have to forget about sleeping, lest they risk of imploding their body in their sleep!


    Duan Li explained how he first cultivated his second dantian in his solar plexus and then the third dantian within his brain. With this explanation, and seeing that Duan Li was being earnest and that there were no lies or trickery in his words, their faces turned pale.


    Is this person before them still human?


    They were already astonished to find out that the other party had cultivated his second dantian out of whim and was not planned out, but they were shocked silly when Duan Li confessed that he did not even know where the third dantian was in his brain, deciding to twirl around his spiritual Qi inside the brain region until he found it...


    Such an act was no different than toying with the god of death!


    No sane human would even dare thinking of doing what Duan Li did!


    This friend of theirs is surely an insane fellow, too tired of living!


    Noticing their bizarre looks, Duan Li thought that they were disappointed and placated them.


    "Brothers, there is no need to worry. At the moment, I am trying to formulate a new cultivation method specifically to let others enjoy and cultivate their second dantian at least!" Duan Li said confidently.


    Hearing this, the trio were jolted out from their daze, "Brother Duan Li, are you serious?" they immediately asked in agitation.


    "En! I think I am very close to completing it, just that I am lacking certain impetus in solving a particular problem.."


    Halfway through his words, Duan Li suddenly felt something as he turned to look at a certain direction.


    "Seems like those bunch of people has finally returned.."


    ...

 Chapter 309 - Misunderstanding!

    Duan Li was connected to his followers by his blood that was coursing inside their body, and this connection only appears to become stronger over time. Right now, he could sense that one by one of his followers just exited the spatial portal connecting the Tian continent to the Eternal Maze!


    "Oh? What''s this?" Duan Li''s eyes suddenly widened in surprise.


    Every single one of them has reached Core Formation realm!


    Even Xiahou Yu that possessed the lowest cultivation realm before was now in the Early stage of the Core Formation realm!


    How in the world did they cultivate so fast? What happen in the Eternal Maze for them to suddenly be this strong?


    Duan Li was so flabbergasted that he forgot he was even more outlandish than his followers.


    "Eh? Where is Wang Xiolun..." Duan Li furrowed his brows before his face suddenly turned pale!


    Oh no! Wang Xiolun is already a Core Formation realm cultivator!


    Realizing this blunder of his, Duan Li''s heart could not help but to become extremely unnerved!


    "I should''ve stopped him back then!" he clenched his fists tight, such that his knuckles made an audible crack.


    The Eternal Maze would send those that entered it according to their cultivation realm, usually an entire realm above their current ones. However, Since Wang Xiolun was already a Core Formation realm cultivator, that means he was not sent into the Second region, but the Third region!


    Even he had not yet been there, so he did not know what sorts of danger the other party would have to traverse!


    "It''s too late... even if I were to enter the Third region now, I might not necessarily be able to find him..." Duan Li pondered for a moment before he exhaled a long sigh.


    Wang Xiolun should''ve known this matter too, but he still entered the Eternal Maze nevertheless. Going by this, he should''ve already prepared and resolved himself...


    Knowing that worrying would be pointless, Duan Li decided to trust Wang Xiolun.


    For now, his priority was locating his mother. Only then, if Wang Xiolun had not returned, would he enter the Third region to find the other party.


    "They are on their way back now..." Duan Li said inwardly as he felt their presence to rapidly approaching him.


    Meanwhile, Wang Dong, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu was utterly confused with the sudden monologuing of Duan Li.


    Who is coming? The mail guy?


    Waking up from his daze, Duan Li turned around to face the trio back, only to found their perplexed expression.


    "My followers will return soon, why don''t we wait for them at the garden near the entrance?" Duan Li said as he chuckled.


    "Ah! So that is the case! Please, Brother Duan Li!" the trio could finally understand as Zhang Liao gestured towards Duan Li to lead the way politely.


    However, they couldn''t help but to find this matter weird. They know of Duan Li''s main class as a Lord, and waiting for his followers to return should be normal. But to welcome them himself?


    Shouldn''t that responsibility be the other way around?


    Although they found this to be weird, they still followed Duan Li to wait his followers by the garden nevertheless.


    ...


    Suuu! Suuu!


    Tap! Tap!


    One by one, Duan Li''s followers returned and entered the residence with a confident expression on their face, and this was despite their clothes seemed to be haggard and their appearance dishevelled, evidence that they had overcome something great. However, their disposition was now more sublime and controlled, as if a blunt sword that was sharpened and put inside a scabbard!


    Duan Li had no doubt that should these followers of his were to engage in a battle right now, he would find that they would be an entirely different individuals than how he knew them a few days ago!


    Impresive!


    Seeing that Duan Li was nodding at them, they knew that the other party was able to gauge their current strength!


    "Hahahaha! Duan Li! I''m now much more stronger than last time! How about we fight right now?" the voice of a man that seemed to be more barbaric than the mountain bandits laughed out. It was Shen Murong that spoke.


    "Impudent!"


    "Know your place!"


    Both Zhang Liao and Lu Bu''s expression immediately warped in fury upon hearing Shen Murong''s words and shouted.


    "Ah? Who the hell are you two?"


    Shen Murong turned his head to stare at the two unfamiliar faces that just cursed at him. He was never a man that placed etiquette before brashness, so he glared at them like those of a hoodlum.


    "You are standing before the presence of your Lord! Not only do you guys not bow or kneel in front of your master, you over there, you even dared to use your master''s name and talk so casually? That is blatant disrespect!" Zhang Liao said frostily.


    In the Tian continent, hierarchy must be strictly heeded. This is especially the case when the relationship was between a master and servants. Yet, to think that there was someone so audacious so as to break this convention right before their eyes...


    Isn''t this guy asking for a beating?


    "What bunch of nonsense are you on about? We are merely followers, not servants!" this time, the one who replied was Xu Rong. While her personality might not be as callous as Shen Murong, her temperament was not much better, a little worse even!


    Additionally, since she was more cultured than Shen Murong, naturally she knew what the other party meant.


    Hearing this, Lu Bu furrowed his brows, "What difference does it make? When you serve under a Lord, you are naturally below them in seniority. To think that you even dare to refute this, which humble background do you come from?"


    "What humble background? Do you even know who we are to be talking like this? Are you guys not afraid of being pummelled to death?" Fei Longwei said, his tone cold.


    These two unfamiliar guest were in their residence, yet they dare to act high and mighty...


    Which one among them does not possess an astonishing background?


    These two people are truly blind!


    "You want to pummel us? Do you even have the capability to do so?" Zhang Liao sneered.


    "Just you two ants? I even dare to play with your grandmother!" Shen Murong grinned as he crossed both arms on his chest, looking absolutely smug.


    Watching this scene abruptly unfolding before him, Duan Li could not help but to become speechless!


    Shen Lu, Wei Wang, Wei Shang and Guo He alternated between being shocked and furrowing their brows when this suddenly happen.


    But...


    Lu Bu and Zhang Liao, for guests to start speaking before the host in this matter like that, isn''t that also not going by the normal convention?


    Fei Longwei and Xu Rong, this two followers of his while actively arguing back, was still being polite..


    But as for this fellow Shen Murong here, he is basically itching for a blood-fest to happen right now!


    And you Xiahou Yu, why are you eating that fried chicken drumstick by the shade of the tree? Are you a spectator? When did you even get there?


    ...

 Chapter 310 - Complex friendship!

    "Calm down! Why is everyone fighting so suddenly?" Shen Lu could no longer watch by the sidelines and intervened. As a strategist, knowing when to jump into the fray at the most crucial moment was but a basic skill that he had already mastered.


    "This two brother here, may we know your name? It doesn''t seem to appear that you guys are from the local populace around here..." he said as he stared right onto the duo with a calm and amiable smile. While this sentence of his might sounded ordinary, it had already elevated themselves into the moral high ground in this dispute.


    After all, it could be translated as ''You guys are not from here, so what do you know about us?''


    "Hmph! At least there is somebody here that still knows how to be polite! Indeed, we are not from the Jiu Empire. I am Zhang Liao from the Wei Empire and this is Lu Bu from the Qin Empire! We are your Lord''s friends." Zhang Liao answered while placing his hands behind his back, his expression softened.


    It is always great to be able to converse with those who thinks first before they speak!


    "Wei and the Qin Empire?"


    Shen Lu''s heart trembled a little upon hearing this, but he didn''t let it appear on his face. Instead, continuing with his smile, he stepped forward and bowed a little.


    "So it is Brother Zhang Liao and Brother Lu Bu! Please don''t mind them, this is all but a big misunderstanding!" he said, trying to placate the situation.


    However, how could it be so smooth?


    "Shen Lu, these two are obviously some cocky fellows! What does it matter if they are local or not? For daring to bare their teeth in front of I, Shen Murong the dragon, I''ll pummel them all the same! Hahahahaha!" Shen Murong laughed out loud, looking unperturbed with his aura spiking gradually, ready for a brawl anytime!


    Despite his brashness, Shen Murong was not a total fool. It wasn''t that he did not recognize that the two standing in front of him were foreign people. In fact, he could even sense that the two were not from any normal clans either, judging by their attire that looks expensive and solemn. Only the powerful clans would distinguish their members as so!


    After all, he was also part of a Great clan himself!


    It''s just that he couldn''t care less about it.


    For someone like him that pursues the very heights of martial arts and cultivation, heeding to hierarchy wasn''t something that would make him really bothered that much!


    Otherwise, despite being in the top prestigious Shen clan of the Jiu Empire, why would he feel the need to become Duan Li''s followers?


    He only respects the strong, and only the strong will he follow! It was as simple as that!


    "HAHAHAHAHA!" someone suddenly laughed out loud in response to Shen Murong''s words, swiftly getting everyone''s attention.


    "I never expected that I will meet another Brother that is almost as overbearing as me here! Brother Zhang Liao and Brother Lu Bu, this person called Shen Murong only listens to the words of the strong like me. I am afraid that he will not back down unless you show him a hint of your true strength!"


    It was Wang Dong, and he couldn''t help but to look at Shen Murong with a look of approval!


    "Oh?" Shen Murong shifted his gaze to look at Wang Dong with an interested look.


    When their gaze met, as if they understood each other''s thoughts, they grinned and swiftly broke into a laughter!


    "If you guys want to fight, do it in one move." Duan Li finally talked after being left by the sidelines like a side character as he sighed.


    "Brother Duan Li, since that is the case, we will not stand on ceremony then. Unless they are qualified, propriety must be strictly uphold! Come, let us trade a single fist above!" Lu Bu beckoned towards Shen Murong as the latter nodded, and they flew to the skies.


    ...


    "Brother, who do you think would win?" Shen Lu asked Duan Li curiously as he stared at Shen Murong and Lu Bu that were closely facing each other at an arm''s length.


    "Eh... I''ve fought them both before and Shen Murong is definitely weaker. But that is before. Now that his cultivation realm had reached the Core Formation realm, maybe they are equally matched!" Duan Li replied honestly. Even he was interested in knowing Shen Murong''s current strength!


    Zhang Liao that heard this by the side furrowed his brows, "Brother Duan Li, I mean no offense by saying these but, don''t underestimate Brother Lu Bu. I''ve never seen or heard him being beaten in terms of physical strength, other than you of course!"


    In response to this, Duan Li chuckled, "Hehe let''s just watch and see!"


    While Zhang Liao might be right, Duan Li himself knew full well the extent of Shen Murong''s physical prowess!


    Everyone then raised their head to look at the two floating figures above them, both radiating out sharp battle intent!


    "Let''s finish this. No skill art, just a pure punch!" Lu Bu said with a confident and indifferent expression. In his opinion, there was no way that he would lose to anyone, not to mention that the other party was only in the Middle stage of the Core Formation realm while he himself was at the Pinnacle stage!


    "Hahahaha! Agreed!" Shen Murong replied with a wide grin.


    Clenching their right fist together, it only took them an instant before they punched out at the same time.


    KABOOMM!!


    The moment their fists clashed with one another, sonic boom exploded out in the sky, causing even the trees below to sway to the side and the grasses to flip furiously!


    Crack! Crack!


    "Hm?!" Lu Bu was astonished that his eyes opened wide. On the other hand, Shen Murong only seemed to snigger!


    Just by this one exchange, they could already understand the physical strength of their opponent!


    "Hmph! It appears that you do have the capability." Lu Bu harrumphed and retracted back his hand, before descending down back to the crowd. Shen Murong shrugged and then followed suit.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Brother Lu Bu, how was it? Is his strength similar to yours?" Zhang Liao could not help but to ask this with an expression of disbelief as soon as the other party landed on the ground.


    "Similar? Far from it! I haven''t even used half of my strength yet." Lu Bu shook his head and replied honestly. "However, he was also the same as me and held back most of his strength!"


    Zhang Liao was once again struck in surprise, but he soon nodded in realization after he gave it a thought.


    The full might of Brother Lu Bu''s punch could even shatter a mountain cliff with a single punch! Perhaps he did not want to attract the attention of the surrounding people...


    That should be the case!


    "Are you guys done? Can I talk now?" Duan Li said as his eyes narrowed and his voice sounding impatient.


    "Huh? Y-yes! We deeply regret our actions for causing such a scene..." Zhang Liao swiftly apologized and used a more respectful tone. Only now did he realized that they had stepped over the line!


    "Its good that you understand. You talk about hierarchy and propriety, but you immediately lashed out at them before I could even speak a single sentence! Even though you two are my friends, that was a little too much when you guys are the guests in my residence, not to mention against my loyal followers at that, don''t you think so?" Duan Li''s words caused these two new friends of his to tremble a little and their face to become pale.


    On the other hand, Duan Li''s followers was all smiles upon hearing this, and they showed a bit of complacency in their smiles!


    "Please forgive our mistakes, Imperial Overseer! We meant no disrespect!" the two of them immediately bowed 90 degrees as they admitted to their wrong-doings.


    While Duan Li was their friend, they forgot for a moment that the other party was also the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire, a standing even higher than the Emperor himself!


    If word were to return back to their empire that they caused such a scene to a person of Duan Li''s status, it will be without a doubt that the Imperial Palace will summon them to get an explanation and punishment!


    "Imperial Overseer?" Duan Li''s followers gasped in unison and turned towards each other. They finally remembered!


    "Don''t tell me... the coronation ceremony has already ended?" Shen Lu said as frustration sunk in.


    The coronation ceremony was something that he had plans for! It was a moment where they could act solemn and stood beside Duan Li while looking imposing to the others!


    But now that such an opportunity was already gone, he could not help but to pull at his hair!


    "You guys are too much! Leaving your Lord here alone when you should be present back then! Even the Emperor himself had asked me the whereabouts of you all!" Duan Li sighed.


    His relationship with these followers of his was quite complicated.


    Xiahou Yu, Shen Lu and the currently not present Wang Xiaolun were both his friends first before becoming his followers. They were the ones who supported him to successfully become a Lord back then and their contributions to recruit the others was something that he will always remember.


    Meanwhile, the others were more of his followers than friends. However, he could not possibly be bias and partial in his treatment, that might lead to some dissatisfaction between them.


    Therefore, the only choice he had to make was to voice out his discontent in front of everyone like this.


    As expected, after hearing this, they felt guilty and lowered their heads. One by one, they began to apologize with varying response.


    Shen Lu laughed it out and apologized directly like friends would between each other, Wei Shang and Wei Wang single kneeled and offered a more formal way to apologize, while Fei Longwei, Xu Rong and Guo He bowed before admitting to their mistakes.


    Shen Murong was still as proudful as ever but still gave Duan Li his apology by saying "Sorry.." which seemed to take everything he had as his face reddened in embarrassment.


    On the other hand, Xiahou Yu did not say anything, but offered Duan Li a full bucket of fried chickens that was labelled ''Premium''. While this action of her''s stupefied everyone and Duan Li almost broke out in a laughter, it was suffice to understand her intentions behind it.


    After all, actions speaks louder than words!


    Only after these was revealed did Zhang Liao, Lu Bu and Wang Dong understood the relationship of the people here with Duan Li.


    "Brother, I''m really worried about Wang Xiaolun! It only dawned onto me that he has a different cultivation realm than the rest of us after we entered the Eternal Maze! What should we do?" Shen Lu asked worriedly.


    "I am concerned as well. But Wang Xiaolun should know this better than us, yet he still entered the Eternal Maze nevertheless. Let''s wait for a while, and if he still did not return, then we shall all depart into the Third region to find him!" Duan Li replied with a resolute decision!


    "En!" the others nodded to this. They felt like it was the best course of action to take for now.


    After all, every cultivator has their own pride, and in the world of cultivation, fortune comes along with peril if one was able to endure.


    "Eh?" Duan Li was suddenly struck by an epiphany!


    Seeing Duan Li''s dazed look, everyone looked towards each other before asking, "What''s wrong?"


    Duan Li clenched his fists tight, and in an agitated voice, he replied;


    "I think I''ve found the solution on how you guys could cultivate your second dantian!"


    ...

 Chapter 311 - Another joined the fray!

    Chapter 304: Another joined the fray!


    "Huh?!"


    Duan Li''s sudden claim had taken everyone by surprise that they immediately swerved their heads to look at Duan Li with widened eyes!


    "Brother, are you saying...?" Shen Lu was the first to react, and he couldn''t help but to clench his fists tight in agitation!


    "Yes! Awhile back, I have already compiled the breathing technique to cultivate the second dantian. However, its impractical to cultivate because it needs at least two people to constantly hold their hands together. A single separation might mean instant death!" Duan Li confessed while lifting one finger up in front of his mouth, his expression grim, as if telling ghost stories to the children.


    Holding hands forever?


    Screw that!


    What if we want to go to the toilet? Would our partner be the one to wash our bottom after taking a dump?


    Wouldn''t that meant that we have to do the same thing as well?


    Just the thought of it sent them trembling in apprehension!


    "With this method, although it would be a bit more painful than tempering your physical body, if you guys endure, your second dantian can be used almost immediately!" Duan Li declared confidently.


    Hearing this, everyone''s eyes sparkled with happiness before their pupils dilated and started to lose focus. At this moment, their dazed look as they imagined the endless possibilities that they could do with cultivating two dantians inside their body had them hypnotized and salivating, appearing no less to those that consumed some prohibited drugs that caused hallucinations.


    "Brother Duan Li, are you willing to impart such priceless cultivation technique to us? I swear that anything you require from me in the future, no matter how difficult it would be, I will comply without uttering a single complaint!" Zhang Liao immediately made an offer as he raised his palm to the sky and made a vow.


    Similarly, Lu Bu did the same thing as well, "The same goes for me! If we were to renege on our promise, may the heavens destroy us!" he said with a solemn expression.


    By the side, Wang Dong finally snapped out from his stupor and joined them, "Brother Duan Li, as the old saying goes, the grass will grow, the ground are brown, the mountains are tall and the oceans are deep! If Brother Duan Li does not mind imparting me such a heaven-defying cultivation technique, then even if you want me to subdue a hundred mistressess and a thousand concubines, I will even resort to kidnapping village girls along with the elders!"


    Pu!


    Duan Li was filled with warmth over Zhang Liao''s and Lu Bu''s vow, but Wang Dong''s conviction almost had him choke himself to death!


    The meaning behind Wang Dong''s sentence was naturally stating that he would do even the impossible if Duan Li were to grant him this favor, and Duan Li understood this


    But ...


    This brazen fellow!


    If you can''t remember anything at all, don''t just construct nonsense out of thin air!


    What hundred mistressess and a thousand concubines? Did you think that I am someone lustful?


    You would even dare to kidnap girls? How about I send you to the authorities right now? And elders? I am beginning to have some suspicion that you have a really weird fetishes here...


    Finally suppressing his stifled chest, Duan Li chuckled a little before replying, "My three Brothers here need not worry, although I think that I have finally solved the problem, I am still lacking the people to test it with, so there is no need to stand on ceremony!"


    Turning towards his followers, Duan Li continued, "As my followers, it goes without saying that I will teach you lot the cultivation technique as well!"


    The crowd somehow seemed to heard something wrong with what Duan Li just said, but because they were all overcome with eagerness, they ignored it. Thus, they swiftly rejoiced and extreme anticipation was clearly reflected on their face.


    "Still, now is not the right time for this as the preparation would take some time." Duan Li said after a bit of contemplation.


    "Brothers, I am afraid that the discussion from now on will only be between me and my followers. As for when I decided to impart the cultivation technique, I''ll let you guys know in the future." Duan Li smiled as he looked towards Zhang Liao and Lu Bu.


    Hearing this, both of them came to an understanding.


    "Of course, Brother Duan Li. We shall come again next time, and please, don''t hesitate to ask our help if you need any in the future. We shall not impose on you anymore today. Farewell!" the duo bowed before exiting Duan Li''s residence.


    Watching their silhouettes slowly disappearing, Duan Li then turned his attention to Wang Dong. Cupping his chin, Duan Li could not help but to have some mixed feelings on this fellow.


    He first met him on the Battle Stadium and the other party had challenged him once, only to retreat in the last second. However, when he was up against Lu Bu and Zhang Liao, this fellow did not back down in the slightest, winning his recognition. In addition, although his personality was weird and eccentric, at least in Duan Li''s opinion, he wasn''t someone that would go overboard.


    "I will teach you the method to cultivate your second dantian if you become my follower!" Duan Li finally made his decision.


    The method to cultivate the second dantian wasn''t something trivial that he could wantonly just pass around like that.


    In fact, this was a revolutionary cultivation technique that would surely threw a huge storm in the Tian continent should it be publicly known! Duan Li by himself wasn''t capable of foreseeing the full implications behind such actions, and he needed advice on how to proceed on his next course of action.


    Until he was sure on what it might do to the world, he will keep his lips tight.


    But as the one who founded such a heaven-shaking cultivation technique, surey he could pick who would be able to learn them in the future at least.


    "This..." Wang Dong was at first surprised that he was being recruited like this. After all, he was someone that will one day succeed the Wang Clan. If he were to follow Duan Li, wouldn''t that make the entire Wang Clan to be at his beck and call in the future?


    Although this perplexed him, he knew that serving Duan Li would only increase his future prospect for sure. After giving it a few more thoughts, he let out a long sigh.


    Forget it, thinking too much isn''t my style anyway!


    Thus, he immediately agree in the next moment, "Very well!"


    "Hahahahaha! Welcome aboard Brother Wang Dong!" Shen Murong was naturally elated as someone of the same species as him had just joined the crew.


    "Hahahahahaha! Brother Shen, let''s get along well!" Wang Dong replied as they both laughed together and shook hands.


    Seeing that the ''new guy'' was already able to make friends on his own, Duan Li nodded before making a dry cough to get their attention.


    Cough! Cough!


    "Alright, how about you guys tell me what you experience in the Second region first? I''m interested to know how you guys fare in there!" Duan Li said, his expression curious. This was also the reason why he sent both Zhang Liao and Lu Bu off as this concerns the secret of the Jiu Empire.


    When they heard this, everyone has a weird expression on their face, as if it was difficult for them to explain. This caused Duan Li''s interest to become piqued even more!


    "Brother, Do you believe me if I were to tell you that I was in the Second region for a whole month?" Shen Lu replied, his face looking melancholic, as if someone that had experienced the vicissitudes of life.


    "A month?! How is that possible?" Duan Li was shocked beyond words!


    How could that be?


    ...

 Chapter 312 - Each and their adventure!

    With a grim expression, Shen Lu continued, "It''s true Brother! Even though we practically jumped in at the same time while holding hands together, in the end, we are all alone as we were transported into the Second region!"


    "Brother, can you imagine the trouble I had to endure? The instant I was teleported in, I was free-falling from the skies! Fortunately, below me was an ocean, so I made a big splash and survived the fall!" Shen Lu began to recount the beginning of his arduous journey.


    "Eventually, I swam and drifted myself to an uninhabited Island. By the distance, I could see two huge volcanic islands, but the damned place won''t even let me fly! As a result, I had to chop a few coconut trees and made myself a raft, braving the huge ocean waves to finally be able to make a landfall!"


    A long sigh could be heard, as if he had sacrificed a huge deal of effort just to get to another island. He then explained that it took him a week to achieve this.


    "It was then that I realized the spiritual Qi in the air was far more denser than in the Tian continent, so I found myself a nice spot atop of a cliff and cultivated for an entire week!"


    He then continued, "It was not after the eighth day that strange monsters started to approach me. They appeared to be like giant lizards with thick scales, and I was prepared to slay them. However, when I sensed their realm, I was left in despair!"


    Shen Lu''s face paled when he reached this juncture in his story, as if the mere thought of recalling these memories almost made him shiver.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li shot his eyebrows upon hearing this.


    Giant lizards and thick scales? Those must be the Komodos...


    "I thought that it was the end, but surprisingly, these huge monsters are strange and not aggressive! They even rubbed their bodies against me! One of them then bit my clothes and seemed to be dragging me somewhere and I was so scared, almost peeing my pants in the process! I thought that it was trying to lure me into their nest so that they can have a feast upon my body, but it was at that point that I recalled your stories Brother! They were those Komodos you were telling us back then!"


    "When I finally arrived to what seems to be their nesting grounds, I found a huge statue erect in the middle! Although the craftsmanship was like a child''s, I felt that it was extremely familiar. Eventually, I found out that its a depiction of you Brother!" Shen Lu stared at Duan Li in disbelief.


    Pu!


    Its me?


    Noticing the incredulous expression on Duan Li, Shen Lu nodded, "I recalled that Brother solved their crisis of the tribal wars right? It must be out of gratitude to Brother that they erected a huge statue of you! Worshipping it as if it was their god! Also, it was precisely at this moment that I stumbled upon Xiahou Yu!" he said with excitement, looks of admiration couldn''t be hidden in his eyes when he looked at Duan Li.


    "En. I saw him and he was actually quite wretched... if not for his voice and calling out my name... I might have mistaken him as an undead and have the Komodos trample over him..." Xiahou Yu by the side nodded.


    "Eh? You guys were able to meet with each other?" Duan Li widened his eyes in surprise. He truly did not expect this.


    What''s going on?


    I thought that the Eternal Maze does not permit them to enter the same area at the same time!


    Wasn''t this the reason why they were separated in the first place, despite entering it while holding hands as they said before?


    "En. But, I was already there for 2 months. By that time, I was able to make friends with the Komodos and could ride them to tour the island." Xiahou Yu replied.


    Pang!


    Duan Li felt his mind to be on a daze!


    Two months? That''s far too long!


    "Oh, I also met Brother Fei Longwei on the second month and Brother Wei Wang and Wei Shang soon after Shen Lu." Xiahou Yu continued.


    This reply had Duan Li even more shocked!


    "In the end, was everyone able to meet with each other?" Duan Li asked, extremely curious as to what these bunch of followers of his did.


    "Yes my Lord! After we stumbled with each other and had a fair share of cultivating for a period of time, me and my little brother here decides to scout the entire island for a way out!" Wei Shang answered.


    He then continued, "We recalled that my Lord told us the exit was to enter the maze which was located at the mouth of the volcano, and halfway to our destination, we met with Guo He! Apparently, he was the one to enter the Second region the earliest! He has been living on the side of the volcanic mountain for a whole 6 months!"


    "What?! Guo He, is this true?" Duan Li quickly turned his sights onto his only Alchemist in this group.


    "Y-Yes! At first, I was extremely scared and had to live inside a small cave for many days, afraid to even come out. But one day, a fragrant smell unlike anything I have ever experienced before attracted my attention, forcing me to leave the cave. When I finally found it, my mind was blowned! It was the Three Chrysalis Yellow plant! Not many people know of it, but this plant was already extinct in this Tian continent!" Guo He answered excitedly.


    "But this was not the ends of my surprise yet. To my astonishment, there was even more extinct plants and herbs growing in the wilds around the volcano! Excited beyond belief, I started to concoct them into pills after pills in a frenzy! It was only when Brother Wei Shang and Wei Wang met me that I realized 6 months had already passed!" Guo He sighed helplessly.


    This was one of his tendency since he was a child. When his mind was focused onto something, he wouldn''t even remember anything else!


    Therefore, he was feeling quite guilty of not making an effort to search for his peers.


    "Brother Guo He, you need not blame yourself on this. It is only because of your countless failed pills that we were able to clear that final trial together in the end!" Wei Shang tapped Guo He''s shoulder with a grateful smile.


    Oh?


    It seems like their friendship has gotten closer!


    Duan Li nodded in approval at this sight. Only by getting closer with each other will this Mysterious Party of his will become stronger in the future!


    On the other hand, Guo He almost broke into tears when Wei Shang described his pills as ''failed pills''.


    Duan Li then turned to Fei Longwei and Xu Rong, "How about you two?" he asked.


    Fei Longwei replied first, "I was cultivating in seclusion most of the time, but I also scoured the islands sometimes."


    "I was cultivating near the peak of one of the volcanic island for a while before I got bored, then I met with Xiahou Yu and stayed with her." Xu Rong answered.


    "I see... Shen Murong, how about you?" Duan Li asked the last person.


    "Hmph! These fellows are so lucky that they went in earlier than me, but wasted their time doing irrelevant stuff. I was only there for about two weeks, but I cultivated everyday at the summit of the volcano until that old man came." Shen Murong harrumphed in dissatisfaction.


    An old man came?


    "You mean the Guardian of the Second region, Dugu Liubai?" Duan Li once again raised his eyebrows.


    To think that he appeared!


    "Indeed. Apparently, he grew tired of watching us doing nothing in his domain and had us grouped together before shoving us into the Maze!" Shen Lu chuckled and explained.


    "After that, we went through the four trials as you did before, but together!"


    "Yeah, I had a blast on the first trial of destroying thousands of those puppets! Hahahahaha!" Shen Murong confessed proudly.


    "In the second trial, me and Xu Rong did most of the work in exterminating the Killerworms," Fei Longwei said.


    "As for the third trial, we had to climb for one whole week before arriving to the top of the mountain and clearing the trial. The questions kept on pestering us non-stop!" Wei Shang gritted his teeth as he recalled that persistent old man in charge of the questions in rage.


    "The final trial almost had us killed though if not for Guo He''s pills! That clone copied everyone''s moves and was even stronger than us! Thankfully, we managed to beat him in the end!"


    Everyone exhaled a sigh of relief. They truly did not expect something as such could possibly exists.


    To be able to copy anyone''s moves... Its simply too terrifying!


    "Ahh that clone, I remember him! Its actually pretty good though you guys managed to win.." Duan Li couldn''t help but conjectured that the clone must had gone easy on them!


    Otherwise, he himself wouldn''t be so heavily injured to the point that he had yet to recover most of his strength even until today!


    Still, from this, Duan Li could identify many more rules of the Eternal Maze that was elusive to everyone, even the Emperor and the Principal before!


    ...

 Chapter 313 - Trouble at the marketplace!

    Before, Duan Li had already realized that time differences between the Tian continent and the Eternal Maze exists. However, it was only now that he knew the time flow to be more complex than he previously expected.


    No wonder those that entered together were still unable to meet with each other... it turns out that the Eternal Maze was able to select random timeframe on when to allow another people to enter!


    "But then, you guys exited at the same time right?" Duan Li asked as he was slowly beginning to understand another mystery of the Eternal Maze.


    "En. That''s right!" Shen Lu replied with a positive nod. Though they exited from the exit portal one by one after completing the trials, they all appeared at the same time outside the gate of the Eternal Maze!


    I see!


    From their stories so far, it seems like if one entered the Eternal Maze at the same time with another, they would also exit at the same time!


    However, they might not necessarily be thrown into the region inside it at the same time together, as was what his followers had experienced.


    While it may be true that the sheer size of the regions may be one of the factor that separated one from another, the time factor should be the most decisive element in doing so!


    "Heh, if that is the case, then the next time we enter, we should do it all together!" Duan Li said, a bold plan appeared in his mind.


    His followers turned to one another before giving a nod, "Alright!"


    As for Wang Dong, though this was his frist time hearing this, he was not someone who would shirk from facing danger, thus he agreed as well.


    No matter what sort of danger they would have to face in the Third region next, as long as they are able to endure for a while and meet up with this sick Lord of their''s, they would be able to throw a huge storm and topple the sky and mountains together!


    "Good! Now that everyone''s cultivation is at the Core Formation realm, you all should strive to reach at least the Late stage before we enter the Eternal Maze once more."


    Cupping his chin, Duan Li thought for a while before flicking his fingers together, and several High quality spirit stones appeared before them!


    Wengg!!


    "Each of you should take 5 of these. I think it will be sufficient to buy the resources you guys need to further augment your cultivation."


    Seeing the piles of High quality spirit stones laying before them, their eyes sparkled and their breathing started to become heavy. Only fools would still be polite and decline to obtain such a massive wealth!


    After all, just one of the High quality spirit stone was enough for them to buy hundreds of stuff and still have some spare change to play around with!


    Therefore with a leap, everyone dashed into the pile of spirit stones to claim theirs like a pack of hungry wolves.


    ...


    The next day...


    "Mother, I hope that you are okay..." Duan Li said inwardly as he sighed, sitting cross-legged at the gazebo in the middle of the lake of his residence court.


    He chose to listen to Liu Sheng Juan''s advice of waiting for a week. If by that time there was still no news of his mother, then he would have no choice but to set out to find her.


    Inspecting his inner body, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction, "I should be able to recover 60 percent soon..."


    "It''s the weekend, what should I do..."


    Duan Li was just about to leave for the toilet before he saw Shen Lu flying by the distance approaching him while waving his hands with a panicked expression.


    "Brother! Brother! You must help Guo He!"


    "Eh? What happened? Did his pills exploded on his face and the ashes could not be washed off?" Duan Li said jokingly as he chuckled.


    "Brother, this is a serious matter! Guo He is being bullied at the market place!" Shen Lu said, his voice in a hurry.


    "Bullied? While he is only at the Early stage, he is still a Core Formation realm cultivator... how could someone bully him?" Duan Li was taken aback when he heard this.


    Shen Lu sighed helplessly, "Hais! We were just hanging out together to buy some herbs when those buffoons appeared and took our spatial rings containing our money! We tried to fight them but we were helpless as their martial arts are too strong!"


    In the public space, skill arts was absolutely forbidden and banned by the authorities as it could damage the public properties through a sealing runic formation underground. Although stronger experts could brute force their way in and use their skill arts, the massive fines prevented them from doing so.


    Therefore, as long as one did not go overboard, fist fights were actually quite a common sight.


    "Ah? Then where are the street patrols? Aren''t they supposed to keep things in order?" Duan Li furrowed his brows, finding this situation to be weird.


    In the case of brawls, the street patrols would usually break off the fights and no one would dare to offend them and resist arrest.


    "Even the street patrols were being beaten black and blue! Everyone could only watch by the sidelines!" Shen Lu replied.


    "What? They even dared to beat up the street patrols? Who are these people? Do they think laws do not exist in the empire? Are they not afraid of being imprisoned?" Duan Li clenched his fists, feeling incensed of the brazenness of the instigators.


    "Unfortunately, those buffoons are outsiders and our laws doesn''t seem to scare them at all! They even said that they don''t care about adhering to the rules and laws of a backwater nation, and they said they came from the great nation of the Doulou Empire!" Shen Lu gritted his teeth as he told all these.


    He was frustrated because he knew this to be true. The laws and regulation of one empire might not be the same as another, and this was a flaw that outsiders or foreign people sometimes exploited when they came to the Jiu Empire. Of course, if they truly made a havoc, the Knights would be dispatched and they would have no choice but to forfeit their lives at that point.


    However, if it was a street fight, it was still tolerable, and even the street patrols could only try to break off the fights slightly. If the outsiders insisted, there was nothing could be done.


    After all, while most empires remained neutral with one another, they loved to showcase their might and superiority against another. If the Doulou Empire were to heard that the Jiu Empire had imprisoned their people for a mere street brawls, even if those people meant nothing to them, it would serve as a reason for them to intervene and be more audacious in their actions.


    At that point, things would truly blow out of proportions then. As a result, these things happens from time to time as the authorities had no choice but turn a blind eye on it.


    Listening to this, Duan Li snorted, "Hmph! The Doulou Empire is it? They are indeed formidable in martial arts, but they dare to be so overbearing in another''s empire? Let''s see how I will teach them, show me the way!"


    ...

 Chapter 314 - I have come!

    "Give back my money! I need those!" Guo He shouted with his face swollen, evident that he had just lost a brawl.


    He didn''t really care about the spatial ring that was taken from him, as it was mostly empty but as for the several High quality spirit stones in it, even if someone were to beat him to death, he would still refuse to give his entire wealth to them!


    "Hah! Your money? How could someone poor like you have this much money? I reckon that you must be a thief! I''m only keeping it until I find the real owner of this money!" replied a young man that looked no more than 16 years old with a short and grey curly hair, his expression looking at Guo He in contempt.


    "You are the one who is a thief! Your whole family is a thief! That money is given to me by my Lord! How dare a hoodlum like you that does not even belong here act as you please! Do you think that you are above the law?!" Guo He retorted with clenched fists.


    He wanted to dash forward and pummel this young man to death, but the other party was protected by his four formidable bodyguards!


    "Damn it!" Guo He cursed inwardly.


    It was just another usual day for him to buy the herbs he wanted in order to concoct some new pills that he had in mind. However, because he wanted to experiment a little in order to create some special variants of it later on, he decided to buy in bulk.


    Unfortunately for him, this young master that was strolling in the market along with his bodyguards, happened to saw him handing out a High quality spirit stone.


    Without even saying anything, Guo He then found himself suddenly being slapped by the other party and cursed as a dirty peasant!


    As a proud cultivator himself, how could Guo He tolerated being suddenly assaulted and humiliated by a little brat?


    From there on, the matter snowballed into a fight between him and the bodyguards of the young master.


    Alarmed and outnumbered, he called out Shen Lu to assist him, but it turns out that the bodyguards was extremely good in martial arts! After that, it didn''t take long for both him and Shen Lu to be beaten black and blue to eat the dust on the ground!


    To make matters even more infuriating, they even proclaimed themselves as practicing superior form of martial arts and that people in the Jiu Empire couldn''t possibly compare to them as someone that came from the Doulou Empire!


    This blatant disdain and disregard towards the local populace had everyone in the market place riled up and called for the street patrols. But alas, even the street patrols were forced to enter the dust bins by the sidewalk!


    "Law? Hahahaha!" the young man laughed at the top of his lungs as he looked at Guo He with derision on his face. "You think laws from this puny empire applies to me? Not to mention that I am a citizen of the Doulou Empire that is not subjected to the rules of another, I am also the son of the famous clan of aristocrat, the Cheng Clan, and my name is Cheng Mao!" he said with a proud look, as if his name was something that could move even the mountains.


    "If I were to be imprisoned in this filthy lands, my father will eventually found me. By that time, if the trade supplies between our empire were to suddenly be ceased, will you be able to bear the consequences?"


    Who cares if this is your money or not? I just want to make trouble in this boring place!


    As if this backwater nation would even dare make a move against me! Hmph!


    "You smelly-mouth brat! Who cares about your father! I don''t even care if your uncle is the Emperor of the Doulou Empire, they mean jack-sh*t to me! Now hand over my money, or else you will regret it!" Guo He harshly reprimanded.


    In his opinion, since the other party dared to be brazen and look down on the people of the Jiu Empire, then all he have to do was to be even more savage in his words than the other party!


    What trade being ceased? Just because of you?


    You surely are overestimating your importance you damn brat!


    You think people travelled far and wide to trade despite having to brave the many dangers in between would suddenly stop wanting to earn the profit in their business just because you said so?


    Naive!


    Pu!


    The young man choked on himself upon hearing this. No one would dare claim their uncle to be the Doulou Emperor, that would truly be a heinous crime and warrants death by public execution!


    "You! Are you deaf to what I just said?! Fine, it seems that you still didn''t get enough of the pummeling from before! Guards, strike him again!" Cheng Mao instructed his bodyguards behind him as they stepped forward to approach Guo He with a menacing look.


    "You guys think I am afraid? Come on then!" Guo He raised his fists once more, preparing for another round of fist fight.


    ...


    High up in the sky above the marketplace, Duan Li was observing the situation with Shen Lu, his brows furrowed together in displeasure.


    "Did you see how cocky that brat was just now Brother? Let''s teach him a lesson!" Shen Lu was now thoroughly incensed and wanted no more but to trash the little brat!


    Even fools could instantly understand that the young man called Cheng Mao was purposely making a ruckus here!


    "Hmph! Say no more!" Duan Li waved his hands before a wooden box appeared, floating on his index finger. It then swiftly transformed into a mask before wearing it.


    This mask only has two holes for Duan Li''s eyes to see, but enough for him to cover his face so that his identity would not be known.


    Otherwise, if the people were to suddenly scream ''Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!'', the other party might chicken out immediately, causing him to be unable teach the brat a lesson!


    "Halt!" Duan Li bellowed out as he descended down from the sky with his hands clasped behind his back, with Shen Lu tagging along behind him.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Ah? Who the hell are you?" Cheng Mao frowned and shouted out.


    "Your grandfather! Come here so that I can give you a thorough bottom-lashing!" Duan Li quickly replied with a non-chalant voice.


    Peng!


    "Impudent barbarian! How dare you! Guards, beat him up first!" the incensed Cheng Mao commanded.


    "Yes young master!" the four bodyguards replied in unison as they changed target from Guo He to Duan Li!


    "Eat the ground!" the first guard threw a fist with a crooked arc, aiming to break Duan Li''s nose.


    Oh?


    "It seems that they are really a cut above the usual people." Duan Li remarked inwardly.


    There are plenty of ways in order to determine one''s opponent was an amateur or not.


    Firstly, rarely do those with experience in fighting would throw a full force punch at the get-go.


    In fact, professionals would first jab in their fists slightly in order to ''feel'' their opponent. This results in a slightly crooked elbow as the fist was not pushed all the way forward.


    Although the force of the punch will not be strong, the form could easily be changed halfway or when it was received, either defended or counter-attacked!


    Simply put, the next move will definitely come from the elbow to his cheeks.


    Knowing this, Duan Li let out a soft chuckle.


    Instead of defending or counter-attacking, to the crowd''s surprise, Duan Li went in to go for the attack instead!


    Shaa!!


    After stepping forward, the guard was taken aback by Duan Li''s sudden move and wanted to retreat by taking a step back so that he could keep their distance and not overlapping with each other.


    "You already lost." Duan Li said, a single index finger poking at the other party''s throat, threatening to penetrate it!


    Hisss!!


    The crowd could only suck in cold breath at this moment.


    ...

 Chapter 315 - The formidable father and son!

    "What..." the bodyguard was dumbstruck before letting out an enraged snort. "Hmph! I was only testing you out! Let''s fight for real this time!" he said and retreated a few steps to the back.


    "Fine by me. Though a single finger is all I need to defeat someone like you, just like before." Duan Li shrugged his shoulder and replied with a non-chalant voice.


    "Bastard! Do you dare to tell me who you are? Stop hiding behind that mask!" the bodyguard was incensed and his body trembled with rage.


    How dare this lowly peasant from the Jiu Empire want to play around with me!


    Hearing this, Duan Li chuckled as he shook his head, "I''m only using this mask so that you lot would not be scared. Enough nonsense, a fight you want, a fight you will get. So why talk so much? Is it that only your mouth could run faster than your fists?"


    As if to provoke the bodyguard further, Duan Li put one of his hands to his back with another hand extending forward, the rest of his fingers curled with only his index finger protruding out like the tip of a sword!


    "You! Don''t you dare regret this!" the bodyguard then flitted left and right, his movements much faster than before!


    Hahaha! Do you see this? I can circle around you and attack any openings you have easily!


    The crowd that watched this was astonished. This was especially the case for a young boy and he couldn''t help but to ask his father, "Father, why is that man moving left and right like that and not walking straight? He looks like father when father is drunk!"


    The father then promptly replied sternly, "Hais, how can that be? Your father''s movements are far more graceful than that! If my eyes of discernment are not deceiving me, that man was born handicapped on either of his legs. Unwilling to be humiliated by his peers, he must have eventually developed this strange movement skill in order to compete!"


    Pu!


    My legs are handicapped? Handicapped your head!


    The bodyguard circling around Duan Li happened to overheard this conversation of theirs, causing his previously energetic tempo to immediately becoming disrupted as he accidentally stepped over his other foot and fell down!


    As luck would have it, the moment he fell down, he seemed to grab onto something and pulled it along.


    Shaa!!


    "Ahh!" several women that watched this couldn''t help but to scream out.


    "Fool! What are you doing?!" Cheng Mao''s face was scarlet red in embarrassment. To think that his bodyguard would trip like that and pulled down his pants along with it...


    This is a shameful display!


    "Beat him up!" Cheng Mao furiously bellowed. Now that his little brother was exposed to the public like that, his entire demeanor turned into a fluster as he commanded his other three bodyguards to pummel the perpetrator.


    Bam! Bam!


    "..." Duan Li.


    I didn''t even need a single a finger..


    Stunned into a daze by this, Duan Li could not help but to turn towards the direction of the father and son that were conversing just now, giving them a nod of approval.


    "What a formidable father and son, to think that their mere words could tumble down the enemy just like that.. I must recommend them to Utmost Being if any needs were to arise to appoint some new strategic advisor!"


    "Enough! Now beat him up! I want you guys to tear down his clothes too while you are at it! These savages needs to be put into an example for others to see!" Cheng Mao pointed towards Duan Li with gritted teeth.


    It was all because of this man suddenly intruding on his show!


    Tap! Tap!


    The three bodyguards nodded to each other as they spread out to corner Duan Li in three different directions, each displaying a unique sets of movement.


    "Interesting. Nevertheless, all it took would be a single finger of mine to defeat you three!" Duan Li said as he chuckled with an unperturbed expression.


    Inwardly however, Duan Li could not help but to give a positive remark, "The Doulou Empire''s prestige for martial arts is definitely not exaggerated! Even each of his bodyguards could possess this unique fighting style!"


    "Arrogant!"


    "Reckless!"


    All the three bodyguards sneered when they heard this.


    Let''s see how you will be able to deal with our formation!


    Shaa! Shaa!


    Three Claws Hooking The Prey!


    This was a collaborative attack formation that the three of them had practiced for a very long time.


    With this formation, they could attack their target in three different directions at the same time, minimizing the escape route of their enemy!


    Unless if their opponents were experts of martial arts, they would find it difficult to escape from this predicament!


    They were initially confident that Duan Li wouldn''t be able to escape. But Duan Li''s next move had them instantly paled!


    This was because Duan Li had charged forward to attack one of them, specifically their companions that was attacking with a high kick!


    "Sh*t!" they instantly grimaced.


    With a decisive poke into the achilles tendon of the bodyguard, Duan Li had immediately rendered the other party incapable of delivering an attack as the latter found the strength on that foot of his dispersing!


    Next, Duan Li did a 180 degrees turn and angled his elbow. Borrowing the force of this movement, Duan Li then thrusted his index finger into one of the acupoints on the next bodyguard''s forearm, causing the latter''s muscles to immediately becoming numb and was stopped in its motion.


    "Ahh! Get out of the way!" the last bodyguard screamed in horror as he was in midair delivering a scissor kick! With two of his companions suddenly freezing on the spot, he would hit them if Duan Li were to side step to the left!


    Tap!


    And his prediction was spot on!


    Duan Li did a side step to avoid him. However, what he did not expect was that Duan Li jabbed his index finger into his glutes muscles, causing his scissor kick to slightly change its form.


    KACHA!!


    The faces of the three bodyguards was drained of blood and their expression contorted hideously.


    After all, the bodyguard with a scissor kick had just crushed the b*lls of his two companions, while his own b*lls was smashed open by his other companions that had their fist frozen in midair!


    The pain was so great that even their scream had reached the highest pitch level that could not be heard by humans.


    Hiss!!


    The crowd sucked in cold air and their eyes widened in shock! Everything happened almost instantaneously in front of their eyes, and by the time they could finally see clearly, Duan Li''s opponent was already in such a state!


    "Father, why are they hurting each other? Do they have spare b*lls to play around like that?" the innocent young boy asked his father.


    The father shook his head, "Hais! How can that be? Look closely my son, their b*ll were not there in the first place! Your father here suspects that they had long lost their b*lls as a man the moment they served that young man over there."


    "Is that so father? Your son here finally understands! In the future, would more of his bodyguards have to part away with their b*lls in order to serve that man father?" the boy asked another question with an earnest look.


    The father nodded with a gentle smile as he pat his son''s head before replying, "Indeed! That young man was born castrated as part of an ancient ritual. In order to man up and fill the emptiness in his heart, he required the b*lls of others to be sacrificed to him."


    He then continued with a pitiful sigh, "Hais! That young man''s fate is truly tragic! How can collecting the b*lls of others compare to having one''s own b*lls?"


    Pu!


    The three bodyguards that heard this felt a sweet sensation pulsating in their throat before they spurted out blood and fainted with an indignant expression.


    Meanwhile, Cheng Mao also choked on himself and somehow felt a numbing sensation on his own b*lls, as if someone was about to rip it off from the sack!


    "Y-You! How dare you lay your dirty hands on my bodyguards? This is a crime! Help! Street patrols! This person is trying to revolt against the law!" Cheng Mao''s face was ashen as he stumbled on himself and fell on his bottom, screaming for help.


    Duan Li could not help but to shake his head upon seeing this shameful display.


    "Halt! What did you do to him? Speak!" a thunderous voice could be heard from the distance as an elderly man that seemed to be in his late 60s strode forward.


    "Uncle!" Cheng Mao''s pale face instantly brightened before turning to look at Duan Li with derision.


    You''re finished!


    ...

 Chapter 316 - As thick as a glacier!

    "Hm? Might I know who you are elder?" Duan Li glanced at Cheng Mao''s ''uncle''. Even a blind person could see that this elder was extremely haughty from his facial expression and tone.


    Unwilling to lose out, Duan Li clasped his hands behind his back, looking unperturbed despite the obvious hostile stare that was directed towards him.


    "Hmph! I am Cheng Chi, the Supervisor for the Blue Swallow Trading Company!" the elder said, exuding a lofty aura as he spoke.


    Trading company? So they are a group of merchants!


    His intention was as clear as day by stating his status towards Duan Li. Unfortunately, how can he compare to Duan Li?


    No matter how important the status of this old man in front of him might seem, as the Imperial Overseer, a single word from him would be all it takes to cripple the entire Blue Swallow Trading Company.


    But Duan Li was a magnanimous man, he could not possibly be so savage as to immediately shot the bird before shaking the nest. At least, not yet!


    "I see, so Elder Cheng Chi is a merchant! However, I haven''t heard of this Blue Swallow Trading Company before..." Duan Li tried to probe their background by being suspicious. After all, the more someone try to doubt another who thinks that they are someone big, the more would they try to brag out everything about themselves.


    And as expected, Cheng Mao''s uncle immediately frowned in displeasure upon Duan Li''s query.


    "You don''t know?" he said, before nodding in realization. "Well, this is to be expected as someone who knows nothing, evidenced by you assaulting my nephew so carelessly."


    He then continued, "We, the Blue Swallow Trading Company are one of the twelve merchants allowed to trade outside the Doulou Empire. It is out of the benevolence of our leader that the Jiu Empire was even able to collaborate trading matters with the Doulou Empire and form an amiable relationship. But this incident today, unless you were to punish yourself accordingly, might cause some trouble between our two empire."


    The crowd that heard this immediately gasped. Almost everyone here knows about the Blue Swallow Trading Company. They were the only merchant known to trade valuable herbs and medicinal plants with the Jiu Empire in huge quantities. If what the elder named Cheng Chi said is true, then provoking them would truly be a disadvantage towards the people of the Jiu Empire.


    After all, cultivators and normal people alike consumes herbs and medicinal plants as part of their daily necessities. If the Jiu Empire were to suddenly have a shortage of important consumable products like this, everyone would be affected!


    Thus, they could not help but to turn towards Duan Li with a worried expression. Although they were unwilling, when it comes to something like this, it was better for one to back down for the greater good.


    However, the crowd did not know that the one with the mask was Duan Li, their Imperial Overseer! If only they know, they would find their worries to be completely unfounded!


    The Tian continent was extremely strict on propriety, such that it was normal for someone to be pummeled because they disrespected people of higher status than them. Therefore, if they know that the person standing at the center of the crowd was their Imperial Overseer, not to mention that Duan Li could beat them up as he like, they might even volunteer themselves to pummel these people more harshly without any sorts of repercussions at all!


    To Cheng Chi''s surprise, instead of panicking, Duan Li only replied with a short sentence, "Ahh, is that so?"


    Enraged that the other party was too clueless, Cheng Chi bellowed out, "Are you still not admitting to your mistakes? How dare you try to cause trouble for your own empire? Do you have no honor?"


    Shen Lu and Guo He that watched this fiasco from the sidelines could not help but to shake their heads.


    Bro, you are digging your own grave!


    Hearing this accusations, Duan Li''s brows twitched under his mask, and he had the urge to immediately slap this elder before him. However, his clone - Utmost Being, that was currently in the Imperial Palace was able to understand the whole situation through Duan Li''s thoughts as they are always connected, so Utmost Being told him how he should reply.


    "I seem to recall that your rank is only a supervisor? Isn''t that someone whose job are only to oversee a transaction being made successfully? Do you even have the authority to cancel a trade between two empires? Isn''t this a breach of jurisdiction and a misconduct of disloyalty? Are you trying to say that you hold the same power as the leader of the Blue Swallow Trading Company?" Duan Li calmly retorted, each of his words carefully voiced out slowly so that others could hear them.


    As expected, Duan Li''s words caused Cheng Chi''s face to immediately contort for a moment before forcing himself to calm down.


    "Hmph! What do you even know? Although I am just the supervisor, I could file a report of this incident to our leader, that you disrespected the Blue Swallow Trading Company, causing us to lose some precious time to make a successful transaction, which made the transaction a failure in the end!" Cheng Chi answered, his words also fluently voiced out for all to hear.


    But inwardly, he harshly cursed Duan Li.


    Bastard! This damn brat is unexpectedly good with his mouth!


    Although Duan Li''s words clearly highlighted that he was abusing his position as a supervisor, the way he answered was in such a way that it was the half-truth and half-lie of the current situation, which would favor him more!


    Unexpectedly, Duan Li''s next answer destroyed his calmness.


    "If that is indeed part of your job, then just do it! As for me wasting your precious time, you must be mocking your leader''s intelligence! Do you think that, once you submitted this report to your leader, causing him to suffer a massive loss from an unsuccessful transaction, that he would remain idle and continue on with his life? Once he investigated, don''t you think that it would all be revealed? By that time, your head would definitely roll on the ground!" Duan Li harrumphed as he tilted his chin up.


    This was a simple fact, but it was apparent that the old man in front of him had already gone senile.


    "Impudent!" shouted Cheng Mao that had long hid himself behind his uncle as he pointed towards Duan Li with a trembling index finger, angered by Duan Li''s words. "How dare you talk to your elders like that? Where is your respect?!"


    His uncle was his support so that he could be as brazen as he wants. Together, they had done many unspeakable things by using the prestige of the Blue Swallow Trading Company to blackmail people! If their leader were to truly investigate this case, their previous heinous crime would also be swiftly uncovered.


    By that time, they would truly have to forfeit their lives!


    No matter what, they had to silence Duan Li using any means necessary!


    "Shut your mouth stupid kid! Is this the time for you to be running your mouth when your elders are talking? This is blatant disrespect!" Duan Li bellowed.


    Pu!


    Cheng Mao felt his face was slapped as his own words was thrown back at him in an instant. It was only now that he realize what Duan Li had said was correct. Although they couldn''t see Duan Li''s face, judging by Duan Li''s composed attitude and voice, it was obvious that the masked figure before them was at least in the 20s!


    Damn it!


    Cheng Chi stared at Duan Li with a murderous gaze before his lips curled into a sneer, "I guess you are right. I truly did not have any authority nor excuses to see this transaction between our empire turn to become a failure. But since I don''t want to waste my time any further in dealing with you, and you did not want to admit to your mistakes, I am helpless and therefore have to eliminate you for the sake of our empire."


    Suu!


    With a single step, he was able to cover the distance of a few meters between him and Duan Li in an instant, even without using any sorts of skill arts!


    Appearing before Duan Li, he casually jabbed his right hand with all five fingers extending out, akin to the tip of a spear!


    "Oh no!!" the crowd grimaced as they could tell what Cheng Chi was about to do..


    He was trying to kill Duan Li with a single move!


    "Die." Cheng Chi said coldly with an indifferent expression.


    He himself was a Golden Core realm expert at the Pinnacle stage, just a step away from reaching Nascent Soul realm. Thus, how could someone of Duan Li''s caliber, who was only at the Core Formation realm, be able to make him panic?


    In his eyes, Duan Li was already a dead man!


    "Don''t blame me on this, it was you who forced my hand!" he said inwardly, looking at Duan Li with disdain.


    CRACK!


    The crisp sound of bones being shattered echoed in the marketplace, causing the place to become deadly silent as people stared in disbelief!


    The scene where they imagined Duan Li''s body being penetrated by Cheng Chi''s hand did not happen! Instead, it was Cheng Chi''s hand that was distorted into a hideous state!


    "AHH!" Cheng Chi screamed, his face pale as he retreated a few steps, gritting his teeth to suppress the pain!


    The tens of bones in his right hand was utterly shattered into bits and pieces when it collided Duan Li''s body.


    How could someone''s body be so strong??


    It felt like I just tried to jab my hand into a thick glacier!


    Isn''t he one realm weaker than me? How is this possible?!


    What''s going on?


    "Uncle!" Cheng Mao dashed forward to help his uncle, his face was similarly pale in shock seeing his uncle injured to such a state.


    "Hais! Elder, your bones are already so brittle at your age, you musn''t exert yourself too much and move like that! Look at your hand, that must''ve been so painful!" Duan Li wanted to laugh out loud, but he managed to suppress it somehow and said this with a concerned voice of a junior.


    Then, turning his attention to Cheng Mao, he harshly berated the other party.


    "You bastard! Unfilial nephew! You should''ve served your uncle a few gallons of donkey''s milk everyday so that his bones will always remain strong! Look at him now, you beast!"


    Pu!


    ...

 Chapter 317 - Broken into pieces!

    "Ahh.. my heart.." Cheng Mao felt that his heart was filled with pain and grief from Duan Li''s accusations.


    Besides, what do you mean drink horse milk? Did you think that my uncle was so pauper that he could not even afford to drink some proper cow milk?


    You think that my uncle is a colt?


    Bastard!


    "Uncle, are you okay?" Cheng Mao asked worriedly.


    "This... I''m fine! I was just caught off guard!" Cheng Chi harrumphed as he stood on his feet hurriedly after recovering from his shock, clutching at his mangled right hand and trying his best to suppress the pain.


    For a Golden Core realm expert like him, any sorts of physical injuries could be recovered and healed over time, even if they were in the midst of a battle as long as one''s spiritual Qi was continuously pumped to heal them. Normally, this wouldn''t be practical though, as spiritual Qi reserves were practically the life line of a cultivator, so one had to be prudent in using them.


    Therefore, although the bones in his right hand was shattered into pieces, since he immediately pumped his spiritual Qi relentlessly into it right now, it would only take him a few days to make a full recovery without any permanent damage if he also consumed some medicinal pills.


    This was what differentiated those that cultivate and those that don''t. Injuries that would make one a cripple their entire life was but a temporary damage to a cultivator!


    However, to think that the other party would say something like his bones being brittle due to old age and he didn''t drink sufficient horse milk...


    I''m a Golden Core realm expert damn it! This is so Infuriating!


    "No wonder you dare to be so arrogant, it seems that you do have some capabilities after all." Cheng Chi said, his expression indifferent despite the pain that he had to endure. No matter what, he must appear unfazed before the crowd around him!


    Otherwise, he wouldn''t know where to put his face into when facing the public!


    In addition, he had already declared his association with the Blue Swallow Trading Company. If this were to affect the prestige of the company as a whole, his entire career would be at stake!


    "Elder, you need not put on such a front. I think that its better we just leave things as it is now and pursue this matter no more." Duan Li chuckled as he replied to Cheng Chi calmly, his hands still clasped behind his back.


    "Reckless young man, after things had already come to this point, do you think that I would just agree to you and end this matter just like that?" Cheng Chi snarled at Duan Li with hatred in his eyes.


    Wengg!!


    A sword that was emerald in colour appeared in his left hand.


    Never before had he been so humiliated in front of the public before! He had come with the demeanor of an untouchable and powerful person, but now all that he had left was his fluent mouth to salvage whatever face he has left.


    "Uncle! You must not!" Cheng Mao''s expression changed when he saw his uncle whipping out a sword.


    One must know that his uncle was a renown expert in swordplay among his peers. Just in the Doulou Empire alone, perhaps there was only some who hadn''t heard of his title before...


    Emerald Sword King!


    "Enough! This is no longer a simple grudge, he had humiliated this uncle of yours before the public!" Cheng Chi replied with a cold voice.


    Pointing the tip of his sword at Duan Li, he raised his voice, "You have proven yourself worthy of facing me, so I, the Emerald Sword King, challenge you to a duel! You can use any weapon you want!"


    When the crowd heard this, they immediately broke into a commotion!


    "A duel? Oh no... the masked man might be in trouble this time!"


    "Aren''t they going overboard? They are the ones who started this mess, yet they still did not want to leave? How shameless can one be? Bastard!"


    "He has equipped himself with a sword! No matter how tough one''s body are, the sharpness of a sword could not be underestimated!"


    "Relax, it seems that the masked man has a plan! See his friends over there? They still look calm despite seeing that old man with a sword in hand!"


    As the crowd were bustling in discussion, the father and son that also heard this were surprised.


    "Father, what is an Emerald Sword King?" the son asked, intrigued by the seemingly domineering name.


    "Hmph! It''s just a title that he probably made up in his dreams! What Emerald Sword King? To dare call himself a ''King'' is a huge blasphemy!" the father answered with a snort.


    "You want a duel?" Duan Li was taken aback that the elder in front of him was being way too pushy!


    It seems that he will not back down until I thoroughly defeat him!


    Shaking his head helplessly, Duan Li replied, "Very well. I have given you the opportunity to leave intact before, so don''t say that I''m bullying you later on!"


    With his right hand still on his back, he raised his left hand forward, extending his index finger outward.


    Seeing this, Cheng Chi''s face darkened.


    So he intent to use his fingers to fight against my sword?


    Arrogant!


    "But this is fine as well. I''ll show him how mistaken he is to play around with me!" he gnashed his teeth and cursed Duan Li inwardly.


    "First up, is your tendons!" Cheng Chi bellowed as he lunged forward with the swiftness of a panther.


    Shaa!!


    Cutting down at an angle that seemed to harness the power to severe even metal in half, Cheng Chi aimed at Duan Li''s left shoulder!


    Watch how I cripple your arm!


    Pengg!!


    "What?!" Cheng Chi was flabbergasted beyond belief.


    He stopped my sword attack with the tip of his finger?!


    The scene right now caused everyone to gasp in astonishment!


    "He.. He was able to stop that heavy slash with his fingers?"


    "Guys, just who is that masked man? How can he be so formidable?!"


    The crowd began to grow excited seeing Duan Li''s domineering move!


    "One Finger To Rule All, this is the name of my martial art technique!" Duan Li suddenly declared!


    Silence..


    "One finger.." a person from the crowd uttered with widened eyes.


    "To rule all..!!" another continued as he swallowed his saliva.


    BOOMM!!


    The crowd found their minds to be blown apart by the revelation of this name?


    "What an overbearing name! Of all the name of techniques that I know, this name is probably the most powerful!"


    "Damn it! My body hair is rising by itself!"


    "Ahh masked man! Marry me!"


    Cheng Mao and Cheng Chi was dumbstruck by the crowd''s reaction, each becoming exaggerated overtime.


    Ptuui!


    Spatting to the side, Cheng Chi shouted in anger, "What an arrogant name! You are just lucky! I''ll cut down that damned finger of yours!"


    Crossing his legs at the opposite side of each other, Cheng Chi then deployed his movement technique!


    Panther Shadow Dash!


    Whosshh!!


    His figure appeared to become blurry in an instant, before clashing sounds of metal echoed in the surrounding!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    Each of Cheng Chi''s attacks was vicious and aimed for Duan Li''s tendons on his four limbs, but as if his movements was decrypted before he even attacked, each of his slash and thrust was either dodged or defended with Duan Li''s index finger as if they were nothing!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    After about 30 exchanges that happened in the span of a few breaths, Cheng Chi''s face was finally devoid of his previous calmness. With it, was replaced by panic, anxiety, nervousness and fear!


    Break! Break! Break!!


    In fact, Duan Li was even slowly counter-attacking him, and his passive position was turning to become defensive!


    "Hmph. It''s over!" Duan Li suddenly said as he tapped at a certain point of the sword in a certain angle.


    CRACK!


    The emerald sword in Cheng Chi''s hand cracked into many cobwebs before splintering into bits and pieces like a shattered wood plank!


    "No.. No!! This is impossible! Impossible!!!" Cheng Chi finally could no longer suppress himself and screamed in horror!


    SLASH!


    With a vertical slash of Duan Li''s finger, the robes of Cheng Chi and his clothing underneath it was sliced into two before dropping to the ground, revealing the naked figure of a wrinkled old man.


    ...

 Chapter 318 - They resonated?

    "Ahhh! Uncle!" Cheng Mao screamed with a ghastly look as his uncle was exposed naked to the public.


    Due to being too rattled that he was defeated even after taking his sword and using his famed swordplay, not to mention against someone one realm lower than him, and that his prized emerald sword was shattered to pieces in the end as if it was a cheap imitation product, it took Cheng Chi a few moments before he realized his current state.


    "Nooo!!" Cheng Chi screamed as he knelt down and covered his little brother that was dangling freely in the air.


    How is this possible? How did this happen? Why?!


    He was confident that at least with his skills in swordplay, no one in this little Jiu Empire would be his match..


    To think that not even his dignity was spared in the end..


    Ah! I want to die!


    "Damn you! How dare you do this! Don''t you think this is over!" Cheng Mao shouted at Duan Li with fiery eyes that was filled with immense hatred, that if looks could kill, perhaps Duan Li would..


    No, if his eyes dared to even try, a fate worse than death would befall Cheng Mao!


    Shaa!!


    Draping over his uncle with a large robe that he took out from his spatial ring, Cheng Mao''s bodyguard then quickly took them away and quickly departed with their heads lowered as Duan Li shouted behind them;


    "If you guys dare to come back, I''ll make you two become renown eunuchs in the Tian continent! You hear me?!"


    Hahahahaha!


    The crowd finally burst with laughter as they saw their retreating figure. Somehow, they felt that great justice was delivered today!


    After all, they need to be able to show those damn outsiders on what will happen if they dare to go overboard, and this would be the perfect example!


    ...


    Soon after, the crowd finally died down, grew disinterested in staying any further and dispersed before everything returned back to normal.


    Business as usual.


    "Brother, do you think that they will really come back to go after you?" Shen Lu asked as they strolled around in the marketplace.


    "Eh? I don''t really care.." Duan Li replied casually, treating the previous matter as something not even worth remembering.


    "Hmph! I dare them to come again!" Guo He snorted when he recalled the pair of shameless nephew and uncle.


    In his opinion, unless they were fools and wanted to be humiliated again, not even their shadow would want to linger in the Jiu Empire anymore!


    Hmm?


    Suddenly, Duan Li felt something strange happening within his spatial ring. Immersing his consciousness into it, he found that the Treasure box that was given to him by Fei Jin Fang, the Supreme Knight of the Imperial Palace was giving off vibrant light and was trembling incessantly!


    What''s happening? Why is it suddenly reacting like this?


    "Brother, what''s wrong?" Shen Lu looked around warily when Duan Li abruptly stopped walking in front of them.


    Perhaps those two bastards are back and stalking us from behind?


    "No.. it''s nothing.." Duan Li replied slowly as he looked around.


    When his eyesight landed on a certain stall to their left, the reaction from the Treasure box became more intense!


    "The Treasure box is reacting in that direction?" Duan Li cupped his chin and pondered for a while before deciding.


    Hmm.. let''s take a look!


    Walking towards the stall, the seller saw them approaching his stall by the distance as he beckoned them with his hands and wide smile.


    "Aiya, Brother over there! Did something caught your interest? I''ll give you a huge discount if you buy any of my wares today!" Said the salesman as he rubbed both of his hands together.


    When Shen Lu and Guo He saw this seller, they almost had the urge to smack the latter in the face!


    After all, this stall was no other than the infamous antique collector!


    Na Zem Xi, the outsider with a weird name from the distant land that sold the antiques here was known to be a very shrewd businessman!


    Any unsuspecting customer would usually be baited with the latter''s tactic of huge discount. In reality, Na Zem Xi would just jack up the original prices to an unbelievable amount before giving a discount of more than half of the price!


    In the end, the price would be sold at its original price and the customer would be none the wiser.


    What discount? This fellow is just looking for trouble!


    "Brother, this fellow here is a known scammer! We shouldn''t buy anything from him!" Shen Lu said as he narrowed his eyes when looking at Na Zem Xi, who appeared to be unperturbed by it.


    "Hais! I don''t know where you guys heard of such a biased rumor from, but I am definitely not a scammer!" Na Zem Xi sighed as he shook his head helplessly.


    Turning his attention back to Duan Li, he observed that Duan Li was looking at each of his wares carefully, as if inspecting them. This caused him to become elated and his eyes brightened!


    While he did not want to admit that he indeed jacked his price all the time, each of his wares was at least a true antique!


    This was something that he had absolute confidence of, and was also the reason why people still buy from him despite the negative rumors about him!


    "Brother, do you get to the Cloud district very often? Oh what am I saying, of course you don''t! Here, let me introduce you to some of my highlighted items on that shelf!" he continued.


    Oh?


    "Since the Treasure box is something mysterious, then the item that it resonated with shouldn''t be of lower quality also.." Duan Li thought inwardly.


    Besides, he could not possibly comb through every objects here as they numbered in the hundreds. That would be a total waste of time.


    Nodding slightly, Duan Li replied, "Alright, show me!"


    They then walked around the counter and stood in front of a certain shelf.


    "I have ten unique antiques here that dates back to the most ancient era of the Tian continent! You can be rest assured about their authenticity, and if you don''t believe me, just take a look at each of their tags!" Na Zem Xi pointed towards one object on the shelf that has a tag with the symbol of the Jixue Knights Academy on it!


    "They are.. actually identified and approved by the academy?" Shen Lu was flabbergasted as he stared at the tags, where every single one of them was approved.


    Unless this fellow is tired of living, he wouldn''t dare to fake all these tags..


    Then they are really authentic!


    But..


    "Hmph! Even if they are all authentic, the price tag on each of them are astronomical!" Guo He complained.


    "Look at this! Everyone would know at a first glance that this is nothing more than a bucket to hold water, yet why is it priced at 10 Medium quality spirit stones? Do you think that spirit stones grow on trees and people are idiot? Only fools would buy it!" he pointed angrily.


    "Ah? You mean that this price here is expensive? This brother here, you sure like to joke around! While this may be a bucket, its mysterious material used to built it and the square space instead of the usual circle are truly designed with artistry in mind!" Na Zem Xi said in his defense.


    He then added, "Besides, its from the Era of the Empyrean Empire, dated to be around 50,000 years ago! But look at it, the condition is still pristine! It''s obvious that an object like this should cost even more than 10 Medium quality spirit stones! Don''t you see that I''m already selling it at a loss here?"


    Just as he was about to reinforce his statement more, he suddenly heard Duan Li beside him said something that almost had him bit off his own tongue.


    "I''ll buy it!"


    ...

 Chapter 319 - Pointed and enlightenment!

    "You.. will buy it?" Na Zem Xi did not dare to believe that he heard Duan Li right.


    The mysterious water bucket, despite its ancient origin, has been sitting on the shelf collecting dust for a very long time. He had endured countless ridicules and mockery from others specifically due to this bucket alone!


    After all, who wouldn''t go insane seeing the price tag on this bucket that was so preposterous?


    No matter if it was from an ancient origin, it was still a useless bucket!


    "My Lord... " Guo He almost bit his own tongue in disbelief. Previously, he said that anyone who would buy a bucket at such a price would be fools. Who would have thought that his Lord would be the one to buy it at the next moment?


    "Yes. Isn''t it just 10 Middle quality spirit stones? I think that this price is fair to be honest." Duan Li nodded firmly, founding the situation to be entirely normal.


    In his opinion, the mysterious bucket from the Empyrean dynasty was a priceless antique given its excellent condition. In addition, this bucket was something that resonated with the Treasure box in his spatial ring. Clearly, the bucket that everyone seemed to look at in disdain was far from ordinary!


    "This... well, if Esteemed customer here insist, then its sold for 10 Medium quality spirit stones!" Na Zem Xi hurriedly retrieved the bucket from the shelf and wrapped it like a coiling tornado, faster than anyone they had ever seen before. It appears that he was afraid that Duan Li would change his mind if he were a second late.


    Meanwhile, seeing how efficient the seller was, Duan Li couldn''t help but to nod his head again in approval.


    This is the correct attitude!


    "Brother, are you sure about this? Even if you are rich, spending so much for a mere bucket.." Shen Lu sighed helplessly, unable to make sense of the entire situation.


    It was not that he was afraid Duan Li would go pauper. After all, there was probably no one who could compare to the wealth of the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire. It was just that he was wary that the infamous scammer in front of them would take advantage of this situation even more.


    "Hehe Brother Shen Lu, of all the people that I met, you were the first one to vouch your support for me and I still remember that. This bucket.. while it may appeared to be useless at the moment, my eyes will never be mistaken!" Duan Li said with a confident expression as he stowed the item into his spatial ring. Naturally, he wouldn''t be bothered to explain that something was resonating with the bucket.


    Immediately after, the reaction from the Treasure box finally died down.


    I''ll investigate the relationship between the bucket and the treasure box given by Fei Jin Fang later on...


    "Eh? Brother.. you mean.." Shen Lu gasped in surprise before he widened his eyes in comprehension.


    Indeed! While Brother Duan Li might makes no sense sometimes, he was definitely no fool! Moreover, he seemed to be hinting on gifting me something...


    "Does it really has more to it than just a bucket?"


    Thinking along this line, Shen Lu and Guo He looked at each other before nodding, deciding to not talk about the matter any further.


    Na Zem Xi, seeing how casually the masked man handed him 10 Medium quality spirit stones for a mere bucket as if they were pocket change, and witnessing the subservient attitude of the two fellows behind the other party, immediately realized that the masked man in front of him was probably someone with a powerful background!


    This was also the reason why he changed his attitude to become more polite and addressed the unknown masked man from ''Brother'', which he would usually call his customer with, to ''Esteemed customer''.


    In his personal guide book, there were only three kinds of person that one shouldn''t offend no matter what, but befriended with given the opportunity. One was the Emperor of an Empire, two was the royal family, and three was someone with an unknown background but possesses a non-chalant attitude towards wealth, such that not even the word ''discount'' exist in their dictionary!


    For him, the third one was probably the most dangerous, which he categorized Duan Li into. After all, even the Emperor would at least frown in displeasure hearing such a ridiculous price of a mere bucket, but the masked man in front of him didn''t even bat an eyelid to the price tag, nor asked for any sorrts of discounts and only had the looks of a curious expert!


    Someone who could view wealth in such disregard was truly unfathomable!


    Unbeknownst of the high evaluation that the seller was giving him right now, Duan Li scanned the other antiques in the stall with his hands clasped behind his back.


    "Oh? Interesting! How much does that Katana cost?" Duan Li pointed to a thin, one-meter katana with only a single edge and long grip that was hanged on one of the wooden pillar of the stall.


    Na Zem Xi swiftly broke out from his previously dazed state when he heard this question and quickly fawned over Duan Li.


    "Esteemed customer truly has good eyes for weapon! That katana is also from the Empyrean dynasty from the unique agate decorating its hilt, and I happened to acquire it by luck whilst travelling in the desert." he said, glancing at Duan Li for a while before continuing, "While this might sound expensive to others, Esteemed customer must trust me when I say that this is really the price of this katana... it is 20 Middle Quality spirit stones!"


    When Shen Lu and Guo He heard this, they immediately became incensed. Shen Lu gripped Na Zem Xi by his collar and was about to beat some sense into the latter when they heard the next sentence from Duan Li.


    "Alright, I will buy it!" Duan Li said without a hint of agitation in his voice, before casting his glance towards the other weapons.


    "..." the trio''s jaw dropped to the ground.


    For Shen Lu and Guo He, it felt like a lightning bolt had shattered a cliff inside their mind and they nearly spurted out blood, utterly caught unprepared by the tribulation. Even Na Zem Xi was now staring at Duan Li dumbstrucked!


    "I''m rich! I''m finally rich!" Na Zem Xi secretly rejoiced in his mind before he escaped from Shen Lu''s grasped and quickly wrapped the katana with an even faster speed than before!


    However, just when they thought that Duan Li had enough of browsing because he was sighing, as if there was no more object that could pique and satiate his interest, a series of objects in the stall was being harshly pointed at.


    "I want this, this, this one, that one and that one also!"


    Duan Li began a pointing-spree with his index finger onto random objects inside the stall.


    Pu!


    At this moment, within the trio''s imagination, it felt as though every object that was pointed by Duan Li''s index finger had gained both liberation and enlightenment, to the point that they grew wings and flew to the nine heavens with limitless freedom!


    Just how many decades did they spent sitting in that dilapidated stall while collecting dust and forming rust?


    To survive dynasties after dynasties since their creation, yet only to become the wares of an unscrupulous merchant after being found, how could they not feel moved by Duan Li''s actions of liberating them all like this at once?


    One had to remember that they had almost given up hope of being owned by a new owner ever since they became the wares of this scam stall. After all, they were being sold at an exorbitant price, who in their right mind would buy them?


    To them, Duan Li was like the majestic Emperor doing a sudden visit to their faraway village, and upon seeing their sorry state, had immediately issued an imperial decree of granting them the titles of nobles on the spot!


    Such actions would bring about total chaos in the court and many opposition would surely be voiced out by the ministers. Even sabotage and assassinations of important individuals in the shadows would be entirely possible!


    But, how could they compare to this dashing Emperor in front of them?


    Against the will of the Heaven''s, all lips should just remain shut if they don''t want their heads to roll on the ground!


    However, this was but in the imaginations of the trio, a subtle effect from the incensed burner in the middle of the stall that seemed to be burning weeds, causing them to hallucinate a little.


    ...

 Chapter 320 - The tales of Na Zem Xi!

    Swords, daggers, axes and many more types of weapons were bought by Duan Li en masse. At this point, Duan Li''s total purchase had already reached a staggering 10 High quality spirit stones and caused Na Zem Xi to become blue from feeling two contrasting emotions at the same time - Happy and scared.


    He was so happy because he had finally become rich by only a single unexpected customer. He reckoned that this must be the result of his good deeds accumulating in his past lives. However, the more Duan Li spent, the more scared he becomes!


    This was because even profligate scions of renown clans in the Jiu Empire that loves to waste money wouldn''t be able to casually hand all 10 High quality spirit stones like Duan Li did just now even if they want to. After all, a few hundred of Medium quality spirit stones might probably be their maximum budget per year.


    As for High quality spirit stones? That depends if their elders were willing to loan them in the first place, and who would if it were to all be spent in buying antique weapons like what Duan Li just did?


    Unless one wanted to be beaten to death by their clan leader, then they should probably give it a try.


    "Is he... a prince of the royal family?" Na Zem Xi widened his eyes as he began sweating and his heart palpitated in nervousness upon such thoughts.


    He must be!


    Only a prince would have so much money to be able to waste them like this, and it is also the reason why he wears that mask...


    It''s to hide his identity as a prince of the royal family!


    Gulp!


    "If the royal family were to hear that their prince had spent such an enormous sum of money at my stall to buy antique weapons... I might lose my little life!" he swallowed his saliva and handed back 5 High quality spirit stones.


    "Esteemed customer, because you have bought in bulk and we have already become friends, I shall give you a 50 percent discount on everything that you just bought! Here, take half of your money back!" he said quickly with a deep pain in his heart. Even though he was extremely unwilling, there were times that one had to sacrifice a little for long-term future gains, and this is called investment!


    He was also tempted to kneel down before the other party as it was part of the etiquette for those of lower status like him in front of the prince, but since the other party had already gone through the trouble to don a mask, it would be foolish of him to call out the latter''s identity.


    After all, even fools should know that a person wearing a mask wants their identity to be anonymous!


    Duan Li, Shen Lu and Guo He was surprised by this unexpected gesture of goodwill, and Duan Li wanted to initially reject, but since he insisted, Duan Li finally relented and took back the 5 High quality spirit stones into his spatial ring, thinking on whether he should just throw them into a lake or something.


    Still, Na Zem Xi couldn''t help but to wonder on why the prince was spending so much money over antique weapons.


    It''s not as if they are peerless legendary weapons from the ancient times..


    Shen Lu and Guo He was similarly curious about this, so they asked, "Brother, why do you need so much weapons? Are you trying to raise an army?"


    Hearing their question, Duan Li was taken aback for a moment and finally realized that they had somehow misunderstood him.


    "These weapons are all from the Empyrean dynasty. While they are not legendary, their quality aren''t actually bad at all! I planned to gift them to you guys later on." Duan Li answered.


    "You want to give them to us?" Shen Lu and Guo He looked at each other, evidently unable to follow Duan Li''s train of thought. In their opinion, the weapons used and made nowadays were far more reliable and could be bought at a cheaper price too. These antiques might rival them, but they were truly nothing special, other than their steep price which was meant to be bought by enthusiast for collection purposes.


    Nevertheless, they still nodded and didn''t dare to reject their Lord''s goodwill.


    Naturally, how could they realize the true value of the weapons like Duan Li did?


    Using his Tetra Soul Sense, Duan Li was able to analyze and get the accurate details of each of the weapons with a single touch of his index finger!


    Weapons in the Empyrean dynasty were mostly forged from the Wang Metal, found deep inside the mouth of dormant volcanoes. While the weapons nowadays that were made of steel were comparitively sharp, they lack the powerful durability of the Wang Metal!


    Duan Li didn''t know how on heaven''s name was Na Zem Xi be so lucky so as to be able to unearth so many perfectly preserved Empyrean antiques like these weapons that he just bought, but if it was just that, he still wouldn''t be bothered to buy them at all!


    The reason he bought them wasn''t just because they were treasures of the Empyrean dynasty, but because the weapons he selected was in fact ''named'' weapons!


    ''Named'' weapons, according to the information from the Mirealithians using his Tetra Soul Sense, were once weapons owned by legendary figures across the Tian continent. They have fought countless battlefields and made a name for themselves to the point that even their weapons were ''named'' by the public and became infamous!


    Eventually, due to the recognition, these weapons formed a small spirit of their own to aid their masters in the battlefields, but after so many years had passed, even the spirit of the weapon itself succumbed to their end as well!


    In the end, these ''named'' weapons were now devoid of spirit, making it no different than ordinary weapons. However, in their place could be inserted ''Power Stones'', almost rare to find but not impossible to be acquired. Slowly, these power stones would nurture a new small spirit, and once they did, the weapons will be able to show their original power!


    For Duan Li, he absolutely did not need them. No matter how powerful they will be in their prime, how could they rival the All-Severing Immortal White Sword dangling on his right earlobe right now? Not to mention that he also has the All-Slaying Eternal Great Axe! If he could use them to their full potential, even the Tian continent could be cleaved in half!


    In addition, he cultivated all three of his dantians, possessed a few mysterious pearls inside his body, and the ability to slow down time.


    All these combined could pretty much make him an overly-powered figure in the world, but his followers were different than him.


    Despite being boosted by his blood so that they only needed to temper their body once every realm instead of every stage in a realm, and that their cultivation rate becoming significantly faster, they could still easily die if they fought against Nascent Soul realm experts!


    With a spirit weapon in hand, although they might not necessarily be able to defeat them, they could still put up a fight! Moreover, such weapons would ensure their victory against other experts once they reached the Nascent Soul realm!


    Turning to Na Zem Xi, Duan Li stared at the latter intently before asking, "How are you able to get these weapons in huge quantity? All of them are top notch weapons despite being ancient..."


    "Hahaha! Esteemed customer is truly talented, to be able to determine their quality so accurately like that, you must be an Appraiser class yourself!" Na Zem Xi first fawned over Duan Li before replying seriously, "Esteemed customer, it was actually a stroke of luck for me at that time..."


    He then explained that, when he was travelling at the edges of the Red Desert, one of the forbidden region in the Tian continent, his caravan got attacked by wild beast which forced him to retreat into the Red Desert. The Red Desert was known to cause one to quickly become dehydrated because of its searing temperature both day and night, and he almost died unable to escape the desert after losing his sense of direction in it for a week.


    However, as luck would have it, one of the sand dune hills happened to swallow him underground, where he found many skeletons with their weapons gripped tightly in their hand, appearing to be unwilling to part with their weapon even in their death. Moved into tears by this sight, he snatched their weapon and stowed them away to sell them somewhere, so that the legacy of the dead could continue on.


    But who could have thought that his good intentions caused the dead skeletons to raise themselves from the ground and wanted to pummel him to death instead?


    Thus he ran and ran, and when he slipped and hit a wall, the wall began to swallow him whole. Seeing that he was escaping, one of the skeleton appeared to become really indignant and dislodged its own arm to throw at his head from the distance, swiftly knocking him unconscious.


    The next time he remembered, he woke up at the outskirts of the Red Desert and managed to survive somehow.


    "..." Duan Li, Shen Lu and Guo He.


    ...

 Chapter 321 - Fitting them together!

    You snatching the weapons of deceased people and you call that moved into tears?


    Its no wonder that the skeletons became so indignant and want you dead!


    Furthermore, you claimed that you want to sell the weapons so that the legacy of the fallen can be continued, yet you sold each of them at an exorbitant price to the point where no one even bothered to look at them!


    Why are you not ashamed of yourself? Hurry up and slap your own face!


    Perhaps we should try to pry open that head of yours and see which gears are missing in there for your brains to be this dumb!


    Shen Lu and Guo He felt exasperated hearing Na Zem Xi''s story to the point that they wanted to pummel him and step all over his body.


    However, they couldn''t help but to be impressed with the latter''s luck. If it were any other person, being lost in any one of the forbidden region would surely spell their doom.


    He on the other hand, not only managed to escape intact, but was even able to plunder the graves of the fallen ancient people too!


    Hais!


    "Seller, you mentioned that you stumbled upon an underground graveyard at the Red Desert, did you perhaps, saw any buildings in there?" Duan Li asked curiously.


    "Hm? No, I don''t see anything there other than those skeletons. Now that Esteemed customer mentioned it, its quite weird for a whole lot of those people died there.. was it perhaps an ancient battlefield that was buried overtime?" Na Zem Xi answered before cupping his chin.


    This was exactly the same line of thought that Duan Li has as well.


    According to the story told by Na Zem Xi, that space in the underground was truly massive, such that there was countless of skeletons that should be around hundreds of thousands, if not more!


    This was a graveyard of gigantic proportions, and unless there was a major war happening at that time which shook the whole Tian continent, there probably won''t be that many remains!


    Additionally, judging by their weapons which was dated back to the Empyrean dynasty, they were probably figures from the same era too.


    However, what baffled them was that, in the records of history, there was never a mention about a massive battle of such scale being waged in that place!


    After all, everyone would probably know about it if it ever happened!


    "The Empyrean dynasty was a strong dynasty that lasted for several millenniums before eventually disappearing overnight, perhaps the Red Desert holds some clue to their demise?" Duan Li seriously said as he stated his conjecture.


    Shen Lu and Guo He thought for a moment before nodding, "That might be the case!"


    The Red Desert was massive in size, such that it was comparable to the sizes of a few empires cramped together. Coincidentally, the center of the Empyrean dynasty was thought to be there as well!


    After pondering for a long time, Duan Li decided that one day he had to pay the Red Desert a visit.


    Who knows if he could uncover the mysteries regarding the disappearance of the Empyrean dynasty!


    "Esteemed customer, is there anything else you would like to buy?" Na Zem Xi asked, his tone polite as if he was talking to his first ancestor.


    Shaking his head, Duan Li replied with a smile behind his mask, "I think that''s all for now. If you happen to acquire more weapons and artifacts from the Empyrean dynasty, you can give me an advance notice. I''ll be sure to take a look!"


    "Yes, Esteemed customer! You can count on me for that!" Na Zem Xi was delighted by Duan Li''s response, but upon realizing that he forgot one crucial factor, he quickly bowed repeatedly before asking in a panic voice;


    "This lowly person has been careless Esteemed customer! If you don''t mind, how should I address you?"


    Since the prince in front of him was wearing a mask, asking the latter''s name would be saying that he was blind and dumb. Therefore, he opted to ask for an alias instead. At least this way, it would be easier to communicate next time.


    "Oh?" Duan Li was surprised and only now realized this matter as well. "You can call me.. Elderly Junior!"


    Elderly Junior?


    What a peculiar name for an alias that is!


    To say that one is both an elder and a junior at the same time.. is he a middle-aged person?


    "This lowly one understands!" Na Zem Xi nodded nevertheless. Whether or not the name meant something was not for him to ponder and question.


    He was already happy with the 5 High quality spirit stones he got from selling his wares to Duan Li, so right now all he wanted was to close down his stall for the day, go to the tavern and drink to his heart''s content!


    He truly had earned more today than his entire life savings combined for ten times!


    From now on, he could open a proper shop and hire people to start his antique business like a professional!


    After talking for a bit more, they soon left Na Zem Xi''s stall and strolled around the Cloud district marketplace.


    Guo He finally bought all the herbs and plants that he wanted in order to practice his alchemy skills, and before long, they had already entered the gate of the academy and returned to their own rooms after arriving back to the residence court.


    ...


    Inside Duan Li''s room, there were two objects that he laid on the floor; the Treasure box that he got from Fei Jin Fang, and the Ancient Empyrean water bucket, sitting next to each other!


    "The square space inside the water bucket seems to fit the treasure box that I got from Fei Jin Fang.." Duan Li said inwardly as his eyes alternating between staring at the two objects.


    He was pondering on whether or not he should combine the two together. After all, if the resulting action would actually unseal some hidden danger that was not supposed to be let out, he would be in deep trouble.


    But, if he were to obtain something good from it, then the steep price that he had to pay in order to acquire it would at least be justified and not in vain!


    "Let''s just be safe first and scan them again.."


    Tetra Soul Sense!


    Wengg!


    "Analyze!" Duan Li beckoned for the Mirealithian to identify both the water bucket and the treasure box with his two index fingers on his left and right hand.


    [Ding!]


    [Water bucket from the Empyrean dynasty. Traces of origin energy signature detected.]


    [Ding!]


    [Unknown treasure box. Independent spatial law exist inside.]


    "The same response like last time.." Duan Li scratched his head in confusion. In fact, he had already tried scanning the two objects before and the result was the same as now.


    However, since the treasure box was reacting to the water bucket before, surely there was at least some kind of connection?


    The origin energy must''ve been the key to unlock this treasure box..


    "Eh whatever, its useless to keep on thinking like this. Let me seal the room first in case something does happen.." Duan Li then made a series of hand gestures before a distortion appeared in the surrounding.


    Spatial Lock!


    Keng!!


    This was a technique under the elusive Spatial art. While his current injuries does not yet allow him to create a spatial portal to teleport around, creating a spatial lock was well within his means right now if it was only a single layer.


    Gulp!


    Swallowing his saliva nervously, Duan Li then picked the two objects and fit them together!


    Click!


    As soon as this clicking sound echoed, the water bucket which houses the treasure box inside began to rumble on Duan Li''s hand!


    Slowly but surely, it started to float on its own!


    Shingg!


    It was then that a big silver chain wrapping around them together suddenly appeared out of nowhere. However, it was apparent that the seal was visibly loosening themselves!


    Keng! Keng! Keng!


    One by one, the silver chain was dropping on the ground rapidly.


    Finally..


    Shingg!!


    [Ding!]


    [Warning! Forbidden object is detected!]


    ...

 Chapter 322 - The Forbidden Object!

    "Huh?" Duan Li was surprised by this notification ringing in his mind, as if he was about to open the pandora''s box; one that could either be good or bad for him!


    Forbidden object?


    Duan Li pondered for a moment before his eyes widened and his body started to sweat.


    Could it be that... the thing its hiding inside is the undergarments of an old lady?


    Curses!


    "I''ll snap the neck of the perpetrator if that is really the case! I''ll even dig their graves if I have to!" Duan Li gritted his teeth as he thought of this.


    Back in the Xuan village, there was once a thief running amok every full moon, stealing the undergarments of all the women in the village blatantly. No one was able to apprehend this thief until one day, the thief made a mistake and stole the undergarments of an elderly woman.


    He was so shocked by the revelation to the point that he screamed out like a maniac on how he was tainted and suffered a fate worse than death. He bellowed towards everyone in rage that such forbidden object should not exist in the first place, asking them angrily on why it was allowed to be hanged among the other undergarments, before finding himself being pummeled to death by the villagers.


    [Please confirm on whether to unseal the forbidden object inside.]


    "Confirm!" Duan Li immediately replied without much hesitation.


    No matter what it is.. please don''t let it be an undergarment!


    Gulp!


    [Ding!]


    [Unsealing successful. Forbidden object is identified as the ancestor of all forge, the All-Father Forge! It is a complete set which includes the All-Enduring Anvil and the All-Pummeling God hammer!]


    [Has the effects of increasing any weapon''s rarity to ''Ultimate'' after one thousand hammerings using all the three objects together!]


    [The All-Father Forge is badly damaged. To unlock further level, it must be fixed.]


    [Warning, the All-Father forge complete set is an object banned by the Heavens. Every time it is taken out from the Box of ''Heaven is blind'', the Heavens will be able to detect it, and the user will be struck by lightning tribulation!]


    Holy Molly!


    "Who in the world has such big b*lls to name this box as such?" Duan Li raised his brows in disbelief.


    Are they tired of living?


    When he cast his senses into the box that was called as the ''Heaven is blind'', he saw a pyramid-shaped forge that has its body all shining black while radiating out a majestic blue aura, with the flames inside it all white in color! To the side, there was a crimson anvil that was pulsating with limitless power, and on top of it was a giant golden hammer... the God hammer!


    "The thing inside is a portable forge?" Duan Li''s face warped in disbelief, his hand trembling in agitation!


    According to the description of the forge, all he had to do was hammer any weapon a thousand times for it to become an unmatched weapon!


    Even if he was a fool in the art of forging weapons, hammering was something that even a fetus could do in their sleep!


    "AH!" Little sword suddenly screamed in horror, causing Duan Li to snap out from his daze.


    "What is it, enemy?!" Duan Li quickly sprawled onto his feet as he put on his defenses. Never before had he heard the proud and mighty Duergar screamed like a little chicken whose feathers were plucked from its bottom!


    Where is that formidable opponent? Let me beat them up!


    "That''s not it! Young Master, that is the All-Father Forge! It''s... it''s.. it''s...."


    Pang!


    "Speak up! Why are you suddenly becoming a coward?" Duan Li was exasperated and flicked the little sword dangling on his earlobe with his index finger.


    He was just relishing the thought of forging Ultimate graded weapons like cabbages when the fool disturbed him.


    Just what is this sword thinking?


    "Young Master, the All-Father Forge... it is where I was born along with all the other Eternal weapons!" Duergar quickly replied, afraid that his master will flick him once more.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was struck silent for a moment and swallowed his saliva.


    Gulp!


    "Little sword, are you sure? Don''t play games with your master here! If I''m not mistaken, your grade is even higher than Ultimate!" his sweat started to pour out from his body from the sheer agitation. Although Duan Li was from a far away village, he had read numerous books the past few days, and the grade of weapons and armors was one of the subject he that studied intensively!


    "It''s true Young Master! The weapons and armors of this mortal plane, as you know, are graded from Common, Uncommon, Rare, Legendary and Ultimate! Perhaps that it is now damaged that it can only forge weapon up to the Ultimate grade. Back then, when the Old Master first created this forge from ten thousand neutron stars of the universe, it can forge Mythical graded weapons like they were useless rubbish on the streets!" Duergar said as he trembled in fear.


    Mythical grade?


    Although Duan Li didn''t know of how powerful a weapon of that grade was, based on its name, its probably far more powerful than an Ultimate graded weapon!


    "Hmm... So it is you... you unfilial child..." an archaic voice suddenly echoed in the room.


    "What? Who are you?" Duan Li scanned his surroundings warily on this unsuspecting voice that ranged in their ears!


    Meanwhile, the little sword that has its body full of luster before, suddenly seemed to become pale like the rough granite rocks.


    "Paying respects to All-Father! Your child is wrong and seek forgiveness!" little sword immediately detached itself from Duan Li''s right earlobe and enlarged to its original size before laying flat on the ground, as if prostrating before a powerful entity that musn''t be offended at all cost!


    "Eh? The forge can talk?" Duan Li could finally identify the owner of the voice.


    Naturally, he was once again dumbstruck by these happenings. To think that a lofty weapon that look at all other life form in disdain and contempt would cower in fear like that...


    This forge sure is formidable!


    "Hmph... of all my children, you are the first to be awakened. Yet, after I was cast into the ditch by those blasphemous chickens, you did not even bother to find and save your father here..." the forge spoke in a sulking tone mixed with anger.


    "All-Father, please forgive your firstborn and cease your anger... at that time, the Six Sects of the Heaven''s Court were at war with each other! You saw how the carnage was back then... I myself was at the battlefield along with the Old Master..." little sword replied with a saddened voice, as if he was wronged.


    Duan Li that was listening to their conversation was intrigued and couldn''t help but to ask, "War between the Six Sects of the Heaven''s Court? What are you guys talking about?"


    At this mention, both the forge and the little sword went silent. They had said something that they shouldn''t have.


    "You... yes... you are very familiar." the forge turned its attention towards Duan Li before continuing, "There is no need for you to know of the past at this time. Eventually, you will come to know of it yourself when the time is right."


    Ah?


    "What do you mean?" Duan Li scratched his head, unable to comprehend the latter''s words.


    "My time is up and I must now sleep again. How you use me is up to you... provided if you got the capabilities of course..." the forge said before his voice becoming fainter.


    "As for you, my firstborn... for you to appear by his side... I guess that one cannot really outrun destiny after all... protect him well, or I shall not recognize my blood flowing in you!"


    As the last sentence was spoken, the room turned silent again. It appears that the forge has finally returned to its slumber!


    "Rest well, All-Father!" the little sword gave a deep sigh before reverting his form back to a small sword and attached itself to Duan Li''s earlobe.


    "Little sword, so the forge is your father... what happened to him? The voices of the Mirealithians told me that he was badly damaged. Does this have to do with the war that you guys mentioned before?" Duan Li inquired as he sat back on the floor cross-legged.


    After a moment''s hesitation, Duergar finally replied, "I cannot say anything much young master, but that is indeed the case. Please don''t ask me anymore about that incident, it pains me that I was unable to protect my father..."


    Hearing that reply, Duan Li became awkward. He never thought that the little sword could be so sentimental as well. As much as a thick-headed person he is, he wouldn''t go to the extent of continuing to push the matter, that would be heartless of him.


    A pity... I wanted to ask them on who this ''Old Master'' of their''s too...


    Hais!


    "Ahem! Well, since your father is now asleep, does that mean that I cannot use it to forge weapons until your father is awake?" Duan Li changed his question. This was on his mind as well.


    "No young master, you can still forge Ultimate graded weapons even without father being awake. He is that powerful." Little sword replied with a hint of fervent respect in its voice.


    After all, he was born from the fires of the All-Father Forge, and he knew best on what his father was truly capable of!


    One has to know that the ranking of weapons and armors that the immortal use was; Epic, Regal, Mythical, Zenith and finally the most powerful, Eternal grade!


    Usually, weapons and armors past the Mythical grade could never be forged straight from their materials, no matter how powerful the tools were or how skillful the blacksmith was!


    This was because weapons and armors could possess spirit, and they could advance through time, but the elements or materials they were made from, no matter how rare, has their own natural limit! To put this in another perspective, it was the same on how the strongest of steel has a limit tolerance of accepting impurities like carbon before they turn soft and brittle.


    However, the All-Father Forge doesn''t seem to abide by this law and could dish out an Eternal graded weapon on the spot, as long the blacksmith could properly make use of the forge, anvil and hammer of course!


    This breach of natural law had the nine Sovereigns from the Upper-realm of Heavens angry, and they combined their power to try to destroy it!


    But, it appears that the nine Sovereigns had failed to do so. Although the All-Father Forge was badly damaged, in the end, it still survived and was sealed from the prying eyes of the Heavens!


    "Is that so?" Duan Li sighed in relief.


    If it turns out that he cannot use the forge until it becomes awake, that would be too troublesome!


    After all, based on its voice, the forge appeared to be very old, and it was a known fact that when an old entity sleeps, they sleep for a very long time!


    After thinking for a while, Duan Li finally made a decision.


    "Let''s give this forging thing a try!"


    ...

 Chapter 323 - Forging the first weapon!

    Clang! Clang!


    With a wave of his hand, Duan Li took out all the weapons that he just bought from Na Zem Xi in the Cloud district before and piled them on the floor one by one, gradually creating a small mountain of metal.


    "Hmm... while the rarity of these weapons are not bad and all Rare-graded, which should be good enough for normal people, its not enough to help my followers become invincible yet!" Duan Li said as he picked up the Katana. This was the first weapon that he bought.


    The sleek design and thin width of this weapon made it extremely suitable for slicing an opponent into a million pieces in a single breath. However, he bought it not for himself, but for Di Rou, his personal bodyguard.


    "Young Master, the All-Father Forge is an entity forbidden by the sovereign of Heavens themselves... using it would definitely attract their attention!" little sword reminded with a worried tone.


    "I know." Duan Li nodded before sighing, "But unless we are to use it, then isn''t it just a lump of useless metal?"


    There is nothing in the world that could be gained without paying a certain price, and this was also true to using the forge as well. Even though this was the case however, the forge was badly damaged, and even if it could attract the ire of the Heavens, considering that it could only produce Ultimate-graded weapons at its current state, the punishment should be manageable!


    "Let''s go outside!" Duan Li said as he exited his room and moved to the garden. Knowing that lightning will fall onto him later on would make him a dumb boy if he stayed inside, unless he wanted to burn down the entirety of his residence court of course.


    Swallowing his saliva nervously, Duan Li scanned his surroundings for a moment and after making sure that no one will be implicated in what he was about to do, he clenched his fists tight and willed towards the ''Heaven is blind'' box!


    "All-Father Forge! Come out to your papa!" Duan Li bellowed grandly!


    Wengg!!


    Three mysterious objects appeared in front of him as they released a prehistoric aura! By the looks of it, their age wasn''t something that could be quantified easily!


    A pitch-black forge radiating out blue sky aura, a crimson red anvil that caused the surrounding air to compress and a giant golden hammer the size of a grown man''s arm, the combined values of these three objects could cause the entire Tian continent to become a bloodbath if it were known by the public!


    CRACKLE!


    "Young Master, the Heaven''s Will has detected it!" little sword quivered in panic.


    "Damn it! I hope it won''t be too powerful..." Duan Li narrowed his eyes as he raised his head to look at the converging black clouds above them, lightning began to dance sinisterly within it!


    ...


    "Eh?" The alarm is on?" someone with a white robe was surprised and scratched his head in confusion. He was just lazing around eating his noodles in front of the holographic screen when this suddenly came up.


    "That''s the automatic response from the Heaven''s Will scanning through all the thousand mortal worlds below. It seems that something had triggered its detection system." another person came over and waved onto the holographic screen with several hand gestures, making the numerous information displayed on it being filtered out one by one.


    "Huh? It''s this world again?" they said in surprise.


    It''s the Tian continent!


    It was just not too long ago that the Heaven''s Will committee had their headaches of dealing with a mortal that could gobble up the lightning from the Heaven''s Will as if drinking water in this very same world, and now something came up again?


    Just what is wrong with this world?


    "Hmm? Unknown object detected? That''s rare... " one of them cupped their chin as he found the matter to be amusing.


    The Heaven''s Will that was imposed on the worlds of the mortal was pretty much automatic based on certain rules. They were derived from the cumulative laws and regulation formed by the Six Sects of the Heaven''s Court and wasn''t something that they can intervene.


    As part of the Heaven''s Will committee though, their job was to enforce phenomena that goes beyond what the system could handle, which would usually notify them on how to take action regarding it, and such was the case right now.


    "What? That''s just equipment to forge weapons and armors... is the system broken?"


    Both of them glanced at one another in confusion.


    Why does the Heaven''s Will put on its alarm over such an insignificant matter?


    Will it even notify us about someone taking a dump next time?


    "I thought it was something interesting... whatever, just instruct it to do nothing." one of them indifferently said.


    "Eh? Are you sure? Shouldn''t we inform Elder Jun Xi at least? This is a matter on that world after all..." the other replied in dilemma.


    "Tsk! Do you think that the elders are people with a lot of free time? If we couldn''t even handle a small matter like this, aren''t you afraid of being fired and left unemployed to live by the streets? I''m telling you, just ignore it! Look over there, another world is facing an armageddon right now, shouldn''t you keep track on matters like that instead?" his friend said casually while pointing towards another hologram where people are screaming in fear, the battle of two mortals tearing apart their world!


    "Fine..." he finally relented and decided to ignore the alarm sent by the Heaven''s Will.


    ...


    "Eh? Young Master, I think that... the Heaven''s Will are not taking action this time?" little sword said in disbelief.


    He knows best that the Heaven''s Will will never give an ounce of leniency when it comes to upholding the law of Heaven, such that every single being will be judged accordingly, to the point that not even immortals or celestials were exempted from it!


    Given so, why does the cloud of Heaven''s punishment dissipated just like that?


    "Hahahaha! It appears that we were worrying for nothing!" Duan Li heaved a sigh in relief.


    "It''s probably due to the forge being damaged that it doesn''t recognize it as a threat anymore!" he continued.


    Hearing this, little sword thought for a moment.


    That shouldn''t be the case... even if father can only shelf out Ultimate-graded weapons, its still a breach of rules set by the Heavens!


    "Still, if what the Young Master said is right, then... I guess it should be fine?"


    Duan Li scanned at the huge golden hammer with his Tetra Soul Sense, and he couldn''t be more impressed by what he saw.


    [Ding!]


    [God Pummeling Hammer, even gods and demons will run away when they saw this hammer.]


    "Splendid!" Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    What an overbearing description!


    "Heng!!" Duan Li gripped the handle of the hammer with his right hand, but upon feeling the weight of the hammer, his eyes widened in astonishment!


    Heavy!


    "Uwwooooohh!" Duan Li screamed as he tried to lift it up inch by inch from the anvil, to the point where all his veins popped out from his skin and his clothes teared apart by his bulging muscles that expanded rapidly.


    Kacha! Kacha!


    Slowly, Duan Li''s clothes was now sleeveless, but he managed to lift the hammer up to his waist.


    "Incredible..." little sword remarked.


    One has to know that despite the miraculous results that will be produced if one were to forge weapon using the All-Father Forge, only the worthy could lift the God Pummeling Hammer!


    "Young Master, you must lift the hammer above your head before swinging it down to hammer a weapon. Otherwise, nothing will happen." he prompted.


    He had seen the Old Master using the forge innumerable times before to supply his armies with Mythical-graded weapons like a maniac, so he knew well on the correct method to use them.


    "Raise it over my head?" Duan Li shook his head helplessly.


    It seems that I''m going to be drenched in sweat today!


    While the hammer was definitely heavy, he could probably swing it a few times. If he really tried though, even a few thousand swings will be doable as well!


    Using his left hand to hold the Katana on the crimson anvil, and his right hand raising the hammer above his head, he swung it down.


    Pengg!!


    A resounding echo that seemed to contain the perfect tune seeped into the surroundings.


    Pengg!! Pengg!! Pengg!!


    Just like that, Duan Li continued to repeat this action again and again.


    ...


    "Hahahaha! Brother Shen Murong, I truly have not misjudged you! That spar was like nothing I''ve ever had before for a training!"


    "Hahahahahaa! Brother Wang Dong, you are too polite! You yourself are quite something as well! To think that such a method of training was possible, unless I saw it with my own eyes, I would never be able to believe it!"


    The laughter of Shen Murong and Wang Dong filled the garden as they entered the residence court, their appearance filthy.


    "Eh? Look over there! It''s Brother Duan Li!" Wang Dong said as he pointed to a figure that was drenched in sweat and his arms exposed with bulging muscles, especially his right arm.


    "Oh you are right!" Shen Murong nodded and called out, "Hey Duan Li! What are you up to? Why do you look so tired and your right arm swollen like that? Did you perhaps..." he stopped his sentence and then laughed out.


    "Damn! I never thought that you have such an extreme hobby! Even when we fought before, you hardly even sweat, and now you are like this... did you at least make sure that no one saw you?" he said with a smirk.


    Duan Li that heard this turned his head around and saw them coming over.


    "Ah? What are you on to about? Can''t you see that I am forging a weapon here?" he replied in exasperation.


    I don''t know why he smiled like that, but it makes me feel like beating him up!


    ...

 Chapter 324 - Why dont you give it a try?

    "What? You are forging a weapon?" Shen Murong was taken aback when he heard this.


    In his view, Duan Li was an uncontested and a formidable cultivator with unparalleled fighting prowess, such that he thought that Duan Li did nothing else other than train himself day and night in secret somewhere like a crazy person.


    Who could have thought that the other party was also able to forge a weapon?


    However, he quickly calmed himself down as he thought of something.


    Given that this Lord of his was mainly training, even if he could really forge some weapons, so what? It''s probably nothing too impressive!


    With such thoughts, he looked around but saw no weapon anywhere, thus he asked Duan Li, "Where is the forged weapon? I want to take a look!" he said, a little interested in Duan Li''s side hobby.


    "Oh? I tossed it into the pond over there for the final quenching process a few moments ago, so it should be almost time... fetch it up for me!" Duan Li instructed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. He had truly underestimated the difficulty in using the All-Father forge!


    After all, the prerequisite to forge an Ultimate-graded weapon was only to use existing weapon as a base and not forging them from the scratch. But it felt like he had used tremendous effort just by hammering the weapon on the anvil with the God hammer, to the point that he thought forging a completely new weapon would probably be less tedious!


    Hearing that Duan Li had casually tossed the weapon he just forged into the lake like that, Shen Murong chuckled as he shook his head.


    "Indeed! My guess was right on the mark! The weapon is probably below common grade, and he was ashamed by it, throwing it into the lake in a fit of rage!" he thought to himself as he went over by the lake to look for the said weapon.


    "Huh?"


    But when he got over to the side of the lake, his eyes burgeoned and almost popped out from their sockets to become food for the golden fish inside the lake.


    What he saw was a Katana that looked extremely antique, and he could deduce it to probably originated from the past era with a single glance. While this was impressive and probably a Rare-graded weapon in itself, if it was just this, raising his brows would probably be the limit to his reaction when he saw it.


    However, what made him this stumped was that, the Katana was laying gently on the bed of the lake... with the water being pushed around by it such that not a single droplet could be seen on its surface!


    This created a peculiar scene as if the katana was a hydrophobic material!


    "This... no, it cannot be!"


    Even for someone of Shen Murong''s caliber, whom would rarely be astonished by something, was thoroughly agitated when he saw this.


    Unable to curb his thirst for answer, he immediately jumped into the lake, creating a huge splash before snatching the katana into his hand!


    Wengg!


    Almost immediately, the downpour of power infected him; transforming his aura to become as sharp as the katana that he was holding himself!


    This was completely opposite to his character and aura signature. After all, he was an unruly man when it comes to fighting, no trickeries and fancy techniques, but raw power!


    As a result, his aura signature was relentless and felt like an impending tsunami to his opponents, not like what he was currently radiating out - the sharp aura of a calculative and efficient person..


    Akin to an assassin!


    "Elemental rejection and the molding of my aura... I''m not mistaken at all... this..." Shen Murong swallowed his saliva.


    "This is an Ultimate-graded katana!" he finally said with a grim look on his face!


    "What?!" Wang Dong by the side was surprised and could not believe what he just heard, his previous playful expression was gone and replaced with a face full of trepidation!


    "You... how did you do this?!" Shen Murong swerved his head to look at the resting Duan Li by the forge with utter disbelief!


    Seeing their shocked expression as if they had just seen their ancestor''s ghost standing in front of them, Duan Li chuckled.


    "What? It''s just an Ultimate-graded weapon... why are you guys making such a fuss?" Duan Li casually replied, making it look like the katana in Shen Murong''s hand was something ordinary that could be bought at any weapons store.


    Pu!


    Shen Murong felt that his blood was welling inside his throat, threatening to burst out from his mouth at any moment now after hearing this.


    Brother! Do you know that an Ultimate-graded weapon was not something you could see and touch, but only hear about in myths and legends?


    This is an even higher tier when compared to a Legendary-graded weapon damn it!


    How many cultivators in the entire world dreamed of owning an Ultimate-graded weapon to accompany them in this lonely world?


    In fact, even if one lived for hundreds of years, the chances of being able to see, not to mention owning one, was still incredibly slim!


    But you...


    "Brother Duan Li my Lord, did you really... forge this weapon?" Wang Dong on the other hand, was still holding some doubts as to the authenticity of Duan Li''s words. While he respects the latter to the bottom of his heart, there was a chance that the other party was only playing jokes with them!


    In his view, a grand master of the forge that was able to produce a weapon of such caliber should be ancient and wrinkled from head to toe, but Duan Li was still like a pubescent youth that did not even know the touch of any women yet!


    Additionally, the design on the hilt of the katana was obviously ancient! Knowing so, how could it be forged recently?


    "Well..." Duan Li thought for a moment before replying, "I did not forge the weapon, but I upgraded it!" Then, turning over to Shen Murong, he beckoned "Now hand it over, that''s not meant for you!"


    "What? But I''m the one who fetched it for you! By logic, shouldn''t this belong to me now?" Shen Murong replied a bit indignantly, like a child whose favorite toy was about to be confiscated.


    "Fool, are you blind? Do you think that someone like you is suitable for that kind of weapon? Calm yourself!" Duan Li reprimanded. Against Shen Murong who was thickheaded and a bit dumb, he had to be a little harsh in his word for the other party to take him seriously.


    Furthermore, what is with that logic? Just because you picked it up for me, it belongs to you now?


    "This... hais!" Shen Murong gave out a deep sigh and handed the katana over to Duan Li while feeling a little unwilling.


    Meanwhile, Wang Dong cupped his chin as he struggled to understand the meaning behind Duan Li''s words.


    "He upgraded it? How can a weapon be upgraded to an Ultimate? Did he whet the katana ever since he was a toddler?" he thought to himself, feeling befuddled.


    To the best of his knowledge, there were only some weapons that were upgradable, and a katana definitely belongs to the opposite category!


    Now that the katana was in Duan Li''s hands, he observed it from top to bottom before nodding in satisfaction, "Mmm! So it turned out well in the end! Who could have thought that just by hammering the weapon down like that would really produce such a result?" he remarked.


    Shen Murong heard this and once again raised his dejected head to look at Duan Li.


    "What? All you did was just hammer it?"


    Brother, you must be taking my intelligence to be a little too low!


    "Ah? You don''t believe me? Why don''t you give it a try then?" Duan Li sniggered as he pointed to the God hammer resting in the anvil.


    ...

 Chapter 325 - Howling in defeat!

    Hearing Duan Li''s words that sounded like a challenge to him, how could the proud Shen Murong just shrug it off like that?


    Naturally, he stepped forward, and with an arrogant snort, he said, "Hmph! Isn''t it just hammering down a weapon for a few times? If you give me a weapon, I''ll also be able to do the same thing!"


    Obviously, despite saying this, he did not believe what Duan Li said to be true. After all, how can an Ultimate graded weapon that was sought by innumerable cultivators around the Tian continent be forged just by hammering them a few times?


    If it were that easy, then wouldn''t everyone be able to have one by now?


    "Be my guest." Duan Li chuckled and tossed over a sword to Shen Murong.


    Catching the sword on his left hand, he placed it on top of the crimson All-Enduring anvil. Then, he gripped the huge golden God hammer with his right hand.


    Sucking in a huge mouthful of air, he imagined himself to hammer the sword a few hundred times in a matter of seconds with his barbaric strength, thinking that he would look so cool while doing it and surprise Duan Li with his capabilities.


    "Hengg!!"


    However, reality was often disappointing.


    Eh?


    Wang Dong by the side was already prepared to watch something interesting with his arms crossed on his chest, but why did his Brother appeared to become frozen at the very last moment?


    Could his stomach be acting up?


    "Even his veins was now popping out from his skin.. he must be desperately holding it in for the faeces to not leak out.." Wang Dong nodded as he made this assumption and felt like it should be the case.


    My Brother, that is not healthy for your bowels..


    As a man, we should be a creature that symbolizes freedom! What does it matter if you were to defecate yourself on the spot?


    Even if the whole world would then viewed you in contempt for doing it, I, the great Wang Dong, would stand tall and become proud of you!


    "How in the world is this hammer so heavy?!" Shen Murong silently cursed in his mind as beads of sweat started to drench his body.


    Duan Li noticed the grim expression on Shen Murong''s face and he knew that the other party had thoroughly underestimated the process of creating an Ultimate graded weapon.


    "Well... How can a tool to create an Ultimate graded weapon be anything ordinary?" Duan Li chuckled as he shook his head.


    "Heengg!!" Shen Murong let out another sharp burst of air from his mouth as his muscles on his right arm burgeoned, which finally granted him the strength to lift the hammer up!


    Don''t you underestimate the heir of the Shen clan you damned hammer!


    Seeing that the latter was finally able to lift the God hammer after exerting quite an effort, Duan Li nodded before he casually spoke while sipping tea by the side, "Unless you can hammer the sword for a thousand times, nothing will happen to that sword."


    Putong!


    Shen Murong found his strength to suddenly disappear and his kneecap loose when he heard this, causing the weight of the hammer to pull him down to the ground and crashed.


    Shen Murong had the scare of his life as the God hammer almost squashed his b*lls when he fell.


    "A thousand times? Impossible! This thing is so heavy! I can probably swing it for ten or twenty times, but that''s already pushing it!" Shen Murong shouted in reply to Duan Li''s absurd statement.


    "Brother Shen Murong, what are you saying? How can that hammer be that heavy? Let this powerful man who once stood at the peak of Mount Tai give it a try!" Wang Dong laughed out loud as he stepped forward with large strides, the wind blowing on his hair making him look like a vagrant cultivator.


    Gripping the hammer with his right hand, he summoned his strength.


    "Eiiyaakk!!"


    ...


    A crow was chirping overhead as it flew above Wang Dong, seeming to curse the other party as an idiot.


    "..." Duan Li and Shen Murong.


    "Sh*t! Its really heavy! What the flying cow is this thing? Is it really a hammer?!" Wang Dong''s mouth and brows twitched in embarrassment.


    "Eiyaaakk!!" he shouted and tried to lift it up once more, exerting more strength this time around.


    Finally, the hammer was lifted off the ground inch by inch, and his face was reddening as blood furiously circulated in his body.


    "You need to lift it over your head before hammering the sword down." Duan Li instructed with a smile as he shook his head.


    "Over my head?" Wang Dong instantly paled.


    What if it fell over my head? Wouldn''t I be dead by then?


    Despite feeling a bit scared, he was also a prideful man and refused to back down. Therefore, he summoned more of his strength and was able to lift it over his head although his arm was already shaking.


    Pengg!!


    He hammered down and lifted it up once more.


    Pengg!!


    Each repetition became increasingly difficult and his breathing started to become haggard.


    After about 5 times, he finally could no longer take it and gripped the hammer with both hands.


    "!!!!"


    Immediately, the weight of the hammer seems to be multiplied by ten, the sudden pull caused all his muscles to react instinctively and tightened themselves, causing his clothes to teared itself apart, revealing his naked body that looked rock solid like the cliff of a mountain!


    It was fortunate that his underwear was holding on. Otherwise, the sun would instantly become dim and the dragon would shrivel up and die.


    Putong!


    Just like that, Wang Dong also crashed heavily on the ground.


    It appears that one must only use the hammer with one hand!


    Seeing that even Wang Dong has failed, Shen Murong turned to Duan Li, "Hey! I refuse to believe that you managed to use that hammer and swung it for a thousand times! That katana must be from somewhere else!" he said grudgingly.


    Lifting the God hammer was akin to the showcase of one''s true raw strength depending on the number of times they can swing it.


    He was always under the impression that although he was weaker than Duan Li, his raw strength should be at least a twentieth of the other party at least.


    If Duan Li could really swing the hammer for a thousand times, wouldn''t that meant that the other party was holding back all these while?


    In response to this, Duan Li only shook his head once more before stepping forward. Gripping the hammer with his left hand, his muscles tightened a bit before he was able to lift it overhead almost immediately, appearing to be unaffected by the sheer weight of the hammer!


    When both of them saw this, their faces showed extreme disbelief!


    "How could this be?!" they simultaneously thought in their mind.


    How was he able to lift the hammer so effortlessly? Using his non dominant hand at that!


    Peng!!


    Duan Li began to swing the God hammer onto the sword on the anvil.


    Peng!! Peng!! Peng!!


    Slowly, the speed of his hammerings began to increase exponentially, before eventually turning into afterimages!


    Wang Dong and Shen Murong could only watch the preposterous scene with their mouths agape.


    ...


    By evening, Fei Longwei, Wei Shang, Wei Wang and the rest finally returned to the residence court after a full day lecture at the academy. Shen Lu and Guo He appeared to be somewhere else at the moment.


    Unlike the hoodlum Shen Murong who frequently skips classes, they were law abiding students and would never miss their class for lame excuses.


    As for their Lord...


    Well, the identity of their Lord was special anyway. How can the Imperial Overseer have the time to attend class every day?


    They arrived mostly at the same time, and when they entered the garden, a perplexed expression could be seen on their faces.


    "Eh? Isn''t that Shen Murong and Wang Dong? What are they doing?" Wei Shang said curiously.


    "It appears that they are watching the Lord forging a weapon?" Fei Longwei replied hesitantly before turning to Xu Rong and Xiahou Yu.


    "You guys arrived earlier than us, what happened?" he asked.


    "What else? Exactly as you can see. Those two has been sitting on the ground like a pair of pebbles watching the Lord hammering that weapon for an hour now!" Xu Rong answered, appearing to be perplexed as well.


    Xiahou Yu by her side nodded and added, "It seems like.. they are intent on counting how many times Brother Duan Li is hammering that weapon..." she explained while munching down a fried chicken drumstick.


    Pengg!!


    "Oh? It appears that the weapon is finally done? Let''s go and take a closer look!" Wei Shang said as the rest nodded.


    They did not dare to get closer before for fear of disturbing the trio as it could be something important, but now that its over, they could finally seek their answer.


    But before they were even close, Wang Dong and Shen Murong suddenly slammed their fists on the ground and cried out!


    "A total of 13,000 swings..." Wang Dong felt his soul to shatter to pieces like a broken glass.


    He could only swung the hammer for 5 measly times!


    "13,000 times... 13,000 f*cking times! Mother, father.. is your son here born as a handicapped person?" Shen Murong howled into the sky emotionally.


    "..." Everyone.


    What the hell are they doing?


    ...

 Chapter 326 - Duan Lis gift!

    "Fuuh!" Duan Li exhaled a mouthful of air as he finished the last weapon. All in all, he had managed to upgrade 14 weapons to the ultimate grade, including the katana.


    Pah!


    He tossed the final completed weapon, which was a saber, into the lake with the rest of the other weapon for quenching.


    During the process, he found out that trying to alternate between his left and right hand was not possible while hammering down those weapons. There was a mysterious force preventing him from doing so.


    Therefore he could only do it alternatingly after each weapon was completed.


    As a result, he was able to forge 14 weapons in total!


    Although he was now fatigued, if he pushed himself, forging 20 ultimate graded weapons should be doable in the future!


    "Oh? You guys are back." Duan Li finally noticed the rest of his followers as he sat down on a boulder. At this time, his topless body was full of sweat and his body temperature was quite high to the point that vapors were radiating off his body, making him look quite dashing!


    Xu Rong blushed when she saw this. As for Xiahou Yu, she only seemed to give Duan Li a single glance before her attention turned towards the pile of weapons laying inside the lake.


    A hint of astonishment could be seen on her usually poker face expression.


    "Those weapons.." she exclaimed in surprise.


    "Hmm?" the rest of them that just came turned towards the same direction as Xiahou Yu.


    "This..!!"


    While Duan Li''s followers each has their own personality, and would sometimes look dumb, they were no fools. A single glance on those 14 weapons slapped their brain so hard that they thought they were dreaming!


    "U-Ultimate graded weapons..." Wei Shang was the first one to utter a sentence to break their stupor.


    "Impossible!!" Fei Longwei narrowed his eyes grimly as he clenched his fists tight.


    If we remember correctly, that saber over there that he just threw into the lake was the one that he just forged..


    And its an ultimate graded weapon too...


    Don''t tell me..


    He forged all these ultimate graded weapons?!


    With the exception of the defeated Shen Murong and Wang Dong whose face were like ghouls, everyone''s mouth was wide agape and their eyes widened in disbelief.


    Ultimate graded weapons, like their title, were only things that existed in the legends. It would take someone extremely lucky from the result of accumulating good deeds in their previous lifetime for such a chance to happen.


    But what is this?


    Why do we see 14 ultimate graded weapons laying inside the lake as if they were some useless trash?


    Aren''t they supposed to be placed on top of some holy pedestal where only the worthy could pull them out?


    Where was the promised adventure and trials to obtain them?


    Where was the sense of achievement and emotional breakdown when one finally managed to lay their eyes on them?!


    "D-Did you... made all these?" Fei Longwei asked with a bit of stutter in his voice, unbecoming of him who was usually aloof and uncaring for the world.


    Duan Li shook his head, "I only upgraded these antique weapons. Its nothing too impressive to be honest." he replied casually.


    Pu!


    Fei Longwei felt stifled in his chest and had trouble breathing.


    You managed to defeat everyone here by yourself and made us your followers? Fine, perhaps it was destined.


    You were able to blow away thousands of monsters from the monster stampede with a single punch? Fine, perhaps you are too strong to be compared with the normal standards.


    You were able to become the Imperial Overseer? Extremely difficult, but not entirely impossible after everything you''ve done.


    However..


    You upgrading antique weapons to ultimate graded weapons and you call that ''nothing too impressive''?


    Pui!


    You are taking this matter too lightly!


    Brother, perhaps you didn''t know yet, but even our Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping does not have a single ultimate graded weapon in his possession yet, and this was despite him having the resources of an entire empire to his disposal!


    To my best knowledge, the Emperor only has two Legendary graded weapon, one for him and another for the Queen Dowager!


    Legendary graded weapons are also extremely rare. Not only that the weapon must be forged from the most rarest mineral in the Tian continent, but it has to be infused with spiritual Qi all the time for several decades!


    Only after several generations would they be completed and has to go through the unique baptism of nature in the final stage to receive their blessings and become a legendary graded weapon!


    It was said that, whenever a legendary weapon was drawn out from their scabbard, the sun and the moon would lose their shine and the stars to dim!


    They were used as strategic level weapon and was able buff out allies and debuff the enemies in a large battlefield!


    As for ultimate graded weapons, their capabilities went far beyond that, such that they were entirely immune to elemental attacks!


    In fact, since it was extremely rare to find out someone that possesses an ultimate graded weapon, not a lot was able to be documented in the history books. As a result, no one was absolutely sure how powerful an ultimate graded weapons could be.


    "Wait.. something is wrong! If these are really ultimate graded weapons, then... Why can''t I detect any spirit within each of them?" Wei Shang suddenly said as his face showing an agitated look.


    An ultimate graded weapon, according to the legends, was an evolution beyond the legendary grade that has already possessed its own spirit. After all, how could a weapon possibly be able to pick out who its allies and enemies were to buff and debuff if it does not possess a sentience?


    The only problem with this was that, a sentient weapon will develop their own eccentric personality and thus couldn''t easily be tamed. This was also the reason why its extremely difficult to own a legendary graded weapon and above even if one stumbled upon them. If they do not deem the person worthy, there will be no way a person will be able to wield them!


    Therefore, since the ultimate graded weapons in front of them were devoid of spirit and sentience, what does this means?


    This means that, practically anyone could make those weapon theirs!


    Although it would not have the ability to extend its power beyond the user, just its capabilities of enhancing the individual user alone would be more than enough!


    "Hold it right there." Duan Li suddenly said with a strict voice. Judging from their flushed expression, he knew what they were about to do.


    With several ultimate graded weapons laying in front of them just like that, he didn''t blame them for becoming tempted.


    "There is no need to go crazy over mere weapons. I made them specifically for everyone here. So line up!"


    Right after he said these, his followers swerved their heads to look at him with shock before immediately forming a neat line in less than a single breath.


    Duan Li had never seen his followers this shameless before, not even Xiahou Yu dared to eat her favorite fried chickens now!


    Good! Good!


    Duan Li nodded his head in satisfaction as he went over the lake to pick up the weapons and stabbed each of them on the ground before looking at everyone.


    "First, Xiahou Yu! As you are my first friend that I made, I will give you these dual rapiers!"


    A wide smile could be seen on Xiahou Yu''s face that was almost far too rare to see. It felt like even the moon started to shy away from the beauty of her smile. Stepping forward, she received the pale blue dual rapiers from Duan Li''s hands.


    "Thank you.." she expressed her thanks as she stared at Duan Li right into his eyes.


    "En!" Duan Li nodded and he could feel the sincerity behind her words. "Next, since Shen Lu and Wang Xiolun is not here currently, Shen Murong!"


    Duan Li handed a pair of metallic red gauntlet that covers the hand up to the elbow, with a sharp protruding blade on its edges.


    "For someone like you who prefers hand to hand fighting, this one is far more suitable to you than the katana before." Duan Li remarked.


    "... Thanks." Shen Murong replied and took the pair of gauntlet away before stowing them inside his spatial ring.


    You don''t need to try and hide yourself, I can perfectly see how embarrassed you are..


    Duan Li shook his head with a chuckle before continuing, "Fei Longwei! I give you this saber in line with your swift and decisive attack strategy!"


    Fei Longwei expressed his gratitude upon receiving the violet saber. He felt the resonance with his Dark Arts that he was practicing as soon as he touched it and immediately became surprised.


    It appears that Duan Li gave him this violet saber specifically because of his Dark Arts..


    "Wei Shang and Wei Wang! Receive these pair of short swords! They will increase your speed exponentially when wielding them! It will be best that you both practiced using them first later on." Duan Li instructed as he gave them 4 short swords that were black in color.


    Wei Shang took a pair and gave the other pair to his little brother, Wei Wang. "Your words is our command my Lord!" Wei Shang kneeled on the ground for a moment before retreating back to the rest.


    "Xu Rong! While you are a spellcaster, I felt like this Shieldstaff would help you the most." Duan Li said as he pulled out the medium sized shield hybrid with a staff on its center from the ground and gave it to Xu Rong.


    "This shield has two purpose, one is creating absolute defense field and augmenting spells. It would take quite a toll on you, but it should be doable." Duan Li explained.


    "En! Thank you my Lord!" Xu Rong''s face became increasingly red when she received the shieldstaff from Duan Li as her eyes could not help but wander a bit on Duan Li''s topless body.


    "I''ll give the rest their own weapon next time." Duan Li said, referring to the currently absent Shen Lu, Wang Xiolun and Guo He.


    He then continued, "Finally... Di Rou!"


    Wuishh!!


    Duan Li''s shadow wriggled for a moment before elongating in front of him. Within it, Di Rou suddenly emerged out while single kneeling.


    "I''m here, Imperial Overseer." Di Rou said, her long black ponytail danced by the wind, making her look graceful even with her simple black clothing and mask covering half of her lower face.


    "I give to you, the most powerful ultimate graded weapon I forged. The Evisceral Katana!" Duan Li said grimly.


    When he first successfully upgraded the katana, the description that he got from his analyze ability made even he himself scared.


    [Evisceral katana, three injuries made by this katana will immediately disembowel the enemy.]


    "Di Rou, this lowly one, expressed her utmost gratitude for Lord Imperial Overseer''s kindness!" Di Rou accepted the Katana with trembled hands.


    Never before in her life had she ever dreamed of being able to obtain an ultimate graded weapon, much less in such a fashion!


    Before, she already made a pledge to herself to serve Duan Li whole-heartedly, but now, she will never doubt or question Duan Li''s action or instruction in the future!


    "En!" Duan Li nodded in satisfaction before he turned his sights on everyone else, his hands now clasped behind his back.


    "With the ultimate graded weapons I bestowed onto everyone here, I only have one condition that you must fulfill!" he spoke with a grim voice which made everyone tense.


    Gulp!


    "Use them only when absolutely necessary! Showing them off is forbidden! And when the time comes that you are forced to draw them out, you must make sure that your enemy in the end.. die!"


    ...

 Chapter 327 - All followers move out!

    The next day...


    "Hey, what do you think about yesterday? Did the Lord really meant what he said?" Wei Shang said to Fei Longwei who was currently cultivating by the shadow of a pine tree in the garden beside him.


    Since they were both cultivating the dark element cultivation, being in the shadow or somewhere dark will substantially boost their cultivation rate.


    Fei Longwei was silent for a moment before nodding, "I think the Lord was indeed serious and I might understand why."


    Wei Shang had been pondering upon their Lord''s words since last night. As far as he recalled, their Lord wasn''t someone murderous, so he was genuinely interested in knowing the reason behind this matter.


    "Oh? Why?" he asked, cupping his chin.


    Fei Longwei exhaled a silent sigh before replying, "Obviously, a single rumor about a cultivator possessing an ultimate graded weapon would send the entire pugilistic world on a hunting mission."


    He then opened his eyes to look at Wei Shang that were currently staring at him and continued, "This is why the Lord warned us strictly to not use the weapon carelessly. If we are forced to draw them out, then we must be sure to kill our opponent! Otherwise, it would become an endless trouble for us down the line!"


    Hearing this explanation from Fei Longwei, Wei Shang nodded in comprehension with a serious look to his face.


    So that''s the case!


    "It appears that great treasures, while granting their owner extreme benefits, also possesses their own disadvantages as well.." he lamented as he stared at the blue sky, seeming to comprehend another aspect of life.


    Truly the wonders of the world! Like the Yin and Yang, both advantages and disadvantages comes hand in hand!


    Wengg!!


    Suddenly, their communication jade slip stowed in their spatial ring glowed brightly at the same time and sent them signals.


    "This.." Both of them turned to each other with a grim look on their face.


    They finally received a mission from Duan Li!


    This was one of the benefit of being a Lord class; able to give missions to their followers as long as the academy agrees to it, and that the given mission was deemed to be not too dangerous for the students.


    Normally, while this was indeed possible, giving them missions outside of the academy would usually be denied unless for special reasons.


    However, now that their Lord was a renown figure, who would even dare question his request?


    Even if their Lord held another identity as a student of the academy and was also subjected to the rules and regulations of the academy until graduation, one would still need to bend a few of the rules for the comfort of the Jiu Empire''s Imperial Overseer!


    "We need to head out to the villages near the southern border? That''s fine I guess.. but the villages on this list.." Wei Shang swallowed a mouthful of saliva.


    They are all near one of the forbidden region on the South.. the Forest of Slumber!


    I hope that the mission will not require us to venture there..


    "Hmm.. it seems that we only needed to scout for information regarding the last whereabouts of the Lord''s mother. This is simple enough, but... " Fei Longwei contemplated for a moment with creased brows trying to comprehend something before releasing a deep sigh.


    Hais!


    The mission itself was not the problem, as gathering intelligence was quite common, but the extra note..


    Pu!


    Wei Shang almost choked on himself as he read the last instruction;


    ''Under the recommendation from Di Rou, Cucko and his minions will join your party. They are highly trained for intelligence gathering and should be quite useful. Treat them well.''


    "What in the world..." Wei Shang slapped his forehead and felt a sudden headache. Turning to Fei Longwei, he asked with a twitching lips, "Hey, can you speak with chickens?"


    "..." Fei Longwei replied with a piercing gaze towards him.


    Oh boy.. this is going to be one hell of a mission..


    ...


    Meanwhile, Xu Rong and Xiahou Yu that were currently at the kitchen cooking their breakfast also abruptly received a mission from Duan Li.


    "Go to the Seven Saints Culinary and speak with the Seven Saints Chef? He wants us to gather a few ingredients for him?" Xu Rong said in surprise as she stared at the absurdly long list of ingredients before turning to Xiahou Yu.


    "What do you think he is planning to do with all these... ingredients?" she asked.


    Xiahou Yu was also looking at the list before shaking her head, "I don''t know.. let''s go there in the afternoon.." she replied.


    They then liased with Di Rou via their communication jade slip who also agreed to help them out after receiving permission from Duan Li.


    ...


    At Na Zem Xi''s stall..


    "Oh? You guys are back! Did Elderly Junior sent you guys to buy some of my wares again? I''ll be sure to sell them cheap!" Na Zem Xi said with excitement in his voice.


    Elderly Junior was the name that Duan Li used to identify himself to him back then. Regardless of the peculiarity of the alias, he felt it to be quite normal for those who wanted to remain anonymous but still flamboyant, as the name sticks like mud in his mind.


    In addition, from the money he made after Duan Li''s purchase, he was able to secure himself a proper building in the Cloud district to finally start his own company the professional way.


    Right now, the building was in the process of renovation and it would probably take a few days to be completed. Therefore, he still had to operate his business in this dilapidated stall of his temporarily.


    "Yes, we came here under his orders, but not to buy something from you. This time, he is offering you a deal!" Shen Lu said and handed a jade slip to Na Zem Xi.


    "A deal? Very well, let me have a look first!" he replied and held the jade slip in his hand before infusing his spiritual Qi into it to read the contents.


    A few moments later, his excited face finally turned grim.


    "Who could have known..." he said after a long while with a deep sigh.


    "Be rest assured! Please relay my message to Esteemed customer, Elderly Junior, that it shall be carried out without fail!" he replied to Shen Lu and Guo He with a confident expression.


    "En!" they both nodded before leaving the stall.


    After a dozen meters away, Guo He spoke to Shen Lu beside him with a perplexed expression, "Hey Brother Shen Lu, since you have known our Lord the longest, what do you think his plans are?"


    Shen Lu chuckled for a bit before replying, "Well, he did explain it to me in detail personally. But he told me to not say a word about it to anyone else yet."


    Guo He looked disappointed hearing this reply. Noticing this, Shen Lu laughed for a moment before patting him by the shoulder, "Don''t worry, when the time is right, you will know!"


    As Duan Li''s friend and the Strategist of the Mysterious party, it was natural for Duan Li to divulge the crux of the plan to him. But since Duan Li instructed to not tell anyone yet, then regardless who it was, be it even Xiahou Yu, he will still close his lips tight regarding the matter!


    Staring at the sky with his hands clasped behind his back, he couldn''t help but to sigh in admiration.


    Brother, to think that you have planned it out so far... even with my insights, there are still some things that are not clear to me as well..


    Hais!


    ...


    "Brother Shen Murong, why do we have to go to the Red Desert? Isn''t that supposed to be a forbidden region?" Wang Dong threw a question to break the silence as he yawned while bolting through the air, heading Southwest of the Jiu Empire''s border along with Shen Murong and Wei Wang.


    "Brother Wang Dong, it seems that he wanted us to go search for a certain place. But the bastard didn''t even told us to find something specific, just that we need to stow everything into these tens of spatial rings that he gave us!" Shen Murong replied, his tone a little upset.


    He felt that Duan Li was asking them to become like bandits, stowing everything that seems to be of value in a certain ruin at the Red Desert, which was the current destination that they were heading to.


    Wang Dong laughed awkwardly when he heard this. Only Shen Murong could say such things about their Lord without repercussion somehow.


    "Bahahahaha! Brother Shen Murong, let''s not be upset! Perhaps the Lord wants us to let loose for a while? If I recall correctly, there are plenty of undead skeletons at the Red Desert! It should be good for practice!" Wang Dong said after laughing out loud, full of positivity.


    "Bahahahahaha! Brother Wang Dong is right! So what if it is one of the forbidden region? This Shen Murong isn''t afraid of some puny undead! I couldn''t wait to turn their home upside down!"


    "Bahahahahahahahaha!" the both of them continued to laugh as their conversation slowly turned more barbaric and uncivilized as time went on.


    "..." Wei Wang.


    The Lord must have made a mistake, making me a party with these two lunatics...


    Am I going to be fine?


    ...

 Chapter 328 - Return of Feng Li!

    In the Principal''s office...


    "Now that I''ve approved the request you made, they''re probably on their separate way right now. To be honest, I didn''t expect you to use the mission function like this." the Principal said to Duan Li who was currently feeding Daelius, the little fenrir with a complicated expression.


    The mission request was for students of the Lord class to help micromanage their followers by giving them some simple tasks. However, each of Duan Li''s mission to his followers were far from simple!


    He didn''t know what grand plan Duan Li was concocting, but for the latter to make such a big move like this, he conjectured that Duan Li was probably planning to do something huge that could affect the whole empire!


    Formidable!


    "Since when did he become this calculative?" the principal said inwardly as he gave a deep sigh, his emotion complex.


    The Duan Li he knew was someone frivolous and acted a little impulsively at times, brazen even.


    Did he finally mature? Did the seat of the Imperial Overseer forced him to change his ways?


    The principal turned his head to look outside the window, his gaze seeming to become more distant as he recalled the time from his prime.


    Back then, I was also the same... fearless and unfettered by everything! But after I became the principal of this academy, all that''s left of me is the shell of my former self...


    Hais!


    The principal continued to perform monologues in his mind as Duan Li remained clueless to this evaluation of his.


    In reality however, he could never be more wrong than this. How could Duan Li trouble himself with such headaches?


    What grand plan? All he did was just asking his fellow members to do something for him! This principal was exaggerating things!


    Duan Li''s request was actually quite straightforward. The only reason why he had to make the request from the principal and made it his follower''s mission was because after sharing his plans with Shen Lu, the latter told him that students of the academy were not allowed to leave the capital city, and could only do so under special circumstances; mission.


    Similarly, the vice-principal was also looking at Duan Li with intrigued, thinking that Duan Li had become a little unfathomable ever since ascending the throne of the Imperial Overseer.


    "In the meantime, what do you plan to do?" the principal asked.


    Hearing this question, Duan Li scratched his head looking helpless, "I don''t really have anything to do today.."


    The vice-principal chuckled, "You should go to class today."


    "Hmm.." Duan Li thought for a moment before replying, "Do you think that it will be fine? After all, everyone now knows who I am.."


    "Well.." both the principal and vice-principal looked at each other with an awkward expression.


    "We are not too sure ourselves on how the other students will react to you now.. but eh whatever, aren''t you still a student of the academy? It would reflect badly on you if people starts to gossip that the Imperial Overseer likes to skip classes.." the principal answered.


    The vice-principal nodded in agreement with the principal before adding, "Additionally, you should found the reaction of the students quite disproportionate towards you."


    He then explained that while some students managed to witness the events of him fighting against Cao Tengfei personally back then during the coronation ceremony, due to the limited space of the square inside the Imperial grounds, where influential people were given the priority to stand there, majority of the students had only heard of his feats!


    This means that there will be groups of students who thinks that the Imperial Overseer and Duan Li were two different people but with the same name!


    Moreover, even if there were people who believed Duan Li to be the Imperial Overseer, the stories about his fights would be thought as an exaggeration.


    After all, no immortal has appeared in the last thousands of years, so how could a student, not to mention only a Core Formation realm cultivator, was able to pummel an immortal that suddenly appeared?


    Duan Li let out a huge sigh.


    I only agreed to become the Imperial Overseer because the prospect of becoming one seems nice..


    Who would have thought that it became quite troublesome now?


    Hais!


    After a while, Duan Li left the principal''s office.


    "Do you think he will create another ruckus again?" the principal turned to Zhang Xi, a bit worried.


    With a sip of his tea, the vice-principal only shrugged his shoulder in reply.


    ...


    When Duan Li walked along the hallway, he could hear some students whispering when they saw him.


    "Hey, isn''t that student Duan Li? Is it true that he is the Imperial Overseer?"


    "What? You must be a fool. How could a student be an Imperial Overseer?"


    "But my best friend said so! He was there witnessing the fights during the coronation ceremony!"


    "Ha! You believe that?"


    Duan Li kept walking with little fenrir by his side ignoring all these conversations. But then, people somehow started following him from behind and the crowd only seemed to become bigger as time passed on.


    "What are these people doing? Why are they following me around?" Duan Li said to himself, a bit exasperated.


    Do they have nothing better to do? I know that I am quite handsome, but I don''t really like being followed like this!


    Just as he was helpless on what he should do with the current situation, something happened.


    "Duan Li you bastard, you better stop right there!" a voice suddenly bellowed out to him from a distance.


    Eh?


    Turning to the direction of this voice, he saw a familiar figure that he hadn''t seen for a very long time.


    Feng Li!


    Duan Li creased his brows together.


    "Oh its you. I see that your arm have recovered quite splendidly." Duan Li nodded feeling impressed.


    This fellow was where everything began for Duan Li. If not for him, Duan Li wondered whether he would still be here right now or on a completely different path.


    The last time he saw this fellow, it was with his brother something, and he made a quick work of them to show his gratitude.


    "You..!!" Feng Li was incensed upon recalling the matter and wanted to lash out cursing Duan Li''s nine ancestors.


    Nevertheless, he managed to calm himself down with a few heavy breathing in and out.


    With a sneer on his face, he continued, "At first, I thought that you are only arrogant. But now you have finally revealed your true evil self!" his voice getting louder as he attracted the attention of everyone.


    "Evil self? What is he talking about?" the crowd whispered to each other in confusion.


    Seeing that his words managed to get everyone''s attention on him, Feng Li became excited.


    "Everyone, please hear me out!" he said while pointing his index finger towards Duan Li.


    "This bastard, his name is Duan Li! As all of you should know by now, the newly coronated Imperial Overseer of our empire, also goes by the name of Duan Li!"


    Everyone nodded when they heard this, while some began to understand where this was going and their face turned serious.


    "This guy, he dares to have the audacity to pay people to spread up rumors about him being the Imperial Overseer! This blatant imposter have dishonored our empire for his own benefits!"


    Hisss!


    The crowd gasped as they threw a suspicious look to Duan Li.


    "Hey! Is what this guy said just now true?"


    "I don''t know, but it seems logical.."


    "Hah! I knew it! How could a mere brat be the Imperial Overseer? If that is the case, won''t I also be eligible to become one?"


    Seeing that he managed to get the crowd to suspect Duan Li, Feng Li''s eyes flashed with a fierce look.


    I''m going to destroy you today!


    He then let out a dry cough and some people that was in the crowd noticed this signal and began to flame their doubts.


    "How impudent! To dare claim himself as the Imperial Overseer.. he deserves death!"


    "Kill him!"


    Meanwhile, Duan Li only frowned for a bit as he cupped his chin.


    Interesting.


    ...

 Chapter 329 - Which side are you on?

    "What do you mean? When did I ever bribe people to spread such rumors? Perhaps it was actually somebody else?" Duan Li replied, his voice remaining calm while playing with his chin, suppressing himself from cackling.


    From the outside, it would seem like Duan Li was treating this matter casually, like a bad joke even. However, if one were to really observe him right now, they would definitely feel their backbones to tremble and their backs drenching in sweat!


    After all, Duan Li''s eyes was now slightly narrowed into slits and within them could be traced a mix of two emotions that was hidden quite well.


    One part of him was amused by Feng Li''s antics.


    While another part of him..


    Was furious!


    It was like the eyes of a predator that only needs to clench their fists slightly, where their prey will then immediately squeal, before exploding into mangled bits and pieces!


    It would''ve been so easy for Duan Li to kill him right now for his insolence, but he wanted to know first on how far the latter were planning to go with this farce.


    Additionally, while Feng Li was a despicable person, he wasn''t someone that had the guts to go out in the open like this unless someone was supporting him from behind!


    "I wonder why he is trying to slander me like this.."


    As Duan Li stared right into Feng Li''s eyes, trying to understand why the other party was doing this, he finally shook his head.


    Oh little Feng Li, I''ve left you alone and never once tried to harm you on purpose, yet here you are.. continuing to create problems for me despite being taught a lesson before..


    Hais!


    "Regardless of the reason, for you to slander me like this and calling me out in the public, henceforth, your fate is now forfeit!"


    As Duan Li made this declaration in his mind, the clap of thunder suddenly exploded in the sky, shocking everyone.


    BOOMM!!


    It was like the quill of heavens had just made a single scribble to cancel out someone''s name from his future fate!


    Feng Li was also startled by this abrupt phenomena and he suddenly felt chilly, as if something was about to happen to him. After a moment however, he shook the feeling away and continued with his speech.


    I should be fine if I do it according to the plan!


    "Enough of your lies!" Feng Li bellowed, not letting Duan Li off the hook as he continued to push on, his face turning savage.


    "While Duan Li is a name that is not that common, the Jiu Empire has a total population of several millions. As such, it wouldn''t be impossible for there to be a few individuals with the same name. Like you for example!"


    "As someone who shares the same name as his Excellency, you should''ve tried your best to not dishonor it. Yet, not only is your attitude arrogant, sullying his Excellency''s humble personality, you also dared to impersonate yourself and proclaimed to be him!"


    "There should be a limit to one''s greed, but you have gone too far! A Core Formation realm cultivator like you dared to claim yourself as the Imperial Overseer, do you think that we are stupid? Impudent!" Feng Li''s voice becoming louder and louder to the point where every sentence was him shouting with all his heart.


    Turning to face the people around him, his face was flushing red due to his excitement to see Duan Li being destroyed and humiliated. "Everyone, I know that I am not strong enough to fight nor capture him alone, but together, we can uphold justice! Who is with me?" he said, using the most sincere face he could make while saying that final sentence.


    Tap! Tap!


    Some people then suddenly stepped forward, but contrary to his expectation that these people would back him up, they instead prostrated on the ground, trembling while facing Duan Li!


    What the heck?


    "Your Excellency! We have nothing to do with this braindead man! We implore you to show mercy to us!"


    "Your Excellency! We are only part of the crowd here because we admired you! We do not think that the situation would suddenly become like this!"


    "Yes, your Excellency! We do not doubt on who you are, so we beseech you to please quell your rage!"


    These group of people that prostrated on the ground towards Duan Li were small in numbers, only a few dozen. However, upon seeing their reaction, the crowd that were initially unconvinced began to hesitate!


    "Hey... I don''t think that they are lying! Look at that, their body are shivering man!"


    "But that man''s words is quite logical as well.. How could the Imperial Overseer be someone that has such a low cultivation level? Shouldn''t he at least be at the Nascent Soul realm?"


    "You don''t know? Duan Li is that junior that had only enroled himself just recently! Yet, not even a single year had past and he is already at such a level!"


    "That''s right! In addition, he was the hero that slayed thousands of monsters by himself during the monster stampede! He was also crowned as the champion in the recent tournament!"


    All sorts of discussion broke out as the crowd became divided. Some who had witnessed Duan Li''s coronation personally back then were shivering non-stop, afraid that the fools around them would cause Duan Li to become really offended and massacre them all.


    Who could stop a raging Imperial Overseer? Not only that there was no one above that rank, the other party had also fought against a true immortal and was able to win!


    People like them? Wouldn''t a sneeze from Duan Li would be enough to shatter all their bones?


    Meanwhile, some that knew Duan Li by his previous reputation also genuinely believed Duan Li to be the Imperial Overseer, while some were still having some doubts.


    Finally, there were people that vehemently rejected the idea of Duan Li being the Imperial Overseer. The rest remained neutral.


    "I don''t know man! I don''t want to be complicated in this! I''m leaving!"


    Slowly, one by one began to leave the crowd. The matter of whether Duan Li was truly the Imperial Overseer or not was not something to be taken lightly of. After all, the Tian continent placed hierarchy on top of everything else, and every cultivator must respect the chain!


    If their guess was right and Duan Li was truly the Imperial Overseer, then perhaps good things might happen to them. However, if they were to guess wrong, and it turns out that the Imperial Overseer was someone else, then their lightest punishment would be beaten to death!


    Against such odds, it would be better for most of them to not have anything to do with the current situation!


    In the end, almost half of the initial crowd left while the remaining ones stood on the believers and non-believers side.


    "Damn it... curse those cowards!" Feng Li inwardly cursed towards the people that left.


    Still, this kind of things are actually accounted for inside the plan, so I just have to act accordingly...


    Cough!


    Giving a light cough as a signal, the people he planted within the non-believers side suddenly stepped forward and growled angrily, "We should capture him together guys!" after which, some of them nodded while joining behind Feng Li, readying their stance to pounce at Duan Li at any moment now!


    "Its useless to struggle! Surrender yourself!" Feng Li said to Duan Li with a huge smile, agitated that he was about to finally destroy Duan Li for good!


    Hais!


    With a soft sigh, Duan Li raised one palm to the air before pressing them down.


    "Suppress."


    ...

 Chapter 330 - The Player behind the board!

    BOOMM!!


    Just by pressing his palm downwards, Feng Li was forced to the ground on all his four limbs, and so was the rest that slandered Duan Li, becoming helpless in the face of his insurmountable power!


    "W-What?!" Feng Li and his lackeys were visibly stunned and scared by this sudden attack. They had never been subjected to such pressure before!


    Crack! Crack!


    Their bones and joints began to clatter together, such that if Duan Li were to exert any more force than this, then they would become a cripple forever!


    Some of the smarter ones among them immediately began to understand this fact, resulting in their face to become ashen.


    "This.. could it be... his aura?" one of them exclaimed as beads of sweat formed on his forehead.


    "What?" his friends widened their eyes in disbelief.


    "How can that be? He is only at the Core Formation realm... It''s impossible for his aura to be able to pressure us like this!" they exclaimed, not daring to believe their ears.


    Even the pressure from Nascent Soul realm cultivators could only freeze them, not forcing them to be on all four of their limbs like this!


    His aura? The heck it is!


    We refuse to believe it!


    "Have you guys cooled down yet?" Duan Li said, his voice echoing in the hallway as he looked down on them without lowering his head.


    After studying spatial arts, he could already channel his aura and presence onto individuals as he like, making them feel as though they were bogged down by a mountain on their backs!


    As long as they were not too strong, taking their ability to move using this technique was as easy as pressing his palm down towards their direction!


    This was very different than how other cultivators expressed their presence and aura to others. While others could only unleash them as a whole, he could concentrate them to single point using spatial arts, causing his aura to be more dense and powerful not normal for someone of his realm.


    In addition, he was already powerful enough as he is. Perhaps, only Nascent Soul realm experts could shake free from this technique of his!


    On the other hand...


    What dignity!


    The rest that were not subjected to Duan Li''s powers gasped in astonishment. It felt like they were looking at the Emperor staring down his subjects from his high throne!


    "Your Excellency! These rebels must be punished!"


    "Since they are so brave in slandering, we can hang them by their big b*lls your Excellency!"


    "Yes yes! In fact, even adding public whipping would still be going easy on them!"


    One after another of Duan Li''s devout believers began to voice out their enraged emotions energetically against these people that did not believe them.


    Holy-molly!


    Duan Li was surprised by these angry mobsters that lashed out punishments which seemed to be getting barbaric in nature from one person to the next, causing the already ashen faced Feng Li and his lackeys to become even more pale!


    These bastards!


    Feng Li cursed in his mind as he threw a wrathful glance towards them, a shred of doubt began to surface in his mind.


    Could Duan Li really be.. the Imperial Overseer?


    "N-No! That cannot be! That person said so himself that this Duan Li was just a cheap impersonator!" he bit his lips hard to the point that blood flowed down his chin.


    "Duan Li! How dare you resist arrest! Are you planning for a rebellion against the Empire?!" he shouted out at the top of his lungs.


    To him, it doesn''t make sense on how Duan Li could be this strong, not to mention at such speed!


    It was fine if he was the only one bogged down by Duan Li''s aura as he was still in the Qi Condensation realm, but the people behind him were a mix of Foundation Establishment realm, Core Formation realm and some were even at the Golden Core realm!


    Given so, how could Duan Li have the capacity to suppress them all?


    It was simply impossible!


    Furthermore, they were both juniors. Yet, how did the other party managed to cultivate even faster than him who enrolled earlier?


    He felt that after he met Duan Li in that Xuan village, all his good luck was sucked out of him!


    Thinking about these, Feng Li became extremely indignant!


    "He must be using some kind of an artifact! It has to be!" he thought inwardly while struggling to break free. However it was useless.


    "Tell me, who told you to do this?" Duan Li suddenly asked, causing a flinch in Feng Li''s expression.


    "N-No one! I am certain that you are a fake!" Feng Li replied before continuing, "Anyway, stop this and let us arrest you!"


    Hearing this, Duan Li became quite exasperated.


    Pah!


    A tight slap landed onto Feng Li''s left cheek.


    Pah!


    Another slap landed on his right cheek.


    Pah!


    And one slap to his forehead.


    All three slaps caused Feng Li to become light headed and his cheeks swollen red.


    "I don''t care whether you believed or not that I am the Imperial Overseer. What I am interested in is the person who sent you to do this. Tell me who it is, now!"


    Pah! Pah! Pah!


    ...


    Inside the moon pavilion, a young man dressed in a neat scholarly uniform was sitting casually by the verandah while drinking tea, sipping it slowly one at a time.


    His expression was calm and collected and his eyes reflected a depth of the bottomless ocean.


    This scholarly young man was Rong Huan, an elder of the Strategist club that fell from grace after he misjudged Duan Li''s level of importance, causing his standing within the social circle to plummet and his reputation destroyed.


    "As the moon and sun revolves, will they still return to where they belong. A thousand swords cannot stop it, nor can it sever the intangible strings that kept it apart." he said, reciting a certain poem about the origin of the universe.


    "I am always the player behind the chess board while others are but my pawns. I might have to back out and retreat sometimes, but I can still play!" he raised his head to look at the blue sky, before letting out a chuckle.


    Duan Li, do you think that you can continue to be arrogant to me?


    So what if you are really the Imperial Overseer?


    For daring to be impudent to me, I will still screw you time and again!


    If I get caught, all I have to do is feign ignorance and make a guilty face!


    "Hahahahahaha!" Rong Huan continued to laugh as he found satisfaction in his flawless plan.


    Piak!


    A bird dropping fell right into his mouth.


    "Ueewkk!!" Rong Huan''s face immediately turned green and contorted. Due to him laughing with a wide open mouth, the bird dropping went straight into his throat and he almost swallowed it.


    Ptui!


    "Stupid f*cking bird! I will find your nest, and I will fry your young chick and cook your eggs!!" He bellowed out from the verandah and shouted towards a red bird flying away happily into the distance.


    ...


    "What''s wrong with the elder above us?" A person below Rong Huan''s floor happened to overheard his shout and couldn''t help but to frown in displeasure as his focus in playing the boardgame was disturbed.


    "It must be a senile old man." his friend that sat at the opposite of the game table replied. "Even the most vicious bandit will never dare to cook their own eggs even when they are super hungry!" he continued and moved a piece on the board.


    "..." his friend.


    Brother, when did you last time wax your ears?


    ...

 Chapter 331 - The Wailing Platypus!

    "Uuuuu! Uuuu!!"


    The sound of a platypus could be heard wailing non-stop, seeming to be in extreme pain. However, if one were to look closely, it was actually Feng Li, whose face was swollen to the point that it was elongated like the face of a platypus.


    "Hmm... so it''s that fellow..." Duan Li cupped his chin as he gave the matter a deep thought.


    What is his problem? Have I ever offended him before?


    He thought inwardly with a frown.


    "Last time before boarding the Phoenix Cradle, the commotion also seemed to be caused by him too..."


    Does he think that I will never found out about the matter?


    Hmph!


    Let''s give him a visit then!


    Making this sound decision, Duan Li then turned to Feng Li that was crying on the floor.


    "As for you..." Duan Li''s face darkened, causing the already scared Feng Li to wail even more in horror! He felt like the shadow of a grim reaper was now looming over him, drenching him in sweat and fear!


    "Uuuuu!! UUUUUU!!!" he tried to scream and beg for mercy, but in the end, all that came out from his severely distorted face was the sound of a platypus, making no sense to what he meant.


    If there was any effect at all, it would be that he received another tight slap from Duan Li.


    Shinggg!!


    Duan Li brandished little sword on his right hand that gleamed menacingly, and with a single breath, waves of slashes cut onto the body of the helpless Feng Li!


    CRACK! CRACK!!


    "UUUU!!!" Feng Li screamed until his veins popped onto his neck, his eyes burgeoning from the sheer pain that he felt, and he almost cried in blood.


    This was because Duan Li had severed the tendons and ligaments from his four limbs, making him essentially a cripple through and through!


    "This is your punishment for your insolence. I don''t care if anyone believed me to be the Imperial Overseer or not, but if they slander me and accuse me like what you did, then this is the outcome!" Duan Li said coldly, the aura he was radiating out right now was extremely murderous.


    "Please, cease your anger your Excellency!" the crowd began to prostrate nervously on the ground once more, even the non-believers who opposed Duan Li before began to do the same thing.


    Currently, it does not matter whether Duan Li was really the Imperial Overseer or not, but for him to dare cripple someone like that on school grounds in front of others, fearing not the strict rules in place for each of the students here, speaks volume of him!


    Against someone like that, who would dare to act arrogant? The rules and laws that usually protected their life meant sh*t in these kinds of situation!


    "Death is too much of a mercy for you and would be bad examples to others. As a cultivator, although you will still be able to recover over time, it will still take you several months even with the best medicinal pills and concoctions you can find." Duan Li said as he turned around and swung little sword to rid of the blood.


    Wengg!


    Little sword then returned to its normal form as Duan Li walked away slowly without giving Feng Li a second glance.


    "I dare you to try this farce again before me. See how I will deal with you!"


    Tap! Tap!


    As Duan Li''s figure disappear into the long hallway, everyone could finally breath in relief.


    "It was fortunate that we were able to know the truth beforehand..." some of them said, shivers running through their backs. These were the people who knew that Duan Li was really the Imperial Overseer!


    "Yeah... if we didn''t, perhaps we might do something foolish like them..." another pointed to a group of people that just recovered from their shock.


    Hearing this, they stood up and argued, "Foolish? That Duan Li is the foolish one! To dare do this on school grounds... we''ll wait for his verdict tomorrow!" they said while gnashing their teeth. It was unseemly for cultivators to bow down towards others as it could be taken as a form of direct humiliation, not to mention prostrating on the ground!


    Seeing these people finally retreating, the others shook their heads, "It''s most likely that you people would be the one to be on the receiving end of your own verdict..."


    Hais!


    Some people are truly blind!


    ...


    Far in the Southwestern parts of the Jiu Empire, three asses could be seen moving about in the bushes.


    "Brother Shen Murong, what should we do? Do we go in fists blazing and beat them all up?" Wang Dong said in a whisper.


    "Brother Wang Dong, I think that should be the correct course of action, let''s go!" Shen Murong replied with a similar hushed voice.


    Tap!


    Before they could move however, a pair of hands gripped at their shoulders, stopping them from behind. It was Wei Wang. He was currently shaking his head side to side like an owl on steroids.


    "Ah? What''s wrong Wei Wang? Do you need to go to the toilet? You can do it here, we don''t mind!" Wang Dong looked at the panic Wei Wang with softness in his eyes. Of the three of them, Wei Wang was the youngest!


    As someone of the oldest of them all, he had to look after his junior properly. He was a man with a big heart after all!


    On the other hand, hearing what Wang Dong just said, Wei Wang almost had the urge to punch him on the face.


    He wasn''t able to speak, so all he could do was use body language to convey his thoughts in the hopes that the two seniors in front of him would understand.


    However, it seems that he underestimated their capabilities for far too much. Apparantly, their way of life was simply too barbaric, such that even simple gestures could be misinterpreted far from its meaning!


    Never before had he felt so tortured and frustrated inside when communicating with people.


    Right now, they were already on the outskirts of the Red desert. Perhaps, of all the regions in the Jiu Empire, only the Red desert remains unguarded.


    This was because the Red desert was located in between the borders of the Jiu Empire and the untamed wild!


    The total area it covered was extremely massive. In fact, a fifth of it encroached into the Jiu Empire like a protruding cliff, and because the Jiu Empire could not afford to build a long wall to encompass it all, the authorities decided to just leave the area alone.


    While this might seem like a foolish idea, it was in reality a logical decision. After all, no one would dare to invade the Jiu Empire through the Red Desert from the outside, and the reason for this was simple.


    If an army were to invade using the Red desert as a passage, they would have to enter the epicenter first. So far, no expedition was able to survive the hostile environment at the epicenter!


    Gigantic killer worms, sand whales, extreme sandstorm and many more form of natural disaster could be found at the epicenter!


    This was why the three of them were stumped when they saw a foreign military force making camp just right in front of them!


    Although they number only a few dozens, it was still questionable on how they were able to bypass the border!


    In Wang Dong''s and Shen Murong''s opinion, their presence could be viewed as blatant disregard towards the Jiu Empire. In fact, it could even be called as an invasion!


    Therefore, they view this foreign military force as an enemy!


    Scribble.. scribble...


    "Oh! So that''s what you mean..." Wang Dong and Shen Murong finally understood after reading the scribble that Wei Wang made on the ground.


    He strongly suggested that they first needed to scout the enemy camp and gather information about the situation first before making a decision!


    "Eh... I think this is too much. I don''t know how to sneak." Shen Murong scratched his head before continuing, "Besides, wouldn''t the result be the same if we were to capture a few of them before beating them up, so that they would answer some questions?"


    "..." Wei Wang could only sigh in helplessness upon hearing his answers.


    Scribble... Scribble...


    "What? You can sneak alone? That''s too dangerous!" Wang Dong expressed his objection towards Wei Wang''s plan. Even Shen Murong shook his head.


    Seeing that both of them did not trust him, Wei Wang activated one of the secret skill of the Wei clan.


    ''Chameleon skin emulation Art!''


    Immediately, his whole body turned into the color of the bush they were in, and because the sun was already setting, it was really difficult to tell them apart!


    "Ohh! How sneaky!" both of them exclaimed in surprise before nodding to each other.


    Now that they knew he had the capabilities, Wei Wang began to slither slowly while limiting his presence into the surrounding as he infiltrated the enemy camp.


    "Brother Shen Murong, will he be fine?" Wang Dong asked worriedly as he watched Wei Wang''s back.


    "Eh, he''ll be fine I guess. Duan Li never chose his followers on a whim. In addition, we got his back!" Shen Murong replied with a wide grin.


    Knowing what he meant, the two of them soon chuckled together before they continued to observe the situation within the bush.


    ...

 Chapter 332 - Tragedy of Rong Huan!

    After making a thorough gurgle and rinsing his mouth with a special medicinal concoction so that he did not get infected by a bird disease, Rong Huan continued to sit leisurely and sipped his tea slowly by the verandah. The sense of carefreeness made him felt drowsy and almost dozed off into sleep, before someone knocked on the door of his suite.


    Knock! Knock!


    Blinking his sleepy eyes slowly, he asked with a little displeasure in his voice, "Who is it?"


    Now that I almost fell asleep to meet some beautiful women, someone decided to bother me?


    How discourteous! Hmph!


    Knock! Knock!


    "I said, who is it?!" a feeling of exasperation began to swell in him and his voice grew louder.


    What is up with the person behind that door? Has he no manners?


    Knock! Knock!


    "....." Rong Huan became speechless, his mood was now riled up.


    What the hell? Is the person outside a deaf? Surely, all the patrons of the Strategist club in this Moon Pavilion are well-mannered people?


    Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock!


    The sound of knocking began to increase rapidly, such that it felt like someone was practicing wing chun on his door as if it was a wooden dummy.


    Pop! Pop!


    Veins began to bulge out of his skin and forehead and his eyes turned red in anger, making him stand up abruptly from his seat!


    That''s it! To dare infuriate the great Rong Huan, just let me see who wants to kiss their grave!


    Tap! Tap!


    With a wide and loud strides, Rong Huan began to march furiously towards the door while flinging his sleeves. As he grabbed the handle, he planned to immediately slap the perpetrator on their face, regardless if it was a dumb salesman.


    But then, the moment he grabbed the handle, all his body hairs stood on end!


    "AAATATATATATATATATAATA!" the high pitched shriek of an elder began to resonate within the Moon pavilion!


    Through the contact from his hand and the metal handle, someone sent him a surge of electricity causing him to become electrocuted, his body twitching rapidly like a fish outside the water. Right now, his skin was charred black and his long hair turned like a crispy noodle.


    After this momentary shock of his life, Rong Huan was fuming with intense rage!


    While a prank such as this was not enough to kill a cultivator of his level, it did at least damage his body a little, especially his outer appearance. Right now, he no longer has the face of a handsome and calculative young scholar, but the face of a dirty peasant by the streets as if he had been sleeping on the dirt his whole life.


    "HOW.DARE.YOU.DO.THIS.TO--"


    Too angry, he began to voice out his sentence word by word as his aura spiked. But before he could finish his sentence, a foot came crashing through the door and kicked his n*t sack!


    CRACK!


    "AAAUUWWOOOOO!!"


    Another scream that pierced through the nine realms echoed from the Moon pavilion, causing children and infants to suddenly be shocked from their sleep and cry to their mother.


    Feeling infuriated by this disturbance, all the mothers in the Jiu Empire began to curse harshly at the owner of this scream!


    Back in the Moon pavilion, Rong Huan heard his poor brothers popped from their existence and the pain, both mental and physical, caused him to scream like a lonely wolf on the night of a full moon!


    Feeling the scream to be too annoying, the perpetrator slapped his left cheek causing him to spin over like a rotating spinning top in midair before landing flat on his face, his bottom perked up like the back of a prawn!


    Seeing this opportunity, the perpetrator spawned a big golden hammer the size of a full grown man''s arm, and standing by the side, as if playing a golf, the culprit craned his neck towards the verandah to adjust his sight on a certain landmark outside. Locking his sights on a pond, this man nodded before smashing the hammer onto the b*ttcheek of Rong Huan!


    BAM!!


    "Puheee!" Rong Huan that was already dizzy after being electrocuted, his b*ll sack crushed, and slapped on the face was then blasted off from the floor. His head crashed against the table and the pot where his favorite tea was in before broke into pieces, splashing the hot tea inside it onto his face, and the broken ceramics of the pot splintered into his skin like a million daggers!


    "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!"


    This third scream of his even had the Emperor and Empress that were currently busy discussing matters with Utmost Being, Duan Li''s clone, inside the Imperial palace furrowing their brows.


    "Who in the world is creating this scream after scream? Do they think that this Jiu Empire is a place where they can freely scream like lunatic? Guards, apprehend this criminal and hang him by the legs for a week!" the Emperor commanded angrily.


    "At once, your Majesty!" two Royal Knights immediately departed on their quest to capture the enemy of the empire!


    Back in the Moon pavilion, Rong Huan crashed over the verandah and fell from the 10th floor. With his mind being confused at the whole situation, he no longer has control over his body and flight did not respond to his wish due to the remnants of electricity disturbing the meridians and Qi pathways in his body.


    SPLASH!


    With a loud splash, he landed on the pond just outside the Moon pavilion, attracting the curious people around it.


    "What''s going on? Is someone planning to swim in that pond? Is this a new trendy challenge after the Kiki dance?"


    "I don''t know, that person must be mad to swim in that pond packed with carnivorous fish! Let''s have a look!"


    When they got closer and surrounded the pond from the bankside while cupping their chin curiously, bubbles began to escape from the surface of the pond!


    "Oh look! That person seems to be giving up! He is swimming like a frog though..."


    "I knew it! How can this challenge be done? It seems like he is surfacing from the water at great speed!"


    SPLASH!


    "AAAAHHHHHH!! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!!!" Rong Huan finally escaped from the water and floated off from the surface.


    He screamed with extreme agony on his face, bite marks was all over his body and his clothes was no longer to be seen, appearing to have been eaten by the carnivorous fish!


    In fact, one of those fish even managed to latch over on what was remaining of his little brother down there, if there was still any that is.


    After screaming, he finally realized where he was, and this caused his entire body to become red in embarrasment!


    "Hey, isn''t that elder Rong Huan?"


    "Now that you mention it, that''s definitely him! No wonder he looked so familiar!"


    "Ewww! To think that he has such a fetish of an exhibitionist! I used to think highly of him too!"


    It was at this moment of trying to escape from the public shame that he raised his head and found the culprit to everything.


    A figure could be seen on the verandah covering his mouth, appearing to suppress himself from laughing out loud!


    Meanwhile, Rong Huan only found this sight and realization to be more than he could bear!


    Racking his brain, he finally found the correct cursing word to bellow out and point to the public that he was being assaulted by a barbarian, before the fish that latched on his little brother tightened its jaw!


    Pchu!


    "AAAAHHHHHHH!!! STOP IT YOU DAMNED FISH!"


    He immediately clawed at the fish that was trying to devour his only relative, but as he tried to pull it out, the pain only seemed to intensified even further!


    Tap! Tap!


    "Stop right there you criminal scum! You have violated the law!" two Royal Knights in golden armor arrived at the scene and immediately apprehended Rong Huan.


    (A.N: If you know TES4Oblivion, you will get this reference lol. Otherwise, see this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Tj2q4BRCVg)


    The confused Rong Huan screamed in horror, "Huh? No! No! I did not break any law! It''s that guy, he did this!" he said, struggling on the arrest as his head was pressed on the ground while his hands was being chained by a special cuff made specially for suppressing cultivators!


    PAH!


    One of the Royal knight gave him a tight slap on his right cheek, and the accumulated damage he received finally blacked him out.


    "Curse... you... Duan... Li...."


    This last sentence lingered on his mind before his sight turned dark. He was then taken away by the Royal knights, dragged naked on the pavement with the fish still biting on his lower body, a burping sound could be heard.


    ...

 Chapter 333 - Great Clans, here I come!

    "Now that is taken care of, he won''t be able to do anything for awhile." Duan Li nodded as he clapped his hands together in satisfaction.


    Wengg!!


    Looking at his list that he got from Liu Sheng Juan, Duan Li eliminated the things that the Imperial Overseer needed to do as it was now handled by his clone.


    "Eh what''s this?" something on the list attracted his attention.


    "I have to visit all the Great clans personally and display my capabilities as the Imperial Overseer?"


    This particular sentence made him cupped his chin in contemplation and he continued to read the remaining details.


    "It would be better if I hide my identities and only reveal myself after they have submitted?"


    This is... quite interesting!


    The more Duan Li pondered upon this matter, the more excited he became. After all, the prospect of an unknown and mysterious powerful man challenging all the Great clans would turn the entire empire upside down!


    "So, the Patriarch of each Great clan did not believe the things that happened during the coronation ceremony? No wonder..." Duan Li nodded in realization.


    I guess I should go to the Shen Clan first then...


    Donning an inconspicuous white mask, Duan Li began to head towards the direction of the Shen Clan.


    ...


    Back in the Red desert, Wei Wang managed to slip through the various patrols of the foreign military camp, and by this time, he was already able to identify this force - it was the army of the Doulou Empire!


    However, from the looks of it, it was more of a private military force than the army of the Doulou Empire. This was because Wei Wang knew the official emblem of the Doulou Empire''s military flag, and the flag planted all over this camp was of a more different design!


    "Just what in the world are they up to?" Wei Wang could not help but to become more curious as he infiltrated deeper. Finally, his sights was locked onto a big tent that appears to be their main tent for commanders and the people in charge!


    Slowly, he tiptoed towards a certain dark corner by the side of the camp, and used a black needle to make a small hole so that he could eavesdrop on what was going on inside the main tent. If any information was worth gathering for, it would have to be from this main tent!


    Wei Wang put his ear closer to the hole and he could hear a particular noise.


    "Ahh... Ahhh! Yes! That feels good!"


    "Do you want it harder princess?"


    "Yes! Use more force please... ahh! That''s better!"


    "...." Wei Wang.


    What the hell did I just hear?


    Gulp!


    "C-Could it be that these two people are fornicating? S-Shameless!" Wei Wang''s face immediately turned red.


    He was an upright man and had never indulged himself in an intimate relationship with any women before, so the noises he was hearing right now was far too intense for him.


    "C-Calm down... I need to calm down my emotions lest my camouflage ability would unravel itself!" Wei Wang had to take in a deep breath and lower his hearbeat.


    Only after he imagined his little brother was being torn by a sabrewolf and eaten raw did he finally get a control on himself.


    "T-This is only an intelligence gathering... so even if they are in the middle of fornicating, their lips might slip out a few important information in their carelessness..." Wei Wang began to put his ear closer into the hole once more as he hypnotized his own brain.


    "Your technique is quite wretched. I''ll show you how a man does it!" Wei Wang could now hear a different voice this time which seems to belong to another man.


    "Ahhh! Ahhh! Yes! Harder! Harder!"


    Puuu!


    Unable to handle this new sudden attack, Wei Wang began to have a nosebleed!


    "A-Are they... t-t-threesome?!" Wei Wang''s little heart started to race once more and his previous stable breathing became heavy.


    Fortunately, he was fast to react and punched his own n*tsack, turning his face blue and stabilizing his rampaging inner demons.


    "I-I have to see what is actually going on in there!" He could no longer take it and decided to change his approach from eavesdropping to peeping through the small hole.


    "...." Wei Wang.


    He felt a little guilty with his previous imaginations. It turns out that a woman was getting a leg and arm massage from two men!


    Damned woman, there was no need for you to moan excitedly like that...


    Cursing slightly in his heart, Wei Wang continued to eavesdrop them when suddenly the topic changed to something unexpected.


    "Princess Doulou Meixiu, is the rumor really accurate? For the legendary ultimate weapon of Ten Commandments to be buried under the Red desert..." one of the man said with hesitation in his voice.


    "I overheard this information from my father himself. What, you don''t trust him Ruo Hen?" the woman called Princess Doulou Meixiu said playfully.


    "I-I would not dare princess! Those who doubt the words of Emperor Doulou Zenguang deserves a thousand deaths!" Ruo Hen immediately replied with trembling hands.


    "That would be for the best. What about you Ling Shin? Do you believe my father?" the Princess turned her head to look at another person.


    "Naturally. However, how could finding something like that be possible? This Red desert is humongous! Even with your private army here princess, just a few dozens of them wouldn''t even be enough to comb the outskirts!" Ling Shin replied a bit indignantly.


    In his view, this princess was too spoiled. Probably, the real reason why they were here was because she wanted to escape training from the Imperial Tutor!


    Princess Doulou Meixiu pouted her lips when she heard this. "You''re no fun!" She said with an expression as if she was wronged.


    "Princess, I know you hated training, but for us to be so far away from the empire is truly dangerous!" Ling Shin sternly replied.


    "You might not know this princess, but Elder Cheng Chao instructed us to scout the Jiu Empire through enlisting in the recent tournament. You know what we found? Prince Lu Bu from the Qin Empire and Prince Zhang Liao from the Wei Empire was there!" Ling Shin continued as he sighed helplessly.


    "But..." the Princess was about to refute but Ling Shin cut her off immediately.


    "There is no but Princess! Surely, our enlistment there has already alarmed them of your presence here! After all, we are your personal bodyguards, they would eventually be able to connect the dots!"


    The Princess went silent this time as her face no longer looked mischievous. She knew what Ling Shin said was true despite the somewhat harsh tone he was using on her. She didn''t took any offence and rather preferred this kind of treatment over the fake Ruo Hen that was currently mute to even speak another word.


    "Fine! But how could we leave and then return to the empire empty handed like this? We need to at least get some valuable artifacts from the numerous ancient ruins here!" the Princess quickly changed the topic so that she no longer got scolded by Ling Shin.


    Ling Shin pressed his forehead with his thumb and index finger as he let out an exasperated breath.


    "Well, since the princes of those two empires already know of your presence here, it would be futile to leave by tonight. They had probably dispatched some elites to scout the Southern Jiu Gate already." Ling Shin pondered for a moment.


    "Pleaseeeeeeee~" the Princess made a big panda eyes that rendered Ling Shin speechless.


    "Ah damn it all! Fine, we will stay just one more day! If we still couldn''t find anything by tomorrow, regardless of even if you beg me, we will still leave this place and return home!" Ling Shin finally surrendered but gave her an ultimatum.


    "Remember princess, if anything were to happen to you... no one could bear the consequences..." Ling Shin shuddered a little when he said this.


    While Emperor Doulou Zenguang was a benevolent ruler, this spoiled princess was his reverse scale. There was a time when the Princess almost got kidnapped and the Emperor was enraged to the point that all the maids, bodyguards and servants was hanged to death in public! Even two generations of their families got exterminated!


    "I know... you don''t have to remind me on that..." the Princess mood immediately soured, a hint of sadness, guilt and regret could be seen on her fair face.


    ...

 Chapter 334 - The Ruckus at the Three fronts!

    Tap! Tap!


    After returning to where Shen Murong and Wang Dong were, Wei Wang began to brief them the information that he just heard from the main tent by scribbling some paragraphs on the ground.


    It took the two of them some time to read it properly, but when they finally finished, their expression changed.


    "You said the names of these two men are Ling Shin and Ruo Hen? I know those two!" Wang Dong exclaimed in surprise.


    "Eh? Brother Wang Dong, who are they?" Shen Murong turned to Wang Dong, caught unexpected that this sworn brother of his were acquainted with two foreigners from a distant land.


    "En!" Wang Dong nodded heavily before he began to explain.


    "A few days ago, before the coronation ceremony of Lord Duan Li, I had enlisted myself as one of the participants for a night event, which was a battle royal in the capital''s Battle Stadium! It was how I met them!"


    ...


    After what seems to be a detailed story-telling session by Wang Dong using a few leaves and sticks on the ground as props for the drama, he finally finished telling everything.


    "So based on the information that we have here.. these Doulou people at the Red desert here came over to our empire not because they wanted to attend the coronation ceremony, but because they wanted to find some kind of weapon among the ruins?" Shen Murong was a little incensed when he finally got the gist of it.


    "That seems to be the case! After all, during the coronation ceremony, they never attended!" Wang Dong nodded in confirmation as each of them clenched their fists tight.


    Crack! Crack!


    They were furious that these people from the Doulou Empire slighted the Jiu Empire to such a degree!


    Not to mention, it was the coronation ceremony for their Lord to officially become the Imperial Overseer!


    "Damn these foolish outsiders! We need to get back at them somehow!" Shen Murong gritted his teeth.


    As they now knew the identity of the foreign military force there belonging to the private army of the princess Meixiu of the Doulou Empire, it would truly be a foolish and unwise move to sprang up an open attack, nor even ambush for that matter!


    Even the not-so-smart Shen Murong, who would commonly punch people without reason sometimes, adding to the fact that these people were enemies, realized the consequences, that if he were to do so, it would not stop by just affecting him!


    Probably, the infamous Doulou Emperor might even unleash a real military force to attack the Jiu Empire for the sake of his daughter!


    And if that were to be the case, then the Jiu Empire would truly be done for!


    Scribble! Scribble!


    Wei Wang began to scribble on the ground once more.


    "Oh? You saw where they kept their rations?" Wang Dong and Shen Murong looked at each other before a sinister smile crept on their lips.


    Huehuehue!


    "Junior Wei Wang, we have a plan..."


    ...


    "Halt! Who goes there?!"


    A guardsman of the Shen Clan called out towards a suspicious person wearing a mask that was approaching their gate casually with his hands behind his back.


    "I am Elderly Junior! I have come to meet your Patriarch!" the disguised Duan Li replied with a different voice than his usual self, sounding deeper and much older!


    Hearing this, the guardsman became angry, "Scram! We do not accept salesman selling shady products here!"


    Yeah right! Do you think that our Patriarch is someone that you could meet so easily on a whim?


    Not to mention that you look so suspicious, our Patriarch isn''t someone so free as to entertain guests!


    "Relax young one, I''m not looking for trouble." Duan Li said with a gentle voice before he continued, "I''m just here to challenge the old man!"


    Pu!


    The guardsman choked on himself.


    Is that what you call not making trouble? You are trying to challenge our Patriarch dammit! Even calling him an old man!


    Should I say, ''Oh okay, you can go right ahead and cause some ruckus,'' while risking myself being dishonorably discharged later on?


    Do you take me for a fool?!


    "How dare you! Identify yourself and submit to arrest!" the guardsman bellowed out and sounded a whistle.


    Wiiiiiiii!!


    The piercing sound of a whistle echoed in the surrounding before it immediately brought out another 10 guardsmen to surround Duan Li from nowhere!


    "Oh my, this is quite the welcoming party!" Duan Li chuckled under the mask. Then, with a slight blur in the eyes of the 10 guardsmen, their sights turned dark before they collapsed unconsciously to the ground!


    Padah! Padah!


    "Resisting arrest? Good! You are dead!!" the first guardsman then sounded another whistle, but this time, it has a different ringing sound to it!


    After all, his cultivation realm was already at the Core Formation realm, and for someone to easily handle ten men like that at once with similar cultivation level to his, to the point that he could not even see the other party moved, could only mean that the person before them was a true expert!


    The big gate of the Shen Clan opened, and rows of guardsmen lined up to surround Duan Li that numbered in the few dozens!


    "If he resist arrest once more, don''t hesitate, intruders must be killed!" the first guardsman commanded.


    "Attack!!"


    ...


    Far in the Southern Jiu Empire, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei had just arrived in one of the village called Greenleaf village when they suddenly found out that the place was currently under the attack of bandits!


    "What should we do? Wei Shang turned to Fei Longwei.


    "You are asking the obvious.." Fei Longwei replied before he continued, "We help the villagers and kill the bandits!" he said with a cold voice that froze the air into mists!


    Covering their face, they immediately blended into the darkness of the sunset.


    Meanwhile, a small figure could be seen perching proudly at the top of a building, looking calm and collected!


    With a haughty gaze as it swept through the numerous bandits, Cucko began to instruct his minions!


    ...

 Chapter 335 - Assassins, Monsters and Evildoers!

    "Kill all the men and capture the women and children! They can be sold for a hefty sum each at the black market!" a bruly bandit squad leader instructed his minions while laughing like a maniac as they wreaked havoc to their surroundings.


    Pshh!!


    However, barely after he said this, his throat was suddenly pierced by a flash of black rod that appeared out of nowhere, leaving an ugly gaping hole!


    Puhe!


    With the bandit squad leader suddenly killed like that, his minions were enraged!


    "Enemy attack!"


    "Careful! It''s an ambush!"


    Huddling together in one spot, each of them perked up their attention to their surroundings to the maximum level.


    For bandits, quantity or numbers of manpower means everything, but so was their leader. If they were to lose any of these two advantages, they would immediately scatter and escape!


    However, right now, there were more than a few dozens of them, still maintaining their morale even when their squad leader has just been slained!


    "Damn it! They still have not yet dispersed?" Wei Shang cursed in his mind as he observed the situation from a dark corner.


    The black rod was actually an attack made by Fei Longwei. By concentrating dark energy onto small metal, he could change its mass freely on the fly! Through this method, his main choice of weapon was black needles as they were light and easier to carry in vast quantities!


    This was also how he was able to surprise attack the bandit squad leader without the latter knowing!


    "It seems like these bandits are not the usual ones.." Fei Longwei remarked inwardly with furrowed brows as he stood on a rooftop far away from the scene.


    Their initial plan was for Fei Longwei to assassinate the bandit squad leader while Wei Shang would then hunt them down one by one in their panic while escaping. Clearly, this development was something that they had not expected!


    "Just what is going on?" the both of them continued to observe the situation before making their next move.


    While Wei Shang and Fei Longwei has the capabilities to go on a direct skirmish with the bandits, their stamina and spiritual qi reserves were far too insufficient for a prolonged battle. This was even after the consideration that most of the bandits were only in the Qi Condensation realm while some were in the Foundation Establishment realm.


    In addition, the area they were in right now was only one part of the village surrounding an inn. Currently, there were many more areas under attack by the bandits at the same time, with the greatest being the village square!


    Through Wei Shang''s assessment, the number of bandits in the village square was almost a hundred! This was because they were currently fighting off the village''s patrols and reserve security force protecting most of the villagefolk that had seek their refuge there.


    Since the bandits were preoccupied of trying to defeat the remaining defending force of the village, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei decided to help the other areas that were the least protected first.


    Shuu!!


    Fei Longwei appeared next to Wei Shang in the next instant.


    "Why didn''t you just drop all the black needles in the sky and let it rain?" Wei Shang asked curiously as he was perplexed that the other party only aimed at the bandit squad leader without taking another two or three bandits at the same time despite the perfect opportunity to do so.


    Fei Longwei stared at Wei Shang as if looking at a fool.


    "If I could do that, I would already be a one man army. Do you think that precision control of something that was infused with dark energy are something so simple?" he said.


    For the previous ambush to work, he had to chose his angle and distance of attack carefully. With his method, the more precise his control was, the less object he could manipulate.


    Even the usage of spiritual qi would increase significantly overtime when more variables are added!


    Cucko!


    It was at this time that Cucko appeared in between their feet, its chest puffed up wide.


    "Huh? What is this chicken trying to do?" Wei Shang was a bit surprised that he was unable to notice the presence of this chicken, so was Fei Longwei.


    Well, it did learn the art of stealth from young lady Di Rou, but still...


    "CUCCK CUCCKOO KOOOO!!"


    This sudden outburst of clucking had Wei Shang and Fei Longwei shocked to death to the point that they jumped on their feet, their hairs standing on end!


    "Over there! Attack!!"


    The bandits that heard this loud clucking noise immediately scrambled to the destination while brandishing their weapon, intent on making mincemeat out of the perpetrators that killed their squad leader.


    "Sh*t! Retreat!" the both of them immediately sprawled on their feet to escape while cursing the chicken. After all, they were perfectly hidden before Cucko ratted them out, so they wanted to kick the chicken as a scapegoat to buy them some time while escaping.


    However, the next moment, something bizarre happened.


    Pshhh!


    "Ahhh!" one of the bandits suddenly found the artery on his neck being cut by something sharp. The profused bleeding caused him to immediately black out and die on the spot!


    This sudden attack once again caused the bandit to become alarmed, "Who is it? Come out!" they bellowed.


    Pshhh!!


    "Ahhh!" another bandit got taken down by the same method but from another direction.


    Pshhh!!


    Pshhh!!


    Gradually, the bandits were eliminated one by one as soon as they turned their backs to look for the hidden enemies.


    "Dammit! They have us surrounded!" the bandit''s morale began to plummet as the frustration to locate their enemies kicked in and that their numbers were thinning out fast.


    "Assassins! The enemies are assassins!"


    Pshhh!!


    Pshhh!!


    In just a few instance, there was only a few bandits left standing and they huddled very closely with each other, trembling and their face pale, thoroughly frightened by the invisible enemies around them. But it was at this moment that one of them suddenly realized something bizarre about the whole situation.


    "H-Hey guys! Since when are there so many chickens around us?"


    "S-Shut up! Why are you looking at the chickens? Look out for the enemies you fool!"


    "N-No! I''m telling you, this is weird! Look, there are tens of them!"


    The bandits finally looked around and realized that he was right! Due to their mindset thinking that the enemy was human, they did not realize that the chickens around them began to increase in number!


    "C-Could it be? That the enemy was actually... c-chickens?!" this realization had their face turning purple!


    "Cuck cuck cuck... cuckooo cucckooo cuckoo!" a single chicken suddenly appeared from the darkness and trodded slowly towards the bandits while clucking in a very peculiar way.


    This chicken appeared to be ordinary like the others, although a tad smaller. However, this chicken seems to be even more menacing in its presence! It was a very disturbing feeling for them to be threatened by a chicken!


    "T-That chicken! Is.. is it cackling on us?"


    The moment Cucko came out, all the other chickens around them suddenly faced the bandits at the same time and surrounded them!


    A small pebble could be seen in each of their beak.


    "We are being assassinated... by a pack of chickens... using small pebbles? Hehehe... HAHAHAHA!" a bandit could not accept the reality that they were being slaughtered by livestocks that they eat on a daily basis and laughed while crying as he lost his sanity. The reality was far too much for him to bear.


    Pshhh!!


    Pshhh!!


    Wei Shang and Fei Longwei that was observing at this situation from the dark corner could not help but for their jaw to drop to the ground and their eyes popping from their socket.


    ....


    "D-Damn you! Do you think that you will get out of here alive after attacking the Shen Clan like this?!" the guardsman bellowed while pointing his trembling spear towards Duan Li.


    He thought that the troublemaker was only an ordinary person, but he was wrong! Even with 80 of them here, each at the Foundation Establishment realm could not overpower this single Core Formation realm cultivator!


    This made him really scared as the other party only seemed to use a single move to knock each of them out as if it was nothing!


    "Is this person actually a Nascent Soul realm cultivator on disguise?!" he could not help but speculate this in his mind and found it to be logical. After all, only Nascent Soul realm cultivator could take them out like this without breaking a sweat!


    Not to mention 80, even hundreds of them together would be useless when facing a Nascent Soul realm cultivator!


    The Shen clan occupied a large territory and the gate he was guarding was only the entrance to the outskirts of the main residence where the disciples of the Shen clan lived. This ruckus finally attracted their attention as they came out to see just what was going on.


    "Guys look! The guardsmen was defeated! We are under attack! Inform the brothers!" the disciples gathered together and in the next moment, their numbers was already in the several hundreds!


    Looking at this situation, the guardsman finally breath out a huge relief. Compared to him, even though he had a decent cultivation realm which was at the Pinnacle stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, and most of the disciples here were a bit weaker, several of them was actually in the Core Formation realm and there were even some that was at the Golden Core realm!


    If the other party was truly at the Nascent Soul realm, there was still some chance that they would all be defeated, but by then, the elders of the Shen clan, which were mostly in the Pinnacle stage Golden Core realm and some in the Nascent Soul realm would definitely come out to deal with this troublemaker!


    Duan Li shook his head after seeing the mob slowly getting larger by the second surrounding him. Since the Shen Clan was a great clan, their total disciples should amount to a few thousands at least. Even if he could defeat them all, that would take a bit more time than he was willing to spend before finally facing the Patriarch of the clan.


    Additionally, he still has a few Great clans to visit.


    Thus, placing his hands behind his back, Duan Li began to cycle his spiritual qi furiously in his body!


    Wrrrrrrr!!


    As a result, his aura began to surge and in an instant, he flooded the entire outskirts with his aura!


    "Aahhh!!" the gathered disciples suddenly found a tremendous pressure being pressed onto their very being; Soul, mental and physical, everything was suppressed!


    Crack! Crack!


    The ground began to tremble due to Duan Li''s sheer aura and cracked like many cobwebs. Even the walls and gate started to shatter!


    "Insane.. power..." the guardsman felt suffocated as if being submerged under the ocean, beads of sweat drenching his body!


    This was his first time being subjected to such a radical aura! He once experienced the wrath of an elder at the Nascent Soul realm before, and it was never this intense!


    Just who is this guy?!


    Almost immediately, the disciples surrounding Duan Li began to black out and fainted one by one. Against Duan Li''s aura who could match even the immortals, there was zero chance for them to withstand this!


    Furthermore, Duan Li was only using thirty percent of his power! And this was when considering the fact that he only recovered eighty percent of his true strength! Any more than this and they would start to cough out blood. Some might even die.


    Of course, with Duan Li''s aura engulfing the entire outskirts of the main residence, it would be impossible for the elders to not be able to detect this!


    Most of them were currently in deep meditation and cultivating, and upon detecting this huge amount of repressing aura, they began to open their eyes one by one and stood up from their seat.


    With furrowed brows, each of them has similar thoughts in their mind;


    "Where did such a monster pop out from?"


    ...


    At the Red desert, Wei Wang was tiptoeing slowly from one dark corner to the next with his camouflage ability on. Right now, he was already inside the tent where the army kept their rations and there was some soldier patrolling inside this tent!


    Seeing the huge amount of supplies here, it was obvious why most armies never bothered to store them inside spatial ring. Most standard issue spatial ring which was already extremely expensive for the common people has a very limited space, about a few cubic meters only. As for spatial rings that has higher capacity, it was extremely rare to the point that only the elders or highly influential people could afford it.


    Even for the Doulou Empire, no matter how rich they were, squandering wealth just to store rations would be too ludicrous.


    Tap! Tap!


    After determining the pattern and the route each soldier patrolled, Wei Wang counted the time interval in their blindspot before he approached a certain wooden crate and opened it slowly, making sure that there was no noise.


    He could not afford to be detected nor engage the patrols here as it would defeat his purpose of sneaking there in the first place.


    Analyzing the contents, he finally determined that the wooden crates there was storing raw food. Taking out a pouch from his spatial ring, he sprinkled white powder onto their contents. These were mixtures of aphrodisiac, laxatives and numerous other herbs grounded together.


    He didn''t know why Wang Dong and Shen Murong have these in their spatial ring and he shuddered at the thought of imagining what they used it for, but in this current situation, these white powders would cause a total collapse to the enemy if ingested!


    Tap! Tap!


    Wei Wang slithered through numerous wooden crates and sprinkled the white powder everywhere. When he was finally done, only a few of the wooden crates was untouched as it was impossible with the patrols constantly checking every corner in their route!


    "This is probably enough... time to return.."


    Thankfully, no mishaps happened during this operation of his, and he managed to exit the enemy camp undetected and returned to Wang Dong and Shen Murong.


    "The deed is done." Wei Wang scribbled on the ground.


    Seeing this, the smiles of both Wang Dong and Shen Murong widened.


    "Huehuehu! You have done well junior brother! Now, let''s just wait for tomorrow..."


    As the sun sets and the night went by silently, the princess''s private army was enjoying their sleep with smiles, not knowing that tomorrow would be the day of their reckoning.


    Historians would later on record that if there was a more wretched dark history that should not be mentioned in the history of the Doulou Empire, it would be the day where the Princess''s army was being douxed to the point that there were many ''mysterious'' holes being poked on the ground that very day.


    ...

 Chapter 336 - The Invincible Intruder!

    Since it was already past sunset, Duan Li''s showcase of aura had attracted the ire of many resting elders in the Shen clan.


    "Hmph! Who dares to mess with the Shen clan at this family hour?!"


    "Audacious! Let''s just see how strong you are to disturb my dinner!"


    "Courting death! I was just about to reach the climax and someone had to disturb me at such a crucial juncture! I''ll mince you!"


    Just like that, several elders popped out from their residence and pavilion with angry faces. They could not wait to pummel the perpetrator to death!


    In their opinion, while the aura that this unknown intruder gave out was unusually strong, he was still but an individual. Against the combined might of the elders, how could the intruder compare?


    This is the Great clan of Shen we are talking about here!


    Shaa!! Shaa!!


    A few moments later, several elders could be seen floating in the sky while staring at Duan Li as if looking at a dead man. Each and every single one of them had their hands placed behind their back like an expert, their expression indifferent.


    "So, they''ve finally come out..." Duan Li heaved out a sigh of relief. He was just wondering on when these elders would come out so that he could ''greet'' them properly.


    By the looks of it, most of them was just a step away from reaching the Nascent Soul realm, while some others was already in the Early stage of the Nascent Soul realm.


    "This is indeed a great clan!" Duan Li noted in his mind as he nodded approvingly.


    By the Tian continent''s standard, reaching the Nascent Soul realm wasn''t something that could be achieved just by anyone. Not only that it requires extreme dedication, but luck and talent also played a heavy role!


    This was why Shen clan could be considered as a Great clan in the Jiu Empire!


    Next, an elder wearing a green robe who appeared to have a strong cultivation level or slightly above the average, spoke with a cold voice, "Since you have the guts to cause a scene here, identify yourself intruder, so that we shall write your name on a plaque when you die!"


    Behind his mask, Duan Li''s brows knitted together when he heard this.


    Isn''t this elder a bit too haughty?


    Nevertheless, Duan Li still introduced himself, "I am called Elderly Junior, and I have come here to meet your Patriarch!"


    As soon as he said this, the face of the previous indifferent elders in the sky immediately darkened.


    "Damned brat! Who do you think you are?!" the green robed elder bellowed with his beard trembling in anger.


    "Even us elders would have difficulties to communicate directly with the Patriarch, not to mention someone like you!" he continued with a disdainful spat to his side.


    The other elders only gave a silent nod to his statement, a sign that they agreed with what he just said. This made the green robed elder elated!


    Contrary to what others would imagine, the elder with the green robe didn''t have that too much of a standing among the elders. He hoped that by volunteering himself like this, they would be able to see him in a new light, thus increasing the influence in his name!


    After all, it was just a young man disguising with a mask and a silly name. Even if this intruder was a bit stronger than usual, only fool would make a move on him with the rest of the elders around watching closely!


    Or so did he thought.


    Therefore he continued, "You must be an idiot, not knowing what the Shen clan are! Go back home and suck your momma-"


    Unbeknownst to him, Duan Li wasn''t someone who could take such a degrading remark like that on his face, so before the green robed elder could finish his word, his face was already smashed by Duan Li''s palm.


    PAHH!!


    "Ahhh!"


    Just like that, the green robed elder was catapulted into space.


    "Formidable!" remarked the other elders after seeing Duan Li''s attack, their hands finally removed from their back as they turned serious. Looking at each other, they nodded with a grim expression!


    Sa! Sa! Sa!


    A series of identical hand gestures was performed in an instant before the elders took out their jade token, and held it up high in the sky!


    "Dragon Sealing Formation activate!" they chanted in unison.


    WENGGG!!


    Several gigantic pentagrams then appeared from all four cardinal directions, including above Duan Li and on the ground that Duan Li stood on. In a single breath, all these pentagrams then contracted themselves with Duan Li as the center, until they form a spherical seal consisting on overlapping pentagrams!


    WENGGG!!


    Compressing themselves, it seemed as though Duan Li was now imprisoned in an extremely powerful seal that was impossible to break out from. When the remaining disciples of the Shen clan and those that regained their consciousness saw this, they could not help but to suck in cold breath!


    "D-Dragon Sealing Formation! To think that the elders would even use a seal that could be said to trap even the dragons themselves... this is unprecedented!"


    "Just who is this intruder? How strong is he to force the elders to use this kind of seal on him?!"


    "It doesn''t matter now! No one can escape the imprisonment of Dragon Sealing Formation! He is done for!"


    While the crowd was cheering that they finally captured the intruder, the faces of the elders maintaining the sealing formation above the sky showed a different reaction!


    "Impossible! Even with all of us synchronizing together for this technique, the Dragon Sealing Formation could only compress this much?" one of them said, his face slowly turning pale!


    The Dragon Sealing Formation was an exceptional sealing technique especially if several other people used it at once. It would compress itself together until it wraps around the body of the trapped person, sealing even their ability to move!


    However, right now, there was a total of 24 elders using this technique on Duan Li, but it stopped compressing when it reached 5 meter radius from Duan Li!


    What does this mean? It means that their intruder is unimaginably, helluva strong!


    Meanwhile, the trapped Duan Li was observing the Dragon Sealing Formation from the inside with his hands placed inside his pockets, and from what he could gather, the seal would compress everything starting from his aura!


    This was also why they failed to seal Duan Li completely because his aura could not be compressed any more!


    "I see.. then if I do this..." realizing this weakness, Duan Li began to agitate the spiritual qi inside his body even more intensely!


    Huuuu!!


    At 40 percent of his true strength, the spherical seal began to expand instead of contracting, and the already surprised elder was now looking even more grim than before!


    "Activate the Sealing array!"


    Wenggg!!


    A sudden outburst of power erupted from the ground and syncronized with the Dragon Sealing formation, stopping the spherical seal from expanding before contracting themselves back slowly.


    Just as the elders were about to breath out in relief, Duan Li increased the pressure of his aura by exerting 50 percent of true strength!


    Pop! Pop!


    "No! No! The seal is going to explode!" the elders panicked at this reversal.


    Finally, as the spherical seal was expanding beyond what the elders could contain with their strength, the numeorus overlapping pentagrams began to shatter and explode into pieces!


    With the Dragon Sealing Formation was no more, half of Duan Li''s true strength was now exposed to the world for the first time!


    "AHH!!" the disciples of the Shen clan began to spurt out blood, even the elders that was subjected to Duan Li''s aura the most could no longer maintain their flight ability and plummet down from the sky!


    Crash! Boom!


    Menacing!


    Dominating!


    Unassailable!


    One by one, these words popped into the minds of the crowd as they stared at Duan Li with a hazy consciousness;


    "Invincible... this man is invincible!"


    ...

 Chapter 337 - Return to the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant!

    "Sister Yu, why do you think he needs all these items for?" Xu Rong asked curiously while reading the long list of ingredients and herbs that Duan Li instructed for them to procure as they headed out into the Red light district at night.


    "I''m not really sure.. maybe he wants to concoct something powerful?" Xiahou Yu replied with a shake of her head. In her mind, what''s important was that she will get to order one of the most delicious fried chicken ever later.


    She was pondering seriously on whether to eat the skin first or savor them the last.


    The list of ingredients that was given to them was not only long, most of it were unfamiliar too. Even if they had heard of some of the ingredients before, it was extremely rare, such that unless one was a 6-Star Alchemist and above, or has extensive connection with the upper echelons of the Alchemy guild will they be able to get their hands on something so rare!


    Tap! Tap!


    After a few turn around the streets, they finally arrived at their destination, Seven Saints Culinary!


    This was a restaurant where only the filthy rich could go to, but for someone like them that was given a hefty sum of money to spend right now, this infamous restaurant where others would have to sell their entire clan''s fortune and heirloom to dine in at, was currently no different to a fast food booth for Xiahou Yu and the gang!


    After all, Duan Li had made sure to entrust sufficient funds to Di Rou in order to purchase all the required ingredients and herbs in the list by giving her a Superior quality spirit stone!


    This was enough money to buy even a portion of the land in the capital city including all its assets and still has some remainder for them to start their own clan! Against unprecedented amount of money like this, Duan Li even instructed Di Rou to purchase the entire restaurant with all their stocks if need to!


    "Let''s enter..." Di Rou, the eldest of them three led the group to enter the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant.


    "Halt."


    Seeing their young faces, the security at the entrance was just about to bar them from entry when Di Rou flashed onto him a certain token.


    "Ah? Who is this Meng Yue? Scram you lost puppies!" the security shouted in disdain.


    What Meng Yue? Do you think that by just producing an identity token you can enter and dine in here as you wish?


    Where do you think this is?


    PAH!


    A stronger looking security guard slapped the back of the man''s head and reprimanded him harshly. This person was the head of security.


    "You fool, what do you think you are doing to the Esteemed customers?!" he said, before quickly turning to face Di Rou, Xiahou Yu and Xu Rong with an apologetic face while rubbing his hands together, looking like the most amiable uncle ever.


    "Please forgive our rudeness! This guy is new around here so he made such a foolish mistake! I''ll punish him later on so in the meantime, let this lowly one escort Esteemed customers inside instead..." said the head of security as he threw dagger stares towards the rookie security who was now sweating buckets.


    As they were then escorted by the head of security as they went inside, their presence then managed to attract the attention of the customers eating on the ground floor.


    "Huh, who are those young ladies? To be escorted by the head of security himself... they must have an astonishing background!"


    "Hey look! They are going straight to the first floor! I wonder how many cumulative eating points they have to be able to directly go up a floor like that..."


    While almost all of the customers there were clueless, the veteran chefs felt their hearts to palpitate as they recognized the party that just entered.


    It was the ladies that came over to their restaurant a month ago along with the tyrant Meng Yue!


    However, when they realized that the person in question wasn''t there, they let out a breath of relief in unison;


    "Thankfully the tyrant is not here..."


    Unbeknownst to the crowd, Di Rou, Xiahou Yu and Xu Rong was not only escorted towards the 1st floor, but all the way to the 3rd floor! This was known to be a VVIP area only, where only those with high status like the Clan leaders and Patriarchs could enter, provided if they have the sufficient eating points that is.


    Upon reaching the third floor, a familiar old butler came forward to greet them as he dismissed the head of security with a nod after a brief exchange of glance between them.


    "Welcome back to the Seven Saints Culinary! I always knew that some of you might return back for more delicacies! Come and sit over here!" Heng Wu chuckled as he gestured for them to sit around the round table with a calm and amiable smile.


    Deep in his mind however, he was cursing his luck, "F*ck! Is the sales going to plummet again tonight?"


    He already received the information from the head security via their exchange of glance previously.. to think that they had the identity token of Meng Yue the tyrant, he wondered what sort of evil tricks they have up their sleeves tonight, earnestly praying that the Seven Saints Culinary will be able to avoid bankruptcy!


    Flip! Flip!


    "I want to order ten of these Heavenly Golden Drumsticks!" Xiahou Yu made the first order, the total amounting to 3 High quality spirit stones.


    Gulp!


    Heng Wu nodded and took note of her orders, his forehead beginning to sweat.


    Xu Rong was next, "I want to try this Trailblazer Of the Moon Dish! As for the dessert, give me the Thousand years Fermented Ice-cream!"


    Heng Wu gave a slight nervous chuckle as he counted the total amount to be reaching 7 High quality spirit stones now. He couldn''t help but to wonder if these three ladies were going to pay with installments. He may need to call the accountant for that.


    Finally, it was Di Rou''s turn to order, "Give us this Star Juice that you have here for drinks please, and as for my order... I''ll pick this Dominion King Lobster, Flashborn Tunasun Fish and some Yokma''s Scrambled eggs!"


    BAM!!


    Heng Wu''s brain almost exploded with the three combos that Di Rou just ordered as it was extremely expensive. All in all, the total now suddenly reached 20 High Quality spirit stones!


    "F*ck my life! I should have skipped work today!"


    A whoopping total of 20 High Quality spirit stones for dinner! Even for the VVIPs that frequently came here, this total was just too unprecedented!


    With a stutter in his voice, he asked slowly, "T-The total is.. is 20 High Quality spirit stones... will Esteemed customers here pay by monthly? That will be fine as well..."


    The unwillingness in his voice on the last sentence was apparent even though he tried his best to hide it. Contrary to his expectations however, Di Rou only casually answered, "That will not be necessary, we will be paying in full after we eat later on."


    Eh?


    This caught him totally off-guard!


    Are my ears playing tricks on me?


    "Esteemed customer, you said that... you will pay in full?" he replied while swallowing a mouthful of saliva, his face in disbelief as he was trying to confirm what he just heard.


    "En!" Di Rou nodded.


    ...


    In a certain cave outside the capital city of the Jiu Empire, a group of old men had gathered around a campfire. On a first glance, these old men looked frail and out of time, but make no mistake, as if one were to observe their faces carefully, then one would be able to realize that all these old men were actually veterans from the old pugilistic world!


    "Why did you use the hidden signal to summon us, Oo Left hand of the Treasure Hunt?" asked one of the old men whose eyes drooped low enough to be mistaken that he was in an eternal sleep.


    "Sacrosanct Elder..." the person whom was referred to as the left hand of the Treasure Hunt single-kneeled on the ground.


    "As the incumbent head in place of the Eternal Patriarch of the Treasure Hunt, I, the Sacrosanct Elder demands an explanation from you.. Na Zem, the son of Na Xi... Or do you perhaps prefer us to call you by your current alias... Na Zem Xi?"


    ...

 Chapter 338 - Treasure Hunt Sect!

    "I... I prefer to be called as Na Zem Xi.." he replied with a reminiscing look.


    The Treasure Hunt was a small ancient sect that had long since retired from the world. They were nomads of the desert and used to be active around one of the Forbidden region, the Red desert! As their name implied, they were a group of treasure seekers unearthing ancient artifacts from lost ruins and past civilizations.


    Since their nature of job was dangerous, they divided themselves into three groups, namely; the Seeker, Pathfinders and Miners.


    The Seeker was usually called as the Right hand of the Treasure Hunt. They possessed some hint of precognition ability that could divine the rough location of valuable treasures. Meanwhile, the Pathfinders consists of rare individuals known to have an extreme amount of luck. After all, if the main task of a Seeker was to find the location, then the Pathfinders job was to explore the location, secure the exits and entrances, as well as mapping the area to find the safest route - the most dangerous of the three jobs.


    That means that if the Pathfinders were not those with luck on their side, they might sooner meet their demise first than locating the treasures instead!


    Finally, the Miners would then follow the guide given by the Pathfinders down to their details, and their role was excavation and extraction!


    However, finding someone who could divine the location of treasures was not something easy to do. In fact, while the ability itself was powerful, it will gradually wear down the eyesight of the owner, eventually turning them blind. Even if someone does possess such ability, they would only use them sparingly, and definitely decline to become the Seeker of the Treasure Hunt where they will have to use the ability quite frequently.


    Currently, the old man known as the Sacrosanct Elder was a Seeker back in his prime. Now, his age had gone past hundred, and he was already blind. Their Founder, Na Xi, had set up rules that unless a new Seeker was titled, the Treasure Hunt will go into a state of hibernation. Ever since the Sacrosanct Elder lost his sights, three decades had already past, and many of their original members has either passed away or moved on.


    Since there was no new recruits during their hibernation, every member that stayed had already went past their prime, becoming old and feeble. The only young member they had left was Na Zem, who was the hope of the Treasure Hunt. Thus, the Sacrosanct Elder named Na Zem as the Left hand of the Treasure Hunt, one that will prop the entire Sect in the future to eventually become the Patriarch, just like Na Xi, his late father!


    "I might have found.. a new Seeker!" Na Zem Xi said with a solemn expression.


    "What?!" his response immediately turned the old men around him agitated!


    "Child, don''t joke around like that!"


    "You are in the presence of the Sacrosanct Elder, how could you just.."


    BAM!


    The Sacrosanct Elder knocked the end of his staff to the ground creating a deep ''Boom'' sound in the earth, "Silence!" he bellowed, immediately turning the atmosphere quiet once more. "Continue." he urged.


    "Yes, Sacrosanct Elder! I met a customer of mine who later appears to be... someone I dared not to imagine at first. Long story short, he gave me a list of ruins in the Red desert.." Na Zem Xi replied as he took a list that was given to him by Shen Lu and Guo He.


    He then began to recite the names of these ruins along with their location to everyone.


    After he was finished, the old men around the campfire whispered among each other as they didn''t understand Na Zem Xi''s intention by listing all those locations.


    However, the Sacrosanct Elder pondered deeply upon hearing Na Zem Xi''s words with furrowed brows.


    "Does that list have their exact locations?" he asked.


    "Yes... I also know some places mentioned here too, but even I do not know most of their locations in such details..." Na Zem Xi replied as he moved closer to the Sacrosanct Elder and whispered the locations into his ear.


    The more the Sacrosanct Elder listened, the more shocked he was.


    Werrrr!!


    "Who among you have leaked out the locations of these ruins?" the Sacrosanct Elder questioned with a deep voice. His aura as a Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm cultivator leaked out.


    Majority of the locations listed was places that he had long known existed, as he was the one who divined their locations back when he still has his sights. But divination was not something exact, and there were times that even when the places was divined, it would be located inside the Danger zone of the continent, or the Forbidden regions.


    As someone responsible to give a feasible location to be explored, he naturally eliminated all those locations from his to-be-explored lists, but the locations that Na Zem Xi told him even contained the direction into these locations!


    Even back when he was in his prime, his precognition ability to divine the location of treasures was never that accurate!


    Silence...


    No one dared to utter a word. After all, to leak the location of the ruins to outsider would mean that one has betrayed the Treasure Hunt, punishable by death. However, this was also something impossible to do.


    "Sacrosanct Elder, the only people who knew of the exact location of any ruins... is you..." one of the old men answered politely.


    Huuu...


    Hearing this answer, the Sacrosanct Elder also knew it to be the case, thus he calmed himself down and reigned in his aura.


    "Who is this person that told you these locations, and how are you sure that he is a Seeker?" the Sacrosanct Elder turned towards Na Zem Xi.


    "This..." Na Zem Xi hesitated for a moment. "His identity is not someone simple enough for me to say out loud, but..." he whispered to the Sacrosanct Elder.


    "!!!"


    After hearing the name and the title of the person, the Sacrosanct Elder whose eyes remained shut ever since he lost his sights, opened wide - revealing the pair of eyes that has lost its lights to the crowd, causing everyone around the campfire to flinch!


    Scary!


    BOOM!!


    The Sacrosanct Elder knocked the end of his staff to the ground as he stood up abruptly from his seat. Then, with the disposition of an otherworldly expert that has seen the vicissitudes of life, he declared with a solemn voice;


    "As the Incumbent Head of the Treasure Hunt, I hereby declare that the Treasure Hunt will once again ravage the old lands from their treasures! Make the vow!"


    BOOM!!


    The Sacrosanct Elder knocked his staff once more as every member of the Treasure Hunt stood up around the campfire, their entire being was now trembling with excitement!


    Finally! We shall roam the lands once more! It has been far too long!


    "We drink to our brothers, for the long past has been done, for the age of wonders is all but gone! Down with ancients, the ravages of time, for their time that was past will be now be undone!"


    With their clenched right fist placed on their chest and their left fist placed on their back, the vow that marks the resurrection of an ancient sect resonated under the moonlight of the solemn night!


    ...


    On the third floor of the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant, Heng Wu the old butler was shocked silly.


    These minions of the tyrant will pay in full?


    Has the sun risen from the West today? Screw that, has the Sun risen from the North?


    Snapping from his dazed state, he immediately laughed in excitement!


    "Hahahaha! Esteemed customers of the Seven Saints Culinary, please wait for a while, your dish will be served in a moment!"


    Whooshh!


    Heng Wu disappeared on the spot as he rushed into the kitchen.


    "Old Heng Wu, how was it? How much are they willing to pay?" one of the Saints Chefs asked nervously.


    "Go back and tell them that if its not at least one High quality spirit stone per month, they cannot eat here!"


    "Yes! Yes! We must have some face for ourselves! If it''s the Culinary Seer then it''s a different matter, but as for them, they cannot just dine in and dash anytime they want!"


    The Seven Saints Chefs began to voiced out their concerns with a constipated look.


    "Ah? What are you guys on to about? They are willing to pay in full tonight! Hahahahaha!" Heng Wu replied, his expression full of elation!


    "What? They are willing to pay in full? Are you sure?" the Saint Chefs almost slapped themselves to make sure they weren''t dreaming.


    "Yes! Now go and cook these dishes before they change their minds! Quickly!" Heng Wu nodded like a woodpecker.


    "Hahahaha! The Heavens are truly not blind! Come brothers! Today, this kitchen will be in a bloodbath!"


    Just like that, the sounds of rapid chopping, blazing flames and the sizzling, aromatic smell of cooked meat began to waft out from the kitchen, enveloping the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant from top to bottom!


    ...


    "This smell... what is this heavenly smell?!" a customer with a sensitive sense of smell abruptly stood up from his seat and breathed in the surrounding air to pinpoint the location from where the smell was coming from.


    "Eh? You are right! Oh my god! This smells so delicious!"


    "Was it on the second floor? No! This smell came from the third floor!"


    "Just what kind of heavenly dish are the Seven Saints Chefs cooking right now?! Hurry, inform your father, your mother, your grandparents! They must come and smell this delicious dish!"


    "Inform the scribes! This needs to be documented in history! This is a one in a thousand-year phenomena!"


    "Quick! Quick!"


    In just a few moments after the Seven Saints Chefs began cooking, the ground floor, first floor and second floor of the restaurant became restless as all the customers turned mad. Had it not been because the Head of Security was guarding the stairs personally, the mobs would have definitely rushed upstairs considering how their minds was now hypnotized by the smell to even think rationally.


    In fact, the crowd outside the restaurant also began to gather around the restaurant like a moth attracted to a flame!


    "Calm down! Calm do- Ah! Hey! My clothes! Stop pulling!" the new security that was guarding the entrance got pushed by the masses and his clothes was now in tatters.


    ...


    "Why does it sound so noisy downstairs? Is someone fighting?" Xu Rong said as the noise became louder by the second.


    "Ah!" Heng Wu that was setting up the table finally realized, "I forgot to seal the area!"


    Taking out a jade token, he then activated the surrounding formation array.


    Wengg!!


    "Fuhh! Catastrophe evaded!" Heng Wu wiped the sweat on his forehead. There was a similar incident in the past where their restaurant was almost turned upside down by customers who went berserk from the smell cooked by the Seven Saints Chefs!


    Tingg!!


    "Aha! The food is done!" Heng Wu sprinted into the kitchen and brought out the dishes one by one, each wafting out extremely alluring smell that could cause even the dragons to descend!


    "Please, enjoy your dinner!"


    Heng Wu was earnestly happy that their restaurant was able to generate such an enormous amount of income in one night! For him, this amount of income would be enough to balance all their deficits in the past and future!


    Meanwhile, the previously elated Saints Chefs in the kitchen was now thinking, "Hey, don''t you guys think that... this is too good to be true?" one of them said.


    "Well... you are right. But, they won''t renegede on what they just said right?"


    "Hmm.."


    Slowly, the sense of foreboding began to loom over them, causing them to become uneasy.


    ...


    "That was the best food I ever eat before!" Xu Rong commented, her face flushing red.


    "En! I need to work on my fried chicken more.." Xiahou Yu nodded as she made her own assessment from her taste bud. She was planning to reverse engineer the taste and unlock the mystery to its secret ingredients later on.


    As for Di Rou, she only gave a satisfied smile after she ate, looking more graceful than the two before her. Then, turning to Heng Wu, she thanked him for the delicious food.


    "As promised, we will pay in full tonight..." Di Rou said as she whipped a single Superior quality spirit stone.


    The bright blue color emanating from the spirit stone was as bright as the sun, even radiating out extreme energy pulsations even!


    "T-T-That is.... a Superior quality spirit stone!" Heng Wu jumped up in disbelief, thoroughly shocked.


    He had only heard of the Superior quality spirit stone before and never saw them personally. But since the energy radiating out from the spirit stone on Di Rou''s hands right now was even stronger than a High quality spirit stones by hundreds of times, the only conclusion was that it was a Superior quality spirit stone!


    He was so entranced by the beauty of it, before he suddenly realized!


    "Wait a minute.."


    Their total cost was only about 30 High quality spirit stones at most, and I''ve heard that a single Superior quality spirit stones should be valued around a thousand High quality spirit stones...


    "If that was the case, then....!!"


    Heng Wu''s face turned pale!


    "It was a trap!"


    The moment he realized this, he wanted to cry out loud to the night sky!


    The Seven Saints Culinary restaurant... does not have enough change!


    ...

 Chapter 339 - The mysterious bellow!

    "E-Esteemed customer.. do you have.. smaller money? W-We don''t have enough change for this..." Heng Wu swallowed his saliva as he reluctantly returned the Superior quality spirit stone to Di Rou. Even if that was something truly valuable and enticing, there was no way that they could keep it!


    "What? Hmmm.. now this is a problem..." Di Rou acted like she didn''t expect this. In reality, everything was carefully planned for between the three of them, including this scenario where Heng Wu did not accept the Superior quality spirit stone from them.


    She then continued, "We do not have any other smaller money than this, and we also do not want to be in debt. Since this is the case, perhaps we should just be allowed to eat to our heart''s content until it reaches the amount equal to the value of this Superior quality spirit stone?" she suggested.


    The moment Heng Wu heard this, his blood was drained from his face. If he were to agree, then their Seven Saints Culinary restaurant will become the lunchbox of these three ladies!


    What if these ladies were to eat all the expensive food from top to bottom? How could they replenish their stock when their ingredients ran out all the time and they cannot receive any profits at all to hire people to procure their ingredients or even purchase them?


    Wouldn''t the restaurant go entirely bankrupt?


    They must be the loan shark!


    "Ah? N-No!" he immediately replied, "H-How about tonight''s dinner is on the house instead? T-There is no need to pay!" forcing a smile with a contorting cheek muscles.


    This was the only way out for them, and if these ladies did not agree, then they would truly be doomed! In the future, he will make sure to forbid customers from paying with a Superior quality spirit stone... assuming that they have one anyway.


    "It''s on the house?" Di Rou looked at Xiahou Yu and Xu Rong, as if they had already expected this and nearly bursted into laughter.


    Though they already felt guilty from doing this, this was the only way for them to procure those huge lists of ingredients that Duan Li tasked them to get!


    "Then, we shall continue to make orders!" Di Rou nodded and answered with a poker face, as if unable to see that the old butler in front of her was currently facing the greatest crisis ever in his life!


    "Eh? P-Please Esteemed customers... don''t do this!" Heng Wu started to beg. He knew where the direction was going with this one.


    Damn it! What did I do in my past lives to deserve this torture? Oh Heavens! Please send me your guiding light!


    "As long as our restaurant does not have to go into debt with you, then we are willing to do anything! Please understand that we also can''t allow you to eat as you want... or we''ll go bankrupt!" Heng Wu said, nearly bawling his tears out.


    Seeing that the old butler has finally submitted, a smile crept up on Di Rou''s lips.


    Success!


    "Well, if you insist. Here are the lists of ingredients that we want to procure within one week!" Di Rou passed onto Heng Wu the lists of ingredients that she received from Duan Li.


    She then continued, "As long as you guys are able to procure them all, then there is no need for the restaurant to pay the remainder to us. You can take that Superior quality spirit stone with you now, and do whatever you want with it."


    "W-What?!" once again, Heng Wu felt another shock to his old heart and almost fainted.


    To give them the Superior quality spirit stone and stating that they they could use it however they like was the same as gaining ownership of it!


    This was a total value of reaching the thousands of High quality spirit stones! With that staggering amount of money, they could do anything they want!


    So what if the lists of ingredients was a lot and hard to come by?


    What Danger zone?


    What Forbidden f*cking region?!


    Hah! Here''s my middle finger!


    The money they have right now would be enough to hire several experts at the Nascent Soul realm at once to personally fetch the ingredients on the field like a bunch of cheap labourers! In fact, after deducting all the possible expenses, they would still be earning profits of several hundreds of High quality spirit stones!


    This was an unprecedented deal! A deal that could only happen once every few thousand years!


    Was it because I am too handsome that the Heavens gave me this golden opportunity? That does seems to be the case!


    Hais!


    With his eyes renewed with extreme determination, and the flames of life began to burn like the second sun, Heng Wu immediately bowed his head!


    "Esteemed customers! This is truly nothing too big of a deal for us! Hahahahaha! In fact, please have a seat again, tonight, everything will be on the house!"


    ...


    At the Southern region of the Jiu Empire, Fei Longwei and Wei Shang managed to rescue the kidnapped villagers near the lodging zone in the village.


    As the village was still under assault by the bandits, it was not safe to roam around freely outside. Thus, they had to pick one inn and hid the rescued villagers there for the time being. They also stationed some of Cucko''s minions to keep on a lookout while they head out to another area to help the rest of the villagers.


    Whoosh! Whoosh!


    With the efficient assassination and ambush tactics of Cucko and his minions, Fei Longwei and Wei Shang was able to clear most of the attacking bandits at lightning speed, the blitzkrieg technique!


    They could hardly believe on what these chickens were capable of! In fact, unless one were to witness them personally in action, then one would never be able to believe it even if someone threatened to fart right into their mouth!


    The sight was just far too inconceivable, that it would be more acceptable to believe that a dragon''s offspring was a house lizard!


    Unfortunately, no matter how fast they cleared out the bandits, since they arrived late, the damage was already done. Everywhere around the streets, dead bodies could be seen laying out cold by the cobble street, slowly turning stiff.


    "Only the town square is left! We need to hurry!" Wei Shang said with gritted teeth as they sprinted along the shadows of the night.


    ...


    "Hahahahaha! What do you think? I told you that it is pointless to resist!" a burly, fat and tall bandit laughed mockingly at an elder with a thick goatee beard, a big iron greatsword was hung from the bandit''s shoulder. He was the bandit leader!


    "Bastard! All of you damned animals will one day pay for what you have done today!" the elder with the goatee shouted with his saliva splattering all over on the bandit leader''s face!


    "Yuck! Stupid old man! How dare you have your saliva all over my handsome face?!" the bandit leader slapped the elderly man on the face, causing the latter to flew to the back and crashed over the wall of a building.


    Crack!


    The sounds of a few bones breaking could be heard as result of the crash.


    "Puhe!" the elder spurted out a mouthful of blood as he clenched his chest tightly.


    "Village elder!" the rest of the villagers that saw this called out in horrow as panic began to sunk into their hearts. All the guards and security forces in the village was killed by the bandits, leaving them utterly defenseless!


    "I''ve sent one of my boys to invite the most beautiful lady from this village to marry me three days ago! How dare you mere peasants reject my gracious offer!" the bandit leader sneered as he scanned over the scared crowd while licking his lips.


    "As punishment, tonight, ten of your most beautiful ladies will have to sleep with me! And if they cannot satisfy me, tomorrow, every single one of you, with no exception, will be beheaded by this greatsword of mine!" he bellowed, raising the huge iron greatsword into the air with one hand as if it were nothing!


    "Oh, and there is no need to wait for rescue from the Jiu Empire, even if they came, we would be long gone by then! HAHAHAHA!"


    ...


    Fei Longwei and Wei Shang that was observing this situation from a dark corner by the village square narrowed their eyes!


    Strong!


    "There is no mistake... that damned bandit.. his cultivation realm is at the Golden Core realm!" they said with a grim voice.


    How the hell could a bandit have sufficient resources to even cultivate all the way to the Golden Core realm?!


    "We need to proceed with the plan regardless, there is no time!" Fei Longwei said as he made a tough decision.


    "I agree! Let''s do it!" Wei Shang nodded as they looked at each other before disappearing.


    On the other hand, Cucko and his minions was already positioning themselves around the bandits, who seemed to be unaware that a lot of chickens began to surround them slowly like the opened jaw of a snake, ready to devour them whole!


    ...


    In the residence of the Shen Clan, the disturbance caused by Duan Li''s explosive aura breaking free from the Dragon Sealing Formation caused a huge number of disciples to passed out.


    They simply could not withstand Duan Li''s might, even when it was just at half of his total strength!


    Meanwhile, the elders of the Shen clan were not doing too well either and plummeted to the ground, barely able to stand on their feet!


    "How in the world could someone be this strong?!" they exclaimed grimly in their minds, full of disbelief.


    What was even more scary to them was that the fact that the masked intruder was placing his hands behind his back the whole time, not moving even a single step to suppress them all!


    "D-Damn you.. just because you are strong.. do you think that we will go down without a fight? B-Brothers, let us all combine our might and-" just as one of the elder was about to rally everyone to face against Duan Li regardless of the odds, a bellow reverberated across the night sky!


    "Halt!" the voice exclaimed.


    "Let him in!"


    ...

 Chapter 340 - Accused from the opposite direction!

    "Halt!"


    The moment this voice reverberated across the night sky, everyone raised their head with shock before they stopped moving.


    "Patriarch Shen!"


    Tap! Tap!


    With no exception, they kneeled on the ground, showing their utmost respect and veneration towards the owner of this voice!


    Patriarch Shen, the de facto leader of the great Shen Clan. No one really knows his real age, but some suggests that he was already more than 300 years old since becoming the Patriarch of the clan back then!


    Furthermore, those who became the Patriarch will only be called by their first name, with their last name being slowly forgotten into the annals of time.


    "Let him in." the voice from Patriarch Shen said.


    "Yes, Patriarch!" the elders immediately replied with an affirmative nod, and no one dared to question this decision of his.


    Such was the influence of the Patriarch of a Great clan. Their commands will be treated as if the holy decree from the heavens itself!


    Duan Li was then escorted into the Shen''s residence, treated like the guest of honor as if the previous incident never happened. He was then asked to wait inside a certain room.


    ...


    Far outside the capital of the Nine Lotuses City of the Jiu Empire, within a certain cave underneath an ancient mountain, an altar could be seen with numerous inscription around it.


    In the center of this altar, at an elevated position, an elderly figure with beards long enough that it almost covered his entire topless body while seated in a cross-legged position could be seen cultivating as still as the boulders.


    His body was rough, and there were numerous deep scars dotting around his impenetrable and pulsating muscles, symbolising the contradiction of the world itself.


    His white beard and long hair that reached down to his back was unkempt, and his entire disposition was like that of a sage. However, if one gets close enough, then one would realize that this old man was like the incarnation of the legendary beast itself - the Dragon!


    He was Patriarch Shen!


    "This intruder.. he is that Imperial Overseer that you speak so highly of?" asked Patriarch Shen to a figure in front of him.


    "Yes. His name is Duan Li... And that was not even his full strength!" Shen Long replied.


    This grandfather of Shen Murong was the current leader of the Shen clan besides being a senior teacher at the Jixue Knights Academy. Although this was so, according to traditions, he was still required to report any major information to the Patriarch in order to keep the latter updated on the current situation of the mundane world.


    Normally, the Patriarch would only listen passively and never acted, as he was someone that had long cut himselves away from the troubles of the world, like many before him, as well as those like him.


    They were considered to be recluse of the past era, and only during great crisis in their clan will they make a move. Otherwise, they would have to remain within the center of the altar, so that their lifeforce could be prolonged.


    The only side-effect to this, was that Patriarch Shen will slowly undergo a mutation to his body.


    The life force of a mythical creature like the dragon was boundless and near immortal, and these traits was even passed onto the humans as bloodlines.


    The altar served to exploit these advantages in order to prolong Patriarch Shen''s lifespan. In return, the more the bloodlines gets activated, Patriarch Shen''s body will slowly turn into that of a reptile, specifically, a dragon!


    Right now, there were already two horns jutting out from his temples, his knuckles changed into that of a dragon''s, his body had scales and there was a tail behind him too.


    This form was similar to the bloodline release ability of the Shen clan, with the only difference was that this one was a permanent form and cannot be reverted!


    "Is that so.. interesting." Patriarch Shen gradually opened his eyes, and the vertical iris of a dragon shone out from him.


    After pondering a bit, he then decided.


    "If what you said is true, then I might need some preparation to adjust my body back into a battle state.. send them a notice that they should delay him until tomorrow morning for me."


    Shen Long nodded and replied politely, "It shall be done, Patriarch."


    ...


    "What? I need to wait until tomorrow morning?" Duan Li, still in his disguise furrowed under his mask.


    "Yes.. it appears that the teleportation portal will require some time before it could be activated." an elder from the Shen clan said.


    "Is that so?" Duan Li thought for a moment, "Why don''t you just tell me the location? I''ll head there personally!" he said.


    The elder shook his head, "That''s an impossible request... the ancestral mountain of our Shen clan, no one knows its exact location. Our clan leader, Shen Long is the only person that knows of it, and right now, he seems to be in that place as well."


    Hearing this, Duan Li gave out a helpless sigh. "Fine, I''ll stay here until tomorrow morning."


    The elder nodded before exiting Duan Li''s room.


    "Well.. I guess I don''t have too much of a choice.."


    Let''s just have a good night sleep!


    ...


    The next day...


    "Hey! Are you guys done yet?!" said a soldier with a panicked expression. He also seems to be in so much pain, as if suppressing something from leaking out.


    "Sh*t! Hurry up!"


    "Ah! It came out!"


    "F*ck! You guys smell!"


    The entire camp was in a state of chaos as the man-made toilet was full to the brim. A few hours ago, it was just another normal morning for them; waking up in the morning with a big stretch, a little wash-up and some morning breakfast. Then, it quickly turned into hell.


    BAM!


    "Damn it! It seems that someone snuck into the camp where we put our rations at and poisoned them with laxatives last night!" Ling Shin smashed the table in front of him with his fist in a fit of anger.


    "Those stupid, good for nothing soldiers! They should have checked the rations first before consuming! It was fortunate that our rations was stored separately. Otherwise..." Ruo Hen gnashed his teeth together, feeling extremely lucky that he was spared from the shame.


    He then continued, "Princess, we should punish them to make an example-"


    "Silence!" Princess Meixiu bellowed, cutting off Ruo Hen''s sentence before he could finish.


    A lot of things immediately came into her mind the moment this incident happened. She then turned to Ling Shin, "Ling Shin, it appears that this attack is not premeditated." she said.


    "Princess, you mean?" Ling Shin''s face turned grim.


    "Think about it, if the enemy wants to harm us, wouldn''t it be much more effective if it was a lethal poison instead of laxatives? It means that the enemy only planned to slow us down, and not wipe us out!" she explained.


    "Princess is correct." an elderly woman entered the main camp with a smile.


    "Elder Cheng Chao!" the Princess ran over to her to embrace the elderly woman. Although Elder Cheng Chao was her maid, the princess treated her like her grandmother instead. After all, she was taken care by her since she was young.


    In addition, Elder Cheng Chao was not a normal palace maid, but more of her personal assistant, appointed directly by the Doulou''s Emperor himself! It went without saying that her status was quite special, such that even Ling Shin and Ruo Hen did not dare to be impudent before her.


    "Elder! I think that last night someone snooped on our conversation and overheard us! They must probably know about the legendary ultimate weapon of the Ten Commandments by now! We need to depart soon and find it before they do!" the Princess said in a panic. Since this was the reason why they even came all the way here, even if it was not the entire reason, she could not possibly let the enemy get away with it.


    Elder Cheng Chao chuckled as she pat onto the Princess''s head, "Princess, there is no need to hurry. I''ve deduced that the enemy was highly likely in small numbers only. Probably less than five people in total."


    "Eh? Less than five? How can you tell Elder?" the Princess exclaimed in surprise when she heard this.


    "Simple. Since they''ve put laxatives in one of the ration''s tent, as you said, then they must''ve only planned to slow us down. Obviously, this unseen enemy has scouted out our camp to a certain extent, but they were only able to find out one of the three ration''s tent, leaving the other two unharmed." Elder Cheng Chao explained.


    The Princess pondered for a moment before her eyes widened in realization, "I get it now! It''s because the enemy does not have enough people! Otherwise, they would''ve surely poisoned all the ration''s tent too!"


    Elder Cheng Chao nodded with a smile, "Correct. Furthermore, we have hidden sentries that disguised themselves as the locals to keep watch on any big movements heading to our direction a few kilometers from here. The fact that they hadn''t reported on anything last night, but checked in with us this morning as usual, means that the enemy that snuck into our camp should only be a couple of people only!"


    "I see! Elder is truly wise!" the Princess was overjoyed and sighed in relief when she heard this. "Elder, do you think that they are from the Wei or the Qin Empire? Ling Shin told me last night that they were also in the Jiu Empire for whatever reason they have..."


    "You mean those two Princes?" Elder Cheng Chao thought for a moment before nodding. "That''s highly likely to be the case. Especially since Zhang Liao, the reputable genius Strategist from the Wei Empire was also here. He must''ve calculated the fact that we had hidden sentries and drafted the plan to snuck in with small numbers in order to remain undetected."


    The Princess then clenched her fists tight, "Zhang Liao and Lu Bu... to dare put laxatives on my soldiers, I''ll teach them a lesson!"


    ...


    Far away in a certain establishment, two person could be seen drinking the local rum early in the morning.


    "Aachoo!!" Zhang Liao sneezed hard, almost spurting the rum onto Lu Bu''s face in front of him.


    "What''s wrong with you? Caught a cold?" Lu Bu chuckled.


    "Eh, its nothing.. probably the sun was too bright for my eyes..." Zhang Liao replied while feeling extremely bizarre.


    The both of them continued drinking, not knowing that in the opposite direction, someone had just accused them for a despicable action done entirely by a completely different, unscrupulous party.


    ...

 Chapter 341 - The Great Clans of the Jiu Empire!

    "Round and round, robin came spinning on the streets~" a man riding atop of a desert camel sang loudly amid travelling on one of the infinite sand hills peak joyously, his voice echoing throughout the desert like a man releasing his pent up stress.


    "Shut up! What if your bad singing attracts the desert centipede king?!" a person behind him shouted in anger, unable to hold the annoyance any longer.


    They were nomads of the desert, travelling from one oasis to another constantly from time to time.


    "Haha! You still believe in such-" just as the man was about laugh off at his friend for being such a paranoid, the tip of his mount''s feet seemed to kick a metal lever on the ground and turned it around.


    Peng!!


    "Huh?" the man immediately stopped his camel from moving before he saw the shape of that lever, and his face quickly went pale.


    Noticing that something was wrong, his friend behind him hastily galloped his camel and came around to the side, feeling weirded out by his friend''s reaction.


    "What''s wrong?" he asked, looking at the sand below the camel''s feet before his expression also froze.


    A lever was accidentally turned on!


    "Y-You.. what have you done?!" he shouted in horror.


    "I.. I didn''t notice it!" the man replied in a panicked voice.


    It was a known fact that the desert held many ancient ruins hidden deep beneath the sand dunes, and more often than not, the entrance was opened by mechanism as such. However, it was also known among the people living in the desert that the opening of an ancient ruin also leads to the releasing of whatever monsters they have inside!


    Brrrr!!


    The ground beneath their feet began to tremble, and a hole started to open not too far away from where they are!


    "R-Run!" the two nomads gallopped downhill to the opposite direction.


    KREEEE!!


    The screech of a certain monster echoed from within the hole, sending shivers down their spine as they urged their camels to run faster.


    Then, a giant shadow seemed to cast over them, causing them to turn their head. What they saw will forever then be the nightmare in their sleep!


    "A g-gigantic... Centipede King!"


    The grotesque shape of a huge centipede, reaching almost a hundred meter in length, crawled out from the hole they opened and stood still as it saw the sun for the first time in its life.


    When it turned its body to face the two nomads, only the high pitched scream of a two grown men could be heard before the entire desert became silent again.


    ...


    "Reporting! Our scouts had just received an information that an entrance leading to an underground ancient ruin was opened this morning!" a soldier single-kneeled on the ground as he reported his findings to Princess Meixiu.


    Hearing this, Princess Meixiu stood up from her seat in excitement, "The Heavens are helping us with this lead! Round up all the soldiers that could go on this expedition, we will be leaving in ten minutes!" she commanded.


    "Yes, Princess!" the soldier replied and quickly left the main tent.


    "We should assume the enemy to know about this information too." Ling Shin said to the Princess with a grim expression.


    The Princess nodded, "That''s right. But the real question is, are we going to be in front, or should we let them test the water first?" she then smiled playfully.


    "You mean..." Ling Shin widened his eyes, seeming to understood the intention behind those words.


    Elder Cheng Chao chuckled, intrigued by the ideas of the Princess. "It seems that we need to put on an act then!" she suggested, before everyone in the tent began to laugh.


    ...


    "Hey, Brother Wang Dong, wake up!" Shen Murong slapped Wang Dong''s cheek repeatedly.


    For someone thick skinned like them, the method to wake them up was naturally far from ordinary. After all, they sleep like dead logs, unperturbed even if the world was ending around them, just like the ancient sages that had severed themselves from the happenings of the mundane world.


    "Ah? What''s going on? Is it time for breakfast? I smell something good!" Wang Dong finally woke up from his dreams, wiping the drool from his mouth.


    After last night''s ''Operation Sabotage'', they decided to retreat further away from the enemy camp and found a small forest with thick bushes around a small oasis. Setting up a camp there, they rested for the night with wide smiles on their face, excited with the fact that the enemy will have a terrible morning ahead of them.


    Shen Murong nodded, "Yes Brother Wang Dong! This is really unexpected, Wei Wang could actually cook!"


    Wei Wang woke up earlier than the two of them, and as part of a daily routine, he cooked his own breakfast as usual. However, since he was now with Wang Dong and Shen Murong, he had to cook for them too.


    Since child, he and his older brother Wei Shang had to live frugally because their clan was poor. More often than not, they only ate rice with a grain of salt everyday. After they were a bit older, they trained and hunt wild animals for their nutrition. Learning how to cook properly was then just part of the natural process, and they now could basically make a delicious dish with simple ingredients.


    For example, the breakfast that he just made was berries that he gathered from the bushes around them and fish from the oasis. Normally, people would only cook these food over a fire, but he brought with himself innumerable amount of spices within his spatial ring, making him able to cook food more creatively.


    "I made our breakfast into skewers so that we could eat while travelling. The enemy should already be awake by now." Wei Wang scribbled on the ground.


    "Aha is that so? Junior Wei Wang is really considerate! This Brother Wang Dong of yours appreciates your good thoughts!" Wang Dong laughed out loud in satisfaction.


    After dismantling their camp, they then headed towards the direction of the Doulou''s military camp. Standing atop of a sand dunes, they could see a long line of people screaming at the toilet while cursing it with countless slurs and curses as if the toilet had just murdered their grandparents.


    Seeing this, both Wang Dong and Shen Murong could not help but to laugh.


    "Hahahaha! Junior Wei Wang, behold, our masterpiece!" Wang Dong raised both arms while laughing, thoroughly satisfied with the results he saw.


    "Hahahahaha! Come, let us roll out the mat here and enjoy our breakfast! I have some tea here by the by!"


    Just like that, the three of them had their breakfast while watching the chaos inside the Doulou''s military camp. Chomping down on their skewers and drinking their tea with a peaceful expression.


    "Eh? Brother Wang Dong, I thought that last night we added aphrodisiac as well... they don''t seem to be on heat?" Shen Murong cupped his chin.


    "Oh, its probably diluted with the laxatives. The effects should be showing later on I think?" Wang Dong replied with a little uncertainty in his voice.


    "Huh? Look over there!" Shen Murong pointed towards the exit of the Doulou''s military camp and saw a dozen groups of soldiers marching.


    "Aha! The people leading them must be this Princess Meixiu! Those two beside her are Ling Shin and Ruo Hen that I was talking about last night! But as for that old lady..." Wang Dong narrowed his eyes, looking a little serious.


    The three of them nodded with a grim expression.


    A Nascent Soul realm expert!


    "Where do you think they are going Junior Wei Wang?" the both of them asked.


    "I think they must''ve already found the location of an anciet ruin. We should follow them!" Wei Wang replied with a scribble.


    Thus, they decided to tail the expedition party from behind.


    ...


    "Honorary Guest, the teleportation array can now be used." an elder said to Duan Li who was still donning on his white mask.


    "En." Duan Li replied simply with a nod. He was feeling quite weird with the elders of the Shen clan using such a polite title on him.


    I guessed that they really respect the Patriarch to even call an intruder like me as an Honorary Guest...


    Stepping onto the teleportation array, Duan Li''s figure flashed with a blinding light before disappearing!


    Wengg!!


    ...


    "Woah!" Duan Li''s figure reappeared ontop of a similar teleportation array and felt a little dizzy.


    After he felt a bit better, he then looked around at his surroundings and found that he was inside a cave with a long pathway ahead of him, lit by torches on each side.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Hmm?" the closer Duan Li was to the exit of this long pathway, the more sure he became.


    Through the ripples of spiritual Qi pressing on him as he moved, increasing dramatically with each step, he was able to identify that the spiritual Qi assault was coming from eight different people!


    By combining their might, the level of spiritual Qi assault on him right now would make even the knees of a Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm experts to collapse!


    But against Duan Li? Honestly speaking, it just felt like the sea breeze to him!


    With light footsteps and his hand placed behind his back, Duan Li continued to trudged on with consistent walking speed without any difficulties at all. Before long, he finally reached the end of the pathway and arrived at a massive open space inside the cave.


    Raising his head, what he saw in front of him was nine tall pillars. Except the last one, on each of them, could be seen figures sitting cross-legged, their silhouette shrouded in darkness as the light from the torches below could not reach them, appearing very mysterious.


    "I thought I was supposed to face only one of you at a time?" Duan Li asked casually with a light chuckle behind his mask.


    Whooshh!


    Below each pillar, their individual torches began to lit one by one, revealing a single character etched on each one of them, starting from the pillar with no one on top of it:


    Sui...


    Ding...


    Shi...


    Fei...


    Wei...


    Xu...


    Wang...


    Shen...


    and finally...


    Jiu!


    The Nine Great Clans of the Jiu Empire!


    ...

 Chapter 342 - Challenge!

    "So these are the Nine Great clans of the Jiu Empire..." Duan Li nodded in approval with his hands still placed behind his back, creating the image of an unperturbed expert in front of what could be considered as apex cultivators of the Tian continent!


    After all, when he scanned all the eight figures sitting cross-legged on top of their pillar with his Tetra Soul Sense, he found out that their cultivation realm was far from normal. Although they were all in the Pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm, their aura felt as though they were already on the verge of entering the realms of true immortals, such that they only had to turn the door knob and open the door and poof!


    Escaping Mortality realm!


    But knowing the restrictions of the world placed upon its inhabitants, Duan Li knew full well that the strength required to push the door was not something that can be done just by one being strong.


    They needed to leave the Tian continent to do that, as well as leaving everything behind!


    That was what it meant to become immortal, severing ties completely with the mortal realm they were born in!


    "Impressive."


    The deep voice of an elder that sounded more ancient and majestic at the same time echoed in the spacious chamber.


    The voice came from the person sitting atop of the ''Jiu'' stone pillar!


    "Hmm?" Duan Li''s suspicion was confirmed.


    Previously, when he felt the aura coming from this elderly man, he thought that it was from the Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping albeit the vast differences in spiritual Qi quality which made him doubt himself. After all, the Jiu Emperor was supposed to be the strongest man in the empire, and should be the one to lead the Jiu clan as well.


    In addition, if the clan leader and patriarch were two different people in the Jiu clan and the clan leader was the Emperor, wouldn''t that meant that the Emperor would have to answer to the patriarch?


    Although this form of hierarchy was indeed correct among the clansmen, an Emperor''s status stood above even that of a patriarch!


    Therefore, to prevent this contradiction, the patriarch and clan leader of the Jiu clan should be the same person!


    However, it was apparent that this does not seem to be the case right now, and whatever the reason was, he would have to ask them about it next time.


    "I''ve heard the rumors but thought it was an exaggeration. Now that I''ve seen it, that rumor seems to be an understatement instead."


    Huu!


    As Patriarch Jiu stood up, his bones made some cracking noises, evident that he hadn''t moved from his seated position for a very long time.


    Following this, the other patriarchs did the same as well. Overwhelming might radiated ceaselessly from their body, once again pressing against Duan Li and caused the rock solid ground below him to tremble.


    Still, Duan Li remained unaffected, and because his expression was hidden behind his mask, the patriarchs were not able to discern Duan Li''s state of emotions.


    "In the entire history of the Jiu Empire since its very first foundation, the title of an Imperial Overseer was never once taken by anyone. It was like the over-reaching sun, always in existence but could never be grasped."


    Whoosh!


    The patriarchs then disappeared from their pillar like smokes before reappearing instantly in front of Duan Li.


    Now, their appearance could be perfectly seen with the naked eyes.


    Patriarch Jiu, whose long hair reached down to his back was golden like his saber-shaped brows. His disposition was majestic like the Jiu Emperor, and his facial expression was indiscernible due to his indifferent face.


    Patriarch Shen, whose body was akin to the transformed Shen Long and Shen Murong, while the entire being of Patriarch Fei was shrouded in darkness, leaving no apparent features that could be discerned except for his slim stature.


    There was also an old man that looked feeble and his face appeared sickly. However, Duan Li had never met an old person that had given him a more dangerous vibe than this old man. He was Patriarch Wei.


    Beside him was a curvaceous woman in a green silk robe, looking like a lady in her late 20s. Her facial feature was also gorgeous, such that no one would have thought her to be an old lady whose age had actually went past 300 years old like the rest of the surrounding patriarchs. She was Patriarch Xu.


    Patriarch Wang was the biggest in terms of physique with bodily muscles that seemed to be carved from the legends themselves. Every fiber of his body cells seems to be screaming with power, and this was a sign that one had already tempered their physical body to the maximum level.


    Meanwhile, Patriarch Shi was donning a Black set of plate armors similar to the one Fei Jin Fang used, with the only difference was that this armor looked quite weathered and old in its design.


    Finally, Patriarch Ding reminded Duan Li of Grandma Ying back in the Xuan village with her amiable and gentle smile. Unconsciously, a smile also formed beneath Duan Li''s mask.


    "Greetings, patriarchs of the Great clan." Duan Li clasped his hands together to show his sign of respect.


    Seeing this quality in the newly inaugurated Imperial Overseer, the expression on all the eight patriarchs softened a little, hints that they approve of Duan Li''s gesture towards them as his senior, a proper conduct and etiquette fit for someone of his title!


    In return, all the eight patriarch clasped their hands together, "Greetings, Imperial Overseer!"


    "En!" Duan Li nodded, feeling gratified that the patriarchs were not haughty individuals.


    After all, if he could, he didn''t want to smack them too much later on.


    "A child of destiny... so, they really exist.." Patriarch Ding said as she smiled while looking at Duan Li.


    Hearing this, Duan Li was surprised.


    "Did you guys perhaps, already knew... about the future?" he asked curiously, not knowing what the latter meant.


    She shook her head, "No... we chose to not want to know about the future..."


    This answer of her caused Duan Li to become even more dumbstruck.


    What is she saying?


    Detecting Duan Li''s confusion, a chuckle could be heard.


    "She has one of the rarest kinds of precognition ability, sensing destiny." this time, it was Patriarch Wei that spoke.


    "We were curious of how you were able to become this... unnaturally strong, and planned to inquire you about it in one way or another." he continued, "But this old lady just had to kill our fun by saying that the world might end sooner or something if we were to know about it."


    "Hmph! What old man, do you not believe me?" Patriarch Ding snorted, annoyed with Patriarch Wei.


    "Ha! Do we even have a choice to not to?" Patriarch Wei harumphed as well, feeling a little indignant.


    After all, no matter what, they had always believed in the ability of Patriarch Ding, even if it meant to severe themselves from the rest of the world like this, as it was also done because she said they had to back then.


    Seeing that the two began to bicker, Patriarch Fei, while shrouding in darkness from top to bottom, had to step in and made some dry coughs.


    "Ahem! She mentioned a long time ago that strong existences like us, who were already close to the ceiling of heavens themselves, would cause severe backlash onto the world upon knowing the secrets of heavens." he said.


    Taken aback by this, Duan Li then nodded as that was actually quite accurate now that he thought about it.


    Since the cultivation realm of the eight old figures in front of him had already reached the utmost maximum on what this world could offer, constantly knocking on the heaven''s door to immortality, the heavens of Tian continent should be deeply aware of them as well.


    If it found out that they know about the future, Duan Li couldn''t imagine the extent of intervention from time to make things right.


    "Heh. You have thoroughly stoked our curiosity you know that?" Patriarch Shen said with a wide grin, reminding Duan Li of the dumb Shen Murong.


    "We old men who had already reached the ends of cultivation, could not help but wonder how you, someone that had not yet even reached Nascent Soul realm, would be able to withstand our combined pressure. It was far too unreal!" he sighed.


    Just what kinds of existence are they?


    Even if just a single one of them were to come out from this mountain cave into the real world to cause chaos, hardly anyone could even hope to stop them, not even people with the same level as their''s!


    Yet, to think that a day had come where their combined might couldn''t even measure to the power of a single boy, had thoroughly astonished and extended their worldly horizons!


    "You know, although you had already proven to us how strong you are as a cultivator, to the point where we might as well be just ants in front of you, seeing that you walked past our pressure as if it were a mere sea breeze, couldn''t help but to hurt our pride a bit, okay?" said Patriarch Shen, his voice sounded demotivated.


    "Therefore!" he exclaimed loudly, causing his voice to echo inside the spacious cave, dropping small debris to the ground.


    "We propose that you have a martial art duel with us, no fancy skill arts, but just fists and kicks! How does that sound?!"


    ...

 Chapter 343 - Veterans of the old era!

    "T-Thank you! If it weren''t for you and your group, I''m afraid that our ending wouldn''t have been so well.." the Village Head bowed at Fei Longwei and Wei Shang repeatedly.


    The rest of the villagers also expressed their gratitude as well, and some were even crying emotionally.


    "We... We only wished that we could''ve arrive earlier.." Wei Shang replied and felt regretful.


    After they had successfully set up their traps and ambush, most of the bandits were killed almost instantaneously. However, the bandit leader along with the more powerful ones had put up quite the struggle and fight to the end, resulting in the battle lasting until the morning.


    "Hais!" the Village Head sighed helplessly.


    "It''s fine.. the fact that we were not completely wiped out in this unfortunate turn of event is already a blessing.." the Village Head then rounded up the remaining survivors.


    "So.. half of the men in our village was wiped out and we don''t have any security forces left.." the Village Head became even more dejected and remorseful.


    Hearing this, Fei Longwei pondered seriously for a moment, "It''s no longer safe here without a defense force protecting the village. I suggest that everyone should split up and head to the surrounding villages to take shelter for the time being. At least that way, while some of you might encounter bandits on the way, the others would be able to survive. If you guys stay here, bandits would just come again to take advantage of everyone due to the lack of security." he said.


    Although his words were direct, Wei Shang nodded, in agreement to Fei Longwei''s suggestion. "That''s right. This is only a temporary relocation until the empire dispatch a new security forces for this village."


    Immediately, the crowd became rowdy and restless. Some were utterly devastated and there were even those that chose to die protecting the village, or at least what remained after the attack rather than relocating elsewhere.


    After all, this was their home, the place where they were born. In fact, if they were to leave now, who would bury their dead relatives from the attack earlier? Were they just have to let them to rot?


    "Leaving the village? But what of our stuff?"


    "Mother, I''m afraid!"


    "We should head to..."


    "I disagree! We should not be..."


    Pretty soon, the entire village seems to be divided between those who were leaving and those that wanted to stay. Seeing this, the Village Head gritted his teeth. Turning to both Wei Shang and Fei Longwei, he dropped to his knees and prostrated on the ground!


    "Eh? Village Head, what are you doing?" the crowd was surprised with this sudden action of his.


    "Please, I beseech you! Please protect our village until the new security forces arrive!" the Village Head uttered these words while crying emotionally.


    He felt extremely guilty and remorseful over his own weakness as the Village Head. For the first time in his life, he hated himself on how he did not possess the sufficient natural talent to cultivate.


    "If only I was strong, I could''ve at least traded my life for the safety of everyone!" he shouted inwardly while clenching his fist tight, such that his nails was buried deep into the flesh of his hands, making him bleed.


    Initially, Fei Longwei was about to reject as he was quite an upfront person. But he was also someone with feelings, affected by his surroundings all the same like everyone else. This was especially the case after he saw the Village Head like that.


    This caused him to hesitate. After all, they were in no way at all obligated to protect villages from bandits, and the order from their Lord, Duan Li, was far more important than the request of mere villagers.


    Just as he was about to make the tough decision, Cucko suddenly perched itself atop of his head.


    "Protect the village at all cost until the new security forces arrive. They will take two days to get there." a voice spoke in his head which caused him to be surprised.


    Telepathy?


    Wengg!!


    At the same time, the communication jade slip on Wei Shang also received similar message. However, the contents sounded more strict than what Fei Longwei got, causing him to sweat profusely.


    Looking at each other, they both nodded.


    "Very well. Our Lord has given us the permission. We will remain here until the new security forces arrive two days later!" Fei Longwei said.


    When the Village Head heard this reply, he was filled with disbelief. "Y-You... agree? Ohh!! Thank you! Thank You!" he then broke into a fit of emotional cry once more to the point that the others had to help him to stand up.


    The rest were also overjoyed with their reply. Since they have the capability to wipe out the previous bandits by themselves, it went without saying that they will be safe and future threats would no longer loom over their village!


    ...


    Meanwhile, inside a spacious cave under a certain mountain, a fight between the apex cultivators of the Jiu Empire was about to begin.


    "Martial arts battle?" Duan Li thought for a moment before nodding in agreement, "Very well!"


    For him, this kind of battle was far less damaging to the environment for people of their level. After all, if Duan Li wanted, just the full might of his Nine Fists Shattering Meteor would destroy the whole mountain along with the surrounding area. In addition, the patriarchs in front of him was no pushover either.


    Based on their spiritual Qi aura, although they were weaker than him, this was when one only consider it from such a limited perspective. If one were to view their age, battle experience, coordination, skills, wits and wills, Duan Li could be considered as amatuers in some of these aspects!


    This was why there was a saying quoted all the time by those who practiced confucianism;


    "Afraid not those who are naturally powerful, but those who are weak, but experienced in winning."


    Whooshh!!


    All eight patriarchs moved to surround Duan Li from his eight cardinal direction.


    "Forgive us old men for ganging up on you. You are not normal after all. We hope that you can understand." the Jiu Patriarch said with his everlasting solemn voice.


    Wrrrr!!


    Lowering their body and adjusting their center of gravity, each of the patriarchs began to exert strength into their bodily cells and muscles, increasing their physical attributes by innumerable folds!


    "Channeling their spiritual Qi into each individual cells to reinforce their internal organs and external body.. sounds simple enough but exceedingly difficult to practice." Duan Li remarked inwardly as he also turned serious, his hands no longer behind his back.


    Widening his stance, Duan Li then put up his guard.


    "Come."


    ...


    "Brother Shen Murong, why are they going over there? If I am not mistaken, isn''t that big hole over there the entrance towards the ancient ruin?" Wang Dong said in impatience after observing for a while.


    They had been following the Doulou''s expedition party from behind, but as if lost travelers by the desert that didn''t even know to read direction, they kep moving in the wrong direction, even when the entrance was so near!


    "Hmmm.." Shen Murong cupped his chin. "What do you think Wei Wang?" he turned to ask Wei Shang''s little brother by his side.


    "I think they might be aware that we are following them. From the looks of it though, they hadn''t discovered us yet. This maybe is their attempt to uncover and scout our position." Wei Wang replied by scribbling on the sand.


    He arrived at this conjecture as a result of them poisoning the enemy''s ration. After all, even the densest of all people would realize that someone was watching them if such a thing happened.


    Obviously, the enemy was quite warry this time!


    "At this rate, it would be better if we enter first, right?" Wang Dong suggested. He was getting bored observing the Doulou''s expedition party for three hours now and was dying for some action.


    "Brother Wang Dong, I think that''s a good idea! How about you Wei Wang?" Shen Murong smiled with a wide grin while giving a thumbs up.


    Wei Wang clutched at his forehead feeling headache dealing with the two brothers in front of him. As an assassin, he was well aware that this was an obvious ploy to lure away the enemy from their hiding spot. However, what they said was also right.


    They can''t just continue to do nothing and observe, they had orders from Duan Li to gather ancient relics or treasures from ancient ruins in the Red Desert!


    Hais!


    After Wei Wang nodded, the trio then sneakily moved over to the large hole in the center of some sand dunes before jumping in, unaware that a pair of eyes has been observing them since the beginning.


    ....

 Chapter 344 - Limitless! (1)

    BAM!! BAM!!


    BOOMM!!


    "Heh, your martial arts are not bad at all!" Patriarch Shen laughed as his elbow and Duan Li''s met together to produce the sound of clashing boulders, rattling the entire cave!


    "Thank you Patriarch Shen! Your''s are extremely formidable as well" Duan Li replied and exchanged compliments. He could not help but to be truly amazed by the martial arts of Patriarch Shen!


    Through immersing himself in the numerous martial arts forms and combinations within the wisdom stone that was lent to him by the Principal, Duan Li was already able to create a flexible fighting style for himself. Compounded with the fact that he had subconsciously learnt the Martial True Instinct technique inside one of the compounded space trial back then, his body could already by considered to have reached the apex of martial philosophy!


    This was a level where one could clearly discern their own and oppenent''s movements at the same time, seeing through the facades and feints to immediately counter anything anytime! In fact, this fighting ability was so powerful that it was supposed to be impossible to obtain without accruing enough experience and insights AFTER one had become an immortal!


    But Duan Li was someone that had lived the lifetime of the alternate him. Granted that by now his memories could no longer recall anything other than the major event, but because they had become one, his bodily cells, or specifically, his muscle memory remembers the experience!


    Through the tempering from the battle of defeating countless numbers of puppets, when his consciousness fades due to his drained stamina back then, those bodily cells of his was forced to activate and defend themselves by memory. From that process, they eventually matured, and the Martial True Instinct was thus born!


    When Duan Li could even defend himself in his sleep while not being aware, it was suffice to say that no one could compare to him when he was wide awake and his attention was heightened to the maximum such as now!


    Therefore, he was amazed that Patriarch Shen was able to follow his moves and defended against him appropriately. In addition, all the seven other patriarchs were equally amazing as well!


    However, this was but through the perspective of Duan Li. From the perspective of the eight patriarchs attacking him right now...


    Duan Li was nothing short but a monster!


    One has to know that they were already hundreds of years old, accruing surplus of battle experience from dueling against each other frequently as they have nothing better to do in the cave. This was to say that they have been fighting for hundreds of years!


    As for Duan Li? He was only twenty-some years old!


    How could someone like him be able to match against ALL eight of them at the same time like this?


    This was utterly unthinkable!


    Are we the one that are attacking, or you instead?


    Why does it feels like we are defending a lot more than attacking when we are the ones surrounding you?


    Isn''t it supposed to be the other way around?!


    Overtime however, their expression became increasingly grim as they realized something.


    Duan Li was pulling his punches!


    "Forgive me for calling you out like this, but boy, aren''t you underestimating us old people a lot?" Patriarch Wang, the person with the largest physique threw Duan Li a straight punch. His arms seems to grow slightly bigger as he flexed his muscles.


    BOOMM!!


    Immediately, even though Duan Li had already blocked the attack while redirecting majority of the force underground through his feet, the impact still caused him to be flung backwards by three steps!


    "Incredible!" Duan Li''s eyes widened in excitement. This was the first time he was pushed back using only pure strength!


    Shaking his head, Duan Li sighed for a moment before replying, "It seems like I really can''t hide myself from you patriarchs."


    "But, isn''t it the same for everyone as well? I noticed that your attacking formation seems to be purposely sparsed in between to give me just enough time to react, no?" Duan Li pointed out.


    In response to this, Patriarch Fei, the one shrouded in darkness from top to bottom seemed to be able to understand the meaning behind Duan Li''s words.


    "Are you saying that, we all should attack you without breaks? Pardon me for saying this but, while we do acknowledge you to be strong, defending against the full colaborative attacks from the eight of us will be too much for you."


    "En, Patriarch Fei is right." added Patriarch Wei, the ordinary looking old man as he smiled at Duan Li.


    Young men are still naive after all.


    "The combined assault from the eight of us old men could even slay an emperor of the surrounding empires. This was one of the major reasons why they do not dare to invade. The costs would be too much for them to bear, even if they sent another expert to do the job." he said proudly.


    It wasn''t without reasons that they still lived even until now and chose to isolate themselves from the outside world. While the precognition ability of Patriarch Ding made them do it, another reason was that they wanted to become the deterrence for the Jiu Empire against the other nations!


    Old existences like them, were known in the history of the Tian continent as ferocious cultivator that the new modern society could never compare to. Adding to the fact that their exact location remains unknown, who would even dare come to test the water to see if they were still alive or not?


    It took a long time for an expert to reach their level, but to come knocking and luring out old fogeys like these patriarchs out from their cave, would render all their past efforts in vain!


    It was courting death after all.


    "Are you confident?" Patriarch Jiu suddenly said towards Duan Li, alarming all the other patriarchs around him. Clearly they view him to be their leader to some degree.


    "Hey, are you getting senile due to old age? He is still young!" Patriarch Shen said to Patriarch Jiu with a displeased tone.


    "Patriarch Jiu, the combined assault from all eight of us at the same time would be no different to using skill arts. Didn''t we all agree to nurture the Imperial Overseer slowly by exposing him to old fogeys like us so that he could fight people like us one day on his own?" Patriarch Xu that was silent all these while also voiced out her concerns.


    Contrary to these patriarchs, Patriarch Ding seemed to agree more with what Patriarch Jiu just offered to Duan Li, "I concur with what Patriarch Jiu has in his mind, to know his limits, we must go all out!"


    "Patriarch Ding, are you sure about this?" the others turned to her. Since she was the most senior out of all of them, added to the fact that she was deeply respected for her ability, her words had the heaviest weight to it, even when compared to Patriarch Jiu!


    "He will be fine." Patriarch Shi began to change his battle stance as it turns out that he agrees to Patriarch Ding. After all, he was always a straightforward man, even back then when he was still the Supreme Knight of the past Jiu Emperor!


    "Don''t you guys remember? We had eight transformations to the attack formation altogether, with each transformation being more powerful than before. All we had to do was stop during the phases if he reached his limits." he simply said.


    Oh!


    Knowing that they had forgotten this important detail, the other patriarchs chuckled for a bit before nodding and changing their battle stance as well.


    "We will be going for real now. Prepare yourself!" Patriarch Jiu said with an indifferent tone. In his mind, he still wanted to know the full extent of the capabilities of the young man in front of him who was said to be able to defeat even an immortal!


    Whooshh!!


    Just like that, their battle aura seemed to peak into a whole new level than before!


    While Duan Li felt a little left out from the conversation, as he didn''t even get the chance to reply when being asked by Patriarch Jiu before they decided that he was ready, in the end, it doesn''t really matter to him.


    Hais!


    How much physical strength should I use next?


    Thirty percent?


    ...

 Chapter 345 - Limitless! (2)

"It''s going to be different now, so make sure to hold those arms up!" Patriarch Shen said with a wide grin, confident that Duan Li would no longer be able to treat them casually as he did.

 Chapter 346 - Limitless! (3)

"A collaborative attack on my visual and hearing senses, this is surprisingly quite effective.." Duan Li was taken aback by this method of assault and found his defensive posture slightly slackened as a result.

 Chapter 347 - Ancient murals!

"Why I didn''t go all out?" Duan Li pondered for a moment on how he should answer this. If he were to tell them that using a hundred percent of his physical strength would turn them into a mincemeat, would they accept it or fly into a rage?

 Chapter 348 - Play with sand!

"..." the remaining six patriarchs could only watch their two friends that was planted deeply within the cave walls with their mouth agaped. Never had they seen a scene so outlandish such as this! It was unreal!

 Chapter 349 - The power of the legendary Sword! (1)

    "..." Shen Murong and Wei Wang could not believe their eyes.


    To think that Wang Dong would be able to lay his hands on the legendary Ten Commandment sword by just playing around in the sand..


    Just what kind of lucky charm did he swallow?!


    "Is this really the sword?" Wang Dong continued to check the body of the sword with scrutiny in order to determine its authenticity.


    "Eiyakk!!" Wang Dong hand chopped the sword in the middle of its spine, producing a crisp banging sound.


    Mmm.. it seems tough enough to withstand my mighty hand chop..


    "Brother Wang Dong, this should be the sword judging by the aura it was emitting but, why was it buried under the sand below us?" Shen Murong replied after giving the sword a thorough look as well.


    They were deeply perplexed.


    Even though the both of them were no appraisal expert, just the unique aura of an Ultimate graded weapon was enough to tell them that it was the one they were looking for!


    Just that, how could it be this easy?


    They had imagined their exploration to be long and arduous, full of danger where monsters will be lurking behind every corner, ready to ambush and devour them whole!


    Yet, before their adventure could even began, the item in question was already found!


    This anticlimactic experience would trouble even the best story teller in trying to exaggerate it!


    Wei Wang however, after snapping out from his daze, became elated upon seeing that they had obtained thei sword.


    This meant that they only had to find the exit now!


    However, just when this thought crossed his mind, a screeching howl of a monster could be heard from above them!


    "KREEEEE!!!"


    "Desert Centipede King!" the three of them were no stranger to this infamous monster of the desert!


    The Desert Centipede King could be considered as a three star monster, and in terms of a human cultivator strength, unless the three of them were a pinnacle Golden Core realm cultivator themselves, they have no way of trying to even contend with it!


    "Run!"


    Furiously cycling their spiritual Qi within their body, they put their all into enhancing their flight speed and dashed to escape.


    "KREEEE!!!"


    The Desert Centipede King seemed to be furious about something and chased after them closely from behind. Its elongated body of almost reaching 60 meters long and its countless hairy legs slithered along the tunnel they were escaping into.


    "Argh! This stupid monster, how dare you make me run like this, eat my punch!" Shen Murong turned his back and delivered one devastating punch attack!


    Dragon Fist!


    This fist art made the howling of a dragon as it traversed and split the air, reminiscing of an angry dragon charging head on to its enemies!


    "With my majestic skill attack, this dumb monster should turn tail to run to its momma and suck-" before he could finish grinning, the sound of his fist art hitting like an iron door echoed when it hit the centipede''s head.


    PENGG!!


    "KREEE!!" the Desert Centipede King became even more furious as it spitted out an acid attack from its mouth, immediately melting even the sand around it into a jelly goo!


    "Stupid human, my exoskeleton will not be penetrated by your puny fist!" the Desert Centipede King scoffed and continued to shoot his acid attack in rapid fire style!


    As this chasing scene went on, the distance between them gradually decreased, such that their clothes started to melt from the splashes of acid!


    After all, in terms of speed, no matter how slow the centipede was when compared to the human cultivators, it still has a higher realm than them. Eventually, its speed will be able to catch up to them.


    "Hahahaha! Foolish humans, where do you think you are going? Surrender your life and return my treasure!" the Desert Centipede King screeched out.


    Meanwhile, Wang Dong that was now shirtless with only his underwear left, which was somehow immune to the acid could no longer take it and felt like the centipede was harassing them with its own language.


    "You dare to besmirch this great body of mine with your nasty saliva! Curse your son!" Wang Dong bellowed.


    Abs Flexing Technique: Supreme Turtle''s Crust!


    Wengg!!


    Wang Dong stopped trying to escape and fully focused his spiritual Qi into his defenses. After all, he was the slowest when compared to Shen Murong and Wei Wang.


    Since he will eventually get caught, why run then?


    "Brother Wang Dong, what are you doing? Come back!" Shen Murong felt his heart clenching together when Wang Dong heroically turned his back to face the monster behind them with nothing but his underwear!


    This is what you call as trying to scale Mount Tai!


    Contrary to his expectation that Wang Dong would be badly pummeled by the Desert Centipede King like a dirty ragdoll, something unexpected happened instead!


    Shiingggg!!


    "Eh?" the legendary Ten Commandment Sword glowed brightly like the second sun, engulfing him in white light!


    This shocking sight even halted the centipede in its track, becoming wary of Wang Dong.


    What is this human doing now?


    Clank! Clank! Clank!


    Sounds of metal clanking together as if innumerable metal pieces were joining together echoed for a moment before the light basking Wang Dong dimmed.


    Wenggg!!


    A figure draped in cold metallic armor with a large turtle shell on his back appeared!


    "..." Shen Murong and Wei Wang.


    "..." Desert Centipede King.


    ...

 Chapter 350 - The power of the sword! (2)

    "Hahahaha! What is this? You turned into a turtle!" the Desert Centipede King wriggled on the ground, seeming to be laughing.


    While Wang Dong could not understand the other party, body language was said to be universal. Therefore, from the way the centipede was wriggling on the ground with tears flowing down on both its eyes while screeching incessantly, Wang Dong knew for sure that the Desert Centipede King must be laughing at him right now!


    After all, it was known that monsters of such level possessed a certain degree of intelligence and could even understand human intentions!


    "Detestable puny worm!" Wang Dong cursed as he gritted his teeth indignantly with reddened face. He was also not sure on how this current form of his came to be.


    How can my majestic figure turned into as such so suddenly just as I was prepared to fight to the death?


    Looking at his right hand, he was shocked to see that the Ten Commandment sword was no longer there!


    "Could it be..?" a thought suddenly flashed in his mind.


    While he was dumb for most of the time, he was not totally beyond saving in term of intelligence. At least, he was smarter than the Desert Centipede King in front of him.


    This armor has a turtle shell on its back after I activated my ''Abs Flexing Technique Supreme Turtle''s Crust''!


    Does this mean that the Ten Commandment Sword responds to one''s skill arts and transform the user accordingly?


    "Let me give it a try- huh?"


    Just as Wang Dong was trying to confirm his theory by using another skill art, a sudden fatigue hit him.


    "How... I only have a third of my spiritual Qi left?!"


    This realization immediately left him feeling rattled.


    It seems that every transformation would take a significant amount of spiritual Qi to activate!


    "I can''t be too choosy now that it''s like this... let''s see..."


    If there is a follow-up skill after activating the Abs Flexing Technique, it would be...


    Justice Dash!


    With a single dash, Wang Dong head straight on towards the Desert Centipede King with the intention to ram on it!


    Squeak! Squeak!


    "Eh?"


    Automatically, his body was sucked into the turtle shell on his back, leaving only the shell itself to speed towards the monster as it spun on its own axis like a rotating arrow head!


    PENGGG!!


    "KREEEEE!!" the wriggling centipede was taken by surprise from this attack and was bolted far away from the resulting impact!


    Squeak!


    Wang Dong''s head poked out from the turtle shell as he laughed out loud, "Hahahahaha! This is great! Again!"


    Squeak! Squeak!


    Justice Dash!


    PENGGG!!


    "KREEEE!!"


    Justice Dash!


    PENGGG!!


    PENGGG!!


    Just like that, Wang Dong continued to harass the Desert Centipede King like an annoying mosquito under the speechless watch of both Shen Murong and Wei Wang.


    ...


    Meanwhile, outside the entrance hole where Shen Murong and the gang entered before, stood Princess Meixiu and her expedition party.


    "They''ve entered the ruin for a while now, so any mishaps or enemies down there should already be attracted to their presence. Princess, I think now is the time to enter!" said Elder Cheng Chao confidently with her hands placed behind her back.


    "En! Men, prepare yourself!" Princess Meixiu ordered her men to jump into the hole one after another before finally jumping into the hole herself!


    Whooshhh!!


    As she dived into the hole, she let her body slid according to the movement of the sand. Flight was entirely impossible as the hole swiftly became narrow, such that only three people could probably fit in at the same time. Throughout the journey spiraling downwards, she never let her guard down even a single breath, and used defensive skill arts to protect herself. Additionally, her focus towards her surrounding was heightened to the max, and she was ready to counter any ambush along the way!


    "Ahhh!!"


    "Help! Help me!"


    Then, she heard screams from below her, and she recognized them to be coming from her men that dived in first beforehand!


    "They''re under attack? Damn it!" she gritted her teeth in frustration. After all, there was nothing she could do in this situation to help them.


    "KREEEE!!" a monster suddenly emerged from below her feet with its two incisor fangs opening wide to devour and mangle her into a corpse.


    "Desert Centipede!" her eyes widened in surprise but only lasted for a single moment before it narrowed into a cold glance.


    It was a common monster found in the desert and measured only about six meters in length. The only dangerous part of the Desert Centipede was its two poisonous fang. Other than that, it can also twist its body around its prey like a snake, suffocating them before devouring them whole.


    With a harrumph full of disdain, she punched out a fist!


    Doulou''s Royal Punch!


    BOOMMM!!


    The Desert Centipede monster was blown into pieces and its flesh splattered on the sand around her as she continued to slid down. Then, as if sensing their kind was killed, more Desert Centipede started to appear from the sand to attack her!


    Doulou''s Royal Chop!


    Chopping her hand down, a series of miniature burst in the air opened in front of her and sliced all Desert Centipedes into tiny bits of flesh!


    POOMMMM!!


    After massacring a few more dozens of Desert Centipedes, she finally reached the bottom of the hole and landed on her feet. Not a single stain could be seen on her luxurious robe despite exploding more than fifty monsters to pieces!


    Looking around, the rest of her expedition party was also nearby, and as soon they saw her finally arriving, they began to rally with her as the center!


    "Where are the others?" she asked with furrowed brows.


    "Reporting!" a few squad captain came forward.


    As it turns out, a dozen of her men was killed during the process. Hearing this news, she was feeling mixed emotions on whether to pity those that didn''t make it or scold them for being lax in their training. After all, if word were to leak out that that her own private army was killed by mere Desert Centipedes, she wouldn''t know where to put her face at!


    Nevertheless, she only gave it a huge sigh. To vent one''s frustration onto the innocent would be worthless. Since those people died, they could only blame themselves for being weak.


    "Form ranks!"


    After a while, her expedition party was once again organized and they began to march forward along the tunnel while being extremely warry towards their surroundings. Since it was a sandy environment all around them, they had to be careful of ambush from the Desert Centipedes as they could be laying around in wait to attack them.


    Finally reaching a vast open space, they were elated to see hundreds, perhaps thousands of swords stabbed onto the ground. Feeling that they had reached the jackpot, the Princess ordered her men to split up and search the area.


    One of them has to be the legendary ultimate graded weapon, the Ten Commandment Sword!


    "What''s wrong Elder Cheng Chao?" Ling Shin said as he approached the Head of the Royal Maid who was also the Princess''s personal maid.


    With a contemplative look on her, she pointed out, "Where do these swords come from? How are there so many of them here?" she asked seriously.


    "Oh? I''m no appraisal expert, but from what I''ve heard among the soldiers, these swords appeared to be from the Empyrean dynasty!" Ling Shin replied.


    "!!!" Elder Cheng Chao''s eyes widened before she immediately turned around and bellowed, "Stop! Don''t pick up those swords!"


    "Eh? What''s going on?"


    The soldiers turned to each other in confusion.


    BRRRRR!!!!


    Suddenly, the ground below them began to quake!


    Splash! Splash!


    One by one, skeletons began to emerge from the sands below their feet!


    "Ah!"


    Even worse, some of the skeletons immediately stabbed the startled soldiers who were too slow to react accordingly, increasing the number of fatalities from the previous count rapidly!


    Undead Skeletons!


    "This is bad! Everyone, rally around the Princess!" Ling Shin, Elder Cheng Chao and Ruo Hen commanded.


    The numbers of Undead Skeletons also began to rise exponentially, swiftly growing beyond a thousand!


    ...


    "So, what are your plans Your Excellency?" Patriarch Jiu asked with a polite tone.


    After they finished their oath, the way they treated Duan Li was completely different. If before he was treated like an outsider, now he felt like he had suddenly become their father!


    "My plans are simple. We need to boost our strength in order to prepare for what is to come!" Duan Li replied as he opened his mask, revealing his true face for the first time towards the eight patriarchs!


    So young!


    The eight patriarchs were visibly stunned after they laid their eyes on Duan Li''s face. They had imagined him to be young, but not THIS young!


    Due to the unique nature of the material which Duan Li used to make his mask, their Soul Sense was not able to penetrate beyond it. This was why their reaction was so great that it made Duan Li blushed a little.


    "Patriarchs, please don''t stare too much like that... I''m afraid that even if you compliment me to be handsome, I regret to say that I''m not willing to marry anyone yet!" Duan Li quickly confessed.


    "Ah?" his sudden statement caught the patriarchs off guard and they almost keeled over to the ground.


    Duan Li had always heard from his village before that clan leaders loves to propose marriage relationship between their clan and the most handsomest and capable guy that they laid their eyes on, and Duan Li felt that he met that criteria after his wonderful showcase of strength with them just now.


    In his opinion, even though he was handsome and capable, he was still far too young to settle down, and there were also other important things to prepare for the future, so before they could even throw a marriage proposal to him, he had to shoot them down first!


    On the other hand, it took quite a while for the patriarchs to understand the meaning behind Duan Li''s words, and when they finally did, they had the urge to pummel him!


    It seems like even the Imperial Overseer is not right in the head!


    ...

 Chapter 351 - Secret to Immortality!

    "Actually, regarding the affairs of handling the Jiu Empire, it would be better if you guys consult with Utmost Being, he is better in that field compared to me." Duan Li confessed as he scratched his head in embarrassment.


    "Utmost Being?" the patriarchs turned to look at each other with confused look. They had never heard of such a person before.


    Meanwhile, Patriarch Shen was visibly riled upon hearing the name. "Utmost Being? What gal to call oneself as such! Who is this person? Why is he qualified to be talking to the rest of us when we only answer to you Your Excellency?" he complained.


    Not to mention him, we rarely talked with even the Emperor!


    "He..." Duan Li once again scratched his head before he continued on, "I guess you can call him as the... acting Imperial Overseer!"


    "Ah?" the patriarchs felt their knee to collapse.


    Acting Imperial Overseer?


    Brother, do you think that the position of an Imperial Overseer was something that can be passed onto someone else like that?


    This is the kind of position that could practically decide on where it should rain in the Jiu Empire we are talking about here!


    Even the Jiu Emperor would have no choice but to act upon the order coming from an Imperial Overseer...


    Yet, you asked someone to do it for you?


    Seeing their aghast expression, Duan Li realized that they might be misunderstanding something, so he swiftly explained, "Oh, by the way, he is a clone of mine. So there is no need to worry about any mishaps at all!"


    Hearing this, their countenance finally relaxed.


    So that''s the case!


    "But still, Your Excellency, why do we need to counsel the matters of the Jiu Empire with your clone?" the Jiu Patriarch asked as he found this to be weird.


    After all, a clone was still but a clone, and they have limited intelligence and approach on how they should react to a certain matter. Without the input from the original, a clone would not even know what to do!


    Could it be that you instruct it to study politics and warfare? How long would we have to wait until it became intelligent then? A few decades?


    Just because we are retired people and have a lot of time in our hands does not mean that we want to wait that long!


    Duan Li chuckled before he answered, "This clone of mine is a little special... I managed to obtain him in the second region inside the Eternal Maze!"


    "What? You... entered the Eternal Maze? How are you even still alive and managed to come out?!" the patriarchs were shocked to their core. They were no stranger to that mysterious place, and back during their time, they even sent a few experts of their clan there themselves, but none returned alive!


    "Hmm? Oh yes... " Duan Li recalled on how these patriarchs had cut their ties with the outside world and remained isolated inside this cave for a long time.


    Thus, he began to tell them his adventure and stories inside the Eternal Maze!


    Like children who were absorbed in the story-telling of their forefathers, the patriarchs sat quietly in circle around Duan Li. There were even times when they clenched their fists tight in agitation as the stories went through their climaxes and gritted their teethes when the story turned arduous!


    "To think that only people of the lower cultivation realm could enter..." the patriarchs were ashamed that they hadn''t thought of this solution themselves back then. If the difficulty progresses as one''s cultivation realm was higher, that would''ve meant that they had sent all those experts into their graves by then.


    Duan Li knew what they were worrying about when he saw their downcasted expression like that, so after thinking about it for a moment, he decided to tell them.


    "There might still be chances that they are alive!" he said and explained the situation as well as the precondition to ascend to immortality!


    Again, the patriarchs were absorbed once more as they listened, and their eyes glistened upon knowing the secret to enter the realms of immortal!


    "I see... so you mean that they had probably entered the Fifth region and the time dilation there might be different than ours... that makes sense!"


    The patriarchs nodded and felt their entire body relaxed as the truth now dawned upon them. Now, the guilt that had taken them for so long disappeared as they had their utmost confidence that the people they sent in would be able to clear any sorts of challenges or obstacles to ascend into immortality, thus continuing their clan''s legacy there!


    "Your Excellency, do you think that it will be fine for us to enter the Eternal Maze as well?" Patriarch Wang asked, his eyes was filled with expectations, and the same could be said about the rest of them.


    They had long felt that their cultivation realm had reached the ceiling and they can''t advance it no matter what methods they tried in the past, so they assumed that they had reached the ends of their cultivation path. But now that Duan Li had told them this, they could not help but be tempted to try!


    After all, there exists no cultivators that would not strive for the higher realm given the chance right in front of their eyes and this was especially the case for them! They were already very old and they could feel that they probably had a few years left before they enter their eternal rest, thus this opportunity was like a lifeline for them!


    "Hmm..." Duan Li pondered for a moment before answering, "When I fought with you all, I can feel that everyone is stronger than the usual Nascent Soul realm experts so you guys should be fine, but... I would advise not to do so yet.."


    Duan Li then told them that he was developing methods for others to cultivate their second dantian. If they wait until then, they would have higher chances of clearing the Fifth region to enter immortality!


    "T-The second dantian you said? Wait... could it be that the reason you are abnormally strong like this were attributed to..." Patriarch Fei and Shi looked at Duan Li as though they were seeing ghost.


    "En! I cultivate all three of my dantian!" Duan Li replied with a nonchalant expression


    Putong!


    Not two, but all three?!


    Screw that, no wonder we couldn''t beat you!


    How could we beat someone who don''t even die for cultivating the dantian inside their head?


    ...

 Chapter 352

    Meanwhile, the sight before Fei Longwei and Wei Shang made them felt so baffled that they almost spat out their blood!


    "Cuck! Cucko! Cuck..."


    Rows of chickens were lined up like the military and stood still as Cucko gave them a motivational speech and went around checking their form, pecking them in the neck if they got it wrong.


    In total, there has to be more than a hundred chickens here and their built was bigger than the normal poultry chickens, their eyes glistening with the bravery of barbarians from the mountains and their fur colorful like the rainbows of the seven sky!


    It was a marvelous sight!


    "When in the world.. are there so many chickens here?" the two of them stared with widened eyes in disbelief.


    Individually, these chickens were nothing much as they were all in Qi Condensation realm, but in groups, they were extremely lethal just as what had transpired the day before, where most of the bandits were eliminated by their unsuspecting ambush!


    Still, they could not help but to be shocked on the actual numbers that went with them. To think that it was this many.. no wonder these chickens practically just popped up out of nowhere with every single ambush!


    Shaaa!! Shaaa!!


    After what seemingly was a complete debriefing regarding their mission, the chickens flapped their wings and flew into the horizon with the agility of an eagle before disappearing, sending shivers down the spine of both Fei Longwei and Wei Shang.


    "C-Chickens can actually.. fly?"


    Trodding with its chest puffed up, Cucko walked towards them before speaking directly into their mind.


    "I just sent my men to become the lookout for every mile in a radius of 500 meter each from this village. They should be able to inform us on anything suspicious!" Cucko said.


    "..." Fei Longwei and Wei Shang.


    Why are we not surprised that its now able to speak telepathically into our mind with ease?


    "Benefactors, a-are those chickens your pets- ah!" the Village Head got poked in the eyes by Cucko before he could even finish his sentence and was rolling on the ground in pain.


    He was initially elated to see so many healthy chickens suddenly appearing en masse in his village right after the massacre and thought that it was a gift from the heavens to appease his depressed people.


    Who could have thought that those chickens were actually formidable to the extent that they could even fly?


    Additionally, most of the villagers also saw this mystical phenomena as well and their mouths were wide agape, full of disbelief!


    If they hadn''t seen this scene with their very own eyes, they would not have dared to believe it to be true even if they were slapped silly!


    BOOM!!


    "Cuck! Cuck! Cuckoo!!!" Cucko angrily cucked while stomping its feet, creating a huge depression on the ground!


    Knowing that Cucko was angry after being called as a pet, Wei Shang helped the Village Head to stand up and fed him a recovery pill before explaining, "This chicken, eh- I mean Cucko, is not our pet, but our comrade and part of the team.."


    He then continued to explain that their rescue effort was only possible largely due to the help of Cucko and his henchmen in their ambush.


    After knowing this, the Village Head immediately prostrated on the ground while crying emotionally, "Ohhh Great One, please forgive this lowly one for besmirching your title! We foolish peasants do not know the heights of heavens and had unknowingly wronged you despite the great lengths you did to save us! Please cease your anger!"


    The rest of the villager immediately followed suit and prostrated on the ground as well.


    "Great One, please forgive us!" they cried out feeling guilty, making Fei Longwei and Wei Shang speechless once more.


    Hais!


    A few moments later, Fei Longwei took a group of men to bury the dead while Wei Shang took another group of people to assess the extent of damage done to the village and salvage whatever they have left that could be used. Meanwhile, most of the women was left to tend the wounded and some were tasked to cook food in order to recuperate their strength.


    ...


    "I thought that our Jiu Empire was doing quite fine.. but to think that a village like this would be so vulnerable to a bunch of bandits and were killed like ants.." Wei Shang said with gritted teeth right after having finished his task.


    Fei Longwei closed his eyes as he meditated beside him before replying, "This is the reality of it. Only cultivators like us would truly have the chance to defend ourselves from harm in this world."


    In the Jiu Empire, all eight towns were located around the Capital City of Nine Lotus and was where life could be said to be truly safe, away from the worries of being ransacked and plundered by bandits.


    Although Knights would be regularly dispatched around the empire to patrol the villages, the vast distances between each of them makes travelling very difficult even with the ability to fly and would sometimes took months before the village was visited by another Knight. After all, there were several tens of thousands of villages spread across in the Jiu Empire and only some were closely connected to the Airtrain station, where their security would be easily guaranteed by the nearby military outpost.


    To put it simply, the Jiu Empire simply does not have enough resources to protect common villages from harm!


    At most, there are only several thousands of Official Knights and a few hundred of Titled-Knights in the Jiu Empire. Majority of them were either tasked to protect the border or were sent out on missions and expeditions.


    This therefore, left only a handful of them which limits their effectiveness despite actively travelling between villages. As a result, a massacre like the village they were in right now would sometimes occur.


    "Don''t worry too much. Now that our Lord has become the Imperial Overseer, things will definitely change. I don''t know how much money he got, but one time I saw him playing dominoes with several thousands of high quality spirit stones.." Fei Longwei said with a sour taste in his mouth as he recalled what he saw.


    Just a single high quality spirit stone was already enough to hire a group of powerful cultivators to protect a village for a set duration. Not to mention that thousands was being treated like toys in the eyes of their Lord.


    "Yeah.. I guess you are right." Wei Shang let out a stifled laugh as he nodded to Fei Longwei''s words in agreement.


    Only their Lord would treat high quality spirit stones like copper coins!


    "Anyway, let''s get to our main task and ask around if they had seen the Lord''s mother before."


    Fei Longwei nodded as they went around collecting information.


    ...


    Meanwhile, inside a spacious study room filled with countless rows of books on the numerous affairs of the Jiu Empire in the Imperial Palace, Shen Lu and Utmost Being was seeing each other for the first time.


    "Damn.. you really do look like him!" Shen Lu said, unable to tell the difference between Duan Li and this clone of his.


    "You must be blind. I''m more handsome and manly than him." Utmost Being promptly replied with a stern look on his face.


    "Ah.." Shen Lu''s mouth twitched.


    I just spot the difference...


    "Enough useless talk. Out of all the followers he has, you are the only one with the suitable level of, albeit admittedly, sub-par intelligence to comprehend what I am about to teach you, so listen and study well!"


    Huala!


    Utmost Being waved his sleeve and a few books flew to the top of his table from the shelf.


    He decided that, from now on, Shen Lu needs to upgrade his level and knowledge base about the Jiu Empire as well as several important strategies to handle certain unique situations if the need arises in the near future.


    Although Shen Lu realized that he was just being called as dumb by the other party in a somewhat lengthy sentence, he had to admit that this clone of Duan Li truly had the capabilities to teach!


    In just a few moments, the two of them were absorbed in their discussion, one the mentor and the other the disciple.


    It was from then on that the legendary strategist of the Jiu Empire was born.


    ...


    In a containment laboratory somewhere in the Imperial Palace, Guo He could be seen copying the results of his experiments with concocting medicine to his personal journal.


    "Very good. You really have talents in alchemy, or specifically in concocting medicines! Come, let me show you the next experiment and how to handle them to produce various differing results without wasting ingredients!" praised Ju Zhianhu, the Chief Doctor of the Imperial Palace.


    "Thank you master!" Guo He clasped his fists together in respect and veneration towards the other party.


    Although it feels weird to learn alchemy from his Lord''s disciple and called the later as his master, contradicting his own seniority between them, he felt that it was somewhat justified as he was learning from the top notch expert in the field that he liked the most!


    In the near future, he will eventually be called as the Alchemy Medicine God!


    ...

 Chapter 353

    "Di Rou, do you know what kind of food... the Lord likes to eat?" Xu Rong asked as she feasted on a lavish meal at the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant, the sensation making her heartbeat faster as a certain figure appeared in her mind.


    Since the ingredients they were required to fetch were all rare and exotic, it will take a bit more time for the Saints Chefs to gather everything. Thus, the old butler Heng Wu, made them some accommodations and free expensive meals for the duration they were staying in the restaurant.


    "Hmm... I''m not really sure... he doesn''t seem to be too picky on his food.." Di Rou replied while sipping on her exquisite seven-nine tea devas with grace and exhaled a short, relaxed breath, her skin glowing with a tinge of redness on her cheeks.


    Munch! Munch!


    "You can''t go wrong with fried chicken..." Xiahou Yu by the side added as she bit through her third set of golden crispy drumstick chicken that was said to be fermented for 80 years with rare spices before it could be cooked, enriching the taste by a hundred fold upon touching the human tongue!


    Delicious!


    "..." Xu Rong.


    Hais!


    Why did I even bother asking?


    Xu Rong sighed as she stared outside from the open space of the third floor through the balcony with a melancholic look.


    "I wonder what he is doing right now..."


    He must be on another epic adventure..


    ...


    "Little Dae, catch!" Duan Li said as he threw a frisbee into the air at a sharp right angle.


    Whooshh!


    "Arff!! Arff!!" Daelius, the little Fenrir caught the fast moving frisbee in between its teeth with a single dash, an agility too fast for its size and age.


    "Incredible.."


    Duan Li nodded in satisfaction as he patted the little Fenrir on its head, "Good boy! Good boy!"


    That was half of my throwing strength and he was still able to catch it in midair... too bad I can''t use any more throwing strength than this or the frisbee might disintegrate...


    "Master, I sense great disturbance in the natural elements at the South direction.." Dilong, the earth Elemental Spirit Origin furrowed her brows as she stopped playing with Zhulong.


    Right now, Duan Li had already returned to his residence court after bidding farewell with the patriarchs. He wanted to spend some time with these pets of his as well as training Bulu on solidifying his cultivation path as a transformed monster.


    "The South direction? That''s where those five are right now.. any specifics?" Duan Li turned to look towards the South direction as he wiped off the sweat on his forehead.


    He was multitasking between playing with Daelius, mentoring Bulu and experimenting with the All-Father forge at the same time in order to unlock more of its secrets.


    He found out that just about anything could be turned into an ultimate graded weapon, provided that they could withstand the thousand hammerings without shattering or getting destroyed first.


    As a result, he was able to turn a resilient pebble into an ultimate graded weapon! This was an unprecedented event in the entire history of the Tian continent, akin to a peasant by the street that no one cared to even look at, suddenly becoming an immortal and turned into a god after a life and death constipation.


    "I am unable to Master, I can only tell the general direction.." Dilong replied while shaking her head. "However... the Earth element is currently seething the most out of the four.."


    Duan Li raised his brows in comprehension as he cupped his chin, "Earth element? It must be the Red desert then. Wei Wang, Shen Murong and Wang Dong are currently there, and with those two together, I reckon that they must have been the one to cause the ruckus...."


    "Are you going to go there and help them Master?" Zhulong by the side asked.


    Duan Li shook his head, "No, they should be fine. Besides, I gifted them their own ultimate graded weapons each. Even if they were to stumble upon a Nascent Soul realm expert, they should still be able to win." he answered.


    Turning to both Dilong and Zhulong, Duan Li assessed them from top to bottom, "It has been quite a while since you two meditated inside me, how was everything? Did you two get stronger?"


    Dilong and Zhulong both nodded, "Strangely enough, we did get stronger! The mysterious presence inside your dantian was oozing out power from time to time, so we were able to siphon them into ourselves. This should not have been possible though as we were only meant to get stronger by consuming monster cores." they answered.


    "Eh? What do you guys meant by that?" Duan Li scratched his head, unable to comprehend them.


    "Think of it like the natural balance of Yin and Yang in this world Master. Since the beginning of creation, the Tian continent had already existed with the perfect balance in its nature through the cycle of life." Dilong explained.


    "En, that''s right! Therefore, for us to grow, we need to consume from the natural cycle itself, which are the monster cores, so that it will remain balance. The fact that we got stronger by that mysterious presence alone meant that its power was similar to the natural cycle, yet did not belong in it!" Zhulong continued.


    Hmmm...


    After thinking about it for a moment, Duan Li finally seemed to get it, "You guys meant that, the presence is foreign to this world?"


    Both of the dragons nodded in unison.


    "Master do not have to worry. Although this would make it seem like we have broken the traditional balance, we are only two individual. It is only when the balance are broken in mass will the natural cycle be in chaos!"


    With this new comprehension towards the nature, Duan Li became even more intrigued with the origin of the mysterious pearls. He recalled that the Will of the Grand Immortal was able to create the Emerald pearl after compressing down the unscalable mountain into a single orb!


    Could it be that the Grand Immortal was not of this world?


    "The only caveat was probably that the spiritual Qi was far too pure for us, so we were only able to take in small amounts of them at a time." they said while sighing.


    This explanation from Dilong and Zhulong made Duan Li even more confident that the mysterious pearl was of foreign origin, just like the Emerald pearl!


    The question was, what was contained inside the Golden and Crimson pearl? It could not possibly be another two mountains!


    "I guess I could only try to ask the Grand Immortal the next time I see him.." thought Duan Li.


    Suddenly, someone spoke through his mind.


    "We have received emergency communication from our neighbour, the Liu Empire. They are requesting for our assistance."


    It was from his clone, Utmost Being.


    "Eh? What''s going on?" Duan Li said in surprise.


    "I believe that you are already well acquainted with Liu Sheng Duhai, the brother of Liu Sheng Juan. He sent a request for help. Specifically, he wants you to come over there." Utmost Being replied with an annoyed tone.


    "Okay... But you haven''t told me what happened yet.. your mind is too messed up for me to catch on what you are thinking right now!" Duan Li replied. Since the other party was thinking a lot of stuff, Duan Li decided to block the information because it made him dizzy.


    "Argh! I''m far too f*cking busy with this lacking empire of ours! There is so much things to be done! Forget it, I''ll send over your useless strategist there, he''ll brief you. Meet him at the border entrance below the Wang mountain range!"


    Utmost Being immediately cut off his telepathic communication with Duan Li.


    "Hmm... by the looks of it, he seems to be under a lot of stress.. its fortunate that I''m not the one over there..."


    Duan Li exhaled a breath of relief, thanking the Heavens for making him such a smart man!


    I''m really lucky!


    He was thingking that if he were in the position of Utmost Being right now, there was a high chance that he would make a run from it and escape from the empire like a fugitive.


    After all, who would want to be bogged down inside the Imperial Palace and do all those work or whatever it was as if a prisoner?


    "The Imperial Overseer should be free and unfettered by the worldly stuff!" Duan Li crossed his arms on his chest and nodded to himself as he was convinced by this universal truth that he was concocting.


    Thinking that he was doing the right thing and the sacrifice of his clone was justified, Utmost Being suddenly opened the channel to his mind again and shouted, "F*ck you!"


    ...

 Chapter 354

    "Brother! You''re finally here!" Shen Lu waved at Duan Li as he saw the latter approaching him from the distance.


    Tap! Tap!


    Landing on his feet after a long two hour flight from his residence court at the academy all the way to the Northern border at half the speed of supersonic, a distance of more than 1000 kilometers from the Jiu Empire''s capital - Nine Lotus city, Duan Li''s hair had become dishevelled and his clothes unkempt.


    "Brother Shen Lu, what''s going on? And how did you arrive so fast?" Duan Li asked with a surprised reaction on his last sentence.


    As far as he know, Shen Lu does not have the capability to arrive before he did, which means..


    "Ah, your clone teleported me to the furthest Airtrain station he could find that is nearest to the Northern border, so I bought a ticket and arrived here about an hour ago." Shen Lu replied with a slight chuckle.


    He was actually surprised that Duan Li was able to make it there within two hours. One has to know that the distance he was teleported to covered half the distance from the capital city, which would take roughly an hour to reach by using the Airtrain!


    Next, the Airtrain that he used to go to the Northern border also took an hour in total.


    That meant that Duan Li''s travelling flight speed was similar to an Airtrain''s!


    What a monstrous body! Able to withstand such speed!


    "As expected of him.." Shen Lu said to himself as he sighed.


    Recalling back to when they first met, he was far stronger than him in terms of cultivation. Yet, in the span of what could be considered as a flash, he was now eating the dust left behind by Duan Li and his cultivation was severely lacking in comparison!


    Right now, Duan Li was already someone that makes Shen Lu felt unqualified to become a rival with!


    Hais!


    Little did he realized however, that one should not compare themselves to Duan Li in the first place. Had he viewed himself among his other peers, his cultivation speed as well as the rest of Duan Li''s party had already far outstripped them all!


    "He teleported you? No wonder.." Duan Li nodded in comprehension. "But why didn''t he teleported you all the way here directly? Surely he can do that?"


    Shen Lu scratched his head, "Well, that''s what I said too, but then I got scolded as a result. He berated me for being a pampered child when I have my own two feet to walk the rest of the distance. He also said that he don''t have the energy to spare for my own convenience.. I tell you what, your clone is way too uptight! How can the clone be so polar opposite to the original?" he complained.


    Pu!


    Hearing this, Duan Li almost choked on his throat.


    Polar opposite? Do you mean to say that I''m far too relaxed?


    I tell you what, I''m a pretty dedicated person okay?


    Letting out a few dry coughs, Duan Li then replied, "He is probably far too busy to handle the desk job that I left him with that he wanted to save some strength for himself. Besides, now that I''ve understood spatial teleportation myself, such technique actually expends quite a lot of your spiritual Qi! The further the distance, the astronomical amount it would take for one to use it!"


    Duan Li''s clone, Utmost Being, although was an exact copy of himself, does not have the massive spiritual Qi capacity like he has from his three Dantians!


    Sure, his clone replicated the technique to use all three Dantians as well, but mastering its usage? The clone could only tap into his understanding of how to do it, but in practicality? That would be a different story!


    Otherwise, how could he be so troubled in trying to teach his followers on how to cultivate their second dantian? He even went to the extent of planning to concoct a special pill for them to do it by using exotic and rare to find ingredients!


    At best, Utmost Being could probably only emulate about 40% of his total spiritual Qi capacity at one time, which also meant that his rate of spiritual Qi recovery per cycle was also 60% less than what Duan Li could do!


    Taking this into consideration, combined with the fact that the teleportation had costed him more than half of his spiritual Qi, it was simple to deduce why Utmost Being did not teleport Shen Lu all the way to the Northern border.


    It''s because he can''t do it!


    "Is that so? But yeah, he was multitasking even during the time he was imparting me with some knowledge of a Strategist. I had not even seen him taking a rest.. continuing to read and compile books after books. Strangely enough, he was far too intelligent to be a clone that I doubt myself that maybe you are the clone instead! Hahahaha!" Shen Lu teased as he stared at Duan Li with a suspicious look jokingly.


    Pu!


    Duan Li received another lethal blow to his pride.


    "Cough! Cough! Anyway, what about the situation in the Liu Empire? Can you brief me?" Duan Li swiftly changed the topic with a reddened face.


    Shen Lu laughed for a bit after seeing Duan Li''s futile attempt to hide his embarrassment before answering, "It''s kind of dire I guess. Let me explain on the way. Meanwhile, we should head for the gate first and present our papers."


    ...


    "I see.. that is a really complicated situation.." Duan Li said with a contemplative frown.


    According to Shen Lu, after the rumors of Duan Li becoming the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire and defeating an immortal spread into the Tian continent like wildfires, the Xian Empire along with its ally, the Yuan Empire, which consequently were located North of the Liu Empire, has shown quite the aggressive stance in the rumor that they had sent their military force that was now en route to the Liu Empire''s doorstep within a week!


    Of course, the Liu Empire and the Jiu Empire then sent envoys in response to this dramatic movement of theirs, but they were captured instead!


    In essence, this was a bold move that could be considered as an unofficial declaration of war!


    Fortunately, one of the envoys from the Liu Empire managed to escape and returned back with a report.


    It turns out that both the Emperors of the Xian and Yuan Empire were enraged upon learning that the Emperor of the Jiu Empire was so weak that someone who was not of the Royal blood was able to become an Imperial Overseer!


    For them, this was a blatant disregard to the hierarchy of the Tian continent, which also meant that their title of an Emperor was sullied!


    However, from the reports of the escaped envoy, he stated that most of the military officials did not even seem to believe that the rumors were real and that it was all a hoax from a backwater nation like the Jiu Empire.


    After all, how could an outsider possibly match against an Emperor, who was known to be the strongest within one''s empire from the decades of high quality resources to nurture their cultivation?


    It would be foolish and courting death!


    Therefore, if that was the case, why then did they took such a drastic action?


    Duan Li and Shen Lu also couldn''t make fingers with this, and according to Utmost Being, Liu Sheng Duhai would brief them more about it.


    Right now, they were waiting in a limbo zone between the gate of the Jiu Empire and the Liu Empire under the Wang mountain ranges. Several powerful knights on both side could be seen staring at their opposing match atop of each gate with a solemn expression, looking unfriendly to their neighbours.


    In addition, the Wang mountain range was cold and rocky, adding to the already chilly and tension atmosphere between the two opposing forces.


    Hais!


    Duan Li sighed as he observed this situation. He understood it all too well that both empires were actually friendly with each other. Thus, why the cold expression?


    Are they not tired of frowning like that all the time?


    "Arrival of the Imperial Advisory!" the Knights on the Liu Empire''s gate declared.


    BOOMM!!


    The gate was opened by two Nascent Soul realm expert channelling their spiritual Qi on each side of the door and pushed.


    "By the looks of it, each door was ingrained with a runic formation that could only be opened with a set amount of spiritual Qi injected into it..." Duan Li and Shen Lu both noted.


    Such security meant that not just anyone could open them! And this seemed to be the case with the gate of the Jiu Empire as well!


    "Sorry that it took a while. Come, we don''t have much time!" Liu Sheng Duhai said with a grave expression.


    ...

 Chapter 355

    Liu Sheng Duhai escorted Duan Li and Shen Lu as they passed through the gate under the watchful eyes of the Liu Knights above the gate.


    Beneath their wary gaze, held both confusion and apprehension as to what were the identity of the two people that could brought out their Imperial Advisor as the welcoming party like this. For them, it was not uncommon that both empire received each other from time to time, but to the extent that their Imperial Advisor had to receive them personally?


    Except for the Jiu Emperor, there was never a precedence for things like this ever happening before!


    Could it be that one of them was the Crown Prince of the Jiu Empire?


    But even the Crown Prince would never be able to have the honor of their Imperial Advisor coming out to greet him!


    "Please don''t mind them. They are just curious about your identity." Liu Sheng Duhai said as they walked through the mountain pass and entered a long narrow valley between the mountain rocks.


    The Wang mountain on the Liu Empire''s side seemed to extend even more than on the Jiu Empire''s side. Along the way, several outposts were strategically located after each set of distance, making the mountain pass secure as a fortress.


    However, through the eyes of Shen Lu, he was able to notice something amiss. Each outposts would have two barracks at least, but one was always empty.


    "Why are one of the barracks always empty?" he asked, feeling curious.


    "Oh?" Liu Sheng Duhai nodded in approval of the latter''s attentiveness.


    "As you know, this Wang mountain is owned by our two empire. Decades ago, it was settled between our Emperor and the Jiu Emperor that the Liu Empire could own up to 80% of the Wang mountain range with two conditions. Can you guess?" he answered and posed another question for Shen Lu.


    "Hmm.. one of them was probably earning the rights to share the outpost? That could be the reason why one of the barracks was always empty on each outpost. Still, on my previous question, if that was the case, then why is it empty now?" Shen Lu replied as he cupped his chin while Duan Li was just listening to their conversation while looking around.


    "You are correct. The Jiu Empire holds the right to own half of the property on each military outposts that we have here, except that only during emergency purposes where our two empires are being invaded would the Jiu''s military be allowed to reside here. The second reason is because.." Liu Sheng Duhai then retold the incident that led to the agreement known as the ''Red and Blue Concordat''.


    It was a significant agreement signed with the blood of both the Jiu''s and Liu''s Emperor at that time, signifying the Will of both empires with the Heavens themselves as the witness!


    One of the important resources for both empire, known as the Wang metal used in forging high quality armors and weapons, coincidentally resides in the core of the Wang mountain range owned by each parties.


    However, it just so happened that the Wang mountain on the side of the Jiu Empire held 80% of the total reserves. In order to even that out, the Liu Empire reached out.


    As a result, the Jiu Empire made a deal to sold 30% of its Wang mountain to the Liu Empire, finally balancing the total reserves to half for each of them.


    At first glance, it appears that the Liu Empire held the advantage after the deal, but under the agreement, not only that the Liu Empire had to pay an exorbitant amount to buy the lands, they also had to tribute 10% of its output to the Jiu Empire!


    In addition, due to the reduction of the border that the Jiu Empire had to guard after the agreement, they now only had to expend less soldiers and Knights to guard the Mountain ranges, resulting in an even less expenditure in the military to focus on other developments!


    With the three factors combined, it was obvious on which side had earned more from the deal. But in recent years, the Liu Empire had managed to obtain a breakthrough in their forging method, able to produce more output with a significant material reduction in the process!


    "I see..." Shen Lu nodded in comprehension.


    After walking a bit more along the valley, they finally reached the end of the path and encountered one huge iron gate with 50 meters in height!


    The sight immediately dazzled both Duan Li and Shen Lu!


    "What a gate.. by the looks of it, not even Nascent Soul realm experts could destroy it that easily..." Duan Li remarked inwardly with a hint of approval.


    He could sense that not only that the iron door was extremely durable, it was even infused with layers of runic formations both offensive and defensive!


    It seems like they took their security to the next level..


    Seeing that it was their Imperial Advisor, the Knights in charge of the gate took no time to open the gate.


    BOOMMM!!


    The huge iron door opened, and the sight before them took Duan Li and Shen Lu by surprise once more!


    A huge farmland, as vast as the ocean was laid before them!


    "Woaaa..." they both gasped.


    They had heard the rumors that the farmlands of the Liu Empire was huge, but not like this!


    All the way to the horizons...


    They couldn''t even see the ends of it!


    Liu Sheng Duhai chuckled upon seeing their reaction. "Our Liu Empire is known for its cold weather and only this part of the region is suitable for farming and agriculture. Due to its importance, we had sealed access to these lands and put up borders around it. Only those authorized may enter!" he said.


    They then took flight to the sky and glided forward with Liu Sheng Duhai as the flight lead.


    Whooshh!!


    "Anyway, regarding the details of the emergency, let me brief you both on the situation more.." Liu Sheng Duhai began to explain.


    Several days ago, their scouts had managed to identify large swathes of army belonging to the Xian and Yuan Empire heading straight into their direction.


    It was impossible for the scouts to have misreported it as they were carrying banners from each empire, and when they sent their envoys, all were captured except for the one that managed to escape.


    Since then, they were able to determine that the goals of these armies were to attack both the Liu and Jiu Empire for sullying the honor and title of an Emperor!


    However, after they gathered their intelligence reports more, it appeared that things wasn''t as simple as that.


    Somehow, both the Xian and Yuan Empire had always set their sights on both the Liu and Jiu Empire as they occupied quite the fertile lands and the monsters weren''t too strong either, perfect for establishing another colony.


    The only reason they hadn''t done so was that they were always preoccupied with their defensive wars against the powerful and aggressive Song Empire!


    Last year, there were rumors that both the Xian and Yuan Empire was dealt with a huge crushing defeat that collapsed their government and caused civil war to break out for a while between the government and the military. It was only after an agreement was made between them that peace was restored, but the impacts from both the wars and infighting caused their empire to become weak and their sustainable resources to provide for their people receded.


    Therefore, within both of those empire, two military dictator rose to lead the army and broke off from the control of their empire to lead and fight battles as they wished.


    Apparently, the army that was coming this time was lead by the two dictator themselves, waging wars under the name of their Emperor.


    Last night, two envoys came forward to explain the matter to the Liu Empire and that both the Xian and Yuan Empire had nothing to do with the impending invasion and that the army was acting on its own discretion.


    However, they also stated that their empire no longer had the capacity to stop them, and that they could not afford to spare any men to help the Liu and Jiu Empire against them.


    In other words, they meant that whatever happens after this, none of it was their fault!


    "They dare..." Duan Li''s face darkened upon hearing the full story. Even Shen Lu''s face that was always cheerful and bright turned solemn.


    "..." Liu Sheng Duhai could only remain silent as he understood their feelings. After all, he was also feeling the same thing as well.


    "In your capacity as the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire, our Emperor, Liu Gongsun Xiaojian, will receive you personally in the Imperial Palace of our capital city, Ethereal Winter!"


    "Eh?" both Duan Li and Shen Lu was shocked.


    "W-Why are you guys making a big deal out of this? I have to meet the Liu Emperor? I''m not ready!" Duan Li replied in a panic stutter as Shen Lu nodded repeatedly by the side.


    "We have to abide by the principles of propriety in this world. In reality, the Liu Emperor should have received you personally, but that would meant that the Supreme Knight as well as several Imperial Knights would have to meet you at the border as well. Imagine the chaos that would''ve made." Liu Sheng Duhai replied as he pointed to a facility on the ground.


    "We''ll take the Airtrain from here on, our expressway is much faster than the Jiu Empire''s. So we''ll be able to reach the capital city in one hour."


    ...

 Chapter 356

    "Run!!" Princess Meixiu and her expedition party retreated into a tunnel as they were chased by the undead skeletons.


    BOOMM!!


    She struck out a fist and collapsed the entrance of the tunnel in order to cut off the undead skeletons, however..


    ROAARRR!!


    Seeming unfazed by the obstruction, as if mere water, they passed right through it!


    "Damn it, its not working! What are you guys doing standing around? Go now!" she shouted to the soldiers for them to continue their retreat.


    Due to the protracted engagement, her expedition party incurred heavy losses and there were only a few of her soldiers left and most were injured.


    The undead skeletons, remaining true to their name, was truly undead. Even if their bones were shattered, they will still be able to regenerate their bones and stood back to fight mindlessly again and again!


    Realizing this, the princess''s personal maid, Elder Cheng Chao adviced for the princess to fall back. After all, even if she could flip her palm to destroy every single skeletons out there being someone in the Nascent Soul realm, the curse on the undead skeleton was far too strong for it to be even effective as they will just raise themselves from the ground repeatedly!


    As the personal maid of the princess, her main role was naturally to protect the princess at all costs. Wasting spiritual Qi on useless endeavor would be a foolish decision knowing that they were inside an uncharted territory right now.


    Additionally, the spiritual Qi underground was far too limited due to the absence of many living environment when compared to the surface ground. If she continued to expend her spiritual Qi needlessly, and somehow encountered even stronger monsters, they would be in deep trouble!


    Thus, with solemn expression, she could only try to kill those that managed to get close to them.


    "Is there nothing we can do princess? A-At this rate, we would be cornered!" Ruo Hen spoke out with a pale face. He, someone who would always try to save his face by acting just and rightful could no longer keep his calm in front of the expedition party. He was far too afraid for his life now.


    "Shut up! I''m thinking!" Princess Meixiu lashed out, cursing the other party as a useless deadweight.


    At the same time, she could not help but to wonder on where on earth was the three people that entered before them right now.


    How did they not stumble upon them? Were they already killed? But that''s impossible! There were not even signs of fighting when the arrived!


    Could it be that they were sent to another location?


    Damn it!


    "Focus on escaping and save your spiritual Qi! These undead skeletons are weaklings but they will kill you if you are careless!" Ling Shin instructed the soldiers as he led the way forward.


    ROARRR!!


    "Sh*t! They are also in front of us! We are surrounded!" a soldier cried out, sending shivers to the rest of them.


    Seeing this, most of the soldiers were now in despair. Thus, Elder Cheng Chao, with a disdainful snort, struck a punch forward!


    "Hmph!"


    Jab of obliteration!


    BOOMM!!


    And as expected of an attack from a Nascent Soul realm expert, this single attack of hers had wiped out all the undead skeletons while burrowing the tunnel and making it bigger to make it easier for them to traverse.


    Crack! Crack!


    "Move it! They are already regenerating. Go!" Princess Meixiu ordered as they continued their escape.


    At this rate, would we find the sword first or would death come to us first?


    ...


    "Hahahaha! I love this sword! It feels like I was born solely to obtain it! What a good sword!" Wang Dong laughed out loud in his turtle outfit.


    While the Desert Centipede King had tough defenses, the relentless ''Justice Dash'' from Wang Dong using the turtle shell on his back was enough to send the monster into a series of concussions, finally knocking the giant centipede into a coma!


    "Good job Brother Wang Dong! Hahahaha! But we should go now while its still down! It will wake up very soon with its insane recovery speed!" Shen Murong said as he laughed out loud as well, impressed with the fighting style of his sworn brother.


    "Ahahahaha! It''s fine, I''ll just knock it back to sleep and- eh?" Wang Dong suddenly felt his sight to shudder before his entire body turning weak as he plummeted from the air.


    Bang!


    "Brother Wang Dong!"


    Shen Murong and Wei Wang rushed to their fallen companion, only to see the later naked with only his underwear on.


    "Huff.. huff.. My stamina.. its almost out.." Wang Dong said as he breathed heavily.


    "It seems like the Legendary Ten Commandment Sword takes a huge toll for its user. We should not use it carelessly in this situation." Wei Wang said, scribbling on the air this time using his spiritual Qi to voice out his concerns.


    "That.. that seems to be the case.. huff.." Wang Dong nodded in agreement.


    Not only that the transformation into an armored turtle had already expended half of his spiritual Qi, it had also drained his stamina to rock bottom!


    Lifting the exhausted Wang Dong and carrying him on his back with a fireman''s carry lift, the trio then proceeded to enter a tunnel nearby.


    Tap! Tap!


    "There is an opening over there!"


    "Is it an exit? Finally!"


    The sound of several people rushing with exhausted breath sounded out from the opposite tunnel just right after the trio left.


    It was Princess Meixiu''s expedition party!


    ...


    "So this village is called the Spring Blossom village? Makes sense!" Wei Shang nodded in realization after finally getting to know the name of the village they were in right now.


    According to the villagers, they have a lot of trees around the village that will blossom into pink leaves during the Spring season called the Sakurai trees!


    Apparently, every Spring season, their village will be able to make an extra income from the influx of people from the surrounding villages visiting them to watch the trees blossom!


    "Stop talking and work more." Fei Longwei by the side said with a frown as he stared at the chit-chatting group.


    "Y-Yes!" knowing that their savior was displeased, these villagers immediately ran back to what they were doing before, dispersing the crowd around Wei Shang.


    "Heyy, that''s not nice! We need to give them a little break!" Wei Shang complained.


    Fei Longwei ignored him as he continued chopping hundreds of wood into planks with his sword art in one go.


    "I feel that something here was amiss. Why were the bandits attacking this village?" he finally said something after a long while.


    "Ah? Isn''t it to sell these villagers as slaves and looting the area for valuables? What more could mere bandits like them want other than money?" Wei Shang replied as he scratched his head and threw hundreds of nails into a wooden structure held by several people at the same time with a scary level of precision!


    Tak! Tak! Tak!


    Just like that, another house was built!


    "They make it look so easy..." the villagers could not help but sighed when they saw this sight.


    Chopping trees into tens of planks and nailing structures to make a complete house with a single breath..


    It would have taken them half a day the fastest just to rebuilt a single home, yet they completed it in less than ten breaths!


    Cultivators are truly people with miracles!


    Hais!


    Hearing his answer, Fei Longwei shook his head before continuing to do his work.


    That would be best if it were true...


    ...


    "Someone called Na Zem Xi wanted to meet us? Who is that?" Xu Rong raised her brows and turned to look at both Xiahou Yu and Di Rou, only to see them shaking their head.


    "Yes. He claims that he is working under your Lord and there was something that he needed help with to accomplish his task!" a servant of the Seven Saints Culinary restaurant said.


    "Hmm.." Xu Rong cupped her chin for a while.


    "Very well! Let him in!"


    ...

 Chapter 357

    "You are Na Zem Xi? Is it true that you are working under Duan Li?" Xu Rong doubtfully asked as she looked at the person in front of them with a frown .


    "Y-Yes, I am him!" Na Zem Xi nodded with a little fluster before bowing a bit. "The Lord has tasked me with collecting treasures and antiques from ruins across the continent, and we managed to pinpoint a location with extreme value not too long ago, just that..."


    "Just that?" Xu Rong said impatiently.


    "The location cannot be traversed on foot nor by normal flight.. we need.. an Airship!" Na Zem Xi answered while feeling nervous.


    Frankly, he had never thought that his ''Esteemed customer'' that wanted to be identified as Elderly Junior turns out to be Duan Li. That was a name that resounded very clearly in his ears!


    When he first received the task via Shen Lu and Guo He, he was surprised to learn of the name Duan Li in it. Being part of the Treasure Hunt Sect, he would be a total fool if he could not piece together Duan Li''s name with the recent rumor of the newly appointed Imperial Overseer..


    They both had the same name!


    Thus, he swiftly went into action and resurrected the ancient sect he was in. After all, being directly commanded by the Imperial Overseer himself was a very tremendous honor!


    That was why he went to extreme length to study all the places they''ve uncovered before to pinpoint their exact value, because he did not want Duan Li to be disappointed!


    After reading through all the scrolls without sleep, he finally found one. The only problem that he faced was that the location was in the middle of the Great Yonglang River!


    Specifically, it was an Island!


    Although the name made it officially a river in view of the gargantuan size of the Tian continent as a whole, it was far more accurate to call it as the Eastern Sea of the Jiu Empire as it was tens of thousands kilometers wide!


    Furthermore, normal flight method was close to impossible due to the Eastern Sea possessing its own harsh climate separate from the land.


    Tropical cyclones and massive water sprouts were common sight, and that the tsunamis were said to be up to ten kilometers in height as well as colossal sea monsters that could instant kill even Nascent Soul realm experts!


    Against such natural forces of disaster, the Treasure Hunt Sect would soon found their demise before even seeing the shadow of the Island if they were to fly there normally!


    It would be an act of sure suicide!


    "An island in the middle of the Eastern Yonglang Sea huh?" Xu Rong cupped her chin as she gave the matter a deep thought while closing her eyes after listening to Na Zem Xi''s explanation.


    "As far as I know, even an Airship would be unlikely to survive if it were to traverse deep across the Eastern Yonglang Sea.." Di Rou by the side said.


    As a former close aide of the Emperor, she was well versed in the arsenals and methods of transportation in the Jiu Empire as well as their capabilities.


    Even the rugged Phoenix Cradle used to transport military personnels during wartime would have trouble if it were to fly across the Eastern Yonglang Sea!


    "I''m surprised that you know her to be the daughter of the Xu Clan Matriarch.." Xiahou Yu said as she stared at Na Zem Xi.


    The Airships were exclusive property of the Xu Clan except those that were sold to the Jiu Empire, and there were many people unrelated to the Xu Clan in the Jiu Empire with their first name being Xu.


    Hearing this, Na Zem Xi scratched his head feeling a little awkward before he answered, "Well, after I know that the Lord actually holds the highest position under the heavens of the Jiu Empire, I did my homework to study his followers.. so yeah.."


    Xiahou Yu and the rest nodded. It made sense for the other party to do a background check on them since that was the case.


    "Here is what I think.. we do have an airship that could traverse the Eastern Yonglang Sea with no problem, but there is no way that our Xu Clan would lend it to you." Xu Rong answered.


    Na Zem Xi was disheartened by the answer before Xu Rong continued, "However, we do have a water transport that we have been developing in secret in the recent years."


    "Xu Rong, you can''t be meaning..." Di Rou frowned. The existence of the water transport the Xu Clan was developing was a secret of the Jiu Empire and shouldn''t be mentioned carelessly.


    "It''s fine. It''s only a finished prototype anyway and we have to test it sooner or later on how it could fare underwater.. since he is here, he could test the prototype for us." Xu Rong replied before turning to Na Zem Xi.


    "We have what we call as.. a submarine!"


    ...


    Inside the Imperial Palace of the Liu Empire located in the Ethereal Winter city, two figures could be seen staring at each other face to face with the atmosphere around them growing tension.


    The Liu Emperor was a woman with majestic disposition similar to the Jiu Emperor. The lofty air exuded from her was cold but gentle like the calm breeze from the glaciers by the sea. Her long pale blue hair draped her shoulders down to her waist, and her Imperial robe was white gold indented with mysterious depictions of the history of the Liu Empire..


    In essence, she was the core of the Liu Empire herself!


    "Your Majesty..." Liu Sheng Duhai said worriedly.


    He knew full well that their Emperor wasn''t really keen on Duan Li no matter how legitimate Duan Li got his position from.


    After all, the title of an Emperor was always crowned at the very top of the power ladder in every empire since time immemorial. It was a lofty position where one could command where the rain should fall!


    Now, such privilege was dethroned by Duan Li, and although this did not affect any of the other Emperors, they still felt some of the ripple effect and their prestige as the Emperor being stained as a whole!


    The Liu Emperor was also not an exception to this, thus she was a bit unfriendly with Duan Li the moment he and Shen Lu arrived.


    "I heard that you are an exceptional individual, but... to think that you are this young. Do you really have what it takes to sit above the Emperor?" Liu Gongsun Xiaojian asked as she walked forward to meet Duan Li.


    Normally, she would be sitting on her high throne upon meeting people, but it would be disrespectful to do the same with someone of Duan Li''s status. So although she was a bit unfriendly, she was not hostile to Duan Li.


    Realizing that the other party held no bad intentions to him, Duan Li scratched his head, "Well... I was actually, kinda forced by the Emperor.. because the Jiu Empire have some debts with me.. so.."


    Hearing his answer, Liu Gongsun Xiaojian was agape for a moment.


    That bastard!


    He dared sold the seat like that!


    I''ll teach him the lesson when we meet the next time!


    Hais!


    Seeing the helpless sigh from the other party, Duan Li could only give a stifled chuckle.


    They were both helpless with the way the Jiu Emperor does his things. But Duan Li could also not tell her that there was another reason to it;


    The fact that it was all to save them 8 years later, this was a truth that he could not tell anyone carelessly!


    "But I am really interested to affirm the rumors circulating that you defeated an immortal during your coronation? If not for my Imperial Advisor here witnessing it himself, I would not have believed even an ounce of it as the truth. Would you be willing to show me your true power?" the Liu Emperor said, her gaze full of force despite the gentle tone she was using.


    Hais!


    Liu Sheng Duhai cupped his forehead in a headache. He knew that unless Duan Li were to show her, she would remain forceful until the end.


    "Your Majesty, I''m not saying that you are not a match for him.. but he really is in a different category!" he said, trying to convince the emperor.


    After all, if Duan Li were to really unseal his cultivation aura here, he was a 100% confident that everyone would have to kiss the ground with their face!


    Even their emperor would be no exception and all that would leads to would be humiliation!


    "It''s fine. You can start now." the Liu Emperor replied as she ignored him.


    Seeing that the other party was adamant in her decision, Duan Li stared at her for a while before nodding.


    "Very well!"


    ...

 Chapter 358

    "Wha-What in the world is that?!" one of the soldier screamed in horror.


    As soon as the expedition party exitted the tunnel, they were greeted with a huge silhouette of an enormous centipede!


    "Desert Centipede King!" Elder Cheng Chao widened her eyes as she sensed some bad premonition.


    The Desert Centipede King, although was only at the Pinnacle stage of the Golden Core realm, possessed an absolute fortress-like defenses! Its exoskeleton was indented with many natural forming defensive runic formation from the symbols on its carapace!


    In addition, the thousands of legs it has as well as its extremely long body made it difficult for anyone to defend against its attacks that could come from any direction, especially lethal as the monster itself will exploit its enemies blind spot!


    Both its offense and defensive traits combined made it difficult for even Nascent Soul realm cultivator to deal with. Unless one was at the Middle or Late stage of the Nascent Soul realm!


    It was for this very reason that the Desert Centipede King was categorized as a 3-Star Monster and for the princess''s personal maid, she was only at the Early stage of the Nascent Soul realm!


    "Is it... asleep?" she said in confusion when she realized that the monster was not moving.


    But that couldn''t be.. with its cultivation realm and senses, it would have immediately woken up the moment we came here..


    What''s going on?


    "This is our chance! Let''s escape over-" she was just about to suggest that they escape with haste when the body of the Desert Centipede King suddenly twitched before opening its eyes and screamed out with rage!


    "KREEEEE!!!!"


    Its eyes were jet crimson and the many symbols on its carapace glowed brightly as its aura shot through the roof!


    "Aahhh!! Its awake!!"


    "Runn!! Runn!!!!!"


    The expedition party quickly became chaotic as some of them crashed against one another.


    "It''s too late!" Elder Cheng Chao gritted her teeth while also feeling furious looking at the stupid soldiers panicking and hitting each other.


    "Something is wrong! Why is it angry?" Princess Meixiu said warily as she instructed her expedition party to scatter out and escape in small groups to prevent instant annihilation.


    They were baffled that the monster was suddenly so enraged after waking up when they had only just appeared, as if they had murdered its entire kin in cold blood for seven generations!


    "Elder, protect the soldier!" Princess Meixiu commanded with a wave of her hand.


    Wengg!!


    Spherical Qi barrier that were visible to the naked eye appeared and encompassed each of the soldiers within a split second, protecting them from the barrage of assault that came a second later from the centipede''s thousand sharp and needle-like legs!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    BOOMMM!!


    Although the Qi barrier managed to protect the soldiers and no one was seriously harmed, it took quite a bit of spiritual Qi that Elder Cheng Chao has.


    "Princess, I can''t keep doing that.. or else we might really be in trouble!" she said worriedly.


    As of now, she was probably the only person who could contend with the Desert Centipede King and hold it out for the rest of them to escape, and if she keeps on wasting her powers, the chances to defeat the monster would plummet as well!


    "But..." the Princess hesitated.


    She understood the intention behind her maid''s words but that would meant leaving her behind alone and such an action would be extremely dangerous!


    After all, Early stage Nascent Soul realm cultivators would already have difficulties facing the Desert Centipede King in its normal state, not to mention its berserk state!


    "It''s fine princess. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve!" Elder Cheng Chao said confidently.


    Kuh!


    "Let''s go! Follow me everyone!" the Princess clenched her fists tight and turned around as her expedition party rallied around her.


    "Please don''t force yourself Elder!"


    Just like that, they retreated into the opposite tunnel from where they came from, leaving behind Elder Cheng Chao alone as she summoned four floating swords around her that looked ancient and mysterious, each with their own unique colors while radiating out sharp and oppressing presence!


    "Hmm.. now that I look closely, why are there several bumps on its head? Did it knock itself onto something repeatedly?"


    Isn''t it supposed to be an intelligent creature?


    Elder Cheng Chao could not help but to cup her chin as she pondered on this mystery.


    ...


    "Please Your Majesty, I implore you to reconsider your decision.." Liu Sheng Duhai said to their Emperor.


    "Silence!" Liu Gongsun Xiaojian bellowed in displeasure.


    "I have to see for myself the peak of power that he has reached to even be able defeating an immortal!"


    Hais!


    Liu Sheng Duhai sighed as he shook his head helplessly.


    It would be good for her if Duan Li would only show her the peak of power so that she could aspire to become even stronger..


    The only problem here is that he already went past beyond that and I am afraid that you would not be able to come into terms with it!


    After all, we are talking about someone who cultivated all three of his f*cking dantian here!


    Are you so looking forward to have your cultivation going berserk from your state of mind breaking apart?


    Prideful experts was especially vulnerable to these sorts of things ya know?


    And you happened to be one of them!


    "It''s fine, I''ll do it gently, so there is no need to worry of me harming her.." Duan Li said, trying to reassure the worried Imperial Advisor beside him.


    Pu!


    Liu Sheng Duhai choked on his throat.


    You''ll do it gently to not harm her?


    Why does that phrase sounded so wrong to me?


    What are you trying to do to her?!


    Liu Sheng Duhai almost had the urge to scream for the guards to apprehend Duan Li, but thankfully, he managed to suppress himself.


    On the other hand, the Liu Emperor furrowed her brows, "Don''t have so little faith on me like that." she said, a little disappointed in the lack of trust from her close aide.


    Again, Liu Sheng Duhai sighed.


    "It''s not a matter of faith.. but nevermind, you will understand later Your Majesty.."


    Hmph!


    The Liu Emperor harrumphed, "Show me!"


    "Very well!" Duan Li answered as he closed his eyes.


    Unseal!


    BOOMMM!!


    The moment Duan Li unleashed a portion of his true aura, the entire Imperial Palace began to tremble!


    "This..." Liu Gongsun Xiaojian showed a visible expression of shock.


    However, it only lasted for a moment before she soon shook her head.


    "It''s comparable to an Early stage Nascent Soul realm, which is quite weird seeing that you are only at the Core Formation realm.. but this isn''t even enough to move me, let alone an immortal!" she said.


    Hearing this, Duan Li answered honestly, "I''m afraid that anymore than this and your Imperial Palace might crumble.. should I go beyond 20%?"


    Ah?


    What do you think my palace is made from? Straws?


    We have hundreds of runic formations planted within the walls to support the entire structure, such that not even the assault of ten Nascent Soul realm experts would be able to destroy them easily, so what can the Qi aura of a single cultivator possibly even do to it?


    And you are only using 20% of your power you said?


    How boastful! Shameless bragging!


    Feeling quite exasperated with Duan Li as she thought that Duan Li was looking down on her, she snapped and said harshly, "There is no need to stand on ceremony! Just use your full power! Even if the entire capital city were to crumble down, it will be my responsibility, not yours!"


    "Your Majesty!" Liu Sheng Duhai''s face was immediately drained of color when the emperor said that.


    "That''s quite reassuring! Okay then, let me give it a try! It''s been quite a while since I''ve recovered to 100% of my power! Time to stretch myself!" Duan Li said while cupping his chin before nodding.


    "Welp.. this place is now history.." Shen Lu by Duan Li''s side chuckled.


    He knew full well on how monstrous the person beside him was, and even that will still be an understatement!


    Unseal!


    BOOMMMM!!


    ...


    A sudden phenomena occured that day as the entirety of the citizens in the Liu Empire''s capital city witnessed something that would be eternally carved inside their mind!


    Even historians would later wrote it inside their record with shaky handwritings from the sheer disbelief they had!


    The impenetrable Imperial Palace of the Liu Emperor, the pride and joy of the Liu Empire..


    Had just exploded!


    ...

 Chapter 359

    Dust and rubles surrounded on what used to be the grand Imperial Palace that outshined all the other buildings around it, known for its exquisite architecture and was designed using many rare materials and inlaid with many runic formations to support its majestic structures, causing the citizens in the Ethereal Winter city to become dumbfounded.


    "Ahhh! What happened? Are we under attack?"


    "Noo!! The Imperial Palace!"


    "Is Her Majesty in danger? Someone, quickly go and check!"


    The citizens clutched at their head in a frenzy as they watched these happenings in full disbelief.


    How can the Imperial Palace suddenly exploded like that?


    Could it be that the Royal family wanted to do a complete overhaul the easy way by dismantling everything in such a bombastic manner?


    Meanwhile, on what used to be the throne room, Liu Gongsun Xiaojian''s mouth was fully agape, her entire mind wallowing in an agonized state!


    Ah! My beautiful palace!


    My throne!


    Liu Sheng Duhai could only let out a helpless sigh, as if already expecting this result.


    I already told you.. but you won''t listen..


    On the other hand, the perpetrator, Duan Li, looked around him in astonishment before nodding in approval.


    "Oho! This Imperial Palace is really quite sturdy than it looks! What novelty in engineering if I must so say myself!"


    Pu!


    The Liu Emperor staggered on her feet and almost keeled over from hearing Duan Li''s words.


    Are you being sarcastic?


    What sturdy? Is my palace still standing?


    Tell me now, am I blind?


    Actually, Duan Li was complimenting on how the Imperial Palace did a good job in absorbing the potent effect of his aura.


    He then turned to Liu Sheng Duhai with a curious expression, "The runic formation within the walls of the Imperial Palace just now could absorb a cultivator''s aura?"


    "Hmm? Well.. yes, but not really.." Liu Sheng Duhai replied as he paused for a moment before he continued;


    "The main purpose of those runic formation was to actually absorb the impact from any Qi source including the aura from cultivators of higher realm, like the Nascent Soul realm for example..."


    He then explained that it was made to protect the Imperial Palace from enemy attacks, not because it was crucial, but because its a building that symbolizes power for their emperor!


    After all, if the place where their emperor live in were to crumble so easily, wouldn''t that meant that the emperor themselves wasn''t really that capable?


    But now, that was exactly what was playing on in their minds!


    "Since it absorbed your aura like a dampener, it probably reached its own limit tolerance in the process, leading the entire thing to explode because they could no longer contain it!" Liu Sheng Duhai said.


    Fights between Nascent Soul realm could easily devastate an entire land and city, that was why they usually chose to do their battle high up in the atmosphere.


    And in the event that their fights affected the ground surface, the runic formations could help shield the structures from collapsing. Otherwise, building a functional empire would be all but impossible if everything was destroyed again and again.


    "I see.. that makes sense! It''s really admirable to be able to withstand 40% of my power until it exploded like that. It was a really fine work of art!" Duan Li complimented.


    Pu!


    Another stifled sensation swelled within the throat of the Liu Emperor from Duan Li''s ''compliment''.


    At the same time, she could not help but to be alarmed, "40% strength should be double the power from the previous 20%. But by Nascent Soul realm standard, that should only be roughly around the strength of Middle stage cultivator at most!"


    Therefore, how did he manage to explode her castle before?


    That''s simply impossible!


    After all, even she herself would be unable to do such a thing when she was already at the Pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm, not to mention someone in the power level of the Middle stage!


    "Your Majesty, have you not realized it yet? Try to cast your soul sense on him..." Liu Sheng Duhai replied.


    "What do you mean-" She furrowed her brows in confusion and did as was told while thinking that there would be nothing out of it, before her eyes opened wide like a pair of flying saucer.


    "T-T-Three... y-you actually... cultivated all three d-dantian?!"


    The shock in her mind suddenly went past beyond the limit like the runic formations before, and she finally lost her calm composure as she staggered backwards!


    Since Duan Li was not concealing his aura right now, the three different spiritual Qi source coursing through his meridians and Qi pathways became visible to those that possess the soul sense.


    "No wonder... it all made sense now!" realization finally struck and answered all the numerous doubts she has regarding the anomaly behind the rumors about the Imperial Overseer in front of her, and how he was able to defeat even an immortal!


    If the person in question was able to cultivate not two, but three dantian, how can it even be impossible for someone that defied death itself to destroy her palace with his mere aura?


    Now, she finally understood it all!


    "For your aura being able to destroy my palace like that, the pressure from that Qi alone are probably like the skill attacks from Nascent Soul realm cultivator!" Liu Gongsun Xiaojian said, her body shuddered from the sheer thought of it.


    Duan Li cupped his chin when hearing this, nodding in agreement.


    "Hmm... now that you mentioned it, that should be the case!"


    Previously, Duan Li had never tried to unleash his power at that level onto his surroundings because he was afraid that people might get hurt and that was why he tried his best to rein his aura in close to himself at all times. Now, it was proven!


    Turning to face the Liu Emperor, Duan Li curiously asked, "Pardon me for asking, but how confident are you Your Majesty, in terms of your power level when compared to the rest in the entire Tian continent?"


    Of course, when Liu Gongsun Xiaojian heard this, she was a bit displeased.


    "Hmph! Even though our two empires are small, an emperor is still an emperor! We stood at the very peak of power!" she snorted with a hint of pride in her voice.


    She then continued, "Based on what I know, there are many experts around the world with strengths matching us. But as for my rank amongst them.. it should be in the top 30 at least!"


    "Top 30?" Duan Li widened his eyes in disbelief.


    I thought you would be in the top 10 or something...


    "What is with that look? Are you looking down on me?!" the Liu Emperor snapped when she saw Duan Li''s disappointed look.


    I''m the Emperor damn it! THE Emperor! How can you humiliate me like this?


    "Why don''t I prove it to you? Unleash more of your power, and I will still be able to stand here like it is nothing!"


    "No! Your Majesty! What are you doing? Our capital city will not be able to withstand-"


    "Silence! You have no say in my decision this time!" the Liu Emperor bellowed towards Liu Sheng Duhai for trying to get in her way with a wave of her sleeve!


    Unseal!


    BOOOMM!!


    Since she challenged him, Duan Li then decided to entertain her without further ado. Additionally, since the capital city was also protected by the same runic formations, his aura shouldn''t harm the populace at all!


    At 50% of his full power, the entirety of the imperial courtyard garden was squeezed to their last drop of honey from their stalk!


    BOOOMMM!!


    At 60% of his full power, the house of Great clans and aristocracts surrounding on what used to be the Imperial Palace began to crumble one by one.


    BOOOOMMM!!


    At 70% of his full power, the structures within 10 kilometer diameter from the Imperial Palace also began to tumble down like dominos!


    "Stop!!!" the Liu Emperor screamed in horror.


    Pant! Pant! Pant!


    Eh?


    Duan Li turned around and couldn''t see the Liu Emperor anywhere until he looked down.


    "What are you doing on the ground? Pushups?"


    Pu!


    "I''ve seen enough! You are right, I am weak!" she said, her face almost seemed like tears would flow down her cheeks at any moment soon.


    ...


    Two silhouettes ran across the wall with great speed while managing to evade the detection of the guards manning the border of the capital city of Ethereal Winter.


    "Hahaha! It''s so easy to sneak in! As expected of this bunch of wastrels-"


    BOOMMMM!!


    A sudden loud explosion caught them off guard, causing them to lay flat on top of the wall on instinct!


    Looking at the direction of the explosion, they saw some buildings getting destroyed one after another.


    "What''s going on? Are we invading already?"


    ...

 Chapter 360

    The two black silhouette stared at each other with a dumbfounded expression. It took them quite a while to believe what they were seeing.


    Didn''t we just got an order to scout the capital city that was rumored to be stable?


    Then why are the buildings suddenly getting blown apart like that?


    "Something must''ve happened.. let''s investigate!"


    Shuu!! Shuu!!


    The two figures flitted into dark shadows as they swept around the corner before disappearing from their surroundings..


    ...


    "My palace.. my city..." Liu Gongsun Xiaojian wanted to scream and cry if not for her position and dignity as the Emperor that was at stake right then and there.


    If one looked at the capital city from above, it would seemed like a colossal giant had left a huge foot print right in the middle of her beautiful Ethereal Winter city, making it look like an ugly stain on the perfect canvas!


    Despite the name, the city was not covered with ice, at least not anymore. This was because the cold breeze from the North of the Liu Empire that went around creating snow in the atmosphere, immediately melted before even reaching the ground and turned into vapor from the heat radiated out by the runic formations laid in each of the buildings.


    In essence, the runic formations acted as both the dampener and a central heater for the city, by venting the accumulated spiritual Qi from the surrounding into the form of heat!


    Thus, since the middle part of the city was now destroyed, the entire connection of the runic formation within the city was cut off, resulting in snow starting to accumulate on the ground!


    Hais!


    "Now we have to make urgent repairs for the runic formations to work again.." Liu Sheng Duhai sighed as he called a few people and gave them some instructions.


    As for the Liu Emperor, it took her a long while to calm herself down.


    "Hmph! You are strong indeed. But I never expected you to destroy my city like this! How can you be so relentless?!" she said to Duan Li, a hint of anger still remained in her eyes.


    When Duan Li used 50% of his strength, who could''ve thought that the power level did not scale to her previous assumption?


    His power immediately skyrocketed to the Pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm instead of the Late stage!


    Realizing that she had gravely miscalculated the potency of someone who cultivated all his three dantian, she quickly wanted to tell Duan Li to stop, but the latter then increased his power further to 60%, causing even her the Emperor, to suddenly bent down to her knees from the sheer pressure of his aura!


    Before she could even make sense of the unfathomable power that could force her into that state, Duan Li then pushed to 70% of his full strength, making the pressure exerted on her body increased by several folds, resulting in her face being planted on the ground as if a child''s face being pushed into the mud by their grandfather for running around naked!


    It was fortunate that everyone was also affected including the Knights and guards, and some were even knocked unconscious! Otherwise, she would not know what will remain of her dignity if they saw her like that.


    "Ah? You were the one asking me to do it..." Duan Li scratched his head with mixed feeling. He had to admit that he was excited to see the buildings exploded one after another the more he increased his power, so he was also not free from the guilt.


    Shaking his head, Duan Li then took out a superior quality spirit stone.


    Wengg!!


    "Would this be enough as compensation?" he candidly asked.


    Meanwhile, the Liu Emperor and Liu Sheng Duhai''s expression froze when they saw what was on Duan Li''s hand.


    ...


    "Brother Shen Murong, here.. you take the sword.." Wang Dong passed the legendary Ten Commandment sword to Shen Murong.


    "Eh? I don''t want to turn into a turtle.. here, you take it Wei Wang!" Shen Murong tossed the sword away as if it was a common sword.


    Catching the sword, Wei Wang also almost threw it away for the same reason as Shen Murong, before coming to realization.


    "Wait.. maybe this sword will change according to the holder?" he scribbled in the air with his spiritual Qi using his index finger.


    "Probably.. it did change when I use my Supreme Turtle Crust technique.. though I must warn that it will take a lot from you.." Wang Dong said, his breathing still heavy.


    Out of the three of them, Shen Murong was probably the one with the highest spiritual Qi capacity, but even he would only be able to do two transformations at most before being sucked dry like a salted fish.


    As for Wei Wang, he was someone that cultivated mostly agile related skills that don''t really require too much spiritual Qi, therefore he has the least spiritual Qi capacity than them. Even if he could transform once, his stamina will probably run out sooner than Wang Dong did before.


    "It''s fine. As long as it could boost my speed.. stronger enemies will not be a problem." said the look from Wei Wang''s face.


    "Well, if you said so junior.."


    Tap! Tap! Tap!


    Right after Wang Dong said this, hurried steps could be heard behind them, swiftly getting closer!


    "That must be them! Wei Wang, get ready!" Shen Murong said in an alarmed state.


    Since Wang Dong was unfit for battle right now, they would probably have to fight a defensive battle!


    Wengg!!


    For now, Wei Wang decided to hide the Ten Commandment sword inside his spatial ring and took out a pair of rare daggers to both of his hands.


    Tap! Tap! Tap!


    "Hold it right there!" a familiar voice sounded from afar.


    "Hahahaha! How unexpected to see you here Wang Dong, and in a wretched state too! Where do you think you are going?" Ruo Hen laughed and stared at them in disdain as if looking at some cornered rats.


    Wang Dong that had to sit cross-legged on the ground to recuperate his stamina and spiritual Qi opened his eyes.


    "Huh? Who are you boi? If your grandmother came looking for me to marry her, don''t bother! I like young women!" he said with a genuine confused look.


    Pu!


    "Y-You!" Ruo Hen choked on his throat and wanted to refute by cursing Wang Dong''s ancestor.


    "Enough!" a person behind him shouted. It was Princess Doulou Meixiu.


    She looked at Wang Dong for a moment before nodding.


    "It seems like you three managed to beat the Desert Centipede King before you escaped. Now, where is the Ten Commandment Sword? I don''t believe your cultivation realm combined could even graze that monster, let alone knocking it out!" she asked and pointed out.


    She is sharp!


    "I don''t know what you are talking about. I just beat the living daylight out of that worm with my own hands! You should see how it moaned when I penetrated it with my fist! Hahahahahaha!" Wang Dong laughed sneakily as he mentioned this while twerking his eyebrows towards the princess.


    Pu!


    "Bastard! How dare you be so dirty towards the Princess of the Doulou Empire? You are seeking death!" Ling Shin beside her bellowed angrily with clenched fists.


    "Ha! Who are you guys threatening? You dare to bring your army into the lands belonging to our Jiu Empire? This is no different than an act of invasion! Are you guys trying to start a war?" Wang Dong replied, his mocking smile reached to his ears.


    The gal of these people! Trying to act like the boss when they are in someone else''s house...


    "Shut it! So what if the Jiu Empire viewed it as an invasion? Do you think we care? If your empire are feeling threatened by a mere expedition force, just how weak of a display that is towards the other superpowers?" Princess Meixiu scoffed before continuing, "Now, don''t play dumb with me. First, you guys poisoned my men at the camp, and now I''ve lost some good men the moment we entered this ruins. Don''t think that you three could get away with this without some form of compensation!"


    The moment Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang heard this, their eyes slitted into a hostile stare towards the princess and the men behind her.


    Arrogant!


    BOOMM!!


    Wang Dong punched the ground with his fist before standing up. The anger swelling inside him quickly suppressed the extreme fatigue of his body!


    With a darkened expression, Wang Dong replied, "We can tolerate it if you mock us. But you dare to mock our empire? Filthy scum!!"


    Wang Bloodline activate!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    The tunnel rattled the moment Wang Dong unleashed his bloodline ability, As people of the mountain, they possessed an extremely resilient body and the ability to absorb spiritual Qi faster than the normal people. With his bloodline now activated, his recovery speed was far swifter than before!


    "Brother Wang Dong..." Shen Murong solemnly looked at the state that Wang Dong was currently in.


    If I''m not mistaken, the bloodline of Wang has a hefty price in order for it to be activated...


    Gritting his teeth, Shen Murong turned his head from sideways to stare at the princess right into her eyes.


    "I don''t know anything about any Ten Commandment sword and whatever, but I do have one here if you fancy mine!" he pointed to his crotch.


    "If you got the skills that is!"


    Shen Bloodline activate!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    ...

 Chapter 361

    "Two bloodline cultivators.." Princess Meixiu was a little surprised to see Wang Dong and Shen Murong transforming and raised her brows.


    One has to know that bloodline cultivators were quite rare, and those that can activate their bloodline potential to transform close to their ancestral''s form were even more so uncommon!


    Yet, to think that she stumbled upon two of them here at the same time! Was it a coincidence?


    "Wang Dong is from the mountain clan, the Wang Clan. As for that guy.. based on that physique and those two jutting horns on his temple, he must be from the rumored Great clan in the Jiu Empire.. the Shen Clan!" Ling Shin said. He had studied some background of the Jiu Empire before they came, so he knew quite a fair bit when it was related to the numerous clans in the Jiu Empire, especially the predominant ones!


    The most starking feature of the Wang''s bloodline was their ability to increase their recovery rate and battle prowess over time. The longer they persisted in their transformed state, the powerful they became. Additionally, markings will start to appear all over their body in that state!


    As for the Shen''s bloodline, when activated, one''s aura will become as barbaric as a feral''s, inducing great intimidation against their opponents, especially when combined with their transformed facial appearance!


    "I see.. well, its no different to me whether they are bloodline cultivators that could transform into their ancestral form or not." Princess Meixiu stretched her hands together before clenching them into fists.


    "Against the might of our Doulou''s Martial Arts lineage, it will all be but useless! Surrender the Ten Commandment sword to me now!"


    Tap! Tap!


    Spreading her stance by a shoulder width apart, she closed her eyes and controlled her breathing before abruptly opening them, releasing an outburst of unique aura that came from the depths of her bloodline!


    Wenggg!!


    Doulou''s Royal Bloodline activate!


    "Eight Undulating Qi technique!" visible steam came out from inside her robes, causing it to flutter mysteriously!


    This was the infamous battle technique that many from the Doulou Empire had cultivated and practiced in their lifetime. However, not everyone managed to reach the same level of mastery in it. Take Ruo Hen for example, his mastery in it was only at the Beginner''s level, which he displayed during the Battle Royale that incurred Duan Li''s disgust.


    As for the princess, her mastery in it has long been at the Pinnacle level! After all, with the unlimited resources of the Doulou''s royal family as well as innumerable experts to guide her, its simply impossible for her to not be able to grasp the battle technique at its highest state!


    "I do not need to transform into my ancestral form to beat you three. Just a hint of the Doulou''s bloodline would be enought to turn a clear river into crimson red!" the princess said with an unwavering stare towards the three of them.


    "This is bad.." Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang could feel the unshakeable ripples of power oozing out from the princess''s body!


    By their estimate, using the Eight Undulating Qi battle technique had raised her battle prowess to the highest level! It was a pressure that usually only came from those in the Golden Core realm state!


    As for them, they were only in the Middle stage of the Core Formation realm, a far cry from rivalling a Pinnacle stage Core Formation realm that the other party has, not to mention that she had boosted it even further now!


    Still, since the other party had mocked the Jiu Empire, it was not as if they were going to back down just because the enemy was far stronger than them!


    "Ruo Hen, Ling Shin and the rest of you stand down. I''ll take care of them on my own!" Princess Meixiu commanded.


    "Yes, Princess!" they replied, heeding to her words as they threw a face of contempt towards the princess''s opponents.


    Even though they knew how lazy the princess were usually, especially towards cultivation, this does not mean that she was weak. On the contrary, she had never lost a fight before!


    "Hahahaha! Quite arrogant eh? That just might be the end for you!"


    Dash!


    Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang moved to dash from different directions at the same time, looking to attack on her blind spot and openings!


    ...


    The sun was gradually setting as the people in the Spring Blossom village continued their repairs on the structures that got damaged and razed by the bandits the night before.


    They had just finished repairing the village walls and gates when Cucko that was perching on top of the highest building, the bell tower, suddenly opened its eyes and stood up.


    "CUCCK CUCCKKOOOO!!"


    Everyone looked towards the direction of Cucko and their faces quickly sank and became pale!


    "I knew it! There are more bandits coming!"


    "We just finished repairing some of the buildings, are they going to get destroyed yet again?"


    "We should''ve just left! What did I told you guys before?!"


    Commotion immediately broke between the villagers as they panicked and argued. Seeing this, Wei Shang stepped forward, "Calm down everyone! We are still here! Let''s assess the situation first before-"


    "Calm down? You are asking us to calm down?!"


    A skinny and scruffy looking man came out from the crowd and pointed his fingers towards Wei Shang.


    "Our lives are at stake here! You people can fight and flee anytime you want! Do you expect us to believe that you will stay here and protect us when the situation turns bad?" he shouted with a clear indignation in his eyes.


    He was just a peasant on the streets, living his life contentedly from the donations of the passersby and could eat and roam about lazily without doing any work. He thought that after people became used to his mode of operation and refused to donate to him any further, he would just move on to the next village.


    Yet, before he could even live freely, this situation had already happened to him! He regretted ever coming to the Spring Blossom village!


    "Calm down, we have orders to stay in this village and protect everyone until help arrives!" Wei Shang knitted his brows but still replied to the man with a calm tone.


    "Hah! As if I believe that! In your eyes, we mere commoners are nothing but ants! You said that right now, but you will definitely escape when hell breaks loose! I''ve seen numerous cultivators like you, and they all viewed all lifeforms other than them in disdain!" the man continued to scream at the tip of his throat.


    Pah!!


    His face was then suddenly slapped from afar. It was Fei Longwei!


    "You have a point there. Cultivators like us might really view you lower lifeforms in disdain. So what makes you think that you can say all these words with your whole limbs still attach after this? Hmm?" Fei Longwei said with a monotone voice as he stood in front of the man.


    "Y-You! Are you trying to commit murder?!" the man staggered backwards as he shouted at Fei Longwei with a shaky voice. He was surprised that the other party would dare to hurt him in front of everyone, not worrying about other''s opinions about him at all!


    "So what if I want to kill you? What can you do about it? What can anyone do about it? Tell me?" Fei Longwei replied with a sinister smile.


    The man was further shaken from Fei Longwei''s intimidation as sweat began to drench his back!


    "No! You can''t kill me! That''s wrong! You are supposed to protect us!" he said with gritted teeth.


    He must be bluffing! There is no way he will dare to kill me in front of everyone! I''ll involve everyone in this so you can''t do anything about me!


    Then, Fei Longwei immediately broke into laughter.


    "Hahahaha! Didn''t you just said so yourself? That we view you as ants? Why should I protect you?" he said, before sweeping his gaze towards everyone, "Tell me, why should I protect you all? Do I have any reason to? So what if I were to disobey the orders and let you all be killed by the bandits? I can just say that we can''t do anything and nothing will happen to me."


    Everyone also realized this fact as well, and they couldn''t find any words to rebuke him at all, so they stared at the ground helplessly.


    This is the end for us!


    "No! No! No! You can''t kill me! You can''t kill me! You don''t have any rights taking my life away from me!" the man continued to scream like a retarded person and uttered the same sentence over and over again.


    "Hais!" Wei Shang sighed and shook his head.


    Fei Longwei had just broke his mental barrier!


    Even a person without many words like him could be vicious when angered. You have messed with the wrong person man!


    Ptuii!!


    "Hmph! You think that I will dirty my hands to kill a scummy bastard like you?" Fei Longwei spitted on the ground in front of that man before he turned around becoming disinterested as the deed was done. Without turning his back, he then continued with a voice not too loud, but could be heard by everyone, "As long as there are no bad ants among you, I will still help to protect village no matter the cost."


    Shuuu!!


    Just like that, Fei Longwei disappeared from everyone''s view and there was a moment of silence when they heard that final sentence.


    Everyone understood what it meant.


    They turned around to look at the man who was now crying and scared sh*tless, their face devoid of emotion as they stared at him.


    Crack!


    Not too long later, the sound of someone uttering his final breath full of indignant could be heard behind a house, away from the views of children as his neck was snapped into two.


    ...


    "Hey, why did you do that?" Wei Shang said as he stood beside Fei Longwei atop of a roof along with Cucko.


    Fei Longwei was silent for a while before replying, "I''m familiar with the scent of a schemer. He was planning to use the rest of the villagers to leave with him so that they could act as a bait, and that he could escape towards another direction."


    Wei Shang raised his brows in comprehension, "I see.. what a bastard."


    It was a common strategy where the bandits would be more attracted to a group of people rather than a single individual. But if this was really the case or not with what the man was really planning, they have no way of knowing. The only fact they have was that the man was really a bad egg that wanted to stir up problems, and they couldn''t afford to risk the other villages of being persuaded by him.


    Fei Longwei made the correct decision!


    "Cuck! Cuccko!"


    Cucko then finished relaying the information towards his minions that was spread out ahead of the village before.


    "They will arrive in one hour. Let us prepare."


    ...

 Chapter 362

    Inside a special chamber located underground of the Imperial Palace that managed to survive the previous devastation, Duan Li, Shen Lu, Liu Sheng Duhai and the Liu Emperor sat together face to face.


    "Do you know the true value of this Superior quality spirit stone that you just gave us?" said the Liu Emperor with a somber look on her as she stared at the spirit stone in question floating slowly on the coffee table.


    "Eh? Isn''t it just another bigger currency like the High quality spirit stones? Like one of them is equal to a few thousand of High quality spirit stones or something?" Duan Li casually replied.


    His answer made Liu Sheng Duhai agitated to the point where he wanted to sprawl on him and strangle his neck for being so clueless!


    "You... superior quality spirit stones are not that simple!" He said in exasperation and stood up.


    With his hands clasped behind his back, he looked towards the ceiling with a deep look before he started explaining.


    "Normal spirit stones from Low quality up to the High quality spirit stones are usually used as a form of currency for trading between cultivators. I am sure that you both at least know that this was because the spirit stones are extracted from deep underground cavern close to the numerous spirit veins spread across the underground system of the Tian continent, fossilized into crystals due to the tectonic activities for several millenniums and was thus considered as valuables according to their rarity!"


    Duan Li and Shen Lu both nodded as this was common knowledge for cultivators.


    "As for their quality, the higher the concentration of the spiritual Qi crystallized, the higher their rarity. For example, Low quality spirit stones could be found easily in any deep underground caverns where the air was trapped for a long time causing the spiritual Qi to condense into small crystals the size of a fingernail."


    "Middle quality spirit stones on the other hand, are formed from the forceful natural synthesis of multiple Low quality spirit stones together, compressed into the size of a finger!"


    "As for High quality spirit stones, these could only be found very close to the source of a spirit vein and only lucky or fated encounters could unearth them, thus their utmost rarity. Their sizes was about the size of one''s palm!"


    "As for Superior quality spirit stones..." Liu Sheng Duhai paused with a dramatic look on his face, causing both Duan Li and Shen Lu to be on their tenterhooks.


    "They are the amalgamations of the spirit vein themselves!!"


    BOOMMM!!


    Duan Li and Shen Lu felt goosebumps on their back upon this revelation!


    For people like them, just knowing that spirit stones came from underground cavern was already enough and they really couldn''t be bothered to know more where each really came from.


    However, even they knew that the value of pinpointing the exact location of a spirit vein that was always on the move every few years due to the tectonic plate movements was as difficult as scaling the heavens, and was therefore a priceless information, not to mention that now, one was right in front of them!


    "To think that Brother Duan Li had been brandishing his Superior quality spirit stones as if they were cabbages, no wonder the Jiu Emperor decided to store all of it for him!" Shen Lu sighed.


    Still, he couldn''t help but to wonder on why Liu Sheng Juan and their Emperor did not tell them about this.


    "Could it be that they didn''t know?"


    Shen Lu shook his head.


    It would be impossible for Liu Sheng Juan, the director of the Jiu Bank company to not know of this information at least when these people knew about it..


    "Amalgamation of the spirit vein? But I always thought that the spirit vein was only a pathway and was never the origin of spiritual Qi. How could a spirit vein amalgamate and crystallized into a spirit stone?" Shen Lu asked doubtfully.


    He then added, "Furthermore, if that was really the case, then why didn''t our emperor, Jiu Xian Ping and Liu Sheng Juan, the director of the Jiu Bank company did not tell us about their actual value beforehand?"


    Liu Gongsun Xiaojian sighed before she answered, "It''s not that they don''t want to tell you. They simply can''t and I understand why."


    "The existence of Superior quality spirit stones has always been a secret and was known only to a few people. Like you said, it should be impossible for a spirit vein to amalgamate and crytallized by itself. After all, they are similar to the meridians in our body where they only exists as gateways to channel spiritual Qi for the many Qi pathways in our body. They in itself does not produce spiritual Qi, but our dantian!"


    "This impossibility is exactly the reason why even a single Superior quality spirit stone is priceless! They are unique! Only fools would want to trade them for High quality spirit stones! The two of them couldn''t even begin to compare!" the Liu Emperor scoffed as she explained this, causing Duan Li to nearly choke himself silly.


    "I disagree! Why are they fools? Can Superior quality spirit stones be eaten? What use are they if they can''t be used as a currency?" Duan Li refuted as he tried to justify himself for trading Superior quality spirit stones with the Principal of the Jixue Knights academy, Bian Tianyu for a mere residence court!


    He swore that the Principal would have to give him a long explanation on it!


    Just because he was a village boy, doesn''t mean that it was okay for them to take advantage of him! Besides, the Principal gave him quite the underpriced renumeration of the actual value of the Superior quality spirit stones!


    In other words, Duan Li had been scammed!


    Hmph!


    "The strategic value of a Superior quality spirit stone should not be underestimated! Since they are the amalgamation of a spirit vein, when you look at it from another perspective, you can say that its a mirror connected directly to the source of the spiritual Qi in the Tian continent, the Source Qi core itself!"


    Liu Sheng Duhai then continued, "You might not be able to sense it, but we Nascent Soul realm can! Just by cultivating near it would cause dramatic increase to our realm, we who have already reached the Pinnacle stage that could no longer cultivate beyond it! High quality spirit stones are not able to replicate this effect no matter how many you gathered!"


    Duan Li pondered on this matter and gave it a deep thought. Indeed, when one had already reached the Nascent Soul realm, increasing their strength became very lengthy and difficult as they were already saturated with spiritual Qi down to their individual cells!


    In other words, when a cup was already full of water, there was little one can do to add more into it as it will just overflow the cup.


    Liu Gongsun Xiaojian nodded to the words of her Imperial Advisor and continued where he left off.


    "Can you imagine if this was known to everyone? The effectiveness for those on the lower realm cultivating near it would increase by several thousand fold, causing even Qi Condensation realm newbie to be able to jump to a Foundation establishment realm in a matter of a few breaths! An unprecedented shortcut!"


    "But do you think that their untempered body would be able to survive it? Their cultivation would immediately go berserk and their dantian to explode with so much power, that it would devastate their surroundings!"


    The Liu Emperor then rolled her eyes before finishing her sentence, "Knowing how reckless and clueless you are, you would definitely want to give it a try! But unless you are at the Nascent Soul realm, no matter how formidable you think you are, you would still die from it and affect everyone around you. This is simply because you need the soul sense ability to see the miniscule vibrations the Superior quality spirit stone radiated out with each random seconds. Each vibration would unleash an instantaneous surge of Qi and only the correct amount should be absorbed while ignoring the rest according to one''s rate of Qi cycle!"


    "Absorbing a surge of Qi well beyond your capacity, which the Superior quality spirit stone will usually give out for most of the time, taking note that its connected to the Source Qi core, one could be easily overwhelmed, so it''s understandable why they didn''t tell you about it!"


    It took a long while for Duan Li to digest and accept this before he finally relented and gave a deep sigh.


    "Hais! If only I knew, I would have at least kept one for myself..." Duan Li said. Since he already gave the only one he had right now to the Liu Empire as a form of compensation, it would not be right for him to take it back after he learnt of its value. That''s just being petty! Thus, he could only shake his head and felt a little regret.


    After all, he had the Tetra Soul Sense where he could gave it a try!


    Nevermind, I''ll get one for myself once I''m back...


    Still, he couldn''t help but thought of the reason why his clone gave one to him via Shen Lu.


    Could it be that he already foresaw me causing troubles?


    Nah.. that shouldn''t be possible...


    On the other hand, Liu Gongsun Xiaojian and Liu Sheng Duhai''s mouth froze when they heard Duan Li''s previous sentence.


    "C-Could it be that.. you have m-more?" their voices stuttered and their breath became agitated.


    "Eh? Indeed, I have several of them. In fact, I loaned them all to our emperor. If I''m not mistaken, I should have tens of them.. or was it hundreds? I don''t really remember. But anyway, that was the main reason I became the Imperial Overseer." Duan Li nodded and told them earnestly.


    Pu!


    Both of the highest figure in the entire Liu Empire suddenly felt lightheaded and wanted to commit suicide.


    ...

 Chapter 363

    "Brother Zhang, we have successfully wiped out 16 bandit hideouts from our end, but a few managed to escape early before we could raid the bastards and we are now in the midst of pursuing them. How goes on your side?" Lu Bu said through the communication jade slip on his hand.


    "I''ve also eliminated 14 of their bandit hideouts as well but similar like on your side, some of them appeared to have a little intellect left in their rotting brain and ran away before we could deal with them. We are using the net formation to corner those bandits right now and they are heading towards this direction.." Zhang Liao replied as they updated their position and current situation with each other.


    After parting ways with Duan Li, they each returned to their camp along with their personal bodyguards. While they have entered the Battle Royale tournament under the identity of a student from their respective academy, in reality, their main identity was something even more astonishing!


    Lu Bu, or also known as the third Prince of the Qin Royal family, Qin Lu Bu from the Qin Empire, was actually roaming the Tian continent for experience as part of the training to temper his state of mind. This was in preparation to decide on who will be the next crown prince of the Qin Empire after the original first prince was killed in battle against the vicious Song Empire!


    It was only because he was near to the Jiu Empire at the time the invitation came from the latter that he was commanded to attend it out of formality. This does not mean that his position of influence within the Qin Empire was negligible however, but because the command came directly from his father, the current Emperor of the Qin Empire!


    As for Zhang Liao, he was originally en route to settle the matters between his empire, the Wei Empire and the Xian and Yuan Empire. As neighbors, the two empires requested an audience with the Wei Empire in order to strike a deal so that the three of them could form and become allies against the Song Empire which was constantly harassing them!


    This was because Zhang Liao was known for his intelligence and advance skills in warfare tactics, being the direct student of the infamous and legendary war strategist of the old era, Grand Preceptor Cheng Siyu of the sovereign and independent state of Langkasuka, or otherwise known as the Kingdom of Langkasuka!


    After suddenly receiving such an extraordinary invitation where the content was the crowning of the first ever Imperial Overseer in the entire history of the Tian continent, he decided to do a detour and analyze how legitimate the person in question was in receiving that grand title. Additionally, he was also the seventh prince with an official title in charge of supervising military activities in the Wei Empire!


    The both of them initially had no high expectations inside an empire as weak as the Jiu Empire and thought that the crowning of an Imperial Overseer that sits on top of the Emperor in hierarchy status was nothing more but a mockery and a joke to the millennium traditions of the Tian continent, but now..


    They realized how wrong they were!


    Granted that both of their empire were significantly more advanced and has many experts that the likes of the Jiu Empire could not possibly compare to, but the level of civilization was not entirely backwards either! In fact, the capital city of the Jiu Empire, Nine Lotuses city was pretty much similar to what they had back home!


    This meant that the people of the Jiu Empire were definitely not fools!


    Confused on how did an empire with a capital city on par with theirs to even think of crowning an Imperial Overseer, they decided to investigate the level of battle prowess the general populace has, just in case that everyone was extremely weak and would therefore answer their question - that if the battle prowess of the public was weak, perhaps the emperor was of lower quality as well and was thus easily beaten by someone stronger!


    Their following actions then led them into joining the tournament of Battle Royale in the battle stadium of the Nine Lotuses city and coincidentally, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu, best friends since young, met with each other!


    What they found out was that the battle prowess of the Jiu Empire was only so-so, not too weak but not of high quality either! That was their belief at least, until they met Duan Li, the person who shattered their conception of what was logic and sent their mind through a clusterf*ck turn of events before turning out to be the Imperial Overseer himself!


    Against such a person, whom could even manhandle an immortal despite being still in the Core Formation realm, it would be foolish to measure Duan Li''s battle prowess with their usual standards!


    What Core Formation realm? What Golden Core realm? What Nascent Soul realm experts?


    These kinds of standard realms for measuring power will never apply to Duan Li who was cultivating all three of his dantian!


    Ever since then, they viewed Duan Li with extremely high regard and would do everything to earn his favor. This was why they decided to go for a bandit hunting spree! After all, through their investigation, they found out that the Jiu Empire was sorely lacking in security enforcement of its territory!


    Practically most uninhabited lands turns out to be infested with bandits around here!


    "There is one problem though, since we are boxing them into the same direction, from the map that I got here, they would probably team up and barricade themselves inside this village... Spring Blossom Village!" Zhang Liao said with a solemn tone.


    "Hmm... if that is indeed the case, then the people inside that village are probably all dead by now or are taken hostage.. what should we do?" Lu Bu similarly had a troubled expression as well and sighed helplessly.


    Hais!


    Had they brought in their private army, it would be a child''s play to surround all the bandits without even letting a single one of them escape but alas, they only brought a few personnel with them when they entered the Jiu Empire. Otherwise, people might misunderstood them as trying to invade if they brought their army in!


    Zhang Liao closed his eyes for a moment before replying, "The only thing we can do is to stop them from escaping any further, or they might rally with the other bandits and bulk their numbers. It would be real trouble by then. As for the villagers... we will avenge them and have their bodies buried!"


    "En!" Lu Bu nodded before they ended their communication channel and hastened their flying speed!


    ...


    BOOMM!!


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    Two figures crashed against the tunnel walls heavily after their attack was deflected and countered at the same time!


    "Puhe!" Shen Murong and Wang Dong both threw up some blood and small bits of flesh from their mouth after receiving damage from the princess''s counter attack!


    Strong!


    This was the only word that came out in their mind after trading several blows with the princess of the Doulou empire. Her martial arts was top notch and they could hardly land any real blows on her! In addition, even when they did, it was a calculated damage where she would immediately redirect the force to the ground in order to nullify it!


    On the other hand, both Wang Dong and Shen Murong, despite their augmentation of physical strength via their transformation, still received the bulk of the damage in their fight against her because of the unique martial arts she was practicing! They discovered that the impact from her attack, especially the palm attacks could not be negated at all through force redirection!


    It was a first time experience for them and they felt it to be bizarre!


    "Is this all that you two got? How disappointing!" Princess Meixiu harrumphed before continuing, "It''s futile to go against me. Hand over the sword right now!"


    "You are not yet my wife! You need to marry me first before you can play with my ''sword''!" Shen Murong playfully replied while raising his brows.


    Hearing this, the princess''s face turned red.


    "You imbecile! Am I in the mood for jokes now? I''ll kill you!" she dashed forward and sent a flurry of attacks!


    BAM!! BAM!! BAM!!


    Meanwhile, Wei Wang was dealing with both Ruo Hen and Ling Shin and was not faring any better either. His opponent, especially Ling Shin, has atrocious instinctual reaction to read most of his moves leaving Wei Wang with little options to continue his assault. After all, Wei Wang''s main method of attack was mainly composed of assassination techniques and ambushes. With the advantage gone, his superior speed compared to the two of them was still unable to truly injure them!


    Pant! Pant! Pant!


    "At this rate, we are going to be defeated..." Wei Wang thought in his mind as sweat trickled down his head and exhaustion began to crept in.


    Must we really use our weapon?


    That would meant that we have to kill them...


    "Hahahaha! You dirty scum! You can never beat us! Surrender already!" Ruo Hen laughed and spit on the ground in disdain!


    BOOMMM!!


    However, at this moment, the tunnel they were in began to tremble!


    "What? Earthquake?" regardless of who they were, their faces turned equally solemn at this point.


    Since they were fighting underground, any earthquake could potentially bury them alive. Thus, knowing this, they immediately halted their actions and regrouped back to their respective side while they watched the ceiling warily.


    "Run!" a familiar voice from the other side of the tunnel shouted.


    Turning her head around, the princess''s lips curled into a happy smile when she saw who it was.


    "Elder Cheng Chao!" Princess Meixiu was elated to see her because that would meant that this personal maid of her was able to defeat the Desert Centipede King! However, she soon realized that something was wrong as the latter''s face was pale!


    "Quickly run! There is not just one Desert Centipede King.. but dozens of them! RUN!!"


    ...

 Chapter 364

    "When in the world did the Red desert have these many Desert Centipede Kings roaming under it?!" Princess Meixiu said as she lashed out at the trio in front of her whom was running faster than them as if people running away from their debt collector. She gritted her teeth and hated their guts.


    "How do you expect us to know that? We are not living in the desert! Maybe it''s your intrusive activities recently that led them to chase us in a frenzy like this! You better confess, you cooked some of their eggs for dinner before this, right?!" Shen Murong replied with a similar but even harsher tone!


    Pu!


    The Princess and her expedition party almost puked out their gastric acid on the mention of cooking the Desert Centipede''s eggs!


    "Motherf*cker! Don''t you dare go overboard! You think we from the Doulou Empire are impoverished nomads to be eating their eggs that tasted like cr*p? I''ll slap you!" Ling Shin that was equally overbearing in his language retorted.


    The Desert Centipede eggs were known to be the most foul-tasted food that the Tian continent had ever recorded. On the outside, their shell looked as ordinary as that of a desert ostrich''s. But as soon as the contents poured out, it smelled no different to that of the human feces or even worse!


    Thus, how could he tolerate it when the other party mentioned that they had been eating such eggs? Wasn''t that like saying that they had eaten sh*t?


    "Hah! That''s what you said, but aren''t you guys here right now scouring for some useless treasure to be sold for a hefty sum? What is that if not being poor? Ah?" Shen Murong wickedly smile and felt good when he talked trash to them like this!


    "Silence!" Elder Cheng Chao could no longer tolerate their constant bickers and shouted at them while defending against the hundreds of acid attacks from the dozens of Desert Centipede Kings chasing the back of the group!


    As she was the most powerful of them all right now, she had to stay behind and cover their retreat while they moved forward! Otherwise, just a single acid attack would be enough to melt the princess''s expedition party into an ugly gooey state!


    "Silence your father! Why do we have to listen to you? This granddaddy here have never bothered to submit to anyone''s whims before, so you shut up, you filthy invader!" Shen Murong replied with a darkened face.


    He was extremely angry at these haughty people who tried to do as they pleased in the territory of the Jiu Empire as if it was their home ground. Against people like them, he wouldn''t even feel guilty if he cursed their ancestor!


    On the other hand, Elder Cheng Chao almost swerved to the front right away to kick Shen Murong in the stomach for resorting to violent language against someone of her age. If not for the last bit of rational she had in defending their retreat, Shen Murong would have been a goner!


    ".... just you wait!" she thought to herself feeling indignant, focusing back her attention in deflecting all of the acid attacks from the Desert Centipede Kings behind them!


    As they ran and ran along the tunnel, they seemed to go deeper into the ground and everyone''s complexion started to change as they felt the spiritual Qi in the air to become even thinner the further they went!


    It was only until they finally reached the exit of the tunnel that the Desert Centipede Kings halted in their footsteps and didn''t dare to go even a single step into the exit area to chase them, their body shivering as if they were afraid of something!


    Noticing this peculiarity, Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang stood back to back with each other as they scanned their surroundings.


    This new area was just as vast as the open space from before, but the air felt even more pressing as if something was currently watching them in secret!


    "These tracks.. are there more Desert Centipede Kings here?" Wang Dong said warily as he saw the many larger foot prints on the ground.


    "Hmm?" Princess Meixiu, Ruo Hen, Ling Shin and Elder Cheng Chao whose attention was also attracted to the numerous large footprints on the ground frowned.


    Since they were now in the same boat, they no longer cared to waste their energy to bicker and fight each other. After all, with the almost negligible amount of spiritual Qi in the air, it would be a foolish thing to do if monsters surrounded them!


    "No, these can''t be foot prints from the Desert Centipede Kings, they are far more smaller than this! The indentation in them is quite deep too, signifying the massive weight of whatever these foot prints are from!" Elder Cheng Chao said with a grim expression. She had a bad feeling about this.


    If even the Desert Centipede Kings are afraid to enter this zone, then it must''ve meant that this is the territory of a monster far stronger than them!


    Soul Sense!


    Wenggg!!


    Elder Cheng Chao finally used the unique ability of a Nascent Soul realm, casting her senses far around them. She found out that this ability of her that could easily scan more than 400 meters in radius was now suppressed to just 50 meters, making her shook her head.


    What is wrong with this place?


    "I guess I''ll have to forcefully extend the range by burning more spiritual Qi.."


    Hengg!!


    Finally, her soul sense managed to go beyond 50 meters.


    60 meters..


    70 meters..


    When her soul sense reached 100 meters, her grim expression visibly changed, turning pale like a white sheet!


    "W-What is.. that?!"


    ...


    "Is this plan really necessary?" Duan Li scratched his head with unwillingness in his voice. Right now, he was wearing a unique full plate armor of glistening black in color!


    Each step he made produces clanking noise that sounded heavy and powerful, a type of armor that signified his overwhelming might, as only the most powerful cultivators would be able to don and use this armor casually as if it were a normal piece of clothing!


    In their previous meeting, after he gave the Superior quality spirit stone, the Liu Emperor and Jiu Sheng Duhai told Duan Li the rest of their plan to defeat the incoming invasion army from the Xian and Yuan Empire.


    The plan was for him to lead the Imperial Extermination Knights, sort of like the First Subjugation Squad of the Jiu Empire.


    They would then make a blockade to stop the invading army, and if they resist, Duan Li were to command the Extermination Knights to fight them!


    If the Extermination Knights then showed signs of being in a disadvantage, Duan Li must pull them back and take action personally. By showcasing his shocking might, they were hoping for the enemy to run between their tails with terrified looks and traumas.


    This way, the Liu Empire would not appear weak in front of all of the other empires, and they would think twice before offending them again!


    "It is necessary if things were to be smooth! Just make yourself appear dignified in front of them!" Liu Sheng Duhai said and reminded Duan Li.


    He was worried that this young man would be a terrible actor and acted like his usual self.


    "Sigh.. fine." Duan Li replied as he put on his helmet, completing the full plate armor that he was wearing.


    Now, Duan Li became one of the Execution Knights of the Liu Empire!


    ...


    Inside a big room, 11 people were sitting impatiently and some of them appeared to be restless.


    "Damn it! Why do we have to listen to the command of a no-name Execution Knight?!" one of them could no longer held it in and spoke out.


    A few of them snorted and grunted, while some nodded silently, signs that they agreed with him. They were wearing the same armor set as Duan Li, just that they were grey in color and not black!


    "Calm down. Her Majesty must''ve had her reasons for doing this." a person beside him said. The color of his armor was unique. It was silver in color and appeared to be holy-like as they reflected off the image of their surrounding.


    "But Leader, we have been following you ever since forever. To suddenly be placed under the command of someone else that is not qualified, how can we sit still? This is injustice and questionable practice towards your capability leader!" the man continued.


    The man was about to continue talking before his brows and the rest of them in that room twitched their eyebrows. They immediately look towards the door.


    "He is finally here!"


    ...

 Chapter 365

    As soon as Duan Li stepped inside the room, all the 11 people in it stared at him with judgmental stares. It seemed as though they were scanning Duan Li from top to bottom like those appraisals inspecting their newly discovered artifact to determine their value!


    "Huh?" they all frowned with a perplexed expression.


    This was because they could not determine Duan Li''s cultivation realm at all!


    "How could this be?!" they were all astonished by this experience.


    After all, who among them was not reputable in the Liu Empire? To become an Imperial Extermination Knight wasn''t something so simple as to ascend to the highest realm only. Each of them was only in their early 40s when their cultivation realm managed to breakthrough to the Nascent Soul realm, and in this regard, they could be considered as unparalleled genius among their peers!


    Even then, they still had to compete with numerous other candidates in order to win a slot just to be nominated as an initiate before they had to undergo some more strenuous process to finally be able to reach their current standing! Only they understood all the pain they had to go through to get this far!


    They were the cream of the crop, the genius among geniuses!


    Yet, despite all these, they were still unable to tell the cultivation level of the newcomer with a glance, and this hinted volumes of the capabilities of the newcomer standing before them!


    Soul Sense!


    Wengg!!


    Their expression turned more bitter as the result of their soul sense was similar to before;


    They couldn''t tell any jacksh*t at all!


    Impressive!


    "This newcomer has managed to hide his cultivation level so deeply to the point where he appeared to be no less than the ordinary mortals that does not cultivate!"


    Straight away, some of them changed their opinion on the newcomer in front of them, and they no longer looked as displeased as before.


    Even the person with the silver colored armor that was their leader nodded in approval. He could not help but to wonder on how high the cultivation level of someone must be to be able to do this!


    Unbeknownst to them, Duan Li was only at the Core Formation realm, and he was able to suppress his cultivation level simply by not cycling his spiritual Qi in his body! Normally, this kind of action would immediately zapped the cultivator of his strength and become as weak as a mortal, but Duan Li was anything but ordinary!


    However, not everyone was equally satisfied.


    "So, you are that newcomer who is supposed to be leading us to battle the invaders?" one of them rose from their seat and approached Duan Li with a cold expression.


    "Stand down You Wing!" the person with the silver colored armor bellowed. However, You Wing ignored him and continued to walk towards Duan Li until he was practically just a finger distance from Duan Li''s face!


    Liu Sheng Duhai that was standing behind Duan Li found this action to be overboard and disrespectful, and he wanted to reprimand You Wing for it. But before he could even make a move, Duan Li suddenly unleashed 50 percent of his power in less than an instant before reining them back in the moment after, and the result was utterly shocking!


    BOOMMMMMM!!


    As if a supernatural force suddenly decided to explode on its own, the entire room and building in front of Duan Li was obliterated entirely! Only the leftover room and building behind where Duan Li stood was left standing without a scratch, as if the demarcating line between lands that was hit by a disaster and the land that was left untouched!


    "...." Liu Sheng Duhai''s mouth was agape and his mind went into a daze.


    What the f*cking hell? Did I misspoke earlier and said to be overbearing instead of dignified?


    Thankfully, after he extended his soul sense around, he found that the 11 Imperial Extermination Knights was still alive! Only then did he heaved out a breath of relief.


    "It seems that he has a plan.. let''s see what it is.." Liu Sheng Duhai could roughly guess what Duan Li''s intention was with his powerful intellect, but he decided to just keep watching instead of interfering.


    "Puufff!"


    After the dust settled, all the Extermination Knights flew into the air while grasping for their breath with a pale face. They were not injured in the slightest given their cultivation level, adding to the fact that Duan Li did not attack them at all. It was just that Duan Li''s aura was so powerful that the building collapsed and the defensive formation got overloaded causing the explosion!


    "That aura..!!" they all remembered an incident that happened earlier where the Imperial Palace got flattened by a mysterious and mighty aura, and it was eerily similar to the occurrence just now!


    "Could it possibly be?!" they clenched their hands into fists in agitation!


    To think that a mere aura from a single individual could press someone of their caliber into the ground head first, even their emperor was not able to do that!


    "Puff! Uhek! Uhek!" a figure rose his head from the debris like a sea lion coming out from the water as he coughed out sand and dust. His entire body felt weak after being dealt with the majority of Duan Li''s aura showering on him, making his movements heavy as if traversing through an ocean of lead!


    This person was You Wing and his butt was currently exposed amidst the debris while reflecting the glare from the sun, making others instinctively cover their eyes!


    It seems that his armor had disintegrated.


    ...


    "People of the Spring Blossom village, hear thy decree from the Heavenly Immortal!" a burly and rough looking bandit with a few loose teeth bellowed from outside the village gate loudly as his saliva splattered all over in the air.


    "By the command from the Heavenly Immortal Sung Jian, all you villagers are to come out and kneel! Those who refused will be considered as rebels and will be executed!"


    All the other bandits behind him laughed sinisterly as they waited. Further behind them was a figure carried on top of a makeshift throne by several other burly bandits and he looked over the village gate with a look of contempt and disdain.


    "People of the Spring Blossom village! Are you guys deaf? Come out here to pay respects to your maker!" the bandit shouted once more when they noticed that there was no reaction at all, as if there was no one inside the village!


    Just as he was about to shout again, he felt a sudden stifled sensation on his throat that made him unable to speak out!


    "Eh? Pufff!!"


    A gaping hole was formed in the middle of his throat, causing him to puked out blood and fell to the ground before losing his life.


    Dead!


    The bandit on top of the throne frowned a little before his lips curled into a mocking smile.


    "There is a cultivator inside? Interesting."


    ...

 Chapter 366

    "Impudent! Who dares to attack the envoy of the Heavenly Immortal?!" the bandits bellowed angrily with all their saliva splattering in the air.


    "Yuck!" the villagers almost puked out when they saw such an ugly and dirty scene. They look towards each other before nodding.


    "Filthy bandits! So what if we dare to attack you scums? You think we villagers are pushover? Screw your ugly face! You hear us? Screw you all!!"


    Hearing these vulgar words coming out from the mouths of the villagers on the other side of the gate, the bandits were utterly silenced, looking shocked and dumbstrucked.


    It took quite a while for them to recover from this state before their face reddened in rage!


    "F*ck! You useless puny villagers! How dare you slight us like that?!"


    "Courting death! I''m gonna wreck your life when I go over there!"


    "I will skin you bunch of peasants for saying that! I dare you guys say that once more!"


    Immediately, the bandits replied with many ruthless death threat as they had never thought even once in their wildest dreams that weak villagers would curse them harshly like that!


    Aren''t villagers usually cowards that trembled and peed their pants upon seeing them?


    How are they acting like this?


    "Oh?" the bandit leader on top of the throne was once again surprised and his interest grew.


    For them to be so brave as to retort us bandits back with vicious words.. it seems that they are pretty confident with the cultivator protecting their hides!


    Is it a cultivator of the Foundation Establishment realm? Or perhaps a Core Formation realm cultivator?


    The bald and overweight bandit leader with numerous scars on his face and bare chest thought deeply.


    "It''s not possible for any Golden Core realm cultivator to be around in this small village..."


    Following this logic, the bandit leader chuckled.


    He was once a guard working under a prestigious great clan from another empire giving him the entitlement to sponsored cultivation resources resulting in his current Golden Core realm, but got dishonorably discharged after being caught using the great clan''s name to threatened others into giving him money and bribing others!


    This was why his state of mind was far different from the normal common bandits as well as his intellect. He was able to remain calm and collected in analyzing situations before jumping to conclusions.


    This time was also the same for him.


    "The only possible explanation for them to be this brave is that there are multiple cultivators inside that village! Their cultivation realm should be Core Formation realm at most!"


    Making up his mind, he ordered several of the bandits in front of him to prepare for a small siege. He wanted to bait the cultivators inside to attack these bandits so that he could plan his next move after seeing their numbers and strength!


    ...


    "Hahaha! That felt good!" the villagers were all excited and laughed out loud after managing to curse the bandits relentlessly with vile words one after another.


    In normal circumstances, they would not even think to retort the slightest word from the bandits and had to act obediently like it was the Will of the heavens when they are surrounded defenseless like this, and even back when they still had defenses from the security forces, they would only stand their ground and prayed that the bandits would give up without trying to offend or agitate them!


    Yet this time around, they could curse the bandits with whatever ravaging words they could utter from their mouth! Perhaps the only limitation was their lack of vocabulary for obscene words!


    This was all due to the instructions and scripts from Wei Shang and Fei Longwei. They needed the bandits to become angry so that their agitation could reveal their cultivation strength!


    "Hmph.. trash.." Fei Longwei stared at the bandits from far away as he snorted in disdain after he got a good look at the bandit''s overall strength as a group!


    Early stage Qi Condensation realm!


    This was the weakest cultivation realm that any cultivator could possess. Additionally, they were mostly in level 1 or level 2, where their martial arts were stronger than the normal people.


    As for skill arts? He reckoned that these bandits would know almost nothing about it!


    However, what he was most concerned about was the bald bandit leader! From the pulsations of the latter''s aura, it seems like he was only in the Core Formation realm, but it was obvious that this person was hiding his true cultivation realm!


    "It doesn''t matter.." Fei Longwei''s figure then gradually blended into the thickets around him before disappearing. He was preparing for an ambush along with Cucko and its several minions as what he and Wei Shang had planned before.


    Right now, their location was actually outside the village gate, located to the rear side of the enemy! They hid themselves here before the bandits even arrived!


    Holding the communication jade slip in his palm, Fei Longwei''s eyes flashed.


    "Commence the attack!"


    Tens of kilometers away, dust cloud could be seen trailing from the ground. Hundreds of bandits trampled the ground with their horses as they sprinted towards the Spring Blossom village!


    ...


    "Elder Cheng Chao, what''s wrong?!" Ruo Hen that was the first to see the horrified look of the Princess''s powerful maid could not help but to have a bad feeling about it.


    Pahh!!


    However, he was immediately slapped for speaking out loud by the latter, causing his cheeks to become red.


    "Quiet you fool!" Elder Cheng Chao said with a hushed voice.


    She then turned to Princess Meixiu and Ling Shin, before gritting her teeth and faced Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang as well. "Everyone, be careful! There is a powerful skeletal monster in front of us! I''m unable to detect its cultivation realm as it seems like it is hibernating at the moment, but from my experience, this kind of monster should be in the Nascent Soul realm!"


    "What?"


    Everyone was shocked by this revelation and they immediately understood on what kind of danger they were about to face right now.


    Wasting no more time, the trio nodded to each other before rallying to the Princess''s side! Also, they released their bloodline transformation so as to not let the monster detect them!


    It was a known fact that a monster''s cultivation realm was always stronger than humans even if both were on the same realm. Now that they knew they were facing against a Nascent Soul realm monster, unless they wanted to die, it would be foolish to continue remaining hostile with each other, so they threw aside their previous petty arguments and stood back to back!


    "Who among you is a Strategist? We need a battle plan right now!" Shen Murong grimly said.


    When an enemy became too strong to handle, the best course of action was always planning a battle formation, and none was more expert in it than a Strategist class cultivator!


    "I am!" Ling Shin answered, which surprised the trio. They had never imagined that this hot tempered and foul-mouthed person could be a Strategist!


    You really can''t judge a person from their looks!


    Quickly, Ling Shin''s mind whirred into action as he broke down everyone''s role. Based on his strength assessment on the people around him, Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Princess Meixiu became the Vanguard, with the former two as the tankers and the latter as the damage dealer!


    Meanwhile, Elder Cheng Chao would become the support in the rear-guard to deflect any lethal attack towards the whole members of the group while preserving her strength as much as possible. Ruo Hen and Wei Wang became the damage dealer as well but their main role was to switch between the Vanguards whenever they needed it!


    On the other hand, being the Strategist, Ling Shin would have to be in the rear-guard supervising the battle formation in order to instruct everyone for any minute changes to the plan. The dozens or so remaining soldiers of the Princess''s expedition party were tasked to protect him at all cost!


    This was going to be a drawn out battle and they needed to be on the defensive side. More than in trying to defeat the monster later, they needed to find the exit!


    Additionally, the negligible amount of spiritual Qi in the air adds more to their problem and this was what had Ling Shin worried the most!


    "I''ve contacted the Lord for a backup, but he says that we need to hold out on our own. Unless we are about to die, he would not be bothered to come here anytime soon because he is busy reading reports.." Wei Wang drew in the air with his spiritual Qi with an awkward expression.


    When Wang Dong and Shen Murong saw this, they immediately wanted to choke their Lord.


    Isn''t this Lord of their''s a little carefree right now? His words are a bit overboard too!


    "Who is this Lord of yours? Can he teleport or something to be saying like that?" Princess Meixiu by the side got curious.


    Naturally, Ling Shin who had already investigated Duan Li''s background when they lost in the Battle Stadium against him before, replied;


    "Their Lord is called Duan Li. He is only a measly Core Formation realm cultivator. That being said, his power level doesn''t seem to scale with the normal standards for some unknown reason and I dare say that his true power should rival a Nascent Soul realm!"


    He then continued, "I seem to recall that everyone was chanting him out loud to be the Child of Tian too!"


    Elder Cheng Chao frowned as she thought to herself, "Child of Tian? In this remote empire? How can that be?"


    Suddenly, her soul sense detected movements from the Skeletal monster in front of them!


    "Everyone! It''s coming!"


    ROOAAAARRRRRRRRRRR!!


    With the screech from the monster, the whole area trembled and a few rocks fell from the ceiling before the silhouette of a gigantic and elongated monster appeared!


    "What in the world... Isn''t that..!!" they gasped when the dust finally settled, revealing the true figure of the monster!


    "Sh*t! Sh*t!" Ruo Hen cursed as his back was drenched in sweat and his legs were trembling.


    It was a monster from the legends thought to be extinct..


    The Skull Centipede Emperor!


    (Author''s Note: I''m using the visual from the Skull Reaper in sword art online lol! You can imagine the situation to be like when Kirito and the rest fought that monster for the first time!)


    ...

 Chapter 367

    Wang Dong, Shen Murong and Princess Meixiu were all soaked in their own blood from top to bottom, and it was barely ten minutes or so since they first started fighting with the Skull Centipede Emperor, but they were already injured!


    Strong! This enemy was far too powerful!


    "Are we even damaging it at all?!" Princess Meixiu panted with heavy breaths as she finished up her strike!


    Boomm!! BAM!!


    A series of shocking images of numerous mini stars exploding on the skeletal frame of the Skull Centipede Emperor resounded and blinded the area they were in, causing deep vibrations in the ground and dust to fly all over, creating an extremely hectic scene!


    This was the Collapsing Star Kick, perhaps her most powerful offensive skill arts in her disposal right now. Not to mention Golden Core realm, even Nascent Soul realm would be slightly injured if they took a direct hit from this skill! Such was the formidable heritage of the Doulou''s royal family!


    However, this was already the fifth time she used such a devastating skill attack on the monster, yet all it managed to do was to knock back the monster with slight and insignificant cracks at most!


    Meanwhile, Wang Dong and Shen Murong was impeccable in their combination attacks and formation against the monster with their weird brotherhood relationship, sort of like an instinct between two fellow barbarians, and their battle sense was heightened to the maximum with the current danger they were in!


    All their skills and martial arts meld together to create a perfect harmony akin to a barbaric beast, unleashing its claws relentlessly!


    However, despite their best efforts, the bones of the Skull Centipede Emperor was too strong such that they could only leave a few scratch marks on its body. After all, against an undead, normal skill arts was already limited in their effectiveness even when used towards the minion and low-level undead, not to mention against a boss enemy like this!


    "Hey you, what''s the plan now? Quickly tell us what to do, or we all might just really die here!" Shen Murong called out towards the person at the back who was also busy fighting against the tail and legs of the monster that was attacking them like the flood from a hundred soldiers!


    "I''m thinking you fool! Why don''t you first focus on attracting all its attention so that I can have some breather to think properly dammit?!" Ling Shin shouted in reply as he parried the needle-like legs of the monster to the side.


    This was a truly terrifying monster, although the bulk of its lethal offense has been suppressed and taken care of by Elder Cheng Chao time and again, it was still able to inflict some severe damage to their tankers while using its other body parts and tails to attack their rear simultaneously!


    It was like the monster has eyes on both ends!


    "Hahahaha! This damned monster! Its hide is as tough as my grandfather''s skin! I''m feeling a gradual numb on my fist every time I punch it!" Wang Dong swiped off the blood trickling from his lips as his expression became a mix of excitement and grim.


    "You madman! How can you laugh at a time like this?! Attack properly!!" Ruo Hen by the side dished out medium to long range attack from time to time while keeping himself on the move.


    Since he was frequently switching to replace the tankers, he could not help but to feel alarmed on how fast his spiritual Qi reserve dropped by the seconds!


    It was as if a leak in a water container that began to grow in diameter as time passes by, so he was especially exasperated when he heard Wang Dong laughed out as if treating the whole thing as a joke when their entire situation was already spiralling down to the worst possible outcome!


    "Hahaha! Why don''t you come here and test the power behind my fist to see if I''m playing around or not?" Wang Dong replied as he charged forward again to attack the upper body of the Skull Centipede Emperor.


    Boommm!!


    KREEEEE!!


    The might behind his fist was unquestionable as it managed to rattle the enemy for a moment, and it was clear that his strength has since increased by a few notch than during the Battle Royale, coupled with him reactivating his bloodline transformation, every injury resulted in a hastened healing process, tempering his bodily cells to become stronger and durable than before.


    However, this came at a significant cost. After all, continuous forceful action of regeneration will expend the bloodline energy quicker, becoming thinner until one could no longer use their bloodline ability!


    Boomm!! BAM!!


    Shen Murong had also transformed back to his ancestral state, and right now, his rational mind was slowly slipping away from his grasp, overtaken by the vicious natural trait of the Shen bloodline and becoming more berserk as time went by!


    This was one its major drawbacks. While it could unleash a greater fighting prowess, there was a time limit to how long one could suppress the dragon''s desire within their blood for rampage! Gradually, Shen Murong''s attacks will become more ferocious and indiscriminate, such that he would not be able to discern between foes and friends!


    "Things are looking pretty bad.." Ling Shin gritted his teeth. He saw no other chances where they could turn the situation around other than the Princess revealing her true power!


    "Princess, we have no other choice! Use your bloodline power!" Ling Shin hastily said.


    Hearing this, the Princess initially rejected, but upon seeing her surrounding where her remaining soldiers began to die left and right, as well as the gradually exhausted maid protecting them, she gave one last good kick before she retreated away.


    "Dammit! You''re asking for it!!" she bellowed angrily at the monster.


    With that, Princess Meixiu has no choice but to finally unleash the full extent of her bloodline power, inducing a unique state in her reflexive and voluntary actions, where every move she made has no wasted movements and every attack was at maximum power!


    Doulou''s Bloodline Ancestral State, Martial Emperor Doulou''s Embodiment!


    Pow!! Pow!!


    With her every move pushed to the maximum level, the fight finally began to visibly change and favor the human cultivators.


    ...

 Chapter 368

    Like a reflector of some sort, Princess Meixiu deflected every attack the monster threw at her.


    Bam! Bam!


    Not only that, with every deflection, she was able to offset the balance of the monster gradually, knocking it back further and further to the walls before she threw out rapid flurry of combination attacks!


    "What a powerful bloodline!" Shen Murong and Wang Dong remarked grimly in their mind.


    It was said that martial artists that managed to perfect their moves to the pinnacle level would be able to display otherworldly strength beyond their current realm!


    However, what they were seeing right now was a display of power even surpassing that!


    There were no flashy skill arts used in her attacks, just plain fists, simple palm and raining kicks, but the overwhelming might behind these simple moves was far more formidable in their effects than those of the usual skill arts!


    In her Ancestral State, the embodiment of the world''s top martial artist as well as their first old ancestor, Doulou Xingkong, will be reignited in each of her bodily cells through her genes and bloodline, inducing supreme might that will temporarily increase her strength to that of the Nascent Soul realm!


    This was the trump card of the Doulou''s royal family!


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    In addition, undead were more susceptible to blunt and impact attacks, and such were the effects from her current continuous assaults!


    KREEEEEE!!


    The Skull Centipede Emperor that was backed into the corner and was getting pummeled around finally could no longer tolerate it and screeched angrily!


    Then, with a spin of its massive and long body, the monster turned into a deadly spinning top that sent shockwaves into its surrounding.


    BOOOMMM!!


    "Puhe!!"


    Everyone without exception, even Princess Meixiu in her Ancestral State was blasted off into the walls and crashed against it like broken dolls, spurting out blood and worsening their injuries!


    Moreover, the Skull Centipede Emperor was not finished yet.


    PEW! PEW! PEW!


    Along with its spin, the monster shoots out long and large spikes of bones from its body, flying towards the human cultivators with terrifying speed!


    "Damn it!" Elder Cheng Chao knew that this particular attack was far beyond the means of the people around her could chew on, so suppressing her injuries and fatigue, she dashed forward and extended her palm!


    "Impenetrable Palm Wall!"


    Wengg!!


    A huge green apparition in the form of a palm extended out in front of her, bouncing off the spikes of bones when they hit it!


    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    "Puhe!"


    The relentless shootings of bone spikes from the Skull Centipede Emperor kept on pressing against her palm and visible cracks swiftly started to show!


    This defensive skill art of her''s was extremely powerful that can ward of any attacks with the exchange of shaving off her spiritual Qi to negate the damage.


    However, each of the bone spikes possessed lethal amount of firepower behind them, and the current lack of spiritual Qi for her to absorb meant that she was quickly losing her ground!


    "If only we are fighting on the surface right now.. I would have mopped you within seconds!" Elder Cheng Chao cursed beneath her haggard breath.


    "Elder!" Princess Meixiu dashed forward and extended her palm to channel her spiritual Qi into the palm barrier in order to help reinforcing it.


    "Puhe!"


    Almost immediately, the princess spurted blood and stagard to her knees!


    "Princess! No!" Elder Cheng Chao''s face turned pale when she saw the current state of the princess behind her.


    Overexhaustion!


    The Ancestral State of the Doulou''s royal bloodline was indubitably the champion when it came to boosting the host''s combat capabilities. But at the same time, the rate of spiritual Qi it consumes was nothing to laugh at either!


    The lower one''s realm was when using it, the faster their rate of spiritual Qi drying out! After all, gaining such miraculous strength would always comes at a price, and such was the law of the world, balance as everything should be.


    With the Princess''s current Core Formation realm, gaining temporary access to the power of a Nascent Soul realm was only short-lived, about ten breaths!


    Therefore, it was already pushing for her to hold out more than that limit when she assaulted the monster before, and now, sending whatever spiritual Qi she had left in her reserve to reinforce the palm caused her cultivation to become unstable, inducing severe internal trauma!


    Crack! Pew!


    In that moment of losing her focus to strengthen the palm barrier, a bone spike managed to punched a hole on it and passed through, heading directly to impale the downed princess.


    "No!!!" Elder Cheng Chao, Ruo Hen, Ling Shin and the rest of the expeditionary soldiers screamed with a horrified voice!


    Pshhhh!!


    A red fountain of blood rained towards the ground creating a very tragic scene. Everyone''s mouth was agape as this crimson scene painted the picture!


    "Y-You...!!"


    All of them could not believe it, especially the princess when she looked up. There was a man standing tall before her like the Mount Tai!


    "You fool.. what are you doing sitting down like that?" the rasp voice of a gentle man said while blood was flowing down from his left chest that was penetrated by a long bone spike, stuck in his body.


    It was Wang Dong!


    The tip of the bone spike was only inches from reaching the princess''s forehead right now, and if not for him stopping the momentum of the bone spike with his body earlier, her life would have been forfeit!


    "Kughhh!!" with a grab of his two big hands, Wang Dong pulled the long bone spike off from his chest and threw it to the side, revealing the huge gaping hole on his body!


    Wengg...


    A breath later, the gaping hole immediately closed!


    "What a terrifying recovery speed!" Elder Cheng Chao said to herself as she witnessed this.


    It seems that the Wang Clan must not be underestimated!


    To think that such a life-threatening injury like that could recover in seconds.. it was unheard of, even in their Doulou Empire!


    Turning around, he saw that the princess was still rooted on the ground with a face full of disbelief, as if her thought process was frozen.


    "Sigh.." Wang Dong shook his head as he approached her.


    Next, Wang Dong made another action that thoroughly stupefied everyone again.


    "Eh?" the princess finally snapped out from her daze, and the sight before her was a scene that she will never forget for the rest of her lives.


    She was being carried on the arms of Wang Dong!


    The manly and stern look on his face, the blood on his martial Gi robe as a result of saving her, the firm grip of his hands holding her body..


    All these combined together made the image of Wang Dong extremely suave and handsome in the eyes of the Princess!


    "Take care of your princess!" Wang Dong said sternly towards the dumbstruck Ling Shin and Ruo Hen as he carried her to them before settling her to sit on the ground.


    "You are no longer in a condition to fight. Stay there and don''t be a burden!"


    After saying this, Wang Dong turned around and look towards Shen Murong and Wei Wang. As if they had agreed on something previously, they all nodded with a serious expression!


    "So.. it''s come to this.."


    The three of them stood side by side in front of the expedition army looking mysterious.


    Then, with a wave of their hand, they each gripped out a weapon from thin air, summoned from the spatial ring!


    Shen Murong with a pair of crimson gauntlets!


    Wang Dong with a pair of fist brass knuckles!


    Wei Wang with an adamantium katana!


    Just a single one of these weapon will be enough to shock the world thorough and thoroughly if they ever appeared on the public view, and now, three of them were suddenly wielded just like that in the hands of these three cultivators from the Jiu Empire!


    With this third surprise, the people from the Doulou Empire could not help but to be put on the verge of insanity!


    ...

 Chapter 369

    Shinggg!!


    "R-Resonating shimmers and vibrating radiance.. U-Ultimate graded weapons!!" Princess Meixiu and her expedition party stared at the three weapons in the hands of the trio in absolute disbelief as they swallowed a mouthful of saliva!


    The term ''Resonating shimmer and vibrating radiance'', was actually a poetic analogy made to describe the majesty of an Ultimate graded weapon when a first of its kind was discovered by an explorer in an ancient ruin!


    The explorer clearly described his first experience as being thoroughly mystified by it! More specifically, the shimmer from the reflection of the light on its body that seemed to resonate perfectly with the nature, such that even the light that touched upon it was affected by the great power harnessed within and was cut down forcefully, producing a crisp vibrating radiance, a trait only possessed by a weapon of it''s caliber!


    Huuu!!


    Everyone that aspired to become a powerful cultivator had always imagined themselves with an Ultimate graded weapons in hand. Thus, they were very versed in that unique description as it was their only lead to finding one even if they thought that it was an exaggeration.


    It was only now that they witnessed it themselves did they find the description to be not only accurate, but exact!


    How in the world did three of them suddenly appeared in their hands like that?


    Aren''t those weapons supposed to be the rarest of the rare, such that it would be more easier to find a needle in the middle of a wheat field?


    Didn''t the legends said that only those favored by the heavens would be able to obtain them, and that it would cost them everything they have?


    Heck, Heavens forbid, they aren''t supposed to appear in pair, not to mention three at the same time!!


    What the f*ck is going on? Are we dreaming?


    "T-Those weapons.. how.." Elder Cheng Chao was the most stupefied of them all. She was an old veteran and only the Heavens knew what she had to go through to obtain even a single piece of information relating to such weapon by rummaging through countless old tales and myths!


    It was only after spending huge amounts of effort that she was able to piece a few information together for the location the Legendary Ten Commandment sword that brought them to the Red desert!


    "Ah? Our weapons? Eh... It''s nothing too difficult!" Shen Murong answered casually as if it wasn''t something worth mentioning. However deep inside, he knew full well that they were dumbstruck to their core and even he would be the same given their position in this matter.


    Still, if he were to answer that their Lord had forged them out like making pancakes one after another, would they even believe him?


    Heck, he didn''t dare to say it lest he was sure that these mass of agitated people would ignore the monster in front of them to pummel him instead!


    They would take it as if he was mocking their intelligence!


    "Pu!" everyone found his answer to be stifling in their chest.


    "What? That cannot be! Ultimated graded weapons are-"


    "Ahem! We have no time to chat! Let''s slay that monster now! Hahahahaha!" Wang Dong that understood Shen Murong''s difficulties quickly interjected Elder Cheng Chao before she could even finish and gestured towards the brother beside him to not answer them.


    Like a pair of twin brothers by birth, they nodded to each other in understanding!


    "Let''s go!"


    BOOMMM!!


    The moment they channeled their spiritual Qi into their individual weapons, these stuff of legends, even though they were devoid of soul, seemed to scream in excitement by instinct as it pulsated waves of overwhelming might!


    Crack! Crack!


    The ground beneath their feet started to crack outwards like the shapes of cobwebs and their aura surged with unstoppable momentum as if a broken dam!


    Pinnacle stage Core Formation realm..


    Pinnacle stage Golden Core realm..


    Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm!


    BOOMMMM!!


    Just like that, their aura bursted straight into the Pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm within seconds!


    This sudden upgrade to the highest zenith of the power level in the Tian continent had the trio felt like they were ascending to become true immortals to slay deities and rob the Heavens of their treasures!


    Who can stop them now?


    "Ahh!! What power!!!" the crowd exclaimed excitedly as they witnessed this overpowered scene and they could not help but to have a series of orgasm! Even Elder Cheng Chao felt her ovaries to suddenly explode in activity and become fertile again despite her old age!


    This was why everyone seeks to obtain Ultimate graded weapons! Just the sheer insane jump in power level would be enough to send a peasant by the street to become an overreaching and domineering Overlord!


    It was like an ant that jumped into the water, only to leap out to become a dragon at the next moment!


    KREEEEE!!


    The Skull Centipede Emperor also seemed to be affected by the sudden torrential surge of powerful auras coming from the three human cultivators in front of it, and it screeched sounding fearful and wary of the trio now!


    "Now!"


    Wang Dong dashed first and unleashed his most powerful fist art!


    Thousand Fists of the Northeastern Star!


    Like the rapid fire of arrows from the bows of a thousand soldiers, his fists connected with the skeletal frame of the monster with almost no delay at all!


    BAMM!! BAMM!! BAMM!!


    "KREEEE!!"


    The Skull Centipede Emperor screeched in agonized pain as some of its bones began to crack and shatter under the punishing might of the thousand fists from Wang Dong!


    "I''m next!" Shen Murong then followed suit and also deployed his most devastating offensive skill art!


    Dragon Ascending Swipe!


    Rotating his body, Shen Murong then moved into an uppercut motion, following which, a vivid image of a dragon claw swiping the Skull Centipede Emperor appeared!


    BAMMM!!


    As if it was suddenly hit under its jaw by a force equivalent to a thrown mountain cliff, the skeletal monster''s bone cracked and shattered further as its massive body was lifted into the air from the resulting impact!


    At this point, it was obvious that it had suffered some serious injuries and was struggling to remain alive!


    Klank!


    Wei Wang that was charging his spiritual Qi inside his katana then suddenly appeared below where the monster was before with a ''swosh''. Taking a stance, Wei Wang grasped the handle of his katana firmly as his eyes glinted like a hawk''s!


    With a burst of his breath, he then unsheathed his katana with a speed that cannot be seen by the naked eye, producing a delayed sonic boom even!


    Quickdraw of the Splitting Sky!


    BOOMM!!


    ...


    "Do you think that I am here to babysit you all?" Duan Li spoke coldly behind his helmet while thinking his voice sounded cool this way as he floated above the naked and unconscious You Wing with exposed butt cheeks who had his armor disintegrated from Duan Li''s aura before.


    "W-We do not dare!"


    The rest of the Extermination Knights quickly flew to bow before Duan Li as they apologized. A number of ideas appeared in their mind as to the identity of the powerful expert before them!


    The previous aura that Duan Li used on them was similar to when the Imperial Palace collapse, and it was far too different from the aura of their Emperor as they were used to feeling it!


    At the same time however, this aura of his was several magnitudes more stronger if not beyond that than anything they''ve ever felt before, and they could only think of several people with this kind of power!


    The strongest expert of any Great Clans, even stronger than the clan leaders themselves..


    The Great Patriarchs!


    "If I''m not mistaken, since his aura first appeared in the Imperial Palace, it should not be possible for any other Great Patriarchs of the rest of the Great Clans to be there.. then that means.. this person in front of us should be..!!" as his thought process arrived there, the person clad in silver full plate armor that seemed to be their leader began to sweat buckets!


    The rest beside him also seemed to have come to their own conclusions as well and their face turned pale!


    The person standing before them with overwhelming power should be..


    The Great Patriarch of the Royal Liu Clan!


    "Paying respects to the Great Patriarch Liu!!"


    ...

 Chapter 370 - From Author..

    I would first like to extend my appreciation to everyone here for your kind support thus far. Today, I was checking my inbox when a concerned and loyal reader of UIU sent me an email that made me smile. He/She was scared that I am about to stop writing because the release rate is only 3 chapters per week now. Therefore, I am here to answer everyone''s doubt that its only because I have a job now (two actually) that I could only finish 3 or 4 chapters per week instead of everyday like what I used to. Furthermore, because of covid, my monthly income is kind of affected because one of my occupation is that I am a teacher, so I had to find extra money somewhere and thus, I ended up doing woodworking for 1/3 of my week nowadays. My schedule for writing since early this year is around 9pm to 1am (my patrons know this because of the timestamp from my post there) after I finish my work, so as you can see, its quite tight. This however, doesn''t mean that I will stop writing. After all, I am invested in this novel and it is my passion now. I want to see it to completion and be proud of it when its done, that is one of my goal. While it is Duan Li''s journey, it is also mine. So don''t worry, I''m still writing ;) Lastly, I hope that everyone can still enjoy this novel, I made it so people can laugh (other than for my income through patre0n), so if you do laugh, I hope that it will lighten up your day no matter what you are going through right now. Love you all and stay safe everyone!

 Chapter 371

    "Ah?" Both Duan Li and Liu Sheng Duhai was stupefied with what the Extermination Knights was calling him.


    This was especially so for Liu Sheng Duhai, his mind went into a daze for a short moment before clenching his fists tight.


    Paying respects to the Great Patriarch Liu your head!!


    One has to know that Patriarch Liu has never appeared in public for the last 300 years! He was someone that practiced the old ascetics way of life and had completely severed his ties with the mundane world!


    Unless it was absolutely necessary for him to intervene for the sake of the Liu Clan''s survival, not even the destruction of the Liu Empire would faze him into making an action!


    In addition, the Patriarch himself did not fancy wearing armors, not to mention full plate armors and preferred more of using robes!


    After all, being someone in the top apex of power in the world of cultivation, there were not many that could injure their physical body!


    Still, he understood their reasoning behind their misunderstanding, so he had no choice but to suppress the agitated feeling he had inside.


    Had this been any other occasion, he would have long pummeled them half foot into their grave for mistaking their great Patriarch as someone else!


    Hais!


    "Hmm. It would be the best for you all to be prudent in your words, and speak non of this again. Also, from now on, do not call me that!" Duan Li waved his hand as he made use of their misunderstanding to solidify his standing and identity among them!


    They are mistaking me as someone else? Eh, I''ll just play along then!


    Seeing the Great Patriarch of the Liu Clan looking displeased, the Extermination Knights bowed their heads even lower and apologized as they were scared into their wits!


    This was the Great Patriarch they were talking about here, and a single wave from his hand would be enough to sever their flesh and skin from their bones!


    Furthermore, they were fearful of being punished like their fellow comrade You Wing. If they were to be stripped naked like that, wouldn''t they have lost all their dignity immediately?


    Who could have thought that the Great Patriarch of the royal Liu Clan would be so... particular in his means?


    Indeed as the rumors said, the apex cultivators of the Tian continent were all eccentric individuals and does things quite differently than others!


    "T-Then, how should we address you E-Elder?" their leader said hesitantly.


    "Hmm." Unbeknownst to him that he had just shifted the image of the honorable and Great Patriarch of the royal Liu Clan into something that could make the person himself to commit suicide in shame, Duan Li cupped the chin of his helmet as he pondered deep like an expert contemplating on the meaning of life.


    "You can call me.. Supreme Elder!" Duan Li finally made up his mind.


    "Yes! Supreme Elder!" the Extermination Knights swiftly understood the reasoning behind this new alias of his!


    Perhaps the Great Patriarch wanted to be low profile and that was why he was like this!


    En! That should be the case!


    Meanwhile, Liu Sheng Duhai also nodded in satisfaction of Duan Li''s choice of name as it sounded powerful enough. Since Duan Li was posing as their Great Patriarch, it was good for them too if viewed from another perspective!


    After all, although their Great Patriarch was powerful as well, he was not as overpowered as Duan Li! Therefore, if their enemy misunderstood their Great Patriarch to have such an overwhelming power, who would dare to look down on them again?


    With a suave turn, Duan Li then said with solemn voice, "Let us depart!"


    ...


    Pshh!! Pshh!!


    "Its an ambush! Disperse!" the bald and overweight bandit leader quickly commanded his minions after they were suddenly attacked from behind!


    "Who is it? Who dares to sneak attack the great Busheng? Come out!" he bellowed in fury as his veins popped out from his temples.


    He was too focused on seeing his enemy got baited with the bandits he sent forward to attack the gates in order to test the waters, yet who knew that the enemy would take that opportunity to attack them instead?


    Dammit!


    Roughly counting, of the 80 bandits that came along with him to the Spring Blossom village, 24 were killed instantaneously by the ambush! This was a scary number for him!


    Granted that they were all trash with their cultivation realm only in the Early stage of the Qi Condensation realm, they were still his minions and meat shields!


    Ducking down inside a one meter deep natural trench along with his men, he then assessed the location from where the ambush came from and was going to burn their image into his mind!


    However, what he saw was only the gustling of sand and a dung beetle rolling up a big dump of sh*t.


    "Ah? There is no one?"


    This cannot be! How are they able to disappear so suddenly!


    "Wait.. why are there so many chickens there? Are the village rearing this poultry animal outside their gates?"


    Could it be.. that these chickens were the ones that ambushed them and the dung beetle was their leader?


    Pah!


    He then slapped himself in the face to stop this thoughts of his, "I must be going senile to even count that as a possibility! Damn it all!"


    "Peel open your eyes! They must be nearby!" he instructed with gritted teeth!


    Right after he said this, screams were suddenly heard from behind him!


    Pshh!! Pshhh!!


    "Ahhh!!"


    "We are under attack!"


    It turns out that the advance party that he sent to attack the gate was also ambushed somehow from the bush beside them!


    When he narrowed his eyes to look for the enemies, he still found no one but a pack of chickens!


    Could it possibly be?


    F*ck!


    "Slaughter those chickens! There are something wrong with them!" he quickly commanded, trusting his instinct this time around!


    "Ah? Great Heavenly Immortal are you sure?" his men were dumbfounded and thought that their leader misspoke.


    Pahh!!


    Busheng could no longer tolerate it and slapped a few of his men harshly!


    "Go and kill those chickens now or die!!"


    ...


    Far in the distance, a cavalry of bandits in a neat formation observed the current happenings outside the gate of the Spring Blossom village from afar with dumbfounded expression.


    "Why are they.. chasing chickens?"


    ...

 Chapter 372

    "What the hell is Ang Busheng up to?!" said a man with a deep and cold voice at the forefront of the bandit cavalry that just arrived.


    This man was the leader of the Red Sands Bandit that was currently escaping from the pursue of Lu Bu and Zhang Liao''s army, Ang Busano!


    He had instructed the other party to clear the village in advance and hold some villagers as hostages for their leverage later on which was supposed to be completed before he arrived..


    Yet, not only does the other party failed to achieve that, the latter even seemed to instruct his minions to go on chasing some damned chickens!


    Curses!!


    Here we are on a rush because we need to rally together at this village and we have tasked you with such an important mission in order to ensure our survival, but you are playing with chickens instead!


    "Give me that!" Busano grabbed a spear from the person beside him forcefully.


    From the top of his steed, he raised his hand with the spear clenched tight, such that his arm muscles were bulging with popping veins!


    "Hengg!!"


    Channeling his spiritual Qi into his throw, the spear ripped through the air at incredible speeds, creating a loud rumbling noises akin to the sound of thunder!


    BOOOMM!!


    "AHH!!"


    The spear landed in front of the bandits that were chasing the chickens around, and the resulting impact exploded off a huge chunk of the ground into the air!


    The bandits were blown a few meters away and they were shook by this sudden attack!


    Busheng that watched this immediately traced the trajectory from where the spear came from, and upon seeing the tall and lean figure on top of a black mount, his expression quickly changed into delight as he rejoiced!


    "Elder brother!!"


    ...


    Fei Longwei that was hiding amidst the bushes narrowed his eyes upon seeing the new waves of bandits trudging down the slope.


    "What.. there are more?!" he said grimly to himself as his expression became serious.


    This was because the new bandits that had just arrived were hundreds in numbers, perhaps almost reaching a thousand!


    How can there possibly be this many bandits around this area?


    In addition, all of these bandits were on horses, in other words..


    Bandit Cavalry!


    These were considered as elite troops in the circles of banditry and their fighting prowess was only a few notches weaker compared to those in the military division of an empire!


    Through synchronising their spiritual Qi with their mounts, further augmented with their battle formation, their fighting prowess will increase by several folds and could easily devastate opponents and cultivators alike if their enemy were not careful!


    Just what is going on for this so many bandits to appear here?


    I need to regroup back with Wei Shang and Cucko to discuss new plan to combat this..


    Whooshh!!


    Without wasting any more time, Fei Longwei slipped quickly along the natural trenches and entered through a hole under the village wall that was concealed by some bushes. He had dug this hole before so he could easily enter and exit the village anytime he wanted.


    ...


    "What''s happening? Why are there so many bandits outside now?" Wei Shang asked after Fei Longwei arrived.


    "I don''t know.. its possible that they might be on a raid mission!" Fei Longwei shook his head and answered as they continued to watch the bandits meeting up with each other through the cracks in the village wall.


    Meanwhile, the rest of the villagers got incredibly scared so they instructed the elderly, women and children to hide themselves underground, an emergency bunker they created before the bandits arrived.


    In the event that they were defeated, the hidden bunker with its entrance located under the pond on the eastern side of the village should be enough for them to remain undetected for a few days before help arrives!


    On the other hand, some brave men decided to stay and fight the bandits, their resoluteness as firm as the immovable mountains which could be seen from their eyes!


    Some were filled with deep anger and hatred due to the loss of their loved ones, while others stayed because of their beliefs in justice!


    Looking at these people, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei nodded in satisfaction!


    "Cuck cucko!" Cucko beckoned for them to see the drawing it made on the ground.


    "A.. battle.. plan?" everyone was stupefied by this odd chicken when they saw what it had just shown them!


    An elaborate and detailed battle plan!


    This wasn''t something that could just be made out of thin air, not to mention from a chicken!


    "Just how is this chicken able to do this?" Wei Shang blurted out loud, before covering his mouth immediately after. He recalled that Cucko doesn''t like to be called that.


    Cucko that heard this then leaped to scratch his face using its mighty talons.


    "Ahh!! I''m sorry! I''m sorry!"


    While Wei Shang got himself pummeled by Cucko, Fei Longwei stared at the battle plan in amazement.


    Cupping his chin, he analyzed the rationale of the battle plan several times and he found it to be impeccable!


    "Focusing on the small fries instead of the big ones in order to reduce their numbers.. I see!"


    Going by the battle plan drafted by Cucko, it seems like this chicken intended to use its minions to thoroughly decimate the bandits!


    They on the other hand, should focus on defeating the bandit leaders!


    "Can''t a chicken be smart?! Memorize this quickly! The bandits are not going to wait for us!" Cucko said to them angrily with telepathy.


    The men of the villagers that stayed previously quickly immersed themselves in the battle plan before nodding and swiftly getting into position.


    Since they were incapable of battle, Cucko instructed them to shoot arrows randomly into the sky!


    ...


    Pahh!!


    "You are telling me, that some f*cking chickens are the ones ambushing your group and killing your people?!" Busano bellowed angrily and slapped Busheng in the face, the force behind his slap was so powerful that it sent the latter spinning in the air before crashing against the ground with his heavy weight.


    Boomm!!


    "Elder Brother.. I-I''m not lying! I''m telling you, the chickens are weird-"


    "Enough!!" Busano shouted once more to interject Busheng before the latter could finish his sentence.


    He then continued, "I''m disappointed in you! Not only have you compromised our illegal dealings back then, causing everyone here to be cast away as exiles, you even have the gall to spout such nonsense rubbish before me? Did you think that this brother of yours have gone senile?!"


    You''ve got to be kidding me!


    No matter how one masterfully tamed the chickens, they are still f*cking chickens in the end!


    How will they even possess the strength to murder humans? They are not monsters!!


    CLANGG!!


    "Hmm?"


    Suddenly, the village gate further in front of them opened slowly before revealing two solemn figure staring with indifferent eyes towards them!


    "They''ve come out?" Busheng and Busano were surprised. But then, they quickly calmed down.


    "So they wanted to face us up front? Are they mocking us?" Busano''s face contorted as he couldn''t stand being looked down by others.


    "Elder brother, I don''t think its only the two of them.. there must be more inside!" Busheng remarked.


    "Hmph! So what if there are more?" Busano replied with his voice full of disdain. "Judging by their aura, they are only Middle stage Core Formation realm cultivators at best!"


    He himself was a Late Stage Golden Core realm cultivator, thus how can two insignificant Core Formation realm cultivators will be able to catch his interest?


    Additionally, not to mention him, even his little brother Busheng was already an Early Stage Golden Core realm cultivator!


    The huge gap between these two realms was like comparing the heights between a hill and a mountain, it was too huge of a difference!


    In his view, the moment the two came out to face them, they were already as good as dead for him!


    "Hear me, you fools! I am Ang Busano, leader of the Red Sands bandit! Surrender or face-"


    Before he could even finish, a black metal rod bolted through the air to pierce his neck!


    Whooshh!!


    Peng!!


    It was a sneak attack deployed by Fei Longwei''s dark arts. Injecting his spiritual Qi into a metal rod before propelling it without any sorts of visible hand movements other than twitching his index finger forward, causing all of his enemies before this to be taken by surprise and die without even knowing how!


    This time however, his sneak attack failed as it was caught by the hand of the bandit called Busano!


    "To dare attack me in the middle of my speech.. impudent!! Hear me soldiers! Charge and kill them!!!" Busano immediately got ticked off and ordered his men to charge!


    Roaaarr!!


    Like the rumbling sounds of thunder, the hooves of their mounts created mini quakes on the ground as they charged down from the slopes, causing the tiny pebbles to move around from the vibrations!


    "It''s starting!!" Fei Longwei and Wei Shang summoned their weapons from their spatial ring before charging forward as well!


    ...

 Chapter 373

    "Charge!!" the bandits bellowed on top of their mounts as they closed in. They were determined to annihilate the two enemy in front of them in this single clash!


    However..


    Pew! Pew! Pew!


    From behind the village walls, countless numbers of arrows were being released into the sky before falling down onto the bandit cavalry like rain!


    "Hahaha! Petty tricks! Shield up!" commanded Busano as he gave a mocking laugh.


    Huu!!


    The bandit cavalry rose their shield above their head as they continued to charge forward. Ang Busano and Ang Busheng looked proud as they witnessed this and also thought that the arrows were a joke.


    How can mere arrows like that defeat their cavalry?


    But then, something inconceivable happened!


    Just before the arrow fell, Fei Longwei waved his left hand, and a part of these arrows that were originally going down immediately went sideways like the receding tide!


    Quickly after, Fei Longwei waved his left hand again, and this time, the arrows that went sideways returned to bolt at the bandit from their side in a sharp arc!


    From afar, it was as if Fei Longwei was controlling an army of bees that flowed together with the dance of his palm!


    Pshh!! Pshh!!


    "Ah!!"


    "What''s going on?!"


    "Where do these arrows come from?"


    As the change in direction of the arrows were too abrupt, the bandit cavalry was taken by surprise and tens of them were hit from their sides, causing them to fall from their horses and crash to the ground!


    As a result, to avoid trampling their brothers, the bandit cavalry had to separate into two direction like a river that was diverged after hitting a wedge!


    This created an opportunity for Fei Longwei and Wei Shang to dash forward and finished off the fallen bandits one by one amidst the chaos!


    ...


    "Dammit! How did he control those arrows like that!" Busano clenched his teeth in anger. "Let''s see how long you two will last!"


    After the initial surprise, the bandit cavalry then converged together once more to charge Fei Longwei and Wei Shang from their back!


    Pew! Pew! Pew!


    Another wave of arrows began to rain down from the sky once more from behind the village wall!


    "The same trick won''t work twice! Everyone, brace and form tortoise formation!" Busano commanded from afar!


    Huu!!


    The bandit cavalry slowed down their charge and braced closer together as they rose their shield above their head. The outer layer of the bandit cavalry then rose their shield to the side to block incoming arrows from the side as well as the front!


    "Hmph!" Fei Longwei snorted and waved his left hand downwards.


    Pew! Pew! Pew!


    This time, the arrows did not go sideways. Instead, as if given steroids, the arrows in midair suddenly began to rotate clockwise and their bolting speed increased tremendously, arriving sooner than expected!


    Clang! Clang! Clang!


    "Ahh!!"


    Some of the arrows managed to penetrate their metal shield and went through it, striking the bandit cavalry directly into their head! However, most of the arrows only managed to penetrate the shield by the arrowhead tip only, causing the bandits to laugh in disdain!


    "Hahaha! Fools! Die!!"


    They were initially elated and picked up speed to continue their charge once more, but when they looked at Fei Longwei''s face that was devoid of panic, they realized that something was wrong.


    "Hmph. You die." Fei Longwei said as he snapped his left fingers.


    The arrowhead tip that went through their shields began to glow red hot before exploding at the next second!


    KABOOMMMM!!


    "Ahhh!! No!!"


    The force of the explosion threw the bandit cavalry''s formation into disarray and most of them fell down from their horse!


    If they did not die from the explosion, they were severely burnt or injured. Thus, taking this opportunity, Fei Longwei and Wei Shang dashed to finish them off like before!


    ...


    "Sh*t! Bunch of useless fools!" Busano bellowed in rage.


    He had sent tens of his men to quickly wipe out the two figures, yet it went the other way around instead!


    How could he not feel humiliated?


    "Elder brother, those two doesn''t seem like the average cultivators that we usually faced.. should we head there ourselves?" Busheng suggested.


    Pahh!!


    Busano slapped his face before shouting at him, "You shut your mouth! You think they are a threat to us?"


    "B-But the men.." Busheng wanted to retort but then held himself back. His older brother has always been a high tempered person since childhood and would not tolerate anyone going against his words!


    In his dejection, he looked to the ground beside him before his expression froze.


    Chicken? What''s that in its mouth?


    What he saw was a chicken walking casually between their ranks and dropping some sort of tiny cylindrical metal on the ground after a few meters between each other.


    "Oh no!" realizing that they were careless, he immediately looked around frantically!


    It wasn''t obvious, but there were several chickens walking around in their ranks while dropping some cylindrical metals!


    Since most of them were on their mount, the tiny chickens walking around below them did not attract their attention at all. In the first place, who would even pay attention to a bunch of chickens walking around anyway?


    Just by their mount giving a kick to those chickens would be enough to kill them! Yet the weird thing was that the horse doesn''t seem to want to move their limbs even when their eyes were clearly locked on the chicken walking around them!


    "Those eyes... the horses.. they are intimidated by fear!" Busheng gasped in disbelief!


    The only time where their mount would be scared into not moving like that was upon meeting their natural predator! The fear of being overpowered sent their muscles clenching tightly to their bones, such that they were not able to move at all!


    The horses are afraid of these chickens? Impossible!


    Busheng then focused his attention towards one of the chicken nearby and he felt something that sent him into goosebumps!


    "T-These chickens.. Qi Condensation realm?!"


    ...


    "Pant.. pant..!!"


    Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang sat on the ground with heavy breaths and their countenance pale.


    By using their Ultimate graded weapons, every single cell within their body was drowned in an archaic and mysterious power that grants them insurmountable power boost!


    However, with their low base cultivation realm, they could only last for less than ten breaths before their entire spiritual Qi reserve were sapped dry by their weapons!


    Furthermore, since their body was driven to their very limits, now that the power was gone, all their bodily muscles were mostly torn from their excessive movements!


    Currently, they couldn''t even stand up anymore and even breathing felt painful to them!


    "Is.. Is it over?" Princess Meixiu and her expedition party were still dazed by the scene previously.


    After all, their power level increase was so unreal that they felt that it was nothing more but a dream!


    As for the Skull Centipede Emperor, it was now laying on the ground without a single twitch! A monstrously powerful monster like that was beaten in seconds..


    The Ultimate graded weapons sure do live up to their name!


    "Those weapons.." Ruo Hen stepped forward with fixated eyes on the three Ultimate graded weapons beside the injured trio.


    "Ultimate graded weapons.."


    Slowly, more and more of the people got their eyes fixated on the three Ultimate graded weapons, even Princess Meixiu and Elder Cheng Chao were not an exception!


    The allure of possessing them was far too great for them to handle!


    "Move any closer, and we will have to kill you all." Shen Murong narrowed his eyes and stared at them with unabated killing intent.


    Despite him being casual around Duan Li, treating the latter like a friend and a rival, sometimes a little disrespectful even, deep inside, he earnestly respected Duan Li''s words as his Lord!


    Shen Murong recalled what Duan Li said to them when they were gifted their Ultimate graded weapons;


    "Should you have to draw these weapon out, your enemy.. must die!!"


    Wang Dong and Wei Wang also radiated out unrestricted killing intent, and their grip over their weapons tightened!


    If possible, they do not want to kill the opposing party, but the command from their Lord was absolute!


    If the people in front of them decided to become their enemy, then die they shall!


    However..


    KREEEEE!!!


    The fallen Skull Centipede Emperor rose back before everyone!


    ...

 Chapter 374

    KREEEEE!!


    The Skull Centipede Emperor, previously thought to be defeated by the combined strike of Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang suddenly screeched out loudly, snapping the people back into their rational mind from the allure of the Ultimate graded weapons!


    "Ah! It''s not dead yet!"


    "How is this possible?!"


    All the broken and fractured bones of the monster began to fix themselves together, the horrifying sight made everyone unconsciously stepped back!


    "F*ck! We forgot one important thing about the Skull Centipede Emperor!" Ling Shin cursed out.


    Everyone then realized what he meant by that, making their countenance pale and their knees to buckle down in despair. It was because the monster in front of them was..


    An undead!


    This was why undead enemies were the most terrifying out of all the other types of monsters. Unless they were killed by a light attribute attack, or that their curse remains unlifted, they will still resurrect themselves again and again as long as a single bone still remains!


    This was similar to when they encountered the undead skeletons when they first entered the ruin!


    "We have no chance to defeat it anymore! Princess, you must escape along with the rest of them!" Elder Cheng Chao turned towards Princess Meixiu with a serious expression.


    "Elder, no!" Princess Meixiu understood what her personal maid was trying to do.


    She was going to hold the Skull Centipede Emperor by herself, sacrificing her life in the end! This was a common tragic ending in some of the novel that she read in her free time.


    Gritting her teeth, Elder Cheng Chao suppressed the tumultous emotions inside her heart and turned around, stepping forward to face the Skull Centipede Emperor!


    "Ling Shin and Ruo Hen, protect the princess with your life. You know what will happen if she lost her life here!" she said without turning her back.


    Wengg!!


    As a Nascent Soul realm cultivator, she still had plenty of spiritual Qi reserves to fight and block the undead in front of them alone. Even though the chances of her making it out in the end was practically nill, for her, it was neccessary in order to let the princess survive!


    Driving her spritual Qi inside her meridians to the limit, the air around her started to vibrate and seethed out!


    Previously, she was still holding herself back but now, she could no longer afford to do so. She was going to release everything from here on out.


    "Stop! What are you guys trying to do? We cannot leave Elder Cheng Chao to face that monster alone!"


    Ling Shin and Ruo Hen lifted the immobilized princess and ran towards an empty tunnelway that that they discovered during their fight, taking their chances and hoping it to be the exit. After all, staying would inevitably means death for everyone.


    "Let me go! No! Elder!" the princess cried out with her heart. From a young age, Elder Cheng Chao was always with her wherever she went to and in this regard, the other party was more like a mother to her than anything else, even when compared to her real mother, the Empress of the Doulou Empire!


    Meanwhile, Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang that were already exhausted and was no longer able to move or fight could only sighed out at this unexpected ending. They had already given their all, but the monster was still alive and couldn''t be killed!


    Their only regret was not realizing it sooner that the monster they were facing was an undead!


    Just as they thought that their life would end there, something happened!


    "Eh? What''s that?"


    Wengg!!


    A ripple in the space in front of them suddenly appeared, attracting their attention. The resulting ripple causes strong turbulence in the huge cavern which also attracted the attention of the escaping expedition party as they turned around.


    "A teleportation portal?" Elder Cheng Chao widened her eyes in disbelief!


    Teleportation was a skill art that was exceedingly rare in the Tian continent, and she only knew a handful of people in the Doulou Empire that could use it, which could be counted by hand. However, to the best of her knowledge, it should not be possible to open a portal where the user had not been to!


    Since they had just discovered this ruin, it was not possible that an expert from their Empire could suddenly teleport at their position! More than that, just the sheer vast distance between their empire and their current location already made it impossible to teleport!


    Thus, the only possible explanation was that..


    The expert capable of using the teleportation skill was someone from the Jiu Empire!


    Just who is it?


    Crack!


    A hand pulled out the fabric of space before revealing a silhouette stepping outside from the portal. This figure wore a majestic white robe and donning a white plain mask. His long black hair draped over his shoulder and down to his back with his lean figure created a mysterious sensation, inducing subconscious subservience on those that witnessed this sight!


    Elder Cheng Chao and Princess Meixiu were very familiar with this kind of unique aura and disposition the other party was giving them. It was similar to the presence of someone sitting at the very apex of the power chain..


    An Emperor!


    Arriving at this thought, Elder Cheng Chao immediately clasped her hands together towards the figure that just arrived. A gesture of the utmost respect!


    "Paying respects to the Jiu Emperor, Jiu Xian Ping!" she said with a gladdened voice.


    If the Emperor himself was here, then their situation finally turned out for the better. After all, no matter where one went, the supreme might of an Emperor was unquestionable!


    Gasp!


    "That person.. is the Jiu Emperor?" the retreating expedition party was shocked, before kneeling on the ground.


    "Paying respects to the Jiu Emperor!"


    Hearing this, the White figure with his hands clasped behind his back snorted, appearing to be displeased.


    "Hmph. What Jiu Emperor? Do you think that I am someone that insignificant?" the White figure said, his voice sounded distorted under his mask.


    "Ah?" everyone was dumbfounded by this statement.


    To say that an emperor was insignificant, someone who could move the mountains and hills around by their whims..


    Who is this fellow actually?


    Elder Cheng Chao was even more surprised by this. She dared not believe that her senses was wrong in identifying the majestic and overbearing presence of an emperor!


    "Hahahaha! You are finally here! What took you so long dammit?" Shen Murong laughed out, his previous exhaustion was somehow lifted by the presence of the person in front of them.


    "You think that I am so free?" the White figure harrumphed and turned to look at the frozen Skull Centipede Emperor. It seems that its survival instinct that was long dead with its life was forcefully turned on somehow in front of the White figure! It wasn''t able to move no matter what it tried!


    This was primordial fear!


    "What is this thing? You guys are troubled by this insect?" the White figure threw out a casual backhanded slap that seemed to be the most ordinary thing in the world, like shooing an annoying fly!


    However..


    PENGG!!


    As if being hit by a mountain, the Skull Centipede Emperor was catapulted to the wall of the cavern and created a huge depression on it!


    BOOMM!!


    This sight widened the eyes of everyone except the trio. They had expected this to happen as soon as the White figure appeared!


    Who else was as overpowered as this person? There was only one existence!


    Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang chuckled and shook their head before kneeling, and what they said at the next moment seemed to shatter the minds of everyone around them!


    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!"


    ...

 375 Chapter 367: Lesson learned!

    "Ah?" the minds of everyone present was sent into chaos as soon as they heard the trio calling the White figure as ''Imperial Overseer!''


    "This person is the one that they called as the.. Imperial Overseer?" Elder Cheng Chao, Princess Meixiu and the rest of her expedition party had their mouth agape, and their countenance changed drastically from elated to being terrified!


    This was a person that stood above the Emperor!


    They had heard the rumors about this newly inaugurated Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire. It was said that during his coronation ceremony, two immortals from the heavens descended to kill him for possessing powers that were not of this world. However, instead of killing him, it was the immortal himself that ended up being killed by the other party while the other one had to escape with his tail between his legs!


    Such rumors were of course denied vehemently by the public when it spread. After all, it was far too outlandish to be real, and those that claimed to see the event happening with their own eyes were thought to be delusional or was bought for some ulterior purposes!


    Who were the immortals? They were mythical beings thought to live above the sky of the Tian continent!


    The immortals possess immeasurable power that could wipe all life in the Tian continent with their thoughts. Thus, how could it be real?


    This was also their previous mindset about the Imperial Overseer, thinking that the story was botched and exaggerated in order to prop up his name. However, now seeing the capability of the other party with their own eyes, this mindset of theirs began to change!


    Casually slapping the Skull Centipede Emperor that was on the level of a Nascent Soul realm as if swatting an annoying fly?


    Most of them were experienced cultivators and had witnessed a few bizarre things, but there was no precedence of such sight before in their life!


    "P-Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire!" Elder Cheng Chao swiftly corrected herself with a visible change in her tone. Her cultivator''s instinct was screaming to herself that the person in front of them were not to be offended at all cost!


    "P-Paying respects to the I-Imperial Overseer!" the rest of them followed suit with stuttering voices, feeling terrified!


    "Un." the White figure nodded in satisfaction after everyone realized who he was. Turning back to the undead monster that he just slapped, he then spoke coldly;


    "You are still not lowering yourself before my presence?"


    KREEEEEE!!


    Due to the White figure''s intimidating stare, the survival instinct of the Skull Centipede Emperor kicked in. Like a cornered rabbit that had no choice but to bare its fangs, it began to dash towards the White figure!


    Of course, this thoroughly enraged the White figure instead!


    "Impudent!"


    With this single word coming out from his mouth, a murderous red aura flooded the entire cavern like a broken dam before freezing the monster on its spot!


    "W-What a killing intent!" Elder Cheng Chao widened her eyes in horror. This was her first time feeling such a deep killing intent from someone to the point that she could feel her bones becoming cold!


    She had felt the Doulou''s Emperor killing intent before, and it wasn''t as intense as this!


    "H-Hey... don''t you think that... he is a little different?" Wang Dong whispered to Shen Murong.


    With a confused expression, Shen Murong nodded, "Yeah, he is not this hot-tempered and callous in his words before..."


    Even Wei Wang had to agree with them. This was their first time seeing their Lord like this!


    Could it be that its another person? But that cannot be!


    "Sh*t... why is he this mad? It''s not like his life was on the line fighting it before... we are!" Shen Murong said to himself as he looked at his trembling hands. He didn''t know why, but he felt afraid at this moment.


    This was especially the case with the weaker people in the expedition party. Some were even so scared that they peed themselves! It felt like if they move for a bit, the killing intent around them would suck out of their life from their mouth!


    Tap! Tap!


    The Imperial Overseer who was the source of this killing intent approached the Skull Centipede Emperor with a frosty expression under his mask.


    "Baring your fangs against the Overlord of this entire land, such act of insolence will not be tolerated! Hmph!"


    With a wave of his hand, several interlocking runic formation began to appear one after another below the monster!


    "Since you are an undead, while I do have more than enough power to completely grind your existence to dust, that is far too lenient for you. Therefore, under my decree, you shall be sentenced to... indefinite torture!"


    A series of blazing pillars of flame began to coil around on his right arm, looking like a pair of angry fire serpent!


    He then punched out not to the Skull Centipede Emperor, but to the empty air above him!


    "Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!"


    BOOOOMMMMMMMM!!


    With the force of a meteor behind his fist, the ceiling above them was blasted off into huge chunks of ground like the eruption of a volcano, sending the debris tens and hundreds of kilometers away! The effect from this event inevitably destroyed the nearby landscape!


    Furthermore, it was fortunate that they were within the Red desert region, otherwise there were bound to be casualties!


    When these phenomena stopped, the underground cavern was of no more. Replacing the dark and damp ceiling of the cavern was the blue sky of the Tian continent!


    "T-The Imperial Overseer''s fist... forcefully tore the ground open..." everyone swallowed a mouthful of saliva and felt like this was all a dream!


    Only now did they realized they were a few kilometers deep underground after seeing how far the sky were!


    But... why did he destroyed the ceiling?


    Wengg!!


    As if to answer the question in their mind, the Imperial Overseer tore open a portal before shoving his hand in, pulling out a ragged figure by the neck!


    This person was all bones with not a single flesh could be seen, and one could easily mistaken him as another undead skeleton if not for the bone crown on his head!


    "An Elder Lich?!" they gasped in surprise!


    "I see... so that Elder Lich is the source of the curse!" Elder Cheng Chao said in realization.


    "You were running away like a scared rat. Did you think that I wouldn''t be able to find and catch you?" the Imperial Overseer scoffed with a mocking tone.


    Previously, when he cast the numerous runic formation onto the Skull Centipede Emperor, one of it was a tracking formation. It was then that he was able to pinpoint the source of the curse that allowed the undead monsters in the ruin to revive again and again!


    "H-How... did you managed to find me?!" the Elder Lich who were all bones were trembling before a thought hit him.


    The killing intent!


    "You used your murderous aura to lure me out from hiding!" he answered shortly after with a horrified voice!


    Before, he was in a perfect hiding spot as he watched the fight between the expedition party and the Skull Centipede Emperor for entertainment. But it all turned around when this person came!


    The released killing intent sent shivers down to his spine, him who was already an undead and devoid of an emotion called fear! That was supposed to be impossible, but he was no fool, feeling such an emotion, it was obvious that it was his survival instinct screaming out to him!


    After all, even undead would still have such primordial reaction as an entity!


    Therefore, he chose to escape from his hiding spot, and with the Imperial Overseer''s tracking formation, his location was found, which was when he was trying to escape the ruin above them!


    "What? You think I''m wasting my words before on that puppet monster of yours? Obviously I was talking to you through it! I already know someone like you has to be around. Since you didn''t dare to greet your Overlord here, I went through the trouble to call you out personally." the Imperial Overseer that was currently hanging him by the neck said.


    Then, he brought the face of the Elder Lich closer to his mask before continuing, "Could it be that you are displeased? Is that it?"


    Snap!!


    Flicking his fingers together, the Skull Centipede Emperor that was trapped inside his runic formations before suddenly screeched out!


    KREEEEE!!


    The runic formation began to blaze out one element after another that ranged from fire, water, wind, earth, thunder and more, grilling the monster from top to bottom!


    This scene could only be described as bone crumbling!


    "As long as there are spiritual Qi in the air and my will, that pet of yours will be tortured like that eternally! I wonder if an undead Elder Lich like you would still feel fine once your spirit was crushed, maimed, cooked, disintegrated, boiled and chopped without pause?"


    Hehehehe! Hahahahahahaha!


    The cackle from the Imperial Overseer in front of him made him felt like sweating buckets.


    Additionally, why does it sound more evil than my own voice when I laugh?


    "P-Please... d-don''t torture me! I... I am willing to do anything! I''ll be your slave! Yes! I can conquer any empire for you without you dirtying your hands!" he said desperately. He was thoroughly scared by the deranged person holding him by the neck right now!


    Pahh!!


    His cheek bones got a tight slap from the other party, causing his head to spin around before being berated by the other party, "Ah? You think I need your measly power? Which empire will not fall if I placed my eyes on them? You dare to tell me?"


    He then turned around, "Anyone here dare to tell me?! Ah?!"


    BOOMMM!!


    This shout from the Imperial Overseer caused turbulence in the air and the ground to rumble as his aura spiked, pressing everyone to the ground! Not even Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang were an exception!


    "This person... is crazy strong!" Elder Cheng Chao remarked in her heart as her face was planted into the ground from the sheer pressure of the released spiritual Qi!


    How can anyone possess this kind of overpowered strength? It''s unfair!


    Dear Heavens, have you become blind?


    "Your Excellency, p-please cease your anger!" she called out with a pleading voice.


    "P-Please ceaser your anger Your Excellency!" the others followed.


    This Imperial Overseer is way too dominant and overbearing!


    Mommy! I''m scared! This person is too scary!


    Some of them began to cry and wailed out loud like a child that got bullied!


    "Shut up!" he shouted feeling annoyed, causing them to immediately bit their lips to seal their mouth!


    "Y-Yes!!"


    Seeing that no one was making noises anymore, he then harrumphed and turned his attention back to the Elder Lich.


    "Because of your stupid game, I am forced to come here in my busy schedule!"


    Pahh!!


    The Elder Lich got slapped and his head spun around once more.


    "Do you know how busy I am for you to force me to come here? I have to read a lot of old documents that were left unchecked by the bastard and lazy Jiu Emperor!"


    Pahh!!


    "There are a lot more stuff that needed my attention back in the empire! Like the military, the education, the transport system, the agriculture, the land amendments and more!"


    Pahh!!


    Pahh!!


    Pahh!!


    Just like that, the Elder Lich got slapped countless of times, such that his neck began to feel loose from his head spinning non-stop like the wheelbarrow in a construction site. At this rate, he might be downgraded into a Dullahan instead!


    ...


    "Ah? What''s that? I can''t hear you!!"


    "Uuuwuu! I''m sorry! Uwuuuu!!" the Elder Lich cried. Even when his grandparents were angry at him back when he was still alive a few millenniums ago for massacring a clan, he was never treated in such a harsh manner!


    This was truly an eye opener for him. From now on, he swore to be a good person so that in his next life, he would not have to meet with this devil!


    Meanwhile, the people around him was able to at least lift their head from the ground to take a peek, but they quickly planted their head back in after witnessing such a tragic scene!


    Lunatic!


    This Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire is a total lunatic!


    No one then dared to look anymore, but the continuous torture sounds and slaps made everyone tremble, hoping that they will soon wake up from this nightmare!


    After what seemingly to be an eternity, he finally finished venting his frustrations on the Elder Lich and threw the other party away like a raggard cloth.


    "From now on, you are responsible for their safety! If I ever need to come out again..."


    "Uwuuu!! Y-Yes! I understand my Lord! Uwuuu!" the Elder Lich got to his knees and kowtowed repeatedly.


    "Hmph! That is for the best!" turning around, the Imperial Overseer then tore open a portal before disappearing at the next instant.


    It seems that he had returned to his ''busy'' life, and the atmosphere in the broken cavern was now silent.


    "...." everyone.


    ...

 376 Chapter 368: Wang Feng!

    "He.. is gone?" the Princess and her expedition party raised their head from the ground only to see that the Imperial Overseer was no longer to be found!


    He disappeared as quickly as he came! What a person that was!


    Heaving a sigh of relief, they quickly stood back on their feet.


    To think that the Imperial Overseer of the Jiu Empire was so dominating, overbearing and so... scary!


    Just recalling the scene where the Elder Lich was slapped continuously while being berated harshly sent shivers down their spine!


    When they look at the other party, complex emotions ran through their mind.


    One has to know that it was common to find a Lich or sometimes a Lich King when there were undead around, but an Elder Lich? That was an existence on the level of a myth!


    Rumors said that for a Lich to become an Elder Lich, it would require at least a millennium years of existence as an undead!


    At this point, their dark elemental power will be enough to cast a curse that can envelop an entire city at once, turning the whole populace to flesh eating zombies which made them a truly fearful opponent for the humans!


    If rumors about its existence now were to spread, the nine empires would definitely send their top experts to bring it down at all cost! It was suffice to say that an Elder Lich''s existence was a threat greater than the Dark Sect themselves!


    Knowing this, they began to retreat slowly, afraid that the Elder Lich would become hostile after the Imperial Overseer left!


    After all, the previous Skull Centipede Emperor was already a 4-star monster that they couldn''t defeat, let alone the Elder Lich that controls it!


    Even if they were now surrounded by spiritual Qi after the ceiling was torn apart, they dare not underestimate a being that could resurrect a thousand monsters with a single wave of its hand!


    Who knows if it could summon another ten of the Skull Centipede Emperor on them? That would truly be the end!


    "Hmph! I''ve no desire to do harm to humans.." the Elder Lich turned around and said to them when he saw how they were gradually becoming wary of him.


    Clasping his hands behind his back, he continued as he stared at the blue sky with a saddened skeletal expression, "I''ve been an undead since the Empyrean dynasty was still standing, and I''ve seen the foolishness of humans time and again that it tires me to even interact with you lot."


    Hais!


    "This is my home for countless years and I''ve grown really fond of it.. but because of you all.. now it was turned into this! Uwuu.." the Elder Lich began to weep once more with a sorrowful voice.


    "..." all of them could only remain speechless at this mention. Somehow, they felt a bit guilty as the other party was right.


    In a way, they were invading on someone else''s house, and as if that wasn''t enough, they even destroyed the roof!


    "Tell me, just who is that person?" he asked towards Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang.


    The trio looked at each other.


    "He is the Imperial Overseer of our Jiu Empire, one who stands even above the Emperor in terms of status and might!" they answered with a trace of pride in their tone.


    "Also... he is the Lord that we serve!"


    Cough! Cough!


    Elder Cheng Chao, Princess Meixiu and her expedition party choked on their saliva. Right now, any lingering thought of still making an enemy of the trio in their mind was thrown out of the window.


    So what if the trio possesses some Ultimate graded weapons that can dominate the world?


    Unless one was beyond insane, no one would still think of trying to snatch them anymore!


    Since the Imperial Overseer was their Lord, it goes without saying that those weapons should be his gift for his followers. Even if they do managed to steal them away, it wouldn''t be surprising if they found themselves to be visited by the Imperial Overseer the next day!


    Everyone swallowed their saliva recalling how close they were to offending such a terrifying existence!


    This was especially the case for Elder Cheng Chao. The reason they dared to bring their private army into the Jiu Empire was because they underestimated the power supporting it, thinking that it would be inferior compared to theirs!


    But now, she was definitely sure!


    While their Doulou Emperor could probably show similar effect like this, the Jiu Imperial Overseer did it so effortlessly!


    A casual slap to knock back a Skull Centipede Emperor?


    How about choking an Elder Lich by the neck while slapping it continuously to the point that its head became a spinning top?


    Perhaps their Doulou Emperor would soon found his head to be lopped off instead!


    "Someone above the emperor themselves? Mmm that should be the case!" the Elder Lich nodded in agreement.


    For all his undead life, he had met countless top notch and apex existences throughout the Tian continent back when his bones was still white. He had even fought against some of the legendary Children of Tian themselves!


    While they were indeed formidable and he almost found himself to lose his undead life several times against them, in the end, he still emerged as the victor!


    But the moment he felt the killing aura of the Imperial Overseer, it was like his life was already forfeit!


    By instinct, he chose to run away, but even that was not enough to escape the jaws of the grim reaper!


    To make matters worse, the other party had such a scary temper!


    Take his cute pet for example, it was still tortured by the numerous elements right in front of him, and by the looks of it, those runic formation would trap others that tried to decipher it too!


    Just the thought of being trapped and tortured like that would make him wish to never be an undead!


    Hais!


    "What is his Excellency''s name?" he started using a more respectful word to refer the Imperial Overseer, evidence that he was no longer a threat.


    With a proud expression, the trio answered him at the same time;


    "Duan Li!"


    ...


    "Elder Brother! We have been tricked!" Ang Busheng shouted in panic and called out to his brother.


    "Huh?" Ang Busano looked towards the ground pointed by Busheng and his face immediately paled!


    There were countless rounded metal balls planted firmly on the ground!


    "This is bad! Everyone disperse!" he quickly ordered.


    However, since his command was abrupt, the bandit cavalry around him was confused and some couldn''t even hear him properly with the chickens clucking noisily below their mount.


    From afar, Fei Longwei chuckled coldly, "Too late!" and snapped his index fingers!


    Snap!


    BOOOMMM!! BOOOMM!!


    BOOOMM!!


    "Ah!"


    The bandit cavalry was thrown into disarray as the explosion injured their mount and some of them were even killed directly!


    However, Fei Longwei was only able to produce a small explosion per ball as his spiritual Qi was limited. As a result, even though the bandit cavalry was taken by surprise, only their mounts was severely injured!


    "DAMN YOU!! I WILL KILL YOU!!" Ang Busano screamed as the dust cleared, revealing his body that was devoid of a single scratch!


    This was the resilience of a Golden Core realm cultivator!


    Those who were killed were mostly on the Early stage of the Qi condensation realm, while those above that level only escaped with minor injuries!


    Right after his outburst of anger, another scene happened right before his eyes!


    Psha!! Psha!! Psha!!


    A bunch of chickens began gliding from the air at super speed, slitting the necks of his bandit cavalry!


    Busano and Busheng clutched at their head feeling frenzied!


    What the hell is this?


    Are these chickens or eagles?


    Screw that! Are they even animals?!


    How can poultry chickens possess cultivation levels? These things are obviously monsters!


    Pu!


    Busheng was so stifled and frustrated that he spurted out blood!


    "F*CKER!! KILL ALL THESE CHICKENS!!"


    Just like that, Ang Busano, Ang Busheng and their men turned into a frenzy swinging their blades, spears, axes and hammers at the chickens flying and dodging through their ranks!


    It was a total mess!


    From afar, another two regiments of bandit cavalry arrived and when they saw this scene, their leader could not help but to become enraged!


    "ANG BUSHENG! ANG BUSANO! WHAT ARE YOU BASTARDS DOING?!!"


    A man riding atop of a wild black bear that was about two meters tall bellowed!


    This person has his chest exposed and his body was bulging with extreme muscles! Two large waraxes was on each of his hand, and his bald figure was even larger than the bear he was riding, about three meters tall!


    Hearing this shout, Busano and Busheng froze on the spot as they turned around with ashened look.


    "Wang Feng!!"


    ...

 377 Chapter 369: Wang Feng of the Wang Clan!

    The Red Sands bandit lead by Ang Busano and Ang Busheng were part of the seven force of the East Bandit Coalition, and their chief leader was no other than this person, Wang Feng!!


    "Nascent Soul realm expert!" Fei Longwei and Wei Shang widened their eyes in disbelief when they saw the aura of the other party as he trod down the slope along with several hundreds other bandit cavalry behind him!


    Now, the total number of bandits was almost reaching two thousand!


    How could there be so many bandits congregating here? What is going on?


    The duo nodded at each other as they retreated back into the village. With the increase number of bandits, they were no longer confident of being able to take them down, not to mention that the new boss that just appeared was a Nascent Soul realm cultivator!


    A Core Formation realm cultivator like them fighting against a Nascent Soul realm cultivator? Even if the other party were to stand still and let them attack him all day, the most they could do was scrap off all the dead skin on his face like giving a beauty treatment instead!


    While they most likely could defeat all the bandits if they use their Ultimate graded weapons, they were not confident of being able to kill every last one of them. If even one of them were to escape then, who knows what that could bring them. After all, their Lord''s command was quite clear for them to follow;


    ''Kill everyone without a single witness should they are forced to draw upon their weapons!''


    As soon as they went back inside, they instructed all the men there to immediately go into hiding with the others in the underground bunker they made before. Initially, most of them were still unwilling to escape, and they would rather die in a fight. But after Fei Longwei slapped them and told them that their dog life was meaningless, and they wouldn''t be able to do sh*t by dying like fools, only to trouble others into burying their useless corpse, did they finally relented and escape with a saddened look.


    They were not even given chances to talk back!


    "Hey... you don''t have to be so cold on people like that..." Wei Shang said as he scratched his head looking at this partner of his.


    With a nonchalant expression, Fei Longwei replied, "I don''t have time to play nice. It''s better they know of the reality beforehand than becoming our dead weights later on. You would eventually learn this to be true yourself and that will already be too late." he said before pointing out, "Look, those two are already in the Golden Core realm while that big guy is a Nascent Soul realm. You honestly think we will be able to fight them while worrying about those villagers'' life?"


    Wei Shang gave out a long sigh, "I understand okay, I got it!"


    He just didn''t have the stone-cold heart to berate others into submission and obedience like what Fei Longwei just did!


    "That new guy over there is a Golden Core realm expert too. So we have three of them now..." he said pointing out to another burly figure leading the second regiment of the newly arrived bandit cavalry.


    With this, their expression became quite awful.


    All in all, they now were facing against two thousand Qi Condensation realm bandits, three Golden Core realm cultivators and one Nascent Soul realm expert! This was a lineup of people akin to going for war!


    The question was, do they really need this much power to conquer over a small village like the Spring Blossom village? Were there treasures hidden in the village? Obviously this was not the case as they already explored most of the village when they helped around in the reconstruction process earlier on!


    They concluded that the Spring Blossom village was only another generic village like the countless others spread across in the Tian continent!


    "We are mistaken! It is highly likely that their intention of taking over this village is not for raid, but as a rallying point for these bandits!" Wei Shang clenched his fists tight when he arrived at this conclusion, and it seems that Fei Longwei also realized the same thing as well!


    "En! But why here? What is the point?" Fei Longwei nodded before raising this question.


    By the looks of it, the bandits they encountered this time around was not of the common rabble as they were quite organized. From that standpoint, it goes without saying that these bandits were not fools and has a really good agenda for trying to rally in the Spring Blossom village!


    After all, if they wanted to make the Spring Blossom village which was a public location on the map as their headquarters, that would be viewed as a direct challenge to the Jiu Emperor governing the Jiu Empire! If that were to be the case, even if they have several other Nascent Soul realm experts in their disposal, they would probably be able to hold out for a few days at most before finding themselves obliterated entirely by the Official Knights of the empire in a single day!


    No matter how powerful they were, they couldn''t fight against the might of an entire empire!


    Furthermore, the reason they were allowed to roam the vast lands of the Jiu Empire in the first place was not because the empire did not care about their illegal activities, but because their overall existence was insignificant. Moreover, since these bandits had to live in the wilds as they were shunned by the society, they had to defend themselves against wild monsters from time to time, thus reducing the numbers of both parties which was a good thing for the empire without moving a single finger.


    For this reason, the empire found it a waste of resources to deal with petty banditry, but if they tried to coalesce into a proper power, the empire would definitely not hesitate to take action and erase them completely!


    Knowing this, both Fei Longwei and Wei Shang conjectured that these bandits were there for anything other than making the village their headquarters!


    However, the village also did not have anything valuable to warrant such an overwhelming force either!


    "Wait a moment... " Fei Longwei seemed to realize something before taking a look around.


    "What''s wrong?" Wei Shang asked.


    Fei Longwei continued to look around before finally giving a reply, "Unlikely as it is, I think they are trying to use this village to defend themselves from something!"


    ...


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    "Pu!" Ang Busano and Ang Busheng were struck on their stomach, causing them to puke out their innards as their face turned green from pain.


    Fast!


    Busano and Busheng couldn''t even see the other party making a move!


    "Explain yourselves!" Wang Feng glared at them murderously. While he also has a nasty temper like Ang Busano, he was more clear-headed than the latter. This was because Wang Feng was not originally a bandit, but one of the elder in the prestigious mountain clan of the Jiu Empire, the Wang Clan!


    He was already more than a hundred years old, but retained his middle age appearance due to his high cultivation level. In the Wang Clan, he was quite respected among his circle as someone with a lot of experience in the world. Unfortunately, he grew ambitious overtime and found the Wang Clan to be too restrictive with what he wanted to do.


    There was even one occasion where he voiced his opinion publicly to the Wang Clan of wanting to invade the mountain lands that belonged to the Liu Empire. His reasoning was that their clan was far too great to be limited by the boundaries set by people from not of the mountain!


    Of course, he was deeply criticized for trying to start a war and this caused him to become extremely unsatisfied.


    The last straw for him was the Red and Blue Concordat between the Jiu and Liu Empire which he viewed it as a total joke. As a result of the treaty, the Wang Clan found their lands in the mountains to be considerably reduced and this had angered him thoroughly!


    In his rage, he barged through the Imperial Palace to meet the previous Jiu Emperor, and with his high cultivation, there was little anyone could do to stop him. The Jiu Emperor listened to his heartfelt complaints until he was finished saying his piece, before rejecting him.


    After all, even if the Jiu Emperor understood his reasoning and point of view, the Wang metal - which was the main reason for the treaty in the first place, was far too important for the stabilization of the Jiu Empire as a whole. Besides, majority of the mountain lands acceded to the Liu Empire in that treaty was not really suitable to live in in the first place, and was why the Jiu Emperor did it.


    Wang Feng''s reasoning of rejecting the treaty was more towards the pride for the Wang Clan and held no real merits nor advantages in the modern society to help the empire as a whole.


    Frustrated that both the Jiu Emperor and the Wang Clan rejecting him, he left the Wang Clan entirely, knowing that the only way for him to retake back the mountain lands was for him to take matters into his own hands!


    Thus, he rounded up groups of bandits around him over the years under the radar of the empire, hoping for one day of using them to create his own clan by forcefully retaking the mountain lands now owned by the Liu Empire!


    It was all going smoothly before he found his East Bandit Coalition force that was made up from seven bandit groups being suddenly attacked left and right by outside forces not belonging to the Jiu Empire! From such a sudden and unsuspecting event, he already lost three of the bandit groups and had to rally the other four groups in order to avoid total extermination!


    It was not to say that he was incapable of handling the foreign forces by himself. In fact, he was more than enough to decimate them all. However, this was also an opportunity for him to test the power he accumulated thus far as the old saying went, "Only through pressure will diamonds began to form."


    Additionally, since the attacking forces were foreign for some reason, the empire would never bat an eye if they were to retaliate instead of dispersing!


    Therefore, he rallied all the four remaining bandit groups at one point, which was the Spring Blossom village. His intention was to train them the ways of war to see whether they were ready for conquest or not!


    With him holding the helm, extermination was unlikely even if this newfound forces of his were subpar in their performance as he could end it anytime he wished!


    This was why he was so angry when he saw how two of the bandit groups were somehow chasing and trying to massacre chickens as if it had done wrong to their ancestors!


    I had dedicated a good portion of my life and effort in recent years to train you all to become fierce and mighty, yet you all are trying to murder weak animals instead!


    Was that performance supposed to impress me and others? Or are you all trying to make us into a clown and laughing stock for the world instead?


    Screw you!


    "We.. t-the chickens are not what they seemed to be! They are monsters with cultivation levels!" Busheng answered and felt a little indignant because this was the second time after his older brother berated him for the same reason. Only this time his older brother was being scolded too.


    "...." Wang Feng had the urge to command his people to slice Busheng into pieces before suppressing his inner demon. Narrowing his eyes, he locked onto the position of one of the said chickens.


    Whooshh!!


    With a single dash, he appeared almost instantly in front of the chicken. Grabbing the chicken by the neck, he then cast his soul sense!


    Wengg!!


    Immediately after, his expression changed.


    ...

 378 Chapter 370: Too fast! Too fast?

    BOOMM!!


    Sonic booms exploded in the atmosphere as twelve figures flitted through the sky at extreme speeds!


    "W-What a casual manner of flying, befitting someone of his caliber!" Xeng Guan said as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva in disbelief.


    This was because Duan Li, or was now known to the Extermination Knights of the Liu Empire as ''Supreme Elder'', whom they had mistakenly thought was the Great Patriarch Liu, was flying with an unusual pose, which was sitting cross-legged while folding both arms on his chest!


    Xeng Guan was the Captain Commander of the Extermination Knights and his cultivation level was the most powerful of them all. In addition, his silver full plated armor was a personal gift from the Liu Emperor herself after he won the title from a free-for-all battle with his peers back then as a testament and recognition of his powers!


    But even he would not be able to fly at the speed they were travelling now if he tried to mimic the pose of the Supreme Elder leading in front of them! After all, not only that the sparrow flying pose was the most efficient in terms of speed and aerodynamics, the majority of the force needed to accelerate one during flight was through expelling spiritual Qi from the numerous acupoints below the feet and palms!


    Thus, how was the Supreme Elder able to do it?


    The rest of the Extermination Knights also could not help but be further awed by this and thought, "Could it be that he channeled his spiritual Qi to the acupoints on his back and used them to fly?"


    It isn''t impossible to do that but...


    Such a method of flying would be far too wasteful on one''s spiritual Qi unless one were to have a huge reserve of it in their dantian!


    Knowing that the means of the Supreme Elder was already someone beyond their league, their respect towards the other party subconsciously grew further in deference!


    In reality, their point was valid and it was indeed wasteful for Duan Li to be flying in such a manner with their current travelling speed, but Duan Li was someone who cultivated three dantian with a Qi cycle rate that could replenish his dantian in one breath!


    This means that his reserve of spiritual Qi was practically infinite, so long as all his nine orifices could still breath!


    But of course, the Extermination Knights could not possibly know of this.


    After all, Duan Li had modified the cultivation technique he was using right now so that the spiritual Qi inside his body appeared to be originating from one dantian, such that not even soul sense could uncover his true cultivation realm if he does not wills it! This was the most important aspect in his current disguise; to appear mysterious and unfathomable in the eyes of others!


    Thus, through redirecting the spiritual Qi from his two other dantians using his modified Qi pathways and circulating them into the same path that his lower abdomen dantian uses, he would be able to appear ''normal'' to others!


    Of course, Duan Li''s term for ''normal'' was subjective, as it was not the same as others!


    This was because combining three sources of spiritual Qi into one flow radically changed Duan Li''s aura, such that he appeared to be no less than a Pinnacle Stage Nascent Soul realm experts! However, at the same time, his aura also became old, archaic and withered. The sort of sensation that could give one as reaching the limits of their life span!


    When the Extermination Knights felt this, they became a little emotional and sad that the expert in front of them will soon leave the world like others before him!


    Such was the tragic fate of the world; that no matter how one cultivate and extended their lifespans, they would still be unable to run away from the embrace of death!


    Completely oblivious to the tumultous emotions of the eleven Extermination Knights behind him, Duan Li yawned under his helmet and felt a little sleepy. Their journey now was already two hours and it would take another four hours for them to reach their destination.


    Since this was the case, Duan Li decided to turn his autopilot on and went into a deep sleep as they continued their supersonic flight, splitting numerous big clouds into two and disippating some!


    ...


    "We are almost there... everyone, keep going! We need to catch up to the Supreme Elder!" Xeng Guan said as his breath along with others behind him became increasingly heavy.


    They did not know the reason why, but the Supreme Elder in front of them decided to gradually increase his flight speed over time!


    At first, the speed increase was only small so they were still able to catch up, but the change was constant and their gap right now was almost a kilometer apart despite them channeling their spiritual Qi onto their feet and palms at maximum power!


    How could this be?


    One has to remember that they were top notch experts within the Liu Empire, but despite trying their best, they were still unable to catch up, not to mention that the other party was flying with such a pose!


    With their current blazing flight speed, their armors had already shown a slight deformation and glowed orange slightly from the extreme temperature due to the increasing resistance with the air! It was only fortunate that they were not travelling with their robes, otherwise, they would be labelled as shameful and perverted exhibitionist due to flying naked in the air as their robes would have been teared into pieces at such speed!


    "The Supreme Elder is definitely a terrifying figure!" everyone said in their mind. They could not help but thought that the Supreme Elder was still a little displeased with them from their previous behaviors, so they dare not complained.


    "If we continue travelling with this speed, we wouldn''t have enough spiritual Qi for batte later!" You Wing said.


    "Hmph! Who was it that brought this situation upon us? You still want to complain? Have you not had enough of creating trouble for us?" the rest of them replied to him sharply. They felt a little angry at this comrade of theirs.


    "I- that''s not what I mean.." You Wing lowered his head in shame.


    One hour later, they finally saw a congregation of black dots on the landscape from the distance! This was the combined army of the Xian and Yuan Empire, roughly totaling to about 800,000 soldiers!


    "Their empires are really in a league of their own.." the Extermination Knights swallowed a mouthful of saliva as they witnessed this scene nervously.


    This was a staggering number of cultivators, even if the majority were only at Qi Condensation realm! Their Liu Empire could only perhaps produce half of that numbers at best, and to make matters worse, this wasn''t even the full extent of the army from the Xian and Yuan Empire!


    It was no wonder why they always heard foreigners from other empires saying that their Liu Empire and their neighbour Jiu Empire was a backwater nation!


    "Let''s descend down and get ready- Ah? Supreme Elder? Where are you going?" Xeng Guan was dumbstruck to see that their Supreme Elder was still bolting through the atmosphere at full speed despite reaching their destination!


    At this rate, the Supreme Elder will pass by that army!


    What is going on?


    ...


    On the ground where the combined army of the Xian and Yuan Empire were marching, around 100 cultivators that seemed to be their leaders also noticed the arrival of the Extermination Knights from the distance.


    "Look, here they come!"


    "Hahahaha! Fools! Coming to their own death!"


    "They must be eager to die so early!"


    Each of them was a Nascent Soul realm experts while some were already one foot into that realm, thus the Extermination Knights did not pose any sort of threat to them at all, this was especially the case when they could only see twelve figures coming towards their direction!


    But then, they realized that something was amiss.


    "Hey, why does it seem like they are travelling at super speed?"


    "Look! One of them was even far off from the others behind him by at least 2 kilometers!"


    "Are they chasing that man?"


    "I don''t know, it could be just some random people playing tag.."


    "Ah? But I think those armors are only worn by the Extermination Knights according to our intel.."


    "That person at the front seemed to be flying in a lotus position. Is he a flying buddha?"


    "Flying buddha your head! The correct term is monk you fool!"


    "Look! The rest behind him are already slowing down and descending!"


    "They are coming in too fast! They are going to collide with the lands!"


    "Too fast! Too fast!"


    BOOMM!! BAM!! BAM!!


    Just like that eleven of the Extermination Knights behind Duan Li crashed onto the ground because they did not have enough time to slow down their descent and created a mess in the landscape with debris and dust!


    "Puff!" they stood from the ground among the sand and dust with light-headedness as they clutched at their head, their footing unstable like a drunkard.


    It was fortunate that their armors absorbed the brunt of the impact from their crash, but the resulting vibrations inside their armors caused them to feel ringing in their ears!


    Furthermore, they were breathing so heavy and was desperate to catch their breath like mortals that just completed a one kilometer sprint!


    "..." the hundred or so experts could only become speechless at this terrible mess!


    What the heck? Are they amatures?


    Who in the world would be travelling at such speed only to crash like that?


    "Hey guys! That guy just went pass by us!" one of them pointed to the sky as everyone raised their head to see that the person had bolted through the air above them without a hint of slowing down!


    "Woaa!! Watch out!" they screamed while clutching at their head as they saw the person smashing through a pack of migrating birds in the air like it was none of his father''s business!


    "Nooo!! Birdie!!" some of them felt a little aggrieved by this horrendous sight and felt that they would be having nightmares from witnessing such brutality!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was still sleeping soundly as his armors were now covered with bird feathers while still bolting in the air at full speed!


    ...

 379 Chapter 371: Clash of the Experts!

    "Supreme Elder..." the Extermination Knights were dumbfounded as they saw Duan Li''s silhouette gradually turning into the size of a dot before disappearing into the horizon altogether!


    Why did the Supreme Elder leave them here and bolt pass the enemy?


    Could it be that the Supreme Elder is scared?


    They turned their head to look at the approaching enemies who are now a few hundred meters away from them, each looking at the Extermination Knights as if they were already a pile of dead corpse!


    Seeing this, the Extermination Knights quickly shook their head to get rid of such thoughts. After all, with the mighty power that the Supreme Elder had demonstrated to them before, there was no way that a bunch of ants could make him scared!


    "I think I understand!" Xeng Guan suddenly said, breaking the awkward silence.


    "What do you mean Captain?" the rest of them asked, curious about what their Captain Commander had comprehended over this bizarre incident.


    "As we all know, it is normal for experts to be quite eccentric and unpredictable in their actions, and this is especially the case for the Supreme Elder! For someone like him, every action he made should not be taken at face value and must be interpreted deeper from their perspective!" he said as he clasped his hands behind his back while still gazing at the direction of where their Supreme Elder had disappeared.


    "En!" the others nodded in agreement. Xeng Guan then continued, "For the Supreme Elder to continue on his journey despite reaching the destination, I could only conjecture two plausible reasons for this! First is that, he detected a powerful presence that the likes of us would never be able to measure. Thus, instead of troubling himself with pesky insects like these people in front of us, he found that fighting against someone of his caliber will be much more worthwhile!"


    "Secondly, this might also be a test from him, to see how far we could fight without his help! This is similar to how we were before being titled as the Extermination Knights, where each of us were instructed to continue killing monsters until we can no longer fight!"


    Ohhh!!


    The rest finally realized! To think that their Supreme Elder would be someone so thoughtful!


    This was like the old saying that they used to hear before during their inception, that no matter how strong and durable the blade was claimed to be, if it had never been really tested against the weight of Mount Tai, how would one know of its true limit?


    How would one know of its breaking point?


    "Hahahahaha!!" the Extermination Knights laughed heartily with each other. If there was one thing that they were absolutely confident in, it would be their extreme resilience!


    Meanwhile, the captains of the Xian and Yuan Empire in front of them could not help but to become enraged!


    "These motherf*ckers! They dare to look at us as if we are mere fries? Courting death!" they shouted.


    With their high cultivation realm, who among them were not without status and influence? Just by walking in the streets, crowded markets would automatically split open as if the receding tides, and countless people would fawn over them just to get on their good sides!


    With a wave of their hands, their clans and henchmen could annihilate their enemy''s family and hunt them down to their last generation, making them feared among the masses!


    Yet what do they hear right now? Being called as a ''bunch of ants'' by a dozen of dead leaves!


    How could they tolerate such humiliation?


    "These f*ckers are even laughing, have they already resigned to their inevitable fate? I''ll kill them slowly!"


    "What the actual hell? Why are they acting so smug? Are we the one with insurmountable powers and quantity here, or they?"


    To dare treat us like this, we will not be satisfied until we skin them from their bones!


    "Brothers and Sisters, let us go all out from the get-go! I believe that the Supreme Elder only wished to see us trying our best! Even if we mock their ancestors, turning these people into a bunch of berserkers, I''m confident that the Supreme Elder will protect us from behind so that we will not get killed!" Xeng Guan said with an agitated and trembling body!


    The same could be said with the rest of the Extermination Knights beside him; they were ecstatic to unleash all their built-up frustrations from being unable to fight to their heart''s content!


    But now, the Supreme Elder has build the stage for them!


    With the Supreme Elder and his inconceivable might as their backing, why should they be afraid of their enemies?


    Why should they be afraid of the world?


    Who cares about being outnumbered? We''ll crush them all!


    BOOMMM!!!


    "Holy-Moly, it looks like these lunatics are serious! They are releasing all their powers without holding anything back!" one of them said as Xeng Guan and the rest of the Extermination Knights drew out their personal sword, releasing powerful outburst of spiritual Qi into the air!


    Next, their aura surged to the maximum level and mixed together with the spiritual Qi released from their individual sword, bursting into unique colors for each of them according to the colors of their sword! These outbursts of Qi rose to the air before twisting together like tornadoes, bringing in thunderstorm and heavy black clouds!


    "Extermination Swords! Be careful! With those weapons, they are stronger than most of us at full strength!" said someone from the Xian Empire after he recognized the swords being used by the Extermination Knights!


    The Extermination Swords were Semi-Legendary graded weapons, bequeathed by the Emperor of the Liu Empire to generations of Extermination Knights ever since its foundation!


    From accumulating the will of its previous owners, each of the sword went through an upgrade continuously, before finally reaching their current state!


    "Hah! So what? We still have the numbers! I can go all out too!" a haughty elder from the Yuan Empire stepped forward and brought out his spear which was of the Rare grade. It wasn''t much when compared the Extermination Swords, but his fighting prowess increased quite significantly as well!


    Several people also followed him and brought out their weapons, each inducing some sort of effects to their surroundings, and when these effects were compounded against each other, it was as if a level 10 typhoon and thunderstorm had wrecked havoc on the land!


    Strong winds, lightning bolts, deafening thunders and torrential rain quickly flooded the previously empty land!


    It was total chaos!


    This was the effect of numerous experts congregating together in one spot and unleashing their might for blood! Even the natural forces were affected and the area looked no different from a disaster zone!


    As for the Qi Condensation realm soldiers, they had to retreat and find safer lands away from the dead zone. After all, no matter how many of them were right now, the power of natural disasters brought upon by the experts of the Tian continent should never be underestimated!


    Just a single Nascent Soul realm cultivator could already wipe out a thousand of them in the blink of an eye if they were aiming for the kill, not to mention that there were tens of them running around angrily right now!


    Who knows if they would even bother to differentiate between friends and foes later on? Additionally, during a fight, it was a known fact that some people tend to lose control of their rationality and went total lunatics!


    Unless they want to die, mere noobs of cultivation like them should just sit a few kilometers away and eat some snacks to watch the show!


    "KILL!" Xeng Guan bellowed loudly to the air as he and the rest of the Extermination Knights dashed forward to meet their enemy!


    "KILL!!!" similarly, the experts from the Xian and Yuan Empire also dashed out to trade some blows!


    BOOOMMMM!! BOOOOOMMM!!!


    BAMM!! BAMM!!


    At this moment, clashes that rang for kilometers away like the sound of a breaking continent filled up the air, and explosions after explosions lit up the sky as if the clouds were on fire!


    "Hahahahaha! Die! Die!" You Wing of the Extermination Knights waved his sword as if swinging a spear which was his unique fighting style, killing several Golden Core realm experts in one go!


    "Kill! Kill!" Xeng Guan dashed forward with unstoppable momentum as if he was a perpetual needle moving forward, left and right like a square without stopping, penetrating through the body of some experts!


    The rest of the Extermination Knights also showed their fearsome martial skill; one swung their sword as if it were rope, another cleaved his enemy down with a grip as if holding a great axe, one held it like a rapier, an enemy was bashed with the sword as if it was a shield, and more!


    "Bastards! We can''t lose to them! Suppress these bastards!" the Xian and Yuan experts began to use skill arts amidst the chaos, further propagating the destruction of the land!


    However, they still found it difficult to pin down the Extermination Knights! Somehow, their fighting style was devoid of fear for death!


    "How can this be? Why are they able to fight like this?"


    "Are they not afraid of death?"


    The numerous experts were no pushover either and countered every attack made by Xeng Guan and the others effectively to reduce casualties!


    Still, those below Nascent Soul realm were killed like cabbages, and hundreds of them had already fallen!


    "Tire them down! Let''s see how long they will last wilth all those powers they are using!"


    ...


    BOOMMM!!


    Far, far away, a loud collision sound resounded through the area before the scream of someone could be heard.


    "Ahh!! Hot! Hot!"


    It was Duan Li. Due to his careless flying while sleeping, he ended up colliding against a tall volcanic mountain and punctured a huge hole on the side of it!


    BOOOMMMM!!!


    The volcanic mountain that were initally dormant began churning out lava bombs before its top exploded, sending huge clouds of mushroom as well as a powerful sonic boom that shattered and rend all the vegetations around it into pieces!


    This sonic boom travelled far into the distance!


    In the air, Duan Li was shaking off the lava from his armor. Due to the unique properties of the armor he was wearing, as long as he has enough spiritual Qi to counter excessive impact, he would be able to remain invulnerable to most form of physical damage!


    Still, since the lava was hot and he was sleeping, when the lava seeped into the tiny gaps in his armor, the intense sudden heat shocked him awake when he accidentally slurped some of it from his nostrils!


    This shocking method of being woken up from his wonderful dream caused him to instinctively react and threw a punch out, resulting in the destruction of the volcano!


    Fortunately, the area seemed to be devoid of life due to its searing temperature!


    "Ah? Where am I?" Duan Li finally realized that he was alone.


    Where are the Extermination Knights behind me? Are they taking a toilet break from the long journey?


    "It''s possible that they also stopped somewhere to buy some food.. I''m famished as well..." Duan Li nodded to this before a heard a loud rumbling sound from the distance!


    Eh?


    These fierce collision of spiritual Qi... people are fighting over there?


    "Oh! Don''t tell me that I went pass the destination?" Duan Li clutched at his forehead before bolting into that direction.


    Hais!


    ...

 380 Chapter 372: I have come!

    The clash between the Extermination Knights and experts from the Xian and Yuan Empire had only been going on for about less than half an hour, but the total casualties had already reached the hundreds!


    Golden Core realm and Core Formation realm cultivators were killed left and right, and a couple of Early Stage Nascent Soul realm experts also lost their lives against the powerful might of the Extermination Knights!


    Most of the experts from both empires were not able to believe it at first, but these eleven people were really able to rival them despite coming from a backwater nation!


    Nevertheless, the Extermination Knights were also severely injured as a result of fighting against the huge flood of enemies. Contrary to their enemies beliefs however, their slowly accumulated injuries did not seemed to waver their fighting morale and spirit. Instead, with every injury they received, they became even more wild and energetic!


    It was as if every injury was like a tonic for them!


    "These people are really lunatics! They do not seem to care about their lives!" one of the expert from the Xian Empire commented when he saw the Extermination Knights laughing as they received sword attacks one after another, causing their blood to fall like rain!


    "Hmph! Just continue suppressing them. Their bravado will not be able to last long soon enough!" replied an elder from the Yuan Empire with his hands clasped behind his back.


    Majority of the experts from the Xian and Yuan Empire were now only defending themselves and countering when necessary. This was because they were quite suspicious of the Extermination Knights and conjectured that there was a trap. If that was the case, then they need to reserve as much of their spiritual Qi as they can!


    After all, while most of them were proudful individuals given their cultivation realm, influence and status, they were not fools to completely underestimate their enemy after decades of experience in battles!


    Otherwise, how would they reach their current cultivation? It was the very testament for their intellect!


    "Captain! The enemies are becoming sparser now and they are no longer charging in recklessly into our killzone like before!" You Wing sent a telepathic message with a grim tone.


    Previously, when the battle first started, both sides came at each other like the space between one''s teeth! That was how they were able to kill many of their enemies by luring them inside their collaborative attack formation, also known as their killzone!


    Their killzone made use of two overlapping hexagon battle formation that extended their senses all around them, making it easier to launch attacks on their blindspot to kill unsuspecting enemies behind them!


    This resulted in the collaborative attack formation to slowly become ineffective!


    Now, instead of ten people jumping on them at once which they could make use of, only three or four people would attack them with their awareness on maximum level, forcing the Extermination Knights to completely rely on their superior martial arts and cultivation realm to beat their opponents!


    Furthermore, their spiritual Qi were dropping to dangerous level and it would soon run out!


    "I know! Just keep on fighting! The Supreme Elder is watching us from somewhere and will intervene if we are in danger!" Xeng Guan replied and told the rest of his team with confidence!


    BOOMMMM!!


    Shortly after, a loud catastrophic explosion suddenly rumbled the entire sky above them!


    "What the hell?"


    "What''s going on?"


    Everyone stopped fighting and turned towards the direction of the explosion. They saw that the world was basked with light as if the birth of a second sun before huge mushroom of black clouds towered into the sky and seemed to extend far above the heavens themselves!


    BOOMMMM!!


    "Ahh!"


    The shockwaves from the explosion finally reached them and sent these experts tumbling backwards. They could not help but to be struck with disbelief!


    "That is the direction of Mount Helens!"


    "You mean to say that the long dormant volcano finally exploded?"


    "That''s impossible! I''ve been there many times before and the volcano''s source of magma is almost extinct!"


    Meanwhile, Xeng Guan and the rest of the Extermination Knights were staring at the sight with their mouth agape!


    That is the direction where Supreme Elder went to!


    Just what kind of opponent did he fight to produce an effect similar to a natural disaster at this level?!


    "I knew it! The Supreme Elder must have sensed the presence of someone strong and went there to deal with it by himself!" Xeng Guan''s voice was agitated in excitement at this point.


    "I wonder who will win.." You Wing swallowed his saliva at the majesty of the explosion.


    Even for someone at their level, producing such a gargantuan explosion would be impossible!


    "Hmph! It''s obvious that Supreme Elder will win!" Xeng Guan snorted. "Let''s put more effort! I''m sure that he will be here soon!"


    The fight then continued on with the Extermination Knights becoming more ferocious as if a pack of hungry feral wolves!


    Now, they no longer cared about how much spiritual Qi they have left and used all sorts of skill arts at their disposal!


    "Bastards! They are exploding things left and right as if its a firework show!"


    "We are starting to lose a lot of our soldiers here, Supreme Commander will behead us if this goes on!"


    "Everyone fall back! Attack them using long range skill arts only!"


    Their initial plan was to tire out the Extermination Knights before killing them, but it was no longer a choice for them as their numbers of casualties was reaching more than what they could tolerate!


    Since they were the captains of their army, it would be inexcusable for them to let the situation remain as such. Therefore, even though they did not like it, they do not want to risk the anger of their Supreme Commander as none would be able to shoulder it!


    "Damn it.. how cheap are you guys to be able to do this? Cowards! Fight us like before if you dare!" Xeng Guan bellowed in anger.


    "Hmph! You''ve forced our hands! You think that we will let you continue killing the people on our side? Dream on!"


    The experts of Xian and Yuan Empire continued to hurl skill arts towards them non-stop, causing their soul barrier to slowly crack!


    "Captain! At this rate, we will be finished!" You Wing said.


    More and more of their enemies started to use this method of attacking.


    "Ahh! I can''t hold out anymore!"


    Just as the Extermination Knights were about to be defeated, a deep and archaic voice echoed in the sky!


    "Suppress!"


    ...


    "Middle stage Qi Condensation realm?" Wang Feng''s expression froze in disbelief and he felt like the reality he knew shattered in an instant!


    How is this possible?


    Chickens are this formidable in cultivation? Since when?


    Just what happened in the world when I was gone building my army?


    These chickens are even more powerful than most of the cavalry bandits I gathered here!


    Pew!!


    A sharp small knife suddenly bolted at his hand that was holding the neck of the chicken, and this sense of danger in his current lapse of attention to his surroundings quickly loosened his grip on the chicken on instinct to deflect the incoming knife!


    Pengg!!


    The chicken immediately flew away to escape like an eagle soaring into the sky!


    This scene caused Wang Feng to become dumbstruck again!


    "Chickens are able to fly now?"


    In the years that I had trodden the lands, I''ve seen countless bizarre things myself that could not be explained, but this?


    This is straight up bullsh*t!


    Hello Heavens, I''m here to lodge up a complaint!


    As if that was not enough, the clucking of an angry chicken in front of him further cracked whatever reality he had left in his mind!


    "CCUCKK!! CUCK KOO!! KOO CUCKK KUKO KOOO!!"


    It was Cucko and he was furious that Wang Feng almost killed his brethren!


    "..." Wang Feng.


    Is this chicken cursing at me?


    ...

 381 Chapter 373: What is going on?

    Peng! Peng! Peng!


    The moment this archaic voice echoed in the sky, all the assailants were pushed firmly into the ground by an invisible forces, planting their face deep into the soil!


    "Who are you?!" the Xian and Yuan experts asked in surprise as they raised their head to look at the direction of the voice and saw a figure.


    Duan Li floated gently in the sky with his hands clasped firmly behind his back, coupled with his black full plated armor and his hidden cultivation levels, the spectators could not help but to sense that a true expert has arrived!


    "Supreme Elder! Congratulations on defeating your opponent!" Xeng Guan suddenly said, breaking the silence.


    "Supreme Elder?" the Xian and Yuan experts widened their eyes at the use of this honorific title to refer the other party!


    He must be a prestigious expert!


    Meanwhile, Duan Li''s face was confused behind his mask, "Opponent?"


    Did I beat someone in my sleep? Why can''t I remember fighting anyone?


    "He is that guy from before!" one of the Xian experts said as he finally recognized Duan Li which further furrowed Duan Li''s brows!


    "Oh! Now that you said it, that''s indeed him!" the rest swiftly identified Duan Li and nodded.


    They know of me? That''s impossible!


    I am wearing an armor to hide my appearance and suppressed my cultivation levels!


    Perhaps.. my fame has reached all over the world?


    Has their adoration towards me surpassed the boundary of physical identification, such that they could already know that it was me from my majestic disposition?


    "How dare you charged at the pack of innocent birds like a brute! Do you have no heart to cute animals?" a female Nascent Soul realm bellowed angrily when she recalled the horrifying scene.


    The rest also voiced out their anger on him as others started to curse.


    "Ah?" Duan Li was once again put into a dumbstruck.


    What the heck are they going on about now?


    "Silence!" Xeng Guan, the Captain Commander of the Extermination Knights suddenly bellowed, attracting the attention of everyone towards him again.


    "How dare you lot speak that way towards the Supreme Elder! You guys must be tired of living!" he said angrily as he pointed his sword towards the experts in front of him gallantly without a hint of fear!


    "Whatever backing you guys have before, the Supreme Elder has already destroyed it! From now on, the tables have turned!"


    The experts of the Xian and Yuan Empire looked at each other with apparent confusion on their face. They had no idea what the other party meant.


    "What backing? We are here on the Commander General''s order!" they replied with a little displeased in their tone.


    Their Commander General was currently fighting against the Song Empire at the main battlefield, leading millions of soldiers himself!


    That was an impossible situation!


    After all, how could the vast distances between them could allow the other party to kill their Commander General and came back to them as if taking a short toilet break?


    Do you take us for a fool?


    "Hah! There is no need to play tricks anymore! That world ending explosion before is where your Commander General died!" Xeng Guan snorted and pointed towards a certain direction where clouds of black ashes were still billowing furiously to the sky!


    "World ending explosion?" Duan Li looked at the location pointed by Xeng Guan''s index finger.


    Isn''t that where I came from just now?


    I was still sleeping soundly until I accidentally crashed against that volcano and subconsciously destroyed it out of pure reaction..


    "Isn''t that right, Supreme Elder?" Xeng Guan said to Duan Li excitedly.


    Everyone turned to look at Duan Li expectantly as if looking for an answer.


    "..." Duan Li.


    What the heck?


    I just woke up and came here to save you guys when I saw that you all are in a pinch!


    When did I ever fight against someone else? Who the hell is even this Commander General guy?


    Screw this! I''ll just play along then!


    "Hmph!" Duan Li snorted and waved his right hand.


    "Kneel!"


    BAM! BAM! BAM!


    Without exception, all the experts from the Xian and Yuan Empire were forced to kneel on the ground!


    "W-What?"


    "How could this be?!"


    "I-Impossible! I''m a Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm cultivator!"


    No matter how they struggled, they weren''t able to move a muscle! Such suppressive power was unlike anything they had ever experienced before!


    One has to know that they were top notch experts in the world of cultivation, such that one could only try to outmatch them in terms of skill arts or martial arts, but never suppress them!


    After all, the ability to suppress a cultivator by mere words alone would require the person tens, no, hundreds of times more stronger than them!


    It would be understandable if they were all just a bunch of Qi Condensation realm or Foundation Establishment noobs, but they were Nascent Soul realm cultivators for f*ck sake!


    How could someone be hundreds of times more stronger than them when Nascent Soul realm was already the ceiling?


    It was not as if the other party is a...


    Gasp!


    "C-Could it be?"


    Some of them began to slowly think of something horrifying in their mind!


    There is no way that someone would be this overpowered unless he is..


    An immortal!


    "F-Forgive us! We are blind!" they cried out emotionally in realization.


    "Ah?" Duan Li had to pause the domineering sentence that he was just about to throw out.


    What is it this time?


    ...


    Cucko was stomping at the ground with his twig-like feet angrily, creating a huge depression on the ground and cracking them like the post effect of an earthquake!


    "M-Middle Stage Core Formation realm?! This chicken is a Middle Stage Core Formation realm monster?!" Wang Feng almost bit his tongue and die anticlimacticly when the small chicken in front of him unleashed its cultivation level!


    Unbelievable!


    It would be understandable if this creature is an original monster breed.. but my years of slaughtering them for snacks would never mistake their species by even a tiny bit!


    This thing is just a poultry chicken!


    How the hell did it possess such a formidable cultivation level?


    Did it eat a miraculous worm from the ground or something?


    Whooshh!!


    "Fast!!" Wang Feng was immediately jolted into defensive posture and blocked at the incoming attack from Cucko!


    Crash!


    "Hmm?" his brows twitched in disbelief after he made a side step.


    Three long claw marks were etched into his left forearm and blood were dripping out from them before his recovery ability kicked in and made them disappear at the next instant.


    "Kukuku... HAHAHAHHAHA!" Wang Feng suddenly laughed out loud.


    Never before in his wildest dream that his adamantium grade body would be scratched by a mere chicken before!


    Not even a low tier rare graded weapon would be able to leave a mark on his body before!


    "You chicken... you are an interesting opponent!" Wang Feng crossed his arms on his chest with a sneer before turning around.


    "The rest of you, wipe them out!" he commanded with an overbearing tone.


    "Yes Sir!!" the bandit cavalries began to dismount and brandished their weapons at the chickens around them, slowly circling them to prevent them from escaping.


    Seeing this, Cucko became even angrier and glared at Wang Feng in the eyes!


    "Hahahaha! I like that look in your eyes! Filled with anger! Filled with helplessness!"


    "But!!"


    His smile disappeared before the air around him suddenly dropped in temperature!


    "A weakling should not be too arrogant in front of true power!"


    BOOOMMMM!!


    Releasing his battle aura, his spiritual Qi soared into the sky before coalescing to form the huge phantom of a wild black bear!


    A battle spirit!


    ...

 382 Chapter 374: Destroyer of a dynasty!

    "A Battle Spirit!" Fei Longwei and Wei Shang widened their eyes in shock.


    This was something that they did not expect to see!


    A Battle Spirit was the culmination of one''s spiritual Qi from countless years of cultivation. Furthermore, the form it will take will largely depend on how one led their life thus far. Therefore, the fact that Wang Feng''s Battle Spirit was in the form of a wild bear would mean that he was an aggressive person!


    Additionally, this was a sign that one had already reached the very apex of cultivation in the Tian continent! Such that it was on the level of Patriarchs of the Great Clans!


    Only few would be able to rival him!


    "This is bad.." thought both Fei Longwei and Wei Shang worriedly.


    However, contrary to everyone''s expectation, Cucko did not even seem to be scared or concerned. In fact, it took a step forward with a menacing pose and spread both of its wings apart furiously!


    "CUCCKK KO!!"


    BOOOMMM!!


    As if a stable lake that suddenly produced a tsunami out of nowhere, Cucko''s cultivation realm began to soar dramatically!


    Pinnacle stage Core Formation realm!


    BOOMM!!


    Pinnacle stage Golden Core realm!


    BOOMM!!


    Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm!


    "..." Wang Feng.


    These phenomena had left him utterly speechless. After all, even if the Heavens were to start pouring out gold as rainfall, he reckoned that the chicken will still never be able to raise its cultivation level like this!


    Just what the heck is going on with this chicken?!


    However, Wang Feng was only dazed temporarily. As a veteran with years of wisdom behind him, he swiftly deduced that the only possible way for one''s cultivation realm to soar crazily as such was through integrating one''s spiritual Qi with a weapon of the highest grade!


    Thus, his eyes squinted and scanned the chicken in front of him thoroughly.


    "T-That is... I-Impossible!" something that he had feared in his conjecture before became a reality!


    Through the result from his soul sense, he detected that the talons of the chicken were actually..


    Ultimate Graded weapon!


    "How could this be?" he stared at the eight claws that were reminiscent like the talons of an eagle with his mouth agape.


    No wonder that it was able to scratch my powerful physical body!


    To think that a day would come where I will discover an Ultimate Graded weapon on a chicken''s feet...


    I had trodden through countless lands and dangerous ruins in search of them, and there were plenty of times when I almost lost my life as the result...


    Yet, all those difficulties that I faced turns out to be in vain today...


    This world is truly unfair!


    Just how in the world did you manage to turn your claws into Ultimate Graded weapon?


    This doesn''t make any sense!


    "Hahahahaha! I will take your legs!" he flipped his palm and tried to suppress Cucko with a skill art!


    Wengg!!


    Cucko found his body to be wrapped up in a green barrier, gradually tightening to halt his movements!


    However, Cucko only had to shake his butt a little and the green barrier around his body shattered into tiny pieces before disappearing like smokes!


    This was such an overbearing move that would be able to leave experts slapping their own face to check whether they were dreaming or not!


    Shaaa!!


    "You''re mine!", Wang Feng suddenly appeared on his back and was about to grab him by his long neck!


    "Cuck!" Cucko harrumphed.


    As if already predicting that such a situation would occur, instead of dodging or making any excessive move, like a true enlightened expert, Cucko only made a casual retreat by a single step to the back, missing Wang Feng''s hand that was trying to grab him by a feather. Following this, Cucko then swiped his mighty talons diagonally, causing another gaping and bleeding claw marks on the latter''s forearm!


    "Damn you!" Wang Feng cursed and followed through with his next move.


    ...


    "Hey, we need to help him out!" Wei Shang waved his hand and was about to summon his own Ultimate graded weapon before Fei Longwei stopped him.


    "Don''t be a fool! We need to eliminate the bandit cavalries first! Otherwise, we will be surrounded!" Fei Longwei said with a serious tone.


    "But.."


    Wei Shang clenched his fists tight with a helpless expression. He knew that Fei Longwei was right. After all, they were now heavily outnumbered and if they were to draw out their Ultimate Graded weapons now, they might be able to wipe out the bandit cavalries, but they would have no spiritual Qi left to fight against Wang Feng!


    In such scenario, not only would they be utterly defeated, their weapons might even be taken away by the other party!


    If that were to happen, how would they answer to Duan Li their Lord?


    Furthermore, they needed to ensure that everyone will be dead once they took their Ultimate Graded weapon out, but in this current situation, they could not guarantee that!


    POONNNNN!!


    "Eh?" a loud sound of a bugle horn suddenly echoed in the area which attracted everyone''s attention!


    Accompanying this loud horn were the arrival of cavalry soldiers that wore blue armors and positioned themselves atop of a long stretch of slope by the distance!


    "More bandit cavalries?!" Wei Shang gasped in panic!


    "No! These forces.. they are foreign! Look at their banners.. bandits never wear any banners!" Fei Longwei shook his head before he saw two familiar figures at the very forefront of the new forces.


    "Zhang Liao and Lu Bu!"


    ...


    "Hey Lich, what sorts of an undead are you? How are you able to maintain your intellect like this?" Wang Dong that had recovered his injuries and spiritual Qi asked with a curious expression.


    "Me? Isn''t it obvious? I''m an Elder Lich!" answered the undead proudly that had just suddenly become their comrade after being taught a harsh lesson by Utmost Being.


    "But maybe you are not really familiar with my kind.." He said while stroking his bony chin before continuing;


    "Lichs like me are sentient undead. All other undead are born from our summons and while they can remain active without being controlled, they become mindless creatures that acted on their five senses like a living being from pure instinct, albeit significantly dulled!"


    He then explained that there were all sorts of Lichs like Lich Mage, Lich Knight, Lich Warrior and more, but generally Lichs were ranked by their age!


    A newborn Lich would be simply called as a Lich and if they managed to survive for more than a decade, they become Lich King. It''s easy to identify a Lich King from their jutting small horn on their forehead, and these horns will keep on increasing every decade in a circular pattern on top of their head!


    If they passed a century, they then become Lich Emperor and their ten horns would raise upwards slightly every century!


    Finally, if they reached more than a millennium years old, they were called as an Elder Lich and by this point, their horns were already raised to become a crown similar to what human kings and emperors would wear!


    "I see! That''s interesting!" Wang Dong nodded in astonishment. He could not imagine just how long the Lich beside him had endured to survive!


    "How strong are you actually?" Shen Murong suddenly asked with a frown. He was still not feeling friendly with their new buddy.


    Hearing this, the Elder Lich chuckled.


    "That Skull Centipede Emperor you guys are having difficulty fighting with? I can summon a hundred of them at once with ease!"


    Hisss!!


    This answer sent shivers down the spine of everyone that heard it and cold sweat drenched their back!


    Even Elder Cheng Chao was not an exception! She shuddered at the mere thought of having to fight a hundred of the Skull Centipede Emperor whose resilience would make any Nascent Soul realm to escape rather than be tangled with!


    "If you are that strong.. then why did you not try to resist the Imperial Overseer just now?" Princess Meixiu that just got back to her feet snorted, feeling unconvinced by the other party.


    The Lich then turned towards her and went silent for awhile, causing everyone to put up their guard with extreme wary!


    "Child, in the millenniums that I have lived, I was able to stomp the Empyrean Dynasty beneath my feet and turned them into nothing more but history!"


    This revelation quickly shook everyone and drained their blood away!


    He is the one.. that destroyed the Empyrean Dynasty?!


    ...

 383 Chapter 375: One above them all!

    "Don''t joke around! How can a single individual like you possess the power to destroy a dynasty?" Princess Meixiu waved her hand angrily in displeasure.


    She was a bit shaken hearing the declaration from the Elder Lich initially, but after thinking about it a moment later, she was confident that the other party was telling them lies!


    From her perspective, no matter how powerful the other party was, it was simply impossible for one to destroy an entire dynasty!


    This was because a dynasty was vastly different when compared to the system of individual empires that they have right now.


    After all, a dynasty would meant that the majority of the superpowers in the Tian continent had pledged their obedience under the rule of one family!


    For all big powers to bow before the might of a single family, shows that they were individuals with extreme capabilities!


    Not to mention that all these family members feared the one who ruled them all, the One Emperor!


    Which historical texts does not talk lengths about the power of the One Emperor?


    He, whose words dictated the prosperity or the desolation of a land?


    He, whose hands could flip an entire mountain upside down?


    He, whose name would cause millions of enemies to retreat in helplessness?


    There was always one recurring phrase by the end of every texts that mentioned the One Emperor;


    Sovereign above all that even the Heavens would not cross him!


    "With the One Emperor around, how could you destroy his Empyrean Dynasty? Their destruction was only due to an unprecedented natural disaster!" Princess Meixiu continued.


    Hearing this, the rest slowly agreed to what she said when they thought about it!


    "Hahahahaha!" the Elder Lich laughed out loud when he saw that the young woman whom he referred to as a ''child'' was still unconvinced.


    "Perhaps you misunderstood. I only said that I was the one who destroyed the Empyrean Dynasty, but I never defeated the One Emperor to do so!" he replied as he shook his head.


    "The One Emperor was an immortal above the Heavens in disguise, playing god with cultivation realm far beyond what you younglings could imagine!" he started to explain as his skeletal expression gradually turned solemn, recalling the past era that was now long gone.


    "What do you mean?" the rest of them asked, their curiosity on the mysterious nature of the disappearance of the Empyrean Dynasty piqued their interest.


    The Elder Lich was silent for a moment before giving out a long helpless sigh.


    "I met him once and challenged him. It was not even a fight as I was suppressed by just a single word of his!"


    Hisss!!


    "The One Emperor was that strong?" everyone began to gather with him as the center. They sat quietly around him as they swallowed their saliva once in a while from the suspense.


    As a veteran expert of the Nascent Soul realm level, she could not imagine just how powerful immortals from the legends were!


    Are their strengths far above us?


    "I''m not entirely sure, but I did asked him if he was an immortal when he defeated me in such a humiliating manner.. and he shook his head!"


    Confused with this, everyone looked at each other while frowning, "So the One Emperor is not an immortal?"


    "Definitely not! He scoffed in disdain when I called him an immortal as if that title was something that was beneath him!"


    The Elder Lich paused for a moment as he cupped his chin to recall a certain word.


    "If I''m not mistaken.. he calls himself.. a Celestial!"


    ...


    "Forgive us dear powerful, most benevolent and handsome immortal!" the experts of the Xian and Yuan Empire were sweating like crazy as they were forced to kneel on the ground!


    After all, people of their level had seen quite everything there was to see in the Tian continent!


    But Duan Li''s suppressive power over them? They who were already at the peak of power in the Tian continent?


    This was a first!


    They did not know whether the other party was truly an immortal or not, but who cares?


    As long as they could live through the day, what does it matter if they call a powerful person as an immortal? Nada!


    In fact, it would do them well if the other party felt good about it and let them go!


    For them who had accrued years of experience, influence, wealth and power, it would be a waste if they were to die simply because of their pride!


    It was of second importance when compared to their survival!


    As the old saying went; "The more powerful a person were, the more afraid they become when faced with death!"


    Meanwhile, Duan Li was a bit taken aback when they called him an immortal.


    Did they mistook my spatial skill arts as aura suppression?


    But thinking that it would be a hassle to deny it, he only nodded.


    "It''s good that you guys understood." Duan Li said before continuing, "But what is this unfair sight that I am seeing? How could people bully those smaller in numbers? Where is your dignity as an expert?"


    The numerous experts turned to look at each other in confusion and answered, "Dear immortal, we are having a war..."


    "Silence!" Duan Li interjected them before they could finish.


    Sh*t! I must not let them answer like that! Otherwise, I won''t be able to fool them!


    "Fighting with numbers is what cowards and weaklings would do! But all of you here are experts of the Tian continent!!"


    "So what if it is war? So what if it was the order from your superior? So what if it was the decree from your Emperor? You should slap them in the face all the same for daring to besmirch the honor of experts by issuing such a cowardly method of fighting!" Duan Li bellowed with his deep voice, sounding like the rumbling of scary thunders!


    Pu!


    The experts spurted out blood. Just thinking the logic behind the words from the other party had caused them internal injury!


    Slapping our superiors? Heck, the Emperor himself?


    Are you mad?!


    You actually want all of our family members to be hanged to their death isn''t it?


    Even newborns would be beheaded for daring to utter such nonsense! How could you say something like this?


    Even though they were stifled, they still didn''t dare to talk back to Duan Li!


    "Y-Yes! We should slap our superiors and e-emperor!" they replied with a small and stuttering voice.


    "En!" Duan Li nodded in satisfaction.


    He then said, "Face towards your soldiers over there! I want you to shout at them that they are weak and cowards, and that you are nothing like them! Say that you refuse to fight in this nonsense!"


    The experts then found their body to turn on their own, causing them to become more fearful of Duan Li''s means!


    Scared sh*tless, they subconsciously repeated Duan Li''s words towards their kin; the eight hundred thousand soldiers behind them!


    "You bastards! This war of yours is disgusting! Get lost!"


    "All of you are cowards! How dare you all embark in this war?!"


    "Screw your ancestors! Why are we forced to lead you weaklings in fighting with this nonsense thing called war?!"


    One by one, the Xian and Yuan experts threw slurs and curse words one after another as if they hated wars to their very core!


    On the other hand, the eight hundred thousand soldiers were dumbstruck when they suddenly got berated and told off like this!


    "What''s going on? Why are our commanders getting angry on us?"


    "They hated wars? But I recall that several of them was the founder of the war council themselves.."


    "Their yelling are full of hatred.. just what did we do to deserve this.."


    Unable to discern what was happening, these eight hundred thousand soldiers could only kneel to beg for their forgiveness, even though they did not know the reason why.


    "We have done you commanders wrong! Please forgive us lowly peasants!"


    Due to their sheer numbers, their cries were loud and filled the entire sky like thunderstorms!


    "Very good!" Duan Li once again nodded in approval that everyone has finally realized their wrongdoings!


    "Now that you all have realized that this war is petty and insignificant, go back home and tell your superiors and emperor that you are done fighting!"


    "..." Xian and Yuan experts.


    We are so dead.


    ...

 384 Chapter 376: Descent of Terror!

    Casually telling us to go home, how we envy this simple life of yours..


    It must be good to be that strong that you could even indirectly slight your emperor like that..


    The Xian and Yuan experts almost had the urge to break down and cry right then and there with the current decision they had to make in front of them.


    While it was true that each of them were powerful individuals with big and influential family behind them, it was also their biggest weakness!


    After all, if they were to abandon their duty and slapped their superior as well as the Emperor himself like what the other party suggested, they could still escape with most of their life intact with the many life preservation means they have in their disposal.


    But their family that they left behind? If they were not beheaded or hanged to death, then they might be sold as slaves!


    That would be way too unfortunate!


    Hais!


    We ourselves would love to live such an unfettered way of life, with history of slapping an Emperor that would make an exhilarating story to be told to our grandchildren, but with such a tragic outcome like that, how could we possibly agree?


    Would we even have grandchildren left to tell such an epic story by the end of it all?


    Realizing how their life was actually chained down like that, they could not help but to feel powerless despite their powerful cultivation realm!


    Just like the law of the world, everything has a balance, and their rise in power was deeply rooted with the help of the resources from their empire!


    Destroy the balance, and they would have to pay a very steep price!


    However, choosing to disregard the Supreme Elder in front of them was also a bad idea and they could very well lose their life!


    Going back home would mean that we have forfeited our future but going against him would also spell our damnation..


    Oh Heavens, just what in the name of hell should we do?


    "O-Oh powerful immortal, the most benevolent and exhalted existence in the Tian continent.. if you would allow me to speak.. I, the lowly one have a suggestion.." somebody among them suddenly said, attracting everyone''s attention.


    "Hmm?" Duan Li turned towards that man, nodding in approval with how the latter was addressing him.


    "You can just call me Supreme Elder from now on, and yes, you may speak!" Duan Li replied with an indifferent tone like an otherworldly being from a different dimension.


    The man gritted his teeth and clapped his b*tt tight to summon up his courage.


    "S-Supreme Elder, why don''t we have a duel? Eleven of us versus Eleven of them! This way, it would be fair for both sides!"


    "Ah?" Duan Li uttered, his displeased tone behind his helmet was like a grandfather that was about to scold his grandson!


    Meanwhile, the rest of the experts around him were almost sent into tears. They were deeply touched by the bravery of this man!


    The Heavens are not blind!


    "Who is he? I will let my beautiful daughter marry him!"


    "What a good man! I will send him lots of gifts if we managed to pull through this!"


    "How courageous!"


    One by one, they each complimented the brave man who stood up for them inside their mind while taking notes of his looks and appearance.


    In addition, unwilling to let such a good opportunity slipped past them, these old crooks quickly kowtowed on the ground and repeated after him;


    "We beseech you to understand us, Supreme Elder!"


    The resonance from their combined feelings rattled the atmosphere through their voice, such that the sky appeared to almost rain from this touching scene and from this, even someone as dense as Duan Li could realize how troubled they were!


    "I see.. now that he said that.. they would indeed be a goner if they return just like that.." Duan Li nodded in realization with his hands clasped behind his back.


    Giving out a deep sigh, he was just about to voice his agreement to it when the sky above them suddenly screeched in a high pitch that rang loudly in their ears, forcing everyone to shut their hearing sense!


    "What?" Duan Li felt an ominous sensation that he had long forgotten as he raised his head to look at the sky!


    Even the mysterious pearls inside his body that had long been dormant to the point that he almost forgot about them seemed to give out a particular reaction to this event!


    CRACK!


    The sky was split into two halves like a broken glass before a pair of gigantic claw stretched out and grabbed by its sides!


    "What.. in the world.. is that?!"


    ...


    "Hmph! So they managed to catch up to us. They''re pretty fast too.." Wang Feng said as he stared at the two figures that just arrived.


    Tap! Tap!


    "Wang Feng! Don''t even bother to escape anymore! We have you surrounded!" Zhang Liao declared grandly from the top of a slope, behind him was a few hundreds of elite cavalries that stood tall and mighty, just like the mountain ranges!


    "Oh hey! It''s you two!" Lu Bu squinted his eyes and waved his hand when he saw two familiar figures, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei!


    On the other hand, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei were surprised with their mouth wide agape on the duo''s sudden arrival along with their huge armies when a thought suddenly hit Fei Longwei!


    "I see.. so these bandits.. they are running away from them!"


    Wei Shang also quickly realized what Fei Longwei meant and nodded, "Yeah.. it appears that, these bandits are actually being hunted by them!"


    "With those soldiers behind them, it is obvious why these bandits, despite having the number advantage, would choose to escape instead of fighting it out.."


    Those soldiers are all at least in the Core Formation realm!


    That''s crazy!


    In the Jiu Empire, Core Formation realm cultivators, while not considered as rare, were still uncommon!


    Their status was already enough for them to lead a small sized clans and have some influence in politics from behind the scene, yet here..


    They become the cavalries of these two!


    It would still be acceptable if there were only tens of them.. but just by the rough estimates here, its obvious that there are at least eight hundreds of them altogether!


    "Just who in the world are they?" Fei Longwei and Wei Shang could not help but to become curious of the real identity of these two people, who were also acknowledged by their Lord to be his ''friends''.


    After all, no matter how powerful the empire where the two of them came from, it would still be a waste of resources to simply squander such a fighting power to protect two mere envoys!


    "Their status must be special.."


    "All soldiers, rally on my position!" Wang Feng suddenly bellowed, breaking the temporary silence between the two sides!


    "Yes!" Ang Busano and Ang Busheng quickly instructed their soldiers.


    "We won''t let you! Everyone, attack!" Zhang Liao waved his hand as they charged forward down the slope with incredible momentum!


    ROAARRR!!


    In that instant, everything suddenly turned chaotic with the two forces clashing together!


    However, it was pretty obvious that the difference in power was putting the bandit cavalries into a disadvantageous position!


    They were getting massacred left and right! Even those that tried to escape via flight was killed in an instant the moment they left their formation!


    "Damn it! If only we have enough time to position ourselves earlier.. it wouldn''t be this easy for them to slaughter us like this.. what a blunder!" Wang Feng cursed under his breath and directed his anger at the chicken in front of him.


    It is all their fault.. these damned chickens!


    It was only now that he realized all the plans he made prior to this was now utterly destroyed by a pack of poultry animals!


    This is so infuriating!


    "Hmph! Playtime is over!" Wang Feng''s eyes glinted and punched out a fist!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    This single fist art from him was so devastating that tens of Core Formation realm cavalries were sent flying or tumbling away, and some were instantly killed!


    "Damn it! Everyone, defensive formation!" Zhang Liao instructed with a serious expression.


    Regardless if they have hundreds of Core Formation realm soldiers, against a true Nascent Soul realm cultivator that had already reached the apex, they would still be killed if they don''t have a strategy to win!


    After all, the famous saying of "those below the Nascent Soul realm are nothing but ants," was very true in this kinds of situation!


    "Futile!" Wang Feng grinned and threw out another punch.


    BOOOMMMM!!


    This time, while there were still casualties, nobody died and most of them only suffered some minor injuries!


    "Oh? Not bad! But... " Wang Feng remarked in surprise before scoffing in disdain.


    "We have already regrouped!"


    Zhang Liao that saw this quickly realized what was going on, "It''s a distraction!" and instructed everyone to retreat, Lu Bu, Wei Shang, Fei Longwei, Cucko and his minions included!


    "Shockwave destruction formation!" Wang Feng raised both hands to the front as his bandit cavalries followed suit.


    "Take cover! It''s a wide area attack!" Lu Bu bellowed and warned those around him.


    Sh*t!!


    While the bandit cavalries was nothing by their own, the formation ''Shockwave Destruction'' was still deadly!


    Its a particular battle formation that will quickly sap the spiritual Qi of everyone in the formation dry in one go to release a burst of destructive shockwave, hence their name, that could rupture one''s meridians and Qi pathway channels unless they have protection from artifacts, amulets or skill arts if caught in it!


    Normally, this wouldn''t be a problem if both sides have Nascent Soul realm experts as they could render it useless with their sheer might, and was therefore quite useless in big battlefields where people in all sorts of cultivation realm coalesce together, but they don''t have one right now!


    "This means that both sides would be rendered incapable of fight, and only commanders will be able to sustain themselves.." Zhang Liao swiftly calculated the change in the battlefield before his expression turned ugly.


    In this case, it would be them versus Wang Feng, and that would lead to nothing but defeat!


    BOOMMMM!!


    The Shockwave Destruction Formation was activated, releasing a blinding wave of light towards the opposing side!


    Just as Wang Feng was confident of his victory..


    CRACK!


    A fissure abruptly appeared in the sky and tore it into two, before a huge foot stomped down from within it!


    BOOOMMM!!


    The Destruction Shockwave Formation was obstructed by the foot and was split into halves!


    ...

 385 Chapter 377: Found out!

    "Everyone, get back behind me!" Duan Li bellowed as soon as he felt the danger from the unknown presence within the cracked sky!


    One has to remember that Duan Li was usually a carefree guy due to his overwhelming power. Therefore, for him to be feeling threatened by it was already an obvious sign that it was something beyond just dangerous!


    "Supreme Elder?" Xeng Guan and the rest of the Extermination Knights snapped out from their daze after hearing his loud voice before retreating to Duan Li''s back. Most of the Xian and Yuan experts also did the same thing as well.


    After all, their years of experience told them that it would cost them their life if they do not listen, and the moment after, their fears became true!


    BOOOMM!!


    The gigantic claw from its left hand within the splitted sky swiped down, causing huge swathes of land being grazed down as if a chisel that was being driven through a wood plank forcefully, sending piles of mud, rocks and other parts of the regolith layer in the ground to be ejected into the sky!


    As a result, three long gashes that spanned about ten kilometers long were formed in an instant, appearing like it was the work of mother nature herself for those who are non the wiser!


    To make matters even terrifying, more than half of the combined army from the Xian and Yuan Empire that were previously only watching by the sidelines, were killed as they were inside the trajectory of the attack before!


    "No!!" the experts from both empires cried out tragically.


    To think that more than 500,000 soldiers out of their original 800,000 strong died just like that as if they were nothing more than some useless dirt..


    This was an unprecedented loss they''ve ever had! Even when fighting against the unruly Song Empire, their total casualties only reached that level after they fought each other for a long time!


    But that was an instant! It was crazy!


    "What the hell is that thing?! I''ve never seen anything like it before!" they said fearfully looking at the outstretched hand with three long claws in the sky!


    From a glance, they could already tell that the pair of scaly hands does not belong to that of a human''s. In addition, the diameter of those hands was about 10 meters long and each of its three claws was about half of that size!


    "The hand is about to attack again!" the experts setup their defenses using their most powerful skill arts when they saw the left hand twitching.


    BOOOMMM!!


    As the claws swiped down one more time towards their direction, the experts and the Extermination Knights closed their eyes. Somehow, they could feel that no matter how much they struggled, they will not be able to defend against that claw attack at all!


    BOOOMMMM!!


    "Hmph." this figure had the other one of his hand behind his back. Looking like an expert that just stopped an attack he received from a child casually!


    "S-Supreme Elder!" everyone widened their eyes in astonishment seeing this bewildering scene!


    For such a powerful, nigh-impossible attack to be stopped with just a single palm of his..


    Mama mia, how strong is the Supreme Elder to be able to do this?!


    All hail to the Supreme Elder!!


    ...


    "Haa.. haa.."


    Meanwhile, contrary to his cool outward appearance, Duan Li was actually sweating profusely inside his helmet!


    This was because he was almost killed!


    While others might not realized it due to being overtaken by fear, the moment those claws swiped towards them, they were locked in place without being able to move their body, and he was deeply familiar with such feeling..


    Spatial Arts!


    After all, just a moment before, he was using the same skill on the Xian and Yuan experts himself to appear invincible!


    As a result, this took him by surprise and even with his Martial True Instinct trying to move his body accordingly, it was unable to do so due to the spatial arts suppressing him!


    It was only fortunate that the ability he had almost forgotten, slowing down time, courtesy from the golden mysterious pearl, took over the fabrics of time automatically and slowed everything down to a grind halt!


    When this happened, Duan Li could finally see that the claws was already a meter away from killing him, so he subconsciously extended his left hand and used a palm attack to counter it!


    ''Nine Palms Slapping the Ocean!''


    Duan Li used the full extremities of this palm arts without holding anything back. Therefore, when the total force behind this palm attack was compounded with the multiplier effect from the time being slowed down, the total might behind his palm attack was powerful enough to blow a whole mountain away into fine dust!


    However, Duan Li found out that the time was still in a state of slowdown and this fact horrified him!


    What does this meant?


    This meant that his palm attack was not enough to stop the momentum behind the claw attack!


    After all, time would only return to normal if his life was no longer in threat!


    "How could this be?" realizing that he was still in a pinch, Duan Li set out another palm attack, then another and another!


    After he executed a total of five palm attacks, only then did the time returned to normal, resulting in the current situation!


    Of course, Duan Li would never forget to stay in his character that he was playing right now, so he struck a cool pose, reminiscent of an unperturbed expert that stood at the very top of the world''s throat, even though his surroundings was being battered by countless meteors into a total destruction!


    Shinggg!!


    "Hmm? Interesting." a cracked voice echoed from within the shattered sky. Its tone was ethereal as if whispers coming from inside a deep cave!


    "A lowly mortal from the thousand mortal worlds that could stop my claws?" this voice then chuckled with a scary vibe to it, as if a predator that could see them from their shadows while they were unable to sense him at all!


    "Who are you? Why have you come to this world you wretched demon?!" Duan Li bellowed as if trying to drive out an evil entity!


    Pu!


    The sound of a choked person could be heard from within the cracked sky before the voice replied angrily, "Who are you calling a wretched demon? Insolent mortal, die!!"


    BOOMMMM!!


    The claws swiped down once more, but this time, with an even greater force when compared to before!


    PENGGG!!


    However, to the surprise of the unknown entity, his claw attack was still halted by the palm of the figure before him!


    Impossible!


    How can a mortal be this strong? That attack could wipe out an entire kilometers of landmass!


    "Could it be?" a sudden thought appeared in his mind.


    On the other hand, Duan Li almost had to catch his breath loudly after countering yet another attack from the claws!


    "Damned being is too strong.. I had to slap it twenty times to finally cancel out the force!"


    Despite the help of the compounding effect from the slowing down of time, Duan Li had used quite a bit more spiritual Qi than he expected!


    It is a good thing that I can recover them all in a single breath.. or else, I might just die out of exhaustion..


    "I see.. so it is you.. the source of the anomaly in the timeline!" the voice abruptly said, catching everyone''s attention, especially Duan Li!


    His eyes narrowed, Duan Li then questioned the unknown entity with a wary voice, "Anomaly in the timeline? You.. are you the artifacts of time?"


    Duan Li recalled his conversation a long time ago with the Millennium Yidara Tree. The tree did mentioned to him that the artifacts of time would begin to appear once he changed the course of history!


    Is this entity one of it?


    "You know of the artifacts of time?" the entity paused for a moment before it chuckled sinisterly, "I was right! Since you know of it, you must be the source of it all and is doing it on purpose! With this much power in you, I can see how that is totally possible now!"


    "But you are mistaken! Artifacts of time are simply the world''s reaction to get rid of something that could potentially harm it! Think of it as a natural defensive system."


    Duan Li nodded in comprehension.


    "As for me.. I am the Guardian of time!" the entity proudly declared.


    "Guardian of time?" Duan Li repeated the sentence as it was the first time he was hearing it.


    "That''s right! But you don''t need to know much! Once I reported you to the Heaven''s Court, all the recent havoc in the time space continuum will be finally answered!"


    Heaven''s Court?


    Hearing this, Duan Li felt another waves of bad feeling in his stomach. He felt that if he let the other party go, there will be even bigger trouble that would be impossible for him to rectify!


    "It seems that you know a lot of things that I wanted to know about.. stay!" Duan Li instructed with an indifferent tone which infuriated the entity that called itself the Guardian of Time!


    "Insolent! I''ll kill you and drag your corpse to the Heaven''s Court myself!"


    The two hands joined and clasped together to form the shape of a hand hammer before striking down towards Duan Li!


    "Die!"


    Rrringgg!!


    ...

 386 Chapter 378: Cooked! 1

    Rriingg!


    The moment Duan Li heard this ringing sound in his ears, time began to slow down again to its very last second, an overpowered ability that Duan Li could always depend on when his already near-omnipotent power could not be relied on.


    Hais!


    Duan Li sighed in helplessness with his hands clasped behind his back as he raised his head to look at the hand-hammer attack coming towards him from above.


    "My own power grows rapidly and I''ve become far too strong, such that none could defeat me anymore."


    "With this forbidden ability of mine, slowing down time on anything that could otherwise prove lethal to me... how can I find the joy of life in battle anymore?"


    His longing look hidden behind his helmet was deep and sad, such that if anyone could see his face right now, they would feel a mysterious heartache in their soul and the urge to slap him!


    After all, Duan Li was doing monologue on the greatness of his power without being ashamed about it!


    Yahahahahaha!


    After giving out a burst of satisfied laughter, he suppressed himself into the composure of a great expert once more before cupping his chin.


    "Alright seriously now, that attack looks like a real problem." he said to himself after looking at his surroundings.


    The hand-hammer attack was still far above in the sky but his slowdown skill was already activated. This meant that it was far more deadly than the previous three attacks!


    If it hits me, who knows if even my ashes will remain?


    Besides, how do I even fight something of this size when only its hands could be seen?


    "Hang on..." a sudden thought appeared inside his mind.


    If I remember correctly, the All-Father Forge could shrink any object that entered its furnace...


    Duan Li recalled that when forging Di Rou''s Ultimate graded weapon, which was a long scythe, he initially thought that it wouldn''t fit inside the forge when suddenly it shrunk and snug right into the furnace!


    But this thing surely is a living thing? Would the All-Father forge even accepts it?


    "Ah what the heck, I guess I should just give it a try.. but I need to pull its entire body down first!"


    Deciding on this, Duan Li flew high up to grab the pair of hands before putting all his weight in to pull the other party out from the cracked sky!


    "Eh, its not budging at all.."


    Duan Li was a little shocked that he wasn''t able to pull down the Guardian of Time even when using all of his strength to the point that his bodily muscles expanded, and the expansion narrowed the spaces inside of his armor, threatening to break apart if he was not careful!


    One has to know that his current physical strength was powerful enough to drag the Liu Empire''s palace with just one hand!


    "If it is like that, then all I have to do is..." a playful smile appeared on his face.


    Taking out the All-Father forge, Duan Li placed it on the ground right below the pair of hands with an opened lid. Then, he flew slightly above the hands, just enough so that the slowdown effect will not be cancelled before he went into a stance!


    "Tri-Desolation Heavenly Arts: First Desolation Warring Intent!"


    BOOOMMM!!


    "Unparalleled Body Ultimate Arts: Super Mode 1!"


    BOOOMMMM!!


    "Unparalleled Body Ultimate Arts: Super Mode 2!"


    BOOOMMMM!!


    Stacking all three of his buff skills, like a person high on steroids, Duan Li''s muscles were bulging wildly akin to multiple typhoons swirling inside it!


    Not only that, the sparks of lightning dancing around him made him look like a war god, ready to tear everything asunder!


    It was fortunate that his full plated black armor was durable enough to not shatter from the sudden muscle expansion. Otherwise, he might become naked because of it!


    Where would his boundless dignity go if people were to see him naked?


    In fact, wouldn''t his carefree life become haphazard with women lusting after him endlessly with his body that looked like a martial god?


    Eat this!


    "Nine Fists Shattering Meteor, Consecutive Thousand Punches!"


    BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!


    Each of Duan Li''s punch carried the might to destroy large swathes of land and flipped over the river, topple the mountain and flood the desert!


    In fact, it wouldn''t even be exaggerating to say that his fists could destroy an entire empire!


    But of course, this was not something that he could possibly done anytime he wanted. His enemy would have to at least be powerful enough to threaten his life so that his slowdown ability would kick in and the effect of his attacks multiplied together!


    With this, he should be able to forcefully change the trajectory of the attack by adding more momentum to it so that it will enter directly into the chamber of the All-Father Forge!


    "Now, all I have to do is to pose a little..."


    Duan Li flew higher and grabbed one of the claws.


    Rrringgg!!


    "Hahahaha! Die!!"


    The Guardian of Time was relishing on his inevitable victory before he realized that his target has disappeared right before his senses!


    What? Where is he?!


    It only took a moment for it to discover Duan Li''s location, about the same time when he realized the other party disappeared due to its unfathomable power!


    "Fall." Duan Li said casually while making a pinching motion on its claw.


    Immediately, the pair of hands felt an impossible weight forcefully dragging it towards the ground, as if being guided by an invisible force!


    "I was attacked? Impossible! How can he be faster than me?!"


    The pair of hands had an earlier suspicion that the other party was using powers that shouldn''t be comprehensible when Duan Li stopped his previous attacks before, but now, it was definitely sure of it!


    It was indeed Spatial Time Manipulation Arts!


    However, even if it was possible for the other party to use such a technique for a mere mortal, Duan Li''s mastery over it shouldn''t exceed him!


    After all, not only was his cultivation level was so high that he only had to fear the Celestials, he was also the Guardian of Time himself!


    Even if his powers had to be capped lest it would destroy the thousand mortal worlds, never before in his line of duty that he was beaten in terms of controlling space and time, against a mortal at that!


    The pair of hands tried to break free from the mysterious force guiding it to the ground, but alas, the momentum added was far too vast for it to stop at the last minute!


    "Huh, a... forge?" the pair of hands felt the hairs on its skin rose straight, an obvious sign of danger!


    He.. is planning to incinerate and melt me with a forge?


    Interesting!


    ...

 387 Chapter 379: Cooked! 2

    "So you want to try and burn me inside that tiny forge of yours?" the Guardian of Time cackled mockingly in his mind.


    He previously thought that the unknown force that was guiding his hands somewhere was redirecting it towards something dangerous, like a dimensional prison, a spatial seal formation or something..


    But it turns out to be just a portable forge!


    One must know that even the explosion of a star wouldn''t be enough to burn the hairs off my skin, not to mention the meager heat from the furnace of a forge!


    Why am I even worrying? In fact, I should help you raise the temperature so that I can have a nice flame bath! Yours is just too weak!


    Oh wait, would that tiny forge of yours could fit me in to begin with?


    HAHAHA!


    What a foolish ape! I shouldn''t have expected anything much from these mortals!


    In addition, with my size, wouldn''t I just smash his forge into pieces if I hit it?


    Is this guy actually an idiot that such common sense has eluded him?


    "I don''t know what you are planning, but that will never work on me-"


    Eh?


    Before he could finish his sentence, the pair of hands suddenly found itself to shrink rapidly in the blink of an eye!


    Now, his size was just a tenth from his previous original size!


    "Impossible!" he gasped in surprise with widened eyes!


    There are powers in the mortal world that can do this to me?


    BAMM!!


    Just like that, the pair of hands was shoved into the furnace of the All-Father Forge and was then locked inside.


    "AHHHHH!!"


    Before long, a tragic and agonized scream could be heard.


    "Hot! Hot! Help me! Let me out dammit!"


    "..." the Extermination Knights as well as the Xian and Yuan experts were staring speechless at the current happenings in front of them in a frenzy.


    Bro, what''s going on here?


    A moment before, that pair of hands showcased a power that is out of this world, so we are sure that its descent was something that should be historic in the Tian continent..


    Yet, after its powerful and bombastic entry, its exit was far too.. anticlimactic!


    Why was it captured just like that as if a wild animal being led into a trap in the forest? It''s not as if its a wild rabbit dammit!


    Could it be that the pair of hands does not have the intelligence as it is missing its head?


    Hang on, was that even supposed to happen in the first place? Logically, we all should''ve been dead and historians would then write today''s event with a deep apprehension towards the unknown apocalyptic future!


    ''Bloodbath Descent'', such a gruesome title for future story-telling that could even make crying children stop and halt their breaths!


    Perhaps, even the entirety of mankind would band together under one banner for the first time in eons in order to defeat such a powerful foe!


    "A-As expected of the S-Supreme Elder.." Xeng Guan swallowed his saliva nervously as he watched Duan Li coming down from the sky.


    Meanwhile, the pair of hands was smashing against the lid of the furnace from the inside viciously, as if a fish that was flapping its body furiously for being taken out from the water!


    However, no matter how much it struggled, the All-Father Forge would not open its lid!


    What is going on? How did I shrunk to this size? Why is this forge so resilient? And most of all..


    Why is the flame so frickin hot?! Its even hotter than the surface temperature of the Eternal Sun!


    I''m gonna melt at this rate!


    "Let me out! Let me out this instant!"


    I''m the Guardian of Time, an existence respected across all the three realms under the jurisdiction of authority itself!


    "How dare you treat me like this! I shall report this behavior to the-"


    BANG!


    "Shut up!" Duan Li lifted the portable forge that was about 2 meters wide and shook it violently as if trying to make an apple fall from a tree.


    "Ahh!! Stop it!" the pair of hands screamed feeling dizzy.


    "Y-Young Master, you shouldn''t shake my father like that..." Little Sword whispered softly feeling concerned, but before he could finish, the sleeping All-Father forge was already woken up from the intense vibrations!


    "Impudent! Who dares to cause a ruckus inside me?" the All-Father Forge bellowed angrily!


    "It''s that thing inside you!" Duan Li quickly answered.


    "You are impudent! Your whole family is impudent! Let me out this instant or I shall severe the heads of your entire clan!" replied the pair of hands inside it in a similar overbearing fashion!


    "Fool! I''m a forge! Does it look like I have a head to you? I''ll burn you to a crisp!"


    Whooshh!!


    The flames inside the forge grew searing hot to the point that Duan Li had to release his grip on it! When he looked at his hands, it was scalded badly!


    Soon after, the entire body of the forge was crimson red while the pair of hands was cursing incessantly and saying something along the lines of ''You will regret this!''


    After quite some time, its voice could no longer be heard.


    "Hmph! While I don''t know where you came from, there is nothing in the three realms that I can''t melt!"


    Ptuii!


    The All-Father Forge then spitted out a rectangle brick that was silver in color with many layers of sheens on it before going back to sleep. When it first came out from the furnace, it was just 1 meter in size, but enlarged to three meters when it landed on the ground!


    "Oh? It was tempered into this metal brick?" he was elated to see that his bet on leading the other party into the forge worked!


    Not only that, the overbearing entity was also smelted into what seemed to be an ingot that could be used in the future!


    However, when Duan Li tried to lift it from the ground, it was not budging at all!


    Damn, it''s still this heavy even after it becoming nothing more than a pile of metal... just what in the world is he?


    Too focus in trying to lift the heavy block of ingot, unbeknownst to him, the spectators around him were nearly driven mad by the sheer insanity of the scenes they were witnessing!


    The crushing pressure that was about to dissipate their bodily fibers and soul when the pair of hands attacked at that final moment, had suddenly entered the furnace of a forge to commit suicide!


    What the hell is going on?


    Not only that, the forge could even talk out loud and its tone was akin to the disposition of someone that could rival the grandfathers of the founding emperors of each empire!


    Furthermore, the most scariest thing was that, it could actually kill and temper the inviolable entity to become an ingot!


    Are portable forges actually that formidable? Should we buy one next time?


    CRACK!


    Everyone raised their head to look at the teared sky, and they could see that it was slowly mending back together before they disappeared entirely!


    Seriously? It ended just like that?


    Was this mega event supposed to run like this?


    "Young Master, I remember now.. that pair of hands.." the Little Sword seemed to be jolted by a recollection in his memories and spoke apprehensively.


    ...


    Back at the outskirts of the Spring Blossom village, the huge left leg of an unknown entity that stopped the Shockwave Destruction Formation of the bandit cavalries seemed to put everyone into a state of bewilderment!


    "No!!" Wang Feng cried out.


    The failure of their previous attack meant that the tables have now turned against him!


    Initially, he was planning to have both of their armies immobile before he duke it out with the chickens and the rest, but now, it was only his bandit cavalries that was out from action!


    This would mean that if the battle continues, his bandit cavalries would be inevitably massacred by the opposing side, and there was just no way that he, Ang Busheng and Ang Busano could possibly cover for the downed bandits while fighting with the rest!


    "I don''t care who or whatever you are! For coming out here to spoil my plans, you will die!!"


    Thoroughly enraged, Wang Feng''s entire being was radiating out dangerous vibe and the Battle Spirit behind him changed into the stance of a roaring wild bear!


    "Fist of the North-East Star!"


    A huge phantom of his fist flew out with an imposing momentum towards the left leg that came down from the cracked sky!


    BAMMM!!


    The full attack of a Pinnacle stage Nascent Soul realm cultivator that had already reached the apex was akin to the force of mother nature itself. Therefore, hitting squarely on the side of the leg, the ground shook like a magnitude 9 earthquake and sent many dust and soil flying from the ground!


    However, the mysterious huge left leg did not even appear to be grazed by the slightest!


    Instead, it turned towards the direction of Wang Feng and kicked out!


    "Danger!" Wang Feng widened his eyes and flitted to dodge to the side when he felt the goosebumps from the incoming attack!


    PTOOMMMM!!


    A huge part of the ground was splattered like a man kicking against the surface of a water, and it extended all the way to tens of kilometers long!


    Just like that, Wang Feng''s bandit cavalries was killed in one strike!


    ...

 388 Chapter 380: Collect them all!

    "No!!" Wang Feng cried out over the tragic deaths of his entire bandit cavalries. Similarly, Ang Busheng and Ang Busano could only stare at the the deep gorge and bloodied remains of their fellow kin with a blank state of mind.


    Powerful! Extremely powerful!


    They had never seen anyone or anything that could do so much damage in one single attack!


    Just what the hell is this foot?!


    "Brother, what should we do? Do we attack while its distracted?" Lu Bu shot a glance as he sent a telepathic message to Zhang Liao.


    "Don''t! This thing is beyond our league! Have all the men retreat quietly, far away from here as possible! We will try to hold it back if it does attack us!" Zhang Liao replied with a grim voice.


    Lu Bu nodded and sent hand gestures towards their people. Knowing what he meant, their men quickly retreated in an orderly fashion as stealthily as they can.


    It was also fortunate that their men were all strong cultivators in the Core Formation realm. Therefore, they were already a few hundreds of meters away within a few breaths!


    "Hey, it doesn''t look like the foot notices us.." Wei Shang said.


    "Perhaps. Or it simply doesn''t care about us. Either way, I think its better for us to retreat. My instinct tells me that we will all die in a hearbeat if we try to retaliate." Fei Longwei replied before turning to Cucko.


    "Send a call for help to our Lord. Only the unstoppable can even it out with the immovable."


    Cucko nodded before closing its eyes, seemingly deep in focus.


    Fei Longwei then waved at Zhang Liao and Lu Bu from afar and sent a few hand signals. He was sending them messages to allow him to communicate with them telepathically. After all, weaker cultivators can''t freely sent telepathic messages to those stronger than them, they need their permission before they could do so.


    "We need to space out ourselves further apart from each other so that if that thing attacks and its unavoidable, at least we will not die all at the same time." Fei Longwei said.


    "Agreed!" both Zhang Liao and Lu Bu nodded.


    "In addition, if that thing does try to attack us, whatever means we have to do, we need to pull its attention away from that chicke- I mean Cucko." Fei Longwei continued before giving a slight cough.


    Zhang Liao and Lu Bu turned to each other wondering why the other party was asking them of this, so Fei Longwei explained it to them.


    "I see! He is indeed our best bet in this case.. let''s just hope that he can get here in time.."


    Tap! Tap!


    Meanwhile, seeing that their opponents suddenly decided to make a move, Ang Busheng and Ang Busano found out that they were not trying to attack them nor the foot, but instead was distancing themselves far away from each other without retreating with their army!


    "I see!"


    The best bet is for us to make as little movements as possible to not attract the attention of the foot..


    On the other hand, losing all his bandit cavalries seemed to finally snapped the line of sanity for Wang Feng!


    Just how much of an effort he had used to form all those bandit cavalries of his?


    It took him years to do it!


    Now that they were all gone, his dreams of taking over the mountain lands will no longer be achievable!


    "ARGHHH!!!" Wang Feng howled to the skies with extreme indignance.


    "Why? Why?!"


    "I only wanted to retake back what belongs to the Wang Clan! Why must this happen to me?!"


    "Heavens! I, Wang Feng, curse you! I curse you and this cruel fate you played on me! I swear that even if I have to die today, I will reincarnate and will one day destroy you!"


    BOOMM!!!


    The howl of hatred from Wang Feng echoed in the sky and turned the previously clear day into dark and ominous vibe! Thunders began to clapped as lightning started to coil over the huge propagating cumulonimbus clouds!


    "He''s gone crazy!" Ang Busheng and Ang Busano gasped with fear as they raised their head to look at the sky!


    The Heavens is angry!


    The number one taboo in the Tian continent was probably cursing the Heavens with one''s name on it, much more when it was uttered with full of malice and the intention to do harm!


    "Has that fellow gone senile? Attracting the anger of the Heavens at this time? He is courting death!" Wei Shang shook his head.


    "Let him be. Either way, it will buy us more time for the Lord to come here! Let''s just sit back and watch." Fei Longwei snickered.


    Even lightning tribulation from the Heavens during ascension between realms was already too much for cultivators to handle and they would prefer to avoid it if they can. Yet, the other party was calling the wrath of the Heavens purposely!


    "Hmm?" Zhang Liao noticed that something was amiss.


    That pair of sharp eyes doesn''t look like someone who had lost all reasons..


    Wait.. maybe he is planning to..


    A hint of comprehension finally dawned on him and he was taken aback, "That''s reckless!"


    BOOMM!!


    A lightning bolt struck him from the thunderclouds, but when the dust settled, Wang Feng was only grazed as he blocked it with one hand!


    "Hahahaha! Is this the might of the Heavens? You are weak! I shall destroy and replace you as the Heavens myself!" Wang Feng taunted while looking smugly at the black sky!


    You must be kidding to think that such a level of power would scare me! I''ve been through stronger lightning tribulations in the past than this!


    Shioongg!! Shioongg!!


    The previously blue lightning turned color to become crimson red with a shade of purple, this was a sign that the Heavens no longer tried to warn him, but to exterminate Wang Feng completely!


    "I was right!" Zhang Liao could finally confirm his previous conjecture when he saw the wide smile forming on Wang Feng''s lips when he saw those changes in the sky!


    Whooshh!


    Immediately after the change, Wang Feng dashed at the currently unmoving foot for some reason with great speed!


    BOOOMMM!! BOOOMM!!!


    The murderous lightning began to struck at Wang Feng one after another!


    ...


    "I wonder if the Tetra Soul Sense could analyze it completely.." Duan Li cupped the chin of his helmet while thinking contemplatively.


    [Ding!]


    [Object analysis completed. A refined material made from the pair of hands of a supreme entity known as the Guardian of Time.]


    [Usage includes, a powerful base material with incredible defensive properties due to its infinite weight. Impossible to lift. Impossible to be integrated with other materials. Impossible to be forged into a weapon.]


    [Left arm and Right arm collected. Collect all the other three parts of the Guardian of Time to unlock a mysterious and powerful body armor of Exodia!]


    "Ah? Collect all the other parts? Does it mean that I have to collect all the limbs of the Guardian of Time?"


    Why does this feels a bit wrong..


    And Exodia? This name feels quite familiar, but I don''t know where I''ve heard it before.. (A.N: You guys could google it if you don''t know lol)


    "S-Supreme Elder.. what''s going on?" Xeng Guan, the leader of the Extermination Knights asked after he could no longer identify if he was in the dream world or the reality.


    "Hm? It''s nothing too serious. That thing was just an evil spirit and I had smelted him into this piece of lump metal." Duan Li replied casually.


    Evil spirit? We seemed to recall that it had called itself as the Guardian of Time or something...


    In fact, it even said something about you being the anomaly of a timeline, the artifact of time and what not...


    Seeing that everyone had a questioning look towards him, Duan Li made a slight cough before clasping his hands behind his back and raised his head to look at the distant horizon.


    "In this world, there are things that would only bring you all demise if you were to know about it." Duan Li said with his deep voice.


    "That evil spirit just now, it was the sign on the coming for the end of time!"


    The end of time?


    "Yes.. and it is my duty to stop it! No, I must stop it from happening again at all cost!" Duan Li''s voiced contained a hint of sadness but firm confidence in the end. He was a bit agitated before giving out a deep sigh, like an expert that had seen the vicissitude of life many times before.


    Although everyone around him that heard this wasn''t really sure if what he was saying made any sense, they were able to feel that the resoluteness in Duan Li''s last words was not fake. Thus, they chose to not ask any more.


    After all, in the Tian continent and the world of cultivation, there were many things that did not make sense to them, and as veteran experts, they knew that not all questions needed an answer. They were well used to these sorts of things.


    "Supreme Elder, thank you for saving us!" the Xian and Yuan experts gave Duan Li their sincere thanks. If not for him, then they might have already been a goner!


    Duan Li turned towards them and was about to say something before he stopped.


    "Cucko?"


    ...

 389 Chapter 381: Distorted message!

    "Cucko is sending me a distress call?" Duan Li paused as he closed his eyes to concentrate.


    "Come over now... we have a foot massage?"


    Abruptly opening his eyes, Duan Li almost spurted out his saliva when he heard this.


    While he can understand chicken language quite fluently, he was sure that this was not the message that Cucko was trying to tell him!


    Was the message distorted along the way as it was passed between several hundreds of chickens due to the sheer distance between us?


    "Which stupid chicken are sending this message? I''ll tell Xiahou Yu to cook you for dinner!" Duan Li cursed in his mind.


    He was a little incensed with this absurdity. After all, this was similar to rumors that slowly became exaggerated as it was passed down between many people, where irresponsible individuals would twist the story one bit at a time, slowly propagating the rumor to track far off from its original story!


    Duan Li perked up his hearing senses and replied to the chickens while threatening them harshly to repeat the distress message.


    "Come over now... we have a foot on us?"


    Are you a masochist? Why would I want that?


    "Come now... which foot is left?"


    How the hell should I know dammit!


    "Come... chicken feet soup tasted great..."


    Pu!


    Curse you useless chickens, you guys must be trolling me!


    And what the hell is with that last message, are you a cannibal eating your own kind?!


    "Forget it, I should just connect with Utmost Being so that he could tap into the distress call at the shortest distance..." Duan Li gave up and connected directly with his clone back in the Imperial Palace.


    ...


    "Moshi Moshi..." the voice of Duan Li echoed in the minds of Utmost Being that was currently drafting a paper amidst the mountains of books piling around his desk.


    Crack!


    "Moshi Moshi your head! What is it?!" Utmost Being shouted in his head and broke the expensive royal quill pen on his finger.


    "Hahahaha you sound lively! Being the Imperial Overseer really fits you well eh?" Duan Li cackled on the receiving end.


    "F*ck you! What do you want? Hurry up and speak, I''m busy!" his clone replied angrily, sounding extremely annoyed as his concentration was broken.


    Suppressing his laughter, Duan Li then answered, "I''m receiving a distress call from Cucko, but the message was somewhat twisted on my end due to the many irresponsible chickens passing them over. Can you intercept the message from there?"


    "Hmph! Give me a second!" Utmost Being closed his eyes and extended his senses before he could feel the vibrations in the air so that he could read the encrypted message as per the directions from his original.


    "A big foot that could defeat them? Could it be?" Duan Li''s eyes widened in shock.


    Does this mean that the pair of hands weren''t the only thing that descended? Even its foot has landed on the Tian continent?


    This is bad...


    Little Sword had told me that each of the limbs possessed their own separate consciousness and would become whole as the Guardian of Time once it finish doing inspection in the mortal realm that had hints of tampering with time!


    This means that the foot should realize that its pair of hands was also in the same world, and if it disappears here, surely when the Guardian of Time made its report, it would take specific notes on the Tian continent!


    "Can''t we just send Queen Levy there? I can teleport her. She is already an Immortal anyway." Utmost Being said with indifference.


    Duan Li shook his head, "You didn''t face the pair of hands just now, so you probably don''t know how helpless she will be if she faced it. In fact, even you will die if you go there!"


    Since Duan Li had turned off their real-time information sync due to how annoying it felt like when they shared everything all the time, his clone wasn''t able to experience what he experienced before.


    "Big talk. Then you go there by yourself!" Utmost Being scoffed before disconnecting their channel and continuing his work.


    ...


    "Supreme Elder? What''s wrong?" Xeng Guan said after they saw Duan Li standing still for a long time.


    Could he be reminiscing the good old times?


    "It''s nothing, just that another evil spirit appeared somewhere else." Duan Li replied with a grim voice.


    What? Another one of that terrifying thing?


    The crowd could not help but to gasp surprise and trepidate in fear recalling their previous encounter with the pair of hands.


    "I need to exterminate it at once. As for you all, this war is over!" Duan Li waved his hand in a vertical cutting motion.


    Wengg!!


    "T-That is.. a teleportation portal?!" the Extermination Knights and the Xian and Yuan experts stared in astonishment.


    Not even one of them has this mysterious and powerful skill art!


    It''s incredibly rare!


    Turning around to face them, Duan Li then continued, "If I hear that you guys are still fighting here, there will be severe punishment. Hmph!"


    He then entered the portal, leaving everyone in an awkward silence.


    ...


    Traversing portals after portals, Duan Li calculated that he should be able to reach his destination within a few more breaths.


    This was because he used nine-tenth of his spiritual Qi to teleport in vast distances, and he needed at least one breath to recover most of his spiritual Qi back!


    "Hang on guys, I''m coming.." Duan Li clenched his fists worriedly.


    ...


    On the other hand, back in the outskirts of the Spring Blossom village, dust of clouds covered the entire area after the Heavenly retribution struck down due to Wang Feng''s provocation.


    "HAHAHAHA!" Wang Feng laughed out loud in satisfaction.


    My plan worked! I managed to attract the Heavenly retribution and made them hit the damned foot!


    "That''s what you get for messing with me!"


    However, when the dust settled, what he saw caused his pupils to dilate and his back drenched in sweat!


    "Impossible! How is it still standing unscathed?!" Wang Feng''s face paled.


    That was a direct hit from the Heaven''s retribution themselves! Even someone ten times stronger than me would be charred into small dust!


    How can it remain uninjured?


    "Puny mortals. The Heavens in this world are not strong enough to even graze the hair on my skin, let alone injure me."


    "You can talk?" Wang Feng and the rest were shocked.


    "Hmph. I don''t waste my time on corpses. Now die." the foot raised itself and stomp down with unstoppable momentum!


    "Oh no.. if that hits the ground.. everyone will die!" Zhang Liao felt helpless when he watched this scene.


    Wenggg!!


    ...

 390 Chapter 382: Another collected!

    Wengg!!


    "Oh, there they are, it seems that I made it in time... eh?"


    As soon as Duan Li stepped out from the teleportation portal, he saw the panicked expression of everyone around him, including three ragged fellows whom he did not recognize.


    What made him surprised however, was that his ability to slow down time was automatically engaged!


    Raising his head to look above him, he saw the shadow of a giant foot that was close to 20 meters wide trying to stomp down on his position!


    "Ah, so its the left foot of the Guardian of Time.." Duan Li nodded in realization.


    No wonder time got slowed down, if that stomp hits the ground, the land within a few kilometers will be compressed and reduced to ashes, not to mention that any life forms would probably be disintegrated!


    Without wasting any more time, he began to set up the All-Father forge right below the foot and opened its lid. Then, flying on top of the foot, Duan Li unleashed all of his buffing abilities followed by a series of devastating consecutive meteoric punches as what he did with the pair of hands earlier!


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    After that was done, as usual, Duan Li found himself a good spot so that everyone can see him once time returned to normal and struck up a cool pose. His favorite choice was always clasping his hands behind his back while tilting his head up a little, creating a strong vibe of a powerful expert!


    Rrringgg!!


    "Die.. eh?"


    As the Guardian of Time, similar like its pair of hands counterpart, it was able to detect the change in time and space around it after time returned to normal. But to its astonishment, he was only able to notice it after it already happened!


    How can that be?


    Then, the instant the foot detected this anomaly, its senses also detected Duan Li floating haughtily beside it!


    "I didn''t see this guy before.. could it be?!"


    He must be the cause! Its impossible for any mortal to go undetected from my senses!


    No wonder I''m drawn into this mortal world... someone had gained a forbidden power that should not be available for mortals! This in violation of the rules!


    I must apprehend this guy whether alive or as a dead corpse and present it to the Heaven''s Court for further action!


    The foot then tried to halt its attack on the ground and change the trajectory to kick Duan Li instead.


    "H-Huh?!"


    However, to its horror, its momentum to stomp the ground could not be stopped. In fact, it was as if there was an additional force tugging it down!


    While it could actually suppress this force given a few seconds, it was already too late. Furthermore, since it wasn''t injured at all despite Duan Li''s devastating attack, the foot couldn''t feel anything as well!


    Therefore, it wasn''t sure what type of force was dragging it down!


    "Is that a.. portable forge?"


    Pengg!!


    "What?! This is i-impossible!"


    Spatial Manipulation of this level should not exist on the mortal plane!


    What in the world is going on here?


    The lid then closed itself shut to imprison the foot inside it.


    "Hmph, trying to contain me here? You are dreaming!"


    BANGG!! BANGG!! BANGG!!


    The foot kicked the inner walls and the lid of the furnace from inside rapidly, kicking up a ruckus which woke up the All-Father Forge once more.


    "Curses! Which impudent being dared to wake me up again this time?" the All-Father Forge bellowed angrily and rattled the entire sky.


    "Ah? Its you again? You really don''t know when to quit disturbing an old man eh? Burn to ashes!"


    He did not expect that another similar consciousness to the one that he smelted before had appeared once more to try and annoy him again!


    "AHHHHH!!"


    The foot screamed and was shocked down to its very fiber. After all, throughout the eons of its existence, there was never once that anyone or anything in the mortal world that could hurt him!


    However, the fires from the forge was increasing rapidly, such that the temperatures shot through the roof and became hotter than anything else it experienced before!


    It didn''t take long for the foot to be completely smelted into a brick of metal and was barfed out by the All-Father Forge!


    [Ding!]


    [Object analysis completed. A refined material made from the left foot of a supreme entity known as the Guardian of Time.]


    [Usage includes, a powerful base material with incredible defensive properties due to its infinite weight. Impossible to lift. Impossible to be integrated with other materials. Impossible to be forged into a weapon.]


    [Left arm, Right arm and Left Foot has been collected. Collect the other two parts of the Guardian of Time to unlock a mysterious and powerful body armor of Exodia!]


    Floating gently in the sky, Duan Li nodded in satisfaction. Everyone else however, was stupefied by the sudden happenings.


    After all, everything happened in less than a few seconds that they couldn''t process what was going on!


    "Lord.."


    Nevertheless, both Wei Shang and Fei Longwei still greeted Duan Li respectfully and Cucko perched itself on top of Duan Li''s left shoulder.


    In their minds, such a life-threatening event was nothing more than a child''s tantrum for their all-powerful Lord!


    Thus, their surprise only lasted for a moment before they accept it as it was.


    But for Zhang Liao and Lu Bu? While they knew themselves that Duan Li was powerful such that even an immortal was beaten by him, they could feel that the foot was countless times more stronger than an immortal!


    How was it then possible for the other party to beat the foot even faster than the immortal?


    Heck, such a powerful existence was even turned into a piece of metal brick!


    Are we dreaming? Is this world still making sense? Or has the Heavens gone drunk?


    As dumbstrucked as they were, there were three people who were even more confounded by what their eyes had seen!


    Ang Busheng and Ang Busano had their mouth wide agape, their minds went totally blank and they did not know what to feel.


    "Who.. are you?" Wang Feng asked warily towards the figure floating in front of them.


    His initial analysis and experience told him that the youth in front of him couldn''t be considered as young from the body stature, but because the other party was wearing a white mask, which Duan Li had changed into, as well as donning his white robe before coming there, he could only deduce that the figure was around the age of 20 or above.


    "Hmm?" Duan Li turned towards him and scanned Wang Feng top to bottom.


    "Nice aura. You are a bit strong. Its a shame that you are a bandit though." Duan Li said.


    He could feel Wang Feng''s strength was stronger than most Pinnacle Stage Nascent Soul realm expert by several folds, but he was still far off from the Great Clan''s Patriarch level.


    Duan Li also knew that the other party was a bandit from his clothing as well as what Cucko had just told him.


    "Hmph. What do you know about me. Tell me who you are!" Wang Feng bellowed as Ang Busheng and Ang Busano rallied to his side.


    "Atrocious, how dare you speak to the Lord like that!" Wei Shang and Fei Longwei shouted back, deep anger was apparent in their eyes.


    Zhang Liao and Lu Bu also stared at them with a hostile expression, seeming ready to butcher Wang Feng and the two bandits at anytime.


    This greatly shocked Wang Feng as he didn''t expect their reaction to be like this.


    Just who in the world is that young man for them to be like this?


    Shaking his head, Duan Li took out a golden white token from his spatial ring and raised it to the sky.


    Wengg!!


    In that instant, the world seemed to dim in color as the symbol from the token in Duan Li''s hand outshone everything around it!


    ''Jiu Imperial Overseer''


    This pair of words glowed brightly in the sky!


    Pengg!!


    Wang Feng and the two bandits beside him felt their energy draining as their face turned pale like a white sheet paper.


    Kneeling on the ground, they uttered with stuttered voice and deep fear!


    "Paying respects to the Imperial Overseer!"


    ...

 391 Chapter 383: The shadow looms once again!

    "You''ve got to be kidding me, why is the Imperial Overseer here?"


    Ang Busheng and Ang Busano were scared out of their wits when the identity token flashed and revealed who the other party was.


    Who in the Jiu Empire hadn''t heard of the exploits of their newly inaugurated Imperial Overseer?


    Defeating an immortal that descended from the world above the Heavens during his coronation.. the rumor was spread like wildfires being blown by typhoons!


    At first, they thought it to be merely exaggerations as there were no recordings from that event, but now that they experienced how their Imperial Overseer had easily handled that mysterious and powerful foot and turned it into a pile of metal right in front of their eyes..


    They dare not think twice on the authenticity of the rumor anymore!


    It was all true!


    "It seems that you are called Wang Feng. Tell me, how did someone like you turn into this pile of mess?" Duan Li asked curiously.


    When Wang Feng heard this, his long-held frustrations and indignance on his clan coupled with his now destroyed bandit cavalries after many years of building them from the ground up finally burst open like a broken dam.


    "Your Excellency, I''ve been wronged!" he cried out emotionally.


    Wang Feng then told the entire story to Duan Li, and only after listening to it all that Duan Li finally understood.


    "I see, you are not satisfied with the Red and Blue Concordat Treaty, so you defied your Wang Clan and the previous Emperor, causing you to be exiled and was left to wander the wilds.." Duan Li shook his head in pity.


    "I understand now. However, you could''ve made your own clan given your powers and previous contributions if you so choose and claim a land to settle. So there are no excuses for you to recruit murderous and treacherous bandits like them under your banner!" said Duan Li sternly as he pointed at both Ang Busheng and Ang Busano who were now cowering on the ground, afraid to even breath loudly.


    "I''m desperate.." Wang Feng replied with a heavy voice before he continued, "If I were to start a new clan, it would be decades to even form the initial foundation. Besides, they will not have the natural traits that I desire for my clan which are bashful and brave! How then will I lead them to fight against the Wang Clan for what little land they have after the damned treaty?"


    "Therefore, I turned to recruit bandits as they are wild and hot-blooded, closer to my taste. I''ve subjugated them by myself and made them work under me as the East Bandit Coalition force which comprises of seven bandit groups in the East. It was because of this that the Jiu Empire experiences less attacks on the trade routes between villages in recent years compared to before!"


    It turns out that what Wang Feng had told him was indeed the truth!


    In the region where the East Bandit Coalition reign, there were only several instances where the trade routes were attacked.


    But if that were the case, then how did they still survive? Bandits only banded together because of one common goal they shared which was banditry!


    Therefore, it didn''t make sense for these bandits to not only dissolve, but instead grew stronger under one banner!


    To put this into another perspective, it was similar to how a piece of bread could only feed so many people at once. If bandits stopped doing banditry work, they wouldn''t have anything to eat and die out!


    Duan Li then beckoned with an authoritative voice towards the two cowering bandits, "So, you two must also be working under Wang Feng. I don''t believe that you bandits are not robbing people anymore. Tell me how you guys operate."


    "Yes! We Red Sands bandit, after joining the East Bandit Coalition, has conducted ourselves to proper banditry ethics! When we strike, we will only kill those who resist, leaving those who surrendered alone. We take what we need which are mostly money for raising our army! Other than that, we never involve ourselves with degenerative acts!" Ang Busheng answered.


    "Bullsh*t!!" Fei Longwei suddenly interjected with an angry bellow.


    "When we came here the other day, you bandits were slaughtering the villagers and wanted to sell the women and children away!" shouted Fei Longwei, and Wei Shang nodded to this statement!


    They both, along with Cucko witnessed the cruelty of the bandits murdering the villagers that night!


    "Yes, I''ve also heard this report directly from them through Cucko before. What do you have to say for yourselves now?" Duan Li''s voice turned cold. This was the last chance he will give them to explain themselves.


    Even Wang Feng''s face darkened when he heard this, "Ang Busheng, Ang Busano, is this true?!"


    He had clearly told them which lines they shouldn''t cross no matter what, and attacking villages were one of the things that he forbid them to do!


    "W-Wait! There must be a mistake! We never attacked any villages! This was our first time coming here!" Ang Busheng turned panic before looking at his older brother for help.


    "My brother is right! If you guys don''t believe us, you can check the corpses of our kin there! All of us Red Sands bandit has a tattoo mark on our left shoulder like this!" Ang Busano pointed to the poorly made tattoo on his left shoulder that looked more like the doodle of a three years old.


    Seeing this, both Fei Longwei and Wei Shang frowned.


    Indeed, when they cleared the bodies of the bandits attacking the Spring Blossom village before, they never saw such an ugly tattoo like that on their left shoulder. Otherwise, they would''ve noticed it if everyone has such an atrocities!


    "W-We only rob the traders when we are in need of supplies such as medicine and weapons, and that job is given to us, Red Sands bandit, by Great Leader Wang Feng here as its easier to rob people in this region.. As for how we survive, the Green Knife Bandit group are in charge of subsistence farming elsewhere, and they provide rations to all the other six bandit groups of the East Bandit Coalition.." Ang Busheng took this opportunity to explain.


    "Oh? So that''s why when we raided some of the bandits den, there were some lands around it full of vegetables and fruits! So this is the case!" Zhang Liao and Lu Bu said in realization.


    They previously thought that the bandits were occupying farmlands, but they were actually the farmers themselves!


    Duan Li and the rest were taken aback by this revelation.


    Holly-Moly!


    Are these people doing banditry as their part-time job now for some quick cash instead of making it their main vocation?


    The more we look into this matter, the more they appeared like an organized crime syndicate instead!


    "It must be the bandits from the West region intruding on our territory!" Wang Feng suddenly said, attracting the attention of everyone.


    "Explain." Duan Li commanded.


    ...


    "A Celestial? Are they stronger than the immortals?" Wang Dong said feeling both curious and excited.


    Everywhere in the legends and myths of the Tian continent, Immortals were said to be the zenith of cultivation!


    Now that he heard that there was something even beyond that, how could he not get excited?


    This was also the same for everyone around him! They were intrigued with this new horizon!


    "Most probably so. Imagine being defeated without your opponents lifting so much as a finger on you!" the Elder Lich said as he shook his head in helplessness with a deep sigh when he recalled that moment.


    "Hang on, before that, do you have a name?" Shen Murong suddenly asked.


    "Ah.." the Elder Lich was surprised before cupping his chin, "Let''s see, what was my name again? Its been so long that I could barely remember.. was it Ainz-something? Oh no, that''s the name of another person.. was it Lin?"


    Seeing the other party was troubled over trying to remember his own name, Wei Wang scribbled on the air with his spiritual Qi, "Can we just call you Elder Lin then?"


    "Oh! That works! You can call me that! Now, continuing on the story, the One Emperor is-" Elder Lin was just about to continue his story-telling when he suddenly paused.


    "You think you can hide from me in my domain? Come out." Elder Lin turned towards a certain direction before a sinister laughter echoed out.


    "Hahahaha! To think that someone like you has now become someone else''s lap dog.. isn''t this an interesting turn of event?"


    Amidst the shadow, a silhouette appeared vividly. This person was wearing a dark black robe with the symbol of a new moon on his back.


    The Dark Sect!


    ...

 392 Chapter 384: Bloodlust incarnate!

    "That black robe.. the Dark Sect?" Shen Murong and Wei Wang narrowed their eyes at this man. His long white hair covered most of his facial appearance aside from his pair of disdainful eyes that seemed to be glowing crimson.


    Elder Cheng Chao whom was silent all these while suddenly spoke, "Impossible.. I am able to see him clearly with my eyes, but my soul sense are unable to detect his presence!"


    It was out of habit for anyone once they possess the soul sense to use it against their opponents in order to do a preliminary analysis on their power level, and Elder Cheng Chao was not an exception to this.


    Usually, she would be able to at least gauge her opponent''s strength by how much they were able to rein in their aura as it was a tell tale sign of their skills!


    In other words, the less aura they radiate, the experienced and dangerous that cultivator would be!


    Therefore, the fact that the other party was able to remain completely like an inanimate object despite her eyes seeing the person itself, had triggered her instinct telling her that the latter was an extremely dangerous person!


    If that person were to attack them silently from behind, they wouldn''t even get the chance to retaliate!


    "Don''t bother using your soul sense. The guy is a vampire, his name is Zeng Jiangshi!" Elder Lin chuckled as he shook his skull slowly.


    "A vampire?" Princess Meixiu and the rest frowned as they were foreign to this new term.


    "He is someone who is in a limbo between the living and the dead, not really alive nor is he an undead. A long time ago, they prospered in number and many people would fall victim to their fangs especially during night time." explained Elder Lin with a deep voice.


    Hearing this, Wang Dong at the side, suddenly widened his eyes feeling horrified!


    Attacking people at night..


    "You mean.. he is a perverted undead?" he said with a grim expression.


    Putong!


    Zeng Jiangshi, the guy from the Dark Sect found his footing to suddenly slip from the boulder he was standing on and fell to the ground, kicking up a huge dust!


    Even Elder Lin choked on himself. If he was a living being, his lungs would probably already fail from the shock he received!


    How in the world did this fellow come into such a conclusion?


    Wouldn''t assassin and the likes be more likely than a perverted undead? Where did he get such an idea?


    "No! I mean to say that they would bite at people''s neck and suck on their blood! This was especially the case for young, virgin women as they would be the most common victim for these vampires!" Elder Lin replied.


    Although the other party was their enemy, he was an upright person who lived by the ancient morals and teachings. Thus, he would never let people misunderstand his words that could sully or slander anyone!


    ''Hide behind me!'' Wang Dong whispered, causing Princess Meixiu''s face to turn red as she nodded slightly.


    Elder Lin''s skeletal jaw literally dropped to ground seeing Wang Dong''s reaction before he covered his face feeling ashamed.


    This guy is exceptional when fighting before, but in terms of intelligence.. he is an idiot..


    Meanwhile, Zeng Jiangshi quickly stood up from the ground while laughing to brush the previous scene off cooly, "You caught me by surprise there, that''s a first after many centuries! You are good!"


    In his heart however, he was cursing Wang Dong harshly.


    Bastard! To dare call me, the great and noble vampire Zeng as a pervert, you deserve to die a million times and be impaled on the stakes!


    "What are you doing here, entering my domain?" Elder Lin asked.


    Although he was much older than the other party, they knew one another way back during the time after he destroyed the leaderless Empyrean Dynasty back then.


    "Chill out! I was in the vicinity when your house happened to blew up. So I came here to check if you are still alive. Pun intended! Hahahaha!" Zeng Jiangshi replied.


    He then continued, "So, that''s the Jiu Imperial Overseer that killed Cao Tengfei.. is he that strong for you to submit just like that?"


    "You and your lame jokes..." Elder Lin sighed. "But in a short answer, yes. Though not as strong as the One Emperor from back then. We could have fought, but it would be meaningless."


    Zeng Jiangshi scoffed, "Hah! As expected! Knowing you, who once summoned ten thousand of your centipede or whatever they were called as to decimate the Empyrean dynasty back then, it would be a terrible joke for you to simply lose like that. You are just lazy to fight back, am I right?"


    "Well, if you are talking about the clone, I might be able to win if I fight seriously. But is it worth it for all that trouble to summon the real person to beat me up? I don''t think so." Elder Lin chuckled.


    "Hmph! You''re no fun!" Zeng Jiangshi harrumphed and flipped his thumbs down on him.


    "Eh? Clone? What do you mean Elder Lin?" Shen Murong asked doubtfully. "I know the Lord personally myself, and that''s definitely his aura!"


    Wei Wang and Wang Dong both nodded in agreement. They could never mistake their Lord''s aura like that. Surely, they would be able to tell if the other party was the real deal or a clone!


    This was especially the case for Shen Murong, how could he forget Duan Li''s aura after his first battle with him during the Combat Class?


    ''Also, this guy is a little out of character from his appearance, is he mentally stable?'' Shen Murong stared warily at Zeng Jiangshi.


    Despite the other party seeming to act like a fool, the dangerous vibe he felt never decreased at all!


    "I don''t know where he got such an impeccable substitute material for his clone, but one thing remains the same for all clones, and that is.. while clones do possess sentience and soul, which is the extension of their original persona, they are still not a living thing in the end. Who else knows better about something that is alive but is also not a living thing when compared to me?" Elder Lin clasped his hands behind his back as he explained this.


    Undoubtedly, as an Elder Lich whom had lived for millenniums, his knowledge about this was extensive beyond words!


    "Hey now! Don''t you get all smug over there! As if you are the only expert here! Hmph!" Zeng Jiangshi turned towards Shen Murong and the rest as he pointed his index finger.


    "Listen up here you younglings! Me and this Lich here whom you now called as Elder Lin, we are very sensitive and attuned towards those with the same attributes like us, ''Deathless'' as we would like to call it."


    "People like us, who are able to remain alive or resurrect indefinitely for as long as we fulfill some certain conditions, are able to sense one another in close proximity. Kind of how you humans recognize each other with a single glance. Its just something natural!" he continued.


    "That Imperial Overseer just now was definitely a clone, and I would dare say its a perfect one at that! So its not surprising for you people to be deceived, but not us! Specifically, not me! Hah!"


    Listening to their explanation, only now did Shen Murong recall the oddity he felt from ''that'' Duan Li!


    The Duan Li he knew was always calm and laid back most of the time, not uptight and like someone with anger management issues!


    He felt sorry for Elder Lin getting slapped repeatedly before, to the point that the latter''s skull was spinning like a ball..


    Had they not explain this to him, he would''ve thought that it was just the menstrual period taking over Duan Li''s rationality! He never would''ve guessed this to actually be the case!


    A clone!


    "I see.. but the fact remains that you are with the Dark Sect! Just because you told us all these, doesn''t mean that we are letting you escape!"


    "..." Zeng Jiangshi''s smile abruptly paused.


    ''Another idiot..'' thought Elder Lin in his mind, feeling helpless.


    "HAHAHAHAHA! You are a funny guy!" Zeng Jiangshi gave out a sinister and crazed laughter.


    "If I wanted you all dead, you guys wouldn''t even realize it! Perhaps because your Elder Lin is here that you are so brave to say that? Do you think that he can protect you?" Zeng Jiangshi took a step forward, instantly radiating out extreme bloodlust!


    "Tsk! Don''t even start. I wouldn''t want to get sweaty now. Must we do this?" Elder Lin also took a step forward and countered with his own death aura as the ground began to tremble.


    Now, two different aura of different colors, crimson and pitch black was clashing against each other!


    "Hehe! Why not? We''ve not fought for a long time, haven''t we?"


    ...

 393 Chapter 385: Kidnapped!

    "The bandits on the West region consists of three main banners, the Gold Barrel bandits, the High Peak bandits and the Ravine Dwellers bandits. They are always competing with one another to gain supremacy!" Wang Feng said.


    Staring into the sky, he then continued, "When I consolidated all the major seven bandit groups here into one banner, the East Bandit Coalition force, I tried to reach out to them but they rejected."


    "Hm? With your power, couldn''t you just force or coerce them into joining? I bet that''s what you did to band all the bandits here together isn''t it?" Zhang Liao interjected.


    Wang Feng shook his head, "If it was that simple, I would have already declared war onto the Wang Clan a long time ago! But these three bandit groups.. their leaders are at least as strong as me, and they also have several Nascent Soul realm cultivators! If we were to fight, there wouldn''t be a definite conclusion, and a fight that big might attract the Empire''s attention, so I just settled with what I have."


    "That''s a problem..." Duan Li cupped his chin when he heard this with a troubled frown behind his white mask.


    The Jiu Empire is too infested with so many bandits.. are we really that short on hand to have let them multiplied to this degree?


    To think that there are even bandits at the Nascent Soul realm level!


    "In addition, I''ve also heard something disturbing..." Wang Feng narrowed his eyes with everyone listening closely.


    "The rumor is that, they are working for the Dark Sect! I wouldn''t want to have a connection with the most wanted criminal group in the Tian continent, that''s just suicide!"


    The Dark Sect?


    Everyone widened their eyes upon the mention of this name. The infamous Dark Sect who harbors nothing but harm for humanity, a threat that all the nine empires swore to eradicate, has rounded up some bandits to work for their bidding?


    "This is a serious issue..." Zhang Liao and Lu Bu could not believe what they just heard!


    If there were bandits working with the Dark Sect in the Jiu Empire, then it was also possible that there were some bandits who worked with the Dark Sect within their empires too!


    "That''s right. But other than that rumor, these bandits are just doing what they normally do I think.. pillaging, robbing caravans, kidnapping and selling people as slaves.. they never encroached our territory here in the East before, but I guess they are desperate to outdo one another. Perhaps that was why they came here!" Wang Feng explained.


    Duan Li was surprised to hear that familiar name once again, the Dark Sect!


    They planned to become a tumor in the Jiu Empire? What gal! I''ll have them eradicated from the face of this world!


    "Hang on. If those bandits from the West are working with the Dark Sect... are they kidnapping people for the Dark Sect then?" Fei Longwei suddenly said.


    Hisss!


    All of them knew that the Dark Sect conducted countless inhumane rituals or experiments on people they get their hands on, but since society were more firm now, they no longer were able to do as they pleased like before!


    However, if they were now using bandits as a front to cover their tracks and let these people do the kidnapping, it will not be that obvious anymore! Furthermore, who would really care about the activities of petty bandits? It''s the perfect cover!


    "Those imbeciles..." Duan Li subconsciously clenched his fists and accidentally let some of his aura leaked out, causing the earth around him to rattle ceaselessly!


    BOOMM!!!


    "A-Ahhh!" Ang Busheng and Ang Busano collapsed to the ground in fear while covering their head. The violent shaking almost felt like it was the end of the world!


    On the other hand, Wang Feng also felt his body trembling as he muttered in his breath, "W-What... How did he have this much power?"


    One has to remember that Wang Feng was previously an elder in the Wang Clan and has seen many, if not countless strong individuals. But the power showcased by Duan Li right now was off the charts!


    Who in the world could make the ground tremble just by releasing one''s aura?!


    After a moment, the shaking began to slowly subside as Duan Li calmed himself.


    "While you three did not commit any heinous crime, you still engaged yourself with injustice against the people, and for that, you will be investigated and punished!" Duan Li said as he pointed his index finger towards Wang Feng, Ang Busheng and Ang Busano.


    Wengg!!


    A series of pentagrams and hexagrams appeared together under their feet forming a complete runic formation before enveloping them in an eight-sided barrier!


    Whooshh!!


    "Eight pillars of Imprisonment formation!" Zhang Liao and Lu Bu were shocked!


    This was a very strong runic formation that would take several people to cast! To think that Duan Li was able to do it with a single finger in a single breath! Terrifying!


    "If you guys try to escape, I will kill you three with my own hands!" Duan Li warned them.


    He then communicated with Utmost Being and had them tranferred away. Also, the new security force for the Spring Blossom village finally arrived late in the evening that day.


    ...


    "..." everyone was tensed with the two undead being staring silently at each other without making a move for a while now. They felt as though they were slowly drowning into the mud!


    "Ahahahaha! I''m joking! I''m just joking! Why do you have to be so serious, eh Elder Lin?" Zeng Jiangshi laughed as he covered his face.


    Elder Lin gave out a huge sigh of relief. "If you are done, can you go somewhere else now?" he said while shooing the other party with his hand.


    "Eh, who wants to stay in this boring place! Besides, I''ve already achieved my primary objective in the Jiu Empire anyway!" Zeng Jiangshi replied after he stuck out his tongue.


    "Hm? You have something to do here?" Elder Lin and the rest had a bad feeling when they heard this.


    "Of course, do you think that I''m so free as to wander aimlessly? Hmph! I came here to instruct my minions to do something for me, and they''ve already kidnapped the subject!"


    "Bastard!"


    "You scum!"


    Hearing that the other party came to the Jiu Empire to kidnap someone, Shen Murong and Wang Dong were naturally riled, even Wei Wang had a very dark expression!


    Zeng Jiangshi laughed out loud when he saw their wonderful agitated reaction. Then, he had an idea.


    "The best part is, the person we kidnapped happens to be the sister of your Imperial Overseer''s mother! Hahahahaha! I had to give my praise to that hermit this time, at least his information and foresight had brought us something good on the table!"


    ...

 394 Chapter 386: It didnt work?

    "You... what did you say?" Shen Murong and Wang Dong were both shocked beyond belief!


    Even Wei Wang''s vocal cord that was damaged since birth was on the verge of producing sound just to ask Zeng Jiangshi if the other party was in the right state of mind!


    At first when they heard it, there was a blast of immense anger in their eyes, and if stares could kill, the other party would''ve died several times already! After all, he had kidnapped someone related with their Lord!


    But at the next moment, this burst of anger quickly popped itself out as swiftly as it came. With it, was replaced with a deep apprehension instead!


    "Hahahaha! Yes, that''s right! I love that look! That pale expression... I can''t get enough of it!" Zeng Jiangshi laughed hysterically, and his long white hair danced madly along with it.


    As someone from the Dark Sect and had toyed with people''s life all the time, one of the thing that he was most fond of was enjoying their numerous expressions while under his demise!


    However, what they said next was definitely not what he had expected!


    "You fool... what have you done? Are you trying to bring the apocalypse down on all of us?!" Shen Murong said, his voices carried hints of fear in them.


    Despite his competitiveness towards Duan Li, he also respected and feared the latter''s seemingly limitless power!


    What if Duan Li decided to just release all his powers out in a fit of rage? Destroying a huge portion of land would be the least of their concern!


    Ah?


    "Are you deaf? I just said that I kidnapped the sister of your Imperial Overseer''s mother! Hmph!" Zeng Jiangshi''s laughter died down as he frowned in displeasure.


    What apocalypse? We kidnapped people all the time and humanity still exists to this very day!


    As if kidnapping another one would make the human race go extinct! Hmph!


    "Even the most powerful being will still have their weaknesses if they have someone they love. In this case, in order to bait your Imperial Overseer into my trap, I must take his mother away by using her sister! Do you understand now?!" he continued, just in case they couldn''t understand his actions.


    "We know your intention as it is obvious and effective, but... how are you going to handle our Lord when he is angry? Do you think that you could stop him?" replied Shen Murong with a totally baffled expression as he couldn''t believe that a member from the renowned Dark Sect would be this foolish.


    Hadn''t they heard what their Lord did to their now deceased member, Cao Tengfei before?


    "You are truly courting death... even your so-called ''deathless'' power means jacksh*t now... I was even impressed for a moment there.. Hais! Goodbye vampire man, it''s nice knowing you even if it was just for a while. May your next life be rotting in hell..." Wang Dong also shook his head in pity as Wei Wang nodded in agreement beside him.


    Zeng Jiangshi once again slipped from the boulder that he was standing and fell to the ground, covered in dust!


    Standing up, he bellowed angrily while pointing at Wang Dong with his index finger, "Bastard! You make it seem like I am already dead! Don''t you dare go overboard!"


    Whoosh!


    In an instant, he appeared in front of Wang Dong and was about to strike him down with a jab when Elder Lin stopped and blocked him!


    "Don''t stop me, I need to teach these kids some manner!" he shouted, his red crimson eyes glowing menacingly!


    "It''s okay Elder Lin, if he wants to kill us, let him do it. After all, even without stopping him here, we are now one hundred percent sure that he will die under the Lord''s hand. There is not a shred of doubt in this godly fact!" Shen Murong''s lips curved into a devilish smile.


    Huehuehue!


    What vampire? What Deathless cr*p?


    If you anger Duan Li, you will just simply die!


    "Y-You!!" Zeng Jiangshi became extremely livid and unleashed his powerful cultivation level!


    BOOMMM!!


    Interweaving aura of crimson and black tendrils seeped out from his pores and morphed into some kind of blood flooding towards his surrounding, creating the illusion of a blood sea!


    This was his special ability. As a vampire, his aura possesses the power to make his opponents hallucinate by resonating with the blood inside their body. It was needless to say that he has mastered this ability to its fullest extent, such that even Nascent Soul realm cultivators would succumb to it!


    Additionally, now that this ability of his was incorporated with their Dark Sect''s Demiruke''s virus, which was the source of the black tendrils in his aura, the hallucinations he created would quickly erode the life of his victims before turning them into his mindless slaves!


    "Stop! If you continue to do this, we will have to fight!" Elder Lin knew the terrible effects from Zeng Jiangshi''s aura, so the moment he saw this, he quickly intervened by releasing his own death aura!


    However, while his death aura has a disintegrating properties which would normally counter a vampire''s aura, the other party was using the Demiruke''s virus which he couldn''t do anything about!


    "Do you think I actually care? If you want, let us fight now-" Zeng Jiangshi was starting to get annoyed with Elder Lin''s threat before he realized that something was wrong!


    Eh?


    They are not.. hallucinating?


    What''s going on?


    Usually, his victim''s eyes would turn red when they became trapped in his illusion attack, but the trio in front of him were clearly unaffected and didn''t show such signs!


    When he turned towards Princess Meixiu and the rest of her expedition party, their eyes had already turned red and they remained motionless while standing, so he knew that his ability was still working!


    The question was, why didn''t it work on them?


    "Impossible! How did you guys managed to remain unaffected by my aura?!" he quickly asked. Elder Lin was also taken aback by this.


    This has never happened before!


    "Ah? What aura? Are you babbling nonsense now that you realized you just made a huge blunder?" Wang Dong scratched his head before continuing, "I tell you what, trying to act like a mentally retarded person now would not let you escape your fate.."


    ...

 395 Chapter 387: Emergency!

    Pu!


    Zeng Jiangshi felt that his sanity was slowly slipping from his grasp.


    It''s no good. If I keep talking with this fellow, I might become crazy!


    Each word that came out from Wang Dong''s mouth was akin to poison that would slowly swallow his opponents whole, like a python!


    But, how in the world are they immune to my blood aura?


    One person immune to it might be considered as coincidence or luck, but all three of them at the same time?


    There has to be something!


    Unable to accept this, Zeng Jiangshi increased his aura to the maximum level!


    "I refuse to believe that I cannot subjugate these weak mammals! Otherwise, I might as well- Ah!!"


    When he tried pushing his aura further to penetrate directly into their pores so that he could probe their innards, he found out something unexpected!


    "This! No wonder my blood aura did not affect them!"


    It turns out that a portion of their blood was radiating an aura of their own! Not only that, those blood seemed to be sentient and would block anything that tries to enter the bloodstream to harm the host!


    How can that be?


    I''ve never heard of blood that could move on their own like this.. just what are they?


    "In addition, these blood appears to be from foreign origin and not of their own, but they mixed together well and did not eat each other out.."


    This is truly bizarre!


    As a vampire, Zeng Jiangshi was the most proficient when it comes to the physiology and characteristics of blood. Usually, when two blood from different sources mixed in together, it would be likely for the person to die because their blood were fighting each other if they were not compatible!


    This was why blood transfusion for critical patient would die if their blood were not compatible!


    However, in the case of vampirism, due to the unique properties of a vampire''s blood, as soon as it enters a person''s bloodstream, they would quickly coagulate with the host''s blood, latching like a parasite!


    This in turns gave them the ability to control the infected. After all, blood would always travel to the brain!


    "I could understand if its from another vampire and it resisted my control, but at my level, I''m a Vampire Lord and I would definitely win in a tug of war!"


    Furthermore, what Zeng Jiangshi found the most exceptional in these foreign blood was that, despite it being superior than the host''s blood itself, it did not try to subjugate nor dominate the bloodstream!


    In fact, he could feel that the foreign blood was actually trying to nourish the host''s blood, like a teacher guiding his disciple!


    "Ah? Damn us? Damn you! Screw you!" Wang Dong no longer felt scared by the person in front of him and lashed back.


    Looking around and seeing the muddled red eyes of Princess Meixiu and her expedition party, standing still without bothering to defend themselves, Wang Dong could roughly guess what was going on.


    They are hallucinating under this person''s influence!


    Since he is talking about blood, it has to be something about our blood which makes us immune to his powers and rejected his control!


    Could it be because of that time?


    When he joined Duan Li''s party back then, shortly after, Shen Lu told him to temper himself inside the blood paste pool the size of a human basket under Duan Li''s instruction. It was extremely painful, but nonetheless he survived it through his iron will knowing that everyone who chose to follow Duan Li had succeeded in it as well!


    He thought that it was only a test in order for them to accept him, but who knew that it has this miraculous effect?


    He couldn''t help but to wonder what other effects the blood paste has onto his body..


    Wang Dong then continued with a mocking smile, "We got our physical body tempered by our Lord, the Imperial Overseer himself, through a blood paste of some kind. Are you finally aware now of how powerful he is? All the things he could do, its unfathomable to say the least!"


    Gedeng!


    Zeng Jiangshi''s heart started to beat erratically when he heard this.


    With a shocked expression, he touched his chest.


    I''m actually.. nervous?


    He knew full well that a person''s talents and achievements in life were always related to how powerful their blood was. In fact, it wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say that a person''s fate was dictated by their blood!


    To think that a mere portion of this blood could already counter his maximum aura as if it was nothing, there was never a precedence to this before!


    In addition, what blood paste? This amateur doesn''t even know what he is talking about!


    As if the blood of monsters grinded into a paste would have this kind of effect, its clearly a human''s blood!


    This could only mean that the Imperial Overseer was using his own blood to temper their body!


    Just how many litres of blood would that take? Perhaps a few gallons?


    What madness! This Imperial Overseer is a madman!


    In reality, Duan Li had only needed a drop of blood for them each which was then further diluted, so the fact that he thought Duan Li had cut himself dry of his own blood thoroughly scared Zeng Jiangshi!


    "Hmph! I''m scared? As if!" Zeng Jiangshi curled up a smile and retracted his aura back into his body, regaining that stealthy presence of his once again, making one impossible to sense him if they cannot see him directly!


    Turning to Shen Murong, he then said, "You said that I am going to die by the Imperial Overseer''s hand? Heh very well, we will see about that! I won''t kill you lot here right now so that you can witness the moment when I kill him instead! Hahahahahaha!"


    Whooshh!!


    Slowly, the figure of Zeng Jiangshi turned into a black shadow before breaking down into numerous bats, flying and dissipating into the surroundings!


    Princess Meixiu and her expedition party also slowly regained their lucidity as well.


    "What.. what''s going on? Where is the enemy?" she said while clutching at her head, feeling intense pain.


    "It seems that he.. has retreated.. for now I guess?" Elder Lin answered, his tone a little surprised.


    ...


    "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" Zeng Jiangshi bolted through the atmosphere in a certain direction at top speed while gritting his teeth.


    "No wonder they assigned me to this mission! I found it weird for the mission to be this easy where even the scrubs should be able to do it!"


    They must be using me to test the water!


    Curse them all!


    "Heh. Do you guys think that I''m going to take the damage on my own? You guys will have to taste the fallout too!"


    Taking out a jade slip, he infused his will into it and sent out a message.


    "This is Zeng Jiangshi, I request for an emergency meeting with all the members of the Dark Sect!"


    ...

 396 Chapter 388: The mysterious carvings!

    "That''s the first time I saw him backing out like that.. it sure is weird.." Elder Lin cupped his skeletal chin feeling intrigued.


    For Elder Lin, he wasn''t sure which between them were truly older, but they do acknowledge each other as people belonging from the ancient past. However, despite having a history himself, he wasn''t as infamous as Zeng Jiangshi. While being asleep for several decades at a time, whenever he woke up, he would hear stories about the evil deeds that the other party had committed.


    Of course, being an undead himself with a twisted sense of perspective on the meaning of life and death, meant that he didn''t really care for what Zeng Jiangshi had done. In fact, had his ''deathless'' requirements were to be the same as the latter, he would''ve done the same thing.


    It was only because a Lich like him only had to kill people to directly absorb a tiny bit of their lifeforce. Therefore, there wasn''t any need for kidnapping and the sorts for him to continue ''living'' as an undead. All he had to do was perform a huge massacre once in a while and he could already live for a few centuries!


    This was why every few centuries, historians would record the mysterious downfall of countries, cities, empires and dynasties alike, all in the span of a single night or two... and it was all because of him!


    When compared to Zeng Jiangshi, while he did not really know in full detail on how the other party could satisfy the deathless requirements being a different species, from the stories he heard, vampires need to extract a lot of human blood and drink them during the night of a crimson full moon!


    This strict requirement would perhaps justify on why the other party had to kidnap people all the time. But the bonus was that vampires will grow immensely strong every time they succeed, and would one day become ultimately powerful as long as they repeat this ritual!


    Meanwhile, since his deathless requirement was remarkably more easier, he didn''t really benefit much from the massacres he had done in the past other than extending his life span and increasing the limit and strength of his summons! Although, since he was now an Elder Lich, his fighting prowess had become quite significant, such that those who could contend with him could be counted with just the fingers on one''s two hands!


    This was the balance of the world, unprejudiced and unbiased towards the living, the dead and the undead alike!


    Turning to look at Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang, he couldn''t help but to feel that something about them made Zeng Jiangshi changed his mind at the last second back there.


    He did say something about blood... perhaps their blood are immune to his aura?


    But even if that was the case, wouldn''t it be better for him to kidnap them and research their blood?


    He didn''t kidnap them even though he could, and he backed out with empty hand too..


    "I see..." Elder Lin came to a realization after pondering for a while before letting out a slight chuckle. He wasn''t sure if his guess was right or wrong, but since it changes nothing, then why bother?


    ...


    "You okay now? The bastard escaped! Hahahahahaha!" asked Wang Dong to Princess Meixiu while crossing his arms on his boulder-like chest and laughing out loud.


    "Yeah.. I''m getting better.." Princess Meixiu''s face turned a bit red and replied with a soft feminine voice. This unusual response of her''s was taken note by her personal maid, Elder Cheng Chao.


    "So, spring has finally blossomed for her..." she said to herself, forming a slight smile as she looked at Wang Dong.


    His physique is not too bad... he also have quite an abundance of physical strength and possess an Ultimate Graded weapon at that... perhaps the Emperor will take a liking to him...


    "Hmph!" Ling Shin and Ruo Hen snorted when they saw this, but at the same time, they knew that its not their place to say anything about it. In addition, Wang Dong and his friends had just saved their lives a moment ago.


    "I need to show you guys something. Come, follow me..." Elder Lin suddenly said after a deep contemplation.


    ...


    Tap! Tap!


    "What a gigantic door.. to think that there is something this massive underground.." Shen Murong remarked with disbelief.


    In front of them was a huge iron door of about 200 meters tall with mysterious carvings, unlike anything that they have seen before!


    "This place used to be the deep trench of an ocean many millenniums ago, long before I even exist." Elder Lin said.


    He then continued, "I''ve been here many times before, wondering the purpose of this door. Its not until a few decades ago that I managed to open it."


    "Wait, what is this doodle? It looks like nine giant monsters to me.." Wang Dong cupped his chin with a curious expression as he analyzed what the carvings meant.


    "What doodle.. this is proper art.. Hmm? That thing above them is even larger.. a dragon?" Elder Cheng Chao said.


    Hearing this, both Shen Murong and Wei Wang''s expression suddenly froze.


    "What did you guys just said?" Shen Murong turned to Wang Dong before he gave a good look at the carvings on the giant door.


    This.. isn''t this..!!


    ...


    At the Spring Blossom village, Duan Li, Wei Shang, Fei Longwei, Cucko, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu were served with many types of delicacies as the people celebrated joyfully. The entire atmosphere was like a festival!


    "We are truly thankful for everyone''s help! If not for you all, we might have lost our life already.." the village head cried emotionally.


    Now that the bandits were all annihilated and the new security force has been setup, the village could continue its normal life like before.


    Duan Li was about to say a few words before he received a message from Wei Wang. After reading it, his hand that was holding the communication jade slip seemed to freeze for a moment.


    Standing up abruptly, Duan Li swiped his right hand vertically downwards, creating a tore in the fabric of space!


    A teleportation portal!


    "Everyone, follow me." Duan Li said, his voice serious.


    ...

 397 Chapter 389: Open Sesame!

    Wengg!


    A teleportation portal appeared in the massive underground ruins of the Empyrean dynasty''s capital.


    "Hmm?" Elder Lin was surprised.


    This presence? It''s him again..


    Why is he here? Did I do something wrong..


    His memories flashed to when the other party had slapped him continuously back then, and this made him greatly terrified and apprehensive of the latter!


    Tap! Tap!


    A figure with a set of white robe and long black hair donning a white mask emerged from the teleportation portal. In addition, a haughty looking chicken seemed to be perching on his shoulder, its gaze like that of an overlord!


    It was Duan Li along with Wei Shang, Fei Longwei, Cucko, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu!


    "Paying respects to your Excellency.." Elder Lin bowed his head a little, and Princess Meixiu as well as the rest of her expedition party also greeted Duan Li, their tone full of respect!


    Taking a slight peek, he noticed the air around the Imperial Overseer this time was a bit different when compared to the person that appeared before!


    Oh?


    This is the real him? I can''t sense any overpowering aura flowing from him.. could it be that the original is far weaker than the clone?


    "En!" the man in the spotlight nodded. Deep inside him however, he couldn''t help but to sigh in helplessness when everyone was being formal with him like this.


    Furthermore, he could see that their legs were trembling a little. This was inevitable when one considered that they had witnessed him doing something horrifying before!


    Or specifically, it was not him but Utmost Being, his damned showoff clone!


    Curse you my damned clone, you added an unneeded reputation to my kind and gentleman image..


    "Wei Wang, is what you said true?" Duan Li turned to face Wei Shang''s little brother and asked with a serious expression behind his mask.


    Wei Wang nodded heavily with a similar expression and Shen Murong pointed to the carvings on the humongous iron door.


    Taking a look, Duan Li could see that each of the nine giant monsters were different in shapes and sizes. Among them, he noticed one monster in particular.


    Million years old Hermit King, Crastesauros!


    Gulp!


    How could he forget them?


    These were all the mythical creatures in the legends, one that appeared one after another in the future, to bring the ends of time for the entire living things on the Tian continent eight years later!


    Then, above the carvings of these nine apocalyptic monsters, stood the apex of all abominations..


    The Sun Dragon!


    "Sun.. Dragon!" Duan Li clenched his hands into a fist and gritted his teeth. He will never forget the events that would transpire in the near future!


    The Jiu Empire destroyed, his friends killed, and his mother''s ending was also tragic!


    He swore that in his timeline, he will prevent all that, and he would do anything and everything he could to achieve it!


    The Elder Lich noticed this subtle expression just from observing Duan Li''s hands, and he couldn''t help but to wonder what the Imperial Overseer knew about those monsters depicted on the carvings of the iron door!


    Even from his tireless research, he wasn''t able to found a clue about them at all!


    "Inside here is a colossal monster from one of those drawings." He said, to which, Duan Li only nodded to, as if already expecting it.


    Then, to his surprise, an overpowering aura started to overflow from the Imperial Overseer. Like a broken dam, this aura quickly caused the spiritual Qi in the surrounding area to seethe out relentlessly, as if a sudden heavy downpour of a torrential tropical storm!


    What a powerful Qi cycle!


    "At the rate of which he is breathing in Qi.. his Qi cycle should be almost.. no, it''s instantaneous! Ah? It''s more than that?" Elder Lin said in his head, full of disbelief. If he were to have a pair of eyeballs right now, they would have probably popped out from his eye sockets!


    After all, before he was a Lich, he was once a normal human being as well, and also a powerful cultivator at that. He had studied extensively on the human acupoints, pores and seven orifices, and he determined that no matter what kind of powerful breathing cultivation technique that a human practices, they will never be able to replenish a 1:1 ratio of the spiritual Qi they expend!


    This was why he chose the path of a Lich, an existence that only requires a cursed soul to live, cutting the inefficiency posed by the human body, absorbing spiritual Qi directly into the soul!


    However, this was not to say that this path of his did not have any disadvantages, they do and in fact several, but for him, it was nonetheless many times better.


    ''How did he do it?''


    This was the question playing in his mind right now!


    Furthermore, he now knew that his previous conjecture about the real Imperial Overseer was wrong!


    ''The original is weaker than the clone?'' He wanted to slap himself for coming to such an amateur conclusion!


    If he saw a slight chance of defeating the clone before, now, not to mention that a ray of light did not even exist, perhaps it would be easier for him to find a needle buried in the middle of a desert, rather than trying to win against the real Imperial Overseer!


    This fellow is a true bad news!


    Only now did he realize the true meaning of Shen Murong''s and Wang Dong''s words towards Zeng Jiangshi before. It was not at all a mockery, but pure fact!


    The other party had truly bit off more than he could chew.


    Hais! Goodbye old friend. It was fortunate that he decided to pledge his allegiance to such an exalted being. Otherwise, his skull would have been made as a wine cup for the other party!


    "Open the door." Duan Li commanded, his voice carrying the dominance of an undisputable apex existence, and he conditioned himself to battle, just in case things escalated into something worse!


    Nodding, Elder Lin tapped a few sections on the iron door, bringing out a runic formation that seemed archaic and complicated, overlaying on top of one another to form like a star system that could be seen during night time!


    "It will take quite a while for me to open this lock as it changes every time, so pardon me.." Elder Lin was about to get to work when he saw that Duan Li had already moved to the center of the runic formation.


    "Ah! Please don''t do anything! Otherwise, the door will never-" before he could finish his sentence, he saw Duan Li lifting his leg slowly before stomping down on the runic formation with his right foot, and a huge clanking noise could be heard from the door!


    CLANK! CLANK!


    "Ah?" Elder Lin was stupefied.


    The lock opened?


    ...

 398 Chapter 390: The apocalypse behind the door!

    Elder Lin recalled the first time he tried to open the iron door, and it took him 24 days in total in order to decipher the runic formation to finally unravel its lock!


    However, since he was now familiar with it, at most, it would just take him a few hours to open it again.


    But what has his empty eye sockets just witnessed? The lock was opened in an instant by the other party stomping his right foot on it!


    Holy-Molly!


    Was his interpretation on the lock actually wrong all these time and he opened them using the most difficult way?


    But who the heck would let an important iron door this huge, to keep away people from entering, be opened by stomping one''s foot on the lock?


    That''s just ridiculous!


    Seeing that Elder Lin''s jaw had dropped to the ground as if his lover had come back to life, Duan Li explained, "The key to unlock it is really by just stomping down your right foot on it... It''s written there.." he said and pointed to the runic formation.


    "Ah?" Elder Lin came over and observed the runic formation once more to scrutinize every detail, but even if he could grow his eyes back and add ten more eyes on his forehead like a spider, he still wouldn''t be able to see any jacksh*t at all!


    After all, Duan Li had only said that to hide the fact that his Tetra Soul Sense was the one that told him the method!


    Otherwise, had it been anyone else that told him the key to unlock the door was actually like that, he wouldn''t believe them even if his dong''er was slapped!


    The person who made the lock sure is eccentric... Crude but effective..


    Who could have guessed?


    Clank! Clank!


    The sound of mechanism of some sort doing its work echoed in the underground cave as the huge iron door slowly opened.


    Boom!


    Hissss!


    When the door was finally opened wide, the crowd sucked in cold breath feeling nervous. They walked in slowly and prepared themselves for anything that might come their way.


    Additionally, the path was dark, and a suffocating sensation seemed to be pressing on everyone''s chest to the point that no one talked along the way.


    After a short walk, they finally came to the end of the path which was a massive opening like a sinkhole straight to the underworld!


    Looking around, they squinted their eyes to try and see the edges as well as the extent of depth of this pit, but it was futile as it was way too dark!


    This was despite everyone''s sharp eyes as cultivators, and they were still unable to see anything at all which made them even more nervous!


    Just how deep is this pit?


    "So its really..." Duan Li suddenly said after looking down the hole, his voice grim. Different than everyone else, his Tetra Soul Sense has many uses, and among them was that he could see in the darkness as if it was outside in the sun!


    Not even a fire torch could let me see what is down there..


    Elder Cheng Chao was also surprised. Despite being a Nascent Soul realm cultivator, she was still not able to see what was inside the pit even after using her soul sense, but the other party was able to!


    The Jiu Imperial Overseer is truly something else! What a terrifying man!


    This also strengthened Elder Lin''s positive view on Duan Li. After all, being a Lich, his eyesight sense works differently than the living, and darkness was of no issue to him so he could already see everything.


    Huu!


    In an instant, Duan Li turned into several after images and executed some light punches which exploded into several bright goublets of fire, lifting the previous darkness to become as bright as day!


    Everyone could finally see.


    And they were not prepared!


    "What... What in the world is that?!" Princess Meixiu and her expedition party gasped at what they saw, and some even fell on their bottom in shock!


    It was unlike anything they had ever witnessed nor imagined!


    A colossal monster crab with at least 2000 meters in height and width of about 5000 meters..


    Now, they know why they can''t see the bottom of the pit..


    It was because the pit was extremely deep due to the size of the monster in it!


    Furthermore, even if one could see it, how would they be able to make anything out of it without being able to witness the entire body?


    From where they stood, the monster looked nothing more than a mountain peak!


    "Million years old Hermit King, Crastesauros!" Duan Li said, his fists clenched tight.


    Elder Lin was surprised to hear that Duan Li know of the name of the monster. This was because even he himself did not know despite the vast amount of knowledge he had accumulated throughout the years!


    "I see.. so that is its name.." He nodded.


    To think that it was far older than him by such a huge margin!


    "Your Excellency, as an undead Elder Lich, I could tell if something is alive, but for some unknown reason, this monster is neither alive nor dead!" Elder Lin continued.


    "I tried using my power to bring it to life when I first saw it because I thought it was dead, but it was as if trying to reanimate a stone! My powers didn''t even seem to have any sorts of influence on it at all!" He explained.


    It would be a different story if he could not do it because he wasn''t strong enough, but there was just no reaction to the monster when he tried reanimating it!


    This was why he said the monster was like a stone. After all, how could one reanimate a stone when it was not dead in the first place? It''s an inanimate object!


    However, clearly the thing was not an inanimate mountain, but a true abomination!


    Thus, why did he not sense any reaction at all?


    "You tried to reanimate it?" Duan Li turned to look at Elder Lin, his voice frosty.


    Even though the other party was wearing a mask, Elder Lin felt a cold stare behind it that was as freezing as the blizzard itself, cold enough to immediately shatter his spine!


    "If you did succeed, you would''ve died by my hands." Duan Li said before turning his attention back to the monster down the pit.


    "I.. I apologize.." Elder Lin felt a murderous intention leaked out from Duan Li for a second there, and he didn''t know the reason why, but it was unlike anything he ever felt before!


    It was as if the statement made by the Imperial Overseer in front of him was like the edict from the Heavens itself!


    ''If the Heavens are willing, thus the sun shall not shine. If the Heavens forbid, not even hell will sprout the tiniest of ember!''


    Calming himself down, Duan Li thought for a moment about what the Lich had told him before he was able to make sense of the situation.


    Since the other party had already tried to reanimate it and failed, it could only mean one thing..


    Its not yet the time!


    He then explained, "If my conjecture is right, then this crab is alive but it is currently hibernating. Only when the time is right, preordained by fate will it rise from its slumber!"


    "Fate?" Elder Cheng Chao and the rest that heard this was confused.


    Hibernating is a term used for animals sleeping their way into the next season. This however, does not mean that they will continue to hibernate if disturbed in one way or another!


    But, Duan Li made it seem like that was the case for this monster!


    "Let me demonstrate and see if I am right." Duan Li decided to give it a try.


    Going into a stance, Duan Li''s eyes glinted as his aura reached to its peak! He appeared like a blazing phoenix in the sky!


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    BOOMMMM!!


    The resulting impact exploded blindingly like the sun, and sounded like an earthquake as well as producing strong gales that made the crowd cover their eyes while their clothes flapping along the wind furiously!


    However, when compared to the scale of the giant monster, this explosion was but like the drop of water in a lake, producing slight ripples instead of a tsunami!


    When the dust settled, they could see that the shell of the colossal crab was not even damaged the slightest!


    Even Duan Li was surprised by this. Granted that he did not go full strength on his attack just now, but he had expected for the monster to be damaged a bit!


    After all, that previous attack from him could decimate a small mountain with ease!


    "So it cannot be harmed too.." he said to himself.


    Calculating his current prowess, he should be around half as powerful as his future self right now as he cultivated all three of his dantian, and from this, his attack should be strong enough to graze the giant crab at least!


    Was something protecting it?


    "Unbelievable..." the crowd watched with a horrified expression.


    Shen Murong, Wei Wang, Wei Shang and Fei Longwei were much better though as they''ve already witnessed Duan Li''s memories. Only Wang Dong, as he only just recently joined them was shocked to his core by what he had just saw!


    "I-If... If this thing wakes up.. then all life.. would be doomed!" Zhang Liao suddenly said, his face pale. Lu Bu was also the same.


    "That''s the purpose of their existence... to bring the ends of time, and there are nine of them altogether!" Duan Li replied.


    "N-Nine...!" their expression became even more awful upon hearing this.


    This was especially so for Elder Lin.


    "Y-Your Excellency, please wait for a moment! If that is truly the case, the One Emperor would have long destroyed it himself!"


    Frowning, Duan Li asked, "The One Emperor? Who is that?"


    ...

 399 Chapter 391: Members of the Dark Dect!

    "The One Emperor was the sole ruler of the colossal Empyrean dynasty a long time ago. His power was unrivalled, and I even think that it is way beyond the possibility of cultivation allowed in the Tian continent!" Elder Lin replied to Duan Li.


    "Eh? You mean.. he is an immortal?" exclaimed Duan Li, feeling interested.


    "That''s not it. He called himself a Celestial and by the looks of it, he seemed to be stronger than the Immortals themselves, judging by how he disdained being called as an immortal by me before!" answered Elder Lin with a confident tone.


    After all, he had personally experienced the might of the other party!


    Hearing this, Duan Li cupped his chin and fell into a contemplation.


    Celestial?


    I think I''ve heard that somewhere before..


    "Wait!!"


    With widened eyes, Duan Li finally recalled.


    If he was not mistaken, the first guardian of the Eternal Maze, Jing Zhianghu, told him something about people being called as ''Celestial'' upon reaching a certain cultivation realm in the Nine Shackles of Mortality!


    Specifically, once one unbounded themselves of the Sixth shackle and reached the Celestial Lord Realm state, they became known as a Celestial!


    In Duan Li''s mind, the Grand Immortal being worshipped by the nine guardians of the Eternal Maze should be someone of that level at least, because when they met after he subdued Queen Levy before, the other party felt like an ethereal existence!


    That is unthinkable!


    What is someone of that caliber doing in the Tian continent ruling a bunch of mortals for?


    Duan Li couldn''t imagine the level of power someone with that cultivation realm holds!


    Perhaps, just a single finger from them would be enough to destroy the entire Tian continent a few times!


    Although in that regard, it was now obvious how no one was able to beat the One Emperor back then!


    "If this thing is really a danger to us all, the One Emperor would''ve destroyed it back then!" Elder Lin said.


    "Hmm..." Duan Li pondered upon the latter''s words.


    That does make sense.. but..


    "Or perhaps, he couldn''t destroy it.." Duan Li said.


    He just couldn''t believe these monsters exist for anything else other than the apocalypse they would bring in the near future!


    After a moment of thinking about it, Duan Li finally gave out a long sigh.


    There must be a specific reason why even a Celestial did not destroy this giant crab..


    Would finding the other eight Hermit Kings shed more clue to this?


    I guess I could only find out then..


    "Regardless, now that we know this thing is here, this place must be locked up at all cost!"


    Wengg!!


    On the ground, a huge black colored summoning runic formation appeared!


    KREEEE!!


    Slowly, four shadows of an elongated and bony monsters crawled out from the summoning formation, its aura suffocating the people around it!


    "F-Fou.. four Skull Centipede Emperor?!" the crowd gasped in disbelief and terror!


    Just a single one of these bastards had nearly killed them all despite ganging up on it, not to mention now four!


    However, their shock didn''t just stop there.


    Instead, an even bigger monster came out with thicker bones and seemed metallic in nature!


    What in the world...


    Elder Lin chuckled seeing their agaped expression, "That is the Primordial Metal Centipede!"


    Primordial Metal Centipede..


    "Another extinct monster from the past..." Elder Cheng Chao remarked with a pale expression.


    We definitely cannot afford to offend the Jiu Empire after this!


    With such a servant at his disposal, the Imperial Overseer wouldn''t even have to lift a finger to wreak havoc at the Doulou Empire!


    Hais!


    ...


    After locking the massive iron door shut and changing the lock to make it more complicated to open, Shen Murong, Wang Dong and Wei Wang told Duan Li about Zeng Jiangshi.


    "What? Another member of the Dark Sect was here?" Duan Li was surprised and didn''t expect to hear this kind of news.


    "That''s right, and we now know why your mother was trying to find her missing sister in such a flustered way without being able to tell you in advance!" Shen Murong replied with a grim voice.


    After finally explaining all the details to Duan Li, there was a deep silence and tension in the air.


    No one knew what Duan Li was thinking, much more so when his facial expression was hidden under his mask!


    Needless to say, the silence was eery and made their skin cold down to their spine!


    However, contrary to Shen Murong''s previous assumption that Duan Li would ran amok and destroy half the Tian continent in his wake, Duan Li only gave out a single sentence in reply!


    "I see." Duan Li said.


    Despite the simplicity of this reply, everyone knew the real meaning behind it.


    ''I see.. so you have chosen death!'' should be what Duan Li was trying to say just now!


    Gulp!


    "Do you guys know where his hideout could be?" Duan Li asked.


    Elder Lin replied after giving it a thought, "He is a vampire, and the place he frequent to since back then that I know of is the Forest of Slumber due to how dark and damp that place is.."


    "The Forest of Slumber?" Duan Li recalled that the Principal also mentioned the name of this place as the last place that his mother was seen going into!


    If it is the place where vampires hang around, then the name does seem to fit..


    "One of the forbidden zone in the Jiu Empire that connects to the outside border where he could slip past the border patrol anytime.. a perfect route to export kidnapped people to outside the empire!" Fei Longwei said.


    He knew a little bit about the Forest of Slumber from his clan. Furthermore, the Dark Arts he was practicing has some relation to the place too.


    After he told Duan Li the general direction to the entrance of the Forest of Slumber, Duan Li then created a teleportation portal.


    Wengg!!


    ...


    "For what purpose do you call us here?" a cold hearted voice questioned. This person wore the Dark Sect robe and his appearance was drenched with dried blood from top to bottom!


    Furthermore, to add up to his distasteful and grotesque image even further, his bald head appeared like a cracked and dried up ground from drought while both of his eyes were devoid of pupils and was white entirely!


    "You better have a good reason as I was in the middle of something before. If its worthless, I''ll kill and dissect you now to make up for the lost time." another voice said. This person seemed to be hunched back and his appearance was also draped in black cloth entirely, which made discerning his face impossible.


    Meanwhile, another figure was just standing still without talking, as if observing them silently. His pair of eyes was red in color with some specific pattern in it. If one happened to accidentally stare into his eyes, it was said that they will be trapped inside an eternal illusion and die!


    All in all, there were only three people that came up after Zeng Jiangshi called them for an emergency meeting.


    The well-renowned serial psychotic murderer, Chi Pisao, due to how he murdered countless people with nothing but an empty-handed stab using his hands, plucking out their still-beating heart directly!


    He then gathered all the corpses together and performed a bizzare and demonic ritual to absorb their life force into him by eating raw the human hearts he collected!


    The other was known to be obsessed with turning humans into his lifeless puppets. There were rumors about how he had already turned himself into a puppet too in order to live an eternal life.


    His name was Muou Da.


    The third person was considered to be the most odd out of them all. No one really know for sure on how did this person managed to join them. But one thing was for sure, that even they did not dare to stare directly into his eyes!


    Apparently, his name was called Huan Jue!


    "Damn the rest of those guys... did they suspect something?" Zeng Jiangshi cursed inwardly towards those that did not come.


    "Well.. its actually like this.."


    ...

 400 Chapter 392: Forest of Slumber!

    Within a dense forested area, a blue teleportation portal suddenly appeared as it cuts through the air and spooked the surrounding wild animals into escape.


    Wengg!!


    From it, quite a few people stepped out of the portal as they looked around, analyzing the new area they were in with astonishment and awe as if a bunch of explorer discovering a new piece of virgin land, ripe for exploitation!


    This was especially so for Wang Dong.


    "Wow.. teleportation sure is convenient! Is there any chance that I could learn this, your Excellency?" Wang Dong excitedly asked with hopes and dreams sparkling in his eyes as he rubbed both of his hands together.


    It was no wonder why many experts would die fighting each other in order to learn the secrets of this teleportation technique!


    After all, not only that it would allow its user to cover vast distances that would usually take hours to traverse in an instant, it could also be used in combat and for escaping powerful enemies!


    You can''t kill what you can''t touch!


    Therefore, the rest of them also became interested to know the answer to Wang Dong''s question!


    "Hmm.. teleportation technique requires its user to be familiar with spatial law, and this field, while very complex and difficult to master, is still quite possible for one to acquire if they dedicate their life into it." Duan Li answered.


    "However, learning the technique itself.. well.. personally its not really a big deal for me, but suffice to say that I''m not gonna share it regardless." he continued.


    This wasn''t to say that he was being stingy, it was just that the secret belonged to the Emperor and was a family heirloom for the other party, so he couldn''t just teach it to people randomly like that when its not his in the first place.


    In fact, there were only a few people in the Jiu Empire that the Emperor was willing to teach the method, and they were all important and cornerstone figures of the empire!


    "Ehh..." Wang Dong became dejected and gave out a disappointed sigh, his hopes and dreams crushed before they could even crawl.


    Meanwhile, Wei Wang could only shook his head. After being teamed up with the other party for a while, he now knew well enough that the latter wouldn''t even be able to comprehend the spatial laws with his tiny brain, not to mention learning advance skills such as the teleportation technique!


    He could bet his entire fortune that Wang Dong would quickly become disinterested after trying to learn it in an hour!


    "Even if there is a miracle and by the off chance that he managed to learn it somehow, he would definitely make a mistake in his calculations and teleport into the heart of a volcano and die." thought Wei Wang in his head, convinced by this idea of his as he nodded confidently.


    Meanwhile, there were several people that had unexpectedly decided to follow Duan Li.


    In her opinion, their encounter with the Imperial Overseer should''ve been just that. There was no need to follow the other party all the way here!


    "Princess, please forgive me... But for the safety of the Doulou Empire, we need to know what we are dealing with here.." Elder Cheng Chao replied with a soft smile.


    While her sentence was short, Princess Meixiu quickly understood the meaning implied behind it. Nevertheless, she still felt like they shouldn''t have tagged along, so she could only sigh helplessly.


    Looking behind her, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu also decided to follow Duan Li, and they were in for the very same reason as them.


    Firstly, they needed to know how the Imperial Overseer would treat his enemies. Will he negotiate or go straight for the offence? This would be a great reference for them, just in case the future turns out unexpectedly!


    After all, there was a saying that said, "Today''s ally might be one''s enemy in the future."


    Secondly, they wanted to know the extent of power the Imperial Overseer really has. While they had seen and felt Duan Li''s prowess before, especially Zhang Liao and Lu Bu during his coronation ceremony, they reckoned that there were still more for them to see!


    Thirdly, they must assess the extent of threat that the Dark Sect would possess on their own empires. This was because the Dark Sect was always secretive in their activities, and one could hardly track what they were doing with their very small member count.


    However, it was a different story now that they know the Dark Sect were collaborating with bandits!


    By getting to know their modes of operation, they could track the activities of the Dark Sect within their own empire as well and eliminate them!


    "Cucko, how capable are your minions?" Duan Li asked at the chicken perched on his shoulder, standing proudly like a prime eagle.


    "Heh! I''ve trained them well!" Cucko replied with a smug chicken expression.


    "I see, then spread out your minions in this forest and scout for any possible pathway!" instructed Duan Li.


    Nodding, Duan Li''s shadow flickered for a moment before separating into multiple directions in an instant!


    He was planning to comb whatever areas he could inside the Forest of Slumber before he proceed with his next action.


    A moment later, Cucko turned to Duan Li, "They have found a trail within the forest, and by the looks of it, this path seems to be commonly used."


    Hearing this positive result, Duan Li then made a swift decision.


    "Alright, we will follow this clue first and see if its the real deal or a trap. Meanwhile, instruct your minions to pull back. The spores inside the forest will kill them if they breathed in too long." Duan Li said with a serious expression under his mask.


    "En!" Cucko nodded and commanded his minions to retreat with telepathy.


    From the side, everyone was watching this unique scene and except for Duan Li''s followers, the rest had their mouth agape.


    After all, they had witnessed a human and a chicken talking with each other, in chicken language!


    To hear the mighty and feared Imperial Overseer clucking to his chicken was far too bizarre for them, and their brain couldn''t process it!


    "Everyone, take these." Duan Li turned around and passed several wooden boxes to them from his spatial ring with a flick of his fingers.


    "Eh? What''s this?" Ling Shin and the others held the wooden boxes with curiosity.


    Then, with another snap of his fingers, Duan Li commanded authoritatively!


    "Transform!"


    Wenggg!!


    The wooden boxes in everyone''s hands turned into a jelly like substance before enveloping their whole body!


    They were treasure boxes that Duan Li had gathered en masse during his adventure in the first region of the Eternal Maze before, and since they were made from the Nine Roots tree, an extremely resilient and malleable material that could be shaped into anything with a single thought, he made them turned into a full body armor!


    A few seconds later, everyone was covered with a wooden armor from head to toe, as if they were wearing a one piece clothing!


    "W-Woa.. this is incredible!" the crowd gasped in awe and disbelief.


    "The suit armor will prevent the poisonous spores in the forest from getting inside your body. Its also extremely strong against physical damage and has high resistance towards any elemental attributes." Duan Li explained.


    "Eh.. but this thing is ugly.. couldn''t you just make it into a helmet.. " Princess Meixiu complained with a pout. As a woman, it was inevitable for her to like appearing beautiful all the time, and the full body wooden armor that she was wearing right now was far too blocky for her taste.


    "You''d do well to stay in that armor, because the spores can get into your body just by you absorbing the spiritual Qi in the air through your pores." Duan Li replied.


    He then continued, "Besides, as long as I supply my spiritual Qi into the wooden armor to compensate against the damage you guys will receive later, it can protect you from any harm."


    "We will receive harm? From who?" she asked curiously, feeling confused.


    One has to know that they were all experienced cultivators, and mere bandits wouldn''t even be able to lay their fingers on them, much less harming them!


    Duan Li paused for a moment before he answered, "From me.. just in case I decided to destroy the entire forest after this!"


    Tap! Tap!


    Walking slowly into the forest, the crowd that heard him had to swallow a mouthful of their saliva before following suit behind him.


    ...

 401 Chapter 393: The living forest!

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 402 Chapter 394: Two Duan Li!

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 403 Chapter 395: Natural Disaster!

    Duan Li''s Nine Fists Shattering Meteor hit the ground and devastated a huge portion of the land below him before the trees around it started to catch fire!


    "Dark Sect! Come out now you bunch of rotten insects and meet your grandfather here! It''s time for your long awaited reckoning!" Duan Li bellowed out loud, his voices were like the thunder, spreading across the Heavens!


    BOOMMM!!


    Series after series of Nine Fists Shattering Meteor began to pummel the ground and changed the entire landscape. Furthermore, the forest fire became even more rampant from his consecutive attack and the tragic cries of monsters could be heard everywhere!


    "Hahahahaha! Burn! Burn you damned evil forest! How dare you let evildoers hide here! You guys are no better than the criminals themselves! The lot of you monsters deserve to burn into ashes as well for conspiring!"


    BOOOMMM! BOOOOMMMM!!


    "Holy-Moly, his Lordship has truly gone rogue this time around!" said Duan Li''s followers as they witnessed this bloody carnage!


    BOOOMM!! BOOOMMMM!!


    Like a cultivator gone fully drunk, Duan Li''s attack to devastate mother nature became faster and rapid, such that for every shadow of his arm that blitzed through the eyes of the people around him, tens of meteoric fireballs blazed the ground in a splendid tempo of explosion and destruction!


    "Just how much spiritual Qi does his Excellency have? A normal cultivator would have long been reduced to bones already with such a huge Qi expenditure!"


    "Could it be that he has a limitless reserve of spiritual Qi? But that''s impossible!"


    All foreign powers from the Doulou, Wei and Qin Empire felt like they were inside a ridiculous dream as they saw the current happenings!


    In fact, was the guy in front of them that was shooting balls of fire even human?


    Like an Ashura that has descended onto the world to bring the end of all life, the Imperial Overseer became such a terrifying figure in their mind!


    Su! Su! Su!


    Unable to accept their tragic fate of being barbequed into cinders just like that, the previously static forest began to retaliate and shot innumerable amount of their long and thick roots to the sky, aiming to pierce Duan Li into pieces!


    "Futile!" Duan Li laughed heartily and extended his right hand forward before gripping the empty air.


    "Come Little sword!"


    Wengg!!


    Duergar materialized on his right hand and he quickly executed another skill art;


    Nine Sword Thunder Strike!


    Shing! Shing! Shing!


    Duan Li''s swordplay was far too fast to be seen by the naked eyes, such that he could execute nine sword slashes in an instant and created cracks in the space where his sword struck!


    As a result, the roots were sliced and turned into dust before they could reach Duan Li!


    Nine Palms Slapping the Ocean!


    In addition, as if that wasn''t enough, with his control over the fire element, Zhulong merged some of the fire together with the sandstorms to create multiple fire twisters with the uprooted trees and countless leaves as their fuel. Moreover, these fire twisters continued to replicate endlessly and spread throughout the vast region of the Forest of Slumber!


    "Hahahahahaha! Hahahahahaha!"


    Amidst this apocalyptic scene, Duan Li continued to laugh in a high pitch. This was his very first time letting all of his powers loose like this without being afraid of the consequences!


    With his instant recovery of spiritual Qi due to his insanely fast Qi cycle rate, adding to the point that the environment was thick in spiritual Qi which he and his clone has absorbed greedily, unless the entirety of the Forest of Slumber were to turn into a desert, Duan Li would practically have an infinite supply of spiritual Qi to continue his madness!


    However, it was obvious that the thick spiritual Qi will gradually decrease over time with their insane consumption!


    After all, the Supreme Spatial Imprisonment Formation that Utmost Being used right now requires a normally impossible amount of spiritual Qi to maintain! This was because the sheer size of it was unlike anything that ever exist before!


    Fortunately, through the runic formation planted onto everyone that acted as the pillar of the formation right now, Utmost Being was able to replenish himself indefinitely by absorbing spiritual Qi from every corner of the forest!


    As for Duan Li himself, since he did not have to bother about maintaining the imprisonment formation, he focused his all onto stripping the entire landscape into black ashes and death!


    ...


    "What the hell is happening? Is this a natural disaster?!" Chi Pisao had to hug a nearby tree trunk and clawed his fingers into it so that he didn''t get blown away by the extremely strong wind! Also, his gums and cheeks were flapping due to the wind and almost teared itself from his already ugly face!


    "Motherf*cker! Zeng Jiangshi, you better explain the situation right now!" Muou Da''s figure was naked as his robes got torn apart by an incoming sharp branches. Fortunately, he had already modified his physical body to become genderless. Otherwise, his little dong''er would have already been displayed for everyone to see!


    "You think I know? I only wanted you guys to help me escape from a predicament! Who were the ones that baited me with the task of kidnapping the aunt of the Jiu Imperial Overseer ah? You guys are the ones inviting this disaster, not me!" Zeng Jiangshi also replied angrily to them!


    After all, in his opinion, he was the victim here! All the Dark Sect members suddenly passed such a suspiciously easy task onto him when it turns out that they wanted him to test the water for them!


    This bunch of treacherous fool!


    Making me shake the nest of a dragon, yet they expect me to die alone? Ha!


    "What?!! You mean that you purposely led us here and that the ones causing this is the Jiu Imperial Overseer?! You fool! You bastard! You stupid vampire!" Chi Pisao cursed and threw many slur words at Zeng Jiangshi before the tree trunk that he was clutching at was blown away, carrying him along with it.


    "Noooooo!!" he tried to use his flight ability to fight against the strong wind, but it was useless. In the end, he got spun between tornadoes and absorbed into a fire twister to be cooked alive!


    Meanwhile, finally realizing the reason why they were called into this trap, Muou Da bellowed, "We specifically wrote in the task description that it should only be done by those who are confident in their ability to not die! Wasn''t it you that was arrogant and called us cowards when we skipped such a simple task? Why are you blaming us then? Damn you, you spineless bat!"


    "Argh! Don''t you dare curse at my ancestral species! Who the hell would know that the Jiu Imperial Overseer would be such a monster?" Zeng Jiangshi retorted.


    Truth be told, he did expect the Imperial Overseer to be abnormally strong to be able to match an immortal, but not outlandish like this!


    How in the world could a single cultivator create such a natural disaster? Heck, even natural disaster would look more tame than this madness!


    On the other hand, Huan Jue was still standing on the ground and the only one who seemed to be unaffected. He was staring right at Duan Li''s direction quietly.


    "All the spiritual Qi in the area are being sucked in continuously.. chance of beating the other party.. less than ten percent.. retreat is the most optimal solution.." he mumbled to himself and nodded calmly.


    His eyes then moved on to Utmost Being, "A possible clone of the other party.. he is controlling the imprisonment formation.. a chance to escape will present itself by disrupting his focus... chance of success.. probably less than twenty percent.." he said and nodded again.


    Next, his eyes scanned through the people acting as the pillars of the imprisonment formation, "Chances to exploit the flaw.. about seventy percent.. good enough for me.."


    Just like that, his figure suddenly vanished before reappearing in front of Ruo Hen!


    "H-Huh? W-Who.." feeling surprised, Ruo Hen was about to call for help before he found his head to suddenly hurt so much!


    "ARGHH!!!" he screamed, his vision began to darken and his consciousness slipping away.


    "Found one!"


    However, before Huan Jue could finish sending Ruo Hen into his illusion world, Duan Li suddenly appeared in front of him and hung him by his neck with a sword being swung ready to decapitate him!


    This greatly shocked Huan Jue for an instant, but in another instant, he had already disappeared from Duan Li''s grasp!


    "Oh? This guy seems interesting!" Duan Li chuckled.


    ...

 404 Chapter 396: Huan Jue of the Dark Sect!

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 405 Chapter 397: The Clone vs Huan Jue!

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 406 Chapter 398: Terrifying Skills of Huan Jue!

    Slash! Slash!


    Using his fingers, Utmost Being continued to control and throw the golden lightning axe viciously towards Huan Jue, to the point where the entire area around him was full of electric charges!


    Now, the Forest of Slumber became a battlefield full of chaos; forest fire running rampant, powerful wind accompanied with numerous tornadoes like a stage 5 typhoon, violent fire twisters everywhere, cracked lands and flying hills, and now lightning was spreading all over!


    If any normal Nascent Soul realm Pinnacle stage were to enter the Supreme Spatial Imprisonment formation right now, they would immediately be killed, their corpse burnt and turned asunder!


    Elder Cheng Chao that became one of the pillars supporting the imprisonment formation witnessed this with her heart full of trepidation and extreme fear!


    What if the imprisonment formation fail to hold? Wouldn''t they, the mere mortals and insects instantly die without a burial?


    Whoosh! Whoosh!


    "..." Huan Jue''s figure began to flicker continuously due to these violent environment, evidence of his illusion skills quickly deteriorating from its effect. Taking this opportunity, Utmost Being began to decipher the means of the other party!


    "I see... So his ability is actually like that!" Utmost Being said inwardly as he snickered, realizing the secrets of Huan Jue!


    Through his observation, it wasn''t that his attacks had went pass through Huan Jue randomly every time, but the physical body of the other party itself was not real!


    Since Utmost Being knew that he was immune to illusion attacks himself, courtesy of the heaven-defying ability of his original, then there could only be one possibility!


    It was that Huan Jue had casted his illusion skills towards his surroundings itself!


    This would result in the other party being able to dodge all of his attacks by creating an illusion body of himself as long as he was within range!


    "Since that is the case, I''ll just have to attack everywhere randomly and fish you out!"


    Knowing that Huan Jue could only affect some limited range around him, Utmost Being went all out!


    Nine Fists Shattering Meteor!


    Nine Palms Slapping Ocean!


    Nine Swords Thunder Strike!


    BOOMMM!! BOOMMM!!


    "And my newly created skill art... Nine Kicks Heavens Breaker!"


    PTOOMMM!! PTOOMMM!!


    All sorts of mayhem mixed in together such that nothing could be clearly seen anymore, only debris and sand flying around that blocked one''s vision, akin to being trapped in an aquarium full of mud to the brim!


    Furthermore, his opponent was brazen enough to take in spiritual Qi as it attacks! This was the same like swimming while drinking!


    Is it because of the formation that the clone was able to do this? Swallowing spiritual Qi from the forest like a black hole?


    "If it is really like that, then it seems that its no longer possible to deal with this clone.."


    A shame, I was also planning to break the formation and get everyone to retreat, but now it seems like that is no longer an option.. they will have to depend on themselves..


    Looking at the direction of his fellow Dark Sect members where Muou Da and Chi Pisao were getting slapped literally in the face left and right by the Imperial Overseer''s left hand without a chance to retaliate back, had further solidified his decision for his next action!


    Huan Jue sighed and vanished from Utmost Being''s sight. Then, he reappeared in front of Shen Murong!


    "Eh?" Shen Murong was shocked to see the enemy suddenly appearing in front of him.


    "Close your damned eyes and don''t look at the enemy! He is using illusion attacks through his eyesight to fool you bunch of idiots!" Utmost Being quickly sent a telepathic message to Shen Murong and the rest of the people that became the pillars for the formation.


    "I know!" Shen Murong did as was told and closed his eyes.


    "Hmph!" Huan Jue disappeared and reappeared in front of Wang Dong, Princess Meixiu, Fei Longwei and the rest, but none of them opened their eyes.


    Zeng Jianshi that saw this sneakily laughed. This was because if he himself claimed to be second to none in terms of illusion skills, Huan Jue was indubitably the number one, master of the illusion arts!


    "You lot think that by closing your eyes, you could stop him? What a bunch of infants, too blind to see the depths of his power!"


    "Huan Jue! Surrender now! I promise that I will only make your life miserable than death and nothing more!" Utmost Being bellowed while laughing out loud. He felt really good cornering the other party like this.


    "It feels like we are the bad guys here with the way he is acting now.." Wei Shang could not help but to become embarrassed, and so was the others.


    The clone of his Excellency sure is overbearing! Why does it feels like he is more arrogant than the original though?


    "My Soul Severing Demons Eyes did not work on them, and maintaining my Illusion mirror realm in this dangerous environment would sap my spiritual Qi dry.. I need to escape quickly."


    My chances of creating a hole in the imprisonment barrier will be more than ninety percent if I use that skill...


    But I would be vulnerable for a few days once I do that.. can I escape from them once I exit this prison?


    Huan Jue shook his head with a smile crept on his lips.


    Well, let''s survive first and think about what''s to come later..


    Closing both of his palms together, his crimson eyes flashed with unique symbols in them, as if the nine planets revolving around the sun!


    Infinite Illusion World of the Nine!


    KANG!!


    "Hmm?!" Both Duan Li and Utmost Being narrowed their eyes and looked towards the direction of Huan Jue.


    They felt an encompassing presence quickly expanding out from his body into the surrounding, passing through them even!


    Despite the strength of the Supreme Spatial Imprisonment formation, it was not perfect.


    Huan Jue''s ''Infinite Illusion World of the Nine'' affects all the human senses through using his sheer presence to affect them!


    This means that, even if his opponents were to shut all of their five senses, it would be impossible for them to shut down the sense from their soul which allows a cultivator to be aware of their surrounding.


    In fact, unless one has a soul sense that could shield their soul from being invaded, it would be very difficult to withstand this kind of attack without a strong will!


    Pu!


    Almost all of the people that became the pillars to support the imprisonment formation spurted out blood from their mouth as a result of their soul being attacked directly, with Elder Cheng Chao and Elder Lin being the exception.


    This created an instability within the imprisonment formation barrier and before long, the barrier began to crack like cobwebs!


    "Aahhh!!" Ruo Hen suddenly cried out in agonized pain, as if being tortured non-stop for a thousand years! Unable to withstand the intense pain on his soul, he fainted.


    CRACK!!


    As a result, his pillar was broken and created a hole in its place!


    "Finally!" all of the three remaining Dark Sect members said at the same time as their eyes glinted.


    Huan Jue vanished almost immediately on the spot while Zeng Jianshi turned into a red bat with ten wings and flew at a speed greater than sound. Meanwhile, Muou Da shot a string of spiritual Qi into the hole, presumably sending his soul out and surprisingly, Chi Pisao committed suicide through exploding his body into smithrens!


    "Damn it!" Duan Li knew that they were trying to escape, so he quickly teleported outside the imprisonment formation.


    "Who allow you guys to leave? Stay!!"


    Using his Tetra Soul Sense, he could only detect the presence of Zeng Jianshi that was fleeing far away already.


    Aiming with his index finger, Duan Li then used a skill he rarely used.


    One Finger Starlight Slash!


    ZOOMM!!


    With the speed of light, this lethal beam attack pierced the red bat with ten wings right on its head, unravelling itself back to Zeng Jianshi''s true form as he crashed on the ground.


    BOOMMM!!


    ...

 407 Chapter 399: Pah! Pah! Pah!

    The attack from Duan Li was far too fast for him to be able to detect and dodge at the same time!


    After all, he had focused all of his attention and power into escaping and he never thought for a moment that any attack could catch him off guard like that!


    Wengg!!


    "It seems that you''ve been abandoned by your friends." Duan Li said as he teleported near the other party with his hands placed behind his back and stood floating in the air loftily.


    Hearing that the Imperial Overseer called the other Dark Sect members as his ''friends'', Zeng Jianshi laughed out loud in a high pitch, founding it ironic.


    "Friends? There are no camaraderie between us Dark Sect members, only equal benefit! Hmph!"


    Since he was now caught by Duan Li, it was useless to try and run away. Instead he focused on his recovery and absorbed large amounts of spiritual Qi into his dantian to prepare and fight to the death.


    As a Vampire Lord, while he can''t compare to Chi Pisao, his regenerative abilities made him equal to being an indestructible immortal!


    "Don''t even bother to try and resist. I was in a good mood before and didn''t want to kill you and the others in an instant, but if you want to try me, you''ll beg me for death!"


    Duan Li''s voice was harsh and cold as he looked down on Zeng Jianshi like a God looking down on an insignificant insect that he could crush anytime.


    This made Zeng Jianshi confused. How could this Imperial Overseer has this kind of domineering temperament as if he had been one for countless years?


    Such a strong presence would not naturally form after all!


    "Tell me, how did they managed to escape without a trace? Since you operate on the basis of equal benefit, them being able to one-upped you this time means that they possess certain abilities that you do not." Duan Li continued.


    Zeng Jianshi stared into Duan Li''s eyes and found the other party was truly serious in getting an answer out of him. It wouldn''t be a good idea if he tried something funny and provoke the latter. Besides, he also has his own trump card, so he wasn''t really panicking.


    "Hmph! Chi Pisao is truly an immortal being. As long as there is a single part of his body is left, he could regenerate even from a single thumb! I suspect that he had stashed one of his body parts out there somewhere." he answered.


    Hearing this, Duan Li finally understood why Chi Pisao had committed suicide and explode himself into smithereens before. With his Supreme Spatial Imprisonment Formation, it would be impossible for anyone to escape even if they used their soul as it would be blocked. Thus, he took the opportunity to let his will escape the moment the formation breaks!


    "When I find him next time, he won''t be able to escape using the same trick! Hmph!" Duan Li gnashed his teeth.


    "As for Muou Da, he escaped using his soul. The guy has an endless amounts of puppets in his possession, and each accommodates a fragment of his soul. He must have hidden a puppet outside the Forest of Slumber and used them to run away." he continued.


    Duan Li nodded after a moment as this answer made sense.


    It was no wonder why Duan Li saw the other party shooting out a string of spiritual Qi before. It turns out that Muou Da had a sliver of will inside that spiritual Qi and transferred himself into another puppet!


    "What about Huan Jue?" Duan Li asked. Out of the three of them, he was most curious about Huan Jue who was able to break the formation he made, which consequently led to the escape of the other Dark Sect members!


    "That guy... " Zeng Jianshi turned serious when he mentioned about Huan Jue, "He is not an Undying Beings like us, but even I would not dare underestimate his abilities. Out of everyone in the Dark Sect, he is the only one that could make our leader wary!"


    Duan Li narrowed his eyes.


    So it turns out that this Huan Jue is really formidable..


    "Furthermore, the way he operates is alien to everyone and we don''t really know what he is doing. He could come and go as he pleased. Instead of being one of the Dark Sect members, I feel that he is more like a guest!"


    "Hmm.." Duan Li pondered deeply as he reevaluate Huan Jue in his mind.


    It seems like the means and background of this person is more than what meets the eye. I need to increase my cultivation level to Golden Core realm pinnacle stage at least!


    I''ll do that once I rescue Wang Xiolun from the Eternal Maze..


    "I see." Duan Li snapped his fingers together and runic formations suddenly appeared under Zeng Jianshi''s feet.


    This person is truly callous. He doesn''t even try to protect the information of his allies..


    On the other hand, Zeng Jianshi was surprised.


    Multiple runic formations to suppress me? When did he have such time to do this? I have been watching his movements closely!


    Gritting his teeth, he quickly tried to analyze the runic formations for flaws before he choked on himself!


    "O-Over a hundred different types of suppression runic formation?!"


    Pu!


    Hey hey hey! Isn''t this way too overboard?


    What are you trying to suppress here? An ancient dragon?


    "Wait! If you let me go, I will tell you where your mother and your aunt is!!" Zeng Jianshi shouted. This was his trump card. He refused to believe that the Imperial Overseer would harm him since the other party came here specifically for those two.


    Tap! Tap!


    All of the people that followed Duan Li arrived and landed behind him.


    "Your Excellency, we must not believe even an ounce of words that came from this man! He is evil!" Elder Cheng Chao said with a grim expression.


    Seeing that a mere insect dared to interrupt him, Zeng Jianshi bellowed viciously, "Shut up you sack of worthless blood! Say a single word more and I will command my entire minions to lay waste to your descendants until none is left!"


    Pah!


    He was quickly slapped by someone he never expected. It was Wang Dong!


    "Y-You..! You dare to slap me? I will-"


    Pah! Pah! Pah!


    Three consecutive heavy slaps landed on Zeng Jianshi''s cheeks.


    Even Duan Li was surprised by Wang Dong''s action!


    "Didn''t I tell you before that your fate is already sealed the moment you try to mess with our Lord? Not to mention you, I''ve heard from my Brother Shen Murong here that even the Heavens dare not push their weights around our Lord! So what if I dare to slap you?" Wang Dong said with a big satisfied smile.


    To think that a day has come where I could slap a member of the Dark Sect like this, once the Wang clan gets a hold of this information, they would be utterly proud with this handsome heir of theirs and showered me with countless praises!


    Bahahahahaha!


    Wei Shang was also excited seeing this, so he turned to Duan Li.


    "Your Lord, I also want to give it a try!" he asked with big eyes.


    Seeing this unexpected development, Duan Li scratched the back of his head for a moment before nodding.


    "Alright, each one of you can slap him how many times you want without any reservation. He can''t use any tricks as I''ve sealed his dantian, all his meridians, Qi pathways and acupoints." Duan Li said.


    "I''ll pass.." Zhang Liao and Lu Bu said with an awkward face. Princess Meixiu and the rest that were not Duan Li''s followers also rejected the offer.


    Since they were not directly under Duan Li''s factions, how could they afford to slap and humiliate a member of the Dark Sect?


    No matter how much they wanted to do it, it would simply be courting death!


    After all, while their background was extraordinary, they were not confident enough of being able to resist or stop the other party if Zeng Jianshi was hell bent on doing revenge!


    Pah! Pah! Pah!


    And so, the sounds of cheeks being slapped continuously began to echo with their background of the Forest of Slumber still burning strongly.


    "Damn them! I also want to give that insect a slap and twist his neck!" Utmost Being slapped his thigh. He was still sitting in a lotus position maintaining the imprisonment formation alone in order to not let the chaos inside spread outside.


    However, since the pillars supporting it was now gone, it was only a normal imprisonment formation, but its enough to contain the disaster inside as long as spiritual Qi still exist for him to absorb and use.


    ...


    After a moment, all Duan Li''s followers could be seen to be catching their breath as if they had just finished a sprinting marathon.


    This was because they decided to have a competition on who could slap faster within a minute, and in the end, Fei Longwei won with 300 slaps per minute!


    "A record equivalent to 5 slaps per second, impressive! I will give you something when we get back later." Duan Li cupped his chin as he nodded in satisfaction.


    "Bastard.. BASTARD.. every single one of you.. will pay..!" Zeng Jianshi''s regenerative ability was truly something amazing. Not a single mark was left on his face after being slapped countless of times!


    However, the damage to his dignity was far too massive. He was humiliated by a bunch of insects and was slapped as if a farmer beating their paddies during rice harvesting season!


    If I do not get my revenge, then I refuse to call myself a Vampire Lord!


    "Silence you stupid child! Now answer me, where is my mother and aunt?" Duan Li shouted, like a grandfather reprimanding their foolish grandchildren.


    He knew for sure that his mother and aunt was not hidden in the Forest of Slumber, nor everyone else that the Dark Sect had kidnapped.


    Otherwise, he would''ve already found them as during their fights before, he had continuously used his Tetra Soul Sense to search for them to no avail!


    Pu!


    Being called a ''Stupid Child'' made Zeng Jianshi''s blood boiled even further, but he dared not to cause a scene anymore and held it in.


    "They are somewhere.. in the Doulou Empire!"


    ...

 408 Chapter 400: Are they twins?

    Hearing that the Imperial Overseer''s mother and aunt was being kidnapped and sent to the Doulou Empire where she came from, Princess Meixiu''s complexion immediately turned pale.


    "What are you saying? That is impossible! Our borders are strictly guarded and not even you could enter undetected!" she quickly refuted before turning to bow towards Duan Li.


    "Your Excellency, please don''t listen to his nonsense! There is no way that such an unethical activity would go past under our nose! This is especially the case when its an outside activity being brought into our empire!" she explained in a panic.


    Had it been anyone else, while she would''ve denied it too, she wouldn''t have gone to the extent of trying to convince the other party. After all, her dignity as the Princess of the Doulou Empire were above all else!


    However, this was the Jiu Imperial Overseer involved they were talking about here. If Duan Li were to be displeased with her answer, she was afraid that he wouldn''t let the Doulou Empire off!


    If such a thing were to happen, who knows what the other party would do?


    Elder Cheng Chao also stepped in as she realized the seriousness of the issue and added, "That''s right your Excellency, it would be possible if it were to happen inside the empire, but with our strict border checks and runic formations on our wall, the chances for such a thing to occur is practically nil!"


    The two of them were big figures in the Doulou Empire, so they knew quite a lot on what could go into the empire, and human trafficking was definitely one of the thing that should be impossible to happen!


    If one were to talk about the possibility of bribery, then that would be highly unlikely. All the patrols and guards were injected with a portion of the soul of the Supreme Justiciar Knight, the highest person in position of maintaining justice in the Doulou Empire. If they were to commit to such atrocities, it would be detected immediately and their soul will burst into flames!


    "Hah! What do you insect know of our means? If we don''t have such capabilities, the Dark Sect would have long gone extinct! No empire in the Tian continent can stop us!" Zeng Jianshi sneered arrogantly.


    Although the Dark Sect comprises of less than ten individuals, they still have an almost encompassing hands reaching to all parts of the Tian continent! Limiting their movements would be the best any empires could do to them, but it would be laughable for mere guards, patrols, runic formations and the likes to be able to completely stop them if they were determined to achieve their goals!


    Pah!


    Duan Li slapped Zeng Jianshi casually with a force that exploded his head and the entire landscape behind him, such that even the nearby small hills were flattened!


    BOOM!!


    A casual slap with such a force behind it, it was impossible to see the bottomless depths of the Imperial Overseer! Perhaps, even the publicly declared strongest emperor in the Tian continent from the Song Empire could not match him when it came to raw strength!


    Wuu...


    Zeng Jianshi''s head regenerated soon after and a look of extreme pain appeared on his face.


    "Speak like that again, and I will make you explode indefinitely while I travel to the Doulou Empire. Try me if you dare." Duan Li said with his voice cold and full of disdain.


    "..." Zeng Jianshi gritted his teeth and spoke not a single sentence after that anymore.


    Just you wait.. when I reach the Doulou Empire, then... hehehe!


    ...


    "This chaos will probably last an entire month before disappearing..." Utmost Being said to Duan Li as he continued maintaining the Supreme Spatial Imprisonment Formation.


    Hearing this, Duan Li cupped his chin in contemplation.


    If he were to cancel the formation, the escaping chaos will definitely spread to nearby areas and might hurt other villages...


    Then, Duan Li had an idea.


    "I say, you should probably remove the protection around your body and let the chaos temper your physical body. Slowly make the formation smaller so that the chaos is compressed."


    While this clone of his was made from a paper talisman, its body right now was perfectly identical like a real cultivator''s body. Therefore, it was still possible for his clone to upgrade itself.


    "Hmph! Are you sure? What if I become stronger than you then? Wouldn''t you be inferior to me? If that were to happen, I might not even listen to you anymore." Utmost Being replied with his chin raised.


    Meanwhile, Duan Li almost had the urge of beating the other party to a pulp, but he suppressed himself from doing so.


    As of now, their physical capabilities was mostly the same, but when it comes to skill arts and spiritual Qi reserves, then Duan Li had the advantage of his three dantians as well as the powers from the mysterious pearls inside his body. After all, when the paper talisman copied his body to create Utmost Being, somehow, it wasn''t able to culture all three dantians like Duan Li did.


    "Well, its impossible for you to be better than me. Your cultivation now is at the Nascent Soul realm pinnacle stage, while I am still in the Core Formation realm pinnacle stage. This being the case, I am already more powerful than you. What happens when I reach the Nascent Soul realm pinnacle stage then? Do you want to get a thorough beating from me?" Duan Li replied with a scoff and proud look.


    This clone of mine is getting ahead of himself, not knowing the heights of heavens!


    Even if by the off-chance that you could become more powerful than me, your soul is originally derived from mine, just a single thought from me would have you running naked around the empire while saying you are stupid!


    Hmph!


    Of course, Utmost Being was dissatisfied with this, but it was also the truth, so he could only snort in reply.


    "I need a month to use the chaos inside this formation to temper my body. In the meantime, I''ve already instructed the useless Jiu Emperor to do some things while I am away." Utmost Being said.


    Duan Li almost plummeted from the sky when he heard his clone calling the Jiu Emperor useless.


    "Hey hey, he is still the emperor, so watch your tongue and have some respect!" Duan Li reprimanded him.


    Even if that was truly the case, must you really be so vicious in your words? The guy is already pitiful enough to become our lackey despite his status, the least we could do is spare him some of his dignities!


    Utmost Being turned his face away with a sulking look, "Hmph! It''s because he was too lazy of doing his job that I have to suffer. Had it not been for his wife, Yu Yan the Empress Dowager, handling most of the things that he should''ve done, the Jiu Empire would''ve long collapsed!"


    "It''s that bad?" Duan Li was shocked. Granted that he wasn''t really educated on managing stuff, but surely the Emperor shouldn''t be that careless?


    "What do you know? You passed onto me your responsibility the moment you got the title. You and him are the same!" Utmost being answered begrudgingly.


    Duan Li''s face turned red behind his mask in embarrassment, so he laughed it out.


    "A-Anyway, I''ve got to return to the empire now and report to the Principal." Duan Li changed the topic quickly.


    Utmost Being frowned and wondered why Duan Li bothered with reporting to anyone when his status now was above everyone else.


    If he wanted to go and do something, who could stop him? He is the Imperial Overseer!


    Knowing what his clone was thinking, Duan Li shook his head, "We shouldn''t get complacent with our status. Despite the seemingly high standing we have, its more like an honarary title. Compared to the title of an emperor that has been through generations of acknowldegment, ours is nothing."


    "Besides, if we do everything ourselves, then wouldn''t that be lonely? What''s the purpose then?" he continued, his hands clasped behind his back while looking at the sky with his head tilted at 45 degrees angle, bearing the look of an expert that had gone through the vicissitudes of life.


    Utmost Being was silent hearing Duan Li''s reply, but he also did not refute it. In a way, he also understood such perspective, not to mention that he was not a real human being.


    "He sure is weird, to be conversing to his clone like that.. its as if they are twin brothers.." Shen Murong commented while looking at Duan Li and his clone''s back from a distance, finding the scene to be peculiar.


    The others nodded to his remark.


    Approaching them, Duan Li then told them that they will be returning back the Jixue Knights Academy.


    "See you later, don''t catch a cold out here! Haha!" Duan Li waved at Utmost Being from afar before teleporting away with the rest.


    Now alone, in the center of a gigantic formation in the middle of nowhere, Utmost Being looked towards the sky with a complicated expression.


    "Hmph.. nosy..."


    ...