Purple Guest Palace.
"Ahhhh-ck!"
Davis cut short his agonizing scream stemming from sacrificing seventeen percent of his soul essence as he gritted his teeth, his expression contorting into one of discomfort.
This was right after the moment he killed Grand Elder Valerian.
"Husband!!!?"
"Davis...!?"
Natalya and Fiora both screamed as they looked at him, their expressions becoming a bit pale.
"I'm... fine..."
Davis instantly tried to answer as he produced a forced smile. The pain was just too unbearable for him, making him feel like his head could burst apart. He held his head for support, instantly using his life energy to begin healing his soul. His soul force superimposed his soul sea, and soul essence, further trying to ease the pain.
In a few seconds, the pain began to subside.
Natalya and Fiora looked at Davis suffer. They had worried expressions on their faces, but they also knew what was happening.
A while ago, he suddenly stopped dual cultivating with them, saying that something had cropped up on his avatar's side and that he would need to make a self-sacrificing move to gain victory. They naturally acquiesced, recalling that he said something like that; if something were to pop out that required his attention, then he would have to go.
However, he stayed and even warned them that there might be something gruesome to see, something Evelynn was familiar with. They became curious, wondering what would happen when he suddenly held his head, screaming as if something had invaded his soul sea, wreaking havoc.
Their eyes became moister by the second as they saw him suffer, not knowing what to do as he hadn't said anything to them about how to heal. In fact, they didn't even know if he could be acting or not just so he could tease them. If that was the case, they did not feel comfortable with this kind of joke, but if he was truly suffering, then they found it to be more uncomfortable and just wanted this to be a simple matter of acting.
"Fuck...!"
Davis suddenly cursed, making Natalya and Fiora blink. He looked at them with his slightly contorted expression and forced a smile again as he raised his brows.
"Don't be scared, okay...?"
"Davis...?" Natalya didn't feel sure about this when she abruptly saw him quiver, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as his entire body suddenly began to tremble soundlessly.
Tears began falling out of her eyes as she quickly pounced on him and wrapped her delicate arms around his neck, feeling his entire body twitch within her embrace.
"Sister... what's happening...?"
On the other side, Fiora had also begun to cry as her face looked as if it was drained of her blood. She appeared to be absolutely helpless while not knowing what to do.
"I don't know~~~"
Natalya sobbed, dearly holding Davis while she couldn't help but fear that he was going to die. Was this a reaction a King Soul Stage Cultivator would show unless their soul was gravely injured? Her heart fell to the depths of the abyss, making her feel deep fear.
*Gasp!~*
Davis abruptly opened his mouth and took a deep breath. The pain that haunted him extended further, instantly filling his entire being as if it was going to make him explode! This was the aftermath of using more percentage of his soul essence to fuel Fallen Heaven's attack to kill Ancestor Magnus Rein!
Accurately, twenty-four percent, which adds to a total of forty-one percent!!!
He came back to himself, looking at the ceiling while the side of his face was treated with warm care by Natalya's ample breasts. It soothed him a bit before he once again began using his life energy to sustain the heat of pain he felt in his soul. Just when he was finding it hard to endure the pain, it subsided slightly while being enshrouded by the pure white energy.
"Ah..." Davis let out a breath, taking deep breaths again as he slightly turned to look at Natalya, forcing a smile again.
"I'm back..."
Natalya bit her lips, her moistened eyes looking aggrieved, "What's wrong with you and your avatar? Why did you become like this suddenly...?"
"Davis~"
Fiora pounced towards him, holding him from the other side before he was now sandwiched by two bountiful women. Their warm naked bodies did make him feel good as he was not feeling numb like the last time, making him think there was a difference between using soul essence two times and a lot of soul essence at once.
'Or... I am just getting used to the pain...'
He inwardly lampooned before a searing pain passed by his soul essence, making him flinch.
"You're still hurt..! What should I do to treat you? Please tell me...?" Natalya pleaded before Fiora also sobbed while holding him dear, "Please don't die, Davis..."
"Hey, stop jinxing me..."
Davis rebuked, but he smiled as he knew that they were serious. They were also confused as to what exactly happened, so he couldn't blame them for acting like this.
He forced out a chuckle, "I'm not going to die. This is just the backlash of a sacrificial technique that I had to use two times in order to kill a Mid-Level Law Rune Stage Powerhouse... and a High-Level Law Rune Stage Powerhouse... Ah, it felt good as much as it hurts..."
Davis crazily smiled, making Natalya and Fiora stunned.
Just at this moment, Davis took out a messaging talisman that resounded out with a female voice.
"Davis, are you fine...!?"
The voice sounded incredibly anxious and worried. Naturally, it was Shirley.
"Mhm? I'm surrounded by my two pretty wives back here. Three, including you from this messaging talisman, and you're asking me if I'm fine?"
Silence pervaded the atmosphere.
"You... arrogant... little... scoundrel!~ I told you to escape! Why did you... Just why did you make a suicidal move like that!!!? You... You practically stabbed my heart at that moment!!! Ahh~~~"
Shirley cried from the other side, sobbing as her voice kept breaking.
Davis's expression became a bit awkward. At that time, he had only wanted to explode the Solitary Soul Avatar so as to fool his enemies. Furthermore, he had tried to diffuse the situation by making a joke, not aggravate them.
"Shirley, he's lying. He probably has his soul gravely injured, and I don't know what to do!!!"
Natalya suddenly screamed at the messaging talisman.
"What!?"
Shirley's shocked voice echoed out before Davis forced himself to shout.
"Hey, stop making it seem worse. I have the ability to heal myself, and I'm recovering as we speak. Otherwise, I wouldn't be this daring unless I am faced with a life-and-death situation."
"Moreover, this wasn't a life-and-death situation. It was just me ruthlessly killing two unlikeable powerhouses who were detrimental and harmful to Shirley's growth and health."
"..."
Hearing his annoyed tone, the three of them went silent. Natalya and Fiora especially didn't know what to feel... Those two kills, weren't they Ninth Stage Powerhouses? How could Davis end their lives just like that and say it wasn't much from his tone? Wouldn't the sacrifice he talked about practically deplete his everything to kill them?
"Are you really fine then...?"
Three voices of worry echoed at the same time, making Davis feel roused in terms of willpower.
"Undoubtedly! I will recover within a few days. However, Shirley, don't let your guard down. This isn't the end. I am ninety percent sure that the other two Ancestors might show up."
"Ah...? What should I do...? Should I make my escape?"
Shirley sounded lost.
"What are you worrying about when I'm still with you?" Davis sounded fearless.
"What?" Shirley spoke and stayed silent. It was as if she looked around before her voice echoed again. "Where are you? I can't see..."
"Check the spatial ring I left with you. There should be a purple vial..."
Hearing Davis's voice, Shirley quickly scrambled to check his spatial ring when she noticed a vial with a kind of luminescence in it. She swiftly took it and out opened it when suddenly a ghost-like Davis manifested out of the vial.
*Bah~*
He stuck his tongue out, looking to scare her but looking at Shirley's unamused expression, he awkwardly took his tongue back. The second attempt to make her laugh was also a fail.
However, looking at her suddenly produce a smile while her moistened ruby-like eyes became untroubled and relieved; he smiled back at her, looking relaxed.
"Idiot..."
Shirley pounced on him, embracing him as she sobbed on his shoulders. She was rather stunned to see come out of a vial that was in the spatial ring. Wasn't souls supposed to be able to enter spatial rings? However, recalling that he had sealed himself inside a vial that specifically sealed living souls, she understood.
Davis patted Shirley's back as he exuded warmth.
"There, there. I'm alive, well, and good. Unlike the body, the soul is more flexible. In higher stages of Soul Forging Cultivation, as long as a sizeable strand of soul essence exists, it is possible to survive. It was especially the case when I designed my avatar to sever five percent of its soul essence to make a dormant strand, storing it in this soul-sealing vial. As soon the avatar died, I woke up here, waiting for you to release me..."
"Only five percent...? Pretty much useless..."
Shirley tightly held him, wanting to take more warmth as she reprimanded to hide her embarrassment. He made her so worried, and now she looked like a fool for worrying so much.
"Hehe, I only need my senses to kill, not power, because the main body is taking the backlash, not the avatar itself."
"I see..." Shirley separated, biting her crimson lips in as she roamed her gaze over his face, "All things said, I'm truly glad to have you by my side..."
"What?" Davis chuckled, "You thought I was just going to leave you alone after faking a death there? I would've been the stupidest person you could've ever met if it was like that. Right now, this is the moment that you're truly vulnerable. Anything could happen as internal power shuffling would take place, and I have no idea how Lea Weiss would move, much less the other two Ancestors. So it was rather obvious I would've left a lifesaving talisman with you, which is me..."
"Davis~" Shirley looked moved, but her expression suddenly changed.
"You scoundrel~ Did you just say that you were between the warm embrace of your wives while I was deathly worried for you? Who was that who spoke? Was it Natalya?" Her tone became a bit teasing and curious.
"Hehehe-"
Davis was about to laughingly reply when a hurried voice echoed.
"Senior sister! There's an Ancestor again along with Sect Master Lea Weiss in the skies, and they're looking at us...!"
Esvele, who also had tears in her eyes, thinking that Davis had died heroically but in truth had faked his death, suddenly noticed the scene on the projection.
Shirley's eyes went wide in panic before she urged.
"Quick! Hide in my soul sea!"
"Uh?" Davis let out a sound of confusion, "Are you serious? I'll go back to the vial, so just hide me somewhere. Maybe in the middle of your bosoms where I can view the scenery at both sides with full attention..."
Shirley looked taken aback as her expression went bright red.
"Davis, this isn't the time to be kidding! Quick! Enter my soul sea!"
Davis blinked. But feeling that her idea was good and there was no time, he warned.
"You're going to feel highly uncomfortable, so don't blame me!"
*Whoosh!~*
His transparent figure shot through her forehead, entering past her glabella before he encountered slight resistance that didn't even put up much of a fight in front of his prowess. However, considering that she didn't put up any defenses but grit her teeth and endured the foreign soul invading her soul sea, he felt that she truly a strong woman.
They didn't share a connection at all, so it was fated that they would repel both of their souls.
As a matter of fact, this was also how old ghosts possessed other people. In this case, he only needed to take over her mind and capture her soul with overwhelming force to possess her now, and yet Shirley allowed him to enter, perfectly aware of such a scenario. This directly spoke about the intense trust or even obsession she had towards him.
Nevertheless, her expression contorted from the uncomfortable feeling of having a foreign soul, but she took a deep breath, trying to ignore that feeling as she walked out along with Esvele and Freya. They just followed her without her even calling them.
After this point, Davis was along with her, all this while, ready to kill whichever bastard that tried to harm her. He had been watching Sect Master Lea Weiss's tenacity and bravery while also seeing the dislikeable Ancestor Reinhardt Weiss, who almost got himself killed while wanting to search for his background and treasures.
However...
"Elder Chu Feng, was it? Come out~"
Hearing that voice that scared the shit out of his non-existent spine, Davis forced a smile.
It looks like when Ancestor Cornelia probed their bodies, she also naturally found him. He wasn't able to perceive the probe at all! However, like the majestic bird she was, she didn't even react and kept talking to them until she called him out.
*Whoosh!~*
He shot out of Shirley's soul sea, manifesting outside as he put his foot on extremely valuable tiles that seethed with fire-attributed energy. Still, in his disguised state, he looked calm, turning his head slightly to wave his hand towards Sect Master Lea Weiss before his gaze fell on Ancestor Cornelia's bone-chilling gaze.
He clasped his hand while adopting an equally cold smile.
"Your beauty hasn't even lessened a bit, Ancestor Cornelia."
Ancestor Cornelia narrowed her crimson eyes while Davis inwardly screamed.
'Fuck! Is this the calamity my fucked up senses were warning about!? I now suddenly feel immense danger creeping up my soul!'