Chapter 636: Strategic Resource

Ka-cha!

It was almost as if Leon could hear the sound of the hard cocoon shell cracking each time Darlene achieves a breakthrough. 

However, it was only an illusory feeling brought by Darlene's surging aura. There was no actual sound of her breakthrough except the sound caused by her body devouring the surrounding energy ravenously.

Within a short time, Darlene was already a 2-star Ranked Awakener. It was only a matter of time before she overtakes Lilith and graduates from being the weakest in the group. 

"Without adequate fighting experience and battle skills to utilize the spatial ability effectively, even if Darlene reaches a high level of cultivation, she would still be weaker than opponents of the same level," Leon muttered softly with an observant gaze.

He pondered Darlene's shortcomings and began devising a plan to help her raise her combat prowess quickly. 

"There's quite a few primordial techniques saved in the Archive now, albeit many incomplete legacies..." Leon began musing on a suitable technique for Darlene. 

"The Star God's legacy seems to be related to spatial cultivation... There's also the Star-Plucking Finger Art skill to match with it. However, the Void God's legacy seems to be more suitable than the Star God's legacy."

"Unfortunately, I don't have any recorded battle skills that would match the Void God's cultivation technique perfectly like the Star God's legacy..."

As Leon pondered, he realized what needed to be done and began planning his next course of action. 

"Once the Desolate Crow Clan is stabilized, I will return to the Darkmoon Tribe and attend the summit. If nothing unexpected happens, I will explore the ruins and uncover more legacies from the primordial era..."

After the Dark Continent matters, Leon slowly shifted his attention to the World Tree's matter. 

"With such large-scale movements of elves and humans traveling together by foot, it will take at least a week to reach Grassland Region..." Leon muttered.

It would be so much faster if he just flew over from the Capital himself. However, he was not in a hurry to visit the Grassland Region, not to mention he had plenty of other things to settle beforehand.

Nevertheless, he could not delay the trip to the Grassland Region for too long. 

It was starting to miss Lynne, and he needed the abundant Spirit Energy produced by the World Tree to help him restore Maya's spirit and repair the Divine Book of Life.

With Maya's help, he would be able to translate the runic texts of the primordial legacies in the Dark Continent quickly after obtaining them.

In short, there were many things to do.

"For now, I should just focus on cultivating until Darlene is done," Leon muttered before spreading out his divine sense to feel the surrounding atmosphere. 

"Seems like most of the Wrathful Demonic Energy in this region of space has been cleared out by me," Leon mused before checking his Black Vortex Space and nodded, "I have collected quite a fair bit of Demonic Energy." 

"It's time to replenish my reserve of True Grandmist Energy. However, this spot is too close to Darlene's location. It will affect her cultivation if I rob the Spatial Energy from here." Leon contemplated for a moment.

Shortly after, Leon moved much further away from Darlene by several miles until he deemed the location was far enough. 

"This should be far enough," Leon nodded.

At this point, Darlene had already reached 4-star Ranked Awakener Realm without any sign of slowing down. She would not be finished anytime soon—was what Leon determined. 

Shortly after entering his meditative position in the zero-gravity zone, Leon closed his eyes.

He spread out his divine sense and began gathering the surrounding energy of various types with Divine Will, followed by refining them with the Nihility Law, transforming them into True Grandmist Energy. 

However, it only took a moment before Leon ended the short cultivation with his eyes snapping open with a hint of weakness in them.

"Seems like it wasn't just the loss of blood that made me feel lethargic. More importantly, I have depleted much more mental strength than I expected." Leon frowned. 

The mental strength deficiency had hidden well under the lethargy of lacking blood. He had overlooked it and not noticed it at all. 

"I shouldn't have expended this much mental strength already… I haven't really done anything to have used up this much mental—" 

Leon suddenly paused as he recalled the Earth Ability he used on a grand scale to move the large mountain of rat carcasses from the Desolate Crow Clan. 

"So there was a price to pay for using borrowed power after all, huh?" Leon mumbled before nodding in understanding. It made more sense that there would be some sort of limitation on his earth power.

There was simply no free lunch in the world. 

"Since my mental strength is a bit low, or rather, it is almost rock bottom, I should not expend any more of my mental strength," Leon furrowed his brows before musing, "Without mental strength, I won't be able to cultivate quickly." 

"On the other hand, using the normal method to cultivating is not very efficient. It is a waste of time. I guess I will put off cultivation for now."

Leon took out a Tier-3 Spiritual Replenishment Pill and swallowed it before closing his eyes again to meditate. 

Since he could enter high-speed cultivation, he will do something else—comprehend the Wrath Law from the cumulation of Law Fragments in his Black Vortex Space. 

With a single thought, the countless Law Fragments began bombarding his soul core, transforming into information that became one with his soul core, allowing him to review the information vividly. 

'Let's see how difficult it is to comprehend the Destruction Law!' Leon was determined to comprehend the law.

…

Back in the Desolate Crow Clan, Aria completed the task of deploying the Demon Gathering Array in four corners of the clan before activating them.

It did not take long before four whirlpools of red mist appeared in the skies of the Desolate Crow Clan, filtering their way into each Demon Gathering Array like a funnel. 

Many clansmen were surprised by the sudden appearance of the red mist looming above their heads. 

At the same time, Lilith also raised her head and glanced at it before she wrinkled her expression while she was with Uncle Jorn.

"This is the Wrathful Demonic Energy that made the rats go crazy? To think there was this much Wrathful Demonic Energy hidden in the atmosphere…" Lilith muttered with a frown. 

Uncle Jorn was quickly surprised before taking another glance at the red sky.

"All that red mist is what caused the rats to go berserk? How worrisome…" Uncle Jorn commented before wondering how they were supposed to shield themselves against something like that. Stop breathing?

Seeing Uncle Jorn's concern written on his face, Lilith reassured him, "Don't worry about the red mist. It seems like Leon has already made preparations to deal with it, Uncle Jorn." 

"Look, the red mists are gathering into four corners of the clan. Although this makes the red mist concentrated in those areas, it is also getting cleared from the sky."

"Oh, you're right, Little Princess." Uncle Jorn nodded.

Nevertheless, Lilith could not help but frown again while looking at all the Wrathful Demonic Energy in the sky, which was not seen until incited by a catalyst.

It is easy to make preparations and avoid something that can be seen, but when it is unseen, how can anyone even be aware of it, let alone make preparations to avoid it? 

It was difficult. 

"If only there was some special eye technique that could see these hidden foul energy," Lilith muttered while recalling Leon's special eye technique when they explored the undergrounds together.

Suddenly, she recalled another matter that also happened during the trip before Lilith called out to Uncle Jorn, "I think we have a solution to the food crisis." 

"Oh? What solution have you found, Little Princess?" Uncle Jorn asked with surprise. 

"There's something called a Fasting Pill, which provides some energy to satiate one's hunger in replacement of food. Leon can refine these Fasting Pills, but I am not sure if he has enough herbs to refine them—"

"…Actually, forget it." Lilith quickly dropped the idea as it was raised. 

"It will take too much effort for Leon to refine enough Fasting Pills to supply the entire clan. He has already done much for our clan. We cannot ask him to slave away in pill refinement for us as well," she explained from a moral standpoint.

"Understood, Little Princess."

Nevertheless, Uncle Jorn could not stop thinking about the Fasting Pills after learning about them. 

If it was as the Little Princess described, the Fasting Pills could become a type of strategic resource due to their size and convenience to carry.

He began to silently ponder how to persuade the human prince to refine these Fasting Pills for the clan en masse.

…

Meanwhile, Aria quickly returned to Soft Feather's side on the hill outside of the Desolate Crow Clan before noticing Leon and Darlene's absence.

"Hm? Where did Leon and Darlene go, Soft Feather? Do you know?" Aria inquired nicely.

Soft Feather turned her head to give Aria a glance before resting her head back on the hill lazily. 

"Leon flew into the sky with Darlene. He said not to wait for him and just focus on cultivating until he returns," Soft Feather explained shortly after. 

"I see. Thank you for informing me, Soft Feather." 

"No problem." Soft Feather said casually. 

Shortly after, Aria took a seat in a lotus position on Soft Feather's soft and fluffy back before closing her eyes in silent cultivation.