Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
‘Among all the techniques I mastered previously, only the assistive Heaven Grade Divine Ability, the Elementary Devouring Tactic, is of any use. I finally mastered the offensive-defensive-movement Duke Grade Celestial Method and Divine Ability… This should be enough for now, technique-wise. I should focus on raising my cultivation base next. Although the consumable Royal Grade Celestial Weapon grants me strength equivalent to a Celestial Lord, ultimately, the boosted Celestial Origin Energy would be depleted. In the end, I can only rely on my true strength.”
After using the boosted Celestial Origin Energy that was granted to him by the consumable Royal Grade Celestial Weapon a few times, Duan Ling Tian’s strength was now comparable to that of a Five Elements Celestial King. Although he enjoyed the power the consumable Royal Grade Weapon granted him, he was not blinded by it. He was keenly aware that he was just a mere Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestial. He did not forget that the power would disappear once he had depleted them. Apart from that, he could only use the consumable Royal Grade Celestial Weapon thrice. Since he had already used it once, he was left with only two more uses.
‘The reason the rate of my Celestial Origin Energy’s depletion is so slow is due to my opponents being weak. The stronger my opponents are, the faster my Celestial Origin Energy would deplete.’ Duan Ling Tian knew his Celestial Origin Energy was depleting at a slow rate because his opponent was weak. The strongest among his opponents earlier had only recently broken through and became a One Basic Celestial King. He knew, to utilize the effect of the consumable Royal Grade Celestial Weapon to its full potential, it would be better for him to only use it against opponents whom he could kill in one blow. After all, if his opponent managed to survive his attack repeatedly, his Celestial Origin Energy would continue to deplete to the point where it would make it easy for his opponent to kill him. Apart from that, the stronger his opponents were, the more Celestial Origin Energy he had to use to kill his opponents.
‘If I face a Nine Palaces Celestial King as soon as I use the consumable Royal Grade Weapon that would grant me the strength of a Celestial Lord, I’m afraid I’ll have to use up all the Celestial Origin Energy just to kill the Nine Palaces Celestial King. Even against those who are slightly weaker than Nine Palaces Celestial Dukes, I’m afraid I won’t have much Celestial Origin Energy left after dealing with them. This is not my true strength, after all. It’s just a temporary boost. In the end, it’s still best to rely on my own strength.’
With all these thoughts in mind, Duan Ling Tian immersed himself in cultivating. Thanks to the King Rank Cultivation Method, the Tai Yi Profound Method, that was given to him by Du Fei, Huan’er’s grandaunt, and the 99 Heavenly Veins he possessed, his cultivation speed was relatively fast even without the help of the Heaven and Earth Spirit Energy from Huan’er’s Divine Crystal.
Since Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er were traveling, Duan Ling Tian did not dare to recklessly use Huan’er’s Divine Crystal in fear of exposing the Divine Crystal. With his current strength, he could sense everyone weaker than a Five Elements Celestial King who approached them, but who could say for sure they would not encounter powerhouses stronger than a Five Elements Celestial King? It was for this reason, he did not dare to risk using the Divine Crystal.
The Divine Crystal was too precious. Not to mention Celestial Kings, even Celestial Lords and ordinary Celestial Emperors would be tempted by it.
…
“Hmm?” Duan Ling Tian who had been immersed in his cultivation suddenly opened his eyes. At this point, they had been traveling for a month.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Almost as soon as Duan Ling Tian opened his eyes, he saw nine figures flying toward him in the distance. He used his Celestial Origin Energy that was currently comparable to a Five Elements Celestial King and extended his Divine Consciousness to probe their cultivation bases. ‘A One Basic Celestial Duke and eight peak Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestials!’
It did not take long before the nine people appeared before Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er, blocking their path.
The leader of the group, a short middle-aged man, inhaled sharply when he saw Huan’er. “What a beauty!” A lecherous expression appeared on his face immediately. He looked like a ravenous wolf staring at its prey.
A young man standing at the back of the group looked at Huan’er with a similarly lecherous expression. He laughed heartily before he said, “Big brother, it seems like our luck is pretty good today. Not only will we be able to loot treasures, but we’ll be able to enjoy ourselves as well!”
Everyone loved a beauty. With Huan’er’s peerless beauty, ordinary men would definitely be tempted by her.
This group of nine people was experienced bandits. They had been looting and robbing people for a long time now. When they saw Huan’er carrying Duan Ling Tian with her Celestial Origin Energy, they assumed that Huan’er’s strength was superior to Duan Ling Tian’s strength. They had ascertained that Huan’er was only a Heaven Stage Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestial. Therefore, they were certain that Duan Ling Tian, at most, possessed strength equal to Huan’er. With this in mind, how could they be afraid of Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er? They had a One Basic Celestial Duke in their group, after all. Apart from that, all of them were peak Overarching Heavenly Supreme Celestials.
“I’ve never seen such a beauty in my entire life. My life would be complete if I could spend the night with her.”
“I feel the same way.”
“Too beautiful…. Where can you find such a beautiful woman? Our luck is really good today.”
The men standing at the back began to talk among themselves as they stared at Huan’er hungrily. They were completely unrestrained with their words. It seemed as though they were certain of capturing Huan’er and making her obey their orders, based on their words.
Only one person among the group of nine remained silent. It was a middle-aged man who was dressed in a simple robe; he had an ordinary appearance and average height. At this moment, he stepped forward and looked at the One Basic Celestial Duke before he said, “Big brother, why don’t we give up on this?” While he spoke, his eyes darted occasionally to Duan Ling Tian who was calmly sitting cross-legged in the air. Although this was his first meeting with Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er, he felt chills running up his spine when he saw how calm Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er were. Moreover, Huan’er was, indeed, too beautiful. How could such a beautiful woman who traveled so confidently without hiding her appearance be an ordinary person?
“Give up?” The One Basic Celestial Duke was momentarily stunned when he heard the middle-aged man’s words. Then, he said, “Old Second, can you really bear letting such a beauty slip away before your eyes? Where do you think you’ll find such a peerless beauty again? This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance!” Despite his words, his tone was rather polite and curious.
At the same time, the remaining people of the group began to protest one after another as they stared at Huan’er lecherously. They also appealed to the small middle-aged man, afraid he would listen to the middle-aged man’s words.
“Second brother, you can’t ruin our fun!”
“Second brother, we know that you’re very clever and extremely cautious…. However, this time, I really think you’re being too cautious for nothing!”
“Exactly! No offense, wise as you are, Second brother, your judgments aren’t always right!”
“Big brother, don’t listen to second brother. We must seize this opportunity!”
“Old Second, as you can see, I can’t heed your advice today.” The short middle-aged man smiled wryly at the middle-aged man, Old Second. His tone was somewhat helpless, but one could tell it was feigned based on the hungry manner in which he looked at Huan’er. It was rather obvious that he could not bear to walk away from a beauty like Huan’er.
“Fine, fine… At most, I’ll just accompany all of you to death!” The middle-aged man with average height, Old Second, shook his head helplessly. A grim expression could be seen on his face as though he had already prepared himself for death.
Upon hearing this, the leader, the short middle-aged man, seemed rather annoyed. “Old Second, don’t be like this. If you’re not interested, you can leave first. Don’t act as though we’re forcing you to do this.”
A few men began to chime in one after another in support of their leader.
“That’s right! Second Brother, if you don’t want to be a part of this, you can leave. It just means we’ll have one less person to share our prize with!”
Old Second scoffed before he said, “I’m not leaving. If I’m truly mistaken, I won’t partake in the prize!” Based on his tone, it was obvious that he was also rather angry.
“Good! Second Brother, it’ll be as you said!”
“Second Brother really cares about us younger brothers.”
“Without Second Brother, I should be able to have my turn with this beauty a bit sooner, right?”
Soon after, the men shifted their eyes to Huan’er like a pack of ravenous wolves.