Inside the Beast Emperor Palace.
After hearing Qiongqi's full report, the atmosphere in the hall changed noticeably.
At first, the ferocious beast titans had regarded Lu Yuan as nothing more than an unusual creature that had suddenly appeared.
He was enormous.
His physical body was powerful.
His bloodline was rare.
The Primordial World was so vast that unusual variants appeared every long stretch of years.
Such beings might be formidable, but they were not necessarily worth the Beast Emperor Palace's serious attention.
But now.
The situation was clearly different.
The fact that he had gotten the better of Qiongqi.
Was enough to show a great deal.
What was more, Lu Yuan was still growing.
A ferocious beast titan clad in black bone armor was the first to speak. "Your Majesty, since Lu Yuan has rejected the Imperial Court's invitation, leaving him in the Northern Land will be a problem sooner or later. He feeds on Fierce Sha Qi. If this continues, many of our race's cultivation grounds will be affected."
Another titan followed. "He says he has no intention of contending for supremacy, but once his strength reaches a certain level, many things cannot be brushed aside with a simple claim of having no intention. If he continues to grow, I fear the kings of the Northern Land will have a hard time keeping him in check."
Qiongqi stood in the center of the hall without speaking.
Qiongqi had naturally considered those problems as well.
The temperament Lu Yuan had displayed so far could hardly be called vicious.
But the problem lay in his rate of growth.
Once he grew powerful enough, even if he did nothing but remain in the Northern Land and devour Sha Qi, he would still have an impact on the Ferocious Beast Imperial Court.
What was more.
The Myriad Sha Abyss was far more valuable than an ordinary earth vein.
Qiongqi said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, following your wishes, I told him about the Myriad Sha Abyss. Given his need for Fierce Sha Qi, he will most likely go there."
Shen Ni's expression did not change when he heard this.
The black-armored ferocious beast titan, however, grew anxious.
"You really told him?"
Qiongqi's face darkened. "Those were His Majesty's orders."
The other titan immediately fell silent.
The titan could not help looking at Shen Ni.
The Myriad Sha Abyss was an important resource of the Imperial Court.
A vast quantity of Fierce Sha Qi had accumulated there, and many ferocious beast kings relied on its power to cultivate.
If Lu Yuan were really allowed in to eat.
Who knew how much he could eat?
Feeling everyone's gaze on him, Shen Ni finally spoke, slowly.
"Let him eat."
The hall fell silent in an instant.
Several ferocious beast titans even suspected they had misheard.
The black-armored titan could not help raising their head. "Your Majesty, the Myriad Sha Abyss..."
Shen Ni gave the titan an indifferent glance.
The black-armored titan immediately stopped.
"I know how important the Myriad Sha Abyss is."
Shen Ni's tone was calm. "And precisely because it is important, it is worth using to test him."
Qiongqi's eyes flickered.
Qiongqi seemed to have understood what Shen Ni had in mind.
Shen Ni continued, "You all just said that he can devour ferocious Sha Qi and will keep growing. In that case, I will give him enough ferocious Sha Qi."
"Let us see where his limit lies."
After those words fell.
The expressions of the ferocious beast titans in the hall gradually changed.
That was right.
The ability Lu Yuan had displayed so far was indeed astonishing.
But even the most astonishing bloodline talent should have a limit.
An ordinary Sha vein could not satisfy him.
The Myriad Sha Abyss was just right.
An exceedingly terrifying amount of Fierce Sha Qi had accumulated there over the years.
The deeper one went.
The more violent the energy became.
If Lu Yuan could only devour a portion of it, they could take the opportunity to determine how much he could withstand.
If he really could devour it all the way to the bottom...
At the thought of that possibility, the expressions of several ferocious beast titans grew somewhat grave.
If he really could go that far.
The value of this giant beast might have to be reassessed.
Qiongqi finally nodded as well.
"I understand."
Shen Ni glanced at Qiongqi.
"Your injuries are serious. Go and recover first."
Qiongqi lowered their head. "Yes."
Qiongqi turned and left the hall.
The remaining ferocious beast titans asked no further questions either.
Since Shen Ni had made his decision, they naturally would not object.
A little while later.
The entire Beast Emperor Palace fell quiet once more.
Shen Ni sat alone upon the imperial throne.
His gaze turned toward the outskirts of the Northern Land.
The interest in those scarlet eyes grew stronger and stronger.
Meanwhile.
Lu Yuan did not set off immediately.
He returned to the ferocious Sha earth vein from before and slowly devoured the remaining energy.
Heaven-Splitting Hou had already left.
Qiongqi was gone too.
The ferocious beasts that had gathered nearby to watch had long since fled without a trace.
Once the whole world around him had fallen quiet, Lu Yuan could finally focus on digesting the gains from the battle.
Great Luo ferocious Sha power really did taste much better than ordinary Sha Qi.
Even though Qiongqi had switched to physical attacks later on, the power Lu Yuan had swallowed earlier was enough to keep him digesting for a long time.
He lay on the ground.
Every breath he took whipped up a vast gale.
Blood coursed through his body.
His bones and scales continued to absorb energy.
The scales Qiongqi had cracked in several places had also mostly recovered.
The new scales were thicker and heavier than before.
The star patterns on their surfaces were clearer as well.
Lu Yuan could plainly feel it.
His physical body was considerably stronger now than when he had first awakened.
His body had grown longer once again.
Although he was still a considerable way from reaching a full hundred thousand li, the direction was perfectly clear.
As long as he kept eating.
He could keep growing.
Lu Yuan was quite satisfied with this method of cultivation.
Simple and trouble-free.
There was no need to sit cross-legged and comprehend the Dao.
No need to comprehend Principles.
Still less need to enter seclusion for hundreds of thousands of years over a single bottleneck.
There was only one thing he needed to consider.
Where he could find more high-quality energy.
And now.
The Myriad Sha Abyss lay before him.
Lu Yuan recalled the general direction Qiongqi had pointed out before leaving.
It actually would not be hard to find.
The deeper he went into the Northern Land, the denser the Sha Qi became.
As one of the north's foremost lands of ferocious Sha Qi, the Myriad Sha Abyss should be perceptible from a great distance.
Only now...
Lu Yuan slowly closed his eyes.
He suddenly felt a little sleepy.
Since the battle had ended, the enormous amount of power he had swallowed was still being transformed.
The instinctive message from his body was clear.
Get some sleep.
He would digest it more efficiently.
Lu Yuan had never been one to go against his body's needs.
After all, years went uncounted in the Primordial World.
The Myriad Sha Abyss would not grow legs and run away.
"I'll sleep for a while first."
His deep voice slowly spread with his breath.
Lu Yuan's enormous body gradually relaxed.
The surrounding land settled as well.
Meanwhile, in the distant Beast Emperor Palace.
Shen Ni waited.
A day.
A year.
Ten years.
A hundred years.
Lu Yuan still made no move.
Inside the Beast Emperor Palace.
Qiongqi's injuries had almost completely healed.
Qiongqi returned to the hall.
Shen Ni opened his eyes.
Qiongqi said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, that fellow is still in the same place."
Shen Ni frowned. "What is he doing?"
Qiongqi wore a strange expression.
"Sleeping."
The hall was quiet for a moment.
The ferocious beast titans nearby all turned their heads as well.
One of them could not help asking, "How long has he been asleep?"
Qiongqi answered in a deep voice, "More than two hundred years already."
The ferocious beast titans looked at one another.
Even Shen Ni fell silent for a moment, a rare occurrence.
He had considered that Lu Yuan might head straight for the Myriad Sha Abyss after learning about it.
He had also considered that Lu Yuan might suspect something was amiss and observe cautiously.
He had even considered that Lu Yuan might simply not go.
But as it turned out.
The fellow had fallen asleep.
And he was sleeping quite soundly.
Shen Ni leaned back on the imperial throne and suddenly let out a soft chuckle.
"Wait."
Qiongqi hesitated. "Should we send someone to hurry him along?"
Shen Ni shook his head.
"Let him sleep."
"I want to see whether he'll still go after he wakes up."
Qiongqi nodded and withdrew.
Shen Ni closed his eyes again.
Only this time...
Even he felt a little more helpless about that strange Grand Void Sky Whale.