Volume Seven: Their Respective Cultivation
Carrying the spoils of their second hunt, Luo Feng and Emperor Qing piloted their Black Flying Boat and began their return journey.
On their return journey, they remained as cautious as ever.
"A flying boat is coming, be careful." An invisible, vast wave of energy enveloped the area, where three hidden figures had already spotted the flying boat using the array.
"Let them continue forward, deeper into the formation, then we'll make our move."
Three hidden figures waited patiently.
Suddenly--
"Um?"
Inside the Black Flying Boat, Luo Feng's Imitation Life-Death Eye remained open between his brows. Since reaching the God Emperor Early-Stage in both the paths of life and destruction, this Imitation Life-Death Eye had naturally advanced further, its observational capabilities becoming even stronger.
"Something's not right around here." Luo Feng immediately transmitted his voice to Emperor Qing, "Retreat at top speed."
"Oh?" Emperor Qing didn't sense any danger, but he trusted his companion.
Luo Feng only sensed that something was wrong; he didn't find any enemies, and the surrounding space seemed normal. However, Luo Feng's 'Imitation Life-Death Eye' detected that the rules of the surrounding world were not functioning properly.
A rule of shadow has permeated the rules of heaven and earth; the deeper one goes, the more profound the influence of this rule of shadow becomes.
"Whoosh!"
The Black Flying Boat suddenly retreated, returning along its original path at maximum speed.
"We've been exposed."
"They actually found out?"
"Trap them."
A dense shadowy power descended, instantly turning the vast surrounding area, spanning billions of kilometers, gray! Luo Feng and his companions' flying boat was also within this vast area shrouded in shadowy power. However, they were not far from the 'boundary'.
At this moment, however, the endless shadow power was thick and viscous, completely binding the flying boat.
"Unity of Heaven and Earth!"
"The World Splitting!"
A majestic figure appeared, naturally mobilizing the power of the vast world, and his right hand was like a big ax, slashing down angrily! Where the big ax struck, it was as if the entire world was split into two, and a huge gap was created!
This is the most suitable forbidden move that Luo Feng created after his life and destruction reached the God Emperor Early-Stage, based on the characteristics of his Heaven-Earth Clone —the Creation of World Splitting!
After this huge rift was split open, even the power of shadow was briefly cleaved open by a huge gap.
"Whoosh."
The Black Flying Boat immediately accelerated along the gap, bursting out of the shadow's reach in a flash. The towering figure also used the crack in the sky to instantly disappear, rushing out as well.
After escaping the vast area of the shadowy power, Emperor Qing finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Brother Luo Feng, he should be an expert from the Myriad Shadow Pavilion," Emperor Qing transmitted his voice. "If we get trapped in their formation, we'll be in big trouble."
"This formation is very powerful. Even my Heaven-Earth Clone technique only managed to cleave a crack in it." Luo Feng also realized how difficult the opponent was to deal with.
"Hahaha..."
Laughter erupted.
Three distorted shadows descended from all around, coalescing into three figures.
They were all dressed in gray robes and wore masks, and an invisible force emanated from them.
"It really is the Myriad Shadow Pavilion." Luo Feng Emperor Qing confirmed it completely.
There are three factions in Rain Ripple City that have long been involved in theft and robbery: the Insect Nest, the Myriad Shadow Pavilion, and the Strange Workshop. They are all under the Hall Master Wei Yang. Hall Master Wei Yang's faction is the largest force in Rain Ripple City.
Inside the Myriad Shadow Pavilion, those responsible for the thefts held relatively ordinary positions.
Those in charge of the looting are the true middle and upper management! These looters generally conceal their presence and appearance. After all, looting is too likely to attract resentment.
"Those responsible for raiding in the Myriad Shadow Pavilion are generally God Emperor Mid-Stage Enlightenment Seeker. They dare not raid those who are weaker," Emperor Qing transmitted to Luo Feng.
"We've already determined their approximate strength from our exchange just now," Luo Feng, quite well aware of it.
"Hahaha, Emperor Qing and Luo Feng?"
The three men in gray robes looked at Luo Feng and his companion. One of them chuckled, "No wonder you two dared to go hunting together. You are indeed quite capable. You should know the rules of raiding, right?"
"Of course," Emperor Qing said, "We are willing to offer a sum of Primal Chaos Crystal."
"We won't take much. Leave behind the corpse of a Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform form, and we'll let you go," the gray-robed man said.
Emperor Qing and Luo Feng exchanged a glance.
"Alright." Emperor Qing replied, then waved his hand and released a Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform form's corpse, which was the cheapest of the spoils, worth about 800,000 Primal Chaos Crystal.
"That was satisfying." After the gray-robed leader collected the corpse, the three figures twisted and disappeared.
"Walk."
Emperor Qing and Luo Feng piloted the Black Flying Boat, avoiding the range of the shadow formation, and continued their return.
Inside the flying boat.
"When hunting outside, in addition to Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform, other Xing Zhe are also a threat." Emperor Qing shook his head. "We certainly don't care about those raiders with average strength; we can even kill them."
"But it will be troublesome if we encounter someone strong."
"Escape if you can, and give away as many Primal Chaos Crystal as you can." Emperor Qing shook his head. "But if the raiders don't want the Primal Chaos Crystal and want to kill and plunder, then we'll have no choice but to fight to the death."
Luo Feng nodded.
Judging from their brief exchange, those three were likely at the God Emperor Mid-Stage Enlightenment Seeker, having accumulated considerable experience and possessing a wealth of secret treasures. Luo Feng knew that even if Emperor Qing joined forces, they wouldn't be confident of defeating them!
"Call."
After flying for a short while, the Black Flying Boat finally arrived at Rain Ripple City.
Emperor Qing also smiled, "We were really lucky. Although we encountered Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform in the God Emperor Late-Stage our first hunt, we managed to escape. Although we were robbed on our way back from the second hunt, we managed to avoid disaster by delivering the corpse of a Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform form."
"Is this what you call good luck?" Luo Feng asked.
"You were very lucky," Emperor Qing said. "You'll understand after you've hunted a lot. During a hunt, you might suddenly encounter an extremely powerful Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform, resulting in the death or injury of most of your team. Or on the way back, you might encounter raiders who don't follow the rules and forcibly kill and plunder your treasures..."
Luo Feng nodded as he listened.
"That's how it was for us God Emperor Early-Stage in Rain Ripple City. We risked our lives, and we might still be robbed," Emperor Qing sighed. "Fortunately, I come from the Source World and have the Clone Technique! Otherwise, life would have been much harder."
"Cultivation in Rain Ripple City is not easy," Emperor Qing said, glancing at Luo Feng. "Of course, Brother Luo Feng, you are different. You already possess the strength of God Emperor Mid-Stage Enlightenment Seeker. If you just purchase a few more suitable secret treasures to enrich your abilities, you will be able to join any force in Rain Ripple City."
"There are many forces in Rain Ripple City. However, those Enlightenment Seeker at the God Emperor Mid-Stage are enough to serve as the backbone," Emperor Qing said. "After all, the next level is the Elder level, and their numbers are still very small."
Luo Feng smiled.
In Rain Ripple City, there are a total of 723 cultivators at the God Emperor Late-Stage level Enlightenment Seeker. Among them, 327 serve as elders. Many of them have avatars venturing into the Dark Holy World! Their avatars in Rain Ripple City rarely take action.
When the elders take action, it usually attracts the attention of the entire city. God Emperor Mid-Stage Enlightenment Seeker are the backbone of many forces operating in Rain Ripple City.
"Do you have any plans to join any faction?" Emperor Qing asked.
"There's no need," Luo Feng said, shaking his head slightly.
What he cares about most now is to advance the 'Life-Death Path' to the God Emperor Early-Stage as soon as possible.
"That's true. You haven't been in Rain Ripple City for long, so focus on your cultivation first," Emperor Qing said. "However, if you have the opportunity, becoming a high-ranking member of a major power will bring many benefits."
Luo Feng smiled but didn't say anything more.
During the conversation, the Black Flying Boat had already arrived at the majestic Primal Chaos Hall.
"Let's sell the spoils first." Emperor Qing and Luo Feng flew together towards the Primal Chaos Hall.
The remaining eight Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform forms, including their Merit Points, were sold for a total of 8.6 million Primal Chaos Crystal, with Luo Feng Emperor Qing each receiving half.
Luo Feng Emperor Qing divided the Primal Chaos Crystal and then went to purchase them separately.
"This time, I mainly want to buy Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform Materials for God Emperor Mid-Stage." Luo Feng to carefully browse through the merchants in Rain Ripple City, asking about the prices of all materials suitable for the Path of Destruction.
I spent a whole day comparing prices in detail and negotiating.
In the end, he purchased approximately 1,000 portions of Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform Materials at the God Emperor Mid-Stage Nine Rivers Holy World, each costing about 3,300 Primal Chaos Crystal. It's estimated that he has collected at least 90% of the Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform Materials suitable for Luo Feng at the God Emperor Mid-Stage throughout the entire Nine Rivers Sacred Realm. The rest are extremely rare and hard to come by.
Afterwards, Luo Feng purchased 900,000 Primal Chaos Crystal worth of auxiliary cultivation pills and other items.
"What a coincidence, the official airship is coming soon?" Luo Feng was pleasantly surprised. On the third day after the purchase, one of his clones took the storage treasure 'Illusory World Maze' and sent the purchased treasures to the Origin Continent.
The treasures stored in the Illusory World Maze must be carried with you every time. Luo Feng was also afraid of them being stolen!
Different cultivation systems can sometimes be very difficult to defend against.
"On the Origin Continent, there is the Life-Death Eye, and the cultivation efficiency is indeed more than ten times higher than in Rain Ripple City." Luo Feng had already decided that he would make a trip to the Origin Continent every time he went hunting.
In the future, when they are wealthy enough, they may only make one trip after several hunts.
"Did Emperor Qing and Luo Feng return from their second hunt?" Since they lived in the same cave abode, Luo Feng Emperor Qing didn't try to hide it, so Emperor Lord Ming Di Fu naturally found out.
"It seems like things are going quite smoothly for them."
Emperor Lord Ming sat cross-legged in his cave abode, his expression complicated. "Since I came to Rain Ripple City, I have only been hunting once, but... the result was a complete disaster!"
There's a reason why normal hunting teams in Rain Ripple City don't want these God Emperor Early-Stage bloodline Xing Zhe! During the hunt, their positive role is negligible, and they're more likely to be a hindrance.
"This time, there were a total of 32 team members, all of whom were God Emperor Early-Stage bloodline Xing Zhe. We studied and discussed our teamwork for a long time. But what was the result?" Emperor Lord Ming was quite discouraged.
The 32 team members set off in their flying boat and were lucky enough to encounter a Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform at the God Emperor Early-Stage. With their strength, if they had encountered something stronger? They would likely have been wiped out.
Even the weakest of the Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform, all 32 of them, coordinated their attack according to the previously prepared method.
However--
The Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform forms were too strong! Their vitality was too strong! Their coordination was exquisite, and they successfully executed all seven sets of encirclement techniques in succession. The continuous encirclement moves left the Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform with no time to retaliate.
However... after enduring seven rounds of attacks, the Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform, though severely injured, still did not die. In its frenzied counterattack as it approached death, the Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform managed to kill seven team members, severely injure more than ten others, and the remaining team members fled in panic.
"Thirty-two team members couldn't even kill a Lowly Primal Chaos Lifeform. No wonder hunting teams don't want us." Emperor Lord Ming shook his head. "Let's use the resources of Rain Ripple City to cultivate diligently and strive to improve our strength."
He appears poor.
Despite having Infinite Space as a reward, Emperor Lord Ming was actually quite wealthy. However, he needed to be very careful when using his wealth. After all... he was too weak! He hadn't even cultivated the Movement Method yet.
"The True Witch Lineage of the Nine Ring World Tower is indeed extraordinary. I've gained a lot from the Void Lineage; I feel I'm getting closer and closer to the complete 'Great Dao of Space.'" Di Fu was very satisfied inside the Nine Ring World Tower, even though he was just helping out with odd jobs and doing basic tasks. He still gained a lot.
After all, they are different cultivation systems, but in essence they are all 'Tao'.
"If I can comprehend the complete Great Dao of Space, I will be qualified to live in the Origin Continent into the next era." Di Fu smiled brightly, full of confidence in the future.
If one remains stuck in the Origin Continent, unable to break through the bottleneck, it's possible that even the Great Annihilation of the Origin Continent won't be enough.
But once they arrived in Rain Ripple City, they were exposed to many cultivation systems and had access to a wealth of cultivation resources, which naturally made it much easier to break through.
"We made the right choice," Di Fu, feeling very fortunate.
With Luo Feng Emperor Qing taking care of him, he didn't need to worry about housing in the city, so he was naturally quite relaxed.
"Brother Luo Feng has already reached the mid-stage of the God Emperor Mid-Stage Enlightenment Seeker, surpassing me." Emperor Qing sat cross-legged in the Quiet Room, looking at the jade bowl in front of him, which contained an amber-like liquid.
"I've been stuck at the final bottleneck for too long."
"I sold many of my treasures for 80 million Primal Chaos Crystal to obtain this 'Void Marrow Essence Liquid,' all for this gamble." Emperor Qing n't in such a hurry at first, but the imbalance of strength within the team made him decide to take this gamble now.
All the wealth accumulated over the long years has been exchanged for precious treasures.
"Bring it on."
As soon as Emperor Qing opened his mouth, the amber-like liquid in the jade bowl flew up and entered Emperor Qing's mouth.