'Life Grass' and Grandfather

And so, Jie Ning and Arannis had already been living in the 'Death God Desert' for several months.

Jie Ning's insights into both Life and Earth steadily improved.

Since marrying Jie Ning, she had gradually come to enjoy this feeling of cultivation.

Mainly because cultivation allowed her to clearly feel her own steady progress every single day—that sensation was simply too wonderful.

Jie Ning looked at the 'Little Grass' before him and decided to do something different.

'Life Nourishment'

Jie Ning cast the 'magic' he had comprehended based on the Life Rule.

A green light flowed swiftly toward 'Little Grass'. The moment the green light touched the surface of Little Grass's leaf, the two merged like water and milk, the green light directly integrating into Little Grass.

Immediately after, within Jie Ning's perception, Little Grass's Life Fluctuation began to continuously strengthen.

Second after second, then in an instant—pop—as if breaking through some boundary.

Jie Ning looked at the Little Grass before him, a hint of joy involuntarily appearing on his face. "Success."

Arannis sensed the commotion here and curiously came over. She looked at the Little Grass, whose aura was now completely different, and exclaimed in surprise, "It's become a Magic Beast."

In this world, for non-intelligent life, without an accident, stepping into the extraordinary was far more difficult than for other creatures.

Take the grass before them as an example. Even though it had monopolized a God Corpse for who knows how many years and could draw energy from the God Corpse for growth, that energy would still prioritize expanding its growth range first—like developing its root system...

Perhaps one day in the future, when this grass reached the limit of its growth, life's instinct would then use the absorbed energy to elevate its own essence. At that point, the grass could also become 'a' Magic Beast.

At that time, while gaining intelligence, its body, which had grown to its limit, would also possess considerable strength.

If, like now, Jie Ning directly used magic to prioritize elevating its essence and let it complete a life leap first, then the grass at this stage could only be considered a first-rank Magic Beast.

But if it had naturally grown into a Magic Beast, then on the day of its transformation, it would most likely rely on its powerful body to become 'a' sixth-rank Magic Beast.

Before that, it could only be considered a highly nourishing medicinal herb.

Then, as its intelligence further developed, its strength would also continuously grow in the process.

However, the above premise was that this grass had to survive until that time. After all, when facing danger, life without intelligence could only passively endure, having poor risk resistance—especially when it was easily coveted by other creatures.

At this moment, Jie Ning had elevated its essence ahead of time. Although it was only a first-rank Magic Beast, it now possessed basic spirituality.

Right after 'Little Grass' gained spirituality, it first seemed dazed, pausing for some time. Then, sensing two powerful lives before it, the next instant, the entire Little Grass rapidly retracted into the ground, leaving only faint pitted traces on the surface.

Jie Ning watched Little Grass's reaction, a hint of a smile on his face.

Jie Ning wasn't just watching with his eyes; he had been using his mental strength to observe its growth. At this moment, he could clearly 'see' that it had burrowed a considerable distance underground, taking the God Corpse along with its root system.

Arannis looked at Jie Ning's calm expression and asked curiously, "This little one just hid like that—no problem?"

Although she knew this 'newborn' little Magic Beast could never escape Jie Ning's grasp, Arannis also knew that what Jie Ning cared about wasn't the creature itself, but the changes it displayed during its growth.

If this little thing kept hiding, that wouldn't meet Jie Ning's requirements.

Jie Ning looked at Arannis, who wore an expression of someone waiting to see a show, and wasn't in a hurry. He simply condensed another green orb in his hand.

Whoosh~ Little Grass instantly grew back in place.

Jie Ning looked at Arannis's disappointed face and laughed. "The spirituality of a first-rank Magic Beast like this is still relatively low; it doesn't have much instinct for avoiding harm."

Little Grass sensed the energy it craved in the hands of the powerful life before it and kept swaying its leaves.

From the leaf movements, Jie Ning and the other seemed to perceive a certain anxious emotion.

With a soft chuckle, Jie Ning reached out and handed the energy to Little Grass.

Little Grass absorbed the orb, and its aura seemed to strengthen a bit more.

Under their watch, Little Grass moved to Jie Ning's feet, its leaves rubbing against his ankle as if acting spoiled.

Jie Ning looked at Arannis. "I take back what I just said—at least this little one still knows how to chase after benefits."

After rubbing for a while, as if sensing that Jie Ning had no intention of giving another 'feast', Little Grass decisively left him, returned to where it had originally grown, and resumed its identity as 'a blade of grass'.

Jie Ning watched this little creature's 'mercenary' behavior, and for a moment, a look of stunned surprise couldn't help but appear on his face.

Arannis, seeing Jie Ning rarely at a loss, immediately found it amusing. "It seems our Lord Jie Ning's prestige doesn't work so well in front of this little one."

"Ahem~" Jie Ning coughed feignedly. "This little thing's spirituality isn't developed enough to express more thoughts yet; its current behavior is still normal..."

"Yes, yes. Then does Lord Jie Ning plan to give this little one a name? After all, it's a Magic Beast you cultivated." Arannis knew when to stop and instead shifted to discussing what to call this 'Little Grass'.

Jie Ning thought briefly but ultimately gave up. "It's better to let this little one choose its own name later. For a first-rank Magic Beast, a name has no meaning."

"However, for convenience in addressing it, from now on, let's call it 'Life Grass'—ahem, no, 'Life Grass' it is." But Jie Ning still gave the grass a species name.

After Life Grass became a Magic Beast, its efficiency in absorbing the God Corpse also improved—though it was only like a 0.1% increase in rate.

Jie Ning also gained some insights from the changes that occurred after Life Grass became a Magic Beast.

Time flew by.

According to the original plan, Jie Ning and the other intended to stay here for another half month before leaving.

But one day, the sudden intrusion of two figures forced them to adjust their plans.

On that day, Jie Ning suddenly sensed two powerful Life Fluctuations approaching him from afar.

"Two Saint Realm experts. It seems one is chasing the other." Jie Ning sensed the fluctuations of their auras.

Soon, the two Saint Realm experts drew closer, their undisguised auras washing over the area. Arannis quickly moved to Jie Ning's side.

The Life Grass vanished into the ground the moment it sensed those two auras.

"Jie Ning..." Arannis looked at him with concern.

Jie Ning gave her a reassuring glance. He could clearly sense that the auras of those two Saint Realm experts were far weaker than his own.

Jie Ning then released his own aura, which was vastly stronger than theirs.

The two who had been chasing each other suddenly felt a powerful aura surging toward them, far surpassing their own. Clearly, a formidable Saint Realm expert was warning them off.

Jie Ning's intention in releasing his aura was to avoid trouble, hoping the two would steer clear of him.

Although, as a Saint Realm expert of the Korur Empire, he had the duty to expel foreign Saint Realm experts from the nation's territory, the Death Desert was a borderland between two countries with no clear ownership, so he wasn't strictly bound to follow that rule.

But sometimes, accidents happened just like that. Jie Ning suddenly felt his insignia grow warm, indicating that one of the two approaching was also a Saint Realm expert of the Korur Empire.

Jie Ning frowned instinctively. Clearly, the other party wanted him to forcibly intervene in the fight, which frankly annoyed him.

However, the displeasure on Jie Ning's face quickly faded, replaced by a helpless expression.

The one being chased suddenly shouted, "I am Dell Dalut of the Korur Empire! I beg your aid, friend! The Dalut Family will reward you handsomely."

Time went back.

Once, when Jie Ning was very young, his father was not yet a baron. That title still belonged to his grandfather.

Unlike his father, who lacked ambition, this grandfather clearly harbored the aspiration to become a strong expert. After his grandmother passed away, one day, the grandfather passed the title to the current Baron Chris.

He resolutely left the family's territory, determined to seek an opportunity to break through to the Saint Realm in the outside world.

And clearly, this "Dell Dalut" was Jie Ning's grandfather, whom he had not seen for many years.

Good news: Grandfather had successfully become a Saint Realm expert.

Bad news: Grandfather was being chased.

Good news: Grandfather had run into Jie Ning.

The moment he heard his grandfather's name, Jie Ning immediately used the Earth-walking Technique to appear near the two.

Arannis had already reacted the instant she heard the name "Dell Dalut" and wasn't surprised by Jie Ning's disappearance.

Harley felt a bad premonition the moment he heard Dell's shout. He knew that Saint Realm experts of the Korur Empire could confirm each other's identities. Outnumbered two to one, he was no match. But what Dell held in his hand...

Just as he hesitated.

Harley found a stranger's figure had already appeared between the two of them. Instantly, Harley's hair stood on end.

The moment he appeared, Jie Ning recognized at a glance that the one on the right was his long-lost grandfather.

"Milord..."

Seeing the other party's seamless method of arrival, Harley immediately understood he was outmatched. He turned to flee, trying to say something as he ran.

Jie Ning naturally noticed the other's little move. Without a word, he simply raised a finger. After Harley had flown a short distance, a beam of light struck him in the back.

"No, don't—I only became a Saint Realm a few decades ago..."

Harley felt himself slowly losing control of his body. Suddenly, his eyes dimmed, and he was dead.

Dell watched in horror as, just a few breaths after the sudden arrival fired a beam of light that struck Harley's back, Harley lost all signs of life and fell.

"As expected, this kind of ordinary Saint Realm isn't even worth fighting." Jie Ning commented inwardly.

"M-Milord..." Dell hurriedly bowed to Jie Ning, sweat pouring down his face.

Jie Ning looked at his pale-faced grandfather and said helplessly, "Grandfather, I'm Jie Ning."

"Ah~" Dell, dazed by the word "grandfather," lifted his head blankly to look at this "milord." 'So familiar...'

'The name Jie Ning sounds familiar too...'

'? Jie Ning!'

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