As things stood, neither of Demon Spirit Lake's two pure-blooded creatures of this generation had attained a hundred thousand jin of physical strength.
If everything went smoothly, they would travel to the Qilin Ruins nine months later and undergo baptism in the blood pool. That would probably bring them close.
Yet Shi Yi, a member of the Human Race who had not even undergone the blood pool baptism, had already surpassed pure-blooded creatures. The result felt almost unreal.
Many young spiders were struck dumb, unable to recover for a long time.
Shi Yi paid no heed to anything around him, his entire mind immersed in tempering his body. By now, his physical strength had reached a hundred and twenty thousand jin, taking him more than halfway to his ultimate goal. With another blood pool baptism still ahead, victory was already in sight.
He had to strive for as many further breakthroughs as possible before the blood pool baptism.
Time was pressing. He could not afford the slightest carelessness or slackening.
Sweat poured off him like rain. Like a tireless weapon, he kept hammering at his body's limits with near-mad fervor, making the young spiders watching him feel their scalps prickle.
Compared with Shi Yi, they had been far too cautious, as though they had come here for a leisurely break.
Some young spiders came to a realization. Perhaps it was precisely because members of the Human Race were born with weak bodies that they honed themselves so desperately, achieving such astonishing results.
Soon, the young spiders in the body-tempering grounds stopped watching Shi Yi and began working harder to temper their own bodies.
Being left so far behind by a member of the Human Race that an empty wilderness stretched between them was a tremendous blow. Naturally, they had to work harder.
Just as Shi Yi was sweating profusely, challenging the limits of the human body again and again and unleashing his potential, an ill-timed voice suddenly rang out across the body-tempering grounds.
"Are you Shi Yi, the one with double pupils? The member of the Human Race who swooped in and stole my place?"
The sudden, icy voice made Shi Yi and the young spiders in the body-tempering grounds stop what they were doing at the same time.
Shi Yi rose, briefly wiped the sweat from his body, and put on his robe. Then his gaze shifted toward the uninvited guest.
When the young spiders who had witnessed Shi Yi's monstrous abilities saw the little Golden Spider's hostile demeanor, their expressions changed. They were certain the little Golden Spider would be beaten until not a patch of skin remained unscathed.
A young spider immediately stepped forward to offer a well-meant warning. But how could the little Golden Spider, whose place had been taken, care about any of that? The blood pool baptism determined whether it could raise its physical strength to a hundred thousand jin. How could it surrender that opportunity with both hands?
The well-meaning young spider was shoved aside. The little Golden Spider stared down at Shi Yi with a cold gaze.
Shi Yi's expression remained as tranquil as water, without a ripple. Nothing could be read in his eyes.
The little Golden Spider grew even angrier. To it, Shi Yi's expression and attitude were nothing short of contempt. It was a pure-blooded creature, an existence that could look down upon others of its realm throughout the Desolate Region. A human, even one with double pupils, had no right to treat it with such disdain.
"Though I don't know what trick you used to get the ancestor to give you my place, what isn't yours will never be yours. Let me see just what is so impressive about those double pupils of yours." The little Golden Spider had no desire to waste more words. Before coming, it had consulted the elders of its clan. As long as it could defeat Shi Yi in front of the other spiders, the elders would have grounds to approach the ancestor and fight to reclaim its baptism place.
Thus, this battle was inevitable.
The words had barely fallen when an explosive crack rang out in the air. A transparent strand thinner than a hair was struck down by a terrifying force.
At the sight, the little Golden Spider's expression turned grave.
This was one of its clan's trump cards. Though the strand was so fine it seemed almost nonexistent, it was extraordinarily tough, capable of easily piercing precious artifacts and killing unseen.
Most terrifying of all was its concealment. It could take an enemy's life without a sound, yet this trump card had failed against Shi Yi.
Before Shi Yi's double pupils, attempting such an underhanded trick was no different from spinning a fantasy from the Arabian Nights. He had directly unleashed Heaven-Opening Double Pupils, intercepting the fine strand in midair.
Seeing that its covert methods could not escape Shi Yi's notice, the little Golden Spider knew it could only cross real blades with him and let their strength decide the outcome.
Blazing golden light erupted from its entire body. Mysterious golden symbols crawled over its legs, spilling out utterly terrifying power as its whole body entered a berserk state. Then it shot toward Shi Yi like an arrow loosed from a bow.
It knew full well that against someone with double pupils, it could not afford the slightest carelessness. Only by attacking with all its strength and denying its opponent any opening could it win in the end.
The young spiders in the body-tempering grounds watched nervously, holding their breath despite themselves and breaking into a cold sweat for the little Golden Spider.
They were certain that if the little Golden Spider had seen Shi Yi lifting sixty thousand jin with each arm earlier, it would never have chosen to charge forward so recklessly.
Common sense could lead one to ruin. Deep down, the little Golden Spider believed its body could crush a human's. It could never have imagined that Shi Yi was an existence even more terrifying than a pure-blooded creature.
The wind howled as the little Golden Spider charged in. In the blood moving realm, its body could be considered unrivaled. At the very least, members of the Human Race had no answer to it. Aside from Shi Yi, every blood moving realm genius in the Stone Kingdom would be crushed. That was why human prodigies paled at the mere mention of pure-blooded creatures. Even the descendants of primordial remnants could dominate an entire area.
Unfortunately, the little Golden Spider had kicked an iron plate. Shi Yi's eyes shone, but he did not use Heaven-Opening Double Pupils again. Instead, he allowed the little Golden Spider to charge right up to him.
Just as the little Golden Spider thought it was about to sweep Shi Yi aside like rotten wood and reclaim its place, Shi Yi moved. He flicked his sleeve, which suddenly expanded at tremendous speed, as though it would envelop the entire sky.
This was a mighty Human Race divine ability, Sleeve-World. Although Shi Yi had obtained only an incomplete version, barely scratching its surface, it was already sufficient in this barren lower realm.
The distance was too short, and Shi Yi moved too quickly. Unable to react in time, the little Golden Spider was engulfed by the sky-filling sleeve. Then an immense force struck its body, sending a surge of agonizing pain through it.
It let out a terrifying shriek and unleashed Golden Spider Aspect, trying to fight its way out.
Naturally, Shi Yi would not let it have its way. He continued striking to suppress it.
After a fierce exchange, the little Golden Spider had been beaten until its whole body ached and could endure no more. The world spun around it, its eyes rolled back, and it lost all ability to resist.
Meanwhile, Shi Yi's sleeve had also been torn in more than a dozen places by the frenzied Golden Spider, sending scraps fluttering through the air.
He held the dying little Golden Spider, his expression calm, paying no attention to his shredded sleeve.
After all, this was a pure-blooded creature. Once it went berserk, how could it be so easy to subdue? Besides, Shi Yi had used only one hand.
As they watched Shi Yi subdue the little Golden Spider with a single hand, every young spider present paled. Was this really a pure-blooded creature? Hadn't it lost far too quickly?
Before Shi Yi, it had no power to resist at all.
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