Chapter 153: Chapter 152: Weathering the Storm
After defeating Zhang Fan, Hong Yuan began to relish the fruits of victory. One after another, enormous sea Soul Beasts were slain and devoured by Hong Yuan, who absorbed their souls to continually augment his own strength.
Since ancient times, soul enslavement and cultivation have been inseparable. At this moment, as a Demon Beast commanding an army of Demon Beasts, Hong Yuan would surely face his enemies with greater ease and pleasure.
Most importantly, the Ice Soul that Hong Yuan had condensed would drastically enhance the effects of his Ice Tao Innate Ability and Ice Tao Demon Skills in the future. At the very least, it had increased his combat strength by ten percent, which was quite astonishing!
Under these circumstances, the bronze lines on Hong Yuan’s body became increasingly numerous. His rate of strengthening far outpaced that of other trial-takers, causing hearts to palpitate with unease.
CRUNCH, CRUNCH.
Hong Yuan kept gnawing at this Soul Beast that resembled a gigantic Swordfish, constantly building up his foundation.
[Soul Tao +60]
[Soul Tao +60]
[School: Soul Tao (Common 78%) → Soul Tao (Common 79%)]
Frankly, Hong Yuan was initially incredulous that he could strengthen his school foundation, especially his Soul Tao foundation, simply by "eating."
This was Soul Tao, the incredibly mysterious Soul Tao.
It was a school that regular Demon Cultivators would find difficult to access, and arguably one of the most crucial elements for becoming a Demon Saint or a Demon Emperor.
Hong Yuan had never imagined that the Dragon God Sacred Land would be so generous as to directly provide the trial-takers with a trial to strengthen their Soul Foundation.
Even more unimaginable to Hong Yuan was that his digestive ability turned out to be so powerful, truly living up to the name "Gluttonous Snake"!
79-fold...
81-fold...
95-fold...
99-fold...
[School: Soul Tao (Common 99%)]
After half a day of foraging, Hong Yuan had enhanced his Soul Foundation to the brink of the Hundred Python Soul realm.
His Soul Body was no longer greyish-white but had acquired layers of bronze patterns, appearing incredibly mysterious and powerful.
At this moment, Hong Yuan felt himself hitting a bottleneck; merely devouring Soul Beasts could no longer allow him to grow without limit.
The multiplier can’t increase anymore? Could it be due to impurities... It seems I still need to visit the Soul-shocking Valley. Hong Yuan pondered, closing his serpent mouth.
The cultivation of the Soul required not only depth but also essence. Initially, it was sufficient to simply bolster one’s Soul, so there was no need to refine it. However, upon reaching a certain realm, one had to focus on both quantity and quality.
On their way here, Messenger Wan Xuerou had told Hong Yuan about several Secret Realms within the trial that could help trial-takers break through their limits: the Soul-shocking Valley, Luopo Mountain, and the Gate of Life and Death.
Now that he had reached the limit of his Soul Realm, it was time to set forth and truly embark on the path to supremacy.
With this thought, Hong Yuan quickly flicked his python tail, breaking through the waves and heading straight to the ocean floor.
The murky, dark seawater churned as giant seafloor Soul Beasts spotted the Bronze Python. They flew into a frenzy, entangling Hong Yuan. He paid them little heed; with a flick of his body, he shook them off and proceeded directly to the Blue Stone Altar on the ocean floor.
With the aid of the Blue Stone Altar’s power, Hong Yuan entered the next stage, the Silver Land, becoming the third junior Demon Saint to step into the Silver Land after Li Jianqiu and Zhang Daoliu.
Hong Yuan was too fast, shockingly fast. His rate of growth simply astounded everyone.
"Who would have thought that Xuan Guangqiao, so unassuming and ordinary, would possess potential on par with Li Jianqiu."
"Indeed, one must never underestimate the juniors of Demon Saints."
"Forget being second to last! I think Xuan Guangqiao can now be ranked among the top two!"
The Demon Cultivators outside the trial discussed animatedly, full of admiration for Hong Yuan’s progress.
Some even believed that if Li Jianqiu hadn’t interrupted Hong Yuan’s progress in time, Hong Yuan might very well have pulled off a major upset and taken a commanding lead over the other junior Demon Saints.
After all, Hong Yuan had already shown potential second only to Li Jianqiu.
「...」
GURGLE, GURGLE.
With a dizzying sensation, Hong Yuan successfully arrived at the Silver Land by harnessing the power of the Blue Stone Altar.
He found himself in a deep pool within a forest, carefully observing his surroundings.
Upon arriving in the Silver Land, Hong Yuan immediately felt oppression from all directions.
All sorts of hidden yet palpably existent pressures squeezed Hong Yuan’s soul, forcing him to expend more soul power to survive. Simply existing in the Silver Land meant he had to use part of his Soul Foundation to cope.
The sky of the Silver Land was a snowy white, with Jade Thunder occasionally descending to strike all things. This forest was dark and hazy, unbearably dim, and filled with the auras of terrifying Soul Beasts.
According to Hong Yuan’s senses, the Soul Beasts in this forest started at the tenfold Soul Realm strength, which was quite impressive.
Only by the flashes of the descending Jade Thunder could Hong Yuan clearly see the forest environment.
Arrived at the Silver Land successfully.
I’m quite lucky to have landed in the Jade Forest. If I get through the Jade Forest, I’ll be able to reach Soul-shocking Valley.
Hong Yuan exhaled deeply, shaking his tail. The water in the deep pool rippled and shimmered.
Looking ahead into the dark forest, Hong Yuan activated his ’Frost Armor’ Innate Ability.
Instantly, layers of icy armor adhered to his forty-nine-meter-long Python Soul, significantly enhancing his defensive power and also improving his ability to see at a distance.
With Messenger Wan Xuerou’s guidance in mind, Hong Yuan set off toward the northwest of the Jade Forest.
The vegetation in the Jade Forest wasn’t particularly lush; even Soul Grass was rare. Perhaps for this reason, the Soul Beasts of the Jade Forest were generally more ’clear-headed’ than the Soul Beasts Hong Yuan had encountered before, capable of basic judgments of strength and weakness.
As Hong Yuan slithered over a mossy area, he sensed spying eyes from caves among the trees. He waited for an opponent to appear, yet found the Soul Beasts above the tenfold Soul Realm to be somewhat ’reasonable.’
They actually aren’t attacking me? Have they gained Spiritual Nature... Hong Yuan cautiously scanned his surroundings, his Python Soul ready to strike at any moment and teach any attackers a lesson.
When he saw a Jade Leopard Soul Beast frantically leaping between giant trees to escape from his path, a flash of enlightenment struck Hong Yuan’s mind.
I see. I’ve been too conservative with my progress, too cautious. Hong Yuan realized.
Shallow waters don’t produce True Dragons. Yet Hong Yuan, with his far superior digestive ability compared to other junior Demon Saints, had forcefully nurtured himself to a realm close to that of the Hundred Python Soul during the first phase.
Normally, only upon reaching the Silver Land could one get closer to the Hundred-fold Soul Realm.
For example, Li Jianqiu and Zhang Daoliu first reached the Silver Land. Only then did they focus on expanding their Soul Foundation and breaking through the Hundred-fold Soul Realm. Hong Yuan, however, had set about breaking through the Hundred-fold Soul Realm directly.
Shaking his head, Hong Yuan stopped pondering.
Indeed, reaching the Silver Land earlier would have saved him time in breaking through, but he didn’t need to rush things. Being cautious was paramount. What if he encountered that detestable Li Jianqiu prematurely?
After crawling for nearly two hours, Hong Yuan finally reached Shocking Soul Valley.
Soul-shocking Valley, I’ve arrived.
Standing at the peak of Soul-shocking Valley and overlooking the environment below, Hong Yuan felt the Great Power of nature.
The valley was filled with chaotically dancing whirlwinds, their noise shaking heaven and earth. Jade Thunder struck haphazardly within the valley, making it extremely dangerous.
A Soul Body fears the power of thunder most.
Just looking at the shattered rocks in the valley, Hong Yuan already understood how formidable Soul-shocking Valley was.
Swallowing hard, Hong Yuan ultimately convinced himself to believe the saying, "you can’t see a rainbow without a little rain," and bravely started crawling down into the valley.
Damn you, Li Jianqiu! Once I’ve achieved my goal, I will make sure to ’repay’ you properly.