I Am Overlord c1-962
Page 35
Since Xiang Shaoyun’s astral cosmos sea had been growing lately, stuffing a few stalks of spirit medicine inside was no problem for him. As for the other old medicines, he merely stuffed them all into his mouth.
Eat! Eat! Xiang Shaoyun chewed without stop. He did not even care if they were old medicines or something else, as an intense hunger had suddenly assaulted him as if his body greatly lacked the nourishment of energy.
And thus, apart from the old medicines, Xiang Shaoyun also started drinking the medicinal liquid in the cauldron. His backbone seemed to have an odd power that incessantly absorbed the medicinal energy. Because of that, even his nine stars weren't able to absorb much of the medicinal energy.
Xiang Shaoyun was unaware of this phenomenon. The only sensation he had currently was an extreme hunger for energy.
Break! Xiang Shaoyun even proceeded to refine the three stalks of spirit medicine in his astral cosmos sea. The massive amount of medicinal energy spread out from his astral cosmos sea, and his astral cosmos sea grew again. Now, the astral cosmos sea was already half a meter wide.
The nine stars shone brightly, covering the astral cosmos sea in their radiance. In the middle of everything was the backbone that kept glowing with a purple radiance. The purple qi spread everywhere and slowly connected with the stars and the astral cosmos sea, seemingly trying to form a new universe within his body.
Xiang Shaoyun's strength grew, and he directly reached late-phase, second-stage Astral Realm. It did not take long for him to advance straight into the third stage of the Astral Realm. With the breakthrough, the energy within his body became extremely dense, and the purple qi kept overflowing from him and from the cauldron, to the point the cauldron started shaking.
Joy covered Wu Fuxiang's face when he saw what was happening. "Haha, this is the elephant facing the heaven phenomenon, a phenomenon that will only appear during the early formation of a spirit pill. Looks like this kid's physique is even better than expected. Otherwise, this won't happen. It's time to add the final ingredients."
Thus, with no hesitation, he tossed in all his remaining ingredients. There were a few spirit medicines among them, and each stalk of these spirit medicines contained extremely rich energy.
Xiang Shaoyun spared none of the medicine. Since his astral cosmos sea had grown, he could store even more stuff inside. Thus, he stored all the medicine. After storing all of them, he started refining some. The extreme hunger he was feeling caused him to panic.
Every single spirit medicine contained extremely rich energy, and for an ordinary person, eating a single spirit medicine would sustain them without food for half a month. Yet even after Xiang Shaoyun refined three spirit medicines and some old medicines, the intense hunger still assailed him.
But in the midst of this intense hunger, his strength was somehow still growing. His astral cosmos sea was also expanding, and an unknown change was happening within his body. All this was due to the odd power contained within his backbone. His backbone had absorbed most of the medicinal power and started to slowly change. Half the backbone had already turned completely purple.
Purple bone!
This was definitely not an ordinary bone. Even weirder, there were strains of purple electrical bolts crackling around the bone, as if tiny dragons were dancing around it.
After refining yet another batch of medicinal herbs, the purple bone seemed to have finally reached some sort of saturation. The purple qi finally withdrew, leaving the nine stars and the astral cosmos sea to continue absorbing the leftover energy.
Xiang Shaoyun tried his very best to suppress the energy, but the energy was still rich enough to push him straight into the fourth stage. As for his astral cosmos sea, it now had the space of one square meter, finally reaching a somewhat respectable size.
One could say that he had transformed this disaster into profit. In the span of two days, he had advanced two stages and had obtained an astral cosmos sea with a decent space. As for the purple bone, he still had no idea what it was for now.
Outside the cauldron, Wu Fuxiang was able to sense the change within the cauldron. "Haha, the Yang Restoration Body Sculpting Pill is probably done!"
He impatiently lifted the lid.
Chapter 70: Old Drunkard Duo Ji
Wu Fuxiang could no longer wait to get his hands on the Yang Restoration Body Sculpting Pill. The moment he lifted the lid, he looked down impatiently. Suddenly, a beam of water shot at him from the cauldron. Wu Fuxiang was a peak Transformation Realm expert, but he had never expected that Xiang Shaoyun would still be alive within the cauldron. Thus, his guard was completely down. Because of that, the scalding water landed right on his face.
"AHHH!"
The heat burned his face, causing him to yell out in pain. Not everyone was as resistant to high temperatures as Xiang Shaoyun. At the same instant, Xiang Shaoyun leaped out the cauldron, gathered all his strength in his fist, and punched Wu Fuxiang's chest.
Lightning Bolt Fist!
Might of thunder, force of lightning!
Bang!
Wu Fuxiang couldn't even defend himself in time before he was struck and sent into retreat. Although Xiang Shaoyun had grown stronger, his explosive punch was only able to cause Wu Fuxiang to cough up a mouthful of blood.
The gap between the Astral Realm and the Transformation Realm was too big, with more than 10 minor stages between them. It was not possible for Xiang Shaoyun to kill Wu Fuxiang with one punch.
"Old bastard, die!" Xiang Shaoyun did not let go of the available opening. With a roar, he mustered all his strength and rained down punches of Lightning Bolt Fists on Wu Fuxiang. Using the Lightning Bolt Fist, crackling electricity snaked around his fist. Thus, his punches were not powered by astral energy alone. Each punch was as powerful as the attack of an eighth-stage Astral Realm cultivator.
This was quite a terrifying combat prowess as Xiang Shaoyun had unleashed a might four stages above his current stage. This unnatural combat prowess was greatly related to the oddity that had occurred in his body.
Bang! Bang!
Tens of punches landed on Wu Fuxiang's body while sounds of explosions rumbled. Unfortunately, the attacks seemed to be ineffective as an energy barrier had formed around Wu Fuxiang's body, blocking all of Xiang Shaoyun's attacks.
Xiang Shaoyun felt like he was punching an unbreakable iron bastion, his attacks completely fruitless. This was the might of a Transformation Realm expert. One would be able to form an energy barrier that protected one's body against normal attacks.
"Bastard! I'll swallow you alive!" Wu Fuxiang wailed—eyes still shut—and slammed his palm toward Xiang Shaoyun.
Even though Wu Fuxiang was unable to see, he was still able to sense Xiang Shaoyun. Instantly, his palm arrived before Xiang Shaoyun's chest. The palm carried with it an incredible might, one that no Astral Realm cultivator would be able to resist. Even those in the Transformation Realm would die if hit by such an attack. This was an attack by a furious peak Transformation Realm expert, an extremely terrifying attack.
"It's over!" Wu Fuxiang’s aura was completely locked on to Xiang Shaoyun. Thus, Xiang Shaoyun had no way of avoiding the attack. But right this moment, a thunderous voice rang out.
"The likes of you are not worthy of touching my young master!"
The sound wave surrounded Wu Fuxiang, shattering his eardrums and sending him flying and coughing up blood. A sound wave alone had seriously wounded a peak Transformation Realm expert. How terrifying was this sound wave exactly?
It was worth noting that the person who shouted was already holding back. He wasn't exactly sparing Wu Fuxiang, but he was leaving Wu Fuxiang for Xiang Shaoyun. The newcomer was not Elder Zhen Peng. Rather, he was a sloppy, one-armed old man. No matter how one looked at him, he did not seem like a remarkable expert. One truly couldn't judge a book by its cover.
"Young master, are you alright?" the old man arrived beside Xiang Shaoyun and asked deferentially.
When Xiang Shaoyun saw th
e newcomer, a smile originating from the depths of his heart bloomed on his face. He said, "Old drunkard, I'm fine. I knew you wouldn't abandon me for real!"
The old drunkard's name was Duo Ji, a devoted guardian of Xiang Shaoyun who had helped him escape the sect. Without Duo Ji, Xiang Shaoyun would have died long ago. Looking at the missing arm, Xiang Shaoyun's heart pained. That arm had been lost for the sake of saving him.
"How can this old servant abandon the young master? I only left because that was young master's request back then. But subsequently, I understand that young master merely wanted to grow strong with your own strength. Thus, I came looking for you again," the old drunkard gave a simple explanation.
Before Xiang Shaoyun joined the Martial Hall Palace, he had been staying with the old drunkard. But he did not wish to be guarded by the old drunkard all the time. Thus, he chased the old drunkard away and even pretended to give up on himself. He was afraid that one day, his enemies would find them and the old drunkard would suffer harm because of him. On top of that, he also wanted to achieve something relying only on himself. He did not want to rely on the old drunkard for everything. If he did, he would not be able to grow.
Xiang Shaoyun sighed. "Old drunkard, it's all my fault."
"Young master, please don't say that. It's the fault of those traitors. A day will come when the sect master returns and all of them will pay the price for their actions!" the old drunkard said furiously.
When Xiang Shaoyun heard the old drunkard mentioning the sect master, a gentle look covered his face. "Even if Father does not return, I only need 10 years. In 10 years, I will definitely return to the sect, kill all the traitors, and retake everything that belongs to my Xiang Clan!"
Xiang Shaoyun spoke resolutely, his eyes filled with confidence.
"I have full confidence in you, young master. With your talent, that will definitely happen!" the old drunkard agreed.
In the span of only two months, Xiang Shaoyun had reached fourth-stage Astral Realm from third-stage Basic Realm. That was a speed worthy of the title "freak". The old drunkard was clear this young master of his was no less talented than the sect master. Perhaps the young master's talent even surpassed the sect master’s.
"By the way, since you have been around, were you the one who had killed off those pursuers before?" Xiang Shaoyun asked.
"Yes. I couldn’t sit around when I saw you in danger," the old drunkard replied.
"Um. Stop following me around anymore. I will be able to protect myself for now. I need you to do something else for me instead," Xiang Shaoyun said.
"But what if they find you?" the old drunkard asked with a frown.
"It will be at least another year before their search reaches here. You don't have to worry about me," Xiang Shaoyun said. He then added, "I need you to go protect my sister. Keep her safe."
"The little princess is well protected by the 13 eagles and a powerful master. Nobody will dare to harm her," said the old drunkard with reverence.
"Even so, that girl has a bad temper. If she decides to do something stupid, it will put her in danger, and it will be too late for us to go look for her then. Old drunkard, you must protect her from the shadows. Also, try to find out how many of my scattered brothers are still alive. I will personally return in the future for my revenge," Xiang Shaoyun gave out one command after another.
Chapter 71: I Hate This Bone!
The old drunkard couldn't say no to Xiang Shaoyun's request. He knew Xiang Shaoyun still wanted to grow without his protection, and he couldn't find an excuse to reject Xiang Shaoyun's request.
"Don't worry, old drunkard. I have gotten myself a King Realm expert to act as my temporary guard. Here, no ordinary person can harm me. Even this incident is merely an accident. In any case, I am a person of great fortune. I won't die that easily," Xiang Shaoyun said. He was trying to placate the old drunkard as he understood that the old drunkard was worried about him.
"Maybe I should go catch a few more of those tiny King Realm cultivators here. How is one enough to protect your precious self?" the old drunkard offered. If others heard these words, they would definitely be immeasurably shocked. The grand and magnificent King Realm had turned into a "tiny King Realm cultivator" in his mouth.
"No, we have to keep a low profile for now. Before you head over to my sister, leave some trails to mislead them. Perhaps that will buy me more time." Xiang Shaoyun waved his hand.
The two further discussed for a bit before Xiang Shaoyun asked for two king weapons, two king armors, and some spirit stones. As for Wu Fuxiang who had been rendered unconscious by the sound wave attack, Xiang Shaoyun personally killed him. He also found out from the old drunkard that this Wu Fuxiang was the patriarch of the Wu Clan. Hence, from now on, the Wu Clan would officially be his enemy.
The old drunkard wanted to exterminate the Wu Clan before leaving, but Xiang Shaoyun stopped him. Xiang Shaoyun wanted to personally exterminate the Wu Clan. It would be a waste to use the old drunkard against a mere Wu Clan anyway.
After he dealt with Wu Fuxiang, Xiang Shaoyun took the cauldron for himself. He also swept the hidden room clean. This room was in fact Wu Fuxiang's cultivation chamber. Quite a number of treasures had been hoarded here, such as some low-grade spirit stones, spirit medicines, and weapons.
"Huh? This is a lightning stone!" Xiang Shaoyun muttered in astonishment when he found a purple stone in the corner of the room while cleaning the room of its treasures. Apart from the color, the stone looked completely normal. But when he tried touching it, electrical sparks would appear around it, rendering even Transformation Realm experts to not dare to casually touch it.
This was a stone containing the power of lightning. It was considered a king-grade stone, a great material for forging king weapons. It was quite a waste that Wu Fuxiang had left a lightning stone so valuable to gather dust.
"Young master, let me seal this lightning stone for you first. You will have a need for it in the future," the old drunkard offered.
"It's fine. I'll use it right now." Xiang Shaoyun waved his hand and reached out for the stone.
The old drunkard wanted to stop him, but after a slight hesitation, he decided to do nothing. The moment Xiang Shaoyun gripped the lightning stone, it started releasing electrical currents of terrifying might. But when the electrical currents touched his flesh, an absorption force appeared from the purple bone within him and directly pulled the electrical energy into his body.
"Hmm?"
Xiang Shaoyun frowned when that happened. The electrical energy was giving him a numb sensation yet it had not harmed him. Rather, he could feel his strength growing.
"Again!" Xiang Shaoyun muttered before he tightened his grip on the stone.
This time, he triggered even more electrical energy from the stone, causing bolts of electrical current to curl around his hand.
Pa! Pa!
This much electrical energy was sufficient to destroy everything, let alone mere flesh. But at this moment, something odd happened. Xiang Shaoyun's body seemed to have turned into a natural electrical gatherer as all the electrical energy was instantly absorbed into his body.
After all the electrical energy was absorbed, the lightning stone dimmed. The old drunkard bore witness to everything. His eyes were filled with astonishment. Even Xiang Shaoyun himself was confused.
"Has something within me awakened?" Xiang Shaoyun muttered to himself.
"Y-young master, y-you might have awakened the lightning bone unique to the Xiang Clan!" the old drunkard cried out, his voice shivering.
"Xiang Clan's lightning bone? Yes, that's possible." Xiang Shaoyun nodded.
When the old drunkard saw how indifferent Xiang Shaoyun was, he couldn't help but say, "Young master, are you not happy? Even sect master himself has lived a life of regret for not being able to awaken his lightning bone. Now that you have awakened yours, he would be gratified to find out!"
"Should I even feel happy? My father is after all an abandoned child
of that clan. I hate that clan, and I hate this bone!" Xiang Shaoyun said, fury covering his face.
"Ohh...young master, forget about them. In any case, awakening this lightning bone will be a great help in increasing your combat power. It will also make your future revenge much easier," the old drunkard said.
"Um," Xiang Shaoyun merely groaned in response. He then said, "Let's go. Bring all these things to my place, and you can leave after that. In about 8 or 10 years, we will return to the sect!"
"Yes, young master!" replied the old drunkard, a yearning look on his face. In the past, he felt that his young master was too young and innocent, wasting his talent away by refusing to cultivate. But now, he was looking at his young master in a completely new light.
Xiang Shaoyun and the old drunkard left the hidden room and arrived at the abandoned building.
"Meow!"
As soon as Xiang Shaoyun appeared, a cry rang out, and a white flash pounced on him. Little White then appeared in his arms. Xiang Shaoyun petted Little White and said, "Little guy, I've caused you to be anxious."
Little White rubbed his head against Xiang Shaoyun's palm and licked the palm intimately, filling Xiang Shaoyun's heart with warmth.
"Here, you can have this stalk of old medicine," said Xiang Shaoyun as he fed Little White a stalk of old medicine. Little White did not bother holding back and immediately swallowed the old medicine.
"Meow!"
After swallowing the stalk, Little White meowed for more.
"Haha, you're such a glutton. Fine, you can eat your fill today!" Xiang Shaoyun laughed and proceeded to feed Little White a few more stalks of old medicine. Only after eating all of them was Little White satisfied.
The old drunkard said, "Young master, this striped tiger cub is most likely a king species, but it's not suited to be your mount, right?"