I Am Overlord c1-962
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Apart from that, a young man from the Devil Blood Society also stepped forth and said, "He has the soul spring on him. Disciples of Devil Blood Society, kill him and take his soul spring."
This was the same young man who had had a short conflict with Xiang Shaoyun on the Moon Gazing Platform. Back then, Xiang Shaoyun, Liang Zhuangmin, and Hua Honglou had killed the three overseers in charge of guarding him.
This young man was Mo Sha, a young genius who had been kept hidden by the Devil Blood Society. He was no less talented than Devil Fairy, and he was similar in strength to Devil Face, whom Xiang Shaoyun had killed not too long ago. At Mo Sha's command, about 40 Devil Blood Society disciples stepped forth as well.
Looking at the over 40 people surrounding him, Xiang Shaoyun said, "Splendid. Bring it on. Do you think I, Xiang Shaoyun, will be afraid?"
The people paused, shocked that Xiang Shaoyun still had such confidence. And it was at that moment that Xiang Shaoyun did something none of them expected. He raised his hand and showed them his middle finger before turning around and running away. The people from Myriad Sword Sect and Devil Blood Society were completely dumbfounded.
Didn't he just declare that he was not afraid? Why was he suddenly fleeing? What?
Chu Chunyu was the first to recover, and he shouted, "Bastard! Give chase! Don't let him escape!"
"You won't be able to escape death," Mo Sha sneered.
And thus, the people of Myriad Sword Sect and Devil Blood Society started chasing after Xiang Shaoyun. But shortly after, they all retreated.
Why? Because Xiang Shaoyun had charged straight into the heartland of the ghostrune territory. If they followed him there, none of them could escape death, and they had no intention to die together with Xiang Shaoyun.
Xiang Shaoyun escaped, leaving his name etched deeply in the minds of these members of the younger generation through the two battles he fought. For them, Xiang Shaoyun was now comparable to the likes of top geniuses like Wu Jianfei, Devil Fairy, and Wu Chi. As for which of them was the actual number one below Skysoar Realm, that could only be answered through battle.
Chapter 297: Entering the Ghostrune Heartland
There were tens of thousands of ghostrunes residing at their heartland. The sheer amount of them was enough to kill off all the humans here if they so wished. Fortunately for the humans, the ghostrunes rarely left their home and would only send small groups out to deal with the humans most of the time.
The reason for that was because they loved the aura drifting about in their home environment, and they enjoyed staying in their territory. Although Xiang Shaoyun was heading deep into their heartland, he wasn't exactly confident he could face the massive army of ghostrunes there.
The only reason he even dared penetrate so deeply was thanks to Devouring Ghost he now had in his head. The ghostrunes had weak physiques, but their souls were powerful enough to protect themselves.
The moment Xiang Shaoyun approached the heartland, a large number of ghostrunes flew toward him. They attacked directly, sending numerous rocks and trees flying toward Xiang Shaoyun.
"I still haven't fought enough, so a fight is always welcomed!" said Xiang Shaoyun with a surging battle intent.
If the Myriad Sword Sect and Devil Blood Society people heard this, they would probably curse him because if he hadn't fought enough, why had he fled from them? In truth, Xiang Shaoyun did not flee because he was scared. He simply did not want to waste any time on them.
He had been in here for about half a month, and the time to leave was approaching. He had to make use of the remaining time to look for a soul raising stone. That was why he had decided to run and charged straight into the heartland of the ghostrunes.
Xiang Shaoyun was not intending to fight these ghostrunes on land. A pair of wings sprouted from his back, and with a flap of those wings, he shot to the sky before attacking with his fists. Two purple dragons flew out and shot toward the ghostrunes.
Rumble! Rumble!
The dragons wreaked havoc, turning numerous rocks and trees into powder. The lightning attack of the dragons would either seriously injure or outright kill any ghostrunes they touched. Xiang Shaoyun no longer held anything back as he flew about and punched repeatedly, sending one purple dragon after another flying from his fists, filling the area with lightning attacks.
The ghostrunes that had welcomed him did not have high cultivation levels, and all of them ended up dead under Xiang Shaoyun's continuous attack. After killing the ghostrunes, Xiang Shaoyun dissolved some spirit crystals within his astral cosmos sea to replenish his energy. It was then that he noticed the increase in his cultivation. The ninth-stage was getting nearer and nearer.
Looks like continuous battles are really helpful. I need to reach the ninth-stage before leaving this place, Xiang Shaoyun decided.
Just as he was about to continue his journey, even more ghostrunes appeared. Their greatest advantages were their ability to attack from afar with soul power and their ability to fly. However, their weakness was very clear as well—their poor ability to defend.
As Xiang Shaoyun could both block the soul attacks of the ghostrunes and fly, the ghostrunes held no superiority over him. The only thing they could do was die. He fought ferociously, charging straight into the midst of the ghostrunes with a flap of his wings. He punched relentlessly, sending the power of lightning and vicious gold everywhere through his fists. The ghostrunes had no way of defending themselves against him, and just one punch was enough to kill a ghostrune when hit.
Their specialty of throwing attacks were completely nullified, as Xiang Shaoyun was flying in their midst. Whenever they attacked, it was very easy for them to harm their own companions instead. Just like that, another group of ghostrunes were defeated.
"Human, you are getting too cocky. You dare intrude on our territory?" shouted a newly arrived ghostrune king.
The ghostrune king immediately unleashed a soul attack by forming a soul formation with his soul power. Soul attacks had never failed this ghostrune king before, but this time, he failed.
"Your soul power is useless against me," said Xiang Shaoyun with a sneer. He flapped his wings and charged at the ghostrune king before jabbing with his finger.
Triple Star Destroying Finger!
Instantly, he jabbed three consecutive times, sending three beams of finger energy forward. Strands of flame energy were suffused in the beams shooting toward the ghostrune king.
Flapping his ghostrune wings, the ghostrune king avoided Xiang Shaoyun's attack. At the same time, strands of unique power spread out of his wings as he tried to daze Xiang Shaoyun's mind.
Unfortunately for the ghostrune king, Xiang Shaoyun was completely immune to the bedazzlement attack as well. Xiang Shaoyun closed in on the ghostrune king and sent out a few punches. However, the ghostrune king was not the same as a regular ghostrune. He had much faster reaction time and was able to keep avoiding Xiang Shaoyun's attacks. Even as he moved about to dodge the attacks, he still had the time to lift more objects before slamming them at Xiang Shaoyun.
"You are not as stupid as the others, but you won't be able to escape death," Xiang Shaoyun sneered. He unleashed all his strength and drew his Purple Lightning Saber before sending a saber energy that turned into a bolt of lightning shooting at the ghostrune king.
Again, the ghostrune king avoided the attack. But would he be able to keep it up? Xiang Shaoyun started slashing his saber madly, innate purple lightning suffused in each of the saber energies he sent out, making each of the attacks incomparably dreadful. After dodging a few attacks in a row, the ghostrune king was finally hit.
The power of lightning was merciless, instantly scorching the ghostrune king’s body black. He started dropping from the sky. Xiang Shaoyun pressed on with another slash, cutting the ghostrune king into two.
But before Xiang Shaoyun could even celebrate the victory, about a dozen ghostrune kings appeared and surrounded him. They attacked him with both soul attacks and telekinetic
attacks, with the rocks and trees sent by the telekinetic attacks posing the biggest threat to him.
The similar sensation as to when he was in the limit rooms returned to him. He was forced into a defensive position where failure would result in death. In a way, this intense situation squeezed more potential out of him.
"Come! This will be a good training session!" Xiang Shaoyun bellowed madly before fully focusing on defending himself. A golden energy barrier formed around him, the dragon and tiger around him roared repeatedly, and his saber was swung again and again to parry the incoming attacks.
Lightning energy splashed everywhere, and rumbling thunderclaps reverberated throughout the area. But being on the defensive for too long would always lead to an eventual defeat. Xiang Shaoyun was able to block most of the incoming attacks, but he still missed some as they crashed mercilessly into him.
Bang! Bang!
Chapter 298: Ninth-Stage Transformation Realm
Xiang Shaoyun was hit repeatedly, and blood could be seen dripping from the corner of his lips. Evidently, he had sustained injuries. He did not let himself be buried by the stones raining upon him. Relying on his Nether Soul Domain, he continued tracing all the objects flying toward him and swung his saber at them.
Unfortunately, even though the Nether Soul Domain helped him trace all the flying objects, his body was unable to react in time. Objects were hailing down on him from all directions, and many parts of his body were hit. He was in a terrible condition.
"Kid, do you need my help?" Devouring Ghost's voice rang out again.
"No," Xiang Shaoyun said resolutely.
It was not like he hadn't been in such a bad condition before. This was a good opportunity for him to temper himself. He squeezed even more power from his body, causing the White Tiger Wings that had dimmed to solidify once again. The wings immediately got to work and started slapping the flying objects away from him.
Bang! Bang!
Like a pair of exceptional weapons, the pair of wings swept everywhere, carrying with them a thick vicious gold energy that reduced everything they hit into dust, greatly reducing the pressure Xiang Shaoyun was in.
Xiang Shaoyun did not remain on the defensive. Once again, he displayed the advantage granted to him by the Nether Soul Domain as he started moving nimbly amid the flying objects while accurately dodging the attacks. Slowly, he approached the ghostrune kings.
These ghostrune kings had learned their lesson and gave Xiang Shaoyun no chance to approach them. They uprooted a large number of trees to form a blockade while continuing their relentless barrage on Xiang Shaoyun.
With the help of the White Tiger Wings, Xiang Shaoyun was doing much better. But his current energy expenditure was extremely high, and he wouldn't be able to last long. For some reason, he did not seem to care. In fact, it even seemed like he welcomed the expenditure.
After an unknown amount of time spent trying to catch the ghostrune kings, Xiang Shaoyun's energy was finally near complete exhaustion. The injuries he had sustained were also reaching a point where he couldn't hold on any longer.
His wings dimmed again, and that was followed by more than 10 heavy hits landing on his body. Blood started flowing from the parts of his body unprotected by the armor. Slowly, the pain eroded Xiang Shaoyun's willpower, forcing him to give up.
I can still hold on! I can still hold on! Xiang Shaoyun told himself repeatedly. He was unreconciled. He wanted to smash apart even more of his shackles and squeeze more of his potential out.
He started circulating the Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual. His nine stars shone brightly, squeezing out every ounce of strength left in him, and finally, more of his hidden potential was forced out. Strands of hidden power started coming out from within him, replenishing his astral energy and nourishing his injuries, helping him slowly recover his combat strength.
"This is not enough. I need more power! AHHHH!" Xiang Shaoyun roared and circulated his cultivation method even faster. His innate purple lightning, his white tiger energy, and Yun Flame's energy erupted at the same time, shrouding him with three different energies of purple, gold, and red.
Xiang Shaoyun's energy barrier became firmer, and once again, his White Tiger Wings turned solid, and they seemed to have grown longer.
Bang! Bang!
Objects were still hailing down at him, but this time, his energy barrier stood tall. He was surging with power.
"Break!" He faced the sky and roared; his wings unfurled wide as a boundless energy spread from him, pushing all the flying objects away back at the ghostrune kings.
The ghostrune kings were forced to quickly scatter and avoid the flying objects.
"This human seems to have become stronger!" one ghostrune king shouted in alarm.
"Damn it! Why is this human different from other humans? Does he have an undying body?" said a different ghostrune king.
The ghostrune kings cursed and increased the intensity of their attacks, trying to kill Xiang Shaoyun at all cost. Now, Xiang Shaoyun was on the verge of breakthrough. He dissolved a large amount of spirit crystals in his astral cosmos sea, creating an unending flow of energy to supply his breakthrough.
"Roar!"
He reached a certain limit, and he suddenly opened his mouth, letting loose a dreadful Tiger's Roar. The deafening roar reverberated through the area, and ghostrune kings dropped from the sky.
That one roar defeated all the attacks the ghostrune kings sent. Xiang Shaoyun felt his body becoming light as rich astral energy coursed through his meridians like an unending river. His acupoints shone brightly while his nine stars started resonating with each other. His entire inner body seemed to have turned into a breathtaking river of stars.
The eruption of numerous sources of power instantly broke through his limit, sending him into the ninth-stage of the Transformation Realm. The moment he stepped into the next stage, numerous changes occurred. His stars enlarged, and his astral cosmos sea expanded. Apart from that, every part of his body was also growing and improving.
To cultivate was essentially to dig out the potential of the human body, to slowly reach perfection, to obtain a longer life span. That was why with each breakthrough the quality of one's body would improve. Xiang Shaoyun had reached the final stage of the Transformation Realm, and the Skysoar Realm was now within reach.
For some reason, Xiang Shaoyun entering the ninth-stage Transformation Realm had created a scene far flashier than the scene of someone breaking through into the Skysoar Realm.
Everything in his surroundings were blown away by the energy storm that had formed around him as his entire body shone with a blinding radiance. Warm currents of energy circulated within his body repeatedly, and his injuries healed. Having recovered to his optimal state, he stretched lazily and remarked, "Battles are indeed the best way to grow."
He then looked at the ghostrune kings around him. They had been stunned by the roar and still remained stunned even now. Evidently, they were completely defenseless against sound attacks.
"Consider yourself lucky. Since this young master is in a great mood, I shall spare you," said Xiang Shaoyun, who didn't feel like killing more of them for no reason. He continued heading deeper into the ghostrune heartland. He had to get a soul raising stone, and he intended to leave the moment he got one.
Chapter 299: Soul Raising Stone Obtained
For any other human, the ghostrune territory was a deadly place. Even King Realm experts could hardly survive a trip to this place. However, Xiang Shaoyun dared to enter the ghostrune heartland even though he was not a Skysoar Realm cultivator yet.
If anyone found out about this feat, they would be stunned. In truth, the reason Xiang Shaoyun dared to do it was because of the Nether Dragon Soul Headband and the White Tiger Wings he had. He also had Devouring Ghost's protection.
No matter how strong Xiang Shaoyun was, he alone would not be able to face tens of thousands of ghostrunes. Death would be his only fate if he attempted that. But with Devouring Ghost
around, he was guaranteed to be able to penetrate the ghostrune territory unmolested.
The moment Xiang Shaoyun arrived at the homeland of the ghostrunes, he was surrounded. However, none of the ghostrunes attacked. They merely glared at him and scolded him endlessly. He could not understand their language, but it was obvious enough that none of them welcomed him. Since the ghostrunes were not attacking, he did not attack either. He waited curiously to see what they were going to do.
"Human, you intrude upon our territory and kill our people. You think none of us can do anything to you?" an aged voice rang out in his head, arriving through soul transmission.
The ghostrunes then stepped aside, making way for an old and massive ghostrune king. Numerous ghostrunes cried out in surprise when they saw the newly arrived ghostrune king; their eyes immediately filled with reverence. This ghostrune king was none other than the patriarch of the ghostrunes.
"Of course not. Your people were the ones to attack first. I was merely forced to defend myself," said Xiang Shaoyun with a shrug.
"Hmph. There are no good people among the humans. I don't care why you're here, but leave right now. Otherwise, we will do everything we can to kill you," demanded the ghostrune patriarch coldly.
"Sure, I can leave. Give me a soul raising stone, and I will leave immediately," said Xiang Shaoyun.
"We don't have it. Leave," said the patriarch.
"Yes, I can leave, after you give me a soul raising stone," said Xiang Shaoyun.
"Since you want to die, I will grant your wish. Kids, slaughter him!" commanded the patriarch.
At his command, thousands of ghostrunes swarmed Xiang Shaoyun. They no longer feared death and seemed intent to kill Xiang Shaoyun regardless of the cost. Not even a King Realm expert could remain fearless in face of so many ghostrunes. At this moment, Devouring Ghost finally acted.
"Hmph. Just some puny ghostrunes dare to act recklessly before me? Die!" Devouring Ghost snorted coldly and sent a wave of incorporeal soul power gushing out of Xiang Shaoyun's head.