Chapter 185: Hand-to-Hand Combat Decides the Progeny

After an indeterminate amount of time, Qian Ye suddenly stirred, awakening from a profound silence. He slowly reined in the operation of the Yao Chapter. In the new origin vortex, a streak of crimson-golden light was slowly swirling in the center. Although the light was still faint, like a thin layer at the bottom of a large jar, it seemed that it would only take a month or two to fill the entire vortex.

Since entering the Great Maelstrom, the Song Ancestral Scroll had been running faster and faster. Qian Ye had felt a subtle assistance more than once during his cultivation, as if the entire world was slowly spinning. By leveraging this great momentum, the operation of the Xuan and Yao Chapters became easier, and Qian Ye gradually grew more proficient, feeling as though he could harness more of the world’s power.

But now was not the time to continue cultivating. Qian Ye checked the time; it was nearing midnight, the time to help the two women through the night. Even with the White Fruit, it was not quite enough, and they still needed his assistance to save as much energy as possible.

At this moment, Ji Tianqing and Li Kuanglan were still meditating, motionless. Qian Ye’s senses swept over them, detecting that their vitality was still strong, which put him at ease.

The time was not far from midnight. On the previous cold, silent nights, Li Kuanglan had already been unable to hold on by this time, requiring Qian Ye’s help. But tonight, she managed to last much longer. Ji Tianqing, with her myriad secret techniques, could remain unaffected even after drinking White Fruit wine, making her a monster that Qian Ye no longer bothered to understand.

Qian Ye waited patiently, and another quarter of an hour passed before the two women woke up from their meditation. They exchanged glances, and Ji Tianqing said, “Indeed, several secret techniques run much faster within the Great Maelstrom, and the original bottlenecks are no longer present. Practicing here is like elevating one’s natural talent to a higher level.”

Li Kuanglan added, “The secret techniques we practice have similar effects. It seems our families prepared for this day long ago.”

Ji Tianqing pondered, “But according to the records, the enhancement of cultivation speed within the Great Maelstrom shouldn’t be so significant. Could it be that the deeper one goes into the maelstrom, the more pronounced the effect?”

“Very likely. I remember that in the Imperial records, there were descriptions of the cold, silent nights, but the effect of slowed vitality was not as severe as it is now. So, we might be close to the center of the Great Maelstrom.”

The two women discussed for a while before each consumed a White Fruit. Under the protection of Qian Ye’s blood nucleus pulse, they safely passed through another cold night.

As dawn approached, Qian Ye packed up and led them away from the camp, venturing into the vast forest toward the native region where he had obtained the White Fruits. This new territory had larger native communities, and more importantly, a greater number of White Fruit wines. That day, Qian Ye had only managed to snatch a few White Fruits before being chased back to the camp. However, the most ferocious four-armed natives had already been slain by Qian Ye, leaving the stone fortress with only a large number of weaker natives, greatly reducing the difficulty of the assault.

After Qian Ye and the two women left, some shadowy figures appeared around the camp after half a day. A few two-armed natives, led by a four-armed female warrior, cautiously approached the camp.

The four-armed female warrior raised her head, sniffing the air, and suddenly became agitated, pointing at the camp atop the mountain and shouting loudly. The two-armed warriors immediately rushed to the top, finding the camp concealed by natural stone walls.

The four-armed woman circled the camp and suddenly picked up a piece of broken pottery, licking it fervently. This was a fragment of a jar used to store White Fruit wine, still with traces of the liquid. After licking the fragments clean, her breathing grew heavy, and she suddenly pinned down a two-armed male warrior, beginning to procreate right there.

As the sky darkened, a dark-colored sphere silently appeared in the air. With a thunderous crack, a figure shot out like a cannonball, wrapped in crimson lightning, and crashed toward the ground. Just before impact, several black tendrils shot from his body, pinning him in midair, slowing his descent dramatically.

He flipped over, laughed, and lightly tapped the ground, attempting a smooth landing.

However, the dark sphere trembled again, shooting out a small shadow that slammed into him, embedding him in the hard stone surface.

The small figure straightened out, revealing Bai Kongzhao. Her heavy armor was in tatters, with only a few pieces hanging on, but her white dress beneath was almost intact, with only a couple of small tears.

She got up, moved her body, and tried jumping a few times, then frowned, clearly unaccustomed to the weight. She tried jumping again, and suddenly, a voice from beneath her feet called out, “You’re about to stomp me to death!”

Bai Kongzhao jumped back, seeing that she had stepped on An Wen. “Are you okay?”

An Wen struggled to get up, his handsome face bruised and battered. “If you don’t crush me, you’ll trample me to death. How can I be okay?”

Bai Kongzhao shook her head. “You’re so strong; I can’t stomp you to death. Unless I use a knife, but I’d need to stab you several times, in vital spots, like—”

An Wen squirmed uncomfortably. “Stop! Are you really planning to stab me?”

Bai Kongzhao looked confused. “Didn’t you just say I was about to stomp you to death? That’s impossible, even with ten times the gravity. Unless… unless…”

“Stop!! I don’t want to die so soon.” An Wen quickly stopped her, relieved when she ceased thinking. “This world is so vibrant; I won’t rest until I’ve lived a thousand years. Don’t think about these things anymore.”

Bai Kongzhao protested, “I wasn’t thinking, but you asked, so I answered. To stomp you to death, it would take 420 times the gravity, and I’d have to stomp your vital spots. I’m too light, but if I gained some weight…”

An Wen, sweating, interjected, “Enough! I think you’re perfect as you are; you can’t gain any more weight!”

“Really?” Bai Kongzhao looked confused.

“Of course! You’re just right. Even a little more weight, and you wouldn’t look as good. As a future supreme warrior, you must look good. Look at those demon women, all fat. Human women are even worse. Who could compare to you?” An Wen blurted, then blushed with shame.

Bai Kongzhao was even more puzzled. “Looks are also combat power?”

“Of course!” An Wen replied firmly.

Bai Kongzhao nodded vigorously, and An Wen sighed in relief.

“What are they doing?” Bai Kongzhao pointed at the natives rolling around.

“Um…” An Wen didn’t know how to explain. For some reason, he didn’t want the girl to know too much, preferring her to remain innocent.

Despite his vast knowledge, An Wen struggled to explain, “They… are fighting!”

“Fighting?” The girl was even more confused. She understood fighting deeply, but these natives didn’t seem to be in a life-or-death battle.

“Yes, hand-to-hand combat,” An Wen admitted. The first lie was the hardest, but it flowed easier after that.

“Fights don’t always end in death. These… natives are only half-intelligent. They fight to compete for offspring,” An Wen elaborated smoothly.

The girl listened intently, eyes wide.

“This is a strange race; only the victors can have offspring. See, the one on the bottom is nearly defeated. When he loses, he must give the right to have offspring to the winner.”

The girl, somewhat understanding, said, “You know a lot.”

In a flash, An Wen felt the urge to howl. People feared him for his bloodline or status, but rarely acknowledged his knowledge. His pride was in his learning, his deep understanding of the Eternal Night history.

For the first time, someone praised his knowledge, albeit for a silly reason. But An Wen didn’t mind. Crafting such lies on the spot was no easy feat.

But letting the girl see the scene any longer was risky. An Wen coughed, “One of our biggest enemies in the Great Maelstrom is these natives. We must eliminate them. Now, while they’re preoccupied, is the perfect opportunity.”

With that, An Wen waved his hand, dispersing the faint black fog around them. This fog was the famous concealment ability of the demon race, and An Wen was especially adept. Though the fog was light, it perfectly hid their presence from the nearby natives.

As the fog dissipated, all the natives reacted, turning to look. Their keen senses were evident.

An Wen remained calm, drawing a compact origin gun. He fired several bolts of black energy, piercing the natives without hindrance. The struck natives fell to the ground, appearing asleep. Though unscarred, they were lifeless, turned to corpses.

After firing several shots, An Wen was visibly tired. He threw the bodies over the stone wall, panting. Only then did he notice the camp, pausing in alarm.

“What is it?” the girl asked.

“Someone was here, probably from the Empire. We need to be cautious.”

“But I don’t sense any danger.”

An Wen relaxed. “True, with you here, who could sneak up on us?”

He crouched, drawing an origin array, saying, “Let’s see who camped here. This array can perfectly recreate past origin force fluctuations…”

Before he finished, a vortex of origin force erupted from the array, shooting into the sky!

In an instant, the completed array was destroyed.