Qian Ye was not within Nan Qing City but had come to the wilderness. The wasteland was still riddled with cracks and depressions, all of which served as natural hiding spots. With Little Zhu Ji guarding him, Qian Ye did not worry about disturbances. As long as the little one released a bit of its aura, all the ferocious beasts within dozens of miles would flee without a trace.
After several intense battles, Qian Ye’s blood vitality cultivation had advanced rapidly. His body was now transforming towards a fire-forged form, and by the standards of the ancient blood race, he had officially ascended to the rank of a Caldwell Earl. In terms of advancement, the dark gold blood vitality encountered no bottlenecks at this stage; with sufficient amounts of essence blood, breaking through one barrier after another became almost effortless.
In the neutral zone, Qian Ye had already experienced multiple fierce battles. The result of unleashing his full power was an abundance of essence blood that could nearly burst him. However, with the Black Book capable of storing essence blood, and the blood core converting it into golden flame blood through combustion, even more essence blood was assimilated into Qian Ye’s strength, no longer constrained by the speed of the Profound Chapter’s transformation.
Yet, the Dawnforce had become a shortcoming. While the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue absorbed void force at an unmatched rate, the process of converting it into Dawn Enlightenment still required the meticulous efforts of the Radiant Chapter. The Song Ancient Scroll seemed to operate at its own rhythm, never too fast or too slow, making it difficult to accelerate. At the current rate, it would take approximately several months to generate a new force vortex.
This was already an extremely impressive cultivation speed, but compared to the cultivation on the side of Evernight, it was agonizingly slow.
During these rare few days of leisure, Qian Ye decided to focus on cultivating his Dawnforce. Perhaps after another month of arduous effort, the fourth force vortex would be formed. At that point, with thirteenth-level Dawnforce, possessing top-tier properties of Dawn Enlightenment, Qian Ye would be a formidable force wherever he went.
After ensuring there were no dangers around, Qian Ye sat down quietly and began to circulate the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue.
As the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue activated, Qian Ye’s three force vortices generated an invisible gravitational pull, causing the surrounding force to slowly rotate, forming a larger vortex. As the gravity intensified, the vortex grew larger and more evident. When it reached a critical point, Qian Ye sensed the presence of void force.
The feeling was extraordinary. The once intangible and formless space was becoming tangible, and as the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue operated, it became increasingly apparent.
The vortex had now expanded to a hundred meters, with the force within it rotating around Qian Ye, converging into the core and being absorbed by his body. A wider range of force was also drawn in, entering the vortex.
Strands of void force were also attracted, gradually being absorbed by Qian Ye.
At this moment, Qian Ye’s body was under considerable pressure, which would have crushed a regular war general into a pulp. In the past, this was the limit, and Qian Ye would not further activate the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue.
But today was different. With the elevation of his blood vitality, Qian Ye’s physical strength had reached new heights, and the pressure he once found extreme was now manageable.
A thought struck Qian Ye, recalling the ingenious arrangements made by Duke Zhi Ji in the Earth Dragon’s nest. He was now faintly touching the mysteries of space through the power of the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue.
In Qian Ye’s perception, the surrounding space was like a thin, brittle piece of glass, seemingly ready to shatter with a little force.
After assessing the burden on his body, Qian Ye made up his mind, accelerating the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue. The gravitational pull grew stronger, and finally, a crisp sound resonated through the void as the fragile space was torn apart!
In an instant, several shifting black bands appeared in the sky above the wasteland, causing everything they passed over to vanish. An immense torrent of void force poured down, forming a massive whirlwind that roared into the ground, creating a spectacular sight!
The pressure on Qian Ye instantly doubled, reaching a level that even his ancient blood race body struggled to bear. His bones crackled, and fine fissures rapidly appeared on his skin.
Gritting his teeth, Qian Ye refused to stop the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue. The opportunity to clearly perceive the rupture of the spatial structure and the flow of void force was invaluable, and he was determined not to miss it. This was akin to a premature experience of the Heavenly King realm, and Qian Ye was willing to endure severe injuries rather than cease. Who knew when such a chance would arise again?
The anomalies on the plain caught the attention of passing hunters and adventurers. Many stopped their vehicles, gazing at the terrifying force storm in the distance, unsure whether to approach. Some seasoned mercenaries quickly turned away, deeming whatever caused such a storm to be beyond their capabilities.
However, some younger, bolder adventurers took a different view. They turned their vehicles and rushed toward the storm. In the neutral zone, tales of overnight riches abounded, and the truth of these stories mattered little. In this uncertain world, there was no shortage of those willing to risk their lives, thinking that a lucky break might come their way.
Many adventurers, driven by this mindset, braved the sandstorms and the risk of being sliced by spatial rifts, crawling toward the storm’s center.
The force storm came and went swiftly.
When Qian Ye emerged from the underground, he was met by a group of bloodshot-eyed adventurers.
Startled, Qian Ye looked around. Apart from the sandy wasteland, there was nothing that could attract so many people. How did so many adventurers suddenly gather here?
Seeing no imminent conflict, Qian Ye prepared to leave. Suddenly, someone shouted, “He must have the treasure!”
The group’s eyes narrowed, noting that the void storm ceased just as Qian Ye appeared, and right at the storm’s center. It seemed too coincidental.
Someone demanded, “Boy, hand over the treasure and we’ll spare your life. Maybe we’ll even share it with you.”
Another voice snarled, “Enough talk. Kill him first, and then we’ll search for the treasure.”
“Agreed,” chimed in several others.
In the Empire, most adventurers and hunters adhered to certain principles, especially hunters who primarily existed to eliminate the dark races and protect human territory. They moved through darkness, yet carried light in their hearts, like Erye and Yu Yingnan.
However, in the lawless and chaotic neutral zone, the behavior of adventurers, mercenaries, and hunters was much the same. They were like packs of scavenging hyenas, ready to be brutally ruthless for a scrap of food.
As the leading adventurers charged, Qian Ye’s gaze turned cold. Without even unsheathing Dongyue, he struck with his fists. Several muffled thuds later, those hit by Qian Ye stood dazed, collapsing slowly into corpses.
The slower adventurers halted in shock, realizing they faced an opponent they could not defeat. Some hesitated, while others turned to flee.
These adventurers were weak, most unable to join even large mercenary groups. Facing such opponents, Qian Ye had little interest in pursuit. But one person he would not let go.
Qian Ye drew his Bloody Mandala, aimed, and fired. An adventurer fell, struggling to turn and look at Qian Ye with eyes full of fear and disbelief.
Qian Ye remained expressionless as the Bloody Mandala roared again, blowing the adventurer’s head to pieces.
This adventurer was the one who had shouted, “He must have the treasure.” After stirring the crowd, he had hung back, hoping to assess Qian Ye’s strength before acting, perhaps out of habit or malice.
Qian Ye could let others go, but he would not forgive such schemers.
Seeing Qian Ye kill one, the adventurers panicked and fled, dispersing into the vast wilderness.
“Let’s go,” Qian Ye said, picking up Little Zhu Ji and heading toward Nan Qing City.
These wasteland hyenas would never be fully exterminated.
Back in Nan Qing City, Qian Ye stayed at the Gao Hu people’s base, remaining indoors, silently cultivating the Radiant Chapter and refining the force.
After cracking the void with the Tai Xuan Bingfa Jue, Qian Ye had absorbed a substantial amount of force in a short time, more than his three vortices could hold. The task now was to convert it into Dawn Enlightenment force using the Radiant Chapter.
This step could not be rushed, and with a few days of waiting for the goods and the Gao Hu people guarding outside, Qian Ye was content to cultivate in peace.
Little Zhu Ji spent the days sleeping beside Qian Ye, her sleep deep and uninterrupted. As Qian Ye practiced for several days, she slept for several days as well.
After five days of cultivation, Qing Yue knocked on the door and said, “It’s time to go and pick up the goods.”
“Alright,” Qian Ye replied, picking up the sleeping Little Zhu Ji and stepping out of the room.
Qing Yue lowered her voice, “There are more suspicious people around, watching us. They don’t seem to be from the neutral zone; I think they might be from the Empire.”
“The Empire?” Qian Ye’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Our collection might be troublesome,” Qing Yue warned.
Qian Ye smiled, “As long as they deliver the goods to the designated location, there won’t be any trouble. Don’t forget, we have the Valhalla.”
Qing Yue felt reassured.
Within Nan Qing City, a man hurried into the Empire’s secret military base and reported to General Lu Sanbei, “General, they just left. Judging by the direction, they’re going to pick up the goods.”
A glint of killing intent flashed in Lu Sanbei’s eyes. “Good, we’ve been waiting for this! Let’s move out and set up an ambush. This time, we will turn Qian Ye into a desiccated corpse in the void!”
The collection point was near a small, unremarkable town by the Eastern Sea. The town, with a population of only a few hundred, was little more than a village by Imperial standards.
At that moment, dozens of cargo trucks were driving through the town toward an open field outside. There, an old freight airship was parked, its massive propellers rusted, and its engine belching steam and black smoke. Even by the standards of the neutral zone, this airship was in poor condition.
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