In the sea, that enigmatic being seemed somewhat surprised, momentarily losing its response. After a brief silence, seven or eight void origin forces suddenly appeared around Qian Ye, much stronger than before, staunchly resisting the ocean vortex and then pulling at Dongyue.
This sudden attack made Dongyue tremble, almost deviating from its original course. However, a flash of dark golden blood energy appeared around Qian Ye, and his hands instantly burst with immense power, forcefully pressing down on Dongyue and withstanding this assault.
The mysterious entity, naturally, would not give up. In an instant, nearly ten more void origin forces were generated, heading straight for Qian Ye. But Qian Ye’s ocean vortex suddenly vanished, leaving those void origin forces, brimming with surging power, to hit nothing. Instantly, they were disrupted and scattered in all directions.
In this round of confrontation, Qian Ye emerged victorious.
Both sides continued to clash relentlessly, with Qian Ye’s domain force appearing and disappearing unpredictably, wielded with incredible skill. At critical moments, he would activate his blood energy, significantly boosting his strength to suppress the pull of the void origin forces. For a while, the mysterious entity was unable to subdue Qian Ye.
After a short while, Qian Ye delivered the final blow, completing the wooden sculpture!
This was the first victory Qian Ye had won over two nights. Gazing at the lifelike small statue of Little Zhuji in his hand, Qian Ye let out a long sigh, drenched in sweat. Completing this sculpture was no less strenuous than a fierce battle against a mortal enemy. Except for not using the Primordial Gun, he had shown his full hand, holding nothing back.
Even so, it was a narrow win, with several close calls. If not for the significant boost to his body from the activated dark golden blood energy, which allowed him to powerfully suppress the pull of the void origin forces, Qian Ye would have lost this round.
Qian Ye carefully placed the completed sculpture aside, also taking the opportunity to rest and reflect on the recent engagement.
Although the mysterious being used a lot of void origin forces, they were all controlled to be just slightly above Qian Ye’s combat level. It could be said that it did not overpower him but rather fought fairly on equal terms. Although Qian Ye won this round, it was a hard-won victory with a touch of luck. If another match were to begin, Qian Ye would likely lose.
In terms of combat skills, the mysterious entity had reached a level of effortless mastery, surpassing even Zhao Jundu. Such a level was unprecedented for Qian Ye, and perhaps only Zhang Boqian or Lin Xitang among those he knew could reach such a realm.
Winning this round, the Black Forest that had extended out retreated, even ceding some of its original land as a reward. However, a subtle urging sensation came, indicating that Qian Ye should continue the battle.
Qian Ye slowly picked up a new piece of wood, starting a new game.
As expected, he lost this round, and the next two rounds as well. After three rounds, Qian Ye’s face was flushed with an unnatural redness, and his blood core was pulsating violently. He felt suffocated and utterly drained, barely able to lift Dongyue.
After these three rounds, Qian Ye had exhausted both his origin and blood energies, with no strength left to continue. The previous night, Qian Ye had not used his origin and blood powers, relying solely on combat techniques, so he could have fought indefinitely. But tonight was a true ordeal, and by midnight, Qian Ye was completely spent.
Qian Ye turned to see the Black Forest advancing layer by layer, consuming most of the land. Clenching his teeth, he tried to hasten his blood core’s pulse, picking up another piece of wood to start a new game.
However, the mysterious entity had already sensed Qian Ye’s fatigue and sent a signal to stop, rolling away and returning to the deep sea.
Qian Ye exhaled deeply, feeling exhausted to the point of death. Looking around, he saw that although the Black Forest had occupied a large area, the newly conquered land was filled with young saplings, none of which grew more than a meter high.
Qian Ye understood that the mysterious entity was showing mercy, for now. If he lost again tomorrow, these saplings would grow into tall trees, and his new home would be overtaken by the Black Forest.
What was the true purpose of the mysterious entity? Qian Ye pondered this question repeatedly but found no answer.
The next morning, when Nighteye and the elder stepped out of the courtyard, they were startled by the abruptly expanded Black Forest. However, after understanding the situation, Nighteye didn’t show much concern, merely saying, “At worst, we can move to the town.”
Cui Yuanhai shook his head, gravely stating, “I fear it won’t be that simple. According to Qian Ye’s description, even if we hide in the town, that thing will still find us.”
“Then, we just need to win, right?” Zhuji said.
Qian Ye patted her head, smiling, “You’re right, we just need to win.”
Night finally fell, and Qian Ye heard the summons, heading to the seaside to begin the night’s battle.
Before long, the moon rose high, and it was past midnight. Qian Ye stood, leaning on his sword, drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, even more exhausted than the previous night. But on a nearby rock, two complete wooden sculptures were placed.
In half a night, Qian Ye had fought five rounds, winning two. The hardships involved were too numerous to mention.
Each time he won, Qian Ye received significantly more rewards, so this night the Black Forest retreated, giving back a portion of the seized land.
When the mysterious entity retreated, a thought occurred to Qian Ye. With the mysterious entity’s presence, there were no dangerous beasts within a hundred li. And to ensure the next night’s battle, the entity would not allow anyone to interfere with Qian Ye. This was the safest time, perfect for cultivation.
Qian Ye had not properly cultivated Dawn Origin Force in a long time, and now, with the ideal environment, he found a rock by the sea, sat down, and began to slowly run the Supreme Martial Art.
As the Supreme Martial Art began, a void origin force vortex gradually formed around Qian Ye. However, the moment the vortex formed, its diameter exceeded a hundred meters, much larger than when he practiced in Evernight, and it continued to expand.
The larger the range of the void origin force vortex, the stronger its pull on the void origin force, and the faster it absorbed. Qian Ye had never handled such a massive vortex before, and sensing the danger, he immediately restrained the origin force, preventing further expansion.
At that moment, a series of sharp cracking sounds echoed around, like teacups breaking. In an instant, several void fissures appeared around Qian Ye, spewing out surging, violent void origin force!
Qian Ye discovered that the neutral space structure was highly unstable, easily cracked by the pressure from the origin force vortex, thus releasing void origin force. Several void fissures simultaneously expelled origin force, quickly forming a small origin force storm around Qian Ye. He struggled to control the vortex; if it went out of control, the consequences would be dire. Even at its current size, the pressure made Qian Ye feel as if he was carrying a mountain, his spine crackling under the strain.
If not for Qian Ye’s physical strength, which rivaled that of ancient blood clans, he would not have withstood such immense pressure. Any other human, regardless of who, would have been flattened into a pulp by this pressure if they hadn’t crossed the threshold of a divine general.
Qian Ye now realized that physical strength was the limiting factor for the Supreme Martial Art.
The massive, over-hundred-meter void origin force vortex absorbed void origin force at an unprecedented rate. In just an hour, Qian Ye’s body was brimming with void origin force, almost overflowing. In Evernight, it would take several days to fully absorb the same amount of origin force.
Void origin force was extremely violent, and even with Qian Ye’s robust constitution, he dared not absorb too much. He gradually ceased the Supreme Martial Art. Next, he would use the Shining Chapter of the Song Clan’s Ancient Scroll to refine the void origin force, converting it into Dawn Origin Force.
Refining void origin force was a slow process, requiring patience. Unaware of the passage of time, he noticed the sky turning light, the dawn casting a golden hue over the East Sea, waves like specks of gold rushing toward the shore.
At this moment, the two origin force vortices within Qian Ye were filled with golden origin force, sparkling like crushed gold, swirling around the vortex centers, mirroring the sea outside. The two vortices were already full, yet the converted origin force continued to flow in. A third vortex faintly appeared, beginning to absorb the stray origin force.
The formation of the third vortex was almost inevitable. With a few more days of refining the void origin force, the third vortex would officially solidify.
Qian Ye stopped the Shining Chapter, slowly opening his eyes. Facing the sea, bathed in the dawn, he felt a sudden sense of clarity, the accumulated pressure of many days dissipating. Unconsciously, he exhaled a breath, and a low, rumbling sound echoed.
Qian Ye got up, heading back to the courtyard, a new day beginning.
A shadow flashed in the Black Forest, as if someone had seen Qian Ye and immediately hid. Qian Ye was slightly surprised; it was rare for native species to be active during the day, especially so close to the courtyard. But now, with Nighteye nearly fully recovered and Little Zhuji present, even if Qian Ye was not around, any native raiders would suffer a great loss.
Glancing across, Qian Ye noticed the view beyond the river was much clearer, the persistent fog having dissipated, revealing vast stretches of land.
Could it be that after defeating the mysterious entity, the fog would also recede? If so, it was indeed good news.
Back in the courtyard, Qian Ye began preparing ingredients for breakfast.
The town had been thoroughly cleaned, the streets spotless, the usual trash nowhere to be seen. Iron Bear and his men were waiting at the gate.
The roar of engines filled the air as a floating boat descended outside the town. The boat was adorned with the fangs of fierce beasts, looking menacing. On its hull, a deep blue wolf head emblem, with two dripping fangs, stood out prominently.
Seeing the wolf head, even Iron Bear’s eyes betrayed a hint of fear—it was the Wolf King’s mark. Anyone using the Wolf King’s floating boat was naturally closely associated with the Wolf King.
The door of the floating boat was kicked open, and a tall, thin, and strangely beautiful young man stepped out, wearing two gold rings through his nostrils, with gems gleaming brightly. He glanced around and muttered, “What a lousy place!” Then, looking at Iron Bear, he added, “And a bunch of lousy people.”
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