Chapter 302: Chapter 100: Heavenly Realm Closed (Seeking Monthly Votes)
ROAR—
An unwilling whine rose, and the massive body of the Tiankui collapsed heavily onto the ground.
The divine light in its giant eyes gradually disappeared.
When the Tiankui died, a creature with fleshy bumps on its back, resembling a puppy, scurried out of the cave. It went to the Tiankui’s side, emitting a sobbing wail.
"That’s the Tiankui whelp!" Xun Qu’s eyes lit up.
As he spoke, the Tiankui whelp, as if snapping out of its grief, bared its teeth and claws, charging at its enemy.
Small as it was, its movements were extremely swift. However, the Tiankui whelp was stunned to find that as it charged forward, not only did it fail to get closer to its enemy, but its body was also lifted off the ground.
Upon taking a closer look, a strange face appeared in its line of sight.
"Is this the Tiankui whelp?"
Shen Changqing held the creature’s somewhat fluffy neck. Compared to the adult Tiankui, which was several zhang long, the Tiankui whelp before his eyes was indeed remarkably small.
Its body wasn’t large, merely three to five inches at most.
In his previous life, it would have been comparable to the puppies of some large dog breeds.
Its fluffy appearance looked somewhat endearing. But the two fleshy bumps on its back seemed somewhat out of place.
At this moment, suddenly grabbed, the Tiankui whelp flailed its teeth and claws in the air, attempting to tear at the person before it.
Seeing its behavior, Shen Changqing flicked his finger, exerting a force that was neither too heavy nor too light, landing on the creature’s forehead.
POP!
The flick of the finger made the Tiankui whelp’s head spin slightly, and its bared teeth and clawing movements also stopped.
A moment later, it regained its senses from the dizziness.
Looking at Shen Changqing, the Tiankui whelp instinctively wanted to bare its teeth and claws again. But when the finger moved, it recalled the dull pain in its head and immediately became much more docile.
Seeing this, Shen Changqing nodded, quite satisfied.
"From now on, you’ll follow me. Since you are a Tiankui whelp, let’s call you ’Tiankui’!"
From their brief contact, Shen Changqing noted that the Tiankui whelp, though a Fierce Beast, possessed a certain amount of Spirit Intellect. While it couldn’t truly communicate, it could understand some intentions.
As for the name ’Tiankui,’ strictly speaking, the name ’Tiankui’ was also just a name assigned by the Demon-Subduing Division.
No one knew what name this Fierce Beast originally had. When the Demon-Subduing Division encountered this type of Fierce Beast, they named it ’Tiankui’ to make it easier to distinguish. Therefore, using the name ’Tiankui’ was much simpler.
On the other hand, Xun Qu had successfully extracted the Tiankui Inner Core.
He placed the blood-stained inner core in a jade box and then handed it to Shen Changqing.
"Elder Shen, this is the Tiankui Inner Core. Martial Artists who consume it can increase their Inner Strength and vitality. The effects are truly extraordinary. You can take it after you leave."
"Thank you!"
Shen Changqing pocketed the jade box.
At this time, when Xun Qu came close, the Tiankui whelp, which had been subdued by having its neck held, lunged with teeth and claws again, showing a strong impulse to rush over and tear at him.
Clearly, after the adult Tiankui was killed, Xun Qu was seen as the greatest enemy by the surviving Tiankui whelp.
"Be quiet!"
With a cold reprimand, the Tiankui immediately quieted down. However, its gaze on Xun Qu remained very ferocious. Yet, combined with its current tiny appearance, this ferocity somehow failed to inspire much fear.
Xun Qu said with a laugh, "Fierce Beasts are naturally bloodthirsty. This Tiankui whelp seems to hold a grudge against me. Elder Shen, if you really manage to raise it, you must keep a close eye on it, or I’ll be in trouble."
"Defender Xun is joking."
Shen Changqing slightly shook his head, then placed the Tiankui on his shoulder.
When it settled on his shoulder, the Tiankui immediately squatted there. Its short hind limbs firmly clung to the fabric of his clothes, stabilizing its body, while its front paws naturally hung over its chest, looking adorably clumsy.
Seeing this, Xun Qu’s smile faded somewhat, and his expression became grave.
"Although I said it in jest, I am serious. A Fierce Beast is, after all, a Fierce Beast. To truly tame it, one must employ certain methods. The Demon-Subduing Division has documents about taming Fierce Beasts that Elder Shen can refer to. After all, with the Heavenly Realm having been opened for so many years, some people have also left with Fierce Beasts. The recorded taming experiences aren’t entirely comprehensive, but they still have some use."
"I understand."
Shen Changqing nodded. Taming was definitely necessary.
As Xun Qu had said, a Fierce Beast was undoubtedly a Fierce Beast. Such creatures were bloodthirsty and difficult to train; a moment of inattention could lead to it turning on its master.
But if raised well, it could also be a good assistant.
Moreover, a Tiankui whelp with barely any meat on its bones, let alone an inner core, had nothing to offer even if it were slaughtered. Rather than wasting it, it seemed better to try raising it.
If it truly showed any intent to harm its master, Shen Changqing naturally wouldn’t show mercy.
Looking at the Tiankui’s corpse on the ground, Shen Changqing struck the ground several times, instantly blasting a large pit. Then, with a wave of his True Yuan, he swept the corpse into the pit. Immediately after, he covered it with soil.
The entire process took only a few breaths.
After finishing all this, he left with Xun Qu.
「Two hours later.」
Shimohe and Xuanye arrived, looking at the signs of battle on the ground and the piled-up earth.
A palm struck out.
The soil was thrust aside, revealing the buried corpse of the Tiankui.
"Too late!"
Shimohe’s indifferent face darkened slightly.
He had thought that with the Tiankui’s strength, no one in the Heavenly Realm would be able to kill it. Unexpectedly, someone actually had killed the Tiankui.
And—looking at the large hole in the Tiankui’s abdomen, Shimohe knew that its inner core had been taken.
"To be able to kill Tiankui, their strength is indeed not bad," he said, his eyes turning cold.
Originally, he had planned to go and kill the Tiankui, then take the inner core and consume it to restore his own strength. But what he hadn’t expected was that the Tiankui had been killed by someone else first, and the inner core had already been dug out.
In this way, Shimohe felt as if someone had gotten one over on him. This feeling made him somewhat uncomfortable.
Sensing that their Ancestor’s mood was not good, Xuanye whispered, "Ancestor, what should we do now?"
"Wait!"
"Wait?"
"There’s not much time left before the Heavenly Realm closes. It won’t be long before everyone leaves. The only things that can stay in the Heavenly Realm will be inanimate objects. No matter who got the Tiankui inner core, they won’t have time for Refinement. The moment it leaves the Heavenly Realm, it will all be mine."
Shimohe looked confident. Under the heavens, he didn’t believe anyone could withstand him. Even though his strength hadn’t fully recovered, he could still look down on everyone else. This was the confidence of a Great Grandmaster.
If it weren’t for the earlier sense that his lifespan was insufficient, Shimohe would not have entered a state of suspended animation. Re-emerging now and having consumed the Longevity Fruit, his life had already been extended. In a short time, there was no need to worry about his lifespan.
What remained was to restore his strength and, within his lifetime, break through his current limits and advance to another stage. By then, his lifespan would accordingly increase.
Hearing this, Xuanye softly chanted a Buddha’s name.
"Amitabha Buddha!"
Shimohe glanced at the Tiankui corpse on the ground, then turned his gaze to the other corpses.
Those corpses, at first glance, seemed similar to people. But upon closer inspection, one could see a great difference. On the corpses, he also sensed a power completely different from the True Qi of Martial Artists.
Xuanye explained promptly, "These are the Demonfolk who have sided with the Demon Evil. Nowadays, the largest gathering of Demonfolk is in the Eternal Alliance. If this Disciple is not mistaken, these Demonfolk should be from the Eternal Alliance."
"Demonfolk!"
"Indeed, Demonfolk!" Xuanye nodded.
"The Demon Evil possess a lifespan far longer than the Human Clan. All members of the Human Clan who have sided with Demon Evil can obtain a lifespan beyond their own. For over three hundred years since the appearance of Demon Evil, not a single Demonfolk who sided with them has died from their lifespan naturally running out. The Eternal Alliance claims that siding with Demon Evil grants immortality, but the exact details remain uncertain."
Hearing this, Shimohe’s eyes flickered with a cold light. "Immortality? I never thought there would be those in the world who dare to discuss immortality! Humph, should the opportunity arise, I would like to meet these Demon Evils and see if they truly can live forever."
Even Great Grandmasters, at best, live only slightly longer than ordinary people. To speak of immortality? That was wide off the mark.
Now he was being told that any member of the Human Clan who sided with Demon Evil qualified for immortality. To Shimohe, this was a provocation. He wouldn’t be content if he didn’t investigate this matter thoroughly.
He extended his hand, and blood from the Demonfolk corpses was drawn to him. The foul smell did not make Shimohe frown.
After observing the blood before him for a few moments, he suddenly released his control. The blood fell onto his palm, and white smoke rose from it.
After a while, the blood disappeared. Shimohe’s palm remained as before, without any change.
"The blood has a strong corrosive quality. Judging by their condition, they could no longer be considered Human Clan. Calling them monsters wouldn’t be an overstatement; the term Demonfolk actually seems to be a compliment for them."
He flicked his hand, his eyes full of disdain for the Demonfolk.
Their power was truly inferior. Perhaps to an average Martial Artist, the power of the Demonfolk was formidable. But to Shimohe, such power was far too weak.
His interest now lay only with the rumored Demon Evil, which intrigued him greatly. However, Shimohe did not rashly seek them out. After all, from Xuanye’s words, he understood that the strength of some Demon Evil was not as simple as that of a mere Grandmaster Peak. Without his strength restored, he should not recklessly seek danger.
「One hour later.」
The Heavenly Realm suddenly shook violently, as if it were an Earth Dragon’s Turnover.
At this moment, everyone existing within the Heavenly Realm felt it.
The Heavenly Realm! It was closing!