Chapter 500 - 429: Grand Territory, Dominator, Spirit Control Realm

Yes, the range of a large territory could be the size of a city, or even larger—spanning dozens of miles!

In contrast, Xiong Batian’s previous small territory was only the size of a small county town—perhaps a few miles across.

Of course, those who reached the stage of Opening Spirit Veins could possess a territory spanning several miles. Their range of activity was larger, their power was greater, and their lands teemed with life.

Now, they had set foot in a second large territory and were about to encounter their first Dominator. Theoretically, a Dominator would try to expel any unfamiliar, powerful presence it sensed, so a meeting was inevitable.

"My Lord, our Dominator is the Wild Ape Dominator..."

The rabbit, held aloft, bared its teeth and let out a strange squeal. It struggled desperately, begging Jiang Qiu to spare its life, but at the same time, it didn’t forget to satisfy his demand, spilling everything it knew about the Dominator.

In reality, however, it was just a small rabbit that had undergone a Spiritual Awakening. How could it possibly know any useful information? It had never even seen the Wild Ape Dominator before; everything it said was just hearsay.

This was perfectly normal. A large territory was so vast, how could just any creature lay eyes on the Dominator? Only those at the Opening Spirit Veins level were required to know what the Dominator looked like—because they had all been beaten up by it.

Furthermore, even minor lords at the Opening Spirit Veins level weren’t seen by every creature with Spiritual Awakening in their territory. In such a large area, a Great Demon at the Opening Spirit Veins level didn’t patrol everywhere.

So, the rabbit didn’t know much at all. Jiang Qiu casually tossed it aside—he didn’t kill it, mainly because it wasn’t very nutritious. It was just a rabbit with a Spiritual Awakening, unable to even sense the Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm. Just ordinary meat.

"Wild Ape Dominator," Jiang Qiu murmured. "Sounds pretty impressive."

It wasn’t that he thought the Dominator was truly powerful, but the name itself was quite wild, suggesting a ruthless character.

"My Lord, are you going to slaughter this territory’s Dominator?"

Xiong Batian asked cautiously, having settled down beside him.

He had been traveling with Jiang Qiu for several days and had come to know the Celestial Spirit’s methods. He killed and ate as he went. Whenever he got hungry, he would kill and eat the local Great Demon at the Opening Spirit Veins level. If the previous territory’s Dominator hadn’t already been gone, he suspected Jiang Qiu would have started his massacre at the Dominator Level and worked his way up.

But it was impossible for there to be no Dominator Level beings. And sure enough, now that they were in a new, large territory, there was a Dominator called the Wild Ape.

And from the looks of it, Jiang Qiu was very interested in this Dominator—very interested in eating it!

Indeed, who wouldn’t be interested? Xiong Batian was also extremely interested in a Dominator. After all, he had once been just a weak creature with a Spiritual Awakening, fundamentally unqualified to even glimpse the Dominator of his time.

It was only by a stroke of luck that he had seen one at all. A Demon from the outside had come to hunt that Dominator, and a great battle ensued. The commotion was just a *little* loud, and he had managed to catch a glimpse from a great distance.

Ever since, he had held the existence of Dominators in profound awe. He never dared to speak of them lightly and had no desire to ever see one, terrified he’d be treated as a snack and casually slaughtered.

But now, following alongside Jiang Qiu, he felt an inexplicable sense of security, with no sense of danger at all. He had even personally eaten the leg of a Great Demon at the Opening Spirit Veins level, and his confidence had skyrocketed.

Besides, when had Jiang Qiu ever slaughtered a Great Demon at the Opening Spirit Veins level and *not* given him a leg? As a result, he was eagerly anticipating Jiang Qiu’s encounter with the Dominator. He was even a little impatient!

As for worrying that Jiang Qiu couldn’t kill the Dominator?

’Of course he can kill it. Even that Fierce Tiger Great Demon from before, a creature at the late-stage of Spiritual Vein Opening, could exchange a blow or two with a Dominator Level being. Yet Jiang Qiu insta-killed it with a single punch. That alone showed how vast the difference in power was.’

’So, as long as Jiang Qiu lands one punch on a Dominator Level expert, even if it’s not a guaranteed kill, it’ll definitely leave them on their last breath!’

’The real worry is that the Dominator Level expert might be too fast. If it escapes, then we won’t get to eat anything.’

To be fair, even though Xiong Batian’s current strength was close to the late-stage of Spiritual Vein Opening, his speed was at best equivalent to the peak of Spiritual Vein Opening. He was one of those who had vaguely figured out how to use the Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm, applying it to his four legs to run as if treading on the wind.

However, such speed was nothing compared to a Dominator Level being. They had clearly transformed, reaching a new plane—the Spirit Control Realm!

How could a mere expert at the Opening Spirit Veins level like himself ever presume to fathom what it took to ascend to such a Realm?

Without immense speed and power, how could those Dominators single-handedly suppress such vast territories and keep all the Great Demons at the Opening Spirit Veins level in line?

Therefore, even though Xiong Batian had inherited some of the giant wolf’s Talent, he didn’t dare compare his speed to a Dominator Level expert. This also meant he wouldn’t be able to carry Jiang Qiu in pursuit of one if it tried to flee.

But what about Jiang Qiu’s own speed?

’Xiong Batian had never seen the Celestial Spirit run at full speed. In fact, he had never seen him run at all. Jiang Qiu only occasionally walked around, and ever since taking me as a mount, he has barely even touched the ground.’

’So, subconsciously, I feel that Jiang Qiu’s own speed might not actually be that fast.’

’Mainly, I’ve truly never seen Jiang Qiu run. His legs are still very short, and he’s basically in the state of a newborn, only a few days old. How could he possibly run fast?’

It was hard to say if it was a matter of limited perspective, but in any case, Xiong Batian’s understanding of the Celestial Spirit was always contradictory and abstract. On one hand, he felt the Celestial Spirit possessed innate divine power, but on the other, he subconsciously treated him like a creature of the First Celestial Realm—a newborn who couldn’t run.

Jiang Qiu had no idea what he was thinking. He just silently urged him to continue forward, heading straight for the depths of the large territory. "Let’s go. We’ll go meet this territory’s Dominator. Let me see for myself the power of the Spirit Control Realm Level."

The Spirit Control Realm was undoubtedly a powerful Realm. It represented the transformation from simply absorbing the Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm to actively utilizing the Spirit Charm—a symbol of reaching a higher plane of existence, one that could practically alter a being’s fundamental characteristics.

’Even in my current state, I technically haven’t even achieved Spiritual Vein Opening. To challenge the Spirit Control Realm? That would mean leaping across two High Realms.’

’All I can say is, the advantage of my bloodline is paramount. Otherwise, if I really encountered someone who truly understood the Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm—the kind of being who could use Secret Techniques—I might not be able to win.’

’Fortunately, this world seems quite primitive. These creatures have to figure out how to absorb the Heaven and Earth Spirit Charm and open their Spirit Veins all by themselves. For them to research and develop Secret Techniques would probably take tens of thousands of years.’

’Researching Secret Techniques is a slow process. Without tens of thousands of years of trial and error, any techniques they created would surely be tactics that would inflict a thousand wounds on the enemy at the cost of eight hundred to oneself. It would be better not to use them at all.’

Therefore, Jiang Qiu wasn’t actually that worried about encountering some incredibly formidable Dominator. He simply hoped to see for himself just how powerful the Spirit Control Realm of this world truly was.

It would also serve as a good benchmark for just how powerful that distant Taihu Python really was.

According to the giant wolf’s description back then, the Tai Python could devour several hundred Dominators in a single gulp. A single turn of its body could raise thousand-foot waves. The vast Tai Lake seemed to split heaven and earth, its boundless surface stretching out from that divide.

The scene it conjured was simply immense, giving one the feeling of looking out at an ocean. And yet, it was still named Tai Lake, much like the Primitive Ancient Forest. That forest also seemed boundless, without even a single mountain in sight, yet it was called merely a forest.

’Hopefully, the Wild Ape Dominator can provide me with more information about the Tai Python,’ Jiang Qiu thought. ’And just how far is it from here to Tai Lake?’

Just as he was pondering this, a deep rumbling sound suddenly echoed. The ground itself seemed to tremble. In the distance, the hundred-meter-tall trees of the ancient forest shivered, and leaves rustled down like a heavy downpour from the sky.

ROAR—

AWOO—

All sorts of creatures fled in a panic, seemingly terrified of a being of boundless horror. Even the Flying Demon Clan in the thousand-foot-high canopies were startled from their branches and took flight!