Chapter 117 - Salvation

Cale checked the next item; a single page from the book which a dragon itself had authored.

The topic was related to pills and their quality refinement. Information on how to exponentially increase the efficiency and potency of even the most common medicinal pills, transforming them into top-tier items worthy of auction houses and noble treasuries.

He spent half an hour in complete focus, absorbing every word, processing every technique described. The knowledge was dense, worthy of a dragon’s accumulated centuries of expertise.

Pills, he learned, formed through nine distinct folds - nine rotations, nine heating cycles, all from different angles and intensities. The more precise the application of heat and energy, the higher the final quality. Pills with visible spiritual veins were exponentially more beneficial than those without. And the dragon had even detailed methods for creating those veins in both the simplest and most complex pills alike.

Chants, handsigns, and arrays could all amplify the refinement process. The dragon had even provided a specific array design on the back of the page.

A generous gift from a master.

But the true treasure was the final technique described called True Flame Pill Refinement.

The dragon had specified this method was exclusively for those carrying dragon’s blood in their bodies, or those with a natural refining physique.

Cale possessed both luckily, his dragon bloodline was active, and his cultivation path naturally aligned with refinement and regeneration concepts.

He would definitely practice this method later.

*

CRASH! BOOM!

A deadly battle erupted on one of the highest mountain peaks.

Li Zhan and his childhood friend Ruo Wan barely leaped away as a massive four-horned minotaur towering approximately twelve meters in height, with burning red eyes and muscles like mountains of stone smashed the exact location where they’d been standing just seconds before.

BOOM!

The impact created a crater.

Ruo Wan screamed, "Ahh! These monsters are at the level of Emperor stage!"

Niva Xercs, who’d infiltrated this group by claiming to be from the "Sword Dao Sect’s branch sect," observed everything from a safe distance.

She and Ruo Wan were the only two females in this predominantly male expedition; the rest ranging from twenty to forty years old.

’It seems like this Sword Dao Sect is a very orthodox organization, and must be quite strong too,’ she thought, maintaining her cover.

Cale had simply told her what to say, and these people had accepted her story without question. If the Li clan is overpowered as Cale said, yet these people show her respect due to her sect affiliation, then this Sword Dao Sect must be one of the top organizations from where these people come from.

She mostly remained hidden in the back, watching. Why would she risk herself fighting for these people? She had simply told them she was injured from a week prior and couldn’t use most of her qi.

Li Zhan, like every arrogant young man trying to impress women, kept throwing himself into battle after battle.

"If it’s only an Emperor stage, just leave this one to me!" he shouted, his voice carrying bravado and testosterone in equal measure.

Ruo Wan immediately protested. "No wait! It’s definitely stronger! Why are you going in head-on!"

But he was already committed, charging forward with a battle cry.

Niva sighed internally. ’Is this guy dumber than he looks? There should be a limit to showing off for women.’

Still, he went and killed the minotaur, though it required use of various artifacts and a prolonged, exhausting battle that left him barely standing.

After four more days of constant monster hunting and tomb exploration, Niva was certain Li Zhan no longer harbored any suspicion toward her. The act was complete. The seduction stage could begin.

She informed everyone casually that she will be hunting monsters at night, then slipped away from the camping area. Finding a powerful beast nearby, she engaged it deliberately; not to kill it, but to lure it back toward the camp.

"Ahh!! Somebody help!" she screamed, her voice pitched to convey desperation and fear.

That was all it took.

Li Zhan’s eyes lit up with what he believed was opportunity. This was his chance to be the hero, to save a beautiful woman and earn her gratitude.

He didn’t notice Ruo Wan’s expression, she had that sharp glare of someone watching her childhood friend and supposed future fiancé chase after another woman.

Ruo Wan tsked. Their families were actively discussing their engagement. And here he was, trying to collect both women like trophies.

Shameless!

Li Zhan arrived at the right moment, dispatching the beast while Niva deliberately allowed herself to sustain visible injuries like shallow cuts and bruises across her arms that made the scene look realistic.

She collapsed into his arms, her entire body trembling.

"Sob... thank you... thank you so much young master Zhan," she whispered, her voice breaking with manufactured emotion, tears sliding down her cheeks on cue.

He placed his hands on her shoulders seeing the chance, his smile confident and warm.

"Compared to your safety, nothing much matters," he said with a gentle voice. "You should be careful in future. Maybe ask me to accompany you next time."

"I-I will do so," she replied sniffling.

He laughed, taking her hand and leading her back toward camp. She followed obediently, playing the role of the grateful, slightly helpless woman.

’Sigh, this guy,’ she thought, smirking inwardly. ’Just a few pretty girl words were enough. How will his family even survive with such an heir? He doesn’t even know he’s fallen into the worst trap.’

Morning came quickly.

And with it, Zenith Kastor was attacked for the fourth time in as many days.

The Wang clan kept sending groups after groups, wave after wave, each new team seemingly more powerful than the last. She somehow killed them all, but the constant assault was taking its toll on her stamina, her qi reserves, her will to continue fighting.

’Shit, seems I’ve killed quite a big fish,’ she realized grimly, her breathing heavy and labored. ’This is troublesome. I need to find people I know and team up with them.’

She understood the tactic now.

These weren’t the main force. These were low level groups, designed to wear her down, to damage her reserves and injure her body.

The real leader was holding back, waiting for the perfect moment to deliver the killing blow.

Wang Youhei was definitely superior to most Wang clan heirs in terms of tactical thinking.

"You’ve all gathered here surrounding me since morning, and even arranged strange traps and formations," Zenith spat, her sword held in one hand, the other arm’s forearm completely shattered—the bone splintered beyond natural healing. "Aren’t you ashamed to do all this to kill just one person?"

Two attackers rushed her simultaneously. She dodged one strike but couldn’t avoid the punch from behind, then that solid impact that sent her stumbling forward.

’Damn it, damn it, damn it!’ she cursed internally, her vision beginning to tunnel. ’I can’t die here because of some bozos!’

She closed her eyes, gathering her concentration.

"Evernight Sword - First Segment, First Move - Blood in the Air."

As her eyes opened, they blazed with such blinding intensity that the enemy in front of her couldn’t even look at her without pain. Using a swordsmanship technique forbidden to those without family approval; a technique she had technically violated by using. She executed a single, perfect slash through the air.

Lightning bolts descended from the heavens like divine punishment, ten consecutive strikes that incinerated more than half the surrounding enemies instantly.

But her body immediately paid the price. The technique was beyond her current limits, exactly why she hadn’t been approved to use it.

The backlash burned through her meridians, shattering her qi circulation.

She could barely stand.

They didn’t retreat. They didn’t even hesitate.

"Fucking hell!" she gasped, her breath coming in ragged, exhausted heaves.

Wang Youhei saw the opening and took it.

He leaped forward attacking her, Zenith barely managed to parry the strike, but the force behind it sent her careening backward, her feet scraping against stone as she desperately tried to maintain balance.

He pressed the advantage, continuing his assault, and suddenly jumped directly onto her—his body weight and momentum combined to deliver a devastating kick directly to her abdomen.

"KUARGH!!!" she screamed, blood spraying from her lips as the impact crushed internal organs.

She hit the ground hard, gasping for air that wouldn’t come.

Through her pain, she tried to speak, her voice raw.

"Y-you... from the looks of it, you are from that guy’s family too... fuck! Don’t you know how that man was? And I killed him, so what!"

Wang Youhei’s expression transformed into something almost amused. His laughter echoed across the battlefield.

"Hehe, you think I care about that man?" he said, shaking his head. "Don’t you worry. I’m just doing this to gain a favorable position in the family. Your sacrifice won’t be in vain. They will see me in a new light."

Their fight continued mercilessly, and Zenith was on the losing side from the very beginning. Her injuries accumulated with cuts across every exposed surface, her waist looking almost chewed off by a particularly vicious bite from a beast summoned by one of his subordinates.

Wang Youhei stood over her battered body, his breathing only slightly elevated.

He hadn’t even likely unlocked his beast transformation at the Emperor stage. Not everyone had the luck to get one, it was something which came out of understanding and comprehension. Things like bloodline and such would only complement it.

"Sigh, looks like you really have no companions to come save you," he observed, "Quite a pitiful girl. But now that I look at you... I can understand why that brother of mine coveted your body."

He smiled, an expression of arrogance and dominance.

"So, I will let you live. Become my slave!"

Zenith gathered what remained of her strength and spat, the blood from her mouth spattering across the ground.

"Oh? Is that so?" Wang Youhei’s expression hardened instantly. "Then die."

He raised his sword, preparing to deliver the final strike, to end this troublesome woman once and for all—

But a voice cut through the moment like a blade through silk.

"Hmm? Who said she has no subordinates?"