Translator: CinderTL
Li Chunjun sheathed the Scarlet Sky Sword and grasped the extraordinary "crystal" from the Apex Divine Spirit in his hand.
Hearing the mix of shock and anger in True Lord Yuanhai's long cry, he couldn't help but give him a strange glance.
Fortunately, True Lord Yuanhai was only grazed by the residual effects of the Icy Soul Divine Light. Although affected, he quickly recovered, and his cry abruptly ceased halfway as he assessed the situation.
However, after stopping his exclamation, his pupils suddenly contracted sharply.
Immediately after, he turned a look of utter astonishment toward Li Chunjun, who was tallying the spoils.
When the Apex Divine Spirit suddenly unleashed its true power earlier, he had already sensed that something was terribly wrong.
Little did he expect that this Apex Divine Spirit not only concealed its true cultivation but was also an "Envoy"-level Divine Spirit!
A Divine Spirit Envoy!
The Divine Race Affiliates, Divine Spirits, and Demigods, having offered their souls to their deities, lost their free will and could hardly exhibit any extraordinary talents.
Thus, whether they were Affiliates or Divine Spirits, matching the Golden Core or late Nascent Soul stage was their limit.
However, among the Divine Spirits and Demigods, a few who had achieved great merits would be granted the opportunity to meet their deities, receiving divine blessings and being bestowed with more powerful Divine Arts and treasures than the conventional ones.
In a way, they were equivalent to direct disciples of Void Refining masters!
Or perhaps equal to late Nascent Soul Great True Lords who had cultivated superior or even top-tier Mystical Powers.
Such "Envoys," though varying in strength, each carried a weight comparable to the "Prodigies" among the human race.
And now...
Such a "Divine Spirit Envoy," comparable to a human "Prodigy," had been decisively slain by this Li Chunjun, True Lord Li!? This...
What level of strength was this!? Beyond a Great True Lord!?
Or was he a "Prodigy"-level genius of the human race at the Nascent Soul stage!? In the realm-level tentacle wars, it was already a stretch for the human side to have two or three "Prodigy"-level geniuses participating, yet they had the incredible fortune to encounter one!?
If they could follow such a "Prodigy"-level genius into battle, as long as they didn't face a legion of Divine Spirits numbering in the hundreds, they could sweep across continents with an invincible momentum on this battlefield.
"Thank you, Sword Prodigy Li, for saving my life. Yuan Hai is willing to follow your command, going through fire and water without hesitation," True Lord Yuanhai promptly stepped forward, bowing with clasped hands.
True Lord Zhi Yuan, who had hurried over, also seized the moment to pay his respects: "I am willing to serve Sword Prodigy Li with all my might!"
His heart was filled with both excitement and trepidation.
A Sword Prodigy! He had thought it was already a stroke of luck to follow a Great True Lord, but to encounter a Nascent Soul Sword Master! What an opportunity!? However...
As an elderly and waning early Nascent Soul True Lord, he wondered if Sword Prodigy Li would even consider him.
But Li Chunjun didn't dwell on it.
In fact, he didn't even react to True Lord Yuanhai suddenly addressing him as "Sword Prodigy Li."
After all, in the Blue Star Minor Realm, people from the Taixu Sword Sect and other factions almost always called him that.
He had grown accustomed to it and found nothing unusual.
So much so that he even overlooked the fact that in the Blue Star Minor Realm, others referred to "Sword Prodigy" as the Sword Prodigy of the Core Formation stage.
But now, it was tacitly understood as the Nascent Soul Sword Master.
The comparison between the two was akin to the top student in a prestigious high school versus the top student in a prestigious university. Both were number one, but their significance was entirely different.
"It's mutual assistance. Let's quickly join forces with True Lord Zhao and complete the eradication of all the Divine Spirits on this continent!" Li Chunjun declared.
"Yes!" the two True Lords responded firmly.
"With the Sword Prodigy taking action, the remaining thirty or so Divine Spirits, including those two Apex Divine Spirits, are already trapped like turtles in a jar!" True Lord Yuanhai couldn't help but add.
"Divine Spirits are Believers of the Evil God, and their methods are endless. Caution is absolutely necessary," Li Chunjun reminded.
"The Sword Prodigy's lesson is well taken! We will remain fully alert!" True Lord Yuanhai and True Lord Zhi Yuan quickly replied.
Li Chunjun tacitly accepted the title of "Sword Prodigy," and the confidence in his tone filled the two True Lords with both surprise and delight.
On the Two Realms Mountain Battlefield, the mortality rate for Nascent Soul cultivators exceeded thirty percent. One out of every three Nascent Souls would perish. But now, following a "Prodigy"-level genius, their safety was not guaranteed to be foolproof, but it was almost certain. Especially since following a "Prodigy"-level genius could also bring immense rewards...
It was practically a chosen start!
...
"Killed a Level 26 creature, gained 3,484 experience points!"
"Killed a Level 25 creature, gained 1,365 experience points!"
"Killed a Level 24 creature, gained 531 experience points!"
...
[Life Level: 29 (10,641/90,000)]
...
Li Chunjun held in his hand an octagonal, gem-like substance. He could clearly feel that when his Divine Sense entered it, it enhanced his Divine Sense power.
At this moment, True Lord Zhi Yuan spoke gravely, "This Divine Spirit Envoy must have committed many atrocities against our human race; otherwise, he wouldn't have been granted the Octahedral Profound Jade."
"Do you know about this item?" Li Chunjun asked, turning his gaze to True Lord Zhi Yuan.
True Lord Zhi Yuan was momentarily stunned. Shouldn't this be common knowledge? But since Li Chunjun had asked, he quickly replied, "When the Evil God summons his Believers, they are often granted Divine Arts, and only a few are bestowed with treasures. The Octahedral Profound Jade is one such treasure granted by the Divine Race. If refined and used, it can significantly enhance the growth of Divine Sense power and also serve as a Mystic Treasure to amplify the power of Divine Sense attacks."
The True Lord held nothing back: "However, items from the Evil God often come with hidden traps. Refining this item could increase the risk of being corrupted by the Evil God. If it's not necessary, I would advise the Sword Prodigy not to refine it. This item may not reach the sixth tier, but it might contain the power of the Evil God, which could allow our human experts to trace the true location of the Evil God based on its energy."
Seeing that Li Chunjun was genuinely interested in asking, True Lord Yuanhai also chimed in, not wanting to fall behind: "By killing the Divine Spirit Envoy and using this item to return to the base, you can exchange it for a sixth-tier material."
He then added, "Even if you sell it, you could easily exchange it for ten thousand Spirit Crystals!"
"Ten thousand Spirit Crystals?" Li Chunjun was somewhat surprised. The wealth of a Nascent Soul True Lord rarely exceeded a hundred Spirit Crystals. This piece of jade could be exchanged for ten thousand Spirit Crystals?
"Selling it is the worst option. Exchanging it for a sixth-tier material is the right path. After all, even the poorest sixth-tier material costs tens of thousands of Spirit Crystals. The price difference is several times over," True Lord Yuanhai explained.
Li Chunjun nodded in agreement.
The materials commonly used by Primordial Spirit True Monarchs are fifth-tier and sixth-tier materials.
Theoretically, sixth-tier materials correspond to the materials used for crafting Dao Artifacts.
However...
The biggest difference between Dao Artifacts and Spirit Treasures lies in the Dao Rhythm.
Dao Rhythm is naturally formed.
At present, the level of material refinement mastered by humans is far from being able to produce materials that contain Dao Rhythm.
Under these circumstances, a special tier—sixth-tier—has emerged.
Apart from lacking the core Dao Rhythm, sixth-tier materials are almost indistinguishable from Dao Artifact materials in terms of performance.
They represent the pinnacle of standardized, mass-production technology for the entire human race.
In many cases, the sixth-tier also signifies the limit of mass-production technology.
Beyond that...
It enters the realm of truly high-end creations, the crown jewels of craftsmanship.
Production capacity drops exponentially, and prices soar dramatically.
Because of this, there exists a quasi-Dao Artifact tier between Spirit Treasures and Dao Artifacts.
This is a unique existence not found between Magical Artifacts and Spirit Artifacts, Spirit Artifacts and Mystic Treasures, or Mystic Treasures and Spirit Treasures.
The profoundness of Dao Rhythm holds no significance for Li Chunjun at this stage.
But if his Lifebound Flying Sword could be refined with a sixth-tier material, it would undoubtedly transform into a top-tier Spirit Treasure.
The strength of a Sword Cultivator is closely tied to the quality of their Lifebound Flying Sword, and by then, his cultivation would surely reach new heights.
"It seems it's time to return to the headquarters," Li Chunjun said.
He glanced at his accumulated merits.
Three Greater Divine Spirits had provided him with 1240 Minor Merits.
Two Common Divine Spirits had contributed 280 Minor Merits.
The minimum Minor Merits provided by a Greater Divine Spirit is 300, but this doesn't mean the value is fixed.
The key was that Divine Spirit Envoy!
It directly added 10,000 Minor Merits to Li Chunjun!
Yes!
Not the guaranteed 1000 Minor Merits from an Apex Divine Spirit, but ten times that amount.
With this addition...
Li Chunjun's total Minor Merits soared to 15,882.
This number was more than double that of Chu Ci, who was still ranked first on the leaderboard before the update.
Even considering Chu Ci's rate of merit accumulation, even after the update, his Minor Merits would likely cap at around 10,000, still falling far short of Li Chunjun's total.
"This should be enough to claim the top spot on the leaderboard. Thanks to that Divine Spirit Envoy, with these merits, I can not only exchange for the Shadowless Pearl but also obtain Spirit Crystals to replenish my Mystical Powers during cultivation... It would be best to prepare some Creation Spirit Liquid as well," Li Chunjun pondered.
But before heading to the headquarters...
"I should first clear out the dozens of Divine Spirits on this continent," he thought.
At that moment, he focused his mind, and his Sword Flight speed increased slightly.
Meanwhile, three Nascent Soul cultivators gathered from the surrounding area and joined up with Li Chunjun.
When they saw that the leader, Li Chunjun, was only at the early Nascent Soul stage, the three Nascent Soul True Lords were visibly startled and almost considered retreating.
It wasn't until True Lord Yuanhai reminded them that Li Chunjun had concealed his cultivation level, and upon closer inspection, they indeed sensed a secret technique masking his true strength, that they hesitantly followed.
However, they kept their distance.
Clearly, they were prepared to turn and flee if the situation turned unfavorable.
As for having Yuan Hai and Zhi Yuan spread word of his achievements? It was pointless.
Those who can cultivate to the Nascent Soul realm possess an extremely strong sense of autonomy. They only believe what they see with their own eyes, or even only what they are willing to believe.
Moreover, these Nascent Souls were following from a distance, and Li Chunjun was pleased with the situation.
He also felt that too many Nascent Souls following him would reduce the number of Divine Spirits he could hunt.
Having them on the sidelines, ready to snipe any Divine Spirits that sensed danger and tried to flee, was the best arrangement.
As time passed, the distance between Li Chunjun and Zhao Yu Pan's group grew closer.
Finally, when the distance between the two sides was less than five hundred miles, faint energy fluctuations could be seen dispersing from afar.
Even the Evil God Divine Spirits patrolling the outskirts as a precaution could be spotted.
Without any hesitation.
Li Chunjun soared through the air on his sword, like a streak of light, charging directly towards the group of Divine Spirits encircling the perimeter.
(End of the Chapter)
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