Grinding EXP From a Demon Hunting Ship

BZZZT!

At that very moment, a seven-colored rainbow light suddenly blazed to life on the distant sea!

The rainbow light flickered and intertwined, transforming into an arched rainbow bridge!

A magnificent dragon-woman, clad in opulent gold-embroidered brocade, rode the rainbow forward with an air of world-conquering dominance, wrapped in a seemingly endless tide of Spiritual Qi!

Li Jinhua!

"Yuan Lan, for a Nascent Soul True Monarch to so shamelessly attack my sect’s juniors... that’s not very appropriate, is it?"

A cool, languid female voice echoed through the void.

With it came the aura of a Nascent Soul, one that was in no way inferior to Yuan Lan’s, flooding the heavens and covering the earth!

WHOOSH!

The seven-colored rainbow bridge flickered and collided with the immense, dark palm!

The space in a radius of over ten li distorted in an instant, as if it were a canvas!

To an outside observer, the scene in this pocket of space was like a reflection in a mirror—a shattered mirror, glinting with infinite, resplendent spiritual light!

The power of a Nascent Soul True Monarch’s techniques was enough to distort the void and briefly tear space itself!

BANG!

A few breaths later, the distortion began to subside.

The space in this realm was still quite stable. A clash between Nascent Soul True Monarchs was like tossing a stone into a lake; it could make a splash and create ripples, but the effects were only temporary.

However, the subsiding distortion didn’t mean the collision was over. On the contrary, as the phenomenon eased, the full might of the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs’ techniques poured into the physical world!

BOOM! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

A terrifying, soul-shaking roar echoed through the void. Lin Yinxiu and Zhao Jiuhuang, who were in the middle of their escape, suddenly went pale as a warm sensation filled their ears.

They reached up to touch, and their hands came away covered in blood. Their eardrums and inner ears had been shattered by the shockwave!

At the same time, a visible shockwave spread out in all directions like a tsunami, making the two Golden Core cultivators’ faces twist in absolute terror!

Fortunately, the seven-colored rainbow light flashed. The bridge flickered, pulling the two female Golden Core cultivators onto its surface, saving their lives from the aftershocks of the clash.

Phew.

More than ten breaths later, the wind and waves died down.

Yuan Lan stood upon the wind, his expression grim as he gazed at the distant rainbow bridge. "The Seven-Colored Bridge of Reincarnation... That Dao Artifact... You’re Li Jinhua of the Cangyuan Dragon Palace!"

Whether it was cultivators, magic treasures, or Divine Power Secret Skills, they all followed one principle: the higher the rank, the greater the fame.

A top-tier Dao Artifact like the Seven-Colored Bridge of Reincarnation, which possessed both tyrannical might and several wondrous abilities, was enough to confirm its owner’s identity the moment it was used in front of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Besides, Li Jinhua’s dragon horns were even more obvious.

Therefore, Li Jinhua made no attempt to hide it. With a calm expression, she serenely clasped her hands in a salute.

"Indeed. Greetings, Yuan Lan."

Then, Li Jinhua’s tone suddenly turned severe as she demanded, "Yuan Lan!"

"Deaths and injuries from battles between subordinate factions are perfectly normal... Even though the Flame Alliance is affiliated with my True Treasure Pavilion, I did nothing while they were suffering defeat after defeat."

"However..."

"For a Nascent Soul True Monarch to be so shameless as to attack Golden Core and Crystal Formation cultivators!"

"For such an act, you must give my True Treasure Pavilion an explanation!"

Li Jinhua’s words were righteous and severe.

Classic.

The villain plays the victim!

"Heh..."

Hearing her words, Yuan Lan laughed.

It was a laugh born of extreme anger!

’So now you’re trying to pin the blame on me, is that it?’

Although he had no proof, with his intelligence, how could he not guess what had just happened the moment he saw Li Jinhua appear?

"Hmph!"

"What a sharp-tongued little bitch..."

"These methods of twisting the truth and turning black into white... you’re really cut from the same cloth as that old dragon from the Cangyuan Dragon Palace..."

"But I’d like to see just what percentage of that old dragon’s strength you have, besides that sharp tongue of yours!"

Yuan Lan let out a long cry.

CLANG!

The clear ring of a sword suddenly echoed!

Yuan Lan reached out, and a long silver sword appeared, standing majestically, exuding an aura that seemed capable of tearing apart the heavens and annihilating all creation!

It resembled the small silver talisman sword Ran Ningshuang held. Or rather, the small silver talisman sword in Ran Ningshuang’s hand was a talisman treasure imprinted with this very sword’s aura!

A Dao Artifact-level Spirit Sword!

Then, Yuan Lan gripped the hilt. The aura of the long silver sword instantly amplified by several-fold, and where its tip pointed, ripples of distortion faintly appeared in the void!

Besides his Dao Artifact-level Spirit Sword, this Yuan Lan was himself a top-tier Sword Cultivator whose mastery of the Sword Dao had reached a transcendent level!

Li Jinhua remained expressionless as she controlled the Seven-Colored Bridge of Reincarnation, using the Dao Artifact’s spatial transport ability to teleport the Flame Alliance cultivators to the edge of Volcano State.

HUMMM!

Li Jinhua formed a hand seal and cast a spell. The Seven-Colored Bridge of Reincarnation transformed into a streak of rainbow light and took the offensive!

Seven-colored light versus pure silver!

The aftershocks from the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs’ clash radiated terrifying ripples, spreading continuously across the battlefield. The surface of Volcano State cracked and split, and lava began to flow!

The shockwaves from the collision of techniques were like tornadoes of Gang Wind, sweeping across the area and peeling back the surface of Volcano State like a carpet!

"Nascent Soul..."

Su Ye stood on the deck of the Ghostly Flood Dragon, maintaining a safe distance as he gazed into the far-off battle.

He didn’t dare extend his Divine Sense. The battlefield was saturated with the Divine Sense of two Nascent Soul True Monarchs; rashly sending his own out would most likely get it crushed, or even lead to a backlash.

"Nascent Soul, huh..."

Su Ye narrowed his eyes. The successive appearance of two Nascent Soul True Monarchs filled him with a sense of urgency.

He was especially alarmed by the conclusion he reached after assessing the ambient fluctuations from their battle!

Both Li Jinhua and Yuan Lan, the two Nascent Soul True Monarchs, possessed the strength to kill him. By Su Ye’s own estimation, if it came to a life-or-death battle, his chances of escaping were less than twenty percent.

This conclusion cast a dark cloud over Su Ye’s heart.

...

’In the Spiritual Mechanism Immortal Dao, realm comes first.’

’Compared to a Nascent Soul, my realm is still far too low...’ Su Ye’s eyes narrowed slightly as he steered the Ghostly Flood Dragon, flying out of Volcano State alongside the other two female Golden Core cultivators.

Li Jinhua’s battlefield was not one they could interfere in.

Right now, all Su Ye needed to do was put as much distance as possible between them and the fight, and preserve his effective strength.

’Besides, I’ve already secured my spoils of war!’

It was time to quit while he was ahead!

Without drawing attention to himself, Su Ye placed the spoils he had collected in this battle—four Golden Cores/corehearts—on the railing of the Ghostly Flood Dragon’s hull.

HUMMM.

The oak railing, like a mimic chest, split open a maw and extended slender, fleshy tentacles that devoured the Golden Cores/corehearts.

"Golden Cores, tasty."

Jiaojiao’s mood was cheerful, and she conveyed a sense of joyful satisfaction.

’These four Golden Cores aren’t as high-quality as the two from the late-stage Golden Core cultivators, but there are enough of them. They should increase the Source Energy Value by more than three hundred points...’

After a moment’s wait, the Source Energy Value conversion was complete.

Su Ye glanced at the panel.

[Ship Panel]

[Name: Ghostly Flood Dragon]

[Grade: Fourth-Order High-Grade / Quasi Fifth-Order]

[Source Energy Value: 810/810]

’Fourth-Order Peak-Grade requires a Source Energy Value of one thousand. I’m not far off.’

At the same time, with the spirit ship’s advancement, the Ghostly Flood Dragon’s level was once again higher than Su Ye’s.

The Ghostly Flood Dragon’s Harmony Personhood gave Su Ye an immediate insight.

A new function!

’Expend Source Energy Value to assist with the Enlightenment Method?’

’Is that it?’

’The effect should be good, but... spending Source Energy Value means I’ll have to hunt even more Golden Cores. That deficit is too... Never mind, I’ll test the effect first.’

"This effect... is barely satisfactory," Su Ye murmured, frowning slightly. The effect was decent enough—or rather, it was good enough to make an ordinary Golden Core cultivator’s eyes green with envy.

However, there was still a gap between this and what Su Ye had imagined.

’Hm?’

’Wait... the Source Energy Value used to assist the Enlightenment Method doesn’t reduce the maximum capacity?!’

[Source Energy Value: 800/810]

...

Friends, the 4k-word Chapter for April 4th is up.

Sorry for the late update. A lot has been going on recently. I left at midnight last night for Qingming to sweep the graves, got home at 3 AM, and slept straight through until the afternoon.

(Exhausted...)