Chapter 503: Dragon-Tiger Transformation! (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Long Shiya released his Wind Attribute Heavenly Energy, soaring up together with Wu Yuehan far into the skies once again, speeding towards the original place where he had grabbed her.
As expected, the two Heavenly King Stage powerhouse Elders from the Heavenly Demon Sect were still waiting there for them. Although they were feeling terrible about Wu Yuehan being kidnapped from them, but it had already happened, and there was no use crying over spilt milk as they could not do anything about it. They could only wait there and pray that the Heavenly Emperor powerhouse would stick to his word return Wu Yuehan to them. No matter what, being able to bring back a live Young Miss was much better than losing her forever.
In a flash of green light, Long Big Fatty descended from the skies with Wu Yuehan in tow. The two Heavenly King Stage powerhouses instantly perked up alertly, quickly advancing forward to greet them.
Seeing Long Shiya, the two of them were filled with hostility. However, they knew their strength was far below this Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor and they could not show any signs of it. If not for that, they would definitely want to immediately tear Long Shiya from limb to limb. To the Heavenly Demon Sect, what happened in the past few days was definitely a terrible humiliation and disgrace.
Little Witch was not dressed in the same clothes she had left in, clearly having changed during her time away. At the same time, they both could see that her expression was weary and almost haggard. With their cultivation level and experience, how could they not see that she had lost her virginity?
"Elders, I have returned." Little Witch said with a faint smile, as if nothing had happened.
The two Heavenly King Stage powerhouses started momentarily. How could Young Miss be so calm and composed after having lost her virtue? Their gaze flickered and landed onto Long Shiya, but he was not even looking at them, smiling gently at Little Witch.
Wu Yuehan said: "Elders, please do not worry. Senior Long only asked me to help someone out, and the person who needed help happened to be a good friend of mine. Now that he has recovered, we can return. You two do not need to say anything, it was of my own free will. We do not need to head to the WanShou Ten Thousand Beast Heavens, when we return I will personally speak to my father."
"Yes, Young Miss." The two Heavenly King Stage powerhouse elders were still clearly confused, not knowing what was going on.
Long Shiya smiled faintly and said: "Yuehan, this time is truly a big inconvenience for you. Do not worry, Little Fatty has some things to clear up first, and once he is done, I will personally bring him to look for you. When that time comes, you just make the preparations. Alright, he is still quite unstable, I will return first." After saying all that, he did not even look at the two Heavenly King Stage powerhouses, and soared up into the air and disappeared swiftly.
"Young Miss, are you okay?" The two Heavenly King Stage powerhouse Elders quickly advanced forward to ask Little Witch concernedly. The Elder on the left said angrily: "It must be that old bastard, did he threaten you to say that? Although the Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor is powerful, our Heavenly Demon Sect is not to be trifled with as well. The Sect Master will definitely get revenge for Young Miss."
A bitter smile crossed Wu Yuehan's face and she said: "Elders, I was not threatened at all. I truly did it of my own accord, and I was willing to do so. It is truly a coincidence… that Senior Long's disciple is the person I mentioned to the Sect previously. Father originally wished that I marry him… this time is…"
""Ahh?" The two Elders stared speechlessly at each other. What kind of magic was that, such a coincidence?!
Little Witch sighed softly. Although she did not regret that her virtue had been stolen by Zhou Weiqing, but deep inside her heart, she did not wish that it had been taken under such dubious circumstances. However, now that things had already played out like this, there was no turning back already.
…
Back atop the Fire Spirit Mountain, Zhou Weiqing slept deeply for an entire day and night. As he slowly drifted out of his dreams into awakening, he felt his entire body itching, especially his back which was especially itchy. He moaned subconsciously before extending all his limbs out to the maximum in a lazy stretch.
At that moment, Zhou Weiqing felt his entire body, down to his muscles, bones and even meridian channels were straining with a strange sound. The next moment, he felt an unprecedented relaxing and comfortable feeling throughout his entire body, as if he had been given a new lease on life.
So comfortable! Feels so good! Opening his eyes, Zhou Weiqing's thoughts were still a little slow. After all, he had been 'cultivating' for almost forty days, and his consciousness was still a bit muddled.
Eh? Why do I feel so weird 'down below'? Zhou Weiqing subconsciously touched himself questioningly, and his mouth twitched slightly as fragments of memories trickled back into his mind one after the other. Was it just me… or was I just dreaming that I had intimate relations with a girl?? A long time… so tight… feeling so good… that's not real right? Wasn't I cultivating under Master's protection? Was it all a dream?
"Damn little brat, you are finally awake." Long Shiya"s voice rang out and the thick smoke around suddenly cleared, revealing his stout figure.
At this point, only then did Zhou Weiqing realise that he was still atop the Fire Spirit Mountain. To his surprise, for the sheer heat and high temperatures of the Fire Spirit Mountain, he did not even feel hot at all, in fact feeling extremely comfortable.
"Master, I succeeded in Awakening and Fusing?" Zhou Weiqing asked.
Long Shiya nodded in a satisfied manner, saying:: "Little brat, luckily your willpower is strong and tenacious enough, and you actually succeeded. More so, you did so in a shorter time than even I expected. However, this time, your success has come at quite a price!"
At such, Long Shiya described in detail the entire happenings during the last thirty odd days that Zhou Weiqing had spent in the depths of the volcano training; all the various surprises and changes that had happened. That would also allow Zhou Weiqing to understand what had happened, as well as the various changes that happened to him and allow him to start familiarising himself with those changes… only then would he be able to make use of them and convert it into actual fighting prowess.
At the end, naturally Long Shiya could not avoid speaking about Little Witch.
When Zhou Weiqing heard the word 'Sacrifice', his first reaction was to think of Shangguan Bing'er. In that instant, he suddenly realised he missed her so much. He had not seen her for such a long time, and yet he was collecting more 'love debts'.
This time, after saving Tian'er, if he managed to return he would definitely have to head back to the Heaven's Expanse Palace. He only had to defeat that Shangguan Xue'er, then he could be with Bing'er at last. And… there was still Fei'er to think about. Sigh.. things were indeed messy.
"Wait… Master… what did you just say? You found a girl to be a Sacrifice for me and I actually did that to her… ?" Lost in his own thoughts, all of a suddenly Zhou Weiqing was abruptly disrupted from them as Long Shiya's words finally registered in his mind, and he stared with utter shock at his teacher.
Long Shiya said sorrowfully: "In my entire life, I have never done anything against my conscience, and you little brat made your teacher ruin that record, and almost destroying my reputation! If I didn't help you look for a Sacrifice, do you think you can actually Awake and return to consciousness?"
Zhou Weiqing stared at his teacher, jaw agape, his mind in a blur. His love life was already messy enough, and now he had to add one more, especially since he had 'taken' her as a Sacrifice to his Demonic Attribute. This…
"I know this will not be comfortable news for you to, but as a man, since you have already done it, you better take responsibility for it. As the saying goes, a man already in debt would not mind incurring more debt, since you already have so many women, one more won't make a big difference." Long Big Fatty said carelessly.
Zhou Weiqing's heart twitched inwardly! What kind of saying was that… a man already in debt would not mind incurring more debt?! There was another saying, three women was like an opera, with so many women, what would his life be like in the future?
"Your luck is not too bad, at least she is a great beauty, and she also knows who you are. Such a good girl, very sensible and understanding… being bullied by you for an entire day and night! Yet, she did not blame you in the end. Little Fatty, you better not let Little Witch down!"
"Wait… what?! Who did you say it was again?" This time, Zhou Weiqing's jaw truly dropped.
"Little Witch… Wu Yuehan… she said you two knew each other! Don't tell me you don't know who she is?" Long Shiya said.
Know? Of course he knew her, but it was without question she was a troublesome one indeed! Previously, Zhou Weiqing had painstakingly avoided Little Witch after their experiences. After all, he did owe the Heavenly Demon Sect a debt in one sense, since he had read their Heavenly Demon Sect Demonic Manual, and it had been of great help in him learning how to cultivate his Demonic Attribute and learning how to use his Devour Skill. However, the Heavenly Demon Sect resided in the Bai Da Empire and was aiding them, and who knew if the destruction of the Heavenly Bow Empire had their shadow behind it. It was just too messy and troublesome indeed.
In that moment, Zhou Weiqing felt a migraine incoming. The comfortable feeling after the Bloodline Fusion and evolving had disappeared.
Towards his Master, he did not have to hide anything. As such, he explained the entire relationship and what had happened between him and Little Witch all that time, as well as all his issues with the Heavenly Demon Sect.
After hearing his explanations, Long Shiya's expression remained impassive as he said passively: "What is there for you to think or stress about? Any other matter I will not interfere, but in this matter between you and the Heavenly Demon Sect, I will take charge. In the past, you were afraid that they might take advantage of you, even take control of you… but with this old man here, what do you have to be afraid of? The Bai Da Empire is not the same as your Heavenly Bow Empire, as one of the stronger Empires in the entire Mainland, it is unlikely that they will have any close connection with the Heavenly Demon Sect. Otherwise, it is tantamount to outright opposing the other four Great Saint Lands, and they would never do something like that. It is too much of a risk to them. As such, I can practically guarantee that your Heavenly Bow Empire's destruction has nothing to do with the Heavenly Demon Sect. To put it more bluntly, with your Heavenly Bow Empire's original strength, would the Bai Da Empire even need the Heavenly Demon Sect to destroy them? Nonsense. Alright, it is settled between you and Little Witch then. You have already done that to her, and especially under such a forced circumstance, how can you not take responsibility? In any case, now is not the time to think too much on this… everything else is of lesser importance now than getting your cultivation level and strength up."
Zhou Weiqing was still somewhat dazed, and upon hearing Long Shiya's words, it seemed like things weren't as messy as he feared. As for the situation between all these young ladies, even he could not untangle that tangled web, and he could only sigh inwardly for now. Amongst all the girls he was attached to, it was without a doubt that his feelings were strongest for Shangguan Bing'er, followed by Tian'er and Shangguan Fei'er. Now… there was another Little Witch added to the mix… that was up to four!
Chapter 504: Dragon-Tiger Transformation! (2)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Now… with yet one more… Little Witch added to the mix… that was up to four women in his life! Furthermore, all of them were from Great Saint Lands… and different ones to boot! However, what Long Shiya said was also true, it was no time to think about all that now, and currently what was most important to him was to increase his strength. If he had the power of a Heavenly God Tier, even if it were all five Great Saint Lands, so what? Even if it seemed impossible, as long as the girls were willing, he could just elope and run away with them in the future.
Thinking up to this point, Zhou Weiqing did not continue obsessing over the matter any longer. Turning back to look as his Master, he said: "Master, how long more until the coldest day of Winter?"
Long Shiya thought about it momentarily before replying: "We still have about less than a month. In this period of time, not only do you have to familiarise yourself to all the changes in your body and power, and any new abilities you have. At the same time, it is also time for you to continue training in the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, to truly wield the maximum power of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation. As long as you have some small completion of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, along with the advantage you have with your body and powers, you will not lose easily even facing that Lion Prince. Little brat, if you want to keep your love, it is time for you to pit your life. There is not much time left."
"Yes." Even if Long Shiya did not say that, Zhou Weiqing also knew what he needed to do.
Long Shiya continued: "Alright, let us begin then. Start by sensing all the changes in your body, use your new Demonic Change State and let me see."
Zhou Weiqing rubbed his stomach with a bitter smile and said: "Master, I haven't eaten for so long, can I at least have a meal first?"
Long Shiya scratched his head and said: "Eat… alright, eat first then."
In such an area, there was naturally nothing good to eat, and they could only eat some dry rations to barely replenish their body's requirements. However, even though it was just dry rations, Zhou Weiqing enjoyed gorging himself on them. Although his body could replenish energy by drawing energy from the atmosphere, but it was still very different from eating, especially in terms of enjoyment. After a large meal, his spirit perked up as well.
Without any further prompting from Long Shiya, as soon as Zhou Weiqing finished eating, he immediately sat down cross legged on the ground, circulating his Heavenly Energy to sense all the changes in his body.
As soon as he started circulating his Heavenly Energy, Zhou Weiqing immediately felt the difference. This time, thirty six days of Awakening his Solidified Dragon Spirit had caused his Heavenly Energy to jump four entire levels, from the Heavenly Shen Energy Eighth Stage to the Twelfth Stage, reaching the Four-Jeweled cultivation level, barely entering the Heavenly Xu Energy stage.
From Heavenly Jing Energy to Heavenly Shen Energy was from real to void, and from Heavenly Shen Energy, it was warping back from void to real. However, this time the void was not within, but outside the body.
Heavenly Jing Energy and Heavenly Shen Energy stages, both were still at the level of training and cultivating one's own body. By the time a Heavenly Jewel Master reached the Heavenly Xu Energy Stage, it was beginning to step out of their body and to start controlling from outside.
Within his body, the twenty four Death Acupuncture Points that had been broken through and formed the large energy whirlpools, like massive mouths devouring any energy from the outside world. The Immortal Deity Technique's power showed itself once more, and within moments, Zhou Weiqing felt his Heavenly Energy gathering, lifting, even improving. Without question, thanks to the Immortal Deity Technique, his cultivation speed did not seem to slow in the slightest despite entering the Heavenly Xu Energy stage.
The merits and demerits of the Immortal Deity Technique were obvious, and being able to directly break through four stages, Zhou Weiqing was extremely overjoyed. It also meant he could suffer four times less. Currently, there was still three more Death Acupuncture Points until he was done with the third portion of the Immortal Deity Technique. According to the notes recorded on the Immortal Deity Technique, the most difficult would be the nine Death Acupuncture Points on the fourth portion of the Immortal Deity Technique, as they were all on the head. After all, the head was one of the most vulnerable parts of the body, and any damage could possibly mean death.
Of course, now was not the time to think of that, and it was of utmost importance for Zhou Weiqing to now concentrate on solidifying and securing his current strength.
The immense Heavenly Energy fluctuations in his body caused Zhou Weiqing to be overjoyed, especially as he sensed the various Attributes of Heavenly Energy circulating in accordance with the fluctuations, a miraculous feeling of resonance that was a pleasant surprise for him.
Up until now, he finally understood what Tang Xian, the three Shangguan sisters' mother, had once told him. That he would only have some measure of protecting himself after he broke through the six-Jeweled cultivation level.
That level of self protection was not just simply because of a six-Jeweled cultivation level, but because of his six Elemental Attributes. Once an ordinary Heavenly Jewel Master reached the Heavenly Xu Energy stage, he could only draw in one attribute of Heavenly Energy from the atmosphere for his own use. However, it was very different for him, especially with his six Attributes, allowing him to draw far more energy from the atmosphere as compared to any ordinary Heavenly Jewel Master. However, in terms of how to use the atmospheric energy drawn from outside, he was still quite at a loss. Of course, that was not a big problem since he had his teacher the Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor beside him.
Sensing the changes in his own body, Zhou Weiqing suddenly felt a bit of assurance about fighting the Lion Prince Gu Yingbing. With a flicker of thought, he called upon the power of his bloodline within.
With that spark of will, instantly Zhou Weiqing felt a sudden itch on his back. The next moment, a feeling of being attached by blood burst forth from behind his back, and in a sudden swishing sound, two immense wings burst forth from the portion of his back that had been itching.
As the wings spread open, Zhou Weiqing immediately saw that his own skin had turned a bright purple, a layer of scales all over his entire body like a strange pattern, including his face.
In that instant, the first thing that Zhou Weiqing sensed was not strength, but a sense of all the outer energies. If one were to say that previously after just entering the Heavenly Xu Stage, he could clearly sense the various Attribute Heavenly Energies from the atmosphere; then now, he himself had turned into a source, a fountain of those very energies.
Indeed, it was a fountain. As soon as the wings spread open, the various Attribute Heavenly Energies gathered and swarmed into his back through those wings crazily. The twenty four Death Acupuncture Points energy whirlpools no longer drew energy in, instead forming twenty four pivot points, the Immortal Deity Shield immersed deeply within each of them as well as his body. In fact, at this point, the vast amounts of Heavenly Energy pouring in from outside was far beyond his energy expenditure in maintaining his Demonic Change State.
This is? Zhou Weiqing"s heart was filled with shock. In truth, his muscles were not as huge or bulging and obvious as they were previously in the Demonic Change State, and the almost crystalline purple of his body was very different from the old tiger tattoos of his Demonic Change State. His senses had also changed apparently, and the Icy Cold Perception was much stronger than before.
From Long Shiya's angle, Zhou Weiqing"s wings had billowed out, and his skin had changed colour almost simultaneously. At that moment, his entire person seemed to change, a unique pressure and aura bursting forth from his person. Even with Long Shiya's Heavenly Emperor cultivation level, he could still sense that pressure clearly.
That pressure did not have anything to do with cultivation level, fully a pressure that stemmed from bloodline. It was just like how a high ranked bloodline Heavenly Beast would have an intense pressure against any low ranked bloodline Heavenly Beast.
Perhaps a more accurate summary was that currently Zhou Weiqing had become an extremely high ranked creature of sorts.
The wings behind his back beat gently once, and Zhou Weiqing did not feel as if he had used much strength, but an intense air flow surged behind his back, shoving his body along with a startled cry as he flew into the sky like a cannonball. In the blink of an eye, he had soared far above the smoke clouds of the Fire Spirit Mountain.
This was the first time that Zhou Weiqing was flying of his own power, and he did not feel good about it at all. That was because he did not know how to balance himself while in mid air, and his arms flailed about clumsily. As soon as he reached a high point, he began falling, still flailing as he did so.
"You idiot! Spread your wings, sense the wind all about you!" Long Shiya's voice rang out in Zhou Weiqing's ears.
Subconsciously, Zhou Weiqing spread his wings. Instantly, his falling speed dropped drastically. Relieved, his will moved to sense the Wind Attribute Heavenly Energy all around his body. The Wind seemed to be like his slave, fully under his control and listening to his every command. Very carefully, he started changing the angle of his wings before starting to beat them. At last, Zhou Weiqing"s body started the soar.
At that moment, Zhou Weiqing finally felt great, unbelievably great to the extreme.
Originally, when Zhou Weiqing had first seen Shangguan Fei'er flying, his heart had been filled with admiration and envy; especially after he had experienced flight on his own, that envy had grown even stronger. From Long Shiya, he had learned that his own 'Hate Earth No Handle' did not have any wings. It was a set that purely chased absolute strength.
As a result, Zhou Weiqing could only place his hopes of flying to when he broke through the Heavenly King Stage, with his Wind Attribute Heavenly Energy.
However, it was without question that flying with wings and just using Heavenly Energy to fly was extremely different. Leaving aside the sheer difference in expenditure of Heavenly Energy, just the agility and flexibility in flight was also drastically different. Zhou Weiqing had personally seen Shangguan Fei'er show various flying skills and combat abilities in midair to the Peerless Battalion soldiers, and the free flow movement, spinning, wheeling and rolling about, able to attack in any and all motions in a beautiful dance… it had truly been a cause of deep envy for Zhou Weiqing.
Currently, he finally had his own wings. More so, they were different from Shangguan Fei'er's Consolidated Wings… they were grown directly on his body, able to be used as soon as he transformed! Furthermore, not only did they not have any toll on their Heavenly Energy, they actually increased his Heavenly Energy recovery rate… only a massive boost.
Just as Zhou Weiqing was lost in his excitement, all of a sudden he felt an intense sense of danger. Instantly, his wings beat down hard, and he flew high up into the sky. Right behind him, a consolidated green-gold Wind Blade flashed past.
Zhou Weiqing turned pale in fright. That was a highly compressed Wind Attribute Heavenly Energy Wind Blade! That was not something an ordinary Wind Blade could compare with. Had his Master gone insane?
Chapter 505: Dragon-Tiger Transformation! (3)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
He desperately dodged away constantly in midair, but it was as if the Wind Blade had a pair of eyes, closely chasing behind him.
In the end, Zhou Weiqing had only gained this ability of flight for such a short period of time, and he was definitely not adept at controlling his flight yet. At last, he was unable to avoid the Wind Blade, and with a soft thud, it slammed savagely into his back.
The moment before he had been struck, Zhou Weiqing felt as if everything around his body lit up. Subconsciously, he looked back down on his body, and he was surprised to see that his entire person was glowing a bright purple. A gentle warmth burst forth from all his limbs, bones and entire body abruptly, spreading out. The attack of the Wind Blade was undoubtedly extremely powerful, but it seemed to only have a simple impact on his body, causing him to fly forward but he did not feel any sense of pain.
With a quick flip of his hands, Zhou Weiqing stroked the area on his back where he had been hit. This time, he was even more surprised to realise that his arm had actually bent strangely in an inhuman way to actually reach his back.
As for his back, not a single mark was left behind, and his skin was smooth and gleaming as ever, feeling fine and delicate like a young girl's skin. As for the purple light, it formed layer after layer of scales made of light, looking rather weird.
"Come down. Long Shiya's voice rang out once more in his ears.
Zhou Weiqing managed to control his wings, however unpracticed, to slowly descend. At least his spiritual control was not too bad, and he did not make a fool of himself in landing. At this moment, his heart was full of shock; his body seemed to have changed in unprecedented manner, almost like everything had been turned upside down… and these changes should be from the Awakening of his Solidified Dragon Spirit and its fusion with his Dark Demon God Tiger bloodline. As for what these changes were exactly, he was still not fully clear on what they were. However, it was without question that this strange purple coloured transformation of his was far superior to his previous Demonic Change State. Not only did it have all the advantages of the Demonic Change State, they had been strengthened manifold, with other additions to it as it seemed. More importantly, he was now able to maintain this new Demonic Change State for a much longer time. Even after Zhou Weiqing landed on the ground and withdrew the Demonic Change State, he could still sense that some of the changes were still active within his body. However, if his body wasn't under the purple transformation state, he would not be able to fully use all those changes.
Long Shiya looked over Zhou Weiqing before nodding his head in satisfaction. "Very good, a much higher defensive capability than I had even thought. It looks like Solidified Dragon Spirit has improved upon one of the weaker points of the Demonic Change State, your defense. Also, it seems your physical strength has also been further improved. The fusion of the two powerful bloodlines you have has brought you a far greater change than merely the Solidified Dragon Spirit. As for what it has brought you exactly, it is up to us to explore and test out fully. From now on, I will give you four hours per day to familiarise yourself with your new body. As for the rest of the time, I will begin training you on how to truly use the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts.
"Master, it seems that this current transformation of mine is no longer simply the Demonic Change State, and I do not have to inflame my emotions as much just to enter it. More so, it seems like it is almost a constant state, only when I enter the purple stage its power is greatly strengthened and the wings come out to allow me to fly. Should I give it another name instead?"
Long Shiya smiled and said: "How about… 'Dragon-Tiger Transformation'! After all, it was brought about by your two dragon and tiger bloodlines."
Zhou Weiqing's mouth twitched slightly. "This… this doesn't even sound as cool as the Demonic Change State! How about… Lord Emperor Transformation or something awesome like that?!"
"Cool your head! You might as well call it 'shit'. Enough nonsense, let me first test how much that defensive capability of your Dragon-Tiger Transformation has actually improved."
Seeing that fresh hideous grin on Long Big Fatty's face, Zhou Weiqing turned pale and turned in an attempt to run. Alas, with his cultivation level, how could he possibly escape from the Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor? In moments, cries of agony rang out from the top of the volcano.
Beating was definitely a must. If he did not beat Zhou Weiqing up savagely, how could they know what the new limits of his defenses would be, and when facing any enemies, not knowing your own defense to make accurate judgements would make it easy to lose out.
After much 'testing', Long Shiya's surprise grew stronger. He discovered that Zhou Weiqing's evolving this time had been truly thorough. It seemed like not just his two powerful bloodlines had been fused together, but the Immortal Deity Technique had somehow been integrated within as well.
When Zhou Weiqing's was under attack, the first defensive effect that was produced was actually from his skin, becoming almost like tough armour, able to withstand any attack from six-Jeweled cultivation level and below, perhaps even higher. Tough and flexible indeed.
As the offensive power of the attacks grew stronger, up to the level beyond what Zhou Weiqing's skin could withstand, his muscles and bones would well up with strength, all the way up to the surface of the skin, strengthening the defense. At the same time, his Immortal Deity Technique would automatically transfer Heavenly Energy to the surface of the skin, presenting in a layer of purple light, once again improving the defensive capabilities several fold. This was the profound secret that had emerged after the merging of the Immortal Deity Shield to his bloodlines.
It could be said that for the current Zhou Weiqing, even if one totally ignored his offensive capabilities, just considering his defensive capabilities alone, he was already at a terrifying level. More importantly, these defenses were automatically triggered, almost passive even, and he did not need to control or activate them with his own will. That was to say, he did not need to worry about being ambushed or caught off guard.
More importantly, even if he was not in the Dragon-Tiger Transformation, Zhou Weiqing's own personal defense was already able to reach at least sixty to seventy percent of his full defense in that State.
Not only that; when he entered the Dragon-Tiger Transformation, Zhou Weiqing's power could be said to go through a total change, an upheaval even. The introduction of the Solidified Dragon Spirit to all his powers not only brought Zhou Weiqing a full true immunity to fire, it also brought about an immunity to the Darkness Attribute. That was to say… as long as any Skills or attacks of these two Attributes landed on Zhou Weiqing, the only effect they would have would be the impact as well as pure Heavenly Energy, and none of the effects of the skills brought about by the Attributes. If the attack was of the Darkness or Fire Attribute, then it would most likely not even be of much harm to Zhou Weiqing at all. For example, if the effect of a particular Fire Attribute Skill was a high level scorching type one, then what would its use be on him at all.
In Long Shiya's words, due to the fact that Zhou Weiqing did not have the Fire Attribute, the Solidified Dragon Spirit was unable to give him any powerful Skills. However, at the same time, when the Solidified Dragon Spirit had fully fused with Zhou Weiqing, all its benefits had been focused on his physical body instead. Not only was he no longer afraid of Fire, when he entered melee combat with an enemy, his attacks would be imbued with the Fire Attribute passively. Furthermore, when his hands warped into the dragon claws, the destructive power of them were no different from any real dragon claws, of course the difference in strength aside. Once he used his Yin Yang Giant Spirit Palms, the sheer terrifying offensive power was such that even Long Shiya would not be easily willing to take such a blow easily. It would not be a good feelings at all.
The greatest benefit of Consolidated Equipment was that they could change according to their user's physical conditions, and did not need to take a particular fixed state. For example, for the current Zhou Weiqing, if he was in his transformed state and he used the Yin Yang Giant Spirit Palm, the palm area of the equipment would form in the dragon clawed shape as well.
After discovering the massive changes to Zhou Weiqing's body, Long Shiya modified his original plan. In three days, he had helped Zhou Weiqing to fully explore all the changes in his body, with not a single detail left unexplored. Once he had familiarised himself with his body, it would be of great benefit for him to practice and master the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts. Especially after learning how Zhou Weiqing's wings could draw in Heavenly Energy from the atmosphere and how powerful that effect was, the more Long Shiya wanted him to examine his Transformation.
Three days had passed. Although they couldn't say that Zhou Weiqing had fully grasped control his new body, he had at least understood all the changes in his body. He had also improved in his winged flight, at least relatively in control now, with some simple flying techniques. After all, that was what Shangguan Fei'er was best at, and though Zhou Weiqing might not have the ability to fly in the past, he had seen her fly so many times that he had learned something. As the saying goes, even if one hasn't eaten pork before, they had to have seen pigs run. As such, his practice proceeded pretty decently at least. Of course, he would not dare describe it as such to Shangguan Fei'er.
"Little Fatty, come here." Long Shiya beckoned to Zhou Weiqing, who had just finished eating his breakfast.
Zhou Weiqing stood there hesitantly, a wary look on his face. The last three days, he had been miserably beaten by Long Shiya in order to test the limits of his new body, and Long Big Fatty had shown no mercy at all. He had often been beaten to the very limit before Long Shiya had stopped, no matter how much Zhou Weiqing screamed in pain or used all of his considerable acting skills, the Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor could clearly sense the changes in his bodies and all the acting was useless. Currently, when Long Shiya called out to him, Zhou Weiqing was afraid that a fresh round of beating would await him, how could he be willing to jump to it eagerly?
"Hurry up." Long Shiya said exasperatedly.
Only then did Zhou Weiqing walk up unwillingly back to his Master, but his heart was still wary. He had to be prepared in case of another beating after all!
Looking at his reluctant look, Long Shiya couldn't help but laugh out loud before saying: "Look at you with that good for nothing expression, isn't it just two days of being beaten? It is natural for masters to beat their disciples! Hmph, don't worry, the beatings are over… we have gathered enough data on your body. From today onwards, I will be starting the real training of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, the true power of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation. We do not have much time left… before we head out for the Heavenly Snow Mountain, you need to have a basic grasp on the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation.
Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation? This was the first time Zhou Weiqing had heard of this term. Originally, when Long Shiya had taught him his Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, it had been the bare basics, and not the intricacies of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation.
Chapter 506: Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation! (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
"Master, what is the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation?" Zhou Weiqing asked curiously as he looked at Long Shiya.
Long Shiya gave a humph and said: "Do you really think my reputation of Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor is just merely about perfect control and fine usage of the various Attribute Heavenly Energies? As long as one's cultivation level is up there, in order for a Heavenly Jewel Master to gain fine control of Heavenly Energy and their Skills, it is not that difficult. However, my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts is matchless even today, and that is because of my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation. Keep your senses full on and keep watch carefully."
As he spoke, Long Shiya's body lit up, eleven Alexandrite Cat's Eye Elemental Jewels floated out, forming a formation with six on top and five below. A six-coloured shield of light rose up, emitting from the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation.
At this moment, Zhou Weiqing was in the Dragon-Tiger Transformation, his senses to the outside extremely intense. Furthermore, Long Shiya did not even attempt to hide what he was doing, and he could instantly sense the sheer changes in the atmospheric Heavenly Energy.
In that instant, Zhou Weiqing had sudden illusion in his heart, as if Long Shiya had become the dictator, the controller of the entire world around. Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light, Darkness… the six different Attribute Heavenly Energy did not fuse together, instead spinning about in perfect synchrony, arranging themselves around his body like soldiers, ready to listen to his orders and follow them at any time.
Long Shiya's right hand waved gently, and immediately the six Attribute Heavenly Energies in the air each split out a strand, flying right in front of him before merging into a six coloured knife of light. Behind his back, the now-familiar Heavenly Skill Image of himself appeared.
"The true profound secrets behind the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is in the words fusion and mixing. Towards those Heavenly Jewel Masters with multiple Attributes, fusion has always been an important lesson to learn. However, for most of them, when going through fusion of multiple Attributes. It would take a massive amount of Heavenly Energy while doing such an unstable task, and more so to maintain it. The more attributes one tried to fuse, the more difficult it would be. However, for my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, the secret lies in using the formation to undergo any fusion, and not just mere Heavenly Energy control. In this way, the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation actually becomes the vessel which contains and controls the fusion, allowing the fusion without the Attributes clashing."
As Zhou Weiqing listened to Long Shiya's explanation, his eyes grew wider in surprise. Such a thing was possible?!
He was no longer the little newbie who had first become a Heavenly Jewel Master those few years ago with Shangguan Bing'er, not knowing anything. Although Long Shiya said it so simply, he instantly understood the sheer audacity and meaning behind those words.
No matter how many Attributes, they would not clash? That meant that even if one tried to fuse as many Attributes, it would still be easy! Furthermore, his Master was using the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation to unleash all the various Fusion Attribute Skills using atmospheric Heavenly Energy, not his own personal Heavenly Energy. Under such a circumstance, even when unleashing an extremely powerful Fusion Skill, it would not take a huge toll on himself, and his sustainability in combat was also terrifying indeed. With the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, he would not need to worry about running out of Heavenly Energy.
From Zhou Weiqing's eyes, Long Shiya could tell that he already understood what he meant. He continued his explanation: "There are many underlying profound secrets to the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation. Previously, the basic Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts that I taught you can be counted as a beginner's test… to test your powers of understanding and your temperament. Although you are a little dumb, at least you are very hardworking and willing to exert yourself to learn. Now, you can truly inherit the profound secrets of my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation."
"In our world, there are six pivot points. North, South, East, West, Heavens above and the Earth below. As such, the basis of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is that one must have at least six-Jeweled cultivation level or higher; otherwise the formation cannot be complete. This was the reason why I have never taken a disciple before I met you. A Heavenly Jewel Master with Six Attributes is just too rare. In my entire memory, amongst all the many Heavenly Jewel Masters I have seen, only you and I, Master and Disciple, have that ability."
"Little Fatty, you will need to listen carefully to all my subsequent words. The most difficult part about learning the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is in actually forming it, its very base structure. However, once you can actually form it completely, then all Skills will be truly within your reach, and it will just be a matter of practice and familiarizing yourself with them and improving."
"Master, I have a question." Right at that moment, Zhou Weiqing asked. "Your Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation will fully control all Heavenly Energy within, and you will be the sole ruler in there. However, that needs the Heavenly Dao Energy as foundation and basis right? I have not reached the Heavenly Dao Energy stage, can I actually unleash the full power of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation? Another question is… if you meet a powerhouse of the same level, what if he purposely disrupts or destroys the Heavenly Energy rhythm or patterns around your Formation?"
Long Shiya looked at Zhou Weiqing with surprise before nodding in satisfaction: "Not bad at all. Just from a quick look, you can already think of such problems, that means you are not stupid after all. Indeed, before you reach the Heavenly Dao Energy stage, the full power of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is still limited for you."
"That is because at this stage, even after you have successfully set up the formation, you will still be depending on your own Heavenly Energy for fusing Skills, not the atmospheric Heavenly Energy. However, do not forget that within the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, there will not be any clash in the various attributes due to fusion. As such, you can still be able to have most of the benefits of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, mainly the easier fusion of the powerful skills. Furthermore, you have already reached the Heavenly Xu Stage. Even if you aren't able to fully manipulate the atmospheric energies, you should already be starting to be able to borrow their powers slightly. More importantly, you have one major factor that would differentiate you from other Heavenly Jewel Masters – your Immortal Deity Technique and those wings that appear during your Dragon-Tiger Transformation. With those, your recovery rate of Heavenly Energy far surpasses any Heavenly Jewel Master of your level, or even above you. Under such a circumstance, the drawback of the current you using the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is pretty much negated, and I do not foresee any problems."
"As for your second question, I can answer you very simply. Unless my opponent is able to kill me off with a single powerful blow, otherwise the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation will not be so easily broken. The key of the matter is that with the pivotal points of the Formation being formed with the six Elemental Jewels is Heavenly Dao[1. 天道, as I translated literally to Heavenly Dao here for the type of energy, also means natural law or the will of heaven], and how can the Heavenly Dao be so easily disrupted by humans? Even if the Heavenly Energy that the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation controls is influenced by outside factors, once I draw them into the Formation, it will automatically harmonize them once more. I have spent seventy long years labouring on my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, and all of those problems you mentioned and more, I have considered them and tested or accounted for them."
Zhou Weiqing's eyes were filled with respect. Seventy years of hard work. It was just a simple line when spoken, but once could just imagine the sheer difficulty of the task, and he was once again filled with heartfelt respect for his teacher.
Long Shiya gave a faint sigh and said: "Regrettably, I did not manage to break through the Heavenly King Stage before the age of thirty; otherwise I would have the chance to break through the Heavenly Shen Stage, and be able to form the Dual Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation that I have theorized for a while now. That Old Monster Xue would then be just a joke in front of me. Who knows… perhaps I would even have the chance to break through to the Heavenly Transformation Stage."
"Heavenly Transformation? What is that?" Zhou Weiqing asked curiously.
Long Shiya explained: "Heavenly Transformation… that is a higher stage than even the Heavenly Shen Stage. Legend speaks of it, that it once existed. If one can break through past the twelve stages of the Heavenly Jewels, breaking past the maximum Heavenly Shen stage… then it is possible to produce a thirteenth Power Jewel. With that, one would have the power to control the heavens. Of course, whether or not this Heavenly Transformation truly exists is not known to living humans, and even in the oldest of records, they do not have any details."
Zhou Weiqing nodded. At most, he had some interest upon hearing about the Heavenly Transformation, not any obsession. After all, his current cultivation level was just too far away to even think about such things now.
"Master, in that case, since your Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation is so powerful… even if you have not reached the Heavenly Shen Stage cultivation stage, with the aid of it, your Six Attributes and the Max Heavenly Emperor stage, are you still not able to win that Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord?"
Long Shiya's brow furrowed, clearly remembering some bad memories. With a bitter smile, he said: "How could it be so easy? Do you really think the Heavenly Shen Stage is that easily reached? Although our Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation can be said to be extremely profound and great, but it is not invincible, with its own faults. Little Fatty, you must remember that in this world, things are fair. If you want to go against the heavens, you will need to pay the price."
"For our Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, there are two main weaknesses. Firstly, power. The greatest power that the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation can unleash will always be limited by maximum of the user's own personal strength. That is to say, even if I am the one using the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, the offensive strength of it will be limited to the maximum Heavenly Emperor stage. No matter what, it will never reach the Heavenly God Tier stage. Of course, that is not considering Consolidated Equipment, as well as the Set bonuses on top of that… with all that there is still room for growth. However, just depending on the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, with your current cultivation level, you will still at most be able to wield power of the Six Jeweled cultivation level. However, with that offensive power, the amount of Heavenly Energy you will need to use is extremely minimal, and our Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts have always been famed for our sustainability in combat."
"The second limitation of the formation lies in the Skills. Once you use the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, you will not be able to use the Skills you have Stored in your Elemental Jewels. Unless you terminate the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, otherwise you will only be able to use your simulated Skills."
"The reason is simple. The Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation allows us to ignore the restraints of fusing all our six Attributes of Heavenly Energy, but it can't make use of the different Skills to come up with the same effect."
Only then did Zhou Weiqing realise that what Long Shiya had previously said was just so true. In this world, there was no such thing as truly going against the rules of heavens. The Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation would allow him to gain much, but at the same time he would have to lose something. It would be up to him to weigh the advantages and disadvantages, as well as how to use each to his maximum benefit.
Long Shiya looked at Zhou Weiqing's slightly disappointed look, and he clapped him on the shoulders encouragingly, saying: "Little Fatty. You are different for me. Perhaps… the heights that I have never reached, you will be able to reach them in the future."
"Ahh?" Zhou Weiqing looked at his master, puzzled.
Long Shiya nodded at him and said: "Although you also have Six Elemental Attributes like myself, but amongst your six Attributes, you have two of the Saint Attributes, the Demonic and Time Attributes. You know very clearly how much more powerful these two Attributes are… and how they truly live up to their names as Saint Attributes. As such, no matter your Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts or Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, your offensive power will reach a greater height than myself. I estimate you will be able to go beyond your current cultivation level. Furthermore, you also have the Dragon-Tiger Transformation that I do not have… due to the fact that you did not have the Fire Attribute element, the Solidified Dragon Spirit has instead spent all of its energy reconstructing and improving your body."
Chapter 507: Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation! (2)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
"With the Solidified Dragon Spirit merging with your original Demonic Change State, it has had an unbelievable benefit to your body, and even more, it does not have any clash with the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formations. Adding your 'Hate Ground no Handle' Legendary Set… all of these together, even I am not certain to what degree the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts can bring you to."
As he spoke up to this point, Long Shiya's words turned grave and earnest. "Furthermore, these Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts were created by your Master, me. However, your talent is not below mine at all… don't you think you can have the ambition to further improve it? I believe that the future of the world is in your hands. In less than twenty years, I doubt that anyone in the entire Boundless Mainland will be a match for you. The target I have set for you is to reach the Heavenly King Stage before the age of thirty, Heavenly Emperor before the age of forty. Beyond that… that will depend on yourself."
Yes, Master. I will definitely not disappoint you." In Long Shiya's eyes, Zhou Weiqing could see a deep affection and appreciation. He knew that although his Master often made fun of him, saying he was stupid or things like that… in truth, he was extremely satisfied with him.
At the same time, although Zhou Weiqing did not speak of it, it did not mean he did not know how well Long Shiya treated him. For his sake, his master had spent so much time and effort to bring him all the way here, spending all the time here with him protecting him as he Awakened his Solidified Dragon Spirit. For his sake, his Master would even bring him up to the Heavenly Snow Mountain… he knew that although Long Shiya seemed to be dismissive of the Heavenly Snow Mountain, how could he not know the danger of doing so? It was the strongest powerhouse in the entire world after all!
For him, Long Shiya had even sacrificed his own reputation, going against his own conscience to grab Little Witch for him. Although these past few days Zhou Weiqing had been fully caught up in testing his body's new limits as well as training, and he had not had time to think about his emotions, feelings or relationships. However, everything else aside, even if it were just for his Master's reputation, he could not possibly abandon Little Witch. After all, he had been the one who had stolen her virtue, conscious or not.
Amongst all of Zhou Weiqing's teachers, the one he had spent the least time with was Huyan Aobo, the longest time, Mu En. However, the one who had truly touched him the most was Long Shiya. In truth, his feelings for Long Shiya now were more like father and son, and this newest teacher of his was not nearly as strict as his father's steel-like personality.
As such, Zhou Weiqing might have only spoken a very simple sentence, a simple promise. However, that pledge was filled with his determination. He would not let Long Shiya down, no matter what. Otherwise, how could he be worthy of all that his Master and all that he had done for him?
In the subsequent time, Long Shiya started officially teaching Zhou Weiqing about all the profound secrets of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts. Just the theory alone took him more than a day to pass on, and what followed next was personally teaching every technique and trick to the entire Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, helping Zhou Weiqing structure his own personal Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation.
It was far more difficult to construct Zhou Weiqing's personal Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation than Long Shiya had expected. Originally, when he had constructed his Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation, due to his six Attributes all being elemental in nature, it was relatively easier to stabilize. Although the Light and Darkness attributes were stronger than the other four Attributes, they were opposing in nature, allowing them to form the two apex of the formation to maintain stability.
However, for Zhou Weiqing's situation, it was different. What were his six Attributes? Wind, Lightning, Darkness, Spatial, Demonic and Time.
Of the six Attributes, besides the Wind Attribute, the other five were not ordinary at all. The Lightning Attribute was considered a 'mutated' Attribute of sorts, while Darkness and Spatial were all Greater Attributes, while Demonic and Time were Saint Attributes. It was definitely not easy to find a balance.
Without finding a right balance, a Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation that belonged to Zhou Weiqing could not be constructed. Yet, that balance point was just too difficult to find.
The Time and Demonic Attributes might both be Saint Attributes, but unlike the Light and Darkness Attributes, they were not polar attributes that could play off each other. Instead, they could be said to have no relation at all, and could not be used as apex points. It was the same case for the Spatial and Darkness Attributes.
For a time, even Long Shiya was stuck, totally at a loss.
In that critical moment, suddenly inspiration struck Zhou Weiqing. He finally thought of something… since their situation differed so much between him and Long Shiya, perhaps their actual Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation had to be different as well. After some serious pursuing of that line of thought, he came up with an idea.
Long Shiya's Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation was an equilateral hexagon, and the idea that Zhou Weiqing had would have his own formation taking a different shape… a star-shaped hexagon of two triangles stacked upon the other.
Why two triangles? The reason was naturally because of the word balance once more. Within Zhou Weiqing's Six Attributes, there were two Saint Attributes, two Greater Attributes, and two relatively 'normal' Attributes.
Since there was no way to apply a balance from the Attributes themselves, with no link between any of his Attributes, Zhou Weiqing decided he might as well keep them separated. The Lightning, Darkness and Demonic Attributes in a group to form the first triangle, and the Wind, Spatial and Time Attributes together in the second group to form another triangle.
This arrangement was not at random as well. Simply put, the Demonic Attribute and Darkness Attribute did share some commonalities, and the Time and Spatial Attributes did so as well.
As for the Lightning Attribute, since it came from the Dark Demon God along with the Darkness and Demonic Attributes, he decided to put them together. Similarly for the Wind Attribute, it was what he often worked together with Spatial and Time Attribute for Consolidating Equipment Master work, and that was a tentative relationship at least. Once the six Attributes were separated as such, the each of the two triangles could form a balance within themselves. Once the two triangles were stacked together to form the star-shaped hexagon, the center would automatically form an ordinary equilateral hexagon shape as well, allowing the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation to fall into place neatly.
When Long Shiya heard Zhou Weiqing's idea, he was so surprised that his jaw almost dropped. Although he did not know if this could work, he was certain that just from theory alone, this had a high probability of working.
The most important thing for the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts was balance, and since Zhou Weiqing had found his own balance between his six Attributes, it was definitely worth giving it a shot. In Long Shiya's own experiments, his personal Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation had to be an equilateral hexagon before it worked… but his attributes were very different from Zhou Weiqing. Who was to say that Zhou Weiqing's star-shaped hexagon could not succeed? Perhaps, it might even have a better effect?
As such, the master and disciple pair started a fresh round of experiments.
Despite being unfamiliar with the entire process, Zhou Weiqing had Long Shiya guiding him from the side, even using his own Heavenly Energy to guide in the process, and it was much easier to form the basic structure in such a case. Even so, they experienced failure after failure. The reason was simple – forming the two triangles were simple, but when stacking them together, it had to be perfectly precise. Even with Long Shiya's help, it was not easy for Zhou Weiqing to do so.
"Master, do you think we can actually succeed?" After yet another failure, Zhou Weiqing finally said, dejection and unreconciled vexation in his eyes.
Long Shiya glanced at him and said: "Do not ask me. Ask yourself. In this world, nothing is impossible. It is just a matter of how much we are willing to put in, what price we are willing to pay when doing something. Originally, when I first came up with my Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts, I did not have anyone to teach me, and I could only slowly structure my personal Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation at a painstakingly slow speed, fumbling my way in the darkness and slowly perfecting it. Did you think it was easy even forming an equilateral hexagon formation? It took me five years of my life, working full time on it, to finally complete it. Compared to me, you have far fewer wrong paths to tread upon. If you are going to give up just after a few days, then perhaps you are not worthy of these arts after all."
Zhou Weiqing's heart gripped in stern warning, and he bowed, saying: "Master, I am wrong. Let us continue."
Long Shiya nodded. The most satisfactory part about Zhou Weiqing was that he would not dwell on things, able to listen to other's opinions and suggestions.
The six Alexandrite Cat's Eye Elemental Jewels swirled around Zhou Weiqing's left wrist, glowing brilliantly. Zhou Weiqing took a deep breath and centered himself once more, focusing hard as the wings spread out behind his back, beating gently. The various Attribute Heavenly Energy in the atmosphere also swirled around, welling into his body.
Abruptly, Zhou Weiqing's eyes lit up. With a slight flick of his left hand, the six slowly spinning Alexandrite Cat's Eye Jewels sped up, floating up into the air, each of them undergoing a different change.
These few days of tough training was not without any results. At least, to this beginning procedure, Zhou Weiqing was already extremely familiar.
The Six Alexandrite Cat's Eye turned into different colours, according to the various Attributes. The rubellite representing Wind, Emperor Sapphire representing Lightning, the chrysoberyl cat's eye representing Spatial, black opal for Darkness, and lastly an unknown grey gemstone that represented the Demonic Attribute and a translucent, almost transparent gemstone representing time.
The Six Elemental Jewels glowed brilliantly in their respective colours, floating before Zhou Weiqing.
No matter Physical Jewels or Elemental Jewels, to any Heavenly Jewel Master, they were their most important Personal Power Jewels, and could be said to be part of their own bodies. Forcing their Personal Power Jewels to leave their bodies like that was quite a dangerous act; not only did it require a large amount of Heavenly Energy to do so, it also required sufficient spiritual energy to control it.
Under the control of Zhou Weiqing's will and Heavenly Energy, the six Elemental Jewels slowly split into two groups, forming two triangles; with each group floating in front of Zhou Weiqing on either side. Currently, his brow was matted with sweat, which poured down the side of his face as he was in full concentration.
Very slowly, very carefully, Zhou Weiqing started moving the two groups simultaneously to the center, right in front of him. Floating above was the single triangle, and below the other in reverse. Soon after, the two slowly floated towards each other.
In truth, the success or failure of the formation was all in a single key instant. Besides his own control, there was a measure of luck involved as well. Not only to maintain the balance between all six Elemental Jewels, but also for the six Attributes to actually form the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formations and start operating at the same time in unison.
The process of forming the structure was actually not complicated at all, but success was definitely not easily achieved. In the past few days alone, Zhou Weiqing had already tried more than a hundred times. Every time, he always felt like he was about to succeed, but it always resulted in failure at the last possible second. Such a feeling was extremely terrible indeed, each and every time a continued blow to his confidence.
However, having just listened to his Master's lecture, Zhou Weiqing's faith had been renewed, and conviction blazed in his eyes once again. As the two triangles came together slowly, one could sense the various different fields of energy each of the six Elemental Jewels were emitting, and the forced warping as they approached each other.
Chapter 508: Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation! (3)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
In that moment, Zhou Weiqing suddenly entered an unknown, rather miraculous or fantastic state. He did not know what had happened, as all his senses seemed to magnify several times over, everything surrounding him becoming exceedingly clear. The six Elemental Attributes and their energy fields were all fully presented in his subconscious, every ebb and flow, reverberation, energy movement displayed before his eyes.
Abruptly, delight sparked in Zhou Weiqing's eyes as comprehension dawned upon him. He realised that if he did not fully grasp and master all those energy reverberations, even if he tried another hundred thousand more times, million times, he would never succeed.
Even within the same group, the three Elemental Jewels had extremely different energy signatures and reverberations, almost drastically different.
As he slowly began to understand the sheer magnitude of the task before him, Zhou Weiqing did not immediately try to gain control. Instead, he did not move at all, allowing himself to stay in that strange, miraculous state, observing every single change in all the six Elemental Jewels. Every tiny miniscule change, any ebb or flow, slightest movement or change… all of it imprinted into his mind.
At the side, Long Shiya was a little surprised to see Zhou Weiqing freeze like that. Naturally, he knew it was a very troublesome process while merging the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formations. However, sensing the energy fields and signatures of the various Elemental Jewels was not something that could be simply taught or spoken about.
This was something that had to be discovered by oneself, to stumble in the dark and grasp it. If he told Zhou Weiqing about it beforehand, he would definitely intentionally be seeking it, and the likely result would be that he would never be able to find it. He could only hope that with Zhou Weiqing's intelligence and power of understanding, he would be able to understand it eventually.
Currently, when he clearly saw Zhou Weiqing's originally urgent and impatient eyes calmed down abruptly, and the six Elemental Jewels floating in front of him settled down in stillness. Not only then, within those deep purple eyes of Zhou Weiqing's, a brilliant light shone, and Long Shiya could sense a powerful spiritual energy reverberation from his body… despite the fact that Zhou Weiqing did not have the Spirit Attribute. Such a powerful spiritual energy reverberation was far beyond any Upper Level Zun Stage Heavenly Jewel Master.
"This is… power from the Solidified Dragon Spirit?! Or… perhaps that strange tiger bloodline he has…?" Even Long Shiya was left puzzled. In truth, one could say that no matter a Dragon or the Dark Demon God Tiger, both had extremely powerful spiritual energy. When both their bloodlines were fused together, there was a qualitative change, causing their spiritual energy to become even stronger. As Zhou Weiqing focused his full attention, it also slowly brought up this powerful spiritual energy for his use, otherwise his senses could not have boosted to such a degree in an instant.
A faint smile. A faint smile revealed upon Zhou Weiqing's face, as the two triangles in front of him slowly started to show change.
Lightning, Darkness, Demonic. The three Elemental Jewels shone with a gentle light. Slowly, the triangle started spinning, the individual light which each gave forth growing stronger as time passed.
What followed next was the triangle with the Wind, Spatial and Time Attributes, also starting to spin, but in a different direction.
From just the outlook alone, with the two triangles both spinning, it would be even more difficult to merge together. However, Long Shiya watching calmly at the side knew fully that Zhou Weiqing was allowing the two triangles to maintain a temporary balance before bringing them to the actual fusion. In this way, as long as the two moving energy frequencies reached a compatible state, they could be fused together, and not like previously attempting to match six energy signatures.
As the two triangles moved closer to one another, six different colours started flashing in the center, in erratic fluctuations. At this moment, Zhou Weiqing once again stopped the two triangles. This was not a time to advance too quickly and impulsively, otherwise he would fail on the last moment again.
The reason he stopped the two triangles was simple – to wait for resonance between the two. Perhaps, it would be a long wait, but this was after all a resonance between two. It was a simple matter of probability, waiting for it to happen between two energy signatures was definitely a greater chance than between six energy signatures!
Time passed, seconds… then minutes… Zhou Weiqing's forehead was now beaded with fine drops of sweat. To maintain the six Elemental Jewels in such a manner was a huge toll on his Heavenly Energy and Spiritual Energy. Even though the wings behind his back was drawing in Heavenly Energy from the atmosphere, it was still far from being sufficient to replenish the massive drain.
15 minutes… half hour… one hour…
Zhou Weiqing still maintained in the exact same position, not having even moved a muscle as he maintained full control on the two triangles, keeping them both in the same position as they spun away. The only visible change was the gathering sweat on his forehead was clearly much more than before.
Zhou Weiqing's vision was starting to blur, the two spinning triangles seeming to turn almost illusory, unreal. Maintaining full concentration and focus for such a long period of time, no matter how strong his spiritual energy was, there was still a limit.
This is it, I'm at my limit… I can't hold on any longer. No matter Heavenly Energy or Spiritual Energy, Zhou Weiqing was already nearing the limit. However, he was at the awkward position that he could not allow himself to breakdown now, as his six Elemental Jewels were separated from his body. If he did not withdraw them back before breaking down, then he was in danger of losing his Power Jewels permanently. If that really happened; even the best case scenario would be him being crippled for life.
I guess this is it. I'll rest a while and try again. Zhou Weiqing sighed deeply inwardly. Just as he was prepared to withdraw his six Elemental Jewels with a fluctuation of his will, all of a sudden the two triangles shuddered momentarily. In that moment, Zhou Weiqing sensed that the two triangles had suddenly miraculously entered a state of perfect resonance.
Not a hint of warning, happiness just came too quickly. Of course, Zhou Weiqing had prepared for this for so long; how could he possibly give up this long-awaited chance.
His spiritual energy exerting at maximum in that instant, and the two triangles came together at once, accompanied by a loud explosion, all six Elemental Jewels glowing brightly as they burst forth with energy. The original two triangles suddenly became a full star-shaped hexagon as they merged together, and the six different coloured lights rose forth, a powerful Heavenly Energy reverberation resonating through the entire air.
Instantly, Zhou Weiqing could clearly sense that the last bits of remaining Heavenly Energy in his body being drained at a crazy rate by the six glowing lights, his entire body felt like it was being sucked dry. At this critical moment, an unbelievably pure Heavenly Energy surged into his body through his back, replenishing his almost fully-drained reserves at the last second. At the same time, the six lights in front of him shone brilliantly, and they clearly changed.
Success! At that point, Zhou Weiqing could clearly sense the harmony between all six Attributes. No matter how exhausted he was physically, mentally and spiritually; he would not give up such a perfect opportunity. Hiw own personal Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation had finally been formed, and this was his chance to fully explore its entire structure, energy signature and multitude of changes within. He did not dare to waste anytime celebrating; once again putting his full focus in controlling his spiritual energy. The six lights slowly lowered down to his feet, and Zhou Weiqing sat down right at the side of the newly raised formation, closing his eyes as he extended all his senses to their maximum to explore the formation and the energy reverberations around.
Although Zhou Weiqing's Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation did not have the same bright brilliance that Long Shiya's one did; and it was also currently unable to unleash the same insane power that Long Shiya could, able to mimic Heavenly God Tier Skills. However, he had finally taken his first step in this major breakthrough. It could be said that he had finally entered the realm of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts and achieved some small measure of success.
A faint smile crossed his lips, his face glowing as he placed his hands on his knees, still fully concentrating on the six Attribute Heavenly Energy reverberations in front of him.
At present, Long Shiya was standing right behind Zhou Weiqing. Indeed, at that previous moment of near-failure, that infusion of pure Heavenly Energy had been from this Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor. Currently, he was standing there, a clear look of delight on his face. It had only been a few days, and his disciple had already succeeded! More so, that Little Fatty's Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation was totally different from his own, and Long Shiya was truly excited to see what sort of differences would occur from that.
After all, Long Shiya had been researching these arts for so many years, and he could clearly sense that this newly created Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Formation by Zhou Weiqing was truly a miraculous feat in its own right, and would have its own unique capabilities compared to his own. As for what those changes were, he would have to wait for Zhou Weiqing to awaken from his own explorations to find out.
Slowly pulling back his hands from Zhou Weiqing's back, Long Shiya stopped the infusion of Heavenly Energy to Zhou Weiqing. At this moment, he no longer needed the extra infusion; the fusion had been complete and the wings behind his back from the Dragon-Tiger Transformation was sufficient to sustain his energy expenditure.
There was still some time before their deadline of the Winter Solstice [1. I previously translated this literally as 'coldest day of winter', after some reading I think this should be referring to the Winter Solstice, though technically that is the 'shortest day' or 'longest night' of winter. In any case I'll use it from now on when that term is used. Haven't been reading comments in the past few chapters so I'm not sure if anyone already mentioned this previously], and Zhou Weiqing's training speed and achievements had already far surpassed Long Shiya's previous expectations. From the looks of things, they would be able to prepare more before they ascended the Heavenly Snow Mountain.
Thinking about it with much satisfaction, Long Shiya's gaze subconsciously turned towards the direction of the Heavenly Snow Mountain.
…
Heavenly Snow Mountain.
The normally cold and cheerless, almost desolate Heavenly Snow Mountain, had suddenly turned lively, bustling with noise and excitement. The reason was simple, the 'True God' of the entire northern ice plains, the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord, had announced that his daughter was about to be married. Furthermore, the person she was about to be married to was the heir of the throne of the Royal Family of the WanShou Empire, the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions, and he could possibly even be the heir to the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord position as well… the Lion Prince Gu Yingbing. Not long ago, Gu Yingbing had actually officially announced that he would be stepping down from the position of heir to the Royal Family, to focus on cultivation and training in the Heavenly Snow Mountains.
Of course, this news did not cause Gu Yingbing's status in the WanShou Empire to drop by any means, instead rising in stock drastically. The entire WanShou Empire knew of Gu Yingbing, and how talented and outstanding he was. Although he did not succeed in breaking through the Heavenly King Stage before the age of thirty, he was still one of the top in the entire younger generation, a leader in his own right amongst his peers. Just not long ago, he had broken through to the nine-Jeweled stage at the extremely young age of thirty two, becoming a Upper Stage Zong Stage Heavenly Jewel Master, just a step away from reaching the Heavenly King Stage.
As the saying went, breaking through to the Heavenly King Stage before the age of thirty would give one the chance to actually reach the Heavenly God Stage, but that was not an absolute thing. The main thing was that the early one broke through to the Heavenly King Stage, the greater the chance one would actually have to actually reach the Heavenly God Stage, however low that was still.
Furthermore, Gu YingBing was the main disciple of the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord, with all the resources of the entire north at his disposal. Who could say that Gu Yingbing would not reach the same height as the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord, to ascend to the Heavenly God Stage in the future?
Chapter 509: True might of Emperor! (1)
Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
As such, as Gu YingBing announced that he was giving up the Royal Heir position, it would revert back to the Divine Heavenly Spirit Tiger bloodlines. From then on, the stock of the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions in the entire WanShou Empire grew, to such a height that no one could shake, not even the Divine Heavenly Spirit Tigers who were at the same level.
The Divine Heavenly Spirit Tiger and Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lion bloodlines had always been at the head of the entire north. One bloodline would be in charge of the Heavenly Snow Mountain, and the other would then be in charge of the Empire. This was a rule that had been passed down from their ancestors long past, and both bloodlines could be said to be inseparably interconnected in complementing each other; no one would ever dare to destroy such an equilibrium. In the entire WanShou Empire, the Lion Tribe and Tiger Tribes could be said to be the two strongest tribes absolutely. Each of them had five Regiments of soldiers, and the two tribes combined was already more than a fifth of the entire WanShou Empire armies… furthermore, they were undoubtedly the strongest fifth!
No matter the Lion Tribe or the Tiger Tribe Regiments, when they entered the battlefield, they always brought about the blood of their enemies as well as their defeat. Of course, in the recent history, these two tribes seldom participated in the war against humans. After all, the war against the humans were mostly raids meant for looting, not an actual invasion.
In the entire WanShou Empire, there were over a hundred Beastmen Tribes in total, large or small. Amongst them, those which could actually form an effective fighting force numbered at least a few dozen, but only about a dozen to a score actually could form an entire proper Regiment that was accepted into the army. Of those tribes, all their leaders and chiefs were all heading towards the Heavenly Snow Mountain; with those at a closer distance having already reached.
The war in the north was already closing in on the end. After all, every year the battles on lasted for two months. Furthermore, in a few days time, it would be the Winter Solstice, also the the date that the marriage between the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord's daughter and the Lion Prince. This wedding was definitely considered far more important than a mere annual skirmish on the borders.
Of course, this year's war between the human Empires could be said to be the worst in history. The main reason was naturally the ZhongTian NorthWest Army area. During that fight, due to a unique new troop in the ZhongTian NorthWest Army, the WanShou Empire had suffered an unprecedentedly massive loss. Worse still, since the larger army had been sent to the NorthWest side, the successful raiding from the other zones were actually slightly less than normal.
The North had now fallen into deep winter, and even the Beastmen Tribesmen would be hard pressed to continue fighting. They had no choice but to retreat at the usual time, but this time they had not succeeded in raiding and looting enough resources, and it would not be an easy winter for the WanShou Empire to get by. They would probably have to dig deep into their reserves to survive the winter.
…
At the peak of the Heavenly Snow Mountain, the weather was as severe and bitter as normal, a stark contrast from the warmth at the feet of the Ten Thousand Beast Heavens that was at the feet of the immense mountain; a contrast that was definitely hard to take for many.
Since the early morning, Gu Yingbing had been standing at the entrance of the Heavenly Snow Mountain Castle, personally receiving all the incoming guests. His long, fiery golden-red hair whipped in the cold wind, but he seemed unaffected by the bitter cold, even dressed in the simple thin golden red robes he was adorned in. Currently, he had a warm, welcoming smile on his face, a far cry from his usual haughty and heroic demeanor.
After all, he was about to be married… married to his most beloved Tian'er. How could Gu Yingbing not be overjoyed? Furthermore, marrying Tian'er would also mean he would be confirmed as his teacher's heir, to become the next Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord.
His Master would definitely go all out in assisting his own cultivation, aiding him in reaching the necessary power to inherit the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord post.
More importantly, he truly did love Tian'er in his heart. At the same time, the Divine Heavenly Spirit Tigers had a great draw towards the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions.
The Divine Heavenly Spirit Tigers' bloodline was slightly higher grade than that of the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions', and they had held control of the Heavenly Snow Mountain all these years. Perhaps, it was finally a time for change this generation. Of course, that would mean the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions would lose the Royal Crown, but in comparison to the throne of the WanShou Empire, the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord position was far more important! As long as the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord wished it, a simple order could replace even the king! To the entire North, perhaps the Royal Family was able to command all the Tribes, but the Heavenly Snow Mountain was tantamount to being the totem of the entire WanShou Empire. He could finally be the pride of the entire Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lion Tribe.
The guests came in a constant stream, their gifts were all the most precious items in the entire north. Of course, accepting gifts was not a task that Gu Yingbing needed to personally do. Much earlier, the WanShou Emperor, the Lion King Gu Si Te, had sent two hundred disciples from the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lions to help out. Just like that, there was a slight feel that the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lion Tribe was starting to become the master of the Heavenly Snow Mountain.
Naturally, only those incoming guests, the heads of the various tribes could sense that. These bloodline disciples of the Heavenly Divine Earth Spirit Lion Tribe were still very respectful towards the people of the Heavenly Snow Mountain.
…
Deep within the Heavenly Snow Mountain Castle.
Tian'er sat on her bed silently, not moving an inch. She was dressed in a white full dress, her similarly white hair hanging down behind her back. The two blue strips of hair in front seemed to have lost their original lustre. Sitting there, she seemed like a beautiful statue… a lifeless one to boot.
All of a sudden, a faint glow appeared, and the Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord appeared out of nowhere with a single step. Looking at his daughter like that, Xue AoTian couldn't help but furrow his brow.
These few days, Tian'er had stopped cultivating at all, just spending all her time sitting there silently as if deep in thought, yet at the same time strangely not thinking at all. Only when he came with Gu YingBing came would she speak a few words.
"Tian'er, it's your big day in two days time. Although it is tradition that the bride does not appear in public, you should be happier. After all, you already agreed to marry Gu Yingbing; you should be a good wife." Xue AoTian said solemnly.
Tian'er lifted her head to look at her father, her empty eyes finally with a slight light within. With a faint smile, she said: "Father, don't worry, I will definitely marry Big Bro Gu, I won't let you down."
Seeing that obviously forced smile on his daughter's face, Xue AoTian felt that something was off. Walking towards Tian'er, he placed a hand gently on her forehead, but he did not find anything wrong with her.
"Father." Tian"er said in rebuke.
Xue AoTian sighed gently and said: "You're still thinking about that human brat?"
Tian'er's heart flinched slightly, and she gave a forced smile before saying: "No, of course I'm not! How could I be thinking of him. Father, I'm already going to marry Big Bro Gu, don't mention that person anymore; if Bro Gu hears about it, he will not be happy."
Xue AoTian smiled and said: "Father is very happy that you are sensible enough to say that."
Tian'er smiled and said: "Father, both you and Big Bro Gu have promised me that as long as I marry him, you two will not hurt Zhou Weiqing, right? Big Bro Gu has already beaten him up previously… and I will not have any other association with him in the future, no matter what. So please, Father, do not mention him again, and do not go and hurt h im alright?"
Xue AoTian nodded and said: "Of course, since when have I not kept my promises? Sigh… I must say that if not for your … connection with him, I truly do feel like bringing him back to teach him a lesson… he is truly an outstanding youth with a bright future ahead. Although this time due to your Big Bro Gu, he has been unable to join in the battlefield, that whatever Peerless Battalion of his has given us quite a big loss."
"Father, please do not say anymore. I do not want to know anything else about him." Tian'er suddenly burst out violently.
Xue AoTian did feel apologetic and regretful towards his daughter, and he just smiled faintly and said: "Alright, Father will not speak of this anymore. You just have a good rest then. I hope that my Tian'er will be the most beautiful bride in the world."
…
Xue AoTian left the room. After a while, Tian'er's hands subconsciously gripped her bed sheets tightly, her impassive face finally showing some emotion as she said softly: "Little Fatty… Little Fatty… I'm so sorry. I'm truly sorry… I cannot keep the promise that we made each other previously. I had no choice but to write that letter to you… to hurt you… However, I had no choice… if I did not do so, Big Bro Gu would definitely kill you. You still have Bing'er… she can still be with you and take care of you… Sorry Little Fatty, I cannot be your wife anymore. However, do not worry, as I said before, Tian'er will only ever belong to you. A good woman will not have a second husband. In my heart, you will always be my only man. Once the wedding ceremony between myself and Big Bro Gu is complete and both his and my father's face can be satisfied, I will leave this world forever… clean and proper… I will make sure I give a good act that I have passed from cultivation issues. Little Fatty, even if I go to the next world, I will pray for you and Bing'er…"
As she thought up to that point, Tian'er could no longer control her tears, and she fell down onto her bed sobbing, face down. She did not hold any hope in her heart, as she knew Zhou Weiqing's strength was just too low now. There was no longer any possibility between the two of them. She did not regret any of her choices; if she could just choose again, the only change she would ever make would be to stay a longer time on the Heavenly Jewel Island with Zhou Weiqing, to make more precious happy memories with him. All these past few days, the only thing that had given her strength to get through those miserable days were all the memories of them together, immersing herself in them all day long.
The normally chilly and empty Heavenly Snow Castle was now decorated with bright lights and coloured hanging decorations, bustling with life. It was now getting very close to the wedding, and the clash and noise of drums and gongs rang out. The entire Heavenly Snow Mountain was also extraordinarily lively due to the arrival of the various tribe leaders and officials.
The Heavenly Snow Mountain Lord's daughter marrying out, it was definitely a major event. Although there were still two more days before the day of marriage, all the invited guests had arrived, and even some of those who weren't invited had also come.
Standing at the entrance of the Heavenly Snow Castle, the smile on Gu Yingbing's face had not lessened a bit. Seeing the sky darken as night was coming, and most guests had already come, and he was about to head in. However, just as he was about to do so, 2 figures appeared in the distance, one fat, one thin, trudging up the path. Gu Yingbing's feet stopped instantly, the smile on his face vanishing, a chilly expression flashing across his face.
The one walking at the front was a large fatty, dressed in black. The reason why Gu Yingbing stopped suddenly and had his face change was naturally because of the black clothing of the large fatty. In the Heavenly Snow Mountain, black was a taboo colour, and anyone who arrived on the mountain was supposed to change to white.