Chapter 53: Dong Bo Xue Ying, a Legend ranker?
Translator: Radiant
Editor: Radiant
"This is the last piece, and also the most important one," Xue Ying displayed a pendant containing a transparent sphere within. "This pendant could store up to a Heaven mage's worth of magic power. After all, as you do not have much magic power, using all the various mage equipment would be very taxing on your body. Thus, use the time now to store up enough energy for use in critical situations."
"Mn." Qing Shi nodded.
Big brother really is too thoughtful.
"But using all the various mage equipment is still ultimately an external aid!" Xue Ying spoke, "Your own strength is still very important."
Even with all that mage equipment, to a powerful Knight, especially one above Meteor rank, Qing Shi's life would still be threatened. At the very most, these items would allow Qing Shi to triumph over anyone e below the rank of Meteor! Regardless, due to the instantaneous casting of the matrices built into in the equipment, he could still barely fight against a Meteor knight.
"Brother, I understand. These pieces of equipment are very powerful, even teacher does not own so much mage equipment," Qing Shi exclaimed.
"This storage treasure ring was obtained by me recently. It contains a huge space, and is practically priceless. Remember, don't let others see it." Xue Ying then took out a black ring, "You are now a genuine mage, so remember to cast some spell to camouflage the ring to prevent others from finding out what it is."
Although its appearance was nothing special, Xue Ying was still extremely vigilant on this matter.
One must know, the value of a storage treasure ring with a one meter radius was already ten of thousands of gold coins! This ring had a three meter radius of storage… this was simply amazing! It could go for a million gold coins! This number was simply frightening. For a storage ring of this level… usually only Legend rankers were able to have one. Even some nobles and rich merchants did not have the capability of owning such a storage treasure ring.
And as for those rings within the hands of Legend rankers, few could compare to the size of the storage ring given to Qing Shi!
"It's this big?" Qing Shi tried infusing his magic power into the ring and immediately, became wide-eyed, "S… So big!"
Refining a storage treasure was an extremely difficult task.
Refining small storage treasures could easily be done with some simple refining methods. As for those storage treasure rings with a very large space… one would require the aid of a Transcendent mage who was extremely proficient in the laws of space to ensure the dimension created was big and stable. After all, inscripting such a dimension into a storage ring was a very difficult task, ensuring the value of any such rings to be priceless.
Qing Shi was a mage, and thus, he certainly understood how precious this storage treasure ring was.
"Brother, how did you obtain it?" Qing Shi asked curiously, "This is really big…"
"Haha, as I've said, this time's venture outside the castle was very rewarding," Xue Ying laughed, "You should spend some time to study the spell scrolls within the ring as well. They are considered to be worthless to Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong and me, so all of them will be yours. After all, these items are life-saving treasures, so remember to study them meticulously."Spell scrolls were something even more rebellious against the laws of nature.
Taking out a spell scroll and infusing one's magic power into it, with a 'hong', one could cast an extremely powerful spell instantaneously! However, the drawback of such scrolls was that they were single-use.
Thus, using spell scrolls was actually equivalent to throwing gold away!
Regardless, such scrolls were still in high demand in the markets. After all, during critical situations, a mage might not have the time to slowly chant out the spell for casting powerful magic, but they could utilise the scroll's instantaneous casting ability to save their own life! What Xue Ying was giving to his brother was actually all the scrolls that were collected after many years of battle by the Demonic God Emissary.
"Big brother, these spell scrolls are too precious already!" Qing Shi could not take in everything at the moment after realising that every single scroll within were at least of the fifth-grade. As for whether there were higher grade spell scrolls, he would have to carefully look through the entire inventory.
"I'm kind of afraid." Qing Shi was worried.
So many treasures in his hands would certainly make him wary of everything.
"What are you afraid of?" Xue Ying shook his head, "Go and categorize all the various spell scrolls based on their killing power, from high to low. Use them only when you need to! During life and death situation, surviving is still more important."
"Mn." Qing Shi nodded.
"Camouflage the ring and bring the scrolls with you everywhere. So long you don't leak out that you are carrying so many treasures, coupled with Uncle Tong, Uncle Zong and me not telling a single soul, no one will know about it." Xue Ying warned, "Remember, do not ever tell anyone about what you have! Even if it's that little girlfriend of yours…"
Within Snowrock Castle…
Xue Ying truly trusted the three men before his very eyes. Uncle Zong and Uncle Tong would sacrifice themselves for his parents at anytime, and were considered to be his family. As for his own little brother, their relationship was so close that nothing needed to be mentioned. It was just that his brother was still too young and might go out boasting to everyone. That was why Xue Ying was currently trying to remind his brother again and again of the importance of the matter.
"Brother, don't worry. I understand. I won't tell a single soul." Qing Shi said.
"Haha, don't be so nervous. These are, after all, just some goods. Your own inner strength is still more important." Xue Ying smiled at him. He treated these items given as mere items after all.
However, Qing Shi had very complex feelings within his heart.
Before, his girlfriend said so much crap, yet now, his brother gave so many gifts. The total value was so high that what his teacher earned over so many years could not even compare to a tenth of what he now had.
"Brother, can I hug you?" Qing Shi came walking towards his brother, hugging him tightly.
"This brat…" Xue Ying hugged his brother back, patting his head softly.
When they were young, Qing Shi would always hug him even in his sleep.
But as they grew up over the years, it had been a while since they had hugged.
"Mn. Good." Qing Shi looked upwards with a grin, "Brother, I'll go back first and study those scrolls." Having said that, he turned around and ran out.
Xue Ying looked towards the door as his brother ran out, before frowning.
"It's time for us to leave as well. Xue Ying, sleep early." Tong San stated.
"Close the doors first. I've something to tell you all," Xue Ying was still frowning.
Zong Ling closed the door, before the two of them looked towards Xue Ying.
"I feel that Qing Shi is behaving differently today." Xue Ying said, "Even though he acted normal, having watched him grow up all these years, I can see through his acts the moment he blinks. Furthermore, he hugged me at the end… confirming my guess that something is strange."
"Oh?" Zong Ling and Tong San were filled with uncertainty.
Xue Ying spoke his deep thoughts, "At his age, having spent his time carefree on the mountain, I guess the only reason should be some relationship issues! During dinner, he was behaving normally. But the moment he went out to send his girlfriend home, his behaviour changed. I'm afraid that this must be related to that girlfriend of his."
"Uncle Zong." Xue Ying said.
Xue Ying instructed, "I'll be writing a letter. Please send someone to pass it to the Dragon Mountain Manor Lord of Water Rites Town! Ask for his help in investigating the background behind this Ji Rong! From her birth until now, her relatives, what she has been doing and anything else. Inform me of all of this . I must understand who exactly is this Ji Rong!"
Even if his brother was behaving normally, he would still investigate thoroughly Ji Rong's background.
Someone who did not have a clean upbringing, how would Xue Ying put down his heart in letting her stay with his brother for the rest of Qing Shi's life?
"Yes. I'll immediately send someone over," Zong Ling nodded, before smiling. "Xue Ying, why did you not tell Qing Shi that you have attained the strength of a Legend ranker?"
"Right, Xue Ying. You are going to be accepting Bronze Order mission, so why hide your strength?" Tong San added.
Xue Ying lightly shook his head, "Qing Shi, that brat is already too inexperienced. He is too pure, too innocent. Were I to tell him that I'm a Legend ranker, who knows what he will become! He might even become some rich and arrogant playboy, which is something I have hoped would not happen. Qing Shi is not putting in enough effort into his practice. Even You Yue has broken through and become an Earth mage, and yet, he remains a Human mage still."
"So demanding. Don't forget he's still 16 this year." Zong Ling laughed.
"I was 15 when I entered the Mountain Range of Desolation killing Silver Moon Wolves."Xue Ying shook his head, "I guess I should find Great Mage Bai Yuan Zhi to discuss about giving Qing Shi a bit more pressure, instead of doing nothing every day. His innate talent in magic is much higher than mother's. Since young, he's had great mental strength, yet among the disciples of Great Mage Bai Yuan Zhi, he is considered as only ordinary. Even You Yue, with a weaker innate talent than him, reached a higher stage albeit having started at the same time as Qing Shi."
Currently, Xue Ying was already a Legend ranker, standing at the peak of any mortals. Yet he was still aiming for Transcendence.
However, he had baggage in his heart still - his little brother.
…
Next day, early morning.
Water Rites Town, Dragon Mountain Manor.
"Manor Lord, this is a letter written by Xue Ying himself for you." The white-haired old man You Tu placed a letter on the long table.
Lord Si An, who was sitting quietly by the table, perked up at that, "It's a letter written personally by Dong Bo Xue Ying? Sent so early in the morning?"
"It was actually sent late in the evening yesterday." You Tu answered.
"What is so urgent that he has to send a letter yesterday late evening? Why did you not tell me about it earlier?" Lord Si An immediately took up the letter and inspected it.
You Tu laughed, "I've skimmed through the letter. It isn't something urgent, but instead, it's just him asking Manor Lord to help him investigate the background behind his little brother's girlfriend 'Ji Rong'. That was why I didn't disturb you last night, Manor Lord."
"Next time, anything related to Xue Ying, please inform me at once." Lord Si An emphasized.
"Uh… Yes, I understand." You Tu felt weird. Such a trivial thing regarding investigating the backgrounds of a girl must be informed at once as well? When did the majestic Dragon Mountain Manor become so cheap?
"Oh yes, he did send someone to pass a note of 1000 gold to us." You Tu added.
"The way Dong Bo Xue Ying does things sure is interesting," Lord Si An laughed. After all, any of these powerful men could ask Dragon Mountain Manor to do minor stuff, but as they were not official, a fee would be required. Investigating the background of a person was simple stuff, yet Xue Ying generously gave them a thousand gold.
"Ji Rong?"
Lord Si An commanded, "Immediately send someone using the highest level of authority to thoroughly investigate all information related to Ji Rong, including her parents, her relatives and her friends. Format the report starting from her birth until now! Do it fast!"
"Highest level of authority?" You Tu was startled.
Dragon Mountain Manor was made to create an information web regarding everything under the skies. It could be said to have the best network in the world, yet investigating such a minor matter using the highest level of authority? Was it a joke?
"Go." Lord Si An instructed.
"Yes." You Tu could only follow his orders.
Lord Si An was sitting by the table, reading the dossier by his side.
"Si An, keep an eye on Dong Bo Xue Ying. Follow him closely. It is highly suspected that he is a Legend ranker - 50% probability!" This was an order sent by the County City with a detailed report coming with it.
"Legend ranker?"
"Is it real or fake…?" Lord Si An could not help but whisper out. Even though it was a day after receiving the report, he was still in a state of shock.
Yet there was enough evidence from the County City.
For instance, Xue Ying had spent up to 500,000 gold buying stuff within the county city. This information regarding Xue Ying's extravagant spending was just an aid in confirming this possibility. The critical evidence came from the Castle of the Lu Clan. Due to the mission being related to the cult of the Demon God, Dragon Mountain Manor had to investigate thoroughly what exactly happened. They found evidence of short spears penetrating deeply in the rocks! Furthermore, out of the five experts participating in the mission, Xue Ying was the only one using spear as his main weapon!
When he was 15, Dong Bo Xue Ying was seen using short spears, eradicating many of the bandits from the Bent Blade Union! At the same time, there were flying darts found pierced deeply into the gigantic rocks in the castle. Each dart was a powerful weapon refined by a Refining Master, worth 1000 gold! Generally, Silver Moon Knights would not have the luxury to use such weapons.
Judging from how deep these darts and short spears were pierced into the rocks… only Legend rankers were capable of doing this!
Explosions would not cause the short spears and darts to penetrate so deeply!
Furthermore, according to the analysis of the power of the explosion, the possibility of Silver Moon Knights dying from it was almost a certainty! Yet Xue Ying was hardly hurt at all, and even Jing Qiu survived the blast.
There were also many other clues littered about, like the fighting traces left behind at the castle. All of these were enough for one to deduce that… a battle between Legend rankers took place right in the castle! There was a chance that the other party died, and the victor who walked out of it alive was Xue Ying. That was why Xue Ying had become rich overnight and that he could freely splurge 500,000 gold on things he wanted to buy!
"So young and yet, he's already a Legend Knight? Seriously, this is too frightening." Lord Si An murmured. The Dragon Mountain Manors throughout the Tranquil Sun Province were already focusing on investigating Dong Bo Xue Ying!
Chapter 54: One with the World
Translator: Radiant
Editor: Radiant
After receiving the young mage from the Si Clan, 'Si Chen', Xue Ying nodded silently, 'Becoming a Meteor mage at such a young age, how extraordinary. He is totally different from Si Bai Rong! But of course, with the hundreds of years of history behind the Si Clan in Azure River County, there are certainly many descendents left behind - some are good, while some are evil. For that arrogant playboy Si Bai Rong to appear, there would certainly exist his counterpart, the genius Si Chen.'
'As a knight, before one enters the Legend ranks, one focuses entirely on sculpting their physique. With a good physique, and a good Qi cultivation method, one could cultivate all the way up to the Silver Moon rank smoothly. Thus, among these Silver Moon Knights, there would be some who are good for nothing.'
'As for mages, they are required to have wisdom. To discover the laws of nature, mages require a thirst for knowledge. Powerful mages are not be belittled.'
Xue Ying sighed.
None of the mages he had met were idiots. All of them were intelligent.
Knights, though, were different. There were many different kinds of knights - some who were brave, some who were reckless, and some who were foolish.
'However, regardless of whether one being a mage or a knight, entering the ranks of Legend is indubitably an arduous task.' Xue Ying nodded lightly. Becoming a Legend ranker was surely very difficult. It was not merely dependent on how good a person's innate talent was. A 'Legend ranker'… required one to have a powerful spirit as well. Xue Ying had been a Great Spear Master for many years, yet he had not achieved the state of being One with the World.
He merely depended on his primordial bloodline in order to have the strength of a Legend ranker.
Any Legend ranker, regardless of whether they were a knight or a mage, were people to be revered - be it a hero, a lord, or a demon.
Only these sorts of existences had the hope of becoming a Transcendent! By then, they would not be mortals anymore. Even deities were afraid of them.
…
Timed passed day by day as Xue Ying silently meditated instead of accepting more missions. He could feel his spirit reaching a critical point.
"Such joy!"
After meditating, Xue Ying entered the martial fields and practiced his spear techniques, making him feel extremely refreshed.
Sou.
After finishing his practice, he leapt to the roof of the adjacent castle .
The main castle covered a huge area with a wide roof of stone. Xue Ying sat by a ladder, leaning against a big rock as he enjoyed the scenery in front of him. This was the highest point on the castle. With a single sweep of his eyes… he could see the peak of the neighbouring mountains, unblemished by the low-lying walls of his castle.
He could clearly see the Great Mage's manor as well.
At the foot of the mountain, there were farmlands, with civilians living in the villages.
"Hong hong hong~~~"
Far off in the distance and at the foot of the mountains was a huge white streak. This was in fact, the namesake of the county, the Azure River!
The Azure River spanned over thousands of kilometers, and was the mother of all of the other rivers in Azure River County!
Even though Xue Ying was overlooking the river from the distance, he could still hear the river surging by.
"So beautiful."
Xue Ying had a pleasant expression.
The castle, the peak of the mountain, the villages at the foot of the mountain, and the meandering silk-like Azure River all painted a beautiful dream-like scenery.
From youth , Xue Ying had always loved the scenery overlooking his hometown. It was so beautiful. This was his home. A home he loved a lot!
He took out a jug of wine and lightly sipped a mouthful of it. The wine was very spicy. He could feel it at the tip of his tongue. Usually, Xue Ying would just drink some fruit wine instead of hard liquor. Only when he was feeling really good, or really bad would he drink a bit of the liquor. Apparently, he was having a pleasant feeling now.
After killing the Demonic God Emissary, Xue Ying understood more about his power.
There was hope in saving his parents!
His little brother was already so big. Everything was making Xue Ying feel so happy! As for the trivial matters, he did not care at all. Under his absolute power, whoever dared to obstruct his path, would die!
"Hu… Xi… Hu…"
Xue Ying's breath rate began slowing down over time, along with his heartbeat. Even the blood flow in his veins started slowing down so much that it seemed stagnant.
Xue Ying became calmer and calmer.
But his sense of the surroundings became even clearer! The movement of servants in the castle, the far-away soldiers talking among themselves — he could clearly hear it all…
The wind around him! At the peak of the mountain, the gust of wind was very strong, blowing comfortably on his body.
The fragrance from the flowers.
The fresh smell of the grass.
"This is nature. Truly beautiful," This feeling was something that Xue Ying loved a lot.
"Bo!"
Suddenly, within his senses, he could feel the world quivering, or rather, his heart was stirring!Just like how a chick broke out from the shell, or like how the grass broke out from the soil to grow…
Xue Ying was currently feeling that his spirit finally broke through the physical confinement of his body. He could feel his spirit breaking out of this shell, merging with the nature around him as one! Initially, he thought that nature was beautiful, but this was merely like looking at nature with a thinly veiled layer in between . Now, he could feel his spirit finally breaking through this layer, allowing him to be One with the World!
The wind was blowing, and he became the wind. Countless types of wind were trying to catch up with one another, either mixing or spreading out.
Xue Ying's ability to feel greatly increased in detail and fidelity, with boundless power -
Power from fire, water, earth, wind, lightning, light, dark… Various different fundamental elemental powers belonging to the world. This was truly the genuine energy from the world! Mages required to utilise matrices in order to guide these power from the world to cast their spells.
Yet after being One with the World, he could directly control all these powers! This was the fundamental difference! That was why in front of a Legend ranker, any mage would unable be able to cast a spell.
"So comfortable."
After his spirit broke through the physical shell, being One with the World, Xue Ying immediately received the essence from nature.
Just like how a sprout grows as it receives water.
Since birth, this was the first time his spirit received the essence from nature, inducing a transmogrifying change! This change was extremely fast, so fast that the transformation ended before Xue Ying could truly savor the feeling of entering the state of One with the World for the first time. But even still, his spirit was already stronger than before by at least ten times, possibly even a hundred times!
Essence of nature, powerful spirit, this was the first step of his dream towards Transcendence.
"One with the World!"
With just a small thought from Xue Ying…
Boom!!!
At that moment, fire elemental energy came rushing into his body without the need of any spell matrix. The flame came so much faster than if one were to use a spell to cast it. Xue Ying's reduced rate of improvement of his physical body suddenly increased tremendously under the aid of the fire elemental power, tempering it immediately! This was something that he could clearly feel.
"No wonder… Those knights who did not awake their primordial bloodline, the moment they become One with the World, they could borrow the forces of energy to complete the transformation, boosting their Qi and entering the ranks of Legend." Xue Ying rejoiced. .
Currently, the essence of nature nourished his body.
The essence of nature even nourished the Qi within his body, causing his liquefied Qi to thicken.
Within the time taken to brew a cup of tea, the qi sea within his dantian was full of energy! Half an hour later, even his primordial bloodline-activated body could no longer receive any more nourishment from the essence of nature. Just as a person could not become fat from one meal, due to the unlimited essence of nature present, with a single absorption, his qi sea and body were already filled to the brim. A period of time was required for his body to transform naturally.
'Based on what I just experienced, I estimate that I'll need half a month for my Qi to reach the level of Legend Knight's.' Xue Ying was extremely elated, 'My physical body is also being strengthened slowly, reaching twice the strength in about two months time!'
After attaining One with the World…
Xue Ying's physical body would continuously improve itself until reaching that of a Transcendent's - the limit of his primordial bloodline! This was indeed a very frightening ability of his!
"One with the World."
"I, Dong Bo Xue Ying, have finally attained the state of One with the World at 22 years old!" Xue Ying stood up on top of the roof, proudly looking down at the world below and the far-reaching Azure River, "There's hope in me becoming a Transcendent! The life of a Transcendent, flying around the world, drinking with the deities, instantaneously shredding apart demons…"
After looking through the top 3000 Legend rankers in the Dragon Mountain's Book, Xue Ying understood that being able to stand side by side with all these powerful rankers at the age of 22, was something that went against the heavens!
The growth of his spirit was extremely rapid.
He had over 100 years of time to search for his own path to become a Transcendent!
"Hu—"
After releasing his spirit and understanding the state of One with the World, the surroundings became much clearer than before. Xue Ying could clearly sense the soldiers outside his castle eating with their family. Immediately feeling embarrassed at invading their privacy, he cast his senses towards another place - sensing the dwelling of You Yue! She was actually within her house talking with another guy.
"Eh? You Yue's brother came?" Xue Ying was surprised.