"Meaning to say, any form of energy devoured by you would also be absorbed by me through the Dragon Pearl? And I would not incur any adverse side effects?" Huang Xiaolong's breathing quickened; if this was true, it was too heaven-defying!
Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi chuckled watching Huang Xiaolong's expression, knowing his thoughts. Ao Taiyi said, "You can put it like that."
Can put it like that? Huang Xiaolong dazed for a second, immediately noticing an underlying meaning to Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi's words.
"Our ancient Dragon Clan was hailed the Lord of All Beasts, and the Dragon Pearl is the most precious heritage treasure of our clan. Although it can purify all energy, it is limited to energy originating from beasts!" Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi explained.
Huang Xiaolong was slightly disappointed, but at the same time, he was greatly relieved.
That was better. According to what Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi said, he could be like the Violet Spirit Devourer Monkey, capable of swallowing and refining demonic beast cores!
Refine demonic beast cores! And without any side effects! A wave of excitement washed over Huang Xiaolong.
A short while later, Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi returned to the Dragon Pearl space. Though he could leave the Dragon Pearl with no restrictions to his movements within a thousand zhang radius from Huang Xiaolong, he could not leave for too a long a time.
Huang Xiaolong stayed inside the Xumi Temple, practicing his Fifteen Moves of the Dragon God to familiarize himself with the new level of strength before exiting to the world outside.
Huang Peng, Su Yan, Zhao Shu, Zhang Fu were all surprised seeing Huang Xiaolong out from his closed-door practice so soon, for he had informed them beforehand that he would take at least one year this time, but it was only a little past six months.
Did something happen?
"Long'er, is everything alright?" Su Yan motherly side rose to the surface, feeling concerned.
Seeing the concerned expression on his mother's face, warmth filled his heart. Shaking his head while smiling, he assured her, "I'm alright."
By this time, those who heard about Huang Xiaolong exiting his closed-door practice raced over to the main hall, from his younger sister Huang Min, his little nephew Guo Xiaofan, the Violet Spirit Devourer Monkey Huang Xiaoyong, Heaven Devouring Beast Lil' Tian, and others.
But, one person Huang Xiaolong did not expect to see was—Shi Xiaofei! Shi Xiaofei entered the main hall, behind his sister Huang Min.
As Shi Xiaofei walked in, her beautiful eyes met Huang Xiaolong's gaze. Her gaze held bashful amorous feelings.
Neither of them spoke, but that did not hinder an ambiguous atmosphere from spreading in the hall with them at the center.
The last time he saw Shi Xiaofei was a few years ago. Seeing her again, Huang Xiaolong could only say that she was even more beautiful. There was a pure aura around her that transcended mortal women, making anyone who saw her unable to look away. That delicate face devoid of any makeup increased one's affection the more they looked at her.
The way Huang Xiaolong stared at her in front of so many people made Shi Xiaofei's little face turn red.
Huang Xiaolong recovered swiftly, looking around the hall, covering up his gaffe with a small flick of his sleeve and said with a laugh, "Tonight we shall eat roast meat! Great, big roast meat!" Not only had he broken through to Tenth Order Saint realm in this time's closed-door cultivation, he even reached peak mid-Tenth Order Saint realm. Undeniably, he was in a wonderful mood.
Even more wonderful was knowing that the Dragon Pearl could purify any form of demonic beast energy. To the current Huang Xiaolong, achieving God Realm was no longer an out of reach goal.
Hearing Huang Xiaolong mention roast meat, the main hall was filled with ecstatic cheers. Especially the Heaven Devouring Beast, Lil' Tian, the little guy was practically jumping up, hollering in a very loud voice. Even Shi Xiaofei was no exception, clapping her hands in delight.
This was a beautiful sight to behold. Even a person with an iron will such as Huang Xiaolong couldn't help being mesmerized.
After Huang Xiaolong gave the command, the Asura's Gate disciples brought back one hundred fat and tender Tyrant Boars with efficient speed.
The sun was setting on the eastern horizon when Huang Xiaolong began to work.
With his strength, roasting one hundred Tyrant Boars or a single Tyrant Boar made very little difference.
Soon, the unique aroma of roast Tyrant Boar meat permeated the entire Asura Square.
Night settled in. Everyone was sitting around the bonfire, cheerful voices and bouts of laughter could be heard from afar.
Huang Peng, Su Yan, and the others sat on Huang Xiaolog's left side, whereas Shi Xiaofei kept close to Huang Xiaolong's side on his right. Under the inevitable circumstances, Shi Xiaofei's sweet virgin fragrance would drift into Huang Xiaolong's nose, carried by the breeze.
Huang Xiaolong was gratified. There was good wine, delicious meat, and a beauty at his side. There was nothing he lacked; how many people longed for this kind of life!
In the past, when he was on Earth, this was the kind of life he dreamed of.
Probably influenced by the atmosphere, the mood struck Huang Xiaolong and he grabbed a piece of roast meat with his hand, just like Lil' Tian, and chowed down, eating heartily.
The night slowly passed, and the party lasted until the morning.
With these people's cultivation, they could go without sleep for several days straight. Hence, one night was nothing.
The party dispersed with the first light of dawn, leaving the place for Shi Xiaofei and Huang Xiaolong alone.
Before Su Yan turned away, she shot a clear, meaningful look at Huang Xiaolong. Inside, he was sweating profusely. Of course, he understood what his mother's look meant, nothing more than wanting a grandchild.
Shi Xiaofei also caught the look Su Yan shot to Huang Xiaolong, and a tinge of red colored her cheeks.
After everyone left, Huang Xiaolong spoke first, "How have you been these years?" His tone sounded slightly pompous.
Shi Xiaofei spoke softly, "My days were good, how about yours?" Her voice was like a lark singing, clear and moving, making one want to listen to it again and again.
Huang Xiaolong recounted his adventures after leaving Starcloud Continent and upon arriving on the Ten Directions Continent to Shi Xiaofei.
As Shi Xiaofei listened to him narrating about killing the Deities Templar's Li Molin at the Beast God Shrine Square, becoming the new Lord Beast God, battling one on nine against the Ao Brothers, taking over the Nine Dragons Temple, her eyes shone brighter with admiration.
In return, Shi Xiaofei talked about some of the things she experienced in the past few years. Against Huang Xiaolong's experiences, hers sounded dull in comparison.
These years, Shi Xiaofei focused solely on increasing her strength. Sometimes she would travel from the Blessed Buddha Empire to the Demonic Beasts Forest, hunting demonic beasts as training to increase her battle capability.
Hearing Shi Xiaofei's experiences, he reached out and held her hands in his. Her small hands were petite and soft as if there were no bones in them, smooth, supple, and fragrant.
Having her hand suddenly grasped by Huang Xiaolong, Shi Xiaofei quivered, her face flushed a deep red, yet she did not pull her hand away.
He, of course, knew why Shi Xiaofei was cultivating so hard these few years.
"Silly fool." Huang Xiaolong observed Shi Xiaofei's beautiful face that could cause the downfall of an empire, emphasizing, "In the future, you don't need to work so hard, you won't become a burden to me." Gently pulling Shi Xiaofei into his embrace, he added, "I will protect you, forever and always."
Shi Xiaofei's body stiffened, then gradually loosened, embracing Huang Xiaolong in return with tears rolling down her cheeks. These were tears of happiness.
Forever and always!
This was Huang Xiaolong's commitment to her, her beloved man's commitment to her!
A while later, Shi Xiaofei's soft voice sounded, "Big brother Long, I know about Sister Li Lu, you definitely must rescue Sister Li Lu out from there."
"We'll talk about this later."
Li Lu!
A glint flickered across Huang Xiaolong's eyes. It was time to totally annihilate Deities Templar! Huang Xiaolong was confident that his current strength was enough to fight Temple Preceptor Ying Tian.
The next day, Huang Xiaolong had Zhao Shu and Zhang Fu gather all the experts and departed to the Dead Sea Gorge.
While Huang Xiaolong was in closed-door practice, Zhao Shu and Zhang Fu located the Deities Templar's headquarters inside the Dead Sea Gorge.