Han Shuo and Andrina were in the gymnasium. Their figures were blurry. Their figures intersected with sharp tinkling sounds.
Whoosh Whoosh! Han Shuo quickly deployed and retracted the Demonic Blades. Ten speckles of dark radiance shot out and swarmed at Andrina like ten little meandering serpents.
Andrina responded by forming multiple dazzling vortexes that would orbit around her, blocking the ten dark radiances from reaching her. However, the dark radiances started maneuvering at lightning speed as though they were alive. They evaded the vortexes and continued slithering towards Andrina.
Andrina let out a gentle cry of surprise. More vortexes appeared around her as the vortexes orbiting her moved towards her. The boundary towers around the gymnasium suddenly started glowing brightly as the energy contained in those towers rushed towards the boundaries.
The ten dark radiances were shredded by the vortexes. They were no longer a threat to Andrina.
Andrina's petite figure gently hovered towards Han Shuo. With her two little hands, she wove a screen of light and trapped Han Shuo in it. Han Shuo immediately felt pricking pain all over his body. He hastily tried to block her attacks.
Pow! Andrina's small hand pierced through the barrier and pushed Han Shuo in the chest.
Han Shuo stumbled. He immediately sensed that the Invincible Omen Body had automatically deployed. The strike did not cause much harm to his physical body. After saving himself from a fall, Han Shuo immediately pushed forward. His left hand became bone-chillingly cold while his right hand turned blazing hot. He launched attacks that harmoniously combined the two extreme temperatures. They were so fierce that even Andrina was forced to take defensive measures.
But it was such a pity that soon after that, the three-minute mark had passed. Han Shuo held on for another few seconds before he retreated. All the energy of Cauldron Spirit withdrew from his body. It took several deep breaths for Han Shuo to restore his blushing face to normal.
From the many days of friendly matches against Andrina, Han Shuo discovered that while his strength was boosted using Cauldron Spirit's energy, his body would automatically deploy Invincible Omen Body when attacked. But after he returned the energy to Cauldron Spirit, his body would not deploy Invincible Omen Body when attacked.
After conducting many tests, long contemplation, and lengthy discussion with Cauldron Spirit, Han Shuo had finally pinned down on the cause. They identified two major factors: his body strengthened by the demon generals that had entered his body and the enormous power in Andrina's attacks. Invincible Omen Body had automatically formed under the enormous external stress and his body was in a strengthened state.
With this knowledge, Han Shuo gained a clear sense of how to proceed in his cultivation. By further strengthening his body, he would not only be able to use the Cauldron Spirit's energy for a longer period of time, but he would also make progress in mastering the Invincible Omen Body.
Han Shuo was destined to face a great calamity on his way to the Skybreak Realm. If his physical body wasn't powerful enough, he would surely die while facing the calamity. Therefore, at this stage, it would not be wrong for him to focus on tempering his body. It was his body that he needed to put the most thought and effort into in order to advance in the Omen Realm. Now that Han Shuo knew his direction, he decided to build his body by increasing his strength with the Cauldron Spirit's energy, fight Andrina, rest, and repeat.
After doing this for a month, Han Shuo could hold the Cauldron Spirit's energy for about four minutes. The Invincible Omen Body would instantly form when his body flooded with demon general energy was hit with powerful attacks.
In this state, Han Shuo stood still and let Akley attack him. However, the Invincible Omen Body did not automatically activate. Akley's strength was classes below Andrina's. His attacks simply couldn't hurt Han Shuo.
After this test, Han Shuo realised that in this state, the Invincible Omen Body would only deploy automatically if there was an external force strong enough to harm his physical body. Akley's attacks, too weak to damage Han Shuo's body, were not strong enough to trigger the demonic ability.
Han Shuo had been cultivating diligently in the gymnasium. He would be in intense agony as the Cauldron Spirit's energy flooded his body. He felt like every cell from his head to his toes was being pierced with needles. But Han Shuo's body grew stronger the more he endured this kind of inhuman pain. He was constantly tempering his own body like a blacksmith tempering a sword.
During this time, Han Shuo did not participate in the management of the Celestial Pearl. Phoebe and Emily had proven themselves to be more than capable of running and managing the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy. Although the pharmacists did not like that the duo knew nothing about refining medicine, they still admired the duo's business management skills.
Within a short time, with the two of them turning the wheels of Celestial Pearl Pharmacy, every aspect of the business became optimal, efficient and productive. Thanks to their efforts, the few branches of the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy that had been closed due to a lack of talent were now open for business.
As a result, Celestial Pearl Pharmacy was now truly the reigning pharmacy of the City of Shadows. In recent times, the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy had amassed hundreds of thousands of black crystal coins in profit. In keeping with his agreement with the House of Sainte, Phoebe delivered Carmelita's share to the Sainte family on time. The Sainte family was very pleased with her punctuality.
Han Shuo, freed from the burden of running his business, spent all the extra time on cultivation. His body grew stronger and stronger.
Finally, Portlem and his party ended their visit and left the City of Shadows. Before Doyalo left, he had Anito tell Han Shuo: "You better not leave the City of Shadows. If we find you, you'll be sorry you ever touched Portlem!"
Han Shuo scoffed at Doyalo's threat. In fact, he did not even consider him a threat. If the Sainte family's bodyguards hadn't seen Doyalo leaving, Han Shuo might have ambushed them with Andrina. Having made rapid progress in his cultivation, Han Shuo was tempted to put his newfound power to the test!
Then one day, Anito, a frequent face around the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy, came by and handed Han Shuo a stack of scrolls. He said with a smile, "From this day forward, we are comrades-in-arms!"
"So it is settled?" Han Shuo accepted the scrolls with an elated heart.
"Hehe, with the support of the Saint Family and the approval of Lord Erebus, it's no surprise that such a matter would be settled so quickly. These scrolls explain your position in our Third Corps. Right, Miss Carmelita wants you to know that Lord Erebus is currently at Skyorchid Fort. Now that Portlem and the others have left the City of Shadows, you don't have to worry about the safety of the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy," Anito smiled.
"Well then, I will go to Skyorchid Fort right away!" Han Shuo had become rather bored in the last few days and was ready to get on his feet.
"There won't be any divine guards protecting the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy for the time being, but I'll be around while you're away. Still, you can feel safe in the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy. Your enemies wouldn't bother with those who haven't become Lowgods yet. They will look for you and Andrina when they want to strike," Anito comforted.
"Thank you!" said Han Shuo with a smile.
"You're very welcome!" Anito replied hastily. Han Shuo's performance at the banquet hall was now widely known among the family clans of the city. After learning that Han Shuo actually possessed Highgod strength, Anito became even more respectful and solemn in his daily interactions with Han Shuo. His glances towards Han Shuo would be filled with awe.
"Andrina, we are going to Skyorchid Fortress. Get ready!" Han Shuo instructed as he found Andrina.
"Wonderful! We are finally going to take care of those godhunters!" Andrina was thrilled to hear these words. In fact, she had been waiting for this for a long time. She giggled as she said, "There is nothing I need to prepare. But you must bring the black crystal coins you made last month!"
"I have them right here," Han Shuo replied with a smile.
With this money printing machine they called the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy making him more and more crystal coins, he became less stingy towards Andrina. Knowing that Andrina could heal herself with crystal coins, he had prepared some for the journey.
After training with Andrina for some time, Han Shuo had a vague idea of Andrina's power source. He discovered that when Andrina fought him, some organs in her body would go into a crystalline state. It seemed that Andrina was an intricate energy tower that could absorb and use the energy inside energy crystals.
Han Shuo also noticed that whenever the battle became fierce, the energy towers around the gymnasium would behave abnormally, which gave Han Shuo some ideas about Andrina's energy. However, he did not ask or seek confirmation from Andrina, as she had not asked anything about his secrets. Besides, he did not want to annoy or upset Andrina.
"You mentioned earlier that you discovered a Godhunter base. Is that true?" Andrina suddenly asked Han Shuo as they were leaving the city.
"
"Yes. After luring the Godhunters away last time, I followed them for a few days. I discovered a valley between the City of Shadows and Mirage City that was full of boundaries. When Brovst reached the area, his behaviour became solemn. I think someone more powerful than Brovst must be in there!" Han Shuo's expression became grave as he continued, "Brovst is already a Mid-stage Highgod. If there's a being even more powerful than him, then this Godhunter Alliance is really quite frightening!"
"It's true. The Brovst Trio is only at the second level of the hierarchy. That place sounds like a really juicy target!" said Andrina.
Andrina knew the Godhunter Alliance much better than Han Shuo. Her words that Brovst, Gallas and Taylin were only the second highest in command had confirmed Han Shuo's guess.
*** Skyorchid Fort.
This fort was located near Mirage City and was one of the most remote forts in the City of Shadows. Surrounding the fort were mountain ranges, swamps, and oceans - places most suitable for godhunters to hide.
Not only were these areas the best places for Godhunters to hide, but the gods who travelled between the City of Shadows, Mirage City and Hushveil City had to pass through these areas, providing an abundance of prey for the Godhunters. Lately, the Godhunters had been particularly active around Skyorchid Fortress. The three cities would send additional divine guards to scour the region, which consisted of several dozen mountain ranges, about eight swamps, and three vast oceans. These godhunters had seriously threatened the safety of the three cities. They had no choice but to take the threat seriously.
On top of the tallest building in Skyochid Fort, Erebus sat across from a woman with fine black hair that reached down to her knees. She had long, shapely eyebrows and eyes with the outer corners tilted upwards. She seemed to glow with health and strength. As she sat, her long, fine hair danced gracefully in the breeze.
The gentlemanly Erebus had eyes full of passion as he looked at the woman before him. Indeed, this woman was the reason he had come to the City of Shadows as one of the leaders of the Divine Guard. Otherwise, Erebus might still be wandering around, concentrating on cultivation instead of settling down.
"Oh, Aobashi, do you not understand my pain and torment?" Erebus sighed softly and said in a voice of anguish.
Aobashi smiled faintly. Her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, as if she was making a cunning smile with her eyes. She replied, "I know your pain, but I never asked you to stay in the City of Shadows for me. Don't you like wandering around? You can leave the city whenever you like. I believe the City Lord will not stop you."
"No matter how far I would wander, my heart stays here, with you. So there's no point in leaving," Erebus replied.
Aobashi shook her head and let out a soft sigh. "Erebus, we really are no match for each other! I have said everything I have to say in the past years. There is nothing I can do if you want to stay in the city, but that will not make me accept you!"
"Forget it, let's not talk about it for now," Erebus hastily changed the subject. "The boy I mentioned will be arriving at Skyorchid Fort very soon. We haven't been able to track the Godhunters, but I believe that will change when he arrives."
Aobashi took a sip of tea, glanced at Erebus and said, "We haven't been able to locate the Godhunters, but he has? Haha, isn't he an apothecary? Why have you suddenly placed him in your Third Corps? Are you hiring him to make medicine for you?"
"Of course not!" Erebus said, "The City Lord wants him to take over the Fifth Corps, which every family clan has been fighting for. In fact, it was the City Lord's idea to let him work in my Third Corps so that he can learn our ways."
Upon hearing these words, Aobashi, the highest ranking chief of the Divine Guards, straightened her lazily reclining body slightly as a gleam flashed across her eyes. She asked puzzled, "Him? The Fifth Corps? Running an army is nothing like making medicine! How will he manage?"
"Nobody knows," Erebus continued, smiling, "but I'm rooting for him. That boy is harder to handle than Avery. I have never seen anyone so good and patient at hiding his strength. He is no ordinary boy! He obviously has Highgod strength, but from the first day he came to the city he disguised himself as a Lowgod. Not only did Andre and I fail to discover his true strength, but even the City Lord was fooled. It was probably because of this that the City Lord was determined to give him the Fifth Corps!"
"Oh?" Aobashi's interest was piqued. Smiling, she said, "He sounds interesting from your words. I will see his talents for myself!"
"He should be here soon. I sent a message to Carmelita three days ago," Erebus said.
While Erebus and Aobashi were talking, Andrina forced Han Shuo to show her the Godhunter's Valley.
"There it is!" Han Shuo pointed into the distance and whispered to Andrina. They were hiding on the top of a large tree.
Andrina remained silent. She took a long time to observe before she replied excitedly, "Bryan, you really are amazing! I've never been able to find a base this big in all my years of hunting. Who would have thought that you would be able to find such a huge base on your own? This is wonderful!"
"Don't do anything stupid!" Han Shuo said hastily, "No matter how much you hate the Godhunters, going in alone won't help you. The Brovst Trio could seriously injure you. Besides, if there are even more formidable characters in there, entering the place will mean your certain death!"
"Pff, such an eloquent one. Of course I know that!" Andrina wrinkled her nose and replied.
"Eh!" Han Shuo suddenly let out a soft cry of surprise.
"What is it?" Andrina asked immediately.
"There is a small Divine Guard squadron lingering nearby. Maybe they will discover this place! They don't seem to be from the City of Shadows. Judging by the design of their armour, they must be from Mirage City. I wonder if they will be lucky," Han Shuo said quietly.
"You saw them with your special life forms?" Andrina giggled and said, "Bryan, your special life forms are really useful. Can you give me some of them? With those unique lifeforms, I would have several eyes watching over the mountain range!"
"No!" Han Shuo firmly refused. Seeing Andrina's displeased face, Han Shuo forced a smile and explained, "It has to do with the energy I cultivate in. The energy you use is completely different from mine, so you won't be able to control it."
"Miser!" Andrina pouted and whined, "That's just an excuse you made up. If you don't give me something, then you are a miser!"
"Say what you want, but I'm not giving you any," Han Shuo laughed mischievously. Then he pulled Andrina along and said, "Come, let's go over and have a look. They are approaching from another direction and might attract the Godhunter's attention. Maybe we can get an idea of their strength!"
Andrina groaned as if she was angry with Han Shuo. After being dragged for a moment, Andrina went with him, but not without dragging her feet.