TL: Etude
When Ye Tian left this time, he had no concerns for the safety of his younger sister, Ye Yu. By now, he was the strongest warrior in the Linhai Base; anyone who dared mess with his sister would be courting death. After leaving the base, Ye Tian headed straight for the Xiao Qianye Forest.
He arrived at the forest quickly and reached the territory where the Xiao Jin tribe was located. "Master!" Xiao Jin saw Ye Tian and hurried over. Xiao Jin had undergone significant changes since Ye Tian last saw him: he was much larger, and his aura was much more powerful.
"High-grade ferocious beast!" Ye Tian immediately noticed that Xiao Jin had evolved from an intermediate ferocious beast to a high-grade one. He wasn't surprised by Xiao Jin's advancement. If he himself could progress from an elite martial warrior to a Grand Martial Warrior, then it was only natural for Xiao Jin, who had top-tier bloodline talents, to advance to a high-grade ferocious beast.
Xiao Jin, having advanced to an high-grade ferocious beast, had grown strong enough to hunt peak-level high-grade ferocious beasts, though he was still no match for top-tier ferocious beasts. Xiao Jin's strength was still too weak to harm them.
"Xiao Jin, how has your collection of ferocious beast blood been going?" Ye Tian inquired.
"Master, come with Xiao Jin!" Eagerly, Xiao Jin led Ye Tian to where the ferocious beast blood was stored.
"So much ferocious beast blood!" Ye Tian was truly stunned. Several large pools were filled with high-grade ferocious beast blood, and the intermediate ferocious beast blood was even more abundant, filling at least a dozen large pools.
"About 10,000 portions of high-grade ferocious beast blood, and at least 200,000 portions of intermediate ferocious beast blood," Ye Tian estimated. For him, intermediate beast blood was of little use now, but his sister was about to advance into the martial warrior realm and would soon need it for body tempering. Some of this intermediate beast blood could be sold, and some could be saved for his sister.
As for the high-grade ferocious beast blood, it was useful to him. A Grand Martial Warrior's cultivation also required a vast amount of high-grade ferocious beast blood. The quantity he saw might not even suffice for his own cultivation to reach the peak of the Grand Martial Warrior level.
"Well done!" Ye Tian praised Xiao Jin, then instructed, "From now on, there's no need to collect intermediate ferocious beast blood. If you encounter any, just consume them yourself. But continue to collect more high-grade ferocious beast blood; I still have use for it."
"Master, Xiao Jin understands!" Xiao Jin obediently nodded.
In the time that followed, Ye Tian shuttled back and forth between the Xiao Qianye Forest and Linhai Base, transporting the collected ferocious beast blood. Though the amount was large, Ye Tian's speed was extraordinary.
What did moving at 20 times the speed of sound mean? It meant covering 6.8 kilometers in a single second. Of course, actual running wouldn't reach such speeds due to obstacles. If he really ran that fast, he would crash into countless beasts and rocks. The 20-fold speed was only possible in short-distance movements during battle.
Even so, transporting the ferocious beast blood to the Linhai Base took him mere seconds. He even built a secret underground chamber beneath his villa to store it. After emptying the pools, Ye Tian assigned another task to Xiao Jin: to find a ferocious beast with extraordinary defensive capabilities, a weakness Ye Tian was eager to compensate for.
Ye Tian's duplication talent was available for use again. Since he had not come across any good talents to copy, he duplicated Xiao Jin's stamina talent. And so, Ye Tian's array of talents changed once more.
Thus, Ye Tian's talent configuration evolved as follows:
Human: Ye Tian
Cultivation Talent: Top-tier
Speed Talent: Top-tier
Blade Skill Talent: Intermediate-tier
Shadow Talent: Low
Healing Talent: Top-tier
Strength Talent: High-tier
Stamina Talent: Intermediate-tier
With his newfound stamina talent, Ye Tian was now capable of fighting for extended periods. He no longer feared being surrounded by enemies, as his robust physical strength allowed him to maintain peak combat abilities for an extended time.
Afterward, Ye Tian returned to Linhai Base and began a long period of closed-door cultivation, occasionally visiting Xiao Qianye Forest. Thus, another month elapsed. Having just entered the realm of a Grand Warrior, Ye Tian found himself in a phase where his strength could rise rapidly. After consuming a significant amount of high-tier beast blood, his physical strength had increased to 150,000 catties, roughly on par with most warriors who were in the early stage of the Grand Warrior level.
One day, Ye Tian returned to Xiao Qianye Forest.
Upon seeing him, Xiao Jin excitedly exclaimed, "Master, I've discovered a beast with extraordinary defensive capabilities!"
"Really?" Ye Tian's eyes flickered with delight as he asked.
"Yes! I dispatched many of my tribe to look for beasts that appeared to have strong defenses. A few days ago, we finally discovered a large serpent covered in scales. It's also a high-tier beast. I personally engaged it but found that my attacks couldn't harm it in the slightest. However, my speed was much faster than its, so it couldn't do anything to me either!" Xiao Jin hurriedly explained.
"A high-tier beast that even Xiao Jin couldn't handle!" Intrigued, Ye Tian was immediately convinced that the creature must possess extraordinary defensive abilities, likely stemming from a defensive talent.
"Where is it, Xiao Jin? Take me there!" Ye Tian urgently commanded.
Hitching a ride on Xiao Jin's back, Ye Tian rapidly moved deeper into Xiao Qianye Forest. Due to the dense foliage, their speed was somewhat hampered. About ten minutes later, they had ventured deep into the forest.
At this moment, Ye Tian and Xiao Jin arrived at a pool.
"Master, this is the place!" Xiao Jin pointed at the pool, where the depths remained enigmatic.
As Ye Tian approached the pool, he sensed a menacing aura emanating from within it.
Suddenly, a gigantic serpent emerged from the water, revealing its upper half. Its body was pitch-black and covered in numerous shiny scales, each gleaming like a precious gem.
"Its body must be at least thirty meters long!" Ye Tian estimated.
Subconsciously, he checked the serpent's talent configuration.
Species: Black-scaled Python
Bloodline Talent: High-tier
Defensive Talent: Intermediate-tier
"Intermediate-tier defensive talent. Although it's not that high, it's enough to compensate for my shortcomings. I can replicate and upgrade it when I encounter a higher-tier defensive talent in the future."
With that thought, Ye Tian covertly replicated the Black-scaled Python's intermediate-tier defensive talent.