Strongest War Emperor

Shen Lang glanced at the sky. Seeing it was getting late, he frowned and said, ”The Dragon Blood Demon Bear prefers to live in lands of ice and snow. True ice and snow can only be found deep within the Crystal Song Forest. Only one thing could possibly lure it out of those depths...”

”And what would that be?” Yin Kuang asked.

”Legend has it that the blood of the Dragon Race is golden. After it spills onto the ground, it seeps into the earth. Ninety-nine percent of the time, it will simply dissipate, making the Spiritual Qi in that area richer. But there is a one-percent chance it will cause a mutation in the land, giving birth to an object called a ’Blood Spirit Pearl.’ This thing is unremarkable in appearance and has a very restrained aura, making it difficult for most Demon Beasts to find. However, for a Dragon Blood Demon Bear, which carries the bloodline of the Dragon Race, it can sense the pearl from hundreds of miles away and will be drawn to it.”

Yin Kuang scratched his head. ”Blood Spirit Pearl? Never heard of it.”

Shen Lang sighed. ”You may not have heard of the Blood Spirit Pearl, but what about the Flame Essence produced in lava zones, the Water-Raising Spirit Pearl found in certain lakes brimming with Spiritual Qi, or the Wood Spirit Pearl that grows where the trees are lush and Wood Element Spiritual Energy is abundant? You must have heard of those, right? The way they are formed is similar to the Blood Spirit Pearl. In any place with rich Spiritual Qi, as oceans turn to mulberry fields and the stars shift in their courses, similar Exotic Treasures can be born with the passage of time.”

”Xiaolang, are you saying there’s a Blood Spirit Pearl where we ran into the Dragon Blood Demon Bear? And that the Demon Bear hasn’t collected it yet? So if we go back there now, we can find it?” Su Jin said, a strange light glinting in her eyes.

”It’s so much easier talking to you, Su Jin...” Shen Lang’s comment made Yin Kuang’s face flush beet-red.

He then continued, ”Because the Blood Spirit Pearl contains the aura of the Dragon Race, it is a thing of Supreme Yang. The time it truly matures and undergoes a new transformation is usually during the coldest month of the year. The twelfth month is less than a month away, so the Dragon Blood Demon Bear can only stand guard nearby... I don’t need to say more, do I? You can all weigh for yourselves just how valuable this information is. So, what do you say, are you going to pay the five thousand Spirit Stones or not?”

”We’ll pay!” Yin Kuang was the first to declare. ”If they won’t pay, I, Yin Kuang, will! Damn it all, the value of this thing can’t be measured by a mere five thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones. This is a priceless treasure...”

SMACK!

Zeng Zuimo slapped the back of Yin Kuang’s hand. ”Who said we weren’t willing to pay? You big oaf, you’re quite the schemer, aren’t you? Putting us down while trying to snatch the prize for yourself! Let me tell you, we need to discuss this at length. We’ll get our families involved. No one is taking this for themselves!”

Su Jin sighed. ”Aren’t you ashamed to be saying these things in front of Xiaolang?”

She turned to Shen Lang and said, ”Xiaolang, thank you for trusting us enough to share such precious information... Don’t worry, we’ll send messages to our families right away to plan this out properly. You don’t need to worry about the Spirit Stones; we’ll get them for you as fast as we can. We’ve taken up so much of your time, your parents must be getting anxious. You and Moran should head back for dinner...”

Shen Moran, taken aback, said with some dissatisfaction, ”Su Jin, you’re all guests at my home. It wasn’t easy for you to come all this way. How can you leave like this?”

Su Jin shot a glare that silenced the words Shui Buyu and the others were about to say, then said apologetically, ”Moran, let’s have a proper gathering after Xiaolang shows his might at the family competition in three days. I’ve been wanting to try your mother’s cooking for ages. I’m always drooling whenever you talk about it...”

”Alright, then.”

Shen Moran smiled and shook her head. She knew Shen Lang’s information had been a huge shock to them, and they probably needed to discuss it amongst themselves.

Besides, Shen Lang had promised to craft Profound Artifacts for them, but all their materials had been used up. They were probably itching to go to the Treasure Pavilion to purchase more.

After all, the sooner they got the materials, the sooner they would have their Profound Artifacts.

For a Martial Artist, the allure of a powerful Magical Treasure Secret Artifact was simply too great.

Even Shen Moran herself was still reeling from the shock of her Ningbi Sword transforming from a First Grade Spiritual Artifact into a Third Grade Profound Artifact. She had yet to fully compose herself.

Understanding all this, Shen Moran didn’t insist. After saying her goodbyes, she left the rear courtyard with Shen Lang.

”Xiaolang...” Walking along the small forest path, Shen Moran finally broke the long silence.

Shen Lang gave a wry smile. ”Sis, I know you have a lot of questions, but there are many things I haven’t figured out myself yet, and I don’t want to lie to you... So, you just need to know that I’ll always be your little brother, Shen Lang. And I’m not useless. That’s all.”

Shen Moran’s calm eyes began to mist over. After a long moment, she lovingly patted the head of Shen Lang, who was now much taller than her. ”Mm...”

”By the way, I have a way to cure Dad’s illness. I already treated him once before I came to find you. He’ll be back to normal very soon.”

”Really?!” Tears streamed from Shen Moran’s eyes.

Shen Lang reached out to wipe them away. ”Sis, I know you wanted to find a powerful Alchemist at Jialan Academy to cure Dad. I also know you’ve been scrimping and saving, wanting to leave what little you had for the family. You’ve suffered so much all these years... You don’t have to do that anymore. From now on, let me carry all the burdens. You just go do what you want to do. Live your dreams, spread your wings and fly!”

”Live your dreams, spread your wings and fly...” Shen Moran gazed into Shen Lang’s eyes. Her little brother, the one everyone called useless, had a gaze as brilliant as the stars, filled with powerful self-confidence. It was as if nothing in the world was impossible for him.

These were words Shen Lang spoke to his sister, but were they not also words he was speaking to himself?

「...」

When they returned home, the family had their happiest reunion dinner in years.

Back in his room, Shen Lang took out the remaining vial of Mountain-Pushing Beast blood and various other materials and concocted a bottle of ”Giant Potion.” Only then did he finally have time to focus his thoughts on Cultivation.

While many people and many families were still fighting to the death for a single High Tier Technique, Shen Lang was starting to worry about having too many powerful Cultivation Techniques to choose from.

Although his Tai Chi Map Martial Soul could help him absorb the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy faster, the Celestial Vein Sacred Body still stood before him like a great mountain.

The existence of a Physique like the Celestial Vein Sacred Body doomed his entire Cultivation path to be different from others.

Of course, it would also be different from the path of the powerful expert in his memories.

On the other hand, although Shen Lang had countless powerful Cultivation Techniques in his mind, he had ”seen” the ”ending”...

Or rather, he had seen another ending for himself as the War Emperor.

Because he had seen this ending, he hadn’t dared to act until now. He had only selected the ”Thunder Control Divine Technique” to practice, casting aside all other powerful Cultivation Techniques like worn-out shoes.

It was like a dead end. No matter how many powerful Cultivation Techniques he had, no matter how he practiced his Cultivation, the end result was the same: failure!

Faced with that power that looked down on all of creation and saw all living beings as ants, not even the War Emperor and the War God Hall could stand against it.

And the War Emperor’s Cultivation, if not the absolute number one at the supreme Peak of the Human Realm, was at least at the very top tier.

If even he was like that, then what about everyone else...?

Shen Lang couldn’t quite describe the feeling. It was as if the heavens had already ordained the result. The hand of fate had already paved the road, just waiting for him to walk it to its end.

As for who or what that entity was, there were no clues in the War Emperor’s memories. It seemed everything related to it had been intentionally or unintentionally put under a Seal.

Even many matters concerning the War God Hall were similarly sealed, making it nigh on impossible for Shen Lang to find any trace of a clue.

”Even if the heavens have ordained it, even if this is my fate, I will defy the heavens and change it!”

After a long silence, a brilliant light suddenly burst forth from Shen Lang’s eyes. In that instant, it was as if a bright light flashed through the dark room.

At this moment, Shen Lang finally had an epiphany. ’In the end, it all comes down to not being strong enough. Even if I cultivated every powerful Cultivation Technique in my mind to its absolute limit, I would only be replaying the events of that dream. Even if I raised my Cultivation to the War Emperor’s Peak level, I still couldn’t avoid that final failure. If that’s the case, then I can’t walk the War Emperor’s path. I have to surpass the War Emperor! Why can’t I use my knowledge to create a Cultivation Technique that is completely my own, one that is entirely different from all the others?’

With this sliver of understanding, a mental block in Shen Lang’s heart finally broke.

It was as if a window had been pushed open, revealing another great path...

When a person feels lost, it is often because their goal is unclear, because they do not know what to do or how to move forward.

But now, Shen Lang had finally cleared his thoughts and knew what he had to do.

First and foremost, he had to find a way to awaken his Celestial Vein Sacred Body.

The meridians of a Martial Artist with this Physique were abnormally tough, making the idea of widening them nothing more than a fool’s errand.

Moreover, the path was full of obstacles and blockages.

After a typical Martial Artist underwent the Purification of Essence and Marrow, their meridians would become clear and open. Spiritual Power would flow through them as if through a smooth channel, rarely encountering any obstruction.

But the meridians of a Martial Artist with the Celestial Vein Sacred Body were another story entirely. It was like taking two steps only to fall into a deep pit, and taking a third only to run into a great mountain. For Spiritual Power to circulate in such meridians was a task as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

A single misstep could even cause one to go mad from a cultivation mishap...

However, after Shen Lang swallowed the green liquid from the Heaven-Sealing Cauldron that day, this particular problem seemed to have been solved.

The Energy from that green liquid had been constantly coursing through his body, smoothing out the pits and craters in his meridians and softening the barriers at each bottleneck.

Finally, under the savage and domineering assault of the Black and White Qi, countless previously blocked meridians had been suddenly forced open... The problem with his meridians had finally been resolved.

However, because he had used the Secret Technique ”Burst” when he fought Hong Yu, and then risked his life by using the ”Prison Guardian Blade Technique,” he had suffered grievous injuries. Afterward, in order to save Shui Qingwu, he had pushed himself to the point of being covered in his own blood. Under the strain of these two severe injuries, he had used up all the Energy from the green liquid. Now, he could only wait and see when the Heaven-Sealing Cauldron would produce more of it.

The problem now was, how could he awaken this Celestial Vein Sacred Body?