Ying Huo was done refining a brief moment later. Tianming asked, “Was it successful?”
“I failed!” Ying Huo sighed.
“You spicy chicken. You’re so useless that I can’t even look at you,” Tianming said with disdain.
“Haha! Look at that stupid face of yours! I can’t wait to see you slapping your own face!” Ying Huo laughed while holding its belly.
“What do you mean?”
“I succeeded! Haha!”
“Screw you, idiot!” Tianming slapped Ying Huo’s head and sent it into the mud. Ying Huo had awakened a new ability, Infernal Blaze. Tianming tried getting the bird to give it a try, but the ability couldn’t be used for the time being; it needed time to acc.u.mulate. But it could gather all the saint ki in its body into a spark and gather it on the tip of its feather.
“I can tear their bodies apart with Skypiercer Ki and inject a spark of Infernal Blaze into their body before igniting it from inside the body. It’s definitely a one hit kill!” Ying Huo placed its wings on its waist and laughed, “Tianming, can you imagine me injecting the Infernal Blaze into your balls and igniting it? Just how wonderful would that be? Ling’er would wash her face with tears daily if she saw that.”
“Haha. I want to eat fried chicken wings,” Tianming sneered. But he had to admit that Ying Huo’s new ability was terrifying. The only downside was that it needed time to acc.u.mulate. They continued on their journey.
Not long later, the stars began gathering on the Deepstar Formation and formed words.
“What’s that?”
“That’s the top hundred rankings in the Battle of Astral, and it’ll show once a day. In the last three days, it can always be seen.” Tianming raised his head. He had defeated three people, so he should have three points now.
The hundredth rank had five points, which belonged to Xuanyuan Cangcang. He got five points together with many others, but they were ranked in sequential order. Then again, this was only the first day.
“The first rank, Xuanyuan Muxue, has forty-one points? The second only has fourteen points? How can anyone catch up to her?” Ying Huo was speechless.
“Maybe she just happened to defeat opponents on the ranking,” said Tianming.
“What about Fang Xingque?”
“Thirty-eight.” Tianming found Fang Xingque’s ranking. He and Ying Huo exchanged a glance before they laughed. The number fitted him well, as thirty-eight also meant bitch.
“No rush. Let’s go cultivate in the Old Deepstar Path.” Tianming triggered his Deepstar Formation and a middle-aged man appeared roughly thirty breaths later. “Do you want to leave the battlefield for the time being?”
“Yes, senior.”
The middle-aged man waved the Star Hooking Rod in his hand and wrapped it around Tianming, then pulled him out of the Deepstar Formation. His voice then echoed out by Tianming’s ears, “You’re not allowed to leave for more than four hours. Furthermore, you’ll be randomly teleported the next time you enter.”
Tianming appeared in the sky of the Deepstar Formation and returned to the Archaion Sect. After he returned, he headed to the Old Deepstar Path right away. The Number One Pavilion was right along the route to the Earth Branch’s Old Deepstar Path, so he went to take a look at his home. But he couldn’t find anyone when he returned home.
“Why isn’t she cleaning up the place? Where’d she go?” Tianming looked around before he found someone in the hot spring. A woman was showering, and she was naturally Lin Xiaoxiao.
“Arggh!!” a girl yelled out.
“What the hell are you screaming for? Aren’t you wearing clothes?” Tianming stared at her. She was wearing clothes, but not much.
Lin Xiaoxiao fiddled around before she came out with her clothes on and looked at him furiously, “Didn’t you say that you weren’t coming back for a month? What’s the matter? You were eliminated?”
“Nope.” Tianming glared at her. “You’re here as a maid, but you’re staying in my house and even bathing in my hot spring. I’m outside risking my life, yet you’re enjoying your life here.…”
“You also didn’t say that I’m not allowed to do that!”
Tianming had only come to take a look, and he no longer cared about it, seeing that she had settled down. “I’ll be leaving now.”
“You coming back?”
“No. I’m heartbroken that my maid is taking a bath in my hot spring as she wishes!”
“Oh.”
Tianming left in the blink of an eye.
“He’s concerned about you. He must be after your body,” the Archaionfiend suggested.
“You’re only saying that because you have no idea how beautiful his lover is.” Lin Xiaoxiao curled her lips. She then suddenly thought of someone and asked, “By the way, where’s Feiling?”
……
Tianming came to Oldwind Street after he came out of the Old Deepstar Path.
“Big Sister, I’ll sell back Brightnight. I need money,” Tianming said when he found Jian Xueyi in the Snowrites Sword Pavilion.
“Oh? It was seven hundred tribulation crystals, right?” Jian Xueyi was absentminded as she counted seven hundred tribulation crystals.
“Five hundred will do.” Tianming returned two hundred tribulation crystals to her.
“At least you’re sensible!” Jian Xueyi winked, then continued, “Hope you get a good result in the Deepstar Battlefield.”
Jian Xueyi then put Brightnight away. After all, she still had to rely on this wealthy husband.
“Thank you, Big Sister.” Tianming observed Jian Xueyi and asked, “Why do you seem unhappy?”
“My uncle passed away, and his murderer still hasn’t been found,” Jian Xueyi lamented.
“Senior Jian Binghe?” Tianming asked.
“Yeah. You even met him that day. His corpse was found after the faction battle ended. His life was instantly taken, along with his lifebound beasts. There aren’t any clues pointing to the murderer at all,” said Jian Xueyi.
“The murderer is powerful?”
“Yeah. Most importantly, my uncle didn’t have any enemies, and he never offended anyone,” Jian Xueyi said with watery eyes.
“The Archaion Sect is so dangerous? Even someone as powerful as your uncle was killed?”
“Yeah.” Jian Xueyi bit her lip and continued, “Tianming, my parents said that the other eight divine realms were stirring when Her Eminence returned. Chaos might unfold soon, and we should be concerned about it.”
“What do you mean?”
“The other divine realms were afraid of her when she returned but when they heard she would need to cultivate again to become a god, a war might unfold to kill her to prevent it,” said Jian Xueyi.
“Oh, got it.” Tianming pursed his lips together and said, “Big Sister, I’ll be leaving now. I have something else to do.”
“Be careful.”
“Alright!”
Tianming looked at the sky after leaving the Snowrites Sword Pavilion. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before quickening his pace. “I’ll kill anyone who wants to touch Ling’er. If the world wants to kill her, I’ll butcher the entire world for her!”
……
At the Heaven Cauldron in the Heaven Branch, Tianming spent five hundred tribulation crystals on a bottle of Hibiscus Spiritwine.
The wine was expensive, and it was definitely the best since he paid five hundred tribulation crystals for it. But it was only a small bottle.
“Senior Ouyang, I’m here to show respect to you.” Tianming climbed up the Heaven Cauldron and stood before Ouyang Jianwang.
“Don’t call me that. You’re making me seem old. Just call me Big Brother Ouyang.” Ouyang Jianwang’s eyes lit up when he saw the bottle of wine. He naturally knew what kind of wine it was.
“Big Brother Ouyang…”
“Haha, the Hibiscus Spiritwine! Come, let’s enjoy it together,” said Ouyang Jianwang.
“Alright. I’ll pour you a cup.”
“Brat, you really know your manners.” Ouyang Jianwang was floating when he saw the wine. With that, Tianming and Ouyang Jianwang sat on the Heaven Cauldron, drinking.
“Great wine! How can there not be any good poems? This is a good scene here, so why don’t we have a poetry battle?” Ouyang Jianwang chuckled.
“Please enlighten me.” Tianming cupped his hands together.
Ouyang Jianwang pondered briefly, then recited, “Listen carefully. A thousand cups of wine isn’t too much when friends meet, drinking as much as you possibly can!”
“Good one!” Tianming started clapping.
“I apologize for embarrassing myself. Come, it’s your turn now,” Ouyang Jianwang said humbly.
“It’s difficult.” Tianming scratched his head and pondered for a long time, then recited, “Seeking him hundreds and thousands of times, try taking two steps if you’re fine.”
“Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! It looks like you’re pretty talented yourself.” Ouyang Jianwang gulped down a cup of wine. He felt the pressure and swayed his head for a long time before slapping his thigh. “Asking the world what love is, love is when two apes are weeping on two cliffs!”
“Brilliant! That’s a brilliant one too!” Tianming exclaimed.
“Thank you. It’s your turn now,” Ouyang Jianwang said proudly.
“Then I’ll be embarrassing myself once more. The birds flying in the sky, flying in their own direction when danger approaches!”
“Not bad. Here’s one from me: Heaven has aged if it has love, humans die faster if they’re too affectionate!” Ouyang Jianwang produced poems while shaking his head.
“The emperor and his mistress remove their war robes, spending the night with hibiscus warming the bed!” Tianming threw out an ultimate poem.
“Asking the emperor about his worries, going to the brothel with eunuchs!” Ouyang Jianwang gave the final one.
“Haha, Big Brother Ouyang is simply a genius. I don’t have any more poems that can match yours!” Tianming raised his hands in defeat.
“Haha, you’re pretty talented yourself. It’s good that you almost tied with me. You’ll surpass me in time!” Ouyang Jianwang said happily and clinked glasses with Tianming again. “Go ahead. What do you need me to do?”
“Big Brother Ouyang, I wish to visit the Archaionfiend Trial.” Tianming raised his head with his eyes blazing.
“The Archaionfiend Trial? That’s where the Trioptic True Dragon Branch tempers their third eye and practices their eye art. Ordinary people won’t be able to endure the Archaionfiend Eye’s impact,” said Ouyang Jianwang.
“I also have a third eye,” Tianming said, stretching out his left hand. His third eye was mysterious, but there were many mysteries in the nine divine realms. He believed that there was no need for him to keep his third eye a secret with Feiling backing him up.
“Holy shit!” Ouyang Jianwang widened his eyes. “You scared me there. I thought your anus grew on your hand there.”
His words left Tianming speechless.
“Alright. Seeing that you’re a poetry friend of mine, I’ll submit an application for you to the Tribulation Peak. But you’ll probably have to wait some time for the approval. I’ll get Old Yi to inform you when the time comes,” Ouyang Jianwang said with a smile.
Tribulation Peak was an organization that could contend with the three sect masters, and they also supervised the three sect masters.
“Thank you, Senior.”
“Call me Big Brother.”
“Alrighty, Big Brother.…”