Whoosh~
Zhuo Fan drifted around in the cave, waving his ring in every direction. He could feel joy bubbling out of him with every precious ingredient being tucked away in the safe confines of his ring.
He just came to Beast King Mountain and had already made a killing. [This is the best goddamn omen of all!]
Zhuo Fan cackled, his sound chilling the snake and human outside to the bone.
After he had made sure nothing was left unappropriated, Zhuo Fan began his search for Shaping Spring in earnest. His soul sense spread to every corner.
Then Zhuo Fan rushed deeper. Standing next to a hot spring, he watched the bottom of the spring in shock.
An all natural hot spring! It was ten meter wide and had hot water coming out from the wall in front. But what was truly amazing was the thick white layer at the bottom of it.
Zhuo Fan knew right away that this was Shaping Spring.
[Isn’t it a bit too much?]
Not even he had hoped to find so much of the underground miraculous treasure. Just a vial of the stuff could buy you a town!
He’d be happy with just a bowl. But he didn’t just get a bowl, he instead got a whole tub!
He could literally bathe in it.
Zhuo Fan shuddered from excitement. Thinking back on this mountain, he realized that only after billions of years of accumulation could have gathered so much of Shaping Spring.
There would’ve been even more of it if not for a certain snake sampling it.
[This is enough as it is. Anyways, one shouldn’t be too greedy. It’s bad for health.]
Zhuo Fan chuckled at his egotistical thinking. Any who heard him would’ve spat blood. [If you’re not greedy then the people in this world are all altruists.]
[Humph, greedy pig!]
Plop!
With a laugh, Zhuo Fan jumped right in. He sank until the Shaping Spring reached his waist.
Zhuo Fan quirked his eyebrows in glee.
[So deep!]
There was even more of the Shaping Spring than he thought was possible.
Zhuo Fan went right down to business. Taking out bottles and filling them with the stuff before throwing them into his ring.
Zhuo Fan’s face always sported that dumb grin throughout this ‘ordeal’, smiling from ear to ear.
[I hit pay dirt coming to this Beast King Mountain. It’s totally worth it even if I don’t get that Brimming Sacred Pill. Ha-ha-ha…]
Zhuo Fan’s laughter echoed throughout the cave.
Bam!
While he was hauling his booty, he touched upon something. It didn’t sound like a rock, but something hollow.
He groped around blindly before taking out a blue vial. Zhuo Fan looked at it curiously.
[Why is there a vial here? Is collecting baubles another one of the serpent’s hobbies?]
But the writing on it left him stupefied, “My luck can’t be that good, right? Did I actually stumble upon a Brimming Sacred Pill?”
Yes sir, the vial had those exact words on it. The cap even had a seal on it to not leak its fragrance and attract spiritual beasts.
Zhuo Fan started flipping it.
Fang Qiubai threw five such pills into Beast King Mountain at the start. This one must’ve flown through an underground river and chanced upon this place, with the snake totally oblivious of it.
Zhuo Fan sighed, [I’m so lucky even I’m scared.]
The odds of finding a Brimming Sacred Pill among Shaping Spring was a true close to zero chance.
But was he one to waste such an opportunity? Hell no! He threw it in his ring and resumed hauling his loot. It took him half a day of ‘grueling’ work to capture it all, down to the last drop.
The venomous serpent outside was swimming around, peeved. [Just what are you doing in my home? Couldn’t you at least leave some for me? Waaah~]
Uncaring and unfeeling for the heartbroken snake outside, Zhuo Fan had no idea about the meaning of restraint. He took one last look at the spotless walls, and nodded in satisfaction that he didn’t miss anything.
Woe was the poor snake. It was now a millionaire turned pauper, wrung dry by Zhuo Fan.
If it’d only seen this spotless place, it’d be crying his lungs out.
Not that the greedy Zhuo Fan ever cared, mind you.
Zhuo Fan now took his time to inspect the Brimming Sacred Pill. He uncapped it and swallowed it.
With enemies coming out at every turn in the Esoteric Debate, he was hard pressed to find such leisure again, giving him enough time to refine the pill. It’d be best to stay in here, under the snake’s watch and grow stronger.
Boom!
An explosion of soul power happened the instant he swallowed it. As if a sea was unleashed in his head, his mind threatened to burst.
Zhuo Fan never thought the pill would be so outrageously strong. Finding it painful even for him to absorb such a vast amount.
Nevertheless, he was happy as he channeled it into his right eye. With his soul at the Radiant Stage, increasing it a few more times would hardly help him in this battle.
His focus was on reaching the Divine Eye of the Void’s 2nd stage with the help of the Brimming Sacred Pill!
The 1st stage had incredible power and made him practically invincible, but the 2nd stage was even more so, as it covered his deadly weakness.
His victory in this final battle solely rested on it!
Zhuo Fan’s right eye burned hot as the golden ring in it flickered. Slowly, a second golden halo came into existence beyond the first.
Even if blood spilled from his eye, even if the pain was excruciating, he braced for it and remained staunch!
If he hadn’t missed his chance in Dragon Cloud City, it wouldn’t have been such an ordeal. But now, forced by circumstances, he chose to power his way through, multiplying his agony instead.
He couldn’t even spare the attention to care though. Even as he bled from his eye, even as he was soaked in sweat, he still remained firmly seated on the ground.
Over the next couple of days, Zhuo Fan was in constant frown and veins bulged on his forehead. He was still suffering through the pain and felt the breaking point drawing ever nearer.
He reached his limit on the afternoon of the third day. He was teetering on the edge, just as the second halo formed in his right eye.
An invisible wave shot to the skies the next moment. A simple glare actually made a small hole straight through the whole five hundred meter tall mountain above him like it was nothing!
The bright sky, the warm sunlight, passed through it and shined upon the gleeful Zhuo Fan. He was spent and weary, but thrilled.
Divine Eye of the Void’s 2nd stage, Void Annihilation!
The power to break through any space!
Even trapped in an array or space, he’d now have no problem blowing his way out all thanks to a little help from something called Divine Eye of the Void’s 2nd stage.
“Ha-ha-ha, awesome! I am truly invincible now!” Zhuo Fan cackled, but fell the instant he tried getting up.
He guessed that he would have to wait as tending to his soul came first. A great deal of his soul power was used on breaking through and it was now time to use the rest to cultivate.
So he sat cross legged again.
The next day, his soul spread around and found everything to be far clearer. He realized the range had increased to two miles and flew out of the cave.
He had struck the motherlode coming to Beast King Mountain!
Whoosh!
Shooting out of the cave with a thunderclap, he ignored the snake and took to the skies.
With his nemesis finally out, the venomous serpent shrank his size and entered the cave.
The empty and spotless place left him wailing in rage.
The hoard he grew throughout his life was gone, just like that. Even Shaping Spring was picked clean. He licked the hot spring and found not a drop remaining.
The snake wailed, [He is worse than a bandit!]
But then he noticed the bright sky above and almost fainted from anger.
[Blast it all to hell! Have you no restrain?]
[You already cleaned me out and now you go as far as punching holes in my home? What did I ever do to you ? Waaah~]