Chapter 51 - Mysterious Steel Token
Long Chen felt the heat of the ground dissipate rapidly now that the fire was gone.
The two men were still locked in battle. They started fighting viciously after learning that the steel token was the source of the mysterious fire.
“Chen Xiongzhou, you must be out of your mind! I’ve already told you I will share the rewards if you let me take the treasure!”
“You think I’m an idiot? You would’ve killed me the moment it was in your hands. I can tell the steel token is not an ordinary treasure just from looking at that fire just now!”
“Fine! Since you want to die so much, I will grant you a swift death! Don’t blame me for doing this.
“Evil Rushing Fist!”
The two Eighth Draconic Stage cultivators clashed and used every technique in their arsenal in their deathmatch.
Seeing their sudden shift in behavior, Long Chen recalled what the Yang patriarch had told him. In this world where power reigns supreme, one would pay the price for trusting their comrades too much. Naturally, this does not apply to those with genuine comradeship.
Their fight was intense. Both were at the Eighth Draconic Stage and were much more versed in combat than Bai Zhanxiong. Thankfully, they were in the Desolate Beastland, where there wasn’t much for them to destroy. Otherwise, the aftermath of their fight would be devastating!
Both of them were equally matched in terms of strength, so the victor would ultimately be decided by who had the faster reaction speed. Feng Mingyang was more agile than Chen Xiongzhou, so he became the victor after finishing his “brother” off with a punch. Though he had won, he came out of it covered in blood and severe injuries.
Feng Mingyang's eyes shone with greed when he thought back on how he had defeated Chen Xiongzhou and got the right to claim the mysterious steel token.
“Chen Xiongzhou, I told you not to compete with me for the treasure. Don’t worry, the steel token is mine now that you are dead! I will improve my cultivation and take care of your lovely wife. I remember your wife being prettier than mine.”
He spat on Chen Xiongzhou’s corpse and was surprised to see blood mixed in his saliva. He glared at his friend one more time before hobbling to the mysterious steel token.
His excitement rose when he recalled how powerful the fire emanated from the steel token was!
“He’s a human-shaped piece of garbage! Not only did he kill his sworn brother over a treasure but he even wants to humiliate his wife. Long Chen!”
Ling Xi was infuriated upon seeing Feng Mingyang’s behavior, and she shot him a look filled with disgust
Even Ling Xi wanted him to get rid of Feng Mingyang. Long Chen was planning to do so in the first place, and he had already transformed into his dragon form. He disappeared like a red whirlwind, his strength higher than Feng Mingyang’s. Then he suddenly reappeared in front of the traitorous man, blocking him from approaching the steel token. Feng Mingyang would have to go through him to get the treasure. “A Beast Warrior?!”
Feng Mingyang was shocked, but greed clouded his judgment. Long Chen was the only obstacle standing between him and the steel token he had fought hard to obtain. His eyes filled with frenzy, and he tried to attack Long Chen even though he was seriously injured.
“You are heavily injured and yet you think you can win against me?”
Long Chen smirked. His powerful Dragon Soul Transformation had increased his speed tremendously, making him more agile than Feng Mingyang. The latter was dragging his injured body just a few meters away and was about to use his technique before Long Chen sent him flying with a single punch.
Feng Mingyang had already sustained grave internal injuries, so Long Chen’s attack almost made him collapse. He spat blood and fell onto the ground, unable to get up while his breath became ragged.
Long Chen knew Feng Mingyang was mortally wounded now, and he was sure to die on that very spot if no one came to his rescue. But the only other person around was the one who had injured him, so why would Long Chen save him?
Feng Mingyang struggled to keep his eyes open on the verge of death. He glared at Long Chen approaching him and unrelentingly said, “You... Who are you?”
Noticing the strong sense of dissatisfaction in his eyes, Long Chen thought about it. He had indeed been playing the role of a weakling for too long. He chuckled and transformed back.
Feng Mingyang was astonished when he saw Long Chen's true form, then he became unrelenting once more. He soon died from shortness of breath due to the extreme mood swings.
Long Chen stared at his corpse and smiled coldly. “You guys wanted to kill me, but I ended up killing you. Don’t blame me for your misfortune.”
“Hey, he gave us a Dream Lingzhi Mushroom before. Do you think it’s appropriate to just kill him like that?” Ling Xi doubted herself.
“Not every good deed needs to be rewarded, especially if said deed was performed by someone like him. He tried to shoo us off by giving us a little treat so I wouldn’t compete with them for the treasure. Think of it as a trade; there’s nothing good nor bad about it since both parties benefit.”
Ling Xi became gloomy. “Then are we making a trade? I rescued you twice and now you are helping me to search for the Dream Lingzhi Mushroom.”
Long Chen was stunned and unhappily said, “Do you have a donkey brain or something?”
“No, you’re the one with the donkey brain!”
“Alright... I don’t want to argue with you, but Xiao Xi...”
Staring at his shoulder, where the miniature Ling Xi enveloped in light and mist stood, Long Chen said calmly, “If this is a trade, I hope it will go on forever and never end.”
Ling Xi understood what he meant and blushed. She didn’t know whether her cheeks were flushed from anger or embarrassment.
Long Chen was already standing near the steel token. Currently, it was not displaying any abnormal signs and looked just like a regular token. He picked up a stone and threw it at the mysterious treasure.
Seeing nothing happen, he carefully walked over and touched the steel token. He was surprised by how cold it was.
Long Chen had expected it to be scalding based on the amount of fire it had emanated before.
He carefully inspected the steel token. Other than the engraving of a burning sun, it had no interesting features.
“Ling Xi, do you know what this is? Anything strange about it?”
Ling Xi frowned and circled the steel token before she shook her head. “I’m not sure. There’s a large amount of energy contained within it, but it’s been sealed. However, it resembles the inheritance keys made by experts from the Middle Ages.”
“The Middle Ages? Do you mean the period after the Ancient Ages, where numerous experts established their sects and households? I’ve heard that they left a lot of inheritances for their descendants. Is this true?”
“It’s true, but I’m just guessing here. Also, this is most likely just a key and not the treasure itself. It doesn’t have much use yet, so it’s better to hide it and return to the Yang family estate soon.”
Long Chen nodded and threw the steel token into his Universe Pouch. He was just about to walk away when he saw Chen Xiongzhou’s and Feng Mingyang’s corpses. Both of them had just died and their blood was still fresh. Long Chen was still in his dragon form when he felt the blood in him boiling. His eyes turned red as if he had just spotted a gourmet meal in front of him.
“What’s wrong?”
Ling Xi was worried when she saw him in a daze.
“Since they are dead, it’s a waste to not consume their blood. If I were to use Blood Transmutation, my strength would increase again...”
Long Chen was straining his voice as if he was restraining himself, but he couldn’t stop himself from uttering those words.
His vision was filled with blood-red images of the dragon within him. It was howling in rage with its mouth wide open, pushing Long Chen to use Blood Transmutation ...
Sensing that something was wrong, Ling Xi suddenly pulled the Ling Xi Sword and hurt Long Chen, waking him up from the trance. She said in a serious tone, “Hey, I need you to listen to me...”
Long Chen didn’t know what had happened. He had suddenly fallen into a daze when he saw the corpses, his body entering hunger mode with food in front of him. If it wasn’t for Ling Xi, he might’ve used Blood Transmutation on both Chen Xiongzhou and Feng Mingyang!
Ever since he obtained the Blood Transmutation technique, he had always felt that it was morally wrong to use it on another person. It was a technique that killed someone while increasing his gains. The technique was too brutal!
He had used it on Bai Zhanxiong as an exception because Long Chen hated him to the core.
Morally speaking, Long Chen objected to the idea of draining someone’s blood to empower himself. It would spark public outrage if it became known. However, he had no qualms about using it on beasts.
“I don’t know what kind of dragon left the Inherited Blood Essence, but it must have belonged to one of the evil dragons. Only an evil dragon would use such a horrible technique. It’s fine if you use it around Baiyang Town since there are no stronger experts to maintain the order, but it’s best if you don’t use it in public in a larger town. The cultivators over there might cripple you and tell others that they were removing the root of evil as justification. Also, I have no idea how it will affect you mentally the more you use it. Dragons related to blood are always filled with killing intent and massacre. I’m afraid you might lose yourself in the future, so please be careful...”
Ling Xi's words were like a truth bomb to Long Chen.
He was initially excited to learn the Blood Transmutation technique, and he had massacred the Underground Blood Lizards to test it out. But he had never considered the possibility of it affecting him mentally. Thinking back, if he had killed everything that crossed his path to improve himself, he might’ve lost his mind to the killing intent.
The path of cultivation heavily emphasized gradual improvements. Techniques that increased the user’s strength in a short amount of time were usually unstable. Long Chen decided that he would use Blood Transmutation sparingly. There are many methods to improve himself, so he didn’t have to rely on this one exclusively.
“I can continue growing stronger at the same pace even if I use Blood Transmutation sparingly!”
Ling Xi’s worries dissipated when she saw him change his mind. “That’s good. Let’s go back to Baiyang Town. While I estimated that the Ascension Fruits would mature in eight days, there’s always some deviation...”
Long Chen swore so loudly that his voice was heard throughout Burning Heaven Valley.
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