Chapter 268: Chapter 255: Disguise
"The Nine-Heart Lotus!"
With one slash of his sword, he shattered the Nine-Heart Demon Fruit Tree. A lotus formed from nine heart-shaped petals appeared before him. Nie Yun knew he had found what he was looking for. He reached out with his right hand, unleashing his Soaring Water Qi to control the seawater, which enveloped the lotus and pulled it into his grasp.
"Who goes there? How dare you steal the Demon Fruit right in front of me! Despicable!"
Just as Nie Yun stored the Nine-Heart Lotus in his Storage Dantian, he heard an explosive roar from above. Looking up, he saw the Seventh Prince and his men swimming furiously toward him.
Though it took some time to describe Nie Yun’s inner turmoil, it had all happened in the span of a few breaths. The moment the Demon Heart Fruit Tree died, the puppets lost their ability to attack and were slain by the Seventh Prince’s group. The Water-Locking Divine Palace Cover lost its effect as a result. Only then did they realize that all their hard work had been for someone else’s gain. How could they not be enraged?
"Heh, Seventh Prince, thank you for your help. I’ll be taking my leave now!"
Although his strength had greatly increased and killing these few men would be no issue, Nie Yun didn’t make a move. Instead, he laughed heartily. With a flick of his hands, his turbulent Soaring Water Qi instantly churned the surrounding seawater, making it murky once again. He shot straight up, flickered twice, and vanished from their sight in an instant.
"He can control the seawater... He’s a Soaring Water Master? He’s actually a Soaring Water Master!"
"Damn it, where did a Soaring Water Master suddenly come from?"
Feeling the sudden increase in pressure from the seawater, the Seventh Prince and his men let out long, furious roars. They couldn’t fathom why a Soaring Water Master would appear here!
A Soaring Water Master possessed a special talent, one of the three great escape talents. This talent was incredibly rare; one might not even find a single one in the entire Divine Holy Empire. So how could one be here?
"Your Highness, it’s Qi Yang! It has to be Qi Yang! I heard before that he was searching everywhere for a Soaring Water Master. I thought he hadn’t found one, but it seems he not only succeeded but also used him to plot against us!"
"That’s right, it must be him. Only he has the map to this place. We were only able to get in here because we obtained the secret from him. Who else could it be!" another middle-aged man roared in confirmation.
"Qi Yang, I’ll make you wish you were dead!"
Hearing his subordinate’s deduction, the Seventh Prince’s eyes grew so cold they seemed capable of freezing the seawater. He ground his teeth with a GRINDING sound and let out a savage roar!
To have all one’s hard work benefit someone else—one could only imagine the feeling. It was safe to say his hatred for Qi Yang had already surpassed the bounds of imagination.
Ignoring the Seventh Prince’s roars, Nie Yun had already reached a hidden spot behind an underwater mountain and concealed himself.
A Soaring Water Master could breathe freely underwater and didn’t need to worry about consuming True Qi. As soon as he stopped, Nie Yun took out the Nine-Heart Lotus he had obtained.
’The Nine-Heart Lotus... it’s truly miraculous!’
Nie Yun’s eyes gleamed as he stared at the Nine-Heart Lotus in his palm.
The Nine-Heart Lotus had nine petals, each shaped like a human heart. Held in his palm, they pulsed continuously as if they were alive.
’This thing is most effective when consumed right after being picked. It’s an ultimate treasure for Body Cultivation. I’ll just eat it!’
The Nine-Heart Lotus was a supreme treasure for tempering the physical body, and its effects were strongest right after being picked. Since he was going to eat it himself anyway, there was no need to save it. He swallowed it in one go.
GULP!
The moment the Nine-Heart Lotus entered his body, Nie Yun felt an earth-shattering transformation taking place. His heart began to beat with more power, his blood circulation quickened, and the cells throughout his body started to reorganize. His muscle strength was undergoing an incredible change!
CRACK!
Nie Yun felt as if he had become a Golden Man. His blood vessels and Meridians had all turned gold, becoming incomparably strong and indestructible!
The power of the Nine-Heart Lotus instantly pushed his Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique to the Peak of the Fourth Layer, reaching the Great Success Level. His muscle strength increased fivefold, reaching a total of 500 Elephant Power!
Muscle strength was different from True Qi. True Qi could see explosive growth from a great opportunity; as long as one’s aura was profound, their power would be astonishing. Muscle growth, however, was extremely slow. Especially for someone at Nie Yun’s level, increasing his strength by even one Elephant Power was incredibly difficult. The fact that the Nine-Heart Lotus allowed him to reach 500 Elephant Giant Power in the blink of an eye was an effect so potent it surpassed even his own imagination!
As his muscle strength increased, his body became even tougher. He could still use the tenfold effect of his Great Strength Dantian. This meant that if Nie Yun were to activate his Great Strength Dantian now, he could unleash a staggering 5,000 Elephant Giant Power with his physical strength alone!
If he added the 2,000 Elephant Power from his True Qi, that would be a total of 7,000 Elephant Giant Power. Below the Heaven-Seizing Creation Secret Realm, he could absolutely be considered a peak existence!
’I haven’t fully digested the power of the Nine-Heart Lotus yet. Although the fourth layer of my Spirit Rhinoceros Celestial Body Refining Technique has reached Great Success, the realm isn’t completely consolidated. With time, it’ll be no problem for my physical strength to reach 1,000 Elephant Power, or even more!’
Taking a deep breath to suppress his excitement, Nie Yun’s eyes shone with utter confidence.
’With this kind of strength, once I get to the Divine Holy Empire, who would I have to fear besides that Heaven-Seizing Creation Secret Realm Powerhouse?’
Besides, this was just the effect produced in the short time since he consumed the Nine-Heart Lotus. He definitely couldn’t have absorbed all of its power so quickly. Given enough time, his strength was certain to increase again!
’Absorbing the Nine-Heart Lotus took a fair amount of time. I estimate Qi Yang and his group should be arriving here soon!’
Standing up, Nie Yun gazed into the distance.
His heart and Meridians had been strengthened, his Spiritual Power had overcome his Heart Demon, and he possessed the abilities of a Soaring Water Master. As a result, his eyes were much sharper than before. Others couldn’t see clearly through the murky seawater, but he could make out scenes from hundreds of miles away with a single glance.
’Hmm? They’re moving fast. Heh, they’re close to the Seventh Prince. This is the perfect chance to set something up and make the two groups meet!’
While observing, he saw that Qi Yang’s group had also reached the area of the Nine-Heart Demon Fruit Tree and smiled faintly.
’But before I go over, I should disguise myself first!’
He changed back into his other clothes, tore them in a few places, and killed a few Demon Beasts in the sea, smearing their blood on himself to create the appearance of being heavily injured.
As a brilliant master of disguise, even though Nie Yun didn’t possess things like a Disguise Dantian, the effects he could create were undetectable to anyone. Although many of his techniques couldn’t be used deep in the seawater, just faking an injury was something that even a Heaven-Seizing Creation Secret Realm Powerhouse would find difficult to see through, let alone Qi Yang and his men.
Once his disguise was complete, he first used his Soaring Water Master abilities to leave a trail for the Seventh Prince’s group to follow. Then, he darted to a spot on the path Qi Yang’s group was sure to take and stopped. He sat down on a protruding rock, his face pale and the True Qi in his body so faint it was practically nonexistent. To an outsider, he looked as if he could stop breathing and die at any second.
"Yun Tong, are you alright?!"
He had just finished his preparations when he heard an anxious cry. A slender, white-robed figure immediately rushed over, their face etched with worry.
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