Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 974

Outside the massive mountain.

The mountain was collapsing under an invisible force. Black energy oozed from the cracks in the soil and rocks.

Over a dozen streaks of black lightning flashed from the rocks. From a distance, they looked like thick tentacles whipping around the mountain peak. Then, a roar echoed from within the collapsed mountain, shaking the area.

Koo-ang!

A massive object emerged from the rubble, completely crushing what remained of the mountain peak. Countless lightning bolts flowed across the surface of the black monster, and the dozen or so tentacles were just a part of its form.

From the center of the black light, a huge face glared with wide-open eyes, emitting an eerie glow.

Kuaaang!

Suddenly, a dragon’s roar echoed, and a blood-red horned dragon burst through the giant monster’s body. Within the blood-red light, the horned dragon transformed into a man wearing spiked silver armor.

It was the man with the surname Gyu, whom they had seen outside the Magum Mountain Range. He, who always had a cruel and cold expression, was now furious, his face pale.

Thud!

At that moment, an explosion resounded from the giant monster’s body, and a blue gale blew out, revealing a large Qilin [a mythical hooved Chinese creature] phantom. The giant face roared and swung black lightning like a sword, attacking the Qilin phantom.

However, the giant Qilin phantom vanished and reappeared a moment later in the distance. The Qilin phantom, now smaller, had sparkling crystals embedded between its eyebrows, and its eyes trembled with anger and surprise.

“Who are you to seize the Blood Spirit and do this?”

Seomseom, who had transformed into a blue Qilin, burst out in anger. Not long after entering the Blood of the True Spirit, the man with the surname Gyu had suddenly attacked, and the Blood Spirit, which should have been dormant, had ambushed and swallowed them together.

If she hadn’t used a pre-prepared secret technique to take refuge in the Qilin phantom, she would have been devoured by the Blood Spirit.

“I have no interest in you. I’m just curious about where the True Qilin Source was within the Blood of the True Spirit.”

The man with the surname Gyu spoke ominously.

“Hehe, who am I, you ask? Who else would know that the Blood of the True Spirit is here?”

The giant face chuckled, vaguely revealing his identity. It was a strange voice that made the listener’s hair stand on end. Moreover, the hole that the man with the surname Gyu and the blue Qilin had created while escaping was restored to its original state with black light.

“Then you too… No one but us should know that the Blood of the True Spirit is here.”

“Hmph, us? I’m different from you, clinging to the body of a Jeong Clan member. I have completely taken over the body of the Silver Horned Dragon.”

The man with the surname Gyu sneered, his eyes wide at the Qilin phantom’s words. In response, the Qilin phantom’s eyes turned fierce, and he calmly retorted.

“That’s just because you were lucky. In any case, we are only one ten-thousandth of the main body’s consciousness. I don’t see any difference between me, who coexists with the original owner, and you, who are parasitic on the horned dragon? If this Jeong Clan woman can cultivate and ascend, I too will be able to regain the body of the True Spirit.”

“Ascend with that body? Is a mere Jeong Clan member even capable of such a thing?”

“What’s impossible about it? With the True Qilin Source, even someone with poor talent has a chance to ascend to the True Immortal Realm.”

Regardless of the man with the surname Gyu’s ridicule, the blue Qilin spoke calmly.

“If a mere Jeong Clan member were to consume the True Qilin Source, it would be a tremendous waste. If I, who possess the body of the Silver Horned Dragon, were to consume it, I would surely be able to undergo a complete transformation and be reborn as a True Dragon within ten thousand years.”

“So, are you saying I should yield the True Qilin Source to you? Although we started from the same existence, time has passed, and we have become separate individuals with independent egos. Besides, even if I were to yield, would that person yield?”

The blue Qilin gestured with his eyes.

“I don’t know how you managed to take refuge in the Blood Spirit’s body, but hand over the True Qilin Source right now! Otherwise, I won’t let you off.”

The man with the surname Gyu felt that the Qilin was provoking him, but he spoke coldly to the giant monster.

“I’ll give you the True Qilin Source if you want. If you come into my belly and become one with me, wouldn’t that be the same thing?”

The giant monster chuckled.

“Have you already swallowed it…? No, the True Qilin Source can only be absorbed by beings with a physical form, so how could a Blood Spirit like you!”

The man with the surname Gyu didn’t seem to believe it at all.

“Do you think you’re the first?”

“What do you mean by that?”

The giant monster, who had been silent, asked coldly, and the blue Qilin was startled and asked.

“I’m saying that I’ve already devoured three or four like you. If I devour you as well, I’ll have secured enough True Spirit blood, so it won’t be too difficult to obtain the body of a True Spirit!”

The giant monster didn’t seem to want to say any more, and he flashed black light, sending out two streaks of black lightning. Each transformed into a giant spear and rushed towards the Qilin phantom and the man with the surname Gyu, as if to pierce them.

At the monster’s words, the man with the surname Gyu’s face contorted, and he blurred, splitting into three bodies. One of them wielded a silver flying sword, splitting the black lightning spear with his sword.

The blue Qilin phantom suddenly grew its head several times larger and swallowed the black lightning spear whole. At that moment, one of the man with the surname Gyu’s incarnations noticed something and shouted.

“Great Devouring Technique! With that level of power, you’re qualified to fight alongside me. Let’s kill that monster together and divide the True Qilin Source. There’s no way the True Spirit’s source has already been refined by such a being.”

“Alright. Let’s do that.”

The blue Qilin also thought for a moment before agreeing decisively. He couldn’t trust the man with the surname Gyu, but it was more important to defeat the powerful enemy in front of them first. The blue Qilin flashed light and swelled his body, emitting tremendous energy.

The three incarnations of the man with the surname Gyu, one flashed silver light from his head and summoned a giant sword aura, another crossed his hands and enveloped the surroundings with bright red flames, and the last one spun around and transformed into a silver horned dragon.

At that moment, the giant monster let out a bizarre laugh.

“You’re going to challenge me? Fine, I’ll show you what I’m capable of. But before that, I need to deal with another uninvited guest.”

Kwa-rung!

As soon as he finished speaking, a dozen thick black lightning bolts tore through the air. In the empty space, silver light flashed, and a slender figure appeared, trying to escape.

However, the lightning bolts merged into one and covered the silver streak of light at an incredible speed. The figure in the dim light was killed without even screaming. It was Guya, a Nascent Soul [a stage in cultivation] demonic beast of the Void Refinement stage, who had been pursuing Han Li and had been hiding nearby using stealth techniques.

She, who possessed the cultivation of the mid-stage of Void Refinement, was instantly killed by the black giant sword. The expressions of the man with the surname Gyu and the giant Qilin became serious at the immense power. However, the giant sword changed direction and, instead of attacking them, cleaved the empty ground.

The man with the surname Gyu and the blue Qilin watched intently, not knowing what was going on.

Koo-ang!

As the giant sword fell fiercely and split the earth, a clear cry was heard from underground, and seventy-two blue swords soared up. The dozens of swords gathered together and transformed into a blue giant sword, flashing dazzling golden lightning and attacking the black giant sword.

Kwa-kwa-kwang!

Golden and black lightning intersected and clashed. The black giant sword was much larger, but the sharpness of the blue giant sword and the power of the golden lightning were not to be underestimated.

The giant monster sneered and stirred up black energy. At that moment, a streak of blue light flew up from the ground. At the same time, the black giant sword shone brightly and created a sword light that looked exactly like a shadow, rushing towards the blue streak of light.

Chang!

The blue light faded, and a strange crystal barrier appeared, deflecting the black sword. Inside the barrier, a young man stood with his hands behind his back. It was Han Li, who had been buried under the collapsed mountain.

He scanned the giant monster, the man with the surname Gyu, and the blue Qilin phantom, and then silently gestured towards somewhere.

Whir!

From not far away, a fist-sized golden petal soared up and flew towards him.

It was the Gold Devouring Beetle that Han Li had sent to track Seomseom. The Gold Devouring Beetle disappeared into his sleeve, and the consciousness residing in the spirit insect returned to his nascent soul.

‘This is…’

As he absorbed all of the Gold Devouring Beetle’s memories, he understood everything. The giant monster, seeing that Han Li had easily blocked his attack, became wary and stopped attacking.

“Ma Yuan’s energy has disappeared, did you kill him?”

The giant monster spoke first.

“Oh, you already know that, your ability to sense is outstanding. Since I’m here, you can assume that Ma Yuan is already dead.”

“Hmph, I deliberately lured Ma Yuan here to do something strange, but it only benefited someone else. I was going to nourish myself once I obtained the body of the True Spirit! That foolish Ma Yuan must have thought that this place was originally filled with pure demonic energy.”

“I see! No wonder I thought it was strange that the injured Ma Yuan wouldn’t have had the strength to gather so much demonic energy. So, I’m even more curious about your identity. Are you perhaps a kind of spirit of heaven and earth?”

“A spirit of heaven and earth? I’m just a miscellaneous monster born from the power of the True Spirit’s energy. Originally, a low-intelligence spirit body is being controlled by an external force. He’s a cunning one, so you should be careful.”

The blue Qilin interjected.

“…Is that Fellow Daoist Seom?”

Han Li raised his eyebrows at the familiar voice coming from the Qilin.

“Yes, it’s me. Although the two consciousnesses are temporarily working together to control the Qilin’s Dharma form, my main consciousness is the one in control.”

The blue Qilin sighed softly and spoke honestly.

“That means the real reason Fellow Daoist Seom called me here was because of the True Qilin Source. The claim that the Heavenly Devil Armor could be repaired with the Star Domain Devil Core was a lie.”

Han Li stared at the blue Qilin with emotionless eyes.

“No, it’s definitely true that the Star Domain Devil Core is needed to repair the Heavenly Devil Armor. It’s true that I used Senior because of the True Qilin Source, but I had no intention of harming you. The information that the Star Domain Devil Beast was injured and was recovering here was also true, wasn’t it?”

Seomseom suddenly explained her situation in a pitiful voice.

“According to what Fellow Daoist said, I have nothing to lose. But it seems there are many variables in Fellow Daoist’s plan.”

Han Li said, scanning the incarnations of the man with the surname Gyu and the giant monster below.

“I never dreamed it would turn out like this either. But if I can just get rid of the Blood Spirit in front of us, I can obtain the True Qilin Source. The True Qilin Source is a part of the original power left behind when the True Spirit Qilin was born. If you consume it, you can undergo a complete transformation and see tremendous effects. If it’s Senior Han, you could reach the Fusion Stage with just a small amount.”

The woman spoke boldly. Since it was impossible to monopolize the True Qilin Source, it was advantageous for her, the weakest one here, to bring Han Li into the fold.

“What are you talking about? You want to divide the True Qilin Source again? My share is absolutely non-negotiable, so if you want to do that, you’ll have to give up half of your share.”

The Silver Horned Dragon, transformed from the man with the surname Gyu, shouted coldly.

“That’s exactly what I was going to do. Senior Han, let’s make a deal again. If you help me kill the Blood Spirit, I’ll give you a portion of my share of the True Qilin Source. And I’ll also tell you a special secret technique to refine the True Qilin Source. Since Fellow Daoist doesn’t possess the consciousness of the True Spirit Qilin, too much of it would be poisonous.”

Seomseom’s soft voice was heard from within the Qilin phantom. Han Li narrowed his eyes and fell into thought for a moment.