Chapter 140: The New Year Approaches, the Year Beast Descends

Chapter 140: The New Year Approaches, the Year Beast Descends

The next day, sunlight streaming through the window woke Chen Qiu from his slumber in the inn. He had slept soundly, a rare moment of pure relaxation without a care in his mind.

With the ten Golden Core Exalted Cultivation Pills that arrived at midnight, he now had forty of them.

After a quick wash, Chen Qiu, feeling refreshed, took Fei Long and the others for a warm bowl of beef soup before returning to the inn to continue his cultivation.

Consume!

Cultivate!

The Sea of Vengeful Spirits beneath Feizhou had brought him significant benefits, the greatest being the accumulation of forty Golden Core Exalted Cultivation Pills, enough to elevate his cultivation by another level.

After five hours, ten Golden Core Exalted Cultivation Pills had been ingested.

The medicinal properties gradually took effect.

He finally broke through the cultivation restriction of the fourth stage Golden Core Realm, entering the fifth stage. After this breakthrough, each Golden Core Exalted Cultivation Pill would only increase his cultivation progress by 2%, a 1% decrease.

-

"Cultivation Stage: Fifth Stage Golden Core Realm (14.3%)."

The familiar panel, enveloped in clouds, reappeared above his Dantian.

"Cultivation has greatly increased, officially entering the Fifth Stage Golden Core Realm."

"Please select one of the three random clauses below within ten breaths."

1:

"Clause Name: Unity of All Spells.

"Clause Level: Blue.

"Clause Effect: You can compress all spells released simultaneously into a small ball."

2:

"Clause Name: Umbrella Over the World.

"Clause Level: Yellow.

"Clause Effect: When you open the umbrella, you cannot be locked on by Spirit Sense, except for those one major realm higher than you."

3:

"Clause Name: Ten Thousand Golden Cores.

"Clause Level: Yellow.

"Clause Effect: Upon your demise, your Golden Core will transform into a thousand illusionary Golden Cores, shooting off in different directions."

".

Chen Qiu contemplated the three clauses without speaking; all three were excellent and desirable.

The "Ten Thousand Golden Cores" clause was a pure life-saving clause.

At the very least, when facing powerful enemies, it greatly increased the chances of his Golden Core escaping, providing an opportunity for a comeback.

Chen Qiu also desired the "Unity of All Spells" clause.

It was an offensive ability, suitable for ambushes or dealing with overconfident enemies. An unassuming small ball contained the explosive power of hundreds of thousands of lightning dragons, causing direct point-to-point damage.

Previously, when attacking an enemy, he would unleash hundreds of thousands of lightning dragons.

But it was area-of-effect damage.

Only a small number of lightning dragons would actually hit the enemy; most of the damage came from the chain reaction of countless lightning dragon explosions. With this clause, he could ensure that all the damage would be concentrated on the enemy's face.

As for the last clause, "Umbrella Over the World," it was also quite suitable for him. A defensive clause, it would prevent him from being locked on by Spirit Sense, proving extremely effective against Sword Cultivators and Spell Cultivators who relied on Spirit Sense to initiate their attacks.

After contemplating for several breaths,

in the final moment, he chose the "Unity of All Spells" clause.

Currently, he felt that "Unity of All Spells" had a higher priority than "Umbrella Over the World." After all, at his Golden Core cultivation, he was virtually invincible, and he was confident in taking the first move. No one could threaten him at this point.

"Unity of All Spells," on the other hand, would significantly enhance his single-target capabilities.

Continuing—

Chen Qiu took a deep breath, consolidating his cultivation briefly before continuing to consume the Heavenly Dao Cultivation Pills without delay.

Another three hours passed.

His cultivation had reached—

"Cultivation Stage: Fifth Stage Golden Core Realm (34.4%)."

As his cultivation increased, the medicinal properties weakened, but his absorption speed also improved. Originally, it took five hours to fully absorb the medicinal properties, but now three hours were sufficient.

Continuing, after another three hours, he consumed ten more Heavenly Dao Cultivation Pills.

"Cultivation Stage: Fifth Stage Golden Core Realm (54.3%)."

At this moment, midnight had passed, and he had yet to consume the remaining 10 Heavenly Dao Cultivation Pills when another 10 arrived. Continue!

"Huff!"

Dawn broke.

Chen Qiu, seated cross-legged on the bed, exhaled a breath of turbid air, examining the cultivation progress panel above his Dantian.

"Cultivation Stage: Fifth Stage Golden Core Realm (94.3%)."

By midnight tonight, he would break through to the Sixth Stage Golden Core Realm. At this rate, breaking through to the Golden Core Apex Great Perfection within a year would be almost guaranteed, and then he could prepare for Nascent Soul cultivation.

He turned his head towards the window, listening to the vendors' cries below.

The snow had melted.

Moreover, due to the clearance of the Sea of Vengeful Spirits beneath Feizhou, the temperature in Feizhou had risen significantly. This even caused the price of Malevolent Wood to drop slightly, as it was no longer needed.

Just then—

A distant and ancient voice resonated in the ears of everyone in the Great Xia Nation.

"Celestial Mandate Scroll: As the New Year approaches, celebrate new life. In the new year, a thousand mountains await.

"The New Year has three stages, corresponding to three Year Beasts.

"Inflicting damage on the Year Beasts will grant Heavenly Dao blessings, varying based on the severity of the damage dealt.

"Causing over 50% damage and delivering the final blow will grant special Heavenly Dao blessings.

"The first Year Beast will descend upon the westernmost region of the Great Xia Nation, Pingzhou, in two hours."

"Let's go!"

Without hesitation, Chen Qiu immediately set off with the Scholar towards Pingzhou, the westernmost region of the Great Xia Nation. Such a significant opportunity must not be missed.

This is the Celestial Mandate Scroll's Year Beast, and the reward for killing it is definitely not small.

Pingzhou is located at the westernmost part of the Great Xia Kingdom.

It borders a hundred countries.

Half an hour later.

Chen Qiu and his group had already arrived in Pingzhou. Not knowing where the Year Beast would descend, they decided to stay at the highest peak within Pingzhou. This way, no matter where it appeared, they could rush to the location at the first moment.

"You've reached the seventh stage of Foundation Establishment?"

Chen Qiu looked at the fluctuating aura surrounding the scholar.

"Mhm."

The scholar smiled and nodded, "Indeed, with the help of the Heavenly Dao Cultivation Pill, my cultivation speed has been very fast. Even Fat Dragon has reached the fourth stage of Foundation Establishment. Everyone's progress is quite rapid, but your cultivation speed, Qiu, is even faster."

"The speed of cultivation at the Golden Core stage is much slower than at the Foundation Establishment stage. You, Qiu, just broke through to the Golden Core stage not long ago, and now you're already at the fifth level. I estimate that you're not far from reaching the sixth level."

"Lucky."

Chen Qiu smiled, and he wasn't wrong. It was indeed lucky. That "Heaven's Pride Ranking" directly gave him 10 Golden Core Heavenly Dao Cultivation Pills every day, which he couldn't use up, no matter what.

Chen Qiu didn't waste the remaining half an hour.

Instead, he sat cross-legged on the ground, running his mental cultivation method to consolidate his cultivation realm.

In the next half hour, as it was about to pass.

"Huff!"

Chen Qiu exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, and then the spiritual energy in his body surged out, and thick dark clouds suddenly appeared above his head again. The raging storm and rain arrived as expected, but this time, there was no sign of any lightning dragons.

He looked down at his palm, and there was a small thunderball about the size of a Golden Core.

It looked extremely inconspicuous.

When his spirit sense swept over it, he couldn't feel how much power it contained. It felt ordinary, and he could only faintly see numerous miniature lightning dragons swirling within the thunderball.

This was the little toy he had created using "Unity of All Spells."

"It looks much more low-key now."

Chen Qiu smiled lightly, and then his spirit sense instantly spread out in all directions. His cultivation had already reached the fifth level of the Golden Core stage, and his spirit sense range had long since reached one hundred and seventy miles. With the bonus from the "Mutual Assistance" attribute, his maximum spirit sense range could reach two hundred and thirty miles.

This spirit sense range was already much farther than that of many Golden Core Apex Great Perfection cultivators.

At this time, numerous cultivators had already arrived in Pingzhou.

Among them were also many Golden Core cultivators, after all, this was a significant opportunity for them.

However, not a single Golden Core cultivator showed any dissatisfaction when Chen Qiu's spirit sense swept over them.

In principle, it was considered provocative for a Golden Core cultivator to release their spirit sense so freely. They could have started a fight and even had the moral high ground, but the problem was that the principle wasn't in their hands.

Having the moral high ground didn't mean they could win the fight.

However, these Golden Core cultivators didn't back down either. Even if they didn't consider Chen Qiu as an enemy, it wouldn't affect their chances of obtaining their own opportunities. Could Chen Qiu really kill the Year Beast instantly?

They would still get rewards for dealing a little damage, and it would be even better if they could land the final blow.

Chen Qiu didn't care what others were thinking. He just focused on releasing his spirit sense and waited for the Year Beast to appear.

Finally—

"Roar!!!"

Accompanied by a roar, a ferocious beast that resembled both a tiger and a dragon suddenly roared and leaped down from the dark clouds in the sky, emitting an extremely terrifying aura. It was a first-level Golden Core cultivator!

It appeared right within his spirit sense range.

As for the Foundation Establishment cultivators who had come to try their luck, they were now filled with fear and scattered in all directions. If the Year Beast had been at the Foundation Establishment level, they might have taken their chances, but against a Golden Core cultivator, they had no chance.

Fleeing was their only option!

"Swoosh!"

Almost as soon as this Year Beast appeared, Chen Qiu, who was dozens of miles away on a distant peak, locked onto it with his spirit sense. The thunderball in his palm transformed into a purple-blue streak of light and crossed the distance at an incredible speed, appearing above the Year Beast's head almost instantly!

"Boom!!!"

Before the Year Beast could even land, a thunderball shot from the horizon and directly penetrated its body, followed by tens of thousands of lightning dragons exploding inside the Year Beast's body!

The massive explosion, mixed with the rumbling thunder, caused the entire world to tremble.

The powerful spiritual energy fluctuation blew away many Golden Core cultivators who were preparing to approach.

When the tens of thousands of lightning dragons dispersed.

There was no trace of the Year Beast left, not even a piece of flesh could be seen. It had disappeared without a trace, leaving nothing behind.

"That's good."

Chen Qiu, sitting cross-legged on the peak, smiled lightly without saying a word. This "Unity of All Spells" attribute was quite useful, especially when it compressed all the damage into a single point, significantly increasing the damage to single-entity beings.

He even felt that.

If a Nascent Soul cultivator didn't activate their protective spiritual energy or use any defensive treasures, and allowed this thunderball to enter their body, they might not be able to escape death either. Of course, this was just his inner speculation, as he had never witnessed the combat methods of Nascent Soul cultivators.

With each major cultivation stage, the differences go beyond just cultivation level and spiritual energy density.

The combat methods differ even more.

For example, at the Golden Core stage, like him, he could lock onto an enemy with his spirit sense and take their life from dozens of miles away. This was something that even the strongest Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn't achieve. Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn't project their spirit sense to lock onto enemies.

Spirit sense attacks and spirit sense locks are unique combat methods of Golden Core cultivators.

As for the Nascent Soul stage...

He had never encountered a Nascent Soul cultivator, so he couldn't even imagine what their combat methods were like. He only knew that Nascent Soul cultivators would definitely crush Golden Core cultivators.

Above Chen Qiu's Dantian, a panel enveloped in clouds slowly appeared.

-

"You dealt 100% damage to the first stage Year Beast, obtaining a Superior Heavenly Dao Retrace Talisman."

"You delivered the final blow to the Year Beast in the first stage and obtained a Superior Heavenly Dao Retrace Talisman."

"Two Superior Heavenly Dao Retrace Talismans?" Chen Qiu's eyes lit up with joy. This was a valuable treasure, and it was just what he needed as he was about to break through the fifth level of the Golden Core. There was a term called "Umbrella Over the World" that he had previously dismissed, but now he wanted it.

Without hesitation, he immediately activated one of the Superior Heavenly Dao Retrace Talismans and selected the "Umbrella Over the World" term that he had previously rejected.

This was one of his few defensive terms.

With this term, when he opened the umbrella, unless an opponent was a whole realm above him in cultivation, it would be impossible for them to lock onto him with their spirit sense, greatly increasing his safety.

One could only use two Heavenly Dao Retrace Talismans at each cultivation realm, and the Superior grade talismans were specifically for the Golden Core realm.

He had only used one.

He decided to save the other one for later.

However, there was no time to check his rewards as the second stage Year Beast roared and leaped down from the dark clouds towards the ground.

"Roar!"

This time, the beast was a hybrid of a clam and a turtle, a defensive-type monster. As soon as it landed on the ground, it quickly covered itself with its turtle shell. Chen Qiu took a deep breath and leaped into the air, constantly teleporting to absorb spirit energy as his previous wave of spirit energy had been depleted.

He needed to recover his spirit energy first.

After a hundred breaths, half of his spirit energy had been restored. Without waiting for a full recovery, just as he was about to squeeze out another thunderball to shoot at the beast, his spirit sense detected that there were already several cultivators lying in a pool of blood near the beast.

The remaining cultivators surrounding the Year Beast were also backing away, looking at each other in hesitation, none of them daring to make a move.

"Hmm?"

Chen Qiu's spirit sense scanned the scene in the distance, and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Then, without lingering on the peak any longer, he and the scholar transformed into streams of light and shot towards the direction of the Year Beast.

In the time it took to take a few breaths, they landed beside the Year Beast.

The scene that his spirit sense scanned was completely different from what his physical eyes saw. When you truly stood before this half-clam, half-turtle Year Beast, you could feel the sheer magnitude of its presence. The beast was nearly ten zhang tall!

It was a colossal creature lying on the ground, and with its massive and heavy body, even the slightest movement of its feet would cause the ground to tremble. It had the cultivation of the third level of the Golden Core!

The cultivators lying in the pool of blood nearby were no longer breathing, having already lost their lives.

This half-clam, half-turtle Year Beast did not take the initiative to attack. It just lay on the ground, motionless, as if daring them to do their worst.

Chen Qiu's appearance immediately drew the attention of many onlookers.

In fact, when the sky was filled with dark clouds, torrential rain, and countless lightning dragons exploding within the first stage Year Beast, everyone knew that Chen Qiu had arrived, as this kind of attack method was unique to Chen Qiu in the entire Xia Dynasty.

But they hadn't seen him in person until now.

At this moment, many people were chattering excitedly.

"Senior, no matter what method you use to attack this Year Beast, it will reflect the attack back at you. Those few fellow cultivators lying in the pool of blood lost their lives in this way."

"Yes, and even spiritual attacks are ineffective. Just now, a Golden Core cultivator tried a spiritual attack and is now sitting cross-legged on the ground over there, recovering from his injuries."

"Senior, you have a great favor to me. My father's injuries were saved by your heavenly blessing."

Various voices filled the air.

Among them were even many voices of gratitude, thanking Chen Qiu for the heavenly blessing that had healed the spirit sense, Dao foundation, and physical injuries of many people. Those hundred million virtue points were not obtained in vain.

Virtue points were not easy to come by.

Even when Chen Qiu had killed countless vengeful spirits in the underground of Fat State, he did not gain any virtue points.

"Hmm."

Chen Qiu nodded slightly, narrowing his eyes without speaking. He casually threw out over ten Lightning Summoning Arts, which bounced back even faster when they touched the turtle shell, hitting Chen Qiu's Celestial Omnipotent Umbrella.

The speed was so fast that there was no time to dodge.

They all slammed into the surface of Chen Qiu's umbrella.

Chen Qiu looked at the umbrella, and there wasn't even a scratch on it. As expected of a middle-grade Celestial treasure, it was incredibly sturdy. This spirit treasure, which had been nurtured in his Dantian, had also increased in grade from a lower-grade Golden Core to a middle-grade Golden Core along with his cultivation.

A growth-type spirit treasure's grade could increase alongside its owner's cultivation.

"Is that the famous Chen Qiu of Xia Dynasty?"

In the crowd, several people with exotic appearances stood together, looking towards Chen Qiu with curiosity in their eyes. "They say that seeing is believing, but he doesn't seem to have anything special about him. It's hard to associate him with the fifth-grade Celestial treasure Golden Core and the vast heavenly blessing clouds."

"But I remember he just broke through the Golden Core stage not long ago, right?"

"But the spiritual energy fluctuations on his body are clearly at the fifth level of the Golden Core."

"I don't know."

One of the men shook his head and said with a smirk, "But you can go and try. You always boast that your charm is irresistible to men. Chen Qiu is the strongest Celestial Talent in Xia Dynasty. If you can get close to him, who knows, he might even support you to become the female emperor of your country."

"That makes sense."

The female cultivator in a long skirt standing next to him had her eyes fixed on Chen Qiu's back, and she seductively twirled a strand of hair and brought it to her lips. "Maybe he'll like me because of my exotic charm."

"You go ahead, and I'll stand back and silently support you."

Chen Qiu looked at the second stage Year Beast in front of him. It was indeed a bit tricky. Its shell was not only extremely hard, completely protecting the beast within, but it could also reflect all damage.

But it was only slightly tricky.

As long as he avoided the shell and attacked the beast inside, it would be fine.

Boom!!!

Accompanied by the deafening thunder, a small thunderball slowly appeared in Chen Qiu's hand, containing over a hundred thousand illusory and real lightning dragons. His spirit sense controlled this small thunderball and immediately shot it towards the ground.

In an instant, it penetrated the ground.

Then, from beneath the half-clam, half-turtle Year Beast, a blinding purple-blue light burst forth, directly blasting the massive beast into the sky.

A loud explosion followed, and a shower of blood rained down.

Some of the cultivators who were still standing in the original spot, stunned by the spectacle, were caught off guard and drenched in the bloody rain, their bodies reeking of the stench of blood. Chen Qiu and the others had already left the area.

Although it was a bit tricky, it was manageable.

When Chen Qiu's spirit sense controlled the thunderball and pierced through the ground to attack the beast's abdomen, he could clearly feel that its belly was also extremely hard, not something that ordinary people could break. It just lacked the counterattacking abilities of a carapace.

-

"You dealt 100% damage to the second stage Year Beast and obtained a 'Heavenly Dao Escape Talisman'."

"You delivered the final blow to the second stage Year Beast and obtained the 'Heavenly Dao Spirit Ring'."

"Hmm?"

Chen Qiu looked at the two panels that appeared above his Dantian, his eyebrows slightly raised. The "Heavenly Dao Escape Talisman" was a great escape tool; once activated, it could instantly transport him ten thousand miles away, ignoring all spatial restrictions and formations.

He was curious if this item could break through the Great Xia Kingdom's restrictions, but after some thought, he abandoned the idea of testing it. It would be a great lifesaving measure once he reached the Xuantian Continent.

As for the "Heavenly Dao Ring"...

"This is a great item."

A hint of joy flashed in Chen Qiu's eyes as he looked at the ring in his hand, which appeared simple but contained a trace of Heaven and Earth Power. It was a Heavenly Dao Treasure, the kind that Artisan Cultivators couldn't create.

This ring's effects were also powerful.

It had its own Spirit Artifact storage space, which was significantly larger than even the highest-grade Spirit Artifact storage spaces.

From now on, he wouldn't need to wear so many storage rings on his fingers; this Heavenly Dao Ring was more than enough.

One ring was all he needed.

Additionally, this Heavenly Dao Ring could also enhance the power of his spirit sense attacks to some extent. When using the "Heart Piercing Needle", a spirit sense attack spell, his attacks would be even more powerful.

Combined with his already larger Sea of Divine Sense compared to ordinary people, his spirit sense attacks were naturally stronger.

With all these enhancements, his "Heart Piercing Needle" would become a powerful ace.

Most importantly,

after obtaining this "Heavenly Dao Ring", a strand of information appeared in his mind. By collecting eight different parts of the Heavenly Dao Treasure Set, he could assemble the complete set and unlock its powerful effects.

All Heavenly Dao Treasures were growth-type treasures, and this Heavenly Dao Ring was no exception.

After collecting three Heavenly Dao Treasures...

He could obtain the first set effect: "The power of the Lightning Summoning Art will be enhanced."

Simple and straightforward.

Chen Qiu was quite satisfied with this effect, although he didn't understand why it seemed like he was constantly enhancing the Lightning Summoning Art. He already had many different methods and entries to strengthen it.

Perhaps...

it was because his most powerful spell was the Lightning Summoning Art, so all spell enhancements automatically applied to it.

If he had other more powerful spells, would the spell enhancements apply to those instead?

It made sense.

Taking advantage of the third Year Beast's delay, Chen Qiu flew into the air to restore his spirit energy to full before landing on the ground to stand with Fat Dragon and the others, preparing to welcome the third Year Beast's arrival.

He didn't know...

if this third Year Beast could grant him another Heavenly Dao Treasure as a reward.

If so, he would have three Heavenly Dao Treasures and could immediately obtain the first set effect.

"Roar!!"

Just as Chen Qiu finished restoring his spirit energy, without much delay, a half-wolf, half-tiger beast descended from the sky and landed on the ground, towering at three zhang high. Although it wasn't as large as the second Year Beast, it was still a gigantic monster compared to ordinary monsters.

At least it was bigger than the little wolf following Chen Qiu.

This little wolf was quite aggressive.

Several times, it tried to charge forward, but Chen Qiu stopped it each time. Otherwise, the little wolf might have rushed ahead on its own.

Indeed, with the little wolf's Fifth Level Golden Core cultivation, it might not fear these Year Beasts. However, Chen Qiu had never seen the little wolf in action, and he was curious to see how this tiny creature would attack.

But at this moment, he didn't think much!

As soon as the third beast appeared, he locked onto it with his spirit sense and shot the thunderball, now transformed into a purple-blue beam of light, towards it. He was growing fond of using the "Unity of All Spells" entry when fighting single targets.

It was indeed quite useful.

As Chen Qiu made his move, the surrounding cultivators also unleashed their most powerful techniques, clearly hoping to get a share of the rewards. They had come from far away, not just to watch the show, but also to claim a reward.

Chen Qiu glanced at them but didn't pay much attention. After all, his Lightning Summoning Art was instantaneous, and by the time their attacks arrived, his Lightning Summoning Art would have already reached the target.

This Year Beast had a Sixth Stage Golden Core cultivation.

Its power was quite terrifying.

If not for Chen Qiu's presence, many onlookers would have fled, especially the Foundation Establishment Cultivators, who were now using their strongest techniques to attack the Year Beast.

If they were alone...

Even with a hundred times the courage, they wouldn't dare attack a Sixth Stage Golden Core Year Beast with their Foundation Establishment cultivation. They might as well slit their own throats; it would be a cleaner death.

At least they wouldn't be chewed alive, and there would be no pain.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end