Chapter 52: The Misty Peak
Chapter 52: The Misty Peak
"Meow~"
"Meow, meow, meow."
As night fell, the meows of a cat awakened a certain someone from their deep slumber.
"Shh," Lu Ran muttered groggily, stroking the cat's head to soothe the little furball.
In the bedroom, a shrine with a divine statue stood, and if the little lynx continued meowing, it might irritate the deity.
"Hungry?" Lu Ran asked, cradling the cat named Lihua in his arms as he sat up.
Seeing the pitch-black room, he realized he had slept for an entire day, and naturally, Lihua had gone hungry for just as long.
"Meow~" Lihua looked pitiful, her fluffy paws pawing at Lu Ran's face.
"There's canned food at home." Lu Ran carried Lihua to the kitchen and found a can of luncheon meat in the cabinet.
He cut it into pieces, placed it on a plate, and poured a bowl of water.
"Eat up, you must be starving." Lu Ran set the food and water on the floor, watching as Lihua devoured it eagerly. "Did I sleep too long?"
Suddenly, Lu Ran remembered something and hurried out of the kitchen without even turning on the lights.
He went straight to the shrine, clasped his hands together, and said, "Divine Sheep, in my dream, you said you would eventually dissipate."
Inside the shrine, the white ram statue remained silent and motionless.
After a moment's contemplation, Lu Ran continued, "What can I do to help you?"
"Can dissipation be avoided?"
"Don't deities need the power of faith? If more humans worship you, won't that help extend your life?" Lu Ran asked eagerly, but the white ram statue showed no response.
Lu Ran's frustration grew, wishing he could give it a kick!
"Divine Sheep, please say something!" he pleaded.
"You want to help me," a telepathic voice suddenly spoke.
Lu Ran's spirits lifted, "Yes, of course, I do!"
When it came to repaying a debt of gratitude, Lu Ran was always earnest and serious.
The white ram statue spoke, "How can someone from the Misty Realm help me?"
Lu Ran: "."
Okay, okay!
You want to help me, but you're stabbing me in the heart instead?
The white ram statue repeated its words from the dream, "Don't worry, just focus on growing stronger."
"Yes!" Lu Ran nodded.
He had always yearned for strength.
Whether it was to avenge his father or to no longer live in fear, Lu Ran was driven to diligently cultivate his skills.
Now, after experiencing the events of July 15th with the Moon Gazers team, he was even more determined to become powerful.
Although he had played a significant role on the night of the 15th, Lu Ran didn't want to be the one being protected.
If possible, he wanted to allow the Wei brothers to fight without restraint and stand shoulder to shoulder with the Great Nightmare, fighting their way to a brighter dawn.
The white ram statue spoke, "If we consider the level of strength, the Evil Dog statue is currently at the third stage of the Misty Realm.
Capture more evil dog souls to quickly cultivate the Evil Dog statue to the Stream Realm."
Once Lu Ran possessed the Stream Realm Evil Dog statue, he would gain the Dark Art of Dark Agility.
With this, Lu Ran's agility attribute would far surpass others at the same level, and his combat power would skyrocket!
"I understand," Lu Ran replied gravely, still not giving up, "Regarding your dissipation..."
The white ram statue suddenly said, "Souls can also nourish me."
Lu Ran's expression froze.
He wasn't sure if the deity was just placating him or if it was true.
A revered deity eating demon souls?
Was that something a deity should do?
Hold on!
Lu Ran furrowed his brows, but the Divine Sheep had created a Demon Sculpture Garden!
Moreover, the method it used to activate the demon sculptures was by employing demon souls.
So, the Divine Sheep's words were very likely to be true!
The more Lu Ran thought about it, the more shocked he became.
The white ram statue said, "You can capture more souls."
"After school starts, I'll go back to the demon cave and slaughter more demons," Lu Ran said solemnly.
The deity stopped transmitting its thoughts, and after a brief wait, Lu Ran sighed deeply.
Strength, strength.
The foundation of everything!
He sat on the ground and began his cultivation.
The Divine Sheep was considerate of Lu Ran, and mist emerged from the shrine, flowing towards him.
But a few minutes later, Lu Ran suddenly remembered something.
He slowly raised his hand, and energy surged in his palm.
"Huff~"
Four fangs made of mist formed several meters away and assembled into shape.
"Crack!"
The four fangs clamped together tightly, creating an unpleasant sound.
In the pitch-black room, Lu Ran's dark eyes gleamed with a strange light.
First, it was the Evil Perception Spell, and now the Evil Fang Spell.
What was this, the Gusu Murong Fu, or Kakashi Hatake?
He wondered if the evil dogs would be confused if he used this spell on them.
Before the dogs could even open their mouths,
I'll bite them first!
I must let them know who the real dogs are. Er.
The days at home passed by in a flash.
In the blink of an eye, the time had come—the 22nd of the seventh lunar month, September 1st on the Gregorian calendar.
In the early morning, the ringing of an alarm clock disturbed Lu Ran, who was diligently cultivating in front of a shrine.
His body was enveloped in a dense mist, far denser than usual.
It was evident that Lu Ran was on the verge of entering an advancement mode at any moment!
"Buzz~ Buzz~"
The phone continued to vibrate relentlessly, showing no signs of stopping.
Lu Ran felt like summoning his Evil Fangs to tear this annoying device apart.
After a brief moment, the phone finally fell silent, but only temporarily.
Just ten minutes later, it started vibrating again.
"Oh man," Lu Ran sighed, reluctantly opening his eyes. Without getting up from his cross-legged meditation, he crawled towards his small bed.
"Meow?"
In one corner of the room, on a soft cushion, Little Li Hua tilted her head curiously, watching her owner.
"Slap!"
Lu Ran slapped the phone on the bedside table and quickly turned off the alarm with a few taps.
Today was the first day of school, and it was time to attend classes.
Lu Ran felt a bit uncomfortable and wanted to focus on breaking through his cultivation rank instead of going to school.
In fact, as early as the 19th day of the 7th lunar month, Rain Alley City had lifted its lockdown.
At that time, with only 3 days left before the start of school, Lu Ran hadn't even stepped out of his house, choosing to continue his home cultivation.
This was because he felt that he was about to advance to the Mist Realm, Fifth Stage!
Lu Ran opened his contacts and quickly dialed a number.
After a series of busy tones, the call finally connected.
"Lu Ran?" Ms. Jiang's voice was gentle, with a hint of concern, "What's wrong?"
This reaction was in stark contrast to the aloof goddess who only responded with 'mm-hmm' on WeChat, making them seem like completely different people!
"I... I'm advancing... Please help me..." Lu Ran stammered, unable to finish his sentence before being interrupted.
"I understand. Go back to your cultivation," Jiang Ruyi said hurriedly, immediately hanging up the phone.
Lu Ran sighed deeply, knelt by the bed, leaned forward, and lay down on the bed.
He felt like he had fallen and was now lying where he had fallen.
The room was filled with mist, becoming increasingly dense.
Lu Ran's body began to tremble slightly.
"Mmm," Lu Ran mumbled into the bed, his face buried in the sheets.
So comfortable...
So incredibly comfortable!
He really wished he could advance every day.
"Meow~" Little Li Hua approached, gracefully jumping onto the small bed.
A soft paw gently pawed at Lu Ran's arm, clearly unable to understand what her owner was doing, thinking he was crying.
"Shh," Lu Ran instinctively hugged Little Li Hua, his cheek rubbing against her fluffy body.
"Meow~ Meow~~" Little Li Hua immediately protested, pushing Lu Ran away, not wanting to be petted.
However, the poor little cat couldn't possibly push away a human.
After struggling for a while, Little Li Hua eventually gave up, looking utterly dejected.
Her fur was now a mess.
Lu Ran held Little Li Hua in his arms for over ten minutes.
"Meow!"
Finally, Little Li Hua was free.
Lu Ran's body trembled as he released his embrace.
The mist within his body compressed and condensed, while external mist continuously flowed into his body, causing Lu Ran's face to flush with the intensity.
"Mmm~" A sound of ultimate satisfaction escaped from his nose.
A surge of energy filled the room, and Lu Ran gradually calmed down.
Mist Realm, Fifth Stage!
"Ha!" Lu Ran stood up, clenching his fists, relishing the feeling of abundant strength.
It was incredibly exhilarating!
Next, he could prepare to break through to the next major realm and advance to the Stream Realm, First Stage!
It wasn't that Lu Ran was greedy, always wanting more.
Within any major realm, once you reach the fifth stage of cultivation, further advancement doesn't require quantitative accumulation.
In the process of cultivating through the previous five minor stages, you have already achieved this accumulation.
Now, it's all about how you make that qualitative leap!
As for how to achieve this breakthrough, it depends on fate, talent, and opportunities.
It's about whether you can have that 'epiphany' moment!
In other words, Lu Ran might advance to the Stream Realm, First Stage, in the very next second.
Of course, he might also get stuck here for three to five months, or even ten to twenty years.
He might even be stuck for a lifetime!
This is why numerous believers often get stuck at the fifth stage of a major realm.
Sun Zhengfang and Deng Yutang are perfect examples of this.
Team Leader Sun, over forty years old, and Deng Yutang, only twenty, are both at the River Realm, Fifth Stage!
"Divine Sheep, Sir!" Lu Ran exclaimed excitedly, quickly approaching the shrine.
White Ram Statue: "Cultivation should not be reckless."
Lu Ran's expression turned solemn as he listened to the statue's teachings.
White Ram Statue: "At this stage, you only need to do one thing: condense the mist within your body into streams of water.
When these streams merge, it will be the time for your advancement to the Stream Realm."
"Yes, sir!" Lu Ran nodded vigorously.
...
(End of Chapter)
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