Chapter 102: Nine Paths

After destroying the Shenxun Hao, Ding Huan finally felt a bit relieved.

He was certain this dung beetle was a top-tier patient schemer, far more treacherous than Shi Changyi.

If this thing isn't killed, leaving it on Earth is a disaster.

But this bastard took over ten thousand Zhan Shen crystals—once he grows stronger, who can kill him?

"Old Zhong, now that the aircraft is gone, go back on your own."

"By the way, when you reach Puhai, deliver a letter to Nian Jinqing's residence at the Beast King Association—just toss it at the door."

After speaking, Ding Huan picked up a wooden sliver and casually carved a few lines of text before handing it to Zhong Chi.

All the paper inside the bag had been ruined by water, so he could only leave a message on wood.

He'd originally planned to return to Puhai, but now with no plane to take him, and having learned Qu Yi was safe, he had no urge to go back.

He'd simply write a letter to Lao Liu and let Lao Liu figure out how to reach the Kunlun Mountains—if he can't go, he should return to Qianluo Mountain.

With Lao Liu's sneaky monkey nature, he definitely won't run into trouble.

"What about you?" Zhong Chi asked, taking the wooden sliver with confusion.

Ding Huan said: "Old Zhong, you saw it too—there's a bastard who escaped from this ship. Do you think he'll behave himself? Add to that the demon dragon and the giant gorilla—peace on Earth is only temporary."

"So I'm going to find a place to strengthen myself. We'll meet again. When you get back to Puhai, look after Qu Yi for me—she's my friend."

"Then… alright." Zhong Chi was eager to return; his first act upon arrival would be revenge.

Ding Huan saw through Zhong Chi's thoughts and warned: "Old Zhong, revenge is fine, but use strategy. Don't just barge in headfirst—you might get killed in their lair."

"Find some allies, make a big show of it—better yet, let the whole world know. First make people understand what Shi Changyi and the Genetic Alliance really are, then strike—it'll be easier."

"Shi Changyi betrayed you—so you have grounds to suspect he colluded with the ferocious beasts. Some things don't need proof."

If he didn't warn him, this guy might get betrayed again.

Zhong Chi nodded: "Brother Ding, rest easy. Getting betrayed once was my carelessness; if I get betrayed again, I deserve it and am powerless. I'm off—until we meet again."

"Big Brother Ding, where are we going?" After seeing off Zhong Chi, Qi Qi Xinyue looked at Ding Huan with concern.

She feared Ding Huan would leave her too; she felt dependent on him, and without him, she doubted she could even survive.

This was even before encountering any Earth humans—if she met them, she'd die faster.

"We'll stay here and cultivate. I'm certain that dung beetle will come back here." Ding Huan glanced at the museum, thinking how to set a trigger marker.

Too bad he only knew that arrays existed—he didn't know how to set them up.

Hearing Ding Huan wasn't making her leave, Qi Qi Xinyue sighed in relief.

Ding Huan walked around the museum, confirmed it held nothing of value, then took Qi Qi Xinyue to an abandoned hotel near the sea.

According to Ding Huan's judgment, the dung beetle wouldn't stray far from Bioko Island—he'd definitely return to retrieve the Shenxun Hao.

As for whether the dung beetle might die in the beast tide? Ha—if he died in the beast tide, he'd be blind.

Qi Qi Xinyue followed Ding Huan's lead entirely; if he chose to cultivate by the sea and wait for the dung beetle, she had no objections.

"Here, take one." Ding Huan pulled out a Zhan Shen crystal and handed it to Qi Qi Xinyue.

Qi Qi Xinyue quickly waved her hand: "I don't need it."

"Take it. If we catch the dung beetle, we'll have as many Zhan Shen crystals as we want." Ding Huan pushed it toward her again.

She didn't take it. She looked at Ding Huan seriously: "The dung beetle got so many Zhan Shen crystals, but you only have five. If you don't strengthen yourself, when he comes, we won't survive."

"If your strength increases, and we catch the dung beetle, there'll be plenty of Zhan Shen crystals."

Ding Huan thought it over—she was right: "Then let's do it this way—we'll cultivate in the top-floor suite. You'll share a room with me."

The hotel was decent—the top-floor suite had seven or eight rooms; Ding Huan picked one.

He worried that while he cultivated, the dung beetle might come and kill Qi Qi Xinyue.

This bastard was too cunning—he had to be guarded against.

Qi Qi Xinyue had no ulterior thoughts; sharing a room with Ding Huan was better for her.

The hotel's attack by ferocious beasts hadn't lasted long; the food storage, locked tight, remained undamaged. Ding Huan and Qi Qi Xinyue gathered a pile of food and brought it to the room before beginning their seclusion.

As his cultivation advanced, Ding Huan needed less food, but his craving for heavenly qi grew ever stronger.

In the room, Ding Huan pulled out a Zhan Shen crystal.

Earlier, with Zhong Chi present, he hadn't examined the Zhan Shen crystal closely. Now, upon careful inspection, he found its heavenly qi was more than ten times denser than that of Qi Stones.

But that wasn't the main point—the main point was that Ding Huan could clearly sense the heavenly qi within the Zhan Shen crystal was far more suitable for absorption and cultivation.

It was as if the heavenly qi inside contained more complete components—he could only intuit this, not articulate it.

As the Luo Shi Jing activated, the pure heavenly qi instantly circled his body in one full cycle.

Ding Huan opened his eyes in delight—this cultivation method was utterly unbeatable.

This single cycle didn't merely strengthen his true qi; more importantly, it seemed to cleanse impurities from his meridians.

He activated the Luo Shi Jing again, sinking into the blissful rhythm of cultivation.

Previously, Ding Huan had been just short of the Sixth-Level Gene Cultivator realm; after only one day of cultivation, he shattered the Fifth-Level Gene Cultivator barrier and entered the Sixth-Level Gene Cultivator realm.

At this moment, Ding Huan understood why his recent breakthroughs no longer brought the same unbearable pain.

Before, he'd cultivated by absorbing pure heavenly qi from the environment.

Earth's environment had mutated—the heavenly qi was now dozens of times denser than decades ago. But even this was far from enough to fuel the Luo Shi Jing.

So each time he broke through, the heavenly qi was insufficient, making every advancement feel agonizingly difficult.

Later, when he used Qi Stones for cultivation, their heavenly qi was far denser.

Thus, when he broke through to Fifth-Level Gene Cultivator using Qi Stones, he didn't endure that excruciating process.

Now, with Zhan Shen crystals—which contained even denser heavenly qi than Qi Stones—cultivation felt as effortless as water flowing downhill.

It wasn't that his talent was poor—it was simply that he lacked resources.

After reaching Sixth-Level Gene Cultivator, Ding Huan didn't stop—he pressed forward toward the Seventh-Level Gene Cultivator realm.

Time passed during Ding Huan's closed-door cultivation. Every day after cultivating, Qi Xinyue would come out to check on Ding Huan's condition. Seeing that Ding Huan was still in closed-door cultivation, she would only then feel at ease enough to continue her own cultivation.

Previously, a single primal energy stone would be consumed by Ding Huan almost instantly. Now, with these God-Bloom Crystals, a single one required Ding Huan to cultivate for several days.

A week passed, and Ding Huan emerged from closed-door cultivation. He ate a little something, washed up briefly, then continued his closed-door cultivation.

……

Just as Ding Huan's closed-door cultivation was nearing its first month, four flying objects appeared beyond the outer atmosphere of Earth.

Two of them resembled discs, while the other two were indistinguishable from the God-Seeker ship Ding Huan had seen before.

"Is this the planet?" Inside one of the disc-shaped craft, a man with fair skin stared at Earth's outline on the large screen ahead and asked.

"According to the coordinates, this is it," a young woman beside him said.

The fair-skinned man looked at the others in the room: "What does everyone think?"

This was clearly an impromptu meeting; seven people sat inside the conference room.

"I suggest we wait. This place doesn't really look like a planet with a divine race. The monitoring shows that heaven and earth primal energy is extremely scarce." The speaker this time was a slightly chubby, short middle-aged man.

Although he looked somewhat plump, the flesh under his chin was especially thick, and every time he spoke, the flesh under his chin would jiggle.

A spirited-looking youth said boldly: "What's there to wait for? The civilization level of this planet is extremely low. We just need to put up a little shielding here—did they notice even the slightest bit? Since that's the case, we can just roll right over them."

The fair-skinned man was presumably the captain. He slowed his tone: "Everyone, first, we can confirm this planet is not some divine race's territory.

Second, our God-Seeker ship is definitely on this planet. None of the signals we sent received any response, which indicates the God-Seeker ship may have run into trouble.

Of course, the most important thing is that this is a living planet, and this living planet may contain good things beyond our wildest dreams.

My idea is that the first step is to find a way to control the lives on this planet, then control the planet itself. As for the good things inside, we'll distribute them when the time comes."

No one opposed the captain's words. Controlling a living planet of a lower civilization was a necessary step for every higher civilization to advance further.

"Ting Ti, Ji Yuan, An Qinger—the three of you first scout for the best landing point.

Peng Tong, Gai Lin, Zang Yu Dinghui—the three of you prepare defense and offense. Once we land on Earth, immediately establish a defensive counterattack system…"

The captain issued one order after another, having already designated Earth as one of their enslaved planets.

……

"Crack, crack…" Ding Huan could even feel the sound of his own bones splitting, but instead of alarm, he felt joy.

The violent heaven and earth primal energy surged madly into his body, and Ding Huan's aura also climbed wildly.

In just a few short minutes, Ding Huan felt the tremendous power of a Level Seven Gene Cultivator.

Ding Huan opened his eyes, feeling deeply satisfied. If he were now sent to deal with the giant ape, he wouldn't need to expend much effort at all.

It's just a pity that Wind Blade Art and Fireball Art were minor spells that wouldn't cut it on the big stage. If only he had a major killing move…

The moment Ding Huan wished for a top-tier killing move skill, a passage abruptly appeared in his memory.

"Nine Paths, the spear is Nine Paths, one path, one layer of heaven, nine paths tore through the nine layers of heaven…"

How audacious, Ding Huan was inwardly shaken. He knew this information was left behind by the hide scroll. Whether or not the scroll's owner was one of his past lives, that person was undoubtedly a great power.

The scroll's owner absolutely knew what the nine layers of heaven meant—that was where Saints resided, and even more, the ultimate of the immortal Dao.

This fellow actually claimed one path, one layer of heaven, and nine paths tore through the nine layers of heaven. How could such audacity be described?