Chapter 819: Wang Zhan

The 67th Baihu Valley was vast; Xu Jingming and Wang Zhan both spent over ten minutes collecting everything.

Among them, over four thousand B-rank and lower rare flowers and herbs totaled 1. 4 tons.

Over two hundred rare flowers and herbs above B-rank were found, most of which were merely B-rank, with only a dozen A-rank and not a single S-rank.

When converted, they weighed only 52 kilograms.

"The ranking of the 67th Baihu Valley is still too low—the total weight of rare flowers and herbs doesn't even reach two tons."

Xu Jingming shook his head involuntarily.

This amount of rare flowers and herbs couldn't even fill a corner of his space ring.

"Only Baihu Valleys ranked above 40th have significantly more rare flowers and herbs."

They start at ten tons or more, but other random locations may also harbor exceptionally abundant rare flowers and herbs.

But that depends on luck," Wang Zhan said with a smile.

Baihu Valleys were merely locations they had identified as guaranteed to produce large quantities of rare flowers and herbs.

In reality, certain random spots could also resemble Baihu Valleys.

"By the way, Brother Xu, your Thunder Martial Arts Hall must be in dire need of rare flowers and herbs right now."

"How about this—before we leave the secret realm, I'll give you all the rare flowers and herbs I've collected, counting them toward your team's total."

Wang Zhan suddenly spoke up.

"Oh?"

Xu Jingming raised an eyebrow and smiled. "So Brother Wang has a favor to ask?"

Xu Jingming raised his sword-like brows, immediately understanding Wang Zhan's meaning, and smiled:

Wang Zhan shook his head, his expression serious. "One goal is to build a bond with you; the other is investment.

If one day you break through to the ninth rank and become a councilor, I hope you'll look after our Wang family."

Wang Zhan didn't hide his intent—he laid it bare.

If one day you break through to the ninth rank and become a councilor, I hope you'll lend more support to our Wang family.

through the aura he'd sensed earlier, he realized Xu Jingming's talent was even stronger than he'd imagined!

They had guessed Xu Jingming might reach the ninth rank within four or five years.

But now, that guess seemed far too conservative.

Xu Jingming's breakthrough to the ninth rank would come far sooner than they'd expected.

This Ye Er Secret Realm was crucial for the Thunder Martial Arts Hall.

If they didn't curry favor now, by the time Xu Jingming became ninth rank, it'd be too late!

"Brother Wang, don't take it personally if I speak bluntly."

"The rare flowers and herbs you, an eighth-rank mid-tier Grand Master, can gather probably won't even justify what I'd do."

Seeing Wang Zhan's honesty, Xu Jingming didn't hold back.

Besides the hundred-member coalition from other nations, 180 elites from the Big Six of Blue Star entered the secret realm.

Half of them were eighth-rank upper-tier, and over thirty were even eighth-rank peak combatants.

Wang Zhan's combat strength really wasn't impressive.

"This..." Wang Zhan froze.

He'd expected Xu Jingming to refuse—but he never imagined the reason would be that his strength was too weak!

"I'm still an eighth-rank mid-tier Grand Master! Even on the international stage, plenty of nations would fight to recruit me..."

Wang Zhan felt helpless, yet he knew Xu Jingming was right.

After a moment's silence, he spoke again: "I'm on good terms with Wang Han and Liao Pei."

"One is eighth-rank peak, the other eighth-rank upper-tier."

"We three can give you all the rare flowers and herbs we've collected."

"Just promise me that when you become a councilor, you'll look after our three families."

Although Wang Han and Liao Pei were extremely close to the ninth rank—

especially Wang Han, the eighth-rank peak, who was barely a step away—

it seemed unnecessary to beg Xu Jingming's favor.

But in truth, Wang Han had been stuck at eighth-rank peak for over a decade.

Without a miracle, he might never break through to the ninth rank.

Without any breakthrough, he may never reach the ninth rank in his lifetime.

Xu Jingming finally showed some interest and nodded. "If you can truly convince them, I'll accept your terms."

The Thunder Martial Arts Hall originally had only six eighth-rank Grand Masters; adding these three would drastically increase their total collection!

Their Thunder Martial Hall originally had only six eighth-rank Grand Masters; if these three are added, the number of rare flowers and herbs collected will surely increase dramatically!

Wang Zhan's eyes lit up, and he immediately took his leave. "Then, Brother Xu, I'll take my leave."

He wanted to join Xu Jingming, but he knew a powerhouse like Xu wouldn't drag along a liability.

So he didn't even ask—after bidding farewell, he turned and left without hesitation.

"Wang Zhan's actually kind of interesting. When he saw I thought he couldn't do it alone, he went and brought two others."

The more friends you have, the fewer enemies you face.

If Wang Zhan could pull this off, Xu Jingming had no objection to helping their families later.

"Eva, where's the nearest next Baihu Valley?"

Xu Jingming shook off his thoughts and asked.

"The next closest Baihu Valley is No. 45, about 74 kilometers straight-line distance from here," replied the green-haired, twin-tailed girl, emerging from her smart bracer.

"Alright, then let's head there next."

Behind him, Lei Long's wings unfolded, and Xu Jingming shot skyward, flying toward the direction.

The simplest way to gather large quantities of rare flowers and herbs was to head to the southwest, where Baihu Valleys were most concentrated.

But on one hand, he was too far away—by the time he arrived, others would have already stripped it bare.

On the other hand, his current strength still couldn't crush everyone, especially the two eighth-rank upper-tier S-rankers.

So starting with the nearest Baihu Valley was the most prudent approach.

More importantly, along the way, he could hunt ferocious beasts and collect ability points.

Once he accumulated enough ability points to level up, he wouldn't even need to search for rare flowers and herbs anymore.

He could simply seize them from other nations' elites—by then, even eighth-rank upper-tier S-rankers wouldn't be able to stop him.

Time passed swiftly; half a day had already gone by.

Tianming Jiao's Tian Jian and others had met at their prearranged location.

Their group totaled six members.

Aside from Tian Jian, all were eighth-rank Grand Masters.

Among them, a burly, unkempt man resembling a wild savage had reached the terrifying eighth-rank peak!

His name was Jonathan, Tianming Jiao's Red Cardinal and the most crucial Tianming Divine Envoy of this mission.

"Divine Son, what's our next move? Go find Xu Jingming?"

Jonathan asked in a low voice, icy killing intent flickering in his eyes.

Though powerful, he still obeyed Tian Jian's orders within the Ye Er Secret Realm.

"No rush. If we meet, kill him. If not, it doesn't matter."

Tian Jian spoke casually. "The days after we leave the secret realm are when you'll truly shine."

Entry into the secret realm was random, but exit required gathering at fixed locations.

Jonathan, though a Tianming Divine Envoy, would enter a prolonged weakness phase lasting over ten days after using the Divine Blood Technique to gain ninth-rank power.

So now wasn't the optimal time to activate the Divine Blood Technique to hunt.

Better to wait until everyone gathered, then net them all at once.

"Understood."

Jonathan understood Tian Jian's meaning, a flicker of excitement on his face.

He longed to see the horrified, shattered expressions of those lowly humans when they witnessed his overwhelming form...

The Ye Er Secret Realm was vast—over three million square kilometers, larger than most nations on Blue Star.

More crucially, it teemed with ferocious beasts!

Though their ranks and density were far lower than those in the Dayangzhou Wilds,

it also lacked dangerous ninth-rank Beast Emperors.

For Xu Jingming, this was undoubtedly the best news!

He could unleash the SSS-rank "Wan Leitianlao Yin" without restraint over any area.

Kill ferocious beasts, gain ability points.

Since reaching seventh-rank upper-tier, Xu Jingming's "Wan Leitianlao Yin" had expanded to a terrifying 17-kilometer radius!

One blast could yield at least twenty thousand ability points.

Thus, even as he continued gathering rare flowers and herbs, his system panel's ability points surged dramatically.

After reaching the upper level of the seventh stage, Xu Jingming's Wan Leitianlao's activation range expanded to a terrifying 17 kilometers!

Each launch of Wan Leitianlao grants at least 20, 00 ability points.

Thus, although he continuously collected rare flowers and exotic herbs, his system panel's system points also surged dramatically.

Eighteen days later, Xu Jingming's system panel showed an astonishing 1. 3 million ability points.

Yet, no plus sign had yet appeared next to the critical level and ability fields on the system panel.

"It took me 1. 3 million ability points to upgrade from Mid-7th Rank to Upper-7th Rank."

"Going from Upper-7th Rank to 8th Rank is a major leap—so it's normal that 1. 3 million points still aren't enough."

"But why can't my ability even reach SSS rank?"

Above a forest already consumed by lightning and thunder, Xu Jingming hovered silently, his mind filled with doubt.

After all, upgrading from S-rank to SS-rank had only cost 50, 00 ability points.

Now, the accumulated ability points were dozens of times that amount.

"The more ability points required to upgrade, the stronger the final ability will be."

"All I need to do now is quietly accumulate more ability points."

Xu Jingming had a premonition—he was close to gathering enough points to upgrade his ability to SSS rank.

"Eva, let's go to the next beast aggregation point."

"Yes. The next beast aggregation point is to your right at S-level, about ten kilometers away."

Eva couldn't understand why Xu Jingming spent so much time hunting beasts while collecting rare herbs and plants.

Though puzzled, this didn't stop her from serving him.

After hearing Eva's response, Xu Jingming's Lei Long Wings fluttered slightly—he was about to fly toward it when he suddenly frowned and halted mid-air.

Crackling—

Brilliant golden lightning formed a thick barrier, enveloping him like an eggshell.

The next instant,

A deafening crack echoed as a bolt of black lightning, as thick as a barrel, plummeted from the sky!

Boom!!

The black lightning didn't budge Xu Jingming's lightning barrier—it exploded outward in a shower of sparks.

It struck the forest below, turning the already ravaged ground into even more shattered ruin.

"Oh? Still alive?"

A voice tinged with surprise came from afar.

A hundred meters away, a muscular man with jet-black skin appeared.

"Gao Jie of Heizhou?" Xu Jingming recognized him at once.

He was an Upper-8th Rank Grand Master from Heizhou, possessing an A-rank lightning ability.

What intrigued him wasn't the man's identity—inter-ability-user conflicts were common in the Ye Er Secret Realm.

What caught his attention was the pitch-black circular ring hovering behind the man!

The ring brimmed with dark lightning, radiating a powerful, wild aura.

It resembled his own Ji Yao Lei Huan.

Could this be one of the four missing rings of the Ji Yao Lei Huan?

Just as Xu Jingming was about to speak, Eva's excited voice echoed in his mind:

"S-rank! This is one of the five rings of the Ji Yao Lei Huan!"

"Of course."

Xu Jingming smiled. "I never expected a surprise like this to come to me just by entering the secret realm."

"If so, then this ring of the Ji Yao Lei Huan is mine."

With a thought, his wings fluttered slightly, and he shot straight toward Gao Jie.

"Upper-7th Rank? No wonder your A-rank technique couldn't touch me."

"But charging at me like this—do you really think so little of me?"

A thunderous voice boomed. Gao Jie stared fixedly at the golden ring behind Xu Jingming, his eyes brimming with greed.

That ring behind him was a top-tier elemental weapon he'd obtained from an ancient ruin.

Thanks to this ring, his combat power ranked among the highest among A-rank Upper-8th Rank Grand Masters.

But during a chance encounter, he discovered that Xu Jingming of Daxia also bore a similar ring!

Though Gao Jie didn't know it was Lei Shen's weapon, he realized his own ring might not be its final form.

If even one ring was rated a top-tier elemental weapon, what would happen if two were combined?

Would it transform directly into a perfect-level elemental weapon?!

The thought made him ecstatic.

But he knew his limits—he could never storm Daxia to seize the ring from Xu Jingming.

He'd thought he'd never get such an opportunity—until now, when Xu Jingming entered the Ye Er Secret Realm alongside him.

So he decided to act within the secret realm.

When he sensed the lightning disturbances from afar,

He rushed over immediately, recognized the Du Tian Shen Lei, and struck without hesitation.

"Die! Hei Shan Lei!"

In the language of Heizhou, Gao Jie sneered as his ring spun wildly.

Dark clouds gathered overhead, brewing terrifying energy.

Hei Shan Lei!

An SSS-rank lightning technique—this strike would obliterate Xu Jingming into ash, no matter how strong he was.

"The second ring will soon be mine!"

Gao Jie's face glowed with anticipation, utterly ignoring Xu Jingming's charge.

A black lightning barrier enveloped his body.

It was an S-rank defensive technique—Xu Jingming couldn't break through it even if he flew straight at him.