Chapter 299: Titan Giant

Even though Bu Laimei gave no answer, Lei En still sensed it from the dwarf's expression.

Obviously, he knows something.

Moreover, Bu Laimei's soul color shifted from a very relaxed white to a red tinged with orange, indicating growing wariness.

Lei En immediately guessed that the dwarf's relationship with the Storm Giant was not simple. If he stated his purpose outright, he might offend Bu Laimei, causing him to refuse to speak truthfully.

But a lie would be easily seen through.

A human transcendent seeking a Storm Giant would not be looking to forge a bond with it, except perhaps to hunt its soul.

Lei En pondered briefly, then said calmly, "I want a soul with a thunder Affinity Element."

"So it's for the thunder Affinity…" Bu Laimei's expression softened, his soul color returned to white, and he shook his head, "Storm Giants are indeed born with thunder Affinity, but if you intend to hunt a Storm Giant, I advise you to give up."

Lei En thought, as expected, Bu Laimei knows a lot about Storm Giants.

He then asked, "Why?"

Bu Laimei examined Lei En, "You haven't ascended to Legendary yet?" Seeing Lei En nod in confirmation, he continued, "You are a high-rank battle Wizard, able to fuse only high-rank souls. At this stage, Storm Giants are just reaching adulthood, about fifty years old. Their population is sparse; what would be the consequence of killing one?"

"Uh…" Lei En scratched his head; of course he had considered the question.

He wouldn't storm into a Storm Giant settlement directly; he would wait for a giant to be isolated and strike where its kin cannot see.

"Don't think I don't know what you're planning," Bu Laimei pulled a pipe from his coat, lit it, took a deep draw, exhaled smoke, and said, "There is indeed a Storm Giant settlement near Ka Er Feng, but you'll never get a chance to strike."

Lei En became even more puzzled.

He smiled and flattered, "Mr. Bu Laimei, as the greatest archaeologist, could you give me some guidance?"

"Ha ha…" the dwarf's face broke into a pleased grin, finding the loudly reputed young man increasingly likable.

"Then I'll tell you."

Bu Laimei said without hesitation, "Lei En, in our earlier exchange I noticed you can speak a few words of giant language, so you're not completely ignorant of giants. You should know that giant branches are many—over twenty known—much like human nobility, each with its own hierarchy."

Lei En nodded.

He had indeed read those records; giants once ruled Ai Lun E Si together with great dragons, developing a powerful civilization and nation with a complete class system.

The hierarchy was simple: all branches were divided into upper giants and lower giants.

Class traits manifested in certain unique giant languages.

However, the giants' golden age was the era before the previous epoch, over twelve thousand years ago; their civilization has long vanished, leaving few and mostly fragmentary records.

Exactly which giants belong to the upper or lower class is unclear.

Bu Laimei tapped his pipe on a stone and spoke freely, "Distinguishing upper and lower giants is easy. Giants with high intelligence who can learn and master writing, language, and spells are upper giants; those with low intellect who rely solely on innate survival and combat are lower giants."

"Upper giants are an intelligent race with creativity; lower giants are more beast‑like, hard to communicate with beyond other giants."

"It's like the difference between great dragons and dragon‑born."

Lei En's mind clicked; the explanation was indeed simple and clear.

He recalled many giant branch details; by this standard, it was easy to tell whether a giant was upper.

Bu Laimei continued, "There are few upper‑giant branches—only five in total, each with a strict rank."

"From highest to lowest: Storm Giant, Flame Giant, Frost Giant, Stone Giant, and Sea Giant."

"Storm Giants hold the highest status among the giant race, essentially the royal line. Naturally, they are the strongest, with the highest chance to advance into Titan Giants. Other upper giants can also become Titan Giants, but the probability is low. The overwhelming majority of Titan Giants were once Storm Giants."

"Thus, only Storm Giants possess absolute power and status."

"All giants outside these five are lower giants." Bu Laimei counted on his fingers, "For example, mountain‑ridge giants, fungal giants, cyclops giants, swamp giants, gray‑rock giants, shabby giants, double‑headed giants, and so on. Occasionally a one or two might be relatively clever, but overall they lack intelligence, akin to beasts."

"You can hunt lower giants at will, but you must be careful with upper giants."

"Especially the Storm Giants of Ka Er Feng!"

"Even if you are a student of a Holy Soul Wizard, provoking the Storm Giants here will not end well unless you hide forever inside Weizelan's floating city and never emerge."

As he spoke further, Bu Laimei's tone grew heavier, clearly warning Lei En not to err.

Lei En's expression hardened as he caught the crucial information.

Bu Laimei specifically pointed out the Storm Giants of Ka Er Feng, not all Storm Giants.

Decades ago, Mo Du once auctioned a Titan Giant's soul, and no notable incident was reported afterward; perhaps that Titan Giant's soul originated elsewhere.

Lei En asked softly, "Do the Storm Giants of Ka Er Feng have divine protection?"

But as far as he knew, the giants' guardian deity Annam had already fallen at the end of the Second Era.

"Not a deity."

Bu Laimei shook his head, "Annam shows no signs of revival; the leader of this Storm Giant settlement is a Titan elder."

Lei En was startled.

Upper giants can advance into Titan Giants; generally, Titan Giants correspond to Legendary High-rank, though some exceptionally gifted giants become Titans at Legendary Mid-stage.

A Titan Giant that advances again becomes a Titan elder.

The power range of a Titan elder is vast; at the low end they may be at Saint Rank—the level of a Holy Soul Wizard—while at the high end they could rival deities!

During the giants' pinnacle era, there were twelve half‑god‑level Titan elders.

Lei En had read an epic treatise on Titan Giants that listed those twelve Titan elders' names and glorious deeds, as well as how several of them fell; the book's contents were hard to verify.

The author of that book believed Ai Lun E Si no longer had any Titan elders.

Now it appears the author was wrong.

If Bu Laimei was not lying, then indeed one must not provoke the Storm Giants of Ka Er Feng. Lei En did not hesitate and decisively abandoned his plan to hunt Storm Giants.

He also had no intention of inquiring further about the Storm Giant settlement's location.

But unexpectedly, after a moment of silence, Bu Laimei said proactively, "If you only want the thunder Affinity Element, I can help. That Titan elder is somewhat acquainted with me, extremely knowledgeable, seemingly all‑knowing; perhaps he can obtain useful information for you."

Lei En was overjoyed yet a bit concerned, "Is this too dangerous?"

Dealing with a Titan elder, a single misstep could be struck down by lightning, ending one's life.

"No." Bu Laimei's face showed satisfaction, "I, Bu Laimei, am also famous among Storm Giants and am their friend. You saved my life and hosted me with meat and wine, so you're my friend now. Asking a few questions between friends is a trivial matter."

Lei En carefully observed the dwarf's soul, confirmed he wasn't bragging, and gratefully said, "Then I'll trouble Mr. Blaimet."

The dwarf waved his hand to indicate there was no need for courtesy.

At daybreak the next day, after Blaimet had a hearty breakfast, he told Lei En to wait on the spot, then rode the Earth Bear toward Karl Peak.

Lei En didn't intend to follow; after the dwarf left for half an hour, he rode the Flame Dragon alone toward the east.

He was going to find that herd of Bronze Wild Horses.

The herd numbered several hundred, the target was large, and on the flat plateau it was also obvious; Lei En flew just over two hours and found them a hundred li from the camp.

They bathed in the morning light, their lapis-colored bodies reflecting brilliance, their builds robust, long manes flowing, and from afar they resembled a swath of moving golden auspicious clouds.

Lei En did not startle the herd.

He let the Flame Dragon hover high in the sky, observing from afar.

The Bronze Wild Horses were scattered within several li; some grazed leisurely, others frolicked around the herd, appearing loose, but actually a few on the outskirts remained ever vigilant, scanning east and west like moving sentries.

After watching for a moment, Lei En landed far away, stowed the Flame Dragon, first used a deodorizer to erase his scent, then activated his invisibility ring and slipped closer.

A few minutes later, he had slipped into the middle of the herd, standing on a raised stone to avoid being struck by the running horses.

Up close, the Bronze Wild Horses' soul Elements were laid bare.

Among three to four hundred horses, dozens were juveniles, and the mature Bronze Wild Horses almost all possessed four Elements: Wing of Wind, Gale Impact, Bronze Body, and Wild Gallop.

A Mid-stage demonic beast having four Elements is not many; it can be called rather mediocre.

However, of the Bronze Wild Horses' four Elements, three are of rare grade, with only Gale Impact being a common Element. Moreover, aside from Bronze Body, which is a physical Element, the other three are all supernatural Elements!

That is quite rare.

Overall, a single Bronze Wild Horse's strength is already impressive among Mid-stage demonic beasts; as Blaimet said, they may be the finest war horses in the world, and their collective power holds great potential—the more there are, the stronger they become!

Lei En silently made an estimate.

Just seven or eight Bronze Wild Horses galloping together could directly shake a High-tier Transcendent.

If they bore knights and were equipped with sufficient enchanted gear, a cavalry squad might dare to clash with a legend!

Lei En waited patiently for a moment, drew his Arcane Torrent Staff, and began casting.

The Bronze Wild Horses' perception was sharp; the nearest few immediately sensed it and turned their heads toward the stone Lei En stood on.

They let out a burst of whinnying, just as they were about to strike, a Thunderclap Technique exploded overhead.

Boom!

A flash of heavenly thunder with a shockwave instantly knocked several clustered Bronze Wild Horses to the ground, leaving them dizzy.

Other horses within a hundred meters also scattered in panic.

Lei En flashed forward, punched two horses into a daze, and simultaneously summoned the Flame Dragon, whose twin claws each seized a horse and lifted it into the sky. Before departing, he produced two alloy collars, swiftly fastening them onto the necks of two other dazed Bronze Wild Horses; the collars flowed like water and sealed tightly.

Having done all that, dozens of horses charged forward.

Amid a howling gale, Lei En promptly triggered Electric Flash Teleport, becoming lightning and landing on the Flame Dragon's back in midair.

The Bronze Wild Horses, as if maddened, sprouted transparent double wings from their ribs and turned to pursue through the air.

Lei En, while steering the Flame Dragon's flight, turned back and cast Light Burst Technique, a white flash dazzling, halting the charging herd's momentum.

After repeating several times, the Flame Dragon rose higher and higher, reaching the clouds and finally escaping them.

(End of Chapter)