Chapter 995: Valkyrie

Women and dragons share one thing: they cannot resist something that shines, especially diamonds.

"What is this?"

A Xina's gaze was instantly fixed.

Ao Xiliya and Bo Erqi's eyes also lit up; they both sensed the uniqueness of the gem in Lei En's hand, as if it contained the most precious thing in the world, exerting an intense pull on their subconscious, wanting to claim it.

The iridescent dragon could still restrain itself, but Bo Erqi could not.

He couldn't help reaching out.

"Snap."

Lei En slapped it open forcefully; the pain in his hand sobered Bo Erqi a bit, his old face flushing as he stammered, "Boss, I really can't control my hand."

"Listen to me first," Lei En said with a smile. "This is a Soul Diamond, an alchemical gem I invented; it condenses my soul energy and can be absorbed by anyone."

"Soul Diamond!"

"So amazing?"

Bo Erqi's eyes bulged, his face full of zeal.

Usually composed Ao Xiliya also turned pale, looking a bit flustered; A Xina couldn't help letting out a gasp.

"Lei En, are you serious?" A Xina said, utterly incredulous.

Ao Xiliya thought of more and asked continuously, "How much soul energy does the Soul Diamond contain, and will it affect you?"

"Of course it's real," Lei En laughed, then replied, "Don't worry, making Soul Diamonds costs me little and doesn't weaken me. As for how much soul energy a single Soul Diamond holds, you'll know after you experience it."

He produced two more Soul Diamonds, giving each of the two dragons one.

"Both try it."

"Just hold it and meditate; the soul energy in a Soul Diamond is the purest and can be transformed into energy you control."

Using a Soul Diamond is completely foolproof; you don't even need to meditate—just hold it and think of absorbing, and the contained soul energy will merge into the body, rapidly strengthening the soul.

"So light!"

A Xina was very surprised; she could barely feel the Soul Diamond's weight.

When Ao Xiliya's hand touched the Soul Diamond, her gaze froze; she sensed the diamond's energy was enormous, enough to raise her half a rank!

Bo Erqi immediately sat down, cradling the Soul Diamond.

He only tried once, a pure soul energy surged into the dragon soul, abundant and fast, like an injection, making his head spin. He feared Lei En would retrieve the Soul Diamond, so he absorbed the soul energy recklessly; soon, because of the rapid boost of the dragon soul, fluctuations arose, and he couldn't maintain the transformed state.

"Roar..."

Bo Erqi manifested a true dragon form.

The giant dragon's golden scales shimmered with bursts of gold light; the three dragon heads' eyes were dazed, as if drunk.

This state lasted a few minutes, the golden three-headed dragon's size clearly grew a circle, its power became hard to control, a forceful aura spread, and the six dragon eyes burned with gold, red, and black flames.

"I'm about to breakthrough!"

The middle golden head shouted loudly, full of delight and excitement.

He was already between the Legendary Mid-stage and Legendary High-rank; over the past two years in the Dragon Valley he had absorbed dragon soul energy and should have broken through long ago, but laziness delayed it. Now, after the Soul Diamond's infusion, he instantly passed the critical point, triggering his sixth Soul Transformation.

Lei En and the other two had to retreat a bit.

The dragon soul energy of Dragon Valley was drawn in, forming a visible energy storm that surged into the golden three-headed dragon's body, causing its size to increase gradually.

Its scales widened and thickened, its wings grew outward, and its claws became even larger and sharper…

The dragon soul was also rapidly metamorphosing.

Generally, a giant dragon's Soul Transformation wouldn't cause such a commotion, but this is Dragon Valley, where the entire plane is saturated with endless primordial dragon energy. A dragon undergoing Soul Transformation here can reap countless benefits, and this is one of them.

A moment later.

Bo Erqi's aura steadied, the golden light on his body dispersed, and this Soul Transformation ended.

His size grew severalfold, about fifty meters from head to tail, his wingspan roughly fifty meters as well; his scales darkened a bit, and his strength, defense, and dragon breath all improved comprehensively—he was now in the Elder Dragon stage.

Of course, only his power reached the Elder Dragon level; his actual age remained that of a prime dragon, so his lifespan was unaffected.

A flash of light, and the giant dragon reverted to Bo Erqi's form.

"Hahaha..."

"I'm already Legendary High-rank!"

Bo Erqi laughed triumphantly, looking at the Soul Diamond in his hands, realizing only part of its energy had been used—at least half remained—and he was instantly overwhelmed with astonishment.

Half the energy was enough to promote him.

The golden three-headed dragon finally realized the Soul Diamond's worth, trembling with excitement, and shouted, "This is the most precious gem in the world!"

He felt immensely grateful that he had signed a Soul Pact with Lei En.

He also understood that it was his master's test.

A Soul Diamond of such rarity involves the master's absolute secrets; without a Soul Pact, the master would never entrust it. Relying only on a soul-control ring cannot prevent the secret of the Soul Diamond from leaking.

Staying was the right choice!

Soul Diamonds are alchemical gems, meaning they can be mass‑produced; the master surely has many more on hand.

Advancing to Legendary High-rank is only the beginning.

The golden three-headed dragon seemed to already envision itself as a Primordial Dragon, soaring with Lei En across the many planes of Ai Lun E Si.

"Boss!"

Bo Erqi ran over, eyes glued to Lei En.

"You idiot..." Lei En said helplessly. Bo Erqi is always lazy in cultivation, but when it comes to gem wealth, his mind sharpens, his motivation spikes, and he instantly guessed his own preparation.

"Take it."

Lei En tossed him a dozen Soul Diamonds. "Find a place to absorb them yourself, and tell me when you're done. I want you to reach Legendary Peak within half a month and be ready to ascend to Ancient Dragon. If you keep slacking with so many Soul Diamonds, you'll stay forever below Saint Rank."

Bo Erqi was ecstatic, pounding his chest and promising, "Boss, don't worry, this time I will definitely succeed!"

After speaking, it turned into a flash of golden light and flew away.

Lei En looked at the two women beside him and said, "Ao Xi Li Ya, A Xina, you too must quickly reach the Legendary Peak."

He then took out dozens of Soul Diamonds and divided them evenly between them.

Both were stunned by Lei En's generosity; they were already at Legendary High-rank, not far from the Peak, and didn't need so many Soul Diamonds.

A Xina couldn't help asking, "Lei En, how many Soul Diamonds have you made?"

"A lot."

Lei En replied offhandedly, then laughed and added, "Anyway, there's more than you can use, enough to let you, after advancing to Saint Rank, soon hit the bottleneck of the eighth Soul Transformation."

Soul Diamonds can only increase strength, but cannot break the bottleneck.

Advancing to Saint Rank can be broken through by other means, but reaching the middle Saint Rank exceeds one's own capability.

"The eighth Soul Transformation…" A Xina was left speechless.

Ao Xi Li Ya frowned, then suddenly asked, "Lei En, what level are you now?" Though they are soul partners, they must jointly trigger the Element of the spiritual contract to clearly perceive each other's soul state; normally they can only use distance‑unlimited telepathy.

"Level twenty‑three."

The iridescent dragon showed surprise on its face.

Lei En read her thoughts; she wasn't surprised that his level was high, but that it was low yet could help them reach the eighth Soul Transformation bottleneck, which defied logic.

The caster truly was different, immediately sensing the clue.

Pressing further would reveal the truth.

Lei En replied vaguely, "In short, rest assured, making Soul Diamonds doesn't affect me; just use them, they have no side effects."

Ao Xi Li Ya gave a slight nod, politely not pressing further.

A Xina was also deep in thought.

"You may go, I'll continue setting up the rune array," Lei En waved his hand. The rune array modified by Dragon‑Blood Soul‑Shedding Technique was extremely complex; the earlier work only laid the foundation, many steps remained, and it would take at least a week to finish.

A Xina originally intended to leave and find a place to cultivate, but after glancing at Ao Xi Li Ya she said, "I'll stay here; it's the same wherever."

She walked several hundred meters away from the rune array and sat on the grass.

Ao Xi Li Ya let out a cold snort, flashed to the other side of the rune array, produced a magical flying carpet, spread it on the grass, and sat down to meditate.

Lei En was helpless about it.

Dragons and giants are naturally at odds; this enmity is etched in their souls and bloodlines, beyond what Lei En can resolve, so he can only try to keep them apart.

After their first meeting years ago in Weizelan's Fu Kong Cheng, today marked their second simultaneous appearance.

Ao Xi Li Ya had been training in secret, either in the high tower or in Dragon Valley.

A Xina had spent most of these years in Albert Bay.

The female giant originally said she would come once Gotham City was finished, but after staying in the highland fortress for months she found she couldn't stay. She preferred adventurous combat, and Gotham City was too safe; she couldn't accompany her all day, and would also run into other women.

Lifulin, Kuilu, Falanjiasika, and Viola would occasionally visit Gotham City.

A Xina didn't want to see them.

So she returned to Albert Bay with Dao En Suosi and Beilake; this city of mixed fish and dragons made her feel at ease, like a fish in water, with plenty of adventure and combat.

The three founded a small mercenary group.

Although the mercenary group was tiny, only a few dozen, its members were all elite superhumans, including many legends; within a few years it became one of Albert Bay's most powerful mercenary groups, holding a pivotal position.

A Xina earned great fame through countless battles and was called "the Valkyrie" by the people.

Lei En didn't want to restrain the female giant, letting her pursue her own dreams.

However, he still sent a Wizard duplicate to join A Xina's mercenary group, posing as a legendary wizard by her side, staying low‑key and not displaying great power; even Dao En Suosi and Beilake were unaware of this secret.

Lei En glanced left and right at the giant and the dragon, feeling it was a tricky situation.

Now he could still easily suppress them, but once they all advanced to Saint Rank, if these rivals fought, extinguishing the fire would be very difficult.

"Hurry and fix this, so they never meet again."

"Women are trouble!"

Lei En brushed aside those chaotic thoughts, began focusing on arranging the rune array, and Reslin flashed over, employing Mirror Image to join the work.

Every hour, Lei En could release Mirror Image once.

Reslin could do the same.

Although only two, their efficiency matched that of over a hundred rune‑master casters; for a super‑large rune array three hundred meters in diameter, the massive workload was more than three‑quarters completed by the two in under three days.

On the third day.

Ao Xi Li Ya and A Xina almost simultaneously reached the Legendary Peak!

Soul Diamonds can be gulped down, reaching the bottleneck in half an hour, though some energy is wasted. Slowing the absorption, chewing and swallowing like a meal, fully utilizes each bit of energy, with conversion rates near one hundred percent.

Lei En didn't care about that little energy loss, advising them to absorb directly without fearing waste.

But they didn't listen.

Thus it took three days to reach the Legendary Peak.

In A Xina's and Ao Xi Li Ya's eyes, this speed was beyond any dream, three days equaling more than three years of cultivation.

"Lei En, let me help you."

Ao Xi Li Ya's grasp of the Dragon‑Blood Soul‑Shedding Technique wasn't deep, but assisting Lei En was fine; a little guidance was enough.

With her joining, the rune array setup sped up a bit.

A Xina could only watch; she received "Void Resonance" and the Star‑Lake Meditation from Lei En, intending to moonlight as a Wizard, but after trying found that learning magical knowledge to become a caster wasn't that easy, requiring huge time and effort, and her casting talent wasn't top‑tier.

During her years in Albert Bay, she had little time to study spells.

She either carried out adventure missions, and in free time trained combat skills, enhancing lightning power, making it impossible to also pursue wizardry.

A Xina regretted the Element she chose when signing the soul contract with Lei En; "Void Resonance" yielded no effect, her Mirror Image was nowhere near Lei En's strength, her own mirror was stiff and couldn't be commanded to think and fight independently.

"Space-Time Shock" is handy, but its effect is rather one‑dimensional.

"Rending Sky Sword" is very powerful, can both attack and defend, but I am not a dedicated spellcaster, casting speed is slow, sometimes in battle there isn't enough time to cast this spell, and also need to divert attention to control it, causing absent-mindedness in battle.

"Legendary Power" is the most satisfying, no matter what kind of battle it can unleash ultimate power.

"I should have waited back then."

"Lei En is now a level 23 Wizard, definitely has fused many Elements, at least two or three legendary Elements, casually picking one is much stronger than those few spells."

"If only the shared Element could be changed..."

"Axina had thought this more than once, blaming herself for her lack of experience before, seeing Lei En's spells so useful she had chosen them. Of course, she never expected Lei En's strength to rise so quickly, in just a few years he ascended to Holy Soul Ascension Wizard."

"Lei En, who was busy, heard her inner voice, suddenly turned his head and asked: 'Axina, do you want to reselect the shared Element?'"

"I definitely want to!"

"The female giant guessed something, her heart pounded."

"But she couldn't be sure, nervous and anticipating she asked: 'Can we reselect?'"

"Oxiliya's attention was also drawn; although she still had one chance to choose, she had always wanted the Wish Spell but hadn't succeeded, yet she also wanted to reselect the shared Element."

"Lei En laughed amid their expectant gazes: 'Before it wasn't possible, but now it is.'"

"(End of chapter)"