Chapter 251 - 250: Peaceful Departure, Peeping Behind the Passage

This was the first time Li Jing used the authentic method of Five Thunder Righteous Method since learning it.

As for executing it, there was definitely no problem.

After all, he was "Cheating".

But he was a bit surprised that the formation of the handprint and the gathering of dark clouds had such terrifying power.

He had just formed the first handprint, and the power of the dark clouds had already exploded far beyond the Five Thunder Talisman used by Li Qidao in the past to blast Liu Yushan into debris.

With Li Jing’s cultivation level at the mid-stage of the Fifth Boundary, his spellcasting strength was undoubtedly superior to Li Qidao’s Five Thunder Talisman at the extreme of the Four Realm, let alone that his Thunder Skill was reinforced by the general outline of Thunder Skill.

But the intensity of the spell right now was so high that it wasn’t very scientific; even he was feeling jumpy.

It seemed.

The magic spell had a crit...

As his handprints changed, Li Jing completed in thirty seconds the construction of a spell formula that would normally take at least three minutes. He held onto the last handprint and did not let the Five Thunder Righteous Method blast out.

The full-blown power of the erupting Five Thunder Righteous Method made people palpitate.

A thick layer of dark clouds covered the sky, the oppressiveness was extreme, making everyone at the scene feel their scalps numb.

The key was that Li Jing was holding it in his hand without releasing it, which made people very uncomfortable.

The dark clouds did not disperse, and the thunder rolled, but the spell never fell.

Under such circumstances, even Yulian and Jiu Li felt uneasy.

The erupted Five Thunder Righteous Method gave them a clear sense of threat.

The excellent survival instinct of Beast Cultivation told them that it would be hard to avoid getting hurt once the spell hit them.

On the other hand, the enraged Giant Ape knew nothing about fear. It was madly roaring under the pressure of the tower with blood-red eyes, angrily roared in vain.

Li Jing kept holding onto the Thunder Skill without letting go, which undoubtedly affected his own people more.

However, they couldn’t help but show understanding.

The Giant Ape was being suppressed under the Linglong Tower at this time.

If Li Jing wanted to hit the Giant Ape, he would definitely have to hit the Linglong Tower first.

Obviously, this Thunder Skill was prepared in advance to deliver a fatal blow to the Giant Ape.

Perceiving this key point, Yulian and Jiu Li hit the Giant Ape even harder.

In their view, Li Jing’s plan to kill the Giant Ape with this Thunder Skill was almost impossible to accomplish.

Even if either of them were to take it, the most likely result would be injury, far from fatal.

However, Li Jing always had his reasons for doing things.

There must be other things to back him up after this Thunder Skill.

Or perhaps, the back-up was in the Thunder Skill itself!

What exactly it was, the two of them did not know.

But they both knew clearly that Li Jing himself possessed the ability to kill a Great Demon in the Six Realm across boundaries and ensure his own safety.

So at this moment, trusting Li Jing was the right thing to do.

Before he made his move, their job was to weaken the Giant Ape as much as possible.

Under the relentless assault of Yulian and Jiu Li, the health bar above the Giant Ape’s head decreased rapidly and was soon reduced to over 3000 points.

As previously mentioned.

In its frenzied state, the Giant Ape became more ferocious and tough the more seriously injured it was.

By this point, its health was so low that Yulian and Jiu Li’s attacks could no longer inflict much damage.

Jiu Li’s full-powered punch could only reduce a dozen points of health.

Yulian’s hit, even only reduced a single-digit health.

Of course.

More importantly, after a period of high-intensity combat, the two of them were gradually getting a little physically strained.

Your firepower is wide open, the consumption is exceptionally huge.

As Yulian and Jiu Li grew weaker, the Giant Ape grew more and more violent.

If it were to escape now, it would be undeniably powerful.

However, it had the Linglong Tower pressing on it and Spirit Weapon Qingfeng cutting its tendons and stabbing under its crotch. All it could do was roar in fury weakly.

As its level of frenzy increased, its self-healing and susceptibility were absolutely unbelievable.

Spirit Weapon Qingfeng had just cut its tendons with a sword, and it fully recovered without taking a breath.

But this, changed nothing.

Recovery?

Just hit it with another sword and that’s it.

Although the ape couldn’t be killed, cutting its tendons and stabbing it under its crotch were easy for Qingfeng, the Spirit Weapon.

All he had to do was swing the sword.

He was a Spirit Weapon, not a person.

The sword was him.

He was the sword.

At the same time, he was also Li Jing’s third Origin, with endless spiritual power in his body.

No matter how much spiritual power he consumed, he could immediately be replenished from Li Jing and Linglong.

If he wanted, he could swing his sword all day long.

The concept of fatigue had no meaning for him.

With Spirit Weapon Qingfeng’s proficient operation like an assembly line, the Giant Ape pressed under the tower could only scream in despair.

It couldn’t break the Linglong Tower.

With his rapidly escalating power of frenzy, he could actually overturn it with his four limbs.

However, all it ever had to use were its arms...

The nightmare was just beginning.

Yulian and Jiu Li had been hitting it for a long time. Both of them were panting and sweating, with increasing weariness in their hands.

Just as the two of them were running out of strength, the Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array of the Heavenly King group took shape.

The original Heavenly King group of ten thousand people were now sitting cross-legged in various places on the ninth floor of the tower.

Four groups of two thousand people, four elite teams of five hundred people, were arranged in a strange array with the large groups at the bottom and the elite teams at the top.

"Form an array!"

Eight teams, sixteen captains and deputy captains, shouted in unison, letting their spiritual Qi explode from within the array eye.

At the same time.

Everyone within the ten thousand people formation let out a joint shout, and let their own spiritual Qi burst forth.

"Buzz!"

With a muffled hum, a massive array map filled with numerous stars suddenly spread out, centered on the Linglong Tower, extending over ten miles.

As soon as the array map was fully unfolded, another slightly smaller array map appeared above the unfolded one.

Then an even smaller array map was displayed.

One after another.

In a blink of an eye, nine different-sized array maps were overlapping, perfectly corresponding to the nine levels of the Linglong Tower. In addition to exuding a destructive aura capable of annihilating heaven and earth, it also radiated an endless killing intent.

Li Jing, pinching the last handprint of the Five Thunder Righteous Method, was secretly taken aback when he saw the Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array fully formed.

The Ninth Heaven Annihilation is the ultimate killing array that every ten-thousand-strong team of the Management Bureau must practice, capable of gathering the strength of ten thousand people to compete with the Six Realm.

This, he had only heard of before.

It’s only after actually witnessing it that he realized how powerful this killing array is.

Just seeing the nine layers of the array map with his naked eyes gave him a sense of powerlessness to resist.

At the same time, he could clearly perceive the countless natural existences of Spiritual Qi throughout heaven and earth being gathered into the array along with the appearance of the array map.

Connecting with heaven and earth, borrowing the mighty power of the universe.

This, was clearly the principle of a forbidden skill!

Understanding this, Li Jing was also enlightened.

The Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array is indeed a killing array, but in essence, it’s a forbidden skill performed by the combined force of ten thousand people.

Where the array resides, the power of ten thousand people of lesser realm is ingeniously gathered together, allowing the forbidden skill that they could not have normally touched to be manifested.

The Array Master who designed this array map is a real talent!

Without giving it much thought, Li Jing shouted out.

"Ayu, Jiu, you two fall back."

Yulian and Jiu Li, seeing the Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array formed, had long been reluctant to stay below.

They had exhausted quite a lot of energy beating up the Giant Ape.

The Ninth Heaven Annihilation, which shares similarities with forbidden skills, was virtually breathing down their necks. How could they dare to stay down there any longer?

Hearing Li Jing’s command, both of them hurriedly flew to his side, tacitly hiding behind him.

Seeing this, the corner of Li Jing’s mouth twitched.

The Ninth Heaven Annihilation doesn’t discriminate between friend or foe.

He called them back merely as a precaution.

As soon as they reached him, they used him as a shield.

Just as Yulian and Jiu Li had finished hiding, there was a "boom" at the top of the Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array. Nine thunderbolts appeared, revolving around the Linglong Tower, penetrating the second layer of the array map.

Immediately after, each thunderbolt divided into two.

This kept on until, when the thunderbolt passed through the bottom layer of the array map, it manifested into eighty-one thunderbolts.

"Boom!"

With a loud noise, the eighty-one thunderbolts engulfed the Giant Ape that was pinned under the tower.

With a painful howl, the thunderbolts dispersed.

Looking again at its health bar overhead, only slightly over 500 remained...

Seeing this, Li Jing’s eyes twitched in surprise.

The combined punches of Yulian and Jiu Li barely did any damage to the Giant Ape, yet the nine thunderbolts of the Ninth Heaven Annihilation Array depleted its health by 2500 points in one go.

Although it was based on the principle of forbidden skills, the majority of the ten thousand people were only at the Three Realm. How could the power be so great?

This was not something that can compete with a being of the Six Realm.

This was clearly capable of killing one!

If they did this again, wouldn’t the Giant Ape be completely defeated?

However, seeing the worn-out look of the Heavenly King Group’s ten-thousand-strong team in the array, and their less abundant Spiritual Qi after one attack, Li Jing felt somewhat relieved.

They could deliver one more round.

But there was no need.

Everyone was already very tired, weren’t they?

Without any hesitation, Li Jing pinched a magic seal with one hand and pressed the communication earphone with the other.

"Hold your fire, conserve your energy!"

As soon as the command was issued, the Heavenly King Group’s ten-thousand-strong team who were about to gather energy for the next attack, all simultaneously retracted their aura.

After the first attack, they had given it their all.

Having been hit by nine thunderbolts in the face, the Giant Ape’s body was scorched and its meat was exposed. Although it was still ferocious, its wild energy had obviously diminished, almost completely disabled by the previous attack.

If they launched another, they might be able to kill it.

But now that the leader ordered them to hold back, they complied. After all, they needed to consider the resultant exhaustion.

If they launched another, the ten thousand of them would not be able to serve as combat power for a short period of time.

Just as the ten-thousand-strong team was holding back, Jiang Wenqian’s voice came through Li Jing’s communication earphone.

"Sir, the artillery position has been built up. Please give instructions, shall we start shelling?"

Upon receiving the communication, Li Jing took a look at the tower.

He saw that several Spirit Energy Cannons had already been placed on the edge of the bottom of the Linglong Tower. There were exactly 88 cannons with their muzzles facing down, aimed at the Giant Ape that had already suffered severe damage.

Glancing at the Giant Ape’s health bar overhead, which had only a bit over 500 left, Li Jing had a thought.

Subsequently, the Linglong Tower shot up into the sky, no longer pressing on the Giant Ape, while the bottom of the tower completely turned transparent, abandoning its defenses.

"Fire!"

With a single order, the 88 Spirit Energy Cannons fired in unison.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!"

Spirit Energy Cannons, spewing out 88 bulky beams of spiritual energy.

The Giant Ape, which was on the brink of death, finally managed to free itself from the Linglong Tower. Just as it was about to roar and get up, it was immediately blasted to the ground by the 88 large beams of spiritual energy.

The health bar above its head dropped by over 50 points in an instant.

Seeing this situation, Li Jing couldn’t help feeling a bit jealous as he looked at the large cannons circling around the bottom of the Linglong Tower.

A shot took off almost 0.5 points of health.

Merely scraping flesh.

But having this effect already was very good.

You have to know, in the Giant Ape’s current state, even Jiu Li’s full-powered attack only took off just over ten health points.

This cannon, it’s very powerful!

If only he could get his hands on a few hundred of them and fully "arm" the Linglong Tower.

An obvious fact.

Despite the slight lack of firepower, the Spirit Energy Cannon just needs enough cannons and a battlefield to "control" its target. Even if the Giant Ape is in full health, it can be killed by constant cannon fire.

The Energy Cannon doesn’t load physical shells, but rather, the energy core is formed by the conversion of Spirit Crystals into compressed spiritual energy.

As long as there are enough Spirit Crystals, the cannon does not need to be reloaded.

And here’s the crucial point.

These cannons, once assembled, are entirely controlled by remote operation via a computer. Just take a tablet and you can control the whole battlefield.

Unfortunately, this thing is a military-controlled device, which could not be acquired.

While Li Jing was eyeing this with envy, the cannon firing position had poured out 8 rounds of cannon fire in the blink of an eye. The Giant Ape roared in agony, and its health bar has now been reduced to about 30 points.

Just a little more and the Giant Ape would be on its last legs. After enduring 9 rounds of cannon fire, the energy cannons’ energy sources would be almost drained. The members of the Heavenly King Group who were guarding the cannons rapidly refilled them with Spirit Crystals. In the meantime, Li Jing decisively unleashed the last handprint of the Five Thunder Righteous Method.

"Boom!"

The thunder exploded.

From the dark clouds, a bolt of blazing red lightning struck down. It was the only thing visible in the deep night of the Big Secret Realm.

The Giant Ape, which had only 30 health left and was utterly frenzied under the influence of its fury, suddenly regained its sanity.

For a moment, it seemed lost.

The human-like expression on its face seemed to ask, ’What have I been through?’

The next moment, the Fire Thunder from the sky swallowed it.

"Experience +8888."

The Giant Ape passed away peacefully.

Receiving the prompt, Li Jing breathed a sigh of relief.

Killing a late Six Realm creature without resorting to forbidden skills is really difficult.

Not to mention his own efforts.

With Yulian and Jiu Li’s attacks, a kill formation of ten thousand people and a supporting cannon strike position, they managed to barely kill it.

This was a bit exhausting.

In the Linglong Tower, the folks of the Heavenly King Group were all stunned when they saw the Giant Ape getting hit by Li Jing’s Thunder Skill and then suddenly grow silent.

Had it...

Died?

Yulian and Jiu Li, who were behind Li Jing, were also slightly stunned.

They couldn’t see the health bar.

The Giant Ape was also in a frenzy, feeling neither pain nor fatigue.

Besides Li Jing, no one could tell its exact condition.

The sudden ’departure’ of the Giant Ape made everyone incredulous.

Crucially, this animal was incredibly resilient.

It was hopping around just a moment ago and then suddenly it was gone, leaving people feeling at a loss.

The atmosphere on the scene stalled, and then the Linglong Tower abruptly erupted with cheers.

Some were shouting Li Jing’s name, while others were praising the might of the Heavenly King Group.

The mood of victory spread rapidly.

Even the researchers joined in the uproar.

This battle was neither extremely difficult nor arduous.

But everyone knew.

Without Li Jing, if they were suddenly faced with such a formidable Giant Ape, they wouldn’t have had the chance to resist effectively.

There’s nothing more to say.

The Heavenly King Group is awesome!

What incensed the Heavenly King Group the most was that, under Li Jing’s leadership, they killed an extremely powerful Alien Species Giant Ape in the late Six Realm.

This victory could be boasted about at the Management Bureau for a year!

The fellows at the Research Institute were also quite ecstatic.

The slain Giant Ape lay intact in a pit, its fur singed clean by the Fire Thunder.

The strength of its body was self-evident.

Isn’t it of high research value?

Behind Li Jing, Jiu Li stared at the smoke-rising, lifeless body of the Giant Ape for a while, then swallowed hard as he tugged Yulian beside him.

"Xiao Yu, this ape is not a monster but is clearly superior to one. Should we try its flesh and see if it’s beneficial?"

Yulian was a little stunned when she heard this, feeling an unexpected temptation.

The origin of the Giant Ape was uncertain.

But one thing is for certain, it practised Beast Cultivation.

Since it practised Beast Cultivation, the essence of its body must be in its flesh and blood.

It would be necessary to have a taste, wouldn’t it?

Cannibalism among beast class creatures is a norm.

Monsters can eat other monsters and also Spiritual Beasts.

Spiritual Beasts can also eat monsters, but the renowned lazy Spiritual Beasts don’t know how to digest that power and use it for themselves.

Currently, Li Jing was looking at the cheering crowd in the Linglong Tower.

Upon hearing Jiu Li’s words, he turned to see the two of them gazing at him with pleading eyes.

As he met their gaze, he really couldn’t bear it.

A wild beauty with animal ears and a fox tail, along with a Lolita, both were watching him intently.

Their beautiful eyes were filled with desire, like a hungry wolf or tiger.

Who could resist that?

Li Jing helplessly gave a bitter smile and said:

"Both of you have made great contributions in this battle, so of course you’ll get your fair share of this ape. However, if you want to eat its flesh, you’ll have to wait. This Giant Ape appears to have a similar power as the Giant Worm we encountered before. Let the researchers at the Research Institute dissect it first and identify the components of its flesh and blood. If they confirm it’s harmless, you can take half of it."

Half.

Yulian and Jiu Li felt their knees go weak.

Li Jing, he never disappoints.

This Giant Ape was a hundred meters tall and had a robust body.

Its flesh and blood were no less than twenty thousand jin....

Half of that, at least ten thousand jin.

Shared between the two of them, that’s five thousand jin each.

How nutritious could the flesh of a Late Six Realm Giant Ape be, if it’s confirmed to be edible?

Seeing the two large and small fox demons gazing at him with languid eyes, Li Jing shared the results of the analysis of the flesh and blood of the Giant Worm, despite feeling a bit creeped out by their gaze.

Upon getting the results, Yulian and Jiu Li felt even more faint.

The conversion efficiency of the flesh and blood to Spiritual Qi was three times that of Spiritual Beasts.

For them, this was equivalent to three times the Demonic Qi.

One bite equaled three!

"How long until the dissection and analysis results from the Research Institute are ready?"

Jiu Li asked anxiously.

"It shouldn’t take more than an hour."

Li Jing replied.

"The reason it took longer to analyze the previous Giant Worm was because we had never seen such energy composition from its body before. Now that we know in detail, the analysis won’t take too long. You two just be patient and don’t rush it."

As he spoke, Li Jing glanced towards the spot in the distance where spatial distortion first occurred when the Giant Ape appeared.

Looking at it now, the spatial distortion was still there, but the silver light that was previously radiating was now extremely dim.

On the surface, it seemed to have returned to normal.

But this situation was obviously not normal.

He had noted this when he first held the Five Thunder Righteous Method in his hand.

The silver light from the spatial distortion was not bright.

He had a feeling that something was observing them from the distortion in space.

Considering the behavior of the Giant Ape after it came through the spatial distortion, it was very likely that it was compelled by some intelligent being to come here as an envoy for reconnaissance.

In truth, Li Jing was very familiar with this strategy.

The initial condition of the No. 107 Small Secret Realm was roughly similar.

The only difference was that the envoys sent by the four tribes of Lizard Men were a few unfortunate parasites.

Seeing Li Jing staring in the direction of the spatial distortion, Yulian and Jiu Li exchanged a look and gradually become serious.

They had never been to the No. 107 Small Secret Realm.

However, they could easily guess that the Giant Ape was only an "envoy" and was compelled by some intelligent entity.

"Behind this spatial passage, there is most likely a high-level Wisdom Civilization. The fact that the Giant Ape is under its control indicates that its level of civilization is extremely high."

Yulian spoke.

"We exerted so much effort to deal with just one Giant Ape. If their armies force their way through when the passage opens again, we might not be able to resist. Should we withdraw?"

"There’s no need for that."

Li Jing looked away as he spoke.

"According to the spatial fluctuation data report given by the Research Institute, the likelihood that there’s a Secret Realm behind the passage is very small. It’s more likely to be a smaller, independent space. This could be left behind by a top powerhouse that once existed in the Big Secret Realm, or it could be a naturally existing Subspace. Even if there is a Wisdom Civilization in there, it won’t be too strong."

As he spoke, he continued.

"The urgency lies in confirming whether the power possessed by the Giant Ape is of the same nature as the Giant Worm we encountered. If this is correct, at least one thing is clear. The Giant Worm we encountered before is obviously a native creature of the Secret Realm, while the Giant Ape came out from the passage. This signifies that the space behind the passage is an artificial survival space."

"The Wisdom Civilization living in this space is most likely a native civilization of the Secret Realm that entered in the past to avoid certain things or catastrophes. They clearly haven’t returned to the Secret Realm for a long time, and we don’t know what the current situation in the Secret Realm is like."

"We’ll stay here and guard. Kill every creature that comes out. After all, this Wisdom Civilization isn’t friendly. Once the passage opens, I’ll go in alone to take a look, then make a decision. I’ll also need the Linglong Tower then."

Upon hearing Li Jing’s long speech, both Yulian and Jiu Li frowned slightly.

They understood his reasoning.

However, Li Jing’s intention to venture alone was a bit too risky.

But recalling Li Jing’s past deeds, they decided not to worry unnecessarily.

Other people might not know, but they were clear about it.

The things that Li Jing accomplished on his own were shocking enough to stun anyone.

Compared to that,

Having other people around was actually a restraint for him.

Just like how Li Jing alone controlled the frenzied Giant Ape just now, rendering it powerless.

What Li Jing could do was definitely not limited to that.

His hesitation meant that there were reservations.

While they were talking. Chen Yuran’s voice came through Li Jing’s earphone.

"Li Jing, the people from the Research Institute can’t wait any longer and are urging you to give orders."

Upon receiving this, Li Jing pressed his earphone.

"Alright, Yuran, you arrange for some people to drag the body of the Giant Ape away to a safer place. Let the people from the Research Institute quickly start dissecting for analysis. This place is too close to where the spatial passage is. More creatures might pop out."

As he spoke, Li Jing continued.

"Also tell the Heavenly King Group to find a location directly facing the passage and set up all sorts of defensive installations and temporary camps. Our plans need to change. After the passage opens in seven hours, the original team doesn’t have to go in. I will go into the space behind the passage. I’ll take the Linglong Tower with me at that time."

"Understood."

Chen Yuran responded and ended the communication to arrange things.

Having ended the communication, Li Jing motioned for Linglong Tower to land in the distance and then looked at Yulian and Jiu Li.

"Xiaoyu, Brother Jiu, you two must be tired from beating the ape. Go rest and recover. I can guard this place alone."

"Okay."

Yulian nodded, the markings and beast-like traits on her face gradually fading away.

The markings on Jiu Li’s face also quietly disappeared, but her petite and powerful form showed no change.

Li Jing frowned at the sight.

"Brother Jiu, aren’t you going to change back?"

"You know I’ve spent a lot of energy, why should I waste it by changing back?"

Jiu Li pouted.

"Everyone who should have seen me has seen. I’ve no problem keeping this look for a while. Besides, as you’ve said, we’re not sure if anything else will come out from behind the spatial passage. I might have to change back in a bit. Instead of going through the trouble of changing back and forth, I’d rather save some energy."

Li Jing was rendered speechless.

Jiu Li was indeed worthy to be called Jiu Li, hands-down the best at slacking off and making it seem absolutely normal.

With a look at Jiu Li, an amalgamation of a young girl and a fox demon, and another look at Linglong Tower, Li Jing withdrew his gaze and gave a knowing smile.

"As long as you’re happy."

...