Chapter 132: Second-Stage Transformation Realm
Three days later, human reinforcements finally arrived.
Several chariots could be seen gliding across the sky. The first chariot was pulled by five blackwind eagles. With only two people on this chariot, it was the chariot with the fewest number of people on it among the newly arrived chariots. The second chariot was pulled by four blood wolves. Five people were seated on the second chariot. As for the other chariots, they were also pulled by various Demon Kings, and each chariot carried more than 10 humans.
This time, the Cloud Margin Pavilion had deployed 37 King Realm cultivators. The leader of the group was the Cloud Margin Pavilion's second elder, the Black Eagle King. He was the middle-aged old man seated on the first chariot.
Beside him was a delicate young man dressed in black. This young man was similar in age with the Young Lightning King. He stood there with his hands clasped behind his back. With his hair whipping around in the wind, he had a free and unrestrained demeanour.
He was Zhang Xiaoyu, one of Cloud Margin Pavilion's genius disciples. He was as famous as Young Lightning King and was the sole disciple of the Black Eagle King. He was also known as the Young Eagle King. Perched on his shoulder was a demonic eagle. The eagle's sharp eyes and aloof expression made it clear it was no ordinary eagle.
On the chariot pulled by the four blood wolves, there was an elder called Long Xiaolang. He was the seventh elder of the Cloud Margin Pavilion, and in this group, his strength was second only to the Black Eagle King.
These three were the most well-known members of the group. When they arrived, He Luo, Mo Chage, Young Lightning King, and the others stepped forth to offer their greetings.
"How is the current situation? Elder He Luo, explain," said the Black Eagle King who remained seated on the chariot. When he scanned the ground, none of them dared to meet his gaze. He Luo gave him a summary of all that had happened.
"Ninth-stage Demon King!" When the Black Eagle King heard that there was such a high-leveled Demon King, there was finally a change in his expression. He was only a peak eighth-stage King Realm cultivator. Granted, he had some trump cards that would enable him to fight a ninth-stage Demon King, but there was a limit to how helpful trump cards could be.
"Yes. We did not think much about them, but such a powerful Demon King appeared out of nowhere. If we hadn’t been quick on our feet, we would have all ended up in the Demon King's belly," said He Luo with a sigh.
"How about the other Demon King gold serpentine crocodiles? How many of them are there?" asked the Black Eagle King.
"The sound wave had jolted a large number of them to death, so not many of them survived. With our current numbers, dealing with them won't be a problem," He Luo answered.
"Since that is the case, we will first occupy the Golden River Valley before we consider anything else," decided the Black Eagle King.
Long Xiaolang interjected, "A ninth-stage Demon King won't be easy to handle. Both of us need to work together if we are to stand a chance."
"There's no need for that. This is a good chance for me to further temper myself. Perhaps it will help me make a breakthrough in my cultivation," said the Black Eagle King confidently. Thus, the group of humans charged toward the Golden River Valley.
Swish! Swish!
Before they even reached their destination, the gold serpentine crocodiles started sounding the alarm. Then, the gold serpentine crocodile clan leader and over 20 Demon King gold serpentine crocodiles appeared in front of the valley. With a vicious expression on his face, he said, "Humans, are you here to intrude upon our domain again?"
"Leave and we will allow you safe passage," said the Black Eagle King, who was standing on a blackwind eagle.
"Not possible. This is where we have lived for many years. Nobody can chase us away," rejected the gold serpentine crocodile clan leader. He added, "You humans are the ones invading our territory. Do you think you can bully us as you like?"
At those words, fierce expressions covered the faces of the Demon Kings behind him. They started sticking their serpentine tongues out, seemingly eager to fight.
"Since you are being stubborn, we'll just have to slaughter all of you," said the Black Eagle King as he waved his hand to signal the start of the assault.
Wielding a pair of eagle claws, the Black Eagle King dashed toward the gold serpentine crocodile clan leader. He moved so fast his entire person blurred. In the blink of an eye, he appeared above the gold serpentine crocodile clan leader, like an eagle out on a hunt.
Demonic beasts were generally rash and feared nothing. That applied to the gold serpentine crocodiles as well. The many Demon Kings all charged forward fearlessly. The human King Realm cultivators would naturally not stand around idly. They drew their weapons and joined the battlefield as well.
Rumble! Rumble!
Instantly, explosions of numerous colors erupted in the sky like fireworks.
...
Inside the cave. Xiang Shaoyun had finally fully digested the white tiger soul in him. He had directly jumped to second-stage Transformation Realm, breaking through four stages at once. This was his fastest ever advancement since he had started cultivating.
Apart from talent, luck also played a great role in the advancement of a cultivator. Evidently, Xiang Shaoyun was both talented and lucky. He had not been cultivating for long, yet he was already a Transformation Realm cultivator.
After the breakthrough, his demeanor seemed to have become even sharper than before. His body also seemed to be naturally emanating a sort of presence at all times now, giving him a sensation that nothing would be able to plant any sort of fear in him from now on.
"It has taken me...eight months? In eight months, I advanced from third-stage Basic Realm to second-stage Transformation Realm. It took me less than a year." Even Xiang Shaoyun himself was astonished by this speed. Everything felt unreal to him. Other people had to work very hard to reach this level, but here he was, reaching this level so easily. He could only lament that fate was indeed never fair.
Xiang Shaoyun had completely recovered from his injuries while his astral cosmos sea had expanded twofold in size. With a storage space of 30 square meters, he would be able to store even more things. His advancement had indeed contributed to the growth of his astral cosmos sea, but the white tiger soul's power had also contributed greatly to the growth.
The shaft of the Overlord Skyslaying Saber was now gold in color after devouring the white tiger soul's power. As for the broken blade, apart from the original purple inscriptions, some additional golden inscriptions could now be seen there as well. Purple and gold, both were colors of nobility. With them converging on a single blade, the saber looked even more exalted.
Unfortunately, the shape of the saber remained the same. It was still the same badly damaged saber. If not for that, the saber would definitely be an exceptional weapon. Xiang Shaoyun circulated his energy, causing the projections of a purple dragon and a white tiger to hover around him. Now, both of them were equally matched and appeared to be in a state of equilibrium.
"There are three main phases in the Transformation Realm. The first phase is my current state, the outer energy phase that allows me to form an energy barrier to protect myself. The second phase is known as the inner energy phase, where one can form an inner energy barrier to protect one's organs, meridians, and bones from damage. As for the third phase, it is the energy transformation phase. The so-called energy transformation phase is the phase when one obtains the ability to give shape to incorporeal energy, materialize it, and use it to harm someone through thin air. It's an ability approaching what King Realm cultivators can do. Since I can already perfectly create the outer energy barrier, I should focus on reaching the inner energy phase for now," Xiang Shaoyun muttered.
He did not become overjoyed and forget himself due to his rapid advancement. Instead, he remained level-headed, and he was clear on what he should do next. His gaze landed on Little White, who was wrapped in a golden cocoon.
"I would have died without Little White. How am I going to repay him for this?" Xiang Shaoyun sighed. He then shifted his gaze to the massive tiger skeleton, excitement surging into his eyes.