บท 365: Rank 99 (3)
"Alright... we manipulate him to... uh... which spirit bone should we choose?" An elegant fox layered in creamish-pink fur hums loudly with a sense of almost divine charm threatening to attract not only Violet and Ja Yin but also Xiao Bei and Zi Ji.
They are gathered around Golden Crocodile. Violet and Ja Yin can be seen not only setting a few 2-5 grades Immortal Ginsengs but also carving into the ground with their spirit energy. Meanwhile, Xiao Bei dives into Golden Crocodile's spatial ring.
Previously, Ah Yin had conspired and successfully killed ten individuals with a spirit bone or two but had left this treasure out of an error in her planning. In the end, this sparked a violent reaction among the voyagers from the Spirit Empire and Golden Crocodile soon came into the possession of these corpses. Not only that, but he also possessed the corpse of a Titled Douluo who got killed during this conflict.
At this moment Golden Crocodile's spatial ring is a trove of significant treasures!
Still in her True Spirit Avatar to keep a tight hold on the already 'high' Golden Crocodile, Hu Lana mutters calmly, "Let's just pick a spirit bone already."
"Fine," Xiao Bei agrees and realizes that even if Bibi Dong didn't say anything about how much time they have, she certainly is in a rush.
She is quick to pick the spirit bone with the strongest aura that also matches the open slots in Golden Crocodile's body.
Like many Titled Douluos, Golden Crocodile has absorbed multiple spirit bones— Both arms and left leg. So, Xiao Bei 'picks' the 42000-year-old Torso Bone from a corpse that no longer has any use for it and brings it out.
The aura of the element of wind is great around the ribcage spirit bone but Xiao Bei is quick to skip forward to the Golden Crocodile in a daze and stroke his wrinkled, albeit, soft skin before gasping, "Wow! His skin is as soft as mine!"
"Come on, really?" Zi Ji barks.
"Right, sorry," Xiao Bei clears her throat and Ja Yin speaks up, "It's not even that strange. This Titled Douluo is not only strong but very wealthy, too. The stuff he eats daily must be grand..."
"Yes," Violet smiles while setting the array alongside Ja Yin, "Master even said that Titled Douluos have physiques that are meant to absorb everything eventually. It means that only dangerous poison works on them and weaker ones become their nutrients without anything considered a waste."
"She means that Titled Douluos can choose not to poop," Ja Yin shrugs.
"What?!" Xiao Bei snaps and looks at Zi Ji, "Did you know that?"
"It's pretty common knowledge amongst us. Ja Sun bragged for days that he doesn't need to go to the toilet anymore," Hu Lana replies instead.
"Get that man to absorb this spirit bone before I lose it," Zi Ji threatens in a somber but distinctly low tone making Xiao Bei nod in a hurry once more. Taking a deep breath to recollect herself and finding a new wave of motivation to break through to rank 90 aside from having the carrot Ja Sun has been dangling in front of her for quite a while, Xiao Bei caresses Golden Crocodile's supple cheek and smiles, "Would you absorb this spirit bone? It will make you stronger."
Her skill is extremely suggestive but in specific situations or amongst weaker opponents Xiao Bei can easily convert an enemy into an ally.
Still in a daze, Golden Crocodile reaches out for the spirit bone with injured and trembling hands of his while Xiao Bei notes the resistance deep within the old and experienced Titled Douluo. Unwilling to take any chances, she whispers softly, "I won't let anyone harm you. Trust me."
The Titled Douluo grabs hold of the spirit bone and sits down cross-legged.
"Alright," Xiao Bei steps back with a sigh of relief escaping her lips.
"Our turn," Ja Yin grins and Violet nods as they sit outside the array constructed with Golden Crocodile as the center.
"What does it do?" Xiao Bei inquires while Hu Lana recalls how beneficial a single Immortal Herb has been in each of their journey of cultivation.
"It wastes these Immortal Herbs," Ja Yin sighs. She may not be as greedy as Ja Sun but she shares his qualities just as much, "All this array will do is use these Immortal Herbs to... fuel his cultivation even more. This and the spirit bone should be barely enough to push him to rank 99."
"Really?!" Xiao Bei gasps in surprise as Violet and Ja Yin activate the array the moment Golden Crocodile starts to absorb the spirit bone. The runes and pattern of arrays light up in a purplish glow as Xiao Bei continues, "Why don't we do this, too? We'll get strong in an instant."
"And dead," Zi Ji mocks.
"Exactly," Ja Yin snickers, too, "Why do you think a person takes time to reach the next step and if they can't they stagnate? That's the way of life. Trying to force a breakthrough comes with injuries. Many times these injuries are manageable. But..."
"Rank 99 is the same as being a million-year-old spirit beast. Not in physical strength, of course," Zi Ji continues calmly, "Even Ja Sun is only 98, and despite all the three cores of his and the spirit bones he still isn't a demigod in cultivation despite possessing equivalent strength."
"So? I can still become a Titled Douluo, at least, right?" Xiao Bei persists.
"Even if your body can endure the pressure, what about the foundation of your spirit energy?" Violet questions, "Breaking through a single level at a higher realm takes treasures or a lot of time. That's because just increasing the quality or quantity of spirit energy is not the answer to cultivation but the Spirit Master's 'container' to retain the necessary spirit energy. The gap widens with each successive rank. And if you're just a rank or two short from reaching the bottleneck of rank 90, injuring your spirit sea and potentially stagnating your cultivation forever makes no sense."
Xiao Bei hums curiously, "What if I had an extremely strong body?"
"Oh, god!" Zi Ji rolls her giant eyes, "Did you hear nothing? It's about the spirit energy and not the body. Even if your spirit sea is better than others, it's not an external competition. A Spirit Master's higher rank will always have spirit energy greater than before. We beasts are wired to take the route of taking time to eventually grow strong even if we don't consume treasures. Humans have to choose the opposite route."
"And too much of anything is bad, even if a medicine. Or in this case, Immortal Herbs," Ja Yin concludes before grumbling, "But that doesn't mean this isn't a waste! 10 Immortal Herbs... tch..."
As they discuss these things, Golden Crocodile's cultivation stirs. He has stayed at the realm of Rank 98 for so many years that the moment he consumed his first Immortal Herb he gained from Bibi Dong, he shed tears of sincere happiness when he felt his cultivation show signs of qualitative improvement.
But things changed soon after and Qian Xunji assured him that there is a way for everyone to become a God.
"It's just a matter of cost. How much are you willing to kill the human within you..." These words resound within Golden Crocodile.
Memories resurface within him. From the most recent to the most ancient ones.
"Heh, my disciples kick your disciple's ass every time but... hey, this sake is pretty good!" The peaceful smile of his friend... no, the smile of the only person who had potential immeasurable only to be curbed stirs him. How can anyone be so peaceful knowing that their birth curbed their talent? Their potential? The chance to become more than a man?!
"I... want to become strong! I want to show my clan that I am not weak!" The boy's determined gaze brought a bit of sense back to him in the depths of darkness as he somehow feels... stronger. Better.
"You will join the Elders hidden in my Spirit Hall..." The cold threat of the leader of the Spirit Hall before Qian Daoliu booms and the humiliation angers him to this date!
"Oh? You're talented. This inheritance is hollow but it should suffice. In return, you promise me that you will eventually reach the peak of mortals and establish a shrine in my name!" The raspy voice from the large torch adorned with a dragon's head laughs.
"I... I am sorry. Dear, I can no longer follow you..." The cold and last caress of his beloved over his cheek churns his emotions even further.
It's something. Something he has lost or forgotten. It's all leading to something.
"Huh?" Golden Crocodile stands in front of a gold-rimmed mirror with a large dragon's head on the top. Everything around him is dark but he can see his reflection clearly.
But what looks back is not an aged and weary figure.
It's a small boy with haggard brown hair garbed in rags and a bright grin adorning his childish face.
"Hey! Nice to meet you! I'm Huang Jin Tong!"
'Huang Jin Tong... Jin Tong...'
Golden Crocodile looks at his hand and finds them smaller and younger than before.
"I... can't believe I even forgot my name. So many things have passed," Jin Tong sighs before stroking his beard— once again older in an instant.
His eyes suddenly snap open and he feels the sheer pleasure born from power coursing through his veins. He notices another, unstable core in his spirit sea aside from the physical core he had formed when he broke into Rank 90.
Despite the strength coursing through him... despite understanding he is Rank 99 Titled Douluo, he notices his body's condition worsening.
His sharp glare falls only on the giant dragon who eyes him calmly and doesn't move while nobody else is around him.
'Why did Ah Yin try to help me? I am ranked 99 and eventually heal—'
*Spurt*
A fountain of blood suddenly burst through his nostrils as the unstable core in his spirit sea raises a great reversal of energy.
"I am Huang Jin Tong!" Golden Crocodile hisses, "And I have survived many tribulations! Ah Yin, I shall survive this ordeal! I shall uncover the truth of this sick joke!"
More than willing to make use of this new violent and uncontrollable strength, Jin Tong aims to attack Zi Ji but she closes her eyes and folds her wings in. As if a cat intending to enjoy her nap, the dragon's forelimbs cross in the front and she rests her head on top of it.
'What?'
Golden Crocodile suddenly feels a chilling intent lock onto him.
Suddenly turning back, he finds a beautiful woman with skin so pale that one might question if she has any blood flowing through her. Her jet-purple gaze seems to cover the entire sky as the sheer lust of death borders the realms of insanity with a violent sea of blood brewing around Jin Tong.
'Bibi Dong...' His eyes widen as he takes notice of the purple scythe in her hands.
'I see—'
Jin Tong suddenly feels his gaze shifting sideways. When did his blood began dripping through the pointed end of the scythe is something he doesn't know.
But he now knew why the Abyss Demon Dragon did not attack.
In death, he understood...
There is no reason to attack who is already dead, right?
His vision darkens soon as Bibi Dong's divine scythe lets out a keen noise and Jin Tong hears a blood-curdling screech from within before 'he' is snatched from his body and devoured by Bibi Dong the next second.
'How disgusting...' Zi Ji keeps her eyes closed.
---
"That pressure..."
Trying to search for the enemy in the sea is hard for him, too. He had almost given up for the time being as the evening sun set past the horizon only to feel a sudden surge of faint divine aura.
***
Alternate Title: Huang Jin Tong; You Can't Kill What's Dead; The Extent a Human Must Kill Themselves For Strength; Flashback is Useless; Jin Tong, in fact, Did Not Survive All The Tribulations.
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