nycdaug Chapter 39 Harvest
Chapter 39 Harvest
"I was terrified! How could this happen?"
After successfully killing the Black Demon Wolf, Mo Yuming sat on a tree branch, panting heavily, looking at the hilt of the sword in his hand, which had lost its blade, with a look of surprise on his face.
"All magical beasts are ferocious. Grandpa said that the Black Wolf is a relatively low-level magical beast. However, in Ruimu Valley, as long as you don't go into the forbidden area, there aren't many magical beasts stronger than the Black Wolf."
Therefore, as long as we are careful, there shouldn't be much danger.
Xinlan thought Mo Yuming was frightened by the ferocity of the Black Demon Wolf, so she quickly comforted him.
Upon hearing this, Mo Yuming was both amused and exasperated, and could only awkwardly shake the hilt of the knife in his hand, saying:
"I'm not afraid of the black wolf, but this thing startled me. I don't know how Grandpa Zhang made it, it's like it's made of paper. When I chopped it hard, it shattered."
I've never seen a steel knife like this before... I don't know if it's because the Black Wolf's head is too hard, or the knife is too bad, or maybe I'm just too strong! When did I become this strong?
"Hehe...you were scared by this! Hehe..."
Upon hearing this, Xinlan couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Hehe, but it's strange, the knife didn't cut into the wolf's head, but it shattered the other side of the head and knocked another wolf away."
Logically, such a large impact should have generated a significant reaction force! How come even the knife shattered, yet I didn't feel a thing?
Compared to the demonic wolf, I should be the one who got blasted away!
Mo Yuming also laughed awkwardly.
"Ha ha……"
Xinlan laughed even harder.
"Brother, what are you saying? That force that sent the Black Demon Wolf flying wasn't a reaction force!"
That was your own Xuan Gong spiritual power! You think fifth-level Earth Rank spiritual power is just for fun?! Don't you even know how strong your own spiritual power is? Hehe…”
Xinlan smiled even more happily.
"Spiritual power? Could that yellow light emanating from the blade be my spiritual power? I thought it was just a coincidence from the sunlight! No wonder I felt like I overexerted myself, like I was exhausted, completely drained! Even now, I haven't recovered my strength. Hehe..."
Mo Yuming was both surprised and embarrassed. He had been reincarnated twice and was a great inventor in his previous life! Now he was being ridiculed by a little girl who was only a few years old.
What she considered the most common sense was something she couldn't understand.
Xinlan, with her pure heart, stopped teasing Mo Yuming and patiently explained to him:
"What you just released was earth-type profound spiritual power. Because your spiritual power was too strong, that broadsword was shattered by your spiritual power. Fortunately, it held on until it transferred the spiritual power to the demon wolf before breaking. Otherwise, you probably would have had to fight the demon wolf with your fists."
That's just an ordinary sword made of common iron; how could it withstand your unrestrained input of spiritual power!
...The control of spiritual energy should be like this: first, regulate the speed of the internal energy circulation within your body, ensuring it is steady, just like during regular practice, allowing the spiritual energy to flow smoothly within your body, and then...
My grandfather said that once you reach the Earth level in Xuan Gong (a martial arts technique), you can release spiritual energy outside your body to attack enemies from a distance. I haven't reached that level yet, so I don't know how to use it..."
"Oh! I see. No wonder I didn't feel any recoil from such a big impact. It turns out it was the spiritual energy I emitted that was working!"
Furthermore, the spiritual energy had already left my body and severed its connection with me when the broadsword shattered; all the collisions and vibrations occurred inside the demon wolf's head. Therefore, I didn't feel a thing.
Mo Yuming immediately understood the problem.
"Yes! After the spiritual energy blasted the black wolf's head, the residual force still lingered, and then it blasted the black wolf's corpse away, killing another black wolf. The black wolf you kicked away was also killed by the spiritual energy you injected into its body..."
Xinlan explained.
"Why can't I mobilize my profound spiritual energy again?"
Mo Yuming tried to release some spiritual energy from his palm, but found that he could not do it as he wished.
"You need to practice more! Only by practicing for a long time can you achieve your desired level and perform at your own pace! I've been practicing the Frost Soul Ice Sword for more than half a year!"
Xinlan, in a condescending manner, began to instruct Mo Yuming.
"Are there any tricks or secrets? Like some kind of mental techniques or mantras?"
Mo Yuming then realized how inadequate his knowledge of profound martial arts was, having never even practiced the most basic introductory techniques.
"Mental cultivation techniques? I don't know what mental cultivation techniques are. My grandfather never taught me. When I was practicing the Frost Soul Ice Sword, he only told me to concentrate my mind, try to output my spiritual energy outside my body, and then control it, turning it into the form I imagined. At the beginning, try to practice the simple forms, and then practice the more complex ones after you are proficient..."
Mo Yuming finally understood why those old men simply kept pouring spiritual energy into their bodies without using martial arts techniques. It turned out that they hadn't cultivated any martial arts techniques or mental cultivation methods; the output of various profound skills and spiritual energy was entirely based on their own imagination.
When one's spiritual power cannot leave the body at the human level, one should try to transform it into ice, fire, armor, etc., and attach it to weapons or the body to improve one's combat or defensive capabilities.
When one reaches the Earth-rank profound skill cultivation level, spiritual power can leave the body and be emitted, allowing one to transform spiritual power into forms such as frost, flames, and meteors to attack enemies from a distance.
Mo Yuming has not yet come into contact with spiritual power at the Heavenly Realm, so he cannot know what it will be like, but he can vaguely imagine some of it.
Those who fall from above are the only ones who understand the offensive martial arts techniques of Xuan Gong.
The reason I didn't teach the second generation of Gu martial arts was because it wasn't necessary.
After all, profound martial arts techniques are extremely difficult to master, requiring a great deal of effort to learn or teach.
Within this secluded canyon, the martial arts skills painstakingly learned were practically useless. Therefore, the old men were too lazy to teach them, and like the second-generation Gu, Xinlan and Mo Yuming only cultivated profound internal energy techniques without learning actual combat skills.
"Ouch - ow -"
"You wretched bastards! I gave you a way out, but you wouldn't leave, just barking here! I'll teach you to bark!..."
Xinlan saw the few evil dogs circling around the black wolf whose throat had been slit by Mo Yuming, but which was still alive because the blood had not yet dried up. Although their limbs were trembling and their eyes were full of terror, they did not dare to run away and just kept howling.
So he jumped down from the tree and killed them with a few swift sword strokes.
"Brother, these magical beasts aren't very high level, do you want their crystal cores?"
"What is a crystal nucleus? What is it used for?"
"You don't even know about the crystal core of a magical beast? The crystal core of a magical beast is a good thing. It is the core of the magical beast's magic power, just like the dantian and qi sea of our humans. However, magical beasts are different from us humans. They either do not produce magic crystals, but once they do, even the lowest level of magic crystals is solid. Unlike our human dantian and qi sea, which starts from a gaseous state, then condenses into a liquid state, and finally solidifies into a solid state."
"Magic crystals can be used by us cultivators of profound arts to absorb and enhance our spiritual power, to heal illnesses and injuries, to forge weapons and make armor... and many other uses. For example, the magic crystals of these calamity dogs are fire-elemental. Although their level is low, they are still very effective in treating common cold poisons..."
Xinlan, like a know-it-all, eloquently explained the properties of the magic crystal to Mo Yuming.
"With so many beneficial effects, how can I not want it! Where is it? Show it to me!"
Mo Yuming immediately perked up upon hearing this.
"I……"
Xinlan frowned but did not make a move.
"I'll go. Where are the magic crystals located?"
Mo Yuming immediately understood that it was really inappropriate to ask a little girl to do such a bloody and rough job. He immediately jumped down from the tree branch, took out a dagger from his interdimensional storage bag, and started to fight.
"The core of a monster is usually located in either its brain or chest."
Shaped like round beads, varying in color and size, the higher the grade, the purer the energy contained, and the higher the quality.
In his previous life, Mo Yuming was a professional breeder. Although he wasn't an expert in dissecting and butchering animals, he was certainly not bad at it. Therefore, in no time, he neatly dissected the corpses of the five demonic wolves and four evil dogs and extracted the magic crystals from their bodies.
After washing the bloodstains from my hands and the magic crystals in a small mortar filled with water, I held five pale red magic wolf crystals and four slightly reddish magic dog crystals in my hands.
The magic crystals of the demon wolf are the size of pigeon eggs, round and translucent like large pearls.
The Demon Dog's magic crystal is slightly smaller, like a boiled bird's egg, and it still has some elasticity when squeezed.
"The red magic crystals are all fire-attribute crystal cores. According to the grade classification, the magic wolf's magic crystal can be considered as a third-grade low-quality crystal, while the calamity dog's is only a first-grade crystal."
Xinlan took the magic crystal from Mo Yuming and examined it carefully.
"How are these magic crystals classified?"
"It is divided into ten levels. The first level is like the 'Disaster Dog,' which is not fully hardened yet, and is soft and elastic."
Grade 2 is already semi-hardened, and its color is better than Grade 1;
Level 3 and above are all hard solids. The higher the level, the larger the volume, the higher the color and transparency, and the greater the hardness.
From level six onwards, they are basically like transparent, colored crystals.
Magic crystals of level seven and above can emit light and possess magical pressure. Level nine and ten magic crystals, in addition to their magical pressure, can also gather spiritual elements on their own…”
Xinlan explained to Mo Yuming in detail.
"The higher the level, the more magical energy it contains. Since humans cannot swallow magic crystals to digest them directly when absorbing magic, a large portion of the magical energy is wasted during the absorption process."
The amount of magic energy that can be absorbed is less than one-fifth of the total energy. The amount of magic energy obtained from absorbing magic crystals below level four is very limited, so the effect is not significant and it is more worthwhile to use it for other purposes.
Only magic crystals of level five or higher can have a significant effect when absorbed.
Therefore, only magic crystals of level five or above are valued by practitioners of profound arts. It is said that one level five magic crystal can be exchanged for dozens of magic crystals of level four or below.
Level 6 or 7 can be exchanged for hundreds or even thousands of magic crystals below level 4.
However, according to my grandfather, magic crystals of level eight and above are very rare, because when a magic beast evolves to level seven, its strength is equivalent to the initial stage of the Heaven Rank of a human Xuan Gong cultivator.
In addition to possessing high magical power, their intelligence has also greatly improved. Some have even awakened their spiritual intelligence, possessing the same wisdom as humans, and some can even speak human languages.
Upon reaching level ten, they can essentially transform into human form, becoming indistinguishable from humans! Therefore, level ten magic crystals are practically legendary; no one has ever seen one.
Why can't humans swallow magic crystals when they absorb them?
In fact, Mo Yuming already had a large number of magic crystals.
He obtained those things in the arena; they were magic crystals that the old men had taken from the monsters he had killed. However, he didn't know what those things were, and the old men hadn't told him either. At the time, he was in a daze and didn't think about these things at all.
They thought they were some pretty gemstone beads or something.
"There are many reasons, but the most important one is that magic crystals are energy crystals formed by the gathering of the original power of magical beasts. In addition to containing enormous energy, they also contain the ferocity unique to magical beasts."
The more ferocious the magical beast, the stronger its malevolent aura. This malevolent aura is extremely harmful to humans. If this aura is absorbed, it will have a very serious effect on the human body. At best, it will cause poisoning; at worst, it will cause a person to go into a state of demonic possession, lose their nature, or even endanger their life. Therefore, it is not worth it to consume magical crystals in order to refine more spiritual power.
Although the higher the level of the magic crystal, the purer the energy, even if there is a way to completely digest it and not be affected by the ferocity of the monster.
However, due to the different types of magical beasts and their different living environments, their cultivation of magical power during their growth process varies greatly. They are so different that it is difficult for them to completely match the spiritual power of the absorber. After absorption, they will have a great impact on the spiritual power of the human body, and if not handled properly, they may cause fatal damage.
Therefore, no one would gamble with their life unless they were absolutely certain…
Xinlan spoke eloquently.
"How do you know so much? I've never seen you do any research in this area before!"
Mo Yuming was quite surprised to see that the little girl Xinlan spoke so eloquently about this matter.
"Grandpa told me this when he had nothing to do. He said it was common knowledge that practitioners of profound arts must know. I was just repeating what he said!"
Xinlan glared at Mo Yuming reproachfully. She wondered why he would ask such a common-sense question, and couldn't help but think that Mo Yuming was deliberately teasing her.
Mo Yuming was immediately speechless with anger: I wasn't joking, I really didn't know!
"Well, whether these magic crystals are valuable or not, they are still spoils of our first battle, so keeping them as souvenirs is not a bad idea..."
After the fight, Mo Yuming meditated on a tree branch for nearly an hour before recovering his spiritual energy. Xinlan, on the other hand, recovered quickly with almost no cultivation. Upon inquiry, it was learned that although Xinlan had also consumed some spiritual energy, her spiritual root would automatically accelerate the absorption of external spiritual energy to compensate for the consumption of spiritual energy in her body.
The higher the level of the awakened spiritual root, the stronger the recovery ability.
As long as the intensity of consumption does not exceed the absorption rate of the spiritual root, the spiritual power within the body can be used almost infinitely.
Mo Yuming, lacking spiritual roots, could not replenish the spiritual energy consumed during use and could only recover through cultivation afterward.
In comparison, the difference between having a spiritual root and not having one is obvious. Although Mo Yuming currently possesses abilities equivalent to the fifth level of the Earth Rank, in terms of sheer energy expenditure, he is no match for Xinlan.
However, this is due to innate talent. No matter how much Mo Yuming envies it, he cannot change it.
"Brother, which way do we go now?"
The two are now completely lost.
"We didn't see anything when we came here, but now we've only been walking for a short while on the way back and we've already encountered magical beasts. This is definitely not a coincidence; there must be something wrong! It's very likely that, as Grandpa Shi said, some high-level magical beasts are causing trouble in the mangrove forest."
The lower-level magical beasts were frightened and scattered in all directions. These magical wolves likely fled from that direction. Therefore, the direction the magical wolves appeared must be towards the mangrove forest; we shouldn't go wrong heading this way!
After careful consideration, Mo Yuming said with certainty.
"Hmm, it seems we didn't go the wrong way earlier!"
After listening, Xinlan felt that Mo Yuming's analysis made a lot of sense, and quickly nodded in agreement.
"It's all our fault for being so careless when we came here. We didn't pay any attention to the path. Now everything looks wrong and unfamiliar. We were just blindly trying our luck. It's so frustrating!"