96: Weighing the gains and losses and choosing the way forward
Forcibly breaking through space to escape consumed a tremendous amount of Liu Qingtian's energy.
Especially borrowing that trace of the Power of Annihilation from the burying netherworld, although it was only for an instant, it caused his recently stabilized Late-stage Kai Shan Realm cultivation to vaguely show signs of loosening, and a sense of weakness came from deep within his tree soul, a sign that his Origin was being extracted.
After passing through several layers of chaotic spatial rifts and confirming there were no pursuit auras behind him, Liu Qingtian finally maneuvered the somewhat dim wither and flourish void-evasion boat, stumbling out of the Void Realm and landing on the backside of an inconspicuous, dead, silent meteorite floating in the outer Star Domain of the Flowing Fire Realm.
This meteorite was not large, entirely composed of cold rock, with no signs of life, and its energy was extremely thin, making it an excellent temporary hiding place.
Liu Qingtian withdrew the wither and flourish void-evasion boat, manifested his true form, and sank his roots deep into the rock, absorbing the meager Earth Qi to restore his consumption.
Wang Gou sat down on the side, patted his chest, and looked like he was still shaken: "That scared me to death! So many bugs, and a Golden Body Realm guy going crazy, brother, you really dare to play!"
Liu Qingtian did not immediately adjust his breath; instead, he cautiously set up several layers of Restriction and dispersed the aura of the Shadow Devouring Willow Branch to further interfere with any potential tracking.
After doing all this, he finally relaxed slightly and began to check his gains from this trip.
The most important were naturally the two "Eye of Delusion Breaking" from Yan Hao.
He took the eyeballs out of the willow leaf grotto-heaven and suspended them in front of him.
Even after leaving the main body, these two eyeballs maintained a peculiar vitality, with a faint, strange luster flowing on the surface that seemed capable of seeing through falsehoods.
"Tsk tsk, is this the capital that kid was showing off with? It doesn't look like anything special." Wang Gou leaned over and looked curiously.
Liu Qingtian carefully sensed the energy and Law fragments contained in the eyeballs and said slowly: "This eye can directly peer into the Origin of energy and background, it is indeed extraordinary. If used properly, it has miraculous effects whether treasure hunting, identifying items, or seeing through weaknesses when fighting."
He recalled the scene where Yan Hao saw through his true form and the special nature of his willow wood heart at a glance, and he had a clearer understanding of the value of this Eye of Delusion Breaking.
Wang Gou blinked and suddenly asked: "brother, you robbed these eyes, aren't you afraid that Yan Hao will come to take revenge on you later? He is a Young Lord after all, his Family must have some old monsters, right?"
Hearing this, a trace of indifference and disdain flashed in Liu Qingtian's tree eyes, and he said lightly: "Revenge? He will not have that chance."
"Oh? How so?" Wang Gou became interested.
Liu Qingtian, while trying to use his Divine Sense to initially refine the Eye of Delusion Breaking, analyzed calmly:
"First, although this eye is unique, look at Yan Hao; apart from relying on this eye to identify people and objects and being arrogant and domineering, does he have any outstanding cultivation, Heart-Nature, or combat power? Having a treasure mountain but not knowing how to use it proves that his talent and Luck are both mediocre, and he is not a true Heaven-Defying genius."
"Second, in that situation at the time, the world-ending insect tide descended, and even more terrifying existences beyond the Golden Body Realm appeared. They were surrounded by the insect sea and could barely protect themselves. With Yan Hao's meager cultivation and the fact that he was already blinded, what are the chances you think he can survive from such a desperate situation? Less than one in ten."
"Third, even if he survived by Luck and was rescued by his Family, a useless Young Lord who has lost his Eye of Delusion Breaking, is blind, and has mediocre cultivation talent, do you think he would still receive attention and resource allocation in a cultivation Family where the strong prey on the weak? He is just an abandoned pawn. His Family might symbolically investigate for the sake of face, but they would never pay a huge price for a useless person."
"Finally," Liu Qingtian's tone carried a trace of certainty, "even if his Luck is Heaven-Defying and he can really endure humiliation and obtain some Heaven-Defying Opportunity to return to his Peak, that would be hundreds of years or even longer later. By then, if I am still standing still and get caught up by him, I can only blame my own incompetence and that I was destined for this tribulation."
What Wang Gou didn't know was that there was deadly poison on Liu Qingtian's Willow Branches; the moment he dug out Yan Hao's eyes, he was already a dead man. If he could survive under these circumstances, it would only mean his life was not meant to end.
After hearing this, Wang Gou stroked his chin and nodded: "That makes sense! brother, you see things so thoroughly! In that case, is this deal a sure profit?"
"Risk and reward coexist." Liu Qingtian corrected, "If the insect tide hadn't suddenly descended this time, creating an excellent chaos, I would never have succeeded and escaped so easily; I might have even had to pay a greater price. But since I succeeded, this item is my hard-earned spoils."
He put away the Eye of Delusion Breaking, which had been initially refined and whose light was slightly restrained. Thoroughly refining and mastering its abilities would still take time and special methods; there was no need to rush.
Subsequently, he looked at the Flowing Fire Realm in the distance, which was shrouded in the insect tide and looked like it was stained with blood, his gaze deep. The outcome of the Flowing Fire Realm was already doomed, and his original plan to earn resources and search for star disk fragment had naturally fallen through.
"Lin Feng's intelligence this time almost trapped me in a desperate situation." Liu Qingtian added another mark against that profiteering Fellow Villager in his heart. Although he was blessed by misfortune and obtained the Eye of Delusion Breaking, the muddy waters of the Flowing Fire Realm were indeed far more dangerous than expected.
"brother, where are we going next? Looking for another lively place?" Wang Gou asked.
Liu Qingtian pondered for a moment. He urgently needed a safe place to completely digest the gains from the Secret Realm, stabilize his cultivation, and study the Eye of Delusion Breaking and that Star Spirit Fox. At the same time, he also needed to plan the next step of earning resources and paying off debts.
Lin Feng could not be fully trusted for the time being, and the Myriad Realms Battlefield was no longer safe due to the Yunlan Sect's kill order.
Suddenly, he thought of a place — the Bone Whirlpool Domain.
It was a chaotic place on the edge of the Myriad Realms Battlefield, where all kinds of people gathered, news was well-informed, resources were abundant, and it was also convenient for hiding. Moreover, he remembered that Lin Feng had mentioned before that there seemed to be rumors about myriad manifestations star disk fragment in the depths of the Bone Whirlpool Domain.
"Return to the Bone Whirlpool Domain." Liu Qingtian made his decision. Although the environment there was harsh, for him, it was more suitable for tempering and growth.
He no longer delayed. After recovering a little, he activated the wither and flourish void-evasion boat again, carrying Wang Gou, changed direction, and quietly drove towards the Void Realm coordinates of the Bone Whirlpool Domain.
A new storm might be brewing, but with the Eye of Delusion Breaking and more bizarre combat power, Liu Qingtian felt more confident about future challenges. The top priority was to convert this harvest into tangible strength as soon as possible.