77: Peak of the Tempering Realm

"Outrageous. The aura is a huge cut above Senior Brother and the Grand Elder. Is this a Great Demon King?" Li Jiangchen's thoughts raced like lightning. The Dragon King Temple by the river flashed into his mind, and a thought immediately surfaced.

His expression returned to calm. He took out the dragon power grass from his storage and said respectfully, "Greetings, Dragon King. This Li was Cultivating a Body Refining Cultivation Technique, trespassed into the dragon lair alone, and stole the dragon power grass. I am here specifically to apologize."

"Apologize? Heh, do you know that dragon power grass has a significant promoting effect on the growth of young Dragons? For this reason alone, this King could suppress and kill you. However..."

A mighty Dragon pressure swept over. Sweat beaded on Li Jiangchen's forehead. Just as he was about to bring up the name of the Martial Temple Ancestor, he heard the words 'however' from the Qiantang River Dragon King, and his heart immediately settled slightly.

He only heard the Qiantang River Dragon King continue, "It is not easy for all living things between heaven and earth to Cultivate. This King will give you a chance. If you agree to this condition, not only will this King not hold you accountable for stealing the Spiritual Plant, but I will also grant you a benefit."

"Please speak plainly, Dragon King. As long as it is not an act of betrayal or harm to the interests of the Human Race, this Junior will agree."

"Easy. The Dragon King Temple is this King's Dao field on land. Currently, it lacks a Human Race Protector. Are you willing to take the position?"

'A Human Race Protector?' Li Jiangchen was slightly surprised.

That's it? It sounds like it might actually be a good thing.

During this process of thought, he hesitated slightly. He heard the Qiantang River Dragon King speak again, his tone revealing a hint of urgency, "After you become a Protector, you can take away thirty percent of the incense offerings every year. This King will also grant you a Dragon King Talisman, sufficient to withstand a full-strength strike from a Spirit Observation Realm Grandmaster. How about it?"

Li Jiangchen's doubts grew even greater. Why does this Qiantang River Dragon King seem so eager?

However, it is best to quit while ahead. He immediately cupped his hands and said, "Many thanks for your favor, Dragon King. This Li accepts."

After speaking, the Qiantang River Dragon King let out a loud laugh, and immediately a dragon scale from his neck flew down, turning into an ice crystal emitting blue light that merged into Li Jiangchen's body.

Immediately, Li Jiangchen felt an aura of protection around his body. Once there was a life-and-death crisis, it would trigger automatically.

Soon, after bidding farewell to the Qiantang River Dragon King, he left the dragon lair in such a swaggering manner.

Once Li Jiangchen had completely left, the Qiantang River Dragon King couldn't help but let out a loud laugh, his massive dragon body rolling around in the dragon lair, causing the ground to shake.

"Haha, I hit the jackpot. This Li Jiangchen, his entire body's Meridians are at Perfection, he has the appearance of a Saint, and recently resonated with three Dharma Body Manifestations. Once he breaks through to the God Viewing, controlling the Dharma Body Manifestation will allow him to rival a Pseudo-Saint. A Genius with such great Opportunity, perhaps he will have a chance to leave this world in the future, and this King might be able to bask in some of that glory."

On the other side. Whoosh— The river water exploded, and a figure darted out from the water.

"This Qiantang River Dragon King is so strange... I should find Temple Keeper Senior Brother to ask about the situation."

A moment later. In the Martial Temple. After listening to Li Jiangchen's account, Temple Keeper nodded and smiled, "Junior Brother, you do not know. That Qiantang River Dragon King is our Martial Temple's guardian Spirit Beast. As early as the time of the third generation Martial Temple Ancestor, it was subdued. Since then, a Dragon King Temple was established by the Qiantang River to offer incense. Nowadays, its strength has long surpassed the average Great Demon King, reaching the Pseudo-Saint level, just one step away from returning to its ancestors and breaking through to the Demon Saint Realm. This old dragon has always listened to orders but not proclamations; except for the current Martial Temple Ancestor, no one's words work on it. For Junior Brother to be appointed as a Protector of the Dragon King Temple, it must be that this old dragon sees Junior Brother's potential and is forming a good relationship in advance."

"So that's how it is." Li Jiangchen nodded; he hadn't expected there to be such a layer of complexity to this.

Although this trip was a bit dangerous, the result was not bad. After bidding farewell, Li Jiangchen was in a quiet room, sitting cross-legged, and began to refine the dragon power grass.

Demon cultivation consumed. [The first year, you absorbed the dragon power contained within one dragon power grass, gaining the strength of one Dragon, and the Astral Essence within your body began to Fusion with the dragon power. The Giant Spirit Gang Yuan Body broke through to the eleventh level.] ... [The Giant Spirit Gang Yuan Body broke through to the thirteenth level.]

At this moment, the Dharma Body Manifestation Divine Ability figure coiling in the Soul Sea melted the Astral Essence, turning it into a more refined colorless Astral Essence that returned to the Meridians.

Li Jiangchen spread his palm and felt a mass of colorless Astral Essence coiling on his palm; it was not as rigid as before, but had an extra bit of resilience.

"According to records, once the thirteenth level of the Giant Spirit Gang Yuan Body is achieved, the Divine Ability of an ordinary Great Demon King cannot break through the defense. Unless a stronger Great Demon King takes action, they cannot injure me."

"Very good. The thirteenth level of the Giant Spirit Gang Yuan Body is achieved, allowing me to take another step forward on the path of Body Refining. Now, I only lack cultivation."

"So much time has passed; it is a good time to go to the Suspended Mountain to absorb those five strands of True Qi, and incidentally try to refine the Suspended Mountain."

Soon, Li Jiangchen turned into a ray of mysterious light and left the Imperial City.

Just shortly after Li Jiangchen left, in the Imperial City, a youth in white clothes raised the corner of his mouth in a smile: "Finally left..."

He took out a Magical Artifact shaped like a crystal from his bosom, and immediately crushed it.

At this moment, ten thousand miles away, the Demon Flood Dragon King looked at the crystal that had suddenly shattered before him, a cruel glint flashing in his eyes: "Finally left that turtle shell, have you?"

Inside the Imperial City, for a Demon proficient in the Dao of transformation, if they went to great lengths to infiltrate, there would be some possibility. But once a battle of techniques occurred, they would be quickly detected. Within a few breaths, a Martial Temple Temple Keeper would control a Dharma Body Manifestation and come knocking. If the Demon Flood Dragon King were to make a move inside the Imperial City, it would be pure suicide.

At this moment, the Demon Flood Dragon King opened his blood-red mouth, his long tongue spitting out breath like a snake's core, radiating unique Divine Ability mysteries, and then his head turned to look in the southwest direction. "In this direction..."

The next moment, he transformed into his true form as a flood dragon, riding the clouds and mist as he darted toward the distance.

Several days later. Suspended Mountain. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh— Five brilliant strands of True Qi turned into silver Dragons, one by one darting into Li Jiangchen's body, merging into his Meridians.

Immediately, the aura around Li Jiangchen's body surged step by step. Under internal observation, the original liquid True Qi was rapidly assimilated by these five strands of silver dragon True Qi, turning into brilliant solid True Essence.

"I left five strands of True Qi before, and by refining them with the Magnetic Force of the Suspended Mountain, they have indeed all condensed into True Essence. In this way, my cultivation has reached the Peak of the Quenching Fiend Realm, and I only need to find a Dharma Body Manifestation to break through to the God Observation Realm." Li Jiangchen muttered to himself.

God Viewing is to use Mental Energy to visualize a deity. This deity can be all things in heaven and earth, mountains, rivers, Demons, ghosts... and so on.

Once the visualized divine image is successfully built in the Soul Sea, one can condense the power of Divine Ability within the Soul Sea, allowing Dao techniques to transform into various Divine Abilities.

Like the Martial Artists of the Great Shang Dynasty, with the help of the power of incense, most visualize their own Yin Soul, which can travel a thousand miles by day, which is very profound.

And Li Jiangchen had long since decided on his visualization object, which was the Heavenly Sword of Heavenly Sword Mountain.

"The Heavenly Sword is rumored to have come from outside the Realm and is incredibly profound. Since ancient times, the stronger the visualized divine image, the more Divine Ability power is born, and the greater the potential. Moreover, currently my Saint Physique has only opened up two hundred and sixty Meridians; if I can find other remnant pages of the Immortal Sword Body at Heavenly Sword Mountain, perhaps I can condense an unprecedented special Physique."

Suddenly, he frowned, feeling a murderous intent emerging from behind him.

Whoosh— A three-foot-long flood dragon needle pierced through Li Jiangchen's afterimage, sinking into the ground, and immediately the ground turned into a mass of ink-black color.

"Yao Race..." Li Jiangchen frowned slightly and looked toward the clouds in the distant Void Realm.