About ten minutes later, Li Chang'an was finally led by Xiajī and Bachědān into a hidden chamber—an isolated space only accessible with a special key that only the two of them possessed.
This chamber was roughly two hundred square meters in size, and the entire space glowed with a soft, radiant light. Wisps of cloud-like mist drifted lazily through the air.
The clouds were pure white, and Li Chang'an could clearly feel the intense concentration of spiritual energy in them. In fact, it wasn't just the clouds—even the air itself was saturated with a rich aura of heaven and earth.
What surprised him most was that the moment he entered this place, his soul power began rising on its own—steadily and without pause. Every second, the number ticked upward by several digits. In other words, just standing here was enough to make his cultivation grow rapidly!
Energy formed into clouds, a sea of qi dense as mercury—this was the truest description of this secret realm.
"This is the training chamber Lord Rakshasa used when she was still in the mortal world. The spiritual energy here is even denser than in the Divine Realm. Honestly, even a pig could probably ascend to enlightenment in this place," Xiajī explained. As he spoke, his gaze toward Li Chang'an lost its earlier trace of contempt and now carried a touch of caution.
To be able to act so decisively, even in such an extraordinary place… this human was not someone the two of them could afford to provoke.
"Hmm, you're not wrong," Li Chang'an replied calmly, waving his hand. "Now, you two can leave. As agreed, I have two days to cultivate here."
"Very well, we'll return in two days," Xiajī said without protest. He took his younger brother Bachědān and quickly exited. After all, two days of cultivation wouldn't significantly deplete the spiritual energy here—and it was worth it to send this plague god away for a while.
Once the two brothers had left, Li Chang'an finally sat cross-legged and began to cultivate…
"Hm?"
Barely a minute into his meditation, Li Chang'an noticed something strange. His soul core was spinning wildly—as if it had taken a stimulant!
And with that rapid rotation, the spiritual energy in the air surged toward him like a rising tide. Even the distant cloud-clusters were being drawn toward him.
He watched in stunned disbelief as his soul power climbed at a terrifying speed—so fast that the numbers practically blurred before his eyes.
'What... what's going on?'
Li Chang'an looked at his soul core, then at his own body, puzzled. By all logic, his teacher also had a soul core and had passed the first level's trial. If this kind of absorption speed was normal, she should be able to gain a rank a day!
And with someone of Bibi Dong's caliber, every advancement came with massive benefits. If she had broken through, there's no way he wouldn't have heard something.
'So… does that mean my soul core is special?'
Li Chang'an stared at the core within his body and gave a helpless chuckle. Still, he didn't try to stop it. The benefits were his, after all—why worry about the rest?
And so, one day later…
Li Chang'an let out a long breath of foul air. Glancing up at the sky where only a few clouds remained, he gave a faint smile. He had absorbed nearly all the essence from this space—and his soul power had finally broken through to Rank 50, officially making him a Spirit King, albeit one still lacking a fifth soul ring.
As soon as he exhaled, Xiajī rushed in. Seeing the few remaining clouds and the now-diluted spiritual energy in the air, his horse-face crumpled in despair.
The energy here was indeed abundant, but the entire ecosystem followed a delicate balance! Li Chang'an may have only absorbed about one-tenth of the total energy, but it was the purest and most vital portion. Losing that essence meant the chamber's recovery would take at least a thousand years!
Honestly, if it weren't for the terrifying tricks Li Chang'an had up his sleeve, Xiajī would've been tempted to beat him into a meat paste.
"Great one… please, I beg you—can you leave now?" Xiajī asked meekly.
"Hm? Well, there's not much essence left here anyway. I was planning to leave," Li Chang'an nodded nonchalantly.
"Thank you, great one!!" Xiajī shouted joyfully, almost shedding tears of relief.
"But—" Li Chang'an didn't move. "I still have one day left. If you want me to leave early… shouldn't there be some compensation?"
Even if he planned to leave, how could he miss out on this opportunity to extort a little something extra? This place had ties to Lord Rakshasa herself. Even if the horse brothers were weak due to trial restrictions, they had to know a lot.
"Great one, I have… I have a treasure map! Perhaps it might interest you?" Xiajī hurriedly pulled out a timeworn scroll made of aged sheepskin, offering it up as a bribe.
"Oh? A treasure map? That's a start—but not enough." Li Chang'an didn't even glance at it, his tone casual but firm.
He could tell it was valuable, sure—but why settle now? Worst case, he'd just stay another day and drain whatever was left!
"Please, great one—I really have nothing left!" Xiajī pleaded, tears in his eyes. He was seriously contemplating dragging Li Chang'an outside and feeding him to the Spirit Beasts.
Without another word, Li Chang'an's eyes flashed with a faint white light—his signature move activated: "Whoever You Stare at Will Shit Themselves!"
Li Chang'an wasn't some saint. They had agreed on two days of cultivation, and he'd shortened it to one out of consideration. Now that he'd absorbed the best essence, the other party had to make up for it.
Besides, Xiajī was clearly hiding more good stuff. There was no way Li Chang'an would let him off so easily!
"G-Great one, please… not again… I'll give you one more treasure!" Xiajī groaned, holding his stomach and trying not to succumb to the agonizing urge in his bowels.
'So he can use that weird ability again!' Xiajī thought in horror.
'Good thing I never tried to fight him!'
"You can go ahead and do your business. This technique can't be undone. Just give me the treasure afterward," Li Chang'an said, taking a few steps back with an air of civility.
Ten minutes later, Li Chang'an stepped onto the teleportation array to the second level of the Rakshasa Tower. As he left, he cupped his fists politely toward Xiajī.
"Thanks for your generous contributions."
"Wuwuwu… I've been bullied so hard… he took everything…"
---
Rakshasa Tower – Second Level
At that moment, Bibi Dong was locked in a fierce and difficult battle. Her condition was far from ideal—her red training outfit had several tears, exposing patches of pale skin beneath, each marked with wounds.
She was surrounded by a swarm of dark, shadowy figures. While their attacks weren't individually strong, they made up for it with overwhelming numbers.
At first glance, these shadow creatures resembled animated black stone golems—but they moved with surprising agility. And due to the rules of the trial, Bibi Dong couldn't use soul power or soul skills, so her attacks only left shallow marks on their bodies…
___
T/N:
Hello everyone! My Patreon is just $3 — a perfect opportunity to access 40+ advanced chapters and support the translation.
You'll also get access to firsthand girls' pics as a bonus!
🔗 patreon.com/user?u=79514336
Or simply search Translator-Sama on Patreon