22 Recovery and breakthrough

After a few days of flying, the trio returned to the Scarlet Dragon Mountain Range where they rendezvous with Ah Diao.

Immediately after getting back, Damien entered seclusion. He felt that he was about to breakthrough in his mental abilities again.

The first time he broke through, he got vast mental energies and intellect which he misused and also gained the Akashic Records. This time he as wondering what ability he was going to unlock.

He immediately took a shower in nearby pool, put on new clothes and entered his seclusion.

.....

" Sigh. I have a bad feeling about this brat. He's a walking disaster. Someone who could casually knock aside the old wussy from the Sword Sect while being so young was unheard of. " Yun Canghai relaxed in a hot spring that Damien had instructed Ah Diao to prepare for him because he stank.

After bathing Yun Canghai sat down a bit to meditate. Damien had granted him a skill called the Profound Revitalizing Technique that should help him regain his past strength.

" What a wondrous technique!!!" After a few minutes of circulating the technique, Yun Canghai screamed out in shock. His body was changing at abnormal speed. His dried up essences were all being replenished and his energy was being revitalized to the peak.

After a few hours, his body finally changed. His skinny and hollow body became filled with strength as muscles grew, increasing his height as well. Then his white hair and beard began to change to black. After a few minutes of the metamorphosis, his body was finally revealed. An old man who looked like a beggar on his death bed was now a handsome middle aged man with a stern expression.

Soon, a massive amount of profound energy burst out of his body, creating massive waves all around him. Even Ah Diao and Long Feng who were cultivating nearby were alarmed by the aura.

" Hahahaha!!! who would've thought that I Yun Canghai would one day regain even more strength than I had before. This is amazing. I'm on a whole different level in terms of purity of My Profound Energy!." His manic laughter rang out.

...

" Sir Diao allow me to check on what is going on with that old coot, lest he harms the young master." Long Feng respectfully bowed awaiting orders. The reason was because although Ah Diao was Damien's subordinate like her, he was Damien's right hand man and he seemed to trust him well, also his dragon bloodline was far higher than hers on the spectrum of comparison.

To her, he wasn't just the ideal leader, he was her ideal man as well. Her previous husband was betrothed to her before she was born, and after their tribe was destroyed, they only had each other to rely on. The only thing that bound them together was the fact that they had a son in the past who was murdered by humans.

" It's alright Miss Long Feng. I'll check it out myself." Sighing slowly, he stood up and began walking towards Yun Canghai. She couldn't help but glance at his strong and sturdy back as he forced herself to calm her beating heart and blush.

....

" Calm down old man, the ruckus you're making is going to wake the young master." Ah Diao spoke with a frown. " So you're his subordinate? Your strength is impressive. Why don't you follow me instead. I'll provide you with the best resources you've ever gained in your life." Yun Canghai said proudly after observing Ah Diao for a while.

" You want me to betray my master?" Ah Diao asked as he looked at Yun Canghai incredulously.

" Hahahahahaha!!!! That's the funniest thing I've ever heard!! I don't know you had such talent in comedy. Hahahah!!" Ah Diao broke his character for the first time and laughed his heart out, completely disregarding his image. Standing a bit behind him, Long Feng couldn't help but salivate when she saw him laughing like that.

" He's so hot." He thoughts were sent into a frenzy as he gazed at him only.

" Listen here old man, I'll never betray my master! Ever! Second! You're letting that power up go to your head. My master could kill you with a single thought, no matter how strong you are. That's how powerful he is. However I don't mind putting you in your place if you don't shut the hell up!" He spoke sternly, before completely black aura burst out of him.

Behind him, a huge dragon apparition that was fully black appeared and roared to the sky, shaking the very foundations of the continent. This energy was pure void energy or as modern humans liked to call it, dark matter.

Yun Canghai was pushed back several steps as his eye brows creased. " Purple Cloud Arts!" He smiled ferociously, before a multitude of lightning smashed down from dark clouds above unto his body. He looked like the reincarnation of a lightning God.

" Lightning Fists!" With a crackle of lightning, his body shot forward, and his fist smashed out towards Ah Diao.

" Boom!" Without further wait, Ah Diao smashed his fist out as well with just pure strength. The two fists smashed together, as a large wave erupted, shaking the land itself.

" Bang!! Bang! Bang!!" Their bodies shot into the sky as they clashed fiercely against each other, with none of them backing down. Their fists, legs and elbows clashed in the most brutal showdown ever seen, leaving a completely gobsmacked Long Feng.

One had to know that Ah Diao was still at the Emperor realm and hadn't broken through, and Yun Canghai in his prime had been at the Sovereign Profound Realm and now he was even stronger, yet they clashed on equal ground.

" Purple Cloud Arts! Lightning Burst!" A hundred feet large bolt of lightning smashed towards Ah Diao at speeds far faster than sound, however, in the twinkle of an eye, he vanished and reappeared instantly behind Yun Canghai.

" You can manipulate space?!" Yun Canghai frowned. The danger level he initially had of Ah Diao had risen sharply in his mind after this. " Oh I can do a lot more than that!" Ah Diao smiled and took a step forward in the empty space.

" Spatial Rend!" " Boom!" With a slight stretch of his arm he muttered. A huge spatial blade, hundreds of meters long slashed towards Yun Canghai almost instantaneously. It was invisible and Yun Canghai with all his senses had not been able to see it coming.

The entire left part of his body was ripped off, along with half of the Scarlet Dragon Mountain Range. " You're really strong, if I hadn't used my profound handle at the last minute, I would've died." Yun Canghai coughed out blood and soon, his body began to regenerate.

Soon his body was covered in a purple armor. " This is my profound Handle, a unique bloodline ability of my Yun family. At my peak, it could exert about 50 percent of my total prowess, now its even stronger!!" Yun Canghai laughed out.

" I'm surprised." Ah Diao suddenly uttered.

" Of course you should be. With this alone, I don't even need to fight with you anymore, you've lost." Yun Canghai spoke proudly.

" I'm surprised you thought you could beat me!" Ah Diao spoke proudly, while space shook as if recognizing its Lord.

" Throughout heaven and earth, only my master and I are the honored ones. Profound Energy Reversal; Red!" With a loud roar, that shook the heavens, space was rend and shattered, leaving an empty void behind him. Soon a divine energy that looked like Profound Energy yet wasnt began to flood the space, and soon, a singularity was formed, like a massive black hole, only this time, it was red.

Soon matter and energy began to be repelled by the huge black hole, as it exploded with a loud bang.

.....

" Cough cough." Yun Canghai lied on the ground with a dejected expression as he labeled what he had just witnessed as the scariest thing he had ever seen. A mortal being able to wield the power of space to the extent of creating distortions. It was unheard of.

After a while, Ah Diao's figure was slowly revealed. His red hair was slightly disheveled, yet he was completely unharmed.

" Clap, clap, clap." Hearing a series of claps, he turned around only to see Damien seated on a rock eating some fruits and enjoying the fight.

" Love what you've done to the place. It looks even better than before." He sarcastically spoke as he ate what looked like a juicy peach.

" And you Ah Diao didn't I tell you not to use that move until you fully mastered it? You did more damage to yourself than to the enemy. If not for you ungodly regenerative ability you would've died." Damien sighed as he walked towards him as he stood there with a shocked expression.

" Other than that, you did well brother." Damien patted his shoulder and smiled at him, which caused his heart to be filled with warmth. Unbeknownst to him, tears had started to pool in his eyes. His whole life he had been seen as a monster and shunned by society, yet this god like figure in his eyes called him a brother. It meant the world to him.

" Are those tears? Sigh. You're embarrassing me you know that? What happened to the stern Ah Diao. I miss him a lot." Damien spoke with a sigh as he tried to ruin the wholesome moment.

" When did you get here master?" Wiping his tears he asked. " When the old jerk over there began to cause the ruckus." Damien facepalmed. At least he had been able to breakthrough.

" Yun Canghai. You dare attack one of my people. Should I say you're mad or brave." Damien pocketed as he walked towards an injured Yun Canghai.

" I will not be your slave like those two!!" He roared out in pride. " I never said be my slave, we had a deal and you've broken one of my terms. You deserve death!" Damien coldly glanced at him with his purple eyes. Yun Canghai was forcefully brought to his knees.

" Bang!!" With a loud explosion, his body burst apart into a fog of blood, and the remaining power from Damien's eyes, decimated the Scarlet Dragon Mountain range, destroying all the mountains and leveling all the hills.

Before his demise, the only thing Yun Canghai thought was that, Ah Diao as right. Damien could kill him with a thought.

" But since you have not fulfilled your end of the bargain, I'm letting you off for now. " With a snap of his finger, time seemed to reverse, before the bloody fog and scattered pile of meat began to combine back into a human figure.

" The next time you do anything stupid, it will result in your permanent ...demise" Damien coldly spoke and turned around.

" We leave tomorrow." He added and vanished from sight.

Yun Canghai was stunned on the spot and couldn't move. He was clearly dead, yet he was alive. " Is — he a God?!" He uttered slowly, before collapsing in surprise.

A/N: Hope you like the chapter. Thanks for your support. Peace.