Book 1. Chapter 41 - 45 Divine Throne of Primordial Blood

Chapter 41: Return (2)

A banquet was being held at the Su Residence's Fragrant Orchid Pavilion.

The banquet's host, Yan Wushuang, was holding an soft, plump male child in her embrace. She was traveling among the crowd, occasionally sending her regards to the guests.

"Wushuang is very grateful for the great Qin Clan's honoring us with your presence."

"So it's Elder Zhang! You also came to offer birthday congratulations to my son!"

"For the Wang Clan's leader to personally come, how could I possibly accept this."

Occasionally, there would also be a few nicknames that she had taken with her from the brothel that would slip out.

"Oh, Uncle Rong, you also came..."

Everyone voluntarily chose to be ignorant of this.

Today was the first birthday of Su Cheng'an's third son, Zhou Hao. Su Cheng'an had specifically arranged a banquet for his beloved son and had invited many guests. All of the guests who were on good terms with Su Cheng'an had come to congratulate him.

The entire Su palace was filled with a joyful atmosphere because of this.

Of course, there were also those who were unhappy.

"Su Cheng'an!"

The piercing yell shattered the atmosphere of celebration.

Tracing the yell to its origin, Tang Hongrui was standing on the waterside pavilion.

Her face was filled with a murderous intent.

She stomped over with large strides. Yan Wushuang came to greet her. "Why has sister come?"

"Get the hell out of my way!" Tang Hongrui pushed aside that woman, then arrived in front of Su Cheng'an and began to curse, "Whether our son is alive is still unknown. However, you don't care at all; instead, you still have the heart to come here singing and dancing! Do you still have a conscience?"

Su Cheng'an froze, not answering.

In fact, the banquet was not his idea. However, Wushuang had constantly nagged him about it, even saying things like "Could it be that if something happens to Su Chen, everyone under the Heavens needs to wear a mournful expression, forbidden to even smile?" She even said that he had been suppressed by Tang Hongrui and that he wasn't allowed to have his own opinion.

Su Cheng'an had already fought many times with Tang Hongrui. With this additional push, he had caved in and decided to put on this banquest. However, in his heart he also knew that he had let her down. Thus, he did not dare to make a retort.

At this moment, Yan Wushuang had also stepped forwards, "Sister's words are... if Su Chen is a son, is my Hao'er not a son anymore? Su Chen has gone to the Scarlet Mountain Range, and we are also worried for his survival. However, we can't just not do anything, can we? Are we not allowed to live our own lives for every day that he doesn't return?"

Su Keji also walked forwards and said, "Aunt Yan's words are reasonable. Today is Hao'er's first birthday, and is also his most important birthday. If we were to miss it because of Su Chen, perhaps there would be no way of ever getting it back. I trust that Su Chen's soul in the Yellow Springs1 would not have any rest either.

Tang Hongrui angrily replied, "Su Keji, what nonsense are you spouting? Whose soul is in the Yellow Springs? My son is not dead!"

Su Keji shook his head. "He has not returned after being two days late, and he is also a blind person. I think that it's quite likely."

However, his expression seemed to be filled with happiness.

His conflict with Su Chen was very well-known. However, unlike Yan Wushuang, he did not have to depend on Su Cheng'an and didn't need to give him any face. Thus, at this moment his joy in someone else's misfortune was very obvious. The corner of his lips even revealed a cynical sneer. He just did not vocalize his happiness.

Tang Hongrui was so angry that she rushed towards Su Keji, but she was restrained by Su Cheng'an, who said with a steely expression, "Have you finished?"

"Cheng'an?" Tang Hongrui looked at her husband, dazed. "He said our son is dead."

Su Cheng'an pushed Tang Hongrui aside. "He didn't even care for his own life, so why do you care so much?"

Upon hearing these words, Tang Hongrui was completely shaken.

She didn't dare to believe that her own husband would actually say such words. She looked at Su Cheng'an again in that moment, feeling like she had never recognized him before. She then said, her voice trembling, "Before, you... weren't like this."

Su Cheng'an, however, acted like he hadn't heard.

From time to time, the surrounding guests would discuss things. Some were sighing, some were mocking and ridiculing, and some were not concerned at all by it.

"Why do you think the Su Clan's Fourth Young Master didn't just stay obediently in his clan? What was he doing if not courting death?"

"That's right. He was just a blind person, yet he still dared to the Scarlet Mountain Range."

"And he was only in the Body Tempering Realm."

"Yes, what a pity. After all, he was still a genius."

"But only a former genius. How many tens or hundreds of geniuses like him can be found in Northface City every year?"

"That's right, that's right."

Upon hearing these words, Tang Hongrui had completely given up on these people.

At this time, a voice suddenly sounded out.

"Who says I'm dead?"

As soon as the voice sounded, everyone throats seemed to have been clamped. They fell silent simultaneously.

Su Cheng'an, Su Keji, Yan Wushuang, the entire Su Clan, and all the guests arduously turned their heads, looking behind them.

A youth was standing there. If it wasn't Su Chen, who else could it be?

"Su Chen?" Su Keji's eyes were spitting flames.

"You actually didn't die!" Yan Wushuang clenched her fists so tightly that her fingernails almost pierced her skin.

"Chen'er!" Tang Hongrui let out an extremely excited yell, rushing towards her own son.

Only Su Cheng'an's feelings were the most complex.

Upon seeing his son who had returned, he discovered that he did not feel happy at all. Rather, a pressure that he hadn't felt in a long time had landed on his heart.

However, in the end, he did not say anything, instead only knitting his brows together.

At the same time, Tang Hongrui fiercely hugged her own son, touching his face as if worried that he were only a dream. "Chen'er, why have you only returned now?"

"The mountain road was rugged and I am blind. My direction was uncertain, and I still spent a lot of energy to walk out of the mountain range," Su Chen gently smiled. "To arrive only two days late is already pretty good. I am lucky that I didn't head in the wrong direction and run into a beast region."

"So you do know that it was dangerous?" Tang Hongrui poked her son's forehead, but her eyes began to fill with tears of joy.

"It's my fault for making mother worried about me," Su Chen respectfully replied.

"Let's leave this place. Just ignore these people." Since her son had returned, Tang Hongrui was no longer in the mood to remain here. She grabbed Su Chen's hand and was about to leave.

"There's no rush," Su Chen said. "When I arrived, I heard that today was actually my third younger brother's first birthday. No matter what, I am still an older brother, and I should still congratulate little brother Hao. I just returned from the mountain range, and I brought back some special items. They aren't particularly valuable, but they are not things that you can easily find on the streets, so why not give them to third younger brother as a congratulatory gift."

"Chen'er, you..." Tang Hongrui was stunned.

Yan Wushuang was celebrating the birthday of her own child while your survival was still unknown. This was not putting on a ceremony; they were basically celebrating Su Chen's death! Now that you have returned, you actually want to give them presents?

"This is proper etiquette," Su Chen said with a smile. As he walked forwards, he pulled out a jade pearl from his body and said, "This is the Jade Bone Demon's bone from between its eyebrows. It is smooth and lustrous and is good for nourishing Origin Qi. Wearing it as an accessory for a long period of time can strengthen one's body. I obtained it by accident, so I might as well give it to little brother Hao as a gift."

In the end, Yan Wushuang was still someone who was very skilled in reading people. She had seen many worldly scenes before. Seeing Su Chen behave in this way, a smile had already reached her face as she said,

"It seems like Fourth Young Master is able to see the big picture and understands the principles of etiquette," she said as she smilingly received the pearl.

Su Chen said, "Would Fourth Aunt be willing to let me hold little brother for a moment?"

Yan Wushuang sank into silence for a moment before finally agreeing.

Su Chen received the child, then hugged it in his bosom, pinching its cheeks as he said, "Although I cannot see, I can tell that he is quite pudgy. Look at how his little legs kick; they are quite strong."

Yan Wushuang smiled as she was about to follow-up. However, Su Chen's smile suddenly vanished as he continued, "Such a healthy, lively baby! Fourth Aunt, do you think I would be able to kill it in an instant?"

1. The Yellow Springs is the underworld in Chinese culture.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Page 2

Chapter 42: Openly Offending

Upon hearing these words, Su Cheng'an and Su Keji's expression immediately changed.

Su Cheng'an was just about to make a move when Su Chen clasped his hand around the child's throat and lifted it up in the air. "If anyone moves, I will drop him."

Everyone stopped moving at the same time.

"MY CHILD!" Yan Wushuang began to yell hysterically.

She wanted to seize him back, but Su Chen's other hand wrapped around Yan Wushuang's throat as he said, "You should probably worry about yourself first."

One of his feet flew into the air, landing on Yan Wushuang's knee. Yan Wushuang plopped to the ground on her knees.

"SU CHEN!" Su Cheng'an furiously yelled, "You unfilial son, what are you trying to do!? Why have you not released your younger brother and your aunt yet?"

"What am I trying to do?" Su Chen laughed," Naturally, I am settling my accounts with Fourth Aunt."

Su Cheng'an said, "I can understand why you are angry since we had a banquet for his birthday before your survival was known, but..."

"It has nothing to do with that," Su Chen interrupted.

"What?" Su Cheng'an was dazed. "Then why is it?"

"If you want to know, you need to ask her what she's done," Su Chen pointed at Yan Wushuang with his chin.

Yan Wushuang's heart jumped. "I didn't do anything..."

Smack!

Yan Wushuang had been viciously thrown to the ground by Su Chen. Next, Su Chen placed his foot on Yan Wushuang's peerlessly enchanting face.

Upon seeing that stunningly beautiful countenance change shape under Su Chen's foot, everyone's heart ached.

Su Chen said, "She tried to harm me twice. The second time she even sent people to try and sell a Beast Drawing Medicine to me as a Beast Repellant Medicine. Do you dare to say that this had nothing to do with you?"

Yan Wushuang was instantly paralyzed.

Everyone simultaneously broke out in conversation.

None of them were idiots.

A Beast Drawing Medicine being sold off as a Beast Repellant Medicine, coupled with Su Chen's return from the Scarlet Mountain Range? Everyone was very clear what this implied.

Even Su Cheng'an opened his eyes wide and glanced at Yan Wushuang. "Wushuang, you did this?"

Yan Wushuang knew that the situation was quickly getting out of control, so she began to yell loudly, "I'm being wrongly accused, Husband! This matter has nothing to do with me. I don't know of any Beast Drawing or Beast Repellant Medicine. As a woman, how could I understand these things?"

"You're still trying to deny it?" Su Chen coldly snorted. "You actually learned your lesson from last time, choosing to find a middleman to take care of the matter and hiding your own identity. But did you really think that I wouldn't be able to find out? That middleman was Old Demon Li, wasn't it?"

Upon hearing this words, a large portion of Yan Wushuang's psychological defenses crumbled.

Old Demon Li was someone that one of her subordinates had found for her. In addition, their identities had been completely kept secret. She had not expected that would Su Chen had still find out about it.

However, she continued to stubbornly insist, "I do not know what you are saying."

"You're still stubbornly denying it? To tell you the truth, I have already captured Old Demon Li. He has already confessed that it was your people who gave the items to him, telling him to sell them to my True Jade Pavilion and harm me."

"Even if it were one of my people, that doesn't mean that it's me," Yan Wushuang grabbed onto the opportunity and yelled, "These subordinates of mine might be trying to frame me. How can you say that it has something to do with me?"

"But if it weren't for your instructions, who would use such precious items to run a scam?"

"What do you mean, precious items? They were only three fakes...."

Yan Wushuang suddenly stopped speaking. Her face paled to a deathly white.

"Keep talking, why don't you keep talking? Why did you stop talking?" Su Chen laughed sarcastically, "I also want to know how Fourth Aunt knew that there were a total of three objects? Previously, I only mentioned that Beast Drawing Medicine had been sold to me as Beast Repellant Medicine."

Yan Wushuang trembled, unable to speak.

Everyone present also understood. They sharply inhaled a breath of cold air.

Tang Hongrui's entire body began to tremble when she heard this. "You slut, you deserve to die!"

She was about to rush over to Yan Wushuang and tear her face to pieces.

However, she was blocked by Su Chen.

"Chen'er? Why are you blocking me?" Tang Hongrui didn't understand.

"I still think it's best for Father to resolve this matter."

Wasn't allowing Su Cheng'an to resolve the matter equivalent to letting Yan Wushuang go? Tang Hongrui wanted to cry out, but upon seeing Su Chen's determined expression, she was unwilling to oppose her son's suggestion. She could only nod her head, then viciously glare at Su Cheng'an.

Su Cheng'an hesitated for a moment, then said, "Let's resolve the matter later."

"I want to know what the consequences will be right now," Su Chen replied.

Upon hearing his son disobey his suggestion, the flames of anger once again surged in Su Cheng'an's heart. "Chen'er, there's so many guests here. Have you not caused enough of a commotion yet?"

"There's nothing I can do. You can't let me hold onto this little guy forever, can you?" Su Chen shook the infant in his hand. The little guy was very uncomfortable being held in the air. He finally awoke from his sleep and began to cry loudly.

Su Cheng'an sucked in a breath of cold air. He thought for a moment, then said, "Yan Wushuang schemed to harm someone, and this despicable behavior should be punished. However, she is still Hao'er's mother, and the child is still young and cannot leave his mother. In addition, you ended up fine, so I decree that she will be stripped of her status as an aunt and demoted to a maidservant."

"Su Cheng'an!" Tang Hongrui was beyond furious. "This woman wanted to kill your son! You don't kill her, and you don't even chase her out of the palace. You actually still want to keep her by your side – what are you trying to do?"

"Enough!" Su Cheng'an angrily said, "Isn't Su Chen totally fine? Yan Wushuang has already been punished. Su Chen, shouldn't you release them now?"

Upon seeing Su Cheng'an's behavior, Su Chen was completely disappointed.

The reason why he wanted Su Cheng'an to punish Yan Wushuang was because he had wanted to give Su Cheng'an one last opportunity.

He wanted to see if his own father still had any feeling for him.

He wanted to know how his father would react when he discovered that Yan Wushuang had tried to kill him.

He had thought of many possibilities, but he had never expected that Su Cheng'an would go so far to protect Yan Wushuang.

He wasn't even willing to apply the palace's rules to her.

Demoted to a maidservant...

Did he think he was lying to an idiot?

Even without her identity, as long as he still liked her and pampered her, Yan Wushuang would still be able to continue to ascend.

The person who had schemed to kill him was only given such a sentence?

Of course, Su Chen could argue for what was right.

But he did not want to argue.

Because he had completely given up on Su Cheng'an.

Thus, he had decided to uphold this verdict.

That way, whenever he saw Yan Wushuang in the future, he would remind himself that he should not harbor any hope for Su Cheng'an.

Thus, he did not fight back.

He nodded his head and said, "I can release them, but I have one request."

"Speak."

"From today onwards, the True Jade Pavilion, the Great Blessing Tower, the Yang Returning Store, and the Red Forest will all be given to me to control. They will not be considered the Su Clan's property anymore."

The four businesses that Su Chen had listed were the ones that his mother had brought when she had gotten engaged.

Today, Su Chen wanted to take them all back.

Upon hearing Su Chen's request, Su Cheng'an had seemingly realized something.

He thought for a moment, then looked at all of the surrounding guests. Finally, he nodded his head and nodded, "Okay!"

Su Chen at this moment finally handed the child over. A maidservant had already received it, then quickly ran aside.

"You still aren't releasing your Aunt?" Su Cheng'an said, his eyebrows knitted, seeing that Yan Wushuang was still pressed underneath his foot.

"Aunt?" The corner of Su Chen's mouth quirked upwards in a smile. "You seem to have forgotten that she had just been demoted to a maidservant. The person that I am stepping on right now is not some Aunt."

Su Cheng'an froze.

Su Chen lifted his foot, picking up Yan Wushuang again.

He said, "Congratulations, Fourth Maidservant, you're free to go. But before I release you, I have a small present I want to give you."

"What... What is..." Yan Wushuang did not understand.

Su Chen's face revealed a trace of a wicked smile.

Upon seeing this smile, Su Cheng'an seemed to realize something. He blurted, "NO!"

Su Chen had already grabbed Yan Wushuang's neck and slammed her into a large round table with hundreds of dragon-like patterns carved into it.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Page 3

Chapter 43: Night Demon

Bang!

Wood chips exploded everywhere.

Everyone gasped, thoroughly shocked, as Yan Wushuang's face suddenly became intimately familiar with the wooden table. The extremely hard wooden table was instantly destroyed. The strength that Su Chen had used could be imagined.

The face that had successfully defeated the table had changed shape and swelled. A peerlessly beautiful face had become swollen like a pig's head. It was truly too horrible to look at.

"Su Chen!" When Su Cheng'an saw Yan Wushuang lying on the ground, unable to even moan, his heart ached and his anger flared.

Su Chen retrieved his hand, then said, "That was the interest."

He turned around and left.

Seeing Su Chen's back, Su Cheng'an was so angry that his entire body trembled, but in the end he only said one sentence. "Unfilial son!"

On that day, everyone there witnessed firsthand Su Chen's tyrannical, bloodthirsty, and vicious nature. This scene left fear and apprehension in the hearts of many regarding this terrifying young master.

However, what no one could predict was that not long in the future this slight apprehension would become a headache or even absolute dread.

After teaching Yan Wushuang a lesson, Su Chen naturally went home with his mother and his uncle, Su Feihu. Under his mother's concerned and repeated questioning, he finally told her some of the events that had occurred in the Scarlet Mountain Range.

Of course, Su Chen could not tell her that he had gone out to battle Vicious Beasts. He only said that as soon as he had entered the Mountain Range, a kind-hearted person had acted as his guide, and lead him to a relatively safe cave where he stayed. In the a hundred days, he had only encountered two common Wild Beasts, which had all been easily taken care of by him. Even so, Tang Hongrui trembled with fear when she heard this, as if her son was too weak to even stand up to a house cat.

However, Su Feihu looked at Su Chen thoughtfully, his eyes filled with suspicion.

He could tell that Su Chen was hiding something, but in the end he could not figure out what that something was.

He stayed with his mother, conversing with her until she went to bed. Su Chen then returned, alone, to the Dustsift Courtyard.

Upon entering his room, Su Chen told Jianxin and the others to leave before saying to the shadow in the room, "Come out."

The black-clothed man's figure rippled into view. "This time I made sure to completely suppress my heartbeat and my breathing. How did you discover me?"

His tone was one of complete confusion.

Su Chen laughed to himself. Shouldn't discovering you be easy? You were just standing there unmoving and I saw you immediately.

However, he said, "Your plan depended on my survival. In addition, I also borrowed four of your Origin Tools. Since I have returned, how could you not come by to take them back? I just carelessly called out assuming you were here."

"So you just made a wild guess." The black-clothed person let out a sigh of relief, which also contained some frustration.

Su Chen found the other party to be somewhat adorably foolish. He said with some amusement, "How long have you waited here? You haven't eaten yet, have you? I brought some things for you to eat."

He carelessly brought out a box of pastries. These were given to him by his mother before he left. Su Chen did not like to eat them, so he gave them all to the black-clothed person.

The black-clothed person was not wary at all. It seemed as if he was genuinely hungry, as he actually began to eat. He ate a thousand-layer pastry in a few bites. His eyes began to gleam as he nodded his head. "Very tasty!"

He ate the entire box of pastries in one breath.

Su Chen was not in a hurry. Once the other party had finished eating, he said, "The reason why I could come back safely was entirely due to these four Origin Tools. Since I have returned, I should return them to their rightful owner."

As he spoke, he handed over the sack on his back to the black-clothed person.

The black-clothed person received the sack and opened it to take a look. Apart from the medicinal pills, the Cracked Soul Magic Pearls, and the Origin Stones, which had not been returned, the four Origin Tools were all there. The Origin Stones, etc. were originally given to Su Chen as consumables, and the black-clothed person had never intended to ask for them back. Thus, he nodded and said, "Since everything has been taken care of, then I will bid farewell for now."

"Wait a moment," Su Chen said.

"What do you want?" The black-clothed person gazed at him, his eyes becoming vigilant.

Damn, why weren't you so vigilant when you were eating? Just a simple "wait a moment" is enough to make you nervous?

Su Chen silently cursed, but he said, "I just want to know what I should call you. After all, we have met a few times already. I can't just keep on calling you 'black-clothed person', can I?"

"This... we might not have any opportunities to meet again in the future, will we?" the black-clothed person hesitated for a moment before saying.

"That might not be true. I still have something that I would like your help with," Su Chen said.

"Su Chen, don't be too audacious!" the black-clothed person immediately said.

"Can you wait for me to finish, please?" Su Chen said, "I just want a mid-tier Origin Energy Absorption cultivation technique and two Origin Skills. You don't need to give them to me for free; I will buy them."

"You've reached the Qi Drawing Realm?" The black-clothed person was dazed.

Su Chen shook his head. "Not yet. However, I received a lot of benefits from my journey into the Scarlet Mountain Range. You also know that I was originally in the ninth layer of Body Tempering when I left. After being tempered for a hundred days in the Scarlet Mountain Range, I have already entered the late stages of the ninth layer of Body Tempering. Perhaps not long in the future I will be charging into the Qi Drawing Realm. Maybe even in these coming months."

Su Chen did not intend on hiding his progress. All he needed to do was push back the success that he had already had to sometime in the future, and everything would logically fall into place.

Basic Origin Energy Absorption techniques were only suitable for Body Tempering cultivators. Upon entering the Qi Drawing Realm, one would need a more powerful magic technique that had a correspondingly stronger absorption ability.

Absorption techniques were split into preliminary, mid, high, and top-tier, but there was no limit on cultivation base. That was to say that after reaching the Qi Drawing Realm, one could cultivate any absorption technique. The only limitation was that higher-tier absorption techniques were harder to obtain.

Su Chen did not dare to hope for an absorption technique that was too high-tier. Thus, in the end he only asked for a mid-tier one.

The black-clothed man believed him. "So it was like this. However, doesn't your Su Clan have absorption techniques and Origin Skills? You are a disciple of the Su Clan. As long as you have reached the boundary, you should be able to request them for free."

Su Chen asked, "You already know what has happened since I returned right?"

The black-clothed person nodded. "You have a very awful father."

"Thus, the first reason is that I don't want to use any more of the Su Clan's resources in the future."

"So it was like this." The black-clothed man began to understand Su Chen's intention. He was slowly but surely drawing a line between himself and the Su Clan.

In reality, Su Chen's actions were drawing a clear dividing line between him and the Su Clan, but at the same time this was a way of protecting the Su Clan.

After all, he was essentially blackmailing a large organization. No one could anticipate what would happen in the future.

Drawing this dividing line was in and of itself a protection for the Su Clan.

Su Chen's grudge with the Su clan ran deep, but he would personally deal with those whom he hated. He would not use someone else's hand to accomplish it.

If he were to bring disaster upon the Su Clan because of his own actions, the nature of that would be completely different. No matter how unfairly the Su Clan treated him, it had not progressed to the point where he was willing to exterminate them.

"Then what's the second reason?" The black-clothed person was not stupid, just a bit foolish. With one there would definitely be a second.

"I'm not satisfied with the Su Clan's magic techniques," Su Chen said straightforwardly. "The Su Clan is just a newly rich household. It was established single-handedly by my grandfather, but because of this its foundation is not deep enough and is actually too shallow for my needs. It's the most meager of the four households. When discussing magic techniques or Origin Skills, the number that we have is pitiful. For your organization to be able to carelessly pull out four Origin Tools means that its strength must be many times that of the Su Clan. I believe that they definitely have better magic techniques. When cultivating, it's best to choose one quality product over ten crappy ones."

In actuality, there was a third reason, which was that Su Chen wanted to conceal the fact that he had already entered the Qi Drawing Realm. The Su Clan's magic techniques and Origin Skills could only be taken for free when one had reached the boundary of Body Tempering. He did not intend on revealing his true strength, so he could only seek outside help. However, he did not need to tell the black-clothed man this point.

Upon hearing Su Chen's words, the black-clothed person was very satisfied. "Of course, if you want to talk about outstanding cultivation techniques, even the Hidden Dragon Library might not be comparable to our Eternal..."

The black-clothed person hurriedly put on the brakes, narrowly avoiding speaking out the name of his organization.

Su Chen pretended not to notice, "That is to say that it is possible to make this transaction?"

"I need to go back and ask," the black-clothed person postured. However, based on the other party's tone, there shouldn't be any difficulties with this.

"Now can you tell me your name?"

"You can call me... Night Demon."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Page 4

Chapter 44: Buying Origin Skills

Night Demon appeared again the next night.

Perhaps it was because he had come many times and was familiar with Su Chen, but when he came in his first words were, "I'm hungry. Are there any pastries left over from yesterday?"

"...Wait a moment, I'll go get some for you."

Su Chen returned after a brief moment. He saw that Night Demon was sitting cross-legged on his bed, playing around with a stone. Every time the stone tumbled, it would let out the cry of a phoenix.

Su Chen said, "That's the Ocean Sound Stone. If you like it you can have it."

"I know," Night Demon replied disdainfully. "Ocean Sound Stones only exist three thousand feet below sea level. Only the Ocean Race can harvest them. They are one of the materials necessary to make a Recording Box."

"You actually know of the Ocean Race and Recording Boxes?" Su Chen purposefully acted surprised.

Night Demon grabbed the pastries from him. "Don't look down on others so much, will you? Everyone knows the six Great Races."

"Six?" Su Chen this time was genuinely surprised. "I only know of five: the Human Race, the Feathered Race, the Ocean Race, the Spirit Race, and the Ferocious Race. What's the last one?"

"The Arcana Race! The Arcana Race that is stronger than the other five Great Races Combined," Night Demon responded.

"But they are already extinct and have disappeared into the ocean of history," Su Chen replied.

"Who said?" Night Demon opened his eyes wide, "The Arcana Race never went extinct. They have just gone into hibernation."

"Is that so," Su Chen indifferently replied.

As if he realized that he had said too much, Night Demon did not continue talking about that topic. He waved his hand, and a pile of pearls appeared on the bed. Each one emitted a faint light, making them look like small balls of light.

Spatial Ring?

Su Chen's eyes shined for a moment, but he pretended as if he hadn't noticed anything.

"These are the things that you wanted. Take your time and pick them."

"I cannot see."

"No worries, pick any one of them, and what you need to know will automatically enter your mind. However, there is an Origin seal on it, so what you can see now is just the summary. Once you decide that you want it, the Origin seal will opened.

As Night Demon spoke, he began to eat the pastries.

Su Chen picked up one of the pearls. Indeed, words began to appear in his mind.

Some kind of Soul Mirage technique?

It allowed one to project some kind of image directly onto another person's perception.

This was quite a powerful skill. Only special Origin Tool masters could use such a technique to create this kind of pearl.

The cultivation method that allowed one to use this skill was likely similarly outstanding.

At the moment, Su Chen had picked up a pretty good mid-tier Absorption Technique called the "Amoluo Breathing Technique". It utilized strong breathing to increase the rate of Origin Energy entering the body. It was much stronger than many other similar absorption techniques of the same tier. However, it had a flaw; it required many environmental conditions, such as a place with plentiful air, at a high elevation, and the temperature had to be very hot. If one was confined in a closed space, it would become hard to breathe, and one's strength would also decrease. In severe cases, one could suffocate.

Su Chen could not accept such a great weakness, so he put down the pearl of light and picked up another one.

This pearl contained an Origin Skill called the "Thunder Drawing Technique". This Origin Skill could not create thunder, but it could attract thunder. Thus, someone would first need to be around thunder and lightning, before they could use the Thunder Drawing Technique to attack. However, because the technique only conducted the thunder, the strength of that thunder could surpass the limits of one's cultivation base and Origin Power strength. It was particularly powerful on days with thunderstorms, but otherwise it was not very good.

Su Chen switched to another one, picking up an Origin Skill called "Black Fog Technique". It could release a large amount of black fog, limiting one's vision in the fog. It was quite a useful Origin Skill. However, this skill required that the user possess a bloodline of a dark-attribute beast in order to use it.

He switched again.

"Brilliance Technique" added bright light to one's weapon. It could disperse any darkness but could also directly harm and kill dark- or filth-attribute beings. However, because of this, one would become a very obvious target.

"Windspeed Technique" would increase one's or someone else's speed.

"Fireball Technique" created a large fireball to attack the opponent.

"Shadow Body Technique" allowed one's shadow to temporarily become alive and become a doppelganger, helping one in battle. It required the bloodline of a mirage-attribute beast to use.

...

Wait a moment.

As Su Chen continued to look at them one by one, the corner of his mouth pulled up into an unnoticeable smile.

Interesting!

Su Chen discovered that many of the Origin Skills that Night Demon had given him contained traces of ancient Arcana techniques.

The Arcana techniques were Origin Skills that the Arcana Race had created.

The greatest difference between current Origin Skills and Arcana techniques was that their manifestations were very different.

Ancient Arcana techniques were primarily used to harm others from long-distance, and the Arcana Race's Origin Skills primarily focused on long-range attacks. In addition, very few focused on improving one's foundation.

One could also say that an Arcana technique only contained an attack, and had no other nuance to it.

The fireball was very representative of an ancient Arcana technique. It created a fireball and launched it at its attacker. The skill did not care about the outcome of that attack.

So how were current Origin Skills different?

Current Origin Skills mainly focused on overall compatibility, combining long-, mid-, and short-range, as well as how one's strength was use.

For instance, the Dazzling Sun Sword Technique that Su Feihu cultivated was a complete sword technique. It had a total of nine stances, so it was also called the Dazzling Sun Nine Styles. This was also an Origin Skill, but it had a total of nine basic sword paths and hundreds of combinations and usage styles.

From the standpoint of power or distance, a large fireball was much better than one sword strike. However, if one also factored in Origin Energy consumption, the Dazzling Sun Sword Technique, which could strike with nine different stances and many variations was much stronger and more flexible than a single fireball technique.

The reason for these differences was that these techniques were created in different periods with different races, that had different needs and strengths.

In ancient times, Origin Energy was relatively abundant. The Arcana Race had very powerful minds, but their bodies were weak. Thus, they did not pursue close-quarter combat, and they had no need of being conservative of their Origin Energy usage.

In the modern era, Origin Energy was much rarer than before, and cultivating also became more difficult. The focus became more centered on how to fully utilize the strength of an Origin Skill. Adding on the fact that humans had stronger physique than the Arcana Race, newer cultivation and battle methods surpassed the previous system that the Arcana Race had used.

Even so, a few ancient Origin Skills had still been passed down.

One had to admit that although these Origin Skills were not appropriate given the time period, they were still quite useful in certain circumstances. Though they had been rendered somewhat useless by time, they had yet to completely back out of the limelight. However, they were no longer the main focus.

Forty percent of what Night Demon had brought him were ancient Arcana techniques, forty percent were current Origin Skills, and the remaining twenty percent were new Origin Skills that had been produced after the two had combined. They were also the most valuable out of all the Origin Skills and were called Improved Arcana Technique.

For there to be so many ancient Arcana techniques and Improved Arcana techniques, as well as considering what Night Demon had spoken earlier, Su Chen's understanding of this organization continued to deepen.

Of course, he didn't say anything outwardly. Instead, he quietly chose the Origin Skills that he needed.

"Did you finish picking?" Night Demon asked, his voice muffled. He was still locked in battle with the pastries, so his mouth was filled with food.

"Pretty much." Su Chen picked out three balls of light.

Night Demon looked at them for a moment, then mumbled, "Flowing Wind Body Technique, Soul Eye, and Dartfrog Absorption Technique... So it was actually these three."

The Flowing Wind Body Technique was of the rarely-seen passive Origin Skill category. It didn't have any explosive qualities to it, but once it was mastered, it would improve one's strength, speed, and reaction time, creating a holistic improvement. It was basically an Origin Skill that gave oneself certain attributes and was a kind of Improved Arcana Technique.

The reason why Su Chen selected this was because of the Black Streak Battle Blade.

As a grade eight Origin Tool this blade was too easy to use.

However, the high energy consumption rate made it so that he was unable to manifest the blade's full power. Even after entering the Qi Drawing Realm, he could only use the blood aura four times. This made Su Chen realize that strengthening his physical body was the best way to deal with this. With the Flowing Wind Body Technique, his physique would receive an additional bonus. Hopefully, this would allow him to use the battle blade a few more times. Of course, he could not tell Night Demon this, since Night Demon believed that Su Chen would not have any opportunity to use the Black Streak Battle Blade anymore. Only Su Chen knew that before long this Black Streak Battle Blade would once again land in his hands.

As for the Soul Eye, it was a soul-related pupil technique. It was also an Improved Arcana Technique. The user would have to stare at the opponent, then activate a soul attack. Firstly, Su Chen wanted to experiment with this technique and see if any special effects would occur when he used it, and secondly, he wanted to temper the strength of his soul. That way, in the future if he were to use the remaining Cracked Soul Magic Pearls, his ability to resist any injury to his soul would increase. At the same time, he wanted to see if cultivating this Soul Eye technique would allow his eyes to evolve once more. That way, he could accomplish many things all at once. Because of this, even blind people could learn and use the Soul Eye. However, whether or not this attack would land was an entirely different matter.

The reason Su Chen gave was that because he was blind, no one would expect him to have a pupil technique and no one would avoid looking him in the eyes. This would give him more opportunities. In addition, if he were to use this soul attack enough, perhaps it would stimulate his eyes.

This was a reasonable explanation.

But Night Demon believed that Su Chen was just greedy. Soul-type Origin Skills were very rarely seen and were difficult to obtain. Upon obtaining it, even if he couldn't use it, it could still be passed on.

The final technique, the Dartfrog Absorption Technique, was a very unique absorption technique. It was an ancient Arcana Technique that allowed one to assimilate Origin Energy not just through breathing but also through one's skin. The Dartfrog Absorption Technique was not a particularly high-tier absorption technique; it was actually a low-tier one. Although one could breathe through one's skin, its efficiency was not very high and did not have much of an advantage over other absorption techniques. Absorption techniques were needed for long-term cultivation, however; only absolute strength was the most important.

The reason why Su Chen picked this technique was very simple. Those dots of Origin Light were absorbed through the skin. Raising absorption through that medium would also increase his cultivation rate.

The techniques most suited for him were the best ones.

Of course, the reasons that Su Chen gave was that he was "Out of money, so I can only be frugal."

However, this was not entirely a lie. Two Origin Skills and an absorption technique costed Su Chen a thousand low-grade Origin Stones.

Su Chen didn't have so many Origin Stones on his own. He had used some from the four businesses that he had taken earlier.

Night Demon expressed dissatisfaction over the fact that he was willing to buy rare Origin Skills that would not be of particular use to him rather than buying a more practical mid-tier absorption technique.

"You're making a big mistake." Night Demon glanced at him with sympathy upon seeing that her advice was fruitless.

Su Chen replied, "Leave a way for me to contact you. That way, if there is a day that I truly regret it, I can at least find you to buy new ones."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Page 5

Chapter 45: Blind People are Not Easy to Push Around

In the following days, Su Chen had a new responsibility apart from going to the True Jade Pavilion to learn from Tang Zhen. Every day, he had to cultivate his new absorption technique and Origin Skills.

What's important to note is that absorption techniques and Origin Skills served different purposes and are cultivated differently.

Absorption techniques would increase one's cultivation base, increasing one's strength by assimilating more Origin Energy. What improved was one's holistic strength and Origin Energy levels.

Origin Skills were methods to use Origin Energy. What they honed was one's combat ability.

The two shared absolutely no common ground. That is to say, cultivating an Origin Skill did nothing to increase one's cultivation base.

The same could be said for producing Origin Stones.

Origin Stones were obtained by infusing one's Origin Energy into a special stone that could hold it. However, using Origin Energy to do so was not the same thing as cultivating and would not increase one's cultivation base. In addition, the pure Origin Energy in the body would accumulate impurities after it entered the Origin Stone. Thus, they could only be used to recover the Origin Energy that one used; they could not be used to increase one's cultivation base.

Thus, creating Origin Stones would only grant one riches, but did nothing to increase one's cultivation base.

If one viewed cultivation as a process of leveling up, then leveling up, combat prowess and riches were three horse carriages that were traveling parallel to one another. It was impossible to ride more than one at a time.

Of course, this didn't mean that one couldn't switch between them.

One could exchange Origin Stones for precious spirit herbs and medicine, which could be used to increase one's cultivation. Cultivating a powerful Origin Skill and using it to kill powerful Vicious Beasts could also grant one riches. Increasing one's cultivation base could similarly allow one's Origin Skills to become stronger and increase one's battle prowess.

The three could be considered to complement each other. As for which area to focus on and develop most, that depended on individual preference and selection.

Those who enjoyed doing business could infuse their Origin Energy to make Origin Stones as their capital. Those without entrepreneurial leanings and who didn't want to take risks could spend their time absorbing Origin Energy and steadily advance. Those who loved battle would cultivate their Origin Skills. Although their cultivation bases were similarly important, they did not have as immediate a result as cultivating an Original Skill.

Without question, Su Chen would pick the third route.

This was the most radical and dangerous route, but without question it was also the fastest way to gain strength and the most long-term focused route.

The path of an Origin Qi Scholar was a path of heroes in the first place. Only the strongest and bravest heroes could travel the farthest on this path.

As for Su Chen, he had an even simpler reason for choosing this path – the Origin Energy dots.

Only through battle could he utilize his ability to see Origin Energy lights.

Thus, for the most part, what Su Chen cultivated the most was the Flowing Wind Body Technique and the Soul Eye.

In only a month's time, Su Chen's Flowing Wind Body had reached the stage of small success.

His physical body had experienced a great increase in terms of strength. If he had the strength of ten horses at the ninth layer of Body Tempering, then once he had entered the Qi Drawing Realm, Su Chen had the strength of twenty horses. Now that he had cultivated the Flowing Wind Body Technique, in just a month of time Su Chen's strength had increased by another ten horses. His speed and reaction time had also significantly increased.

Comparatively, his cultivation of the Soul Eye was much slower.

After a month of cultivating, Su Chen had only formed a preliminary Origin Energy talisman. He had not yet gotten to setting up the Origin Energy pattern yet.

Origin Energy patterns were a special component of using Arcana techniques. Origin Qi Scholars had to condense an Origin Energy pattern before being able to release the corresponding Arcana technique. Every Arcana Origin Skill had a corresponding Origin Energy pattern. Even people who cultivated the same kind of Arcana technique might have small differences in their Origin Energy patterns.

In comparison, current Origin Skills did not require any Origin Energy patterns,; instead, it only required an Origin Energy talisman. During battle, one only had to activate this Origin Energy talisman to release the corresponding Origin Skill.

When compared to an Origin Energy pattern, an Origin Energy talisman was much more flexible, but the power they could produce was relatively lower.

In any case, ancient Arcana techniques mainly focused on long-range, explosive attacks. Current Origin Skills focused on adaptability, sustainability, and limiting Origin Energy waste.

Neither one was objectively superior to the other. It only depended on which one fit the situation. Current Origin Skills were better suited for the current environment, so ancient Arcana techniques slowly began to disappear.

However, the Improved Arcana technique that Su Chen had obtained was slightly different. It incorporated the benefits of ancient Arcana techniques and current Origin Skills. One had to construct both an Origin Energy talisman and an Origin Energy pattern, greatly enhancing both the flexibility and the strength of this Improved Arcana technique. However, the difficulty in learning them was extremely high, since one had to study not only the Origin Energy pattern but also the Origin Energy talisman.

The Flowing Wind Body Technique was not so bad. Passive Origin Skills were not very complicated, so they were relatively easier to cultivate. However, the Soul Eye was an exemplary model of combining the two routes.

After cultivating for a month, Su Chen could barely activate the Soul Eye. Every time he activated it, he had to spend lots of time and energy to do so. He was far from being able to use it as he wished. As for determining any additional effects that the Soul Eye would have on his own eyes, he had placed that to the side for now. It would require a certain level of understanding and experience of Origin Skills in the first place.

What truly made Su Chen excited, however, was his improvement in the Snaking Mist Steps.

One time, when he was practicing the Snaking Mist Steps, Su Chen unintentionally infused his Origin Energy into it. Unexpectedly, the speed of the Snaking Mist Steps drastically increased.

The Snaking Mist Steps was originally a kind of Origin Skill, but it could only be used to its full potential when one possessed Origin Energy. Otherwise, it could not have been considered one of the Gu Clan's three absolute techniques. His Origin Energy talisman had already been formed when he had been initially practicing it. However, it had gradually been awakened after he became an Origin Qi Scholar. However, techniques like the Su Clan's Flaming Tiger Fist could not establish a talisman while still in the Body Refinement stage. If he wanted that technique to become an Origin Skill, he would have to cultivate it.

This also meant that Su Chen had three Origin Skills. His strength had increased in leaps and bounds from how he was before.

Unfortunately, the level of his cultivation base basically had not changed.

A month and a half ago, Su Chen was in the first layer of the Qi Drawing Realm and had twelve Yellow Stars. A month and a half later, Su Chen was still in the first layer of the Qi Drawing Realm and still only had twelve Yellow Stars.

This was the outcome of focusing all one's efforts on cultivating Origin Skills.

However, Su Chen did not care. He had devised a plan long before this.

Today was a good day to execute it.

The sky was clear, and the sun was shining bright.

Su Chen returned from the True Jade Pavilion. Just as he got off his horse carriage, a footboy came to greet him, "Fourth Young Master has returned."

Ever since he had beaten Su Chen and crippled Mo Dayan, then further beaten Yan Wushuang, Su Chen's name had begun to flourish. At the very least, underlings no longer dared to provoke this Young Master.

Even if the other party was a "blind person", they were not someone that could carelessly be provoked.

Of course, those of the same status as him might not care.

Just as Su Chen had answered and was going to head through the door, someone else walked out of it, directly running into Su Chen.

It was Su Qian.

Perhaps there was something that he was rushing to do, but Su Qian's head was lowered as he was rushing somewhere. He didn't expect that he would actually crash headlong into Su Chen.

Originally, this matter wasn't really a big deal. However, Su Qian's expression sank. "Damned blind man, only knowing how to block the road."

Although he had inadvertently blurted it out, it was something that he had suppressed for many years in his heart. Thus, he didn't think very much about it when he spoke.

Perhaps even if he had thought about it, Su Qian may still have said this anyways.

Although Su Chen had beaten Su Qian before, Su Qian always believed that Su Chen had only been lucky. If they had another opportunity to exchange blows, he definitely would not lose.

It was this belief that made Su Qian believe that he was still the strongest among the Su Clan's third generation, even though Su Chen had painfully beaten Su Yue and crippled Mo Dayan.

Upon hearing Su Qian speak, Su Chen's eyebrows raised slightly. "What did you say?"

"I said 'you damned blind person, you're blocking my way. What, are you not satisfied?" Su Qian replied, his expression full of provocation.

So what if I call you a damned blind person, what can you do to me?

However, he silently retreated a few steps.

Su Chen acted as if he hadn't noticed. He thought for a moment, then said, "Although I received a small amount of benefit from my last trip to the Scarlet Mountain Range, I've always been a little regretful that I never obtained a Cloud Bat. You know that was the reason why I had chosen the Scarlet Punishment in the first place."

Hm?

What did he mean, saying this now?

Su Qian did not understand.

Su Chen had already spoken, "What I mean is that I want to go there again."

Su Chen's expression suddenly changed.

Su Qian retreated again.

But it was already too late.

In front of him, Su Chen suddenly morphed into a shadow. In an instant, he had closed the distance between him and Su Qian, directly slamming into Su Qian's bosom.

His left hand had already latched onto Su Qian's throat. Su Chen laughed darkly, "I've got you now."

Su Qian was extremely surprised. He was already being extremely careful, but why was it that no matter how he tried to evade it, he was still instantly grabbed?

In the next moment, Su Chen's Iron Fist had already been directed towards Su Qian.

Directly slamming into the bridge of Su Qian's nose.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!