Chapter 222: The Undying Underworld Emperor III (Thanks to the great author Chou.Suyan for the certification, gift value +5)

A month later
Chen Tianyi knew.
He wasn't a genius.
After a month of cultivation, his progress was as slow as a snail's pace.
This puzzled Chen Tianyi greatly.
Why could he break through a level in a month before, but now it might take a year to advance even a single level?
"That crow hasn't come for a long time either."
Chen Tianyi felt he was probably sick.
He actually missed the crow he hated so much.
The life of guarding the spirit rice garden was simply too monotonous.
Suddenly... Chen Tianyi saw a black figure flying in from afar.
Familiar, yet strange.
"It's that crow, he's back!"
Chen Tianyi's expression was filled with joy.
But soon, he realized that the crow... didn't seem to be an ordinary crow. Its feathers had undergone an unknown change, like black steel embedded in its body.
"That crow, it's become a demon beast?"
Chen Tianyi was shocked and astonished.
A month ago, that crow was just an ordinary crow without any cultivation; now it had become a demon beast.
Even the weakest demon beast... the difference was immense. The demon race placed great importance on bloodlines; without demon beast blood, transforming from a mortal beast into a demon beast was virtually impossible, unless one possessed an extraordinary stroke of luck!
This time, the crow didn't eat the spirit rice.
Chen Tianyi didn't attack the crow either.
Chen Tianyi watched the crow circle overhead once, then fly off in a certain direction.
"Is it telling me to follow it? Could this crow have gained sentience?"
Chen Tianyi was shocked. He hesitated for a moment, then quickly followed, keeping pace with the crow.
Qinglan Sect
The gatekeeper disciples saw Chen Tianyi chasing after another crow.
"Could it be... Chen Tianyi has a particular fondness for crows?"
The gatekeeper disciple wondered, watching Chen Tianyi's departing figure with a strange expression.
...
"This kid isn't stupid."
Su Chen led Chen Tianyi to a spot in the forest.
For a month, Su Chen had been quietly developing his cultivation, finally breaking through to the third level of the Awakening Spirit Realm.
However, this cultivation speed was simply too slow...
Even though Su Chen considered his cultivation speed too slow, it was still far faster than the most talented cultivators of the Qinglan Sect.
Simply hunting and eating low-level demonic beasts was no longer enough to satisfy Su Chen's appetite. He began searching for precious spiritual items. In his previous life, he was a Great Emperor and one of the world's top alchemists; finding spiritual items was naturally no challenge for Su Chen.
However, obtaining spiritual treasures became the biggest problem. All rare and precious materials were guarded by powerful demonic beasts. In this life, he was just an ordinary crow, lacking a powerful bloodline and having not even cultivated basic Yuan Qi. Many of his abilities were unusable, and the thought of crossing a major realm to fight powerful demonic beasts was nothing short of a pipe dream.
Su Chen was troubled. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He remembered Chen Tianyi, the human he had interacted with most in this life.
Su Chen looked at the dazed child standing there, helplessly stretched out one wing, and pointed in a certain direction.
Chen Tianyi looked in the direction Su Chen pointed. There was a tall thicket of bushes. He pushed through the bushes and found a waterfall cascading down a cliff. At the other end of the waterfall stood a tall tree, and atop the tree were six vibrant fruits.
Chen Tianyi immediately recognized the six fruits.
Blood Source Fruits! These were fruits formed from the essence and blood of powerful demonic beasts after their death. Consuming them was highly beneficial to cultivators; some high-grade Blood Source Fruits could even improve one's aptitude.
However, Chen Tianyi couldn't even imagine the level of Blood Source Fruits he was talking about. The Blood Source Fruits before him were only first-grade, but even so, one was incredibly valuable, equivalent to several years' income. Using them for cultivation would be extremely beneficial, saving him months of arduous training!
Chen Tianyi exclaimed excitedly, "Crow...no, Brother Crow, from now on you're my brother, Chen Tianyi's brother! You can eat as much spirit rice as you want from the Spirit Rice Garden!"
Su Chen looked disdainful and pointed to three fruits on the tree.
The meaning was clear.
"Don't try to fool me with spirit rice, kid! No way!"
Three first-tier Blood Source Fruits—that was Su Chen's real goal.
Chen Tianyi grimaced. Blood Source Fruits were incredibly valuable, far surpassing spirit rice.
After a moment's hesitation, he firmly stated, "Since Brother Crow wants three Blood Source Fruits, then you can't continue eating spirit rice after taking them."
Su Chen cawed twice in disdain.
Chen Tianyi's expression turned serious. He knew that this spiritual treasure hadn't been harvested yet, meaning there must be a guardian beast nearby—a powerful one at that!
"Although I, Chen Tianyi, am a lazy bum, I'm still a lazy bum with dreams!"
Chen Tianyi shouted, drawing a large, powerful sword and charging forward.
Su Chen looked at the sword Chen Tianyi had pulled out, somewhat surprised.
"This kid actually has some background."
The sword in Chen Tianyi's hand was extraordinary; it was a Xuan-level weapon.
Seemingly sensing someone's attempt to seize his guardian spirit, a massive figure swept through the grass from the other side, revealing a giant serpent as thick as an adult's arm, coiled around its body.
This was also a Spirit Gathering Realm demon beast!
However, Chen Tianyi was not afraid. He discovered that his entire body was burning with energy; he saw hope for breaking through and no longer being just an ordinary disciple of the Chen family!
Chen Tianyi fought without hesitation.
He fiercely battled the giant serpent.
His fearless demeanor earned a slight admiration from Su Chen.
One can lack talent.
But one cannot lack a martial heart.
Chen Tianyi painstakingly slayed the serpent demon, then collapsed to the ground, laughing.
He only wanted to live a life of leisure and idleness.
He never expected to be able to slay a giant serpent all by himself today!
Unfortunately, there was no one by his side to share this moment.
Only a crow.
"Brother Crow, did you see that? I slew a giant snake! It was a demonic snake at the Spirit Gathering Realm!"
Chen Tianyi couldn't help but share his joy with a crow.
Su Chen glanced at Chen Tianyi out of the corner of his eye, ignored him, flew directly to a tree, swallowed three Blood Source Fruits in quick succession, and flew away.
He needed to find a place to properly digest them.
Watching the crow fly away,
Chen Tianyi smiled wryly.
"That's true... a crow might have gained some spirituality through some fortuitous encounter, but how could it possibly understand human feelings?"
Chen Tianyi picked the remaining three Blood Source Fruits.
This was a tremendous opportunity.
With these Blood Source Fruits, he could quickly break through to the third or even fourth level of the Spirit Gathering Realm!
...
Two weeks later
Su Chen opened his eyes on a precipice.
"Seventh level of Spirit Awakening..."
Su Chen's physical strength at this moment was at the seventh level of Spirit Awakening!
The cultivation speed of the demon race is inherently weaker than that of the human race, especially for demons with weaker bloodlines. For an ordinary crow, becoming a demon beast in its lifetime is already a stroke of luck. Su Chen, however, in just two and a half months, went from a mortal beast to a demon beast at the seventh level of Spirit Awakening. This cultivation speed is even faster than that of many human geniuses!
"It's time to find the next opportunity..."
ps: Three chapters today, four more tomorrow to continue clearing out the King of Gifts