Meanwhile, Chen Fei, upon realizing that the King of Gilded Toads had given up the chase, still pushed himself to escape for another several dozen, nearly a hundred miles. Only then did he finally relax and breathe a sigh of relief. Afterward, he found an inconspicuous, low-lying cave on a mountain, hastily set up a few shoddy formations at the entrance, and went inside, sprawling on the ground and gasping for air.
"Not bad. Your first getaway in the Cultivation World was a resounding success. How does it feel?" Just then, Zhen Jingkong's teasing chuckle echoed from within the sea of consciousness.
However, embedded deep within that laughter was a hint of amazement that even he himself didn't seem to notice... Because even for him, Zhen Jingkong, back in his day, it would have been impossible to achieve something like this against a Beast at the Peak of the Second Level Middle Stage with that Cultivation Level. No! It would have been utterly impossible to escape its clutches. But now? Not only had Chen Fei escaped, but he also seemed to have gotten away with only minor injuries. Wasn't that shocking enough? It had to be said, this was both frightening and outrageous! It was truly unbelievable.
"How does it feel? Terrible, of course! Just wait until I break through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer. I swear I'm going to twist that toad's head off," Chen Fei muttered through gritted teeth, wincing in pain. While it was true he had no serious issues, he was covered in numerous, unavoidable superficial wounds that burned with a fiery ache.
"If you manage to break through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, that Toad Demon truly wouldn't be your match," Zhen Jingkong said, nodding. His tone suddenly grew serious. "Now that you've successfully passed through the Four Layer Thunder Tribulation Spiritual Qi Baptism, have you noticed any changes in your body?"
A Four Layer Thunder Tribulation Spiritual Qi Baptism... even with his vast knowledge, it was something he had never heard of. It had to be a product of mythical proportions. Naturally, Zhen Jingkong was curious what benefits and changes would come from successfully passing it.
"Changes? Let me check..." At Zhen Jingkong's reminder, Chen Fei finally focused, immediately sending his Spiritual Energy inward to inspect his body.
However, just a moment later, he opened his eyes with a strange expression. "It seems... there are no changes?" he asked hesitantly.
"No changes?" Hearing this, even Zhen Jingkong was momentarily stunned. He had already imagined many possible answers Chen Fei might give, but he had never expected this. No changes at all!? But that was the Four Layer Thunder Tribulation Spiritual Qi Baptism! How could that be?
"Perhaps there are some changes that I just haven't discovered yet..." Chen Fei added, still uncertain. He also found it hard to believe. After such a grand spectacle, he couldn't find a single change in his body. Wouldn't anyone else find that strange? It's really, really strange.
THUMP. THUMP.
Just then, a tremor came from outside the cave. It wasn't strong, but it was perceptible, and it was getting closer, as if some massive creature was crawling toward the entrance.
Chen Fei's eyes narrowed. Lifting his head slightly, he locked gazes with a pair of cruel, ferocious eyes. It was a wolf demon at the Second Level Early Stage.
"Human, who are you? Why are you in my cave?" The wolf demon was as large as a bull, with pitch-black fur, a wide mouth, and sharp fangs. The only distinguishing feature was a single strand of pale silver hair behind its erect ears, which swirled with a faint grey glow. The sight of it made both Chen Fei, and Zhen Jingkong in his sea of consciousness, startle slightly.
"A Silver Grey Wolf?" Chen Fei muttered.
"You... what did you say!? How do you know..."
The instant Chen Fei's murmur fell, the giant wolf's eyes constricted. Its cruel pupils fixed on him as its Demon Qi churned, and it let out a menacing growl. It was as if a secret that no outsider should ever know had just been exposed. However, upon seeing this, Chen Fei merely curled his lip.
"It's hardly a secret. Your clan's traits are so obvious. Do you take me for a blind man?" he said calmly, pointing at the tuft of pale silver fur behind the giant wolf's ears.
Members of the Silver Grey Wolf Clan could reach the level of a Third-Level Demonic Beast upon maturity. This was just the baseline, a level that every single member of the clan could achieve, which was more than enough to prove how extraordinary the clan was.
Hearing this, the giant wolf's gaze faltered. After a long silence, it stared coldly at Chen Fei and said, "Human, this is my cave, and you are not welcome here. Leave at once, or don't blame me for being impolite!"
His words were clearly not a joke. The moment he finished speaking, an astonishingly icy Demon Qi seeped from his body and locked onto Chen Fei. He was clearly ready to attack at the first sign of disagreement.
Seeing this, a cold light flashed in Chen Fei's eyes as he finally spoke slowly, "It seems that on this entire mountain, your cave is the only one with a Spirit Vein passing directly beneath it, making the Spiritual Energy here slightly denser."
"A Spirit Vein? So what!" the giant wolf snarled, baring its ferocious fangs, its eyes still cold.
"I'm injured. I need a place with dense Spiritual Energy to enter seclusion and heal. Within dozens of miles, it seems this is the most suitable place," Chen Fei stated calmly, tilting his head up.
"ROAR!"
"Human, are you mocking me? What do your injuries have to do with me? Get the hell out of here now, or don't blame me for crushing your skull with my paw!" the giant wolf finally roared, unable to restrain itself any longer. It threw its head back and howled, its cruel pupils fixed coldly on Chen Fei.
BOOM!
The last word of its warning had barely left its mouth when everything suddenly changed. WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! Thirty-Six Paths of Sanyang True Fire Sword Qi blazed into existence, traversing the sky and instantly encircling the giant wolf, whose eyes now showed utter shock. An invisible pressure bore down on the giant wolf, making it feel shackled and exceedingly difficult to even move.
Clearly, even though the Silver Grey Wolf was an inherently unique species with exceptional potential, its Cultivation Level was still too low. It was merely at the Second Level Early Stage, a world apart from the King of Gilded Toads. Therefore, even though Chen Fei was injured, subduing it was still a simple matter.
"A moment ago, I was negotiating. Now... if you don't want to die, get to the side and stay there. I don't have the patience to play games with you," Chen Fei said, his voice laced with ice.
Hearing this, the giant wolf's body shuddered violently. It knew now that the human before it was a terrifying expert, far beyond its league.
With this realization, it dared not say another word or act rashly. Its gaze flickered with fear as it fell silent, obediently shrinking into a corner of the cave.
Seeing this, Chen Fei gave it one last glance before ignoring it and closing his eyes to begin healing.