Chapter 293 - 288: Harvest, Authority
A full hour passed before Su Yu finally recovered from his weakness.
He got up and stretched his limbs. Sensing no abnormalities in his body, he let out a great sigh of relief.
’The power of this Supernatural Ability is truly beyond imagination, and I feel like I didn’t even unleash its full potential!’
’Activating this Supernatural Ability uses my Qi and Blood as its foundation. But from what I understand, when Martial Arts Grandmasters activate their Supernatural Abilities, they rely on more than just Qi and Blood!’
Su Yu’s eyes glinted with deep thought.
’Right now, this move, Silent Annihilation, is amplified based on my foundational strength! As I grow stronger in the future, the power of this Supernatural Ability is bound to increase!’
At this thought, Su Yu felt a surge of anticipation. If he broke through to the Muscle Forging Realm, the Supernatural Ability would probably become even stronger!
’But even at its current level, its power easily transcends a major realm! Anyone in the Muscle Forging Realm wouldn’t be able to block this strike at all! And judging by the aftershock, I might even be able to kill someone in the Profound Bone Realm!’
As Su Yu walked forward, he summoned his panel to check it.
[Supernatural Ability]: Silent Annihilation (Tier 1) (Unlock Progress: 33%) (Sealed: 719h:01m:16s)
[Note]: The Host’s physical foundation is too weak. Forcibly using the Supernatural Ability will cause the body to break down. To shorten the cooldown period, please increase your personal strength.
Su Yu stopped in his tracks and couldn’t help but draw a sharp breath.
He watched as the timer ticked down:
719h:01m:15s
719h:01m:14s
"..."
’719 hours... that’s almost 30 days. Which means I can’t use this Supernatural Ability for the next month...’
’That’s quite a long time... sigh...’
Sighing, Su Yu closed the panel, suppressing his disappointment. The sheer power of the Supernatural Ability had been exhilarating. With a strike like that, what force in the Outer City of Black Stone City could possibly be his match?
’It’s only a month. I can wait. It’s not like the ability is gone for good.’
After reassuring himself, Su Yu’s composure returned, and his gaze fell upon what was left of Hong Lei’s body—only half a corpse.
’Time to help the leader of the Water Snake Gang... ’fix’ his appearance.’
He walked over to the corpse, bent down, and expertly untied a waterproof leather satchel from Hong Lei’s waist. He dumped everything inside onto the nearby grass.
CLINK.
Besides a few blood-stained gold ingots and some hidden weapons and poisons, there was only an exquisite White Jade Porcelain Bottle.
’So little... What a shame. Looks like Hong Lei was in a hurry to escape and didn’t bring much with him.’
He casually pulled the wooden stopper from the White Jade Porcelain Bottle.
Instantly, a rich, exotic fragrance wafted from the bottle’s opening.
Su Yu’s spirits lifted. He carefully poured the pills into his palm.
There were only three in total. The pills were a pure golden-yellow, and a faint golden light seemed to flow across their surface, as if they were alive.
’What kind of pills are these?’ Su Yu wondered, examining them closely. ’They don’t look like the typical pills that just boost Qi and Blood with limited potency. This medicinal energy is gentle yet profound. They must have a special effect.’
Since he couldn’t immediately determine the pills’ effects, Su Yu simply waved his hand. His spiritual sense wrapped around the three pills, the gold ingots, and the other items on the ground, sweeping them all into his storage ring.
Unsatisfied with just the satchel, Su Yu continued to carefully search Hong Lei’s mutilated corpse.
When his hand reached the chest area, Su Yu’s brow furrowed slightly.
There was originally a thick stack of silver notes tucked there, but unfortunately, under the power of Silent Annihilation, this priceless stack of silver notes, along with half of Hong Lei’s body, had been turned into fine, grayish-white ash. Now, only a small, charred remnant was left.
’All ruined... The destructive power of this Supernatural Ability is just too terrifying. Anything it even grazes, living or not, is turned to dust and smoke.’
Su Yu sighed, feeling a pang of regret. Just as he was about to pull his hand back, his fingertips brushed against something hard.
’Huh? That’s not right! How was this thing not destroyed along with everything else by the Supernatural Ability?’
Su Yu’s heart skipped a beat as he quickly pulled the hard object from the tattered remains of Hong Lei’s robes.
By the faint starlight, Su Yu got a clear look at the object in his palm.
It was a jade statue, smaller than his palm, carved in the likeness of the Vacuum Mother Statue worshipped by the Black Lotus Sect!
This was the very thing that Luo Gui had sacrificed himself to deliver!
The moment Su Yu saw the Divine Statue clearly, his heart skipped a beat.
’What in the world is this Divine Statue? I’ve hit the jackpot!’
Although Su Yu still didn’t know exactly what this small Divine Statue was, the ink-wash characters that suddenly appeared in his mind made him realize the terrifying value of the item in his hand!
[Divine Authority detected. Can be seized. Seize?]
[Divine Blood detected. Absorb?]
[Option 1: Absorb to further increase the unlock progress of the Supernatural Ability, Silent Annihilation.]
[Option 2: Absorb to unlock a new Supernatural Ability.]
’Divine Authority!’
Seeing those two words, Su Yu felt his scalp tingle. He completely ignored the message about absorbing Divine Blood.
’Authority... This must be a conceptual-level power! Is my Peerless Talent so overbearing that it can forcibly seize the authority of a divine being?’
Su Yu sucked in a sharp breath of the cold, misty air.
He instinctively looked up, glancing around.
Under the starlight, the dim Black Iron Forest was a mass of shifting shadows. The wind howled through the treetops, stirring a sense of unease in his heart.
Seizing a god’s authority... it certainly sounded dangerous.
’But with my Peerless Talent, what’s there to worry about? Gaining greater power is the path I must take! Seize it for me!’
Without further hesitation, Su Yu silently gave the command in his mind.
[Analyzing Divine Authority... Seizing...]
[Successfully obtained Divine Authority: Thunder! (Integrity: 0.01%)]
As the text appeared before his eyes, Su Yu snapped his eyes shut.
An ancient scene seemed to appear in his Sea of Consciousness, from an era countless ages ago.
He found himself inhabiting the body of a terrifying god-fiend, tens of thousands of feet tall and wreathed in world-ending lightning!
This god-fiend was faceless. A colossal halo of lightning, woven from pure black and white thunder, floated behind it, rotating slowly.
Like the ruler of this world, he strolled through an endless pool of lightning that roiled with an aura of destruction, high above the Nine Heavens.
The god-fiend took a casual step, and the violent magma of lightning surged and erupted like a tsunami. A single, insignificant wisp of thunderous energy accidentally splashed out of the pool, falling toward the vast mortal world below.
It instantly transformed into a world-ending thunderbolt that tore across the sky and spanned the entire world!
RUMBLE!
A deafening thunderclap echoed through the Nine Heavens. In the face of this absolute law of destruction, all living beings trembled and submitted like ants!
「The Northern Border, Liangzhou Prefecture.」
A moment ago, the sky above the vast lands of Liangzhou was dotted with stars, a bright moon hanging high in the heavens.
Then, in the next instant, without any warning!
A terrifying pressure that felt as if it could crush the heavens suddenly descended!
Countless thunderclouds, black as ink and heavy as stone, instantly blotted out the entire sky above Liangzhou!
The city seemed on the verge of being crushed under the weight of the black clouds!
Within the span of a few breaths, the entire region of Liangzhou was plunged into an endless, apocalyptic darkness.
Countless common people woke from their sleep, staring in despair at the ink-black sky outside their windows. As for the lofty Martial Arts experts, they were so oppressed by this heavenly might, which felt as if it could crush their very souls, that they could barely breathe. Even the Qi and Blood in their bodies stagnated.
Deep within the nine layers of clouds, countless thick, silver-white bolts of furious lightning, like silver dragons, writhed, twisted, and collided madly within the black clouds, brewing a terrifying wrath sufficient to destroy the world.
A breath later.
BOOM!
A heaven-shaking thunderclap exploded, causing the entire northern border of the Great Xia to tremble violently!
The pent-up, furious thunder, like the roar of a god, boomed and echoed endlessly across the skies of Liangzhou with world-destroying power, refusing to fade!
On the top floor of the Celestial Watchtower, the tallest structure in Liangzhou Prefecture, which pierced the very clouds.
An old man with white hair and a white beard, dressed in a moon-white robe, stood with his hands clasped behind his back at the edge of a wind-swept terrace.
His world-weary eyes stared quietly at the terrifying, apocalyptic thunderclouds in the sky. His withered lips moved slightly as he muttered to himself:
"The wrath of a god is the wrath of the heavens... The poor souls of this world are about to face another great calamity."
Behind the old man stood a mysterious woman dressed in a pure white gauze dress.
The woman had a sacred aura, like a celestial maiden from the nine heavens, completely unstained by the mortal world. It made one yearn to see her face.
But if anyone were to look at her, they would discover that no matter the angle, her face seemed to be covered by a blurry veil, making it impossible to see her features clearly.
"Lord Celestial Observer."
The woman in white bowed slightly, her voice ethereal and indifferent, without a trace of emotion. "Such a terrifying celestial phenomenon... Has the Holy Mother sent down a divine decree?"
The old man maintained his posture, hands clasped behind his back, his expression unreadable.
His gaze turned, deep and profound, toward Qing Province. His voice was calm as he said, "A god is enraged. The source is in Qing Province."
"Relay my orders... Command the Annihilation Heavenly King and the Saintess of Mercy to depart for Qing Province in ten days. They are to go personally!"
"Yes, Lord Celestial Observer."