Chapter 137 – Taming General Mammoth, Advancing to The Sixth Rank - Part 3
Li Yuan took a moment to reflect on the battle. The leap from seventh rank to sixth rank went far beyond raw power—speed, reaction time, the mysterious ancestral seal, and a doubled lifespan were all part of the package. And the gap was vast enough to be decisive.
If Li Yuan and General Mammoth had been on equal footing in terms of raw strength, his spear might never have so much as grazed the other man.
Sixth rank cultivators seemed to have eyes everywhere, granting them near-impossible levels of perception. And they could potentially recover from being sliced in half, thanks to their ancestral seals. It truly was a world of difference between sixth rank and seventh rank.
“Impressive,” Li Yuan said.
General Mammoth gave a bitter smile. “Not compared to you.”
Li Yuan nodded. “Your timing with that needle was excellent. Quite clever. You’re not hiding another one in your mouth, are you?”
General Mammoth felt very much like a mouse being toyed with by a cat. Faced with Li Yuan’s overwhelming power, he knew he had no chance; even trying to flee had proven pointless.
Bowing his head, he answered obediently, “You overestimate me, Mister Wood. It’s risky to keep a poisoned armor-piercing needle in one’s mouth. One slip, and I’d be the first to die.”
He hesitated, then added, “If you’ll spare me, I’m willing to serve you.”
Li Yuan studied him. “You’d swear an oath?”
“I can,” General Mammoth said. He paused. “But who really believes in oaths anymore?”
After a sigh, he went on, “I can’t return to the Central Plains; my only option is to remain here. Wouldn’t it be better if we allied together, two sixth rank experts forming a small power bloc on the frontier?