Chapter 580 - 359: Twin Gouyu Break the Saint Tier

Chapter 580: Chapter 359: Twin Gouyu Break the Saint Tier

The air in the Lava Tunnel deep within Mount Fuji was thick with the stench of sulfur. Two one-hundred-foot-tall Saint Tier Exotic Beasts lay prostrate at Li Xiang’s feet. To his left, the Blazing Earth Core Python’s scales shimmered with a molten gold luster; as it flicked its tongue, magma dripped to the ground. To his right, the Profound Ice Crystal Soul Beast’s body looked as if it were carved from Ice Crystal, its hexagonal pupils refracting a bone-chilling, spectral light. The tens of thousands of Exotic Beasts below Saint Tier under their command shrieked outside the base, shaking the mountain walls so violently that cherry blossoms showered down.

These were two Saint Tier Exotic Beasts that Li Xiang had hand-picked and newly subdued for Chiba Yuki. He had used Beast Taming: Azure Qilin Guide to forge a Soul Contract with them, ordering them to guard Mount Fuji and protect Chiba Yuki and her daughters.

Not long ago, he and Chiba Yuki had engaged in Dual Cultivation, allowing her to reach the Tier Twenty-second Realm. As she had just broken through, her Realm was unstable, so she had entered seclusion to consolidate it.

Li Xiang, meanwhile, was training the two Saint Tier Spirit Beasts, imparting more knowledge to them on how to faithfully perform their duties and protect the base.

Japan had been in chaos ever since one of its large islands had sunk. Exotic Beasts ran rampant, and of the more than fifty original Underground Cities, only thirty-odd now remained.

However, Chiba Yuki’s base was relatively small, with few personnel, and their own combat strength was high, so they had yet to suffer any major attacks. But Li Xiang had already subdued Spirit Beasts to stand guard for Erin, and he couldn’t show favoritism. So he had come here to station two Exotic Beast armies as well.

Chiba Yuki’s base was built like a hidden paradise—no, a hidden paradise of cherry blossoms. Transplanted cherry trees filled the mountainside base, and most had successfully taken root. Those that didn’t were dug up and replaced with new saplings.

Chiba Asatsuyu approached, her bare feet treading on a carpet of fallen cherry blossoms. Her fiery-red furisode kimono fluttered under her Spiritual Pressure. She had tied her black hair into a high ponytail, the tips highlighted with flame-colored streaks. The Red Sun Gouyu adorned her snow-white neck, and her bare calves glowed with a coral-colored halo amidst the surging Spiritual Power. To her right, Chiba Yukigiri wore her hair in a waist-length hime cut. Her snow-white Hunting Kimono was adorned with subtle patterns of Ice Ridges, and her eyelashes, coated in a fine layer of frost, trembled slightly. Her cold, jade-like fingertips were unconsciously twisting the tassel of the Xuan Yin Gouyu at her waist.

"Godfather, we’ve reached the peak of Tier Eighteen! Aren’t we incredible?"

"Incredible!" Li Xiang praised, giving them a thumbs-up. The Twin Gouyu were indeed exceptionally talented. Especially after the Apocalypse began and the Extraordinary Particles grew dense, they no longer needed him to provide Spiritual Medicine. They had reached Tier Eighteen through their own efforts and could now attempt to break through to the Saint Realm.

Hearing Li Xiang’s praise, the Twin Gouyu beamed and said in unison, "Godfather, we want to break through to the Saint Tier. Will you protect us while we do it?"

Li Xiang nodded. "Then let’s begin."

He waved his hand, dismissing the two Spirit Beasts. As if a great weight had been lifted, they scurried away in a panic.

The Twin Gouyu then sat down cross-legged, one on his left and one on his right. They began to cultivate in earnest, preparing to break through.

At first, everything went smoothly. But as they were about to break through to the Saint Tier, they suddenly encountered a dangerous situation. Because they were "interconnected" and had "shared senses," their energies fell out of balance.

This was precisely why they had sought Li Xiang’s help and asked him to protect them.

Li Xiang knew their situation like the back of his hand. He had helped them suppress their powers more than once as they were growing up. He had an Earth Attribute physique, whose nature was to support and stabilize, much like the earth itself. The Spiritual Power within the Twin Gouyu—one ice, one fire—originated from the ultimate yin and ultimate yang energies deep within the Earth Veins. Li Xiang’s Earth Attribute acted as the perfect Yin-Yang Medium between the two girls, allowing him to regulate their rampaging Spiritual Power.

"’Godfather’s hand... it’s so hot,’" Yukigiri murmured softly. Li Xiang’s palm, pressed against her back, was glowing with golden light. The collars of their kimonos slipped down half an inch, revealing shoulder blades as smooth as white jade. Molten veins became visible beneath Asatsuyu’s skin, while crystalline frost patterns formed along Yukigiri’s spine. The moment Li Xiang’s Spiritual Power poured into them, the Ice and Fire Spiritual Power collided violently within their bodies, shattering their three layers of under-kimonos. The falling fragments of silk vaporized into mist before they even touched the ground.

Asatsuyu suddenly turned and grabbed Li Xiang’s wrist, the Cinnabar mole at the corner of her eye glowing brightly. "Mama said that during Dual Cultivation, our Spiritual Power is supposed to spiral together~" she cooed. She guided Li Xiang’s hand to her heart, and the Red Sun Gouyu erupted with a red light like a solar prominence. Biting her lower lip, Yukigiri pressed her forehead against the nape of Li Xiang’s neck. A cold current surged from her Xuan Yin Gouyu and crept up his spine, forming patterns of frost on his clothes.

The Earth Core Lake suddenly boiled like a furnace, then instantly froze into a mirror-like surface. Their three reflections shattered and reformed amidst the intertwining ice and fire. Asatsuyu’s flame-colored hair ribbon transformed into a flowing, fiery Golden Crow, while Yukigiri’s Ice Crystal hairpin burst into a swarm of Profound Nether Butterflies. When Li Xiang’s Dragon Ridge erupted with a brilliant golden light, the lake’s surface exploded with a magnificent radiance. Boiling crimson waves and shattered Ice Crystals coalesced in the air to form a Tai Chi Totem, enveloping the girls’ soft moans in a vortex of Spiritual Power.

"’Godfather’s Dragon Ridge... is it devouring our source essence?’" Yukigiri gasped, clutching at a floating piece of Ice Silk. But she only saw Asatsuyu smile and press her red lips to Li Xiang’s ear. "It’s resonance~"

With a flick of her snow-white foot, Asatsuyu kicked up a wave, and the entire lake instantly transformed into a gilded vortex.

The Ice Lotus blooming from Yukigiri’s fingertips and the pulsing Flame Core in Asatsuyu’s palm simultaneously entered Li Xiang’s body. The two streams of Ice and Fire Spiritual Power converged within him...

...

A night of boundless passion.

After this period of accumulation, further stimulated by the combined power of the Twin Gouyu, Li Xiang’s Cultivation rose to another level. He advanced all the way to the twenty-seventh rank.

When he had consolidated his Cultivation and opened his eyes, he saw Asatsuyu using molten gold foil to paint a Twin Lotus on Yukigiri’s collarbone. The latter shyly swatted her sister’s hand away. "Last night, Godfather promised he would balance the Spiritual Power, but he definitely favored you more..."

"But the balance point can shift, you know~" Asatsuyu licked her fingertips and leaped out of the water, the hem of her soaked kimono revealing a leg garter that shimmered with a golden glow. "Hey, Godfather, next time we break through to the Divine Tier..."

Li Xiang draped his black outer robe over the two girls. From a distant mountain peak, the shriek of the Blazing Earth Core Python echoed. Asatsuyu chuckled, toying with her newly awakened Saint Tier Great Inscription, Blazing Celestial Robe. "I suppose it’s time to feed our new pets," she said.

Yukigiri had also broken through to the Saint Tier. The Saint Tier Great Inscription, Profound Nether Ice Soul, materialized at her fingertip. She lowered her gaze and tied the corner of Li Xiang’s robe into a lover’s knot, where Ice Crystal and flame blended together perfectly.

...

Li Xiang arrived on the North American Continent. Passing through Los Santos, he suppressed his aura, used Earth Escape to enter the city, and disguised himself to gather some information.

The second wave of the Beast Tide was sweeping across the globe, and Los Santos was also being frequently attacked by Exotic Beast Armies. Because of this, Su Xuanji and the others had postponed their plan to deal with Li Xiang.

After all, they were nothing like Li Xiang, who could travel freely and rapidly across the globe.

The distance from Los Santos to Underground Dungeon 03 was immense. Even traveling at Mach 1 in a straight line with no delays, the flight would take over ten hours. Moreover, this was their first time on Earth, and they were completely unfamiliar with their surroundings. Without navigation, the journey would take even longer. If they left, this Underground City would most likely be overrun by Exotic Beasts, and they would lose the base they had worked so hard to establish.

Li Xiang didn’t do anything to alert the enemy and quickly departed. To him, they were a trivial nuisance. The only reason he was leaving them be for now was to find out the coordinates of their home world.

And as long as Los Santos had an internet connection, it would remain under Jiang Cai’Er’s surveillance. These outsiders had only a superficial understanding of Earth’s technology and were completely unaware that they were exposed to Jiang Cai’Er’s watch every single day.

Li Xiang then went to support Yaki Toto’s base, helping him repel three waves of attacks from Exotic Beast Armies. Just as he had in Japan, he also subdued two Saint Tier Exotic Beasts, ordering them to lead their packs and guard the area around Yaki Toto’s base.

Although Yaki Toto’s people were a primitive tribe, after the Apocalypse began, Li Xiang had run underground fiber optic cables to their location and installed electronic equipment, including cameras.

Many members of the tribe, especially the young and able-bodied, had long since learned to use the internet. However, under Yaki Toto’s supervision, they diligently practiced their Breathing Technique and Body Techniques day and night, not allowing themselves to become addicted to games or short-form videos.

Using the convenient holographic network, Yaki Toto video chatted with his son and daughter, who lived in Underground Dungeon 03, almost every day to keep up with their lives.

Yaki Toto’s son, Tupak Kualakan, was now six years old and in the first grade, while his daughter, Yaxi Sacha, was four and in preschool.

Li Xiang’s two sons, Li Yuchen (nickname Yiyi) and Li Zezao (nickname Yangyang), were a bit older than Tupak Kualakan and were now in the second grade. The three boys all attended the same elementary school: the Li Family Village Experimental Elementary School, which was also the First Elementary School of City No. 03.

Just from its name, one might mistake the Li Family Village Experimental Elementary School for a rural school, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. It was the best elementary school in all of City No. 03 and also the seat of the city’s power.

The teachers there were almost all master’s and doctoral graduates from prestigious universities, including many top students from Tsinghua and Peking University. The Breathing Technique instructors were all Extraordinary Beings of Tier Six or higher.

Even though it was the Apocalypse, admission to this elementary school was still highly competitive, and many people couldn’t get in no matter how hard they tried.

On a daily basis, Li Yuchen and Li Zezao took good care of Tupak Kualakan.

As for Li Xiang’s daughter, she was not yet two years old and hadn’t started preschool. However, Jiang Cai’Er had personally taken charge, recruited staff, and opened a private early education center just for her.

But having just their daughter attend wouldn’t work, so they opened enrollment to several nearby residential communities, recruiting local children to be her classmates.

When the nearby residents heard that the boss behind the center was Jiang Cai’Er, they all scrambled to sign up. A whopping three hundred-plus eligible children applied, far exceeding the planned eighty-student capacity. In the end, with a wave of her hand, Jiang Cai’Er accepted them all, dividing them into twelve classes.

Six of the classes were named after plants—Maple Class, Dandelion Class, Bauhinia Class, Hyacinth Class, and so on—while the other six were named after animals, like Starfish Class, Dolphin Class, Jellyfish Class, and Penguin Class.

Yao Yao had once been curious why Yaki Toto’s children had different surnames. She wondered if he’d had them with two different women, with each child taking its mother’s surname.

Li Xiang explained that wasn’t the case. Yaki Toto had only one wife, and the two children shared the same mother and father. It was just that the naming conventions in the primitive rainforests of South America differed from those of the outside world. Surnames weren’t fixed to the father’s or mother’s line but were influenced by various factors, such as religion, history, and traditional culture.

Although they didn’t have written histories, they had murals and customs passed down through generations. This was also a form of history, albeit an uncodified one.

The same was true of their religion. They were generally believers, worshiping various nature spirits and gods.

The name Tupak Kualakan represented thunder and a fierce beast: the Thunder God of the Andes Mountains and the Sacred Jaguar. Yaxi Sacha’s name, on the other hand, represented moonlight and the dense forest, alluding to the Moon goddess (legend said her tears formed the tributaries of the Amazon River). The names combined mythology with local natural features, in keeping with their tribal traditions.

Yao Yao also found herself daydreaming about what she would name her own children in the future, but the time wasn’t right yet, and she was still unable to have any.

Although Yao Yao had several hundred Clones, only her original body could get pregnant; the Clones themselves were incapable of reproduction. This was a source of some regret for her. Otherwise, she would have loved to use several Clones to get pregnant at once, giving birth to seven or eight—or even dozens—of children at the same time. That would have been a truly spectacular sight.

As for the postpartum recovery period and taking care of the babies, she had Clones for that. She wouldn’t even need anyone else’s help.

Zhao Xueqing and Lei Xiaohui would privately shoot her down, saying, "Stop dreaming. You can’t even have one right now."