Hello, dear readers! Here's chapter 147! This chapter marks the end of Book 2. 147 chapters written... It sounds a bit crazy, but it's true. I hope you're still enjoying the story and that you will stay for the following book 3 and beyond. It is far from over, I can tell you as much!
Interestingly, whether it was a coincidence or fate, my 'project' I've been working on is finally ready. I've created a youtube channel, which will be a mix of audiobook and visual novel. Even if you're not interested in the visuals(they are nice too), the audio is guaranteed to be soothing. The story is obviously 'A Knight's Journey', but adapted to youtube's rules (No R18 for example). I also changed some dialogues slightly. Anyway, if you're interested, the first video will be out on April 11th at 6PM GMT+7. I will put the link to the channel below.
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Bye!
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Bright Star City, Bright Star Island, Flowing Stars Archipelago, Earth
Omniscient P.O.V.
As the young man started singing his silly tune, the last speck of Creation Energy Cloud was absorbed by his body, marking the end of Demian's heaven-shaking Tribulation.
As soon as everything ended, the young man was suddenly teleported back to the flying boat, where he was 'jumped on' by Bryn and Liya, who were still shaken from the deadly tribulation he had gone through, something that should have normally been a walk in the park for someone with his talent.
Well, they were not aware that both his Perks and the Chaos Soul Ring floating in his Soul Space were there to ensure his safety, though even if they did know it, it might not have changed much.
After all, emotions could make one behave strangely.
Feeling the two women's warm embrace, both his gaze and the smile gracing his lips turned gentle.
While glancing at everyone around him, his calm voice entered everyone's ears, bringing a smile to each of their faces.
"I'm back."
As those words left his lips, the image of a mischievous dark elf appeared in his mind, making him feel some restlessness.
Indeed, besides her absence, what concerned him was that as soon as his transformation ended, the Soul bond he shared with her had started to react strangely, hinting at a massive change experienced by the latter.
Thankfully, his senses told him it was something beneficial, most likely due to the feedback from his own breakthrough.
However, he still felt a hint of anxiety, wanting to be there in case something went wrong, no matter how abysmally low the chances of that happening were.
Thus, he nodded toward Mikhail Anrepov and said with a respectful tone.
"Uncle Mikhail, now that my Tribulation is over, I need some time to get used to my new strength. You're welcome to visit anytime, by the way."
With a knowing grin, Mikhail briefly glanced at the two women in the young man's arms before saying.
"Having reached Peak Third Level in one go, that's understandable. It would also do you good to take a few days off cultivation, maybe spending them with your lovers to unwind a little..."
Seeing Demian coughing slightly while avoiding his gaze, a few chuckles escaped Mikhail's lips before he added.
"No need to be shy about it. You're all very young and overflowing with energy, so it's actually normal for you to have more... Needs, shall we say."
Even with his thick skin, Demian still felt speechless for a brief moment before diverting the subject, his face only showing a neutral smile.
"Right. By the way, Uncle, can you also inform Aunt Eldoria of my breakthrough? It's not that I don't want to tell her myself, but since the two of you are so close, I figured it might be best to let you act as the messenger."
The smug expression on the older man's face froze for a brief moment before his lips twitched slightly, prompting a thought.
'Damn, lad! Are you threatening me with Eldoria? Fine! Consider yourself ruthless!'
Although he was cursing at the young man's pettiness inwardly, outwardly, his expression was nothing but kind as he replied.
"Very well, I will. Since you have things to do, I won't stop you any longer, then."
After bidding them goodbye, his figure swiftly vanished from the boat, as if he were running away from something, which swiftly brought an amused smile to the faces of everyone aboard.
After shaking his head slightly, Sergei patted his student's shoulder while saying in a proud tone.
"You did well."
Nodding his head slightly, the fake calm expression on Demian's face turned to a satisfied one as he replied with light banter.
"With all of you waiting for me, I couldn't afford to die. So, you all basically forced me to survive."
The light joke brought a few chuckles from the people around before Sergei said.
"Since we're done here, let's go home."
Nodding firmly, Demian echoed the other man's words.
"Yeah, it's time to go home!"
As the group was preparing to head back to the Serene River Mansion, Feng Ling was standing outside Seraphine's cultivation room in the Mikhailov's courtyard, previously known as the Guest Courtyard.
The attractive Asian-looking woman was currently sporting an expression filled with amazement mixed with a hint of worry.
Indeed, a few hours ago, when Demian and the rest went to the Tribulation Plateau, Ling and Sera, both having stayed in the Mansion, decided to stay together while waiting for the group's return, being informed from time to time by Sergei of the event's progress.
Although Sergei did not include every detail, the two women could easily guess from his tone that the young man might have encountered some difficulty during his trial, beyond what they had expected.
It was especially the case for Sera, who could sense some vague emotional fluctuations coming from the Bond she shared with the young man, something that, due to the distance, could only mean that the emotions he was experiencing were mind-destroyingly intense.
Knowing he was undergoing his Tribulation, it was easy to guess that the emotion in question was pain, an unfathomable amount of it.
Thus, she was incredibly worried.
Fortunately, his life did not seem to be in danger, making her unsure how to feel.
The emotional rollercoaster went on until around an hour ago, when they received a message from Sergei informing them that Demian had successfully transcended his tribulation and was currently absorbing the Creation Energy Cloud.
At that time, both Sera and Ling had looked at each other, instantly noting the relief in each other's gazes.
As if one cue, the two had started giggling with abandon, the laughter draining the tension that had been wracking their mind for hours.
Although a bit impatient for the others' return, now that they knew the danger was over, it was just a matter of waiting until Demian finished assimilating the Creation Energy, without the need for further anxiety.
Thus, minutes went by with Ling and Sera chatting together, each venturing guesses as to how many benefits Demian would get, though neither was even close to the right answer.
Seraphine, who was aware of the young man's Perks, included.
The atmosphere that was previously fraught with tension had swiftly transformed into a harmonious one, though it only lasted for a while before, in the middle of the conversation, Seraphine's body suddenly froze, her eyes closed, and a mystical aura started to spread from her body.
A few seconds later, her eyelids snapped open, her expression solemn as she declared.
"I need to cultivate, Teacher."
As soon as those words left her lips, her body flickered away towards her bedroom's assigned cultivation room, disappearing inside before the door slammed closed with Ling stopping in front of it, her expression a mix of concern and puzzlement.
As Ling was waiting anxiously in front of her cultivation room door and Demian's group was on the way back to the Mansion, Seraphine was sitting cross-legged in the empty room, her attention focused entirely on sensing the explosive transformation she was experiencing.
In her perception, the Soul Bond, which was previously only a vague and almost illusory link toward Demian's location, had suddenly turned extremely substantial, with its effects growing alongside that upgraded perception.
Previously, when she and Demian were separated by too large a distance, the feedback from the bond grew weaker until she could only sense intense emotions coming from her lover's Soul.
Even the cultivation boosting effect decreased somewhat, though not to the point of disappearing completely, something she noted as Demian left in the morning.
Now, however, she could tell that no matter how far apart they were, the two would be able to sense each other.
As for sensing thoughts and emotions, her intuition told her that the distance limit had grown exponentially, though the details still eluded her.
It was similar for the Physiology Perk she had access to, with both distance and effectiveness experiencing a great growth.
Nonetheless, those changes only grabbed a sliver of her attention, with the rest busy observing the massive influx of Energy coming from the newly strengthened Bond.
The Energy, neither Elemental Energy nor Void Energy, seemed to be something of a higher order, though her knowledge was too lacking to determine anything beyond that.
Still, knowing more was not needed, as the mystical Energy started automatically flooding her body, from her Soul Space to her Energy Veins, from her flesh to her Bones, every part of her being started to absorb that wondrous panacea, triggering explosive improvements all around.
Indeed, as the mystical energy was swallowed by her body, her three Attributes started experiencing incredible growth, and even her Bloodline was being elevated further, bringing with it a flurry of new Bloodline memories.
As time passed, her Physique grew progressively more refined, her Soul Power became purer, and her six unlocked Main Acupoint Systems had started strengthening at a pace that defied logic.
At one point, a loud crack resounded in her mind, shaking her body and freezing her thoughts briefly.
Her Seventh Main Acupoint had unknowingly been breached!
She could finally be considered a Heaven-Grade prodigy, though the lowest of them all, bringing her status above most cultivators in the Mortal World.
However, she had no time to enjoy the sudden status upgrade, as the transformation was far from over.
Indeed, the torrent of Energy was not content in breaching only one Acupoint.
Soon after the seventh was unlocked, the energy Veins corresponding were not only excavated entirely, but also strengthened to the limit before another cracking sound shook her body once again.
The Eighth Acupoint unlocked!
Another round of strengthening, and her body jerked again as the last main Acupoint, the Ninth one, was broken through, removing every blockage in her mana system and thus ensuring a smooth cultivation path from now onward.
At that moment, Seraphine felt as if she had been reborn, as if she had always been burdened with some invisible shackles limiting not only her strength but everything about her, from her perception to her reflexes, speed, etc.
Even her comprehension grew to a level that was previously unthinkable for her.
With a single thought, what would have taken days, weeks, or even months to comprehend was now understood, like drinking water.
'No wonder sis could cultivate so quickly. It's like the difference between being blind and having perfect sight.'
The elven woman exclaimed inwardly in awe, observing the changes still happening to her body.
If before those changes could be called explosives, bringing broad alterations, they were now more akin to the finishing touches of an artist, perfecting the great piece of art and propelling it to the masterpiece level.
Every impurity was washed away, every imperfection was smoothened out, and everything lacking was remedied until the young woman was naturally brought to a state of perfection beyond what the overwhelming majority of Peak Heaven-Grade geniuses could hope to reach.
Only Immortal-Grade prodigies could be considered above her at that point.
Extreme talent, Extreme power, and extreme beauty.
'I'm really a good catch, aren't I?'
She thought playfully as she sensed the powerful strength radiating from her own body, enough to crush her previous self with a mere thought.
As she felt herself reach a certain threshold, she sensed a slight tremor coming from the depths of her Essence.
However, it was at that moment that the mystical energy coming from her Bond dwindled to nothing, ending the life-changing transformation.
Unfortunately, with nothing fueling further changes, the tremors shaking her Essence also subsided, bringing a feeling of having missed an even greater opportunity.
A few moments later, she shook her head slightly, telling herself to stop being greedy while thinking with amusement.
'Now I understand why I can always see both happiness and disappointment on Dem's face when he breaks through. It's so addictive that no matter how many benefits you get, you always want more.'
Naturally, she was not one to indulge in regret, especially when it was due to her own greed, so she swiftly regained her calm and took a deep breath, a beautiful smile illuminating her face as her eyelids fluttered open and she absentmindedly mumbled.
"Now, I only need to go through my own Tribulation..."
As the last word left her lips, she felt a pair of strong arms embracing her from behind, while a gentle whisper reached her ears, its owner the man that had quickly become her World, someone she could not see herself living without anymore.
"Indeed, Love. Congratulations on your talent breakthrough, by the way."
With a sweet smile filled with love, she replied in a soft tone.
"You're back?"
Even without using her Soul Sense, she could picture his usual playful smile from the tone he used to answer.
"My wife was waiting for me, so I didn't dare be late."
His joke brought a few giggles from the young woman, who then replied once she regained her calm.
"I was really worried, you know. I could feel your pain from the Bond."
Falling silent for a few moments, he said.
"I'm sorry for worrying you."
Shaking her head, she added.
"I'm not blaming you. It's just how cultivation is. As long as you pulled through, that's what mattered."
Feeling him nod, she then felt his warm breath in her ear as he said.
"Well, going through my first Tribulation, I think we can say I've taken my first step onto my Immortal Path. So, I believe that deserves a celebration, and I intend to make you my present today."
As those last words left his lips, their figures instantly vanished from the cultivation room, leaving only a brief echo of carefree laughter in the empty room.