Chapter 22: A Plea

The calamity clouds dispersed. The One-Horned Cheetah and Lei Yan crashed heavily onto the ground. The One-Horned Cheetah had exerted all its strength; its demonic energy had long been completely depleted. Now, it could only breathe heavily, with no energy left for anything else. It closed its eyes and began to cultivate. Meanwhile, Lei Yan had fainted. The fourth heavenly tribulation was the most powerful among the Golden Core tribulations. Even if Lei Yan could unconsciously convert some of it, the effect was limited. After absorbing such a massive amount of lightning, his body was in chaos—numerous electric serpents writhing wildly within him. The only consolation was that these electric serpents were still being converted, albeit at a very slow rate.

Several hours passed. The sky gradually darkened, and the steady drizzle continued. The One-Horned Cheetah, lying in the rain, suddenly twitched. Its burnt and cracked skin began peeling off like black scabs, crackling softly as they fell away. The rainwater dampened and washed away the remnants slowly.

Suddenly, the One-Horned Cheetah opened its eyes wide and leapt up violently, shaking its body vigorously. The black scabs and rainwater were flung off, revealing a sleek, smooth coat beneath. The cheetah glanced at the motionless Lei Yan with a flicker of hesitation in its eyes. Yet, in the end, it circled around Lei Yan’s body, opened its mouth wide to reveal sharp teeth, and let out a roar. The nearby azure talisman seemed to respond to the command, flying straight into its mouth. Then, with a swift turn, it gently bit down on Lei Yan’s back, grasping him firmly and running forward.

After running a short distance, the One-Horned Cheetah suddenly turned back. It clawed the ground with its right forepaw, pulling up a golden, glimmering orb. Staring at the orb, a trace of greed flashed in its eyes, and a stream of saliva dripped from its mouth. Finally, with a reluctant growl, it sprinted onward.

The valley stretched out in all directions, carpeted with grass, enclosed entirely by towering mountain walls—an unobstructed view. The One-Horned Cheetah, still holding Lei Yan in its jaws, charged toward the mountain wall. Just as it seemed poised to collide, it leapt powerfully, as if oblivious to the danger, and soared toward the mountain face.

A strange sound echoed, and ripples formed on the mountain wall. The cheetah plunged into the wall as if diving into water, passing right through it.

Inside the mountain was a cavern. The One-Horned Cheetah dropped Lei Yan onto the ground and quickly dashed deeper inside.

“Drip, drip…” The crisp sound of dripping water echoed through the cave. Soaked to the bone, Lei Yan suddenly shuddered awake. Raising his eyes, he saw nothing but darkness. Even with his vision, he could only see about five meters around him. Fortunately, this told him he was inside a cave. Attempting to stand, he immediately felt a wave of weakness throughout his body. Helplessly, he checked his internal condition. The electric serpents inside him had been completely consumed, and even his true energy was entirely depleted. Only the red and blue lights in his mind shone brighter than ever.

“You’re awake.” An aged voice drifted through the cave. Lei Yan turned to see a wrinkled old man with graying hair emerging from the darkness.

The old man gave Lei Yan a strange impression. Despite his advanced age, his eyes sparkled with sharp intelligence, and his steps were agile—a contradictory aura that made Lei Yan wary. He asked cautiously, “Who are you?”

“Little brother, no need to be so tense. I’m called You Wen,” the old man said with a cheerful smile. “Oh, and I’m the One-Horned Cheetah. I saw you unconscious and brought you here. You actually saved my life as well—I couldn’t just leave you out in the rain.”

Recalling the earlier events, cold sweat poured down Lei Yan’s back as he chided himself for his recklessness. In this life, why was he always so impulsive? The last time, refining that dried meat demonic artifact had left Qing Ling unconscious, and now he had nearly lost his own life. Thinking of Qing Ling still unconscious, he didn’t want to linger. Struggling to rise, he looked at the cheetah, now sitting calmly, and said, “If that’s the case, then I should be going.”

“Wait,” You Wen quickly stopped him. “Little brother, there’s one thing I’d like to ask you. Where did you get the Tu Yuan?”

“Tu Yuan?” Lei Yan didn’t even know what that was, looking at You Wen with confusion. “What’s Tu Yuan?”

“You don’t know?” You Wen was stunned for a moment and sighed regretfully. “Seems this kid has no idea about that demonic artifact. Ah, such waste! This kind of demonic artifact, and this kid just trampled all over it.”

After lamenting for a while, You Wen pointed at Lei Yan. “I mean the demonic artifact on your body.”

“I have three demonic artifacts on me. He must not mean the vine or the storage artifact. Hmm, it’s probably the defensive one,” Lei Yan thought, then focused his mind. The artifact on his body began to slowly wriggle and gathered around his right arm. “You mean this one?”

“Yes, yes, exactly that one,” You Wen nodded excitedly.

Seeing You Wen’s enthusiasm, Lei Yan realized this Tu Yuan must be quite important. He asked, “You know about this artifact?”

You Wen stroked his sparse beard and calmed his excitement. “Do you know about the grading of demonic artifacts?”

Lei Yan shook his head.

“You see, our demonic artifacts are graded from ‘No Grade’ up to ‘Grade Nine,’ with Grade Nine being the highest. Anything beyond Grade Nine is called ‘Supreme Grade.’ Of course, the most precious are the ‘Transcendent Grade’ artifacts, which can evolve. As their owner’s strength increases, these artifacts can evolve beyond Supreme Grade. The Tu Yuan you have is a Transcendent Grade artifact.”

Hearing this, Lei Yan’s heart stirred uneasily. He had casually bought a piece of dried meat, and it turned out to be a Transcendent Grade artifact. That meant his storage artifact might also be capable of evolution. No wonder its space had increased significantly, and why fusing those two artifacts had drained so much of his blood. But what pleased him the most was the storage artifact. After all, discovering a Transcendent Grade storage artifact was a rare blessing.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. He took the vine from the storage artifact and asked, “Do you recognize this?”

You Wen’s eyes bulged when he saw the green vine in Lei Yan’s hands. His mouth opened so wide that it seemed he could fit a fist inside. His jaw nearly dropped as he held the vine, examining it again and again. “This… this is the Jade Branch… heavens…” Having lived for over two centuries, he had never seen two Transcendent Grade artifacts in a single day before.

“You know this too?” Lei Yan couldn’t help but mutter inwardly. How long had this old man lived, knowing everything?

“Bright green and fresh, curved but unyielding, with dimples on the surface—yes, this is the Jade Branch,” You Wen nodded. “If the Tu Yuan is the supreme defensive artifact, then the Jade Branch is the supreme offensive artifact.”

Lei Yan nodded in agreement. The Tu Yuan was indeed a Transcendent Grade defensive artifact, capable of full-body or focused defense, and could even be infused with true energy for protection—truly an exceptional artifact. Naturally, he looked forward with anticipation. If the defensive artifact was this powerful, the offensive one must be even stronger.

But when Lei Yan looked up, he frowned. You Wen seemed reluctant to let go of the Jade Branch, touching it left and right as if unwilling to release it.

“*Ahem*,” Lei Yan cleared his throat softly to get You Wen’s attention. Yet, You Wen’s eyes shone brightly as he gazed at the Jade Branch, seemingly unaware of Lei Yan’s subtle cough. After a long moment, he slowly raised his head.

“Little brother, I have a request. Could you possibly give me this Jade Branch?”