Chapter 23: Element Integration Stage

Hearing the sound, Titus quickly stowed away the low-grade spirit stone and stealthily moved towards the source of the noise. He soon discovered a slightly overweight middle-aged man hiding in a corner. A cold glint appeared in Titus's eyes; this man was the steward of the Xenos Family. “He’s already dead,” Titus emerged from the shadows. “You... You're just a cripple, how could you possibly...” The steward's face changed dramatically, and he tried to flee, only to be struck in the abdomen by Titus's fist. The steward fell to his knees, blood oozing from his seven orifices. After all, his cultivation was only at the eighth level of the Qi Refining Stage. Titus could easily overpower him without even using martial techniques. “Our Xenos family has raised you for many years, but you have betrayed the Xenos family. You deserve to die. However, before your death, it’s best you reveal who sent you and that assassin to the Xenos residence,” Titus said, stepping on the steward’s head, making it impossible for him to struggle free. “Just kill me,” the steward said through gritted teeth. “I don’t want to threaten you, but if an assassin could come in today to kill me, then tomorrow they might come for my uncle, for Elsie... I don’t want my family to live under the threat of death every day. So, I must resort to some extreme measures. You also have relatives in the Xenos Family...” Titus stared at the steward. The steward’s expression changed drastically, and he quickly shook his head: “Don’t harm them, they know nothing about this. It was all because of my own greed.” “I won’t touch them, but if I were to tell my uncle about your deeds, what do you think he would do? You know well what kind of man Jasper is,” Titus said indifferently. The butler's expression was extremely unpleasant, and he naturally knew who Jasper was. As the patriarch of the Xenos Family, he was not a pushover and would not show mercy when dealing with people who posed a threat to the Xenos Family. “You promise to spare my family...” the steward said. “As long as you tell me who sent you and that assassin to kill me, I will spare them,” Titus replied. “It was the Third Prince, Gavin,” the steward said through clenched teeth. The Third Prince, Gavin... Titus mentally noted this, and swiftly dispatched the steward. Then, Titus drank a bottle of healing potion and closed his eyes to rest, reminiscing about every detail of today’s life-and-death battle. A life-and-death battle is extremely valuable for martial cultivation, as it reveals one's weaknesses to be addressed. After fully contemplating the process, Titus opened his eyes, a hint of joy in his gaze. He had an epiphany during his recollection. Nine Star Collapse! Titus leaped up, slashing down with the Horse Beheading Blade, bringing forth nine layers of starlight, as if nine stars were plummeting from the sky. A Blade Gale raged forth, leveling the vast courtyard in an instant. “The power of this second move is much stronger than the first, at least comparable to the completed level of a Mysterious-grade lower-tier Weapon Martial Technique.” Titus sheathed the Horse Beheading Blade. With both moves of the Starfall Technique perfected, the power of the Blade Gale far surpassed before. If he were to encounter the black-clothed assassin now, Titus was confident he could defeat him without injury. Although he had improved, Titus was not overly excited, knowing that his current abilities were still far from sufficient for revenge. “The level of that black-clothed assassin was comparable to an upper-mid level Inner Sect disciple at best. There are even more top-notch figures among the Inner Sect disciples, not to mention the core disciples, and Chloe is among the top of the core disciples, perhaps even stronger.” Titus reluctantly looked at the courtyard. He had planned to stay a few more days, but it seemed he could no longer remain. “Anyway, it will take nearly a month to reach the Xanth City of Yanille Empire. It’s better to leave early and prepare than to be late.” Titus left a note in his room and left the Xenos Family under the cover of night. ... A large cloud boat, stretching 100,000 feet long, sweeps across the sky. Under the operation of crystal stones, the formation surrounding the cloud ship continuously transformed the fierce winds into powerful propulsion. Titus sat in a solitary cabin on the second level of the cloud ship. Although this cabin was only about 20 feet in size, it was quite expensive, costing eight hundred gold coins. Before departing, Titus took a thousand gold coins from the Xenos Family, thinking it would be enough for his journey. However, he hadn't anticipated that a private cabin alone would cost eight hundred gold coins. Including food and drink along the way, he barely made it to Xanth City. After six hours of sword practice, Titus took a brief rest and then took out a medium-grade spirit stone, absorbing its spiritual energy as usual. The surging spiritual energy poured into him, which Titus guided around his body before absorbing and transforming it. The medium-grade spirit stone in Titus's hand contained about as much spiritual energy as forty low-grade spirit stones. However, the energy in the medium-grade spirit stone was far superior to that of low-grade stones, both in quantity and purity. After nearly half a month of absorption, Titus had consumed eighty percent of the spirit stone's energy, leaving only twenty percent remaining. Suddenly, Titus's body trembled slightly. It was coming! Titus opened his eyes, and the true qi circulating within his body began to condense, turning into a faint white mist. One hour passed. A sound like rushing river water emanated from within Titus, as the dense true qi circulated through his limbs and meridians, emitting a powerful and vast aura, like flames bursting forth. His true qi was like flames, and his aura like a tidal wave. This was a characteristic of stepping into the Element Integration Stage. "Finally, I've broken through to the Element Integration Stage." Now, even a casual release of true qi from Titus was many times stronger than before. Qi at the Qi Refining Stage was dispersed, but at the Element Integration Stage, it was concentrated and cohesive. His rapid advancement to the Element Integration Stage was mainly due to that medium-grade spirit stone. This thing is an extremely rare treasure even for those at the Element Integration Stage in Martial Cultivation. Spirit stones were scarce; even the Xenos Family had only a few low-grade spirit stones stored for over a hundred years. They were treasures of the Xenos Family's treasury, given to Titus only because he was admitted to the Skynet Sect. Considering how rare low-grade spirit stones were, medium-grade ones were even more so. With twenty percent of the energy still remaining in the medium-grade spirit stone, Titus put it away. After breaking into the Element Integration Stage, he needed some time to stabilize before he could absorb more energy. Now that he had broken through to the Element Integration Stage, Titus was in a good mood. "I've been in this private cabin for almost half a month. Time to go out for a walk." He remembered hearing that the scenery of the boundless sea along the journey was incredibly beautiful. Opening the cabin door, Titus walked onto the deck. Some people were already there, gazing at the distant scenery, chatting, or meditating in a seated position. In the distance, purple clouds layered upon each other, displaying a variety of magnificent colors, occasionally shining with unique glows. Titus looked out, marveling at the uniqueness of the world. Such beautiful and unique scenery was only visible in the boundless sea. Looking down, he saw the vast ocean a thousand feet below, with various islands coming into view. The world was immense and endless. Standing amidst the world, Titus felt a profound sense of connection. Gazing into the distance, he felt a deep, unique sensation in his heart, and faint humming sounds came from the Blade Vein and bone within his body. "An epiphany, but not quite there yet. This is not a bad thing; forging a Blade Soul is not an overnight task, but requires that unique opportunity." Titus was not surprised. He had been practicing hard lately, his connection with the blade growing stronger. Titus had a premonition that the day to forge his Blade Soul was not far off. Roar! Suddenly, a thunderous roar erupted, the terrifying sound waves striking the Cloud Boat.