It has been about fifteen minutes since Shen Yinghu has glided over the surface of the lake.

　　She landed in the gazebo. Her delicate fragrance announced her presence in the area.

　　Chu Li got up and smiled, “How was it?”

　　“Mm, the pavilion leader has agreed,” Shen Yinghu then gently laughed. “A hundred Shimmering Spiritual Grass for each individual.”

　　“A hundred…” Chu Li showed a bitter smile. “You do know it isn’t easy to get the Shimmering Spiritual Grass.”

　　“Yeah right!” Shen Yinghu rebutted displeasingly, “Yes, it’s hard for others. However, isn’t it easy-peasy for someone like you?”

　　Chu Li sighed, “Alright then, a hundred it is.”

　　“Are there more people?” Added Shen Yinghu, “Less than five would not be a problem. Consider it as repaying the House of High Dukes. You guys beat up Green Hill real good!”

　　Chu Li revealed a smile, “Okay, then I won’t hesitate. I’ll add three more in the future.”

　　“Alright then,” answered Shen Yinghu. “But can you guys gain that many Grandmasters?”

　　In order to advance to a Grandmaster, ‘acquired mastery’ is needed to be learned before any advancement in done. This step alone is not easy to be achieved.

　　Chu Li smiled as he nodded.

　　“It is only limited to those from the House of High Dukes,” Shen Yinghu said. “Others cannot be trusted.”

　　“Of course,” Chu Li nodded.

　　Shen Yinghu stretched her body and sat by the stone table, “It’s only this, right?”

　　“I would need a few seeds of the Shimmering Spiritual Grass,” replied Chu Li.

　　Shen Yinghu took out a sachet from her sleeve and tossed it over.

　　Chu Li grabbed ahold of it and closed fist saluted, “Then I shall excuse myself.”

　　“Go,” Shen Yinghu waved her arm as her eyes kept fixated at the lake.

　　Chu Li read a reclusive energy off her silhouette and sighed internally. He fist saluted and disappeared in flash.

　　——

　　He appeared at the Spirit Crane Peak.

　　It was the prime time of twilight and the Spirit Crane Peak was hectic. Tired birds retreated to their nests in the forest as they chirped incessantly.

　　Two small chicks instantly dashed over and fought playfully with him.

　　They have gained more control of their long beaks as they swung it with ferocity. The speed of their growth as compared to twice the rate of a human’s. It was astounding.

　　Chu Li did not know how long he could maintain the upper hand as the two little cranes have gained more coordination in covering each other during their attacks. Their speed and strength improve tremendously day by day. It wouldn’t be long when they are able to surpass him, even if he owns divine powers.

　　The two adult spirit cranes were nowhere to be seen. They seemed to have a lot of confidence in these two little cranes.

　　After Chu Li fooled around with them for a bit, he let them play among themselves. He then went off to spread the seeds of the Shimmering Spiritual Grass beneath a tree.

　　The Shimmering Spiritual Grass preferred dark and humid places as they could not take direct sunlight. When exposed to it, they would die in just a single afternoon.

　　After he had spread the seeds, he sat beneath a tree. He laid on top the budding green grass while looking high up at the dimming sky.

　　His initial plan was to bring over Siao Qi to let her meditate in seclusion here.

　　It was beneficial for cultivation. However, luck was not smiling upon him. Siao Qi didn’t need to move to Mountain Shiwan but rather required distance away from him!

　　He couldn’t help but sigh as a sense of melancholy lingered within him.

　　Lying here felt as though he had entered a whole different world. All the scheming, war and caution against Prince An was temporarily gone. The high ambition of the House of Secret Guardian or the thirst to be an Enlightened Masters seemed to fade. His heart resided only in peace.

　　If he were to forego everything and come here to be in seclusion, would he achieve the Enlightened Master’s Boundary quicker?

　　Once this thought was struck, he could not stop the train of thoughts.

　　If he could be here, isolated from the outside world, he could toss aside all worries and concentrate on his cultivation. Once he were to become an Enlightened Master, he could reappear before Siao Qi and win her heart. They would then live here or at Chong Ming Town.

　　Thinking about the wondrous days, he could not help but smile.

　　A brief moment later, he slowly came to his senses.

　　It was a shame he could only dream about it. The Heavenly Demonic Power that he was cultivating could not depend solely by himself. No matter how much he cultivated, he would not be able to reach new heights. He needed to collaborate with masters; even better if the masters were stronger than him.

　　By absorbing the inner energy of these masters, the level of his Heavenly Demonic Power would slowly increase. If he did not fight with others and cultivates for a thousand years, he would never become an Enlightened Master.

　　His road to the Enlightened Mastery would require continuous fights with other masters!

　　“Wham!” Suddenly a black elongated object fell from the sky with a cry from a bird.

　　Chu Li saw a spirit crane fly by and dumped something in front of him. He laughed. Chu Li wondered what kind of delicacy did it brought him this time.

　　A dark figure shot towards.

　　Chu Li jumped and transported three feet away out of reflex.

　　It was a black snake with the thickness of an arm. Its body was three meters long and had a vicious looking flat head. It erected its head and hissed aggressively.

　　Chu Li let out a sigh. The spirit crane gave him this thing to eat. It was such a shame he did not like eating snakes.

　　“Hiss!” The black snake leaped over.

　　Chu Li pushed forward his palm energy.

　　“Swish!” The black snake whipped its tail in the air. With an agile stance, it broke his solid palm energy and appeared right before Chu Li in a blink of an eye. It was quick as lightning.

　　Chu Li took a step aside to dodge it.

　　This black snake could actually break past his palm energy. Basically, more than half the tactics used by a Grandmaster is deemed useless against this snake.

　　The black snake rattled its tail and hurled itself directly to Chu Li. It appeared so close to Chu Li that he could smell its bloodied mouth.

　　He had no choice but to dodge and reappear ten meters away.

　　The black snake landed and shot towards him again. His speed was so quick that it appeared right beside him again.

　　Chu Li scoffed and unveiled his Modesty Sword that had a dark misty glow. He tried to stab the snake.

　　“Ding…” The sound of metal was heard.

　　The Modesty Sword vibrated. The force of the sword almost had Chu Li drop it.

　　Chu Li was shocked at the power of this snake and the toughness of its skin. The sharp Modesty Sword did not even leave a single mark on the snake. The vicious snake once again reared its ugly head. The smell of blood filled his nostrils.

　　As Chu Li took a step back, he threw a dagger.

　　“Ding…” It was as if the flying dagger shot through metal as the snake closed its brille. It ricocheted to the side.

　　It did not stop the black snake as it travelled towards Chu Li. It made a dash and attempted to bite his throat.

　　Chu Li flashed disappeared again.

　　He reappeared right behind the black snake and tried to grab it by its tail in order to fling it. If he could fling it hard enough, it could break its joints, thus, causing it to be paralyzed.

　　The snake’s tail suddenly whipped and struck his right hand.

　　“Bang!” He staggered backwards by two steps. The force from the snake’s tail almost had him off his feet.

　　Chu Li could not believe what he had seen. He reciprocated with another palm attack. His Shura Palm was as quick as lightning.

　　“Bang!” Could it be that his attack was faster than the black snake? It did not evade in time, or perhaps it could not be bothered.

　　Its body was tough and slick while its exterior was wet and cold. A peculiar feeling came to Chu Li’s mind that it gave him goosebumps.

　　He felt that his palm energy could not pass through the snake’s body. The skin of the snake was layered with layers of scales; each layer was a natural armor. No matter how powerful his inner energy was, it simply could not enter.

　　“Bang bang bang bang…” Chu Li was growing frustrated as he pushed his Shura Palm to the limit. He made over ten palm attacks in a single breath while hitting at the same spot.

　　“Bang” The snake dropped to the ground but got back up again. It didn’t seem to be affected by the hits nor appeared to be wounded.

　　Chu Li shook his head and sighed.

　　At first he thought that going against a snake wouldn’t require much effort; like the snap of his fingers. Who would have thought it would be so troublesome that even weapons nor palm energy could maim the snake.

　　The black snake drew close again.

　　Under the Omniscient Mirror, Chu Li’s mind quickly deliberated his actions. He calculated his route pattern.

　　Once the black snake drew close, Chu Li’s Modesty Sword stabbed to its side. A ruthless and accurate strike to its heart.

　　The black snake somersaulted and turned upside down.

　　“Ding…” The Modesty Sword ricocheted.

　　The jab that was supposed to be accurate enough to kill was not proven effective. Puncturing the heart might do the trick if it weren’t for its lightning speed and high alertness to dodge.

　　Chu Li’s sword was aimed at its heart as his technique was pushed to the limit.

　　‘Ding. Ding…ding…ding’ The sounds of clashing metal. The black snake managed to evade the strike.

　　In a blink of an eyes, Chu Li has jousted over a hundred times. However, the outcome was fruitless against the black snake.

　　“Hiss!” The black snake hastened its speed and opened its mouth to an exaggerated angle. As if its intentions were to envelope him in whole.

　　Chu Li did not back down and flung his left arm.

　　“Swish!” A flying dagger was shot into its mouth.