Chapter Seventeen: A Stirring Moment

The Lord of the Spirit Iron Axe was growing anxious, yet Qin Chuan clung to him like glue. At last, he could no longer contain himself.

“Damn you! Get out of my way! Sacred Axe Descent!”

A phantom of a massive three-meter axe manifested, cleaving toward Qin Chuan’s position. The Lord of the Spirit Iron Axe didn’t even bother to check if it hit—he spun around and tried to dash into the cave.

But Qin Chuan blinked out of range in an instant. After such a prolonged and intense battle, frustration had been mounting within him. In that moment, he forcefully roused his anger.

“Ding! You have gained 10 Rage Points.”

“Ding! Rage Points are full.”

“Haha! Stream Strike!”

Without hesitation, Qin Chuan unleashed his skill.

“Chiu!”

“Ding! Critical strike triggered. Knockback effect activated.”

“Clang! Crack!”

“Aaah!”

“Huh, why was that attack so effective this time? It seems his resilience has dropped,” Qin Chuan remarked in surprise. But that only delighted him, and he chased after with renewed vigor.

That blow left a deep gash in the Lord’s axe, reducing his overall condition by half. He could no longer withstand Qin Chuan’s attacks, especially with the critical strike.

At last, the Lord of the Spirit Iron Axe “got his wish” and entered the cave—only to nearly break down in despair the next instant.

For he saw the treasury doors perfectly intact—there was no emergency at all.

This vault was custom-made for the Violet Spirit Sect. How could I have overlooked that?

The reason he’d made such a blunder was because the shipment of Spirit Iron Stones was so important he’d lost his composure.

At the cave’s entrance, Qin Chuan had already caught up. Without a word, he began to weave and attack, leaving the battered Lord utterly defenseless.

“Clang! Clang! Clang! Crack!”

The cave echoed with the sounds of relentless blows, punctuated by the axe’s splintering.

“Aaah!” The Lord of the Spirit Iron Axe let out a final, unwilling scream. Within thirty seconds, Qin Chuan shattered him completely, and a purple item dropped, which Qin Chuan’s Black Iron Sword immediately absorbed.

“Ding! You have slain the level 13 Mutant Lord of the Spirit Iron Axe. Gained 8,750 experience points. Over-level kill bonus: 100% extra experience. Congratulations, you have gained 17,500 experience points.”

Hearing the system’s prompt, Qin Chuan couldn’t help blurting out, “Damn! That mutant really was something—seventy-five percent more experience than a normal level 13 Lord!”

“Devour Origin!”

“Ding! Devouring successful. Gained 1,400 Evolution Points.”

“Haha, this is fantastic—yes!”

Evolution Points: 14,980/25,600

Experience: 80,200/204,800

Rage Points: 10/100

Though this fight had been tough, Qin Chuan was elated.

“Hey, brother, shouldn’t you come out now?”

“Heh heh, Brother Black Sword, you really are amazing. Even a level 13 mutant Lord was no match for you.”

At Qin Chuan’s call, Sleepy Worm twisted his awkward body out from the shadows.

“Brother, you said I’d just distract the guard and you’d handle the rest. Look at this door—it’s still perfectly intact.”

“Heh heh, Brother Black Sword, my mistake, my mistake. I didn’t expect the door to be custom-made.”

Sleepy Worm looked embarrassed and hastily tried to explain.

“So what now?” Qin Chuan was exasperated—he’d almost been played for a fool by this bug.

“Unless we find the key to the door, there’s nothing I can do.”

“Damn it! So you’re telling me all my efforts were for nothing?”

Sleepy Worm shuddered at the sharpness in Qin Chuan’s tone.

“Well... Brother Black Iron, how about I try digging a tunnel from underground?”

“No need. Everything around here is made of the same material. Don’t waste your time.”

“Oh, the pain, the heartbreak!” Sleepy Worm rolled around on the ground, leaving Qin Chuan speechless.

“If only I could open that door...” Sleepy Worm perked up immediately, stopped rolling, and said eagerly, “Brother Black Sword, if you can open it, you take nine parts and I take one! Even if you give me nothing, just let me smell it. Otherwise, I’ll have insomnia for life!”

“Good, I like your straightforwardness!” Qin Chuan was secretly delighted—he’d managed to squeeze a bit more out of Sleepy Worm with little effort.

“Alright, step back a bit.”

“Okay!” Sleepy Worm quickly scuttled off, thinking Qin Chuan was about to force the door open.

But the next moment, he let out a wail of despair.

“Brother Black Iron, you can’t trick your own brother like this!”

For he saw the Black Iron Sword flip over, revealing a purple token on its blade that fit perfectly into the door’s indentation—plainly the key.

“Haha!” Qin Chuan laughed heartily, ignoring Sleepy Worm as he slotted the purple token into the groove.

With a thunderous rumble, the treasury doors slowly swung open, releasing a crystalline glow from within.

“Damn! We’ve struck it rich!”

Sleepy Worm hurried over, sniffing the air greedily, utterly intoxicated.

“Wow, over ninety Spirit Iron Stones! This is a wonderful surprise.”

“I’ve never seen so many in my entire life. From now on, I’ll be grinning in my sleep.”

Sleepy Worm grinned foolishly, drooling as he basked in the scent.

“As we agreed before, nine for me, one for you, but...”

Sleepy Worm immediately tensed up, his innocent eyes growing wary after being tricked twice. “But what?”

“Well, brother, I’m about to evolve, so I need to use the Spirit Iron Stones first. Any leftovers are yours. If there aren’t enough, I’ll owe you, and next time we split another deal, you’ll get a bigger share. How about it?”

“Is that so?” Sleepy Worm hesitated, now only left with a tenth of the spoils.

But then he realized that without Qin Chuan, he wouldn’t even have that much. With Qin Chuan’s strength, he wouldn’t have needed to consult him at all.

“He’s at least treating me as a friend. If I keep being difficult, I might lose even that.”

After considering, Sleepy Worm made up his mind. “Alright, Brother Black Sword. Take all you need. Don’t worry about giving me a bigger share next time. As long as you remember me as your brother, that’s enough.”

Qin Chuan was surprised and moved, realizing Sleepy Worm was actually quite loyal.

“Don’t worry. From now on, you’re my brother. Anyone who bullies you will answer to my sword!”

Qin Chuan declared, feeling a surge of fraternal spirit.

“I believe you, Brother Black Sword.”

“Since we’re brothers, just call me Qin Chuan.”

“Qin Chuan? That’s your name? I don’t have one.”

“Then why not call yourself Qin Long? Maybe one day you’ll soar through the sky as a dragon.”

“A dragon?” Sleepy Worm’s innocent eyes sparkled with excitement. Evolving into a dragon was something he’d never dared dream of.

“Alright, I’ll be Qin Long from now on. And I’ll call you Big Brother!”

“Deal, my good brother. Now, I won’t stand on ceremony.”

“Um... Big Brother, could I have one piece as a keepsake?”

“Hah, you little rascal—here you go.”

“Thanks, Big Brother.” Qin Chuan flicked a Spirit Iron Stone to Sleepy Worm, who caught it in his mouth and gleefully retreated to a corner to savor its scent.

“So fragrant, truly wonderful.”

Ignoring him, Qin Chuan checked his attribute panel. The evolution list now offered three options.

Rank Evolution: Level restricted, 100% success rate, consumes Origin Power each time, can only advance to third-rank inferior at level 20.

Quality Evolution: No level restriction, consumes Origin Power and chance each time, next quality is Rare, current success rate 22%.

Mutation Evolution: No restrictions, consumes Origin Power and chance each time, current success rate 40%.

“It’s getting harder and harder to advance—each evolution needs a tremendous amount of Origin. I’ll have to choose carefully in the future.”

Both rank and quality evolutions gave a fixed +10 to all attributes, but mutation evolution gave less and had unpredictable fluctuations.

Having sorted out the key points, Qin Chuan began to devour.

“Ding! Devoured Spirit Iron Stone successfully. Gained 150 Evolution Points. Quality improvement rate increased by 0.82%.”

...

“Ding! Evolution Points are full. Evolution can be performed at any time.”

...

“Ding! Congratulations, Host. Quality evolution rate has reached 100%.”

A series of pleasant chimes sounded in his ears, and pure Origin Power flowed into him endlessly. Qin Chuan felt as if he might soar from sheer delight.

“Damn! Ninety-five Spirit Iron Stones, used up to the last one. Good thing I have some extra Evolution Points.”

Evolution Points: 29,230/25,600

Experience: 80,200/204,800

Rage Points: 10/100

Qin Chuan’s spirit form eagerly rubbed his hands together. “Heh heh, the exciting moment has finally arrived.”

“Quality Evolution!”