Chapter 552

Chapter 552: I Want to Rub Too

If we’re talking about merits, the System’s achievements are so vast that even giving Lu Ye to her wouldn’t suffice.

However, Lu Ye had already concocted a clever response in the blink of an eye.

“You and the Darkness Origin are different; the Darkness Origin is a subordinate, and thus its contributions naturally require rewards. But you’re not my subordinate; we’re more like the closest of partners, inseparable. If you need something, I would even risk my life to help you. If we do something beneficial for each other and start talking about rewards, that would just complicate our relationship.”

Shen Xitang pondered over Lu Ye’s words for a moment.

It really does seem that way.

While Lu Ye was distracted by Shen Xitang’s contemplative beauty, the whole world seemed to grow dimmer.

Only Shen Xitang shone with a warm light.

“Ding! Alright, but I want a reward this time!”

Shen Xitang was still unhappy about Dark Yaner flirting with Lu Ye.

In her past life, she fought for the Heavenly Dao against Shen Xitang, and in this life, she competes for the host.

Humph! If it weren’t useful to have the host keep the Darkness Origin around, I would have suggested getting rid of it completely!

“Okay, okay, what reward do you want?”

Lu Ye wouldn’t refuse this.

“Ding! I want the host to rub my head!”

Ah, the comparison syndrome—this was clearly all about one-upping!

Lu Ye let out a silent laugh.

“Alright, come here!”

Shen Xitang promptly approached Lu Ye, who placed his hand gently on her head and began to ruffle her long hair.

Shen Xitang couldn’t help but squint her eyes in delight.

Hmph, the host truly treats me the best!

“Ding! I want too!”

Little Heavenly Dao couldn’t sit still after witnessing this, instantly appearing on Lu Ye’s other side.

If her sister has it, she wants it too!

“Ding! Host, rub my head.”

Lu Ye…

Only one hand per person.

Gradually, the atmosphere around them began to feel a bit off—at least, Lu Ye thought so—and he swiftly decided to take action.

“System, start calculating how to accelerate the rebirth of the world.”

“Ding! Calculating…”

“Ding! Host, I want to join too!”

A smile appeared on Lu Ye’s face.

“Fine, you can join.”

“Ding! Calculating!”

Little Heavenly Dao was quite satisfied; whatever her sister was doing, she wanted in on it too.

My Little Heavenly Dao life is not inferior to others!

The two began to calculate, merging into a beam of light that entered Lu Ye’s body.

Lu Ye suppressed his swirling emotions for now.

Cultivation!

Time passed silently.

All things in the world evolved with time, never ceasing.

Lu Ye’s realm continued to rise as time progressed.

Shattering Realm, Third Heaven!

Shattering Realm, Fourth Heaven!

Shattering Realm, Fifth Heaven!

Honestly, the further he went, the harder the cultivation became—that was true.

Cultivating at the Shattering Realm now felt quite difficult.

By the time Lu Ye reached the Shattering Realm, Sixth Heaven, the first Quasi-Emperor to seclude himself woke up, and Lu Ye opened his eyes as well.

Daoist Chu Jiang appeared before Lu Ye.

They were somewhat familiar with each other; when Lu Ye entered the Netherworld before, Daoist Chu Jiang had mentioned wanting to advance so badly.

The Netherworld had been terribly affected by the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

Even making a living was tough.

In reality, the Netherworld had been keeping an eye on Lu Ye, feeling his astounding cultivation pace, which was simply shocking.

The Netherworld believed that they had backed the right horse.

Therefore, upon receiving word from Luan Xin, they quickly brought all the Quasi-Emperors along, and of course, they wouldn’t forget the Book of Life and Death.

Daoist Chu Jiang was quite powerful, considered a peak Quasi-Emperor; honestly, if the Netherworld had existed a bit longer, he could have become a Great Emperor.

However, a grim reality was that the Netherworld, like the Six Paths of Reincarnation, varied in strength.

When the Netherworld was thriving, Daoist Chu Jiang could single-handedly take on eight Quasi-Emperors with ease.

Yet in times of weakness, he could barely even handle one-on-one.

Currently, the Netherworld was still in a weakened state.

Daoist Chu Jiang’s strength had increased a bit compared to before; he stood before Lu Ye.

“Lu Ye, do you think my current strength can pass into the Emperor realm?” Daoist Chu Jiang asked straightforwardly.

“Well, you’ll have to demonstrate that yourself; I can’t judge your ability purely by looking at you,” Lu Ye said.

Daoist Chu Jiang appeared excited.

“Then I’ll just show you directly!”

“Let’s go, we need a different location.”

Lu Ye set five conditions for the proof of Dao.

First, how high is your strength?

Second, how strong is your defense?

Third, how solid is your Dao heart?

Fourth, how true is your Dao?

Fifth, what resources do you possess?

If he can meet these five standards, Lu Ye estimated he would have about a sixty to seventy percent success rate.

As for a hundred percent?

That would have to wait until Lu Ye became a Great Emperor—then he could help one by one.

That was simply impossible.

If Lu Ye really did that, even the Heavenly Dao could not bear it; after all, that would be too against the natural order. It was quite possible that during the Great Emperor Tribulation, the Eternal Great Tribulation would descend upon Lu Ye.

So crossing the tribulation would have to rely on one’s own efforts.

Daoist Chu Jiang began his demonstration.

The aura of a Quasi-Emperor was indeed astonishing; he put forth all his power to prove his strength.

But as Lu Ye watched, he couldn’t help but frown.

Not enough!

It really wasn’t enough!

The Great Dao of Daoist Chu Jiang was on point; after all, he had been a Quasi-Emperor for a long time.

In the Netherworld, his lifespan was barely consumed, but his strength was affected by the environment.

Even after listening to Lu Ye’s teachings, he progressed further; however, for crossing the tribulation to become an Emperor, it was still not enough.

The strength that Daoist Chu Jiang exhibited gave him barely a ten percent chance of success.

After finishing his demonstration, Daoist Chu Jiang approached Lu Ye, noticing his expression, he knew he wasn’t ready yet.

But he wasn’t discouraged.

“Fellow Daoist, please tell me where the problem lies and where I should improve!”

“Well, I’ll speak frankly then.”

“Hahaha, do you think it’ll shake my Dao heart?”

Lu Ye contemplated this a moment.

“Fine, other than the Great Dao, everything else is lacking!”

Daoist Chu Jiang…

…

“The Dao heart is lacking?” Daoist Chu Jiang said in despair.

Lu Ye…

You weren’t saying that a moment ago.

“No worries though; there’s still lots of room for improvement in every aspect. I’ll think of how to help you elevate.” Lu Ye reassured him.

Daoist Chu Jiang bowed deeply.

“Thank you, Fellow Daoist!”

Lu Ye returned the gesture.

“No need to be polite!”

Daoist Chu Jiang’s awakening seemed like a signal, triggering other Quasi-Emperors to emerge from their retreats.

Lu Ye directly became their instructor.

He was going to conduct a training session, taking this group of Quasi-Emperors out to seek the Four Spirits needed to accelerate the rebirth of the Small World!

Eighteen Great Emperors were still too few; in the face of the chaos brought by Darkness Origin, they’d be completely overwhelmed.

But Lu Ye wouldn’t let that scare him.

He was going to take on those Great Emperors within the Darkness Origin!