Beast Taming: I can even raise gods and demons!

Chapter 187 Using the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled as bait for the Shadow Beast?! (6020 words)

"This is the northern edge of the Broken Soul Mountains."

The woman on the back of the Dragonblood Lion said, "Twenty miles further north is the Flashing Firefly Swamp."

Chen Fan and his three companions found a clearing in the woods and sat down.

It's been three days...

The journey has been quite smooth so far, without encountering anyone from the Nightmare Court.

However, the Broken Soul Mountain Range is teeming with monsters, and once you reach the central area, monsters of level 10 or higher can be found everywhere.

The four of them, along with a group of tamed beasts, practically fought their way here.

Chen Fan took a sip of water and checked the system panel.

[System Energy]: 3656898

[Host]: Chen Fan

[Rank]: Third Grade, Fifth Level

[Star Power]: 3799 cards+

[Mental Strength]: 452 Hz+

[Lingtai]: 5+ floors

Two nights ago, after discovering that the system energy had increased to over 100 million, Chen Fan immediately used the system energy to forge the fifth layer of his spiritual platform, breaking through to the fifth level of the third grade.

We are not truly out of the crisis yet.

If we can improve our strength even a little bit, then we should.

Because the breakthrough was too rapid in a short period of time, Chen Fan's foundation was unstable, and he found it difficult to control the surge in power.

So along the way, he chose to be the vanguard, constantly killing his way through.

After three days of fighting, although his cultivation level did not break through again, Chen Fan was able to control the power of the fifth level of the third rank with ease.

Unfortunately, the current system energy is still insufficient to activate the Nine Heavenly Blades and the Void Divine Body.

On the system panel, the Nine Blades of Heaven are still grayed out.

Chen Fan learned the Nine Heavens-Severing Blades from his senior brother Bai Tianyu, so to activate the Nine Heavens-Severing Blades, he still needs to consume 220 million system energy.

Activating the Nine Heavenly Severing Blades is only the first step; the next strike will require 380 million units of system energy.

If the system has enough energy, Chen Fan will definitely not hesitate to launch the first strike.

This swordsmanship is truly too profound...

Bai Tianyu used a method that depleted his soul power to pass on this set of sword skills to him, which was equivalent to passing on his years of experience and insights.

Even so, after all this time, Chen Fan has only managed to comprehend nine strikes with his first strike.

The first of the Nine Heavenly Severing Blades is actually composed of eighty-one blades. Not only must one comprehend all eighty-one blades, but one must also integrate and condense these eighty-one blades into a single blade for it to be considered a complete strike.

If the system has enough energy, it can directly activate the first strike, which would be equivalent to Chen Fan directly comprehending the first strike!

With the first strike of the Nine Heaven-Severing Blades, I dare not say it's too powerful, but killing several fifth-rank cultivators with a single strike shouldn't be a big problem.

But it only has 365W of system energy right now.

It looks like we'll have to wait a few more days.

The insect swarm incident in Donghai City is nearing its end.

Although Chen Fan had been frantically breeding beasts for the ten days before coming to Shanghai, the insect swarms outside Donghai City were dwindling, so the increase in system energy had slowed considerably in the past few days.

It's probably impossible to see the system energy increase by one or two million units overnight like before.

Chen Fan remained silent for a moment, then suddenly stood up.

Ye Hao was taken aback: "Brother Fan, what's wrong?"

Chen Fan said casually, "My stomach isn't feeling well. I'm going to find somewhere to clear my head."

Ye Hao also stood up: "I'll go too, my stomach isn't feeling too well either."

"Get lost!" Chen Fan said, "Do I need to team up just to take a dump? I'll go west, you go east!"

Helpless, Ye Hao could only walk eastward: "Daodao, keep an eye on that woman, don't let her get away."

The woman was about to speak...

Shen Daodao reversed the sword hilt and stabbed it into the woman's head.

"Bang!"

The woman collapsed to the ground and fainted.

Shen Daodao said, "Then there's no need to worry."

Chu Xuan glanced speechlessly at the woman on the ground.

The woman's head was covered in bumps.

Whenever he needed to do something, Chen Fan would habitually knock her unconscious.

Now even Shen Daodao has learned it.

……

Chen Fan didn't want to defecate in the wild at all.

He wanted to get away and directly utilize the system's energy to break through to the fourth rank.

Although the difference between the third and fifth ranks and the fourth rank seems small, they are actually worlds apart.

Unless someone like Chen Fan has mastered a peerless sword technique like the Nine Blades of Heaven-Severing, or possesses a high-grade Xuan weapon like the Heaven-Severing Demon Blade, an ordinary third-grade fifth-level cultivator simply cannot possibly cut down a fourth-grade cultivator.

After reaching the fourth rank, one can condense star power into star power armor.

This single layer of defense is more than enough to outperform most low-level armor!

Chen Fan glanced back at Chu Xuan's group, then went around to the back of the jagged rocks.

Let's keep a low profile...

These past few days have been a real blow to those guys.

In just two or three days, he forged three layers of spiritual platforms, which has made Chu Xuan a bit withdrawn.

If he were to see him break through to the fourth rank by simply taking a dump, even someone with Chu Xuan's personality would probably want to vomit blood.

After walking a distance, Chen Fan sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

[Lingtai]: 5+ floors

The Lingtai (spirit platform) has only five floors.

But even after breaking through to the fifth level, there are still plus signs afterward.

Clearly, this is the final hurdle for someone to break through from the fifth level of the third rank to the fourth rank!

Chen Fan took a deep breath, focused his mind, and clicked the "+" sign after the 5th floor.

[Consuming 150 million system energy, solidifying the Star Sea, breaking through to the fourth rank. Please click "Yes" to confirm!]

This final step requires a staggering 150W of system energy.

In future cultivation, if you want to directly increase the system's energy, the energy consumption will be enormous.

Once we arrive in Shanghai, we must take "beast breeding" to the extreme.

Once the number of trained beasts reaches a certain level, the system's energy can then soar to new heights!

The Nightmare Garden has unleashed a swarm of insects, which has conveniently delivered a "generous gift"!

But once you arrive in Shanghai, it's not so easy to encounter such "generous gifts" again.

Chen Fan pondered for a moment, then clicked "Yes".

next moment……

"boom!"

His body jolted violently!

The Yin energy surrounding him suddenly surged towards him like a raging flood!

The process of breaking through from the third rank to the fourth rank involves absorbing the Yin energy of heaven and earth to forge a spiritual platform, allowing the Yin energy to merge with the stellar power within the body.

Now Chen Fan has already reached the fifth level of his nine spiritual platforms, and he is just one step away from achieving it!

As the Yin energy from the surrounding world poured in, the star sea, surrounded by the nine spiritual platforms in the center, immediately condensed and compressed, transforming into the shape of a spiritual platform!

Immediately...

The star power on the nine spiritual platforms began to circulate, quickly connecting and permeating each other!

Centered on the central star platform, a mysterious and unpredictable star array quickly takes shape!

As the star array took shape, the stellar energy from the surrounding heaven and earth immediately converged on Chen Fan at an even faster speed.

The star platform formed from the sea of ​​stars, though much smaller than before, was like a black hole, frantically devouring the star power of the surrounding world.

"boom!"

Chen Fan's body jolted violently once again.

Above the star platform, a "heavenly gate" leading to an unknown destination rapidly materialized!

Countless stars fell from the sky...

I've finally broken through to the fourth rank!

The eight extraordinary meridians connect to the nine orifices.

The nine orifices determine the ten directions.

The Ten Directions Gathering Spirit Platform.

The Spirit Platform ascends to the Heavenly Gate!

The first-grade realm requires opening eight meridians, hence it is also known as the Eight Meridians Realm.

The second-grade realm requires the opening of the nine orifices, hence it is also known as the Nine Orifices Realm.

The Third Grade Realm requires the determination of the Ten Directions, hence it is also known as the Ten Directions Realm.

The fourth-grade realm requires the convergence of the spiritual platform, hence it is also known as the spiritual platform realm.

The fifth rank realm requires ascending to the Heavenly Gate, and is thus known as the Heavenly Gate realm!

[System Energy]: 2156970

[Host]: Chen Fan

[Rank]: Fourth Grade

[Star Power]: 3949 cards+

[Mental Strength]: 465 Hz+

[Tianmen Progress]: 1%

After glancing at the system panel, Chen Fan stood up.

In just a short while, the system's energy increased a little bit more.

With a slight thought, Chen Fan activated his star power, instantly covering his body with a thin film of star power.

"Bang!"

This layer of star power exploded before it could fully cover the entire body.

Chen Fan frowned.

The "Star Power Armor" after reaching the fourth rank seems to require unique skills.

Let's ask the old leader later.

Alternatively, you can ask your advisor after you arrive at the top martial arts university in Shanghai.

Chen Fan looked at a large tree with a diameter of more than three feet directly in front of him, and with a flick of his wrist, his fist immediately began to glow.

But just as he was about to punch the big tree...

A faint human voice suddenly came from ahead.

"Someone's there!"

Chen Fan's fist trembled slightly as he withdrew his star power.

Then, two summoning circles appeared beside him, and the old ape and Little Black crawled out of the summoning circles.

Little Black took to the air.

The old ape then unleashed "Shadow Curtain," enveloping Chen Fan within it.

Under the cover of the old ape's shadowy canopy, Chen Fan quietly crept toward the direction from which the voices were coming.

Before long, a scene on the mountain road ahead came into Chen Fan's view.

On the mountain path, a group of armored beast tamers, leading a group of beasts, were seen pushing a group of people who were bound hand and foot.

The group of people who were tied up included the old and the young, men and women.

Everyone's body was covered in wounds, and blood was flowing freely.

Some children cried as they walked.

But their cries only brought them a brutal beating!

For a moment, cries, curses, screams, and the ferocious roars of the beasts mingled together.

Seeing this scene, Chen Fan thought he had traveled to an ancient world.

Why do we see this scene on the northern edge of the Broken Soul Mountains?

Who exactly are they?

Chen Fan's gaze quickly swept over the bound people.

The properties panel did not appear.

They are neither monsters nor aliens!

What exactly happened?

"Hurry up! If you delay our important mission, none of you will survive!"

"A bunch of trash, so slow, they're wasting my time!"

"If you don't reach the Glowing Swamp before dark, I'll kill you and feed you to the wild dogs!"

The whip kept falling on those people.

Screams continued to ring out.

The screams of the adults and children only drove the group of armored beast tamers even more frenzied.

Some of them even burst into laughter, treating the beating of the elderly, weak, sick, and young as a form of amusement.

Chen Fan's gaze grew colder and colder.

His gaze swept quickly over the beasts.

Eight tamed beasts...

The lowest-level beast taming is a level 9 Clefthoof Bull;

The highest-level tamed beast is a level 13 swamp flying serpent;

The other six beasts are all level 10 or above.

Judging from their appearance, the cultivation levels of this group of beast tamers should all be around the third rank.

Chen Fan watched the group of people gradually disappear into the distance.

After they disappeared around the bend in the mountain valley ahead, Chen Fan waved and called Xiao Hei down.

At the same time, he also summoned Xiaoqing.

"Xiao Hei, you, Xiao Qing, and the old ape, go back and find Chu Xuan and the others. Tell them what happened to me. Then you and Xiao Qing, together with Chu Xuan and the others, should find a place to hide nearby."

Chen Fan said in a deep voice, "I'll go after them and see what's going on."

Xiao Hei asked, "Aren't we letting Chu Xuan and the others pass?"

Chen Fan shook his head: "It's difficult to get things done with too many people, and most of them are at least at the third rank. It would be too dangerous for Chu Xuan and the others to go with them."

Xiao Hei nodded and, together with Xiao Qing and the old ape, headed back the way they came.

Chen Fan slung his long sword behind his back, crouched low, and followed quickly like a ghost.

After breaking through to the fourth rank, even though he didn't exert much effort, his speed was much faster than before.

A few minutes later...

Chen Fan then caught up with that group of people.

Among the group of people who were tied up, two children who looked no more than seven or eight years old collapsed to the ground, seemingly exhausted.

Two beast tamers, a man and a woman, were whipping two children on the ground.

Amidst the heart-wrenching cries, the man and woman burst into laughter.

Chen Fan picked a leaf, poked a few holes in it, strung a vine on it, and made a mask, which he then wore on his face.

He then took the long sword off his back.

With his left hand gripping the scabbard, Chen Fan emerged from the woods with a cold gaze.

"Who goes there!"

Among that group of beast tamers, some saw Chen Fan emerge from the forest.

A group of beast tamers and their beasts all turned to look at Chen Fan at the same time!

Chen Fan didn't speak, but walked slowly step by step.

"Something hiding its true nature..."

The person riding on the level 13 swamp serpent coldly said, "Kill him!"

A beast tamer clad in armor immediately approached, leading a black flame rat that was larger than an ordinary ox.

Chen Fan walked step by step toward the black flame rat.

"hiss!"

After getting a little closer, the Black Flame Rat, along with the Beastmaster on its back, pounced directly on Chen Fan!

"Clang!"

Chen Fan suddenly drew his longsword and cleaved it down, splitting both himself and the Black Flame Rat in two instantly!

"How dare you!"

"court death!"

A group of beast tamers were enraged when they saw their companion killed!

Apart from the level 13 beast and the level 12 beast, the other beasts and beast tamers surrounded Chen Fan at the same time!

Many of the children who were tied up collapsed to the ground as their legs gave way.

"Crack!"

Just as the group of people surrounded them and the beasts were flashing with light, preparing to unleash their skills, Chen Fan suddenly vanished into thin air!

next moment……

"brush!"

Chen Fan appeared out of thin air directly in front of the level 13 swamp flying serpent!

A blade flashing with lightning light slashed towards the man on the swamp flying serpent!

"How dare you!"

The man roared, and with a flash of light, his spear slammed towards Chen Fan's longsword like a club.

"when!"

The domineering and unparalleled blade light sliced ​​through the spear in one strike, then cleaved the man and the swamp serpent in two at the same time!

The early stage of the third rank and the level 13 beast taming were not even able to withstand a single strike from Chen Fan!

The other six turned around and stared at their murdered captain, dumbfounded!

Immediately, a group of people cried out in alarm and scattered, trying to escape!

"Are you able to leave?"

With a powerful push from his feet, Chen Fan shot forward like a cannonball. When he was more than eight meters away from the person in front of him, he swept his sword horizontally!

"boom!"

Blood spurted out, and the bodies of the beast tamer and the beast exploded simultaneously!

Chen Fan moved swiftly, catching up with the group and killing them one by one with a single strike, showing no mercy!

After he killed five people, the last man had already escaped more than a hundred meters away!

But Chen Fan flashed twice and caught up with the man right behind him!

"No!"

When the man realized Chen Fan had caught up with him, he was terrified and knelt on the ground with a thud: "Please, please don't kill me!"

"Those people you bound also begged you for the same thing." Chen Fan casually swung his long sword, cleaving the jungle bear next to the man in two.

Seeing his beast killed, the man became even more terrified, lying on the ground trembling as if having a seizure, wanting to run but daring not to!

Chen Fan squatted down and said calmly, "Who are you people? Why are you taking this group of unawakened old, weak, and disabled people? Where are you going, and what are you going to do with them?"

"If you dare to lie to me, I will kill you; or if I think you are lying to me, I will also kill you; if you are hiding something, I will also kill you... In fact, you have to work very hard to keep this little life."

"Did you understand what I said? If you didn't, I'll kill you right now."

The man swallowed hard and said, "I...we are from the Li family of Shanghai. This time we captured some people who haven't awakened yet, and we want to use them as bait to lure out the Shadow Beasts of the Flashing Swamp."

"None of this has anything to do with me; I was just following orders..."

"It was Li Xinghe, the eldest son of the Li family, who did it. He ordered us to do it!"

The Shadow Beast of the Glowing Swamp?

Chen Fan's expression shifted slightly.

The female Star Warrior from Nightmare Court who was captured earlier mentioned that only one Shadow Behemoth posed a real threat in the Flashing Swamp ahead.

This Li family's young master, Li Xinghe, actually used living people as bait to lure out the Shadow Beast?

What difference is there between this kind of depraved person and the scum of the Nightmare Court?

Chen Fan stood up and said coldly, "Li Xinghe wants to capture the Shadow Beast?"

The man kneeling on the ground nodded repeatedly: "That Shadow Behemoth is an extremely rare monster. Li Xinghe wants to capture it alive so he can subdue it and make it sign a contract with him!"

Chen Fan's eyes narrowed slightly: "What is Li Xinghe's cultivation level? What kind of experts are around him?"

The man on the ground said, "Li Xinghe is at the second level of the fourth rank. This time he brought two beast tamers at the third level of the fourth rank... They have now arrived at the Dust Mist Canyon of the Flashing Firefly Swamp."

"We're escorting this group of people to Dust Mist Canyon..."

"Pfft!"

Chen Fan's long knife slashed across the man's neck.

The man clutched his neck with both hands, stared wide-eyed at Chen Fan, struggled for a moment, then collapsed to the ground, dead.

Chen Fan nimbly leaped and bounded through the jungle, quickly returning to the mountain path.

On the mountain path, the group of people who were tied up had actually managed to break free of their ropes!

Chen Fan's expression shifted slightly.

Among these people, there seem to be Star Warriors?

At this moment, seeing Chen Fan return, a woman in her mid-twenties from the group stepped forward and said, "Thank you for saving me, sir!"

Chen Fan sized up the woman, tilted his head, and asked, "Are you a Star Warrior or a Beast Tamer?"

The woman quickly replied, "I am a Star Warrior, Second Rank, Second Heaven."

Even a second-grade, first-level Star Warrior was captured and used as bait. This Li family of Shanghai...

Chen Fan glanced at the group of people behind the woman and asked, "Besides you, are there any other Star Warriors or Beast Tamers?"

The woman said, "There are three other Star Warriors, but their cultivation is only at the fifth level of the first rank."

Hearing this, Chen Fan frowned.

Most of the monsters in the Shining Swamp are level 8 or higher.

It would be extremely difficult for a second-grade, second-level Star Martial Artist, plus three first-grade, fifth-level Star Martial Artists, to protect such a large group of people.

Chen Fan looked at the group of people and felt a bit of a headache.

He's being hunted down right now.

Escorting such a large group of people is highly unrealistic.

But Chen Fan couldn't bring himself to leave them there to fend for themselves.

After a moment of silence, Chen Fan pointed to the pile of corpses and said, "Among the group of people I killed, some still had intact armor, shield-type bracers, and weapons of considerable level..."

"Go and get that equipment. Are you confident you can get out of the Shimmering Swamp?"

The woman gave a wry smile and said, "It's very difficult, but we have no other choice."

Suddenly, a little girl walked over and said, "Big brother, thank you for saving us... Can you take us away from here?"

Chen Fan sighed softly and said, "I am also being hunted down. Taking you along would be very inconvenient... and might even bring you to your doom."

"Moreover, Li Xinghe has also arrested a group of people, and I need to go and take a look."

The little girl's eyes widened, and she nodded firmly: "Then...then you go!"

"We...we will get out of this swamp ourselves!"

"Good girl!" Chen Fan smiled slightly and reached out to pat the little girl's head.

Then, he looked at the woman and said, "Do you know how to get to the Dust Mist Canyon in the Flashfire Swamp?"

The woman nodded and said, "Go northwest from here, about 180 miles away, and you'll find the Dust Mist Canyon."

"They want to capture us and take us to Dust Mist Canyon to use us as bait to capture the Shadow Behemoth."

Chen Fan nodded slightly: "You should change direction and head northeast. Be careful on the road."

After leaving a message, he rushed into the jungle and headed northwest.

A little further ahead is the Glowing Swamp.

Chen Fan moved quickly through the jungle.

The helpless and desperate looks in the eyes of those children kept flashing through his mind.

An indescribable killing intent rose in his heart.

At this moment, Chen Fan's eyes became somewhat frightening.

He had never wanted to kill anyone as much as he did now!

I want to kill them all!

(End of this chapter)