Chapter 638: Thunderous Nine Heavens

Chapter 638 -306: Thunderous Nine Heavens

「The next day.」

First thing in the morning, Chen Cheng began his cultivation of the Iron Armor Demon Suppression Skill, making steady progress.

An hour later.

Chen Cheng stopped his cultivation and built a bonfire. He carved off a large, tender cut of Demon Crocodile Meat, sliced it into palm-sized pieces, and set them on a makeshift rack to roast slowly.

While the meat was cooking, he took out the Secret Manual for the Nine Heavens Thunder Shocking Hammer Technique and began to study it carefully.

Before long, the meat began to sizzle and spit oil over the flames. It gradually grew crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, releasing a rich, fragrant aroma.

By now, Chen Cheng had committed the moves and Heart Method Mantra of the Nine Heavens Thunder Shocking Hammer Technique to memory. He put the Secret Manual away and sprinkled various seasonings over the meat.

Just as he was about to dig in, he saw two Tier Four Demon Rats, each the size of a calf and covered in thick, shaggy, blue-green fur. They had crept up to the cave entrance and were poking their heads in, peering around cautiously.

They were crouched low, their bright, jet-black eyes gleaming. Their mouths hung wide open, drool trickling out. They looked absolutely ravenous.

“Want some?”

Chen Cheng picked up a piece of cooked meat and waved it at the two Demon Rats.

The two creatures immediately sat up, clasping their sharp claws before their chests in a clear attempt to curry favor.

They looked endearingly clumsy, yet remarkably intelligent.

CRUNCH!

Chen Cheng took a huge bite of the Demon Crocodile Meat. Incredibly crisp!

The gleam in the two Demon Rats’ eyes intensified, and they began to let out a series of high-pitched squeaks.

“None for you!”

Chen Cheng waved his hand, feigning a strike.

The two Demon Rats, thoroughly spooked, bolted away and vanished from sight.

Clearly, the beatings Chen Cheng had given them the previous night had left a lasting impression.

Chen Cheng chuckled and pulled out a wine gourd, taking hearty bites of meat and great gulps of wine.

The two Demon Rats soon crept back to the cave entrance. Not daring to enter Chen Cheng’s line of sight, they hid carefully behind the rocks outside.

However, Chen Cheng could clearly sense the two creatures sniffing the air insistently.

Demon Beasts possess more Spirituality than ordinary animals, and many can be tamed to serve as Hospital Guards.

However, the higher the tier of the Demon Beast, the more difficult it is to tame. Taming a Tier Four Demon Beast could take years, and Chen Cheng naturally had neither the time nor the inclination to bother with them.

This Tier Five Demon Crocodile meat was delicious. While its ability to replenish Qi Blood Power couldn’t compare to Tier Six Demon Beast Meat, it was far more potent than any other Tier Five Demon Beast Meat Chen Cheng had eaten before.

This was perhaps because the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi within the Fog Concealment Cave Mansion was far denser than in the outside world.

Moreover, since there were no Martial Artists hunting here, the population of Demon Beasts in the Fog Concealment Cave Mansion was extremely large.

On his way to Lake Heart Island the previous day, Chen Cheng had sensed the auras of several Demon Beasts, among which were at least two Tier Five Demon Beasts.

Since his cultivation of the Iron Armor Demon Suppression Skill required a massive amount of Qi Blood Power, he had no reason to worry about his supply of Demon Beast Meat.

The Tier Five Demon Crocodile he had hunted yesterday alone had yielded seven or eight hundred catties of meat—enough to last him for ten to fifteen days.

Lake Heart Island was located in Cold Water Lake, where the temperature was extremely low, so he didn’t have to worry about the Demon Beast Meat spoiling.

Furthermore, the rich Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi in the cave mansion meant that eating the Demon Beast Meat would allow him to recover his Qi Blood Power more quickly.

In the outside world, Chen Cheng could only cultivate the Iron Armor Demon Suppression Skill for two hours a day, but here in the cave mansion, he could manage a full three hours.

‘If I could cultivate in this cave mansion indefinitely, my Martial Arts Power would absolutely soar.’

‘But that isn’t realistic. Every Martial Artist who comes in will cultivate, consuming the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi within the cave mansion.’

‘Especially in this Fog Concealment Cave Mansion, where so many Martial Artists have entered, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi is being depleted even more quickly.’

‘If I want to cultivate faster, I’ll have to race against the other Martial Artists.’

‘Of course, the most satisfying thing would be to kill every other Martial Artist who entered and claim the entire cave mansion for myself.’

‘But that isn’t realistic. For one thing, the cave mansion is simply too vast—spanning two or three thousand li, but with only a few dozen Martial Artists inside.’

‘Besides, most of them are Organ Refining Realm experts with rich experience in the Jianghu. They’ll all be extremely cautious, making survival their top priority.’

‘Killing two people right as I entered was just a stroke of luck.’

‘If I actually went out hunting for others, I’d probably waste a lot of time just trying to find them. I might not even succeed.’

‘On the other hand, while wantonly killing other Martial Artists inside the cave aligns with the rules of the Jianghu, it would inevitably make me a target for resentment once I leave, creating a lot of unnecessary trouble.’

This was also why Chen Cheng had chosen to hide his identity.

‘Fighting and killing are unavoidable, but there’s no need to swagger around and attract attention.’

‘Keeping a low profile, quietly reaping benefits, and increasing my Martial Arts Power—that’s the proper way to do things.’

After finishing the Demon Beast Meat, Chen Cheng strode out of the cave. The two Demon Rats, terrified, scurried back to their lair in a panic.

Only after Chen Cheng was a good distance away did they sneak out again. They drew near the cave entrance but didn’t dare enter, huddling together and chittering as if whispering to one another.

Sensing their actions, a faint smile unconsciously touched Chen Cheng’s lips.

‘If those two dare to steal my Demon Crocodile Meat,’ he thought, ‘I’ll have no choice but to make a snack out of them!’

The northern part of Lake Heart Island was slightly larger than its southern part, giving the island the overall shape of a gourd.

The terrain was not particularly high; the tallest cliff, located behind Chen Cheng’s cave, was only twenty to thirty zhang in height.

Not far in front of the cave lay the lowest point on Lake Heart Island, where there was a Cold Pool more than ten zhang square.

The pool’s water was dark and deep. Along the cliffs at its edge grew many rare Medicinal Materials, hundreds of years old. Any single one of them would be priceless in the outside world.

For several hundred zhang around the Cold Pool, there were no signs of any Demon Beasts, not even a trace of a small animal.

Because of this, Chen Cheng deduced that a powerful Demon Beast might be lying dormant in the Cold Pool. Since he wasn’t short on Demon Beast Meat for the moment, he had no intention of bothering with whatever was in the pool.