If possible, Jiang Ke’er naturally wanted to find a quality team to quickly raise her ranking—first, to earn enough food for Eggy, and second, to fulfill her small wish of making it into the Shenzhou Cup Grand Tournament.
If anything, she also felt that her strength had not yet reached the point of being unrivaled under the heavens.
If she ran into the Dao Seat of the Tribulation Immortal Hall being besieged, and the organizers threw in some tricks, she might just lose on some Bronze Arena.
As someone weak, she had to be extra cautious.
But this time, she got impulsive again.
She had to admit, Si Lian’s words had truly moved her.
The sense of inferiority of her race—she’d felt it herself from the moment she crossed into this world.
Little Fox dreamed of turning into a human, yearning for everything the Human Clan possessed, ashamed of her own fur, ears, and tail.
The fate of an entire race was not something a small character like her could change.
That was too distant a matter.
She just wanted to be a quiet Little Fox, call anyone she disliked “Awai,” and if no one bothered her, she’d simply be left alone…
Yet, there always seemed to be a thorn lodged in her heart.
Perhaps she really was just a fool.
So be it.
Jiang Ke’er poked at the little egg white of the Pouched Dragon Egg and laughed.
“Count me in,” Gan Ruǎnruǎn sat down at the table, yawning as she called for Xiao Er, “A cup of Milk.”
“Not trying to act tough anymore?” Jiang Ke’er teased.
Gan Ruǎnruǎn’s face reddened a bit: “Playing it cool always comes at a price, but if you succeed, it’s fine. Getting carried home by Little Dog though… that’s just too embarrassing…”
“Ruǎnruǎn…” Si Lian looked apologetic.
“Let’s not bring up the past,” Gan Ruǎnruǎn waved her hand, “I’m only joining for Little Dog’s sake, so she won’t get fooled by you and lose her way.”
Si Lian looked at Gan Ruǎnruǎn, then at Jiang Ke’er: “Looks like you two get along well.”
Gan Ruǎnruǎn curled her lips: “One table’s worth of drinks—I can only promise not to pick a fight with Little Dog.”
“Um…” Jie Shui poked his head up weakly from under the table, “May I wake up now?”
Bang—
What greeted him was a thick, heavy wine bottle.
“Sleep a little longer. You can go find your chef Jiang Ke’er in your dreams.” Jiang Ke’er said expressionlessly.
Jie Shui was about to cry.
Why did I have to brag when I was bored? After drinking too much, I just happened to say, “Jiang Ke’er is my chef,” and of all things, I got caught red-handed by Jiang Ke’er herself.
“So…” Si Lian opened her notebook.
“My name’s Jie Shui, I’m in. Wolf Tribe, Strength System Cultivator!”
“Gan Ruǎnruǎn, Agility System, Fist Cultivator.”
“Qing Yi, Agility System, Dual Sword Cultivator.”
When they heard Jiang Ke’er’s explanation, everyone couldn’t help but look at her in astonishment.
A Demon Race Sword Cultivator was already rare enough, let alone one of the hardest to control—Dual Sword Cultivator.
Flying Sword Style was still manageable. It didn’t require much footwork or Sword Technique; as long as one’s telekinetic control was strong, anyone could practice it.
But Sword Technique was a battle technique danced on the edge of life and death.
Controlling a single sword was already the limit for most people.
Dual sword meant completely abandoning defense, requiring absolute confidence in one’s movement and offensive techniques!
Because of its difficulty and poor combat results, Dual Sword had already been eliminated by the Era.
Unless one could achieve Perfect Awareness Suppression, dual swords had no practical combat use.
Even the famed Sword Cultivator Jiang Ke’er was only a single sword cultivator.
No one had ever seen her wield two swords.
Gan Ruǎnruǎn frowned and said bluntly, “We’d better drop out. Due to lack of inheritance, our Demon Race really is weak in Sword Cultivation. Maybe your dual swords have no rival in normal times, but on the Divine Land Cup Arena it’s different…”
Actually, her words were already quite tactful.
“You don’t need to worry,” Si Lian explained for Jiang Ke’er, “Qing Yi did a 1v9 on the arena yesterday, wiped out both opponents and teammates alike using dual swords.”
Gan Ruǎnruǎn and Jie Shui were dumbfounded.
What kind of move is it to wipe out both opponents and teammates?
“I’ve got a basic grasp of your situations. Later I’ll help you set up actual Formation Arts and a Training Plan,” Si Lian took off her glasses, closed her notebook, and said, “Now I’ll take you to meet our other two teammates. These two are rather… hmm… rather unique, so don’t be too shocked.”
Si Lian led Jiang Ke’er to a construction site.
On the site, a hundred robust men were busily moving bricks, building a tall tower.
“Which one is it?” Jiang Ke’er couldn’t help but ask curiously.
“All of them.” Si Lian replied.
“…But aren’t there only five slots for the arena?” Jie Shui was puzzled.
Si Lian didn’t answer.
Suddenly, the Foreman on top shouted down, “A Miao! We’re short-handed!”
A man carrying a brick looked up, “Oh! Got it!”
Just then, another man beside him suddenly drew a gleaming broadsword and, with a sharp chop, brought it down right on him!
“Hey!”
This plot twist stunned everyone.
Jie Shui wanted to rush over, but Si Lian held him back and shook her head: “Wait, watch a bit more.”
“But… that’s murder!” Jie Shui was sweating all over.
The scene was extremely gruesome.
The blade-wielder cut the man in two and wasn’t done yet—he kept hacking, madly chopping the corpse into tiny bits.
Jie Shui nearly threw up at the sight.
But Jiang Ke’er noticed—there was no blood flowing from the body.
Instead, those tiny chopped bits were wriggling slowly.
They gradually separated from their original spot, and then, at a speed visible to the naked eye, started growing!
Limbs and veins grew out on top of the bits. In just a few breaths, they’d taken on human shapes.
Some of them turned out lopsided, with extra heads or feet, so the executioner chopped off the extras. After a while, they turned into complete people.
[Awai]
[Demon Race–Platyhelminthes–Turbellaria]
“These are your new teammate A Miao. You’ve just witnessed his skills,” Si Lian laughed, “The first time I saw it, I lost my composure even worse than you. Who could imagine there are such wondrous Demon Race fellows in this world?”
“Insect tribe?” Jiang Ke’er asked in surprise. It was her first time seeing a Demon Race member other than mammals or reptiles.
She’d thought only those two kinds of animals could cultivate into demons.
“I only learned for the first time that our Demon Race also has insect-type kin. A Miao said he used to live on Hanye Island in the Realm of Novice Cultivator. That place used to be the Myriad Blades State’s Human Sword Duel site, but he was never discovered… Looks like there are many Mysteries yet unsolved in this world.” Si Lian sighed.
Hanye Island? Jiang Ke’er didn’t remember ever seeing such a wondrous creature on the island.
Splitting was the Turbellaria’s racial ability.
It’s said that if you cut an earthworm in two, both halves live.
As for a turbellarian…
Suddenly, from above came another voice, “A Miao! I want to play football!”
“Eh eh, alright!”
“Da-da-da-da-da-da—”
The sound of a knife rapidly chopping on a Chopping Board rang out.
A few minutes later, two football teams were happily running about on the Green Field.