Like previously, Leyvi attempted to gather fiery Qi into his fist again, and to his surprise, not only did the Qi conversion happen faster than when his Fire Affinity benefit was enabled, but the circulation of fiery Qi was even swifter, its power noticeably amplified.
Leyvi's eyes widened, staring at his fiery fist. "What? How can this be? To charge my Big Bang attack this much so quickly. Does that mean my body's fire affinity is greater than the Fire Affinity benefit now? Can this even happen?" He found it unbelievable.
If he were in the same situation as when the fire rock monster launched a big rock at him, he would have successfully charged his fist in time and obliterated the rock entirely without getting hit by the fragments.
Leyvi dispersed the charged fiery Qi from his fist and stood up. Immediately, his body erupted with fiery Qi, a radiant aura of heat and light flaring around him, casting flickering shadows on the glass. He looked around and noticed the surrounding bamboo trees weren't affected by his intense fiery Qi at all. It seemed the nature-born formation contained his power and prevented it from leaking out of the center, sparing the bamboo trees.
"Hahaha! Perfect! Then I can go all out!" he laughed, his voice echoing in the tranquil space.
The fiery Qi around Leyvi intensified quickly. The air within the clearing grew heavy, shimmering with terrifying energy, as if an inferno had been unleashed yet perfectly confined. Over time, the fiery Qi swelled, its heat and power reaching a crescendo.
Even though the nature-born formation prevented the inferno Qi from leaking outward, the seven pandas and the other demonic beasts, who had been gathering and complaining about Leyvi using their sacred spot for too long, felt the terrifying aura emanating from him.
As peaceful demonic beasts living harmoniously in the forest, rarely engaging in battle, Leyvi's aura frightened them deeply, causing them to retreat further and hide behind towering stalks, observing from a distance. Only the seven lively giant pandas stayed in place, cheering for their panda god.
Far within the bamboo forest, Crown Prince Dastan sensed the aura, though faintly. "Eh? This aura… isn't this the same aura when Leyvi went all out that time? Shit! Did something attack him? This prince needs to make sure!"
Without hesitation, he executed his royal family's movement technique, his steps now imbued with practiced elegance, weaving effortlessly through the bamboo. After a year of navigating diverse terrains, his once-clumsy technique had refined, his figure a blur as he evaded stalks with grace, rushing toward the source of the aura.
Meanwhile, Leyvi, at the formation's heart, had pushed his Fiery Trailblazing Martial Skill to its limit, his body enveloped in a blazing inferno of fiery Qi, the air shimmering with heat. His skin was glowing, eyes glinting with exhilaration.
"Amazing! This is around twice the amount of fiery Qi I could charge compared to last time. If I detonated myself right now, my Big Bang Annihilation's explosive power would be far stronger! Hahaha! All hail Fire Essence Beads! Truly the ultimate treasure!" Leyvi celebrated.
Satisfied, Leyvi canceled the martial skill, dispersing the charged fiery Qi. The inferno aura vanished, the clearing's atmosphere returning to its serene norm.
Leyvi smiled widely. His objective was accomplished. Now, even if the Talent Bead vanished suddenly, he wouldn't lose all his combat ability. He might not be able to use Big Bang Annihilation, since that technique required the Fire Immunity benefit to protect him, but he still had other strong moves.
"Oi, Leyvi, what's going on? What do you mean detonate yourself? Are you a suicide bomber?" Crown Prince Dastan's voice cut through, his figure emerging near the formation.
"Oh, Dastan, you're here. I was testing my martial skill. My body's fire affinity is better than expected. Hahaha!"
Crown Prince Dastan's eyebrow raised. "You know, this prince never asked since it had nothing to do with me, but now this prince can't contain my curiosity. You clearly use fire elemental Qi expertly, and you're even immune to fire. Doesn't that mean you already have high fire affinity? So why do you need the Fire Essence Beads? This prince would understand if you were struggling with fire Qi, but you don't. So why?"
"Ah… About that. I'm surprised it took you this long to ask. We've explored so many places together. I thought a busybody like you would've pried sooner," Leyvi teased, grinning.
"Bullshit! This prince might be arrogant and many things, but busybody's not one of them!" Dastan retorted, puffing out his chest.
"Hahaha! Is that so? Good! 'Don't be a busybody' is my family motto, after all. Now, back to your question. I actually have an attributeless spirit root, so my combat ability wasn't great before," Leyvi replied.
"Attributeless? I see. No wonder. Attributeless Qi cultivators lack combat power, but they generally have better spiritual sense than others. In my continent, due to their inherent spiritual sense advantage, they learn the attacking methods of Spiritual Cultivators instead. Huh? Wait a minute. Then how do you use fire elemental Qi effortlessly? Other elements too?"
"Hahaha! Of course, I found a treasure that lets me use multiple elemental Qi. But I use fire Qi the most," Leyvi replied. Though his answer was only part of the truth, sidestepping the Talent Bead specifics, it was still true. He didn't lie to the crown prince.
"No wonder," Dastan nodded. Many treasures with magical abilities existed, so Leyvi's answer didn't surprise him much. As for a treasure allowing multiple elements, he wasn't interested, as it meant learning more martial skills. He preferred treasures that enabled strong attacks instantly.
"Then why do you want the Fire Essence Beads if you already have the treasure?" he asked, crossing his arms.
"Tch, tch. Dastan, Dastan. This is called preparing for a rainy day. What if I lose my treasure? Wouldn't I be useless then? But now I don't have to worry! My body's fire affinity is better than what the treasure lends me! I won't have to worry about losing my explosive attacks anymore. Hahaha!" Leyvi laughed.
"Well, good for you then," Dastan said, shrugging. As a crown prince steeped in wealth and status, he didn't share Leyvi's cautious mentality—why prepare for a rainy day when resources were always at his fingertips? "So how many Fire Essence Beads did you consume?" he asked, curiosity piqued.
"A hundred. I didn't feel any effect at that point, so I stopped," Leyvi replied.
"Fuck! A hundred to reach the limit? That's more than this prince thought."
"Eh? You don't know?" Leyvi asked, tilting his head.
"How am I supposed to know? Do you know how long cultivators have been exploring the Protogaea Continent? Most treasures are gone already. Even if people found newly made elemental essence beads, they're only in single digits, you know. You shouldn't think the amount we found here is normal."
"Is that so? I guess we're really lucky, huh? Hahaha!" Leyvi laughed.
"Heh, who do you think you're traveling with? This prince is the bringer of luck, the embodiment of good fortune. By the end of this Mystic Realm exploration, you'll be the richest person in your backward continent. Daa hahaha!" Dastan boasted, puffing out his chest, his laughter echoing.
"Cheh, are you done bragging? Then go away," Leyvi said.
"Dammit, Leyvi! It's not a brag, it's the truth! Who do you think you're chasing away, this prince… Huh? Are you not done yet?"
"Not yet. I've only consumed the Fire Essence Beads. I still have the Earth Essence Beads. You can go play somewhere else again. I'll be done in probably another month."
Before Dastan could respond, a chorus of grumbles and growls rose from the surrounding bamboo forest, their sounds sharp with dissatisfaction, breaking the forest's usual peace.
"What's wrong with them? They were quite peaceful before. Are they picking a fight? Heh, a bunch of weaklings. This prince can handle all of them alone," he turned around, facing them.
"Wait, Dastan. They're complaining about me. Let me handle this," Leyvi said. They were upset because he had monopolized their sacred formation far beyond the pandas' allocated time.
The crown prince blinked. "Oh, right. You can talk to them. Then… this prince will continue exploring this place. You deal with your problem." With a casual wave, he turned and strode off, his refined movement technique carrying him gracefully through the bamboo, disappearing into the mist.
A demonic gorilla stepped forward. "Outsider, how much longer are you gonna use our place? It's already past the time allocated for the pandas! Get lost now! We've been patient enough," it growled.
"Right, right! Get lost!" the other demonic beasts supported.
The seven pandas panicked, trying to calm everyone down to prevent their Panda God from being hated, but they failed. More demonic beasts joined in, voicing complaints, forgetting the power Leyvi had shown earlier.
Leyvi scratched his head. He felt bad for monopolizing this great spot, but he still needed it. Should he play the villain and beat them up? No, no, no. The pandas were watching. He couldn't set a bad example for his cute fans.