"Beast Taming Qi, envelop them!"

After knocking the two Demon Beasts into a heap, Nie Yun’s Beast Taming Qi descended with a WHOOSH and completely enveloped them. He then let out a thunderous roar.

"We are Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Beasts! We are far too proud to become anyone’s Demon Pet..."

Feeling the Beast Taming Qi wash over them, the two Demon Beasts finally began to panic.

They had been the undisputed rulers of this valley, living in blissful freedom. How could they possibly become someone’s Demon Pet, their very lives no longer their own to control!

Although Beast Taming Qi was domineering and the Beast Tamer himself was a monster, it was impossible to forcefully subjugate a Demon Beast as long as it refused to submit willingly.

"Proud? Unwilling? Heh, I’ll beat you until you are!"

As if he had expected this, Nie Yun smiled faintly and brought his Profound Jade Sword crashing down in a torrential storm of blows.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

He applied his strength with great skill, ensuring he wouldn’t kill the two beasts, but inflicting excruciating, irresistible pain.

"Aaargh... Stop! I’m willing to become your Demon Pet..."

"Me too..."

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of being beaten, the two great Demon Beasts could no longer endure the pain and cried out at the same time.

Seeing the youth’s ruthless methods, they knew that if they didn’t surrender, he would actually kill them.

The longer one lives, the more one cherishes life. These two Demon Beasts were monsters that had lived for centuries; they knew that being a Demon Pet was better than being dead, so they surrendered immediately.

HUMMM!

As they conceded defeat, a smile touched Nie Yun’s lips and he intensified the Beast Taming Qi.

"Master!"

"Master!"

A moment later, the two great Demon Beasts were prostrated on the ground.

"Tell me your names and your special abilities." Having finally subjugated the two great Demon Beasts, Nie Yun breathed a sigh of relief and smiled faintly.

"Master, my name is Hei Yan. I’m a Black Rock Giant Bear. I possess immense strength and can form a Black Rock Armor. Among Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Beasts, my power is only about average," Hei Yan offered his self-assessment.

"Master, my name is Zi Tong. I’m a Purple-Eyed Iron Armor Dragon and possess a diluted Dragon Race bloodline. While my defense isn’t as astounding as Hei Yan’s, it’s still quite formidable. My Talent Secret Techniques are Thorn Spike Impact and Purple-Eyed Light!"

"Hmm, not bad."

Having subjugated two Ultimate Venerable Level Demon Beasts and reached that level himself, Nie Yun was in an indescribably good mood and made a casual promise.

"Stick with me, and you’ll only find benefits, never drawbacks. In the future, reaching the Ultimate Venerable Peak, or even breaking through the Ultimate Venerable Realm itself, won’t be out of the question!"

"The Ultimate Venerable Peak? Breaking through the Ultimate Venerable Realm?"

Upon hearing the youth’s promise, both Demon Beasts’ eyes lit up.

If anyone else had said such a thing, they would have dismissed him as a madman. ’But this master...’

The moment they became his Demon Pets, they instantly learned their master’s exact age. He wasn’t even seventeen...

An Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse who was not yet seventeen... What did that even mean? As long as he didn’t meet an untimely end, breaking past the Ultimate Venerable Realm was practically a certainty!

The thought of serving a young man with such boundless potential as his Demon Pets made it all seem worthwhile to the proud Hei Yan and Zi Tong.

"Since you’re my Demon Pets now, you can’t stay here any longer. Come with me."

Even though he had reached the Ultimate Venerable Level, Nie Yun knew his current strength was still insufficient to break the seals within the Sword Burial Tomb and retrieve the swords buried in the first and second graves.

Since he couldn’t retrieve them, there was no point in staying. Besides, a month had passed since his second Nirvana. The escaped King Ning was probably close to waking, if he hadn’t already. He had to be killed as soon as possible. Otherwise, if news of the Luoo Qu Tomb and the Phecda Sword got out, it would cause endless trouble.

’Hm? Oh, right. That black pearl I found in the Luoo Qu Tomb... the one that made the Nameless Technique react. I tossed it in my Storage Dantian and completely forgot about it. Now’s a good time to see what it really is!’

The thought of the Phecda Sword reminded Nie Yun of the black stone he had taken from the Treasure Vault in the Luoo Qu Tomb.

He had no idea what the stone was; he’d simply placed it in his Dantian that day and forgotten all about it. Now that he had reached the Ultimate Venerable Level, it was the perfect time to figure out what could make his Nameless Technique tremble, even slightly.

"You two go gather your belongings. We’ll be leaving in a little while."

After giving the two great Demon Beasts their instructions, Nie Yun sat down on the ground and, with a flip of his wrist, took out the black pearl.

’The two Demon Beasts have lived in this valley for many years; they must have amassed quite a few treasures. Letting them pack up before we leave will make them more loyal.’

"Yes, Master!"

As expected, upon hearing the youth’s command, both great Demon Beasts showed looks of gratitude. With a WHOOSH, they transformed into two gusts of wind and vanished, each returning to their lairs to gather their things.

’This thing is incredibly hard...’

Once the two Demon Beasts had left, Nie Yun began to study the black pearl in his hand. It felt like stone, not metal, but ’how could any stone be this hard? I’m squeezing it with all my might and it’s not deforming in the slightest!’

What was his current level of strength? He was an Ultimate Venerable Powerhouse with a profound foundation. A single squeeze from him contained terrifying force, yet it hadn’t been enough to crush this pearl. It was truly astounding.

’Let’s try hitting it with True Qi!’

Placing the pearl in his palm, Nie Yun violently surged his True Qi into it.

RUMBLE!

With a loud bang, his Ultimate Venerable Level True Qi poured into the pearl in an instant.

"My successor, you chose wisely by taking this black pearl from the Treasure Vault!"

As soon as his True Qi flooded in, a faint voice sounded in Nie Yun’s mind.

’It’s Luoo Qu...’

The voice was identical to the one he had heard in the Luoo Qu Tomb. Nie Yun’s eyes widened.

"This is a treasure I sealed with a special method. It is the Storage Dantian of a Demon Beast!" the voice explained.

"What? A Storage Dantian?"

Nie Yun jumped in shock.

He possessed a Storage Dantian himself; it was one of his innate talents. It was common knowledge that the Dantian and the Qi Sea were the most fragile parts of the body. Once a person was killed, their Dantian and Qi Sea would shatter, becoming useless.

’To extract a Dantian from a body and turn it into a pearl... How is that possible? What kind of technique is this?’

Even for an old soul like Nie Yun, who had lived two lives, this revelation was so shocking it made his head spin.

Extracting a Storage Dantian from a body while preserving its storage function... Forget his current self, even in his previous life at the Peak of the Dantian Acupoint Realm, he couldn’t have accomplished such a feat!

Terrifying!

"Heh, you’re quite surprised, aren’t you? To tell you the truth, I didn’t create this Dantian either. I obtained it by a stroke of luck in an Ancient Divine Tomb! The most precious treasure of the Luoo Qu Tomb, the Phecda Sword, is inside it! When you all entered my great tomb, I said that there was one item worth more than all the others combined. I was referring to this pearl."

Inside the pearl, Luoo Qu’s voice continued, archaic and ancient, carrying a soul-stirring resonance.