Chapter 493: Small Mysterious Boat

Yun Che traveled northward, heading straight for the direction Jasmine had indicated. Along the way, he passed through many small towns and naturally encountered a diverse population of humans and demons. He became increasingly convinced that this was indeed a world shared by both races. In bustling areas, some people would suddenly transform into beasts or spirits, while some beasts or spirits would likewise transform into human form. Those around them paid no mind, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

After seeing more demons, Yun Che quickly learned to discern between humans and demons based on their aura. Although the number of demons was no less than that of humans, the vast majority Yun Che saw were in human form. After all, in the vast Grand World, the human body was considered the most perfect. Pure humans and those who had transformed from demons interacted with complete normalcy. At least from what Yun Che observed, there seemed to be no discernible barrier between them. He even saw many couples where one partner was human and the other a demon.

"The Grand World truly holds countless wonders," Yun Che mused. "Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that each of its myriad smaller worlds is a unique and distinct entity. Everything in this world would astound the people of the Azure Cloud Continent. Conversely, a world like the Azure Cloud Continent, where demons are rarely seen and completely ostracized, might seem abnormal to the inhabitants of this place." Yun Che, tired from flying, stopped and rested on an ancient tree, expressing his thoughts.

"The complexity of the Grand World is beyond your imagination," Jasmine said indifferently. "Whether it's the Azure Cloud Continent or this world, they are merely specks of dust in the Grand World and represent nothing at all." Her tone suddenly shifted. "You'd better come into the Sky Poison Pearl for a moment."

"Hm?" Yun Che was startled. He then closed his eyes, focused his thoughts, and entered the Sky Poison Pearl.

The moment he entered, he heard a "crunching" sound. Jasmine floated there, feet not touching the ground, arms crossed, and an expressionless face as she stared ahead. Before her... Yun Che was astonished to see Hong'er.

"Hong'er?" Yun Che's eyes widened. "How is she here?!"

"The Sky Poison Pearl and the Profound Imprint Space are both worlds within your body, so it's not strange for them to be connected," Jasmine replied calmly.

"But when the Snow Phoenix Beast was here before, it could never enter this place! Moreover, the Sky Poison Pearl's inner world is extremely special. Even if both are spaces within my body, they shouldn't be able to merge with other spaces."

"Who knows?" Jasmine pursed her lips, clearly disinclined to explain further.

"And the Sky Poison Pearl's space clearly cannot accommodate living people or creatures. How could she..." Yun Che was filled with confusion.

"Because she isn't a living creature to begin with. I told you, she's very likely an 'Heavenly Spirit,' a species that has long been extinct. Or, you could understand it this way... she is a sword!" Jasmine said indifferently.

"A sword?"

"Yes! She is a sword! If you understand it this way, everything makes sense. And the truth... is pretty much that." Jasmine's gaze shifted slightly, her tone playful. "Instead of fretting over this right now... haven't you noticed what she's eating?"

Hong'er sat on the ground in an undignified manner, her cheeks puffed out, her mouth busily chewing. Crisp sounds, like someone eating candy, emanated from her. After finishing one piece, she tossed another into her mouth... Yun Che clearly saw that the object she was biting into emitted a profound purple light.

That purple glow shocked Yun Che so much he nearly knelt on the spot.

Purple... Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal!

"Hong'er... stop! You can't eat that!" Yun Che roared, lunging forward. The moment Hong'er saw him charge, she shrieked and scampered away, causing Yun Che to lunge into empty air. Before Yun Che could even resume his pursuit, Hong'er had made several more "crunching" sounds, then "gulped" down whatever was in her mouth. She then spread her small hands and said with a grin, "All gone!"

Yun Che: "！a#￥..."

Yun Che's hands trembled as he roared, "Hong'er! Do you know what you just ate?!"

"I don't know, but it was delicious!" Hong'er happily licked her lips. "Master, do you have more? I want more!"

"Of course not!!" Yun Che's heart twitched. "That was a Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal, a priceless treasure! I've only ever obtained two in my entire life, how could there be more... Huh, Master?"

"That's right!" Hong'er tilted her head and said with a giggle, "Sister Jasmine said that Master is much younger than me, so I can't call you 'big brother.' 'Master' is fine. And if I call you 'Master,' you'll give me all sorts of delicious things to eat every day! Oh my... I've called you 'Master' so many times already, what delicious treats will Master give me?"

Yun Che's eyebrows twitched violently... This wasn't an act, because what Hong'er had eaten were genuine Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals. One had come from the Xiao Sect's branch, and the other from Xia Qingyue. As he'd said, at his level, these were the only two he had ever obtained, and he had never brought himself to use them... Yet, they had all been eaten by Hong'er... Eaten! And she even thought they were delicious! Setting aside the value of Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals for a moment, as rare energy crystals second only to Purple Vein Divine Crystals on the Azure Cloud Continent, they possessed extreme hardness. Even with his current strength, it would be almost impossible for him to damage one with full force. At the same time, Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals contained extremely dense power. Absorbing this power for cultivation could bring rapid progress. Using its power to sustain life or profound energy could grant prolonged immortality and even regenerate flesh. Luxuriously, it could also be used to power profound arks. A tiny Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal could power a several-hundred-ton profound ark for thousands of miles! With heavenly crystals containing such dense energy, no one could predict what would happen if one were eaten... because no one would ever actually swallow such a treasure of heaven and earth. Hong'er not only ate them, but she actually bit them into pieces and chewed them! Her teeth would find a common flatbread hard to bite... yet she could eat Dragon Fault and Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals as if they were tofu!

"'Master' is a much more harmonious title, isn't it?" Jasmine said, her eyes half-closed. "Also, she didn't just eat the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals. All of your Yellow Profound Crystals, Cyan Profound Crystals, Purple Profound Crystals, Yellow Profound Jades, Cyan Profound Jades, Purple Profound Jades, and the Violet Crystal Marrow you bought in Divine Phoenix City — she ate them all."

"Hehehe..." Hong'er looked up, laughing, revealing two shiny little canine teeth at the corners of her lips. It was unclear whether it was a shy laugh or a triumphant one.

Yun Che felt utterly distraught. He quickly took inventory and found that apart from the lowest-grade profound stones with very low energy density and purity, all of his profound crystals, profound jades... and the precious Violet Crystal Marrow, all energy crystals were completely gone, not even a trace remained. The various energy crystals he had accumulated for so many years and never brought himself to use, which he had stored in what he believed was the safest place in the world—even safer than a super-powerful personal space he could open himself—had been completely emptied overnight. Yun Che scratched his scalp, then covered his face, and said, on the verge of tears, "Jasmine, why didn't you stop her?"

"I am your master, not your servant," Jasmine said disdainfully.

Yun Che: "..."

Jasmine's tone shifted. "However, don't worry. Hong'er won't eat your things for nothing. Her entire being is now dependent on you; she is both your person and your sword. Although what she likes to eat is unusual, it will bring you immense benefits."

"Benefits for me?"

"Haven't you felt a faint aura of Dragon Fault coming from her?" Jasmine asked.

"Dragon Fault's aura?" Yun Che stared at Hong'er, concentrating. A look of surprise appeared on his face... Although very faint, her body, which had previously emitted no aura, was indeed releasing an aura belonging to Dragon Fault! If it were merely Dragon Fault's aura, he could have directly attributed it to her having eaten Dragon Fault and not yet "digested" it. However, this aura was distinctly that of Dragon Fault before it had been broken, when it possessed a low-level sentience. He asked in astonishment, "What's going on?"

"It's simple. After she ate Dragon Fault, its power was broken down and absorbed by her strange body, becoming her own strength! Not only does she now have a faint Dragon Fault aura, but the sword she transforms into will also become more powerful because of it!" Jasmine turned her gaze to the astonished Yun Che and said indifferently, "In other words, every time she eats a sword, her own power will increase, and the Heaven Punishing Ancestral Demon Sword she transforms into will also grow stronger! She is not just Hong'er now; she is also your sword! If you want your sword to become powerful, then seek out all sorts of powerful swords for her... and heavy swords are best! For Hong'er, swords are her delicacy, and at the same time, they can transform into an enormous aid for you!"

Yun Che was truly astonished. Hong'er being able to eat Dragon Fault was already incredible to him, but for her to absorb the power from a sword after eating it, to make herself... and the sword she transforms into, grow stronger!! Such an astonishing existence actually existed in this world! Following the shock, a sudden surge of delight welled up... The Heaven Punishing Ancestral Demon Sword itself was already incredibly powerful, more than ten times stronger than Dragon Fault! If it could also grow in this manner... then it would be an unparalleled aid to him! Its power would be nothing less than that of a legendary Profound Heavenly Treasure!

"So, I just need to find all sorts of swords and feed them to her?" Yun Che looked at Hong'er, his previous resentment over her eating the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystals and Violet Crystal Marrow completely forgotten, his eyes gleaming brightly.

"It seems not," Jasmine said, pointing to her left. "Because she has absolutely no interest in swords below the Sky Profound level."

Following Jasmine's direction, Yun Che saw the Overlord Sword, Tiger Soul Sword... and the hundreds of swords he had taken from the Xiao Sect branch's treasure vault, all lying within the Sky Poison Pearl. Given Hong'er's gluttonous nature, where she'd abandon all principles for food... these swords lay there completely untouched.

This meant Hong'er didn't eat just any sword; the ones she was willing to eat had to be at least Sky Profound level... or even Emperor Profound! Sky Profound swords were extremely rare, and as for Emperor Profound swords... how many were there in the entire Azure Cloud Continent? As for artifacts above the Emperor Profound level... Yun Che had only seen the Sun Moon Divine Tribulation in Ye Xinghan's hands. He had never even seen a sword above the Emperor Profound level. Where was he supposed to find swords above the Sky Profound level for her?!

"Alright, I understand." Yun Che nodded. Although swords above the Sky Profound level were incredibly difficult to find, the fact that Hong'er could increase her power by eating swords was, after all, excellent news. However, he then said with some dejection, "She's my person and my sword, that's true, but it seems... she doesn't entirely obey me. Not only can she run out of the contract space on her own, but she can also come back by herself... and most seriously, she can break free from my control."

Just now, when he chased Hong'er, she ran incredibly fast... Despite both being bound by contract, the Snow Phoenix Beast back then could not disobey any of his mental commands whatsoever.

"Oh?" Yun Che's words caused a fleeting look of surprise to appear on Jasmine's face, followed by a faint hmph. "She's not a profound beast, and she's a Heavenly Spirit, an entity far superior to you in terms of existence. It would be strange if she were completely under your control. However, while she may seem simple, she's far smarter than you think. If you treat her well enough, not only will she listen to you, but even if you actively try to release the contract and make her leave, she'll stubbornly refuse to go."

"Oh..." Yun Che could only nod, sighing inwardly. Treat her better? Wouldn't that mean I'd have to constantly fawn over her? Damn it! Am I the master or is she the master?!

"So, eating crystals can also increase her strength?" Yun Che asked.

"No," Jasmine shook her head decisively. Then she turned to Hong'er and said, "Hong'er, show your master that profound ark."

"A profound ark?" Hong'er blinked her hazy red eyes, then her gaze brightened. "Oh, right, that one!"

As she spoke, she extended her small hand. A red light flashed in her palm, and instantly, a miniature profound ark, dark red all over and only the size of her small hand, appeared in her palm.