Devouring the Heavens (ATG)

As Shane approached the two kids, smiling like a kindly old man, they shared a terrified look of understanding. Something was drastically wrong and doing the most sensible thing they could think of, they began circulating Profound Energy in their legs to bolt.

Well, they tried…

Who was Shane? The moment he had firmly decided to pay them back for this little embarrassing attack on two fronts, they were already completely surrounded by invisible ropes of Earth Energy.

As soon as they shared that panicked look and their bodies twitched as if to run away, he had constricted the ropes and bound them in place.

Seeing the kindly smile replaced by a wide toothy grin, Xiao Che went deathly pale and almost fainted, knowing whatever fate awaited him would be much much worse than his little aunt.

Lingxi, well she also tried her best to produce some crocodile tears and it was definitely effective, she was just too cute.

"B-big b-brother Long" She blinked while showing him an expression of being wronged but alas, he remained unmoved. Well on the inside he was kind of freaking out, that master level puppy dog eyed technique of her was almost lethal!

"Come child, let Master take a look at you~," He said in a singsong voice, enjoying this immensely while thinking. 'That'll teach those kids to make me feel sentimental'

Shane was definitely being a bit tsun tsun but he clearly felt the genuine respect and emotion that they projected into their Kowtows and it shook him up a little.

Obviously, they knew his character by now and how he wouldn't allow them to always be thanking him for every little thing.

Shane liked to take care of people if it was within his means to do so and didn't want those that he saw as equals always lowering themselves in front of him just because this backwards society demanded they do so.

Hence the Kowtow and acknowledging him as their Master. Even if he would never truly treat them as disciples, they saw him as their Master and benefactor in their hearts. This unexpected, two-pronged, attack had been able to make him feel exceptionally awkward with the added benefit of a warm heart and a stuffy chest.

Naturally, he needed to get some payback...

So, Shane deliberately took his time approaching and when he finally reached the front of Lingxi, she was sweating cold, her eyes roving around from side to side looking for a possible saviour or failing that, any means of escape.

What was going on? The puppy dog eyes technique had never failed before! Her big sister Qingyue had assured her it would work on him.

Shane extended his hands, pinched her little nose and then amidst her protests of "Pweash schwop!" and "Liimzi's showwwy", he proceeded to 'lovingly' squish and pull her cheeks for a few minutes until they were bright red.

Qingyue, that little devil, was unexpectedly leaning against a tree trunk and clutching her stomach while literally cackling with laughter, yes ...cackling. He wasn't exactly sure what she found so funny. Whether it was how awkward the kiddos managed to make him feel, what he just did to Lingxi or the fact that she likely put them up to it.

Thinking about it, it was probably all three, though another thought was more apparent in his mind right now. 'How the actual Fuck can she be cackling like a witch and still be so Goddess damned sexy? Where is the fairness in the world!?'

While this was all going on, the other perpetrator had been all too quiet, seemingly accepting of his fate albeit still madly revolving his Profound Energy to struggle against the bindings, hoping against hope to break free.

A commendable if ultimately futile effort.

An otherworldly blue lotus made of the purest Ice burst into bloom on top of Shane's palm, slowly revolving in the air and emitting a chilliness that could be felt a dozen meters away.

He blew softly at the lotus and it lazily floated through the air before hovering above Xiao Che's head where it erupted into a huge cloud of goose feather sized snowflakes, each one many times colder than any normal snowfall.

As the snowflakes covered the boy, he stopped struggling and started shivering, resignation and defiance fighting for a place inside his eyes. "Brother Long, did I ever tell you how much of a great brother you are?"

Shane sneered. "Really kid? That's the best you can do?"

The gears were turning in the kid's head now and knowing his brother so well, he soon had a stroke of genius, his expression brightening up. "Umm, Brother Long, you know you look really heroic with that majestic Warhammer slung across your shoulders. Oh, how I wish I was strong enough to wield one."

Bingo! Shane's whole demeanour changed, turning extremely amiable within an instant and he slung an arm around his brother's shoulders. "Hahaha! I knew you would come around Brother Che!"

Xiao Che, still shivering and covered in that unmelting snow, tried his best to show a sincere smile and nodded along as Shane launched into a tirade about the greatness of Warhammers.

Insert obligatory 'sometime later' "...Okay brother Che, now we are on the same page, how about let's get those snowflakes washed off of you?"

"W-washe-" Before the kid could even finish, Shane stepped away and a hole opened up in the air above him, gallons upon gallons of chilly water from the forest pool surged out, instantly soaking him to the bone.

Qingyue, who had calmed down during Shane's enthusiastic talk about Warhammers, burst into a fit of laughter again and even Lingxi couldn't help but giggle along.

Satisfied with his little payback, Shane picked up and dried out a madly shivering Xiao Che out with his own Profound Energy while being treated to a few colourful phrases that would easily make a sailor blush.

He just laughed them off and secretly committed a few of the more Asian ones to memory for later before sending them on ahead into the forest to search for beasts to hunt.

Shane and Qingyue spread out their Spirit Senses and activated their bracelets, for all intents and purposes, they became simple Elementary Profound peak cultivators.

They then followed along at a distance that was not too close but still within both of their Spirit sense range's while Shane explained what he wanted his wife to do on this trip.

"Qingyue, I want you to get used to live combat, so anything between the [6th of Nascent Profound] and the [1st of Spirit Profound], you will defeat using profound arts coupled with hand-to-hand combat.

Although unlikely as it will be to find one on the outskirts, I want you to use your sword at maximum power, along with all the skills you have developed to defeat any beast between the [1st of Spirit Profound] and the [6th of Spirit Profound] in the fastest time possible." He said seriously.

Qingyue's small world had always been a part of her and now that she had trained with it in mind and bonded deeper with her physique on a fundamental level, it was difficult for her to not show more power than she had any right to possess should she find herself in any sort of extended battle.

He needed her to get used to using overwhelming power for ending things quickly and avoiding detection, as her physique wouldn't become undetectable until she reached the Divine Way.

They had already been over the reasons and she knew the risks, so Shane just held her hand and rubbed his thumb across her palm reassuringly. "Like brother Che and little Lingxi we are also two halves of the same whole and I will be right here next to you in case anything goes wrong.

Still, I believe in your talent for combat, your skill with your techniques and your overall ability. Remember to stay vigilant and don't underestimate your opponent and nothing will happen to you." Not that he would ever let anything happen to her.

Qingyue next to him was sporting a gentle smile at Shane's concerns and overprotectiveness. Having cultivated for years now, this obviously wasn't the first time she was hearing words like these, although it still didn't diminish the warmth in her chest by even a fraction.

A little bit of teasing wouldn't hurt though, right? Turning around and placing both hands on Shane's chest, she rapidly fluttered her mesmerizingly beautiful eyes, bit her bottom lip and said coquettishly. "Yes Maaaster~"

*Slap* "Ahhh"

Only to receive a tight slap on her juicy buttocks, followed by a strong squeeze. Shane then disappeared in a flash of green while sending over a spirit sound transmission. 'Hmph Hmph! You see if this Master doesn't punish you plenty later.'

Qingyue just licked her lips, satisfied at the thought of getting exactly what she wanted and started preparing her mind for battle while constantly scanning ahead with her spirit sense, scrutinizing the area around her two friends.

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Shane watched on with a serene expression, betrayed only by the sharpness of his gaze, as Xiao Che drew the attention of a stocky looking canine the size of a horse.

A stake of the purest ice hovered above his palm, ready to take action at the slightest inkling of lethal danger as the beast again narrowly missed its prey.

He frowned slightly at the transparent blue window in front of him, [Profound Earth Wolf: Nascent profound 6]. 'Why is it always wolves?'

The beast didn't look all that much like a wolf but Appraisal hadn't steered him wrong before, so it must have been named by someone... lazy. *Growl* Shane shook his head and focused his attention fully on the battle going on below him.

The kid's sword and both his legs were enveloped in a faint green aura as he nimbly dodged another lunge from the ferocious overgrown pup.

The beast's answer was to let loose a throaty growl and lunge forth yet again, causing sparks to erupt along Xiao Che's blade as he parried the sharp claws with an upwards swing.

Amidst the shower of sparks, were shards of the beast's claws, and from the way it roared in pain and flinched away, that strike must have hurt it greatly.

Xiao Che's sword shone with a greater emerald hue and taking advantage of the Wolf's distraction, he performed a perfect downwards slash.

*Hooowl* The sword opened up a long and deep gash along one of the beast's forelegs, it wasn't a fatal wound, or even a disabling one but that wasn't what the kid was aiming for.

Xiao Che wasn't fighting alone and he had successfully caused it to forget about the other combatant.

"Haaaa!" With a cute shout, a blurred figure, sword covered in that same emerald aura, sailed through the air and landed on the wolf's broad back.

A gale formed in the surroundings as all of the figure's aura condensed into the tip of the sword, and without hesitation, it was plunged into the base of the beast's skull.

Of course, it was a wild little Lingxi!

The wolf jolted forward, catching the boy, who was watching her off guard and scraping across his thigh with the claws of its uninjured leg. It let out one last indistinct whine and collapsed down dead on top of him.

"Arrrrrghh!"

"Little Che!" Lingxi abandoned her sword and jumped down to the side of her love with a horrified expression but Shane was faster.

The corpse of the beast vanished into thin air and revealed Xiao Che, pale face covered in cold sweat, teeth grit and holding his badly bleeding thigh.

"Ahh, Little Che! No no no no no!" Lingxi panicked as she saw the amount of blood and lunged towards the kid only to be pulled back by Shane.

"STAY. BACK! Qingyue, a little help!" he shouted in a deep voice, before ignoring everything else and swiftly crouching at the side of Xiao Che.

Qingyue appeared with a flash of blue and held the now sobbing girl in her arms, while lightly scolding her to not lower her guard.

More beasts would soon be attracted by the scent of blood after all...

Shane pulled the kid's hands away from the wound, revealing three bone-deep gashes and his eyes narrowed. There was a heck of a lot of blood but also dirt and other shit from the beast's claws mixed into the wounds.

He had no idea whether a cultivator could get infections but there was also no way he would take the chance. Oh, how he couldn't wait to finally finish that quest and get the medical knowledge when he returned from this trip.

Smiling wryly, he pinched the kid's chin and pushed a handful of 'vitality pills' into his mouth before saying. "Brother Che, this is going to hurt."

Xiao Che nodded with determination and to show his understanding, he without the slightest hesitation, crunched the 'vitality pills' in his mouth.

With a wave of Shane's hand, his leg was enveloped in by a cocoon of dense Water Energy as the blood and other shit was pulled out from the wound, washing it clean.

Shane couldn't help but inwardly respect the kid as he only took in a single sharp breath through his tightly shut teeth but made not a single other sound throughout the entire process.

Satisfied that the gashes were clean, he placed a hand on Xiao Che's chest and started guiding the vital energy towards the wound while encouraging his body to also replace the lost blood.

They both could feel the temperature of the air drop by a large amount as profound energy attacks were discharged into the surroundings one by one, but trusting their companions, they continued to work on healing the wound so as to leave no sequelae.

After a quarter of an hour, most of the lost blood was replaced and Xiao Che's leg was almost back to normal when Shane felt a tap on his shoulder. "Leave the scar." Two pairs of eyes met, one filled with regret, the other understanding, and two brothers nodded together.

When the small issue was over with and the beasts in the surroundings that were thoroughly frozen into ice sculptures had entered Shane's inventory, the group decided to find a place to stop for the day.

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Dusty, no longer suppressing her aura, burst out from the undergrowth and wound herself around his arm as they worked together, using the wind to clear an area large enough for their tents.

A few minutes later, the camp was set up and an ear-piercing and sonorous Eagle's cry was heard from above before Coral landed on his shoulder and nuzzled against him.

Shane ran his fingers along her beak and cooed. "Such a good job today my adorable little birdy, yes you are."

She truly had done magnificently for them today, luring over many late and peak True Profound beasts which were promptly slaughtered by Qingyue using nothing but her Ice art enhanced hand-to-hand combat.

Three of the four Spirit Profound beasts including a [1st, 3rd and 5th of Spirit Profound] were also cleanly slaughtered by her with her sword. The full might of which she was already clearly capable of displaying as she finished off all of her opponents with either a single slash or stab augmented by Ice Energy.

To be honest, Shane did have some misgivings about her ability to kill at the start. After all, this wasn't an emotionless Qingyue who would feel nothing from death. However, it would seem he worried for nought.

When in battle her eyes became sharp and her face turned indifferent as she employed all of his teachings and experiences from the many training and sparring sessions, to the absolute limit.

There was zero hesitation in her movements. That, combined with her incredible awareness, flawless attacks, and swift executions, meant that everywhere she went, there would only be frozen corpses left behind.

Qingyue was simply a demon on the battlefield and God would Shane be lying if he said it didn't really really really turn him on. Seeing that indifferent expression soften at the sight of him and that icy cold goddess turn into a little kitten only for him to enjoy, also did wonders for his ego.

Unfortunately, the only other high-level beast found by Coral was at the [6th of Spirit Profound] and Shane accidentally froze it into a popsicle with a lotus that was boosted in power by his small world.

Still, it was only the first day and the harvest so far had already been bountiful.

Xiao Che and Lingxi had slain dozens and dozens of peak Elementary Profound and early Nascent Profound beasts, Qingyu had slain a lot of late to peak True Profound beasts and even four Spirit Profound beasts had fallen.

All of those had made their way into Shane's storage and would become valuable cultivation resources for the group.