CHAPTER 1701: CHAPTER 1701: SOUL GATHERING

The Storage Ring requires blood recognition to master it and control the space inside to store items.

A master-recognized Storage Ring cannot be opened by others unless the master voluntarily relinquishes it or the master dies.

Yet now, Wyatt Barnes cannot open the Storage Ring that originally belonged to the Junior House Master of Sky-scraping Mansion, ’Peace Adams’.

Thus, there’s only one possibility.

Peace Adams is not dead!

"Impossible!"

However, as soon as this thought arose, Wyatt Barnes felt it was impossible.

On that day, when he killed Peace Adams, he used the myriad sword domain to form a sword light, combined with the second realm of the Supreme Heart Sword, ’Sword Shadow at Will’, and the formidable power of his physical body, to execute the strongest sword strike, piercing directly through Peace Adams’s brow.

The brow and the heart are the death points of humans.

The heart controls the body, and the brow governs the soul.

Piercing the brow is equivalent to destroying the soul, which is the safest means of a kill.

Attacking the heart brings certain risks, as some people have misaligned hearts.

Given the situation at the time, if Wyatt Barnes couldn’t deliver a one-hit kill, Peace Adams would surely surrender immediately upon coming to.

Thus, he didn’t target Peace Adams’s heart because he wouldn’t gamble.

That’s why he chose the safest method — one sword through Peace Adams’s brow, crushing Peace Adams’s soul.

"Back then, I extended my Divine Sense to investigate... Peace Adams’s soul was clearly dispersing as his corpse fell. According to common sense, once the soul begins to disperse, there’s no chance of survival... But, why can’t his Storage Ring recognize a master?"

Wyatt Barnes’s face turned a bit unsightly.

Maybe there were quite a few good things inside Peace Adams’s Storage Ring, along with the Storage Rings of Monk Flower, Silent Void, and GullyAshton Chapman, yet Wyatt Barnes wasn’t thinking about retrieving the items, but pondering why the Storage Ring failed to recognize a master.

Thinking it over and over, there’s only one possibility:

Peace Adams is not dead!

"Elder Fire."

Unwilling to believe Peace Adams is dead, Wyatt Barnes immediately contacted Elder Fire inside the Seven Treasure Jewel Tower, seeking the reason.

Elder Fire, at his peak, was a powerful being in the heavenly planes, perhaps capable of shedding some light on the matter.

As Wyatt Barnes recounted the events, Elder Fire pondered for a moment and asked, "You said he was a Demon Cultivator?"

"Yes."

Wyatt Barnes nodded, then added, "According to others, Peace Adams was not a Demon Cultivator a year ago and was only at the early stage of Middle Saint Realm... A year later, he appeared again, not only as a Demon Cultivator but having advanced to the ’Middle Saint Realm peak’!"

Frankly, Wyatt Barnes was astonished by Peace Adams’s progress.

To know that even with the assistance of the Seven Treasure Jewel Tower, where five days inside equaled one day outside, Wyatt Barnes couldn’t guarantee advancing from early Middle Saint Realm to the peak within a year outside.

Like before the Overleaping Rankings started, he stayed on the third level of the Seven Treasure Jewel Tower for nearly four years, spending a part of the time understanding the Supreme Heart Sword, but primarily focusing on upgrading his cultivation level, only stabilizing at the early stage of Little Saint Realm and breaking through to the middle stage of Little Saint Realm.

Now, Wyatt Barnes, although in the middle stage of Little Saint Realm, is infinitely close to the late stage of Little Saint Realm.

Additionally, his battle power is comparable to that of a typical Middle Saint Realm peak!

This is evident from his ability to kill Peace Adams.

"To gain such improvements in such a short period, and also become a Demon Cultivator... I reckon his Devil Path cultivation method must record the technique of ’Soul Gathering’."

Elder Fire’s voice quickly transmitted.

"Soul Gathering?"

Wyatt Barnes’s eyes shrank, revealing horror; it was his first time hearing this term.

"Yes, it’s Soul Gathering."

Elder Fire responded, "Some advanced Devil Path cultivation methods and Taoist Immortal Methods record the ’Soul Gathering’ technique... Soul Gathering refers to the ability to consolidate the soul anew within the period when the soul is shattered. Of course, even if consolidated, it takes some time to fully recover."

"So, could he possibly come back from the dead?"

Wyatt Barnes took a sharp gasp.

"You could say that."

Elder Fire responded again.

Upon hearing this, Wyatt Barnes’s face turned extremely unsightly, "So Peace Adams not only survived but could use the ’Soul Gathering’ technique to reconsolidate his shattered soul, resurrecting?"

"How can this be!"

The murmuring deepened, and Wyatt Barnes’s face twitched slightly.

He traveled thousands of miles to the Sky-scraping Mansion territory, to partake in the Overleaping Rankings position battle, precisely to kill Peace Adams and relieve Julia.

He originally thought he killed Peace Adams, but didn’t anticipate this outcome.

"Now, Uncle Hanson also believes Peace Adams is dead... If he finds out Peace Adams survived, who knows how disheartened he’d be!"

As time passes, Wyatt Barnes’s expression becomes increasingly grim.

Intending to report the good news to Karina Hanson, Wyatt Barnes, upon thinking that Peace Adams survived, decided not to seek Karina Hanson but left the Blue Wave Hanson Mansion on his own.

He needs to calm down now.

"Elder Fire, you just mentioned that even with the use of the Soul Gathering technique, it requires a period of time to restore the soul... Specifically, how long would it take?"

Wyatt Barnes asked Elder Fire again.

"The specific time needed still depends on how well the Soul Gathering technique is mastered. The technique itself is tiered... However, even with the best Soul Gathering method I know, to restore a soul at the peak of the Middle Saint Realm and allow it to reincarnate, it would take at least a year and a half."

Elder Fire replied.

"A year and a half?"

Upon hearing this, Wyatt Barnes let out a sigh of relief.

Earlier, his biggest concern was that Peace Adams might recover immediately, and then his marriage contract with Karina could proceed as planned.

But now it seems, in the short term, there’s no chance of fulfilling this marriage contract.

Wyatt Barnes temporarily set his heart at ease.

"A year and a half... and that’s with the best Soul Gathering method Elder Fire has seen! The technique that Peace Adams has mastered shouldn’t be that strong; it would take at least two to three years."

At this thought, Wyatt Barnes felt even more at ease.

However, his gaze gradually became sharp, "Peace Adams, I never thought you’d survive... But if I can kill you once, I can naturally kill you a second time! In two or three years, killing you will be as easy as killing a dog!"

Wyatt Barnes was filled with confidence about this.

Two or three years later, even if Peace Adams fully restores his soul and reincarnates, his cultivation would at most remain at the same peak level as before.

Right now, Wyatt Barnes could kill him.

After two or three years, facing a Peace Adams whose cultivation hasn’t changed, it would be even easier for Wyatt Barnes to kill him.

"At that time, I can just use the identity of Eden Lee to find an excuse to target him... saying I’m unwilling that I didn’t kill him during the Overleaping Rankings, creating a devil’s obstacle in my Heart Sword, obstructing my path in Martial Dao, and using his life to eliminate all barriers... This way, it won’t implicate the Bibo Hanson House."

With this idea in mind, Wyatt Barnes completely put his heart at ease.

The Sky-scraping Mansion, regardless, wouldn’t link ’Eden Lee’ with the Bibo Hanson House.

Therefore, there’s no worry about implicating the Bibo Hanson House.

"In a month’s time, it’s the day the Sky-scraping Mansion comes to seek marriage... but now that Peace Adams’ soul is shattered and he’s unconscious, it’s impossible for him to marry Julia. For the next two to three years, Julia is safe."

With this thought, Wyatt Barnes breathed a sigh of relief.

In this light, his trip to the Sky-scraping Mansion’s region wasn’t in vain.

After sorting this out, Wyatt Barnes went to find Karina Hanson.

"Brother Leandro!"

Seeing Wyatt Barnes appear again, Karina Hanson was naturally very surprised, a gloomy face blossoming into a smile.

However, this smile appeared rather bitter.

"Brother Leandro, where have you been this past year?"

Karina Hanson continued to ask without waiting for Wyatt Barnes to respond.

"I went to the Sky-scraping Mansion region."

Wyatt Barnes smiled and said.

"Went to the Sky-scraping Mansion region?"

Hearing this, Karina Hanson’s smile froze; the words ’Sky-scraping Mansion’ were no less than a curse to her.

In a month’s time, she was destined to marry into the Sky-scraping Mansion, to that playboy.

Seeing Julia’s face freeze, and the pain reflected in her eyes, Wyatt Barnes immediately dismissed the thought of teasing her and straightforwardly said: "Julia, don’t worry, a month from now, the Sky-scraping Mansion likely won’t come for marriage... the Junior House Master of the Sky-scraping Mansion, Peace Adams, is dead, having perished in the Overleaping Rankings."

At the moment Wyatt Barnes’ words fell, Karina Hanson was stunned, completely stunned.

The Junior House Master of the Sky-scraping Mansion, Peace Adams, dead?

Dead in the Overleaping Rankings?

This news was no less than a bombshell for Karina Hanson, causing her mind to jumble.

She certainly wouldn’t doubt Brother Leandro’s words.

Although she didn’t know who killed Peace Adams, the surprise indeed came too swiftly!

Wyatt Barnes calmly watched Karina Hanson, her facial changes were entirely in his eyes.

At first stunned, then disbelief, and finally joy.

Wyatt Barnes sighed inwardly, deciding not to reveal to Karina Hanson that the Junior House Master of the Sky-scraping Mansion, Peace Adams, was actually not dead yet.

After all, the immediate crisis was temporarily averted.

"Brother Leandro, his death... is related to you, isn’t it?"

Although Karina Hanson felt her thought sounded a bit far-fetched, she had a strong intuition that the death of the Junior House Master of the Sky-scraping Mansion, Peace Adams, was ten to one related to her Brother Leandro.

Judging by the timing, the Overleaping Rankings had just ended recently.

"Yes."

With Karina Hanson, Wyatt Barnes naturally had nothing to hide, nodding, "A year ago, I left the Bibo Hanson House, went to that Sky-scraping Mansion region under the alias ’Eden Lee’, and participated in the Overleaping Rankings... during the rankings, I killed him! Thus, his death naturally wouldn’t be linked back to the Bibo Hanson House by the Sky-scraping Mansion."