Astral Pet Store (WN)

"Thank you very much, master." Su Ping nodded.

Although he was unafraid of Old Monster Ye's attacking the store, the other residents on that planet were innocent. Even a powerful Star Lord would have destroyed it easily, not to mention Ascendants!

Considering the old monster's personality, he could have sent several loyal Star Lords capable of destroying the planet, which would possibly aid him in figuring out the trigger for the store's counterattack.

"Are you going to train in seclusion again?" Joanna asked Su Ping. She could tell that he was significantly stronger than before. It seemed that he would make great progress after each training session, even without her help.

"I'm going to rest for a few days, and then visit and thank my master," said Su Ping.

Even though he was eager to cultivate, he could wait for a day or two.

Besides, he needed to consolidate and digest what he had just picked up.

"You're going to leave the store?" asked Tang Ruyan nervously. "Even though this planet has been relocated by your master to the Celestial Court and is protected by him, it's possible that the old monster will send Ascendant State assassins. None of the guards present will be able to help you if you leave the store. As for me…"

She bit her lips. Even though she could leave the store, she was simply too weak. Even a Star Lord could beat her easily, let alone someone in the Ascendant realm.

Su Ping chuckled and said, "That's fine. I don't think that the old monster is going to come in person. And even if he does come, my master will be there for him. As for the Ascendant assassins… they cannot hurt me."

He believed that Old Monster Ye was too busy reorganizing his subordinates to leave his base and attack the Celestial Court.

The old guy could only send some Ascendant assassins at best. After all, he could have been defeated by any Ascendant when he last showed up. But the situation had changed.

"Huh?"

Joanna and the others in the store felt dazed after hearing his answer.

The information he had just revealed was too shocking.

Ascendant State assassins can't hurt him?

They couldn't help but gaze at Su Ping. Could it be that he had already entered the Ascendant State and was only pretending to be weak?

After staring at him for a moment, the sutra old man asked in confusion, "You haven't reached the Ascendant State yet, have you?"

"Not yet." Su Ping chuckled. "But it shouldn't be a problem for me to deal with normal Ascendants. Even if I can't kill them, I'd still be able to ensure my own safety."

Everybody was shocked upon hearing that.

The breakthrough to the Ascendant State was hard to achieve. However, Su Ping was claiming that he could deal with normal Ascendants? Normally speaking, if Star State warriors could challenge Star Lords, they would be considered unparalleled geniuses. After all, very few in the entire universe were able to condense small worlds while in the Star State.

However, the gap between a Star Lord and an Ascendant was even bigger. There had rarely been anyone able to do that in the history of gods and deities.

All those capable of doing that were mythical figures; young Deity Kings, God Emperors, and even people on higher levels.

"Are you serious? You mustn't joke on this matter. You may die," said the cauldron woman with a frown.

Su Ping looked at her and wore a bigger smile. "You're right. Let's go to the test room and have a spar. It just so happens that I haven't fought other types of Ascendants yet."

"All right." The cauldron woman quickly accepted the request and rubbed her hands. "It was you who proposed the practice; don't blame me when you get beaten up."

"Sure," Su Ping replied with a smile.

The two of them instantly left for the pet test room.

Joanna and Green Lady looked at each other, then followed after them. Both had noticed that Su Ping had improved significantly, but they were eager to find out if he was as strong as he claimed.

After all, cultivators would tend to feel overly proud when their strength was rapidly increased, thinking that no one was their match. But that was just an illusion; they would know the harsh reality when they encountered a tough rival.

Inside the test room—

Su Ping and the cauldron woman stood in position. The test room was adjusted to recreate space. The room instantly changed from an empty room with a coverage of a hundred square meters to an infinite void with stars in the distance.

The cauldron woman looked around and remarked, "It's barely possible even for me to change space like this. Whoever did this must be at least a Deity King."

"Come on." Su Ping was ready to start.

The cauldron woman grinned cunningly. "Can't wait to be beaten up, huh? I'll show you what great power is!"

Su Ping instantly attacked.

Boom!

Her aura burst out, warping the surrounding void. Su Ping, on the other hand, dashed quickly into the seventh space.

The ancient whispers and the compressed energy of the universe in deep space couldn't affect his body, which stunned Joanna, Green Lady and the others. The sutra old man changed his expression. "His body is as sturdy as Green Lady's?" His voice was full of shock and disbelief.

The cauldron woman instantly realized that something was off. Feeling shocked, she quickly expanded and became almost eight meters tall, unleashing abundant and scorching heat that came from the fire in her body.

Bang, bang!

The two of them instantly clashed. The cauldron woman waved her fist, performing deity techniques as well as ancient body skills. Her hands were covered in a fire that could melt any weapon. That was also why the other Golden Deities had tried to keep their distance from her when fighting.

However, the use of fire seemed rather hilarious in her battle against Su Ping.

Su Ping was covered by an extremely pure and hot fiery power, his body gradually turning brilliant and golden. He switched to the original god constitution.

Golden flames were burning, originating from the dazzling divine power. They were the flames of the Golden Crow.

"The original god constitution…" Joanna was too stunned for words when she noticed his constitution.

She had never seen such a pure constitution, even back when she was in a high-ranked clan. Only the princes of the seven clans could possibly attain it!

Boom!

The flames were interweaving in the void. Su Ping was actually on par with the cauldron woman. Dazzling light burst out after each collision.

The void was filled with fire. Even though they fought in the vacuum of space, the fire was real because it wasn't caused by the burning of substances, but by a power beyond laws. It was a fire from a higher dimension!

"This is great!"

Su Ping swung his fist, feeling as if he were smashing iron. He combined his fist technique with the Sky Execution Sword Technique, making his punch both forceful and piercing.

Dong, dong, dong!

The cauldron woman's fist produced heavy sounds. She unleashed all her strength and roared, but she was still unable to suppress Su Ping; she was constantly being forced back instead.

She found it hard to believe, and felt frustrated because of it. The kid had been completely vulnerable in her eyes not long before. However, it only took a year for him to grow that much; she wasn't able to suppress him anymore.

Most importantly, Su Ping had yet to reach the Ascendant State!

If he reached her realm, wouldn't he be able to crush her completely?

But I am an emperor-level cauldron!?roared the cauldron woman in her heart. The fire covering her hands turned from red to purple, gaining much more power. Meanwhile, she performed many other techniques, surrounding Su Ping with meteors and tornadoes.

However, Su Ping simply weathered through the destructive techniques with his body; none of the attacks was able to hurt him.

"God's Arrival!" Su Ping suddenly bellowed and smashed forth with his fist, unleashing fifty percent of his power in an instant. The attack transformed into a golden fist that was as brilliant as the sun.

The cauldron woman narrowed her eyes and hurriedly resisted the attack with her full strength. She summoned auras and giant shields with her power, but the fist penetrated all her defenses and struck her.

The piercing power of the fist was spread to a planet far in the distance. The planet shook violently, leaving a huge fist mark. Dust arose on the planet just like the detonation of a nuclear explosion.

The planet, which seemed barren and desolate, was on the verge of collapsing.

The aftermath of his punch was already that terrifying!

Seeing that Su Ping was about to charge again, the cauldron woman quickly shouted, "Wait, let's stop here!"

Su Ping stopped in time. Then, he saw that the cauldron woman's arms were twisted, with fist marks on them.

She rubbed her arms in frustration. "How can your body be harder than mine? I wouldn't have fought you had I known."

"Every man should be hard." Su Ping chuckled in delight.

The cauldron woman's body was clearly on the top tier of the Ascendant State. He had tested his physical sturdiness in the cultivation sites and was unparalleled in the Ascendant State. He had also seen it during the present testing.

I do owe the humans of the Archean Divinity a big favor. However, besides the countless rare materials they offered, my body has been polished and hardened by original divine power and original soul power. That's why it's so sturdy right now…?Su Ping remarked in his heart.

His body had only reached the mid tier of the Ascendant State back in the Ember Palace—

However, it had been further enhanced in the Divine Eye and the Abyssal Hole. His Golden Crow bloodline had also been improved. In terms of physical strength, he was already on the top tier of the Ascendant State.

I haven't used the power of my six small worlds yet. If I use all my strength, I probably will be able to fight against Heavenly Lords…?Su Ping thought.

"Is this how effective this ancient store's grooming is?" The sutra old man was shocked as he watched in the distance. Su Ping had been improving astonishingly fast. Maybe it wouldn't be long before he could step over Ye Chen. It was inevitable. Even if he were still by Ye Chen's side and offering aid, there would still be no stopping Su Ping!

A storm is raised every time this ancient store reveals itself. I seem to have encountered this one,?the sutra old man thought. He couldn't help but look forward to the future. He had read the information from some ancient books, thinking it was just a tale. However, this time, he was there to witness the whole thing.

The cauldron woman was angry after admitting defeat. She thought that Su Ping had pretended to be weak to lure her into challenging him and later humiliate her. She stormed off once she regained her normal human form, too embarrassed to stay there.

Joanna, Green Lady and the others snapped out of their stupor; they looked at each other with conflicting expressions.

They had watched Su Ping grow from a weak human being to a strong expert. They thought it would take him at least hundreds of years to reach their height. However, Su Ping had torn down their expectations.

He said he didn't need to eat me to reach the Celestial State…?Green Lady's eyes glittered. She now believed what Su Ping had told her in the past. Indeed, that young man didn't need her help; he could reach the Celestial State on his own.

"Great, great!"

On the other hand, Tang Ruyan hopped and applauded in delight. Even though she couldn't understand the battle at all, she saw the cauldron woman admit defeat; she felt both shocked and happy.

She had been following Su Ping for the longest time. He hadn't even reached the Ocean State yet when he captured her. However, he miraculously rescued the Blue Planet and traveled to the Federation. He had worked so many miracles that she was no longer surprised; she could only feel proud of him.

Su Ping canceled his power and switched to his human body; his divine power and golden light faded away. He smiled at the women who were at the moment feeling happy for him.

Su Ping talked to them about recent events after leaving the test room. He opened the door at midnight, hoping to get some fresh air. But then, he only saw the long line of customers; the fat mouse under the statue was gone.

Su Ping felt dazed; he turned around and asked Joanna,"Where's the Lightning Rat?"

Joanna replied, "There was a girl who constantly fed the little one. She signed a contract with the rat and took it away half a month ago."

He was stunned for a moment. Su Ping remembered the girls he had met a couple of months before; one of them was clearly very fond of the Lightning Rat.

"This little fella…"

Su Ping raised his head and looked at the gigantic moon in the sky. He couldn't help but put on a smile of relief. "It seems that it's finally willing to let go."

The Lightning Rat had been staying outside the store for a very long time. Many of the customers had noticed the little fella that always slept outside of Su Ping's extraordinary store, and had attempted to take it away. Some truly liked it, and some had other purposes.

However, they all failed.

Only the girl had successfully changed its mind. She helped the Lightning Rat escape from the gloom of the past and find a new person to protect.

Some things aren't as bad as I thought. They will eventually pass.

Su Ping truly felt happy for the Lightning Rat. After all, it was the very first pet he had trained. He was fond of it.

Even the Lightning Rat could free itself from the past and find a new life. Is Old Monster Ye truly a big deal?

Su Ping chuckled and said goodbye to Joanna and the others. He was planning on visiting his master to express his gratitude in person.