Princess of the Kingdom, first meditation. (6200)

Chapter 420: Kingdom Princess, First Meditation. (6200)

Cao Xing's heart stirred slightly.

So this person was the princess of the Orchid Kingdom and that newly advanced Archmage!?

Although Marita had mentioned before that this person was a relative of hers.

Cao Xing had only thought it was some member of the royal family.

He really hadn't expected that she was a princess of the kingdom.

After all, an existence with such a noble status would always bring a large number of guards to ensure her safety when traveling.

Following Marita so low-key was indeed somewhat unexpected.

Moreover, judging from the status above, this woman had indeed also been infected with the Life Withered Curse.

Marita explained, "Lord Cao Xing, this is Princess Fran of our Orchid Kingdom."

"For some reasons, her travel arrangements are inconvenient to reveal, so I didn't tell you about this. Please forgive us."

Cao Xing nodded, indicating his understanding.

At the same time, the ethereal woman in front of him slightly bowed.

"Fran greets Lord Cao Xing."

Cao Xing was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Princess Fran, I really can't accept this bow from you."

Princess Fran said softly, "No, you can accept it."

"Lord Cao Xing is willing to help me lift the Life Withered Curse in my body, which is of great significance to us, so you naturally deserve our gratitude."

Her tone was extremely solemn.

Cao Xing shook his head and said, "There's no need to be so polite."

"Since you are Marita's relative, you are my friend, and it's only right to help."

Upon hearing this, a gentle smile appeared on Princess Fran's face.

Cao Xing didn't say much more and directly had Buoyancy continue to release the Purifying Light.

As for this Light Feather Chicken, after helping Marita clear the curse earlier, it seemed a bit tired and lazily lay on the floor tiles to the side, unwilling to move at all.

Seeing this scene, Cao Xing directly took out a piece of pet ration from his backpack.

Buoyancy instantly regained its spirit, jumped up from the ground all at once, and then looked at its master with a longing expression.

Cao Xing was speechless, and directly fed the ration in his hand over.

This Light Feather Chicken turned into a white shadow, instantly rushed into the air, and swallowed the ration directly.

After finishing the food, Buoyancy seemed to have recovered its strength, happily circling around its master.

Cao Xing patted its wings and then said, "Alright, get to work."

"Cluck~"

Buoyancy obediently nodded, and then gradually floated into mid-air.

"Hum~!"

In front of it, a ball of pure light condensed once again.

As the Purifying Light fell on Princess Fran's body.

Just like Marita, bursts of blood aura constantly overflowed from her body.

And as the purification proceeded, the vast magical power on her body constantly grew stronger.

When the fifth Purifying Light ended.

The Life Withered Curse on Princess Fran's [Status] finally disappeared…

She spat out a mouthful of crimson blood, and her entire body felt refreshed.

Then she took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the corner of her mouth.

And casually cast a wave of magic to clear away the bloodstains on the ground.

She looked at Cao Xing with a relaxed expression and exclaimed, "I can feel that the curse in my body has been cleared."

"To solve the curse in our bodies, we have tried too many methods, but none of them had any effect."

"I didn't expect it to be solved here. Thank you so much, Lord Cao Xing."

[Because of your treatment, Orchid Kingdom Princess: Fran Vargas's favorability has increased. Current favorability: Friendly]

…

Cao Xing smiled, "You're welcome. It's good that it's cleared."

A joyful smile also appeared on Princess Fran's face.

Cao Xing continued, "Right, Ms. Marita, I want to know what happened in your Orchid Kingdom that even Princess Fran was afflicted with such a curse?"

Hearing this, the pair of women with somewhat similar appearances looked at each other.

A moment later, Marita spoke gracefully.

"For this matter, I must thank Lord Cao Xing for reminding me that I had the Life Withered Curse on my body."

"After I went back, I investigated all suspicious personnel in the royal family and found the source of the curse."

"Then, following the clues, I discovered that Princess Fran had actually also suffered from this curse."

"So we deduced that the backlash she suffered last time when breaking through to Archmage was also due to the influence of this curse."

Speaking of this, Marita paused for a moment, and then said in a serious tone.

"Not only that, as the investigation continued."

"We found that besides Princess Fran, quite a few people in the entire royal family have also been infected with this curse."

A look of surprise appeared in Cao Xing's eyes.

Princess Fran next to her also chimed in, "So based on this phenomenon, we deduced that the Watchers are preparing to make a move against our Orchid Kingdom."

"And I estimate that it's not just our Orchid Kingdom; several neighboring kingdoms should also have many royal family members infected with this curse."

"Before long, the Blood Legion will make a comeback and launch a war against us!"

"Therefore, this is also why we are so eager to find a way to lift the curse."

Princess Fran's tone was solemn.

Upon hearing this, Cao Xing's expression also became solemn.

The Blood Legion's actions were actually this fast, which was somewhat beyond his expectations.

"Princess Fran, then according to your calculations, how much time is left before the Blood Legion fully initiates the war?"

Hearing this question, a look of contemplation appeared in the eyes of the two women.

A moment later, she gently shook her head and said, "As for the specific time, I'm not too clear about it either."

"However, according to past historical records, once the Blood Legion shows signs of resurgence, it will launch a large-scale war within a very short period of time."

"Making the entire continent stained with their color."

"Short as two to three months, long as a year or half a year."

Hearing this timeframe, Cao Xing slowly breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, two to three months of time was already enough for him.

With his current development speed, such a long time was enough for him to upgrade everyone entirely.

And next, he also had to enter the Battle of the Oracle scenario for about a month.

In there, there would undoubtedly be considerable improvements.

And after he came out, there would still be a period of development time.

In this way, facing such a terrifying enemy, the pressure wouldn't be that great anymore.

Princess Fran continued.

"After returning this time, I will tell my father the seriousness of the matter."

"And make the several neighboring kingdoms prepare to deal with the Blood Legion."

Cao Xing nodded.

Taking precautions beforehand was indeed a good thing.

At this moment, Princess Fran looked at him closely and continued, "Lord Cao Xing, thank you again for your rescue."

"In the future, if you travel to the Orchid Kingdom, I will definitely grant you corresponding rewards."

Cao Xing waved his hand and said, "No need, Ms. Marita has already given me a reward."

However, Princess Fran said, "No, one thing is one thing."

"You rescued my royal aunt, and she gave you remuneration."

"And as the princess of the kingdom, I naturally must give you a reward as well."

"If Lord Cao Xing is willing to develop in the Orchid Kingdom, I can even ask my father to directly grant you a noble title, no lower than an Earl!"

Hearing that last sentence, Cao Xing instantly narrowed his eyes.

He took a deep look at this woman.

Even Marita next to her looked at Princess Fran with a weird expression.

After pondering for a moment, Cao Xing shook his head and said, "Thank you for Princess Fran's kind intentions, but I don't have much interest in being a noble, so I'll pass."

Upon hearing this, the princess didn't feel surprised.

"I see. Since you're not interested, we can't force it."

At this time, Marita interrupted from the side, "Lord Cao Xing, Her Highness the Princess and I have just recovered and still need to recuperate for a period of time. We will return to our room to recuperate first."

Cao Xing slightly nodded, "Alright, Ms. Marita, go take a rest."

With those words, the two women turned around together and returned to the room.

…

…

In the room, Marita cast a faint look at Princess Fran.

"Your Highness the Princess, didn't I say that Lord Cao Xing wouldn't go with us to develop in the Orchid Kingdom? You still didn't believe it."

"Most of these Otherworld Lords have no interest in nobility; they all have their own pursuits and ideals."

Princess Fran blinked her pretty eyes and chuckled, "I know, I was just trying."

"What if Lord Cao Xing had agreed?"

"At that time, if I pull this lord who can clear the Life Withered Curse into our Orchid Kingdom, the significance would be huge."

"Those royal family members in other kingdoms who are afflicted with the curse would have to beg us to help lift it."

"In this way, the political status and influence of our Orchid Kingdom will steadily rise among the neighboring kingdoms."

"Besides, royal aunt, don't you want to spend day and night together with Lord Cao Xing!?"

Princess Fran looked at Marita playfully.

Marita shot her a glare with her eyes.

"Stop running your mouth…"

"Don't mention this kind of thing again in the future."

"Lord Cao Xing has the method to lift the Life Withered Curse. If later on, the Blood Legion launches a full-scale attack, he will be of great significance."

"We cannot easily damage our relationship with him, understand?"

Princess Fran slightly lowered her head.

"Alright, I know…"

…

…

After curing the curses on Marita and Princess Fran's bodies.

Cao Xing was also in a very good mood.

Holding that Moon God Sealed Orb in his hand, he stroked it from time to time.

"Not bad, not bad…"

"In this way, with the combination of the two treasures, the Sealed Orb and the Lizardman Statue, I really have a high probability of taking down a Legendary!"

His confidence suddenly surged greatly in his heart!

Although up until now, Cao Xing hadn't engaged in a direct battle with a Legendary powerhouse yet, and didn't know how strong such an existence truly was.

He knew without thinking that it must be extremely terrifying.

Legendary was an existence that had broken through the limits of life, and also the first step into the path of becoming a god.

If he could take down such an existence, the gains he would receive were simply unimaginable!

However, very quickly, Cao Xing suppressed this dangerous thought in his heart.

"I can't get too carried away. Trump cards are meant for saving one's life."

"No one knows whether these Legendary powerhouses have even more powerful means, so it's still better not to easily provoke existences of this level!"

Cao Xing slowly let out a breath and glanced at the time again.

It was now past four in the afternoon, and only the last few tens of minutes remained until the challenge of Zhuo Mas Claw ended.

Due to the incident in the grotto midway, the daytime challenge of Zhuo Mas Claw was forced to be interrupted, so not many points were earned today.

However, it wasn't much compared to Cao Xing.

After all, he had accumulated nearly eighty thousand points in total today.

Counting the afternoon 'Zorma Behemoth' challenge, a minimum of one hundred thousand points was guaranteed for today.

As for the other Survivors, even people like Bai Zhi and Wei Jianyi might not necessarily obtain 100,000 points even after ten consecutive days of Zhuoma challenges.

Yet Cao Xing obtained this much in just a single day, and he still wasn't satisfied.

If they found out, they would probably die of jealousy.

…

…

Meanwhile, deep in the mountains over a hundred kilometers away from the territory,

Da Zhuang of the Arctic People had already driven the transport vehicle and led all the goblin laborers to the Lampri Grotto.

"Bzz! Bzz-bzz!"

Over a dozen armored transport vehicles crushed through the thick snow and stopped at the entrance of the grotto.

The Cents led by Kandaer were already waiting there.

They quickly completed the handover work.

A group of goblins jumped out from the carriages.

And they moved all the supplies in the carriages, such as food, timber, coal, and camp tents, into the cave.

Meanwhile, Da Zhuang ordered, "Goblins, tonight we will set up the camp first, and starting tomorrow morning, we will work at full capacity!"

The goblins raised the hammers in their hands high and shouted excitedly, "Mining! Goblins love mining!"

With those words, the more than one hundred people all started moving.

…

…

Time slowly passed…

Soon, it was five o'clock in the afternoon.

The world boss, Zorma Behemoth challenge, started on time.

Under Hilda's 100 stacks of Blood Poison attack,

It still only took 1 hour and 27 minutes to resolve the battle.

…

…

Nighttime.

Liu Muxue and Assam led all the warriors back to the territory in a mighty procession.

Cao Xing walked up to welcome them.

Upon seeing Cao Xing's figure, this heroic female knight quickly jumped down from the back of the Frost Moose.

After a day of battle, she didn't feel tired at all; instead, her face carried an excited expression, seeming quite thrilled.

She first handed all the loot to Cao Xing, and then said,

"Axing, should I go apply single-target skills to those newcomers now?"

"There are still many skills on the new members that haven't refreshed during the day."

Hearing this, a gentle smile appeared on Cao Xing's face.

"Alright, go ahead."

"Mm-hmm!"

Soon, this female knight left this place.

There wasn't really any arrangement for tonight.

Cao Xing planned to take some time to go to the Mage Tower and absorb the [Magic Crystal].

This thing took one or two hours to absorb one piece, but the benefits were also quite huge.

It could directly increase spell damage by 1%, with a maximum limit of 50%.

But there was a restriction: only 1 could be absorbed per day.

Therefore, Cao Xing decided to start absorbing them from today onwards; in about two months, his spell damage would usher in a qualitative change.

However, before that, he still needed to make a trip to the Blacksmith Shop.

Cao Xing walked straight and pushed open the heavy doors.

"Creak~!"

As soon as he entered the Blacksmith Shop, the first thing he saw was three burning forging furnaces.

Sarle and Boudi, the two blacksmith apprentices, were learning techniques like quenching and smelting under Harold's guidance.

Seeing him come in, the three of them saluted simultaneously.

Cao Xing nodded in acknowledgement and then asked, "Harold, how many of that batch of shields from last time have been forged?"

This dwarf blacksmith respectfully replied, "Lord, there are about 40 of them."

An arc appeared at the corner of Cao Xing's mouth.

This quantity was completely enough.

After all, there were only over thirty shield-wielding warriors in his territory.

"Very good, I can go get them myself, you continue with your work."

"As you command, my Lord."

With those words, Harold took the two apprentices and continued explaining forging knowledge.

As for Cao Xing, he headed straight to the storage box area.

After the box was opened, exquisite round shields immediately appeared inside.

These round shields were about half a meter in diameter, moderate in size, and while lightweight, they also had sufficient protective area.

The surface of the round shields was dark gray, engraved with an ancient totem mark on the shield face.

The whole thing was forged from fine iron, with some evergold and mithril added inside, further increasing its defense.

"These shields actually look quite nice."

Cao Xing directly put all these shields into his backpack.

[Obtained: Barbarian Round Shield (Purple) * 41]

…

These round shields were naturally prepared for that group of Centaur Spear Shield Cavalry.

Actually, speaking seriously, that group of Silver Hand Knights could also equip them.

They could hold a shield in their left hand and a spear in their right, achieving the same combat style as the Centaur Spear Shield Cavalry.

However, the number of shields in the territory wasn't large, so it could only be discussed later.

He glanced at the shield's attributes.

[Barbarian Round Shield (Purple)]

[Quality: Rare]

[Equipment Level: Level 40]

[Armor: 432 ~ 451]

[Attached Special Effect ①: Constitution + 150, Strength + 100, Parry Probability + 20%]

[Attached Special Effect ②: Advanced Force Deflection (When receiving physical attacks, reduce the effect caused by the enemy's 300 points of Strength)]

[Attached Special Effect ③: Barbarian Strength (When attacked, there is a 30% chance to increase Strength by 300 points, lasting for 60 seconds)]

(Equipment Introduction: A shield only worthy of being used by the brave and fearless, forged by the Expert Blacksmith: Harold Iceberg)

"These special effects are quite interesting, reducing the enemy's Strength by 300 points and increasing one's own Strength by 300 points."

"Added together, that's a difference of 600 points in Strength."

"These shields are just right for the Centaur Spear Shield Cavalry; after all, they can both tank and deal damage."

Satisfied, he nodded and then left the Blacksmith Shop.

"Next, I need to go to the Mage Tower and start absorbing the magic crystals."

Familiar with the road, Cao Xing walked quickly towards the Mage Tower and soon arrived at the entrance.

"Creak~!"

Pushing open the bronze doors of the Mage Tower, a full wave of magical breath rushed towards him.

In an instant, a spacious hall appeared before him.

The chandelier hanging overhead emitted a blue faint light, adding a hint of cold and solemn atmosphere to the entire Mage Tower.

Cao Xing glanced over.

He found that most of the more than thirty meditation rooms on the first floor showed occupied statuses.

And the entire Intermediate Mage Tower had over a hundred meditation rooms.

Previously, there weren't many mage classes in Cao Xing's territory, so these meditation rooms were basically empty.

But now, counting the several mage wives and Isabelle, as many as two hundred-plus mages had moved in.

Therefore, every meditation room was put to use.

Cao Xing exclaimed in praise, "Not bad, not bad. It seems everyone is working hard on their cultivation."

After finding the meditation room of the two mage wives, he pushed open the door and entered directly.

Seeing Cao Xing's arrival, surprise and joy instantly appeared on the two women's faces.

"Lord…"

"Lord, you're here."

Cao Xing smiled and said, "Count me in, I'll meditate with you two."

"Mn…" Aili responded softly.

Whereas Sylvia was much bolder, "Lord, come between us."

Hearing this, Cao Xing didn't stand on ceremony and sat right between the two mage wives.

The soft thighs of the two mage wives pressed against him.

Then, Cao Xing took out a [Magic Crystal (Gold)] from his backpack.

Magic crystals of this golden quality were as big as an adult's fist.

The surface was smooth, emitting a dark blue light. Holding it in his hand, he could sense the abundant magic power contained within it.

Cao Xing turned his head and asked, "How is this thing absorbed? Can I just enter the meditation state directly?"

Aili and Sylvia looked at each other and smiled, "No, after entering meditation, Lord, you still need to actively absorb the magic power contained within the magic crystal by activating the frost elements inside your body."

A look of realization appeared in Cao Xing's eyes.

Then he quickly entered the meditation state.

According to the method they mentioned, Cao Xing guided the ice-attribute magic power within his body and covered it over this magic crystal.

Sure enough, he felt streams of pure and majestic magical breath being absorbed by him.

This was an exquisite experience; his brain was completely ethereal, while at the same time he could feel his magic power constantly increasing.

No wonder those mages all loved meditation.

And during his meditation process,

Cao Xing heard a rustling sound coming from beside his ear.

The soft-textured mage robes drooped onto the ground.

A moment later, two warm, smooth bodies moved closer toward him.

Cao Xing could feel that on the left side was a tender bud just starting to show, while on the right side was round and plump.

They gently pressed against Cao Xing's body.

Then they stretched out their smooth little hands, gently stroking that broad chest.

A moment later.

Sylvia gently lowered her body.

Meanwhile, Cao Xing, who was absorbing the [Magic Crystal], suddenly felt that the magic power inside his body was also instantly extracted!

His body suddenly trembled!

However, at this moment, Cao Xing was wholeheartedly pursuing magic, continuing to absorb the magic crystal with complete concentration, completely ignoring the external influence.

A moment later.

Sylvia raised her head and licked the corner of her mouth.

Then she looked at Aili beside her.

With a hint of a sly smile on the corner of her mouth, she said, "Aili, it's the taste of the Lord~"

At this time, Aili beside her was in a kneeling posture, close to Cao Xing's side.

Hearing this, her face instantly flushed red.

"I… I know…"

Then, she gradually lowered her body, tentatively learning Sylvia's actions.

At this moment, Cao Xing had just entered the meditation state for less than five minutes.

Suddenly he felt an even smaller magic extractor starting to absorb his magic power.

And this magic extractor was obviously much more stimulating.

Directly stirring up the frost power throughout his body, beginning to converge toward the same place.

"Damn… the magic power I managed to absorb with such difficulty, it's not going to be sucked away, right?"

After persisting for a period of time,

Cao Xing ultimately still couldn't resist this degree of interference.

Time slowly passed.

Two hours quickly passed.

A system prompt appeared.

[Absorption successful, magic affinity has increased, spell damage increased by 1%]

…

At this moment, Cao Xing suddenly opened his eyes, and then sensed a full magic power welling up from within his body.

At the same time, he also felt a burst of refreshing invigoration!

…

…

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