Theft failed

Long Chen opened his eyes. Tang Wan'er, who had been watching him closely, immediately sensed it and asked, "How was it?"

Long Chen smiled slightly and slowly extended a finger. With a thought, his finger was instantly wrapped in dense power of thunder, emitting crackling sounds.

Tang Wan'er lightly covered her cherry lips with her jade-like hand, her beautiful eyes filled with disbelief. Initially, she had thought Long Chen's idea was completely fantastical and impossible to achieve.

But now, Long Chen had proven with his actions that his conception was correct; he had truly done it.

"How is this possible?" Tang Wan'er murmured as she stared at Long Chen's finger, which was covered in the power of thunder.

"Hehe, how about it? Convinced yet? Remember to be a bit nicer to me in the future so you can keep me firmly by your side."

"Of course, that's not enough. If you want our relationship to be even more secure, you could consider methods like promising yourself to me," Long Chen said with a serious expression.

"Pfft, you? A little rookie only at the Blood Condensation Middle Stage is worthy of this young lady promising herself to you? You must still be dreaming, right?" Tang Wan'er tilted her head back and spoke with a face full of disdain.

"Hmm, how did you know my cultivation level?" Long Chen couldn't help but be startled.

"When you blocked Zhao Wu's beastified strike, you exposed your aura. Although you hid it well, don't think you can escape my senses. I imagine not only did I sense it, but Lei Qianshang did as well," Tang Wan'er said calmly.

"Truly worthy of being a monster-level Genius; this sensory ability is terrifying," Long Chen sighed. It seemed he would have to be more careful in the future.

Long Chen didn't want to expose his aura because all the applicants were at the Blood Condensation Late Stage Peak, which is the Blood Condensation Nine Heavens.

Basically, more than half were at Blood Condensation Great Perfection, ready to step into the Tendon Transformation Realm at any time, but they were using medicinal power to forcibly suppress their cultivation.

A guy like Long Chen, who was only at the Blood Condensation Sixth Heaven, seemed to be the only one. Long Chen didn't want to be too unique to avoid being stared at, as that was very uncomfortable.

"Speaking of monsters, you are the true monster. You can even achieve this kind of Heaven-Defying ability," Tang Wan'er said, shaking her head as she pointed at Long Chen's finger.

Although Tang Wan'er didn't want to praise this guy, she had to admit that Long Chen had truly stunned her this time.

To actually be able to steal someone else's Origin power for one's own use—this ability was truly terrifying, one could even say it was Heaven-Defying.

Long Chen shook his head and said with a helpless expression, "What's so Heaven-Defying about it? Unfortunately, it was still a failure."

"How can that be? Didn't you condense the power of thunder?" Tang Wan'er asked in surprise.

"Although I refined the power of thunder, my own Spiritual Qi cannot be converted into thunder power. To put it bluntly, the power of thunder currently in my body was all given to me by Lei Qianshang."

"In other words, once this bit of thunder power is used up, I'll need to find a place to replenish it. After all that effort, I gained nothing; it's really disheartening," Long Chen said somewhat dejectedly.

The power of thunder was different from his flame power. His Spiritual Qi could be converted into flames, so as long as he had enough Spiritual Qi, his flame power would never run out.

But the power of thunder didn't work that way. Once it was used up, it was completely gone unless he continuously absorbed more. It seemed he would have to deal with Lei Qianshang frequently in the future.

However, Lei Qianshang wasn't a fool. Over time, he would surely notice something was wrong. If he refused to fight Long Chen, Long Chen would simply run out of power.

Thus, Long Chen was quite troubled. This wasn't what he had originally envisioned, and his plan to use the power of thunder to temper his Physical Body had ended as a result.

"Actually, you're already very impressive; your body can store lightning. I do have a way that might solve your problem," Tang Wan'er smiled slightly.

"Really?" Long Chen asked in surprise.

"Of course. As long as you're willing to go there, everything will be solved." Tang Wan'er pointed to the sky and said, "When the gales howl and the lightning flashes, we'll send you up into the sky. Won't you be able to collect lightning then? Hehe." By the end, Tang Wan'er herself started laughing.

Long Chen looked at her with disdain and said, "Are you trying to get me struck by lightning?"

"No, I'm just a helpful person, and flying kites is my specialty. Just say the word, and I'd be more than happy to oblige," Tang Wan'er giggled.

Although Tang Wan'er was joking, it caused Long Chen's heart to stir. This was indeed a good way to collect lightning.

Seeing Long Chen look up at the sky with a thoughtful expression, Tang Wan'er said in shock, "I was joking. You're not actually thinking of trying it, are you?"

Long Chen nodded and said, "Your method is indeed feasible. When I want to try it, I'll ask for your help."

He reached out to brush the dust off his clothes, gathered some dry wood from the surroundings, and with a flick of his finger, a spark flew into the wood, immediately igniting it.

"What are you doing?" Tang Wan'er asked.

"To thank you for saving me—even though it didn't succeed, I still want to thank you. I'll treat you to a good meal," Long Chen smiled.

Tang Wan'er's face turned red. She knew Long Chen was referring to the matter of transferring Qi to him. She couldn't help but feel both embarrassed and angry as she said, "Long Chen, if you dare speak nonsense again, I won't let you off!"

"Don't worry, this is a secret between the two of us. I wouldn't say a word even if I were killed," Long Chen promised solemnly.

She felt like there was something not quite right about Long Chen's words, but seeing how serious he looked, Tang Wan'er felt relieved.

After the fire was set up, it grew bright and strong in a short while. Long Chen took out ten Qi Ling Fish.

"You actually caught Qi Ling Fish?" Tang Wan'er said in surprise.

"Hehe, this is nothing. I could catch two Dragons for you tomorrow without a problem," Long Chen said without even looking up. He got a basin of water, washed the Qi Ling Fish in his hands, removed the Qi Ling Fish Essence from the gills, and placed them by the fire to roast.

"Braggart. Dragons are legendary Divine Beasts; nobody even knows if they actually exist. How would you catch one?" Tang Wan'er said irritably.

"A person needs to have dreams. What if they come true one day? So one must have dreams; otherwise, wouldn't life be devoid of any fun?" Long Chen said.

"Dreams and bragging are two different things, okay? Don't confuse the two," Tang Wan'er argued.

"Talking to someone without a sense of humor is especially exhausting." Long Chen shook his head and focused on roasting the fish in his hands.

"You…" Tang Wan'er's brows shot up, but then she thought of something and slowly sat down, saying, "Long Chen, I find you very strange. Can't you talk to people in a normal tone?"

"That's not a problem. The key is that I need to meet a normal person first," Long Chen said with a troubled look.

"You bastard!"

Tang Wan'er could no longer hold back. She reached out and gave Long Chen a flick on the head, angrily saying, "Are you saying I'm not a normal person?"

Long Chen neither fought back nor dodged, allowing her to flick his head. He looked Tang Wan'er up and down and said, "Beautiful Young Miss Tang Wan'er, do you think you're normal right now?"

Tang Wan'er's face turned red, and she immediately quibbled, "I was originally very normal. I only became like this after meeting you."

"Alright, the fish is roasted. Eat up."

Long Chen handed a roasted Qi Ling Fish to Tang Wan'er. Tang Wan'er took the roasted fish and immediately felt its fragrance overflowing, making her mouth water. Looking at Long Chen, she couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed.

"Eat. Only when you're full will you have the strength to deal with me," Long Chen laughed.

Tang Wan'er's face felt hot. She turned her head, opened her cherry lips, and took a bite of the fish. She immediately cried out in surprise, "It's so delicious! No wonder it's called a delicacy of the human world. This is my first time eating it!"

Tang Wan'er's beautiful eyes were filled with surprise. Many people knew of the Qi Ling Fish's great fame, but very few had actually eaten it.

"Hehe, same as before: be a bit nicer to me in the future and you can eat it often. If you consider promising yourself to me, hehe, then you'll have endless delicacies to eat," Long Chen also ate the roasted fish, laughing with a smug expression.

"Hmph, in your dreams. Do you think women are as easy to fool as you imagine?" Tang Wan'er had clearly grown accustomed to Long Chen's way of speaking. She wasn't angry and responded coldly while continuing to eat the roasted fish.

After finishing one, she didn't stand on ceremony with Long Chen and directly reached for another. She just sat there beside Long Chen and ate, without any sign of embarrassment.

"Hey, since you can control the power of flames, are you a Pill Cultivator?" Tang Wan'er asked while eating.

"Yes, I am a Pill Apprentice," Long Chen replied.

"Then that's quite good. A Pill Apprentice so young has a very bright future. Why didn't you choose Alchemy and chose to cultivate the Martial Dao instead?" Tang Wan'er asked in confusion.

"What's the point of refining pills all day? Cultivating the Martial Dao is much better. Fighting every day, picking up girls, kicking and punching anyone who looks annoying, and being able to tease a beauty like you—this is what life is about," Long Chen said with an entranced expression.

"Bastard, you just said a few serious words and you're already back to being unreliable. If you chose to cultivate the Martial Dao, did your Alchemy Master agree?" Tang Wan'er scolded playfully.

Hearing those words, Long Chen paused slightly. The figure of Great Master Yun Qi surfaced in his mind, especially the scene of Great Master Yun Qi turning to ash; it felt as if it had happened only yesterday.

"He probably would have agreed," Long Chen said, shaking his head.

"What do you mean 'probably'?" Tang Wan'er said with dissatisfaction.

"Because he's already dead, so I don't know his true thoughts," Long Chen smiled slightly, though his smile was somewhat desolate.

Watching the trace of sorrow revealed in Long Chen's eyes, Tang Wan'er's heart couldn't help but tremble. For the first time, she felt the sadness deep within Long Chen's soul.

"Alright, the fish is finished. Remember what I said: if you want to eat fish again, remember to be nicer to me. I'm leaving now," Long Chen said as he stood up.

Seeing Long Chen about to leave, for some reason, Tang Wan'er felt a sense of loss in her heart. As for why, even she herself didn't know.

"By the way, Long Chen, have you collected all your nameplates?"

"No," Long Chen shook his head. There was still plenty of time anyway, so he wasn't in a hurry. Even if he robbed people now, it would just be bits and pieces; it would be hard to gather a full set.

"I have a set here. I'll give it to you first." After Tang Wan'er finished speaking, she handed Long Chen a nameplate.

Unlike Long Chen's, that nameplate had the four characters 'Heaven, Earth, Black, Yellow' on it. The four characters were actually merged into one instead of being four separate nameplates.

Long Chen smiled slightly, took the nameplate, and laughed, "Is this the legendary 'softening the mouth of the eater'? Thanks, but this small favor isn't enough to make me, Long Chen, devoted to you to the death. You could try promising yourself to me."

"Get out!"

Tang Wan'er was furious. This Long Chen had only been serious for a moment before becoming unreliable again. She kicked out at him.

Long Chen laughed and dodged Tang Wan'er's attack. With a few leaps, he disappeared at the end of the valley.

Watching Long Chen disappear, the anger on Tang Wan'er's face also vanished. She burst out laughing, composed herself, and also disappeared within the valley.