"Which means our team now has one more Deity,"
Hun Lao said with a smile.
"And the Ancient Heavenly Fox is an ancient inherited beast. Once it breaks through, its strength will likely far surpass other beings of the same rank,"
Hun Lao added.
"Master, I am a Deity now,"
Hu Miao said, her figure flashing as she instantly appeared before Ye Yunfei, looking immensely pleased.
"Congratulations. Your strength now surpasses mine, so you'll have to protect me from now on,"
Ye Yunfei replied with a laugh.
"Master, you haven't become a Deity yet, but your combat power is already comparable to one. There's no need for my protection. However, I can fight side-by-side with you from now on,"
Hu Miao answered.
"Master, my clan elder has called me in; he has something to tell me,"
Hu Miao suddenly announced, then strode into the palace.
Ye Yunfei found a spot nearby, entered the Phantom Tower, and sat down cross-legged. He practiced his cultivation while patiently waiting.
"Hu Miao has now found her clan elder. I wonder if she plans to follow him or stay with us,"
Hun Lao suddenly sent a sound transmission to Ye Yunfei.
"This...
Let her choose for herself. Whatever she decides, I'll support her."
Ye Yunfei was momentarily stunned before replying.
Ever since the Tianxuan Continent, Hu Miao had followed Ye Yunfei; they had been inseparable companions until now. If Hu Miao were to leave suddenly, Ye Yunfei would truly miss her.
But if Hu Miao genuinely wished to follow the elder inside the palace, Ye Yunfei would respect her choice.
"I still have seventeen Divine King Fruits. I'll refine and absorb one now.
The Divine King Fruit is not only useful for cultivation realms but also has a great effect on the physical body. I believe one will give my physique a substantial boost."
Ye Yunfei declared.
The Divine King Fruit was originally a treasure for Deities to cultivate, capable of allowing a Void God to directly break through one realm.
Ye Yunfei's current realm was merely Perfected Demigod. An ordinary Perfected Demigod who forcibly refined a Divine King Fruit would most likely have their physical body burst from the fruit's immense energy, exploding on the spot.
But Ye Yunfei was different. The quality of his physical body was exceptionally powerful, even stronger than that of an ordinary Void God.
Therefore, Ye Yunfei believed his body could withstand the energy of the Divine King Fruit. Moreover, he had already refined quite a few Deity-level cultivation resources.
Ye Yunfei took out a Divine King Fruit, letting it float before him. He then activated the Nine-Yang Ancient Scripture. The eight divine meridians within his body and the four massive golden spheres in his dantian simultaneously manifested, erupting with torrents of energy.
While operating the Nine-Yang Ancient Scripture, Ye Yunfei also took out a large batch of elixirs beneficial to the physical body and swallowed them directly.
Not long after, having prepared himself, Ye Yunfei opened his mouth and sucked in, forcefully swallowing the Divine King Fruit.
BOOM!
An indescribably terrifying, massive energy instantly erupted, causing Ye Yunfei's body to swell up like a balloon being inflated. In less than a single breath, his volume had increased over tenfold.
At this moment, Ye Yunfei resembled a balloon made of human skin. The energy of the Divine King Fruit boiled and surged wildly within his body, crashing around.
"The Divine King Fruit truly lives up to its reputation!"
Ye Yunfei looked at his body, swollen over ten times its size, and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
If not for the sufficient sturdiness of his physical body, he would undoubtedly have exploded from the fruit's terrifying energy by now. Even his soul body might have suffered severe damage, potentially leading directly to his demise.
"So it truly is a treasure that only Deities are qualified to ingest and refine!"
Ye Yunfei couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Time flew by. Ye Yunfei continuously refined and guided the immense Divine King Fruit energy within him. Slowly, under his refinement and guidance, the energy began to transform into his own.
Ye Yunfei discovered his own energy intensity continuously rising. Not only in terms of energy, but his physical body was also undergoing constant changes.
After an unknown amount of time, Ye Yunfei finally refined all the energy of the Divine King Fruit.
"My current energy intensity should be equivalent to that of a beginner Void God, right?"
Ye Yunfei felt the vast, churning energy within him and felt somewhat shocked.
Having experienced numerous battles against beginner Void Gods, he had a rough idea of their energy intensity.
Ye Yunfei found that the energy within him had indeed reached a level equivalent to that of a beginner Void God.
"Impossible?
My realm is still Perfected Demigod, but my energy intensity is actually equivalent to that of a Deity. Isn't that too exaggerated?"
Ye Yunfei was extremely excited.
"And the quality of my physical body has also improved significantly."
Ye Yunfei gently clenched his fists. Violent physical strength immediately poured forth from within. Not only strength; Ye Yunfei could clearly feel his body had become much more resilient than before.
"Excellent. The effects of the Divine King Fruit are truly worthy of its name."
Ye Yunfei was very excited. After refining one Divine King Fruit, his strength had undergone a huge leap.
"If I encounter a beginner Void God now, I can face them head-on even without relying on physical strength,"
Ye Yunfei muttered to himself.
After refining the Divine King Fruit, Ye Yunfei ended his cultivation session and emerged from the Phantom Tower.
At this time, Hun Lao, the Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm, and Huang Shang were still inside the Phantom Tower, refining their Divine King Fruits.
"Master."
As soon as Ye Yunfei exited the Phantom Tower, he found Hu Miao waiting outside.
"Master, I have already broken through to become a Deity and can leave this place now,"
Hu Miao stated.
"Hu Miao, are you planning to continue staying by my side?"
Upon hearing her words, Ye Yunfei felt a pleasant surprise.
"Master, why would you say that?"
Hu Miao was taken aback by Ye Yunfei's question.
"Ah, I understand! Master, you must have thought that since I've met my clan elder, I would choose to follow him, right?
Actually, this elder of my clan is only a Remnant Soul remaining here, and he will continue staying here. Perhaps he will remain here forever.
The elder told me to continue venturing and growing in the outside world. Moreover, I now have an additional task: to search for other surviving members of our Ancient Heavenly Fox Clan. So of course, I will continue following you, Master."
Hu Miao immediately realized why Ye Yunfei had asked and explained.
"Your clan elder is only a Remnant Soul here?"
Ye Yunfei was somewhat surprised.
"Yes, that elder is only a Remnant Soul. To preserve this soul fragment, he can only remain in seclusion within this Small World. Only by utilizing the special environment here can this soul fragment of the elder be sustained.
If he went out into the outside world, this Remnant Soul would likely slowly dissipate its energy."
Hu Miao nodded, her expression tinged with sorrow.