Davis opened his mouth, sounding solemn.
"I don’t think of you as a burden, nor do I think that having to take care of you is a nuisance. You’re mine, so do not be afraid to ask for help or want my presence in your sect life. I cannot afford to appear there in my main body, but I can afford to send my avatar to you even if there are many things to do because you have already become that important to me."
"..."
Silence pervaded again before a moved voice echoed.
"Davis..." Sobbing sounds echoed before she lightly giggled, "That’s a lot of things..."
"You sassy little princess..." Davis chuckled, "I’m rather glad that you didn’t think I’m insincere since I didn’t show up with my main body."
"How can it be!?" Shirley abruptly cried out, "If you had arrived in your main body, I would’ve chosen to escape without uttering a word! I’m never having you face this kind of danger! I’ve already seen you die once, even if you did not really die! It’s just... I don’t want to see it happen ever again!!!"
Davis became completely taken aback by her outburst, but he suddenly understood that this might be the true reason that she told him not to come, perhaps because he would do something crazy again like killing a Ninth Stage Powerhouse, burning his soul essence.
Indeed, it was because Shirley felt that he would go to any lengths, sacrificing his blood and soul essence to save her, that she told him to stay away. She had already seen it happen and didn’t want him dying again because of her, not for a single moment.
She felt like she would rather die herself than see that happen again, but hearing his words, she wiped her tears and spoke.
"I’m sorry. I will not purposefully hide if something happens..."
Davis’s lips twitched.
His doubts were on point. She was indeed trying to keep him away so that he wouldn’t waste his precious soul essence on her. However, when he thought about it, healing blood essence and soul essence after it had been overused was practically impossible, so it was reasonable that Shirley still thinks that he was on rest and that his wives were taking care of him instead of taking ’care’ of him.
Even the matter of reforming the avatar was perhaps not believed by her that she told him not to come in order to not embarrass him, or she was afraid that he would appear in his main body since he told her that he would be back in a few short hours.
Truly, she was considerate.
However...
"You better tell me everything that happens because if you don’t, I’m going to storm the Burning Phoenix Ridge with my main body..." Davis admonished.
"You silly..." Shirley couldn’t help but sniffle as she pursed her lips, "In this life, you’re the only one for me. I will do as you say..."
*Chu!~*
"I love you~"
A kissing sound echoed as she acknowledged, making Davis feel satisfied than ever!
Natalya, Fiora, and Shirley. They all loved him dearly more than he could ever love them, more than he was obsessed with them, making it more than worthwhile for him to share his time with them.
"I love you too, take care."
Davis answered, and with another acknowledgment from her, their conversation ended as the messaging talisman’s glow faded. The smile didn’t leave his face for a long while before he readjusted his mental state.
His soul sense scoured his dantian, locating the tiny strand of tribulation lightning that was extremely powerful yet dwelling like a harmless thing.
Davis’s brows furrowed, wondering what exactly he could do with this tribulation lightning.
’It’s at the Peak-Level of Eighth Stage, capably of instantly frying my meridians if I dare to refine and absorb it. My instincts are screaming that I should not even dare it, but what if I refine it using my soul force? No, it’s useless. My meridians and revolving core would still have to absorb the essence of this tribulation lightning to be tempered, which makes it almost impossible unless I was at the Martial Sage Stage.’
’Then again, I risk my plan to change my revolving core’s attribute to fire and lightning if I ever end up succeeding in strengthening my revolving core with the tribulation lightning because even the Infernal Core Flame Leaf might not work on me anymore...’
Davis’s expression became difficult. He had already thought a lot about refining it, but no matter how he tried to make it work in his mind simulation, it ended up ruining at least one of his plans.
One should keep in mind that this was the case if Davis succeeded in refining the tribulation lightning because he was not completely sure that if his meridians and revolving core could handle the absorption as there was always the risk of his meridians being fried, his revolving core exploding from being unable to contain the energy and whatnot like the strange illness that Lia Alstreim contracted.
Although he felt like he could heal most injuries and illnesses like it was nothing, he couldn’t help but feel how wonderful it would be if he could just keep strengthening instead of needing to worry about counteractive attributes, side effects, and the difficulties of further increasing strength that would come with the successful refinement of the tribulation lightning.
’Well, here goes nothing...’
Davis’s soul force surged from his soul sea as he dared.
The first thing he did was protect his revolving core and meridian veins and points before a strand of soul force appeared in front of the tribulation lightning, which was already being showered by the soul force that projected life energy to make it stay tamed.
He began to use the same life energy to refine the tribulation lightning essence to suit him. A strand of refined tribulation lightning slowly began to form under the fine care of the life energy, making Davis’s eyes go wide.
’Great! It seems that it can be refined in small amounts...’
At the same time, he couldn’t help but praise that Fallen Heaven’s life energy was truly something else. Although it used up his soul force like a huge mouth drinking up a whole river, its effects were as marvelous as its usage.
Soon, after a minute of refining, he collected the refined strand of lightning essence that was now going to temper his meridian veins. He carefully used the life energy to send its way out of the dantian before he safely carried it all the way to his index finger of his right hand.
Davis’s expression was now solemn. Once again, he adjusted his mental state before he slowly dropped that strand of refined essence of tribulation lightning over his meridian vein.
The refining process was rather simple.
It was just like how he refined his meridian points and veins to fire-attribute using the medicinal essence of the Searing Winged-Flame Fruit.
However, the moment his meridian veins began absorbing the extremely tiny strand of tribulation lightning essence, the meridian veins it was connected to abruptly burst into flames while the point of absorption instantly became fried!
Davis’s expression contorted into one of pain as he clenched his teeth to not make a sound.
That tiny strand of tribulation lightning essence was used up, but his hand was rapidly turning black! His index finger’s meridian vein and point were completely fried, and the veins it connected to were burning at this moment, unable to withstand the peak-level eighth stage tribulation lightning essence.
"As expected... How can heavenly tribulation lightning be absorbed so easily without at least having a proper constitution, or perhaps a unique physique that is capable of withstanding its immense might?"
Davis smiled, but his smile was seething with immense rage instead of enduring the pain.
Imagine being able to capture the tribulation lightning, even being capable of refining it but not being capable of absorbing it...
Davis was completely enraged by his lack of cultivation at this moment, but he sighed the next moment as he had already expected this to happen. It just couldn’t be helped.
He was rushing his cultivation as fast as he could.
He patiently waited for his cultivation to stabilize and reach a certain foundation before he broke through, keeping his cultivation foundation at a healthy level. For a person around twenty-five years old, he felt like he was already the fastest. Yet, it still was not enough for him to try refining the tribulation lightning essence again using another method because it was all useless as his meridians were unable to withstand the essence.
’It was rather a good thing that I didn’t try it on my revolving core...’ He shook his head, shaking away the disappointment that seeped into his heart as he consoled himself.
"It’s time to get Eldia back..."
Davis spoke as he narrowed his eyes.
He tried to absorb the tribulation lightning but ended up meeting failure. He understood that capturing, taming, and refining the tribulation lightning with Fallen Heaven’s life energy might be one thing, but absorbing it...?
He couldn’t help but shake his head as he possessed a mocking smile.
"If I think I can still absorb that in my current level, then my arrogance is on the level of a mental illness..."
Hence, the only way he could make the tribulation lightning useful and also get rid of it from his dantian was to see if the Emperor Grade Lightning Elemental could absorb it for him.
Time passed, yet Eldia still had not erased the soul mark he had placed on her. She was still in the direction of the Dark Thunder Island, probably enjoying her time alone in her birthplace. Nevertheless, her compliance still told him that she hadn’t rejected or tried to escape from him, which more or less displayed her loyalty till this point.
’I don’t know if she could absorb it, but since she’s an elemental that is birthed by the heavens, she should be able to absorb it, right? She has the required lightning energy body and capable of devouring any other lightning like all lightning elementals to strengthen themselves, especially when her grade and prowess are more or less equal to the tribulation lightning itself...!’
Davis felt like he could try.
Or, he could wait till he entered Martial Sage Stage, risking a time bomb ticking inside him because he couldn’t assure that it would not explode within his body if he stopped the supply of life energy, which was taming it even now as he kept thinking.
After all, he could faint for a few minutes or even hours if he had to overuse his soul essence, not to mention that Martial Sage Stage was the point where he would have to inscribe the laws on his body, so he couldn’t be hasty, or he would risk mediocrity, which certainly wasn’t in his plan right now, not after the long talk he had with Shirley.
Therefore, he couldn’t help but give the nod to this viable plan.
’Alright then, with Shirley’s understanding nature, I have gained more time with the avatar by my side, and since I don’t want to waste my time constantly looking out for the Alstreim Family, it’s imperative that I strengthen the Alstreim Family’s defenses.’
Davis finally felt that it was time to rescue the trapped Alstreim Family’s Powerhouse and his family.
Even though there was still a few days left, he felt that it didn’t make a difference, not to mention that he was leaving out the anxious Niera Alstreim, who was probably scared to wait till the end of the month as that was the time limit her father, Nero Alstreim indicated that if he didn’t return, it would mean Davis was a liar who had deceived them.
’Well, something might pop up in a few days like it always does. I don’t want to be locked at that time, unable to get Niera back, inevitably making her think that I had abandoned and used her...’
He stood up before two Davis’s exited the room as they left their separate ways.
As for Davis’s right hand that was charred black, it was already healed!