"Ferocious beast meat can be cooked," Ying'er said with a soft sigh as she gracefully dabbed the corner of her lips.
"If prepared by a master chef, the flavor would certainly be even better. But even without cooking, it's already a peerless delicacy."
She smiled faintly.
"However… to properly cook the flesh of a beast at the Qi-Refining to Spirit-Transforming level, that's something only cultivators are capable of."
"Shushan Village doesn't have such a chef yet. Still, I don't think this disappointed you."
Himeko nodded firmly.
"Of course not. If even this could disappoint me, then there's probably nothing in the world worth eating."
Only then did she finally have the leisure to observe the others.
Draymond and Ying'er were both radiating barely restrained blood qi after eating, their inner strength churning violently, clearly unable to settle down for the moment.
Jiang Yan, on the other hand, looked calm and composed. He even asked for another portion, eating unhurriedly.
It was obvious that ferocious beast meat provided a much stronger boost to martial artists than to someone like him.
"You've probably already noticed what matters most after consuming ferocious beast meat," Ying'er said with a smile.
"For ordinary people, food is pleasure for the palate. But for martial artists, strength is everything."
"This heart, if utilized properly, can give rise to an entirely new batch of powerful warriors in Shushan Village."
"Even for us, the benefits are substantial—though unfortunately, this isn't something you can eat in excess."
She shook her head regretfully.
"Eat too much without being able to digest it, and the surging blood qi and inner strength will shatter your meridians."
"But once refined, our strength will increase significantly."
Himeko nodded in understanding, her thoughts already racing.
If martial arts were to be promoted on a large scale, spiritual energy was one aspect, and martial techniques formed the foundation.
With those two in place, the groundwork for widespread martial cultivation would exist.
But resources—more bluntly speaking, ferocious beasts—were the real bottleneck.
Born from spiritual energy resurgence, ferocious beasts were disasters in their own right, yet for martial artists, they were perfect nourishment and cultivation resources.
If one wanted to rapidly create a large number of martial artists, ferocious beasts were indispensable.
That applied to ordinary warriors.
For top-tier figures like Jiang Yan, however, the heart was far less impactful.
Not useless—but limited.
To truly advance further, refining essence blood and entering secluded cultivation would be far more effective.
Coupled with the insights he gained during the battle against the Mangfang Elephant, breaking through to the peak of the Land Immortal realm was likely only a matter of time.
After checking on Himeko's condition, Ying'er and Draymond shifted the conversation to how the Mangfang Elephant would be distributed and utilized.
Shushan Village housed over fifty thousand people, but given the sheer size of the beast and its early Essence-Refining realm, its resources would sustain everyone for quite some time.
Of course, that applied only to the most basic flesh.
The true essence would naturally go to Jiang Yan and the others.
Discussing allocation and utilization was now the most pressing matter.
Besides, Himeko didn't need to be constantly entertained—she clearly had plenty of her own thoughts to work through.
And indeed, she did.
After encountering cultivation firsthand, Himeko understood one thing clearly—
Cultivation was not something that could be widely popularized.
It was powerful, yes—but how many people could truly cultivate?
What the Honkai world desperately needed was martial artists as its foundational combat force.
Ferocious beast meat aside, once she herself began cultivating, resources would no longer be an issue.
Today's close observation of the martial artists' battle against the Mangfang Elephant gave her a far clearer picture of their true combat value.
Ying'er hadn't even fought, yet Himeko could still judge plenty.
First came the Innate realm martial artists.
Though they hadn't participated directly in the frontline battle, Himeko had seen them clearly during the evacuation and later during the reconstruction.
In terms of speed alone, they were on par with A-rank Valkyries.
Their raw destructive power was weaker—but that was partly because many A-rank Valkyries wielded high-powered weapons.
Innate martial artists were still flesh and blood.
In a straight fight, an Innate martial artist versus an A-rank Valkyrie would probably be a six–four split—
Sixty percent in favor of the Valkyrie.
That said, martial arts were incredibly diverse. Himeko had seen long-range martial techniques that could absolutely contend with A-rank Valkyries.
This evaluation was purely her personal, first-hand judgment.
As for Grandmasters—
There was no ambiguity at all.
An A-rank Valkyrie stood no chance.
Heavy weapons were useless if they couldn't hit, and a Grandmaster's personal destructive power already surpassed most conventional armaments.
But when it came to S-rank Valkyries…
Himeko could only use Theresa as a benchmark.
Without accounting for Divine Keys, a Grandmaster could probably exchange a few blows with Theresa.
Once Divine Keys entered the picture, the Grandmaster would lose—without question.
Even so, that wasn't an absolute comparison.
Theresa's Divine Key was simply too outrageous.
Whether it could effectively suppress inner strength was still an open question.
Then came Grand Grandmasters.
There was nothing to debate.
Among S-rank Valkyries, excluding Durandal, every single one would lose.
Draymond's attacks could resonate his martial intent with the will of heaven and earth.
Put another way, a Grand Grandmaster's martial intent was a downright unfair power—
Like carrying a personal suppression field at all times.
Within that domain, they were pay-to-win players, and the world itself was the game developer.
And the developer always favored the whales.
That strike Draymond used might have barely scratched the Mangfang Elephant—
But that was a ferocious beast.
Against Valkyries?
Even Theresa wielding Judah might not win.
As for Rita… Himeko hadn't seen her fight enough, but based on what she knew, Rita likely wouldn't last a single exchange.
So—
Grand Grandmasters were slightly stronger than S-rank Valkyries?
Himeko quickly discarded the thought.
Siegfried's self-burning, life-consuming strike—
That was something a Grand Grandmaster absolutely couldn't withstand.
That attack was practically a small-scale nuclear explosion.
From that perspective, the technological path wasn't worthless either.
As for Durandal…
Himeko had personally reviewed her combat records in Schicksal's database.
Facing three Emperor-class Honkai beasts simultaneously, she resolved the battle in under five minutes—using unknown methods.
A Grand Grandmaster would die without question.
As for Jiang Yan…
Himeko didn't think he could defeat Durandal.
Durandal was simply too monstrous—there seemed to be several insurmountable chasms between her and ordinary S-rank Valkyries.
If there truly were SS-rank or SSS-rank classifications…
Durandal would be at least SSS—perhaps even beyond that.
She wielded absurd Divine Keys and possessed unknown innate abilities.
Based on today's display, Jiang Yan wouldn't win—but he could survive several exchanges.
That alone was astonishing.
And it all hinged on how extraordinary inner strength truly was.
Using the Mangfang Elephant as a reference—
If Durandal fought it at full strength, she could likely defeat it within ten minutes.
Solo.
Beyond that, further comparisons were meaningless.
As for cultivators—
Himeko had only seen Wendy and Alice spar playfully yesterday, and Yun Qing today.
All three were at least mid-stage Qi-Refining to Spirit-Transforming or above.
In the Honkai world, they could wipe the planet clean of Honkai single-handedly.
No matter how strong Durandal was, she wouldn't stand a chance.
As for early Essence-Refining cultivators…
Himeko hadn't seen any. No judgment.
And herself?
Even now, with significant mastery over the Gem of Conquest—calling herself the Herrscher of Flame wouldn't be inaccurate.
But against Jiang Yan?
She wasn't confident.
That final Hundred-Pace Flying Sword was terrifying.
Even Durandal would never try to tank it head-on.
Thinking this through, Himeko suddenly froze.
She hadn't realized before—
Durandal was that strong.
Then again—
As a teacher, she naturally had to support her student unconditionally.
Kiana had talent.
She lagged behind Durandal now, but in the future?
She would surpass her.
Himeko believed that, just as Kiana believed in her.
Still, martial arts weren't Himeko's ultimate path.
To truly resolve the Honkai—
Only cultivation would suffice.
Cultivation was her only way forward.
To become a world-saving hero depended entirely on whether she could cultivate this time.
She had confidence.
Once she fully mastered the Gem of Conquest and stepped onto the cultivation path—
In the Honkai world, aside from the Final Herrscher, no one would be her equal.
That was dimensional suppression.
And to master the Gem of Conquest as quickly as possible…
Himeko pondered briefly, then turned to Jiang Yan.
"Mr. Jiang Yan," she asked softly, "during this period… could you spar with me?"
Jiang Yan set down his chopsticks and looked at her.
After a moment of thought, he nodded.
"If Miss Himeko requires it."
"I'm also quite interested in that unusual power of yours. Martial arts thrive on cross-pollination."
"If I want to break past my limits and achieve entering the Dao through martial arts, endless seclusion won't be enough."
"Fighting with you would help me as well."
Himeko let out a breath of relief and smiled.
"Then I'll be relying on your guidance."
Jiang Yan was stronger than her—that much was clear from today's battle.
More importantly, his martial techniques had reached the level of perfection.
Sparring daily with someone like him—
Even if she didn't learn a single technique outright,
His combat instincts and experience alone would be invaluable.
Himeko's own fighting style was forged on the battlefield against Honkai.
It differed greatly from the cultivation world.
The sooner she mastered mystic-style combat, the better she could integrate into the cultivator system.
Not to mention, the Gem of Conquest demanded increasingly precise control.
Jiang Yan's Hundred-Pace Flying Sword—
Condensing all power into a singularity—
It sounded simple.
In practice, it was absurdly difficult.
At her current level of control over Honkai energy, Himeko simply couldn't replicate it.
If she could…
She was confident she could have pierced the Mangfang Elephant's true defenses instead of merely inflicting superficial wounds.
"It looks like Shushan Village is going to get livelier in the coming days," Ying'er said with a playful grin.
Himeko laughed.
"Why don't you join us too, Miss Ying'er? As a Grand Grandmaster, how could you have power without technique?"
Ying'er merely smiled without responding.
Draymond, however, shook his head.
"Don't underestimate Miss Ying'er."
"She always claims her cultivation was forcibly elevated by Lady Ningguang, but…"
"If we truly fought, I might not be her match."
"And if she used her trump cards, even Mr. Jiang Yan would be in danger."
He looked at Ying'er deeply.
"As Lady Ningguang's confidante…"
"Miss Ying'er—how could she not possess methods beyond imagination?"
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