Translator: CinderTL
[My child, Ren Sais]
[It has been seven years since you ventured into the Holy City.]
[Although you have shed the Serpent God's bloodline and abandoned all of the Serpent God's blessings, I believe that the Serpent God will still protect you.]
[Because you are the great warrior of our Black Blade Tribe, one of the pioneers who dared to attempt the Transformation Ritual.]
[The Serpent God will eventually awaken again. His eyes will illuminate this world, and his scales will restore the earth.]
[Believe me, when that day comes, you will once again receive the Serpent God's blessing and become one of his angels.]
After reading the contents of the parchment, Chen Feng sat in deep thought.
Fei Shan looked completely like a normal person and had even awakened the Seed of Life.
Yet, he turned out to be a serpent man from the Serpent Tribe.
Judging by the name, he was likely from the Black Blade Tribe.
"The Transformation Ritual..."
The key point mentioned in the parchment was the reason Fei Shan could infiltrate the Holy City.
Chen Feng narrowed his eyes, recalling the information he had extracted from Wu Heng.
The walls of the Holy City were inscribed with special runes. Once any Serpent Spirit-related power appeared, it would be detected.
This was why the Holy City was considered the best refuge for humans in this world.
But now...
"After lurking for so long, their ambitions must be significant."
With a flicker in his eyes, Chen Feng rewrapped the parchment, pondering how to handle it.
Should he return it to Fei Shan's corpse?
Not only would it risk exposing himself, but the presence of a serpent man was a major hidden danger.
He couldn't be sure if there were any serpent men among the Holy City officials searching the bodies.
If they discovered it first, returning the parchment would be pointless and might even alert them.
What about giving it to Molly?
The thought crossed his mind, and after some consideration, Chen Feng came up with an idea.
The night passed without incident.
As sunlight spilled over, the town came alive with people moving about.
On the streets between the wooden houses, groups of robust men in vine armor, armed with spears and bows, headed out. Meanwhile, men and women in simple linen clothes carried tools to work in the fields.
Whispers of discussion arose, mostly about the events of the previous night.
"I heard Fei Shan's body was found. It was a gruesome death; his head was even missing."
"Who could have done it? Do you think it was the serpent men?"
"I don't know, but the Holy City is investigating. There will surely be an answer..."
Similar murmurs reached Chen Feng's ears, with most speculations leaning toward the serpent men.
Without drawing attention, Chen Feng waited quietly in his room until a familiar figure appeared in his line of sight.
"Brother Feng Chen."
Molly, clad in a gray cloak, approached slowly, waving away the vine-armored guards at the door.
Chen Feng nodded in acknowledgment, his gaze briefly falling on the brown animal skin in her hand.
As expected, Molly walked up and handed it over.
"This is the Life Seed Awakening Method I was fortunate enough to obtain. It can only be cultivated up to the fourth level."
"I hope it can be of some help to you."
She smiled, her words carrying a hint of deeper meaning.
"Thank you."
Chen Feng didn't hesitate, thanking her as he accepted it.
His eyes scanned the parchment, where tadpole-like characters appeared.
With the power of the dream subtly enhancing his understanding, the contents quickly became clear.
[The Life Seed Awakening Method]
[Guide the Life energy within your body, circulate it through your meridians and acupoints, and temper your physique.]
[Meditate on the elements of wind, earth, water, and fire, select one, and determine the type of the Life Seed.]
[Once the elemental meditation resonates successfully, the Seed of Life can be condensed in the dantian below the navel. Nourish it with vital substances or daily Life energy to help it grow.]
In an instant, Chen Feng absorbed all the information.
The interface automatically appeared.
[Life Seed Awakening Method: Unawakened (1%)]
A glint of excitement flashed in Chen Feng's eyes. He was certain this cultivation method was genuine.
Unaware of his thoughts, Molly, seeing him engrossed in the cultivation method, offered a few words of advice before tactfully taking her leave.
With no one around, Chen Feng closed the door.
Following the key points of the method, he quickly sat cross-legged and began meditating.
Wind.
Fei Shan's agility, which contrasted with his burly physique, had left a deep impression on him.
However, to his surprise...
Wind?
Chen Feng suddenly felt confused.
Wind has no form. How could he meditate on it?
The thought flashed through his mind, and he then tried meditating on water, wood, and earth.
Though he managed to vaguely visualize some forms, his spirit felt no resonance.
Finally, a strand of crimson force quietly emerged, swirling in his palm.
Like a flame, it flickered gently in the sunlight streaming through the window.
"Fire."
Chen Feng suddenly smiled.
Throughout his journey, the martial arts and techniques of the Flame Tiger Sect, such as the Flame Tiger Stance and the Crimson Tiger Force, had become deeply ingrained in him.
Compared to the other elements, fire was the power he was most familiar with.
In an instant, all obstacles vanished.
A flame materialized in his meditation, quickly growing into a fireball.
Fierce claws stepped out from within, and the majestic head of a tiger emerged, exuding authority.
Sparks exploded in his mental visualization, and the tiger's tail lashed, its vertical pupils gleaming with life.
A flying crimson tiger, composed entirely of flames, appeared in his meditation.
Buzz!
A sense of clarity washed over Chen Feng as he felt a slight anomaly in his lower abdomen, the location of the dantian in martial arts.
Through internal vision, he saw the Life energy in his body gathering and merging, condensing into a tiny seed-like particle.
It was entirely crimson, as if blended with a portion of his force, yet also resembling a burning flame.
Immediately.
[The Life Seed Awakening Method: Awakened (1%)+]
Seeing the prompt on the interface, Chen Feng knew he had truly begun.
His gaze lingered on the "+" sign for a moment before he quickly took out the snakeskin pouch and opened it, revealing two red crystal-like Serpent Spirit Fruits.
The Life Seed Awakening Method was, to some extent, a part of martial arts.
However, it was more unique and leaned toward strengthening techniques.
Nevertheless, Chen Feng had no intention of using Limit Breaking or Extreme Martial Arts on this awakening method, at least not in the short term.
After all, the Crimson Tiger Force still needed to be elevated to the Heavenly Flame level, and the Extreme Martial Fist also required improvement.
Therefore...
"Convert!"
With his mind made up, the two Serpent Spirit Fruits rapidly dissolved, merging into his body like red spiritual light.
Following the method's key points, he guided the Life energy to nourish the Life Seed.
Soon, warm currents flowed through him. Chen Feng could clearly feel his Life energy replenishing, and the Life Seed in his lower abdomen gradually grew.
Over time, his physique, which had hit a bottleneck, began to be tempered.
His four-dimensional attributes quietly increased as he immersed himself in the cultivation of this method.
A day later.
Molly sat alone in her room, cross-legged, attempting to guide her Life energy to consolidate the Life Seed she had recently awakened.
A faint white light emanated from her slightly tanned skin, her curly hair cascading down as her gray cloak had been removed.
The room was utterly silent, and her thoughts once again turned to the burly young man in brown linen clothes.
Is Brother Feng Chen really an outsider?
His awkward accent, his appearance that differed from the southern region, his sudden appearance and disappearance.
Even his intense curiosity about her Life Seed Awakening Method, as if he had never encountered the power of the Seed of Life before.
Her suspicions grew stronger. If it weren't for the portraits of outsiders brought back by the battalion commander from the Holy City—blue-skinned and resembling silver-gray colossi—she would have almost been certain.
This was also why she had temporarily held back from recommending him to the battalion commander and recruiting him.
"Should I tell the battalion commander?"
The thought crossed her mind, but she couldn't forget the debt of gratitude for saving her life.
Just then, she heard footsteps approaching outside.
Knock, knock!
The sound of knocking followed.
Molly opened her eyes, surprised.
Who could be visiting at this hour?
Puzzled, she got up, straightened her clothes, and went to open the door.
No one was there.
Flecks of sunlight spilled from the sky, the horizon painted with crimson clouds as the sun dipped westward.
She glanced around, her gaze finally falling to the ground.
The only thing there.
A brown parchment.
---
"In martial arts, your stance must be firm!"
"Didn't Senior Brother teach you the Giant Tiger Technique? Starting today, you'll all train with me!"
Under the blue sky with drifting clouds, Zhao Jushan's voice echoed from the training ground.
In the neighboring courtyard, Xu Tingxiao stood alone, practicing his stance.
Everything was familiar. Chen Feng put down his phone and walked to the window, his eyes slightly dazed.
Days had passed in the dream, but only one day had gone by on Earth.
The difference in time was somewhat disorienting.
"I wonder, do those from the Divine Martial Alliance or the Serpent Spirit Cult also experience this when they enter the Serpent Spirit Secret Realm using the key?"
"Is the secret realm they enter the same world I experienced?"
Chen Feng pondered.
Perhaps after some investigation, he could determine whether it was a difference in time between the two worlds or a peculiarity of the dream.
With this in mind, he glanced at the serpent-shaped mark on his palm.
It was dull, as if its energy had been depleted.
Indeed, his Serpent Spirit Power was completely exhausted. If he wanted to return to the Serpent Spirit Secret Realm, he would need to find a way to gather more.
For now, he had no plans to return. Suppressing his stray thoughts, he turned his attention to the interface.
[Life Seed Awakening Method: Second Level (1%)+]
[Strength: 40.2→42.7]
[Agility: 35.4→37.2]
[Constitution: 48.3→51.3]
[Willpower: 39.5→41.2]
A 9-point increase in attributes.
The two Serpent Spirit Fruits had directly propelled him to the second level.
But this wasn't his greatest gain.
He had noticed a subtle change in his body since the birth of the Life Seed.
With a thought, a strand of crimson force appeared in his palm.
Flames swirled, lifelike.
If someone else were present, they might have truly believed he could control fire.
Then.
"Explosive Fist."
His arm suddenly swelled slightly, muscles bulging, veins protruding.
Yet, the Crimson Tiger Force in his palm didn't dissipate. Instead, it grew deeper.
As he carefully observed this, Chen Feng realized that the path of the Seed of Life was indeed the right choice.
Previously, he couldn't use force and the Explosive Fist simultaneously.
But with the Seed of Life acting as a mediator, this issue was effortlessly resolved.
The reason was that both force and physical strength were forms of the body's Life energy.
After activating the Seed of Life, he could now combine these two skills, unleashing even greater power.
Beyond that...
Looking at the force in his hand, Chen Feng quietly activated the fire Life Seed within him.
Strands of Life energy flowed out, enhancing the force.
In an instant, the Crimson Tiger Force became even more crimson and deeper, like a restless spark ready to explode.
"So, this must be the special feature of my Life Seed."
Chen Feng recalled some key points mentioned in the Life Seed Awakening Method, as well as Molly's specific advice.
Though each person's physique was different, if the elemental meditation resonated with the same element, the enhancements would generally fall within the same broad category.
For example, wind elements were more related to speed and perception.
Water and wood elements leaned toward recovery and healing, while earth elements focused on defense.
As for fire elements, they were oriented toward offense.
Like now.
The force in his hand was restless and aggressive. Chen Feng thought of a word.
Explosive!
More aggressive, with greater destructive power than others at the same level.
Eager to test it, he quickly retracted the force and left the courtyard, heading to a training room.
Spanning hundreds of square meters, the room had wooden windows on both sides, with specks of dust floating in the sunlight.
This was a private space the Flame Tiger Sect had built for him after he became a Grandmaster.
It was equipped with various small fitness equipment, swords and other weapons placed on racks in the corner, and several ironwood dummies at the front, wrapped in human-shaped sandbags.
With no one around, Chen Feng walked across the wooden floor to the sandbags.
Buzz!
The force reappeared, and he quietly activated the Life Seed within him.
Then, with a single palm strike, he hit the sandbag.
Boom!!
The sandbag and ironwood dummy exploded, scattering sand and iron fragments as if scorched by fire.
Chen Feng's eyes gleamed. He knew he had only used a wisp of force and hadn't even employed any force techniques.
Yet, the effect was several times stronger than the Flame Blast Style.
"Good."
Satisfied, he sensed someone approaching.
The commotion from his strike had attracted attention, and Xu Tingxiao, who had followed him, stood at the door.
Dressed in a white robe, his short hair slightly messy, his eyes were sharp, and his hesitant expression was unmistakable.
"What is it?"
"Senior... Senior Brother, could you... give me some guidance?"
Xu Tingxiao asked shyly. Chen Feng chuckled.
This kid had become much more obedient since returning from Yun Port.
With their master unconscious and Third Martial Uncle busy managing affairs, there was no one to guide him.
"Alright."
Chen Feng nodded, signaling him to come in and demonstrate what he had learned.
Although Chen Feng's cultivation relied on Limit Breaking, his insights and realm allowed him to spot some key points.
"At the Steel Fire level, the force should be aggressive like fire and fierce as steel."
"Your strikes are too light. Be ruthless, and your movements need to be sharper..."
After a few brief pointers, Chen Feng suddenly sensed something unusual.
His gaze shifted to a black crow flying overhead.
A faint malice brushed past him, and he narrowed his eyes.
"The Divine Martial Alliance?"
Just like the feeling of being watched before, the black crow didn't leave immediately. Instead, it circled above for a few seconds.
With a thought, Chen Feng instructed Xu Tingxiao to continue practicing diligently, then found an excuse to leave.
"Caw!"
The unpleasant cry of the crow echoed as it stopped circling and flew toward the back mountain, descending lower and lower.
Chen Feng's eyes turned cold. Enhancing his perception, he quickened his pace.
Finally, in the shaded woods of the back mountain.
A figure appeared, seemingly waiting for him.
(End of the Chapter)
---
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