Chapter 344: The Path to Divinity
Chapter 344: The Path to Divinity
Chapter 344: The Path to Divinity
After a brief hesitation, Chen Chu’s gaze fell upon Agility.
At the moment, the Thunder Fiery Emperor Beast’s greatest strength was its physical body. With a density exceeding other level 8 colossal beasts by twenty to thirty times, combined with top-level Defense and Strength abilities, it was invincible in close combat.
If its Agility was also enhanced to the maximum level, it would have absolute dominance in close combat, even against stronger colossal beasts.
Thinking of this, Chen Chu's voice resounded in his mind.
Consume ten thousand attribute points to enhance the Thunder Fiery Emperor Beast’s Agility ability.
As soon as Chen Chu finished his thought, a vast enhancing energy exploded within the Thunder Beast through their soul connection.
Deep within its flesh, strands of special power converged, resembling intricate runic patterns as they formed an invisible net that spread throughout its body.
This was the manifestation of the Agility ability. The runes were continuously evolving, becoming increasingly complex and exuding a profound aura. The speed was so rapid that even with Chen Chu’s full focus, he couldn’t discern it clearly.
Roar! Roar! Roar!
At the edge of the erupting volcano, the black and red colossal beast stood upright, letting out a deep roar. An overwhelming aura surged, shaking the heavens and the earth. The micro-world trembled under the kingly aura, and the distant sea roared wildly, forming tsunamis that battered the ice crystal palace.
Such a dramatic display instantly alerted the Silver Colossal Dragon, Nine-headed Serpent, Deep Sea Dragon Turtle, and Single-horned Kun, who had been cultivating in their palaces for half a day.
Squeak, squeak, squeak! Thunder Fiery has become even stronger.
The Kun's eyes were filled with envy. It also wished its size and strength would grow as rapidly as Thunder Fiery’s. If it could grow stronger just by lying down and sleeping, that would be even better.
Watching the colossal beast shake the heavens and earth with its aura, the Dragon Turtle let out an excited roar: Roar, roar! Baxia must become stronger, cultivate, keep cultivating.
The Dragon Turtle believed that the Thunder Beast's increase in power and continuous progress were related to its rune cultivation, and it suddenly became very motivated.
It hadn’t even condensed a single basic rune yet, so it set a small goal for itself: condense its first energy conversion rune today.
In contrast to these two creatures, who were already accustomed to the Thunder Beast's abnormal power, the Silver Dragon was even more shocked, its eyes wide with disbelief. It could feel the pressure from the Thunder Beast's bloodline becoming stronger, almost indistinguishable to that of the purple dragon egg, and comparable to that of an emperor.
How was this possible, though? It had only recently enhanced its bloodline!
It wasn’t the Thunder Beast’s physical growth, but the speed at which its bloodline was evolving that astonished and shook the Silver Dragon. Strength and levels could grow with time, but bloodline was different. It not only represented the bearer’s upper limit, but also their battle power.
This fellow must have a secret to enhancing its bloodline. I must find a way to trick it out of him.
Looking at the distant, domineering colossal beast, the Silver Dragon, being a mythical creature itself, had a gleam in its eyes, feeling like it had discovered a blind spot.
Unlike the Kun and the Dragon Turtle, the Silver Dragon was more knowledgeable. Even though it had less experience and a simpler mind, that didn't mean it was stupid.
But how do I trick Thunder Fiery into revealing its bloodline evolution secret? Should I share some of the delicious food stored in my reverse scale with it? No, this guy is smarter than the great Saixitia, not so easy to deceive.
While the Silver Dragon contemplated its goal, the Serpent poked one head out, glanced around, and then retreated back into its palace to continue sleeping... or rather, cultivating.
Due to its nine dragon heads, the Serpent could focus on nine different tasks simultaneously. Usually, one head would be on duty while the other eight slept, including now, where one head diligently condensed a durability rune while the others snored away.
It didn’t find the Thunder Beast’s strength improvement surprising. Ao Ba had always been abnormal, so this was actually normal.
Gurgle, gurgle! The great king is so powerful, so strong, so mighty.
At the micro-world’s entrance, the General Crab's eyes were spinning with admiration for the ferocious Thunder Beast.
This was its idol, with an aura that covered an entire world, shaking the heavens and earth. If only it could be so powerful. Wouldn't all the female crabs line up to find it, then?
While the other colossal beasts were shaken by its aura, the Thunder Beast slowly opened its eyes. Within its golden pupils, flames burned, and thunderbolts flashed, as they radiated a terrifying majesty.
Feeling the special power within, the Thunder Beast's eyes showed amazement: I didn't expect that enhancing it to the top-level would bring such changes.
The Agility ability had integrated into its entire body, forming a lightness that enveloped and created an invisible repulsion field around the Thunder Beast. Under this special force field, it felt so light as if it could fly.
Bang!
The massive Thunder Beast took a step forward. Its heavy footfalls only slightly shook the volcanic rock, without causing the usual shattering within a dozen meter radius.
Of course, enhancing its Agility to top-level didn't just allow the Thunder Beast to control its own weight. It also brought about a drastic improvement in the coordination of its massive body. In addition, there were slight adjustments to its appearance, making it look sharper and more ferocious, such as its spiked horns becoming sharper.
Boom!
The Thunder Beast vanished from its original spot. A sonic boom immediately followed, creating a white shockwave spanning thousands of meters, which then transformed into a storm that swept across the land.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The nearly hundred-meter-long Thunder Beast seemed to have teleported. It continually flashed around the world of fire and water, appearing several kilometers away with each flash.
The ground shattered and ice exploded from its rapid movements, and the resulting shockwaves formed a white typhoon that shook the palaces.
This was just from the shockwaves of its rapid movements. After nine consecutive "teleportations,” the Thunder Beast reappeared at the volcanic crater, emanating an aura that seemed to crush the void and burst the atmosphere.
With its Agility ability enhanced to the top-level, the Thunder Beast could now perform nine flashes continuously. With a speed that almost surpassed conscious reaction, colossal beasts of the same level would be obliterated by a single strike from its claws.
These incredible results filled the Thunder Beast with anticipation for the next enhancements of its Golden Flames and Thunderbolt abilities.
However, after finishing the test, it didn't leave. Instead, it charged into the volcanic crater with a boom, causing lava to splash everywhere.
It planned to spend a few days condensing a few dozen more runes and perfecting the force field constraint of its claws, with the aim to compress the energy by fiftyfold.
Combined with its Agility flashes and Strength, it might be able to obliterate a beginning stage level 9 colossal beast with a single strike.
Killing a few level 9 colossal beasts at random could allow it to evolve to level 9 faster than hunting down those at level 7 or 8.
***
The next morning, the weather was clear, and there was nothing to do.
"Brother Chu, brother Chu..."
"...What's the matter?" Chen Chu withdrew his attention from the secret scripture.
Seeing him engrossed in cultivation right after sitting down, Li Daoyi couldn't help but shake his head. "Brother Chu, I think you're pushing yourself too hard. Relaxing a bit might be better for you.
"As the saying goes: When water is too full, it overflows; when the moon is full, it begins to wane. The string of a bow that is always kept taut will eventually break[1]. Our path of cultivation is the same."
Li Daoyi spoke sincerely. "Actually, with our current achievements, we already stand at the forefront of the younger generation of this era.
“Over the years, many strong individuals at the peak of the Ninth Heavenly Realm have been stuck at that crucial step, unable to break through. At this point, what we need is to perfect ourselves. Only then will we be able to take that step more easily when we reach the peak.”
Li Daoyi's sudden seriousness made Chen Chu feel a bit uncomfortable, and he simply nodded. "Brother Li, thanks for the reminder. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. But what exactly is this ‘step’ you're referring to?"
"Ahem! Well, I don't know either," Li Daoyi coughed awkwardly, feeling a bit embarrassed. "Anyway, that's what the old man told me. He advised me not to sit under the Thunder Rampage cloud all day to cultivate, so now I'm passing on this advice to you.
"But of course, the main thing is that you're already so strong and still working so hard, which puts a lot of pressure on me."
At this point, Li Daoyi felt a bit melancholic. Just as he said, Chen Chu was still working hard in his cultivation, even after how far he had gotten already. This made Li Daoyi feel a bit guilty whenever he slacked off.
Especially after chatting with beauties, he always felt a sense of guilt, wondering if he was too lazy compared to Chen Chu.
At that moment, Li Daoyi suddenly said, "Brother Chu, have you heard of the God Creation Plan?"
"God Creation Plan?" Chen Chu's eyes showed a questioning look.
"You haven't heard of it... Well, that's understandable. You've risen too quickly, unlike us."
Li Daoyi pondered for a moment. "With your talent and strength, you will definitely be classified as a God Seed. The Southern Military District should reach out to you after this mission ends.
"In the next two to three months, there will be a great opportunity called the path to divinity. As long as you step onto it, you have an almost one hundred percent chance of breaking through to the king level."
"Brother Li, please explain in detail." Chen Chu's expression turned serious.
"Breaking through to the king level is a monumental threshold," Li Daoyi said slowly. "Whether it's us human cultivators or mutated creatures, breaking through to the king level after reaching the Ninth Heavenly Realm requires a special kind of power called the origin of the world, and it can only be found in the mythical world.
"Normally, cultivators who reach the peak of the Ninth Heavenly Realm not only need to perfect their own path of laws, but also have to go to the mythical world. Only there can they absorb transcendent energy, temper the origin of the world from it, and finally condense their laws, leading to the transcendence of their soul and body.
"The path to divinity can let us obtain that origin power in advance. The greater the potential, the more origin rewards we can get. And the manifestation of potential includes comprehension, the soul, combat power, and other aspects.
"In addition, the path to divinity doesn't just contain origin energy, but also other opportunities like innate runes, law fragments, and god-level resources. Currently, the major empires are determining the candidates for God Seeds, and we are just waiting for that place to appear again."
Chen Chu instinctively asked, "What place?"
"It's an ancient ruin. Decades ago, the sudden rise of so many king-level cultivators among our people was because of the inheritances and resources obtained within that ruin. Even the supreme powerhouses of humanity are said to have broken through because of the experiences they had in there.
"And now, decades later, those same powerhouses have calculated that the ruin will reappear soon, so they started selecting candidates half a year ago, because there's an age limit for that place. No one over twenty can enter, and this restriction applies to the soul."
"I see. Thank you for the explanation, Brother Li." Chen Chu slowly nodded.
"You're welcome, you're welcome," Li Daoyi said with a beaming smile, pleased to have finally given this exceptional guy something to ponder.
While Li Daoyi was in a good mood, Chen Chu's emotions were slightly stirred up.
An opportunity involving supreme powerhouses? In that case, he absolutely had to compete for it. This wasn’t even mentioning the innate runes, law fragments, god-level resources, and the origin energy similar to ancient aura.
Especially the world's origin power—an essential and extremely valuable special energy for the Thunder Beast to break through to the mythical level.
Although reaching the peak of the Ninth Heavenly Realm and extracting and tempering the power of heaven and earth in the mythical world would also be possible, Chen Chu figured it would be a painfully slow process, given that so many powerhouses were stuck at that step.
He also recalled the level 9 colossal beast that relentlessly pursued the Thunder Beast for that ancient aura, demonstrating how incredibly precious it was.
However, these concerns were for the future. Chen Chu quickly returned to studying and contemplating the secret scripture, much to Li Daoyi's dismay.
"Brother Chen, did I just say all that for nothing? You're making it hard for me to slack off here. I'm going out for a walk," Li Daoyi said, standing up and making a hasty exit before he too was compelled to cultivate.
As Chen Chu immersed himself in his cultivation, it was evening in Wujiang City. Chen Hu returned home around six o'clock after visiting a classmate's house.
"Mom, I’m back," Chen Hu shouted as he pushed open the courtyard gate, only to see his mother chatting with a woman in her thirties across the yard.
The woman glanced at Chen Hu and then said with a smile, "Sister Zhang, we’ll chat more later. I need to go make dinner."
"Okay, go ahead."
Since Chen Chu became the top student at Nantian, Zhang Xiaolan had been promoted to a middle management position at her company, with fewer daily responsibilities. After finishing work on time, she was usually the one preparing dinner in the evenings.
As he entered the house, Chen Hu curiously asked, "Mom, I thought Grandpa Zhang and his family lived next door. Who was that?"
Zhang Xiaolan casually replied, "Grandpa Zhang sold the house and moved to the other side of the city to help his son with the grandchildren. The woman you saw is Ms. Dai, our new neighbor and my colleague. She’s very nice."
"Oh." Chen Hu nodded.
After dinner, Chen Hu grabbed his fishing rod and gear, shouting as he ran out, "Mom, I’m going to the river to fish."
Zhang Xiaolan’s voice came from inside the house. "Come back early, don’t stay out fishing until midnight."
"Got it."
Ever since he realized he could make both money and meals from fishing, Chen Hu had developed a strong interest in it and went to the river every day.
With the nationwide personnel movement, most of the fish over 1.5 meters long showing signs of mutation had been caught. Chen Hu had heard stories of people catching fish over 3 meters long, almost reaching the level of a mutated beast, which had been too big to reel in and even dragged people into the water.
The next morning, Kleide appeared in a major city on the southern border of Banan, challenging the local martial arts academy, then sweeping through the three Sixth Heavenly Realm experts there by defeating them with a single move. He was invincible.
All of this was broadcasted live by Banan's top television station, causing a stir online.
"So strong."
"Yeah, that domineering punch shattered the atmosphere of the stage. It was like an unstoppable explosion."
"But I think Chu Batian is stronger."
"I think so too. He’s the man who killed a god."
"Do you think Chu Batian will accept Kleide's challenge?"
"He probably will. They’re both young men in their twenties; who would back down?"
"Yeah, if you’re a man, you’ll face him head-on."
As the online discussions grew increasingly heated, Yan Ruoyi watched the big screen in the hotel and pondered. "He’s creating momentum, to make it impossible for you to refuse.”
Chen Chu responded calmly, "It doesn’t matter."
1. This proverb emphasizes the importance of moderation and balance. It suggests that pushing anything to its extreme—whether it be effort, tension, or a state of fullness—will ultimately result in negative consequences or a breakdown. ?