Chapter 439: Acquiring a Profession — The Increasingly Monstrous Wondrous Tree |
Su Chen sat cross-legged in the center, his form enveloped by a membrane of light as thin as a cicada's wing.
Wisps of pale cyan radiance rose from the rootlets of the four corner plants, traced along the runic channels of the metallic base, and slowly surged into Su Chen's body.
The sensation wasn't painful at all. Rather, it was like sinking into a hot spring — warm, dense, with threads of coolness interlaced throughout.
Su Chen nearly groaned with pleasure. In barely half a day, he had absorbed it all completely.
"Phew..." At the center of the ritual, he slowly opened his eyes, feeling the warmth gradually recede from his body. He couldn't help feeling a touch wistful. "What a rare treat."
After a brief adjustment, Su Chen saw Luo Shuhang and his people off.
As he was leaving, Luo Shuhang couldn't resist asking in a hushed voice, "Star Seed Su, I heard you'll be heading to High Heaven soon?"
"Probably." Su Chen didn't bother hiding it. Nearly two months had passed since the Immeasurable Buddha's descent. The matter of High Heaven was now essentially common knowledge within the sect — it simply hadn't been formally announced.
"Congratulations to you..." Luo Shuhang bowed. Su Chen waved him off and watched him depart.
Verdant Wood Guest — acquire profession!
In an instant, a cyan radiance burst from within Su Chen's body. Unlike the usual stinging pain of profession acquisition, it instead wrapped around his flesh, sinew, and bone.
Faint luminous patterns writhed beneath his skin like living things, growing and spreading. His bones creaked silently, stretching and extending.
"This feeling... not bad at all..." Su Chen even had the presence of mind to muse. Though his body was undergoing transformation, there wasn't a trace of pain. A vast tide of life force surged through every inch of him like a rushing river.
His chest rose and fell. A wisp of faint cyan mist exhaled from his mouth, spiraling for a moment before taking the shape of a small tree — then being drawn back into his body.
It could only be said that a top-tier wood-attribute recovery Holy Class truly lived up to its name. The acquisition process could only be described as "blissful."
[Verdant Wood Guest acquisition complete. Ability Acquired — Evergreen Body: Gain a twentyfold wound recovery rate. The vast majority of toxins will have no effect on you. Lifespan doubled.]
[Ability Acquired — Deliverance Seeds: Your body can condense up to three Deliverance Seeds. Consuming a Deliverance Seed will instantly restore all injuries.
If at least two Deliverance Seeds remain at the time of death, and at least 30% of your body parts are intact, you can gradually resurrect within three months. Each resurrection reduces the Deliverance Seed condensation limit by one.]
[Bonus Reward Acquired — Deliverance Seed condensation limit +1]
"Lifespan doubled?" Su Chen's gaze lingered on those words. The other abilities had been within expectations, but this was a genuine surprise.
The importance of lifespan went without saying. Even Solar-rank beings couldn't escape death.
In a certain sense, spirituality was the other side of that coin — it couldn't be called life, which was why it could persist eternally.
"The Deliverance Seeds are incredible too..." Su Chen clicked his tongue. While they didn't provide direct combat enhancement, combining the Deliverance Seeds with Immovable Vajra could probably yield remarkable synergies.
"And the real kicker is resurrection from death..." Even though he considered himself reasonably cautious, there was no guarantee he'd never slip up. Who wouldn't want a second chance?
"Each use reduces the cap by one. Minimum two seeds for revival — so that's essentially three resurrection tokens." Su Chen calculated. "But it's not like the limit can't be strengthened further."
Doubled lifespan, resurrection from death. Su Chen was in excellent spirits. The panel slowly unfolded, jumping to the Seven-Branch Wondrous Tree interface.
[Verdant Wood Guest is compatible with one branch of the Seven-Branch Wondrous Tree. Fill the slot?]
Su Chen responded immediately. One of the Wondrous Tree's branches lit up with emerald radiance, which quickly spread into the main trunk's meridians, merging completely.
Then, beneath [Calamity Star Conjunction], another line of text materialized—
[Deep-Rooted: Two Deliverance Seeds can be converted into one Doppelganger.]
Su Chen's eyelid twitched. "Converted into a Doppelganger?"
His heart lurched. His Doppelganger had the trait [Incinerate My Mortal Husk] — consuming the Doppelganger directly granted a threefold boost equivalent to his total stamina.
Because of [Calamity Star Conjunction], his base stamina was already doubled. A Doppelganger could provide him with nearly two hundred times the amplification.
With [Deep-Rooted] added to the mix, four Deliverance Seeds equaled two Doppelgangers.
"Infinite, absolutely infinite..." Su Chen swallowed hard. His stamina was approaching a state of pure redundancy. He estimated that even if he activated Sky-Scars, he could sustain it for an extended period.
"I really need to find a way to have Sky-Scars consume stamina directly for recharging, rather than metallic materials."
"Everything complements everything else..." Su Chen couldn't help but take another look, his awe deepening.
With just three elemental Holy Classes, the power was already formidable. He couldn't imagine how terrifying it would be once Pentaelemental Rotation was achieved — or when all slots were completely filled.
"A lightning-attribute Holy Class..." He glanced at his panel again, already contemplating the next Holy Class.
The Evil God essences he'd previously lacked were nearly gathered — he'd unabashedly had Lao Qing mobilize the sect's resources to help collect them.
With the Ten-Thousand-Year Lightning Arc he'd obtained earlier, he naturally leaned toward a lightning-attribute Holy Class, though he hadn't settled on a specific direction yet.
"I expect that once the materials from Xuantian and Star-Firmament arrive and the Heavenly Gate is completed, I could plan things out after reaching the Abyssal Void."
Su Chen weighed his options. The Abyssal Void operated at a much higher level than the Dust Star Sea. There might be novel opportunities there.
After all, he currently had only a single Ten-Thousand-Year Lightning Arc, which could only modestly reduce the Holy Class difficulty. Even if he prepared now, he couldn't acquire the class in the short term. Better to wait.
Putting aside these thoughts, Su Chen pulled out two vials of potion and downed them one after the other. With the Sacred Cauldron Sect destroyed, the Bronze Sect's stockpile of their potions was nearly depleted.
Without new supply, he had to resort to lesser-grade supplementary potions.
Compared to the Sacred Cauldron Sect's formulations, the stimulation was considerably milder. However, thanks to the Eerie Spirit and the newly acquired Verdant Wood Guest, his development efficiency hadn't dropped much — it had actually increased somewhat.
"Even so, only 6%..." Su Chen shook his head. His body was gradually enveloped by elemental energy. At this level, no matter how high one's talent, considerable time was still required.
The next day, the Bronze Ancient King announced his return, immediately igniting a surge of excitement throughout the sect. Every member's face showed undisguised elation.
Never mind the Abyssal Void or High Heaven — the Bronze Ancient King was, and had always been, the sect's bedrock. With the Ancient King absent, everyone felt like something was missing.
After the Bronze Ancient King's return, matters concerning High Heaven were brought fully into the open for discussion.
First was the name change. Whether it was "Sect" or "Heaven" was merely a suffix, and on this point no one offered much resistance.
Next came the question of who would travel to High Heaven. Chu Lingyuan and the three Star Seeds would naturally go, but including the Ancient King, that made only five people — even as an advance party, that number was far too few.
Some people wanted to go see what the Abyssal Void looked like, while others had no desire to uproot themselves. On this matter, the disagreements were considerable.
.........
The Abyssal Void. High Heaven.
Within a magnificent palace, footsteps rang out abruptly. A figure strode through the corridors, proceeding deep within, and pushed open a great door. What greeted him was birdsong and the fragrance of flowers.
It was like a world unto itself. Fragrance washed over him. Everywhere were exotic plants — the tallest ones towering like ancient pagodas with their roots coiled in midair.
The shorter ones resembled jade carvings, their leaves thin as cicada wings, edged with golden lines that trembled gently in the breeze, scattering tiny motes of light.
The newcomer seemed familiar with the place, weaving through the plants until he stopped at a certain spot. Facing the figure whose back was turned to him, he bowed respectfully. "Teacher."
"Qi You, you're here." The voice was deep and resonant. The figure had the back of a tiger and waist of a bear — even squatting, he stood nearly two meters tall. His clothes stretched taut over bulging muscles, and the arms exposed were fearsome in their musculature.
"Come." The brawny man handed him a pair of shears.
Qi You took the shears with practiced ease, squatting beside the massive figure, and began pruning with meticulous care.
"The Daoist Lord has instructions." The brawny man's attention remained focused on his work. From the side, one could see that he wore a pair of spectacles perched on his ears. Before him, a crimson vine was winding its way up through a crack in the stone.
At its tip hung a flower bud the size of a bowl, its petals like solidified flame.
Qi You rose to his feet immediately.
"The Daoist Lord's instructions are for me." The brawny man waved him back down. "You should know about the newly joined Bronze Heaven."
"Bronze Heaven..." Qi You nodded. "It's the talk of all High Heaven. Even the rest of the Abyssal Void is curious. Though Bronze Heaven has joined High Heaven, they still haven't made an appearance to this day."
"The Daoist Lord wants me to go welcome the Celestial Lord of Bronze Heaven," the brawny man said.
"He's sending you?" Qi You couldn't hide his surprise. "The Daoist Lord must place great importance on this, to send you personally."
"This Bronze Heaven..." The brawny man stood, his massive shadow engulfing Qi You, and moved toward a cluster of flowers to the left. "Their origins are somewhat unusual. It appears to be connected to the Sovereign of the Purple Zenith."
"The Sovereign of the Purple Zenith?" Qi You's expression shifted. "They found that Solar-rank profession?"
"Not only found it — apparently, a new Chosen has already been born," the brawny man said, fiddling with the vine in his hand.
"What?" Qi You froze, unable to help asking, "Who? From which faction?"
"Taixuan... Hong..." The brawny man spoke three syllables that struck Qi You's ears like a thunderclap.
"Taixuan Hong?" Qi You was stunned. "Wasn't the Taixuan House originally the family that served the Sovereign of the Purple Zenith? It's them again?"
"Indeed." The brawny man couldn't help but sigh. "After all those twists and turns, it returned to the Taixuan House. A pity... they can't hold onto it."
"All five Solar-rank beings have reached an agreement to jointly search for this Taixuan Hong."
Qi You's expression shifted through several shades. He let out a sigh of his own. "That's true. Ever since the Taixuan House fell, countless factions across the Abyssal Void have hunted and searched for what remained of the Taixuan lineage."
"Among the Five Pillars, only the Longevity Pillar has kept completely clean. Even our own High Heaven — several of our Heavens have secretly made moves."
"Forget the Five Pillars. Even the other factions in the Abyssal Void would never stand by and watch the Taixuan House return to prominence."
The entire Abyssal Void joining forces to hunt a single person — the mere thought of it was terrifying to Qi You.
"That matter has little to do with us." The brawny man steered the conversation back on course. "That Dust Star Sea was the refuge of the eight Radiant Moon experts who triggered the Mist-Fall Calamity."
"So it was them. No wonder..." Qi You understood at once.
"Great Heaven and Buddha Land already moved first and seized considerable benefits. This Bronze Heaven appears to be the last remaining power in the Dust Star Sea, and its overall strength is not to be trifled with." The brawny man waved his hand, and a virtual screen opened — their basic data. "Take a look."
Qi You immediately examined it. "One Radiant Moon, one Morning Star..."
Then his eyebrow arched. "Three individuals chosen by Morning Star Spirits? And there's another Morning Star Spirit without a Chosen yet."
"Five Morning Star Spirits? Hmm, they lost one, but four is still a respectable number."
"It's just..." His eyes swept over the data. "The quality of these Star Seeds is rather low. Two with Profound Purple talent, and only one with Divine Dawn."
"They've been separated from the Abyssal Void for too long. That quality is perfectly normal." The brawny man wasn't concerned. Instead, he said, "That one with Divine Dawn talent — take a closer look."
With his teacher specifically pointing it out, Qi You examined it carefully and immediately exclaimed, "Twenty-six years old, 7th-Tier? At that age... the advancement speed is absurdly fast."
"Could it be that he focused exclusively on his main profession?" He speculated. "While still remarkably quick, it's not entirely impossible."
"But if his Holy Classes aren't strong enough and he lacks proper Ascension Refining methods, his speed of tempering Morning Fire after advancing to Morning Star will be extremely slow."
"If he tries to acquire Holy Classes at the Morning Star level, the costs will be far from trivial."
"There are virtually no Ascension Refining methods in the Dust Star Sea. Focusing on main profession advancement makes sense." The brawny man shook his head. "But this individual is certainly unusual. Worth keeping an eye on."
"Understood." Qi You nodded, then couldn't help adding, "Of High Heaven's eight Heavens, only five currently have masters. Now with Bronze Heaven added, there's bound to be quite a bit of upheaval."
"That's their concern." The brawny man said indifferently. "Go make preparations. The Heavenly Gate should be connecting soon. Since he is, after all, the lord of a Heaven, the reception must be appropriately grand."
"Yes." Qi You acknowledged, carefully set down the shears, and hurried away.
.........
"So that's the Heavenly Gate?"
The Xuantian Ancient King gazed up at the enormous gateway standing amid the star-void, its surrounding mechanical arms still constructing according to their programmed routines, assisted by numerous Grand Architects.
"Yes." The Bronze Ancient King nodded at his side. "A technique beyond imagination. It can span vast distances and the interference of Nether Mist."
"The disparity is immense." Xuantian sighed. Behind him followed a considerable retinue — all upper echelon of the Xuantian Sect, currently in conversation with Chu Lingyuan and Qing Cang.
"However, building one comes at no small cost." The Bronze Ancient King's words carried a pointed undertone, but the Xuantian Ancient King showed no surprise. "Paying a toll for passage is perfectly reasonable."
The Bronze Ancient King paused. The Xuantian Ancient King's generosity and decisiveness actually left him feeling a rare twinge of embarrassment.
"If you feel any sense of debt, please look after the remaining members of the Xuantian Sect," the Xuantian Ancient King said with a smile.
Even with their Starfire destroyed and core zones ravaged, they still held considerable territory elsewhere. They weren't abandoning everything entirely.
It was simply that without pledging allegiance to a major faction with Solar-rank beings, traveling between the Dust Star Sea and the Abyssal Void would consume enormous amounts of time. If something went wrong, by the time he returned, it would be far too late.
"Of course." The Bronze Ancient King agreed. The Xuantian Sect's people were temporarily settled in one of the satellite cities, while the two Ancient Kings drifted through the star-void, talking at length.
The Bronze Ancient King brought up some information he'd gathered from High Heaven. "The Abyssal Void is immense. Beyond the Solar-rank Pillars, there are also no small number of forces possessing Radiant Moon-level power. Establishing a foothold will be extremely difficult."
"I expected as much. It is the Abyssal Void, after all." The Xuantian Ancient King had a sense of what lay ahead. He produced an object. "Help me see if this can still be repaired."
"The Profound Heaven Instrument?" The Bronze Ancient King was surprised. "It was actually rescued from the Royal Court?"
The Xuantian Ancient King explained, "The Immeasurable Buddha only had eyes for the Solar Fire Pillar. Lu Huai managed to escape with it in the chaos, but this thing seems to have been damaged while in the Royal Court's hands."
"I haven't been able to locate the problem."
The Bronze Ancient King took it, his five fingers dissolving into nanoparticles that flooded into the Profound Heaven Instrument. Moments later, they reassembled. His brow furrowed. "It's perfectly intact."
"Perfectly intact..." The Xuantian Ancient King sighed. "Then I suppose it can't be repaired."
The recent losses had been so staggering that even learning the Profound Heaven Instrument was beyond repair could only elicit a sigh.
Just as the Bronze Ancient King was about to say something, his eyes suddenly lit up. He looked toward the Star Gate behind them. "What a coincidence — you and he have arrived practically one after another."
"Who?" The Xuantian Ancient King was puzzled.
"The Vast Sea Emperor." The Bronze Ancient King watched the warship emerging from the Star Gate.
"Here to have the Mist Embers purified..." The Xuantian Ancient King understood, his eyes glinting. "These are complete Mist Embers. Does Su Chen think he can handle it?"
"If he can't, he can't. No guarantees were ever made." The Bronze Ancient King shook his head, already moving forward to greet them.
.........
"Finally here."
Su Chen received word from the Ancient King and hurried to the Royal Court's liaison post on Dragon Abyss Planet, heading straight for the top floor.
Whether it was the Mist Source obtained from purifying the Mist Embers, or the Evil God blood the Royal Court had brought — both were excellent materials.
The moment he pushed open the door, several gazes converged on him, giving him pause.
The Bronze Ancient King, the Xuantian Ancient King, and the Vast Sea Emperor were all present.
"Young friend, it's been quite a while." The Xuantian Ancient King spoke first, wearing a smile that made one itch to punch his face.
That familiar form of address instantly pulled Su Chen's memories back to the days when he had been Taixuan Hong.