Cliff Jumping, Courting Death

After naming them, Chen Yuan could not wait to try flying. He attempted to control the muscles and bones in his back, hoping to thereby control the wings behind him.

But he was quickly disappointed. He could not effectively control the wings. Forget flapping them to fly—even simply folding and spreading them was beyond him.

Chen Yuan's expression darkened slightly, and he immediately said to Chen Xin:

"Teacher, aside from boosting my Soul Skills, I can't effectively control these wings at all. I can't fly with them. They're nothing more than gorgeous decorations."

Chen Xin frowned as well. He then strode over to Chen Yuan's side, examined the pair of wings, reached out to pinch them, and released his Soul Power. After investigating them, he reached a conclusion.

Chen Xin then explained his speculation to Chen Yuan point by point:

"Yuan'er, your External Soul Bone isn't one of the usual six great Spirit Bones that Spirit Masters can absorb. As an additional Spirit Bone, although it has grown out of your body, it hasn't truly fused with you yet."

"I just checked. The blood vessels and meridians in your wings aren't connected to your body. Without blood circulation, they cannot provide strength; without Soul Power circulation, you cannot fully control them. Forget it. Once we return, I'll think of a way to help you gain control over this External Soul Bone."

Hearing Chen Xin's words, Chen Yuan felt enlightened. He thought of Tang San's Eight Spider Lances. It seemed that only after Meng Shenji, the head of Heaven Dou Royal Academy, had tempered Tang San with Soul Power pressure did they truly fuse with him. It appeared that he had encountered the same problem.

If that was the case, then as long as he asked Chen Xin to temper him with Soul Power pressure, he should be able to truly fuse with these wings soon enough.

However, Chen Yuan turned to look at the wings. Even if they truly fused with him, if he could not soar through the skies, they would still just be decorations.

Chen Yuan let out a soft laugh, raised his head to look at the sky, and said:

"Teacher, I once read in a book that once avian Spirit Beasts' children have begun to grow up, they would ruthlessly push them out of the nest, sending them leaping from cliffs hundreds or even thousands of zhang high. If they succeeded, they could soar through the skies. If they failed, they would be smashed into pulp."

"This isn't because they do not love their children. On the contrary, it is because they love them too much and hope their children can gain the power to soar through the skies through their own efforts. Now that I have a pair of wings too, perhaps I can imitate them."

"Jump from a cliff, leap down from a height of hundreds or thousands of zhang, and in that instant between life and death, under extreme conditions, quickly fuse with the wings behind me—and learn how to fly."

Chen Xin furrowed his brow deeply at those words. Looking at his reckless disciple, he rebuked him in a low voice:

"You brat, do you understand the risks involved?"

Chen Yuan's gaze was resolute. His handsome, heroic face displayed the fearless spirit of youth.

"The greater the risk, the greater the reward. Not only will I fuse with these wings, I'll truly master them and soar through the skies instead of letting them remain mere decorations."

Seeing Chen Yuan's determined expression, Chen Xin knew he had made up his mind. He did not try to dissuade him further. With his strength, he would not let him truly fall to his death. Shaking his head, he said:

"Fine. I'll stay here with you for a few more days. When do you want to begin?"

Overjoyed upon hearing that, Chen Yuan answered without hesitation:

"No time like the present. Let's do it now. Teacher, please take me to the edge of a cliff."

Chen Xin nodded, grabbed Chen Yuan by the shoulder with one hand, and the two instantly rose into the air. Like a sharp streak of sword light, they swiftly flew high into the sky before landing atop a towering cliff a hundred zhang above the ground.

Chen Xin released him. Chen Yuan walked to the cliff's edge and looked down. Everything below had become tiny, and such a height was enough to make ordinary people dizzy.

However, Chen Yuan had experienced flying through the air while following Chen Xin, so this height was not enough to frighten him. He stretched his limbs and made some minor adjustments. As he sensed the flow of blood and Soul Power within his body, he bent his knees slightly, stomped hard against the ground, and used the rebound to leap off the cliff.

The terrifying sensation of freefall struck in an instant. Chen Yuan's pupils widened as he stared fixedly at the bottom of the cliff. It was dangerous, thrilling, and his body began to react. His blood surged, and his Soul Power roiled.

His heart pounded powerfully, pumping blood throughout his limbs and bones, even into the wings on his back. Shocking waves rose within his Dantian, while Soul Power surged through his meridians like an enraged dragon. Some meridians were clear and unobstructed, while others were clogged shut. But before that dragon-like Soul Power, if they were open, so much the better; if they were blocked, then they would be forced open. Impact after impact, fierce impacts, smashing them clear and carving out a smooth road to the heavens.

Chen Yuan could never have imagined that through this act of courting death, his Soul Power would not only rapidly advance toward Level 33 as it circulated, but its condensation speed, circulation speed, and explosive speed would all undergo a qualitative leap. This single reckless act was worth several days of cultivation.

His descent grew faster and faster. Chen Yuan spread his arms and legs with all his strength, using the momentum to unfold the wings behind him. The broad wings, which spanned over six meters when spread, were battered by the fierce wind and gradually transformed from fragile to resilient. They began to offset much of the impact and carried his body gliding forward.

This made Chen Yuan sigh in relief, and it also made Chen Xin, who had been observing him all along, sigh in relief. So long as Chen Yuan could land relatively steadily and avoid mortal danger, he would not need to intervene. In his view, being able to control these wings was a good thing for his disciple.

As the ground drew closer, Chen Yuan chose a relatively flat spot to land. But his momentum was too great. The instant he touched down, he rolled several times, leaving his body covered in wounds. Still, they were only superficial injuries and did not matter.

He climbed to his feet, bare-chested and wearing only trousers. The wings behind him swayed slightly, and Chen Yuan could not help bursting into laughter.

"Sure enough, jumping from cliffs is very effective for tempering my Golden Feathered Wings. But if I want to fully master them, I'll probably need to repeat it many times. Now, how do I get back up the cliff...?"

After a brief moment of thought, Chen Yuan summoned the Seven Kill Sword. Three Spirit Rings emerged beneath his feet one after another—yellow, purple, purple. The three Spirit Rings revolved above and below him, dazzling as they pulsed.

"Third Soul Skill, Sword Wings Soar!"

The Seven Kill Sword in Chen Yuan's hand trembled. A layer of sword light emerged over its blade, and it enlarged proportionately until it was about two meters long and half a chi wide. Even after Chen Yuan released his grip, it continued floating in midair before descending to hover horizontally in front of him.

Chen Yuan immediately jumped onto it, but he quickly lost his balance. His body swayed, and he fell back to the ground. Helplessly, he said:

"Looks like I'll need to seriously practice sword riding in the future!"

Then, Chen Yuan gripped the sword hilt and urged the Seven Kill Sword into the sky, flying back toward the top of the cliff.