Something Strangely Familiar

Chen Feng's pupils contracted; he hadn't expected to hear that name.

Looking out the window, Chen Feng realized that Cang Xiao had already walked quite far away, but he figured that with her Titled Douluo strength, she could probably still hear the conversation.

However, this is not a problem; the topic that Chen Feng and Chen Xin were discussing was not problematic in itself.

What truly made Chen Feng's expression change was that he had considered a certain possibility, but if that was the case...

"Master, how long was the interval between when our great-grandfather (Chen Yang) came to the Death Desert and when our distant ancestor brought his people to follow?" Chen Feng asked softly.

"It was about ten days. Because Uncle Chen Yang was controlled by the Demonic Sword at that time, his whereabouts became unpredictable. Therefore, my great-grandfather did not discover that Uncle had left immediately. It was only when he found a book recording information about the Death Desert on the table in Uncle's room that my great-grandfather guessed where Uncle had gone and gathered people to follow him," Chen Xin recalled.

"They even left a book on the table? That's too obvious." Chen Feng sighed softly.

"Yes, so later my great-grandfather realized that my uncle might have been subconsciously seeking death at that time. After all, ten days was more than enough time for my uncle to be promoted to a higher title, but he didn't. In the final battle, my uncle also focused all his attention on my great-grandfather. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for that group of people, including the sect leader at the time, to return unscathed," Chen Xin said with emotion.

More than ten days... It seems there really is such a possibility. Chen Feng fell into thought.

His great-grandfather, Chen Yang, once came to the Death Desert, supposedly to obtain his last Soul Ring. The Soul Beast he chose was the 100,000-year-old Azure Flame Blade Ghost leader who lived in the Death Desert.

Later, Chen Yang was killed by his father for the sake of justice, or it could be said that he subconsciously sought death and gave others the opportunity to surround and kill him.

After his death, his wife left home with their children, and his father tried to find them several times without success.

This story comes from Chen Xin's narration, and what Chen Xin knows comes from what has been passed down through generations, meaning that this story is not actually the same as reality.

At least, the fact that Chen Feng's ancestor went out to search several times without success contradicts what Cang Xiao just said, because Cang Xiao said she had seen Chen Feng's ancestor.

Cang Xiao was a party to the incident, while the other side only had rumors. Regarding whether the two sides had met, Chen Feng naturally felt that Cang Xiao's words were more credible. She had no reason to fabricate such a lie, because it would not bring any practical benefits.

There was nothing illogical about what Cang Xiao had said before, and it matched what Chen Feng knew. Therefore, Chen Feng believed that there was something wrong with the story his master Chen Xin had told, or that his ancestor had concealed something from him.

So the question arises: why does this fallacy or concealment occur?

If you only look at the story, you can't see anything, but combining Cang Xiao's Martial Soul and the location of this village, Chen Feng has a bold guess.

Is it possible that his Great-Grandmother wasn't simply human, but rather, like Xiao Wu and Gu Yue Ling, a human transformed from Soul Beast?

After all, the appearance of a human with the Azure Flame Blade Ghost Martial Soul in a place near the Death Desert is bound to raise suspicions.

This explains the fallacy in the story: why Chen Feng's ancestor, after finding his daughter-in-law and grandson, claimed he hadn't found them. It's likely that the granddaughter-in-law's identity couldn't be revealed, so the ancestor didn't want to attract attention and endanger his relatives.

The current Cang Xiao is Titled Douluo, but he wasn't back then.

This conjecture can also explain the time gap to some extent. There was a time difference of more than ten days between Chen Yang's departure and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's pursuit. During these ten days, Chen Yang neither took the time to advance his cultivation nor set up traps to deal with the pursuers. So what was he doing?

You can't exactly stroll through the desert and admire the scenery.

According to Chen Feng's speculation, his great-grandfather may have already come into contact with the Azure Flame Blade Ghost Clan, but he doesn't know what happened in the process.

There are ways to verify this hypothesis: either ask his Great-Grandmother Cang Xiao, or take a trip to the Azure Flame Blade Ghost's settlement.

"What are you thinking about?" Chen Xin asked curiously, seeing his disciple looking thoughtful.

Chen Feng snapped out of his reverie and said, "I'm just curious about Great-Grandmother's Martial Soul. Master, could we go to the desert to take a look later?"

He really wanted to see the real Azure Flame Blade Ghost; the drawing in the book and the figure he had just seen were both somewhat different.

Chen Xin thought for a moment and shook his head. "It's not very safe. I know where you want to go. If I were alone, I could get out unscathed, but it would be inconvenient to bring you along."

"Alright." Chen Feng didn't insist any further. He planned to see if he could make a breakthrough with his Great-Grandmother first. He would have a chance to see Soul Beast like the Azure Flame Blade Ghost in the future; he was still young.

"Speaking of which, Xiao Feng, what do you think of that Fire Mark Ritual?" Chen Xin asked.

"I'm quite curious about its principles and where this method comes from. I'd like to try it myself if I have the chance."

"Chen Feng said without hesitation."

"Yes, if it can alleviate your Martial Soul problem, that would be even better." Chen Xin nodded.

Chen Feng wanted to say that his Martial Soul problem was not serious at the moment, because he had only obtained two Soul Ring through hunting, and the Remnant Soul of those two Soul Beast had already been released. In the future, he would be protected by the Ring Expansion Method, so it was unlikely that he would have any problems due to absorbing Soul Ring.

What he was really worried about was the impact of killing, because although he didn't like it, he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't kill in the future; at least he had already remembered Salas's life.

There is also a foreseeable war. If too much blood is killed, even that Shi Nian Old Deng, probably won't be able to withstand it. Even if he can withstand it, sooner or later he will have his Mental Power drained by Chen Feng. Therefore, the Fire Mark Ritual has become Chen Feng's hope.

But these things were not something he could tell his master, so Chen Feng didn't explain.

"Hey, what are you chatting about?" Cang Xiao's cheerful voice rang out before he even got close.

"Great-Grandmother, did you get the portrait?" Chen Feng asked as he walked up.

"Of course I got them, here you go." Cang Xiao handed the two rolls of paper to Chen Feng. Chen Feng unfolded them and looked at them, memorizing the appearances of his father and Chen Lang. Then he handed the two rolls of paper to Chen Xin.

Chen Xin glanced at them as well and said, "When I get back, I'll have Feng Zhi look for information on these two people. I'll let you know when I have any news."

1

"Alright, Xiao Feng, do you want to learn about the Fire Mark Ritual? This time, the Fire Mark Ritual is ready," Cang Xiao asked Chen Feng.

"What a coincidence?" Chen Feng was taken aback.

"It's not a coincidence, but rather that after what happened back then, I would periodically prepare for the ceremony in advance," Cang Xiao explained.

"I see. Then, Great-Grandmother, please take me to see it," Chen Feng said.

Cang Xiao nodded, then asked Chen Xin, "Do you want to come along? By the way, I haven't asked your name yet."

"I am Chen Xin, Xiao Feng's master." Chen Xin gave a brief self-introduction.

"Master? You didn't let Xiao Feng recognize his grandfather?" Cang Xiao asked curiously.

"Xiao Feng wasn't adopted by me, so I just had him become my disciple," Chen Xin explained.

"I see. Can you tell me about this child's past?" Cang Xiao became somewhat interested.

"Of course, back then..." Chen Xin began to recount Chen Feng's past. Cang Xiao listened with great surprise, glancing at the genius junior beside him from time to time.

A short while later, the three arrived at a cave near the village. From the outside, they could see that the path inside the cave went downwards, and they didn't know where it led.

After venturing further along the path, I could feel a surge of heat rising from ahead.

Chen Feng guessed, "Could it be lava down there?"

"Yes, it's lava," Cang Xiao said.

Chen Feng licked his dry lips. He hadn't expected the Fire Mark Ritual to be held in such a place. When Cang Xiao said that the Fire Mark Ritual was a dual test of physique and will, he didn't really grasp the significance of it, but now he could roughly understand the difficulty involved.

"Could it be that the Fire Mark Ritual will be performed in lava?" Chen Feng couldn't help but ask.

"Of course not, it's just over there." Cang Xiao shook his head.

That's alright, though it's not much better, Chen Feng thought to himself.

The three of them reached the end of the road, where they found a huge cave with a river of lava flowing through it. There were also three Stone Platform nearby, arranged from closest to furthest from the lava river, with the furthest one reaching the crossroads where they had come from.

Walking to a Stone Platform, Cang Xiao explained, "This is where the Fire Mark Ritual takes place. As you can see, there are three Stone Platform here, each for people with different Soul Power levels. They are basically graded according to the three rings, meaning those at the Soul Elder and below use the furthest one, and so on. However, this isn't absolute; you can choose the difficulty level you want to challenge."

Chen Feng's lips twitched. He had no interest in the Stone Platform next to the lava river and walked straight toward the Stone Platform in the middle.

If he could, he would actually prefer to go to the outermost Stone Platform, since it was his first time performing the Fire Mark Ritual, which was equivalent to being One-Ring Soul Master, right?

However, with two elders watching, Chen Feng ultimately didn't do anything so shameful.

"How do you use this Stone Platform? Do you just lie down on it?" Chen Feng looked at the Stone Platform beside him. He felt that lying on it would be a bit like a cooking method, like teppanyaki.

"Of course, you won't just lie down. You'll need to use your Soul Power to protect your body. This isn't difficult for a four-ring Soul Master," Cang Xiao explained as he walked over.

The furthest Stone Platform has the lowest temperature, so you can lie down on it directly. After all, it's for Soul Master of the third ring and below, and it's difficult for them to protect themselves with their Soul Power.

"And then?" Chen Feng asked.

"Then, I will use special Crystal Powder to inscribe Fire Mark patterns on your right arm. Similarly, the Crystal Powder used will vary depending on the Soul Power Level," Cang Xiao said, taking out a large crystal bottle.

"What is the purpose of these Crystal Powder?" Chen Xin asked, somewhat uneasy.

"The difference between the three types of Crystal Powder lies in their ability to contain Fire Element Fire Element; this is the lowest grade," Cang Xiao said, shaking the large crystal bottle in his hand.

"Soul Guidance Material?" Chen Feng said subconsciously.

"What?" Cang Xiao looked at him in confusion.

Chen Feng gave a general explanation of Soul Guidance Material and some related concepts. Cang Xiao thought for a moment and said, "That's not wrong. The difference lies in their Soul Tool Performance."

"I see. Then what is the Fire Mark like?" Chen Feng continued to ask.

Cang Xiao took out a notebook, turned to a certain page, and showed it to Chen Feng, "This is A Yao's original achievement: three different levels of Fire Mark."

Chen Feng looked at the notebook, which contained three neatly drawn circular patterns. They were all roughly the same size, but the lines ranged from simple to complex. However, a rough look revealed that there seemed to be some kind of pattern among them.

Wait a minute, this first pattern seems familiar! Chen Feng examined the first pattern for a while, then suddenly seemed to remember something, took out a piece of paper from the Blood Sky Vault, and took the notebook from Cang Xiao to compare it.

"That's right, it's Rune! Part of this Fire Mark is Rune! No, it might be entirely Rune!" Chen Feng said excitedly.

He truly hadn't expected that just a few days ago he and Tang San had figured out the Fire Elemental Rune, and today he would see the same thing here.

What is this? This is fate! He has a destiny with Rune.

Cang Xiao didn't know what Chen Feng was so excited about, and looked at Chen Xin with some confusion. Chen Xin shook his head, indicating that he didn't understand what his disciple was talking about either.

Cang Xiao had no choice but to ask, "Xiao Feng, can you explain this to us?"

Chen Feng then snapped out of his daze, realizing he had been a bit agitated. He coughed lightly and said, "I'm sorry, Great-Grandmother, Master, I got a little carried away. To put it simply, this is related to a research project my partners and I conducted. We made some progress before, and now I've seen something similar here."

At that moment, Chen Feng recounted the discovery of the Elemental Rune and placed the paper with Fire Elemental Rune drawn on it next to the first Fire Mark, allowing Chen Xin and Cang Xiao to compare them themselves.

"It's unbelievable... there really are some identical ones." Cang Xiao was greatly surprised; she hadn't expected this to happen.

It's amazing how something that I've used for decades without even understanding its principles was explained by a younger generation decades later!

Even if it's just a partial explanation, it's still a major breakthrough.

"Back then, A Yao pondered for many years before creating these three Fire Mark, but he didn't know what these patterns specifically represented. He only knew that they could play a role. He never expected..." Cang Xiao looked at Chen Feng with emotion.

She brought the child here out of compassion, never expecting to receive such a reward.

Chen Feng, meanwhile, was deep in thought as he looked at the patterns before him.

Why is it ring-shaped?