The Gatekeeper's Surprise

"Zhao Xing, take it off."

"Senior Hanari, I've already picked it."

"No, there's still one stuck to your back."

"You've been discovered by your senior? I feel like I have complete control over this plant—let me go!"

"Don't move!"

"Get out of here!"

Zhao Xing roared, and the Internal World shifted dramatically. General Hua Li, was blasted away by a ball of dark purple light. She crashed heavily onto the Boundless Continent and looked at the sky in shock.

The impact was enormous, completely exceeding expectations.

"The true spirit is forbidden, the Great Dao is extinguished from the heart, the law is a curse on the body, the golden hoop shrinks."

Having no other choice, General Hua Li could only recite the incantation of the Great Dao Golden Circlet Hoop.

Zhao Xing, in the sky, felt a splitting headache, let out a scream, and then collapsed onto the Boundless Continent.

"Thump!" He fell to the ground at the feet of General Hua Li, his face contorted in pain.

"Senior Hua Li, please stop reading! I beg you!"

"Ouch! It hurts so much!"

Zhao Xing rolled on the ground in pain, covering his head with his hands, trying to break the Great Dao Golden Circlet.

General Hua Li unmoved, chanting as she went to pick the fruit from Zhao Xing's back.

"Roar!"

Unexpectedly, Zhao Xing let out a beastly roar and transformed into the Nine Marsh God, General Hua Li flying with a single punch.

"Throat--

General Hua Li sighed inwardly. In Zhao Xing's Internal World, when Zhao Xing went berserk, even she could not control him.

Fortunately, the Great Dao Golden Circlet, forged by the General Jieluo, could even control Bowei, Zhao Xing, after his transformation, still could not get rid of it.

Before long, under the tightening of the golden headband, it reverted to its original form, and this time the headband behind Zhao Xing was successfully removed.

"Loose!"

When General Hua Li stopped chanting, Zhao Xing immediately stopped struggling, remained embedded in the ground, and kept panting heavily.

General Hua Li trapped in a vessel of blood and separated from its host; it itself did not possess much offensive power.

After a while, Zhao Xing's breathing gradually stabilized, the ferocity in his eyes faded, and he sat up somewhat bewildered.

"Senior, how long did I hold on this time?"

"Your fusion with [the Dao] has reached a new level." General Hua Li, squatted down and removed the Great Dao Golden Circlet from his head. "From what I've observed, you were normal for two years and one month, after which your mind began to suffer negative effects."

"I've improved since last time; I lasted longer."

"Only two years? That's less than I imagined."

"That's already quite impressive," General Hua Li praised. "To have been able to control the ferocity and killing intent that have been growing in your mind for so long is truly remarkable."

"How did you feel this time?" General Hua Li, taking notes in a small notebook.

Zhao Xing tilted his head and recalled, "I thought you were trying to harm me, and I couldn't suppress my murderous intent at all, because the feeling of taking it off was like cutting off my own flesh to commit suicide."

"In addition, my temper has also become worse, probably due to the expansion of my power."

Even if I remove it now, I still harbor a sliver of desire to merge with it again.

General Hua Li recorded Zhao Xing's words one by one.

Finally, Zhao Xing asked General Hua Li, "Have you made any new progress in your research on its Life Dao Diagram?"

General Hua Li, "This Derived Seed doesn't seem to exist in this world at all."

"No matter how you try to eliminate it, the negative impact it has on people will always remain."

"I tried to fuse it with other Original Seed, and selected many kinds of relatively mild plant spirits."

"But eventually, they will all be covered up."

General Hua Li unfold several Life Dao Diagram. The first one is Life Dao Diagram, with dark and chaotic lines. The next seven diagrams will follow.

The lines are relatively gentle, presenting a more stable life form.

Then came the fusion of the diagrams, but it was discovered that no matter which diagram it was fused with, it could quickly revert to its original form with almost no change.

It either completely collapses and cannot form a shape at all.

In this situation, it means that the research on General Hua Li has not made much progress at all.

Its life structure is unshakable, and this Derived Seed has a mysterious Source of Life structure.

It either exists or it doesn't exist; there's simply no room for change.

"It seems impossible to fully comprehend the structure." Zhao Xing wasn't too disappointed.

If the Derived Seed created by Divine King Yu Heng could be easily deciphered by him and General Hua Li, then they wouldn't need to exist anymore.

"I don't have much time left." Zhao Xing glanced at the Sun Star and immediately deduced that eleven years had passed in the outside world.

"Senior, I need to go out and engage in real combat."

He was only given thirty years to master the War God, and he still needed time to practice controlling the War God in the outside world.

The fusion was merely a means; the true goal was to control the War God to defeat the other one.

"Put this on." General Hua Li, picked up the Great Dao Golden Circlet again. "I will recite it every two years to prevent you from falling into depravity."

"Okay." Zhao Xing nodded and put the Great Dao Golden Circlet Hoop on his head.

After emerging from his Internal World, Zhao Xing immediately entered the Metal Giant Gem Space.

"Gurgle~"

Countless gray mist-like tentacles clung to Zhao Xing and quickly merged into his limbs and bones.

They were even more powerful than those bred by the General Hua Li. Zhao Xing immediately felt his soul power surge, as if no one in the world could rival him.

It even created the illusion that even God King could fight.

"This is absolutely outrageous."

Zhao Xing shook his head, shifting these distracting thoughts to a corner of his Life Palace.

This time, with the entire body fully integrated, Zhao Xing also gained control of the War God's entire body, no longer just one arm.

"Boom!"

The War God was activated, and the giant's feet were pulled out of the ground.

Zhao Xing challenged another metal giant to a duel.

"Black Death Fist!"

He crouched slightly, then slammed his right fist into the head of another giant. Black light flashed, and a whirlwind cut through the air.

However, the giant opposite him suddenly shrank to less than half its original height, causing Zhao Xing's punch to miss.

"Whoosh~"

After shrinking, the giant sprang up from its feet, like Dragon Emerging from the Sea, and appeared behind Zhao Xing as a streak of light.

He bent his index finger and gently tapped it on the back of Zhao Xing's knee.

"Thump!"

Zhao Xing's War God immediately fell face-first into the mud.

"Metaphor~"

Finally, the giant suddenly grew larger, becoming twice the size of the War God controlled by Zhao Xing, and stepped on Zhao Xing's back.

"Boom!" The huge foot was incredibly heavy, like a mountain pressing down. Streams of light and flames covered Zhao Xing's entire body, and countless tiny rays of blood light pushed downwards.

"You disappeared for a full eleven years. I thought you had figured out some way to beat the game, but I never expected you to be so easily defeated."

A boy appeared atop the metal giant's head, shaking his head repeatedly.

"Becoming a god is not easy. It's better to retreat now and at least save your life."

Seeing that Zhao Xing was unable to control the War God to get up, the consciousness also withdrew its foot and returned to its original position, Nie Li.

After standing up, Zhao Xing pondered for a moment before issuing another challenge.

"Again!"

He still started with the Black Death Fist, going straight and direct.

The consciousness pursed its lips and shrank again.

But at this moment, Zhao Xing also shrank.

"!"

Black Death Fist missed again, because the consciousness body reacted faster and took the initiative to control the War God to unleash a martial skill.

Swoosh~

Once again, Zhao Xing was circled behind him and knocked down by the same technique, eventually being pinned to the ground and unable to move by the gatekeeper.

"It's all in vain."

Seeing that Zhao Xing could not struggle, the consciousness returned to its original position.

Zhao Xing stood up and thought for a moment longer.

"Again!"

He launched his third attack.

It's still the Martial God technique, "Black Death Fist," as the starting move.

"Boom!"

Pyrofera~~~

The metal giant controlled by the gatekeeper and Zhao Xing both took two steps back, their feet making a sharp scraping sound as they hit the ground.

"Um?"

The gatekeeper looked up and noticed the gem on his forehead, which surprised the boy.

Because on the third time, Zhao Xing followed his movements.

"Is this progress?"

Zhao Xing grinned, manipulated the divine bone in the War God's leg, activated the bacterial flora, and immediately unleashed his leg divine skill, kicking his opponent.

Flames suddenly erupted from his toes, as if the space itself were ablaze. The twisted, layered peaks created an obstacle, making it difficult for his opponent to dodge left, right, up, or down; he could only advance or retreat.

"!"

Suddenly, the gatekeeper unleashed a burst of blue flames from his hands and gripped Zhao Xing's right leg with his ring.

A large amount of snowflakes fell, the flames were extinguished, and a large amount of frost essence fell like snowflakes. Zhao Xing felt his lower body stiffen.

"Thump!"

He was defeated once again.

This time, the gatekeeper did not offer any words of advice or mockery, but quietly waited for Zhao Xing to ponder.

"Again."

Zhao Xing was quickly freed from the ice and stood up again.

"Okay, come on."

The gatekeeper watched with a hint of anticipation.

Time passed quickly, and twenty-one years later it arrived.

At this moment, Zhao Xing emerged from his Internal World, having fought against the gatekeeper for nearly ten years.

Over the course of ten years, every two years, Zhao Xing would break free from the fusion, emerge from the gem space, and calm his mind.

But after only half a month of rest, he was back in the fight.

Over the course of ten years, Zhao Xing has fully mastered the 108,000 divine bones and can manipulate any combination of martial arts techniques.

In the following year, Zhao Xing rarely fell to the ground.

He usually takes two or three months to be knocked down once.

"Boom!"

After being knocked down once again, Zhao Xing returned to his original position and did not immediately challenge again, but instead pondered.

"May I have your name?"

The gatekeeper, however, took the initiative to ask Zhao Xing's name.

Twenty-one years have passed, and this is the first time he has asked Zhao Xing's name; he would never have bothered to ask before.

"Zhao Xing".

"Your learning talent is quite good." The gatekeeper nodded slightly. "Much better than the last rogue who came to challenge you."

The previous one? A scoundrel? Could it be referring to Lao Qing?

Zhao Xing's expression was somewhat strange. He didn't know what Qing Yuzi had done to receive such a evaluation from the gatekeeper.

However, he had no time for idle chatter and instead focused on improving his proficiency.

"In the first few years, I mastered the War God very quickly and made great progress in everything I did, from triggering the array diagrams and controlling the divine bones to fusion levels."

"However, the fusion still needs to be dismantled every two years or so."

The negative effects of integration on the mind are unavoidable.

Zhao Xing's "Seven Luminaries Immeasurable Heaven" cannot go any further; it is already the limit that can be reached at present.

"Since they are only War God at the level of Divine General, the martial arts attached to their divine bones are relatively simple and all the same moves. In fact, there is not much difference between me and the gatekeeper when we fight."

"The key lies in the level of integration and the degree of control over the Chaos Mushroom."

Controlling the War God requires Zhao Xing to understand the mysteries of martial arts, nor does it require him to continue practicing. The fusion will allow him to release the skill naturally, just like a natural secret technique.

Besides [ ], another plant life form, [Chaos Demon Fungus], also determines the upper limit of the War God's combat power.

"Let me remind you of something." The boy's illusory figure stared at Zhao Xing was deep in thought.

"In terms of integration, you are already on par with me, the gatekeeper."

"Combat experience is still a long way off from mine."

"The martial arts combinations attached to the more than 100,000 divine bones have countless attack patterns. In this respect, you can't possibly be inferior to me, who is the gatekeeper myself."

"You are far from mastering the Chaos Demon Fungus."

"Too much difference?" Zhao Xing looked up at the gatekeeper.

"Please give me your guidance, senior."

"The Chaos Demon Fungus lies dormant within the War God's body. There are countless of them. You should be able to sense that even when you unleash your attacks, many Chaos Demonic Lords remain dormant throughout the War God's body."

"The same move, but mine is stronger than yours. Why? Mainly because the Chaos Demon Fungus is activated, allowing it to gather more divine power to unleash."

"In my opinion, you can only unleash a maximum of nine times the amplification of a standard Divine General when controlling the War God."

"But the amplification factor I can unleash is... 1200 times!"

The number the boy said left Zhao Xing speechless.

1200 times, that's an absolutely despair-inducing increase in combat power.

Both of them are controlling the War God, but I can only make this body exert a 9-fold amplification, while my opponent can exert a 1200-fold amplification. How can I fight against that?

"Don't rush," the gatekeeper smiled. "Just because I can unleash such a high amplification doesn't mean you'll have to reach my level to clear the level."

"When the War God was born, I was born too. How can you compare to me? My master isn't that demanding."

"Therefore, in the battle nine years later, I will only be able to exert a hundredfold increase in combat power at most."

"Knock me down once, and you'll pass the test."

A hundred times? This number is still somewhat disheartening, considering that Zhao Xing can only unleash a 9-fold increase in combat power.

"Everything is difficult at the beginning. You can withstand the mental burden for two years. The next nine years will be the stage where you make the most progress. There is still hope that you can meet the requirements to pass."

"I understand." Zhao Xing cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you for the reminder, senior."

This break lasted a long time, and Zhao Xing did not launch a challenge.

After merging, his soul began to explore every part of the War God's body.

The War God's body is practically a miniature universe, and those individual points of light are Chaos Demon Fungus. Zhao Xing needs to discover more Chaos Demon Fungus in order to gather more power from this microcosm and defeat the gatekeeper.

"The War God created by Divine King Yu Heng is simply incredibly profound."

Zhao Xing has devoted himself to the study for 21 years, but he still feels that he has only learned the basics.

The Divine King Yu Heng incorporated so much Dao and Dharma into his work that the more I looked at it, the more incredible it seemed, and I realized how little I knew about it.

"This body is only at the Early Divine General level. Out of 108,000 divine bones, there are only three divine bones of Divine General."

"I can only achieve a nine-fold increase right now."

"Only by controlling the Chaos Demon Fungus can one improve."

"I cannot bring the War God into my Internal World for research. Now it all depends on my comprehension over these nine years."

Zhao Xing was completely immersed in his contemplation.

As the gatekeeper said, everything is difficult at the beginning.

After focusing his comprehension efforts on the Chaos Demon Fungus, Zhao Xing entered a period of rapid advancement.

A year later, when Zhao Xing challenged the gatekeeper again, the gatekeeper commented that Zhao Xing was now able to control the War God and unleash thirty times the power of Divine General.

By the end of the second year, the increase had reached forty-eight times.

By the end of the third year, it had reached sixty-four times.

Such a rapid rise also surprised the gatekeepers.

"I knew I wasn't wrong, his comprehension is truly astonishing."

"However, this person is also very strange. With such amazing comprehension, he cultivated the origin to become Free God and was already in the Late Divine Soldier, yet he only has a very mediocre 'Earth Treasury Divine Body'? He hasn't even activated his divine treasure."

The spirit of the artifact had no idea that Zhao Xing, this "Free God," was a complete fabrication by the Zu Emperor Dynasty, essentially a "low-income" god, which made him appear rather mediocre.

"I even have the illusion that he never became a god at all," the gatekeeper thought to himself. "Yet, with such an ordinary divine body and divine sense, he was able to cultivate a powerful Soul Secret Technique, and his comprehension is so astonishing."

"Could it be that there's a flaw in my destiny from birth?"

The gatekeeper had also fought Zhao Xing for many years, engaging in all-round battles, which is why he found it strange.

However, he quickly overlooked this point, because no matter how you looked at it, Zhao Xing was the genuine Free God.

"At least he's better than that scoundrel."

"I hope he can pass."

And so they waited, and soon thirty years of preparation time had passed.

Zhao Xing also finished his final training session and launched a real challenge against the gatekeeper.