Chen Daolin Makes His Move

How strong was Chen Daolin now?

His physical strength had already surpassed eighty thousand kilograms of punching power.

With the fivefold boost from King Kai Fist, that became four hundred thousand kilograms.

Then there was the ninety-percent increase in force from the first level of World Destroyer, bringing his punching power to eight hundred thousand kilograms.

A High-level War God's punching power was only somewhere between [missing value] and [missing value] kilograms.

Eight hundred thousand kilograms—that was an incredible amount of strength. A single punch would be no different from a shell exploding.

In fact, because all that power was concentrated, its destructive force against a single target was even greater than a missile's.

At least a missile monster could still dodge by relying on its reflexes and speed. But few monsters could evade Chen Daolin's attacks.

The Death Giant Python right before him certainly couldn't.

When Chen Daolin swept his spear across and sent the Blood-Eyed Lion Mastiff Beast—stronger than the python itself—flying like a ball, the Death Giant Python instinctively curled up. Its long body coiled, its tail tip lifted, and its huge triangular head rose above the mass of coils. Only after it had finished curling up did it realize—What the hell am I doing? I should be running!

But it was already too late. Before the Death Giant Python could escape, Chen Daolin's figure flashed beside it and vanished. The python's huge, hideous black head burst apart like an eggplant, its brains spraying everywhere as it died instantly.

Chen Daolin was like a gray phantom. He casually slapped the Blood-Eyed Lion Mastiff Beast to death, claimed the Death Giant Python, then used Instant Transmission to appear in front of the Blood-Eyed Tiger Mastiff Beast. The latter didn't waste time thinking. Its ferocity flared, and with a roar, it opened its mouth and lunged at Chen Daolin, baring its fangs. Chen Daolin's lips curved into a faint, cold smile. He raised his spear and thrust it like lightning into the beast's mouth, driving it straight into its brain. The Blood-Eyed Tiger Mastiff Beast shuddered violently, blood pouring from its mouth, ears, and nostrils.

Chen Daolin had replaced his spear with a new, ninth-series model, powerful enough to fight High-level Lord-level Monsters. Combined with his own immense strength, it left these savage, violent monster lords utterly helpless before him.

In just a few seconds, three Lord-level Monsters had already died. Only the Black Giant Scorpion and the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox remained on the mound. Seeing how effortlessly Chen Daolin had killed the others, the Black Giant Scorpion was so frightened it nearly burrowed back underground. The Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox's gaze also grew grave and wary. This human was far stronger than it had imagined.

Although the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox was wary, it still had confidence in its own strength. It stood atop the mound, swishing its fiery red tail as it stared coldly at Chen Daolin.

Suddenly, the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox turned and growled at the Black Giant Scorpion lying nearby. The scorpion shuddered, plainly reluctant, but under the fox's threat, it still crawled out ever so slowly and headed toward Chen Daolin.

Chen Daolin watched it and smiled, raising the spear in his hand.

The Black Giant Scorpion looked up at him and gave a squeak. Then it darted off—not toward Chen Daolin, but toward the space between him and the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox. It smashed through the gymnasium wall with a bang and disappeared in an instant.

Chen Daolin: "..."

The Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox: "..."

It had happened so suddenly that Chen Daolin hadn't expected the scorpion, which looked so imposing and vicious, to be such a coward. It had run without even fighting. He froze for a moment and didn't stop it.

The Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox atop the mound was even more stunned that its "loyal" subordinate had betrayed it and run away. It was so furious it nearly leaped into the air. But when it saw Chen Daolin distracted, it immediately seized the chance. Its vertical eye opened, a silver light shone, and an invisible, mysterious force silently swept toward Chen Daolin.

Chen Daolin's instincts suddenly screamed a warning. He whipped his head toward the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox, but his vision swam, and he felt weightless. This is bad! He focused his thoughts and roared inwardly, "Break!" His will, tempered by years of King Kai Fist, was as unyielding as a blade. It sliced through the illusory vision before him. It was like suddenly breaking the surface of the water; the world became clear and vivid again. Chen Daolin's mind returned, and he regained his senses. He looked coldly at the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox on the mound, only to see it stagger. Blood streamed from its third eye, and it stared at him in terror.

Chen Daolin's thoughts turned, and a cold smile appeared. "You beast, the backlash got you, didn't it?" He wasn't about to let such a good opportunity slip by. He stamped the ground, and his body shot toward the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox like a cannonball. The fox was so frightened that it turned and fled without hesitation. It had already used its mental illusion once that day and expended a great deal of energy. Now it had used it again, only for Chen Daolin's powerful will to break through it and inflict a backlash. Its vitality had been badly damaged, and its strength had fallen. How could it possibly stay and fight him?

Although its mind had been weakened by the backlash, its physical strength was still intact. With a single leap, it smashed through the wall, burst out of the gymnasium, and ran without looking back.

Chen Daolin had intended to chase it, but stopped when he saw the Crystal Vine on the mound. He thought of Long Yue and the other War Gods from earlier. Could they have risked their lives to come here for this thing?

Chen Daolin stopped and walked over to the Crystal Vine. He gazed at its translucent, extraordinarily beautiful form and marveled. This plant was so lovely it looked like a work of art. He had no idea what species it was. Four egg-sized, crystal-like fruits hung from it, sending out an enticing fragrance that made him feel refreshed and at ease.

"What a treasure." Chen Daolin praised it, then plucked all four fruits without hesitation and put them in his pocket. He had considered uprooting the Crystal Vine, but decided against it. A natural treasure like this probably couldn't grow just anywhere, and he didn't know whether it would die if he pulled it out. Besides, he had already picked the fruits, so he wouldn't take everything. He left the plant behind and cut off just one vine to take with him.

After Chen Daolin left, the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox sneaked back. When it saw the Crystal Vine stripped bare, it looked heartbroken. It lay limply on the mound, its fiery red tail drooping dejectedly.

Chen Daolin returned to the high-rise where Ji Xuan had been hiding. Seeing him come back, Ji Xuan breathed a sigh of relief and hurried over. "Are you all right? I just saw two Lord-level Monsters run out, and they scared me."

"I'm fine. Don't worry about them. This time, I..." Chen Daolin told Ji Xuan what had happened and took the crystal fruits out of his pocket. "Those War Gods must have been after these. I just don't know what they are. When we get back to the military Supply Base, we can look them up online."

Ji Xuan stared blankly at the fruit in Chen Daolin's hand.

"What's wrong?" Chen Daolin noticed her strange expression and asked in surprise.

Ji Xuan swallowed. "I don't know why, but looking at these fruits makes me really want to eat one. I feel like it would do me a lot of good."

"Is it really that miraculous?" Chen Daolin was puzzled. He also thought the crystal fruit smelled wonderful and wanted to eat it, but he wasn't nearly as affected as Ji Xuan.

What was the difference between Ji Xuan and him?

Ji Xuan was a Spirit Reader.

Could the crystal fruit be especially beneficial to Spirit Readers?

Chen Daolin couldn't help wondering.

But to be safe, Chen Daolin didn't give Ji Xuan a fruit to eat right away. He planned to look up the information once they got back and figure out what to do after learning more.

When Chen Daolin put the fruit away, Ji Xuan looked a little disappointed and somewhat embarrassed.

That same day, the two of them set out from City 003 and soon returned to the military Supply Base. At the Martial Artist lodging building, they used a laptop to look up information about the Crystal Vine fruit.

But Chen Daolin and Ji Xuan didn't even need to search. News of the Crystal Vine had already spread throughout the world. A post had appeared on the War God-level Martial Artist Forum, and every martial artist could see it as soon as they logged in. The ones who had spread the news were Long Yue and War God Liufeng. Chen Daolin understood immediately: they must have released the information to avenge their companions. But they didn't know that he had already taken the Crystal Vine fruit from the gymnasium—and that the Three-Eyed Fire-Tailed Fox had escaped.

The Crystal Vine was also called the Concentration Fruit. It was a type of Vegetation Spirit.

What was a Vegetation Spirit?

After plants and animals evolved, mysterious and rare plants appeared for reasons unknown. These Vegetation Spirits had developed a "spirit" and possessed simple awareness, including the ability to attack and protect themselves. The more powerful the Vegetation Spirit, the more precious it was.

Once plants transformed into Vegetation Spirits, they posed no threat as long as people didn't approach them. And every Vegetation Spirit could be considered a treasure containing the essence of heaven and earth, each with its own special effects.

The Millennium Willow Heart, Green Grass Dew, Iron Armor Spirit Bead...

But nearly all these treasures had been monopolized by the Five Great Powers, the Two Great Dojos, and the HR Alliance. Few War Gods could get their hands on them.

Wild Vegetation Spirits were incredibly rare. Whenever one appeared, countless people would fight over it. Even beings Beyond War God would make a move.

The Crystal Vine fruit had appeared twice before. The first time, a martial artist obtained it and ate it immediately, gaining fifty thousand kilograms of physical strength.

The second time, a Spirit Reader obtained it. After eating it, the Spirit Reader gained fifty thousand kilograms of strength and doubled his Spirit Reading Power. In other words, his increase in Spirit Reading Power was equivalent to one hundred thousand kilograms of strength.

This treasure was useful to both martial artists and Spirit Readers, but it was better for Spirit Readers. After all, ordinary martial artists had no way to use Spirit Reading Power.

Each Crystal Vine fruit only worked the first time it was eaten. Eating it again had no effect.

Any faction would be willing to pay an enormous price for a single Crystal Vine fruit.

Chen Daolin and Ji Xuan looked at each other, then at the backpack containing the Crystal Vine fruit. They had only one thought: We've struck it rich.