Hong's Grand Gesture

When Shi Fen learned that the man in black was Hong, he froze in shock.

Shi Fen had never imagined he would meet Hong so soon. He had just gone all out, and while others might not have noticed, Hong, the world's strongest man, was sure to have seen through him.

I've blown it. I've exposed all my strength at once.

Shi Fen was panicking, completely at a loss. Just as he was wondering what to do, the corners of Hong's eyes crinkled mysteriously, and he revealed Shi Fen's secret outright.

"I didn't expect you to have strength beyond that of a low-level War General after your very first session cultivating Genetic Origin Energy. Looks like your Spiritual Master talent is quite impressive. When you tested your punch strength today, you weren't using all your strength, were you?"

Seeing Hong's manner, Shi Fen felt a chill creep over his scalp. With difficulty, he nodded, admitting it.

Watching the two of them, Elder Qian's mouth twitched slightly. I didn't realize Shi Fen had been hiding his strength so thoroughly. But then again, with the level of control he showed when forging Deep Spring, I wouldn't have been able to see through him.

If Brother Hong hadn't suddenly gotten the urge to test him personally, who knows how long I would've been kept in the dark? Shi Fen, Shi Fen—you really are a genius!

Seeing how embarrassed Shi Fen looked, Hong smiled faintly and asked, "You've used up quite a bit of the solidified Spiritual Force in your Sea of Consciousness, haven't you? Otherwise, there's no way you could've improved so dramatically."

Shi Fen knew he had been completely exposed, so he decided to come clean. He bowed slightly toward Hong and admitted, "Senior Hong, there are nine Dark Gold Spheres in my Sea of Consciousness. When I was cultivating just now, I drew on them, and a small portion dissolved quickly. That's why my strength increased so much.

"When my Spiritual Force awakened, a small portion of one of them dissolved as well."

Hong asked curiously, "Roughly how much of your strength did you use when you tested your punch today?"

Shi Fen considered it briefly, then replied, "I used about sixty percent of my strength when I tested it today."

That was a lie he was telling the two of them. The surface of the Dark Golden Spheres in his mind was now covered in bright golden spots, and the spheres themselves had grown somewhat larger. Shi Fen had no idea why they had changed like this, so he had made up an explanation based on the common logic of the world as he understood it.

Hong and Elder Qian were somewhat surprised. His strength had increased so quickly, yet only a small portion of his solidified Spiritual Force had dissolved. That was impressive talent. Exactly how impressive remained to be seen; it depended on how long those nine pieces of solidified Spiritual Force lasted.

The longer it took for solidified Spiritual Force to dissolve, the greater the talent.

At Hong and Elder Qian's insistence, Shi Fen tested his punch strength again.

"13,082 kg."

The figures Shi Fen displayed at full strength were terrifying.

Before he cultivated Five Hearts Towards Heaven, Shi Fen's strength should have been around 7,000 kilograms. After cultivating Genetic Origin Energy, it had nearly doubled.

"Good heavens. Just relying on solidified Spiritual Force, you're already close to the middle-level War General realm after your first proper cultivation session," Elder Qian exclaimed.

Hong was equally shocked. He silently estimated that Shi Fen's talent seemed no weaker than that of the most famous Spiritual Masters on Earth—in fact, it might be even greater.

Moreover, Shi Fen's punches had a certain finesse to them, with the feel of traditional Huaxia martial arts. His techniques were little more than flashy moves, but his fundamentals were outstanding.

Hong had discovered a great deal of knowledge about Spiritual Masters in ancient ruins.

One piece of information had left a particularly deep impression on him: "A genius Spiritual Master can naturally reach Apprentice Level 9 simply by relying on the solidified Spiritual Force in their mind, even without cultivating any techniques or secret manuals. The most powerful can even grow to Planetary Level." Several such people had appeared throughout history among natives of Primal Stars who knew nothing about cultivation.

Hong had never met anyone so "obtuse" before—someone who couldn't be bothered to cultivate, then soared to the heavens as soon as he did. It looks like having solidified Spiritual Force divided into multiple pieces really is an advantage in cultivation. His strength is improving at an astonishing rate!

As Hong continued pondering how he should deal with Shi Fen, Shi Fen bowed respectfully to him and asked, "Senior Hong, what should I do from now on...?"

Hong raised a hand to stop him. Then, all at once, Hong broke into a delighted laugh. "Haha! There's no need for that. I call your master Elder Qian, and you call me Senior Hong. Doesn't that put us in different generations? If you don't mind, just call me Big Brother."

Elder Qian and Shi Fen stared at Hong, unsure what he was up to.

Shi Fen reacted quickly and hurriedly said, "Hello, Big Brother Hong."

Hong smiled smugly. "Elder Qian, you don't mind your disciple calling me brother, do you?"

No matter how talented Shi Fen is, he's still a member of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall. Is there really any need to cozy up to him this much? Elder Qian had lived long enough to become shrewd. He saw through Hong's little scheme, and his tone carried a hint of disdain.

Hong wasn't annoyed at all that Elder Qian had seen through his intentions. Instead, he said proudly, "He's a genius Spiritual Master, a future forging master with boundless prospects, and your prized disciple, Elder Qian. What's wrong with building a relationship early?

"I'm counting on my little brother to grow up quickly and make me a set of SSS-grade equipment."

At that moment, Hong had none of the airs of the world's strongest man. He eagerly rubbed his hands together as he looked at Shi Fen, full of anticipation. "Little Brother Shi, heh, let's be frank. I'm counting on you to upgrade my gear, so I hope you'll surpass your master as soon as possible."

Seeing Hong's reaction, Shi Fen was already beaming inside. I didn't expect high-grade weapons to have such a strong hold on Hong. He went so far as to make me his little brother right away. This...

But when he thought about it, it made sense. If Hong had to fight, an SS-grade weapon would never withstand combat at his level. Every Martial Artist wanted a weapon that suited them. Even Hong, the world's strongest man, was no exception.

Shi Fen had never imagined things would take such a strange turn. Somehow, he had managed to get close to Hong ahead of schedule.

Shi Fen said to Hong, visibly excited, "Big Brother Hong, I'll do my best."

Elder Qian stood beside them with a hand pressed to his forehead, his face dark with exasperation.

"Enough, you two. Hong, hurry up and give Shi Fen some of your good stuff. If you don't give him anything, how's he supposed to improve?" Elder Qian urged him.

Hong chuckled and waved his hand. Several large boxes immediately appeared on the ground.

Hong looked at Shi Fen warmly, completely ignoring Elder Qian's presence. Pointing to the boxes one by one, he explained, "These boxes contain some of humanity's best manuals. There are manuals for Martial Artists and Spiritual Masters alike. You can study them when you're tired of forging.

"This box contains some treasures I prepared for you to help improve your strength: a portion of Dragon Blood, a portion of Jade Marrow, and a precious Millennium Willow Heart.

"I've written down the order in which to use them, as well as the precautions you need to take. Once you've absorbed all their medicinal power, you'll have enough to become a High-level War God."

Seeing how generously Hong was giving, Elder Qian's expression improved. Hong had given Shi Fen not only Dragon Blood and Jade Marrow, but also the Spirit of Vegetation best suited to him. Elder Qian stopped silently "looking down" on Hong.

Elder Qian was very pleased with Hong's actions.

Hong had truly made a huge sacrifice!

Shi Fen hid his reaction flawlessly. He acted utterly astonished by the sudden appearance of the boxes and Hong's explanation. Once Hong finished, Shi Fen hurriedly asked, "Big Brother Hong, how did you make those boxes appear?"

The corners of Hong's mouth and eyes curved mysteriously. With a hint of smugness in his eyes, he raised the ring on his hand to show Shi Fen and explained, "This is called a Space Ring. You carry it with you, and it can store and retrieve items."

"There's really such a thing?" Shi Fen asked, pretending to be shocked.

"Heh, the universe is vast, and it's full of wonders. It's just a Space Ring. Once you become a War God, you'll learn about plenty of other amazing things. Work hard at your cultivation and improve your strength as quickly as you can," Hong explained with a smile.

Shi Fen nodded solemnly.

As soon as Hong finished explaining, Elder Qian cut in. "When are you going to get me a Space Ring, too?" Elder Qian had been coveting Hong's Space Ring for a very, very long time.

Hong was at a loss for words. "Uh, Elder Qian, I only have this one Space Ring. There's nothing I can do about it. Even if you had a Space Ring, you wouldn't be able to use it. You'd have to break through to a higher level first."

"Alas, at my age, breaking through is too difficult," Elder Qian sighed.

"There's still hope," Hong said softly, consoling him.

Elder Qian rubbed his face with both hands, then composed himself and said sternly to Shi Fen, "You have such great talent, so you mustn't neglect your cultivation. Don't end up like me. Strive to break through the War God realm and reach an even higher level."

Shi Fen nodded firmly.

In truth, he had already planned to find some special treasures for Elder Qian when he went on an adventure in the universe, so he could help Elder Qian rapidly improve his strength.

Hong seemed to remember something and asked Shi Fen, "By the way, little brother Shi, were you using some special method when you punched just now?"

Shi Fen hurriedly replied, "I was using Taiji Fist Technique I learned online. I used the part that's most yang and unyielding."

Hong and Elder Qian were dumbfounded. He'd learned it online...

His comprehension was simply absurd.

Hong thought it over briefly, then made up his mind and took another two large boxes of manuals out of his Space Ring.

Hong gave Shi Fen some further instructions, explaining how to use the treasures and taking care to ensure he wouldn't misuse them. Once Shi Fen had confirmed he understood, Hong left with a carefree air.

"Shi Fen, don't worry about anything else for now. Use the treasures Hong gave you first. Once your strength and realm have stabilized, we'll start forging," Elder Qian instructed him. He stopped trying to teach Shi Fen for the moment and went out to take care of other matters.

The enormous underground Forging Room was left with Shi Fen alone.

Shi Fen used his Spiritual Force to carry the boxes straight to his room.

After closing the door, Shi Fen swept the room with his Spiritual Force and confirmed there were no hidden cameras. Only then did he let out a long breath. It wasn't easy to keep up an act in front of two big shots.

Fortunately, nothing had gone wrong.

Shi Fen used his Spiritual Force to open all the boxes. Everything inside was laid out before him.

The boxes were neatly filled with books of all kinds. Apart from the one containing treasures, all the others were packed with books.

Shi Fen flipped through a few. He was stunned.

Basics of Spiritual Reader, World Annihilation, Nine-Layered Thunder Blade, Phantom Blade Art, Mist Sword... There were more than a dozen manuals, and every one was a complete set!

The box containing World Annihilation also held a notebook. It turned out to be Hong's notes on the technique. Though it was only a photocopy, it was still astonishing.

Besides that, the two boxes Hong had taken out last contained classic martial arts manuals from all over the world. They covered everything, from compilations of traditional Huaxia martial arts to translated and edited collections of modern combat techniques.

Baji Fist, Taiji Fist, Shaolin Fist, and other classical martial arts passed down through the ages.

Jeet Kune Do, Judo, Karate, Boxing, Kickboxing, military combat techniques, and other modern martial arts.

The boxes had them all!

Even more incredible, these were all Hong's personal notes from studying and exploring martial arts. He had marked down his insights on each one. As Shi Fen skimmed through them, he even found traces of Thor.

"Are these notes from Hong and Thor's training?" Shi Fen was stunned all over again.

Just then, Shi Fen received a text message. He opened his phone, and a rush of excitement shot to his head, making him feel dizzy.

It was from Hong.

"Little Brother Shi Fen, make sure you keep those two boxes of books safe. Don't show them to anyone. They contain Thor's and my martial arts insights. You're the third person in the world to see these books.

"I'm not only impressed by your talent for forging and Spiritual Force; I believe in your martial arts talent, too. These books can help you build a foundation for martial arts that's uniquely yours. I look forward to the day you catch up with me—or even surpass me.

"Hong."

After reading it, Shi Fen immediately replied, expressing his gratitude and respect to Hong.

Why was Hong being so nice to me? Shi Fen's mind felt like it had stopped working. He had no idea what was going on and couldn't understand why Hong was being so open with him.

No one was that open the first time they met someone. Normally, people took things slowly, first getting to know a person's character and then gradually placing their trust in them and offering resources and treasures.

Yet Hong had unexpectedly gone straight to "full trust," even though he had only just taken Shi Fen on as his little brother.

It made no sense at all.

Could it be that I showed too much talent? Shi Fen wondered, still deeply uncertain.