After several days, Thor finally mastered a domain and awoke. The moment he opened his eyes, he wanted to challenge Hong and show off, getting revenge for all the years he'd spent under Hong's thumb.
That was naturally impossible.
Thor had just started acting smug when Hong and Shi Fen stopped him with stern looks, putting an end to his mischief.
Thor was lively, but he wasn't stupid. He immediately realized something was wrong.
When he saw Luo Feng's state, Thor's jaw nearly hit the floor. "Damn, damn, damn, damn..."
Thor began to question his life.
I've spent all these years living like a dog. I couldn't surpass Big Brother, and now two little punks have surpassed me... If Thor hadn't been worried about disturbing Luo Feng's comprehension of his domain, he would have cursed up a storm for days just to ease his feelings.
Instead, he could only bottle them up.
Thor was no ordinary man. His insight into the domain had also improved his state of mind, and he had now fully consolidated his "unity of heaven and humanity" state. He soon calmed down and quietly studied the domain he had just comprehended, waiting for Luo Feng to finish.
Hong and Thor's personal guards had witnessed this unbelievable scene. How could they dare say anything? They guarded the others even more diligently, cherishing the chance to watch three nascent domains develop and hoping to plant a seed of their own that might one day take root and grow.
Shi Fen soon returned to Mist Island. By then, more than ten days had passed.
Half of Shi Fen's consciousness was still in the Image World, receiving a terrifying stream of information. With the Image World's soul-restoration ability supporting him, the information was transmitting quickly. At this rate, he would probably finish receiving it all in another day or two.
The Eight Trigrams Reincarnation Mirror had temporarily gone silent while transmitting its inheritance, so Shi Fen couldn't do anything else. Every day, he studied his newly acquired domain and quietly conducted all sorts of "human experiments" on Hong and Thor's guards.
Through his domain, Shi Fen could clearly "see" the energy flowing through the guards' bodies. There wasn't much energy flowing through areas beyond the body's core, such as the arms and lower legs. Using his Soul Domain, Shi Fen could see the human body's tissues in great detail.
Ever since activating his Soul Domain, Shi Fen hadn't stopped.
Shi Fen had underestimated it. After conducting experiments continuously, he realized he could maintain such a small area for over a month. Using his domain consumed very little of his Spiritual Force.
Everyone felt the continuous boost from Shi Fen's domain and trained with all their might, hoping to improve their strength.
Luo Feng's progress in comprehending his domain was going smoothly. It was gradually nearing completion, and it would take about another day for it to fully form.
A few more days passed.
After mastering his domain, Luo Feng took advantage of the momentum to continue consolidating it here. He planned to leave only after the domain had completely stabilized.
Everything finally settled down.
It happened to be August 15 on the Gregorian calendar.
They had been in seclusion here for nearly half a month, and everyone was exhausted. Shi Fen impatiently urged them to hurry up and head home to rest. In truth, his other half of consciousness had awakened, and he wanted to get out of everyone's sight so he could quietly inspect what he had gained.
With Hong, Thor, and Luo Feng all possessing domains, Shi Fen didn't dare make the slightest move that might reveal his secret. For the past few days, all he could do was sort through the information; he couldn't do anything else.
Shi Fen was as anxious as an ant on a hot griddle.
Shi Fen was fretting, but Hong and Thor weren't in a hurry at all.
Hong and Thor exchanged a glance. Thor immediately understood and said casually, "We've gained so much here on Mist Island. Shi Fen, Luo Feng, and I were lucky enough to break through together and gain domains, while Big Brother even got a whole pile of Spirits of Vegetation.
"The four of us are the strongest people on Earth right now. I can't compare with our two younger brothers, Shi Fen and Luo Feng, when it comes to talent.
"So, since I'm the least capable, how about I suggest that we become sworn brothers here?"
Hong and Shi Fen had already been prepared for this, so they nodded naturally.
After his initial shock, Luo Feng agreed as well. His brother Shi Fen had already agreed, so it wouldn't be right for him to refuse.
"Good!"
With several personal guards as witnesses, the four performed a simple ceremony and officially became sworn brothers.
There were no strange rituals or strange slogans. The four paid their respects to the sky, then to one another, and the ceremony was complete.
They ranked themselves by age.
Hong was the eldest, Thor the second, Luo Feng the third, and Shi Fen the fourth.
The ceremony ended.
Hong said meaningfully, "I hope that one day we can venture into the universe together and carve out a place for Earth."
The other three fell silent.
Hong and Thor had decided to become sworn brothers, and over the past few days they had opened up and told Shi Fen and Luo Feng many secrets about Earth and the universe. Shi Fen and Luo Feng were deeply moved and had a lot to reflect on.
Of course, Shi Fen was only pretending.
Sharing their secrets with open hearts had brought Shi Fen and Luo Feng much closer to Hong and Thor. The old and new generations of experts had bonded, so becoming sworn brothers was only natural.
Seeing that nobody was speaking, Shi Fen broke the awkward silence and said firmly, "We definitely can."
Hong smiled and looked at Shi Fen. "That's right. We definitely can."
Hong's gaze made Shi Fen feel inexplicably uneasy. He didn't know what was going on.
Have I been exposed? That doesn't make sense... Shi Fen grew wary and nervous.
Thor didn't notice anything unusual. He looked at Shi Fen and Luo Feng and said with a smile, "Forget the universe for now. You two need to hurry up and find a way to break through to the Planetary Level. That's what matters."
Shi Fen hurriedly nodded.
Luo Feng gave a quiet answer and nodded.
"You two already have domains and have become Planetary-Level experts. Hurry up and challenge the Third and Fourth Speakers. Then three of the four strongest people in the world will be from the Extreme Martial Arts Hall. Hahaha! Your Thunder Martial Arts Hall doesn't stand a chance, Second Brother." Hong stopped looking at Shi Fen and turned to tease Thor.
Thor immediately jumped up in exasperation. "You just got lucky! What's there to brag about? Neither of them was trained by you. They made it this far through their own strength."
Hong ignored the fuming Thor completely and muttered to himself, "They're still people from my Extreme Martial Arts Hall."
Then he turned to Luo Feng and said, "What are your plans? If you don't have anything else to do, come to the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and serve as an Inspector."
Luo Feng thought about it briefly, then nodded and agreed.
Realizing he was being ignored, Thor immediately flew into a rage. "Come on, then! Let's fight one-on-one. I refuse to believe that you can keep beating me just because you've had a domain all these years. Now I have one too! Besides, my Genetic Origin Energy is a level higher than yours."
"I'd be delighted." Hong smiled and nodded, not looking the least bit afraid.
Thor was furious. He grabbed Hong and flew out over the lake.
Shi Fen and Luo Feng exchanged bewildered looks, unsure what to make of their behavior. The two seemed like brothers squabbling out of spite. They didn't act like world-renowned experts at all.
Hong and Thor's two groups of personal guards had long since gotten used to it. They let the two do as they pleased.
Everyone present focused on the two experts fighting over the lake. Shi Fen and Luo Feng were extremely excited. This was a fight between the two hall masters, after all. It was a rare sight.
Hong and Thor didn't use weapons. They stood on the lake and fought with their bare hands. At their level, using the SSS-grade weapons Shi Fen had forged might lead to accidental injury, so they wordlessly agreed to use their fists.
The fight ended sooner than expected.
Hong beat Thor into a pulp.
"Damn, how are you so strong?" Thor rubbed his swollen face, his eyes brimming with tears from the pain as he complained resentfully to Hong.
"Just because you mastered a domain, I'm not allowed to break through with mine? Keep following behind me and eating my dust." Hong looked at Thor's bruised face with perfect calm, putting on the air of a worldly master.
"Damn..." Thor began reciting a string of curses.
Hong turned to Luo Feng and said, "Come with me to the Martial Arts Hall headquarters. You helped gather Spirits of Vegetation on Mist Island, so I'll let you exchange them for some good things."
Luo Feng nodded excitedly at once. He had coveted Shi Fen's fighter jet for a long time.
"Oh, Luo Feng, your custom-made weapons." Seeing how eager Luo Feng was to leave, Shi Fen handed him the weapons he had brought.
Luo Feng opened the bag, and his eyes lit up even more.
"By the way, the Beast, Yaorao, and Iceberg have finished cutting up the materials from the monsters you hunted, as well as the beasts. That includes the King-Level Crocodile Dragon. I packed up everything we'd found useful and sent it all back to Elder Qian's Forging Room." Just before bringing Luo Feng aboard the fighter jet, Hong suddenly remembered something and told Shi Fen.
"Okay, good. Big Brother, change my rank to Invincible War God for me. I don't feel like going there myself." Shi Fen replied immediately.
Hong nodded indifferently. "Yaorao can do that with a flick of her finger. In the future, if you need anything, you can contact Beast, Yaorao, or Iceberg directly. They can handle just about anything at the Extreme Martial Arts Hall."
"Okay."
Beast, Yaorao, and Iceberg were delighted to hear this. They knew the hall master wanted them to get closer to Shi Fen.
Shi Fen politely asked for their contact information and thanked them for helping process the monster materials.
Beast, Yaorao, and Iceberg were thrilled. Although Shi Fen hadn't promised to keep in touch, it was only a matter of time before they got a full set of custom-made SSS-grade equipment forged by him.
After Hong's subordinates had connected with Shi Fen and their business was settled, Hong took the excited Luo Feng and left the sulking, bruised Thor behind. He boarded the Blood-Red Triangular Fighter with his personal guards and flew off in style.
"You've got no heart." Thor complained to Hong with a wounded expression, then turned to his personal guards. "Our Fourth Brother only works in the forging department, not the combat department. Are there things the Extreme Martial Arts Hall can do that our Thunder Martial Arts Hall can't?"
He then turned to Shi Fen and said, "Fourth Brother, if you ever need help from the Thunder Martial Arts Hall, just contact them. They can handle all kinds of matters on my behalf."
At their leader's instructions, Thor's personal guards' eyes immediately lit up. They had watched the three members of Hong's group chat with Shi Fen, and they were green with envy. Who wouldn't want a full set of custom-made SSS-grade equipment forged by Shi Fen?
With a full set of custom-made SSS-grade equipment, their strength would increase tremendously!
Only a fool would turn down such an opportunity.
Shi Fen saw right through Thor's ploy, but didn't expose him. He was delighted to finally be able to return and inspect what he had gained, so he treated the personal guards from both sides equally.
After seeing Thor and the others off, Shi Fen boarded his own fighter jet and began the journey home.
Shi Fen knew the fighter jet's AI had a backdoor left by Hong, so he didn't dare inspect his gains on board. He stretched out comfortably in the fighter jet's rest cabin and waited until he got home to check them.
After seeing that Shi Fen and the others had all left, Babata immediately ordered the Cloud-Touching Vine to bloom at full power, drawing Earth's experts to Mist Island so they could choose a successor.
Although Babata had two clear candidates for personal disciples, his curiosity got the better of him. He still released the Cloud-Touching Vine and a large number of Wood Bud Crystals, hoping to discover another miracle on this "miraculous Earth."
Babata wanted to see if any more extraordinary people would appear.
The blooming Cloud-Touching Vine spread sixteen black-purple tendrils, each several kilometers long, through the mist. They waved and churned, parting the thick fog. Mist Island, which had been shrouded in mist for years, opened up layer after layer of fog and revealed its true face to the people of Earth.
It felt like the clouds had parted to reveal the moon.
A little over half an hour later, a military satellite detected the anomaly on Mist Island.
The information was immediately reported up the chain...
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