Reinforcement

"Can you tell me what this is about?" Chen Jin's heart stirred, linking it to Xu Fu's offering of the elixir.

"Do not ask! Leave at once!" The voice of the Shrine of the Four Seasons Deity sounded somewhat anxious. "The four seasons in this valley are in disarray; for every moment you linger here, several hours may have passed in the outside world. If you delay any longer, I fear you will not be able to leave even if you wish to."

Hearing this, Chen Jin's expression changed abruptly.

Xu Fu's offering of the elixir was imminent; if he truly missed it due to the time dilation, the mission would be an immediate failure.

No longer daring to probe for secrets, he bowed toward the cliff face. "Many thanks for the warning, Divine Venerable! This junior takes his leave!"

Chen Jin dared not delay for even a second. He carefully stowed away the seed of [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers], leaped, and began scaling the steep cliff like a nimble ape.

Chen Jin was not the type to take someone's favor and turn his back immediately; he wasn't that thick-skinned. However, time was running out, and he would have to settle the debt of gratitude after he completed the Yanfu event.

Using both hands and feet, he navigated the craggy rocks with a few leaps and bounds, quickly escaping the strange valley.

As he stepped back onto the mountain ridge, a cold night wind rushed toward him, sharpening his senses.

Looking up, he saw the sky was as black as ink, dotted with stars, with a crescent moon hanging askew on the horizon—it was already deep into the night.

"Ren Tu," Chen Jin asked urgently in his mind, "what time is it now? How much longer until Xu Fu offers the elixir?"

Ren Tu's gender-neutral voice responded immediately:

"Walker, according to the time flow of the outside world, four days have passed since you entered the valley. After sunrise tomorrow, the First Emperor will arrive at Langya Terrace, and Xu Fu will offer the Elixir of Immortality."

"Four days?!" A violent shock struck Chen Jin's heart, and a chill surged from his spine to the top of his head.

He had felt like only a single day had passed in the valley, yet four days had gone by outside!

Had the Shrine of the Four Seasons Deity not warned him, he would have missed the mission deadline had he lingered a moment longer.

Thinking of how a mission failure would not only wipe out all gains from this event but also erase the hard-earned purchasing permissions, it would truly be a case of all his efforts coming to nothing.

A wave of lingering fear washed over him, and he felt even more that the one who imprisoned the Shrine of the Four Seasons Deity was unfathomable.

With the crisis at hand, Chen Jin immediately suppressed his distracting thoughts and decided to strengthen his power at once.

He found a hidden corner, took out the [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers] seed, and chose to inherit and strengthen the [Metamorphosis] skill.

"You need to consume 1000 Yanfu Points and nine Solar Longitude graduations from [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers], including [Awakening of Insects], [Grain Rain], [Grain in Ear], [Lesser Cold], and [Greater Cold]."

As Chen Jin confirmed the strengthening, nine clouds of mist drifted from the seed in his palm, flowing into his mouth and nose.

Small characters flickered before Chen Jin's eyes.

[Metamorphosis] strengthening complete.

Effects are as follows:

[You can change your form at will. Your morphological changes will break through the shackles of human form, allowing you to transform into more biological forms and even non-living material forms, with no cooldown.]

[You can now perform rapid metabolism during metamorphosis. Your transformations will gain traits such as rapid giantization and rapid miniaturization.]

[You can now enter a "Tortoise Breath" state when transforming into non-living forms like plants, soil, or stone, significantly increasing your concealment effect.]

Chen Jin used the [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers] seed again to strengthen, this time choosing the [Proliferation] skill.

"You need to consume 1000 Yanfu Points and ten Solar Longitude graduations from [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers], including [Lesser Snow], [Greater Snow], [White Dew], [Lesser Fullness], and [Frost Descent]."

[Proliferation] strengthening complete.

Effects are as follows:

[Proliferation gains the new trait "Mimicry." When your body is stimulated by specific types of energy or after analyzing its material structure, you can locally simulate the corresponding traits on your body surface or within your body to counter or adapt.]

[You can consume stamina to regulate your own hormone secretion, enhancing the strength of various organs in your body.]

[You can heal the physical injuries of others by sharing your own flesh and blood; this portion of flesh will lose its activity once the healing is complete.]

After the two strengthenings, only five Solar Longitude graduations remained in [Flick of the Finger, Beauty Withers]: [Spring Equinox], [Summer Solstice], [Autumn Equinox], [Winter Solstice], and [Pure Brightness].

Behind the Flesh of Vision inheritance, words like [Stars Shift Strengthening] and [Solar Longitude Strengthening] appeared.

The improvement from Chen Jin's strengthening this time could be called the greatest since he entered Yanfu.

Exhaling a breath of stale air, Chen Jin moved his mind and activated his strengthened Metamorphosis ability.

His exposed skin rippled slightly; its color, texture, and even luster began to adjust rapidly. Within a few breaths, it became almost identical to the mottled mountain rock behind him, making it difficult to distinguish even at close range.

With this perfect disguise, Chen Jin became like a silent shadow, slipping back into the perimeter of the Shrine of the Four Seasons Deity, which was already under martial law.

He avoided squads of patrolling elite soldiers and finally, on the side of the main sacrificial hall, chose a spot behind a flying eave that could overlook the entire altar while remaining easy to hide in and retreat from, lying in wait like a boulder.

The night was deep, and the cold dew grew heavier.

Chen Jin restrained all his presence, merging with the shadows of the building, and through the gaps in his disguise, coldly watched the altar below where the final arrangements were being made.

Everything was ready; they only awaited the dawn for the grand drama that might stir the winds and clouds of the world to begin.

The darkness before dawn was at its deepest, and the entire Langya Mountain was shrouded in a near-stagnant solemnity.

Even the mountain wind seemed to hold its breath; only the faint, rhythmic clanking of the elite soldiers' armor broke the silence.

As the first streak of fish-belly white cracked the eastern horizon, a low and magnificent horn blast echoed from the foot of the mountain, layer by layer, resounding through the sky.

The elixir-offering ceremony had begun.

The first thing to catch Chen Jin's sight were the three thousand boys and girls who had set sail with Xu Fu.

They were dressed in moon-white alchemist robes, their faces youthful yet devoid of expression, their eyes hollow like puppets pulled by invisible strings, walking slowly along the main divine path leading to the shrine at the summit with precise, uniform steps.

In the center of the procession, Xu Fu, known as the world's foremost alchemist, held a Sandalwood Spirit Box with a steady gait.

He wore a black alchemist robe embroidered with golden cloud-seal talismans that shimmered with a mysterious luster in the brightening morning light.

The procession was silent, save for the rustling of footsteps on the stone stairs, which gathered into a heart-palpitating undercurrent.

Holding the spirit box, Xu Fu led the three thousand boys and girls onto the Altar Plaza at the top of Langya Terrace; they surged in, silently branching out to follow the faint, ancient carvings on the ground toward their respective positions.

The three thousand boys and girls knelt down quickly and orderly, forming a massive and complex pattern.

It was as if they had rehearsed it countless times before.