Deep Blue Points

"System, what is the growth of the Sage Body related to? How should I develop my Sage Body?" Ying Yue asked inwardly, his voice filled with eager curiosity.

A moment later, the system's answer echoed in his mind:

[Host, the growth of the Sage Body is related to several factors, the most important of which is potential. Asura inherited the Sage Body of the Sage of Six Paths, which gave rise to the Senju Clan, while Indra inherited the Sage Eye of the Sage of Six Paths, which gave rise to the Uchiha Clan. The closer one's bloodline is to the Sage of Six Paths, the greater one's potential to awaken and strengthen the Sage Body.]

The system's answer helped Ying Yue understand the close connection between the Sage Body and bloodlines.

As the Sage of Six Paths' two sons, Asura and Indra had each inherited the power of the Sage Body and the Sage Eye, respectively. The Senju and Uchiha clans were the continuation of these two powers.

[Someone like Senju Hashirama, the reincarnation of Asura's chakra, was born with great potential for the Sage Body. As his body grew and the quality of his chakra improved, he also unconsciously absorbed Natural Energy. It was easy for him to awaken more than 80% of the Sage Body, and then naturally awaken Wood Release.]

This helped Ying Yue better understand why Senju Hashirama could master Wood Release so effortlessly.

Because of his bloodline and chakra, Hashirama had tremendous potential for the Sage Body. He could also absorb Natural Energy without realizing it, continually strengthening his Sage Body until it surpassed 80%. That allowed him to awaken Wood Release naturally and wield its immense power.

"System, how good is my potential? How far can I awaken my Sage Body?"

[Host, your potential is above average among the Senju Clan. As your body grows and you train, you should be able to awaken about 40% of the Sage Body's potential. Most members of the Senju Clan can only reach 20%–30%, while a few geniuses and people with exceptional potential can exceed 60%, such as Senju Tsunade.]

[Most members of the Senju Clan lack the potential to awaken a high-level Sage Body, and naturally, they also lack the potential to awaken Wood Release.]

After hearing the system's explanation, Ying Yue had a more objective understanding of his potential.

He knew that although his potential was above average among the Senju Clan, he still fell short of the top geniuses.

Even so, Ying Yue had considerable potential to awaken the Sage Body, reaching around 40%—far beyond that of ordinary Senju.

This meant that with continued training and growth, he did have a chance to further improve his Sage Body. But to reach the heights of Senju Hashirama, his natural potential alone wouldn't be enough.

The system had also revealed a key point: most members of the Senju Clan lacked the potential to awaken a high-level Sage Body, and therefore couldn't awaken Wood Release naturally.

This explained why Senju Hashirama had become the legendary God of Shinobi, while the other members of the Senju Clan struggled to reach his level.

Senju Tsunade was one of the few geniuses capable of reaching over 60% of the Sage Body. She was renowned for her powerful chakra and healing abilities, yet she had never awakened Wood Release. This further demonstrated the close link between a high-level Sage Body and Wood Release.

Faced with the figures the system had given him, Uchiha Ying Yue couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

Although he knew his potential wasn't bad, he still fell far short of a legend like Senju Hashirama.

Ying Yue wasn't willing to accept it. Did this gap mean he was destined never to wield such powerful Wood Release?

Unable to help himself, Ying Yue asked the system inwardly, his voice tinged with anxiety and frustration. "Does this mean I'm destined never to have Wood Release as powerful as Senju Hashirama's? System, isn't there any other way?"

[Host, you can use another of the system's abilities. It's a template left behind by one of your predecessors who crossed over.]

[Deep Blue Points]

Uchiha Ying Yue's interest was piqued by the unfamiliar term. He immediately checked the ability's description, and the system displayed the full details before him.

[My achievements today are all thanks to my own hard work and talent. Deep Blue! Add points!!!—A certain predecessor]

[Deep Blue Points can raise the host's various attributes through directly "adding points." Chakra reserves, chakra quality, Sage Body awakening, Sharingan ocular power, Taijutsu ability, and more can all be improved by spending Destiny Points, allowing for rapid advancement.]

[Warning: The effects of adding points are immediate, but the Destiny Points required will increase exponentially as the difficulty of improvement rises. Powerful abilities also require a great many Destiny Points to improve. This is the equivalent exchange of fate.]

Reading the description, Ying Yue felt hope flare within him. The system had been hiding such a powerful function: "Deep Blue Points"!

By adding points, he could directly improve his various attributes and even make up for his lack of natural potential.

This might be the key to breaking through the limits of my potential! Ying Yue thought excitedly.

However, he also understood that although this ability was powerful, using it required a large number of Destiny Points, and the cost would keep rising as his attributes improved.

He would have to use it carefully and make sure his Destiny Points were spent efficiently.

Uchiha Ying Yue currently had 2,260 Destiny Points. That was a fair amount, but it might still be nowhere near enough for his future needs.

So he needed to plan their use carefully, prioritizing the attributes that would most improve his combat ability.

After thinking it over, Uchiha Ying Yue decided to first use Destiny Points to improve his Sage Body awakening.

The Sage Body was the foundation of Wood Release's power, as well as the key to improving chakra quality and vitality.

He hoped that adding points would bring him as close as possible to Senju Hashirama's level.

"System, use 'Deep Blue Points' to increase my Sage Body awakening," Ying Yue instructed inwardly.

Uchiha Ying Yue then put 1,000 Destiny Points into improving his Sage Body.

[Sage Body awakening increased: Current 21% → 31% (1,000 Destiny Points spent)]

With that improvement, Ying Yue could clearly feel the power within him growing stronger.

His Sage Body awakening had risen by 10% all at once. His physical abilities, chakra quality, and vitality had all improved significantly.

He could feel his chakra flowing more smoothly, and his body's ability to recover had also improved noticeably.

He felt more closely connected to nature, and his Wood Release had grown more proficient. Then Uchiha Ying Yue decided to spend another 1,000 Destiny Points.

[Sage Body awakening increased: Current 31% → 36% (1,000 Destiny Points spent)]

However, when Ying Yue spent another 1,000 Destiny Points, he found that his awakening had increased by only 5%. The points had still strengthened his Sage Body, but the effect was clearly less pronounced than the first time.

Uchiha Ying Yue furrowed his brow slightly. He understood that as his Sage Body awakening increased, the Destiny Points required for further improvement would also grow exponentially.

In other words, the closer he came to awakening a high-level Sage Body, the more Destiny Points he would need, and the harder it would be to improve.