Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, Xiao Cheng had already spent more than four months in the Body Sect.
His life over those four months could be summed up in two words—bitter cultivation.
He rose at five every morning for a ten-kilometer cross-country run with weights; trained with Mu Huang in specialized Body Martial Soul exercises in the morning to hone control over his body; sparred and underwent resistance training in the afternoon; soaked in the Yang Spring at dusk to nourish his body and strengthen his True Dragon Qi; and followed Han Tianyi in mental cultivation at night, chasing stars through the sea of stars.
Day after day, without interruption.
The results of such intense cultivation were equally remarkable.
Over four months, Xiao Cheng's Soul Power rose from level 22 to level 24. Though he had only advanced two levels, his foundation was exceptionally solid, without the slightest hint of instability. His mental power had improved by leaps and bounds as well, soaring from just over three hundred points to over four hundred. He was not far from the Spirit Sea Realm now!
His physical strength had undergone an even more dramatic qualitative leap. With a swing of one arm, he could exert five thousand jin of force, nearly twice as much as when he had first arrived at the Body Sect.
But what concerned Xiao Cheng most was something else.
Over the past few days, he had constantly sensed something stirring deep within his body, as though a sleeping beast was about to awaken.
The feeling was strange. It was neither a sign of a Soul Power breakthrough nor a precursor to Martial Soul Evolution, but a deeper, more primal stirring.
"Could my Body Martial Soul be undergoing its Second Awakening?" Xiao Cheng had guessed, but quickly dismissed the thought. The Second Awakening of the Body Martial Soul could only be triggered once the Martial Soul had developed to a certain extent, absorbed multiple Soul Rings, and accumulated sufficient foundation. He had not even attached the first Soul Ring to his Body Martial Soul yet. How could it possibly undergo a Second Awakening?
With that question in mind, he sought out Mu Huang and Han Tianyi.
"Grandfather, Grandpa Han, lately I've always felt like something inside my body is about to awaken, but I can't tell what it is," Xiao Cheng honestly described his feelings.
Mu Huang frowned slightly at those words and placed a hand on Xiao Cheng's shoulder. A gentle stream of Soul Power entered Xiao Cheng's body as he carefully examined him.
"It isn't the Second Awakening of the Body Martial Soul," Mu Huang said with certainty. "The Second Awakening of the Body Martial Soul requires the Martial Soul to grow to a certain level, absorb multiple Soul Rings, and build up enough foundation before it can be triggered. Your Body Martial Soul has not even attached its first Soul Ring. It cannot possibly undergo a Second Awakening."
"But..." Mu Huang withdrew his hand, confusion appearing on his face. "Your physical condition is excellent. Your blood and qi are abundant, your meridians are clear, and there are no abnormalities whatsoever. Yet I can indeed sense a latent power gestating within your body. I simply cannot determine what it is yet."
Han Tianyi stepped forward and examined him as well, then shook his head. "I can't see through it either. But since you feel something awakening, it means your body truly is undergoing some sort of change. Rather than letting it slowly brew, we might as well add fuel to the fire and make it awaken completely."
"Add fuel to the fire?" Xiao Cheng was puzzled.
"That's right." Han Tianyi smiled faintly, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes. "Our Body Sect possesses a secret method called Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement. As the name suggests, it uses heavenly treasures of ice and fire attributes to temper the body and stimulate its potential through the extreme alternation of cold and heat.
Twenty thousand years ago, Sea God Tang San used Fiery Apricot Delicate Sparse and the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass to achieve true Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, laying the foundation for his path to godhood. This secret method was developed based on that legend."
Mu Huang nodded and added, "We may not possess divine treasures like immortal herbs, but the Body Sect has accumulated some spiritual materials with both ice and fire attributes over the years. Their effects cannot compare to true Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, but they should be enough for your current condition."
Xiao Cheng's eyes lit up. "Then what do I need to do?"
"Very simple." Mu Huang pointed toward the back mountain. "We'll prepare a large cauldron and place spiritual materials of both ice and fire attributes inside. Then you will temper yourself within it. If you endure it, the power within you will awaken completely. If you can't..."
He paused, a meaningful smile curling at the corner of his mouth. "Then we can only fish you out. But at that point, you'll have to start all over again."
Three days later, everything was ready.
At the center of an open area on the back mountain stood an enormous bronze cauldron. It was three meters tall and two meters wide, its entire surface carved with intricate runes that gave off an ancient, weighty aura.
The cauldron was a high-grade Soul Tool. It required no fuel; as long as it was supplied with Soul Power, it could generate blazing flames and heat its body until it glowed red.
The cauldron was filled more than halfway with liquid. It displayed a strange dual coloration—its left half was a blazing crimson, radiating scorching heat as bubbles burbled across the surface; its right half was an icy blue, emanating bone-piercing cold as a thin layer of ice crystals formed atop it.
Red and blue met within the cauldron, yet remained clearly separated, creating a strange scene resembling a taiji diagram.
"This is Ice-Fire Spirit Liquid brewed from more than a dozen spiritual materials, including Red Flame Fruit, Ice Crystal Fruit, Mystic Ice Grass, Fire Spirit Ganoderma, and Jade Marrow Grass." Standing beside the cauldron, Mu Huang spoke solemnly. "Every one of these materials is over a hundred years old, and there are quite a few thousand-year spiritual materials among them. Their medicinal potency is exceedingly tyrannical. Once you enter, you will suffer the torment of two extreme powers, ice and fire. That pain is not something an ordinary person can endure."
He looked at Xiao Cheng, concern in his eyes. "Cheng'er, it isn't too late to regret this. We can use a gentler method to stimulate the power inside you. It will be slower, but safer."
"No, Grandfather." Xiao Cheng shook his head, his gaze resolute. "I'm ready. If it is an awakening, then let it come more fiercely."
He removed his outer clothes, leaving only a pair of shorts. After taking a deep breath, he leaped into the enormous bronze cauldron!
Splash!
Water sprayed everywhere.
The instant Xiao Cheng landed in the cauldron, he felt two completely opposing extreme powers crash into him simultaneously!
The fiery spirit liquid on the left was scorching like magma, as if it would burn his skin to ash; the icy spirit liquid on the right was cold as millennia-old black ice, as if it would freeze his blood solid. The two powers violently clashed inside him, as though they would tear his body in half!
"Urgh—!"
Xiao Cheng could not help letting out a pained groan. Half his body turned blood-red, while the other half went pale with frost. The two colors intertwined and battled across his body, creating a bizarre sight.
Xiao Cheng clenched his teeth and endured the heart-rending pain as he began circulating the Dragon Transformation Sutra.
True Dragon Qi flowed slowly through his meridians, guiding the two extreme powers along a specific route through his body. Every circulation felt like a dull blade scraping through his meridians, causing unbearable pain.
Yet he did not stop. Again and again, he circulated the technique, gradually allowing the ice and fire powers to merge into his flesh, muscles, bones, and organs.
As time passed, the Ice-Fire Spirit Liquid within the cauldron began to change.
The crimson fiery spirit liquid gradually dimmed, while the icy-blue spirit liquid began to melt away. The medicinal power contained within the spirit liquid was being absorbed bit by bit by Xiao Cheng's body.
Xiao Cheng's body was also undergoing astonishing changes.
Fine lines began appearing across his skin. They were interwoven red and blue, like some ancient runes.
His bones crackled, and his muscles continuously swelled, contracted, and reshaped themselves. Tempered by the ice and fire powers, his internal organs became tougher and stronger.
It was a transformation akin to shedding one's mortal form.
No one knew how much time passed—perhaps an hour, perhaps an entire day. The Ice-Fire Spirit Liquid within the cauldron had dimmed considerably, with most of its medicinal power completely absorbed by Xiao Cheng.
Xiao Cheng slowly opened his eyes.
It seemed as though flames burned within his eyes, while ice crystallized there as well. But the strange phenomenon quickly faded, returning his gaze to its usual clarity.
"How do you feel?" Mu Huang and Han Tianyi hurried forward and asked.
Xiao Cheng leaped from the cauldron and stretched his body. Feeling the surging power within him, so abundant it seemed ready to overflow, he broke into a radiant smile. "I feel... very good."
Just then—
Buzz!
A strange fluctuation suddenly erupted from Xiao Cheng's body!
A Purple-Gold Mark abruptly appeared on his forehead! The mark formed a complex geometric pattern and radiated an ancient, mysterious aura, as though it contained some supreme law.
This was the first time Xiao Cheng had sensed the existence of the Purple-Gold Mark while fully conscious!
He could feel that the mark was like a part of his soul, closely connected to him. It was like a key that had opened a door to an unknown world.
"This..." Mu Huang's pupils contracted sharply. He could feel that the power contained within the Purple-Gold Mark made even him sense a trace of danger!
Han Tianyi's expression also turned grave. His mental power was the sharpest, and he could clearly sense that the Purple-Gold Mark was connected to a power far beyond the limits of their understanding!
The next moment—
Roar—!!!
An earth-shaking tiger's roar rang out behind Xiao Cheng!
A gigantic black tiger phantom appeared out of thin air behind him!
The black tiger was pitch-black from head to toe, with a pair of fallen-looking black wings on its back. Its tail was not an ordinary tiger tail, but an Evil God Hook formed from countless segments of bone, resembling a scorpion's tail! Its eyes were dark gold, radiating an overbearing aura that looked down upon all beneath heaven, like a king reigning over all living things!
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger!
A legendary god-level soul beast with divine bloodline, an existence as taboo as it was terrifying!
Though it was only a phantom, the pressure it exuded seemed to freeze the very air across the entire back mountain! The surrounding trees trembled beneath that pressure, and even the scattered stones on the ground floated into the air on their own!
"This... this is..." Mu Huang sucked in a breath of cold air. With his knowledge, he naturally recognized the legendary ferocious beast. "The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger?! Cheng'er, how did you awaken the power of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger?!"
Xiao Cheng was equally shocked and delighted. He could feel that his Body Martial Soul had automatically gained its first Soul Ring—a Purple-Gold Soul Ring that emitted the same aura as the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger phantom!
It was the first Soul Ring of his Body Martial Soul, formed from the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's power!
And the source of everything was the Purple-Gold Mark on his forehead!
Xiao Cheng's consciousness sank into the Purple-Gold Mark, and a flood of information surged into his mind like a tide.
He understood.
Back in the Spirit Ascension Platform, the Purple-Gold Mark had devoured the Dark Demon Scorpion Tiger and returned the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger bloodline inside it to its origin, extracting the purest Evil God Bloodline and storing it within the mark. Today, under the stimulation of Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, that power had finally awakened completely and become the first Soul Ring of his Body Martial Soul!
So that was it... Xiao Cheng suddenly realized. That Dark Demon Scorpion Tiger wasn't simply erased after being devoured by the Purple-Gold Mark. It was transformed into this Soul Ring and had been lying dormant within my body all along. Only today, after being stimulated by Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, did it finally awaken completely!
With the appearance of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger phantom, Xiao Cheng's Soul Power broke through once more, reaching level 25.
His mental power also touched the threshold of the Spirit Sea Realm at that moment. If measured by a mental power tester now, it might reach 499 points.
He could feel that his mental power had become purer and stronger. Most importantly, under the enhancement of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger Soul Ring, his physical strength surged once again!
With a swing of one arm, he possessed a full eight thousand jin of force!
Eight thousand jin! What kind of concept was that? Even an ordinary assault-type Soul King's full-force attack without using a soul skill would be no more powerful than this! Yet he was only a level 25 Soul Grandmaster!
"So... so strong..." Xiao Cheng clenched his fist, feeling the power inside him that seemed ready to burst forth. His heart was filled with excitement and shock.
"Good boy..." Mu Huang stepped forward and patted Xiao Cheng's shoulder, his eyes full of gratification and pride. "You truly did not disappoint your grandfather. But for now, do not speak of this matter to anyone else. The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger does not have the best reputation, and it could easily draw unnecessary trouble."
"I understand." Xiao Cheng nodded.
Xiao Cheng grinned, revealing a row of white teeth. "Thank you, Grandfather! Without your Ice-Fire Golden Body Refinement, I might not know how long I would have had to wait before this power awakened!"
"This is all your own fortune." Mu Huang shook his head. "I merely added some fuel to the fire."
Han Tianyi also stepped forward, carefully studying the Purple-Gold Mark on Xiao Cheng's forehead. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "This mark... its origin is mysterious. Cheng'er, you must hide it well. Do not let it be exposed before others."
"I understand, Grandpa Han." Xiao Cheng nodded solemnly.
Xiao Cheng had always known that he carried a great secret. And now, that secret had finally opened a small corner of itself to him.
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