Then the Slug Sage told Zhou Cheng how to train in Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode.
"No one here will teach you. You can only rely on yourself!"
"I'll leave for now. Once you've learned it, I'll appear again."
Then the slug on Zhou Cheng's shoulder jumped down.
The Slug Sage's consciousness was no longer inside that slug.
Zhou Cheng looked around and found a spot with fewer slugs.
He recalled the training method the Slug Sage had taught him.
The different Sage Modes should have been forms of Senjutsu with a common origin.
Their underlying principles were all the same.
They all involved absorbing natural energy and balancing it with the two energies within the body.
That produced senjutsu chakra.
The only difference lay in the speed and direction in which senjutsu chakra circulated through the body.
They used different primary chakra pathways.
With his experience training at Mount Myōboku, Zhou Cheng made smooth progress learning Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode.
Zhou Cheng opened his eyes again.
Mysterious markings had already appeared on his face.
They resembled the markings that appeared on Hashirama Senju's face when he entered Sage Mode.
There was a small circle between his eyebrows, with a dot inside it.
The markings on his face were not exactly the same as Hashirama Senju's.
Zhou Cheng carefully assessed how he felt.
It did not feel much different from Mount Myōboku's Sage Mode, which enhanced his abilities across the board.
Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode primarily enhanced his ability to recover.
That was an ability neither Mount Myōboku's nor Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode possessed.
Hashirama Senju's ability to recover had been equally astonishing.
It was impossible to tell whether that had been due to his Sage Body or his Sage Mode.
But was that all?
*Something was wrong. It felt like