Chapter 329 - Feng’s Breakthrough
Another day rapidly passed by.
After returning from his intense training around his new element, Theo was faced with fortunate news.
Lucienne had successfully broken through as well, bringing the team up to four gold cores now.
It was a massive improvement compared to when they had first entered the ruin.
And fortunately, her breakthrough had been far less destructive than Owen’s.
The following morning, everyone woke up more spirited than ever before.
Everyone except Theo, that is.
In fact, he’d long disappeared from the cave, standing several miles away in the desert.
’’So?’’ he asked, arms crossed. ’’Did you find anything?’’
Feng floated quietly in front of him.
Its emerald eyes narrowed slightly as a gentle breeze flowed around its body.
’’It’s not nothing,’’ it replied quietly.
Theo raised an eyebrow.
’’What kind of vague answer is that?’’ he asked immediately.
The little unicorn began turning in the air.
Only after it floated upside down did it finally open its mouth.
’’I examined him closely last night and confirmed there was something off,’’ it said. ’’But I can’t sense the specifics since I’m just too weak right now.’’
Theo’s expression grew more serious.
There were two things that immediately shot through his mind.
’There is something off,’ he thought, clenching his fist. ’Still doesn’t have to be bad... but the odds it is have increased.’
Then there was the second part, and probably the most important part.
Feng still hadn’t broken through to the gold core stage.
’I’ve never really given him the time and space to do that, huh,’ he thought. ’We should finish that as soon as possible...’
Having Feng at a higher level before getting teleported would significantly improve their odds of surviving once more.
Without another thought, Theo glanced up.
’’So,’’ he started swiftly. ’’How far are you from breaking through?’’
Feng stopped spinning.
For a moment, it simply stared at him.
’’That’s the wrong question,’’ it replied. ’’It should be, ’Am I strong enough to handle your breakthrough?’’’
Theo gave it a deadpan look.
’’Really?’’ he asked. ’’We’re doing things like this now?’’
The little unicorn shrugged lightly.
’’To answer your question,’’ it continued. ’’You are strong enough to handle my next stage now. You have been for a day or two now.’’
For a moment, silence fell between them.
Then Theo raised both his hands.
’’What the hell have you been waiting for then?’’ he asked, infuriated.
Feng blinked innocently.
’’I didn’t want to interrupt your incredibly important training,’’ it replied.
Theo’s expression immediately flattened.
Feng casually looked away, completely unbothered.
’’Besides, your core had barely settled after your own breakthrough. I didn’t think causing another massive ruckus a day later would be particularly wise.’’
Theo just stared at it for several seconds.
Dragging a hand through his hair, he couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh.
’’You could’ve at least told me,’’ he muttered quietly.
’’I was planning to do so today... or tomorrow,’’ Feng replied. ’’Don’t worry too much.’’
Theo’s eyebrow twitched.
’’I’m really going to need to limit the time you can spend with Owen and Jim,’’ he mumbled, shaking his head.
Feng’s eyes narrowed slightly.
But it remained silent.
After a few quiet seconds, Theo shook his head and snapped back into it.
’’If I’m strong enough,’’ he said. ’’Do you want to break through right here and now?’’
The little unicorn grew more serious too.
’’That’d be for the best,’’ it replied. ’’All I need are a few wind cores to fuel mana into me externally.’’
Theo glanced at it in surprise for a moment.
After a moment, he nodded.
’’If that’s all,’’ he said, raising his hand. ’’That’s easy enough.’’
His spatial ring lit up for a split second.
A moment later, several large mana cores appeared on the ground ahead of him.
Feng’s gaze immediately locked onto them.
’’Good,’’ it said. ’’Then prepare yourself for some mana feedback.’’
Theo raised an eyebrow.
’So it’s going to be like last time,’ he thought. ’No wonder he waited to tell me then.’
It seemed like his core was about to absorb a ton of mana once more.
Before he could even say anything, Feng’s body lit up in front of him.
Its body slowly changed back into that of a massive, majestic wind kirin.
As its beautiful emerald mane fluttered in the winds, Feng slowly turned back to look at Theo.
’’Are you ready?’’ it asked.
Theo took a few steps back, allowing him to see Feng’s full form.
Then he sat down on the ground with a determined expression on his face.
’’Go for it.’’
Feng closed its eyes right away.
WHOOSH!
Emerald winds began surrounding its body immediately.
Sand was swept up into the air everywhere as the winds grew harsher.
One by one, the wind cores began floating up into the air beside Feng.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
They shattered one after another.
Pure wind mana flowed out of them, immediately rushing towards Feng.
’Damn,’ Theo thought, narrowing his eyes.
Before he could think any further, a familiar green orb materialized above the wind kirin’s head.
Dense mana immediately began pressing down on him.
’It’s that orb,’ he thought, nearly being flattened on the ground. ’It condensed all its mana into that before!’
Finally, the real breakthrough started.
Feng’s body slowly started growing larger as the emerald glow around it intensified.
The winds surrounding it grew stronger with every passing second.
Theo gritted his teeth as the pressure continued increasing.
Then, something changed.
THUMP!
The circle on his heart lit up.
Before he could react, a stream of pure mana rushed out from it.
’There it is!’
Theo immediately closed his eyes and began guiding the mana to his core.
At the same time, the orb above Feng began fading away.
’This is strange...’ it thought, feeling the mana transform its body. ’I’ve only just hit my limit.’
Compared to its old body, this breakthrough... was definitely better.
But why?
Feng quickly got its answer.
THUMP!
The circle on its own heart lit up.
Streams of black mana rushed into its body, ravaging everything they passed.
’What?!’
Feng stared down at itself in disbelief.
’His mana...’ it thought. ’It’s strengthening me?’