Chapter 647: Fortune or Misfortune
Although it was supposed to be quick, everyone had waited for a full half hour or so.
The three Spirit Seeds had not risen into the canopy, but remained on the ground, occasionally emitting a green radiance, making everyone both nervous and excited.
Finally, when the green radiance subsided, and the Spirit Seeds returned to their original state, the three lids suddenly popped open.
Ling Feng leapt out with a bound and immediately asked, "Giant Spirit Root, what’s the result?"
"Innate spiritual body," it replied.
"What does that mean?"
Ling Feng and everyone else didn’t understand, so he immediately asked.
"Your body has evolved into a spiritual body; you don’t need a Dantian, you yourself are the Dantian," said the Giant Spirit Root.
"Uh..."
Ling Feng still didn’t understand and scratched his head, "I mean, can you speak in plain language? I don’t get it."
The Giant Spirit Root was silent for a moment, as if considering its words, and then said, "Human cultivation requires absorbing Spiritual Energy from nature into the body, entering the Dantian for refinement, and transforming it into controllable Spiritual Power."
"Now, your Dantian has dissolved, and every minute tissue in your body is equivalent to a Dantian."
Ling Feng: "..."
Surprise!
Sheer astonishment!
The minute tissues that Giant Spirit Root was referring to are what humans mean by cells!
That means that every cell in Ling Feng’s body functions like a Dantian, which is terrifying, isn’t it?
If someone else’s Dantian is destroyed, their realm would be completely destroyed, turning them into a cripple, not to mention there’s a high chance of direct death!
But with Ling Feng’s current state, as long as one cell is alive, he can’t die!
To verify his own idea, Ling Feng quickly posed this question to the Giant Spirit Root.
However, the Giant Spirit Root answered, "Indeed, this is feasible, but you have not yet reached that realm!"
Ling Feng, who was feeling happy, was immediately taken aback by this answer and hastily asked, "Why?"
"With the Dantian dissolved, you now have to start from scratch, beginning from the early stage of Qi Strength, only after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm will you gradually refine each minute tissue in your body and possess an immortal body!"
"Can you tell me what the stages are?" Ling Feng continued to ask.
"The Qi Strength Realm; after breaking through, one can enter the Qi Refinement Realm, followed by the Core Formation Stage, the Nascent Soul Stage, and the Divinity Transformation Stage. For normal humans, unless one is an exceptional genius, it’s very difficult to reach the Divine Transformation Realm. But you..."
Pausing for a moment, the Giant Spirit Root then continued, "The path you need to take will be even longer, because you need to refine every minute tissue in your body!"
The others looked at each other and Ling Feng, somewhat bewildered, asked, "So you’re saying that while others might break through to the Qi Refinement Realm in a year, for me it would be several billion times that?"
"Roughly..."
"Because each of your tissues needs to be elevated, reaching the same realm before you can break through to the next one."
Ling Feng was dumbfounded, his eyes wide and mouth agape!
Then, stamping his foot, he exclaimed, "Damn it, doesn’t that mean I’m basically impossible to break through?"
A year is just a hypothetical scenario, in reality, hardly anyone can do as he did, breaking through to the Qi Strength Realm so swiftly from the Clear Energy stage without missing a beat!
Take Lin Huaqiang, for instance, he took at least twenty years for this process!
And once one enters the Qi Strength Realm, to advance into the Qi Refinement Realm is not something that can be achieved in just a few years!
Without any fortuitous encounters, relying solely on absorbing the spiritual energy of nature, some people might spend their entire lives and still not reach it.
Even for Ling Feng, with his exceptional talent and the assistance of high-grade spirit stones, it would still take several years at least to have a chance at touching the threshold of the Qi Refinement Realm. Now, it seems like an impossible task.
Thinking of this, Ling Feng couldn’t help feeling disheartened, like a deflated ball, completely losing his earlier excitement.
Wang Laogen and Chu Nan had long since emerged from the spirit seed, but because Ling Feng had been asking questions, neither of them had spoken.
Their complexions had changed, both beaming with a healthy glow, looking several years younger and bursting with vigor.
Seeing Ling Feng’s dejection, Wang Laogen said with a smile, "What’s the rush? Didn’t we just verify that your strength hasn’t decreased, but has actually become even more formidable than before? I don’t know what you’re anxious about!"
"Laogen is right. While this conclusion sounds a bit terrifying, it doesn’t mean there’s no hope. On the contrary, I think it’s a good thing!" Chu Nan nodded.
Ling Feng turned to look at the two, then at the others—everyone shared the same steadfast gaze, believing this was not a setback but a great opportunity!
So he sighed and turned back to ask, "Giant Spirit Root, what should I do next?"
"Absorb spiritual energy, circulate it within your body, and enhance the strength of every tissue!"
"Alright then."
Ling Feng felt resigned, having already reached the peak of the Qi Strength Realm—only to be reverted back to square one, he was still somewhat frustrated.
Since there was no alternative, that was all he could do.
Thus, he turned back to the group and said, "If that’s the case, then let’s head back first."
"Let’s go. Tomorrow is the deadline. Perhaps those people have already arrived in the provincial city by now, we have work to do!" Zhou Yi nodded.
The group left the Fourth Layer Heaven, and seeing that Ling Feng was alright, Li Shiyun and Ling Yao, among others, did not follow them to the provincial city but stayed behind.
On the other hand, Ling Feng summoned Xun Qianqian and Joanna, along with Miao Ruoruo—who were all in the early stages of the Qi Strength Realm—from the depths of the Fourth Layer Heaven to lend a hand when the time came.
The party returned to the provincial city, and by then it was already afternoon.
Mo Lan was the logistical support for this mission; she went downstairs first to arrange rooms for Xun Qianqian and the other two, and soon the girls were chattering away in their new rooms.
Ling Feng stayed with Lin Huaqiang and the two elders in Wang Laogen’s room, reviewing the list of registrants on the screen.
Many had come to participate; the number of registrants had already exceeded forty.
The majority of these people were using pseudonyms, and it was clear that nearly all of them were proxies; the actual buyers were not showing themselves.
"It seems that no one is a fool; they appear to have sensed something!" Ling Feng said with a smile.
"To reach the Hua Energy Realm, one naturally develops their own power base. If they’re still going it alone, it’s easy to suffer losses!" Wang Laogen nodded.
Ling Feng gave him a look, "What do you mean? That seems like you’re speaking to me."
"You? Don’t flatter yourself. Are you still on your own now? In Huaxia, is there anyone whose power matches yours?" Wang Laogen glanced at him sideways.
"Fair point, so I’ll forgive you!"
Ling Feng chuckled, watching Wang Laogen roll his eyes, but then he suddenly remembered something and said immediately, "Laogen, I think I may have figured out a way to identify those people from the other worlds!"