Free Web NovelChapter 212: Chapter 205: Physical Body Advancement
Ian sat cross-legged in the center of the meditation chamber, his eyes tightly shut.
Deep within his Sea of Spirit, the silver-white core that had absorbed the residual crystal from the Soul Weaving Civilization was emitting a soft glow.
For the past two months, he had been meticulously, drop by drop, integrating the precipitated Crystalized Origin within it into his own Spiritual Power.
Now, he had reached the final, critical moment.
HUMMM!
Within his Sea of Spirit, the Spiritual Power that was once like the Silver Moon began to churn violently.
A pale golden light spread out from the core, like a drop of golden ink in clear water, swiftly dyeing the entire space of his consciousness.
The light grew brighter and brighter.
The originally liquefied Spiritual Power, under the pull of the Crystalized Origin, began to contract and condense inwardly.
Ian could clearly "see" tiny, shimmering ice crystals beginning to form at the edges of his Sea of Spirit.
They were like the frost flowers that form on a window on a winter morning—small and fragile, yet incredibly real.
The first flake.
The second.
The third...
More and more ice crystals appeared, floating in the pale golden mist of his Spiritual Power. They rotated slowly, making an imperceptible CRACKLE sound when they collided.
It was a sign that his Spiritual Power was undergoing a qualitative change.
Ian’s breathing became long and deep.
He guided the power of the Crystalized Origin, washing over every corner of his Sea of Spirit again and again.
With each wash, the ice crystals multiplied and his Spiritual Power grew more refined.
The pale golden light grew richer, almost dyeing his entire Sea of Spirit pure gold.
An unknown amount of time passed.
The last trace of the Crystalized Origin was fully integrated.
Ian’s eyes snapped open.
Deep within his pupils, a minuscule glint of gold flashed past, as fast as a trick of the eye, yet undeniably real.
He slowly exhaled.
His breath was so condensed it was almost tangible, forming a thin, pale golden line in the air that extended for three meters before slowly dissipating.
’Realm at 74%...’
Ian muttered to himself, swiping a finger lightly through the air.
An invisible thread, shimmering with a faint golden light, extended from his fingertip.
The thread was as fine as a strand of hair, yet it possessed a cold, hard quality, as if it could cut through anything.
Crystal Silk Thread.
Compared to back in the Underground Palace, the thread was now more condensed, its color deeper.
’Its power... at least three times stronger.’
Ian could feel that, if he wished, this thread could easily pierce the Shield of a Level One Liquidation Wizard.
It could even directly annihilate their Soul.
’I’m not far... from the Level One Limit.’
For Level Two Crystalization, he still needed to crystalize all his Spiritual Power and fuse it into a glaze-like texture to truly enter Level Two.
He stood up and stretched his limbs.
An unprecedented sense of Power filled his body, and the ice crystals in his Sea of Spirit rotated slowly.
Each rotation tempered his Spiritual Power.
’Time for the next step.’
Ian walked out of the meditation chamber and went to the next room.
He pushed the door open. A silver-gray mist of Energy filled the room, where the small silver tree stood quietly in the center of an array, its branches and leaves spread out.
The Five Fruits were huddled by the tree’s roots, entangled in silver threads, sleeping soundly.
Lucy’s leaves twitched. She seemed to sense Ian’s arrival and groggily "looked up."
"Great Demon King... what are you doing here..."
The other four fruits were also woken up. Vivian yawned, Amy and Rice Grain shrank back behind the roots, while Benny simply rolled over and went back to sleep.
Ian crouched down and looked at them.
"Do you remember our agreement?"
All Five Fruits stiffened at once.
Lucy’s leaves shot straight up. "What... What are you going to do?!"
"I need your help now," Ian said calmly. "This is what we agreed on."
"WAAAH!"
Lucy burst into tears.
"Liar! You big liar! You said you’d take good care of us! Now you’re going to eat us!"
Vivian started crying too. "No... Don’t... It’ll hurt..."
Amy and Rice Grain huddled together, trembling.
Benny rolled directly behind the small tree and curled into a ball.
Ian felt a headache coming on. "I’m not going to eat you. Stop crying."
The branches and leaves of the small silver tree swayed gently, transmitting a clear mental wave.
"Children, do not be afraid. He doesn’t mean to harm you; he needs help."
The Five Fruits paused in unison. Lucy raised her leaves and asked in a tiny voice, "Mama... he’s not going to eat us?"
"It’s not ’eating,’ it’s ’sharing.’ He brought you away from the collapsing Underground Palace and gave you a safe home and nourishment."
The tree’s consciousness was gentle yet firm.
"Now, his Cultivation has reached a critical stage. He needs the Life Energy you’ve accumulated—a part that you don’t need for now and can naturally regenerate."
"Like... like sharing extra candy with a friend, right?" Vivian asked in a small voice.
"Correct. It won’t harm your core. It’s just a matter of guiding the Energy out. With proper rest afterward, it will slowly grow back."
The Five Fruits "looked" at each other. Their silver threads brushed together gently, as if they were whispering among themselves.
A few seconds later, Lucy was the first to roll forward, saying in a small voice:
"O-Okay, then. After all, he did save us and Mama..."
"I agree too!" Vivian followed, rolling out. "But... be gentle, okay?"
Amy, Rice Grain, and Benny also moved over slowly. They were still a little nervous, but they were no longer afraid.
Ian looked at them, a hint of warmth in his eyes.
He sat down cross-legged and said softly, "Thank you."
The Five Fruits surrounded him, each extending countless silver threads finer than hair.
The threads were crystal clear and shimmered faintly as they slowly reached for Ian.
Lucy was the first to extend her threads. They touched the back of Ian’s hand, trembled slightly, and then attached themselves firmly.
Immediately after, the threads from Vivian, Amy, Rice Grain, and Benny also connected, landing on his arms, shoulders, and knees...
A dense net of silver threads enveloped him. A gentle, pure Energy flowed out along the threads and slowly poured into Ian’s body.
The Furnace Body Tempering Skill activated on its own, gradually absorbing and refining this essence from the ancient Alchemy Creations.
Ian could feel waves of warmth coming from deep within his flesh and blood, as if his dry meridians were being nourished by a clear spring. Every inch of his muscles and bones was quietly being strengthened.
The Energy transfer was continuous and steady. The glow of the Five Fruits gradually dimmed, and their bodies began to shrink.
Lucy suddenly cried out, "Hey! Ian, you’re absorbing too fast! Slower, slower!"
Vivian immediately chimed in, "Exactly! Ian, can’t you go any faster?"
Amy’s voice was a bit faint. "I... I feel like I’m getting lighter... Am I going to float away...?"
Rice Grain’s voice was tearful. "Waaah... Mama... the Energy is flowing so slowly..."
Benny just kept muttering, "Hungry... so hungry..."
They huddled closer together, their silver threads still intertwined, and started chattering away.
An hour later, the Energy transfer gradually stopped, and the silver threads slowly retracted.
The Five Fruits nestled limply by the small tree’s roots, their skins dull and their spirits completely drained.
Ian opened his eyes, took out the Life Essence Potion he had prepared, and carefully dripped it onto each of the fruits.
The emerald-green droplets seeped into their skins. They trembled slightly, letting out faint whimpers of satisfaction as some life gradually returned to their dull colors.
The small silver tree’s branches and leaves gently caressed the children, transmitting thoughts of praise and comfort.
Gaga poked its head in from the doorway, its small eyes blinking.
It had been peeking from outside the whole time, not daring to enter.
Seeing the Five Fruits in such a sorry state, it, for once, didn’t mock them. Instead, it flew in and landed by the roots.
"Gaga... Are you guys okay?"
Lucy raised a leaf and feebly swatted it.
"It’s all your fault... You always bully us... and now the Great Demon King is bullying us too..."
Gaga shrank its neck, uncharacteristically not talking back.
It touched Lucy with its little claw, then looked at the other four fruits.
Suddenly, it pulled out a few small pieces of Blood Essence from its feathers—snacks it had hidden away.
"Here... for you to eat..."
Lucy was stunned for a moment, and so were the other fruits.
"Gaga, you..."
"Hmph! This king just feels sorry for you! It’s not like I care about you, gaga!"
Gaga pushed the Blood Essence in front of them, then turned around and pretended to preen its feathers, but its little ears were perked straight up.
The Five Fruits "looked" at one another, and finally extended their silver threads to carefully wrap around the Blood Essence and pull it over.
Although they were still very weak, their spirits had lifted a little.
Watching this scene, the corners of Ian’s mouth lifted slightly.
He didn’t disturb them, quietly leaving the room and gently closing the door.
「Back in the meditation chamber.」
Ian sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.
Inside his body, the essence of the Five Fruits was surging wildly.
The Furnace Body Tempering Skill operated at its peak. The Jade-like Radiance under his skin almost burst forth, bathing the entire meditation chamber in a milky-white glow.
He could feel his flesh and blood undergoing Reorganization, his muscles and bones strengthening, and every cell cheering with joy.
It was a qualitative change far beyond any of his previous Cultivation sessions.
If taking Blood Essence before was like pouring water into a pool...
...then absorbing the essence of these ancient Alchemy Tree fruits was like rebuilding the very structure of the pool itself.
Deeper, wider, and stronger.
Time passed, bit by bit.
In the meditation chamber, the glow on Ian’s body grew brighter and brighter, eventually forming a jade-like cocoon that enveloped him completely.
On the cocoon’s surface, fine patterns flowed slowly, like breathing, or a heartbeat.
THUMP...
THUMP...
THUMP...
A low, powerful heartbeat echoed from within the cocoon, causing the floor of the meditation chamber to tremble slightly.
In the next room, Gaga and the Five Fruits heard the sound and all turned to "look" toward the wall.
"Ian is..." Gaga said in a low voice.
"What’s the Great Demon King doing now..." Lucy asked weakly.
"Don’t know, gaga, but it feels... very strong."
One day.
Two days.
Three days.
The patterns on the jade cocoon’s surface became clearer, and the light grew more subdued.
Until the evening of the third day.
CRACK.
A soft sound.
A crack appeared on the surface of the jade cocoon.
Immediately after, the crack spread rapidly, covering the entire cocoon like a spiderweb.
BANG!
The jade cocoon shattered, dissolving into a sky full of milky-white specks of light that slowly faded away.
Ian emerged from the specks of light.
He was bare-chested, his skin covered in a jade-like luster so faint it was almost imperceptible.
It wasn’t an external light, but a radiance emanating from deep within his flesh and blood.
His muscle lines were fluid and full of power, yet not bulky. Every inch seemed as if it had been forged with the utmost precision.
He raised his hand and slowly clenched his fist.
CRACK!
It was the sound of the very air being crushed.
His raw Power alone had reached a terrifying level.
Ian walked to a corner of the meditation chamber, where a half-man-high Black Steel Testing Stele was placed.
He had borrowed it from the Star Library specifically to test physical strength.
He took a deep breath and drew his right fist to his waist.
Then, he threw a punch.
He didn’t use any Witchcraft, nor did he channel any Energy.
Just a pure, physical punch.
His fist slammed into the Black Steel Testing Stele.
DOOOM!!!
An incredibly dull thud, like a giant bell being struck.
The floor of the meditation chamber shook violently, and the Protective Runes on the walls flickered wildly, on the verge of shattering.
On the surface of the stele, countless fine cracks spread out from the point of impact, covering the entire body of the stele like a spiderweb.
And then.
BANG!
The stele exploded, shattering into countless pieces that clattered to the floor.
Ian pulled back his fist. There wasn’t even a red mark on his knuckles.
He was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled.
’I should be able to withstand most Tier One Witchcraft now.’
This wasn’t a blind guess. It was confidence.
He could feel that his current physical strength had completely surpassed the scope of "Level One," stepping into another tier entirely.
’Next up... is the altar.’
