CHAPTER 10: THE MYSTERIOUS STONE TABLET: ANOTHER MUTATION

Once the roots could no longer dig in any deeper, the Green Sovereign Divine Vines began to extend upward, sprouting a thin branch from which pure spirit qi continuously dripped.

Lu Chen observed the Green Sovereign Divine Vines. Compared to before, the vines had completely changed in appearance. They now resembled a tree far more than vines. Calling it the Green Sovereign Divine Tree felt far more appropriate.

The Green Sovereign Divine Tree gradually stopped evolving. The twin fish leapt and danced above the sea of qi, spitting spirit qi into the circular pit below. The Yin-Yang Core at the base of the Green Sovereign Divine Tree slowly absorbed the spirit qi and began to rotate. Eventually, it transformed into a Taiji Diagram. The two fish dove in and started swimming within it.

Staring at the red-and-blue Taiji Diagram beneath the Green Sovereign Divine Tree, Lu Chen felt as though he were looking at a magnified version of the Twin-Fish Medallion.

The sea of qi within the Heavenly Pool slowly settled down. The twin fish resumed swimming freely, while the Green Sovereign Divine Tree continued to absorb spirit qi and drip spirit liquid. Although everything appeared calm and quiet, Lu Chen could clearly sense the joy emanating from the Green Sovereign Divine Tree and the twin fish. Their spiritual intelligence had grown more pronounced.

After withdrawing his gaze, Lu Chen shared his feelings with Feng Tiancheng. He felt as if he had stumbled upon an incredible opportunity.

Feng Tiancheng told him, "The path of cultivation is filled with strange and wondrous occurrences. What is meant to happen will come eventually. Don't overthink it. What matters most is focusing on what's right in front of you."

However, in his heart, Feng Tiancheng was already cursing wildly. He had lived for tens of thousands of years and witnessed countless miracles. He knew that sometimes a single stroke of luck was all that was needed to turn someone ordinary into a great cultivator. And yet, in just a few days, Lu Chen had run into so many lucky opportunities. If not for the need to maintain the dignity that was expected from someone of his status, Feng Tiancheng would've already cursed out loud.

That said, he carefully recalled the scene from earlier. Lately, he had been witnessing more and more events that defied common logic. In the cultivation world, anything was possible, but when such things happened too frequently, it was hard not to feel that something was amiss.

An old saying came to his mind, "In the cultivation of heaven and earth, a golden age arrives every three thousand years, while a great upheaval comes every nine thousand."

By that count, the nine-thousand-year mark was fast approaching. It seemed that heaven and earth were on the verge of another monumental change, perhaps the greatest one yet. For now, all they could do was take things one step at a time.

Lu Chen gathered the remaining bones and meat of the Iron-Armored Rhino, storing them away to exchange for spirit stones later.

As night gradually fell, Feng Tiancheng returned to the space within the Twin-Fish Medallion to rest. Lu Chen found a nearby cave, started a fire, and began roasting the rhino meat. While resting, he reflected on his shortcomings during the battle with the Iron-Armored Rhino and considered how he could improve his use of spirit qi. It had been his first time hunting a demonic beast, and the results were promising.

His coordination with martial techniques was improving, his control over spirit qi had become more refined, and he had even gained the Green Sovereign Divine Tree as an offensive ability. Previously, he could barely manage a single use of Heaven-Splitting Six Yang Palms, but now he felt confident he could use it at least four times. With the Golden Snake Nine Variations Art added in, he believed his combat power had reached a new level.

Lu Chen reached out to summon the Green Sovereign Divine Tree. A passage opened before him, and several tentacle-like branches extended outward. Flames and frost clung to the vines as they hovered gently around him. One particularly thick branch curled up beside him, rubbing affectionately against his face.

He could clearly feel the vines' closeness and felt that controlling the Green Sovereign Divine Tree would be easier now.

Lu Chen turned his gaze to a large boulder ahead. He only had to think about attacking for an instant, and as soon as the thought formed, a group of vines lashed out, shattering the boulder to dust. They then returned to him, brushing lightly against him as if seeking praise.

He continued experimenting on the surrounding terrain and trees, carefully controlling the vines to stop them from drawing out any life force. Everything worked exactly just as he intended.

Lu Chen also noticed that ever since the Green Sovereign Divine Tree had taken root in his Heavenly Pool and started absorbing spirit qi, the qi within his body had grown noticeably purer. It had even begun to condense from spirit qi into spirit liquid. Consequently, the Green Sovereign Divine Tree had grown significantly more powerful, and it now cost him almost no spirit qi to use it without any added elemental attributes.

Lu Chen withdrew the vines and began eating the roasted rhino meat. What he had gained from this day made him truly understand how vital life-and-death combat was to a cultivator. Realizing that, he decided to set himself a goal of hunting one thousand demonic beasts within a month to further sharpen his control and improve the coordination of his martial techniques.

***

Lu Chen used the Star-Serpent Cloud Concealment technique to dart through the forest in search of demonic beasts. Just today alone, he had already encountered forty, but they were all low-level creatures that had only recently stepped into the Qi Absorption Realm. None of them had even formed proper demon cores. The Green Sovereign Divine Tree killed them instantly with its vines.

Just then, a tiger's roar echoed in the distance. A flock of birds scattered, and low-level demonic beasts fled in panic.

Lu Chen immediately recognized the signs as the arrival of a demon king. It was the perfect chance to temper himself, and he swiftly rushed toward the sound.

A giant tiger could be seen behind a massive tree, its jaws clamped around a wild boar's hind leg as it thrashed it violently. The wild boar refused to yield, swinging its tusks back at the tiger with all its strength.

Feng Tiancheng's voice rang out, "That's a Skyquake Tiger, a demonic beast at the eighth level of the Qi Absorption Realm. It's considered one of the strongest in this realm, known for its speed and power.

"The other one is a Golden-Boned Tusk Boar that has just reached the seventh level of the Qi Absorption Realm. Its defense is formidable, and its tusks are incredibly powerful, but with a full stage difference in cultivation, the outcome is already clear. The Golden-Boned Tusk Boar will definitely lose within fifty moves."

Lu Chen watched as the two beasts tore into each other. The Golden-Boned Tusk Boar's defenses were formidable, but the Skyquake Tiger had already mauled its hind leg.

As the battle progressed, one of the boar's tusks snapped, and the tiger inflicted deep wounds across its belly with its claws. The tiger wasn't unscathed either, though. One of its eyes had been gouged out, and several deep gashes marked its abdomen. Its movements had noticeably slowed.

Just as Feng Tiancheng had said, that one-level gap was starting to show. The Skyquake Tiger clearly held the upper hand and was closing in on victory.

The Golden-Boned Tusk Boar sensed that the battle was no longer in its favor. It kept its eyes fixed on the Skyquake Tiger, anxiously pawing at the ground before glancing around with growing unease. Lu Chen could tell that it was getting ready to flee.

Both beasts are badly wounded. This is the perfect moment to strike. If not now, when? Thinking that, Lu Chen prepared to charge forward.

Just as the Golden-Boned Tusk Boar lunged at the Skyquake Tiger, feinting an attack as it prepared to flee, Lu Chen seized the moment. He unleashed Silver Snake Emerges From Its Lair directly at the Skyquake Tiger, and simultaneously, he summoned the Green Sovereign Divine Tree to entangle and attack the Tusk Boar with its vines.

He knew the vines couldn't bring the tiger down instantly, but as long as they could stall it for a short while, that would be enough for him to finish off the boar.

Under the cover of Star-Serpent Cloud Concealment, Lu Chen appeared above the boar's head and slammed a palm down onto it.

The Golden-Boned Tusk Boar staggered from the blow, glaring at Lu Chen as if to say: You puny human, how dare you get in my way?

However, it was too badly injured to retaliate. All it wanted now was to escape.

Lu Chen saw through the boar's intent and pressed the attack, weaving in and out as he landed blow after blow. Wounds split open across its body, and as more blood spilled, its strength rapidly waned. Lu Chen quickly formed a hand seal and unleashed the Heaven-Splitting Six Yang Palms, slamming the attack into the boar's belly. With a sickening crunch, its abdomen burst open.

With that, the level-seven Qi-Absorption Realm Golden-Boned Tusk Boar was slain.

Lu Chen didn't pause. He immediately turned and flashed toward the Skyquake Tiger. Entangled in the Divine Tree's vines, the tiger was already drained and struggling. Nevertheless, it was a beast at the eighth level of the Qi Absorption Realm; it wasn't about to go down so easily.

Lu Chen used Silver Snake Emerges From Its Lair once again, this time to distract the tiger. He then leapt onto its head with Star-Serpent Cloud Concealment and punched down at its remaining eye.

With a sickening pop, the tiger's eye burst.

Blinded and enraged, the Skyquake Tiger flung Lu Chen off and let out a deafening roar. Now unable to see or sense direction properly, the threat it posed to him had dropped significantly. Lu Chen immediately coordinated with the divine tree's vines, launching attacks from both flanks.

The relentless assault of Star-Serpent Cloud Concealment, Silver Snake Emerges From Its Lair, and the vines' strikes gradually wore the tiger down, slowing its counterattacks.

Lu Chen kept a close eye on the beast and sent out another Silver Snake Emerges From Its Lair, releasing two phantom strikes to probe its reaction. Despite having lost both eyes, the Skyquake Tiger suddenly lunged forward, shredding the illusions to pieces.

Cold sweat beaded on Lu Chen's back. What a cunning beast. If I'd charged in just now, I'd be the one in pieces.

No longer daring to take any risks, he decided to keep a steady rhythm instead and continue to wear the beast down slowly. At last, with one final strike of Heaven-Splitting Six Yang Palms, the level-eight Qi Absorption Realm Skyquake Tiger let out a dying roar and crashed to the ground, dead.

Drained of strength, Lu Chen collapsed on the ground. He directed the vines to absorb the remaining life energy from both the Skyquake Tiger and the Golden-Boned Tusk Boar to replenish himself. Just then, a crisp crack sounded from deep within his body. After enduring two brutal battles, Lu Chen had broken through to the sixth level of the Qi Absorption Realm.

This marked Lu Chen's first breakthrough since leaving the Green Emperor's secret realm. He clenched his fists, feeling the surge of power coursing through him. When he had first stepped into the Qi Absorption Realm, his physical strength had already reached the level of perfect mastery for that stage.

Since then, through repeated body refinement and a series of fateful encounters, every increase in his cultivation had added roughly a thousand jin to his strength. By now, each of his punches likely carried the force of fifteen thousand jin.

Once recovered, Lu Chen began clearing the battlefield. He swiftly dismembered the two beasts, storing their hides, flesh, bones, and other materials into the space within the Twin-Fish Medallion. As a reward, he fed both demon cores to the Green Sovereign Divine Tree. In response, the Divine Tree extended a vine and affectionately nuzzled his face.

Just as Lu Chen sat down to rest, one of the vines suddenly dragged over a stone tablet fragment. Lu Chen picked it up. The characters on the fragment were foreign to him, but he felt something in his blood resonating with it. The words "Cloud Register of Seven Seals" burned into his mind.

After studying the tablet fragment more closely, he was able to recognise the words "Green Sovereign." His pupils dilated in surprise, and he quickly summoned Feng Tiancheng.