NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 14: Chaos Seed
Deep outside the Demon Suppression Land, in a place filled with monsters that transcend the mortal realm, Su Wanqing stood guard in front of a cave, waiting for Honghong to break through.
"Hey, is she about to break through?" A surprised voice sounded. Gu Changsheng, dressed in green, came to Su Wanqing's side.
Su Wanqing was about to salute, but Gu Changsheng waved his hand and asked, "How have things been in the past half month?"
"My little master has made very fast progress. Facing monsters of the same realm, she can already kill them in three moves." A smile appeared on Su Wanqing's face. In the past half month, she had witnessed Honghong's remarkable growth. The monsters in the Demon Suppression Land are fearless and fight fiercely. Ordinary geniuses would need dozens of rounds to deal with monsters of the same level. Initially, it took Honghong dozens of turns to deal with lower-level monsters. Now, she only needed three moves to handle those at the same level. This half-month of growth is equivalent to several years, or even ten years, for others.
Gu Changsheng was still a little dissatisfied, though he didn't blame Honghong. He blamed himself for meeting her too late.
Seeing Gu Changsheng's thoughts, Su Wanqing quickly said, "Sir, don't blame the little master. She has worked very hard these past weeks. Her achievements in just one month of practice are not much worse than the Holy Son and Holy Daughter of the Holy Lands."
Hearing this, Gu Changsheng smiled and said, "Do you think I am blaming her?"
Su Wanqing shook her head quickly. "She has only been practicing for a short time. I am very satisfied with her achievements, but it's not enough."
"Boom." As soon as Gu Changsheng finished speaking, a violent fluctuation of vitality came from the cave, attracting the surrounding monsters.
"Hmph, my disciple is making a breakthrough. How dare you come here to cause trouble?" Gu Changsheng snorted coldly, and the monsters within a ten-mile radius instantly disappeared. Su Wanqing was stunned. Although she knew Gu Changsheng was powerful, she was always shocked every time she saw him in action.
"Oh no, I forgot that the Demon Suppression Land is full of mixed energy. It's not suitable for a breakthrough." Su Wanqing's face changed slightly. She quickly took out a few high-grade source crystals from her storage ring and threw them into the cave. The top-grade source crystals were attracted by Honghong's technique and immediately released huge, pure energy, seeping into her body through her pores.
Seeing this, Su Wanqing breathed a sigh of relief. The Demon Suppression Land, shrouded in black fog all year round, was not suitable for absorbing energy for breakthroughs. It relied on source crystals. Fortunately, she had accumulated a lot of source crystals over the past three hundred years.
Suddenly, Su Wanqing felt a look fall on her. She turned and saw Gu Changsheng's somewhat eager eyes. Misinterpreting his eagerness, she blushed.
"Sir, what are you looking at me for?" Su Wanqing asked shyly.
Gu Changsheng said bluntly, "How many high-grade source crystals do you still have?"
"Oh, sir, you're asking this?" Su Wanqing breathed a sigh of relief, though she felt a bit disappointed. Was she so unattractive? "I still have 30 million high-grade source crystals. I've collected them through frugality over the past three hundred years."
"Thirty million!" Gu Changsheng's eyes lit up. He didn't expect the protector he randomly found for Honghong to be so wealthy.
"Ahem, Wanqing," Gu Changsheng coughed twice and said, "It's not safe to carry so many source crystals. You should leave them with me for safekeeping."
"Okay, sir." Su Wanqing did not doubt him. She had seen Gu Changsheng's power and believed many were stronger than her, so she agreed without hesitation. She took out a Xumi (Space) ring designed to hold source crystals and handed it to Gu Changsheng.
Gu Changsheng took the ring and glanced with his consciousness. There were not only 30 million high-grade source crystals but also hundreds of millions of mid-grade source crystals and tens of billions of low-grade source crystals. Seeing so many source crystals, Gu Changsheng regretted setting up a stall for half a month. If he had known about Su Wanqing's wealth, he wouldn't have bothered.
"Fortunately, most people who knew me are dead. The others either sealed themselves off or were killed by me," Gu Changsheng comforted himself.
"Boom!" At that moment, another violent fluctuation of vitality came from the cave, then gradually calmed down.
After a while, a beautiful red figure walked out of the cave. Her extraordinary temperament indicated she had successfully entered the transcendent realm. When Honghong saw Gu Changsheng, a hint of surprise flashed across her face. She quickly ran to him and held his hand, saying coquettishly, "Master, where have you been these past two months? You didn't even come to see me. You know I've become very powerful now."
If Li Beifei had held his hand like this and acted coquettishly, Gu Changsheng would have educated him with love. But in front of him now was his precious disciple, Honghong.
Gu Changsheng smiled warmly, like a proud father, and said, "I’ve been busy earning source crystals to buy you clothes."
"Liar!" Honghong said, though she felt a warmth in her heart. As an orphan, she deeply appreciated the familial affection from Gu Changsheng.
"Master, I've already broken through to the early stage of the Mortal Trascending Realm. Isn't that awesome? I've only been practicing for a month!" Honghong boasted.
[Mortal Realm -> Mortal Transcending Realm]
Gu Changsheng was about to humble her a bit when Honghong added, "Master, don't downplay it. I already asked Sister Su. Even the Holy Son and Holy Daughter of the Holy Land rarely achieve a breakthrough to mortal transcendence in just one month."
Gu Changsheng suppressed his urge to boast about his own rapid progress. He remembered it took him a year to reach transcendence, despite the logs showing just three days, due to his fear of heights and lengthy practice sessions.
"Well, since you've done so well, let me reward you," he said, waving his hand. A wisp of chaotic energy appeared in his palm.
"Xuanhuang Qi!" Su Wanqing exclaimed. Realizing her outburst, she quickly covered her mouth and looked around, relieved to see no one else around.
"What is Xuanhuang Qi?" Honghong asked, puzzled by the new term.
Su Wanqing explained, "Xuanhuang Qi, also known as Chaos Qi, is a supreme treasure for weapon refining. Ancient emperors sought it, and adding even a trace of it to a weapon could make it powerful enough to become an emperor's weapon. If the emperor knew you had this, he would try to take it."
"That powerful?" Honghong was shocked. Although she didn't fully grasp the concept, she understood its value.
"Master, please put it away quickly. What if someone discovers it?" Honghong urged.
"Who would dare?" Gu Changsheng scoffed. He was the one who took from others, not the other way around. Nonetheless, he appreciated Honghong’s concern for his safety.
"Honghong, reveal your vision," Gu Changsheng instructed.
"Oh!" Without questioning, Honghong revealed her innate Dao diagram.
"Run the spiritual power in your body and fully support the innate Dao map," Gu Changsheng warned.
"Yes!" Honghong concentrated, pouring all her spiritual power into the Dao map, making it shine brightly.
Gu Changsheng gently placed the Xuanhuang Qi on the Dao map. The seemingly light energy caused an earth-shattering collision, creating a large crater around Honghong.
Honghong's expression changed, her face turned red from the strain. Gu Changsheng explained, "Xuanhuang Qi is the energy of heaven and earth, each strand as heavy as ten thousand stones. This wisp is as heavy as a hundred thousand stones. Persist and let it merge with your Dao map and body. It will be your greatest aid for enlightenment."
"It's...Master!" Honghong struggled to support the Dao diagram, her spiritual power depleting rapidly.
"Little master, open your mouth!" Su Wanqing called, holding a nine-turn life-sustaining pill. Honghong opened her mouth with difficulty, and Su Wanqing fed her the pill. Instantly, Honghong felt a surge of life force and spiritual power, sustaining her efforts.
If outsiders knew Honghong used the legendary pill as an ordinary supplement, they would be outraged at the waste. But Gu Changsheng remained indifferent; he had plenty of such items.
Eventually, the Xuanhuang seed entered Honghong's Dantian through the Dao map, settling as if it had taken root.
"Communicate well with the Chaos Seed. It has recorded your innate Dao diagram's vision. You can refine it into a true Dao diagram and fully utilize its power," Gu Changsheng guided her, even teaching a weapon refining technique.
After the Xuanhuang (Chaos) Seed's baptism, Honghong's cultivation would advance rapidly. With the additional power from the two Nine Revolutions Life-Sustaining Pills, she could reach the late stage of transcendence or even peak Yuanfan.
Gu Changsheng eagerly anticipated the potential rivalry between Honghong, wielding the Chaos Seed, and Li Beifei, wielding the Tianshu (Heavenly Scripture) Sword. The thought of his two apprentices battling excited him immensely.