Chapter 2: Continuous Breakthroughs
“Xiao Feng.” A voice came, and a middle-aged man appeared in the courtyard. He was tall and slender, with a powerful aura, bearing some resemblance to Lin Feng.
“Father.” This man was Lin Hai, the head of the Lin Clan, and also Lin Feng’s father. The fusion of souls had given Lin Feng the memories of both individuals, so calling him “father” came naturally, and Lin Feng saw nothing wrong with it.
“Xiao Feng, you… you’re better!” The lines on Lin Hai’s face trembled. When Lin Feng had been sent back to the Lin Clan, he was on the verge of death, barely clinging to life, and had been unconscious the entire time. Lin Hai had already lost all hope, even starting to prepare Lin Feng’s funeral arrangements. But now, seeing a living, breathing son standing before him, how could he not be overjoyed?
“En, Father, I have fully recovered.” Lin Feng saw the excitement on Lin Hai’s face and smiled faintly, feeling a deep warmth. In his previous life, after his grandfather passed away, he had faced the coldness of the world alone and had never experienced such a warm feeling.
“Good, good.” Lin Hai heavily patted Lin Feng on the shoulder. His eyes flickered with sharp light as he glanced at the stone pillar that had been reduced to powder. His brothers were all waiting for him to have no heir so they could seize his position as family head. They never expected Lin Feng to recover so quickly. Those bastards must be very disappointed, he thought.
Just then, a chilling coldness suddenly radiated from Lin Hai’s body, making Lin Feng feel as if his body had frozen stiff.
“As expected of a Spirit Martial Realm expert like Father. Just the aura he emits can freeze weak martial artists solid,” Lin Feng thought to himself. On the path of martial arts, the first stage was the Qi Martial Realm, where one drew the world’s primal energy into the body to temper the flesh and refine the martial soul. Only after generating true qi and stepping into the Spirit Martial Realm could one learn and master divine abilities and techniques, killing with a single step—an immensely powerful state. Lin Hai was indeed a Spirit Martial Realm expert.
“Xiao Feng, who did this?” Lin Hai’s expression darkened. When Lin Feng had been sent back, he was already at death’s door. The attacker had clearly intended to kill him, and in fact, they had succeeded in taking the life of the original “Lin Feng.”
“Father, let me handle this matter myself.” Lin Feng did not tell Lin Hai that he had been injured by Lin Heng, the son of his third uncle. Within the clan, his third uncle and eldest uncle were in cahoots, coveting the position of family head. Both in strength and influence, they were not weaker than Lin Hai. Moreover, Lin Heng had considerable talent, being an outstanding outer disciple of the Cloud Sea Sect, which was why he dared to act recklessly and injure Lin Feng.
This grudge, Lin Feng had to settle himself. The path of martial arts could tolerate no grain of sand; any inner demon would become an obstacle to a martial artist’s growth.
Lin Hai looked at his son with some surprise. The Lin Feng before him had completely changed his former demeanor. His gaze was resolute, with no trace of the dejection or cowardice that had once been there.
It seemed that this time, Xiao Feng had turned misfortune into a blessing. Lin Hai felt relieved and nodded. “Tomorrow, come with me to the clan meeting. I want to see how they plan to depose me as the clan head.”
…
Night fell, silent as water.
In the Lin Clan’s Purple Bamboo Forest, Lin Feng sat cross-legged on the ground. Behind him was a dark, shadowy figure that almost completely merged with the darkness of the night—this was his Darkness Martial Soul.
During his cultivation, Lin Feng had discovered that when he used the Darkness Martial Soul, his cultivation speed increased by more than five times. Therefore, ignoring his mental exhaustion, he kept the martial soul active. Since the heavens had given him a chance to be reborn, he intended to live well. On the Nine Heavens Continent, only the strong were respected, revered, and able to command the wind and rain.
A faint, milky-white glow shimmered like firefly light in the darkness, enveloping Lin Feng’s body. This was a phenomenon that occurred when the world’s primal energy reached a certain level of density.
Those with strong talent cultivated at an extremely fast pace, drawing the world’s primal energy to gather around them, forming a halo of light. At this moment, Lin Feng was clearly in such a state.
Lin Feng’s breathing was steady, his expression calm and peaceful. Inside his body, the world’s primal energy flowed through his veins, merging with his blood and strengthening his bones and tendons.
After a long while, a flash of light appeared. Lin Feng’s body suddenly became like a bottomless pit, instantly absorbing all the milky-white primal energy around him, leaving not a trace.
Opening his eyes, a glint of sharp light flashed and vanished like a fleeting shadow. Lin Feng stood up, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. He had broken through—one realm in a single night. He was now at the Sixth Layer of the Qi Martial Realm.
However, Lin Feng was not satisfied. From his memories, he knew that the Nine Layers of the Qi Martial Realm were merely the starting point of a martial artist’s cultivation. True peerless experts could soar through the air and roam beyond the nine heavens. What carefree freedom that was! In his previous life, such beings would have been considered immortals.
With this thought, Lin Feng began to throw punches. The wind from his fists howled, and wherever his fist aimed, the green bamboo instantly exploded and shattered. Waves of powerful spatial ripples ravaged the Purple Bamboo Forest.
The Qi Martial Realm was divided into nine layers. Each layer increased one’s strength by a thousand jin. At the Sixth Layer of the Qi Martial Realm, he possessed six thousand jin of force. If he used the Ninefold Wave, which he had already cultivated to the sixth layer, he could unleash a powerful force of six thousand five hundred jin. But in Lin Feng’s eyes, this was still not enough. If he could cultivate the Ninefold Wave to the seventh layer, where each wave was fiercer than the last, he would then be able to wield seven thousand jin of force, equivalent to the pure strength of a martial artist at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Martial Realm.
A force of over six thousand jin was incredibly fierce. The fragile purple bamboo continuously exploded, the entire space churning like ocean waves, filled only with the howling wind of his fists and the shadows of his punches.
Just then, a bent green bamboo in the distance did not shatter under the force of his punches but instead rebounded back. This caught Lin Feng’s attention, and the speed of his punches slowed down.
“The Ninefold Wave is a martial technique derived from the surging waves of the sea—each wave stronger than the last, domineering and fierce. However, since it is based on ocean waves, besides its domineering aspect, it should also have a gentle side. Only by combining hardness with softness can one advance without hesitation.”
A flash of insight struck Lin Feng’s mind. His fists were no longer purely fierce but advanced slowly, sometimes hard, sometimes soft.
“Ha!” Lin Feng let out a loud shout and threw a punch.
“Boom, boom, boom…”
Explosions rang out one after another—six explosions, seven explosions… eight explosions!
Wherever the force of his fist passed, all the purple bamboo was reduced to powder.
“Eighth Layer of the Ninefold Wave—so strong.” Lin Feng took a deep breath, looking at the vacuum left in front of him, and stopped punching. By grasping the essence of the Ninefold Wave, he had broken through two layers in succession, reaching the eighth layer. It was well known that the higher the level of a martial technique, the harder it was to cultivate. A martial artist at the Fifth Layer of the Qi Martial Realm could easily comprehend the Fifth Layer of the Ninefold Wave, but even a martial artist at the Eighth Layer of the Qi Martial Realm might not necessarily be able to execute the Eighth Layer. Yet Lin Feng had done it.
“Now I should have a force of seven thousand five hundred jin. Once I fully comprehend the balance of hardness and softness, the Ninth Layer of the Ninefold Wave will be complete.” Lin Feng felt a secret joy. The higher the level of a martial technique, the harder it was to cultivate, but its power also increased exponentially. With his current force of seven thousand five hundred jin, he could even fight against a martial artist at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Martial Realm.
The former Lin Feng couldn’t even defeat an ordinary martial artist at the Fifth Layer of the Qi Martial Realm and was looked down upon. But now, just one day after arriving in this world, Lin Feng possessed the combat power of a martial artist at the Seventh Layer of the Qi Martial Realm, leaping directly across two realms.