novelraw Chapter 142: Twisted Light
Chapter 142: Twisted Light
SPLASH!
The crimson Sea of True Essence surged, raising giant waves that began to crash against the barriers of the surrounding Qi Vein Divine Treasure.
Under these circumstances, this independent space, which had already been fully opened, actually began to swell and expand once more.
Seeing this, Hu Qi was quite astonished.
One had to understand that no matter how monstrous a person’s aptitude was, there was a limit to the Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy they could absorb and the True Essence Power they could convert.
Generally speaking, the size of the opened space varied according to the individual’s aptitude and foundation.
However, there was a universal method of judgment.
If one could fill one-fifth of the space within their newly opened Qi Vein Divine Treasure on the first try, it was considered a passing grade.
They would then be able to break through successfully.
Filling two-fifths to three-fifths already made someone a genius.
Only a very small minority could fill it to near Perfection.
But the Qi Vein Divine Treasure Hu Qi had originally opened was already at the perfect level—the largest possible Qi Vein Divine Treasure.
Logically, there should have been no possibility of further expansion, yet it was happening right before his eyes.
The Qi Vein Divine Treasure only stopped expanding after it had more than doubled in size.
The Qi Sea opens, the Qi Sect is formed!
However, the moment his breakthrough succeeded...
the blood in his body began to boil.
At the same time,
his consciousness once again entered an Illusion Mirror.
Before his eyes,
the ground was littered with the carcasses of enormous monsters.
The acrid stench of blood filled the air.
His perspective was once again that of a Three-Eyed Primordial Serpent.
But this Three-Eyed Blood Serpent was colossal. It was currently coiled atop a massive mountain peak.
Its immense serpentine body was wrapped tightly around the peak, as if a slight exertion of force could crush the thousand-zhang mountain to dust.
At this moment, the Three-Eyed Primordial Serpent raised its head and looked toward the sky.
The sky was like a painting, but it was covered in cracks, as if blood might seep through at any moment.
Suddenly,
a blood-red eye appeared within the fissures.
At first, the eye’s outline was illusory, but it gradually began to solidify.
Seeing this,
the perspective of the Three-Eyed Blood Serpent that Hu Qi was inhabiting trembled.
A feeling of horror rose in its heart.
It was a sense of impending doom.
As if sensing this,
the next moment,
the scales of the Three-Eyed Black Snake trembled, emitting a faint black light.
The black light spread over its entire body, enveloping it.
At the same time,
in the next second,
the blood-red eye solidified completely. It was immense, occupying a huge swath of the sky.
The eye’s pupil was like a bottomless black hole, exuding a terrifying, suffocating aura.
Its gaze was calm and vast.
Devoid of any superfluous emotion.
Under the eye’s influence, the clouds on the horizon turned a bizarre blood-red, drifting slowly like a Demon’s tentacles.
The Eye of the Heavens.
The moment he saw this eye,
a term suddenly appeared in Hu Qi’s mind.
After the Eye of the Heavens appeared,
its pupil swiveled slightly, as if searching for something.
Unfortunately, it seemed to find nothing.
As time passed, it could only fade away unwillingly, disappearing.
The instant the blood-red eye vanished,
the surrounding scene fractured and then began to flake away like shattering glass.
...
「Back in the outside world.」
Hu Qi opened his eyes.
He stood up, his feet treading on empty air. It was as if the Earth Core’s gravity had lost its effect on him.
He looked down. Because he had devoured a massive amount of gray fog during his breakthrough to Qi Dao Grandmaster, the fog enveloping Anshan City was no longer as dense as before, having thinned into a light mist.
Now, he could clearly see the scene on the ground, even spotting people appearing on the streets.
He roughly estimated his distance from the ground to be at least several hundred meters.
’So this is a Qi Dao Grandmaster?’
Hu Qi sensed the condition of his body, a smile gracing his lips.
With a thought, a flicker of True Essence Power flashed across the surface of his body.
In the next instant, the bloodstains covering him from slaughtering the Black Blood Species were completely shaken off, vanishing without a trace.
He then thought of the Illusion Mirror he had just seen.
’Crimson!’
At his thought, the translucent crimson panel immediately unfolded before his eyes.
[Host: Hu Qi]
[Status: Normal]
[Age: 22 (Remaining Lifespan: 678 years, 223 days, 4 hours, 59 minutes, 36 seconds) △]
[Bloodline: Three-Eyed Primordial Serpent (Incomplete 20%) △]
[Talent: Spirit Devouring, Twisted Light]
[Skill: Three-Eyed Primordial Snake Spirit Devouring Map (Qi Vein Chapter, First Layer)]
[Seven Evils Saber (Sixth Layer) △ Traits: Sheep Horn Fiend, Sharpness
Celestial Dog Fiend, Erosion
Blood Blade Fiend, Blood Drinking]
...
[Modification Points: 39 (13%)]
The data on the panel had changed significantly.
First was his remaining Lifespan, which had increased by five hundred years.
This was reasonable. Compared to the two-hundred-year Lifespan of a Martial Arts Family member, a Qi Dao Grandmaster had a seven-hundred-year Lifespan, more than three times as long.
It could be said that as long as a Qi Dao Grandmaster did not die prematurely and lived until their Lifespan was exhausted, they were a living history book.
Coupled with the ability to fly, there was almost no difference between them and the Immortal Gods of legend.
Not only that, but a modifiable Rune had actually appeared after his Lifespan.
This confirmed his previous suspicion: the panel could indeed modify his remaining Lifespan.
It also meant that with enough Modification Points, he could even achieve immortality.
However, Hu Qi only glanced at it and did not choose to increase it.
The fact that the option had only just appeared proved that the cost in Modification Points to alter his Lifespan was by no means small.
And with his current abundant Lifespan, he had no need to worry about such matters.
His gaze moved down.
His Three-Eyed Primordial Snake Bloodline had actually increased from seventeen percent to twenty percent, a three-percent jump in completeness out of thin air.
This directly saved him thirty Modification Points.
This was a pleasant surprise.
He had a theory about this; perhaps it was related to his breakthrough to Qi Dao Grandmaster.
More importantly, he had gained another Talent.
’Twisted Light?’
Hu Qi muttered to himself.
He raised his hand, recalling the scene from the Illusion Mirror.
He felt a faint inkling in his mind.
He tried to mobilize a power within his body other than his Qi Blood True Strength and True Essence.
A few seconds later, his expression shifted slightly, as if he had detected something.
It was a power hidden within his Bloodline.
Guided by his will,
a layer of fine black scales emerged on the skin of his arm.
Then, faint black motes of light seeped from between the scales, enveloping his arm.
When the motes of light vanished,
his human arm was gone, replaced by a tiger’s paw covered in brown fur!
Hu Qi could still feel the presence of his hand.
To him, his arm felt unchanged.
This was normal.
Twisted Light’s secondary function was to distort one’s own form; its most important aspect was distorting perception.
It was like a controllable mirror—what others saw in it was entirely up to you.
It could be understood as a type of Disguise, but it was far more advanced.
After all, the fact that the Three-Eyed Blood Serpent in the Illusion Mirror had used this trick to evade the gaze of the Eye of the Heavens spoke volumes.
Although, he had no idea what that Eye of the Heavens truly was.
But you didn’t need to be a genius to know it was something extraordinary.
For Hu Qi, this Talent was ridiculously overpowered.
However, he could also feel that he didn’t have much of the power to use Twisted Light in his body; it seemed he couldn’t sustain it for very long.
This was likely similar to his Spirit Devouring Talent, a consequence of his incomplete Bloodline.
It should gradually grow stronger as his Three-Eyed Primordial Snake Bloodline was restored to completion.
He pulled his thoughts back, and his arm returned to its original form.
Looking at his remaining thirty-nine Modification Points, Hu Qi frowned slightly.
’At the Martial Arts Family level, ten Modification Points could raise a skill by one layer. Does it take fifty points per layer at the Qi Dao Grandmaster level?’
The corner of his mouth twitched.
That kind of increase was a bit much.
He seriously suspected the Crimson Modifier was taking a cut for itself.
Of course, that was just a fleeting thought.
Setting aside whether the Crimson Modifier was sentient, even if it were, he was powerless to do anything about it with his current abilities.
He could only accept it.
Just as he was pondering this, he suddenly seemed to sense something and turned to look into the distance.
It was in the direction of the southern sea.
Within his perception,
two powerful and dense auras of Black Blood Species were rapidly approaching.
The intensity of these auras far surpassed that of Helinta, whom he had just killed.
There was only one conclusion: these were two Middle Rank Black Blood Species!
He could clearly feel their hostility.
They were probably here for him.
After all, the commotion he had just caused was anything but small.
Realizing this, Hu Qi’s expression shifted.
He reached a hand downward and grasped. The Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy surged, and a powerful pulling force appeared in his palm.
BUZZ!
The ring of a saber echoed.
The next second, a red Flowing Light shot up from below and landed directly in Hu Qi’s hand.
It was the Red Mirror.
True Essence Power surged from his palm and into the Blood Refining Spiritual Soldier.
Instantly,
the blade let out a clear, pleasant hum!
The aura of Sharpness emanating from it grew even more intense.
He glanced in the direction of the two approaching auras, then looked down at the dense city buildings below.
He turned and flew toward a deserted suburban area to the side.
Because this was his first time flying, his posture was a bit unsteady at first.
But soon enough, relying on his powerful control over his own body, Hu Qi quickly familiarized himself with how to fly.
At the same time, he focused his gaze on the Seven Evils Saber in his Skill column.
’Crimson! Upgrade the Seven Evils Saber to the Seventh Layer for me!’
HUM!
In an instant, a vast swathe of memories of practicing the Seven Evils Saber appeared in his mind.
They flashed by rapidly, like a slideshow.
From the First Layer of the Seven Evils Saber, to the Second Layer, all the way to the Seventh Layer.
The moment the Seven Evils Saber reached the Seventh Layer!
The image of the practicing figure became clear—it was Hu Qi himself.
The image froze, then shattered with a bang.
Information about the Seventh Layer of the Seven Evils Saber suddenly appeared in his mind.
The panel’s information also changed.
——————
[Seven Evils Saber (Seventh Layer) △
Traits: Sheep Horn Fiend, Sharpness
Celestial Dog Fiend, Erosion
Blood Blade Fiend, Blood Drinking,
White Tiger Fiend, Extinction]
...
[Modification Points: 19 (13%)]
Upgrading the final layer of the Seven Evils Saber had directly consumed twenty of his Modification Points.
’White Tiger Fiend, Extinction?’
A strange glint flashed in Hu Qi’s eyes.
As he expected, reaching the final layer of the Seven Evils Saber had granted him another Trait.
It was just that this Trait was a bit peculiar.
According to its description,
once struck, the target’s Vitality would be rapidly depleted.
This all took some time to describe, but the entire upgrade process was completed in a very short time.
Hu Qi glanced around.
A Qi Dao Grandmaster’s flight speed was extremely fast. With True Essence Power protecting his body, he could barely feel any wind resistance.
In a short time, he had crossed more than half of Anshan City.
The city buildings below had disappeared, replaced by a snow-covered landscape.
He stopped and turned to look behind him.
As he had intentionally slowed down, his pursuers were getting closer and closer.
’This place isn’t bad. I’ll test my saber on you!’
Hu Qi muttered softly to himself.
To be honest, even Helinta had only forced him to use seventy or eighty percent of his strength.
And now he had broken through to become a Qi Dao Grandmaster.
He was curious about his current strength—just how powerful was he?
These two Middle Rank Black Blood Species would be perfect test subjects.
Thinking this,
Hu Qi narrowed his eyes, locking his gaze on the two figures flying rapidly toward him in the distance.
He activated the Seven Evils Saber technique, raising the Red Mirror Saber in his hand.
His other hand gently stroked the cold, uneven surface of the blade.
A faint white light began to glow on the saber’s edge.
It emanated a terrifying aura of Sharpness.
Blood Refining Spiritual Soldiers were meant to grow stronger along with their masters.
Now, infused with Hu Qi’s True Essence Power, this Long Saber began to reveal its terrifying side.