《Legend of the Dragon Phoenix Warrior》


 1 The Fligh

    Chapter 1


    Chen Zhen was scared to death. He was on a flight over the Himalayan mountains returning home from a business trip. The plane was experiencing extreme turbulence and was shaking nonstop. His worse fear has always been flying. But he still did it because his job required him to. The captain and stewardess''s were walking up and down the aisles reassuring everyone that this was normal and there was nothing to fear. But Chen Zhen just couldn''t get over the feeling that something bad was about to happen. The stewardess had just handed him another cocktail when he looked out the window right side of the plane and saw lightning flash past the wing of the plane. As he kept watching he began to feel that his eyes were playing tricks on him. Because he could have swore he saw lightning in the shape of a dragon rising into the clouds.


    As he continued to stare dumbfounded the lightning dragon once again swooped down. It opened its ten meter wide mouth and bite the wing off the plane. Chen Zhen though that he must be dreaming. This wasn''t really happening. As the plane pitched wildly and stalled the force of the collision with the lightening dragon tore the plane in two. Chen Zhen sitting next to the window on the wing was ripped from the plane and sent tumbling through open space.


    Chen Zhen was still buckled to his seat as he fell through the air. He thought of his family, his loving wife and his two kids. He regretted that he wouldn''t be there to see them grow up. He wouldn''t be there to support them and love them. His wife would be left with the burden of supporting the kids and raising them alone. As Chen Zhen fell he regretted his own short life. He was only thirty years old and he felt there was so much he wanted to be able to accomplish with his life. But due to a freak storm he would no longer have that opportunity.


    As Chen Zhen got closer to the ground what he originally saw as a small black dot quickly grew into a massive hole leading underground. This hole had to be over three hundred meters wide. And Chen Zhen fell right into it. As Chen Zhen was about to plunge into this unknown abyss a the lightning dragon roared passed him suddenly charging back to where it came from. As the lightning dragon passed him a wisp of it''s being flew into Chen Zhen''s body. This tiny wisp instantly over whelmed his consciousness and he blacked out Ashe plunged into the cavernous hole.


    Chen Zhen slowly regained consciousness and found that he was still strapped to his plane seat falling thru the depths of the abyss. He didn''t know how long he had been out for, but his hunger pains made him believe it was days. As he looked ahead of him he saw what looked like a star at first, but several hours later he noticed it getting steadily bigger. He also noticed a change in the smell to the air. The wind blowing past his face seemed to be fresher and carry a vibrancy to it. As he fell closer to this new portal, sounds started to reach his ears. But it was not a welcoming sound. The explosions he could hear were becoming louder and more frequent. As Chen Zhen pictured his coming death the only thought that was in his head was, " I''m falling into a battlefield?"

 2 Abyss World

    Chapter 2


    Chen Zhen had given up all hope of surviving this fall, so hearing the enormous battle taking place didn''t phase him very much. At most it sparked his curiosity. What could be in this strange new world he was plummeting into? How advanced was their technology? Could the hollow earth theories be true? If one word could be used to describe Chen Zhen''s personality it would be curious. He was always driven to know and understand things. He was always motivated by the phrase, " Knowledge is Power". He felt that accurately described life. The more you understood about the world around you the less fear you had. Now sometimes the more you knew the more you did fear something, but that was solely because you know your own limitations very well. You wouldn''t do anything you knew was beyond your capabilities. Once we knew about gravity and its constant effect on pulling things toward the ground, we realize that a fall from certain heights are no longer just painful but deadly. We fear heights because we know we can''t fly, not because we are scared of gravity.


    Chen Zhen was imagining all kinds of scenario''s that would play out before his eyes as he passed thru the whole in the sky and into unknown world. But what he saw shocked and disappointed him at the same time. There were not futuristic jet fighters, or alien looking UFO''s battling in the skies. There was just a golden scaled dragon that was fighting a reddish-gold three-legged crow. The dragon was easily a hundred meters long. Its head and mouth could swallow a city bus with ease. The three-legged crow was just as magnificent. It had a wing span of eighty meters. From his height they looked like two toy dolls battling in the sky. Their auras were so strong that from thousands of feet away Chen Zhen could feel the pressure from them constricting his body. The more he fell the harder it became for him to breath. As Chen Zhen''s body was starting to shut down from lack of oxygen that thin tiny wisp of dragon lightning began to circulate within his body of it''s own accord. It began slowly at first relieving the pressure on his heart and lungs. As soon as Chen Zhen could breath again he sucked in huge mouthfuls of air. The air was very vibrant and continuously nourished his body. Earth is a void world where Heaven and Earth Yuan qi is deficient. The Heaven and Earth Yuan qi was like a wonder drug for Chen Zhen''s body. His skin, blood and marrow greedily absorbed yuan qi as that wisp of dragon lightning circulated out from his dantian through his meridians and back into his dantian completing one circulation.


    The aura of the divine dragon carried the dragon lightning within it. The aura of the three-legged crow carried the burning flame of the celestial Phoenix. As Chen Zhen fell closer the pressure of these two Titanic auras started to force open tears in his skin. Chen Zhen''s body was trying to heal itself as the wisp of dragon lightning kept circulating and giving his body nourishment and energy. When Chen Zhen was about a thousand feet away the divine dragon suddenly sensed the wisp of dragon lightning circulating inside of Chen Zhen. The divine dragon made the mistake of allowing itself to be distracted. The three-legged crow took this opportunity to attack its nemesis with all its remaining power. It opened it wings up wide and an immense celestial fire qi filled its body. The surrounding temperature instantly raised over six hundred degrees for the next three seconds. This was all the time it needed. Its body flashed across the sky like a shooting star. The divine dragon realized its mistake too late. The divine dragon only had enough time to brace for impact before the three-legged crow impacted into him igniting its celestial fire qi. The explosion was like a nuclear bomb.

 3 Shanggu Feng

    Chapter 3


    The divine dragon''s golden scales were melting and falling through the sky like a golden shower. Parts of his flesh were on fire and smoke could be seen escaping from the ruptures all over its body. Many of its internal organs were either damaged or incinerated in the blast. The three-legged crow did not come out completely unscathed itself. Dragons have some of the strongest bodies and natural defenses of all the different mystical creatures. Impacting on the dragons body with it''s head caused a fracture in its skull. As the dragon began to fall from the sky the three-legged crow was hovering unsteadily in the. Its body was keeping it in the air purely on instinct. It was at this time when the three-legged crow was in a daze that Chen Zhen and his plane seat smashed down on the head of the three-legged crow, splitting its head completely open. Chen Zhen, who''s body was still suffering from the ever increasing pressure of those powerful auras, felt like he ran into a brick wall going faster then the speed of sound. His body nearly exploded from the collision.


    As all three of them fell from the sky a beam of light pierced through the clouds arriving right beneath Chen Zhen, the divine dragon and the three-legged crow. It was the lightning dragon that had destroyed the plane Chen Zhen was traveling on, causing him to fall to his death. Now that the lightning dragon was back in its home world it was able to restore all the yuan qi it lost just maintaining itself on earth. It was now ten times it''s original size that Chen Zhen had first seen. It opened it huge mouth and swallowed all three at the same time. If one looked closely they would see a very sinister smile on the lightning dragon''s face as it flew off to the horizon.


    Chen Zhen slowly woke up. To be more accurate, he slowly became aware of his surroundings. He felt as if he was floating in the vacuum of outer space. He felt as if he had no form or mass. As he became more and more aware of his surroundings he notice a very old man with sharp clear eyes. He had a head full of white hair and a full white beard, that both hung down to his waist. The old man''s looks were quite the contradiction. You could almost feel the years exuding off of him, but at the same time he gave you the impression of being spry and youthful. The azure colored dragon robe and golden belt gave off a very noble and regal feel. If the old man told Chen Zhen he was a king he would immediately believe him.


    The old man smiled and said, " My name is Shanggu Julong. Young Chen Zhen you have come a very long way just to die. I don''t think that is fair, do you? " Before Chen Zhen could speak Shanggu Julong continued as he already knew what Chen Zhen was going to say. " I must say I have ventured into many worlds but I thought your world was a myth. How a world can survive in such a void state with such an infinitesimal amount of yuan qi is absolutely amazing. And what''s even more amazing is that there obviously must have been so much more at some point in your history because as soon as I introduced yuan qi into your body it greedily devoured it. To the point were you should have exploded but now your body is still absorbing energy even without my assistance. But instead of your broken body bursting from absorbing so much energy it is actually rebuilding itself. This is beyond my wildest expectations." Shanggu Julong knew that even though Chen Zhen''s body was rebuilding itself it wouldn''t be able to rebuild itself fast enough to prevent his death. While Shanggu Julong was contemplating Chen Zhen''s situation he could see the bodies of the dragon and phoenix lying behind Chen Zhen. Their bodies were completely destroyed and their souls were slowly leaving their bodies.


    "I can give him the souls if these two spirit beast to help nurture and guide him in this new world. But they are such proud beast and have ruled over their own territories for thousands of years. If I want them to agree I will have to offer them something worthy of their attention....", thought Shanggu Julong.


    Looking at the phoenix first Shanggu Julong released his immense aura. The soul of the phoenix was locked in place by this immense aura unable to move or perceive anything around it. It could tell that this overwhelming aura could crush it out of existence if it so wished, not even allowing it to enter reincarnation.


    " What is your name?", Shanggu Long asked the phoenix after observing this phoenix''s soul for a while.


    "This junior respectfully answers senior I am called Lou Tian of Imperial City''s Lou Phoenix Clan." Lou Tian didn''t dare to be arrogant in front of such an immensely powerful figure. As he sat there waiting he could only regret his bad luck for attracting this powerful figures attention. After what seemed like an eternity to Lou Tian, Shanggu Julong finally spoke again, but what he said next frightened him even more.


    "Why were you attacking my direct descendant?", Shanggu Julong asked Lou Tian.


    If Lou Tian still had a body he would be trembling and sweating profusely.


    " Respectfully replying to senior, this was all a terrible misunderstanding. I was out traveling the world hunting for relics and holy treasures. I sensed that an ancient ruin was located in a mountain range near by. As I was heading there I was very excited and my vigilance waned. As I was traveling at my highest speed I may have accidentally bumped into your direct descendant, who also seemed to be headed in the same direction. He mistook my accidental bump as an open assault. You already know the result of the ensuing battle. I hope senior can not hold this small matter between juniors to highly in his eyes...", explained Lou Tian.


    "Are you telling me how I should view things? Is it your job to instruct me on how I should judge a situation?", Shanggu Julong asked interrupting Lou Tian.


    Shivering in utter terror thinking he just offended this immortal existence. Seeing the look of terror on Lou Tian''s face Shanggu Julong couldn''t help but laugh out loud.


    "I understand very well what happened here. You both being proud elites of your respective clans, neither of you could ever back down in a confrontation. But what exactly did either of you gain? Did either of you reap the rewards of your pride? No. In fact you both lost everything you worked your entire lives to achieve. Everything your clans put in so much work and resources to nurture you to thus point. And for what? Just for your pride to throw everything they gave you away."


    Shaking his head and giving a long sigh Shanggu Julong couldn''t help but feel disappointment in his heart toward his descendant.


    "Feng-er.... You were a very promising candidate for the future of our Shanggu clan. I watched you grow from a distance and I had really high hopes for you. I hoped to see you lead our clan I into a new age of growth and prosperity. But now..... look at you. Your pride has thrown away our clans hopes."


    Shanggu Feng looked at his great, great, great grandfather''s eyes which were full of disappointment and could only hang his head in shame. His great, great, great grandfather was the last true powerhouse of the Shanggu Clan. Ever since Shanggu Julong ascended over a thousand years ago the Shanggu clan has been in a steady decline. This once hegemon could no longer hold on to the vast territories it used to hold. Warring with other clans, especially the Lou clan of Imperial city has downgraded them over the years to a mid-class clan. Since his birth Shanggu Feng had followed closely in Shanggu Julong''s footsteps. As a child he quickly showed his comprehension ability and quickly master the martial techniques of the Shanggu clan. As he grew stronger his pride grew with him. He was look up to my so many in the Shanggu clan, he soon lost sight of strengthening the Shanggu clan and only thought of his own strength. He went from being the pride of the Shanggu clan to being its biggest disappointment. In Shanggu Feng''s mind he was the only important thing in his life. He took all the best cultivation Heaven and Earth treasures for himself. He fought regularly inside and outside of the clan. No one could offend Shanggu Feng and live. The slightest offense to him meant immediate death.


    So when he sensed the very potent spiritual energy from the secret treasure hidden in the mountains he felt only he was worthy of having it. When he saw Lou Tian flying towards the treasure in his Phoenix form, he quickly changed into his Dragon form and ran into him. He could feel that Lou Tian was the same level and strength as him, but in his mind Shanggu Feng was unrivaled in the same cultivation realm.


    As Shanggu Feng looked into his great, great, great grandfather''s eyes, he could only hang his head in shame,"¡­.. forgive me¡­.."

 4 Chance for Life

    Chapter 4


    Pride is before a fall. As Shanggu Julong looked as his great, great, great grandson he could see the regret in his eyes. But in this world there is no pill for regret. Shanggu Feng''s decisions led him toward his own downfall. Shanggu Julong had the power to stop him along the way but if he would it have changed Shanggu Feng''s ways. No it wouldn''t have. Shanggu Feng became the way he was thru his own thinking, and no matter how much his father or the elders of the Shanggu clan tried to adjust his thinking along the way he never listened to anyone. Shanggu Feng''s pride told him he could do no wrong. The more people tried to correct or guide him the more abstinent he became. He began to lash out at those he viewed as beneath him. As Shanggu Feng increased in strength he also increased in belligerence. No one, not even his Immortal great, great, great grandfather could get him to change his ways.


    As Shanggu Julong looked at Shanggu Feng''s soul he decided to give him one last chance. The world of mist the Chen Zhen''s consciousness was in began to swirl. The old man that he was speaking with turned his head to Chen Zhen''s right. When Chen Zhen looked in that direction he saw the dragon and Phoenix that had been fighting earlier standing over there. They were separated from each other by a wall of mist. They didn''t seem to be able to tell the other was right next to them, like each side of that wall of mist was its own separate world.


    "You all have experienced death this day. Shanggu Feng, Lou tian you both have lost your physical form and are now merely souls. You still retain your immense martial and spiritual power but you no longer have a means to channel it into the physical world. Chen Zhen even though you have experienced Death''s door, you have not full stepped through yet. Your body seems to have the strange ability to absorb large amounts of energy. Energy that should under normal circumstances cause you to explode, but your body is evolving to this new energy at an astounding rate. I''m not sure if this is a by-product of you growing up in a void world or not, I can only speculate.", with a heavy sigh Shanggu Julong pauses here as he looks at the three people before him.


    "I hope I am making the right decision and not just letting my emotions cloud my judgment.", Shanggu Julong quietly ruminates to himself before firming his resolve and continuing.


    "I can give you all a one time help that will bring you all back from Death''s grasp. But to do this requires merging you all together in one body. You will become a new life form, one body but three souls. If you can learn to grow together you will have a chance to make new bodies for all of you but that will require many Immortal grade treasures. You will have to cultivate from the very beginning all over again. Even though Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian have power spiritual energy in their souls for this merger to work I will have to seal your power to a level this is in harmony with Chen Zhen''s soul. You will retain your knowledge and training but you will have to wait for Chen Zhen''s cultivation to increase before you will be able to use your abilities again. As Chen Zhen''s level increases you seals will slowly weaken as well, his breakthroughs will awaken your sealed abilities.


    You wont be able to rush his advancement though. He must cultivate and stabilize his foundation one step at a time. For you to have any chance of a future in your own body Chen Zhen must reach the peak of Immortal realm, and as you already know there are no shortcuts.


    I can force this upon you but it will be much easier if you are all willing to cooperate for this to happen. I have given you all the information you need to make your decision. I now place your life or death in your own hands. This must be a unanimous decision and it requires all of you to succeed. What choice will you make?"


    As Shanggu Julong finished explaining everything to them a heavy atmosphere appeared around Chen Zhen, Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian. Three people who met under the most dire of circumstances must now put their future lives in each other''s hands. Could they possible trust the others enough for this? What decision would they ultimately make?

 5 Everyones Decision

    Chapter 5


    Chen Zhen, Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian looked at each other with heavy hearts. They had absolutely no trust for the others. They were all thinking the exact same thing, "What should I do?" Chen Zhen was frightened out of his mind. There were three extremely powerful beings surrounding him, telling him he had to accept two of them inside his body just to live! And the one telling him this is none other then the Lightening dragon that destroyed the plane we was on, causing him to be in this position where he was at Death''s door to begin with. Are these guys out of their mind! If Chen Zhen could run away he would have fled as soon as he could. All he wanted to do at this time was to wake up from this nightmare back at home with his family.


    As Chen Zhen was thinking of his family he began to picture his wife and kids. His family was his life, his greatest motivation. He would do anything to be with his family again. As he thought of his wife and kids he suddenly felt completely helpless. As much as every fiber of his being told him to scream no, he already gave in in his heart to this ridiculous choice because right now this was the only way to see his family again.


    Shanggu Feng looked into Shanggu Julong eyes. He knew that this was his only chance to atone for his past sins. But as much as he knew this was right, he couldn''t accept lowering himself like this. He felt he would be nothing but a slave to Chen Zhen, and ant in his eyes.


    "Honorable ancestor. There must be another way. How can you expect me to allow my fate to be controlled by this pathetic creature? I understand that I owe you and the Shanggu clan a life debt, but isn''t this being to unreasonable? I will pay any other way you command me but this is beneath my bottom line!", Shanggu Feng pleaded with Shanggu Julong.


    As Shanggu Julong listen to Shanggu Feng his expression slowly fell till he was glaring at Shanggu Feng by the time he was done speaking.


    "Honorable ancestor indeed! So now you remember you have a family, a clan, and an ancestor. I did not interfere with you choices in life because I hoped that someday you would finally mature, but that never happened. And now your karma has led you to me, so I will no longer take a passive role in your choices. You will either lower yourself and voluntarily accept to work with Chen Zhen and Lou Tian for a better future for you all or I will implant a slave seal on your soul making you a slave to Chen Zhen for the rest of your life. I will give Chen Zhen full control of your life or death. At any time he feels you are working against him, he will be able to completely absorb all of your spiritual power and memories. No make your choice before I completely lose patience with you and make your decision for you!", Shanggu Julong bellowed. Sparks were flying from his eyes by the time he was done speaking. Shanggu Feng knew he had no other choice. He hung his head low in shame and fear. He could feel the rage radiating off of Shanggu Julong. If he didn''t agree his life was basically over. He knew nothing about Chen Zhen, so he imagined the worse possible situation. In Shanggu Feng''s mind he was sealed away in Chen Zhen''s body, completely a slave to Chen Zhen''s every whim. As soon as Chen Zhen''s body was strong enough he refined all of Shanggu Long''s spiritual power. He absorbed all of Shanggu Feng''s memories making his comprehensions all his own, wiping out Shanggu Feng from existence in the process. If Shanggu Feng had a body it would be covered in cold sweat at this moment. He quickly raised his head, "I accept!" Shanggu Feng''s very being quaked at the moment he said that. He knew there was no going back now, as high as Shanggu Feng''s pride was it never allowed him to be a man who went back on his word. Now that he said he would follow thru with it wholeheartedly. As he looked over at Chen Zhen a wide mix of emotions ran through his head, hate, anger, fear, sadness, and finally hopelessness.


    Shanggu Julong knew of Shanggu Feng character since he kept checking in on him most of Shanggu Feng''s life. Shanggu Julong knew that Shanggu Feng would never go back on his word now that he committed himself to Shanggu Julong''s proposal. As Shanggu Julong saw the wave of emotions pass over Shanggu Feng''s face his heart was touched.


    Addressing Shanggu Feng, Shanggu Julong said, "You will hate me and you will try to final any loophole you can to get around this and still keep your word. But I promise you this is not lowering yourself like you think you are. As long as you apply yourself and work with Chen Zhen and Lou Tian you will see this is a blessing, not a punishment."


    Shanggu Feng nodded his head, sighing with a heavy heart. As everyone looked over at Lou Tian they were surprised to se him very calm with a small smile on his face. Noticing everyone looking his way Lou Tian shrugged his shoulders and said "I accept."


    Chen Zhen and Shanggu Feng were both dumbfounded by his simple and straightforward answer. They both were immediately put on alert and suspicious of him. Lou Tian could see the skepticism in their eyes. Lou Tian was of the Phoenix clan. The phoenix was the symbol of rebirth. They struggled thru years of cultivating to reach their nine nirvanas. But in the last several millennia no one in the Tian clan has been able to progress pass their sixth nirvana. If a Phoenix could find enlightenment during his different nirvanas then after attaining their ninth nirvana they would unlock a power that surpassed the Immortal realm. Lou Tian had only passed four nirvanas. During his last nirvana he was enlightened about the cultivation method he and his clan members followed. During his nirvana the blood of his ancestors guided him back to the right path. The only problem was he couldn''t practice what his ancestors blood taught him to confirm whether the new cultivation method would actually work. Since his last nirvana Lou Tian had been searching around the world for Heaven and Earth treasures so that he would have the resources necessary to be able to destroy his cultivation and restart from the beginning. After a century of searching he was still woefully short of what he required. The next best thing was to die and resurrect to life, allowing him to begin again with more time. Even though a Phoenix gains more life energy after every nirvana and extend there life by hundreds of years, it would have taken him several millennia to acquire all that he needed. By then he wouldn''t be able to use the new cultivation technique. The offer from Shanggu Julong was a win-win for Lou Tian. He could kill two birds with one stone, and as far as whether he could trust Chen Zhen or Lou Tian. Lou Tian knew more about souls then Shanggu Feng. He understood that in the offer Shanggu Julong proposed Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian would not be slaves to Chen Zhen at all. They would form a soul tri-union inside of Chen Zhen''s body. They would all experience everything equally. For Shanggu Feng and himself they would be able to sit back and let Chen Zhen do all the hard work. They would experience every breakthrough right along with him. As far as Lou Tian was concerned this was a no brainer.

 6 Merging Souls

    Chapter 6


    Shanggu Julong looked into Lou Tian''s eyes and could see his straightforward heart. He didn''t know why Lou Tian readily chose to accept his offer, but he could see that he had no malicious intent in his heart. For now that was enough for Shanggu Julong.


    "Now that you have all made your decision I will explain to you a little more about what you will experience. As I said before Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian will have their spiritual powers sealed away inside of their respective souls. This has to be done so that all of your souls are at the same power level. This will allow me to combine your souls and implant them in Chen Zhen''s sea of consciousness. After doing this I will stay around for a little bit to protect and guide Chen Zhen on his initial path of cultivation. During this time Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian will be in a deep slumber. Your souls being as powerful as they are will receive some damage from the sealing process, but the damage will be very minor and the slumber you will enter will help you souls to safely recover. Your souls will awaken of their own accord. The time it takes for this to happen will depend on how freely and openly you enter into this process. I will need you to completely open your souls to me. However much you hold back will determine how long it will take for you to awaken because your soul will have received more damage during the merging process. After you awaken you will be able to start cultivating your souls. For you to process in your cultivation you must all be on the same level before a breakthrough will be possible, so you will all have to put in equal work to progress in your abilities. As long as Chen Zhen allows it you will all be able to take control of Chen Zhen''s body at different times, but I must repeat only if Chen Zhen allows it.


    Chen Zhen after Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian awaken I will leave to take care of my own personal matters. I will leave them to help guide you on your martial path. Do not look down on their guidance. Both of them are prodigies in their respective clans and have centuries of knowledge and experience to help train you with. You will have to learn to trust each other as you would trust your own self. What happens to one of you happens to all of you. Learn from each other, even though Chen Zhen doesn''t have knowledge of the martial path the same as the two of you, the knowledge of his world in other aspects is far advanced of our own. Just because his spiritual power is non-existent doesn''t mean he not able to teach you in other ways."


    After explaining this to the three of them Shanggu Julong waved his hands pulling the three of them together into a mist bubble. Shanggu Feng felt a sharp pain in his sea of consciousness before he heard Shanggu Julong''s voice in his head telling him to relax and allow his control. As Shanggu Feng opened his sea of consciousness more and more to Shanggu Julong the pain gradually reduced to a dull ache before he finally lost consciousness.


    Lou Tian told himself that this is what he wanted and tried to prepare to open his sea of consciousness fully but in the end even he fail to completely open up to Shanggu Julong. Shanggu Julong expected this and actually praised Lou Tian for opening up as much as he did. For Lou Tian the pain at first was almost unbearable. The most he could open up and get it to reduce to was a sharp stabbing pain in his sea of consciousness. When it finally came to an end and he lost consciousness it was a blessing to him.


    With Shanggu Feng''s and Lou Tian''s sealed souls in his hands Shanggu Julong approached Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen was very afraid because he didn''t know what Shanggu Julong was talking about. He had no idea what a sea of consciousness was let alone how to open it completely to someone else. He could hear the screams of pain from Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian even though they tried to hold it in. Thinking of how powerful these two were, how could he survive this insane ordeal? As Chen Zhen was beginning to panic and hyper ventilate Shanggu Julong stood right behind him holding the two sealed souls.


    "Chen Zhen I know you are very afraid right now but I promise you this is for the best for you. I will remove all the feeling from the rest of your body so that you can relax but your mind must be awake thru this entire process. Do you understand me?", Shanggu Julong''s mellow and soothing voice penetrated into Chen Zhen''s head in an almost hypnotic fashion.


    Everything around Chen Zhen slowly went dark, he felt as if he was floating in outer space except it was devoid of stars. As he began to relax a blurry figure was slowly taking shape in front of him. As this shape became more clear and distinct Chen Zhen could feel a sharp pain begin to radiate from his glabella for a long time before it stopped.


    "I have just helped you to forcefully open your sea of consciousness. Even though it is open you will still need to learn to access it on your own in the future. Right now I need it open to complete merging your three souls together. As I said before I need you conscious for this entire process. Pay attention to me and do exactly what I say and this will be relatively painless for you. But if you lose consciousness this will fail and you will all perish here and now. Are you ready to begin?", Shanggu Julong asked.


    Chen Zhen was extremely curious as to what was happening it was hard for him to focus completely on Shanggu Julong. He wanted to explore what exactly his sea of consciousness was. When Chen Zhen was in school he developed the ability to multi-task in his mind. During his college studies he would listen to the lectures of the teachers while studying side notes on the web during classes. It helped him to stay at the top of his class thru out college. So as he was listening to Shanggu Julong another version of Chen Zhen appeared in his sea of consciousness and began to explore this strange new world that existed inside his head. Shanggu Julong knew nothing of this happening. Even though he helped Chen Zhen to forcefully open his sea of consciousness Chen Zhen was still fully in control of this area. So Chen Zhen''s clone was not detected by Shanggu Julong because Chen Zhen chose it to be that way. While Chen Zhen''s clone was wandering around Chen Zhen sat down in front of Shanggu Julong.


    Shanggu Julong took the two sealed souls and placed them on Chen Zhen''s head. As he did so be began to chant an incantation that was slow and rhythmic at first but gradually became louder and seemingly chaotic. Chen Zhen at first focused on Shanggu Julong''s voice trying to at first understand what he was saying. But as Shanggu Julong''s voice increased in volume a great pressure enveloped Chen Zhen''s mind. It went from feeling like a terrible migraine to a pain so intense all Chen Zhen could see was a white light behind his eyes. Chen Zhen used every ounce of his being to endure this but he felt himself losing consciousness fast.


    Just when Chen Zhen thought he would pass out Shanggu Julong ''s voice broke thru his pain and whispered to him, "Think of the things most important to you right now. Find strength in the ones you love the most."


    As Chen Zhen heard this his wife''s face was the first to appear in his mind. She was standing in front of him and he was holding her hand. His daughter and son appeared next. The family was holding each other''s hands forming a small circle. As he looked at his family Chen Zhen felt a small suction force pulling him from behind. It was trying to separate Chen Zhen from his family and take him away from them forever. The stronger the suction became the stronger Chen Zhen held onto his family. Whenever he would start to feel weak and think his grip would fail, he would look at his family and his resolve would be strengthened. This cycle repeated for Chen Zhen an unknown number of times, while this was happening Chen Zhen''s clone was absorbing energy from Chen Zhen''s body and feeding it into his sea of consciousness. It didn''t know how it was doing this but it felt¡­. Right. Chen Zhen''s clone could tell that Chen Zhen''s life was in danger and it instinctively did something to help out.


    As Shanggu Julong was merging the souls together in Chen Zhen''s sea of consciousness he only had enough mental energy to spare to give Chen Zhen that one warning, after that he could only rely on Chen Zhen to make it thru. Even though Shanggu Julong understood the theory behind merging the souls together, the practice was much harder then he first assumed. Shanggu Julong could feel that Chen Zhen had come close many, many times to failing. But to Shanggu Julong''s surprise Chen Zhen would suddenly spike with a mental strength ten times his normal peak. When ever this happened it made things easier for Shanggu Julong for a while. By the end both Chen Zhen and Shanggu Julong were both mentally and physically exhausted. Before he ran out of complete strength and passed out the last thing Chen Zhen here was Shanggu Julong utter, "Success¡­.!"

 7 New Life

    Chapter 7


    Chen Zhen woke to the sound of birds chirping. His body had never felt so relaxed and refreshed in his entire life. He couldn''t put into words how good he felt at this moment. Before he could even stop himself a moan of pleasure escaped his mouth. A chuckling sound could be heard from across the room he was sleeping in. This caused Chen Zhen''s face to turn beet red with embarrassment. As he opened his eyes and looked around he noticed he was in a one room open shack that was roughly thirty feet by thirty feet square. Two of the walls on opposite sides of the room had large windows that took up two-thirds of the walls height and length. Looking towards the foot of the bed he was lying in he could see a door leading outside. Next to the door was a very plain table with two wicker chairs. In one of the wicker chairs was Shanggu Julong enjoying a cup of tea and laughing at Chen Zhen''s expense during this awkward moment for him. Shanggu Julong wasn''t in any hurry so he let Chen Zhen observe his new surround without interrupting him. As Chen Zhen continued to look to his right were he saw a fireplace in between the beds. The living conditions of this place was very spartan.


    Chen Zhen stood up and stretched his body, marveling at how amazing he felt and catching himself this time before he moaned in pleasure again. As Chen Zhen left the bed he was suddenly assaulted by the must pungent odor he had ever smelt in his like. He covered his nose and quickly rushed to the window to try to escape from the smell.


    Laughing again Shanggu Julong told him, "That smell is coming from you, so no matter how far you travel you will never escape it!"


    Chen Zhen looked back at Shanggu Julong in horror! He then looked back at the bed and he could see a man shaped black tar like substance covering the sheets he had just been laying on. He had no idea where that horrible stuff came from or how it was associated with him. Chen Zhen didn''t know what to do, he could only look back at Shanggu Julong with and imploring face, begging him to take pity on him and help. Seeing Chen Zhen''s absolutely pathetic countenance Shanggu Julong couldn''t help but hold his belly as he doubled over and laughed even harder.


    "Just¡­ haha¡­ just¡­ hahaha¡­ just wash yourself in the stream outside¡­. Hahahaha!!!", Shanggu Julong could barely control his laughter as he told Chen Zhen what would help him.


    Giving Shanggu Julong the stink eye for laughing at his misfortune, Chen Zhen promptly rushed to the stream he could see at the edge of the clearing the shack was in. What seemed like a distance of almost two hundred yards took Chen Zhen a mere twenty seconds to run to. As Chen Zhen jumped into the stream he realized that after running that far so fast he wasn''t even winded. As Chen Zhen soaked in the stream even though the water was on the cold side it didn''t seem to bother him one bit. Chen Zhen could see more and more of the black tar like substance being washed away from his body. Chen Zhen grabbed some sand from the streambed to help wash more of it off himself. The more he scrubbed the lighter his body felt in the water. The stream water was crystal clear and as Chen Zhen cupped his hands to drink a mouthful a shadow soon blocked out the sun from behind him.


    "You may drink no more then one handful of water a day for your first week. Your body is still adjusting to our world.", with that Shanggu Julong turn around and walked back toward the shack.


    Seeing that he was still alive and knowing how powerful Shanggu Julong was, Chen Zhen didn''t see any reason not to trust Shanggu Julong''s words. But Chen Zhen was a little skeptical, why could he only drink one handful of water? That made absolutely no sense to him¡­ until he took that first sip of water. As soon as then water entered into his throat a sudden rushing gale of power that surged into his body. As soon as it reached his stomach the wisp of dragon lightening that was still in his body took control of that power and started to circulate it thru his body. Chen Zhen was astounded! Wasn''t this just water? How could it have so much power? As the power in his body completed a full circulation thru the major meridians in his body and returned to his dantian he could feel the power rest there in his dantian like someone took a balloon and blew a slight puff of air into it. This marvelous feeling was addictive and euphoric at the same time. Chen Zhen kept sipping the water and letting it make it way thru his body to his dantian. When he finally finished that handful of water his dantian felt swollen like a balloon that was about to pop. Chen Zhen didn''t know what to do with this excess energy. He left the stream and ran back to the shack were Shanggu Julong was waiting for him. As he ran back he paid more attention to his nakedness, so when he arrived at the shack he poked his head thru the door trying very hard to hide his nudity. If Chen Zhen knew that Shanggu Julong''s spiritual sense allowed him to see everything around the entire clearing and more with his minds eye he would have known how futile his efforts were. With a wave of his hand Shanggu Julong used his energy to create a set of clothes for Chen Zhen. The clothes looked like they fit in an episode of Dragon Ball Z. They even had a weight to this that made Chen Zhen exert a considerable effort just to move around. If Chen Zhen didn''t have the extra energy inside his dantian helping him to resist the weight of his clothes he would have fallen flat on his face, instead of just forcing him to double over.


    By the time Chen Zhen straightened his body back up Shanggu Julong was standing in the door way. Chen Zhen could see the mirth in Shanggu Julong''s eyes. He remembered the many times he was referred to as an ant by these incredibly powerful beings. He refused to let them win this little battle in his head. Using every ounce of his strength he force his back straight and looked Shanggu Julong in the eyes. Seeing Chen Zhen''s determination Shanggu Julong gave a small nod of approval before walking out of the shack and beckoning Chen Zhen to follow him.


    "That disgusting black stuff was some of the impurities that you have accumulated over your life being expelled. This world is abundant in heaven and earth energy. The best way for you to understand this is that this world contains a type of radiation that is very beneficial for the body. The people of this world are commonly referred to as cultivators. Cultivators progress from body refinement and ultimately to Immortal cultivators if they are talented and fortunate enough. Because this world is ruled by the powerful, strength is the defining factor of all things. The strong lord over the weak. In your world there is a moral code of conduct that protect the weak and allow for fair justice in all matters. In this world strength is justice. The strong determine who is right and who is wrong, no matter what evidence there might be to the contrary.


    So your first goal to help you to achieve your hope of returning to your world and your family is to gain strength. Coming from your world you are much too weak. Any ordinary person from this world would be a God in your world, able to dominate anywhere they chose as long as the had enough energy. The only problem is that you crossing the dimensional plane into our world left a tiny hole in the barrier that separates our two worlds. To use terms from your world that you will understand it''s like you put a tiny pin hole in a giant balloon. Except this balloon is the size of a planet that is one hundred times larger then your own. Your planet will fill up with spiritual energy eventually over time. This will create a balance between our two worlds that will weaken the barrier till eventually it will crumble and be no more. But that is for another time. Right now you only need to focus on getting stronger. You first exercise will be to run around the clearing, you have until dinner time to complete one hundred laps.


    I am a fair teacher but I am also a firm teacher. I will not coddle you. I''m not your mother. While you are here I will instruct to make you the best warrior possible, but I will not hold your hand through out this training. If you can''t follow my instruction I will expel you from this sanctuary whether you are strong enough to face the outside world or not. You may ask me questions along the way but if I don''t feel they are pertinent to your cultivation I will choose whether to answer them or not. Now begin running your burning daylight.", with that Shanggu Julong walked back into the shack and slammed the door in Chen Zhen''s face.


    Chen Zhen knew there was nothing he could do but to listen to Shanggu Julong''s instruction. He knew Shanggu Julong was right about this world. Just breathing the air made his body full of a potent energy. The water he drank earlier already gave his body more energy than he could handle, and that was only a handful. Chen Zhen could just imagine how powerful a child who drank this from birth would be. That child could probably kill him with a mere slap. This depressing thought spurned Chen Zhen as he started to run his laps. He started off very slowly because the weight of his clothes was more then he thought he could handle. Chen Zhen soon realized that has he took in huge breaths of air he would soon feel revitalized. That small wisp of energy was still circulating constantly thru his body bringing energy to his tired and aching muscles. Before long Chen Zhen could jog one complete lap without having to stop. Even though it still took him the whole day by the time the moon was up in the night sky Chen Zhen had completed his one hundredth lap and returned to the shack with a smile on his face.


    Shanggu Julong had prepared a dinner of a simple stew for them to eat. To Chen Zhen this food tasted absolutely amazing because of the spiritual energy it contained. Shanggu Julong let Chen Zhen eat till his hearts content, then smiled mischievously when he saw discomfort begin to appear on Chen Zhen''s face. When Chen Zhen looked up and saw Shanggu Julong''s face he knew something wasn''t right.


    Shanggu Julong looked Chen Zhen in the eyes and said, "It''s time for you to learn how to cultivate the energy to take into your body. And we need to hurry before you explode¡­.."

 8 Cultivation Genius?

    Chapter 8


    Chen Zhen felt a swelling, painful feeling in his dantian. Hearing Shanggu Julong''s words made him begin to hyper ventilate and panic. Chen Zhen never paid attention to how much energy he took in because the wisp of dragon lightening would always circulate the energy for him. Now for some reason he didn''t understand it wasn''t moving the energy for him anymore.


    As Shanggu Julong saw how scared Chen Zhen was he knew he had to intervene before things got out of hand.


    "I already explained to you that this world is full of spiritual energy that far exceeds anything you have ever experienced before in your life, yet you still took it for granted. If you couldn''t drink more then a handful of water from the stream outside, why would you think that you could eat as much food as you wanted? When you were running laps around the clearing you observed how much energy just breathing the air brought you. Yet you failed to discern that the food would also contain abundant heaven and earth energy? You cannot fumble around and assume I will be there to fix your every mistake. Your life is at stake at every turn in this world. If you aren''t absolutely careful at all times you could pick a fruit from a tree and die from too much energy because you picked a spiritual fruit that is beyond you level of control. Or you could die from the spirit or demon beast that has been guarding that same fruit for countless years waiting for it to mature. This is not your world! The sooner you come to understand this the safer you will be. Now sit down on the floor." Shanggu Julong pretended to be upset there at the end, but he felt it was the only to get Chen Zhen to start to take things more seriously


    Chen Zhen knew he had made a huge mistake. He was so hungry and the food was so good that everything he had learned so far just went right out his mind. With his life on the line and seeing how he had angered Shanggu Julong, Chen Zhen now felt that if he made it past this safely he would strive to be more independent. Just because he was under Shanggu Julong''s tutelage that didn''t mean he was always safe. He had to treat everything as if it would kill him at any moment. That was the only way Chen Zhen felt he could guarantee his own safety. As Chen Zhen sat on the floor he crossed his legs and inclined his head to look at Shanggu Julong. Chen Zhen was no longer panicked or hyper ventilating, he was now fully focused on what Shanggu Julong had to say.


    As Shanggu Julong saw the sudden change in Chen Zhen he was immediately surprised, he had to steel his face to prevent it from showing. The more he observed Chen Zhen the more he felt he was actually worthy of being his disciple. Shanggu Julong at first agreed to teach Chen Zhen out of guilt. The reason he attacked the airplane that Chen Zhen was in was because he had mistook it for a avian beast. When he sensed all the life forms inside of it and he thought some Demon beast had attacked a small village and eaten all of its inhabitants. It wasn''t until Shanggu Julong had flown around Chen Zhen''s world and read the minds of many of its people that he learned of his terrible mistake. Shanggu Julong stayed on Chen Zhen''s Earth as long as he could to learn as much as he could from this strange and exotic planet. A lot of the scientific knowledge from Chen Zhen''s world help him to understand his martial Dao better. As Shanggu Julong had been meditating on some of the things he learned he actually felt he was getting close to a breakthrough. As Shanggu Julong was finally returning to his world he felt a wisp of his spiritual energy entering his world ahead of him. When he saw that not only was Chen Zhen still alive but he was adapting and resisting the pressure from Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian, he made the decision that if he managed to survive this ordeal with his meager strength then he would do whatever he could to help him.


    Now that Shanggu Julong saw the courage and resolution in Chen Zhen''s character, he felt Chen Zhen was much stronger mentally then he first gave him credit for. "Maybe Chen Zhen isn''t the ant we mistook him for.", Shanggu Julong thought to himself.


    "The wisp of my dragon lightening that has been helping you all this time has been removed by me.", Shanggu Julong said as he started to instruct Chen Zhen, "If you had been paying attention to it you would have known by now the correct pathway to use to circulate the energy stored in your dantian to help strengthen your body. Use that you have learned to move the energy in your body around. Judging by the way your dantian is swelling you only have about and hour or two left so you better hurry up and remember." With that Shanggu Julong got up and left the shack.


    Chen Zhen was stunned¡­.! "That''s it¡­ I''m just supposed to remember something that you knew I wasn''t paying attention to? How am I supposed to do that, you must want me to die?"


    Chen Zhen didn''t know what to do or where even to begin. He tried to move the energy in his body but it kept causing him more and more pain. Chen Zhen was trying to stay calm but the increasing pain in his dantian was like a clock counting down to his death. Chen Zhen started to take in deep slow breaths to try and clear his mind to help him think better. It was then that he remembered that clone of himself that he left in his sea of consciousness. When he thought of the clone he was instantly taken right back inside his sea of consciousness.


    [I know how to help you], Chen Zhen heard the clone say.


    "What do I need to do?", Chen Zhen asked.


    The Clone walked up to Chen Zhen and placed his finger on Chen Zhen''s glabella. A bright light flashed and Chen Zhen was brought back to when he was running laps. He could see himself but he could also see inside of himself. Chen Zhen could see exactly were the wisp of dragon lightening was going inside of his body. When Chen Zhen looked down at himself he could see inside of himself again. As Chen Zhen was running beside himself in his memory he was having difficulty moving the energy and running at the same time.


    "I WISH THIS MEMORY WOULD JUST STOP MOVING!", Chen Zhen shouted in his head. To his delight and surprise it actually did. Chen Zhen thought and sudden he zoomed in on just the wisp of energy. It was like controlling a video except the video was in 3D. This made tings extremely simple for Chen Zhen. Soon he was circulating the energy properly and he could feel the swelling in his dantian reducing. Chen Zhen felt this was very comfortable to him so he began to circulate his energy faster. As he was doing this he felt that something wasn''t right. It wasn''t that he was doing it wrong, but that it just wasn''t what was for him. Now that he was paying attention to what he was doing he remembered this feeling was always there.


    [I can fix this for you.], the clone told Chen Zhen.


    "Really, how?" Chen Zhen asked


    [Change the circulation pathway so that it feeds me too. Then I will have the energy need to figure out the right pathways to better suit you], the clone responded.


    As the clone said this a new circulation pathway opened up. As Chen Zhen tried this new method he instantly felt mind becoming clearer. He felt his memories becoming easier to recall. He was amazed by how much his mind was expanding.


    From Shanggu Julong''s point of view it was the most amazing thing he had ever seen. Even though Chen Zhen thought it took him m awhile, to the outside world it happened almost instantly. As far as Shanggu Julong knew Chen Zhen sat down and just started cultivating. He had never seen anyone take to cultivating so smoothly and swiftly. Chen Zhen was like a fish in water.


    "Have I discovered a cultivation genius?", Shanggu Julong asked in bewilderment¡­.


    Now that Chen Zhen knew how to cultivate he quickly used up the energy he had stored in his dantian. He opened his eyes and looked at he steaming food that was still on the table.


    [We need more energy. You go eat and I will cultivate for us.] The clone suggested to Chen Zhen.


    "You can do that?"


    [Yes that is very easy for me]


    "Great this is going to be so much easier. I''ll eat and you cultivate. Twice the reward for half the work!", Chen Zhen thought excitedly.


    As he sat back down to eat Shanggu Julong got very angry with him, thinking that Chen Zhen wasn''t taking his warning seriously. But he was soon dumbfounded when he noticed that as soon as the energy entered into his body it would be swiftly circulated around his body. Chen Zhen was actually cultivating while he eat! Even though this wasn''t a major achievement because any cultivator that had been cultivating for a year or more could easily accomplish the same thing. The reason Shanggu Julong was so astonished was because Chen Zhen had never cultivated before today. This was unprecedented, this was beyond genius status! He had to think of an entirely new training regiment for Chen Zhen now. Even for an Immortal cultivator like himself, training Chen Zhen was going to be exciting.


    As Shanggu Julong got lost in his revelry about how to torture, I mean train Chen Zhen in the future. Chen Zhen was noticing a new bloated feeling in his dantian. But this time it wasn''t painful like before, it was actually quite pleasant.


    [I think we are about to level up...]

 9 Breakthrough

    Chapter 9


    "What do you mean?", Chen Zhen asked his clone.


    [Well since you left me in here since your sea of consciousness was opened I have been observing everything in this world. I have full access to all your memories and analytical ability. Your complete mind is available to me for my use. I''ve been pondering on everything that Shanggu Julong has been telling you, and I believe that as you circulate energy thru your body you will continue to not only strengthen your muscles, bones, nerves, organs, and meridians, you will also slowly increase the amount of energy your body can store at any given time. Right now, your dantian id full and your body has adjusted to the energy in your body enough that it will it is now ready to expand how much energy it can contain.], the clone explained.


    Chen Zhen had a thoughtful expression on his face. This was very exciting to him. He was already getting stronger. Chen Zhen looked as his body feeling his new muscles and admiring the strength of his new body. Chen Zhen was the same height of six feet tall. He was never an overweight person, but he never worked out before either. He was much weaker then he is now in his old world. Chen Zhen''s life didn''t require him to him to be strong and he never found weight lifting to be an enjoyable exercise. In fact, he found weight lifter to be lunk heads to chose to solve all their problems with their fist instead of using their heads. Now that he found himself in a world full of nothing but lunk heads, the importance of his personal strength and growth of that strength was his top priority.


    "Do I need to do anything?", Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [For now, we are just refining your body, I can handle things for now but as you get more powerful you will have to be more hands on. For now, just keep providing me with more energy.]


    This was easy for Chen Zhen, he had already eaten half of the food on the table, so he just kept eating till all of the food was finished. Just as he was finishing the last bite of food Shanggu Julong had come back inside the shack. When Shanggu Julong saw Chen Zhen finish the food and he kept looking for more, Shanggu Julong was once again amazed at Chen Zhen''s improvement speed. Before Shanggu Julong could say anything to Chen Zhen, Chen Zhen ran past Shanggu Julong heading for the stream at the edge of the clearing.


    [We are very close, but our body seems to be able to store energy on a cellular level. So we will need to absorb more energy than a normal person to advance. Fortunately we are still weak enough that simple things in this world can provide us the energy we need.] As Chen Zhen listened to the clone he made it to the stream and bent down to scoop up a handful of water.


    Shanggu Julong stood in the doorway looking at Chen Zhen wondering what he was up to. Shanggu Julong sent out his spiritual sense and noticed that Chen Zhen was about to breakthrough.


    "This is too soon. This guy doesn''t follow any of our worlds conventional rules at all! I have to admit that I''m at a loss as to how to proceed here. The most I will be able to do is offer him some suggestions, but mostly I''ll have to let him figure this out on his own as he progresses¡­..", Shanggu Julong thought to himself perplexed.


    After drinking two handfuls of water Chen Zhen sat down to focus on cultivating. His dantian had completely filled with energy, but instead of it feeling like his dantian was going to break and all the energy was going to flood around his body, it felt like his dantian was suing the energy to make itself bigger. His dantian was the size of peach pit but now it was the size of a plum. Chen Zhen could feel that the energy in his body was more stable and easier to control. He felt very relaxed after his breakthrough, but something didn''t make sense to Chen Zhen. It seemed it him that he had taken in much more energy then what was present in his dantian. Even if some of the energy was used to help him breakthrough he felt that a lot of energy was missing from his body.


    "Why do I feel there is a large imbalance between how much energy I''ve taken in and used, compared to what I have present in my body right now?", Chen Zhen asked his clone while he meditated.


    [The energy you take in is being dispersed throughout your body evenly between you mind, body, and soul. The part that goes to your body is only one-third of the energy you take in, so what you see in your dantian is only that one-third of energy. Another one-third goes to your mind which is absorbed and used by me to help maintain your continuous cultivation, expand your mind and understanding of your body, energy, and cultivation pathways. And finally the last one-third is used to feel your soul, and the other two souls that dwell together with yours. As long as you''re only refining your body you will not need extremely large amounts of energy to progress, but the stronger you become in all aspects because you have to split it between mind, body and soul you will need twice to three times as much energy as normal cultivators to continue progressing. I would say that you next biggest problem will be finding greater amounts of energy to continue progressing quickly or your progression will slow down to a snail pace in a very short period of time. You need to learn more about this world as soon a possible, the more information I have the more of use I will be to you.]


    The clone''s explanation left Chen Zhen perplexed. It seemed that every time he felt he made progress, he had to take two steps back right afterward. Chen Zhen got up and walked back toward the shack, it time he had a good chat with Shanggu Julong. Its time Chen Zhen knew more about this world he now found himself a part of.

 10 Get Stronger

    Chapter 10


    When Chen Zhen walked into the shack he saw Shanggu Julong sitting at the table with a contemplative look on his face. Shanggu Julong looked up as Chen Zhen walked in, he sent his spiritual sense into Chen Zhen''s body. He saw that Chen Zhen had broken through but the energy in his body seemed a lot less then he expected it to be.


    "You said you would answer questions for me as long as they were concerning my cultivation. I have a couple question for you if your ok with me asking right now?", Chen Zhen asked in a very respectful tone of voice. He didn''t want to give Shanggu Julong an reason to reject him right now, he really needed information immediately.


    "Sure what do you have on your mind?", Shanggu Julong was curious to see were Chen Zhen mind was heading when it came to his cultivation. This would allow him to see where he could best use his knowledge to help Chen Zhen progress.


    "My first question concerns my body. The energy I take in seems to nourish not only my body, but my mind and soul also. How do I continue to progress smoothly without it taking too long as I get stronger?", Chen Zhen asked.


    "It''s very good that you have already understood that as you get stronger it will take continuously more and more energy to keep progressing. But before I an answer your question I must ask you a few questions of my own. What do you mean exactly when you say that the energy nourishes not only your body, but your mind and soul also?", Shanggu Julong responded.


    "Well the energy that enters my body strengthens my muscles, skin, and meridians. Part of that energy enters my mind making my thoughts clearer, and my memories easier to retrieve. As far as my soul goes, it helps with the other two souls that share this body of mine." Chen Zhen didn''t mention about his clone in his sea of consciousness, because he felt that this was his own matter that he shouldn''t share with anyone just yet until he understood more.


    Shanggu Julong pondered what Chen Zhen told him for a little bit before letting out a light sigh.


    "What you are experiencing is not normal for average cultivators. Under normal circumstances when a cultivator first begins cultivating all the energy they take in only enhances their body preparing them to be able to hold large amounts of energy. As your body becomes stronger your dantian will increase in size to hold more energy in your body. The more you can increase the size of your dantian the better your foundation will be. After the body enhancement stage is the liquid core formation stage. In the liquid core formation stage you learn to convert the gaseous energy inside of your dantian into a liquid state. This change in state of your energy condenses your energy and gives you much more power in a smaller amount. After you enter the liquid core stage your dantian will stay the same size, so you can now see the importance of having as large as possible dantian by the time you reach this stage.


    In your case because your energy is separating into three parts and enhancing different parts of your body its not putting enough energy into enlarging your dantian. The only way we can change this is to overload your dantian almost to the point of it shattering before your breakthrough to the next level each time before you enter the liquid core stage. I can help, you to do this and I will watch over your future advancements to ensure your safety. But this will require a lot from you. You will have to endure excruciating pain every time you break through. It will put you in harms way, but no pain no gain. If you can endure thru this you will not only come out physically, but mentally stronger also. Your dantian will be twice the size of normal cultivators by the time you enter the liquid core stage, giving you a drastic advantage over other cultivators."


    Chen Zhen looked inside himself and saw his extremely small dantian. He knew that if he was going to survive in this world he would need any advantage he could get. Chen Zhen knew himself well, he wasn''t the kind of man who could take large amounts of pain. He was torn between wanting to agree and worrying whether he could actually survive it each time.


    [It''s ok just tell him you agree. I will help you to endure the pain. My mentality is much stronger than yours. You will have to endure for as long as you can, and then I will take over from there. You will have to learn to be stronger so you we will use this as a way to help train you.], the clone told Chen Zhen while he was trying to figure out what to do.


    "You can really do that? If you can do that why don''t you just endure all of it?", Chen Zhen asked excited that there was a safe solution.


    [Because this world needs you to be mentally strong to make it back to your family. You will experience pain. Are you willing to give up on being with your family again just because you weren''t mentally strong enough? Remember I am here to help you but in the end it is your responsibility to do the work.], the clone said rolling its eyes at Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen mentally nodded to the clone knowing it was correct. He couldn''t be lazy and constantly looking for shortcuts. He had to put in the work to make himself stronger, besides that nothing else mattered.


    "Ok, I will do as you say.", Chen Zhen said to Shanggu Julong as he came out of his revelry.


    "Since you have made your decision then w will have to change our routine. I wasn''t going to have you much but exercise and slowly take in energy to help you progress but now your going to have to take in twice as much energy then I expected. I will leave to get you some spiritual beast meat to eat. Starting tomorrow you will be working three times as hard as you did today. I need you to be completely open and honest with me about the changes happening in your body, so I can adjust any part of the training regimen to better accommodate your needs. Get some rest because tomorrow will be a very busy day for you.", Shanggu Julong said with an excited smile on his face.


    Things with Chen Zhen were getting beyond his control, but now that they had a starting point to work from Shanggu Julong felt himself relax. He could still help train Chen Zhen properly. He knew Chen Zhen had no clue how much pain he was going to be in soon, but as long as he made it thru this ordeal he would be more powerful then any cultivator Shanggu Julong knew, including himself when he was at Chen Zhen level. With excitement growing in his heart Shanggu Julong left to hunt some spirit beast.

 11 Elemental Affinity

    Chapter 11


    Chen Zhen couldn''t sleep so he sat there and meditated on all the information he had learned so far. He was interrupted from his thoughts by the clone informing him of its assumption that as long as he could drastically increase the size of his dantian, then when the other two souls finally awakened, he would be able to greatly increase is strength once again. The clone didn''t go into much detail, but it felt excited with its on conjectures.


    Shanggu Julong returned quickly with the carcass of ow very large spirit beast. One was a Thunder Bison, which was a rank 2 spirit beast, and the other was a Fire Ox, also a rank 2 spirit beast. The Thunder Bison was twice the size of any earth bison. It was similar in size to an elephant. It has two sharp horns on its head that even in death glowed and sparked with a fierce lightening power. As Shanggu Julong skinned and butchered the Thunder Bison he explained the defensive and offensive characteristics of the spirit beast. He explained the differences in rank between spirit beast and how it corresponded to cultivators. Chen Zhen was shocked to know that every one rank of a spirit beast equaled two ranks of a cultivator. So if a cultivator wanted to hunt a rank one spirit beast, then that cultivator would have to be at least a level 2 body refinement cultivator. To be safe most cultivators wanted to be at least level four to solo hunt a rank 1 spirit beast, in order to ensure they would return home safely. Otherwise level two body cultivators would hunt in groups to be safer.


    Shanggu Julong continued to explain which parts of the body were more nourishing to a cultivator''s body and would help speed up their improvement quicker. He showed which parts could be sold for medicinal materials to an alchemist shop, and which parts could be used to refine weapons by a blacksmith. The more mature the spirit beast was the more profit could be made of the materials. Besides hunting to feed their families, many later stage body refinement cultivators hunted spirit beast to harvest materials for sale.


    After butchering both spirit beast Shanggu Julong sat Chen Zhen down and showed him the spirit cores of the Thunder Bison, and the Fire Ox. The difference between a regular wild beast of the field, a spirit beast, and a demon beast is the cultivation level of the spirit beast. Animals didn''t have to cultivate like humans did. As long as an animal was strong enough to survive in the wild for many years it would naturally ingest the vital blood energy of its enemies. This would allow it to develop of time a spirit core in its body. Once a wild beast developed a spirit core its attack power and life span would have a qualitative increase. As a spirit beast attacked and killed more spirit beast, not only would it take in the vital energy of its prey it would eat its spirit core as well strengthening its own spirit core. This is how spirit beast would increase its rank, until it finally reached the demon beast rank. Because of all the vitality that was absorbed from its prey the natural defense of spirit beast was twice that of human cultivators. That''s why human cultivators level had to be twice the rank of a spirit beast in order to fight one. Even then being able to win was not ensured.


    "For the next couple days you will ingest the meat of these spirit beast to help advance your cultivation. But before we do I wish to perform a simple exam to determine your elemental affinity. This is a completely harmless process that will help you find what elements your most compatible with, so we can use the best resources in your cultivation.", Shanggu Julong said to Chen Zhen, "Outside you will find an array that I have set up. You will simply need to sit in the center of the array. Around you, you will find different spirit stones representing the elements of fire, water, earth, lightening, wind, and ice. The colors of the stones are red, blue, brown, yellow, green and white. The array will circulate the different energies into your body, and whichever colors appear around your body are the elements you''re compatible with."


    Chen Zhen was kind of excited to try this out, it sounded very cool to him. As Chen Zhen ran outside like a little kid getting a chance to play with his new toy, Shanggu Julong was shaking his head chuckling to himself.


    Chen Zhen quickly sat down in the middle of the array. As soon as he sat down the array lit up brightly. Fire was the first one to circulate thru him, a bright red glow soon enveloped his body. Water and earth followed but neither color showed on his body. After lightening circulated thru his body a bright yellow light joins the red one on his body. Wind and ice followed after without leaving any new lights on his body. Just as Chen Zhen was about to get up all of the spirit stones lit up brightly. The energy in the stones shot to a spot in front of Chen Zhen''s face. The colors started swirling and formed a rainbow colored glow before him.


    Shanggu Julong instantly sensed when there was a change to the array. This array had been used for centuries and there was never any problem with its functions. The moment something strange began to happen Shanggu Julong was shocked and confused at the same time. Shanggu Julong appeared behind Chen Zhen so fast it seemed he had teleported behind him.


    The rainbow swirling glow suddenly shot inside of Chen Zhen''s chest. Chen Zhen flinched are first because he expected something painful to happen. To his surprise he felt nothing. No pain or any type of discomfort, it wasn''t even a pleasant feeling, he literally felt nothing at all. When Chen Zhen looked at his body he saw a black glow had joined the red and yellow glows that already surrounded his body. As Shanggu Julong and Chen Zhen pondered what this black glow meant, all the energy from the spirit stones was absorbed into Chen Zhen''s body.


    Turning his head to look at Shanggu Julong, "What does that mean?" , Chen Zhen asked.


    Thinking for a while, "Your elemental affinity with fire and lightening is expected because of the souls of Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian sharing your body. As for the black element, I have never seen this before. My best guess is this is the nature of your body from your world. You can absorb all of the elements of this world. Even though we already knew this, this lets us know that you can make every energy in this world your own source of power. You can''t manipulate them as you wish, but you can use them as a way to increase your cultivation. You''re very, very lucky. Any Heaven or Earth treasure you find will be usable by you. You don''t have to look for specific cultivation materials, spirit herbs, or alchemic pills, because all of them are usable by you. If my guess is correct this is truly amazing! Quickly follow me"


    When Chen Zhen followed Shanggu Julong into the shack, Shanggu Julong stood behind the table. With an excited grin on his face Shanggu Julong waved him hand, and the once empty table was filled with hundreds of spirit stones piled high to the ceiling. Chen Zhen was shocked when he saw all of those spirit cores. Most of them were from the water, earth, wind, and ice.


    "Starting tomorrow we will be testing out my theory. Besides eating the spirit beast meat, you will try absorbing the energy in these spirit cores. If this works and you can make this energy your own you will be able to progress very quickly thru the entire body refinement stage in a couple of weeks!", Shanggu Julong said with an excited grin on his face.

 12 Dantian Expansion

    Chapter 12


    The next morning Chen Zhen woke to the smell of grilled meat. It smelt better then any food he had ever eaten before in him life, he was practically drooling as he got out of bed. He ran down to the stream and got cleaned up before coming back to the shack and sitting at the table. There were two plates of meet and a strange vegetable that Chen Zhen had never seen before. It looked like a purple carrot was somehow connected to a cabbage leaf at its point. When he asked Shanggu Julong what it was he explained that it was a very low grade spirit herb that would help his body absorb and refine the energy he took in. This was a very common plant used in many clans and sects when children started to first cultivate. At first Chen Zhen was surprised, but after giving it a little thought he realized that the sooner someone started cultivating the better their chances of reaching a higher realm would be. Since he wasn''t from this world he would literally be treated with kid gloves until he reached at least the liquid core stage. By then his body would be strong enough to withstand more intense training, that was the game plan for now.


    As Chen Zhen started eating he took a bite of the Thunder Bison first. As soon as he swallowed he felt a rush of lightening energy flood down his throat straight into his dantian. This rush of energy was easily a hundred times more potent then any energy he had taken in so far. Even though it was startling because of the volume of energy it wasn''t painful at all. It left a very pleasant feeling in his body. Chen Zhen''s clone quickly got to work circulating the energy around his body.


    Shanggu Julong was observing the energy flow and he noticed that it flowed in a similar path to how he used to circulate the energy around Chen Zhen''s body, but there were slight variations along the way. When he asked Chen Zhen about it, Chen Zhen just said that this felt more comfortable and efficient to do it this way. When Shanggu Julong observed again he saw that Chen Zhen was right. The energy was being absorbed 10% better whit his changes then before.


    "He really is a cultivation genius!", Shanggu Julong thought to himself then said, "When you are finished eating we will try one of the spirit cores."


    When Chen Zhen heard this he wanted to eat faster but the large amounts of energy he was taking in with each bite required time to be circulated and refined. By the time Chen Zhen had finished both plates his dantian already felt extremely full and bloated. Even though the clone was still refining his body he had already reached the peak of level 2.


    Chen Zhen was exactly were Shanggu Julong wanted him to be. If this little experiment worked then Chen Zhen would have an enormous increase in power when he reached level 3. Shanggu Julong had Chen Zhen sit in front of him, with his back facing Shanggu Julong.


    "Chen Zhen as you absorb the energy from the spirit core the flood of energy will be greater then you can handle. This flood of energy will make your dantian want to explode, which is very dangerous for you. If your dantian explodes from too much energy your body will explode and you will die. To prevent that from happening I will siphon off some energy to bring it to a level that is controllable. What we want to do id expand your dantian until it gets cracks in it but does not shatter. As you dantian fills in the cracks we will continue to expand them as much as we can. This will allow your dantian to increase in size two to three times what it normally will. If this works how I planned by the time you are entering the liquid core stage your dantian will be as large or even larger then mine. The advantages you will later on will be tremendous. But you have to remember that this process will cause you excruciating pain. You have to stay focused and keep circulating your energy throughout the entire process. If you pass out before we finish it will cause a chain reaction in your body that not even I can stop. Are you ready?"


    Chen Zhen took in a deep breathe to steady his nerves. The clone once again assured him that they could do this. It was ready to take over as soon as he couldn''t hold on anymore but he would have to start the process. See that he was mentally and physically ready Chen Zhen nodded his head and began to absorb the energy from the spirit core.


    As soon as Chen Zhen started he felt as if you were suddenly plunged under a waterfall of energy and all of it was rushing into his dantian at once. Large cracks appeared in his dantian instantly, and pain the likes of which he had never experienced before in his life almost made him pass out instantly. Right before he passed out, and his dantian exploded the waterfall was suddenly reduced to a trickle. It still took Chen Zhen a while to adjust to the pain and be able to focus again. As Chen Zhen began circulating his energy those large cracks in his dantian slowly started to repair themselves. The repair process would once again shrink his dantian''s size. When this happened Shanggu Julong would let larger amount of energy to flow into his dantian to swell the size and expand the cracks again. If viewed from the outside his dantian would look like a slowly beating heart. This process was very slow, before six hours had gone by and they still weren''t done. At the seventh hour Chen Zhen couldn''t stand the pain anymore and the clone took over for him. Chen Zhen still experienced the pain but he didn''t have to try and focus thru it anymore. At the twelfth hour the spirit core was finally completely used up. As Shanggu Julong removed his hand from Chen Zhen''s back Chen Zhen collapsed from no longer having support. Shanggu Julong picked Chen Zhen up and laid him on his bed. When he checked Chen Zhen''s body he saw that his dantian that used to be the size of a peach pit was now as big as a grown man''s fist.


    Chen Zhen woke up from Shanggu Julong moving him. Shanggu Julong told him to rest up because tomorrow they would be repeating the process once again. The most Chen Zhen could do was nod his head before sleep overtook him.

 13 Awakeneing

    Chapter 13


    The next two days Chen Zhen endured the torture of his dantian being expanded. Each time he could last a little longer before having the clone take over. After the second night before Chen Zhen fell asleep the clone had a conversation with him.


    [You are now at level 4 of body refinement. I felt it was important to inform you that one of the souls will fully awaken tomorrow. Since we don''t know how its awakening will affect you it might be pertinent to inform Shanggu Julong now, so we can postpone your training for a day or two for you to adjust to having a new voice in your head.]


    Chen Zhen rolled over and called to Shanggu Julong, letting him know that one of the souls was going to awaken tomorrow.


    "Really, so soon? I thought it would take a couple weeks to a month at least before they would start to awaken. Now that I think about it, didn''t you say that the energy you took in was being distributed between your mind, body, and soul?", Shanggu Julong asked.


    Chen Zhen nodded his head, feeling sleep overtaking him and trying to fight it.


    "That explains it. Your knew cultivation method has been giving them the energy they needed to awaken sooner. Chen Zhen my boy you really are a genius! But this once again changes everything. I have no way of planning our next move before they awaken so we will have to hold off on expanding your dantian till they both have fully awakened. So starting tomorrow I will begin teaching some of the body strengthening martial techniques of my clan.", Shanggu Julong said with a wicked smile on his face.


    Chen Zhen couldn''t hold on anymore and was already asleep before Shanggu Julong finished speaking. Had he still been awake he would have had a shiver travel down his spine looking at Shanggu Julong''s devilish countenance.


    When Chen Zhen woke up the next day his head had a slight pressure to it. It literally felt full to him. The added pressure was like a migraine making his eyes sensitive to sunlight. Chen Zhen had a light dizzy spell as he sat up. Chen Zhen crossed his legs underneath himself and began cultivating.


    "This feels very weird.", Shanggu Feng said startling Chen Zhen


    "Yes, I agree. This definitely feels very weird.", Lou Tian said in agreement.


    "So you both have awaken. How do you feel?", Chen Zhen asked them. It felt very strange to him having two different voices in his head.


    "I don''t know how to answer that question. I can feel everything that is happening in your body, but I can''t move or control anything. The best I can describe it as is weak. I feel weak.", Shanggu Feng replied


    "I would say weak also. I have control of my sea of consciousness, but other then that I feel as if someone else is moving my body for me. This feel is very disconcerting. What has happened since we have been asleep?", Lou Tian asked.


    Chen Zhen brought the two up to speed on what he has been doing to get stronger. He was honest about everything he had experienced except for his clone. Not even Shanggu Julong knew that his sea of consciousness was still opened to his use. When Chen Zhen explained what Shanggu Julong and he had been doing to expand his dantian Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian became outraged.


    "Has your ancestor gone senile in his old age?! Is he trying to kill us?!", Lou Tian howled.


    "I don''t know what he was thinking but I''m going to give him a piece of my mind as well! His plan is insane!", Shanggu Julong yelled as well


    "Guys look at my dantian before you go questioning whether Shanggu Julong has lost his sanity.", Chen Zhen said to calm them down.


    After checking Chen Zhen''s body the two of them were momentarily speechless. They had never seen or heard of a dantian that big in a level 4 body refinement stage cultivator. At level 4 Chen Zhen''s dantian was the size of a large bowl. There were still six more levels before he entered the liquid core stage. If this continued then by the time he entered the liquid core stage his dantian could hold the power of a solid core realm cultivator. This was insane, this meant if he was trained properly he could jump realms and fight warrior much more advanced then he was. This completely boggled their minds.


    "As to be expected of my revered ancestor! He has always been a genius when it comes to the martial path and always thought outside the box. Chen Zhen you are truly blessed to be lead by such a master on your martial path.", Shanggu Feng said with utmost solemnness.


    Chen Zhen and Lou Tian both rolled their eyes at Shanggu Feng''s thick skin. At this time Shanggu Julong walked into the shack and noticed the change in Chen Zhen''s aura.


    "Good they both have awakened at the same time. Since they are awake we need to experiment to see if they will be a help or a hinderance to your training progress.", Shanggu Julong said with a big grin on has face, and rubbing his hands together like a mad scientist.


    "This can''t be good¡­.", Lou Tian said.


    "You have no idea¡­", Chen Zhen agreed.


    Chen Zhen started by eating the Thunder Bison and Fire Ox again. As he was eating his third plate he noticed it was taking too long to fill his dantian with energy. When he asked the clone he was shocked to find that he now had three separate dantians now. Now that the other two had awakened they were able to store and hold energy as well. This energy is what they would use to cultivate their souls. Chen Zhen was disappointed to find out that he couldn''t use their energy as well. Whenever he tried he found there to be something blocking his attempts. The other noticed the same thing when they tried also. After eating and cultivating all day it took Chen Zhen eating nine plates before all of their dantians were full. When asked Chen Zhen explained to Shanggu Julong about the other two dantians. Shanggu Julong was surprised to learn about this because he couldn''t sense them in Chen Zhen''s body.


    When they were ready to expand their dantians Chen Zhen held a rank 2 Thunder Bison spirit core. As soon as he started to absorb the energy the spirit core was instantly drained. This was the first time this had ever happened. Seeing this Shanggu Julong didn''t seem to be surprised, he just shook his head like this was what he expected to happen all along. Shanggu Julong handed Chen Zhen another rank 2 Thunder Bison spirit core and a rank 2 Fire Ox spirit core. Chen Zhen looked at Shanggu Julong asking was he sure. Shanggu Julong just nodded his head to show it was ok.


    This time he felt the torrent of power flow into him again. The three of them all circulated the energy and felt their dantians crack, but this time the pain was a hundred times less for Chen Zhen. Shanggu Julong and Lou Tian were both very powerful cultivators. Even though their powers were sealed in their souls they were still very powerful souls in their own right. They took the lion''s share of the pain allowing Chen Zhen to fully focus o his cultivation. Because of this Shanggu Julong no longer had to reduce the energy flow into Chen Zhen''s body. Within five hours they had already expanded their dantians and drained both of the spirit cores. Besides having to wipe a little sweat off of his forehead Chen Zhen actually felt fine. His quiet rumination was quickly ruined by Shanggu Julong.


    "Since you can still stand after that its time to learn martial techniques

 14 Fighting Ability

    Chapter 14


    Chen Zhen followed Shanggu Julong outside of the shack, he noticed that now in the clearing there was a stone platform that was three steps up from the ground. The platform was one hundred feet by one hundred feet square, made of white stone tiles.


    "I''ve noticed a couple times that when we have exited the shack that things in the clearing have been different, but you have been with me the entire time. How are you changing things around here without me noticing?", Chen Zhen asked.


    "So you have finally noticed, huh?", Shanggu Julong replied with a laugh, "This is a separate world I have created to shelter you from our world until you are ready to venture out on your own. I have changed the ratio of time here in this partial world to a 1:10 ratio. One day here is ten days in the regular world. I know that your main concern id returning to your family as soon as possible. It will require your strength to grow close to my level before you will be able to return there. It will take some time, to be honest it will take you many years. I did this to help you in a little way to achieve your goal a little bit sooner."


    "Why can''t I just stay in here till I reach the level I need to be able to return?", Chen Zhen asked a little depressed by what Shanggu Julong just told him.


    "When you are walking the path of a martial cultivator you will find that the biggest components to you advancing are experience and enlightenment. When you are in the body refinement stage those aspect don''t come into play, because you are solely training your body to be stronger. But as soon as you enter the liquid core realm the martial techniques you will learn to perform will require you to understand the intent and nature behind the move to truly bring out its greatest power. This can only be done with experience and sometime if your fortunate enlightenment.", Shanggu Julong instructed Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen didn''t fully understand what Shanggu Julong meant but he got the gist of what he was trying to express. At this point they had arrived at the stone platform. When Chen Zhen walked up the steps he saw copper armor sitting on the other side of the platform. The armor looked like something a medieval knight would wear, except that the arms and legs ended in sharp points. As they approached the center of the platform the armor stood up on its own and walked toward Chen Zhen and Shanggu Julong.


    "This is a battle puppet. I want you to show me what you can do. I don''t expect much from you but just try to attack the puppet in front of you. I need to be able to judge your strengths and weaknesses.", Shanggu Julong said


    Chen Zhen stood there for a while thinking what he should do. He was not a fighter, so he had zero fighting skills to rely on. As he was thinking he began to remember all the Kung-Fu movies he had watched in his life. As he kept progressing in his body refinement cultivation his body and mind were getting closer toward a perfect standard. His memory had evolved into a photographic memory. He could clearly remember everything he had ever seen in his life and recall if with full clarity. As he pictured the moves done by the martial artist in the movies his body suddenly became loose and flexible. He could that it was very easy for him to imitate everything the martial artist had done on the screen.


    His favorite martial artist was Bruce Lee. He began imitating Bruce Lee''s moves, attacking the armor with lounging punches to the armors abdomen, and high kicks to the head. His speed was very fast, and the armor didn''t try to block any of his moves. Chen Zhen was feeling good moving his body this was. He began to have fun with it switching between Jackie Chan''s drunken fist and then Jet Li''s Taiichi fist. As he was having fun the clone suddenly informed him that it could combine a lot of the knowledge Chen Zhen had in his brain from martial arts movies, to video games to make a solid fighting style for him. Chen Zhen heartily agreed and felt new information flow into his mind. When he started using this new fighting style his moves became more natural and elegant. He almost seemed to dance around the bronze armor striking it with more and more power with each new blow. Even though his moves looked choregraphed they were still unpredictable and struck from awkward angles.


    When Chen Zhen first started fighting he looked very rudimentary to Shanggu Julong. Even Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian felt he was moving in a very clunky manner. But as Chen Zhen began to adjust his moves they all were very surprised with his combat prowess. By the end they were amazed that he could fight with such strength and dexterity. To seasoned warrior such as themselves they could still see many holes in his technique, but for someone from a world that didn''t focus on martial arts his performance was outstanding.


    "Where did you learn to fight?", Shanggu Julong asked.


    "Hehe¡­. Well to be honest I didn''t. Because of my body and mind becoming stronger, I can remember things that I have seen before with full clarity. I began to imitate the moves I''ve seen martial artist do in my world. We have things called movies which are a moving picture show. I''ve seen hundreds of them in my life, and a lot of them showed battles between martial artist. We also have things called video games were you can choose a character and fight as them using something called a game controller. As I was fighting against the battle puppet I was just using what I had seen before and making it fit what I liked better.", Chen Zhen said with an embarrassed smile on his face.


    Shanggu Julong, Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian were all shacked at what they heard. They had no clue what a movie or a video game was. But to hear that Chen Zhen just copied martial techniques that he had seen and then modified them to fit himself better was amazing. Was that really possible? This meant that Chen Zhen''s comprehension ability was off the charts. Thinking of this Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian now knew why Shanggu Julong said they would be able to learn things from Chen Zhen. For Shanggu Julong this was great news. It meant he wouldn''t have to work so hard to train Chen Zhen''s fighting ability.


    "I want you to attack the battle puppet again but this time it will fight back.", Shanggu Julong said.


    Chen Zhen had just been beating the battle puppet senseless, so he didn''t take this seriously. As he threw a punch at the battle puppet it simply moved it head tom the side to avoid his fist. Chen Zhen was stunned at the speed the battle puppet displayed. Because he wasn''t expecting it to be able to dodge his fist he just stood there with a dumb look on his face. The battle puppet took the initiative to attack Chen Zhen back. Since Chen Zhen was not a natural fighter he had no fighting instincts to speak of. He could clearly see the battle puppet charging at him with it shoulder but he didn''t move to avoid this simple blow at all. After being struck Chen Zhen shot backwards like a cannon ball. The battle puppet followed closely behind him slamming its arms and legs against his stomach, head, legs, and back. If Chen Zhen body hadn''t as strong as it was he would have been covered in bruises and hand many broken bones right now. It would be safe to say that he would have been on the brink of death right now.


    As high as everyone''s hopes were for Chen Zhen, they had now sunk to the very bottom all over again. There hopes of easy training session flew away on the breeze. When Chen Zhen raised his head he could see Shanggu Julong holding his lowered head shaking it from side to side.


    "Kid you are completely hopeless¡­..",Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian both said at the same time.

 15 Instincts

    Chapter 15


    Seeing Chen Zhen in his sorry state Shanggu Julong breathed a sigh of relief. He was looking forward to training Chen Zhen and passing down his vast knowledge and experience to him, but he was beginning to believe there was nothing for him to teach. Now that he could see that Chen Zhen is a blank canvas when it comes to fighting technique and experience, he knew he could mold Chen Zhen into a martial genius.


    Chen Zhen stood up and got ready to attack the battle puppet again, but Shanggu Julong held up his hand to stop him. He walked over and stood before Chen Zhen. He didn''t say anything for so long Chen Zhen felt awkward.


    "I give you credit for your learning ability and your comprehension, but as expected of someone from your world you are sorely lacking. Your moves are¡­''pretty'', but they lack true strategy or striking power. For now you need to gain basic fighting instincts.", to prove his point Shanggu Julong threw a simple punch toward Chen Zhen''s head.


    Chen Zhen merely flinched and waited for the pain to come. When it never came he slowly opened his eyes to see Shanggu Julong''s fist stopped in front of his face.


    "In the world of cultivation you must learn to be fearless. The beast of the fields will not show you any kind of mercy. Savage warriors will kill you without batting an eyelash. You have been raised in a world were death at another person''s hands is viewed as a tragedy, and justice is sought for the offender. In this world death is a tragedy as long as you are the weak one. As long as you are strong you could kill anyone you wished with no remorse if you so choose. But to become stronger you must first overcome your fears.", with that Shanggu Julong lightly flicked Chen Zhen''s forehead, causing him to fly to the other end of the stone platform.


    When Chen Zhen stood back up he was enraged, but before he had the time to voice his anger the battle puppet was already sending a kick toward Chen Zhen''s head. Chen Zhen was once again sent flying by the battle puppet. It once again pummeled him to the ground, except this time it didn''t stop. It continued to punch, kick, slap, and throw Chen Zhen around the platform like he was a ragdoll.


    Chen Zhen was waiting for someone to stop this, but Shanggu Julong just sat there with an indifferent face. Chen Zhen began to feel like he was a kid again back in grade school. He was constantly being picked on and bullied. He was constantly being beaten by bigger and stronger kids. He would always wish and hope for the day when he was strong enough to fight back. In Chen Zhen''s sea of consciousness he was that little kid again crying because he was being beaten up. His clone slowly walked up the scene of him getting beaten.


    [Then why don''t you fight back?], the clone asked.


    "Because I am too weak, and I don''t know how to fight.", the kid Chen cried.


    [Are you sure you are too weak?]


    "Yes I''m sure."


    [Have you tried to fight back?]


    "Yes once when I was a kid, they only beat me harder."


    [But you''re not a kid anymore, are you?]


    As kid Chen heard this it thought for a bit, and as it thought it started to grow up. Finally it was the adult Chen Zhen again. He remembered all of those beating he took as a kid. He felt the anger that developed from his sense of helplessness he felt as a child. He remembered how he never wanted to ever be that help again in his life. As the Chen Zhen stood up he remembered what he had gone thru since he had come to this world. He felt the new strength that was coursing thru his body and he realized how strong he truly was.


    Shanggu Julong felt the mental struggle that Chen Zhen was going thru. A smile started to creep across his face as he felt the energy in Chen Zhen''s body slowly start to rise. Even though the battle puppet was still hitting Chen Zhen none stop he was no longer flying around the platform. The sounds of the battle puppet hitting him slowly switched from the sound of metal hitting flesh, to metal hitting metal.


    Chen Zhen opened his eyes to see the leg of the battle puppet flying toward his head, "ENOUGH!!!!!", Chen Zhen screamed and caught the leg in mid-flight. The force of the leg hitting his hand created a dust cloud around them. The battle puppet then swung its arm at Chen Zhen. He ducked below the arm and pushed the chest of the battle puppet with all his force. The battle puppet became a bronze streak that went flying out off the clearing. Before the battle puppet completely left the clearing it flipped backwards in mid-air and dug its arms and legs into the ground creating a deep furrow twenty meters long that ended in the middle of the stream.


    The battle puppet shot back like a rocket returning faster then it was flung away by Chen Zhen. It continued with its onslaught of attacks. Chen Zhen was just dodging at first, but he was still taking hits. The hits hurt Chen Zhen a lot less than before, but they still hurt nonetheless. Chen Zhen began retaliating with his own attacks. The more Chen Zhen fought back the more his heart started to beat, and his adrenaline began to flow. Chen Zhen was soon loosing himself in the thrill of this battle. He was tired, and he was hurting but he was also getting more and more excited.


    By the time Chen Zhen couldn''t move anymore he was battered and bruised. As for the battle puppet it was a broken and bent pile of scrap metal.


    "You did well for your first time. Rest up tonight because tomorrow you will fight the battle puppet on level 2." Shanggu Julong said as he walked back toward the shack happy with his disciples progress for today.

 16 Energy

    Chapter 16


    Chen Zhen woke up early the next morning. He ate his daily rations of spirit beast meat and used two spirit cores to expand his dantian. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were slowly feeling a little stronger, bit by tiny bit they were starting to regain some of their former strength. Now that Chen Zhen was level 6 of the body refinement stage his dantian was roughly equivalent to a five gallon bucket. Chen Zhen felt he was brimming with energy. As he was running outside to the stone platform he suddenly felt a weight press down on his body making his movements very sluggish. He could now only move at one-tenth his former speed. Chen Zhen''s first thought was that someone had turned up the gravity around him. He tested his theory by picking up a rock and letting it fall. When it didn''t create a large crater next time him he knew the gravity wasn''t the issue. When he looked down at his own clothes he realized the fabric looked much thicker. Chen Zhen remembered how heavy his clothing felt when Shanggu Julong first made them. It seemed that now that he was much stronger Shanggu Julong had increased it''s weight to make his training harder.


    Chen Zhen walked up the stone platform and stood in front of the new battle puppet that was standing there waiting for him. Chen Zhen could feel and energy field around this one that wasn''t there yesterday. Chen Zhen was intelligent enough to understand what was required of him, so he didn''t wait for Shanggu Julong to explain things. As soon as Chen Zhen entered a fighting stance the battle puppet began to attack. Chen Zhen was caught off guard by the speed of the new battle puppet. It was clearly stronger and faster then the one he fought yesterday, and since he was being weighed down now, Chen Zhen could barely put his arms up in time to block.


    Chen Zhen was knocked around the platform for most of the morning without any signs of being able to retaliate. Since Chen Zhen started fighting without asking, nor allowing Shanggu Julong to offer his advice, Shanggu Julong wasn''t going to be forthcoming with any advice either. Lou Tian was observing what was happening to Chen Zhen, but he would just shake his head and go back to cultivating his soul.


    Shanggu Feng could take this anymore, "How could you be so useless?! What do you have this enormous source of energy for in your dantian if your not going to use it?", he shouted in frustration.


    "Don''t give him all the answers, he will have to start using his brain and learn these things on his own.", Lou Tian said chastising Shanggu Feng for interrupting Chen Zhen''s training.


    "Do you not feel any shame at his display of weakness. It may be his body but we all share it. Doesn''t his shame reflect upon us as well?", Shanggu Feng asked in exasperation.


    "What he does or doesn''t do with his body is none of my concern. He has all this energy, but he has never once tried to use it except to cultivate. It is no our fault that he lacks the most basic intelligence to know that all he has to do is circulate his energy thru his body to strengthen his moves while he is fighting. Didn''t you learn that as a child? I know I did.", Lou Tian said in a condescending manner.


    "Of course I learned that as a child, but he is basically a child in our world why do you offer advice instead of¡­. Oooohhhhh¡­..", Shanggu Feng started to say before he realized what Lou Tian had just done.


    "Can you do what they just said giving me a chance to fight back?", Chen Zhen asked his clone.


    [Sure no problem. Let''s take this thing down.]


    Chen Zhen had been curled in a ball on his back at this point just trying to protect his body as much as possible since he wasn''t fast enough to attack back. As the clone began circulating energy thru his body the weight of his clothes began to lessen more and more. As soon as he felt that he could move, Chen Zhen sent a kick to the chest of the battle puppet that had been standing over him raining down blows. The battle puppet was launched over a hundred feet into the air. The battle puppet did a backflip in the air and adjusted itself to fall back down fist first aiming for Chen Zhen. The battle puppet looked as if it were superman flying right toward Chen Zhen. Seeing the battle puppet coming straight back at him Chen Zhen had an idea that left a wicked devilish smile on his face. Chen Zhen bent his knees with his right leg toward the front of him, and is leg facing out and a little behind. Chen Zhen bent forward at the waist and held his right elbow to his right knee, with his fist facing up right next to his face. Chen Zhen pushed energy into his legs and his right fist. Chen Zhen knew he had to time this perfect, so he waited until the battle puppet was just five feet above he head before he released his move.


    "SHA-RYU-KEN!!", Chen Zhen shouted as he launched a flying uppercut directly into the battle puppets head.


    The force of the two colliding caused a small explosion that left a ten foot diameter crater on the stone platform. The battle puppet couldn''t withstand the force of the blast and its head was sent in one direction and its body was launched in another. Chen Zhen landed in the middle of the crater lightly with a small energy field surrounding him. He was looking at himself in amazement. He never thought that would actually work. In his mind he was just joking around.


    "That was a very interesting move you just did there.", Lou Tian said with a chuckle.


    "You should be ashamed of yourself, being so heavy handed with a mere level 2 battle puppet.", Shanggu Feng said with mock indignation.


    "So what did you learn today?", Shanggu Julong asked.


    After thinking about what he experienced today Chen Zhen replied, "The energy that flowed thru my body enhanced my muscles on a cellular level. The more of the energy I pushed thru my body the more explosive the energy I could release. And I found out that I could store energy in my body to release very strong attacks that force the energy out of my body to attack my opponent with amplified force."


    "That''s good. When most cultivators start fighting they begin by first circulating their energy to prepare to use their martial techniques. Tomorrow before you begin fighting I will teach you a very rudimentary martial technique for you to practice. This will teach to get more accustomed to fighting with your energy.", Shanggu Julong said as they walked back to the shack.

 17 Rescue

    Chapter 17


    The next morning after Chen Zhen completed his morning routine he excitedly ran out to the stone platform. Shanggu Julong was already there waiting for him. Chen Zhen was practically hopping from foot to foot like and overly hyper child. Shanggu Julong let him stew in his excitement for a while be fore he began the lesson.


    "You have learned to take in energy and circulate it around your body to strengthen it. And you have learned to store energy to release it for explosive attack power. Martial techniques are a combination of these two acts. But there is also one more factor you have to learn first, using spiritual sense. Spiritual sense is a second sight that cultivators can attain, but it is far more then just sight. Spiritual sense allows you to see the unseen, to feel your environment and not it as well as you know your body. With this, cultivators can know of dangers that may be present beforehand, allowing them to either prepare ahead of time, or avoid the danger all together. The stronger you become the farther your spiritual sense will be able to reach. Once you reopen your sea of consciousness the range of your spiritual sense will be hundreds of miles.", Shanggu Julong explained.


    Chen Zhen had sat down as he was listening to Shanggu Julong''s explanation, now he closed his eyes to see if he could use this spiritual sense for himself.


    "So how exactly do I use this spiritual sense that he was talking about?", Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [First allow your mind to drift out and feel the energy around you.]


    Chen Zhen could feel the abundant Heaven and Earth energy around him. He could feel it entering and circulating around his body.


    [Now open your mind more and allow the energy entering you mind to bring with it am image of what is around you.]


    Chen Zhen started to focus more on the energy that entered into his mind. As he did so he could see the stone platform from where he was sitting. At first he thought it was just his memory of his surroundings, but then he noticed that Shanggu Julong''s long white hair and beard lightly swaying in the breeze. He could see Shanggu Julong walking down the stairs of the platform and heading toward the shack. Shanggu Julong could feel Chen Zhen''s spiritual sense observing him, that''s why he started to walk away. He wanted to see how far he could move before Chen Zhen couldn''t sense him anymore.


    Chen Zhen could see Shanggu Julong leisurely strolling toward the shack, he quickly became distracted by the other things he could see in his environment. First it was the grass in the clearing, then the insects in the grass. Chen Zhen noticed a boulder that was mostly buried under ground. He noticed he could look inside the boulder with his sense like he had x-ray vision. His mind kept wandering and he made his way to the stream. Chen Zhen''s mind followed the water towards the woods at the end of the clearing. As he approached the woods he could feel a strange sort of energy fluctuation. This energy covered the entire clearing like a dome. When Chen Zhen sent his sense into the air it was hundreds of feet of the ground before he encountered the energy again. If this dome was a complete circle its diameter would be at least four to five hundred feet. Curious to know more about hits world and his surroundings Chen Zhen sent his spiritual sense to the woods at the end of the clearing again. It took him some effort, but he was finally able to push his sense thru the barrier. As soon as he did all of the sounds that were being blocked by the barrier came flooding into his mind. Chen Zhen heard the howls that sounded like wolves from the woods near him. When he followed the sound the scene in front of him shocked him to his core! Chen Zhen bolted towards the woods.


    Shanggu Julong stood completely still on the path leading to the shack. As soon as Chen Zhen''s spiritual sense left him he thought that Chen Zhen had reached his limit. Even though Shanggu Julong had been walking slow he still mad it about fifty feet away from Chen Zhen, in his mind this was an excellent start for Chen Zhen. But then Shanggu Julong became startled when he noticed Chen Zhen didn''t reach his limit, he was just bored of looking at Shanggu Julong. The farther Chen Zhen reached with his spiritual sense the more amazed Shanggu Julong became. He was finally coming to understand that normal convention didn''t apply to Chen Zhen. As Chen Zhen''s sense reached the barrier Shanggu Julong had erected for Chen Zhen''s protection, he could feel Chen Zhen trying to force his way thru. Curious to see his disciples limits Shanggu Julong gave Chen Zhen permission to pass thru the barrier. The first thing that Chen Zhen discovered where the rank 2 Shadow Wolves that Shanggu Julong knew lived around here. Next thing that Shanggu Julong knew was that Chen Zhen was hurtling himself toward the wolves at his full speed.


    Chen Zhen''s body met with a slight resistance when he reached the barrier. He pushed thru with all his strength, at this moment every second counted. As Chen Zhen raced thru the woods he could hear the excited yelps from the Shadow Wolves, they had caught their prey and knew they were about to make a kill. As Chen Zhen was running he threw off his shirt, which crashed into a pine tree knocking it down. Without the added weight Chen Zhen was now moving at twice his previous speed. As he was running he was planning his next move with the clone.


    "I need you to provide me with as much energy as you can. I need you to push the energy to my arms and legs. As much as my body can take. I don''t care if it starts to hurt I must save them no matter what!", Chen Zhen said to the clone who just nodded its head. The clone knew just how important this was to Chen Zhen.


    Since these were only rank 2 Shadow Wolves and Chen Zhen was now a level 5 body refinement cultivator Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian weren''t too concerned about their safety, but they were extremely curious as to what was going on with Chen Zhen. What could possibly make him fly off like a bat out of hell all of a sudden?


    Chen Zhen could now see the Shadow Wolves. One of the wolves was already in the air pouncing toward it''s prey as Chen Zhen arrived. Chen Zhen didn''t even think twice, he launched himself in the air and punched the side of the wolf. By the time the wolf noticed Chen Zhen''s presence it was already too late, there was nothing it could do. There was a loud bang and then the sound of breaking bones, it was as if time slowed down. After the sound of the last broken bone time seemed to return to normal and the wolf Chen Zhen just punched was launched twenty feet away before crashing into a tree and knocking that tree over.


    Chen Zhen and the wolves stared at each other. They were all panting in an aggressive manner, at this point no one could tell who was and wasn''t a wild animal. Chen Zhen slowly backed toward the woman and two children, making sure to keep himself between them and the wolves. The remaining three wolves eyed Chen Zhen apprehensively. They didn''t know where this human came from. This is there territory and they had hunted this prey for several days now and this human had never shown up before. Looking at their size each wolf was the size of a horse. They knew they had the advantage in strength and numbers, so even though Chen Zhen had caught their brother off guard they felt they were strong enough to win this fight. Coming to this realization the wolves crept forward tightening their encirclement around Chen Zhen and the others.


    As the wolves pressed forward Chen Zhen didn''t know what to do, he was running on adrenaline and pure instinct. He had to protect the people behind him at all cost, even if it meant giving up his own life.


    Seeing the situation becoming dire Lou Tian decided to help Chen Zhen out.


    "Do exactly as I say right now!", Lou Tian shouted to Chen Zhen, "Take the energy you have stored in your right hand and spin it as fast as you can in your palm. You want this energy to start feeling hot. The hotter you can make it the better! You will know you''re doing it right when you see sparks."


    At the same time Shanggu Feng was also giving Chen Zhen advice, "Take the energy in your left hand and make it vibrate. You want to create as friction as possible. You will know you''re doing it right when you see sparks!"


    Chen Zhen looked inside himself at the clone, but he didn''t even need to say anything. They just both nodded to each other once, Chen Zhen focused on the right hand and the clone focused on the left.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian had never expected Chen Zhen to listen to both of them at the same time. If he had just listened to one of them then that would been fine by them. To their joint surprise both of Chen Zhen''s hands began to spark. As Chen Zhen and the clone push more energy into his hands the sparks grew brighter and more intense.


    The Shadow Wolves could feel the large amounts of energy being pulled into Chen Zhen''s body. As soon as they saw his hand begin to spark they knew they couldn''t wait any longer. Two of the wolves leapt at Chen Zhen, one from the right, the other from the left. Chen Zhen didn''t even think about what he was doing he just punched at the two wolves with all his might. While Chen Zhen''s right was flying thru the air a series of muffled bangs could be heard. As his right fist made contact with the wolf''s head the sparks surrounding his fist became a deep dark red flame. The explosion that followed left a fist sized crater in the wolf''s head and the ensuing flames burned the rest of the wolf to a crisp.


    The left fist began to make a sizzling sound right before it struck the wolf. Upon impact there was a bright flash that made everyone looking close their eyes and turn their head away. It was as if the lightening bolt suddenly struck at that very moment. The wolf hit began to convulse and twitch on the ground while sparks of electricity flashed across it''s body. In the end it was foaming at the mouth and its eyes rolled back in its skull as it died.


    At this point Chen Zhen was a mad man. His eyes were glowing red and his anger caused him to lose control of himself. Chen Zhen wildly took the energy from the lightening and fire that was coursing thru him and began to circulate then together. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were yelling at him to stop before he blow himself up, but he couldn''t hear them. The clone was helping him to balance the opposing energies as much as it could, but this was still putting a huge strain on Chen Zhen''s body. The remaining two wolves stalked back and forth in front of Chen Zhen waiting for an opportunity to attack him. Chen Zhen suddenly put his hands together and started pushing the energy in his body into his palms. A small sphere of flames the size of a marble formed in between his hands. As Chen Zhen forcefully pushed more and more energy into the sphere it started to expand and contract almost like a beating heart, while bands of lightening began to form on it.


    When the wolves sensed this new energy they were instantly frightened! They both took off running as fast as they could to get away from this new threat. Immediately as they took off running Chen Zhen launched himself high into the air in the direction they ran. Holding the sphere of flames that was now one foot wide, swirling with bands of lightening, Chen Zhen aimed at a spot ahead of the wolves and launched the sphere with all his might.


    The wolves who thought they had gotten a good distance away from danger were suddenly blocked by a glowing sphere of flame and lightening. They had no time to react before the sphere hit the ground in front of them and exploded. Everything within a fifty foot radius of the explosion was instantly vaporized. The woods in that area were turned to ash that blew on the wind. Flames and sparks inside of the crater were the only things left until they slowly dissipated as well.


    Chen Zhen saw none of this because the backlash of using so much energy caused his body drain almost instantly. Chen Zhen had passed out as soon as he threw his attack. His body fell ungracefully to the ground leaving him battered and bruised. If his body refinement hadn''t been at level 5 he would have died from the fall, let alone the massive amount of energy he just used. As he lay there the woman and children behind her walk up to him. Looking down they wonder who this stranger that saved them was?

 18 Mei Ling

    Chapter 18


    Shanggu Julong showed up shortly after the woman and children stood over Chen Zhen. The woman and children were forced to the ground by the pressure of Shanggu Julong''s aura, and this was after he had restrained it as much as he could. The woman pulled her kids underneath her to protect them even though she knew there was nothing she could do if this figure wanted to take her life. Her long black hair cascaded down her back and spilled over her shoulders. Looking up Shanggu Julong could see her beautiful countenance.


    "What is your name and how are you related to this man?", Shanggu Julong asked looking at Chen Zhen and not facing her at all.


    "My¡­my name¡­name is Mei Ling¡­.", she stuttered, "and I don''t have any relationship with this man. I''ve never seen him before in my life."


    "What are you doing here?", Shanggu Julong asked, still not looking at her.


    "It is a long story my lord.", Mei Ling said while looking around nervously.


    "You are safe as long as I am here. But depending on what you tell me will determine whether you remain safe.", Shanggu Julong said with an emotionless voice. Mei Ling nodded her head in understanding.


    "We used to live about a hundred miles away from here. My husband was a hunter, and we lived in a village on the edge of the Qin Hong forest. My husband would leave for a week at a time to hunt in a small group of warriors. They would bring back rations for their families and spirit cores that they would pay to the mayor of the village as taxes. About a week ago while the warriors were out hunting, my husband was injured by an object falling from the sky while trying to flee from a rank 4 Vine Snake. They were hunting rank 2 Spirit Foxes when they were lead by the fox into the Vine Snakes territory. My husband was the member of the group, so he stayed back to allow the other members time to flee. He was struck by a flat square shaped object that was spinning down from the sky. It was covered in flames and it wasn''t really able to hurt my husband, but I was told it slowed him down for a second, which allowed the Vine Snake a chance to catch him. My husband was a level 6 body refinement cultivator, even if he couldn''t defeat the Vine Snake he would have been able to at least flee safely from it.


    After the rest of the village warriors returned and told us of what happened the mayor wasted no time trying to make me his play thing. He came up with all kinds of false allegations saying that our family was late on our taxes. He had the power in the village and no one was willing to stick up for our family. So I decided to leave the village with my children, because I feared for our safety. I was on the road when we were passed by a merchant caravan. The young madam of the caravan took pity on me allowed us to join the caravan. I was placed with the cook to help prepare meals. But soon after a couple of the guards started harassing me. Before I could speak with the young madam the guards made their move one night. I fought back and grabbed my kids and ran into the woods. As soon as I lost the pursuit of the guards, I could here the wolves in the woods behind us. We have been running nonstop for the last two days. I truly believed that we were going to die right here until he intervened. But other then that I have no clue who he is. When he first appeared in front of me for a split second I thought he was my dead husband come back to save us one last time¡­.", tears were flowing freely down Mei Ling''s eyes by the time she was finished speaking.


    Shanggu Julong could see that Mei Ling had left her life bare before him. He knew she wasn''t lying to him. As he heard her story he felt a sense of guilt begin to form in him. Shanggu Julong put the time period together and figured that the strange object that killed her husband was most likely a piece of the chair that Chen Zhen fell into this world in. It would have broken out and been flung far away by the impact with Lou Tian. Knowing that her current circumstance was tied to his disciple, Shanggu Julong felt some responsibility toward Mei Ling. A teacher for a day, a father for life. Picking up Chen Zhen, Shanggu Julong told Mei Ling and the kids to follow him as he headed back to the barrier and the shack within.


    Shanggu Julong laid Chen Zhen on his bed. He handed Mei Ling a bottle of medical ointment that he told her to apply to Chen Zhen''s wounds. The kids hid in a corner of the room scared of the new environment they found themselves in.


    As Mei Ling applied the ointment to Chen Zhen she was able to finally get a good look at her savior. As she looked at Chen Zhen''s face she was shocked by his appearance. He looked close enough to her husband''s appearance that they could pass for brothers. Chen Zhen''s height was shorter, and he was a lot skinnier then her husband was, but there was definitely a resemblance between them.


    Shanggu Julong walked back into the shack and handed Mei Ling some bandages to put over Chen Zhen''s wounds. He told her of a shack not too far away that she and her kids could stay in for now. He still had no idea what he was going to do with her. Maybe if she was willing he would sent her to the Shanggu Clan as a maid. Her life there would be safe, and she would be able to earn a living for herself and her children, they wouldn''t want for anything.


    Chen Zhen lay there, and the clone circulated energy to help heal his body. With the help of the ointment and the clone, Chen Zhen woke a couple hours after they returned to the clearing. As he opened his eyes he at first thought he was dreaming. His loving wife was standing over him looking down with care and concern on her face.


    "Xian-er you will never believe the dream I just had, it felt so real.", Chen Zhen said with a smile on his face


    "Who is Xian-er?", Mei Ling asked.

 19 My wife and kids

    Chapter 19


    Chen Zhen sits up a little and cocks his head to the side very confused. When he first opened his eyes he saw Mei Ling who looks exactly like his wife. They even have the same voice. So when Mei Ling didn''t recognize his wife''s name, he was thrown for a loop. As Chen Zhen looks around he sees that he is still in the shack he had lived in for the last week or so. He sees Shanggu Julong sitting at the table enjoying a steaming cup of tea. As he look around his sight lands on the two kids sitting together in the corner by the door. The kids are ages ten and eight. They look identical to his own kids. This is becoming more, and more strange for Chen Zhen. He takes a couple deep breaths and rubs his eyes vigorously. When he opens them and everyone is still where he saw them last he is completely perplexed.


    Mei Ling can see the confusion that is playing across Chen Zhen''s face. To make this awkward situation come to an end she decides to help Chen Zhen by explaining whom she is. She''s intelligent enough to understand that he has her confused with someone else.


    "My name is Mei Ling, and these are my children Chen Zhou and Chen Xiao.", Mei Ling say Waving for the kids to come stand next to her.


    Chen Zhen is surprised to hear the children share a surname with him. Even though the children look identical to his children they have different names. Mei Ling can see that he recognizes the children''s faces. Chen Zhen takes a deep breath to settle himself then stands up from the bed. He walks around to where the children are standing and kneels down to look them in the eye. Chen Zhen can''t keep the tears from his eyes. They look so much like his own children that he misses so much. The kids are not used to seeing such emotion from grown men, so they are a little put off by Chen Zhen''s behavior.


    Standing back up Chen Zhen nods to Mei Ling then walks over to Shanggu Julong. He knows he owes him an explanation for his behavior. At this point Shanggu Julong already has a pretty good idea as to what happened, but he doesn''t stop Chen Zhen from explaining.


    "Shifu I am sorry for my rash behavior. As you have probably guessed when I sensed this family in distress, I mistook them for my own family. They look identical to my wife and children down to the last detail. I know that I have unnecessarily endangered myself in the process. Please for give my lax in judgement.", Chen Zhen said this while trying his hardest to hide his true emotions. He felt that his wife and kids had been taken from him all over again. It was a heart wrenching pain. With his head bowed in front of Shanggu Julong Chen Zhen was too embarrassed to raise his head. His tears were flowing freely now, and his sobbing made him look quite pathetic.


    As Mei Ling and the children heard Chen Zhen''s explanation for saving them, and then saw his emotional outburst, a part of their heart that had begun to grow cold was warmed by what they saw. To this family Chen Zhen started to remind them of their lost father and husband.


    Mei Ling came up behind Chen Zhen and gently rubbed his back in a consoling manner. The children seeing their mother trying to console Chen Zhen came up and gave him a hug, expressing their gratitude for saving their lives. Shanggu Julong let out a big sigh, shaking his head. This disciple of his was too emotional, in this world that would only end up causing him troubles later on. But even Shanggu Julong was touched by this warm family scene in front of him.


    Clearing his throat Shanggu Julong said, "Since you are safe that is all that matters right now. Mei Ling and her kids can stay with us for now. I will arrange for her to be hired by my clan. They will be able to work and support themselves. I will make sure the clan takes very good care of them, they will want for nothing."


    Hearing this Mei Ling''s face lit up with surprise. She quickly grabbed her kids and they all kowtowed low in front of Shanggu Julong thanking him for his immense generosity. They kept going till Shanggu Julong had to use a little energy to lift them up from the ground preventing them from being able to continue. Knowing that they were going to be safe and taken care of Chen Zhen was especially happy and relieved. Mei Ling looked at Chen Zhen with a smile that could light up the room, making his heart melt a little.


    Shanggu Julong shooed Mei Ling and her kids to their own shack so that he could discuss with Chen Zhen about his display of power today.


    "So explain to me what you did today, walk me through it step by step."


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were curious as well. They had never seen someone in the body refinement stage doing what Chen Zhen did today.


    "At first I was following your instruction on sensing the energy around me. Then I began to see in my mind what was happening. This became more clear to me as soon as I could see you walking away from me. Then I began to sense more of my surroundings. I followed the stream to the end of the clearings near the woods. I could feel a new energy blocking me from going further. I pushed against the energy with my mind until it gave what and let me thru. As soon as I could sense the woods my mind locked onto the sound of a woman''s scream. It sounded so much like my wife''s voice that I sent my sense rushing to the sound. As soon as I saw Xian-er, I mean Mei Ling and the kids, my every instinct told me to protect them. I wasn''t thinking much after that I just rushed to where they were. After I got there, and the wolves began to surround us, Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian both began to advise me at the same time. I didn''t have time to sort out what they were saying so I just listened to both of them at the same time. After the attacks worked I was in such a rage over what I thought was my family being attacked I just wanted to kill those wolves. I wanted to use all the energy in my body to hurt them. Since the wolves took off running and I knew I could follow them both, I just threw everything I had in me into an attack. By the way did it work? Probably not, huh?"


    Silence lasted for a long time. Neither Shanggu Julong, Shanggu Feng, or Lou Tian knew what to say. Was it really possible to be that lucky? Was it possible to say, "I wanted to be invincible, so I just was?" Chen Zhen didn''t even know if his attack worked. He just made up something on the spot because he was mad at the wolves? Is this guy for real? Chen Zhen began to feel he did something horrible wrong because Shanggu Julong just sat there not saying anything.


    "I want to begin by saying never, ever do that again. You have no idea how fortunate you were that you didn''t blow yourself up with that little stunt you pulled. Energy is a force of nature. We as cultivators learn to slowly manipulate that energy over time. It is a slow and steady process. If you try to cut corners or skip ahead before you are ready you will more than likely kill yourself in the process. You are very lucky that when you formed those to energies together that you didn''t create an imbalance and incinerate not only yourself but Mei Ling and the kids in the process. Your foolishness nearly killed those who you were trying to save. Yes your move worked this time but there is no telling what will happen the next time. That is why martial techniques were created. When a cultivator utilizes a martial technique the energy they take in is channeled thru bodies to stabilize the energy before it is released along a specific meridian pathway. This is to ensure the smooth transition of energy and to protect the cultivator from backlash which can do detrimental harm to your body. You were fortunate enough to receive a very mild backlash this time, but next time you could possible cause irreversible damage to your body."


    Chen Zhen was surprised by what he heard. He had no idea that martial cultivation was so technical. There was almost a science to it. He was very much afraid of the potential consequences of his actions. But at the same time there was a spark of joy in his heart. His move had actually worked. He could remember clearly how it felt to form that energy together. It was very difficult to him to maintain it, if it hadn''t been for his clones help the result would have been very detrimental to his life. Chen Zhen knew that Shanggu Julong would never approve of him practicing that move in order to perfect it, so he planned to have the clone research it later.


    "Since your soul brothers have already begun to teach you, and you are strong enough to fight the weaker spirit beast, I will allow them to continue training for now. I will take this time to journey to the Shanggu Clan and make arrangements for Mei Ling and the children.", Shanggu Julong said before he got up and left. He stopped in Mei Ling''s shack to give her an interspatial ring that had provisions for them, asking her to prepare meals for Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen, Shanggu Julong, and Lou Tian were all wondering the same thing, "Soul Brothers??"

 20 Interspatial Ring

    Chapter 20


    When Chen Zhen stood up he noticed there was a ring left on the table. The three of them could hear Shanggu Julong''s voice in their head, "That is an interspatial ring. It has enough supplies of spirit cores for you to reach the liquid core stage. I want you to keep expanding your dantian every morning until you reach the liquid core stage. In the meantime, since I will not be there to control the battle puppet, I want you to go into the woods to gain real life experience and to temper yourself. By the time you have reached the liquid core stage, I should have everything set up for Mei Ling and the children at the Shanggu Clan. Your job will be to escort their family safely to the clan. I will wait there for you to check your progress. Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian have plenty of martial knowledge they can impart to you, so follow their lead. As far as your journey to the Shanggu Clan goes, I have left a silver battle puppet that is equivalent to a peak solid core cultivator. It has just two uses available to you and will only activate when your life is truly in jeopardy. The three of you are more powerful when you are together, remember this. I expect great things from you."


    Shanggu Julong had left well before his message to them had ended. Chen Zhen was a little confused by the cryptic message at the end. Chen Zhen, Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian shared the same body. They literally couldn''t be separated. To the three of them the meaning of Shanggu Julong words was lost on them. Chen Zhen picked up the interspatial ring and examined it. It looked like a flat green jade ring with a dragon and phoenix circling it. It seemed that Shanggu Julong had made it especially for him.


    "How do I use this?", Chen Zhen asked.


    "Pinch the tip of your finger and place a drop of blood onto it.", Shanggu Feng answered.


    That''s sounded unnecessarily painful to Chen Zhen. But he did it anyway. Chen Zhen hadn''t realized how much his pain tolerance had increased, he barely felt that at all. As soon as his blood dropped onto the ring it expanded briefly, then shrunk to fit his right ring finger perfectly.


    "Now send your spiritual sense into the ring.", Lou Tian said.


    When Chen Zhen put his sense into the ring, all three of them were amazed by how much room was in there. This was definitely a top high grade spatial ring. It could hold a warehouse worth of items. The storage area was three hundred meters wide, by one thousand meters long, by two hundred meters high. As Chen Zhen focused down into a tiny corner of the ring he fifteen each of the rank 2 Thunder Bison and Fire Ox spirit cores. There was also the silver battle puppet sitting like a string-less puppet next to the spirit cores.


    "Since Ancestor Julong and you didn''t officially have a master/ disciple ceremony and exchange gifts. This is mostly likely his way of giving you a gift worthy of his status. This top high grade spatial ring will be useful forever. And since Ancestor Julong made it personally you can be sure its made of only the best materials.", Shanggu Feng said proudly, as if his ancestor''s accomplishments were his own.


    With his new ring in hand Chen Zhen went outside to the stone platform. In his mind he had named this his training platform. As soon As Chen Zhen stepped onto the platform a light flashed and he had a new set of training clothes on. These were easily twice as heavy as his last set of clothes. Chen Zhen started by exercise his body to grow accustomed to the new weight. He didn''t want to risk his life just yet in the woods outside the clearing. Chen Zhen spent the day practicing the moves he had been taught by Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian in the woods. They explained that he wouldn''t be ready to learn the next step of the martial technique until he could instantly cause fire or thunder to appear in his hand with but a single thought. At first Chen Zhen was allowed to stand still and circulate the energy in his body until his hand ignited in fire and thunder. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian tried time and again to get Chen Zhen to focus on one or the other. But Chen Zhen refused to listen to them, he had first done it this way and that was how he would stick to doing it. As the day drew on They had him throwing punches and kicks while also igniting his hands. To Shanggu Feng''s, and Lou Tian''s surprise Chen Zhen began to ignite his feet also to compliment his kicks. Chen Zhen never ceased to amaze them with his comprehension and unorthodox way of thinking.


    Whenever Chen Zhen would get tired Mei Ling would bring him some water from the stream and some spirit beast meat on a platter to help him replenish his energy. As Mei Ling observed Chen Zhen''s practice she was astonished to learn that he was such a novice. Due to his display in the woods when he was saving them, she naturally assumed he was a seasoned fighter like her husband. She would sit under a tree in the yard of her old home and watch her husband practice for hours, so she was very familiar with fighting talent. Even though Chen Zhen showed remarkable potential, he was still very lacking when it came to her husband''s abilities.


    By the time the sun had set, and the moon was high in the sky Chen Zhen was finally quitting for the day. He could ignite his hands and feet at will while he was fighting now. Shanggu Feng, Lou Tian, and Mei Ling were all impressed by Chen Zhen commitment and perseverance. Chen Zhen knew that the only way to see HIS family again was to become stronger. Having Mei Ling and the kids around gave him a familiar feeling, but he understood that it was a false feeling. They weren''t his family. As he practiced he kept that as his mantra to keep himself focused throughout the day. Chen Zhen was happy with his progress for today, but he felt that it was missing an edge that fighting someone or something else brings. He was ready to explore the woods around the clearing tomorrow to better improve his fighting skills.


    The next morning Chen Zhen finished his routine in record time. He rushed out to the training platform and felt his clothes weight increase once again. He spent a couple hours adjusting to the new pressure on his body, before he felt comfortable enough to try leaving the clearing. When Chen Zhen stepped thru the barrier this time he took his time and observed his surrounding first. Now that he took the time to pay attention, Chen Zhen couldn''t help but gawk at the size of the trees around. Every single one of them had a massive trunk size, big enough that it would take ten to fifteen grown men to reach around just one of them. Looking up Chen Zhen couldn''t see the tops of the trees they were so high. The dense foliage blocked most of the sun creating a constantly twilight in the forest. The clearing that Chen Zhen was used to was its own separate world. The features were entirely different from what was around them. This extreme contrast was completely unexpected by Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen stretched his spiritual sense as far as he could to try to get a better understanding of his environment. Chen Zhen noticed many rank 2 spirit beast in his direct vicinity. The farther away he sensed the more powerful the spirit beast became. Chen Zhen quickly retracted his spiritual sense when began to notice the irritation of some of the stronger spirit beast. Since he was already familiar with the Thunder Bison and Fire Ox, Chen Zhen headed toward their territory to try his luck hunting.

 21 Hunt 1

    Chapter 21


    As Chen Zhen was running thru the woods he went over the plan he had in his head with Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian concerning his training. He would see how difficult it was to fight the rank 2 Thunder Bison and Fire ox first. He would fight them until it became easy to defeat them. From there he would move on to the rank 3 Frost Mammoth. He was told by Lou Tian that they had a very strong defense to make up for their slow speed.


    When Chen Zhen arrived at the Thunder Bison territory he found one foraging along by itself. Besides being highly territorial The Thunder Bison''s were family oriented, they would often be seen traveling in family herds through the forest. Chen Zhen hadn''t learned to hide his aura yet so as soon as he was within the Thunder Bison''s sensing range it immediately noticed him. Chen Zhen didn''t mind being spotted, he wasn''t trying to sneak up on the Thunder Bison. As the Thunder Bison came charging at him he was surprised by its size. He had never seen a Thunder Bison before, he had only eaten whatever Shanggu Julong had given him. Even though he knew Shanggu Julong had large amounts of bison meat, Chen Zhen just assumed it was from multiple bison. Haven seen the size of this beast for himself, Chen Zhen realized that Shanggu Julong only needed to kill one bison to feed him for a week or two at a minimum.


    Chen Zhen didn''t underestimate this Thunder Bison at all. He sent power to his hand and feet, creating flames on his right and lightening on his left. The Thunder Bison was intimidated by Chen Zhen''s power, it only enraged it more to see Chen Zhen prepare to battle it in its own territory. The Thunder Bison lowered its head and sparks could be seen flashing across the horns on its head. When it was twenty feet from Chen Zhen it suddenly released a lightening strike from its horns. Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian didn''t give Chen Zhen information on the Thunder Bison''s attacks because they wanted to see how he would respond in this situation. Even though this was unexpected Chen Zhen still reacted quickly to this attack, he shifted his stance to his left and took the brunt of the lightening on his left arm. Chen Zhen felt a slight tingle in his arm but otherwise he was fine. The angle of Chen Zhen''s body and the forward push of the bison slid Chen Zhen out of the way of the bison''s charge. As the bison was passing in front of Chen Zhen he took the opportunity to punch with all his strength. Chen Zhen still wasn''t sure where the limits of his strength lied, and he hadn''t exactly learned to control his strength yet. As Chen Zhen threw his punched he pushed all his energy into his right fist, the flames surrounding his fist tripled in size. Before his fist even touch the side of the bison its hairs were already burned away. The closer his fist got the more of a depression formed in the side of the bison. When his fist finally connected all of the energy was released at once in a thunderous explosion that sent this two-ton creature flying thru the air. The Thunder Bison''s internal organs were roasted to a crisp before it even hit the ground. Chen Zhen ran over to the bison carcass to see exactly what he did. He approached it cautiously thinking it was just hurt and not dead yet. As Chen Zhen circled around it he could already smell roasted meat. When he checked the bison with his spiritual sense and realized he had killed it with one punch he was amazed at himself.


    "Take that Siatama!", Chen Zhen cheered in his head.


    Chen Zhen was standing there gloating over his first kill when a loud roar came from not too far away.


    "That is one of the Blood Lions! It''s a rank 4 spirit beast. You are not ready to face one of those. Hurry up and place this in your interspatial ring and get out of here!", Shanggu Feng shouted to Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen waved his hand and the Thunder Bison vanished. He would never get used that, it was so cool! Chen Zhen immediately took of running back to the clearing. As he was running he could hear the roars of the Blood Lion getting closer. Chen Zhen was a hundred yards from the clearing when his sense felt the Blood lion entering his range. As fast as Chen Zhen was running it seemed as if he was standing still, that''s how quickly the Blood Lion was catching up to him. Chen Zhen was still ten yards from the clearing when it felt as if the Blood Lion had teleported behind him. Chen Zhen leapt forward jumping the last thirty feet and entering the clearing in the nick of time. Cold sweat was running down Chen Zhen''s forehead as he stood up form where he had landed. Chen Zhen winced in pain when he made it to all fours. Looking over his shoulder he could see four bloody slashes, two across his shoulders and lower back, and two along the back of his legs. Chen Zhen realized that he was very fortunate to be alive. When Chen Zhen first started hunting that Blood Lion was no where around. Today''s experience was a huge wake up call for Chen Zhen. He now knew he had to be a lot more cautious when he was out hunting.


    Chen Zhen hobbled to Mei Ling''s shack. When she saw the condition, he was in she was instantly astonished by his injuries. She rushed him back to his shack and laid down to apply ointment to his wounds. Mei Ling tried to be as delicate as possible, but Chen Zhen still cried out in pain a couple times. Mei Ling was well practiced since she used to help her husband out the times he came home injured as well. The medicinal effect of the ointment caused Chen Zhen to fall asleep before Mei Ling was done. She stood up looking at him and was reminded of her husband once again. Memories flood her mind and before long Mei Ling was fighting back her tears as she quietly left his shack and headed to her own.


    The next morning Chen Zhen woke up and was surprised that he wasn''t in any pain. As he stood up and stretched his body he found he had full mobility. The medicinal ointment was better then the best medicine from his world. This was completely incredible. He remembered that Mei Ling had brought him home and help apply the ointment to him. He went to her shack and thanked her profusely, while be bowed low to her. She was thrown back by his display. She wasn''t worth of such gratitude, especially having him bow low to her. He had saved the lives of her children and herself. If he wanted to claim their lives for his own he had every right to do so. Besides all she had down was apply a little ointment to his wounds, that was nothing compared to saving their lives. She quickly told Chen Zhen not to worry about it. The more she was around Chen Zhen the more she found his behavior to be strange.


    "Do you know how butcher a Thunder Bison?", Chen Zhen asked her sheepishly.


    "Yes, I do. I used to do that for my husband when he returned from hunting.", Mei Ling replied looking at Chen Zhen a little weird.


    Chen Zhen mistook her look for annoyance, it was the same look that Xian-er would give when she was getting pissed with him.


    "I have the Thunder Bison I hunted yesterday, and I don''t know¡­. how¡­", Chen Zhen was to embarrassed to finish his statement, he just stood there rubbing the back of his head like a simpleton.


    Mei Ling got the gist of what he was trying to say and took pity on him offering to butcher it for him. Chen Zhen was about to release it out of his ring before Mei Ling stopped him. A Thunder Bison was way to big to fit inside of her small shack. Chen Zhen laughed at himself with a goofy grin on his face and went outside to drop off the bison.


    "Try to be more careful this time¡­.", Mei Ling stated meekly out of concern for his well-being as Chen Zhen started to run away.


    "I will. I won''t put you in that position again.", Chen Zhen said with a very serious face, before turning around and heading out at full speed.


    Mei Ling realized Chen Zhen misunderstood her again but shook head hopelessly as she watched him disappear.


    Out in the woods Chen Zhen wasn''t in a rush to pick target this time. He wandered around observing the different groups of animals. Chen Zhen was hiding in a tree overlooking a family of Fire Ox, when suddenly a line of light appeared out of thin air under the tree next to him. If it wasn''t for the light he wouldn''t have known it was there, he couldn''t sense any energy fluctuations at all. As Chen Zhen stood there watching three people slowly walked out of the light.

 22 Hunt 2

    Chapter 22


    Chen Zhen watched as the people stepped thru the white light shaped doorway. The first to come thru was a very tall hairy man. He stood almost eight feet tall with a mass of curly hair on his head and face. He had really bushy brows, but his upper lip was devoid of hair. He had sharp canine teeth that protruded below his lower lip. He began sniffing the air as soon as he stepped into this world. He walked around sniffing the area as the next person stepped thru the doorway. It was a female, she stood about six inches shorted then the male. She looked like a mix between a human and a white tiger. Her white hair that flowed down her back had black tiger stripes mixed in. Hair or maybe it was more apt to say fur could be seen down her neck, along the back of her arms, and even covering her feet. Her fingers and toes had sharp talon like claws on them. Her ears could be seen twitching as she circled the area in the opposite direction as the first man. Finally, the biggest man Chen Zhen had ever seen emerged from the doorway. He was almost nine feet tall and the width of his shoulders along was easily five feet. He looked to be of African descent and his hair was in braids tied behind his head and He was wearing a black armor that morphed into regular clothes after he step completely into this world. He turned around and Chen Zhen heard him tell someone named Aviana to stay where she was, and they would be right back. Apparently she didn''t appreciate this and was throwing a fit as the doorway closed in her face. The large black man could be seen shaking his head as he let out a hopeless sigh.


    "Vrkane, Bengala why are you pretending to search when you already know Chen Zhen has been watching us this whole time.", the black man said in a deep baritone voice.


    His two companions shrug their shoulders with a guilty look on their faces knowing that had been exposed. Chen Zhen who had been sitting there completely still and quietly observing them was instantly put on guard. He had no clue who these people were, nor how they knew him. Adding in the fact that they knew where he was made Chen Zhen very apprehensive. Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian both had their guards up as well. As powerful as their souls were they couldn''t sense anything from these people. The only way that would be possible id if these people had a power level too high for them to sense. They could even sense Shanggu Julong, but even as powerful as he was Shanggu Julong''s power paled in comparison to these individuals. Shanggu Julong is an Immortal cultivator, what did that make them, Gods¡­?


    Chen Zhen still hadn''t moved a muscle when the black man finally looked up at his hiding spot in the trees.


    "My friend Chen Zhen, why don''t you come down and we can have a chat?", the black man said with a warm friendly smile on his face.


    "What should we do?", Chen Zhen asked the others.


    "It seems to me that they are very powerful beings. If they meant us any harm we would have been dead already. Finding out what powerful beings like this want with you shouldn''t be a problem. This my be a blessing for you.", Lou Tian suggested.


    Shanggu Feng reiterated the same sentiment. Since they were unanimous, Chen Zhen lightly hopped down from the tree branch he had be crouching on. When he landed he was once again impressed by the height of the three of them. He felt like a small child in comparison.


    "My name is Jerry, and as you her me say earlier these two are Vrkane, and Bengala. It''s a pleasure to meet you again for the first time.", Jerry said laughing to himself at the joke he just made.


    Vrkane and Bengala shared a look and rolled their eyes, clearly not appreciating Jerry''s humor. Jerry turned around and Chen Zhen could see a campsite with a roaring fire was prepared behind them. This campsite wasn''t there a second ago. This was getting weirder by the second. Chen Zhen followed them into the campsite and sat on a log across the fire from them.


    "I know you are very confused about all of this, and I''m sorry to tell you that you will just as confused when we leave. But know this meeting is truly momentous indeed. If you can stay focused you will attain great things in the future. You will meet with great challenges that will push you to your limits and beyond, but you must persevere. You have the potential to be the hope of not just this world, or Earth but many other realms.


    This warriors of this world have been cultivating for thousands of millennia but that doesn''t mean they have figured out everything just yet. You have a unique perspective, don''t lose that, it will lead to your greatness. And no matter how dark your situation seems, never give up hope.", Jerry said with a serious face.


    As soon as Jerry finished talking the rank 4 Blood Lion roared from very close to their campsite. Chen Zhen jumped up in fear. He was so focused on what Jerry was telling him that he let down his vigilance.


    As Jerry and his companions saw Chen Zhen''s fear they quickly reassured him that it was ok. Before Chen Zhen could warn them the Blood Lion was already right behind them. Jerry simple reached his left hand behind him a flicked his index finger. The entire world shook from that single move. The Blood Lion split in two as if someone had unzipped it causing its skin to peel away from its skeleton. Bengala jumped up and gently swiped her hand, causing half of the Blood Lion to be sliced into large chunks. The chunks flew over to Vrkane who was waiting by the fire. He skewered them onto a spit and placed them over the fire. In next to no time the fragrant smell of roast meat filled there little campsite.


    Chen Zhen''s mind went blank as their display of strength. He didn''t know how much strength they just used but it seemed like the simplest of things for them to kill a beast that almost took Chen Zhen''s life the day before. Chen Zhen wasn''t sure what he had to do or how long it would take him, but he wanted this type of power. Chen Zhen didn''t see where Bengala got the seasonings from, but she began to season the meat while Vrkane continued to rotate it on the spit. The smell was so enticing that Chen Zhen was literally drooling on himself wanting to jump into the fire and begin eating right away. Jerry began to laugh at Chen Zhen''s antics, soon after the meat was cooking. The juices were glistening on the marbled meat shanks. Bengala handed Chen Zhen piece, and Chen Zhen couldn''t restrain himself any longer. He attacked it like he had never eaten before in his life. The first bite was so good Chen Zhen closed him eyes and groan in ecstasy as the meat melted in him mouth becoming a rush of pure blood energy that permeated into ever cell in his body. Chen Zhen''s body felt so comfortable at this moment. The energy coursing thru his body spilt between Shanggu Feng, Lou Tian, and himself. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian felt their souls nourished by the energy. This was very unexpected, the blood vitality from the Blood Lion meat should have only been good for physical bodies. It shouldn''t have had any effect on their souls. When Chen Zhen asked about this for them they found out that the seasoning used on the meat was meant to help Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian. All three of them were amazed that Jerry even knew about his soul brothers as well. Knowing that this feast was basically prepared for them Chen Zhen gorged himself on the Blood Lion meat. He felt his body and soul filling with a tremendous energy. When all of the cooked meat was eaten Chen Zhen sat cross-legged on the ground and began cultivating. All three dantians were filled to the brim with energy. As Chen Zhen was expanding his dantians Jerry was thinking if he should give Chen Zhen a gift to celebrate their first meeting. Vrkane and Bengala thought it was a good idea as well.


    When Chen Zhen finished cultivating Jerry walked up to him and opened his hand. At first there was nothing there, but soon tiny back orbs began to form and spin around inside of Jerry''s palm. As the orbs got closer together they would merge into each other becoming bigger. Small spurts of flames and electricity would flash off of the orbs as they bumped into each other. Soon they all melded together forming one solid black orb the size of a large grapefruit. Before Chen Zhen could ask what it was Jerry thrust his hand out and pushed the orb into Chen Zhen''s head. There was no resistance as the orb fused into Chen Zhen''s head.


    "This is a weapon orb. When you are strong enough, and you have chosen which weapon you wish to fight with in the future this weapon orb will become your greatest ally. It will grow with you, sharing the same attributes as yourself. I have done far more then I should have, but I like you, so this gift is the least I could do. Take the rest of the Blood Lion with you, its meat and spirit will be very help to you. And remember what Shanggu Julong told you together you guys are strong then apart.", with that a white light enveloped Jerry, Vrkane, and Bengala.


    Chen Zhen stood there in a daze long after they were gone, still not understanding what had just happened to him.

 23 Creating a technique

    Chapter 23


    Chen Zhen shook his head to clear it then turn around and headed back to the clearing.


    "Who do you think they were?", Chen Zhen asked Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian.


    "If I had to guess I would say that you just encountered Gods in human form. But I have never heard of any Gods having their specific appearance.", Lou Tian said


    "I have never heard of them either. They maybe Gods from your world, drawn here by the spiritual resonance you share with your realm. They seem to know exactly who you are, even if you don''t know who they are.", Shanggu Feng said.


    Chen Zhen nodded his head in agreement with Shanggu Feng. What he said made sense to Chen Zhen in a strange way. Their familiarity with him was a little disconcerting. Chen Zhen didn''t like people knowing who he was when he couldn''t say the same about them.


    "Well it''s safe to say that they weren''t here to harm you. You must have been born under a Fated Star. You are a very fortunate individual. To be blessed by a God. Its truly amazing to experience that. Choosing to be join with you was the right decision indeed! Plus the power he just displayed was incredible! I wonder which Dao he cultivates? He was truly and amazing warrior!", Lou Tian rambled on like a star struck fan girl.


    "I know I have never seen such immense strength! All he was flick his finger and he almost caused the entire world to collapse! Are you kidding me? My soul felt like it was going to disintegrate at any second, and then I felt the most gentle caress of power stabilize me. The things he spoke sounded like nonsense but also extremely profound at the same time. And this sphere that he gave us, what is it exactly?", Shanggu Feng replied also like a crazed fan.


    Chen Zhen was had stopped dead in his tracks completely dumbfounded by these two. If he didn''t know any better he would think he shared his body with the souls of two love struck school girls. Shaking his head Chen Zhen continued to run back to the clearing. As he ran he asked the clone to see if it could figure out what that black sphere was also. He could see part of it when he entered his sea of consciousness, but it was only around a third of its full size. He figured the other parts when in Shanggu Feng''s and Lou Tian''s sea of consciousness respectively.


    [I don''t know exactly what it is, but it is slowly releasing a very powerful spiritual energy that is being absorbed by your soul. It is also taking energy from your soul to refine itself. My guess is that it will that years for this process to be completed. By then this black sphere will literally be apart of your soul.], The clone extrapolated.


    The clones computational ability far exceeded that of Chen Zhen, so he trusted its opinion on this matter. Since it wasn''t hurting him, and was slowly fusing with his soul, Chen Zhen decided to forget about it for now. His body was still bursting with energy from the Blood Lion. The energy circulating thru his body was nourishing his muscles, meridians and bones. He could even feel it nourishing his marrow. He felt more alive now then he ever did before in his life. He wondered if this is what they meant by increasing his vitality. He was excited to share this Blood Lion meat with Mei Ling and the kids.


    As soon as he got back to the clearing he made a beeline straight for Mei Ling''s shack. This was the first time that Chen Zhen had come by after dark, so Mei Ling was a little startled to hear him knocking. Chen Zhen apologized for coming by so late, but he excited started to explain what just happened to him. Mei Ling only interrupted him to invite him inside and made some tea. She couldn''t help but smile and laugh a little at the huge grin on Chen Zhen''s face. Chen Zhen told her of the Gods they saw and how it easily defeated the rank 4 Blood Lion. He took out the Blood Lion meat to show her and give it to her to prepare meals for everyone. Mei Ling took the meat and placed it in her spatial ring. She didn''t have the heart to tell Chen Zhen that it was too rich for the children and her to eat, she didn''t want to spoil his excitement.


    Chen Zhen felt good to be able to share his day with someone. And since Mei Ling looked so much like his wife it made it easier to open up to her. He noticed that Mei Ling was trying not to yawn, so he said goodnight and headed to his own shack. When he got inside he sat on the bed cross-legged and began cultivating.


    "I know that it''s dangerous to try mixing the lightening and fire energy together, but I feel that if I can do it right it will be a very powerful weapon at my disposal. Can you help me make it possible?", Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [It is possible to do. I have been giving it some thought ever since you used it that one time. I believe the key is to not compress the energy externally but to use your own dantian as an energy furnace and compress the two elements equally inside of you before releasing it in one go. But there is a draw back. You will be completely devoid of energy after doing this, which means you will be at your weakest right after you use it. You can make this a trump card for saving your life in a dire emergency. The upside though is that as you become stronger this draw will slowly diminish. I figure by the time you reach the peak of Solid Core Stage you will be able to perform this move and still have some energy left to fight.]


    "That''s great! I feel that if I can master this technique it will become even stronger later on. This will be my own martial technique. I believe this is what the God Jerry meant when he said that I should follow my own way.", Chen Zhen exclaimed.


    [Circulate the two energy thru you left and right sides but stop them from entering your dantian.]


    Chen Zhen did as he was told, and his right side soon had a red glow and his left side had a purple glow to it.


    [Now slowly trickle in the two energies rotating them clockwise. Make sure that the energies stay balanced. If you lose control of the energy then you could cause your dantian to explode. Best case scenario you will be a cripple, worse case scenario you will explode and level everything in this clearing.]


    Feeling the pressure of enormity of the task he was trying to undertake, sweat began to form on Chen Zhen''s brow and down his back. He ever so slowly allowed the two energies into his dantian. They rotated half a revolution before they made contact with each other. The moment they touched there was a repulsive force keeping them apart from each other.


    [You must force the two energies to comply with your will. In a sense you must tame them. In nature lightening and fire are both very volatile forces. You are trying to tame what nature says you shouldn''t. You must learn a way to allow them to coexist in harmony for this to work.]


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were both cultivating absorbing the energy the herbs gave them when they sensed a strong pressure in Chen Zhen''s dantian. Even though they could control the energy in his dantian they could feel what was happening in there. What they both saw horrified them to their core! They wanted to yell at Chen Zhen for being an idiot and not listening to their earlier warnings, but to distract him now would cause their utter doom.


    How was Chen Zhen supposed to do that? He felt he was already riding the tiger. As Chen Zhen applied more pressure between the energies the more they would repel from each other. As Chen Zhen was trying to figure this enigma out he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his dantian. The energies had begun to battle with each other.

 24 Harmonic Frequency

    Chapter 24


    Chen Zhen was taking deep breathes to stay calm, even though his body was starting to swell, and he was in excruciating pain. He clinched his teeth causing a grinding sound, as sweat was pouring down his head soaking his clothes and his bed. Chen Zhen was racking his brain trying to find a solution to his problem with the different energies repelling each other. Just as Chen Zhen was about to really start panicking he hear a high-pitched ring from a small bell. The ring sound light, but the reverberation hung in the air for a long time. Just as the sound was beginning to fade, the bell was rung again. As the sound waves travelled thru his body it caused a miraculous change in his dantian when it travelled thru it. The chaotic energies began to calm down, no longer struggling to explode out of Chen Zhen''s dantian. By the third ring Chen Zhen noticed the bell was coming from his sea of consciousness.


    As he looked inside he could see the clone holding a small porcelain bell with blue and white decorations on it. Chen Zhen immediately recognized it as one his grandmother used to have in her home when she was still alive. Chen Zhen thought it was very beautiful when he was a kid and wanted to play with it. He remembered his grandmother saying that it was too delicate for kids tom play with and it would break easily. Chen Zhen still wanted to play with it anyway, so when his grandmother wasn''t looking he snuck into her room to ring the bell. The bell had a small porcelain dowel that was painted to match, which was used to ring the bell. The first couple of times he rang the bell no problem, but as he got more, and more excited he rang the bell with increasing force. Next thing Chen Zhen knew the bell cracked in half. His grandmother was very angry with him for disobeying her warning. He felt awful about what he did. When he was old enough he bought her a replacement. He could still remember how happy she was when she opened her gift to see that same bell again after so many years.


    The sound of the bell and the memory of his grandmother helped Chen Zhen to calm down. This also sparked and idea in him. The bell rang at a high frequency. Chen Zhen studied frequency and harmonics in school. The two energy were like similar poles of a magnet, what Chen Zhen need to do was change their harmonic frequency to bring them into balance. In doing so the energies was no longer fight again each other but instead would be drawn together. As the clone could see that Chen Zhen was thinking along the right path to solve his chaotic energy problem he waved his hand causing the bell to fade away.


    For Chen Zhen to create the energy spark for his fire he vibrated the fire elemental energy in his body creating friction. He used a similar technique for the lightening elemental energy creating a static electricity. The biggest difference was in the speed that the two different energies vibrated. Chen Zhen first tried slowing down the vibration speed but as soon as he did the elemental energies started to breakdown no longer having the strength to sustain themselves. So instead he began to speed them up. This was promising but it took too much focus to speed both energies up and maintain a steady balance as he fed them into his dantian. He realized he had to focus on maintain the high vibration speed and continue that same speed while maintaining the balance of energy entering his dantian.


    Seeing that he needed help the clone offered to control one of the energies while he controlled the other. With the two of them working together it was an instant success. As the both fed and rotated the energies into his dantian, the energies melded together seamlessly. Chen Zhen could immediately feel a huge boost in his strength.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were once again astonished by what Chen Zhen did. They felt how close he came many times to failure. They were just sitting there waiting for their deaths to come. But miraculously Chen Zhen made it work.


    "How did you figure it out", Lou Tian asked


    "Yes I would like to know as well", Shanggu Feng chimed in,


    "Its called harmonic frequency. I vibrated the two energies at such a high speed that was perfectly balance between the two. Then while doing this I slowly fed both energies into my dantian, while maintaining that high speed. It was very difficult, but it worked.", Chen Zhen explained sheepishly.


    Chen Zhen went outside and went to the training platform. He practiced his martial moves, but this time his punches and kicks were accompanied by flames that were covered with lightening swirls. Chen Zhen made a casual gesture and formed a ball of energy in his palm. Aiming for a large boulder at the other side of the clearing, he was curious to see how powerful this new energy was. The boulder that was roughly the size of a VW Bug was instantly vaporized. There was a crater left that was three meters deep and ten meters round. Chen Zhen looked at his hand, then looked back at the crater with his eyes bugging out. That small casual toss was extremely powerful. Chen Zhen wasn''t sure, but he felt confident facing a rank 4 Blood Lion now that he had this new energy to rely on. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were happy to see Chen Zhen getting stronger. Even though he was a level 6 body refinement stage cultivator, the energy he released was something you would see in the early stages of the liquid core stage. They refrained from telling this to Chen Zhen because they wanted him to continue in his steady advancement. If Chen Zhen knew how powerful he was exactly he might try to rush his training, ruining his foundation and possibly getting into a situation that was way over his head.


    Chen Zhen spent most of the night practicing. The training platform had increased the weight of his clothes again. Chen Zhen didn''t know it, but he was already wearing over two hundred kilograms of extra weight. To him his clothes felt a little heavy but didn''t really incumber his movement much. He finally went to sleep a little before the sun rose.


    The next morning after his meal and expanding his dantian he went to go hunting again. Mei Ling and the kids waved by as they saw Chen Zhen off. As soon as Chen Zhen stepped thru the barrier he knew something was wrong. Before he had time to react a loud roar came from directly beside Chen Zhen.

 25 Rank 6 Blood Lion

    Chapter 25


    The roar startled Chen Zhen who instinctively jumped behind a tree in front of him. The roars were very close to him, he could feel the ground shaking from the foot steps of the Blood Lion as it approached his hiding spot. Chen Zhen sent his spiritual sense out and was amazed at what he saw. The last few times Chen Zhen never really got a good look at the Blood Lion that attacked him. Even the one the God Jerry killed died before he could really get a good look at it. But Chen Zhen could still tell that this one was one and a half times larger then the last one. The last Blood Lion was completely red, but this Blood Lion was a deep golden color with a large red mane, and red tuffs of fur around its paws, and at the end of its tail. It already sensed Chen Zhen''s position and could tell that it was easily twice as strong as Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen didn''t know but the Blood Lion that was killed was its mate.


    The Blood Lion could sense its mates vitality inside of Chen Zhen. As it got closer its power level kept increasing. This Blood Lion was a rank 6 spirit beast. The Blood Lion suddenly pounced toward Chen Zhen from thirty meters away. The trees in its way were like toothpicks that snapped easily, and didn''t deter its movements, or slow it down one bit. Chen Zhen dodged to the left as soon as he sensed the Blood Lion leap toward him, but he still barely avoided its claws. Chen Zhen never stopped moving from that moment on. He ran up tress and hid behind boulders, anything he could find that he thought would slow the Blood Lion down ad give him time to think up a plan.


    The Blood Lion was having fun toying with Chen Zhen. It didn''t care that he was running back and forth, the Blood Lion it could kill Chen Zhen anytime it wanted. It was slowly closing in on Chen Zhen, cutting off all of his routes of escape. Pretty soon Chen Zhen would be completely pinned down and cornered.


    Chen Zhen could see that things were getting out of hand Chen Zhen decided to stop running and just attack the Blood Lion hoping to catch it off guard. The Blood Lion seeing Chen Zhen suddenly launch an attack at it made it want to laugh. It decided to humor Chen Zhen and let him have a few hits. Chen Zhen threw a quick series of punches and kicks in the Blood Lions face and head. For a creature that stood over four meters tall, Chen Zhen hit felt more like bee stings then punches and kicks. It wasn''t enough to really injure the Blood Lion, but it was an annoyance that hurt a lot. This enraged the Blood Lion even more. It swatted at Chen Zhen knocking him a hundred feet back into a mountain wall, leaving a big hole that his body went thru.


    Chen Zhen was aching from his head to his toes. If his body hadn''t been refined by the blood vitality from the Blood Lion meat he would be in even worse shape than he was now.


    [We should use the Thunderfire to attack it. It''s the only thing we have strong enough to really hurt that beast.]


    Chen Zhen immediately listened to the clone''s suggestion. He began building the fire energy and the clone began building the lightening energy. The Blood Lion was slowly walking to the hole Chen Zhen made in the mountain wall thinking even if it didn''t kill him already, he would be in no condition to fight back. But suddenly it felt a terrifying energy begin to build in that hole. The Blood Lion jumped to the hole to try and interrupt what was happening, but it was too late. The moment it arrived before that hole a fireball as big as it head that was surrounded by swirls of lightening came flying out of the hole, directly into the Blood Lion''s face.


    BOOOOMMMM!!!!


    The blast destroyed everything within a hundred-meter radius. The ground and the mountain wall looked like someone used a giant ice cream scoop and took everything away. The earth-shaking boom scared away any beast nearby, but some of the stronger spirit beast were now curious of who was battling the Blood Lion, and who could create such a large energy blast.


    Chen Zhen fell from the air where he was knocked into the wall. The hole he was in was caught up in the blast radius. As he fell he could see the Blood Lion still standing there, but now it was completely headless. That was the last thing Chen Zhen saw before passing out. It was a testament to its natural defensive ability that it wasn''t completely vaporized from taking that Thunderfire ball at point blank range. It was also a testament to the strength of Chen Zhen''s Thunderfire that it was strong enough for him, just a level 6 body refinement cultivator to be able to kill a rank 6 Blood Lion. A rank 6 Blood Lion could still hold it''s own in a battle with a level 2 liquid core stage cultivator. Their explosive fighting speed, immense strength, and naturally tough defense made them the perfect apex predator. A rank 6 Blood Lion would easily rule over its own forest, have a territory of hundreds of miles. If Shanggu Julong knew what Chen Zhen just did, he would be completely astonished, let alone Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian. As Amazed as they were they knew Chen Zhen wasn''t out of danger yet. They could sense the curious spirit beast getting closer.


    "That was amazing that he was able to defeat the Blood Lion, but now we are in even more danger. I sense a rank 5 onyx panther, a rank 4 wind sparrow cheetah, and a pack of rank 3 shadow wolves headed this way.", Shanggu Feng said


    "I know, but what can we do? We can''t control is body or move him in any way.", Lou Tian said


    "Are you sure we can''t? I''ve been testing with sending my energy around his body while he sleeps. It seemed that since the lightening energy is used on his left side, that I can get a slight reaction from it with my energy. If my guess is correct the two of us working together might be able to get him moving. But it will only work when he is not in control of his body, like right now.", Shanggu Feng suggested.


    Lou Tian sent his energy around the right side of Chen Zhen''s body. He was able to sense that the energy was responding to him. It wasn''t perfect, but it felt like he was a puppeteer that was trying to control half of a puppet with loose strings, and a numb hand.


    "This is very weird but it''s the best we have at this moment. Ok I''ll try moving the right and you move the left.", Lou Tian said.


    Chen Zhen''s body slowly started to lift off the ground. He looked like a string-less marionette puppet as his arms hung above his head, and his butt almost dragged across the ground, because his knees were bent so much. He was really a sorry sight to see. His movements were slow and extremely awkward. At one point he was literally crawling on his hands and knees. Even though he was moving it wasn''t fast enough. The spirit beast was quickly closing in on Chen Zhen''s location. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were trying their best to get away but since they never practiced this before it was very hard for them to do the little they were able to do. Just as they were finally getting the hang of moving Chen Zhen''s body, the pack of shadow wolves ran ahead and surrounded Chen Zhen.

 26 Stronger Together

    Chapter 26


    "What are we going to do now?", Lou Tian asked.


    They worked together to climb to Chen Zhen''s feet and placed his back to the tree that they used help him stand.


    Shanggu Feng didn''t have an idea either. They could barely control Chen Zhen''s body. It became easier the more they worked together to do so, but they were a long way from being able fight these spirit beast.


    Lou Tian could barely cycle his energy thru Chen Zhen''s body. It became a little easier the more cycles he did but this process was excruciatingly slow.


    One of the Shadow Wolves lunged at Chen Zhen. Shanggu Feng and Lout Tian dodge in time so they just let his body fall to the ground. They tried rolling away from the wolf but ended up getting swatted but its huge paw. Chen Zhen''s body flew thru the air like a ragdoll, slamming into a nearby tree. Cracking sounds could be heard coming from his body as some of his bones broke. It was a good thing Chen Zhen was already out cold or he would have passed out from the pain.


    "We need to do something soon or we are all going to die! Why hasn''t your Ancestor''s battle puppet come to protect him yet?", Lou Tian asked in exasperation.


    "I don''t know, maybe it has to do with the fact that we are controlling his body. Technically we should be strong enough to protect him, but we are failing miserably at doing so. I''m trying to wrack my brain to find a solution, but I''m coming up blank.", Shanggu Feng said hopelessly.


    [You guys have not been working completely together. You each still look at yourselves individually, but now you are two part of a complete whole. Unless you can be of one mind you will never be able to save Chen Zhen. Stop fighting it and just be one. Remember you are stronger together then apart.]


    "Who said that? What do you mean ''Be one''? Can you explain yourself better?", Lou Tian asked, "What do you think it means Shanggu Feng?"


    "I have no idea. We have been trying to work together, haven''t we? What can we do better than what we already have?", Shanggu Feng asked perplexed.


    The Shadow Wolf that was attacking Chen Zhen was standing directly over him getting ready tear his throat open.


    At this moment Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian screamed at the same time, "NNNNOOOOO!!"


    Chen Zhen''s body opened its eyes and its mouth as they shouted. The voice coming out of it sounded nothing like Chen Zhen''s voice. It sounded like two different people yelling no at the same time. They also both instinctively punched forward at the Shadow Wolf hovering over Chen Zhen''s body. The Shadow Wolf was launched straight up into the air. As everyone looked that Shadow Wolf became a black dot that disappeared above the clouds.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian sudden felt all resistance disappear in front of them. Their power flowed freely into Chen Zhen''s body. His body was tough, but it wasn''t strong enough to handle all of their strength. As they stood up in Chen Zhen''s body, his left eye was purple and emitted lightening, while the right eye was releasing fire from it. The power level of Chen Zhen''s body kept rising and rising. The rest of the Shadow Wolves started to feel fear. The rest of the spirit beast that were still making their way over stopped in their tracks and began to back away. The energy that Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian could emit together in Chen Zhen''s body without hurting him was around level 5 of the liquid core stage. This was a mere pittance to their former strength, but it was enough to get the spirit beast to run away. While they were still in this state they collected the body of the Blood Lion, then ran back toward the clearing.


    They made it half the way back before their mind set changed. They weren''t in that exact state of mind anymore. They began to look at themselves as individuals instead of one whole again. Chen Zhen''s body moved awkwardly, then stumbled and fell. They were back to fumbling along again. The fast mode they could achieve was crawling on Chen Zhen''s hands and knees. By the time they reached to the clearing they could at least walk upright. They walked straight to Mei Ling''s shack and knocked on the door. As soon as Mei Ling answered the door they released control of Chen Zhen''s body and he collapsed at her feet. Mei Ling knelt down to check his body. When she felt the many broken bones in his body, Mei Ling shook her head. She was beginning to feel that taking care of Chen Zhen was turning into a full-time job.


    Mei Ling bent down and lifted Chen Zhen onto her shoulder. Even though she wasn''t a cultivator, but because of all the spirit beast meat she had eaten over the years, Mei Ling was as strong as a level 3 body refinement cultivator. She carried Chen Zhen to his shack and applied the medicinal ointment to his body again. She soon had him bandaged up and sleeping peacefully in his bed.


    The next morning When Chen Zhen woke up he was very confused as to where he was. After looking around he realized he was in his room, lying in bed. Then last thing he remembered was fighting the Blood Lion. As he thought back, he began to remember more of the fight. The last thing he saw before falling unconscious was the headless Blood Lion. Chen Zhen jumped up excited about being able to kill such a strong spirit beast. But his excitement soon died down due to his curiosity. How did he end up back home?


    "Hey, do you guys know what happened after I passed out yesterday?", Chen Zhen asked Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian.


    But no one answered.


    [They are very tired. They used a lot of spirit energy controlling your body to get you home safely.], the clone explained.


    "Really? They can do that?", Chen Zhen was confused, he didn''t know that was possible.


    [Apparently it only works when your are no longer in control of your body. Plus the fact that you use the same energy on each side of your body every time. So it allows them to use their spirit energy that corresponds to that side to control you with much difficulty. I tried to give them a clue to help them, but it only worked for a little bit. They did save your life though, so when they wake up it will be good to show them a little gratitude.]


    "How long will it take them to wake up?"


    [It shouldn''t take long. I''ve been cultivating all night, so they have replenished most of the energy they used up. If you guys ever learn to really become one then you will experience a power level you have never imagined. Till then you will just to keep getting stronger faster.]


    "I''m working has hard as I can."


    [I know you are. This process can''t be rushed. You have to take it one step at a time. The more I study this world the more I understand what cultivation actually is. Think of yourself as a nuclear reactor. Unless you set up all the fail safes, and security systems, and make sure all of the safety precautions have been met, you would never start a nuclear reactor up. Being in the body refinement stage you are creating all of those precautions in your body. As soon as they are all set your body is ready to fire up its reactor and produce limitless amounts of energy. In the later stages of cultivation you will have power levels that rival a star. This is the type of power you will be able to control.]


    As Chen Zhen listened to the clone he sat there pondering what the future would hold for him. Is his family safe, are they getting along well? What will become of him when he returns to his world, would he be able to keep these amazing abilities? How long will it take him to return home? These question plagued his mind as he sat down to cultivate.

 27 Li Moxian

    Chapter 27


    The day after Chen Zhen''s plane crashes:


    "Asiana Airlines flight 719 from Qinghai to New Delhi was inexplicable lost over the Himalayan Mountains. Authorities are still looking for the black box recorder to see if there was any technical difficulties in the cockpit. As of right now there was no radio contact immediately before the crash. Most of the debris is in a very remote area of the mountains making any kind of rescue attempts extremely perilous. Authorities are trying to arrange personnel mountain climbing experience to venture into the Himalayan Mountains to retrieve the black box and see if there is any possibility of survivors. This is Amanda Smith with Fox News."


    Li Moxian turned off the television and hugged her knees to her chin crying. She had been up all-night listening to the different news broadcast hoping to hear something new. Her worst fears had come true. She hated when Chen Zhen had to leave for work, even though she knew it was to support their family. She had asked him multiple times to try and transfer to a local office. But it would have been a huge pay cut for him. Chen Zhen grew up in an impoverished home. He wanted more for his kids. He didn''t want them to want for anything. So when he got out of college and got a job as an IT for an international telecommunications company, it was a dream come true for Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen had met Li Moxian in college. For him it was love at first sight. They shared a coding class, and Chen Zhen was dumbfounded when Li Moxian asked to be study partners one day. After stuttering and stammering over his words Chen Zhen finally agreed. At first he thought she just wanted to get her hands on his notes since he had the highest average in the class. But the more time they spent together, and the more relaxed Chen Zhen became around her, Chen Zhen slowly realized she liked him too. Well it was more like she just told him straight out that she liked him one day. They began dating and before they knew it they were inseparable.


    Li Moxian remembered Chen Zhen proposing to her with a ring made from a gum wrapper. He promised that as soon as he could afford to he would get her the biggest diamond. Li Moxian didn''t care about that, she was happy just being with him. Chen Zhen was fortunate to get a job right after graduation. Their coding teacher was old friends with someone in HR at the telecommunication company. He wrote a recommendation letter for Chen Zhen that really help him get hired. In the beginning Chen Zhen''s job was like an all expense paid vacation for Li Moxian. Chen Zhen would bring her along when ever he could. Even though he was working all day, they would spend their nights sightseeing. After two years of working Chen Zhen could finally afford the diamond he promised her. Their wedding was a big affair with lots of family and friends, some of Chen Zhen''s co-workers were even invited.


    When they found out that Li Moxian was pregnant, they agreed that their whirlwind lifestyle needed to come to an end. The headquarters to the company that Chen Zhen worked for was located in Boston, Massachusetts. They found a lovely little ranch home down on Cape Cod. It was a long commute from the office, but most of the time Chen Zhen was flying overseas anyway, so he didn''t mind. Chen Zhen was willing to do anything for his family. Li Moxian knew how much he hated flying, and since she wasn''t travelling with him anymore, she hated it when he flew also. Especially like this trip, where Chen Zhen had to fly to multiple sites to upgrade the company servers. Chen Zhen''s department was severely undermanned. He sometimes had to do the work of three to four men, and because Chen Zhen was just that good at his job, he always got it done.


    As Li Moxian was wiping her eyes a call came in from Chen Zhen''s job. They were finally notifying her that Chen Zhen''s plane was in an accident. They haven''t been able to find out if he was able to survive the crash. They were letting her know that it would take several weeks before they could confirm his status. Before his status was confirmed the funds for his company issued life insurance policy wouldn''t be able to be dispensed to her. Li Moxian just hung up the phone. She didn''t have the emotional strength to listen to them right now. She knew they were just doing their job, but to her this was her life. How was she to explain to her kids that their father could be dead? Li Moxian laid down on the couch and sobbed uncontrollably.


    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Nathan McDaniels was a former special forces marine. He had seen plenty of action in the middle-east. He hated what he considered senseless violence. The war over there made no sense to him, so as soon as he could got a job offer from a private sector, he wholeheartedly accepted. He thought he would be doing security for corporate execs doing overseas business deals. But to his disappointment he was mostly playing babysitter to rich spoiled businessmen on safari, or some company camping retreat. So when he got the call that he was needed to explore a remote crash site to see if any of their companies employees who were onboard survived, he was surprised.


    The helicopter Nathan was riding in had just flown over the major wreckage of the crash. It was in a place that had no safe landing zones. Most of the wreckage seemed to have fallen in a ginormous hole that was at the foot of a mountain. The best the helicopter could go was fly low over the mountain next to the crash site and Nathan could traverse down the mountain to the site. Nathan made his way to the side of the helicopter and hung his legs out the side door. He pulled his snowboard out from under his seat and strapped it to his feet. The pilot looked back and gave Nathan a thumbs up. Nathan returned the thumbs up and hopped out of the helicopter. He started his decent from about the middle of the mountain. This was remote inhospitable land, if Nathan hurt himself there wasn''t going to be anyone coming to save him anytime soon. The different nations were to busy trying to point the finger at someone to get anything done. It had been almost a week and they were trying to plan how to get rescue workers here. The reason Nathan could get here so quickly was that he didn''t have to deal with government jurisdiction and bureaucratic red tape. Nathan hated the fact that if someone did miraculously survive they would probably be dead by now anyway. That was another sad fact, due to the remoteness of this crash site, the different governments of the world already wrote these people off as dead without even trying to save anyone.


    The weather was extremely cold where Nathan first started down the mountain. But as he travelled further toward the crash site the weather was getting inexplicable warmer. As Nathan got to the rim of that humungous hole in the ground he had to remove layers because it was to hot to keep his winter gear on. Nathan had underestimated the size of this hole when he was in the air. It would take him a day to hike around it to the other side. Nathan began to notice that the ground around the hole had no snow on it. He could even see plants growing around the rim. These plants looked like new growth. Nathan was trained to identify helpful and harmful plants in the wild, but he didn''t seem to recognize any of these plants he saw here. Nathan also noticed the air seemed fresher here near the rim. He couldn''t explain it but for some reason he just felt better just standing here. Nathan began to feel filled with energy, he took off running around the rim. He ran for hours non-stop without feeling tired. The distance that should have taken him a whole day to travel took him only a couple hours.


    Nathan began to route thru the wreckage looking for the cockpit of the plane. He soon found the cockpit and retrieved the black box. As he played back the recording Nathan was instantly confused. He knew his Mandarin was a little rusty, but he could have sworn they said the plane was attacked by a lightening dragon?!

 28 Gorampa

    Chapter 28


    In a very ancient Tibetan monastery that was one hundred miles from the crash site, a very old monk was sitting in meditation. He had been sitting in the same position for many years now. He looked like a mummified skeleton wrapped in ceremonial robes. In his right hand was a bronze Tibetan singing bowl, and in his left hand was a wooden mallet as ancient as he was. Every now and then a very pure sine wave would emit from his meditation chamber. On this day the malas hanging around his neck began to produce a very faint glow. Since there was no other light source in his meditation chamber any light source would be instantly noticeable.


    After a week the glow on his malas became more pronounced. The ancient monk now looked completely different. There was now a healthy glow to his skin. His muscles had filled out again, no was no longer just skin and bones. He could be heard taking in extremely long deep breathes. Every time he breathed in he would circulate his qi and allow the energy in the air to nourish his body. The ancient monk had practiced this his entire life, but he only got benefits from the spiritual herb garden hid deep in the depths of the monastery. And even then it was only a small amount that he was allowed to take in every few years. The amount of energy he took in over the last week was a hundred times more than he did in his entire life. Many of the secret arts that were past down thru the ages were finally able to utilized by this ancient monk. He allowed his mind to leave his body and follow the energy back to its source. What he found baffled him. He could see the crash site and the enormous hole next to it. He could see a bright glow coming from the hole. He of course knew of this place, it was a forbidden area for their monastery. In there history a great battle took place here. Powerful being from another world would enter from here to plunder resources and enslave local inhabitants. Before that fateful battle this land was rich in spiritual energy. The land was lush, and rich, and fertile. Many nomadic tribes who lived off the land and worshipped it as their god called this mountainous region their home. They would pilgrimage to the monastery he lived in to gain enlightenment from the monks living here. They learned cultivation arts to progress their strength and enrich their bodies. This is were the legend of Shangri La came from.


    Below the mountain the monastery sat on was a spirit vein, known today as a ley line, that would circulate spiritual energy to all of the plants in the area. Anyone, man or beast, who ate this vegetation would gain amazing benefits to their body and mind. But hundreds of thousands of years ago the powerful abbots of many monasteries banded together to seal this hole to prevent the invaders from attacking. They were successful in driving back the invaders and sealing the hole, but the consequences were beyond their worse fears. They consumed most of the Earth''s spiritual energy to form the barriers and seals. This alone drained of half of the Earth''s spiritual energy, and the barriers prevented that lost energy from being able to be replenished. Over time the remaining energy was slowly used up by the worlds cultivators. Man changed to adapt to this new world by becoming industrial. The old ways were soon forgotten and became nothing but myth and legends. Very few places still knew of the old ways and had the old knowledge. The ancient monk returned his mind to his body. He stood up making many cracking as popping sounds as his old bones rubbed together. He stretched his body to get the blood flowing to his extremities again. After half a day he felt comfortable enough to move about.


    "I can only use about twenty percent of my full strength but that should be enough for now. I need to get closer to the Sacred Abyss to see what has really happened there to cause such a change.", the ancient monk thought to himself.


    When he made his move to leave he was so fast that he seemed to teleport. One second he was there the next a blurry afterimage slowly faded away.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Nathan was confused, so he used a translation app to double check if he heard the recording from the black box correctly. After checking a couple times he found out he was right the first time. The captain and co-pilot both yelled that they saw a lightening dragon attack the plane. The recording ends right after they say that so there is no other information to follow up on.


    "You did hear them correctly, and they weren''t imagining things. From the energy I can feel of the wreckage, a being of the lightening element definitely attacked this aircraft."


    Nathan spun around and pulled the Glock from its holster on his hip. He didn''t see anyone standing around him. Now that he thought about it he heard that statement in his head, not with his ears.


    "Is the high elevation playing with my head?", Nathan thought while laughing to himself for being too jumpy.


    "No you''re not going crazy. We don''t speak the same language so this is the easiest way for my to communicate with you."


    "Who are you? How are you able to get in my head like this?", Nathan was getting nervous.


    He couldn''t see who was speaking to him, and they could easy enter his head. If they meant him harm there was nothing he could do to stop them. He slowly moved around the fuselage of the plane as he searched for any sign of someone around him. Suddenly a very ancient looking monk appeared beside him. The monk was wearing malas and ceremonial robes that seemed three sizes to big for his body. The monk was bald, but his bushy white eyebrows hung down to his chin. Nathan was startled when he saw him appear suddenly out of the corner of his eye and turned and fired his gun. The bullet went thru the monk and hit the fuselage behind the monk but didn''t seem to cause any harm to the monk at all. The monk continued to smile at Nathan, slowly he raised his right hand and pointed up. As soon as Nathan looked up the monk in front of him disappeared, it was just an illusion anyway. The real monk was floating above the hole sitting cross-legged in mid-air, with his voluminous robes hanging down.


    "Nice to meet you Nathan McDaniels my name is Gorampa Sonam Senge."


    As tough as Nathan was he just couldn''t mentally put all of this together. As much as he tried to comprehend what was happening it was too much for him.


    "Please calm down before¡­..", Nathan passed out before Gorampa could finish his sentence.

 29 History

    Chapter 29


    Nathan awoke to light slaps to his face. When he opened his eyes he just back suddenly, smacking his head against the side of a piece of the plane. Gorampa was way to close for his comfort. Gorampa chuckled, shaking his head at Nathan''s reaction. Nathan slowly rose to his feet and edged around Gorampa like Gorampa had a nasty disease he didn''t want to come in contact with.


    "Can you explain to me what is going on here, and please talk to me with your mouth not inside my head. That is just creepy.", Nathan said to Gorampa


    Gorampa looked at Nathan for a while before opening his mouth, "There is a long and illustrious history to this place that dates back hundreds of thousands of years"


    "No, no, no I still hear you in my head! Just because your moving your lips doesn''t mean your speaking to me. Just talk!", Nathan shouted interrupting Gorampa.


    "Fine.", Gorampa lunged forward faster than Nathan could react and placed his right index finger on Nathan''s glabella. There was a bright flash of light, when Nathan could see again, "Is this better for you?"


    "What did you do, you''re speaking English now?", Nathan asked Gorampa.


    "I used you to enlighten myself to your language.", Gorampa said casually with a grandfatherly smile on his face.


    Nathan shook his head helplessly. He was tired of not understanding what was going on. This old monk who looks like he should have been dead for a couple hundred years just appears out of nowhere, and everything he says is more confusing then the last thing he said. Nathan held his hands up in surrender trying to gain a moment to collect his thoughts. So far this telepathic ancient monk told him that the plane was really attacked by a lightening dragon. He could create holograms of himself. He can talk to him inside of his head. He could float in the air. He could learn an entire language by just touching his forehead. And supposed this place is something from a legend that''s hundreds of thousands of years old.


    After collecting his thoughts Nathan calmed down, "Ok you really, really, really old Professor X. Can you explain what going on to me now that I have had a second to collect myself?"


    "I will explain what I can, but you have to listen to me in entirety without interrupting me. As I was starting to say before this land has an auspicious history that dates back over a hundred thousand years. Our world used to be like over worlds that have intelligent life. It was filled with spiritual energy. This energy allowed people to live longer, to have stronger bodies, and to be able to cultivate themselves into extremely powerful warriors. Warriors with the ability to travel thru the cosmos.


    Our world had connections to some of these other worlds or realms which had powerful warriors as well. Some realms have warrior that are much stronger then our world. One of those realms is located at the other end of this Sacred Abyss. Their warriors were at first very amicable and allied themselves with people of this world. They would trade resources between realms, and many martial and cultivation techniques. But soon some of the stronger warriors from their world found out about the abundant spiritual energy we had in our world. They came and enslaved the people and had them mine for spirit stones and had them collect the spirit herbs with the highest energies inside. The invaders were very brutal and slaughtered people for fun.


    The most powerful warriors in our world banded together to fight these invaders. In order to seal off the entrance to our world these brave warriors used all the energy in ever spirit vein in our world. Because of their brave sacrifice we were safe from the invaders, but they didn''t realize that there would be dire consequences. They didn''t just seal our world from the invaders realm, they sealed off our world completely. The seals prevented our world from being able to absorb heavenly energies to replenish itself. Over the years the few small monasteries and clans that still have the knowledge of our worlds history have been trying to keep the last of our spiritual herbs alive. As you can imagine this is a losing fight. But from what I can tell the barriers have weakened to the point that someone from the other side had been able to come thru to ours. And if the wreckage of this plane is any indication someone from our world may have gone thru to theirs also.", Gorampa stood there looking into Nathan''s eyes watching his emotions cross his face.


    As Nathan listened to Gorampa explain the history of the world, he felt it was the fantasy of an old monk. But he had to admit that due to what recently happened to him, hearing Gorampa in his head, and seeing him floating in the air, maybe there was more to this story then he cared to admit. Nathan didn''t know what he should do with this information. He didn''t know who would believe him if he told them anyway. As far as his job was concerned there were no survivors he could see. Nathan took a long deep breath and then sighed. As he breathed out he felt a sudden rush of energy in his body. Gorampa felt the energy build up inside of Nathan, he stepped up to Nathan and touched his glabella causing another white flash. Nathan felt information on how to circulate energy inside his body sudden appear in his head. As he followed the information he felt the energy rush begin to subside.


    "The Earth will become a new world soon. The fact that the seals are broken means that the spiritual energy of our world will slowly replenish over time. You will hear reports of strange and wonderous things happening around the world. But you will also hear of people being hurt, this will be unavoidable. Man will revert back to his most basic instinct, and strength will reign over all moral standard. The people like me will be a haven for those who really want to learn to live in this new world.", after saying this Gorampa took off into the air, and flew away quickly becoming a speck in mere seconds followed by a muffled sonic boom.


    Nathan stood there speechless, staring off after him.


    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Chen Zhen got up the next morning and went to Mei Ling''s to share the rank 6 Blood Lion with her. Upon finding out that it was too powerful for them to eat Chen Zhen felt bad. The meat of the rank 6 Blood Lion was too strong for Mei Ling to be able to cut thru. She had to ask Chen Zhen to cut it for her. To Mei Ling''s surprise the fire from the pit wasn''t hot enough. After some experimentation they found out that Chen Zhen could make a fire hot enough to cook with. Lou Tian thought this would be a good opportunity for Chen Zhen to learn better control of his energy.


    Chen Zhen figured this would be and easy task that he could just flash his hand and be this amazing genius warrior that Mei Ling and the kids would applaud for his greatness. But reality was a totally different story. Having to control the energy to produce the right amount of heat was a very taxing tasking. By the time he was done cooking the meat he had used up all his energy. He felt completely drained. Chen Zhen looked at the glistening, juicy meat he just cooked, and his mouth watered from the delicious smell.


    The first bite tasted amazing, but the special part was all of the energy that rushed into Chen Zhen''s body. If he didn''t have the clone to help him circulate the energy around his body he wouldn''t have been able to keep up with how fast the energy was filling his body. As his blood, bones, and marrow were being refined by this energy, black slug started to ooze out of Chen Zhen''s spores.


    "This is a good opportunity for you to further temper your body as well as expand your dantian. If you can keep eating and flushing your body with the blood vitality from this rank 6 Blood Lion your foundation will be extremely solid. And the impurities that you will expel from your body will make your energy flow more smoothly thru your body. It will also make it easier to absorb energy into your body. If you''re lucky you might obtain a portion of the Blood Lion bloodline. Blood Lions can the potential to be a Divine Spirit, their growth is virtually limitless. This will all translate into increasing your fighting strength, and defense. Try absorbing the spirit core while you finish eating the meat.", Shanggu Feng told him.


    Chen Zhen took another bite while holding the spirit core and endured the pain of having his bones and marrow refined. Soon the black ooze started to have a red tint to it. Mei Ling saw how Chen Zhen was soon covered in his own blood as it was being forced out of his pores. His marrow was being replaced with the blood from the Blood Lion. As he continued to endure the pain his body began making popping sounds as his bones grew stronger and thicker. His skin took on a reddish hue, and his eyes and hair became red also.


    Mei Ling was surprised to see Chen Zhen''s body change in such a way. Chen Zhen''s shoulder length hair becoming red gave him a devilish look, but it also added to his charm. Mei Ling could full Chen Zhen''s energy getting stronger it seemed he was on his way to a breakthrough.

 30 Breakthrough..... Another Breakthrough??

    Chapter 30


    Chen Zhen was still circulating the energy from the Blood Lion spirit core. A bright red glow surrounded his body as energy fluctuations emerged and then borrowed back into his body. Mei Ling could see the pain he was in from his facial expressions he was making. She thought she should stop him from cultivating at one point when he began to bleed from his orifices. But she remembered her husband telling her to never interrupt a cultivator when they are having a breakthrough, it could be life threatening. Chen Zhen hair started to turn a darker shade of red before it began to look like a waterfall of blood cascading down his shoulders. Chen Zhen had a slim physique before, but now his muscles began to bulge and thicken. Chen Zhen was never considered tall at only 5''7" but now he grew a whole foot taller. As Mei Ling watched Chen Zhen went from a slim fit man to a hulking behemoth in just a couple hours'' time. Throughout all this Chen Zhen never stopped eating more of the rank 6 Blood Lion meat.


    All three of his dantians were filled to the brim with energy. Chen Zhen felt that ever cell in his body was full of energy. The clone never stop circulating his energy improving his cultivation bit by bit. Chen Zhen''s body was being reborn thru this torturous process.


    BANG!!


    A loud bang sounded from Chen Zhen''s body, afterward his body shrunk a little bit. Chen Zhen had just reached level 7 of body refinement. His dantian was like a large reservoir that was quickly being filled with energy again. Usually after breaking through to another level his body would feel full of energy, but this time his body felt starved and was ravenously absorbing all energy he was feeding it. As Chen Zhen continued cultivating Mei Ling left to take care of the kids. After he broke thru and was still absorbing insane amounts of energy, she knew that he would be fine.


    As Chen Zhen was lost in the monotony of his eating and cultivating he began to think of the fight he was in with the Blood Lion. He realized that his speed was a very big hinderance during that fight. He began to see many holes in his fighting style and experience. He realized that he was strong but without any place to direct it. He felt like he had all the food in the world but no mouth to eat it.


    "I need your help guys.", Chen Zhen asked Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian


    "What do you need?", Lou Tian asked, "Are you having trouble with your cultivation? Is the energy getting out of hand?"


    "No its nothing like that. I need real help with my fighting style. I have realized that my experience is too shallow. Fighting someone weaker then me will never allow me to improve. The fight with that rank 6 Blood Lion showed me a lot of my deficiencies. I need to improve faster then this if I''m going to make it back to my family as soon as possible.", Chen Zhen said seriously.


    "Well its not that we don''t want to help you per say¡­. It''s just that we don''t know exactly were to start. You are very independent, and you refuse to listen to common knowledge. You seem to figure things out on your own, so we thought we would just offer advice ever now and then when you needed it. To hear you openly ask for help is a little startling.", Shanggu Feng admitted.


    "When I am done cultivating can you guide me on improving my speed. I feel that is my biggest weakness right now. I have ideas on how to use the Thunderfire I created, but it seems that if I''m not fast enough to use it then it doesn''t how strong I am.", Chen Zhen said.


    As the night passed Chen Zhen continued to cultivate and the three of them discussed the best method to help train Chen Zhen. When they were just done discussing things another loud BANG! sounded out from Chen Zhen''s body. Chen Zhen body shrunk a little more again. He now looked like sculpted gladiator. All of his muscles were not only powerful but flexible as well. There would be no problem for Chen Zhen to utilize all of his power without any restraint if need be. Chen Zhen stood up and his body emitted loud popping sounds. Chen Zhen clinched his fist and unexpectedly a fierce wind blew thru his room. Chen Zhen looked at his hand in astonishment. He wondered how powerful he had actually become now. Chen Zhen threw a casual punch and blew a hole in the side of his shack. The racket made from this simple punch aroused the curiosity of Mei Ling and the kids. Chen Zhen went to explain to them what happened, and accidentally ripped the door off the hinges. Looking around for where he should put the door, Chen Zhen looked very comical going around in circles holding a door in his hand like it weighed nothing. As Chen Zhen walked thru the doorway and smashed his head thru the wall at the top of the door. Now that he was almost seven feet tall he had to duck to leave out of the shack.


    After hearing all the commotion that Chen Zhen was making, Mei Ling and the kids came out to see what was going on. As they saw Chen Zhen smash his head thru the wall while walking thru the doorway they couldn''t help but laugh hysterically. Looking back at his shack and seeing his head shaped hole he left in the wall, Chen Zhen doubled over in laughter too. That night they ate together, and Chen Zhen got to know the kids a little better. At twelve years old the boy who was older by two years, the same as his son. The boy was already starting to practice martial arts, he was a level 2 body refinement cultivator. Apparently his father taught him cultivation methods when he was younger. The daughter was also starting to practice martial arts as well and was actually showing some promise. She had started after they arrived here in the clearing and she had already caught up to her brother. The kids were hoping to be accepted as disciples of the Shanggu Clan when they arrived at their new home. Mei Ling was very proud of them both, she really hoped their dreams would come true. After dinner Chen Zhen excused himself and went back to cultivate and come up with a training plan for himself.


    The next morning Chen Zhen stopped by the training platform to increase the weight of his clothes again, and then left the clearing and went searching for a Specter Monkey.


    "So Shanggu Feng can you tell me more about what a Specter Monkey is". Chen Zhen asked.


    "A Specter Monkey is a smaller sized monkey with a long tail. Its body is completely white and at the higher ranks for this spirit beast it can completely go incorporeal. They are extremely nimble and agile. The Specter Monkeys in this area are around rank 5, which means they can go incorporeal for about a minute at a time before they have to rest and replenish their energy. If you can manage to catch one with your weighted clothes then you will have solved your speed issues.", Shanggu Feng said with a slight chuckle.


    Chen Zhen travelled for most of the morning before he found the Specter Monkey territory. He concealed his aura how Lou Tian taught him to do the night before, and quietly climbed the nearest tree. As he reached the half-way point of the tree he could see a group of Specter Monkeys about 100 meters from his tree. Seeing them for himself they reminded him of spider monkeys form his world. The only difference he saw at first was they were solid white like Shanggu Feng had said, that is until he saw one phase right thru the trunk of the tree it was walking on.

 31 Zhang You

    Chapter 31


    Chen Zhen was sweating profusely. He understood from Shanggu Feng''s description that the Specter Monkey was going to be fast, but these monkeys were impossible to catch! No matter how much Chen Zhen circulated his energy through his legs his speed still wasn''t fast enough to get close to any of these Specter Monkeys. The monkeys themselves were having a good laugh at Chen Zhen''s expense. They began to slow down giving him a glimmer of hope that he would be able to catch one before either sprinting away with ease, or phasing thru a tree to get away from him. The Specter Monkeys preferred the latter method because it usually ended with Chen Zhen slamming into said tree. Whenever this happened the Specter Monkeys would roll around on the ground holding their stomachs and laughing uproariously. Chen Zhen would get so mad that he would scream at the top of his lungs, causing the monkeys to laugh even harder at his frustration.


    While Chen Zhen was enduring this sick form of torture just to train his speed, a dark presence was making his way into the forest. Zhang You was at level 2 of the liquid core stage. He had heard from some hunters that there was a rank 6 Blood Lion in this forest and planned to use its spirit core and meat to refine his body in the hopes he would acquire the Blood Lion''s bloodline. Zhang You had already tried three other times and they all ended without him acquiring the bloodline. Zhang You was a vicious bandit needed to increase his strength in order to be able to start attacking small clans to gain the resource materials he need to continue increasing his cultivation.


    As Zhang You entered the forest he heard an enormous racket being made by some Specter Monkeys. Since this was outside of their normal character Zhang You thought maybe the Blood Lion had entered their territory. He rushed over in hopes of catching up to the Blood Lion. As Zhang You hid behind a tree he saw a man with blood red hair running off into the distance. He could tell that this man was only in the body refinement stage, but from what he could see this man had partaken of the Blood Lion and acquired its bloodline. This should have been impossible for someone at his level. Zhang You realized he must have had help from a powerful senior. Zhang You decided to follow after Chen Zhen to see just how powerful this senior was. If he was lucky he maybe he could kidnap Chen Zhen and ransom him back to his clan and become very wealthy.


    Chen Zhen kept his spiritual sense on high alert, but Zhang You was much more powerful then he was. Zhang You was able to easily hide himself away from Chen Zhen. A couple hours later when Chen Zhen suddenly disappeared from his sense Zhang You was confused at first. He went to where he last sensed Chen Zhen and found a barrier set up in the middle of the woods. As much as Zhang You tried he couldn''t penetrate the barrier with his senses. For someone to be able to set up a barrier like this they had to come from a first-rate clan. He didn''t know what was going on but he k new that this was beyond him. After thinking for awhile he decide to go see an old friend of his. He was a very powerful bandit leader who might be able to help him gain something from this. This was too juicy a prize to let slip thru his fingers. He didn''t understand exactly what was going on, but that didn''t stop him from scheming to profit from whatever it was. Zhang You hid himself and decided to observe that was happening.


    Zhang You started chanting in a low voice while his hands flashed making hundreds of hand seals. On the ground under his feet ancient runes began forming overlapping pentagrams surrounded by circles, triangles, and squares. As these runes and shapes overlapped Zhang You slowly faded from sight. As long as Zhang You didn''t move from this spot only a Divine Immortal would be able to tell he was there. This technique was found in an ancient grave that Zhang You found running from a peak Liquid Core stage cultivator. At the time this was a god send. Ever since then Zhang You has used this to ambush cultivators more powerful then himself. Many peak Liquid and Solid Core stage cultivator have died to his machinations over the years. Even though Zhang You could kill these people and rob them of their wealth, he was known to go partying afterward and would always waste his wealth on gambling, drinking, and prostitutes. But now he needed cultivation resources the most. He had his sights set on bigger clans. Zhang You wanted to make a name for himself, like his bandit leader friend, he wanted to start his own bandit crew. And to do that he needed to be stronger. Zhang You sat cross-legged and waited for Chen Zhen to come out of the barrier again.


    Chen Zhen woke up the next day and procrastinated getting out of bed because he dreaded have to chase those stupid Specter Monkeys again. Chen Zhen dragged his feet heading over to Mei Ling''s for breakfast. As Mei Ling saw his forlorn countenance she felt pity for him. She wanted to say some words of encouragement, but nothing appropriate came to mind. All she could do is pat him on his shoulder in a consoling manner. After dinner Chen Zhen walked to the training platform to increase the weight of his clothes like he always did.


    "Chen Zhen before you head out today would you be willing to listen to some suggestions to help improve your movement?", Shanggu Feng asked.


    "PLEASE¡­. I''m going crazy trying to figure out what I''m doing wrong. I''ve sent large amounts of energy to my legs to help speed me up, but nothing is helping me to get faster. I can feel my legs getting stronger from the weight of my clothes but that is all. Why does this seem like this isn''t working?", Chen Zhen was at his wits end at this point.


    "It''s not so much that you''re doing anything wrong, it''s just that you haven''t learned to a movement technique yet. You have learned to send energy to your legs but there is much more to it then that. The way a movement technique works it that the energy flows thru your meridians following a specific pathway. This not only feeds your legs with energy, but it allows you to make the best use of the energy your legs receive. You get two to three times the explosive force for a fraction of the effort.", Shanggu Feng explained.


    "Really that''s possible? I wish I had known this days ago. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, CAN YOU TEACH ME?!", Chen Zhen begged in exasperation.

 32 Movement Technique

    Chapter 32


    Since Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were in agreement with training Chen Zhen, they were able to communicate freely between themselves. They decided to each teach Chen Zhen the movement technique they learned, then allow Chen Zhen to choose or modify which ever technique fit him better. That was Chen Zhen could still feel in control of what martial technique he used. They had no idea that Chen Zhen had the clone studying for him. The assumed he had issues with being told what to do, that was why he seemed to ignore their advice so much. It was also why they were both so surprised to hear Chen Zhen actually asking for help. It didn''t help matters that Chen Zhen just assumed that they weren''t willing to offer advice, support, or encouragement unless there was a life-threatening situation. The miscommunication and assumptions have been keeping them all separate from each other. If they could learn to work more cohesively as a single unit in mind, body, and soul they would reach a point where their powers would begin to harmonize, allowing them to reach a power level anywhere from ten to hundred times what it is now. But as it stands now they haven''t learned to trust each other enough to let down their mental walls. For three beings that share a body they rarely even talk on a daily basis. This time of teaching was the most interaction they had since being merged together.


    "The movement technique I learned is called Thunder Step. In the initial stages of the technique large success you will be able to achieve Mach 1. Small perfection will allow you to achieve Mach 5. Great perfection you will be able to achieve Mach 10. And finally at mastery you will move so fast that travelling 100,000 kilometers in a step will be possible. Thunder Step also allows for great flexibility so using it during fights is still possible.", Shanggu Feng boasted of his movement technique.


    "Well my movement technique is very similar is strength, it''s call Fire Flash. The speeds through the different stages are exactly the same, but the difference appears when you''re fighting. Fire Flash adds tremendous power to your attacks. In the initial large success it add one ton of force to your punches and kicks. At small perfection it adds twenty tons of force, great perfection adds one hundred tons of force, and mastery adds one thousand tons of force to your attacks. This addition of force can also be carried out through the use of a weapon as well.", Lou Tian smugly said showing his technique was just as good as Shanggu Feng.


    Chen Zhen was excited to start learning. Chen Zhen was still new to moving energy thru specific meridians, major and minor, in his body. It took him several hours to memorize and grow accustomed to the exact pathways in his body. Chen Zhen started with Thunder Step and the first time he got the technique correct he felt a sudden rush of energy to his lower body. Chen Zhen took off running around the clearing and became a blur to those looking. When he put his all into running as fast as he could a sonic boom flooded the clearing as Chen Zhen broke the sound barrier. Chen Zhen stopped running and looked at himself with his eyes bugling out of his head. He never imagined that he would ever be able to move that fast in his entire life. What amazed him even more what that even though he was moving that fast he still felt in complete control of his body. Chen Zhen began running again and he was suddenly come to a complete stop or dodge a weave unpredictable. Never once did he feel unstable or that he might fall at any moment. Besides the fact that his closed weighted over a ton at this point he felt light as a feather as he raced around the clearing.


    Seeing how powerful the Thunder Step movement technique was, Chen Zhen couldn''t wait to try out the Fire Flash. Practicing the Thunder Step made it easier for Chen Zhen to learn the Fire Flash. Both techniques used similar pathways. It only took Chen Zhen about an hour to succeed this time. As soon as he succeeded Chen Zhen felt the weirdest feeling. He felt light, but his feet sunk into the grow at the same time. The strength to Chen Zhen''s lower body increased by many-folds. Chen Zhen stomped his foot and half of the training platform sank three feet down. When Chen Zhen pushed off to run he instantly shot off reaching Mach 1 in the blink of an eye. Chen Zhen loved the great force he could feel from his movement, but he could tell that with this technique he could only move unilaterally. As Chen Zhen approached a twenty-foot boulder in front of him, he threw a kick at the boulder. The boulder exploded with incredible force and Chen Zhen didn''t lose in speed afterward. Outside the barrier Zhang You could feel the ground beneath him rumbling from time to time. He was very curious as to what was going on because he couldn''t hear anything around him. By what he felt he would assume a very explosive battle was happening right now.


    Chen Zhen spent the rest of the day practicing both techniques and becoming more familiar with them. The clearing had large craters littering everywhere. The explosive force of Fire Flash could amplify his attacks greatly. But the speed and flexibility of Thunder Step was also something he relished a lot. He couldn''t chose which one he liked better, so he spent his time switching between techniques to see if it was possible to utilize both of them in battle. He soon realized the folly of his idea, because even though he could switch, the time it took to actually switch would get him killed in and actual battle. That night as Chen Zhen cultivated he consulted the clone to see what it could think up.


    [I''ve already analyzed the pathways for both techniques. Since they utilize a lot of the same pathways integrating the two together shouldn''t be that hard. The thing though is that it will take a lot of energy to activate the combined technique. You will have to use the Thunderfire to power the technique to make it work. This will be better for you the long run, because as you grow in power and as your understanding of energy increases, the power your techniques you use with the Thunderfire will increase also. So basically you should in theory be able to surpass all of their levels with this technique.]


    "How much will I be able to surpass them by?", Chen Zhen asked.


    [My best estimation is that large success should push your speed to Mach 2-3, and your force would be about 3-4 tons. Small perfection would put your speed around Mach 10-12 with one hundred tons of force. Great perfection would be Mach 25-30 with a force of over a thousand tons. Finally mastery would require you to learn the Dao of Space time and Gravity, so you would be able to teleport and exert a force of over one million tons. Since this has never been done before, these are my best estimates.]


    Chen Zhen was speechless, he was so shocked he completely stopped cultivating. When Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian noticed his strange behavior, they checked with him to see if anything was wrong.


    "No, nothing is wrong, but I have an idea about combining both of your techniques together. Since both techniques use very similar cultivation pathways. Has that ever been done before?", Chen Zhen asked the both of them.


    "Hm¡­ It has never been done before that I know of but that is a very tall task. If you get it wrong while trying to experiment on the right pathways to choose, the backlash could damage some of your meridians. If the backlash is strong enough the damage could be permanent.," Lou Tian said


    "Yeah I agree with Lou Tian. Every warrior would love to customize his techniques to make them stronger and more suitable to their particular fighting style. But not only is the process of doing so extremely time consuming, the potential for self-infliction of injury is also extremely high. You must weigh the loses with the gains to see if they are worth the risk.", Shanggu Feng said in agreement with Lou Tian, and also hope of deterring Chen Zhen from his current train of thought.


    "Ok I understand what you''re trying to say I''ll sleep on it and give it more thought.", Chen Zhen said to appease their minds. Tomorrow he would work with the clone to try out the new technique together.

 33 Thunderfire Flash-step

    Chapter 33


    Chen Zhen meditated and practiced the qi flows for the two movement techniques to be able to call them out at will. He also spent time listening to the clone and practicing the qi flow for the combined movement technique. The next morning after he ate he went out to teach some Specter Monkeys a lesson. Chen Zhen had a malicious grin on his face as he thought of the different ways he was going to torture those Specter Monkeys to pay them back for his painful failed attempts at catching them. Chen Zhen passed within a couple feet of Zhang You but didn''t sense anything there. Chen Zhen quickly sped off toward the Specter Monkey territory.


    "That''s strange it''s only been about four hours, but he seems to have gotten stronger again. There must be a time enchantment inside the barrier. Since the forest is always in a state of twilight he probably never noticed this. That means his Master must be at least an Emperor realm cultivator, maybe even a God realm cultivator. This is definitely beyond my capabilities but if I plan it out correctly I might still be able to score big off of this information. The more detailed the information I can give the more valuable it will be to some of the really strong Bandit leaders. I might not be able to act personally, but that doesn''t mean I can''t sell this information to someone who can.", As Zhang You thought about this he allowed his sense to follow Chen Zhen.


    The formation that Zhang You set up not only prevented him from being sensed by others, but it also amplified his sensing range. Right now Zhang You could sense hundreds of miles around the forest. Since the clearing was located a couple miles from the edge of the forest his range could only cover about a quarter of the forest. But that was plenty of distance to keep tracking Chen Zhen''s movements.


    Chen Zhen climbed the tree he usually did and spotted his former tormentors. Chen Zhen knew that the Specter Monkeys were very slippery characters, so he was definitely going to use the Thunder Step to get closer to them and finally catch one. Chen Zhen wanted to catch the Specter Monkeys off guard, so he used the tree branches to get close to them as he had done before. When the Specter Monkeys saw Chen Zhen coming some of them started laughing already, and he wasn''t even close to them yet. A couple of them actually ran toward Chen Zhen. When they were about twenty yards from him they turned around and started taunting him but shaking their butts at him and slapping their own butts. Seeing their taunts and remembering how they played him for a fool before, Chen Zhen grabbed a tree branch as he ran past. Chen Zhen activated the Thunder Step and reached Mach 1 almost instantly. Suddenly the forest was filled with the sounds of howling Specter Monkeys. The rest of the troop of Specter Monkeys didn''t understand what had happened. When they saw the two monkeys who were howling they noticed they were holding their butts while screaming in pain. When the two howling Specter Monkeys finally moved their hands out o the way everyone could see red welts on their butts. When they looked back to where they were acting a fool and slapping their own butts they could see Chen Zhen standing there holding a tree branch and smiling with satisfaction written all over his face.


    Chen Zhen remembered each and everyone of the Specter Monkeys that had made a fool out of him before and now he was here to get his revenge. With sadistic pleasure Chen Zhen flashed around the Specter Monkeys spanking them with the tree branch in his hand. Before long the entire forest was filled with their screams and howls. The troop of monkeys took off running deeper into the forest. Chen Zhen who was having too much fun returning their torture tenfold followed after them, continuing his harassment of the Specter Monkeys. Even though Chen Zhen was having fun he didn''t forget to keep his senses pealed to his surroundings. Pretty soon Chen Zhen felt a peak rank 5 beast headed his way, but for some reason it was giving off energy signals that were sometimes just as strong as a rank 6 spirit beast, and sometimes stronger than a rank 6 spirit beast.


    "Do you guys feel that? Do you know what it could be?", Chen Zhen asked Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian


    "It feel like a spirit beast is about to advance to rank 6. Spirit beast don''t have to cultivate like we do, they have to keep absorbing enough energy from spirit cores of other beast to make their advancement.", Lou Tian explained.


    "I actually think its something much worse then that.", Shanggu Feng quickly added, "I think this is a rank 5 variant spirit beast. They are much harder to deal with. They can have abilities that others of their species don''t. And the ability can be anything, you won''t know what it is until you start fighting them. They usually have much stronger defense then their normal counterparts do. This can be a really big problem for you, you should probably leave as soon as you can!"


    "Too late¡­..", was all Chen Zhen could say before a bright golden light ran into him.


    BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!!!!


    Chen Zhen was blasted back and smashed thru a couple trees before he flipped backwards and landed on his feet, sliding and leaving deep furrows in the ground. When Chen Zhen looked up he saw a golden Specter Monkey that was one and a half the size of a normal Specter Monkey. It looked at Chen Zhen and growled in anger at him. Its teeth were clenched tight and the veins on its arms and neck were bulging as it huffed and puffed, putting on a very intimidating display.


    "Not good! That is a Golden Specter King. Their speed is three times a normal Specter Monkey. Where normal Specter Monkey are relatively weak for a rank 5 spirit beast, the Golden Specter King''s strength can rival that of a rank 6 spirit beast. The angrier they are the stronger they become, he seems to be incensed right now.", Shanggu Feng warned him.


    "This is perfect! I can test out my strength with him. I can also see how strong I am now that I have the Blood Lion bloodline in me.", Chen Zhen said with excitement.


    Chen Zhen turned around and smacked his butt like the Specter Monkeys did earlier, trying to make the Golden Specter King angrier. The Golden Specter King threw its head back and screamed in rage before taking off like a golden bullet slamming into Chen Zhen with its shoulder. Chen Zhen braced for the impact and was surprised to see that he barely moved back at all. The first time the Golden Specter King had caught him off guard, but this time since he was prepared, the attack marginally affected him. Chen Zhen figured if he really tried to then the Golden Specter King wouldn''t even be able to move him with its current strength.


    The Golden Specter Monkey was thrown into even more of a rage seeing that its attack barely moved Chen Zhen. It could feel how sturdy Chen Zhen''s body was when it slammed into him. The Golden Specter Monkey hollered at the top of its lungs and beat its chest I frustration. When it looked at Chen Zhen again its eyes were blood shot, and it seemed to have grown a few inches. This time Chen Zhen was prepared, and he activated Fire Flash at the same time that the Golden Specter King launched itself at him. Chen Zhen''s fist met the Golden Specter King''s fist causing a huge explosion.


    VVRRRBBABABBOOOOM!!!


    A huge fireball rose out of the forest clearing a section thirty meters in diameter. A golden streak was blasted out of the fireball smashing into some trees and stopping underneath the troop of Specter Monkeys. As the Golden Specter King picked itself back up from the ground it wiped blood from the side of its mouth. The troop of Specter Monkeys looked down dejectedly then started screaming and yelling to encourage the Golden Specter King to get up and keep fighting. Looking up at its troop the Golden Specter King sat down, lower his head and began to holler in a rhythmic pattern. As it was doing this its energy was slowly rising. As the rest of the troop heard this, it was like a signal to them, they all sat down and began to holler in rhythm with the Golden Specter King. A white mist started to flow out of the Specter Monkeys, very soon a white cloud of energy hovered among the trees. The Golden Specter King suddenly raised his head, his eyes were now glowing a bright red. The energy hovering in the trees started to swirl around forming a vortex that poured into the Golden Specter King. The Golden Specter King''s body began to grow bigger and bigger, this was its variant ability. When the Golden Specter King stopped growing it was the size of a silver back gorilla. Its power level had increased to a peak rank 6 spirit beast, it was now more powerful then the Blood Lion that Chen Zhen fought before.


    Chen Zhen in no way underestimated this Golden Specter King. While it was powering up Chen Zhen and the clone were making Thunderfire in preparation to attack. Chen Zhen circulated his qi to follow the new combined technique he learned from the clone last night. The Golden Specter King stood up and roared at the top of its lungs. As soon as the last bit of energy entered its body it took off from its spot leaving an afterimage in its place. Chen Zhen activated Thunderfire Flash-step as soon as the Golden Specter King moved. The two met in the middle causing another huge explosion. This time two figures were sent flying out of the flames. Even though they both were pushed back neither of them were hurt from their clash. Chen Zhen and the Golden Specter King both looked at each other with excitement in their eyes. The Golden Specter King looked at his troop then back at Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen nodded his head understanding what it wanted and took off running into the forest. Chen Zhen''s battle lust was slowly growing with each fight he entered. Even though this was just training for him it was also much needed experience. For some reason he couldn''t explain he knew that the Golden Specter King felt the same way. This battle wasn''t a life or death struggle for them, they were both using this as experiential training to get stronger. When they were far enough away that none of the troop of Specter Monkeys would be effected by the aftermath of their fight, the tow of them went back to bashing each other silly. This continued for many hours before they both were stopped leaning against trees to be able to stay on their feet. They were both exhausted and hurt all over, but they both also had smiles on their faces. The Golden Specter King waved at Chen Zhen, beckoning him to follow it. It took Chen Zhen on a long walk were they eventually ended up at a small cave at the foot of a mountain. There was a large boulder blocking the entrance to the cave. When the Golden Specter King pushed the boulder out of the way an extremely pure energy rushed out of the opening, just breathing in the vapor made Chen Zhen automatically start circulating the invigorating energy he breathed in.


    "Oh my god¡­. You have got to be the luckiest bastard I have ever met in my life¡­..", Lou Tian said.

 34 Monkeying Around

    Chapter 34


    As Chen Zhen followed the Golden Specter King into the cave he couldn''t see anything at first because it was completely dark in the tunnel they were walking through. After a couple minutes Chen Zhen began to be able to make out details around him. He couldn''t tell where the light was coming from until he left the tunnel and entered a very large open space inside the cave. When Chen Zhen looked up there were thousands of tiny stone that emitted a dim light, together they gave off enough light to light the entire cavern. When Chen Zhen looked to the left he saw hundreds of wine jugs lined up against the wall, and to the right was a small pool of milky white liquid that had thirty or forty stalactites hanging over it. As Chen Zhen breathed in two distinct aromas assaulted his nose. Both aromas contain very pure and potent energy.


    "I knew it! Those jugs contain Monkey King wine! That is the best nourishment for body refinement cultivators. You will be able to have a breakthrough just from drinking some of that wine. But on top of that there is also a pool of 10,000-year stalactite milk! All of your ancestor must have blessed your birth! Were you born under a star of great fortune? I have never met anyone as lucky as you are!", Lou Tian exclaimed in disbelief.


    "This doesn''t make any sense how could you be invited to share not only Monkey King wine but also 10,000-year stalactite milk? The milk is useless to the Golden Specter King. Do they use it make the Monkey King wine? The process that is used to make Monkey King wine is a secret of the Simian race, is it possible to use the 10,000-year stalactite milk to make it?", Shanggu Feng was just as perplexed as Lou Tian.


    The Golden Specter King walked over to the jugs of wine and waved for Chen Zhen to follow him. He started to reach for a small sized jug before he handed a medium sized jug to Chen Zhen. The Golden Specter King was still in his ape form, so he grabbed a large jug for himself and walked over to the stalactite milk pool. To Shanggu Feng''s and Lou Tian''s chagrin the Golden Specter King walked into the stalactite milk pool and lounged back like he was in a hot spring. The Golden Specter King took a large swallow of his wine waving for Chen Zhen to join him, splashing the milky fluid around while laughing.


    Chen Zhen walked into the pool and was surprised that it felt warm to him. Chen Zhen was about to sit back and relax like the Golden Specter King did when he was interrupted by Lou Tian, "Don''t even think about wasting this opportunity! You have a chance to advance two levels and enter the Liquid Core stage in one go. Between the Monkey King wine and the stalactite milk you have and unbelievable source of energy available to you right now. Now here is what you are going to do, start cultivating now. You will be able to feel a huge rush of energy enter your body. As soon as you feel our dantians getting full you will drink the wine. Then you will have to really focus, the only problem is that Monkey King wine is not only good for you, it''s also very potent alcohol. You will start to feel intoxicated right away, YOU MUST NOT LOSE FOCUS! Otherwise we could blow up and die from the large amounts that will be running thru your body. If you don''t mess this up you will use have the effort for twice the results."


    Chen Zhen could hear the seriousness in Lou Tian''s voice. If what Lou Tian said was correct then this was definitely just what he needed. He began circulating the energy from the stalactite pool in his body. The pure energy was flowing into every corner of his body, tempering his muscles, nerves, bones, and marrow. Chen Zhen once again felt impurities being pushed out of his body, but this time it was very minimal. The energy was so vigorous that it quickly filled their dantians with white swirling power. Chen Zhen took a big swig from his jug, as soon as the wine entered his throat a very strong alcoholic flavor rushed into his stomach. Chen Zhen began coughing at first from the burn of the alcohol, causing the Golden Specter King to laugh at him. Before Chen Zhen could get his coughing under control the Monkey King wine was already having an affect on him. Chen Zhen tried to sit straight and cultivate, but he soon found himself sliding deeper into the pool. Chen Zhen was only able to stop himself before his nose was submerged also. The clone seeing that their situation was about to become dire, stepped in and started circulating the energy for him.


    There was soon a muffled boom sound coming from inside Chen Zhen''s body indicating he had just advanced to level 9 body refinement cultivator. To the Golden Monkey King it sounded like Chen Zhen had gas, so it pointed at him and laughed hysterically, especially when it saw a large group of bubble begin to surround him. The bubbles didn''t come from Chen Zhen having gas though, it was from Chen Zhen''s pores opening up and greedily absorbing the 10,000-year stalactite milk. Chen Zhen was now completely drunk, so when the Golden Monkey King started it full-belly laughing, Chen Zhen couldn''t help but join in. The two of them drank and laughed for hours together. Chen Zhen had no clue when it happened, but he suddenly saw that his jug was empty. At some point the Golden Specter King had left the stalactite pool, but Chen Zhen was too drunk to notice this. Chen Zhen felt so thirsty at the moment, and when he looked over at where the other jugs of wine were, he felt to lazy to get up and walk all the way over there for some more. Chen Zhen looked down at the milky white pool of water he was laying in, and suddenly felt it was very appetizing.


    "Don''t you dare drink the stalactite milk! That is a very bad idea! NOOOO!!!!", Shanggu Feng''s shouts went completely ignored but Chen Zhen


    Chen Zhen dipped his face into the pool and took a big mouthful of milk and then swallowed. An intense, hot, fiery, energy burned its way down Chen Zhen''s throat. For a second Chen Zhen was sobered by this feeling, but the alcoholic potency of the Monkey King wine took effect again. The energy from the 10,000-year stalactite milk rushed into Chen Zhen''s blood. A red glow began to surround Chen Zhen''s body and loin roars were being produced from his body. These roars started off low, but they slowly increased in volume as time went on. The clone could tell that this was actually improving Blood Lion bloodline, so it made Chen Zhen drink some more. The glow around Chen Zhen''s body increased each time he drank more 10,000-year stalactite milk, eventually it became too bright to look at. The defense of Chen Zhen''s body reached and unbelievable level. The power of Chen Zhen''s attacks of just his physical body alone could injury cultivators in the liquid core stage. Chen Zhen had been in such a rush to increase his strength that he took no time to consolidate his foundation. It was a problem that Shanggu Julong was going to address after Chen Zhen had reached the liquid core stage. But Chen Zhen''s baptism in the 10,000-year stalactite milk corrected all his deficiencies for him. Chen Zhen now had a very solid foundation to work off of to improve his martial cultivation.


    When Chen Zhen finally stumbled out of the cave it was already night time in the forest. The clone guided him home, using Chen Zhen''s spiritual sense to avoid any spirit beast in the area. When he reached the Specter Monkeys again he saw that they were all still sitting in the same tree they were in when they gave their energy to the Golden Specter King. It seemed that using that technique drained all of the troop of monkeys. Chen Zhen took back control of his body and climbed the tree with the Specter Monkeys. He found himself a branch to get comfortable on and fell fast asleep.

 35 Reality Check

    Chapter 35


    Chen Zhen woke up the next morning feeling very confused. There was a weight against his back and across his legs. When he opened his eyes he saw a Specter Monkey sleeping on his legs, he could feel another one asleep behind him. Chen Zhen was trying to move very gently so as not to wake up the sleeping monkeys. As he was adjusting himself he accidentally knocked the one sleeping on his legs off the branch. Before it could even notice that it was falling the Golden Specter King caught it and placed it gently back down on the branch. Chen Zhen smiled and nodded to the Golden Specter King in thanks for its help. When Chen Zhen was finally down the tree, he looked back up at the Golden Specter King, cupping his hands and bowing to his new friend. The golden Specter King returned the gesture, then waved bye to Chen Zhen.


    As Chen Zhen was walking back thru the forest he could feel a humungous change to his body.


    "Hey what happened last night after I passed out? I don''t remember getting out of the cave or climbing into that tree," Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [Well for starters you seemed to get very thirsty at one point and was too lazy to leave the stalactite pool and get more wine, so you decided to drink the 10,000-year stalactite milk.]


    "I did? I assume it was ok to drink since I''m still fine. Why did you let me do that?"


    [It is not my job to babysit you. I was created to study this world for you and make it so that you progress faster. If you want a babysitter you need to create another clone.], the clone said in a monotonous voice.


    "Wow! Why the attitude, did I do something to you?" Chen Zhen was surprised that the clone responded to him that way.


    [It is not an attitude. You have not put forth much effort to learn anything on your own. You constantly rely on to save you from very mundane and ordinary matters. Last night you were told to keep your focus or the large amount of energy you were taking in could be harmful to you. But instead of listening and trying to take thing one step at a time, you are so focused on getting stronger faster, that you completely ignore any potential danger you put yourself in. And beside yourself there are two other people you need to be concerned about. Yes I am here to make you learn faster, but you have come to rely too heavily on me. The other two souls tried to get you home safely last night, but I''ll be honest I gave control of your body back to you so that you would have to face the consequences of your own actions,] the clone reprimanded him.


    Chen Zhen was startled. As he took the time to think about it he realized the clone was correct. His main has always been to get home to his family as soon as possible but in order to do that he needed to get as strong as he could. He did create the clone to help him understand this world and help him get stronger, but he never stopped to consider the danger that was involved.


    [You also need to consider the two other people that inhabit this body with you. You barely ever talk to them unless you need help with something. If you guys are supposed to be stronger together than apart, then how are ever going to get stronger if you never connect with them? Have you given any consideration to their plight in all of this? You all agreed to this union, but you have done little to nothing to include them in your daily life. You want to get stronger, well you have two very powerful people that share a body with you. They might have powers or at least insights that will be much better then what I can give you, since they have lived here their entire lives.]


    Chen Zhen felt like an ass. He knew that everything the clone said was correct. He didn''t mean to ignore Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian so much. It''s just that they were their own people. He felt he didn''t really have anything in common with them. How do you make friends with people when you don''t share any common ground? But as Chen Zhen thought about it more he realized that he didn''t know if they had any common ground or not. He never asked them about their life''s before all of this happened. Did they feel as stuck in this situation as he did? Probably not since he at least had the freedom to move around and do the things he wanted to do. As Chen Zhen started walking back toward the clearing he was literally dragging his feet.


    "Hey guys¡­. I should start off by saying¡­ I''m sorry¡­," Chen Zhen said dejectedly.


    "For what?" they asked simultaneously.


    "I have to apologize for basically ignoring your existence for starters."


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian didn''t know what to say. This was a very sudden confession. Not only were they not expecting it, they also didn''t know how to reply to it. Because of that it made for a very awkward silence for a while.


    "I don''t really know anything about you guys. It doesn''t look like we will be able to get you into your own body anytime soon, so getting to know each other a little better seems like a good idea to me.


    What do you guys think?", Chen Zhen said to try and keep the conversation going.


    "Well what would you like to know," Lou Tian asked?


    "What was your life like before all of this happened to us," Chen Zhen asked?


    "Well I was out to find some fortuitous encounters. I was trying to find a way to better myself and hoped to strengthen my clan in the process."


    "How were you going to better yourself?"


    "¡­.Well it''s a secret¡­. That is very sensitive to my clan¡­..so¡­.."


    "It''s ok, I understand. How about I tell you a little bit about my life? Do you have any questions for me?"


    Shanggu Feng knew that most of his life story was told by his ancestor so when Chen Zhen started talking he didn''t feel comfortable saying anything. He felt anything he said would be seen as an excuse to them, but now that Chen Zhen offered to talk about his life, Shanggu Feng wanted to join in the conversation.


    "What was your life like before you ended up here," Shanggu Feng asked?


    "I worked for a big company helping them stay connected around the world."


    "How did you do that?" Lou Tian asked, this sounded very interesting to him.


    "Well in my world we have these machines called computers. They help workers to handle larges amounts of information. I make sure that those computers can stay in contact with each other, no matter where in the world they are.", Chen Zhen was trying to explain his job to people who had no idea what he was making reference to.


    "How do they stay in contact? Do they use transmition scrolls," Lou Tian asked?


    "What kind of information do the workers handle? Is it top secrets," Shanggu Feng also asked?


    "No its not secrets, its just information needed to work smoothly. And in outer space there are giant floating machines that catch the information and then send it to different locations," Chen Zhen said chuckling to himself.


    "Do you work for a Master Builders sect? I can''t imagine giant floating machines in outer space. That sounds amazing," Lou Tian trying to picture that in his head.


    "Do you work for a spy sect? Those are the only people I know who need to share that much information every day," Shanggu Feng asked, trying to understand Chen Zhen''s life.


    Chen Zhen was enjoying their conversation when he was suddenly alerted to a strange smell. He wasn''t sure why, but he knew this was the smell of a powerful cultivator near-by. As Chen Zhen focused on the smell his blood began to pump rapidly through his body. He got a great sense of danger from his surroundings and he didn''t know why. What made him even more alarmed was that he was right outside of the clearing. As Chen Zhen searched around he couldn''t find anyone near-by. As Chen Zhen was walking around a tree where the smell and the sense of danger was the strongest hid Blood Lion bloodline suddenly activated. Long red hairs grew all over his body forming a natural armor. The hairs grew as think as steel cables, as the twined and contoured to Chen Zhen''s body they hardened into a flexible crystal-like substance. His fingers ended in razor sharp talons, and he had spiky protrusion on his elbows and knees. The hairs on Chen Zhen''s head became a large mane of red hair, his facial feature became more feline in nature. A great power came flowing into Chen Zhen from his blood. He wanted nothing more then to throw his back and roar like a mighty lion, so he did.


    When Chen Zhen was done he looked himself over and was startled by what he saw.


    "Your bloodline has strengthen tremendously! This must be the result of drinking the 10,000- year stalactite milk last night. With your bloodline strengthen you know have the special abilities of a rank 8 Blood Line. This is their special ability called Blood Armor. With this you can take a hit from a peak liquid stage cultivator with no worries at all. This is great" Lou Tian exclaimed!


    Chen Zhen could feel his bloodline giving him power. Even though he felt stronger then his peak body refine stage cultivator, he didn''t feel he was as strong as a rank 8 spirit beast. So he figured he just had the ability of a rank 8 spirit beast but not their strength. But he was fine with it either way. This was just one more ability to keep him safe in this crazy world.


    Chen Zhen continued going around the tree but in the end he still didn''t find anything. He didn''t feel any better because his sense of danger was still there. Chen Zhen rushed back to the clearing hoping that everything was still safe inside.

 36 Soul Connection

    Chapter 36


    Zhang You was terrified with what he just saw. That person was just level 8 of the body refinement a day ago. Now not only was he a peak body refinement cultivator, his bloodline had leveled up as well. How was this possible? The best guess that Zhang You had was that this was a future inheritor of a first-rate clan. As he put the pieces together he figure that this was a child prodigy that has shown exceptional skill in child birth. He may have even been born with a special heavenly body. Maybe he was born with all his meridians and acupoints already opened. This person would be of immense value to his clan. This operation will take some time and a lot of thorough planning to be viable, but the end score could set him up for life. Just the resources he could get alone would be enough to reach the King realm, or maybe even the Emperor realm. He would love to reach the God realm, but he knew that was being way to greedy. The biggest obstacle was finding someone powerful enough that he could trust. As Zhang You was making plans in his head he left just as quietly as he came, leaving no trace that he was ever there.


    When Chen Zhen passed thru the barrier the sense of threat he felt instantly disappeared. With out the sense of danger around him his bloodline retracted, and his armor flowed back into his body. As Chen Zhen looked around everything in the clearing look normal, but it was deathly quiet in there. Chen Zhen rushed to Mei Ling''s shack. When he arrived out front he could Mei Ling and the kids inside. Chen Zhen heaved a sigh of relief as his punt up emotions came crashing down. He suddenly felt very tired, and completely drained. Chen Zhen went to lean against the side of the shack, but lost his balance, falling into it instead.


    Mei Ling heard a loud bang and felt the entire shack shake. She opened the door to see what was the matter, when she accidentally hit Chen Zhen with the door. Seeing him slumped against her cabin the way he was Mei Ling assumed he had hurt himself again. She picked Chen Zhen up and carried him inside with much difficulty. For some reason Chen Zhen''s body felt a lot more solid and weight a great deal more then before. As Mei Ling check him over she couldn''t find any injuries or wounds on his body.


    "Hey guys, do any of you know why I feel so weak all of a sudden?"


    "This is probably the side effect of using your bloodline ability. Your body is still too weak to handle the power strain the ability put on it. You will be fine after you rest up. This side effect will naturally go away on its own after you learn to control your bloodline and fully unlock it," Shanggu Feng told him to help him understand his situation better.


    "Thank you Shanggu Feng. And thank you too Lou Tian. The advice you guys have given me has been very helpful. I would be really lost without you guys."


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian weren''t expecting such a sincere thank you from Chen Zhen. They really felt he appreciated them. This small gesture actually went a long way him starting to bridge the gap between them. And there actually was a literal gap between them. Even though the three souls were "merged" together it would actually be more accurate to say they were placed together. The three souls occupied the same body but originally they were the farthest apart they could possibly be. Since Chen Zhen took the initiative to open communication with Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian, and then this gesture of gratitude he just share, Chen Zhen actually pulled the other two souls a little closer toward his.


    "Hey, I feel a little bit different, but I don''t really know what it is," Shanggu Feng said.


    "Yes I know what you mean, things feel a little bit more vivid. I can hear you a little clearer. I can feel my dantian a little bit better too," Lou Tian excitedly said.


    "Yeah I can hear and feel you guys better too. I wonder what happened," Chen Zhen asked?


    [You guys are stronger together. You are beginning to communicate more, so you guys are drawing a little closer to each other,] the clone speculated.


    Chen Zhen wasn''t sure if that was it or not, but if it was it definitely wasn''t a bad thing. This took a while to explain but it happened in a matter of seconds. Mei Ling was still checking to see how Chen Zhen got hurt.


    "I''m okay Mei Ling. I''m just very tired right now," Chen Zhen told her.


    "Okay. When you didn''t come back yesterday and then seeing you like this today¡­.. I was naturally concerned," Mei Ling said looking very relieved.


    "I just need to get some rest. I do have some very good news. I have a very fortunate encounter while I was out yesterday. I am now at the peak of body refinement. As soon as I reach Liquid Core stage we can head to the Shanggu Clan and you and kids can begin your new life," Chen Zhen said hoping to make Mei Ling and the kids happy.


    Chen Zhen left to go to bed, so he didn''t see the looks that Mei Ling and the kids shared. They were very excited to be starting their new lives, but at the same time they were sad to know that they would be parting from Chen Zhen soon. Even though they all knew that Chen Zhen wasn''t they deceased family member, having him around felt so normal that they could easily forget that he wasn''t their Chen Fei Long. As they thought about all that Chen Zhen had done for them they were very grateful in their heart. Because of him they had a chance for an exciting new life that was beyond any of their wildest dreams. They only had to make it to the Shanggu Clan first, they had no idea where that clan was. Mei Ling once again had worry on her face as she thought of the perilous journey they had ahead of them.

 37 O.G.A.

    Chapter 37


    Nathan woke feeling rested, but he also felt tired in a weird way. It had been a couple months since he had returned from the Sacred Abyss. Every night before going to bed he would cultivate like Gorampa had taught him, but it wasn''t the same. He could feel wisps every now of then of the spiritual energy in the air, and whenever he did he would immediately stop and cultivate to absorb it. But it was like a tiny miniscule drop of water of water to a dried-out sponge. What he craved to do was to go back to the abyss and cultivate there. He was hoping his request for leave would be approved so he could head back.


    After showering and getting ready Nathan commuted to work as usual, but as soon as he got there he knew something wasn''t right. There were many government vehicles parked out front of the office he worked out of the office he worked at. Men in tight black suits with earpieces were guarding the front of the building not letting anyone in. When Nathan approached the front doors a muscular black agent taller then he was held up his hand to prevent him from entering.


    "My name is Nathan Daniels, I''m head of Security from the President and Vice President of World COMM. Can you please tell me why your preventing me and the rest of the workers from getting to our jobs?" Nathan asked feeling quite perturbed.


    "No one is allowed¡­. Wait did you say your name is Nathan Daniels? Please follow you, your wanted for questioning concerning your finding of the Flight 719," the muscular black agent said.


    Nathan followed the agent into the building and they went straight to George Miller''s office. He is the president of World COMM. On the way up Nathan tried to get any information he could out of the stoic agent, but he just stood there and ignored Nathan the entire time. As soon as they exited the elevator in the 30th floor, George Miller who had been pacing restlessly back and forth heaved a huge sigh of relief when he saw Nathan.


    "Nathan where have you been? We have been trying to reach you all morning. I left at least twenty messages on your phone, but you never responded," George said in one breath, Nathan could tell by his rapid speech that he was highly stressed.


    Before Nathan could respond to George the agent stepped in-between them and led Nathan by the arm to the crowded conference room. Nathan Looked back apologetically at George, but then glared daggers at the agent. Nathan snatched his arm free and dared the agent to try that again with the look he gave him.


    When they entered the conference room Janet Miller, George''s sister and the real head of World COMM was seated at the head of the conference table being berated on both sides by a male and female agent. Even though they were yelling at her she just sat there with a calm collected expression on her face. Never ever play poker with Janet Miller. You will lose everything, including the shirt on your back. Nathan knew this from personal experience the first time he join a company camping retreat.


    As Janet saw Nathan entering the conference room she stood up pretending she didn''t see the two agents next to her and walked up to Nathan. The agents were both yelling at her to sit back down, but Janet didn''t care one whit what they had to say. She walked up to Nathan and gave him a hug. Their relationship was¡­.. complicated. There was a definite attraction from both sides, but neither of them tried to pursue anything with the other. There were no romantic rendezvous or anything like that, but there were a few shared lunches and some only time during company retreats.


    "I was worried when we couldn''t get ahold of you this morning. Are you alright?" Janet asked as she left Nathan''s embrace.


    "Yes I''m fine. I usually take the train in in the morning, so I don''t get signal, that''s all. What''s going on here? Who are these people?"


    "We will be the ones asking the questions around here," the female agent said as she came around Janet''s desk.


    Janet and Nathan both rolled their eyes at the same time.


    "Who are you people which department are you from?" Nathan asked.


    "We are from O.G.A.," the male agent said with a smug attitude.


    "Don''t give me that Other Government Agency bullshit. If you don''t show me any solid credentials, as head of security I will just have to treat you all as trespassers on World COMM property and have you all escorted of the building," Nathan said thru clenched teeth.


    Ever since he had been cultivating his strength and speed had been increasing by leaps and bounds. The only thing he hated was that there was so little spiritual energy that it was also increasing at a snails pace. But that didn''t mean he could personally handle every agent on this floor in ten seconds flat. The male agent didn''t like the look ion Nathan''s eyes, so got in Nathan''s face prepared to use force to subdue him.


    The female agent pulled her partner away from Nathan while saying, "There is no need for a pissing contest. We have a copy of your itinerary that shows you were the first person to arrive at the crash site. Satellite imaging shows you approaching the crash site at speeds no human being should be able to achieve, let alone sustain for as long as you did. And then mysteriously the satellite feed was interrupted by an unknown energy source. The interruption was for alone about twenty minutes, but when the feed is restored you are seen leaving the crash site with the black box. Do you mind explaining this series of events Mr. Daniels?"


    Nathan was shocked. He didn''t know that the government was actively monitoring the crash site. He just assumed they were waiting for someone else to do the work, and then swoop in to take all the credit like they did when he returned with the black box. He didn''t know that the feed was interrupted, he could only assume that was the work of Gorampa. He decided not to mention Gorampa in any of his reports, because basically he didn''t want to sound crazy. And secondly he didn''t know who to explain everything that Gorampa had told him.


    Nathan''s silence mad the agents think that they had rattled him. Nathan looked at the both of them then looked at the other ten or twelve agents that rummaging thru the files and cubicles in the office. The office was trashed, they didn''t care about what they were doing they were just trying to seem intimidating.


    Nathan looked back at the two agents in front of him with an evil grin on his face, "Get you flunkies and get the hell out of our office. Go back to you precious O.G.A. and tell them that unless they have warrants and actually subpoena me to testify before a grand jury I have absolutely nothing to say to you."


    The two agents looked at each other feeling that they had just run into a brick wall. They knew that they had nothing concrete on Nathan, nor on World COMM. This was just a scare tactic to try and flush out some new information.


    "Ok Mr. Daniels, since you want to play hardball, lets see how squeaky clean you really are. You had better not have so much as an overdue library book. I know you are hiding something Mr. Daniels and when I find out what it is I''m going to nail your ass to the wall!" the female agent said before calling to her underlings and heading to the elevator.


    When they were all gone, Janet finally let go of her tough exterior and collapsed into the nearest seat. She suddenly looked ten years older.


    "What''s going on Nate? What didn''t you tell us about the crash?" Janet asked in almost a whisper.


    "I can''t talk about it right now. Plus you not knowing anything gives you plausible deniability. But right now I need you to approve of my request for vacation time and make the company jet, and some overseas assets available to me right away. I have to revisit the crash site now more then ever," Nathan said while kneeling down in front of Janet.


    Janet looked Nathan in the eye. She had learned that Nathan was a very intelligent and capable man. She learned to trust his instincts.


    "Ok I will do you this favor, but I swear Nathan as soon as you return to explain everything to me. No more secrets. You still have my trust for now, but if still try to hide things from me that trust will be completely gone, and you will be on your own. Do I make myself clear?"


    Nathan could tell by the way she was speaking that she meant business. He knew no words were needed between them, so he just stood up and saluted Janet. Turning on his heal Nathan walked out of the office and headed to the elevators. He need to contact Gorampa now more then ever. The only problem was he had no Idea how.

 38 Sacred Abyss World

    Chapter 38


    Gorampa had been spending most of his time near the Sacred Abyss. He was studying the seals and paying attention to the spiritual energy that was transferring onto Earth. He was also cultivating and regaining his old strength. He had met with the other Ancestor Monks from different temples around the world. Since Gorampa''s temple was closest to the Sacred Abyss, and they had the most knowledge of what was happening, it was unanimously agreed to allow Gorampa to oversee the situation. From what Gorampa could tell of the seals they had been first ruptured from the Sacred Abyss side. When he checked the strength of the seals he found that there was a fatal flaw in the ancient ones plan back then. Because the seals were meant to keep people from the Sacred Abyss out of Earth it also sealed the spiritual energy convection between the two worlds. As Earth''s energy began to wane and eventually vanish all together, the power supporting the seals vanished as well. At most the seals were as flimsy as bubbles at this point. The being that ruptured the seals originally was hiding his power as he did so. There was absolutely no restriction for him as he passed thru the seals.


    If this happened at the time of the plane crash then its highly possible that some of the people on the plane would have been sucked into the Sacred Abyss. Think of it as a pressurized ship, if a hole is suddenly punched in its hull then the air will first be sucked out of the new hole before the pressure becomes stabilized. Right now even though there are very small amounts of spiritual energy coming onto Earth the majority of the pressure is still in The Sacred Abyss.


    The seals right now look like layers of inverted parachutes. The pressure can escape thru the hole in the top, but the process is very slow. Since the seals are destroyed anyway Gorampa feels that he should just destroy them to speed up the stabilization process. But in order to do that he would have to travel down into the Sacred Abyss himself.


    Gorampa had been sitting above the Sacred Abyss debating with himself if this was the right move to make for days now. The only draw back he could see to his plan is that it would make Earth become visible to people on the other side. Theoretically the Earth should already be visible to people of the other side because the seals had already been broken. And beside the plane crash there has been no other signs of anyone entering Earth from the other side. The plane crash wasn''t proof of hostile intent, because do to its proximity to the Sacred Abyss it could have been a complete accident. Imagine a grown up turning a corner and knocking down a child that they didn''t know was there. The beings that come from the Sacred Abyss are so powerful that a mere swing of their arm or flick of their finger could change the weather.


    Having finally convinced himself Gorampa charged down into the Sacred Abyss. The seals were so feeble that he merely released all of his power creating a wind shockwave in front of himself that completely destroyed the seals as he passed through them. There were thousands of seals that lined the portal in the Sacred Abyss. Even Gorampa was surprised by what the ancient ones were able to accomplish. He also understood why all spiritual energy was completely cut off. From what he could sense of the seals before he destroyed them there was a redundancy placed inside of the entire seal formation. If this barrier had been attacked from the other side the power of all of these thousands of seals would have been transferred to the front intensifying the strength of the last seal exponentially. These thousands of seals would have seemed like hundreds of millions when this formation was at full power. The ancient ones sacrifice was truly great, but they really ensured the safety of mankind.


    A couple days later Gorampa finally destroyed the last seal. As he floated in the air above the Sacred Abyss world Gorampa began to laugh like a lunatic. The amount of spiritual energy in this world was so abundant that just breathing was strengthening his body. Gorampa sent his spiritual sense out to see what was around. To his surprise, not to far away he felt a strong aura that seemed to have come from Earth. Gorampa went to find out who this strong aura belonged to. As he neared a forest that was about two hundred miles from where he was ne noticed a barrier set up near the edge of the forest. Gorampa walked around the barrier trying to see if there were any defensive runes used to make it. He was surprised to find that it was solely a restriction barrier. It was meant to keep people that''s it. As Gorampa stretched his hand out to touch the barrier he was surprised to see his hand pass right thru.


    When Shanggu Julong set up the barrier he restricted everyone from his world from being able to enter. When he set the barrier to allow Chen Zhen to pass freely thru, he didn''t set it to Chen Zhen personally, but he set it to Earth realm energy signature. So the actual key wasn''t Chen Zhen''s energy signature, but Earth''s which Chen Zhen shared also. There was no way for Shanggu Julong to know that someone from Earth would be able to make it to the Sacred Abyss world.


    Gorampa quickly withdrew his hand looking around to see if anyone or anything was alerted to his presence. When there was no respond, he put his hand thru the barrier again. Seeing that there was no harm, Gorampa walked into the barrier. He stood there shocked by what he saw on the other side. The spiritual energy inside was even thicker than outside the barrier. There were fruit trees around and a clear stream flowing down the right side of the clearing he found himself in. Gorampa could see a stone platform, and two small shacks near the stream at the other end of the clearing. Everything was sunny and bright unlike the twilight he found inside of the forest. Gorampa was still observing the clearing when he felt an oppressive spiritual sense envelop him. Looking back toward the shacks Gorampa saw a blood red streak of light heading his way.

 39 Visitor

    Chapter 39


    Zhang You was slowly walking out of the forest deep in thought. He was trying to figure out who he could trust to help him capture Chen Zhen when he felt a very strong energy fluctuation coming from the sky. This energy was strange because it didn''t seem to originate from this world. As he tracked it with his spiritual sense Chen Zhen was surprised again to see that it was headed for the barrier. His first thought was this was the great elder who was helping Chen Zhen, but on second thought he realized this this person definitely wasn''t strong enough to set up the barrier. Zhang You wasn''t as strong as this new person, but he was confident he could sneak attack them and injure them heavily. From what he could tell they didn''t seem to be at full strength at this moment. Zhang You was preparing to head back when the new person actually went into the barrier, with no resistance. Somehow this person and the people who set up the barrier must be connected. This would change all his plans he had made so far. Zhang You was a very cautious person. He got where he was today because he always thoroughly investigated his targets before he acted. Zhang You set up his Nullification formation again and sat down to patiently wait to see what happened next.


    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Chen Zhen had just woken up and was headed to Mei Ling''s shack for breakfast when he was alerted by the barrier that someone had just entered the clearing. Chen Zhen remembered his sense of danger from the day before, so as soon as he locked on to the intruder he rushed over at full speed. Chen Zhen saw an old monk in ceremonial robes looking around the clearing. Chen Zhen didn''t get a sense of danger from him, but because of Mei Ling and the kids he wasn''t taking any chances. Since the intruder looked so old Chen Zhen restrained his strength to 50% and threw at punch toward the old monk.


    Gorampa was looking at a blood red streak of light rushing toward him. He could feel the fighting intent of the person heading his was. When Chen Zhen was right before him Gorampa threw out a light punch to meet Chen Zhen''s fist.


    BBBOOOOOMMMM!!!


    Chen Zhen was sent flying backward for a hundred meters, he did a back flip in the air, and righted his body leaving deep furrows in the ground before coming to a stop. Gorampa didn''t move an inch, after throwing the punch he continued to look around that this marvelous place. Chen Zhen realized he couldn''t underestimate this old monk anymore. Executing Fire Flash he launched himself at Gorampa again. Gorampa could feel the increase in power from Chen Zhen''s attack. Instead of being worried he actually became more excited.


    "This old me hasn''t had a real opportunity to workout this old bones in ages. Please allow me to have a little fun!" Gorampa said before amping up his power to 50%.


    Gorampa seemed as though he just light kicked off the ground, but he took off light a rocket blast straight toward Chen Zhen. When they collided together the impact from their fist created a large fireball that left a twenty-foot-wide and ten-foot-deep crater in the ground. This time both of them were sent flying back from the force of the blast. They both righted themselves and rush forward again. Gorampa started to flicker form side to side leaving afterimages, making his movements very unpredictable. Chen Zhen tried to keep up with his movements and was soon completely lost as to were Gorampa was. Chen Zhen suddenly felt a heavy pressure coming from behind before he turned around real quick and blocked a punch from Gorampa. Gorampa was surprised that Chen Zhen could react to him that quickly. He nodded his head in approval and then continued his assault on Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen was reduced to just blocking at this point. The only reason the fight had lasted this long was because his body boasted such a tyrannical defense thanks to the Blood Lion bloodline. Chen Zhen tried using Thunder Step to keep up with Gorampa''s erratic movements, but it was of no use. Gorampa''s battle experience was too vast for Chen Zhen. Feeling frustrated at his limitations in battle and feeling inadequate Chen Zhen begins to fuse his power to create Thunderfire. When Gorampa felt the immense energy building in Chen Zhen''s body even he was alarmed by what he felt. Gorampa quickly appeared behind Chen Zhen striking him in the neck and knocking him out cold.


    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Chen Zhen awoke with a splitting headache. As he sat up in bed and looked around he realized he was in Mei Ling''s shack. He could hear low voices speaking outside. Jumped out of bed and ran outside when he remembered the old monk he had been battling earlier. When Chen Zhen got outside he could see the kids laughing as the played around with Gorampa. Mei Ling was sitting to the side serving tea for them.


    "Ah my young friend has awoken. Sorry for that bump on your head, but I couldn''t let you use that dreadful energy on my. My poor old body would have surely perished. No, no we don''t want that now do we," Gorampa said as he shook his head and waved his hands.


    Chen Zhen was completely confused, he had no clue what was going on. Now that he wasn''t on high alert and could think more calmly he felt something familiar coming from Gorampa. Since there was no danger to Mei Ling and the kids, Chen Zhen finally relaxed and joined them for tea.


    "My young friend I can feel that you are from Earth as well. Can you tell me your story of how you ended up here?" Gorampa asked.


    Chen Zhen took his time and explained in detail everything that happened to him since Shanggu Julong attacked his flight. When he was done Gorampa had a contemplative look on his face, Chen Zhen couldn''t tell what he was thinking.


    "Thank you for sharing your story with me, that has helped me to understand somethings that were confusing me. I know you must be very confused about who I am. I am a monk from a Buddhist temple in Tibet. Our temple near the Sacred Abyss you fell thru to enter into this world. We are the guardians of the history that explains the relationship of these two worlds," Gorampa then explained the histories to Chen Zhen, "I came thru the portal to investigate the source of the breach in the seals. I did not expect to find survivors from our world here. If you were able to survive then its possible that others from you flight might have managed to survive as well."


    Chen Zhen was surprised when he heard this. he had never considered the possibility of others falling into the abyss along with him. As he looked over at Mei Ling and the kids he felt very torn at the moment.


    "I can tell from your look that you are feeling conflicted in your emotions right now." Gorampa said in hopes of getting Chen Zhen to open up to him.


    "Since I ended up here my only goal has been tom return home. I have my wife and kids waiting for me and I don''t know if they are even ok at this moment. Even though I made arrangements for them to be provided for in the case that something happened to me, it''s not the same. I would rather be there with them."


    Mei Ling and the kids heard Chen Zhen''s words and put on a brave face even though it hurt very much to hear he wanted to leave them. They knew this day was coming, but they didn''t expect it to be so soon.


    "I can understand how you feel. Being separated from your family must be very troubling for you. But can I offer you some advice from an old monk," Gorampa asked looking Chen Zhen in the eye.


    "Sure. I would never turn down your advice, senior." Chen Zhen respectfully replied.


    "Stay here and become stronger. Your family is safe for now and I''m quite sure they miss you dearly. But before long our world will need strong warrior to help protect it again. This vast marvelous world is full of wonderous opportunities, but it is also full of incredible dangers. And those dangers will eventually make their way to Earth. When that time comes around the very few older warriors such as myself may not have to power to fight back. We are beyond our prime. The most we can do is train and guide the next generation of warriors. You have a distinct advantage, you have the ability to train under some of the most powerful master in this world. Take advantage of this, don''t squander it. So that when you do finally return to your family you will be able to protect from the future dangers coming to our world," looking over at Mei Ling and the kids Gorampa said, "and I believe that you still have some responsibilities here that you must look after before you are free to return also."


    Chen Zhen looked down considering Gorampa''s words. There was no telling how long before Earth would be noticed by truly powerful beings from this world. He now felt an even more urgent need to get stronger, faster.


    Chen Zhen looked at Mei Ling and the kids and smiled, "You are right. I will stay for now to become stronger, and to fulfill my responsibilities. But I must ask you a favor please, Senior Gorampa."


    "Of course, you don''t have to be so polite, just call me Gorampa."


    Chen Zhen told Gorampa where his family lived, he gave Gorampa as many of the fruits from the trees that he could care and asked him to deliver it to his family. He also gave Gorampa a message for his wife before bidding farewell to him.


    Gorampa left the barrier and returned thru the portal heading back to Earth. As Gorampa was leaving Zhang You followed him with his sense. Zhang You sat there pondering what his next move should be. His interest was very piqued by the portal that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

 40 Decisions

    Chapter 40


    Nathan had been camping out around the Sacred Abyss for a couple days. The spiritual energy was a hundred times more potent then before. He didn''t know what the cause was, but he felt overjoyed by what he found. He had been cultivating for two days and he was getting close to a breakthrough. When he wasn''t cultivating he was searching around the area. He noticed a distinct change in the flora and fauna of this region. The land seemed to be revitalized in a way he couldn''t explain. It was like a new color was added that he had never seen before, and because of that he never knew it was missing to begin with.


    As Nathan was returning to his campsite this night he noticed a fire was already blazing. Nathan hid behind a piece of fuselage and slowly crept up to behind his tent. As Nathan peeked around the side of his tent he heard an old voice calling out to him. Signing in relief Nathan walked up to the fire and sat down on the log next to Gorampa.


    "How have you been my young friend?" Gorampa asked while taking very small bites of a strange looking fruit.


    "Things have definitely been better. The government of my country is looking into this crash site because of what you did to their satellites. I still don''t fully understand this myself, so I have no clue what to tell. Neither do I think they will believe me if I tell them the story of the history of this place. I came here looking for you to see if you could help me tell them the truth of this place." Nathan said as he stared into the fire.


    "This is a world of many extremes, with a plethora of variety mixed in. The governments of the world only know one extreme or the other. While the people of the world will vary from place to place. The main concern we should have is for the people, not the governments. The people will be the true victims if preparations aren''t made to protect them. If we inform the governments they will hide the knowledge away from the masses until they figure out a way to benefit themselves with it, and they wont share that knowledge unless it becomes impossible to hide it anymore." Gorampa said with a heavy sigh.


    "So what exactly are you saying, that I shouldn''t let the governments at all?" Nathan asked very confused by what Gorampa said.


    "Let me say it this way. Have you heard that the origins of all myths and legends are based somewhere in truth?"


    "Yes," Nathan replied.


    "So think of all the myths and legends you have heard about in your life. Some of them are good and some of them are very bad, right?"


    "Well yes¡­ I guess you could say that." Nathan answered, but he was still having a hard time following Gorampa''s train of thought.


    "So if you tell your governments that strange and wonderful power was coming back to Earth thru this Sacred Abyss. Then you told them that creatures from myth and legend would be walking the Earth again, what would they do with that information?"


    "Well if they didn''t throw me in a looney bin, they would most like try to gain control of that power for themselves. And they would begin to hunt down the strange and unknown considering it to be a threat."


    "So how would they treat a power they couldn''t control?" Gorampa asked.


    Nathan sat there and thought about it for a while. What would they do? They would treat it as a threat. If they stop the energy from entering our world or control it after they it entered into our world, they would most like send soldiers down the Sacred Abyss to explore where the energy was coming from. A world with extremely powerful beings that could enslave mankind. Nathan finally understood what Gorampa was trying to say.


    "They would start a war. A war we would have no way of winning¡­." Nathan was even more distressed now. He didn''t know what his move should be. After sitting next to the fire in silence for a couple minutes Nathan came up with an idea.


    "Instead of going to the governments, why don''t we go straight to the masses? The company I work for can get this information to everyone around the world in a couple days. The governments would find out, but the people would know too."


    "If you feel that is the right move, I wont stop you. But I have my own responsibilities and people I must take care of here. You will have to explain this on your own." Gorampa said.


    "I must leave now but before I go can I ask a favor of you young Nathan?"


    "Sure, what do you need?"


    Gorampa told Nathan about meeting Chen Zhen in the Sacred Abyss world. He handed Nathan most of the spirit fruits and explained everything about them. Nathan promised to pass them along to Chen Zhen''s family. Gorampa then flew off into the night. Nathan decided to leave the next day, hoping the plan he had in mind was the right one.

 41 The Truth

    Chapter 41


    Nathan left the airport and hailed a cab to World COMM''s main headquarters. He didn''t call Janet to tell her he was on his way because he figured the office phones were tapped. He was carrying a burner phone himself, he had left his regular cellphone at home. He used his years of military experience to avoid detection while he traveled. He had the company jet change flight plans mid-flight just to make sure he wouldn''t have agents waiting for him when he landed.


    When he arrived at the front of the building he saw a grey van parked across the street. He asked the driver to circle the block. He was impressed by how thorough the government was being. Being the head of security he knew all of the ways in and out of the building. He went two streets down and got off at a bodega. The service tunnels of this bodega connected to ones under the World COMM building. This was and emergency escape route that was planned to be in case of a terrorist act or a hostage situation.


    Nathan made his way into the basement of the World COMM building and used his thumb print to access the private elevator. This elevator connected to a secret panel in Janet''s office. When the door opened Nathan found himself in a small room behind a faux wall in Janet''s office. Nathan put his ear to the wall because he could hear voices on the other side.


    "Ms. Miller if you know what is good for you, you will start being more cooperative with us. We know that Mr. Daniels has used your company jet to travel outside of the country. Where did he go?" Nathan could tell it was the same female agent as before


    (Silence)


    BAM!! The female agent slammed her hand on Janet''s desk


    "My patience is running out! If you don''t hand over Mr. Daniels whereabouts by this time tomorrow I will return with a warrant for your arrest."


    "On what grounds?" Janet replies in a monotone.


    "You are a global telecommunication company. I can say its on the grounds of national security. Ever since 9/11 everything seems to be able to fall under that nowadays. And you best believe I don''t need proof to get a judge to sign off on the warrant. Hahahahaha," the female agent said with smug satisfaction.


    When Nathan heard the door close he waited a while to make sure the agents had boarded the elevator before coming out of the hidden room.


    "You can come out now Nathan they have left." Janet said to the wall.


    Nathan opened the faux wall surprised that Janet knew he was there.


    "I had a silent alert system placed to ensure that the escape route wasn''t some psycho''s backdoor entry to my office late at night."


    That was Janet. She always planned three to four steps ahead of everyone else, including him.


    "Spill it. What have you gotten yourself into?" Janet asked looking at Nathan with a solemn expression.


    "Our world is changing in a wonderous and miraculous way, but no one really knows. We need to get the truth out to the world before the governments of the world get wind of it. This is a crazy tale that a lot of people wont believe at first but when people and plants and animals start changing no one will be able to deny the truth. We have to get the truth out to the world before the governments try to control what the media knows and says."


    "What has gotten into to Nathan? I''ve never seen you like this before. What could be so important that you would risk your career and maybe even your life? What exactly happened in the mountains?" Janet trusted Nathan with her life, but right now he really wasn''t making sense to her.


    Nathan explained everything that Gorampa had told him about the history of the Sacred Abyss. He showed her the plants that he found near the Sacred Abyss and how they had changed. He showed her the new strength he had ever since he had begun cultivating by lifting her solid oak desk over head with one hand. Even with everything that Nathan had done he could still see that Janet was skeptical. Nathan knew that the only way for her to truly believe was if she had experienced it for herself. Nathan took out one of the fruits that Gorampa had asked him to pass on to Chen Zhen''s family. Gorampa had given him permission to take a couple for himself. The energy in these fruits was so potent that even he wasn''t able to eat more then two small bites before his dantian was full of energy. Since he received the fruits he had already broken through to the third level of body refinement.


    "This fruit is from the world on the other side of the Sacred Abyss. It is full of spiritual energy. I can only give you a tiny piece to try because if I gave you more then that it would be harmful to you." Nathan gave her a piece about the size of a tic tac.


    Janet looked at Nathan skeptically, she could see that Nathan was being honest with her. The things he just did and the plants he showed her were truly marvelous, but Janet just couldn''t bring herself to accept what she had just been told. Looking into Nathan eyes, Janet took that tiny piece and placed it in her mouth.


    That tiny piece melted instantly and became a flood of energy that rushed down her throat. Janet gasped loudly as he never expected to feel so much energy rushing into her body from so tiny a piece of fruit. The energy flooded her body vitalized every cell in her being. Janet threw back her head and moaned uncontrollably due to the feeling. Her body began to make popping sounds as her bones strengthened themselves. Her heart and lungs grew stronger and her brain felt clearer. Her thoughts ran smoother than they ever did in her life. Janet looked at the fruit in Nathan''s hand with greed and fear mixed together. As much as she wanted nothing more than to swallow the rest of that fruit whole, she realized that the amount of energy in that fruit was enough to power a nuclear reactor.


    As Janet fell back into her seat feeling tired from her body going through so many changes so quickly, she looked at herself in the mirror on her desk. The sight astonished her, she looked ten years younger! Her hair was glossy and vibrant, her eyes looked like to emerald orbs that seemed to glow. Feeling what she felt and seeing the changes to her own body, Janet that Nathan was telling the truth. All of it was true. If what the monk told Nathan was true then soon this would happen to the whole world.


    Janet looked at Nathan and he just nodded his head. Janet was very intelligent, she would very easily be able to come to the same conclusions that Nathan did. Even though Janet may seem like a cold-hearted scheming individual, she was really a very kind-hearted caring person. It''s because she cared so much that she would always think of ways to protect the ones she loved. That to her meant out thinking the bad guys.


    "OK. I will arrange everything. The story will play on tonight''s news. There will be no advance warning so there will not be anyway the story can be leaked before its time. What will you do know?" Janet asked still eyeing the fruit in Nathan''s hand.


    "I still have somethings I need to take care of. When I''m done I''ll meet you at your house to discuss moving forward." Nathan placed the rest of the fruit on Janet''s desk then headed out the door. He needed to get to Chen Zhen''s family as soon as possible.


    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Chen Zhen sat in his shack quietly after Gorampa left. He felt torn. He knew that it was right for him to stay to make sure Mei Ling and the kids made it to their new life. But part of him felt he was betraying his own family by not rushing back to them as soon as possible.


    "I can feel the concern you have for your loved ones thru our bond. I hope you don''t mind if I say a few words, that might ease your mind some." Lou Tian spoke in a hushed tone.


    "Sure. I can use a distraction from my own thoughts right now." Chen Zhen said with a heavy sigh.


    "I still have family waiting for me to come home. They don''t know that I have passed away in a sense. Until I come home they will be waiting patiently for me to return. You have the benefit that you are able to let your family know you are safe and you will return some day. When that comes you will not only be able to show them your undying love, but you will be strong enough to keep them safe. That is worth every day you miss with them. Because everyday your away, you are getting stronger. So that when you return, you can ensure that nothing will be able to separate you again. They have been your motivation to get stronger, don''t disappoint them. Continue to get stronger, for them." Lou Tian was sad because this is how he felt about his own family when he left them.


    "Thank you, Lou Tian. I appreciate your words of encouragement. They mean more to me then you can ever know." After wiping a tear from his eye Chen Zhen sat up straight and prepared to cultivate.


    "Now that the mushy stuff is out of the way let''s get you stronger. I''ll teach you how to advance to the liquid core stage!" Shanggu Feng said feeling excited to see Chen Zhen''s advancement.

 42 Liquid Core Stage

    Chapter 42


    "I want you to look inside yourself and tell me what you see inside of your dantian," Shanggu Feng said to Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen took a really good look inside of himself, something he just realized he hadn''t done in a while. As his mind''s eye looked under his skin he saw his muscles that looked like flexible steel fibers. They interwove together around his skeleton which looked like white jade crystal. His heart beat with a steady rhythm as it pumped his blood thru his body. Every cell of his now had a power of its own that fortified his body. A gaseous spiritual energy flowed thru his meridians and congregated in his dantians. The dantians were all full of this gaseous energy.


    "Our dantians are full of a gaseous spiritual energy. I can see if coursing thru my meridians." Chen Zhen said still looking inside himself.


    "What you first need to do is compress that gaseous energy until it becomes a fine mist. Lou Tian and I will be compressing the energy in our corresponding dantians also. This is were your elemental affinity comes into play. As you compress you energy you need to choose which element you plan to focus on. Then as you compress that gaseous spiritual energy you need to feed it the element you choose." Shanggu Feng explained.


    "Do I really have to choose one or the other? I don''t want to lose out on the benefits of using both elements. Plus there is the void element I''ve not had the chance to investigate yet. I feel that my strength would be handicapped if I don''t utilize everything at my disposal." Chen Zhen said feeling anxious about having to make a choice.


    "You are correct, this is a very hard decision for martial artist such as yourself who have multiple affinities. I never had the problem your facing, so I can''t truly advise you on the best option. For Lou Tian and myself, because we are descendants of Sacred Beast, our bloodline carry only a single affinity."


    "Can you give me some time to think about this?" Chen Zhen asked Shanggu Feng.


    "Sure no problem there is no rush right now. You have been able to produce quite a few miracles. Just don''t act before consulting us first. We promise to not hold you back, but you have to remember to include us in whatever you decide to do." Shanggu Feng told him.


    "No problem I will not do anything rashly like I did before." Chen Zhen said to reassure them.


    "Is there a way to not lose any of our abilities when we progress to the Liquid Core Stage?" Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [I haven''t been able to research everything yet. I know that we can combine the fire and lightning affinities, but the void affinity has never been used. I don''t have enough information to make an accurate answer. I do have a theory about the void affinity.] the clone explained, [I believe the void affinity isn''t so much an affinity as it is an innate ability. The fire and lightning affinity you gained when you combined with Shanggu Feng''s and Lou Tian''s souls. I believe the void ability was something you had before you met them. If this is true then you will not have to worry about losing it after you advance to Liquid Core Stage. Unfortunately the only way to test this theory is after you have already advanced.]


    Chen Zhen didn''t like his options, but at least what the clone offered him was more hopeful. He could only begrudgingly accept the clones method over losing everything.


    "So what do I have to do to test your theory?" Chen Zhen asked the clone.


    [As they convert the gas in their dantians into mist you need to use a little bit of there mist as a catalyst to create Thunderfire mist in your dantian. But you must got very, very slow. This is a very dangerous process. I will try to help but you MUST do the majority of the work yourself. I can''t communicate with Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian. You must stay in constant contact with them throughout the entire process for this to work right.] the clone implored him.


    "OK I think I have a solution, but it will require both of your help." Chen Zhen said to Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian.


    "Sure what do you need us to do?" they replied.


    "As you guys convert you gaseous spiritual energy into mist, I will take a small drop of mist from each of you to act as a catalyst to create Thunderfire mist in my dantian. I will be taking things very slow and communicating with you guys along the way. I believe that working together we can make this possible." Chen Zhen explained to them.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were both skeptical on whether this would work or not, but since Chen Zhen had been doing the impossible this entire time, they would give him the benefit of the doubt.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian were both very powerful warrior before, so they had already done this process before. It took them no time at all to create mist in their dantians. Taking a deep breath to steady himself Chen Zhen took a drop of mist from each dantian. As soon as that drop of mist entered his dantian it felt like a miniature explosion went off in his dantian. Chen Zhen coughed up a mouth full of blood, but he stayed focused. The mist energy was extremely potent. Even though it was a small amount it actually held as much power as a quarter of all the gaseous spiritual energy in his dantian.


    The mist spiritual energy was taking all the spread out and tiny gas particles and pushing them tightly together until they began to bond to each other. As more and more particles bound together they would form a vaporous mist. This mist was hundreds of times more powerful than the gas.


    As Chen Zhen stabilized his dantian, that tiny drop of Thunderfire was slowly rotating in his dantian. He took another drop from their dantians, but he was ready for the force of combining them in his dantian. The second drop was still volatile, but it didn''t harm Chen Zhen this time. As Chen Zhen slowly continued the process Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian replenished whatever he used from their dantians.


    They were all so focused on what they were doing that no one payed attention to the time. The next day when Chen Zhen didn''t come to breakfast Mei Ling went to check on him make sure he was okay. Before she even got close to Chen Zhen''s shack she could feel enormous energy fluctuations. The fluctuations felt as heavy as a mountain pressing down on Mei Ling, making it hard for her to move. She realized that Chen Zhen was making his breakthrough, she quickly left that oppressive aura and headed back to her shack. Her little family didn''t have many things, but she still collected them together in the spatial ring that Shanggu Julong gave her in preparation for they departure.


    As the hours flew by like a flowing river, the aura coming from Chen Zhen''s shack began to stabilize. Chen Zhen had converted his entire dantian into Thunderfire mist. His body was cover in sweat showing how exhausting the process was.


    "You are doing great Chen Zhen. Now that you have completed the first step you have gotten the hardest part out of the way. Now that your dantian is full of a mist that consist of your elemental affinity, to truly step into the Liquid Core stage you must compress that mist into a small liquid pool inside of your dantian." Shanggu Feng told him.


    Right now Chen Zhen''s dantian was about a third of the way full of Thunderfire mist. Do to the immense size of all of their dantians this third was still as much as a normal cultivators when it was full. Chen Zhen didn''t know this, so he was feeling bummed when he realized he would have so little energy when he was done. If any normal cultivator knew what he was thinking they would have cough up blood in frustration.


    Chen Zhen finished the rest of his breakthrough process smoothly and ended up with a tiny pool of Thunderfire energy that only fill about one-fifth of his dantian.


    [Try circulating your energy,] knowing that Chen Zhen was looking down on the amount of energy he had in his dantian, the clone asked him to do this.


    Chen Zhen was completely exhausted, but he still did as the clone asked. As soon as he began circulating his energy he was instantly invigorated. He had more energy now then he ever had when all three dantians were full. Chen Zhen looked at his body in astonishment! He didn''t even use any martial techniques yet all he did was circulate his energy.


    [Now when you absorb energy and cultivate it was automatically create Thunderfire for you. This is one of the benefits of entering the Liquid Core Stage.]


    "This is amazing! This is more then I ever hoped for." Chen Zhen said to everyone.


    "You still have our dantians to use as an energy source also. In this way you can continue to learn our martial techniques while you create you own along the way." Lou Tian said feeling very happy with Chen Zhen.


    "Even though you just entered into he Liquid Core Stage you are currently about as powerful as a level 3 Liquid Core Stage cultivator. This will by no means make you invincible, but you will at least be able to protect everyone better." Shanggu Feng said also giving his approval.

 43 Zhang You 2

    Chapter 43


    Nathan snuck into the back of the Janet''s estate to avoid the government agents hiding out front. The bodyguards had already been informed that Nathan would be coming so they just nodded to acknowledge him as he walked by. Nathan went to Janet''s home office he could hear her on the phone.


    "I don''t care about our stock plummeting. This is only a temporary thing, once it passes over we will be fine." Janet nodded her head to Nathan.


    "The investors will be fine they can try to vote me out of my VP position but as long as you don''t vote with them they don''t have the majority." Nathan could tell she was talking to her brother, and that she was reaching the end of her patience.


    "George you know that you can trust me. I have never steered this company wrong. I will explain everything to you in detail tomorrow at the office. I had to do things this way to make sure everything ran smoothly." Janet rolled her eyes at the ceiling making a fist in frustration.


    "(sigh)¡­. George there are somethings happening that will change the world as we know it. I know that the media will make us sound crazy. Hell¡­ I felt it was crazy myself until I had undeniable truth. When I see you tomorrow you will know and experience everything I did, so that you will know the truth for yourself."


    After listening to her brother for a little while Janet told him she loved him too, and finally hung up. Nathan could see she was drained. He didn''t envy her the barrage of calls she would have had to field due to the announcement that aired on the eight o''clock news.


    While Nathan was driving over her could already hear the news station ridiculing World COMM for their outlandish claims. The world wasn''t ready to know the truth, but at least this way when people started to experience it for themselves they had a reason to lean back on. If this was allowed to be concealed then the government would have been able to spin this in a way to hide the truth from everyone.


    "I wanted to come here to teach you a way to improve yourself using the energy from the fruit I gave you earlier." Nathan said as he sat down on the floor of her office. He held his hand out to invite her to join him on the floor.


    Janet placed the fruit on her desk before joining him on the floor. It took all of her will power to resist eating more of it. Nathan explained to her all the information that Gorampa placed in his head. He then held her hand and guided the energy in her body to follow her major meridian pathways. When the energy returned to her dantian Janet felt refreshed, here will be like she had just taken a nice soothing nap.


    "With this you will be able to take a small bite of fruit everyday until it is gone. When it is done you will feel a longing in your soul for more energy. The most you can do is try to absorb the energy in the air whenever you feel it. As time goes on there will be more and more energy available to cultivate with, but till then we must take what we can get." Nathan explained.


    "You make it sound like we will be junkies looking for our next fix." Janet said not liking the sound of things to come.


    "To be honest it will feel that way too. I have no timeline on when the spiritual energy will become more abundant on our side of the portal. We live in America; the portal is in Asia. We are a long way from the source of the spiritual energy." Nathan said with a shrug to show his helplessness in the matter.


    A knock was heard at the door to Janet''s office.


    "Ms. Miller there are some government agents demanding to be let in. They say they have a warrant to search the premises." One of the bodyguards said thru the door.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Zhang You waited a couple days to see if there would be any more activity from the portal. After the old man went back thru the portal no one else had come anywhere near this area. Zhang You decided to see for himself what was on the other end of the portal. Zhang You flew for a few days before he exited the other end of the portal. What Zhang You say was very strange and weird to him. The first thing he noticed was the lack of spiritual energy. He could tell there was a lot of spiritual energy where he was, but as soon as he sent his spiritual sense a hundred miles away he felt the amount of spiritual energy greatly diminish.


    Even though it was night time Zhang You could see there were people hidden around the area, but none of them were powerful at all. The people hidden had strange objects around them that they would enter and leave every now and then. The objects looked like very large carriages, but there were no horses or other spiritual beast pulling it. Maybe these were the works of some great Puppet Master sect. These sect were very rare in his world, and their works were known to be extremely powerful.


    Zhang You saw the pieces of the fuselage that were still scattered around the Sacred Abyss. He saw the large size but couldn''t fathom what use they would have. As he searched around he found a group that was smaller then the others. They were very weak, they were only normal mortals. They were carrying strange weapons in their hands, but Zhang You didn''t sense any danger from them.


    Zhang You landed behind a Chinese soldier that was patrolling around the northern edge of the Sacred Abyss. Zhang You was completely silent as he landed behind the soldier. Zhang You sat there and observed him for a while before walking up to him and hitting him lightly in the back. A light hit to Zhang You was like getting hit by a charging rhino to that soldier. As he went flying another soldier was alerted to someone in their area.


    The soldier raised his rifle and pointed at Zhang You yelling to him to raise his hands. Zhang You couldn''t understand his language so just stared at him confused. When Zhang You didn''t comply the soldier opened fire on him. The bullets stung a little bit, but mostly they just bounced off of Zhang You. Zhang You swatted him, sending him flying into at tree. The sound of broken bones rang out in the night.


    The next soldier raised his AK-74 assault rifle and launched a grenade at Zhang You at close range. Zhang You didn''t even try to dodge or block the attack. He felt they weapon were very weak. The grenade exploded on contact and to Zhang You''s surprise he was sent flying backwards thru a tree. That attack hurt. Zhang You realized that even though these mortals were very weak they had weapons to allow themselves to compensate for this weakness.


    Soon one of the carriages that Zhang You had noticed before was aiming a weapon right at him. There was a flash of fire then something was streaking toward Zhang You in the night. Zhang You tried to run away from the weapon, but it was following closely behind him. Zhang You went to fly into the air, but the weapon caught up to him and blasted him out of the air. This blast was many times more powerful then the last. Zhang You happened to be in the direction of the Sacred Abyss when he was hit. He allowed himself to fall back thru the portal.


    All of the hidden soldiers gathered around the Sacred Abyss. They brought out flood lights and shined them around the abyss. There was no sign of Zhang You, but they couldn''t be sure if he was dead or just escaped back into the abyss. The soldiers around the abyss were from different countries, but after witnessing the abilities of the unknown from the abyss, they shared the responsibility of guarding the abyss.


    As the governments received the reports from their respective commanders, the seriousness of the World COMM announcement became very evident.


    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Gorampa hid amongst the clouds overlooking the Sacred Abyss. He had sensed Zhang You as soon as he exited the abyss. Gorampa also already knew about the many soldiers hidden around the abyss. He wanted to see what the militaries of the world were capable of. He could sense that Zhang You was only at level 2 of the Liquid Core Stage, so he shouldn''t have posed too much of a threat. The military didn''t disappoint him since they were able repress Zhang You and send him back into the Sacred Abyss. But if it had been a warrior at level 7 of the Liquid Core Stage or higher, then all of these soldiers would have been wiped out.


    Gorampa had to commence a meeting of the elders to plan for the future safety of their world. It would have been better that Zhang You was destroyed, then they wouldn''t have to worry about any retaliation coming from him. But since he was able to escape, there was no telling the horrors he could bring upon their world.

 44 Setting off

    Chapter 44


    Zhang You was irate. He had burn marks all over his body and was still coughing up blood. He had been in such a rush to escape that he take the time to heal his wounds. Those mortals were so weak, but their weapons craftsmen were very skilled. They were able to arm, what Zhang You considered ants, to be able to repel his attacks.


    As Zhang You return thru the portal to the Sacred Abyss world he glanced in the direction of the barrier. He couldn''t sense anything from there, so he decided to leave this area. His mother''s brother was a very powerful slave trader. It would take him a couple weeks to get to his uncle''s estate, but when he told him of this new world, he was sure his uncle would rush there as soon as possible. Not only would his uncle lay waste to the mortals and collect thousands of new slaves, he would greatly reward Zhang You for leading him there. Not only would Zhang You exact his revenge on that world he would be able to collect enough resources from his uncle to advance straight into the Solid Core stage. Zhang You laughed hysterically as he envisioned the demise of those mortals.


    "Now that you are ready to leave I will help guide you on the way." Shanggu Feng said excited to be heading home.


    Chen Zhen went to Mei Ling''s shack to see if they were all ready. Before he even got there they all came out him. They all looked around the clearing one last time. This is all Chen Zhen has known for a home since he arrived in this world. All though only a little over month had gone by Chen Zhen had grown attached to this little clearing in the woods. The kids ran around one last time playing tag, their laughter rang like clear bells in the air. When they got to the barrier they all paused and looked back together.


    "My ancestor prepared a small surprise for you when you reached this level and were ready to leave. Consider this and advancement gift." Shanggu Feng said to Chen Zhen.


    "What do you mean?"


    "I''ll explain after you step out of the barrier," Shanggu Feng was enjoying teasing Chen Zhen.


    Everyone stepped outside the barrier.


    "Now place you hand against the barrier and circulate your energy into the barrier" Shanggu Feng told Chen Zhen.


    When Chen Zhen did As Shanggu Feng said, he first felt a strong pull on his energy. Just as soon as it started it stopped. Then everyone heard a loud click, as if something had just been unlocked. To everyone but Shanggu Feng''s surprise the barrier shrunk until it was a clear orb that rested in Chen Zhen''s palm. When you looked deeply into the orb you could see the clearing inside of it.


    "Shanggu Julong made this little world portal for you as your advancement gift. Now you can enter it whenever you rest for the night as you travel. I wouldn''t recommend using it in area where there are a lot of people. Your strength is still considered quite weak in this world. If someone very powerful notices you exiting a portal barrier world, they will see you as a values descendant of a powerful sect or clan. You maybe kidnapped and held for ransom. This is a very common occurrence in this world. So be careful as you use it." Shanggu Feng warned Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen nodded his head in acknowledgement. He knew this journey would be quite perilous for them. Even though he was strong for someone who just entered the Liquid Core Stage, he was only at the Liquid Core Stage. There were many powerful bandits and thieves that had reached the Solid Core Stage or Higher. Chen Zhen looked over at Mei Ling and the kids with a heavy heart. He hoped they wouldn''t encounter and danger that he wasn''t able to handle on his own. He still had the battle puppet that Shanggu Julong left him, but Chen Zhen knew that in the end he could only really rely on himself.


    Nathan was trying to think of a way out of Janet''s estate without being seen by the government agents. Janet on the other hand was very calm and relaxed.


    "You can let them in, I will be out in a second." Janet said to her bodyguard thru the door.


    She turn to Nathan and told him to remain here in her office till she came back. Janet lifted some papers off of her desk and left the office to go meet the agents.


    When Janet got to the balcony overlooking the foyer there were agents already heading up the stairs toward her, while others were heading into the different room on the first floor. The female agent that was in charge was directing the agents to do a thorough search of every room in the house. When She saw Janet coming down the stairs she smugly waved the warrant in her face.


    "This warrant give me permission to search you premises. Please stand aside and let my agents do there job." The female agent said glaring down her nose at Janet.


    "Under what grounds?" Janet asked calmly.


    "Your public broadcast was a breach of national security. You are suspected of housing terrorist in you home. The number one terrorist on the most wanted list right now is your head of security Nathan Daniels." The female agent felt self-righteous announcing that Nathan was a wanted criminal.


    "Under what grounds is Nathan being accused of being a terrorist? What proof do you have to validate you allegations?" Janet asked.


    "I don''t need proof. I say he is a terrorist, so he is one. He is wanted in questioning for what he discovered at the crash site. That information is of utmost importance to national security." The female agent said thru gritted teeth. She was getting pissed off by Janet''s continued questioning.


    "You and your men can leave now. This is a cease-and-desist order my lawyer arranged for me today. In it, it outlines and specifies that you continued harassment and defamation of character of myself and my employees has violated our rights. You can choose to ignore it, but I believe that Judge Jones would love to knock you agency down a peg or two." Janet said with a condescending smile on her face.


    Judge Jones had been very public recently on the abuse of government agency since 9/11. He made it his personal agenda to have legislation put in place to correct what he call, "Heinous misuse of government power on American citizens." The female agent knew she couldn''t just throw her weight around like she wished. She didn''t know that Janet and Judge Jones were so closely connected.


    "Everyone out!! We are done for now," she yelled to her agents, then looking at Janet she said, "This isn''t over yet, Ms. Miller. We will get our hands on Mr. Daniels, and there is nothing you or any lawyer can do about it."


    With that the female agent spun on her heals and left Janet''s house. Janet stood there watching her leave knowing that this was just the beginning. That woman wouldn''t be happy till she turned their lived upside down. Janet had a lot to do and a very little amount of time to do it in.


    "Sweep the house for bugs or any other devices that left behind. No is to disturb me for the rest of the night." Janet said while walking back upstairs to her office.

 45 Li Moxian 2

    Chapter 45


    Li Moxian sat at her kitchen table all night long looking at the fruits that were left by Nathan. When she got the call from the head of security from Chen Zhen''s company, she was confused as to why he would be reaching out to her. Chen Zhen''s funeral was a couple weeks ago, and she had already signed all the paperwork she need to receive his life insurance benefits. World COMM had also paid quite a bit more then they were obligated to, which was a blessed surprise for Moxian.


    Moxian couldn''t understand everything that just happened this night. From finding out that Chen Zhen was really still alive, but training in another world. To receiving this fruit which filled her body with so much energy that she almost felt like she would explode. To learning a cultivation method that would allow her to use this energy to grow stronger.


    She cried for hours when she was told Chen Zhen''s message for her. Promising that he would return to her and the kids as soon as he could. He was doing everything for the sake of her and the kids. The world would soon be changing, and many threats would be coming from different places. He wanted to make sure that he could protect his family at all cost. She cried because she knew that was exactly how Chen Zhen was. He would step in front of a bullet to protect his family, that was what scared her the most. He would put himself in so much danger just to protect them. She didn''t want Chen Zhen to die for her, she wanted him to live for her.


    As she looked at the fruits that were spread out across the kitchen table, the last part of Chen Zhen''s message replayed in her mind. He wanted her and the kids to start cultivating. To give themselves a head start in this new world. Nathan had passed on some information to her from an old monk who met with Chen Zhen. He said that it would be much easier for the kids to cultivate then adults. Their bodies were still growing so it would accept the new energy much more smoothly then adults could. She wasn''t worried about whether the kids could handle cultivating, they were both in sports in school, so they were used to rigorous practice. She was more concerned with their emotional states. They just came to grips with the fact that their father had passed away. Now they were going to find out he was alive and well but wouldn''t be able to come home anytime soon. Moxian was having a hard time coming to terms with this news, how would the kids take it?


    Moxian looked at the time and realized the kids would be getting up for school soon. She cleaned off the table and was about to make the kids breakfast when there was a knock at the door. Moxian wasn''t expecting anyone, especially at this early hour. As she peeked outside she saw what looked like police officers at her door. Being cautious Moxian placed the chain on the door before opening it a crack.


    "Mrs. Chen my name is agent Diane Matthews. I''m here from Homeland Security. Can we come in and speak to you for a minute, please?" a female agent said when Moxian opened the door.


    "What would I have to do with Homeland Security? I''m a recently widowed housewife. How could I be of any assistance to you?" Moxian asked feeling very confused by this visit.


    "I can explain everything if we can just go inside and speak for a minute." Agent Matthews said being very pushy about entering Moxian''s home.


    Moxian didn''t feel comfortable about this, but she never had any dealing with the authorities before, so she felt obligated to let them in. As soon as she opened the door for them Agent Matthews and the male agent behind her barged their way into her home.


    "Are you home alone Mrs. Chen?" Agent Matthews asked while she searching room to room on the first floor.


    "It''s just myself and my kids. What are you looking for? I thought you said you wanted to talk to me." Moxian was getting nervous from the behavior of these two agents.


    "We have reason to believe you had a visitor come to your home last night. A Nathan Daniels, he''s the head of security for your husbands former employer." Agent Matthews said as she continued to search around.


    Moxian was starting to get frustrated, as she saw Agent Matthews directing the other agent to look upstairs she blocked the way.


    "I don''t know why you''re here or what you''re looking for, but I do know my rights. If you don''t have a search warrant you can leave my home now. My kids are upstairs sleeping and I will not have you barging in on them!"


    "Are you obstructing our investigation? With the new immigration laws I can you deported for this." Agent Matthews said getting into Moxian''s face.


    "My husband and I have our green cards and are legal U.S. residents. And if you want to try and arrest me by all means do so. But you will not be harassing my family early in the morning. You two can leave now before I call the cops." Moxian said staring Agent Matthews in the eye.


    When Agent Matthews saw that she couldn''t intimidate Moxian, she signaled to the other agent to head to the front door.


    "If I find you have been aiding Mr. Daniels I will personally see to it that are deported back to where you came from. And that your kids end up in the worst foster home where they will be lost in the paperwork, if you catch my drift. This isn''t a threat it''s a promise!" with that Agent Matthews stormed out of the house.


    Moxian locked the doors after they left and leaned against it, before slowly sliding to the floor in tears. They had just threatened to take her kids away from her. What was she going to do? Covering her mouth so the kids wouldn''t hear her, her body shook as sat on the floor and cried.


    Moxian knew she had to pull herself together. As she tried to think of her options she remembered Nathan left a card with Janet Miller''s direct contact information. He told her that if she was in dire need of help she should call her right away. Moxian never thought that she would need to use it, so she just put it in her pocket and forgot about it.


    Moxian got up from the floor and went into the living room to grab the phone. She called the number and it rang twice before someone picked up the other end. Right as Moxian was about to speak the phone hung up. Right afterward a cellphone in the kitchen began to right. It wasn''t Moxian normal phone, so she didn''t recognize the ring tone. The ring was coming from one of her upper cabinets. When she opened the door, there was a small flip phone sitting on the shelf ringing.


    "He¡­Hello¡­." Moxian answered apprehensively.


    "Mrs. Chen sorry for the cloak and dagger, but this is necessary to ensure your calls aren''t being monitored. Ms. Miller is in a meeting at this moment, but she informed me to cooperate with you and offer you any assistance. How may I be of help?" a chipper young man''s voice came thru the phone.


    Gorampa sat in a chamber with eight other very ancient looking monks. They all sat in a circle facing each other. There was nothing but silence for a long period of time.


    Finally one of the old monks dressed in silver robes spoke, "The situation you describe does sound like things will turn dire for our world. I agree that when that time comes it will be our responsibility as the guardians of Earth to step forward and help mankind. But we don''t know when this calamity will happen. To mobilize our forces now and place them under your leadership will greatly weaken our temples.


    Now that Earth is regaining spiritual energy, cultivation is of the utmost importance to our individual temples. No one, not even yourself Gorampa, can deny this fact."


    Many of the monks nodded their heads in agreement with what the silver robed monk said.


    "I do not deny the validity of your words Bassui, but the problem we face can be here today tomorrow or even ten years from now. But that does change the urgency of the matter. If we wait until they are already here destroying and enslaving mankind, would we not have failed in our sacred duty?" Gorampa said in reply.


    Once again many monks nodded their heads in agreement. Many of them knew that what Gorampa was proposing was the right course of action. But since Earth had be devoid of spiritual energy for so many millennia, all of the temples where taking full advantage of this time to strengthen their warriors. They all knew that the peace that existed would soon reach and end. When that time came the weaker temples would be swallowed up by the stronger ones. No one wanted to become the servants of other temples. The peace would last as long as it was mutually beneficial.


    All of the monks in the chamber had spent time at the Sacred Abyss. Many of them had even been able to make breakthrough in their cultivation. They no longer looked at the Sacred Alliance as something they needed to protect themselves anymore. That is why no one was willing to step forward and offer their support. Gorampa knew this as well. He was hoping he could still reach them through their sense of honor and duty. But as he looked around he saw too many face with condescending looks staring back at him. If this alliance fail, it spelled doom for mankind as a whole.

 46 Return to the cave

    Chapter 46


    Chen Zhen, Mei Ling and the kids traveled north thru the forest. Chen Zhen used his spiritual sense to avoid the dangerous beast of the forest. He ranged ahead of Mei Ling and the kids to clear the path for them. This allowed him to keep training as they travelled. Chen Zhen was now hunting rank 7 and rank 8 spirit beast. He would bring the meat from these beast back to Mei Ling for them to eat at night. Because they had all started cultivating, including Mei Ling, the meat was very beneficial for them.


    Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian would talk with Chen Zhen and advise him on fighting strategies. This allowed Chen Zhen''s overall battle experience to increase by leaps and bounds. He was now able to conserve energy as he fought. Chen Zhen began to understand the subtleties of using his energy to fight, how to maximize his power output when necessary. He learned to incorporate his speed techniques to his best advantage. Slowly his aura began to deepen, Chen Zhen was gaining killing intent. With his killing intent he could scare away some of the weaker spirit beast.


    Their trek took them near the Specter Monkey troop. When they saw Chen Zhen they ran to him to greet him, jumping around him while laughing and playing. The Golden Specter King walked up to Chen Zhen and bowed to him in greeting. Even though the Golden Specter King was stronger then the last time they met, Chen Zhen was had grown at least twice as strong as then. The Golden Specter King naturally looked at Chen Zhen as his superior now. Chen Zhen asked if it was ok to travel thru their territory with Mei Ling and the kids. The Golden Specter King mistook them to be Chen Zhen''s family. It not only allowed them safe passage thru but sent a group of the elite Specter Monkeys as a scouting party for them. To Chen Zhen''s surprise the Golden Specter King accompanied them a well.


    The travel was much faster for them now that they had no obstacles in their way. The kids had fun playing with the Specter Monkeys, and the Specter Monkeys looked at it as an honor to be able to help a friend of their king. The way they traveled took them near the cave that hid the Monkey King Wine and 10,000-year stalactite milk. Looking back at Mei Ling and the kids Chen Zhen had the idea to ask the Golden Specter King if they could use the stalactite pool. The Golden Specter king was very observant and started to head to the cave before Chen Zhen even got a chance to ask. Chen Zhen very a great warmth blossom in his heart. He quickly got Mei Ling and the kids together and headed over to the cave.


    "I have a surprise for you guys, but you need to swear that you will keep it a secret. You must never tell anyone of what you are about to do." Chen Zhen said to Mei Ling and the kids as he stopped by the boulder outside of the cave.


    They could see the seriousness of this matter by the look on Chen Zhen''s face. They all swore right away.


    "Inside this cave is a wonder of nature. It''s called a 10,000-year stalactite milk pool. This is very beneficial for improving your bodies and your natural talent in cultivation. The Golden Specter King has agreed to allow you to soak in this pool. It is a very generous gift. This pool is a coveted treasure, if anyone were to find out about it, it would spell a disaster for the Specter Monkeys." Chen Zhen said hoping it would help drill into their minds the importance of their secrecy.


    Since the Golden Specter King wasn''t in its ape form, Chen Zhen had to remove the boulder blocking the entrance of the cave. The dense pure spiritual energy once again diffused into the air. All of their body involuntarily shivered and relaxed from the aroma alone. As they entered deeper into the cave their cultivation techniques began circulating on their own. Their bodies were like hungry sponges soaking up the pure energy. Chen Zhen walked them to the edge of the pool, knowing that they would have to strip down, he gave them simple instruction and then left to give them some privacy. The Golden Specter King grabbed a medium sized bottle of Monkey King Wine, and then left the cave to join Chen Zhen outside.


    When Mei Ling looked at the pool of milky white fluid, she really wasn''t sure what to do. She stripped down and walked to the edge of the pool. She slowly tested the liquid but putting her toes in first. She was surprised by how warm the fluid felt. It really felt like she was stepping into warm milk. Mei Ling quickly lost her apprehension and walked into the pool. She laid back leaving everything, but her head submerged in the pool. When there were no adverse effects she waved to the kids to join her inside. The kids being kids, quickly stripped down and then jumped in the pool. Mei Ling lay at one end and the kids lay at the over. Their bodies completely relaxed feeling as if they no longer had any bones in their bodies. Time was soon lost to them as they just laid there absorbing the energy in the pool.


    Chen Zhen sat outside with the Golden Specter King enjoying the wine. Chen Zhen''s body had a qualitative change since the last time he was here. The alcoholic efficacy of the Monkey King Wine was reduce by 70-80%, this allowed Chen Zhen to handle his liquor much better than the last time. Unfortunately for the Golden Specter King that wasn''t the case, it became drunk very quickly. It was stumbling around trying to speak like humans do, it looked very funny make such a racket.


    The next morning Chen Zhen told the Golden Specter King his theory on how drinking the stalactite milk helped strengthen his bloodline. He suggested that the Golden Specter King try it when Mei Ling and the kids came out. Chen Zhen cultivated while he wanted, even though he had plenty of spirit cores to use his dantian was so large that it was like a drop in a bucket. At this rate it would take him a very longtime to fill all three dantian.


    It took two more days for Mei Ling and the kids to finish in the stalactite pool. Their bodies weren''t like Chen Zhen''s and his void ability. They couldn''t absorb and refine the energy from the pool as fast as he could. When they finally walked out of the cave their auras were much stronger. There bodies has been thoroughly cleansed and all of their meridian pathways had been opened allow them to cultivate much more smoothly. Now they would have double the results with half the effort when they cultivated. They were all very happy and stood next to Chen Zhen when they came out.


    The Golden Specter King went in after they came out to test out Chen Zhen''s theory. It didn''t take long before a power aura rushed out of the cave. The Golden Specter King could be heard howling like it was in pain. Chen Zhen pushed the boulder back in front of the entrance to the cave. He didn''t want howls to attract other spirit beast or random hunters to their area.


    Chen Zhen and everyone stayed there for a couple more days cultivating. Every six hours Chen Zhen would open the cave to see if the Golden Specter King was done. One day while he was waiting the boulder began to move by itself. A bright glow brighter then the sun came out of the cave. The Golden Specter Monkey had grown half a meter bigger in height. It muscles had almost doubled in size. Parts of its body would phase in and out randomly as it stood there. Its power level had increased to a peak rank 8 spirit beast. It was very close to being a rank 9. The Golden Specter King was on his way to becoming the hegemon of this forest. There was no way for the golden Specter King to thank Chen Zhen for his advice. All of the Specter Monkeys and the king bowed down low to Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen was embarrassed by this display of theirs. He quickly told them to stand up. They were friends and such a display was unnecessary between friends. Chen Zhen, Mei Ling and the kids were now members of their troop. Every Specter Monkey would gladly lay down their life to protect anyone of them.


    Their journey continued, they followed the base of the mountain west for a week before turning north again. Chen Zhen learned some of the geography from Shanggu Feng along the way. This forest was located in a small obscure nation called the Ting Hai nation. It was small part of the Imperial Fudoki nation. The imperial capital was their final destination. It would take them many months to travel that distance by foot. They were hoping to make it to a small town on the other side of the mountain range to sell some of the spirit cores that Chen Zhen had been collecting along the way. Then they could purchase horses to use to travel to the imperial capital. It would save them at least a month''s worth of time.


    As they came to the northern border of the forest the Specter Monkeys had sad looks on their faces. Everyone was sad to depart from here. Chen Zhou and Chen Xiao had been able to get some practice in hunting rank 1 and rank 2 spirit beast with the help of the Specter Monkeys. They were both progressing much faster since their stay in the stalactite pool. They were both level 5 Body Refinement cultivators now. They would both be considered outstanding geniuses in any sect or clan. They both had high hopes of becoming inner court disciples when they arrived at the capital. Chen Zhen walked up to the Golden Specter King. It tried to bow to Chen Zhen, but he picked it up in a big hug. After Chen Zhen put it back down Mei Ling and the kids gave the Golden Specter King a hug as well. A couple of the Specter Monkeys that were especially close to the kids gave them hugs as well before running back into the forest. After a tearful farewell on both side Chen Zhen and everyone finally set off Qianbei, the small town on the other side of the mountain.


    The travel thru the mountains was steady, there had to be more cautious as they moved forward. Chen Zhen resumed his role as the scout making sure they pathway was clear. Even though his cultivation hadn''t progressed much he was able to solidify his foundation more and improve his fighting skill every day. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian even said there were very few flaws left in his technique.


    They travelled this way for three weeks before finally leaving the mountains and joining the main road that lead straight to Qianbei. As they left the mountains they could see a merchant caravan coming up the road. The main carriage was painted a crimson red color and had a golden relief of a griffin on the sides. Many of the guards were in the late to peak Body Refinement Stage. Chen Zhen could sense that inside of the carriage was two cultivators at the Liquid Core Stage.


    "HALT!", a voice belonging to a teenage woman shouted as the carriages were passing by.


    After the carriages came to a halt, the curtain of the main carriage was pulled aside, and a young redheaded girl looked back at them.


    "What a lovely family. Are you any chance headed to Qianbei? If you are you can join our caravan. We are heading there to do some trading. I''m told that you all seem to be quite powerful. Since this road is none to have many bandits hiding along it, it would be benefit both of us to work together. Plus it would be a lot easier to travel by carriage then walking, don''t you think?"

 47 Going Home

    Chapter 47


    Ten minutes after Moxian hung up the little cellphone a black limo was outside her house to pick her and the kids up. The windows were pitch black not allowing anyone to see inside. An hour after they got into the limo they were inside of Janet''s office at World COMM. The kids were nervous because they didn''t understand what was going on. All they knew was that their mother woke them up and told them they had to leave right away. From the limo ride to arriving at the office they hadn''t been told anything yet. Moxian and the kids sat down in the chairs in front of Janet''s desk, Moxian carefully placed the backpack she had next to her seat.


    Janet was about to say something when the wall behind her opened up and Nathan walked through. Looking back Janet acknowledged him with a nod and a smile before looking back at Moxian.


    "How are you Mrs. Chen? I''m sorry that things involving your husband has dragged you guys into this horrible situation. I will do everything in my power to keep you and your family safe and together." Janet said in an attempt to reassure Moxian.


    Looking at the kids confused, and scared faces Janet asked, "You haven''t told the kids yet?"


    "I didn''t know what to say to them or how to tell them¡­.." Moxian said as she looked at her kids.


    Chen Talon and Chen Xiaoxiao looked at their mother with expectant faces, waiting for answers to everything that was going on.


    "(Deep sigh)¡­. I found out last night that your father is still alive¡­" Moxian was interrupted by both her kids asking her questions at the same time.


    "I don''t have a lot of information. I was given a message from him by this gentleman here. Your father is in another world, where he is training to become stronger. He wants to be able to protect us when he returns home. From what I can gather our world will become a very dangerous place soon and we need to be ready for when that happens." Moxian was putting on a brave face for her kids, but she was slowly crumbling inside.


    Talon was always a very mature kid for his age, so he kept a calm head throughout this situation. As long as his mother was ok with things then he would follow her lead. Xiaoxiao looked at her mother, even though she was worried she put her trust in her mother. She would wait for her mother to tell her what she needed to know.


    "I know that you and your husband are originally from China. Would you feel safer if you are your kids stayed with family back in China? I think with what the government is trying to do right now that that would be the best option for you." Janet suggested to Moxian.


    Moxian thought about it for a while. She hadn''t been home in many years. It would be much safer if she stayed with her parents. They lived in Yichang City, in the Hubei Province on the Yangtze River.


    "Will we be able to leave the country? They will probably have us detained at the airport if we try to fly out." Moxian thought out loud.


    "That won''t be a problem. Nathan will escort you to our private hanger here in Boston. I''ve already ready the company jet. Here is some traveling money. I suggest you don''t worry about your clothes back at home. There should be plenty of money there for you to buy a new wardrobe when you arrive in China. To make sure your home is untouched when it''s safe for you to return, I''ve purchased it and placed it in a trust. If you will just sign by the X at the bottom of the page, my lawyer will finish handling the rest." Janet said sliding a large envelope full of cash and some documents to Moxian.


    "Why are you going out of your way to help us like this? Was World COMM in some way responsible for Chen Zhen''s plane crashing?" Moxian was very skeptical of this matter, she understood well that there were no free meals in this world.


    "It''s not like what you''re thinking Mrs. Chen. We are not responsible in anyway for your husband''s plane crashing. But this female agent¡­"


    "Agent Matthews." Moxian interrupted


    "Yes this Agent Matthews seem to have made it her personal vendetta to take down Nathan and World COMM along with him. We refuse to bow to her strong-arm tactics. And unfortunately you and your kids are now caught in the collateral damage. I''m truly sorry about that so I am offering what help and support I can, that is all Mrs. Chen."


    Hearing the sincerity in Janet''s voice, Moxian relaxed a little. She signed the paperwork and handed it back to Janet. She and the kids followed Nathan out thru the wall behind Janet''s desk. Half an hour later they in the air. To disguise their trip they first flew north to Toronto, Canada. There the landed and did a quick refuel before heading to China, the flight would take them over seventeen hours. Moxian took this time to talk to her kids about what happened. The kids were very happy to know that their father was actually alive. She told them the full message that Nathan passed on to her.


    Then she taught them how to cultivate. It was much easier for the kids to cultivate then it was for the adults. Their bodies accepted the new energy more readily. The kids took it as their personal mission to cultivate for as long as possible. This is what their father wanted them to do and now that they knew he would some day come home, they wanted to make sure he wouldn''t be disappointed in them when he arrived.


    When the private jet landed in Yichang City Moxian''s father, Li Wuchang, was waiting to pick them up. Moxian was in her fathers arms before she finally relaxed. She cried on her father''s shoulder as he patted her back, soothing her. The kids hadn''t seen their grandfather for a couple years, so they were excited to see him too. The car ride from the airport to Moxian''s parents house was very short. Moxian''s mother Sheng Mai come running out the house, very excited to see her daughter and grandkids.


    Moxian''s parents kept apologizing that they couldn''t make it for Chen Zhen''s funeral. Li Wuchang was just recovering from surgery himself, so Moxian brushed it off. She was just as worried about her father''s health, that''s why being able to come home was a great relief for her.


    The kids went outside to play, and Moxian took this time to explain everything in detail to her parents. They were both shocked and amazed by the story that Moxian was telling them. It was too astonishing to be real. Moxian took out one of the fruits from her backpack, she cut a tiny piece and repeated the process that Nathan had with her. Because Moxian''s parents were much older the process was much more painful for them. But when they finally absorbed that first rush of energy, they couldn''t believe what they saw when they looked at each other. They both looked ten years younger. The scars from Li Wuchang''s surgery were completely gone.


    Li Wuchang sat there in deep thought after seeing the truth of his daughters tale. He suddenly remembered something and ran upstairs to his office. He rummaged around for a while before finding an antique scroll. This scroll had been passed down for many generations in the Li family. There was an old tale that Li Wuchang''s grandfather used to tell him when he was a kid, about a very powerful ancestor of the Li family, Li Tian Wu. He was reported to have been one of the strongest warrior of his time. The Li clan was very prominent then and many people feared the strength that Li Tian Wu had. The Li Clan was the hegemon of the Yangtze River region at that time. Li Wuchang always thought it was a fairy tale his grandfather used to tell him at bedtime.


    Li Wuchang brought the scroll downstairs and placed it on the table, causing Moxian and Sheng Mai to look at him confused.


    "This is an ancient scroll containing the secret Li family martial art that made my ancestor Li Tian Wu famous during his time. This scroll had been passed down for years in our family. The things said in it were to outrageous to be real, so I never gave it any credence. But now that I know that spiritual qi will be returning to our world, this could be the hope of our family." Li Wuchang reverently caressed the scroll as he described it to them.


    Moxian looked at the scroll but she couldn''t understand anything written on it. What she could make out were so small pictographs, but they weren''t anything she could understand either. When Moxian touched the scroll with her hand she felt a jolt of energy jump from the scroll into her finger. Moxian felt a large amount of information suddenly jumble up into her head. Her head felt very full like it was over stuffed. The feeling was too overwhelming, before she knew everything was turning dark¡­.

 48 Ambush

    Chapter 48


    Chen Zhen looked at Mei Ling and the kids, "Thank you very much for the offer, but we are taking our time and hunting to earn a living as we travel to Qianbei."


    For a second a strong malicious intent could be seen in the redhead teenage girls eyes, but it faded as soon as it came. She quickly put a smile back on her face.


    "Ok then, I wish you safe travels. Maybe we will meet again in Qianbei." The redhead girl waved bye out of the carriage window as it slowly pulled away.


    "Madam Zenua why did you allow them to leave? They would make good additions to our slaves for sale." Ling Chanyom, the senior guard for the caravan asked.


    "They were alert and powerful, it would have been too costly to try can confront them openly. We will set up an ambush to separate and trap them individually. They will be great additions to our stock. Most of the rest of the slaves are all weak and sickly. Some of the mortals are even close to dying already." Diako Zenua said with slight agitation. It would have been so much simpler if they were gullible peasants.


    As Chen Zhen and them watched the carriage leave, they didn''t move from their spots until the carriage was out of sight.


    "Why didn''t you want to join them? It would have made our trip a lot easier." Mei Ling didn''t understand why Chen Zhen would refuse the offer.


    "My spiritual sense has been active even before they arrived. The rear carriages were full of people in chains. Some of them were close to death. We need to be careful from here on out. Just like how it was for you on your last journey, I don''t want anything like that to happen again." Chen Zhen said as he looked in the direction the carriage left.


    Mei Ling and the kids were shocked to hear what Chen Zhen said. Mei Ling was reminded of what almost happened to her last time. She looked at Chen Zhen and firmly nodded her head. She would trust Chen Zhen''s judgement and rely on him to see them safely along this journey.


    They decided to wait there for the rest of the day to allow the caravan group to make it a good distance ahead of them before they started traveling again.


    There were a hundred guards on the entire caravan split amongst the many carriages and wagons. Ling Chanyom took half of them to set the ambush. As slave traders they had many formations they were proficient at to allow them to sneak attack and quickly overpower their targets, without accumulating a lot of damage to the merchandise in the process. Because Ling Chanyom sensed that Chen Zhen was a Liquid Core Stage cultivator he asked his second in command Xiong Yu to come along also.


    Chen Zhen and them walked slowly along the road. It meandered its way thru the woods. Chen Zhen couldn''t sense anyone along their route, but he wasn''t going to relax his guard. Chen was looking back and forth into the woods on either side of the road when his bloodline began to heat up. Chen Zhen paused because he felt like his blood started boiling in his body. Mei Ling and the kids stopped and took a couple steps back, because of Chen Zhen''s weird behavior. Soon as Chen Zhen''s bloodline started to activate, his sense of smell was amplified over a hundred times. He could smell that people were hiding around him. Chen Zhen raised his head and inhaled deeply, suddenly he took off toward the woods on the left side of the road. Quickly the sounds of screaming could be heard followed by the smell of blood. Within two breaths Chen Zhen had returned to his spot on the road.


    Mei Ling could feel that there was something very different with Chen Zhen. He was releasing a bloodthirsty aura right now that was very oppressive to her and the kids. Unbeknownst to her there were warriors in the woods that could feel the bloodthirsty aura pressing down on them like a small mountain.


    Ling Chanyom felt a cold sweat break out all over his body. He didn''t know why he suddenly felt fear when he looked at Chen Zhen. Ten of his men he had hidden in the woods were bleeding from various body parts. There was no way for them to help capture Chen Zhen and his family. He had no clue how Chen Zhen found them. The formation they were using has been used to capture cultivators that were a lot more powerful then Chen Zhen with absolute success. He realized now that he had completely underestimated Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen took of to the woods on the right side of the woods. He became a red streak that flashed behind trees. The first tree had a man crouched low behind it. Chen Zhen grabbed the man''s arm as he rushed by, the force ripped the arm from his body. The next tree had a man hiding on a tree branch, Chen Zhen grabbed one of his feet and twisted it until it was backwards. Chen Zhen kept attacking in this way until he had maimed another ten men before he returned to the road. Now continuous screams could be heard from the left and right of the road.


    "Go out into the road and distract him. I will sneak around to the back and take his family hostage while you confront him." Ling Chanyom said to Xiong Yu.


    Xiong Yu was terrified. He couldn''t even see Chen Zhen move, how was he supposed fight him.


    "Don''t worry as soon as you have his attention I will make my move." Ling Chanyom said to encourage him.


    Xiong Yu took some deep breaths to calm himself down. He slowly walked out into the middle of the road. Chen Zhen instantly locked in on him. Just the gaze on Chen Zhen''s face was enough to petrify Xiong Yu. Xiong Yu felt like he was being stared by a wild beast. While Xiong Yu was moving into the road Ling Chanyom made his move. He ghosted thru the forest not making a sound. Ling Chanyom had just gotten behind Mei Ling and the kids when he felt pressure on his shoulders.


    Xiong Yu was still staring at Chen Zhen when Chen Zhen suddenly turned his head slightly and looked back toward Mei Ling and the kids. He could smell someone moving at a high speed toward Mei Ling and the kids. Chen Zhen activated Thunder step and arrived behind Ling Chanyom at the same time that he arrived behind Mei Ling. All of this happened faster than Xiong Yu could blink.


    Before Ling Chanyom could react he was thrust violently into the woods. His body was blasted thru five or six trees before coming to a stop. Ling Chanyom was a level 2 Liquid Core Stage cultivator. He sensed before that Chen Zhen had just broken through to the Liquid Core Stage, so how was he so powerful?


    Ling Chanyom had just stood up when a fist crashed into his face, smashing him back down to the ground. Chen Zhen kicked and punched Ling Chanyom until he was a bloody mess. It was like a grown adult beating on a little child. Ling Chanyom had no chance to fight back.


    Xiong Yu heard the sounds of someone being beaten badly. A little while after the sounds stopped Chen Zhen came slowly walking out of the woods dragging Ling Chanyom''s battered body. He threw the body at Xiong Yu''s feet.


    "I''m going to show you mercy once and only once. Take you men and leave. If you try to come after us again I will slaughter each and every one of you to protect them." Chen Zhen said as he pointed back at Mei Ling and the kids.


    Chen Zhen then turned around and walked back to Mei Ling and the kids. They walked back the way they came. Chen Zhen decided to camp out for a couple days to give to avoid the rest of the caravan. If need be he would avoid Qianbei altogether. Chen Zhen would take any measures necessary to keep Mei Ling and the kids safe.


    Xiong Yu and the rest of the warriors slowly dragged themselves back to the rendezvous point with the caravan. When Diako Zenua came out of her carriage all of the warriors knelt down with their heads hung low.


    "Explain. What happened?" Diako Zenua said scowling at her warriors.


    Everyone looked at Xiong Yu who explained what happened in detail. Xiong Yu thought that Diako Zenua would be furious, but instead she was slightly smiling.


    "He''s even more powerful then I thought. I can make a fortune off of him. I have underestimated him this time, but I will plan much better next time." Diako Zenua started to look around at her men, "Take the injured to the medic carriage. When everyone his healed we will go hunting for him. I WANT him in my stock within the week. I will not accept you failure another time. Either he ends up in my stock or you will take his place."


    With that Diako Zenua spun on her heals and went back inside her carriage.

 49 Moxian levels up

    Chapter 49


    Moxian awoke in her old bedroom she grew up. She was a little disoriented at first, until she remembered coming home. She could hear her parents talking downstairs and the kids playing outside, so she knew that they were all safe. Heaving a sigh of relief and allowing her body to relax, Moxian crossed her legs underneath herself and closed her eyes to meditate. Her head still felt full from the information that was imparted by the ancient scroll.


    As she focused on the information she was able to sort things out in her mind and make sense of what she had been taught. The scroll was a cultivation technique that her ancient ancestor created himself. It allow the family members to maximize their spiritual output with minimal effort. The more Moxian studied the technique the more she felt like it was a cultivation cheat code. It was just too good to be true.


    Now that Moxian was back in China she could feel more yuan qi in the air. Since they were safe here she decided to try out this new cultivation technique out. Moxian grabbed her backpack and took a fruit out. She took a bite and then began circulating her energy according to her ancestors cultivation method. After just a couple circulations it became very easy for her, almost like her body already knew how to do this.


    As she was cultivating green light dots started to appear around her. These green light spots came from the plants in the room with her. These light spots slowly began entering Moxian''s body. Moxian could feel her body strengthening itself. She felt this was too amazing, her power level was increasing incredibly fast. From what she learned from Nathan cultivating was supposed to be a slow steady process, but she was quickly approaching the next level. Unbeknownst to Moxian the plants in her room began to grow around her forming a green cocoon. Inside the cocoon Moxian''s power''s were growing by leaps and bounds. Moxian knew nothing of the cocoon, all she knew was that this cultivation technique seemed tailor made for her.


    After an hour passed Moxian finally woke up from her enlightened state of cultivation. The green cocoon withdrew from her on its own, as if the plants were responding to her will. Moxian went downstairs, as her parents saw her they came running over to make sure she was ok. After reassuring them that she was, she went outside to check on the kids.


    "After you passed out I brought you upstairs to your room. When the kids saw that you were just sleeping, they went out to practice. They started by earnestly cultivating, and then they asked me if I could teach them martial arts. I only know how to do some tai chi, that your mother and I use for exercise every morning. They have been practicing it none stop since. They seem to be possessed with a need to get stronger." Li Wuchang explained as they went out back.


    "Ever since I told them their father''s message for us, it has been they goal to be as strong as possible when he returns so that they don''t disappoint him. I want to tell them that they don''t have to worry, but I''m sure I would be right in doing so. This world will soon be changing, I''m not sure what to expect when it does. I feel we can only prepare for the worst to come." Moxian said deathly serious, this shocked her parents back to the reality of things.


    As Moxian was walking into the backyard all the plants she passed would grow toward her like they were trying to touch her.


    "Moxian what has happened to you?" her mother asked her.


    "Oh nothing. I just learned ancestors cultivation method, it''s really wonderful isn''t it." Moxian was happy because she finally felt she wasn''t being completely left behind by Chen Zhen. He would be proud of his entire family when he returned.


    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Nathan hid himself after he returned to the states. He knew he need to take more responsibility for his actions. Lately he had been relying too heavily on Janet. The last thing he wanted to be was a burden on Janet, let alone the trouble he was bringing down on World COMM.


    Nathan managed to track Agent Matthews back to her home. He waited until she was walking into her house and came in behind her. He moved so fast she didn''t realize he was there until after the door was shut. It took Nathan clearing his throat to get her attention before she drew her gun and turned around. Nathan looked at nonchalantly as he she sighted down her glock at him.


    "Your not going to shoot me so just put the gun down, and we can have a nice little talk." Nathan said as he looked back at her.


    "Are you so sure I won''t shoot." Agent Matthews said cocking the gun.


    "You want too many answers to kill me, now put the gun down before you hurt yourself." Nathan said in a deadpan voice, never losing the bored look on his face.


    Agent Matthews could see that Nathan meant her no harm, so she complied and put her weapon away. She walked into her living room and sat down. Nathan followed her, but still checked around the corners before sitting as well.


    "What do you want to tell me?" Agent Matthews asked.


    "That depends, what do you want to know?" Nathan said back.


    "I want to know everything. We have been monitoring you and it seems you have been able to do some incredible things lately Mr. Daniels. The government believes what you are saying. We want to be better prepared to handle any contingencies that may arise. The threats to this world will be on a global scale am I right?" Agent Matthews asked


    Nathan just nodded his head in agreement, he could already see where this conversation was headed.


    "Its your civic duty to help us protect the fine citizens of this country. Why won''t you share what you know with us? You don''t want us to be able to help people?" Agent Matthews made it seem as if Nathan was against helping his fellow countrymen.


    "And how exactly will you be helping the people? Do you intend to share all this knowledge with the rest of the country?"


    "We will obviously tell everyone what is prudent for them to know. Your little stunt on the evening news nearly caused mass hysteria. If we didn''t step in to down play the importance of your message, there would be total anarchy out there right now. We know what best for the citizens." Nathan could hear the condescension in Agent Matthews voice.


    "And that right there is exactly why I won''t share what I know why the government. People like you always feel you know better then everyone else. I will not give you another weapon to use to enslave the minds of people." Nathan said standing up, "And you had better stop harassing World COMM and its employees. Today was my only warning. I know you have already researched my military history, so you know I''m not bluffing."


    Nathan was gone before Agent Matthews could even respond. She got up and took out her cellphone, making a call as she walked to close her front door. The phone rings twice before it is answered.


    "This is Agent Matthews serial number Alpha-Charlie-Vega-niner-niner-Epsilon-Omega"


    There was a clicking sound before an electronic voice responded, "Serial number confirmed, connecting to the 5-star generals private line¡­"


    A gruff male voice answered the phone, "Report Matthews."


    "Nathan Daniels has become much stronger then before. He just paid me a visit. He is not will to cooperate at all with us. He even warned me off from the employees of World COMM. Knowing his military history, I find his threat very credible."


    "Ok understood. For now report to the hole is China. We have reports of a foreign entity coming out of the hole and attacking some Chinese nationals. All Allied forces are being asked to send troops to help guard from invasion."


    "How credible is this report?"


    "Very.", suddenly the gruff voice softened, "Diane take care of yourself out there. If the threat level becomes too much to handle make sure you evac ASAP. Do you understand?"


    "Yes father, don''t worry I can take care of myself." With that Agent Matthews hung up and prepared for her trip to China.

 50 Trapped

    Chapter 50


    Diako Zenua walked into her carriage and shut the door. When she opened her hand she had two small bamboo tubes that had red ribbons on them. When she snapped her hand shut they made a small ''clack'' sound. Right afterward the other side of her carriage slowly started to be enveloped in darkness. It was as if night had descended on the other side of the carriage. When the darkness faded away there was an old warrior kneeling down in front of her.


    "What is your bidding Madam?" the old warrior asked with his head bowed.


    "There is a very powerful warrior with his family some where in the woods behind us. I sent Ling Chanyom and fifty warriors to capture him, but they returned in failure. I''m not even sure in Ling Chanyom will survive his injuries. I must have them all in my stock for the auction in Qianbei. Take the elite soldiers and capture him with our family secret formation. I will not tolerate failure from you. With your strength this should be an easy task." When Zenua was done speaking the old warrior simply vanished into thin air.


    Chen Zhen and them decided to leave the road and travel thru the woods to avoid running into Zenua''s caravan again. This allowed them to continue their training and helped solidify their cover story as a family of hunters. They traveled this way for a couple day when suddenly Chen Zhen''s bloodline began to boil again. He suddenly stopped and signal for everyone to step back.


    Chen Zhen slowly searched ahead of them for any threats. He couldn''t smell anything this time, so he was very confused as to were the danger was coming from. Just as Chen Zhen was realizing he couldn''t hear animals in this part of the woods, five people suddenly jumped out of the ground surrounding him. Chen Zhen''s bloodline armor immediately grew out and covered his body.


    The warriors surrounding him were all chanting together and forming hand seals in perfect unison. In the blink of an eye they had already formed one hundred hand seals. A rune formation appeared under their feet. The force of this rune formation locked Chen Zhen in place not allowing him to move. He happened to be facing Mei Ling when the formation took effect, so he saw when an old warrior appeared behind them. He jabbed each of them in the neck in quick secession with a neuro-toxin, causing them to fall down paralyzed. Chen Zhen screamed out and tried to move but he was completely immobilized.


    "You will return and become the young madams property. Please stop fighting, your efforts are futile." The old warrior said as he bent down and easily picked up Mei Ling and the kids.


    As much as Chen Zhen tried to struggle it was of no use, he couldn''t budge an inch. Another elite soldier appeared behind Chen Zhen and tried to jab him with the neuro-toxin, but his armor prevented it. When the old warrior saw this he shook his head at the nuisance this caused.


    "Is there any way you guys can help me save them!" Chen Zhen screamed in his head.


    [This formation is too powerful there is nothing I can do to neutralize it.] the clone said in exasperation


    "I''ve been trying but there is nothing I can do. We are not strong enough to break a formation of this caliber yet." Lou Tian said feeling helpless.


    "If I had my strength back I could have killed all of them with a mere sneeze." Shanggu Feng said, frustrated with his current weakness.


    "I really wish we were stronger right now!!" they all screamed in their minds at the same time.


    When this happened a strange things happened with their souls. Their souls pulled closer together and the very edges of their souls overlapped with each other. When this happened a new meridian network was opened up in Chen Zhen''s body. The three dantians that had always been separated were suddenly connected. Their souls resonated together allowing them to be linked as one mind. For the first time they truly felt connected.


    Inside the formation Chen Zhen''s body slowly began to glow. A bright red light was slowly starting to be emitted from his body. As the warriors maintaining the formation saw this they poured more power into the formation. But it was no use, as Chen Zhen''s power level rose cracking sounds started coming from his body as he pushed against the formation. Cracking sounds like glass shattering could be heard from the runes on the ground. The soldiers maintaining the formation soon had blood pouring from their orifices as the backlash of the formation breaking was rebounding in their souls.


    The pressure of the formation was slowly weakening around Chen Zhen. Seeing that the formation was about to break, the old warrior was trying to decide if he should use family as hostages or return to the caravan for re-enforcements. Before he could make his decision the formation shattered completely. A scream that sounded like the roar of three mighty beast simultaneously came from Chen Zhen''s mouth.


    The soldiers who made the formation lay on the ground twitching. The powerful backlash from the formation shattering was too much for their minds and bodies to handle. They would die shortly of the internal injuries they sustained. The old warrior was a peak of the Liquid Core Stage cultivator, but the power radiating off of Chen Zhen made him weak in the knees. He knew there was no going back for him. The bloodlust in Chen Zhen''s eyes showed that even if he tried to hold his family hostage it wouldn''t stop him.


    As Chen Zhen sat their looking at the old warrior, he wanted nothing more then to tear him apart with his bare hands. He didn''t see Mei Ling and the kids in his arms. He saw Moxian and his kids lying unconscious in front of him. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian could feel his rage thru their bond, but it only fueled their own rage at this moment.


    The old warrior dropped them to the ground and pulled out the long sword on his back. Words were meaningless at this point, so he just attacked with his full strength. He flashed in front of Chen Zhen and swung his sword down diagonally from right to left. Chen Zhen didn''t even bother to move to avoid or defend himself. When the sword struck upon his armor the energy stored inside blasted out at Chen Zhen in point blank range. Dirt flew everywhere from the blast; Mei Ling and the kids were flung a distance away. When the dust cleared there was a large crater in the ground expect for where Chen Zhen stood.


    The old warrior stepped back and released another martial technique. When he swung his sword, ten afterimages were left in its wake. Each afterimage attacked Chen Zhen from different side and angles. Once again Chen Zhen neither moved nor defended. Seeing that none of his strongest techniques could leave a scratch on Chen Zhen''s armor, the old warrior decide that the only way to made hurt Chen Zhen was to detonate his dantian.


    As soon as Lou tian saw what the old warrior was going to do he instantly activated Fire Flash. The old never saw Chen Zhen move it wasn''t until he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen that realized Chen Zhen was right in front of him. Chen Zhen''s fist was buried in his abdomen before the concussive blast from Fire Flash took effect. The old warrior was like a kite without the string as he tumbled thru the air. He tried to stand up from where he landed but his body no longer had energy. His dantian had been completely destroyed, all he could do was lay on the ground coughing up mouthfuls of blood.


    Dark cloud began to appear in the sky, soon they congregated above the old warrior. Shanggu Feng took over Chen Zhen''s body and pointed his finger at the old warrior. The old warrior felt a heavy pressure build up around him as he lay on the ground. As the pressure grew stronger sparks of lightning could be seen flashing in the dark clouds. The old warrior struggled with all his might and finally managed to roll over. When he saw the dark clouds hanging in the sky, his last thought was who was this powerful warrior that his young madam chose to offend. A bolt of lightning as thick as a grown man landed on the old warrior, turning him and everything else in a twenty-foot radius into ash that blew away on the wind.


    Chen Zhen looked down and could see that the soldiers were still twitching on the ground. He crossed his hands in front of himself with his claw facing out. As he stepped out of their encirclement he swung his arms behind, sending out ten red streaks of light from the tips of his claws. Those red streaks of light minced up the twitching soldiers putting them out of their misery.


    Chen Zhen went to were Mei Ling and kids lay on the ground. They were breathing stably but they were unresponsive otherwise. Seeing them in this state made Chen Zhen''s rage soar to it peak once again. Chen Zhen picked them up and rushed them back to the Specter Monkey territory. When he got there the Golden Specter King rushed over to see what was wrong. Chen Zhen asked if they could just watch over them for him. As soon as he knew they were safe he headed back toward the main road to Qianbei. Chen Zhen, Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian all had the same thought in mind, they had some hunting to do. With that Chen Zhen let his Blood Lion bloodline take over as he raced down the road.

 51 Mudd Buddha

    Chapter 51


    The monks had been sitting inside that chamber for many days. They had all lived for hundreds of years already, so they were not in a rush to make a decision. The different monks were looking back and forth at each other but not a word was being said. The silence was finally broken by the sounds of Buddhist chants. The chants started off very low at first but gradually grew louder. The old monks began to look back and forth wondering where this sound was coming from. Suddenly a monk in dirty brown robes, with dreadlocked hair that hung over his dirt stained face appeared inside of the chamber.


    "The Mudd Buddha!" someone exclaimed in fright.


    The Mudd Buddha was a legend even to these ancient monks. No one knew his true age, he was believed to be an immortal being brought into existence by the world itself. Looking at the Mudd Buddha one could never make out his features. One second he would look like a young man. The next a walking skeleton. This constantly changing countenance of his made it hard for people to look directly at him. But the scariest truth about the Mudd Buddha was that he only appeared right before a cataclysmic disaster would strike mankind. No one dared to question the prophecies that the Mudd Buddha uttered. To ignore his words were kin to ignoring the will of the world itself.


    "My, my, my what have we here. A bunch of pompous kids thinking they know what is best." The Mudd Buddha said while looking around the chamber.


    Everyone stood up at the same time to offer greeting to the Mudd Buddha, but to their surprise a heavy force prevented them form being able to stand. Only Gorampa was able to stand and bow before the Mudd Buddha. This was a clear sign to everyone in the chamber that Gorampa was the only one who had the Mudd Buddha''s favor at this moment.


    "This humble servant greets his eminence." Gorampa said as he bowed.


    "You have done a great service to this world. Even though you have been questioning the validity of your decisions, rest at ease. Everything you have done has furthered the world''s will. I bring you the world''s blessing for your hard work." With that the Mudd Buddha waved his hand a golden-purple colored mist fell upon Gorampa''s bowed form.


    The natural reward power of the world flooded Gorampa''s body, causing him to age in reverse. Gorampa''s body returned to the peak of his existence, and then kept progressing. Gorampa broke through the bottleneck of the peak Solid Core Stage into the Divine stage. When the natural reward power stopped Gorampa''s body emitted a vast aura causing the other monks to be hard to breathe. Looking at Gorampa now he looked to be in his early thirties. Gorampa was so amazed by how powerful he was now that he didn''t know what to do with himself. He wanted nothing more then to find someone to battle just to see how strong he had truly become. Gorampa was releasing his aura at full power before he heard someone clearing their throat. When Gorampa came back to his senses and looked around, all the other monks were slumped over gasping for air, finding it hard to breathe.


    Gorampa quickly retracted his aura and bowed to the Mudd Buddha again in apology. The Mudd Buddha laughed it off before turning his attention to monks lying on the floor.


    "What was the reason the Sacred Alliance was created?" the Mudd Buddha asked.


    No one was brave enough to answer the Mudd Buddha. As he looked around at the monks, disappointment could be seen in his eyes.


    "Your ancestors banded together for the survival of mankind. Yes there ended up being unforeseen consequences from their decisions and actions, but in the end mankind is still here today. So in the end they were successful.


    You as their descendants, are charged with the task of being the guardians of mankind. But what have you been doing? Sitting here plotting on how to make yourselves stronger. Gorampa is the only one who seems to remember his responsibility."


    "Your eminence we did not disagree with Gorampa¡­.." one of the monks started to say. But was interrupted by a glare from the Mudd Buddha.


    "You were wasting time is what you were doing. If I hadn''t showed up you would still be sitting here staring at each other like the fools you are. I don''t have time to waste on your frivolous words, and neither do you. At the most you have six months to a year to prepare for the first wave of the invasion force that will come to begin enslaving mankind.


    Your temples will be tasked with being the first stage of defense for our world. You will each give twenty of your strongest warriors to form an army." turning to Gorampa the Mudd Buddha continued, "Your job will be special but also the hardest, that''s why your power level was pushed higher. You must travel the world and find elites who can be trained. You will take them into the Sacred Abyss to train them in the harshest environment. Only in the Sacred Abyss will they have the opportunities to progress fast enough to be of help when the time comes."


    Gorampa nodded to the Mudd Buddha, "I already have one person in mind. He shows extraordinary potential, but how will I know who to pick?"


    The Mudd Buddha waved his hand and eight scrolls came flying out of his sleeve, "These cultivation techniques will respond to the bloodlines of their respective recipients. When you are close to them the scrolls will react on their own. Your search will take you around the world, but don''t worry, each new candidate will have clues to the next one. And before you ask, yes Nathan McDaniels is one of them."


    Gorampa laughed awkwardly while rubbing the back of his head at being seen thru so easily by the Mudd Buddha.


    "You guys have your task to complete. I now call this meeting to an end." the Mudd Buddha had simply vanished before everyone''s eyes, all that was left were his words hanging in the air.


    -----------------------------------------------------


    Nathan awoke with a start, he thought he heard someone calling his name. When he didn''t hear anything after listening for a while, he figured it must have just been in his dream. When he lain his head back down he heard the sound of his name being called again. Now that he was awake he realized he didn''t hear it with his ears but felt it with his soul. There was no way for Nathan to ignore this call. He quickly got dressed and left his home.


    Nathan had no clue were he was headed, he just felt something pulling at him. Before he knew it Nathan was at Franklin Park in Boston. As he walked thru the park he saw a monk standing at a hotdog vendor. He walked up just in time to hear the monk ask the vendor to make him one with everything.


    "That is literally the punchline to a joke." Nathan said shaking his head, for some reason even though he looked much younger Nathan still recognized it was Gorampa.


    "I recently discovered these things on my way here. They are amazing!" Gorampa said around mouthfuls.


    "Sure if you say so¡­" Nathan could think of a hundred things he would rather eat then some hotdogs, "Do you have any ideas what those things are made of?"


    "Don''t know, don''t care. They make my taste buds happy, that''s all I care about. Follow me, we need to find a more private place to talk."


    "We could have talked back at my house. Why did you drag me all the way out here anyway?" Nathan said a little perturbed.


    "I don''t know where your house is." Gorampa simply said as he kept walking.


    "Then how did you know I lived around here?" Nathan asked very confused.


    They had reached a part of the park were no one else was around them.


    "I didn''t, this lead me to you." Gorampa said as a scroll came flying out of his sleeve.


    The scroll flew around Nathan''s head before hovering in front of his face. Nathan instantly felt a call from this scroll. It felt like he was returning home. When he reached his hand out the scroll flew into it, suddenly a rush of information flooded Nathan''s mind. It was similar to when Gorampa transferred the cultivation technique to him, this time it was much more detailed. This new technique felt warm and inviting, he felt a response from his body on a cellular level. Every inch of his body felt warm and relaxed. As his mind was assimilating the information his body was being purified at the same time. All of the pores on Nathan''s body opened allowing a black tar like substance to be secreted from his body. The smell was absolutely horrible, so Gorampa waved his hand causing it to dry up and flake off Nathan''s body, blowing away in the wind.


    Nathan wasn''t aware of any of that. All of the meridians in his body began to open as energy surged thru them. A bright yellowish-brown glow surrounded Nathan''s body. Energy from the Earth''s ley lines was being diverted into Nathan''s body helping to further restructure his bones and muscles. When Nathan opened his eyes again his skin looked like marble.


    The cultivation technique of Nathan''s ancestors focused on the power of Earth. It allowed the user to channel earth power into their bodies to strengthen their attacks and defense. They could also manipulate the gravitational field around them help them fight. Nathan knew that all he had done was practice the introduction to this cultivation technique and he already had these benefits to his body.


    "Your destiny has been chosen by the will of this world. You will become one of the Guardians chosen by the world itself. Your job will be to protect mankind from dangers not of this world. The first thing I need you to do is help find the other Guardians who will be your brothers in arms." Gorampa''s hand on Nathan''s shoulder truly seemed to carry the weight of the world in it.

 52 Escape

    Chapter 52


    Diako Zenua sat in the window of her carriage tapping her fingers impatiently. She felt that something was very wrong right now. The elite squadron should have been back by now. Zenua trusted her instincts implicitly, so she took out a token white jade token with the Diako family name engraved on it. She promptly crushed it in her hand. Her family would send one of the guardian elders to come to her rescue. This would be an existence that was anywhere from the mid to late Solid Core Stage cultivator.


    She had sensed that Chen Zhen was only just into the Liquid Core Stage. Even if he was from a powerful clan that gave him a life saving treasure, he most likely used it already to fight off the elite squad. If he came looking for revenge he would end up falling right into her hands anyway, Zenua thought to herself with a chuckle.


    BOOM!!


    A carriage full of soldiers exploded, causing wood and flesh to rain down from the sky. Zenua''s intuition was correct once again. Her soldiers were well trained, so instead of panicking they quickly formed a battle formation. When the dust and smoke cleared the soldiers didn''t see anyone around. Suddenly they looked up into the air and saw what looked like a blood red armored demon standing there.


    The strongest soldier there was only at the peak of Body Refinement Stage, so their attacks were just too weak to harm Chen Zhen. The smell of blood in the air was making the beastly instincts of Chen Zhen''s bloodline start to enter a frenzy. Chen Zhen dove down thru the soldiers slaughtering them like a wolf amongst chickens. His claws ripped thru flesh and bone with absolutely no resistance. Screams filled the air as blood began to collect like a pool around Chen Zhen''s feet.


    Zenua witnessed this from a distance, and trepidation began to make her heart beat faster. She stood outside her carriage watching Chen Zhen massacring her troops and knew that it was useless to even try running.


    As Chen Zhen walked out of the blood pool he had created from the soldiers bodies, his eye finally fell upon Zenua standing by her carriage. Chen Zhen''s steps caused small indentations in the ground as he walked. His right arm had flame in the shape of a Phoenix with long tail feathers coiled around it. His left arm had a Lightning Dragon coiled around it. The detail of the two divine spirit creatures was to the point that they looked no different from real animals. Chen Zhen stopped ten feet from Zenua.


    "Give me the antidote to the neuro-toxin and I will give you a painless death."


    "Don''t think you can intimidate me. My family has housekeepers stronger than you." It took all of Zenua''s mental fortitude to not allow her voice to tremble as she stared Chen Zhen down.


    Chen Zhen lifted his head and took a deep breath, he started laughing and Zenua could see his canine teeth enlarging in his mouth.


    "You can''t bluff me, I can smell the fear on you. If I had to guess I would say your bravado is an attempt to stall for time. No matter what you will not leave here alive. I gave you two chances to leave me and my family alone peacefully. You chose to ignore my warnings. You can only blame yourself for your own downfall."


    Just as Chen Zhen was about to take a step forward he was blasted back for hundreds of feet. When he picked himself up he saw a middle-aged man in black robes with a white symbol of the Diako family on his chest.


    "You will die today for your insolence." The middle-aged man said with an emotionless face.


    "Hahaha¡­ that actually hurt a little." Chen Zhen said as he wiped a trickle of blood off the corner of his mouth, "You''re stronger then the rest. Good, this should be more fun."


    The longer Chen Zhen''s bloodline was activated the stronger his blood lust became. It made him strive for battle and the feeling of his claws tearing his enemies apart. They had touched upon his reverse scale when they went after Mei Ling and the kids. Chen Zhen allowed the Blood Lion''s instincts to fully take over his mind.


    A saber appeared in the middle-aged man''s hands. His aura skyrocketed around him, suddenly the surrounding temperature began to drop drastically. In a couple breaths frost covered everything around them. As the middle-aged man''s aura kept surging spikes of ice began to form around him. The man took one step forward, but it carried him to right in front of Chen Zhen, "Lunar Ice Storm," as he slashed down hundreds of ice spike followed his saber.


    Chen Zhen crossed his arms in front to block the incoming ice. The images of Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian flared up forming a barrier of Fire and Lightning that blocked the ice spikes. Even though the spikes were blocked Chen Zhen was still pushed back another hundred feet. He dug the claws on his feet into the ground to finally come to a stop.


    "Let me have a little fun" Lou Tian said taking control of Chen Zhen''s body.


    A sword of flames grew out of Chen Zhen''s right hand. Chen Zhen''s aura changed and the temperature around him flared to over three hundred degrees. The frost the middle-aged man produced was quickly melted before evaporating into nothing.


    When the middle-aged man saw the change in Chen Zhen he realized something was wrong. He had never heard of a warrior being able to change their aura before. A warriors aura was equivalent to a finger print, it was unique for everyone. The middle age warrior was truly beginning to think that the young miss had truly angered a real demon. He had heard what Chen Zhen said right before he attacked, so he was able to piece together where the enmity between them came from. If the young madam wasn''t the favorite niece of the main clan''s clan head he would have left her to her fate. He looked back at Zenua and threw a piece of black jade at her.


    The middle-aged man transmitted his voice to Zenua, "If I''m killed by him break this. It will teleport you back to the clan immediately."


    Zenua looked at him in surprise. These one-time use family treasures where extremely expensive to have made. She understood her status in the clan was special because of her uncle, but she never expected to receive such a treasured gift. But what shocked her even more was that she would have to possibly use it today. For the guardian elder to not feel assured of victory enough to give her this life-saving gift meant he truly expected to die here today. This entire situation was incredulous. Chen Zhen was nothing more then some ant she passed on the road. How had things degraded to this point?


    As Zenua was perplexed by what was happening, Lou Tian made his move. "Magma Burst" Chen Zhen stepped forward using Fire flash causing him to appear as if he teleported in front of the middle-aged man. The middle age man had formed a shield of ice before him. Chen Zhen''s foot struck the shield first, his foot stayed on the shield as he swung his flame sword forward. As the sword came forward a wave of hot magma followed behind the sword. Cracks had already started to form in the shield from the pressure Chen Zhen''s foot placed on it. When the sword and magma arrived the shield began to melt as the cracks spider webbed further across it. Just as the middle-aged man thought he had successfully blocked Chen Zhen''s move, the concussive force of Fire Flash arrived blasting him hundreds of feet away.


    The middle-aged man pulled himself to his feet coughing up mouthfuls of blood. He knew he only had one chance to use his strongest technique, because if he didn''t do it now he wouldn''t have time to use it later. The middle-aged man pulled all of the remaining energy in his dantian, "Tempest of the Immortal Ice Dragon!"


    Clouds quickly formed in the sky above the middle-aged man. Winds started slow but quickly turned into wailing gales. Snow started to fall from the clouds as the temperature plummeted even lower than before. The falling snow began to swirl around the middle-aged man covering him in a sphere of ice. This Earth ranked technique offered defense was well as offense. The snow that continued to fall began to turn into shards of ice. Hundreds of thousands of shards of ice swirled around the middle-aged man forming an ice tornado. When the sky above the middle age man was covered in these ice shards and the power had reached its peak a loud dragon roar came from inside the ice tornado. A hundred-meter-long ice dragon came out of the ice tornado and coiled around the middle-aged man ready to strike at any moment.


    "Oh he wants to compete in dragons. Please allow me to have some fun with him." Shanggu Feng said as he took over Chen Zhen''s body.


    "You have done a very good job learning this move, but since it took you so long to bring out its might you still haven''t completely comprehended the essence of the will behind the move yet" Chen Zhen said to the middle-aged man.


    The middle-aged man was shocked, with just one glance he saw thru his greatest weakness when it came to this technique.


    "It''s ok. Before you die I will show you what a true Earth Rank technique looks like." With that Shanggu Feng called out, "Heavenly Lightning Dragon"


    A spear made of lightning shot out from Chen Zhen''s left hand. As soon as it entered into the clouds loud rumbles of thunder could be heard. The sky darkened till it looked like night had come early where they were. Many bolts of lightning start to flash across the sky, soon after the lightning bolts began to congregate over Chen Zhen''s head. An enormous head in the shape of a dragon slowly descended from the clouds. The lightning dragon looked endless as it hovered over Chen Zhen''s head. This took a while to describe, but this whole process took only two breaths to complete.


    The middle-aged man swung his sword, and Chen Zhen pointed his finger forward. The two dragons lounged at each other baring their fangs. The power discrepancy between the two was quickly apparent. The ice dragon was completely obliterated as soon as it came in contact with the lightning dragon.


    Even though the middle age man had a higher cultivation then Chen Zhen, the middle-aged man wasn''t just battling Chen Zhen alone. He was also battling Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian, even though most of their power was still sealed they still had access to their comprehensions. Their understanding of techniques far outstripped the middle-aged man. Meaning they could easily bring out more battle power from their techniques then the middle-aged man. Unfortunately he was doomed to failure before he even started.


    The lightning dragon swallowed the sphere of ice the middle-aged man was sequestered in. There was a loud crunching sound as it bite down. The lightning dragon raised its head to the sky roaring in triumph before detonating in the sky. Shanggu Feng new that Chen Zhen still needed the antidote from Zenua, so he didn''t want her caught up in the explosion.


    Zenua looked to the sky only to see the middle-aged man''s charred remains falling to the ground. While she was still looking up a gust of wind blew in her face. She looked forward to see Chen Zhen standing right in front of her. She screamed in such terror that her hand snapped that black jade without her even meaning to. Chen Zhen was about to grab her, but there was a sudden flash of light and she was gone. Looking around all that was left was a puddle of piss where she had been standing.


    "NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Chen Zhen screamed in frustration knowing that she got away.

 53 Diako Natsu

    Chapter 53


    Moxian and the kids were settling into their new life in Yichang City. After going shopping for new clothes, Talon asked if they could find a dojo in the area. Moxian initially saw no harm in that, until Talon''s first practice against another student. Because the kids had been cultivating their strength was more comparable to grown adult instead of pre-teen kids. The other kid was seriously hurt by accident, but his parents were furious. The instructor was ecstatic to have such a promising student in his dojo, but Moxian decided to take them out of class to prevent future mishaps.


    To make up for them not being able to go to the dojo anymore, Moxian purchased books on martial arts. Because the kids minds as well as bodies were being enhanced through their cultivation, it actually wasn''t hard for them to learn from the books. They bought a large shed and had it modified to a practice room for the kids. Their comprehension ability was off the charts, very soon a large pile of books that they had already finished appeared in the corner of the room.


    Moxian''s mother is a retired school teacher, so she tutored the kids in the classes they were missing out on. Life for them settled into its own rhythm. Moxian had been making rapid progress on her cultivation also. Besides the fruits that Chen Zhen had sent back for them, Moxian could absorb the life essence of plants as well. Due to this in a few short weeks she was already at level 3 Body Refinement.


    Janet contacted her to say that the government had toned down its harassment of the people at World COMM, but she didn''t think it was safe for them to return just yet. She wired Moxian another large sum of money and promised to stay in touch. Moxian couldn''t thank her enough for her help and support. This experience truly highlighted how caring a woman Janet was. Moxian used the money to help her parents as much as possible so that she and the kid weren''t a burden to them.


    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Agent Matthews chopper landed on the north side of the Sacred Abyss. What she saw truly surprised her. The armies of the different nations were in full cooperation with one another. She had been versed on the circumstances of the night attack and found its validity hard to believe. But after seeing the broken trees and the scorch marks still on the ground, she started to believe that something extraordinary really did happen her.


    Her contact on the ground was a Chinese ally named Lieutenant Situ. He was waiting in the LZ for her arrival. Lieutenant Situ guided her to a tent for her use while she was there. Lt Situ lead her around introducing her to the different members of the allied group. The danger they faced was so great that it transcended all borders. The soldiers here understood the danger much better then their commanders did. After they witnessed the attack power of their enemy on that dreadful night, all the soldiers came to an agreement. They would lay down their lives to protect their world.


    Agent Matthews couldn''t fathom what they had seen to cause such a resolve to be formed in them.


    "You will be stationed with us on the north side of the abyss. There will be a transitional period for you, so I would suggest just taking it easy and don''t exert yourself to much. Once you''re fine you can join us on the front-line." Lt Situ explained to her.


    "What do you mean? I feel fine, I don''t even feel any jetlag." Agent Matthews said laughing off his comment.


    Suddenly she felt it little light headed and dizzy, Lt Situ had to reach out and catch her before she fell on her face.


    "Wh¡­wha¡­..what i¡­is¡­ wr¡­.wro¡­.wrong¡­.wi¡­.th¡­.this¡­.pl¡­.pl¡­.pla..place?" Agent Matthews asked as her vision grew dark.


    "You''ll be fine as soon as you adjust." was the last thing she heard before passing out.


    ------------------------------------------------------------------


    Zhang You was very travel worn by the time he arrived at his uncle''s clan. The guards outside weren''t familiar with Zhang You because he chose to stay out of family affairs as much as possible. He didn''t want his life restricted by the clan hierarchy, he preferred the life of a loose cultivator.


    After stating his name and purpose for being there he waited patiently for a response. It took a little while, but he was finally admitted inside. He gave a guards a sly ''I told you so'' look as he passed them by. They obviously thought he was a charlatan. He was led by a maid to the meeting hall, where he was informed he would be seen when his uncle was free.


    Zhang You sat down and waited. After a short while a maid came and brought him some tea and some fruit for him to snack on while he waited. Many people came and went but he was still left to wait outside the meeting hall. He knew his uncle was doing this on purpose, to teach him a lesson. If Zhang You''s mother wasn''t his uncle''s direct sister he probably wouldn''t even give Zhang You the time of day. Zhang You had squandered too many family assets, and refused to be of support to the clan, so he wasn''t surprised by his treatment.


    After waiting for hours a maid finally came and lead him into the meeting hall. Zhang You''s uncle was now the clan head, and a powerful warrior in the Divine Lord Stage. He looked at his nephew with disappointment etched across his face.


    "Zhang You, what brings you to see me this time?" his uncle said not hiding the contempt in his voice.


    "Uncle Natsu I come bearing great news and a wonderful opportunity for our clan''s business." Zhang You was trying to be as charming as possible before his uncle.


    "What does the clan business have to do with you? If I recall correctly you chose to break all ties with our clan and its business years ago."


    "That is true uncle, very true. But I happened to stumble upon a vast world that is ripe for the picking¡­.." Zhang You was suddenly interrupted by a bright flash of light.


    When he could see again his cousin Zenua was standing next to him in the meeting hall. She looked utterly terrified and actually smelled of piss.


    When Zenua saw that she was in the meeting hall of the Diako''s main clan, and that her uncle was seated in front of her, she dropped to her knees and broke out in tears. Her life was actually saved! She didn''t even remember breaking the piece of black jade that was in her hand.


    When Diako Natsu saw Zenua in such a hysterical state, he rushed over and knelt down in front of her.


    "Zen-er tell me what happened! Who did this to you?" Diako Natsu was in a rage when he saw his favorite niece in such a condition.


    It took Zenua a little while to get her emotions under control. She explained in detail her encounter with Chen Zhen. After she described the battle that took place Zhang You was suddenly deathly pale. He knew exactly who she was talking about as soon as she describe his blood red armor.


    Diako Natsu had forgotten Zhang You was there, but when he saw him take a couple steps back and looked frightened, he knew his nephew recognized this person''s description.


    "Do you know who she is talking about?" Natsu asked Zhang You.


    "I don''t know his name, but he was training in a personal dimension in a spirit beast forest in the far reaches of the Ting Hai prefect of the Imperial Fudoki nation. I happened to be roaming that area when I found out that a rank 6 Blood Lion lived in that forest. I went there to get its spirit core to try and acquire the Blood Lion bloodline for myself. By the time I arrived there he had already acquired the spirit core and the bloodline, but he was only in the mid Body Refinement Stage then. So I stayed around to investigate who was helping him to see if he could be ransomed for cultivation resources and riches.


    I saw someone at the peak of the Solid Core Stage, leave his personal dimension and fly off into a portal in the sky. When I followed him, I found a strange world that was severely lacking yuan qi. I attacked some of the people there, but was force back due to their weapons. I knew that I might be too weak to face them, but I also knew that uncle would be strong enough to take control of that world. You would have a limitless supply of slaves to trade."


    Zhang You was terrified of his uncle''s rage, so he quickly told him everything he knew. Hearing Zhang You''s story caused Natsu to calm down a little. It seems that his good-for-nothing nephew may have stumbled upon a gold mine ripe for the taking. He needed to plan this properly and make sure this information was kept secret.


    "Who else knows about this?" Natsu asked looking at Zhang You from the corner of his eye.


    "No one uncle. I came straight here without delay."


    "Good. Go find yourself a courtyard to stay at. From this moment on you are no longer a loose cultivator, you will return to the clan like you should have been to begin with. If this goes well I will make sure you and your mother''s side of the family is richer than your wildest dreams."


    Natsu had a maid come and lead Zhang You and Zenua away. He promised to hunt down the man that tormented her and killed they family soldiers. Then Natsu sat back down in the meeting hall to plan.

 54 Soul Sage

    Chapter 54


    Chen Zhen searched around thru the carriages but couldn''t find any antidotes anywhere. Shanggu Feng told him to take possession of the spatial ring the middle-aged man was wearing, but after doing so he found there wasn''t any antidote in there either. The only thing Chen Zhen saw was the slaves that were being transported to the market. Just as Chen Zhen was feeling exasperated and didn''t know what to do someone called out behind him.


    "You seem like you could use a hand there my young friend"


    Chen Zhen turned around and found a short, wise looking old man standing behind him. Chen Zhen was surprised the old man was able to sneak up on him without his bloodline or spiritual sense reacting to him. When Chen Zhen looked closely at his face his was surprised to see that his eyes had no pupils, they were all white. The old man was used to his appearance startling people, so he laughed off Chen Zhen''s scrutiny.


    "My name is Chenglong Ershi''er* but you can just call me Jackie."


    "Can I help you with something?" Chen Zhen asked looking cautiously at Jackie.


    "Well, in fact I''m actually here to lend you a hand if you''ll let me." Jackie said smiling merrily at Chen Zhen


    Chen Zhen look at Jackie skeptically, as much as he tried he couldn''t figure out his motive.


    "I would love to stand here and chat with you, but I have some people I really must get back to as soon as possible. Their lives are in danger." Chen Zhen said trying to politely excuse himself.


    "I''m actually here about them. They have been poisoned with a neuro-toxin correct?" Jackie asked.


    Chen Zhen jumped about twenty-feet back from Jackie and started circulated his energy, "Are you with the caravan too?"


    "No, no, no. I promise you I mean you no harm what-so-ever. How about this, I promise to heal your friends as long as you listen to a little story I have to tell you." Jackie said chuckling at Chen Zhen''s reaction to him.


    "Listen to him. I think I know who he is. If I''m right this is a great fortune for us." Lou Tian said feeling excited.


    "Who is he?" Chen Zhen asked curious of Lou Tian''s response to Jackie''s identity.


    "No cheating. If you want to know who I am you can just ask me." Jackie smiled at Chen Zhen, his eyes looked like to crescents.


    Chen Zhen and the others were startled by this, apparently Jackie knew of the other souls inside of Chen Zhen''s body. Not only that but he could even hear them communicating with each other. This fact alone blew they minds. At some point Jackie appeared in front Chen Zhen and used a walking stick that was taller than him to shut Chen Zhen''s mouth.


    "To formally introduce myself my name is Jackie and I''m a Soul Sage." Jackie said bowing slightly to Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen bowed deeply to Jackie in return. He had no Idea what a Soul Sage was but the aura he felt coming off of Jackie was majestic and ancient.


    "The story I''m going to tell you dates back to the earliest history of this world. At that time cultivation had not even been discovered yet. Mankind had to fight against the many wild beast of the world at that time. They were woefully weak in comparison to the wild beast. The wild beast due to their enormous strength controlled large territories. They could freely eat the best spiritual herbs which allowed them to evolve into spirit beast. The most mankind could do was to band together to fight against these spirit beast.


    Mankind took heavy losses but they eventually manager to kill some of these spirit beast. They learned from the animals of the forest and the natural cycles of the energies of the world. Cultivation had been born. Soon mankind learned to fight on equal terms with the spirit beast. A balance was soon formed between the beast of the forest and fields, and mankind.


    Mankind began to prosper in this time, and clans began to form around the world. Inside of these clans warriors were able to create and perfect martial arts. As mankind cultivated to higher and higher realms, their understanding of the Martial Dao progressed to knew heights. It was during this time of continuous grow that the first demon horde broke thru the void.


    The demons were much stronger then anyone could have imagined. They laid waste to man and beast alike. They were driven for the need to destroy, nothing else. They became a scourge on our world. The strongest clans all banded together but they still couldn''t stop this horde, the most they were able to do was slow its advance down.


    During a meeting of all the clan heads, spirit beast of the Immortal Rank showed up offering their assistance in protecting their world along with the mankind. Mankind had been working on an idea that would allow certain select warriors to become exceptionally powerful. Powerful enough to face off against the demons directly. When the Immortal Rank spirit beast offered their assistance all the pieces finally fell into place.


    The final outcome were known as Soul Warriors. These Soul warriors had three souls that occupied the same body. All of the clan heads and Immortal Rank spirit beast combined together to create these Soul Warriors. These warriors all fought together against the demon horde. At first it didn''t seem as if their plan worked out. But the more these warriors fought and risked their lives together the more completely the three souls merged together. Once the first Soul Warrior completed his merger the most incredible thing happened. His power level raised to the point he broke thru the Immortal Stage. With a wave of his hand he changed the landscape of the world. He single handedly changed the fate of mankind.


    Following his example all the other Soul Warriors completed their merger. The group of warriors fought day and night destroying the demon horde and sending them back into the void were they came from. The people and beast of this world were safe once again. The clan heads all returned to their homes and for a while their was peace in our world.


    Mankind soon found that they had gained an unexpected blessing from the merger of their souls with the Immortal spirit beast. Their descendants carried the bloodline of the spirit beast from then on.


    But the peace was soon broken by the demon horde once again. But since mankind now had an answer for them, the clans created their own Soul Warriors. These soul warriors were not as power as their predecessors, but they could easy repel the demon horde. This cycle continued for a couple thousand years before the demon horde just stopped showing up. We don''t know why this happened, but we few guardians have always been on watch for when they might appear once again.


    You my young friend are the first Soul Warrior to be made in the last 500,000-years. Your appearance is quite auspicious in itself. So I came to offer you some advice. Learn to trust each other as you would your own self. Learn to rely upon each other as you would your own brother. Be of one mind, body, and soul when you fight. And never lose the love and compassion you carry in your heart. If you can do all these things you will become the most powerful warrior ever seen in the last million years."


    Chen Zhen, Shanggu Feng, and Lou Tian all sat there and pondered Jackie''s words for a while. After a long while they suddenly had a spark of enlightenment. This enlightenment allowed their souls to overlap a little more, bringing them closer together. Jackie smiled seeing that he was right to come here and talk to them, they didn''t waste his words and truly took them to heart.


    "Now as I promised to help with the neuro-toxin your friends were suffering from. It doesn''t require and antidote, it leaves the body on its own given enough time. I believe that if you head to them now you will find that they have already awoken and should show no after-effects of the poison."


    "Really? It''s just that simple?" Chen Zhen asked excitedly


    "Yes, they should be fine. Now get, get. Shoo!!" Jackie laughed as he saw Chen Zhen running away.


    Chen Zhen made it to the tree-line before he stopped and turned around. He bowed deeply to Jackie one last before he turned around and headed to the Specter Monkeys with a huge grin on his face.


    *(Chenglong Ershi''er literally means Jackie22 in Mandarin)

 55 Ice Man

    Chapter 55


    Before Nathan could be drowned in his own self doubt Gorampa slapped him on his shoulder and started walking away.


    "So where are we going now?" Nathan asked.


    "You tell me. I was told that you would have a clue as to were our next guardian would be found. Where do you think we need to go?" Gorampa replied looking over his shoulder as he continued to walk.


    Nathan had stopped for a second to think, so when he looked up again he had to run to catch up with Gorampa. He didn''t know why but every time he thought about where they should head next he felt a cold chill run thru his body. At first he thought it was just his imagination, until he breathed out a burst of frost from his mouth.


    "Interesting¡­ it seems that our next guardian is someone with an affinity to the ice element." Gorampa said as he saw the frost come from Nathan''s mouth, "Can you think of anyone you know who fits that description?"


    "I don''t know of anyone personally, but there is this one guy I saw on the internet that climbed Mount Everest in shorts¡­.his name is Wim Hof. People call him the iceman. Apparently he has learned the ability to control his body temperature." Nathan said not sound confident in his suggestion.


    "That sounds very promising. For him to be able to unlock his bloodline in our qi devoid world is amazing. Lets go have a talk with this Iceman to see if he has been chosen to become an Earth guardian." Gorampa was excited at the idea of meeting this Mr. Hof.


    Gorampa brought Nathan up into the air and headed to Holland, where Wim Hof was reported to be from. Nathan was scared at first but after the first hour he gradually became accustomed to flying thru the air with Gorampa. When they arrived in Holland it took them a couple days to find Wim Hof''s whereabouts.


    Nathan had called Janet to let her know of all the incredible things that were happening to him. They both didn''t realize it, but they had grown a lot closer over this ordeal. Janet helped Nathan to take care of their traveling expenses. Nathan knew he owed her a debit he would never be able to repay, but he promised himself he would give her the love she deserved when he returned. He finally admitted to himself that he truly loved her. Janet hung up feeling her heart swell as well. She knew that Nathan loved her and now that he was willing to openly express it she couldn''t be any happier.


    After staying in a hotel for a couple days, Nathan and Gorampa found out that Wim was going to be speaking at a seminar about unlocking the power of the human body. They bought tickets to the seminar and sat towards the front. Nathan thought there were some interesting point that Wim brought out in his seminar, but Gorampa spent most of his time rolling his eyes and harrumphing at the points he thought were ridiculous.


    They waited in their seats as everyone else was leaving. When Wim saw them walking up to the stage, naturally he thought they just wanted to ask him some questions about his seminar.


    "How can I help you gentlemen?" Wim asked with a smile on his face.


    Before Nathan or Gorampa could say anything one of the scrolls flew out of Gorampa''s sleeve and circled around Wim''s head. Wim was surprised by this strange even. As much as it shocked and even scared him a little bit, he felt a soul searing urge to grab ahold of the scroll hovering in front of his face. As soon as he touched it a bright light flashed in his mind. Next thing Wim knew he was in a white void. As he looked around he saw there was nothing else he but him. He turned in circles but saw nothing else.


    Before he started to freak out he could hear the sound of foot steps approaching him. A figure could just barely be seen walking toward him, sometimes it was solid and other times it would be transparent. When the figure stopped in front of him it was a monk wearing dirty robes with dreadlocked hair, and a dirty face.


    "Hello Wim. My name is the Mudd Buddha. I''m here to explain what is happening to you right now."


    For reasons he didn''t know Wim knew he could trust the Mudd Buddha, he nodded to show that he was being cooperative.


    The Mudd Buddha explained the history of the world to Wim. He told him of his ancestry and the importance he would have to the world''s future. Wim was very overwhelmed at first, but as the Mudd Buddha kept talking to him his voice carried a hypnotic feel which calmed Wim down. The Mudd Buddha explained to Wim about his cultivation technique and answered any questions that Wim had. Before the Mudd Buddha left he vouched to Nathan and Gorampa, letting Wim know that they could be trusted.


    When Wim woke back up he felt like he had been sleeping for days, but in reality only about half a minute had gone by. He looked at Gorampa and Nathan with a relaxed and trusting gaze.


    "How do you feel?" Gorampa asked.


    "I feel better then I have ever felt in my life." Wim said while bowing to Gorampa.


    Nathan and Gorampa shared a quick glance because they had both noticed the misty frosty that companied Wim''s words. Pretty soon the temperature in the auditorium they were in began to plummet. Ice cold winds circled around Wim being absorbed into his body. When Wim stood back up he looked like an ice statue has come to life.


    "This feels amazing! I have never felt so much power before in my life!" Wim said, his voice sounding ethereal and radiating power, "The Mudd Buddha has instructed me on our quest. I will gladly accompany you to protect the future of our world."


    "Wonderful! Now I must ask you where do you think we will find our next guardian?" Gorampa laughed feeling ecstatic about finding the next guardian so soon.


    Wim looked at Nathan, "I look at you and I feel as if a mountain is standing next to me. But when I think about where we should head next, I begin to feel a burning heat inside of me."


    The next moment a red flame could be seen inside of Wim''s chest thru his ice skin. After hearing Wim Nathan felt a raging inferno inside of his chest as well. They both breathed out hot searing flames from their mouths.


    "So fire it is¡­" Gorampa said with a shrug, "Where should we begin looking?"


    Nathan shrugged his shoulders and looked over at Wim.


    Wim took out his cellphone held it out for the other two to see, "I was watching this video this morning. If I had to guess, I would say this definitely our guy."


    In the video you could see a dog that has been trapped behind a lava flow at a beach. A surfer comes running across the beach. He runs right across the lava without showing any signs of being burnt in anyway. He quickly picks up the dog and runs back toward the person filming. He drops the dog at their feet and keeps running.


    "This was filmed in Hawaii a couple days ago. The person has been identified as Keanu Mahoe. He has gone into hiding ever since this video was released, so no one has been able to interview him or get a comment from him. If I had to guess he''s like us and has unlocked his bloodline as well." Wim suggested.


    "To Hawaii then." Nathan said then looked at Gorampa, "We will take conventional methods this time. I''ll buy us some plane tickets."


    Nathan didn''t want to go thru flying thru the air like he did last time.

 56 Survivors

    Chapter 56


    As Jackie watched Chen Zhen running away, he looked back at the many carriages that held the slaves inside of them. Jackie waved his hand and all of the chains holding the slaves unlocked themselves. As soon as the slaves were free they peeked outside of the carriage. When they couldn''t see anyone around they knew that this was there only chance to escape. The slaves helped those they knew, and large groups of slaves left heading back toward their homes.


    When everyone else had left there were two people who looked around very lost. They had no idea where they were or how to return to their home.


    "You poor dears. I can''t imagine how it must feel to be in your shoes right now." Jackie said to them feeling sorry for their current plight.


    The two looked at Jackie in surprise, "You actually speak our language?" the male asked


    "Where are we? How did we get here? The last thing I remember if falling from the sky when our plane broke apart in the air." the female said, looking to Jackie for answers.


    "You have been thru a very traumatic ordeal. I can only tell you that you have fallen into a wonderful knew world. But there is someone who maybe able to help you return home. He is from your world as well. He is also trying to return home. Maybe you guys can work together to return to your world." Jackie said, sounding very nonchalant.


    The two instantly perked up on hearing this. Even though they had no clue who this weird old man was, he was the first person who they could communicate with since coming to this world. They had no idea how they survived the plane crash. They only knew they woke up not to far from each other on a river bank. They saw a caravan passing thru the woods not to far from them and ran to see if they could help them. The people in the caravan starting talking but they couldn''t understand a word they were saying. Next thing they knew they woke up in the back of a carriage chained to the wall like the rest of the people in there.


    Jackie led the two off into the woods and explained as much as he could of the world they were in while they walked.


    Chen Zhen ran non-stop all the way back to the Specter Monkey territory. Before he got there he could hear laughter and excited calls of the troop. Chen Zhen could finally relax when he knew that Mei Ling and the kids were truly safe. As soon as Mei Ling and the kids saw him they all ran to Chen Zhen throwing their arms around him. They were so happy to see that he was safe. Mei Ling couldn''t stop herself form checking to see if he had any injuries. Chen Zhen and the kids laughed causing Mei Ling to blush when she realized what she had been doing.


    Chen Zhen thanked the Specter Monkeys again for looking at them. After discussing things with Shanggu Feng, they decided to avoid Qianbei all together and head to the next city in route. They travelled thru the woods and stayed away from any major roads along the way.


    Mei Ling started to open up more and asked Chen Zhen questions about his life. She had always been curious about his life after he mistook her for his wife. Seeing how powerful Chen Zhen was and how he was the personal disciple of an Immortal Level cultivator, she assumed that he was married to a daughter of some very powerful clan chieftain or maybe even an imperial princess seeing as they were headed to the imperial capital. She was rather disappointed to find out that his wife was a very ordinary woman. Her outlook of Chen Zhen had become very inflated. Chen Zhen had a godly status in her eyes, his importance was no less to her then her own kids.


    The more Chen Zhen spoke about his life the more it didn''t match up to what Mei Ling thought it should be. Mei Ling began to ask how strong his wife was. When Chen Zhen explained how people in his world were very weak compared to the abyss world, Mei Ling felt that Moxian didn''t deserve to be Chen Zhen''s wife. She started to ask if Chen Zhen would rather stay with her here in the abyss world. Chen Zhen felt very awkward by the question. He told Mei Ling that she and the kids were very important to him, but his family needed him more. As Mei Ling tried to be a little more persistent on the matter Chen Zhen became a little upset with her. Sensing Chen Zhen''s mood, Mei Ling stopped and became quiet again, but in her mind she felt she was better for Chen Zhen then Moxian. She fantasied about how to get Chen Zhen to replace Moxian in his heart with her.


    As they continued walking along unbeknownst to Chen Zhen and them, Jackie began walking with them. By the time Chen Zhen noticed him they had already walked quite a ways.


    "Follow me. There are a couple people who are very interested in meeting you." Jackie said as soon as Chen Zhen noticed he was there.


    Jackie turned to the left and meandered thru the woods for a while before coming to a small clearing in between some trees. Two people, male and female, got up from the log they had been sitting on when they heard foot steps behind them. Their faces looked scared until the saw Jackie coming around the tree, then they instantly relaxed. As soon as Chen Zhen saw them he was instantly amazed. They were people from Earth.


    "Oh wow! There are actually other people who survived the crash not just me!" Chen Zhen said very excited.


    When they saw Chen Zhen with his blood-red colored hair and red colored eyes, they were intimidated by his appearance at first. But as soon as he spoke English they were shocked and amazed.


    "Hi, my name is Chen Zhen. Who might you guys be?"


    "My name is Alex Rogers. This is Kim Smith." The make said.


    He was a tall black man with broad shoulders and a scruffy beard. Despite his gruff appearance he was actually quite soft spoken. Kim was a petite Italian woman, she looked like she would faint at any moment.


    Looking at the two even though they had been in the abyss world for some time now they were still very weak. They hadn''t until recently been able to eat any of this world''s meats or fruits. Jackie had brought them some foods to eat but it was nothing compared to the spirit beast meats that Chen Zhen had consumed. Looking at Kim, Mei Ling began to understand how weak Earth''s females really were. This re-enforced in her mind that she was the better choice for Chen Zhen.


    After they introduced themselves Alex asked Chen Zhen a lot of questions, from how he survived, to how he came to look the way he did, where was he headed, how did he plan to return to earth, and finally would he help them to get home?


    Chen Zhen shared his experiences with Alex and Kim. Jackie had already explained to them the dangers of this world but hearing them again from Chen Zhen really brought the point home. Lou Tian gave them a simple cultivation method to help them gain some strength to be able to protect themselves better. Even though Chen Zhen was powerful enough for now, it was a common practice of this world to make sure everyone you travelled with had at least a modicum of strength. Enough to protect themselves in a pinch.


    Since Alex and Kim were the weakest members of their group they waited a couple day to allow their bodies to absorb some yuan qi. Jackie was amazed at the rate their bodies absorbed energy. It seemed that everyone from Earth had a talent for cultivation.


    When it was finally time to set off Jackie had simply disappeared to everyone''s astonishment. Chen Zhen scouted the way as usual and the kids help to hunt along the way. At night Chen Zhen thought to teach Alex and Kim some martial arts so they would be able to hunt and be more contributing members of the group.


    The groups destination was Shangren City. It was a very large city that was founded by the Shangren clan. They were very good business men and they had a famous auction house that hosted many events throughout the year. Chen Zhen''s spatial ring was more then half full from all the hunting they had been able to do along the way. Even though they spirit cores he had weren''t of the highest quality because he had been allowing the kids and Alex and Kim to do most of the hunting while he led everyone around the most dangerous areas. They had still acquired a large sum of spirit cores. Chen Zhen went to exchange them for gold so that he could purchase horses for everyone.


    Just as Chen Zhen was leaving the Spirit Core Merchant store with 5000 gold taels, he spotted a wanted poster with his depiction on it.

 57 Fire Lord Ozai

    Chapter 57


    Nathan did some research online and found out that the Kilauea Volcano had recently erupted. The trio caught a flight to the Waimea-Kohala airport. They rented a car and drove about two hours to the Kahauale''a Natural reserve. As they got closer Gorampa was able to use the scroll to figure out a general direction to head in.


    They climbed the mountain in the National Park that took them closer and closer to the summit of the volcano. As they climbed higher the heat in the area started to become unbearable for Nathan. When he looked at Wim and Gorampa and saw that they weren''t even sweating he became jealous.


    "How are you guys not being effected by the heat?" Nathan had already taken off his shirt and was fanning himself with his hat.


    Wim and Gorampa looked at each other and then shrugged their shoulders, "I just tell my body not to feel the heat." They both said at the same time, then looked at each other again laughing.


    Nathan squinted his eyes as he looked at them. He really wanted to smack them upside their heads right now. He shook his head and began following after them again.


    When they were getting to area of the mountain where the foliage was beginning to thin out, they saw signs nailed to the trees. The signs warned of danger. The signs were clearly hand painted and recently put up. As they continued the signs started to become ridiculous warning of fire beast and lava monsters. The last sign was the most ridiculous of them all, it said any who enter the kingdom of Fire Lord Ozai will be killed.


    Nathan laughed out loud when he read that last sign, "If he''s Fire Lord Ozai then my name is Bumi and that flaming ball falling form the sky is Sozin''s comet"


    Nathan suddenly stopped laughing as he just realized what he said. He reacted without thinking a and swung both his arms from down to up. As he did so the ground in front of them rose up and shielded them from the fireball. It exploded into the shield sending dirt and rocks flying everywhere.


    When the dust cleared they say a young man walking towards them. He was still wearing that wetsuit they saw him wearing in the video, but from his elbows to his hands and his knees to his feet his body looked like molded flames.


    He jumped into the air and threw out a punch sending another fireball flying towards their group. Wim stepped forward this time and condensed and ice spear in his hand that he threw at the fireball. They exploded in the air on contact.


    Gorampa was going to stop the fight right away but on second thought he was very interested to see what these three guardians were capable of.


    The young man was surprised to see his attacks easily countered, but this just made him get angrier. He rushed forward leaving molten foot prints in his wake. Nathan began to take this fight more seriously, he circulated his cultivation technique and absorbed energy from the ground. As this energy coursed thru his body his skin hardened and he no longer felt the intense heat around him. He rushed forward and met the young mans charge head on. He wasn''t trying to truly hurt the kid in front of him, so he lightly threw a punch. When the flame fist and earth fist met both parties were thrown backwards. Even though he held back Nathan was still physically much stronger then this young man. The young man was tumbling across the ground for a little bit before coming to a stop. Wim took this opportunity to run over and spray him with a layer of ice. Because it was so hot there it wasn''t easy for Wim to condense ice, but it was enough to immobilize the weakened young man.


    "What do you want with me? Let me GO!" the young man screamed at them.


    "We mean you no harm. We are actually here to offer you help in controlling your new abilities." Gorampa said stepping forward to try and smooth things out.


    "What are you some weird Asian Professor X or somethin?" the young man said looking at Gorampa''s appearance.


    Instead of answering Gorampa just let the fire scroll leave his sleeve. It flew over and hovered in front the young man''s face.


    "Is your name Keanu Mahoe?" Nathan asked.


    "How do you know my name?"


    "We saw the video of you saving the dog on the beach from lava. We came here because like us, you share a very special destiny." Nathan said trying to get the kid to relax more.


    "Special destiny¡­.. What destiny"


    "Take the scroll and you will soon understand." Gorampa said with an encouraging smile.


    Wim released the ice on Keanu, he grabbed the scroll as soon as he was free. The same thing that happened with Wim happened for Keanu. After hearing the Mudd Buddha''s explanation of things Keanu actually felt very excited to join the fight for Earth.


    "Ok gentlemen, where is our next destination?" Gorampa asked cheerfully.


    Nathan, Wim and Keanu all stood in a circle and began to circulate there cultivation techniques. Nathan and Wim both agreed it helped to figure out the clue for the next guardian. They all stood there and breathed slowly, in thru their nose and out thru their mouth. As they did it their breathing began to sync with each other. The gust of wind that came out of their mouths became stronger and stronger. Soon a small tornado was formed between them. It spun there in perfect harmony with the three of them.


    "It would seem that the next element we are looking for is wind" Gorampa concluded.


    ------------------------


    Diako Natsu called Zhang You to his meeting hall. It had been a couple days since Zhang You had been staying with his uncle. He knew his uncle had begun favoring him because of the many cultivation resources he had been receiving. He was already close to a breakthrough to level 3 Liquid Core Stage. As Zhang You swaggered into the meeting hall he was surprised to find it filled with the elders of the Diako Clan.


    "We have deliberated and have come up with a plan of attack for this new world you have found, dear nephew." Diako Natsu said while smiling at Zhang You.


    "Yes we believe that it is time for you to step up and take a bigger role in our family business. So you will take a group of soldiers to launch our first attack. Since you have been there before you are more familiar with what to expect. This will give us a drastic advantage when its time to strike." the First Elder said.


    Zhang You was completely shocked! He never imagined that he would be called upon to lead a strike on the new world. He was still apprehensive after his last failed attempt. He really didn''t want this kind of responsibility. He was hoping to just sit back and collect the benefits without having to do any real work.


    "Since you will be receiving such a large reward for yourself and your mother''s family, we feel its only right that you are more hands on this time." Diako Natsu said seeing right thru his nephews motives.


    Knowing there was nothing he could do Zhang You bowed deeply to the elders in the hall and thanked them for this opportunity, before turning around and leaving.


    "Are you sure we can trust him with this assignment?" the First Elder asked Diako Natsu after Zhang You left.


    "I don''t have any high hopes for that weakling of a nephew. Honestly I hope he dies during this mission, that way I won''t have to kill him myself. He will lead our scouts thru the portal and then his usefulness will be done." Diako Natsu said.

 58 Auction

    Chapter 58


    When Chen Zhen saw his portrait on the wall, he was surprised because it held not only his normal appearance, but also his bloodline appearance. When he discussed things with Lou Tian and Shanggu Feng they already warned him this might happen. Show they changed Chen Zhen''s appearance as much as possible using make-up before he entered Shangren City.


    As Chen Zhen was he heading to buy some horses he was directed to head past the auction house. One of the females servants of the auction house was handing out fliers promoting their upcoming auction.


    "Look thru the list of special items that are being auctioned. See if there are any fire or lightning attributed cultivations materials being auctioned." Shanggu Feng said.


    "Do we even have time for that? Shouldn''t we get back on the road as soon as possible to avoid the Diako Clan''s people?" Chen Zhen asked feeling a little nervous about finding his wanted poster already.


    "It will be fine. No one has been able to recognize you yet. This is a great opportunity we shouldn''t let pass." Shanggu Feng said


    "I agree with Shanggu Feng on this point. You never know what kind of rare items will appear at an auction." Lou Tian added.


    "Ok, fine I will go and see if there is anything worthwhile being auctioned." Chen Zhen said as he took a flier from one of the young ladies outside of the auction house.


    As Chen was looking at the flier his face started to grow gloomy. The most items listed for auction were slaves. There were detailed descriptions of what the different slaves looked like. As Chen Zhen read the descriptions he saw something that made his heart stir. A couple of the slaves were called foreigners who didn''t understand spoken language. Their complexions were described in different tones that didn''t belong in the Abyss World.


    "There are some slaves from my world being auctioned. We have to free them immediately!" Chen Zhen said wanting to rush into the auction house right away.


    "You can''t do that! They have very powerful people that are the backbone of the auction house. If you try to rush in there they will easy kill you for your troubles." Shanggu Feng warned


    "Then what should we do?" Chen Zhen asked.


    "Go to the auction and see who buys the slaves from your world. Then we can follow them when they leave the city. Depending on how strong their guards are we should be able to attack them and get the slaves back that way." Shanggu Feng suggested


    "Ok¡­. I''ll listen to your suggestion." Chen Zhen entered the auction house still frustrated with his own weakness.


    Chen Zhen paid for a ticket to enter the auction and followed the crowd to the seating area. As he looked around Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian explained how the auction houses worked. The main hall was very grand with many opulent decorations on display. The upper floors had private rooms with two-way mirror to allow VIP''s to be able hide their identities. Each VIP room had a maiden who communicated their bids to the auctioneer.


    The auction soon started and many of the lower ranked items were of no interest to Chen Zhen, so he didn''t pay any attention to it. It wasn''t until Lou Tian told him to bid on and item that his attention returned to the auctioneer.


    "We have a Rank 9 spirit core of the Mantle Spider. This spider lived deep inside of active volcanos. Its spirit core is brimming with pure fire attribute spirit energy. This will great help anyone with a fire attribute energy core to increase their cultivation. Depending on your current level this could easily save you five to ten years of cultivating!" the auctioneer was really trying to drum up interest in this spirit core, but since it was still considered a low rank item the starting price wouldn''t be that high, "The starting price is 50 gold coins. Each bid must be and increase of at least 5 gold coins. The bidding begins now!"


    "55 gold coins"


    "60 gold coins"


    "70 gold coins"


    "85 gold coins"


    Chen Zhen didn''t bid right away. Even though he wasn''t familiar with auction houses he was definitely familiar with bidding for items. Back on Earth he was an avid user of E-bay. He knew to wait till the last minute to place his bid to gain the greatest effect.


    Since Chen Zhen and everyone had been hunting regularly to gain experience they had amassed quite a large sum of spirit beast cores. Excluding the higher Rank 8 and Rank 9 cores Chen Zhen kept for himself, there were 300 Rank 5, 200 Rank 6 and 150 Rank 7 that he sold already. He kept the nearly 1,000 Rank 1-4 beast cores for cultivation resources for the members of his group. Still he was able to get over 5,000 gold coins for what he sold, Chen Zhen was not short of money at all.


    "The final bid of 105 gold coins. Going once¡­."


    "130 gold coins" Chen Zhen nonchalantly spoke out.


    Many people were shocked at this amount. Normally a Rank 9 beast core sold for between 50 to 75 gold coins. The especially rare ones could sell for as much as 100 gold coins. The previous bid of 105 gold coins already exceed its true value, so Chen Zhen''s bid seemed extremely extravagant.


    "130 gold coins, do we have any other bids.... Going once..... going twice¡­.. sold for 130 gold coins." The auctioneer was very happy since he would receive a ten percent commission for all the sales.


    Chen Zhen stopped paying attention again until it was Shanggu Feng who asked him to bid this time. This time it was a lightning attributed spirit core of the Rank 9 Devil May Spider. This was a much rarer beast core, so the bidding was quite fierce for a while. It finally slowed down when it reached 140 gold coins.


    "Are there any final bids¡­.."


    "160 gold coins" Chen Zhen once again shocked everyone with is bid that was considered extremely high.


    The auctioneer had a huge grin on his face as he tried to get people to bid some more, but ultimately it went to Chen Zhen in the end.


    Not long after this the lower rank items came to an end. Next the slave auction would begin. Chen Zhen spread out his spiritual sense, so he could be aware of who ever bid on the slaves from Earth. Since they were considered an exotic item they were the last ones to be brought out. Seeing them on display like common property, shackled around the neck, wrist and ankles, made a burning rage ignite inside of Chen Zhen. His killing intent leaked out a little causing those next to him to begin feeling uncomfortable.


    Chen Zhen was shocked to find that all of the earth slaves were purchased by the same person in one of the VIP rooms. Chen Zhen noticed that as soon as this person began to bid all other bidders would immediately stop bidding. Shanggu Feng warned Chen Zhen that this was probably someone from a very influential family who no one dared to offend. Chen Zhen didn''t care who they were. He was hoping that since they were used to receiving such impartial treatment that they security would be a little lax. This would make rescuing his fellow Terrans much easier.


    As discreetly as possible Chen Zhen followed them from the auction house after picking up his purchases. The highest guard he found was only at Level 1 of the Liquid Core Stage. They loaded they wagons with their purchases and headed north out of the city.


    Chen Zhen purchased the horses he needed then left the city to find his group. After explaining what happened at the auction house, no one discouraged him from trying to set the other people from Earth free. Chen Zhen made plans for rendezvousing with the group after he rescued the slaves. Even though he could run much faster then the horses Chen Zhen took some along, so he could bring the freed slaves back easier.


    The small caravan didn''t seem to be in a hurry, so it didn''t take long for Chen Zhen to catch up to them. Chen Zhen followed them for a while before heading into the woods and sneaking a head of the caravan. Chen Zhen hid the horses in the woods along side the road, and then found an ambush spot. After waiting for quite a while without anyone showing up Chen Zhen became a little confused. When he crept back down the road, to his surprise he found the caravan had stopped and set up a campsite near the road.


    Chen Zhen could see the person from the VIP sitting on a log laughing with some of his servants when sudden a voice rang out in his head, "He my friend don''t hide there in the woods why don''t you come join us."

 59 Talia

    Chapter 59


    Talia was walking up the mountain trail the started on the left side of her families property. Her father asked her to check on the windmills, like he always did. Talia loved the windy and everything about it. She was always amazed by it power and gentleness. It gave her family life and sustenance. The thing she loved the most ever since she was a kid was when the wind would blow thru her hair.


    As she got older the wind seemed to become her friend. It would whisper its secrets to her and play with her. She would lose herself to running with the wind around the mountains and hills where she lived. She grew up in Wellington, New Zealand, the windiest city in the world.


    Her family discovered her connection to the wind when she was very young. One day the winds were so strong they blew her off the side of a hill. Talia''s mother screamed and franticly ran after her, expecting to see her daughter severely her form her fall. To her utter surprise Talia was laughing and floating down the hill with the wind seeming to cradle her. When her mother asked what happened, five-year-old Talia told her mother that the wind was playing a game with her. No one openly admitted it, but everyone believed that Talia could control the wind to some degree. Their family wind farm never stopped producing power, even when other wind farms had to shut down due to the winds being so severe they could topple some windmills, the winds seemed to just avoid their farm during those times.


    Talia was walking along enjoying the gentle breeze when she suddenly stopped. She could feel a weird disturbance in the wind. As she looked up toward the sky a scroll flew over toward her from the clouds. Talia''s ears perked up for a second as if she was listening to someone speak. She nodded with a smile on her face and then reached out and grabbed the scroll. As soon as she did Talia felt as if she was transported to another world. As she looked around she saw a very dirty monk walking toward her.


    "Talia you are a blessed one of our world. The world we live in is changing very rapidly, and unfortunately some of this change is not good. You have a strength that our world will need to protect it. My dear Talia you are a very gentle soul, its one of the qualities of the wind that you have fully embraced. But now the world needs you to embrace the other aspects of the wind as well. Its power. Its rage. Its vengeance. The world needs you to take on the mantle of a warrior to protect the people we share this planet with and love. Can you do that, Talia?" the Mudd Buddha asked in a very gentle tone.


    Talia thought about what he said. She knew herself very well, and she knew she was the farthest thing from a fighter. But then she thought of an experience she had when she was a teenager. Due to the fact that her father''s wind farm never became damaged or had to shut done, so of the other farmers felt that it wasn''t fair. They ganged together to make thing difficult for her father. They tampered with and damaged some of her father''s windmills. When Talia went to check on them like she did every morning, she was heartbroken with what she saw. As she ran home to tell her father she saw many men surrounding her father and threatening him with bats and metal pipes. Talia could tell that these were the same ones who destroyed the windmills. Fearing for her father''s safety, and thinking of her poor windmills, Talia was filled with and unspeakable rage. That day the wind answered her call. The wind quickly picked up and became a terrifying storm. The men surrounding her father and their vehicles they drove in were all blown off her father''s property, but her father was completely unharmed.


    As Talia thought of this time she realized that she did have what it took to protect the ones she loved. She smiled at the Mudd Buddha, and then suddenly a bright light filled her vision. When Talia could see again she was back on the Mountain trail. Nathan, Gorampa, Wim, and Keanu were standing in front of her.


    "Hello Senior Gorampa, my name is Talia. The Mudd Buddha has told me all about you." Talia said while bowing slightly to Gorampa.


    "The pleasure is mine Talia. Its wonderful that you have agreed to join us." Gorampa said while bowing back, "Where do you guys think we should head next?"


    Talia, Nathan, Wim, and Keanu all looked at each other. They stood together in a circle and began to cultivate. As they stood there the sounds of metal colliding with each other. The sounds started slow and low. As the sounds sped up and got louder the faint image of a sword floated in the middle of their circle. Soon the image became a little clearer and the shape of an island could be seen on the sword.


    "It looks as though we are heading to Honshu, Japan." Gorampa said after getting a good look at the image.

 60 Auction 2

    Chapter 60


    Chen Zhen stepped out from behind the tree he was hiding at. The person he was spying on had clearly sensed his presence already. Chen Zhen was very cautious and apprehensive because he couldn''t sense the smiling man''s cultivation. That was either a matter of him being just a regular mortal or his cultivation was so much higher then Chen Zhen''s that he couldn''t sense it.


    Chen Zhen slowly approached the campsite, constantly sensing if anyone was hiding in ambush nearby. He made it all the way to the campsite safely, but he still didn''t lower his guard.


    "Hello my name is Shiku. I noticed you paying very close attention to me when I was purchasing those slaves at the auction. I wonder is there some connection between you and the slaves?" Shiku said with an amiable smile still on his face.


    Chen Zhen didn''t expect him to be so direct and straightforward upon their first meeting each other. He couldn''t decide if he should be truthful or not. Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian didn''t have any advice for him in this situation either. They were both on guard, ready to act in a moment''s notice.


    "My name is Chen Zhen. You can say that I do in a way have a connection to them. I can be considered a foreigner as well. I wonder if there is a way that we can negotiate a release of those slaves to my custody so that I can return them home." Chen Zhen decided that the truth would most likely be his best option right now.


    Shiku raised his brows in surprise. He wasn''t expecting Chen Zhen''s response at all. But as he thought about it, this might work out ion his favor. He could very easily subdue Chen Zhen and make him a slave as well. Since Chen Zhen could speak their language it would be take away the need to teach them to understand their language.


    "There is no need to negotiate there release. You will just join them as one of my slaves. That will save me the time of having to train them to speak properly." Shiku said while casually waving his hand.


    When Chen Zhen heard him he instantly jumped up in surprised. Even though he reacted right away he was still surrounded by the caravan guards. Most of them were in the mid to late Liquid Core Stage, only a small few had just entered the Liquid Core Stage.


    "I can''t believe they were able to hide their cultivations so well. This was a trap from the moment they left the auction house!" Shanggu Feng bellowed in rage.


    "They are weak, these caravan guards are not our concern. This Shiku is the one we need to be weary of I still cant see thru him. Damn this soul seal!" Lou Tian was angry as well feeling helpless in his weakened state.


    Chen Zhen looked at Shiku as if he was looking at a mad man. Shiku looked at Chen Zhen as if he was an ant. Shiku was a peak Solid Core Stage cultivator. In his eyes most of his guards were more powerful then Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen''s capture was already a done deal in his mind. He turned back to one of his maid servants and accepted the tea cup she offered him.


    Chen Zhen activated his bloodline armor and began circulating his Thunderfire in his body, the images of a dragon and a phoenix formed on each of his arms. As the armor formed around his body many of the guards jumped back in shock. They had seen the wanted posters of Chen Zhen back in town. As Shiku noticed the change in his guards he got a good look at Chen Zhen''s transformation.


    "Oh you''re that person the Diako family is looking for. That''s great! That means you even more valuable." Shiku said nodding his head at his good fortune for getting his hands-on Chen Zhen first.


    Chen Zhen held nothing back. He attacked with his full force wanting to eliminate the guards in a single hit. If he connected with a head, it exploded. If he connected with their bodies, their internal organs liquified. One hit one kill. That was Chen Zhen''s battle plan. Because he had tempered his body in the stalactite milk and also acquired the Blood Lion bloodline his physical attacks were leagues ahead of what these Liquid Core Stage cultivators could handle.


    But it seemed that no matter how many Chen Zhen killed there were more to take their place.


    As much as Shiku tried to pretend that this bloodbath didn''t affect him, he was starting to feel the loss of so many of his guards.


    "ENOUGH!!! It seems that you don''t understand your place in this world. Ants like you supposed to be able to acknowledge your better. If you had just submitted like you were supposed to I wouldn''t have lost so many of my men. But since you have chosen to be stubborn and do things the hard way I will just have to make you suffer now." Shiku yelled before flying over and throwing a palm toward Chen Zhen.


    Chen Zhen didn''t underestimate Shiku in the least. He formed a shield in front of himself using his Thunderfire, the images of Shanggu Feng and Lou Tian even circulated on the shield as well. But it was just barely able to block Shiku''s strike. Chen Zhen was blasted a hundred feet away, digging his feet in the ground creating two long furrow, trying to stop his momentum. Shiku looked at Chen Zhen with surprise in his eyes. Even though it was just a casual strike he was almost two large realms higher in cultivation then Chen Zhen. Even if it didn''t kill him it should have left in a crippled state.


    "I really am amazed at your strength. I will have to make sure I don''t kill you, so I can torture you later and learn all of your secrets." Shiku wanted to be able to fight warrior two realms higher than himself as well.


    Chen Zhen finally was able to dissipate the force pushing him back. He was surprised as well by his ability to withstand Shiku''s palm strike. The difference in power was too far out of his league. He now knew he had to think of a way to escape before it was too late.


    Instead of dispelling his shield, Chen Zhen compressed the energy until it was the size of a basketball. He jump in the air and threw it a Shiku with all his might. Shiku was surprised by the power he felt from that energy ball but that was it, it wasn''t enough to injure him. A grey light surrounded Shiku''s hand and then he swatted the energy ball away. It flew off into the woods and then exploded. The explosion was so big it lit up the sky brighter then the sun. A huge flaming mushroom cloud mixed with lightning could be seen in the distance. Many of the surviving guards had cold sweat break out all over their bodies. They knew that if that energy ball had landed anywhere near them then they would have been instantly vaporized. Their respect for their Lord Shiku''s power grew to another level.


    "You just full of surprises aren''t you. I must admit that hurt my hand a little bit." Shiku said glancing at the small burn mark on the side of his hand.


    Chen Zhen was starting to lose hope here. That was one of his most powerful moves. He still hadn''t developed any other martial techniques to use with his Thunderfire.


    "This has been fun but its time to end this." Shiku said as he flew over at top speed.


    He hit Chen Zhen in the chest with another palm strike, but this time Chen Zhen didn''t have time to form a shield. His armor shattered, and his ribs broke leaving his chest caved in. Chen Zhen laid on the ground in agony coughing up mouthfuls of blood.


    "You have thoroughly pissed me off now. You even marred my beautiful hand. And ant like you has already sullied my reputation. I was going to wait but I must exact some revenge on you right now to ease my mind." Shiku said as he slowed walked over to where Chen Zhen lay on the ground.


    Shiku grabbed Chen Zhen by his neck and lifted him up to a kneeling position. Grey energy covered his hands again as he applied pressure on Chen Zhen''s neck. The bones in his neck were beginning to crack from the pressure. Chen Zhen''s face was bright red from lack of oxygen.


    "I think I will start by breaking your meridians one by one" Shiku had a maniacal grin on his face as he hovered over Chen Zhen.


    He flooded Chen Zhen''s body with his grey metal attributed energy. Just when he expected Chen Zhen to begin to scream in pain there was absolute silence. When Shiku sent his sense throughout Chen Zhen''s body he saw that his meridians were completely intact.


    "What has he done to strengthen his body this much?! I must know his secrets. This wonderfully strong body is wasted on this insignificant ant!" Shiku thought to himself as he pushed more energy into Chen Zhen''s body, he wanted to see where his limit reached.


    As the energy flooded into Chen Zhen''s body it circulated thru his body and was refined into his energy. Chen Zhen''s void ability finally showed itself. His void ability could take any energy and make it his own. Even though Chen Zhen had many different spirit cores, he only used the fire and lightning attributed ones to cultivate. With Mei Ling and her kids showing up, testing out his void ability was pushed to everyone''s back burner. But now the truth of his ability could be finally seen.


    Chen Zhen''s body greedily absorbed the energy that Shiku pumped into him. When Shiku had pushed more than one-third of his energy into Chen Zhen''s body without anything happening he tried to stop. To his horror he realized that he couldn''t stop his energy from leaving his body. Chen Zhen had latch on to his energy and was using it to repair his damaged body. When his body was healed he continued to absorb Shiku''s energy. His dantians were slowly beginning to fill up from the energy in Shiku''s body. Because he was a peak Solid Core Stage cultivator he had more then enough energy to fill all three dantians.


    Shiku was continuing to get weaker as his energy was forcefully drained from his body. He tried to blast Chen Zhen a couple time to separate them, but that energy was just absorbed as well. Shiku didn''t remember when it happened but now he was the one kneeling being held by his neck by Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen showed no mercy at all draining ever drop of energy from Shiku''s body.


    "M¡­mmm¡­.mer¡­..cy¡­." Shiku feebly tried to beg.


    "Hahahah¡­ mercy? An ant like you had the audacity to beg for mercy? Did you just show me any kind of mercy?" Chen Zhen said as he kicked Shiku away from him.


    "Did you show the slaves any kind of mercy?" Chen Zhen asked as he ran over and rained punches onto Shiku''s face.


    As Chen Zhen continued to pummel Shiku he vented all his frustration out all over his body.


    "Enough Chen Zhen... I believe he is dead already¡­." Lou Tian said after a long while.


    Chen Zhen finally came back to his senses. He looked around to see the guards and servants all cowering behind the carriages. As he walked over many of them screamed out in terror.


    "Release the foreign slaves." Chen Zhen said with a cold glint in his eyes.


    One of the guards immediately obeyed and ran to the last carriage to release the slaves. The people from Earth could hear the devastating battle that took place, but they had no idea what was going on. As they stepped out of the carriage they were first horrified by the bloody scene that greeted them.


    "Follow me." Chen Zhen said and then began to walk off into the woods.


    The people from Earth looked at each other then slowly they all left to follow Chen Zhen. They followed him simply for the fact that he spoke their language. They may not have known what happened, but they could at least piece together in their minds that he had done this for them. As more of them came to this conclusion, they began to hurry faster after Chen Zhen.

 61 Attack from the Abyss 1

    Chapter 61


    Shinto Yamamura was cleaning another finished blade in the swordsmith shrine. Even though the shrine had been around for thousands of years they had still kept up with the times. As he was cleaning the blade a TV was hanging in the corner that was playing the afternoon news. The world was going through some incredible changes and people were beginning to freak out. People found that their travels times had increased by astronomical amounts recently. Scientist had discovered that the Earth was actually expanding, and they had no idea how to explain this phenomenon. Besides the changes to the Earth, people were starting to display extraordinary abilities. There were even animals that were showing signs of heightened intelligence. Even though World COMM had warned people that the world was going to go thru some drastic changes, everyone was still not ready for the changes that happened.


    As Shinto Yamamura looked around to make sure no one was around his hand started to glow with a silver light. He then slid is hand along the sharp edge of the blade strengthening it and increasing its sharpness. Shinto Yamamura had always felt that he had an intimate connection with metals. But recently he realized that not only could he feel where there were metals in the ground, he could manipulate the structures of the swords he held in his hands. He didn''t want to be treated as even more of an outcast then he already was, so he hid his abilities from everyone else.


    As Shinto Yamamura stood up to put the sword he was cleaning away, he suddenly clutched his chest and screamed out in pain. His body began to glow with a sliver light that kept getting brighter and brighter the more his chest hurt. All of the swords in the room with him began to violently shake. As the glow that surrounded Shinto Yamamura reached the swords they would begin to hover in the air around him. As the glow enveloped the entire room, it was no longer just the swords but everything metal in the room began to hover around him. Shinto Yamamura noticed none of this, he was curled in a ball on the floor screaming in pain. His father came running in from the forge when he heard Yamamura''s screams. By the time he made it to where Yamamura was he couldn''t get to his son because the everything metal was spinning around him like a deadly vortex. As he yelled Yamamura''s name his son couldn''t hear him thru the pain and agony he was experiencing.


    Gorampa and the rest of the guardians were still on there was to Honshu when their flight suddenly stopped in mid-air. As they looked around they noticed that everyone else on the flight was frozen but them. Suddenly the door to the airplane opened and the Mudd Buddha walked in.


    "Things are beginning to progress faster then we anticipated. We need to speed things up a bit." As he spoke the Mudd Buddha waved his hand and three of the scrolled he gave to Gorampa flew back into his hands.


    "As soon as you''re done in Honshu head straight to the Sacred Abyss. The enemy you will face in not our real threat. The Escaped Ones have felt the changes to Earth and are trying to accelerate the process so that they can return. You must make it into the Sacred Abyss and train as fast as possible, so you can be ready for their return. If not all of humanity will be doomed." As he finished speaking the Mudd Buddha simply disappeared.


    When Gorampa and the Guardians looked around they realized that they had all shared a vision. The plane never stopped moving. Everyone looked at Gorampa and asked the same question, "Who are the Escaped Ones?"


    "Mankind''s greatest threat¡­." was all Gorampa would say.


    The rest of the flight was uneventful. When they arrived in Japan they quickly left the airport and found a secluded spot.


    "I know you guys don''t like to travel this way, but we really need to hurry." With that Gorampa lifted everyone into the air and flew off toward Honshu.


    Zhang You was staring up at the Portal to Earth. His uncle had made him the commander of this group, but he felt that it was a truly unfair task placed upon his shoulders. The main group of warriors were all only in the Body Refinement Stage. The only warriors of any considerable strength were the group of scouts his uncle sent along, but they had their own orders. He was merely their guide. He knew his uncle had sent him on a suicide mission. How was he supposed to fight the enemies around the portal and secure the area with the weak warriors under his command.


    As Zhang You looked at the warriors they all wore excited looks on their faces. They had been told they the enemy was weak, and they would be able to easily overpower them. When Zhang You heard this whispered amongst his men, he knew he had been set up. He gave his uncle detailed intel on their fighting capabilities. He knew that none of these men were strong enough to survive this coming fight. He even thought of telling these men the truth on multiple occasions, but every time he went to speak up one of the scouts would interrupt him. This was a clear sign from his uncle that he was to just shut up and do as he was told. So Zhang You sat here underneath the portal in the sky trying to devise a plan that would allow him to do as his uncle wanted, without getting himself killed in the process.


    "What are we waiting for?" one of the scouts yelled in annoyance.


    "We can begin. I was just making sure everyone was at their peak condition before we crossed over." Zhang You felt frustrated with their interference. He could feel the noose tightening around his neck.

 62 Attack from the Abyss 2

    Chapter 62


    Gorampa followed the scroll as it lead him into the mountains. When they were still quite a few miles away from the sword shrine in Honshu they could see a very bright silver glow. Due to the energy fluctuations from the energy Gorampa could tell that someone was going thru an awakening. If they didn''t hurry the guardian going thru this awakening would be in mortal danger if he didn''t receive his cultivation technique soon. The other Guardians didn''t have to worry about this because their awakening happened after they received their cultivation technique which allowed their bodies to control the immense energy coursing thru them.


    Gorampa and the Guardians flew directly into the shrine. They were greeting with the same storm of metal spinning around Shinto Yamamura. They couldn''t get to Shinto Yamamura because anyone that stepped into this vortex would be ground into mince meat in seconds.


    The scroll in Gorampa''s hand was trying to break free of his grasp. Looking at the scroll Gorampa got the impression that if he just let go it would be able to save Shinto Yamamura. Since there was nothing else he could do trusted his instincts and just let go of the scroll. It quickly flew and joined the metal spinning around Shinto Yamamura. It wove its way thru the storm making its way closer to Shinto Yamamura.


    As Shinto Yamamura was writhing on the floor in pain, he felt something gently brush head. Even though his eyes were shut a bright light still flashed in his eyes. He found himself in a strange world that was only a white void. Suddenly a figured appeared before him, it was a monk with dirty robes and dreaded hair.


    "I would love to be able to explain things to you, but unfortunately we are very short on time. All I can tell you is that when you wake up would will be able to trust Gorampa and the people with him." with that the Mudd Buddha gently touch Shinto Yamamura''s glabellum.


    Shinto Yamamura felt a flood of information rush into his mind. His body began to control the energy flooding his body and the pain he was enduring gradually began to diminish. When it finally went away, Shinto Yamamura could feel all the metal still spun around him. It was now spinning slowly and was completely under his control. When he opened his eyes he could see his father''s worried face looking back and him.


    "I am sorry I made you worry father." Shinto Yamamura said as he controlled the metal to move to a corner of the room, so his father could finally enter the room he was in.


    Yamamura''s father rushed to him to see if he was injured in any way. As soon as he confirmed his son was fine he breathed a sigh of relief. At this time Gorampa walked in as well. Yamamura''s father bowed to Gorampa in thanks because he saw how the scroll he released helped his son.


    "My name is Gorampa and I am a Guardian of Earth. We are here because Shinto Yamamura you have been chosen by our planet as a Guardian. We face a dire crisis that requires your help to protect the people of our world."


    Yamamura''s father looked at his soon with pride and concern mixed on his face. His son was a young man so he able to make his own decisions but that didn''t mean that he wasn''t concerned for his son''s safety. The world they lived in was changing by the second. He was worried he might never see his son again.


    Yamamura looked at his father and knew what he was thinking. His father had always been there for him growing up, teaching him and nurturing him. His father and taught him about responsibility and honor, and what it truly meant to be a man. He taught him not just with his words but also with his actions. With the changes that were happening to their world he was worried for his family. If he had the ability to protect and ensure their safety he would do everything in his power to accomplish that.


    "Father, I love you and our family very much. I can not sit by and allow any kind of danger to befall you all. If this ability of mind will allow me to protect you then I will use it to do just that. You have shown me time and again what it means to be a man. Now I will use those lessons to show you the man I have become. I will make you proud of me father."


    "I already am¡­." His father replied with tears in his eyes.


    ---


    Agent Matthews found herself in a dark world. There was no light nor any sounds. She felt as in she was in a dark cave, but no matter which direction she moved in there was never anything around her. It seemed as if she wandered for years when she finally noticed a sound. She was so shocked by the sudden change, she began to move toward the sound. As she got closer she realized that the sound was hearing was chanting. The chanting was slowly getting louder until she could faintly make out a figure seated on the ground. For a while she had the surreal feeling that the more she walked the farther the figure got from her. As soon as she became reserved to the idea that she would never be able to reach that mysterious chanting figure, he was suddenly right in front of her.


    "Who are you?" Agent Matthews asked as the figure stood up.


    The figure regarded he for a while walking around her and scrutinizing her from head to toe, "I don''t know why the Earth chose you. Your heart is filled with deceit and greed. You care about nothing but yourself. I don''t see what redeeming value you have at all¡­." the Mudd Buddha said as he continued to scrutinize her.


    Agent Matthews felt appalled. Who did he thing he was judging her like this? He didn''t know anything about her!


    "I know a lot more about you then you think." the Mudd Buddha said in response to her thoughts.


    Agent Matthews was actually beginning to show signs of fear. She had no idea who this strange man was, or where they were for that matter. Her thought were even spread bare before this stranger.


    "You will be given a chance to prove your worth. The Earth has chosen you to be one of its Guardians. You will be tasked with protecting the people of this planet. But should you fail to fulfill your responsibilities I will personally make you suffer a fate worse then death." as the Mudd Buddha finished speaking a scroll flew out of his sleeve toward Agent Matthews head, "You job begins now!"


    With a flash of light Agent Matthews in her tent to the sounds of guns firing and explosions happening around her.

 63 Attack from the Abyss 3

    Chen Zhen lead the small group through the forest toward the portal back to Earth. As he got closer to the Specter Monkey troop he could hear a great commotion coming form them. Something had them spooked, they were very anxious, many were crying out in fear. When Chen Zhen got closer he was quickly swarmed by the Specter Monkeys who saw him. They kept pointing in the direction to where the portal was located with fear in their eyes. The Golden Specter King came over and warned Chen Zhen that humans were in that direction.


    Chen Zhen thanked them for the warning but he knew he had to help get the Alex and Kim who were travelling with him back home. He asks everyone to wait with the monkey troop while he goes to she what is causing the commotion. He keeps his spiritual sense pushed as far as he could. He didn''t want to run into any unexpected surprises. As Chen Zhen slowly made his way thru the woods he say many demon beast running in the opposite direction. Chen Zhen became nervous the closer he got tot the portal, because a lot of the demon beast that were running past him were stronger then he was. If something could cause then to flee then he stood no change against this unknown force.


    Chen Zhen stopped when his spiritual sense picked up humans at the end of his range. He decided to climb a tree and see if he could get an idea of what was going on. When he got to the top his heart nearly stopped. He couldn''t see who the were but he could see a sea of people marching toward the portal to earth. When he looked in the sky at were the portal was he could see explosions coming from inside of it.


    "What am I going to do? I''ll never be able to make it past those people to get home....," Chen Zhen said in despair.


    "You must go to my ancestor in the clan like we originally planned. He is the only one who can help you reach your home. We are too weak to force our way thru that army over there." Shenggu Feng solemnly said.


    "I agree that''s our only option at the moment." Lou Tian said.


    Chen Zhen looked out at the massive army one more time before climbing back down the tree and hurry back to his friends. When he told everyone what he saw there all felt that same way Chen Zhen originally did that things were hopeless. Alex and Kim''s last shred of hope for returning home snapped and they lost all motivation for moving on.


    "There is still a safe place for us to go but it is a far journey. A very powerful ancestor of the Shenggu Clan has saved my life and offered me sanctuary in his clan. He isn''t here right now because he went ahead of me to make arrangements for my arrival there. We can all go there and I''m sure he will help us to return home safely" Chen Zhen said trying to offer some encouragement to the both of them.


    Alex and Kim looked each other in the eye and knew that there was no other option for them so they agreed. There group quickly set of. Chen Zhen looked back one last time and hoped in his heart that Earth''s military can hold out till he can return with help. He remembered that old monk that visited him from Earth and hoped he was willing to help out too. With Shenggu Feng guiding Chen Zhen they had no problems finding a safe route, but with heavy hearts their long journey began.


    ----------------------------------------------------------


    Agent Matthews may have been disoriented at first but he training soon kicked in. There were people flying out of the Abyss carrying weapons from swords to spears to staffs, bow and arrows and may other primitive weapons, but there were still slaughtering the members of the different armies. People with machine guns were having no effect on there assailants. The bullets seem to bounce right off of them. The only people who seemed to have even the slightest bit of success those who were proficient in martial arts. Their bodies had been steadily strengthened due to there proximity to the abyss. Because of this they could move fast enough and strike hard enough to withstand blows from the enemy.


    Agent Matthews was proficient in hand-to-hand combat from her fathers intensive training, but as she started to fight she noticed that she was using moves she had never learned before. There was power building behind her punches and kicks. When she analyzed her moves she found a flood of information occupying her mind. Her body was moving on instinct, she realized she didn''t even have to concentrate to fight off her assailants. She took the time while she was fighting to understand the changes to her mind and body. When she asked herself where this came from she instantly remembered the Mudd Buddha. She thought that was all a dream. A smile slowly crept up on Agent Matthews face, if what she was feeling was true then...


    Agent Matthews pushed the guy she was fighting with away and then pulled the moisture in the air in front of her making a sphere the size of a watermelon. She then compressed this sphere until it was the of a baseball and then fired forward. The compressed water sphere burst his head like a bubble. Agent Matthews was shocked by the power of just compressed water. But what she didn''t know was that it wasn''t just the compressed water, but also her spiritual energy that helped her form that water sphere and keep it together that allowed it to have so much power.


    -----------------------------------------


    Zhang You slowly rose up from the Abyss. the fighting had been going on for a little while now. He figured he could sneak up unsuspected and find a good hiding place. He was still frightened by his memory of the armies missiles from last time. What he saw was against his expectations. His uncles clansmen were actually doing very well. He would come right out and say that they were winning but they were clearly holding there own. Several squads had been able to form battle formations and were slowly pushing the armies back. This was allowing more clansmen to make it safely out of the Abyss. Just as Zhang You felt things we looking on the bright side he noticed that one of the enemies was actually a cultivator.


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    ''How could there cultivators here? Wasn''t this a void planet not to long ago?'' Zhang You wondered as he watched Agent Matthews fighting.


    Just as Zhang You was about to shrug it off seeing as it was only one cultivator compared to the tens of thousands that were from his uncle''s clan he felt there was not problem. And that''s when he felt it. Not Just Zhang You everyone felt it. The fighting came to a sudden halt as a pressure so great it made it hard to breathe enveloped the entire area. When Zhang You looked up his knees went weak. From five different directions monks could be seen flying over toward the Abyss. They numbered into the thousands. They couldn''t compare to the size of Zhang You uncle''s army, but due to logic there should be no way for thousands of cultivators to be on this planet.


    "I have to warn my uncle!" Zhang You said as he jumped back down into the Abyss.

 64 To the Shenggu Clan

    As Chen Zhen group trekked toward the Shenggu Clan, Chen Zhen finally had the time get to know Alex and Kim better. They stuck to the forest and avoided the main roads so they didn''t attract unwanted attention upon themselves. The first night they stopped to make camp Chen Zhen asked Alex and Kim a lot of questions. He used his personal spatial domain to allow everyone to rest and enjoy a home-cooked by Mei Ling.


    "Is this really the first time you''re eating food in this world?" Chen Zhen asked Alex and Kim


    "Yes surprisingly we were only given water when we were in the slave carriages, but I never really felt hungry are drinking it" Kim explained.


    "The same goes for me as well. I would always feel very energized after just a single ladle of water. I could never figure out why" Alex said.


    "Have either of you noticed any kind of stinky, sticky substance on you after you drank the water?" Chen Zhen asked.


    They both nodded their heads, "Yes we were wondering what that was, since you''re asking us do you know what it is?" Kim questioned


    "Yes. Its the impurities in your bodies being removed. this world''s energy is very good for our bodies. It helps to purify us and make us healthy and much stronger." Chen Zhen went on to explain everything that Shenggu Julong told him about this world.


    "It''s probably a very good thing you were never given any food before now. Most likely your bodies wouldn''t have been able to handle the energy overload and you would have exploded. I know because the samething almost happened to me. The way to avoid that from happening is to circulate the energy around your body so it can be absorbed naturally. The benefit of this is that you will naturally become stronger and faster and be able perform amazing feats the more you do it"


    Chen Zhen''s enthusiasm was contagious. Alex and Kim were quickly caught up in his hype. They had seen how powerful he was when he fought off the ferocious demon beast as they traveled. Especially for someone like Alex who spent his life staying in top shape so he could always protect himself, he very much wanted to be able to do the things he saw Chen Zhen do. While Mei Ling was cooking Chen Zhen used some of the equipment Shenggu Julong left behind to test Alex and Kim''s elemental affinity. Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian promised that they would be able to give them cultivation techniques that fit their elements. they had both explored me ruins in they life and tons of cultivation techniques in the process.


    Alex volunteered to go first. He had a strong affinity with the earth element with a slightly weaker affinity to fire. Because his affinities strengths were so closely matched Lou Tian had Chen Zhen pass a cultivation techniques call Divine Lava force. It utilized his earth to further strengthen his body while the fire affinity coursed thru his blood giving him explosive movement and attack power. As its name stated it was a Divine Teir cultivation technique that can be cultivated to the Immortal realms. Wars have been fought over cultivation techniques of this caliber.


    Kim was nervous at first not knowing what to expect but seeing how quick and easy the process was she was eager to she what her results would be. Her strongest affinity was actually the Light element with a slightly weaker affinity to wood. Since both of her affinity lead her toward being a healer Shenggu Feng didn''t have any cultivation techniques in his knowledge base that could help her. Lou Tian did but it wasn''t as spectacular as the one Alex received. It was okay for starting out but as an Earth Teir cultivation technique it was very common. Shenggu Feng suggested when they reached is clan maybe there would be a better technique she could learn. Healers were very important to any clan so once one was found they would do all they could to try to rope them in.


    Alex and Kim excited sat down to start cultivating, It was tricky to get started but once they got the hang of it they immersed themselves completely in the process. The kids were excited that they knew more then some adults so they offered to help them out, but when they were reminded of the language barrier between they quickly realized there was nothing they could do. the kids who were still very diligent in their cultivation sat down next to Alex and Kim and cultivated as well.


    Chen Zhen offered to help Mei Ling with the cooking but she firmly refused. She still had hopes of switching Chen Zhen''s affection toward herself, so being useful by cooking all the meals was her first step. Since Chen Zhen had nothing to do at the moment he sat down to meditate and scan his surrounding to make sure things were safe.


    "How long will it take us to reach you clan?" Chen Zhen asked.


    "At the rate we are going if there are no unexpected problem about a month." Shenggu Feng replied.


    That''s a lot longer then Chen Zhen thought it would be, "Is there any way we can get there faster. I''m concerned about my planet. I know we are completely weak but I''m also not sure how we will handle an army of superhuman warriors we''ve never faced before." Chen Zhen said feeling perplexed.


    Mei Ling cooked a delicious meal as always and Alex and Kim got to enjoy the wonderful flavors of this worlds foods. After dinner everyone cultivated and they were soon on their way again. Because of the time difference in Chen Zhen''s personal spatial domain they on stopped for a few hours but everyone was completely refreshed. As their journey continued they still encountered many demon beast, but now Alex got the chance to practice what he learned. He soon realized it wasn''t as easy as Chen Zhen made it seem. Even the children had a easier time then he did witch really hurt his pride. But he practiced diligently and after the first week could hunt Rank Two demon beast regularly. Kim was able to get a lot of practice in healing during that time as well, patching Alex back up. Everyone wanted to arrive at the Shanggu Clan as early as possible but they all still agreed that the main roads were to hazardous at this time. The little joy they could find in learning new skills were always dampened by the worry they felt for their home.


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    -----------------------------------------------------


    Li Moxian and the kids were watching the TV when the show they were watching was interrupted by an urgent news bulletin about a mysterious invading force. Li Moxian''s phone rang soon after, it was Janet calling her. Before Li Moxian could say anything Janet already started talking.


    "Li Moxian you need to take your kids and get out of China. you are too close to the Abyss. The news is not going to give you completely accurate information about the crisis, but our satellites can clearly see what is going on right now. And I''m telling things are not looking promising. Our world''s armies are fighting to the best of their abilities but the invaders are stronger then anyone could imagine. I know that the news is saying that things are safe for now but I believe differently. You must get as far away from the Abyss as you can."


    Li Moxian was stunned, she didn''t know what to say. Her mind was drawing a blank. Where could she go? the only place she felt safe was right here at her parent''s house. She could go back to the United States but felt more dangerous to her then being a couple miles away from the Abyss.


    "Janet I appreciate your call to warn me but I don''t feel safe anywhere else but where I am right now. I can''t take any chances with possible being caught by your government. If things get worse we will figure something out but for I''m staying. Thank you again Janet" Li Moxian hung up the phone and didn''t give Janet a Chance to speak again.


    Janet knew that calling back would be pointless. She only prayed that they would stay safe and somehow escape the coming danger, but deep inside she knew that wasn''t going to be the case. Unless a miracle happened their world was doomed.

 65 Warrior Monks

    Everyone was still frozen as they observed the monks that were flying above them. There were thousands of monks hovering above the army surrounding the Abyss. Everyone felt a great pressure envelope them, for many it became hard to breathe.


    "To the soldiers of Earth''s army we ask that if you don''t feel that your martial skills are adequate, you should leave now. We mean no insult in our words. But as soon as we begin fighting we will be using our full strength. We will be using abilities beyond your wildest imagination. If you can''t protect yourself at that time there will be collateral damage. Our intent is merely to defend Earth from the invading force, not to cause harm to its military."


    Everyone from Earth was spooked to realize that the message wasn''t heard by their ears but was projected directly into their minds. Many began to flee and draw away from the Abyss. The strength they felt from the monks was undeniable. They knew that things were now completely out of their hands.


    As the army retreated the monks began descending from the sky. Even though the Diako cultivators had hundreds of thousands of warriors only about ten percent of their army had made its way thru the Abyss. So the thousands of monks were evenly matched in numbers. But the Diako warriors were still feeling pressured. The formation set up by the Diako clansmen allowed the cultivators at the 9th level of the Body Refinement Stage to teleport up thru the Abyss. Due to Zhang You report to his uncle, the Council of Elders believed that they would be more then powerful enough to take over the land around the Abyss. Under normal circumstances they would have been absolutely correct. But since the Abyss opened and the Mudd Buddha admonished the temple ancestors of the folly of their ways, the warrior monks have been cultivating none stop around the Abyss. Most of them have been able to achieve multiple breakthroughs.


    The average power level of the Diako cultivators was the 9th level of the Body Refinement Stage while the average power level of the warrior monks was the 1st level of the Liquid Core Stage. The monks easily had double the power of the Diako cultivators. Cold sweat dripped down the backs of the Diako cultivators. Because it took a lot of spirit crystal to power the formation back in their world they knew they wouldn''t be getting any reinforcements anytime soon.


    The lull in the fighting may have seemed as if it dragged out for a very long time but in actuality it was only for a couple of seconds. As soon as the soldiers quickly retreated the monks released their spiritual energy, the Diako cultivator closest to them were pushed back several feet.


    "ATTACK!!" as soon as this command was shouted all different types of elemental martial arts began flying back and forth between them. The Diako cultivators hadn''t used any martial skill before because they didn''t see any use in it. The enemy that was before them was too weak to need to. They felt it would be more of a psychological triumph to devastate them with their weapons. It would also allow them to save energy for any unexpected complications. Never in their wildest dreams did they ever expect to run into powerful cultivators in what was supposed to be a world devoid of spiritual energy. That was also a reason they didn''t use their energy to attack, they didn''t expect their to be enough energy to replenish what they spent fighting.


    The monks were proficient in battle formations. They had decades of practice together. They began to decimate the Diako cultivators.


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    ------------------------------------------------------------------


    At this point Zhang You had already snuck back down the Abyss. He rushed to ther scouts to warn them of the monks that had appeared. The scouts were very doubtful of the validity of what Zhang You was telling him. It truly made no sense for there to be an army of powerful cultivators attacking their army. What he was saying sounded completely ludicrous to them. Zhang You''s uncle had warned then that he was a trickster, so they had even less of a reason to believe him, but since he was the commander of their army they couldn''t completely ignore him.


    The lead scout Diako Ze Tian said, "We will follow you back up there to see if you speak the truth, but be warned, if you are deceiving us in any way today will be your death anniversary!"


    Zhang You didn''t want to go back up there but with the sinister look in the scouts'' eyes he knew there was no room to argue. The second in command of the scouts grabbed Zhang You by the back of his collar and forcefully dragged him back up thru the portal.


    When they made it to the other world, what awaited them was mass destruction and chaos. Their clansmen were being ruthlessly annihilated right before their eyes. They could tell by the spiritual energy coming from the monks that they were already a rank higher then their men. When you add the combined might of their battle formations on top of it, it was complete overkill. It was like using a war hammer to crack open an egg. These scouts had decades of battle experience. They could easily compare to the most seasoned generals around. So it was very easy for them to see the message that was being presented here. The monks would not tolerate them taking one step into there world.


    This infuriated the scouts. Who the hell did they think they were. The men they were slaughtering were from the mighty Diako Clan. There was no way they would take this insult lying down. Even though there were only three scouts, they were all at the mid-level of the Solid Core Stage. They were an entire one and a half ranks higher then these monks. The monks battle formations allowed them to fight against opponents one rank higher then them but one and a half was too much for them to handle.


    The three scouts were actually three brothers that had been personally groomed by Diako Natsu. Their names were from eldest to youngest: Diako Ze Tian, Diako Nagakiro, and Diako Teyinmen. They always practiced diligently together and shared resources to ensure that they always advanced together. Between their space, poison, and darkness skills they were a very lethal fighting combination unto themselves. So when they unleashed their powers to the fullest extend possible they literally crushed everything in the surrounding area. The trio was able to form a mini battle formation which allowed them to amplify their already substantial powers. The Diako cultivators that were already on their last breathe were crushed into a meat paste. The brothers had shown no concerns for who they were killing because they considered them all to be weaklings. The monks in their battle formations were barely able to remain standing on their feet. The weaker ones amongst them were forced to their hands and knees.


    "Its time to taste some fresh blood brothers. We haven''t been able to unleash our full powers with such reckless abandon in a very long time. We should take our time and enjoy the treat we have before us today" Diako Ze Tian said while looking like a lion who had just corner a fat gazelle.

 66 Times running ou

    Gorampa was still in Kyoto when the Mudd Buddha appeared before him again.


    "Something has accelerated the time table. The enemy had invaded ahead of schedule and I don''t know what has affected our timeline. You must take the few warriors you have found and head to the Abyss now. If you don''t we will lose the war before we have any chance of fighting back."


    "But I''ve only found half of the guardians" Gorampa explained feeling anxious.


    "I know and one of the guardians is already at the Abyss. And even though I don''t trust her, she is all that we have right now. You must hurry to the Abyss and take her with you into the other world. The monks are fighting right now but they won''t survive the leaders of their invasion force, they are too powerful. You are the only one who can force them back to their world. Remember find Chen Zhen when you get there, he will be able to help you train the rest of the guardians. Tell him that if he wants to keep his family safe he must help you." after saying that the Mudd Buddha vanished once again.


    Gorampa was feeling very anxious but when he turned around to see the eyes of the guardians that were relying on him, he once again firmed up his resolve.


    "You heard what he said. Time is no long a commodity we can afford to waste. I know you guys hate when I do this but he have no other choice." after saying that Gorampa wrapped everyone in his spiritual energy and took off toward the Abyss.


    --------------------------------------------------------------------


    The temple ancestors had been observing the battle from above the clouds. They were very proud of their disciples. They were living up to their sacred vow of protecting Earth. There might they exhibited in their battle formations proved the validity if their hard work.


    Before the Sacred Abyss seals were broken they tirelessly practiced day in and day out for decades without much to show for their hard work. It wasn''t until spiritual energy began to be reintroduced into their world that they could finally see the true might they possessed. It takes a very strong mind to continuously do the same thing over and over again for decades without fully understanding why you were doing it. But that''s exactly how it was for these monks. If it wasn''t for the minuscule amount of social energy that could be derived from the scant few sacred herbs they could still grow, then even cultivating would have been a pointless endeavor. The monks being able to feel their bodies being filled up and becoming saturated with digital energy, and achieving multiple breakthroughs because if the extremely solid foundation they laid due to years of cultivating in a void world. Even the ancestors benefited from the immense amount of spiritual energy constantly flooding into their world. Many of then were able to push their cultivation to the peak of the Solid Core Stage, but because they didn''t recieve the world''s blessing like Gorampa did, their bodies were still past their prime.


    So when the three scouts arrived and they felt how powerful they were, they knew their disciples were in trouble. The ancestors all looked at each other and knew they had to step up to save their disciples lives. As they loved into each other''s eyes they all saw determination and a firm resolve. But they also saw the truth in each other''s eyes. They all knew that even though their cultivation was higher, their old bodies could no longer support their full strength. If they had more time to grow the right herbs they could make sacred pills that sold allow them to heal the damage that time had done to them, but alas time was not on their side. With a firm nod of their heads they descended to confront the scouts.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------------


    Diako Ze Tian pointed to a battle formation in front of him, "You look strong, let''s have a little fun shall we"


    Even though the monks couldn''t understand what he said they knew from his expression that it wasn''t anything good. They put ever last drop of their energy into the Tiger Battle Formation they were in. With a loud roar a blazing tiger twenty meters tall and fifty meters long appeared above them. The power they released could easily decimate any opponent at the 1st level of ther Solid Core Stage, but in front of Diako Ze Tian it was like a rabbit baring its teeth before a lion.


    "How cute the little kitty wants to play. Let''s see how well it like my Spatial Slash!!" Diako Ze Tian pulled his saber from off his back and sliced toward the Tiger Battle Formation. A blade qi that looked like a tear in there fabric of space appeared before the monks battle formation that was the hundred meters away in a blink of an eye. The blazing tiger was like tissue paper before it. ther monks looked on helplessly as it appeared right before them. Suddenly an explosion rang out and tho ther monks surprise even though they had been blasted away they were still fine.


    Then an ancient voice said, " Let the kids rest now. They''ve had a hard time of it. Why don''t you let this old self accompany you for a while"


    To everyone astonishment five old monks who looked like they recently climbed out of their geriatric bed cane hovering down from above the clouds. Diako Ze Tian was at first apprehensive when her felt their powers were at the peak of the Solid Core Stage, but after sensing their extremely low vitality, he couldn''t help but laugh inside.


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    Using his spiritual sense to communicate Diako Ze Tian says with a laugh, " For a second there you gave me a fright old timer. I normally won''t bully the elderly but since you seem determined to go out on your sword, I would be remiss if I didn''t oblige you. Let''s just view as me and my brothers paying respect to our elders."

 67 Enraged Ancestors 1

    The three brothers rushed towards the ancestors who were high up in the air. The ancestors knew their battle would cause a lot of destruction and they didn''t want their disciples to get caught up in the blast range.


    The five ancestors were named Chodak, Jampa, Kalsang, Nordu, and Palden. They each spent their lives in search of the Dao. They were very gifted in their youth. In world devoid of spiritual energy they were still able to reach the heights they achieved. If they were in a different world each one of them would have been able to cultivate to become a hegemon of a region. Feeling the spiritual energy that had begun to spread across Earth they would be lying to themselves if they said they didn''t feel a little bitter inside knowing they did''t have enough time to fully enjoy what their world was becoming.


    Each of their temples herb gardens had begun to flourish almost overnight. They few spiritual herbs they were able to prevent from going extinct were blossoming and spreading rampantly. These herbs were the strongest and most potent herbs around. These herbs were treasure sought after on any world in the universe. Their temple alchemist would finally be able to concoct precious spiritual pills to help further the growth of the monks there.


    They could finally begin to use their spiritual sense to access they ancient archives of knowledge left by their temple founders hundreds of thousands of years ago. These are all the benefits that they had originally given up hope of never receiving, but now that they had an opportunity to grasp them, they didn''t want to let them go. So when they saw the brothers rushing over to battle them knowing that they were coming to take their lives, For the first time ever theses benevolent temple ancestors were livid! They wanted nothing more then to crush these brothers with their bare hands.


    Chodak was the first to make a move, "Solar Flare!" he held his right arm above his head and spiritual energy began to compress and circulate in his palm. Even though it was being compress this ball of energy quickly expanded from a walnut size, to a baseball size, basketball size, to a beach ball size, finally ending with a diameter of over five meters. It looked like a miniature sun suspended in his had. As the heat began to rise little mini flare began to erupt and circulated around it. This feature is were it got its name from.


    Chodak flashed forward so fast it looked like he teleported for a second. He threw the Solar Flare at the incoming brothers. They weren''t expecting the ancient monk to still be able to display such speed so they were caught off guard at first, The brothers quickly combined their energy and raised a shield in front just in time. Even thought they raised the shield in time that didn''t mean they were not affected, they used the force of the blast to created some distance between themselves and Chodak, and to minimize their injuries. The brothers still received minor injuries but ti was nothing to them. Chodak''s opening attack was a very big eye opener for them. They knew these monks were a higher level then them but with their withering life force they assumed they wouldn''t put their all into their attacks and speed up their own demise. The brothers had no idea what their invasion had cost these monks. If they truly knew then they would possible have turned around and headed back instead of staying and fighting.


    Kalsang was next to make a move, he began to spin his hand in front of himself as if he was spinning a wheel. The wind began to pick up and follow the rotations of his hands, At first this wind rotation was about twenty feet wide and ten feet long, but the more energy Kalsang fed it the tighter the rotation became and the longer it stretched. When the rotation was no more then two feet across and it was thirty feet long, Kalsang flew at the brothers. Seeing him coming they quickly dispersed, as the column of rotating air was flying past them Kalsang shouted, "Wind Blade Typhoon!" Kalsang''s spiritual energy flooded the column of air causing it to explode. As it exploded thousands of glowing wind blades attacked the the three brothers at once. Even thought they never let the guard down they were still caught by surprised by this move. Fortunately their physical armor and spiritual shield was able to handle most of the blades so they once again only received minor injuries.


    While this was going on the brothers didn''t notice Nordu was floating cross legged behind the other ancestors continuously forming hand seals. his movements were very slow at first because it didn''t want to attract the brothers attention to what he was doing. As Nordu''s hand seals began to pick up speed dark clouds began to appear in the sky behind the brothers. Nordu used the attacks by Chodak and Kalsang to hide the spiritual energy he had been gathering. Just as the Brothers were getting their bearing again after Kalsang''s attack Nordu stood up and shouted, "Heavenly Judgement!" Four meter thick beams of lightning sudden crashed down on top of the brothers. Their bodies spasmed and smoke could be seen coming off of them. They fell to the ground leaving small craters from the impact.


    the ancestors knew that this was going to be enough to defeat them but it would give them a good gauge of the brothers strength. The brothers lay there twitching sporadically because of the residual lightning still coursing thru their bodies. They slowly stood up together and then floated back up to where the ancestors were.


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    "That was fun. It was quite eye opening for me. But it would be too selfish of me and my brothers if we were the only ones to partake. Now it''s our turn." Diako Ze Tian said with a wicked smile on his face.

 69 Retaliation

    Diako Nagakiri looked at Diako Teyinmen and said, " Brothers it''s time to lay these old fools down for their final slumber. If you would be so kind as to start things off please."


    Diako Teyinmen formed hand seals so fast it seemes as if his hands disappeared from his wrist, when he was finished he shouted, "Darkness Domain!"


    A Sphere of Eternal Darkness spread from Diako Teyinmen''s body and covered and area ten miles wide. No one could see anything, you couldn''t even see your hand if it was right in front of your face. The ancestors quickly stood back to back. Their spiritual sense was completely disabled in this darkness domain. Even sound was limited. Every now a then an eerie sound of a sword slash would creep past their ears. The ancestors were on full alert keeping their energy primed and ready to react in a moment''s notice.


    The ancestor Palden knew that it was his turn to contribute to their efforts. He could feel the Sphere of Eternal Darkness was repressing his qi flow, making it hard for him to circulate his qi thru his meridians.


    "Please protect me while I prepare.", Palden asked.


    He moved so the other ancestors could surround him. He pushed his qi to the limit and slowly a Buddhist chant could be heard from him. Thus chant started off very low but picks up fervor and pace.. When he is finished hr shouts, "Buddha of Unimpeded Light!"


    Palden releases a divine light that surrounds them for ten meters. This doesn''t allow them to see perfectly but it does alleviate some of the mental stress brought about by my enclosed in complete and utter darkness.


    Diako Teyinmen can''t believe what he is seeing. His Sphere of Eternal Darkness not only creates darkness and seal off all light from being able to enter, it also corrodes and disrupts any ability for light to be formed inside of it. The difference in power need to maintain that light in his darkness domain would have tho be insanely high.


    "So what you made yourselves a little light, it didn''t mean a thing. Everything you''re doing is an exercise in futility. You will still die today!", Diako Nagakiri yelled before charging at Jampa.


    Eventhough Palden''s light covered them for ten meters all around, for people of their level that distance can be traversed in a blink of an eye. By the time Jampa could see Diako Nagakiri he was already right in front of him. Diako Nagakiri''s speed and strength was more then twice what it was prevously. He grabbed Jampa by his leg and dragged him back into the darkness. Jampa tried to throw kicks and punches to break free of Diako Nagakiri''s grasp, but Diako Nagakiri performed impossible body movements that the human body should never be able to accomplish. It was as if there wasn''t a bone in his body. The two of them began to grapple when suddenly Diako Nagakiri slithered himself around Jampa''s body. As his coils tightened Jampa felt his bones slowly fracturing. The more Jampa fought back the more constricted he became. Cracks crept up on his bones which quickly turned to splinters of bones chipping off here and there.


    The other ancestors could only hear the blood curdling screams from Jampa reach then from the darkness. They had no idea what was happening to him, but to be able to make a body refienment cultivator at the peak of the Solid Core Stage emit such terrifying screams was completely unimaginable to them. While they were focusing on the sound that seemed to be coming from multiple directions at once, a Spatial Slash came at them from above aimed for Palden. Kalsang was the first react and released to six foot wind blade to intercept the Spatial Slash. As soon as they made contact the Spatial Slash stopped moving, but instead of dispersing the Wind Blade was instead sucked into the Spatial Slash. While Kalsang was trying to comprehend what he just saw an identical Wind Blade to what he just threw appeared out of the darkness behind him leaving a bloody wound on his back. Kalsang was leaning over trying to remain standing, eventhough he closed off his back from bleed, the wound was very deep. He wouldn''t be able to survive another attack like that.


    See Kalsang injured like that and not knowing the status of Jampa, Chodak decided to release a wide area attack to try and push the enemy back. After doing a quck series of hand seals he shouted, "Fire Crow Swarm!" After that thousands and thousands of crows made from fire flew off in every direction into the darkness. After what happened to Kalsang last time everyone raised a shield around them. A second later at least half the swarm flew back at them exploding on their shields.


    "HAHAHAHAHA!!! Since there is no hope for you to escape I''ll increase your despair. My Spatial Slash has an added affect that I can control. By placing multiple Spatial Slashes around you I can use the void realm inside of it to redirect your attack to anywhere I choose. You are now completely surrounded by my Spatial Slashes. If you try to move you will torn to pieces by my Spatial Slashes. If you try to counterattack you will be destroyed by your own attacks, HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! No matter what you do you''ll die!" Diako Ze Tian''s laughter was all that could be heard coming from all around them at once. Anyone with a weak will would have been driven insane from the sound of tht laughter alone.


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    Diako Nagakiri''s body was fully coiled and compressed around Jampa. Every bone in his body from his shoulders had been broken and fractured like it was brittle glass. Diako Nagakiri opened his mouth and two large fangs extended out. He bit down on Jampa neck enjoying the feel of his fangs sinking into Jampa''s fleash. Jampa released another heart-wrenching scream when he felt a searing pain running thru his veins. He was reminded of the times he tempered his body in his early years of cultivation, but this was easily ten times worse than that.


    "OOoooo!! I love it when you scream. HAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!! My Naga spirit not only allows me to poison my victims, but I can also control what type of poison it is. This poison will attack you blood vessels causing a debilitating burning pain throughout your body but it wont kill you. No no no that would be too easy a death for you. You must suffer. Only then can you be purified and be a worth sacrifice for my Naga spirit." Diako Nagakiri said sounding more demented than ever.

 70 Suppression

    Diako Nagakiri sank his fangs into Jampa''s left shoulder. The poison he injected this time made Jampa feel cold as if he had fever chills. The sudden shock to Jampa''s system made it hard for him to keep good composure and not panic. Eventhough he had been screaming in pain this whole time, due to his experience in tempering his body he eased very familiar with the old adage, "What doesn''t kill you makes you stronger." Jampa was not delusional enough to believe her could have a breakthrough assay this time. But he eased only hoping to use this to spare his life so be wouldn''t die too soon.


    While Jampa was struggling against Diako Nagakiri, Nordu, Kalsang, and Chodak were sending out wide range attacks in the hopes that they might catch Diako Ze Tian in one of their attacks. But do far their efforts were completely futile, and in ther end they all ended up with injuries all over their bodies.


    Diako Ze Tian did not have it completely easy himself. Eventhough her had been able to hide in the darkness all this time, some of the ancestors'' attacks had reached him now and then. The Spatial Slashes be had placed around them was already at his limit, and the attacks were so huge that they filled all the spaces in between his Spatial Slashes reaching his hiding places before her could escape from their range. But eventhough their game of cat and mouse was being played out over a long time, his brothers and himself would still be ther ones to come out on top in the end, so Diako Ze Tian wasn''t concerned with his minor injuries.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------


    Gorampa finally managed to reach the Abyss. Because he was bringing so many people along with him it took a lot longer then if he traveled alone. What he saw when he arrived was an enormous sphere of pure darkness. This sphere didn''t just seem dark, it appeared as if it was absorbing all the light from the surroundings as well. Gorampa was surprised by the level of power her could feel coming from that sphere.


    Because Gorampa was a lot stronger then Diako Teyinmen his spiritual sense could still penetrate the darkness sphere, and what he sensed on ther inside made his blood boil. Gorampa took his time to study the situation before taking action. He didn''t want to inadvertently hurt the temple ancestors with his attack. But to be honest he wanted to launch good most powerful attack and annihilate the brothers all in one go. Due to the three brothers being too close to where the temple ancestors were Gorampa decided to go inside the darkness sphere to attack the three brothers directly.


    Gorampa found a safe place for the guardians to wait for him bit everyone was concerned for his safety. Feeling touched by their warm sentiments Gorampa assured them that he would be fine before taking of into the darkness.


    As soon as he entered Diako Teyinmen felt his presence.


    "Brothers someone has intruded into my Eternal Darkness Domain. And from what I can tell their power level is far above our own.", Diako Teyinmen warned.


    Diako Ze Tian thought about it for a while before saying, "Teyin your darkness domain restricts all spiritual sense. Unless this person is in the Divine Stage then it''s impossible for them to determine what is happening or where to go once inside. Why don''t you lead them to a spot and we''ll ambush them together. Eventhough they are stronger than us we brothers have defeated many a foe more powerful than ourselves with our ambush tactics. This should be no different."


    With the brothers feeling confident with their plans, they quickly put them into action. Jampa was confused as to why Diako Nagakiri suddenly released him. Knowing that his life hanging in the balance Jampa started tho meditate to heal what her could of his wounds.


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    Gorampa could see thru his spiritual sense that the brothers were moving into an ambush position. He could even feel a path through the darkness being opened up for him. Gorampa chuckled to himself thinking, ''So ther mantis stalks the cicada.'' The brothers plans played right into Gorampa''s hands. Gorampa lowered his power level to purposely decide their senses. After seeing what they had done to the temple ancestors, he didn''t want to give then a chance to flee. Gorampa wanted to return ther favor with interest.


    Gorampa proceeded along playing the role of someone caught in an environment they couldn''t escape from. He sent out his spiritual sense pretending to not notice ther brothers slow encroaching upon him. Just before the brothers were about to attack Gorampa suddenly disappeared from in front of them. Before anyone could figure out where her went Diako Nagakiri cried out in pain as a fist blasted ther back of his head. A perfect fist imprint left a shallow crater in ther back of his skull. Diako Ze Tian was the first to react, he sent a Spatial Slash at point blank range to Gorampa. Gorampa humphed and caught the Spatial Slash with his bare hand. Gorampa clenched his fist and shattered it with ease. Diako Teyinmen tried to compress and restrict Gorampa with the darkness sphere''s abilities. But in the end it felt like her was trying to squeeze a mountain of steel with his bare hands.


    Gorampa''s body began to glow. A golden light that carried a red and gold flame spread out around him. Quickly it took the shape of a Celestial Phoenix that spread its wings behind Gorampa''s back. As the Phoenix grew larger the darkness began to bubble and dissolve from the divine light of the Phoenix. Diako Teyinmen screamed as blisters began to bubble up grim his flesh. The Phoenix had completely engulfed Gorampa at the point. He could be seen floating inside of its illusory body. Diako Ze Tian sent countless Spatial Slashes that exploded against the Phoenix body not even causing a ripple.


    Diako Teyinmen couldn''t take ther pain off having his flesh seared from his body, he eventually passed out and fell back thru the abyss. No one knew if he dead or alive. The Eternal Darkness Domain ceased functioning after he lost consciousness.


    With the darkness domain gone the temple ancestors could finally set their surrounding again and what wad happening near them. Palden quickly rushed to Jampa and used his holy light to try and heal his wounds. After looking aft his body he was astonished to find he was still alive. Chodak, Nordu, and Kalsang saw how useless Diako Ze Tian''s attacks against Gorampa were and knew they had been saved. When they spotted Diako Nagakiri trying to sneak away back into the abyss they all moved to surround him as if it had been prearranged. Eventhough they were no longer at full power and were full of injuries, they were still more then a battered and bruised Diako Nagakiri could handle. Their continuous bombardment of attacks left bone deep lacerations, burned and charred flesh, and shattered bones all over his body. Finally Chodak launched his limp body back into the abyss.


    In the brief seconds it took for this to happen, they looked back in time to see the Phoenix surrounding Gorampa grab Diako Ze Tian crushing him within its claw.

 71 Messenger

    The giant Phoenix hanging in the sky clutching a battered and bruised Diako Ze Tian appeared like celestial savior to all the people around the Abyss. Everyone had been trapped in the Sphere of Eternal Darkness and couldn''t see what was happening. They felt like their souls were being slowly dragged from their bodies by the corroding effect of the darkness sphere. They had given up hope on being rescued, they had assume that they''re end was near. But then suddenly the sphere of Darkness completely imploded. Their first reaction was to look up only to see a golden shiny giant Phoenix hovering above them.


    Gorampa looked down at Diako Ze Tian contemplating what to do with him. With all of his meridians shattered, Diako Ze Tian''s cultivation was as good as wasted, he was no better then a cripple at this point. To a cultivator that was the worst possible fate. Gorampa was wondering if it would be more merciful to just end his life now, when he heard a very low hissing laughter. It sounded like air being squeezed out of an old tire.


    Eventhough it caused incredible pain, Diako Ze Tian just couldn''t stop himself from laughing.


    "I bet you think you have win don''t you. You think that you''ve saved your pathetic little world don''t you. You are a frog in a well.", Diako Ze Tian said reveling in his thoughts of the disaster he knew was coming.


    "What insane rubbish are you spewing out now? I was just considering whether I should mercifully end your life to save you the torment and humiliation from living in your world as a cripple. But seeing as you''re also insane I''ll just end you now." Gorampa said as he crushed him tighter in the Phoenix claw.


    "That is fine and well. I don''t need to be alive to see what happens I already know. Eventhough our clan profits from the slave trade, we''r are but a small cog in a vast reaching machine. Once word of our loss to you profligates around my world, and trust me it will. People and clans much more powerful than my own will attack this world. And your meager strength will not be enough to protect this decrepit world."


    Gorampa stood there frozen. He remembered the tales of how Earth was repeatedly attack in the past. The stories told of powers that could annihilate entire continents in the wave of a hand. He then thought about what Diako Ze Tian said and realized that it eased the truth. It would take some time maybe 6-8 months or maybe even a year or more. But whatever it ended up being the fact was still the same. They were running out of time.


    Gorampa flashed over to the guardians and enveloped them in his spiritual senses. He then flew over to where the temple ancestors were to check on their injuries.


    "Kalsang, Nordu, Chodak, and Palden. How are you? How severe are Jampa''s injuries?", Gorampa asked


    "It will take us a long time to recover, if we ever truly will. Our old bodies are not like yours. We burned a lot of our vital force had been expended in that battle. If we were younger any one of us could have wiped ther floor with them by just moving our pinky finger. But now we don''t know how much time we have left.", Chodak said hanging his head in remorse.


    Right as Gorampa was going to open highs mouth to try and console them, a purple mist slowly rose up from the ground surrounding the ancient monks. Tears of joy fell from their eyes as they could feel their injuries being healed. Not only could they feel their injuries being healed but they felt their vital force being replenished as well. Ther Mudd Buddha''s voice rang out in their minds, "You guys did very well. You were selfless in upholding your duties as Protectors of the Realm. The World acknowledges your sacrifice and reward your good deeds."


    Gorampa was happy to see them receive a blessing grim the world. Eventhough they didn''t see eye to eye all the time. They all made a sacred vow to protect earth, and now with ther world blessing they could continue to fulfill their duties. And after listening to Diako Ze Tian, he knew that they needed every powerful person they could get. Gorampa knew that they would receiving their blessing for a while so he left without saying goodbye.


    Gorampa still clutching Diako Ze Tian in ther Phoenix claw and carrying the guardians flew down into ther abyss. When they arrived on the other side to see the enormous army waiting, at first the guardians were terrified.


    The Diako warriors were in a panic. At first two of their leaders came plummeting from the abyss on ther brink of death. Then suddenly a being no less powerful than their Clan leader had appeared holding Diako Ze Tian like a rag doll. He seemed on his last breathe as well. How could this be possible?? They were supposed to be attacking a world devoid of spiritual energy. So how the hell did it produce a Divine Stage cultivator? Was all their Intel as lie? Many who were standing near Zhang You were glaring at him. This disaster was all his fault. See that everyone was against him now Zhang You ran away. The wad no easy her wad going to stand around and allow himself to beer captured and brought back before his uncle. He didn''t care if he would be considered a coward from now on. At least he was still alive tho be called a coward.


    "Our world is not some defenseless realm you can come and plunder as you please. We were derelict for a while but things have changed now. We are getting stronger every single day. So you can either heed my advice or just take my words as a fart. Anyone who attacks my planet will be destroyed. There will be no one from their entire family left alive. There will be many of you that will challenge what I say. That is fine. I will use my words today to give my one and only warning. Anyone today comes with be attacked on sight. I leave you puny little ants alive simply because I''m to lazy to repeat myself. So as you journey home please remember to spread my warning far and wide. And I have one last message for your Clan Leader... tell him I''ll be seeing him very soon"


    With that Gorampa open the Phoenix claw and just let Diako Ze Tian''s body just drop to the ground. He then released his full power while glaring at the Diako warriors one last time before taking the guardians and leaving.


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 72 Arriving at the Shenggu Clan

    After Gorampa left with the guardians, the Diako warriors were left in s momentary daze. The power he emitted sent chills down their spines. They thought that a massacre was about to begin. As their heads followed his flight towards the horizon they all breathed a collective sigh of relief.


    None of them were happy with the thought of their long journey home while have to carry and care for their leaders. The lower level clansmen were clinging their blessing that they didn''t have to stand before the Clan Leader and explain how this happened. They were still furious when they thought of the fact that Zhang You was able to escape. All of their losses were placed at his feet. The higher ups didn''t even have to issue the order, they knew that as far as the Diako Clan was concerned Zhang You was now public enemy number one.


    When Zhang You saw the long line of warriors finally disappear in the distance, he finally released his concealment technique. The Diako warriors had assumed that he had fled a long time ago, but he merely hid himself in the woods near by. Zhang You knew there was no longer any place he could stay in this world. It didn''t matter that his uncle was his mother''s brother, no blood relation would be able to spare his life. How was he tho know there were cultivators in that world? His Intel was all that he knew. He didn''t embellish anything he told his uncle. His uncle became obsessed as soon as he heard of this new world. His arrogance made him assume that it was a world full of weaklings he could do with as he pleased. If anything it wad his uncle''s fault, and now her had no home to go to. The more he thought it the more he cursed his wretched uncle. He thought for a moment to go his mother''s and hide out there, but he just a quickly threw away this idea. He knew there was no way his mother would be able to protect him. Hell she might even sell him out to her brother if the offer was enticing enough.


    As Zhang You was pondering what his options were and what her should do he happened to glance up at the portal. His eyes began to light up as ther craziest idea began to surface in his head.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------


    The armies around the abyss were busy getting a sit-rep and treating their wounded. Agent Matthews was on a satellite phone with her father the general.


    "So explain to me again what happened. You had a very vivid dream that you were being chosen by some homeless man? ", the General asked with some confusion.


    "Father it wasn''t a dream it was more of a vision. What happened afterward was real father. The techniques that have been implanted in my mind are more powerful than any form of martial art that had ever been taught before. I have an energy that is circulating in my body that is making me more powerful every second today goes by. I really don''t know how to describe it more clearly to you. But I do know that I''m not the only person who was given abilities like this. We were all chosen to receive this gift.", Agent Mathews said with excitement in her voice.


    She thought that her father would be proud of her knowing that of the over 7 billion people in ther world, his daughter was one of the chosen. But her father''s next world dumped ice cold water all over her warm feelings.


    "How do you know you haven''t been brainwashed by this homeless, dirty monk? What gives them the right to choose who gets these abilities? For all we''r know they are giving our enemies the power to destroy us! You will return immediately so our scientist can check you out to make sure you''re ok."


    With that the General hung up. Her didn''t wait to hear her reply because he knew she would obey him. Agent Mathews had never disobeyed a direct order from her father in her entire life. Agent Mathews shoulders hung low as age rummaged thru their destroyed base looking for her things. While she was doing that she kept looking over her shoulder toward the Abyss. She felt something was urging her to go down there. What ever was urging to go felt like it was tugging at her soul. Before she knew it she wad already standing at the edge of the Abyss with her toes hanging over the edge. She suddenly jumped back startled not only by her proximity to the Abyss, but also by ther fact that she didn''t even remember going over there. Just as she was about to turn back she suddenly saw a flash of strange movement on the other side of ther Abyss.


    ------------------------------------------------------------------


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    Chen Zhen stood at the foot of an enormous mountain range. The peaks of some of the highest mountains were shrouded in clouds. There were many road and winding pathways that meandered their way the many valleys and along towards the mountain tops. The area was very active with people walking or riding spirit beast. Some more wealthy people could be seen riding along on very extravagant carriages. To Chen Zhen instead of looking clustered and a chaotic mess, all the activity blended naturally with the mountain landscape rendering everything a beautiful old world feel.


    "I''m glad you can appreciate the beauty of my home as well. I never realized how much I''ve missed it until I returned to see it once again.", Shenggu Feng said with an emotional voice.


    Chen Zhen could understand how he felt. Being so close to going home just to have to turn around and leave again. Deep down he wad truly heartbroken. What made it worse for him was that Mei Ling could tell how he felt and shed repeated trying to entice him when he felt his lowest. If anything Chen Zhen was very happy that they had finally arrived at the Shenggu Clan. He could now turn her over tho be the clan''s responsibility and her no longer had to worry about her hovering around him all day.


    Shenggu Feng guided Chen Zhen up to one of the mountain peaks that was decorated with a golden palace. Chen Zhen didn''t think anything of it and just stayed to walk thru the enormous golden gates. As soon as one of his feet passed the threshold a hand roughly grabbed his collar from behind. Acting on instinct Chen Zhen pivoted back a little on his right foot, while his left arm swung under the hand that grabbed him. He then very easily grabbed the person''s bicep with his left hand and tried to toss them over his head. Instead of being able to toss this mysterious assailant away the person used the force of Chen Zhen''s toss to flip over his head. They then threw a punch at his face. Chen Zhen easily knocked it away with his left hand while stepping forward to throw a right hook away their body.


    His assailant very agilely spun away from his hook and used the momentum from their skin to throw a sweeping kick at Chen Zhen''s right knee. Eventhough Chen Zhen was surprised his hook didn''t connect her child still keep up with the flow of his opponent. Her braced his leg and when ther sweep failed to trip him, her pushed back with his leg. Right as his fist was about to surrender his assailant in the face a shout to stop came from inside inside the gates as well as inside of Chen Zhen''s head.

 73 When the hell did I get adopted?

    Janet sat behind her desk at WorldComm looking at her private satellite feed from the Sacred Abyss. For a while she was terrified by what she saw. She knew that Nathan was blessed to receive amazing gifts and he was destined to be a powerful man in the future. theBut what she say today made her terrified of what her would have to face in the future. The enemies that could display such incredible abilities would be his constant opponents in the new world he was travelling to. What if there were stronger people than that there, would he even stand a chance against them? As Janet''s heart was filled with worry she reached for her remote to turn the screen off when she noticed a strange flash of light near the edge of the Sacred Abyss. It was only for a brief moment, it seemed as if the image distorted when she longed again it was back to normal. Janet was smart enough to know that she should record everything just in case this information could be used as a bargaining chip layer. So she quickly rewound the recording and sure enough that distortion was still there. When she froze the screen and zoomed in she saw a very indistinct shadow of a man appear in the distortion. His image was so vague, that if she really leaned towards that tendency, she would have believed she had video evidence of a ghost. Feeling today something wasn''t right, but not have a clue who to contact about it, Janet got up to leave after transferring a copy of that video to her home computer.


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    -------------------------------------------------------------------


    Chen Zhen stopped his attack not because of the shout he heard coming from beyond the gates, it was because Shenggu Feng yelled for him to stop as will. His fist hover before a beautiful face. Now that he had taken the time to pay attention to who had attacked him he saw a female who looked to be around 30 years old with a delicate oval shaped face. Her lips were blimp and naturally red to the point she didn''t need lipstick to accentuate them. Her eyes were an emerald green color and she had a honey complexion that seemed to make her glow.


    A very powerful aura followed that shout out from the golden palace. Chen Zhen was not alarmed by this aura because he recognized it belonged to Shenggu Julong. The female had also stopped her attacks and retreated to the side. She knew the voice was from ther clan''s ancestor who had returned recently. She was confused as to what could have drawn him out aft this point in time.


    When Shenggu Julong arrived before them he took as moment to access Chen Zhen before saying anything. His progress was really to amazing. In a few short months he had already progressed to the Liquid Core Stage. Chen Zhen is by no means a powerhouse in this world, he was far from it. But to be able to advance to the Liquid Core Stage in such a short time, if he keeps up this pace he would reach Shenggu Julong''s level in a little over a years time.


    Shenggu Julong glanced at the female standing a little ways from Chen Zhen. Her name is Shenggu Tian Wu. She is from the dance generation as Shenggu Feng. Because Shenggu Feng was such an outstanding genius in the clan anyone of any concern was so completely overshadowed that they became pretty much nonexistent. If Shenggu Tian Wu was born in any other clan at that time she would have been considered a rising star.


    Shenggu Tian Wu kept throwing side glances at Chen Zhen. She didn''t know why but something about him seemed familiar to her. She also didn''t know why the ancestor had arrived and intervened in their fight. She didn''t want to appear inattentive in front of ther ancestor so she kept her head forward, but she wished so badly to study this person to find out why her made her feel this way.


    "Chen Zhen you sure took your sweet time getting here. If I didn''t know any better I would have thought you got lost. Follow me and explain to need what happened to detain you for so long.", Shenggu Julong said as he turned around to leave.


    "Senior Julong what about Mei Ling and best children? Are they still allowed to come and work for your clan. I also have some friends I''ve brought along with me. They are also survivors from ther crash." Chen Zhen said tentatively pointing to ther small group of people behind him.


    Shenggu Julong in his excitement over Chen Zhen''s improvement completely disregarded the small crowd that had gathered do to the initial excitement over Chen Zhen''s fight with Shenggu Tian Wu. Sheepishly scratching ther back of his head Shenggu Julong realized he''d completely ignored everyone else. He originally ran over because her was worried for Chen Zhen''s safety which in turn included the safety of Shenggu Feng. But he soon after became distracted and forgot about ther other important matters her had to deal with.


    Clearing his throat Shenggu Julong looked around and said, "Oh yes before I forget there are as couple of things I need to announce. First the two people over here are honored guest of our clan." When Shenggu Julong said this her point toward Alex and Kim. There was a low murmur from the crowd when they heard this unexpected news. After finding out from Chen Zhen what he said they were astonished by ther good treatment they were receiving. This was a far cry from being forcefully taken as slaves.


    "My second announcement is that this woman better is name Mei Ling. She still now be an attendant in my house. Her children will also be accepted as disciples of our clan." This caused another round of murmurs wondering who she was to receive such preferential treatment. In all honestly being an attendant was just a glorified way to say she wad a maid. But everyone knew that the higher the rank of a household, the more resources and benefits that household would receive. And everyone who was apart of that household would receive something from those benefits. Anyone in the crowd wild have gladly given up an arm or a leg to become a member of the ancestors household. Their were plenty of jealous stares being pointed Mei Ling''s way.


    " And finally the piece of news I''m proudest this young man named Chen Zhen is my adopted son. Anyone who finds trouble with him will be directly insulting me personally. There will be a more formal announcement in a couple of days."


    Chen Zhen was so stunned by this news he had to ask Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian, "When did I get adopted?" All he heard in response was laughter.


    Shenggu Julong looked at Shenggu Tian Wu an asked her to see to the guest then had Mei Ling and Chen Zhen follow him. While there was a great mix of emotions from confusion, to excitement, to jealously, and even some with out right derision. Chen Zhen was feeling helpless. Not only did her not succeed in getting rid of Mei Ling, no one would still answer his question, "When the hell did I get adopted?!!"

 74 Whats so funny?

    Chen Zhen was so confused, he couldn''t figure out why Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian were laughing at him. And every time he asked them to explain they would just laugh even harder. Even Shenggu Tian Wu was looking at him like he was a monster.


    Shenggu Tian Wu followed behind with her head down. She was trying to figure out a way to speak with Chen Zhen alone. She had to understand what was making her feel as if Shenggu Feng was standing next to her. But that was impossible, the clan patriarch sadly announced months ago that Shenggu Feng''s Soul Token shattered. Eventhough they had been investigating it they have yet to find ant evidence to his whereabouts or any clues to who may have taken Shenggu Feng''s life.


    "Shenggu Tian Wu please take Mei Ling to the attendants courtyard and make sure she''s and her kids are settled properly. I know you have questions but I can''t answer them at this time. I will allot you some resources and in a couple days come find me for some personal training.", Shenggu Julong said to her seeming like an elderly grandfather at the moment.


    Shenggu Tian Wu nodded knowing that no matter how much she tried she wouldn''t get anywhere with Shenggu Julong today. Mei Ling had a longing look on her face as she watched Chen Zhen being lead away by Shenggu Julong.


    Chen Zhen''s mood was very foul at this point. It wasn''t a comfortable feeling being ther butt of everyone''s jokes. Shenggu Julong didn''t understand why he eased acting ther way he was. Chen Zhen was in such a bad mood that he didn''t even realize when Shenggu Julong stopped. When he finally realized he turned and glared at Shenggu Julong with three most evil stare he could muster.


    "What has gotten into you? Why are you so angry right now?", Shenggu Julong asked completely confused by Chen Zhen''s behavior.


    "How can I not be upset!", Chen Zhen yelled, "First of all you drop this bomb in my lap that you''ve suddenly adopted me! And when I asked these two knuckleheads about it they''ve been doing nothing but laughing hysterically every since you announced it! Soooooooo please explain to my why I shouldn''t be upset right now?"


    Looking at Chen Zhen''s outraged appearance, Shenggu Julong sheepishly scratched ther back of his head. He never thought that making Chen Zhen good adoptive son was a bad thing. Now that be thought about it he knew nothing of the customs of Chen Zhen''s world. Her hoped he didn''t just completely offend Chen Zhen''s entire line of ancestors with his gesture.


    "I''m sorry I wasn''t thinking...."


    "That''s right you weren''t thinking. Now please explain to me why these imbeciles are still laughing. I refuse to still be the butt of their joke."


    Shenggu Julong was confused as well. He stopped to try and figure out what could be so funny when it suddenly hit him. Looking back at Chen Zhen it took all of his will power to not bust out laughing himself. Chen Zhen seeing his failed attempts at keeping a straight face became even more enraged.


    "Not you too!! Out with it. What''s so freaking funny!", Chen Zhen screamed.


    "It''s nothing big really...pfft... It''s just that as my adoptive son you would technically be an elder to everyone in the clan. Pfft.... that means that no matter how young or old a person was they would have to refer to you as senior....pfft...", Shenggu was having a really hard time keeping his face straight while he spoke.


    Chen Zhen looked at him as if he was insane. What the heck was so funny about that. They have a terrible sense of humor in this world. No matter how Chen Zhen thought about it he could not find anything funny about that statement.


    Cocking hood eyebrow and looking at Shenggu Julong like he was crazy, "And what is supposed to be funny about that?"


    Shenggu Julong calmed himself and tried to think of a way to explain it to him.


    "In our world there is a huge importance placed on seniority. To even think about calling a person younger then them senior would give some older people convulsions. And now the elders of our clan, who have lived for hundred of years in some occasions, will have to call you senior. Just imagining the look on their faces when the time comes, well for us that''s just priceless."


    Seeing that Chen Zhen just didn''t get it, it killed the mood for Shenggu Julong. As he sobered up his mind returned to more important matters.


    "Right well there are a lot of benefits to basing my adoptive son. First and foremost it provides you with protection. No one will be foolish enough to attack you knowing that it would be their immediate death. Second within the clan your status would be equivalent to a prince. But I admonish you right now, there is a great responsibility that comes with this title. If you abuse this in anyway I will personally hold you accountable for your actions. Third it still allows me to personally train you and allocate resources to you. And finally this will allow you to keep the soul fusion a secret for as long as possible.", Shenggu Julong said as her lead Chen Zhen to his private courtyard.


    When they arrived there, there was a little old man making tea by a table in ther livingroom area of the courtyard. Chen Zhen was very surprised to see him there. Shenggu Julong was astonished because he felt nothing from this old man. If her didn''t see him with his own eyes her wouldn''t believe that he was really there. Before Shenggu Julong recovered from his shock Chen Zhen approached and started talking like old friend.


    "Jackie what are you doing here? How have you been?", Chen Zhen said smiling as he sat down next to the table.


    "I''ve been fine, thanks. I''m here to ask a favor of your adoptive father over there. But it seems like I may have shocked him too much. He seems to have short circuited.", Jackie said lifting his chin in Shenggu Julong''s direction while he laughed.


    Shenggu Julong looked back and forth between the two of them not understanding what was going on.


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    "Doesn''t he look like he''s watching a game of tennis?", Jackie asked Chen Zhen as he started laughing.


    Chen Zhen looked over and laughed so hard he spit out the tea Jackie had just handed him. Shenggu Julong now knew how Chen Zhen felt justy a little while ago. He couldn''t help but look at them and ask, "What''s so funny?"


    -------------------------------------------------------------


    Li Moxian turned the TV off after checking the news. She only saw one minor news report about military action in a remote mountain region in Asia, but nothing else. After talking to Janet she knew that there was activity from the abyss where Chen Zhen disappeared. The more she thought about it the more she was worried about him. She knew that he couldn''t return yet but at the same time she wanted him to come home so bad. She feared the kids were growing more and more accustomed to their father not being there. The more she thought about it ther more she wondered if he couldn''t come home maybe she should go to him. As many fingers as she''s had this idea she always talks herself out of it. But lately it''s getting harder and harder to convince herself it was a bad idea. Finally not being able to convince herself otherwise, Li Moxian called Janet, "I need a favor from you"

 75 World Child

    Jackie and Chen Zhen shared a laugh for s like bit before Jackie hit serious again.


    "The reason I came this time is to give you a little heads up and to ask for your assistance. ", Jackie said looking Chen Zhen in the eyes.


    Chen Zhen nodded his head for Jackie to continue. Before Jackie did he motioned with his hand for Shenggu Julong to join then at the table. After Shenggu Julong sat down Jackie handed him a cup of tea as well.


    "Do you know who I am? ", Jackie asked Shenggu Julong.


    Shenggu Julong had a pondering expression on his face when he replied, "I''m sure I''ve never met senior before, but for some reason I seem to have a very vague impression from you."


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    "i am a representation of ther world''s will. Now please don''t mistake this a me being ther world. i most certainly am not, but our world had been around long enough to form a certain type of consciousness. My job is to listen to that consciousness and make sure it''s will is followed by ther inhabitants of this world. Now Shenggu Julong I know that you found some old ruins where you learned ther Soul Connecting technique. Did you learn the history of that technique?" Jackie asked with a patient smile on his face.


    "If your esteemed-self is referring to the text that were on the walls of the old temple where I found the Soul Connecting technique, I must unfortunately inform you that a large part of them had been destroyed. I could only decipher that the technique was connected to a great calamity that befell our world in ther past. And powerful warriors that were soul connected were our only chance at saving our world. But what exactly that disaster was, I don''t know. it seemed as if someone had deliberately destroyed that part of the text." Shenggu Julong tried to answer as thoroughly and as honestly as possible.


    "That is what I expected", Jackie said then closed his eyes to collect his thoughts before continuing, "What I am about to tell you will explain some of the past but most importantly will warn you of ther coming danger in the future.


    Our world was breached eons ago by a race of demons. Their goal was to wipe out all of the inhabitants of our world and to take all the resources our planet had to offer before moving on. They look for planets that are young have civilizations that have yet to fully develop.


    That is the state they found our world in at that time. Our world consciousness was nearly formed and I had just recently been created when they opened their portal to our world. Mankind was still trying to learn to cultivate from the Spiritual Beast of the world. We really didn''t have any force that was powerful enough to repel them, and they were killing everyone they found.


    I followed the will of the world and approached the Spiritual Beast leaders and mankind''s leaders about an alliance. I won''t bore you with the details but after a vary long time I finally got them to agree."


    "Senior i don''t mean to interrupt you but i must ask a question. I have to believe that ad the envoy of our world you must have been bestowed power and abilities far beyond what normal people or beast could possess. So how come you didn''t just force them to listen to you and save what was obviously precious time?", Shenggu Julong asked unable to hold back his curiosity.


    "Well there are two reasons why. The first is eventhough I am blessed with some abilities by the world I can''t use them against the people of this world unless I find myself with a need to protect myself. And secondly for the people of that time to recieve the gift from the world which was the Soul Connecting technique, they had to agree of their own free will. The process will not work if anyone of the participants is even the slightest unwilling. If there was not only would the technique fail, but all three souls would perish at the same time." Jackie calmly explained.


    For Chen Zhen, Shenggu Feng, and Lou Tian this was a mini bombshell. They were truly thankful they didn''t hold back at the last second out no matter how much they wanted to survive at that time, their lives would''ve been ended without them even knowing why. Just thinking about it brought a cold sweat to Chen Zhen''s forehead.


    "Well with the success of the Soul Connecting technique. The demon invasion was repelled. The inhabitants of our planet went back to their own lives, and mankind in general grew stronger over the ages. Eventually everyone forgot about the Soul Connecting technique and the danger it saved the world from.


    A couple hundred thousand years ago our world broke off a part of its consciousness and birthed another world. It sent this consciousness into another dimension, but it left a single portal that it could use to nurture and feed this new world it created."


    "Like a child?", Chen Zhen asked.


    "That''s exactly right! Like a child. Due to being nurtured by our world this new world developed a consciousness of its own quite quickly. But it was still too young to create its own spiritual energy. So our planet left the portal open shop it could share its abundant spiritual energy with its child.


    Not long afterward mankind found the portal. This was not a problem at first. Our world was originally happy that its inhabitants wanted to visit its child. It hoped that they might create a bond with the inhabitants on the new world. But things took a dark turn. Mankind from our world turned out to be very vicious. They began to enslave the inhabitants of the new world and rob it of its resources. Our world''s inhabitants became no better then the demons we fought off before. This fact upset our world deeply.


    The new world''s envoy taught its inhabitants how to fight back. But they were just too young. They didn''t have enough time to grow as powerful as our inhabitants.


    So both worlds agreed that they would cut off contact between the worlds. They hoped that out would give the new world enough time to be able to produce its own spiritual energy and allow its inhabitants to become strong enough to contend against our people. So they asked for people to volunteer to sacrifice to seal the new world away. And it worked, but it worked too well. The new world was sealed off from all useful energy. It wasn''t able to replenish any of the spiritual energy that was used.


    Our world waited till the seal began to loosen before allowing you Shenggu Julong to be able to break it."


    At this point Jackie was looking at Shenggu Julong. Shenggu Julong finally understood now. He had been around this world many many times. The area to the southeast where he found the portal was one area he would frequently cultivate in. So when he suddenly felt the energy from the portal he was truly amazed. He just thought it wad his dumb luck and he found an ancient relic that had been sealed away for eons. He never in his wildest dreams sold have thought that it lead to a strange new world. One that was completely devoid of spiritual energy.


    "You entering that seal allowed spiritual energy to begin slowly leaking into that world. And it needed to start off slowly to. Imagine a man lost in a desert completely dehydrated. As much as her wants water very badly he can''t drink it too quickly for it would do more harm then good to his body.


    The samecan be said for that world. It needed to slowly receive spiritual energy, just enough to help it revitalize a tiny bit before it could accept more. The envoy of that world used the power it recieved from the spiritual energy to weaken the seal some more, finally allowing it to be opened from their side. It could only be fully opened from their side because that was where the orginal seal was created.


    But here is where the problem begins. Our world had maintained a seal on the portal opened by the demons. And there had more or less been a constant push against that portal by ther demons trying to reenter our world. That is until recently. We believe that they were able to sense the new world now that the seal is gone. We''r have no way or tracking them to determine if it true or not but we believe they''re heading toward Chen Zhen''s world as we speak. There is no way to tell how looking it will take them. Or world is trying to flood the new world with ad much special energy as it can. Hoping it will help but to be honest we can only rely on you guys for help."


    Jackie paused here to allow his words to sink in. He knew he just gave them a lot of information to process. Chen Zhen and Shenggu Julong shared a glance. They both longed very determined. Chen Zhen would do anything necessary tho save his world. His family was there and her wouldn''t let anything happen to them as long as it was in his power to stop it. Shenggu Julong had long since treated Chen Zhen as family as soon as he agreed to join with Shenggu Feng. He would support, and if needed be, fight right along side of Chen Zhen when the time came.

 76 Secret Revealed

    "There is one more matter I need to talk to you about. Your world has assigned a group of Guardians to defend it from the coming disaster. This world and your world would like your help in training them to become as powerful as they can within the shortest amount of time possible.


    You are the only one who possesses the ability to accomplish this task.", Jackie said with a knowing look on his face.


    "I appreciate the flattery Senior Jackie, but I''m still learning myself. How could I possible teach others when I have so much I don''t even know?" Chen Zhen asked feeling overwhelmed by what wad being asked of him.


    "It will be fine as long as your other self has all the information he needs.", Jackie said with a smirk. He was determined to not let Chen Zhen off easy.


    While Chen Zhen stared dumbfounded at Jackie, Shenggu Julong asked, "Excuse me Senior Jackie, but what exactly are you talking about. I believe I''m as confused as Chen Zhen is at the moment."


    Jackie didn''t answer right away, he just stood there staring at Chen Zhen. Chen Zhen feeling very uncomfortable being stared at like that started to look away and scratch the back of his head sheepishly. When Shenggu Julong saw this he knew that Chen Zhen really did understand what Jackie meant.


    "Ok you little brat spill it. What is he talking about?", Shenggu Julong glared at Chen Zhen, upset that he had been hiding something from him. He wasn''t too upset though as he knew every cultivator had their own secrets. It''s just that he thought that they were close enough that Chen Zhen wouldn''t keep anything from him.


    "Well it''s like this. Remember when you were performing the Soul Connecting technique, you needed to open my spiritual sea?", Chen Zhen asked Shenggu Julong.


    "Yeah I remember that, what''s that got to do with this? "


    "Well.... when it was opened I created a copy of myself to explore that new realm. When I recovered from the Soul Connecting technique my spiritual sea was still open and my copy was still there. Not only that but it could communicate with me. It never requires rest and is always absorbing information around it. It was the reason I was able to create my techniques. He does all the hard work of figuring out qi flows, which meridians to use, and how best to execute the new martial art. Then he just transfers the finished product into my mind and I practice it to become proficient in it."


    Chen Zhen had his head down the entire time he was explaining because given the situation, he felt guilty he had not told Shenggu Julong these things sooner. He didn''t raise his head till he noticed it was extremely quiet around him. Jackie and Shenggu Julong were looking at him with their jaws hanging open. Chen Zhen''s simple reply was nothing short of a miracle. Chen Zhen didn''t think anything of it because he didn''t understand the fundamental behind the spiritual sea. Eventhough Jackie knew of his alter ego, her just assumed it was an innate ability that Chen Zhen naturally possessed. He never in his wildest dreams believed it was an ability that Chen Zhen created.


    The Spiritual Sea usually isn''t opened until someone reaches the Divine Stage because a person must step by step improve their body and mind and enhance it to the point where they can withstand the backlash of information that their spiritual sense would impart to them.


    Everytime a cultivator improves their bodies They enhance themselves on their most fundamental level. Their flesh, bones, nerves, bone marrow, even ther blood cells that circulate thru their bodies are slowly enhanced as they cultivate. This improvement allows their brains to grow stronger as well. They slowly begin to use more parts of the brain then before. This allows them to gain abilities like Spiritual Sense, perfect memory recall, this also allows them to understand the deeper meanings of the universe so they can fully seek out their Dao.


    For Chen Zhen who was nothing more then a mere mortal on the verge of death to be able to withstand the soul crushing pain of having his spiritual sea forcefully opened, means that parts of his brain that had never been active before were forcefully activated. Not only did this not cause him to instantly pass out, but he even took the time to explore what was happening. And not only did be take the time to explore but he even created a soul avatar. This is a vast high level skill that some Immortal cultivators can''t even accomplish. But Chen Zhen as a mere mortal was able to. Shenggu Julong who is at the peak of the Immortal Stage could not do this himself.


    The monstrous mental prowess that Chen Zhen possessed was never seen before. And it would continue to grow stronger as her improved his cultivation. Jackie and Shenggu Julong were speechless.


    "Well now that I know your little secret, I realize I''ve been far too lenient with your training. It seems I will have to take my time truly think of a regiment worthy of such a monstrous genius as you.", Shenggu Julong said with a very evil grin on his face.


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    "The guardians I mentioned to you earlier will be arriving here in a couple days. That monk you know will be leading them here. Even though he has already reached the Divine Stage thanks to the World''s Blessing, he still needs training as well.


    Do you accept the request that our two worlds ask of you? If you are will, trust me you won''t be disappointed."


    ''Just go ahead and accept. If im not mistaken it will make me stronger. If we are going to be able to protect our family we will have to get stronger as fast as possible. I really think this will give us just the boost were need.", Chen Zhen''s Soul Avatar said.


    ''I agree. It''s good to finally know who that random person I heard before was. It''s nice to finally meet you formally. Hahaha!'', Shenggu Feng said.


    ''I agree as well. Between the two of us we should be more then qualified to help train these guardians. And I also agree that it is good to finally meet the man behind the voice.'', Lou Tian said with a laugh.


    "We all seem to be in agreement.", Chen Zhen told Jackie.


    "That''s great! I knew you wouldn''t disappoint me. Now come over here and sit right next to me.", when Chen Zhen complied, "What I need you tho do is drink this tea here. It is the concentrated blessing of two worlds. This blessing will not be what you want most, but what you need most. I must warn you that this still not be a pleasant experience. Where the is no pain there can be no gains. When you ate through you will have been reborn in a way. You will understand when you''re done."


    Jackie then gave Chen Zhen a tea cup that looked to be full of a purple liquid with a little purple mist bubbling over the edges. Chen Zhen was apprehensive. After giving it s little thought and firming up his resolve, Chen Zhen tilted his head back and finished the tea all in one go.


    As soon as he finished, Jackie covered Chen Zhen with a force field to prevent him from being able to move. Before Chen Zhen could ask him why, Chen Zhen roared in excruciating pain. There seemed to be two voices screaming at the same time. As time slowly ticked by eventually there were four voices that could be heard roaring from Chen Zhen''s body. Chen Zhen was in this state fire the rest of the day, all thru the night, and well into the next day.


    Just as suddenly as he started screaming he stopped. Everyone who could hear had gotten so used to the sound today now that it was gone, the silence seemed eerie. When Chen Zhen opened his eyes they were completely white.


    "I can see it ALL.... EVERYTHING!!"

 77 Call from the Abyss

    Li Moxian packed a small bag of clothes and other things. The kids were waiting outside her bedroom door already in their coats, carrying their own bags. She picked up her bags and smiled at hart kids as that gift ready to leave. It was very early in the morning. Li Moxian didn''t want her parents to see her abs the kids leave. Her father and berated her that she eased making a very bad decision, and was unnecessarily putting the kids lives in danger. She couldn''t explain it to them and to be honest she couldn''t even explain it properly to herself. She only knew that something was drawing her and the kids to the Abyss.


    As they quietly snuck down the stairs to get ready to leave, Li Moxian paused when she walked passed the kitchen. There was a large travel cooler and a note sitting on the counter. When Li Moxian read the note she loved back up the stairs and tears welled up in her eyes. The note was from her mother telling her that eventhough she didn''t agree with her decision she still supported her. The cooler was full of waters and sandwiches she made for their trip. It also mentioned how her father was just worried about their safety and how he wasn''t truly angry with her.


    Li Moxian wiped the tears from here eyes and left holding her kids'' hands. They took taxi to the airport. There they headed to hanger and met up with Janet on her private jet. She waited till everyone was fastened into their seats and the plane was taxiing down the runway before she spoke to Li Moxian.


    "The closet I could get you was Bangladesh. From there you will have to hike around the Himalayan mountain range. It wont be a short trip. I would suggest trying to find a guide to lead on the safest route thru the mountains. But I still feel it will take you a least a month to even make it close to the Abyss. Even then you will have to sneak past the armed forces that are still stationed around the Abyss. Here is an envelope with the message for Nathan, and some funds to help you on your journey. Remember I am only doing this because you are the only one who can get a message to Nathan for me. It is imperative that he receive it as soon as possible.", Janet said all of that in one breath, feeling she would lose her nerve if she paused for even a second.


    Li Moxian took the envelope and thanked Janet again for all her help. She looked at her kids and saw the smiles on their faces. They were extremely excited to be heading to see their father. They wanted him to see their progress so far. They only hoped it was enough to make their father proud of them.


    The flight took a five hours but for Chen Zhen''s family it seemed to take an eternity. When they landed at Bangladesh they barely took enough time to properly thank Janet and say their goodbyes before they were marching away from the airport, Li Moxian didn''t require a guide for where she was headed. She couldn''t get lost if she tried, she could walk there blindfolded if she wanted to, that''s how ingrained into her soul it was. She could point from any direction and accurately aim at the Sacred Abyss. The closer she got to the Abyss the more powerful the pull was. As Li Moxian saw the kids staring off into the direction of the Sacred Abyss she realized that they could feel the same pull as she did.


    They went around Bangladesh getting sleeping bags, warmer clothes, sturdier boots, rope, camping supplies, and rations. When they were done the bags seemed as if they would be too heavy even for strong men. Many of the guides were looking at her with smirks on their faces. They had approached her many times offering the use of their pack animals and to guide them on their way, but everytime she just refused them. Now that Li Moxian was fully supplied and ready to head out, they were waiting for her to ask for help so they could charge her three times what they offered her before. But all of them had their jaws drop when they saw Li Moxian carrying two bags herself and the kids carrying a bag each. None of them were struggling in the least. It was as if the bags were full of helium and just floated there on their backs.


    The journey only took two weeks instead of the month that Janet expected. That was because Janet didn''t know that they had begun cultivating already. They flew thru the mountain range covering hundreds of miles a day. The kids used it as a game to see who travel faster or farther than the other. Li Moxian smiled and laughed at the kids antics. It was a very long time since they could all just relax and enjoy life. the closer they got to the Abyss the more they felt all their anxiety, fears and doubts were beginning to feel relieved. When they finally neared the Abyss they could tell that a great battle had recently taken place there. There were still smoldering fires in different areas around the Abyss. Many of the army mechanics were trying to do repairs on the many tanks and armored vehicles that were near by. As Li Moxian was approaching from behind some trees she could hear a muffled conversation taking place in a large tent at the edge of the encampment.


    __________________________________________________________________________________________________


    Agent Matthews had seen as flash of light by the edge of the Abyss. She looked around to see if anyone else had seen it but no one seemed to have noticed anything. Agent Matthews felt she could feel a presence brushing past her but as far as her eyes could tell there was nothing around her. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the moisture she could feel in the air. This was one of the techniques that was placed into her mind from the scroll given to her by the Mudd Buddha. It allowed her to sense things that were trying to hide but using the moisture in the air as a detection catalyst. Moisture was everywhere around it would be extremely hard to avoid the tiny microscopic droplets of water in the air. She followed closely behind what she was sensing and when it got close to her tent she flashed forward and forcefully dragged it into her tent.


    Zhang You was surprised to suddenly be grabbed from behind. He was so confident in his concealing technique that he didn''t even pay attention to his surroundings. He only paid attention to the tree line he was heading for. So when Agent Matthews pretty much tackled him into the tent, he didn''t even have time to avoid her or defend himself. As soon as she hit him his concealing technique was broken leaving him exposed for everyone to see. Fortunately she ended up bringing the both of them into the tent with her tackle, so besides some curious glances as the unexpected commotion, no one saw what actually caused it.


    Agent Matthews straddled Zhang You and covered his mouth with her hand, the other hand held her index finger over her own mouth warning Zhang You not to make a sound. She slowly stood up and made a few hand seals that felt very foreign to her eventhough they were inside her head. Zhang You was surprised to see this. He could tell that she had absolutely no experience at what she was attempting. He chose not to fight back just to see if she would succeed. To his complete astonishment she actually succeed on her first try. Water formed a snake about as wide as an adult fist that coiled it way around Zhang You''s body. When it had his arms and legs secured it proceed to freeze into solid ice. Zhang You was impressed by her ability. If he were still in the Body Refinement Stage this would have really been a debilitating restraint. Even a Liquid Core Stage cultivator would have to expend a lot of energy to negate the chill entering into their body from this move. But since Zhang You had already stepped into the 1st level of the Solid Core Stage thanks to his uncle''s help, his physical body was already strong enough to resist this small amount of chill.


    Zhang You took this time to observe Agent Matthews. He used his spiritual sense to search her mind for any useful clues about who she was. The more he watched her watching him, the more he began to appreciate her beauty. Her Auburn shoulder length hair a shade so dark it looked like shiny bronze. Her features individually weren''t exquisitely beautiful but when you looked them as a whole she had a unique beauty all her own.


    Agent Matthews had to admit that there was something intriguing about this stranger who was sneaking away from the Abyss. He was in no way physically handsome to her but his bearing had a charm that drew her in. Their mutual observation lasted for a couple minutes before Agent Matthews finally broke the silence.


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    "Can you understand me?"


    Zhang You just nodded his head.


    "Can you communicate with me in my language?"


    "Yes I can?", Zhang You replied.


    "Good now tell me who you are and why were you trying to sneak into our world?"


    "Are you the strongest person here?", Zhang You asked.


    "Yeah but what does that have to do with anything?", Agent Matthews asked confused by Zhang You''s seemingly random question.


    "Perfect!", Zhang You said as he broke thru his restraints and rushed toward Agent Matthews,

 78 Enlightenmen

    "I can see it all..... EVERYTHING!"


    Chen Zhen''s mind was being expanded at an astonishing rate. His understanding of the universe and how it worked was growing with every breathe he took. The blessing of two planets amounted to him being enlightened on everything from how a planet was truly formed to the operation of the ecosystems that allow life to flourish. He was given a detailed understanding of the elements, their composition and formation. He understood atomic structures, and cellular genesis, and ther complete genetic structure of all plants and animals. He could understand the process of the formation of stars and galaxies. The many mysteries of the universe began to unfold in his mind.


    The clone in Chen Zhen''s spiritual sea could be seen floating with his legs crossed underneath him. His head was facing the sky and a blinding holy light was shining out of his open eyes and mouth. The information filtered thru Chen Zhen''s mind into his spiritual sea where it was absorbed by his clone. The holy light kept filling up Chen Zhen''s spiritual sea and slowly pushing its boundaries farther and farther beyond their limits. Chen Zhen''s mental powers were pushed to the point we''re they easily exceeded someone at the peak of the Immortal Stage.


    As the flood of information came trickling to an end Chen Zhen realized to his horror that he could only remember an insignificant smattering of information. He felt that he had just wasted such a good gift.


    ''Don''t worry. It will take me a long time to digest it all but all of that information had been stored inside of me.'', Chen Zhen''s clone said to him tho calm his panics emotions.


    After hearing that Chen Zhen could finally breathe a sigh of relief. He continued to sit there and check his body to see what changes he could detect. The first thing he noticed was that he had reached the solid core stage. Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian had never received the world''s blessing before, so they didn''t know what to expect. They couldn''t believe it was possible to advance so much without it affecting their foundation in the process. All three of them noticed that their dantians had a faint purple-gold glow. Their solid core that normally gets formed by compressing the liquid core pushing out all the impurities usually leaving a very pure but very small ball of solid energy. That small ball of energy is usually the size of a walnut. To continue progressing in your cultivation you must continue to compress the energy absorbed during meditation and filtering out all impurities adding layers to the ball of energy until your dantian becomes completely filled by that ball of energy.


    Shenggu Julong and Jackie had watched over Chen Zhen during this time they were both amazed at how much Chen Zhen gained from this blessing. eventhough Jackie was and envoy of the Sacred World he knew that every blessing was different. So he had no idea exactly what Chen Zhen would be blessed with. Hearing him say he could see everything it was still a mystery to him what Chen Zhen meant by that. They waited patiently while Chen Zhen continued to meditate but to be honest they were both anxious to ask him what he meant by that.


    Chen Zhen was trying his hardest to remember and understand everything that had passed thru his mind. He was in a very rare state of enlightenment and who they next time he would be able to regain this perfect mental state. Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian were both in a similar state. They weren''t able to to understand everything that passed thru Chen Zhen''s mind but subject that pertained to them were very clear and easy for them to understand. Shenggu Feng understood lightning, or at least he thought he did. But after receiving the World''s blessing he understood the purest essence of lightning. Just by thinking about the things he learned he caused lightning to dance around Chen Zhen''s body. But this wasn''t just any light This was lightning birthed from Chaos essence. It was the origin of all lightning, and it was in different colors from white, to red, to purple, to gold, and even in black. This was the same lightning that was used in Heavenly tribulations. Before his death Shenggu Feng was at the peak of the Divine Stage. He was looking for opportunities to push his understanding to the next level allowing him to advance to the Immortal stage. The treasure from the ancient ruins he was fighting over with Lou Tian was just such and opportunity for him. But now with the World''s blessing, what he fought and struggled for hundreds of years for was placed right at his feet. This knowledge allowed him to have a qualitative and quantitative change to his soul.


    Lou Tian had received the same benefits as well. His understanding of fire reached a pinnacle he never hoped to reach in the past. He thoughts caused Chaos Fire Essence was pure gold in color. The people around Chen Zhen had to rapidly move far away from him. Shenggu Julong placed a barrier Chen Zhen to protect his home from burning down. to his surprise he had to use all of his strength to encase the flames. The lightning and flames formed a sphere that revolved around Chen Zhen as he meditated. Lou Tian''s soul also changed along with Shenggu Feng, beause they both were at the same cultivation level before their death. They had to restart their cultivation from the beginning but their souls still retained their former glory and cultivation. With the blessing of the World their souls finally reached the Immortal Stage. They had never heard of someone''s soul being so much stronger then their bodies, so they had no idea how beneficial this would be to them in the future.


    They spent half a day in this amazing state, but all good things must come to an end. As they began to wake from their state of enlightenment, Chen Zhen saw Shenggu Julong and Jackie staring at him with looks of anticipation written all over their faces. Chen Zhen smiled as he stood up and bowed deeply to them both.


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    "Thank you for watching over us. And preventing others from finding out about this wonderful blessing."


    Chen Zhen knew that the barrier that was around him not only prevented him from causing damage to his surroundings but also prevented others from feeling the massive amount of energy his body was releasing. Their were many elders of the Shenggu Clan who were well into the Divine Stage. They would have been able to spy on what was happening in Shenggu Julong''s home if they felt something strange was happening there. And since Shenggu Julong had to use all his strength to maintain the barrier he couldn''t afford to spare any energy to block the elders'' spiritual sense.


    "What benefits have you guys received from this state of enlightenment you entered?", Shenggu Julong asked.


    Jackie was trying to hold back emotions but he failed because they could be seen clearly on his face. He wanted to ask just as bad but he felt he had to retain some of his dignity. He just smiled and nodded his agreement with Shenggu Julong''s question.


    While they were all thinking of the best way to answer, and amazing phenomenon happened. An image of Shenggu Feng and Lou Tain floated out of Chen Zhen''s body. Ironically they all shared the same expression. Shenggu Julong and Jackie looked astonished and gasped involuntarily. Chen Zhen looked up when he heard and couldn''t fathom what would cause them to react that way.


    "I-I-I-I can see the two of them! This is too soon! You shouldn''t be able to do this until you reach the Immortal Stage. But you are clearly at the Solid Core Stage? No, that''s not right! Chen Zhen is at the Solid Core Stage but the souls of you two have already advanced to the Immortal Stage. This is AMAZING!", Shenggu Julong went from pointing a shaky finger at Chen Zhen to moving around him lifting his arms and moving his body in awkward positions, as if he had just discovered to most unique and mystifying thing in the world.


    Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian looked at each other in shock. They both had the same idea and quickly flew off in different directions to see how far the could travel. They were hoping that they could more freely as far as they wished. But after traveling about ten kilometers, they were both jerked back, while Chen Zhen was yanked backwards off his feet. He was completely caught unawares and lay there sprawled on the ground looking completely confused. Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian both returned very quickly and apologized to Chen Zhen.


    For Chen Zhen it was a very surreal experience. He could see not only his own sight but the sight of Shenggu Feng and Lou Tian at the same time. It was very disconcerting. It left him feeling very dizzy and almost nauseous. Chen Zhen understood their train of thought. They were hoping to have regained some of their freedom after being trapped in his body. He was hoping they have that freedom as well. They were his brothers now and he wished them to have everything they wanted.