Chapter 183 - Chapter 183: Growth

Chapter 183: Growth-type Spiritual Artifact

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Bacca’s face revealed an expression of reluctance upon hearing that Chen Fei was truly leaving.

Bacca knew that Chen Fei always had to depart from here, and the fragments of human memories it absorbed had made it clear to Bacca that the place it lived in was just a small corner of the world. Beyond that lay a much broader expanse.

Chen Fei came from the outside, as did all humans. When the time comes, everyone will leave here.

Bacca also had a bit of longing for the outside world, but it knew it couldn’t leave. With its identity, the moment it appears outside, it would immediately be captured and most likely end up being used for alchemical purposes.

“Will you come back to see me?” Bacca stared at Chen Fei with wide eyes.

Compared to the friendship with the rabbit demon, Bacca felt a strong connection with Chen Fei. At least, if Chen Fei were in danger, Bacca wouldn’t just use a single punch.

“If the opportunity arises.”

Chen Fei looked at Bacca, a smile unconsciously appearing on his face. He wasn’t sure if this counted as a well-intentioned lie, but from what Chen Fei sensed, the tremendous changes in this realm weren’t limited to just the spirit materials and beasts.

The entire realm seemed to be elevating, somewhat similar to the advancement of a warrior’s realm.

If that were indeed the case, then second-tier demonic beasts would soon appear in this realm, equivalent to those in the Aperture Tempering realm for cultivators, and they wouldn’t be rejected by the realm.

Precisely due to this perception, Chen Fei began to feel that this place was becoming extremely dangerous.

Beings like Bacca were already on the verge of reaching the second-tier demonic realm. Given the right opportunity, they could break through to the second tier.

And there were many creatures like Bacca in this current realm, so many that Bacca wasn’t even among the strongest.

The Half Bottle Mountain, Chen Fei only had to sense it slightly to detect the immense terror it contained.

Clearly, many powerful beings were currently in hiding, waiting for the realm’s upgrade, after which they could all ascend together.

The duration for this change was uncertain, Chen Fei couldn’t estimate whether it would take a few months or perhaps the next moment.

“All right, it’s a deal!”

Bacca extended its little fist, Chen Fei was momentarily puzzled but then understood and extended his fist as well, giving Bacca’s fist a light bump. This was their way of making a gentleman’s agreement.

Half an hour later, Chen Fei left the position of the cave with a bag of herbs given by Bacca.

The quantity of herbs was substantial; Bacca had gifted several plants with a century’s worth of growth, a rarity in the outside world. After running a distance, Chen Fei stashed the most precious ones into his spatial grid and carried the rest.

The ones he didn’t hide were items Chen Fei presented openly, as he couldn’t leave the sect without turning in anything, and it wouldn’t sit well with the sect.

There was also the jade token; Chen Fei had one on him to guide his way out. The remaining six were stored in his spatial grid.

Chen Fei wanted to make contact with Guo Linshan first to check if he had enough tokens, before deciding how to handle the extra two.

Chen Fei moved forward cautiously while sensing the surge of his mental power and observing the changes in his body.

After a moment, a smile crept onto Chen Fei’s face.

Besides the previously sensed surge in mental power that rapidly elevated his internal energy cultivation, Chen Fei found that his body’s responsiveness had increased as he executed his body techniques.

In a matter of moments, Chen Fei’s face broke into a smile.

In addition to the earlier surge in mental power, which accelerated the growth of his inner strength cultivation, he now discovered that his body’s responsiveness had improved significantly as he utilized his body techniques.

It was similar to the enhancement of his sensory acuity and bodily agility that usually accompanied advancement to a new realm. At this moment, the surge in mental power allowed every command he issued to his body to receive swift responses.

Previously, Chen Fei couldn’t sense any delays in his body’s reactions. However, compared to his previous state, he now clearly felt that his sensitivity had increased another notch.

Despite this incremental improvement, while Chen Fei was still in the Marrow Tempering realm and his cultivation method remained the same, his combat strength had grown remarkably.

Furthermore, he was able to efficiently harness every ounce of strength within his body. While it wouldn’t be accurate to say that one unit of strength had become two, a thirty percent enhancement was more than sufficient.

This was an incredibly exaggerated growth.

The fluctuations emanating from the jade token grew increasingly distinct, indicating that he was nearing the exit of the sect. Simultaneously, the jade token no longer picked up signals from the other jade tokens. Clearly, the sect considered this trial to be approaching its conclusion.

No longer did the sect require disciples to continue with the brutal fighting amongst themselves.

Climbing up a hill, Chen Fei looked ahead. Following the guidance, there was roughly less than three miles left before he would officially leave this secret realm.

Just as Chen Fei was about to leave his current spot, his steps suddenly faltered, coming to a halt.

A gentle breeze brushed by, causing the waist-high wild grass to sway with the wind.

Narrowing his eyes, Chen Fei surveyed his surroundings. His hair was blown back by the wind, revealing his forehead.

In the next moment, the longbow on his back came into his left hand. An arrow was nocked onto the bowstring, and with a firm pull of Chen Fei’s right arm, the arrow transformed into a streak of light, disappearing from his hand.

“Boom!”

Like a heavy artillery strike, the thicket to the right was suddenly blasted apart, sending grass debris flying everywhere. Simultaneously, a figure shot out from within the thicket, and upon closer inspection, it was clear that the palm of his right hand had been torn apart.

Evidently, the previous arrow had made it quite difficult for him to defend against.

It’s a misunderstanding!”

Feng Dali shouted loudly, but his response was met with another arrow hurtling toward him.

Feng Dali’s expression slightly changed. Although he had hurriedly caught the first arrow, he couldn’t deceive himself about the force contained within it.

Feng Dali sighed inwardly, running into a tough opponent at this juncture was unfortunate. He had only recently reached the Marrow Tempering realm, so what kind of terrifying archery and strength was this?

“Bang!”

In midair, Feng Dali lost his balance as the arrow hit him. He attempted to flee, but he realized several arrows were headed his way.

Feng Dali was filled with dread, wildly wielding the longsword in his hand and desperately fleeing into the distance.

“You rascal, don’t harm my senior brother!”

Another voice shouted from another direction, and three figures jumped out of the thicket. However, they merely called out; they didn’t dare to charge forward.

Feng Dali was the strongest among the four of them in terms of cultivation and combat prowess. Yet, he had been pushed into a precarious situation by just a few arrows. If they dared to rush forward, they would likely be shot before even approaching Chen Fei.

Their intention for jumping out was more about diverting Chen Fei’s attention, giving Feng Dali a chance to escape.

However, Chen Fei, upon hearing their shouts, didn’t respond at all. He continued to shoot arrows at Feng Dali. In just a moment, his quiver was left with less than half its contents.

“All!”

An arrow grazed Feng Dali’s thigh, the explosion ripping through the flesh on the side of his thigh. He couldn’t help but cry out in pain. Yet, after that shout, he gritted his teeth and fled into the distance.

The other three saw Feng Dali’s miserable state and were all shocked. None of them dared to call out anymore. They too fled frantically in different directions.

It was astonishing. A Marrow Tempering cultivator skilled in archery had the four of them retreating rather than approaching. They could only desperately run away, terrified of moving too slowly.

Chen Fei watched as Feng Dali and the others disappeared, then he lowered the bow in his hand. Intercepting others on the road meant being prepared for counterattacks. If Feng Dali hadn’t been injured just now, Chen Fei might have continued to attack.

Shouldering the bow and arrows, Chen Fei continued on toward the indicated location. Over the next three miles, he encountered no more road-blocking individuals.

Apart from the secret realm being extensive and the road-blockers being too dispersed, the ghastly scream of Feng Dali might have made the others wary and caused them to avoid Chen Fei’s direction.

Finally, after Chen Fei jumped onto a huge rock, he saw a spatial ripple several hundred meters ahead. A portal was shimmering with ripples. That was the exit.

There were several exits like this within the secret realm.

By now, the jade token had sensed the proximity of the exit. As long as inner energy was infused into the jade token, it would rapidly pull the body towards the exit, sending the person out of the secret realm.

This measure was considered the sect’s final act of gentleness during this trial, ensuring you wouldn’t be cornered by a group of people before reaching the exit.

At this moment, around ten meters from the portal, dozens of people were gathered, exchanging resources amongst themselves. Many had even set up stalls directly.

This time, the secret realm was much more dangerous than the previous records had indicated. However, the resources that could be obtained within the realm had also increased significantly.

Aside from the spiritual materials, even just the herbs from several decades’ growth, while not exactly abundant, could still be found with careful searching.

In addition to the herbs, there were some ores used for crafting weapons, and even soils that were hard to come by in the outside world. People were bringing these items out to sell or exchange.

Chen Fei observed from a distance for a while, not detecting any danger. Only then did he approach with confidence.

There were no loud haggling cries. Instead, those interested in certain items would quietly negotiate. Occasionally, there might be intense arguments, but they would quickly be settled as well.

There wasn’t a powerful force keeping order here. The slightest friction could lead to chaos. However, this place had its own set of unwritten rules: everyone hoped to acquire what satisfied them. Therefore, there was some risk involved in exchanges here, but many people were willing to try, especially given the demand for the jade tokens.

In the sect’s true transmission trial, collecting five jade tokens was the goal. How one acquired them didn’t matter to the sect—whether it was through theft, aggression, or other forms of exchange, the sect didn’t intervene.

In the martial world, strength was respected, but that wasn’t the only aspect. Entanglement over interests was ubiquitous. As long as you achieved your objectives, the methods were secondary.

Everyone here seemed cautious, wary of one another. The slightest misstep could trigger the jade token to pull them out of the mystic realm, ensuring a level of safety.

“Clockstone Milk?”

Chen Fei stopped in front of a stall, where a milky-white liquid was contained in a crudely-made stone bowl, not even the size of a fingernail. Chen Fei observed it carefully and confirmed that it was indeed Clockstone Milk.

Clockstone Milk couldn’t enhance one’s cultivation, as it wasn’t a spiritual material for consumption. It had other uses, like in crafting.

Chen Fei wasn’t skilled in crafting, but he knew that there was a unique crafting method within the sect. This method allowed several spiritual materials to be melted and gradually transformed from semi-spiritual weapons into spiritual weapons.

The Green Ridge Sword of Feng Xiupu was actually created using this method, as were many of the elders’ spiritual weapons within the sect..