The Obsidian Golden Sphere Shattered

Luo Feng pierced through layer after layer of underground rock, delving deeper and deeper, far surpassing the depth of his previous resting cave. He plunged downwards with desperate speed... As he passed, the rock and soil he displaced would close back in, making it nearly impossible to track his movements.

“Katelan is powerful. I should go deeper underground, where he won't find me,” Luo Feng thought, continuing his rapid descent.

“Wait.”

“When I fought for the Thousand-Year Willow Heart, my mental force clashed with Katelan’s. His mental force seemed slightly weaker than mine,” Luo Feng mused, involuntarily slowing his pace.

With a splash!

Two to three thousand meters underground, above a subterranean river, a figure burst through the rock and plunged directly into the dark waters.

“Pfft!”

Luo Feng leaped out, landing on a protruding rock beside the subterranean river.

“There’s actually a subterranean river this deep underground,” Luo Feng murmured, standing on the rock and gazing at both banks of the dark river… It was pitch black. The river surged, its width a good sixteen to twenty meters, and the entire passage offered almost no foothold.

“There don’t seem to be any aquatic monsters in this subterranean river,” Luo Feng noted, having not detected any earlier.

“Where does this subterranean river lead?”

Luo Feng glanced around from the protruding rock, then shook his head. He slammed directly into the adjacent rock wall, which crumbled like tofu before him, creating a large cavity. With three black flying daggers clearing the way, Luo Feng swiftly carved out a cave twenty to thirty meters away.

This cave was only twenty to thirty meters from the subterranean river.

“Thousand-Year Willow Heart.” Luo Feng opened his clenched left hand, revealing an egg-shaped green crystal. Its structure was peculiar, as if shimmering green liquid pulsed within. The Thousand-Year Willow Heart, even to the naked eye, was captivating.

Luo Feng felt waves of coolness penetrate his skin, leaving him feeling refreshed and invigorated.

The Thousand-Year Willow Heart could enhance cellular activity and improve physical fitness, possessing these two major effects.

For Luo Feng now, this was likely the best treasure. Even a better one would be wasted on him, as he wasn't far from reaching the peak of the Wargod tier! Even if he were given a Ten-Thousand-Year Willow Heart… Luo Feng would still, at most, reach the Wargod peak, unable to break through further.

From the Wargod peak to an existence beyond Wargods…

This step was incredibly difficult to cross!

It was precisely why many remained stuck at the Advanced Wargod level.

“How do I use this Thousand-Year Willow Heart?” Luo Feng wondered. “The post said to ingest it, but… is that true or false? That post might just be a bluff.”

The Thousand-Year Willow Heart itself was incredibly tough.

Even a sharp sword struggled to damage it. Ingest something like that?

“Like dragon blood, it must never be ingested directly, or it will be fatal. What about this Thousand-Year Willow Heart?” Luo Feng frowned. Acquiring a treasure was good, but one also needed to know how to use it. If a treasure was used incorrectly, it wouldn't bring benefits, but disaster!

After a moment of hesitation…

Luo Feng looked down at his communication watch, dialed a number, and made the call.

“Beep—beep—beep—”

Suddenly—

“Hello?” A low voice answered.

“Hello, this is Luo Feng from the Elite Training Camp,” Luo Feng quickly replied. This number was his internal contact for the Extreme Martial Arts Dojo, used for claiming substantial rewards or reaching out to the organization. Now, unsure how to use the Thousand-Year Willow Heart… after much thought, he decided to inquire.

Anyway, once he used it, his strength would jump significantly, and the Dojo would know he had used a treasure.

So there was no need to hide it; he had, after all, taken it from someone else.

“What is it?” the low voice asked.

“I’d like to ask, how should the Thousand-Year Willow Heart be used?” Luo Feng inquired.

Silence met him from the other end.

Luo Feng’s heart grew uneasy.

After a long pause, the voice finally returned: “The outer crystal shell of the Thousand-Year Willow Heart is incredibly tough. The inner liquid is the essence. The method of use is to pierce the outer crystal shell, then ingest the inner liquid essence. Remember… do not swallow the crystal shell.”

Luo Feng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Good thing he asked.

The description in the Wargod-level forum post only mentioned ingesting it, but not how… If he had foolishly swallowed the entire crystal, he would have been in deep trouble.

“During consumption, it will be very comfortable, with no painful symptoms. The duration of this transformation process varies depending on the extent of the strength increase,” the low voice slowly explained. “Anything else?”

“No, thank you, sir,” Luo Feng quickly said.

“Sir?” The low voice chuckled, a rare occurrence.

Click!

The call ended.

“Yes!” In the pitch-black rock cave, illuminated by the faint glow of his communication watch, Luo Feng’s eyes shone with unprecedented brilliance!

“Right now, my strength still falls slightly short compared to Li Yao, who possesses the Black God Set.”

“But once I use the Thousand-Year Willow Heart…” Luo Feng was filled with anticipation. Ever since the exorbitant bounty was placed on him years ago, he had never dared to relax even a little. The constant pressure had driven him to fight relentlessly, and he had never slacked off in the Elite Training Camp.

Perhaps his rapid rise to favor with the Extreme Martial Arts Dojo, and the substantial rewards like dragon blood, were also thanks to the Vulture and Scorpion couple.

Without the pressure they exerted, how could Luo Feng have pushed himself so hard?

“Vulture and Scorpion, from now on, it won’t be me fearing you, but you fearing me!” Luo Feng’s resolve hardened.

Whoosh!

The egg-shaped green crystal floated in mid-air before him. Simultaneously, an SS-grade flying dagger beside Luo Feng flashed like lightning, directly piercing the surface of the green egg-crystal. “Pfft!” The tough crystal shell, under Luo Feng’s deliberate attack, was instantly punctured.

Gurgle~~~

The essence liquid slowly flowed out from within the crystal. However, these vibrant green liquids, brimming with vitality, were controlled by Luo Feng’s mental force, hovering before his eyes.

“Come.”

Luo Feng opened his mouth, and *whoosh*! These captivating, endlessly vital essences of the Thousand-Year Willow Heart, guided by his mental force, flew directly into his mouth. Although the entire crystal was egg-sized, the essence within was probably only the volume of a small wine glass.

Swallowing it in one gulp, the essence flowed down his esophagus and into his body. Instantly, a sensation of ‘coolness and comfort’ permeated his entire being, even making his soul tremble.

Pure bliss!

“The mysterious person on the phone said consuming the Thousand-Year Willow Heart would be completely painless and incredibly comfortable. It seems he wasn’t lying,” Luo Feng thought, lying motionless in the rock cave, clearly feeling the subtle changes in his body… He could never forget the agony of using dragon blood.

To have his strength increase without enduring pain, Luo Feng was naturally overjoyed.

“So comfortable.”

“I feel my entire body—bones, tendons, skin, and flesh—trembling,” Luo Feng said, looking down. In the faint light of his communication watch, he could visibly see his hand’s skin undergoing rapid, subtle, yet astonishing vibrations. Amidst this tremor, wisps of grayish-black matter seeped from his skin pores.

This sensation was truly wondrous…

A coolness enveloped his entire body!

At the same time, it felt as if all the flesh on his body had detached from his bones, losing control, only vaguely sensing the continuous tremor, like a massage.

…

Within Luo Feng’s body, the essence of the Thousand-Year Willow Heart, with its surging, boundless vitality, instantly integrated into every part of him. This vital energy caused astonishing changes in the cells of Luo Feng’s bones, tendons, and muscles, akin to a sapling growing into a towering tree.

At this moment—

Countless cells within Luo Feng underwent astonishing transformations. His genes rapidly evolved and perfected themselves, shedding useless genetic material and undergoing a complete re-integration. This process was incredibly swift, and it seemed his genes even absorbed a trace of the Thousand-Year Willow Heart, leading to unique genetic alterations.

Cellular activity rapidly increased.

Under this surge of vitality, Luo Feng’s entire body rapidly improved.

The very texture of his bones and tendons seemed to change, and his muscles and skin underwent astonishing transformations. Yet, these changes brought Luo Feng no pain; he only felt an incredibly comfortable sensation, like a deep massage.

…

Within his sea of consciousness.

In the boundless sea of consciousness, the obsidian golden sphere spun rapidly, continuously releasing energy. The entire sea of consciousness was enveloped in a thick mist, and within this endless fog, countless droplets continuously formed, like dewdrops. This rate of improvement was simply astounding.

Luo Feng’s physical fitness was rising!

His mental force, naturally, surged wildly, limited only by his physical endurance!

Luo Feng’s physical fitness ascended from the baseline of a Beginner Tier Wargod (approx. 64,000 kg punch force)… to the average level of a Beginner Tier Wargod (approx. 96,000 kg raw punch force)… to the peak level of a Beginner Tier Wargod (raw punch force nearing 128,000 kg)… to a Mid-Tier Wargod!

Rising step by step!

The instant his physical fitness reached the ‘Mid-Tier Wargod’ level, the obsidian golden sphere in Luo Feng’s sea of consciousness suddenly expanded, then “Crack, crack, crack~~” The entire obsidian golden sphere actually fractured, and an endless, surging mental force energy directly diffused, filling his entire sea of consciousness.

A Mid-Tier Wargod’s physical fitness could already withstand mental force nearing the limits of the Wargod realm!

His mental force surged explosively!

Luo Feng’s physical fitness continued to rise…

…

All transformations finally ceased. In the rock cave beside the subterranean river, two to three thousand meters deep, Luo Feng lay still.

“The obsidian golden sphere… shattered…”

That night of awakening, he had become a mental-force user, with boundless prospects!

He had always worried about how far the obsidian golden sphere would take him… Many mental-force users, after all, stopped their rapid advancement once they reached the Advanced Warlord or Beginner Tier Wargod level, having exhausted their latent energy. Mental-force users who could rapidly ascend to the Mid-Tier Wargod level were few and far between.

“My sea of consciousness!” Luo Feng’s consciousness immersed itself within his sea of consciousness. Previously, he had been barely an Advanced Wargod-level mental-force user, with droplets filling his sea of consciousness.

But now—

In the boundless sea of consciousness…

Mist swirled and spread, boundless and infinite.

“Rumble~~~” Surging liquid currents, like a galaxy, flowed through Luo Feng’s sea of consciousness. The mental force contained within was utterly terrifying, and within this ‘mental force liquid’ galaxy, he could occasionally spot fragments of the obsidian golden sphere mixed in.