Everlasting

 

Back when Chen Feng was assailing level 1 of the Concealed stage, he had to utilize everything he had; his blood energy, primary energy, all of them surged with intensity to assail that level. He had also utilized the Imperial Blood Grass, enduring a great deal of pain in the process. After assailing it many times, he was finally successful in clearing off the layer of fog enveloping his sea of wisdom to rise to the Concealed stage.

The barrier for his 2nd sea of wisdom layer was much thicker compared to the layer of fog for level 1. Rather, it was nearly a hundred times thicker. Even so, Chen Feng’s present level of strength was not something his past self could compare against. That was especially true when considering the fact that he had already condensed out his Soulflame. Assailing the barrier to level 2 of the Concealed stage was not an issue for him.

As Chen Feng was focused on cultivation, the Five Heroes of Pot Mountain exchanged glances before moving to surround Chen Feng in order to protect him.

Although the eyes of Elegant Gentleman and the short, middle-aged cultivator kept glinting with light, they did not attack.

A clump of flames, Chen Feng’s Soulflame, pulsed constantly within his sea of wisdom. At that moment, Chen Feng’s divine sense had gathered together into his Soulflame, leaving only 10 % of the Soulflame to respond to whatever might happen. Even though there were Ye Ziming and Lu Ta to protect him, Demon Soul Valley was an eerie place. Additionally, some cultivators were eyeing him like a prey. That was also the other reason why Chen Feng was determined to break through now. Only by breaking through could his strength multiply. That way, they would be safer later on. 

In the past, he would have preferred to find a remote spot where he can enter the Longevity Tower and cultivate himself there. That was the safest approach. However, that was clearly not possible. Doing so in front of so many cultivators might expose the existence of the Longevity Tower and bring about endless troubles.

After absorbing all that spiritual energy, his Soulflame grew increasingly large while condensing and wriggling to finally assume a humanoid form. Legs, feet, hands, arms and head. All of them were formed. In the end, even a face emerged. However, the facial features of the face were absent and all was a blur there. It seems my cultivation base is still lacking. Still, according to the Longevity Scripture, forming a body is only possible for the divine sense after reaching level 3 of the Concealed stage. I am already ahead. Chen Feng felt somewhat delighted.

“Ha!”

The condensed humanoid form could be considered another special form for Chen Feng. He raised the humanoid form’s fist up high and gathered all the power of his divine sense upon the fist before smashing heavily upon the barrier below.

Kacha!

A cracking sound rang out. It was like the sound of the frozen surface of a river cracking. Next, strands of mysterious aura seeped out from the cracks.

Bang!

Chen Feng did not stop. He immediately followed up with another punch and a circular hole suddenly appeared upon the barrier below him. It was as dark as ink and as vast as the ocean. That was his 2nd sea of wisdom layer.

Woah!

His Soulflame body continued thrashing the barrier. Finally, he raised his head and laughed aloud. Powerful soul ripples spread out and the barrier standing in between his 1st and 2nd sea of wisdom layers was utterly shattered. Next, a vast amount of mysterious aura charged upwards. Chen Feng’s Soulflame form, on the other hand, charged straight down, paving a broad route through his newly-opened 2nd sea of wisdom layer.

Chen Feng did not let up. With a momentum that only knew how to advance, his Soulflame form charged all the way down until reaching the barrier for his 3rd sea of wisdom layer. Once again, he smashed the barrier with a punch.

Kacha! Kacha!

Fine cracks appeared upon the barrier. This time, however, no aura seeped out. As Chen Feng was gathering all his strength to break this barrier to break through to level 3 of the Concealed stage, light suddenly flashed within his mind and he stopped.

Given my current level of strength, breaking through to level 3 of the Concealed stage is very likely. However, cultivators should avoid the anxious desire for quick success. I should properly lay out the foundation for level 2 first. After reaching that line of thought, Chen Feng stopped punching the barrier for his 3rd sea of wisdom layer. He then began practicing a meditation technique to fully open up his 2nd sea of wisdom layer.

The Heavenly Origin acupoint and the two Magnetic acupoints churned and energy streams surged out continuously to smash into his 2nd sea of wisdom layer. They mixed and fused with the mysterious energy within the sea of wisdom to form a benign cycle. Every circulation would increase the size of the newly opened sea of wisdom by a notch and the power within Chen Feng’s body was also constantly growing stronger.

Feeling the constant growth of power in his body, Chen Feng let out an involuntary sigh. “The human body is truly wondrous. The sea of wisdom actually contains such a powerful and mysterious force.”

It was then that a grunt rang out within Chen Feng’s mind. “Humph! Do you think that mysterious energy came about intrinsically?”

“Tower, you are up?” Chen Feng was pleasantly surprised. That voice earlier belonged to none other than Tower.

“Just for a bit. I will need to sleep again later. Also, what is this place? Why is there demonic energy?” Tower asked in a puzzled tone.

“You haven’t clarified what you said earlier. Could it be the mysterious energy within the sea of wisdom is not intrinsic in nature?” asked Chen Feng.

“Heh. The human body is truly wondrous and filled with mysteries and there are quite a few Heaven-defying constitutions. However, most seas of wisdom contain nothing. They are all dry and desolate. Everything after the opening of the sea would depend on extrinsic efforts. You, on the other hand, could access a vast amount of energy right after entering your sea of wisdom. That aspect alone puts you far ahead compared to the majority of cultivators. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the moment you stepped into the Concealed stage, you have taken an extra 100 steps compared to others,” said Tower with a snicker.

“This wondrous energy does not exist in the seas of wisdom of others? What is this all about?” Chen Feng was vaguely able to discern something.

“Did you forget about the Longevity Scripture in your sea of wisdom? This is a type of legacy. Even before you were born, a powerful force had been injected into your sea of wisdom. Tsk tsk. Kid, you will slowly come to understand it. Humans have nine layers of sea of wisdom in total. At present, you have only opened up two layers and seen great power flow out from them. That power will change your body and enhance your soul. Can you not feel yourself constantly growing stronger?” said Tower with an amused tone.

“Yes. I feel much stronger compared to the cultivators on the same level as me. I can probably beat 10 of them,” said Chen Feng after feeling the power coursing through his body.

“One against ten? Ha ha ha ha ha!” Tower suddenly laughed out.

“No, no, no. Too weak, too weak! I can recall, back then, your old man could singlehandedly kill off 100 fellows who are on the same level as him,” said Tower.

“What? My old man? Who is he? Hurry up and tell me!” Chen Feng was first taken aback. Next, his Soulflame form roared out. Outside, his face contorted and the sword light radiating off his body flickered shakily.

“What is wrong with Brother Chen? Did something happen?” Big Pot Bro could not stop himself from blurting out.

“It is nothing. No need to worry.” Ye Ziming waved his hand and put on a façade of nonchalance. However, he was also secretly feeling concerned that something might have happened to Chen Feng.

“He he he he he.” Tower snickered a few times. Apparently, he had let that slip by accident.

“Tell me.” Chen Feng’s voice suddenly took on a calm tone. However, the suppressed aura resembled that of a volcano that was on the verge of erupting.

“Fine. I will have a good chat with you.” After saying that, Tower’s voice too, took on a calm tone. Chen Feng said nothing. He simply waited silently for Tower to continue.

“You should already know. I am the Longevity Tower’s artefact spirit,” said Tower after some time.

“Yes, I have known that for a long time now.” Chen Feng nodded his head.

“Back then, I was not lying when I told you that the Longevity Tower is an existence superior to Immortal artefacts.” There were pauses between Tower’s words. It would appear he was recalling his memories.

“However, since I am damaged, many of my memories have seemingly disappeared. That means I cannot recall many things.”

“What? You aren’t lying to me about this?” Chen Feng could not hold himself back and he asked.

“Of course not. Besides, what benefit is there for me to lie to you. Why should I lie to you?” Tower countered with his own question.

“That is true.” After considering it, Chen Feng nodded his head. It was true. Given his present level of strength, the only reason he could shed off the title of ‘trash’ was due to Tower’s assistance. There was no reason for Tower to lie to him.

“Wait, since you don’t know anything, that means you were lying to me when you said you know about my past?” Chen Feng’s mind suddenly realized that.

“Ahahaha. Once my power is restored to its prime, my memories will naturally recover as well. When the time comes, your past will be made clear as well, no?” Tower suddenly let out an awkward laugh.

“That doesn’t sound right. I get the feeling that you know more than you are letting out,” said Chen Feng, who shook his head.

“Sigh!”

Tower suddenly let out a sigh.

“I only remember a great war happening in the past. Although I did not fall in that war, I was badly damaged. In the end, I managed to preserve a strand of my essence power as I escaped. I spent who knows how long drifting about in space before finally entering a state of deep slumber. It was only when you were about to get struck by lightning in Black Origin Mountain Range that I woke up. If it were not for me, absorbing that lightning, you would have been reduced to ashes,” Tower slowly said.

“This cannot prove you know my past. Maybe I had picked you up from some other place,” Chen Feng objected.

“Did you forget about the Longevity Scripture?” said Tower coolly.

Immediately, a wry smile appeared on Chen Feng’s face. How did he become so foolish? The Longevity Scripture was his legacy. Should others attempt to practice it, their bodies would self-destruct. Additionally, the Longevity Tower was the one who poured longevity-type primary energy into his body back then.

“It is not just that. There is an inseparable connection between you and me. It is a very mysterious connection, though it may be more apt to call it a feeling. I do not know the details myself. It may be that I will have to recover my memories in order to understand it,” Tower continued.

“Then, what about what you said earlier, about my old man singlehandedly killing off 100 fellows?” Chen Feng asked again.

“I only have fragments of my memories. Additionally, they are very vague. Due to the great war back then, only one of 10,000 of my memories remains. Even that small part consists only of vague fragments.” 

“No need to doubt me. I am not lying to you. If you want to know all about it, you will need to wait until I have recovered my memories. In order for me to recover my memories, I will need to recover my strength. To do that, I will need your help. So, if you want to find out about your past, you must help me recover my strength. What you need to do right now is to keep getting stronger and stronger, super strong, extremely strong!” There was a slightly amused tone in Tower’s voice.

“You must be joking. You are an existence superior to Immortal artefacts, but was almost destroyed. How am I supposed to help you? I am just a minor Concealed stage cultivator right now,” Chen Feng could not stop himself from blurting out.

“You truly trash.” Tower’s voice suddenly took on a harsh tone.

“You are practicing the Longevity Scripture. Your sea of wisdom contains a powerful force left behind by someone for you. Additionally, you even have me, an existence superior to Immortal artefacts to help you. If you truly fail to reach the immortal stage under such conditions, you will truly be trash. Or have you forgotten the title of ‘trash’ that you held in the past?” Tower’s voice was filled with harshness, ridicule and contempt.

The word ‘trash’ stung at Chen Feng’s sense of self-respect. That was right. He refused to go through such a life again, even if it meant death.

Since he was not even fearful of death, what else was there to fear?

Having reached that line of thought, Chen Feng’s resolve grew firm once more and an atmosphere of unwavering desire to advance without turning back arose from him.