"Gu Bo, you passed?" Upon seeing Gu Bo, Chu Feng was genuinely happy. After spending this time together, he had come to regard Gu Bo as a true brother, so of course he hoped Gu Bo had made it through the examination.
"Passed? That's an understatement — Gu Bo took first place in the Yuan Martial level dungeon and earned the Supreme Token!" Before Gu Bo could answer, a young man behind him spoke up with obvious pride, as if he were the one who had won.
"Brother Gu Bo, congratulations." Chu Feng wasn't particularly surprised by this outcome — his face simply showed heartfelt happiness, happy for Gu Bo's sake.
After all, Gu Bo was not only powerful in combat but also exceptional with his Spirit World techniques. Him taking first place in the Yuan Martial level dungeon was exactly what Chu Feng had expected.
"Brother Chu Feng, if you had chosen to enter the Yuan Martial level dungeon, first place would obviously be yours without question." Gu Bo was quite modest about it, and the members of the Spirit World Association behind him all nodded in agreement.
No matter how many stories they had heard about Chu Feng before, there had always been a seed of doubt in their minds. But once they witnessed him — at the Spirit Martial Ninth Level — single-handedly beat a group of Xuan Martial realm experts from the Jie clan into the ground like dogs, their admiration became genuine. Some even felt a deep sense of fear toward him.
Chu Feng simply smiled at the peculiar looks the others were giving him, then changed the subject. "So if my brother Gu Bo took first place in the Yuan Martial level, who took first in the Xuan Martial level?"
"Chu Feng, there was a dark horse this time." At the mention of this, Gu Bo and the others' expressions immediately changed.
"A dark horse? What happened? Didn't that perverted old man Wang Qiang take first?" Chu Feng feigned confusion.
"No. This time it was a young man — only fifteen years old. He's the one who took first." When Gu Bo said this, his face was filled with complex emotions, because this was someone even younger than both him and Chu Feng.
That meant a true genius had arrived. No matter how he had achieved first place, in terms of raw talent, he had already surpassed every genius currently on the Nine Provinces Continent.
"Is that so? What's his name?" Chu Feng was equally intrigued by this mysterious youth.
"Jiang Wushang." Gu Bo spoke these three words with utmost gravity.
Upon hearing this name, Chu Feng thought to himself, "So it's Jiang Wushang — as expected, someone from the Jiang Dynasty."
Afterward, Chu Feng and Gu Bo's group entered the main city of the Supreme Dynasty, which signified that they had all qualified to participate in the Alliance Marriage Conference.
Inside the mansion provided for rest, Chu Feng first set up several barrier formations. Once his defensive measures were in place, he wasted no time pulling out the Universe Bag containing ten thousand Mystic Stones.
In that moment, Chu Feng felt a surge of excitement. He was certain that these ten thousand Mystic Stones would be enough to push him into the Xuan Martial realm — possibly even to the second stage of Xuan Martial.
"What's going on? I can already feel that my reserves are full, so why can't I break through?"
But things didn't go as smoothly as he had imagined. Even though he could clearly feel that the Mystic Force within his Dantian — consumed and stored by the Divine Thunder — was more than sufficient to break through to the Xuan Martial realm, the breakthrough simply wouldn't come.
Right now, aside from continuously devouring Mystic Stones and feeding more Mystic Force to his Divine Thunder, Chu Feng had no other options. And he had to admit that this breakthrough was proving far more difficult than any he had attempted before.
By the time Chu Feng had fully refined all ten thousand Mystic Stones and the vast Mystic Force had been consumed by the eight Divine Thunder bolts within his Dantian, he still hadn't broken through. This time, Chu Feng was genuinely starting to panic.
"Damn it, where did I go wrong? I've accumulated so much Mystic Force — I should have broken through long ago. Why won't it happen?" Chu Feng broke out in a cold sweat, pacing anxiously back and forth.
"Chu Feng, don't panic. Focus carefully on the ones inside your Dantian. Try to communicate with them. Try to understand them."
"The path of martial cultivation was never meant to be smooth sailing, never meant to be easy. Anyone who wants to break through to the next stage must first comprehend the essence of that realm — and that takes time."
"Many people can never reach the Heaven Martial realm, and some can't even reach the Xuan Martial or Yuan Martial realms, simply because their comprehension isn't deep enough to grasp the Yuan Force and Mystic Force between heaven and earth."
"But you're different. You don't need to comprehend Yuan Force or Mystic Force — you don't need to communicate with them. You only need to communicate with the things inside your Dantian and let them serve you."
Just when Chu Feng was at his wit's end, Eggy's sweet and gentle voice suddenly rang out. At this moment, Eggy was remarkably calm — like a guiding beacon in the darkness, pointing Chu Feng toward the right path.
"That's right. The path of martial cultivation has always been layered with obstacles, and only by constantly breaking through them can one enter a new realm and welcome new power."
"The way I've been breaking through before was too easy. That ease made me think that as long as I had enough resources, I could break through endlessly — that with enough resources, breaking through was simply a given."
"But I was wrong. Even though I have the special Divine Thunder inside my Dantian, breaking through isn't that simple."
"Eggy, thank you. I know what I need to do now."
Chu Feng's mind cleared in an instant. He stopped pacing and sat cross-legged on the ground, steadying his mind and pouring his entire focus into sensing the eight Thunder Beasts within his Dantian.
Chu Feng couldn't determine the exact forms of these eight Thunder Beasts, but he could feel that each possessed its own intelligence, its own appearance, and yet they were all part of a single entity.
The Thunder Beasts were intertwined, coiled together into a mass. Seven of them appeared serene, as if they were deep in slumber. But the eighth was restless, surging with agitation, as though it wanted to break free from the group.
"Is it you? Are you the one who wants to merge with my body and bring me new power?"
"Don't hesitate — trust me. I won't let you down. Give me your strength, and I promise I will let your power shine." Having identified the source of the problem, Chu Feng was overcome with joy and immediately began to communicate silently with that particular Thunder Beast in his mind.
"ROAR~~~" Suddenly, the Thunder Beast seemed to understand Chu Feng's words. It let out a furious roar that echoed through Chu Feng's mind as if it could pierce the heavens and shake the earth.
Most importantly, after that roar, the Thunder Beast — carrying with it a terrifying surge of thunderous power — broke away from the other seven and surged out from within his Dantian.
In that moment, Chu Feng could clearly perceive the form of this Thunder Beast. It had no fixed shape, constantly shifting and changing. It had no eyes, yet it could discern direction. It was composed of blue lightning, radiating an incredibly terrifying force.