After successfully breaking through for the second time, his cultivation stepping into the third rank of Venerable realm—
Chu Feng continued cultivating, comprehending the surrounding heavenly energy and the martial path.
However, the gains grew fewer and fewer. Chu Feng knew that further breakthroughs were likely out of reach.
That said, after his second successful breakthrough, Chu Feng could feel that the lake's power had changed.
The same power now resided within his own body, and the lake felt like an extension of himself.
Chu Feng gave it a try — he could already draw upon the lake's power.
He glanced at Zhang Yanfeng and the others around him, then looked at himself.
He noticed that unlike the three of them, a faint, ethereal glow was beginning to emanate from his body.
Simply put, he was now different from Zhang Yanfeng and the others.
"Looks like it worked."
Chu Feng preened with satisfaction. His comprehension ability hadn't failed him after all — at least he had been a step faster than Zhang Yanfeng and the other two.
Still, Zhang Yanfeng was no slouch either. Half a shichen after Chu Feng had fused with the power, Zhang Yanfeng's body began emitting the same faint glow.
And the moment that glow appeared, Zhang Yanfeng looked straight at Chu Feng.
In that instant, Chu Feng noticed a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
It was probably because Chu Feng had been a step ahead of him.
But Zhang Yanfeng was a graceful man. Upon realizing Chu Feng was looking at him, he smiled and gave a nod. The disappointment in his eyes not only vanished, but was replaced by a look filled with respect.
From this alone, Chu Feng could tell that Zhang Yanfeng was not only talented but also possessed a commendable temperament. Although… he was just as shameless as Wang Qiang, his nature wasn't bad.
"What's this feeling?"
Suddenly, Chu Feng's expression changed drastically. He had discovered something terrifying.
He found that the Sacred Tree seed inside his Dantian had awakened.
And after awakening, it began devouring his cultivation.
Not his martial power, but his cultivation — Chu Feng could feel that all the cultivation he had painstakingly gathered from absorbing heavenly energy was being swallowed by the Sacred Tree seed.
And the speed was horrifyingly fast. In the blink of an eye, Chu Feng dropped from third rank Venerable to second rank Venerable.
"How can this be?"
Chu Feng panicked.
He had broken through an entire rank with immense difficulty, only for it to be devoured by the Sacred Tree seed just like that.
Worse still, after consuming his cultivation down to second rank Venerable, the Sacred Tree seed showed no signs of stopping.
"Come on, big guy — what are you doing? If you're not going to help me, fine, but you're devouring my cultivation?!"
Chu Feng was alarmed — there was no point pretending otherwise. This cultivation had been so hard to earn, yet it was being consumed by the Sacred Tree seed just like that.
If this continued, wouldn't all his cultivation simply vanish for nothing?
But soon, Chu Feng noticed that the seed's consumption had slowed. Finally, when his cultivation had been devoured down to first rank Venerable, it stopped.
By now, Chu Feng had managed to calm down somewhat from his initial panic. He directed his consciousness into his Dantian and began carefully observing the situation within.
"What is going on?"
But what he saw took his breath away. Inside his Dantian, a bizarre scene was unfolding.
The interior of his Dantian resembled a vast martial world.