Chapter 213 Breakthrough to Level Sixty
Time passed, and it had been more than ten days since Xiao Wu left the Star Dou Great Forest.
The central region remained calm. With the presence of two forest overlords residing there, almost no soul beasts dared to approach recklessly. It was the most dangerous yet the safest place.
Inside a cave, Chen Xuan sat cross-legged, still in seclusion, cultivating. At present, he had set multiple highly challenging goals: the body of an immortal, the Rinnegan, Sage Mode, and methods comparable to the Six Paths level.
The first three goals, though difficult, were not unattainable. The final Six Paths mode was the most elusive and intangible. He had pondered for a long time without finding a solution.
In Naruto, to become the Sage of Six Paths, one had to either absorb the Ten Tails, possess Yin-Yang powers, or acquire the chakra of the nine tailed beasts to reach that level.
Chen Xuan was troubled. There were no tailed beasts or Yin-Yang powers here. His path was practically cut off. He might hit a bottleneck, reaching the Kage level with no further breakthroughs.
He wanted to find an alternative path, but this wasn't something easily resolved. With his strength alone, it was hard to achieve. He could only rely on the system's mental gift package to see if he could get a suitable item.
If he couldn't find a way, Chen Xuan would have to give up this cultivation system and focus entirely on cultivating his martial soul. However, after reaching level ninety-nine, he would still face a major problem.
Level one hundred soul power—almost no one in the continent's history had achieved it. Everyone remained at level ninety-nine, unable to break through in their lifetime. Even if one truly cultivated to level one hundred, they still wouldn't be a match for a deity.
"Sigh, I really don't want to give up on the Naruto path," Chen Xuan lamented. Along the way, he had relied mostly on ninjutsu and chakra, already accustomed to it. His martial soul served more as a support.
Of course, now that the martial soul's restrictions were lifted, he had gained several spatial abilities, flexible and freely controllable. Used properly, they could provide some combat capabilities.
"Forget it. I'll focus on learning Senjutsu and awakening the Rinnegan. Even if I can't reach the Six Paths level, I'll still be able to deal with Peerless Douluo and third-level deities," Chen Xuan muttered, pinning all his hopes on the strange object rooted in his heart.
This plant was nurtured too well. It could absorb anything. Over the years, it had devoured an unknown amount of his soul power and chakra, even the residual energy from soul beasts within soul rings. Otherwise, it wouldn't have grown so robust.
Ten days ago, Chen Xuan consumed two immortal herbs. Before he could refine much, the plant snatched most of the medicinal properties.
In the days that followed, he swallowed an immortal herb daily. By now, he had consumed the thirteenth one, all of which were devoured by the plant. He couldn't compete with that damn thing.
However, it showed no signs of being full, still absorbing slowly.
"You're really a bottomless pit!" Chen Xuan was speechless. If it didn't return even purer natural energy, he would've given up long ago. No way he'd tolerate this crap!
He sank his consciousness, entering the world behind his heart. A boundless red-soil land stretched before him, rooted with a lush green plant resembling a vine, over a meter tall, with thirty-six leaves and nine cherry-sized fruits.
Since absorbing thirteen immortal herbs, Chen Xuan clearly felt the ruby-like fruits had grown larger, their skins glossier, red and crystal clear, now slightly bigger than a fist.
Since they were fruits, he secretly wondered what would happen if he ate them when fully ripe. Could he achieve instant breakthroughs after nurturing it for so long?
Moreover, the leaves seemed unusual—exactly thirty-six, no more, no less. Could they be absorbed as well?
"Shouldn't be a problem," Chen Xuan thought more and felt it was likely. Without hesitation, he decided to accelerate the ripening process.
He took out all his immortal herbs—thirty in total—and stuffed them into his mouth, eating them all at once.
"Damn, this medicinal effect is too intense!" Chen Xuan felt extremely uncomfortable. His face flushed, his skin turned red and hot, and steam began rising from his body.
He felt unbearably hot inside, as if thousands of degrees of heat were burning within him, scorching his organs.
"I must refine this quickly!" Chen Xuan didn't dare delay. Otherwise, he would really die from an exploded body!
In fact, as soon as the first immortal herb entered his mouth, its medicinal power was drawn away, flowing toward his heart and being mostly absorbed.
Now, after consuming thirty immortal herbs in one go, the vitality within him was terrifyingly rich, and the energy contained was even more astonishing.
"Hiss!"
Chen Xuan gasped. His arms, chest, and thighs began to split open, oozing blood, with deep gashes revealing bone.
The excruciating pain was unbearable. His organs seemed to be tearing apart, on the verge of bursting. Simultaneously, the abundant vitality was nourishing his limbs and organs. As long as he endured, everything would improve.
"Thankfully, I've always focused on body training. Otherwise, I'd be doomed this time," Chen Xuan felt a bit fearful. Anyone else would've exploded instantly.
Now, the cracks on his skin grew more numerous, densely packed, with blood and life energy seeping out, filling the cave with vitality.
He saw with his own eyes that weeds and moss growing in the cracks of rocks sprouted rapidly, reaching half a meter tall in the blink of an eye.
In an instant, five days passed. Chen Xuan sat cross-legged at the cave entrance, his clothes soaked in blood, completely resembling a blood-soaked figure.
Moreover, the cracks on his skin had increased, like fine porcelain shattering, crisscrossed with intricate fissures.
Finally, on the seventh day, the vitality within him began to decrease. At the same time, his heart glowed as the plant kicked into overdrive, transforming into a bottomless pit, frantically devouring life energy at several times its previous speed.
Two days later, Chen Xuan exhaled deeply. The vitality in his body stabilized, blood no longer seeped from his wounds, and the crisis was over.
He changed into clean clothes, then sank his consciousness into the small world behind his heart. The red-soil land stretched endlessly, the lush green plant rooted firmly, surrounded by white mist, brimming with terrifying vitality.
The mist was thick and ethereal, resembling immortal energy, with dense life energy spilling out, drifting around.
Life energy and immortal mist flowed in the air, swirling gently. Chen Xuan took a deep breath, instantly clearing away his fatigue, feeling refreshed and letting out a comfortable sigh. His mental exhaustion was fully restored.
"After eating so many of my treasures, you've finally grown!" he sighed, finally seeing the fruits of his labor.
The plant's stem had thickened considerably, even sturdier than his arm, with nine plump, glossy fruits hanging from it. It no longer resembled a vine but looked more like a fruit-bearing tree.
After not seeing it for days, the nine fruits were even more vibrant and colorful. Originally the size of a fist, they had grown to the size of pomelos, nearing full maturity.
In addition, the thirty-six emerald green leaves brimmed with vitality, entwined with wisps of immortal mist, thriving more than before.
At that moment, Chen Xuan felt the wounds on his body itching as new cells grew. A massive flow of life energy surged throughout his body, healing his injuries and closing his wounds.
After devouring so many immortal herbs, the plant finally began returning large amounts of energy.
At the same time, Chen Xuan felt his cultivation level loosening. He finally broke through the level sixty barrier, ready to add a new soul ring to his martial soul.
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