Translator: Cinder Translations
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[You have gained a trace of Serpent Spirit Power!]
[Originating from the Abyssal Evil God—the Ouroboros' servant belief]
[Usage: Accumulate fully, then use it in the Dream World]
[Effect: Can re-enter the Dream World briefly, entering the Serpent Spirit Secret Realm]
[Serpent Spirit Power: 5/100]
A notification appeared on the panel, and Chen Feng's pupils contracted.
He had never encountered such a prompt before.
Abyssal Evil God? Serpent Spirit Power?
It sounded unusual.
Wait...
His gaze flickered, and he suddenly thought of something from the Alliance's history, which he had once read in the Dream World.
[Martial Arts and the Supernatural grew stronger, with legends frequently emerging. Individual great powers continuously broke through until thirty years ago, when the Abyss appeared and the Black Calamity descended.]
"Abyss?"
"Could it be that this so-called Evil God is related to the Black Calamity in the Dream World?"
A guess rose in Chen Feng's mind, and he felt there was a high possibility.
Moreover, he recalled the situation from the last time he entered the Dream World.
He had clearly fallen asleep, but did not immediately enter the Dream World.
Instead, he stayed in a place that closely resembled reality for a moment, sensing the presence of a giant serpent-like mythical creature.
Thinking about it, Chen Feng felt as though he had grasped something.
Perhaps the so-called Serpent Spirit Secret Realm was a place similar to Qinggang City.
And now, it seemed like it might even have a connection to Earth Star?
Thoughts rose and fell.
In the end...
"Anyway, the progress is still far off, so I'll leave it for later."
Shaking his head, Chen Feng temporarily suppressed these thoughts.
Fatigue swept over him, and he closed his eyes, giving in to sleep.
Soon, he entered the Dream World once again.
In the outskirts of Nanjiang City, within a hidden underground warehouse.
Several figures were either sitting or standing. Some were wiping firearms and drones, while others sat at a row of screens, typing on keyboards.
"These Utopia trash are really troublesome."
"Thanks to the old god's bravery, otherwise, my arm would've probably been destroyed."
One of the half-modified humans said as he removed his metal left arm.
Most of the others were engaged in similar actions, but soon—
"Boss, something's happened."
A voice suddenly rang out, freezing everyone's actions.
They all turned to look, and the short-haired woman sitting in front of the large row of screens had an uneasy expression.
Her face looked pale, a mixture of shock and anger.
"Speak."
A deep voice responded, and a tall man covered in dark golden metal, with a cigarette in his mouth and a scar across his face, walked over.
"The boss is dead."
When the words fell, everyone's expressions froze.
"Are you kidding? Didn't Luo Cheng and the others protect the boss?"
"This isn't funny, Xu Na."
Several voices rang out, full of suspicion, and the man with the scar narrowed his eyes.
"It's true. This footage was transmitted by Luo Cheng and the others just before they died through the communication module."
The short-haired woman, Xu Na, pressed a key on the keyboard, her face growing paler.
Boom!
A muffled explosion sounded from the screen, and a modified human was blasted apart by a punch, dying on the spot.
A humanoid figure with a black horn and red eyes slaughtered all the security personnel, causing them to drop their helmets and armor, suffering heavy casualties.
The scenes played out, and the warehouse fell silent.
"This is another video pulled from the web. The security department hasn't managed to block all of it yet."
"The boss was killed by this person."
The image froze, showing the horned figure strangling Zhao Jianlong before leaving calmly.
Seeing this, the group of people showed varied expressions.
Some looked skeptical, some were hesitant, and others were uncertain.
Such a powerful figure... no one here could match them, except for the boss.
"Who exactly is this person?"
"Could it be someone from Utopia?"
Someone asked, and Xu Na was not sure.
"Boss, should we leave Nanjiang?"
Another person couldn't help but speak up.
They were already disliked by the United Coalition, with too many lives on their hands.
Without Zhao Jianlong's protection, and now with Utopia attacking, leaving was the best option.
The atmosphere was tense.
All eyes eventually turned to the man with the scar holding the cigarette.
---
Squeak!
The sound of a door opening echoed on the silent street. Chen Feng, carrying a black backpack, quietly pushed open the red door of a single-story villa and stepped inside.
His spirit had been overly drained, causing his strength in the Dream World to drop significantly. He was only at the level of a professional, maybe one or two ranks.
The branch of the Extreme Martial Hall had a masked man, and he planned to wait until he was at his peak condition before going there to avoid any injuries that might affect his real-life state.
He then walked into the living room.
Buzz!
He raised his hand and touched, collecting a broken light orb from the sofa.
Aside from that,
Chen Feng's face remained calm as he entered the study.
Click!
The drawer opened, and based on his perception, he knew exactly what was the most important thing inside.
A new diary.
Additionally, there was a broken copper plate.
[In the year 246 of the Alliance, on April 26th]
[The Black Calamity has struck again, completely sealing off Qinggang City.]
[The last battle caused significant losses, and the law enforcement team is severely understaffed. If it weren't for Captain Wang Yu summoning the sword master Alonco's spirit, we would probably have already died.]
[We don't know if we'll survive this time. The Black Calamity creatures on the battlefield are growing stronger, and we've heard that the Abyssal Secret Realms in the wilderness are increasing as well.]
[Zhou Chong said, since he feels he's going to die anyway, he might as well write a diary and leave something for those who come after us.]
[To the ones who come after, by the time you read this diary, I will probably be dead.]
[I don't know if Qinggang City is still around in your time, or if anyone still remembers us, the deceased.]
[Signed, Fang Wei.]
After reading the diary, Chen Feng furrowed his brows.
It mentioned Wang Yu again, the young man with the Spirit Summoning talent.
Clearly, he had begun to stand out in the law enforcement team and was becoming well-known.
Besides that, the Abyssal Secret Realm mentioned in the diary made Chen Feng ponder.
"The Abyssal Secret Realm... Could this be the source of the Black Calamity?"
"Also, could the Serpent Spirit Secret Realm be one of them?"
This thought arose inexplicably. From a literal perspective, Chen Feng felt there might be a significant connection between the two.
However, due to his lack of experience and insufficient related information, he could only suppress these thoughts for now.
He then closed the diary and looked at the broken copper plaque.
Several pieces of information appeared before his eyes.
[Black Wolf Pack: One of the Black Disaster creatures, a social species.]
[Strength: First stage in the juvenile phase, second stage as adults, with a small chance of a third stage Black Wolf King emerging due to a faint bloodline.]
[Weakness:]
[Giant Rage Bear: One of the Black Disaster creatures, protector of the Black Poison Bee swarm.]
[Strength: First stage in the juvenile phase, third stage as adults, some may break through to the fourth stage.]
[Likes to eat the honey of the Black Poison Bees, regularly receives offerings, thus protecting them within its territory.]
[Weakness:]
New information on the Black Disaster creatures caused Chen Feng to raise his eyebrows at the next line.
"Giant Rage Bear?"
Based on the description, he thought it seemed extremely similar to the violent bear creature he had encountered that day.
Moreover, this solved one of his earlier puzzles.
No wonder the Black Poison Bees were so weak, yet they could find such a powerful ally.
It was because of the honey.
He had killed the poison bee queen and destroyed the hive, so naturally, the bees had lost a stable source of offerings.
"It's a pity I don't know how large the territory of this Giant Rage Bear is. Next time, I'll need to be more cautious."
Chen Feng put away the copper plaque and didn't want to encounter a situation like the previous one.
He then took out a map and glanced at it.
He quickly left the villa and set off around the location of the Extreme Martial Arts Branch.
Time passed, and after the dream faded, he successfully obtained another Limit Breaking Light Orb.
[Limit-Break Points: 2]
Chen Feng opened his eyes and looked at the panel.
He was still two orbs away from breaking through to Crimson Tiger Force, but he decided to upgrade now.
[Crimson Tiger Force: Beginner (88%)]
His internal strength grew slightly again, and with a thought, Chen Feng could see a faint red glow surrounding his palm.
"Almost there."
Only two more orbs, and he would break through to Inner Strength, which would allow him to refine his body and use strength-based techniques, increasing his power.
With this thought, he didn't delay any further.
He got up, opened the curtains, and after cleaning up, he quickly called a cab to head to the martial arts hall.
---
[Yesterday, near Feiteng Plaza in Guangyang District, a highly malicious attack occurred!]
[Reliable sources confirm that Mr. Zhao Jianlong, chairman of the Hongguang Group and a member of the city's United Coalition, has unfortunately been murdered.]
[The attacker was a cybernetic human with a blue-black exterior. Initial assessments suggest that this individual is likely the same one who killed Mr. Zhao Jiapeng last time. The United Coalition has intervened in the case and promises to apprehend the perpetrator and give everyone an explanation.]
The taxi's radio station was playing the news. Chen Feng sat in the back seat, looking out the window. He could also see similar news reports playing on the large outdoor screens of nearby shopping malls.
"Zhao Jianlong was killed? That's outrageous."
The driver, a middle-aged man, noticed that Chen Feng remained calm and young-looking, and assumed he might not understand the significance of the news. He quickly spoke in a familiar tone:
"Young man, you probably don't understand this, but Zhao Jianlong and I are from the same generation. He started from scratch, built Hongguang Group in just two or three decades, and was elected as a member of the United Coalition."
"This guy was ruthless and had a lot of power. You have to admit, the person who did this really had guts to kill him. What do you think?"
Hearing his question, Chen Feng nodded calmly.
Soon, the car arrived at the martial arts hall's branch. He scanned the payment code, paid, and got out.
Lin Hao, wearing a blue sports jacket, was parking, and many students were coming and going.
"Senior Brother, good morning!"
"Senior Brother, you're here early!"
In the greetings, Lin Hao quickly walked over, his expression somewhat serious.
Chen Feng waited in place, and soon heard the expected question.
"You suddenly left yesterday. Were you helping your friend?"
Lin Hao's tone was serious, clearly guessing what had happened the night before.
The incident occurred not far from the shopping mall, and since Chen Feng left suddenly, it wasn't hard for people to make a connection.
"I'm telling you, you better stay out of this matter."
"Zhao Jianlong had many enemies, but no one had dared to kill him in Nanjiang until now, except for Utopia. Do you know why?"
"The Hongguang Group was just a part of it. The real reason is because he's a member of the United Coalition!"
"His death has huge implications. I heard that the provincial United Coalition sent special representatives overnight to investigate."
Lin Hao spoke urgently, his gaze filled with worry and helplessness.
He didn't understand why Chen Feng would want to get involved in such a mess.
Once or twice might be fine, but if evidence was found, even if he was a direct disciple of the Flame Tiger School, it would be difficult for him.
Chen Feng could vaguely feel his concern.
But perhaps because he had already anticipated this, he felt unusually calm.
"Also, I heard that Zhao Jianlong once saved the life of Dong Tao, the 'Winged Tiger.'"
"That guy is tough, most of his body is enhanced with silver-steel modifications, and he's strong. He was one of Zhao Jianlong's most loyal men. You should get your friend to run. Leave Nanjiang, don't come back."
Lin Hao spoke as they walked, and Chen Feng raised an eyebrow.
So, I didn't kill them all.
"If you want to leave Nanjiang, I can help you get them out safely."
"Let your friend decide soon."
Lin Hao sighed, and Chen Feng stood silently for a moment, feeling the sincerity in his words.
It wasn't a bad escape route. He nodded slightly.
"Thanks."
He patted Lin Hao's shoulder, and quickly walked into the quiet room.
The door closed, and all the noise was isolated outside.
Clenching his fist, Chen Feng stood by the window, looking at the bustling street outside.
Tall buildings, busy crowds.
He knew that if things really reached the worst-case scenario, with the Security Bureau keeping an eye on him and the United Coalition involved, not even the Flame Tiger School could protect him...
Then the only thing he could rely on was himself.
"Strength."
The strength to break out of encirclement, the strength to fear no enemy!
With this thought, a strong will entered Chen Feng's calm state once again.
He turned around, walked to the center of the wooden floor, and took out a jade porcelain bottle. He poured out a Muscle-Fortifying Tiger Bone Pill into his hand.
Whoosh!
Crunch!
He bit it, the bitterness flowing down his throat.
As the pill was consumed, a wave of heat quickly rose from his lower abdomen, flooding his limbs.
Grabbing the time, Chen Feng began to regulate his blood flow and refine the medicinal power.
The Flying Tiger Diagram and the techniques of the Bronze Statue Technique.
Gradually, a panel prompt appeared, and the core true technique taught by his master, Li Tong, progressed rapidly again.
[Bronze Statue Skill: Beginner (65/100)]
[Bronze Statue Skill: Beginner (66/100)]
[Bronze Statue Skill: Beginner (67/100)]
(End of the Chapter)
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