A Blessing in Disguise

The new world was like a hidden paradise—a vast expanse of red earth, with ethereal white mist floating about and divine energy surging in the air, full of life force.

In a moment of disorientation, Chen Xuan found his spiritual body pulled into this strange place.

The mystical scenery—divine energy, white mist, and the rich vitality in the air—all seemed to originate from a single green plant, slowly giving rise to this surreal environment.

As he breathed in the mist, Chen Xuan felt a profound comfort, his mental strength growing rapidly, as if being nourished.

He wasn't sure if he had died or had really arrived in another world.

His spiritual body glowed as he attempted to reconnect with his physical body.

Though it took some time, he eventually succeeded. His body was still outside this world, sitting by a riverbank, cross-legged on a large stone, breathing faintly.

"Good, I'm still here," Chen Xuan sighed in relief. Although he didn't know how he got to this place, he realized that he could leave at any time and return to his physical form.

With no immediate danger, he wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, he began exploring this world, particularly that green plant with 36 leaves, glowing vibrantly with life force and bearing nine fruits that resembled red gemstones.

The plant felt familiar to Chen Xuan, as if he had seen it before.

He started to recall where he had encountered it and soon remembered—two months ago, on his first day arriving on the continent, one of the items in the three upgrade gift packs was a plant bearing nine fruits, which he had absorbed, causing his martial spirit to evolve.

However, the plant back then had only nine sparse leaves, and the fruits were as small as cherries.

Now, the plant in the red earth world was far more majestic, surrounded by divine energy and white mist, with 36 lush leaves and fruits that had grown to the size of red gemstones.

"It seems that after I absorbed the plant, it took root here," Chen Xuan reasoned.

The divine mist swirled around, ethereal and dreamlike, full of terrifyingly abundant life force. It was undoubtedly a rare and precious celestial herb.

Chen Xuan approached the plant, carefully observing its condition.

He soon discovered that its roots were absorbing nutrients from the soil, strengthening the plant, while its energy flowed into its leaves and fruits.

"Thirty-six leaves, thirty-six heavens—is this really the legendary Thirty-Six Petal Flower?" Chen Xuan dismissed the thought. It was just a myth, and this was the real world. The rarest treasure here was this celestial herb.

At the same time, he felt a tremor in his physical body. The toxins that had lodged themselves in his organs were now slowly leaving, flowing into his heart, and then mysteriously vanishing.

As the rare herb grew larger, its roots strengthened, and its leaves became even greener.

"Could it be that this red earth world is a reflection of my heart?" Chen Xuan was shocked by the thought, but it seemed highly possible.

The toxins had left his organs, flowed to his heart, and disappeared, seemingly absorbed by the plant.

Suddenly, the rare herb glowed, its leaves turning a brighter green, and the fruits appeared to grow even larger.

In his physical body, Chen Xuan's heart pulsed with a strange red glow, like the rumbling of a heavenly drum, resonating through his entire body.

And then, his soul power suddenly broke through, reaching level 48, bringing him one step closer to the Soul King realm.

"An extraordinary herb!"

Chen Xuan couldn't contain his excitement. This plant was beyond incredible—it had drawn the toxins out of his bones, absorbed them into the red earth world, and even returned a portion of the purified energy to him.

At this rate, he would break through to level 50 in just a few days. The rare herb was slowly absorbing the toxins and refining them into soul power, which it then fed back to him.

With a flash, Chen Xuan's spiritual body returned to his physical form. He opened his eyes and clenched his fists, feeling powerful and full of energy.

He felt incredibly light, as though he had escaped from a swamp, and the benefits were immense.

His nose twitched as he caught a foul smell. It was pungent and unbearable.

Only then did he realize his body was covered in a black, sticky substance. The stench was worse than rotting fish.

Splash!

Unable to tolerate it, Chen Xuan jumped into the river, scrubbing himself clean before changing into fresh clothes. He set the dirty ones on fire, as there was no way he could wear them again.

"It's not poison—it's the impurities from my body," he concluded, realizing that the black liquid wasn't the toxins he had thought.

Chen Xuan clenched his fists, feeling the abundant soul power within him. His body was lighter, and his soul power had reached level 48. Overall, this experience had turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

He attempted several times to re-enter the red earth world but failed.

He concluded that it would likely take a life-threatening situation to trigger his spiritual body to enter the heart-constructed world and absorb the abundant life force for recovery.

The poison no longer posed much of a threat, but Chen Xuan planned to continue acting as if it did, using himself as bait to catch a bigger fish.

That golden-haired woman, beautiful and radiant, didn't quite look like Qian Renxue, though there were some similarities.

Chen Xuan had used his Sharingan to see her real form, not an illusion, but he still had his doubts. Was she really Qian Renxue? He would investigate further in the future.

...

Morning

As the sun rose, Chen Xuan returned to the Shrek camp, where the royal knights informed him that the ranking competition had ended the day before, and the teams had returned to their academies for a three-day rest.

The final match had been between Shrek and the Godwind Academy, with both teams agreeing on a single round to determine the victor.

In the match, Tang San had used all his techniques and was finally forced to wield the world's number one tool martial spirit, the Clear Sky Hammer, to defeat Feng Xiaotian.

The victory, of course, went to the Shrek team.

This was what Chen Xuan learned from the royal knights, and it was similar to the original timeline, with only minor differences.

"Thanks," Chen Xuan said.

That day, he didn't go home but returned to Shrek Academy instead.

"Chen Xuan, where have you been these past few days?" Zhu Zhuqing asked when she saw him, finally letting out a breath of relief. She had feared something terrible had happened to him.

She had searched many places, but there had been no sign of Chen Xuan, as if he had vanished from the world.

Her worry had been great. Though she disliked most men, Chen Xuan was one of the few she had feelings for.

Even though she knew that nothing could ever happen between them, she didn't want anything bad to happen to him. She just wanted him to be safe and alive.

"I'll explain later. Where's the Grandmaster?" Chen Xuan asked, noticing that the Grandmaster's presence wasn't in the academy when he returned.

"After the competition ended yesterday, the Grandmaster left early," Zhu Zhuqing explained.

She knew there was a deep grudge between Chen Xuan and Yu Xiaogang, but she couldn't help him in this situation, despite her desire to do so.

"I have something to take care of. I'll be leaving for now," Chen Xuan said, turning toward the exit.

With such a great opportunity, it would be foolish to waste it.

"Wait—" Zhu Zhuqing called out, reaching out her hand, but she stopped herself from saying more.

Watching his figure disappear, her gaze dimmed, and her emotions grew complicated.

During the ten days of Chen Xuan's disappearance, she had felt an inexplicable sense of loss, as if something important had been taken from her. It was then that she realized how much he meant to her, more than Dai Mubai.

Perhaps it was because of the soul bone, or maybe it was because of the two times he had saved her in the Star Dou Forest, sparking these feelings.

Zhu Zhuqing understood that this feeling would never lead anywhere, so she held back, not calling him back.

Chen Xuan, in his haste, didn't notice that Zhu Zhuqing was a bit more proactive than usual.

Outside Shrek Academy

Chen Xuan found a secluded spot, summoned his chakra, and with a puff of white smoke, created a perfect clone of himself, identical in appearance and height.

It was the Shadow Clone Technique, a ninjutsu he had recently developed after modifying the Three Basic Techniques. Though he had been in seclusion for ten days, he had not neglected his training.

"Grandmaster, you've created such a great opportunity. You're leading me into crime," Chen Xuan mused with a smile.

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