Chapter 4: The First Fruit
Feeling no discomfort at all, Chen Xian simply stood still, letting Lan Chao and his gang rain down blows upon him.
Fifteen minutes later, he noticed that except for those mysterious transparent fruits, the entire strange tree had turned red and become solid. Yet, he saw no other mutations in the tree.
Just then, a whirlpool appeared on the first transparent fruit near the roots, absorbing all the red energy flowing into the tree, growing denser with every moment.
“Aren’t you guys going to try a bit harder?” Chen Xian’s lips curled slightly as he looked at the sweat-soaked Lan Chao and his companions.
The group exchanged glances, baffled by Chen Xian’s unscathed appearance.
“Chao, is that guy trained in Iron Shirt or something? We’ve been hitting him for ages, not a scratch!”
“Chao, maybe we should back off. This guy is too weird!”
The sports students following Lan Chao felt uneasy and anxious at the sight of Chen Xian, showing signs of retreat.
Lan Chao swept his gaze over them, then looked toward a pile of bricks near the flowerbed outside the parking garage, used for landscaping. With a fierce tone, he said, “Don’t chicken out, grab some bricks! I refuse to believe we can’t break him!”
He was the first to dash to the flowerbed, grab a brick, and charge back into the parking garage. The others followed suit.
Chen Xian frowned slightly at their actions. He knew he could absorb attacks from fists and feet, but whether he could absorb blows from bricks and other objects was still uncertain. Last night, he saw a red whirlpool form at the spot where the SUV’s bumper touched his leg.
With caution, Chen Xian tried to run outside. He did not dare let them hit him with bricks without being sure. Yet Lan Chao’s gang blocked all his escape routes.
“Damn it, you think you can run? You think you’re tough?” Lan Chao was delighted to see Chen Xian scared. “Today, I’ll smash you to pieces with a brick!”
He led his lackeys, all wielding bricks, charging at Chen Xian.
With nowhere to retreat, Chen Xian took a direct hit to the head from Lan Chao’s brick.
Yet he still felt no pain. A red whirlpool formed on his head, slowly spinning and absorbing the red energy.
Chen Xian was secretly pleased: he wasn’t afraid of bricks!
“Come on, keep hitting me!” He stopped running.
Half an hour later.
Chen Xian exited the parking garage alone, unable to hide his smile. He ignored his delivery duties and lunch, rushing straight to the dormitory.
Inside, Lan Chao’s group sat on the ground, drenched in sweat, utterly exhausted and despondent. They stared at Chen Xian’s retreating figure, an unspoken fear lurking in their eyes.
Damn it, Chen Xian wasn’t human at all.
Eight people had pummeled him for ages, expending all their strength and stamina, yet he was unscathed.
...
Chen Xian hurried back to his dorm because the first fruit on the strange tree in his mind had solidified, glowing bright red like a tiny sun. He was eager to study it.
As soon as he stepped through the door, a plump figure blocked his path.
It was his roommate, Zhang Xiaoshuai. Despite having “handsome” in his name, he was anything but: 1.7 meters tall, weighing a staggering 200 pounds, and wearing 600-degree glasses.
Whenever he had free time, Zhang Xiaoshuai stayed in the dorm playing games or surfing the web, or spent nights at internet cafés. He slept through classes but aced every exam, was a computer whiz, a hacker, and quite the oddball.
“Xian, you beast, you actually stole my goddess Zhang Xin! Spill it—how did you hook up with her?” Zhang Xiaoshuai squinted, feigning toughness. “The harsher the resistance, the harsher the punishment; honesty brings leniency!”
He’d seen Zhang Xin invite Chen Xian out after school.
Zhang Xiaoshuai often claimed he would pursue the campus belle Zhang Xin, but never took action.
He and Chen Xian were on good terms. Zhang Xiaoshuai came from a wealthy family and was generous with pocket money, always helping Chen Xian in times of need, and never forgot to share good food.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I just helped Zhang Xin’s little niece, and she invited me to dinner to thank me. Move aside—I need the bathroom urgently!” Chen Xian pushed past Zhang Xiaoshuai and dashed to the restroom.
Bang!
He slammed the door shut.
“Xian, are you telling the truth?” Zhang Xiaoshuai blinked his small eyes.
“Of course I am!” Chen Xian muttered from inside.
“Xian, can you take me along for dinner tonight? Let me dine with the goddess too, haha!”
“Xian…”
Chen Xian ignored Zhang Xiaoshuai’s chatter outside, standing before the mirror with his eyes closed.
Boom!
As if a dimensional portal had opened, Chen Xian’s consciousness entered that hazy space in his mind. He saw a fiery red strange tree with a single fruit radiating red light, the others still transparent.
He wanted to pick the red fruit but didn’t know how.
At that moment, a faint consciousness from the tree transmitted: If you wish to pick this fruit, focus your mind on it and silently recite “pick.”
He seized the hint and quickly asked, “Who are you?”
No answer came.
He tried several times, still no response, so he stopped asking. Following the guidance, he focused his consciousness on the fiery fruit and said, “Pick!”
Crack!
The red fruit detached from the tree, split open, and golden light burst forth, condensing into a heavy golden tome.
On its cover were eight characters, bold and ancient, brimming with mystery and timelessness—letters Chen Xian had never seen before. They resembled tadpoles, musical notes, and more, evoking an aura of profound mystery.
Yet, at a glance, he recognized them—Supreme Chaos Manual, Mortal Level.
It was as if he had always understood these strange symbols.
Chen Xian guessed it was due to the strange tree merging with his mind, granting him knowledge of these glyphs.
Supreme Chaos Manual, Mortal Level—each character contained a world of meaning, unfathomably wondrous. The golden script captivated him deeply.
After a while, he steadied his mind, and with a thought, opened the tome to reveal the first page, which outlined the Supreme Chaos Manual.
“Cultivating the Supreme Chaos Manual can make one the strongest throughout history, dominating the cosmos and all realms.
This technique can directly refine all negative energies, demonic forces, life essence, and other energies into spiritual energy and true essence, strengthening oneself.
As the practitioner’s cultivation increases, so too does their ‘spirit,’ ‘divine sense,’ and ‘soul’—the Supreme Chaos Manual is a dual cultivation method for both form and spirit, infinitely profound.
Moreover, the Mortal Level chapter of the Supreme Chaos Manual produces spiritual energy and true essence with miraculous effects—it can nourish life, detoxify, transform decay into wonder, and more.
By cultivating the Supreme Chaos Manual, Mortal Level, one can awaken ten spiritual wheels in the Transcending Mortal Realm, achieve the legendary great perfection of that realm, and forge a supreme foundation for spiritual cultivation… The Mortal Level chapter can be cultivated up to the Profound Origin Realm.”
After reading the overview, Chen Xian opened the second page.
“In the path of spiritual cultivation, realms progress from low to high: Transcending Mortal Realm, Spiritual Void Realm, Profound Origin Realm…
The Transcending Mortal Realm involves absorbing spiritual energy into the body, causing extraordinary changes, shedding the mundane physical form, becoming far superior to ordinary people, condensing ten spiritual wheels, storing spiritual energy within them…”
After finishing the cultivation method for the Transcending Mortal Realm, Chen Xian found he could not open the third page. He assumed perhaps only by reaching the great perfection of that realm could he unlock it.
He closed the Supreme Chaos Manual, Mortal Level, with a thought. The golden tome hovered beneath the strange tree, which had now reverted to its eerie, gray-transparent state.
Chen Xian gazed at the tree and the tome, unable to calm his heart.
He knew that his life would forever be changed, made extraordinary, by the strange tree in his mind.