The middle aged man couldnât believe his eyes, but just to be sure, he rushed in the direction of the man in blackâs disappearing figure.
Meanwhile, the cave was filled with a rumbling sound and flooded with light that came from all over Chen Haoâs body as he exclaimed, âSo this is the true awakening of the Way of Heaven!â
Chen Hao could feel energy bursting through every cell in his body, and having it burst out of his body felt really good. However, he wasnât concerned with how he would use this power; he was more concerned with how he would control it because right now he felt invincible, invulnerable. This was way more strength than he could possibly handle.
Is this the true strength of someone who has actually achieved the first cycle of awakening? Chen Hao sighed. Thank goodness for the strong Royal Stage Technique he learnt as part of the Heaven Abstruse Skills, or else heâd genuinely have no idea how to control all this power. Naturally, Chen Hao also noticed that the seven spots on his body had disappeared after his awakening, and he was completely enveloped in blue streaks of light.
This means that Iâm going back! Chen Hao thought. Now that heâd completed his awakening and achieved all the abilities that came with this first cycle, heâd gained so much strength that Chen Hao felt confident enough to see what the man in blackâs face looked like.
But Chen Hao was running out of time, so he didnât dare waste another moment; he levitated into the air and turned into a ball of light before heading straight toward the man in black.
âHoly crap, heâs a god!â The workers were losing their minds.
In a flash, Chen Hao caught up to the man in black, where he was still battling Uncle Pingan and clearly intending to make a break for it if it werenât for his uncle blocking his way. Unfortunately, though, Uncle Pingan was no match for him.
The two of them were battling in earnest when they both noticed a change in the weather. The man in black froze and immediately tried to retreat, but Chen Hao immediately attacked.
With a loud boom, the man in black was hit by a strong Qi wave that he simply could not resist. Chen Hao internally thought, Iâll unmask you for sure today!
While the man in black stumbled backward, Chen Hao lifted a hand to his mask and pulled. The man was powerless to stop Chen Hao in his current state, and his eyes instantly became filled with fear.
On the other hand, Chen Hao thought the manâs eyes looked familiar and was just about to take off the guyâs mask when a blue crackling current of electricity wrapped itself around Chen Hao.
Damn it, Iâm being sent back! Chen Hao thought, feeling himself become unable to move forward in the exact moment his Stone of Fate started using its irresistibly strong powers on him.
With a loud boom, another bolt of thunder struck and Chen Haoâs entire body disappeared in a flash of blue light. Before long, he felt that sensation again of being a blurry consciousness that had no control over itself.
Chen Hao did see the manâs eyes though, along with half of his face. He was familiar with it and he knew that it belonged to someone close to him, but he still couldnât remember who he was.
After what seemed like an eternity, Chen Hao suddenly heard a loud blast next to his ear that startled him as if he was waking from a dream.
When he slowly opened his eyes, Chen Hao realized that he was on an island full of lush forests. When he used his godly senses to look around, he could sense ships constantly passing nearby.
I should be back, but I was sent off course onto an island, Chen Hao thought. It wasnât hard to fly straight back to the Chen residence in the Southern Region, and Chen Hao fully intended to do that after meditating and sensing that his Foundation was completely intact. Truly, the Stone of Fate could do anything, so he had nothing to be afraid of anymore.
However, another problem surfaced immediatelyâwith the reawakening of his Foundation, Chen Hao had so much power that it felt like a mountainâs worth of weight on his body unless he could channel it properly. So, he was forced to stop and process this immense power by getting into a meditative position and use his channeling techniques.
At the same time, several bolts of lightning flashed over the Chen residence, but nothing was left behind when they passed. Chen Pingan was already getting anxious, and his eyes went wide when he realized this. âZiyan, whatâs going on? Where is Chen Hao? Shouldnât he be back by now?â he asked hastily.
âYes, but he should be fine. He probably just went off course because he was moving around at top speed before he left, and thatâs why he didnât reappear at the same spot. Weâre just not sure where the Stone took him,â Luo Ziyan said.
âAccording to what you said, Chen Hao should be completely different after his awakening, so it shouldnât take him much time to come back here if he was sent off course!â Chen Pingan said.
âNo, heâll have received so much power that he cannot handle it when it resurfaces in the present, so heâll need to take some time to channel it properly because thereâs so much to process! This might even result in physical changes, so he must take his time to reabsorb all that energy instead of rushing back.â
âHmm.â Chen Pingan nodded, then asked, âThen what changes will he go through? Will he get superpowers like we did in the Border Realm?â
âPerhaps, but clearly the ones heâll get are completely different from ours. His powers wonât just be superpowers, but it would be in a category of its own! A terrifyingly strong divine power!â Luo Ziyan explained.
âHmm, then I canât wait to see what his final transformation will look like,â Chen Pingan said cheerfully.
Just then, Luo Ziyan suddenly frowned and said, âOh no!â
âWhat is it, Ziyan?â Chen Pingan asked.
âA team of people are heading toward us fast, and I can sense the King of Nine Doors!â Luo Ziyan said grimly.
âThe King of Nine Doors?â Chen Pinganâs eyes went wide.
âTheyâve found us after all. We need to leave right now!â Luo Ziyan said.
âLeave? You wish it was that easy!â A terrifying voice could be heard roaring from all around them and with a howling gust of wind, the King of Nine Doors arrived with an army of martial arts experts, who quickly surrounded the entire island that the Chen residence was on.
âZiyan, this wonât do! You need to leave now while I distract them!â Chen Pingan said.
âNo way! Youâre Chen Haoâs uncle, and heâll be devastated if you were in danger. He canât afford to lose another loved one!â Luo Ziyan shook her head.
âYouâre more important to him by comparison. My life is nothing! Please go! The Chen residence has secret tunnels, and if we keep wasting time, none of us will be able to escape!â Chen Pingan begged in earnest.
Luo Ziyan hesitated for quite a while, but had to bite the bullet in the end; she couldnât afford to be captured by the King of Nine Doors right now, or else Chen Hao would be in a lot more danger than he already is. She had no choice but to turn herself into a beam of light with the Dragon Blood Jade still in her hands and hid within the Chen residenceâs secret tunnels.
âNone of you can leave! Chen Hao will fall before me!â The King of Nine Doorsâs voice could still be heard howling outside.