268: Chapter 268 Skill Effect: Breath of Flame

Ever since joining Old Wolf's team and throwing himself into tonight's thrilling operation to seize the golden bumpa bottle,

Fang Cheng had repeatedly utilized Qigong, relying on its unique effects to walk along the edge of life and death time and again, turning danger into safety.

Aside from enhancing his body's defense strength, treating injuries in a timely manner, and accelerating physical recovery,

it also allowed him to unleash even more astonishing attack power in close-quarters combat. Every punch thrown and every kick delivered, if simultaneously enveloped in True Qi, would see its power significantly enhanced.

On some level, Qigong had already become his most solid and reliable defensive skill, yielding unimaginable results in both offense and defense.

It was practically a customized Sharp Weapon for the battlefield, truly deserving of the title "exclusive skill".

Especially when challenging the nearly impossible task—flying across Miwu Mountain and gliding at high altitudes for a distance of nearly one kilometer, Fang Cheng made an unexpectedly pleasant discovery.

He noticed that through clever control, letting the surging breath within his body spray evenly and fiercely through all the pores of his body could actually form a powerful propulsion force similar to a jet engine.

This discovery was no less than letting Fang Cheng master a brand-new skill out of thin air, opening up possibilities worth trying for this adventure.

Because of this, the Qigong skill, which usually progressed slowly in training and was difficult to break through the Bottleneck, finally welcomed an Opportunity for an upgrade under this series of high-intensity actual combat trials.

Such a natural transformation was actually within reason and expected.

What truly made Fang Cheng pleasantly surprised was the skill special effect additionally acquired after this upgrade—Flame Breathing.

Looking at the continuously emerging prompt information, Fang Cheng subsequently cast his gaze toward the skill panel.

The row of skill bars representing "Qigong" faintly displayed a crimson red at this moment, as if a flame were burning fiercely within it.

[Flame Breathing, originating from the surging anger deep within the heart and the steel-like Battle Intent, can release a flame power strong enough to destroy everything and turn enemies into ashes]

[Your breathing ability, endurance, and combat capability in high-temperature and hot environments have all been unprecedentedly and significantly enhanced, as if a Phoenix reborn from the flames, growing stronger with every battle]

[When operating this Breathing Technique and releasing True Qi, you are like wearing a layer of heat-insulating armor, capable of effectively avoiding the threat of external flame high temperatures and strolling leisurely in a sea of fire]

[You can attach the True Qi turned into flames to various parts of your body at will, as well as the weapons you hold, giving it even stronger lethality, like adding wings to a tiger]

[Note: The various ability effects and flame temperature of Flame Breathing will rise along with the improvement of your internal True Qi quality, offering infinite potential]

[Note: This Breathing Technique is exceptionally fierce in power and has extremely high demands on the Physique. Forcing its use may cause partial bodily damage, and the consumption rate of True Qi is much faster than other Breathing Techniques. Therefore, the duration of continuous use should not be too long, and you must carefully grasp the scale]

Fang Cheng examined the more than ten full lines of skill special effect introductions, and a desire for battle couldn't help but rise in his heart, making him eager to try.

He immediately held his breath and concentrated, silently circulating his internal energy.

In an instant, the vast ocean at his Dantian began to surge, with layers of waves rising and falling one after another.

Beneath the sea level, in a place resembling an abyssal trench,

a violent power was hidden, like a sleeping giant beast slowly Awakening, emitting a heart-palpitating Aura.

At the same time, Fang Cheng's entire Aura instantly underwent a strange change, his eyes seeming to have flames ignited within them.

Wherever his gaze reached, it seemed to want to destroy everything.

With a movement of his will, a crimson True Qi, like surging magma, rushed out from beneath his abdomen, passing through his meridians and Bloodline, and surging all the way to his arm position.

In a split second, a flash of fire appeared on his right hand, and his entire palm instantly turned red and hot, resembling a piece of steel being continuously smelted in a furnace, its whole body blooming with a thrilling red light.

Immediately after, with a "bang" sound, his palm actually burned fiercely, and the scorching flames leaped happily.

Fang Cheng slowly raised his hand and clenched it into a fist.

The flames wrapping around his fist still burned fiercely in the water, and the crimson firelight illuminated the surrounding waters into utter brightness.

Where the flames made contact with the water, it sizzled, and a large number of bubbles continuously emerged, rising upward.

That was the product of the fierce collision between high temperature and cold water.

Witnessing such a bizarre scene, Fang Cheng couldn't help but mutter to himself:

"With me like this, perhaps it can also be called a Flaming Fist?"

Thinking of this, his thoughts couldn't help but drift back to the fire ability user he encountered back on Yongan Island.

He mentally compared it in secret, wondering whether his trick now, compared to the other party's, was stronger or weaker?

At this moment, Fang Cheng was merely releasing flames from a single palm. If his whole body were shrouded in roaring flames, how astonishing would that power be?

Perhaps in the eyes of others, he would look like the God of Fire descending to the mortal world?

Pushing down this thought, Fang Cheng recalled the scene when he flew across the high altitude.

No wonder that in the final sprint stage, he clearly felt a scorching and dazzling light resembling burning flames erupting from his body.

Those surging black mists rushing over were all ignited, turning into howling air currents that pushed him forward courageously.

That scene was simply like a meteor streaking across the night sky, plummeting down from the heavens.

Fang Cheng casually flicked his hand, extinguishing the flames on his palm, and cast his gaze back toward the Dantian.

Now that he had successfully mastered two Breathing Techniques, this meant that his body simultaneously possessed two types of True Qi with completely distinct properties.

Compared to the deep blue True Qi born from Water Breathing, which was as serene as the deep sea,

the crimson True Qi stimulated by Flame Breathing had high-temperature combustion as its greatest characteristic.

Its primary function lay in significantly enhancing attack power, allowing every strike he made to possess even more formidable and violent destructive force.

On the defense level, apart from being able to burn abnormal energy like black mist with high temperatures, flames could also form a scorching barrier at critical moments to protect his own safety.

More importantly, having an extra Breathing Technique meant having an extra choice when fighting and dealing with crises, allowing him to respond more flexibly to various complex situations.

Of course, there was still an extremely crucial problem in all of this.

The skill special effect introduction of "Flame Breathing" heavily emphasized that when using this Breathing Technique, the consumption speed of True Qi was extremely fast.

Even, overuse would cause some damage to the body.

Therefore, in an incomparably fierce battle, once he accidentally consumed too much, how to timely replenish nutritional energy became an imminent and important problem.

He couldn't possibly think that relying solely on practicing the Breathing Technique normally and ingesting air and food could quickly restore the depleted True Qi to its original state, right?

Fang Cheng's gaze flickered slightly, and he once again concentrated to carefully observe the Dantian.

That clump of azure True Qi representing Water Breathing had already restored itself to the appearance of a calm and tranquil sea at this moment.

Moreover, it almost filled the entire Dantian, and judging from the water level line, there was no obvious sign of decline.

Looking again at the crimson True Qi representing Flame Breathing hidden deep beneath the ocean floor, it was like a dormant volcano.

Seemingly calm, it actually contained boundless energy like magma, always ready to strike.

At present, whether it was physical strength or True Qi reserves, he was clearly at his Peak state.

You must know that previously, he flew across the high altitude, struggled to shatter the golden bumpa bottle, then plummeted from the sky, slammed heavily onto the ground, and subsequently dived to the bottom of the lake to circulate his energy and heal his injuries.

Every single one of this series of astonishing actions required the consumption of a large amount of True Qi.

The reason why his Dantian could be refilled and plumped up now was mainly thanks to a coincidence of Opportunity.

When he was circulating energy to heal his injuries at the bottom of the lake, it happened to coincide with a bloody rain falling from the sky and merging into the lake water.

Therefore, it allowed him to absorb the crimson energy contained within it to the greatest extent possible.

However, since it was an Opportunity, it meant it could only be met by chance and not sought by force.

This abnormal energy was obviously limited and non-renewable.

Fang Cheng guessed inwardly.

Perhaps, it was similar to the radiation properties emitted by ancient remains, both belonging to some extremely pure and powerful life energy.

Perhaps the two could transform into each other, much like the intersection of water and fire, the harmony of Yin and Yang, mutual generation and restriction, complementarity and integration?

Fang Cheng had no intention of continuing to probe deeply; after all, he had not yet completely escaped the dangerous situation.

The top priority was how to safely evacuate this Inner World and get rid of potential threats; everything else had to be put aside for the time being.

Thinking of this, Fang Cheng's eyes narrowed slightly, and he quickly glanced at the other prompt messages unrelated to Qigong.

[Your body has absorbed a certain life energy, Physique has increased by a total of 5 points]

[Boxing experience + 10]

[Boxing Lv2 (441 / 500)]

[Jiu-Jitsu experience + 10]

[Jiu-Jitsu Lv2 (227 / 500)]

[Tai Chi experience + 10]

[Tai Chi Lv1 (131 / 250)]

[Meditation experience + 4]

[Meditation Lv1 (160 / 250)]

Looking at these glowing pieces of information, the corners of Fang Cheng's mouth curved up slightly, and the joy in his heart grew even stronger.

After absorbing those mysterious crimson energies, his body directly increased its Physique by 5 points, boosting his Physique attribute to 46 points in one go.

You must know that after the attribute value exceeded the 40-point milestone, the effects brought by ordinary step-by-step training were already minimal.

Wanting to continue obtaining enhancements was quite difficult, almost like sailing against the current.

Fang Cheng had previously pinned his hopes on the attribute points that had a chance of being harvested when skills were upgraded.

Now, relying on an Opportunity accidentally obtained during a treasure-grabbing operation, he had achieved a massive leap forward.

It could be seen that the bizarre energy contained in this mysterious blood rain was truly extraordinary.

Aside from his Physique being significantly enhanced,

after the thrilling limit Flight and the action of shattering the Formation with his fists, the experience of several skills had also increased a lot.

The effect was comparable to the effort spent on continuous hard practice for several days.

Especially the Boxing skill, its experience continuously increased and accumulated rapidly.

Seeing that it was also about to cross the upgrade threshold and be promoted to the Grandmaster level in one fell swoop.

"Grandmaster..."

Fang Cheng sighed inwardly, his eyes full of yearning.

Just think about after the Push-up broke through to the Grandmaster level, the skill special effect acquired, "Qilin Arm", which had already become his ultimate move to defeat enemies at critical moments and display Divine Might.

Let alone this skill that was already specialized in combat.

Without considering differences in physical base attributes, in any industry, figures who could reach the Grandmaster level were all individuals who had undergone thousands of refinement and possessed exceptional talent.

They were like dazzling stars standing at the pinnacle of human skill, revered by all and yearned for by younger generations.

Fang Cheng's heart grew warm, and he couldn't help but feel even more driven regarding his future cultivation path.

After a brief contemplation, he immediately took a deep breath, calmed the excitement in his heart, and raised his eyes to look at the lake surface.

His gaze was like a sharp arrow piercing straight through the layers of lake water.

At this moment, the rain on the lake surface had stopped, and darkness and tranquility quietly shrouded this body of water and forest.

Seeing no abnormalities outside for the time being, Fang Cheng withdrew his gaze.

He then stretched his muscles and bones, only to hear a series of popping sounds coming from his entire body, resembling firecrackers going off together.

This was the cheer issued after his body further broke through its shackles, and it was also the roar of power surging within his body, eager to be released.

Fang Cheng bent his knees slightly, and his soles exerted sudden force.

Splash—

His entire person instantly shot upward toward the lake surface like an arrow leaving the string.

The moment he broke out of the water, it was just like a torpedo roaring, blasting water splashes everywhere.

Layers of waves were stirred up on the calm lake surface, breaking the silence.

Fang Cheng leaped into the air, twisted his waist and back, his posture as nimble as a large bird, and landed easily in the grass by the lake.

Looking around, the night was dark and profound.

Mist lingered among the forests like a light veil, indistinct, as if washed away and largely dissipated by the heavy rain.

In the distance, the calls of a Night Owl could be faintly heard, drifting leisurely in the tranquil night.

Miwu Mountain, which was originally fraught with danger, seemed to have restored its past tranquility after experiencing a bloody slaughter.

Moonlight was like water, pouring down through the gaps in the branches and leaves, paving patches of silver-white light spots on the ground.

It even gave off a feeling of an earthly paradise.

"Could it be that I have already come out of the Inner World?"

Fang Cheng muttered inwardly, his brows furrowing slightly.

He saw that the surrounding trees and green grass obviously grew more lush than before.

The branches and trunks of those trees were gnarled and vigorous, much thicker than before.

The color of the grass leaves was so rich that it seemed juice could drip from them, crowding closely together layer upon layer like a green carpet.

Even the vines climbed and spread more wantonly, wrapping everything they could entangle tightly, exuding a strong vitality.

But other than that, there really were no abnormal movements produced.

Fang Cheng's gaze flickered slightly, and he raised his head to look in the direction of Lu Family Manor.

In his Eagle Eye Vision, his sight pierced through layers of branches and leaves, but he did not see the expected lights or figures.

Then he turned his ear to listen, and did not capture any sounds of battle or shouts from those treasure grabbers.

Fang Cheng's heart was filled with doubts.

He didn't know how the battle situation over at the manor was doing.

Which of the two sides, the Lu family and the Black Sect lamas, won?

Did the Professor and the others safely evacuate the Inner World and return to the physical world?

After a brief thought, Fang Cheng decided to return to the manor immediately to check the situation and find out what was going on.

After all, the middle-aged man staying by the Professor's side was very likely his biological uncle.

Reason and emotion dictated that he could by no means stay out of it.

Fang Cheng clenched his fists, his finger joints popping loudly, his heart filled with confidence and strong Battle Intent.

With his physical strength and True Qi both reaching a full Peak state right now, as long as he wasn't beaten by Lu Shihua and Roger teaming up, facing either side alone, he would have the power to fight.

Just as he was pondering, suddenly a few "zizhi" sounds echoed in his mind, as if a radio wave signal was being transmitted, wanting to establish contact with his consciousness.

Fang Cheng's eyes lit up, and he immediately chose to accept this signal.

The next second, a calm yet caring voice clearly came through:

"White Ghost, where are you?"

Before Fang Cheng could respond, a crisp and urgent female voice rang out immediately after:

"Fang... White Ghost, are you okay?!"