Volume 3: Global Vanguard & The Advanced Pinnacle
Chapter 233
Divine Spring Marrow Cleansing & Six-Element Advancement
The wind on the peak of the Parthenon Holy Mountain swept gusts of pristine air through the blinding white marble Doric columns. The pungent, earthy fragrance of artemisia mixed with millennial cinnamon bark, carrying the purest blessing fluctuations of the ancient temple.
Beneath the crystal-clear Greek sky, Lin Feng slowly strolled behind Grand Goddess Priest Sofia. Her gold-threaded silk robe swept lightly against the quartz stone floor, emitting a pure rustling sound. Flanking them were four Holy Temple Knights clad in gleaming silver heavy armor, gripping tightly to lanten-engraved heavy lances as an escort.
“Contestant Lin Feng, ahead lies the inviolable forbidden territory of the Temple—the Parthenon Holy Spring.”
Sofia paused before a massive arched gate carved directly into the monolithic cliff face. Her voice was warm and deep, her gaze filled with profound awe toward the youth from Shenzhou:
“For hundreds of years, the Holy Spring has only been opened for the newly appointed Pope or successive Saintesses to perform the rite of soul cleansing. Even princes, nobles, or Forbidden-Cursing Great Mages who rendered monumental contributions were at most rewarded with a single flask of spring water gathered from the outer branches. To allow an outsider to step right into the center of the Spring Eye to soak for three days and three nights... this is an unprecedented precedent. Your feat of defeating Alexander and leading Shenzhou to the world championship throne in Venice has forced the entire Elder Council to bow in respect.”
Lin Feng nodded slightly, his angular face maintaining its usual calm composure. Having survived countless bloody battles covering the Adriatic Sea, the razor-sharp aura around his body had completely retracted, becoming as profound and unfathomable as an abyss.
“Many thanks to the Grand Goddess Priest and the Holy See for keeping their promise.”
“The absolute strong are fully worthy of receiving the supreme reward.”
Sofia raised her lapis lazuli-inlaid scepter, lightly tapping the tip against the mythological pattern on the gates. Instantly, a brilliant jade-green ripple radiated outward, and ancient Greek runes blazed with light. The thousand-ton heavy stone gates slowly slid apart without emitting the slightest sound, revealing a deep, plunging passageway suffused with cool, misty vapor.
“You have a full three days. Once the time limit expires, the defensive formation will automatically expel you. Remember well, the Holy Spring’s spiritual qi is extremely violent; you must never force it if your meridians cannot withstand the pressure.”
“I understand.”
Lin Feng resolutely stepped across the stone threshold. The heavy gates behind him closed shut, completely sealing off all worldly clamor.
Inside the cavern, there was no damp gloominess. All around, the natural stone walls consisted of translucent white quartz plates that emitted a gentle, soothing glow spontaneously. In the center of the cavern lay a body of water about thirty zhang wide, as calm as a giant mirror carved from lapis lazuli jade. The crystal-clear water revealed intricate mystical mineral veins glowing faintly at the bottom, deeper than ten meters. On the surface of the lake, ribbons of mist undulated like fairy silk. Every breath inhaled caused the viscera to vibrate rhythmically due to the dense concentration of primordial magic energy.
The Parthenon Holy Spring—a millennial spiritual spring condensing humanity’s ultimate source of healing!
Lin Feng removed his uniform jacket, revealing a robust physique with chisel-hard muscles like tempered steel. Faint, obscure scars were deeply etched across his chest and shoulders—the testimony of his clashes with Biên An sea monsters, his mortal combat alongside the Black Vatican in the Magic City, and the heaven-shaking punch from Alexander’s Titan mecha.
He stepped barefoot to the water’s edge.
The moment his first foot touched the azure-jade water, a bone-chilling cold rushed straight from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head, causing his entire body to shudder slightly. But a split second later, that chill abruptly transformed into a surging, violent torrent of heat, akin to thousands of warm little springs frantically permeating through ten thousand pores.
Lin Feng clenched his teeth, wading straight into the lakebed and then slowly diving deep into the center of the spring eye. He crossed his legs and sat upon a smooth jade-stone slab beneath the water, closing his eyes tightly and entering a state of deep meditation.
The process of the Divine Spring Marrow Cleansing officially began!
Through hundreds of bloody, life-or-death battles from his initial awakening all the way to stepping onto the pinnacle of the world, Lin Feng had absorbed countless magic energies from remnant souls, soul essence, spiritual medicines, and battle achievements. Even though his cultivation speed was shockingly fast, his meridians had endured countless microscopic fractures alongside layers of filthy magical residue clinging tightly to them.
Normally, these impurities hid deep within the bone marrow, but when pushing toward the Super Tier or Forbidden Curse major realms, they would transform into fatal shackles, causing mages to be permanently trapped or to suffer ruptured meridians and die.
The millennial holy water of the Parthenon was turning into a divine sledgehammer, shattering those shackles bit by bit.
The azure-jade holy liquid surged in a torrent, pouring into Lin Feng’s body. It did not flow along ordinary blood vessels; instead, it pierced straight through flesh and skin, worming its way into every cell, purging every vertebra and marrow organ.
Crack! Crack!
Crisp, cracking sounds echoed within his body. Intense pain struck, akin to having one’s skin peeled and bones scraped. It felt as though millions of dull blades were dredging every muscle fiber, scraping clean the layers of filth clinging tightly to the meridian walls over all those years.
Veins bulged violently on Lin Feng’s temples, twitching in spasms. His entire body shivered beneath the lakebed, yet his face maintained its unyielding, iron-willed expression. He did not expend force to resist; instead, he actively relaxed all defenses, opening wide all major acupoints to allow the holy water to purge freely.
From every pore, thick, dark-gray streams of liquid began to be expelled. These were precisely the magical impurities accumulated from ferocious battles and unevaporated magic toxins. The moment they escaped his skin, the filth was instantly purified into ephemeral air bubbles by the azure holy water.
The more it was cleansed, the lighter and more wondrous Lin Feng’s body became.
When the final droplet of residue vanished, a pure silver-white halo abruptly enveloped him. All meridians in his body expanded twofold, becoming translucent and sparkling like crystal yet pliable and durable like ancient dragon silk. Every muscle fiber and bone segment seemed reforged from indestructible diamond, overflowing with unprecedented, vibrant vitality. Blood and vital energy surged like the roaring sound of a waterfall echoing in his ears.
When all tendons, bones, and meridians reached absolute perfection, the colossal leyline energy of the holy mountain began to roar, transforming into a massive swirling water column that enveloped Lin Feng, pouring wildly straight into his Brow Center!
BOOM!
Lin Feng’s sea of consciousness shook violently like a heaven-opening and earth-splitting flood!
Within the boundless realm of consciousness, the solid spiritual wall of his sea of consciousness was abruptly pushed outward by this holy energy. One zhang, ten zhang, a hundred zhang... The mental space expanded frantically at a speed visible to the naked eye, growing three times wider than before! Such a vast and boundless sea of consciousness was normally only possessed by powerhouses who had stepped into the threshold of the peak Super Tier!
At the center of that vast spiritual sky, Lin Feng’s six magic elements were simultaneously manifesting, creating an unprecedented, magnificent spectacle:
Reigning in the central position at the highest peak were two vast, brilliant Star Seas—representing Lin Feng’s Advanced Tier realm:
On the left was the dark purplish-gloomy Lightning Star Sea, with three hundred and forty-three stars glittering like amethyst thunder crystals. Lightning traversed the night sky, tearing open the void, carrying the might of the ultimate Lightning Spirit Seed, ready to unleash destructive punishing blows.
On the right was the Fire Star Sea surging with crimson heat waves, three hundred and forty-three burning stars blazing boundlessly. Waves of Scarlet Flame roared fiercely, forming deep crimson magma whirlpools and radiating a scorching breath that incinerated all things.
On the second tier below were two Intermediate Star Nebula having reached Tier 3 Peak:
The Shadow Nebula condensed into a pitch-black, profound veil of night; forty-nine jet-black stars flickered like lingering ghosts, exuding a chilly, treacherous aura capable of swallowing all light and granting perfect assassination capabilities within darkness.
Beside it, the Summoning Nebula radiated a translucent silver-white light; forty-nine stars linked tightly together to form a mysterious spatial gateway. Deep within that gateway, the massive silhouette of the Netherworld Dark Wolf reared back and roared, its entire body covered in pitch-black lightning scales, absorbing a portion of the holy spring’s spiritual qi pouring through the soul pact to temper its sharp claws and fangs.
And finally, located in the deepest, most secluded corner of the sea of consciousness—newly opened when Lin Feng stepped into the Advanced Tier realm at the Venice tournament—were two youthful Star Dusts:
The Space Star Dust radiated a pure, brilliant silvery light.
The Chaos Star Dust coiled with mystical ash-gray mist.
At this moment, both of these Dimension magic elements were merely at the Primary Tier Tier 1 realm, each streak possessing a mere seven tiny stars revolving around a central axis, looking as fragile as candles flickering before a storm.
As everyone knew, Dimension magic including Space, Chaos, Psychic, and Sound were the most supreme and difficult-to-cultivate magic elements in the mortal world. To accumulate enough magic energy to split seven primary stars into forty-nine intermediate stars, an ordinary genius from a prestigious clan would have to spend five to eight years of bitter cultivation devouring countless astronomical resources.
Yet today, these two tender elements had encountered the most fertile land in existence!
The Parthenon Holy Spring was inherently a convergence of heaven and earth’s blessing essence, with magic energy so pure it lacked any elemental impurities whatsoever. For two “energy-swallowing black holes” like Space and Chaos, this was the absolute finest divine feast!
Rumble... rumble... rumble...
At the bottom of the lake, Lin Feng’s body emitted a muffled roar akin to the startup of a super magic engine. The torrent of azure-jade holy water poured endlessly into the crown of his head, transforming into two colossal light galaxies that cascaded straight down to the deep corner of his sea of consciousness, enveloping the Space Star Dust and Chaos Star Dust!
The seven silver stars of the Space Element began to vibrate violently. They emitted ear-piercing shrieks of tearing space, frantically devouring the pure energy. Each star swelled in size, its silver light glowing dazzlingly bright across the corner of the consciousness sky. Tiny spatial cracks began to appear around their orbits.
On the other side, the seven ash-gray stars of the Chaos Element were no less formidable. The chaotic aura upended elemental order, turning all absorbed energy into a spinning gray whirlpool.
Both Star Dusts were like starved ancient beasts of a thousand years, devouring without pause. Energy accumulated to the ultimate tolerance limit of a Primary Star Dust.
“Compress! Continue to compress for me!”
Lin Feng’s consciousness roared within the sea of consciousness. He did not rush to break through; instead, with the iron will of a dual-element Advanced Mage, he forcefully compressed that violent magic energy. The tighter the compression, the more solid the future foundation!
The seven silver stars compressed into dazzling diamond-like points of light.
The seven ash-gray stars compressed into thick, dark dust particles dense as dark matter.
The pressure within the sea of consciousness multiplied exponentially, akin to a sealed volcano with its crater plugged, boiling with magma awaiting eruption. The spiritual walls surrounding both elements trembled violently, the invisible Intermediate Tier barrier as thin as paper before the thousandfold pressure.
When the accumulation reached the absolute explosion point—
CRACK!
A crisp cracking sound echoed like the shell of a divine beast’s egg shattering through the void!
The realm barrier shattered! EXPLODING!
From within the seven silver Space stars, an invisible spatial shockwave swept across the sea of consciousness. The brilliant silver light specks scattered and separated into fourteen, twenty-eight... shooting straight up to the count of forty-nine glittering stars!
Forty-nine silver stars linked by brilliant silver light filaments, officially expanding from a tiny Star Dust into a magnificent, boundless SPACE STAR NEBULA!
Space Element—Intermediate Tier breakthrough!
Now, Lin Feng could no longer merely use the Primary Tier “Mind Gravity Pressure”; he could map out a Spatial Star Map and cast the notorious Intermediate Tier magic: Spatial Law — Time Stasis and rips in space capable of tearing apart enemy defenses!
Simultaneously, beside the Space Star Nebula, another muffled explosion rang out:
BOOM!
The ash-gray whirlpool of the Chaos Element expanded ferociously. The seven ash-gray stars divided frantically, torrents of chaotic aura reversing the heavens and earth, sweeping away all fixed rules. Forty-nine ash-gray stars formed a mysterious, profound CHAOS STAR NEBULA, resembling a miniature black hole nestled within the sea of consciousness!
Chaos Element—Intermediate Tier breakthrough!
Unlocking the Intermediate Tier Chaos magic: Chaos — Chaotic Reversal, a magical technique capable of bending the trajectory of an opponent’s spells, turning enemy attacks into backlash weapons against themselves!
The magic waves subsided, and Lin Feng’s sea of consciousness gradually regained its profound tranquility, but its internal appearance had completely metamorphosed.
Six Elements Assembled!
Lightning Element: Advanced Tier Tier 1 (Star Sea)!
Fire Element: Advanced Tier Tier 1 (Star Sea)!
Shadow Element: Intermediate Tier Tier 3 Peak (Star Nebula)!
Summoning Element: Intermediate Tier Tier 3 Peak (Star Nebula)!
Space Element: Intermediate Tier Tier 1 (Star Nebula)!
Chaos Element: Intermediate Tier Tier 1 (Star Nebula)!
At nineteen years old, wielding six independent magic elements, among which two Elemental elements reached Advanced Tier, two Dark & Summoning elements reached Intermediate Tier Peak, and two mysterious Dimension elements had just broken through to Intermediate Tier!
If this power configuration leaked to the outside world, the entire magic world from the Holy City’s Magic Tribunal down to global top academies would plunge into a frenzy of shock. This was something no one in human history had ever achieved since the dawn of the magic era!
A feeling of overflowing fullness filled every cell. Lin Feng let out a long breath beneath the lakebed. Both his mind and body had reached an unprecedented peak state.
However, just as he prepared to retract his magic energy to consolidate his cultivation—
Buzz... buzz...
An abnormally scorching temperature suddenly erupted from his chest!
The gray-black dragon-shaped jade pendant pressed against his skin—the Primordial Dragon Pendant—began to vibrate violently. The pendant, normally cold as ice, now glowed red as a burning coal fresh from a magic forge. The ancient dragon veins carved upon the pendant sprang to life, coiling like a black dragon scratching and tearing at the void to escape!
“Roar...!”
An ancient dragon roar carrying absolute pressure echoed deep within Lin Feng’s mind. That roar produced no mechanical sound underwater, yet it caused his soul to tremble violently.
“The Dragon Pendant... is reacting to something at the bottom of the lake?”
Lin Feng instantly became vigilant. Ever since his magic awakening, the Primordial Dragon Pendant had saved his life countless times, but never had it emitted such a fervently passionate fluctuation. It completely ignored the surrounding Parthenon holy water, directing all its attention straight downward—penetrating through the mineral jade mud of the Holy Spring’s floor!
Whoosh!
From the Primordial Dragon Pendant, a strand of golden light shot outward, enveloping Lin Feng’s divine consciousness and pulling his awareness deep down into the earth.
Guided by the Dragon Qi, Lin Feng’s divine consciousness easily pierced through the jade stone at the bottom of the lake, punctured hundreds of meters of thick granite bedrock beneath the Parthenon Holy Mountain, and plunged straight into the profound core deep beneath the Greek earth.
Mud and rock flashed by in the blink of an eye.
And then, his divine consciousness’s perspective opened up to a colossal underground space that left one holding their breath in awe!
Beneath the millennial snow-capped, holy-light-enveloped Parthenon Holy Mountain, there was actually hidden a FIRE GOD CAVERN spanning thousands of mu!
Here was a rolling crimson sea of magma touching the sky. The terrifying temperature completely distorted the air; millennial lava rocks falling into the fire sea were incinerated into dust in an instant.
But what caused Lin Feng’s pupils to contract violently was not the magma sea, but the scene right at the center of the cavern:
Rising amidst the boiling fire sea were twelve colossal platinum-colored sealing pillars carved with forbidden spell runes of the Parthenon Holy See. Hundreds of magic chains as thick as ancient tree trunks, emitting dazzling holy light, intertwined to form a massive taboo cage, pinning down a terrifying entity within.
Crouched within the taboo cage was a blazing golden flame!
No, more accurately, that flame had condensed into the shape of an Ancient Great Dragon!
Every single dragon scale upon its body was forged from the purest fire flames, and its dragon eyes burned with endless destructive fire. Every time it stirred its body, the taboo chains vibrated violently, spraying thousands of white sparks and dragging up surging waves of magma dozens of zhang high!
A violent, tyrannical, and suffocatingly ancient aura filled the space.
“This is...”
Lin Feng’s heart beat furiously. The Fire Star Sea in his sea of consciousness was stimulated, frantically boiling in response to the roar of that fire dragon. The Scarlet Flame spirit seed he currently possessed—the seed that had once helped him dominate arenas—at this moment shrank back like a servant encountering an emperor!
Soul Seed! No... this is not an ordinary Soul Seed!
Lin Feng stared fiercely at the imprisoned fire dragon. Around that fire dragon’s flames, space was not simply burned; it formed an independent boundary—where all other elements were assimilated and incinerated into primordial fire energy!
That was the sign of magic that any Advanced Great Mage desired to the point of madness: a DOMAIN!
A supreme, archaic top-grade Fire Element Soul Seed, possessing at least five times the power of ordinary magic, incinerating opponent’s meridians and carrying a unique, peerless Dragon Flame Domain—PRIMORDIAL DRAGON FLAME!
Why would such a terrifying destructive archaic ominous fire be sealed beneath the Holy Mountain of the Parthenon Holy See—a place representing White Magic blessing and healing?
And more importantly... why did his Primordial Dragon Pendant create such a violent resonance with this imprisoned fire?
Suddenly, the golden fire dragon within the taboo cage seemed to sense the familiar Dragon Qi from Lin Feng’s divine consciousness.
Its massive, blazing dragon head slowly lifted. Ancient burning dragon eyes pierced through the void of magma, staring straight into Lin Feng’s divine consciousness!
A low roar containing the anticipation of ten thousand years echoed from the depths of the abyss:
“You... have finally come...”
Whoosh!
Lin Feng’s divine consciousness was yanked backward by a powerful suction force, returning to his physical body.
At the bottom of the Parthenon Holy Spring, Lin Feng abruptly opened his eyes wide!
The azure-jade water around him boiled with bubbles as his body temperature soared. Deep within the youth’s pitch-black eyes, two dragon-shaped golden flames flashed before sinking deep into his pupils.
An arrogant, sharp smile slowly spread across his lips.
His fire element had just stepped into the Advanced Star Sea, but its might was still restrained by the Spirit Seed grade. He had been racking his brains searching for a matching Soul Seed to fill this supreme power puzzle piece.
And the greatest stroke of fortune in his life... turned out to lie right beneath his feet!
The Parthenon Holy See’s millennial taboo cage might be an inviolable sacred forbidden ground to others. But to one bearing the Primordial Dragon Pendant... that was precisely the key unlocking the door to becoming the lord of fire!
“Primordial Dragon Flame... You must be mine!”
Lin Feng clenched his fists, letting the Parthenon holy water continue washing away the hot sweat on his brow, his gaze burning bright as it targeted the deep abyss of the holy mountain.