"O-one hundred trillion!"
Su Zhan was utterly stunned.
Having just one protagonist halo would already make him extraordinary, but one hundred trillion? Wasn't this completely excessive?
However, when he examined the interface more closely, he noticed that all the protagonist halos displayed on his panel were grayed out and inactive—all except for the cultivation halo, which glowed with a faint golden light.
As Su Zhan puzzled over this phenomenon, the system's mechanical voice echoed in his mind once more.
"Host, as a beginner's gift package, you have been granted access to the [Protagonist's Cultivation Halo]. The remaining halos will be unlocked upon completing various achievement tasks!"
[Protagonist's Cultivation Halo]:Cultivation obstacles? What obstacles? As a protagonist, learning martial techniques and advancing realms should be as natural and effortless as eating, drinking, and sleeping.
After reading the halo's description, Su Zhan immediately inquired, "System, what exactly are these achievement tasks?"
"Host, achievement tasks can be triggered randomly at any time. You might even complete an achievement simply by drinking a cup of tea!"
"Then how do I activate these protagonist halos?"
"The Host need only open the halo interface and select the desired effect. However, please note that activating multiple halos simultaneously will dilute the potency of each individual halo."
After asking several more questions, Su Zhan finally grasped the basic mechanics of his protagonist halo system.
Just as he was processing this information, an irritating voice cut through his thoughts. "Young Master, why haven't you departed yet?" The servant's tone dripped with mockery. "Are you so terrified of the three great families that your legs are trembling and you can't walk?"
Though he heard the insolent words clearly, Su Zhan chose to ignore the servant for the moment. Instead, he immediately opened the halo interface and selected the cultivation halo without hesitation.
"Ding! Cultivation Halo activated!"
The moment Su Zhan began circulating his internal energy, the qi within his body suddenly erupted into chaos, surging wildly through his meridians.
Simultaneously, the medicinal essence of the Spiritual Lotus he had consumed days earlier began reacting violently with his true qi, creating a tempest of energy that raged throughout his entire body.
Su Zhan's initial excitement turned to alarm. If this explosive growth continued unchecked, his physical form might simply burst apart from the overwhelming pressure.
What kind of protagonist halo is this? It's more like a death halo! Su Zhan cried out internally.
At that critical moment, however, a warm, soothing sensation began flowing through his body. His previously chaotic true qi, rather than destroying him, suddenly broke through one of his blocked meridians!
Then the second meridian opened. The third. Then another!
Within ten seconds, every single meridian that had been obstructed for years was completely cleared!
His cultivation speed instantly increased by an exponential degree. The accumulated medicinal essence that had been dormant in his body for years, combined with the tremendous power of the Spiritual Lotus, was finally being absorbed and integrated to its fullest potential. The energy transformed into tyrannical true qi that shattered through realm barriers one after another!
Fifth Stage of the Meridian Opening Realm!
Sixth Stage of the Meridian Opening Realm!
...
Ninth Stage of the Meridian Opening Realm!
Early Stage of the Qi Sea Realm!
Six consecutive breakthrough!
Within his dantian, streams of true qi converged and condensed into a pristine white Qi Sea, dense with refined spiritual energy!
But his advancement still wasn't finished.
Several seconds later, the remaining medicinal power from the Spiritual Lotus was finally exhausted, and his cultivation stabilized at the Middle Stage of the Qi Sea Realm!
"This... this is incredible!" Su Zhan could hardly believe what had just occurred.
After several moments to collect himself, his face bloomed with pure joy.
This protagonist halo was truly miraculous!
The servant had also sensed the dramatic changes in Su Zhan's spiritual pressure. His expression shifted nervously as he asked hesitantly, "Y-Young Master, have you successfully broken through to the Fifth Stage of the Meridian Opening Realm?"
"Fifth Stage?" Upon hearing this, Su Zhan's lips curved into a cold smile. He approached the servant and delivered a sharp slap across his face.
SLAP!
The servant's body was launched through the air by the force of Su Zhan's strike. Five finger marks were clearly visible on his cheek, and he immediately spat out two bloody teeth upon hitting the ground.
"You! How dare you strike me! You should know that I—"
BANG!
Before he could finish his protest, Su Zhan delivered a vicious kick to his face.
"I know you're Su Heng's lapdog. I tolerated your disrespect before out of consideration for that relationship, but that doesn't mean I'm weak or easily bullied. If you dare show such insolence again, I'll beat you until you can't speak at all. Do you understand?"
"Understood, understood! Please have mercy, Young Master!" After experiencing Su Zhan's newfound power firsthand, the servant's anger immediately transformed into terror, and he kowtowed repeatedly while begging for forgiveness.
"Tell your master to keep his dogs on a tighter leash and stop letting them make disgusting spectacles of themselves!" Su Zhan declared coldly.
"Yes, yes, absolutely!" The servant nodded frantically.
"Get out!" Su Zhan then lifted his foot and kicked the servant again, sending him flying several meters down the corridor. With that dealt with, he turned and strode purposefully toward the main hall.
It didn't take long for Su Zhan to reach the reception hall. There, his father Su Tianhai was already seated with three Qi Sea Realm experts representing the three major families of Qingcheng City.
"Father," Su Zhan called out as he approached Su Tianhai.
"Ah, you've arrived, my son. These are honored elders from the three great families who have come to offer early birthday congratulations," Su Tianhai replied with a diplomatic smile.
"I see..." Su Zhan glanced around the room with feigned confusion. "Father, even though this is an early birthday celebration, I don't see any gifts. Are the three great families perhaps so impoverished that they cannot afford even a modest present?"
"Impudent!"
"Arrogant brat!"
"A mere junior dares speak so recklessly before his elders!"
The representatives from the three families immediately erupted in indignation at his words.
Su Tianhai frowned slightly. "Please, honored elders, don't take offense. My son is here now. If you have something to discuss, please speak plainly."
Elder Zhao from the Zhao Family stepped forward, his expression stern. "Very well, Patriarch Su. The Spiritual Lotus is an exceptionally rare heavenly treasure. Had that precious resource been given to a talented genius from the Zhao Family, they would have certainly reached the Qi Sea Realm within three days! Su Zhan, possessing such mediocre talent, has completely wasted this invaluable treasure. As his father, shouldn't you provide an explanation to our family?"
"Brother Zhao speaks our thoughts exactly," agreed the Chen Family representative.
"The Li Family shares this sentiment as well," added the third elder.
All three family representatives fixed their gazes on Su Zhan as they voiced their accusations.
Su Tianhai's voice turned cold. "Heavenly treasures can only be claimed by those fortunate enough to encounter them!"
"That statement holds truth, Patriarch Su, but why waste such a precious resource on someone utterly worthless?" Elder Zhao pressed.
"Precisely. If Su Heng of your family had obtained the Spiritual Lotus, we would have no complaints!"
"Exactly! Because Su Zhan has squandered the Spiritual Lotus—a treasure that should have benefited all four major families—Patriarch Su must provide us with satisfactory compensation!" Their voices carried clear undertones of coercion.
Among the four major families of Qingcheng City, the Su Family was admittedly the weakest. Now, with the other three families united in their grievance over the Spiritual Lotus incident, they held significant leverage to pressure the Su Family into submission.
Just as Su Tianhai's expression darkened and he struggled to formulate a response, Su Zhan spoke up calmly, "You keep insisting that I've wasted the power of the Spiritual Lotus. How amusing. If I, Su Zhan, was unworthy of obtaining the Spiritual Lotus, then you three families are even less deserving of it!"
As he spoke, the overwhelming spiritual pressure of the Middle Stage Qi Sea Realm erupted from Su Zhan's body!
"Impossible! Just days ago, he was clearly only at the Fourth Stage of the Meridian Opening Realm! Even if he managed to absorb the Spiritual Lotus completely, he could never have reached the Qi Sea Realm!" The representatives from the three families were visibly shaken.
"Breaking through directly from the Fourth Stage of Meridian Opening to the Middle Stage of Qi Sea Realm—this is absolutely impossible! He... he must have been concealing his true strength all along!"
"Even the most outstanding genius of the Zhao Family couldn't use a Spiritual Lotus to achieve such a dramatic breakthrough in a single leap!"
The three elders were thoroughly shocked, their voices filled with disbelief and growing unease.
Su Zhan shook his head dismissively. "That's simply because the people from your three families are too pathetic compared to me."
The atmosphere in the reception hall immediately became suffocating with tension.
The faces of the three Qi Sea Realm elders darkened considerably. They had come here intending to humiliate and extract concessions from Su Zhan, but instead found themselves faced with a genius who had just made them look like fools.
Moreover, this young man wasn't even sixteen years old and had already reached the Middle Stage of the Qi Sea Realm... If this level of talent continued to develop, the Su Family would inevitably surpass and dominate the other three families combined!
This could not be allowed! This prodigy had to be eliminated before he could fully mature!
Elder Zhao's expression turned grim as he clasped his hands toward Su Tianhai. "Patriarch Su, three days hence, we shall certainly return to properly celebrate Young Master Su's birthday with appropriate gifts."
"We take our leave."
After speaking, he turned and departed with obvious haste.
The elders from the other two families quickly followed in his wake.
Watching the three representatives flee in obvious distress, Su Zhan settled into a chair with a satisfied expression, picked up a teacup, and sipped his tea leisurely.
At that moment, a system notification suddenly appeared in his mind.
"Ding! You have successfully completed the achievement task 'First Demonstration of Power' and unlocked a new halo: [Protagonist's Comprehension Halo]!"