Bloodline awakening.
Su Linfeng smiled as he explained, "A single immortal herb alone couldn't do this. But it allowed me to sense the ancient bloodline of the Golden Crow clan, which triggered the true awakening of my spiritual power."
Bloodline?
Even a crow has a bloodline?
Bibi Dong stared blankly at him, still finding it hard to believe.
What kind of bloodline awakening could allow his spiritual power to leap by several dozen levels at once?
She was shocked, yes—but she didn't dig further. After all, she didn't know much about soul beast bloodlines. Instead, she asked:
"Then what abilities does your spiritual soul skill, Stellar Gaze, possess?"
"Stellar Gaze has two spiritual abilities."
Su Linfeng had no intention of hiding it, so he explained:
"One is an active ability called Mental Prediction. The other is a passive ability called Stellar Stare.
The active ability is similar to a perception skill. It allows me to foresee the opponent's every attack trajectory for three seconds into the future. One second before an enemy soul skill is released, a starmark automatically forms—and I can forcibly twist the direction of that skill."
"The passive is more like a control ability. When Stellar Gaze is activated, everything within my line of sight suffers. Among those at my level, all living beings lose 5% of their spiritual power per minute, which is then converted into my own soul power. If the target's spiritual power drops below 50% of mine, the drain doubles to 10% per minute."
"And—"
"Stellar Gaze can continue evolving."
Monstrous!
Bibi Dong's eyes twitched violently, staring at Su Linfeng as though he were some sort of freak.
Mental Prediction.
To foresee an enemy's every move for three seconds into the future! This wasn't just perception—it was absolutely a skill tied to time and space.
Even more outrageous, he could forcibly alter an opponent's attack direction a second before the skill was released. If that wasn't time-and-space authority, what was?
And that passive ability…
To drain 5% of an opponent's spiritual power per minute, converting it into his own soul power—this meant that in battle, he could essentially fight without consumption. He might even exhaust opponents to death. After all, once a soul master's spiritual power was depleted, they would collapse into unconsciousness.
And this heaven-defying skill could still evolve further?
"Elder Sister."
Seeing her face filled with shock, Su Linfeng couldn't help but feel a bit smug. He cleared his throat on purpose.
"I didn't lie to you, right? To a soul beast, these immortal herbs are like what ten-thousand-year soul rings mean to human soul masters."
"Mn."
Bibi Dong nodded. "This truly surpasses even my imagination."
"And… I feel terrifyingly strong right now."
Su Linfeng narrowed his eyes, mischievously sizing her up. "I noticed Elder Sister's aura was a bit unstable from that fight earlier. Should we, maybe… find a cave to test things out first?"
"…"
Bibi Dong froze.
This little brat! He's getting more and more outrageous!
And more and more cheeky toward her!
The worst part was—she couldn't even be angry.
Who told her to tease him before, saying he couldn't do it? Kids always had that competitive streak. But hearing him now somehow felt… suggestive.
"Just hurry and eat your herbs already!"
Bibi Dong flicked him sharply on the forehead with her fingers, then cast a glance at the unconscious, trembling Dugu Bo. "What about this one? Should I kill him directly?"
Uh…
Su Linfeng rubbed his sore head, looking at Dugu Bo as well.
Kill him?
That certainly fits Bibi Dong's character. For someone who might one day threaten Spirit Hall, the simplest solution was erasure.
But Su Linfeng thought differently.
Dugu Bo might be an oddball, but he had weaknesses. Sometimes, a living pawn was more useful than a dead one. It all depended on how you used him.
Thinking this, Su Linfeng inhaled deeply.
"Keep him alive. I think I might have a way to make him serve Spirit Hall. For now, let him sleep. Don't let him interfere with my herb absorption."
Bibi Dong nodded.
Though she didn't believe Su Linfeng could truly pull this off, she still agreed.
After all, she didn't want to kill someone in front of him again. And seeing him so serious, she wanted to give him a chance to try.
It was a kind of indulgence.
With her assent, Su Linfeng grinned.
"Elder Sister, later I'll need you to guard me. This time, it might take longer. And no matter what happens, don't intervene."
"Go on."
Bibi Dong reached out and ruffled his hair gently. "Be careful."
"Mn."
Su Linfeng nodded, reassured, and walked toward the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Though excitement surged within him, he wasn't reckless. Each step he took, he calmed himself further, carefully analyzing which herbs he could and couldn't take.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass was marvelous, but it was pure ice, incompatible with his fiery attribute. What he sought was the ultimate flame—he didn't need dual fire-ice immunity.
So he gave it up first.
The Yearning Heartbroken Red was excellent, but had little benefit to his cultivation. He decided to store it for later.
Following his body-tempering order, he picked the Strange Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, Qiluo Tulip, and Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone one after another.
Body, spirit, meridians, bones, martial spirit limits—all set.
Finally, he chose the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower and Blazing Apricot Cactus to elevate his martial spirit's quality.
As for the fiery poison of the Apricot Cactus? Completely negligible for him.
Su Linfeng consumed the six herbs in sequence. Before he lost control, he dove into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well with a splash, under Bibi Dong's alarmed gaze.
The well erupted in boiling turmoil.
Energy burst from his body, dyeing the waters in seven dazzling colors.
At the same time—
The skies above the Sunset Forest shifted once more. Though night was falling, the sinking sun suddenly blazed with radiant brilliance.
Even more terrifying—
Bibi Dong saw the stars above begin to twinkle, as if endless streams of starlight were pouring into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well like a celestial river.
"Mnnn—"
Su Linfeng, seated in the fiery pool, let out a low groan before surrendering to the intoxicating sensation.
What he didn't know was—
His body outside was changing under the baptism of the starlight.
In Bibi Dong's stunned eyes, the familiar phantom of the Three-Legged Golden Crow appeared once again above the well. Its body was growing at a frightening pace.
A thousand years. Ten thousand years. A hundred thousand years.
Transformation!
Six years. Eight years. Fifteen. Eighteen.
Time trickled on.
From child to boy, from boy to youth—the phantom grew until it stood as a young man, then ceased.
And Bibi Dong froze in place.
Su Linfeng had been reborn.
Slender brows, a high nose bridge, a sharp jawline—his face looked sculpted by divine hands. His elegant features, handsome nose, and lips the shade of cherry blossoms curved in a perfect arc. That faint smile seemed able to part the clouds, gentle yet unrestrained.
A beauty beyond gender, beyond the mortal realm—words could no longer capture it.
Yet Su Linfeng himself remained unaware, lost in the ecstasy of tempering by the immortal herbs and the fiery spring.