Chapter 176 - Evanescence: The Prideful Son of Heaven

Qin Fen took the nutrient solution and gave it to Xing Wuyi. The disdainful gaze of the comet level expert seeped with ridicule, as he assumed that Qin Fen didn’t understand what the nutrient solution was.

Xing Wuyi pushed the offered nutrient solution back to Qin Fen. His tone revealed quite the fatigue. “This is some good stuff. This is a high-grade nutrient solution. It can alleviate the body’s fatigue.”

Qin Fen didn’t decline this time around, but neither did he want to bicker with the meteor level expert who knew what it really was. He stuffed the nutrient solution into the pocket of his military uniform.

Such an action grew the gazes of ridicule of several people. It was as if they were saying, you really are a country bumpkin who lacks experience.

Qin Fen wasn’t in the mood to bicker with the arrogant and lofty experts about possessing true knowledge. The near-complete depletion of true energy could not be restored by a bottle of nutrient solution. Enzo Rota’s Super Berserker Pill and Super Armor Pill had such tyrannical side effects. Only those who ate these pills for themselves would know of these side effects.

The vehicle’s journey was smooth from beginning to end. It took approximately half an hour before it began to slow to a stop.

The door to the vehicle opened, and Qin Fen walked out, carrying Du Zhanpeng. He was given a fright when he saw where they were.

What a large house! It clearly had the appearance of a civilian residence, yet there was even a gatehouse at the entrance. It seeped with a faint air akin to that of a lookout post outside the entrance to a military camp. There were even soldiers, wearing the common uniform of the Army, standing in front of the entrance. These people were in charge of guard work.

Qin Fen studied the new guards a few times. Though they clearly wore the common military uniform of the Army, their bodies exuded faintly with powerful auras. Their strengths were probably in the realm of the comet level.

Door guards? And they didn’t even have any military ranking emblems on their uniforms, even though the uniforms were that of the Army. They were comet level martial artists as well? A series of puzzling questions flashed in Qin Fen’s mind. This couldn’t be Du Hen’s residence, right?

They made their way past the courtyard and approached the large villa doors of the two-story building. Du Hen’s held a wisteria walking stick in his hand as he sat on a chair, carved out of wood, in the middle of the room.

He gently raised his hand when he saw Qin Fen, pointing the walking stick at the Du Zhanpeng in Qin Fen’s hands. “Carry Pengster away.”

There was a seasoned soldier with the martial artist strength of the comet level standing beside Qin Fen. He reached out with both arms.

Qin Fen looked at Du Zhanpeng, who was against his chest. The deathly-white face was the same as usual, and the ice-cold body never showed any signs of taking a turn for the better all this time.

“Give him to me. You have done your best already.”

The seasoned soldier spoke, but this time the lofty and arrogant air was no longer contained within his voice. Instead, his voice revealed a hint of sorrow.

Qin Fen gently sighed. Since Du Zhangpeng was the child of the Du Family, the Du Family really did have the authority to take him. They were his family, after all.

“If it is possible….” Qin Fen spoke to the seasoned soldier, who was carrying Du Zhangpeng away. “Still ask for a doctor. Perhaps a miracle may truly occur.”

A faint tremble ran through the seasoned soldier’s body. The footsteps he strode out with stopped for that one moment before quickly leaving the hall.

“Sit.”

Du Hen’s expression was just as dignified and imposing as it was from the very beginning. There was a difference, however. A haggard pain from mourning over his grandchild was seen on his forehead. The haggardness faintly gathered there, not dispersing.

Very casually, the wisteria cane lightly knocked against the ground with a single strike. His commanding words made it very hard to refuse him.

Qin Fen was far too tired. He strove, never giving up, on the entire journey. This caused his mind, true energy, and even body to be sent to their limits. Overdrafting all his strength past their limits like this had never appeared even in the two weeks of training. He immediately sunk into the sofa.

“What sort of desires did Pengster possess before he left?”

“He hoped that Du Peng….”

“Don’t talk about him.” Du Hen raised his wisteria cane, gently swaying it. “Talk about other things.”

Qin Fen looked at Du Hen, unable to understand. Was this old man not the Viper King who was the most proficient in planning? Even if he didn’t feel even an ounce of love toward Du Peng, his own bloodline, he should know that it is very likely that Du Zhanpeng’s death was real. Du Peng could allow the Du Family to continue on, for he too was one of their offspring. Why was Du Hen so stubborn? Why did intense malice flash in his eyes when he heard Du Peng’s name?

After a short period of silence, Qin Fen shook his head, feeling very tired. “There is nothing else.”

Du Hen was stunned at first before his lips lifted into a faint smile. His eyes flickered faintly with the misty waters of tears.

He placed down the wisteria cane in his hands, and his two hands gently clapped in applause.

There was only the sound of Du Hen clapping in this peaceful hall.

Clap… clap…

“Good… good…. it really is good….” Du Hen’s voice, which was full of grief, seeped with faint pride. “No wonder he is the grandchild who I, Du Hen, looked heavily upon. He was even able to trick me.”

Killing intent filled the air fo the hall in a split second. The ice-cold killing intent had only one source: Du Hen’s body.

The eyes of the Viper King were filled with fury. He was merely sitting, and his feet weren’t even lifted, but Qin Fen could feel his own sofa trembling.

It wasn’t that the sofa itself was trembling, but rather that the ground within a five meters radius of Du Hen was trembling.

In this instance, countless cracks emerged in the perfectly polished marble tiles.

“It’s a pity… a real pity….” Du Hen shook his head over and over. “It’s a pity that my grandchild, he who is this intelligent, did the most stupid thing of all. Du Peng’s aptitude is limited. At most, he can only become an expert in his future growth. It is impossible for him to become a commander, and it is even more impossible for him to become an apex expert. I should have known… I should have known… I should have known to kill Du Peng earlier on.”

Qin Fen looked at Du Hen with worry. Let alone the fact that Qin Fen’s strength was unable to return to its peak for the time being, before this Viper King, Qin Fen didn’t even have the power to resist even if he was at his peak if the Viper King was to truly to kill Du Peng.

The killing intent gradually faded away, and Du Hen returned back to his calm state of the Viper King. He slowly raised his cane. “I know what you are thinking. Be at ease. For consideration of Zhanpeng, I won’t kill him.”

Du Hen seemed to have aged quite a bit in a split second. He waved his cane around once more. “All of you should go rest now.”

The servant of the house quickly arrived before Qin Fen. He bowed and said, “Mister, please follow me.”

“Wuyi, is there something else?” Du Hen looked at Xing Wuyi, who stood in place, not leaving. Du Hen was a bit curious. This child, who normally didn’t even dare to breathe in front of his aura, had guts today that was truly far, far greater than usual.

“Grandfather Du.” Xing Wuyi drew in a deep breath. “I want to sleep in Zhanpeng’s room….”

Du Hen was stunned for a moment before his ice-cold eyes grew moist once more.

He didn’t say anything else this time. He just gently nodded his head. He raised his arm and waved his hand.

Xing Wuyi bent over in a deep bow of ninety degrees. He didn’t need anyone to lead him around. He quickly walked to the second story.

At this moment, Du Hen slowly leaned back in the large chair carved of wood. He stared idly at the lamp that hung in the hall. His mouth muttered in a whisper. “Pengster, you have a cohesiveness that is incomparable. You are able to have little Yi, who is incomparably afraid of me, to standoff against me for your sake. You possess an astonishing gift for martial arts. You possess an outstanding mind. You possess the skill to control your subordinates. Why… why did the perfect you have to….”

The hall sunk into a silence that was incomparable. All the servants and bodyguards quietly left this room. Everyone knew that this Viper King needed some peace right now.

Qin Fen entered the guest room. He lacked the strength to even undress and shower.

The door closed, and his entire body went weak. He simply laid on the soft carpet and fell asleep.

It was the unbounded space of darkness. The master of the school of theory slowly walked out from within the darkness.

“You must be tired, kid.”

Even if his body was resting, even if this was merely a dream, Qin Fen still felt the incomparable fatigue with his mind. He slowly nodded his head, not saying a word.

It wasn’t that he lacked the strength to speak, it was that Qin Fen didn’t want to speak. Everything about Du Zhanpeng was deeply engraved in his mind. There were pent up emotions in his chest, ones that were impossible to talk about.

“You made two mistakes this time.”

The master didn’t care about Qin Fen’s emotions. As a master of the school of theory in the martial dao, what he needed to care about was Qin Fen’s development on the martial dao.

“Two?”

Qin Fen raised his head. The words that the master just spoke contained extraordinary penetrating power. Even if Qin Fen was in a gloomy mood, the words were able to jolt Qin Fen’s entire mind.

“The first. You had just entered the five-star meteor level. You should not have transfused the purest of higher-level true energy into someone else’s body.” The master had a face of disappointment as he looked at Qin Fen. “Do you know? Do you know why there is such a huge difference between the titles of the four-star level and the five-star level? It is because their will is an essential change between them! In theory, the five-star level will never lose to the four-star level….”

The master looked at Qin Fen at this point. He shook his head and said, “You are an exception. But your exception doesn’t count. Of course, if using auxiliary equipment, a four-star can indeed prevail over the five-star. However, purely in theory, when two sides don’t borrow any external forces, this should be an iron law. Why is this? This is because of innate true energy!”

“Innate true energy?” Qin Fen was stunned for a moment.

“That’s right! Innate true energy.” The master’s state returned to the great scholarly demeanor of a teacher. “At the four-star level and below, true energy that is cultivated can completely only be acquired true energy. The moment someone breaks through to the five-star level, the innate true energy can be excited in one’s body. That innate true energy is extremely important. It can slowly transform all the acquired true energy of the four-star into the inmate state. It is true energy that is higher in purity. After going through this transformation, the innate true energy is leaps and bounds above acquired true energy, regardless of quantity or in quality.”

Qin Fen didn’t say a word. He waited for the master to continue speaking.

“Therefore, there is a broad name for those at the five-star level and beyond—innate expert.” The master thought for a moment and he added, “Of course, the meteor level is the first time when one excites innate true energy. The theory says that they are indeed considered innate experts. It is just that….”

“This has nothing to do with me….” Qin Fen twitched with his lips. “What’s my current state, then?”

“Right now, you….” The master’s expression grew difficult. “Originally, you really did enter the meteor level. If you had properly consolidated after the fights, then you would have become a true meteor level expert.”

“So you are saying that I fell back a level?” Qin Fen’s words contained not a hint of regret. If he had known clearly that such a conclusion would occur during the circumstances back then, he would have still chosen to do the same thing without the slightest hesitation.

“Yes, but is not just this.” The master sighed. “When you fell back to the four-star level, you didn’t know to restrain yourself at all. You continue to transfuse your true energy, to the degree that even your dantian region is practically dried up….”

“I fell down to the three-star level?” Qin Fen was a bit puzzled. If he really did fall back to the three-star level, he should be able to feel it. However, he had a clear sensation that he was a four-star martial artist.

“Not to that degree.” The master didn’t deny Qin Fen speculations. “It is just that if you hadn’t done these things, I can utilize the method of teaching – enlightening people with perfect wisdom – to help pull you back to the meteor level. Right now, you can only rely on yourself for everything. However, you have to mentally prepare yourself. Your situation is where you’ve renounced and fell back down, on your own accord, after ascending. Wishing to break through will be harder for you than for other martial artists.”

“It is okay.” Qin Fen shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t regret it. If I were to do it all over again knowing what I know now, I would still do the same thing.”

The master gave Qin Fen a thumbs up. “Excellent, kid. Though you have fallen back to the four-star level, this is not necessarily a bad thing. When you rely on your own efforts to slaughter your way back to the meteor level, your strength will let all five-star level experts know what being truly breathtaking means. How can those who have never experienced evanescence become prideful sons of heaven?”

“Evanescence?”

“That’s right! Evanescence doesn’t mean complete nonexistence. The word ‘evanescence’ is actually ‘nirvana’.” Master’s eyes flashed with excitement.