Everyone was shocked by Yirene's sudden action and wondered, 'why she destroyed the pictures on the wall?' but no one questioned her. Just thinking about how even rocks melted by a small crystal ball scared them greatly.
"Why?" Gin asked.
"Now's not the time," Yirene said.
"Ok" Gin didn't ask anything further, noticing Yirene's solemn expression.
"You guys should use this place to increase your strength since this place is permeated with essence energy of life, sent forth by the rare herbs," Yirene spoke while Gin and others nodded.
"Miss Emeera, please collect the herbs and we will divide it evenly later." Gin said while Emeera agreed.
Gin then walked towards the tiny tree filled with aromatic fruits, when he inhaled its fragrance, a strong craving rose as if every cell in his body wants nothing but to devour this fruit.
"Yirene, what magical fruit is this?" Gin asked, suppressing his desire to swallow the fruit.
"It's a life-essence fruit!" Before Yirene could answer, Hammer said while eagerly staring at the fruit.
"It's a Rank-2 magical fruit filled with essence energy of life. It helps in improving one's physique and strength, if used properly it's a treasure." Yirene explained.
"Rank-2 magical fruit?!" Gin knows a little bit about herbs and magical fruit, that's why he was shocked. If he sold it in the black market, it will easily sell for at least 10 million credits.
"There's eight fruit here, we will take four and split the other four with Miss Emeera." Gin said. He mindfully plucked the fruits from the tiny tree and shared one with everyone on his team.
When he gave the remaining four to Emeera, she only accepted a single fruit on behalf of Athusa and rejected the other three by saying, 'Just consider it my thanks for safely protecting me.'
He didn't reject Emeera's thanks as these magical fruits may fetch a high price in the market. Gin safely kept the fruits on his backpack and decided to sell it for ranker credits.
"I am going to absorb this fruit," saying this Hammer quietly sat under a large tree root and ate the fruit.
"Brother Gin, I will surely increase my strength and won't be such a deadweight next time," Astro spoke with determination and left to train on his own.
Everything he obtained today was thanks to his teammates - the magical fruit which he can't hope to obtain in his lifetime, precious breathing technique tailor-made for him, everything.
"Use this opportunity and breakthrough to Advanced ranker stage, I will stand guard," Yirene said.
Gin nodded and sat down. He finished the fruit in three bites – it was juicy and sweet. Unfortunately, he didn't have ample time to enjoy the magical fruit's taste.
As soon as Gin ate the fruit, he sensed silver golden energy rose from his belly; It was hot, overbearing and wild.
The wild burning energy unconstrainedly streamed through every part of his body, trying to incinerate everything in it's way to ashes.
He knows if he let the energy roam around freely, he may even die.
Gin promptly circulated the breathing method, and let the overbearing energy flow according to the path mentioned in it.
As soon as he circulated his 'Physique Scripture', a mysterious pure golden energy emerged from the symbol in his chest.
The pure golden energy was like a child, running here and there swallowing all the energy on its way while growing in size – it was treating Gin's body like a playground.
Within a few seconds, every single bit of energy present in his body was devoured by it. Unfortunately, Gin couldn't notice it.
It shuttled across his entire body sprinkling tiny golden particles. As soon as the hungry cells in his body sensed the golden dust, they began to swallow it, greedily.
The golden specks of dust fused with every part of his body - skin, muscles, bones, marrows, veins, even his blood had a tinge of gold in it.
His whole body was covered in a layer of translucent golden energy, he looked like a buddha shimmering in gold radiance.
-
Meantime, Emeera, Athusa, and Yirene watched Gin who was shrouded in golden energy with awe.
"What's happening?" Athusa asked in amazement.
Yirene frowned because when she broke through to Advanced Ranker level, she didn't undergo such a magical transformation.
'Is it due to the technique he was cultivating? No wonder this idiot's strength improved at an alarming rate.' Yirene thought.
-
Without knowing any of this, Gin maintained the circulation of his physique scripture.
He could feel his entire body is being nourished by some kind of magical energy. He felt warm and comfortable.
It was such an intoxicating feeling, his physique was evolving while his strength was improving at an astonishing rate.
The process lasted for about fifteen minutes — a complete metamorphosis. Gin felt he broke free from some kind of shackle restraining him.
As soon as his physique finished the evolution, the pure golden energy once again returned to its home – the symbol on his chest.
--
'Is this how others feel when they advance to the 7-star level?' Gin thought.
Apart from his physique and strength, the major change Gin noticed came from his soul.
There was some kind of energy in his brain: transparent, shapeless and had no characteristics but it's there, Gin could sense it.
As soon as he wields it, the formless energy spread out in every direction, reaching the maximum extent of 10 meters.
Within this range, he was able to sense, watch, and hear everything around him even with his eyes closed. It's like having a third eye.
Unknown to Gin, Yirene also sensed this formless energy, released by Gin. She frowned, 'When did he awaken his soul energy?'
Yirene was curious but waited for Gin to end his practice.
Gin began to experiment with the formless energy. Suddenly, he noticed the symbol on his chest, curious, he wanted to inspect it as he wants to know more about the symbol.
Who knows as soon as the formless energy neared the symbol, a powerful suction force will arise. It was strong and wanted to swallow the formless energy.
Gin grappled with his entire might, trying to pull the energy back but everything is for naught. The harder he struggled, the greater the attraction.
"Oh, shi-" Gin didn't even finish his curse before his entire consciousness was hauled inside.
In the next second, he was standing in a green grassland filled with rich energy. There's even a dazzling blue sky, as in blue of the ocean.
The land couldn't have been more than a kilometer wide, beyond that everything has hidden behind a seemingly impenetrable screen of haze.
"How the hell did I come here? Is this place inside the symbol on my chest?" Gin murmured, noticing his body is translucent. 'Looks like only my awareness traversed here.'
Aside from these seemingly colorful world and scenery, he noticed a table, chair, and a large bookshelf carrying at least thousands of books; nothing more.
Gin noticed a beast skin scroll at top of the table when he walked near it. The only thing which Gin recognizes in this place is a similar symbol as the one on his chest and the bronze case which magically disappeared.
"Don't tell me?! is it because of that bronze case?" Gin wondered, remembering he couldn't find that bronze case anywhere in the home.
Gin picked the beast skin scroll and looked into it. The words in that resembled that of ancient language which forcibly taught to every student in his middle school.
~ Inheritor of my legacy,
I don't know where you were in this vast realms, but nothing could change the fact that now you are my sole successor.
Your improvement in soul energy will unlock the mysteries and knowledge about this place.
I hope that you will try to achieve what I couldn't do it in my lifetime. My legacy and knowledge will help you with that!
Struggle against the chaos, it's the only way.
-Empyrean Chaos
"What the fu*k? Why all the old peoples converse like this?! I don't understand anything apart from the part, 'I am your successor'." Gin cursed.
Even so, this person is the one who gave him hope in his most desperate situation. He already began to consider him as an important person in his heart.
Putting the beast skin scroll aside, Gin walked towards the large book self. He knows knowledge is wealth and he's also the type of person who likes to read books.
But, when he tried to pick a book, he couldn't. Only then he noticed, aside from two books on top self that looked more solid, others are vague and filmy.
'Don't tell me I can't read any books other than those two? No, Wait...In beast skin scroll it was stated, 'my improvement in the soul energy will unlock the mysteries and knowledge about this place.' Gin pondered.
In that sentence, knowledge meant books. So if he wants to unlock more knowledge, he has to improve his soul energy.
Gin understood this but he didn't know anything about soul energy. 'I will eventually find out!'
He then turned his attention towards the bookshelf and when he thought of picking that two books, they magically drifted and hovered before him.
'Wow! A magical space with magical abilities!' Gin mused while looked at the titles of two books hovering before him.
~The Origin of Cultivation —
~Martial Cultivation and Soul cultivation —
He knows it's not the right time to read books, he has to find a way to leave this place as Yirene and others were probably observing him.