Super Gene

Han Sen still had a trove of questions he wished to ask, but the man had started to shine with a purple light. An ancient stone door appeared in the early morning sky, and after it did, the man approached it without hesitation.

“What is your name?” Han Sen repeated his first question.

The man had been kind enough to answer all his questions so far, and he had even been kind enough to give him the memory card on Xuan Men. Yet strangely, he hadn’t mentioned his name.

“It does not matter,” the man said without looking back. He continued onwards toward the door.

Han Sen felt that it was all quite peculiar. The man had given Han Sen so much, except the simplest of ordinary niceties: a name.

The skeleton followed the man to the door. This was a surprise, and it made Han Sen think, “How can the skeleton follow behind him? Can other creatures traverse the same door? Is that skeleton even strong enough to withstand the fires of those steps?”

As Han Sen pondered this, the man pushed the doors open. The typhoon-like gusts of wind began to blow through the opening and expand, blowing the man’s hair.

The man pushed it open effortlessly, and then he ascended the steps with the skeleton in tow. Perhaps because there were two beings passing through the door, but the fires seemed stronger and more ferocious than the ones Han Sen had seen before.

The man continued to shine and glitter like amethyst, and a purple mist warped around them like a shield against the scorching whips that lashed out. The man and the skeleton walked the ten steps without trouble, and then the door shut behind them.

Han Sen was shocked. It was very different than what had occurred with Xiang Yin, Yaksha’s intrusion aside. That man walked as if he was going shopping, and the fires were nothing but bothersome pedestrians.

“Awesome!” Han Sen believed if that man could do it, he could do it, too.

Of course, he still had a while to go before he could attempt the feat. He still needed a fair amount of additional strength, and the timeframe for when he achieved the necessary amount of power to traverse the steps was still up for debate.

The Dongxuan Sutra seemed different from Xuantian, and Han Sen did not know if their levels were the same.

Regardless, he was eager to find out more about this new Xuantian he had just learned about. He had the memory card, but that could not be used in the sanctuary.

Boom! Boom!

Amidst Han Sen’s excitement, the sound of thunder rolled. The snaps of what seemed like lightning pummeled the mountainside, vibrating the entire landmass.

“What was that?” Han Sen looked down at the chasm that had recently formed on the peak.

“A man like that wouldn’t just go for a nap, here of all places, for no reason. There must be something around here worth investigating. I might find a souvenir, and it might be something that helped him. If it helped that fellow, it can surely help me.” Han Sen’s mind scrambled to keep itself composed, thinking of the treasure that might lurk in the darkness.

Boom!

An energy pulsed out of the hole, blowing Han Sen away a few hundred meters.

Han Sen kept his body straight as he flew backward, watching a purple light stem from deep inside the chasm. It was like an eerie, purple volcano that was seeking to erupt.

Han Sen was shocked, to say the least. He flew around the area, but he noticed many creatures had started to ascend the mountain. When the purple light began to beam up and up into the sky, it exploded in a dizzying array of fireworks. The purple light was soon like rain, cascading over the mountain.

All the creatures on the mountain were washed with that purple rain, Han Sen included. The purple rain landed on Han Sen and moisturized his skin. The substance was warm and soothing to the touch.

He used his Dongxuan Aura to absorb the warmth, and almost immediately, he felt as if his seventh gene lock was going to burst right open.

Under the purple rain, a lot of plants came out of the soil, making the mountain bloom with lush plant life and an unrivaled vibrancy. The creatures that touched the rain were all shining now, as well. They too were opening gene locks.

Katcha!

Han Sen felt like a restrictive chain had been severed inside his body. It delighted Han Sen to confirm that he had indeed opened his seventh gene lock with the Dongxuan Sutra.

As Han Sen sought to absorb more of that rain, though, the rain came to a stop.

The tower below became purple as a holy presence and aura started to form around it. The tower started to grow, becoming much larger. Suddenly, the tower overtook the entire mountain, becoming one incomprehensibly large spire.

Han Sen looked around and stared into the crowds of creatures that had come together, but he could not find the silver fox.

“Strange. Did none of the Ghost Buddies actually come here, then?” Han Sen frowned.

But then, Han Sen watched the creatures resume their ascent and hurry towards the tower. Not wanting to leave with his curiosity unsatiated, Han Sen followed them.

After he entered the tower, though, Han Sen was shocked. The minuscule tower had transformed into a shelter, and a king-class one at that. Han Sen followed the creatures and reached the top. There was a spirit statue there, with a spirit stone lodged in its forehead.

Han Sen realized that man had overtaken the location where a spirit could be born. The man had absorbed its energy, and when he left through the door, the spirit was free to continue its growth.

“I wonder what the spirit’s level is. If it was worthy for that man to take its power, it must be a strong one.” Han Sen’s face started to turn grim as he felt the power of that stone become tangible.

The lifeforce was much stronger than he expected it to be.

“It cannot be an emperor with ten of its gene locks opened, can it?” Han Sen stared at the purple spirit stone in awe.