The Art of Chaotic Divinity

"Go on."

Ling Feng glanced at the Despicable Donkey. Whatever else could be said about him, his breadth of knowledge far surpassed Ling Feng's.

"What you humans call a Sacred Body is simply someone whose affinity with an Origin Source exceeds ten percent. Once that affinity surpasses fifty percent, the person develops what is known as a guardian power. Earth Spirit Guardian, Ice Spirit Guardian, and the like all come from that. Those are exceptionally powerful physiques. If the affinity exceeds seventy percent, then that's true heaven-defying talent. As long as such a person doesn't die young, reaching the sacred tier is practically guaranteed."

"This body has an affinity of over seventy percent with the Earth Origin Source. On top of that, it's a mutated Earth Origin Source. Even many so-called Divine Races couldn't compare to this kind of talent."

The Despicable Donkey's eyes glowed green as drool streamed from the corner of his mouth.

"Hey, little guy. Why don't you extract the Earth Origin Source from that body? We can split it among ourselves."

"Hmph! Keep dreaming! This body belongs to me now!"

Zifeng glared indignantly at the Despicable Donkey.

The shameless donkey was actually plotting against him.

Ling Feng was inwardly astonished.

He looked at Zifeng for a long moment before firmly patting him on the shoulder.

"Zifeng, from today onward, you have a new task."

"Huh?"

Zifeng instinctively shrank his neck.

"W... what task?"

"Cultivate properly."

"Then become my sparring partner."

"What? No! Please don't!"

Zifeng looked utterly miserable.

"Master, I don't want to cultivate!"

As an elemental life form, all Zifeng normally had to do was sleep, and his strength would steadily increase.

Now that he occupied Long Xingye's body, however, Ling Feng had no intention of letting such extraordinary talent go to waste.

He was going to raise the ultimate punching bag.

One capable of enduring his increasingly insane combat training.

"You don't want to?"

Ling Feng narrowed his eyes with a smile.

"Despicable Donkey, how about we research a way to extract that mutated Earth Origin Source?"

"Hehehe."

The Despicable Donkey grinned wickedly.

"I know at least seventy or eighty methods. Every single one is more painful than the last."

"Then pick the most painful one."

Ling Feng smiled pleasantly.

"I... I'll do it! Isn't that enough?"

Zifeng's face turned deathly pale, and he immediately surrendered.

"That's more like it."

Ling Feng smiled happily as he patted Zifeng's shoulder.

"Zifeng, I've collected quite a few earth-attributed cultivation arts and martial skills. Starting today, you're going to study and practice them diligently. One month from now, if you can't withstand half an hour of my attacks, I'll have to punish you."

With Long Xingye's natural talent, such a requirement was hardly unreasonable.

Zifeng looked as though he wanted to cry.

All he had ever wanted was to spend every day sleeping like a lazy pig.

"Oh, and don't forget the treasure box I gave you. Study it whenever you have spare time."

"I'm counting on you."

After assigning all his impossible tasks, Ling Feng left the Five Elements Heavenly Palace in complete satisfaction.

He looked every bit like a heartless landlord exploiting cheap labor.

"Waaah..."

Zifeng looked utterly devastated as he quietly sobbed to himself.

...

The night passed peacefully.

At daybreak, as Ling Feng stepped out of his room, he noticed someone standing in the courtyard practicing a boxing technique.

Luo Hanzhou had risen even earlier than he had.

He repeatedly threw one punch after another.

There was nothing flashy about his movements.

He used no elaborate techniques.

Each punch was simple and direct, yet every movement carried an indescribable rhythm.

After practicing for a while, Luo Hanzhou would suddenly stop to think.

Then he would resume.

After repeating this cycle several times, his understanding seemed to deepen little by little.

Ling Feng quickly realized what was happening.

Luo Hanzhou had clearly borrowed some of Ling Feng's methods of generating force.

Looking carefully, he could even faintly detect traces of Dragon-Elephant Divine Strength within those punches.

"What a monster."

Ling Feng was secretly amazed.

Unlike himself, Luo Hanzhou didn't possess the Eye of the Emperor.

Simply by fighting Ling Feng yesterday and observing his battle with Long Xingye, Luo Hanzhou had managed to comprehend portions of Dragon-Elephant Divine Strength's force application.

There truly were countless geniuses in this world.

A blazing battle intent rose within Ling Feng's eyes.

After quietly observing for a while, he walked to an open area nearby and began practicing basic sword forms and movement techniques.

This was part of his daily routine.

People only ever noticed the overwhelming strength displayed by an expert.

Few ever saw the countless hours of effort hidden behind that strength.

Ling Feng's talent was indeed extraordinary.

Even so, the hard work he had invested far exceeded that of ordinary cultivators.

"Since you're here, let's spar."

As soon as Luo Hanzhou noticed Ling Feng, he threw a punch toward him.

Just like before, he refrained from using any vitality.

He relied solely on pure boxing techniques.

The reason he had chosen to stay by Ling Feng's side was precisely so they could spar whenever they wished and continuously improve themselves.

"Gladly!"

Ling Feng laughed.

Both of them were battle fanatics.

The moment they began fighting, the clash became intense enough to shake the surroundings.

Fortunately, both kept their strength under control.

Otherwise, the temporary residence of the Dongling Region would probably have been reduced to rubble.

As the battle grew more intense, Ling Feng gradually abandoned his sword and switched to his fists.

At the same time, Luo Hanzhou put away his fists and drew his sword.

Only then did Ling Feng realize that Luo Hanzhou was also highly skilled with the sword.

His attainments in swordsmanship were obviously inferior to his boxing, but under Ling Feng's deliberate guidance, his technique steadily began moving in the right direction.

By then, more and more martial practitioners from the Dongling Region had gathered to watch.

Although the two appeared to be sparring, they were actually instructing one another.

Opportunities to witness experts exchanging martial insights were exceedingly rare.

Everyone held their breath as they watched with complete concentration.

No one dared interrupt them.

No one wanted to miss such a precious opportunity.

To the spectators from the Dongling Region, the simplest punches and sword strikes seemed to come alive in Ling Feng's and Luo Hanzhou's hands.

Every punch.

Every sword strike.

Each movement contained its own unique charm and profound meaning, leaving the audience deeply captivated.

This was what it meant to return to simplicity.

All unnecessary complexity had been stripped away.

A sword was simply a sword.

A fist was simply a fist.

This realm stood far beyond that of ordinary martial practitioners.

As for how much each observer could comprehend, that depended entirely on their own talent.

At last, the two exchanged a palm strike before separating.

"That was satisfying!"

Luo Hanzhou laughed heartily.

He fixed his eyes on Ling Feng.

"I've gained some new insights. We'll fight again tomorrow."

Ling Feng raised an eyebrow.

"I'll be ready anytime."

...

Time passed in the blink of an eye.

Two days quickly went by.

Early in the morning, the rising sun spread golden-red light across the land, bathing everything beneath it with vibrant vitality.

Inside the battered little courtyard, Ling Feng and Luo Hanzhou were discussing various techniques of swordsmanship when a burst of hearty laughter came from outside.

Today, an unexpected guest had arrived at the Dongling Region's residence.

Xiao Juanyun.

The moment the martial practitioners of the Dongling Region saw him appear, many instinctively became tense.

After all, every impression they had of the martial practitioners from the Xijian Region was one of arrogance and tyranny.

Still, with someone of Xiao Juanyun's stature personally arriving, no one dared stand in his way.

Not even Shi Haoxuan possessed enough influence to do that.

"Brother Ling! Brother Ling!"

Before Xiao Juanyun even came into view, his voice had already reached them.

"Brother Xiao?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Ling Feng turned around.

A moment later, Xiao Juanyun strode toward him with long, confident steps.