Mycelium Left Arm, Sunset Forest

Chapter 54 Mycelium Left Arm, Sunset Forest

When Ning Fengzhi entered Qingzhu Garden and saw Chi Ping standing on the lawn controlling a pure white left arm to make gestures such as reaching out and swinging, to be honest, he was startled and stood there for a long time, unable to come to his senses.

"Uncle Ning, you're here!"

Perhaps he was too focused, because it was only a quarter of an hour after Ning Fengzhi entered the courtyard that Chi Ping noticed him. So Chi Ping stretched out his left arm and mechanically waved it left and right twice as a greeting to Ning Fengzhi.

Ning Fengzhi strode forward, disregarding etiquette and manners, and grabbed Chi Ping's strange left arm.

then……

"It broke! It broke! Ugh~"

Chi Ping caught the broken piece of mycelium from his arm and looked helplessly at Ning Fengzhi.

"Uncle Ning, be gentle! I'm not using my real hand."

Ning Fengzhi was a man of considerable experience, but he had to admit that he had never seen anything like this before in his life!

Ning Fengzhi grabbed Chi Ping's left arm, but before he could exert much force, the arm was crushed!

Broken!

"Xiaoping, you...I...your arm...I must be seeing things!"

Seeing Ning Fengzhi questioning his existence, Chi Ping quickly said, "Uncle Ning, look closely. This isn't a real arm; it's part of my martial soul. Um... you definitely can't eat it, but you can pinch a small piece."

At Chi Ping's suggestion, Ning Fengzhi carefully removed a small piece from the severed arm.

I crushed it in my hand to feel the texture, and then brought it to my nose to smell it.

"It smells like mushrooms..."

Ning Fengzhi was skeptical.

Chi Ping pressed on, explaining, "Although my martial soul manifests as a mushroom, the mushroom grows from mycelium, which is also part of my martial soul. The mycelium is like the root of the mushroom, just like the root of the Little Three Blue Silver Grass. Mycelium is much thinner than the roots of ordinary plants and is more malleable, so I controlled the mycelium to shape my left arm according to the structure of an arm. However, like a mushroom, the mycelium is very fragile and will break if you squeeze it."

Ning Fengzhi finally understood.

If it were really an arm, it wouldn't be so fragile, and there was no bleeding after it was severed!

Ning Fengzhi swallowed hard, still shaken. "Xiaoping, you're not kidding me, are you?"

Chi Ping said earnestly, "I promise everything I said is true!"

Ning Fengzhi finally felt relieved.

But then he became interested in Chi Ping's mycelial arm. "Xiao Ping, can your mycelial arm recover?"

Chi Ping nodded. "It's just an outline pieced together with mycelium; it's very easy to repair. You see..."

Chi Ping raised his left arm, which was now only half of its original length. The fragments that Ning Fengzhi had crushed were all mixed together, a white mass that was indistinguishable from one another. But under Chi Ping's control, the clump of mycelium began to wriggle and rearrange itself.

The process was hard to describe. In short, Ning Fengzhi turned his head away after watching for less than ten seconds, and only looked back at Chi Ping after Chi Ping had finished shaping the mycelial arm.

"May I take a look?" Ning Fengzhi asked.

Chi Ping generously extended his arm.

Ning Fengzhi observed cautiously, muttering to himself, "Incredible skill, incredible skill!"

"How did it start moving?"

"Use soul power." Chi Ping looked regretful. "However, my control is limited, and my proficiency is insufficient. Right now, I can only make simple gestures like waving my hand; I can't even clench my fist."

This is similar to controlling a robotic arm. No one knows how many hydraulic valves and springs need to be controlled simultaneously for a simple action, or how many times the reaction needs to be made, or how complex the program needs to be.

Ning Fengzhi exclaimed, "That was already astonishing, but Xiaoping, your move is truly divine!"

Chi Ping said dismissively, "There's still a lot of research to be done to replace my original arm. By the way, Uncle Ning, I've broken through level 50."

Ning Fengzhi nodded. Compared to the mycelium arm, breaking through to the Soul King level wasn't actually that shocking.

"Look how well my body has recovered now. Am I ready to acquire my fifth spirit ring?"

"You want to absorb a ten-thousand-year-old soul ring?"

"That's right."

Ning Fengzhi frowned in thought.

Ten thousand years is a threshold; soul beasts that have cultivated for ten thousand years will possess intelligence, signifying a qualitative change in their spirit and soul. When a soul beast older than ten thousand years dies, a portion of its soul remains on its soul ring, launching a final counterattack when the soul master absorbs the ring. This is a necessary stage for absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring, known as Soul Shock.

Chi Ping was naturally aware of the dangers of soul tremors, so he needed Ning Fengzhi to assess his condition.

Ning Fengzhi was his attending physician, and one must always listen to the advice of the attending physician.

A quarter of an hour later, Ning Fengzhi nodded and said, "Xiaoping, you can absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring!"

Chi Ping smiled.

"Ikehira, teacher! You're all here! Huh? What are you looking at?"

Xue Qinghe walked into the courtyard at this moment, and was then attracted by Chi Ping's mycelial arm. When he took a closer look, he was instantly frightened and took three steps back!

"What is that?!"

Ning Fengzhi and Chi Ping looked at each other.

Chi Ping explained helplessly, "This is..."

……

Sunset Forest is the most controversial of the three major habitats of soul beasts in Douluo Continent.

Not far from Heaven Dou City, it is a place where Soul Masters hunt Soul Beasts in the city centered around Heaven Dou City.

Sunset Forest is located in the center of the Heaven Dou Empire. While not exactly a frigid zone, its temperature is still much lower than that of the Star Dou Great Forest, and its vegetation consists mostly of temperate plants typical of the north. The quality of soul beasts there isn't as high as in the Star Dou Great Forest, but you can still find quite a few ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts.

Chi Ping will obtain his fifth spirit ring here.

Why would Sword Douluo help me obtain a spirit ring?

Wandering through the jungle and wild grass, Chi Ping's thoughts were racing.

Chi Ping originally wanted Flander to bring him to obtain a spirit ring, but after inquiring about his physical condition from Ning Fengzhi, Ning Fengzhi recommended Sword Douluo Chen Xin to Chi Ping.

Chi Ping wanted to refuse, but Ning Fengzhi and Sword Douluo didn't give him a chance. After consulting at noon, Sword Douluo arrived at the Crown Prince's residence in the afternoon and took Chi Ping to Sunset Forest in the evening.

—What kind of speed is this?!

Chi Ping thought to himself, "This is what I'm complaining about."

Ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts are generally very good at hiding themselves, and Chi Ping and Sword Douluo arrived at Sunset Forest relatively late. Even though Chi Ping could activate his intuition, the two of them did not find a single ten-thousand-year-old soul beast before sunset.

Sword Douluo offered to rest for the night and continue searching for soul beasts the next day.

Since it was inconvenient to operate with one hand, Chen Xin helped Chi Ping start a fire, set up camp, and cook.

Under the moonlight, Chi Ping and Sword Douluo sat facing each other across the fire, on which were stuck buns, steamed buns, and a rabbit on branches.

While tending to the food, Chi Ping exchanged glances with Sword Douluo.

"Your Majesty, why have you come to help me hunt souls?"

Perhaps it was Sword Douluo's consistently friendly attitude, perhaps it was Chi Ping's great ability and courage, or perhaps it was the result of his intuition; in any case, Chi Ping just asked directly.

The pond was flat and open, and Sword Douluo was quick-witted and outspoken.

"Because your theory helped me break through to the first level of soul power."

Chi Ping looked puzzled.

What does that mean?

Chen Xin patiently explained, "Your theory of Mind-Body Technique has inspired me. What I seek is the highest level of swordsmanship; soul power is merely a stepping stone for me to climb to a higher peak. In the past, I placed too much emphasis on the level of soul power, neglecting what was near and seeking what was far, like trying to catch fish by climbing a tree, and went astray. Rongrong's words have awakened me."

It wasn't just Chi Ping's theory that mattered; more importantly, it was Ning Rongrong who spoke. Only then could Chen Xin listen and begin to think.

"A clear and enlightened sword mind?"

Chen Xin's eyes lit up. "A very accurate description. You understand swordsmanship?"

Chi Ping shook his head. "I don't understand. But after listening to your description, I feel that these four words resonate with your state of mind. The heart that wields the sword is clear and pure, untainted by external things."

Chen Xin nodded, "We can add another one: Seeking the Sword."

"Isn't wielding a sword the same as seeking the sword? As long as there is something to seek in your heart, something to think about, you are always on the path of progress."

"An interesting idea."

Chen Xin became interested.

"Would you be interested in chatting with this old man all night?"

Chi Ping nodded.

(End of this chapter)