Feng Wukang understood the stance of the Fang Lushan military strategists. A faint stir moved in his heart; future matters would require careful planning.

However, before that, the most crucial thing was to elevate his strength. If his power was insufficient, amid the great chaos engulfing heaven and earth, he would only become cannon fodder, with absolutely no chance to fish in troubled waters.

"Oh? Junior Nephew has already reached the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment? This injury this time wasn't entirely in vain!"

Yuan Buhuan was both surprised and delighted. This lad hadn't been seen for three days, yet one had to look at him with new eyes; upon his return this time, his cultivation had clearly made a leapfrog advancement.

"If you learn a few more divine abilities, your strength won't be far behind even those Martial Uncles of yours!"

Feng Zikang's speed of cultivation growth exceeded his expectations. Among the second-generation disciples, many were still stuck in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. Compared to Feng Zikang's boundless potential, they were far behind.

What he said struck a chord with Feng Zikang. The part that currently bothered him was that although his cultivation level was rising, his means of combat were becoming increasingly inadequate.

After all, his opponents were growing stronger, and the utility of his old supplementary divine abilities was diminishing.

At this point, he either needed to acquire powerful magical artifacts or cultivate even mightier divine abilities; otherwise, he would clearly be at a disadvantage in battle.

His past trump cards were the mechanism beasts, the Four Symbols Divine Demon Array, and the Starlight Great Annihilation Sword Technique. But now, the upgrades to the mechanism beasts and the Four Symbols Divine Demon Array could not keep pace with his own advancement in cultivation. Facing opponents in the Core Condensation stage in the future, these two methods would only serve as harassment.

While the Starlight Great Annihilation Sword Technique possessed infinite power, mastering it was not an overnight affair; moreover, its effect was too singular. Finding an auxiliary cultivation method or divine ability was the kingly path.

He took his leave of the Sect Master and headed toward the Scripture Hall’s Treasure Repository.

Elder Wu was dozing at the entrance as usual. Seeing him arrive, he grudgingly opened his eyes a slit and smiled at him.

"Heard you got beaten up this time?"

"I was beaten."

Feng Zikang honestly nodded in affirmation. There was nothing to deny—a win was a win, a loss was a loss. As long as his life remained, he would settle the score next time.

"Oh?"

Elder Wu nodded. "Who was it that could injure you?"

Feng Zikang frowned, recalling the cultivation and abilities of the stark-naked man, yet feeling vague and elusive, unable to grasp it clearly. In truth, he didn't know precisely how strong the opponent's cultivation was.

Thinking carefully, he was actually a notch below Mou Canglang. He definitely hadn't reached Core Condensation yet; it seemed more like late-stage Foundation Establishment.

"Foundation Establishment cultivation managed to wound you?"

Elder Wu shook his head. "Truly unfathomable. I thought with your boy's ingenuity, coupled with that iron sword and the Starlight Great Annihilation Sword Technique, no one below Foundation Establishment could handle you. I didn't expect there were such figures among them."

Of Feng Zikang's skills, Elder Wu knew the most, second only to the Heavenly Demon lineage, as he was the elder of the Scripture Hall. He was most familiar with the cultivation levels of everyone in the Dragon-Tiger Mountain military lineage, and his discerning eye was the sharpest.

"You are still continuously reinforcing this Starlight Great Annihilation Sword Technique; the choice back then was indeed correct."

As Elder Wu muttered to himself, a thought struck Feng Zikang, and he recounted the enemy's power-doubling fist technique to Elder Wu, hoping to ask about the origin of such a cultivation method.

"Oh? Such a divine ability exists?" Elder Wu was also quite astonished, knitting his brow.

"In the cultivation world, methods where power doubles aren't unheard of, but a technique where power doubles with every strike until the body can no longer bear it—in the past, I've only heard of one."

"The Nine World-Shattering Breakers!"

This was a peerless Dragon Clan technique from bygone eras. Beginning with the first strike unleashing all one's battle power, each subsequent strike would double the force, culminating in the ninth strike capable of bringing about world-destroying chaos. However, even for a dragon's physical body, surviving up to the fourth or fifth strike was remarkable.

After the Battle of Investiture of the Gods, no living members of the Dragon Clan remained in the world, and such a monstrous divine ability had naturally been lost.

"Naturally, it's not that potent."

Feng Zikang, having personally endured that fist technique, knew that although every strike doubled in power, it was far from possessing world-destroying might. Even following this trend to the ninth strike, it would at most be equivalent to a Nascent Soul expert's move, far weaker than the power of the Nine World-Shattering Breakers.

"Besides the Dragon Clan, I truly haven't heard of anyone possessing such a bizarre and formidable divine ability..."

This martial art was no simple matter. It absorbed the backlash from its own exertion and then unleashed double the force. The subtle control required was extremely complex; one careless slip could result in being(shaken/blasted) to death by the very backlash.

Elder Wu pondered for a long time but still couldn't grasp its essence.

"I can't recall it for now, but if we speak of divine abilities that counter this technique, there are several. I suggest you learn a few to prepare for dealing with that fellow."

Without Elder Wu needing to say it, Feng Zikang was already resolved to find a way to avenge the wrong done by the stark-naked man.

"Then I ask for Martial Grand-Uncle's guidance."

Elder Wu nodded, pondering briefly, and retrieved several scrolls of scriptures.

Dealing with enemies whose powers escalate relentlessly makes a direct contest of strength difficult. Therefore, the techniques he selected were all specialized divine abilities.

The first divine ability was named the 'Elephant Sorrow, Elephant Joy' Technique—a strange title stemming from the ancient Sage King Shun. Practitioners of this technique could reflect the damage they received perfectly back to the attacker. Although they would endure the formidable blow themselves, the opponent would suffer the exact same pain.

When first cultivated, the rebound was minimal, but when mastered, it could reflect nearly ninety percent of the incoming force. Given the stark-naked man's attacking method, if he could land a fourth punch, this technique would likely cause him to collapse by the third.

Feng Zikang nodded. This art was quite useful, and he intended to learn it.

The second divine ability was named the 'Strongman's Binding of a Thousand Armies' Technique. It borrowed the power of the Heaven and Earth Strongmen to suppress the opponent, reducing the force of every strike the enemy delivered to only about fifty percent.

This was another viable countermeasure, and Feng Zikang nodded again.

There was a third divine ability, named the 'Wind's Whisper, Crane's Cry, Grass and Trees Becoming Soldiers' Technique. This art used all things in heaven and earth to create an illusionary double to absorb a single strike on behalf of the true body. If the opponent couldn't withstand the resulting backlash, they would naturally be finished—an excellent technique for killing without drawing blood.

"Excellent divine abilities!"

Feng Zikang clapped his hands in praise.

"So, which one do you wish to learn?" Elder Wu asked with a smiling gaze.

Feng Zikang smiled. "All three divine abilities are marvelous. Since that is the case, I shall learn all three!"

"What?"

Elder Wu was startled. "These three divine abilities are not cheap. Do you have enough Merit Points for them? I recall you haven't undertaken any Merit tasks for quite some time!"

Feng Zikang chuckled slyly. "Whether I have enough to learn them or not, Martial Grand-Uncle can check and see for himself, can't he?"

Elder Wu, half-doubting, opened the jade register in his arms, glanced inside, and snapped it shut again.

"Take them! Take them all!"

He let out a wry smile. Just how did this boy accumulate so many Merit Points? He actually had this much?

Feng Zikang smiled calmly and sat to the side, imprinting all three secret scrolls of the divine abilities into his spiritual consciousness before contentedly returning to the Small Bamboo Grove.

※

"Senior Brother!"

As soon as he arrived back at the Small Bamboo Grove, he ran into Gu Ya, who was well-informed. This junior had already learned of his return and was waiting for him in the bamboo hut among the grove.

"I heard you were injured; I was terribly worried! Luckily, Master said you are fine!"

Gu Ya rushed forward affectionately. "Senior Brother, with your powerful skills now, you can still be ambushed? You really must be careful. Those people in the Imperial Palace are nothing but trouble!"

"Oh?"

Feng Zikang was momentarily stunned. "Junior Brother, how did you know they were people from the Imperial Palace?"

Although he suspected the stark-naked man was sent by the Emperor to deal with him, he had no concrete evidence, nor did he know the man's origin.

How could Gu Ya speak with such certainty? Had the Heavenly Secret Astrologer seen something?

"Hmph! Master won't tell me anything. But Senior Brother, you underestimate me too much. I am also a successor of the Star Gazing Chamber; can I not discern it through observation?"

It turned out that when Gu Ya heard of Feng Zikang's disappearance, he became worried. Gazing at the stars that night, he unintentionally entered the realm of Heaven and Earth Sensing and saw Feng Zikang being injured by someone. The other party searched for him unsuccessfully, their stellar aura receded, and ultimately settled over the Great Tang Imperial Palace.

"They are actually people from the Imperial Palace?"

Feng Zikang's face shifted, growing grim.

He hadn't expected the Great Tang Emperor to be so tactless. If he had hired someone from outside, and there was no solid proof, it would be hard to cause trouble for him. Instead, he sent people from within the palace to deal with him!

"Senior Brother..." Gu Ya looked at the change in his expression, quite concerned. "Don't be angry. The Sect will seek justice for this matter. But after all, this incident stemmed from you killing the Crown Prince first. The Royalty and the Three Teachings have all swallowed their anger and endured this, mainly because they do not wish to stir up unnecessary conflict before this great calamity of heaven and earth."

"So, Master also said you shouldn't be angered for the time being; there will be a time to resolve this later."

Feng Zikang gradually calmed down. Indeed, the root of this entire affair lay in his slaying of the current Crown Prince. After all, the Three Teachings and the Great Tang Imperial Family were now inextricably linked. That the matter was yielded so easily exceeded his expectations.

Although mortals could never compare to cultivators, that person was still a descendant of the true dragon; the reigning Crown Prince possessed a formidable destiny, and his demise by Feng Zikang's hand naturally carried countless karmic entanglements. Just like when he killed You Duyai previously, entanglement was involved. In this great calamity of heaven and earth, he was destined to be unable to remain aloof and detached.

"Since that is the case, I can only strive for fierce advancement. I want to see what this great calamity can truly do to me!"

Feng Zikang sneered coldly, making up his mind.

He would not let this feud linger. As soon as he mastered these three divine abilities, he would naturally go to the Imperial Palace to trouble that stark-naked man.

Even if the Sect had reservations, his Dao Heart was resolute; what was there to fear? If he had the power and the righteousness but failed to take revenge, he would not be the Immeasurable Heavenly Demon, Feng Zikang!