Chapter 56: The New Training Ground

Nodding, Rod had no intention of pressing further. Since the other party wasn’t willing to reveal anything, it was pointless to keep asking. Already knowing these things was beyond his expectations, and he needed time to process such shocking news. There was no need to expect more. Moreover, he realized his guess was correct—the man in black possessed godly strength, just like the one before! It seemed the continent was indeed a place hiding many talents; there were far more godly warriors than those openly known, perhaps even many more!

Taking a deep breath, Rod looked at the man in black and suddenly smiled. “I’ll remember this favor, Rod. If I get the chance, I’ll definitely repay it to you!” Rod knew the man in black wasn’t lying—these messages suggested he might truly be facing punishment. After all, the information was too astonishing; it wasn’t something someone like him could possibly know.

His view of the man in black also changed drastically. It seemed this man held a high position within the organization—certainly on par with that mysterious figure. In Horri’s eyes, he was someone far above them all. With godly strength, it was enough for Rod to feel honored just by being treated this way. He nodded deeply at the man in black. Yet, on the other hand, Rod was secretly puzzled—why did this guy seem to have nothing to do, spending all his time with him? Could it be that, with his status and strength, he had nothing to do in their organization? But the previous man in black had seemed very busy.

“Come, let’s go in!” Rod’s words surprised the man in black, who then took a deep breath and spoke. His words gave Rod a warm feeling. After staring at Rod intently, he led him deeper into the woods.

“Alright, this is where you’ll train for the time being. Remember, don’t leave this area until you reach the Saint level. Otherwise, don’t blame me if you die! You’re not strong enough to enter yet!” After walking for a while, the man in black stopped and gave Rod serious instructions.

Looking at the enclosed area before him, Rod felt strange, as if he had a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen it somewhere before, but he couldn’t recall where for the moment. Before Rod could react, the man in black disappeared from that spot, leaving behind only these words: “Come to find me once you reach the Holy level!” With that, he vanished from Rod’s sight. By the time Rod reacted and looked again, not even a trace remained. He could only sigh, standing there in frustration, looking around in despair. In this desolate place, nothing was left for him; it seemed he would have to rely on himself. He could sense that although the place seemed calm on the surface, it hid immense dangers—a fact Rod doubted not at all. The man in black had no reason to lie to him, and his own judgment couldn’t be wrong!

Carefully, he drew out Dark Dragon and held it tightly in his hand. It had indeed been some time since he last held it. Now, Dark Dragon seemed especially excited as it emerged from its sheath, emitting a low humming sound, as if searching for blood everywhere. As more lives were absorbed by Dark Dragon, Rod could sense subtle changes taking place within it—its entirely black body gradually took on more dark red hues, and the scent of blood grew stronger. The three thousand lives mentioned by Dark Dragon’s sword spirit must have been reached by now. Looking at Dark Dragon again, Rod felt both anticipation and hesitation; he really didn’t know how to deal with this creature. Dark Dragon’s sword spirit had always been a major problem troubling Rod. He also didn’t understand what the Xuanyuan Sword Spirit meant, as it still hadn’t given any clear answer, leaving Rod even more frustrated.

With another sigh, he decided to put this matter aside for now. He remained vigilant, scanning the surroundings while focusing inward. Moments later, a loud roar echoed, and with it, a deep red giant dragon soared into the air, displaying an awe-inspiring and formidable presence. At this moment, Rod chose to summon Furnace Heaven from within himself. Looking at it again, Furnace Heaven had already grown to four or five zhang in length, its entire body deep red and as thick as a bowl. Its scales had fully developed, giving it all the characteristics of a dragon. By now, Furnace Heaven had reached the Imperial level, transitioning from its juvenile stage into adulthood.

The reason for summoning Fen Tian was not only because of the promise he had made to him earlier but also because Rod intended to use this opportunity to practice coordination with Fen Tian during this time. Since his identity had been revealed, Fen Tian no longer needed to hide; it was better to bring him out directly. To be honest, since acquiring Fen Tian, the coordination between the two of them had been extremely limited. The only instance of coordinated combat seemed to be the battle in the woods outside the imperial capital. Thinking of this, Rod couldn’t help but smile bitterly—how ironic fate could be.

This time, he chose to summon Fen Tian in order to hone their coordination and unleash maximum power as preparation for the future.

As soon as Fen Tian appeared, Rod’s body let out a long howl, seemingly filled with extreme excitement. Fen Tian circled around Rod, looking like a divine dragon descending from the heavens, exuding an almost unbelievable beauty. A fiery red glow instantly illuminated the surroundings, making them stand out sharply. Over this period, Fen Tian had indeed changed a lot, growing more and more like a dragon! His regal aura also began to manifest at this time.

After all this, Rod fell into deep thought before finally making up his mind. He let out another long howl, clenched his fists tightly, looked up ahead with unwavering determination, and his howl was filled with dominance and conviction.

That howl spread far and wide like an unstoppable force, carrying an intense momentum. As the howl echoed, the elements in the surrounding space seemed to respond to some unseen call and rushed toward him swiftly. At the same time, Rod’s combat energy burst forth like a volcanic eruption. His mental energy became highly tense and divided into three streams, each taking action independently.

The combat energy gradually condensed around Rod at an increasing speed. In the blink of an eye, it visibly took the shape of armor and continued to form.

Along with this, strong winds swept through the forest, causing the fallen leaves to flutter even more violently in the autumn air. The process was sudden and intense, yet it ended just as quickly and quietly.

About five seconds later, all changes came to an abrupt halt. As the howl faded, all movement ceased. Upon closer inspection, aside from the elements retreating outward, no other changes could be detected. It seemed as if nothing had happened at all.

Looking closely, Rod was now covered in a layer of fiery red armor, with a dragon’s head and tiger’s head design, along with dragon-scale tattoos, appearing extremely majestic and powerful.

Just now, it only took him five seconds to form his own Combat Qi avatar. Since forming his Combat Qi avatar at that critical moment in Tielan Town, Rod had felt as if he had broken free from a shackle, seeing a world of openness and clarity ahead—his speed in forming the avatar had improved dramatically. Although he tried several times without reaching that speed again, he could generally control it within about five seconds each time. Yet even such speed was enough to place Rod among the top members.

This time, his decision to use his Combat Qi avatar during training came from his own thoughts—he hoped that through such training, he could gain a deeper understanding and control over it, so he could use it anytime in the future. Especially after his last encounter with that demon race, where he witnessed their abnormally high defense, Rod realized that to further improve his own defense, he must focus on his Combat Qi avatar.

Cloaked in his Combat Qi avatar and surrounded by the Furnishing Dragon, Rod began a new phase of cultivation.

“Hehe… Interesting kid. I wonder how long you can hold on like this? But that long snake is fascinating—it has a dragon-like aura, and quite strong at that. What kind of creature is it? Maybe it’ll surprise us again!” Less than a moment after Rod moved forward, the figure of the man in black reappeared at the spot where he had stood earlier. He hadn’t really left; instead, he had hidden in the shadows to protect Rod. After all, he knew how dangerous this place was. Not to mention Knightrod, even he himself could be in grave danger if careless. He didn’t want anything to happen to Rod, or else he would really be in trouble when he returned.

However, he also knew that if he stayed by Rod’s side, the latter’s cultivation would surely be hindered and disrupted by his presence, and Rod might even become dependent. Such cultivation wouldn’t yield any results. It was for this reason that he had fabricated a lie earlier—only in this way could Rod place all his hopes on him and unleash his full potential.

Their time was indeed running out, so Rod had to reach the threshold of the Saint level as quickly as possible. Only then could he enter that place to cultivate and grow!

Watching Rod leave, a sigh was uttered. The figure in black vanished once again, moving silently through the world without leaving any trace as it approached Rod. The figure seemed highly interested in Fen Tian, who was by Rod’s side. It was curious to see how Rod would react upon learning this. His first reaction would likely be to absorb Fen Tian into his own body.