Chapter 499 - 315: Perfection of the First Layer of Enlightenment, Trait: Plundering Vitality, Creating the Seed of Dao Borrowing

A perfect location immediately came to Han Feng’s mind.

Broken Star Reef, the underground palace!

The place that the Child of the Mist had converted into a "slaughterhouse" and a production facility for Divine Soul Crystals was practically a tailor-made sowing ground for him.

The Child of the Mist had painstakingly established production lines and distribution channels, turning Divine Soul Crystals into a coveted Treasure everyone was clamoring for.

All he had to do was pull off a classic bait and switch.

He would use the Sword Seeds he created to replace the real Divine Soul Crystals.

When the time came, the items that members of the major powers fought tooth and nail for would all be his, Han Feng’s, "seed round investments."

It was the perfect scheme of borrowing a hen to lay his own eggs!

Even better, if the scheme was ever exposed and something went wrong, the Child of the Mist would be the one to take all the blame.

After all, the production base was theirs, and so was the technology. Who would have ever guessed someone would swoop in to hijack the whole operation?

’I’m truly an unassuming little criminal mastermind.’

Han Feng couldn’t help but give himself a pat on the back.

Thus far, the plan was nothing short of perfect. Only one final, and most crucial, problem remained.

The cost.

Condensing a single Sword Seed consumed ten percent of his maximum Spiritual Power—a whopping four hundred and fifty hertz.

The cost was far too great.

Even with a miraculous recovery item like the Clear Heart and Spirit-Nourishing Jade Dew, he wouldn’t be able to produce very many in a short amount of time.

This ran completely counter to his grand blueprint of "mass production and casting a wide net."

’No, something isn’t right.’

Han Feng frowned, calmed himself, and carefully recalled all the information the system had instilled in him regarding Sword Seed Dao Transmission.

He quickly reviewed the information and soon found the key point.

"...condense an intangible Sword Seed by combining one’s own essence, qi, and spirit with one’s understanding of a specific branch of the Sword Dao..."

"...condensing a Sword Seed requires...infusing 10% of one’s maximum Spiritual Power as an imprint and a driving force..."

Ten percent of his Spiritual Power served as the "imprint" and "driving force."

This was "Dao Transmission" in the truest sense of the term. It required him to infuse all his insights regarding a particular Skill, creating a mechanism similar to the inherited memories of a Demon Beast.

A Sword Seed like that was of extremely high quality, allowing the recipient to receive the most complete inheritance and avoid countless pitfalls on their cultivation path.

But right now, he didn’t need to cultivate successors. He needed to borrow the Sword Seed’s mechanism to collect the wisdom of thousands of living beings to pave the way for his own Cultivation.

He didn’t need to give them a complete, finished piece of software. He just needed to provide a "programming tool" and a "basic user manual."

’So, I don’t need to use that much Spiritual Power at all!’

Han Feng immediately began to experiment.

He changed his goal from "infusing the complete insights of the *Three-Inch Heart Sword*" to "only imprinting the most fundamental principles of Divine Soul Cultivation."

For example, how to improve the efficiency of condensing Spiritual Power, how to temper the resilience of one’s Will, and how to perceive and repair minor wounds to the Divine Soul.

These were the most fundamental "axioms," applicable to any Divine Soul Cultivation Technique.

He carefully controlled his Spiritual Power output, decreasing it little by little.

Four hundred hertz... three hundred hertz... one hundred hertz...

When the Spiritual Power cost dropped to ten hertz, he finally felt a hint of resistance.

Any lower, and the structure of the condensed Sword Seed would become unstable, liable to collapse at any moment.

’Is ten points of Spiritual Power the limit?’

With a thought, Han Feng used ten points of Spiritual Power as the core and activated the condensation technique once more.

This time, he succeeded!

A brand new Sword Seed floated quietly in his palm.

It was no longer a brilliant gold, but possessed an almost transparent quality. The distinct Three-Inch Heart Sword was no longer visible within it, only a blurry halo of light slowly swirling.

He activated his Eye of Insight.

[Borrowed Path Sword Seed (Divine Soul)]: Unplanted.

[Status]: Healthy (Fragile Structure).

[Control]: 100%.

[Contained Information]: Basic Principles of Divine Soul Cultivation (Simplified Version).

"It worked!"

Han Feng clenched his fists, unable to hide his excitement.

Ten points of Spiritual Power for one!

With his total Spiritual Power of 4,500 hertz, he could create four hundred and fifty of them in one go, even without using any recovery items!

This was an increase in efficiency of more than tenfold!

Rather than "Dao Transmission" or an "investment," it was more fitting to call this kind of Sword Seed "loan-sharking."

As for how much "interest" to collect, that would depend entirely on Han Feng’s mood.

For his own people, like Zhao Tianlan, he would only take the core Dao Rhyme Insights, making it a win-win situation.

But if it were an enemy...

Then he wouldn’t be so courteous.

He would siphon away their Cultivation and Talent Origin along with everything else, like pulling a critical load-bearing column from the foundation of a skyscraper.

Everything they had built upon the foundation of the Sword Seed’s information would be reduced to nothing.

’The name "Dao Transmission Sword Seed" isn’t fitting anymore.’

Han Feng looked at the transparent Sword Seed in his hand and muttered to himself.

’I’ll call it the Borrowed Path Sword Seed.’

Looking at the "Demon Contract" he had created with his own hands, Han Feng actually felt a flicker of shame.

A perfectly good ability like Sword Seed Dao Transmission, meant to be a supreme Technique for masters to pass on the Great Dao, had been twisted by him into a scythe for harvesting suckers.

’Sigh, I didn’t want to do this. I was forced.’

Han Feng quickly found a perfect excuse for himself.

He was just a poor soul trying to survive the apocalypse. In a struggle for survival, how could there be right or wrong?

Besides, strictly speaking, this move of his was a case of thieves robbing thieves.

His entire operation was built upon the scheme laid out by the Child of the Mist; he was merely stealing the "fruit" of the Weaver.

This was like an innocent passerby’s wallet being stolen by a thief.

And he was just snatching the wallet from that thief’s hands.

Could this be considered a bad deed?

This was clearly carrying out justice on heaven’s behalf!

With that thought, the last trace of guilt in Han Feng’s heart vanished into thin air, and he felt utterly relieved.

His thoughts were unobstructed, his mind perfectly clear!

Just then, the long-absent system notification chimed once more!

[Ding! Host has broken through a mental obstacle, clarifying their true nature. Good and evil are subjective; the Dao follows what is natural...]

[Talent: Heart Clarity and Nature Seeing (Middle Level) Skill Proficiency +450! Current Progress: 10000/10000!]

[Congratulations, Host! Heart Clarity and Nature Seeing has met the advancement requirements and is automatically upgrading!]

[Talent: Heart Clarity and Nature Seeing (High Level)]

[Effect 1: Heart of glass, impervious to all arts. Grants immunity to all Tier Three and lower negative mental states and soul attacks.]

[Effect 2: Will Barrier. Drastically reduces the effects of Tier Four Spiritual Contamination and soul corrosion. Possesses extremely high resistance to High Tier attacks of the same nature.]

[Effect 3: One True Self. Maintain self-awareness and a clear mind under any threat, including Illusion Realms, Heart Demons, and possession.]

A cool energy surged from the depths of his soul, washing over his entire body.

Han Feng felt his thoughts become incredibly clear, as if he could see through the very essence of the world.

Previously, when observing Zhao Tianlan, he had needed to analyze the data panel from his Eye of Insight.

Now, simply by recalling Zhao Tianlan’s appearance, he could vaguely sense through Intuition a power hidden deep within the man’s Divine Soul. It was a force utterly different from his own Divine Soul Sword Seed, one filled with chaos and malice.

’Is this the effect of High Level Heart Clarity and Nature Seeing?’

Han Feng was stunned.

This was no longer a simple defensive ability. It was more like a form of "danger precognition" that operated on the level of Intuition.

With this ability, the next time he encountered something with a hidden backdoor like the Divine Soul Crystals, he would probably spot the problem in a single glance.

A pleasant surprise. This was definitely a pleasant surprise!

’Looks like a person can’t be too kind, after all.’

Han Feng stroked his chin and concluded with a straight face, ’Being a little devious now and then is good for mind and body. It even helps with your Cultivation.’