Chapter 407 - 404: The Cannons Roar Again

Chapter 407: Chapter 404: The Cannons Roar Again

The atmosphere grew heavy after Sun Yaowen finished speaking. After all, a demonic invasion was a very serious topic.

"If the Root Cutting Sect really is connected to the demons, I’m afraid there will be no more peaceful days ahead," City Lord Zhong Yuntao mused, then frowned and asked, "But there’s still one thing I don’t understand. The Ancient Cang Realm is clearly protected by the [Ancient Seal]. How did the demons get in?"

"How would I know?" Sun Yaowen said wryly. "But since the demon from the legends was able to get in, there must be a way."

"Heavens, this is a monumental issue!" Zhong Yuntao exclaimed. "Given the Ancient Cang Realm’s position as a bastion, if the demons truly have a way in, it would be a disaster for the entire Inner Star Realm."

At these words, everyone fell silent. It was just as Zhong Yuntao had said: if the Ancient Cang Realm were to be occupied by demons, the defensive lines deployed outside the entire Fifth Ring Star Realm would collapse.

"Seniors, rest assured. The demons shouldn’t have a way to enter the Ancient Cang Realm en masse," Feng Hao said, reassuring them with a light laugh.

According to his analysis, whether it was the demon from the legends or the one now backing the Root Cutting Sect, they were likely just like the Thief Master—flukes that had slipped through the net of the [Ancient Seal].

After all, if humans could accidentally slip past the [Ancient Seal], then demons could do the same.

But on the whole, the [Ancient Seal] was still very effective, capable of keeping out the vast majority of demons.

Sun Yaowen nodded in approval. "Xiaofeng is right. If the demons could invade on a large scale, the Ancient Cang Realm would have fallen long ago. So there’s no need to worry. We can leave the rest to the Five Great Sects."

"True. It’s more important to focus on the crisis at hand," Elder Yun said with a self-deprecating laugh.

...

When the discussion ended, Feng Hao finally had a clear picture of the Root Cutting Sect’s main objective in attacking Five States City.

Although the situation had stabilized for now, the Root Cutting Sect could attack again at any moment. Therefore, no one at the academy dared to lower their guard.

Countless students and teachers gathered together, seizing the opportunity presented by the lingering [Magic Tide] to cultivate and increase their strength as much as possible.

Feng Hao, of course, wasn’t idle either. With the help of Miao Feng and Sun Yaowen, he frantically refined Life Spirit Pills to supply the academy’s entire student body and faculty.

Naturally, there was also no shortage of other commonly used pills. However, he didn’t need to craft these personally, except for the high-level ones. After all, the students in the alchemy department weren’t just freeloaders.

After a flurry of activity, and at the urging of Sun Yaowen and Miao Feng, Feng Hao left the alchemy team to join the other students in their cultivation.

Come to think of it, ever since the [Magic Tide] had erupted, he hadn’t had a chance to properly experience its benefits.

He hadn’t thought much of it before, but the moment he began to cultivate, Feng Hao truly felt the benefits of the Magic Tide.

Enveloped by the dense magical aura, it felt like bathing in a hot spring. He could clearly feel the magic energy pouring into every pore of his body, an unprecedented feeling of comfort.

But that wasn’t the most important part. The crucial thing was that his cultivation speed had increased two- to threefold.

To Feng Hao, it felt just like a server-wide double EXP buff in the game *Mage*. Leveling up was ridiculously fast!

Combined with the aid of Life Spirit Pills and Magic Crystals, not to mention his 128-point genetic activity from the Foundation Establishment Pill, cultivating felt like he had cheats enabled. He could clearly feel the Genetic Tree in his sea of consciousness growing.

A single night of cultivation felt more effective than several days’ worth of effort in the past.

Early the next morning, while everyone else was still mired in the oppressive atmosphere, Feng Hao smoothly broke through to Level 43.

He allocated all his [Gene Points] to his Strength root system in one go. The changes on his gene panel were clear:

Gene Level: 43

Qi Blood: 111,200 (11,450)

Life Force: 330 (32)

Magic Power: 2,158

Qi Gathering: 2

Strength: 699

Dark Force: 2,427

Magic Damage: 301

Defense: 3,280 (69)

Gang Qi: 1,322

Speed: 1,634 (170)

Attack Speed: 432 (162)

Divine Sense: 571

Breath Concealment: 1,022

Divine Sense Strength: 50

Weak Point Enhancement: 116

Looking at his current gene panel, the increase in power wasn’t immediately obvious due to the shift in his stat allocation, but the raw numbers alone were already insane. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

His Qi Blood, in particular, was over 110,000. While it couldn’t compare to a Defense Mage of the same tier, it towered over every other class. And one had to remember, Feng Hao was following the path of an Assassin; for an Assassin to have this much health was already incredible!

At least, back when Feng Hao was a dominant force in the game *Mage*, he had never enjoyed such an advantage.

If he’d had this much health back then, he would’ve been slaying gods and devils, completely unstoppable.

’The two Su Mu Daggers have Strength requirements of 110 and 105. If I keep putting 11 points into Strength each level, I can activate the off-hand Su Mu Dagger at level 46, and the Divine Soul of the main-hand dagger at level 47.’

’Also, because of the Life Creation Pill, I can jump directly to the fifth tier as soon as I reach level 45. That means I’m just two levels away from a massive leap in power!’

At this thought, Feng Hao couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.

Back when his genetic activity was only 48, he wouldn’t have been this excited. But things were different now. With 128 points of genetic activity and the boost from the Magic Tide, two more levels were not a distant goal.

Once both Su Mu Daggers triggered [Light Weapon Specialization], he would instantly gain an additional 2,061 base Dark Force, nearly doubling his damage output.

Moreover, his main-hand Su Mu Dagger had the Divine Soul effect of [Dark Force Ignores 20% Defense], which would synergize perfectly with [Dark Force Fifth Layer]. When that time came, a single strike would deal absolutely explosive damage!

’Since I’m about to enter the fifth tier, I should replace my Su Mu Daggers too. That’ll be another big boost to my Dark Force.’

’Unfortunately, Dark Force materials are hard to come by, especially fifth-tier ones. I haven’t even seen any in the Grand Hall’s Treasure Pavilion.’ Feng Hao sighed helplessly. It couldn’t be helped; Dark Force materials were even rarer than Dark Force Mages, and the higher the grade, the scarcer they became.

Feng Hao had only managed to get his hands on two pieces of fourth-tier Su Mu wood back then out of sheer luck, by running into Yu Xiaoxiao, the young woman from Thousand Blades Valley.

If he had been left to find it on his own, he probably still wouldn’t have succeeded.

Speaking of which, Feng Hao suddenly remembered Yu Xiaoxiao. It had been a long time since their collaboration on the MP3 player and the Snow Frost Ointment, and he hadn’t contacted her since. He wondered what she was busy with.

’Forget it. She’s probably busy with her own affairs. Besides, Five States City is still trapped by the Array, so I couldn’t contact her even if I wanted to.’

Feng Hao gave a wry smile and stood up, stretching lazily. He was just about to let out a sigh and unwind when a massive BOOM echoed from outside the city.

It was followed by a second, a third, a fourth...

After two days of quiet, the cannons of the Root Cutting Sect roared once more.

Everyone at the academy was jolted awake. The Elders reacted instantly, soaring into the sky to intercept the falling shells. The instructors immediately began organizing the students to prepare for battle.

"Don’t panic! Reinforcements from the major sects will be here soon!" In the midst of the crowd, Yue Linglong waved her Magic Staff, reassuring the students around her.