Chapter 58

Slowly returning to the Uchiha mansion, Su Zhong looked at the backyard that was in a mess and felt a surge of anger.

Especially the clear artificial lake, which was his favorite place.

But now the lake water had become turbid, with broken branches and leaves floating on it, just like the surface of a river after a heavy rain, making Su Zhong particularly upset.

After circling around for a while, Su Zhong felt something was not right.

"Where is Bai?"

Searching in a hurry, he found Bai lying unconscious not far from his room.

Bai's body was stiff, his eyes rolled up, and he lay motionless on the ground.

Next to him was a tray with a cup of tea that had already cooled down.

Relieved, Su Zhong couldn't help but feel fortunate.

"Fortunately, it was just an illusion."

But the problem was that Su Zhong didn't know how to dispel illusions.

The simplest method was to use one's chakra to disrupt the chakra of the person under the illusion. However, the issue was that Su Zhong didn't have chakra.

Scratching his head, Su Zhong decided to wait for Sasuke to return.

Looking at the stiff Bai, Su Zhong had to carry him back to his room.

Thinking about the attack, Su Zhong was still shaken.

"If it weren't for the Boundary-Breaking Pearl's power and the breakthrough in Hard Qi Gong, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

This experience made Su Zhong fully realize the danger of this world.

The Boundary-Breaking Pearl had allowed Su Zhong to live in three different worlds. And this would continue, giving him a sense of immortality in a way.

But if he died before breaking the boundary, everything would be meaningless.

Bending down, he reached out to pick up Bai. Suddenly, Su Zhong thought of the breakthrough in Hard Qi Gong.

That cool fluid was inside his body, and he could clearly feel its presence.

"What exactly is that thing?" Su Zhong suddenly became interested.

He had tried forming seals but couldn't use any jutsu, leading him to believe it definitely wasn't chakra.

Even Senjutsu chakra would trigger jutsu if he formed the seals.

Forming the seals for the Great Fireball Jutsu, as expected, Su Zhong still couldn't use any jutsu.

Sitting cross-legged next to Bai, Su Zhong propped his chin on his hand and thought deeply.

"First, it's not chakra, nor is it Senjutsu chakra. Second, it's a combination of three forces, with the same foundation as Senjutsu chakra. What are the differences and similarities between them?"

Clenching his fists tightly, Su Zhong felt he had found a direction.

"Two energies have the same raw materials, but due to differences in composition and formation, they result in two different products."

This was the best evaluation of chakra and the cool fluid.

Why can't the cool fluid be used for jutsu?

Su Zhong suddenly thought of a question: "Did jutsu appear first, or did chakra appear first?"

Straightening his back, he felt he had found the key to the problem.

"According to the original story, jutsu can be traced back to Kaguya Otsutsuki eating the fruit of the God Tree. This means chakra appeared first, followed by jutsu. Jutsu were developed to better utilize a certain energy. Different powers require different methods."

He felt a sudden clarity.

"The key to jutsu lies in the seals. Seal-less jutsu is the simplest and most direct use of energy. The simplest is often the most universal."

Staring at Bai, who was still trapped in the illusion, Su Zhong's eyes grew brighter.

Taking a deep breath, he placed his right hand on Bai's shoulder.

Su Zhong decided to conduct an experiment. He would try to use the cool fluid to dispel the illusion.

Dispel illusions is the simplest use of chakra. If he could wake Bai, it would mean his analysis of chakra and the cool fluid was completely correct.

"If the analysis is correct, it proves I'm on the right path to researching new abilities!"

Suppressing his excitement, Su Zhong tried to mobilize the energy inside his body.

To his surprise, this lively but dispersed energy was very obedient.

Just having the thought to move, the fluid immediately flowed from Su Zhong's hand into Bai's body.

Almost instantly, Bai's eyes returned to normal. His body sprang up, and with a shout, he threw a handful of steel needles at Su Zhong.

Clang, clang, clang, clang...

The steel needles hit Su Zhong and were deflected, flying away even faster than they came.

Some were nailed into the wooden floor in front of him, while others pierced through the doors and windows into the room.

...

"Please punish me, sir!" Bai's face drained of color as he knelt on one knee to apologize.

Noticing Su Zhong's almost glowing eyes, Bai felt something significant was about to happen.

It was a good day, and the Uchiha mansion was quieter than usual.

"Probably because everyone in Konoha is busy with the Chunin Exams," Bai thought with a sigh. "People living in Konoha are truly fortunate."

Wandering the ninja world with Zabuza, he had seen too much suffering. The peace in Konoha was indeed intoxicating.

Bai was very satisfied with his current life. Although assisting the new master in training was tiring, and he had to constantly learn new knowledge.

Medical jutsu, Ice Release, and recently, a large amount of seal jutsu.

Life was busy, but Bai was very satisfied: "This is much more fulfilling than wandering around all day."

Of course, Bai was still grateful to Zabuza. He just preferred a different lifestyle.

Roar...

In the distance, a cheer echoed.

Bai looked in the direction of the sound, guessing that a Konoha genin had performed outstandingly.

It might even be Master Sasuke.

Bai smiled warmly and prepared to take the tea to the strange new master.

Turning around, Bai's smile froze. He found himself in a dilapidated house.

He was very familiar with this room. It was his home! The place where his jutsu went berserk, and he killed his father!

An illusion!

Bai immediately realized the reason for the current scene.

But he found himself an outsider, unable to speak or move. He could only watch, over and over, the memory he had buried deep in his mind.

After an unknown amount of time, a thunderclap suddenly exploded in his ears, shattering the entire world.

He saw a figure in front of him.

Without thinking, Bai channeled all the anger accumulated during the illusion into a cloud of steel needles.

Then he saw Su Zhong, unharmed but grinning evilly.

He had seen this look before, the first time he met Su Zhong.

And the result was that he was forced to leave Zabuza and become his servant.

Although, in hindsight, this decision wasn't bad.

"Does the master have some new plan?" Bai shivered involuntarily. "I wonder who will be the next victim."

"Please punish me, sir?" Bai thought that no matter who the master wanted to target, he should protect himself first.

Su Zhong came to his senses, saw the frightened Bai, and smiled. He waved his hand, dismissing Bai, and continued to ponder the cool fluid.

"Natural power, physical power, and soul power. The cool fluid is a combination of three energies." Su Zhong thought about what to name this energy.

This was a completely new energy different from chakra, and as the first creator, Su Zhong had the right to name it.

"Three energies combined, 'Yuan Qi'? Sounds good. Let's go with that." Su Zhong happily decided on the name.

He was eager to go into seclusion and focus on researching this new energy. Su Zhong had already seen the direction to activate the Boundary-Breaking Pearl.

But now was clearly not a good time.

Konoha was in turmoil, the Third Hokage was dead, and Danzo was plotting an assassination. All these events weighed heavily on Su Zhong.

"I must leave Konoha as soon as possible. Here, I am completely restrained." Su Zhong thought bitterly.

As an Uchiha orphan, he was under high scrutiny, especially from those with ulterior motives.

He had long had the idea of leaving Konoha.

After the ambush incident, this idea became even more urgent.

The joy from earlier vanished, and his smile gradually turned into a stern expression.

"Danzo? I can't let you off so easily."

...

At night, in the Uchiha shrine's secret room. Four flames illuminated the entire room as bright as daylight.

Sasuke and Su Zhong sat facing each other.

"I saw the One-Tail Jinchuriki today," Sasuke said with a cryptic tone.

"How was it? Shocked by his power?"

"Indeed, I was shocked." Sasuke paused for a moment. "Does Naruto have that kind of power too?"

"What? Is Uchiha Sasuke afraid? Or jealous?" Su Zhong asked with interest.

Sasuke opened his mouth, paused for a moment, and said, "I'm just not satisfied. I train hard every day, but why can't I match others?"

"Can't match others? How can you think that?" Su Zhong raised an eyebrow, looking at Sasuke strangely.

"I can't defeat the One-Tail Jinchuriki, but Naruto can. He has a very powerful summon. He..." Sasuke let out a long breath, deflating like a punctured balloon.

Su Zhong smiled. "I'll tell you, any power comes with a price."

"I've paid a price too." Sasuke's voice couldn't help but rise.

"So you have this pair of eyes!" Su Zhong's smile faded, and he looked at Sasuke sternly.

"You have a brother as an enemy, and a clan member. Naruto, as a Jinchuriki, has nothing. If I didn't tell you, could you imagine that Naruto, the so-called son of the Nine-Tails, is the son of the Fourth Hokage?"

Sasuke's mouth gaped open, clearly stunned by this information.

"You have the Sharingan, which is your greatest fortune. What you need to do is not to envy others but to learn to use your own power!" Su Zhong stood up and walked to the wall.

Two katana swords leaned against the wall. Su Zhong picked one and threw it to Sasuke, taking the other for himself.

"To gain power, you must pay a price. And timing is crucial." Su Zhong said meaningfully.

He could see that Sasuke was thinking about seeking out Orochimaru.

"Right now, you need to vent. Let me see what you've learned from Kakashi. He is the son of the White Fang."

"The son of the White Fang?" Sasuke took the katana, puzzled.

"Want to know? Defeat me." Su Zhong held the katana in one hand, taunting.

"Ah..."

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