Chapter 29

"What, he ran away?" Wang Xiong’s face turned angry upon hearing the report from the person who came.

Zichen had offended many people, and it was a matter of life and death. If Zichen could not be killed, it would be difficult to explain to the Luo Sect.

"Yes, there was no one there early this morning," the person reported.

"Damn it, he actually ran away. Find him, we must find him. Contact the outer sect disciples and have them go out to search," Wang Xiong said angrily.

"Yes."

Dozens of miles away from the Lingwu Sect, there was a vast mountain range. The mountains were covered with undulating forests, lush and green, with towering peaks, clear streams, and the sounds of birds and flowers.

This was a vast primeval forest, with a large area. The scenery at the edges was beautiful, and only small animals roamed there without danger. However, deeper in, there were fierce beasts, and it was said that even innate realm demonic beasts existed.

Many disciples of the Lingwu Sect came here to try their luck. Over time, this nameless primeval forest gained its own name: the Tranquil Forest.

On this day, a young man came to the edge of the Tranquil Forest. He was dressed in blue and carried a bundle, and he arrived at a hill.

The hill was only a few dozen meters high, with old trees on its sides. A few hundred meters away was a lake, the water of which was clear to the bottom, and fish were swimming happily in it.

The young man was Zichen, who would turn eighteen after the spring. Walking in the mountains and forests, wearing white clothes was somewhat inconvenient, so he put on the clothes of an outer sect disciple.

"Good, this is the place." Zichen was very satisfied with the environment here.

There was food, and at the base of the hill, there was a protrusion that could shield against wind and rain. It was a perfect place for quiet cultivation.

Sitting cross-legged, his mind and body became empty, and Zichen once again entered the lightning space.

A lightning youth appeared, carrying the true meaning of the Thunder Finger. With one point, a bolt of lightning shot towards Zichen. The lightning was fierce and terrifying, like an angry dragon, exploding on Zichen’s body, causing his form to dissipate.

His consciousness returned, and Zichen opened his eyes, beginning to comprehend the Thunder Finger.

Between his fingers, silver light surged again. This time, most of his finger turned silver.

The silver light flashed, and his finger pointed forward, instantly creating a finger hole in a large rock.

"Ah!" Zichen shook his head in disappointment.

During the day, he practiced the Thunder Finger, and at night, he cultivated the Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering Technique. In this vast area, surrounded by endless grass and tree essence, Zichen’s cultivation speed increased significantly.

Every night, Zichen transformed into a vortex, continuously absorbing the essence of the surrounding plants. After a night of cultivation, he would be refreshed by morning.

In the morning, he washed by the lake, and when he was hungry, he ate dry rations. Sometimes he would catch fish to improve his diet.

Zichen’s life was quite comfortable.

However, he did not know that Wang Xiong had mobilized hundreds of outer sect disciples to search for his traces dozens of miles outside the Lingwu Sect.

At the same time, the Luo Sect was sponsoring this operation, offering a True Qi Pill as a reward to anyone who found Zichen.

Thus, more outer sect disciples left the sect.

Zichen’s strength and constitution were steadily increasing, and his comprehension of the Thunder Finger was deepening.

In front of Zichen, the large rock, which required several people to embrace, had many finger holes, all products of his failed experiments.

Fifteen days later, his consciousness returned from the lightning space, and Zichen stood beside the large rock, thinking about the previous scene.

With one point, a bolt of lightning appeared, like an angry dragon, flying towards him.

While thinking, the lightning true qi in his body surged, and Zichen’s fingertips turned completely silver, though he did not know this, as he was still thinking about the scene in the lightning space.

His finger subconsciously pointed forward, and suddenly a crackling sound appeared. A brilliant silver light shot from his fingertips towards the large rock in front of him.

The silver light hit the rock, and lightning flashed, followed by a loud explosion.

The large rock, which required several people to embrace, was instantly shattered into pieces, and a powerful shockwave pushed Zichen back.

"What is this?"

Zichen instantly became clear, looking at the stone fragments in front of him, his eyes filled with disbelief, "Could I have succeeded?"

The previous strike had consumed a third of his true qi.

With the true qi in his body surging, Zichen struck again in surprise, but this time, nothing unusual happened.

"Something’s wrong."

Zichen sat cross-legged, his mind began to ponder the previous scene, his body and mind becoming empty as he carefully comprehended.

Time passed, and Zichen’s comprehension took a whole day. When the sun was about to set, he opened his eyes, a hint of joy in his eyes.

"It’s like this." Zichen opened his eyes, his face showing a sudden realization, "The Thunder Finger is about transforming a finger into lightning. The surging true qi becomes a bolt of lightning. The key is not in transforming a finger into lightning, but in the lightning true qi."

While talking to himself, the true qi in Zichen’s dantian surged again, appearing like a fine thread, like a bolt of lightning. Then, his entire finger turned silver. If one looked closely, they could see a flickering bolt of lightning within the silver light.

Zichen was about to test this strike, but suddenly saw an old man standing in front of him, so he reined in his aura, and his finger returned to normal.

"Old sir, it’s so late, why are you still here?" Zichen asked, puzzled, seeing the old man in front of him.

The old man was dressed in rough hemp clothing, with no trace of true qi, his back already hunched, his eyes somewhat cloudy, and his face lined with wrinkles.

The first time Zichen saw him, the old man was fishing on the other side of the lake. Zichen thought he had met a hermit, but later found out that he was just an ordinary old man from the foot of the mountain, coming here daily to fish, partly for health and partly for food.

"I came early in the morning, wanting to chat with you, but I didn’t expect you to sit there motionless for a whole day. Young man, are you cultivating?" The old man’s eyes showed curiosity.

"Not exactly cultivating, I was just thinking about a problem," Zichen scratched his head and stood up.

"Old sir, did you catch any fish today? If not, I’ll go catch one for you," Zichen asked.

The old man shook his head and smiled, "Not yet, I’ve been watching you and forgot."

"Alright, old sir, wait a moment." Zichen took off all his clothes, becoming completely naked, and jumped into the water. A moment later, he emerged with two fish, each weighing over two pounds.

"Old sir, take one home to eat, and I’ll roast the other. Let’s eat now," Zichen said with a smile.

"Sure, it’s rare for a young man like you to have such a refined interest. I’ll accompany you," the old man smiled and then unhooked a large gourd from his back.

The gourd was full of wine. Besides fishing, the old man also enjoyed drinking, and Zichen often saw him drinking while fishing.

"Old sir, I’ve told you many times, my name is Zichen. Don’t call me ‘young man’ all the time; you could be my grandfather," Zichen smiled, taking out a short dagger from his bundle and skillfully cleaning the fish.

"I am a cultivator of the Lingwu Sect, and you are just an old man. You are older, but your status is lower than mine, so it’s better to call me ‘young man’," the old man said, sitting beside him, taking a sip of wine, and smacking his lips.

"What cultivator? We are all ordinary people, or even less than ordinary," Zichen shook his head, finished cleaning the fish, and gathered some dry wood. Using a flint, he started roasting the fish.

A campfire rose, and the fish were split in two, skewered on sticks. Drips of oil fell into the fire, sizzling.

Zichen and the old man were chatting.

The old man drank, occasionally letting Zichen take a sip, which caused Zichen to cough, and the old man to laugh heartily.

The old man told Zichen some interesting stories from the secular world, and Zichen told the old man about his troubles.

"My quota was taken, and I offended many people. I had to leave, or I would be killed in the sect," Zichen shook his head and sighed.

The old man did not speak, listening quietly. Soon, night fell.

"Oh, I’m sorry, old sir. It’s so late, and I’ve kept you. I’ll see you down the mountain," Zichen said, looking at the sky, feeling apologetic.

Although there were no fierce beasts here, there were still dangerous animals. Zichen was not afraid, but the old man was an ordinary person and could not defend against them.

"Ah, I’m old, and my body isn’t as strong as it used to be. In my youth, I could capture tigers," the old man shook his head, his cloudy eyes suddenly bright, as if reminiscing about his younger days.

"Old sir, you don’t even pant when climbing mountains, you’re not old," Zichen smiled, then helped the old man down the mountain.

Despite their significant age difference, they chatted as if they were close friends.

The Tranquil Forest was dangerous at night, with fierce beasts often appearing. On the way down, Zichen saw a tiger blocking their path.

The tiger’s roar shook the forest, and a strong wind blew. The tiger, about three meters long, blocked their way.

"Perfect, I’ll use you to test my Thunder Finger," Zichen indicated for the old man to stand behind him, a glint of determination in his eyes.

True qi surged in his body, and his fingertips instantly turned silver. With one point, a bolt of lightning shot forward.

"Roar." Sensing the oppressive aura around Zichen, the tiger let out a terrified roar and turned to flee, but its speed was no match for lightning.

"Boom!"

In the sound of the lightning explosion, a living tiger turned into a charred corpse. The fierce roar of the beast and the sound of the lightning explosion echoed through the entire forest.

Behind Zichen, the old man’s cloudy eyes suddenly flashed with a wise light, which quickly disappeared, replaced by shock. He looked at Zichen, who turned around, and said, "Young man, you’re so powerful. What was that just now, lightning?"