Alien Science Cultivation

Zhang Qiang frowned slightly, gazing at the faint glow in the sky above, a sense of unease welling up within him. The vastness of this immortal cemetery far exceeded his imagination. He exerted his full spiritual awareness, but it was like a drop in the ocean, unable to cover the entire tomb. Silence reigned, with no sign of life. He realized that after entering the cave, everyone seemed to have been randomly transported to various locations, and he couldn't help but worry about Ni Fang's safety. He stood there, pondering his next move. This mysterious cemetery held both danger and opportunity, and he must be cautious. But he also knew that only by continuing to explore could he find Ni Fang and the others, and uncover the secrets of the immortal cemetery. Taking a deep breath, Zhang Qiang gathered his composure, chose a direction, and slowly advanced. His steps were light, fearful of disturbing any unknown presence. His figure seemed insignificant in the dim stone forest, but his eyes were filled with determination and courage.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhang Qiang arrived at the top of a mountain. Gazing at the surroundings, he felt lost. He had already traveled hundreds of kilometers, yet he still hadn't spotted a single living creature, let alone encountered Ni Fang and the Shadow Clan. This made him feel like this place wasn't a cemetery, but more like a separate world. He couldn't help but increase his speed, flying through the air at high speed. "Hmm... a volcano? There seems to be some movement... There seem to be living creatures in this volcano... It seems the forms of life in this world of immortal cultivation are beyond my comprehension... Damn... What a huge turtle..." Approaching the crater, Zhang Qiang discovered a massive, flaming turtle a hundred feet long, its aura unprecedented in its power.

"Hmm... there's another bamboo... a bamboo growing in the volcano... Could this fire turtle's purpose here be to protect it?" Zhang Qiang, hiding thousands of feet above the volcano, quietly gazed down at the volcano. The enormous fire turtle lay motionless before the bamboo, its eyes fixed on it. Each joint emanated a pale blue flame, and the leaves glowed an eerie red. A moment later, the fire turtle seemed to sense someone approaching from the sky and roared towards Zhang Qiang, shaking the surrounding space as if it were shattering. Zhang Qiang instantly activated the power of nothingness, enveloping his entire body. Currently, the limit of space Zhang Qiang's power of nothingness can control is within a sphere with a diameter of one hundred miles. Beyond this limit, the ability to control space decreases, and the duration of this control shortens. It was only after rescuing Ni Fang that Zhang Qiang truly mastered the power of nothingness. From the first time the power of nothingness appeared when forming a pill, the second time when rescuing Dulong from the thunder calamity, to the third time when rescuing Ni Fang, it seems that this power of nothingness has a lot to do with Zhang Qiang's mood.

This left Zhang Qiang speechless, but he could still manipulate the force of nothingness by accelerating the Tai Chi ball, arbitrarily controlling its range and shape, thus altering his control over space. Embracing the terrifying power of nothingness, Zhang Qiang confidently approached the fire turtle's ten-thousand-foot radius. However, the fire turtle's roar was followed by a wave of heat from its mouth, violently impacting the spatial shield formed by the force of nothingness. The shield was actually slowly disintegrating. Zhang Qiang's heart tightened, and he instantly disintegrated his body, transforming it into atoms, and fled at full speed. A moment later, he appeared on the top of a mountain, his body charred black, a few drops of blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. "Damn... I was careless..." He then drifted off into a daze and passed out. An unknown amount of time later, Zhang Qiang, still dazed, saw a palm-sized, snow-white fox standing before him.

It was a white fox the size of a palm, its body as pure as snow, as if condensed from the purest snowflakes. Its fur was soft and shiny, shimmering faintly with silver in the dim light. On its tiny head, a pair of pointed ears trembled gently from time to time, as if alert to the movements around it. Its eyes were like two dazzling sapphires, clear and smart, as if containing endless wisdom and mystery. Its small mouth was slightly pursed, with a hint of playfulness and cuteness. It stood there quietly, exuding a charming charm, as if waiting for Zhang Qiang to wake up. "I say, fool... you are so fierce... you don't even know your own cultivation level! How dare you trespass into the territory of the Fire Turtle..." As if sensing Zhang Qiang's awakening, the little fox looked at Zhang Qiang with contempt and said unabashedly. Zhang Qiang shook his groggy head hard.

Pondering the fox's words, he realized he hadn't actually studied the specific differences between cultivation levels in detail, having only read a few shabby books on the subject. His own level, brought on by the changes in his third dantian, seemed vastly different from the categorization in the cultivation world. Several crushing victories had made him inflate his ego. "My Lord... Miss... Beauty... No, Senior, excuse me for laughing..." Zhang Qiangqiang, his head fuzzy, mumbled back, changing his address again and again until he finally decided that "Senior" was more appropriate. "Haha... Why do I feel like you're a newbie... How many years have you been cultivating? While you appear to be only at the Qi Refining stage, your magical powers are quite impressive... Are you here for that Burning Heaven Bamboo too?" the fox scoffed. "To answer your question, Senior, it's been over twenty years... I don't know anything about the Burning Heaven Bamboo... It was just a chance encounter that brought me here... And as you expected, I'm not very familiar with the differences in abilities between the cultivation levels; I'm just sensing auras..." Zhang Qiang honestly answered the fox's questions, making no effort to conceal anything. "Over twenty years... Cultivating for over twenty years, reaching the state of Qi Perfection is only mediocre, but your magical powers are truly astonishing. Honestly, I can't quite figure you out, which is one of the reasons I'm here beside you. I doubt you, a little scumbag, would recognize my race, so I won't beat around the bush. I'm here for that bamboo. Although I've made every effort, I didn't expect that Fire Turtle to break through recently. I'm no match for it right now, and the Burning Heaven Bamboo is almost complete, so I'm looking for you to join forces. If we succeed, we'll split everything we get 30/70, you get 30/70... How's that?... We Sky Foxes always keep our word..." the little fox said loudly. "My cultivation is limited, how can I help you, Senior?" Zhang Qiang asked, puzzled. "This is easy. Just use the magical power you used to decompose your body to send me to the bamboo. Just now, when I found you resisting the fire breath of the fire turtle, I vaguely felt a force of nothingness. After you decomposed, the fire turtle also lost its target. I also thought you turned into ashes, but I didn't expect you to condense into shape again... I was planning to leave, but after seeing you condense into shape, I felt the hope of seizing the Burning Sky Bamboo again." The little fox explained.

Zhang Qiang pondered the situation. He suspected that if he didn't agree to the fox's request, it would crush him to death. Agreeing, regardless of the benefits, would at least allow him a dignified death. Although the fox was only the size of a palm, its aura was incredibly powerful. While not as powerful as the fire turtle's, it was not far behind. At such close range, the chances of escaping its sight by disintegrating were practically zero. Even if it did, condensing its form within a thousand-foot radius would likely be difficult to escape. If the fire turtle hadn't been guarding the bamboo, its second blast of fire would have reduced Zhang Qiang to ash. Once the Heaven-Burning Bamboo matured, a fierce battle was likely, and escape from the chaos seemed more likely. If this so-called Heavenly Fox Clan was truly as honest as it claimed, perhaps he could still survive and gain something in return.