Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 9: Bottleneck

Tang San's recent mood was rather gloomy. The reason was straightforward: it had been two years, and he had yet to make a breakthrough to the fourth order of the Mysterious Heaven Technique.

Initially, he believed that by the age of seven, he would be capable of reaching the fourth order. However, when he reached the third order’s pinnacle, he realized he had encountered a bottleneck. This barrier didn't appear to result from his limitations but rather from a restraining force inherent to Falan Planet.

Advancing from the third to the fourth order was a formidable challenge.

Tang San had diligently cultivated and amassed power but could not overcome this suppression. Two years had passed, and at eight, he had only reached the third order of the Mysterious Heaven Technique. Furthermore, the collected energy didn't appear to assist him in breaking through.

Leopard Flash and Wind Blade had become second nature to him. Yet, their power hadn't grown alongside the advancement of his Mysterious Heaven Technique. It seemed as if these two skills had indeed reached a plateau. With this, it seemed that all of his abilities were at a bottleneck.

This predicament was caused by a significant issue: the lack of a path to higher advancement. Without such a path, he could only continue to grow at the pace he was currently at. What could he accomplish with the power at the pinnacle of the third order? He would remain an insignificant presence in this world.

Tang San was aware that he needed to embark on some daring endeavors.

Today, his task was to transport trees. In the village, he assisted the adults in carrying the trees the grown men had cut down to a wooden cart that would bring them to the town.

Seven children were aiding the four adults in transporting the load of wood on the cart. The adults pulled the cart with ropes at the front while the children pushed from behind. The road was covered in gravel but relatively even. The cart wasn't moving quickly, and the adults at the front were already putting forth their full strength, progressing step by step.

Tang San had visited Wind Wolf Town a few times in the past. The town's residents were exclusively members of the Wind Wolf Clan, a subgroup of the wolf demons. The Wind Wolf Lord resided in the most prominent house in the town's center.

Wind Wolf Town was the residence of over a thousand Wind Wolf Clan members, surrounded by seven human slave villages that served and supported them.

Wind Wolves were predatory, and humans, including the occasional human slaves, would become their food. Of course, other animals also served as their sources of nutrition.

Compared to other demons, Wind Wolves didn't exhibit an extreme interest in consuming humans, making the likelihood of humans being eaten relatively low in this area. It wasn't due to the Wind Wolves' compassion; instead, they recognized that the real value of humans lay in their capacity for labor.

As Tang San pushed the cart, he observed the town's surroundings, and at the same time, speculated on why he had reached a bottleneck. A potential reason was a conflict between the cultivation of the Mysterious Heaven Technique and this world’s fundamental rules. Given his present abilities, it seemed impossible to escape the constraints imposed by these rules.

The unseen presence of the Lord of the Plane frequently shaped these rules. Being a former God King, Tang San was well-acquainted with this aspect.

Having lived here for eight years, although he had never ventured beyond Wind Wolf Town, one thing was clear. The spiritual energy in this world was exceedingly abundant, reflecting the overall strength of the plane. The higher beings in such a potent plane would undoubtedly possess formidable power, potentially surpassing the divine order in his original world. Therefore, the Lord of this plane—in other words, the avatar of the planet itself—was likely to be extremely powerful.

From his prior interactions with Zhu Jiaxin and the absorption of wind attribute energy from the wolf demons, he had a vague sense that the Mysterious Heaven Technique might possess the ability to absorb the powers of this world. Perhaps the reason he was experiencing suppression was also related to this capability.

Breaking through would become exceedingly challenging by relying solely on the Mysterious Heaven Technique. He needed to explore an alternative approach. Drawing from his perspective as a former God King, the most direct method appeared to be gaining recognition from the Lord of the Plane and its governing rules.

The Lord of the Plane usually manifested as an intangible entity, and all the rules within the plane were put in place to safeguard themself and uphold equilibrium. Consequently, the best approach for Tang San to continue his advancement was to strengthen himself within the rules of this world. He had to conceal the existence of his Mysterious Heaven Technique, thereby reducing the rules' awareness and suppression. This would allow him to make a breakthrough and continue his cultivation.

He was observing Wind Wolf Town with this strategy in mind. The most effective means to improve his capabilities in this plane were undoubtedly enhancing his Wind Wolf abilities or refining the Leopard Flash ability.

Finding another individual who had Leopard Flash would be almost impossible. However, Wind Wolf Clan members were most prevalent in Wind Wolf Town. His strategy was to locate a suitable Wind Wolf around the third rank and attempt to use the Mysterious Heaven Technique to extract the bloodline power from the Wind Wolf, enhancing his existing Wind Blade ability.

If this method proved successful, he would monitor the Wind Wolf in order to confirm whether the Wind Wolf could still regenerate its bloodline power even after having its bloodline power extracted. If it could recover, then the chances of him being discovered would decrease significantly. With the continuous enhancement of the Wind Blade, his Wind Wolf bloodline would grow stronger, enabling him to overcome the bottleneck of his cultivation.

Tang San had devised this plan after meticulous consideration. Given his abilities—the Leopard Flash, Wind Blade, and the peak of the third order in the Mysterious Heaven Technique—he was confident that he could ambush a Wind Wolf.

As they walked, the wooden cart unexpectedly stopped, prompting the children behind to pause their movements instinctively. One of the youngest children even tumbled to the ground due to the sudden stop. Tang San promptly controlled his strength, refraining from exerting any unusual force, and pretended to react just like the other children. The adult at the front also stopped and appeared to be gazing in a specific direction.

Tang San could discern from the side that their expressions held a tinge of envy.

A thing worth noting was that these humans, raised as slaves from a young age, were typically emotionally numb and rarely showed any visible mood changes, so this was a rather unusual occurrence.

Tang San followed their line of sight and observed several individuals posting notices not far away. They were humans, just like himself; but in contrast to the slaves, the attire of these individuals appeared relatively clean and well-kept.

Tang San narrowed his eyes and activated his Purple Demon Eyes, which enabled him to see clearly. He read the notice, which stated that a bloodline assessment would occur in three days, and any slaves who had some measure of wind wolf bloodline were invited to participate in the testing. If the test were successful, they could reside in Wind Wolf Town and cultivate as vassals of the Wind Wolf Clan.

Bloodline assessment?

Tang understood instantly.

Although he often came to Wind Wolf Town for labor, this was the first time he had seen such notices. Undoubtedly, the individuals who were posting notices were also vassals of the Wind Wolf Clan, possessing the coveted Wind Wolf bloodline and enjoying a higher status than ordinary slaves. It was apparent that they had moved beyond the life of slavery, at the very least.

Curiosity began to stir in Tang San's mind. If this was indeed the situation, his strategy could be altered. Being disguised as a slave did offer certain advantages, but it also came with a major problem: his interactions with this world were severely limited.

Given his limited exposure, the possibility of exploring more and accessing the true resources of this world appeared grim. With that in mind, the bloodline screening event in Wind Wolf Town meant a good chance for change.

From a human standpoint, it was clear even for a slave with the slightest shred of self-esteem that this assessment was a tremendous insult.

Who exactly were the humans likely to possess wind wolf blood? They were humans of mixed ancestry. That would mean that these individuals were born from the unions between the creatures of the Wind Wolf Clan and humans. However, in this world, humans were utterly unqualified to be companions of the demons. Rather than partners, they were nothing more than objects used by the demons to release their carnal desires.