Chapter 280: Ascension, Nuclear Explosion in Claws, Divine Abilities Achieved (II)

Several hundred meters away, the Thunder Beast stood where it had landed after getting blasted away by the explosion. It was still emitting black smoke, with some cracked scales visibly healing.

After a long while, the Thunder Beast let out an excited low roar.

This move is so powerful!

This technique of compressing sixty percent of the Golden Flames energy within its body dozens of times and then releasing it explosively in an instant was even more powerful than a continuous breath attack. The destructive power was so immense that even it had found it hard to endure.

It was as if it were holding a nuclear bomb in its claw. This was the proper way to wield power; breath attacks and surface-level burning were weak in comparison.

Thinking of this, the excited Thunder Beast focused its thoughts, and countless thunderbolts converged in its claw. Gradually, a hundred-meter-long war spear materialized, radiating brilliant light.

Boom!

The thunderbolt spear exploded due to unstable energy, scattering countless lightning sparks in the water. The Thunder Beast's eyes showed joy as it watched the sparks, for it had realized that with this new ability to substantiate its powers, it had gained more combat techniques.

It could compress and form fireballs or create energy weapons, providing flexibility. Additionally, to enhance its control over the Golden Flames and Thunder, it could engrave, stabilize, and restrict with basic runes on its claws' scales.

It could even research a set of layered rune formations to engrave on its claws, forming a powerful magnetic field to compress half of its Golden Flames energy a hundred times into its claws. With that, each claw strike would be like a nuclear explosion. Who could withstand something that powerful?

Moreover, it could engrave some basic runes in its mouth, not for complex functions, just simple amplification to increase the power of its breath attack. And...

The Thunder Beast grew more excited as it thought about the endless possibilities, and had to take a moment to suppress it. No need to rush; these things could be done over time.

With that, it turned its attention inward. After the breakthrough, its Strength and Defense abilities had also become tangible and substantive powers.

In its perception, a special power flowed through its muscles, which could be concentrated and unleashed to amplify its strength dozens or hundreds of times with just a thought. Additionally, its scales and bones formed a unified system, with a defensive power circulating through them.

Even the originally imperceptible abilities like Agility, Regeneration, and Toxin had become perceivable and controllable, able to be utilized at will.

These were akin to the legendary innate divine abilities. In this situation, it didn't really need to create any secret scriptures for colossal beasts. It just needed to study some runes that would amplify its innate abilities.

Roar!

A distant roar echoed, and the Silver Colossal Dragon approached majestically, accompanied by the Single-horned Kun and the Dragon Turtle.

Seeing the large crater in the distance and the imposing Thunder Beast at its edge, the Silver Dragon's eyes sparkled with joy as it let out a low growl.

Roar! Ao Batian, did you break through?

Roar! Yes, I've reached level 8.

The Thunder Beast nodded slightly.

Roar! Roar! Haha, this strengthens our Dragon Palace even more. By the way, I just led Big Horn and the others to conquer the territory of a level 8 transcendent being. That creature dared to refuse to join the Dragon Palace and reject the great Saixitia's invitation. It was simply courting death.

Squeak! Squeak! Squeak! Yes, courting death, kill it.

Roar! Roar! Kill, I was also very brave earlier, but unfortunately, that creature ran too fast and escaped.

The Kun and the Dragon Turtle roared with excitement. During this time, they had followed the Silver Dragon and swept through vast ocean territories, defeating four entrenched level 8 colossal beasts and over a dozen level 7 mutated creatures.

Unfortunately, those creatures had such low intelligence that they couldn't comprehend joining the Dragon Palace. Some were killed in resistance, while others fled; the corpses ended up in the Kun and Dragon Turtle’s bellies.

During the Thunder Beast's slumber, they had consumed all of the Growth Crystals produced over the past half month. Although the effect weakened over time, it still allowed them to grow to sixty meters, reaching the peak of level 7.

In this situation, they needed more energy, which was why the Silver Dragon had constantly led them into battles. If the Dragon Palace could gain two more level 8 colossal beasts with royal blood or dragon lineage, their combat power would become unstoppable.

With four level 8 colossal beasts working together, even killing a level 9 creature wouldn't be impossible. After all, both the Silver Dragon and Ao Batian possessed formidable strength.

Unlike the Thunder Beast, however, which began to transform at the peak of level 7, the Dragon Turtle and the Kun hadn't yet touched that stage’s barrier and would need more time.

Watching the increasingly formidable black-and-red beast, the Silver Dragon excitedly growled.

Roar! Ao Batian, let's patrol the seas together and conquer those transcendent colossal beasts.

Roar! Not yet, I have some things to take care of first. Let's wait.

The Thunder Beast shook its head.

It needed to test some of its previous hypotheses before engaging in battle again.

***

On the balcony, Chen Chu slowly opened his eyes. The feedback from his avatar breaking through to level 8 was significant, with his most powerful attribute skyrocketing by 200 points to reach a terrifying level of 2,000.

His basic arm strength now exceeded sixty tons. With just his physical power, he could easily overturn a heavy tank. Small cars were like toys for him, which he could casually toss hundreds of meters away.

Feeling his increasingly robust body, Chen Chu sighed. "Mutated beasts are truly blessed by nature. If humans couldn't cultivate, this world would have long been dominated by mutated creatures."

With his avatar breaking through to level 8, it had almost fully mastered its seven major abilities, forming a power projection that covered a two-hundred-meter radius.

In contrast, human cultivators breaking through to the Eighth Heavenly Realm and condensing a Battle Body could only form a protective force field; they needed to reach the Ninth Heavenly Realm to condense a domain.

This disparity was due to the immense size of exotic beasts, which allowed them to contain energy hundreds or even thousands of times greater than humans. They could directly use this vast energy to activate runes and form domain projections.

This was why cultivators focused on true power after reaching the Fourth Heavenly Realm, eventually moving toward the path of the laws. However, while each breakthrough strengthened the human body, the enhancement was limited by their size. Chen Chu was an exception.

The next morning, as soon as Chen Chu woke up, someone knocked on the door.

Xu Xiaoqi, Bai Yunfeng’s assistant, was standing outside, holding two sets of clothes. She politely said, "Mr. Chu, here are the clothes you requested."

Yesterday, Chen Chu had asked Bai Yunfeng to prepare some appropriate bodyguard outfits. Considering his role as Yan Ruoyi's "bodyguard,” it was essential to look professional.

"Sorry for the trouble." Chen Chu took the clothes and returned to his room.

Soon, he came out dressed in a black suit, white shirt, and black leather shoes, completing the look with a pair of sci-fi styled black sunglasses. He now looked like a proper bodyguard.

Xu Xiaoqi, waiting outside, was momentarily stunned. Yesterday, Chen Chu had already given off a handsome and noble aura. But now, in this outfit and with the sunglasses, he looked exceptionally cool.

The black sunglasses highlighted his fair and jade-like complexion, which made his features appear more chiseled and stern, and his tall and straight figure stood like a solid wall, immovable and exuding a strong sense of both security and charm.

Noticing Xu Xiaoqi still staring, Chen Chu calmly asked, "Assistant Xu, has Brother Li woken up yet?"

Xu Xiaoqi snapped back to reality, her face slightly flushed. She quickly replied, "Mr. Li is already up. He's currently having breakfast in the dining room, along with Miss Ruoyi."

She then regained her composure and politely said, "Mr. Chu, let me take you there."

"Thank you."

Following Xu Xiaoqi, Chen Chu soon arrived at Yan Ruoyi's private dining room, where Bai Yunfeng, Li Daoyi, and Yan Ruoyi were having breakfast. Unlike Chen Chu, Li Daoyi was still dressed in his Daoist robes, as he didn't need to stay close to protect Yan Ruoyi and thus could be more casual.

"Brother Chu, you look so cool in that outfit," Li Daoyi said, a bit envious.

Yan Ruoyi and Bai Yunfeng also had their eyes light up upon seeing Chen Chu. Since they weren't very familiar with him yet, however, they simply smiled and motioned for him to join them for breakfast.

After Chen Chu sat down, Xu Xiaoqi took out a schedule. "Today, Miss Ruoyi doesn't have any outings planned. At nine in the morning, she needs to go to the tenth-floor studio to record two new songs, 'Radiant as Flowers' and 'Heart Butterfly.'

"Next is lunchtime. After a break at two in the afternoon, there's an hour of flexibility training, followed by dance rehearsals for 'Hometown of the Dragon' at three thirty."

As a major celebrity, Yan Ruoyi's daily schedule was very tight, and she enjoyed this busy and fulfilling lifestyle. If she didn't keep up with these activities, she wouldn't have time for them later.

After the assistant finished reporting the day's itinerary, Bai Yunfeng turned to Chen Chu and Li Daoyi, asking, "Do you have any suggestions or arrangements?"

Chen Chu shook his head slightly. "For now, the enemy is in the shadows while we are in the light. We can only wait and see, so you should continue with your normal activities.

"I have a keen sense and will be responsible for protecting Miss Yan. Brother Li, with his strong combat abilities, will be in charge of eliminating any potential threats. He can move freely as long as he stays within a kilometer's range, ensuring he can reach us instantly if needed."

"Alright then, we'll leave Little Yi's safety in your hands. I need to coordinate some things at the concert hall."

After breakfast and a short rest, Chen Chu followed Yan Ruoyi to the tenth floor. This was her usual place for recording and practicing, equipped with top-notch audio equipment, although Chen Chu wasn't familiar with or interested in these.

So, after watching Yan Ruoyi enter the recording studio, Chen Chu found a sofa in the corner of the workspace, then took out the Divine Might Dragon Elephant secret scripture and began to study it.

To others, it seemed like he was reading a book... one that was blank, with nothing written inside.