Chapter 209: Corpse of a Star Devourer, Tianyan Alloy, Forging Growth-type

Chapter 209: Star-Eater Corpse, Heaven-Evolution Alloy, Forging a Growth-Type Weapon! The Tenfold Hand Ascends Again!

Just as the Supreme Council Hall of the Blue Star Federation was utterly shrouded in the despairing shadow cast by the SSSS-class behemoth codenamed "Leviathan," and the five chiefs, their hearts ashen, had already prepared for the worst—the annihilation of their civilization—

A sudden, crisp electronic chime shattered the dead silence.

"Beep—!"

The main control optical brain at the center of the hall flashed a glaring red warning frame.

"Warning! Detected an unknown-source, high-intensity encrypted information stream requesting access to the Federation Think Tank's main server!"

"What?!"

The five chiefs jolted awake, their gazes snapping in unison to the main control optical brain.

"Unknown source? It bypassed all our defense systems and directly requested access to the Think Tank?"

Chief "Tianji" paled, fully aware of what this meant. The other side's technological level had far surpassed Blue Star's comprehension.

"Intercept! Intercept immediately!"

He commanded on instinct.

"Unable to intercept!"

The optical brain's synthesized voice replied coldly. "The opposing information stream uses an encryption protocol we cannot parse... Warning! They have forcibly bypassed the verification protocol... Accessing... Access successful."

The entire process was fluid and overbearing, Blue Star Federation's vaunted firewall as fragile as paper before them.

The next moment, a gentle, steady baritone voice echoed clearly through the hall's amplification system, reaching every ear.

"Greetings, nascent civilization of Blue Star. We come from the Human Empire of the Universe."

This opening line struck like a thunderbolt, plunging the five chiefs' minds into a blank void.

The Universe?

Human Empire?!

Before they could recover from this immense shock of information, the voice continued unhurriedly:

"Our goal is to spread martial arts among the nascent civilization of Blue Star, help you cleanse the 'myriad races' beings' brought by that dimensional rift, and ultimately assist you in completing the civilizational docking with the entire Human Empire."

"What you call the 'Underground Cavern' is, in truth, a dimensional rift. And what you call 'Fierce Beasts' are various beings from the myriad races' battlefield."

"As a gesture of sincerity, we should note that our survey vessel has been stationed in Blue Star's synchronous orbit for about a month now. Of course, with your current technological level, you cannot detect our presence."

"Relevant documents, including 'Comprehensive History of the Empire,' 'Introduction and Application of Psychic Technology,' 'Detailed Explanation of Basic Martial Arts,' and 'Imperial Standard Body-Tempering Method,' have been sent to your Think Tank. File formats have been automatically adapted for compatibility. Please receive them."

The broadcast ended abruptly.

The entire hall fell into a long, deathly silence.

The five chiefs exchanged glances, each face etched with shock, confusion, and deep suspicion.

Interstellar colonization?

A meticulously crafted hoax by some hostile force?

Or a prank of the most malicious kind?

Countless thoughts raced through their minds.

But in the next instant, they unanimously cast aside these chaotic notions.

Because they had no choice.

Behind them loomed the SSSS-class behemoth capable of destroying their civilization.

Before them lay this message from the "Human Empire of the Universe"—whether hope or abyss.

They had to treat a dead horse as if it were still alive!

"Even if it's interstellar colonization, so what?!"

Chief "Leishen" gritted his teeth and growled, "As long as we preserve the spark of Blue Star civilization, even being colonized is better than being devoured clean by those monsters!"

His words voiced everyone's thoughts.

"Tianji, immediately review the data they transmitted!"

Chief "Panshi" made a swift decision.

"Yes!"

Tianji quickly got to work. Soon, files with titles never before heard appeared on the central holographic screen of the hall.

His gaze was instantly drawn to the file titled "Imperial Standard Body-Tempering Method."

Even a cursory glance made his breathing suddenly quicken!

"This... how is this possible?!"

"What's wrong?"

The other four immediately gathered around.

"Look!"

Tianji pointed at the screen's content, his voice trembling with excitement. "This body-tempering method... it's practically tailor-made for humans! It elaborates in detail how to train every part of the body scientifically and progressively—its sophistication is beyond belief!"

"Most crucially, its balance between developing physical potential and minimizing wear and tear perfectly corresponds to our existing C-rank, B-rank, and A-rank martial artist levels! As long as we follow the method with adequate nutrition and rest, it causes almost no harm to the body!"

At these words, everyone's eyes widened.

This was the fundamental problem that had plagued Blue Star's martial arts world for over a century, leaving even their S-rank strongmen riddled with hidden injuries!

And now, the answer was laid before them so effortlessly.

Just then, the voice from the universe spoke again.

"This body-tempering method, along with all knowledge, is shared freely. So please trust our sincerity. Now, to resolve the crisis most efficiently, please temporarily hand over the supreme command of Blue Star civilization to us."

The words carried an undeniable tone.

The five chiefs exchanged glances, seeing resolve in each other's eyes.

No debate, no hesitation.

Chief "Panshi," speaking for all, replied solemnly: "We agree!"

Five votes, unanimous.

They all knew well: given the other side's civilization level, far surpassing Blue Star, even if they disagreed, the other side was fully capable of forcibly obtaining their "consent."

"Received. Please wait a moment. We have initiated a strike operation against the strongest threat on this planet—the 'Star Beast'..."

"Star Beast? Does that mean... Leviathan?!"

The five chiefs froze, then quickly realized.

"Quick! Mobilize all military satellites! Lock onto the East Sea! Track the behemoth!"

The order was swiftly issued.

Soon, a real-time image, stitched together from dozens of satellites capturing from different angles, was projected onto the main screen of the conference hall.

In the image, the colossal beast, codenamed "Leviathan," was rising and falling in the depths of the ocean.

Its body length, according to the latest radar calculations, had already reached a terrifying thirty kilometers!

Its massive frame, resembling a Western dragon, churned up monstrous waves with every roll.

It surfaced from time to time, revealing its hideous head and scales that shimmered with a metallic, eerie gleam. The sheer majesty of its presence was enough to make anyone who saw it tremble to the very core of their soul.

Then, just as the five chiefs held their breath, their hearts leaping into their throats,

a brilliant point of light, like a flaming meteor, plummeted from beyond the atmosphere with ferocious might!

"Quick! Zoom in the satellite feed! Lock onto that meteor!"

The image was swiftly adjusted and magnified.

Through the blazing plasma flames flickering on the screen, they could barely make out that the core of the "meteor" was actually a distinct humanoid figure!

And a long spear clutched in its hand!

Boom, boom, boom—

That humanoid figure descended at an unimaginable speed. The tip of the spear scraped violently against the dense atmosphere, igniting flames more terrifying than the surface of the sun!

Yet, incredibly, around the humanoid figure, an invisible wave of energy seemed to radiate spontaneously, effortlessly isolating all the flames and heat that could melt steel.

"This energy fluctuation..."

Chief "Tianji," staring at the wildly jumping numbers on the monitoring instruments beside him, trembled with excitement, "That's it! That's the fluctuation state of our latest research on 'psychic energy'! Our research direction... is correct!"

The other chiefs, already utterly stunned by the image, had fallen into a state of speechlessness.

"What level of human is this?!"

"His energy tier has far surpassed our classification of realms! This is definitely above four S's!"

Plop—!

Under the gaze of billions of Blue Star inhabitants, Qin Feng's body, like a meteorite, plunged with boundless might, precisely and unerringly into the deep sea, right beside the colossal beast "Leviathan"!

Then, through the somewhat blurry images transmitted by deep-sea detectors,

that tiny human figure, before the beast as massive as a mountain range, thrust out a spear.

One thrust, piercing the indestructible belly of "Leviathan."

And then came an apocalyptic scene.

An energy, more brilliant and billions of times more terrifying than the detonation of tens of millions of tons of nuclear bombs, erupted from that small spear tip!

In that instant, the sea area spanning hundreds of miles, because of this incomprehensible, fearsome energy, boiled over completely!

Hundreds of millions of tons of seawater were instantly vaporized, forming a terrifying steam that blotted out the sky and sun!

"Roar—!!!"

A scream, utterly agonizing yet abruptly cut short, transmitted through the seawater medium, spread across the entire planet.

On the screen, the life-sign data representing "Leviathan" plummeted like a kite with a broken string, dropping to zero in less than a second.

Inside the conference hall, the five chiefs stared blankly at the image before them, as if their souls had left their bodies.

A physical body crossing the vacuum of space...

Enduring the high temperatures of atmospheric friction...

The energy output of a single strike could instantly vaporize a sea area spanning hundreds of thousands of miles, completely altering weather and terrain...

"The energy intensity of this strike... according to preliminary estimates, is roughly equivalent to... ten thousand times the total of all our stockpiled nuclear weapons combined."

Chief "Tianji's" voice was dry and hoarse.

"What kind of existence is this?"

"Is this the Human Empire of the universe?"

The same thought surged into the minds of all five.

Everything happening before their eyes had completely exceeded their comprehension, as if they were immersed in a bizarre, dazzling dream.

—

In the deep sea, utter silence reigned.

The colossal beast "Leviathan," which had once brought endless despair and terror to the entire Blue Star civilization, now floated quietly before Qin Feng. On its massive body, the wound pierced by the spear tip still radiated destructive energy aftershocks, utterly severing all its life force.

Qin Feng hovered beside the beast's corpse, his expression calm.

For him, this was nothing more than a routine cleanup operation.

"Master,"

the voice of his AI assistant, Hammer, sounded in his mind through bone-conduction communicator, "According to database comparison, the carcass of this 'Star-Eater' juvenile contains extremely rich 'bio-metal keratin' and 'devouring alloy properties.' It is a top-tier rare material for crafting 'growth-type' weapons and power armor. It is recommended that you recover it intact."

"Growth-type weapons?"

Qin Feng's interest was piqued.

"Yes, Master. This type of equipment can grow synchronously with your strength, saving the trouble and resource consumption of frequent replacements. However, the volume of this material is too large; your current subspace storage unit capacity is insufficient to contain it."

Hammer quickly provided a solution, "It is recommended that you immediately exchange for a 1000km subspace storage unit in the Empire Mall, costing one million contribution points."

"One million contribution points..."

Qin Feng glanced at his remaining balance of just over 1.3 million contribution points and issued the command without hesitation.

"Exchange."

For him now, contribution points were merely a string of numbers; what truly mattered was acquiring strategically valuable resources.

He extended his hand toward the beast's corpse, which lay like an underwater mountain range.

Hum—

An invisible gravitational field enveloped the carcass. Under the influence of spatial forces, the massive corpse transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the storage imprint on his palm.

Having dealt with the spoils, Qin Feng did not linger.

"Hammer, project the coordinates of all threats on Blue Star with a life-force index exceeding 80,000 points."

"Yes, Master."

The next moment, a precise, global three-dimensional ocean map was projected onto Qin Feng's retina.

On the map, several conspicuous red dots were moving slowly.

Qin Feng moved, leaving a long white trail of water in the deep sea, like a torpedo, racing toward the nearest target.

The following hours were, for Blue Star's marine ecosystem, nothing short of a divine purge.

A deep-sea giant octopus, lurking in a trench ten thousand meters deep, its body the size of an island and life-force index as high as 87,000 points, had just awakened from slumber when a spear light descending from the sky pierced through it and its lair, vaporizing them both.

A school of saber-toothed ferocious fish, each over a hundred meters long, moving in a pack with life-force indices generally around 80,000 points, was hunting a Blue Star nuclear submarine. The next second, a figure burst into the midst of the school.

The spear thrust like a dragon; within minutes, the entire school was slaughtered, their cold corpses sinking to the seabed.

Like the most efficient scavenger, Qin Feng followed the map's guidance, eliminating one by one all the top-tier "monsters" that posed a lethal threat to this nascent civilization.

"Master, I've detected a rare alloy."

Just as Qin Feng was traversing a patch of blood-reddened sea, heading toward his next target, Hammer's prompt sounded again, without any warning.

"Hmm?"

Qin Feng paused mid-step.

"At your twelve o'clock direction, about three thousand kilometers deep in the ocean, I've scanned an extremely precious 'Heavenly Derivative Alloy.'"

Immediately after, a detailed set of information materialized before Qin Feng's eyes.

[Heavenly Derivative Alloy: A transcendent metal possessing biological characteristics.

It boasts the highest spiritual and psychic conductivity among currently known materials.

Its internal structure can record the user's life imprint and martial will, undergoing adaptive evolution accordingly, granting it special 'growth potential.'

It is a top-tier material for forging planetary-level weapons, power armor, and even starship cores.

Currently known to be produced only in specific chaotic environments within the 'Myriad Races Battlefield.'

Within the territory of the Human Empire, there are no stable sources of production.]

"Only produced in the Myriad Races Battlefield..."

Qin Feng's gaze sharpened, instantly grasping the key point, "That means it must have been brought along inadvertently by those myriad-race beings through the subspace rift."

He hesitated no longer, his form flickering as he transformed into a streak of light, racing at full speed toward the coordinates marked by Hammer.

At his current speed, a distance of three thousand kilometers was but a mere moment.

Soon, he arrived at the target sea area.

Under Hammer's precise guidance, he discovered, deep within a dark submarine canyon, a peculiar piece of metal emitting a faint, iridescent glow.

This metal, about the height of a person, was irregularly shaped, like a lump of clay casually kneaded, yet its surface was smooth as a mirror.

It lay quietly amidst the sand and silt at the seabed. Without Hammer's special reminder, even if Qin Feng conducted a carpet search of this sea area with his psychic power, he might have searched for ten years and still found it extremely difficult to detect its existence.

Its aura perfectly merged with the surrounding environment.

"Hammer, is this scanning and identification ability one of your built-in functions?"

Qin Feng asked in his mind as he approached.

"Yes, Master."

Hammer's little dragon form bobbed before his retina, "Item scanning and value assessment are among Hammer's core functions, which remain active by default. However, until now, the environment you were in never encountered any items marked as 'Rare' or above in the database, so this function never triggered an alert."

"I see."

Qin Feng nodded, carefully storing this invaluable "Heavenly Derivative Alloy" into his subspace storage unit.

This mission had brought an unexpected delight.

Afterward, Qin Feng spent another half a day thoroughly patrolling and cleansing the entire sea area of Blue Star, ensuring no top-tier predators capable of threatening the civilization's survival remained.

Then, he burst out of the sea surface, oriented himself, and headed toward the location of the subspace rift—a desolate zone at the edge of a continental plate, known to Blue Star's humans as the "Cursed Land."

From a high-altitude view, the rift resembled a colossal scar spanning the heavens and earth, stretching for hundreds of thousands of kilometers.

It did not look like a true "crack" but rather a bottomless, enormous "abyss," its pitch-black entrance constantly exuding chaotic and malevolent energy.

Qin Feng did not approach; instead, from a safe distance, he took out the silver metal sphere—the subspace rift stabilization device.

Following the mission instructions, he infused it with a stream of pure psychic energy.

Hum—!

The silver sphere instantly activated, countless arcane runes lighting up in sequence, transforming into a brilliant pillar of light that shot skyward, precisely penetrating the deepest part of the "abyss."

Immediately after, the entire ground began to tremble violently.

Under the watchful eyes of the five chief directors in the Blue Star Federation's Supreme Council Hall, and countless citizens worldwide observing through satellite broadcasts,

The "abyss" that had plagued Blue Star's civilization for decades, devoured countless lives, and been regarded as an eternal nightmare—its edges of crustal plates began to slowly close inward at a visible rate!

As if a deity were personally stitching the wound of the earth!

Inside the Council Hall. The five chief directors, iron-willed hardliners who had never bowed before any disaster, could no longer contain their excitement as they watched the slowly closing "abyss" on the screen.

Their eyes instantly reddened.

"Sealed... truly sealed!"

Chief "Phantom Fox" covered her mouth, scalding tears silently streaming down her cheeks.

"The abyss... is locked!"

"Thunder God," with his single eye also brimming with tears, repeated in a hoarse, trembling voice over and over.

Chief "Bedrock" slowly rose to his feet, straightening his spine—slightly hunched from bearing the weight of civilization for years—and gazed at the wound on the earth being erased by miraculous power on the screen, tears streaming down.

"Decades of turmoil and sacrifice..."

"End today!!"

As the massive scar on Earth was completely smoothed over by miraculous power, and the nightmare that had haunted Blue Star's civilization for decades was declared over, the five chief directors in the Supreme Council Hall reached the peak of their excitement and gratitude.

"Tianji, immediately! Send a communication of thanks to our benefactor, to the great Cosmic Human Empire, in the highest name of the Blue Star Federation!"

Chief "Bedrock" suppressed the turmoil within him and issued the command with a slightly trembling voice.

"Yes!"

Chief "Tianji" swiftly operated, sending out an encrypted message carrying the most sincere gratitude of the entire civilization.

Almost the instant the message was sent, that gentle and steady voice echoed again in the Council Hall as a response.

"Gratitude received. To facilitate the handover and subsequent operations, do you permit our team to teleport directly to your meeting location?"

This request left the five chief directors momentarily stunned.

Teleport?

What concept was that?

Could it be... that the Cosmic Human Empire had mastered the legendary technology of spatial teleportation?

Shocked as they were, they did not hesitate for a moment.

"Permission granted!"

Chief "Bedrock" immediately gave an affirmative answer.

They all knew well that facing a terrifying powerhouse who could effortlessly slay a "Leviathan" and alter celestial and terrestrial phenomena with a mere gesture, any refusal would be feeble and futile.

If that being intended them harm, there would be no need to seek any consent.

"Hum—"

The very next second after they responded, the space in the center of the Council Hall suddenly rippled visibly, like water waves.

Then, after a faint flicker of fluctuation, the eleven-member team led by Qin Feng appeared out of thin air before the five chief directors.

The entire process was silent and soundless, yet filled with an indescribable mystery and awe.

The five chief directors in the Council Hall involuntarily held their breath, their pupils instantly contracting.

Their gazes immediately locked onto Qin Feng at the forefront.

Unlike the ten fully armored members behind him, Qin Feng wore no powered armor at all.

He was clad only in the simplest, most unadorned black training uniform, his figure standing straight as a spear.

Yet, it was this seemingly ordinary frame that exuded a terrifying pressure they could hardly bear to face directly.

They could clearly sense waves of vast, tidal energy surging and ebbing within Qin Feng's body.

He stood there silently, as if a deep nebula slowly drifting, making these so-called S-rank elites instinctively feel a sense of insignificance and an urge to bow in worship.

And the blood-red skull hanging at his waist radiated a strange, bewitching power.

Just one glance seemed capable of drawing their minds into it, plunging them into endless slaughter and desire.

Then, the five slowly shifted their gaze to the ten members behind Qin Feng.

When they saw the fierce, heavy, and ornate powered armor, the five chiefs were deeply shaken once more.

The design, utterly different from Blue Star's simple and practical technological style, was filled with a sense of power aesthetics and classical charm.

The armor bore insignias, medals, and shield emblems they could not decipher, every detail seeming to tell tales of glorious and bloody war history.

They could clearly feel that every person beneath that armor was an elite who had crawled out of true mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

Just as the five chiefs were stunned and lost in thought, Qin Feng spoke.

His voice was calm and forceful.

"This is the Warp Network Pass."

One of his members stepped forward and neatly stacked several alloy cases, each containing a hundred thousand black crystal card-like passes, on the conference table.

"Drop your blood on it; it will automatically detect your genetic sequence and generate a unique Imperial citizen ID number for you. Then, the card will liquefy and form a wrist terminal on your wrist for easy wear."

"These hundred thousand passes all have the same configuration. I've unlocked four basic permissions for you: the Imperial Forum, Warp Network Teleportation, the Imperial Arena, and the Imperial Trading House."

"If you need more later, you can purchase them from the Imperial Trading House yourself, each for a hundred thousand Imperial credits."

Qin Feng paused, then continued, "What you need to do now is first unlock your own passes, then go check out the Imperial Forum. You'll find answers about the Empire there. We won't explain further."

The five strongest of Blue Star exchanged silent glances, then each picked up a black crystal card from the table.

As Qin Feng instructed, they pricked their fingertips and let a drop of blood fall onto the card.

A miraculous scene unfolded.

The hard card, upon contact with the blood, melted like snow, turning into a pool of black liquid that flowed along their wrists, slowly coalescing into a sleek, sci-fi black wristband that fit perfectly.

A soft light screen projected from the wristband's surface, forming a virtual interface.

With trepidation and reverence, the five followed the interface's prompts and clicked on the column labeled "Imperial Forum."

In an instant, an unprecedented, boundless new world unfolded before them.

The entire conference hall fell into utter silence.

Only the increasingly rapid breathing of the five chiefs and the complex light flickering in their eyes—mingled confusion, shock, awe, and ecstasy—could be heard.

This process lasted a long time.

After several hours, when they finally managed to tear themselves away from the vast torrent of information, the look in their eyes had completely changed.

They now had a basic, yet utterly paradigm-shifting, understanding of this vast civilization called the "Universal Human Empire."

"Might I ask, sir..."

Chief "Tianji" was the first to recover from the shock.

He looked at Qin Feng, his tone filled with unprecedented reverence and humility.

"According to the forum's rank classification, are you a legendary 'Planetary-level' martial artist?"

"Mm."

Qin Feng nodded briefly. "They are all ninth-level ultimate martial artists."

Upon receiving the confirmation, the five's breath caught again.

They were silent for a moment, then finally, Chief "Panshi," speaking for all, asked the question that mattered most to them at that moment.

"Sir, is there still... a possibility for people like us to go further?"

His voice trembled with excitement and anticipation.

Having glimpsed the vastness of the universe and the prosperity of the Human Empire, having gained a preliminary understanding of the boundless star sea and flourishing martial arts, no martial artist could resist the primal urge to become stronger, to personally set foot among the stars!

It was an instinct etched deep in human genes!

Qin Feng's gaze slowly swept over the five.

With his current level, he could see through their physical conditions at a glance.

He said solemnly, "Your bodies... because of years of crudely squeezing potential, have too many hidden injuries. Your meridians are mostly blocked and beginning to decay. In your current state, trying to open and merge acupoints again would be as difficult as reaching the heavens..."

Hearing this verdict-like result, the hope that had just ignited in the five's eyes dimmed instantly.

But just as despair was about to set in, Qin Feng's tone suddenly shifted.

He recalled many years ago, on Qiming Star, in the small Limitless Martial Arts Hall, how Master Sun Chantang had used the miraculous *Ten Complete Hands* to uproot his damaged foundation and reshape his martial path.

He also remembered his middle school homeroom teacher, Li Weiguo, who had earnestly told him, "When you one day stand high, perhaps a casual move of yours could save a youth who, like you once were, is frustrated and unfulfilled."

Though these people before him were no longer youths.

But they were living martial artists who had burned themselves and risked life and limb to protect their civilization.

"Forget it,"

A flicker of emotion passed through Qin Feng's heart. He said slowly, "There is... still a way."

The five lifted their heads abruptly, hope rekindling in their eyes.

"Each of you, give me a killing technique you've created. In exchange, I'll help regulate your bodies and heal your hidden injuries."

"However, how much you recover in the end depends entirely on your own fortune."

Qin Feng thought to himself that with his now vastly improved strength and his *Ten Complete Hands* skill, which had reached a proficiency of one point, helping a few martial artists with life force indices barely over a hundred to clear their hidden injuries should be more than enough.

"Killing techniques? Good! Good!"

Hearing this, the five were overjoyed, without any hesitation.

"But... these techniques of ours were all rough-hewn from bloody battles with beasts, unworthy of refined taste. Please don't take offense, senior!"

"No problem."

Qin Feng smiled.

Then, the five chiefs each unreservedly handed over their ultimate, closely guarded techniques to Qin Feng via data transfer.

These killing techniques were the culmination of their life's work, battle skills distilled from countless life-and-death struggles, also incorporating various martial arts striking techniques from this planet's history, ancient to modern.

Qin Feng glanced briefly at the names of these techniques.

*Heaven-Earth Quake*, *Eight Trigrams Palm*, *Life-Death Determination*, *Learning from Nature*...

"Heaven and Earth, Eight Trigrams, Life and Death, Nature..."

He understood in his heart.

This reminded him of the diverse sects of the Death Cult he had encountered during previous missions.

"Indeed, as long as it is human civilization, no matter where it is, no matter its developmental style, in the course of history, the speculations about the principles of heaven and earth, about the cycle of life and death, are always more or less the same."

Qin Feng put away his killing techniques, then waved his hand and took out ten packs of top-tier flesh recovery agents from his storage space.

It cost him a hundred contribution points.

"Is there a separate, quiet martial arts room?"

He looked at the five of them. "One by one."

"Yes! Yes! This way, please!"

The five nodded hurriedly, like the most respectful students, personally leading the way for Qin Feng.

Deep within the highest fortress of the Blue Star Federation, in a specially opened, absolutely quiet martial arts room.

Qin Feng held his breath and concentrated, his hands slowly pressing onto the aged but still sturdy back of the chief, "Rock."

He closed his eyes and slowly began to circulate the empire-level strategic nurturing technique he had inherited from Master Sun Chantang—the *Ten Complete Hands*.

A gentle and vast spiritual energy, like a trickling stream, flowed through his palms and softly entered "Rock's" body.

At the same time, Qin Feng's already condensed into droplets, extremely pure mental power transformed into countless invisible tendrils, carefully probing into the other's limbs and bones, precisely scanning every meridian, every bone, every muscle fiber.

Throughout the process, Qin Feng was meticulous, his spirit highly concentrated.

He could clearly "see" that inside "Rock's" body, due to years of brutally squeezing potential, it was already riddled with holes.

Countless tiny meridians were blocked and necrotic, bones covered with fine cracks, and the body's natural spiritual energy was withered and depleted from overuse.

Qin Feng did not rush for quick results.

He controlled his spiritual energy and mental power, like the most skilled surgeon, using the miraculous method of the *Ten Complete Hands* to slowly clear the blocked meridians and repair the damaged bones.

He wanted this elder, who had dedicated his life to protecting civilization, to truly leave no hidden injuries and regain the chance to step onto that broader path of martial arts.

Time, in absolute focus, ticked away drop by drop.

An hour later, when "Rock" walked out of the martial arts room, he was already in tears. He could clearly feel that his body, once heavy as lead, had become unprecedentedly light.

Next was the chief, "Thunder God."

Then the chief, "Heavenly Mechanism."

...

Qin Feng tended to each of the five, one by one, each time fully focused and unreserved.

When he finished tending to the last female warrior—the chief "Phantom Fox"—and slowly withdrew his hands, his calm, well-like mind suddenly rippled.

It wasn't because of Phantom Fox's fiery figure, but because a familiar yet long-absent prompt quietly emerged in his mind.

[Ten Complete Hands Proficiency +1]

[Ten Complete Hands (Not Yet Mastered)]

[Proficiency: 2/10]

Qin Feng was slightly stunned, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

He hadn't expected that this strategic nurturing technique, hailed as the empire's supreme art, would increase its proficiency at this very moment!

He clearly remembered that the last time his proficiency increased was years ago on the K-7 planet, when his benefactor Sun Chantang personally demonstrated and taught him hand-in-hand for an entire year, barely raising his proficiency from 0 to 1.

And this time...

Qin Feng thought for a moment and understood the key.

This breakthrough was the result of multiple factors working together.

Among them, there was certainly the accumulation of that previous proficiency point and his sporadic use over the decades;

But more importantly, it was his now vastly improved mental power, reaching 200 points, which gave him a deeper understanding of the profound methods within the *Ten Complete Hands*;

Of course, there was also his single-minded focus on thoroughly healing others, without distraction, as he carefully cleared their hidden injuries.

The combination of these various coincidences ultimately led to his understanding of the *Ten Complete Hands* naturally reaching a higher level.

For such a supreme art, a single point of proficiency made a world of difference!

...

Outside the martial arts room.

When Qin Feng walked out, the five chiefs, who had already dressed and been waiting for some time, immediately came forward.

On their faces, without exception, were indescribable excitement and gratitude.

Especially the chief "Phantom Fox," whose face, once pale from too many hidden injuries, now showed a healthy flush.

Thinking of the strange sensation of the gentle energy flowing through her body during the treatment, a complex emotion crept into her eyes.

But Qin Feng remained indifferent, his expression unchanged, as if he had merely done a trivial thing.

"Thank you, senior, for your grace of rebirth!"

Chief "Rock" spoke first, leading the other four in a deep bow toward Qin Feng.

"Senior! Could we... could we be honored to add you as a friend on the subspace network?"

Chief "Heavenly Mechanism" followed up, his tone full of hope and sincerity. "Your kindness, we will never forget!"

They were no longer the ignorant ones they once were.

After Qin Feng's medicinal bath and careful treatment to remove their hidden injuries, they had immediately checked the empire's trading market.

When they saw the high-level recovery agents that could only be exchanged with contribution points, they truly understood how precious those ten packs of "top-tier flesh recovery agents" that Qin Feng had casually taken out were.

They also understood that "contribution points" were a currency earned by empire warriors through life-and-death struggles in the star sea, with blood and lives.

Yet this senior from the empire had so lightly used these precious resources on them, complete strangers, "natives."

This grace was as heavy as Mount Tai.

"Sure."

Facing their earnest request, Qin Feng showed no arrogance and agreed straightforwardly.

He took out his wrist terminal and quickly added all five as friends.

With this interaction, the originally somewhat serious atmosphere immediately relaxed.

And not far away, the ten squad members who had been silently waiting looked at Qin Feng with subtly changed eyes.

The members of other war groups showed curiosity.

But the two members of the Ultramarines war group, wearing sky-blue power armor, had their gazes toward Qin Feng shift from initial reverence to fervent shock and worship!

Because they had guessed it.

One of the Ultramarines' secret arts—the *Ten Complete Hands*!

It was their Ultramarines' most treasured, never lightly shared, supreme strategic nurturing technique!

What other nurturing technique could remove so many hidden injuries?

One of the younger Ultramarines could no longer contain his excitement.

He stepped forward, removed his helmet, revealing a face flushed with exhilaration, and said with a smile, "Captain! So you are one of us, from the Ultramarines Chapter!"

"Not exactly."

Qin Feng heard this, smiled, and replied, "I still have to finish the Universal Genius Tournament. After that, I suppose I will be."

(End of chapter)