Avatar - Conquering the Elements-Chapter 147

Somewhere in the Spirit Realm. Yo.

"So, there's a nearly seven-thousand-year-old fire lotus. A six-thousand-year-old qinqinx is also available. And there's a five-thousand-year-old water lotus. That leaves only the ginseng..." It felt like I'd somehow ended up in the world of cultivators.

But thankfully, that wasn't the case. The list above was actually the plants I needed to gather to activate my sixth chakra. Yes, I'd have to temper my body in a hot bath infused with the beneficial properties of these ancient plants. At first, I thought I could cheat and ask my ladies to create these plants for me, but it turned out to be far more complicated. I needed plants that were thousands of years old, steeped in spiritual energy for ages. The older they were, the better the effect. The energy within them would essentially "poison" my body, pushing me to a new level.

All four plants were highly symbolic: the fire lotus represented fire, qinqinx symbolized wind, the water lotus stood for water, and ginseng embodied earth. The funny part was that I had to add them to the water in the sequence of the Avatar Cycle: fire, air, water, earth. So, there was something sacred about it... though I didn't fully understand it yet.

The month-long quest to find these plants was finally nearing its end. They were incredibly hard to locate, almost like finding a needle in a haystack. And while you could cheat with the needle, this required visiting the most remote places, with only a tiny hope of finding what I needed. There were, of course, certain guaranteed locations where they might be... but those would involve dealing with ancient spirits. Their habitats had the highest concentration of elemental particles, which meant the chances of finding something from my list increased dramatically. That's how I managed to get the qinqinx for free—it was growing abundantly near the dwelling of the Great Master of Air Currents.

I wasn't on friendly terms with other ancient spirits, so they demanded something comparable in return. But what could I offer? By human standards, I was practically an Emperor, but they clearly didn't need human trinkets.

By the way, these plants, saturated with spiritual energy, were a favorite treat for both light and dark spirits. The energy they provided was absorbed 100%, propelling their development forward. Even higher spirits needed plants that were at least a thousand years old, let alone the ancients. Usually, if someone spotted them, they'd devour them immediately.

One thing was reassuring—my chakra development was progressing without obstacles. And perhaps, once the sixth chakra opened, I'd be able to at least minimally touch the power of ancient-level spirits. Once, Van Shi Tong and I compared my open chakras to spirit ranks. Here's how it worked: the first chakra let me fight weak lower spirits, the second allowed me to take on strong lower spirits, the third put me on par with weak mid-level spirits, the fourth equaled strong mid-level spirits, and the fifth reached the highest rank. Theoretically, the sixth should prepare my body to battle a weak ancient spirit. After all, chakra power grows exponentially. And the seventh chakra? No question—I'd definitely be able to take on the elite of the spirit world.

Shaking off my thoughts, I arrived at the forest section where the ginseng might grow. First, I needed to deal with the sentient beings that would only get in my way. Sending out slicing air waves, I grew tired of killing them within three minutes—I had more important things to focus on. There were far too many of them here, as if the place were coated in some spiritual honey. I'd sworn off using large-scale techniques in areas where the plants might be. Just a week ago, one of my moves had destroyed a water lotus. Thankfully, there was a second one nearby.

"Ah! I've got it!" My long hair instantly became thicker and fuller, and the next second, it began firing thin but deadly strands. These strands could pierce even mid-level spirits, as they were packed with life energy. For higher spirits, the hair transformed into massive jaws that effortlessly crushed particularly stubborn ones.

I was still unlocking the potential of the fifth chakra. Now, I could replicate Jiraiya's "Hair Style" perfectly. During a training fight with Van Shi Tong, I realized that a body covered in hair could significantly reduce incoming damage. Plus, I just enjoyed dramatically controlling my hair, like some kind of Otsutsuki.

"Looks like I was reborn in the wrong universe..." For some reason, I kept gravitating toward techniques from Naruto.

For the next hour, I wandered the forest, searching for ginseng, while my hair continuously drenched any spirits that got too close.

Dejectedly, I sat on a stump, lost in thought. The final ingredient wasn't here. Just like in the other fifty places I'd already visited... I could keep searching, but my intuition told me I wouldn't find it in open spaces.

"Well, I've always dreamed of visiting an ancient spirit's lair," I thought, feeling even worse. But steeling myself, I decided to act. Who knew when the gateway to the sixth chakra would open? I might need the plants as early as the next day!

"Annoying," I muttered, glancing at the dim-witted spirits still charging at me. They wouldn't even get a piece of my body.

With a small circular motion of my wrist, a tiny tornado appeared beside me. I didn't need to spare this place anymore, so it was time for a mega-move! The tornado rapidly grew in size and speed. Soon, the technique effortlessly shredded the spirits here.

Meanwhile, I was already in the space between worlds. I had no idea why I hadn't thought of traveling this way sooner. It was awesome! First, you ended up here, and then you could appear anywhere in the Spirit Realm. I'd only figured out this travel method about three weeks ago when I'd grown utterly exhausted from searching for plants.

"Not here... that place is too dangerous..." For a full thirty minutes, I debated where to appear near an ancient spirit. It was a tough choice—my life could depend on it. I immediately ruled out strong signatures; there'd be no chance there. That left two relatively weak spirits to choose from. In such a serious matter, I couldn't even rely on intuition. Decision made! I'd cautiously check both options.

Upon arriving at the slope of a mountain, I instantly felt that for many kilometers, there was no one else but me and the spirit itself. The unnatural silence was deeply unsettling. Adding to that was the growing sense of the spirit's attention on me.

"Bye-bye!" I vanished instantly.

This option was immediately rejected. The spirit wasn't only awake but also highly alert. No way I could pull this off.

The area near the second spirit's dwelling was less dangerous. A big plus was that the energy around me wasn't saturated with Vatu energy. That meant I'd luckily landed near a rare dark spirit still unaffected by Vatu. Most importantly, the spirit seemed to be either sleeping or meditating, as the energy was too calm. Too "static."

Next, I began lowering all my energy signatures. I didn't even spare my life force. I needed to be as stealthy as possible. Ideally, I'd reduce myself to the level of an ordinary, ungifted human. That way, the ancient spirit definitely wouldn't sense any danger. It was like having a gnat buzzing around your kitchen. Sure, it's there, but it's not really bothering you. If it gets in your way, you'd swat it, but otherwise, it's no big deal. Hopefully, the spirit would think the same...

Crossing my fingers and saying a quick prayer, I cautiously entered the dark cave. That's where the spirit's presence was strongest.

Step by step, I moved deeper inside. I was afraid to even sweat, though I really wanted to...

"Ginseng!" After about fifty meters, my passive sensitivity detected what I was looking for. "So much ancient ginseng!" I exclaimed to myself. Peeking cautiously around the corner, I saw an entire field of ginseng flowers.

Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freewebnσvel.cøm.

"Difficulty level just went up to deadly..." Right at the end of the space lay a massive stone tick. Nothing else came to mind when I saw it. I'd seen plenty of these little skin-burrowing pests in my past life. I'd never forget them.

"Grab one and get out!" I shoved my greed deep down. Luckily, they were all very old. Any one would do.

Slowly, I lay on the ground and began dragging myself toward the field. Both my eyes were fixed on the spirit. So far, there was no movement from it.

Soon, the first volunteer for relocation was within arm's reach. Carefully digging it up along with the soil, I slowly retreated back around the corner. One eye never stopped glancing at the spirit.

"At least I didn't mess up here," I thought as I reached the thin stone wall of the cave. But just as I'd covered half the distance, a deafening roar echoed from the cave's depths:

"Ro-o-o-o-ar!"

"Greedy me!" I didn't hesitate, activating all my energy sources and chakras. The next second, I shot out of the cave like a cork from a champagne bottle. Another second later, I was out of the ancient spirit's energy range, so I could safely teleport away.

"You're not the fastest, huh?" I smiled in relief at the spirit that burst out of the cave. It wouldn't catch me in time.

Five minutes later, my body was back in the familiar walls of Van Shi Tong's Library. I replanted the ginseng, letting it wait for its moment alongside the other three plants.

*

The Spirit Realm. One of the spirit settlements on the border with the cursed lands.

On the outskirts of a blooming forest, a massive battle erupted. The fighting sides had no banners or unified forms. There wasn't even a proper formation...

It seemed like two waves had collided. On one side were soft, vibrant colors, while the other side featured darker, more "sinister" shades. The battle had been raging for an hour. It was impossible to tell who would win or lose just yet. Both sides were evenly matched.

Among the countless spirits, one human stood out. He continuously hurled stone boulders, lightning bolts, water streams, and air currents at the dark spirits. Wielding all four elements, he was a prime target for the other spirits. Though many sensed they should fear him, it wasn't because of his power—something about him struck terror into their hearts.

"You've gone too far, Avatar!" Aang heard the voice of his new friend Wong, introduced by Yo, behind him.

"I got too caught up in the fight again!" Aang cursed his habit of forgetting everything but his enemies during battle. Six months ago, this had cost him dearly. While defending a settlement, he'd pushed too far forward, becoming the target of a hidden ancient spirit.

To drive the spirit away, he'd had to enter the Avatar State. Years of effort went down the drain! And that cursed spirit seemed to deliberately prolong the battle! Now, he had to replenish Rava's energy at double speed.

His body still felt phantom pains, especially where Yo had struck him particularly hard. Under the guise of sparring, Yo had given him a thorough beating, drilling battle rules into his head. Aang was horribly ashamed—he, a master of all four elements, had been utterly defeated by someone using only fists and feet. Though... there had been a green glow emanating from Yo's body. He'd have to ask about that. But only after restoring Rava's energy to its previous level!

"Thanks, Wong!" Aang thanked the monkey spirit.

"No worries, it's easy for me," Wong brushed it off, skillfully wielding his extending staff. If Yuki were here, he'd definitely mumble something like, "Hiruzen, is that you?"

"The more I fight, the more energy I gain!" Aang thought happily. He'd probably never know it, but he'd already become the perfect protagonist of any Korean grind-focused novel.

With all his chakras open, his reserves were practically impossible to deplete. Regeneration simply outpaced even active magic use, as Aang well knew. So, he didn't hold back on large-scale techniques, covering hundreds of meters in fire.