Chapter 1544: Pressed down the ominous signs of old age

Originally, some of its leaves had drooped and it looked sickly. By all accounts, it should have withered and reverted to a seed.

But now, the purplish-brown tree was once again radiating tendrils of vitality. Most importantly, its flowers were growing larger, constantly expanding to a diameter of one and a half meters.

Wisps of mysterious mist drifted down, enveloping Chu Feng.

In a trance, he seemed to revisit the most ancient era, witnessing that remote, desolate plateau where silence reigned and even time itself was corroded and erased.

What was considered indestructible through countless eons became mere nothingness there.

Only the barren, silent plateau remained, bearing the last vestiges of the most ancient era and concealing the bronze coffin.

"I'm seeing it again..." Chu Feng murmured as if in a dream, deeply engrossed. Yet, this time was different; it wasn't a spiritual awakening, nor had he reached the end of the pollen path. He remained in the real world.

He would never forget his recent experience, having witnessed the origin of the pollen path, seen the fallen woman, and even observed several distinct coffins.

What precisely occurred in the most ancient era? Simply paying attention, simply attempting to explore, would lead to one's obliteration. No matter how formidable one's divine powers, it was impossible to resist; fallen True Immortals turned to ash, and even Immortal Kings perished.

"Who is buried beneath the plateau?"

Who, or what kind of being, once lay buried or slumbered within the bronze coffin?

It seemed to be the source of everything. Even the entity spoken of by Nine Dao, and the Heavenly Emperor revered by the Dog Emperor, had interacted with this coffin.

Chu Feng concentrated, attempting to visualize and see through the frozen ground, to glimpse the landscape beneath the desolate plain.

Unfortunately, that place existed beyond all realms. Unless the stone jar chose to reveal it, even an Immortal King, by sacrificing their own Great Dao, could not locate it, much less discern its truth.

Finally, he noticed the mist suddenly thickening, isolating everything ahead, submerging the plateau he had vaguely perceived. Everything vanished.

In reality, a unique, ethereal mist was now emanating from the tree he stood on, enveloping him.

Then, he realized he was evolving!

The strange soil, sourced from the plateau, was exceptionally potent. He had only taken a small handful, not using it all, and yet burying it at the tree's roots triggered this profound mutation.

The enormous flowers eventually turned a crystalline, snow-white. What they scattered was not pollen, but a hazy mist, resembling both immortal qi and a strange veil.

Chu Feng felt a tearing pain as a pair of pure white wings violently sprouted from his back, piercing through his flesh.

His hair flew up, and his refined face instantly gained a pair of wings, making him appear like an angel descended to the world.

But he didn't want wings. Could he still be considered human?

The transformation was too intense and rapid, giving him no time to react before he sprouted these sacred wings.

However, with a gentle flap, he felt an immense, boundless power. The wings instantly tore through space, propelling him skyward with incredible speed.

Then, with another flap, he returned in a flash, standing beneath the tree once more.

Soon, he felt sharp pain again. His ribcage and back successively burst open, and pair after pair of wings sprouted. Some were pristine white and sacred, some brilliantly golden, some pitch-black like ink, and others a dismal gray, akin to the hues of hell...

In total, twelve pairs of wings emerged from Chu Feng's back, all imbued with astonishing runes and radiating fragments of the Great Dao!

This made him resemble an angelic being from evolutionary history, specifically of the highest order.

However, upon closer inspection, they seemed somewhat different, more akin to the wings of supreme avian creatures such as Rocs, Phoenixes, or Golden Crows.

Once the blood on his back coagulated, Chu Feng no longer felt pain. He sensed an astonishing surge of energy, realizing that with his twelve pairs of wings fully extended, he could effortlessly slice through opponents, and a single flap could reduce his former formidable enemies to dust.

Furthermore, he distinctly noticed his body becoming ethereal, light, and exceedingly agile, as if a mere flicker of movement could transport him hundreds of thousands of miles away.

"A Great Roc King's single wing-span covers one hundred and eight thousand li. Have I surpassed a Great Roc King?"

Chu Feng seriously suspected he had embarked on a path of ancient biological genetic restoration.

However, a moment later, his expression changed. His left shoulder felt intensely itchy; the skin there tore open, and a head began to emerge.

This emerging head bore a resemblance to his own, yet it possessed a strikingly cold demeanor. Its silver-white pupils emitted lightning, instantly splitting a massive mountain before him into dust.

This was somewhat terrifying; he had grown an extra head. Though its power was considerable, he looked rather grotesque.

Suddenly, his right shoulder throbbed with sharp pain, and another head abruptly sprouted. This head, with its flowing hair, effortlessly tore through heaven and earth, appearing quite eerie.

"Legend has it that when Great Dao Realm beings evolve, they rot and become indescribable. The root cause is said to be an overabundance of pollen, which, when unlocking their potential, releases too many inexplicable elements!"

Upon realizing this, Chu Feng recalled that very notion.

The reason Great Dao Realm beings putrefy, become ominous, and undergo terrifying transformations, apart from their connection to strange substances, is also attributed to the pollen path granting them more than they could bear.

Now, he hadn't even reached that realm, yet he was experiencing such changes. Was this an excessive amount of mutation being bestowed upon him?

He looked up at the massive flower on the tree. The ethereal mist drifted down and enveloped him. Was this stimulating the release of the immortal essence within his body, or was it directly imbuing him with some divine power, or perhaps activating a unique bloodline?

"I want power, but not this kind of mutation. If this continues, will I still be myself? What kind of creature will I become?" Chu Feng realized with alarm.

In an instant, he experienced an even more ferocious mutation.

On his head, his scalp split open, and a pair of purplish-glowing dragon horns actually sprouted from his hair. Accompanied by lightning and thunder, a casual movement of the horns pierced through the sky, unleashing terrifying and astonishing thunder!

However, these changes were not accompanied by decay or other such phenomena. Overall, they were still considered normal supernatural mutations.

However, Chu Feng quickly became unsettled. At the base of his arms, a tingling sensation began, and with popping sounds, his flesh tore open, and two more pairs of arms grew out, transforming him into a three-headed, six-armed monster.

Was this a mythical phenomenon brought to life?

In the annals of evolution, this should have been merely a powerful divine ability. Yet, on his body, it was manifesting as bloody, literal growths.

Chu Feng increasingly realized something was amiss!

If he could barely maintain his composure until this point, the subsequent changes terrified him, plunging him into a panic from which he could no longer recover.

An unsettling sensation arose between his legs. The moment he glanced down, his face instantly paled. What was happening? His single "great Roc spreading its wings" had instantly transformed into three heads!

He desperately wanted to exclaim, "To hell with this! I absolutely don't need three heads!"

Instantly, his muscles stiffened and felt somewhat itchy. Was he about to grow scales again?!

He could tolerate it no longer. Chu Feng swiftly took action to intervene in this mutation.

First, he began with the wings on his back, decisively refining them. He did not want wings; this was a heart-wrenching pain. Using wondrous techniques, he ground away the wings, stripping them from his body amidst blood, and refined them completely.

Concurrently, he introspected, gazing with his Fiery Golden Eyes. He aimed to retain that ability, for he observed runes and mysterious patterns at the base of the twelve pairs of wings, which were the source of a certain power.

Chu Feng guided these Great Dao patterns to disappear from his skin, yet circulate within his body, spreading to all his limbs and bones!

He then found that his agility persisted. With a slight movement, his body could traverse hundreds of thousands of miles. This wasn't achieved through mystical techniques but by innate bodily instinct, as if the twelve pairs of wings were still present, capable of instantly tearing through heaven and earth and fleeing at extreme speed!

Simultaneously, he could not allow the two heads on his left and right shoulders to remain. He sought to refine them, preserving their Great Dao essence.

Not long after, he was once again covered in blood, guiding the mysterious patterns on his shoulders to extend directly to his eyes, making his Fiery Golden Eyes even more astonishing. He glared fiercely ahead, and a single glance at a mountain instantly disintegrated it, reducing it to ash.

Concurrently, when he focused his gaze and activated his energy, he could cleave through heaven and earth like an immortal sword, creating terrifying fissures of dark void!

The two heads vanished, but the divine abilities they possessed were inherited by his eyes.

Chu Feng resolutely reshaped his physical form. He desired only to remain human, free from inexplicable bodily mutations, yet he also wished to retain those divine abilities and unique techniques!

"I am Chu, the Heavenly Emperor. Is reshaping a mutated body like this equivalent to forcefully suppressing and grinding away some kind of ill omen?!"