Douluo Continent: On Becoming a God Through Science

Chapter 174 "The Three-Part Return to Origin Qi", Tang San's current situation: the most perfect mission tool at this stage.

But the battle was already over the moment Tang Hao flew into a rage.

He couldn't even release his Martial Soul True Body. Under You Chen's glare, he immediately rolled his eyes.

He was about to faint, but his intense anger and hatred kept him going for a moment.

Otherwise, given Tang Hao's mental strength and his decadent and dejected state of mind over the past decade, he would absolutely not be able to withstand You Chen's Soul-Slaying Technique.

His intense emotions did allow him to hold on for a little longer.

While Tang Hao was in a daze, You Chen rushed forward and delivered a precise chop to the back of Tang Hao's head, causing him to lose consciousness.

Tang Hao's strength is beyond doubt. Even among the titled Douluo, he is not considered weak. He is one of the very few strongmen who can fight against Super Douluo at the ordinary titled level.

Even a Limit Douluo can be temporarily repelled when using the Great Sumeru Hammer's Ring Explosion Technique.

While the Clear Sky Hammer may not excel in other areas, its power alone places it among the most powerful martial souls, making it a true symbol of violence.

However, while possessing extremely high explosive power and attack strength... he is also very easy to target.

Simply put, all their skill points were focused on attack.

Tang Chen, who is known as the invincible one on earth, can make up for this deficiency by relying on his absolute advantage in soul power and his superb combat skills, but Tang Hao, who has been decadent for more than ten years, obviously cannot.

Moreover, You Chen's mental strength is unparalleled in the Douluo Continent. If a specialist like Tang Hao can't withstand You Chen's mental attacks, he will be a lamb to the slaughter, making him easier to deal with than an ordinary Title Douluo.

Looking at the mission reward for successfully completing the extra conditions after a decisive victory, You Chen's lips curled up in a rare, large smile.

"This is truly an unexpected delight."

The basic rewards go without saying.

As an extra bonus, another martial arts technique has appeared, and its name is well-known, if not universally recognized: "Three-Part Return to Origin Qi".

It is the signature move of Xiong Ba in "Storm Riders".

Although it is called a single cultivation method, it can actually be regarded as a fusion of three cultivation methods.

It combines the long, flowing power of the Wind God Leg, the fierce power of the Cloud Dispelling Palm, and the chilling internal force of the Heavenly Frost Fist, unifying three different types of internal energy into a single, unparalleled martial art.

They truly are father and son.

Perhaps because they extracted the characteristics of Tang San's proficiency in martial arts and Tang Hao's inheritance of the Clear Sky Sect's techniques, even the first blood reward they gave to You Chen was of the same category, all being rewards of martial arts techniques.

As Tang San's father, Tang Hao is important not only because of his blood relation, but also because he is directly related to Tang San's confrontation with the Spirit Hall. He is a character who serves as a thread throughout the entire story.

In addition, as an important figure in the Haotian Sect and a top expert on the continent, the youngest Title Douluo on the surface, his destiny power, even if not in the first tier, is definitely at a level that is infinitely close.

In addition to the bonus from its own strength, the first blood reward it gives is anything but ordinary.

If the martial arts techniques provided by the system have names that are familiar to You Chen, then they cannot be regarded as the original versions. They are basically modified versions, and their specific strength needs to be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.

After instantly completing the introductory process through the system, You Chen knew that the "Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi" was absolutely a peerless divine skill second only to the "Divine Elephant Suppressing Prison Force".

This localized version of the Threefold Return to Origin Qi is still divided into four realms.

In addition, the three techniques it comprises are also like this.

If one cultivates "Wind God Leg," "Cloud Dispelling Palm," and "Heavenly Frost Fist" to the great perfection, and condenses special energy, it is enough to be comparable to a god. If one cultivates them to perfection and reaches the level of complete control, it is enough to contend with a third-level god.

The introduction to "Three-Part Returning Qi" does not actually involve cultivating the Three-Part Returning Qi, but rather it introduces You Chen to the three-part techniques of Wind God Leg and teaches him how to condense the Three-Part Returning Qi, which means he knows the next step.

Otherwise, the Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi is a kind of energy that can only be formed by the fusion of the Heavenly Frost Force, the Void Cloud Force, and the Divine Wind Force after mastering the Wind God Leg, Cloud Dispelling Palm, and Heavenly Frost Fist.

Following this logic, You Chen had already paved the way to godhood the moment he obtained this cultivation technique. Having grasped its essence, he only needed to cultivate step by step to directly possess god-level combat power.

The system is clearly not the kind of sign-in system that would feed You Chen food.

To achieve the minor mastery of the "Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi," one must cultivate all three special energies of the three-part technique, and then use at least one of these energies as the primary and core to initially condense the Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi. Even this is enough to be comparable to a third-level god.

To reach its peak, one must completely complement the three types of energy, allowing them to circulate endlessly and achieve a state of perpetual vitality. At this point, one can contend with a level two god.

To reach its perfect state, one must completely integrate the three ultimate martial arts, achieving the "inner three harmonies" of "mind and intention," "intention and qi," and "qi and strength," truly unifying the three elements and attaining the unity of heaven, earth, and man. Only then can one be considered a top-tier expert, even among the ranks of first-level gods.

It is not difficult to see from the description of the martial arts that the three special energies have reached the lower limit of divine power.

The perfect fusion and control of three different levels of divine power energy forms the Threefold Returning to Origin Qi, the essence of which is beyond imagination.

It is far beyond what You Chen can imagine at present.

Although the system explained that even if the Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi was completely perfected, it would only be a level one divine combat power, You Chen had the experience of perfecting the Soul-Slaying Technique, so he knew that the so-called perfection could also be regarded as another kind of beginning.

With enough talent, one can completely adapt and innovate upon existing techniques.

If one can cultivate the Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi to perfection, there is hope that one can take another step forward and reach the realm of the God King.

However, You Chen did not intend to make the Three-Part Returning Origin Qi his main cultivation project.

It's simply a matter of time.

You Chen didn't have that much time to start cultivating the three top-tier techniques from scratch, and then integrate them into a coherent whole.

He is already on the right track and has enough time and energy to make achievements on the existing path.

However, this reward is still extremely valuable.

Even without practicing, the theories and mysteries of unparalleled martial arts are enough to broaden one's horizons.

This Three-Part Returning to Origin Qi not only coincides with You Chen's Three Elements Theory, but its deeper realm of the unity of heaven, earth, and man seems to have opened a door to a new world for You Chen.

In addition, its method of fusing the three types of energy is very similar to the Stardust Power born from the fusion of the three elements of Youchen!

Even without directly cultivating it, this technique is a huge treasure trove for You Chen!

You Chen did not intend to truly delve into the cultivation of this technique, but even just a dabbling in it, experiencing its essence and wisdom of cultivation, would greatly benefit him.

"As expected, choosing to attack you was the right decision."

You Chen looked at the unconscious Tang Hao and felt very happy.

Why didn't You Chen feel any regret about losing a huge experience pack—a quest-farming tool—when he cut off Poseidon's arm and reduced her level?

From any perspective, Tang Hao is the more suitable candidate to be this "tool".

If Poseidon hadn't had his arms and legs cut off, even You Chen wouldn't dare say he was absolutely certain of victory.

Even if one of his limbs is cut off, reducing his strength to the level of a Soul Douluo, and he is left unattended, he could still escape by relying on his extremely high mental strength and combat experience if not careful.

You Chen must personally oversee it to ensure that nothing goes wrong.

Tang Hao, however, is different.

This guy's mental strength is only at the level of an ordinary Title Douluo, just at the early stage of the Spirit Abyss Realm. Coupled with more than ten years of decadence, under this kind of debuff, his mental resistance is definitely at the bottom level among all Title Douluos.

You Chen could defeat it with just one of his starlight avatars.

Even though You Chen's mental strength naturally decreased after being transferred through the Starlight Avatar, it was still easy for him to control Tang Hao using the Soul-Suppressing Technique.

In addition, the speed of the Starlight Avatar completely overwhelmed Tang Hao.

With these two advantages, keeping an eye on him was not a big problem for You Chen.

With the blessing of extremely high destiny power, even if Tang Hao is only an ordinary Title Douluo, the reward he gives will probably not be much worse than that of Poseidon, who is at the Limit Douluo level.

This cost-effectiveness is unmatched by any other Title Douluo.

With such a tool at hand, the daily rewards you get are definitely no worse than those from conquering a large territory and earning resources.

Considering the irreplaceable nature of rewards such as Soul Ring Limited Time Cards, Flash of Inspiration, and Illumination of the Origin, their value in You Chen's mind is no less than that of a North Sea.

After all, he's the protagonist's father, and it's only natural that he gets more gold coins from the rarest fermented bean curd, which is the top-tier variety.

"Since we're already here, it wouldn't hurt to see some old acquaintances."

You Chen looked towards Soto City, put away the unconscious Tang Hao using a soul tool for storing living beings, and then flew back to Soto City.

……

"call."

In a dormitory at Shrek Academy, a boy with an ordinary face and dark skin, typical of rural children who had been exposed to the sun in their childhood, let out a sigh of relief.

It was Tang San who had completed another cycle of the Xuan Tian Gong.

"Ha, mistress, you're even cultivating?"

Oscar, from the upper bunk, poked his head out and said with a grin, "If you ask me, cultivation is about gradual progress. Your relentless effort is counterproductive. Or perhaps..."

Oscar paused, then winked and said, "Is it because you got beaten up by Boss Dai again, and you want to make a good impression on your sweetheart, so you're in such a hurry to improve your strength?"

"W-What sweetheart? Xiao Ao, you've misunderstood, it's not like that... I, I just see Xiao Wu as an M—older sister!"

"Huh? When did I say it was Xiao Wu?"

"No... Xiao Ao, are you out of your mind? Xiao Wu is the only girl in our college. You can't possibly say I like guys, can you?"

Tang San felt like he'd been hit where it hurt, and his face flushed red as he retorted, almost blurting out the word "Mom." Fortunately, he reacted quickly and managed to pull himself back, even giving Oscar a speechless retort.

However, on the other hand, even though he's mentally in his thirties, he can still blush when Oscar teases him about having a crush. That's something else... But it does fit Tang San's pure and innocent character.

When Oscar mentioned "Boss Dai," a deeply hidden shadow flashed in Tang San's eyes.

More than three years have passed since he, Yu Xiaogang, and Xiao Wu left Notting City and came to Shrek Academy.

Perhaps his luck hadn't completely faded, and by chance, he left Notting City ahead of time. With the better cultivation environment at Shrek Academy compared to Notting City, or rather, mainly due to the cultivation resources of soul beast meat and the assistance of Shao Xin, a food-type soul saint, he was able to catch up.

During this period, which was very close to the time when he originally left Nottingham, he raised his soul power to level 28.

However, although his soul power level recovered, the three years at Shrek Academy were a huge blow to Tang San's morale.

In the original novel, when Tang San first met Dai Mubai, he was able to fight him head-on without using hidden weapons and achieve a fair exchange. However, the situation in this timeline is quite different.

First of all, for Soul Masters, the difference in physical development between 9-year-olds and 12-year-olds is not small.

The reason why Soul Masters experience the most rapid increase in Soul Power during their teenage years is that in the first few years, a large portion of the Soul Power they cultivate is used to nourish their physical body and accelerate its maturation.

At this stage, the appearance and physique of a Soul Master change dramatically, almost daily. By age 12, this accelerated maturation is nearing its end, and compared to age 9, the difference is like that between an adult and a child.

Given Tang San's superior physical attributes in the early stages of his Beast Martial Soul, and the fact that his body had not yet fully developed, he was no match for Dai Mubai, who possessed a top-tier Beast Martial Soul.

not to mention……

As a member of the Star Luo Empire's royal family, Dai Mubai received top-tier training from a young age. Over the past few decades, he naturally did not miss out on the whale-gel foundation-building techniques that top nobles and powerful forces had enjoyed.

Regardless of how much of an advantage Davis has over Dai Mubai in the struggle for the throne, before they truly determine a winner, they are nominally competing on a level playing field, and the training they receive will not be different.

Although Dai Mubai later escaped the Star Luo Empire and came to the Heaven Dou Empire, he could no longer enjoy the cultivation resources that the royal family had enjoyed in the past, he did not miss out on any of them before that.

Tang San arrived here three years ago and encountered Dai Mubai, whose soul rings were a combination of yellow and purple.

The difference between this work and the original is far greater than a tiny bit.

At that time, Tang San was not as good as his counterpart at the same point in the original story...

The proud Tang San naturally wouldn't allow himself to be easily defeated by his peers. Losing to a Yuxing he respected was one thing, but if just some random Tom, Dick, or Harry could defeat him, wouldn't that mean that this peerless genius with the Tang Sect's legacy was far inferior to the local natives after arriving in this other world?

Driven by anger and self-reflection, Tang San naturally unleashed his true trump card – hidden weapons.

Then... naturally, he was stopped by the teachers of Shrek Academy and severely reprimanded, who ordered Tang San not to use such a dangerous item in future sparring sessions with his classmates!

Even Yu Xiaogang's good friend, Dean Flander, earnestly advised Tang San that even if he wasn't sparring with his classmates, he should try not to use hidden weapons.

Tang San naturally felt extremely aggrieved.

It goes without saying that this academy was run by the teacher's old friend, and now that he and the teacher are under someone else's roof, they have no choice but to bow their heads.

In the end, Tang San could only swallow his resentment and chose to seal away his hidden weapons during the battle.

The result of this was that he had never beaten Dai Mubai in the past three years.

Tang San did not display the strength that would impress Dai Mubai, and the situation where the two were close friends and called each other brothers, as depicted in the original work, could not have occurred.

There's no other reason than... Dai Mubai is a womanizer!

How could Dai Mubai, a lustful man, possibly let go of Xiao Wu, who was gradually growing up?

Even if Tang San doesn't think he's fallen in love with Xiao Wu, if he sees Xiao Wu as his mother, then he'll be just as, if not even more, intolerant of Dai Mubai's existence!

Over the course of three years, Tang San naturally clashed with Dai Mubai, and they sparred countless times.

Unfortunately, the absolute gap in strength cannot be changed by individual will.

Because of Tang Hao's inaction in the early stages, he failed to lay a good physical foundation for Tang San. In addition, due to the existence of You Chen, the top-level soul masters in this world have basically been updated once, which has widened the gap between the two even more.

Without using hidden weapons, Tang San couldn't even slightly control Dai Mubai with just the Blue Silver Grass.

Dai Mubai, who is stronger than in the original story, has now reached level 40 and is about to obtain his fourth soul ring, while he is still two levels away from level 30.

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

Tang San silently looked at the Blue Silver Grass in his hand, and a sense of hatred inexplicably arose within him.

"If I had cultivated the hammer martial soul first, would things have been different?"

If Tang San were to cultivate Blue Silver Grass as a purely support-type skill, he would naturally not have such an idea.

But he's currently cultivating Blue Silver Grass as a martial soul for battle spirit masters, so it would be strange if he didn't think that way.

Although Yu Xiaogang kept telling Tang San that the future was promising and that he was on the path of a future warrior, Tang San inevitably began to doubt and waver in his beliefs.

This is only natural; no man can remain calm when he sees a man he can't possibly beat constantly lingering around and pestering the woman he loves.

Even though Xiao Wu remained indifferent to Dai Mubai, Tang San grew increasingly anxious over time.

If they had the same strong bond as in the original story, with a sibling relationship, Tang San might not have wavered so much.

However, they are now just slightly better classmates from the same place.

Essentially, Dai Mubai's relationship with Xiao Wu is no different from his relationship with Xiao Wu.

Most importantly, compared to his own virginity, Tang San saw Dai Mubai as someone who could easily get girls into bed and change girlfriends every few days, with no two girls the same every week.

Tang San inevitably felt inferior when comparing his own ordinary appearance with Dai Mubai's roguish good looks and tall stature.

He couldn't help but worry that even if Xiao Wu wasn't being deceived by Dai Mubai's feelings right now, she was still just a naive girl who had never experienced love before. Who knew that one day she might succumb to Dai Mubai's womanizing tricks and be seduced into bed...

Just imagining that scene made Tang San feel like he was going crazy.

Although the reality is that Xiao Wu is constantly anxious about having a Title Douluo watching her, and is no longer as playful as before, she devotes all her time to cultivation. She has already reached the Soul Master level even before Dai Mubai, but…

How could Tang San possibly know this?

So Tang San, who has been getting increasingly irritable lately, has started to consider assassinating Dai Mubai. However, he hasn't taken action yet because he hasn't figured out a way to avoid being discovered by the academy's teachers and classmates.

You Chen silently watched Tang San tossing and turning, unable to sleep, from the window. From Tang San's conversation with Oscar earlier, he had already vaguely guessed the reason for Tang San's somewhat dazed state, and his expression remained indifferent.

You Chen wasn't too surprised that Tang San's cultivation progress had caught up again.

He had anticipated this situation when Tang San and Yu Xiaogang left Notting City ahead of time.

The reason he stopped interfering was simply because he preferred to strengthen himself rather than create trouble for Tang San.

He felt that what he had done before was enough.

If Tang San can still regain his strength, it can only prove that Tang San is indeed being protected by fate, just as he predicted.

Now, he has caught up with his original cultivation progress. Is it fate, or just a simple coincidence?

You Chen's mood was slightly agitated.

Tang San's biggest protector, Tang Hao, has already been captured by him, and theoretically, Tang San can now be controlled by him at will.

However, this also means that, if things continue as they are, Tang San himself will no longer pose any threat to him.

If this happens, then it's an anomaly, and... it can only be the power of fate.

What You Chen feared was never Tang San himself, but rather the elusive destiny, the protagonist's fate that surpassed even the final boss.

In this world, fortune is a definite phenomenon, but destiny and fortune are not entirely the same thing.

It may exist, or it may not.

"Shall we unveil the veil of fate right here, at this very moment?"

You Chen couldn't help but hesitate.

Everything is proceeding smoothly according to his script, and it's going as planned. Tang San has no chance of turning the tables.

On the contrary, if he were to take action against Tang San, the chosen one of this world and even the chosen one of the universe, he doesn't know what kind of chain reaction it would trigger.

It's possible that nothing will happen, or it's possible that it will directly attract extraterrestrial demons, or the so-called God of Destiny.

You Chen could easily come up with several possibilities: he clearly killed Tang San, but Tang San ended up gaining an opportunity.

The simplest solution is for Tang San to time travel and be reborn once more. Since Tang San has already time-traveled once, it makes perfect sense for him to do it again. This is the most logical and least contradictory outcome, consistent with the original storyline.

To exaggerate a bit, the worst-case scenario—Tang San being transported directly to the Main God Space and becoming the protagonist of a new fanfiction—is not entirely impossible. However, compared to the former, this scenario is undoubtedly less likely.

But like Schrödinger's cat, no one knows what will happen until the black box is actually opened.

(End of this chapter)