After their conversation, Lac Long Quan looked deep into Lam Minh's eyes, his own gaze filled with satisfaction and a momentous decision.
"You said you want your Golden Core to be the strongest," Lac Long Quan said, his voice low. "That ambition is good. But external training alone is not enough. Do you know that the most precious thing I gave you was not the 'Primeval Dragon God Art' technique, but the drop of heart's blood of the Dragon that I passed to you through the seal?"
Lam Minh was surprised. He knew that drop of blood was precious, but he didn't realize its importance.
"That drop of Dragon Blood is a seed," Lac Long Quan explained. "It has been silently transforming your body, fusing with your bloodline. Combined with your cultivation of the Dragon race's technique, that seed has begun to sprout. But for it to truly awaken, it needs an extremely powerful external force to activate it. Before, your body was too weak to withstand it. But now, after reaching the perfected Peak Foundation Establishment Realm, the time has come."
"Awaken? Awaken what?" Lam Minh was curious.
"The true power of the Dragon God bloodline," Lac Long Quan said, pride shining in his eyes. "An ability that only my most outstanding descendants can possess."
He stood up and gestured to Lam Minh. "Sit down. Relax your body, operate your cultivation technique, but do not resist my qi. This process will be very painful, more painful than any breakthrough you've had. But if you can endure it, you will gain a true trump card."
Without a moment's hesitation, Lam Minh immediately sat down cross-legged. He completely trusted this "uncle" of his.
Lac Long Quan walked behind him and placed a hand on his back.
"Begin!"
An indescribably pure, powerful, and domineering stream of Dragon qi flowed from Lac Long Quan's palm into Lam Minh's body like molten lava.
"Ah!!!"
Lam Minh let out a roar of pain. He felt as if his entire bloodstream was boiling, as if tens of thousands of needles were stabbing into every cell. The drop of Dragon Blood hidden deep in his heart, activated by this energy, suddenly exploded.
It didn't destroy his body, but began a process of "regeneration" from within.
His blood began to turn a pale golden color. His bones became harder, carrying a faint metallic sheen. His meridians expanded, becoming more resilient.
And then, the change began to manifest externally.
From Lam Minh's skin, tiny dragon scales began to appear. They were not green or gold, but a deep, abyssal black. On the edge of each scale were crimson veins like blood, forming ancient and demonic patterns.
The scales quickly spread, enveloping his entire body from foot to neck, forming a perfect biological battle armor, fitting like a second skin.
The armor was not bulky; on the contrary, it highlighted his firm, muscular lines. A sense of power and absolute defense flowed through Lam Minh's body. He felt that now, even if a Golden Core cultivator punched him, he could withstand it with just his body.
Finally, the black and red scales condensed on his face, forming a ferocious dragon-head helmet, leaving only his sharp and cold eyes exposed.
The awakening process was complete. Lac Long Quan withdrew his hand, his breathing a little ragged. Clearly, this had also consumed a not-insignificant amount of his energy.
Lam Minh slowly stood up. He looked down at his body. A suit of black and red battle armor, at once majestic, demonic, and exuding an indescribable kingly aura. He could feel that his strength, in this state, had increased by at least five times.
"This is..."
"The Dragon God Battle Armor," Lac Long Quan said, his voice tinged with pride. "It is the crystallization of bloodline and spiritual energy, the strongest battle armor a Foundation Establishment cultivator can possess. It not only enhances strength and speed, but also has astonishing defensive capabilities, making you nearly immune to attacks below the Golden Core level."
He looked at Lam Minh. "But remember, maintaining this state consumes a great deal of spiritual energy. With your current cultivation, you can only maintain it for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn (about 30 minutes). Use it as a trump card in the most decisive moments."
Lam Minh clenched his fist, feeling the surging power. He nodded. The system's [Invulnerability] state was absolutely unbeatable, but its cooldown was death. This Dragon God Battle Armor, though not immortal, could be activated at will. They were two perfect trump cards that complemented each other.
With a thought, the battle armor slowly vanished, retracting into his body as if it had never been there.
"Thank you, Uncle," he said, his voice full of sincerity.
Lac Long Quan just waved his hand. "No need. Consider it a gift for you almost becoming an adult. Alright, you can go now. Go out there and show those Madakaros and those traitors what the true power of the descendants of Lac Hong is like."
Lam Minh nodded, his eyes blazing. He no longer needed the boat. He walked to the edge of the cliff and looked towards the distant mainland.
He took a deep breath, then jumped.
In mid-air, he activated the Dragon God Battle Armor. Hac Duc's bat wings were a product of experimentation, but in his bloodline was the power of a true dragon. A pair of giant, black and red dragon wings appeared on his back and flapped powerfully.
VROOOM!
He shot off like a black and red meteor, tearing through the air, flying towards the mainland at an unimaginable speed.
His journey of training, and also his journey of "wreaking havoc," now had a pair of wings.
...
Lam Minh flew through the sky like a phantom. The Dragon God Battle Armor not only brought him strength but also gave him the ability of true flight, an ability that should have only been possible for Golden Core cultivators. His speed was faster than any fighter jet; in just a few hours, he had returned to the mainland.
He landed in a remote forest, retracted his battle armor and wings, and returned to the appearance of a normal student. But his mood was no longer as leisurely as before.
The images of the sacrificial altar, of his own kind being turned into test subjects, constantly replayed in his mind. It was like a smoldering fire, urging him to act, to find and destroy that organization called the "Sacred Cult of World Salvation."
This was no longer about "leveling up" or "hunting" for fun. This was a responsibility, a mission he felt he had to shoulder.
But the problem was, where to start?
The world outside the Great Wall was too vast. The "Night Shadow" base he had destroyed, according to Hac Duc, was just one of hundreds of small bases. They were like cancer cells that had metastasized everywhere, hiding in the most secret places.
The only information he had was Hac Duc's vague testimony. She only knew that she operated in the Northwest region and received missions from a mysterious "Deacon."
"I have to find that 'Deacon'," Lam Minh muttered. "He's the lead."
He decided to return to the Hoang Lien Son mountain range. He had a hunch that the enemy would not give up such an important area so easily. They would surely send people to investigate the disappearance of Black Shadow and the entire base.
He returned to the site of the battle, but he had already cleaned up everything, leaving no trace. He began to expand his search area.
He didn't wander aimlessly. He thought like an enemy. If he were the "Sacred Cult," where would he place his bases?
Certainly not in open places. It had to be places with complex terrain, easy to hide, and with certain resources, like near a mineral mine, or a place with abundant spiritual energy.
He began his search.
Many days passed.
He traveled through pathless jungles. He climbed towering mountains. He explored dark, deep caves.
He encountered and eliminated quite a few wandering Madakaros, and his Immortality Points increased a little, but traces of the "Sacred Cult" remained as elusive as a fish in the sea.
The enemy was hidden too well. They were like ghosts, existing but impossible to grasp.
Lam Minh's patience began to be tested. The indignation and impatience in his heart grew day by day. With each passing day, more innocent people could be captured, turned into test subjects. He couldn't wait forever.
One night, while resting by a small fire, he took out the tactical tablet To Quyen had given him. He opened the satellite map of the area, trying to find any abnormalities.
He suddenly thought of Minh Thu.
"That's right! Why don't I ask her?"
He immediately sent a message to Minh Thu, a message encrypted with their own algorithm.
[Eye icon] -> [Map icon of Hoang Lien Son] -> [Question mark] -> 'Look_for_ghosts.'
Minh Thu, despite being in Sai Gon, replied almost instantly.
'Ghosts?' -> [Magnifying glass icon] -> 'Define_parameters.'
Lam Minh described to her the characteristics of a secret base. Places with abnormal energy signals, areas with unnatural activity, man-made trails that appeared and then vanished illogically.
Minh Thu received the information and replied with a single word: 'Working.'
And then, Lam Minh had to wait. He knew that even if Minh Thu was a genius, scanning and analyzing such a huge amount of data would take time.
While waiting, he didn't sit still. He continued his own search, but this time with more purpose. He went to the areas he suspected the most based on his own experience.
Another week passed. Still no results.
Helplessness began to creep into Lam Minh's mind. He was strong, he had the system, he had Lac Long Quan's support. But against an enemy that was hidden so well, he also felt like a giant trying to catch a fly in a dark room.
He began to understand that this war required not just strength. It required patience, wisdom, and also a little bit of luck.
And luck, it seemed, was about to smile on him.
That night, when he was almost about to give up and move to another area, his tablet suddenly vibrated.
A message from Minh Thu.
The message contained only a single red dot, blinking over a remote area of the map. And with it, a line of text.
'Found_a_rat_hole.'