Immortality begins with Swallowing the Stars.

Chapter 11 Wind Attribute Body

The southern outskirts of Heyun City.

Lu Jing was wearing a newly changed camouflage combat uniform. He was waving a black spike about two feet long in his hand. The top of the spike was as sharp as a cicada's wing, and the diameter became thicker towards the bottom. In his other hand, he held a black oval shield that looked like an eggshell.

Jiang Mu, with the same upright posture and a simple short ponytail tied behind his head, said with his eyes closed: "The combat suit is made of the most advanced nanomaterials. It is thin and flexible, and ordinary small-caliber bullets cannot penetrate it."

The weapons you wield are derived from the arthropods of a first-tier high-level insect monster from Wushan, and your shields are made from the carapace of a beetle-like insect monster. As you know, the exoskeletons of insect monsters from Wushan are extremely hard, making them difficult for existing weapons to penetrate. By using their own weapons against them, these weapons can more easily inflict effective damage on first-tier insect monsters.

The other team members also received weapons made from the limbs of the insect monster, some long and some short.

Besides melee weapons and shields, there are only three anti-materiel weapons.

According to Jiang Mu's explanation, although heavy machine guns could be carried, the bullets would be consumed too quickly and in too large a quantity, resulting in excessive weight and pressure.

As the military stated, the entire operation team was indeed an extremely elite mobile unit, with a small number of members.

Although many extraordinary individuals in Heyun City volunteered, only seven people actually joined the team in the end. Among them were five first-level intermediate martial artists, including Zhou Mingsheng, as well as Lu Jing, a first-level advanced gene martial artist, and Zheng Long, a first-level advanced mentalist.

In addition, there was a first-level high-grade martial artist who came from Ningzhou with the team leader Jiang Mu, and three first-level mid-grade martial artists.

There were twelve people in total, none of whom were beginner-level martial artists. They were truly the elite of the elite.

Jiang Mu kept her eyes closed, but it didn't seem to prevent her from seeing the scene before her. She said calmly, "Before we take action, I need to make it clear to everyone that I will deal with the Insect King!"

But I only have the strength for two strikes, so I won't use any mental power until I see the Insect King. This trip to Wushan will depend on all of you team members to deal with the insect monsters and demons along the way, and your task is to protect me and escort me until we find the Insect King.

Although the request was somewhat strange, it was information they had received from the military before the operation, and no one, including the superhumans in Heyun City, objected.

Lu Jing's heart stirred slightly. He had cultivated internal martial arts and was only half a step away from becoming a grandmaster. His spiritual sense was extremely sharp, and he could sense the danger that Jiang Mu was bringing him, which was growing almost constantly.

This woman is like a volcano in the making, with terrifying power lurking beneath her calm surface, constantly accumulating.

Remembering that Jiang Mu hadn't opened his eyes since landing at the airport, Lu Jing muttered to himself, "Could he be preparing some powerful mental attack technique?"

Even during Luo Feng's rise to power, mentalists who primarily used mental attacks were extremely rare compared to those who controlled physical objects. It's unexpected that a mentalist would create a method of mental attack in the early stages of the Great Nirvana?

Jiang Mu turned his head slightly, seemingly looking at Zheng Long: "You are a mentalist and can fly, but some types of insect monsters in Wushan can also fly. Believe me, unless you advance to the second tier, your flight speed will not be able to match theirs. Unless absolutely necessary, or unless you are not allowed to take off without my order, you will become a sitting duck!"

Seeing Zheng Long nod, Jiang Mu turned resolutely to face south: "Let's go!"

Immediately, twelve extraordinary elites dressed in camouflage combat uniforms shot out like arrows.

"We're about to enter the Wushan Mountains, everyone be alert!" Zhai Kong, a first-level advanced martial artist who came with Jiang Mu from Ningzhou and also the deputy captain of the action team, deliberately lowered his voice.

Zhou Mingsheng, following behind Lu Jing, shuddered, seemingly uneasy, and muttered, "We haven't been back to Wushan since the first insect swarm attacked the city. Who knows how many insect larvae are here?"

Wushan is a mountain range located about 150 kilometers south of Heyun City. It was originally a famous scenic area, but after the emergence of the RR virus, it gradually became a gathering place for insect monsters and the source of several insect swarms that attacked Heyun City.

Vice Captain Zhai Kong whispered, "Don't worry, everyone has been sprayed with a newly developed 'perfume' based on the corpses of these insect monsters. As long as we're not face-to-face with the insect monsters or too close, they won't be able to smell us."

The group proceeded cautiously, not daring to speak, and ran through the mountains and forests for nearly half an hour.

"That's not right!" Lu Jing said, puzzled. "Why isn't there even a single animal or monster?"

The silence in the mountains and forests was eerily quiet; there were no sounds of insects or birds, and apart from the blue sky and white clouds, not a single bird could be seen in the sky.

Jiang Mu, standing in the middle of the group, turned his head slightly and said in a cold voice: "According to intelligence collected from satellite images and other sources, Wushan has completely become a paradise for insect monsters. Here, other monsters will become food for the insect monsters, which will not spare any tiny life. They will even kill each other."

This is also the biggest reason why the military is determined to eradicate the Insect King. According to the existing information, apart from Wushan, arthropod-type monsters are rarely seen anywhere else in the world. There must be something special about Wushan!

Lu Jing felt a chill run down his spine. No wonder the military was so well-prepared this time, from combat uniforms and weapons to "perfume" that could conceal and blur scents. It turned out that they had long regarded Wu Shan and the insect monsters hiding in Wu Shan as a thorn in their side.

It seems that eliminating the insect king is not the ultimate goal!

Thinking about this gave rise to some bad premonitions, and the urgency to open the door again and travel to another world arose spontaneously.

"There's an insect monster hiding underground ahead. It must have spotted us too. Its aura is probably somewhere between mid and high level 1..." Jiang Mu's cold voice rang out.

"I'll do it!"

Before Jiang Mu could finish speaking, Lu Jing's resolute voice revealed a hint of surprise.

Zheng Long looked at Lu Jing, his eyes flickering, seemingly lost in thought.

Deputy Captain Zhai Kong quickly said, "Let me do it. We've only just entered the mountains; we shouldn't linger too long..."

"Leave it to him!" Jiang Mu said, his eyes closed, but an invisible gaze seemed to fall on Lu Jing. "Combat experience needs to be accumulated and cultivated. Rather than waiting until we enter the depths of Wushan, let's start now."

Zhai Kong frowned. As one of only three first-tier high-level experts in the team besides the captain Jiang Mu, he naturally knew some of Lu Jing's basic information. His lack of combat experience was the most obvious characteristic.

Even with a high level of strength, he was still a greenhorn in the eyes of Zhai Kong, a battle-hardened and carefully trained elite.

However, the captain's words also make sense. Taking advantage of the fact that we haven't gone deep into Wushan yet is a good time to train the troops, so as to avoid making mistakes in the future.

Zhou Mingsheng patted Lu Jing on the shoulder, conveying his concern through the silent gesture.

Lu Jing nodded to Zhou Mingsheng and then ran forward decisively.

He volunteered not to show off, but because opening the mysterious gate required reaping powerful lives, and if possible, Lu Jing would try his best to take every single one of them.

As soon as Lu Jing stepped onto a withered leaf, the ground suddenly bulged up, and the earth and rocks collapsed.

A giant beetle, entirely black with blood-red stripes, burst from the ground.

A gust of wind blew by, and Lu Jing, like a fish swimming, dodged the beetle's ferocious mandibles in the blink of an eye. He twisted his body and thrust out a black spike, which pierced the beetle's carapace. Then he withdrew again, avoiding the beetle's iron whip-like tentacles.

"Internal martial arts?" Zhai Kong's eyes lit up. As a military expert, he could immediately tell that Lu Jing's moves were clearly a variation of internal martial arts: "He has already entered the inner sanctum."

However, this was not what truly surprised Zhai Kong.

After all, Lu Jing possesses first-tier advanced genetic energy, so mastering internal martial arts wouldn't be too difficult for him.

What truly astonished him was Lu Jing's speed!

"It's probably approaching 80 m/s... that's basically reached the limit of the first order!"

Generally speaking, a speed of 60 meters per second is considered to be at the advanced level of the first tier of physical fitness. It is not easy to improve by even one meter from that level.

It was precisely this terrifying speed that allowed Lu Jing to manipulate the giant beetle at will. In just two or three rounds, he plunged a black spike into the beetle's brain through its eye with a single sword strike, completely killing the giant insect monster.

A faint warmth flowed to his chest, and the color of the birthmark on his chest changed slightly to red.

Lu Jing wiped the black spikes clean, feeling delighted: "Having the right weapon really makes a difference."

If he were to fight this insect-like monster covered in an exoskeleton with his bare hands or a regular steel knife, he would probably have a real headache.

Zhai Kong said excitedly, "Good lad, you've been hiding your true strength. In the world of martial arts, speed is the only thing that can be broken. With your current level of speed, you are among the top-tier martial artists in Ningzhou."

His words even hinted at a restless desire to test his skills against Lu Jing.

Even Jiang Mu, though silent, nodded to Lu Jing, clearly impressed everyone with his performance.

Zhou Mingsheng looked at Lu Jing as if he were a monster, muttering to himself, "This kid is simply a monster, how did he cultivate like that?"

Half a month ago, when Lu Jing dealt with Akabane Raijun, he displayed first-level high-grade strength and astonishing speed in critical moments, but it was far inferior to the strength he showed in the battle just now, especially that terrifying speed.

Lu Jing remained relatively calm in the face of the surprised looks from the crowd; in fact, this was not his limit.

Each time he absorbs wind-attribute cosmic energy, his body undergoes a slight change, causing his speed to increase at a rate that is almost visible to the naked eye.

……

Two days passed in this way. Along the way, Lu Jing, Zhai Kong, and Zheng Long, three first-level high-level experts, took turns dealing with the insect monsters that appeared. When they encountered some more difficult insect monsters or when there were many insect monsters, the three of them worked together and were able to quickly eliminate the target.

In particular, Lu Jing's maximum speed is his trump card when facing a large number of insect monsters, and he has killed the most insect monsters.

At night, the team found a hidden cave, killed the insect monsters living inside, and rested.

A first-level mid-level martial artist from Ningzhou stood guard at the mountain pass, while the others entered a semi-conscious state of rest. This was a basic skill for martial artists, enabling them to react quickly in times of crisis.

Lu Jing sat cross-legged in front of the stone wall, his eyes focused on his nose and his nose on his heart. His breathing was so faint as to be almost inaudible, and his mind was as still as a lake. He was able to clearly sense the condition of his entire body, from his internal organs to every muscle, skin, and hair.

The sound of blood flowing through the body's blood vessels, like the gentle murmur of a spring, combined with the beating of the heart, created a strange rhythm that resonated within Lu Jing's mind.

The rhythm grew louder and louder, and in an instant it transformed into a grand and resounding bell, striking Lu Jing's heart.

Lu Jing suddenly opened his eyes, a flash of lightning passing through them.

"This is……"

Lu Jing recalled the atmosphere he had just experienced, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

In that instant, his mind was like that of an emperor, overlooking every part of his body, perfectly controlling every muscle, every tendon, and every genetic energy.

"Grandmaster!"

After more than ten battles over the past two days, Lu Jing was getting closer and closer to becoming a grandmaster, but there was always a layer of frosted glass between him and the master, and he could not comprehend it. However, just now, during his routine meditation and cultivation of the internal martial arts technique, he unknowingly and silently broke through this barrier!

"Hiss~~"

Immediately afterwards, Lu Jing circulated the Battle Qi Manual he had obtained from the Panlong World and slightly modified, and felt as if every cell in his body was starving, devouring the wind-attribute cosmic energy flowing into his body.

The cultivation speed is dozens of times faster than before!

One minute, two minutes...

As time went by, it was as if all the cells in Lu Jing's body had simultaneously let out a burp. Then, it was as if an invisible barrier had been broken. Lu Jing sensed his body and a look of shock appeared on his face.

"This feeling..."

Lu Jing felt as if his body had lost its weight, as if he could float into the air with the slightest effort.

"As light as a feather..." This phrase came to mind in an instant.

Lu Jing stood up somewhat awkwardly, took a step out, and before he knew it, he had already stepped out of the cave without making a sound.

"What happened?" Lu Jing carefully recalled the changes that had occurred within his body: "Could it be...?"

He remembered that in the original work, when a gene warrior reached the planetary level, his body would undergo a qualitative change and awaken special abilities related to his attributes. For example, Luo Feng achieved the "Diamond Body" in the "Metal Attribute," and Li Yao awakened a special light ability after reaching the planetary level.

Only planetary-level beings can perceive and absorb cosmic energy of specific attributes and transform it into genetic energy of different attributes.

This reminds me of how he was able to sense and continuously draw upon wind-attribute cosmic energy, converting it into genetic energy.

"Could it be that he has awakened some kind of wind attribute constitution...?"

Lu Jing was confused but also pleasantly surprised: "Of course, this can't be compared to the attribute body that has undergone a leapfrog evolution to the planetary level. After all, the planetary level is a qualitative improvement, but even a change of only one percent or one ten-thousandth is terrifying."

In fact, upon closer reflection, the transformation of his body did not occur only by chance when he broke through to the level of a Grandmaster of Internal Martial Arts. For the past half month, every time he absorbed wind-attribute cosmic energy to cultivate his genetic energy, his body would undergo some subtle changes, but none were as dramatic as this one.

Lu Jing stroked the large, bright red birthmark on his chest. The mystery of this gate was not just about descending into another world; it could even solidify and transfer certain special abilities or attributes from that other world into the Devouring Star Universe.

(End of this chapter)