Apocalypse: I Have One More Keyword Than Others

"Wrong?" Feng Jiu was startled and asked subconsciously.

"Yes, wrong. The keyword 'restorative power' is so potent that it can even repair a ruptured Dantian, yet you have eaten so much, and you still feel stomach pain—do you think that's normal?" Duge asked.

"It is a bit abnormal," Feng Jiu frowned.

"So, Brother Jiu, you misunderstood Gluttony," Duge looked at Feng Jiu. "Let me ask you, what does Gluttony mean?"

"A fierce beast, greedy, gluttonous," Feng Jiu pondered, then said.

"Right, Gluttony is first and foremost a ferocious beast, and only secondarily greedy and gluttonous," Duge continued. "But you? When you think of Gluttony, you only think of eating and neglect the fierceness, the beastly nature. It hasn't been reflected at all. And about greed and gluttony—what does greed mean? A huge appetite, never satisfied. And gluttony? Eating without knowing when to stop. Tell me, of the traits of Gluttony, which have you embodied?"

"I..." Feng Jiu was rendered speechless, at a loss for words for a long while as a layer of fine sweat beaded on his forehead. Could it be that his understanding of the keyword had deviated so much? Seeing Feng Qi looking so confident, the sourness in his heart grew more intense. Was this the gap between them?

"Brother Jiu, strive for the extreme in everything. That's the only way to grow. Without madness, there's no living," Duge said seriously to Feng Jiu.

"The extreme?" Feng Jiu blinked and furrowed his brow, lost in thought.

For a moment.

As if a flash of insight crossed his mind, he widened his eyes, grasping the ultimate secret of the simulation field.

He swallowed excitedly, his gaze towards Feng Qi even shifting somewhat. Although Feng Qi had put him through a tough time, he taught him valuable lessons!

"Yes, the extreme," Duge clenched his fist, his eyes ablaze with fervor. "Just like me. Even though I know we are in competition, I am still willing to protect your interests and tell you the secrets of growth, without considering that you might turn against me in the future. For your sake, I can sacrifice anything, even my own life. That's the extreme of protection. Do you understand?"

"I understand," Feng Jiu took a deep breath, looked at Duge with a complex expression, and after a moment, as though making up his mind, said, "Brother Qi, rest assured, I won't betray you. What you've taught me is enough to last a lifetime; I know what's good for me. I'm convinced, don't worry. From now on, I will do everything I can to help you advance."

"Brother Jiu, our relationship is one of cooperation, not one where one must assist the other. Supporting each other and growing together is the only way we can go farther. Remember, when we fight side by side in the future, I hope you can trust me enough to have your back," Duge said to Feng Jiu, with a smile in his eyes. "Now, do you still decide to take the medicine?"

"No more," Feng Jiu chuckled, his eyes growing fervent. "I need to eat more, eat even when I can't, even if my stomach ruptures, nothing will stop my craving to eat..."

"Exactly, that's the ruthless spirit I'm talking about," Duge looked at Feng Jiu approvingly. "But you still need to take the medicine."

"Still take it?" Feng Jiu was confused again.

"Yes, take it. Take digestive aids while also taking laxatives," Duge instructed. "You must always keep your intestines empty to maintain an insatiable appetite."

"Laxatives?" Feng Jiu swallowed, imagining himself squatting over a privy and feasting ferociously, his face turning pale in an instant.

He didn't think Gluttony was meant to be used like this.

But at that moment, led by Duge's tempo, his mind was filled with the frenzy of extremes, and he couldn't find any flaw in Duge's words!

Thinking of the gap between himself and Duge, he bit his teeth: "Alright, I'll take it."

...

On the side.

The speech of Feng Qi left the Feng Yunming brothers with tingling scalps and standing hair.

Feng Yunming swallowed hard to moisten his dry throat, musing that this must be the so-called demonic nature!

So ruthless!

No wonder Feng Qi was able to devise such strategies for the Feng Family; he had taken protection to the extreme.

No wonder they always felt Feng Qi was too eager, his actions and words too awkward—it wasn't his fault; they had been measuring a Heavenly Demon by human standards!

They were the ones at fault!

This must be reported to the Family Head as soon as possible, lest he make the wrong decision...

...

After advising Feng Jiu, Duge turned to the Feng Yunming brothers: "Eldest Young Master, Fourth Young Master, don't just listen to my words about Feng Jiu. In fact, the Feng Family has made the same mistakes as him!"

"What?" Feng Yunming was stunned.

"Those who practice martial arts and wish to achieve something must first cultivate a bit of malevolence in their hearts," Duge said. "The many descendants of the Feng Family lack precisely this malevolence. Not only do they lack malevolence, but they also lack the courage to venture out and the blood Qi to fight and compete with others.

The Martial Worlds Grand Tournament is soon to begin, yet the Third Young Master's method of practice involves sparring with sparring partners from within the household.

The sparring partners' contracts are all held by the Feng Family, they eat the Feng Family's food, practice the Feng Family's martial arts; not to mention their skills are inferior to the Third Young Master, even if they were stronger, would they dare to injure the Third Young Master? What's the difference between such practice and hitting a wooden dummy? Lacking the experience of fighting life-and-death battles and not being exposed to the martial arts of various schools, once they step onto the stage, it's odd if they can win."

Feng Yunming fell silent. He opened his mouth as if to argue but couldn't find a point of contention; in the end, he could only sigh and say, "Mr. Seven's lesson is well taken."

"Easy for you to say," retorted Feng Yunlu, unconvinced. "The Feng Family doesn't have top-tier martial arts, how can we compete with others outside?"

"I dare to go out and steal secret manuals for the Feng Family. Would the Fourth Young Master dare to practice them?" Duge challenged provocatively.

"If you dare to steal, I dare to practice." Feng Yunlu puffed out his chest, refusing to show weakness.

"Good. It turns out the Feng Family still has spirited young men; that's the hope of the Feng Family. My efforts to protect the Feng Family haven't been in vain," Duge's eyes shone with excitement, and he clapped his hands, saying, "For the Fourth Young Master's spirit, even if the Family Head doesn't allow it, even if it causes chaos to the martial worlds, even if it costs my old life, I will snatch back a few top-tier secret manuals for you…"

Feng Yunlu nodded vigorously, clenching his fists with excitement: "Good, I'll wait for that day."

Watching his fourth brother get riled up to the point of disorientation by a few words, Feng Yunming shook his head and made a respectful fist-and-palm salute: "Mr. Seven, please rest here for a while. I will go find Dr. Hu to prepare some digestive and laxative medicines for Brother Jiu, and also prepare some food for him…"

Watching Feng Yunming find an excuse to leave, Duge knew his prodding had had its effect, and said with a smile, "Be quick and return soon."

"Fourth brother, take good care of the two sirs, don't wander off," Feng Yunming instructed Feng Yunlu before hastily leaving through the door.

Duge returned to his chair and sat down, looking at the youthful-faced Feng Yunlu, he said, "Fourth Young Master, tell us about the neighboring sects! I believe the Family Head will make the correct decision. We should prepare in advance and decide which sect to target first…"

Feng Yunlu didn't understand why Duge said things were settled. After pondering for a moment, he sighed, "Mr. Seven, you can't blame the Feng Family for lacking spirit. The Feng Family is really too weak. The closest to us is the Iron Palm Gang, which controls the dock and waterway businesses in two provinces, with countless members, plenty of money and manpower. These years, the Feng Family has been severely oppressed by them.

The Gang Leader of the Iron Palm Gang, Qiu Yuanlang, with his Iron Sand Palms, has dominated the three mountains and five peaks, and is a famous expert in the martial worlds. Every time the Qiao Family's sacred site opens, the Iron Palm Gang is guaranteed to have at least three members enter the sacred site.

Six years ago, Qiu Muqian from the Iron Palm Gang brought out a Light Body Technique called 'Eight-Step Cicada' from the Qiao Family's sacred site, which compensated for the Iron Palm Gang's previous lack of agility. This made the Sect Leader's martial arts more formidable, and we dared not provoke them even more.

This time, the representative of the Iron Palm Gang participating in the Martial Worlds Tournament is Qiu Yuanlang's fifth son, Qiu Feibao, whose Iron Palm Technique is refined to perfection. A single hit can cause broken tendons and fractured bones. Brother Jiu is afraid of encountering him, and it would be best to disable him before the tournament..."

…

Conference hall.

Feng Shiren looked around at everyone and asked, "Second brother, what do you think about the matter of the Heavenly Demon? How much do you believe is true, and how much is false?"

Feng Shiyi shook his head: "Big brother, this matter is too incredible, I can't discern its truth. It's best for you to decide on everything."

Feng Yunjie fidgeted restlessly in his chair. Looking at his father, who appeared calm and collected, he suddenly stood up and said, "Father, I think we can try it. What if it's real?"

"Hmm?" Feng Shiren frowned and looked towards Feng Yunjie.

Feng Yunjie clenched his teeth: "Twenty-eight years ago, when the 'True Scripture of the Heavenly Fox' emerged, the major sects of the martial worlds fought bloody battles over it. In the end, the scripture fell into the hands of Yang Luo, who, with the martial arts from the scripture, wiped out three sects and five schools, establishing the Heavenly Fox Sect on his own. At that time, his identity was nothing more than a minor beggar from the Beggar's Gang.

We did not compete at that time.

Fifteen years ago, when the Fist King's arsenal was uncovered, the major sects fought viciously over the thousand-year-old stone milk. We did not compete again, and as a result, Tong Le of the Five Tigers Gang got the stone milk, adding sixty years of Inner Strength to his young body. With that additional Inner Strength, he retrieved the 'Mandarin Duck Saber Manual' from the Qiao Family's sacred site. In just a few years, the then insignificant Five Tigers Gang became a first-rank sect.

This time, with the descent of the Heavenly Demon and two born within the Feng Family, if we don't compete for this god-given opportunity, when can the Feng Family rise? Father, I have a premonition that the arrival of the Heavenly Demon this time might stir a bloody storm across the martial worlds. It was alright to not compete the previous two times, but if we don't this time, I'm afraid, just as Feng Qi said, the Feng Family may face an ill-fate for no good reason."

Feng Shiren frowned: "Third son, do you believe what Feng Qi said?"

Feng Yunjie replied, "Father, rather than questioning the belief, we just need to send someone out to investigate. As soon as we find the third Heavenly Demon, the truth will be clear."

"I'm not as old-fashioned as you think. I was planning to do just that," Feng Shiren nodded, "First, verify the truth and then act accordingly. Feng Qi is too impulsive; it always makes me somewhat uneasy. If what he says is true, we should also find ways to control those Heavenly Demons…"

"Father, there's no need for verification. When it's time to act, act decisively. Delaying any longer, I fear we won't even have soup left to drink," a voice came from outside the door just as Feng Yunming stepped into the conference hall, "Father, Uncle, I've learned the true secret of the Heavenly Demon from Feng Qi, and we've been heading in the wrong direction."

"What direction is the wrong direction?" Feng Shiren asked.

After catching his breath, Feng Yunming succinctly presented Duge's extreme viewpoint, and watching the dumbfounded people in the hall, he gave a wry smile and said, "Father, they are Heavenly Demons, not ordinary people of this world. We shouldn't measure them with the mindset of common folks. Heavenly Demons are essentially a group of madmen who will do anything to grow…"