Chapter Ninety-Two: Natural Energy and the Phoenix Gene (First Update)

Natural energy is a wondrous thing. Long before chakra existed, it was already present in the shinobi world. One might even call it a planet’s life force; at the very least, whether a world can nurture life depends on whether it contains natural energy.

The Divine Tree planted by the Otsutsuki clan also had to be grown on a planet rich in life force, or it would never take root.

After Princess Ichikishima injected natural energy into Kahn with the help of her snake fangs, he immediately, through the natural energy within his body, sensed the dense natural energy all around him. Although the wound on his neck healed at once under the power of the Extremis virus, he could still clearly perceive the natural energy outside his body.

In an instant, vast quantities of natural energy surged toward Kahn. Once inside him, it was controlled and transformed into Sage chakra. But as more and more natural energy poured in, it was not even a minute before Kahn began to feel that he was losing control.

“You’re being too hasty. A newcomer ought to absorb natural energy slowly. With such an enormous amount of it, your chakra is no longer enough to control it...”

Princess Ichikishima spoke softly and was about to step forward and bite him again, drawing out all the excess natural energy from within Kahn. This was what the Ryuchi Cave called a guaranteed success: the Three Snake Princesses possessed the ability to take in and draw out natural energy, allowing a practitioner to control the natural energy within the body perfectly.

No matter how little chakra the other party had, Ryuchi Cave could still help them succeed in their training. They simply almost never did so, because none of the three snake princesses wished to see any shinobi truly succeed in mastering Sage Mode.

Kahn was an exception. He and Orochimaru could bring great benefits to Ryuchi Cave.

Sizzle!

Just as Princess Ichikishima was about to help Kahn, flames suddenly burst across his body, kindling into a brilliant yellow fire. In a very short time, the blaze burned away the clothes on his body, though it did not injure him in the slightest.

“What... is happening?”

Princess Ichikishima’s large eyes instantly narrowed into vertical slits. If she had not dodged in time just now, she might have been burned by those flames.

And whether it was an illusion or not, she suddenly felt an alluring fragrance coming from Kahn’s body. She wanted to swallow him in one bite and savor him carefully.

As the flames continued to burn, Princess Ichikishima found the tempting scent around Kahn growing richer and richer. It had now even surpassed the attraction of a fire dragon. If not for reason suppressing the instincts of her beastly desire, and for that layer of flame, she might already have wrapped herself around him.

Those flames gave her a deeply dangerous feeling, a fear born from instinct itself, as though they were especially effective against snakes.

The fire burned for nearly an hour before slowly dying down at last.

Once the flames vanished, Princess Ichikishima could no longer restrain her urge to press close to Kahn. But just as she moved, Kahn suddenly opened his eyes and cast magic directly at her.

“Petrify!”

A spell struck Princess Ichikishima head-on, blasting her tens of meters away and slamming her hard into the stone wall. After hitting the ground, she felt no pain. The three snake princesses had lived for over a thousand years, and their bodies had long since been strengthened several times over by Sage chakra.

What she could not do was move. No matter what Princess Ichikishima tried, her body would not respond, as though some force had bound her limbs, turning her into stone.

“You really did go and make trouble for yourself, didn’t you? You wanted to eat me...”

As he spoke to Princess Ichikishima, Kahn took a set of clothes from his spatial backpack and put them on. After dressing, he used another spell to summon clear water, filling a hollow in the rock with a pool of clean water so he could look at his reflection.

There was a barely perceptible trace of blue at the corners of his eyes. It would have been almost impossible to notice without careful examination, and Kahn had already perfected Sage Mode, storing a great deal of Sage chakra within his body.

Most importantly, he felt as though he had been through a complete rebirth. His entire being felt wonderfully light, and when he woke, he found that his magical power had increased considerably.

If this had happened before, he might still have blasted Princess Ichikishima away, but not nearly so far, nor could he have restrained her for so long. Kahn could only conclude that the phoenix gene within him had taken effect, digesting all that excess natural energy and gradually transforming it into his own magical power.

The phoenixes in the world of Harry Potter were never clearly said to have an origin, but Kahn guessed that they were very likely magical creatures born of nature itself.

After putting on his clothes, Kahn beckoned to Princess Ichikishima. “Snake princess, come here.”

Princess Ichikishima was still trying to use Sage chakra to regain her mobility, but before she could break the petrification curse on her body, she floated toward Kahn.

“Princess Ichikishima, were you just planning to ambush the Ryuchi Cave contractor while I was cultivating Sage Mode...?”

Princess Ichikishima hurriedly defended herself. “No. Although your scent is very tempting, I had no such intention at the time.”

Kahn studied the snake princess for a moment, then took a vial of Veritaserum from his spatial backpack. He had bought it from Borgin and Burkes, and he only had this one bottle.

“If you lie, even the White Snake Sage won’t be able to protect you.”

With that, Kahn forced the entire bottle of Veritaserum down her throat. Once the potion took effect, he asked the same question again. “Princess Ichikishima, what were you planning to do just now?”

“I wanted to use the excuse of helping you check your Sage Mode to draw a little blood from you... Your scent is extremely enticing. Your appeal to me is even greater than that of a fire dragon...”

Kahn lifted a brow slightly and continued, “Besides that, did you plan to eat me?”

“No. If I ate you, the White Snake Sage would certainly punish me, so I only wanted to taste you.”

After that, Kahn sealed the cave entrance with magic and erected several barriers to prevent anyone from overhearing his questioning. Only after everything was done did he return to Princess Ichikishima’s side and, while the Veritaserum was still in effect, continue probing Ryuchi Cave’s secrets.

“How old are you?”

“When did Ryuchi Cave come into being?”

“Does the Sage Art of Ryuchi Cave consist only of Inorganic Reincarnation and the White Rage Technique?”

“What does the White Snake Sage usually do? What is her weakness?”

“...”

Barely ten minutes passed before the Veritaserum’s effects were almost entirely worn away. Princess Ichikishima’s immense Sage chakra had offset much of the potion’s potency.

Seeing this, Kahn lifted the petrification curse on her.

“What did you use on me...”

Princess Ichikishima’s angry words had not yet finished when the stone on the ground suddenly elongated, binding her tightly. The stones even slithered like serpents, instantly coiling around her petite body.

At the sight of this, Princess Ichikishima cried out in surprise. “Inorganic Reincarnation!? I only said it once just now, and you already learned that Sage Art?”

“This isn’t Inorganic Reincarnation, but it’s close enough.”

With magic and chakra used in tandem, one power controlled the stone’s shape while the other altered its hardness. Once infused with Sage chakra, the stone became harder than steel.

Kahn waved his hand, and Princess Ichikishima, bound in stone, was brought before him.

“Princess Ichikishima, though you had no thought of killing me, I cannot overlook what you tried to do. From now on, you will be my summon. If I call you into battle, you must fight for me.”

“You already learned so many of Ryuchi Cave’s secrets from me, and there was still...”

Princess Ichikishima’s tone turned somewhat reluctant, but when she met Kahn’s uncompromising gaze, she knew that if she refused, she would not likely get through the day.

“All right, I agree. But in the future, could you let me taste your blood? Just a little would be enough.”

“We’ll see how you perform then...”

Kahn waved again, releasing the control over Princess Ichikishima. He then took out a scroll and said to her, “Make the summoning scroll. Best not try anything clever. If you perform well, next time I’ll treat you to a cup of my blood.”

“A cup!?”

Hearing that, Princess Ichikishima immediately recalled the alluring scent from earlier. If she could drink a whole cup, her snake life would be nearly complete.

So she promptly said, “Very well. I hope you keep your word.”

After that, Princess Ichikishima began making the summoning scroll.

Seeing how serious she looked, Kahn could not help but smile inwardly. Once he returned, he would make a few small cups with a capacity of ten milliliters each, and from then on he would use that standard to reward Princess Ichikishima.

The summoning scroll was quite simple. Both the three snake princesses and the White Snake Sage knew how to make one. The White Snake Sage could create a scroll that covered the entire Ryuchi Cave, while Princess Ichikishima only needed to make a scroll linking herself and Kahn.

Once the scroll was finished, Kahn signed his name on it. From that point on, he could summon Princess Ichikishima to aid him in battle whenever he wished.

Princess Ichikishima’s true value lay in helping others cultivate Sage Mode. With her assistance, Kahn would be able to recruit a few more subordinates capable of mastering it.

Kahn was not worried that Princess Ichikishima would agree in name only. By constantly pressuring her with force and tempting her with blood, this loli snake princess who had lived for over a thousand years would, in the future, be his exclusive summon.

...

After returning from Ryuchi Cave to the capital of the Land of Fire, Kahn slowly examined the changes in his body.

He discovered that he seemed able to maintain the power of Sage Mode continuously. According to Princess Ichikishima, Sage Mode should not be sustained for long periods, or else the use of natural energy would also consume a shinobi’s physical and spiritual energy.

Even if no ninjutsu were used at all, physical and spiritual energy would still be depleted, because one had to continually resist the natural energy being absorbed.

But Kahn’s body seemed different. The phoenix gene could help him absorb natural energy and convert it into magical power, and the fullness of that magic allowed Kahn’s condition to remain at its peak at all times.

“I need to learn some magic, or else all this magical power will be rather wasted.”

Kahn made up his mind. Still, before going to the wizarding world, he would at least need to settle matters in the shinobi world properly.

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Chapter Ninety-Two: Natural Energy and the Phoenix Gene, First Update. Free to read.