Volume 1, Chapter 68 – Their Respective Problems

Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue exchanged a glance, then tacitly walked toward a relatively flat, open area.

They drew their swords and, just as they had on Snow Moon Peak, began with the most basic exercises: stance training, gripping the sword, thrusting, chopping, lifting, and hooking.

Their movements were slow and meticulous.

With every strike, they strove to channel the spiritual power within their bodies perfectly into the blade.

Here, they had ample time to correct every tiny mistake and comprehend the fleeting transitions between sword techniques.

Zhao Ling’er and Wang Zhaojun chose a level patch of ground.

Zhao Ling’er sat down cross-legged, took out the basic Alchemical Dao jade slip bestowed upon her by her Master, and began studying it repeatedly.

At the same time, she circulated her cultivation technique, absorbed the pure spiritual energy of this place, and repeatedly widened and reinforced her meridians.

She knew that alchemy required not only skill, but also abundant and pure spiritual power as support.

Wang Zhaojun sat quietly beside Zhao Ling’er. She did not begin cultivating immediately.

Instead, she closed her eyes and combined the contents of the Hundred Herbs Compendium with the perceptions granted by her physique.

Her mind seemed to connect with the earth beneath the wasteland. She could faintly “hear” the “sound” of spiritual energy flowing deep within the ley lines and “smell” the subtle differences between the various attributes of spiritual energy in the air.

It was an unfathomably mysterious form of perception, an extension of her innate affinity with plants.

Here, free from disturbance, she could explore the mysteries of this talent to her heart’s content.

Xiao Ya walked farther away on her own and arrived at a place scattered with several strangely shaped, jagged rocks.

She first touched the rocks with her hands to feel their texture and temperature, then looked up to observe the angle of the light beneath the eternal twilight sky.

Afterward, she sat down cross-legged, spread the Myriad-Phenomena Heavenly Craft Compendium across her knees, and took out the recording jade slip she carried with her.

“A change in the flow of time must be accompanied by subtle adjustments to the rules of space…”

“The flow of spiritual energy here is clearly different from that of the outside world… If viewed from the perspective of formations…”

As she recorded the phenomena she observed, she attempted to analyze them using the principles in the compendium.

An almost fanatical light of inquiry gleamed in her eyes.

To her, the Myriad-Phenomena Tower itself was an excellent subject of study.

Wang Teng, Li Haoran, Liu Qingqing, Su Yurou, Liu Lie, Shi Lei, and the others also found suitable places of their own.

Some practiced basic spells, some sat in meditation and regulated their breathing, while others tempered their martial techniques.

Rеаd оո КαtRеαԁiոɡCαfе

Everyone understood how precious this extra time was and did not dare slack off in the slightest.

Fushan did not disturb them. He merely sat cross-legged in the center of the wasteland like a silent mountain.

His eyes were closed, and he appeared to be cultivating, but in truth, his powerful divine sense spread like an invisible net over the surrounding area.

He closely monitored the condition of every disciple, ensuring that none of them suffered dangerous problems such as rampaging spiritual energy or unstable minds.

Time flowed across this wasteland of eternal twilight in a peculiar manner.

During the first few days, the novelty of the place and its abundant spiritual energy allowed the disciples to improve rapidly.

Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue’s sword techniques grew increasingly smooth and integrated, with faint sword qi beginning to gather around them on its own.

Zhao Ling’er’s meridians widened slightly, and her spiritual power became more condensed.

The range of Wang Zhaojun’s spiritual energy perception doubled.

Xiao Ya recorded more than a dozen pages of conjectures concerning changes in the tower’s energy field…

However, as “time” passed, only a few days had gone by outside, while dozens of days had already passed within the tower.

Certain problems quietly began to emerge.

Wang Teng was the first to feel discomfort.

He had always been somewhat impatient by nature and longed to become stronger quickly so he could prove himself.

After discovering that cultivation here was far faster than in the outside world, he wished he could devote every breath to raising his cultivation.

He stopped consolidating his foundation and began frantically absorbing spiritual energy to break through the barrier to the seventh layer of Qi Refinement.

At first, everything progressed smoothly, and his spiritual power increased rapidly.

But around the seventieth day, which was the seventh day outside, he began to feel restless. Chaotic thoughts flashed through his mind from time to time.

His spiritual power occasionally became obstructed while he circulated his cultivation technique, and his chest felt stifled.

“Pfft!”

During one attempt to force a breakthrough, Wang Teng’s face turned pale. He spat out a small mouthful of blood, and his aura immediately weakened.

“Nonsense!”

Fushan’s voice exploded beside his ear like thunder.

Reaⅾ oո ΚаtReaԁinɡСafе

The next moment, Fushan’s burly figure had already appeared before him, a large hand pressing down on his shoulder.

A vast yet gentle stream of spiritual power flowed into him, swiftly calming the churning, chaotic spiritual power within his body.

“Brat, did you treat my words as nothing but wind passing your ears?”

Fushan glared at him, his voice stern.

“You rushed for quick results and neglected your foundation! With such an impetuous mind, how do you expect to control this sudden surge of spiritual power?”

“If this continues, you won’t even need to wait for a heart demon. You’ll cripple yourself through cultivation first!”

Wang Teng’s face was deathly pale. Filled with shame and guilt, he lowered his head and did not dare speak.

“Stop cultivating!”

Fushan ordered.

“For the next few days, go over there every day, carry that rock on your back, and run one hundred laps around this wasteland!”

“You can resume cultivating when your mind has calmed down!”

Wang Teng looked in the direction Fushan was pointing. There stood a massive rock weighing several hundred jin.

He gritted his teeth, silently rose to his feet, and walked toward the boulder.

He knew the elder was doing this for his own good.

Tempering his body, honing his will, and solidifying his foundation.

Similar problems appeared among the other disciples to varying degrees.

Because Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue were too eager to improve, their auras had also become somewhat unstable.

Zhao Ling’er had spent too long studying the jade slip, exhausting her mind and causing her to briefly fall into a daze.

Xiao Ya had become so immersed in her “research” that she neglected her own cultivation, causing a gap to open between her and the others.

Fushan appeared rough and boisterous, but he was actually extremely attentive.

Depending on the different problems each disciple displayed, he promptly corrected them with severity and assigned targeted measures.

Those who practiced swordsmanship excessively were ordered to put down their swords and meditate in contemplation.

Those whose minds had been overtaxed were forced to rest. Fushan even personally used his spiritual power to nourish their souls.

As for someone like Xiao Ya, Fushan simply confiscated her research jade slip.

Rеαd оn KatReaԁіոgСafe

“Little girl, having lots of ideas isn’t a bad thing, but you have to eat one bite at a time!”

“You haven’t even figured out the basics of cultivation, yet you already want to study rules?”

“Raise your cultivation first! The sixth layer of Qi Refinement? You’ve been here for almost one hundred days and you’re still at the sixth layer of Qi Refinement? Does that sound reasonable to you?”

Xiao Ya’s face flushed bright red from the scolding, but she had no way to argue. She could only obediently sit down cross-legged and begin cultivating.

Under the supervision of Fushan, a Mahayana demon king who seemed rough but was actually highly experienced, the disciples gradually adjusted their pace.

They began to understand that this extra time was not merely for “accelerating” their cultivation. It was also meant for “settling” themselves and “refining” their foundations.

During meditation and contemplation, Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue gained a deeper understanding of the true essence of the Sword Dao taught to them by Li Hanyi.

After being forced to rest, Zhao Ling’er recovered her energy. When she read the Alchemical Dao jade slip again, many passages that had previously seemed obscure suddenly became clear.

Wang Teng ran across the wasteland day after day with the boulder on his back.

Sweat soaked through his robes, and his muscles ached unbearably, but the restlessness in his heart gradually subsided.

He began to have time to think about why he was so desperate for quick results and what the true meaning of cultivation was.

Only when he could calmly complete one hundred laps while carrying the boulder, without feeling that it was torture, did Fushan allow him to resume cultivating.

This time, Wang Teng no longer pursued speed. Instead, he carefully refined every trace of spiritual energy, integrated it into his meridians, and solidified his Dao foundation.

Although Xiao Ya was somewhat reluctant to be forced into cultivation, once she settled her mind and truly began cultivating in earnest, she was surprised to discover that many “problems” she had previously been unable to solve, no matter how much she pondered them, unexpectedly offered her inspiration in another form during cultivation.

“Conservation of energy… the mutual generation and restraint of the five elements… so that’s how it is!”

“Aren’t formation runes simply a special form of energy encoding and spatial topology?”

Light reignited in her eyes, but this time it was no longer blind fanaticism. Instead, it was inquiry guided by a clear purpose.

She began to realize that cultivation and her “research” could be combined.

Without cultivation to support her, any theory would ultimately remain nothing more than empty speculation.

One hundred and fifty days of tower time quietly passed amid continuous cultivation, adjustment, refinement, and comprehension.

When Fushan announced that their time was up and led everyone out of the Myriad-Phenomena Tower through the gate of white light, only half a month had passed in the outside world.

Fresh air, real sunlight, the shimmering waters of Yaochi in the distance, the imposing main hall…

Everything felt both familiar and slightly strange.

Rеаd оո ΚаtReаⅾіոɡСаfе

Outside the tower, Yun Yun, the elders of the various peaks, and the remaining disciples had already been waiting for some time.

The moment they emerged, everyone could clearly sense the changes in them.

Their auras were steadier and more restrained, while their gazes were clearer and more resolute.

Their cultivation had not risen by an absurd amount, but the solidity of their foundations was startling.

Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue in particular were surrounded by almost imperceptible traces of sword intent, and their gazes were incomparably sharp.

Zhao Ling’er and Wang Zhaojun carried a faint fragrance of plants, and their spiritual power flowed smoothly and harmoniously.

Much of Wang Teng’s impatience had faded, replaced by greater composure.

Xiao Ya’s gaze had become even deeper, as though countless thoughts were hidden within it.

“Not bad.”

Yun Yun swept her gaze over the eleven disciples and nodded slightly, satisfaction showing in her eyes.

She could naturally tell that these disciples had not blindly pursued higher cultivation inside the tower. Instead, they had truly solidified their foundations and tempered their wills.

That was precisely the original purpose of opening the Myriad-Phenomena Tower.

“Rest for half a month and consolidate what you have gained.”

Yun Yun announced.

“Yes!”

The eleven answered in unison, their voices steady and powerful.

“The second group: Zhang Xiaohu, Yue Shan, Wang Meng, Jiang Che, Zhu Xiaoxiao…”

“The accompanying elder will be Mo Lin!”

As Yun Yun finished speaking, the second group of disciples followed Mo Lin into the Myriad-Phenomena Tower one after another.

The envy in the eyes of the disciples who had not been selected transformed into even stronger fighting spirit.

The allure of the Myriad-Phenomena Tower was now undeniably real, and the qualifications to enter had to be earned through their own efforts.

Because of the opening of the Myriad-Phenomena Tower, the cultivation atmosphere within Yaochi Immortal Palace became even more intense, yet also more rational.

The disciples no longer blindly competed with one another. Instead, they began consciously planning their own cultivation paths.