The moment the words fell.
Luo Mu felt his entire body grow intensely hot again.
Numerous images flickered in his mind, all of them scenes of him cultivating, absorbing a full hundred strands of solar essence.
And his body underwent violent changes.
Like a world inside a volcano!
His blood was like magma, roaring and surging within his meridians.
His bones were crimson red, unbreakable, and sparking with embers.
His flesh and blood felt as if they were being pounded by countless fiery hammers, becoming increasingly tougher every second!
“It’s actually a hundredfold!”
Luo Mu came back to his senses, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes.
A hundredfold meant that he had just absorbed a full hundred strands of solar essence!
His cultivation technique had directly skipped over the introductory stage, reaching the initial understanding realm.
And he had even progressed a short distance within the initial understanding realm!
To reach the minor mastery stage, he would need three hundred strands!
“Let's test the effect!”
Luo Mu drew out the long blade beside him.
He lightly slashed it against his arm.
Clang!
It felt like metal striking against metal!
With this thought, Luo Mu increased his strength.
Until he used half his strength.
Crack!
The long blade actually broke in two.
But his arm was left unscathed.
“Seems like ordinary weapons can no longer cause me any harm.”
“Even forged steel weapons, I'm guessing, would have a hard time.”
Luo Mu was very satisfied.
Those five thousand five hundred contribution points were well spent.
Once he cultivated the Xuanyang Bati Gong to minor mastery, great mastery, and even perfection, he would experience further qualitative changes, especially the fiery armor!
“Let’s try other aspects, like my fist power!”
The Xuanyang Bati Gong was a relatively comprehensive body tempering technique, focusing primarily on defense, followed by strength...
Boom!
Luo Mu threw a punch.
The air instantly exploded, scorching the ground within a dozen meters, and the water in the pond was vaporized, turning into white smoke.
His blood Qi was intense, like a blazing sun!
There was a piece of training stone nearby, extremely hard in texture.
Luo Mu casually punched it.
Crack!
The training stone instantly shattered into four pieces!
“This power...”
Luo Mu took a slight breath of cold air.
It had increased by at least seventy thousand compared to before!
In simpler terms.
It had gone from thirty thousand to one hundred thousand!
And he was only at the initial understanding stage, which was an incredibly exaggerated increase.
“The Xuanyang Bati Gong doesn't focus on strength. If it were those body tempering techniques that mainly boosted power, how terrifying would they be?”
Luo Mu couldn’t even imagine it.
“With my current strength, even a True Aperture Realm martial artist at the sixth or seventh level should be able to fight me, right?”
Luo Mu made a comparison in his mind.
Of course, that was assuming an ordinary martial artist.
But once he cultivated the Wusheng Daojing, even if it were a genius martial artist, he would have confidence in defeating them!
Both the Wusheng Daojing and the Xuanyang Bati Gong were top-tier techniques among those of the middle-grade tier.
Once they reached perfection.
Their power would be astonishing and exaggerated!
“I’ll improve my cultivation at night, since there’s no sunlight.”
Looking at the gradually setting sun, Luo Mu walked toward his room.
In his life, rest only took up a very small proportion.
——
The next day.
Luo Mu opened his eyes.
He had cultivated for four hours throughout the night.
The results were not bad. Although he didn’t trigger the hundredfold burst, he got a fiftyfold burst once, and the rest were all twentyfold or more.
Overall, it was equivalent to cultivating for one hundred and twenty hours.
He had taken a big step within the True Aperture Realm first level.
But a problem arose.
Luo Mu realized that he was running out of cultivation resources.
He was almost out.
“Should I go back home and get some?”
Luo Mu thought.
The main issue was that his family was in Dong Li County, which was too far away from the academy.
Just the journey back and forth would take at least a month.
And it wasn’t yet time for his family to send him his fixed allowance.
“Forget it. I’ll just hunt some demonic beasts in the back mountains and get some materials. I’ll cultivate the Wusheng Daojing at the same time. If that doesn’t work, the academy also has corresponding missions.”
Luo Mu got up.
His family had already spent a lot of their fortune to send him to the academy. He didn’t want to ask them for more unless it was absolutely necessary.
Knock knock knock!
Suddenly, there was a knock on his courtyard door.
Luo Mu raised an eyebrow, surprised.
He was always a recluse, and he hadn’t made many friends in the academy.
So usually, no one would come to visit him.
But without thinking much, he went out and opened the courtyard door.
“Junior Brother Luo, good morning.”
Cheng Qing Man was standing outside, her eyes curving into a smile.
“Senior Sister Cheng?”
Luo Mu was taken aback.
He didn’t expect Cheng Qing Man to come looking for him.
“Are you surprised?”
Cheng Qing Man was wearing a blue dress, her legs long and round.
Under the sunlight, she radiated youthful energy.
Though she was called senior sister, Cheng Qing Man was only a year or two older than Luo Mu.
“I am indeed surprised. Senior Sister, what brings you here?”
Luo Mu asked.
“I like your straightforward nature, but aren’t you going to invite me in for a sit?”
Cheng Qing Man said.
“I’m sorry, my apologies. Please come in.”
Luo Mu stepped aside.
Cheng Qing Man walked in. As her eyes swept across the scene, she saw shattered training stones scattered on the ground, the empty pond not far away, and a large expanse of scorched earth.
This... was caused by Junior Brother Luo’s cultivation?
What kind of martial arts could have such an effect?
Although puzzled, Cheng Qing Man didn’t ask any further.
She reached a stone bench and sat down, not minding the dust.
“The courtyard is rarely visited, so I didn’t prepare anything for guests.”
Luo Mu sat down as well.
“We martial artists don’t care about such things.”
Cheng Qing Man waved her hand and got to the point, “I came here mainly because I have a mission, and I want to complete it with Junior Brother Luo.”
“Mission?”
Luo Mu raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. Recently, the academy has discovered several well-hidden Devil Path strongholds and we need to send people to eradicate them. I and my other fellow disciples have accepted one of those missions.”
Cheng Qing Man said.
“How strong are the opponents?”
Luo Mu asked.
“Not very strong. The strongest is only at the True Aperture Realm seventh level.”
Cheng Qing Man answered, “It’s just a small stronghold. The academy is treating it as a training ground for us. As for those larger ones, naturally, stronger individuals will handle them.”
“I’m only at the True Aperture Realm first level. Why did Senior Sister come to find me?”
Luo Mu thought for a moment, then said.
“You’re not an ordinary True Aperture Realm martial artist. With the Juesheng Daofa, even some Inner Palace True Aperture Realm third level martial artists wouldn’t be your match!”
Cheng Qing Man replied.
“Then what about the reward?”
Luo Mu asked again.
“Three thousand contribution points starting, plus five thousand per Devil Path martial artist killed.”
Cheng Qing Man said.
Upon hearing this.
Luo Mu’s eyes immediately lit up.
In other words, as long as the mission was completed, even if he did nothing, just went along, he would get three thousand contribution points.
And three thousand contribution points could already be exchanged for many cultivation resources!
It could at least sustain him for one or two months of cultivation!
And if he killed a few more Devil Path martial artists...
Luo Mu’s fists clenched slightly.