Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue looked at each other and walked tacitly toward a relatively flat area with a wide view.
They took out their long swords and, just as they did on Snow Moon Peak, began from the most basic stances: holding the sword, stabbing, hacking, lifting, and parrying.
Their movements were slow and meticulous.
With every strike, they strove to perfectly infuse the Spiritual Qi within their bodies into the blade's edge.
Here, they had ample time to correct every tiny error and comprehend the fleeting transitions between sword moves.
Zhao Linger and Wang Zhaojun chose a flat area.
Zhao Linger sat cross-legged and took out the basic Alchemy Jade Slip bestowed by her Master, beginning to study it repeatedly.
At the same time, she circulated her Cultivation Technique, absorbing the pure Spiritual Qi of this place to widen and consolidate her Meridians over and over.
She knew that Alchemy required not only skill but also thick and pure Spiritual Qi as support.
Wang Zhaojun sat quietly beside Zhao Linger; she did not start her Cultivate immediately.
Instead, she closed her eyes, combining the contents of the 'Encyclopedia of a Hundred Herbs' with her own Physique's resonance.
Her mind seemed to connect with this wasteland, faintly "hearing" the "sound" of Spiritual Qi flowing deep within the earth's veins and "smelling" the subtle differences between Spiritual Qi of various attributes in the air.
This was a mysterious and profound perception, an extension of her innate affinity for plants and trees.
Here, she could explore the mysteries of this talent to her heart's content without being disturbed.
Xiao Ya walked a bit further away alone, arriving at a place with several strange, 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 in the eternal twilight sky.
Then she sat cross-legged, spreading the 'Manual of Myriad Celestial Works' on her lap and taking out her personal recording Jade Slip.
"The change in the flow of time... must be accompanied by fine-tuning of spatial rules..."
"The trajectory of Spiritual Qi flow here is significantly different from the outside... If viewed from the perspective of a Formation..."
She recorded the observed phenomena while trying to analyze them using the principles from the manual.
Her eyes flickered with a near-fanatical light of research.
To her, the myriad manifestations pagoda itself was an excellent research subject.
Wang Teng, Li Haoran, Liu Qingqing, Su Yurou, Liu Lie, Shi Lei, and the others also found suitable spots.
Some practiced basic Spells, some meditated and breathed, and others honed their Martial Skills.
Everyone knew the preciousness of this extra time and dared not slack off in the slightest.
Fu Shan did not disturb them, sitting in the center of the wasteland like a silent mountain.
He kept his eyes closed, appearing to be Cultivating, but in reality, his powerful Divine Sense was like an invisible net, enveloping the surroundings.
He closely monitored the status of every Disciple, ensuring no one encountered dangerous situations like Spiritual Qi rampages or mental instability.
Time flowed in a strange way across this eternal twilight wasteland.
In the first few days, the sense of novelty and the abundant Spiritual Qi allowed the Disciples to progress rapidly.
Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue's sword moves became increasingly fluid, with Sword Qi faintly beginning to condense spontaneously.
Zhao Linger's Meridians were widened slightly, and her Spiritual Qi became more condensed.
Wang Zhaojun's range of Spiritual Qi perception doubled.
Xiao Ya recorded over a dozen pages of conjectures regarding the changes in the tower's energy field... However, as "time" passed, although only a few days had gone by outside, dozens of days had already passed inside the tower.
Some problems began to quietly surface!
The first to feel discomfort was Wang Teng.
His nature was already somewhat impatient, and he longed to become stronger quickly to prove himself.
After discovering that the Cultivate speed here far exceeded the outside world, he was even more eager to use every breath of time to improve his cultivation.
He gave up on consolidating his Foundation and began to frantically absorb Spiritual Qi, impacting the barrier of the seventh level of Qi Refining.
At first, progress was smooth, and his Spiritual Qi grew rapidly.
But around the seventieth day (the seventh day outside), he began to feel restless, with cluttered thoughts flashing through his mind from time to time.
His Spiritual Qi would occasionally stagnate during practice, and his chest felt tight.
"Pfft!"
During a forced Breakthrough, Wang Teng's face turned pale, he spat out a small mouthful of blood, and his aura instantly withered.
"Nonsense!"
Fu Shan's voice exploded in his ear like a clap of thunder.
The next moment, Fu Shan's burly figure appeared before him, a large hand pressing on his shoulder.
A thick and gentle surge of Spiritual Qi poured in, quickly smoothing out the churning and chaotic Spiritual Qi within him.
"Kid, did you treat my words as wind passing through your ears?"
Fu Shan glared at him, his voice stern.
"Rushing for success leads to an unstable Foundation! With such a restless heart, how can you control this surging Spiritual Qi?"
"If you keep this up, you'll ruin yourself before any Heart Demon even shows up!"
Wang Teng's face was pale; he was both ashamed and guilty, lowering his head and not daring to speak.
"Stop your Cultivate for me!"
Fu Shan commanded.
"For the next few days! Every day, go over there, carry that rock on your back, and run a hundred laps around this wasteland!"
"When your heart has calmed down, only then can you start Cultivating again!"
Wang Teng looked in the direction Fu Shan pointed; it was a large rock weighing several hundred catties.
He gritted his teeth, stood up silently, and walked toward the giant rock.
He knew the Elder was doing this for his own good.
Body Refining, tempering the will, and solidifying the Foundation.
Similar situations were reflected to varying degrees in the other Disciples.
Because Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue pursued progress too aggressively, their auras were also somewhat unstable.
Zhao Linger had spent too much time studying the Jade Slip, leading to excessive mental exhaustion and brief moments of trance.
Xiao Ya, being overly immersed in her "research," had neglected her own Cultivate, causing her to fall behind the others.
Although Fu Shan seemed rough, he was actually as meticulous as a hair.
Based on the different problems each Disciple faced, he provided timely and stern corrections and specific arrangements.
Those who over-practiced the sword were told to put it down and sit in meditation and visualization.
Those with excessive mental exhaustion were ordered to take a forced rest, and he even personally used Spiritual Qi to help nourish their Divine Soul.
For someone like Xiao Ya, Fu Shan directly confiscated her research Jade Slip.
"Little girl, having many ideas isn't a bad thing, but you have to eat your meal one bite at a time!"
"You haven't even figured out the most basic Cultivate, yet you want to study rules?"
"Raise your cultivation level first! Sixth level of Qi Refining? You've been here for nearly a hundred days and you're still at the sixth level of Qi Refining? Does that make any sense?"
Xiao Ya's face turned bright red from the lecture, but she had no rebuttal and could only honestly begin her cross-legged Cultivate.
Under the supervision of Fu Shan, a seemingly boorish but actually experienced Mahayana Demon King, the Disciples gradually adjusted their pace.
They began to understand that this extra time was not just for "accelerating" but also for "settling" and "polishing."
During their meditation and visualization, Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue gained a deeper understanding of the true meaning of the Dao of the Sword taught by Li Hanyi.
After her forced rest, Zhao Linger was full of energy; when she read the Alchemy Jade Slip again, many previously obscure points suddenly became clear.
Carrying the giant rock, Wang Teng ran across the wasteland day after day.
Sweat soaked his robes and his muscles were sore and aching, but the restlessness in his heart gradually subsided.
He began to have time to think about why he was so eager for success and what the true meaning of Cultivate was.
When he could finally carry the giant rock and finish a hundred laps with a calm heart, without feeling it was torture.
Fu Shan only then allowed him to restart his Cultivate.
This time, Wang Teng no longer pursued speed; instead, he carefully tempered every wisp of Spiritual Qi, integrating it into his Meridians and solidifying his dao foundation.
Although Xiao Ya was a bit reluctant to be forced into Cultivate.
But when she settled her heart and truly began to Cultivate seriously.
She was surprised to find that many "difficult problems" she previously couldn't solve.
Had unexpectedly found another form of inspiration during her Cultivate.
"Energy conservation... the mutual generation and overcoming of the Five Elements... So that's how it is!"
"Aren't Formation runes just a special kind of energy coding and spatial topological structure?"
Light reignited in her eyes, but this time it wasn't blind fanaticism, but an inquiry with a clear goal.
She began to realize that Cultivate and her "research" were interconnected.
Without cultivation to support her, any theory would ultimately be nothing but a fantasy.
One hundred and fifty days (tower time) quietly slipped away amidst constant Cultivate, adjustment, polishing, and comprehension.
When Fu Shan announced that time was up and led everyone out of the myriad manifestations pagoda, stepping through that white light gate once more.
Outside, only half a month had passed.
The fresh air, the real sunlight, the shimmering light of Yaochi in the distance, the majesty of the Main Hall... everything was familiar yet somewhat strange.
Outside the tower, Yun Yun, the Elders of various peaks, and the rest of the Disciples had been waiting for a long time.
When they saw them emerge, everyone could clearly feel the changes in them!
Their auras were more stable and restrained, and their gazes were clearer and more determined.
Although their cultivation levels hadn't shown an exaggerated explosion, that solid Foundation was startling.
Especially Li Zhiwei and Murong Xue; a faint, imperceptible Sword Intent lingered around them, and their eyes were incredibly sharp.
Zhao Linger and Wang Zhaojun carried a faint fragrance of plants and trees, and their Spiritual Qi was fluid.
Wang Teng had shed much of his impetuousness and gained a bit more stability.
Xiao Ya's eyes were deeper, as if hiding countless thoughts.
"Not bad."
Yun Yun's gaze swept over the eleven people, and she nodded slightly, her eyes showing satisfaction.
She could naturally see that these Disciples hadn't blindly pursued cultivation levels in the tower but had truly solidified their Foundations and tempered their wills.
This was exactly the original intention of opening the myriad manifestations pagoda.
"Rest for half a month and consolidate what you have gained."
Yun Yun announced.
"Yes!"
The eleven people responded in unison, their voices steady and powerful.
"The second batch: Zhang Xiaohu, Yue Shan, Wang Meng, Jiang Che, Zhu Xiaoxiao..."
"The accompanying Elder, Ink Scale!"
As Yun Yun's voice fell.
The second batch of Disciples, led by Ink Scale, entered the myriad manifestations pagoda in sequence.
The envy in the eyes of the remaining Disciples who hadn't entered turned into even stronger fighting spirit.
The temptation of the myriad manifestations pagoda was so real, and the qualification to enter required them to strive with effort!
The Cultivate atmosphere of the Yaochi Immortal Palace became more heated and also more rational because of the opening of the myriad manifestations pagoda.
The Disciples no longer blindly competed pointlessly but began to consciously plan their own cultivation.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[email protected]/DaoistRoeoNQ
Thank you so much for your support!!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"