In the courtyard, Mu Chen stood straight, his palm slightly cupped. A wisp of black spiritual energy rapidly condensed in his palm, faintly emitting a powerful and sharp fluctuation.
Mu Chen sensed the minute changes in the wisp of spiritual energy in his palm. A moment later, his gaze locked onto the black spiritual energy, which had been lying docilely in his hand, as it suddenly began to vibrate violently.
It was like a drop of water falling into a pan of boiling oil.
Amidst this violent vibration, the intensity of the wisp of spiritual energy's fluctuations continued to rise.
Mu Chen's hand trembled slightly. He could feel the frequency of the spiritual energy's vibrations rapidly increasing...
One fold... Three folds... Five folds... Eight folds...
When the vibration of the spiritual energy reached the ninth fold, Mu Chen's palm trembled even more violently. It seemed as if the wisp of spiritual energy was showing signs of slipping out of his control.
"Only nine times, that's not enough."
Mu Chen frowned slightly. His slightly cupped palm suddenly clenched. A faint sound seemed to echo within, and the wisp of spiritual energy surged once more like a wild horse.
Thirteen times.
The black spiritual energy enveloped Mu Chen's hand, and his gaze turned serious. In an instant, his hand shook violently. Pressing two fingers together, he thrust them like lightning toward the stone pillar in front of him.
The sound of rushing wind whistled.
Middle-grade Mortal Tier offensive Spiritual Art, Bone Shattering Finger!
*Thud!*
Mu Chen's two fingers sank deep into the stone pillar, causing cracks to spiderweb outward from the point of impact.
Mu Chen stared at the cracks, slowly withdrew his fingers, and muttered to himself, "Thirteen times."
He nodded slightly. Today, he had only just initiated his cultivation of the Great Pagoda Art, yet his spiritual energy could already be amplified thirteen times. This was enough to prove the extraordinary power of this Spiritual Art. Furthermore, Mu Chen could feel that once he became more proficient with the Great Pagoda Art, the amplification rate of his spiritual energy would increase even further.
"This Great Pagoda Art must be at least a High-grade Spiritual Tier Spiritual Art."
Mu Chen grinned. The item left behind by his mother was indeed extraordinary. A High-grade Spiritual Tier Spiritual Art was likely a rarity in the entire Northern Spiritual Realm. However, cultivating this Spiritual Art was quite difficult. Although Mu Chen was highly confident in his own talent, cultivating the Great Pagoda Art was indeed rather challenging.
"Well, it's not like I'm short on time anyway," Mu Chen muttered. He dusted off his hands, turned around, and headed back to his room. It seemed that for the next few days, all of his focus would be dedicated to cultivating the Great Pagoda Art.
Not far from the courtyard, Mu Feng had witnessed everything. He couldn't help but chuckle with satisfaction. "Little Mu's cultivation talent is indeed extraordinary. Back then, it took me five whole days just to refine my first wisp of spiritual energy, and even then, I could only amplify it seven times."
"To think that in just half a day, he has not only cultivated spiritual energy but also reached such a terrifying level. It really astounds me." Although he said this, Mu Feng's eyes could not hide his pride and joy.
"Haha, Little Mu's talent is indeed terrifying. I'm afraid his future achievements will far surpass old fogies like us who already have one foot in the grave." Beside him, Zhou Ye also nodded and smiled, his voice filled with nostalgia.
"Indeed. Although this Northern Spiritual Realm is vast to us, to Little Mu, it is far too small..."
Over the next few days, Mu Chen focused all his energy on cultivating the Great Pagoda Art. On the surface, he appeared lazy, but he was actually incredibly resilient and strong-willed. It was this very trait that had earned him an illustrious reputation in a monstrous place like the Spiritual Road, though it was a pity that he ultimately caused a massive incident that left countless freakish geniuses dumbfounded.
Through this relentless cultivation, in just seven days, the spiritual energy in Mu Chen's spiritual sea grew rapidly, and his understanding of the Great Pagoda Art deepened. However, he was still quite far from the Foundation Stage. This made him click his tongue in secret; the Great Pagoda Art was indeed no ordinary technique.
Once his cultivation of the Great Pagoda Art was on track, Mu Chen began to relax a little. He then diverted some of his attention to searching the secret chamber for a few offensive Spiritual Arts suitable for him to practice.
Although he now had some spiritual energy as a foundation, if he wanted to increase his combat strength, offensive Spiritual Arts were indispensable.
Furthermore, that fellow Liu Yang was no ordinary character. Being the top expert of the Earth Branch of the Northern Spiritual Academy was enough to prove his capability. Moreover, his father was the Territory Lord of the Liu Territory. The Liu Territory was the strongest territory in the Northern Spiritual Realm, with a strength slightly superior to the Mu Territory. In recent years, the Liu Territory had frequently clashed with the Mu Territory, and the two sides harbored deep animosity toward each other. Thus, even if the Liu Territory could not plant their own people inside the Northern Spiritual Academy, they would still provide Liu Yang with their utmost support...
However, was Mu Chen really someone who could be stepped on so easily? If even the monstrous geniuses of the Spiritual Road couldn't manage that, what did Liu Yang amount to?
…
In a training field surrounded by numerous stone pillars, a figure was gliding through the swirling dust. Black spiritual energy enveloped his hands, faintly emitting extremely powerful fluctuations.
"Thwip!"
Shrouded in black spiritual energy, his two fingers straightened, forming a pitch-black spike that stabbed fiercely into a boulder.
"Crack!"
Countless stone fragments splattered in all directions as spiderweb-like cracks rapidly spread across the surface of the boulder. Mu Chen's dark eyes suddenly flashed with a brilliant light. The two fingers embedded in the boulder vibrated, and immediately after, a muffled explosion rang out. The boulder, as thick as a man's embrace, was pierced clean through.
As the boulder shattered, the youth's footwork shifted continuously. Changing his fingers into a palm, black spiritual energy surged forth with the sound of rumbling thunder as he struck another boulder.
"Crack!"
The moment the youth's palm struck that boulder, his leg followed suit, kicking fiercely at yet another boulder.
"Boom! Boom!"
Two loud explosions rang out as both boulders shattered, sending debris flying everywhere. The youth slowly withdrew his leg, his breathing returning to normal as the black spiritual energy wrapping around his hands quietly dissipated.
"Clap! Clap!"
The sound of clapping came from the side. Mu Chen looked over to see Mu Feng standing outside the training field, smiling warmly. Mu Chen's performance left him highly satisfied. That offensive was like a torrential downpour, harboring a sharp fierceness that was not at all inferior to his subordinates who had undergone life-and-death training. It seemed his son's year of tempering in the Spiritual Road had not been in vain.
"Father."
Mu Chen brushed the dust off his arms and walked toward Mu Feng.
"Are you returning to the Northern Spiritual Academy tomorrow?" Mu Feng asked with a smile.
Mu Chen nodded slightly.
"If you can win this competition, you'll be able to enter the Heaven Division of the Northern Spiritual Academy. When that time comes, you'll be qualified to compete for a spot in the Five Great Academies," Mu Feng said with a smile, gently patting Mu Chen on the shoulder.
"A spot in the Five Great Academies..."
Mu Chen stretched lazily, a smile spreading across his face. "Don't worry, Father. I will definitely secure that spot..."