บท 27: Training...[2]

With that thought, I decided to start cultivating and use those cards that I had yet to use.

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[3rd POV]

In the middle of the dense forest, where only cracked ground, destroyed trees, and a jagged path remained, a young man with chest-length, long white hair sat cross-legged on top of a big rock, his eyes closed and body steady.

"Now then... shall we start?" he muttered with a smirk, reaching into his system inventory to pull out a Minor Realm Upgrader card.

Taking a deep breath, he tore the card apart.

As soon as he did, a violent wave of Qi rushed into him, tearing through his body like a wild beast. His veins bulged like crazy, throbbing under his skin as he clenched his fists.

"Ugh...!" he grunted, gritting his teeth so hard to handle the pain as he tried to keep his mind clear. The Qi flowed fast, filling him like a storm as it forced its way inside his dantian.

"F-fuck!" he growled through gritted teeth, feeling the energy burn inside his core. It was hot, fierce, and unrelenting, pushing him to his absolute limits. The intense Qi swirled as it started to stretch out his dantian until it felt like it might shatter if it continued.

While all this was happening, sweat poured down his face like a waterfall as he struggled to control the energy inside his own body. His breathing started to become really heavy. Every inch of his body felt like it was on fire as his muscles strained to handle the intense pressure. He could feel his strength growing, but it came with pain—a raw, tearing sensation as his dantian absorbed the Qi and nurtured his small, mini version of himself, his nascent soul.

The storm inside him raged on, refusing to calm. But he held on, forcing himself to bear the pain as the Qi pushed him further, his power inching toward a breakthrough that he had been anticipating.

Finally, after what felt like ages, the pressure began to settle, the fierce Qi slowly calming within him. His body trembled slightly.

But even at the cost of such burning pain, he still endured, for the sake of the thing that he wanted, and that thing happened.

"Finally...!" he muttered as he clenched his fist, feeling the immense power that had grown inside of him.

"My strength has grown by at least 10%!!!" he muttered with an excited tone.

He was now finally at the second stage of the Nascent Soul realm!!!

"Hah... Since I've become a bit accustomed to feeling that pain right now... I should finish using up all the other four Minor Realm Upgraders..." he muttered with a smirk as he sat cross-legged once again, but this time, something felt amiss.

"Why do I feel like I'm sitting at a lower place than before?" he muttered confusedly, and just as he looked down at where he was sitting, he cussed out loud.

"Oh fuck!" he let out a surprised curse, seeing that the rock he had been sitting on previously had melted to dust.

"Ugh! That's why I felt I was sitting in a lower place... Because I WAS sitting on dust on the ground instead of my rock," he muttered in annoyance as he facepalmed, not checking it before sitting.

"Hah! I guess I'll find a new stone to sit on... 'Cause it's too much to sit on the ground, and besides, sitting on higher rocks makes me feel at ease somehow." Saying that, he looked around for some stone.

"Hmm... that stone will do the work," he muttered, looking at the stone that was bigger than the one he had been sitting on, and it was exactly just a few hundred meters away.

After teleporting to the rock, he once again sat cross-legged and took a deep breath.

"Now let's get started!" he muttered as he took out another Minor Realm Upgrader and tore it apart, an immense amount of Qi rushing at him and splashing on him like a wave.

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[37 hours later...]

[3rd POV]

"Hah... hah... hah..."

"Finally...!!!" Long Tian said as he abruptly opened his eyes with a grin.

"I reached the fucking 5th stage of Nascent Soul... Hah!... Hah!" he shouted in happiness, as only he knew how nerve-wracking the pain had been to increase his stage from the 1st stage to the 5th stage.

"Now then... Since I still have about 13 days, 11 hours... Let's just cultivate..." he muttered with a thoughtful look before sitting once again in his sturdy, favorite rock that he spent the last 37 hours on.

"Oh yeah, system!" Suddenly remembering something from the past, he called out to his system.

[Ding, how can I help you, host?] the system replied in its always monotonous voice, this time in a confused tone, wondering what the host had to say, as Long Tian didn't really rely on the system nor ask anything, treating it as just a side benefit he got and nothing more.

"You remember that you told me you had a store function, right?"

[Yes, host! What about it?] the system replied, its confusion still tingling in its tone.

"So how does one purchase things from the store?" Long Tian asked, a thoughtful look hanging on his handsome face.

[You would need ASP (Achievement System Points) for that.]

"Ah, I see... But...!" Long Tian paused, his eyes glinting with evilness, which made the system shiver unconsciously, even though he was just a programmed tool.

[Why do I feel so cold all of a sudden?] the still-naive system questioned itself, wondering how a programmed tool like him could shiver like those living beings.

"Why... Didn't you give me any ASP until now?" Long Tian asked, his expression turning chillingly cold, his eyes emotionless as he glared at the blue box that sweated.

[Fwwweh...Fewwwhhh!!] The system looked away while glancing around nervously as if he got caught in his mischievous act.

"System... I'm only going to tell you once..."

"GIVE. ME. MY. HARD. EARNED. ASP NOW!!!" Long tian said, his voice chillingly cold as he glare at the blue box with cold, emotionless eyes which made the system gulp.

[I-i... Fine, host, you won! Here's your hard-earned ASP!]

[Ding, congratulations, host, on getting 20,000 ASP.]

"Oh... and also turn the first quest's reward into ASP... I know I forgot to claim the rewards," Long Tian said, somehow remembering everything he forgot.

[A-ah, fine, host...] the system replied in a somewhat dejected tone, completely different from the monotonous voice it always had.

[Ding, congratulations, host, on getting 7,000 ASP.]

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Where's all my gift, golden tickets, power stones? 😭 🎁