Outside the Hall of Limits, the martial officer who brought Xiang Shaoyun over had returned. He spoke to the senior overseer, saying, “I say, brother, don’t you think you’re being a bit cruel here? Normally, only sixth-stage Basic Realm disciples are allowed in, and they’re only required to remain there for a quarter of an hour. That brat from just now is only at the fifth stage...making him stay in there for half an hour is—”
The old overseer lazily waved his hand and said, “Don’t worry. He possesses a five-star physique, so he must suffer a bit more than normal people. If he cannot even surpass the first limit, this proves that his heart is not in the right place, making it difficult for him to accomplish great things in the future.”
“Okay, then. I really hope nothing untoward happens; otherwise, if the nineteenth elder comes for me, I really will be in hot soup.” Taking one more glance at the Hall of Limits, the martial officer left.
Still indifferent, the old overseer slowly shut his eyes and sunk deep into meditation. In the first room, Xiang Shaoyun was undergoing a torture of the utmost limit. Subjected to a gravity of 500 kilograms, every single second was unbearable, much less an entire hour.
Although Xiang Shaoyun was able to forcefully tap his astral energy via the Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual and lessen the pain, as time went on, he felt his bones being crushed and his mind being torn into pieces. This test not only tested one’s physical endurance, but also one’s willpower. If his willpower was not strong enough and he fainted, he would most certainly be crushed by the immense gravity.
“I must surpass this limit. Activate, Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual!” Xiang Shaoyun recalled all the moments he had been insulted by others, giving him a boost of adrenaline originating from his unwillingness to submit. The stars in his body began to light up brilliantly, with the nine stars turning into something akin to nine whirlpools that began to activate the hidden potential within his flesh, meridians, organs, and bones.
Buzz Buzz
Xiang Shaoyun’s body began emitting a strange buzzing noise. A large wave of power flowed from his limbs and bones into the midst of the nine stars. Such immense power was definitely not something that a regular fifth-stage Basic Realm practitioner should possess, nor was it gained from withstanding 500 kilograms worth of gravity. The source of this power was from Xiang Shaoyun himself.
“Father, why are you bringing over such a large medicine jar? We are not even done boiling the existing medicine!”
“Father is using spirit medicine to reinforce your body. Although you have amazing talent, since you made a bet with others to not cultivate for 10 years, you’re wasting 10 of your best years for cultivation! I am doing this to build up your foundation so that you will be able to rise up again after 10 years! Otherwise, once your star formation is formed, your accomplishments will be severely limited!”
“But but but…this cauldron of medicine is boiling, I will be roasted to death!”
“Don’t worry. I’ve locked away your meridians and star formation, and I will also be freezing the spirit medicine with my hand seals. Be a good boy and trust me, ok? You won’t feel any pain.”
“You’re a liar, Father! Didn’t you say it wouldn’t hurt?! It burns, it burns—ahhh—you cub-eating tiger!!”
Remembering what his father had done for him when he was five, Xiang Shaoyun began to smile. He said, “Father, all the hard work and effort you put in back then, your son is reaping the harvest right now. Rise!”
Xiang Shaoyun cried out loud, his palms flat on the ground, forcing himself to stand against the weight of 500 kilograms. The nine stars in his body shone brightly while energy constantly streamed into his star formation, powering the stars to even greater limits. Waves of refined energy, pulsing from his meridians, flowed throughout his body and resonated within his 365 acupoints, causing his internal energy to explosively increase. From his initial cultivation of fifth-stage Basic Realm, this explosive growth pushed his cultivation to the late phase of the fifth stage before it reached the peak phase shortly after.
Boom!
Sixth-stage Basic Realm!
Xiang Shaoyun’s energy raged like a god holding up the heavens and the earth. The 500-kilogram gravity continued to assail him and squeezed out the energy hidden within his body, which in turn fueled his nine stars. All this resulted in an ungodly increase in his cultivation!
Xiang Shaoyun’s bodily reinforcement had begun when he was 5 years old and lasted all the way until he was 14 years old, a full 9 years! The result of this was that his body seemed to contain boundless energy; the pressure that he was undergoing from the Hall of Limits had unleashed just a tiny bit of it!
Filled with this energy, Xiang Shaoyun forgot about his hunger, even forgetting that the 500-kilogram weight was still pressing down upon him!
“I cannot afford to break through too fast. I must first consolidate this new strength and establish a firm foundation!” Although Xiang Shaoyun had yet to formally qualify as a cultivator, nobody understood better than him the essentials of cultivation.
With this train of thought, Xiang Shaoyun endlessly suppressed the unrestrained flow of energy, forcing it into his nine-star formation. Although the energy seemed boundless, once it came into contact with the nine stars, it disappeared without a trace. With the massive flow of energy into his nine stars, the pressure on his body gradually decreased, making it easier to withstand the gravity.
Simultaneously, the energy that was being squeezed out from him slowly decreased until it finally stopped. Was that all there was to the energy he had accumulated over nine years of bodily reinforcement? Naturally, Xiang Shaoyun understood that that was not the case. Rather, the limit of this particular room was no longer able to force out any more of the energy within his body.
Without realizing it, half an hour had already passed. When the old overseer came before the hall’s gates, the entrance to the room, he found that Xiang Shaoyun was standing straight, as if the environment within the room felt completely normal to him! Upon seeing this, the overseer’s eyes almost fell out of their sockets!
Ever since this overseer had taken up the position of overseer at the Hall of Limits, he had never seen anybody below the seventh stage of Basic Realm stand there so effortlessly, much less someone at the fifth stage!
The old overseer trembled as he cried out in surprise, “Impossible! This…this brat has broken through to the peak of the sixth-stage Basic Realm? H-how is this even possible?” While the old overseer stared in disbelief, Xiang Shaoyun turned and noticed him standing there.
Laughing, Xiang Shaoyun then asked, “Revered overseer, may I stay here for a little bit longer?”
“Eh? This…yeah, sure,” the old attendant replied, completely dumbfounded.
“In that case, many thanks!” Xiang Shaoyun cheerfully answered.
Leaving the front of the first room, the old attendant’s face was one of utter shock. In the end, all the attendant could do was silently curse, “F*ck, this brat is definitely a masochist!”
If Xiang Shaoyun had heard his words, he would have fallen face flat onto the ground. How could he be a masochist?! All he wanted to do was to further adapt himself to the gravity in the room and see how much longer he’d be able to last!
After a full four hours, Xiang Shaoyun finally came out of the hall. The moment he stepped out, he immediately felt the pressure on his body disappear. In fact, his body felt weightless now!
Extremely satisfied, Xiang Shaoyun laughed to himself, “Haha! Testing my limits feels great!”
By the time Xiang Shaoyun stepped out of the compound, the old overseer had been waiting for a long while.
“Brat, you’re not bad at all,” the old overseer praised Xiang Shaoyun without holding back.
“Many thanks for the revered overseer’s praise,” Xiang Shaoyun humbly replied, not letting what had just happened go to his head.
“Alright. Since your challenge is a success, you’ll get 1,000 points as a reward!” the elder spoke as a matter of fact.
“What in the world is 1,000 points? I want food!” Xiang Shaoyun complained, as if he was a hungry ghost.