Cultivation is just so scientific!

"Uncle Master, up ahead is my cave dwelling!" Li Shiming could hardly stand the glances that Uncle Master occasionally shot his way, and seeing that they were nearing Eagle Beak Island, he quickly spoke up.

"Li Shiming, make sure to hide your storage bracelet. Don't let other cultivators see it!" Uncle Master used voice transmission to remind him as Li Shiming was bidding farewell to his two fellow disciples and leaving the boat.

"Thank you for your concern, Uncle Master!" Li Shiming was initially taken aback, then bowed with a smile and replied.

Back in his cave dwelling, Li Shiming sped up his crafting process. With ample electrical power, he and his clone worked simultaneously.

The next day before dawn, while it was still dark, he left the underground cave dwelling and went to the top of a small hill on Eagle Beak Island.

The benefit of solitude was here; he didn't have to consider other cultivators and could choose the most suitable place for cultivation.

If he were at Jiufeng, his cave dwelling there couldn't receive the first rays of morning sunlight.

As for the summit of Jiufeng, the best location, it was not his turn; every section of Jiufeng had a designated function, and one must have the corresponding permissions to enter.

Sitting at the top of the hill, he was above the sea. Although the hill was not high, there were no obstructions around, so nothing hindered the arrival of the first sunlight.

He repeated the contents of the "Purple Qi Eastward" cultivation technique in his mind. The sea horizon was still enveloped in darkness, the dark before dawn.

Time slowly passed, and first, a hint of fish-belly white appeared across the horizon.

The fish-belly white persisted for a while, and the sea horizon turned into a red line before the sun suddenly leaped from the sea surface.

In that instant, Li Shiming felt a burst of purple qi light sweep across heaven and earth.

Using "Purple Qi Eastward," he absorbed all his might, albeit just a fraction, but even this small amount made him feel an impact on his physique, spiritual power, and spirit.

Given his current physique, without advancing in realm, it was nearly impossible to further improve his physique.

The "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill" and the "Sword Demon Secret Manual" were top-notch body refining techniques. Their combination, along with the true intent of Angry-eyed Vajra and the Third Grade Sword Base which far surpassed his own realm, made his body refinement reach the zenith of his current realm.

This was why, with the body of a Qi Refining Eighth Layer, he could withstand extensive spell attacks with ease on a battlefield of the Qi Refining Ninth Level.

Yet, this bit of purple qi was letting his physique, which could not improve any further, gain a slight enhancement. Even though the enhancement was minor, it was a breakthrough, underlining the significant impact of purple qi on the physique.

In terms of spiritual power, the influence of purple qi was insignificant; it didn't enhance the spiritual power but solidified it slightly.

Due to Li Shiming's rapid cultivation pace, he had always had flaws in the solidity of his spiritual power.

Regrettably, the effect of "Purple Qi Eastward" was somewhat weak, far not on par with his own rate of refining spiritual power.

In terms of spirit, the purple qi caused an imperceptible growth—if he hadn't cultivated Spiritual Thought beforehand, he wouldn't have noticed this slight increase in spirit.

But this was already extremely gratifying. Spirit growth is not easy to achieve. Now that the "Ice Heart Jade Thought Technique" had little help in increasing spirit after he had formed Spiritual Thought, it had only become a means of spiritual thought attack.

Other techniques like the "Hundred Thoughts Thousand Reversions" and the "Thousand-Hammered God Technique" were still beyond his reach; therefore, any means of increasing spirit became very important now.

The "Purple Qi Eastward" absorbed so little purple qi each time, only during the moment of sunrise was the purple qi absorbed. The rest of the time was spent integrating the absorbed purple qi within his body.

Having felt the effect of "Purple Qi Eastward," his daily morning routine now included an additional cultivation practice.

Li Shiming lightly tapped his finger, and the Broken Jade Sword flew out. After its real battle, the sword bone in his right thumb had a deeper impression.

When he controlled the Broken Jade Sword, a slight if faint connection would form between the sword bone and the Broken Jade Sword. He could also sever this connection, and then the Broken Jade Sword would lose its contained special energy.

He did not know that this was a trace of sword intent, one that exuded from within the sword bone.

But having experienced actual combat, he knew this unique energy held inexplicable power, allowing him to easily erase the spiritual imprint within a magic artifact.

Previously, he had not focused on enhancing this ability, which was also a skill that required long periods of experience and practice.

If he could summon more of this special energy from the sword bone, then his battle power would see significant enhancement.

He did not inquire about the aftermath on Seven Star Island, as he didn't think himself qualified to question it.

In the sect, only the Golden Core cultivators knew what transpired on Seven Star Island, and even with that knowledge, he was powerless to affect any outcome.

Li Shiming did not wish for the Beishu cultivators to successfully invade the seven sects because, after participating in this competition, he had gained an enemy in a Beishu Golden Core cultivator. If the Beishu cultivators indeed defeated the seven sects, he would inevitably be pursued by that Golden Core cultivator.

As it stood, he still had the protection of his sect, and he could practice quietly.

As days passed, Yin Shilan had recently become busier, and they spent very little time chatting each day. Ren Fei'er was even more out of reach, having fully entered closed-door cultivation.

Li Shiming worried about the invasion from Beishu, but there was no news at all. If not for his part in the confrontation with the Beishu Qi Refining cultivator, he would have thought that no conflict ever took place on Seven Star Island.

He felt a sense of urgency, as if his peaceful days were numbered.

Perhaps for this reason, or maybe because his cultivation had entered a rapid phase, his "Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique" had improved very swiftly, bringing him close to the Qi Refining Ninth Level.

Had he not sensed the spiritual power within his body was tangible, he would have thought there were issues with his cultivation.

Actually, this was related to his body having undergone modifications by the Golden Core Sword Cultivator Yun Xingyi from Beishu, who had integrated a sword bone into his right thumb and also influenced his body with a Golden Core and lifebound flying sword during the process.
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These impacts had not been particularly prominent at the time, but after a while, they greatly enhanced his body's sensitivity and absorption of spiritual power.

He had to frequently update his cultivation speed calculation every few days.

The theoretical value of his cultivation speed was originally 138.79, helped by the zenith of his Qi Refining cloned self and considering the difference in realms, this value was supposed to increase beyond this theoretical number.

Yet, his current cultivation speed had reached close to 200, nearly twice the speed of someone with a Heavenly Spirit Root.

The increase in Li Shiming's cultivation speed was achieved by a Golden Core Sword Cultivator who had sacrificed his own lifebound flying sword and Golden Core for the modification, a change that did not relate to spirit roots and would gradually decrease as his cultivation realm increased.

Indeed, excluding the aid of his clone, his modified cultivation speed had become similar to that of a Heavenly Spirit Root.

Four months later, on one day, an unexpected visitor arrived.

Upon sensing the transmission outside the Mountain Protection Array, Li Shiming immediately activated the array.

The Mountain Protection Array of Eagle Beak Island had long since evolved from its initial small-scale version. He had utilized the island's terrain and connected it with the ocean, transforming the small Mountain Protection Array into one that integrated with the seabed formation.

Its defensive power had increased several times, with tens of thousands of spirit stone worth of formation materials invested.

He was not the least bit stingy when it came to his own safety, having layered three tiers of spiritual power defense, which was the utmost extent allowed by the formation materials and the geophysical limits of Eagle Beak Island.

With the present Eagle Beak Island's defenses, not to mention Qi Refining cultivators, even Foundation Establishment cultivators would find it difficult to break through the Mountain Protection Array, especially those at the early or mid stages of Foundation Establishment.

"Uncle Yin, please come in!" Li Shiming bowed and said to the visitor.

The visitor was none other than Elder Yin, and Li Shiming had not anticipated that Elder Yin would personally make his way to Eagle Beak Island as they usually summoned him for discussions.