Perfection, Inner Force Threads

Three system prompts popped up in succession, and Gu Shao'an stopped cultivating as his inner force was completely depleted.

Looking at the three prompts before him, Gu Shao'an felt a warmth in his heart.

"It feels good to have a cheat."

He glanced at the proficiency of the Golden Summit Cotton Palm, and Gu Shao'an wasn't surprised.

After all, it was a high-level martial art. Even with the trigger of the Sudden Enlightenment perk, it was impossible to reach the heavens in one step.

Gu Shao'an's body was young and full of vitality. Even after a session of cultivation that left him drenched in sweat, he didn't feel tired at all.

However, cultivating martial arts also consumed inner force, and the more profound the martial art, the more inner force it consumed during practice.

Gu Shao'an didn't have much inner force to begin with, and in this half-hour of cultivation, he had almost depleted all the inner force in his Dantian.

But it was also the most suitable time to cultivate inner force techniques.

Immediately, Gu Shao'an sat down on the spot, and the Original Inner Force in his Dantian began to circulate slowly.

[Congratulations to the player for cultivating the breathing technique for half an hour, Achievement Points +1.]

Gu Shao'an's thoughts stirred.

[Emei Nine Yang Skill First Layer (Entry Level): Proficiency: 73/100.]

At the current pace, in another two days, Gu Shao'an's Emei Nine Yang Skill First Layer would reach the Lesser Mastery realm.

However, the inner force in his Dantian still wasn't much.

It had only just reached a hundred strands, and the growth rate wasn't fast.

Only by increasing the proficiency of the inner force technique and cultivating the subsequent mental methods could the efficiency of inner force condensation be accelerated.

"Grumble~"

Just as Gu Shao'an's thoughts were racing, a faint sound suddenly came from his abdomen.

This feeling of hunger, as if he hadn't eaten for almost a whole day, made Gu Shao'an instinctively touch his stomach.

"Little Junior Brother."

At that moment, Zhou Zhiruo's cheerful voice reached Gu Shao'an's ears.

She was walking towards Gu Shao'an with a wooden tray.

On the tray were dishes and steamed buns.

Seeing this, Gu Shao'an was stunned and quickly got up to take the tray from Zhou Zhiruo.

Before Gu Shao'an could speak, Zhou Zhiruo, with beads of sweat on her forehead, said softly, "Third Senior Sister noticed you were cultivating and guessed you might be hungry, so she asked someone from the sect to bring some food."

Hearing this, Gu Shao'an looked around but couldn't see Bei Jinyi.

Zhou Zhiruo guessed what Gu Shao'an was thinking and said with a smile, "Third Senior Sister has already returned to her courtyard to cultivate."

Gu Shao'an remarked, "I didn't expect Third Senior Sister to be so thoughtful."

Zhou Zhiruo nodded, "Although Third Senior Sister isn't the strongest, she is the most thoughtful and gentle, and the most approachable. You'll know when you spend more time with her."

As she spoke, Zhou Zhiruo sat down beside Gu Shao'an and watched him eat.

Gu Shao'an didn't stand on ceremony and began eating in front of Zhou Zhiruo.

In the Jianghu, it was common for martial artists in inns or restaurants to eat several pounds of meat at a sitting.

This was because the condensation of inner force originated from the body's essence, spirit, and mind. Every strand of inner force condensed consumed a portion of the body's energy.

This also meant that martial artists often had a larger appetite than ordinary people.

If the external energy supply was insufficient, the cultivation progress would inevitably be affected.

Although the amount of food Gu Shao'an was eating wasn't large, the porridge contained medicinal ingredients that could restore vitality.

A young man was still growing, and his appetite was already large.

Not to mention that Gu Shao'an was ravenously hungry at the moment.

In less than fifteen minutes, Gu Shao'an had finished everything.

After Gu Shao'an finished eating, Zhou Zhiruo took out a pill bottle from her embrace.

"This contains our Emei Qi Recovery Pills. Third Senior Sister said they are refined with medicinal ingredients specifically for cultivating inner force. From now on, when you cultivate inner force, take one pill to avoid the deficiency caused by condensing inner force."

"Other Emei disciples have a fixed quota each month, but we don't have such restrictions. If you run out, just go to the pharmacy to get more."

Hearing the effects of the Qi Recovery Pill, Gu Shao'an's eyes lit up.

With this, he could save a lot of time.

He then smiled and said, "Thank you, Senior Sister."

Zhou Zhiruo shook her head, her small face full of seriousness. "I am your Senior Sister, and it's only natural for me to take care of you. Don't say such polite words in the future, Little Junior Brother."

Even though Zhou Zhiruo had experienced family misfortunes and the hardships of martial arts training, her heart remained pure and kind, her childlike innocence not yet faded.

Who wouldn't like such a considerate, innocent, and beautiful Junior Sister?

Gu Shao'an knew that Zhou Zhiruo had wanted to spend time with him every day for the past few days.

However, she dared not disturb him due to his cultivation.

Therefore, after chatting with Zhou Zhiruo about everything under the sun and teaching her a playful children's song, she left with a light step, carrying a wooden tray.

After Zhou Zhiruo left, Gu Shao'an got up again and continued his cultivation.

The sun rose in the east and set in the west; the mountains remained the same, the rivers remained the same, and the wind remained the same.

A month passed in the blink of an eye.

Inside the house, Gu Shao'an, dressed in a blue and white long gown with a jade belt around his waist, sat cross-legged, circulating his inner force according to the first layer of the "Emei Nine Yang Skill."

After a month of arduous practice, his inner force, which had been like wisps of smoke, weak and scarce a month prior, had now grown into thick plumes of smoke, many times stronger.

Although everyone has the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and Twelve Principal Meridians within their bodies, they are like leaves; though the patterns appear similar, there are actually subtle differences.

All inner force cultivation techniques in the world were created by predecessors based on their own circumstances. Later generations, having different meridians within their bodies, naturally experienced different cultivation effects.

However, with the proficiency panel, Gu Shao'an could continuously adjust based on the amount of proficiency gained after each cultivation session. This allowed the inner force to circulate within his body according to the "Emei Nine Yang Skill" with optimal effect.

Naturally, his cultivation efficiency also increased.

As his inner force circulated slowly, Gu Shao'an condensed a few more strands of inner force.

However, with the appearance of these strands, a hidden meridian around Gu Shao'an's Hand Lesser Yin Heart Meridian seemed to reach its limit and was forcefully broken open.

With this hidden meridian unblocked, the speed at which the inner force circulated within Gu Shao'an's body suddenly increased severalfold.

A notification also popped up in front of Gu Shao'an.

[Congratulations Player, "Emei Nine Yang Skill First Layer" has successfully reached Perfection. Achievement Points +500]

A moment later, as his Original Inner Force successfully entered this hidden meridian and completely unblocked it, subtle changes occurred every time the inner force circulated within Gu Shao'an's body.

If someone were to inject their true energy into Gu Shao'an's body, they would undoubtedly discover that the inner force within him had begun to condense into tangible threads.

This was the manifestation of Inner Force Threads, which only appeared after the first layer of the "Emei Nine Yang Skill" reached Perfection.