Ning Ri Practices Blade

After the Disciple Token spoke, Ning Ri remained silent, his thoughts churning within him—

[Mortal Anomalies] can only be broken after becoming an immortal cultivator.

But his current condition was clearly abnormal.

No...

That's not right.

Before Anomalies existed, ancient mortals could find cultivation methods and cultivate on their own.

It was only after Anomalies appeared that self-cultivation was forbidden.

In other words, the current cultivation world is actually abnormal.

Only his cultivation is normal!

So, did he originally have a Mortal Anomaly or not?

Could it be that the appearance of the Panel helped him break free from the Mortal Anomaly?

Or perhaps because he was a transmigrator, his soul differed from the natives of this world, so he didn't come with a [Mortal Anomaly] from birth like the natives?

Eh...

Thinking of this, Ning Ri's brow suddenly twitched—

He suddenly remembered that when he was making up excuses with Xun Zang and the other sects before, he had said he obtained the Qi Refining Art through a fortuitous encounter.

He had thought this excuse was flawless; isn't it normal for people in the cultivation world to have fortuitous encounters?

But the other sects refused him as soon as they heard about it.

They said his fortuitous encounter was unstable, that if his aptitude was poor, it was poor, and he couldn't possibly have repeated fortuitous encounters in the future.

At the time, he hadn't thought there was anything wrong with their reasoning.

But now, thinking about it, their quick refusal was because they thought he was lying, right?

They must have thought he was taught the Qi Refining Art by someone, and since he was lying, they became annoyed and refused him even faster.

It was like an HR manager seeing a job applicant falsify their resume and then stubbornly lie to their face...

Ning Ri slapped his thigh at this thought—

No wonder so many sects rejected me!

However, the Heaven Defying Sect was different.

Elder Xun fell silent for a moment after hearing about his fortuitous encounter.

Then, he immediately said that Ning Ri was very suitable for joining the Heaven Defying Sect.

Ning Ri had always thought that Elder Xun's "suitable" referred to his unique acupoint stones and incomplete spiritual root.

But now it seemed, Elder Xun... might have thought that his ability to find a cultivation method was already incredibly heaven-defying!

In other words, Elder Xun chose to believe his story!

Although, technically, he wasn't lying...

But he had to admit, thinking about it this way, Ning Ri's favorability towards Xun Zang and the entire Heaven Defying Sect increased significantly.

However, judging by the reactions of the other elders, Elder Xun Zang didn't seem to have publicized this matter much. Either the elders above were deliberately hiding it, or perhaps Elder Xun also thought he was lying but was willing to tolerate him and let him join the Heaven Defying Sect.

Next.

Ning Ri suppressed the thoughts in his mind, set aside the Disciple Token, and opened his Panel.

[Host]: Ning Ri
[Skills]:
1. [Mortal Blade Technique]: 4 (Respec Available)
2. [Qi Refining Art·]: 3 (Respec Available)
3. [Gale Step·Incomplete]: 3 (Maxed) (Respec Available)
4. [Crocodile Turtle Iron Bone Skill·Incomplete]: 0
5. [Spirit Absorption Technique]: 10 (Maxed) (Respec Available)
6. [Compendium of Qi Refining Stage Artifact Forging Techniques]: 0
7. [Blazing Heaven Chapter]: 0
8. ...
Free Skill Points: 68.

Below were techniques like [Subtle Art], [Dao Nourishment], [Red Furnace Melting Snow], [Supernatural Craftsmanship], and so on.

When Ning Ri was learning the artifact forging techniques given by Mo Cuidao, he respec'd points as he learned.

After demonstrating, he would immediately remove them. If he needed to demonstrate again, he would add them back, to avoid running out of skill points.

At first, he thought the idea was a bit ridiculous, wondering if he was overthinking things. But then Mo Cuidao gave him so much, he couldn't possibly learn it all.

This made him secretly glad he'd reset his stats early; otherwise, he wouldn't have enough skill points.

Next, Ning Ri pondered for a moment—

The artifact forging techniques Mo Cuidao had given him were all for the Qi Refining stage.

The cap was ten points for each!

Once he maxed them all out, his artifact forging skills would undoubtedly be well-rounded.

However, it would also require a significant number of skill points, and he'd have to stay up late practicing his blade techniques.

Fortunately, the Golden Osmanthus Garden dormitories were spacious enough, over 40 square meters, and without a separate living room or kitchen, it was perfectly adequate for him to practice his blade work.

Besides practicing his blade, Ning Ri began considering the choice Zhou Hai had presented him.

Should he incur a large debt of contribution points so the elders could retrieve the spirit medicine from the "anomalies" for him?

Although Zhou Hai wasn't in any real danger, Ning Ri still felt something was not quite right...

Perhaps it was because he still wasn't used to being treated so kindly by others.

Moreover, he wasn't at a point where he desperately needed it yet!

After some thought, Ning Ri made a decision. He immediately opened his Panel, took out his blade, and began practicing...

For every half an hour Ning Ri practiced his blade, he gained 1 skill point in blade techniques.

As he practiced, he could clearly see on the Panel before him:

1. [Mortal Blade Technique]: 4 (Resettable)

Would become:

1. [Mortal Blade Technique]: 5 (Resettable)

Then, it would become:

1. [Mortal Blade Technique]: 6 (Resettable)

Ning Ri had to keep the Panel open while practicing, watching the increase in skill points, to feel a sense of accomplishment.

In fact, he thought the Panel could use a red [↑] to indicate the increase, and ideally, a daily and a five-day line to show his efforts over the past five days, which would then turn green when he reset his stats.

That would be so much more engaging!

Or perhaps it could add a voice broadcast feature, notifying him every time he leveled up:

"Congratulations, Host. Due to your persistent effort, your [Mortal Blade Technique] has become more proficient."

"Congratulations, Host. Because you forget to eat from hard work, your [Mortal Blade Technique] has reached the realm of perfection."

"Congratulations, Host. Because you study late into the night, your [Mortal Blade Technique] is breathtaking."

Unfortunately, the Panel didn't have this function.

He planned to modify his Disciple Token later to have a voice broadcast function, chirping at him every half hour, much like how a shop owner might have a cash register sound effect:

"Deposit received: One hundred fourteen thousand five hundred fourteen yuan."

Wouldn't that provide a great sense of accomplishment?

Ning Ri was focused when he practiced his blade, but his mind was filled with many thoughts; otherwise, practicing blade techniques endlessly would be too monotonous.

He planned to get a cat or dog in the future, preferably a chatty one, to avoid loneliness.

Although his Qi Refining cultivation and artifact forging techniques weren't learned through his own direct efforts...

The Mortal Blade Technique couldn't use spiritual energy for shortcuts!

Practicing it that way would make the mortal blade technique impure.

The long blade cut through the void, a cold glint seemingly reflecting on the Disciple Token. Sweat dripped from Ning Ri's forehead, his gaze sharp as an arrow—

Therefore, his blade technique skill points were truly earned through his own hard work, one slash at a time!

Amidst the flashes and shadows of his blade, as he swung and moved around the empty room, the skill points on his Panel were rapidly increasing