Mysterious Space, a Golden Finger?

Lu Nan looked around the unfamiliar space, his heart leaping into his throat.

No way! I'd just joined the sect and I'm already about to croak??

He cautiously observed his surroundings, not daring to let his guard down.

In this world, one careless step could cost him his life.

He had finally been given another chance at life, so he had to be more careful.

He waited quietly for a moment, but the surroundings remained deathly silent.

The silence weighed heavily on Lu Nan as he carefully surveyed the area.

Aside from the roughly hundred-square-meter patch beneath his feet, everything around him was a murky gray.

Countless gray mists filled the space, preventing him from seeing what lay beyond that hundred-square-meter area.

Unable to see through the mist, Lu Nan turned his attention to the space beneath his feet.

Unlike the murky grayness around him, the ground beneath him was snow-white.

He had no idea what material it was made of, but since he sensed no danger—

He cautiously squatted down and reached out to feel it. It was icy cold and incomparably hard.

"Pretty damn hard!!"

After patting the ground, Lu Nan quickly stood again,

and looked toward something in the distance that resembled dirt.

He said it merely resembled dirt because mist seemed to rise from that patch.

It was not accompanied by swirling golden threads, yet no matter how he looked at it, this thing did not resemble soil at all.

Though he was extremely curious, Lu Nan did not act rashly and waited a while longer instead.

Only after he still sensed no danger did he attempt to explore ahead.

"Whew..." Who knew how long had passed before he finally let out a long breath and collapsed onto the white ground.

Looking at the black soil streaked with golden threads beside him, yes!!

After Lu Nan's repeated examinations, the pile of black-and-gold stuff at his side really was dirt.

He just did not know what kind it was!!

At the same time, he discovered that this space contained no danger.

Even the mysterious gray mist—seeing the scrap of cloth in his hand remained completely undamaged,

Lu Nan let out a deep breath of relief, and his body relaxed considerably.

After resting for a while, he could not help pondering what this Mysterious Space was for.

How had he entered it?

And how was he supposed to leave?

The instant the thought arose, his vision blurred.

When he focused his eyes, he found himself in his own Wooden Cabin, making Lu Nan frown.

He tentatively muttered, "Enter!!"

But there was no response. He was still inside the Wooden Cabin.

Why had nothing happened?

Then he suddenly recalled that his entry into the Mysterious Space seemed to have something to do with his qi and blood.

With that thought, Lu Nan immediately sat cross-legged and sensed the qi and blood within his body once more.

Soon, that familiar flash of crimson passed by, and Lu Nan eagerly opened his eyes.

"Just as I thought!!!" Looking around, he could not help excitedly clenching his fists.

After looking around once more, he silently thought of leaving.

"Enter!!" Lu Nan silently called out again as he looked around the Wooden Cabin.

His figure flickered, and he reappeared within the Mysterious Space.

"Leave!!"

After repeated experiments, Lu Nan mastered the method of using the Mysterious Space.

Whenever he wanted to enter, he only needed to picture the Mysterious Space in his mind

and silently say enter. To leave, he only needed to silently say leave.

Having mastered the method of entering and leaving the Mysterious Space,

he thought again of the black soil streaked with gold inside.

Could that stuff be the legendary Spirit Soil???

With that possibility in mind, Lu Nan silently stored it away.

He planned to search for relevant clues later. For now, the priority was raising his cultivation as quickly as possible.

He poured out a Body Tempering Pill and swallowed it, then swiftly sat cross-legged and began cultivating.

Who knew how long had passed before Lu Nan suddenly opened his eyes.

"According to the Qi Condensation Art's description,

the standard for Body Tempering Layer One is the birth of nine streams of qi and blood within the body."

As he sensed the qi and blood within him, a smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

But when he looked at the now completely empty pill bottle,

a trace of helplessness flashed through his heart.

Nine Body Tempering Pills... that consumption was a bit steep!

That was a month's worth of resources...

Looks like I'll have to find a way to get some resources in the future. Thinking of this, Lu Nan smiled bitterly.

Shaking his head to cast away his distracting thoughts, he picked up the Basic Sword Art at his side.

He slowly opened it and carefully studied its contents.

The more he read, the deeper he sank into it, unable to pull himself free.

"Whew..." After a long while, Lu Nan let out a long breath of stale air and closed the book.

He picked up the standard-issue Longsword from the bed and lightly swung it at the ground before him.

With a crack, a trench roughly a foot deep appeared in the ground.

Its edges were incomparably smooth, without the slightest trace of having been cleaved.

Looking at the trench in the ground, Lu Nan was utterly astonished.

It had only been a casual swing, yet it caused such destruction?

Satisfied, he set down the Longsword and picked up the Qi Condensation Art again.

He planned to study it once more, and this time, he discovered something different.

When he had read the Qi Condensation Art before, much of it had felt tangled and obscure. Now, however, he handled it with effortless ease.

Not only had he thoroughly understood it, he could even draw inferences from one instance to another.

That was something his former self did not possess.

"Did something in my head just click?"

Looking at the two secret manuals in his hands, Lu Nan was immensely astonished.

He sat cross-legged once again and tried circulating the Qi Condensation Art according to his own understanding.

A few minutes later, "It has improved by at least threefold!!"

Lu Nan abruptly opened his eyes. "At this speed, I'll definitely reach the Qi Condensation stage within two years."

"Ugh! My talent is still too poor. Otherwise, why would I need two years???"

Thinking of his own talent, he felt utterly miserable.

"Damn it! If talent isn't enough, resources will make up the difference!!!"

"But how am I supposed to get those resources?"

"Forget it! I'll sleep first. Tomorrow, I'll go out and sound out the others.

I don't have anything to compare myself against right now, so I don't even know what stage I'm at."

With that thought, Lu Nan quickly tidied up before climbing into bed to sleep.

Early the next morning, a voice rang out from outside.

"Elder Zhang will be giving a lesson today. No one is allowed to be late!"

At those words, Lu Nan's eyes snapped open, and he swiftly rose.

He put on the black clothes issued by the sect, quickly straightened himself up, and hurried out the door.

There were already quite a few people outside, all dressed in black robes.

Seeing this, Lu Nan quickly ran into the crowd while surveying the people around him.

He found that most of them had entered Body Tempering Layer One, and his heart immediately settled.

Before long, all the new disciples had gathered.

Seeing this, the disciple leading them called out loudly, "Keep up! Don't fall behind!"

"Today, Elder Zhang will explain some cultivation basics to you.

Listen carefully. Opportunities like this do not come often."

The newcomers hurriedly nodded at those words, each expressing that they would listen attentively.

Lu Nan was also filled with anticipation, hoping to gain something.

Led by an old disciple of the Sword Sect, the group arrived beneath a low cliff.

At a glance, countless meditation cushions had been placed below the cliff.

"Find your own seats!" With that, the old Sword Sect disciple turned and left.

Lu Nan and the others quickly headed for the cushions beneath the cliff. Everyone instinctively scrambled for the first few rows.

A considerable conflict even broke out, but Lu Nan paid it no mind.

He found himself a seat around the middle-to-back area and sat down alone.

Quietly waiting for the Elder to arrive.