New Talent

Wu Tian stayed in the Cave Mansion and cultivated every day, neither hurried nor impatient. Aside from circulating the four Curse Techniques to open his acupoints, he never neglected the task of refining the Ruyi Rope.

Refining the Ruyi Rope was not something that could be done in a day. It required long-term perseverance. Every day, Wu Tian set aside an hour to draw silk from the Bitter Bamboo outside the cave, then inscribed Curse Runes with his own blood.

As for cultivating the Abdomen Pouch Spell, swallowing and exhaling the Curse Artifact into his abdomen every day could count as cultivation. It was the simplest of all.

Besides that, Wu Tian's Spiritual Communication talent was gradually entering the hall. He could actually carry out simple communication with the beast soul bound inside the Soul Stirring Bell.

The beast soul bound inside this bell was the resentful soul of a Wolf Demon. It was exceptionally ferocious and spent most of its time asleep.

With his Spiritual Communication talent, Wu Tian could sense ghostly creatures and resentful souls. Even without the Soul Stirring Curse, he could still wake this wolf soul.

Thus, every so often, a white dog could be seen barking furiously at the bell in the Cave Mansion...

In this manner, five days passed in a row. Wu Tian finally opened his last acupoint. There were no earth-shaking phenomena, nor any bottleneck or twists and turns. Everything fell into place naturally.

The four Water, Fire, Wind, and Thunder Curse Techniques were cast in turn. The turbid qi dispersed, and the final acupoint was opened along with it.

After more than two months of tempering and the cleansing of the four Curse Techniques, the Tongyou Qi in his body had become purer and more abundant than when he had first broken through.

It was already evening, and the bright moon hung high in the sky.

The Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram could only be cultivated at night. Cultivating it during the day was counterproductive.

Wu Tian went straight out of the Cave Mansion and leaped onto a stone platform at the entrance. It was more spacious there, and the moonlight fell upon it without obstruction.

Wu Tian lay prone on the stone platform and slowly closed his eyes.

Over the past few days, he had committed the Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram to memory. Without hesitation, he began circulating the Tongyou Qi along the route shown in the Qi Circulation Diagram.

This circulation could not contain the slightest mistake. Otherwise, he would have to start over and follow the Qi Circulation Diagram to pass through all seventy-two acupoints in a single breath.

It consumed an enormous amount of mental energy. Moreover, as the acupoints trembled while he circulated the True Qi, his body shook along with them, resulting in a tremendous drain on his physical strength.

Wu Tian had the System Panel. Once a skill was recorded, it could not fail, so not the slightest mistake would occur.

He slowly circulated the True Qi. Although the progress was slow, it was steady and precise. The Tongyou Qi flowed through one acupoint after another, and when it finished at the final acupoint, the True Qi happened to flow to the spot beneath his tongue.

At that instant, Wu Tian subconsciously opened his mouth. A cool, shadowy breath immediately entered his body, seeming like a stream and yet resembling Jade Dew Nectar.

The Tongyou Qi beneath his tongue swallowed that icy breath in one gulp like a nimble spirit serpent. It even seemed almost impatient to do so.

Man Xiongmu, who had been meditating indoors, abruptly opened his eyes as well. His magical power flowed through his pupils, allowing him to see what was happening on the stone platform outside.

He saw White Dragon raise his head and open his mouth in a swallowing motion. A strand of moonlight descended from the heavens and happened to sink into his mouth.

The scene looked just like the legendary Heavenly Hound devouring the moon.

"In a little over two months, he completed the opening of his acupoints. He even mastered the profound and obscure Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram in one stroke. White Dragon is becoming more and more extraordinary..."

Man Xiongmu sighed inwardly. Ever since this dog had come up the mountain, his cultivation progress had repeatedly exceeded expectations. If he had not known that the dog came from White Dog Stockade, he might even have thought it was the cub of a Great Demon.

"No wonder that senior passed on the method to him..."

After giving his head a slight shake, he withdrew his gaze. He had now newly entered the Law Refining Realm and was cultivating his first spell, the Netherwind Method.

He had only just planted the Law Seed of the Netherwind Method, so it was unstable. It needed to be nourished with various spiritual materials, tempered with magical power, and constantly wielded.

This step consumed vast amounts of resources and energy. Therefore, cultivators in the Law Refining Realm would basically descend the mountain to travel.

After swallowing the first strand of moonlight, Wu Tian felt his mind grow clear and tranquil. Even his Tongyou Qi had visibly improved.

"One strand of moonlight is almost equivalent to the results of my previous month of tempering True Qi."

He sensed the change in his True Qi and could not help feeling both shocked and delighted.

In fact, the disciples of the Sect Leader's Direct Lineage and Wild Dog Cave—even those with superior aptitudes—needed several months to enter the gate and swallow their first strand of moonlight.

Wu Tian had the System Panel, so his skills could not go wrong. This saved him a tremendous amount of time.

Otherwise, he would have to attempt the circulation again and again until he could manipulate the True Qi with microscopic precision, ensuring that the route, frequency, and rhythm of its circulation contained not the slightest error before he could complete a cycle.

"Continue!"

Wu Tian was somewhat excited and began circulating the True Qi again.

An hour later, he successfully completed another cycle and swallowed a strand of moonlight.

Unfortunately, his mind and physical strength had been severely depleted. He could no longer complete another full cycle and could only stop.

"The Moon Swallowing Qi Circulation Diagram consumes far too much mental energy and physical strength." Wu Tian was exhausted from head to toe, yet he felt extraordinary joy.

He had swallowed only two strands of moonlight, yet his True Qi had achieved the equivalent of two months of tempering. This efficiency was truly astonishing.

"After descending the mountain, I won't be able to cultivate so recklessly. I'll have to preserve enough physical strength to deal with any sudden changes and dangers that might occur."

"And I can't cultivate during the day either, so I have to seize the time."

Thinking this, he closed his eyes and sank into sleep. It was the best way to recover his energy and physical strength.

Time slowly passed. Wu Tian cultivated tirelessly in the Cave Mansion, circulating cycles and swallowing moonlight at night, and cultivating various Curse Techniques and refining Curse Artifacts during the day.

During this period, Man Xiongmu exchanged the Soul Stirring Curse from the Transmission Pavilion, giving Wu Tian one more task to cultivate.

After ten days of hard cultivation, the Abdomen Pouch Spell, which had progressed the fastest, reached perfection and gave birth to a new talent.

Ding, system notification: Your skill Abdomen Pouch Spell has reached perfection and can awaken as a talent. Please choose one talent from the following three options.

Option One: Mountain Devourer. You can open your mouth and swallow entities far larger than your own body. However, if the entity is alive, there is a high possibility that it will break through your abdomen pouch.

Option Two: Iron Stomach. Your digestive ability will surge. You can swallow gold and eat iron to enhance your physical strength and injury recovery. Consuming metal for a long time can strengthen your physique to a certain degree.

Option Three: Weapon Hoarder. You can swallow one weapon and nourish it with your essence, qi, and spirit, thereby improving the weapon's quality.

All three options are Intermediate Talents.

The talents that Secret Transmission Curse Techniques could produce truly far surpassed those of Beginner Curse Techniques and ordinary skills. All three of these talents were excellent.

"If the Mountain Devourer talent reaches perfection, perhaps one day I'll really be able to swallow an entire mountain in one bite."

"The Iron Stomach goes without saying. Isn't this the talent of the iron-eating beast and the Pixiu? It can not only strengthen the physique, but also accelerate the recovery of physical strength and injuries through eating. This is an extremely practical combat talent."

"As for the final one, Weapon Hoarder—it can improve a weapon's quality. Simple, brutal, and extremely practical."

What should he choose? Which one should he pick?

Wu Tian felt a headache coming on. He wanted every one of them.