Two Levels in a Row

Ji Xinghuo returned to the villa on Qinghao Road, took the Aether Sensitivity Ability Seed from his room, and entered the Training Room.

He had eaten an Azure Sky Fruit that afternoon, and it had long since been digested and taken effect.

The hunger-like sensation of having an empty stomach after using the Life Spirit Seed made it very clear to him that he could fuse another Ability Seed.

He sat in the middle of the Training Room and looked at the Ability Seed in his hand. The fusion method for the Aether Sensitivity Ability Seed was also the most common one: eat it. Without hesitation, he tossed the quartz-like Ability Seed into his mouth in one bite. It was a little hard, but fortunately it was only the size of a mung bean, and he swallowed it with his saliva.

After waiting a few minutes, Ji Xinghuo felt it.

Ether energy was flowing toward him.

However, compared to when he fused the Rotating Magnetic Field, the disturbance was far smaller. It could be called completely silent. If he had not sensed the difference himself, he might have thought the fusion had failed.

The Ether energy that had previously been invisible became slightly clearer in his field of vision.

It was everywhere.

Like air, it was difficult to notice, yet it profoundly affected everything.

As Ji Xinghuo absorbed Ether energy, he felt his body undergoing a subtle transformation. This transformation had no effect on his physical attributes, but it made him more sensitive to Ether energy.

The Ether energy in his perception became increasingly distinct, nearly visible to the naked eye.

He opened the Myriad Stellar Eye interface.

His Stellar Force was slowly rising. Every few dozen seconds, the number jumped, increasing by 1 point! During the more than forty days of hunting outside, he had not trained specifically, but his Stellar Force had repeatedly been depleted and restored, which had also produced a training effect. It had increased his Stellar Force by 2 points, bringing it to 103. Now that he had fused Aether Sensitivity, it immediately began soaring like a rocket.

Only after half an hour did the increase in Stellar Force stop.

Stellar Force: 161/161

Ji Xinghuo was both shocked and delighted.

When he had fused the Rotating Magnetic Field, his Stellar Force had increased by 41 points. Aether Sensitivity was merely a high-quality ability, yet it had increased by 58 points—more than the Rotating Magnetic Field.

He jogged a few steps around the Training Room. An increase in Stellar Force also enhanced physical attributes, though not by much.

The interface information had updated as well.

Ability: Aether Sensitivity (Level 1, 1/23)

"Upgrading only takes 23 points of Spirit Source Energy?" Ji Xinghuo was extremely surprised. It seemed the Spirit Source Energy required to upgrade an ability was tied to its quality. The better the quality, the more Spirit Source Energy it required to upgrade, and vice versa.

He looked below.

Spirit Source Energy: 132

Back in Absolute Peak Valley, although he had not killed any Stone Scythe Giant Mandrills, he had still killed dozens of monsters. He had also encountered several battles on the way back to Olympia.

Adding the 38 points he had before entering Absolute Peak Valley, he had accumulated a total of 132 points of Spirit Source Energy.

Ji Xinghuo immediately upgraded Aether Sensitivity.

As Spirit Source Energy was poured in, Aether Sensitivity's progress advanced bit by bit, and he felt his perception of Ether energy steadily improving as well.

Very quickly, Aether Sensitivity rose to Level 2!

Ability: Aether Sensitivity (Level 2, 1/103)

"It can still go up another level!"

Ji Xinghuo was overjoyed. Upgrading this ability was much easier than he had expected. In the blink of an eye, Aether Sensitivity became Level 3, 1/433.

Level 3 Aether Sensitivity!

He turned his head and looked around. As long as he focused slightly, Ether energy appeared before his eyes.

This energy had no color. Like the molecules and particles that made up matter, its microscopic state could not be seen, but on a macroscopic scale, it resembled a gas, constantly shifting and moving.

When he waved his hand and stirred the air, it also disturbed the Ether energy, creating whirlpools and turbulence that appeared utterly chaotic.

Ji Xinghuo observed himself.

Clearly, his body had a much greater influence on Ether than other things did.

It was not entirely because of Aether Sensitivity. It was because he was an Aberrant, and the Stellar Force within his body was transformed from Ether energy.

He took a lap outside. Through observation, he quickly understood the use of Aether Sensitivity. Wherever Ether energy gathered, it was bound to have been affected by extraordinary power. For example, Ren Mian's garden had Ether energy density several times higher than elsewhere.

The higher the density of Ether energy, the stronger the power generally was—or there was some precious treasure.

Ji Xinghuo quickly figured out the trick.

If he combined his Magnetic Field Induction with Aether Sensitivity, he should be able to judge the strength of an Aberrant with great accuracy.

"Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated."

"This is a great way to gauge an enemy's strength!"

Ji Xinghuo looked at his remaining 6 points of Spirit Source Energy and did not use them. He returned to the Training Room and began training.

His total bench press had reached 800 kilograms, but for safety, he only used a 500-kilogram barbell. He performed more than ten consecutive sets of bench presses, squats, and deadlifts, along with other training movements that consumed stamina and Stellar Force. He combined aerobic and anaerobic exercise, and only after more than an hour was he completely exhausted.

"Whew..."

Ji Xinghuo sat down, drenched in sweat, and noted the time. "Now let's see how fast Stellar Force recovers."

Two hours later, his Stellar Force had recovered to 161/161.

"So fast!"

Although full recovery took twenty minutes longer than before, he now had around 60 more points of Stellar Force than before. After calculating, his Stellar Force recovery speed had increased by roughly 38%!

His stamina had recovered even earlier.

The Rotating Magnetic Field could also accelerate stamina recovery. An hour and a half ago, he had already stopped feeling tired.

This greatly shortened his training cycle. He no longer had to worry that excessive fatigue would damage his muscles and bones. As long as his Stellar Force recovered, he could immediately train again.

A training cycle that had previously taken five hours now took only three! "Let's do another round."

Ji Xinghuo worked up another sweat, draining both his stamina and Stellar Force, then waited another two hours for a full recovery. Seeing that it was still early, he stayed in the Training Room for nine straight hours and completed three training cycles.

When his Stellar Force fully recovered for the third time, the number suddenly jumped.

Stellar Force: 162/162

"It increased by a point!" Ji Xinghuo was ecstatic.

Before gaining Aether Sensitivity, it took him a week of training to gain 1 point of Stellar Force. This new point certainly was not entirely the result of today's training; it had probably happened to fall right at the threshold where the value changed.

Otherwise, if he could gain 1 point every day, his training efficiency would have increased sevenfold. Level 3 Aether Sensitivity could not possibly have such heaven-defying effects.

"I'll try again tomorrow."

With anticipation, Ji Xinghuo returned to his room. After washing up, he went to bed.

After sleeping for only six hours, while it was still dark outside, he got up and entered the Training Room to begin another day of effort.

The sky gradually brightened.

Ji Xinghuo trained tirelessly. For an entire Star Realm day, he remained in the Training Room, leaving only to eat and use the restroom. In a full 42 hours, he completed 14 training cycles.

The third day was the same.

However, as soon as Ji Xinghuo completed one training cycle, his Stellar Force increased by 1 point, becoming 163/163.

"Fifty-four hours!"

Ji Xinghuo finally stopped. He had recorded the duration of every training cycle.

He had spent 54 hours of sweat to gain that 1 point of Stellar Force. The fatigue in his body was swept away, and his mood brightened as well. This meant his training speed had increased by around 30%. It was a little lower than the improvement in Stellar Force recovery speed, but still very considerable.

"These past two days were only for testing. I can't possibly devote myself this completely every day in the future. I also need to train Martial Dao and my abilities."

"Still, I need to complete at least nine training cycles every Star Realm day."

"In two Star Realm days, I can gain 1 point of Stellar Force."

Ji Xinghuo quickly formulated a new training plan.

A day had 49.6 hours: 27 hours for Stellar Force training, 9 hours for Martial Dao practice, 2 hours for archery, and the remaining time for eating, resting, and sleeping.

He did not know how long he would have to wait for his next life evolution, but he had a feeling it should not be too far away.

He estimated that, during the Elementary Esper stage, his Stellar Force limit would be around 230.

As long as he settled down and trained in Olympia for a few Star Realm months, he should be able to undergo life evolution again.

"Intermediate Esper..."

Ji Xinghuo calculated the time. It was currently early October on Earth. By the end of June next year, he should be able to advance.

Going from an Elementary Esper to an Intermediate Esper in less than a year would be an extraordinary speed even on a global scale.

"If I had more Spirit Source Energy and upgraded Aether Sensitivity a few more times, I could be even faster." Ji Xinghuo could not help thinking about it, but he did not know when the next hunting expedition would be.

While eating, he asked Ren Mian.

"There are no plans for now," Ren Mian replied. "If there is a suitable hunting target, we'll head out. However, it's October now, and I have something to do that will take me away for a few months. I'll return next year."

"Where are you going, Ren-jie?" Ji Xinghuo was very surprised.

"This is a private matter, so I can't tell you yet." Ren Mian smiled mysteriously. "Every year, I leave Olympia for around four months. During that time, you can move about freely—return to Earth, focus on training, or hunt with other teams."

Chi Zhonglin and Jiangnan Caiyi both nodded. They had known about this already.

"I'll return to Earth in a few days to prepare for the Martial Dao Master Advancement Tournament." Chi Zhonglin had long made his arrangements.

Jiangnan Caiyi said, "I'm going home to see my mother too. But I'll come back once every two weeks and stay for a day to clean up and tend to Sister Ren's garden."

The three of them found Ji Xinghuo's blank expression rather strange.

"Xinghuo, aren't you going back to Earth?" Ren Mian asked.

"I've only been in the Star Realm for a short time, so I don't want to go back yet." Ji Xinghuo scratched his head. He did not tell his teammates about the Sharp Sword Bureau.

Ren Mian smiled. "Then stay here and train with peace of mind. You can watch the house for us."

"No problem." Ji Xinghuo readily agreed.

A few days later.

Ji Xinghuo was the only one left in the villa.

Ren Mian had already left the day before yesterday. From this, Ji Xinghuo guessed that she must have another, more important botanical garden elsewhere. The villa garden was merely a temporary planting site and was unimportant to her. She could abandon it at any time, including the Trifoliate Sweet Osmanthus that could be used to cultivate Azure Sky Fruit.

Chi Zhonglin and Jiangnan Caiyi were also returning to Earth today.

After some consideration, Ji Xinghuo ultimately asked Chi Zhonglin to deliver a message to his second brother, Zhong Ming, telling him that he was doing well and did not need to worry.

"Only deliver it in person? No phone call or email?"

"And it's best not to reveal your identity?"

After receiving Ji Xinghuo's confirmation, Chi Zhonglin found it somewhat strange and guessed some of the reasons, but he still agreed.

After seeing Chi Zhonglin off, Ji Xinghuo turned around and entered the Training Room to begin the day's training.