Zhao Gongming's eyes burned as he gazed at the system's glowing screen, his consciousness sinking into it. With his cultivation now firmly established, a brand-new deduction option had quietly unlocked.
[Spiritual Root Deduction Options Unlocked:] [One: Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root: Refine the host's current foundation to optimize the root of his spiritual energy affinity. Cost: 1,000 Primordial Points.] [Two: Mid-grade Innate Spiritual Root: Trace the Qingfeng origin within the host and condense the Dao Mark of Wind Law, transforming it into an Innate Wind Spiritual Root. Cost: 5,000 Primordial Points.] [Three: High-grade Innate Spiritual Root... (Insufficient permissions. Unable to view.)]
Looking at the two available options, Zhao Gongming didn't hesitate.
"One thousand points... A Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root!"
Although the Mid-grade Innate Spiritual Root was undoubtedly more powerful, its cost of five thousand points was more than he could currently afford. The Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root, at just one thousand points, was the best value for him right now!
One's foundation determined the limits of one's cultivation and one's affinity with the Great Dao.
Cultivation methods determined the efficiency of one's cultivation and the quality of one's magical power.
A spiritual root, meanwhile, directly affected how quickly one could absorb spiritual energy of a particular attribute and how well one could comprehend its laws!
The three complemented one another. None could be lacking.
His foundation had now reached the pinnacle of an Innate Being, and with the Innate Level Shangqing Immortal Method, his cultivation was already advancing by leaps and bounds.
If he added even a Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root, it would be more than enough to make his cultivation speed soar once again!
By then, he would accumulate points faster, and his reserves for breaking into a higher realm would be on an entirely different level.
"First, I'll deduce a spiritual root and further strengthen my potential. Then, at my absolute peak, I'll break through the Golden Immortal barrier in one fell swoop!"
Zhao Gongming's heart surged with ambition. Once the thought had taken root, there was no holding it back.
He had never wanted a simple breakthrough. He wanted to reach the utmost limit of every stage!
Zhao Gongming's consciousness stirred, and without the slightest hesitation, he sent a wordless command to the system's glowing screen.
"System, spend one thousand Primordial Points to deduce a Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root!"
[Command confirmed... Primordial Points -1,000... Deduction beginning...]
The instant the system's cold notification rang in his mind, Zhao Gongming felt a crisp snap deep within his soul, as if a shackle that had existed since time immemorial had been smashed open!
Boom!
An indescribably profound aura erupted from the deepest reaches of his limbs and body, from the ineffable source of his fate!
This aura was neither magical power nor the soul. It was something more fundamental, more ancient.
It carried a hint of the chaos that had preceded creation and the birth of all things—simple and vast, yet brimming with boundless vitality.
This was the aura of the innate!
Zhao Gongming's body trembled involuntarily. He could "see" the ordinary acquired root within him—the one that had possessed only a commonplace affinity for Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy—undergoing a world-shaking transformation!
It was as if an invisible hand were using the power of the Primordial as its chisel and his body as uncut jade, shaping it in a feat that defied the natural order.
Countless tiny, profound runes appeared from nowhere, etching themselves into every inch of his spiritual root.
The mottled marks formed after birth were washed away by the Primordial power, melting and purifying like snow beneath the blazing sun.
In their place came purity, and a nobility he had possessed from birth!
His spiritual root was reversing its transformation, returning from acquired to innate!
Inside the cave, the spiritual energy storm—already gathered to its limit by the Spirit-Gathering Array—seemed to have found an outlet. No, it wasn't an outlet. It was a far more frenzied act of worship and inrush!
Before, the spiritual energy had been forcibly "drawn" in by his cultivation method. Now, the Innate Spiritual Energy was like subjects beholding their king, or fledglings returning to their nest. Driven by instinctive affection and yearning, it surged eagerly and madly into Zhao Gongming's body!
He didn't even need to deliberately circulate the Innate Level Shangqing Immortal Method. The wisp of innate Dao resonance naturally emanating from his transforming spiritual root alone turned his body into a spiritual-energy vortex more than ten times as terrifying as before!
The surrounding void trembled. The dense Innate Spiritual Energy on Jin'ao Island was torn into visible white currents that pierced the cave's stone walls and formations before pouring into his crown!
"So... this is an Innate Spiritual Root?"
Zhao Gongming was shaken to the core. He could clearly feel that his connection to the world had become closer than ever before.
Previously, when he looked at the world, it was as if a thin veil stood between them. He could see everything, but that barrier remained.
Now, the veil had been swept away completely. The threads of law between heaven and earth, the paths along which spiritual energy flowed—all were crystal clear to his senses!
Every breath felt like drawing in the essence of the Great Dao.
The deduction didn't take long. When the final strand of Primordial power sank into the depths of his spiritual root, the transformation from its very source finally began to settle.
Zhao Gongming looked within himself and saw that his spiritual root had been completely remade. It was crystalline and translucent, like the root of a divine tree carved from flawless jade. A faint, clear radiance surrounded it, and it emanated an utterly pure innate aura.
[Deduction complete!] [Spiritual Root: Low-grade Innate Spiritual Root.] [Effects: Perception, absorption, and conversion of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy increased tenfold. Affinity with the laws of the Great Dao slightly increased.]
Success!
Suppressing his elation, Zhao Gongming immediately began circulating the Innate Level Shangqing Immortal Method again.
Rumble!
The moment the cultivation method began to flow, the liquid Immortal Essence within him boiled!
The river of spiritual energy surging in from outside barely needed any complex refinement. His Innate Spiritual Root converted it into the purest energy, which poured into his Dantian Sea of Qi.
It felt as if a channel that had once been only a finger's width had suddenly widened into a surging river ten zhang across!
He sank his consciousness back into the system's glowing screen. The Primordial Points, which had just been reduced to zero, began a fresh surge that sent his heart racing!
[Absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. Converting...] [Primordial Points +1]
In the span of a single breath!
Before, it took more than ten breaths to accumulate one Primordial Point. Now, one breath was enough!
That meant his rate of accumulating points had increased more than tenfold!
"Good! Good! Good!"
Zhao Gongming's heart surged with ambition. This was the cultivation he wanted! An early lead brought an advantage at every step! With this Innate Spiritual Root, he would accumulate points far faster than before. Whether he wanted to deduce cultivation methods or improve his foundation, he would now have a much stronger backing.
He could even feel the incredibly solid Golden Immortal barrier grow slightly looser under the impact of this newly awakened power.
As long as he wished, he could unleash this immense force at any time and break through in one fell swoop.
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