Ten Days of Grueling Cultivation, Spiritual Power Breakthrough!

After leaving the Soul Tool Department, Huang Fei did not return directly to the Dormitory.

The night was deep as he turned toward Tranquil Heart Lake in the academy's Northeast Corner.

The surroundings were quiet and secluded. Lake water shimmered beneath the moonlight, weeping willows shaded the shore, and the Wood Attribute Spiritual Energy was three parts denser than elsewhere. It was a favored spot for many students cultivating wood- and water-system Martial Souls.

At this late hour, there was no one by the lake.

Huang Fei found a flat Blue Stone and sat down cross-legged, taking out the bottle of Calming Spirit Pills Song Yunzhi had given him.

The Jade Bottle felt warm and smooth. When he removed the stopper, a cool, refreshing medicinal fragrance spread through the air, invigorating his mind with a single breath.

Two pale-blue Elixirs the size of longans lay within. Fine cloud patterns covered their surfaces, and a faint radiance flowed across them.

A Grade Four Pill, the Calming Spirit Pill.

Huang Fei did not take one immediately. Instead, he carefully put the Jade Bottle away.

This Elixir was precious and had to be saved for when he absorbed a Soul Ring.

His most urgent task now was to break through from Soul Elder Peak to Soul Ancestor Initial Stage in ten days.

For ordinary Soul Masters, breaking through a spiritual bottleneck was as difficult as reaching the heavens.

But Huang Fei was different.

He possessed the Wood Breathing Technique, which naturally had the effect of nourishing the spirit.

Moreover, he already had Soul Elder Peak Spiritual Power. He was only one Last Step away from Soul Ancestor.

"I will break through this barrier within ten days."

He closed his eyes and quietly began circulating the Wood Breathing Technique.

With each breath, the pores across his body opened. Faint vapor rising from the lake and the pure air of vegetation were drawn toward him, swirling around his body.

Soul Power circulated through his Meridians. With every full cycle, a wisp of weak yet pure energy flowed into his Brow Sea of Consciousness, nourishing his spirit.

Time slowly passed.

When the moon reached its peak, Huang Fei suddenly had an idea.

He recalled the Soul Condensing Secret Art Song Yunzhi had given him. Although it was a method for tempering Soul Power, it demanded extremely high spiritual control. Repeated circulation was, in truth, also a form of Spiritual Power tempering.

"Perhaps... I can combine the two."

He acted as soon as the thought arose.

Huang Fei split his focus in two, maintaining the rhythm of the Wood Breathing Technique while circulating the Soul Condensing Secret Art within his body.

Under the dual guidance, Soul Power flowed through his Meridians like a stream, surging and compressing. Every surge required intense concentration, while every compression was the ultimate test of control.

It was somewhat awkward and sluggish at first, but within half a Shi Chen, Huang Fei gradually found his rhythm.

His breathing became long and steady, his Soul Power circulated smoothly and naturally, and under the dual tempering, his spirit rose at a slow but unwavering pace.

A night passed.

As the sky began to brighten, Huang Fei opened his eyes. His gaze was clear and radiant, with faint Essence Light flickering within.

After a night of arduous cultivation, his Spiritual Power had not broken through, but it had become far more solid. He was one step closer to the threshold of Soul Ancestor.

He did not slack off. After stretching his limbs, he headed toward the Cafeteria.

Cultivation required balance. Excessive strain would only do harm.

Over the following days, Huang Fei's life became extremely regular.

He attended classes and trained with his team during the day, everything proceeding as usual.

He did not publicize his breakthrough to Level 20. Only Ning Tian and Wu Feng vaguely noticed something, but they tacitly chose not to ask.

Every night without fail, he went to Tranquil Heart Lake and used the Wood Breathing Technique and Soul Condensing Secret Art to temper his spirit.

On the fifth night, Huang Fei finally touched that barrier.

His Spiritual Power surged through his Sea of Consciousness like a tide, crashing against the invisible wall of the Soul Ancestor realm.

Once, twice, three times...

The barrier did not budge.

Huang Fei remained calm and continued circulating his techniques, gathering strength.

Until late on the seventh night.

The Bright Moon hung high overhead, and the lake was like a mirror.

Huang Fei's aura suddenly condensed, and a faint pale-green glow lit up between his brows.

Within his Sea of Consciousness, his Spiritual Power crashed into the barrier like a breached flood!

Crack—

It was as though something shattered in the depths of his soul.

The barrier broke, and his Spiritual Power suddenly surged. His sensing range, sensitivity, and precision of control all rose to an entirely new level!

Soul Ancestor Initial Stage—breakthrough!

Huang Fei opened his eyes, his gaze as sharp as lightning and his spirits soaring.

With a thought, his Spiritual Power spread outward.

Fifty meters, eighty meters, one hundred meters...

It finally stopped at one hundred and twenty meters.

With Soul Ancestor-level Spiritual Power, his sensing range was now more than twice what it had been before.

What delighted him even more was that after his Spiritual Power breakthrough, his control over Soul Power had also risen accordingly.

With a casual wave, a strand of pale-green Soul Power emerged from his palm and condensed into a miniature Blue Silver Spear barely an inch long. It hovered above his hand, every detail perfectly clear.

External Soul Power release, meticulous control.

That was one of the benefits brought by Soul Ancestor-level Spiritual Power.

Huang Fei nodded in satisfaction, withdrew his Soul Power, and returned to the Dormitory.

His spiritual bottleneck had been broken. Over the next three days, he would focus fully on Physical Body refining and push his strength toward the Level 30 Soul Elder standard.

On the eighth day, Huang Fei went to the academy's Body Tempering Hall.

This was a physical training ground specially established for Battle Soul Masters, equipped with all kinds of gravity Formations, pressure-resistance mechanisms, and body-tempering equipment.

Huang Fei exchanged his student points for three Shi Chen of access to an Intermediate Gravity Room.

The moment he stepped inside, the heavy metal door automatically closed.

The air carried a faint mixture of metal and sweat. Complex Array Patterns covered the four walls, while a black stone platform ten meters across stood at the center.

Huang Fei stepped onto the platform and activated the Formation.

Hum—

The gravity around him suddenly doubled.

Onefold, twofold, threefold!

Huang Fei's body sank, and a faint Creaking Sound came from his muscles and bones.

He took a deep breath and circulated Soul Power throughout his body, resisting the crushing pressure.

Then, he began practicing the Wood Combat Art.

Fists, palms, fingers, legs—he sought precision in every stance and steadiness and power in every movement.

Sweat soon soaked through his clothes and dripped onto the black stone platform with soft hissing sounds.

Three Shi Chen later, the Gravity Room Formation stopped.

Huang Fei was drenched from head to toe, his muscles sore and swollen, yet he could feel his blood and energy coursing through his body. It was as though his muscles and bones had been hammered anew, becoming even tougher.

He did not stop to rest. Instead, he went to the medicated bath area and exchanged his points for a barrel of Body Tempering Potion.

Steam rose from the pale-green potion, carrying the fragrance of grass and wood.

Huang Fei soaked within it as the medicinal effects seeped through his pores, nourishing his exhausted muscles and bones.

Thus, he attended class and trained with his team during the day, then refined his body and soaked in medicated baths at night. Huang Fei's Physical Body strength rapidly improved.

On the evening of the tenth day.

Huang Fei rose from the medicated bath barrel and clenched his fist.

The lines of his arm muscles were smooth, while faint pale-green radiance flowed beneath his skin. It was the sign of Life Energy saturating his Physical Body.

He walked up to the Force Measuring Soul Tool in the Body Tempering Hall and threw a punch.

Bang!

The Soul Tool's display flickered wildly before finally settling on—

"Fist Force: 3,800 jin."

Joy flashed in Huang Fei's eyes.

The Fist Force standard for an ordinary Level 30 Soul Elder was around 3,500 jin.

That came naturally with reaching the realm.

Aside from Soul Masters with comparatively weak Martial Souls, few failed to reach it.

His current Fist Force of 3,800 jin had already firmly reached the Physical Body strength of a Soul Elder Mid-Stage.

His Spiritual Power was at Soul Ancestor Initial Stage, while his Physical Body strength was at Soul Elder Mid-Stage.

Everything was ready.

Late on the tenth night, Huang Fei once again arrived at the Third Laboratory of the Soul Tool Department.

When he pushed open the door, Song Yunzhi was not the only person inside.

The other person was tall and powerfully built, with an aura as steady and imposing as a mountain. He was Tie Shan, the combat Instructor Huang Fei had seen at the Training Ground that day.

When Tie Shan saw Huang Fei enter, he swept his gaze over him and nodded slightly.

"Your Body Refining is not bad. Your foundation is solid."

Huang Fei bowed. "Instructor, Instructor Tie Shan."