After returning to the tent, Lu Chen did not lie down. He sat cross-legged on the bed, closed his eyes, and looked inward at his dantian.
Thirty percent of the true essence remained in his dantian. It was not much, but every drop was heavy.
It was no longer the light, mist-like true essence from before, but a viscous liquid like mercury. This was the change brought by a stabilized foundation—at the same quantity, its quality had doubled.
He tried circulating the Mystic Dragon Sea-Suppressing Art. The instant the cultivation art began to move, the true essence in his dantian stirred, slowly, like someone churning a vat of honey.
The true essence flowed out of his dantian and traveled upward along his meridians, passing through his chest and shoulders before reaching his arm.
The silvery-white patterns on his right arm did not light up, but he could feel them—the patterns were still beneath his skin, fused with his muscles, bones, and blood vessels, inseparable.
Whenever true essence flowed through the patterns, it sped up, like water entering a broader riverbed.
He opened his eyes and clenched his right fist. No silvery-white light appeared over his knuckles, but the force of his fist had increased by thirty percent.
It was not the true essence's doing, but the power of the patterns—the Dragon Soul Mirror's seed had already merged completely with his body.
The system notification sounded.
[Host's current state: early Longevity Realm, foundation stabilized. True essence at thirty percent. Recommendation: expend lifespan to deduce the Longevity Chapter of the Mystic Dragon Sea-Suppressing Art and accelerate the improvement of cultivation art proficiency.]
Lu Chen checked his remaining lifespan. 1,100 years.
"How much lifespan is needed to deduce the Longevity Chapter of the Mystic Dragon Sea-Suppressing Art?"
``` [Current proficiency: beginner.