Peaceful Secluded Cultivation

After settling Shen Liuyu's matter, Shen Hanyu could finally devote himself completely to cultivation without worry.

He desperately needed to grow stronger before the plot began. Strength was king—the only hope of surviving in troubled times.

This era lacked no brilliant, peerless geniuses. Although the cultivation system was incomplete, quite a few powerful Soul Masters had still forcibly carved out their own paths. That was innovation, and it was also the continual progress of the era and history.

Sometimes, Shen Hanyu wondered what this world would be like if it were not the world of a book—if its protagonists did not have predetermined fates and were not forcibly dumbed down into love-struck fools.

The View on Love of the men and women of Douluo Continent was generally somewhat problematic. That was an undeniable fact.

Yet such a distorted world was filled with surprises and hope. Every day, lives were born here, while countless others slowly departed.

By now, he had obtained almost all the great opportunities from the original work. He would leave only a few minor opportunities to conveniently claim later. As for the inheritances of gods...

That could wait. It was still too early.

After spending two clingy days with Shen Hanyu, Shen Liuyu reluctantly returned to Skywater Academy.

As for her Soul Power and Soul Rings, Shen Hanyu had a headache over them as well. No matter what, he could not find a solution. In the end, he could only have Tian Meng secretly leave a Mental Power imprint on Shen Liuyu's Soul Rings. This imprint had no other purpose; it merely concealed the Soul Rings visually and perceptually.

With Tian Meng's immense Mental Power, the imprint could probably last five years. As long as the other party's Mental Power did not surpass Tian Meng's, they would not be able to discover Shen Liuyu's true Soul Ring configuration.

The sudden surge in her Soul Power was easy enough to explain away. He could just make up something about medicinal herbs and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. Unless someone had ulterior motives, no one would keep digging into it.

Shen Hanyu also planned to remain in Element City for a while longer. If some blind fool dared to provoke his Sister, he could reward their entire family with a one-way travel voucher to the west...

Before fully entering his cultivation state, Shen Hanyu went into the city to purchase plenty of food and basic supplies. Then, under the cover of Tian Meng's terrifying Mental Power, he went to check on Little Phoenix.

Only after seeing that she was growing well did he feel slightly relieved. He then followed Tian Meng's guidance directly to a cave within a dense forest outside the city and began his Hard Cultivation in earnest.

He had told only Shen Liuyu about this location, so he was not worried about any problems. Besides, Tian Meng was on round-the-clock alert, bringing the safety factor to the absolute maximum.

The Cold Sky Spear's Ice Attribute had already reached its peak. Even Tian Meng had lavishly praised it, claiming that it was the strongest Ice Attribute it had ever seen on a human Soul Master in its hundreds of thousands of years of life, just one step away from Extreme Ice.

Following the previous ice-and-fire body tempering, the Cold Sky Spear had changed slightly. A red line now ran through its previously crystal-like body from end to end. Scorching energy flowed within it, yet it resonated with the other Ice Attribute energy, endlessly circulating inside. It was truly extraordinary.

Shen Hanyu had some guesses about this, but he did not want to say much. As long as it was not a bad thing, that was enough.

Other than cultivation, nothing could move his heart anymore.

When he had time, Shen Hanyu and Tian Meng once again discussed spear techniques. To be honest, Shen Hanyu did not understand spear arts. Rather than saying that, it would be more accurate to say that he pursued only ultimate attack power and strength. In a fantasy world like this, spear techniques were in an awkward position. Some were praised to the heavens, while others were disparaged into the gutter...

And when it came to such things, one had to face a straightforward issue. No matter how strong your techniques were, if your opponent was powerful enough, you would still only be a clown performing in public, unfit for the stage. Before absolute strength, techniques instead became a brand-new posture of clownery...

The result was that, without those external influences, his compatibility with the Cold Sky Spear was incomparably high. As long as he held the Cold Sky Spear, he would naturally follow his Martial Soul and produce the most suitable method of attack. This was the resonance between him and his Martial Soul, something no factor could sever. This was the path best suited to him.

Of course, Shen Hanyu did not deny that some techniques were indeed dazzling enough. After all, this was a world where a Hidden Weapon could shatter a god's heart...

Of course, that was on the premise that you had protagonist plot armor. Otherwise, he did not recommend trying it...

If any unpleasant consequences occurred, transmigrators were responsible for themselves...

The days of quiet cultivation in the cave passed quickly. In just a month, with the energy of the large power bank, energy supply station, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, along with the world's elemental energy, Shen Hanyu unsurprisingly advanced to Level 57.

Not only had his cultivation advanced, but the meridians that had previously retained faint hidden injuries were completely restored under Tian Meng's nourishment. His flesh and blood rejoiced, and his body brimmed with delight.

With his mood improved, his cultivation speed naturally grew faster and faster. In the blink of an eye, another three months passed, and Shen Hanyu's cultivation had directly reached Level 58.

This rate of improvement was unprecedented and likely never to be repeated. Other than the necessary time to attend to personal matters, Shen Hanyu spent nearly all his time buried in cultivation.

Even Tian Meng could not help but sigh at this state of affairs. After all, few humans could endure loneliness and solitude for long. Since entering the mountains, Shen Hanyu had spoken fewer than three sentences each month. If not for the fact that his mind remained vigorous and active, Tian Meng would have suspected that something had gone wrong with his mental state.

Time slowly passed, and the scenery of the forest gradually shifted as well.

Its initial deep green had turned into a withered yellow, as though it had undergone a transformation. It gave off the unique scent of time, and even the air seemed to bear traces of summer giving way to autumn.

Shen Hanyu continued cultivating in the dense forest as he pleased, but he discovered that simple cultivation had begun to slow down. Even with Tian Meng's assistance, it was far less effective than before.

Shen Hanyu was not bothered by this. He simply cultivated while fighting Soul Beasts.

Deep in this forest lived three twenty-thousand-year Earth Explosive Bears. Sometimes Shen Hanyu fought one of them, sometimes two, and sometimes he directly faced the three brothers' attacks from all sides.

Although their cultivation age was somewhat lacking, they worked well together and were clever enough. After seemingly realizing that Shen Hanyu only wanted to spar with them rather than take their lives...

The three Soul Beasts completely gave up trying. Every day after eating and drinking their fill, they came looking for Shen Hanyu to fight. Of course, every battle was fought to the death, without the slightest restraint.

The intelligence of twenty-thousand-year Soul Beasts was still not particularly high, but perhaps a habitual pattern had formed in their minds. In any case, they did not find sparring with Shen Hanyu unpleasant, and Shen Hanyu naturally could not have asked for more.

Tian Meng also seemed to have noticed that Shen Hanyu's state was highly unusual. It rarely spoke to him, only occasionally giving a few simple reminders before continuing with its own affairs in the Sea of Consciousness.

It understood Shen Hanyu fairly well, so it naturally did not need to worry that this would cause him any serious problems.

What it wanted now was nothing more than to help him become a god with all its strength, then fulfill its long-held dream... to have Ice Empress sweetly call it Brother Sky Dream~...

PS: Baijiu's cap nearly went GG...