"The transformation is complete." Chen Yuan opened his eyes from Deep Sleep, clenched his fist, and felt the surging power within him. He then opened the panel and took a look, his expression immediately turning shocked.
"14,728 kilograms!" Chen Yuan exclaimed in amazement. "It's hard to imagine. In just two hours, I became a War General."
But that was the Spirit of Vegetation!
Or rather, in the world of Swallowed Star, resources that could increase one's strength were just that absurd.
"No wonder Virtual Universe Company said not to let geniuses waste their time absorbing energy. Focusing on comprehending laws and cultivating secret techniques is the proper path." After using the Willow Heart, Chen Yuan thought of those even more precious resources and felt a little envious. "Using resources to increase strength, then using the freed-up time to improve secret techniques—that is the path a genius should take."
"Damn it, I'm suddenly a little jealous of Luo Feng. He entered Virtual Universe Company's core ranks, so he can practically lie down and advance in the future."
Having once spent a whole month cultivating bitterly just to gain two thousand kilograms of strength, Chen Yuan found himself unable to get enough after tasting the benefits of resources.
Shaking his head, Chen Yuan dismissed those thoughts and restored his heart to a calm state.
"It seems my state of mind still isn't cultivated deeply enough." Chen Yuan sighed. He had thought he could remain unruffled in the face of anything, yet after getting a taste of the benefits, his mind had immediately fallen prey to temptation.
One had to know that the Meditation Method he cultivated had been specifically designed to temper the mind in the world of Star River Emperor. In this world, it was a secret technique for cultivating the Will Branch.
Although this Meditation Method was still at the entry level, it was enough to let Chen Yuan remain calm in most situations without becoming overly startled or excited.
The reason he had entertained those thoughts just now was that he had not properly subdued his restless mind, and it had begun to stir.
"Sure enough, the heart is like a bright mirror; it needs constant dusting." After calming the turmoil in his heart, Chen Yuan began considering his next plans.
First of all, even from a rational perspective, he should still obtain whatever resources could increase his strength. He simply needed to avoid putting the cart before the horse. His goal had always been to climb the highest peak, so he needed to proceed steadily and build a solid foundation. He absolutely could not chase quick success.
Therefore, some resources could not be used. For example, certain genetic medicines on Earth could also increase strength, but they did so at the cost of one's potential. They were absolutely unacceptable to Chen Yuan.
"So my next goal is to strive to join the Elite Training Camp, then take the opportunity to sign a Training Contract with the Limit Dojo." Chen Yuan calculated inwardly.
That was right. Chen Yuan planned to replicate Luo Feng's experience: first join the Elite Training Camp, then display his talent—such as his Force Exertion Level—to attract the attention of the Limit Dojo's higher-ups and have them offer him an Official Recruitment Contract.
Generally speaking, such a contract would stipulate that he had to raise his combat strength to a certain level within a set period of time. However, that was not the important part. The truly important thing was that the dojo would provide precious resources based on his performance!
What tempted Chen Yuan the most were resources that could increase his strength without depleting his potential, such as Dragon Blood.
Dragon Blood was a resource that enhanced strength. Its advantage was that it did not deplete potential, which made it extremely expensive. According to the original work's description, even internal members of the Limit Dojo who received a half-price discount still had to pay a full eighty billion!
If Chen Yuan relied solely on hunting Monsters to slowly earn those eighty billion, who knew how long it would take to gather enough? Not to mention that even if he did gather it, he would still need "purchase qualifications" before he could buy it from the Limit Dojo.
Therefore, the simplest method was to obtain those resources directly through the Limit Dojo's Training Contract.
"However, Elementary War General Level strength probably isn't enough to join the Elite Training Camp." Chen Yuan remembered that in the original work, Luo Feng had entered the Elite Training Camp with Elementary War General Level strength.
But that had been twenty years ago. At the time, the Elite Training Camp had still been called the War God Preparatory Camp.
But now, twenty years later, the Elite Training Camp was no longer training so-called War Gods. It was training Planetary Level powerhouses!
Thus, the current Elite Training Camp was also called the Planetary Preparatory Camp. As for the title of War God Preparatory Camp, it had long since been passed down to the Basic Training Camp.
With Luo Feng's performance back then, he had still needed to pass a B-grade assessment to enter the Elite Training Camp. Although Chen Yuan believed himself stronger than Luo Feng had been at the same time, he might not necessarily be able to impress the Limit Dojo so easily.
"Since Elementary War General isn't reliable enough..." Chen Yuan looked at the data on the panel and pondered for a moment. "I'm only thirteen hundred kilograms short. I'll first raise myself to Intermediate War General, then give it a try. It'll also be a good chance to further temper my swordsmanship and improve my Force Exertion Level."
Chen Yuan's current Force Exertion Level was only 2, somewhat lower than Luo Feng's had been at the same point. Of course, that was because he had only cultivated for a little over a month, while Luo Feng had trained for a full half year by the time he became a War General!
Therefore, Chen Yuan was very confident that as long as he could enter the Elite Training Camp, he would definitely attract the Limit Dojo's attention and receive focused cultivation.
"Then it's decided." Chen Yuan stood up and walked out of the basement. "I'll use one month as the deadline, do everything I can to improve myself, then return to the Jinling City Limit Dojo, display my strength, and obtain the qualifications for the Elite Training Camp."
Afterward, Chen Yuan found a water source near the villa. Once he had replenished his drinking water and washed away the grime produced by his transformation, he left County-level City No. 0247 and headed deeper inside.
Time flowed like water, and a month quickly passed.
Deep within the Wilderness Zone, an exceptionally fierce battle was taking place in Prefecture-level City No. 067.
The two sides were an Elementary Overlord Level Monster—a Fire-Scaled Trident Boar—and a young man in a combat suit wielding a Streamer Battle Sword. It was Chen Yuan.
The Fire-Scaled Trident Boar was covered in fiery red scales and stood over ten meters tall. Three curved horns grew from its massive head, shaped like a trident, hence its name.
Chen Yuan, meanwhile, stood only 1.8 meters tall. Before the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar, he looked as small as a blade of grass. Yet with his nimble footwork, he moved around it with ease.
One had to know that as an Overlord Level Monster, the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar could run at the speed of sound! Yet despite attacking for so long, it had not even touched the corner of Chen Yuan's clothes, because Chen Yuan was faster and more agile.
Naturally, Chen Yuan did not dare let the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's attacks hit him either. If he were struck by the trident atop its head, the Series 7 Combat Suit on his body would not be able to save his life.
Just then, after Chen Yuan dodged another attack from the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar, he finally spotted an opening.
"Now!"
Chen Yuan suddenly exerted force beneath his feet, instantly unleashing his Extreme Speed. His speed even exceeded nine hundred meters per second. As a sonic boom rang out, Chen Yuan had already leaped above the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's head.
His long sword thrust forward. Chen Yuan unleashed 3.2 times his strength and drove the entire sword directly into the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's eye socket.
"Roar—"
The Fire-Scaled Trident Boar let out a painful roar, its four hooves stomping wildly. But Chen Yuan had been prepared. He immediately released the battle sword and rapidly retreated beyond the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's attack range, leaving the sword embedded in its eye socket.
Time passed, and the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's wails gradually weakened. Its massive body could no longer support itself, and it crashed heavily to the ground, making the earth tremble.
Chen Yuan also let out a long breath. "It's finally dead."
He then opened the panel. After seeing that the Kill Points belonging to the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar had arrived, he approached its corpse with relief and pulled the Streamer Battle Sword from its eye socket.
Looking at the dense notches covering the blade, Chen Yuan could not help sighing. "This battle sword should retire too."
Clearly, the Streamer Battle Sword made of A6 Grade material had difficulty harming an Overlord Level Monster, especially a Fire-Scaled Trident Boar known for its defenses.
The notches on the battle sword were proof. At the start, Chen Yuan had used the sword to attack the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's body, only for its surface scales to block the attacks. Worse still, the blade had chipped, and the sword that had accompanied Chen Yuan for a month had begun to suffer damage.
Over the course of the battle, the notches on the sword became more and more numerous, nearly reaching the point of breaking. Fortunately, Chen Yuan had ultimately seized the opportunity to drive the sword into the Fire-Scaled Trident Boar's eye socket and kill it.
"Defeating an Overlord Level Monster while at Intermediate War General Level can be considered a Completion Level ending to this period of cultivation." Chen Yuan recalled his training over the past month and could not help sighing.
He then opened the panel and examined the progress he had made during this time.
Before you continue