Leave of Absence

Earth!

In the world of Swallowed Star, Earth was not an ordinary rocky planet. According to the original setting, it was a special treasure personally forged by Mountain Sitting Guest, a supreme powerhouse who stood at the pinnacle of the universe.

Its effect was that humans born on Earth possessed exceptional talent in terms of their "state of mind," making the Will Branch attribute easier to improve.

"Since Earth is a treasure forged by Mountain Sitting Guest, it should be usable as a meditation object." Chen Yuan's eyes lit up. The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

So he tried again. "System, optimize the Hibernation Method. Optimization direction: a cultivation method suitable for the Entering Stillness realm, using Earth as the meditation object, with the effect of enhancing one's spiritual realm and consciousness strength."

"Optimization task creation failed. Reason: insufficient information on the meditation object."

"So this failure was because of insufficient information on the meditation object." Chen Yuan stared at the information on the panel and asked, "What information is required to use Earth as a meditation object?"

The system answered every question. It quickly displayed a huge amount of information, and after reading it carefully, Chen Yuan fell into thought and roughly understood the requirements.

Although the system had said quite a lot, it all boiled down to one sentence: he had to observe the planet with his own eyes.

This observation had to be both macroscopic—viewing the entire Earth from space—and thorough, reaching every corner of the planet and recording mountains, rivers, lakes, rainforests, and all kinds of terrain in detail.

"So, if I want to use Earth as a meditation object, I need to take an impromptu trip around the world?" Chen Yuan rubbed his forehead, finding it rather troublesome.

The first issue was time. Recording most of Earth's terrain meant setting foot in many different regions, which would take a great deal of time.

Whether the Training Camp would approve such a long leave was another problem.

What was more, he needed to find a way to get into space at least once so he could observe the entire Earth.

For all of this, he had to see it in person. Photos and computer-simulated landscapes were useless.

"There's no helping it. I can't just skip optimizing the cultivation method, or I'll be stuck at Entering Stillness." Chen Yuan shook his head. "I'll ask Teacher Jiang Fang for leave first, and while I'm at it, see whether there's any way to get into space."

With Earth's current technology, getting into space was not difficult. The difficult part was arranging a rocket launch as an individual.

Fortunately, Chen Yuan had the Limit Dojo behind him, so he should be able to find a chance to go up there.

Chen Yuan left the basement, took a shower, changed clothes, and called Jiang Fang.

"Chen Yuan? What is it..." Jiang Fang sounded somewhat surprised. This student was not only gifted but also extremely self-disciplined. He should not have had any cultivation problems requiring her guidance.

"It's like this, Teacher Jiang. I'd like to request leave, for an indefinite period," Chen Yuan said directly.

"Leave?" Jiang Fang had not expected that question. She froze for a moment, then said, "...You're at Jiangnan Pavilion, right? Wait for me. I'll be there right away."

She hung up immediately. After Chen Yuan waited where he was for a while, Jiang Fang hurried over.

Upon seeing Chen Yuan, Jiang Fang walked straight up to him and asked, "It wasn't clear over the phone. Did something happen? Do you need my help?"

Chen Yuan did not hide his purpose. "It concerns my cultivation. I need to travel across Earth and observe all kinds of natural terrain."

"Also, I want to find an opportunity to go into space and view the whole Earth."

"Observe nature... Could it be that your Conception is about to break through?" Jiang Fang asked doubtfully.

"I just have a feeling that doing this will help my cultivation." Chen Yuan was not good at lying, so his answer was deliberately vague.

"I see... I can approve your leave, but how long do you need?" Jiang Fang smiled and asked again.

"The length depends on when I finish seeing Earth and gain some insight. The exact time is uncertain." Chen Yuan shook his head helplessly. "So I'll need you to make an exception."

Jiang Fang pondered for a moment, then looked at Chen Yuan and said, "So your issue is that you don't know how long it will take you to break through, and at the latest, you may need to travel across the entire Earth?"

Chen Yuan nodded, then added, "And I need to go into space once, the kind where I can see the whole Earth."

"There's nothing you can do by coming to me. Only the dojo's upper management has spaceships and warships capable of flying into space." Jiang Fang shook her head. Seeing Chen Yuan's disappointed expression, she smiled again. "But you can ask Wei Wen."

"Uncle Wei?" Chen Yuan was startled.

"Didn't you know? Wei Wen's personal craft is a Smart Fighter Jet, and it's Primordial-class." Jiang Fang's tone carried a hint of envy. "Even an ordinary King-Level Smart Fighter Jet can fly in low Earth orbit, let alone a Primordial-class one. Wei Wen can even make a round trip to the Moon."

"Besides, ordinary Smart Fighter Jets already exceed ten thousand kilometers per hour. Wei Wen's is even faster. No matter where on Earth you want to go, you can reach your destination in less than an hour." Jiang Fang looked at Chen Yuan. "So for this, asking your 'Uncle Wei' is the most convenient option. If you can borrow his Smart Fighter Jet, even circling the world will take only a few days."

"Then call him and ask to borrow it now," Jiang Fang said. "If Wei Wen refuses, give the phone to me. I'll talk to him."

Chen Yuan nodded, then called Wei Wen under Jiang Fang's watchful gaze.

"Beep... beep..."

"Hello, Chen Yuan? What do you need?" Wei Wen's voice came through the phone.

"Uncle Wei, there's something I'd like to ask your help with..." Chen Yuan explained his needs succinctly.

"I understand. You mean that because you lack an opportunity for a breakthrough, you need to travel around the world and see the natural scenery in different places, as well as go into space to view Earth once, right?"

Over the phone, Wei Wen summarized Chen Yuan's request, then readily agreed. "No problem! Go ahead and take the fighter jet. Once you're done, just tell the jet's intelligence, and it'll fly home by itself."

"Do you need it now? If so, I'll have the fighter jet head over immediately. It should reach the Training Camp in about half an hour."

Chen Yuan glanced at Jiang Fang. Seeing her nod, he said gratefully, "I need it right away. Sorry to trouble you this time, Uncle Wei."

"Hey, you call me Uncle Wei, so what's this little matter?" Wei Wen sounded completely different over the phone than he did in person, exceptionally hearty and cheerful.

After hanging up, Chen Yuan said to Jiang Fang, "Teacher Jiang, I'll request ten days of leave first. That should be enough."

"Fine." Jiang Fang agreed just as readily. Smiling warmly at Chen Yuan, she said, "If you run out of time, just call and let me know. Your leave can be extended anytime."

"I've troubled you too this time, Teacher Jiang." Chen Yuan lowered his head slightly.

"It's nothing." Jiang Fang gently shook her head. "I only hope that when you return from leave, you'll be stronger than you are now."

"I will be," Chen Yuan said firmly.

Chen Yuan then bade Jiang Fang farewell. After returning to the pavilion to collect some personal belongings, he went alone to the entrance of the Training Camp and waited for the fighter jet to arrive.

About half an hour later, a dark-blue, flying-saucer-shaped fighter jet flew in from the horizon. It was Wei Wen's Primordial-class Smart Fighter Jet, one Chen Yuan had ridden many times before.

The fighter jet flew above Chen Yuan, slowly descended, and landed completely.

The hatch opened, and at the same time, an electronic voice came from inside the fighter jet. "Chen Yuan, please board the fighter jet."

Chen Yuan smiled faintly, slung his backpack over his shoulders, and stepped through the hatch.