With the end of his tenth training session, Xu Ziming finally entered a state of epiphany.
In this state, Xu Ziming's progress in cultivation was astonishingly fast.
[Five Prison Sword Art Current Realm: Not Yet Initiated (23.3%)] [Five Prison Sword Art Current Realm: Not Yet Initiated (27.9%)] [Five Prison Sword Art Current Realm: Not Yet Initiated (31.7%)]
Xu Ziming's body seemed to become a cage that suppressed all things. His qi and blood circled within him, forming one prison after another and gradually creating a new network of qi and blood.
It wasn't just his swordsmanship—even his Life Energy Level seemed to be rising along with it, though its numerical value hadn't changed.
In this wondrous state, his control over his own body reached an entirely new level, and his understanding of the Five Prison Sword Art improved tremendously.
As his proficiency gradually climbed to 40% (Not Yet Initiated), the rudiments of sword intent slowly took shape in his mind.
Unlike Sword Momentum, sword intent was closer to something tangible, rather than mere presence.
The key to cultivating sword intent lay in first forming its rudiments, then practicing swordsmanship every day and letting the qi and blood within the body flow in a fixed pattern.
In the end, it would continually be transformed into the fuel needed to condense sword intent. This was more than simply tempering one's qi and blood—it was a form of cultivation that defied description.
During this process of transformation, small wounds gradually appeared on Xu Ziming's body. Most were ruptured capillaries caused by his qi and blood suddenly changing course.
However, thanks to the Flame Spirit Clan Leader's Favor, Xu Ziming recovered quickly.
As he made progress in cultivating the Five Prison Sword Art, Xu Ziming realized that his swordsmanship had also changed in some way.
This wasn't a simple accumulation of quantity. It was a genuine qualitative transformation.
Every move and gesture of his now carried a hint of a grandmaster who had reached great mastery.
"Whoo—"
Xu Ziming let out a long breath, finally finishing his experience of the effects of this epiphany.
It was already evening.
He didn't rest. Instead, he began practicing the Galaxy Mental Tempering Method. This was his first time cultivating it since he'd obtained it.
To meet the requirements for cultivation, he removed the Sword Saint Body Technique and switched to the Star God's Favor trait.
This was the first time Xu Ziming had equipped this trait. The moment he did, he sensed something different.
It was a vague feeling of being blessed by a higher existence, unlike anything even the Flame Spirit Clan's Blessing could evoke.
Next, he tried to direct the qi and blood within him to sense the stars of the universe, tens of thousands of light-years away.
He sensed them!
There was no awkwardness or hesitation whatsoever. The instant he projected his consciousness outward, the energy scattered through the starry sky surged into his body of its own accord, as if it were returning home.
He didn't need to guide it at all.
Still, to get the best results from his cultivation, he used his mind to guide the stellar energy through his body, then gathered it into his mind.
A warm sensation spread through his sea of consciousness. With the help of the stellar energy, his sea of consciousness—or rather, his mental power—gradually began to take on a tangible form.
It was only like a speck of dust, though, too tiny to make out clearly.
Xu Ziming didn't lose heart. Instead, he continued drawing in an unending stream of stellar energy, pouring it all in and making it part of his spirit.
Perhaps it was because this was his first time using stellar energy to temper his body and mind. Perhaps the epiphany he'd experienced while practicing swordsmanship that day had truly helped.
Xu Ziming actually felt a searing heat in his body—the kind that only came when breaking through to a new Life Energy Level.
The last time he'd advanced had been after consuming an Alien Warrior Life Source Crystal. As far as cultivation was concerned, this was the first time in a week that he'd broken through to a new Life Energy Level purely through his own efforts.
Sure enough, after he had practiced the Galaxy Mental Tempering Method five times, the heat in his body reached its peak.
Then came the notification from Yue'er's Equipment Slot.
[Life Energy Level Breakthrough! Current Level: 3.9]
Besides that, the speck of dust in his sea of consciousness finally condensed into a bead about the size of a grain of rice.
Just as Xu Ziming was preparing to continue cultivating, a sharp pain shot through his mind.
His mental power was completely spent. He couldn't practice the Mental Tempering Method any more that day.
Before, his body had been what kept him from practicing the Basic Body Forging Method. Later, as his physical attributes improved and his Iron Skin grew tougher, he had gradually overcome that obstacle.
He hadn't expected to run into it again a month later.
He glanced at the time. Just five sessions had taken nearly five hours—one hour each.
It was already three in the morning. Xu Ziming didn't choose to rest, instead starting his studies for the academic subjects.
The Second Mock Exam was drawing closer, and he'd been rather lax about his academic subjects lately.
Just like that, eight days passed in the blink of an eye. It was now late March, and the Second Mock Exam was about to begin.
"Bang!" The door to the training room swung open. Xu Ziming had been training for eight full days straight, only sleeping the night before.
During that time, Mother Xu had brought him meals every day. She'd also told him that the family had finished moving and was waiting for him to come back and see the new place once his training was over. As for his father, they still hadn't been able to contact him.
Xu Ziming opened the door and wiped his bare upper body with a towel, sweat running down the contours of his muscles.
Even his face looked more sharply defined than it had eight days ago.
He lifted his head slightly and looked at the physical data page in the Equipment Slot.
[Host: Xu Ziming] [Life Energy Level: 4.2] [Cultivation Techniques: Basic Body Forging Method—Great Mastery, Basic Sword Method—Minor Mastery, Five Prison Sword Art—Initiated, Nebula Mental Tempering Method—Initiated] [Equipped Traits: "Qilin Body," "Star God's Favor," "Flame Spirit Clan Leader's Favor"] [Permanent Traits: Body Forging Acceleration, Natural Sword Bone, Steel Skin, Charge Filtration] [Equipment Slot Level: 3]
In eight days, Xu Ziming's Life Energy Level had risen by another 0.3. On top of that, he had successfully reached great mastery in the Basic Body Forging Method.
After reaching great mastery, the concentration of qi and blood in his body had risen by another fifty percent. Now, he no longer had to worry about being unable to hold out.
If news of this astonishing speed got out, it would be enough to shock all the high school students and adults in Pengcheng City.
If he could go back to the night he'd fought in the underground boxing ring, he'd never be a "one-minute man" again.
"Maybe Shen Xingyue's strength is only about this level?" Feeling the abundant power within him, Xu Ziming thought smugly.
That was the effect of the Equipment Slot continually stacking traits, and it would keep growing stronger like a snowball rolling downhill.
Perhaps one day, he'd be able to raise his Life Energy Level by a single digit in a day.