Meditation, a New Day

Ever since discovering that Meditation could replace sleep, Lin Huo had spent most of his nights meditating.

After cultivating all night, he felt no fatigue whatsoever. Aside from feeling refreshed, the slight increase in his Soul Power also delighted Lin Huo.

After recovering his Soul Power last night, he had briefly tested the effects of the Meditation skill in his room and made another pleasant discovery.

The Meditation skill and the meditation cultivation method he had learned from Huo Tian were, in fact, the same thing.

It was precisely because he had learned how to cultivate Soul Power through Meditation that the Meditation skill had appeared in his skill list.

The effects of the Meditation skill were also simple. Whenever he cultivated Soul Power through Meditation, as long as he intended to activate the Meditation skill, the enhancement process would automatically trigger.

For every session of Meditation cultivation lasting at least half an hour, followed by the expenditure of a large amount of Soul Power, the Meditation skill would count it as one successful enhancement, increasing both Special Attack and Special Defense by one.

When translated into reality, the increase in Special Attack was most obvious in the strength of his Soul Power.

Just one enhancement, bringing a fifty-percent increase, allowed him to clearly feel the tremendous leap in the strength of his Soul Power.

Although the total amount of Soul Power had not changed at all, its intensity had undergone a complete transformation.

More specifically, it was like ten pounds of loose cotton suddenly becoming ten pounds of wood. The same weight could unleash entirely different power.

As for the other effect, the increase in Special Defense, Lin Huo had yet to determine what it did.

However, judging from how refreshed he felt and how quickly his thoughts were moving—

Lin Huo had every reason to suspect that this so-called Special Defense enhancement was very likely applied to mental strength.

And the moment mental strength was mentioned, Lin Huo inevitably thought of the soul impact unique to absorbing a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

Thinking of Tang San in the original novel, when he broke through to Soul Ancestor, he had successfully absorbed the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Cave Demon Spider as his fourth Soul Ring.

Aside from Fiery Apricot Delicate and Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass strengthening his body—

Wasn't the key that Autumn Dew had helped Purple Demon Eye break through to the Mustard Seed Realm, greatly strengthening his mental power and allowing him to withstand the soul impact of a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring?

Although he had no idea just how much mental power Purple Demon Eye at the Mustard Seed Realm could enhance—

The +6 Special Defense effect of his Meditation skill could, if nothing went wrong, increase the strength of his mental power by up to four times!

With his mental power directly quadrupled after maxing it out, there was no way it could lose to a mere Purple Demon Eye, right?

With a fourfold increase in mental power, as long as his physical constitution met the standard, he might even be able to attempt absorbing a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring while still at the Soul Elder realm!

The more he thought about it, the hotter his heart grew. Yet Lin Huo, sitting cross-legged on the bed, suddenly shook his head and temporarily dismissed the idea of absorbing a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring early.

Absorbing a Soul Ring was truly a life-or-death matter. Even with a cheat, he would never act rashly.

If he truly wanted to put the matter of absorbing Soul Rings beyond their usual age limits into practice, he first needed to acquire more useful Soul Master knowledge as a foundation.

He might even need to use certain methods to persuade Blazing Fire Academy and obtain more help through its resources.

For now, though, he should focus on studying properly. He only had level-six Soul Power at present, so there was still time before he needed to absorb his first Soul Ring.

As for how to make this happen, he already had some ideas.

He got up, patted his backside, straightened his clothes, and had only just stepped down from the bed when he froze in place.

"Come to think of it, how am I supposed to cancel this Meditation enhancement?"

A night of Meditation had brought six successful enhancements, leaving both his Soul Power and mental strength at four times their normal levels.

He could feel neither physical exertion nor Soul Power consumption, and mentally, he did not feel the slightest bit tired.

Such a fourfold enhancement seemed to have no further cost beyond the large amount of Soul Power consumed when it was first activated.

The incomprehensible phenomenon left Lin Huo, who believed in the law of conservation of energy, deeply uneasy.

But after pondering for a while longer and still sensing nothing unusual, Lin Huo could only let it go.

Why worry so much? The mere appearance of Pokémon skills was already mysterious enough.

Since he could not spot anything abnormal for the moment, he might as well treat it as if nothing was wrong.

With Ingrain as such a reliable, life-saving skill, he did not need to be suspicious of everything.

After leaving the bedroom and washing up, Lin Huo changed clothes and headed toward the dining hall.

Now that things had come to this, he should eat first.

Early in the morning, no students could be seen walking around Blazing Fire Academy. Most of the people in sight were maids, attendants, and similarly dressed servants hurrying along the streets with meal boxes in hand.

Seeing this scene, Lin Huo could only sigh inwardly.

Blazing Fire Academy truly lived up to the rumors circulating outside. He did not know what the advanced and intermediate academies were like.

But this junior academy alone was full of young masters and young ladies who needed personal attendants even when they came here to study.

Lin Huo quickly arrived at the dining hall. The receptionist at the entrance was still the same one from yesterday.

The moment he saw Lin Huo again, the receptionist's eyes lit up. He casually summoned a group of attendants to wait at the entrance, then personally hurried forward with welcoming steps.

"Student Lin Huo, you are up very early today. For a diligent student such as yourself, success and fame are only a matter of time. But perhaps you do not know this yet?

"The academy dining hall offers complimentary meal delivery for distinguished guests like you. If you need it, you need only give us advance notice."

Once again thoroughly shaken by the vilely extravagant life of feudal imperial privilege, Lin Huo's mouth twitched as he declined.

"No need. It's only a few steps away, and walking around a little helps clear my head. Also, don't arrange that group of attendants in the future. I don't like making a big spectacle of things."

"Yes, yes, of course. The dining hall will follow your instructions from now on."

The receptionist's obsequious manner brought Lin Huo no pleasure whatsoever. Instead, he felt uncomfortable all over and sighed inwardly.

The education he had received in his previous life still would not allow him to accept a life built on standing atop other people's heads.

"Student Lin Huo, before you dine, would you like me to introduce this morning's dishes?"

This time, Lin Huo had no intention of refusing. He nodded, signaling the receptionist to begin.

"Steamed crimson prosperity, dragons welcome from the waters, blazing South Sea delicacies, golden jade flying yellow threads..."

"Stop, stop, stop! These dish names are too abstract. Please just plainly tell me the ingredients and how they're prepared."

The names nobles gave dishes were designed specifically to avoid speaking like normal people. Unable to take it any longer, Lin Huo promptly interrupted the receptionist's introduction.

The receptionist maintained the same ingratiating smile and continued in different terms. "Steamed red whale meat, braised flying dragon whale, stir-fried blazing white clams in sauce, dragon whale fin in dressing..."

A gout-inducing feast this early in the morning? Blazing Fire Academy's dining hall really had some nerve. Or were Soul Masters just built tough enough to eat this stuff every day without getting gout?

Lin Huo briefly mocked it in his heart, but he quickly noticed something else.

"Come to think of it, all these ingredients come from sea Soul Beasts, don't they?"

"Yes. Is there a problem, Student Lin Huo?"