Cultivating the second layer of the Heavenly Dragon Golden Body was far tougher, producing Heavenly Dragon True Essence was no small feat.
Outside the Treasure Pavilion, something felt off.
The white-haired Ninth-Tier Martial Master suddenly noticed that the low-grade spirit stones in the pavilion were being consumed rapidly, their abundant spiritual energy pouring entirely into Ling Xiao’s body.
“What’s this kid doing? Comprehending a mortal technique shouldn’t burn through low-grade spirit stones,” the black-haired Ninth-Tier Martial Master said, shocked.
“He’s not comprehending, he’s cultivating!” the white-haired Martial Master said with a wry smile. “Unbelievable, in just half an hour, he’s fully grasped the Heavenly Dragon Golden Body. Does he actually have dragon blood?”
“Senior Brother, this isn’t good. Those spirit stones belong to the General’s Mansion. If he keeps this up, he’ll face serious punishment,” the black-haired Martial Master said urgently.
“No need to worry,” the white-haired Martial Master stroked his beard, smiling. “His realm’s still low, so he’s only drawing on low-grade spirit stones. Let him use them. The rules don’t forbid it, and they’re just low-grade stones. If he really masters a mortal technique, what’s a few stones?”
General September gaped, thinking, Marshal Lin, what kind of freak did you drag in? This kid’s way too heaven-defying.
Inside the pavilion, low-grade spirit stones were vanishing fast.
Ten!
Twenty!
Fifty!
A hundred!
A resounding dragon roar echoed through the pavilion.
Ling Xiao finally opened his eyes.
He’d broken through to the second layer, a trace of Heavenly Dragon True Essence now in his body.
At first, he was thrilled, but his face fell fast.
Breaking through had burned through over ten thousand low-grade spirit stones!
His Mountain River World only held a few hundred.
The Heavenly Dragon Golden Body didn’t need gold, but its spirit stone consumption was astronomical.
Still, it felt worth it.
With just his physical strength, he could sweep same-realm martial artists, those below Seventh-Tier Martial Vein were nothing.
Second layer or not, his power had more than doubled since becoming a Martial Master.
With terrifying physical might and Heavenly Dragon True Essence, he could now solo late Seventh-Tier Martial Masters, even hold his own against peak ones, worst case, he wouldn’t get crushed.
But the resources needed for the Heavenly Dragon Golden Body were insane, reaching the second layer made further breakthroughs feel like scaling the heavens.
Unless he got his hands on massive resources.
“Time to head back!”
Ling Xiao took a deep breath, stood, and walked out of the pavilion.
“Why’s everyone staring at me?”
Stepping out, he was baffled to see a crowd eyeing him like he was a monster, making him a bit shy.
“Freak!” the crowd muttered in unison after a long pause.
“Ling Xiao, you used up 10,200 low-grade spirit stones. You’ll need to pay that back, so work hard,” General September said, patting his shoulder with a sigh.
Ling Xiao nodded.
Using someone else’s stuff meant repaying it, fair enough, with his strength, getting spirit stones would be easy.
“But, you don’t have to pay it back if you do one thing,” General September said, tone shifting.
“What’s that?” Ling Xiao asked.
“End of the month, Sky Endurance Academy’s sending three geniuses to spar with our Hidden Dragon Camp. As camp leader and chief commander, you’re expected to join.”
“I know, I’ll win,” Ling Xiao cut in before he could finish.
“No, one win’s not enough. We need at least two victories, or Hidden Dragon Camp loses face,” General September said. “I can swing it, if you lead us to win, I’ll cover those 10,000-plus stones.”
“Deal?”
“Deal!”
This was a no-brainer for Ling Xiao, he wasn’t about to say no.
After, he followed General September out of the Border General’s Mansion, back to Hidden Dragon Camp.
Then he went into seclusion.
This time, he called Ling Yixue and Leng Mei to his private courtyard.
They were his most trusted allies.
Leng Mei’s injuries had mostly healed, likely thanks to a top doctor.
“You two cultivate here from now on. Stick by me, you’ll gain plenty,” Ling Xiao said without much explanation, diving into stabilizing his strength.
The second layer of the Heavenly Dragon Golden Body was fresh, still shaky, he had to lock it in.
To solidify it, he popped dozens of Gang Qi Pills and downed a thousand-year Golden Snow Lotus.
He also gifted Ling Yixue and Leng Mei each a five-hundred-year Golden Snow Lotus to boost their cultivation.
Golden Snow Lotuses could grow in his Mountain River World, one day outside equaled ten years inside for plants.
In fifty days, he could grow a five-hundred-year lotus, a hundred days for a thousand-year one.
To him, such treasures, though rare, were easier to get than for others.
Twelve days remained until the month’s end.
Ten days in, Leng Mei emerged first, still shy of Seventh-Tier Martial Vein, but near invincible below it.
Her Snow Plum Remnant Soul reached thirty percent, her Shadow Assassination Technique hit Great Mastery.
On the twelfth day, Ling Xiao and Ling Yixue came out together.
Ling Yixue broke through to mid Seventh-Tier Martial Vein, a rare feat.
Her Snake Girl Remnant Soul hit sixty percent, her Soul-Seizing Palm reached Perfection.
Ling Xiao’s gains were huge too.
His Giant Sword, Blood Blade, and Ghost Ship Remnant Souls all hit sixty percent.
The Heavenly Dragon Golden Body stabilized at the second layer, one martial vein now brimming with Heavenly Dragon True Essence, his current cap.
From Leng Mei, they learned Hua Nongying, Shi Lei, and other captain-level geniuses were also in seclusion.
Probably spooked by Ling Xiao’s one-move kill on Murong Shao and fifty-move defeat of Hua Nongying, they felt the pressure.
Good news.
“Master, Hua Nongying’s likely emerging today, it’s the monthly sparring day, he’s always in. Word is, he’s been reflecting hard, training like mad, might’ve made a breakthrough,” Leng Mei warned. “Bet he’ll still come for you.”
