Chapter 58: Trouble from the Dantian

Jianchen took a long breath, slowly calming himself down. He then looked down at the demon core in his hand. Although the energy absorption from the demon core had only lasted for a brief moment, he clearly felt that the energy within this first-stage demon core had significantly decreased, and even the size of the demon core seemed to have shrunk.

This scene made Jianchen draw a sharp breath. While the energy in a first-stage demon core was not particularly abundant, before reaching the Sage realm, Jianchen would need at least three nights to completely absorb the energy from a first-stage demon core. However, the energy absorption he had just experienced lasted only a single breath, yet he could clearly feel that the energy within the demon core had drastically reduced. Jianchen could hardly imagine how much energy he had absorbed in that short time.

Jianchen then immediately checked his body, but to his great surprise, after absorbing such a vast amount of energy, there was no reaction in his dantian, and his energy showed no signs of increasing. It was as if what had just happened was just an illusion that never occurred.

If it weren't for the clear reduction in energy within the first-stage demon core in his hand, Jianchen would have thought that what had just happened was just an illusion, for everything was too bizarre.

Furrowing his brows, Jianchen thought hard, but no matter how much he pondered, he could not understand what had happened. In the end, Jianchen could only put the matter aside and continue to absorb the energy from the demon core to cultivate. However, after what had just happened, Jianchen was much more cautious this time, focusing all his attention on his body to prevent the inexplicable event from happening again.

To his surprise, as soon as he began to absorb the energy from the demon core, the same scene reappeared. The demon core in Jianchen's hand emitted a faint glow, and the energy inside rushed into his body at an incredible speed, entering through the meridians in his arm and the pores in his skin.

Jianchen, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, trembled slightly. Now, he was certain that what had just happened was real, not an illusion. Just as Jianchen was about to stop absorbing the energy from the demon core, he suddenly changed his mind. He heightened his focus to the utmost, closely monitoring the situation inside his body. He wanted to understand what was happening and why the speed of energy absorption from the demon core had suddenly increased to such a terrifying degree, and why the energy entering his body seemed to vanish without a trace.

The first-stage demon core in Jianchen's hand was visibly shrinking at a rapid rate, and the vast amount of energy released from the demon core was continuously pouring into his body through the meridians in his arm and the pores in his skin. The intense energy flow caused pain in the meridians in his arm and a small area of his skin.

Unlike the absorption of elemental energy from the environment two days ago, which was gentle, the energy from the demon core was much more intense and pure. It also contained a violent factor, making the rapid absorption of energy from the demon core detrimental to Jianchen's body.

Jianchen paid no attention to the pain, focusing his mind and closely observing the situation inside his body. He noticed that most of the vast energy he absorbed from the demon core was flowing towards a specific location in his dantian, while only a tiny fraction remained for him to absorb.

When Jianchen discovered where the energy was going, his expression changed dramatically. The location was where the two purple and green light points had appeared in his dantian two days ago, and these light points were absorbing all the energy.

Jianchen slowly opened his eyes and looked at the demon core in his hand with a serious expression. He then discarded the demon core and closed his eyes again, continuing to cultivate by absorbing elemental energy from the environment.

The elemental energy gathered towards Jianchen at an incredibly fast rate, about ten times faster than usual. However, of the elemental energy he absorbed, ninety-nine percent was absorbed by the two mysterious light points in his dantian, leaving him with only one percent.

If this were the case, Jianchen's cultivation speed would be ten times slower than before.

Realizing this, Jianchen's expression turned grim. A cultivation speed that was only one-tenth of his usual speed was not what he wanted. What was even more unexpected was that the two purple and green light points in his dantian were causing him such significant trouble.

Jianchen then tried to absorb the energy from the demon core again. To his relief, his expression gradually relaxed. If he absorbed the energy from the demon core, his cultivation speed would not only be as fast as before but even faster by a third. However, the downside was the enormous consumption of demon cores, which made Jianchen break out in a cold sweat.

A first-stage demon core that used to last him three nights of cultivation now only lasted less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea. If he were to cultivate for a whole night, he would need nearly fifty first-stage demon cores. Such a high consumption rate would be unsustainable even if Jianchen were extremely wealthy.

Jianchen quickly calmed down. With his mental fortitude, such a minor setback would not defeat him. "Well, one step at a time. If I run out of demon cores, I'll just hunt more monsters. Besides, maybe they'll stop competing for energy once they're full."

With this thought, Jianchen took out a large number of demon cores from his spatial belt and continued to cultivate.

The night passed quickly. The next morning, Jianchen ended his cultivation and counted the demon cores he had used the previous night. He couldn't help but draw a sharp breath. In just one night, he had used fifty-six first-stage demon cores.

Jianchen's face showed a bitter smile. Although he still had many demon cores in his spatial belt, at this rate, they would not last long. Once his demon cores were depleted, he would have to rely on absorbing elemental energy from the environment, which would be ten times slower. Now, Jianchen could only hope that the two light points in his dantian would reach saturation soon and stop competing for energy.

"It seems I'll have to go to the forest to hunt more monsters for demon cores," Jianchen muttered to himself.

After calming down, Jianchen left the dormitory and went to the small forest on the east side of the academy to teach his elder brother, Changyang Hu, some techniques and combat experience. He continued until the sun was high in the sky.

"Brother, that's enough for today. You need to spend more time on the application and transformation of strength. As for combat experience, it will increase with more battles, so you don't need to practice it deliberately," Jianchen said to his elder brother. These days, Jianchen would come here every morning to guide his brother in martial arts.

Changyang Hu nodded and said, "I understand, Fourth Brother." Changyang Hu was no longer surprised by how Jianchen knew these things. He didn't know about Jianchen's life in the Changyang Manor, but he believed his fourth brother was a true genius. Even if he received special attention in the family, it was justified. Perhaps these skills were taught to him by the elders in the family, or he learned them from the books in the family's library, as he often spent his days in the library at the academy.

"Brother, practice on your own. I'll leave now," Jianchen said, then walked deeper into the forest. Changyang Hu continued practicing.

...

In an indoor training ground at the academy, two young men in the academy's uniform were engaged in an intense battle. Both were wielding large swords. One of the swords glowed with a fiery red light, emitting waves of heat. This was Cheng Mingxiang, known as a cultivation genius at Kagas Academy.

The other young man's large sword glowed with a water-blue light. He appeared slightly older than Cheng Mingxiang, but his expression was serious, and his forehead was covered in sweat.

The two were fighting intensely, but it was clear to any observer that the young man with the water-blue sword was being completely overpowered by the one with the fiery red sword, unable to fight back and only able to defend.

"Alright, Young Master, let's stop. I can't hold on any longer," the young man with the water-blue sword suddenly said.

Hearing this, Cheng Mingxiang immediately stopped, and his large sword disappeared from his hand. He smiled and said, "Sala, your endurance is getting shorter. You need to work harder. You're much weaker than before."

Hearing this, the young man with the water-blue sword couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "Young Master, it's not that I've become weaker, but that you've become much stronger. I'm no match for you anymore."

Hearing this, Cheng Mingxiang's face showed a hint of pride.

At that moment, a student in the academy's uniform ran in and approached Cheng Mingxiang. He then took out an envelope and said, "Young Master Cheng, this is a personal letter from the Patriarch."

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