Chapter 78

Time passes like sand, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a month had gone by.

During these half dozen days, Mu Chen underwent intense training under the waterfall every day. The impact of the waterfall often forcefully pushed him into the lake, and the wooden stakes that cascaded down with the waterfall repeatedly struck his fingers, causing them to swell and turn red. If it weren't for the spiritual energy constantly circulating within his body, nurturing his body and the bones of his fingertips, Mu Chen would have long been unable to endure.

In the first five days of this half month, Mu Chen was almost always in a semi-comatose state, being carried back by Master Mo. The young boy, usually gentle and sunny, was extremely comfortable to be around, but once he set his mind to something, even Master Mo was slightly moved by his persistence.

Fortunately, after the most difficult adaptation period of the first week, Mu Chen began to show his talent. Although he still suffered many injuries, compared to the state of being semi-comatose and carried back during the first week, he was much better.

As time passed day by day, Mu Chen's adaptation grew stronger. Sometimes, he could even catch the brief moments when the waterfall's flow had gaps.

His fingers, with each heavy blow and the nurturing of spiritual energy, became increasingly lethal. Occasionally, if he seized the right moment, he could truly pierce through the wooden stakes that flashed by.

This arduous training finally began to show results.

Of course, during these half dozen days, not only did Mu Chen improve, but the four others, Tang Qian'er, Mo Ling, and the others, who were also training under the waterfall, made progress as well. Among them, Chen Fan and Huo Yun improved the most.

These two had long attempted to condense their spiritual wheels, and now they only needed a small step to truly advance. Therefore, on the thirteenth day of their training, they were pleasantly surprised to find that the spiritual energy in their qi seas had finally condensed into spiritual energy light wheels. The sudden surge of spiritual energy even pushed back the massive waterfall.

Although the two successfully advanced to the Spiritual Wheel Realm, Master Mo still had them continue training under the waterfall to stabilize their realm as soon as possible, to avoid any signs of floating spiritual energy.

Tang Qian'er and Mo Ling, seeing Chen Fan and the others successfully advance to the Spiritual Wheel Realm, were greatly stimulated. They significantly reduced their rest time, gritting their teeth to endure the water's impact, and struggled to circulate the spiritual energy within their bodies, hoping to advance to the Spiritual Wheel Realm as soon as possible.

The scorching sun hung in the sky, and under the icy waterfall, five figures endured the waves of pressure, letting time quietly slip away.

*Boom.*

The waterfall cascaded down the mountain gorge, finally landing in the lake below, splashing up mist that filled the sky.

At the edge of the lake, Master Mo stood with his hands behind his back. He glanced at Tang Qian'er and the others meditating under the waterfall, sensing the increasingly powerful spiritual energy fluctuations, and nodded slightly. Then he turned his head to look in another direction.

The waterfall there was even more rapid, and the sound of the massive water flow cascading down was like a low rumble, echoing through the gorge.

Under that waterfall, there were narrow wooden stakes. Mu Chen's figure darted and leaped like a spirit monkey on these stakes. His speed was extremely fast, sometimes only a shadow could be seen.

"Not fast enough!"

However, Mu Chen was not satisfied with his speed. He frowned, and the cold mist splashed on his face, making his mind even calmer.

Dark spiritual energy surged from Mu Chen's body, wrapping around his feet. Instantly, the deafening roar of the waterfall seemed to quietly disappear.

The water fell from the sky.

Mu Chen's eyes narrowed slightly. In the next moment, his figure darted out like lightning, weaving through the waterfall's flow at his fastest speed.

*Whoosh!*

A somewhat blurry shadow appeared on a wooden stake. The water rushed past, but it went straight through, revealing a residual image created by his high speed!

"Hmm?"

Master Mo, who had been watching from the edge of the lake, narrowed his eyes and let out a light exclamation.

At this moment, Mu Chen seemed to be isolated from the outside world. He could feel his body becoming much lighter, and the previously uncontrollable turbulent water now seemed to slow down. He could even see the gaps in the water curtain.

As long as he passed through these gaps, he could avoid the waterfall completely!

*Whoosh!*

Mu Chen's figure blurred, and dark spiritual energy surged from his feet. A blurry shadow appeared, and his figure darted through the gaps in the waterfall like a black line.

*Whoosh!*

Just as Mu Chen's figure passed through the water gap, a black shadow rushed down the turbulent water.

Mu Chen's expression remained calm. He bent his fingers, paused for a moment, and then extended his arm straight out. His fingers, like a sharp spear, tore through the mist and struck the center of the wooden stake with extreme precision.

*Pang!*

A dull sound echoed, and Mu Chen's fingers pierced through the wooden stake, sending splinters flying and being washed away by the water.

A sense of joy welled up in Mu Chen's heart. This was the most satisfying strike in over twenty days, with no hesitation, and the flow of power was like water flowing smoothly.

"Ha ha!"

Mu Chen's heart filled with indescribable joy, and he couldn't help but laugh out loud. His figure moved, turning into a black line, darting back and forth under the waterfall.

*Pang! Pang! Pang!*

As he darted, his attacks did not stop. His finger strikes were like lightning, seizing every precise moment to pierce through the wooden stakes that flashed by.

The low sounds formed a rhythmic and beautiful melody.

Tang Qian'er and the others, who were training elsewhere under the waterfall, were startled by this rhythmic sound. They looked over and saw a shadow darting back and forth under the waterfall, and they were all stunned.

"This lunatic."

Chen Fan couldn't help but smirk. After advancing to the Spiritual Wheel Realm, he had also tried Mu Chen's training method, but he was instantly washed away as soon as he reached the wooden stakes. Later, he tried again with spiritual energy enveloping his body, but he was still hit and thrown away by the wooden stakes.

Now, Mu Chen could move as if walking on flat ground on the wooden stakes under the waterfall's impact and even pierce through the wooden stakes. How terrifying must his speed and finger strength be?

This monster, in the entire Northern Spirit Academy, probably only Liu Mu Bai from the West Courtyard could match him.

Beside the lake, Master Mo nodded in satisfaction.

Under the gaze of Tang Qian'er, Chen Fan, and the others, who looked at him like a monster, Mu Chen finally stopped after about ten minutes, stabilizing his feet on a wooden stake.

He stabilized his figure but did not retreat. Instead, he sat down in a meditative posture, and dark spiritual energy rose from his body, resisting the incoming water.

Tang Qian'er and the others were slightly stunned by Mu Chen's strange actions. Then they felt a special spiritual energy fluctuation emanating from his body.

"This is..."

Master Mo's eyebrows lifted slightly. "Did his cultivation technique suddenly break through?"

Master Mo's guess was indeed correct. Earlier, Mu Chen had felt an indescribable comfort in his body. When he pushed his speed to the limit, he found that the spiritual energy in his body began to circulate on its own, following the path of the Great Floating Pagoda Technique.

The dark spiritual energy surged, flowing into his qi sea. Mu Chen's mind followed, and he was surprised to see that on the spiritual wheel in his qi sea, dark spiritual energy rose and condensed, forming a roughly palm-sized, illusory light tower.

This light tower was extremely illusory, as if it would dissipate with the slightest breeze. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to have nine layers, but only the base was somewhat solid, while the rest was illusory and blurry.

But at the moment the illusory light tower formed, Mu Chen felt mysterious light points light up in his body. These points were scattered throughout his body, but if connected, they formed a large light tower inside Mu Chen's body!

As this light tower appeared, dark spiritual energy surged on the surface of Mu Chen's body, forming a somewhat blurry black light tower.

This light tower protected his entire body.

*Boom.*

The massive waterfall crashed down, striking the blurry black light tower, but it remained unmoved.

However, the black light tower only lasted for a moment before quickly dissipating. As the light tower disappeared, Mu Chen's tightly closed eyes slowly opened, filled with uncontrollable joy.

The Great Floating Pagoda Technique he was cultivating had advanced to the Forming Stage!

(To be continued)