However, before all that, let's cultivate first!
Shen Mo sat on his bed, cross-legged, and took out the last Qi Gathering Pill from his person. Counting the days, it's been a month since I last took a Qi Gathering Pill.
It's time to take it again!
According to Uncle Chen's instructions, this Qi Gathering Pill should ideally be taken once a month.
On one hand, the medicinal power of the Qi Gathering Pill was too potent for his Body Tempering Realm Layer VI cultivation to fully absorb in a short time. He had to wait for a period to completely refine its power.
On the other hand, any medicine, if overused, carried risks. Consuming too many of these spiritual medicines that directly enhanced cultivation, or taking them too frequently, could not only lead to resistance but also adversely affect a cultivator's foundation.
Therefore, Shen Mo had patiently waited until today!
GULP!
Without hesitation, he swallowed the Qi Gathering Pill.
The medicinal power slowly dispersed, and a searing heat began to burn within his body.
"Heavenly Yuan Magic, absorb!" Shen Mo muttered, the cultivation method already circulating within him.
The potent medicinal power spreading through his body was gradually guided by his cultivation method, then absorbed and assimilated by Shen Mo.
[You have absorbed the surging medicinal power of the Qi Gathering Pill, transforming it into your own vital energy. Your cultivation has improved.]
[With the circulation of Heavenly Yuan Magic, your understanding of it has deepened. Heavenly Yuan Magic Experience +1.]
...
Shen Mo ignored the continuous stream of notifications, remaining completely engrossed in his cultivation.
This meditative cultivation lasted for about four shichen.
When he opened his eyes again, a hint of brilliance shone within them.
[After a prolonged period of cultivation, you have finally broken through the realm bottleneck, successfully advancing to Body Tempering Realm Layer VII.]
I've broken through!
Body Tempering Realm Layer VII!
Feeling the surging power within his body, a sense of joy welled up in Shen Mo's heart. The path of cultivation is long, but I've crossed another threshold!
With a thought, the Destiny Panel quickly appeared, displaying all his information.
[Destinied Lord: Shen Mo]
[Cultivation: Body Tempering Realm Layer VII]
[Cultivation Method: Heavenly Yuan Magic – Senior (450/500)]
[Martial Arts: Shangqing Swordplay – Primary (95/100)...]
Not only has my cultivation level improved, but by continuously circulating Heavenly Yuan Magic during this period, my understanding of it has also reached a new level!
Shen Mo's gaze rested on the cultivation method entry.
Half a month ago, he had accumulated enough experience to advance Heavenly Yuan Magic from the Primary level to the Senior level.
The upgraded Heavenly Yuan Magic had significantly improved his ability to absorb nature's spiritual energy. This, in turn, had slightly increased Shen Mo's cultivation speed.
Now, the experience bar was almost full again.
In a few days at most, Heavenly Yuan Magic will break through to the next stage. By then, my cultivation speed should increase even further!
A flicker of anticipation danced in Shen Mo's eyes.
Perhaps it was due to the experience bar, but Shen Mo's cultivation method progression seemed to have no bottlenecks whatsoever. Unlike other cultivators, who, upon hitting a bottleneck in their cultivation, often needed all sorts of opportunities, coincidences, and patient waiting to break through. As soon as his experience points were filled, he could directly reach a new level. This effect gave Shen Mo a significant advantage over ordinary cultivators in practicing cultivation methods and magic.
However, Shen Mo couldn't yet fully ascertain whether he would encounter no bottlenecks with any cultivation method at any level. After all, his experience with it was brief, and Heavenly Yuan Magic was his only sample so far. Moreover, he had only cultivated Heavenly Yuan Magic to the Senior level.
All this remained to be verified in the future.
After pondering for a while, Shen Mo turned his gaze to another piece of data on the panel.
[Destiny Points: 1.]
Has another Destiny Point appeared?
Seeing that the Destiny Points were no longer zero, a look of pleasant surprise appeared on his face. He scrolled back through the message log and, sure enough, found that particular highlight from last night's cultivation session, hidden among the numerous other messages.
[Your diligent practice triggered a special effect. Destiny Points +1]
This time, I must use the Destiny Point cautiously. I absolutely cannot waste it! Shen Mo told himself.
The last time he used Destiny Points was three days ago. After a month of accumulation, he had finally gathered 10 Destiny Points. He had been eager to enhance his talent again, striving to upgrade it from its current top-notch level to that of a martial arts prodigy.
Disappointingly, the attempt failed. The 10 Destiny Points vanished instantly, leaving him empty-handed; it was all for nothing.
As a result, Shen Mo learned his lesson and decided that in the future, when he obtained Destiny Points, he wouldn't stubbornly focus on elevating his talent. Although talent was of paramount importance to cultivators, the success rate for improving it was too low. He still had many shortcomings that could be improved using Destiny Points.
Good steel must be used on the blade's edge.
[Vitality: Robust]
[Talent: Top-notch]
[Luck: Ordinary]
[Appearance: Average]
[Wisdom: Innately dull]
[Fate: ???]
[Lifespan: ???]
Upon opening the Basic Destiny Disc, Shen Mo hesitated for a moment but ultimately decided against trying to enhance its attributes again.
Upgrading the Basic Destiny Disc is very difficult; the failure rate must be considerably high, Shen Mo thought. The fact that I managed to upgrade my talent to the green tier in just two attempts was purely good luck. Instead of enhancing these, I might as well explore Special Destinies.
With that thought, Shen Mo once again opened the Destiny Vault.
Two Destiny Card slots appeared before him.
Aside from the equipped Special Destiny [Robust (White)], the other card slot was conspicuously empty.
Using Destiny Points should allow me to exchange them for a Special Destiny, he mused. Let's give it a try!
Shen Mo focused his mind on the empty special card slot and activated it with a thought.
In an instant, his remaining 1 Destiny Point dropped to zero.
At the same time, countless dim, currently unusable Special Destinies within the Destiny Vault began to emit dazzling fluorescent light.
A draw?
Can I spend Destiny Points to draw Special Destinies from the vault? Observing this, Shen Mo guessed inwardly.
I wonder what kind of Special Destiny will appear.
As the fluorescent light suffused the Destiny Vault, a Destiny Trait, enveloped in flowing light, gradually materialized.
Shen Mo held his breath, his heart filled with anticipation.
Purple, orange... preferably gold!
He had browsed this Destiny Vault before. Although all the Destinies within it were dim and unusable, he could still check their basic attributes and bonuses. Although the Destiny Panel didn't specify the exact grading for Destinies, Shen Mo had pieced together a system based on the various Destiny data, colors, and other factors he had observed.
Grey, white, green, blue, purple, orange, and gold—a total of seven colors, corresponding to seven tiers.
Grey Destinies were the lowest tier, offering the most basic attribute bonuses, while Gold-tier Destinies provided the highest.
HUM!
Finally, under Shen Mo's intent gaze, the Destiny Trait slowly emerged.