As soon as he completed the task, Jiang Tian collapsed onto the ground. His body was drenched in sweat, and his limbs ached with exhaustion.
Yet his eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Potential points can be used to upgrade everything on the panel… and the conversion rate is ten to one. That means one potential point is equal to ten experience points!"
Right after the reward was issued, the non-sentient system had transmitted a brief explanation regarding the use of potential points, allowing Jiang Tian to understand their immense value.
"As expected—cheating really is the shortcut to power!"
Letting out a breath, Jiang Tian noticed the surroundings had changed. Though the rain continued to fall, golden light filtered in through the cracks above.
Morning had arrived.
In this world, most anomalies preferred the night. Only a few dared to roam beneath the sun—and those that did were usually far stronger. Fortunately, daytime encounters with anomalies were rare. Most humans only dared to travel during daylight for this very reason.
As for the weeping ghost… it was merely an average one-star anomaly. From what he observed, it only appeared late at night—always around Jiang Tian's hiding place.
Closing his eyes, Jiang Tian allowed himself to rest. The ten hours of continuous circulation had drained both his physical strength and mental focus.
Four hours later, he opened his eyes feeling noticeably better. The soreness had faded, and his mind felt refreshed.
He didn't rush to use the potential points. First, he needed food—his stomach was grumbling.
After eating the last of the millet he had cooked days ago, Jiang Tian still felt hungry.
He sighed helplessly, already understanding the reason.
Now that he had entered the Metamorphosis Realm, his body had begun to shed its mortal shell and undergo transformation.
And with that transformation came increased consumption. His body now demanded twice the food it once did.
Of course, while he consumed more food, his energy and stamina were far more efficient—he wouldn't need to eat again for at least two and a half days.
But that wasn't ideal. Eating only every two and a half days would barely sustain him, and it wouldn't support the growth of his muscles or bones. Even with progress in his transcendent technique, his physical body would remain stagnant.
Yet this was the most crucial stage in the path of a Transcendent.
The Metamorphosis Realm laid the foundation for all future growth. It was the best period to refine the body and solidify one's base.
Even though the system gave him a shortcut, it only applied to things displayed on the panel.
His physical body wasn't a stat. It couldn't be upgraded with a button.
So—how could he strengthen it?
"Once I have enough strength, I need to escape from here. Only then can I begin cultivating my body properly. Otherwise, even if I reach the peak of the Metamorphosis Realm, I'll never survive the Transcendent Tribulations. I'll be stuck here forever."
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Tian summoned the panel.
[Name]: Jiang Tian
[Profession]: Transcendent
[Realm]: Early Metamorphosis (5/100)
[Spirit Root]: Low-tier Earth
[Technique]: Mountain Breathing Technique – Early (10/100)
[Task]: None
[Potential Points]: 5
Staring at the panel, Jiang Tian fell into deep thought.
"If I want the strength to escape, I need to increase my cultivation realm as fast as possible. But right now… the only task I can create is related to the Mountain Breathing Technique."
He paused.
"Wait… can I create the same task again?"
He quickly tested it out, thinking: I want to cultivate the Mountain Breathing Technique.
A prompt appeared before him. His expression fell.
[Task]: Circulate the Mountain Breathing Technique continuously one hundred times.
[Reward]: 50 Potential Points
[Accept?]: Yes / No
"One hundred times?! Is this system insane?! That's basically suicide!"
A hundred continuous circulations meant a full hundred hours of meditation. With his current state, that was completely impossible.
Even if he used points to upgrade the technique, he wouldn't survive the task.
"At least… not yet."
Jiang Tian sighed in frustration.
"My plan was to upgrade the technique and abuse the task function to gain experience quickly… Looks like this system isn't as overpowered as I thought."
"No choice then." He took a deep breath and made a difficult decision.
"System—use all five potential points on my cultivation realm."
[Metamorphosis Realm (5/100)] → [Metamorphosis Realm (55/100)]
As the experience points surged, a warm current flowed through his dantian. A faint brown aura emerged, and his body felt significantly stronger.
Jiang Tian could now feel his connection to the earth deepening—he could even sense the subtle vibrations of raindrops striking the ground. His perception was clearer, his strength denser.
"With this… I can handle early Metamorphosis Transcendents. Even weaker one-star anomalies shouldn't be a problem," he said, eyes lighting up.
"And if I use a bit of trickery… I could even create a task to kill that weeping anomaly!"
The more he thought about it, the more tempted he became.
Grinding experience by meditating was too slow. With his current technique level, each circulation gave him only one experience point. And every two technique experience points translated into a single cultivation realm point.
He needed 45 more cultivation points to reach the middle stage.
That was 90 more circulations.
That would take at least three and a half days—time he didn't have.
The radiant stones reinforcing his shelter would eventually dissolve under the constant rain. When that happened, he'd be completely exposed—and death would follow swiftly.
He had to grow stronger now.
Having decided, Jiang Tian rejected the new circulation task.
The panel flickered, and the task disappeared.
Then, he issued another.
I want to kill the weeping anomaly!
[Task]: Kill one anomaly
[Reward]: 10 Potential Points
[Accept?]: Yes / No
"Accept."
He didn't hesitate.
The panel vanished, and the task appeared in the status window.
Outside, it was still daytime, and the rain continued to pour.
"Kill an anomaly…"
Jiang Tian whispered the words, his voice calm and cold.
Ordinary people wouldn't even dream of confronting an anomaly, let alone killing one. But Jiang Tian was no longer ordinary.
After surviving the torment of the butcher anomaly, he had changed.
The idea of killing still unsettled him slightly—but it was necessary.
If he wanted to survive in the world of Transcendents, killing anomalies was a step he had to take.
He clenched his fist and sat silently in the small, dark space. A faint brown glow pulsed around his fingers.
When he first awakened, his Earth Spirit was so fragile that a gust of wind could shatter it. Now, halfway to the mid-stage, it appeared solid—steady and brimming with power.
It gave him confidence.
Once he fused with it, his strength would multiply—his body would become as tough as stone and his attacks like crashing boulders.
Of course, that was just a metaphor, but Jiang Tian was sure of it: once in combat mode, he could fight the weeping ghost—and win.
"I'll need to ambush it…"
With that, Jiang Tian looked around his cramped 9-square-meter shelter.
A plan was already forming in his mind.