(PS: A huge thank you to Bing Shi ice for the massive donation! I'll be releasing 6 bonus chapters after the novel goes premium. Thanks as well to all my other readers for your support, for adding the book to your libraries, and for all the recommendation votes!)
'An Ogre... That's a Spirit Warrior Level Combat Creature. If I synthesize it, can my status be upgraded to the Spirit Warrior Level?'
Shu Feng's eyes lit up, his heart pounding wildly.
'In Guardian Flame, Spirit Warriors are already official members, each earning millions a year.'
'No! That Ogre is powerful, but it's huge and doesn't have the invisibility of a Void Demon. It would be easily discovered by ordinary people. That would cause me to rack up a massive debt in no time.'
'Besides, even with an Ogre, my own personal strength is too weak. Synthesizing one wouldn't be of much use. At best, it'd just be an extra meat shield, and I don't need one right now.'
'Besides, if I show off an Ability that's too powerful, I'm afraid I'll just make people jealous. It's better to lay low and develop steadily.'
Shu Feng suppressed his excitement and quickly weighed his options.
"What does Divine Power do?"
Shu Feng asked the Central Analyzer curiously.
A line of information appeared on the Central Analyzer: "Divine Power is a high-level energy refined by Divine-level Powerhouses. It can be used for the host or Big Black to evolve!"
"I can evolve!"
Shu Feng's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed in excitement.
"Please enter the Warrior Synthesis Nest!"
Shu Feng strode toward the Warrior Synthesis Nest. The moment he stepped inside the semicircular structure, countless streams of mucus gushed out, pouring over his body and encasing him in a black egg.
Shu Feng was completely submerged in the strange fluid. When he opened his mouth to breathe, air separated from the surrounding mucus and entered his lungs, yet not a single drop of the fluid got in.
"Please circulate Spirit Cultivation Technique 2.0. This will enhance your evolution!"
A notification chimed, and Shu Feng began to circulate Spirit Cultivation Technique 2.0.
An intensely cool current flowed out from the surrounding mucus and poured into Shu Feng's body.
CRACKLE! POP! Within that cool current, Shu Feng's bones, body, and meridians underwent a terrifying evolution and metamorphosis.
CRACK!
After an unknown amount of time, a crisp sound echoed as the black egg cracked open. Shu Feng opened his eyes from within and immediately rose to his feet.
'That feels amazing! I feel like my entire body is overflowing with Power! Let me see how much I've improved!'
A flash of excitement in his eyes, Shu Feng strode over to the Central Analyzer to scan and analyze his strength.
"Host, Shu Feng."
"Power 12, agility 11, Defense 12, Constitution 12, Intelligence 13, Spirit 14."
"Charm 2, Spiritual Power 15, Soul Power 4."
'Haha, I'm a Second-level Spirit Warrior Apprentice now! My physical attributes have finally surpassed those of an ordinary person. I can finally cultivate the Spirit Shield Technique!'
Shu Feng gazed at his dramatically increased physical attributes, his eyes shining with an indescribable exhilaration.
The Spirit Shield Technique was a mandatory Magic Technique for a Spiritual Spear Master. Once mastered, a Cultivator could use their Spiritual Power to form a Spirit Shield or a Spiritual Power Membrane around their body.
Although the Spirit Shield Technique was basic, it was the very essence of a Spiritual Spear Master's path.
When a Spirit Warrior-level Spiritual Spear Master activated their Spirit Shield Technique and deployed the Spiritual Power Membrane, rifle bullets would only inflict minor wounds.
The Tier One Spiritual Spear, Hei Ya, was terrifyingly powerful, like a hand cannon. Without the protection of a Spirit Warrior Level Spirit Shield Technique, if a Spirit Warrior-level expert took a direct hit, a massive hole would be blasted through their body, leaving them a corpse. With the Spirit Shield Technique, however, they would still be injured but wouldn't be killed in a single shot.
While the Spirit Shield Technique at the Spirit Warrior Apprentice Level couldn't withstand gunfire, it could enhance one's physical defense, reduce the Destructive Power of bullets, and, once activated, improve the body's overall damage resistance. It was wonderfully versatile.
Shu Feng asked, "Soul Power is at 4. What's the benefit of increasing it?"
"Increasing Soul Power improves your Cultivation Talent and evolutionary potential. Currently, the projected increase to your maximum Spiritual Power each time you cultivate Spirit Cultivation Technique 2.0 is 0.06."
Shu Feng's eyes lit up, a flicker of excitement crossing his face. '0.06... my cultivation speed has tripled! At this rate, I can advance to Spirit Warrior in about five years! I'll surpass Ma Jin!'
Shu Feng was fifteen this year; in five years, he would be twenty. Becoming a Spirit Warrior at twenty, with an annual income in the millions, would absolutely make him one of society's elites.
"Display current resources!"
A line of information appeared: "13 units of Pure Soul Power."
'This evolution consumed 15 units of Pure Soul Power and 0.42 points of Divine Power. In other words, to raise my Soul Power by one point, it costs five units of Pure Soul Power.'
Shu Feng continued his inquiry. "Can the remaining Pure Soul Power be used to evolve Big Black?"
Big Black, the Void Demon Black Dog, had been invaluable in the last battle. If it hadn't been there, Shu Feng, with his pitiful combat ability, would have been torn to pieces by those goblins long ago.
"In addition to Soul Power, Big Black's evolution also requires Spiritual Power and Ghost Energy! However, it can be evolved in stages. The next stage requires 10 units of Pure Soul Power and 50 Spiritual Power."
"Then drain my Spiritual Power!"
With a single thought, Shu Feng had the Energy Collector begin drawing his Spiritual Power.
A faint light flashed, and Shu Feng's Spiritual Power was completely drained. Enduring waves of fatigue, he left the Base Space. Once outside, he forced himself to circulate Spirit Cultivation Technique 2.0 to cultivate and restore his Spiritual Power.
As soon as his Spiritual Power was restored, Shu Feng fell into a deep sleep.
Early the next morning, Shu Feng went to school.
'This is so easy! All these subjects are way too simple!'
Once Shu Feng started paying attention in class, he found every subject remarkably simple. He absorbed new information with incredible speed, making it his own. Learning felt as natural as a fish taking to water; there was no difficulty at all. He was like a sponge, soaking up all kinds of knowledge and expanding his mental reserves.
From his conversations with Ma Jin and the others, Shu Feng had learned that many top Spiritualists also had immense achievements in fields outside their own. Many leading figures in various domains—top biologists, medical experts, pianists, archaeologists, physicists, and chemists—were all Spiritualists.
Shu Feng had once found it strange that these top figures from so many different fields were also Spiritualists. Now, however, he understood. A Spiritualist who studied diligently could easily become an academic prodigy and dominate multiple disciplines.
Shu Feng began to diligently study all his middle school subjects. He wanted to truly understand the genetic maps within the Mysterious Base. Only by becoming a top scientist could he figure out how to truly control the Mysterious Base and become its real master.