5: Continuously increasing combat power

Inside the gravity training room, the air was as stagnant as lead.

Lin Yuan took the warm, mutton-fat white jade bottle. The moment his fingertips touched the bottle, the data panel in his mind refreshed instantly:

[Obtained: Qi Gathering Pill (Excellent) x 3]

[Quality: Yellow Grade Top Rank]

[Effect: First consumption grants Combat Power +5 (no side effects), subsequent consumption effects diminish]

[Impurity Content: 0.5% (Trace amount, negligible)]

[Can consume 15 Evolution Points to perform 'Purification/Evolution'?]

"Thank you, Principal!" Lin Yuan's voice carried heartfelt gratitude. Over these five days, the protection of the gravity room, top-tier cultivation techniques, precious pills, and the daily meal deliveries regardless of the weather... this heavy feeling of protection, though originating from his father Lin Zhengnan's life-saving favor.

Lin Yuan swore secretly in his heart: This kindness must be repaid with the position of the Top Scorer of the Tianming City College Entrance Examination! Regarding this, he had absolute confidence!

The Principal waved his hand and turned toward the heavy alloy door: "Teacher Li Wen is coming to see you this afternoon, don't keep her waiting." The door closed silently, isolating the inside from the outside.

Without hesitation, Lin Yuan poured out a Qi Gathering Pill that shimmered with a green glow and swallowed it!

Boom!

The pill melted upon entry, instantly turning into a pure and majestic torrent of warmth that far surpassed the Body Tempering Pill! Like a river bursting its banks, it surged and washed through his four limbs and hundred bones!

He immediately sat cross-legged, and the Starlight Body Refining Art operated at full power! A complex map of energy circulation routes lit up inside his body, guiding this massive medicinal power to gallop incessantly along profound trajectories!

Two hours later.

The faint glow of spiritual energy surrounding Lin Yuan slowly retracted. He opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing through them. The number on his wrist monitor had jumped abruptly from [27] to 32!

"One pill increased it by 5 points! As expected of a Yellow Grade Top Rank!" He clenched his fists with satisfaction, feeling the even more surging power within his body. His gaze swept over the two remaining Qi Gathering Pills in the jade bottle.

"Continuous consumption of ordinary pills would cause impurity accumulation that damages one's foundation... but my 'Excellent' Qi Gathering Pills are almost flawless!" Lin Yuan's eyes were burning, "If I use Evolution Points to purify them again..." He rubbed his chin, looking at the [Evolution Points: 15] on the panel, and finally suppressed the impulse.

"Evolution Points have too many uses: improving aptitude, repairing the black tortoise ring, deducing techniques and martial skills... 3 points a day is still too little, I have to be frugal."

Beep beep beep—

The red light on the wall communicator flashed, and Teacher Li Wen's concerned voice came through: "Lin Yuan, is it convenient to open the door?"

Lin Yuan quickly shut down the gravity system and ran to open the door. Li Wen stood outside holding a large stack of books that almost blocked her vision, her gaze behind her gold-rimmed glasses full of worry.

"Teacher!" Lin Yuan quickly stepped aside, "You are..."

"There are less than three months left until the College Entrance Exam!" Li Wen laboriously piled the books onto the simple camp bed, the top few copies of 'Five Years of Martial Exams, Three Years of Simulations' being particularly eye-catching. "Even if your combat power is advancing by leaps and bounds, the difficulty of the Cangqiong Martial Academy's theory exam is hellish! You absolutely cannot neglect your cultural courses! You are our class's re—"

Her words stopped abruptly, her gaze as if drawn by a magnet, fixed dead on the crimson number at the top of the force-measuring pillar by the wall—

27!

"2... 27?!" Li Wen turned around sharply, her eyes behind the lenses widening into circles, her voice changing pitch. "Three days ago! Principal Zhou personally told me you were only at 12 points! It's only been a few days?! Did... did you eat some legendary divine pill?!" She felt her worldview collapsing.

Lin Yuan rubbed his nose and gave a "bashful" smile: "The gravity room's effect... is quite good."

"Monster!" Li Wen adjusted her sliding glasses, giving the exact same evaluation as the Principal, her tone carrying deep shock. Then, her expression turned solemn as she lowered her voice: "There's one more thing. Zhao Hao... was discharged from the hospital today."

Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow, waiting for the rest.

"Zhao Tian male... used unimaginable connections and costs to get him a bottle of 'Dragon Blood Potion' that is strictly controlled by the military!" Li Wen's voice carried gravity and a hint of disgust. "It's said that after the injection, Zhao Hao's combat power exploded to 18 points in a short time! But the price is... he looks very wrong now. It's like lava is flowing under his skin, his eyes are frighteningly violent, and the side effects are massive!"

Dragon Blood Potion? A forbidden drug that overdraws potential for short-term power? Lin Yuan sneered in his heart. Zhao Tianxiong was truly stopping at nothing for his son's revenge.

"Zhao Hao is nothing to fear." Li Wen looked at Lin Yuan with concern, "But his father, Zhao Tianxiong... is different! This man had a nickname when he was young: 'Living Yama'! To achieve his goals, he is sinister, ruthless, and uses any means necessary! The Principal can block the pressure on the surface, but the arrows in the dark..." She didn't continue, but the worry in her eyes was almost overflowing.

Twelve days later, in the gravity training room. The air was as heavy as solidified mercury.

"2.0 times standard gravity, activated." The cold mechanical female voice announced an even greater challenge.

Hum!

The invisible pressure suddenly doubled! Lin Yuan's muscles throughout his body tensed instantly like steel cables, and his bones emitted a low hum. Sweat beads had just seeped out of his pores when they were pulled down by the massive gravity, splashing into tiny droplets on the specialized floor.

But his posture was as upright as a pine tree, and his breathing was steady and long. Clearly, he had completely adapted to this high-pressure environment.

Bang! Boom—!

His right fist, loaded with power, was like a cannonball out of the chamber, slamming hard against the dark, specialized force-measuring pillar! A dull, thunderous bang exploded in the enclosed space! The display screen at the top of the pillar jumped violently, finally freezing at a heart-palpitating number:

53!

Lin Yuan shook his slightly numb arm, the sharp light in his eyes becoming restrained. "53... 3 points higher than this morning, the rhythm is stable." With a thought, he called up the data panel in his mind:

[Host: Lin Yuan]

[Combat Power: 53]

[Realm: Preparatory Martial Artist]

[Aptitude: Promising Talent (Upgrade to Outstanding Talent requires 100 Evolution Points)]

[Technique: Starlight Body Refining Art (Yellow Grade Top Rank), can be deduced and evolved]

[Martial Skill: Mountain Crushing Fist (Minor Achievement 15%), can be improved]

[Evolution Points: 36 (+3/daily)]

[Primordial Purple Qi Fusion: 0.002% (Bottleneck)]

[Special: Item Appraisal (Elementary)]

Twelve days! From 27 to 53! An average stable increase of over 2 points per day! This speed, which would seem like a myth to the outside world, was as natural as breathing for Lin Yuan with the help of the Primordial Purple Qi!

What was even more terrifying was that he hadn't encountered any of the legendary cultivation bottlenecks at 20 or 50 points! It was as if as long as resources were sufficient, he could charge straight into the clouds without any obstacles!

"Four days... four days at most, and I'll break the 60-point mark!" Fire burned in Lin Yuan's eyes. "There are still 76 days until the College Entrance Exam!"

Click.

The alloy door unlocked and slid open. Principal Zhou walked in carrying a fragrant meal tray. Even his bald head seeped fine beads of sweat under the 2.0 times gravity, and his steps were slightly heavy.

"Extra meal today, Braised Spirit-Scale Fish!" The Principal placed the meal tray on the specialized pressure-resistant table, beaming with smiles. "Li Wen specifically told the cafeteria to make it, saying it's to nourish your brain so you can aim for a perfect score in theory."

Lin Yuan turned off the gravity, his body suddenly feeling light. He took the chopsticks and found that the amount of food was more than double the usual.

The Principal sat down, his gaze sweeping over the eye-catching "53" on the force-measuring pillar, his eyes full of gratification and amazement: "53 already? Good lad! This speed, even in my prime, I couldn't have hoped to catch up!" He had also been a genius in his youth, but compared to Lin Yuan, he was simply mediocre.

"It's all thanks to your cultivation, Principal. The gravity room and the Starlight Body Refining Art are both indispensable." Lin Yuan's tone was sincere.

"Haha, it's because you're capable yourself!" The Principal laughed, then mysteriously pulled out a palm-sized, ancient wooden box emitting a faint sandalwood fragrance from his robe. "Here, take this. Consider it... a small reward for this stage."

Lin Yuan curiously opened the wooden box. The box was lined with soft silk, and on it lay an old, bronze-colored copper coin.

The edges of the copper coin were heavily worn, and its surface was carved with blurred, strange patterns that looked like drifting clouds, exuding an indescribable sense of the vicissitudes of time. When his fingertips touched the cool surface of the copper coin—

Hum!

The data panel instantly popped up a striking prompt box:

[Discovered Special Item: Ancient Martial Copper Coin (Rare)]

[Effect: Passively increases the wearer's cultivation speed by 10% (Spiritual energy absorption and circulation efficiency)]

[Can consume 30 Evolution Points to perform 'Primordial Analysis/Evolution'?]

"This is...?" Lin Yuan looked at the Principal.

"I obtained this by chance years ago when I was exploring a dangerous place with your father, Lin Zhengnan." A look of reminiscence appeared in the Principal's eyes as his fingers unconsciously rubbed the patterns on the copper coin. "The specific use is unknown, but when worn close to the body, I always felt the spiritual energy flow in my body was a tiny bit smoother... maybe it will be useful to you."

Lin Yuan solemnly threaded the copper coin with a tough beast tendon and wore it around his neck.

Hum!

A cool and gentle aura, like a mountain spring, instantly spread from the skin where the copper coin touched, flowing through his entire body! He immediately tried to run a small cycle of the Starlight Body Refining Art.

"The spiritual energy absorption speed... is nearly ten percent faster! The feeling of sluggishness in circulation has also decreased!" Lin Yuan said in surprise. This 10% bonus would bring a huge advantage over time!

The Principal nodded with satisfaction, stood up, and walked toward the door. He stopped at the door again: "By the way, after that kid Zhao Hao was discharged, relying on his 18 points of combat power, he's been shouting everywhere that he's going to find you for a 'settlement'. Li Wen asked me to tell you not to mind that clown and focus on your exam preparation." After saying that, his figure disappeared outside the door.

A cold arc formed at the corner of Lin Yuan's mouth. 18 points? Before his absolute power of 53 points, he was nothing more than a slightly stronger ant. The gap would only get wider and wider.

He lowered his head to gaze at the Ancient Martial Copper Coin on his chest, his mind racing. 36 Evolution Points—he was still 64 points away from the 100 needed to improve his aptitude, but evolving this copper coin only required 30... was it worth it?

Just as he was concentrating on his thoughts!

Hum—!

The dormant strand of Primordial Purple Qi in his body suddenly became active, as if it had smelled a peerless delicacy! A strong desire to devour, originating from the depths of his soul, was transmitted to the copper coin through his intent!

At the same time, the data panel suddenly erupted with an unprecedentedly brilliant purple-gold light, and a never-before-seen option popped up:

[Detected a special energy carrier containing 'Ancient Martial Intent'!]

[Can directly devour the 'Ancient Martial Copper Coin', converting it into pure origin to temper the physique and increase Primordial Purple Qi Fusion by 0.002%!]

[Devour?]

Devouring the copper coin to directly increase the fusion degree?!

Lin Yuan's heart skipped a beat! What did a 0.002% increase in fusion degree mean? It meant his daily Evolution Point income would jump from [+3] to [+5]!

Although he would lose the 10% cultivation speed boost provided by the copper coin, Evolution Points were his strongest, most direct, and most comprehensive path to improvement! Whether it was instantly increasing combat power, repairing divine artifacts, or deducing top-tier techniques and martial skills, he couldn't do without them!

"Devour!" Lin Yuan's intent was like iron as he instantly made the decision!

Hum! Shhh—!

The Ancient Martial Copper Coin on his chest suddenly erupted with a blinding bronze light! Countless fine golden threads containing ancient martial intent peeled away from the copper coin, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, and were frantically absorbed by the skin on Lin Yuan's chest!

That strand of Primordial Purple Qi was like an awakening glutton, greedily devouring and refining these golden threads!

In just a few breaths, that copper coin, which carried the traces of time, as if it had experienced tens of millions of years of weathering, instantly lost all its luster, turned into a handful of fine bronze-colored dust, and rustled down!

Boom—!

An indescribable, pure origin power that seemed to originate from the beginning of chaos instantly exploded within Lin Yuan's body!

It was as if his body were being tempered anew in a universal furnace. Every cell was cheering and jumping, greedily absorbing this supreme origin! The surrounding heaven and earth spiritual energy became active and friendly as never before!

Lin Yuan immediately sat cross-legged and operated the Starlight Body Refining Art with all his might!

Inhale—Exhale—

One large cycle!

"The time... has been shortened by nearly a third?!" Lin Yuan snapped his eyes open, a terrifyingly sharp light erupting from them! Where was the loss of a 10% boost? This was simply gaining a terrifying increase of at least 30% or more!

What the increase in Primordial Purple Qi Fusion brought was a minute evolution in the level of life essence, a deeper affinity and control over heaven and earth energy!

"This is too heaven-defying!" Lin Yuan felt the spiritual energy circulation speed within him, which was nearly twice as fast as before, and suppressed the wild joy in his heart. He quickly recorded the latest data:

[Combat Power: 53]

[Evolution Points: 36]

[Daily Evolution Point Recovery: +5] (Base +1, 0.004% Fusion Bonus +4)

[Primordial Purple Qi Fusion: 0.004%]

[Days until College Entrance Exam: 76]

From now on, the combat power he could increase through cultivation each day would soar from about 3 points to nearly 4 points! Plus the 5 Evolution Points steadily coming in every day... breaking the 100-point combat power mark before the exam?

No!

Lin Yuan's gaze pierced through the alloy walls of the gravity room, as if seeing the gates of the "Cangqiong Martial Academy" standing at the peak.

His goal had long since surpassed a mere 100 points! He wanted to reach the top of Tianming City with a crushing posture! Let all contempt, all schemes, and all greed turn into powder before his absolute power!