55: Chapter 55 Gravity Valley

Ten days after the Black Wind Cave mission ended, Lin Xuan sat cross-legged in the Quiet Room, his fingertips tracing his identity jade token.

Contribution point balance: 1,827 points.

The Soul-Nurturing Jade sold for 350 points, higher than expected—it was said a Ghost Cultivator desperately needed it to repair a Magical Artifact and bought it at a premium.

The 800 points from the Black Wind Cave mission were split equally, giving everyone 200 points. After deducting the costs for daily Cultivation and adding his previous savings and the income from the thunder-patterned soil trade, this sum was quite substantial for a Disciple at the Qi Refinement Stage.

"Money should be spent when it needs to be spent."

Lin Xuan rummaged through his Storage Pouch and pulled out a yellowed booklet with "Sanyang Sect Disciple Guide" written on the cover.

This was issued by the General Affairs Hall when he first joined. He had only skimmed it before, but he remembered it contained records of some special Cultivation locations, so he was now checking it carefully.

Flipping to the "Auxiliary Cultivation Facilities" chapter, one page caught his attention:

"Heavy Mountain Peak, Gravity Valley. The valley has naturally occurring gravity anomalies; from the outside in, the gravity multiplier increases gradually. It has miraculous effects for Body Cultivators, capable of tempering the Physical Body, forging tendons and bones, and accelerating the circulation of blood and Qi. Fee standard: 10 contribution points per day (limited to four hours). Note: Recommended for Disciples at Qi Refining Level 3 or above."

Lin Xuan's gaze fell on the words "accelerating the circulation of blood and Qi."

He had been practicing the Thunder Body Refining Technique for two months; the first stage, "Skin and Flesh Tempering," had reached Perfection, and the second stage, "Tendons and Bones Forging," had entered the Middle Stage. However, progress had slowed significantly recently, and conventional Cultivation was struggling to break through the Bottleneck.

The extreme pressure of a gravity environment might be able to break the deadlock.

Ten contribution points a day was not cheap. But if it could bring about a Breakthrough in Body Refining, it was worth it.

He put away the booklet and stood up to leave.

To go to Heavy Mountain Peak, one had to ride the Sect's flying Spirit Beast. Lin Xuan arrived at the "Avian Cliff" on the south side of Emerald Bamboo Peak, which was dedicated to renting out mount Spirit Beasts for Disciples.

There were over a dozen cyan cranes parked on the platform by the cliff, each about a zhang tall, with feathers as smooth as satin. A few Outer Sect Disciples were busy feeding the spirit cranes and grooming their feathers.

"Where are you going, Junior Brother?" A round-faced Disciple walked up to him.

"Heavy Mountain Peak, Gravity Valley." Lin Xuan handed over his identity jade token.

The round-faced Disciple took the jade token and swiped it on a Formation Plate: "Five contribution points one way, eight points for a round trip. Gravity Valley is on the west side of Heavy Mountain Peak; from the landing point to the valley entrance, there are still three miles of mountain road to walk."

"Round trip." Lin Xuan said.

The round-faced Disciple led him to a spirit crane and patted its neck: "Qingyu, take this Junior Brother to Heavy Mountain Peak."

The spirit crane was quite intelligent; it lowered its body, letting Lin Xuan climb onto the saddle on its back. The saddle was very crude, just a wooden board padded with animal skin, with leather ropes on both sides to hold onto.

"Hold on tight, you'll be there in a quarter of an hour." The round-faced Disciple urged.

The spirit crane flapped its wings and took off.

This was Lin Xuan's first time riding a flying Spirit Beast. He felt his body lighten as the scenery around him dropped rapidly.

A fierce wind rushed at his face, so he quickly circulated his Spiritual Qi to stabilize his posture. Looking down, Emerald Bamboo Peak shrank rapidly beneath his feet, and the bamboo forest spread out like a green carpet.

The spirit crane flew very steadily. As it passed through the clouds, everything around was a vast white. A moment later, a gray-black mountain appeared ahead, with steep slopes, exposed rocks, and sparse vegetation.

That was Heavy Mountain Peak.

The spirit crane landed on a platform halfway up the mountain. Lin Xuan dismounted.

There was a signpost on the platform: Gravity Valley ←.

Lin Xuan walked west along the mountain road. This road was clearly rougher than the stone steps of Emerald Bamboo Peak; the surface was chiseled from natural mountain rock, with low shrubs growing on both sides.

The further he went, the more stifling the air became, as if something invisible was pressing on his chest.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour over the three-mile road, the entrance to the valley appeared ahead.

There was a stone house at the valley entrance, and a bare-chested, burly man was sitting on a stone stool in front of it. The man was about thirty years old, with knotted muscles and scars covering his bronze skin.

Seeing Lin Xuan approach, he didn't even lift his head: "New here? Token."

Lin Xuan handed over his identity jade token.

The burly man glanced at it: "From Emerald Bamboo Peak? First time in Gravity Valley?"

"Yes."

"You know the rules, right? Ten points a day. You must buy at least one day at a time, up to ten days."

"Buy one day first." Lin Xuan said.

"Ten points." The burly man deducted the contribution points and threw a wooden token to Lin Xuan, "Hang it on your waist; this is your pass for entering and exiting. Gravity Valley is divided into nine zones, with the gravity multiplier increasing from outside to inside. There is a Formation on the wooden token that will heat up to remind you when you reach the zone of your limit. Don't force it; you are responsible for any injuries yourself."

Lin Xuan took the wooden token. It was half the size of a palm, brown, with the character "Heavy" carved on the front and simple Formation patterns on the back.

"Go on in." The burly man waved his hand, "Remember, fighting is prohibited in Gravity Valley; violators will be severely punished."

Lin Xuan nodded, hung the wooden token, and stepped into the valley entrance.

As soon as he stepped in, his body suddenly sank!

It felt as if two invisible giant hands were pressing on his shoulders, and his body weight increased by twenty percent instantly. His steps became sluggish, and when he lifted his feet, it felt like sandbags were tied to his legs.

Lin Xuan stabilized his breathing and circulated the Thunder Body Refining Technique. His blood and Qi accelerated within his body, his muscles tightened, and he slowly adapted to this extra pressure.

He looked around.

Gravity Valley was more desolate than he had imagined. The valley was about a hundred zhang wide, with steep gray-black rock walls on both sides, completely barren.

The ground was coarse gravel, scattered with strange rocks of various sizes. The deeper one went, the darker the color of the rocks, gradually changing from gray to dark brown and dark red.

There were already over a dozen people cultivating in the valley.

The closest one was a young female Disciple, who was squatting in a horse stance, holding up a millstone-sized rock with both hands. Her face was flushed, and sweat soaked her clothes.

Further in, a bald man was punching slowly, each punch heavy and incomparable, bringing up a whistling sound of wind. Even deeper, one could only see blurred figures doing various kinds of extreme training.

Lin Xuan took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Every step was more strenuous than usual. Ten zhang, twenty zhang... when he walked to about thirty zhang, his body sank again!

The gravity increased to about 2.5 times.

He stopped, feeling that this was his current limit. If he walked further to Cultivate, he might damage his tendons and bones.

Finding a flat piece of open ground, Lin Xuan set up the starting posture of the Thunder Body Refining Technique.

The Cultivation Technique recorded three sets of basic postures, which respectively tempered "skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and blood." Practicing these postures in a gravity environment would yield twice the result with half the effort.

The first style, "Thunder Python Turning Over," mainly practiced the waist and abdominal tendons and bones. Lin Xuan lay on his side, supported by his right arm, and slowly lifted his legs together upward.

Usually, he could easily complete three sets of thirty reps each. Here, he felt a tearing, sour pain in his waist muscles before he had even lifted them halfway.

Ten times, fifteen times... by the twentieth time, his forehead was already covered in sweat beads, and his breathing was rapid.

The second style, "Electric Light Crushing Stone," tempered the explosive power of the arms. With both palms supporting the ground, his body was in a handstand position, using his palms to "burst" his body upward. Under 2.5 times gravity, every upward burst felt like pushing a thousand-jin boulder.

The third style, "Startling Thunder Stomping the Ground," forged the Foundation of the legs and feet. Standing on one leg, the other leg was slowly lifted and lowered, coordinating with a special breathing technique to guide blood and Qi to flush the Meridians of the lower limbs.

Every style, every movement, was several times harder than usual.

Muscle fibers were constantly tearing and reorganizing under extreme pressure, and blood and Qi surged like a river. Lin Xuan could clearly feel that his body was becoming stronger at a slow but steady speed.

Half an hour later, he was drenched in sweat, his muscles sore and swollen as if filled with lead, but his blood and Qi were exceptionally active. Under the pressure of gravity, the circulation speed of the Thunder Body Refining Technique was thirty percent faster than usual!

"It really is effective."

Lin Xuan sat cross-legged and swallowed a Qi-Restoration Pill, circulating his Cultivation Technique to recover. He could feel that each recovery after extreme training brought a slight improvement in the strength of his Physical Body.

Four hours later, the wooden token became slightly hot—this was a reminder that the time was up.

Lin Xuan finished his Cultivation and stood up, drenched, but his eyes were shining with divine light.

When he walked out of the valley entrance, the burly man guarding the valley looked up at him: "Being able to train for four hours in the 2.5-times zone on the first day, your Foundation is not bad."

"Senior Brother is too kind." Lin Xuan cupped his hands.

"What is your name?"

"Lin Xuan of Emerald Bamboo Peak."

"Lin Xuan... I'll remember that." The burly man nodded, "Coming tomorrow?"

"Yes."

For the next half month, Lin Xuan's life was regular and fulfilling.

Early in the morning, he went to the Qinglin Herb Garden to serve, completing the recording work of the thunder-attribute spirit plants assigned by Deacon Wu. He finished before noon, took the spirit crane to Heavy Mountain Peak, cultivated in Gravity Valley for four hours, and returned to Emerald Bamboo Peak in the evening.

On the third day, he was already able to walk to thirty-five zhang, adapting to 2.6 times gravity.

On the seventh day, he attempted to practice the more difficult "Nine Thunder Styles" in the Thunder Body Refining Technique under gravity.

The first style, "Thunder Light Appearing Suddenly," required the body to complete three twists in mid-air, which he could barely do usually, but he failed repeatedly in the gravity environment, falling countless times.

On the tenth day, he was finally able to fully execute "Thunder Light Appearing Suddenly" under 2.6 times gravity. When his body twisted in mid-air, every muscle worked in coordination under extreme control, and his control over his body improved significantly.

Lin Xuan also gradually became familiar with the other Disciples in the valley.

The female Disciple who lifted stones every day was named Su Qing, from Sharp Metal Peak; she practiced Body Refining to increase her strength so she could use bow and arrow Magical Artifacts.

The bald man was from Heavy Mountain Peak itself, named Shi Yong, at Qi Refining Level 4, specializing in Body Refining Cultivation Techniques.

There was also a thin, tall youth who always practiced footwork in the depths, with strange movement techniques, said to be for increasing speed.

Everyone practiced their own things, chatting a few words during occasional breaks to exchange insights on Body Refining.

"Junior Brother Lin, this Cultivation Technique of yours is quite interesting." Shi Yong came over during a break one day, "Although the movements are strange, it can temper many fine muscles that are usually hard to train."

"Senior Brother Shi's boxing technique is the impressive one." Lin Xuan said sincerely. He had seen Shi Yong practicing boxing; under 2.8 times gravity, one punch could create an air explosion, with astonishing power.

"Hehe, I've been practicing for eight years." Shi Yong wiped the sweat off his bald head, "The 'Heavy Mountain Fist' of Heavy Mountain Peak only tastes right when practiced in Gravity Valley."

On the thirtieth day.

Lin Xuan stood at forty zhang; the gravity here was about 2.8 times.

He was practicing the fourth style of the "Nine Thunder Styles," "Lightning Flashing and Thunder Rumbling."

This style required the body to complete nine consecutive changes in mid-air, each change requiring the mobilization of different muscle groups, placing extremely high demands on coordination and strength control.

Usually, he could barely complete it, but under 2.8 times gravity, he fell from exhaustion just after making the third change.

"Bang!"

His body hit the ground heavily, gravel splashing.

Lin Xuan gritted his teeth and climbed up, patted the dust off his body, and jumped again.

Failed, fell.

Jumped again.

Once, twice, ten times...

Sweat soaked his clothes, pooling into a puddle beneath him. His muscles trembled from overuse, and his bones made "creaking" sounds under the unbearable load.

But he didn't stop.

The essence of the Thunder Body Refining Technique was to break through limits within limits.

During the twentieth attempt, a miracle happened.

The moment he made the fifth change, Lin Xuan suddenly entered a mysterious state. His body seemed to be no longer bound by gravity, every muscle and every joint coordinated perfectly, and the transfer of power was like flowing clouds and streaming water.

Six times, seven times, eight times...

Nine times!

His body landed lightly and stood steadily.

Success!

Just at this moment, an unexpected change occurred!

Inside his Dantian, the Thunder Spiritual Energy of the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder Art began to circulate crazily on its own! At the same time, the power of blood and Qi cultivated by the Thunder Body Refining Technique also surged like a river!

Under the extreme pressure, these two forces produced a marvelous resonance!

The Thunder Spiritual Energy washed through his limbs and bones along the Meridians, while the power of blood and Qi surged from deep within his flesh and blood. The two gathered, collided, and fused outside the Dantian...

"Boom—!"

A thunderous explosion sounded in Lin Xuan's mind!

The Qi vortex in his Dantian rotated violently, greedily devouring the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. The thin Spiritual Qi in Gravity Valley was drawn over, forming a small vortex.

Breakthrough!

It was natural, without any obstruction.

Qi Refining Level 3!

Lin Xuan maintained his standing posture and closed his eyes to look inward. The Qi vortex in his Dantian had expanded by a circle compared to before, the total amount of Spiritual Energy had surged by fifty percent, and it was even purer and more solid.

His Physical Body strength and intensity had also improved significantly, and his muscles and bones contained surging power.

He clenched his fist, and his knuckles made a crackling sound.

He estimated that now, relying solely on his Physical Body, he could contend with a Cultivator at Qi Refining Level 2. Combined with his thunder techniques, his combat power could be comparable to Qi Refining Level 4!

He slowly moved his tendons and bones. His body, having adapted to 2.8 times gravity, felt much lighter now.

Several Disciples cultivating nearby were startled and looked over one after another.

Shi Yong's eyes lit up: "Junior Brother Lin, a Breakthrough?"

"Just lucky." Lin Xuan finished his Cultivation and showed a smile.

"Amazing!" Su Qing also stopped training and said enviously, "I've been soaking in Gravity Valley for three months, and my cultivation hasn't had any movement yet."

"Everyone has their own Opportunity." Lin Xuan said modestly.

Feeling the surging power in his body, he felt clear-headed.

Gravity Valley, he had come to the right place.

When he walked out of the valley entrance, the setting sun was slanting, and it was already evening.

The burly man guarding the valley looked up at him and rarely spoke: "A Breakthrough?"

"Yes."

"At Qi Refining Level 2, being able to have a Breakthrough in the 2.8-times gravity zone, your Foundation is not bad." The burly man nodded, "My name is Zhao Tieshan, a Deacon of Heavy Mountain Peak. If you have any questions about Body Refining in the future, you can come and ask me."

"Thank you, Senior Brother Zhao." Lin Xuan cupped his hands.

When he returned to Emerald Bamboo Peak by spirit crane, it was already dark.

Lin Xuan pushed open the door of the Quiet Room and lit the oil lamp.

He began to stabilize his Realm.