32: Three days of seclusion!

Mu Shi County Demon Suppression Division stronghold, Spiritual Qi secret chamber.

This place was much better than the dilapidated room he lived in before; the Spiritual Qi was so dense it almost dripped with water.

Li Dong sat down cross-legged, unceremoniously pulling out a pile of sparkling high-grade Spirit Stones and several bottles of obviously expensive Medicinal Pills, placing them in front of him as if they were free.

Foundation Establishment Stage - Early Phase?

That's not enough; he needed to quickly stabilize it, and ideally, push forward a bit more.

He was now in the Foundation Establishment Realm, and his Cultivation was completely different from before.

Spiritual Qi entered his body, no longer a trickling stream, but like a floodgate opening, surging into his Meridians and Dantian.

Combined with the immense medicinal power of the Medicinal Pills that melted upon entry, and the pure energy continuously supplied by the high-grade Spirit Stones, the initial feeling of instability he had after his Breakthrough quickly vanished.

His cultivation soared, solid and steady.

This feeling was exhilarating!

Just improving his cultivation wasn't enough; combat power was the real deal.

Li Dong focused his attention on the two core skills that had just been enhanced to LV.X by the System: the Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal and the Black Scale Armor.

System enhancement was one thing; whether he could fully master them was another.

He had to diligently hone them and unleash their full potential.

He stood up, stretched his limbs, and began to practice the Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal in the secret chamber.

As he assumed the starting stance, the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Qi within his body was instantly mobilized, circulating according to an abstruse trajectory.

Buzz! The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

He struck out with his palm; there was no earth-shattering roar, and the palm wind was even somewhat restrained.

But Li Dong could clearly feel that what was unleashed with this palm strike was not just violent Spiritual Qi, but also an invisible, heavy "Concept."

It was a "suppression"! As if an invisible mountain descended from the sky, intending to crush and pulverize everything in its path.

This feeling wasn't as clear when he used Body Tempering Realm Spiritual Qi before.

Now, as he entered the Foundation Establishment Realm and his Mental Energy greatly increased, especially after activating that "trace" Spirituality attribute, his perception and control over this "Concept" reached a new level.

He tried to condense this "suppression" Concept, concentrating it in his palm.

When he struck out again, even the dense Spiritual Qi in the secret chamber seemed to be suppressed, flowing slowly, wherever the palm wind passed.

Li Dong's heart stirred. If this thing hit a demon... it probably wouldn't just be physical damage; even their Soul and will would be severely impacted, right?

This was practically an upgrade from physical attack to Dual Cultivation of physical and magical, complete with mental control effects?

Good! Good! Good!

If that old dog Zhao Zhen took another hit like this, it probably wouldn't be as simple as spitting blood; he'd directly question his existence.

The hidden characteristic of this Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal was awesome! It was practically a demon bane plus edition!

After practicing his offensive methods, it was time for defense.

Black Scale Armor!

With a thought, the deep black scale patterns beneath his skin lit up, and Foundation Establishment Realm Spiritual Qi flowed into them like living water.

Hiss, hiss, hiss... A dense layer of black scales, shimmering with an eerie glow, quickly covered his body, even his face was covered by a thin mask, revealing only his eyes.

The scales were more solid and thicker than before, and their connections were tighter, with almost no visible gaps.

Li Dong tried to punch his chest with his fist; there was a muffled thud, and the force was evenly dispersed, with him feeling almost no impact.

This defense was excellent!

What surprised him even more was that under the continuous nourishment of Foundation Establishment Spiritual Qi, the surface of the Black Scale Armor was actually covered with a thin, almost invisible, flowing Spiritual Qi protective film.

He tried to impact this film with Spiritual Qi and found that most of the force was deflected by this film, reducing at least thirty percent of the power!

Holy crap! It comes with a force-deflecting effect? This Black Scale Armor is so strong after upgrading? Before, it was pure resistance; now, it's both hard and slippery, like a loach wearing a turtle shell, its survival ability directly maxed out!

Anyone who wants to kill me in the future will have to think twice.

Li Dong contentedly dispelled the Black Scale Armor, feeling a surge of security.

Both offense and defense had undergone a qualitative leap. Next, it was time to try out his newly acquired item.

He took out the Mystic Iron Demon Suppressing Ruler.

Although this thing looked like a fire poker, it was heavy in his hand, indicating a remarkable material.

He injected Foundation Establishment Spiritual Qi into it.

Buzz! The ruler vibrated, and the ancient patterns on its surface lit up sequentially, emitting a heavy, murderous aura.

Li Dong felt a subtle connection establish between himself and the ruler.

He tried to swing it; the ruler cut through the air, producing a muffled roar, full of power.

"Grow!" With a thought, the ruler swelled against the wind, instantly becoming over ten feet long, almost touching the ceiling of the secret chamber, exuding an astonishing oppressive force.

"Shrink!" The ruler quickly shrank back to its original size.

Interesting, it can grow and shrink, smash and strike; it's practically an essential item for home travel, murder and robbery... Pooh, no, it's for slaying demons and devils.

He suddenly thought, since this Demon Suppression Ruler has the words "Demon Suppression" in its name, can it be used in conjunction with the Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal? Let's try!

Li Dong once again activated the Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal, but this time, instead of striking with his palm, he guided the "suppression" Concept towards the Mystic Iron Demon Suppressing Ruler in his hand.

Something miraculous happened! The Demon Suppression Ruler seemed to come alive; the patterns on its body shone brightly, perfectly aligning with the energy of the Demon Suppression Seal, creating a strange resonance.

He felt that what he held in his hand was no longer a ruler, but a movable Demon Suppression Stele!

He thrust the ruler forward, without much force, but where the ruler's tip pointed, the air hummed under the unbearable pressure; that "suppression" force was more than double what it was when he used it bare-handed!

Li Dong's eyes lit up; this combination was incredible! The Demon Suppression Seal provided the core "suppression" Concept and energy operation method, while the Demon Suppression Ruler was a perfect carrier and amplifier.

Together, they specifically countered demons and evil spirits!

If he encountered that Foundation Establishment Realm giant python again now, Li Dong was confident that with one ruler strike, he could directly suppress it in place, unable to move, and then slowly deal with it!

This was like having his old face peeled off and thrown on the ground, trampled hundreds of times with shoes that had stepped in dog shit, then spat on and finally thrown into a pigsty to plaster the wall... uh, no, it was like grinding demons into the ground! Yes, grinding!

Just as Li Dong was immersed in the excitement brought by his new power, the System's notification sound rang out at an inopportune moment.

"Ding! Detected that skills Heavenly Pill Rifting Demon Seal (LV.X) and Black Scale Armor (LV.X) have reached their current cognitive limit, proficiency is full. To continue improving, higher-level energy sources, special Opportunities, or the Fusion of new related skill fragments are required."

Proficiency full? So fast? Li Dong was stunned for a moment, then reacted.

The System's enhancement directly maxed out the Rank, saving him a lot of arduous Cultivation time, but this also meant that without new Opportunities, the power of these two skills would basically be fixed at their current level.

He sensed the cultivation within his body; Peak Foundation Establishment Stage - Early Phase, only one step away from the Middle Stage, but this one step, relying solely on the Spiritual Qi in this secret chamber and his current resources, would probably not be easy to cross.

The consumption of Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills was enormous, but the rate of improvement had clearly slowed down.

It seemed that the resources and environment of the Mu Shi County stronghold were no longer cost-effective for him.

Continuing to stay here was like driving a sports car on a country road, very stifling.

To improve faster, to obtain the "higher-level energy sources" or "special Opportunities" mentioned by the System, he had to go to a larger platform.

The Prefecture! It seemed he had no choice but to go.

What his elder brother Zhang Wu said was right; the recommendation slot was an Opportunity, and also an inevitable choice.

During these few days of consolidating his cultivation, Li Dong wasn't idle either.

His perception, which had activated a "trace" of Spirituality, was practically like having a cheat.

Closing his eyes, he could vaguely sense the general situation of the entire Demon Suppression Division stronghold.

He discovered that besides Zhang Wu, who was at the Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment, there were several obscure but powerful auras deep within the stronghold, faintly present, but their power level was definitely far beyond Zhang Wu!

At least Late Foundation Establishment Stage, or even... possibly higher?

Hiss... The waters of a small place like Mu Shi County are so deep? Then the Prefecture Demon Suppression Division, wouldn't it be Foundation Establishment cultivators everywhere, and only Golden Core cultivators dare to walk sideways?

Li Dong for the first time had an intuitive but vague Concept of the Prefecture's power hierarchy.

The pressure was immense!

At the same time, he also clearly "felt" several unfriendly "gazes."

The owners of these "gazes" were not highly cultivated, probably the remaining subordinates Zhao Zhen left behind.

They didn't dare to approach the Spiritual Qi secret chamber, only daring to spy from afar, a sinister feeling, like venomous snakes hiding in the dark.

Hmph, a bunch of clowns.

Li Dong sneered inwardly.

That old dog Zhao Zhen was probably still licking his wounds; once he recovered or found a new backer, he would definitely make a comeback.

This grudge was thoroughly settled.

The trip to the Prefecture, he feared, would also not be without these lingering fellows.

However, when soldiers come, generals will block; when water comes, earth will cover.

He was no longer the Body Tempering Realm rookie he once was.

Three days passed in a flash.

Creak—

The heavy stone door of the Spiritual Qi secret chamber slowly opened.

Li Dong walked out, his aura more condensed and profound than three days prior.

Although his Realm was still Peak Foundation Establishment Stage - Early Phase, his control over power and the application of skills were now vastly different.

He felt as if he had been thoroughly refined, completely transformed.

He stretched, his joints popping with a series of crisp cracks.

The Prefecture, huh? He was a little excited.

As he walked out of the secret chamber area, he ran into Zhang Wu, who was rushing over.

"Brother Li Dong! You've finally come out of seclusion!" Zhang Wu said with a joyful expression, coming up and patting his shoulder, "The transfer order from the Prefecture has arrived!"