by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
Gurgle! Gurgle!
Xiang Shaoyun felt his body gradually weaken, and he could not help but place the rock to one side.
“Dammit. People once said that a meal can defeat a hero. I, Xiang Shaoyun, am a heavenly genius among men. Am I bound to fall here too?” Xiang Shaoyun said, ironically tooting his own horn.
At this moment, a young girl’s voice came from right beside him, “I have some food here for you.”
Chapter 8: Challenging One’s Limits!
Appearing right beside Xiang Shaoyun was precisely Lu Xiaoqing. Her face showed faint traces of pink, and her cute round eyes did not dare to look directly at Xiang Shaoyun, as if she was a bit shy. She was a compassionate girl, and she pitied Xiang Shaoyun.
Before Xiang Shaoyun even had the chance to speak, a mocking voice resounded through the air, “Oho, a five-star physique genius has fallen to the point where he needs a woman to feed him? How sad of you.”
Who else could have said this but Gou Zi? He had even appeared right beside Xiang Shaoyun with two other people. He gazed scornfully at Xiang Shaoyun, as if he wanted to swallow him whole.
Ignoring Gou Zi’s words, Xiang Shaoyun looked at Lu Xiaoqing and sincerely said, “Thank you, but I can’t accept this.”
Having said that, he stood up and looked at Gou Zi’s group of three and declared, “The three of you, remember this! You may mock me today, but I will make you pay me back ten times as much in the future!”
Laughing coldly, Gou Zi said, “The likes of you dare to spout this nonsense? In less than three days, you will starve to death! You really don’t know your place!”
Gou Zi and his men did not dare to personally take action against Xiang Shaoyun out in the open. This was part of Martial Hall Palace’s rules—apart from the canteen, personal duels were not permitted elsewhere. The only exception was if they were to fight in the arena.
“You’re taking your bullying too far!” Lu Xiaoqing unhappily cried out as she watched Gou Zi’s arrogant manner.
“Miss Lu, we have no intention of offending you, and we even ask you to stay away out of this. Otherwise, if Young Master Wu gets angry over this, you might suffer in the process,” Gou Zi warned Lu Xiaoqing.
“Good, very good! I will report this matter to the martial officer!” Lu Xiaoqing furiously yelled. The martial officer was basically the teacher in charge of mentoring the outer disciples.
“Heheh, go ahead, then,” Gou Zi indifferently replied.
“Getting angry over these dogs is of no use. I can feel your sincerity. I, Xiang Shaoyun, have not yet fallen to a point where I need to live off a woman to survive.” After he finished speaking, Xiang Shaoyun turned around and left.
“You ungrateful fellow!” Lu Xiaoqing lightly stomped the ground before she also proceeded to leave.
“Haha! I want a genius like you to get the hell out of Martial Hall Palace like a lowly dog!” Gou Zi madly laughed.
At this time, Xiang Shaoyun was feeling extremely depressed, and he swore to himself to get his revenge! From afar, a figure riding on a wolf had taken note of what was happening to Xiang Shaoyun. He lightly sighed to himself, “An unpolished jade will never shine. If you can’t even get past this small hurdle, then your five-star physique is indeed a waste.”
As for Xiang Shaoyun, he was strolling toward a martial officer. This officer was a middle-aged man who was able to utilize the power of the stars. He was coldly monitoring the movements of every single outer court disciple who was within his sight. When he saw Xiang Shaoyun coming over, he indifferently asked, “What?”
Xiang Shaoyun went straight to the point. “Martial officer, I wish to have a meal.”
“Lunchtime is over. If you were unable to get a meal, you cannot blame others. Stay hungry first, then wait for dinner to fight again,” the Martial Officer coldly replied.
“I just want to know if there are any other ways of getting a meal?” Xiang Shaoyun asked.
“Outer court disciples are only allowed to have their meals in the canteen, inner court disciples are allowed to eat in our local restaurant or leave the Martial Hall Palace to get a meal, and personal disciples can have meals at their respective elder’s abode. Is that clear?” explained the martial officer.
Xiang Shaoyun could not help but feel a bit disappointed. He was already hungry beyond compare, yet he had to wait another six hours before even getting the chance to fight for dinner. It was going to be rough trying to hold on.
Just as Xiang Shaoyun was sadly walking away, the martial officer said, “However, if you have the guts to challenge your limits and complete a few tasks, an exception will be made and you will be rewarded appropriately. Food won’t be an issue then.”
“What tasks?” Xiang Shaoyun fervently asked.
“At the place called the Hall of Limits, thresholds have been designated for different cultivation levels. So long as you are able to surpass that threshold, you will be able to get special rewards! However, the limits are not easily broken. Only if you are the strongest among those your level will you be able to forcefully complete the task there,” the martial officer said.
“I want to give it a try!” Xiang Shaoyun said with determination.
“Heheh, very good. Follow me, then,” the martial officer replied with a smile on his face.
The martial officer proceeded to bring Xiang Shaoyun to the Hall of Limits. At the same time, he also informed Xiang Shaoyun about some matters regarding the Hall of Limits. The so-called limits one needed to surpass referred to the upper thresholds of one’s ability within the same cultivation realm. This would separate geniuses from others in the same realm, and every stage’s limit would be different. There were different challenges available: facing off against strong experts, being tortured in illusionary worlds, or even other strange tasks that would test one’s limits.
“Okay, this here is the Hall of Limits. I can only bring you here. If you’re able to surpass the limits, wanting to have a meal is but a simple matter.” After the martial officer finished speaking, he turned around and began to leave.
A five-star physique was worthy of this martial officer’s care and attention. If this was any other outer court disciple, he would have merely pointed the way and let them find the place themselves. The Hall of Limits was an extremely old building. Built at the foot of a mountain, the building was suffused in some weird energy, making it difficult for others to see through the building.
“Disciple Xiang Shaoyun greets the revered overseer,” Xiang Shaoyun politely greeted the old overseer seated in an old wooden armchair.
“You wish to challenge the limits?” the old overseer said, his cloudy eyes gazing at Xiang Shaoyun.
“Indeed. Please show me the way!” Xiang Shaoyun replied.
“Go straight. It is the first room. Enter yourself, and if you’re able to walk out safely after an hour, it’ll count as you passing,” the old attendant said directly without beating about the bush.
After a slight bow, Xiang Shaoyun started making his way to the old building. Very quickly, he reached the entrance to the first level of the Hall of Limits. Without hesitating, he pushed open the doors and walked inside. Just as he had stepped inside, the doors automatically closed. Simultaneously, an invisible burst of energy filled the room, making Xiang Shaoyun feel as if he was lifting a rock weighing 500 kilograms, causing him to fall flat on the floor.
Pu!
Xiang Shaoyun spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.
“Gravity room!” Xiang Shaoyun cried out to himself in alarm.
Basic Realm cultivators focus on honing their physical strength, and the limit pertaining to this particular hall was precisely that. However, this was no ordinary gravity affecting him; it was artificially produced via a formation that resulted in it being formless. This made it practically impossible to resist. Only one who could withstand the pressure of the gravity constantly trampling them would be considered to have surpassed the limit!
Xiang Shaoyun’s perc
eption was extraordinary; the moment the unknown pressure assailed him, he knew that it was a test of limit pertaining to gravity.
The gravity in the room made him feel the weight of 500 kilograms. Xiang Shaoyun was a mere fifth-stage Basic Realm cultivator, meaning that his physical strength was only able to bear 250 kilograms. Making him endure pressure double that was no doubt his utmost limit.
What Xiang Shaoyun had to be thankful about was that even though he had neglected his training since young, his father had constantly tempered his body with various spirit medicines. This made his physical body unusually strong; otherwise, he would’ve long succumbed to the gravity!
“This room really does push the limits. However, I will make use of this to achieve a breakthrough in my Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual!” Crying out to himself, he began circulating the Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual.
Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual was indeed an ancient technique, one full of various mysteries. The moment Xiang Shaoyun activated it, his body rapidly circulated qi while nine stars lit up throughout his body. As the Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual circulated through him, the pressure he felt gradually decreased.
Chapter 9: This Brat Is Definitely a Masochist!!
Outside the Hall of Limits, the martial officer who brought Xiang Shaoyun over had returned. He spoke to the senior overseer, saying, “I say, brother, don’t you think you’re being a bit cruel here? Normally, only sixth-stage Basic Realm disciples are allowed in, and they’re only required to remain there for a quarter of an hour. That brat from just now is only at the fifth stage...making him stay in there for half an hour is—”
The old overseer lazily waved his hand and said, “Don’t worry. He possesses a five-star physique, so he must suffer a bit more than normal people. If he cannot even surpass the first limit, this proves that his heart is not in the right place, making it difficult for him to accomplish great things in the future.”
“Okay, then. I really hope nothing untoward happens; otherwise, if the nineteenth elder comes for me, I really will be in hot soup.” Taking one more glance at the Hall of Limits, the martial officer left.
Still indifferent, the old overseer slowly shut his eyes and sunk deep into meditation. In the first room, Xiang Shaoyun was undergoing a torture of the utmost limit. Subjected to a gravity of 500 kilograms, every single second was unbearable, much less an entire hour.
Although Xiang Shaoyun was able to forcefully tap his astral energy via the Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual and lessen the pain, as time went on, he felt his bones being crushed and his mind being torn into pieces. This test not only tested one’s physical endurance, but also one’s willpower. If his willpower was not strong enough and he fainted, he would most certainly be crushed by the immense gravity.
“I must surpass this limit. Activate, Heaven Conquering Overlord Manual!” Xiang Shaoyun recalled all the moments he had been insulted by others, giving him a boost of adrenaline originating from his unwillingness to submit. The stars in his body began to light up brilliantly, with the nine stars turning into something akin to nine whirlpools that began to activate the hidden potential within his flesh, meridians, organs, and bones.
Buzz Buzz
Xiang Shaoyun’s body began emitting a strange buzzing noise. A large wave of power flowed from his limbs and bones into the midst of the nine stars. Such immense power was definitely not something that a regular fifth-stage Basic Realm practitioner should possess, nor was it gained from withstanding 500 kilograms worth of gravity. The source of this power was from Xiang Shaoyun himself.
“Father, why are you bringing over such a large medicine jar? We are not even done boiling the existing medicine!”
“Father is using spirit medicine to reinforce your body. Although you have amazing talent, since you made a bet with others to not cultivate for 10 years, you’re wasting 10 of your best years for cultivation! I am doing this to build up your foundation so that you will be able to rise up again after 10 years! Otherwise, once your star formation is formed, your accomplishments will be severely limited!”
“But but but…this cauldron of medicine is boiling, I will be roasted to death!”
“Don’t worry. I’ve locked away your meridians and star formation, and I will also be freezing the spirit medicine with my hand seals. Be a good boy and trust me, ok? You won’t feel any pain.”
“You’re a liar, Father! Didn’t you say it wouldn’t hurt?! It burns, it burns—ahhh—you cub-eating tiger!!”
Remembering what his father had done for him when he was five, Xiang Shaoyun began to smile. He said, “Father, all the hard work and effort you put in back then, your son is reaping the harvest right now. Rise!”
Xiang Shaoyun cried out loud, his palms flat on the ground, forcing himself to stand against the weight of 500 kilograms. The nine stars in his body shone brightly while energy constantly streamed into his star formation, powering the stars to even greater limits. Waves of refined energy, pulsing from his meridians, flowed throughout his body and resonated within his 365 acupoints, causing his internal energy to explosively increase. From his initial cultivation of fifth-stage Basic Realm, this explosive growth pushed his cultivation to the late phase of the fifth stage before it reached the peak phase shortly after.
Boom!
Sixth-stage Basic Realm!
Xiang Shaoyun’s energy raged like a god holding up the heavens and the earth. The 500-kilogram gravity continued to assail him and squeezed out the energy hidden within his body, which in turn fueled his nine stars. All this resulted in an ungodly increase in his cultivation!
Xiang Shaoyun’s bodily reinforcement had begun when he was 5 years old and lasted all the way until he was 14 years old, a full 9 years! The result of this was that his body seemed to contain boundless energy; the pressure that he was undergoing from the Hall of Limits had unleashed just a tiny bit of it!
Filled with this energy, Xiang Shaoyun forgot about his hunger, even forgetting that the 500-kilogram weight was still pressing down upon him!
“I cannot afford to break through too fast. I must first consolidate this new strength and establish a firm foundation!” Although Xiang Shaoyun had yet to formally qualify as a cultivator, nobody understood better than him the essentials of cultivation.
With this train of thought, Xiang Shaoyun endlessly suppressed the unrestrained flow of energy, forcing it into his nine-star formation. Although the energy seemed boundless, once it came into contact with the nine stars, it disappeared without a trace. With the massive flow of energy into his nine stars, the pressure on his body gradually decreased, making it easier to withstand the gravity.
Simultaneously, the energy that was being squeezed out from him slowly decreased until it finally stopped. Was that all there was to the energy he had accumulated over nine years of bodily reinforcement? Naturally, Xiang Shaoyun understood that that was not the case. Rather, the limit of this particular room was no longer able to force out any more of the energy within his body.
Without realizing it, half an hour had already passed. When the old overseer came before the hall’s gates, the entrance to the room, he found that Xiang Shaoyun was standing straight, as if the environment within the room felt completely normal to him! Upon seeing this, the overseer’s eyes almost fell out of their sockets!
Ever since this overseer had taken up the position of overseer at the Hall of Limits, he had never seen anybody below the seventh stage of Basic Realm stand there so effortlessly, much less someone at the fifth stage!
The old overseer trembled as he cried out in surprise, “Impossible! This…this brat has broken through to the peak of the sixth-stage Basic Realm? H-how is this even possible?” While the old overseer stared in disbelief, Xiang Shaoyun turned and noticed him standing there.
Laughing, Xiang Shaoyun then asked, “Revered overseer, may I stay here for a little bit longer?”
“Eh? This…yeah, sure,” the old attendant replied, completely dumbfounded.
Leaving the front of the first room, the old attendant’s face was one of utter shock. In the end, all the attendant could do was silently curse, “F*ck, this brat is definitely a masochist!”
If Xiang Shaoyun had heard his words, he would have fallen face flat onto the ground. How could he be a masochist?! All he wanted to do was to further adapt himself to the gravity in the room and see how much longer he’d be able to last!
After a full four hours, Xiang Shaoyun finally came out of the hall. The moment he stepped out, he immediately felt the pressure on his body disappear. In fact, his body felt weightless now!
Extremely satisfied, Xiang Shaoyun laughed to himself, “Haha! Testing my limits feels great!”
By the time Xiang Shaoyun stepped out of the compound, the old overseer had been waiting for a long while.
“Brat, you’re not bad at all,” the old overseer praised Xiang Shaoyun without holding back.
“Many thanks for the revered overseer’s praise,” Xiang Shaoyun humbly replied, not letting what had just happened go to his head.
“Alright. Since your challenge is a success, you’ll get 1,000 points as a reward!” the elder spoke as a matter of fact.
“What in the world is 1,000 points? I want food!” Xiang Shaoyun complained, as if he was a hungry ghost.
Chapter 10: If You Don’t Let Me Eat, You Die!
“A brat like you really doesn’t know how to appreciate good things. The 1,000 points will allow you to fill your stomach for an entire year!” The old overseer was slightly speechless after hearing Xiang Shaoyun.
Xiang Shaoyun hesitated then said, “Eh, what do you mean? This disciple has just joined the Martial Hall Palace yesterday! My heartless senior brother Zi Changhe didn’t tell me any of this at all!”
Upon hearing Xiang Shaoyun directly call Zi Changhe by name, the old overseer couldn’t help but tremble. Each and every one of the Martial Hall Palace elders was mighty; which disciple would dare to speak their names directly?
