Chapter 311 - 30: The Metal Sphere’s Abnormal Movement

「Two days later. Nine in the morning.」

Figures moved to and fro below the apartment building, and occasionally, a black Sharp Light sedan would slowly drive up.

A somewhat fiery sun slowly rose into the sky, its scattered rays barely managing to dispel some of the winter chill.

In stark contrast to the clamor outside, the Cultivation Chamber inside the apartment was perfectly quiet.

For two full days, Lu Chao had been completely immersed in training his Martial Arts skill.

The Superpower Level had essentially broken the previous limits of an Earth Star People’s life, and their energy and stamina could no longer be measured by conventional standards.

Not to mention, he was blessed with the "Tough Body" talent, giving him a terrifying recovery rate.

’I’m almost there.’

His face was focused, and beads of sweat trickled down his cheeks.

Lu Chao had barely rested these past two days, spending most of his time in stance training, slowly but surely mastering the basics of the Ten Thousand Spirits Martial Arts Skill.

His Martial Arts uniform was in tatters, as if it had been burned away in an explosion, revealing muscles that looked as if they had been forged from molten steel.

BZZZT!

As a strange hum filled the air, his gaze shifted.

He looked down to see a brown Qi Flame humming to life in his palm.

The intense heat it held warped the air, and upon closer inspection, one could see the brown had grown noticeably deeper and denser.

’The so-called "Hundred Refinements" involves completely fusing the Martial Arts Flame, making its quality far surpass other Qi Flames of the same level and giving birth to a ’crushing’ property.’

’The difficult part of the training is this fusion step. The slightest error in perception or control will cause the Qi Flame to explode and backlash against me.’

Lu Chao’s eyes shone, a glint of Crimson Fire flashing within them.

Focusing his mind, he slowly brought his hands together, and the Golden Stone Flame in each palm began to overlap like two merging fires.

Just as they were about to fully merge, the Qi Flame suddenly went wild and lost its balance.

It detonated in his palms like a high-energy bomb.

BOOM!!

A muffled boom echoed through the room, and the entire Cultivation Chamber trembled slightly.

Lu Chao’s face was blackened with soot. The upper part of his Martial Arts uniform had been completely blasted to dust.

He even felt a slight stinging pain in his meridians as his qi and blood roiled, leaving him feeling a bit unwell.

If it were any other Limit-Breaking Level expert who hadn’t cultivated a defensive art, they could probably endure this once or twice, but any more would certainly result in injury.

And up to this point, he had already failed dozens of times.

’No wonder this skill has such high requirements for physical durability.’

’The backlash from a failed fusion doesn’t just damage the flesh; it also impacts the meridians and internal organs.’

Shaking his head to himself, a glint of determination flashed in Lu Chao’s eyes.

Soon, he raised his hands, and the brown Qi Flame reappeared in his palms.

Just like before, he slowly brought his palms together, letting the Qi Flames merge.

Lu Chao activated his Flow State talent again, heightening his focus and enhancing his comprehension.

Through his heightened senses, he detected a subtle abnormality and immediately guided the Qi Flame to adjust for it.

Then, as the seconds ticked by, he held his breath, staring intently at the Qi Flame before him as it gradually fused.

Finally.

BZZZT!!

The brown Qi Flame merged into one, its color turning even deeper.

It now looked like solidified lava, giving off a sense of immense weight.

’Success!’

His eyes lit up. Lu Chao could clearly feel that the Qi Flame now possessed a hint of that crushing property.

He then turned to the new silver-steel training dummy to the side.

He slowly raised his palm, letting the wisp of Qi Flame touch it.

CRACK... CREAK... GROAN!

A grating sound that set one’s teeth on edge rang out. The training dummy’s metal chest slowly twisted, warped, and caved inward where the Qi Flame touched it.

This wasn’t caused by an explosive burst of his strength, nor was it just the effect of the high temperature.

It was mainly the crushing destruction of the Golden Stone Flame, like the absolute suppression of a fragile object by a much harder one—a heavy impact akin to brute force.

’So that’s how it works.’

’The so-called crushing property is an increase in density resulting from the enhanced quality of the Qi Flame. And because it’s fused with the ’heavy’ characteristic of the Golden Stone Fighting Skill, the effect is even better.’

Seeing this, Lu Chao nodded to himself, thinking that the Ten Thousand Spirits Martial Arts Skill was especially suited for head-to-head combat.

Moreover.

’This is just the beginning. It doesn’t even count as a single, complete fusion yet.’

His eyes flickered as he looked back at the Qi Flame in his palm.

Part of it was a deep color like molten rock, while another part was paler, just as it was when he first broke through.

A complete Qi Flame fusion meant making the Qi Flame throughout his entire body, from top to bottom, undergo this fusion once.

And to reach the Peak of Limit-Breaking and master the "Hundred Refinements," he would need to complete this Qi Flame fusion nearly a hundred times!

Sighing to himself, Lu Chao then stopped his training.

Despite his powerful recovery ability, he still needed to rest properly.

Two consecutive days of training had already consumed a great deal of his physical energy. He needed nutritional supplements to maintain his body’s peak performance.

His mental energy had also been significantly drained.

He walked over to a corner of the Cultivation Chamber and picked up a bottle of a self-made, primary-grade Nutritional Potion.

GLUG! GLUG!!

He downed it, and a cool liquid flowed into his stomach.

Though his body’s energy was partially replenished, Lu Chao frowned slightly, clearly feeling the immense energy consumption of the Superpower Level.

He immediately drank another bottle, which was just enough to get him back on his feet, replenishing most of his energy.

’No wonder both Master and Master Ge said the resource consumption at the Superpower Level is an astronomical figure for an ordinary person.’

’I never really felt it before, but now... this body is practically a money-devouring monster.’

Sensing his own condition, Lu Chao shook his head to himself.

It wasn’t just that his Potential Progress had become harder to advance, but also that resources below a high grade now had very little effect.