Chapter 364: Chapter 349 White Mist

“Have you arrived at the Tree-man Base? I’ve secured a spot for you to cultivate under the tree. Starting tomorrow, every day after sunrise, you can train for an hour in the slot.

“The first slot is primarily for tree-men to cultivate, but I’ve reserved the second slot for your cultivation.”

“Cultivating under the Tree of Life yields outstanding results. It not only enhances True Qi Techniques but is even better for Body Refining Techniques and Healing Techniques.”

“Each round lasts 10 days, and the next opportunity won’t be for another month.”

“Once your wounds heal, achieve more war merits, build good relations with the tree-men, and through their connections, you can apply for a ’Permanent Tree-Under Cultivation Quota,’ allowing daily cultivation, and possibly even a ’Tree-man Cultivation Quota.’

“When tree-men cultivate, they release dense Spiritual Qi, greatly enhancing cultivation effects.”

“Unfortunately, such cultivation quotas are scarce. Even when I was in the Innate stage, I couldn’t get one, and now as a Grandmaster, I wouldn’t feel right competing with Innate stage individuals for these spots.”

“Keep striving forward, and contact me if you need anything.”

After thanking Chen Shouhu, Zhou Leng sent a message: “Brigadier General, I wish to join the battle now. I’m almost fully healed.”

“Stop talking nonsense. Do you take me for a blind person? At that time, you were as fragile as a porcelain bowl dropped to the ground, ready to shatter at any touch. A battle between True Liquid Innate and regular Bone Forger Innate is nothing, but attacking head-on with the Flesh and Blood War Chariot, you two were crazier than I ever was. Enough talk, I’ll assign you a task in three days, focus on healing.”

Zhou Leng, seeing no choice, had to forgo battle and toured the Tree-man Demon City Base to gather information.

Occasionally, he watched battles inside and outside the city walls from afar.

Near sunrise, Zhou Leng finally felt a bit drowsy.

Just as he was about to find a place to nap, he saw groups of tree-men gather under the Tree of Life, standing like a forest around the Tree of Life and the Life Spring Water.

At the moment the sun rose, a faint white mist rose from the crown of the Tree of Life.

The white mist descended, enveloping the tree-men.

People of various races watched the tree-men and the three non-tree-men among them with envy.

Those who can cultivate at such a time are either tree-men or people with extraordinary backgrounds.

Zhou Leng looked at the three people, identifying one as a Demon Spirit Master, one as a dwarf, and a young human he didn’t recognize.

An hour later, it was time for the second cultivation slot.

Zhou Leng simply sat cross-legged on the ground, leaning against a tree house, covered himself with a thin blanket, and took a short nap.

When the time came, he opened his eyes.

He saw the tree-men and the three individuals leaving one after another.

People of other races entered the area.

Zhou Leng opened the Martial Arts City, displayed his cultivation quota for the tree-man guard to check, and entered.

At this moment, under the Tree of Life, there was still a hint of white mist, though it was very thin.

Once everyone had entered, they said nothing, each finding a place close to the Tree of Life to sit.

Zhou Leng activated the Star Phoenix Rejuvenation Technique, transforming the True Qi within his body into fine red threads that cleansed his body.

The red threads gathered at the center of his chest, transforming into a Star Phoenix Feather, settling into his spine.

Unconscious of time, the ground he sat upon grew warm.

Threads of Power of Life transmitted from the ground, flowing into his body.

As explained before by Vigorous Root, all trees of life have an array of tree root caves beneath them.

These are the habitation places of tree-men.

The aura of the Tree of Life inside is extremely abundant, only allowing Innate tree-men or those from alien races who have done major deeds for tree-men to reside in the Tree Root Cave.

This sensation is the power of the Tree Root Cave being transferred upwards.

Quietly, Zhou Leng cultivated.

One, two, two and a half…

The bell rang, signaling the end of cultivation, amassing two and a half Star Phoenix Feathers.

Though reluctant, Zhou Leng left, carefully recalling his earlier cultivation process.

The feeling of cultivation under the Frost Giant Tree or at Mammoth Lake was different.

Mammoth Lake felt like silent air, healing the body unbeknownst.

The aura of the Tree of Life was like flowing water passing through the body, with clearer perception.

The power of Mammoth Lake was thinner.

The power of the Tree of Life was denser, more pure and focused, seemingly designed to increase the Power of Life alone.

This resulted in more efficient Star Phoenix Rejuvenation Technique practice under the Tree of Life than at Mammoth Lake.

“As expected of the Tree of Life.”

“It seems the muscle vitality increased a bit.”

“Cultivating at Mammoth Lake equates to fortifying muscles.”

“Cultivating under the Tree of Life equates to enhancing the muscle’s self-healing ability.”

Walking outside, Zhou Leng noticed people of various races cultivating outside the perimeter.

Those who entered earlier sat directly outside the perimeter upon leaving.

Zhou Leng also found a place to sit and continued cultivating the Star Phoenix Rejuvenation Technique.

Including the previous two and a half, he accumulated four Star Phoenix Feathers and then stopped cultivating.

Looking at the time, Zhou Leng wondered.

Why did the cultivation feel the same outside the perimeter as inside it?

The warm sensation under his seat persisted, as if the power of the Tree Root Cave was seeping upwards.

He secretly glanced at others and then lowered his head to inspect the area he was sitting in.

Could it be that this spot is special?

He first remembered this spot and then went to other places close to the perimeter to cultivate.

The effect was the same.

“I’ll investigate this later, but for now, let’s quickly use…”

So, Zhou Leng sat by the perimeter and continued cultivating the Star Phoenix Rejuvenation Technique.

Only after accumulating six Star Phoenix Feathers did he feel his body reach its limit.

“At Mammoth Lake, in one session, I could accumulate at most four; here, it’s six. Let’s try other cultivation techniques.”

He sequentially practiced the Star Gazing Technique, Undying Star Body, Taiqing Sea Robe, etc.

The Star Conch within the Magic Spirit Bag could even be directly absorbed by the Undying Star Body, though the effect was slightly inferior.

Here, the effectiveness of practicing other techniques was also noticeably enhanced.

However, the most noticeable improvement was still in the Star Phoenix Rejuvenation Technique.

Zhou Leng compared the effects of cultivation inside and outside the railing; it was roughly the difference between 90 and 100.

The difference of that 10 came from the lingering white mist of the Tree of Life.

Zhou Leng pretended to chat with people to learn about the situation here.

Everyone said that the effect inside was ten times better than outside.

Moreover, no one mentioned being able to sense the Power of Life underground during cultivation, not even inside the railing.

This led Zhou Leng to conclude that he must have some talent or a treasure causing this change, allowing him to steal the Tree of Life’s power.

So, he searched through the Magic Spirit Bag.

There was the Octagonal Bone Fragment obtained in the dwarf world, the Eye of the Ancient God, the Tiger Talisman and Star Refining Furnace from Hundred Peaks Valley, the Incense Burner awarded by the state, and other miscellaneous items.

He couldn’t tell exactly what was making the difference.

Putting away the items, Zhou Leng stood up and went to the Martial Arts Dojo, starting with the Overlapping Waves Palm, the technique he was most familiar with, to train his External Skills.

The more Zhou Leng practiced punching, the brighter his eyes became.

While punching and training moves, he could sense the power of the Tree of Life, some coming from the air, some from beneath his feet.

This led to an endless flow of True Qi, physical strength, and energy.

From start to finish, everything remained in the perfect state.

This feeling was somewhat similar to cultivating in the Flying Moon Hall of the Ancient River Sect.

The more Zhou Leng cultivated, the more exhilarating it became.

Previously, the killing move of the Overlapping Waves Palm wasn’t completed, and he hadn’t cultivated the Celestial Tide Palm, but he was always learning.

Now, with the killing move Thousand Seas achieved, and the palm technique at the level of Divine Communication Mastery, it was a good time to cultivate the Celestial Tide Palm.

Zhou Leng recalled the Divine Text of the Celestial Tide Palm in his mind and then started his cultivation.

For the first three times, he practiced the twelve forms of the Celestial Tide Palm slowly, without True Qi, with nothing special happening.

The fourth time, he began at normal speed, still without True Qi.

The first form, Sea Tide Rising, the second form, Thunderous Waves Hitting the Shore…

“Huff… huff… huff…”

This time, even without using True Qi, a wind sound accompanied each movement, producing a whirring noise.

Nearby martial artists, hearing this, looked over in secret amazement, guessing who this person could be.

Creating wind without Qi, and with such unhurried movements, was something achievable only at an extremely high realm.

After completing three sequences at normal speed, Zhou Leng then performed three sequences of fast punches.

Then he began Qi Manipulation during his moves.

This time, the wind sound in each strike transformed entirely into the sound of waves crashing.

His True Qi was inexhaustible, and the more he practiced the Celestial Tide Palm, the more he enjoyed it.

Zhou Leng punched again and again, with the Divine Text of the Celestial Tide Palm circulating faster and faster in his mind, dramatically increasing his understanding.

He already possessed top-notch basic skills in palm techniques, and with the Divine Communication Realm experience of the Overlapping Waves Palm as a foundation, the realm of the Celestial Tide Palm advanced rapidly.

After thirty sequences, he achieved entry level with the Celestial Tide Palm.

After one hundred sequences, he became proficient.

After five hundred sequences, he attained mastery.

After two thousand sequences, he reached Minor Achievement.

He practiced for a full seven hours, with ample True Qi and physical strength, his willpower nearly at its limit.

Zhou Leng slowly concluded his practice, glancing up to find nightfall had arrived.

He appeared slightly fatigued, but his eyes were bright.

One-day Minor Achievement.

This was an achievement he hadn’t dared to imagine before.

In the past, reaching Minor Achievement with the Overlapping Waves Palm took a full ten years.

Now, with a more complex Innate Palm Technique, he achieved it in one day.

No wonder Elder Song said to practice the Overlapping Waves Palm to its utmost before learning new palm techniques.

Having a solid foundation in palm techniques made a world of difference.

Throughout the entire cultivation process, past experiences constantly emerged, with the two sets of palm techniques complementing each other.

Every shared insight and similarity rapidly advanced his mastery of the Celestial Tide Palm.

If the foundation in Overlapping Waves Palm and basic palm techniques wasn’t strong, it would take at least a year to reach Minor Achievement, possibly two or three years at the slowest.

“Sharpening the axe doesn’t delay the task of cutting wood.”

At this moment, Zhou Leng deeply understood the value of basic skills.

He resolved internally that for other types of martial arts, he must practice the basics to their fullest extent.

This would not only speed up the cultivation of new techniques but also amplify their power.

“If I achieved Minor Achievement in one day, if Elder Song were here, he might achieve Great Success or even Perfection in one day.”

“Zhou Leng!” A familiar voice sounded.

Zhou Leng turned to see Zhang Feng, Ren Yuan, and other disciples from the Ancient River Sect standing not far away, smiling at him.

In the presence of outsiders, they couldn’t casually call him “senior brother.”

“How long have you been standing there?” Zhou Leng approached them.

After a few steps, sweat poured profusely from every pore, forming a thick layer like a membrane, soaking his clothes.

Zhou Leng’s figure swayed slightly, feeling a bit faint, but instantly his hearing and vision became sharp, as if electrified throughout the body.

A numbing sensation coursed through him, as if countless tiny hands were massaging all his tissues.

Strange energies flowed endlessly through his muscles, bones, and tendons.

Some muscles gently twitched.

“What is this…” the junior brothers were puzzled with mixed emotions.

“Is this false sweat or real sweat?”

Zhou Leng calmly sensed his body.

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