Chapter 525 - 231: Abyss
’The improvement is incredibly subtle... but this is good! My proficiency is increasing very quickly!’
He looked at his panel.
Before he came in, it was ’Third Layer of the Profound Nether True Water Scripture (True Essence Root Technique) (entry-level) 9/1000’.
And now...
His proficiency had actually increased by more than thirty points!
Bringing it to over 40.
...This progress was nothing short of immense!
’It’s a shame I don’t know how long it took to refine that strand of Primordial Power... But it’s fine. I have the Divine Summoning Hourglass, so I can still keep track of time.’
With that thought, Qin Fang took the ’Divine Summoning Hourglass’ out of his personal satchel.
He placed it beside him and, after confirming it didn’t ’sink into the Abyss,’ he nodded.
...Although his master had instructed him not to come here to cultivate Spiritual Sense Leaf Skills, he had still made some preparations.
It was a classic case of having to see for yourself.
Without experiencing it firsthand, what others said could only be taken as a reference at best.
Of course, now that he had personally experienced the bizarreness of this World, he decided to heed his master’s teachings.
But the ’Divine Summoning Hourglass’ was still useful.
His concept of time couldn’t be allowed to get muddled.
It didn’t need to be precise... but he needed a rough idea.
...It was a crucial component of self-awareness.
Watching the sand in the Hourglass slowly trickle down, Qin Fang let out a soft breath.
’Alright, let’s begin... I wonder how long I can stay in this World...’
Qin Fang closed his eyes and began to cultivate.
In truth, Qin Fang was already quite familiar with this kind of secluded cultivation. Back at Old Ox Back, he would stay for half a year or even a full year at a time. During those periods, though, he would usually spend most of his time walking around, looking here and there, to dispel the complex thoughts that would suddenly surface during his training.
However, during his cultivation at Old Ox Back over the past year, he hadn’t taken a single step out of his cave abode.
...Who knew when some powerhouse’s Divine Sense might sweep over the area?
If he were discovered, the secrets of Old Ox Back would likely be exposed as well.
He wasn’t about to lose a treasure trove like Old Ox Back just because he was feeling a bit restless.
Therefore, even though the current environment was more difficult, it was still within an acceptable range for him.
’I just wonder how long I can stay in this World...’ he thought to himself.
Time passed, day by day.
Every time the Divine Summoning Hourglass chimed, Qin Fang knew another day had passed.
Even in the midst of cultivation, he could easily use his Divine Sense to flip the Divine Summoning Hourglass over, ensuring his sense of time didn’t drift too far off.
The Primordial Power of this World was truly violent. Refining it each time required a great deal of time... but the progress was also obvious.
Checking his proficiency each day, he found his training efficiency was hardly any slower than when he had been cultivating at Old Ox Back using True Essence Pills every day.
And as he refined more and more of the violent True Essence, his own True Essence absorbed more and more of this World’s unique ’Sharpness’ aura, growing increasingly condensed.
...Of course, he was still a long way from reaching True Gang.
But Qin Fang now completely understood why it was said that this Secret Realm offered tremendous benefits for Condensing Gang.
Sometimes, when he had been cultivating for too long, Qin Fang would stop for a short break.
He didn’t dare to wander too far, but taking a short walk nearby was fine.
He would also look at the stars to clear his mind...
...The stars in the sky seemed to change every day, which was undoubtedly good news for Qin Fang.
Being able to see a different starry sky each day provided a sense of novelty amid the unchanging scenery.
...In a world like this, such novelty became especially important.
But cultivating like this for so long put an ever-increasing strain on his mind. The longer he stayed here, the heavier his inner loneliness and solitude became.
At times, he would even feel his thoughts become viscous and Slow, as if they too were about to be assimilated by the seemingly stagnant darkness...
Even with the Divine Summoning Hourglass as an anchor to give him a rough idea of how much time had passed, his sensory judgment of time grew extremely fragile in this eternal night, which lacked sunrises, sunsets, and temperature changes.
Sometimes he would feel as though he had been cultivating arduously for several days, but the Divine Summoning Hourglass still hadn’t chimed, compelling him to open his eyes and check... afraid the Hourglass might have broken.
He would then discover that only a few hours had gone by.
Other times, he would feel as if he had only closed his eyes to regulate his breathing for a moment, yet the Hourglass would have already, and quietly, run out...
This conflict between his internal and external perception of time clearly exacerbated the instability of his mind.
But Qin Fang’s will was like a blade, and he always persevered.
...But sometimes, he couldn’t help but reminisce a great deal.
Scenes from his time as a refugee. Scenes from his time in True Martial. And scenes from his time in the Sect.
In this process of sinking into despair and pulling himself back, time flowed by, day after day.
In the blink of an eye, he had already been in this World for... over a year...
Because the Divine Summoning Hourglass had chimed three hundred and sixty-five times.
To prevent his memory from becoming muddled and miscounting... every time the Divine Summoning Hourglass chimed, he would carve a notch on a bamboo tube he carried with him, using this method to aid his memory.
Now, there were three hundred and sixty-five notches, but there was no sign of him being sent out.
And in this one year, his progress was nothing short of immense...
𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
The ’Third Layer of the Profound Nether True Water Scripture’ had already reached Great Success... although only by a little over ten points.
More important was the quality of his True Essence...
It was far stronger than when he had first arrived.
When he first came in, he felt that compared to the violent Primordial Power in the raging winds, the quality of his True Essence was like tofu to a stone.
Now, he felt it was more like the difference between ’frozen tofu’ and a ’stone’.
...The change was still quite significant, right?
Speaking of the wind, over the past year, he had endured it countless times... and most of these winds were very weak.
However, winds similar to the one from his first day... were not unheard of.
That kind of wind was clearly on a different level from the others.
Even now, his Nine-Layered Abyss Water Armor had no resistance whatsoever against that ’wind’.
...And whenever this kind of wind appeared, Qin Fang would absorb a small mouthful and then slowly ’refine’ it...
Because the Ultimate Yin Primordial Power and ’Sharpness’ characteristic within this wind were clearly far superior to those in the other winds.
It was just that the process was a bit painful.
But... there were benefits as well.
Namely, his Physique had also improved significantly under the ’tempering’ of this ’wind’.
Now Qin Fang could be sure...
...This wind was definitely not something his master and senior sister had carelessly forgotten to warn him about.
Rather, it was unique to the World he was currently in.
But... why had this change occurred?
That, he did not know.
’It’s been a year... I wonder how many more years it’ll be...’
Qin Fang frowned slightly, thinking to himself.
But there was nothing he could do.
As long as the Secret Realm didn’t ’kick’ him out, he couldn’t leave on his own.
He could only rein in his emotions and continue to ’endure’ it here...
「In the blink of an eye, another half a year passed...」