C10 The Strength of the Cultivator Increased!

After a low hum, a dense energy gathered around the furnace, slowly igniting a flame. This flame wasn't any kind of soul fire; the Worldscorching Lightning that Chen Dutian once controlled in a past life had vanished completely. The flames now surrounding the furnace were entirely conjured by burning energy.

Under the intense heat, the outer wall of the furnace quickly turned red-hot. Chen Dutian opened the box beside him and first tossed in the ebony vine. The ebony vine, being the root of a thousand-year-old tree, required at least half an hour to be completely melted into a liquid state without the aid of soul fire.

Next, the Scarlet Cloud Fruit and Iceflower were added to the furnace, filling the room with a rich, aromatic scent. After a short while, the Scarlet Cloud Fruit had transformed into a blood-red liquid, swirling continuously inside the furnace.

The impurities in the liquid were forced out under the high temperature, reducing the liquid's volume. Once the Iceflower melted, only a few drops of the red liquid remained. The Iceflower, with its cold properties, was somewhat repellent to the red liquid from the Scarlet Cloud Fruit, causing the furnace to tremble slightly...

It seemed like the Iceflower had completely melted that day, with all its impurities driven out. Only then did Chen Dutian add the Dragonheart Grass into the furnace. Under the intense heat, the Dragonheart Grass quickly dissolved, and three differently colored liquids began to swirl rapidly inside the furnace, yet they stubbornly refused to blend.

By this time, more than half an hour had passed, and the Ebony Vine had also melted. Chen Dutian felt that more than half of his spiritual energy had been depleted. "Without soul fire, creating a fifth-level pill seems impossible," he sighed deeply. He could sense that there were still some impurities in the liquids, and even if he managed to concoct a Soul Nourishing Pill, it would at best be of the third level.

Moreover, the spiritual energy required to refine pills was immense. With Chen Dutian's current strength at the Third Heaven of the Spirit Convergence stage, relying solely on his spiritual energy to produce a Soul Nourishing Pill was pushing his limits.

The four liquids continued to rotate independently within the furnace, showing no signs of merging. In the blink of an eye, another quarter of an hour passed, and Chen Dutian was running out of time...

"Buzz!"

A surge of majestic spiritual energy burst from Chen Dutian's body, instantly enveloping the glowing furnace. The four distinct liquids seemed to be controlled by an invisible hand, slowly beginning to make contact. Meanwhile, the flames around the furnace flared up to over a foot high.

After a few deep breaths, Chen Dutian abruptly dispersed the energy, extinguishing the flames in an instant. The furnace emitted a low hum before falling completely silent. Exhausted, Chen Dutian climbed off the bed and slowly approached the furnace. With a gentle wave of his right hand, a purple pill, enveloped in energy, floated before him.

“A fourth-level Soul Nourishing Pill, what luck!” Chen Dutian thought, his heart filled with joy as he grasped the pill tightly. Without the aid of soul fire, producing a fourth-level Soul Nourishing Pill with his current abilities was nothing short of a miracle.

“I wonder if taking this pill will boost my strength to the Fifth Heaven of Spirit Convergence!” Returning to the bed, he sat down slowly, excitement coursing through him as he popped the pill into his mouth. The pill melted instantly, releasing a warm energy that flowed through his meridians, spreading throughout his body.

Holding his breath and focusing, Chen Dutian closed his eyes and began channeling the Cosmic Energy Siphoning technique to sense the changes within. The ambient energy in the air surged toward him, drawn by the pill’s power.

The warm energy from the Soul Nourishing Pill started to transform Chen Dutian’s body, gradually merging with the surrounding energy in his meridians. If anyone had entered his room at that moment, they would have seen him enveloped in a cocoon of energy, with a small vortex forming above his head, his absorption rate astonishingly rapid.

Waves of pain coursed through his body, yet Chen Dutian felt a surge of excitement. His energy channels were expanding, and the flow of energy within him was noticeably faster. More importantly, in the chaotic space of his Power Node, his Martial Spirit was growing stronger, and the energy coursing through his channels had deepened in color.

In a warrior's training, each advancement in level changes the color of their energy. At the Spirit Convergence level, it is a pale white, but upon reaching the Astral Wandering level, it turns a shade of blue. The deeper the color, the stronger the warrior.

The night passed in the blink of an eye. At dawn, before the sun had risen, Chen Dutian opened his eyes, a sharp gleam in them. A powerful aura emanated from him, causing the two guards outside his courtyard, both at the Ninth Heaven of Spirit Convergence, to exchange shocked glances. The Lord Protector's Heir, once deemed a failure by the Imperial Capital, had now unlocked his Power Node, and his strength had surged. Even the guards in the estate couldn't help but feel excited.

"Fifth Heaven of Spirit Convergence, ha!" Chen Dutian laughed heartily as he got out of bed, flung open the door, and strode out. Glancing at a massive stone in the corner of the courtyard, he vanished from where he stood.

"Mountain Shaker!"

Chen Dutian stood firm in front of the massive rock, raising his hand with a powerful shout before striking it heavily. This technique was a basic skill he had learned in his past life when he joined the Graymanes. Though it seemed unremarkable, as his palm connected with the rock, a flash of white light appeared, and the rock trembled violently. Cracks spread across its surface before it shattered into pieces on the ground.

"This strike carries a force of at least 1,100 pounds. If I were to use the top-tier skills from my past life, I could hold my own even against a warrior at the peak of Spirit Convergence," Chen Dutian mused, a satisfied smile playing on his lips as he looked at his hand.

"Come out!" he called casually, taking a seat at the stone table in the courtyard.

As soon as he spoke, a shadowy figure appeared before him, kneeling respectfully. "Congratulations, sir, on your significant increase in strength!"

The figure was dressed in tight-fitting black attire, with only a blood-red thread on the chest breaking the monotony. Judging by the speed he displayed, this person was at least at the Second Heaven of Astral Wandering.

This was a member of the Bloodshadow Guard, the personal protectors of Lord Protector Chen Dou. There were thirty of them, all formidable warriors in Astral Wandering. Before leaving the capital, the Lord Protector had specifically left ten of them to ensure his family's safety.

Chen Dutian had never noticed them before, but when he shattered that massive rock earlier, he sensed a faint energy fluctuation in the courtyard...

"From now on, there's no need to guard my safety in this courtyard. Without my orders, no one is allowed to approach. Understood?"