Dark Moon Era

Chapter 179: Astonishing Cultivation (3.5 in 1)

Tang Ling muttered the pithy formula and entered the silent state quickly.

Less than ten seconds later, due to the assistance from the gene tester, Tang Ling moved forward to the visualization state.

According to the pithy formula, he had to use his spirit to feel the energy in the realm. This particular step was a difficult hurdle to pass for a person who had just started cultivation. Otherwise, the gene tester would not be used to guide one into the visualization state and help the newbies feel the energy.

But was it really that difficult?

Tang Ling devoted his mind and body to the visualization as there should not be messy thoughts in his mind, but he could not help feeling strange.

Right after he entered the visualization state, he could already feel the energy that floated in the realm since it was very obvious. It was not purple energy particles or a lump of purple clouds floating in the air like how Yang Kong described it. Instead, he saw strips of purple glowing belts intersecting with one another in the air.

“Did I sense it wrongly?” Tang Ling could not help but doubt himself. The strange thing was that even if he was distracted by the sudden thought, all it did was disrupt the silent state but did not destroy it completely. The purple glowing strips were only slightly blurrier in his eyes.

Nevertheless, it frightened Tang Ling. He discarded the thought and concentrated on his visualization.

Whatever. This is what I sensed. There shouldn’t be any mistake. If the energy is in the form of the glowing strips rather than particles or clouds, will it be easier for my spirit to capture them?

According to the guidance in the manual, he could sketch the outline with his brain in the visualized world. Then, his spirit would become a big net or a pair of hands that could capture the energy.

However, sketching the outline of a pair of hands was harder than the net because the hands had a much more delicate structure.

However, in Tang Ling’s visualization, if the energy was presented in the form of strips, would it not be better if he had a pair of hands to pull them over?

He was ready to face the difficulties of sketching the outline of a pair of hands with his spirit. Soon, he started to visualize his own hands in that imaginary world.

However, a few seconds after his thought when Tang Ling’s hands took form in the imaginary world, a pair of gigantic hands lay across the realm.

What the...? Did something mutate?

Tang Ling dare not stray away from his visualization any more. He suspected that if he were to continue visualizing, he would sketch himself as a giant in the imaginary world, and he would be able to catch as many energy strips as he wanted, but...it was not necessary.

Tang Ling was afraid of wasting time. Nevertheless, Yang Kong did mention that the length of the first cultivation varied according to people. The fastest took around three to four hours, and the longest, seven to eight hours.

Yang Kong also said that if the duration exceeded ten hours, the cultivation session must be halted because the gene tester energy could no longer sustain the cultivation after that.

Based on what the addendum said, the best way to start the first cultivation would be to allow the energy to wash his body as many times as possible. Because the impurities at this stage were rather scattered, the energy wash could flush away the impurities easily.

However, if there were a lot of impurities that remained after the first cultivation, the impurities would fuse with the body during the next cycle. Due to the relentless energy wash attempting to flush the impurities out, it would unintentionally move the impurities into smaller seams or holes, causing them to be stuck there.

The fusion between the impurities and the body would grow closer with time, so if time was removed from the equation or shortened, the impurities would be less likely to get stuck in the body, and the flushing would be much more effective.

Summarizing everything that the addendum mentioned, the longer the first cultivation, the more impurities would be flushed out.

Even if he could not flush out all the impurities from his body in the next few sessions, Tang Ling could achieve a clean body, so he could easily absorb the energy from the realm. Then, he could temper his body with the energy he absorbed over and over again, ultimately reaching a higher level of life form.

Therefore, the first cultivation was very important. If he could achieve an excellent result in the first session, he could very well remove all the impurities with a few more cultivation sessions in the future. Then, he could achieve a higher state of body, an esteemed body. That would greatly improve the benefits of cultivation in the future.

However, the addendum clearly stated that the cultivator should not intentionally seek an esteemed body state. The cultivator should not repeat the process of the energy wash to flush out the impurities for more than three times.

Repeating the process for more than three times might result in the cultivator harming his roots, so it would go against the initial goal from there onwards.

Based on what Tang Ling understood, after repeating the process for more than three times, it would harm the cells in his body. If a single cell had a life span of 50 mitosis cycles, after the damages, the mitosis cycle would be decreased to around 30 times.

Damn it! It’s a go for wool and come home shorn situation!

Nevertheless, Tang Ling had set the esteemed body as his goal. The addendum contained records about there being people who achieved an esteemed body during their first cultivation because all the impurities were washed out in a single session.

The matter about impurities would eventually transform from the starting point of cultivation to the problem during final cultivation.

If the impurities were not flushed out during the early stages of cultivation, it would only get harder from thereon. Even if Tang Ling reached a higher state, the cost for cleaning the impurities would be high and it would be less effective.

If left unchecked, according to the addendum, the impurities would eventually become the biggest hindrance for the cultivator to reach the highest state, the perfect fusion state.

The addendum also stated, ‘How many are there at the end? An esteemed body is coincidence, not persistence.’

That meant that even if one could reach an esteemed body, there were only a handful in the world who could continue reaching the highest cultivation state.

Nevertheless, such words were never within the consideration of the proud Tang Ling. He was thinking about whether or not he could clear the impurities in a single session and become one of the legendary cultivators that the addendum mentioned.

Although those men probably lived a prestigious, clean life and maintained a strict diet, hence starting off with lesser impurities in their bodies, Tang Ling never deemed himself as a dirty person either. He would cook all the food he ate. His grandmother loved him very much. Whenever his shirt was torn or stained, she would quickly patch it up and clean it, giving him the cleanest clothes to wear.

Still, he was nothing close to being prestigious.

Therefore, in conclusion. Tang Ling ought to seize every second to cultivate in order to reach an esteemed body state. The imaginary world had no concept of time, to begin with, but he was afraid that if he started to waste time, an hour would fly by.

The pair of hands that he sketched out would be enough for now. Tang Ling tried to control the pair of hands with his spirit.

The control was the second hurdle that Yang Kong mentioned before this. Visualizing the form was one thing, but controlling it to move as one’s limb was another. One had to possess a powerful spirit to move the visualized hands or net freely.

How powerful would a newbie’s spirit be? A newbie would have to concentrate every thought in his mind to adapt himself to the control.

Tang Ling bore that in mind. Feeling very tense and nervous before he started to control, when he tried to, the pair of hands moved freely as if he was moving his own arms.

Did Instructor Yang Kong exaggerate about the control?

Tang Ling could not afford to be distracted, so he controlled the hands to capture those purple glowing strips. It was a piece of cake for him!

With a single pull, a single strip of purple glowing energy was dragged to his side. With a second pull, another strip of purple glowing energy curled up around him.

According to the requirements of the addendum, he had to gather all the energy into a stream, one that was strong enough to wash his body. The best outcome would be gathering the energy into a waterfall that could flush away all the impurities.

The more energy he could gather, the better the cleaning effect. However, he had to keep the energy he gathered at an optimal level. Water brimmed, only to overflow. If the energy gathered was too much, he would flush himself to death.

As for how much energy he should gather, it would depend on his body. Usually, people would choose to flush their bodies after they got tired of the gathering.

The gathering process was exhausting since one had to gather particle by particle, cloud by cloud to reach a steady stream.

For those with better talent, the gathering process would be quicker, so they could calculate the amount according to their strength.

The calculation was simple. The amount of energy to start the washing should be approximately tenfold of how much energy one could gather in one go. The strength of the energy wash would be at its maximum then.

How much energy could Tang Ling gather at one go? It should be an astonishing amount, at least for a young teenager at his age. Otherwise, he would not be given the title of a Harsheen boar.

Tang Ling ran into a little problem. How should he calculate the amount? Should he calculate only his own body or include the seed in the equation?

Tang Ling could not think about that in his visualization state. Since things tended to lean towards his instinctive thoughts, he calculated the seed together. He felt that it was necessary for the little seed to have a ‘bath’ sometimes.

Moreover, did the addendum not mention that the strongest energy wash could be as powerful as a waterfall? If there were such records in the manual, meaning someone must have achieved it either, so why could Tang Ling not do the same?

Nevertheless, he did not consider how ancient Huaxia described things or how big the waterfall would be. He should be more conservative against such an ambiguous description.

A pail of water being poured down from high up would also seem like a mini waterfall, and so could a stream flowing downwards from a cliff.

Still, were they comparable to a real waterfall?

In reference to that, Yang Kong also mentioned during his lecture that it was possible to make the energy wash as powerful as a waterfall and they would have to try their best to lock the energy in their bodies.

Yang Kong must have missed out that there were people like Tang Ling who could gather energy effortlessly.

Therefore, Tang Ling was happily collecting the energy strips in his visualized world. He was greedy for more in order to make the energy waterfall happen because it must be as strong as what he imagined.

He still had to consider his little seed, would he not?

However, back in reality, Yang Kong was frightened out of his mind by Tang Ling.

Tang Ling entered the silent state in less than ten seconds and Yang Kong was just surprised. He felt a little pitiful about why Tang Ling’s Genetic Chain Talent was so poor.

He once thought that Tang Ling had some gift in his spirit. Although not strong enough to be shown in the Genetic Chain, it was considered a decent outcome.

However, now based on Tang Ling’s performance, his spirit talent might be the rare kind of spirit talent, the growth spirit talent. It was something worthwhile of Yang Kong’s attention.

It seems like Fei Long has a good reason to pay attention to this kid.

Yang Kong thought as such. He felt even more pitiful for Tang Ling’s Genetic Talent, but right after his thought flashed over, the whole gene tester glowed in a faint purple.

It seemed like inside the machine, Tang Ling had felt the energy.

Yang Kong was a little stunned. He repeatedly checked his watch and it has only been 15 seconds!

What kind of sensing ability is this? It’s so powerful!

With that thought in mind, Yang Kong wanted to know what was Hank’s record. He ran towards the back of the gene tester where there was a working computer that held tons of important information.

Hank’s documents were pulled out.

Yang Kong clicked on the file labeled Hank Tye.

With a six-star Genetic Chain Talent, space and spirit double ability, he was the first throughout the hundred years history in Safety Sector No. 17.

The time used to sense the energy during the first cultivation: 1 minute 7 seconds.

Yang Kong fell limp in front of the computer. He had to light up a cigarette to calm his mind down. Did he miss out on something important? He remembered how fast Tang Ling entered the silent state during the first Genetic Chain Talent test.

Then, he spent a long time in the machine and the result was that he considered a very common Genetic Chain Talent in terms of the First Reserved Camp.

Did Yang Kong overly concentrate on the Genetic Chain Talent and neglect Tang Ling’s other talents?

It was obviously his occupational mistake. Although no one could deny the importance of the Genetic Chain Talent, in the vast world, there were many other people who could stand out from the rest with other talents. Some excellent examples would even surpass those with outstanding Genetic Chain Talents.

Scientists were the best example. Their minds were smarter than others.

Technicians were also a great example, their spirit and agile hands fused perfectly to provide them with amazing techniques and skills.

However, with Safety Sector No. 17’s capabilities, the sector could not produce any other kind of occupations like a perfectionist.

“A perfectionist...what a powerful existence! Did I really...but even if it is, the sector can’t do anything about it, so what should I do?” Yang Kong was obviously suffering from a headache although he still took several strong puffs from his cigarette.

As the smoke circled his face, he suddenly had the urge to contact Fei Long and felt necessary to keep the secret for Tang Ling.

‘As a teacher, you should be selfless in front of your students and focus on their virtues and future.’ It was what someone very important to him, Fei Long, had told him in the past.

The meaning of that phrase was that as the instructor or mentor to the New Moon Warriors, he must be selfless and think about the bigger picture. He must concentrate on developing the student’s virtue and help them shape a path in the future.

_Concentrate on the future..._It sounded very heavy in his ears. If he did not have the ability to raise the student if the faction that he was with was not capable of bringing out his potential, should he...send Tang Ling away?

If he were to send Tang Ling away, it must be carried out in secret. Otherwise, based on how corrupted the higher-ups of the sector, even if he could not raise Tang Ling, the sector would never give him away either.

_Moreover..._The sector was in a strange state. The castellan seemed to have decided to keep himself away from this. Was it an act of compromise? The higher-ups would surely do more harm than good to Tang Ling’s future.

Those higher-ups would surely consist of members of the Agnes family. If his information served him right, Tang Ling had offended two members of the Agnes family.

As for why the Agnes family was targeting Tang Ling, it was not something Yang Kong could figure out based on how isolated he was from politics and complicated situations.

But what about keeping it a secret? Would it consider as a betrayal to the sector?

The more he thought about it, the more Yang Kong’s head hurt.

All I feel for the kid was disdain at first since I don’t really like him either. How come the more I get to know him, the more I care about him? Is it because of the pure and strong gaze in his eyes? What the hell is this? Is it because of Fei Long?

Yang Kong took another puff. Suddenly, the gene tester behind the computer started to shake.

“Did something happen?” The gene tester was one of the most important assets of Safety Sector No. 17, Yang Kong neglected his messy thoughts and ran to the machine with the cigarette in his mouth.

It was at that moment, Yang Kong saw a scene that he will never forget for the rest of his life.

A huge amount of purple energy gathered above the gene tester. Due to the transparent ceiling, the energy materialized in the glass-like material.

What in the hell? It’s materializing? How is the energy so rich that it is visible to the naked eye? Where else can this happen other than the highest floor of the Tower?!

The huge cloud of purple mist above the machine told Yang Kong that everything he saw was real.

Sitting inside the machine with his legs crossed, Tang Ling did not notice any of those. There was a mischievous smile on his face.

“This kid must be feeling good.” Yang Kong was stupefied, but he instinctively felt that Tang Ling might be feeling good about himself for gathering this amount of energy. This kid must be feeling a sense of achievement.

Due to how mischievous Tang Ling’s smile was, Yang Kong assumed that Tang Ling was feeling a sense of achievement and he had the urge to beat Tang Ling up. However, he did not do that. Instead, he wandered over to the door and went out.

There was a big window beside the corridor outside the door. The sky was blue and the clouds were white. Meanwhile, the sunlight was bright and it was hot since it was the middle of summer.

“Right! It is still daytime!” Yang Kong slammed the door shut. He started to suspect if he had lost his mind. How could he forget it was still daytime?

Yeah, why is the energy so rich in the day? It’s more likely at night...Shit! It’s also not easy during the night. It’s not a Purple Moon Warrior in training!

This Tang Ling...There must be a secret behind his decision to cultivate in the day!

Yang Kong thought of the time as if he had just woken up from a dream.

He dashed to the gene tester. I can’t let this kid continue. The machine cannot sustain such a huge amount of energy. It might explode!

Besides, if that amount of energy blasted out from his body, this kid might die of overload. Does he even know what he is doing?

Yang Kong could not help but blame himself. He blamed himself for not explaining the process better, but he never expected that there would be someone as offensive as Tang Ling.

However, when Yang Kong stood in front of the genetic tester, he was stunned.

It was too late to stop it. The energy had formed a powerful waterfall and was blasting at Tang Ling powerfully.

Tang Ling stopped gathering energy. The gene tester was safe, but what about himself?

Yang Kong had a feeling that this would end badly. H shut his eyes as he could not bear looking anymore.

******

“What the f*ck is this?! It’s so painful! It’s like a rock falling on my body!”

When the energy waterfall poured down on Tang Ling and impacted his body for the first time, it felt like rocks instead of energy hitting his body. It felt nothing like a waterfall, not even a mudslide. It was a rock slide hitting his body!

Tang Ling finally came to his senses, afraid that he was being too greedy and would fail to control the energy he gathered.

But so what? The addendum obviously stated that it was possible for the energy to be as strong as a waterfall, so there must be someone who made it through, so why could he not do the same?!

Was it more painful than eating vicious beast meat? Yes, it was more painful than eating vicious beast meat. It felt like rocks hitting his body again and again in an endless barrage. The pain was far more intense than eating the meat.

It was only half a second and his body started to shake. At the same time, the energy started to flow into his body and fill every corner and seam. It felt like the energy contained the impurities and nourished his body at the same time.

It was impossible to hold on with sheer willpower.

The official cultivation had started when the energy waterfall touched his body, but he still had to choose which way to go and armed with either the Thousand Satin Skill manual from Yang Kong or the addendum from Mysterious Store.

If it was the Thousand Satin Manual, he would want to try his best to contain the energy in his body and form the energy vortex. With the amount of energy that he gathered, forming a vortex was no longer a difficult task.

If it came to the addendum, he would have to try his best to expand his body and flush out all the impurities in his body. However, it would wash away some impurities that contained energy since his body would feel hungry after that and it was the so-called setbacks.

Tang Ling had made up his mind a while ago, so the difficult part would be staying awake to cultivate.

Under the immense pain, he had to breathe using the addendum method and expel impurities with his spirit. The breathing rhythm was the same as the Thousand Satin Skill. The key was his spirit.

In the Thousand Satin Skill manual, when inhaling, the body would shut itself off. Those who had high control of their body could shut their body off better. When exhaling, the body would expand, and all the follicles on the body would be wide open.

The Thousand Satin Skill manual required one to contain the energy with the spirit. One had to visualize the spirit as a net and capture all the energy during exhale.

However, the addendum was the exact opposite.

When inhaled, he must visualize his spirit as a broom. With his body shut off, he had to sweep the energy to the side of every follicle on his body.

When exhaled, he had to scatter a great amount of energy and the spirit had to expel the energy out, leaving nothing behind around the follicles.

It was obvious that the addendum demanded a higher spirit to work. It also required Tang Ling to be more focused, but at the same time, even if someone with a weaker spirit cultivated in the way of the addendum and failed to do a good job at clearing the impurities, it would still be better than the manual way of neglecting all the impurities in the body.

This sole fact alone made the addendum a lot better than the Thousand Satin Skill manual of the safety sector.

Still, so what if it was better? Controlling his breathing under such intense pain was difficult. It was even harder when he has to concentrate on visualizing his spirit.

Tang Ling could not give up. He had to endure the pain.

He clenched his teeth and breath accordingly. He pushed his tongue upward and tried his best in prolonging his exhale and inhale. He would pause half a second and inhale twice before exhaling for once.

As for his spirit, Tang Ling gave his best at visualizing. An eruption appeared beside him and it started to gather all the impurities around his skin.

In order to perform the sweeping better, Tang Ling visualized a dozen smaller brooms and assigned them to clear up different areas carefully.

Yang Kong was standing blankly beside the gene tester. He was smart, almost as smart as a rocket scientist, but he too failed to figure out what was going on.

The energy was poured on his body but the kid didn’t die. Is he only bleeding because he clenched his teeth too hard?

How powerful is his willpower to be able to endure all this? Has he started to breathe using the method of the manual? He’s starting to cultivate?

Why does it look a bit strange? I can see there’s a great amount of energy flowing out of his body through the sealed glass door.

Is it because of the pain that he cannot visualize properly?