The Green Snake Spying

This time, Xu Yunxin simply changed the location, digging a shallow pit for barbecue near a smooth boulder in the center of the peak.

After completing the preparations, he sat cross-legged on the large rock and began his cultivation.

The new cultivation method requires more spiritual energy, but the "Thousand Lakes Wasteland" itself has very little spiritual energy, so he can only meet the consumption of the new cultivation method by meditating for longer periods of time.

By the time he completed his first major cycle of cultivation, it was already noon.

Xu Yunxin calculated the time and found that the new cultivation method took sixteen to eighteen times longer than the old one.

When he practiced the old techniques, there were few meridians through which spiritual energy could circulate. He could complete one cycle of cultivation in about fifteen minutes. After four consecutive cycles, his meridians would start to ache, forcing him to stop and rest.

However, the new cultivation method involves the circulation of spiritual energy through almost all the major meridians of the body, including the twelve regular meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians. The spiritual energy generated from a single cultivation session is not only insufficient to put pressure on the meridians throughout the body, but it also makes Xu Yunxin feel increasingly "hungry" the more he cultivates.

One reason for this feeling of "hunger" is insufficient spiritual energy, and another is the feedback from the meridians in his body.

The old cultivation method he practiced before involved using the meridians to transport and transform spiritual energy for his own use, and finally storing it in his dantian.

In this cultivation process, the meridians are an important tool.

Cultivators typically use their meridians to transport spiritual energy during cultivation, and prolonged use will naturally cause the meridians to become swollen and painful.

This is why cultivators cannot cultivate continuously; they must stop at the right time to allow their body's meridians time to recover.

Cultivators with good aptitude naturally have wider and stronger meridians than others, and can withstand a greater flow of spiritual energy and more cultivation sessions.

It is said that cultivators with a aptitude of Grade A or above have meridians as wide as rivers, allowing them to cultivate while walking, sitting, or lying down. They hardly need to worry about the risk of their meridians being unable to withstand the pressure. If there is sufficient spiritual energy, they can even make the rushing sound of flowing river water when they are gathering and refining spiritual energy, which is truly enviable.

As for cultivators with aptitude below grade C, their meridians are as thin as reeds, and they have very little time to cultivate each day. When they are gathering spiritual energy, they probably can't even make the sound of urinating.

Of course, there are also people whose meridians are congenitally blocked or damaged. These people cannot gather spiritual energy and can only temper their bodies through physical training to cultivate a breath of acquired energy and gradually open up their meridians. If they can open up the Ren and Du meridians, they can reverse their acquired energy back to their innate energy and become Qi cultivators.

In short, apart from cultivators who practice special techniques, other cultivators only undergo a thorough strengthening of their meridians when breaking through a major realm, such as from the Qi Refining stage to the Foundation Establishment stage. This is because the quantitative change in the spiritual energy accumulated in a cultivator's body leads to a qualitative change, allowing them to transform themselves with spiritual energy and reshape their dantian foundation and physical body. This is so that their meridians can withstand stronger and more frequent flows of spiritual energy during future cultivation and spellcasting.

The new cultivation method that Xu Yunxin adopted with the help of "Qingyu Ginseng" is a special kind of cultivation method.

Previously, he practiced the Xu family's inherited cultivation technique, which only allowed him to transport spiritual energy through his meridians, and the benefits of practicing it on his meridians were very limited.

The new cultivation method being practiced now involves absorbing spiritual energy, which naturally allocates a certain amount to nourish the meridians during the process of circulating it throughout the body. As the spiritual energy is transported through the meridians, the meridians gradually become more resilient.

In the long run, strengthening the meridians in advance is naturally a good thing. More resilient meridians can greatly increase the total amount of spiritual energy he can gather, the speed of casting spells, and the duration of cultivation. However, when he advances to the Foundation Establishment stage, since the meridians have already been strengthened, he will need more spiritual energy to fully upgrade and transform them.

Just like now, he spent most of the day to complete one cycle of cultivation. His meridians were far from reaching their limit, and the total amount of spiritual energy he had gathered into his dantian was not much, only about 30% more than the cultivation method he had practiced before.

It seems the only way to fill the gap is with a large number of spirit stones, or to use the [Skill: Wild Transformation] to draw upon nature.

Xu Yunxin finished his practice, stood up, walked to the edge of the peak and looked into the distance. He saw several black dots moving rapidly towards Qifeng Mountain.

The visitors were none other than Uncle Fu and his six black dogs.

It seems that he didn't return home all night, and Uncle Fu was worried about his safety, so he brought the black dog to the mountain to look for him.

Xu Yunxin pondered for a moment, then left the summit of the third peak and went to the nursery on the mountainside. He used his spiritual energy to give the saplings in the nursery a spa treatment while waiting for Uncle Fu to come over.

When Uncle Fu and the six black dogs arrived at the mountainside, they immediately spotted Xu Yunxin in the nursery.

Upon seeing the person, Uncle Fu finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt at ease.

Xu Yunxin then instructed Uncle Fu that he had some insights these past two days and needed to take care of the saplings in the nursery on Qifeng Mountain to comprehend and cultivate "divine powers bestowed by heaven." He instructed Uncle Fu to restrain the townspeople from going up the mountain for the time being and to take good care of the "red mushrooms" in the "mushroom house." Everything else would be discussed after he returned to the town after he had succeeded.

Upon hearing that the young master had gained new insights, Uncle Fu readily agreed and took the black dog down the mountain to make arrangements.

After taking good care of the saplings on the mountainside and collecting some Druid class experience along the way, Xu Yunxin returned to the summit of the third peak of Qifeng Mountain.

With more than half a day left, he planned to use the [Skill: Wild Transformation] to transform into a golden Buddha tree and cultivate on the summit of the third peak.

He stood beside a large rock in the center of the peak, and as a burst of cyan-gold light flowed, a dazzling golden tree appeared beside the rock.

The golden tree was initially less than two zhang tall, but it grew taller and thicker rapidly according to Xu Yunxin's wishes, eventually becoming a three-zhang tall, bucket-thick golden tree.

After growing to its maximum size, Xu Yunxin activated the true function of the [Skill: Wild Transformation], beginning to draw energy from heaven and earth and perceive the natural world.

It's unclear whether it's because the summit of Qifeng Mountain is close to the sky, or if the place itself is just special.

As soon as Xu Yunxin transformed into a tree and absorbed natural energy, he felt that the light and distant energy above his head was several times greater than that in the town below the mountain.

The branches of the golden Buddha tree spread out in full, like a large, open golden umbrella, orderly accepting the blessings of heaven.

The tree roots extend downwards, gradually becoming familiar with the mountains beneath their feet, sensing the flow of the earth's energy, and savoring the unique flavor of Qifeng Mountain.

The golden tree vanished in a flash after three breaths. Xu Yunxin then sat cross-legged on a large rock at the mountaintop, focusing all his energy on meditation and regulating his breathing.

The newly modified cultivation method produces more refined and pure spiritual energy, which is also more suitable for the Druid class. This time, when using the [Skill: Wild Transformation], only one-third of the spiritual energy in the body was lost.

Without the assistance of the "Spirit Gathering Array Plate", Xu Yunxin meditated for an hour and a half to replenish the spiritual energy lost from using the [Skill: Wild Transformation].

He then transformed into a golden Buddha tree, absorbing the energy of heaven and earth.

Xu Yunxin was so engrossed in his cultivation that he was completely unaware that a light mist had quietly gathered in the shaded area of ​​the mountain peak, and a pair of ruby ​​eyes were watching him transform back and forth within the mist.