Xu Wuyi finished the last bit of food on his plate and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

As he stood up, an unprecedented sense of coordination flowed through his body, as if every joint and muscle had been recalibrated.

The "Returning to Truth" trait, gained from achieving Perfection in the Basic Body Refining Technique, was subtly adjusting his physical state.

But he didn’t indulge in the sensation.

"Anna," Xu Wuyi said, walking toward the console. "Pull up the data on all the Martial Arts I’ve currently mastered, including the average time per single cultivation session, the estimated toll on my Heart and Spirit, and whether it’s possible to complete a thousand repetitions a day."

"Compiling," Anna replied, data streams flickering in her eyes.

A few seconds later, a translucent light screen unfolded before Xu Wuyi, displaying clear rows of data:

[Martial Art: Basic Body Refining Technique]

[Time per Session: Approx. 18 seconds]

[Heart and Spirit Consumption: Extremely Low]

[Can Complete 1,000 Reps Daily: Yes]

[Visualization Method: Mountain Shifting Technique]

[Time per Session: Approx. 65 seconds]

[Heart and Spirit Consumption: Medium]

[Can Complete 1,000 Reps Daily: Yes]

[Martial Art: Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace]

[Total Time per Session: Approx. 4 minutes]

[Heart and Spirit Consumption: High]

[Can Complete 1,000 Reps Daily: No (Insufficient time)]

[Martial Art: Shocking God Spear]

[...]

Xu Wuyi’s gaze swept quickly over the list as he calculated silently in his mind.

Besides the already Perfected Basic Body Refining Technique, there were actually only two disciplines he could possibly complete a thousand standard repetitions of in a single day.

The Mountain Shifting Technique: about 65 seconds per session. A thousand sessions would be 65,000 seconds, which converted to just over 18 hours.

Adding in time for necessary rest, recovery, and meals, it could theoretically be completed within 22 to 24 hours.

As for the Ten Beginner Forms of the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace, each form was an independent movement, taking even less time—about 10 to 15 seconds to complete a standard practice repetition.

The problem was that the ten forms were separate, and each required accumulating its own "effective repetitions."

In other words, to practice even one of the forms enough to trigger a "Great Enlightenment" would also require a thousand repetitions.

But at least it was feasible in terms of time. If worst came to worst, he could just practice one form per day.

As for his other Martial Arts...

A single full-power thrust of the Shocking God Spear took 45 seconds and consumed a huge amount of his Heart and Spirit. With his current Spiritual Strength, thirty repetitions a day was his absolute limit, making it impossible to even approach the thousand-rep threshold.

It was the same for the Instant Shadow Step and the Eight-direction Soul Suppressing Spear; either time or the toll on his Heart and Spirit presented an insurmountable obstacle.

Xu Wuyi closed the light screen and walked to the window.

Night had fallen, and only a few scattered streetlights were lit in the residential complex.

He needed to make a decision.

’I’ll try the Mountain Shifting Technique first.’ Xu Wuyi made up his mind.

The Mountain Shifting Technique was his fundamental Visualization Method. He had already advanced it to the Sixth Layer, with progress based entirely on the growth of his Spiritual Power.

This type of basic Visualization Method was extremely simple. There wasn’t much of a skill component to it; it was truly just a mechanical process.

However, if he could accelerate his progress through a "Great Enlightenment," even a small improvement would translate into a tangible increase in his Spiritual Strength.

Besides, cultivating a Visualization Method didn’t require large movements like practicing Martial Arts. It could be done in any quiet environment, consumed little physical stamina, and mainly drained one’s Heart and Spirit.

"Anna," Xu Wuyi said, turning around, "help me plan a schedule. Starting at midnight tomorrow, I’m going into all-day closed-door cultivation. My main focus will be the Mountain Shifting Technique, with the goal of completing one thousand standard Visualizations."

He had Anna create the plan directly. Even if such a training regimen were leaked, others would at most find it strange; it was unlikely to arouse any other suspicions.

Besides, the world was full of eccentrics. Liking to practice a fixed number of times during cultivation was nothing in comparison.

"Planning..." Anna’s voice paused for a moment.

"Based on your physical data and spiritual recovery curve, I recommend a cyclical pattern of ’90 minutes of cultivation, 10 minutes of rest.’ The estimated total time is 22 to 24 hours. Shall I prepare high-energy liquid food and Nutrient Liquid for you?"

"Do it."

Xu Wuyi nodded and walked into the bedroom.

He didn’t go to sleep immediately. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the bed and began one final cultivation session of the Mountain Shifting Technique.

This time, he deliberately slowed down, carefully savoring every detail of the Visualization to prepare for tomorrow’s thousand-rep challenge.

At the Sixth Layer of the Mountain Shifting Technique, the mountain he visualized was no longer the small, man-sized hill from the beginning, but a much more majestic peak.

The process of "Moving Mountains" had also changed.

It was no longer a crude process of prying at it with a spiritual "crowbar." Now, he needed to use his Spiritual Power to permeate the mountain’s body, understand its structure, and then "disintegrate" and "transport" it from within.

The efficiency was much higher than in the early stages, but correspondingly, the time required for a single Visualization had also increased to about 65 seconds.

After completing one Visualization, his proficiency didn’t budge at all.

Xu Wuyi wasn’t surprised. The proficiency of the Mountain Shifting Technique was tied more to his Spiritual Strength itself than to skill.

He slowly withdrew his power and lay down.

Closing his eyes, he began to mentally simulate the rhythm of tomorrow’s cultivation.

「The next day, at the stroke of midnight.」

Xu Wuyi opened his eyes right on time.

He didn’t turn on the lights, sitting up in the darkness and changing into a set of loose, comfortable cotton training clothes.

When he walked into the living room, Anna had already placed the prepared items on the coffee table: three high-energy Nutrient Liquid tubes, a pot of warm water, and a few specially made energy biscuits.

"The Cultivation Area has been cleared for you, the room temperature is stabilized, and soundproofing mode is active," Anna’s virtual avatar said from the side. "You may begin whenever you are ready."

Xu Wuyi nodded, picked up a tube of Nutrient Liquid, and drank it.

The slightly sweet, herbal-tasting liquid flowed into his stomach, quickly transforming into a warm current that spread through him.

He walked to the already cleared space in the center of the living room floor and sat down cross-legged.

He took three deep breaths, clearing his mind of all stray thoughts.

His consciousness sank into his sea of consciousness.

The Mountain Shifting Technique. First Visualization, begin.

A grayish-brown mountain coalesced in the void, its outline clear and its texture heavy.

Xu Wuyi mobilized his Spiritual Power, letting it seep into the mountain like an invisible stream of water, feeling the complex structure composed of countless "rocks" and "layers of earth."

Then, starting from the smallest point, he began to peel it away and transport it, bit by bit.

The entire process was steady and focused.

seconds later, the mountain dissipated.

[Standard Cultivation Sessions Completed Today: 1]

A notification popped up on his panel.

Without pausing, Xu Wuyi immediately began the second Visualization.

The mountain coalesced again, and his Spiritual Power seeped into it once more...

The third time, the fourth, the fifth...

Xu Wuyi became completely immersed in the cycle of Visualization.

Coalesce, permeate, disintegrate, transport, dissipate, and then coalesce again.

He strove to make every Visualization a standard one, pouring his entire Heart and Spirit into it.

Ten times, twenty, thirty...

When he completed the eighty-fifth Visualization, the alarm he had set vibrated faintly.

Ninety minutes were up.