Cultivation: But Not a Game-Chapter 134 - 65: Preparations Before the Year-End Exam, 7th-Tier Magical Treasure Celestial Sound Bell
Su Yu went out that night, diving into Chensha River to undergo closed-door cultivation.
Before taking action, he consumed 1.08 billion experience points and 300 points of Taoism to raise the long-neglected Basic Qi Refining Heart Skill to the seventieth level.
Purple Essence Qi Refining Skill, Seventieth Level: Qi and Blood +2800, Mana +5600, Magic Power +2800, Mana Recovery +14 points/second.
To better pressure himself, he and Ao Run dived deep into the river, facing monsters as high as level eighty to ninety.
He had Ao Run farm monsters nearby while he summoned two Flying Swords, encircling two level-ninety creatures, trapping them within the sword circle with exquisite swordsmanship.
Slash, entangle, explode, twist, trap...
Various basic swordsmanship techniques were used with near-perfection, securely trapping the massive creatures dozens of meters long within the defined circle, unable to break free no matter how they struggled.
As time went by, his swordsmanship slowly but steadily improved.
Increasing one or two points each day, the skill ’Condensing Sword into Silk,’ which was already close to advancement, reached completion after a week, successfully advancing to a minor achievement, Sword Qi Intensity +40%, Armor Break +2.
Displayed in his swordsmanship, his Sword Qi was further compressed to be finer and more compact, boosting its lethality slightly.
Looking down at his attribute panel, Su Yu’s gaze fell on the Taibai Sword Scripture, consuming 1.62 billion experience points and 450 points of Taoism to raise the Taibai Sword Formulas to the seventieth level.
Taibai Sword Formulas, Seventieth Level: Flying Sword Damage +4200, Attack Speed +2800, Sword Control Speed +2800 km/hour.
After the upgrades, he had 13.81 million cultivation points and 899 points of Taoism left.
"I’ve enhanced all that I could!"
"With my current swordsmanship realm and these magical treasures, unless Ding Lingyu can persistently raise his Divine Techniques level by twenty levels and derive more powerful Divine Secret Skills, otherwise, he won’t be my match."
He didn’t think Ding Lingyu could achieve that. The experience required for Sect-level Transformation Skill is astonishing. Based on the levels he demonstrated in the last minor test, it would require at least over ten billion cultivation points and thousands of Taoism points to raise twenty levels continuously. Even with luxurious resources, accumulating that many cultivation points in three months is impossible.
"I must secure this spot."
Closing the panel, Su Yu continued his focused cultivation.
Though the remaining time wasn’t enough to make significant improvements to any skill, every little bit adds up, so he aimed to enhance what he could.
In the last half-month of this year, Su Yu stayed each day in the depths of Chensha River, farming from dawn till dusk, even while sleeping, Ao Run continued working overtime, to a level of diligence many found incomprehensible.
Team matters were mostly entrusted to Gu Zhiqiu. He would occasionally show his face every few days and occasionally participate in teambuilding for one or two days to make his presence felt.
To his surprise, Ding Hao hadn’t approached him again after being clearly rejected nor engaged in the anticipated behind-the-scenes suppression or sabotage.
When he asked Chu Xinyue about this, the response he got set his mind at ease.
"You’re with me, he wouldn’t dare."
Su Yu understood instantly.
"Of course, if you’re among the last few opponents, and they could inherit the Earth Immortal legacy by defeating you, they’d use every extreme measure. Even I couldn’t protect you."
"But we’re not there yet. After joining the sect, all his competitors are guilds or families of the same tier, many stronger than the Thousand Feather Association. If they resort to tricks before even entering, what about afterward? Can dozens of opponents all do the same?"
"Ultimately, it all comes down to strength. If your strength isn’t enough, give up early to minimize losses."
"Oh!"
"But don’t be careless; although they won’t resort to underhanded tactics, they will surely support Ding Lingyu with all their might, including some special treasures to significantly boost his strength. If you are careless, defeat is inevitable."
"I will be cautious."
"Glad you understand. Visit me before the year-end exam."
"Understood."
Half a month passed in a blink. On this day, a Sword Qi shot out from Chensha River, drawing a long arc in the sky before plummeting into Li Shui Town, where many underlings awaited:
"Mr. Su, the exam is starting."
Everyone, including Gu Zhiqiu, all team leaders and above gathered together, as well as the fourth squad led by Gu Yao and the fifth squad led by Hu Qingfeng.
Compared to Mu Chen and Xiao Yunya, they were much wiser. Though Su Yu didn’t meddle in the internal affairs of these two squads, both would proactively report the squad’s situation to him periodically.
At the discussion hall, Su Yu listened attentively to the reports from several squad leaders and interim squad leaders.
After the reports, Su Yu gave a speech at the meeting, fully affirming the achievements of the squad leaders and interim squad leaders over the month, expressing approval and praise for the development of each squad this month.
During the meeting, he widely gathered suggestions from various leaders on team development, collected several highly constructive proposals, and decided to implement them within the coming year.
In conclusion, Su Yu clenched his right hand, rallying everyone to unite closely around the team leadership centered on Captain Chu Xinyue, guided by Second Regiment’s unique development plan, to fully implement the team’s developmental spirit and deeply understand the captain’s guiding principles.
Enhance three consciousnesses, strengthen four confidences, achieve two maintenances, adhere to the general principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability, fully implement new development concepts, accelerate the construction of a new era team development pattern, solidly promote high-quality development, and comprehensively enhance the overall level of team members and equipment.
As his words faded, the discussion hall erupted in prolonged applause.
After the meeting ended, most of the subordinates dispersed. Gu Zhiqiu came over with a smile and asked:
"Mr. Su, are you confident this time?"
Su Yu nodded:
"Of course I’m confident."
"Then can I place a bet?"
"Bet, I’m betting on myself too."
"OK!"
Half an hour later, the group left Li Shui Town, heading for Thousand Feather City.
Upon arriving in the city, Su Yu parted ways with them and first went to Qingxin Small Residence.
Previously, Chu Xinyue had sent him a message, asking him to find her there.
The view within the residence remained unchanged; Chu Xiaoyu was also present. He first clasped his fists in a salute to Chu Xinyue, then greeted Chu Xiaoyu:
"Xiaoyu, haven’t seen you in a month, you’re getting prettier."
"Flatterer!"
Even though she said that, it was clear she enjoyed the compliment.
"Su Yu, do you have the confidence to defeat Ding Lingyu in the year-end examination?"
Su Yu smiled and said:
"Of course, I have confidence!"
Chu Xinyue smiled, flipped her right hand, revealing an ancient bell resting on her fair palm, and pushed it towards him.
Su Yu was momentarily stunned as he reached out to take the ancient bell, utterly astonished.
Celestial Sound Bell (Tier Seven Magical Treasure): Exquisite, ancient sect treasure of the Celestial Sound Palace.
Attributes: Defense 200000, Damage Reduction 30%, Mana Conversion Rate 300, Special Feature: Celestial Sound.
Attributes: Shockwave Bell, deals 3000-30000 sound wave damage to enemies within 10000 meters, Magic Damage bonus 30%-100%, Mana cost 1000-10000.
Celestial Sound: Immunity to sound wave damage below Celestial Immortal level.
Equipment Requirement: Qi Refining Heart Skill level sixty and above.
"Wow, these attributes...."
"So fierce!"
Su Yu was incredibly shocked and asked in a trembling voice:
"Leader, is this... for me?"
Next to him, Chu Xiaoyu rolled her eyes directly:
"What are you thinking? It’s on loan. You have to return it after the battle."
Chu Xinyue smiled slightly and said:
"Even if you have confidence, it’s not enough; you need sufficient strength. Ding Lingyu has gotten family support with sect-level techniques, not just one Tier Seven Magical Treasure. You would be at a disadvantage without any. This bell is temporarily lent to you."
"Oh!"
A bit disappointed, but it made sense.
No matter how favored, it’s impossible to gift a Tier Seven exquisite-grade Magical Treasure.
Ordinary, Fine, Exquisite, every grade differs vastly.
A Tier Seven exquisite Magical Treasure boasts stronger attributes than typical Tier Eight Magical Treasures.
This Celestial Sound Bell combines offense and defense, far superior to single-attribute ones, almost reaching the value of Tier Eight fine-grade Magical Treasures.
"With this Magical Treasure, the upcoming exam will be a breeze."
Su Yu thanked again:
"Thank you, leader, for the treasure."
Then, he quickly infused mana into the ancient bell to refine it. Chu Xinyue had already removed her spiritual imprint, allowing him to swiftly re-refine it and imprint his own in just a minute. He then took off the Nine Orifice Treasure Pearl and replaced it with the bell.
Now, he only had four Magical Treasure slots available, one of which was already occupied by the Sea-Suppressing Pearl, a self-recognizing treasure requiring a special method to remove. Otherwise, he would temporarily take it off and re-equip post-battle.
The other slots were the Nine Orifice Treasure Pearl, Profound Light Mirror, and Floating Light Saber.
With the Celestial Sound Bell, the Nine Orifice Treasure Pearl, also a defense treasure but offering only a quarter of the defense, became redundant.
Notably, in the other realm, equipping flying sword Magical Treasures necessitates a mana infusion and a spiritual imprint to freely wield them, preventing direct use upon acquisition.
The refining process is quite quick, especially with an ownerless treasure lacking the previous owner’s spiritual imprint, making it easy to re-refine.
Yet, it’s not an instant process. Moreover, the higher the treasure’s grade, the slower the refining.
For Magical Treasures from Tier One to Three, a quick mana pass suffices, taking just seconds.
The refining speed slows for Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Tier Treasures, generally taking around a dozen seconds.
For Tier Seven and above, the pace reduces significantly, requiring at least over a minute.
In regular times, this is extremely swift, but in combat, there’s no time for swapping flying sword Magical Treasures, which takes more than a dozen seconds.
Once refining was done, Su Yu gestured, causing the treasure bell to fly from his palm and hover overhead, descending layers of transparent sound waves to protect him.
He lightly tapped it, curiously asking:
"Leader, this bell is that unlucky fellow, Li Yingshen’s from the Frostfire Association, right?"
Chu Xinyue nodded.
"Indeed it is."
That guy was quite unfortunate. Holding such an exquisite-grade top treasure, no one outside the sect should have been able to deal with him. But how could he have known he would encounter someone tough like Chu Xinyue with an even mightier treasure? His negligence cost him dearly, leading to his demise and total wipeout.
Su Yu didn’t stay long. After obtaining the treasure, he bid farewell and left.
Soon after, Chu Xiaoyu flew straight to the Thousand Feather Tower, betting 300 taels of gold on Su Yu to win.
She didn’t let Gu Zhiqiu bet this time as he already placed third during the last mid-term exams, being quite high profile.
For this major exam, he had only two odds: to place first or second, with both having a two-to-one payout, whether he finishes first or second.
This indicates that in the bookmaker’s eyes, his chances of winning were just as high as Ding Lingyu’s.
Of the 300 taels Xiaoyu bet, 100 taels were her share, an advance from the large team’s dividend, and she bet it on herself finishing first.
If she lost, it would vanish into thin air, but if she won, she would earn 100 taels.
