I Can Upgrade My Talent Infinitely-Chapter 62: Month-End Sparring

The moment he finished refining.

Fang Yun felt his entire body relax.

At this moment, he felt utterly exhausted, both mentally and physically.

Refining an Upper-Grade Magical Artifact was no easy task for him at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer.

The process drained his mental energy. The breakthrough to a new minor Realm hadn’t provided a huge boost in this regard. Once he cultivated to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, refining an Upper-Grade Magical Artifact would be much less taxing.

At the very least, he wouldn’t feel this exhausted after concentrating on refining a single Upper-Grade Magical Artifact.

Fang Yun infused Spiritual Power into the newly refined Profound Iron Shield to activate it.

’The drain on my Spiritual Power is manageable.’

With an Upper-Grade Magical Artifact, the boost from his one-star Combat Talent was no longer ridiculously overpowered.

For the current Fang Yun, the Upper-Grade Profound Iron Shield was usable in combat, but not something he could wield with ease.

To do so, he would either have to break through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer or upgrade his one-star Combat Talent to two stars.

At the beginning of this month.

He had drawn for Combat Talents twice, obtaining one Shield Talent fragment and one Sword Type Talent fragment.

Now, he needed just three more fragments to upgrade his Shield Talent to two stars, while his other Combat Talents each required five.

Putting away the Upper-Grade Profound Iron Shield, Fang Yun left the advanced Artifact Refining Room.

When renting the Artifact Refining Room, Steward Cai might waive the fee if he went over by less than a two-hour period. But now, having gone over by half a day, he had to pay what was due.

The rental fee came to six Lower-Grade Spirit Stones.

The rental fee plus the cost of materials brought the total to nearly forty Lower-Grade Spirit Stones.

"Fang Yun, how did it go?" Steward Cai asked as soon as he saw him.

"The refining was a success."

"Right." Steward Cai nodded, looking as if he’d expected as much. "Hurry back and get some rest."

Steward Cai didn’t bother to inspect the new Upper-Grade Magical Artifact Fang Yun had refined.

His inspections were meant to point out shortcomings in Fang Yun’s Artifact Refining. But given Fang Yun’s track record, and the fact that he had just successfully refined an Upper-Grade Magical Artifact, the steward felt there was nothing left for him to teach.

Even in his exhausted state, Fang Yun could still manage to move at a relatively high speed.

He really did need to get some proper rest now.

...

「The last day of December.」

Fang Yun appeared at Battle Peak.

’After today, this month’s Talent Points will be calculated. I can engage in a few rounds of Magical Combat, which will not only let me test the real-world performance of my Upper-Grade Magical Artifact but also earn me some more Talent Points.’

Infusing the Magical Artifact with Spiritual Power only gave him a general idea of its capabilities.

Based on past experience, Fang Yun could extrapolate a more accurate estimate of its performance.

But to understand it in full detail, he’d have to test it in a few rounds of Magical Combat.

By now, Fang Yun had accepted that his role in Magical Combat was purely defensive. Until someone could break through his guard, it was unlikely any disciple would engage him in a normal bout.

And if he intentionally threw a match, it would be obvious.

The disciples who frequented Battle Peak were a sharp-eyed bunch.

"That is... Junior Brother Fang!"

"Junior Brother Fang, are you booked for a match today?"

"Not yet."

"Hahaha, looks like my luck is in."

Fang Yun had barely set foot on Battle Peak, not even having made his way up the mountain, and his first Magical Combat opponent of the day was already set.

Fang Yun was long used to this.

As soon as he arrived at Battle Peak, any Qi Refining Sixth Layer disciples who saw him would immediately challenge him to a match.

Against him, they could attack with their full strength without holding back, allowing them to hone their skills.

This was also why his fame had grown so much.

After making the arrangement with Fang Yun, this Qi Refining Sixth Layer Outer Sect Disciple followed behind him.

Some Qi Refining Sixth Layer disciples who saw this felt it was a shame. If they had known Fang Yun would be at Battle Peak today, they would have lain in wait for him at the foot of the mountain.

Following procedure, they registered with the Steward and were assigned a Dueling Platform.

The two had barely stepped onto the Dueling Platform when a crowd of Sect Disciples from both the Inner and Outer Sects gathered below.

Among them, some had come to witness the so-called invincible defense of the "Turtle Immortal," Fang Yun. Others were already poised to leap onto the platform and challenge him the moment this match concluded.

Fang Yun only ever engaged in three Magical Combat spars at most whenever he came to Battle Peak, and he didn’t visit the peak many times a month.

Many Outer Sect Disciples at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer had yet to test Fang Yun’s defensive abilities for themselves.

Watching from below was one thing; facing him personally was another entirely.

"Qu Gaomin, Qi Refining Sixth Layer."

"Fang Yun, Qi Refining Sixth Layer."

The words had barely faded when Fang Yun released his aura.

At that moment, a stir went through the crowd below the Dueling Platform.

"Junior Brother Fang is already at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer! I was hoping to see if I could break his defenses, but it looks like there’s no chance now."

"Even if Junior Brother Fang were at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer, you wouldn’t have a chance." The one who spoke was Zhang Wenyu. He had sparred with Fang Yun in Magical Combat before and knew full well how formidable Fang Yun’s defenses were.

After their last Magical Combat spar, he had even invited Fang Yun to undertake a mission together, but unfortunately, Fang Yun already had a planting mission.

"You can’t say that. How would you know without trying?" the disciple replied, confident in his own abilities.

But that confidence was against a Qi Refining Fifth Layer Fang Yun, not one at the Sixth Layer.

After breaking through a minor Realm, Fang Yun’s control over his Magical Artifacts must have reached a terrifying new level. This was the root of his despair.

Down below the Dueling Platform, the way some of the Inner Sect Disciples looked at Fang Yun changed.

The Magical Combat hadn’t even officially begun, yet Fang Yun received a notification.

Sect Influence 1%↑

The news of his breakthrough to the Qi Refining Sixth Layer had already spread among some circles of disciples.

Now that the disciples at Battle Peak had learned of his new Realm, combined with his previous accomplishments, his Sect Influence had finally risen.

’Talent Points are settled at the end of the day.’

Fang Yun’s current mood could be summed up in one word.

Awesome!

’Every percentage point increase in influence now brings me a handsome, double-digit return in Talent Points.’

"Junior Brother Fang, I’m about to begin."

Qu Gaomin, who had once held a sliver of confidence that he could break through Fang Yun’s defenses, now felt that confidence completely evaporate as he faced the Qi Refining Sixth Layer cultivator.

His primary purpose in challenging Fang Yun had always been to hone his own offensive skills; breaking through the defense was just a secondary goal.

Mentally, he was largely unaffected.

He was just a little surprised at how quickly Fang Yun had reached the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, that’s all.

"Let’s begin."

Unlike previous matches.

Now, facing his opponent’s attack, Fang Yun’s first move was to summon his Upper-Grade Profound Iron Shield.

In the heat of battle, the performance of the Upper-Grade Profound Iron Shield was somewhat different than Fang Yun had anticipated.