The Heavens: Man Covers the Heavens, Refines Treasures to Become an Emperor

"The power has increased at least three times."

Jiang Xuan made his own assessment.

"And it consumes less."

This is the essential difference between the Human Gang Realm and the True Martial Realm. The spiritual energy is transformed into spiritual energy, which is much more powerful and can be controlled more precisely.

Camp 39 was more lively than Jiang Xuan had imagined.

Dozens of cultivators who had just broken through to the Human Gang Realm were practicing the use of spiritual energy in front of various facilities.

Some were trying out spiritual energy protection, some were practicing ranged attacks, and others were testing the amplification effect of spiritual energy on weapons.

"New here?"

A burly young man noticed Jiang Xuan and took the initiative to come over and greet him.

"I am Tieshan, and I broke through three days ago."

"Jiang Xuan just broke through today."

Jiang Xuan gave a brief self-introduction.

Tieshan grinned, revealing his white teeth.

"That's your junior brother. Come, let me show you around."

He enthusiastically led Jiang Xuan on a tour of the camp facilities.

"This is the Spirit Qi Testing Pillar, which measures attack intensity; over there is the Reaction Training Ground, specifically for practicing precise control of Spirit Qi; the innermost area is the Combat Zone, but newcomers shouldn't rush there."

Jiang Xuan listened attentively, nodding occasionally. Seeing his sincere attitude, Tie Shan spoke even more enthusiastically.

"Do you know what the biggest change is after breaking through to the Human罡 Realm? It's not increased strength, but this."

As he spoke, a pale yellow light suddenly appeared on Tieshan's body.

"Spiritual energy protects the body! This is the key to survival."

Jiang Xuan curiously reached out and touched the light barrier, feeling a flexible resistance.

"Try yours."

Tieshan encouraged him.

Jiang Xuan closed his eyes and concentrated, mobilizing the spiritual energy within his body.

In an instant, a sky-blue halo seeped out from his body, forming a thin and dense protective shield on his skin.

Unlike Tieshan's pale yellow light shield, Jiang Xuan's shield had faint swirling vortexes that emitted a peculiar fluctuation.

"this"

Tieshan's eyes widened.

"Why is your spiritual energy this color? And this fluctuation..."

Jiang Xuan's heart tightened, and he immediately suppressed the vortex effect on the shield, leaving only the basic sky blue color.

"It might be related to the cultivation technique I practice."

Tieshan scratched his head.

"That's true, everyone's situation is different. But the quality of your spiritual energy looks very high, why don't you go and test it on the testing pillar?"

Just as Jiang Xuan was about to agree, he suddenly felt the storm vortex in his dantian tremble, as if it were warning him of something.

He politely declined without making a sound.

"Let's familiarize ourselves with the basic operations today, and test it another day."

Tieshan didn't force him.

"Okay, feel free to look around. Ask me anytime if you don't understand anything."

Jiang Xuan nodded his thanks and walked alone to a quiet corner.

He needs to calm down and carefully study the "mutated" spiritual energy pool within his body.

Meanwhile, Xu Sanqi was still deep in thought in the secret room.

An ancient jade book was laid out in front of him, which already contained information about Jiang Xuan.

Jiang Xuan, aged seventeen, triggered a strange change in the Transformation Realm Lake when he broke through to the Human Gang Realm. Investigation revealed the condensation of a Grade 1 spiritual energy pool, "Eye of the Storm," with a potential rating of Upper A.

The pen paused here, and as Xu Sanqi explored Jiang Xuan's Qi Sea, he sensed something even deeper.

At the heart of that storm vortex, an even more mysterious force seemed to be lurking.

That power made him instinctively wary, so much so that he dared not investigate further.

"What other secrets does this kid have?"

Xu Sanqi muttered to himself.

He did not record this discovery in the jade book. Closing the jade book, Xu Sanqi sighed deeply.

"That's enough. Since I promised to keep it a secret, I shouldn't have any other thoughts."

He stood up, walked to the wall of the secret room, and pressed a hidden mechanism. The wall slid open silently, revealing a deep passage behind it.

Xu Sanqi stepped inside, and his figure was quickly swallowed by the darkness.

At the end of the passage was a more secluded stone chamber, in the center of which floated an ancient bronze mirror.

Xu Sanqi stood in front of the mirror, hesitated for a long time, and finally reached out to brush the mirror surface.

"Reporting to my lord, a user of the Eye of the Storm has been discovered in this training camp."

Ripples spread across the mirror's surface, revealing a blurry figure.

Xu Sanqi reported respectfully, but deliberately downplayed the extent of the changes in the Huagang Lake and did not mention the mysterious power he had sensed.

After the report was completed, the mirror returned to its calm state.

Xu Sanqi stood there, his expression complicated.

"Jiang Xuan, I hope you can understand my good intentions. The Eye of the Storm is already serious enough; if more is exposed, your fate will no longer be in your own hands."

The empire has always given "special attention" to those exceptionally talented young people.

Such care often means the loss of freedom.

"That's all I can do."

Xu Sanqi turned and left the secret room, his back view appearing somewhat forlorn.

As an instructor, he had to select talent for the empire; but as a senior who had witnessed too many geniuses fall, he couldn't bear to see a promising talent being "cultivated" too early.

That night, at Camp 39.

Jiang Xuan returned with heavy steps, his robes still stained with faint lightning patterns left from when the spiritual energy pool condensed.

As soon as he reached the camp entrance, a white figure came into view.

Bai Lingxi leaned against an ancient tree.

“I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.”

Bai Lingxi spoke, her voice clear and cold like a spring.

Jiang Xuan paused.

"Is something wrong?"

Bai Lingxi straightened up, and her eyes took on a strange silver-gray hue in the moonlight.

"I heard you condensed a pool of spiritual energy today?"

She approached slowly, each step as precise as if it had been measured.

What grade?

Jiang Xuan subconsciously touched his chest, where a swirling storm was slowly turning.

"First grade."

He said frankly.

Bai Lingxi suddenly smiled, a smile that reminded Jiang Xuan of the ice lotus blooming atop the snow-capped mountain.

"good."

She nodded.

“But it’s not enough.”

"What's the meaning?"

Jiang Xuan seemed to be deep in thought.

Bai Lingxi did not answer directly, but instead extended a slender finger and touched Jiang Xuan's chest.

In an instant, Jiang Xuan felt his spiritual energy pool tremble, as if it had encountered something that made it wary.

"Next time we meet, let's settle this once and for all."

Bai Lingxi withdrew her finger, turned and left, her white figure quickly disappearing into the night.

"I hope you can give me a surprise then."

Jiang Xuan stood still, his chest still trembling with spiritual energy.

He looked down at his palm.

"An existence even more special than the first grade?"

He muttered to himself, his eyes filled with doubt and fighting spirit.

Only after Bai Lingxi's aura completely disappeared did Jiang Xuan regain his composure and stride towards the center of the camp.

From afar, he could smell the aroma of wine and roasted meat, and he could also hear Ning Meng's signature loud voice.

"Here he comes! Our Stormboy is back!"

Ning Meng was the first to spot Jiang Xuan and immediately waved the wine jar in his hand, shouting.

He was a burly man, and his messy hair looked like burning flames in the firelight.

Shi Yu and Gong Ming also stood up.

Shi Yu had a handsome face and always wore a somewhat cynical smile; Gong Ming was relatively silent, but his eyes were also shining with excitement.

"What are you doing?"

Jiang Xuan stared in astonishment at the table laden with wine and meat.

"Celebrate!"

Ning Meng put his arm around Jiang Xuan's shoulder.

"The Eye of the Storm, a first-grade spiritual energy pool—very few in the entire history of the Bloodthirsty Camp have been able to achieve this!"

Shi Yu handed over a bowl of wine. "Drink three bowls first, that's the rule."

Seeing the expectant looks in the three people's eyes, Jiang Xuan took the wine bowl without saying a word, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

The spicy liquid slid down my throat, burning my chest.

He drank three bowls in a row, and when he finished the last bowl, he felt a surge of heat rush to his head.

"good!"

Ning Meng laughed and filled Jiang Xuan's cup again.

"That's more like it!"

The four men sat together, the clinking of their wine bowls sounding particularly crisp in the night.

Jiang Xuan was soon flushed red from being plied with alcohol, but he accepted it all, as if he wanted to wash away all the fatigue that had accumulated over the past few days with the alcohol.

"Speaking of which..."

Shi Yu suddenly lowered his voice.

"What did Bai Lingxi want from you just now?"

Jiang Xuan paused, his hand holding the wine bowl still.

"She asked me about the grade of my spiritual energy pool."

"Then what?"

Ning Meng leaned closer, her eyes gleaming with gossip.

She said there are even more special spiritual energy pools than the first grade.

Jiang Xuan frowned.

Have you heard of it?

The three looked at each other, and finally Gong Ming spoke.

"There are indeed legendary pools of spiritual energy that transcend grade classifications, but those are all ancient records, and no one has seen them in the last thousand years."

"Bai Lingxi is a very mysterious girl."

Ning Meng took a swig of wine.

"It is said that she comes from an ancient family deep in the snowy mountains of the North, and her bloodline is special."

Shi Yu patted Jiang Xuan on the shoulder.

"Don't think too much, just drink today! We'll worry about tomorrow tomorrow!"

"That's right!"

Ning Meng suddenly jumped up.

"I almost forgot about there was another guy!"

He strode towards a corner of the camp and soon returned, dragging a thin figure with him.

Let me go!

Li Duxing struggled, his face ashen.

The boy, who always kept to himself, looked particularly disheveled as Ning Meng grabbed him by the back of the collar like a chick.

"Hey, don't be so antisocial!"

Ning Meng smiled and pressed Li Duxing into his seat.

"Today is Jiang Xuan's big day, please give him some face!"

Li Duxing snorted coldly, but seeing the wine bowl Jiang Xuan offered, he hesitated for a moment before accepting it.

Just one bowl.

He said curtly.

However, under the repeated offensives of Ningxia and Inner Mongolia, Li Duxing was eventually defeated.

When the third bowl of wine was downed, a rare blush appeared on the face of this usually aloof young man.

As night deepened and several rounds of drinks were consumed,

Jiang Xuan felt dizzy, and the firelight in front of him turned into blurry patches of color.

He heard Ning Meng singing loudly, Shi Yu telling some vulgar joke, and even Li Duxing laughed out loud, which was rare for him.

These sounds intertwined, creating a wonderful harmony.

"Honoring the Blood Slayer Camp!"

Ning Meng suddenly raised his wine bowl and shouted.

"Honoring the Blood Slayer Camp!"

Everyone responded in unison, and even Jiang Xuan struggled to lift the wine bowl that he could no longer hold.

My last memory is of a sky full of stars spinning before my eyes, and then everything went dark.

The blinding sunlight pulled Jiang Xuan back to reality from his daze.

He sat up abruptly, and a sharp pain immediately shot through his temple.

My throat felt as dry as if I had swallowed a handful of sand, and my stomach was churning.

"woke up?"

came a familiar voice.

Jiang Xuan squinted and looked over. Xiao Man was standing by the bed with a cup of tea in her hand, a mischievous smile on her face.

He then realized that he was lying on the small bed in Old Mo's warehouse, still wearing yesterday's clothes, which reeked of alcohol.

How did I get here?

Jiang Xuan's voice was hoarse.

"You were so drunk last night, I had to drag you back."

Xiaoman handed him the tea.

"I never expected that the owner of the Eye of the Storm would have such a poor alcohol tolerance and still dare to challenge someone to a drinking contest."

Jiang Xuan finished the tea in one gulp, and the cool liquid relieved the burning sensation in his throat.

He circulated his internal spiritual energy, and a cool energy immediately flowed throughout his body, dispelling all discomfort. In the blink of an eye, his headache and nausea disappeared, and he felt refreshed.

"Instructor Xu Sanqi has already spread the news that you have condensed a first-grade spiritual energy pool."

Xiaoman leaned against the door frame, her eyes filled with mockery.

"Those who used to look down on you, their expressions are priceless now."

Jiang Xuan rubbed his temples.

"What about the others?"

They were picked up by their respective families early this morning.

Xiaoman's tone suddenly softened.

"Three gilded carriages arrived at Shi Yu's house. Ning Meng was personally picked up by his father, and even that gloomy Gong Ming had someone come to greet him."

Jiang Xuan remained silent for a moment, then suddenly understood something. Last night's revelry, those vows of drinking until they dropped, were all just a cover for the reluctance to part today.

They chose to replace tears with laughter and to dilute their sorrow with drunkenness.

"Those bastards."

Jiang Xuan said in a low voice, but the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up.

Xiaoman observed the change in Jiang Xuan's expression and said softly.

"The days of the Bloodthirsty Camp are over, but your path of cultivation has only just begun."

Jiang Xuan stood up and walked to the window.

The sun was shining brightly on the path outside the warehouse, where there was no one, only a few fallen leaves dancing in the wind.

Three months ago, they came to the Blood Killing Camp along this road, and now they are leaving along the same road.

What are your plans for the future?

Xiaoman asked.

Jiang Xuan turned around and found Xiao Man's expression unusually serious.

"have no idea."

He said it honestly.

"But there's always a way."

Xiaoman suddenly smiled.

"You're hiding too many secrets, Jiang Xuan. I know you won't stay here long."

Jiang Xuan's heart skipped a beat. Indeed, ever since he condensed the "Eye of the Storm," he felt something awakening within him, and some vague fragments of memory would occasionally flash by.

Bai Lingxi's words also bothered him. What could be a spiritual energy pool that was even more special than the first grade?
"Grain Buds (Xiaoman)."

Jiang Xuan suddenly stepped forward and gave the girl a hug.

"If you encounter any trouble, be sure to tell me."

Xiaoman was clearly taken aback by this action, and her body stiffened for a moment, but she quickly relaxed and patted Jiang Xuan on the back.

"Go ahead and don't worry, I can take care of myself."

Jiang Xuan released his grip and strode towards the warehouse entrance.

He walked alone in the empty camp, the gravel under his feet making a soft cracking sound.

Three months ago, this place was filled with the shouts of trainees and the clash of weapons; now, only silence remains.

"The Mine Prison. Mr. Deer. Old Mo at the Summer Solstice"

These names flashed through his mind one by one, like dull knives cutting into his nerves.

He had never forgotten his purpose in coming to the Purple Obsidian Empire; it was just temporarily overshadowed by the brutal training of the Bloodthirsty Camp.

Now, it's time to confront these issues head-on.

"Jiang Xuan."

A deep voice came from behind.

Jiang Xuan turned around and saw Xu Sanqi standing at the edge of the training ground. (End of Chapter)