Chapter 170 - 166: So Many Talents, How to Choose?

Chapter 170: Chapter 166: So Many Talents, How to Choose?

But this was immediately followed by a stark warning from his Heart Spirit.

Chen Yue’s body was being incinerated. For every extra breath he circulated the Celestial Demon Dissolution, the flames burned hotter, and more of his body’s Origin was consumed.

In that instant, Chen Yue had stopped circulating it, forcing the vast power back into the depths of his Dantian.

He had never used Celestial Demon Dissolution since.

Now that Celestial Demon Dissolution had reached Perfection, he should be able to control that power much better.

He might never have to use it, but in a true life-or-death crisis, the mere existence of this trump card was enough to grant him peace of mind.

Chen Yue’s gaze shifted down, looking at the long list of new Talents.

Bone-Entwining Soft Body, Wisdom Eye Brightening, Breathing Like the Sea, Ears Distinguish Truth and Fiction, and Qi Guarding Spirit Platform—all five new Talents had awakened, thanks to the amplified effects of the elixirs Chen Yue bought today during the settlement.

These were all good Talents, and each had its use.

Bone-Entwining Soft Body could make his muscles and bones more flexible. Wisdom Eye Brightening could enhance his vision, giving him an advantage in battle.

Breathing Like the Sea could expand his Dantian, making his Inner Strength more abundant. Ears Distinguish Truth and Fiction could improve his hearing, helping him perceive an enemy’s position in the dark or when his vision was obstructed.

Qi Guarding Spirit Platform could stabilize his Heart Spirit and defend against external spiritual attacks.

But there was a problem. The number of elixirs Chen Yue could take each day was limited.

His Physique was formidable, and his Immune to Hundred Poisons Talent was heaven-defying, but he currently couldn’t take every type of elixir daily.

Chen Yue had to make some choices and prioritize them.

After all, his Cultivation growth could not be affected; that was his foundation.

’Copper Skin Iron Bones really did transform.’

Chen Yue’s gaze fell on the two words ’Vajra Indestructible’, and a hint of a smile flashed in his eyes.

He had previously guessed that the continuous stimulation from a stronger elixir of the same type might cause a qualitative change in an already formed Talent. Taking the Bone-Strengthening Pill had verified this guess.

Copper Skin Iron Bones had transformed into Vajra Indestructible.

If that was the case, Chen Yue could also consider making Immune to Hundred Poisons transform as well. Then his resistance to Erysipelas could be further strengthened.

The original 195 Experience Points from Copper Skin Iron Bones were not wasted; they were completely inherited by the new Talent.

Adding the 1 Experience Point gained from taking the Bone-Strengthening Pill today, the total was now exactly 196 points.

It would take 795 points to fully form. If it grew at a rate of 1 point per day, it would take nearly two years to complete this transformation.

However, Chen Yue also took the Bone Marrow Cleansing and Body Refining Pill daily, which might help reduce the upper limit for Vajra Indestructible.

Unfortunately, taking more of this kind of Talent-enhancing elixir each day was useless.

Chen Yue had experimented before, taking two or three elixirs of the same type in one day, but during the final settlement, the Experience Points gained for the Talent was still only 1.

It was possibly because this type of elixir worked by stimulating a certain Origin within the body, which was a slow process.

The body’s response to this kind of elixir wasn’t like its response to Cultivation elixirs, where the more you took, the more you gained directly.

Chen Yue didn’t know if he could gain more Talent growth as his Cultivation continued to rise in the future.

For example, upon reaching the Refining Organ Realm, after his five viscera and six bowels were tempered, would his body’s absorption and conversion abilities increase dramatically?

After taking more Bone-Strengthening Pills, would the Talent Experience gained during settlement change from 1 point to 2, 3, or even more?

These were all unknowns. He could only verify them when the time came.

Chen Yue’s gaze moved away from Vajra Indestructible, sweeping back and forth across his other new Talents.

’Bone-Entwining Soft Body is useful, but among all these Talents, it can be the last one I upgrade.’ Chen Yue mentally ranked the Talent.

The flexibility bonus from Bone-Entwining Soft Body had limited use in his current fighting style.

Placing it last, he could slowly upgrade it later when he had the spare resources. There was no rush.

’Ears Distinguish Truth and Fiction is also very good, but at best, it ranks just above Bone-Entwining Soft Body.’ The value of enhanced hearing in combat was undeniable.

But compared to the other Talents, he was more inclined to first upgrade those that directly aided his cultivation efficiency.

’Wisdom Eye Brightening is more helpful for combat. I can try to see if I can fit it into my daily upgrades without affecting my Cultivation progress.’

Enhanced vision was an all-around benefit in a fight. Whether it was long-range observation, close-quarters combat, or quick reactions in complex environments, a good pair of eyes provided a huge advantage.

Looking at this pile of new Talents, Chen Yue felt a kind of happy frustration.

There were too many choices; he didn’t know which to pick first.

The Breathing Like the Sea Talent definitely had to be upgraded, and with priority.

No Talent related to the Dantian was unimportant.

The Dantian was the foundation of a Martial Artist, the source of Inner Strength, and the power core for all Cultivation Techniques and Martial Techniques.

The size of one’s Dantian directly determined how much Inner Strength could be stored. The amount of Inner Strength, in turn, directly determined how long you could fight, how much power you could unleash, and how much consumption you could endure.

If the Breathing Like the Sea Talent was fully formed, Chen Yue’s Dantian capacity would increase significantly.

Therefore, Breathing Like the Sea was definitely not something he could give up.

As for Qi Guarding Spirit Platform, that was even more of a given.

Every Martial Artist knew just how precious Heart Spirit-type Talents were.

The Sea of Consciousness is the origin of awareness, the hub for perception, judgment, and reaction.

There wasn’t a single Martial Artist who didn’t care about their Heart Spirit, and Chen Yue was no exception.

Because on the path of the Martial Dao, the further one walked, the stronger the opponents they encountered. And the methods those experts used to attack the Heart Spirit became increasingly bizarre and difficult to defend against.

So, Qi Guarding Spirit Platform had to be upgraded.

And then there was Vajra Indestructible. As the advanced version of Copper Skin Iron Bones, its name alone was enough to make any Martial Artist on the Body Refinement path’s heart race with envy.

With Vajra Indestructible, his margin for error in battle would increase dramatically. He could even directly tank attacks he originally needed to dodge carefully.

Breathing Like the Sea, Qi Guarding Spirit Platform, and Vajra Indestructible—there was no hesitation needed for these three Talents.

Wisdom Eye Brightening would be fourth, pending his training situation tomorrow. As for the other two Talents, he would deal with them after the first few were fully formed.

Once he had decided on the priority for upgrading his Talents, the weight of indecision in his heart lifted.

But soon, another, even heavier weight took its place: money.

One Bone-Strengthening Pill to grow Vajra Indestructible cost twenty-five taels of Silver. This was the price at Jishi Hall, fair and square.

One Clear Heart Pill to grow Qi Guarding Spirit Platform cost thirty-five taels of Silver. It was ten taels more expensive than the Bone-Strengthening Pill because its medicinal ingredients were rarer and the refinement process was more complex.

One Qi Absorption Pill to grow Breathing Like the Sea also cost thirty-five taels of Silver.

One Lighting the Acupoints Pill to grow Wisdom Eye Brightening was a bit cheaper, but it still cost twenty taels each.

Setting aside the Lighting the Acupoints Pill for now.

Chen Yue mentally added up the prices of the first three elixirs, for a total of ninety-five taels.

This was the cost for one of each per day. In other words, if Chen Yue wanted to simultaneously upgrade the three Talents of Vajra Indestructible, Qi Guarding Spirit Platform, and Breathing Like the Sea, he would need to spend ninety-five taels of silver every day.

And that wasn’t even counting the Lighting the Acupoints Pill for Wisdom Eye Brightening. If he added that, it would be one hundred and fifteen taels a day. That was over three thousand taels a month, and nearly forty thousand a year.

If he then added the Nourishing Spirit Pill, Yang Pill, and Bone Marrow Cleansing and Body Refining Pill that he took daily, the resources Chen Yue needed to consume were terrifying enough to make one’s scalp tingle.

Chen Yue’s current net worth wasn’t considered poor among the Inner Sect Disciples of the Panshi Sect.

But faced with such daily expenses, his savings would be completely drained in no time.

If he didn’t work hard to earn Contribution Points and money, there was no way Chen Yue could afford to cultivate like this.

Chen Yue slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. The pocket of warmth in his chest was expelled with it, forming a faint wisp of white mist in the cold night air before dissipating.

After returning to the Panshi Sect, he still had to go back to Alchemy. It was his most stable source of Contribution Points.

His proficiency with the Nourishing Spirit Pill and Yang Pill was still steadily increasing. Once he could stably produce three pills per furnace, the pressure would be much less.

Alternatively, he could fight his way up the Cyan Cloud Ranking.

The higher his rank on the Cyan Cloud Ranking, the more Contribution Points he would receive each month. Furthermore, every time he challenged a higher rank and succeeded, he would be directly awarded a sum of Contribution Points based on the rank.

This was a one-time reward. If you fought your way from 100th place to 99th, you would receive a sum of Contribution Points upon success. If you then fought from 99th to 98th, you would receive another sum.

The higher the rank, the more generous the reward.

Of course, this was only for successfully challenging a new rank for the first time.

If your rank dropped and you later fought your way back to your original position, you wouldn’t receive an additional Contribution Point reward.

Moreover, you didn’t have to challenge your way up one rank at a time. You could skip the ranks in between and directly challenge the highest-ranked person you believed you could defeat.

The Contribution Point rewards for the ranks you skipped wouldn’t disappear; they would be calculated into the reward for the final rank you successfully challenged and given to you all at once.

So, as long as one was strong enough, directly challenging the strongest opponent within one’s capabilities would grant all the Contribution Points they deserved.

There was no need to waste time fighting match by match.

Chen Yue took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to digest the burgeoning insights in his Sea of Consciousness. His breathing became long and even as his Heart Spirit sank into the depths of his Sea of Consciousness to process them.

Time ticked by. Suddenly, Chen Yue’s eyes, which he had just closed moments ago, snapped open.

Two people had leaped into the courtyard.

"This is the courtyard?"

One of the black-clad men crouched in the shadow of the courtyard wall, his gaze sweeping rapidly across the yard. His voice was hushed.

"Yes."

The other black-clad man crouched beside him, his voice thinner and sharper than the first’s:

"We grab the one called Lin Quan directly. He has no strength to truss a chicken, so he’ll be easy to control. We’ll see if we can lure out that Shen Dujiang!"

His gaze swept over the several rooms in the courtyard, finally landing on the main house.

"Who did you plan on luring out?"

A voice exploded in both of their ears simultaneously.