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Chapter 68: Dreams

Even though it was just an inn in a county town, the decor and facilities of this suite were very luxurious.

There were a few moments when Zhou Heng even seriously entertained the idea of living here permanently.

It was far better than the shabby house he rented.

At this moment, Zhou Heng was sitting on a rocking chair on the suite’s balcony, holding a pot of hot tea, leisurely looking at the scenery outside.

The nighttime in the county town was not like the heart of Huangtong Mansion City which was brightly lit all night long; it was only the hour of the dog now, and in this season, the sky had just darkened not long ago, but the roads in the town were already deserted.

It seemed quite tranquil.

Only the occasional barking of dogs and crowing of roosters broke the silence.

In such an environment, Zhou Heng suddenly felt a sense of indescribable tranquility welling up in his heart, and the Inner Qi within his body involuntarily accelerated its circulation.

The Dantian Qi sea, like a heart, began to beat vigorously, and the Inner Qi, like blood, followed the Dantian’s pulsing, began to increase rapidly.

A moment later, Zhou Heng snapped out of that state and discovered to his surprise that his Inner Qi had increased substantially due to the tranquil state of mind he had just experienced.

System prompts appeared in a long sequence.

“Congratulations! Your current state of mind fits extremely well with the ‘Authentic Internal Energy Heart Method’ [Eighth Rank], proficiency +10.”

“Congratulations! Your current state of mind matches perfectly with the ‘Authentic Internal Energy Heart Method’ [Eighth Rank], proficiency +12.”

Zhou Heng carefully examined the situation and saw that the sudden “enlightenment” had greatly increased the proficiency of this Inner Strength method, by at least 300 points.

[Eighth Rank] Authentic Internal Energy Heart Method: Advanced (1264/3000)

Feeling the Dantian Qi sea within his body, he felt as if his meridians were rivers, with the Inner Qi being the river waters, flowing mightily and unceasingly, tempering his tendons, bones, blood, and marrow, synchronously enhancing the strength of his body.

No wonder the Ninth Grade stage is known as “easy muscle and marrow cleansing”, which is a comprehensive tempering of one’s own meridians, tendons, blood, and marrow, thereby bringing an overall improvement to the body.

At the same time, Zhou Heng could also feel that his strength had improved.

Because the stronger the Inner Strength, the more powerful the Six Paths Plum Blossom Hand would become.

And with techniques like Disrupting Qi Style and Sundering Sword Style, and Running Clouds Falling Sun Sword incorporated into the Six Paths Plum Blossom Hand, most Eighth Rank Martial Artists would not be a match for him. Of course, if it came to facing a Seventh Rank Warrior, Zhou Heng would likely have to rely on sharp weapons and the boost from basic attributes to contend with his opponent, and the outcome would be uncertain.

After all, that was an expert who had begun “metamorphosis” and even sensed and weaved some of the laws of heaven and earth, far surpassing the level of the Eighth Rank.

“I didn’t expect to see an increase in Inner Strength just by moving in; this inn isn’t bad at all,” Zhou Heng pondered in a good mood, thus deciding to open the two Fortune Bags and the remaining Silver Luck Bag he had acquired today. “Open two Copper Fortune Bags and one Silver Luck Bag!”

“Congratulations! Your luck has exploded, and you’ve obtained a special item: Taoist Formulas Dreamlike Cultivation Card*l.”

“Congratulations! You’ve obtained a special effect, Golden Radiance Overflowing the Skies.”

“Congratulations! You’ve received a basic attribute: Spiritual Root +1.”

After hearing the three reward prompts, Zhou Heng fell silent for a moment, somewhat surprised.

Could it be that Silver Luck Bags are specifically for enhancing basic attributes? Have I ever opened anything else?

It seems there’s no memory of that.

He then studied the specific details of these three rewards more carefully.

“Taoist Formulas Dreamlike Cultivation Card: Can open a real dreamlike realm during sleep to cultivate Taoist Formulas, enhancing proficiency.”

“Golden Radiance Overflowing the Skies: This is a purely special visual effect, with no actual power, purely for a more impressive appearance…”

“Spiritual Root +1: Enhances one’s aptitude towards the cultivation of Taoist Formulas.”

This, seems like there’s something to it.

Zhou Heng’s eyes sparkled with excitement, as his biggest worry right now was how to improve the proficiency of Palm Thunder and truly master the Five Thunder Orthodox Gold Book.

Even though he had learned Palm Thunder for quite some time, this Taoist formula was a serious money burner, and until now, his proficiency had remained at a beginner’s level.

[Eighth Rank] Palm Thunder: Beginner (878/1000)

Not to mention the Five Thunder Orthodox Gold Book.

Although he had Palm Thunder as a foundation and had learned martial arts related to the five elements, which indeed allowed him to contemplate this Sect Fifth Rank Taoist formula, reality was brutally harsh.

[Sect Fifth Rank] Five Thunder Orthodox Gold Book: Unlearned (0.000025/1)

This frustrating progress in proficiency made Zhou Heng curse under his breath multiple times.

It’s damn slow!

But, this was actually normal; trying to fathom a Sect Fifth Rank Taoist formula at a Martial Path Ninth Grade was not something one could learn quickly—it was like dreaming of peaches.

“Now that I have a Spiritual Root +1,1 should be able to learn the Five Thunder Orthodox Gold Book much faster, but the priority is to improve the proficiency of Palm Thunder as soon as possible,” Zhou Heng thought.

“Even with a counter-ghoul property attached, a beginner’s Palm Thunder can at best kill ghosts at the Eighth Rank. Against a Seventh Rank ghost, it’s more likely just to injure them, but not kill.”

“While I’m still unsure about the exact rank of the ghost possessing Wang Tong, it’s always right to treat it as a Seventh Rank ghost. It’s best to increase Palm Thunder’s proficiency to intermediate, or even advanced.”

“What is the actual effect of this Taoist Dream Cultivation Card, and what kind of boost does a Spiritual Root +1 give in real cultivation practice?” he wondered.

After sorting out his thoughts, Zhou Heng lay down on his bed, activated the Taoist Dream Cultivation Card, and drifted slowly into sleep.

In his dream, he suddenly became wakeful and found himself standing in a misty gray fog-shrouded space without any concept of direction. Everything felt like nothingness.

With a thought, he focused on cultivating Palm Thunder.

And suddenly—Boom!

A thunderous roar!

In front of Zhou Heng, a mountain of glistening gold materialized out of nowhere—it was a mountain made entirely of gold!

It must have been three to four hundred feet tall!

“Holy shit…” Zhou Heng couldn’t refrain from cursing. He had never seen so much gold in his two lifetimes combined—no, this was a mountain of gold!

Unfortunately, this was just a dream, and the golden mountain could only be used for cultivating Palm Thunder.

He wondered how long he could practice with it.

If he could “burn through” the entire mountain, then he could probably reach perfection in Palm Thunder countless times.

Beneath the pitch-black night sky.

Xu Hai was entirely engulfed by that sticky, wax-like substance without even time to scream before being silenced completely.

The intense writhing of the “wax” gradually caused the bulky mass to shrivel, as if it were digesting Xu Hai himself.

After a short moment, the “wax” reformed into the shape of a man—an ordinary-looking middle-aged man in his fifties with a mustache and an unnaturally pale face, but with a smile hanging on his lips.

“Haha! Hahaha!” He laughed maniacally. “This must be Zhou Heng’s friend, yes, I’ve devoured Zhou Heng’s friend, I’m so happy! Truly ecstatic! Hahaha!”

He seemed to have fulfilled a long-held desire, lost in madness.

“Thank you, thank you for giving me the power to let Zhou Heng experience the feeling of losing someone important!” he said, offering thanks to the void, while his face showed deep resentment. “Qingqing, your death was so tragic! It’s all Zhou Heng’s fault, and I’ll kill everyone important to him, all his friends and family!

“I’ll make him suffer so much, he’ll wish he was dead!!”

“Well then, let’s go have a look,” a faint voice seemed to travel from an infinite distance to Wang Tong’s ears, “I just got some information about him and also know where he’s currently staying, right?”

Following the guidance of that voice, Wang Tong quickly homed in on the best suite in the guesthouse. With a leap, he reached right to Zhou Heng’s window, glimpsing inside where Zhou Heng was lying in deep sleep.

“Kill him now?” Wang Tong furrowed his brows.

He intended to make Zhou Heng suffer before his death, to perish amidst agony and oppression.

“No, my strength isn’t fully restored yet, and I am currently unable to kill him in reality, as he has a Pure Yang Body,” the voice chuckled lightly. “However, that’s not to say there are no other ways. I can feel he’s dreaming.

“Just find a hidden spot for now, and I will enter his dream to investigate,” the voice suggested.