The Azure Cloud Sect never truly slept. Before dawn had even broken over the eastern mountains, disciples were already making their way toward the cultivation grounds. The clang of swords, the crack of fists colliding with wooden dummies, and the occasional explosion of spiritual qi echoed throughout the valleys. For the Outer Disciples, every day was a race against time. The six-month assessment was drawing closer. Those with talent desperately tried to widen the gap between themselves and everyone else. Those without talent could only rely on diligence. Di Tian... Belonged to neither category. He belonged to a third. One that no one else knew existed. --- Inside Courtyard Thirty-Seven, the first rays of sunlight shone through the wooden window. Di Tian slowly opened his eyes. He stretched lazily before sitting up on his bed. The familiar voice immediately greeted him. 【Basic Qi Gathering Art is cultivating...】【Current Realm: Fifth Stage Qi Gathering (99%).】【Mountain Splitting Palm: Perfection.】【Cloud Step: Perfection.】【Heavenly Thunder Physique: Beginner (8%).】 Di Tian smiled. "Looks like I'll break through soon." He looked toward the fourth technique. Compared to the other three... Its progress was painfully slow. Eight percent after several days. If this continued... Eight months sounded accurate. "So even the system has to respect difficulty." He wasn't disappointed. Instead... He found it reassuring. The cultivation world still had rules. His system simply made the best possible use of them. --- Outside the room, Lin Hai was already practicing his sword. Every swing was sharp. Every step deliberate. Sweat covered his forehead despite the cool morning breeze. Nearby, Zhao Ming repeatedly struck a thick wooden post until his fists bled. Sun Wei sat beneath the courtyard tree, silently circulating his cultivation method. Di Tian quietly watched them. "Hard workers." Then he yawned. "I think I'll head out." Lin Hai sheathed his sword. "Mission?" "No." "Cultivation?" "...Maybe." The three roommates exchanged suspicious looks. Whenever Di Tian answered like that... Nobody knew whether he was serious. --- After leaving the courtyard, Di Tian didn't head toward the training grounds. Nor did he go to the Mission Hall. Instead... He walked deeper into the mountains surrounding the Outer Sect. The further he travelled... The fewer disciples he encountered. Eventually... The stone roads disappeared. Only narrow forest paths remained. Birds sang among ancient spirit trees. A clear stream flowed between moss-covered rocks. Several low-level spirit beasts watched him cautiously before fleeing. The spiritual qi here was noticeably denser than within the Outer Sect. Most importantly... No one was around. Di Tian smiled. "This should do." He entered a secluded valley surrounded by cliffs. Large boulders were scattered across the clearing. Several ancient trees towered overhead. The place was completely silent. Perfect. He had spent three months letting the system cultivate his techniques. Yet... He had never actually used them seriously. Today... He wanted to see what "Perfection" truly meant. --- He walked toward the largest boulder. It stood nearly three meters tall. Its surface was weathered by centuries of wind and rain. Di Tian slowly raised his right hand. "Mountain Splitting Palm..." He closed his eyes. Instantly... The countless movements practiced by the system flooded his mind. His breathing adjusted naturally. His stance lowered by exactly the right amount. His spiritual qi circulated through his meridians without the slightest hesitation. Everything... Felt instinctive. It was as though he had practiced this palm technique for decades. "So this is Perfection..." He lightly exhaled. Then... He struck. BOOM!! The sound echoed across the valley. The enormous boulder exploded into hundreds of fragments. Stone shards flew in every direction. A cloud of dust rose into the air. Di Tian remained standing exactly where he was. He slowly looked at his palm. "...That wasn't the third form." It had only been the First Palm—Breaking Force. He blinked twice. "I think..." "...it's stronger than Elder Zhou demonstrated." The system answered. 【Mountain Splitting Palm has reached Perfection.】【Host's execution exceeds the standard of the original technique.】 Di Tian scratched his head. "So the system optimized it even before Transcendent?" 【Perfection represents flawless execution. Continued optimization will eventually lead to Transcendence.】 He nodded. That made sense. --- Next... He wanted to test his movement technique. He took a single step forward. Cloud Step activated automatically. His body became incredibly light. Each step landed with almost no sound. Leaves beneath his feet barely moved. He accelerated. One step. Five steps. Ten. His figure blurred between the trees. To an ordinary Qi Gathering cultivator... He would seem to disappear entirely. Di Tian suddenly stopped. Not because he wanted to. Because he had already reached the opposite end of the valley. "...That was fast." The system corrected him. 【Movement efficiency increased.】【Spiritual qi consumption reduced by 37%.】 "So I can move longer..." "...and faster." Not bad. Very not bad. --- Finally... He looked toward another boulder. This one was even larger. He inhaled deeply. "Third Palm..." The spiritual qi within his dantian surged violently. Unlike the first form... Nearly half his available qi gathered within his right arm. The surrounding air trembled. Even the leaves began to shake. Di Tian frowned slightly. "So much qi..." He stepped forward. His palm descended. BOOOOOOOM!! The valley shook. A deafening explosion echoed through the surrounding mountains. The massive boulder... Simply ceased to exist. Where it had once stood... Only a deep crater remained. Several nearby trees had been uprooted by the shockwave. Birds scattered into the sky in panic. Silence returned. Di Tian stared blankly. "..." "..." "...I should probably avoid using that inside the sect." If another Outer Disciple had witnessed the attack... They would never believe it came from a Fifth Stage Qi Gathering cultivator. --- Just then... A notification appeared. 【Battle experience acquired.】【Mountain Splitting Palm comprehension increased.】 Di Tian smiled. "So actually using the techniques helps too." The system responded. 【Combat experience accelerates optimization.】 He nodded thoughtfully. Perhaps he should visit this valley more often. There was another advantage. No one would discover his true strength. For now... That suited him perfectly. The six-month assessment was only three months away. Until then... He had no intention of standing in the spotlight. Let everyone believe he was merely an ordinary disciple who cultivated a little faster than expected. When the assessment finally arrived... He would reveal only as much strength as necessary. Nothing more. With one last glance at the devastated valley, Di Tian turned and leisurely began walking back toward the Outer Sect. His hands rested behind his head. His expression was as carefree as ever. Anyone passing him on the mountain path would see nothing more than a lazy Outer Disciple taking a stroll. None would imagine... That hidden deep within the mountains... A young man had just reduced solid stone to dust with a single palm. And by tomorrow morning... His system would have grown even stronger while he slept.

Chapter 11: Solitary Cultivation