Chapter 458: Training and Protective Treasures (Combined Chapter)

Inside the training room, time seemed stretched and twisted.

Two identical figures clashed at high speed within the confined space.

The dull thuds of fists striking flesh echoed like a drumbeat, while the whistling of kicking legs cut through the air like ghostly shrieks.

Each attack targeted the opponent's most vulnerable joints and energy flow nodes; each defense used minimal movement and precise force redirection to block or deflect.

Gao Jie Ming's right arm bent at a grotesque angle to parry the afterimage's knife-hand strike aimed at his temple, while his left knee shot forward like a venomous dragon toward the opponent's abdomen.

The afterimage seemed to anticipate it, arching its waist like a willow leaf backward to evade the knee thrust, then hooking its foot like a scorpion's tail upward toward Gao Jie Ming's jaw.

Thud!

Gao Jie Ming leaned back, barely avoiding it—the wind of the kick scraped his skin, leaving a burning sting.

Without pause, he used the backward momentum to brace one hand on the ground and kicked out both legs in a continuous whirlwind, sealing off the afterimage's lower body.

The afterimage leapt into the air, palms like blades, slashing downward with force sharp as solid blades.

Both possessed identical memories, techniques, and combat instincts, with perfect control over every muscle and unit of energy.

Anticipating the opponent's anticipation, countering the opponent's counter—each move felt like dueling one's own reflection, perilous to the extreme.

Sweat and blood spattered with every violent motion. Their training uniforms were shredded; exposed skin bore purple-black bruises and tiny wounds.

Both eyes were chillingly calm, like emotionless killing machines, extracting every last ounce of potential under extreme strain.

At first, Gao Jie Ming struggled terribly.

The time afterimage perfectly replicated all his current abilities—he felt as if he were trying to shake a mountain of identical weight and solidity.

But gradually, change began to emerge.

During a direct fist clash, Gao Jie Ming felt a faintly lighter vibration in his arm bones than the afterimage's.

After absorbing a heavy kick, the churning in his organs was slightly weaker than expected.

Under the extreme pressure of an opponent who knew his every move, his Body Strengthening Art's adaptive evolution trait activated with unprecedented efficiency.

Pain became nourishment; injury became a stepping stone to progress.

Muscle fibers were restructured and strengthened at the microscopic level; bone density gradually increased; neural reaction speed was pushed beyond limits under life-or-death stimuli; even the energy pathways of the Body Strengthening Art were forced into more efficient micro-adjustments through this extreme confrontation.

Slowly, Gao Jie Ming began to detect tiny flaws in his own habits that he had previously missed.

His attack rhythm shifted slowly but steadily, integrating flashes of insight beyond his established patterns.

His defense grew more fluid; some attacks could now be absorbed with minimal cost, thanks to newly evolved subtle resilience in his muscles and bones.

The balance of battle began tilting—imperceptible to the eye, but undeniably real—toward the original.

"Hah!"

Finally, during a desperate close-quarters struggle, Gao Jie Ming seized a momentary lag in the afterimage's energy flow caused by rapid, high-intensity technique changes.

His left arm clamped down like an iron vice on the afterimage's blocking arm; his right fist gathered all his sudden explosive power, faint golden runes flickering across the knuckles before vanishing.

With speed and force surpassing any prior attack, he slammed it squarely into the center of the afterimage's chest!

Crack!

A clear sound of bone breaking echoed.

The afterimage's body stiffened abruptly; its cold gaze dimmed rapidly, pupils scattering.

The elemental components forming its body began to leak uncontrollably, its form blurring and turning translucent.

Gao Jie Ming did not pause—he followed with a brutal elbow strike to the throat, then spun and delivered a final whip-like kick to the side of the afterimage's neck.

Puff…

Amid a spray of blood, the time afterimage shattered like broken glass, dissolving into a mist of glowing particles that slowly vanished into the training room's energy filtration system.

"Huff… huff…"

Gao Jie Ming knelt on one knee, gasping heavily. Sweat streamed down his forehead and temples, dripping onto the equally soaked floor.

Every part of his body ached; multiple bones had cracked; his internal organs suffered significant shock damage.

Yet his eyes burned with startling clarity, filled with exhilaration and satisfaction from breakthrough.

He struggled to his feet, dragging his exhausted body slowly out of the training room.

Outside the door, a black giant priest waited silently, offering a warm towel.

Gao Jie Ming took it, roughly wiping sweat and blood from his face and neck, then walked straight to the adjacent private washroom.

Cold water washed over his scorching skin, carrying away fatigue and grime.

Then he stepped into a large tub nearby, already filled with a potent herbal brew.

Warm medicinal liquid enveloped his entire body; pure medicinal energy seeped through his pores, rapidly repairing damage, nourishing overtaxed cells, and resonating with his Body Strengthening Art to solidify his recent breakthrough.

A black giant priest carried portable scanning devices and began detailed bodily scans and data collection on Gao Jie Ming in the tub.

A screen lit up beside the tub, scrolling with real-time data:

【Base Physical Strength Increase (vs. previous scan): +287%】

【Average Bone Density/Toughness Increase: +255%】

【Muscle Fiber Energy Conversion Efficiency Increase: +198%】

【Neural Conduction Speed Limit Increase: +176%】

【Peak Cell Regeneration Rate Increase: +331%】

【Estimated Physical Impact Resistance (converted): Reaches standard Level 6 Wizard physical defense average】

【Passive Resistance to Energy Erosion: Significantly Improved】

【Life Magnetic Field Strength: Surged, nearing Level 6 biological threshold】

…

Gao Jie Ming leaned against the tub's edge, gazing at the astonishing data, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Indeed, for cultivators, constantly surpassing oneself is the fastest path forward—and even more so for Body Cultivators." He mused silently.

Just one month of high-intensity time afterimage training, combined with top-tier herbal baths, had yielded gains surpassing many years of conventional hard cultivation.

His current physical strength had firmly reached the average standard of a regular Level 6 Wizard.

This meant he could now withstand direct hits from many Level 5 Wizard spells purely through his body, and his resistance to physical damage had reached astonishing levels.

Without exaggeration, Gao Jie Ming could now face solar energy ejections without issue—even bathe inside a star.

But with it came the familiar problem—the Three Treasures of Essence, Qi, and Spirit were once again unbalanced.

His body, the "container," had surged far ahead; his mental force and spiritual power—the "fuel" and "control system"—needed time to catch up.

For the foreseeable future, until his mental force and spiritual power naturally rose to match, he should not continue pushing his physical limits further, or it might trigger various complications.

"In the short term, ascending to Level 6 Wizard seems impossible—my understanding of laws is still far behind. Ascending to Void Refinement is equally difficult; without clear bottleneck guidance, it'll likely take as long as reaching Level 6 Wizard." Gao Jie Ming calculated his future path, "But… this is fine. It means I can use this method to accumulate the total quantity and quality of the Three Treasures almost without limit."

Though his realm was stalled, his foundational strength could keep rising; and since Wizard power stems from knowledge, Gao Jie Ming's combat capability would never stagnate as long as he kept improving himself.

At that moment, another black giant priest entered the bath chamber silently, holding a magic network terminal in active communication request mode.

Gao Jie Ming glanced at it—the caller displayed: Bill Ling Black.

This old classmate was now a stable business partner and "downline" seller of his liquid adamantium.

Through years of frequent contact and trade, their relationship had grown close again.

Gao Jie Ming directly accepted the call; Black's smiling face appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Gao Jie Ming! Didn't interrupt your 'cultivation,' did I?" Black's tone was as familiar as ever.

"Just finished. What's up, Black? Liquid adamantium sold out again?" Gao Jie Ming leaned against the tub's edge, lazily asking.

With the war between the three powers growing imminent, Black's liquid adamantium business had indeed become increasingly profitable.

This consumable, effective against illusions and stabilizing the mind, was a hard currency in wartime—no amount was ever too much.

And Gao Jie Ming's own recent research consumed vast quantities, so he was glad to see it.

Black nodded: "Yes, the inventory is nearly depleted again. You'll need to prepare another batch. But I'm contacting you mainly to ask—do you have anything else? Like new witch tools designed to counter illusions or other common battlefield threats?"

"Defense, detection, even one-time offensive items—all fine! Anything tied to war is skyrocketing in price; there's no shortage of buyers!"

Gao Jie Ming shook his head, the water rippling with his motion: "Not right now. I'm fully focused on preparing for battle—using all my time to enhance my strength and refine existing methods. I have no capacity to develop new mass-produced witch tools. Liquid adamantium is the only thing I can reliably supply."

He paused, his tone growing slightly more serious: "Black, don't just chase profits. When war truly breaks out, neither front nor rear will be safe."

"Prepare yourself. Stockpile survival gear. It's worth more than any military merit. Don't end up with money but no life to spend it."

On the screen, Black's smile faded slightly, but a strange gleam flashed in his eyes.

He lowered his voice: "Don't worry—I haven't just been acting as a middleman these past months…"

He paused for effect, voice tinged with secretive pride: "Next time we meet, I might surprise you. Just don't get too shocked."

Gao Jie Ming raised an eyebrow, watching Black's confident expression, and smiled: "Alright, I'll be waiting. I'll prepare the liquid adamantium soon—same arrangement as always."

"Got it! Stay in touch!" Black waved, ending the call.

The bath chamber fell silent again, save for the faint bubbling of the herbal brew.

Gao Jie Ming handed the terminal to the black giant priest, then sank back into the warm medicinal liquid, closing his eyes.

Black's words circled in his mind, but he did not dwell on them.

Everyone had their own path and preparations; his old classmate had always been sharp even as a Wizard apprentice.

After the herbal bath, his injuries repaired and Body Strengthening gains solidified.

Gao Jie Ming felt refreshed, his body brimming with power, as if every cell rejoiced.

Though brief, Black's message reminded him of some matters temporarily set aside.

He did not return to his lab to continue spell modifications; instead, he went directly to the vast storage zone deep within the Hell Sulfur Plane, designated for storing non-combat supplies.

The guards and daily managers here were several especially steady black giant priests, skilled in delicate operations.

Seeing Gao Jie Ming arrive, they bowed respectfully and silently parted to let him pass.

Gao Jie Ming said nothing, walked straight to the central console, and retrieved inventory lists and storage locations for specific categories of materials.

Data scrolled across the screen, then several metal doors engraved with different sealing runes slowly opened with a deep rumble deep within the storage zone.

The first thing to come into view were three entire ultra-large standard warehouses.

Their interiors had been expanded, densely and uniformly stacked with countless translucent storage jars filled with slowly swirling, brilliant mist.

Each jar emitted a chilling, eerie yet strangely vital mixture of energy.

Flower God Sha.

Since transforming the Hell Sulfur Plane into his foundational base, Gao Jie Ming had gradually abandoned the Golden Garden and its auxiliary labs at Norlen 147 Academy.

But he did not abandon the rare magical plants he had carefully cultivated; instead, he expended resources to carve out and maintain a larger, more controllable "ecological farm" near the Level Seven large elemental pool on the Hell Sulfur Plane.

Although the Hell Sulfur Plane itself was scorching hot and thick with sulfur fumes, utterly unsuitable for ordinary plant growth,

for Gao Jie Ming, who possessed a Level Seven large elemental pool and mature environmental control technology, this was no challenge.

Spending a bit of energy to construct an independent ecosystem with ideal temperature, humidity, lighting, and special elemental concentrations was effortless.

Thus, his garden did not shrink—it expanded many times over.

Those delicate magical plants, thriving in superior conditions and under meticulous care, grew even more lush, and their daily output of "Hundred Flowers Dew" and "Flower God Sha" surged accordingly.

Hundred Flowers Dew, as a universal solvent and catalyst for alchemy and pill-making, was consumed in massive quantities and remained roughly at equilibrium between production and demand.

But Flower God Sha… its uses were relatively narrow, and its consumption was slow.

When renovating the garden, Gao Jie Ming had installed an automated collection and sealing array covering the entire area.

Day after day, year after year, these arrays meticulously gathered this essence of yin sha energy without interruption.

Over time, even with specially forged storage vessels of considerable capacity (the jade jars), they had been completely filled—three entire large warehouses!

The brilliant sha energy within the jars flowed as if alive, converging into a silent yet overwhelming pressure.

Beside them were two slightly smaller, even more tightly sealed, pitch-black "sha gourds."

Frost congealed on their surfaces, and faint, mournful howls of wind leaked from within.

These contained high-quality "Death Sha Energy" collected by Gao Jie Ming long ago on the Flame-Frost Plane—purer in nature than Flower God Sha.

As for Dust Qi and Incense Divine Power, there was no need to elaborate.

Under the daily, unwavering faith and collective rituals of billions of Black Giants on the Hell Sulfur Plane, efficiently converted via the Incense Divine Path, they were generated ceaselessly, moment by moment.

Within dedicated storage units, pale golden incense power and milky-white Dust Qi, interwoven with the wishes of countless beings, had already accumulated into substantial quantities.

They shimmered and steamed, radiating a warm, sacred glow.

Gao Jie Ming's gaze swept slowly over these precious reserves.

He extended a hand, drawing forth a strand of pure incense power and a thread of rich Dust Qi from the storage units; they twined and spiraled around his fingertip, emitting a soothing, tranquil aura.

"Good stuff… but critical in use, and consumed quickly," Gao Jie Ming shook his head, carefully returning the two strands to their place.

Whether used for cultivation, alchemy, artifact forging, or as "fuel" and "building material" for the Incense Divine Path, demand for them was immense.

Though their stock seemed ample, if truly needed in critical moments, they would not last long.

His attention ultimately returned to the three massive warehouses, piled high with Flower God Sha.

"Originally, I built the garden primarily to harvest Flower God Sha—Hundred Flowers Dew was just an added bonus. Now, Hundred Flowers Dew is in short supply, while Flower God Sha has become the most excessive 'byproduct'…" Gao Jie Ming stroked his chin, eyes thoughtful.

Blake's words reminded him: war loomed, and beyond offensive capabilities, his defensive systems needed constant updating and reinforcement.

Especially unconventional, hard-to-defend-against attacks—such as curses, prophetic locking, soul corruption, and illusionary deception.

At that moment, his mind stirred slightly.

The air around his body seemed to ripple invisibly; countless near-transparent, mist-like streams gathered out of nowhere.

Within a foot before him, they coalesced into a constantly shifting, faintly visible veil of vapor.

This veil had no color or scent, no fixed form; upon close inspection, its interior appeared to swirl with delicate, brilliant threads and milky-white specks, faintly tinged with a thread of liquid-metal luster.

Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil.

This was a unique protective artifact Gao Jie Ming had crafted long ago to test his preliminary "Element–Spiritual Energy Conversion Technology," using Flower God Sha and Dust Qi as primary materials, employing artifact-forging techniques.

It had no physical form, normally hidden within the master's aura and energy field.

Its two primary functions were:

First, to spontaneously resist, weaken, and even reflect all attempts at curse, prophecy, divination, or malevolent wishes directed at Gao Jie Ming.

The strength of its resistance and counterattack depended entirely on the quality and quantity of Flower God Sha and Dust Qi stored within.

Sha energy erodes malice; Dust Qi disrupts fate's threads.

Second, when later developing a charm to resist illusions for Blake, Gao Jie Ming had incorporated the new technology and properties of liquid gold into an upgrade of the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil.

It now gained resistance against illusions, mental manipulation, and thought interference, making its protection far more comprehensive.

Yet, since its creation, its status had been awkward.

Most enemies Gao Jie Ming faced were straightforward, rarely employing such strange curse-based or psychic assault techniques.

He had encountered one such enemy once on the Fairness Plane, but against the power of a Level Nine being, the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil proved utterly useless.

Thus, the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil had never truly been tested, remaining merely an invisible safeguard.

Over time, even Gao Jie Ming himself had nearly forgotten its existence.

Only now, prompted by Blake's reminder, did he summon this long-dormant artifact once more.

Sensing the energy flowing within the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil, Gao Jie Ming frowned slightly.

"The quality of the sha and Dust Qi stored inside is acceptable, but the total quantity… given my current life tier and the potential level of enemies I may face, the resistance it provides is insufficient."

If confronted by a Level Six witch skilled in curses, or a powerful foe adept at large-scale mental illusions, the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil's current "reserves" would likely be breached quickly.

He stared at the shifting veil before him, then at the vast sea of brilliant sha energy in the warehouses, and his eyes gradually sharpened with resolve.

Though he already possessed the Gui Xu Armor as a defensive measure, the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil remained highly valuable as non-combat protection.

"It's time… to give you a complete 'upgrade.'" Gao Jie Ming murmured, his finger lightly brushing the edge of the Xuan Gang Hong Chen Veil; the veil trembled faintly, as if responding.

(Hard to split chapters—combined into one.)

(End of Chapter)