The Elixir is for You, The Poison is for Me

#342 - A different approach

According to the Qing Guang Moon Shadow Sword, in the initial stages of nurturing a sword, when the sword spirit is first born, it is like a newborn infant, fragile in all aspects. Therefore, one must proceed slowly and carefully nurture it.

Lu Jing initially did indeed do so, but after discovering that the consumption rate of his mystical power was not as satisfactory as he had hoped, he had no choice but to risk increasing the absorption rate of the sword shadow.

He first increased the absorption rate of mystical power by about thirty percent. As a result, the sword shadow didn't seem to change much, and Lu Jing couldn't help but feel a little relieved. So, he increased the speed by another thirty percent.

But this time, his sneaky addition to the bowl didn't go unnoticed. The sword shadow clearly sensed the change in the surrounding mystical power. The sword trembled slightly, as if reminding Lu Jing that it was eating too fast.

However, Lu Jing acted as if he didn't see it. Not only did he not slow down the absorption rate of mystical power, but he also added another thirty percent on top of that.

Now, the sword shadow's absorption rate of mystical power was more than double what it had been originally.

The trembling of the sword shadow became even more violent, and a tiny crack appeared on the sword's body, which was naturally not a good sign.

However, Lu Jing still didn't stop. Instead, he hardened his heart and added another thirty percent on top of that.

Of course, he knew that what he was doing now was despicable, practically forcing the sword spirit to its death.

But there was no other way. If he couldn't empty the mystical power in his upper dantian before the next refresh, even if the sword spirit was still there, it wouldn't matter if he was gone.

Not adding it meant certain death, adding it at least gave him another chance to fight. Lu Jing naturally knew which to choose. And with his third speed increase, the sword shadow's absorption rate of mystical power soared to three times its original speed!

The mystical power that had previously flowed into the sword shadow like a gentle stream now had the momentum of a vast ocean.

It was as if the surface of the sea at high tide was setting off layers of terrifying waves.

Then, those terrifying waves surged from all directions, gathering and pouring into the sword shadow together.

In an instant, several more cracks appeared on the sword's body, looking shocking.

And those cracks continued to extend. Seeing this, Lu Jing had a feeling that something bad was about to happen.

He was just about to cut off the connection between the mystical power and the sword shadow, but the next moment, he saw that the first crack that had appeared actually began to heal. Then, the second and third cracks healed…

In the end, a strange scene appeared on the sword shadow.

New cracks kept appearing on one side, while old cracks were constantly being repaired on the other. The two sides maintained a delicate balance, keeping the sword shadow on the verge of shattering, but it never actually broke.

Lu Jing's thoughts raced, and he quickly guessed the reason. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

As expected, work is never saturated. How can you know how much potential your employees have if you don't push them hard enough?

This newly born sword spirit clearly knew that it had reached a critical moment of life and death. It simply couldn't absorb so much internal force in such a short period of time. So, it unexpectedly took a different approach and escaped this disaster by harming itself.

By constantly shattering and repairing itself, it forcibly consumed the portion of mystical power that it couldn't digest.

Lu Jing didn't know if the sword spirit's desperate shattering and repairing would have any impact on the flying sword. This kind of thing was too far away for him. For now, he was just using this flying sword as a battery.

As long as this flying sword could continue to absorb mystical power for him, that was enough.

After increasing the absorption rate to three times the original speed, Lu Jing could now exhaust his mystical power before the next refresh. In addition, the sword spirit seemed to be at the end of its rope, so he didn't continue to increase the speed.

Lu Jing took a long breath and leaned back. According to his past experience, the first day was often the most dangerous. Surviving the first day meant that he had overcome the immediate difficulty.

However, Lu Jing didn't relax for too long. After half an incense stick's time, he climbed up from the bed again.

This time, the mystical power came inexplicably. He had too many unanswered questions in his heart. Although he had previously obtained some answers from Xuan Ji in the library, the latter had never personally cultivated mystical power.

Faced with Lu Jing's questions, she could only find answers from past classics.

If it were some common cultivation knowledge, it would be fine, but if the questions were more obscure or relatively flexible, Xuan Ji couldn't answer them either.

So, the person Lu Jing went to find this time was Xia Huai. The latter was recognized as the most talented in mystical power among the current students of the academy, and her understanding of mystical power far exceeded others.

Lu Jing had also considered whether to go directly to Supervisor Huang or Professor Zheng, but these two were old foxes. Even if Lu Jing didn't say it explicitly, they would probably be able to guess what had happened to him from the questions he asked.

Although the refresh bug made Lu Jing extremely headache, it was also the biggest secret on his body, helping him to turn danger into safety several times. Before parting, Zhang Sanfeng had also instructed him to guard this secret well.

So, Lu Jing hesitated for a long time and finally gave up on the path of directly seeking help from the academy or the Department of Celestial Observation. He came alone to Xia Huai's small courtyard and knocked on her courtyard door.

"Who is it?" Xia Huai's voice came from behind the door.

"It's me, are you asleep?" Lu Jing said.

"Not yet." As Xia Huai's voice fell, the courtyard door was quickly pushed open from the inside.

Xia Huai was wearing a rather loose Taoist robe, standing barefoot on the bluestone steps. It seemed that she had just finished cultivating as well.

In fact, as the academy began to offer classes, the lives of the students had become busy. They had to attend lectures during the day and review what they had learned at night. Moreover, they had to cultivate not only mystical power, but also their own martial arts. Their days were packed full, and they wished they could split themselves in two.

The time they went to bed at night was also repeatedly delayed. Fortunately, they were all martial artists and young and strong. As long as they could sleep for two hours a day, they could basically guarantee their energy the next day.

Lu Jing divided the ham he had brought back from Wu Jiang City into seven parts and brought a share to Xia Huai. After the latter accepted it, he scratched his head and said, "Sorry for disturbing you so late. I mainly have some cultivation questions I want to ask."

"Huh?" Xia Huai didn't quite hear him.

"It's about mystical power," Lu Jing admitted.

This time, Xia Huai did hear him clearly, but she couldn't help but wonder if she had misheard.