Chapter 196: Fourth Rank!
Chapter 196: Fourth Rank!
Several days had passed since the Resistance Army had reached out to him.
Time had also brought them to the end of the month.
Early in the morning, Jiang Cheng glanced at his phone's calendar. Tomorrow would be the 1st, the day the Black Market opened.
On the panel, the experience bar for Crystal Shattering Technique was approaching Perfection Level.
As long as he refined several thousand more Primal Energy Points, he would be able to open the last acupoint, becoming a Fourth Rank Primordial Energy Warrior.
"It hasn't been easy," Jiang Cheng thought to himself.
To earn money, he had spent most of the past ten days teaching others how to shoot at the firing range every afternoon.
Fortunately, after just one trip to the Black Market, he wouldn't have to go through this again.
Additionally, next month, he would receive the Dawn Society's second task, likely around the beginning of the month.
He wasn't concerned about the difficulty of the task.
After all, the upper echelons of the Society were unaware of his true strength; they only knew him as a Second Rank Primordial Energy Warrior. Unless, like the previous task, he encountered a Sage, there wouldn't be any danger.
What he was worried about was the nature of the task.
If it was just about killing evil people, it might not be so bad.
Jiang Cheng shook his head at this thought.
There was nothing to do but take things one step at a time.
Since he didn't have to go out to instruct others in the afternoon, he decided to cultivate at home.
Time passed.
Accompanied by the sound of shattering glass.
The twentieth acupoint was finally broken.
A vast amount of Primordial Energy surged into his body.
Jiang Cheng slowly opened his eyes, unaware of how much time had passed.
He had reached the Fourth Rank.
Upon reaching this rank, his maximum fist strength reached one ton, his speed 30 meters per second, and his physical defense underwent a qualitative change. Even if he was shot at close range in the eyes, ears, mouth, or nose by a handgun, he wouldn't sustain any damage.
Even a rifle, as long as it didn't hit a vital spot, wouldn't inflict fatal injuries.
If he were a Fifth Rank Primordial Energy Warrior, his physical defense would be enough to block rifle shots. However, if he were continuously hit in vital areas by a machine gun, which had greater power and rate of fire than a rifle, there would be a risk of death.
Being hit by a heavy sniper rifle in a vital area was even more dangerous.
Because the Shattered Jade Fist reached Mastery Level first, Jiang Cheng almost instantly adapted to this surge of energy as he broke through with the Crystal Shattering Technique.
If he were to go to a fist strength testing machine, he could immediately demonstrate a one-ton punch.
Jiang Cheng looked at the panel.
[Crystal Shattering Technique: Mastery Level (0/1,000,000)]
Compared to the previous stage, the experience bar had increased by more than three times.
According to the description of the Crystal Shattering Technique, the difficulty of opening the last eight acupoints was several times that of the first twenty combined. It wasn't just the number of Primal Energy Points required, which increased from two hundred thousand to five hundred thousand, but also the complexity of sensing and opening them. Sometimes, one might get stuck on a single acupoint for two to three years, which was not uncommon.
The unluckiest ones might sense all but the last one or two acupoints, unable to break through the bottleneck and become Fifth Rank Primordial Energy Warriors.
Jiang Cheng did some calculations.
The eleventh acupoint he opened would automatically absorb one hundred more Primal Energy Points per day than the previous one. Following this trend, by opening the eleventh to twentieth acupoints, he could refine an additional 16,500 Primal Energy Points daily. Combined with the 4,000 he could actively absorb, the total reached 27,000!
Refining all these Primal Energy Points daily would grant him over 40,000 experience points.
With one million experience points required, he would only need 25 days to accumulate them.
"In less than a month, that's not bad."
Jiang Cheng nodded slightly.
If his mental power increased, say, tenfold, then the Primordial Energy Points he could refine in a day would reach six or seven hundred thousand, and the time required would directly shorten by two-thirds!
Of course, he also felt this was unlikely, just like breaking the physical body's limits, breaking the mental power's limits was also becoming increasingly difficult.
The main reason he could increase his mental power tenfold upon entering the door was that his mental power was initially too weak.
After mastering the Visualization Technique, if his mental power could increase fivefold, that would be a blessing.
A smile appeared on Jiang Cheng's face.
After all, he was in high spirits after his recent breakthrough.
Once he perfected the Shattered Jade Technique, he could start cultivating the second technique, the Seven Star Palm, which he obtained from Gao Songbai.
The time required for this would likely be even shorter. Perhaps he could enter the door in less than half a day, advance a small realm in a day, and possibly perfect the technique in half a month.
At that time, he could purchase a Human Martial Art, and it would be like a snowball effect. Initially, he could refine fewer Primordial Energy Points, but as the snowball rolled, he could refine more and more, and he might truly be able to perfect a technique in three or four days.
The speed would be like having a cheat code.
Of course, there was another option: to purchase higher-tier Secret Arts for cultivation.
After all, the higher the tier of the Secret Art, the more acupoints it opened up, and the greater the improvement after the breakthrough.
It was hard to say which of the two methods was better.
But the first method was undoubtedly easier to implement and more in line with his desire to conceal his strength.
"In any case, improving my mental power is definitely the right choice."
Jiang Cheng thought to himself.
With enhanced mental power, cultivation would be twice the result with half the effort.
Once his mental power reached a certain level, he could, like Nightingale, use his mental power to manipulate objects. Enemies would never dream that he, who appeared to be a Primordial Energy Warrior, was actually a Mind Master.
---
A day passed quickly.
Late at night, taking advantage of his family's deep sleep, Jiang Cheng quietly entered the living room and retrieved the bag he had hidden inside the sofa.
Upon entering the bedroom, he contemplated the bag filled with money.
He wanted to spend all three million at once, as it would be the fastest way to improve his strength. After all, he needed not only recovery potions for his mental power but also higher-tier Secret Arts, Visualization Charts, and even Secret Treasures if he could buy them.
However, he had a concern.
What if he was unlucky this time and someone snatched it from him? After all, he was only a Fourth Rank Primordial Energy Warrior.
If he couldn't defeat them, he would have to cut his losses and run with the three million.
So, to play it safe, he could go in batches.
This time, he would only bring half, just enough to buy enough Mental Potions to improve his Visualization Technique proficiency.
Of course, as a precaution, he could bring a little extra.
If everything went smoothly this time, he could go to the auction in mid-month to purchase the items he wanted.
After all, by then, he should be a Fifth Rank Primordial Energy Warrior.
Jiang Cheng thought it over.
He decided to go with the second option.
Even if he was unlucky and someone snatched it from him, he would still have half left, giving him a chance to rise again.
Unlike the first option, where he might lose it all in one go.
(End of Chapter)
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