Chapter 26: Seventh Tier

Before long, the group arrived at the administration office. Liu Feng noticed that the building was exceptionally spacious, with numerous rooms; he’d heard it was where the academy handled official matters. They entered one of the rooms.

Liu Feng pushed open the door and found a man around thirty sitting inside. His features were resolute, his presence extraordinary—clearly a person of considerable power. Before him stood a desk piled with books.

Zhao Yang spoke up, “Instructor Liu, we’ve come to submit our mission and exchange it for contribution points.” He handed over the completion record and placed the mission token on the desk.

Instructor Liu took the paper, glanced over it for a moment, and said, “That thief possessed eighth-level strength. For you to complete this mission is quite impressive. Please take out your contribution point cards.”

Zhao Yang handed over a metal card. Instructor Liu accepted it, drew a brush-like instrument across the card, and a flash of light flickered over its surface. He then returned the card to Zhao Yang. The others also produced their metal cards, and Instructor Liu used the brush to mark each one before handing them back.

Seeing Liu Feng without a card, Instructor Liu asked, “Is this your first time here? You haven’t received a contribution point card yet?”

Liu Feng nodded, “Yes, Instructor, this is my first mission.”

Instructor Liu opened a drawer, took out a metal card, drew the brush across it, and handed it to Liu Feng.

“Goodbye, Instructor Liu,” Liu Feng and the others said.

Instructor Liu gave a slight nod.

They closed the door and walked out.

“How do you use this card?” Liu Feng asked curiously.

Zhao Yang explained, “There are staff at the Training Tower. Tell them how long you wish to train, and they’ll deduct the corresponding contribution points.”

Liu Feng nodded.

Chatting and laughing, the group soon arrived at the Training Tower. Liu Feng looked up—the tower wasn’t very large, about ten meters tall, and divided into three levels.

“We need to register over there,” Zhao Yang said.

He led the way to a nearby room, with Liu Feng and the others following behind.

Zhao Yang pushed open the door. Inside sat a young woman, about twenty-five or twenty-six, dressed in white, her features delicate and beautiful.

Seeing them enter, she smiled gently. “Here to train and improve your strength?”

“Yes,” Zhao Yang replied.

The woman in white asked, “How long do you plan to train?”

Zhao Yang handed over his contribution point card. “I’d like to train on the first floor for one hour.”

She accepted the card, drew a brush-like instrument across it, and a flash of light flickered over the card. She returned it and handed him a thumb-sized glowing stone.

Liu Feng and the others came forward, handed over their cards, stated their training times, and each received a glowing stone.

After registering, they made their way to the Training Tower.

“What’s the purpose of this stone?” Liu Feng asked, puzzled.

Wang Yue explained, “When your training time is up, the stone will extinguish, and you’ll be sent out of the tower by a mysterious force.”

“So that’s how it works.” Liu Feng nodded in realization.

As they spoke, they arrived at the Training Tower. Zhao Yang entered first, and the others followed.

“Let’s each find a spot and settle in to train,” Zhao Yang said.

Liu Feng looked around. There were hundreds of meditation cushions arranged neatly on the floor. Beside two or three dozen of them, points of light flickered.

“No one’s training?” Liu Feng asked Zhao Yang.

Zhao Yang replied, “See the cushions with glowing objects beside them? That means someone is training there. Each cushion is isolated by an array—you just can’t see them.”

“How mysterious this tower is,” Liu Feng marveled.

Zhao Yang sat on a cushion. Instantly, he seemed to vanish, leaving only a glowing point behind.

Liu Feng chose a cushion at random. As he sat, he felt as if he’d entered a strange new space.

He calmed his mind and began to practice the 'Awakening Potential' technique.

As his cultivation method circulated, streams of spiritual energy gathered rapidly, swirling around his body before seeping inside.

Liu Feng sensed the spiritual energy here was much denser than usual, and his cultivation speed had increased several times over.

The true energy within him flowed more vigorously as the surrounding spiritual energy, like waves, gathered and enveloped his body, then was swiftly absorbed and refined.

As the energy entered, Liu Feng’s body was cleansed and strengthened at an astonishing rate.

His entire skeleton vibrated as if struck by hammers, and his organs resonated, playing a symphony within him.

Boom!

Liu Feng seemed to hear a sound from deep within, as though a barrier had been shattered. He had reached the seventh level of the Qi Gathering Realm.

Immediately, he felt his true energy become thicker, its circulation smoother and more harmonious.

His body felt light and airy, as if seated atop clouds; his eyes grew sharper, his hearing keener.

Every aspect of his physical abilities improved, his constitution transformed and strengthened.

Liu Feng didn’t rise at once, but quietly savored the changes until the feeling of transformation faded, then he stepped down from the cushion.

He threw a few punches, and afterimages flickered around him, accompanied by explosive sounds in the air.

“Excellent, my strength has increased greatly,” Liu Feng said, clenching his fists in delight.

Just then, Liu Feng felt a pulling force dragging him outward. In a blink, the scene shifted—he found himself outside the Training Tower.

“Liu Feng, you’re out too. How did your training go?” Wang Yue approached and asked.

“Not bad, my strength has grown,” Liu Feng replied with a smile.

At that moment, Zhao Yang and the others were also expelled from the Training Tower.

“Are you planning to keep training or tackle more academy missions to earn contribution points?” Wang Yue asked the group.

“I plan to continue training. After last time, I realized my strength isn’t enough,” Wang Yang said.

“I’m the same as Wang Yang—time for more training,” Zhang Bing added.

“Me too. I’m still lacking in strength!” Zhao Yu sighed.

“What about you, Liu Feng?” Zhao Yang asked.

Liu Feng considered for a moment. “I plan to hone my martial skills first, then take on another academy mission.”

“Let me know when you do,” Zhao Yang said.

“Don’t worry, I’ll inform you when I take a mission,” Liu Feng assured him.

“Since you’re all set on training, I won’t take any missions either. I’ll wait until I advance another level,” Wang Yue said, a bit dejected.

With that, the group dispersed.

Liu Feng headed to the academy’s training grounds, intent on refining his martial techniques.

He arrived, unlocked his training room with a key, and went inside to begin.

He practiced ceaselessly, his true energy moving along a unique trajectory, sending ripples through the air and producing explosive sounds.

Finally, he stopped, wiped the sweat from his brow, and exited the room.

“I hear you defeated Yang Dong from Class Two, and fought Zhao Yang, your class’s third strongest, to a draw. Do you have the guts to accept a challenge from our boss?” a harsh and arrogant voice called out to Liu Feng.