High Martial: I Grind Professions

Chapter 276: Chapter 168: Threshold Marquis-Level Strength

Five hours passed in the blink of an eye.

A subtle sense of mental fatigue washed over him. After five hours of continuous exertion, the abundant Spiritual Power in his Sea of Consciousness was finally on the verge of depletion.

Li Wen slowly retracted his blade. With a thought, he deactivated his [Absolute Focus] state.

The sound of the long blade returning to its sheath was crisp and clean.

The results of the training session he had just completed far exceeded his expectations.

The 140% comprehension bonus from breaking through to Scholar Lv. 14 had allowed his understanding of the Profound Dome Rainbow Silence Chapter to reach a new depth.

The subtle nuances of his bladework were magnified and deconstructed. All his accumulated doubts and bottlenecks were resolved and dissolved during this session of selfless practice.

The results of these five hours were equivalent to several months of arduous training in the past.

This sense of breakthrough was like a minor epiphany, and the improvement was considerable.

With this, he had essentially finished testing the main changes brought about by his Scholar level-up.

The strengthening of his physique, the growth of his Primordial Spirit, the expansion of his perception, and most importantly, the progress in his bladework—he was now clear on all of it.

Only one last thing remained.

Li Wen’s gaze sharpened.

In his Sea of Consciousness, the thought of the 6th Layer runes for the Shocking God Stab became incredibly clear.

He had long since memorized the contents of all seven layers of this Primordial Spirit Secret Technique. In the past, the only thing holding him back was the limitation of his Primordial Spirit Realm itself.

Now, the leap in his Scholar level had brought a massive boost to his Primordial Spirit, and that formless barrier seemed to have loosened.

Completing the inscription of the 6th Layer runes should no longer be an impossible task.

A subtle flicker of anticipation rose within him.

The 6th Layer of the Shocking God Stab, once fully nurtured, possessed power capable of matching an ordinary ”threshold Marquis Level” expert.

Possessing Marquis Level combat power while only in the Bright Moon Realm was an unconventional, extraordinary feat.

Carrying this hope, Li Wen returned to his quiet room.

Without any delay, he took out an expensive and highly effective spiritual recovery potion and downed it in one gulp.

A cool energy surged through his limbs and soothed his weary Sea of Consciousness.

Then, he sat down cross-legged and entered a deep meditation.

After reaching the Flying Star Level, sleep was no longer a necessity. Deep meditation was sufficient to quickly recover his spent Spiritual Power.

After just one hour, when Li Wen opened his eyes again, the Spiritual Power he had expended practicing his bladework that afternoon was already fully replenished.

His Sea of Consciousness was clear and serene, like the sky after a rain shower.

’The time is right.’

Li Wen no longer hesitated. He submerged his consciousness deep into his Sea of Consciousness.

The miniature Primordial Spirit, which had already grown to over seven feet tall, suddenly snapped its eyes open.

Deep within its eyes was not emptiness, but what seemed to be the reflection of a thousand star rivers, their brilliant light swirling unpredictably, profound and inscrutable.

Next, the miniature Primordial Spirit opened its mouth slightly, and a cone-shaped object, translucent and radiating a cold, sharp aura, slowly flew out.

It was none other than the Shocking God Stab, which had been nurtured to the perfection of the 5th Layer and had become one of his trump cards.

What came next was the most crucial step: the inscription.

The miniature Primordial Spirit lit up with a hazy yet condensed spiritual radiance. This light formed the tip of a spectral engraving blade, landing with incomparable precision upon the transparent body of the Shocking God Stab.

Every movement was deliberate and focused. Every stroke was imbued with immense Primordial Spirit power and a profound understanding of the Secret Technique’s essence.

Guided by the spiritual engraving blade, the complex and profound structure of the 6th Layer runes began to emerge, solidify, and connect, piece by piece, upon the surface of the Shocking God Stab...

The entire inscription process lasted a very long time.

His Spiritual Power was consumed at a torrential rate, like a river bursting its banks.

When the final stroke of the rune was complete, merging flawlessly into the body of the Shocking God Stab, a more restrained yet even more terrifyingly sharp aura erupted. It was as if this formless sharpness could slice ripples into the very void of his Sea of Consciousness.

’Success!’

But the cost was also significant. The miniature Primordial Spirit, which had just been glowing brilliantly with a powerful aura, was now considerably dimmer, exuding a deep sense of fatigue.

It opened its small mouth again, and the Shocking God Stab, now containing a terrifying power, was slowly drawn back into its body. A new round of nurturing began, allowing the newly inscribed runes to fuse completely with the main body.

Li Wen’s strongest trump card had finally reached the 6th Layer.

With this power, he was only a matter of time—the time it would take to fully nurture it—away from threshold Marquis Level combat power.

In the quiet room, the corner of Li Wen’s mouth curled into a faint, irrepressible smile, which then quickly vanished.

...

At the very moment Li Wen felt the mental drain in his quiet room on Nine Heavens Peak after successfully inscribing the 6th Layer runes of the Shocking God Stab...

...deep within a remote mountain in the border region between Bluestone County and Antai County.

The night was deep and utterly silent; even the chirping of insects had vanished.

In the shadow of a massive boulder, a figure seemed to melt into the surrounding darkness. His aura was completely retracted, like a long-dormant venomous snake, not a single trace of it leaking out.

His face was covered by a cold, serpentine mask, revealing only a pair of emotionless eyes. His gaze pierced through the mountains, directed coldly toward Antai County.

He had been lurking here for several hours.

Suddenly, a faint spatial fluctuation, almost impossible for an ordinary person to detect, emanated from the direction of Antai County’s territory. It was like a pebble dropped into still water.

Although the distance was not insignificant, the unique energy ripple was still captured precisely by his senses.

At almost the exact same moment.

Deep beneath Antai County, the Stargate, which had been dormant for several months, suddenly erupted with an intense, ethereal blue light.