Invincible Beyond Heavens: Cultivating With A Broken EXP System

Using Phantom Gale Steps, Li Yun’s figure flashed through the ground like raging winds.

After defeating Shen Feng, Li Yun did not immediately seek a place to enter seclusion and break through to the Half Step Xiantian Realm. Although he already possessed many Heaven and Earth Treasures, he knew his own situation very well.

Because of his Supreme Foundation, the resources required for each breakthrough were far greater than those of ordinary cultivators. With what he currently had, he was only eighty to ninety percent certain of successfully reaching the Half Step Xiantian Realm.

Li Yun was not satisfied with such odds.

To ensure absolute success, he decided to search for a few more Heaven and Earth Treasures before entering seclusion.

Three days and three nights passed in the blink of an eye.

During this time, Li Yun finally gathered enough Heaven and Earth Treasures to meet his requirements. Some of these treasures were discovered by him within the Eternal Sky Secret Realm, while others were obtained through less gentle means, forcibly taken from other Martial Artists he encountered along the way.

Naturally, while seizing these treasures, he also plundered a considerable number of contribution points.

By the end of these three days, Li Yun had not only secured sufficient Heaven and Earth Treasures to push his cultivation into the Half Step Xiantian Realm, but his contribution points had also surpassed twenty thousand.

With just three thousand more contribution points, he would meet the basic qualification to become a Disciple of the Martial Ascension Gate only for now that was.

Li Yun felt no urgency about gathering those remaining contribution points.

As long as one possessed overwhelming strength, contribution points were nothing more than a matter of time. To him, the most important task at present was to grow stronger, and advancing his cultivation to the Half Step Xiantian Realm was clearly the most direct path forward.

“I will cultivate in seclusion here.”

After flying for roughly an hour through the sky, Li Yun arrived above a remote and secluded valley. With a slight movement of his body, he descended directly into it.

Soon after, he selected a clean and quiet cave within the valley. After ensuring there would be no disturbances, Li Yun settled down inside and prepared to enter secluded cultivation.

“Refine.”

Seated cross-legged within the cave, Li Yun first laid out all the Heaven and Earth Treasures before him. After steadying his breathing, he began consuming them one by one, circulating his two top-grade mortal-rank wind and flame cultivation arts – Heavenflow Wind Scripture and Sun Refining Scripture – while simultaneously running his low-grade profound-rank lightning cultivation art. Streams of energy surged through his meridians, intertwining and tempering his body without pause.

Time passed unnoticed.

Nearly a full month slipped by.

Only then did Li Yun finally emerge from his secluded cultivation.

“This Eternal Sky Secret Realm truly lives up to its name. In just one month, my cultivation has advanced to the Half Step Xiantian Realm.”

Sitting cross-legged on the cave floor, Li Yun allowed a faint smile to curve his lips.

The results were undeniable.

After a month of intense and arduous refinement, his strength had undergone a dramatic transformation. Previously, he could barely mobilize a trace of qi, but now, having stepped into the Half Step Xiantian Realm, he could freely draw upon it as needed. Although replenishing it still required cultivation afterward, the simple fact that he could actively wield qi elevated his combat power to an entirely new level.

“Let me test a punch using only qi.”

As the thought formed, Li Yun suddenly drove a fist forward. A domineering and ferocious force surged forth, converging around his fist before erupting like a volcanic explosion.

Boom!

A thunderous roar echoed through the cave as the ground trembled violently. Shattered rocks blasted outward in all directions, shooting through the air like a torrential downpour.

Li Yun had not used any martial technique, nor had he drawn upon elemental power. That strike was fueled purely by qi.

Yet the destructive force it unleashed was terrifying.

Ordinarily, a simple qi-infused punch would never reach such a level. However, Li Yun possessed a Supreme Foundation, had cultivated his top-grade wind and flame arts – Heavenflow Wind Scripture and Sun Refining Scripture to the ninth layer, and had advanced his low grade profound rank lightning cultivation art – Overlord Thunder Scripture to the seventh layer. Even in a resting state, the combined effects of these three paths produced overwhelming power.

“A frightening strike indeed.”

Observing the devastation before him, Li Yun nodded in quiet satisfaction and slowly withdrew his fist.

“With my current strength, I should be qualified to contend with the top three on the New Disciples Ranking, if not claim the very first position.”

The thought settled firmly in his mind as his confidence deepened.

Before his breakthrough, Li Yun had to admit that if he were to face Ye Beichen, Zhu Ximen, or Lu Changsan, the three powerhouses ranked at the very top of the New Disciples Ranking, he lacked true confidence in confronting them head-on.

At that time, although his overall combat strength was already sufficient to kill a Xiantian Realm fourth-level cultivator, the gap remained clear. Ye Beichen, who held the first position, and Zhu Ximen, ranked second, were both firmly at the fifth level of the Xiantian Realm having combat power of sixth level of Xiantian Realm.

As for Lu Changsan, Li Yun had no doubt that he could compete with him in terms of physical strength thanks to the Golden Battle Body, but defeating him outright was another matter entirely.

But now, everything had changed.

After his breakthrough, Li Yun was confident that he could face them without hesitation.

His comprehensive combat strength had surged to a level where he could contend with geniuses at the fifth level of the Xiantian Realm and even stand against some ordinary sixth-level Xiantian Realm cultivators. Whether it was Ye Beichen, Zhu Ximen, or Lu Changsan, their combat strength should be no higher than the sixth level of the Xiantian Realm.

Although Li Yun’s cultivation realm remained far below theirs on the surface, the gap in actual combat power had nearly vanished.

Of course, this was only Li Yun’s own assessment.

He understood very well that it was impossible for only him to have improved during the past month. Ye Beichen, Zhu Ximen, and Lu Changsan were all peerless geniuses. Even though a single month was short, such figures would never remain stagnant. Within the Eternal Sky Secret Realm, a place rich with opportunities and treasures, their strength must also have advanced significantly.

Even so, Li Yun felt no fear.

No matter how much they had improved, he possessed enough confidence to challenge them directly and emerge victorious.

“A month has passed. The Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet should be opening soon.”

A sharp gleam flashed through Li Yun’s eyes as he slowly stepped out of the cave.

Boom.

Just as he emerged, a soul-shaking roar erupted from an extremely distant location, its echo spreading across the entire Eternal Sky Secret Realm. Immediately afterward, a vast aura filled with ancient vicissitudes swept over the world, surging outward from the source of that roar.

“It seems the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet has opened.”

Sensing that ancient and majestic aura, Li Yun smiled faintly. His figure trembled, transformed into a streak of light, and shot toward the location of the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet at tremendous speed.

In the blink of an eye, he crossed more than a thousand meters, his figure vanishing into the distant sky.

The sound and aura released by the opening of the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet spread throughout the entire Eternal Sky Secret Realm. Everyone became aware of its presence. Anyone with even a shred of sense understood that something extraordinary had appeared there, and they rushed toward it without hesitation.

And in this chaos, Li Yun, the opportunistic hunter, found yet another chance to act.

He had spent an entire month in seclusion and had no opportunity to gather contribution points during that time, so his total still remained at twenty thousand. This was still thirty thousand short of the amount required to qualify as a disciple of the Martial Ascension Gate.

Along the way, he encountered numerous martial artists, and there was no reason for him to show mercy. He made sure that these unfortunate souls truly understood what it meant for curiosity to lead to disaster.

After a full month, everyone’s contribution points had risen sharply. Some possessed twenty or thirty thousand points, while even the weakest still held several thousand.

Li Yun casually plundered seven or eight people, and his contribution points surged from twenty thousand to eighty thousand in a short span. Once he had secured more than enough points, he stopped attacking others and focused entirely on rushing toward the location of the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet.

After flying at high speed for five or six minutes, Li Yun finally arrived in the central region of the Eternal Sky Secret Realm.

This was the place where the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet stood.

He lifted his gaze and saw a colossal stone tablet towering into the clouds. Profound runes resembling drifting clouds were carved across its surface, and it stood upon the vast and level land like an ancient giant supporting the heavens.

Waves of solemn and majestic aura poured from the massive tablet like endless tides, permeating the surrounding world.

“So this is the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet. As expected of a relic left behind by an ancient sect, it truly is extraordinary.”

Li Yun could not help but marvel as he observed the enormous tablet from afar. His eyes then swept across the area surrounding it.

“The allure of the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet is truly immense. It has drawn in so many powerful figures.”

At this moment, countless people had already gathered around the massive tablet. Many of them radiated auras that were no weaker than Shen Feng’s, and some even surpassed him.

As Li Yun had already realized, millions of martial artists had entered the Eternal Sky Secret Realm. A mere unofficial New Disciples Ranking could never encompass all of the true powerhouses. Among those millions, there were surely many hidden dragons and crouching tigers.

Now that the Eternal Sky Heavenly Tablet had revealed itself, those concealed experts had finally been drawn into the open.

Even so, Li Yun did not pay much attention to the majority of them. His focus rested only on a few figures within the sea of people.

Those few were the only ones who could make Li Yun serious.