Even though he could have refined his Second Star Vein in one go, Lu Lin still adhered to the step-by-step method taught in the cultivation technique.
One minute, then two, passed. Lu Lin, like a patient snail, meticulously refined his Second Star Vein. Although he could only advance a tiny fraction at a time, the Star Power within his body continually drew in new Star Power Factors. Even after refining his Star Vein with Star Power for so long, its consumption was still slower than its replenishment.
His progress slowly climbed: 51.3%, 51.4%, 52.5%, 54.7%, and finally 59.6%. A full half an hour passed before Lu Lin managed to refine it to Zero Level Six Stages.
This speed was much slower than the Second Star Vein's autonomous refinement, but Lu Lin wasn't impatient. He had only been cultivating for a short while. My Star Core feels much more solid, he sensed, and the Star Vein refinement isn't just superficial. It's a feeling of being thoroughly and smoothly refined, inside and out.
Simultaneously, during this refining process, Lu Lin also accumulated considerable experience in controlling and delicately manipulating Star Power. A little slow is fine, he thought. As long as I maintain forward momentum, that's enough.
「Time slowly passed...」
Lu Lin lost track of time as he refined his Star Veins in the Cultivation Room. Jiang Yueming, observing Lu Lin's state through the Cultivation Room's monitoring video, thought, This is the first time my student has cultivated so wholeheartedly. Since that's the case, I'll do him a favor and give him some extra cultivation time. Anyway, the cost of using the Dragon Battle Hotel's Cultivation Room isn't expensive.
「From morning to noon, and then to evening.」
Lu Lin remained immersed in refining his Star Veins, completely oblivious to the passage of time. By this point, I have to admit I was a bit too ambitious in the beginning, he conceded internally.
With Star Vein refinement, the difficulty of cultivation soared with every ten percent increase. It took Lu Lin almost an hour to advance from 50% to 60%. Going from 60% to 70% cost him three hours. And from 70% to 80%, he spent six and a half hours. The further he progressed, the slower his cultivation speed became.
While cultivating, Lu Lin suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion. It wasn't physical; his body was in peak condition, brimming with strength and vitality. It was his spirit that was weary. Anyone who refined their Star Veins continuously for more than ten hours would find it unbearable, he thought. Moreover, Lu Lin had to maintain absolute control over his Star Power and the state of his Star Veins throughout the process, advancing by only 0.1% each time. After ten hours, my brain feels like it's been completely drained.
However, his Star Vein Refinement Degree had only reached 82.4%.
Lu Lin exited the Consciousness Universe and checked the time. It was already past 11 PM. He had missed two calls from his mom, three from Teacher Li, and twelve from Zuo Yiming. Secretary Hou had sent two internal discount coupons for purchasing Star Skill ship tickets at no cost.
Lu Lin, fighting off his exhaustion, first sent a message to his mom, explaining he had been cultivating all day and couldn't answer her calls. He then replied to Teacher Li and sent his thanks to Secretary Hou for the discount coupons. As for Zuo Yiming, I'll just call him later, Lu Lin decided.
"Lu Lin, are you done cultivating?" Jiang Yueming, seeing Lu Lin stand up, sent him an audio message through the Cultivation Room's control system.
"Yes, I'm done. Thank you, teacher." Lu Lin remembered that Jiang Yueming had told him that morning he only had two hours of usage time left. But now it was already 11 PM; clearly, Jiang Yueming had paid for additional time for him.
"Hmm, it's fine. Do you want to grab something to eat together?"
"No need, teacher. I just want to sleep right now." Lu Lin declared, "Cultivation is really exhausting!" He rubbed his eyes and pressed the elevator button.
He dazedly made his way back home and collapsed into bed, instantly falling asleep, even forgetting his intention to call Zuo Yiming back.
He slept soundly until the next morning. Greeting the rising sun, Lu Lin opened his eyes. It's another beautiful day, he thought.
He washed up, changed his clothes, and ate his nutritional breakfast. Watching the diligent Electromagnetic Robot deliver his meal, Lu Lin mused, Should I give it a name? We've been together for six years, and I never really thought about it before. Now that I'm about to graduate from Golden Sword High School, seeing this little robot makes me feel a slight reluctance to part with it.
An idea struck him as he swallowed a mouthful of the bizarre, hot and sour shredded potato-flavored nutritional breakfast, which had the texture of sugarcane bagasse. Perfect! Yesterday, didn't the principal and Director of Teaching at Golden Sword High School mention that the school needed two logistics staff members? Once Mom and Dad come to Blue Star, they can live in my current two-bedroom apartment. It's not far from the school, so they can walk to work. And they could also enjoy the care of this little robot here. It's settled then! As for naming the robot, I'll leave that to Mom.
After breakfast, Lu Lin remembered he needed to call Zuo Yiming. Even though it was only six in the morning, he dialed his number directly.
"Hello, Old Lu, what's up?" Zuo Yiming asked, his voice thick with sleep, still burrowed under his blanket.
"Time to get up and cultivate."
"Cultivate?" Zuo Yiming glanced at the time. "Old Lu, what time is it? You're already up to cultivate? Even if you're a genius, you have to give us ordinary folks a chance! Who can keep up with this kind of hard work?"
"Zuo Yiming, I have a secret I was thinking of sharing with our classmates..."
「...」
「Half an hour later.」
Zuo Yiming, yawning, drove to the entrance of Lu Lin's residential area. "Old Lu, Brother Lu, you absolutely cannot tell anyone about this!" he pleaded, a resentful look on his face. "But how did you even know about me and Luo Ling?"
Lu Lin certainly wasn't going to tell him that he possessed a Perceptive Talent and had sensed Zuo Yiming affectionately calling out "Little Ling" and "Ling'er" from under the covers that night. Come to think of it, I might have the potential to be a paparazzi, Lu Lin mused. In the Interstellar Era, Awakeners pursued martial power to conquer the Exotic Battlefields. Ordinary people, under the protection of these strong individuals, sought stable lives and spiritual entertainment. If I became a paparazzi, with my unique Perceive Star Skill, what gossip couldn't I get my hands on?
Zuo Yiming's family also had a cultivation room. Desperate to prevent Lu Lin from telling Zuo Zhenyu about him and Luo Ling, Zuo Yiming steeled himself and directly took Lu Lin to his house, activating the Gathering Star Array for Lu Lin to use for cultivation.
「From 7 in the morning to 7 in the evening.」
For a full twelve hours, Lu Lin focused solely on refining his Second Star Vein with Star Power, without eating, drinking, or sleeping. Finally, he raised the refinement degree of his Second Star Vein from 82.4% to 95.8%.
Utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally, Lu Lin emerged from the cultivation room with vacant eyes. Zuo Yiming, seeing his state, simply invited him to stay over. After all, given Lu Lin's condition, he couldn't possibly make it home on his own.
「The next day...」
Lu Lin was once again full of energy, as if he were a completely different person from the day before. This left Zuo Yiming speechless, though he couldn't help but secretly admire Lu Lin. At least, I could never push myself to that extent, Zuo Yiming thought.
「However, in the afternoon...」
Zuo Yiming had to enter the cultivation room and rouse Lu Lin from his cultivation state. "Lu Lin! We need to go to school to fill out our enrollment preferences!"