After securing everything he needed, Gu Zhen swiftly left the Wolf territory.
Along the way, he encountered a few squads of Star Warriors, but none of them dared provoke him.
Without any grudges or knowing his true strength, why invite unnecessary trouble? Especially in the wilderness, caution was survival.
Gu Zhen made it back to the academy by nightfall without incident.
Only after stepping through the academy gates did he finally relax a little. Once back in his dormitory, he carefully organized the spoils from this trip.
63 Realm 1 star beast crystal cores
1 Realm 2 star beast crystal core
1 Realm 1, Peak physical-type material: Iron Wolf Grass
1 pair of Realm 2, Intermediate metal-type material: Iron Wolf Fang
Overall, it had been an extremely fruitful haul. He had acquired everything he needed without any major mishaps.
Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Gu Zhen picked up a beast core, letting his spirit sense probe it carefully.
Within moments, he could feel the pure star power inside, along with a faint, twisted trace of spiritual energy—most likely the so-called Resentment left behind by the star beast.
Still, he wasn't planning to absorb the cores just yet. First, he intended to consume the Iron Fang Grass.
Gu Zhen wasn't familiar with preservation skills for herbs; the longer he delayed, the more medicinal potency would be lost.
As for how to use it—simple. Just eat it directly.
Before doing so, Gu Zhen had double-checked online for any information about Iron Fang Grass.
Thankfully, basic herbs like this were easy to find information on. After confirming it was non-toxic, he decided it was safe.
Higher-rank herbs might have been a different story, with much scarcer information available.
Setting the beast core aside, Gu Zhen took out the Iron Fang Grass. He washed it clean with a glass of water, then stuffed the entire stalk into his mouth, chewing a few times before swallowing it whole.
Moments later, a burning heat erupted from his stomach.
Gu Zhen immediately focused on refining the incoming medicinal energy. As the warm power gradually flowed through his limbs and bones, he felt a gentle warmth suffuse his entire body.
His physical cultivation realm steadily began to rise.
Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows, Li Qin quietly observed Gu Zhen movements with a hint of curiosity.
Where had Gu Zhen gotten Iron Fang Grass? He doubted the young man had earned enough selling star skills to afford something so valuable.
However, his gaze soon shifted toward the backpack.
A strong wave of pure star power leaked from within—it didn't take long for Li Qin to realize: Gu Zhen must have plundered an entire wolf pack.
Just when he had looked away for a moment, this little troublemaker had gone and stirred up even more chaos.
Li Qin interest in Gu Zhen grew even stronger.
However, collecting so many star beast crystal cores—likely for absorption—could be problematic. The resentment in them might cause Gu Zhen significant trouble.
After a moment thought, Li Qin decided not to intervene. The faster Gu Zhen advanced, the sooner he could complete his task.
As for the resentment in the cores, once Gu Zhen was sent to his organization, someone there would handle it.
His only concern was if Gu Zhen absorbed too many at once and collapsed under the resentment weight—that would be a hassle.
Time passed slowly. Five hours later, Gu Zhen body realm successfully reached Realm 1, Advanced.
He clenched his fists, feeling the newfound strength coursing through him, and exhaled a long, satisfied breath.
Though winter was setting in, his bare upper body felt only a slight chill.
The surge of power in his body brought him a brief sense of joy—but it quickly faded.
During his refinement of the Iron Fang Grass, Gu Zhen had vaguely sensed someone spying on him again. No surprise—Li Qin, that perverted maniac.
Fortunately, the watcher had lost interest and left quickly. Still, the thought of being monitored so openly left Gu Zhen feeling deeply uncomfortable—and even more desperate to strengthen himself.
Pulling the heavy backpack closer, Gu Zhen retrieved a Realm 1 beast core.
Gripping it with both hands, he closed his eyes and began to absorb the star power within.
Little by little, the beast core energy was drawn into his body. Though the amount wasn't massive, the improvement in his star power realm was obvious.
If he had to describe it: before, his cultivation was like a leaking faucet; now, it was a steady, thin stream.
As Gu Zhen continued absorbing, traces of resentment seeped into his spiritual sea, trying to disturb his mind.
However, such minor disturbances were easily crushed by Gu Zhen willpower.
After about half an hour, Gu Zhen fully absorbed the first core, feeling his strength rise a little further.
Judging from this pace, he estimated that after absorbing another thirty cores, he could break through to Realm 1 Level 5.
Without hesitation, he grabbed a second core and continued.
Time blurred. Before he realized it, dawn had arrived.
Shaking his head, Gu Zhen shattered the residual resentment lingering in his mind.
After absorbing just seven Realm 1 beast cores throughout the night, he wasn't feeling great.
It wasn't due to slow absorption—but the mental strain caused by the lingering resentment.
Now, in the depths of his spiritual sea, he could faintly hear the howling of Iron Fang Wolves, creating an unbearable irritability.
If he forced himself to continue, it might even damage his spiritual sea.
Although Gu Zhen mind held a mysterious thread of golden light that seemed to protect him, he didn't dare place all his hope on it.
Reluctantly, Gu Zhen decided to halt the absorption process and instead focus on practicing his star skills to distract himself.
Despite the constant interference of wolf howls, Gu Zhen quickly entered a training state, repeating his familiar skills over and over.
By concentrating fully, he managed to temporarily shut out the outside disturbances.
Still, once he paused, the howls would creep back into his mind.
Helpless, Gu Zhen sat down cross-legged, forcing himself to calm his mind and slowly soothe the resentment within his spirit sea.
This was the slowest—but safest—method of clearing away resentment.
The faster method would be to hire a powerful Spirit Star Martialist, one at least Realm 4 or higher, to forcibly cleanse it.
But even draining the Gu family wealth wouldn't afford such a service, let alone Gu Zhen.
While calming the resentment, Gu Zhen pondered quicker solutions.
Idle anyway, he figured he might as well brainstorm—maybe he'd stumble on an answer.