Ao Ziyun didn't have to wait long; soon, the lizards that had gone to gather resources were returning.
The entire collection process took no more than a few days; most of the mountain's resources were now in the possession of these lizards.
The most time-consuming part was at the base of the mountain, where they had to confront the humans. Even so, it didn't last long. It seemed they had already been prepared; many fled as soon as they saw the first sign of the lizards descending the mountain, resulting in only a few resources being obtained.
Ao Ziyun calmly observed the growing mountain of treasures: there were Thunder Grasses, Violet Electricity Spirit Bamboo, and other resources; if placed in the human world, it would be an incomparable fortune.
Ao Ziyun decided to take a nap and left Shou in command.
======
[Some time later]
"Great Ancestor! The collect is finished!"
Ao Ziyun was awakened by Shou's roars.
Looking at the pile of resources, he noticed it had at least tripled in size.
Most of the items came from the mountain; few were from the humans at the mountain's base. It seemed that the resources of those tribes were truly scarce.
Ao Ziyun moved his body closer to the pile of resources.
And the message he hadn't seen for some time appeared.
---
Energy detected...
Absorb?
Yes / No
---
"Yes!"
Ao Ziyun watched as all the grasses, the bamboo, and other herbs withered and transformed into a light that shot straight into his body.
Ding!
+23,000 Points
---
Martial Arts Panel
Name: Ao Ziyun
Race: Purple Flood Dragon (Saint Beast Variant)
Cultivation: Xiantian (Peak)
Points: 23,000
---
Ao Ziyun's eyes widened with joy.
"23,000 points!?"
He had expected an exorbitant amount, but not this much. With this amount, he was practically using a cheat, and another cheat, right at the beginning!
"With this amount, could I go straight to the Divine Sea?" he thought for a moment. "No, maybe I should progress steadily to the 9th layer of Life Destruction."
The cultivation levels on the Skyspill continent began at the stages of bodily tempering, but individuals at this stage were not truly considered as having entered the Path of Cultivation.
The path really began at the Houtian Level, also known as the Pre-Celestial stage, which is the starting point for cultivating the Essence Gathering System. After a warrior reached the Houtian Realm, it was the moment they opened their dantian and began training it. During the Houtian Realm, one's true essence would be chaotic and disorganized, so their reserves of true essence were extremely limited.
Next came the Xiantian, the realm in which Ao Ziyun was now. In a mortal world, the Xiantian Realm could be considered the maximum level, possessing the ability to move the wind and rain at will, enjoying an existence that even kings would envy. In the Southern Wilderness, he was the absolute hegemon, without rivals. But in places like the South Sea Demonic Region, he would be just an ordinary disciple.
Above Xiantian was the Revolving Core. The cultivator creates a core within themselves, giving a qualitative leap in the speed of absorbing qi from Heaven and Earth and the quality of essence. A Revolving Core master, if placed in a fourth-tier sect like the Divine Phoenix Island, would be considered an elder.
And beyond the Rotating Core was the Life Destruction Realm. In the Essence Gathering System, it was a fundamental step; all following levels depended on how far the cultivator had progressed in Life Destruction. At each layer, the cultivator had to endure a terrifying tribulation that would reshape their body, essence, and soul. The chance of death was extreme. In the Southern Horizon Region, the most powerful cultivator was Xuan Wuji, who was at the third stage of Life Destruction. Others, like the High Ancestor Master of Divine Phoenix Island, were only at the first layer, unable to advance further.
The minimum requirement to attempt advancing to the next Realm, the Divine Sea Realm, or, as it is commonly called on the continent, the Emperor Realm, was the 4th layer, but one would never surpass the initial stage and would be among the weakest.
If Ao Ziyun advanced straight to the 9th layer, he would be invincible. From what he remembered, the most powerful cultivator in this world was the Eightfall War Emperor, who had passed through 8 layers of Life Destruction before advancing to the Divine Sea.
Thinking of this, Ao Ziyun became even more excited.
---
"I can't do it."
Ao Ziyun was confused.
He had tried, for a few minutes, to use his points, but nothing changed; not a single message appeared.
"Why can't I improve my cultivation!?"
"Could it be that I can't use them for this?"
Ao Ziyun began trying to explore the system. Soon, he started speaking various commands that he remembered from the many novels he had read in his previous life.
Until a panel appeared in front of him.
----
[Martial Arts Panel]
1. Cultivation Method
2. Martial Skills
---
Ao Ziyun was already a little irritated. He then chose option 1.
---
Does the user wish to create a Cultivation Method from scratch?
Yes / No
---
"So it's a panel that creates Cultivation Methods and Martial Skills…" Ao Ziyun thought. "The technique I was testing earlier qualifies more as a Martial Skill."
He went back to the previous tab and selected the second option. The same message appeared again.
"YES!"
The tab updated once more.
---
The system can deduce any skill for the user, whether improving an existing one or creating a skill from scratch. The user can dictate the direction and any detail of the skill's development. As long as sufficient points are provided, any skill can be created!
---
"Truly a Heaven-defying cheat! Even if it can't be used to enhance my cultivation, its ability to create cultivation methods and martial skills is just as good. A good cultivation method or a powerful skill can be even better than a cultivation level!"
Ao Ziyun then began conceptualizing the technique from before. "Let's see, I want it to be a skill tailor-made for me. The technique must utilize my innate Purple Thunder Soul…"