"You can contact me if you need anything in the future."

"Okay, thank you, Aunt Xu," Chen Yu nodded.

——

After dinner and washing up, Chen Yu went to his room and lay down on his bed.

’It really is much faster than the Primordial Breath Skill.’

Sensing the increase of Qi in his body, Chen Yu came to a conclusion.

’I’ll try it again.’

He set a timer on his Life Watch, then closed his eyes and tried to cultivate the Starry Sky Breathing Skill again.

Three short, one long!

His mind emptied, entering the Sitting and Forgetting Dao once more!

The Starry Cosmos materialized in his mind, boundless and filled with cosmic starlight. Having learned from his first attempt, Chen Yu had now grasped the balance.

Gentle starlight washed over him, a warm sensation circulating through his body.

On the bed, Chen Yu’s body was suffused with faint specks of starlight, difficult to notice if you weren’t looking closely.

An hour passed. When the alarm on his Life Watch rang, Chen Yu opened his eyes right on time.

’Alright, at this rate, cultivating my mind at the same time won’t be a problem.’

To him, the hour of cultivation felt like it had passed in an instant.

But now that he had some experience, to be safe, Chen Yu set the timer again, adding ten minutes.

Another hour passed. Before the Life Watch’s alarm could ring, Chen Yu woke up on his own.

He checked the time and turned off the Life Watch’s alarm.

After two attempts, he could now practice it just as he had previously practiced the Primordial Qi Breathing Skill.

His Qi fluctuated, but the change wasn’t significant.

Cultivation methods were the fundamental core, and he couldn’t neglect them. The Spirit Devouring Skill could devour Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi for recovery, but it could only restore him to his current limit.

It couldn’t increase his Qi.

He still needed to cultivate. However, with the Source of Life, his physical body’s Evolution would greatly increase his strength, even if his Qi remained unchanged.

’Time to test out my martial skills.’

Chen Yu activated his Life Watch, and a virtual screen appeared.

He tapped one of the interfaces, and a cold, mechanical voice sounded out.

"Would you like to enter the Spirit Realm?"

Chen Yu nodded.

In the next instant, a flash of light enveloped him, and his surroundings changed completely.

His figure appeared inside a pristine White House.

Three options appeared before his eyes.

One: Wilderness Mode!

Two: Combat Mode!

Three: Training Mode!

’So this is the Spirit Realm!’

Chen Yu looked at the White House and the three options before him, his heart filled with shock.

The Spirit Realm!

It was a spiritual virtual world.

Developed by the Spirit Realm Group, it was a mega-corporation that spanned the Nine Realms.

Its influence spread across all Nine Realms!

And the Spirit Realm Group was backed by the Five Great Federations, giving it immense power.

You could enter the Spirit Realm through the Life Watch. Of course, other smartwatches also had this function, but it was exclusive to high-end models.

The smartwatch he had bought before didn’t have this feature!

The Spirit Realm simulation could enhance one’s combat abilities and was used for practicing martial arts and techniques.

By pulling a person’s consciousness into the Spirit Realm, it could create a 100% accurate simulation of their Spirit Body.

He knew about the Spirit Realm from his memories, but this was his first time actually entering it.

Looking at the three options, Chen Yu chose Training Mode.

The White House vanished. The next second, he found himself in a vast room.

It was as large as a school basketball court, extremely spacious.

A small, elf-like figure appeared beside Chen Yu.

"Hello, I am the Spirit Realm Assistant. You have selected Training Mode. Would you like to equip a weapon?"

"Yes!"

Chen Yu nodded.

WENG—!

In the next instant, he felt a weight in his hand as a long broadsword appeared.

It felt just like holding a real blade.

So realistic!

Gripping the broadsword, Chen Yu closed his eyes, and the cultivation method for the martial skill quickly appeared in his mind.

Gale Knife Skill!

Striking as fast as the wind!

It all came down to one word: fast!

WENG—!

He infused the blade with Qi. It hummed, and a cyan blade aura emerged.

"Gale Slash!"

His Qi flowed as he slashed out, tearing a gash in the air itself.

The cyan blade aura shot forth.

Then, Chen Yu struck again, the blade aura rising as he unleashed the second form of the Gale Knife Skill.

It was followed by the third form, the fourth form...

Blade flashes glittered, and auras of light crisscrossed the room.

In one go, Chen Yu practiced all nine forms of the Gale Knife Skill.

The Qi in his body was instantly depleted by a fair amount.

HUFF... HUFF... HUFF!!!

After practicing the nine forms once, Chen Yu felt a wave of exhaustion, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He was exhausted!

It felt exactly like practicing in the real world!

"This practice session: ten points!" the Spirit Realm Assistant’s voice said from the side.

"Ten points? That’s not bad!" Chen Yu’s eyes lit up.

The Spirit Realm Assistant added, "Out of one hundred!"

Chen Yu: "..."

"Again!"

Gritting his teeth, Chen Yu began practicing once more.

Blade auras rose, and the air in the room hummed.

His strikes grew faster and faster, swift as the wind!

Time trickled by until his Qi was completely exhausted, and only then did Chen Yu stop.

"This practice session: seventy-five points!" the Spirit Realm Assistant’s voice announced.

"Seventy-five... That’s pretty good." Chen Yu lay on the floor, drenched in sweat.

Listening to the score reported by the Spirit Realm Assistant, he felt quite satisfied.

"How long was I practicing?"

Chen Yu asked.

The Spirit Realm Assistant replied, "You practiced for a total of two hours, fifty minutes, and fifty seconds."

’Almost three hours...’

Hearing the Spirit Realm Assistant’s answer, Chen Yu pushed himself up from the floor.

’It’s getting late. I should get some sleep. I have to meet up in the morning.’

After thinking this to himself, Chen Yu spoke aloud.

"End!"

"Understood. We hope you visit the Spirit Realm again!"

The Spirit Realm Assistant’s voice faded. With a flash of light, everything vanished. Chen Yu opened his eyes to find himself still lying on his bed.

But he could feel the exhaustion in his body.

The Spirit Realm consumed Spiritual Power, and mental fatigue would also translate to the body.

His Qi reserves, however, were unchanged.

He set his alarm, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

The mental exhaustion made him fall asleep quickly.

At 7:30 in the morning, Chen Yu woke up on time.

A few hours of rest had already restored his mental energy.

After getting up, washing, and eating breakfast, he said a quick goodbye and left the house.

At a little past 8:00, Chen Yu arrived at Number 12 Courtyard on South Street in the city district.

This was the meeting place.

It was also the headquarters of Qing City’s Twelfth Mercenary Team.

In the Qing City Safety Zone, there were about a dozen mercenary teams in total, with each team having around ten members.

For a normal safety zone, a dozen or so mercenary teams were generally sufficient.

Mercenary teams were different from the police department; they weren’t responsible for things like public order. City security was basically handled by the police.

The main tasks of a mercenary team were patrolling outside the city and clearing out xeno-beasts.

The work of a mercenary team was highly dangerous, but the salary and benefits were also very high.

A regular member earned around ten thousand a month. Combined with other benefits and perks, their salary was basically far beyond that of an ordinary person’s job.

But high income also meant high risk!

For Chen Yu, this job was full of challenges.

But he wasn’t afraid.

Joining the Mercenary Team was just the reason on the surface. The real reason was still for the Source of Life.

Hunting xeno-beasts could earn him Source of Life. As for whether killing people could do the same, Chen Yu didn’t know, nor did he have any way to try.

He wasn’t that twisted!

He swiped his card to enter the courtyard. It was quiet inside, with no one around. Chen Yu wasn’t in a hurry. He waited patiently, as it was still a little before 8:30.

"You must be the new team member, Chen Yu, right?"

Just as Chen Yu was waiting, a voice suddenly called out.