NOVEL WEB Chapter 91: Advance
"Human, take what you need and start cultivating," the Eagle General ordered before Oliver had even gotten to his feet.
He stood first, still staring at the pile of treasures in front of him — which, as it turned out, included Spiritual Pills.
Since most of them were things he didn't recognize, he could only rely on his instincts.
For example, a long-stemmed black rose somehow drew his attention strongly.
His cultivation instincts urged him to claim it.
When he picked up the black rose and brought it close to his eyes, he noticed it had a mysterious fragrance — one that lightened his head while making his mind work on its own.
This effect is similar to Rowan Lee's wine, but far stronger, he thought.
Even more astonishingly, the rose's effect didn't require consumption — just inhaling its scent was enough.
"Human, is that useful?" the Eagle General asked.
"Yes. It's amazing. I can cultivate with this first," Oliver replied.
"Then get to it."
Oliver sat down and continued breathing in the rose's fragrance.
Within moments, he slipped into a state similar to enlightenment — in fact, exactly the same — and this state also occurred in his original body and his other manifestation, since they shared the same consciousness.
The value of this black rose was beyond anything he could imagine. He doubted any human on Earth had ever obtained one.
And this was only by scent alone. Perhaps after one use it would become ineffective for him, but it could still be used by others, indefinitely, for different people.
Compared to the enlightenment he had experienced before, this pseudo-enlightenment increased his understanding of all his Scriptures and techniques — including the notoriously difficult Void Domain and Absolute Fusion Technique.
However, the latter still didn't improve as much as Void Domain, since it was far more complex.
His body was pushed to its limits, so much so that his already absurd speed of absorbing Spiritual Energy became even more outrageous.
Only in absorbing Will Energy did he remain fairly ordinary.
In no time at all, his understanding of his two Scriptures — Black Hole and Ordo of Life — reached 10%.
But then it stopped there, unable to go any further, as if the black rose's effect simply couldn't push beyond that limit.
To put this into perspective, a Scripture comprehension of at least 13%, along with Will at the Earth Master Realm, was required to advance into the Earth Master Realm. Increasing comprehension by even 0.01% after reaching 10% was no easy task.
For his techniques, however, the rose's effect continued boosting his mastery well past 10%, with Void Sense jumping by a whole 20%.
Naturally, he wasn't about to waste this opportunity and kept cultivating.
After who knows how long, his mind returned to normal.
The black rose's fragrance still filled his nostrils, but it seemed he had built an immunity to it — there would be no further gains.
Cultivation: Tenth Stage of Spiritual Master Realm!
Spiritual Energy: 0 / 5,000!
Body: Void Body!
Will: Earth Master | 233 / 10,000 Will Energy!
Physical Weight: 3000 KG!
Innate Scripture from Void Body:
Black Hole (10%) +2.80
Scripture:
Ordo of Life (10/10%) +4.90
Innate Techniques from Void Body:
Void Domain (4.40%) +2
Void Particle Control (13.70%) +6
Void Step (13.80%) +7
Void Body Transformation (16.40%) +6
Void Sense (20%) +10
Techniques:
Absolute Fusion Technique (1.55%) +1
When Oliver opened his eyes, he appeared calm — but only he knew just how powerful he had become.
He was now overwhelmingly strong.
A three-stage leap in one go, and now his life-path was equal to his void-path.
The energy reserves in his body could only be described as immense.
"Not bad, human. Among your kind, you might be one of the most gifted," the Eagle General remarked.
Though this was thanks to the finest resources, the general was still impressed by his talent.
"General, can I send this black rose to my world?" Oliver asked.
He still couldn't move — the general's oppressive force was simply too great — so he couldn't act freely.
In this situation, he could only ask, gambling on the chance of taking the rose back to Earth.
If it worked, he could trade it for treasures of great value.
"What do you mean?" the Eagle General asked back, not fully understanding.
"I know what's going to happen to me. When that time comes, I can only gamble with my fate. That's why I hope I can send treasures to my family," Oliver explained honestly.
At that, the Eagle General finally understood, his eyes turning mocking.
"In your dreams."
Though it was just words, Oliver still felt as if his head had been slapped hard.
'Hmph, hmph. Just wait until you realize I'm only a manifestation — you'll be the ones frustrated,' he thought, swallowing his anger.
He felt as though he had just lost a golden opportunity, making it hard to stay calm.
"Now, you should try advancing to the Earth Master Realm," the Eagle General said.
"That won't be difficult with this potion," Oliver replied, picking up the Earth Path Potion.
It was not the same as the Spiritual Path Potion, though it had evolved from it.
Its liquid was also transparent, but instead of being filled with images of various monsters, it held only the image of a miniature world.
It was said that upon advancing to the Earth Master Realm, a cultivator's Spiritual Space would transform into a Miniature World formed from their elemental affinity.
As their strength increased further, that world would expand.
At the Sky Master Realm, for example, the world would gain a sky layer, becoming a living world — though still called a Miniature World.
"Then drink it quickly," the Eagle General urged impatiently.
"Give me a few hours," Oliver replied.
"I've just made significant progress and need to adapt. If I rush it, I'm afraid my body won't withstand the advancement and will collapse."
It was a reasonable explanation — for any cultivator, this was a necessity.
Cultivation progress was not just about gaining power; it was about evolution.
And one could not simply evolve endlessly without pause, except for Awakeners who had the aid of their Systems. Cultivators relied solely on themselves.
"Hmph." The Eagle General snorted coldly, saying nothing but not forcing him.
"Also, I still need this black rose for my next cultivation session," Oliver added.
It was useless to him now, but he still wanted to hold onto it — in hopes of one day sending it to his home.
The Eagle General narrowed his eyes at that, but said nothing, assuming the rose's fragrance still benefitted Oliver.
And so, Oliver pretended to meditate while his consciousness returned to his original body, which had just awakened from sleep.
Naturally, his real body had also progressed, and he felt the urge to laugh out loud.
He was tempted to test his newfound power right away, but decided to wait — his strength would be even greater once he became an Earth Master.
'Still… gathering 5,000 Spiritual Energy is going to take time,' he thought.
Of course, he knew his exact stats thanks to his manifestation in Southeast Asia, who carried the Observation Ring — and had awakened from sleep when his cultivation advanced.