57 Rapid Improvement

Zhou Bai thought, I'll increase Degree of Taoification through reading Taoist Sutras. I'll think of something else when I get to a bottleneck again. Right now, my concern is not that it won't rise, but that I won't be able to adapt if it gets too high. As for Primordial Spirit Value…I can continue raising that.

After entering the Tao, his Degree of Taoification broke through the 0% threshold. His Primordial Spirit Value was no longer limited to 99 and could be increased further, but there was still an upper limit.

The upper limit for Primordial Spirit Value at the zeroth realm was 999 points. If you wanted to break through the 999 Primordial Spirit Value limit, you would have to increase your Degree of Taoification to 10%. When you reached the first realm, you could exceed the limit of 999 points of Primordial Spirit Value.

Zhou Bai directed his will. His primordial spirit power extended outward faster than in the past, and it was more lively and agile.

Zhou Bai focused his attention on the Primordial Spirit Value on the board. He immediately depleted 10 points of Laziness, increasing Primordial Spirit Value from 99 points to 100 points.

Zhou Bai smacked his lips, reveling in the feeling. He didn't sense that he had broken through a limit. It looked like the 99-point Primordial Spirit Value limit was only because of Degree of Taoification. It had nothing to do with Primordial Spirit Value itself.

Then, Zhou Bai tried to increase some Primordial Spirit Value again, and he raised his value to 101.

Just as he expected, it used 100 points of Laziness this time.

When I increase Primordial Spirit Value above one hundred, he noted to himself, each point uses up a hundred points of Laziness.

With some unwillingness, Zhou Bai added all his remaining Laziness onto his Primordial Spirit Value. The 3,650 points of Laziness instantly lowered to 40 points.

Zhou Bai's Primordial Spirit Value reached 136 points.

With his will, the newly increased 136 points of Primordial Spirit Value swept outward, crackling in the air. It was even more aggressive than before.

Right now, I can at least beat two of myself from the past, he thought.

I really want to experiment.

Zhou Bai smiled contentedly, but after thinking about Sakurako, who had mutated, and the snake-shaped Mara in the underground base, the smile on his face slowly faded.

It's still not enough. I'm still too weak. I must be a little stronger. I don't want to face the threat of death again, and I want to have my own choice, to have the power to protect others.

Zhou Bai jumped off the bed and walked to his desk to begin studying basic textbook materials. He planned to go back to sleep tomorrow morning.

So in the following days, Zhou Bai increased Laziness when he slept during the day and went to the library to read the Taoist Sutras at night, then came back to the dorm to self-study textbook materials.

Time passed quickly. The entire Tao academy seemed to have returned to its tranquil state, and no abnormalities occurred around Zhou Bai again.

Two weeks passed like this. There was only one month left before the test.

Zhou Bai didn't continue practicing the Divine Map during these two weeks. He put all his energy into increasing Degree of Taoification and Primordial Spirit Value.

Every night, he read the Taoist Sutra, raising Degree of Taoification by 0.1% or 0.2%, then slowly adapting to it.

The Laziness he got from sleeping every day and cutting class was all used toward increasing Primordial Spirit Value.

Degree of Taoification: 2.4%

Primordial Spirit Value: 221

Divine Map: Deva Nine Disasters

Laziness: 70

That night, in a small building in the northeast direction of the Tao academy, Zhou Bai was in one of a vast number of completely sealed practice rooms covered in layers of protective formations.

In this era where everyone resisted Mara, the combat capacity of practitioners was important. Naturally, they needed extremely solid practice rooms to assess their levels of practice, combat ability, and destructive power.

At this moment, inside a certain locked practice room, Zhou Bai gripped his palm lightly. Twenty meters ahead of him, steel armor was instantly crushed, turning into a ball of useless metal that hovered in mid-air.

Then, Zhou Bai's primordial spirit power pulled again, flattening the crushed armor, tearing it, and turning it into dozens of pieces that floated in the air.

Zhou Bai thought, Two point four percent Degree of Taoification, 221 primordial spirit power. My destructive power is two to three times that of before, and my range is now over 20 meters. And my primordial spirit power is more agile and easier to control. Is it because of the increase in Degree of Taoification?

He manipulated the dozens of shards to shoot out in every direction. The shards hit the walls, exploding as if bullets had hit them.

And not only his strength increased, he noted. I feel like after my primordial spirit power increased, my memory got better, and I can think more clearly now.

Memories of the past few weeks flashed in Zhou Bai's mind. He found that they were incredibly clear. Even his memories from when he used to be a normal person became much clearer.

He looked at the results of his work with satisfaction. Zhou Bai continued to test out the limits of his primordial spirit power, then left the practice room and walked toward the cafeteria.

It was dinnertime, and people filled the cafeteria. Zhou Bai saw this, thought about his points, and sighed.

With the 20 points he had spent on Elsa's food that day, he probably wouldn't be able to taste anything aside from humanfeed before the next test.

"Hm? Isn't this the genius first place in the entrance exam?"

Zhou Bai frowned when he heard this. He turned to look and saw two boys and a girl standing not far away, examining him curiously.

"Yeah, it's him. First place in the entrance exam, but he hasn't even gone to a full day of class." The boy had slicked-back hair. He walked toward Zhou Bai and said, "I'm curious. What level of practice could you have without attending a single day of classes? How about we test our skills in the practice room?"

Over 100 points of primordial spirit power sprawled out from his cognitive sea, faintly rippling the air.

Liu Xian had placed fifth in the entrance exam and had successfully entered the Tao and broken through the 99-point limit. His confidence seemed to be bursting right now. He seemed to want to challenge Zhou Bai.

Zhou Bai sensed the primordial spirit power and thought to himself, One-fifty? Or is it 160? It looks like I've gotten far ahead of my classmates.

At that moment, a bulky figure walked in front of Zhou Bai. Du Bing looked at the people before him and said, "Hey, Liu Xian, are you guys trying to bully Zhou Bai?

"You've already successfully entered the Tao, but Zhou Bai hasn't participated in a single Taoist Sutra class. Aside from the fact that the school prohibits private battles, what I can't stand the most is practitioners bullying the weak."

Around 150 points of primordial spirit power sprawled out of Du Bing's body. When Liu Xian saw this, his lips twitched. "I was just eager for a try and wanted to test my skills against Zhou Bai. The gift of getting first place in the entrance exam—I admire it very much.

"Don't be so nervous, Du Bing. I'll leave. I'll leave. All right?"

"It's all right now, Zhou Bai. I…" Du Bing turned around but found Zhou Bai had already vanished. "Hm? Where did he go?"

***

"I nearly got caught by the slicked-back-hair boy and the ripped boy. It would've been a total waste of time." Zhou Bai walked to the serving window and raised two fingers. "Two bowls of humanfeed, please."

The cafeteria lady glanced at Zhou Bai and said with a smile, "Young man, you eat humanfeed every day. Do you want to try something else today? You're so young, and in your prime age to practice Tao, you should eat better food."

Zhou Bai smiled awkwardly. "That's all right; just give me some humanfeed, please."

The cafeteria lady shook her head. When she got the food, her hand slipped, and a few pieces of meat fell into Zhou Bai's bowl. She said, "Aiya, I gave you the wrong food by accident. Whatever—I guess I'm treating you today."

Braised Lili Meat: Slightly increases stamina, 5 points.

Looking at the meat in his bowl, Zhou Bai nearly drooled. He raised his head to look at the cafeteria lady and said, "Thank you."

"Thank me for what? I said it was an accident. Hurry up and leave. Don't let the others see."

Zhou Bai left quietly with the rice and meat, thinking to himself, It must be because I'm so handsome.

He found an obscure spot to sit down. Zhou Bai wolfed down the rice and meat. The taste and juices of the meat burst in his mouth, mixed with the aroma of the rice. Zhou Bai looked intoxicated.

It had been more than a month since Zhou Bai had eaten meat. When he suddenly tasted meat again, he felt like he'd never had any meat that tasted this delicious.

Especially after he ate the Braised Lili Meat, he felt a warm aura continuously circulating in his body. His entire body felt extremely comfortable, as if he were in a hot spring.

And his physical energy and stamina also increased slightly as he digested the Braised Lili Meat.

In a blink, he finished his bowl of rice. There was less than a quarter of the Braised Lili Meat left.

Looking at the remaining meat, Zhou Bai held back his desire and decided to bring it back for Elsa.

Just as Zhou Bai was about to leave, a somewhat familiar figure sat in front of him, "Hehe. Isn't this Zhou? What a coincidence; we see each other again."

Zhou Bai looked up. The person before him with a head of bright blond hair, a beauty mark below his eyes, and a playful look was Qian Wangsun.

Seeing the bowl of rice in his plate, Zhou Bai couldn't help a smile that climbed up his face.

"You're only eating humanfeed too."

Qian Wangsun smiled, saying as he ate, "Can't be helped. The points at Tao academy are harder to obtain than I expected. It's been so long since I've eaten anything else."

As he said this, he approached Zhou Bai, saying with a mysterious expression, "Zhou, are you interested in earning some points with me?"

"Earning points?" Zhou Bai's eyes instantly lit up, but quickly dimmed again. "Tell me what plan you have first."

Qian Wangsun smiled, taking out a piece of paper from his pocket and placing it in front of Zhou Bai.

Zhou Bai took it and read it. On the first page, it said: "Eight: The highest goodness resembles water. Water greatly benefits myriad things without contention. It stays in places that people dislike; therefore it is similar to the Tao. Dwelling with the right location; feeling with great depth; giving with great kindness; speaking with great integrity; governing with great administration; handling with great capability; moving with great timing. Because it does not contend, it is therefore beyond reproach."