For an entire afternoon, Ji Mo endured Huo Lin'er's brutality. Despite wearing protective armor, Ji Mo could still feel a strong impact on his whole body every single time he was hit by Huo Lin'er's Flaming Sword Qi. His blood raced and his bones creaked loudly.
This was the true prowess of the Celestial Devil Tempering Art. If Ji Mo had been a regular Tempering Art cultivator, he would not have had the courage to spar with Huo Lin'er for such a long time. Most probably, he would not have lasted for more than thirty minutes. Nevertheless, he persisted throughout the entire afternoon without quitting.
'Good lord, she's truly a she-demon. Her strikes are absolutely vicious!' Ji Mo groaned in his heart. Initially, he had hoped that she would go easy on him on the account that she was a whole level ahead of him. However, Huo Lin'er was completely merciless, and each strike took almost half his life.
"I've really underestimated you. I thought that you'd give up after half an hour, but you've persisted for such a long time," Huo Lin'er said, wiggling her dainty hands. Her impression of Ji Mo improved by a few notches.
"Now, I've earned two of the third-grade spiritual medicines. Do you still want to continue?" Ji Mo asked.
"Forget it. That's all for today. Here, catch." With a casual wave of her hand, two crimson fruits landed in his hands.
'Red Cabernet Fruits, third-grade spiritual medicine!' Ji Mo was filled with excitement.
This third-grade spiritual medicine might be negligible to someone like Huo Lin'er, but they were a precious treasure to Ji Mo. Just two of this third-grade spiritual medicine would be enough for him to cultivate the Celestial Devil Tempering Art to the next level.
"Come back again in three days. Don't be late. I don't want to hear any excuses," Huo Lin'er said. She took the armor from Ji Mo and left gracefully.
Looking at her elegant retreating figure, Ji Mo was slightly mesmerized. Ordinarily, she appeared like a she-demon, but right now, she looked inexplicably charming. Perhaps, it was an attitude problem. Yes, it was definitely an attitude problem.
Upon arriving back home, Ji Mo did not waste any time. He immediately refined the Red Cabernet Fruits.
True to its name, third-grade spiritual medicine was starkly different from second-grade ones. After a whole day and a one whole night, Ji Mo finally finished refining the third-grade spiritual medicine. This time, he sensed that his fifth acupuncture point was loosening up. He believed that soon, he would be able to achieve the fifth tier of Body Tempering.
The fact that merely two third-grade fruits were able to improve his strength by this much was somewhat mind-blowing. If he had relied on the Purple Spirit Fruits, he would have needed at least a dozen of them or more. However, since Red Cabernet Fruits were a grade above Purple Spirit Fruits, their effect was much more formidable.
This time, Ji Mo was looking forward to his next sparring session with Huo Lin'er. The longer he spent sparring against her, the more benefits he would obtain from her.
The third-grade spiritual medicine might be negligible in Huo Lin'er's eyes, but it was the panacea for Ji Mo to improve his capabilities.
The following days were quite peaceful. Except for attending the occasional lecture, Ji Mo spent the rest of his time on his personal cultivation. Every three days, he would spar with Huo Lin-er. After a while, he obtained substantial benefits from her and accumulated a significant amount of third-grade spiritual medicines.
Just yesterday, Ji Mo successfully unlocked the fifth acupuncture point inside his body as a result of some of the third-grade spiritual medicine. His mortal body underwent another transformation. Both his strength and his physique were enhanced. The Celestial Devil Power made his entire body extremely tough. At this point, Ji Mo was able to exert more than a thousand kilograms of force.
Upon breaking through the fifth-tier Body Tempering, Ji Mo was one step closer towards achieving the Celestial Devil Body.
In fact, sparring with Huo Lin'er would now be a walk in the park.
...
"The Hell Celestial Devil is rumored to be more vicious than a true Great Celestial Devil. A thousand years ago, a Hell Celestial Devil overturned hell and came to the mortal world, unleashing a bloodbath on the cultivation world. In the end, several masters of the cultivation world came together and attacked. Only then was the catastrophe quelled," Ji Mo read from an ancient book.
Things such as Celestial Devils and hell actually existed and were even recorded in history. The only caveat was that the accuracy of these historical writings could not be determined.
Closing the book, Ji Mo exhaled a lengthy breath. Over the years, he had collected quite an impressive number of books. Some of the books mentioned 'Celestial Devil' and 'hell', but their descriptions varied. Therefore, Ji Mo wondered if 'hell' actually existed in this world.
However, if hell did not exist, then where did the Celestial Hell technique come from? The technique manual clearly stated that it had evolved from the Path of Hell. This meant that the person who invented this technique had seen hell with his own eyes. Otherwise, it would not have been possible to create such a domineering technique.
Replacing the book on the shelf, Ji Mo walked out. He had promised Huo Lin'er to spar with her today.
In the arena, he wore the armor and was walking across the empty space like an iron giant. Rays of Flaming Sword Qi hurtled straight towards him. As agile as a cheetah, Ji Mo dodged out of the way of the shockwaves. Occasionally, a few stray beams of Flaming Sword Qi landed on his armor, forcing him a few steps back.
"Wow, I've not seen you for just a few days, but your abilities have improved tremendously. You must be at least at fifth-tier Body Tempering now?" Looking at the ease at which Ji Mo dodged her attacks, Huo Lin'er was slightly surprised.
Immediately, she doubled up her attacks. The Flaming Sword Qi coalesced into a qilin. Then, like a fiery beast, it charged towards Ji Mo and slammed into him.
Bang!
Ji Mo was sent flying into the air. Although the armor absorbed most of the impact of Huo Lin'er's attack, the massive force still made his body sore. If not for the fact that Ji Mo had just achieved the fifth-tier Body Tempering, the last blow would have severely injured him.
"That's all for today." Huo Lin'er grinned. With a tiny wave of her hand, the armor on Ji Mo's body transformed into a ray of light and disappeared into her waist.
Ji Mo stood up with a painful wince. He mobilized his body parts and heard the snap and crackle of his bones. Although his entire body was sore, he did not suffer any internal injuries. Only his muscles were slightly worn out, due to the barrage of hits endured.
"Speaking of that, you must have worked hard recently. You improved from the third tier all the way to the fifth tier, which is quite unlike your style." Huo Lin'er chewed the inside of her rosy cheeks and peered at Ji Mo with interest.
"Well, it's all thanks to you. If I didn't cultivate my Body Tempering, I wouldn't have been able to endure your daily abuse," he teased.
Huo Lin'er hid a smile which made her look quite charming. "You should count your blessings. After all, I give you two third-grade spiritual medicines every single time. This is something many covet but cannot get. You'd better not be grumbling,"
Ji Mo felt a little embarrassed by her reply. Honestly speaking, the main reason he was able to improve his abilities so quickly was thanks to her. Although he had to suffer as her sparring partner, he also obtained many benefits from her.
Moreover, through his sparring with Huo Lin'er, Ji Mo discovered that the Celestial Devil Tempering could also be strengthened without using any spiritual medicine. Just by enduring Huo Lin'er's spell attacks, his body was becoming stronger.
Although he only achieved the fifth tier of Body Tempering, he could smash a rock apart just by exerting a little more force. This was a feat that even many seventh tier Body Tempering cultivators could not achieve.
"By the way, are you joining the hunt this time?" Huo Lin'er asked.