Chapter 52: Different Paths! The Hunt Begins!
Xiao Ze carefully felt the changes brought by the Dou Crystal.
He discovered that the faint blue light spots emitted by the Dou Crystal were not generated out of thin air.
Instead, they were transformed from the Dou Qi hidden inside the Dou Crystal through some special method.
They were used to nourish and strengthen Xiao Ze's body.
Trading Dou Qi for body strength was definitely a profitable deal!
As long as he slightly relaxed the absorption ability of the Dou Qi vortex, the consumed Dou Qi could immediately be replenished!
However, the key issue was that continuous strengthening meant continuous consumption of his Dou Qi.
Xiao Ze tried it out by slightly relaxing the absorption ability of the Dou Qi vortex to fill the gap in the Dou Crystal.
After observing for a while, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The transformation of Dou Qi into faint blue light spots remained the same as before.
It was a good function, but if the transformation range was too large, it could potentially cause him to regress.
Just like when Xiao Yan had his Dou Qi absorbed by Yao Lao.
However, Xiao Ze was different. Although his Dou Qi was consumed, his body became stronger!
"It seems that even if I don't use the advanced rewards from Xuner to break through to a higher realm, I can still benefit from subsequent advanced rewards."
"In the Dou Fighter stage, a special Dou Qi vortex was condensed for me, and I've already benefited greatly from it."
"In the Dou Master stage, there was the extremely abnormal liquefied Dou Qi and soul strengthening."
"And this time, Xuner's advanced reward can allow my Dou Crystal to transform Dou Qi and nourish my body!"
"It seems like my cultivation system has already taken a different path from the traditional cultivation system of the Dou Qi Continent!"
"Perhaps it's just a bit special in the early stages, but when it comes to the Dou Grandmaster stage, the Dou Crystal's condensation will have completely diverged onto two different paths!"
Xiao Ze thought to himself, remembering clearly.
In the original work, the Dou Crystal was generally rhombus-shaped, and after breaking through to the Dou Spirit stage, it would transform into a sphere with nine spikes protruding from it!
From rhombus-shaped Dou Crystal to sea urchin-shaped Dou Crystal.
For every star advancement in the Dou Spirit stage, one spike would retract into the Dou Crystal until all nine spikes were retracted, reaching the peak of the Dou Spirit stage!
The Dou King stage, on the other hand, had no Dou Crystal or vortex!
The Dou Qi fused into the entire body, and with a thought, the Dou Qi could immediately appear.
There was no need to laboriously extract the Dou Qi from the Dou Crystal and circulate it through the meridians to use it.
But Xiao Ze's Dou Crystal at this moment already had the characteristics of the peak Dou Spirit stage!
That's why Xiao Ze said his cultivation system was completely different from the traditional one.
"I wonder what the end result of this cultivation system will be?"
Xiao Ze muttered to himself, then opened his eyes.
The sky was slightly bright, and rays of light shone through the gaps in the leaves.
"Have I been cultivating all night?"
"Yeah, Xiao Ze gege, the commotion you caused during your breakthrough yesterday was not small!"
Xiao Xuner's voice sounded from the side, as she stood there looking lively.
A faint fragrance drifted from afar, and the Little Doctor Fairy came over carrying a pot of meat porridge.
"Xiao Ze, finished cultivating? I just made a pot of meat porridge. Let's eat, and then we'll head to the site of the Magical Beast Hunt Competition."
"Alright!"
The three of them enjoyed the warm meat porridge in the morning sunlight.
During the meal, Xiao Ze shared his cultivation experience, which they often did.
It's not wise to work alone in isolation, but rather to brainstorm for many benefits.
When the three of them hurried to the competition site, Ruolin quickly greeted them.
"I haven't seen you around these past two days, but thankfully you didn't miss the event."
Ruolin breathed a sigh of relief. The rewards for academy-level competitions were generous, and she didn't want Xiao Ze's group to miss out.
With Xiao Ze's strength, they could at least aim for the top ten and receive rewards.
"We still have some time. Let me introduce you to the rules of the Magical Beast Hunt Competition!"
"It will last for ten days, and the judging criterion is the number of magic cores obtained!"
"Two things to note: first, the entrance locations for freshmen and seniors are different, so there's no need to worry about running into seniors."
"Second, the academy does not allow students to snatch loot from each other. If discovered, they will be immediately disqualified from the competition!"
After Ruolin hurriedly introduced the rules, an elder flew in from the sky, his magnificent Dou Qi wings showcasing his strength!
"The time has come. The Magical Beast Hunt Competition officially begins!"
With the elder's words, a large number of freshmen rushed into the back mountain.
This was the closest location to Canaan Academy, and the level and quantity of magical beasts were also the least here.
Currently, the freshmen's strength was far inferior to the seniors. In competitions like this at the academy level, freshmen were basically just bystanders.
There were very few freshman teams that could enter the top ten and receive rewards.
However, with the standard being the acquisition of magic cores this time, it was possible for freshmen to enter the top ten based on luck alone!
The three of them glanced at each other.
It was fortunate that freshmen entered from the periphery.
If they had entered from the middle like the seniors, with the current chaotic scene, some students might have already been killed by magical beasts.
Xiao Ze waited for a while in place until the crowd dispersed before taking Xiao Xuner and the Little Doctor Fairy into the back mountain.
With the Magical Beast Hunt Competition lasting for ten days, there was no need to rush.
Xiao Ze had no intention of competing with the freshmen here for magical beasts.
He planned to venture deeper into the back mountain.
After all, their usual cultivation spot was already located in the middle of the back mountain.
Soon, the three of them left the hunting range of the freshmen and entered the middle section of the back mountain.
Here, the number of magical beasts was noticeably higher.
Magical beasts organized in groups began to appear more frequently.
For example, the Ice Spirit Rabbit Xiao Ze had enjoyed earlier was found in this middle section.
As a second-tier magical beast, the Ice Spirit Rabbits appeared in groups!
Ordinary freshmen would probably retreat immediately upon encountering them.
Only Xiao Ze's group could mark them for later consumption.
Whenever they felt like it, they could come and catch a few.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"There's the sound of battle!"
Xiao Xuner looked towards Xiao Ze, and Xiao Ze's brows furrowed slightly.
Although Canaan Academy had many students, the back mountain was vast, and the chances of two teams crossing paths were small!
"Let's go around! Although it's not allowed to snatch loot from each other, it's still possible to eliminate competing opponents!"
Xiao Ze didn't return to his previous cultivation spot.
As a water source, the waterfall was still very attractive to magical beasts.
But after Xiao Ze designated it as a cultivation spot, many magical beasts had gone but never returned, gradually reducing the number of magical beasts there.
In the dense forest, Xiao Ze controlled his soul perception nearby.
Although he could expand the range, there was no need.
The more condensed it was, the more detailed the perception!
He could detect some magical beasts with extremely strong concealment abilities, avoiding being ambushed up close.
Roar!
Crack!
Xiao Ze punched, shattering the neck of the Green Wood Wolf, ending its life without even letting out a sound.
This was the head wolf in the wolf pack they unexpectedly encountered.
Xiao Ze took out his dagger and searched the head wolf for a while, finally extracting a light green magic core.
After wiping it on the wolf fur, he threw it into the bag.
The academy didn't allow the use of storage rings, fearing that someone would hide magic cores in them and cheat.
"Hmm?"
Xiao Ze stood up and looked to the side, while Xiao Xuner and the Little Doctor Fairy immediately became alert.
"You guys are... freshmen?"
Five beautiful figures emerged from the forest.
The one in the middle, with a cold demeanor, stood tall like a snow lotus on a high mountain, attracting attention.
(End of Chapter)