A month later, Hou Niao felt that he had made some minor achievements in the Purple Mansion. By minor achievements, he meant not that he could be useful in all sorts of complex situations, but that he could maintain the intensity of his cultivation without a significant setback even after leaving Feileng Spring.
Deep within his eyes, there was already a hint of purple that helped him adapt to Yang's Aurora even without the assistance of Feileng jade; by this point, the help from external objects had become extremely limited. This is a natural process in cultivation, as no skill relies on external objects forever; most only borrow strength briefly at the beginning or at crucial stages.