Chapter 85: The Second Fine-Tuning

Wei Cheng sprang from his bed with a somersault, and his old wooden frame collapsed with a crash, splintering into pieces. A sliver of golden sunlight fell across his face—he was back.

But immediately, his eyes landed on the miner’s basket resting on the floor. It was the same one he had always carried on his back—no mistake about it.

Could this be the so-called standard magical instrument eliminated by the city’s authorities?

Wei Cheng approached it cautiously; it was empty. Yet when he reached inside, his eyes widened in astonishment.

Good heavens!

Inside, five hundred jars of osmanthus wine were neatly arranged, along with every piece of black iron stone he’d kept for himself—not a single one missing.

So this was a storage magical instrument?

He could never have imagined it!

That miner’s basket, so common and ignored, picked up and tossed aside by countless people, turned out to be an unactivated storage magical instrument!

It was like a dream.

Wei Cheng stood there, overcome by a torrent of emotions.

The room was still silent; outside the window, the city bustled as ever.

On Earth, only fifteen days had passed, yet most people’s lives and fates had already been irrevocably altered.

Soon, he noticed the time—it was now 7:40, whereas before he’d fallen asleep it had been about 6:40.

Time had stretched?

A fierce sense of crisis surged within him.

Just then, his phone rang—it was Xu Shan. Six missed calls from her. Did they awaken earlier than him?

“Old Wei, you’re awake? Liu Sui and I woke up twenty minutes ago. I called you several times but got no answer. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. What about you two?” Wei Cheng was surprised.

“No issues. Liu Sui and I are lively as ever. We gained a lot—each of us received six seconds of divine light exposure and fifty jars of osmanthus wine to bring back to reality as rewards. I’ve already contacted others—”

Xu Shan hadn’t finished when Liu Sui’s voice cut in, urgent.

“Old Wei, latest internal intel: Some trial participants have vanished in F City, Southwest Province—not the kind of disappearance caused by death, but they never entered the real trial at all. Their teammates have sounded the alarm, the authorities are involved, and suspicion falls on the infiltrating demons.”

“After all, our method of entering the real trial is far too unsafe. Once we enter the dream, even if we wake quickly, there’s still a period of unconsciousness. In those moments, we’re most vulnerable.”

Xu Shan interjected anxiously, “Exactly, Old Wei—everyone’s panicking. All district servers in P City are urgently coordinating, checking who didn’t make it to the sixth stage. Old Wei, Earth is no longer safe. We must act. I suggest you come here—we need to establish a defensive mechanism.”

“And, from Zhou Wu’s group I heard, they endured just two waves of demon shadow curses before returning, so they woke up half an hour earlier than us.”

“In comparison, Old Wei, you’re the latest to awaken so far. I advise you to keep this information confidential.”

Hearing this, Wei Cheng immediately grasped the gravity of the situation. No matter how powerful he was, in sleep he was utterly defenseless.

“Alright, contact the others first. I’ll handle a few things and then come over.”

He ended the call, frowning. Now he was grateful he’d dispatched the infiltrating demon in P City earlier—otherwise, with those elusive infiltration methods, untold numbers would have suffered.

He immediately phoned his parents, urging them to come to P City at once. No matter what, only by keeping them close could he protect and care for them.

“I wonder what’s happening with this batch of newcomers?”

Wei Cheng glanced around, but instead of rushing to Xu Shan’s designated meeting place, he drew the curtains, locked the door, and released the Immovable Golden Bell—his best barrier. In Earth’s state, this bell could last a full twenty-four hours.

Then Wei Cheng sat cross-legged within its protection and began drinking osmanthus wine furiously—thirty jars in a single breath. His entire body flushed crimson, as though he were a prawn heated to glowing, every inch of him burning.

Only then did he cycle the Mountain-moving Mind Technique's second tier, activate the Mountain-moving Visualization Diagram, and commence fine-tuning his eighth meridian.

This was paramount.

Without completing the fine-tuning, despite the absence of cultivation bottlenecks, he absolutely could not rush to break through nine cycles of Mountain-moving in one go.

Without a solid foundation, blind advancement brought no greater benefit.

The fine-tuning process was not complicated—much like the seventh meridian's adjustment. By tweaking infinitesimal details on the eighth congenital meridian, he triggered interconnected changes.

With his current mental strength, he could achieve precision far beyond surgical standards. The only concern was whether five hundred jars of osmanthus wine were sufficient.

Silent as spring water, changes unfolded at the most subtle levels.

Within his body’s mysterious realm, the eighth cluster of peaks was being pushed by vast Mountain-moving inner power, each variable shifting in sequence.

The seventh congenital meridian had required fifty thousand linked variables for its adjustment.

The eighth meridian now triggered eighty thousand.

Luckily, he was no longer who he once was—the concentration of his spiritual seed made him adept at this.

Thus, Wei Cheng, experienced and skilled, quickly and flawlessly completed adjustments for all eight clusters of peaks, then the seventh, sixth, down to the first—consuming four hundred and thirty jars of osmanthus wine in the process.

At that moment, thunder raged, heavens collapsed, and inner power surged—here it came again.

It was the rule restructuring triggered by the fine-tuning.

With prior experience, Wei Cheng remained unflustered, enduring even the tearing pain with composure, his immense mental strength maintaining control.

Finally, as all eight clusters of peaks crumbled into ruins, he decisively activated the Dao of Non-Contention. The mighty river surged, Mountain-moving Mind Technique’s second tier spun, and in a flash, mountain after mountain soared from the earth, the entire visualization diagram remade.

This time, the peaks pierced the sky, rocks were jagged, mountains twisted like dragons, rivers cascaded.

The whole Mountain-moving Visualization Diagram transformed, gaining a rugged, unyielding, indomitable presence.

The tempering effect of the fourth wave of demon shadow curse was tremendous.

It even altered Wei Cheng’s very demeanor—now he exuded a sense of being forged, solid as granite.

Just a glance would convince anyone he could break flesh and shatter bone.

Wei Cheng felt quietly gratified. With his mind’s eye, he observed—the eight clusters of peaks restored, signifying successful fine-tuning.

His Mountain-moving inner power’s quality would now rise to 2.25 times its previous value. Including the enhancement from facing the fourth wave of demon shadow curse, the total improvement was about 2.35 times.

Compared to ordinary Mountain-moving practitioners, he appeared to possess eight cycles of inner power, but in reality, it was 8 + 8×2.25 + 8×0.1 ≈ 26.8 cycles.

And this was just the beginning.

With higher quality, the Immovable Golden Bell’s effect would improve.

Ordinarily, one cycle of inner power could release six bells, totaling up to 160. Of course, “ordinary” was relative to him—for others, even this level was mountainous, offering several times the defensive gap.

Moreover, this adjustment brought the Mountain-moving Visualization Diagram's deeper details to 85% completion, making the Dao of Non-Contention even more formidable.

He eagerly anticipated what perfection would bring!

Another benefit: for the ultimate form of the Immovable Golden Bell, he no longer needed to expend all his inner power at once—only five cycles sufficed, leaving him three cycles in reserve.

Similarly, when controlling the bell as a magical instrument, he could extend its operation from three seconds to about five.

(End of chapter)