Mysterious Space.

Mirrored in a luminescent, shallow pool of emerald-green water was the reflection of the roots of heaven.

At this moment, the reflection distorted as a singular droplet of vibrant green dew separated from the serene pool. Defying gravity, it rose slowly, like a miniature emerald gem.

During its ascension, the droplet began to split into five viscous strands of Qi, each radiating a familiar green glow that resonated with the same natural energy of the pool below.

These strands of Qi then weaved around in the air, forming a visual symphony of shapes and patterns that seemed to defy the laws of physics.

After a moment of suspended animation, the invisible control that guided the dance was released.

The strands of Qi drifted apart naturally, dispersing like fireflies in the evening breeze.

Alas, these fireflies were irresistibly drawn towards the heart of the space, devoured by the sprout’s verdant leaf.

Soon, the strands of luminous green became another delicate luminous dew on the green leaf.

It was a cycle of deconstruction and creation – the cost was only a mere portion of his naturally recovering spiritual power.

This was a result that was completely acceptable for Bubai.

“It seems there will be no problem with acquiring the strands of Qi required for using techniques.”

Qi drops - it was indeed useful in his recovery and physique enhancement, but it was a concept completely set apart from Qi strands.

In fact, Bubai lacked any concrete knowledge regarding Qi drops.

He speculated these drops might come into play in the later stages of cultivation, but...

His Arboreal Bliss Dreamcatcher Art only had details up to the early stage of Foundation Establishment!

Similar to the Qi-refinement breathing and circulation methods that were provided in pairs, Foundation Establishment methods were also split up into parts: Breakthrough and Early Stage, Mid and Late Stages, Completion Stage and Golden Core details.

Bubai only acquired the first part, which explained how to refine strands of gathered Qi into true Qi using the totem.

The subsequent part naturally demanded more contribution points.

Just another avenue for the sect to milk its disciples.

Fortunately, he already possessed the progression details for the early stage. So, he didn’t have to worry... for now.

However, his cultivation was met with a bit of hassle - his sprout’s automated function of converting strands of Qi into drops.

Currently, he lacked any knowledge of techniques that actually required Qi droplets to cast, rendering these droplets rather tasteless.

Fortunately, it didn’t take long to discover his inherent control over the drops of green dew, even capable of breaking it down into strands of Qi with ease.

While somewhat tedious, especially given the seed's automatic conversion of all strands within his mysterious space into dew, there was no problem with keeping the strands if he stored them in his real dantian.

As a result, his real dantian now served as a green Qi strand storage, while his mysterious space became the Qi pool for green dew.

However, this wasn't a drawback.

The green dew, essentially compressed versions of the strands, occupied less space and allowed his mysterious space to store even more Qi than his previous strands!

Basically, his green Qi strands capacity was multiplied by at least five times!

The benefits didn’t stop there.

The strands of Qi derived from the green dew exhibited a higher viscosity than those before his breakthrough, as if the strands were infused with another substance.

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According to the Arboreal Bliss Dreamcatcher Art, Bubai understood this as evidence of a Qi strand being refined, signifying its transformation into true Qi!

True Qi naturally came with its own set of advantages.

Thanks to having greater control over his true Qi, Bubai was no longer limited to manipulating just one strand of green Qi at a time!

The heightened control also increased the speed of transmission of true Qi through the meridians.

As an analogy, driving a strand of Qi in the Qi-refinement stage was likened to a steam train, while manipulating true Qi resembled operating a high-speed bullet train!

This speed difference was of critical importance in terms of casting speed...

Activating a technique involved channeling Qi, but there was always a delay during the channeling process. This delay became more pronounced for more powerful techniques that required more than one strand of Qi!

This explains why Qi-refiners could easily be overwhelmed by his physique alone.

Given the casting time required for techniques, by the time they circulated their Qi to the corresponding meridian, his speed already allowed him to get up close and personal, pummeling them multiple times over.

Of course, casting time could still be reduced during the late-stage of Qi-refinement. A benefit of saturating meridians was to strengthen them, allowing for the faster passage of Qi without causing internal injuries.

This is why Bubai steered clear of head-on confrontations with late stage Qi-refiners. The casting delay still existed, but his speed might not be fast enough to cancel their quick casting, and the result would probably be trading physical injury for a supernatural injury.

Then there were Foundation Establishment cultivators wielding true Qi.

Unless they were dealing with higher-level techniques that demanded an exorbitant amount of Qi, most low-level spells became nearly instantaneous, typically exemplifying enhanced power and even control during battle!

Even low-level artifacts and talismans could be used effortlessly in dynamic combat situations.

He need not emphasize their danger further. There was a clear reason why, despite his physique and speed, he found himself helpless against a cat...

Now, he was also someone with true Qi. The possibilities unlocked were limitless!

For instance, he could now run his dream catching method full-time, all while still piping his Qi to other locations for various other tasks - whether it be activating techniques like the Qi-sensing eyes or refining his tower's key card.

Alas, he was still restricted by the absence of a good combat technique to cast.

“Ah, maybe I should slot the lightning spell into my schedule.”

Bubai knew he needed at least one ranged attack to cover his weakness in that aspect. The lightning spell could fulfill this.

Before, it might not be worth learning, but now…

Though weakened, the lightning spell should still have a good destructive effect when used in conjunction with true Qi.

Plus, his seeds had swallowed tribulation lightning. So, there could be some unexpected effects when mastering the lightning spell… right?

“Alas, so little time, so much to learn.”

Consequently, the lightning spell was still not a priority on his list because it may have even less combat effectiveness than mortal martial arts. Empowered by his upgraded physique, it was probably more effective to get up close and personal to pummel most enemies.

Plus, it may be more productive to focus on earning more contribution points and acquiring a technique that was compatible with his Foundation Establishment method.

Amidst these considerations, he also couldn't neglect the myriad other tasks on his plate, such as unraveling the mysteries of his golden finger.

Despite his innate connection that provided inherent knowledge regarding most functions, enabling his instinctive utilization of them, many of his abilities still remained vague regarding their actual, real-world applications - something requiring his personal exploration.

To complicate matters, some parts even lacked any inherent clues about their functions!

Tapping into his innate connection with his seed, Bubai's senses seamlessly transitioned from the mysterious space to his seed's storage space.

A quick glance revealed a noticeable expansion, more than doubling its original size and meeting the standards of at least 3 cubic meters of storage space!

All his scattered formation supplies and meager assets now occupied only a fraction of this storage, leaving a significant portion empty.

Sitting in this empty space, Bubai sensed the presence of nine pill-sized seeds.

With a mere thought, one of them materialized in his hand.

Sitting on the bed, Bubai ran his fingers over its rugged surface, colored with a blend of dull forest green and brown.

Compared to the others, the seed in his hand had a much more pronounced brownish hue.

“This should be the lowest quality one?”

However, Bubai was instinctively aware of his ability to nurture the seed further with his green Qi. Just that... the specific benefits remained unknown.

Though Bubai could feel an innate connection with the seed in his hand, there was no feedback regarding its functions.

In fact, he didn’t even know exactly how these seeds found their way into his space.

His only speculation rested on them being the results of his main seed's absorption of tribulation lightning, with one of these new seeds generated for each lightning strike absorbed.

“So many unresolved mysteries...” Just one of the downsides of possessing a golden finger that doesn’t tell you what everything does.

“Keep it for now and find a way to test it in the near future.” With a thought, Bubai sent the seed back into his storage space, leaving the seed sitting besides its more verdant brothers.

Just when Bubai was about to pull out from the space, a whim prompted him to check on his formation supplies.

“Yup, it’s all here-”

No, wait a sec. They were all there?

Bubai scanned his formation supplies once more, feeling something was not quite right...

After quickly recounting them a couple times, he noticed the additional supplies that were originally supposed to be in his green storage pouch!

“How did they get in here?”

Escaping from his spatial storage, Bubai shifted his attention to the green pouch on his waist, opening it and peering inside…

???

Where did the space inside his storage pouch go?!