Light Fortress

Chapter 1590 - 277: Silent Meditation (Second Update)

Alf took Gu Shen and Xiaoman for a walk through the Initial Number.

The Initial Number was immense.

It was a survival spacecraft crafted by the God of Craftsmen for escape, and most of the interior space was designated for Transcendents to live in. The vast "false Snowfield" could change with the seasons according to the needs of the Initial Number, and it could even switch to different ecosystems.

Beyond the simulated environment of the Snowfield, there was also a fairly spacious resource storage room and several gravity cultivation rooms.

"Alright, this is the Gravity Cultivation Room."

Alf introduced, "This place can provide gravitational pressure up to fifty times..."

Gu Shen had quite an impression of it.

Gu Xiaoman blinked: "Since there’s fifty times of gravity, why did you only use thirty times when we triggered the alarm?"

"On one hand, it’s because I was afraid of harming you."

Alf helplessly said, "On the other hand, Gu Shen was too cunning... This guy was reluctant to break through the thirty times gravity at first, and by the time I reacted, he had already reached the control room. I could only give up the pressure to stop him."

Gu Shen gave a slight smile.

In his previous breakthrough, he deliberately left [Truth] unused to guard against such a move.

"Drawing the sword in the Dream of the ’Lord of Love’ isn’t an easy task."

Gu Shen seriously said to Alf, "I want to take Xiaoman to cultivate on the Initial Number for a while... Before the submersion ends, we want to rest on the Initial Number."

"No problem."

Alf agreed quite readily: "There are many nutrient pods and plenty of unoccupied living quarters here. Just choose whichever you like and stay."

The Initial Number was changing position.

The troubles in the Ice Sea had been resolved, and Gu Shen was in no hurry to leave...

As for Xiaoman’s subsequent arrangements, those would have to wait until they returned to the Five Continents.

He needed some time for meditation, to carefully think about what to do after returning.

Of course.

Spending time with Xiaoman was also important.

The little one had made rapid progress over the past five years and had already advanced to the Deep Sea Seventh Level, a stage with the opportunity to strike into the "three-time Super Realm."

Gu Shen prepared to personally guide Xiaoman.

...

...

In the days that followed, on the vast Initial Number, three figures often appeared inseparable.

One big, one small, and a wobbling cubical robot.

Alf is an AI that doesn’t need rest, it doesn’t need sleep, nor companionship.

If it weren’t for the arrival of Gu Shen and Xiaoman, it wouldn’t feel anything amiss even in its solitude over the millennia...

Yet, now there were two more people.

Alf’s life had gained something different.

The Initial Number crafted by the God of Craftsmen was not just a refuge. Similarly... the "Alf" he created was not merely a cold program for fulfilling butler duties.

"Quick, Xiaoman... strike!"

"Faster!"

"Even faster!"

On the Snowfield, with snow swirling around, a fierce figure in a black cloak launched a fierce attack on the bamboo armor.

The former continuously carved crosses into the Snowfield with sword flashes.

The continuous cold lights tore through the snow, slicing the void, hacking out a heart-palpitating roaring river, but every move from the bamboo armor was perfectly blocked. The two fought back and forth on the tundra, covering several miles, with intense combat kicking up piles of snow.

This scene was both dangerous and beautiful.

A moment later, Gu Xiaoman struck heavily with a sword, and just as the bamboo armor man lifted his sword to block, she effortlessly shifted the Sword Force with lightning speed, changing from a chop to a flick. This change in tactic was incredibly clever.

"Rip!"

A piece of bamboo armor flew into the air.

The sparring ended there.

Gu Xiaoman held her knees, panting heavily. Even though she had great talent and excellent physical qualities, this tug-of-war had lasted for an entire hour...

Her stamina was truly exhausted.

"One hour, and I barely found a single flaw."

Gu Xiaoman spoke with some unwillingness: "Wasn’t the difficulty of this guy supposed to be lowered?"

"It’s already been lowered several times."

Gu Shen smiled and said, "Alf... what’s the current difficulty of ’Red Shadow’?"

"According to the trial intensity you provided, the current body technique intensity of ’Red Shadow’ is at the ninth level of the deep water area, elementary level." The small cube flew over, comforting: "Miss Xiaoman, to achieve this level at your stage... is already very impressive."

Gu Xiaoman had just advanced to the Seventh Level not long ago.

According to Gu Shen’s evaluation, the little one’s current strength probably barely counts as "one-time Super Realm." Putting aside external assistance methods, in a legitimate single battle, Gu Xiaoman could have a fifty-fifty fight against Transcendents of the Deep Sea Eighth Layer.

In cultivation, being young is an advantage.

This means you have more time to cultivate slowly, without rushing.

But in fighting, being young is a definite disadvantage.

Older Transcendents often possess richer combat experience and more seasoned fighting techniques.

"No... I’m still far behind."

Gu Xiaoman gritted her teeth and clutch the long sword again, "Alf, you don’t have to comfort me; I know I still need much more training."

The Initial Number traveled under the Ice Sea for nearly a week.

During this week, Gu Shen focused Xiaoman on cultivating body techniques...

The reason was simple.

The "Red Shadow" robots on the Initial Number were truly perfect sparring partners, hard to come by.

The battle techniques of "Red Shadow" were flawless, even Gu Shen couldn’t find fault with them.

The God of Craftsmen, when he created it back then, must have fused the essence of body techniques from that era without any reservation.

This is simply not an industrial product but a work of art.

Not only Gu Xiaoman but also Gu Shen engaged in a counterattack with "Red Shadow."

Gu Shen did the same.

"Take a break for a while, watch my battle next..."

Gu Shen patted the little one’s shoulder, signaling her to step back, while Gu Xiaoman adjusted her breathing, her eyes filled with anticipation as she looked at Gu Shen.

This week.

Gu Shen’s image had changed considerably.

There wasn’t much food on the Initial ship, but there were plenty of nutritional supplements. Thanks to Alf’s "meticulous care," he no longer had the "sallow and emaciated" appearance from when he first left the Ice Sea. Although his overall physique still seemed somewhat thin, the general contours of his skin were now visible, and his long hair had become lustrous.

Gu Shen did not cut his long hair, instead opting to simply tie it up in accordance with the traditional customs of Alf’s era.

Gu Shen, draped in a black-patterned robe left by the God of Craftsmen, reversed his grip on a wooden sword that was stuck in the ground.

Out of the snowy mist walked three figures.

Three Red Shadow Robots.

Alf spoke softly, "Gu Shen, per your request... the difficulty level of these three combat-type Red Shadows has been set to the highest."

"Thank you."

Gu Shen stood still, his feet unmoving, pulling up the wooden sword and simultaneously closing his eyes.

Closing his eyes was for better "seeing."

The fire of life burned fiercely at his forehead, and at that moment, Gu Shen’s vision enveloped a thousand-meter icefield.

"Once the fighting starts... you may perform random ’laser strikes’ on me."

After saying this.

Gu Shen and the three Red Shadows moved together, though his speed was faster than the bamboo armor men.

"Whoosh!"

On the icefield, Gu Shen stepped with the same fast and intricate strange footsteps as the bamboo armor men, violently attacking with the wooden sword.

The [Deep Sea] provided a standard path of promotion for Transcendents.

For a Transcendent, how to progress step by step from awakening to mastering domains and then transcending the deep water area trials... this is the entire content of the twelve-layer ocean.

But [Deep Sea] could not provide a path for cultivating body techniques.

Faster, more enduring, stronger—this seemed to be the essence of "body techniques," but behind those seemingly simple words is an ascension principle unchanged for a thousand years, capturing breath, precise strikes, all the way to [Complete Flash]. Those who specialize in body techniques as Transcendents actually walk a path completely different from the "Deep Sea Trial."

They convert all external forces into their own advantages.

The hot weapons era completely crushed cold weapons.

Yet, the emergence of extraordinary abilities rendered both hot and cold weapons meaningless.

A distant marksman skilled in gunplay might not necessarily be a match for a cold weapon-wielding Transcendent.

After Gu Shen attained insight into [Complete Flash], his body techniques reached a bottleneck.

And this sparring with Red Shadow made him realize what that bottleneck was.

One cannot have both fish and bear’s paws—cultivating oneself and cultivating the extraordinary domain are inherently two conflicting paths... Choosing the former means giving up the latter.

Why is "Red Shadow" so powerful?

Because the God of Craftsmen completely abandoned "domains" and needed no "Spirit Sea."

Red Shadow is considered an artwork precisely because its mechanical body has reached its ultimate limit.

Transcendents are the same.

Countless crisp collision sounds erupted instantly on the snowfield, Gu Xiaoman focused intensely, barely able to see the battle between Gu Shen and the three Red Shadows... She discovered that in this confrontation, Gu Shen completely forsook the blazing fire and Pure Land domains. From a spectator’s perspective, Gu Shen was even more purely "Red Shadow" than "Red Shadow"!

"This guy’s comprehension is truly astonishing." Alf lamented, "If the master were still alive, he would certainly take him as a disciple, wouldn’t he?"

Perceiving Gu Xiaoman’s strange gaze directed at him.

Alf sighed helplessly, "Alright, in all likelihood, Gu Shen would be unwilling to join under my master’s command... After all, my master is not adept at fighting, but at least he’s a leader-level figure, could still teach him forging techniques, and mental cultivation."

After the matter in the bronze hall concluded, Gu Shen deliberately instructed Alf not to leak the scenes seen within the Pure Land world.

Though he did not understand, Alf chose to respect the request.

It could only conceal its knowledge of Gu Shen possessing the "Gospel Box fragment."

However, knowing Gu Shen was a "leader" instead balanced its heart somewhat.

Because he was chosen by the Gospel Box fragment as a "leader," he was this powerful!

If any Transcendent from the Five Continents were as abnormal as Gu Shen, Alf truly would not dare let the Initial ship set out again.

Seeing the battle reach a stalemate, Alf hurriedly increased the difficulty of Gu Shen’s combat.

"Crash!" Countless fierce winds arose on the snowfield.

The laser beams were ready, at this moment hidden within the rising wind and snow, finding the pause in Gu Shen’s knife blocking, instantly shooting forth!

Over a dozen laser beams crossed and divided the void, but ultimately did not even graze Gu Shen’s hair—

Gu Shen’s [Complete Flash] had reached Great Success, the Blazing Fire Spirit enveloping the snowfield, capturing every anomaly into the Heart Lake.

The speed of these laser beams was still too slow.

"Zizz!"

This battle ended with a simple and down-to-earth cross slash.

Gu Shen seamlessly dodged the lasers, then continued forward, drawing and slashing repeatedly. It wasn’t a fancy move, Gu Xiaoman had used it before... Now being utilized by Gu Shen effortlessly, it had already developed a masterful demeanor.

Bang, bang, bang!

With such simple sword strokes, in a flash, Gu Shen had reached the back of three Red Shadows.

The quickest blocks Red Shadows excelled at were broken head-on.

Amidst three crisp explosion sounds, electric arcs and sparks burst from the chests of the three Red Shadows, and they all fell.