The proof of Emperor Wu began with daily rewards for diligence.

Over the past day...

[Today's evaluation: Working tirelessly from dawn till dusk, diligence reward index: 3.]

[Reward Settlement]

[Receives double the nourishment of spiritual essence; Five Elements True Qi fully restored.]

As the golden book descended with its first golden light, the spirit stone in Chen Jue's hand, which had been used to replicate the fire spirit energy, began to crackle and pop like popping beans.

"Hey! Are you kidding me?! I have to pay for the spiritual energy needed to replicate the essence?!"

Chen Jue was dumbfounded.

His maximum true energy value is 1024 strands.

Subtract the 600 strands of Five Elements True Qi that the talent of diligence draws from heaven and earth.

He now needs to spend a total of 212 spirit stones out of his own pocket to fully restore his internal energy to its peak!

"What the hell! What was the point of me trying to be clever and exhausting all my inner energy before midnight?"

Chen Jue almost fainted from anger.

In order to get more settlement rewards, through his self-righteous actions, the spirit stones he had worked so hard to obtain were reduced by nearly 30%!

Sure enough, no matter how hard a bad person racks their brains, it's no match for a fool's quick thinking.

Why not just wait patiently for the settlement? Why insist on doing something like that when things come to a head?

Chen Jue was filled with regret and punched the pillow until it burst.

Settlement is still ongoing.

[Gained double the True Qi (from meditation and Spirit Sprout Pill), True Qi Realm Level 5 (30.27% → 36.12%)]

Compared to the robbery that replicates the effects of spiritual marrow, the naturally growing true qi seems much more gentle, consuming only 2.3 spirit stones from Chen Jue, a truly conscientious act.

[Gained double the amount of spiritual energy and health, increasing health and health value from 197.3% to 197.6%]

When Chen Jue killed the demon that Dong Ling had transformed into, he activated the Reverse Blood Sunset effect to its maximum.

The 30% increase in Qi and Blood comes at the cost of a 3% reduction in the maximum Qi and Blood, causing the constitution to drop from "Pure Yang Body" to "Minor Pure Yang Body".

Alas!

However, this is actually not important.

Because Pei Qingying will find a way to help him regain the weight he accidentally lost.

[Gain double the experience points for the Six Harmonies Sword Technique (Practice + Demonstration + Enlightenment), increasing proficiency to (6530/10000)]

The sudden surge in proficiency with the Six Harmonies Knife Technique was entirely within Chen Jue's expectations.

After all, with two intense battles and the "All or Nothing" technique gleaned from the true essence of the Six Harmonies Swordplay, it would be abnormal if the swordplay proficiency didn't skyrocket after being doubled.

It was just tough on Chen Jue. He hadn't slept for 24 hours, and then the reward for diligence pulled him to the dream battlefield, where he had four exhilarating life-or-death battles with the freak Meng Liang.

Under the simulation of the reward-for-diligence talent, Meng Liang was practically an invincible numerical monster.

It possesses immense strength and unlimited regeneration. When at a disadvantage, it can also spawn spiritual plants to hunt him down from all sides.

They're so shameless they're unreasonable.

[Gain double experience points for silent footwork, and improve proficiency by 300/10000]

[Gain double the experience points for the Dragon's Movement Technique, and increase proficiency by (5370/10000)]

With the Swimming Dragon Body Technique as a foundation, Chen Jue found the Silent Step, another intermediate-level lightness skill, to be quite effortless.

Each time you practice the Silent Step, your proficiency level increases from "3" to "5" in the Soaring Dragon Body Technique. You can gain 300 proficiency points by practicing the light footwork 20 times a day.

Even those who hadn't practiced the Swimming Dragon Body Technique, due to the similarity of their techniques, were passively rewarded with 30 points of proficiency.

[Gain double experience and proficiency in Concealment Technique (3420/10000)]

Because the Concealing Spirit Technique can be easily integrated into daily activities to conceal one's own aura.

Therefore, Chen Jue used this technique almost all the time, causing his proficiency to skyrocket. It seemed that he would be close to the perfection level in less than ten days or half a month.

[Gained 2000 strands of double Flame Qi.]

[Gained 8 points of double Divine Essence, total Divine Essence (12/10000).]

With the opening lightning strike that replicates the essence of the spirit, even the spirit stone consumption of replicating 1000 strands of fiery true energy and 4 points of divine essence sedimentation becomes tender and affectionate.

Each step consumes 100 spirit stones, and even combined, it doesn't equal the amount of spirit stones consumed in replicating the spirit marrow.

This also indirectly confirms that the "spiritual essence" Pei Qingying gave him was extraordinary, truly a gift made with care... such affection is rare.

……

For the next ten days, Chen Jue devoted himself entirely to cultivation and alchemy.

With ample alchemy materials available, Chen Jue began producing Spirit Sprout Pills in large quantities starting from the seventh day of his leave.

Five trays of pills were produced each day, with 40 pills in each tray. In just four days, 800 Spirit Sprout Pills were produced. The high yield shocked Old Man Jiao for a hundred years.

Moreover, what made Old Man Jiao even more unable to hold back was—

The Spirit Sprout Pills that Chen Jue sold him two days ago, although they looked to be of superior quality, were still within the normal range.

However, the Spirit Sprout Pills sold to him in the next two days actually began to have golden patterns on them, turning into the legendary top-grade Spirit Sprout Pills. The spiritual power contained within them increased by 30% out of thin air, and they were also easier for martial artists to refine!

"Anyway, we're all just refining low-level pills, so what's the difference? Why don't you try refining a Body Tempering Pill?" Jiao Fengchun tempted Chen Jue, who had come to sell pills.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jue quickly waved his hand in refusal.

"Elder Jiao, please don't get me into trouble. If we sell some cultivation-enhancing pills, perhaps it won't attract the attention of the imperial court and powerful clans..."

"The Body Tempering Pill is the authentic pill for martial artists in the True Qi Realm. It has many miraculous effects, such as tempering the body, refining true qi, and healing hidden injuries. The medicinal effect lasts for a week after swallowing one pill, and one pill is worth more than 200,000."

"Once a large number of them enter the market, not to mention a small clinic, even local powerful families with slightly less backgrounds will be completely exposed."

"Don't forget, the Qi and Wu families are at odds, fighting to the death, all because the Qi family moved the trial work for the Lesser Body Tempering Pill to the Wu family's territory, didn't they?"

A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall.

Although Chen Jue had begun to feel that the path of martial arts required an ever-increasing amount of resources to cultivate, the further he progressed, the more astronomical it became.

But he knew that some money could be earned, while other money should never be touched.

Take Lingya Pill as an example. A wealthy martial artist can take three pills a day, which would amount to 90 pills a month.

He hastily refined 800 Spirit Sprout Pills, but when he threw them out all at once, they weren't even enough for ten wealthy martial artists to share.

But the Body Tempering Pill is different. Those who can take this kind of pill are either scions of powerful families or the pride of heaven.

Let alone 800 coins, even if he distributes just a few dozen, he'll be investigated for misappropriation the next day.

This deal is not worth doing; the risks and rewards are disproportionate.

Moreover, the Body Tempering Pill is not something he can refine at will. The precious medicinal materials required for it have been controlled by the imperial court and powerful families for many years, and their distribution channels are very clear.

In this environment, he'd better not reach out, or he'll get caught.

"Xiao Chen, you've misunderstood..."

Jiao Fengchun carefully took out a prescription from his bosom and handed it to Chen Jue, saying, "This isn't for sale."

"I work for a non-governmental organization. The organization has many young martial artists who urgently need Body Tempering Pills to solidify their foundation."

"But as you said, Body Tempering Pill is a righteous pill for martial artists. If you buy this pill through legitimate channels, you need to register your information with your real name, and it's quite expensive..."

Chen Jue didn't even glance at the prescription Jiao Fengchun handed him.

"Master Jiao, the risks involved are too great, and the risks outweigh the rewards. I regret that I cannot comply."

If he dares to refine this pill, he will become bound to the organization behind Jiao Fengchun.

He's not going to agree to get something for nothing without giving something in return.

"..." Jiao Fengchun was slightly stunned upon hearing this.

He had considered that Chen Jue would refuse outright because the risk was too great, but he hadn't expected that Chen Jue thought his offer wasn't enough.

What he didn't expect was that Chen Jue had already made up his mind—

If things go wrong or his misdeeds are exposed, he will immediately seek refuge with the Pei family and become their alchemist.

Anyway, he has the talent to work hard, so it doesn't matter where he lies.