Chapter 877: Breaking Through the Bottleneck

"Deal!"

Han Li, upon hearing this, replied without any further hesitation.

"Hehe, Fellow Daoist Li, don't agree so quickly. I have one small request. I hope that while imparting the technique, you can also include some cultivation insights. What do you think?" Gu Qianxun asked with a faint smile.

"That is not impossible. However, whether it's the 'Ascending Flight Technique' or my cultivation insights, you may only practice them yourself and not pass them on to others. If Fellow Daoist Gu agrees, then swear an oath to that effect. If you cannot do it, then let's forget the matter." Han Li nodded and transmitted his voice.

"Such a technique is likely unique even in all of Qingyang City. You don't need to tell me; I won't pass it on to others." Gu Qianxun agreed directly upon hearing this.

Having said that, she immediately swore a heavy oath in her sea of consciousness.

Seeing this, Han Li then communicated with her through divine sense, exchanged the cultivation techniques, and obtained the Earth-tier beast core.

This transaction was thus completed, to the satisfaction of both parties.

In the following time, Han Li searched the exchange meeting for half a day more. Finding nothing else, he took his leave from Du Long and left first.

Han Li left the trading area but did not return to his residence. Instead, he went to the exchange hall.

"Fellow Daoist Li, what would you like to exchange this time?" A tall, thin young man in a crimson robe said with a beaming smile from behind a stone table.

Han Li was now a prominent figure in the Arena, and he participated in matches much more frequently than ordinary fighters. He also traded here more often than most, so over time, he had become familiar with these people.

"I'm not here to exchange items this time. I want to cultivate in the Star Pool." Han Li took out his token and handed it over.

The number of points on the token showed one hundred and eighteen.

Although he had never rested in recent years and earned many points, he had spent them all on cultivation, leaving him with little surplus.

The tall, thin young man nodded, took the token, and swiped it with a silver rod. Instantly, one hundred points were deducted, leaving only eighteen.

"Fellow Daoist Li, please follow me." The tall, thin young man instructed a staff member nearby and then led Han Li to the entrance of the passage marked "Star Pool" inside the hall.

The stone door at the entrance was still tightly shut. The tall, thin young man took out a blue token and placed it on the closed stone door, which had a square indentation that perfectly matched the token.

Threads of starlight emanated from the token and spread rapidly across the stone door.

Then, with a soft "click," the stone door slowly opened.

"Let's go." The tall, thin young man retrieved the token and led Han Li inside. The stone door closed again behind them.

Inside the stone door was also a dimly lit corridor. After walking a short distance, they came upon a staircase leading upward.

The two stepped onto the staircase and ascended for quite a while before reaching the end.

At the end of the corridor was a stone chamber of about twenty to thirty zhang in size. Calling it a stone chamber was not entirely accurate, as it had no roof and was open to the sky, resembling a mountain-top depression.

In the center of the depression was a circular pool about ten zhang in diameter. Surrounding the pool were over a dozen white exotic trees, encircling it.

The trunks, branches, and leaves of these white trees were all pure white, as if carved from white jade, giving them a rather peculiar appearance.

Moreover, the branches and leaves of the white exotic trees were very lush, spreading out to cover almost the entire sky above the depression. The trunks were covered with countless white patterns that extended all the way into the pool.

At that moment, night had quietly fallen, and beams of starlight descended from the sky.

The leaves of these white exotic trees emitted a white glow, drawing in the nearby starlight, which merged into the white leaves and then flowed along the patterns on the trees into the circular pool.

The white pool water was filled with substantial starlight, shimmering with ripples, like a pool of star water.

Beside the circular pool, a man in a white robe sat cross-legged, resting with his eyes closed.

This man appeared to be about thirty years old, with unusually pale skin devoid of any color, and his hair and eyebrows were also white.

"Sir, this Li Feiyu has paid one hundred points to cultivate in the Star Pool once." The tall, thin young man bowed respectfully to the white-robed man and said.

The white-robed man opened his eyes, glanced at Han Li, and nodded.

The tall, thin young man bowed again and retreated.

The white-robed man glanced once more but said nothing. He took out a palm-sized hourglass and placed it beside him; the fine sand inside flowed silently.

Seeing this, Han Li immediately leaped into the circular pool. With a "splash," white water splashed in all directions like pearls.

This Star Pool was not his first visit, so he was well aware of the rules here.

Paying one hundred points granted him the opportunity to enter the Star Pool, but the cultivation time was limited to one hour.

The hourglass would run out exactly at one hour, and he had to leave by then.

He sat cross-legged in the pool and began to circulate the Ascending Flight Technique.

Threads of pure star power converged and merged into his body, much stronger than when absorbing beast cores.

Han Li directed this star power, condensing it into a single stream, and charged it toward a hidden acupoint in his lower abdomen.

This was the only hidden acupoint in the Ascending Flight Technique not located on the legs, but it was also the most important one and the most difficult barrier in the technique.

Once this acupoint was opened, the power of the hidden acupoints in both legs would flow through smoothly, and the Ascending Flight Technique could be considered nearly complete. The remaining few acupoints were minor details and not a concern.

In the past few years, Han Li had cultivated the Ascending Flight Technique almost recklessly, and thanks to various opportunities, he had made rapid progress. Three months ago, he had reached this bottleneck.

Over the past three months, he had tried every possible method to break through, but to no avail. He had only managed to open a small part of the acupoint and could not make any further progress.

Therefore, he had saved up some points and entered the Star Pool to attempt a breakthrough.

Under his mental urging, the vast star power fiercely struck the tightly closed hidden acupoint.

A "boom" sounded in his mind, and his body trembled involuntarily. The hidden acupoint showed no reaction, and the condensed star power scattered.

Not surprised by this, Han Li once again circulated the Ascending Flight Technique, absorbed the star power in the pool, and began a second assault.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Streams of star power struck the hidden acupoint, wave after wave.

In the blink of an eye, most of the hour had passed.

Han Li's face was slightly flushed, and his forehead was a bit sweaty. Such continuous assaults placed a considerable burden on his body.

However, this hard work yielded great results. The hidden acupoint had opened considerably more, though not fully, but it was close.

Han Li took a deep breath, briefly regulated his body, and began the assault again.

But then the situation changed. The mostly opened hidden acupoint became tough again, and even the power of the Star Pool gradually lost its effect.

"The Ascending Flight Technique is indeed not so easy to master..." Han Li murmured to himself, not feeling particularly disappointed. He flipped his hand and took out a beast core the size of a fist.

This was the Earth-tier beast core he had just obtained from Gu Qianxun. Inside the core, a visible white star vortex churned incessantly.

A terrifying fluctuation of star power emanated from the beast core, surpassing that of the Star Pool.

A hint of joy appeared at the corner of his mouth, and he unhesitatingly swallowed it.

The reason he had traded with Gu Qianxun was not only for her Vajra Force Technique but, more importantly, for this Earth-tier beast core.

This item contained extremely powerful star power, greatly aiding in breaking through the hidden acupoint. That was why he had agreed to the trade so readily; otherwise, he would not have been willing to impart his cultivation techniques and secret arts to others.

Although higher-grade beast cores were more difficult to refine, with the Celestial Bottle in hand, refining was a piece of cake.

The beast core quickly melted, turning into an exceptionally powerful but also extremely狂暴 star power that rampaged through Han Li's body.

But immediately, the Celestial Bottle emitted a pulling force, quickly drawing back this star power from the beast core.

Han Li fully activated the Ascending Flight Technique, manipulating this star power from the beast core along with the star power in the Star Pool to form an even larger torrent that struck the hidden acupoint.

A loud "boom" exploded in Han Li's mind, and his divine sense surged violently.

The blood and qi energy in his body also boiled and churned. Many mysterious points near the hidden acupoint were forced open, and even his dantian shook turbulently.

The final barrier of the hidden acupoint buzzed and trembled, the vibrations growing more intense, and it began to open slowly again.

Joy surged in Han Li's heart.

He took a deep breath, circulated the technique faster, and urged the power of the beast core. At the same time, more and more star power from the surrounding Star Pool merged into his body, flowing toward the hidden acupoint.

With his body at the center, a vortex formed in the Star Pool.

Near the Star Pool, the white-robed man raised an eyebrow, opened his eyes, and looked at Han Li with a hint of surprise.

"What hidden acupoint is this kid cultivating to cause such a commotion?" the white-robed man murmured to himself.

In the Star Pool, it was forbidden to probe others with divine sense, so he did not investigate. He simply watched Han Li with an intrigued expression.

Time passed bit by bit. The hourglass beside him flowed quickly and soon ran out completely.

Han Li still sat cross-legged in the Star Pool. A bright starlight shone from his lower abdomen, flickering continuously, and the fluctuations of star power grew more intense. Anyone could see that he was at a critical moment in his cultivation.

The white-robed man glanced at the empty hourglass, hesitated briefly, and did not call out to Han Li.

Another half quarter of an hour passed. A faint "crack" sounded from within Han Li's lower abdomen. The light from the hidden acupoint suddenly brightened, and the acupoint finally opened completely.

The other hidden acupoints on his legs also emitted starlight, connecting into one. His entire body became as light as a feather.

Han Li's eyes snapped open, filled with surprise and joy. With a slight movement, he actually flew directly out of the Star Pool.

A bright starlight emanated from the hidden acupoints on his legs, forming a nebula-like glow that supported his body, suspending him in midair without falling.