Chapter 105: Training In The Dungeon

It could take weeks, months or even years for some cultivators to learn and be able to use such fundamental techniques, but Adam didn't know that and thought that if it was fundamental, then it was simple and everybody knew how to use them.

Focusing hard on his body and its energies, he was trying as hard as he could to become more proficient in wielding it as he sat cross-legged for hours without moving, circulating his energy and attempting to control it.

It was just like his master had said, he had no fundamentals and he knew that he needed to grasp the fundamentals completely and lay down a strong foundation for his progress and strength.

Unlike others, Adam had no need to worry about needing to find energy and resources to absorb into his body as he could increase his strength and cultivation level through killing beasts without needing to worry about anything else.

He also didn't have to worry about bottlenecks that others may reach while attempting to breakthrough, which could hold cultivators at a particular rank or cultivation level for weeks, months or even years.

With so many advantages, all that was left was for him to train.

[Why don't I train in these techniques in the dungeon where I have double the time. I have only exploited the dungeon for hunting and increasing the strength, but I have yet to use its slower time for anything else] thought Adam to himself.

[I will enter the dungeon then run to the edge of the dungeon where there shouldn't be any more Wood Pythons after I over hunted on the stage] planned Adam.

[Hopefully master doesn't think I am lazy and incompetent while I am sleeping as I am actually in the dungeon and if he does ask how I learnt if I was only sleeping, I can tell him that I have a mindscape in my mind that allows me to learn stuff in my head. Although it is unusual, it is the only thing I can tell him to explain what had occurred without revealing the dungeon system] stated Adam to himself, preparing for any possible questions from his master.

[System take me into the dungeon] communicated Adam to the system.

The system notified Adam that he would be taken into the dungeon and after waiting a few seconds he felt his soul be sucked out of his body. 

Adam had walked over to the side of the dojo and leant against a wall, so that when he entered the dungeon, his body would stay in the same position and his master would believe he would still be cultivating.

12 hours in reality, which was 24 hours in the dungeon, was the optimum amount of time that Adam could spend in the dungeon. Any less and he wouldn't be able to accomplish much, and any more and he would suffer strain and backlash from leaving his body for too long.

He knew he could spend 48 hours in the dungeon at most, but that would push him too far past his limits and he wasn't willing to test what would happen if he did. 

However, he could sustain 32 hours at most in the dungeon without starting to feel weakened in his Dungeon Form within the dungeon, which was the most time he had spent in the dungeon at a time so far.

Looking around him in the dungeon there didn't seem to be any beasts in the specific area he was in, but he was quite close to the centre of the Floor and he needed to be careful.

[After learning and becoming proficient in both the techniques, I will head towards the centre of the Floor and face the Boss Beast of Floor 2] planned Adam.

He was LVL 16, but had strength that was close to an ordinary LVL 20 and he was confident in his current ability.

After he had learnt the fundamental defence techniques, then matching them with the 3 E+ Rank Monkey Fur Coat, which would allow him to increase all his stats by 3 points for 10 minutes if he wore them all at once, his strength would be incredible.

Using all his trump cards and power, Adam felt confident enough in his strength to face the Boss Beast of Floor 2.

Bursting off towards the edge of the Floor at his full speed, Adam had the speed that one would expect of an LVL 21 Novice Cultivator and was 3 times faster than an average human. Avoiding any beast he came across, not wanting to waste his time battling against them, Adam rushed towards the edge of Floor 2.

After he felt that he had entered Stage 1 of the Floor, where there were no longer any Wood Python beasts after he had hunted too long in Stage 1, Adam finally stopped and prepared to continue his training.

The Dungeon Form felt the same as his physical body in reality, but he could still tell that it wasn't his physical body and was an astral form and an extension of his body and soul.

However, it was still suitable for him to be able to train in and what he was curious about was whether his training would give him any EXP. He was also curious about how exactly he would reach the dungeon and where it was in reality, because if his body gained everything that he gained within the dungeon, it was unlikely for it to be a space within his mind.

He knew he would retain the memory and experiences of what had occurred in the dungeon, so was sure that if he grasped a concept, skill or technique in the dungeon, he would also be able to use it in reality.

{Any progress that the host makes in cultivation will count as EXP and that can come in any form, but I wouldn't recommend the host to seek knowledge that is too profound for him} stated the system, confirming that he could gain EXP from training the techniques in the dungeon, but not relieving his curiosity.

[Incredible] thought Adam to himself as he realised just how close the link was between his actual body and the Dungeon Form that were identical in every way, shape or form.

Sitting down cross-legged, Adam suppressed his curiosity and continued what he was doing in reality as began circling his energy and feeling its flow.

Adam was becoming more in tune with his energy's current and the invisible force that he had over it.

Adam didn't realise it, but it was the intelligence stat that dictated his skill and ability when it came to wielding energy and currently the skill and ability that he was capable of was superior to a rank 2 cultivator.

However, he was yet to learn how to use his capability and it would require him to become more proficient in the use of energy before he realised the capability that his high intelligence stat gave him.

But his Energy Storages surpassed his Intelligence Stat and he would find it hard to control and wield such vast amounts of energy with his limited experience and proficiency.

Adam was beginning to realise that stats didn't dictate the final outcome of a battle and that without skill, experience and abilities, one's raw strength and power didn't mean much.

Adam was becoming more and more accustomed to the use of his energy over time and as he wasn't expending his energy and was only attempting to manipulate and control it within his body, he didn't need to stop to recover his energy.

However, Adam found that he was starting to have a headache as he felt as though his skull was tightening around his brain because of the mental strain.

Stopping, Adam used the Ethereal Recovery Skill to relax and calm his mind while also recovering the mental strain slightly.

Despite his determination and drive, there were limitations on what he could do and he knew that in some circumstances surpassing his limits would only cause him backlash and hinder his future progress.

After using the Ethereal Recovery Skill for an hour, he felt that he was ready to continue practising his control over his energy. Adam was planning to work on his fundamental ability to wield his energy and be able to move it to different areas of his body before he began attempting to learn the techniques.

Although it was a very boring and arduous process to repeat, Adam was willing to and doing so in order to increase his capability as much as possible before he continued increasing his strength.

If he continued increasing his strength and forgot about laying down a foundation with good fundamentals, he would suffer in the future as his skill and prowess would lag behind his strength if he didn't stop to practise.

Adam continued the cycle many times and had sat in the same position practising his control over his energy for 12 hours and he only stopped 3 times to use the Ethereal Recovery Skill, for an hour each time, to lower the mental strain he was experiencing.

After the 9 hours of training, he finally felt as though he was comfortable using his energy to an extent as was ready to begin attempting to learn the techniques.