"See you later."
After a simple farewell, Mike turned and hurried toward the Warband’s equipment exchange area.
Qin Feng, on the other hand, activated his teleporter and returned to his private dorm.
...
Qin Feng’s figure reappeared in the quiet Cultivation Room.
He deactivated his power armor, retracting it into his storage unit, then sat cross-legged and began to review the previous battle.
In his account, 5,000 Contribution Points and 30,000 Warband Reputation points sat quietly.
A familiar question arose in his mind: ’Should I use these resources for another round of secluded cultivation now, or continue doing missions to accumulate more resources for a single, longer, more intensive session?’
If he chose to cultivate now, he might be able to merge another one or two acupoints, increasing his life force index by a little.
But having just survived a life-or-death battle, he had come to a profound realization: in a high-stakes engagement, the advantage gained from a mere few dozen points in his life force index was far less significant than a piece of critical equipment.
’Forget it. I’ll buy some equipment first.’
Qin Feng quickly made his decision.
If not for the protection of the General Star Medal, he and Mike would have certainly died today.
He was deeply uncomfortable with the feeling of entrusting his life entirely to an external object.
The General Star Medal was powerful, but it was ultimately a last resort and couldn’t be relied upon as a standard measure.
He had to have his own reliable Spiritual Protection Equipment.
Qin Feng opened the Imperial Trading House and typed a keyword into the search bar: "Spiritual Power Protection Device."
Instantly, a dazzling array of products appeared before him.
Qin Feng’s gaze swept over the devices, all with different designs and a multitude of functions. In the end, Hammer filtered it down to the highest-rated standard-issue piece of equipment.
[Model: Imperial Army Type II · Spiritual Barrier Module]
[Type: Internal Protection Device]
[Function: Can be seamlessly integrated with the energy core of most Imperial Standard Power Armor. When activated, it can generate a basic Spiritual Barrier.]
[Protection Strength: Can effectively withstand a standard Mental Power impact of 10.0 intensity for one minute. Overall effectiveness is approximately 50% of the basic protection provided by the "Enlightened General Star" Medal.]
[Value: 4,000 Contribution Points]
Seeing the steep price, even the usually composed Qin Feng couldn’t help but be slightly surprised.
A device that was only half as effective as the General Star Medal cost a whopping 4,000 Contribution Points!
’I never realized that "Enlightened General Star" Medal was so valuable,’ he thought.
He had always known the medal represented honor and the Empire’s recognition, but he never imagined it held such an incredible value in actual combat, especially against Mental Power attacks.
But surprise was surprise; the money had to be spent. Not a single point could be spared.
"Purchase."
Qin Feng confirmed the order without the slightest hesitation.
His 5,000 Contribution Points were instantly reduced to just 1,000.
Almost at the exact moment he completed the purchase, a palm-sized silver metal module covered in intricate runes appeared in his Subspace Storage Unit.
He immediately summoned his "Singing Dragon I" power armor again and, following the instructions, precisely inserted the "Spiritual Barrier Module" into a reserved slot next to the energy core on the armor’s back.
VMMMM—
Accompanied by a faint hum of energy, the runes on the module lit up one by one, linking perfectly with the power armor’s energy system.
Only after doing all this did Qin Feng feel a sense of security.
Qin Feng sat cross-legged, his mind completely calm, shutting out all external distractions.
He began to map out the future of his cultivation path with the most detailed and rational planning possible.
All plans had to be based on precise data.
And the only available reference point was his previous four-month secluded cultivation session.
’Four months. Two acupoint mergers. I successfully combined three Great Sun Acupoints into one.’
’To do that, I consumed top-tier cultivation resources worth nearly thirty thousand Warband Reputation points.’
His thoughts raced like the most precise computer.
’My Great Sun Star Map is composed of 360 acupoints. After the first merger, there are still 358 individual acupoints that need to be fused one by one, ultimately condensing into the legendary, singular Primordial Acupoint.’
’These 360 acupoints will require a total of 359 fusions.’
A clear but immense undertaking took shape in his mind.
Next came the most critical part: estimating the resource consumption.
’Using the first merger as a standard, two mergers cost nearly thirty thousand reputation points. In that case, the total amount of resources I need is...’
Qin Feng silently voiced the astronomical answer in his mind.
’In total, 5,370,000 Warband Reputation points.’
This number was largely consistent with his previous rough estimate of "around 5.5 million."
It was a number sufficient to drive any Fifth-level Martial Artist to despair.
Qin Feng couldn’t help but make a comparison.
A Fifth-level genius practicing a Top-grade Acupoint Opening Technique, who persistently completed missions and participated in various competitions, would likely need over a hundred years to earn such a fortune.
And that was just the time needed to accumulate the resources.
Factoring in the immense amount of time required for the cultivation itself, the total came out to roughly two hundred years—which matched the average time rumored within Cannan Star Martial Arts University for an ordinary genius to complete the "acupoint merging" phase.
’But I don’t have two hundred years.’
Qin Feng’s gaze grew incredibly sharp.
The Warband ranking tournament—this once-in-a-century Golden Era that offered triple reputation rewards—only lasted for thirty years!
And his enemy, Shi Dang, would never give him sixty, let alone one or two hundred years, to cultivate peacefully in seclusion.
’I must make the most of this opportunity within the next thirty years, earn all the resources I need, and even more!’
A new, more rational plan gradually took shape in his mind.
He would divide his cultivation into several distinct, alternating phases.
’First, I can’t just cultivate in seclusion. Improving my strength is the only way to complete missions more efficiently. And real combat is also the best way to hone my killing techniques and improve my Combat Wisdom.’
’So, the plan for the initial stage should be a combination of "secluded cultivation" and "real combat."’
His line of thinking became increasingly clear.
’I’ll use short cycles of one month, or several months. During each cycle, I’ll focus on completing missions, using the Contribution Points I earn to upgrade my equipment and using real combat to familiarize myself with new killing techniques, honing my combat power to its current limit.’
’Once I’ve accumulated enough reputation points for a short period of secluded cultivation, I’ll immediately stop taking missions, enter a Cultivation Room, and convert all my resources into my own cultivation base, completing several "acupoint mergers."’
’After I emerge, my life force index will have increased, and I’ll be stronger. Then, I can challenge more difficult missions, and my efficiency at earning resources will naturally increase as well.’
’In the later stages, I’ll grind missions like crazy, saving up enough resources to advance all at once.’
’Yes, that’s it.’
Qin Feng slowly opened his eyes, not a trace of confusion remaining in his gaze.
First, combine secluded cultivation with real combat, then switch to a frenzy of combat. He had to take advantage of the thirty-year Warband ranking tournament to madly accumulate reputation points.