’But next to the Extreme Enlightenment Stele, in that same month, my proficiency shot up by about 9,000 points!’
’That’s an insane boost! It’s a full six times faster than before!’
Just as Qin Feng was marveling at this incredible training efficiency, a grand and majestic voice echoed through the depths of the cosmos, pulling his consciousness from the Imperial Arena.
"Time is up."
...
When Qin Feng’s consciousness returned to his body, he found he had been teleported back inside the silver-gray warship.
The Ultimate Warrior in sky-blue power armor still stood silently on the bridge.
He looked down at the young geniuses, who had just completed a month of arduous training. Their faces still held expressions of longing, as if it hadn’t been enough. In his deep and steady voice, he slowly said:
"Your Mental Power is still too weak.
The amplification from the Extreme Enlightenment Stele is directly proportional to your own Mental Power.
The stronger your Mental Power, the greater the effect."
"I hope all of you will train diligently after you return.
And I hope that in the distant future, I will see you again here at the Martial Hero Pass, as members of our Ultramarines Chapter."
"That is all. You may return."
He waved his hand, saying no more.
Soon, the ship activated again, traveled through a Subspace passage, and re-emerged outside the Starry Sky Cup’s massive orbital Space Fortress.
Qin Feng disembarked from the ship and followed the tournament staff’s directions to find the transport ship belonging to Canaan Starry Sky Martial Arts University, the *Sword of Justice*.
When he returned to his familiar cabin, he found that most of his classmates had already been waiting there for some time.
Dragon Jade, Nissan, and Ning Jing were there as well.
Once the last group of students, which included Qin Feng, had finished contemplating the Extreme Enlightenment Stele and returned, the massive transport ship finally powered up and began its journey back to Canaan Starry Sky Martial Arts University.
The atmosphere on the return trip was somber.
Clearly, for most of the young geniuses attending such a top-tier event for the first time, the reality of an early elimination was still a significant blow.
Qin Feng walked over to Dragon Jade and his friends and started a conversation.
"You guys were eliminated during the main tournament?"
Qin Feng asked.
"Yeah."
Nissan scratched his head dejectedly, a glum look on his face. "That damn place was just too crowded! Not long after I went in, I ran into a three-person ambush. I was outnumbered and got eliminated in the confusion. Didn’t even get to touch a single resource pack."
"Me too."
Ning Jing didn’t look happy either. "Bad luck. I got caught in the aftershock of a battle and was seriously injured, knocking me out of the competition."
Dragon Jade had fared slightly better, but he only shook his head with a wry smile. "I lasted half a month. In the end, during a fight over a high-level resource pack, I was eliminated by some monster who had cultivated a Fourth-level Killing Technique to the Perfection realm. Still, I definitely gained a lot of combat experience."
After hearing their stories, Qin Feng also spoke candidly, "My luck wasn’t great either. In the first round of the arena tournament, I ran into a tough opponent who’d cultivated a Fourth-level Killing Technique to the Perfection realm, achieving One Heart, Nine Uses. I held on for a bit but was eliminated."
"That’s a shame."
Dragon Jade sighed. "With your strength, if you hadn’t run into a monster like that in the first round, you definitely would have secured a spot in the top thousand."
"It’s alright."
Qin Feng took it in stride. He smiled and said, "There’s always next time. Besides, I still made some pretty substantial gains this time."
When the magnificent Canaan Tower once again appeared outside the viewport, a collective sigh of relief echoed through the somber transport ship.
They were back.
For most of the Canaan Students, however, the Starry Sky Cup trip had been filled with regret and frustration.
The ship docked smoothly at the campus Starport.
After bidding a quick farewell to Dragon Jade, Nissan, and Ning Jing, Qin Feng returned to his dorm alone.
HUMMM—
As the door slid shut, the clamor of the outside world was completely sealed away.
Qin Feng didn’t rush into another round of arduous training. Instead, he first spent half a day bringing his body and mind to a state of complete relaxation and peace.
Only then did he begin to take stock of everything he had gained from the Starry Sky Cup.
’Hmm... All in all, it was a good chance to see the wider world.’
A reminiscent smile appeared on Qin Feng’s face.
Although his journey in the Starry Sky Cup ended with some regret due to an early, unlucky elimination in the arena stage, the entire process was still an incredibly precious experience for him.
He also came to deeply understand the vast gap that still existed between himself and the true, veteran powerhouses in the realm of Mental Power.
This realization, far from damaging his confidence, actually made his already rock-solid Martial Arts Heart even more limpid and clear.
It also gave Qin Feng a clearer, more defined direction for his future training.
Of course, aside from these gains on a spiritual level, there were also the tangible, material rewards.
With a thought, Qin Feng accessed his Subspace Storage Unit.
Inside the independent storage space, piled as high as small mountains, were all sorts of high-level Potions and rare materials.