Time Acceleration

He Tu and Luo Shu: A World Unto Itself

Once Paul became the master of the He Tu and Luo Shu diagrams, he could enter and exit the world within them with nothing but a single thought. Upon recognizing Paul as their master, the He Tu and Luo Shu embedded themselves into his chest, and if anyone were to see his bare chest, they'd spot a tattoo resembling a grand map of mountains and rivers—none other than the He Tu and Luo Shu themselves.

Now, as Paul entered the world of the He Tu and Luo Shu, the diagram floated out from his chest, transforming into a speck of dust invisible to the naked eye and gently settling on the table.

"The He Tu and Luo Shu world can accelerate time," He Tu explained calmly when Paul asked, "In here, time flows twice as fast as the outside world. Six days here would only mean three days outside."

In reality, four days had passed in the outside world. Paul had left with others on the first day but hadn't returned with them, leading people to believe he had been missing for three days.

"Time acceleration?" Paul's eyes widened with delight. "So, I have twice as much time as others? If they train for one day, I will have trained for two."

He was both shocked and elated. Paul was already sixteen years old. Compared to others who started martial training at the age of five or six, he had fallen behind by nearly ten years. It was widely known that the best time to start martial arts was between five and ten years old. At sixteen, Paul was already considered late. His bones and meridians had essentially solidified, meaning that even if he trained now, he was unlikely to achieve much.

However, he believed that hard work could make up for lost time. With twice the time to train, Paul felt confident he could still achieve great things!

"Time acceleration is only one of the most basic abilities of the He Tu and Luo Shu," He Tu continued, his tone as indifferent as ever. "There are countless other divine powers and abilities within it, but these are things you will need to discover for yourself."

He Tu paused before adding nonchalantly, "To be clear, the He Tu and Luo Shu world can speed up time by billions of years in an instant if you have the capability."

"Billions of years in an instant?" Paul's excitement rose to a fever pitch. "That means while only a moment passes outside, billions of years could pass inside this world!"

The thought sent a chill down Paul's spine—terrifying.

"What kind of conditions do I need to accelerate time to a billion times?" Paul asked eagerly.

He Tu cast a disdainful glance at Paul and immediately dashed his hopes. "Forget about it. You don't even have the conditions to accelerate time by threefold, let alone by billions. Besides, speeding up time won't do you any good. Without enough lifespan, you'd die of old age in an instant."

Paul fell silent. He Tu was right. In this world, the average person could live up to a hundred years. Peak-level martial artists of the Postnatal (Houtian) stage had a lifespan of two hundred years, while those who achieved the Innate (Xiantian) stage could live for five hundred years.

Given Paul's current physical state, he was uncertain if he would even live to seventy or eighty. If he were to accelerate time by billions of times, he would die of old age in the blink of an eye. Moreover, Paul understood that the conditions required to achieve such a high level of time acceleration would be nothing short of monstrous.

"Time to go train," Paul muttered, forcing a grin as he walked over to begin his practice.

Training in the He Tu and Luo Shu World

Paul focused on practicing the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique, a formidable martial technique that channeled immense power. With a single punch, one could summon the image of a dragon and an elephant. At its peak, the technique allowed one to shatter stone and split mountains with ease—and, according to He Tu, it could even crack the heavens and sunder the earth!

Of course, Paul had only just mastered the first level of the technique, and his strength was still limited. But even though the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique was a martial technique, it wasn't reliant on complex moves; it purely harnessed raw physical strength to tear through the heavens and rend the earth.

After a brief session of practicing the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique, Paul switched to the Chaos Celestial Body Sutra, his primary cultivation technique. After a full day of training, the black dragon above his head grew more condensed, nearly solid. Paul could sense that he was on the verge of breaking through to the second level of the Postnatal realm.

In the Great Xia Dynasty—and in fact, the entire mortal world—the most powerful beings were Innate martial artists, while Postnatal martial artists were far more common. In the empire's military, even the average soldier had a Postnatal realm cultivation level between the fifth and sixth layers.

While martial prowess was highly esteemed in this world, true masters were still rare. Most martial artists spent their entire lives trapped in the Postnatal stage. However, families like Paul's, with a lineage of martial artists, had many Innate masters. The descendants of such families also had a significant advantage in martial cultivation.

With access to systematic cultivation techniques and guidance from seasoned masters, geniuses like Paul Yan had already reached the sixth layer of the Postnatal realm by the age of fifteen. Paul Ling, another prodigy, had reached the eighth layer by seventeen and was highly likely to achieve the Innate stage before turning twenty—a truly remarkable talent.

A Clash at the Martial Arena

As dawn broke, Paul stepped out of his room. The moment he opened the door, he was startled to see eight servants from the Imperial Horse Directorate standing in a neat row outside, seemingly waiting for his appearance.

Ever since Paul had crippled Paul Hong, these servants had been intimidated by his newfound power and were eager to curry favor with him. Today, they had even prepared his breakfast and waited for him to wake up.

A sly smile crept across Paul's face. Such treatment was once reserved only for the likes of Paul Hong. All he had done was give Paul Hong a beating...

It seemed this world truly operated on the principle of the strongest ruling. And Paul, seeing no reason to reject their flattery, enjoyed the meal they had prepared. Afterward, he instructed them to take care of the Imperial Horse Directorate while he leisurely made his way to the Paul family's martial arena.

Every morning, regardless of the weather, the younger generation of the Paul family gathered at the martial arena to train. It was a tradition that every martial family upheld—a daily routine that was never skipped.

As Paul arrived at the martial arena, he found the atmosphere bustling with energy. Nearly two hundred of the Paul family's children were gathered, practicing with great enthusiasm. The youngest were only five or six years old, while the oldest were around Paul's age of sixteen or seventeen. Of course, geniuses like Paul Ling didn't need to attend these basic training sessions.

In other words, those who trained at the arena were either beginners or individuals without much talent.

Near the martial arena, Paul leaned against a massive stone, watching the young martial artists in training. In the past, whenever Paul came here, he would simply observe with envy, wishing he could train alongside them. However, today, as he watched them practice, Paul felt none of the old longing.

With a self-deprecating smile, Paul realized why. He was now a martial artist himself, practicing one of the world's top-tier cultivation techniques, and with He Tu, the greatest spirit artifact, guiding him. The only thing holding him back was his cultivation level, but in every other aspect, he far surpassed those on the field.

After watching for a while, Paul grew bored and turned to leave. "I should head to the Sutra Pavilion and see if I can find any suitable martial techniques."

Just as he turned, he bumped into something, and a powerful force sent him stumbling back several steps.

"Well, well, isn't this the infamous trash, Paul? Come to watch others practice again, have you? After all these years, have you learned anything?" A voice dripping with sarcasm rang out, followed by a round of laughter from the others.

Paul's expression remained calm as he looked up. Before him stood five people, the speaker being Paul Ping, one of the direct descendants of the Paul family. Although only fifteen years old, he had already reached the fourth level of the Postnatal realm.

While not a prodigy, he was still far more powerful than Paul, who had long been labeled a good-for-nothing.

Paul inwardly cursed his bad luck—running into this idiot again.

In the Paul family, nearly everyone had bullied Paul at one time or another. His status as a "trash" made him a target for anyone looking to vent their frustrations. All it took was the slightest provocation to put him in the line of fire.

Seeing Paul's dejected expression, Paul Ping grew even more arrogant. His eyes flashed with cruelty as he prepared to strike Paul. In truth, he had deliberately approached Paul, eager to bully the family "trash" once more—a ritual he had repeated nearly every day.

"Paul Ping, if you don't want to die, you'd better get over here right now!" A thunderous voice boomed from the martial arena, sending a shockwave through the air.

Paul Ping flinched, his neck shrinking instinctively. With a venomous glare at Paul, he spat, "I'll settle this with you next time." With that, he and his lackeys hurried off toward the martial arena.

Paul's eyes gleamed with a sharp light. For a moment, he had the impulse to give Paul Ping the beating of a lifetime. But he knew that Paul Ping wasn't like Paul Hong. His strength far exceeded.