Bai Mo decided not to worry about whether his direction was correct, persisting in using his Divine Sense to replace his normal vision. He found that when using his Divine Sense at full power, his brain had to process immense amounts of incoming information every moment, and the sheer impact of this data prevented him from dwelling on other matters.
He needed a massive influx of information to fill his emptiness, to keep himself from agonizing over the issue of direction. Thus, his use of Divine Sense transformed from a resolute conviction into a peculiar form of sensory anesthesia.
As deep winter set in, the wind and snow in Ukraine intensified, yet none of it touched him in his cultivation. His Absorption Skin ensured that energy almost exclusively entered his body without dissipating. Only the persistent falling snow bothered Bai Mo slightly, forcing him to shake it off every so often.
"Lying idly on a leaking nuclear reactor, quietly lost in thought—truly a bizarre pleasure," he mused, stretching lazily. He stood atop the twenty-meter-high reactor, shaking off the blanket of snow covering him, feeling the biting cold wind around him. "What a pity, there's not a hint of chill. Not even a trace of the feeling of 'solitary fishing on a cold river in snow'."
"It took a full three weeks of uninterrupted Divine Sense usage for my brain to start adapting to the immense data stream, to truly use Divine Sense as a sensory organ. If only I had a few pills like CHP4, how much trouble that would save."
"Before, I treated Divine Sense like a pair of glasses, but from now on, it *is* my eyes."
"Although I still haven't found the sensation of integrating with my Life Field, I've at least grown accustomed to observing this world directly with Divine Sense."
Bai Mo leaped with feline agility from one foothold to another. After four or five such transitions, he successfully reached the ground from the twenty-meter-high summit.
"Considering the time, it's about time to go back and prepare for the Ability User Conference. However, if it weren't for the fact that my body started struggling to cope with the rapid pace of Spirit Energy Transformation, I'd much rather continue hiding here. As a cultivation holy land, this place is simply perfect: no one to disturb me, and an endless supply of energy waiting for me to absorb."
"A memorial unable to be forgotten, a memorial for the sake of forgetting, farewell." Bai Mo jumped into the car parked beside the nuclear power plant's outer wall, indulging in a rare moment of literary flourish as he waved at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. "I wonder if there will still be radiation here the next time I return, or if it will have transformed into a land of celestial wonders?"
Bai Mo returned in February, with endless snow blanketing his path. If he hadn't relied on his Divine Sense to orient himself, even a GPS would have been useless. Amidst the swirling snow, every direction on the ground was an endless, despair-inducing white for ordinary people. The so-called roads were all buried beneath thick layers of snow.
After a long, arduous journey, the travel-worn Bai Mo finally spotted inhabited villages. The villagers were all holed up in their homes; only upon driving into the city center did people begin to appear on the streets. After making his way through the city, Bai Mo returned the car to the hotel where he had rented it. Once he had handed over the vehicle and retrieved his hefty deposit, Bai Mo, who had lived like a wildman for a month, once again checked into a five-star luxury suite, a symbol of civilization and prosperity.
"A month without a shower, my hair's all knotted. When can I reach the 'not a single leaf touches the body' realm mentioned in cultivation novels? It'd be great to reach a state where I just don't get dirty." Bai Mo grumbled, vigorously scrubbing his hair in the shower.
The next day, Bai Mo, carrying his luggage, embarked on his journey home. The path to the airport this time was remarkably peaceful; no bald men came looking for trouble. Of course, the primary reason was that all the local bald men were still lying in hospital beds or incarcerated in police stations. Bai Mo, after all, had treated them like robot toys from his childhood, playing with them quite violently.
Upon returning home, Bai Mo received an email notification instructing him to gather at the Dao Academy Building two days later for pre-departure tests. This was also to confirm if his combat prowess was sufficient for the corresponding position, lest he bring shame to Huaxia during the exchange.
"Another boring display of muscle-flexing, as expected," Bai Mo muttered to himself after seeing the combat prowess competition.
Just as Bai Mo was muttering to himself, Zhang Jin Qu called him.
"Xiao Mo, how are you preparing? From what I know, after nearly two months, many people have made considerable progress. The team is currently full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, so you need to be careful, or even with my recommendation, your vice-captain position won't be stable," Zhang Jin Qu said with a teasing laugh.
"Don't worry, General."
"A lot has happened this past month, you know. Thanks to you, young man, the Spirit Stones at the foot of volcanoes have become strategic resources. Now, every volcanic base is heavily guarded, with unauthorized entry strictly forbidden. Professional geological survey teams have already gone in to inspect and prepare for mining operations. Such a massive development naturally couldn't be kept secret from others; both those with ulterior motives and those without have realized the importance of Spirit Stones. The entire world is in an uproar now, especially regarding volcanoes located on disputed borders."
"Spirit Stones truly have immense appeal," Bai Mo said, laughing it off.
"Don't tell me you didn't think of this before submitting those documents, you scamp. According to the intelligence we've gathered, some smaller nations have already begun to mobilize their armies and prepare for war over the Spirit Stones on their borders. Moreover, current geological surveys indicate that our own country shares Spirit Stone deposits along some borders with neighboring nations. Now those annoying fellows are clinging even more tenaciously, a pack of greedy curs!"
"What's the difference what they fight over? If there's oil, they fight for oil; if there's gold, they fight for gold. This time, with Spirit Stones, they'll fight for Spirit Stones, that's all. With such immense profits at stake, the nation as a collective isn't in the business of yielding."
"Are you afraid of nothing but order, young man?" Zhang Jin Qu asked.
Feeling a bit sheepish, Zhang Jin Qu didn't answer directly, instead steering the conversation to another topic.
"For this exchange conference, our Huaxia delegation plans to bring 20 people from the Dao Academy and 10 from the military's ability users. As for who from the higher-ups will attend, you'll find out then. The meeting location has been set for Rome, Italy, with departure in one week. I'm confident that the final departure list released in two days will not be without your name. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll hang up now."
"Goodbye."
After hanging up, Bai Mo, following the adjustment experiences gained from his discussions with Hua Taishan and the others, slowly refined his posture and habits for exerting force. He was adapting to the explosive power that now coursed through his entire body, the result of completing the Spirit Energy Transformation of his muscles, blood, major tendons, and bones in Ukraine.
During his month in Ukraine, Bai Mo, relying on the Spirit Qi concentration in the Chernobyl reactor, which was ten times greater than that of Tianhai, as well as the intense nuclear radiation itself and his further evolved Absorption Skin, completed a Spirit Energy Transformation process that would have originally required a year of accumulation.
Bai Mo's physical constitution had already reached the peak of this stage. The remaining Spirit Energy Transformation of his brain and a few individual organs would generally not significantly impact his physical constitution itself.
Meanwhile, his Life Field, now integrated with the Absorption Skin, not only increased further in strength but also gained the ability to absorb energy. Energy-based attacks landing on him were essentially halved, and combined with the Life Field's inherent defense, light kinetic weapons like pistols were now ineffective against Bai Mo.
In the final two days, all Bai Mo did was continuously adapt to his burgeoning power, ensuring that its output remained under his control. He didn't want to accidentally crush a glass when reaching for it. Simultaneously, he experimented with adjusting his method of exerting force, allowing himself to unleash the body's latent strength to a greater extent.