The Spider moved at an astonishing speed across the room and passed through the doors by going underneath them.
'Incredible, it changes its size at will to pass through impossible places,' thought Xiaotian.
The spider's entire vision was transmitted to his mind with terrifying clarity. He could practically see every detail, every movement... even the ants were visible to him.
The spider quickly crossed the doors; he didn't send it to snoop around the other offices on this floor because that would be disrespectful, but he did take a quick look at them before going downstairs.
The speed at which this thing moved made him a little dizzy, but it reached the fourth floor. There weren't many people training here, as usual. So he didn't look too closely, though he did pass by the few novices training.
He could hear, see, and even smell everything, gaining a perfect and detailed view of each of their movements.
Suddenly, he realized something. He could use this not only to study his enemies, but also to learn from the fighters and their movements in this place.
It was a rich source of information, not only for espionage, but also for strengthening himself.
On the lower floors, he focused on an area where a couple of Tower instructors were teaching different techniques to the official members.
No one noticed that a small spider was right in the middle of them, watching them closely.
"For us swordsmen, good movement technique is just as important as sword technique. We attack with swords, but we must defend ourselves with quick movements, as we have no shields."
"Although the sword can also be used for defense, it is not highly recommended to use it for that purpose. So, good movement technique would allow you to get the most out of your sword attacks."
The elderly teacher pointed to something on the table beside him. "I made a copy for each of you; it is the Fast Feet cultivation technique, well known in our Tower. Starting today and throughout this week, we will be learning it. Please stand up one by one to get your copy."
Xiaotian watched intently as the students began practicing this movement technique. Today was supposed to be his turn to start learning these movement techniques. Gathering information beforehand was a good idea.
He carefully watched the training sessions until he had a mental picture of the levels of technique and the correct way to train, as taught by the teachers.
It was when he was most focused on this that he noticed movement near him and opened his eyes.
Elder Yan had entered the room.
'Come back,' Xiaotian ordered the spider to return at full speed.
It ran uphill and passed under the Elder before disappearing into Xiaotian's hand.
"How is your cultivation going?" Elder Yan asked when he saw him sitting in the cultivation position. He would not have imagined that Xiaotian was snooping around the secrets of his Tower; nor did he need to know.
"My talent is very low, Elder," Xiaotian replied. "I have barely been able to advance to 55% these days. But it is getting more and more difficult."
"Barely?" The elder scoffed. "Brat, you're quite arrogant in your display of humility." He scolded him.
"I've never seen a guy who claims to have a level 2 life root, raising his cultivation as if he were someone with a level 3 life root or higher. How silly of you to be so humble."
Xiaotian shook his head helplessly.
Perhaps, in the long run, he was better than many at his level; that was partly because he didn't need to sleep for a full 8 hours. Approximately 3 hours pass in the real world when he has already slept for 9. That gives him a huge advantage over his rivals, as he uses others' downtime to train.
But the point is that he wouldn't need his Level 2 Life Root in the long run, because the system assured and proved that it could increase its level.
He needed strength in the short term.
In a few weeks, he would have to face those people from the Zhang Family in a tournament. He would surely have to face Lucheng or Xiao Ding, the two most outstanding of the current generation, leaving out his older cousin, who would not be coming.
Despite having recently defeated Lucheng, it was in a battle where cultivation was not a factor. They limited themselves exclusively to sword tactics, in which Xiaotian can assure that he is far above them.
But when cultivation comes into play, the terrain changes. Lucheng's strength is much greater than his.
'If I'm not mistaken, he was in the Prime Stage of the Body Strengthening Realm when he returned from the sect,' he thought, which also meant that his body was quite strong, much stronger than his own.
After all, Lucheng became a cultivator two years ago. All that time, he had not only devoted himself to strengthening his cultivation but had also invested heavily in his body, as he would need it to try to advance to the Elemental Root Realm.
Unlike him, who had been a cultivator for less than a month and had invested most of his spiritual energy in his cultivation and sword technique training, leaving very little for his body.
The difference was really big.
Not to mention that Xiao Ding, who had been a cultivator for four years, was surely already in the Initial Stage of the Elemental Root Realm...
A long sigh escaped his mouth, causing the Elder to laugh helplessly.
It was the first time he had seen such a talented boy being frustrated by his "lack of talent." This is what creates family division, after all.
'I can't say I don't understand; I, better than anyone, should be the one who understands him best.' He smiled and, after finishing tidying up his office, took out a couple of scrolls and handed them to him.
"A cultivator should always have a wide variety of attacks at their disposal. Relying on a legacy technique is best, but it shouldn't be the only option. From time to time, it's worth having a Cultivation Technique; it can help you in different situations without using too much energy."