Cave Refuge

Although Dong Tianyu had a mixed spirit root, the palace of gold still presented hundreds of different cultivation methods for him to choose from.

With the help of survival points, Dong Tianyu could filter out the methods that didn't match his skillset well. Eventually, he chose a method called 'Chaos Decision'.

This cultivation method had high compatibility. No matter how the spirit root was before cultivation, the methodology would gradually transform any type of spirit root into a chaos spirit root after practice.

Other than that, once the technique was successfully cultivated, it would circulate within the body on its own, constantly absorbing energy from the surrounding air. This energy included, but was not limited to, Spirit Energy.

Due to this special feature, after practicing Chaos Decision, one could become immune to a certain degree of pure energy attacks. Rather than immunity, it would be better to describe it as absorption.

Although the method had numerous advantages, it also had its conspicuous downfall. The cultivation method's route was extremely complex; a regular person would find it difficult to successfully practice it.

Even though once practiced successfully for the first time, the technique would circulate within the body on its own. However, during the initial practice, there must not be the slightest deviation, or else it may result in severe injuries or even death due to deviation from the cultivation. Hence, the technique was extremely difficult to master.

For the Hall of Longevity with an auto-cultivation ability, successfully practicing the technique for the first time was extremely simple.

After exhausting another five hundred survival points on a primary cultivation method, the survival points displayed on the Data Layout had fallen below five hundred.

Although he wanted to cultivate some more spells, looking at the remaining four hundred-plus points on the Data Layout, Dong Tianyu could do nothing but shake his head and, for the time being, give up his plans to cultivate magic techniques.

Once he calmed down, Dong Tianyu planned to take a walk around Pengcheng. As the factory was gradually resuming production, Pengcheng was slowly regaining its prosperity.

However, the very instant Dong Tianyu left his Cave mansion, he felt a jolt. He suddenly felt that the outer world also had a breathing rhythm, and it was identical to the rhythm of Chaos Decision's circulation in his body.

However, this feeling wasn't long-lived and was only a split-second occurrence. If it wasn't for Dong Tianyu's possession of Divine Sense, he may not even have noticed this.

However, no one knew that in that moment of inhalation and exhalation, it was as if Blue Star had come back to life.

At that time, Blue Star, much like a black hole, gradually began to absorb the surrounding meteor fragments, pulling them towards itself. The dragged meteor fragments broke down into tiny particles as they entered the planetary atmosphere, silently merging into Blue Star.

Unfortunately, the survivors on Blue Star were completely unaware of these changes.

Although Dong Tianyu sensed something earlier, the process was too slow. So, he simply made a note of the event and didn't delve too much into it.

However, when he stepped outside the next day, he noticed a change in the temperature. The temperature outside was two or three degrees higher than the day before.

A small fluctuation in the outside temperature was rather normal. After all, even on the same day, the temperature difference between noon and night could vary significantly.

Under normal circumstances, an average person wouldn't even notice a slight change in temperature, let alone care about it.

However, even without building a foundation, just in Qi Refining stage, Dong Tianyu could sense the exact temperature outside.

"Ah! The hot summer is approaching."

Upon noticing this, Dong Tianyu knew he had to remind his parents.

Dong Tianyu's vehicle had been upgraded. His bike now had a single-cylinder engine, transforming it into a simple motorcycle.

In the beginning, such contraptions were rare on the roads. However, just a few days later, they could be seen everywhere on Pengcheng Roads.

This was the power of a revived industry.

When Dong Tianyu arrived home, no one was in. He wasn't bothered by this, as his parents had already retired. His father, Mr. Thompson, would usually play badminton with his elderly group in the morning, whereas his mother, Mrs. Thompson, would join her group of besties for some singing. Their retired life was quite colorful.

Being idle, Dong Tianyu scrounged up some dough in the kitchen and made some oil cakes.

Making these oil cakes was simple. He would add some flour to a bowl, crack two eggs into it, add some water and stir until it was uniform. It was ready when he could lift the batter with chopsticks without breaking it.

There was no specific ratio for the flour and water. If the batter was too hard, he would add water; if it was too thin, he would add flour.

It was best to use a flat-bottomed pan. He would brush the pan with oil, pour in the batter adjusting its thickness based on personal preference, and let it cook for a while.

When Dong Tianyu was almost done with his batter, Mr. Thompson returned home. Seeing Dong Tianyu cooking in the kitchen, Mr. Thompson found it surprising.

Mr. Thompson knew that Dong Tianyu could cook, but whenever Dong Tianyu came home, he seldom cooked himself.

"What made you think of cooking today?"

Hearing Mr. Thompson's voice, Dong Tianyu cooked the last oil cake to perfection. While clearing the kitchen, he replied, "Are you back from playing ball? What time does mom usually get back?"

Setting the racket down and changing clothes, Mr. Thompson answered Dong Tianyu, "Yes, I'm back. Your mother is not coming home today. Haipeng came over yesterday and said your uncle is back. They are planning a family gathering at your grandfather's place tonight. We were wondering how to inform you, didn't expect you to be home this morning."

Hearing this, Dong Tianyu brought the oil cakes out from the kitchen and said enthusiastically, "My uncle is back? Isn't he living at his father-in-law's with my aunt?"

Mr. Thompson took an oil cake from the tray and tore it apart. He made sure it was cooked before putting it in his mouth, "Tastes average, you need more practice. As for your uncle, I'm not too sure. But Haipeng seemed a bit gleeful, which indicates that your uncle might not be having a good time there."

Hearing what his father said, Dong Tianyu didn't feel much about it. Despite his uncle nearing retirement age, Dong Tianyu felt his uncle still acted like a child.

Perhaps it was due to having a son late in life or because of his grandparents and Mrs. Thompson, along with his elder aunt and Grace being too caring about his uncle, they didn't let his uncle worry about anything.

Even though his uncle was nice to Dong Tianyu, his selfish mannerisms and quirky behavior were hard to ignore.

For instance, when he took Dong Tianyu and his cousin fishing in a fish pond, he purposely bent Dong Tianyu's fishhook since the pond charged by the weight of the fish, and the fish were easy to catch - you could pull one up every time you put down your hook.

The normal practice was to secretly throw back any unwanted fish into the pond. But as Dong Tianyu's uncle had to watch over two kids, he made a point to ensure that even if the fish took the bait, the hook wouldn't catch the fish's lip due to its bent shape.

As such, Dong Tianyu's cousin, under uncle's supervision, was successful in catching fish from time to time, whereas Dong Tianyu sat alone holding his fishing rod looking like a fool the entire morning.

Initially, Dong Tianyu wasn't aware of this and thought that it was due to his poor fishing skills that he couldn't catch any fish but later on, Dong Tianyu's brother casually mentioned it during a meal when he was older.