After breakfast, I made my way to the training grounds, feeling the familiar thrill of anticipation that came with working on new techniques. The sect had announced that tournament participants would receive free access to the private training facilities until the competition finished.

The private training grounds were located in a separate complex behind the main administrative buildings, accessible only to inner disciples under normal circumstances. As I approached the entrance pavilion, I could see other tournament participants moving between various specialized chambers, each designed for different cultivation focuses.

The attendant at the desk, a middle-aged inner disciple with the patient expression of someone who'd explained the same rules countless times, looked up as I approached.

"Name and cultivation focus?" he asked in a bored tone.

"Ke Yin, wood and plant-based cultivation methods."

He consulted a jade slip, running his finger down what appeared to be a list of available facilities. "Training Ground Seven should suit your needs. It's designed for nature-based cultivation with living soil, ambient wood qi, and growth acceleration formations."

He handed me a token marked with the number seven. "The chamber will recognize your spiritual signature and remain sealed to others while you're inside. Maximum session length is twenty-four hours, after which the formations will automatically cycle for the next user."

"Thank you," I said, accepting the token. "Is there anything I should know about the facility?"

"Standard rules apply," he said, returning to his paperwork. "No permanent modifications to the chamber, no introducing foreign substances without approval, and obviously no techniques that could damage the infrastructure. The formations are designed to contain up to Stellar Realm techniques, so don't hold back during practice."

I made my way through the complex, following carved stone markers toward Training Ground Seven. The building was remarkably well-maintained, with spiritual energy flowing through visible formations carved into the walls and floors. This was clearly a significant investment by the sect, designed to nurture their most promising disciples.

Training Ground Seven was located at the end of a quiet corridor, its entrance marked by a heavy door carved with intricate tree and vine patterns. I pressed my token against a small formation array beside the door, feeling it scan my spiritual signature before the locks disengaged with a soft click.

The chamber beyond was breathtaking.

I'd expected a simple practice room with some basic plant-friendly features, but this was an entire miniature ecosystem. The space was larger than my entire quarters, with a high ceiling that disappeared into what looked like a canopy of living branches. Rich, dark soil covered the floor in various terraced sections, already sprouting with different types of spiritual plants and flowers.

Wood qi hung thick in the air, so dense I could practically taste it. The ambient energy would significantly enhance any plant-based techniques I practiced here, accelerating growth rates and strengthening the connection between my cultivation and the natural environment.

"This is incredible," I breathed, walking into the center of the chamber. "No wonder inner disciples always seem so much more advanced than us outer disciples. Access to facilities like this would accelerate anyone's development."

"Master," Azure said, his voice filled with appreciation, "the formation work here is extremely sophisticated. These aren't just growth enhancement arrays, they're creating an artificial ecosystem that mimics optimal cultivation conditions for wood-element techniques."

I could feel what he meant as I extended my spiritual sense throughout the chamber. The formations weren't simply pushing energy into the space; they were creating complex cycles that balanced growth, decay, and renewal in carefully controlled patterns. The soil itself was alive with beneficial microorganisms and spiritual essence cycles that would respond to my techniques.

Finding a comfortable spot near the chamber's center, I sat down cross-legged on the soft earth and pulled out the scroll Sect Master Yuan had left on my desk. The parchment felt warm in my hands, radiating subtle spiritual energy that suggested it contained more than just written information.

The scroll was longer than I'd expected, covered in dense text and detailed diagrams that would require careful study to fully understand. But just from the introduction, I could tell this was exactly the kind of advanced technique that could transform my combat capabilities.

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"Partial Manifestation of the Realm Stabilizing Tree - Intermediate Cultivation Technique for World Tree Sutra Practitioners"

"Prerequisites: Successful integration of a complete Realm Stabilizing Tree within the cultivator's inner world."

"Warning: This technique involves projecting aspects of your inner world into external reality. Improper execution may result in spiritual backlash, inner world destabilization, or temporary loss of access to integrated treasures. Begin with minimal manifestations and increase scope gradually."

"Important Distinction: This technique is NOT a domain manifestation. Domains involve projecting the laws and environmental conditions of one's entire inner world onto external reality, typically requiring Stellar Realm cultivation and risking catastrophic backlash if disrupted. Tree manifestation projects only specific physical structures without altering local reality laws or environmental conditions."

I paused in my reading, absorbing that crucial distinction. I'd read about domains in the sect library, legendary techniques where Stellar Realm cultivators or rare prodigies in the Qi Condensation Realm could temporarily overlay their inner world's properties onto external space, gaining overwhelming advantages by fighting under their own cultivated laws and conditions.

But domains were incredibly dangerous to use and nearly impossible to achieve below Stellar Realm. Most Qi Condensation cultivators who'd attempted domain manifestation had typically suffered permanent spiritual damage or inner world collapse. This tree manifestation technique was apparently something much safer and more focused.

"Theoretical Foundation: The Realm Stabilizing Tree exists simultaneously within your inner world and as a conceptual anchor in dimensional space. Through careful spiritual manipulation, portions of the tree's essence can be temporarily manifested in external reality without compromising the original structure. Think of this as creating a reflection rather than removing pieces of the source."

"Unlike domain techniques that attempt to impose your inner world's laws upon external reality, tree manifestation simply projects physical structures that retain their inherent properties. No reality alteration occurs; you are essentially creating temporary constructs from stabilized dimensional essence."

That made much more sense.

Instead of trying to fundamentally alter the nature of space around me, which would require power levels far beyond my current capabilities, this technique let me create specific objects that maintained their useful properties without the catastrophic risks associated with domain work.

"Basic Manifestation Method: Begin by establishing deep meditation connection with your Realm Stabilizing Tree. Feel its roots, its trunk, its branches as extensions of your own spiritual body. The tree is not separate from you; it is part of your cultivated reality."

"Once connection is established, gather spiritual essence from the tree's roots and channel it through your meridians to your hands. Do not attempt to 'pull' the tree into external reality. Instead, allow its essence to flow through you as a conduit, creating a manifestation anchored by your spiritual presence."

"First attempts should focus on manifesting individual branches or root sections no larger than your forearm. The manifestation will appear as translucent wood with silver spiritual veining, maintaining the tree's stabilizing properties but existing independently of the source."

That sounded manageable, though I suspected the execution would be more difficult than the instructions made it appear. Most advanced cultivation techniques had a gap between theoretical understanding and practical application that could only be bridged through extensive practice.

"Defensive Applications: Manifested tree sections retain the Realm Stabilizing Tree's primary property: absolute spiritual stability. Attacks that rely on disrupting qi flow, dimensional manipulation, or reality distortion will be significantly weakened when encountering manifested wood barriers. Physical attacks will be absorbed and distributed through the manifestation's structure, though excessive force may cause the manifestation to disperse."

"Combat Duration: Manifestations last depending on the cultivator's spiritual essence reserves and the size of the manifested section. Larger manifestations require exponentially more energy and concentration to maintain."

I found myself nodding as I read.

This was exactly what I'd been missing in my combat arsenal. I had Verduring Step and Blink Step for mobility, plenty of offensive options through my runes and plant manipulation, but my defensive capabilities were limited to the Aegis Mark and whatever barriers I could create with vines and branches.

A defense that could neutralize qi-disruption attacks would be incredibly valuable, especially against opponents like Wu Kangming whose sword techniques seemed designed to cut through energy-based defenses.

"Advanced Techniques: Experienced practitioners can manifest multiple tree sections simultaneously, create interlocking defensive networks, or even temporarily manifest the tree's crown for area denial effects. These applications require Elemental Realm cultivation or higher and years of dedicated practice."

"Critical Safety Note: Manifestations that are destroyed in combat will NOT damage your inner world's Realm Stabilizing Tree. The manifested essence automatically returns to the source when the external structure is compromised. However, rapid manifestation and destruction cycles can cause temporary spiritual exhaustion."

That was the most important information in the entire scroll. Knowing I could use the technique aggressively without risking my inner world's stability removed my biggest concern about practicing with it.

I set the scroll aside and closed my eyes, extending my spiritual sense inward to my inner world.

It was time to practice.

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