When it came to the opportunities and fortuitous encounters that Geochin harvested in Murim Supremacy, almost 99% of them were courtesy of the generous Murim Lord.
Not only did he let him in on hidden secrets like the Azure Fruit's emergence, but he also clued him in about the value of items relevant to his limited Internal Energy condition like the Violet Plum Core.
'All protagonists are innately lucky.'
However, just like Geochin managed to take the Azure Fruit in such an impossible situation from under everyone's noses, his luck was a factor just as important, if not even more, as the Sword Emperor Encyclopedia.
A major example of that was the way Geochin managed to obtain one of the greatest cheat items in the whole novel!
He had just managed to defeat the Mutated Centaur with the power of cheats and friendship when he comically collapsed on the snow, luckily causing the Frozen Bloom to rise and shine.
At the same time, it just happened that he was holding the Violet Plum Core in his hand to recharge towards the end of the battle, and then… Everything just happened on its own!
[ Hidden Event occurrence has been detected. ]
There were certain methods to consume the Frozen Bloom without losing any of its efficacy, but Leo didn't have to worry about that as the Violet Plum Core started heating up on its own, directly disintegrating the flower into energy particles and sucking it all up!
[ Hidden Piece, Frozen Plum Core, discovered. ]
[ You have received 295 Reading Points. ]
Though it was easier to say that it was all for the convenience of the plot, the author of Murim Supremacy made sure to draw up a great picture that explained the connection between the two Hidden Pieces.
Though the vibrant and lively picture of Mount Hua's plum blossom seemed to have nothing to do with ice and snow, the main concept behind the plum blossom sword technique was closely related to the contrasting frigidity!
Only by having the tenacity to grow, flower, blossom, and eventually bloom in the harshest environments like the frozen Northern Island could the Plum Tree achieve mystical status and give birth to Plum Blossom Energy.
A flower that specifically grew in frozen environments like the Frozen Bloom was nothing short of an extreme evolution in one of the directions pursued by Mount Hua's swordsmanship!
Though in another direction, the Violet Plum Core was nurtured with the same concept in mind, which resulted in its mystical ability to absorb energy from the surrounding atmosphere.
So naturally, once it came into close contact with the Frozen Bloom, it instantly absorbed its mystical twin, transforming into something much more vibrant and tenacious, the Frozen Plum Core!
'It's working!'
Feeling the lively new energy surging from the core into his meridians, Leo's worries about Meditation back on Earth were finally alleviated. His Martial Arts path wouldn't be cut off once he left Murim!
The Violet Plum Core on its own was promising. The recurring theme in novels always dictated that the protagonist would find that there was some 'Energy' in Earth's atmosphere. However, Leo had no idea what it would be like on real Earth.
In most cases, even if there was 'Energy' around, it was likely to be scarce, or else True Beasts might have already appeared back home. In the end, Leo had to obtain his own special 'Energy Source' as most protagonists did.
It was just that instead of betting that something like that would exist in reality, Leo preferred to take one with him back home, just like he unknowingly did with the Sword Breath Generator!
'The concept behind it is scientifically impossible, but since it said so in the novel…'
Unlike the Violet Plum Core that just gathered surrounding energy and released it whenever its user desired, just like a rechargeable battery, the Frozen Plum Core was no different from an infinite energy generator!
Even Leo wasn't sure how that worked since its mechanism was only roughly covered in the novel, but the Frozen Bloom's original effects apparently turned the Violet Plum Core into a mini-martial artist…
The Frost Energy that would have created an additional compartment attached to the Dantian for whoever consumed it basically transformed the core into a portable Dantian!
And just like Martial Artists passively recovered their energy once it settled down in their Dantian for the first time, the Frozen Plum Core had the ability to passively recharge itself even without gathering Energy from the atmosphere!
Even for some who didn't have the same situation as Leo, the effect was nothing short of miraculous for every other Martial Artist.
Owning the Frozen Plum Core not only meant getting an initial Internal Energy Boost as big as 30 years of Internal Energy but also included receiving additional boosts over time, albeit being smaller.
Most importantly, the Energy produced by the core was nothing like the ones contained in pills. Its purity was impeccable, and there was no resistance or toxin build-up to be wary of!
Of course, such scam effects also meant that it would likely cost a big chunk of Reading points.
'I couldn't risk it even if it ends up being more costly.'
However, even when being fully aware of that, Leo didn't attempt the stunt of taking the two raw ingredients home before combining them there.
There was no guarantee that this fantastical combination method would work in reality where the laws of novels are no longer effective! What if being stingy only resulted in completely losing such an important lifeline?
"Ho… It had a function like this?"
Sohee had already run behind Bing Baek to chat more while Yong answered his master's call, but Yeon was right beside Leo as he performed the whole magical show.
The semi-grumpy face that she was making disappeared as her eyes sparkled, even for someone who had received centuries of blurred memories like her, seeing such special energy revolutions through her mystical eyes was a rare experience.
"Cool, right?"
After witnessing the overwhelming cuteness produced by Yeon's evolution from anger to curiosity, Leo had a big smile plastered on his face. He was really going to miss her…