True Qi washed over his flesh.
The injuries that had previously marred his body began to heal at a rate visible to the naked eye under the impact of the powerful True Qi.
When the True Qi calmed and returned to his Dantian, Shen Changqing discovered that some of the less severe injuries had almost completely healed. Even the more serious injuries, which had been tainted with a cold, sinister qi, were all purged. Although some remnants lingered, they no longer posed a significant problem.
With the ninth layer of the Pure Yang Technique, I can now consider myself to have officially broken through to the Pulse Condensation Peak! Shen Changqing steadied his mind. The True Qi in his Dantian was vigorous, nearing a transformative stage. Seeing this, he was quite pleased.
However, the advancement from the eighth to the ninth layer of the Pure Yang Technique consumed five Slaughter Value points. The remaining Slaughter Value won't allow for much more improvement. Shen Changqing mused. Undoubtedly, reaching Perfection in the Pure Yang Technique required more Slaughter Value than the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique because the former is inherently more powerful. If one were to classify Martial Arts, the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique would merely be considered a foundational Martial Art. The Pure Yang Technique, on the other hand, would be deemed an advanced Martial Art, a tier above the former.
Having slain the Demon Evil here, when I return to the Capital City, I will be a formally recognized Demon Hunter. A Yellow Rank Demon Hunter is qualified to access the second level of the Scripture Pavilion, where surely even more powerful Martial Arts are recorded. However, from what I see now, conserving my Slaughter Value to study higher-level Martial Arts upon returning isn't necessarily the best choice. My remaining Slaughter Value is ten points. Considering the consumption for my current Martial Arts, I can roughly estimate the increased cost for enhancing higher-level Martial Arts. Even if each level only required one additional Slaughter Value point, at best, I could only raise a higher-level Martial Art to around the third level. A Martial Art, irrespective of its depth, might not be stronger than a lower-level one unless developed to a significantly higher level. To put it another way, the third level of the Pure Yang Technique would definitely not surpass the fifteenth level of the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique.
Therefore, rather than saving Slaughter Value to study a new Martial Art, it might be better to commit fully to one path. There might be unexpected gains. Besides, if I can enhance my strength and continue to undertake Yellow Rank Demon Hunter missions, my safety margin will undoubtedly increase a great deal. Given that Zhao Fang and the others dared to collude with Demon Evils, it's possible other powerful figures lurk behind them. In this case, boosting my own strength would provide greater assurance!
With this thought, Shen Changqing immediately made up his mind. He focused his mind on the panel. After breaking through to the ninth layer, the Pure Yang Technique could still be elevated further.
Enhance! Shen Changqing silently commanded in his heart.
Suddenly, it was as if seas overturned and rivers churned within his Dantian. A Great Sun seemed to rise from within, an overwhelmingly potent and scorching force instantly sweeping through his entire body. At the same time, his Qi and Blood began to gradually wane.
At that moment, Shen Changqing's skin faintly turned red, as if something was trying to break free from his flesh.
Following that, the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique erupted. His Qi and Blood vibrated. A gleam flickered across his flesh. No matter how fiercely the scorching force battered him, it was forcibly suppressed each time.
After several such exchanges, the scorching force finally settled, operating normally within his body before returning to a standstill in his Dantian.
PHEW!
Once the Pure Yang True Qi had calmed, Shen Changqing let out a long breath. The simple exhalation created a faint air current that stirred the dead leaves on the ground.
He calmed his mind and began to observe the changes within himself.
The Pure Yang Technique has broken through to the tenth level. The Pure Yang True Qi seems to be undergoing some sort of metamorphosis; its temperature is much higher than before. If my flesh weren't strong enough, the recent advancement might not have failed, but I very likely would have been injured. Beyond that, my Qi and Blood have also become somewhat depleted—
Shen Changqing frowned. I had thought that as long as I had Slaughter Value, I could advance without limitation. But now it seems some Martial Arts cannot be recklessly advanced. When Martial Arts are improved, the physical body must keep pace; otherwise, it simply cannot contain so much True Qi. Not only that, as the Pure Yang Technique improved, my Qi and Blood were also depleting. It's evident that True Qi doesn't appear out of thin air but is transformed from Qi and Blood. This is somewhat different from the enhancement process of the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique. But now, the depletion of Qi and Blood has reached a noticeable level.
Of course, the fifteenth level of the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique had made my physique incredibly strong; so strong that the enhancement to the tenth level of the Pure Yang Technique didn't have too much impact. And it was far from reaching a limit.
At this moment, five Slaughter Value points had been consumed. As he had anticipated, breaking through the limits of the Pure Yang Technique consumed more than the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training Technique—the latter cost three points per level, the former five.
Fortunately, I still have five Slaughter Value points left, just enough for one more level.
As the thought settled, the Slaughter Value was completely exhausted.
Immediately after, his Qi and Blood began to deplete at a frenzied pace. Simultaneously, the Pure Yang Technique within his Dantian also visibly increased with incredible speed.
As one declined and the other grew, Shen Changqing, while falling into a weakened state, also felt as if his body was filled with surging power.
In the next moment, the metamorphosis of the Pure Yang Technique was complete.
Then, uncontrollably, it rampaged throughout his body, shattering one meridian point after another—
BOOM!!
His flesh vibrated wildly. It was as if a primordial beast was wreaking havoc within. Yet no matter how wildly it rampaged, it could not break free from the confines of his flesh.
Gradually, the force of the onslaught diminished. The meridians in his body had been opened up considerably during the rampage.
By the time the Pure Yang True Qi returned to his Dantian, if one could inspect Shen Changqing's flesh with the naked eye, they would discover the newly opened meridian points flickering with faint light, slowly connecting.
The moment the connections formed, an invisible membrane emerged.
As the membrane materialized, Shen Changqing experienced a moment of enlightenment.
Gang Qi!
"Innate Gang Qi!" he exhaled, as though a great burden had been lifted.
When Body Tempering reaches its pinnacle and True Qi Generation occurs, one may step into the Pulse Condensation Realm. The main focus of the Pulse Condensation Realm is to nurture True Qi and open the meridians. Once the meridians are opened to a certain degree and can complete a Grand Circulation, Gang Qi will naturally form within a Martial Artist's body.
This Gang Qi is also referred to as Inner Gang.
Martial Artists who reach this step formally transition from the Pulse Condensation Realm to the Innate Realm.