Chapter 131: Chapter 102: Star Shift

In the Quiet Chamber.

Chen Qing felt the vibrant strand of Cyan Wood True Qi within his Dantian.

It was like a newborn vine—slender, yet suffused with a powerful Life Force. It flowed slowly through his meridians, nourishing his entire body.

’So this is True Qi?’

With a mere thought, the Cyan Wood True Qi moved at his command, flowing wherever he wished.

Only by stepping into the Embracing Pill Force realm could one generate True Qi.

Once one possessed True Qi, the power of their Martial Arts would multiply. They could learn Lightweight Body Techniques and, even more, could circulate their energy for Body Protection, Strengthening the Foundation and Nourishing the Essence, and Healing and Detoxification… Its uses were truly endless.

Chen Qing rose, picked up the Cold Chiyi Treasure Spear, and went out into the courtyard.

Standing with the spear, he didn’t practice any complex techniques. Instead, he focused his Intention, attempting to draw out the strand of Cyan Wood True Qi from his Dantian and slowly channel it into the spear’s shaft.

VMMMM!

The Cold Chiyi Spear let out a faint hum. At its tip, a barely perceptible point of cyan light quietly began to glow.

The spear’s shadow danced, and cyan Strong Qi shot out in all directions.

He gathered the Cyan Wood True Qi in his body at the spear’s tip, aimed at a specially made, hardened wooden dummy, and thrust!

WHOOSH!

A cyan light tore through the air with a piercing shriek.

With a dull BANG, the hardened wooden dummy instantly exploded!

It was worth noting that this dummy was specially made from hardened wood.

’True Qi really is extraordinary.’

Chen Qing looked at the Cold Chiyi Spear in his hand, a new thought stirring. ’But different types of True Qi have different attributes. If I were to use this Spear Technique with Earth True Qi, would it be even more powerful?’

The Embracing Pill Force realm was divided into early, middle, and late stages. The core of progression was to open the Twelve Orthodox Meridians to accumulate and refine True Qi.

With every Main Meridian opened, one’s True Qi became deeper and purer, and their strength would rise accordingly.

The more meridians one opened, the more smoothly their True Qi would circulate, and the faster they could regulate their breathing and recover.

When experts of the same Realm fought, beyond the foundation of their Flesh Body and practical combat skills, the depth and purity of their True Qi were also critical.

A thought flashed through Chen Qing’s mind: ’If I master the Nine Revolutions Gilded Gold Technique, I’ll have two different streams of True Qi in my body. Wouldn’t my foundation be twice as deep as that of an ordinary disciple?’

He secretly decided that in the future, he would have to find more time for the Cultivation of the Nine Revolutions Gilded Gold Technique to verify his theory.

In the afternoon, Chen Qing went to the Armory and made an Imprint of the second level of the Cyan Wood Eternal Spring Technique.

For the next month, he entered a state of seclusion, dedicating himself completely to meticulously refining and applying his Cyan Wood True Qi.

He repeatedly circulated the Cyan Wood Eternal Spring Technique, causing the strand of Cyan Wood True Qi to cycle endlessly through his meridians, constantly growing stronger and more refined, like a trickling stream gradually becoming a brook.

Every breath he took was accompanied by the subtle tempering of his body by the True Qi. Nourished by it, the strength and resilience of his flesh, blood, muscles, and bones quietly increased.

Chen Qing tried to integrate his Cyan Wood True Qi into the Floating Light and Shadow Hand.

When he threw his Hidden Weapons, they were not only faster with more unpredictable trajectories, but his Flying Needles and Money Darts were also coated with a trace of Cyan Wood Strong Qi, doubling their lethality.

He focused his practice on the Mountain Prison-Suppression Spear. Although the attribute of his True Qi deviated slightly from the spear technique’s artistic conception, he didn’t try to force a change in the technique’s fierce and powerful nature. Instead, he integrated the “resilience” and “life” of the Cyan Wood True Qi into it.

The transitions between his Spear Techniques became smoother and more fluid. The Spear Force in his thrusts had more follow-through, like the gnarled, twisting roots of an ancient tree. After one strike, a latent force remained, adding another layer of variation.

As he brandished the spear, it no longer carried the crushing might of a mountain, but it had gained an air of ancient, vigorous power—a sense of Everlasting Life.

「One month later」

Chen Qing changed his clothes, stepped out of the Quiet Chamber, and walked to the Cyan Wood Institute.

There weren’t many disciples on the training grounds, making it seem a bit deserted.

They gathered in twos and threes, chatting, sparring, and exchanging pointers.

Chen Qing’s gaze swept across the area, but he didn’t see Luo Xinyi’s imposing figure.

“Huh? Junior Brother Chen?” a slightly surprised and doubtful voice called out.

Chen Qing followed the voice and saw it was Xu Qi.

He was tall and slender with a handsome face, one of only two Mid-stage Embracing Pill Power disciples in the Cyan Wood Institute, and held a rather high status.

At that moment, Xu Qi was looking Chen Qing up and down, his eyes filled with obvious surprise.

“Brother Xu,” Chen Qing said calmly, clasping his fist in greeting.

Xu Qi took a few steps closer, sensing the fluctuations of True Qi that Chen Qing had yet to fully conceal. He couldn’t help but ask again, his voice filled with disbelief, “Junior Brother Chen, you… you’ve broken through to the Embracing Pill Force realm?”

In his memory, Chen Qing was just an unremarkable nobody. He never would have imagined that he could actually break through to the Embracing Pill Force realm.

Chen Qing didn’t deny it, nodding frankly. “I had a lucky breakthrough yesterday. I’m still stabilizing my realm.”

The few disciples nearby who had been chatting or practicing instantly fell silent. Their gazes shot toward Chen Qing, filled with shock, envy, and even a trace of something more complex.

“Junior Brother Chen actually reached the Embracing Pill realm?”

“For real?”

“The eighth Embracing Pill Disciple of the Cyan Wood Institute…”

Many began to whisper among themselves.

The disciples who had started at the same time as Chen Qing but were still struggling in the Transmutation Force realm had the most complicated feelings, their gazes filled with an indescribable mix of emotions as they looked at him.

The Embracing Pill Force realm was the true threshold for entering the ranks of Martial Arts masters. Within the Wutai Sect, one’s status changed completely, and the allocation of resources became vastly different.

“Congratulations, Junior Brother Chen!”

“My heartfelt congratulations, Junior Brother Chen! This is truly a blessing for our Cyan Wood Institute!”

“Congratulations, Brother Chen! Please give us your guidance in the future!”

After a moment of shock, the disciples who came to their senses all stepped forward to offer their congratulations.

Whether their sentiment was genuine or not, their attitude toward a newly advanced Embracing Pill disciple had become much more respectful and enthusiastic.

Zhao Stone’s expression was the most conflicted.

Among the group, he was the closest to Chen Qing. Their backgrounds and opportunities had seemed similar.

While he wanted the best for Chen Qing, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of indescribable bitterness in his heart.

Chen Qing clasped his fist and returned the salutes one by one.

Just as the crowd was surrounding Chen Qing to congratulate him, a disciple hurried over, bowed respectfully, and said, “Brother Chen, Master Li has summoned you. He asks that you see him at once.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep