Chapter 124.2: Four Years of Bitter Cultivation, At Last Reaching the Thousand Cauldrons Stage! (II)

Of course, the prerequisite was to raise the progress of all three Intents as much as possible. The most troublesome one was actually the Starry Sky Waterfall Intent. This was an Intent Lu Changsheng had comprehended by drawing inspiration from “poems.” He had relied on his imagination alone, which made it extremely difficult to further improve.

Perhaps at night, by gazing at the starry sky, I can try to push the Starry Sky Waterfall Intent further.

For now, that was the only approach Lu Changsheng could think of. However, for the time being, he focused on improving the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent. After all, the Northern Region Battlefield was saturated with wind.

In such an environment, the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent was bound to progress rapidly. Thus, Lu Changsheng continuously activated the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent to relentlessly hunt down the northern barbarian squads.

Within a single day, Lu Changsheng hunted at least seven or eight squads, totaling roughly forty Divine Strength martial artists. Even without encountering any ranked experts, he still earned more than seven thousand minor merits.

Although it fell short of his previous ten thousand, it was more than sufficient for his current needs.

One day, two days, three days… for three full days, Lu Changsheng hunted down 127 northern barbarians. In addition to the 33 he had slain earlier, the total reached exactly 160—a staggering number. Each day, people watched him carry massive bundles of head down the streets.

The bundles contained so many heads that it shook the hearts of those witnessing it. Before Dao Shi’er, it seemed like those people weren’t Divine Strength martial artists at all, but mere weeds that could be harvested at will.

“Exchange my 22,000 minor merits for two different Divine Strength Realm pills.”

Lu Changsheng immediately completed the exchange. He had eight hundred cauldrons’ worth of strength at the moment. With just two more pills, he would step into the Thousand Cauldrons Stage.

He accepted the pills and left the Martial Pavilion.

All of a sudden, a burst of commotion erupted up ahead.

“Look, isn’t that Song Wuqing?”

“What happened to him? He looks seriously injured.”

“I heard he ran into Sheng Yuanyi again on the battlefield. After a fierce battle, Sheng Yuanyi heavily wounded him.”

“Sigh… Song Wuqing has lost again. Aside from their first time, almost every fight had ended in his defeat. He’s still alive, but his strength really does fall short.”

Lu Changsheng stood among the crowd as well. On the surface, Song Wuqing only had some blood on him and no visible injuries. Divine Strength martial artists possessed astonishing physical recovery, and ordinary injuries wouldn’t linger for a long time.

Song Wuqing’s injuries lay elsewhere. Being defeated by Sheng Yuanyi again and again was a tremendous blow to his mind. Song Wuqing raised his head and noticed Dao Shi’er within the crowd. Not long ago, he had boasted that if Lu Changsheng were to team up with him, he’d guarantee Lu Changsheng’s safety.

However, he was defeated by Sheng Yuanyi.

Song Wuqing looked at Lu Changsheng and said, “Dao Shi’er, Sheng Yuanyi is looking for you, and he has become even stronger. If you run into him, the odds will be against you. For now, it’d be best if you avoid the battlefield.”

After saying that, Song Wuqing left. For a time, the atmosphere outside the Martial Pavilion remainedgloomy. Since even Song Wuqing was defeated, Tian Xin didn’t even need to do anything.

Just Sheng Yuanyi alone had defeated Song Wuqing time and time again.

“Sheng Yuanyi… Hmph! if I truly meet him, I will kill him,” Lu Changsheng said calmly. Ignoring the stunned looks around him, he turned and returned to the small courtyard.

In the small courtyard, Lu Changsheng sat cross-legged on the ground. Earlier at the Martial Pavilion, he hadn’t been boasting. He truly intended to kill Sheng Yuanyi.

Over these past few days, Lu Changsheng had basically confirmed that Tian Xin wouldn’t make a move. Whatever the reason, as long as Tian Xin remained away, Lu Changsheng had no way of killing him. However, that did not mean Lu Changsheng had no means to deal with Tian Xin at all.

By killing Sheng Yuanyi, Tian Xin would definitely not be able to stay indifferent. Still, he remained too weak to kill Sheng Yuanyi. He had to reach the Thousand Cauldrons Stage. At the very least, his cultivation could not fall short of Sheng Yuanyi’s.

Fortunately, he had already obtained two Divine Strength Realm pills, and they were more than enough to push him to that stage!

Lu Changsheng did not waste any time. He swallowed both pills at once. With his current strength at eight hundred cauldrons, he could withstand consuming two Divine Strength Realm pills simultaneously.

Boom.

The moment the pills melted into him, his flesh trembled violently. Since he had taken both pills at once, the enhancement was extremely rapid. With his deep foundations, he felt no fear and allowed the intense transformation to proceed.

Time passed slowly, and Lu Changsheng felt as though his body were a vessel filled with accumulated strength. When the vessel finally reached its limits, he realized something.

His physical body could no longer be strengthened, unless something special happened. He had reached the limit, and the limit of the Divine Strength Realm was none other than the Thousand Cauldrons Stage!

Lu Changsheng finally stepped into the Thousand Cauldrons Stage, reaching the true pinnacle of the realm!

Lu Changsheng opened his eyes. His physical body had reached its absolute limits for now. Whether it was Tian Xin, Sheng Yuanyi, or Song Wuqing, all of them stood at the Thousand Cauldrons Stage, and Lu Changsheng was now on equal footing with the top three on the rankings.

Counting the time, it had only been a little over four years since he began practicing martial arts, still several months short of five. In just over four years, he rose from an ordinary person to the very peak of the Divine Strength Realm. His pace was just unbelievable.

Lu Changsheng carefully examined himself. He could still sense traces of residual medicinal power lingering within him. In theory, it was possible to further strengthen his body, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that his body had reached a firm bottleneck. No matter how many pills he consumed, they would be ineffective. The remaining medicinal power would only dissipate over time.

The human body has limits. Once that limit is reached, it becomes very difficult to improve further. If I want to advance, I must make a breakthrough into the next realm, which would be equivalent to a complete transformation of life itself. The Divine Fortification Realm is next. Hmm… Divine fortification… isn’t that essentially a transformation of the physical body, granting it new ways to protect itself?

Lu Changsheng’s thoughts turned to the divine fortifications of Divine Fortification martial artists. The layer of fortification could block any attack. As long as it remained intact, the martial artist would suffer no harm at all.

Upon reaching the Divine Fortification Realm, one would no longer fear battle formations or sheer numbers.

However, reaching it was far from simple. It was said that the breakthrough was extremely difficult and required a compatible martial art. Only through a specific method within that martial art could one advance to that realm.

Moreover, it was said that breaking through to the realm was also related to Intent. Martial artists who had not comprehended Intent were almost incapable of reaching it.

For now, Lu Changsheng had no intention of attempting that breakthrough. He did not even possess a suitable martial art to begin with. The Martial Pavilion did have techniques for the Divine Fortification Realm, but the prices made it clear that they were not meant to be obtained. They were merely for display.

With my cultivation now at the Thousand Cauldrons Stage, just how much power can I unleash?

In truth, even Lu Changsheng himself was not entirely sure. If he activated the Third Transformation, he would possess the power of three thousand cauldrons. Once Threefold Waves was fused into his techniques, each strike would double in power, giving him essentially six thousand cauldrons’ worth of strength.

Without drawing upon any intent at all, the amplification from secret techniques and martial techniques alone already pushed him to six thousand cauldrons. That level of strength was already good enough.

Song Wuqing and Sheng Yuanyi were likely at roughly the same level. Even if Sheng Yuanyi had grown stronger, the difference wouldn’t be too great, at most seven thousand cauldrons of strength.

However, Lu Changsheng also had Intents. If he unleashed the Starry Sky Waterfall Intent, the Wave Intent, and the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent, they’d still boost his power by fifty percent, even though his progress in each Intent remained low.

In other words, he’d obtain nine thousand cauldrons’ worth of strength.

If those three Intents were improved, reaching ten thousand cauldrons of strength would not be difficult. Tian Xin had been dominating the top place in the rankings precisely by relying on secret techniques, martial techniques, and Intents.

Lu Changsheng was the same. With his three Intents, it would not be hard for him to unleash close to ten thousand cauldrons of strength. To fully surpass that level, however, he would need to improve the three Intents.

Since the Wave Intent and the Starry Sky Waterfall Intent were difficult to advance, his only practical path was to push the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent even further.

If he could raise his progress for the Heaven and Earth Wind Intent beyond thirty percent, he would be able to unleash power comparable to Tian Xin’s. In terms of adaptability and variation, he was probably even stronger. After all, he had comprehended four Intents. More than that, he still possessed the Nine-Character Mantra and the Blood Qi Sword Crafting. These were his true trump cards.

Now that I have reached the Thousand Cauldrons Stage, there is no need to wait. I will kill Sheng Yuanyi first and see if Tian Xin can still sit still. If he still refuses to act, then I will unleash a massacre and slaughter the northern barbarians until they’re terrified! They’ll force him to make a move by then!

After four years of bitter cultivation, he had finally reached the Thousand Cauldrons Stage. A sharp glint flashed through Lu Changsheng’s eyes as scenes from a year ago surfaced before him. The sight of Tian Xin killing his squad members remained vivid in his mind.

Lu Changsheng had spent an entire year for this day. Now, he was no longer willing to wait. He would take the initiative! He rose to his feet and headed straight to the battlefield!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep