Chapter 112: Disciples of Mount Qingcheng and Successors of Wudang

In the early morning on Xiangshan Island, ethereal mist curled through the air, and a purple aura drifted in from the east—the most potent spiritual energy of the day. Usually, the disciples would rise early, leaving their dormitories to meditate and cultivate throughout the island, absorbing the particularly dense energy of heaven and earth, seizing the fleeting purple aura of the dawn.

But today, only a few remained steadfast in their early practice; most chose to sleep in, resting and relaxing after waking. Today was a day of rest for the disciples.

The path of cultivation requires balance—like a stringed instrument, too tight it snaps, too loose it fails to resonate. Relentless toil often leads to the trap of rushing without progress, so each month the disciples were granted two days of respite.

On these days, instructors refrained from urging cultivation, instead encouraging rest and mental relaxation, reflection on the past fortnight’s progress—sometimes such pauses brought unexpected insights.

...

At the Ascension Pavilion on Xiangshan Island, He Ming stood poised in a white youth’s Zhongshan suit, feet slightly apart, arms folded around a foundational stance known as the Hunyuan Pillar. Between his palms, a spherical, intangible Taiji diagram slowly rotated.

The condensed cloud-like spiritual energy of heaven and earth swirled into miniature whirlwinds, rushing toward him, merging into the Taiji orb. As it was refined into pure spiritual power, it flowed through his palms into his body, converging in his dantian.

While others cultivated by directly absorbing spiritual energy into their bodies for refinement, He Ming’s method was unique. He first emitted spiritual power to form a Taiji orb that refined the absorbed energy before returning the purified power to himself.

This was the essence of the “Qian Kun Return Technique,” distinct from other cultivation methods in its remarkable speed. The orb’s absorption and refinement of spiritual energy far outpaced similar-level techniques that refined energy within the body, allowing He Ming’s cultivation to advance rapidly.

However, the drawback lay in the energy not being refined internally, thus missing the benefits of tempering the physical body and soul during the process. It was akin to leveling up swiftly but without enhancing one’s physical attributes.

Li Yunfei’s progression, where each level up increased his four core attributes, was the tangible result of spiritual energy entering and tempering the body and soul.

For He Ming, though, this was not an issue. Given his status and background, he lacked no elixirs or rare treasures to refine his body and soul. Consuming beast meat was as commonplace to him as ordinary folk eating chicken or fish.

Indeed, those with privileged backgrounds held advantages across all fields compared to ordinary people.

After a while, He Ming dissipated the Taiji orb, concluded his practice, and turned his gaze toward the pavilion’s entrance.

...

A man in a black youth’s Zhongshan suit, a few years younger in appearance than He Ming, entered the Ascension Pavilion with a leisurely, unhurried stride. He wore a gentle smile.

“Brother He, your cultivation has advanced again. It seems the formation of your golden core within is not far off,” he remarked.

He Ming smiled faintly. “Brother Wang’s aura is restrained and unified; surely reaching the ‘Invincible’ realm is only a matter of time.”

Wang chuckled inwardly, knowing He Ming was merely being courteous. Though Wang had reached the late True Intent stage, the Invincible realm remained a considerable distance away.

Similarly, though He Ming was but a step from the Golden Core realm, the gap was still significant.

The Invincible realm in martial cultivation was characterized by robust qi and blood, exceptional constitution, and astonishing regenerative ability. As long as one’s vital energy was not exhausted, death was difficult to achieve.

It was akin to the invincible body of Ge Xiaolun in the Super God Academy. Li Yunfei and Honghong had long attained such constitutions through consuming blood elixirs.

The Invincible realm corresponded to the Golden Core phase in spiritual cultivation—Li Yunfei’s level 50.

In other words, He Ming was roughly level 49, while this Brother Wang was about level 48, similar to Li Yunfei but likely less powerful in actual combat.

In martial cultivation, after the foundation was laid, one cultivated qi circulation, known as Qi Refinement, corresponding to the Spiritual Cultivation stage, Li Yunfei’s level 10.

When qi was abundant, the spirit was full; after Qi Refinement came Spirit Refinement, corresponding to the Enlightenment stage, Li Yunfei’s level 20.

Upon entering the Spirit Refinement stage, sensory perception heightened dramatically, keenly attuned to hostility, killing intent, and lethal attacks.

Hence, once a martial cultivator reached Spirit Refinement, it was nearly impossible to assassinate them with a sniper rifle. The moment the scope locked onto them, their senses would detect it.

Though unable to withstand sniper bullets, they could evade them in advance—a clear advantage over spiritual cultivators.

In early cultivation, martial artists generally held the upper hand over spiritual cultivators.

The next stage after Spirit Refinement was True Steel, where qi could be condensed into steel-like energy, greatly enhancing offense and defense—almost a world apart from previous stages.

True Steel marked a watershed in martial cultivation, corresponding to the Spiritual Agility stage, Li Yunfei’s level 30.

Upon condensing steel energy, one sought to comprehend their own martial truth—sword cultivators grasped sword intent, blade cultivators blade intent, fist cultivators fist intent.

Thus, beyond True Steel came the True Intent stage, corresponding to the Yin Spirit stage, Li Yunfei’s level 40.

The Invincible realm beyond True Intent had been described earlier and need not be reiterated.

This Brother Wang was named Wang Zhiwu, one of the direct disciples of Taoist Si Hang of Wudang, almost assuredly destined to join the Twelve Earthly Branches.

...

Once his cultivation further advanced to the True Intent peak, he would become a member of the Twelve Earthly Branches.

All ten Heavenly Stems were already assigned; among the Twelve Earthly Branches, only three members existed, each with cultivation at the True Intent or Yin Spirit peak.

Currently, Wang Zhiwu served as the head of the Xiangshan Island Cultivation Academy, managing all affairs of the institution.

After exchanging pleasantries, Wang and He Ming strolled side by side out of the pavilion.

One carried an air of leisurely refinement with unhurried steps, the other calm and indifferent, unburdened by worldly matters. Their matching black and white attire complemented each other harmoniously.

As they walked, a phone rang in He Ming’s pocket.

...

“Hello, this is He Ming.”

A warm, jade-like tenor voice came through the receiver, already leaving Li Yunfei with a favorable impression before they met.

Li Yunfei replied respectfully, “Greetings, Senior He, I am Li Yunfei.”

He Ming’s tone brightened with pleasure. “Ah, it’s you! Since you’re calling voluntarily, does that mean the matter is settled and you’re ready to depart?”

Li Yunfei said, “There is one last thing. I need your help.”

“Tell me; if I can assist, I will not refuse.”

Li Yunfei glanced at Zhang Ziying, who looked at him with shining eyes and silently approved his words.

“Here’s the situation: my girlfriend cultivates the ‘He Bi Tian Ji Cai Bu Great Art’ of your sect, and now we are practicing dual cultivation.”

“You know, dual cultivation accelerates progress beyond solo practice, and I have no shortage of resources. So, I wish to speak with the head of Xiangshan Academy to see if she can graduate early.”

“But I do not know the academy head personally, so I’d like to ask you to help make the connection.”

Zhang Ziying’s gaze was filled with warmth as she silently accepted his explanation. Although Honghong’s joking words last night seemed lighthearted, they had thoroughly shattered the barrier between them, confirming their relationship.

Moreover, for Li Yunfei to bring her away officially, there had to be a reason. If they had no relationship beyond childhood acquaintances, it would carry little weight.

...