Chương 478: Chapter 477: Breakthrough! Breakthrough! Breakthrough!

Breakthrough! Breakthrough!

I sat cross-legged on the cultivation mat and channeled a thread of Martial Qi into my right palm. The energy pooled there, dense and heavy, completely different from the regular qi I was used to. It felt raw, primal even, like the distilled essence of a warrior's fighting spirit without any of the ethereal qualities I normally associated with cultivation energy. Jinghui remained silent in our shared mindscape, but I could feel his presence watching intently.

He'd been quiet ever since I took control, probably trying to figure out what kind of being had possessed him.

"It's fascinating," I murmured, rolling the Martial Qi between my fingers.

"Regular qi has both martial and spiritual aspects working together. But this stuff? It's purely martial. No spiritual component at all." Which explained a lot about this world. The cultivators here weren't immortal cultivators pursuing eternal life and cosmic power. They were mortal martial artists, focused entirely on perfecting their combat abilities and physical techniques. Sure, they lived longer than regular mortals and could perform incredible feats, but they still aged. They still died eventually.

But that didn't mean the Civilization Realm expert who created this inner world was weaker than other cultivators at that level. Actually, it might be the opposite.

"Azure, I've been thinking," I said inwardly, knowing Jinghui couldn't hear my inner world spirit.

"The inhabitants of an inner world don't need to be individually powerful to benefit their creator, right?"

"That's correct, Master," Azure replied in my mind.

"What matters is how well their cultivation aligns with and supports the creator's own path. A world full of weak but perfectly synchronized cultivators could provide more benefit than one filled with powerful but misaligned ones." This world's focus on pure martial cultivation, on discipline and technique over mystical power, probably fed directly into whatever martial dao the creator followed.

Every punch thrown, every form practiced, every breakthrough achieved through sweat and determination rather than enlightenment - it all added to their strength.

"It's actually brilliant," I continued, still playing with the Martial Qi.

"No distractions from spiritual pursuits. No cultivators abandoning martial practice to chase after pill refining or formation mastery. Just pure, focused martial development." But philosophical appreciation wouldn't help me win this tournament. I needed practical benefits I could take back with me. And when it came to hand-to-hand combat, there wasn't really a cheat code. You just had to practice more. Well, except for my world-walking ability.

With the time differential between realms, after the tournament, I could try find a realm that I could use as an extended training chamber. But I didn't want my martial arts to just be average. Practicing basic punches and kicks would only get me so far. What I really wanted was something like a Martial Aura; that tangible manifestation of fighting intent that Heartsteel Realm cultivators could project.

Or if I got really lucky, maybe I could grasp something similar to those Echoes that Sect Mastery Realm cultivators left behind. Techniques so perfected they continued existing even after the practitioner's death. But for Azure to have any chance of replicating something like that for my use back home, I'd need to advance Jinghui's cultivation to those realms before my time ran out. I glanced up at the sky visible through the window. A glowing number 5 hung there like a countdown timer. Five days.

That's all I had in this realm before the tournament pulled me back. Time to get to work. I turned my attention inward, examining Jinghui's cultivation base. The Inner Pulse Realm was all about forming Meridian Rings: circular channels of Martial Qi that enhanced the body's natural energy flow. At peak Inner Pulse, a cultivator would have thirteen rings. Jinghui only had six. Fortunately, his memories included detailed instructions from Master Hong on forming new rings.

I let the memory surface, experiencing it as if I'd been there myself. Master Hong stood in the training courtyard.

"Listen carefully, young Cao. Forming a Meridian Ring isn't about forcing the energy. You must guide the Martial Qi in a complete circuit through your body, starting from your dantian." He demonstrated with his own energy, making it visible for teaching purposes.

"Up through the chest, across the shoulders, down the arms to the fingertips. Then back up, over the crown of your head, down your spine, through your legs to your toes, and finally returning to your dantian. One complete circuit."

"But Master," young Jinghui had asked, "how do we make it form a ring instead of just circulating?"

"Compression and intent," Master Hong replied.

"As the energy completes its path, you compress it inward while maintaining the circular flow. Like tightening a belt. The Martial Qi will naturally form a ring structure when properly compressed. Each ring must be perfectly balanced, or it will destabilize the others." The memory faded, leaving me with clear instructions. I gathered Jinghui's Martial Qi and began guiding it through the prescribed path. Up through the chest, across the shoulders... The energy sputtered and dispersed before I even reached my elbows.

I sighed, not really surprised. I'd never focused much on body cultivation back in the Cultivation World. My techniques were all about plant manipulation and energy attacks, not internal martial development. I wasn't used to working with just the martial aspect of qi, stripped of its spiritual component. Someone like Earth Fist Liu could probably breakthrough multiple realms without breaking a sweat here.

"Having trouble, Master?" Azure asked.

"The Martial Qi keeps breaking apart when I try to guide it," I admitted.

"It's like trying to push water uphill with just my thoughts. The energy wants to disperse instead of flowing in a circuit."

"Perhaps you're approaching it with the wrong energy type," Azure suggested.

"Martial Qi might not be your path to victory here." He had a point. Time to see what my other energies could do in this realm. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. I started to reach for my regular qi, then stopped. The formations in this building would definitely detect spiritual energy. Another alarm would mean guards, investigations, maybe even elders getting involved. Too risky.

"Azure, what about red sun energy?" I asked.

"Think it would work here?"

"It might be worth trying," Azure replied thoughtfully.

"Red sun energy specializes in physical transformation and enhancement. It's closer to martial energy than spiritual energy in many ways. And since this realm seems to categorize energies differently..."

"Right. In the Two Suns world, red sun exposure created physical mutations: the Sun-touched. The spiritual techniques only came through runic applications." I nodded slowly.

"But I need to be careful." This was the tricky part. While I was possessing Jinghui, my connection to the Genesis Seed would protect him from red sun corruption. But when I left? If I accidentally left traces of red sun energy in his system, it could drive him mad. He was already bloodthirsty enough without adding supernatural corruption to the mix. Last thing I wanted was to turn him into something worse than his brother.

And there was always the possibility that red sun energy might affect this realm the way blue sun energy had corrupted the Realm of the Chosen. Though that seemed less likely; the blue sun's corruption was all about mental influence and consciousness manipulation. Red sun was more direct, more physical. Still, better to be cautious. I gathered a small amount of red sun energy from my inner world and channeled it into my palm. The energy that appeared was pure white.

I blinked, staring at the pristine energy swirling above my hand. For a moment I was completely confused. Red sun energy was supposed to be, well, red. Crimson and hungry and aggressive. Then it clicked. This realm classified everything as either martial or spiritual. And apparently, it recognized red sun energy as the absolute peak of martial energy; so pure and concentrated that it appeared white. Well, no point wasting time.

I gathered the white energy and began guiding it through the meridian formation path Master Hong had described. Up through the chest, across the shoulders, down the arms... The energy flowed like water finding its natural course. No resistance, no dispersal. It completed the full circuit and compressed into a ring so easily I almost laughed. The seventh Meridian Ring snapped into place with an almost audible click. I didn't stop.

Again and again, I circulated the white energy, each path flowing smoother than the last. Eight rings. Nine. Ten. In our shared mindscape, I felt Jinghui's consciousness jolt with shock.

"What... what are you doing? That's impossible! Each ring should take weeks of preparation!" I ignored him, focused on the work. Eleven rings. Twelve. The thirteenth ring was trickier. Not because the energy resisted, but because the first twelve created a natural barrier. This last ring had to encompass all the others while maintaining its own integrity. I pushed more red sun energy into the pattern, feeling it naturally adjust and adapt.

The white energy spiraled outward, wrapping around the existing rings like a crown, then compressed inward to form the final ring. Peak Inner Pulse Realm. In less time than it took to brew tea.

"How?" Jinghui's voice was barely a whisper.

"Even Senior Brother took three months to form his thirteenth ring. And that white energy... I've never seen anything like it." I stayed quiet, already looking through his memories for the next breakthrough. Form Unification Realm, that was where the body and technique became one. Every cultivator had to choose a primary technique during this breakthrough, and that choice would define their future martial development.

"I should let you choose," I said, addressing Jinghui directly for the first time since taking control.

"This is your body, your future. What technique do you want to unify with?" Silence for a moment, then: "You're... asking me?"

"Of course. I'm just borrowing your body for a tournament. You're the one who has to live with the consequences. So what'll it be?"

"I..." He hesitated, probably trying to process that the being possessing him was being considerate.

"Swift Wind Stepping. It's a movement technique focused on speed and evasion. I've been practicing it since I was eight." I found the technique in his memories. A series of quick, darting movements that emphasized unpredictability over raw speed. Not bad. The Form Unification process would require performing the technique while circulating energy through all thirteen Meridian Rings simultaneously. I stood up and took the basic stance. Weight on the balls of my feet, knees slightly bent, arms loose at my sides.

Then I began. The first step carried me three meters to the left, leaving a slight afterimage. The second took me diagonally backward. The third forward and spinning. All while the white energy coursed through my meridian rings in perfect synchronization. The breakthrough hit like lightning. Every muscle fiber in Jinghui's body suddenly aligned with the stepping technique.

Tendons adjusted their tension, bones shifted minutely in their sockets, even the distribution of fast and slow-twitch muscle fibers reorganized. I could feel the body changing, becoming more suited to explosive movement. Legs lengthened slightly, torso became leaner but denser with coiled strength. The transformation wasn't dramatic; Form Unification was about optimization, not radical change. When it finished, I tested a simple step.

My body moved before conscious thought, carrying me five meters instead of three. The afterimage lasted a full second longer. Form Unification Realm achieved. But why stop there? I was already consulting the memories for Heartsteel Realm requirements. This was where things got interesting; the realm where a cultivator's fighting intent became tangible. Where pure will could deflect attacks and suppress enemies. The process was more complex than the previous breakthroughs.

It required compressing all of one's Martial Qi into the heart region while maintaining perfect emotional control. Too much aggression and the energy would explode outward. Too little and it wouldn't condense properly. I began drawing the white energy inward, feeling it pool around Jinghui's heart. The thirteen Meridian Rings pulsed in rhythm with his heartbeat, each pulse drawing more energy into the center.

"Wait, you're attempting Heartsteel already?" Jinghui's voice cracked with disbelief.

"People die attempting that breakthrough! The energy compression can stop your heart if you lose focus for even a moment!" I kept my concentration steady, compressing more and more energy. The white light grew denser, brighter, until I could see it glowing through Jinghui's chest even with my eyes closed. Then came the moment of crystallization. The compressed energy suddenly solidified into something beyond mere qi, a tangible manifestation of martial will.

I felt it spread outward from the heart, reinforcing every aspect of the body. And the physical changes this time were anything but subtle. Muscle mass increased dramatically, but not in a bulky, cumbersome way. Each muscle group expanded with dense, corded strength. Height increased by several centimeters as the skeletal structure reinforced itself. Even the skin toughened, taking on a subtle bronze sheen that spoke of incredible durability.

Jinghui's body had transformed from a lean, quick fighter into something that looked like it could punch through stone walls. Which, at Heartsteel Realm, it probably could. I stood up, feeling the Martial Aura naturally emanating from the transformed body. It pressed against the walls of the cultivation chamber like invisible weight. When I clenched my fist, the aura condensed around it, creating visible distortions in the air. In the mindscape, Jinghui had gone completely silent.

I actually worried for a moment that the shock had made him faint. Do consciousnesses faint? Was that even possible? I spent some time experimenting with the Martial Aura, seeing how it responded to different intentions. When I projected killing intent, the aura turned sharp and cutting, leaving thin scratches on the stone floor without any physical contact. When I shifted to protective intent, it became a nearly visible barrier around my body.

"This is exactly what I was hoping for," I told Azure.

"If you can analyze this while I'm using it, maybe we can replicate something similar back home."

"Already working on it, Master," Azure replied. After several minutes of practice, Jinghui finally spoke again. His voice was barely a whisper: "Could you... could you breakthrough to Sect Mastery Realm?" I paused in my movements, considering. Sect Mastery Realm was where cultivators either perfected an existing technique or created their own martial system. It was a qualitative leap beyond just having strong martial intent.

"Let's find out," I said.