Martial Dao Conviction

Lin Zheyu was completely bewildered. What just happened? He felt as though he had entered the space of consciousness, spaced out for a second, and then immediately been kicked back out. Checking his mind, the one unit of Origin Power he had just used was restored. "Did it fail?" Lin Zheyu’s eyes widened, somewhat dazed. Even though he had anticipated this outcome beforehand, he was still a little disappointed. Evidently, poisons and medicinal herbs could not manifest out of thin air within the consciousness space. Yet since the Poison King Body appeared in his conscious data, it meant it could be enhanced using Origin Power. "Strange. When enhancing with Origin Power, my consciousness enters a mysterious state. When cultivating in that consciousness space, training stakes and small props used for practicing footwork can all be manifested." "Yet the poisons and herbs required to enhance the Poison King Body cannot." "Could it be that things intended for direct consumption to enhance strength cannot be manifested, and only external training tools can?" Lin Zheyu pondered. He felt that this likely involved some peculiar law of conservation of energy. However, this made things troublesome. It meant that whenever he used Origin Power to enhance the Poison King Body, all the necessary herbs and substances would have to be ingested beforehand. "One unit of Origin Power is roughly equivalent to a year of cultivation time." "If I use Origin Power to enhance the Poison King Body, does that mean I have to ingest all the poisons, antidotes, and secret medicines I would normally need over an entire year all at once?" "Not only that, but also the medicinal potency of the Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoction required to remodel the body." Lin Zheyu clicked his tongue in disbelief as he thought it through. That one-year duration was a rough estimate he had calculated previously. It was a baseline derived from comparing his daily training progress against the progress made when upgrading through Origin Power. He had specifically calculated it: at the third layer of the Golden Goose Skill, practicing for two and a half shichen each day took about fifteen days to increase his progress by one percent. At the third layer, one unit of Origin Power advanced his progress by roughly twenty-five percent. Practicing the Golden Goose Skill for two and a half shichen every day for 375 consecutive days yielded a twenty-five percent gain, which was roughly equivalent to one year. In other words, one unit of Origin Power roughly equaled a full year of bitter training. However, that year referred to a year of training purely relying on regular food for nutrition without consuming high-grade tonic herbs. In his daily training, he was reluctant to spend money on herbs to assist his cultivation, instead replenishing his physical state entirely through food. The money he saved was pooled to purchase Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoctions to serve as fuel when upgrading with Origin Power. "Ingesting an entire year's worth of various poisons, antidotes, and tonics all at once... wouldn't that kill someone?" Lin Zheyu was at a loss for words. Stuffing so many chaotic medicinal ingredients into his stomach at one time was a problem in itself, let alone whether his body could hold it. Would it work without swallowing them? Lin Zheyu pondered silently. The medicinal broth he drank certainly wasn't absorbed directly through his stomach alone; the stomach could never digest and absorb it that quickly. It was under the mobilization of the mysterious energy that the medicinal potency was rapidly absorbed. If he did not drink it, but instead held it or touched the medicinal ingredients externally with his hands, could that mysterious energy directly extract the potency from the herbs? He had never had such a need before, so he had never considered it from this angle. The moment the thought surfaced, he felt it was entirely viable. "Next time I accumulate a new unit of Origin Power, I can test it out." "No use dwelling on it now. I can't let the Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoction I just drank go to waste. I'll use it to upgrade the Golden Goose Skill first!" Lin Zheyu calmed his mind and cast aside all stray thoughts. 'Use 1 unit of Origin Power to upgrade the Golden Goose Skill.' Lin Zheyu transmitted the thought. In an instant, his consciousness entered that mysterious space, where he began cultivating the Golden Goose Skill without end. Inside that conscious space, his spirit knew no fatigue and never ceased, cultivating like a madman. In his physical body in the outside world, mysterious energy surged forth, guiding the medicinal potency coursing through him to nourish and strengthen his physique. An endless stream of qi and blood energy was refined, flooding his entire body once more until reaching the limit of what his frame could contain. Yet the generation of qi and blood energy did not halt; it continued to be refined incessantly. Under the effects of the mysterious energy, the qi and blood were continuously compressed and purified, growing ever purer and more potent. After a few breaths, Lin Zheyu came to his senses from the trance. He took a deep breath. Although the quantity of qi and blood in his body had not increased, its purity had risen, and his strength felt significantly greater than before. [Heaven Rewards Diligence] Name: Lin Zheyu Origin Power: 0 Skills: Wild Bull Fist (Perfection) Golden Goose Skill (Fifth Layer 14%) Turtle Breathing Art (Third Layer 2%) Six Harmonies Saber (Minor Accomplishment 3%) Poison King Body (First Layer 0%) "The progress increased by thirteen percent. That means completing the first qi and blood transformation will require eight units of Origin Power in total." "Furthermore, the qi and blood within my body haven't reached their peak yet. During that upgrade just now, the potency of four doses of Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoction wasn't even enough to satisfy the consumption of one unit of Origin Power." Lin Zheyu examined his condition and realized his qi and blood were not at their maximum. Purifying qi and blood and causing it to undergo qualitative changes was far more difficult than imagined, requiring massive amounts of energy. With a shift of his body, he channeled his qi and blood into his legs. A terrifying surge of power erupted, leaving afterimages trailing through the courtyard. Thump! Thump! Thump! Dull, explosive impacts sounded repeatedly as his whip-like kicks struck the training stake. Under the terrifying force, even the stake made of iron birch wood—as hard as iron—could barely withstand the blows. Compared to before, Lin Zheyu's strength had grown by roughly eight percent. Yet that was not the most crucial gain. Continuously purifying the qi and blood and inducing qualitative transformation time and again was preparation for advancing to the Marrow Tempering Realm. The saying that qi and blood formed the foundation of martial arts was no empty phrase. Only when one's qi and blood were sufficiently formidable could martial cultivation penetrate deep into the marrow. Martial artists in the Marrow Tempering Realm tempered their bone marrow and replaced their entire body's blood, rejuvenating themselves and drastically enhancing their physiques. Liang Song had once said that if a martial artist failed to break through to the Marrow Tempering Realm before the age of forty, their progress would almost certainly grind to a halt. Only by driving martial cultivation into the marrow before the body's peak began to decline, reigniting fresh vitality, could one continue climbing toward the apex of martial arts. A Marrow Tempering Realm martial artist surpassed the mortal lifespan, living to around one hundred and fifty years, with the longest-lived reportedly reaching two hundred. However, breaking through to the Marrow Tempering Realm was extraordinarily difficult. To drive martial arts deep into the marrow placed exceedingly high demands on the quality of one's qi and blood. Only a martial artist who had undergone four qualitative transformations of qi and blood could drive martial cultivation into their bone marrow. *** Inside Bidan Teahouse. Jia Yanyong and the others were gathered together as usual, listening to the storytelling. The story of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* was drawing to a close, and Lin Zheyu had already written out the tale of *The Return of the Condor Heroes* and delivered it to Manager Wu in advance. To him, the income from storytelling was now rather meager, amounting to only around a dozen taels of silver a month. As his strength increased and after acquiring the Poison Canon, Lin Zheyu had opened up far more avenues for earning money. Heading out of the city to eliminate bandits could yield an income equal to an entire year of storytelling if luck was on his side, to say nothing of refining poisons to sell. "Brother Lin, sit over here." Seeing Lin Zheyu approach, Ning Hui shifted to the left, making room for him. "Master Qiu came by earlier. He said we're setting out for Baishi Mountain in seven days and told you to get ready," Xie Jiang said. Guarding Baishi Mountain was divided among several cohorts. After stationing there for a month, one could return, and the next rotation would not come for roughly three months. "What's the situation at Baishi Mountain right now?" Lin Zheyu asked. "It got raided two more times recently. Those bastards came prepared, but the losses weren't significant." "According to Master Qiu, you'll be assigned to lead a team this time, just like the Viscera Tempering Realm masters, taking charge of securing an entire zone." "Fortunately, that area is easy to defend and hard to attack, so the risk isn't great." Xie Jiang looked Lin Zheyu up and down, eyes brimming with curiosity. "Did you really marry into the Xu family? You're only at the Bone Tempering Realm, yet you're already being entrusted with such heavy responsibility." "Looks like we'll have to start calling you 'Master' from now on," Ning Hui teased. The organizational structure of the Feihong Gang was simple: several Viscera Tempering Realm masters commanded skilled hands at the Bone Tempering Realm, and the Bone Tempering fighters supervised the underlings beneath them. Above the Viscera Tempering masters stood Gang Leader Xu and the three prominent clans. Given that Lin Zheyu was now being entrusted with such a responsibility, he was clearly being elevated to the status of a Viscera Tempering master. "You can call me that if you want, but I still think 'Brother Lin' sounds more natural," Lin Zheyu said with a smile. He suspected that word of his spar with Chen Mu yesterday had reached Gang Leader Xu's ears, prompting this arrangement. "I was hoping to latch onto your coattails, but you got promoted straight away and assigned to a different zone. What a pity," Xie Jiang said regretfully. "Don't worry. As long as you don't get carried away in a fight, nothing usually goes wrong. On that note, Jia Yanyong, you'd better be careful. Don't end up following in Zhou Jiang's footsteps," Lin Zheyu said. Jia Yanyong: "..." "What does that have to do with me? I'm not a simpleton like Zhou Jiang," Jia Yanyong grumbled. To Lin Zheyu, the New Year season felt no different from ordinary days. If there was any distinction, it was merely that the streets felt slightly livelier, and Baiwei Street featured unfamiliar delicacies that weren't usually around. The food tasted quite good. After returning from the teahouse, Lin Zheyu practiced the Wild Bull Fist in the courtyard. Sparring with Chen Mu yesterday had given him plenty of insights. Enveloped in a formidable aura, Lin Zheyu unleashed a punch. An invisible wave of momentum radiated from him, striking awe into the soul. Thump! Thump! Thump! Dull thuds rang out steadily. Lin Zheyu immersed himself completely in the Wild Bull Fist, sensing the 'momentum' contained within the technique. What was 'momentum'? Lin Zheyu had pondered this question before. Though the knowledge explosion of his past life hadn't turned him into an expert in any particular field, he had picked up bits and pieces of all sorts of subjects. He seemed to understand a little of everything, yet under close scrutiny, he mastered none of it. Relying on the eclectic knowledge of his past life combined with the martial arts of the Great Wei, Lin Zheyu had formed his own understanding. 'Momentum' was the twist of essence, qi, and spirit into a single braid, which, bolstered by mental conviction, radiated outward as a special magnetic field—or aura. Different convictions produced different fields. This invisible aura targeted an opponent's mind and stimulated biological instincts, making creatures perceive danger and triggering instinctual responses. In the face of powerful momentum, even mindless beasts would instinctively cower, trembling all over and failing to act normally. That was precisely where Chen Mu's strength lay. When someone with weak resolve fought him, faced with Chen Mu's momentum soaked in blood and slaughter, an irrational terror would well up in their heart. They would turn stiff and tense, as if encountering a natural predator. Yet although momentum was a specialized field emitted after essence, qi, and spirit were bound into one, having stronger essence, qi, and spirit did not guarantee one could cultivate momentum. It required martial dao conviction. Only those with outstanding talent who had comprehended their own martial path and possessed unshakeable martial dao conviction could condense momentum. Lin Zheyu's martial dao conviction was not entirely his own; it had been gleaned from comprehending the Wild Bull Fist. He had only practiced martial arts for a few months and simply hadn't had the time to coalesce a martial dao conviction of his own. Thump! Thump! Thump! Heavy thuds sounded continuously. The momentum around Lin Zheyu steadily climbed; every punch he threw carried a formidable pressure that made it difficult to breathe. Before long, however, he came to a stop, his brows furrowing slightly. "Still not quite right. Although my fist momentum is much stronger than before, it isn't as cohesive as Chen Mu's," Lin Zheyu mused. Chen Mu's momentum was not as overwhelming as his, but it was far more solid, like a firmly tamped foundation laid for a towering pavilion, even if the pavilion had yet to be built. Lin Zheyu's momentum, by contrast, was like a castle in the air, lacking a proper foundation. Though it had grown recently, the higher the tower rose, the more precarious it became. Both of them had cultivated momentum by grasping the intent infused into their respective techniques. The difference was that Chen Mu was constantly fighting, experiencing battle, and putting his martial conviction to the test. He was hammering down his foundation, aligning his martial dao conviction ever closer with the momentum of the Mad Battle Art. Lin Zheyu had not done that. He had relied solely on bitter training and raw comprehension. "Chen Mu was right. The path of martial arts demands forging ahead boldly, gaining insights amidst life-and-death clashes, validating one's martial dao in blood-soaked battles, and carving out a road of one's own." "Working behind closed doors gets you nowhere in martial arts." "Combat... I need continuous combat to validate my martial path through battle." A sharp glint flashed in Lin Zheyu's eyes, and the momentum around him solidified a fraction. Throughout his journey, his strength had risen too quickly—so quickly that there had been no time for it to settle. In the early stages, that posed little problem. Yet now that he had reached the point where martial comprehension was required and momentum had to be condensed, the cracks began to show. What was martial dao conviction? In Lin Zheyu's understanding, conviction was experience, battle, and insight; it was what one continued to hold onto and pursue even after enduring agony and tribulation. "So then... what is my martial dao conviction?"