At the Inspectorate storeroom.
All the spoils of battle were kept here.
Night had already fallen, but because the contents of the Inspectorate storeroom were extraordinarily valuable this time, even with powerful figures present in the city, the Inspectorate dared not be careless. Mu Sen personally stood guard outside the storeroom with his men.
Until Yuan Shuo took these things away, he wouldn't dare let his guard down for a single day.
Over a thousand cubes of mysterious energy!
In a small town like Silver City, even someone of Mu Sen's high status had never seen so much.
Aside from White Moon City and Yaoguang City, such a sight was rare anywhere else.
The storeroom of the Inspectorate was heavily guarded. When Li Hao entered the perimeter, he could faintly sense numerous machine guns aimed in his direction. With Chief Mu Sen personally stationed there as well, an ordinary Solar Radiance expert would find it difficult to snatch the treasures.
"Li Hao of the Law Enforcement Team reporting, Chief Mu!"
Li Hao saluted Mu Sen at the entrance.
He didn't know the chief very well. His first impression had been decent enough; back when Li Hao dropped out of school to join the Confidential Records Office, Mu Sen had advised him that it was best to finish his studies before joining the Inspectorate.
His second impression had formed just last night. Although the chief hadn't gone out of the city to assist in the battle, he had still done everything he could within the city to help Liu Long break away.
As for the conversation between Mu Sen and Hao Lianchuan earlier today, Li Hao naturally hadn't heard it.
"Ah, Li Hao!"
Mu Sen smiled, a brilliant grin spreading across his face. "Not bad, not bad at all!"
He nodded and offered Li Hao a compliment, though Li Hao had no idea what he meant by 'not bad.'
"Here to collect mysterious energy?"
"Yes, sir," Li Hao nodded.
"Your teacher's share, or the Demon Hunting Squad's share?"
"The share allocated to me. As for my teacher's, I wouldn't dare overstep my bounds."
Li Hao gave a bashful, embarrassed smile.
"I hear you rendered quite a service this time. Liu Long mentioned earlier that you're getting thirty-two cubes. Truly makes one envious!"
He was only saying so politely. In reality, he had taken a cut of his own—the earth-traveling supernatural in the city had been killed by him and his men, and he certainly hadn't hesitated to hold that portion back.
Continuing, Mu Sen chuckled. "I'll take you inside. Are you planning to absorb it today?"
Li Hao nodded.
Mu Sen unlocked the storeroom, and the interior lights switched on. Soon, Li Hao saw an expansive cluster of ice crystal chambers ahead. Yet at a glance... there definitely weren't a thousand cubes!
Li Hao was a bit puzzled. Was the rest not here?
Mu Sen stepped into the storeroom as well. Seeing Li Hao looking in that direction, he smiled. "Curious why there doesn't seem to be as much mysterious energy here as you imagined?"
Li Hao nodded.
"Mysterious energy doesn't necessarily have to be stored in ice crystal chambers. Ice crystals are indeed effective at preventing mysterious energy from dissipating, but they have one drawback—they take up too much space! When you're out traveling and kill a supernatural, could you possibly carry an ice crystal chamber like this just to store the energy? Out of the question!"
Hearing this, Li Hao nodded in agreement.
Indeed!
A Three Suns expert yielded about a thousand cubes of mysterious energy. Who would lug around an ice crystal chamber with a volume of a full thousand cubes just to kill a Three Suns?
"The same goes for extracting mysterious energy for your own use," Mu Sen continued to explain. "Take your thirty-two cubes of mysterious energy, for instance. Are you supposed to absorb it right here? Neither martial masters nor supernaturals like having others watch their cultivation process. That's why there are ways to extract it and carry it off on your own!"
Li Hao grew interested and asked promptly, "Chief, how do you extract it? What can prevent mysterious energy from dissipating?"
He had also been thinking that if he absorbed it here, many people were right outside, leaving no privacy at all.
If he finished absorbing it in the blink of an eye, wouldn't that be broadcasting to everyone that he was different from the rest?
"You'll see in a moment!"
Mu Sen chuckled, his smile carrying a subtle hint of meaning. "In the past, our Silver City had no way to extract and carry it away either. But now... now we can!"
A moment later, the two walked over to the ice crystal chambers.
There were over a hundred cubes of mysterious energy of various elements, along with a portion of non-elemental energy.
Mu Sen said, "Pick your thirty-two cubes. Whatever element you want... or non-elemental, it doesn't matter. In truth, their value is about the same. Non-elemental is easier to absorb, while elemental energy is a bit more volatile, but it makes it easier to draw energy into your body, break your shackles, and become a supernatural."
Li Hao's primary focus for this visit was the five elements.
Last time, the earth energy had tempered his spleen.
This time, with the exception of fire, they had metal, wood, water, and earth. The only missing element was fire, because no fire-element supernatural had participated in the raid; a rainy night was ill-suited for a fire attack, as rain cut their efficiency in half and severely weakened their combat power.
As for the rest, there were wind and lightning elements. Flying supernaturals also fell under a type of wind energy.
*Missing fire energy... According to the five elements, fire corresponds to the heart. That means if the five-element energy can strengthen the five viscera again this time, the heart won't be reinforced.*
Li Hao glanced over them and quickly said, "Chief, I'd like to take eight cubes each of metal, wood, and water, and six cubes of earth."
Since he had already absorbed two cubes of earth energy last time, Li Hao felt it was better to keep things balanced.
As for fire energy, none was available now, leaving two cubes to choose from. After a brief thought, Li Hao added, "One cube of lightning and one of wind, please."
Mu Sen wasn't surprised in the least, but he reminded him, "Absorbing elemental energy does offer a chance to help you advance into a supernatural, but it must be an appropriate match! If you are naturally of the fire element, absorbing water-element energy can easily cause a backlash and cost you your life!"
It was normal for Li Hao to ask for energies of different elements.
Drawing energy into the body was best done with a matching element to stimulate and unlock one's supernatural lock.
However, there was no way to scan for one's affinity beforehand; one could only test it step by step.
Li Hao asking for so many different elements all at once could easily lead to waste... Of course, since it was Li Hao's own decision, Mu Sen wouldn't interfere.
Li Hao nodded. "I understand, Chief! If anything feels off, I'll stop!"
"Good. I believe you aren't that foolish... Still, focusing entirely on absorbing elemental energy—does this mean you're giving up on progressing along the martial path?"
He still felt a bit of regret. "Your teacher has now stepped into the Thousand-Battler realm and stands as a legend among martial masters! I originally thought you would choose non-elemental mysterious energy to walk further along the path of a martial master just like him. It seems... you don't care much for it."
Li Hao put on an honest, naive smile. "Chief, I haven't been practicing martial arts for very long! Counting from the very beginning, it's only been three years, and treating it as genuine martial arts has only been a matter of days... That's essentially the same starting point as stepping into the supernatural, and supernaturals progress much faster. So I'd still like to become a supernatural as soon as possible!"
Mu Sen nodded again, refraining from further persuasion.
Indeed, Li Hao had studied martial arts for too short a time; his choosing the supernatural path was understandable.
"It's best to reach the Ten-Slayer realm before advancing to supernatural. That way, you have a chance of skipping the Starlight realm... Though of course, it depends on the circumstances. Reaching the Ten-Slayer realm takes time, after all."
Liu Long hadn't reported Li Hao's actual progress to anyone.
Thus, Mu Sen had no idea about Li Hao's true state. As for why Li Hao had received such a large share of mysterious energy, Liu Long hadn't offered any detailed explanation either. When Mu Sen asked, Liu Long had merely said Li Hao served as bait and rendered great service.
Only a few members of the squad knew that Li Hao had killed that supernatural and that Hundred-Breaker martial master.
So even now, Mu Sen had no idea that Li Hao had stepped into the Ten-Slayer realm, let alone that he was nearing the Hundred-Breaker level.
In everyone's eyes, Li Hao was just an ordinary person.
Perhaps after absorbing mysterious energy, he could reach the Starlight or Ten-Slayer realm a bit faster... As for anything beyond that, no one gave it much thought; it was far too early.
Li Hao, naturally, was more than happy to keep a low profile and reap the rewards in silence.
There was no need to broadcast this!
Only if nobody knew could he catch his enemies off guard. If everyone knew, how could he launch surprise attacks?
"Chief, what should I use to extract the mysterious energy?"
Mu Sen didn't answer right away. Instead, he walked over to the side and retrieved a long, white object from a glass display cabinet. At first glance, Li Hao didn't recognize it.
Soon, however, his eyes flickered.
A human bone!
Sure enough, Mu Sen smiled faintly. "Use this! Of course, remember to return it once you're done! Ordinary objects can't contain mysterious energy. Aside from ice crystals, the easiest vessel for preserving it is actually the human body... Though not just any body will do! It requires at least a Solar Radiance expert. Their bones can hold and compress mysterious energy!"
This time, one Solar Radiance and one Three Suns had been killed, which was how Silver City had obtained such materials.
No wonder Mu Sen said there had been no way before.
"The bones of these powerhouses can compress mysterious energy; otherwise, even strong experts would burst from the inside! In fact, their skin could have preserved it too... But the two who died this time were chopped to pieces by your teacher. Their bones survived, but as for the skin... forget it!"
A look of discomfort crossed Li Hao's face. He seemed slightly nauseated, his complexion turning faintly pale.
Mu Sen glanced at him and chuckled. "Scared?"
Li Hao gave an embarrassed look. "No, not scared, just... just a bit... Chief, is this the only thing we can use?"
"You could use something else, like a supernatural item. Do you have one?"
He laughed. "Given Silver City's current conditions, having anything that can store mysterious energy is already a blessing, and here you are being picky. Your teacher's share of mysterious energy was stored in an even more exaggerated vessel—it was put inside that Three Suns expert's skull!"
Li Hao turned even paler, then gritted his teeth, putting on an expression of grim determination.
Mu Sen looked at him and sighed inwardly.
Too young!
Just like those youngsters from the Night Watchers, he hadn't seen much of the world. Li Hao had seen even less; though he was Yuan Shuo's student, he hadn't practiced martial arts before, so he naturally shrank from such gruesome things.
Saying no more, Mu Sen quickly began extracting the mysterious energy according to Li Hao's request.
Eight cubes each of metal, wood, and water, six cubes of earth, and one cube each of wind and lightning.
Rather than using a single bone, he used six separate bones to store them individually.
A moment later, he packed the six bones into a small black pouch and handed it to Li Hao. "Go home and absorb it slowly! Don't rush! Whenever you finish, bring the bones back. They can be reused next time; items that can store mysterious energy are far too scarce in Silver City!"
He added, "Only a handful of people know about this. Don't speak of it to outsiders, lest you invite trouble! Wealth stirs the heart. Thirty-two cubes of mysterious energy could fetch tens of millions on the black market! To many people, that kind of money is enough to make them disregard everything!"
"Thank you for the warning, Chief!"
Li Hao offered his thanks, took the small black pouch, and walked out looking a bit pale.
...
A short while later, Li Hao disappeared from the storeroom entrance.
Soon after, Liu Yan arrived.
Seeing Mu Sen, she gave a slight nod. Mu Sen chuckled and remarked, "That young fellow Li Hao just took his share. Your Demon Hunting Squad ought to give him some proper training! Since he's entered this sphere, he needs more exposure. His courage is too small—he turned pale just from the sight of a human bone. If I hadn't let him leave, he might have wet himself..."
Liu Yan's eyes took on an extraordinarily peculiar look.
She looked at Mu Sen and, after a long pause, managed a strained nod. "Understood! He's a man of letters, a true scholar who's never seen blood. That's only natural!"
Inside, she was scoffing frantically!
That kid was no innocent soul.
Tricking people again!
Scared to the point of wetting himself by a bone?
*He almost scared the piss out of me! The way he butchered that water-element supernatural earlier... words can't even describe it.*
*And him?*
*Going weak at the knees over a human bone?*
*Who was he kidding!*
She hadn't realized it in the past, but now Liu Yan saw right through him. It was all Li Hao's disguise. That kid was wicked, daring, cold-blooded, and twisted; whoever believed him would suffer the most miserable death!
She didn't bother elaborating to Mu Sen. It was better this way.
It was best if no one knew!
If everyone knew Li Hao was sinister and twisted, none of them might have made it back alive this time. It was precisely his quiet, devious ruthlessness that had allowed him to ambush and slay two powerful foes.
"A scholar, indeed!" Mu Sen sighed with emotion. "Yuan Shuo is a fake scholar himself, yet he managed to raise a true seed of learning! Who knows what Li Hao thinks of him now? A frail, gentle professor suddenly turned into a demon who slaughters without batting an eye!"
He almost felt anxious on Li Hao's behalf.
Liu Yan forced a stiff smile and quickly changed the subject. "Chief, I'm here to collect my share!"
*Save the nonsense!*
*What Li Hao thinks of him?*
*You should mind your own business!*
She was more worried about whether Yuan Shuo could accept that his student was a homicidal maniac!
Mu Sen said no more, beaming as he led Liu Yan inside. He enjoyed chatting with mature, attractive women the most, though Liu Yan was a thorny rose; he only indulged in teasing her with words, and wouldn't dare take her on if she actually threw herself at him.
...
At the same time.
Li Hao didn't go home, but headed straight for the Silver City Ancient Academy.
At this juncture, his teacher's place was far safer.
If anything went wrong during the absorption, his teacher might be able to help resolve it.
...
The Yuan Family Compound.
Yuan Shuo had also returned. There weren't many supernaturals around Silver City; he had made a sweep and killed a few. Whether there were any left, he couldn't say for sure, but even if there were, learning of the others' deaths would send them fleeing immediately.
By now, no one was guarding his place anymore; there was no need.
Hu Hao and Li Meng had received the New Book of Five Animals and were eager to test it out, so they had no time to linger here. Besides, Yuan Shuo didn't like people watching him, so he had sent them all away.
When Li Hao arrived, the compound was quiet.
It was nearly midnight, but the lights were still on. Over the past two days, few people in Silver City could sleep peacefully.
"Teacher!"
Li Hao spotted Yuan Shuo in the living room. Yuan Shuo was eating, and only then did Li Hao realize he was hungry as well; he hadn't eaten for an entire day and night.
"Want some?"
"Thank you, Teacher!"
Li Hao didn't stand on ceremony. He sat down and dug in, his mouth glistening with oil.
Yuan Shuo ate with little refined manners himself, watching Li Hao with a pleasant smile, his eyes carrying a rare gentleness. In his old age, having suffered injuries, he had planned to officially retire and groom a student to inherit his wealth of knowledge.
His mind held countless ancient texts, the original copies of which he had destroyed.
If he died just like that, those ancient texts would be lost forever, which would be a tremendous tragedy.
He had originally planned to spend several years passing all of it down to Li Hao. Li Hao wasn't his chosen successor in martial arts, but the heir to his knowledge.
The New Book of Five Animals was merely intended to make Li Hao healthier.
Who could have guessed that, in the end, an unexpected twist of fate would lead Li Hao onto the path of a martial master?
And he himself had turned misfortune into a blessing. Because of his injury, taking in this student had instead allowed him to step into the Thousand-Battler realm in a single stride.
He was thoroughly pleased with this student.
It was just a pity that he would likely be busy going forward, and might not have much time to pass on the vast library of ancient texts in his head to this student.
Yuan Shuo felt a pang of regret at the thought.
"Little Hao!"
"Yes?"
Li Hao gnawed on a chicken leg and looked up at his teacher.
Yuan Shuo said with a smile, "Don't go home for the next few days. I'll be busy soon, but I can spare some time at night to teach you a few things. They might not be useful right now, but in the future... they could be of immense value!"
For example, the Blood Saber Art, the Five Animals Art, the breathing technique...
Many of these things had been learned by Yuan Shuo from ancient texts, and he had adapted them to make them more suitable for modern martial masters to practice.
And that was only the tip of the iceberg!
There were many other things he had once thought were mere conjectures and fantasies of the ancients.
Yet looking back now, were they really?
Yuan Shuo now harbored a grand idea: to connect the ancient texts and see if he could forge a new path for martial arts.
Some records in the ancient texts were fragmented.
No matter!
He could reconstruct and adapt them bit by bit. Even the original Five Animals Art hadn't been complete; he had restored it himself, and practicing it now yielded remarkable results.
However, the process might take a very long time.
Li Hao nodded without refusal.
He had always been this obedient.
"Then we'll begin tonight..."
"Not tonight!" Li Hao hurriedly interjected. "Tonight I need to absorb mysterious energy. Teacher, I don't know if you've noticed, but elemental mysterious energy can actually be split apart—one part into elemental energy, and one part into non-elemental mysterious energy! Non-elemental mysterious energy strengthens the physical body, while elemental energy can reinforce the internal organs... Of course, I'm not entirely certain, but earlier I broke down earth energy and used it to strengthen my spleen!"
Yuan Shuo froze slightly.
He truly hadn't noticed that!
"Are you certain?"
"Yes!" Li Hao added, "Of course, it requires the energy of the little sword to work; otherwise, it can't be done!"
Yuan Shuo grew solemn and muttered, "Mysterious energy can strengthen the five viscera? In the Ten-Slayer and Hundred-Breaker realms, martial masters only temper bone and muscle. Only upon reaching the Thousand-Battler realm does one undergo blood transformation, using the new blood to nourish the internal organs in return! But that process is exceptionally long!"
He found it rather strange. Didn't mysterious energy devour inner force?
Naturally, during absorption, one didn't feel it, but once he had formed his own mysterious source, he discovered that the thing devoured inner force.
Yet now Li Hao claimed it could strengthen the internal organs. Didn't that mean... one could take a shortcut?
Why was that?
What made it different from directly absorbing mysterious energy?
What was the little sword's true function?
Thoughts flashed through his mind one after another. He looked at Li Hao and murmured, "At the Thousand-Battler level, aside from spirit intent, the most critical aspect is strengthening the internal organs. Only then can one be considered a true earthly immortal! Otherwise, even for a Thousand-Battler, certain poisons can still prove fatal! If the internal organs aren't strong enough... you may temper the sinews, bones, and skin externally, but internally you cultivate a breath of qi... and that breath alone can hardly reinforce the internal organs!"
After pondering for a while, he spoke again: "You plan to absorb mysterious energy to temper your internal organs?"
"Yes, that's my plan!" Li Hao nodded. "Teacher, I feel that cultivating both internally and externally might yield better results! It's more comprehensive! Otherwise, in combat, whenever inner force clashes violently, each shockwave could damage the internal organs. That's one of the reasons so many martial masters carry internal injuries."
Martial masters were almost never free of injuries; someone without injuries was merely a fake martial master who never fought!
"Very well!"
Yuan Shuo nodded. "If it's possible, strengthening the internal organs is naturally the way to go! We couldn't do it because we had no method, but if there is a way... you must temper your internal organs before the energy in that sword runs dry!"
"If you succeed, it will be of tremendous help to your future path!"
"My only worry is that the sword's energy is too meager to suffice for you."
As for himself, he had no intention of using it. He could sense that if he tried, the energy would be exhausted after barely strengthening him at all.
Since that was the case, it was better to let Li Hao use it to lay a solid foundation.
"Stop eating!"
Seeing that Li Hao was still focused on his food, Yuan Shuo roughly hauled him up. *Eat, eat, eat! If I'd known you had serious business, I wouldn't have fed you in the first place!*
Li Hao didn't mind. He kept chewing the chicken meat in his mouth until it was thoroughly crushed, swallowed it all down, and only then felt satisfied.
...
Yuan Shuo's residence featured a spacious martial arts practice room.
In good weather, he practiced in the courtyard.
In bad weather, he trained inside.
Tossing Li Hao onto a meditation cushion, Yuan Shuo urged, "Hurry up and begin. Let me see how you absorb it!"
"Teacher!" Li Hao spoke up at once. "No rush. Teacher, I feel like I'm close to reaching Hundred-Breaker, but what exactly is Hundred-Breaker? What are its defining characteristics? What should I watch out for when crossing into this realm?"
He knew nothing about any of this!
Yuan Shuo paused... Only then did he snap back to reality with a pang of emotion. Though he had repeatedly mentioned that Li Hao was close to Hundred-Breaker, seeing his student genuinely on the verge of it still brought an indescribable sense of marvel.
When had he himself broken through to Hundred-Breaker?
He had started practicing martial arts at just a few years old, stepped into the Ten-Slayer realm in his teens, reached Hundred-Breaker in his twenties, and attained peak Hundred-Breaker around age forty, sweeping through the martial arts world of Silver Moon Province to become a regional hegemon.
For the next thirty years, he had tried every method to step into Thousand-Battler, succeeding only recently.
Yet Li Hao...
The rise of the mysterious and the supernatural was, in fact, a blessing for martial masters; at the very least, mysterious energy now made it far easier to strengthen oneself!
As these thoughts flickered through his mind, he felt a twinge of guilt that he hadn't taught Li Hao these fundamentals yet.
For the final disciple of a Thousand-Battler powerhouse to know nothing about the martial path would be an embarrassment if word got out!
"Ten-Slayer and Hundred-Breaker, as I've told you before, belong purely to the power domain! Once you reach Thousand-Battler, it involves the mental plane—what we commonly refer to as spirit intent! That's why Thousand-Battler is the easiest to identify and distinguish!"
"In the Ten-Slayer realm, inner force is generated, and sinews and bones chime in unison. That marks your entry into the ranks of true martial masters! Inner force is acquired through the daily cultivation of arts and secret techniques... Now there is an additional path: absorbing non-elemental mysterious energy to strengthen the physical body, which can rapidly generate inner force. However, it can also cause severe harm—it's a double-edged sword, so you must weigh the risks yourself!"
"The Ten-Slayer realm is a process of strengthening inner force! When inner force grows powerful, the physical body grows powerful—the two are unified!"
"As for Hundred-Breaker... For true combat-oriented Hundred-Breakers in the past, the hallmark was taking to the battlefield and breaking an army of a hundred men. That was a true Hundred-Breaker! But in modern times, we don't measure it that way, because you'd be hard-pressed to find a hundred-man force willing to fight you without firearms!"
"So nowadays, the realm is judged on its own merits, and combat on its own!"
Li Hao listened attentively, nodding repeatedly.
"Hundred-Breaker has a signature trait: the outward projection of inner force!"
Li Hao was taken aback. Outward projection?
Yuan Shuo continued, "The human body acts as a barrier to both mysterious energy and inner force! When your inner force can project outward through your flesh to protect your body and harm your foes, you have officially reached the Hundred-Breaker realm!"
"Outward projection... Teacher, how do I project it outward?"
Yuan Shuo explained, "It's not something you do deliberately; it's a natural reaction of the body! When your inner force reaches the Hundred-Breaker level, it will naturally project outward, breaking through the barrier once your physical conditioning rises and your inner force grows strong enough!"
It sounded simple, but in reality... Li Hao actually found it quite straightforward. Projecting outward—understood!
"Then Hundred-Breaker also has tiers of strength. How does one differentiate between them?" Li Hao asked further.
Yuan Shuo continued to explain, "In our traditional martial arts community, Hundred-Breaker is generally divided into Initial, Middle, Late, and Peak! This corresponds to the Crescent Moon, Half Moon, and Full Moon stages of Lunar Nether Masters in the supernatural domain... In fact, above Full Moon and before stepping into Solar Radiance, there is also Moon Overflow, which corresponds to the Peak level of a Hundred-Breaker martial master. The moon wanes once full; the same applies to a martial master at Hundred-Breaker Peak! Once you reach the Peak or Moon Overflow level, if you still cannot advance, you will begin to decline!"
When the moon is full, it wanes; when water is full, it spills.
Upon reaching the pinnacle of Lunar Nether or Hundred-Breaker, lingering without being able to break through marked the start of the downward slope.
Yuan Shuo had remained at that level for a very long time and understood the feeling deeply. If one couldn't push upward swiftly at that stage, they would end up like him—unless favored by extraordinary fortune, that was where their life's progress ended!
Liu Long was currently striving for this stage and had barely reached it, but if he couldn't keep pushing forward, his decline was not far off!
Li Hao pondered this and asked, "Teacher, then how do you tell Initial from Middle?"
"Simple!" Yuan Shuo explained. "When a martial master first enters Hundred-Breaker, outward projection of inner force is limited to the four limbs! The limbs are the easiest to project from; once you achieve outward projection from all four limbs, it signifies that you've completed the Initial stage! A hallmark of the Middle stage is the torso—every part of the body can achieve outward projection... except the head!"
"The Late stage extends to the head. Inner force can be projected from head to toe. At that point, headbutting an opponent can be reinforced with outward-projecting inner force... It means your physical body has been refined to the extreme! When that happens, you are in the Late stage!"
Li Hao blinked. "And Peak?"
"Peak?" Yuan Shuo chuckled. "The Peak stage is when you begin making contact with spirit intent! That boundary is still somewhat mystical to you. Put simply, it's when you feel as though you've grown a heavenly eye, possessing a heightened sense of danger—sometimes suddenly sensing someone behind you, or even 'seeing' what's behind your back... Or perhaps you can look inward, inspecting your own flesh and internal organs... When you make contact with spirit intent, you have reached Peak! That is the initial threshold of stepping into the Thousand-Battler realm."
Li Hao understood!
At this moment, he finally gained an intuitive grasp of the martial master cultivation system.
The Ten-Slayer realm was purely about cultivating inner force and the physical body.
The Hundred-Breaker realm was about projecting inner force outward.
Projecting from the four limbs was the Initial stage.
Projecting from the torso was the Middle stage.
Having no vulnerable weak points across the entire body was the Late stage.
Peak meant being able to look inward, sense danger, and touch upon spirit intent.
"Is Captain Liu at the Peak stage?" Li Hao asked again.
Yuan Shuo shook his head. "Not quite, though he could sort of count!"
"How so?"
"He piled on his strength entirely through mysterious energy. Calling him a Late Hundred-Breaker is fine, but he knows nothing of spirit intent! It's just that the inner force he accumulated exceeds the Late stage. Today's martial masters all share this problem! That's why Liu Long has little hope of stepping into Thousand-Battler... unless he can connect with spirit intent! If he doesn't cultivate spirit intent, he'll either end up turning into a supernatural or remain stuck at peak Hundred-Breaker for the rest of his life!"
Li Hao frowned. "Is there no other way?"
"There is!" Yuan Shuo smiled again. "For a martial master, this hurdle is the hardest to overcome! Guess how I made contact with spirit intent back then?"
The earlier realms weren't too difficult.
Touching upon spirit intent, however, was truly arduous.
Li Hao didn't know, but he was certain his teacher did... because the man was a Thousand-Battler.
"Teacher, how did you make contact with it?"
"Cultivate the martial form, cultivate the intent, cultivate the mind, cultivate the source!"
Li Hao looked utterly bewildered.
Yuan Shuo sighed. *This kid doesn't seem all that sharp either.* Oh well, considering he had only recently taken up martial arts, Yuan Shuo elaborated further: "Take the New Book of Five Animals as an example. Back when I sought to break through to Hundred-Breaker Peak, I lived in the mountains for three full years! Day after day, I observed the true traits of the tiger, deer, bear, ape, and bird! I studied everything about them and imitated everything they did... Remember, it was merely imitation, not truly trying to become one with them!"
"Humans are humans, and beasts are ultimately beasts... What we must do is grasp the spirit intent within them! Take the tiger's pounce... Why does it pounce that way? How can it strike with such precision and hit vital points in a single blow? How does a deer sense a tiger's approach? In short, the process is profoundly wondrous!"
Yuan Shuo smiled. "Those who get it, get it. Those who don't... well, there's nothing to be done; it just means they truly lack the talent!"
Li Hao grew intrigued. "Teacher, Captain Liu practices the Nine Refinements Force, which doesn't imitate the five animals. If he wants to break through, how is he supposed to comprehend its spirit intent?"
"That comes down to exploring the origin of the martial art! Take the Nine Refinements Force: you must contemplate how its creator originally conceived it. What is the essence of the Nine Refinements Force? How can it achieve nine layered strikes in a single burst? I've never cultivated it, so I can't say for sure, but he has practiced it to such a level—doesn't he have a shred of insight? Striving for greater power isn't wrong, but pure power alone can rarely carry you across realms!"
Li Hao nodded. His teacher's few words had granted him an immediate, foundational understanding of the entire martial master cultivation system.
A Thousand-Battler truly was a Thousand-Battler!
So the reason the captain couldn't step into Thousand-Battler was that he hadn't truly reached Hundred-Breaker Peak; without touching upon and comprehending spirit intent, he was naturally still far from Thousand-Battler.
This wasn't something mysterious energy could solve.
And in the future, Li Hao would likely face the exact same challenge.
With that settled, Li Hao stopped asking questions and focused on absorbing the mysterious energy first.
Having already strengthened his spleen, he decided not to temper it further for now, but to reinforce the other four viscera first.
Among the five viscera, the heart corresponded to fire, the spleen to earth, the liver to wood, the lungs to metal, and the kidneys to water.
With that in mind, Li Hao began absorbing the water energy!
Strengthen the kidneys first!
Strong kidneys made a strong man... As someone who had read widely, Li Hao understood this well.
Strengthening the kidneys might also reinforce his groin... It was hard to say, but having used that groin-striking move twice to incapacitate his enemies, Li Hao felt a bit anxious himself, terrified someone might turn the tactic against him.
As the water energy entered his body, Li Hao drew a tiny sliver of energy from the jade sword. He dared not be wasteful now, fearful that excessive consumption would deplete the jade sword's energy entirely.
The kidneys served a vital role in detoxification and metabolism; with powerful kidneys, he wouldn't need to fear enemy poisons, as toxins could be swiftly expelled from his body.
The kidneys also regulated blood pressure. For someone like Li Hao, whose blood possessed immense power, his blood pressure could spike easily. While not fatal, it risked rupturing blood vessels—a downside of having blood that outstripped his physical constitution.
Traces of mysterious energy were extracted from the human bone.
Entering his body, they were swiftly separated by the jade sword's energy. Then, the elemental portion began reinforcing his kidneys, matching Li Hao's earlier conjecture—it truly corresponded to the five viscera!
Yuan Shuo watched intently, his expression shifting continuously.
Vague ideas stirred in his mind, though now was not the time for experimentation.
After absorbing roughly two cubes of water energy, Li Hao quickly moved on to metal and wood.
Once he had absorbed two cubes of all four types of energy, Li Hao felt the strengthening of his viscera... except for his heart. At this moment, he felt faintly uncomfortable. His blood surged faster, and his internal organs grew stronger; while other parts could bear the strain, his heart felt slightly overloaded.
*Thump, thump, thump!*
His heart beat rapidly!
It caused Li Hao a measure of discomfort, though the imbalance was not yet extreme.
"Lacking fire energy!"
Yuan Shuo realized in an instant. A sudden thought struck him, and an instant later, he vanished from the room.
...
Outside.
Yuan Shuo stepped through empty air, appearing before Hao Lianchuan in the blink of an eye. "Do you have fire energy?"
"Hm? No... What's wrong?"
"I remember you're of the fire element, right?"
"Yeah..."
"Then how do you not have fire energy?"
Hao Lianchuan was speechless. "Just because I'm fire-element doesn't mean I carry spare fire energy around! Am I supposed to strip away my own mysterious energy?"
He hadn't brought any stored fire energy along.
"Strip some out!"
"..."
Hao Lianchuan nearly choked with exasperation. *What is this supposed to mean? I'm still alive and well, and you want to extract my mysterious energy?*
"Hurry up, strip some out and I'll tell you a secret!"
"A secret?"
"Move it!"
Well, Hao Lianchuan was genuinely curious about the secret. After a moment's hesitation, he extracted a small wisp. Yuan Shuo frowned. "Not enough. Around twenty cubes—that's nothing to you!"
"..."
Hao Lianchuan sighed. "Professor Yuan, don't swindle me. I hope this secret is truly worth twenty cubes!"
Yuan Shuo couldn't be bothered to respond.
Once the other man extracted the fire energy, Yuan Shuo quickly gathered it using a supernatural item. Hao Lianchuan pretended not to notice; the old man was wealthy indeed, having stashed away plenty of perks over the years.
"Professor Yuan, what's the secret?"
Hao Lianchuan asked curiously. Whether it was a major secret didn't matter much—twenty cubes wasn't a massive amount, and he had a feeling that if he refused, Yuan Shuo might beat him up, so the secret was basically a bonus.
Yet Yuan Shuo's next words shook him to the core.
"Your heart is overloaded! Fire energy places tremendous strain on the heart! You need to absorb an appropriate amount of energy from the other four elements. Even if taking in small amounts creates a slight clash, it won't matter—just absorb a little to balance the overload on your heart... Otherwise, your heart might burst!"
With those words, he strode through the air and swiftly vanished.
Hao Lianchuan stood frozen, a storm brewing in his mind.
His heart was overloaded!
Absorbing small amounts of the other four elements—Yuan Shuo was completely right! He had indeed been feeling a slight tightness in his chest lately, but hadn't paid it any mind.
"Energy of all five elements?"
Hao Lianchuan sank into deep thought. At this moment, he suddenly felt those twenty cubes of fire energy had been exceedingly well-spent. This old man was truly packed with frightening secrets; any casual remark from him was worth paying close attention to.
...
Inside the room.
Li Hao had originally prepared to stop absorbing, but Yuan Shuo quickly handed over a small, flask-like vessel. "Fire energy!"
Li Hao's eyes lit up. His teacher was truly extraordinary, procuring whatever was needed right on cue.
He resumed his absorption.
Gradually, Li Hao's heart received reinforcement as well. Within his body, a harmonious circulatory system formed, tempering all five viscera simultaneously.
When the five viscera reached a state of complete equilibrium, Li Hao's body vibrated faintly. His inner force grew substantially, though it had not yet reached the threshold of breaking through the flesh.
Paying it no mind, Li Hao continued absorbing, taking in two cubes at a time.
After an unknown amount of time, the thirty cubes of five-element energy he had acquired, combined with eight cubes of fire energy provided by Yuan Shuo... Li Hao had absorbed a staggering thirty-eight cubes of five-element energy this time. Adding the two cubes of earth energy from before, the total came to forty cubes!
Such an amount was something Liu Yan and the others hadn't managed to absorb across several years, nor had there ever been that much available to them.
Just as Li Hao finished absorbing all of it, a sensation welled up within him... His inner force could break through the flesh!
In the next instant, Li Hao let out a low cry and threw a punch.
Yet it fell slightly short!
Unfazed, he unleashed the Nine Refinements Force. If one layer of inner force wasn't enough, then a second!
Double-stacked force!
This time, his inner force seemed to multiply. With a sharp pop, faint light appeared to glint off Li Hao's fist, and the punch blasted forward, shattering the floor tile in front of him to dust!
Li Hao looked overjoyed!
Had he reached Hundred-Breaker?
Yuan Shuo, however, frowned slightly. "Decent, but barely... You only managed outward projection by stacking it twice... Still, it can count as Hundred-Breaker! But... why the hell did you smash my floor tile?"
*The little bastard!*
Yuan Shuo looked thoroughly disgruntled. *Those high-end tiles cost me a fortune to install, and the brat went and smashed one to bits. Why are your hands so itchy?*
"Teacher, I'm a Hundred-Breaker!"
Li Hao was far too thrilled to care about a floor tile.
Yuan Shuo adopted a stern expression. "So what if you're a Hundred-Breaker? You barely just scraped by; strictly speaking, you don't even fully count yet! Wang Ming, who's the same age as you, is already at peak Half Moon and on the verge of Full Moon—that's Late Hundred-Breaker! Do you think you're impressive?"
If he didn't knock the boy down a peg, the kid's head would swell to the sky.
"Teacher, I..."
Li Hao looked sheepish. *Can't I just celebrate for a second?*
*I reached Hundred-Breaker!*
"Besides, your actual combat ability is atrocious. Enough, that's all for today!"
Yuan Shuo declared with dignity, "Spend today adjusting to your new strength!"
With that, he stepped out of the training room.
The moment he crossed the threshold, a wide, blooming grin burst across his face, his fists clenching tight!
Hundred-Breaker!
To think that in his old age, he might actually cultivate the next Thousand-Battler martial master!
Though the kid had relied on external power, so long as he could comprehend spirit intent, it wouldn't hinder him. If he could reach Thousand-Battler... then it would be two Thousand-Battlers under one roof!
*Keep your composure!* Yuan Shuo told himself inwardly, ecstatic beyond measure.
*Mustn't let it show!*
*I'm a Thousand-Battler powerhouse who has slain a Three Suns! It's just a Hundred-Breaker—a freshly minted rookie whom I could swat dead with a single palm...* Thinking this, his heart settled down considerably.
Yes, exactly that!
The next second, Yuan Shuo stamped down, cracking another floor tile beneath his foot, and grunted, "Have someone come retile my floor tomorrow! Replace the whole thing! You're paying!"
"..."
Inside the room, Li Hao looked thoroughly embarrassed. *I... I don't have much money.*
His teacher's floor tiles were exceedingly expensive.
Only then did he remember that he was dead broke. The joy of reaching Hundred-Breaker dimmed considerably. *I have no money!*
Chapter 47