Internal martial arts cultivation is divided into five realms: Qi Sensing, Body Cultivation, Storing Truth, Innate, and Grandmaster. Qi Sensing is the first realm. One is considered to have successfully broken through upon perceiving the elusive Qi sensation. Body Cultivation is the second realm. Practitioners of internal cultivation use their internal Qi to nourish their limbs, bones, and all meridians, allowing the internal Qi to flow unimpeded throughout the body. Therefore, this realm is also known as Body Nourishment, as its purpose is to develop a physique suitable for practicing the Martial Dao of internal cultivation.
The Martial Dao is not merely about bravery and aggression. The true goal of practicing it is to push the human body’s potential to its utmost limits. The third realm, Storing Truth, involves the constant compression of internal power to nurture a strand of life-sustaining True Qi, which is stored within the Dantian.
「Xiaoyi Hall temporary headquarters.」
Inside the secret room.
Master Ma and Xu Xing sat facing each other. As Xu Xing, seated cross-legged, refined his internal Qi, Master Ma began to adjust his own breathing rhythm, striving to synchronize with Xu Xing. He focused on two tasks at once. While circulating the Stony Heart Method, he also began to operate the Meridian Skill.
Soon, Master Ma relaxed, his mind entering a meditative state, envisioning boundless space. Above his head, drops of Ganlu appeared, like dew condensed on a lotus leaf. They gently fell from the crown of his head into his body, cleansing it from top to bottom, inside and out. He harnessed this spiritual Ganlu, which penetrated through his head, mixed it with his own internal power, and then sent it into Xu Xing’s body. This was to cleanse Xu Xing’s body using the power of the Meridian Skill.
"The Meridian Skill I cultivate is fully named the Meridian Purification Skill, also known as the Meridian Life Taking Skill," Master Ma explained, having informed Xu Xing of his intentions beforehand. "The terms ’Zi’ and ’Wu’ in its name refer to the Zi (11 PM - 1 AM) and Wu (11 AM - 1 PM) periods, as practicing this skill during these times is optimal. Zi is when Yin declines and Yang flourishes, while Wu is when Yang declines and Yin begins to rise. These periods, corresponding with the trigrams Kan and Li, are the most favorable times for cultivation."
"As for ’Purification,’ it signifies washing away all dross to reveal the true gold. Legend says this skill is a fundamental Internal Power of Quanzhen Taoism, personally compiled by Grandmaster Chongyang. Now, I will use the internal power condensed by this skill to help you achieve your breakthrough!"
Ordinarily, it is most suitable for someone practicing the same cultivation method to assist in a breakthrough. However, Master Ma was an exception. His Meridian Skill was a true Taoist lineage, of a higher order than common Internal Powers.
The two pressed their palms together.
In an instant, a torrent of internal power surged into Xu Xing’s body. This internal power was vastly different from Xu Xing’s own. The internal power Xu Xing had cultivated was like a rock—tough and slow-moving. In contrast, this new power was like a mountain spring, flowing fluidly. As it passed through his meridians, it brought not discomfort, but a refreshing, cool sensation.
Blocked meridians and acupoints were flushed open.
"Gate of Origin, Meeting Yin..."
"Thymus, Jade Hall, Jade Ring..."
While being nourished, Xu Xing diligently guided this internal power to circulate through his body, aiming to merge it with his own internal Qi and thereby generate a strand of his life-sustaining True Qi.
One Great Zhou Cycle.
Two Great Zhou Cycles.
Seven Great Zhou Cycles.
After transferring internal power for nearly four hours, Master Ma began to feel his own reserves dwindle. Is it done? Just as he hesitated, wondering whether to withdraw his hands, Xu Xing took the initiative to separate their palms. Xu Xing’s breathing rhythm gradually quickened, and the speed at which he circulated the Stony Heart Method suddenly increased significantly.
Master Ma’s tense heart relaxed slightly. If Xu Xing hadn’t successfully broken through, Master Ma might have had to continue transferring internal power. After all, they were just one step away, and giving up was not an option. Now that Xu Xing had succeeded, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
A single strand of True Qi is condensed from thirty-six strands of internal Qi.
Xu Xing looked inward. Under his intent, a strand of earthy yellow True Qi was guided out from his Dantian, flowing continuously through the meridians in his flesh and blood. As the True Qi circulated throughout his body, his internal organs were constantly tempered, becoming much more resilient and profound than before.
Upon entering the Storing Truth Realm, one was considered a renowned expert in the Jianghu. One could even imbue weapons with their life-sustaining True Qi to slay enemies.
The reason Master Ma... Forget it, let’s not discuss Master Ma, Xu Xing thought, shaking his head. He couldn’t fathom Master Ma’s realm. Even Haige could use Qi to control a knife, let alone Master Ma.
However, he believed Master Ma was likely somewhere between the Innate and Storing Truth realms. According to rumors in the Jianghu of Fengxi Country, masters in the Innate Realm could kill from a distance using nothing but flying flowers or falling leaves. Although Master Ma could control a knife with Qi, he seemed to fall somewhat short of those legendary Innate masters.
In his youth, before deciding to pursue the Imperial Examination, he had inquired about some secrets of the martial world. However, the people of the Jianghu were too disappointing; most couldn’t even handle a hundred opponents. That was why he had opted for the Imperial Examination to become an official.
The reason Master Ma was thought to be between the Innate and Storing Truth realms was because he cultivated an immortality cultivation method. The first step of the Meridian Skill was to draw in spiritual essence from the external world, while internal martial arts cultivation methods focused on extracting essence from food and circulating it through the meridians to form internal Qi.
Scholar... I must pass the examination! Xu Xing’s eyes burned with eagerness at the thought. The cultivation methods of the Quanzhen Dragon Gate Sect are worth more than a thousand gold! If merely the foundational Internal Power of Quanzhen Taoism possessed such capabilities, what then of their true immortality cultivation methods? It was only after meeting Lü Zu and Han Zhongli on Mount Zhongnan that Grandmaster Chongyang received the profound teachings of Quanzhen and began the path of cultivating immortality...
"Thank you for your efforts, Master Ma," Xu Xing said, finally ceasing his cultivation after successfully storing two strands of life-sustaining True Qi. He rose and bowed to Master Ma in gratitude. Thanks to Master Ma using the Meridian Skill to help him break through, the aftereffects of his advancement seemed minimal. This point alone was enough to fill him with profound gratitude.
Master Ma casually picked up a cold pot of Triple Cannon Stage tea, poured a cup for Xu Xing and himself, then drained his own in one gulp. Waving his hand, he said, "We’re all brothers in arms. There’s no point in standing on such ceremony."
Xu Xing was now an Incense Master of Xiaoyi Hall. Although he didn’t directly command any men, his rank was only slightly below Master Ma’s, who was a Red Stick. Furthermore, Xu Xing had previously gifted him the Stony Heart Method, a valuable asset that could strengthen his family’s foundation. Even if Master Ma himself couldn’t use it, future generations certainly could.
The Meridian Skill was not something just anyone could cultivate. In over a hundred years, I’m the only one who has successfully cultivated it, Master Ma mused. Haige only counts as half. To put it nicely, Haige possessed a child-like innocence, which made his practice of Taoist internal skills exceptionally smooth. To put it bluntly, Haige was somewhat slow-witted, not quite on par with an average person... The ’opportunity’ I offered Xu Xing was, in essence, merely spending a favor I was owed. If Xu Xing failed to pass the Scholar examination, this opportunity would become an empty promise.
"Let’s call a spade a spade," Xu Xing said, his tone serious rather than dismissive. "A favor is a favor, and it needs to be clearly acknowledged."
Master Ma could choose to downplay the matter, but Xu Xing could not. Otherwise, if he needed help today, whom could he ask? And what about tomorrow, or the day after?