23: Chapter 23 Breakthrough to the Innate Level

These were all gifts from Lin Datong.

You were familiar with the road out of the city. You arrived at the neighboring small town, spent half a day buying everything you needed: medicinal powders and pigments for disguise, salt, fire starters, dry rations, winter clothing, and various other daily necessities.

Then, you entered Daliang Mountain.

The mountain roads were difficult to traverse, but with your Post-Heaven Peak Physique, walking such paths was like taking a stroll; you even had the mood to admire the scenery on both sides.

Daliang Mountain still bore traces of lingering snow, icicles hung from pine branches, and the stream water was bone-chillingly cold.

You were not in a rush to find Little Wang. Instead, you found a sheltered mountain col deeper in the mountains, which had a water source, cover, and only one narrow path for entry and exit.

You put down your pack and sat cross-legged.

It was time for a Breakthrough.

In your last simulation, you attempted to charge from Post-Heaven Peak to the Innate realm, but your Meridians shattered, nearly ending your path as a Martial Artist. That was because the rigid and fierce Internal Energy of the Mysterious Tiger Force did not match your Physique, and you were forcing a Breakthrough while pushed to a desperate situation.

But things were different now.

You were cultivating the Azure Sky Heart Method, which was soft, gentle, and pure, perfectly compatible with your Physique.

You closed your eyes, and the Azure Sky Heart Method began to circulate.

The True Qi circulated through your Meridians for a full cycle before gathering in your Dantian. Your consciousness sank deep into your Dantian, sensing that thin barrier—the threshold between the Acquired and Innate realms.

Coupled with the foundation from your twenty-plus years in your previous life.

In this life, you lacked nothing.

On the first day, you cleared the blockages in three auxiliary Meridians, increasing the circulation speed of your True Qi by nearly thirty percent.

Early on the second morning, you focused all your True Qi, aimed it at the barrier, and broke through in one go.

The moment your Internal Energy transformed into True Qi, your five senses suddenly ascended to a new level. The scent of pine resin carried on the wind, the sound of the stream hitting rocks three miles away, and the faint vibration of earthworms wriggling in the soil beneath your feet all flooded in.

Innate Realm.

You stood up, drew your short sword, and practiced three moves of the Frost Moon Sword Technique.

The sound of the sword cutting through the air was a whole octave sharper than before. When True Qi was infused into the tip of the blade, a layer of visible Qi radiance condensed at the edge. Although it was only a thin layer, this was something an Acquired Martial Artist could never achieve.

You sheathed your sword and exhaled a breath of stale air.

It was time to go find Little Wang.

You followed the route from your memory, walking east for most of the day, and saw it on a rocky beach.

A white-browed tiger, completely snow-white, a few years younger than in your memory, with glossy fur and thick limbs, was lying on a large rock basking in the sun, its tail flicking lazily.

Little Wang.

But it clearly no longer recognized you.

The moment it discovered you, Little Wang sprang up from the rock, arched its back, bared its teeth, and let out a low warning growl from its throat. Its amber tiger eyes stared fixedly at you, pupils shrinking into vertical slits.

You stood still, not out of fear, but because an indescribable bitterness welled up in your heart.

In your previous life, you had spent three years together. It would bring you fish, let you rub its belly, and squat at the cave entrance to keep watch while you cultivated. After you left, it waited for you at the village entrance for so many years, only to be surrounded and killed in the end, without even its bones left behind.

It didn't remember you.

However, you had been prepared for this; after all, in this lifetime, it had never met you.

Little Wang clearly mistook your stillness for weakness; its tiger body shuddered, it pressed forward two steps, and its roar grew louder.

You sighed, raised your hand, and walked up to it.

Slap.

A slap landed solidly on the tiger's head.

With True Qi of the Innate Realm infused into your palm, this blow caused Little Wang's head to tilt to the side, and the fierce glint in its tiger eyes instantly turned into confusion.

It froze for a breath, then flew into a rage. Its roar shook the leaves until they rustled down, and it swiped both front paws at your face.

You dodged to the side, backhanded another palm strike, and pressed down on the back of its neck, pinning it to the ground. Little Wang struggled a few times, discovering it couldn't break free, and its struggling force grew weaker and weaker.

After a dozen breaths, it stopped moving.

Then, very sensibly, it rolled over to expose its soft belly.

Its tiger eyes were half-closed, sneaking glances at you, and in that gaze—there was actually a hint of fawning.

You squatted down and reached out to rub its belly.

"This time, I won't leave."

The days spent with Little Wang were more troublesome than you had anticipated.

It wasn't because of danger—in this mountain forest, Little Wang was the apex predator, and beasts within a ten-mile radius would detour as soon as they smelled its scent. When you cultivated, it would lie on the side dozing off, occasionally pricking up its ears to listen for movement, which was even less trouble than hiring a bodyguard.

What was troublesome was the eating.

The cause was that you grilled a fish for it on the third day.

You built a campfire, skewered a fish caught from the stream on a wooden stick, sprinkled some salt on it, and turned it over a few times. The skin was grilled until it was crispy, and the fish meat glistened with oil. Little Wang leaned over to sniff it, and you tore off half for it.

It ate it.

And then, it wouldn't eat raw food anymore.

The next day, Little Wang went out hunting as usual and brought back a plump muntjac. After killing it, it didn't eat it itself, but dragged it in front of you, then sat down, its tail sweeping the ground, staring straight at you with its two tiger eyes.

You: "..."

You grilled it for it.

On the third day, it brought back two wild rabbits.

On the fifth day, a wild boar.

On the seventh day, it dragged back half a deer from who knows where.

You really couldn't take it anymore.

"Am I your cook or your master?" You squatted in front of the campfire, your hands covered in oil and ash, complaining to Little Wang.

Little Wang tilted its tiger head and looked at you with an innocent expression.

You rolled your eyes.

Grilling meat wouldn't work; the quantity was too large. The amount Little Wang ate in one meal was enough for you for half a month. You couldn't squat here every day turning a grill; you still had to Cultivate. So, you disguised yourself again, went down the mountain to the nearest town, and found a blacksmith shop to order an oversized iron pot. When the blacksmith saw the dimensions you drew, his eyes almost popped out.

"Miss, what are you planning to cook?"

"Cooking a tiger." You replied expressionlessly.

The blacksmith thought you were joking and laughed twice. You didn't laugh, and three days later, you carried the pot back into the mountains.

Along the way, you restocked on seasonings, salt, and menstrual pads.

While climbing the mountain carrying the large iron pot, you suddenly felt a bit nostalgic for your previous life.

In your previous life, when you were thirsty you had delivery, when you were hungry you ordered delivery, you could drink iced cola every day, and you never had to worry about these annoying things.

Life went on like this.

The Azure Sky Heart Method circulated steadily within your body, and your True Qi grew increasingly thick day by day. Your talent as a Martial Arts Prodigy displayed even greater value in the Innate Realm—your perception of the flow of True Qi became increasingly delicate, and every time you cultivated, you could precisely send the True Qi to where it needed to go, with almost zero waste.

One year later, you had a Breakthrough to the Xiantian Middle Stage.

Three years later, Xiantian Late Stage.