14: Chapter 14 Third-Rate Martial Artist
The trip to the gym was merely a diversion in Ji Yebai's leisure life.
His goal had always been very clear.
Before the recovery of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, he would Breakthrough to become a Third-rate Martial Artist and strive for as many Opportunities as possible.
Ji Yebai's Path of a Hundred Refinements had now surpassed eighty, nearing its end.
At this very moment.
Ji Yebai already had a faint sensation.
It seemed as though he could Breakthrough on the spot.
This feeling was ethereal and elusive.
This allowed Ji Yebai's heart to relax.
The appearance of this feeling indicated that the path he was taking was correct.
This gave Ji Yebai even more confidence.
With ample confidence, he became even more devoted to his cultivation.
Gradually.
The Path of a Hundred Refinements continued to deepen.
Eighty-two times...
Eighty-five times...
Eighty-eight times...
...
Until ninety-nine times!
When the ninety-ninth tempering was completed, Ji Yebai nearly lost control of the Qi within his body.
That condensed energy felt as if it possessed the properties of Internal Energy.
Even more, with a burst of power, he could shatter a large rock with a single punch.
Ji Yebai estimated that at his current stage, he already possessed a thousand catties of strength.
And when he became a Third-rate Martial Artist and birthed Internal Energy, his body would be strengthened again; if it was strengthened once more, just how great would his strength become...
Ji Yebai felt a sense of longing in his heart.
"Phew! A year has already passed; it is time to prepare for the Breakthrough!"
Ji Yebai exhaled a puff of white air.
He had spent a full year on the path from the eightieth refinement onwards.
Mainly because as the process progressed, the time required to replenish his internal breath lengthened each time.
Furthermore, from time to time, the feeling of an impending Breakthrough would strike, and he had to suppress it.
"Finally ninety-nine. Next is the end of the Path of a Hundred Refinements!"
"I must prepare thoroughly!"
Ji Yebai took a deep breath, suppressing his excited heart.
Since his Rebirth, four years had passed.
Four years—double the two years he had originally planned.
But his mood was extremely good.
At this point, he felt at every moment like a vessel filled to the brim, ready to overflow.
Moreover.
The Path of a Hundred Refinements had raised his Physical Body's strength by several Ranks.
It was no exaggeration to say.
Ji Yebai's current strength was no worse than when he became a Third-rate Martial Artist in his previous life.
Of course, this was the body's base strength.
If he utilized Internal Energy, his strength could explode several times over.
"The greatest risk in breaking through to become a Third-rate Martial Artist is extracting internal breath, continuously condensing it, and birthing Internal Energy..."
"During the birthing process, because internal breath from the body is extracted and combined with Mental Energy, once it fails, it will cause extreme exhaustion."
"The reason for this is simply that this portion of internal breath and Mental Energy is consumed."
"The loss of internal breath harms the Physical Body's Origin, while the loss of Mental Energy is even more intangible; I've only heard that it hinders the Cultivation of Internal Energy in the Late Stage..."
Ji Yebai's thoughts fluctuated.
"Now that I have completed the Path of a Hundred Refinements, the quality and condensation of my internal breath, while not comparable to Internal Energy, already faintly carries some properties of Internal Energy, so..."
"Becoming a Third-rate Martial Artist should be a natural progression for me."
Ji Yebai thought to himself.
In this life.
He was finally going to restore the strength he had in his previous life.
And he would far exceed it.
Being stronger than in his previous life meant that his future martial arts cultivation would go much further.
How could this not make him excited!
"Phew!"
Ji Yebai slowly exhaled, suppressing his excited heart.
The Path of a Hundred Refinements was just one final push away.
Whether the rumors were true would soon be verified.
Turning around.
Ji Yebai changed his clothes and walked out of the mountains.
At this point, the important thing was to adjust his state of mind.
He decided to pause his cultivation for a few days.
With the moment at hand, these few days wouldn't make a difference.
Over the next few days.
Ji Yebai took a good rest at the foot of the mountain.
At night he stayed at Shuimu Xiaoxiang, and during the day he took a bus to visit the major scenic spots in Zhangjiajie.
Just like that, a week passed.
Until this day.
"Phew, it's time!"
Ji Yebai felt he was ready and returned to the cave.
He took out the musk grass powder and placed it beside him.
If people from his previous life saw this, they would likely scream that Ji Yebai was a spendthrift.
musk grass.
It was a peculiar Spiritual Plant.
The reason it was called peculiar was that its effect was to strengthen a Martial Artist's Mental Energy.
In his previous life, this kind of herbal medicine cost tens of millions per plant.
And no one would directly grind musk grass into powder.
That would be too wasteful of its medicinal effects.
Of course.
Although musk grass was precious.
It couldn't cause too much of a stir in him anymore.
After experiencing the spirit gathering grass, Ji Yebai had seen through it all.
It was just musk grass, no need to make a fuss.
However, grinding the musk grass into powder still made Ji Yebai's heart ache for a while.
But to prevent any accidents, Ji Yebai gritted his teeth and did it anyway.
Regarding internal breath.
He was not worried.
His current internal breath's condensation had reached a critical point.
If he weren't suppressing it right now, he would have broken through long ago.
However.
He was worried about his Mental Energy.
For such strong internal breath to transform into Internal Energy, how much Mental Energy would it need to combine with?
If his Mental Energy was insufficient, failing at the final step would be a net loss.
Therefore, Ji Yebai prepared to consume the musk grass powder to complete the final step of the Path of a Hundred Refinements.
Moreover, he could simultaneously strengthen his spirit and eliminate hidden dangers.
Killing two birds with one stone.
"Let's begin!"
Ji Yebai sat cross-legged, tilted his head back, and poured all the musk grass powder into his mouth.
It didn't choke him at all.
Instead, it melted in his mouth instantly, filling it with a fresh fragrance.
Ji Yebai swallowed and focused his mind.
An hour later, Ji Yebai's whole body jolted.
Immediately after, the sense of Qi in his body surged, expanding rapidly like a balloon.
But in the next moment.
It suddenly collapsed.
Like a burst dam, it crazily sank toward a certain point.
The abundant internal breath was instantly emptied.
However.
Within Ji Yebai's body, vast amounts of internal breath emerged again, thread by thread, continuous and unending.
The threads of internal breath tangled incessantly, surging toward the Dantian, creating an illusion of a grand, majestic flow.
And that Dantian.
The mists were swept away, gathering breath into Qi, and gathering Qi into form.
Internal Energy!
Extremely powerful Internal Energy was instantly born in the Dantian.
The quantity was so massive that it filled the entire Dantian in an instant.
With a thought from Ji Yebai.
Then, the powerful Internal Energy, like a floodgate opening, surged out of the Dantian and circulated throughout his body.
The Internal Energy that had nearly burst the Dantian, after surging into Ji Yebai's Meridians, actually merged rapidly into the surrounding flesh and bone, strengthening his body at a speed beyond ordinary imagination.
A full three hours passed.
Ji Yebai slowly opened his eyes.
"It actually succeeded!?"
"And..."
"Body Tempering for five hours!?"
Ji Yebai was beyond astonished.
Compared to his previous life, this Breakthrough was simply too easy, and the tempering of his body actually lasted for five hours.
One must know that in his previous life, Ji Yebai only successfully birthed Internal Energy on his sixth attempt, and the Body Tempering lasted less than half an hour.
The gap was simply immeasurable.
During a Martial Artist's Breakthrough, they briefly draw upon the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
Internal Energy augmented by the world's spiritual energy can strengthen the body in all aspects.
The longer the strengthening lasts, the greater the harvest naturally is.
"Is it because the Path of a Hundred Refinements enhanced my foundation!?"
Ji Yebai slowly stood up, carefully sensing the changes within his body.
As Ji Yebai stood up, he discovered that a layer of black substance had emerged on the surface of his body.
Impurities!
A foul stench filled the air!
"Cleansing the marrow and refining the bones!"
Ji Yebai smiled slightly, then with a flicker of thought, his entire being instantly turned into a dark shadow and disappeared from the cave.