Yuan’s Ascension

Yes, it wasn’t to seek guidance but to exchange pointers.

Wu Yuan wasn’t arrogant, he simply had that much faith in his abilities. So what if they were Land Rankers? While they had powerful physical constitutions, they might not necessarily surpass him in terms of skill.

However, that didn’t mean that Wu Yuan had no desire to ask them for guidance at all. Compared to his previous life, martial arts in the Middle Land was much more advanced, with many Grandmasters throughout the ages breaking through their human limits.

Wu Yuan had many unanswered questions, such as details about these human limits and the upper dantian lobe, and he hoped that the Grandmasters would be able to provide him with answers.

It wasn't that he wasn't intelligent enough. But how could the exploration and research of one person match the thousands of years of cumulative knowledge of an entire world?

But I can only leave them unanswered for now. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. Displaying Twofold Power Surge was already the limit. In fact, it was a bit too much, already enough to attract the attention of the two hierarchs of the Cloudstride Sect.

Even more? He might just get captured for experimentation.

There's still time, no need to hurry. I'll practice for a few more years. I only need to attend classes occasionally. As for the supplementary guidance from experts, I'll just put on an act when the time comes. Once or twice should be enough. Wu Yuan decided, returning to his reading.

He knew better than to draw too much attention. If he was going to pretend, he had to commit fully.

Apart from normal items and natural treasures, one could also exchange their points for weapons, including divine weapons.

A third-grade divine weapon required 150,000 contribution points. It also came with the warning 'proceed at your own discretion'.

As for these secret techniques? Wu Yuan scanned the list of various saber, sword, spear, and axe techniques. The price range of these secret techniques varied from tens to thousands of points.

I'll redeem a few occasionally to look through. Wu Yuan was unwilling to squander too much on such techniques, knowing very well that the secret techniques of the Cloudstride Sect were incomparable to the likes of Thousand Mountains or Ghostwalk.

These secret techniques were similar to the 'Tai Chi Sword'[1], 'Eight-extremities Boxing’[2], 'Eight Trigram Palm'[3], and other such techniques from his past life.

The Fundamentals are all about routines; beginners must learn the basics.

In his past life, he had immersed himself in the study of nearly a hundred forms of martial techniques - from the fist, saber, spear, and axe to footwork and more. He had dedicated over a decade to mastering these techniques, blending a hundred schools of thought. But as the years went by, he forgot them all!

Reaching the Rigid Yet Supple stage signifies one is qualified to be Grandmaster. At this point on, these forms and routines become less important, and one must begin afresh from within. From simplicity to complexity, from complexity to simplicity. Everything converges in the heart. Where the mind goes, the weapon follows, not a hair's breadth off. This is the essence of being a Grandmaster.

Every move a Grandmaster made seemed to be inspired by the divine, as only then could they establish their own school of thought.

For a Grandmaster, what mattered most was creating a secret technique that could greatly enhance their physical burst power.

Take 'Thousand Mountains' and 'Ghostwalk', for example. When Wu Yuan reached the limits of his human body and his power was harmoniously unified in his past life, he devised these techniques based on his physical characteristics.

After arriving in the Middle Land, Wu Yuan's physical constitution now surpassed that of his past life. Yet, he found himself less proficient in these two secret techniques compared to before.

Why?

My body is still developing, still growing. The two bodies are different, and the experiences from my past life cannot be applied exactly to this body. Once this body reaches its human limits, I will need to recreate the techniques.

The strongest secret technique was a self-created one.

However, I must acquire these sixteen 'Grandmaster’s Insights'. Wu Yuan's eyes gleamed as he mentally checked off each name from the list.

‘Grandmaster Yun Shan's Insights', 'Grandmaster Hong He's Insights'... 'Grandmaster Fang Xia's Insights'... 'Grandmaster Xia Heng's Insights', 'Grandmaster Bu Yu's Insights', 'Grandmaster Huan Jian's Insights'.

There were sixteen volumes in total, each written by one of the sixteen Grandmasters who had emerged from the Cloudstride Sect since its inception.

According to the outline, these cultivation insights were personally compiled by each Grandmaster between ten to twenty years after stepping into the Grandmaster level, capturing a reflection of their lifelong cultivation journey.

Books are the crystallization of wisdom, the vessels of experience. These sixteen Grandmaster's Insights are equivalent to sixteen Grandmasters imparting their martial arts knowledge. Reading them is equivalent to learning from the sixteen Grandmasters.

Only by drawing on the experiences of many Grandmasters can I hope to reach new heights.

Each volume of Grandmaster's Insights required 30,000 contribution points for redemption. Was it expensive? Not to Wu Yuan! Outside the sect, one couldn’t buy a Grandmaster's cultivation insights even with 200,000 silver taels. Such was the power of a great martial sect.

Having the guidance of ancestors from past generations was many times more helpful than having to navigate one's cultivation path alone. Of course, the warning 'proceed at your own discretion' was also stated.

It is advised that one should be a first-rate Adept with martial skill at the Rigid Yet Supple stage before redeeming a volume. Wu Yuan chuckled. He naturally understood the principle. If one's strength or skill level was insufficient, reading the book was like reading a divine scripture[4]. They might not be able to comprehend the Grandmaster's insights even if they read them.

I don’t have enough contribution points. Wu Yuan frowned slightly. He had a strong desire to read the sixteen Grandmaster's Insights right away. Unfortunately, he couldn't even acquire a single one at the moment.

I can only accumulate contribution points bit by bit. Wu Yuan shook his head faintly.

Based on his calculations, he could only obtain a total of 80,000 contribution points this year, most of which needed to be exchanged for cultivation treasures, such as Cloudspring Blood. Moreover, having just joined the sect, wouldn't be too eye-catching to immediately redeem a Grandmaster's Insights?

I'll wait another two years before acquiring a Grandmaster's Insights. It won't be too late then.

Wu Yuan's gaze fell onto a page, his lips curling into a smile. These special cultivation environments are precisely what I needed. This greatly eases my worries.

To nurture its disciples, the Cloudstride Sect expended vast resources to construct a variety of special training grounds on Cloudhill.

One type was static environments, such as the Gale Crag nestled between two cliffs. It featured unique tunnels that spurred relentless gusts of wind year-round, rendering it ideal for physical conditioning.

Another example was the Thousand Woods Forest, a carefully selected woodland planted with sturdy Yellow Dragon Wood. These trees were uniquely shaped to allow disciples to practice their martial skills amongst the trees.

Similar static environments numbered over a dozen.

Then there were dynamic training environments, such as the Mountain Cascades located on one side of Cloudhill, where the waters from the Cloud Pool gave rise to waterfalls of varying heights – 10, 30, and even 100 zhangs.

The unpredictable flow of water was ideal for practicing spear, saber, and sword techniques. Simply enduring the waterfall's impact was also greatly beneficial to one's cultivation.

There were about five or six similar dynamic environments.

Not many contribution points are required to access these special training environments. With just ten points, one can practice at one site for a year.

He understood why the cost was low - the losses incurred by the sect during each use were inconsequential.

If I want to make further progress in Environmental Mastery, I should gradually adapt myself to these special environments.

Environmental Mastery, at its core, entailed being able to perceive one's surroundings to ensure no oversights during combat. Was this the pinnacle of martial arts? Wu Yuan had no answer. However, he sensed further room for progress on the path he had chosen. That alone was sufficient for him to feel he made the right choice.

Hmm? I can even redeem contribution points for an expert to accompany me during practical combat training. Wu Yuan flipped through the last few pages. Having completed the book, he closed it.

The Cloudstride Sect has truly poured everything into building the Cloud Martial Hall, no wonder disciples of the Cloud Martial Hall generally surpass those of other tertiary martial academies.

Talent was just one aspect. The Cloud Martial Hall provided secret techniques, Grandmaster's Insights, auxiliary treasures, special cultivation environments, individual practical combat mentoring...

One could say that the sect had everything prepared. As long as their disciples cultivated diligently, most would achieve some level of success. By their twenties, they could easily become third-rate Adepts.

Besides the necessities to maintain my disguise, I will mainly spend my contribution points on cultivation treasures first, then on special cultivation environments. Everything else was secondary.

He set the book down and arranged his belongings properly. After that, he made his way to the center of the training ground.

I trained daily on the journey here, and my physical constitution has improved slightly. Let's try the blood-red mist again. Wu Yuan closed his eyes.

Within his upper dantian lobe, a dense layer of blood-red mist enveloped the towering black pagoda. The quantity was much greater than before.

During the battle in Li City, I didn't kill many enemies, yet there’s several times more blood-red mist present now than when I killed Bai Yuxian.

This only confirmed Wu Yuan's previous guess. The more enemies he killed, and the stronger they were, the more blood-red mist would emerge from the black pagoda.

Let's give it a shot. Strands of blood-red mist surged from the black pagoda in his upper dantian lobe, quickly extending to Wu Yuan’s limbs and body. And then—assimilated!

My body can continue to absorb the blood-red mist? Wu Yuan's heart filled with elation as he sensed the subtle changes within him. He could barely detect them, yet it was undeniable.

Though I've consumed more blood-red mist this time, the improvement is smaller. Was it because the blood-red mist needed for evolution increased in tandem with the refinement of his physical constitution?

The process only lasted for a moment.

I can't absorb any more blood-red mist? A glimmer of surprise flickered in Wu Yuan's eyes.

After a brief period of contemplation, a theory took shape in his mind.

The reason I experienced massive changes previously was because it was this body’s first time absorbing the blood-red mist. My body was akin to a blank canvas, riddled with numerous imperfections in genetic makeup, offering ample room for enhancement. And a few days ago, these flaws were completely repaired. Wu Yuan speculated.

Both his genome and physical constitution had already reached their current limit. Consequently, the amount of blood-red mist that could be assimilated had also diminished.

My body is still developing and growing. Does this mean that as long as my physical constitution further improves, I can absorb more blood-red mist?

In other words, Wu Yuan's progress could no longer race along as quickly as it did in the previous months. Only gradual progress was possible.

However, with the aid of the blood-red mist and over three more years left in my body's golden development period, the extent to which my physical constitution improves is destined to far exceed normal martial artists. Wu Yuan was calm.

My only concern is whether the blood-red mist I currently possess can sustain my cultivation until I turn eighteen.

At this moment, the blood-red mist seemed plentiful. Yet, Wu Yuan keenly noticed that the further his body evolved, the more blood-red mist was consumed. There were also no enemies for Wu Yuan to slay on Cloudhill.

Wu Yuan took some time to gauge the total quantity of blood-red mist surrounding the black pagoda.

Based on the rate of consumption just now, the existing blood-red mist should be sufficient for another year.

As for what would happen after one year? He would cross that bridge when he came to it.

1. Taijijian: a straight two-edged sword used in the training of the Chinese martial art tai chi. The straight sword, sometimes with a tassel and sometimes not, is used for upper body conditioning and martial training in traditional tai chi schools. The different family schools have various warmups, forms and fencing drills for training with the sword. ☜

2. Bajiquan: a traditional Chinese martial art that features explosive, short-range power in close-combat and is well known for its rapid elbow and shoulder strikes ☜

3. Baguazhang: one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the Wudang school, the other two being tai chi and xingyiquan. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice (or neijia). Baguazhang literally means "eight trigram palm", referring to the bagua "trigrams" of the I Ching, one of the canons of Taoism. ☜

4. metaphor for indecipherable text ☜

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