Lu Sheng flipped through the martial arts manuals one after another, examining them with quiet focus. Each volume was similar in length, yet the true core lay not in the text, but in the meditation diagrams etched within.
He absorbed them methodically. One by one, he comprehended the true intent embedded in the diagrams. Any martial art that could be integrated into his existing system and skills was immediately assimilated. The rest he committed to memory as reference, a means to broaden his understanding of the martial path.
His current cultivation and insight were already beyond the scope of what even an ordinary Divine Prime expert could fathom. Compared to a mortal Divine Prime cultivator, Lu Sheng was an aberration, a being who had refined his martial path for nearly a thousand years without succumbing to death. His inner force was unprecedented, powerful enough to justify the title of the strongest martial arts practitioner in the present world.
Integrating these martial arts would require further extrapolation and upgrading of his own path. Yet his remaining Yin Qi amounted to only slightly more than fifty units, far from sufficient to support the upgrade of even a single martial art. Lu Sheng frowned.
Without hesitation, he summoned Deep Blue, calling forth the Modifier.
A pale blue screen unfolded before his eyes. Rows upon rows of martial arts were displayed in precise detail. Having been implanted into his body and mind, the Modifier adjusted its descriptions dynamically, reflecting his real-time physical condition.
Lu Sheng scanned the list from top to bottom.
At the forefront were his three most powerful arts. Yang Extreme Dao governed the strength of his physical body, while Ultimate Crimson Nine Furies Skill and Yin Yang Jade Crane Aquarius Qi determined the depth and quality of his inner Qi cultivation.
Beneath them lay a series of offensive, technique-based martial arts. Crimson Whale Saber Technique. Changing the Heavens in Seven Days Saber Technique. Eighty-One Swallows Pursuing the Wind Saber Technique. Black Tiger Saber Technique. One after another, they filled the screen in orderly succession.
These were all pure offensive techniques. Outer force skills designed to push the application of inner force and hardened flesh to their absolute limits.
“Come to think of it, the offensive technique I rely on most in battle is the Divine Might of Changing the Heavens in Seven Days Saber Technique.”
“But that saber art only contains two moves. Most of the time, I end up depending on the brute strength of my body.”
“Relying purely on speed and physical toughness is far too inefficient. I need a system of moves that truly suits me.”
Lu Sheng recalled how he had failed to perceive the stealth techniques of Wandering Heart Society, as well as the frustration of being constrained in battle, forced to advance and retreat in rigid, straight lines.
“And what if I encounter a ranged opponent?” The thought surfaced abruptly. “The odds may be low, but it’s inevitable. If I meet someone faster than me, someone I can’t reach, then all I can do is endure their attacks.”
Seated within the sanctuary, he sank into contemplation, his gaze resting on the stack of manuals before him.
“Each of these martial arts is complete in its own right.”
“If I dismantle them and stitch them together at random, their power won’t increase. It will only weaken.”
After a brief pause, he reached a conclusion. His remaining Yin Qi was insufficient to upgrade his primary cultivation methods, but it was more than enough to refine Spirit Focus skills. As long as he mastered their forms and techniques, enhanced by his immense inner force, their combat strength could rival that of Changing the Heavens in Seven Days Saber Technique.
“In that case, I’ll select a ranged outer force skill… and a qinggong capable of pushing my speed to its limits.”
His eyes swept across the manuals. Then, without hesitation, he reached out and lifted one from the pile.
Thousand Extreme Devil Shadows.
It was a power-type qinggong once mastered by a notorious Divine Prime expert. Relying on it, the man had repeatedly escaped capture by the Noble Families. In the end, however, he had fallen by the hand of a close friend, another Divine Prime expert just like himself.
That close friend was Ouyang Qi, the same man who had later sworn himself to Lu Sheng.
Ouyang Qi had driven the blade into his companion’s back after uncovering the truth. The so-called friend had been secretly scheming to seize Thousand Extreme Devil Shadows for himself. Once Ouyang Qi realized this, he chose to strike first.
Powerful as Thousand Extreme Devil Shadows was, it was almost impossible to cultivate. After numerous failed attempts, Ouyang Qi had been unable to grasp even its fundamentals. With no other choice, he had presented the manual to Lu Sheng as tribute.
Lu Sheng flipped it open. After only a brief glance, his brows knit together.
The very first page detailed the requirements imposed upon its cultivator.
“Only one whose mind can split into three, and whose body weighs less than one hundred catties before cultivating any qinggong, may practice this skill.”
Beneath it was a footnote.
“After mastery, the skill becomes ineffective if one’s weight exceeds one hundred and ten catties. Take heed.”
Lu Sheng continued reading. The deeper he went, the clearer it became that this qinggong was absurdly complex. It demanded constant calculation akin to advanced arithmetic. While moving, the cultivator had to devote all mental focus to determining position through time, starlight, terrain, and environmental changes, all at once.
“No wonder no one but that madman could master it.”
Shaking his head, Lu Sheng set the manual aside and picked up another.
Jade Abyss Step.
The name itself carried an ethereal air. Its meditation diagram depicted an ancient Taoist riding an immortal crane, gliding across the heavens amid rolling clouds.
Its requirements were no less restrictive. The cultivator’s weight could not exceed one hundred and fifty catties. Moreover, he had to preserve his virginity.
Lu Sheng’s expression turned strange.
He was on the verge of marriage. To maintain virginity for the sake of a qinggong was nothing short of absurd.
He tossed the manual aside and searched through the remaining pile. There were no independent qinggong techniques left. What remained were fragmented movement arts, inseparable from their corresponding inner force skills, effective only when practiced as a whole.
Lu Sheng skimmed through them in silence. A faint sense of frustration surfaced.
It seemed that finding a qinggong capable of accommodating his transformed body was all but impossible.
One should not be misled by Lu Sheng’s current, unremarkable appearance. At a glance, he looked no different from an ordinary young master. In truth, this was merely a façade, achieved by forcibly compressing his muscles, flesh, and bones under immense pressure.
The instant he released those restraints, his body would expand back to its natural state, towering at two to three meters tall. That was his true, ordinary form. And beyond that lay his Yang Extreme Mode, a five-meter-tall, monstrous physique built upon the foundation of his true body.
“My true body weighs at least three hundred catties. Keeping it under one hundred and fifty is outright impossible.”
Lu Sheng frowned and set the manual aside, a sense of pressure weighing on him.
After a brief moment of contemplation, a thought surfaced. He recalled the countless martial arts he had once memorized within the Crimson Whale Sect’s martial arts library. Among them were several qinggong techniques.
Though most of those qinggongs were merely at the Strength Proficiency level, lacking even a single Intent Proficiency technique, they still existed.
“I have Yin Qi. If I can’t find a qinggong suited to me, then I’ll create one myself.”
Excitement flickered through his thoughts.
“There’s nothing stopping me from using Yin Qi to extrapolate a qinggong tailored to my body, starting from one that imposes no weight restrictions at all.”
His interest ignited instantly.
“I have raw strength. I have explosive power. Because of my weight, the only qinggong I can use are those that ignore it entirely. And those are almost always nothing more than crude techniques for applying force.”
He sifted through his memories, searching for qinggong techniques from the martial arts library that did not restrict weight.
Yet a problem soon emerged. He had only memorized the stronger, more valuable skills. The finer details of the lesser martial arts had long since faded from his mind.
With that realization, Lu Sheng raised his hand and tugged lightly at a rope hanging from the wall some distance away.
An invisible strand of inner Qi shot forth, coiling around the rope and yanking it downward.
Ring. Ring.
A clear bell chime echoed from outside the sanctuary.
“Tell Xu Chui to bring me all the qinggong manuals from the martial arts library.”
“Yes, sir!”
Acknowledgments rang out immediately, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps retreating down the corridor.
Lu Sheng closed his eyes and waited in silence, carefully steadying his mind. Before long, a series of light knocks echoed against the sanctuary doors, breaking the stillness.
“It’s your subordinate, Xu Chui. I’ve brought the manuals.”
The qinggong manuals in question were nothing more than Strength Proficiency techniques. Lu Sheng had no fear of Xu Chui leaking them. As the legitimate Squad Captain of the Soaring Eagle Squad, Xu Chui could easily redeem such manuals with his contribution points.
Moreover, Xu Chui himself was already at the pinnacle of Strength Proficiency. After being infused with inner force by Lu Sheng, his combat strength in his ordinary state was comparable to that of Spirit Focus. All the more reason for him to have little interest in such low-tier manuals.
“Bring them in.”
As Lu Sheng’s emotionless voice faded, the blood-web inner Qi within the sanctuary surged. It condensed into a solid beam that lifted the metal bar sealing the doors.
Rumble…
The heavy stone doors slid aside. Xu Chui entered respectfully, an ornate chest cradled in his arms. He set it down before Lu Sheng, bowed deeply, and withdrew without a word.
The stone doors closed once more, and the metal bar dropped back into place.
Lu Sheng rose and approached the chest. With a flick of his hand, he opened it. Inside, rows of qinggong manuals lay quietly, neatly arranged.
Eight Steps of Cicada Chasing. Lifting Manipulation Art. Floating on Water. Lizard Skill. Traceless Snow Stepping. Flying Swallow Skill. Floating Wanderer Art…
One by one, the manuals were revealed before him.
Lu Sheng flipped through them methodically, discarding every technique that imposed restrictions on the cultivator’s weight.
Before long, several thin booklets remained.
Cloud Bow Art. Pegasus Steps. One Breath Lightweight Skill. Three-in-One Arrow Firing Skill. Chaos Wind Art. Light Void Skill.
These six qinggong techniques were all at the Strength Proficiency level. None possessed true intent. They were merely rudimentary systems, stitched together from scattered movement techniques.
One had to understand that the true intent of a martial art was what forged it into a complete whole. It gathered the cultivator’s force and strength into a single, focused point. Because of this, Intent Proficiency martial arts were naturally far superior to those of mere Strength Proficiency.
“I need faster, more agile steps. Not a qinggong that forces me to move only in straight lines.”
After several rounds of elimination, Lu Sheng’s gaze finally settled on Light Void Skill.
Among the remaining Strength Proficiency techniques, the effects of Light Void Skill after mastery aligned most closely with his needs.
Once fully mastered, Light Void Skill rendered one’s movements unpredictable, shifting freely between lightness and emptiness at any moment. It also enhanced overall speed to a certain degree. The manual even noted that cultivators with inner force could channel Qi into specific points of the body to further amplify their speed.
Such a trait was exceedingly rare among Strength Proficiency qinggongs.
“It’s you, then.”
Lu Sheng picked up the manual and flipped it open to the first page.
Light Void Skill was divided into three levels.
After mastering the first level, one could change directions while running at a normal pace, with only a slight increase in speed.
After mastering the second level, one could alter direction freely even while sprinting or charging forward, with a significant boost to overall speed.
After mastering the third level, one could accelerate and decelerate at will while charging at full speed, shifting seamlessly between motion and stillness. Overall speed would increase by one and a half times.
Lu Sheng stood up and began moving, applying force exactly as prescribed by the cultivation method of Light Void Skill.
This qinggong relied primarily on tempering specific muscles and refining techniques of force application. The muscles involved were small, obscure groups that ordinary practitioners would never think to train.
After a short while, a dull numbness spread through Lu Sheng’s legs. Numerous neglected muscle groups were forcibly activated. Worse still, his three-hundred-catties body placed an immense burden on them during this first round of practice.
“But it doesn’t matter.”
He circulated Yin Yang Jade Crane Aquarius Qi through the fatigued and torn muscle fibers, expending a substantial amount of inner Qi to mend and strengthen them. After sitting down to rest for several dozen breaths, he rose once more, the soreness already gone.
“Again!”
He resumed practicing the steps of Light Void Skill.
It was an exceedingly strange movement technique, one that felt deeply unnatural to the body. Lu Sheng’s leg muscles turned numb and sore five or six times in succession. Each time, he calmly circulated inner Qi to heal himself. Only after repeating this cycle again and again did he finally begin to grasp the essence of the skill.
The mantra and force application of Light Void Skill were just as unnatural. The technique demanded that force be applied along the most awkward, counterintuitive paths. A single lapse in precision, the slightest misalignment, would be enough to twist one’s ankle and cripple the movement altogether.
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