Invincible Under Heaven

Assembly

Longquan Martial Hall.

Hongyu hesitated on how to tell Li Xian about the predicament and crisis he was facing.

After struggling for several days, she still felt it best to wait until her master Zhou Juechen returned so they could discuss it before talking in detail with Li Xian.

The Dingfeng Marquis had gone to the Royal Capital; the Dingfeng Marquis Residence was left without a leader, so it seemed unlikely that there would be any specific actions in the short term.

Just as well, she could take this time to carefully observe Li Xian's growth progress.

If he could continue to maintain such an efficient rate of improvement...

A martial arts prodigy with a hope to leap through the Dragon Gate was already worth her master, and even the entire Zhou family, taking a gamble on.

With this in mind, Hongyu first went to the inner courtyard to check on Li Xian's cultivation progress.

What she discovered...

Unlike before, when entering the inner courtyard she would always find Li Xian tempering his muscles and bones, this time, he was not practicing fists at all.

Instead, he was performing standing meditation, remaining motionless.

Yet his whole body appeared a deep flush of red, the exposed skin on his body even showing a faint trace of blood-red.

Above his head, steam could literally be seen rising, as if he had fallen into some state of high internal heat or fever, his flush coming from the inside out.

This state...

"Are you cleansing your marrow and changing your blood!?"

Hongyu's eyes suddenly widened as she exclaimed in shock.

She immediately clapped her hand over her mouth.

Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation—each time was critically important and could not be interrupted in the slightest.

Any error could leave irreversible consequences or hidden dangers, ruining one's foundation and causing them to remain stuck in the cleansing stage, never making further progress.

Fortunately, Li Xian seemed to be in the early stages of Marrow Cleansing.

Her exclamation had not disturbed his state during the process.

The steam above his head and the flush that had continuously oozed from his skin gradually faded as he completed another cycle of marrow cleansing.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Li Xian finished cultivating and opened his eyes once more.

Seeing that Li Xian was unharmed, Hongyu breathed a slight sigh of relief.

But she immediately couldn't wait to ask, "You've achieved mastery in Viscera Refinement?"

"Mm, I reached mastery two days ago,"

Li Xian replied.

"After pondering the impact this had on my body, I tried today to use force to initiate Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation."

"This... you attained mastery in Viscera Refinement just like that?"

Hongyu seemed not to have heard his latter words at all, her whole demeanor dazed, "I thought you'd have to spend at least several more months of hard practice..."

"Reaching Internal Viscera Refinement in the past few days was within my cultivation plan and not much of a deviation,"

Li Xian said calmly, but then was a bit emotional, "Compared to Internal Viscera Refinement... ki and blood are the roots of one's strength. Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation are truly not easy to achieve."

He had never reached this realm in his previous life.

Of course, cradling Ki into a Pill was, to some degree, equivalent to Primordial Unity and Leakless throughout the body.

This process not only nourished the viscera, but also enhanced the ki and blood.

However, this was a passive process, relying on gradual accumulation over time for one's ki and blood to transform.

Now, actively operating force and breath to circulate essence and ki and deliberately initiate Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation was his first experience of its kind.

He needed to be extremely cautious at each step.

Fortunately...

With his [Once Attained Forever Attained] talent, as long as he completed one cycle, he could precisely grasp the feeling of "moving blood with force", advancing step by step, so completing the full transformation was only a matter of time.

Hongyu remained dazed for a considerable while, but she had prepared herself psychologically to some extent.

Though Li Xian reached mastery in Viscera Refinement much faster than she expected, after a moment of distraction she recovered from the shock of the vast gap between mediocrity and genius.

Hearing Li Xian sigh about the difficulty of Marrow Cleansing, her own heart felt somewhat relieved: "After all, you've only just mastered Viscera Refinement. If you crossed over the Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation stage in just a few months with such ease, such talent couldn't be simply described as genius—it would be monstrous!"

She glanced at Li Xian: "Which person, in this world, when doing Internal Viscera Refinement, isn't extremely cautious and proceeds step-by-step? Spending a decade or more is more than normal! If even Viscera Refinement takes so long, Marrow Cleansing, which requires even more precise control, is that much harder."

Li Xian nodded.

"With mastery in Viscera Refinement, you can make a name for yourself in the martial world; in a county, you'd already be among the very top. Once you complete Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation, martial arts opens up a whole new world. In a region of a million people, you'd stand at the peak..."

Hongyu's expression was a bit complicated.

Viscera Refinement mastery...

She thought she'd still need another year or two just to achieve the minor accomplishment.

But Li Xian, how long had he been practicing? And he'd already achieved Viscera Refinement mastery!

And was about to start Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation!

Such progress was simply astonishing.

"In Lijiang, as the capital of Jiangzhou, Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation isn't yet the pinnacle,"

Li Xian replied calmly.

"In the martial world, Internal Viscera Refinement is called third-class, Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation is called second-class, and Leakless, or Leakless Body, is first-rate expert. These three realms are best distinguished by their influence: Internal Viscera Refinement can dominate a county, Marrow Cleansing a prefecture, Leakless shakes an entire province."

Hongyu looked at Li Xian: "Lijiang may be the capital city of Jiangzhou, a land of outstanding people, but the number of genuine Leakless-level first-rate experts can be counted on one hand. These esteemed martial seniors' every move commands immense attention, and unless there's a major event, they rarely take action. Most of the time, martial artists who have achieved Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation command respect."

"Leakless Body."

This realm did not involve a physical transformation, but rather was more about enlightenment and regulating the state of the body.

For those lacking perception, they could be stuck at this threshold for life, unable to advance at all.

But for the exceptionally gifted, they could instantly grasp the breakthrough and reach first class.

This was the dividing line between mediocrity and genius in the nine realms of martial arts.

Having achieved Condensing Ki into a Core, Li Xian had comprehended Primordial Unity.

He was only a step away from Leakless Body, needing only to perfect his ki and essence.

Once Marrow Cleansing was complete and his body transformed, reaching Leakless Body would be a natural progression.

Thus, his mind was now even more focused on grasping control over his ki and blood, uniting body and spirit, and Refining Void into Reality.

However, before fully cleansing his marrow, his ki and blood were not yet flourishing; even with Condensing Ki into a Core, controlling ki and blood was still not easy.

Let alone uniting essence and spirit, using the false to cultivate the real, and training his ki and blood into True Ki.

"I will keep my feet on the ground and finish Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation first, to avoid aiming too high."

Li Xian said.

Hongyu couldn't help but cover her face at those words.

She recalled how, half a month ago, both she and her master Zhou Juechen had been left speechless and ridiculed the way Li Xian asserted he had already mastered the theory of the first four realms.

Now looking back...

He had only spoken the truth.

The eyes of mediocrity could never comprehend the world of genius.

But having already started Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation, Li Xian thought of something: "By the way, I haven't seen Master Zhou for a while."

If he could spar with Zhou Juechen, a master in Marrow Cleansing and Blood Transformation, and truly understand the difference from Internal Viscera Refinement, it would greatly help his rapid progress.

"Master has been at Mount Canglang for half a month now,"

Hongyu replied.

"Not just Master—every famous expert in Jiangzhou has gathered at Mount Canglang to attend the Sword Assembly hosted by Swordsage Guang Yuanzi."

"Sword Assembly? Swordsage?"

Li Xian was curious.

"All well-known experts of Jiangzhou are going? Wouldn't that mean a gathering of countless elites?"

"Naturally,"

Hongyu nodded.

"Not just Jiangzhou—masters from neighboring provinces will come to participate. With the Dragon Gate leap just ahead, every young expert hopes for a pointer from Swordsage Guang Yuanzi, so they can make one last effort and leap through the Dragon Gate."

She noticed Li Xian's interest: "Does Young Master Li want to go?"

"Is it not too late?"

"The Sword Assembly usually lasts from ten days to a month, sometimes even longer if special circumstances arise. Master left early, so if my calculation is correct, it's only mid-assembly. There's still time to make it."

Hongyu looked at him: "Every martial artist in Jiangzhou who has achieved Internal Viscera Refinement is within the scope of the invitations. As someone so young, having reached mastery in Viscera Refinement, with the potential to leap through the Dragon Gate, it would be perfect for you to go, gain experience, broaden your horizons, and besides, master will be there to look after you."

"You're not going?"

"I'm Master's only disciple, and have to take care of Longquan Martial Hall. If I leave, the newly opened hall would have to close after only two months."

There was a note of regret in Hongyu's eyes.

Li Xian didn't say much after hearing this.

He had always been a man of action.

Once he made up his mind, he acted on it.

After clarifying the location of Mount Canglang, he bid farewell to Hongyu, returned to the courtyard to pack clothes and money, and headed straight out of the city.

He moved so quickly that those who had been secretly monitoring him didn't have time to react before they completely lost his track.

...

Since reincarnating, Li Xian had spent a month in the Marquis Residence, then another month outside of it; his life had basically been an endless commute between two points, knowing little about the outside world.

Now as he left the city, for the first ten miles or so, there were still many small towns, markets, and villages, but as he went further and further, the smoke and fires of human habitation became increasingly rare.

The land before him grew increasingly desolate.

The highway he traveled on changed from a pebbled path to one paved with rammed earth.

Because the weather was clear and cloudless recently, traveling the road meant dust flying all around—not a great experience.

"I finally understand why ancient martial artists wore veils and bamboo hats."

Li Xian sighed.

To shield from sun and dust.

He even bought himself a shoulder cape and bamboo hat at a small fair he passed—to fend off dust and sunlight.

He traveled a hundred miles in a day, stopping at a small town to rest for a while.

The next morning at dawn, he resumed his journey.

By midday, he saw a cloud of dust ahead—a party of six, riding tall horses, charging toward him down the highway.

The rising dust...

Made Li Xian step off the road early to avoid getting dusty.

Fortunately, the six riders didn't pay any attention to a lone pedestrian by the roadside.

The six galloped past Li Xian in no time.

During the brief moment as they passed, Li Xian seemed to "see" a familiar face among them.

After a moment's thought...

"The Dingfeng Marquis Residence's captain of the guards? Was his name Fang Xin?"

He glanced back.

At that very moment, one man among the six—a middle-aged man in his forties—suddenly, with sharp instinct, turned and looked at Li Xian.

Their eyes met in midair.

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