Chapter 224 - 224: Unprecedented
In the Zhongyuan Sword there existed a detailed record about measuring acupoints and the meticulous techniques for excavating them. Although my level of cultivation had yet to truly reach the pinnacle of the Visceral Tempering realm, merely measuring the acupoints wouldn’t entail any peril.
Through Chen Fei’s focused mental prowess, guided by a unique vibration frequency, it began to suffuse his entire physique. The minutiae of his body started to manifest before Chen Fei.
While not part of the genuine transmission, there were still instructions for measuring and excavating acupoints, albeit lacking the same precision. The majority of the inner disciples from the Primordial Sword Sect, aspiring to advance into the Aperture Tempering realm employed such a method.
In the present moment, as Chen Fei’s attention kept intensifying, aspects like skin, blood, and bones were continually skimmed over. Eventually, Chen Fei caught sight of something resembling a star within the realm of his mental awareness.
Upon exiting the hidden realm, due to consuming the Dreamlike Lotus, Chen Fei’s mental power had surged, allowing for a faint, barely perceptible connection to acupoints.
Now, with his mental strength heightened once more, aided by the particular technique used in searching, Chen Fei had finally pinpointed the location of his own acupoints.
At this juncture, the acupoints appeared somewhat dim, yet they emitted a subtle radiance. Upon close inspection, Chen Fei discerned that the frequency of this faint radiance from the acupoints remarkably coincided with that of the Zhongyuan Sword.
“Even though the acupoints haven’t been fully opened, the practice of cultivation, especially with top-tier techniques, can still absorb a trace of vital energy.”
A realization dawned upon Chen Fei; this was the reason why one could feel accelerated progress in places with concentrated vital energy. The acupoints weren’t entirely sealed, possessing a residual effect that allowed an interaction between the human body and vital energy.
Chen Fei’s mental power began to approach the acupoints, encircling them without discovering any further distinctive features.
Considering Chen Fei’s current depth of understanding, he had actually surpassed the vast majority of peak-level Visceral Tempering realm martial practitioners, whether in terms of physical or mental strength.
Therefore, Chen Fei already possessed several key elements for a breakthrough. Elevating his cultivation to the pinnacle of the Visceral Tempering realm merely required refining his physical state to the point of consummation for a smoother breakthrough.
In less than a month’s time, Chen Fei’s cultivation would be able to ascend to the zenith of the Visceral Tempering realm. Naturally, he wasn’t anxious about this short span of time.
Entering the Aperture Tempering realm was undeniably a pivotal step, a stairway toward longevity. So, whether to await patiently or exercise a slight delay, Chen Fei pondered.
Observing the acupoints up close, Chen Fei attempted to allow his mental power to come into contact with them.
Not for excavation, but for contact. In the records of the Zhongyuan Sword making preliminary contact with the acupoints could provide a rough sense of their sealed state.
For individuals with exceptionally robust roots and extraordinary innate talents, their acupoints were nearly in a semi-sealed state. This was why their cultivation progress far surpassed that of others, starting from the initiation of martial arts training.
Because of the semi-sealed acupoints, they could absorb more of the surrounding natural vital energy after reaching the pinnacle of the Visceral Tempering realm.
The probability of breaking through to the Aperture Tempering realm after reaching the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm was also significantly higher for such individuals compared to others. They seemed born for the path of martial arts, rapidly advancing in cultivation, a sight envied by others.
As Chen Fei’s mental power drew near the acupoints, a sudden barrier obstructed his mental power. Chen Fei was briefly taken aback; what was this situation? Why had a barrier appeared even before touching the acupoints?
After a moment of contemplation, Chen Fei’s mental power exerted a slight force. The next instant, a scene unfolded in Chen Fei’s mind.
Facing the yellow earth, with a year’s hard work yielding barely enough to make ends meet.
A child sat on a hillside, watching the figures toiling below, besieged by a constant wave of hunger. It was as if his entire stomach was burning through with pain, only by pressing down hard could he barely endure this agony.
“This is… the original owner?”
The intensity of hunger was so profound that even Chen Fei, beyond the confines of the image, could vividly feel this sensation, evoking despair.
The child struggled to grow up but encountered a severe drought and famine, causing the village’s population to decrease by half.
With no hope, living in a daze, the most memorable thing was a bowl of egg noodles in front of a thatched cottage. It was the most delicious food he had ever tasted.
After a prolonged moment, Chen Fei withdrew from this memory. The barrier beyond his acupoints still remained, causing a faint crease in his brow.
“Is this the deepest memory of the original owner? But what does this memory mean? And how can I break through this barrier?”
The Zhongyuan Sword did not contain any records of such a situation, leaving Chen Fei somewhat perplexed. When he first transmigrated, he absorbed a considerable amount of the original owner’s memories, but most of it was related to events in Pingyin County.
As for memories from even earlier in the original owner’s life, it was unclear whether they were too distant or if the original owner simply chose not to remember, resulting in Chen Fei having absorbed very little of them.
Based on the original owner’s life trajectory, it was typical of an ordinary person in this world, especially those in remote areas. Any slight disaster or famine could wipe people out.
This was precisely why, when the original owner had the chance to live in Pingyin County, they were willing to give up everything.
However, what does this have to do with unlocking the acupoints?
Early the next morning, Chen Fei arrived in the courtyard of Feng Xiupu. Only someone experienced might be able to shed light on this matter.
“I’ve located the acupoints, but a barrier is preventing my mental power from approaching them.” Chen Fei posed his question to Feng Xiupu.
Upon hearing Chen Fei’s query, Feng Xiupu’s brow furrowed slightly.
In order to break through from the Visceral Tempering realm to the Aperture Tempering realm, opening the acupoints was the only method. The location of each person’s acupoints was unique, requiring them to measure and subsequently open them.
The success or smoothness of the measurement and opening process varied from person to person. Whether one could succeed depended mostly on the strength and purity of their mental power.
On the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect’s sparring field, Chen Fei had demonstrated an exceedingly strong level of mental power. Logically, measuring and opening acupoints shouldn’t pose a significant obstacle to him.
In the eyes of most people in the Primordial Sword Sect, Chen Fei was destined to reach the Aperture Tempering realm. It was estimated that he could achieve this within a short year or at most, definitely not more than three years.
Chen Fei shared this belief thus, he had measured and pinpointed the acupoints in advance, gaining a clear understanding beforehand. He only needed to wait until his cultivation reached the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm before proceeding with the breakthrough.
“Based on what you’ve described, you encountered past memories within the barrier. It seems to be a form of obsession. To break through this barrier, you might need to resolve this obsession,” Feng Xiupu suggested.
After pondering for a moment, Feng Xiupu recalled encountering such a situation in some ancient texts.
In order to break through to the Aperture Tempering realm from the Visceral Tempering realm, Feng Xiupu’s background wasn’t as exaggerated as Chen Fei’s. Consequently, he had done a lot of research and scoured various texts.
Most Visceral Tempering realm practitioners, like Feng Xiupu, comprehended a wide array of possible situations, regardless of their practicality, just to be well-prepared.
“Obsession?” Chen Fei’s brow furrowed slightly. Was this obsession leading him back to the countryside, prompting him to take another look? Was it a desire for a triumphant return to his roots?
This kind of obsession might have existed within the original owner for a long time. If the original owner had the cultivation level Chen Fei currently possessed, this obsession could likely be resolved with a little self-convincing.
After all, humans are quite adept at comforting themselves. Over time, even significant matters could be smoothed over by the passage of time.
However, the issue now was that the original owner’s soul had long dissipated. This obsession was deeply rooted in the body, extending all the way to the acupoints.
Encouraging someone to be magnanimous was one thing, but attempting to advise a long-dispersed soul to adopt a more accepting outlook was simply an impossibility.
“This kind of obsession, you can try to gradually smooth it out with your mental power. It might take a bit longer, but it can be done,” Feng Xiupu suggested, knowing that Chen Fei came from a remote area and considering the current chaotic situation outside.
“This obsession, you can try to smooth it out with your mental power. It might take a bit more time, but it can be done.”
Feng Xiupu knew that Chen Fei came from a remote area, and considering the current chaotic situation outside, even though Chen Fei possessed peak Visceral Tempering realm strength, and even more, he might still be stronger, it would be best to avoid going out if possible in times like these.
“Alright, 1’11 give it another try.”
Chen Fei nodded, thinking that it was worth attempting for a while. With his current mental power and regular refinement within the Strange Heart Realm every month, he might be able to grind down the barrier beyond his acupoints.
A quarter of an hour later, Chen Fei left Feng Xiupu’s courtyard and returned to the True Transmission Peak.
The matter of measuring the acupoints felt like a small episode, and Chen Fei quickly set it aside in his mind.
His daily rhythm continued just as before: alchemy and cultivation. Since the Zhongyuan Sword had already been perfected, Chen Fei found himself with a lot of spare time to engage in other activities.
A month later, Chen Fei’s cultivation officially broke through to the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm. On the path of physical cultivation, Chen Fei had already reached the pinnacle.
Upon achieving complete physical cultivation, Chen Fei felt a change in his body. A sense of fullness and ease filled his heart.
Skin, flesh, bones, marrow, organs—linked by the coordination of internal energy—formed a unified whole. This even resulted in boosting the speed of his practice of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant technique by a bit.
Although the amount of vital energy he absorbed through the Receival Bead each day remained limited, the speed of cultivating the Dragon Suppressing Elephant technique had increased by at least thirty percent, bringing him closer to its mastery.
Not only his physical body but Chen Fei’s mental power had also become more agile after reaching the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm.
“No wonder it’s recommended to break through and open the acupoints after reaching the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm. It’s truly a different experience.”
Perceiving the changes in his body from the inside out, Chen Fei’s face broke into a smile. However, as he thought about the barrier beyond his acupoints, his smile gradually faded.
For a whole month, Chen Fei used his mental power every day to erode that obsession. It couldn’t be said that it was completely ineffective, but the results were indeed less satisfactory; it had only eroded away a little bit.
Now that his cultivation had officially reached the peak of the Visceral Tempering realm, and his mental power had become more agile, Chen Fei wanted to see if, under these circumstances, he could accelerate the erosion of that obsession.
Another month passed, and it was time for the semi-annual evaluation of the True Transmission disciples in the Primordial Sword Sect. Chen Fei was directly designated as the Chief Disciple of the True Transmission Peak, with no challengers and no dissenters. The competitions from the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect still remained vivid in the memories of these True Transmission disciples.
Thinking about the sorry state of individuals like Wang Guiwu, none of the True Transmission disciples from the Primordial Sword Sect wanted to provoke a fight.
Chen Fei had established a new record for the Primordial Sword Sect, becoming the Chief Disciple of the True Transmission Peak within half a year, a position no one had attained before him.
In front of the True Transmission Hall, Guo Linshan’s face was beaming with a smile. Although Guo Linshan had only recently started to grasp the True Transmission techniques, this did not hinder his happiness and pride for Chen Fei’s accomplishments.
It could be said that Guo Linshan had witnessed Chen Fei’s journey step by step, from an ordinary inner disciple to his current position!