Kaiyuan Eighth Level

Su Residence.

Chen Hao, recuperating from his injuries, was reading in the living room. His head bobbed, his eyes blurred; reading was truly a killer.

Yawning, Chen Hao forced his eyes open and glanced towards the bedroom. He wondered how Yu could sit still for so long.

After spending so much time in his room, did the scholar not need to pee?

Inside the room.

Su Yu swallowed the drop of Qi Liquid that Bai Feng had condensed that day. Its concentration wasn't very high, but it was perfect for him at his current stage.

Along with the Qi Liquid, Su Yu also swallowed the Iron Winged Bird's essence blood, which he had bought for 30,000.

He activated the Essence Gathering Art to absorb Qi. This way, the Qi Liquid could be absorbed to its maximum potential.

At this moment, Su Yu once again felt his body's nine acupoints opening.

Seven acupoints were already open, and the eighth, the Purple Palace Acupoint, was half-open, half-closed.

The seven acupoints now emitted a light invisible to ordinary people, forming a circuit that was connecting to the Purple Palace Acupoint.

Opening the Purple Gate will officially connect the Qi!

The ninth acupoint, Baihui, connected to the Qi inside and outside of heaven and earth. With the opening of the eighth acupoint, the Purple Palace, the internal Qi circuit of the human body could be connected.

The eighth level of Kaiyuan Realm possessed true combat power precisely because of this.

Humans had always cultivated the Kaiyuan Jue, and their bodies contained some Qi. Without the opening of the eighth acupoint, this Qi could not be actively used; it could only passively temper the acupoints.

Once the eighth acupoint was opened, this Qi could be actively utilized. Cultivating martial skills and incorporating Qi into attacks would greatly increase their lethality.

The biggest difference between the eighth and ninth levels of Kaiyuan Realm was that the eighth level utilized one's own stored Qi, while the ninth level could connect to the internal and external Qi, allowing the use of natural Qi.

By opening the Purple Gate, I will be able to use martial skills, and my lethality will skyrocket. I won't have situations where a single strike can't kill someone in the Qianjun Realm anymore!

Su Yu mused inwardly. At this moment, the speed at which he absorbed Qi was extremely fast.

He felt like he was about to burst!

Kaiyuan Realm cultivators didn't absorb much Qi to begin with. Not only had he used essence blood to activate the Essence Gathering Art, but he had also used half a drop of Qi Liquid. This meant that his Qi absorption speed and concentration were faster and greater than that of ordinary Qianjun Realm cultivators.

"Temper the acupoint!"

Su Yu grunted, channeling Qi towards the Purple Palace.

He had been stuck at the seventh level for some time. On May 16th, he officially entered the seventh level of Kaiyuan Realm, and today was June 5th.

Nearly 20 days. This was the longest Su Yu had been stuck since he was able to activate the Essence Gathering Art.

Moreover, with the assistance of Bai Feng's Kaiyuan Jue, failing to break through for 20 consecutive days made Su Yu a little anxious.

"Buzz!"

The surrounding Qi converged, the air vibrated, and the sound of wind echoed in the sealed room.

Outside the door, Chen Hao looked puzzled.

At the same time, he felt very comfortable. Qi was converging, and although he couldn't see Qi yet, his body could feel it to some extent. He felt a sense of comfort, like drinking a bowl of hot soup after not eating for days.

"It feels so good at Yu's place. It's probably because my dad didn't scold me."

Chen Hao thought to himself and turned to look at the bedroom again. Was Yu practicing martial skills?

There was quite a commotion.

"Why isn't it opening yet!"

Su Yu felt like he was truly at his limit. If it didn't open today, it would be a complete waste.

The Qi Liquid and essence blood were worth nearly 100,000.

If he couldn't open it now, halfway through, and had to continue opening it next time, he would need to consume more essence blood or even Qi Liquid. This wasn't cultivation; it was throwing money away.

Su Yu felt he couldn't bear it any longer. He stopped sitting cross-legged and suddenly stood up.

He wanted to vent, to release the accumulated Qi in his body, otherwise, he would burst.

Cultivation didn't necessarily require sitting cross-legged or remaining motionless.

However, during cultivation, sitting cross-legged and calmly absorbing Qi was the most energy-efficient and highest-utilization method.

With larger movements, absorption efficiency decreased, and more Qi was wasted.

At this moment, Su Yu didn't care about that. If he couldn't break through, this Qi would be wasted anyway, dissipating into the surrounding area. He didn't have the ability to get it back.

Su Yu stood up, stretched his limbs, and began to punch.

Tiger Fist, a low-grade Yellow-tier boxing technique. It was the most basic boxing technique for humans, primarily used for physical training. It was considered a martial skill, but its Qi utilization rate was low, relying mainly on physical strength to train the body.

"Buzz!"

Like a hungry tiger pouncing, Su Yu's punches were fast, and he moved with great force as he sparred.

Tiger Fist was adapted from the cultivation methods of the Tiger race. It was primarily fierce and its movements were simple.

With imposing energy, he stomped his foot to boost his might, to amplify his momentum!

"Hah!"

A booming shout erupted from his mouth.

Shouting while practicing punches was to enhance one's power, which was also why many people shouted constantly during combat.

Outside the door, Chen Hao was startled. Su Yu's shout felt much more imposing than usual, truly like a tiger pouncing.

Downstairs, the elderly neighbor felt the ceiling vibrate and couldn't help but look up. He quickly exclaimed in admiration, "This kid, his Tiger Fist has some real substance to it now. In the army, he'd be a good hand!"

Although his strength wasn't exceptional, still in the Kaiyuan Realm, one had to admit that the sheer momentum of that shout was something even an ordinary Qianjun Realm cultivator would struggle to produce.

The old man hadn't seen it firsthand, but he could hear it; that shout was unusual.

This was Su Yu's tiger roar, infused with willpower, naturally making it extraordinary.

"Hah!"

The booming shouts came one after another, his arms driving the air, causing continuous vibrations.

His fingers splayed, and although Tiger Fist was a boxing technique, the tiger's claws were sharp and not just for show.

With a swish, his five fingers dug into the wardrobe door, piercing straight through.

Su Yu glanced at it but didn't pay it much mind. Practicing at home with limited space, causing some damage was normal.

At this moment, his Qi was considerably depleted, and Su Yu finally felt less strained. He continued to absorb Qi, refining his acupoints.

The eighth acupoint was gradually breaking open, establishing Qi channels with the other seven.

Su Yu felt more and more exhilarated as he fought, his shouts growing louder.

At one point, he felt his strength surge. Without hesitation, Su Yu let out a thunderous roar and punched towards the wardrobe!

Bang!

The wardrobe door exploded!

The entire wardrobe began to shatter, splinters flying.

"Hahaha!"

Su Yu no longer cared about the wardrobe; he couldn't hide his smile. Even though he was much calmer than most youths, he couldn't help but feel excited at this moment.

The Purple Que Acupoint was opened!

Kaiyuan Eighth Level!

Bang!

The room door was pushed open forcefully. Chen Hao looked at the shattered wardrobe and then at Su Yu, scratching his head. "Yu, are you okay? Even if Uncle Su's wardrobe was ugly, you didn't have to smash it, did you?"

Su Yu panted, glancing at him with a look of helplessness.

Was the wardrobe the key point?

The key point was, I smashed the wardrobe with one punch, do you idiot understand what that means?

Before Kaiyuan Eighth Level, being able to smash a cabinet door with one punch was already good; that was normal human strength.

Now the wardrobe was completely destroyed, haven't you thought deeper about it?

If this were an ordinary person, my punch just now could have blown them apart, scattering them everywhere, understand?

Su Yu couldn't be bothered to say more. He retracted his fist, stood up, stretched his limbs, and looked at his fist, finding no injury.

In the moment of explosion, there was a faint burst of Qi, which also acted as protection.

"Kaiyuan Eighth Level!"

Su Yu was overjoyed. With 20 days left until the assessment, reaching Kaiyuan Eighth Level was complete, his first goal achieved.

"I need a blade of my own, and I also need to practice another proper martial skill for combat. I can adapt to my strength and familiarize myself with the skill, then I can look for an opportunity to kill a mid-stage Qianjun Realm Ten Thousand Races Cult member."

"I just don't know if these guys still exist in Nanyuan. I hope they haven't all been killed."

These days, Jifeng Hall had been active, and many deeply hidden Ten Thousand Races Cult members had been dug out. It was almost impossible to encounter a large number of them now; catching even one would be considered lucky.

Su Yu thought to himself, glanced at Chen Hao, and said, "Clean up the clothes and tidy the room."

"Huh?"

Chen Hao looked innocent. "I didn't do it."

"Then go read a book for an hour!"

"Cough, cough, I'll clean up then!"

Chen Hao instantly made his decision. He'd rather do chores; reading was truly not something a human could do.

Only then did Chen Hao seem to realize and suddenly say, "Yu, you've reached Kaiyuan Eighth Level?"

"You're just noticing?"

Su Yu stared at him, speechless. Your reaction time is a bit too slow!

"Ah? Really!"

Chen Hao was shocked. "This is too fast!"

"I told you last time, I'm almost at the eighth level, is it strange that I'm breaking through now?"

After Su Yu finished speaking, he frowned slightly. "Next time I cultivate, you cultivate too. You're wasting all the Qi!"

Chen Hao had just broken through to the fourth level. However, breaking through between the fourth and fifth levels wasn't difficult. Once one ear acupoint was opened, the other side became much easier.

There were still 20 days until the assessment. If he was lucky and had ample Qi support, he might still have hope of breaking through to the fifth level of Kaiyuan.

Although with the fourth level of Kaiyuan and an additional 30 bonus points, Chen Hao's chances of getting into the War Academy weren't small, he could probably be considered stable.

However, a better assessment score would provide greater benefits after enrollment.

Students who barely scraped by had a tough time at the War Academy.

"Kaiyuan eighth level..."

Chen Hao was somewhat dejected and didn't pay attention to what Su Yu was saying. He was feeling a bit down at the moment.

He had previously thought that reaching the fourth level of Kaiyuan would be quite good. Although Su Yu had said he was at the seventh level of Kaiyuan, the seventh and eighth levels were different.

If they were to really fight, he wouldn't necessarily lose.

But reaching the eighth level of Kaiyuan wasn't just about physical fitness anymore; it was about the utilization of Qi. Ten of him wouldn't be able to defeat Su Yu.

"Ah Yu... Am I really that stupid?"

Chen Hao was dejected. "I can't focus on my studies. My dad said that the 'Kaiyuan Jue' is a good thing, something only important figures could write. You only showed it to me because you consider me a brother, but I just can't understand it..."

"Now you're at Kaiyuan eighth level, and I'm just at Kaiyuan fourth level..."

Su Yu ignored his dejection, saying indifferently, "Don't compare yourself to me. I'm chasing the geniuses of Great Xia Prefecture. You're not chasing them. You just need to catch up to Zhou Chong. If you can beat Zhou Chong, then you've succeeded."

"But didn't you say last time that I should have a broader vision and aim for Soaring?"

"Nonsense, goals have to be achieved step by step. First, catch up to Zhou Chong, then enter the Qianjun Realm, advance to the Wanshi Realm, and after that, aim for Soaring... I'm not asking you to achieve it all at once. Break down your goals into segments, cut them up, and complete each small goal. That way, you'll have motivation."

This was also Su Yu's experience. Big goals were too vague. Cutting big goals into smaller ones and completing them one by one would ultimately be simpler and more motivating.

"Is that so?"

Chen Hao thought about it and nodded. "Alright then, my current goal is to crush Zhou Chong. I'll go to the academy tomorrow and beat him up again!"

"..."

Su Yu inexplicably pitied Zhou Chong. What I meant by crushing was in terms of cultivation level, not brute force. You've already beaten Zhou Chong once, and you still want to beat him? Are you even human?

"I can't be bothered with you."

"Hurry up and pack, then accompany me to the Xia Family Merchant Guild."

He needed to buy some essence blood and see if there were any suitable weapons. If he had enough money, he'd see if he could buy a suitable martial skill.

Mid-tier academies generally only provided basic martial skills, which were low-grade Yellow tier.

In a place like Nan Yuan, even if they gave you high-grade ones, you wouldn't be able to learn or use them. Decades might pass without a single person at the Kaiyuan eighth level achieving it.

Of course, the instructors had mid-grade or even high-grade Yellow tier skills, but those required merit points to exchange. Su Yu would rather spend money. He now realized that merit points were more useful than money. For example, upon entering the Civilization Academy, one could exchange for original copies of Myriad Races cultivation techniques, which were difficult to obtain even with money.

He actually had martial skills too.

The 'Blood Condensing Blade' he acquired earlier was a mid-grade Yellow tier martial skill. His father also had military martial skills, but those were better practiced after reaching the Qianjun Realm. Practicing them now would be difficult for him to comprehend.

Chen Hao quickly started packing, sweeping the floor as he turned to ask, "Ah Yu, should we buy some monster beast meat from the Xia Family Merchant Guild to roast and eat? That stuff tastes delicious!"

"All you think about is eating!"

Su Yu cursed softly, then quickly said, "We'll see when we get there. Also, if no one asks, just say I'm learning to draw Divine Script when they ask why I'm buying essence blood."

"Oh, got it."

Chen Hao didn't care about that. He was actually curious why Su Yu kept buying essence blood. He seemed to have bought quite a lot. Couldn't this guy be secretly drinking blood?

But his father had said that it was very dangerous to consume essence blood before reaching the Qianjun Realm.

"Ah Yu, why don't you teach me how to draw Divine Script?"

"Hmm?"

Su Yu was taken aback. "Are you sure?"

"My dad said that Civilization Masters are also very powerful. Of course, they're definitely not as powerful as those in the War Academy!"

Su Yu rolled his eyes. "Don't even think about it. You drawing Divine Script? Talk to me again when you can actually understand the 'Kaiyuan Jue'!"

He didn't bother explaining further to Chen Hao. Even if he did, Chen Hao wouldn't truly listen. He didn't need to say much to this guy; he wouldn't delve too deeply into it anyway.

An hour later.

Xia Family Merchant Guild.

At this moment, Su Yu still had 170,000 Anping Coins and 10 gold coins.

Thanks to Liu Wenyan's connections, the essence blood he bought recently cost 30,000 per drop, which was much cheaper than the counter price.

"3 drops of Iron Winged Bird essence blood."

Su Yu was a regular customer, heading straight for the flesh and blood section as soon as he arrived. The merchant guild manager personally greeted him.

The manager didn't ask many questions and arranged for someone to fetch the items. Seeing Su Yu looking around at other areas, he couldn't help but smile, "Mr. Su, would you like to look at anything else today?"

"What about the prices of weapons?"

"It depends on Mr. Su's needs. Generally speaking... for those in the Kaiyuan Realm, weapons made of common iron are sufficient. Of course, for those at Kaiyuan Eighth Level and above, it's best to use Yellow-grade ones, as they help with Qi channeling."

The manager explained, "Weapons, like cultivation methods and martial skills, are also divided into Heaven, Earth, Black, and Yellow grades. The main differences lie in the materials and Qi channeling efficiency."

Su Yu nodded; he understood this.

Common iron did not have the function of channeling Qi. The practical swords used by students in the academy were all made of common iron and weren't expensive.

However, materials that could channel Qi were all expensive. Therefore, genuine cultivators using graded weapons found their prices to be considerable.

"For Qianjun and Wanshi realms, Yellow-grade weapons are fine. Once you reach Soaring, Yellow-grade won't be enough; you'll need Black-grade. Wealthy individuals might even use Earth-grade, but those are for the big figures in Great Xia Prefecture. No one in Southern Yuan can afford them."

The manager asked with a smile, "Mr. Su, are you looking for common iron or graded weapons?"

"Graded."

Su Yu thought for a moment, "Low-grade ones won't be enough for the mid to late stages of Qianjun, right? For mid to late Qianjun, you'd need at least mid-grade Yellow-grade, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, but that's still a ways off for you, Mr. Su..."

The manager was speaking the truth; mid to late Qianjun was indeed still a long way off for Su Yu.

"So, buying low-grade Yellow-grade is sufficient for you."

Su Yu remained noncommittal. He could unleash the power of late Qianjun with his essence blood. If he unleashed his Qi a few more times, even low-grade Yellow-grade weapons might break.

"Buy mid-grade, and you can use it all the way. That way, you won't have to switch when you reach mid to late Qianjun."

Su Yu spoke, then quickly asked, "What's the price?"

"The prices vary depending on the type."

"However, for mid-grade Yellow-grade, the approximate price range is between 100,000 and 300,000."

"That expensive?" Su Yu frowned. "Common iron weapons, three to five thousand is pretty good, and low-grade Yellow-grade is only about ten thousand, right?"

"That's correct, but for this kind of item, going up one grade means higher crafting difficulty and better materials, so the cost increases significantly."

The manager explained earnestly, "Mr. Su, you are a student of Instructor Liu, so we won't deliberately inflate prices. This is indeed the price. These are mainly for those in the mid to late stages of Qianjun. Most don't use them in the mid-stage; it's primarily for the later stages."

"For warriors above Qianjun Seventh Level, a weapon costing over a hundred thousand isn't considered cheap, but most can afford it."

Su Yu gasped. Most can afford it.

Can my dad afford it?

It seems he can!

But if he buys a weapon, half of his entire savings will be gone. And this isn't even the best one. For the best mid-grade Yellow-grade, my dad would have to put all his savings into it to get one.

"Besides the 90,000 for the 3 drops of essence blood, I have 80,000 cash left, and 10 gold coins. That's 180,000. I could afford it if I really wanted to... but... it's just too expensive."

"There are also martial skills... I'll skip the martial skills. If I have to, I'll just cultivate 'Blood Condensing Blade.' Although it's trash, it's enough for me right now."

Su Yu quickly calculated his finances. He realized that while he earned money quickly, he also spent it quickly.

The more than 300,000 his father left him seemed to be almost gone.

Even the 10 gold coins he captured last time would probably be spent this time.

Poor scholars, rich warriors... the teacher was right.

Weapons for the Qianjun Realm are already this expensive. What about Wanshi?

And Soaring?

Cultivation methods, martial skills, weapons, essence blood, pills... Su Yu shuddered at the thought. No wonder those Jifeng Hall guys chased the Ten Thousand Races Cult members relentlessly, wanting to dig them up from the ground. It was all about money!

Killing an early-stage cultivator earned 1 merit point, two for mid-stage, and three for late-stage. That was much better than a salary.

Soon, Su Yu received the essence blood. As for the weapon, he didn't look at it much. Southern Yuan used standard issue, similar to the military.

If he wanted custom-made, he'd have to go to Great Xia Prefecture, and the price would be too high. Without the financial backing, it was better to use standard issue.

A standard-issue mid-grade Yellow-grade saber cost 150,000, after the discount.

The reason he chose a saber was that Su Yu used a saber in the academy, and his father learned saber techniques in the army. The saber was the "gall of a hundred weapons"... but the main reason was that it was easy to get started with.

Weapons like spears, swords, and halberds were harder to learn than sabers.

With a saber, you could slash wildly and it was less likely to injure yourself. If you randomly thrust with a sword, a greatsword was fine, but a rapier was the easiest way to end up covered in your own blood.

After paying all the money, Su Yu was left with only 30,000 cash for food expenses.

As for the idea of buying martial skills, he completely gave it up.

He was out of money!

He still had some merit points, but merit points were useful, and Su Yu was reluctant to waste them.

"3 drops of essence blood, opening the illustration book three times. Whether to cultivate or to unleash skills, they'll be used up very quickly..."

"Sigh, money flies like water, I'm so broke!"

Su Yu clutched his items and calculated for a while longer. With the remaining 3 drops of Qi Liquid and 13 merit points, he hoped to reach the ninth level of the Kaiyuan Realm. He had no way to earn money in the short term.

Nowadays, Kaiyuan Realm cultivators were common, and Qianjun Realm cultivators were also not that rare.

If his teacher hadn't taken him to hunt down members of the Ten Thousand Races Cult, he wouldn't have had the chance to earn even a few merit points. Southern Yuan wasn't lacking in Qianjun Realm cultivators; a large group of them were clamoring for Jifeng Hall to let them handle the Ten Thousand Races Cult members themselves.

"Haozi..."

"What's up?"

Chen Hao, who was walking out of the Xia Family Merchant Guild with Su Yu and still thinking about eating monster meat, was a bit confused. Why was he calling him?

"You think... if I sold my house, and my dad came back and found it gone, would he kill me?"

"..."

Chen Hao was stunned. A Yu was going to sell his house!

Su Yu muttered, "If the house sells, it's worth at least 500,000. I'm just afraid... that one day my dad comes back, finds the house gone, and can't find his home. He might come at me with a knife and kill me on the street."

Chen Hao quickly nodded and urged, "Don't do anything reckless! If I sold my house, my parents would hunt me down for the rest of my life. A Yu, don't be impulsive!"

Chen Hao wiped the sweat from his forehead. When the top student went crazy, he was even more terrifying than Chen Hao.

"I was just talking, you're not actually going to sell it, are you?"

Su Yu chuckled. How could he sell his house!

Besides... he couldn't sell it anyway!

The house was in his dad's name. Since his dad wasn't home and hadn't transferred ownership to him, where would he even sell it?

Sigh, when his dad left, he really didn't think to have him transfer the house ownership. Otherwise, he would have had a backup plan, a way to sell the house at a critical moment.

Battlefields of the Heavens.

In a military camp.

Su Long muttered, "I left over 300,000 for that kid, and I sent back his salary card for next month too. His basic salary alone is over ten thousand a month, which should be enough for him to spend a lifetime. Next time I go back, if that kid doesn't spend money recklessly, he should have enough to buy a small house in Great Xia Prefecture, right?"

Su Long mumbled for a while, thinking it should be enough. His son wasn't someone who spent money carelessly.