Kaiyuan Eighth Stage

Su Family.

Chen Hao, still recovering from his injuries, sat in the living room reading. His head kept drooping, his vision had already gone blurry. Reading really was enough to kill a person.

Yawning, Chen Hao forced his eyes open and turned to look toward the bedroom. He had no idea how Ah Yu could sit still for so long.

After staying in his room that long, did top students not need to pee?

Inside the room.

Su Yu swallowed the drop of Qi Liquid Bai Feng had condensed that day. Its concentration was not especially high, but it was well suited to him at the moment.

At the same time he swallowed the Qi Liquid, Su Yu also swallowed the Iron Winged Bird Essence Blood he had bought for 30,000.

Activating the "Essence Gathering Art," he devoured Qi. This allowed him to absorb the Qi Liquid to the greatest extent possible.

At that moment, Su Yu once more sensed the nine apertures in his body opening.

Seven apertures had opened. The eighth aperture, the Purple Gate Acupoint, was half-open and half-closed.

The seven apertures emitted a radiance invisible to ordinary people, seeming to form a circuit that was connecting to the Purple Gate Acupoint.

"Open the Purple Gate and officially link the Qi pathways!"

The ninth aperture, Baihui, connected the Qi of heaven and earth, inside and out. Once the eighth aperture, the Purple Gate, opened, it could link the Qi pathways within the human body.

The Kaiyuan Eighth Stage possessed true combat strength because of this.

Humans had always cultivated the "Kaiyuan Jue," storing some Qi within their bodies. If the eighth aperture remained unopened, that Qi could not be actively used and could only passively temper the apertures.

Once the eighth aperture opened, one could actively use that Qi. When cultivating martial skills or launching attacks mixed with Qi, their destructive power would greatly increase.

The greatest difference between the Kaiyuan Eighth Stage and Kaiyuan Ninth Stage was that the Eighth Stage used one's own stored Qi, while the Ninth Stage could connect inside and outside, drawing upon natural Qi.

"Once the Purple Gate opens, I can use martial skills. My killing power will soar, and there won't be any more situations where I can't kill a Qianjun Realm cultivator with one slash!"

Su Yu muttered inwardly. At that moment, he was absorbing Qi at an extremely fast rate.

He felt as though he could barely endure it any longer!

Kaiyuan cultivators did not absorb much Qi to begin with. Yet he had not only used essence blood to activate the "Essence Gathering Art," but had also used half a drop of Qi Liquid. As a result, the speed and density at which he absorbed Qi surpassed even ordinary Qianjun Realm cultivators.

"Temper the aperture!"

Su Yu gave a muffled grunt as Qi gathered toward the Purple Gate.

He had been stuck at the Seventh Stage for some time. On May 16, he had officially entered the Kaiyuan Seventh Stage. Today was already June 5.

Nearly twenty days had passed. Since gaining the ability to activate the "Essence Gathering Art," this was the longest he had ever been stuck.

Moreover, he had Bai Feng's "Kaiyuan Jue" assisting him. After failing to break through for twenty straight days, Su Yu was beginning to feel a little anxious.

Buzz!

Qi gathered around him, the air trembled, and the sound of wind echoed through the sealed room.

Outside the door, Chen Hao wore a strange expression.

At the same time, he felt extremely comfortable. Qi was gathering, and while he still could not see Qi, his body could sense some of it. He felt that pleasant sensation, as though he had gone days without eating and suddenly drank a bowl of hot soup.

"It's so comfortable at Ah Yu's place. It must be because my dad hasn't been yelling at me."

Chen Hao thought to himself and looked toward the bedroom again. Was Ah Yu practicing a martial skill?

The commotion was not small!

"Why won't it open!"

Su Yu felt that he truly could not endure much longer. If it did not open today, it would be too much of a waste.

Qi Liquid and essence blood—those things were worth nearly a hundred thousand.

Now that the aperture was half-open, if he failed to open it, then he would have to swallow more essence blood or even Qi Liquid the next time he tried. Was this cultivation? This was squandering money.

Su Yu felt that he could no longer bear it. He stopped sitting cross-legged and suddenly stood.

He needed to vent, to squander the Qi stagnating within him. Otherwise, he was about to burst himself to death.

Cultivation did not necessarily require sitting cross-legged, nor did one have to remain motionless.

However, during cultivation, sitting cross-legged and calmly absorbing Qi was the most economical method, with the highest efficiency.

The larger one's movements, the lower the absorption efficiency and the greater the waste of Qi.

At that moment, how could Su Yu care about any of that? If he failed to break through anyway, this Qi would be wasted. It would disperse and scatter into the surrounding area, and he had no ability to gather it back.

Su Yu rose to his feet, loosened his limbs, and began to practice his punches.

"Tiger Fist," a Low Yellow Tier boxing technique, was the most basic fist technique humans encountered. It was mainly used to train the body. It counted as a martial skill, but its Qi utilization rate was low. It primarily relied on physical strength and focused on tempering the body.

Buzz!

Like a starving tiger pouncing on prey, Su Yu's punches were swift, and every blow whipped up wind like a roaring tiger.

"Tiger Fist" had been adapted from the cultivation art of the tiger race. It emphasized fierce, unyielding force, and its moves were simple.

With broad stances he drove his strength, stamping his feet to bolster his might and raise his momentum!

"Ha!"

A thunderous shout burst from his mouth.

Practicing fists with sound bolstered one's might. This was also why many people kept shouting when they fought.

Outside the door, Chen Hao jumped. Ah Yu's roar felt far more imposing than usual, truly carrying the sensation of a tiger lunging in for the kill.

Downstairs, the elderly neighbor felt the ceiling shake and could not help looking up. Soon, he clicked his tongue in amazement. "This kid's Tiger Fist has a few traces of true intent. Put him in the military, and he'd count as a capable hand!"

Although his strength was nothing special and he was still at Kaiyuan, that thunderous shout alone carried a momentum that ordinary Qianjun Realm cultivators could hardly produce.

The old man had not seen it with his own eyes, but he could hear it. That shout was extraordinary.

This was the tiger roar Su Yu had released with Willpower mixed into it. Naturally, it was no ordinary roar.

"Ha!"

Thunderous shouts came one after another as his arms drove the air, producing unceasing vibrations.

His five fingers curled and spread. Though Tiger Fist was a fist technique, the tiger race's claws and fangs were not mere decorations.

With a ripping sound, his five fingers dug into the wardrobe door and tore straight through it.

Su Yu glanced at it without taking it to heart. Practicing fists at home in such a cramped space—it was normal to cause some damage.

By then, he had consumed a considerable amount of Qi and no longer felt as swollen as before. He continued absorbing Qi and tempering his aperture.

The eighth aperture had gradually begun to break open, establishing Qi channels with the other seven apertures.

The more Su Yu fought, the more freely he moved, and his shouts grew louder and louder.

Until, at one particular moment, he felt his strength surge explosively. Su Yu did not hesitate in the slightest. With a boom, his right fist tore through the air and smashed toward the wardrobe!

Bang!

The wardrobe door exploded!

The entire wardrobe began to split apart, wood chips flying everywhere.

"Hahaha!"

How could Su Yu care about the wardrobe now? He could not hide his smile. Even though he was much steadier than ordinary youths, he could not help his excitement at that moment.

The Purple Gate Acupoint had opened!

Kaiyuan Eighth Stage!

Bang!

The bedroom door was shoved open forcefully. Chen Hao looked at the shattered wardrobe, then at Su Yu, scratching his head as he said, "Ah Yu, are you okay? Even if Uncle Su bought an ugly wardrobe, you didn't have to smash it outright, did you?"

Su Yu panted and shot him a glance, his face full of helplessness.

Was the wardrobe the important part?

The important part was that I shattered the wardrobe with one punch. You idiot, do you know what that means?

Before Kaiyuan Eighth Stage, being able to smash a cabinet door with one punch was already pretty good. That was normal human strength.

Now the wardrobe had not even been left an intact corpse, yet this guy had not thought any deeper?

If that had been an ordinary person, my punch just now could have blown them apart too, leaving them in pieces. Do you understand?

Su Yu could not be bothered to say more. He withdrew his fist, stood straight, moved his limbs, and looked at his fist. It was uninjured.

At the instant of his earlier burst, a faint surge of Qi had erupted, serving as protection as well.

"Kaiyuan Eighth Stage!"

Su Yu rejoiced inwardly. With twenty days until the examination, he had completed the Kaiyuan Eighth Stage and achieved his first goal.

"I need a blade of my own. I also need to cultivate an official martial skill meant for killing enemies, get used to my strength, and become proficient with the martial skill. Then I can find an opportunity to kill a mid-stage Qianjun Realm member of the Ten Thousand Races Cult."

"I just don't know whether any of those people are still in Nanyuan. I hope they haven't all been killed."

These past few days, Jifeng Hall had mobilized, digging out quite a few deeply hidden Ten Thousand Races Cult members. It was now almost impossible to encounter large groups of them. Catching even one would count as good luck.

As Su Yu pondered this, he glanced at Chen Hao and said, "Put the clothes away and clean the room."

"Ah?"

Chen Hao looked utterly innocent. "It wasn't me who did it."

"Then go read for an hour."

"Ahem, ahem. I'd better clean up!"

Chen Hao made his decision instantly. He would rather work. Reading truly was not something a human should do.

Only then did Chen Hao seem to react. He suddenly said, "Ah Yu, did you reach the Kaiyuan Eighth Stage?"

"You only just noticed?"

Su Yu stared at him, speechless. Your reaction time is a little too long!

"Ah? Really?"

Chen Hao was stunned. "Isn't that way too fast?"

"I told you last time that I was close to the Eighth Stage. Is it strange that I broke through now?"

After saying that, Su Yu frowned slightly. "Next time I cultivate, you should cultivate too. All that Qi is being wasted on you!"

Chen Hao had just broken through to the Kaiyuan Fourth Stage, but breaking from the Fourth to the Fifth Stage was not difficult. One ear aperture had opened, so opening the one on the other side would be much easier.

There were still twenty days until the examination. If he got lucky and had plenty of Qi to assist him, it was not impossible for him to break through to the Kaiyuan Fifth Stage.

Although Chen Hao's chances of entering the War Academy were already fairly high—probably stable—with the Kaiyuan Fourth Stage plus thirty bonus points, better examination results would be more helpful after enrollment.

Students at the bottom of the class did not have an easy time at the War Academy.

"Kaiyuan Eighth Stage..."

Chen Hao was somewhat dazed and did not care about what Su Yu had said. At that moment, he felt rather dejected.

Previously, he had thought reaching the Kaiyuan Fourth Stage was already quite good. Though Su Yu had said he was at the Kaiyuan Seventh Stage, the Seventh and Eighth Stages were different.

If they really fought, Chen Hao might not necessarily lose.

But at the Kaiyuan Eighth Stage, it was no longer a matter of physical fitness. It was a matter of using Qi. Even ten of him could not defeat Su Yu.

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

Chen Hao was depressed. "I can't keep reading. My dad said the 'Kaiyuan Jue' is a good thing, something only an important person could write. You only let me read it because you treat me like a brother, but I just can't keep reading it..."

"Now you're already at the Kaiyuan Eighth Stage, while I just reached the Kaiyuan Fourth Stage..."

Su Yu did not care whether he was depressed. Indifferently, he said, "Don't compare yourself to me. I'm chasing the geniuses of Great Xia Prefecture. You aren't chasing them. It's enough if you catch up to Zhou Chong. Beat Zhou Chong until he can't get up, and you'll have succeeded."

"But didn't you say last time that I should set my sights farther ahead, on Soaring?"

"Nonsense. Goals have to be reached step by step too. First catch up to Zhou Chong, then enter the Qianjun Realm, advance into Ten Thousand Stones, and only then set your sights on Soaring... I never told you to reach it in one step. Divide your goal into stages, cut it apart. Each time you complete a small goal, you'll have motivation."

This was also Su Yu's experience. Grand goals were too vague. Divide them into smaller goals and complete them one by one. In the end, one would discover that it was simpler and more motivating.

"Like that?"

Chen Hao thought about it, then nodded. "All right, then my current goal is to beat Zhou Chong until he can't get up. Tomorrow, I'll go to the academy and beat him up again!"

"..."

Su Yu suddenly felt sympathy for Zhou Chong. By beating him until he could not get up, I meant in terms of cultivation realm, not violence. You already beat Zhou Chong once, and you still want to hit him again? Are you even human?

"Can't be bothered with you."

"Hurry up and clean. Afterward, come with me to the Xia Family Merchant Guild."

He wanted to buy some essence blood, then see if there were any suitable weapons. If he still had enough money left, he would see whether he could buy a martial skill suited to him.

Intermediate academies generally only provided basic martial skills, meaning Low Yellow Tier ones.

In a place like Nanyuan, even if they gave you advanced ones, you could neither learn nor use them. There might not even be one Kaiyuan Eighth Stage cultivator in several decades.

Of course, the instructors had Mid Yellow Tier or even High Yellow Tier skills, but those required Merit Points to exchange for. Su Yu would rather spend money. He had now discovered that Merit Points were more useful than money. For example, at the Civilization Academy, they could be exchanged for original copies of the cultivation arts of the myriad races—something difficult to buy even with money.

As for martial skills, he actually had some.

The "Blood Condensing Blade" he had seized earlier was a Mid Yellow Tier martial skill. His father also had military martial skills, but those were better cultivated after reaching the Qianjun Realm. He would have difficulty understanding them now.

Chen Hao hurriedly began tidying up. As he swept the floor, he turned and asked, "Ah Yu, should we buy some demon beast meat to bring back and roast when we go to the Xia Family Merchant Guild? That stuff tastes so fresh!"

"You only know how to eat!"

Su Yu cursed quietly, then quickly said, "We'll see when we get there. Also, if nobody asks, forget it. If someone asks why I'm buying essence blood, say I'm learning to inscribe divine runes."

"Oh, got it."

Chen Hao did not care much about that. Actually, he was also curious why Su Yu kept buying essence blood. It seemed like he had bought quite a lot. Could this guy be secretly drinking blood?

But his dad had said that swallowing essence blood before reaching the Qianjun Realm was very dangerous.

"Ah Yu, how about you teach me how to inscribe divine runes?"

"Hm?"

Su Yu froze for a moment. "Are you sure?"

"My dad said Civilization Masters are actually very powerful too. Of course, they definitely aren't as powerful as the War Academy!"

Su Yu rolled his eyes. "Stop dreaming. You want to inscribe divine runes? Talk after you've thoroughly understood the 'Kaiyuan Jue'!"

He did not explain much to Chen Hao. Even if he did, Chen Hao would act as though he had not heard it. There was no need to say too much to this guy anyway, since he would not investigate deeply.

One hour later.

Xia Family Merchant Guild.

Su Yu still had 170,000 Anping Coin and ten gold coins in hand.

Thanks to Liu Wenyan's favor, when he bought essence blood here lately, it cost only 30,000 per drop, much cheaper than the counter price.

"Three drops of Iron Winged Bird Essence Blood."

Su Yu was practically a regular customer now. The moment he arrived, he headed straight for the flesh-and-blood section, where the merchant guild's manager personally received him.

The manager did not ask many questions and arranged for someone to fetch it. Seeing Su Yu looking toward the other sections, he smiled. "Would Mr. Su like to look at anything else today?"

"How are weapon prices?"

"That depends on what Mr. Su needs. Generally speaking... weapons forged from ordinary iron are sufficient for Kaiyuan Realm users. Of course, once one reaches Kaiyuan Eighth Stage or above, it is best to use Yellow Tier weapons. They are helpful for channeling qi."

The manager explained, "Weapons are the same as cultivation methods and martial skills. They are divided into Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow tiers. The main differences lie in the materials and the qi transmission rate."

Su Yu nodded. He understood that.

Ordinary iron did not possess the ability to channel qi. The practice sabers used by academy students were all forged from ordinary iron and were not expensive.

However, materials capable of channeling qi were all costly. Thus, the tiered weapons truly used by cultivators were also extremely expensive.

"Yellow Tier weapons are sufficient for Qianjun and Ten Thousand Stones cultivators. Once one reaches Soaring, Yellow Tier weapons will no longer suffice; Profound Tier weapons are needed. Those with money even use Earth Tier weapons. Of course, those are important figures from Great Xia Prefecture. No one in Nanyuan can afford them."

As he spoke, the manager smiled and asked, "Does Mr. Su want ordinary iron or a tiered weapon?"

"A tiered weapon."

After thinking for a moment, Su Yu said, "Low-grade ones will become insufficient by the middle or late Qianjun stages, right? By the middle and late Qianjun stages, one should at least use a Mid Yellow Tier weapon?"

"That is correct, but for Mr. Su, that is still a long way off..."

The manager was telling the truth. The middle and late Qianjun stages were still far away for Su Yu.

"Therefore, a Low Yellow Tier weapon would be more than enough for Mr. Su."

Su Yu neither agreed nor disagreed. He could unleash the strength of the late Qianjun stage with essence blood. If he erupted with qi a few more times, a Low Yellow Tier weapon would probably be ruined.

"I'll buy a mid-grade one. I can use it for a long time and avoid having to replace it once I reach the middle or late Qianjun stages."

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

"Different types have different prices."

"However, Mid Yellow Tier weapons generally range from 100,000 to 300,000."

"So expensive?" Su Yu frowned. "A decent ordinary iron weapon only costs three to five thousand. Low Yellow Tier weapons are only around ten thousand, aren't they?"

"That is true, but each step up in grade makes forging more difficult. The materials are better, and the cost is much higher."

The manager explained earnestly, "Mr. Su is Instructor Liu's student, so we would never deliberately inflate the price. That truly is the price. These are mainly for those in the middle and late Qianjun stages. Even people in the middle stage generally do not use them; they are primarily for the late stage."

"For fighters above Qianjun Seventh Level, a weapon costing over a hundred thousand is not cheap, but most can afford it."

Su Yu clicked his tongue. Most could afford it?

Could his father afford one?

It seemed like he could!

But after buying one weapon, half of his father's entire savings would be gone. And this was not even the best kind. For the best Mid Yellow Tier weapon, his father would have to pour in all his savings just to get one.

"After the 90,000 for the three drops of essence blood, I have 80,000 in cash and ten gold coins left—180,000 total. I could afford it if I really wanted to... but... this is far too expensive."

"And martial skills... forget martial skills. If it comes down to it, I'll just cultivate the Blood Condensing Blade. It may be trash, but it is enough for me right now."

Su Yu swiftly calculated his assets in his heart. He realized that while he earned money quickly, he also spent it quickly.

The more than 300,000 his father had left behind seemed to be nearly gone.

Even the ten gold coins he had seized last time would probably have to go in this time.

Poor scholars, rich warriors... Teacher truly had not been wrong.

Weapons for the Qianjun Realm already cost this much. What about Ten Thousand Stones?

What about Soaring?

Cultivation methods, martial skills, weapons, essence blood, pills... The thought made Su Yu shudder. No wonder those fellows from Jifeng Hall hunted Ten Thousand Races Cult members without sparing any effort, wishing they could dig three feet into the ground. That was all money!

Killing one early-stage member earned one Merit Point, a middle-stage one earned two, and a late-stage one earned three. That paid far better than a salary.

Soon, Su Yu received the essence blood. As for weapons, he did not look around much. The ones in Nanyuan were all standard issue, similar to military equipment.

Custom orders required going to Great Xia Prefecture, and the price was far too high. Without that kind of wealth, standard-issue weapons were better.

A standard-issue Mid Yellow Tier saber cost 150,000 after the discount.

He chose a saber because he used one at the academy, while his father had learned saber techniques in the military. Sabers were the courage of all weapons... though the real reason was that they were easy to learn.

Spears, swords, halberds, and such were harder to learn than saber techniques.

With a saber, one could slash around wildly without easily hurting oneself. Stabbing wildly with a sword was another matter. Greatswords were fine, but flexible swords could most easily leave one covered in blood.

After paying for everything, Su Yu had only 30,000 in cash left, enough for meals.

As for his original idea of buying martial skills, he abandoned it completely.

He had no money left!

He still had some Merit Points, but they were useful for other things. Su Yu could not bear to waste them.

"Three drops of essence blood can open the book three times. Whether for cultivation or unleashing skills, they will actually be used up very quickly..."

"Ah, money flows away like water. This is too hard!"

Holding his things, Su Yu calculated again. With the remaining three drops of Qi Liquid and thirteen Merit Points, he hoped to reach Kaiyuan Ninth Stage. For the time being, he had no ability to earn money.

These days, Kaiyuan was worthless. Qianjun was worthless too.

If Teacher had not taken him to hunt Ten Thousand Races Cult members, he would not even have had the chance to earn a few Merit Points. Nanyuan did not lack Qianjun cultivators. A whole crowd of them were howling for Jifeng Hall to release the Ten Thousand Races Cult members and let them kill them instead.

"Haozi..."

"What is it?"

Chen Hao walked out of the Xia Family Merchant Guild with Su Yu. Still thinking about eating demon beast meat, he looked somewhat confused. Why was Su Yu calling him?

"Tell me... if I sold our house, and my dad came back to find it gone, would he beat me to death?"

"..."

Chen Hao was stunned. A-Yu wanted to sell his house?

Su Yu muttered, "The house should be worth 500,000. I'm just afraid that... one day my dad might come back, find the house gone, and be unable to find home. He might carry a saber and chop me to death in the street."

Chen Hao hurriedly nodded and said anxiously, "Don't court death! If I sold my family's 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 a top student went crazy, he was even more terrifying than Chen Hao.

"I was just saying it. Could I really sell it?"

Su Yu laughed. How could he possibly sell the house?

Besides... he could not sell it anyway!

The house was in his father's name. His father was not home, and he had not transferred it to Su Yu. Where could Su Yu possibly sell it?

Ah, when his father left, Su Yu had not thought to ask him to transfer the house over. Otherwise, he would have had one last resort—a house he could sell at a critical moment.

Battlefields of the Heavens.

Inside a military camp.

Su Long muttered, "I left that brat over 300,000. Next month's salary card has been mailed back too. The base salary alone is over ten thousand a month. That should be enough for him to spend for a lifetime, right? Next time I go back, if that brat does not squander money, it should be enough to buy a smaller house in Great Xia Prefecture?"

Su Long muttered to himself for a while, deciding it should be about enough. His son was not someone who spent money recklessly.