True Qi Realm

Nearly two months had passed in the blink of an eye since his last experience at the plaza.

Lu Ming had truly come to understand the difficulty of breaking through to the True Qi Realm. Half a month ago, he had already cultivated his inner qi to the peak of the ninth level.

After adjusting his condition, he had thrown himself into a full-force charge at the True Qi Realm.

Yet half a month passed in succession, and there was still no sign of a breakthrough.

"Could it be that, like Dugu Mingri, I'll be stuck here for half a year?"

After another failed attempt, Lu Ming frowned deeply. He even began to doubt whether his talent was truly as good as he had thought.

But just as self-doubt began to consume him, a sudden surge erupted within his mind, instantly snapping him awake.

"That was close. I nearly suffered qi deviation. It seems I've been too impatient for quick success."

That surge had come from the Saber Intent embryonic form within his body, which had suddenly reacted and pulled him back in time.

Saber Intent was the manifestation of his will. If his will was unsteady, then his Saber Intent would be unstable as well.

He had nearly met with disaster just now, but there seemed to be an unexpected delight amid the danger.

He had never known how to transform the embryonic form of Saber Intent into true Saber Intent.

Yet after this ordeal, understanding suddenly dawned upon him. Saber Intent was his will; as long as he continued strengthening that will, his Saber Intent would one day undergo a transformation.

More haste, less speed. Whether it was Saber Intent or cultivation, excessive impatience would only backfire.

After pondering for a while, Lu Ming stopped cultivating and took out the books Old Man Zhao had given him.

He wanted to read in order to illuminate his heart and see his true nature.

With movement and stillness, urgency and calm complementing each other, Lu Ming soon entered a state where his heart was like still water.

Then, three days later, he suddenly sensed an opportunity for breakthrough. The feeling was mysterious beyond words, impossible to explain, yet incomparably clear.

He hurriedly entered seclusion once more.

This time, when he circulated his cultivation method, Lu Ming clearly felt the flow of inner qi accelerate. After it traveled through his meridians and reached his dantian, it even formed a vortex.

"I've broken through to the seventh layer of the Heavenly Saber Art."

The Heavenly Saber Art had twelve layers in total, with the first six belonging to the Inner Qi Realm.

Breaking through to the seventh layer meant entering the True Qi Realm portion.

Now that he had reached this stage, breaking through to the True Qi Realm next would be as natural as water flowing into a channel.

Sure enough, as Lu Ming's cultivation method broke through, the vortex within his dantian began spinning faster and faster. The inner qi flowing through his dantian was refined into true qi by that rotation.

It then flowed outward again, until all the inner qi had been refined and began circulating through the Greater Celestial Circuit.

This process could not be accomplished in one stroke. Several more days passed before Lu Ming's entire body shuddered, and amid waves of surging airflow, he opened his eyes.

"The True Qi Realm... I've finally made it."

Lu Ming withdrew his cultivation and slowly exhaled a stream of white air. Even with his mature and steady temperament, he could no longer hide his delight.

"So this is true qi? It truly is far purer than inner qi."

Once he had finished withdrawing his cultivation, a strand of crimson light suddenly emerged from Lu Ming's palm. It was true qi refined from Heavenly Blade Inner Energy.

"Go!"

After watching it for a moment, Lu Ming suddenly pointed forward. The crimson light instantly shot from his fingertip, piercing through the wall of his house in one go. It still retained enough force to fly more than ten meters farther before finally dispersing.

This was a blade qi. Once the Heavenly Saber Art entered its seventh layer, it could generate a blade qi within the dantian. It could be triggered instantly in battle, and its power was equal to a full-force strike of the fourth stance of the Heavenly Saber Saber Art, the Soul Chasing Style.

It was equivalent to an instant-cast move.

Upon reaching the eighth layer, he would be able to store two blade qis.

And so on from there.

The fifth stance of the Heavenly Saber Saber Art was the Soul Slaying Style, while the sixth was Flying Stars All Over the Sky.

There were three more stances after those, but they required the Gangqi Realm to perform. Thus, Lu Ming planned to focus on learning these middle three stances next.

But not now. He planned to pass the Inner Sect assessment first. Once he became an Inner Sect disciple, he would go to the Martial Arts Pavilion and collect two Human-grade High Stage martial skills.

This was a benefit granted to every Inner Sect disciple. Like Outer Sect disciples, they only had one free opportunity.

Aside from his saber art, Lu Ming's movement technique and palm art were both Human-grade Middle Stage, and they no longer matched his strength.

Therefore, after collecting the two martial skills, he planned to cultivate them together with his saber art.

With a plan in mind, Lu Ming stabilized his cultivation once more before heading toward the Inner Sect assessment hall.

Although the Wuji Sect had many Outer Sect disciples, fewer than half a percent could break through to the True Qi Realm before turning eighteen.

Spread across each day, such people were even rarer.

Thus, when Lu Ming arrived at the assessment hall, it was exceedingly quiet inside.

"Another one has come. It looks like today will break the record for the entire year—four Outer Sect disciples have actually come to take the assessment in a single day."

An Inner Sect steward disciple spoke.

Compared with Outer Sect steward disciples, Inner Sect steward disciples generally possessed cultivation at the middle to late stages of the True Qi Realm. They had once been Inner Sect disciples of the Wuji Sect, but after passing a certain age without making any major breakthroughs, they had been unwilling to leave the sect and thus remained in this manner.

Therefore, the moment Lu Ming entered, several Inner Sect steward disciples saw at a glance that he had only recently broken through to the True Qi Realm.

One of them called out, "Those here for the assessment, come register your information."

Lu Ming nodded and hurried over, taking out his identity token. The disciple accepted it, checked it against the records, then returned it to him.

"All right. The elder has not arrived yet, so wait over there for now."

Lu Ming looked in the direction indicated and saw that three Outer Sect disciples were already waiting there. He walked over and quietly waited.

The three were studying Lu Ming, finding him unfamiliar. One of them spoke softly.

"Senior Brother Qi, all Outer Sect disciples who have reached the peak of the ninth level of inner qi know one another. Why does it seem like I've never seen him before?"

"I haven't seen him either."

The youth called Senior Brother Qi shook his head as well. "He probably joined midway, like Zhu Ningyun."

"That must be it. I just wonder how strong he is."

"Stop talking. The elder is here."

Another person suddenly said.

Lu Ming naturally heard their whispered conversation. He was just considering whether to pretend he had not heard it or take the initiative to greet them.

Then he heard that the elder had arrived, so there was no need to dwell on it any longer.

The arriving elder was a gaunt old man with sharp eyes like those of a hawk.

The moment his gaze swept over them, the hall fell completely silent.

"Four people are taking the assessment today?"

His eyes swept over Lu Ming and the other three as he spoke in a dry voice.

An Inner Sect steward disciple hurried forward. "Reporting to Elder Ming, there are indeed four. This is the roster."

"Mhm."

Elder Ming showed no particular expression. He nodded, accepted the roster, and glanced over the information on it. When he saw Lu Ming's name at the end, however, he paused.

"Lu Ming?"

The steward disciple beside him did not understand, and thought there was an error in his work. He hurriedly replied, "Reporting to Elder, it is indeed Lu Ming. He is over there."

Elder Ming looked toward the indicated Lu Ming, then instantly appeared before him and asked, "You are Lu Ming?"

Lu Ming was startled by his speed, but he quickly calmed himself and offered a salute.

"Reporting to Elder, this disciple is Lu Ming."

"The one who only recently joined?" Elder Ming immediately asked again.

Lu Ming nodded.

Then Elder Ming said, "Let me see your true qi."

Lu Ming began to understand. Without hesitation, he sent his true qi surging out of his body.

"Good, excellent! It truly is genuine true qi."

Elder Ming laughed loudly, then turned and pointed at a steward disciple. "You. Go to Elder Gongsun He's residence and have him come here."

"Yes."

The disciple did not dare delay and hurried away.

Elder Ming then pulled Lu Ming aside alone and questioned him.

This scene left everyone in the hall utterly bewildered.

They had no idea who Lu Ming was, to make the usually unsmiling Elder Ming reveal such a manner.

Before long, Gongsun He hurried over. Without another word, he went straight to Lu Ming's side. Once he confirmed that this was indeed that Lu Ming, he could not help laughing aloud as well.

But he quickly reined himself in and quietly said to Elder Ming, "This is not a place to talk."

Elder Ming nodded. "Follow me."

He then led Lu Ming away.

This only made the people in the hall even more confused.

Especially the three Outer Sect disciples waiting for the assessment—they did not know whether they would still be able to take it today.