Breaking the Cauldrons and Sinking the Boats, Waves Wash Away the Dust

As Sun Sheng left, Li Changqing had no intention of staying any longer.

This waterfall was no longer suitable for Li Changqing's cultivation. He needed a more extreme environment to push his physical body and break through his limits.

He needed an environment that could wring out his body's limits from the inside out.

He shouldered the half-ton boulder again and ventured deeper into the nature reserve.

As he moved away from the waterfall, the river channel gradually widened.

The original babbling stream, guided by Earth's gravity, impacted the rocks on the riverbanks with a slight roar as it flowed from high to low.

"Still not enough, too slow."

Li Changqing didn't stop. His chest rose and fell, his thunderous breathing capable of drowning out the roar of the river.

Where he passed, other than his breathing and the river's roar, there was no other sound.

The chirping of insects, the calls of birds.

All had vanished.

In the forest, all the animals restrained their presence. Packs of wolves hunting prey huddled together, brown bears hid beneath the boulders near the riverbank, and clouded leopards curled up on tree trunks.

Only when the sound of breathing gradually faded did the animals dare to move their bodies slightly. When the sounds in their ears completely disappeared, the forest's vitality was restored.

With their actions, they expressed their reverence for life towards the existence that stood at the apex of the food chain in the entire nature reserve.

He charged forward.

Li Changqing ran another 3000 meters, sweat dripping down his cheeks.

This was the distance he had broken through his limits last time, but now...

"Hah!"

Li Changqing's leg muscles exploded, his Qi and Blood gathered in his dantian and erupted forcefully.

He accelerated again.

Facing the river, he charged towards the increasingly loud roar, relentlessly pushing his body.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Striding forward, each landing of his feet left a crater-like trail in the mud on the riverbank.

After 4000 meters.

The boulder on his back began to sway again. Just as he was about to reach his limit, Li Changqing suddenly held his breath and retracted all his Qi and Blood into his dantian.

He was delaying the arrival of his limit!

Just like a spring, the harder it's pressed, the higher it bounces.

At 4300 meters, his muscles began to ache, but he continued to charge forward with his head down.

At 4500 meters, deprived of the nourishment of Qi and Blood, his brain suffered from insufficient blood supply, and illusions began to appear before his eyes.

At this moment, the forest became sparser, accompanied by the roaring sound of water.

"It seems like the Milky Way falling from the ninth heaven."

A cliff over thirty meters high appeared at the end of the river.

The stream had widened into a rushing river over ten meters wide, and under the force of gravity, the water poured down, forming the largest waterfall in the reserve.

It was now midsummer, with abundant rainfall, and the waterfall's flow rate had reached its peak. Even a speed boat couldn't go upstream.

The last 500 meters, charge!

Gazing at the turbulent river before him, a wild look flashed in Li Changqing's eyes.

He strode forward, shouldering the half-ton boulder, and charged towards the river.

His feet stomped on the bank, the immense force shattering his training shoes.

Whoosh—

Li Changqing leaped into the air, exhaling a thick white mist. The mist, like a sword, did not pierce the air before him but instead transformed into a white vortex like a rain cloud, hovering above the river.

[Spirit Turtle Breathing Technique, Proficiency: 40%]

Exhaling like a vortex, exhaling like a whirlpool.

With the advancement of the breathing technique, Li Changqing's Qi and Blood became more sustained, and his endurance far surpassed that of Lower-Rank Martial Artists of the same level.

Boom!

The boulder fell from the sky, smashing heavily into the center of the riverbed.

Li Changqing descended from the sky, landing in the waist-deep river. The turbulent water cleansed his body and mind. Any slight slackening...

He would be thrown into the abyss behind him. Such a height, coupled with the jagged rocks at the bottom of the cliff, meant that a single misstep would leave no chance of survival.

Boom—

The river roared.

Drops of water converged into a river. The impact generated by such terrifying speed almost suffocated Li Changqing.

[Physique +3]

[Vitality Concentration: 9%]

A 5000-meter forest run carrying half a ton of giant rocks allowed him to break through his limits once again.

His old strength had just been exhausted, and as the river washed over him, a new, more powerful strength surged into Li Changqing's body.

Leveraging the physique improvement gained from breaking his limits, Li Changqing steadied himself.

He didn't wait for his body to recover at all, instead directly practicing his fist techniques by the riverbank.

Old Technique, Tai Chi.

Double Peaks Pierce Ears!

Li Changqing stood in a bow stance, his hands drawing arcs as he powerfully struck the sides of the giant rock.

Fine powder fell, but the rock's core remained unharmed.

This was granite, formed by lava cooling on the surface, the hardest rock in nature.

A person's finger bones were far from as hard as a half-ton rock. Even if he had enough power, Li Changqing couldn't unleash it because his fist would shatter from the immense force before it could break the rock.

His first attempt failed.

Li Changqing was not discouraged at all. He rooted his legs, standing in the waist-deep river, and performed his fist techniques again.

Tai Chi Single Whip!

Bang!

He could still only chip off small fragments. With every strike, Li Changqing had to expend a large amount of Qi and Blood to protect his finger bones, leaving much less for the actual striking force.

As his Qi and Blood continued to be depleted, Li Changqing's footing became unstable, and he slipped, immediately retreating backward.

At this moment, his position was less than a meter from a cliff.

To be pushed to the brink of death to find a way to live.

This was Li Changqing's plan.

Burning his bridges, fighting with his back to the river.

Only when facing a life-or-death crisis would a person's potential be fully unleashed.

"This isn't right."

Li Changqing realized that with every punch he threw, before it even connected with the giant rock, the collision with the river water consumed a significant amount of his force.

How could this work?

The experience of his run through the mountains came to mind.

Tai Chi overcomes the strong with the soft; I am using the Flowing Water True Meaning to perform my fist techniques, so why would the river become my obstacle?

Li Changqing raised his arms and began to grapple with the swift river once more.

"Move, Block, Strike!"

His waist drove his arms. This time, he employed the Flowing Water True Meaning, and as expected, the resistance from the current was greatly reduced.

Bang!

The rock vibrated violently.

[Tai Chi Soft Strength, Proficiency: 39%]

Through the Flowing Water True Meaning, Li Changqing not only increased the power of his fist techniques but also his proficiency.

Effective!

He stepped forward with his left foot, his Qi and Blood flowing with his punch.

"Flick Body Strike!"

His right palm retracted to his ribs. Until the very moment he threw the punch, his muscles remained relaxed. Only in the second before impact did a burst of strength spread through his meridians, and with the contraction of his muscles, he powerfully slammed into the giant rock.

Like flowing water, without predictable patterns, without fixed forms, he mobilized his body's strength to the greatest extent possible.

Tai Chi Seven Hammers – this was a technique Li Changqing had developed by combining various Tai Chi combat techniques found online with his Old Technique Tai Chi.

It also utilized Tai Chi Soft Strength, intended to be used in conjunction with grappling techniques to deliver a heavy blow before disrupting an opponent's center of gravity.

As Li Changqing continued to perform his fist techniques, the Flowing Water True Meaning became more integrated, and the proficiency of Tai Chi Soft Strength rapidly increased.

"Seven Star Hammer!"

For his final punch, Li Changqing adopted the Seven Star Stance. The swift river could no longer be his obstacle.

From needing to resist the current with every punch before, the river now completely became Li Changqing's advantage.

Boom!

A fine crack appeared on the surface of the giant rock.

[Tai Chi Soft Strength, Proficiency: 50%]

With the Flowing Water True Meaning fully integrated, Li Changqing no longer needed to fight against the river.

The flowing water was no longer an obstacle, but an aid.

His fist collided with the giant boulder, and the recoil pushed Li Changqing back slightly.

A sheer cliff, less than two meters behind him.

Just then.

Boom—

A smooth pebble, carried by the current, struck the boulder that was shaking from Li Changqing's punch.

With a crack.

Losing its balance, the stone slid across the mossy riverbed.

It charged directly at Li Changqing, its approach carrying the threat of death.

Dodge?

At that close range, there was no time for him to evade.

Behind him lay a ten-thousand-foot abyss; falling meant being smashed to pieces.

A death trap!

Li Changqing faced the giant boulder, and to everyone's surprise, he slowly closed his eyes.

Waiting to die? Of course not!

The image of the Overlord, looking down on the world, appeared in his mind.

At that moment, the rushing boulder touched his palm.

There wasn't enough time for him to meticulously sketch the image.

Boom—

The immense force propelled Li Changqing backward. His toes dug into the riverbed, but he still couldn't stop his backward momentum.

Three seconds later, he was less than a meter from the cliff.

It was too late.

At the most critical moment, Li Changqing's mind became exceptionally clear.

In this instant, he resolutely skipped the previous complex steps.

He recalled the image!

There was no faded scroll, no rough ink lines.

In the face of life and death, Li Changqing's will broke free.

He had finally escaped the limitations of merely imitating.

The crucial element of the Artistic Conception was the Overlord.

Not lifting the cauldron, nor the painted scroll.

That paper was merely a vessel, ready to be discarded at any moment, nothing more.

Eight seconds later.

Li Changqing's heels touched the cliff's edge.

In his mind, the invincible Overlord leaped forth from a non-existent scroll.

[Artistic Conception (Overlord Lifts Cauldron): 2%]

The Overlord's will descended, an aura of invincibility that instantly tore through fragile physiological limits.

What did it matter if his Qi and Blood were depleted?

A lone Overlord, on a single steed, could charge through a hundred thousand Han soldiers!

"Lift!"

Li Changqing forcefully lifted the boulder, weighing over half a ton, above his head.

The rushing water?

It couldn't even shake his ankles!

"Hah!"

His powerful arms propelled him, Li Changqing's muscles bulged, and he actually tossed the giant boulder high into the air.

His depleted Qi and Blood, along with the Artistic Conception, tore through the barriers.

Li Changqing had once again broken through his limits.

[Physique +3]

[Vitality Concentration: 15%]

Two-star Martial Artist!

A powerful surge of Qi and Blood rose from within, merging with the turbulent river, an external and internal resonance.

Li Changqing's physique was being cleansed.

Like waves washing away dust, a hundred refinements forged steel.

His fragile bones, nurtured by Qi and Blood, began to gleam with a jade-like luster.

In the swift river, where even speedboats couldn't fight the current, a whirlpool centered on Li Changqing appeared.

This was a manifestation of his internal strength penetrating his body.

Tai Chi Soft Strength was nearing completion!

Rumble—

The giant stone fell back to the riverbed.

Li Changqing slowly stretched his limbs, the cracking sounds like popping beans, crisp and clear.

His tendons and bones sang in unison!

He took a deep breath, the Flowing Water True Meaning enveloping his mind.

The turbulent river was not an obstacle; he forcefully borrowed the powerful currents generated by the whirlpool.

Once again, he stepped in a seven-star pattern, his right fist clenched, a strong force surging like rolling waves.

"Tai Chi Seven-Star Hammer!"

Bang!

The force passed through, spreading across the giant stone like a spiderweb of cracks.

Li Changqing's fist was smooth, and even his skin was unharmed.

With a single punch, Li Changqing blasted a football-sized hole in the half-ton stone, which crumbled into debris.

Fist shattering stone, tendons and bones singing.

Several days later.

He had finally broken through to the realm of a Two-Star Martial Artist!